Annie Cresta is one with the waves (lifeisastorm) wrote in valarlogs, @ 2015-12-21 17:39:00 |
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Entry tags: | !complete, annie cresta, finnick odair |
Who: Annie and Finnick
What: Annie is escaping loud neighbours
When: Late November
Where: Finnick’s place
Warnings: Low
Status: Log | Complete
Annie had been trying to relax but there was drunken singing and it was getting to be too much. Not wanting to bother Johanna or Peeta (especially since she didn’t want to accidentally interrupt him should Caroline be over), Annie had sent a text to Finnick to see if she could just hide at his place for the night. It wasn’t like she took up much space and her nerves were on edge ever since she’d gotten the message from Sherlock. And Finnick had a calming effect on her, had it even before he’d started dreaming.
So she did feel a bit awkward about the entire situation since it wasn’t like this was Peeta and it had been a normal thing. But he’d offered before, she was just taking him up on it.
With a small beg for things she’d need, Annie made her way to the address she was given, paying the taxi driver before going to the door and knocking.
There was something about Annie that Finnick found calming. No matter what was going on, talking to Annie always made him feel good. Sure, they’d only known each other for a little while, but he’d felt it almost immediately upon meeting her so of course he wanted to be there for her when she needed it and that was one reason he’d told her that if she ever needed to, she could come by his place.
When she’d texted him, he’d just finished eating dinner and had told her to come on over and gave her his address. His address was actually a grassy area not too far from his business, so he didn’t have to go far. Despite the fact that his home had wheels, his car was parked nearby the renovated school bus, which he’d been living in for the last couple of years. As far as Finnick was concerned, he didn’t need much room to live and the bus was just the right size and had been designed to his liking.
Hearing the knock at the door, Finnick headed towards the front of the bus where there used to be the usual folding style school bus door, but now had a regular door behind a screen door. Opening the first door, he smiled upon seeing Annie, “Hey. Come on in.” He moved aside to allow her inside, “Did you find the place alright?”
While a small part of her still felt awkward, most of that feeling seemed to go away when Finnick answered the door and smiled at her. Then again, it made sense, it was just the way it was and she had realised before that it wasn’t just the pull from the Dreams, which was a relief. And also terrifying on a completely different level. “Hi… Thank you again.” Because she would always be a bit concerned she was interrupting or being a bother. Those she went to it wasn’t as prominent but she still worried because she didn’t want to become a bother or burden to those she cared about. Not here.
Looking around as she stepped inside, the brunette had to nod in approval at the renovation. “Yeah, I did…. I have to say, I did not know what to expect when you told me you lived in a renovated school bus, but it suits you.”
The idea itself seemed interesting but it was still not something one would normally consider. To actually see it? It was nice.
Finnick smirked as he closed the door behind her, “Yeah, a lot of people don’t really know what to expect. A lot of people think that since I have my own business I should be living in a bigger place, but honestly, this place is good enough for me. I’ve got everything I need.” Finnick didn’t have a ton of stuff, so he didn’t really need a lot of room for just himself. Someday he’d probably need to move into an apartment, but for now, he was young and was happy with his home. “And I’ve gotta say, not having any close neighbors is a plus.”
“That’s the important thing, that it has what you need.” Really she had just never seen a renovated school bus before and didn’t know exactly how that would work. It was hard to picture in theory but now that she saw it? She could definitely tell that it suited Finnick. Smiling some, she nodded. “Yes. No close neighbours is probably nice.”
It wasn’t that Annie was anti-social. She was selective and given her current neighbour situation? She could definitely appreciate the idea that it would be nice to not deal with that on a nightly basis.
“Do you want something to drink? I’ve got beer and soda. Or juice, or water.” Finnick said, moving towards the kitchen area of the bus. His bedroom was at the far end of the bus and the bathroom at the other end near the door then there were two sitting areas, one near the kitchen and one in a loft area above his bed.
Following after Finnick, Annie found herself distracted by a cat. Blinking, she knelt down to give it attention before remembering the question about a drink. Looking up, she contemplated the question, “Juice please?” Yes her attention was a bit diverted by the cat who had decided to make her it’s new friend, which she was more than happy to comply with. Cats were soothing.
Straightening up, Annie quickly made her way to the kitchen, though ended up being followed by her new friend.
Finnick laughed as his cat began following Annie around, “That’s Winston. He seems to like you,” He got out a glass and poured Annie a glass of juice, “So, we can sit down here, or up in the loft.” He gestured to the small staircase on the side of his bedroom area which led up to where his TV and a futon were located.
“Well, he’s very sweet.” At least, that was the feeling Annie got from him. If this was normal behaviour for Winston or not, that she didn’t know. Whatever though, she now had a furry friend. Debating the two options of where they could sit, Annie shrugged. “The loft?” Because it would be easy to curl up. While sitting in regular chairs was easy and what not, being able to curl up into places like couches or lofts? Just comfortable.
“He’s always been like that. He was actually my mom’s cat,” Still holding the glass of juice, Finnick started towards the loft steps, making sure that Annie was following, “She got him a year or two before I decided to move out here. When I was moving my stuff, he kept running out of the house and in here and I didn’t even realize he was in here when I left.” Once up in the loft, Finnick placed that glass down on a small end table and took a seat on a bean bag chair, giving Annie the whole futon to herself, if she wanted it, “I got halfway across the country before I realized it.”
Following after Finnick up to the loft, Annie just smiled as he explained how Winston came to be here. “Well clearly he would have missed you too much if he hadn’t followed after you.” She could understand that. Not that she could put that into words. So instead she was content to sit on the futon, pulling her legs under her and just being curled up on it as she took a sip of the juice now that they were situated up in the loft.
“I never knew he cared so much, but it would have been a hassle to send him back to my mom, so he stayed with me.” As if on cue, Winston came up the stairs and jumped up onto the futon beside Annie, “When you leave I might have to put him in the bathroom to keep him from following you.” Finnick smirked as he watched the cat make himself comfortable in Annie’s lap.
Annie didn’t mind that Winston had decided to make himself comfortable on her lap. In fact, it was rather calming for her. Or added to it since she tended to calm down around Finnick in general. So instead she just went back to petting the cat who seemed content where he was. “That might be a good idea. I don’t know how the building would appreciate me showing up with a cat.”
“Do they have a no pets rule?” Finnick asked, leaning back in his bean bag as he watched Annie and Winston. That was another reason he liked his tiny house; there were no rules unless he decided on them himself.
“Sadly.” And it was. Annie was pretty sure that having a pet would help her on the days that became too much, when she needed something to focus on but couldn’t handle being around people. She made due, she always found a way to, but she would still prefer having the option of a pet to take care of. But it was what it was and now that she knew Finnick had Winston? Well, she probably would be over more often if he’d have her. “So. How have you been since we last talked?”
“Well, you’re welcome to come and see Winston whenever you’d like.” Finnick may not have known Annie long, but he wasn’t against giving her a key if she wanted to come see Winston when he wasn’t home. There was just something about her that told him he could trust her and it didn’t hurt that she was cute too. “I’ve been good. Dreamt about winning the games. You didn’t tell me that I was the youngest winner.” He couldn’t help smiling a little. At fourteen, he’d been the youngest winner, which was quite the accomplishment. Atleast he thought so.
“That’s good to know.” Smiling, she went back to giving attention to Winston, who seemed to be perfectly content where he was. Then he was talking about where he was in the dreams. Okay, that was at least good to know where he was. “I didn’t know if you’d want spoilers or not.” Which was true. Annie’s rule of thumb with Peeta and Johanna had been let them dictate if they wanted to know ahead of time or not, though that tended to be because of how painful it was. Nor would she know how to explain to Finnick the things that were to come for him.
Some of which she didn’t want to think about. Even sitting with him sometimes she felt the pain of knowing in the dreams he had died. “But you do remain the youngest victor.” She wasn’t surprised really that it would be seen as an accomplishment. They all had been told that winning the Games was an accomplishment and would bring great honour to their District and families. It was one of the reasons why she’d been fine with the strategy put forth in her own games. She was supposed to die but it was to help her partner who had been seen as the one who had a better shot at winning. The results would have been the same and she still would have contributed.
Not that things had worked out that way. No. They had gone horribly, horribly wrong.
“I guess being a Career paid off. All that trident training.” Finnick smiled as he continued watching Annie with Winston, “Tridents aren’t the most practical weapon though.” Most everyone else in the arena had used axes or knives or something along those lines, but Finnick was the only one with a trident.
“No, they’re not practical, but everyone has a specialty and usually it’s the unexpected that end up surviving. Maybe because of that.” Because they were underestimated. Because people trained more against more practical or expected weapons. It was hard to know. Then again, Annie survived because she was able to swim. That was it. She had trained like the rest of them, but she’d never actually… Not that it mattered in the end.
“Well, I’m glad that my unorthodox weapon came in handy.” Finnick smirked. He was looking forward to seeing what else was going to happen in his dreams whether it was good or bad, “Some people have talked about getting items from their dreams. Do you think I might get my trident? Not that I’d have any use for it here, but it’d be kind of cool to display it somewhere.” Not that he had an overabundance of space for doing such things of course, but he was sure he could find a place for it if it showed up.
Annie tilted her head to the side at the question before shrugging. “It wouldn’t surprise me if you did.” Because the Dreams liked to give them reminders of the hell they went through, the death of children. She hadn’t killed anyone so instead she got random items, like a wedding dress. And the charm bracelet from Finnick which was now just a staple in her wardrobe. “It’s hard to tell, there isn’t exactly rhyme or reason behind it. Things just...show up randomly.”
“Well, if I get it, you’ll be the first one I tell.” Finnick grinned as Winston stood, stretched then turned to find another spot on Annie’s lap, “I don’t think he’s going to let you leave any time soon.” Not that Finnick minded having Annie around a little longer.
Nodding, Annie was momentarily distracted as Winston stood and then decided to resettle on her lap. Not that she minded, far from it. Instead she just smiled some and scratched the cat behind his ears as it seemed that was what he was fond of. “I guess it’s a good thing I like the both of you then.”