LEIA WAS FINALLY EIGHTEEN YEARS OLD. That meant that she was officially a designer for the HUnger Games, not just an apprentice. That meant that she was able to move out of her parent's house and get her own apartment. That meant that she could do whatever and go wherever she wanted without being interrogated. She felt free.

Amethyst insisted that they go out for the special occasion, and they got dressed up to go for dinner and drinks. The older woman had been ordering them shots and flirting with every woman with a heartbeat, but Leia stood back and watched in amusement.

The Calore girl laughed at something her friend said before turning to lean against the bar and observe the other patrons in the restaurant. She loved people watching because Capitol citizens were always so ridiculous. Her face when she saw a woman cackling as she sat across from a man, a man very familiar to Leia.

Finnick.

He was right there, sitting less than twenty feet away from her, talking to some woman she did not know. He didn't tell her that he was coming, and he didn't find her while he was there. Would she have known if she had not seen him there? Would he have told her? Was this the first time he's been there, or had he been visiting that entire time?

As if he could feel her staring at him, his head snapped up, and his eyes met hers. He froze for a second, his charming smile dropping. His fork hit the ground with a clang, which seemed to snap him out of his trance. He looked back at the woman, resuming conversation, but he could feel the eyes of the blonde girl across the room.

"Hey, I'm gonna go get some fresh air for a second. I'll be right back," Leia informed Amethyst, and the woman nodded, too immersed in her flirty glances at a woman on the other side of the bar to even really care. She downed the rest of her drink before grabbing her purse and walking out the door.

Finnick was not unaware of her exit, and his eyes discreetly followed her on her way out. After a few moments, he stood up and told his date, "If you'll excuse me, I need to go to the men's room." The woman barely acknowledged him leaving and turned around to speak to the people behind her.

Leia was walking quickly down the sidewalk, not sure where she was going, but she knew that she could not just go back into that restaurant. All of a sudden, a hand wrapped around her arm and yanked her into an alley. She was about to scream, but a familiar scent hit her. She knew who it was before he pressed his finger to her lips, and she looked into his pleading eyes.

"Leia, please let me explain," he whispered, glancing back onto the sidewalk to make sure that no one saw them. If word got back to Snow that he had ditched his date to go after her, he didn't even want to imagine what would happen.

"No, Finnick, you don't need to explain anything to me," she sighed, shaking her head. She looked down as he held her shoulders, not wanting to show him how completely embarrassed she was for thinking that she was special. "We never agreed on anything. You don't owe me anything."

His face fell because that was the opposite of what he wanted. He wanted to have to explain to her. He wanted her to care. He tilted his head down and tried to get her to look at him. "Don't say that. That wasn't what it looked like."

"You're allowed to date other women. I'm sorry, I was just surprised. I thought that you would tell me if you were in the Capitol. I'm okay now," she assured him. She really did not want to discuss this and have him apologize just because she had been stupid. She tried to walk away, but he grabbed her wrist and pulled her back so that she collided with his chest.

"This isn't the first time I've been in the Capitol without telling you," he admitted, taking a gamble and hoping that that would get her intrigued. It succeeded, and she stopped trying to walk away. He grabbed her chin and lifted her head up so that she finally looked him in the eye. "So, please just let me explain."

She slowly nodded. "Go ahead."

"Not here. It's too open. Is there somewhere we can meet?" he asked. His eyes were pleading for her to just give him a chance. How could she say no to that face? He had to have a good reason. It was Finnick. He had spent months writing to her. He wouldn't have done that if she didn't mean something to him, right?

She took a pen out of her purse, rolled up his sleeve, and wrote her new address on his forearm. She rolled the sleeve back so that his date would not notice and pointed at him with the pen. "Tomorrow night, midnight."

"I'll be there. Thank you."

《✵》

LEIA WAS SKETCHING AN EYESHADOW LOOK WHEN THE KNOCK CAME. She headed over and opened the door, a little shocked when she saw a hooded figure standing on her porch, but her nerves were eased when she saw the shadow of his perfect lips turn into a grin at the sight of her. He clearly was not supposed to be there because he was in disguise.

"Can we sit?" he asked, and she nodded, gesturing to her couch. She sat next to him but turned to face him as she waited for him to start talking. "I was back in District 4 after winning the Games for about three months, and I came home one day. And Snow was sitting there in the middle of my kitchen, drinking tea. And he told me that many men and women in the Capitol have expressed how attractive they found me and how they were willing to pay in order to... have me."

As he was speaking, her stomach dropped, and her entire body filled with dread. "Finnick—"

"He told me that if I refused, he would... take care of people I love. He threatened Mags and my mother. He threatened you," he informed her, and that somehow made her feel worse. She hated the idea that she somehow contributed to his pain.

She took a deep breath, and her eyes were filled with sadness. "Oh, Finnick."

"So, I accepted, and ever since, once a month or so, I come to the Capitol. And whoever pays the money can do whatever they want to me, and I can't do anything about it," he continued to explain, and she hated herself for getting upset back at the restaurant when she didn't even know what was happening. How could she not know what was happening?

Over the course of their conversation, she had gotten closer to him, but she did not want to touch him or move too close without his permission. It made her sick in the stomach to think that this was happening right after he had won the Games. "You were just a boy."

"That doesn't seem to stop a lot of people," he sighed, and he frowned when he saw the tears welling in her eyes. He did not mean to make her cry, and she did not want to cry because she was not the one that needed comforting. "Please don't cry. It's okay. It's worth it to keep you safe."

"I didn't know. How did I not know?" she muttered, her voice breaking. She was trying her hardest not to cry as he put his arm around her and slid her closer to his chest so that she was leaning against him. She felt awful for not seeing the signs or at least noticing something. He was just so good at seeming happy with his charming personality and flirty jokes.

"I didn't want you to," he responded because he knew that it would hurt her almost as much as it hurt him. She cared so much, and she felt things deeply. It was one of the things that he loved about her. "It didn't matter, and even telling you this could be putting you in danger."

She looked up at him, making sure that he was looking her in the eye so that he knew she was serious when she told him, "I don't care about that. Are you okay?"

"I wasn't, but I am now that I'm here with you," he answered, and it was true. Her presence made everything else fade away. His hand rubbed her shoulder while her legs curled up so that she was lying on his chest. He leaned back against the couch so that they would both be more comfortable, and he ran his fingers through her hair until she fell asleep.

Then, he carried her into her room and placed her in her bed, making sure to slip the covers over her. As he was about to leave, her voice stopped him. "Finnick?" He turned back so fast that his neck almost snapped, raising his eyebrows at her as she stared up at him. "Can you stay?"

He nodded before slipping his shoes off and climbing into the bed next to her. He put his arm around her, and she put her head on his chest. They fit together like two puzzle pieces, and it was not long before they were both asleep.