The Life of A Victor || Finnick Odair

CHAPTER 50

➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳➳

"My name is Melo Ogilvy. I'm twenty-five years old. I was adopted after my biological parents tried to abandon me in the orphanage when I was three. I've been a tribute, a survivor, and a mentor of the Hunger Games. My little sister and my best friend volunteered to go back to them six weeks ago. Finnick was rescued and brought to Thirteen, where we live with most of my family and Johanna. Dove was taken by the Capitol. She's being tortured every minute that passes. . ." Melo mumbled, looking around Special Defence as Beetee entered with Katniss and Gale.

"Finally, and here I thought I would have to wait all day." He commented mockingly as Katniss greeted him.

Beetee completely ignored the boy's presence as he continued to explain the wheelchair to the rest. "I can walk a little now. It's just that I tire so quickly. It's easier for me to get around this way. How's Finnick doing?"

"He's . . . he's having concentration problems," Katniss replied unsurely.

"Wow. That's a good way to sugarcoat the fact he had an absolute mental breakdown." Melo commented, a grin plastered on his face as he approached the group. "You don't need to use euphemisms here, Katniss. All victors know perfectly well what Finnick is going through. Isn't that right, Beetee?"

"Right. If you knew what Finnick's been through the last few years, you'd know how remarkable it is he's still with us at all." Beetee added with a sad smile.

"Oh, yeah. Who hasn't thought of committing suicide at least once after going through that, huh?" Melo said, surprising both Katniss and Gale. "Sorry about that. It's my coping mechanism. I promise I'm not such a douche-bag normally." Melo said, watching as Beetee told something to Katniss, who nodded as she followed him to see various arrows.

When they got to the armoury, Beetee gave Melo a trident, while Gale and Katniss received their bows. Having a trident in his hands, knowing full well what it would be used for, felt strange after so long. Melo tossed it from one hand to another, got a dummy and tried it out, throwing it and retrieving it with the button on his wrist, which got it back immediately as if it had a magnet.

"Finnick needs this," Melo muttered. When he saw Katniss going back to the recording room after trying her bow, he called for her to wait. He gave the trident back to Beetee and ran to her side, accompanying her until her prep team, where they took Katniss away to change her into the Mockingjay outfit.

"Hey, Melo," Finnick said, approaching his friend with Dove's photo still secured in his hand. "Johanna told me. You gave me Dove's songbook and the photo, didn't you? Thanks."

"Don't even mention it. I know what you're going through. Only, I had something to distract myself. Here you had nothing to care about, except Dove and us. And let's be fair, you weren't exactly with the best company. Muscida and Johanna got angry at everyone as a coping mechanism, Mags ignoring everything and Rhett just giving up, right? Anyway, did you read some songs already?" Melo asked, seeing as commands were being delivered to the background assistants via intercom from the glassed-in booth.

"I did. The first one was Alder's song. Although, the word heart was crossed out and replaced with eyes." Finnick said, a chuckle escaping his lips as he remembered something. "To think that comforted me . . . I must be going insane."

"Jealous over a dead boy? Wouldn't have expected that from you, Finnick." He commented, a playful grin on his face.

"Coping mechanism?" Finnick questioned, getting a nod in reply. "That's OK. I might copy you, though. This place . . . It's just too serious."

"I think that does it," Plutarch announced, getting everyone in front of the television as they watched the last few minutes of taping. The woman in there was not the same girl the boys knew. That was not Katniss Everdeen, nor was she the Mockingjay.