➳❦

HE DIDN'T KNOW WHAT TO THINK. Was Arya alive, was she dead? There was no way of knowing, no way of finding out. At least that's what they told Finnick. He didnt know if he believed them though. He wouldn't be surprised if they were just waiting on information they had. Allowing the other victors to be tortured. Finnick didn't really trust the leader of Thirteen, no matter how much she tried to convince him that she was helping.

Finnick didn't care about anything else honestly. He just needed to know that she was okay. And if that meant he had to go to the capitol himself, then so be it. He wasn't going to allow Snow to get away with this. Finnick saw what he did to her, he heard her broken voice. And it killed him to know that she was being hurt. She was being hurt because he left her behind.

She told him that she didn't want to go back to the capitol and that's exactly what happened. No matter how much Katniss tried to convince him, how much he tried to convince himself, he was always going to blame himself. He was always going to feel guilty. Especially since it seemed like she was never going to be the same person. Sure, she had her faults but Finnick never wanted her to change. Now it seemed she was forever changed.

"Finnick!" He hears someone call his name. Finnick turns his head toward the door, his eyebrows furrowed. He sees Katniss rushing in, her eyes wide. Did something happen? Why was she so frantic? "Finnick, they found someone." Katniss tells him, stopping in front of the man.

Finnick felt his heart stop. He didn't even know if he had heard her right. What did she mean by they had found someone? He could barely even think, his mind was clouded as he could barely concentrate. His mind just went immediately to Arya. "What?" He asks. He didn't even know what to say.

Katniss on the other hand was nervous and practically feeling her heart jump out of her chest. She didn't know what to believe. Haymitch was the one to told her so she knew it was true. But how did one of them get out? Was it some sort of trap? "One of the victors, they say they're bringing them here." She says, looking down at Finnick.

Finnick felt his eyes widen more. "They rescued the victors?" He asks. Finnick didn't think Coin would actually go through with it because it seemed she just felt annoyed by them constantly asking her to. Katniss seemed defeated at his question, shaking her head.

"No, but one escaped." She corrects him. Finnick was even more skeptical now. He knew it wasn't easy to get around the Capitol undetected. Especially when you had guards searching for you.

"Who?"

"I-i don't know. Haymitch is trying to find out." Katniss admits, running a hand through her hair. That was the one thing she didn't know. She didn't even know if it was a man or woman.

"Is it Arya, Peeta?" Finnick was asking questions that she couldn't answer. She knew why, he was worried. She was too. But she couldn't do anything to assure him it was Arya, because she truly wasn't sure.

"They should be here any minute, come on." Katniss tells him, grabbing his arm and pulling him up from the bed. Finnick follows her out of the room, although he almost hesitated. He didn't know whether or not he was ready to face reality. To see her. If it was even her.

What if it wasnt? What if he was just getting his hopes up for nothing? Or even worse, what if she actually hated him? Because he did leave her. She already hated him before, maybe it would just be amplified. Finnick truly didn't know what the Capitol did to her. And that scared him enough as it was.

"Haymitch!" Katniss shouts as she sees the man by the door. Haymitch turns, seeing her and Finnick rushing over to him. "Haymitch, do you know who it is?" She asks him, trying to see whether or not the victor was being brought in.

"I do." Haymitch says, glancing around as a sigh leaves his lips.

"Who?" Finnick asks him impatiently. Haymitch looks away from them, not knowing what to say. He heard from the guards who grabbed her that she wasn't in the best mental space. Haymitch wasn't sure what that meant exactly, but he knew it wouldn't be a good thing.

"Look, you guys might want to prepare yourselves." Haymitch tells them, not wanting to worry them but they needed to prepare for the worst. Being tortured in the Capitol wasn't for the light hearted.

"Why, is something wrong?" Katniss questions, furrowing her eyebrows. She didn't understand if something happened or if he was just being overly cautious.

"Haymitch." Finnick didn't need him to sugarcoat it, he just wanted the truth. But before Haymitch could answer, they heard someone shouting. They both look past him, trying to see who it was.

Matthew had also made his way there, and finnick could tell he was nervous. He would try and say something, but he knew Matthew didn't exactly like him right now. So, it was best to just keep his mouth shut.

"No, no!" Katniss felt her stomach twist. It wasn't Peeta. She wasn't upset that it was Arya, she could clearly tell the woman's voice. But she wanted Peeta. Katniss was scared for the man, scared that he was going to be killed. "Get off of me!" Arya was wheeled in on a gurney. The guards were trying to tie her down but she was pushing and pulling against them. "Don't touch me!" Her voice was loud and full of fear.

Finnick was very conflicted when his eyes landed on the woman. He was happy, glad she was safe. Of course he would be. He's been praying that she would get out of the Capitol alive. But another part of him was racked with pain. Especially seeing the state of the woman as she screamed at the people trying to contain her. He didn't understand why they thought putting their hands on her was the best choice.

"Arya..." His voice was barely audible. Katniss glanced over to him, knowing he must be overwhelmed. Her hand goes to his arm. Finnick meets her eyes and she tried to give him a smile but he could see that she was hurt. Because it was just Arya. There was no one else with her.

"Hey, hey. It's okay. Let her go." Haymitch demands as he gestures for them to let her go. He could see the guards were reluctant but did what they were told. Matthew instantly made his way over to the woman, a relieved smile on his face.

"Arya, you're alive." He immediately engulfed the girl in a hug. But he didnt miss the way she tensed, the way she didnt instantly hug him back like she always did. Matthew pulled away slightly,  his hand going to her cheek. "You're here." Arya flinched away from his touch, her breathing getting heavy.

"G-get away." She demands, pushing him off of her. Matthew was confused, staring at her. And it was like he was looking at a stranger. She didn't have the same glint in her eye as she always did.

"Arya, it's me." Matthew tells her, wondering if she was just a bit out of it from escaping the Capitol. But the way she looked at him like she was scared of him, that broke his heart.

"I don't know you." She denies. Katniss glances toward the floor. She couldn't look at this. Especially the way Matthew seemed utterly defeated by her words.

"Yeah, you do. It's Matthew." He tried to convince her, tried to get her to realize who he was. But that just caused her to move away from him further, she was practically wincing away.

"No, no." Arya shakes her head repeatedly, bringing her hands up to her head. Haymitch sees this, looking toward Matthew. He knew that he was just trying to help but it was just making the situation worse right now.

"Okay, everyone give her a little space." Haymitch says, placing his hand on Matthew's shoulder. Matthew backs up, turning away from everyone else. But everyone could see that he was obviously upset.

"Should we cuff her? She seems unstable." One of the guards asks, trying to keep their voice hushed to Haymitch but katniss scoffs as she glares over at him.

"Hey, don't even suggest that." She snaps toward him.

"She just needs to get her bearings." Haymitch says, wanting everyone to stop provoking the situation. "Arya." He says, getting her attention as she carefully looks over to him. "You remember me? Haymitch? From before the arena." He asks her and she furrows her eyebrows, glancing over him for a second.

It was a moment before she nodded her head. "You're safe now. You're in Thirteen." He tells her. Even though Thirteen was run by Coin who wasn't exactly the best person to be around. It was better than the Capitol. At least for now. But Arya didn't want to be here, she didn't feel safe here, especially seeing how everyone was just staring at her.

"Not safe." She states, her hands clutching the sheets that were on the gurney.

"You are safe." Haymitch states, wanting her to understand. But he didnt even know if she realized where she was, who was around her. "You're out of the Capitol." He assures her. He knew they had found her pretty close to the capitol perimeter, she most likely thought they were Peacekeepers when she was first caught.

"Nowheres safe." Arya denies, her voice in a whisper. Haymitch could see how wound up she was. And the guards getting closer to her was just going to make things worse. One of them touched her arm causing her to thrash in his direction. "Get off!" She shouts, pushing him back and getting off of the gurney. "Don't touch me!" She screams as the guard quickly retreats.

"Woah, woah! Easy." Haymitch tries to intervene, getting between them and holding his hands up in defense. But Arya was only getting worse, thinking everyone was trying to hurt her.

"Talk to her." Katniss says, looking over at Finnick. He meets her gaze and she could tell he was confused. "Finnick, she might calm down knowing you're here." She points out. Arya wanted to know finnick was alive, so Katniss knew Finnick had to speak up.

Finnick didn't think she would calm down just from her seeing him. But it was worth a chance. "Arya." Finnick says softly, his eyes stuck on her. Arya stopped what she was doing, her body going tense as she heard his voice. But she didn't know if she was hallucinating. Maybe she was. Maybe this whole thing was fake. Had she even escaped?

"Arya, it's finnick." He tries again, taking a step toward her. Arya finally turned her head to the sound of the voice. Her eyes widen as she sees him. He was there. He was in front of her. But then again, Nova had been as well. And Nova was dead. "You know me, right?" Finnick asks her, wondering if they had messed with her memories of him as well.

But with the way her eyes softened, the way she stopped fighting, it was clear they hadn't. Even though their memories weren't exactly nice and happy, they still had their moments. And if she hated him, she wasn't showing it.

"Finnick?" She asks him, starting to walk over to him. Arya noticed the way the guards were wary but Haymitch signaled them to leave her. Finnick nodded his head as he just watched her stop in front of him. She looked so frail underneath his eyes, like she'd break just with a slight touch.

"Yeah." Finnick had to clear his throat, feeling tears brim up in his eyes. He hated seeing her so vulnerable because she was one of those people who rarely allowed you to see her emotions.

Arya lifts her hand, slowly moving it over to him. She rests it on his arm and Finnick could see the relief that filled her. Arya could often tell the difference between real and fake by touching them. She felt him, she felt his touch against her. He wasn't an hallucination. Finnick was actually alive. He wasn't dead because of her.

Suddenly, Arya had her arms wrapped around him. Finnick was taken aback, but that was because he wasn't used to such physical gestures from her. "You're alive. You're really alive." Her voice cracked as she held onto him tightly. Finnick let out a breath that he was holding in, his arms wrapping around her. One of his hands went to her head, closing his eyes as he tried to slow his heart beat.

This was what he waited for. To be able to see her alive. To feel her touch and know that he wasn't just imagining it. She was here. She was okay. Well, relatively. Finnick felt bad for Matthew, having to watch as Arya found comfort in someone else. But he wasn't going to lie and say that he didn't want it. Finnick never hated Arya. They just got off to a rocky start. But this was a chance to fix it all. This was a chance to mend their broken relationship together and maybe become friends.

Or maybe everyone had been right within the arena. Maybe there was something more he hoped for.

➳❦

THE GROUP COLLECTIVELY LOOK AT ARYA THROUGH THE GLASS, watching as the woman glanced around, clearly still wary about everything. Plutarch sighs as he crosses his arms against his chest. "Well, she's attacked two nurses who's tried to give her a needle." He points out, shaking his head. Katniss just stared at him. It would help if the nurses actually tried to talk to her first.

"Because they're coming on too strong. She clearly doesn't trust anyone." Katniss retorts, rolling her eyes a bit. Arya wasn't just going to let some stranger stick a needle in her. Not after everything she's gone through.

"She trusts me." Finnick pipes up causing everyone to look at him. "Let me do it." He suggests. It was the best case scenario since there really wasn't anyone else she was really close to in Thirteen. Not when she didn't remember Matthew.

"You don't know how." Plutarch points out before anyone else can say anything. Finnick didn't seem to like that answer. It wasn't hard to stick someone with a needle. Katniss sighs as she clenches her jaw a bit.

"I can get Prim. She's being trained." Katniss suggests. At least Prim knew how to be gentle, kind, she knew how to approach a patient. Haymitch looked wary, tilting his head.

"It's your choice. We don't know how she'll react." He tells her. If Arya lashed out at Prim, it could get her hurt. Katniss knew that but she also knew that Prim would immediately help Arya when asked.

"She won't attack a kid." Finnick denies, hating how they were speaking of her like she was a different person. She would never harm a kid.

"We don't know what she'll do anymore." Plutarch says, looking at both Katniss and Finnick who didnt want to think she was unreliable. "She was in the Capitol, god knows what they did to her." He states, glancing back toward Arya.

"Why didn't she remember Matthew?" Katniss asks, pointing out the elephant in the room. Beetee sighs as he looks at them.

"They call it hijacking. Most of the time it's to change memories, but it seems they just erased him completely." He explains to them. Katniss understood that part but why would they do that. Wouldn't it be better to just kill him?

"But why?"

"To take away the one thing she had left." Haymitch suggests. It was what Snow did best, take away the people you loved. Arya didn't have many left, so of course Snow picked for Matthew to be the target.

"Can we talk to her?" Finnick asks him. He wanted to be with her. She seemed to relax more when he was around just from the two minutes they saw each other. They had to practically drag her away from him. But haymitch was hesitant.

"I think it's best to take it slow, not ask her too much." He admits. If they asked her the wrong question or pushed too much, they could set her off. Or risk the chance of her not trusting them anymore. Katniss didnt agree with him though.

"She could know things about where they keep the tributes, about Peeta. Johanna." Katniss points out. If she really escaped, she'd know how to get inside. Where they would have to go to save the others.

"Just give her some time." Haymitch tells her. They were no help to the others if they completely botched it with Arya. But Katniss was letting down.

"She mentioned his name in the interview. She trusts him. She'll tell us what she needs to in order to save him." Katniss believed that if Arya knew how much danger Peeta was in, she wouldn't waste a second. She'd help them.

"For all we know, they let her go. We need to be cautious." Haymitch tells her. They couldn't just expect this small victory to be without consequences. Without knowing how she escaped, they couldn't rule out the possibility of her being let go.

But Finnick had enough of the arguing, deciding to just go in himself. "Finnick-" Plutarch tries to warn him but he was ignored. Finnick made his way into the room, causing Aryas head to snap in the direction of the door opening.

"Hey, it's just me." He assures her, being a bit more slow with the way he closed the door. She seemed to settle a bit when she realized it was him. Finnick walks over to her, seeing the needle still on the tray. "You know you need this. It's everything you've been deprived of in the Capitol." Finnick tells her, gesturing toward it.

Arya just had her arms wrapped around her body. "They keep grabbing me." She tells him. Finnick could barely even look at her without being met with sad, lost puppy dog eyes. She was just scared. And she was clearly having a hard time trying to distinguish between people trying to help her, versus hurt her.

"You don't want someone touching you?" Finnick asks her and she shakes her head after a moment. He understood that. He could only imagine what she suffered through. "Because you don't know them." He was mainly saying it to himself. Finnick was hard at trusting too, he knew it was ten times worse for her now.

His eyes go back to the needle and he slowly reaches over toward it. Picking it up, he looks back at her. "Can I?" Finnick questions, gesturing to her arm. Arya was certain that Finnick wouldn't hurt her. But she could feel the eyes watching her through the glass. It made her a bit overwhelmed. Nonetheless, she allows him to grab her arm.

As Finnick tries to find a vein, Arya had her eyes solely on him. She knew what he must be thinking. What they were all thinking. The way they stared at her as she lashed out at them. Like she was some sort of monster. But she was the one brought into an unknown environment with people she barely knew. Her brain just made her believe that everyone was out to harm her. It was difficult to distinguish who wasn't.

"I'm not crazy." Her voice pipes up. Finnick glances up from what he was doing. He felt his heart falter as he heard her sniffle. He didn't think she was crazy, far from it actually. She went through something traumatic and was trying to heal.

"I know." Finnick responds, finally pushing the needle into her skin. Arya winces, her eyes closing for a moment. "You just want to be careful." He says, withdrawing the needle and placing it back on the tray. "Do you want to... talk about what happened?" He asks hesitantly, not knowing if he was overstepping boundaries.

And with the way she immediately tensed, he knew he was. "Nothing happened." Arya denies, glancing away from him. Her hand goes to her head as she rocks back and forth slightly. "Nothing, nothing." She whispers, shaking her head. Finnick bites the inside of his cheek as he carefully places his hand on her knee.

"Okay." He knew that was a touchy subject so he wasn't expecting any response from it. "Can you tell me how you escaped? Did Peeta help you?" Finnick asks. If they knew how she escaped, that could help them with their plan to rescue the others.

But the look of confusion that formed on her face wasn't exactly helpful. "No Peeta. No, no." She mumbles to herself, continuing to shake her head. Finnick began to get confused, staring at her and trying to get her to look back at him.

"No? Peeta didnt help you?" Finnick didn't know if they saw each other often. Maybe they just didn't see each other when she had planned to escape.

"Peeta isn't there." This got everyone confused. They knew for a fact that Peeta was there. She also did. Why else would she have asked for him?

"He's not in the Capitol?" Finnick questions, tilting his head, his tone gentle. Arya nods her head, fiddling with her fingers. Finnick lets out a small sigh. "Arya, we saw interviews. We know Snow has him." There wasn't a doubt in anyone's mind that Peeta was in the Capitol, but it seemed there was some in Aryas.

Katniss shakes her head, looking toward the others. "I don't understand. She knew who he was in her interview." She points out. How could she have forgotten him in such little time?

"Maybe Snow erased him too." Haymitch suggested. If Snow saw how close they were getting, it could've been his way to make them drift apart. So they had nobody in there with them.

"Or it could be her brain trying to protect her. Sometimes we force ourselves to forget things we don't want to remember." Beetee adds as he looks at them. It was possible that she was simply pushing part of her brain into hiding. It's what a lot of people did when they went through something traumatic.

But this just caused the worry in Katniss to escalate. "You think they killed him?" She asks him, not wanting to even think about it.

"I'm not saying that." Beetee denies, sighing a bit as he looks back at Finnick and Arya."But we're not getting any answers from her until she allows herself to remember." He admits.

Katniss watched them for a second, seeing the way Arya looked at Finnick. There was no doubt that she trusted him. "Why are her memories of Finnick not changed? She hugged him. He could barely touch her in the arena without a fear of his arm getting broken." She explains, wondering what the difference between Finnick and Matthew was.

"Maybe Snow didn't think to mess with those memories because he didn't think she cared." Haymitch suggests as he shrugs his shoulders.

"You think she cares for Finnick?" Katniss asks him, furrowing her eyebrows. Although she had teased it in the arena and she did believe there was some sort of connection, it seemed like it was more evident than ever with the way Haymitch caught it as well. The man lets out a sigh as he looks toward the brunette.

"I think he's our best way of getting through to her."

➳❦

MATTHEW WAS SAT IN HIS ROOM, his eyes dead on the floor. He felt completely hopeless. Like there was nothing he could do. Because there wasnt. They made her forget about him. They toyed with her memories and that made him furious. What else had they changed? What kind of fear had they sewed in her mind? He thought when they got her back, that he could help her get through it. But he couldn't even do that.

Instead, she ran straight to Finnick. The man who she claimed she hated. The man who had never had one good moment with her. Matthew didn't even get to see the same girl he raised. He was met with cold eyes because she didn't know who he was. And he seemed to be the only one. Sure, she was hostile toward the others but she still knew them. Matthew was all alone.

"Maybe you should try talking to her again." Matthew sighs, closing his eyes for a moment. He knew it was Katniss who was talking to him but he really didn't see how she could help. No one could help. Not unless they could bring Aryas memories back.

"It's no use. She doesn't know who I am." He mumbles back to her as he sat up a little bit. Katniss knew that was what he would say. But she didn't expect him to just give up. He had to at least try.

"You can help her remember." Katniss suggests. Maybe if he tried talking to her about memories, he could possibly jog her memory.

"Because it's that easy?" Matthew snaps.  He hadn't meant to be harsh, this whole thing was just really frustrating.

"Matthew, this is what Snow wants. To hurt you. Don't give into it." Katniss points out. If he just gave up, that was allowing Snow to win. And none of them wanted that.

"How would you feel if Peeta came back and didn't know who you were? All the time you spent together was just erased. All the.." Matthew stops himself, looking back at the ground. Katniss frowns as he could see the man becoming upset. "I promised her father I would protect them, all of them. And now... now she's the last one and she doesn't even--"

"This isn't your fault." Katniss denies, cutting him off. She wasn't going to let him blame himself for things he had no control over. "Arya will remember, just give her some time." She assures the man. Matthew felt his jaw clench, his fingers fiddling with each other.

"She went into that arena completely despising him." Katniss was a bit confused at the change of topic. At first she had no idea what he was talking about, before it hit her. The only hateful relationship that went into the games which was personal, was between Arya and Finnick.

"Who? Finnick?" She asks him curiously. Matthew nods his head slowly as he rubs his hands along his leg.

"I don't understand what changed." Matthew admits. He understood she was in the Capitol, but that didn't explain her change of behaviour toward finnick. Was it solely because she felt guilty thinking he was dead? Or was it something else?

"Maybe nothing did." Katniss admits with a shrug. Matthew glances over at her curiously. She lets out a small sigh as she thinks back to the quarter quell. Finnick and Arya surely pissed each other off a bit, but neither really did much to hurt the other. And if they did, it wasn't lethal.

"In that arena... we could all see, well all of us except for Finnick and Arya, that something was going on." Katniss thought they were both blind. Granted, they were. Neither would admit anything, no matter what went on. "They do care about each other. It's just neither of them realized it then." She admits. She did think something changed.

It possibly could have been the fact they realized the other could be dead that they finally admitted it to themselves. Or maybe they hadnt yet. They could just be bouncing on the line of friendship for the moment. "Finnick has been beating himself up ever since she got taken." Katniss saw how much it weighed on the man and she understood why Matthew thought it was fake, but she could tell it was very very real.

Finnick was scared for her. He never wanted her dead. He would have killed her in the arena if that was the case.
"I know you said he didn't care, but I think he does." Katniss tells Matthew, meeting his eyes again. Matthew didn't want to agree but he couldn't deny it. Even if it was just one sided on Finnick's side.  "I think he cares more than he likes to admit." She finishes. Katniss hadn't known Finnick long but they had grown closer. She could see his true feelings.

"Did the doctors examine her?" Matthew asks her, changing the subject. He just wanted to know how she was. What exactly they did to her. If there was any lasting injuries. But Katniss shook her head.

"They can't get close to her." She admits, leaning her elbows on her knees. Arya won't allow any doctor to look at her, even the women. She just completely shut down.

"She's beating them up?" Matthew jokes lightly, although he knew that was a very real possibility. Katniss laughs gently, nodding her head.

"Precisely." Katniss retorts, smiling over at him. Matthew takes a deep breath as he looks down.

"She won't just let anyone examine her." He would suggest someone but he really didn't know anyone with the credentials who he trusted either. It wasn't like they had anyone from their district here.

"Then what do you suggest we do?" She asks, wondering how they would examine her if she wouldn't let anyone touch her.

"Sedate her." Matthew suggests, shrugging his shoulders.  Katniss widens her eyes at what he said.

"That will just make her trust us less." Katniss points out. It wouldn't really gain much rapport if they drugged her. She would wake up and probably try to escape from them. Matthew sighs, standing up.

"Not if Finnick asks." And with that, he walked out of the room. Katniss frowns as she watches after him. She felt awful that no one could really do anything to comfort him. He had his sister, the family he had left. But he still lost Arya. And they weren't sure if he would ever get her back.

➳❦

ARYA FOLLOWED HAYMITCH INTO THE ROOM, one which consisted of a table and chair, a bed and a small mirror. She glances around, not liking how small it was. It was a palace compared to her cell but the colour just reminded her of it. Not that she expected five star treatment. "This is where you'll sleep. You're free to join the others if you want, food is in the cafeteria." Haymitch explains to her.

She just walks over to the bed, placing her hand on it and pushing down. Haymitch just watches as she continues to examine the room, skeptical. "Is she settling in okay?" Finnick asks from beside him. Haymitch didn't even know how to answer that question, because no one had any idea what was going on inside her head.

He just sighs as he looks over at Finnick.
"

Coin will want to see her." Haymitch points out. He wanted to delay it as much as possible though since Coin could definitely make things worse.

"Well, she can wait." Finnick says harshly, shaking his head. Coin would probably want to take credit for Arya's escape even though she did it all on her own. Finnick walks into the room, hitting the door causing Arya to jump out of her skin.

He hated that he had spooked her, but it seemed pretty easy to startle her. One sound and she probably thinks its someone coming to hurt her. So, Finnick holds his hands up. "Just me." He assures her, a soft smile on his lips. Arya takes a careful seat on the bed, hitting her feet against the floor.

"Not the best but it's better than nothing." Finnick admits as he puts his hands in his pockets, sitting beside her. Arya nods, her eyes once again scanning the walls. "Did you want to get some food?" He asks, wondering if they had given her anything. But Arya didn't want to eat. Finnick might be here, and he may trust who they're with but she didn't.

"I'm not hungry." Arya denies, picking at her nails. But this just worried Finnick. She had to be starving. They most likely weren't feeding her well in the Capitol and she had burned a lot of energy.

"You must've been running for a while." Finnick points out. Arya only shrugs her shoulders. She could push away her hunger, she did it plenty enough. "Do you wanna talk?" He asks her curiously. She remained quiet. "Do you wanna do anything?" He didn't know what to say, what to do with her. Finnick didn't want her to think he was just taking pity on her, but he also wanted to help her.

"No." She responds, a bit sharply as she chews on the inside of her cheek. Finnick let's out a long breath, nodding his head.

"Okay." He says, standing up and rubbing the back of his neck. "I'll leave you alone." Finnick didn't want to push. He knew Haymitch said to take it easy, let her come to you. But it was hard to just sit back and do nothing.

Finnick heads toward the door, when her voice stops him. "Finnick?" She asks, causing him to look back at her. Finnick stared at her, waiting for her to continue. Arya felt her heart race, her palms become sweaty as she could barely look him in the eye. "Is this real?" Arya questions. Finnick could only continue to look at her, not understanding.

"Sorry?" He takes a step closer to her, waiting for her to explain. Arya takes a shaky breath, rubbing her hands along her legs.

"I-i think it's real. It felt real but..." She trails off and Finnick felt the pain flood his chest. Arya sniffles as she wraps her arms back around her body. "I can't tell."
Arya admits. She knew she had hugged him, she knew he was right in front of her. But she needed him to say it.

"It's real." Finnick responds. He hadn't even thought about that. The way they probably kept her drugged up, she mightve thought she imagined the whole thing. "Would I ever lie to you?" He asks her, raising an eyebrow at the woman who just stares back at him.

"Yes." She responds, clearly indicating to their relationship before the arena. Finnick can't help but crack a smile, shaking his head. He bends down in front of her, taking her hand in his and squeezing it tightly.

"Trust me. It's real." Finnick assures her, gazing up at the woman. Arya felt safe underneath his eyes, as his fingers caressed hers. "If you ever need go know if Somethings real, just ask me." He tells her. Wanting her to feel like she could ask him anything, that he would always be there for her.

Arya was hesitant, not even wanting to ask because she felt like it would just hurt her if he said yes. "Did you blame yourself?" Arya asks him. She blamed herself, thinking he was dead all this time. She didn't want him to hurt also thinking the same way. Because she told him to leave. It was on her.

"Let's not talk about that right now." Finnick responds, bringing his finger up to her chin and brushing along it for a moment. "Get some rest, okay?" He tells her, standing back up. He offers a small smile before heading toward the door.

But Arya didn't know how much she would even sleep. She hadnt slept since she left the Capitol, and even then it had been a few days. Arya was terrified to close her eyes, especially with the nightmares that have started. And she would definitely not be able to close her eyes in a new environment.

The door shuts making her stomach twist. She quickly gets up, rushing over to it and grabbing the handle. Pulling on the door, it easily slides open. Arya let out the breath she was holding in as she shuts the door back over. Her head tilts back for a moment, her hand running over her face before turning and heading back over to the bed.

➳❦

Authors note;

Another chapter because I wanted to write one lol