Reputation (Finnick Odair)

Chapter 14

     "What did he want?" Mars' voice echoes across the living room as he walks over and throws himself onto the couch Plutarch had been sitting on minutes earlier. Atlas sits in quietly for a few moments, the shock of Plutarch's offer still floating through her mind. Atlas was more surprised she had accepted it.

      Atlas tears her gaze away from the elevator Plutarch had just walked into and looks to Mars, raising her wrist as she does, "Wanted to give me this."

      Mars' eyes lock on the gold bangle around Atlas' wrist, confusion crossing his face, "Why? What is it?"

      "Token," Atlas pauses, furrowing her eyebrows, "from Haymitch."

      Mars hums, the noise reverberating throughout the silence of the room. His eyes flick from Atlas' face to the bangle a couple of times before they drift to the large window on the edge of the room.

     Atlas breaks the silence, her tone flat, "Some kind of parting gift, I guess. From an old friend."

     Mars nods, his gaze still locked on the window that looks down onto the streets of the Capitol. A tense silence envelopes the two. Although it might just have felt tense for Atlas. Who knows what Mars was feeling? Guilt creeps through her already icy-cold veins. Atlas didn't want to keep secrets from Mars but she also knew that it was for the greater good of the whole of Panem. Or at least, the greater good districts.

      "That's nice of him," Mars mutters, glancing back to Atlas for a second before turning back around.

     "Yeah."

     The room is silent once again so Atlas takes that as her cue to leave the room. She stands from her seat quietly and steps away from it, the bangle hitting against her wrist as she lowers her arm.

    "I'm going back to my room, didn't sleep well. Wake me up for dinner," Atlas says, moving quickly to exit the room. Her gaze lingers on Mars who just hums, nodding his head distantly.

     Atlas sighs walking out of the room and making her way down the hall. The cold grey of the walls that surround Atlas make goosebumps rise up on her skin and a chill runs down her spine.  Something about the hall made her feel like an animal up for slaughter. Her light footsteps barely echo around the small space. In the silence, Atlas' thoughts drift to Finnick who had no doubt gotten the same proposition from Plutarch. The gold around Atlas' wrist lays heavily and she can't help but rub the skin under it, the cold of the metal lingering as she shifts the bangle. Atlas quickens her pace and slides into her room, wasting no time before throwing herself into her bed and praying that she wouldn't be haunted by nightmares.

     Of course, luck was never on her side and as usual, Atlas woke up with heaving breaths, the sound of a knock barely making its way through the ringing in Atlas' ears. She takes a few breaths to steady herself, her hazy vision focusing and the nightmarish sight of her mother bleeding out finally leaves her mind. She stands up from the bed, rolling out of the sheets that were clinging to the sweat collecting on her arms. As she stands, she wobbles a bit, having to grab onto the nightstand to steady herself. She slowly walks over to the door and opens it, revealing Olympia with a blank look on her face. Olympias' face shifts into a look of concern when Atlas swings the door open roughly.

     "You okay? You look like you've seen some things," Olympia asks, her gaze raking up and down Atlas' exhausted form with a raised eyebrow.

    "You'd be surprised," Atlas mutters, dragging a shaky hand through her messy hair, "Dinner ready?"

     Olympia shakes her head, "I didn't know you were asleep," She pauses before speaking quickly, "I- I need to talk to you. I can come back later though."

     Atlas hums lowly, shifting on her feet, "No, it's good. I wasn't sleeping well anyway."

     Olympia simply nods, rubbing the back of her head with an awkward look on her face.

     "Here, come in," Atlas says, her voice gravelly from sleep.

     Olympia walks in behind Atlas as she moves back into her room, moving to sit in one of the chairs by the window. Olympia follows, sitting in the one across from her. They sit in tense silence for a few moments before Atlas speaks.

     "You talk to Haymitch today?" Atlas asks, a clear hinting tone behind her words. She picks at the nail polish on her nails, the white colour having chipped in the past few days.

     A brief look of shock passes over Olympia's face before it settles into one of awareness, "Yeah, was it lonely here all by yourself?"

     "Wasn't exactly alone," Atlas says, finally locking eyes with Olympia, an understanding passing through the two and the company they had kept that day.

     Atlas wasn't sure how much they could say out loud in these rooms. Plutarch had implied that the rooms they stayed in were bugged but Atlas was sure he had some kind of clearance that allowed him to speak freely in the sitting room that morning when he had passed the cuff on to her. Olympia seemed to understand the danger of speaking things into existence in the Capitol. There was always someone listening when Atlas wasn't a tribute, there was bound to be ten more pairs of ears on her now that she was one. 

     A sudden knock breaks the two out of the silence that they were locked into. Both of them turn toward the door. Atlas glances back at Olympia for a split second and then looks back to the door they had walked through minutes earlier.

    "It's open," Atlas calls out and the door slides open to reveal Mars. A tired look is settled on his face. It wasn't an unfamiliar look for him but the look of defeat that accompanied it was.

     "Dinners ready," He says, confusion passing through his face as he sets his eyes on Olympia sitting next to Atlas. His eyes turn back to Atlas with a questioning glance and the girl just smiles.

     "Thanks, Mars."

     He turns away slowly, his gaze passing between the pair as he does. He finally shakes his head and walks away, his heavy steps echoing around the small hallway. Olympia locks eyes with Atlas again, raising an eyebrow and slightly tilting her head in the direction Mars had trotted off in. Atlas shakes her head and a mutual feeling of pain flows through the two. Deep down, they both knew he'd be better off being a part of the plan. Everyone involved would benefit from this. Atlas knew Olympia thought leaving Mars out of this was certain death for him. Breaking the haze of pain, Atlas stands up quickly, walking away from the window and Olympia's face full of guilt. She can hear Olympia's sigh of defeat and the older woman's piercing gaze on her defeated form.

     Of course, Atlas felt guilty about leaving Mars out of the plan that would save her life but she wasn't in charge. She didn't get to choose who was included in the plans. They could go badly so quickly and she knew Plutarch had a reason to not include Mars. Plutarch had painted a picture of a life without the chains that had shackled her since she was sixteen. A life where the feeling of phantom touches didn't haunt her as she lay in bed. A life without the threat of death hanging over her head at all times. Who was she to question the man who would get her out of the clutches of the Capitol? The man who held the power to finally bring peace into Atlas and the other tributes' lives. Besides, Mars would be fine on his own.

Wouldnt he?

A/N 

Later update, sorry <3

- Sunny 🌞