The Life of A Victor || Finnick Odair

CHAPTER 7

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The day of the new Victor's arrival had come. It was early in the morning, and the whole family was waiting for the train to arrive. The Victors stood in line in front of everyone. It was a hot, sunny day, and all the Ogilvy family were dressed in green and blue. They fidgeted nervously, while Dove kept staring at where the train should appear at any moment.

As the tiny figure of the train started approaching, everyone in the station began cheering with excitement. The train stopped in the District Four's station; the door opening revealed the new Victor alongside his mentors.

They stepped down from the platform, greeting everyone with a smile. Some people whistled at Melo. Others just shouted his name with enthusiasm or clapped. As he approached his family, his gaze became softer. 

He was relieved to see them again. He greeted them with a quick hug. They would hold the true greetings at home, where he had been itching to go back since his name was called the Reaping.

The family and the Victors made their way through the sea of people to Victor's Village. The redhead felt empty, thinking about how her house would be without her brother's freshly cooked bread every morning.

"We're here. My new house," Melo announced to the group, which now consisted of his mother and sisters. They stood in front of a house identical to their own. The other Victors had decided to go to their own residences, leaving the family some time alone. 

"Ugh. Yeah, I don't like this house. Let's go back home," Melo said. "Wait, what?" Dove asked incredulously. He has his own house now, and he wants to live with us? Did he hit his head in the Arena or something?

"No, I'm not crazy, so stop looking at me like that, Dove. I want to go home, that's all... Don't tell me. You transformed my room into a study!" the red-haired girl chuckled at him. "I wanted to transform it into a play area, but Angel didn't let me," she answered cockily. 

"Oh, you learned how to joke! Congrats! Now I'm for sure going back. I need to see for myself what you've done to my poor room," he replied mockingly. "I painted it bright yellow," Angel joined in with a playful smirk.

They hadn't touched Melo's room. In fact, they hadn't found the courage to enter since the Reaping. So it was just as he had left it. Looking around, the boy saw his things, not a millimetre away from where he remembered to have left them.

"Dinner will be in two hours. You can sit down and relax, sleep a bit," her mother told him. "No, I won't be able to sleep. So, how about you tell me what happened here while I was gone?" Everyone sat on the boy's bed. They talked about how it had felt to them. How they had admitted part of their insecurities. 

"You're telling me Angel admitted that, and I wasn't present? Well, that's great!" Melo said sarcastically. His family had gone through so much pain because of him. He hadn't been there for them, and now he could only listen to their explanations of what had happened. It felt foreign. As if they were different, or maybe he was the one who was different.

"How about you? How do you feel after all that?" Angel got the strength to ask. Everyone knew it was a sensitive topic, but they wanted to know the boy was alright. Their mother had explained to the girls that their brother would change after his games. It was a bizarre thought for them. But, of course, starving, killing, and waiting for death for weeks would change anyone. However, that didn't mean they could understand it.

"Well, it took me a while to let everything that happened in the Arena sink in. I might have woken up Finnick and Muscida like four or five times since I got out. I have these... These nightmares. Where I'm still in the Arena, I'm with Joseph and his district partner. Then, the boy from Two appears and kills them both in front of me... I-I can't move, and..." The more he continued explaining, the more he cried.