For a moment, he fears he's offended her or hit a nerve. But then she hugs him, and it's all he can do not to get too misty-eyed. There is no way to describe the camaraderie between Victors... And maybe it's best left undescribed, but he will always be pulled in right away whenever he finds one.
As they pull apart, he gives her a reassuring smile and a squeeze on the shoulder, but he can tell she needs a minute to Not Be Perceived. He politely looks away, at all this gorgeous gorgeous scenery. Still, his hand stays on her shoulder, tethering them to each other and, ideally, the present.
It's uncanny, then, how everything she says could have literally come out of his own mouth, even though it's all so specific. It's like her timeline ran parallel to his own, with similar major events.
"I get it, trust me." At least, he gets it more than any other person in Caldera would. "The freedom is overwhelming at first. For me, I couldn't... Trust it. It all seemed fake, or like it would be taken away at any moment. But if you trust me, then I'll tell you that you can trust this place, at least for the most part. The Visitors, they're all wonderful people who are worth your time and effort. And the freedom, once you come to accept it, being able to do what you want, say what you want, be who you want..."
He pauses, trying to find words for what he means.
"I feel like a better version of myself. There glimpses of who I could have been if I was never reaped. Those glimpses seem to come more and more often, now. It's... It's not too late, you know?"
Okay, yes, incredibly sappy, but he means every word with perhaps an unnerving amount of sincerity, especially coming from Finnick Odair, someone who was once hardly ever sincere.
no subject
As they pull apart, he gives her a reassuring smile and a squeeze on the shoulder, but he can tell she needs a minute to Not Be Perceived. He politely looks away, at all this gorgeous gorgeous scenery. Still, his hand stays on her shoulder, tethering them to each other and, ideally, the present.
It's uncanny, then, how everything she says could have literally come out of his own mouth, even though it's all so specific. It's like her timeline ran parallel to his own, with similar major events.
"I get it, trust me." At least, he gets it more than any other person in Caldera would. "The freedom is overwhelming at first. For me, I couldn't... Trust it. It all seemed fake, or like it would be taken away at any moment. But if you trust me, then I'll tell you that you can trust this place, at least for the most part. The Visitors, they're all wonderful people who are worth your time and effort. And the freedom, once you come to accept it, being able to do what you want, say what you want, be who you want..."
He pauses, trying to find words for what he means.
"I feel like a better version of myself. There glimpses of who I could have been if I was never reaped. Those glimpses seem to come more and more often, now. It's... It's not too late, you know?"
Okay, yes, incredibly sappy, but he means every word with perhaps an unnerving amount of sincerity, especially coming from Finnick Odair, someone who was once hardly ever sincere.