You Asked For This - Finnick Odair

Reef Newport

"This is going to sound crazy but... from the moment I first set eyes on you, I haven't been able to stop thinking about you."
— Leigh Fallon

...

When Reef Newport volunteered for the Hunger Games, he didn't plan on coming back alive. All he cared about was his best friend. His twin sister, not by blood, but by soul.

So, when his brothers came in to say goodbye, he hugged them extra tight. And he told them he loved them so, so much. And, when he looked at Ocean, his older brother by a little over a year, he stared. Reef held back his tears, but they were there.

And Ocean knew. If one of his siblings made it home, it would be Coral.

Reef and Coral would be the ultimate alliance. Both could easily be charismatic and likeable, though it came easier to Reef. He knew that she would do anything she could to keep him alive. And he would do the same for her.

He couldn't tell her about his plan to die. She would fight him on it. But, ever since they were kids, Reef had always been faster. And, if it came down to it, he would kill himself before she even got the chance to blink.

Reef Newport was resigned to his fate. There was no changing his mind.

...

And then he saw her. She was on the screen where they watched the other tributes get reaped. He didn't know her name, having not been paying attention when it was called.

What caught him was the way her district cried after her name was called. How so many of the young children sobbed, boys and girls alike, in anguish at the mere selection of this girl.

He wanted to meet her. He wanted to know her. Yes, she was beautiful physically. But how beautiful must her character be? How beautiful must she be to elicit such a reaction?

He knew it wasn't a good idea to try and start anything right now. But she seemed so incredible. And he was a fourteen-year-old boy. What else was he supposed to do?

...

When he saw her near her chariot, he knew he had to talk to her. Now, Reef Newport could be pretty stupid sometimes. He had no idea that she would think he was trying to mess with her. He just wanted to talk to her.

But, being a fourteen-year-old boy with three brothers and only one sister (who seemed to always know what he meant, even when he said it wrong), he didn't have much experience with girls. And he had never met a girl outside of District 4.

Feeling confident in his pirate getup, he sauntered over to the girl.

"What a place," he said, looking around them. "You come here often?" He wanted to sound casual.

The girl gave him a bizarre look and then proceeded to ignore him. Maybe he should try a more direct approach.

"What's your name? Mine's Reef. I bet you'll never guess what district I'm from." He smiled humorously at her. His name was a sea plant and he was dressed as a pirate. What other district could he possibly be from?

But she continued to ignore him. Maybe try talking about her. Compliment her. Girls like compliments. Cora mentioned once that girls like compliments.

"Let me guess... You're from District 8, right? You see, I can tell because of your outfit. Honestly, it's a real shame that they put someone so beautiful in such a train wreck of an outfit," Reef rambled on.
Her face grew red and he felt heat rush to his. Did he succeed or mess it up?

"Go and flirt with some other girl, I'm busy." The girl said through gritted teeth, glaring at him.

"Yeah, all that standing around and doing nothing must take a lot of focus," he tried pointing out that she was, in fact, not busy.

She ignored him again.

"If I go flirt with other girls, will you talk to me again?" He just wanted her to talk to him. Why wouldn't she?

She rolled her eyes. "Sure."

And so he did. By the end of it, he had flirted with and explained to every girl there that he was trying to get this one girl to like him. He didn't say who, he didn't want to embarrass her or make her a target in the games.

He walked back over to her.

"Now will you talk to me?"

She glared at him. Why did she keep glaring at him?

"Will you at least tell me your name?"

"Will that get you to leave me alone?" She demanded.

"You'll never know until you try it," he smiled. There's no way he could leave this girl alone. He liked her.

She rolled her eyes and let out a groan.
"Mauve. That's my name. Now leave."

He smiled widely. "Mauve," he repeated the name, seeing how it felt rolling off his tongue. "That's beautiful."

Mauve's face flushed, he hoped she was blushing. But then she stormed off and yelled at Cora before continuing to storm off.

...

He played everything off as cool as he could with Cora and Finnick. He wanted to talk to Mauve again. He wasn't sure why, but despite her rudeness, he liked her.

During the chariot ride, he let go of his fears. He flexed his muscles and winked at the crowd. He and Cora seemed to have the same idea when they went to have a fake sword fight. He did it for him and Cora. But, maybe, he thought, Mauve might think it was funny.

If it weren't for his (and potentially Cora's) impending death, it would've been fun. Reef Newport was at peace when he was at play.