Pairing: Katniss/Peeta

Rated: PG-13, T

NOTE: I always wondered what the conversation between Peeta and Gale during Mockingjay was about—while Katniss was asleep. This is just what I imagined happened and it's told in Gale's point of view.

DISCRETION: The amazing Suzanne Collins owns everything, I am merely a thankful fan!

I look at Katniss in her serene sleep and it's hard for me to pinpoint when I thought of her as something more than a friend. There were moments before she entered the Games where I look back and know I was attracted to her, but I'm not quite sure when it happened exactly.

"You still asleep?" asked a voice from the shadows.

I turn and find Peeta sitting against the wall; arms leaned against his knees as he stares at me. He's still tied to his post, secured tightly from hurting not only us, but himself.

"No," I answer him, sitting up and the sudden quench of thirst makes its way to me. "You want some water?" I might as well get him some while I'm at it. A part of me feels for the guy. The torture he must have gone through, I couldn't bare to imagine. I had never been friends with the baker's son, but from what I had heard, he had always been a charismatic and caring person. Looking at him now, he was anything but either characteristic. Even in the dark, I can tell he looks more than beat. He's more than ready to pass out at any moment; however, like the rest of us, he restrains as much as possible.

He nods his head. "Please." I can see his eyes flicker towards Katniss before he stares at the empty space between me and her. He begins to fiddle with his handcuffs.

I make my way towards the water as I get to thinking. I've noticed he doesn't sleep while Katniss does. And I've noticed the same with her. She stays awake when she sees him sleeping. There will be some moments where they take little power naps that are less than five minutes long. Sleep wins over, but only for a little while. They each notice their mistake and keep fighting to stay awake. Had to be because of the Games. On television, I saw the partnership they created; each looking after the other. They both carried strengths and weaknesses, but together, they balanced each other. A part of me—the guy side, I would suppose—was jealous of it and hated it. However, the other side of me, the one that loved Katniss as a friend, was thankful towards him.

I might hate the closeness the baker's son had with my hunting partner, but I knew it was necessary for Katniss' survival—not only for the Games, but for life as well. He looked after her during the Games and intentionally put his life at risk again when he entered the Quell. Physically, he wasn't a good survivalist, but I had to give it to him, he had a way with words. And if it hadn't been for his words and manipulation, Katniss might not have survived either Game. At times, I caught myself liking the guy.

I was grateful to him for it. And I wanted to say it aloud, but had no idea how to do so. Especially when he looked ready to kill any one of us at any given time.

I made my way back to Peeta, water in hand. Once I got to him, I couldn't help but feel for the guy who's all tied up. I un-cuffed him and handed him the water.

He takes it and sips. I can see the brutal red marks across his wrists.

A noise erupted in the silent darkness, snapping my head away from Peeta.

I turned towards the whimper and saw it was coming from Katniss. I had seen her this way before. Seeing her struggle with her nightmares was awful. She would whimper, scream, call out someone's name—which was usually Rue's. They usually wouldn't last longer than a couple of minutes; but those two minutes felt like an eternity.

Her noises became a little stronger by now, calling out Rue's name. She trashed back and forth. "No. No."

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Peeta become still as stone and sensed him staring right at her. Katniss was now giving small screams.

I hurried over to her.

"Katniss?" I was too afraid to touch her, fearing it would worsen her state.

Her screams only became stronger.

"Katniss?" Still, I did not touch her.

She began to grunt. Her face looked to be in even more agony.

"Rub her lower back," came the voice from the dark.

I turned, seeing Peeta sitting still as stone and staring intently at Katniss.

"What?" I asked.

I only saw his lips move. "Rub her lower back," he repeated.

I frowned, a bit confused. "Why?"

He didn't answer.

I turned back to Katniss, who was now scratching the floor beneath her. I think a bit of blood could be seen and I immediately did as I was told. My hand went immediately to Katniss' lower back and began to rub.

She stopped scratching the floor, but still remained grunting loudly.

"Make small circles on her back. It calms the grunts." Peeta's voice no longer was monotone as it usually was. Something else could be heard in his voice; something which had been there before he went to the Quell. I had only spoken to him several times, but had picked up on it immediately when I heard him talking to Katniss.

Katniss' shrieking noise pulled me out of my thoughts once again. I began to make circles on her back, hoping Peeta's instruction worked.

I felt her calm a little. I wondered how many times Peeta had been there for Katniss during the nightmares. He knew how to calm her. Had it only been during the Games and Quell? Had they spent other nights together—away from the cameras?

Katniss had sworn it had all been for TV, or at least had implied it to everyone close to her. But I never fully bought it. There was something in her eyes every time I saw her around Peeta.

Suddenly, Katniss wasn't so calm anymore. She trashed, swatting my arm away. Rue's name escaped her lips, followed by Finnick's.

Before I could do anything, before I could even think about doing anything, Peeta was there. Pushing past me.

He leaned over her and whispered something I couldn't hear.

I saw his hand reach towards her face, his fingers lightly on her cheek. She let out a gasp, her hand grabbing his.

"Shh. It's ok." I could barely hear Peeta's low voice.

Katniss let out a sob in her sleep. She let out another name. "'Eeta."

"I'm here," he promised her.

I saw her hand pull his towards her lips; she was still dreaming, I knew. "Stay with me," she pleaded like she had several hours ago.

And just as it had hours ago, my stomach sunk to the ground at hearing her say that. There was no denying it. She needed him. In ways no one, not even her, would ever know.

Peeta leaned closer to her and whispered something I couldn't hear.

He placed his other hand on her lower back and began to rub circles there. Not a second had passed and she was still.

I saw him stroke her hair a bit and watched him watch her. He had that same look in his eyes I would see in Katniss. My eyes followed his. She looked serene once again.

How did he do that?

I tried to shake off the anger that I was now all of a sudden feeling.

Peeta came to his feet and without a word, walked over to his post.

I followed and placed him back in the handcuffs. Something about his face told me he didn't want to talk about what had just occurred. Maybe Katniss' nightmares were worse than I thought. He knew something he wasn't willing to share. Did she have these nightmares often? Did he witness them first hand? How could he? Maybe it was because he has the same sort of nightmares, I told myself. They had gone through two Games together. It made sense.

I turned back to Katniss and saw her stir a bit.

"Thanks for the water," he told me.

Yup, he didn't want to talk about it. I would go along. I turned back to him. "No problem. I wake up ten times a night anyway."

"To make sure Katniss is still here?" he asks. There's no tone of jealousy in his voice; more like an understanding.

"Something like that," I say but leave out 'same as you,' which I know is true.

I want to ask him about her nightmares, but I know I can't. Katniss is pretty private and wouldn't want anyone knowing about them. Peeta knew of them because of the time they spent together while they were on tour. Maybe during her naps on a sofa while she was fully clothed, he heard her and comforted her. At least that's what I tell myself. Somehow I don't believe Peeta and Katniss spent any nights together outside of the Games. It just doesn't sound like Katniss to sleep with a boy.

Peeta speaks again. "That was funny, what Tigris said. About no one knowing what to do with her."

I crack a smile as I turn to look at her. "Well, we never have."

We share a laugh and for some reason it doesn't seem strange that we both know her so well. She's important to the both of us, so why should I hate him?

"She loves you, you know," he tells me. It takes me aback. "She as good as told me after they whipped you."

The memory of that whip made my back sting. I felt a bit of satisfaction though at remembering how good of a nurse Katniss had been, caring for me. However, I remember something else. "Don't believe it. The way she kissed you in the Quarter Quell…well, she never kissed me like that." It was true. While we had shared a handful of kisses, it didn't compare to the amount of times she and Peeta kissed. And I know some of those kisses weren't for the Games.

"It was just part of the show," he says.

I roll my eyes. I hope he's only being modest and isn't so stupid. "No, you won her over. Gave up everything for her." And he had. He wasn't stupid; he was smart. "Maybe that's the only way to convince her you love her."

Peeta had played this game so well. Not only with the Hunger Games, but with Katniss. He strategized well. Every decision he made, made her love him more. He was courageous, intelligent, brave, and ethical. Who could fight against that and win?

I say what's been on my mind for the last two years, "I should have volunteered to take your place in the first Games. Protected her then." Shown her that I too loved her as much as Peeta did. But, I hadn't. And that caused me to lose.

"You couldn't," he tells me. "She'd never have forgiven you. You had to take care of her family. They matter more to her than her life."

It surprises me he knows her so well. In only two years he had gotten to know her this well? Had the Games really brought them that close together?

"Well, it won't be an issue much longer. I think it's unlikely all three of us will be alive at the end of the war." I know to some I might sound like a pessimist, but I believe in being realistic. "And if we are, I guess it's Katniss' problem. Who to choose." A long-awaiting yawn leaves me. "We should get some sleep."

"Yeah," he answers back and I hear him trying to get comfortable. "I wonder how she'll make up her mind."

As if you don't know, I want to tell him. Again, I think he's just being modest. "Oh, that I do know. Katniss will pick whoever she thinks she can't survive without."

And I have a great guess as to who that is.

But that doesn't mean I won't fight.

NOTE: When it comes to characters, Collins for sure knows how to bring them to life and be believable. To me, Katniss is the most realistic character ever written in the 21st century. She isn't very likable and that makes her human. I was truly frustrated with her throughout 'Mockingjay' because I saw her as being so self-absorbed and my heart went out to Peeta and I rooted for him. However, after allowing the book to sink in and discussing about it to my friends, I can't imagine any other way Katniss could have been written. The decisions she made throughout 'Mockingjay' were very understandable and believable. (I was just being a self-righteous asshole.) Her decision in the end to choose Peeta WAS the right one. Throughout 'Mockingjay' I saw the dark sides of Katniss, Peeta, and Gale and Katniss was right during end, Gale and her are TOO much alike. There needs to be some sort of balance and equality, and I believe Peeta is that other half for Katniss.

I can go on and on about how perfect Peeta is for Katniss, but then it would simply turn into an essay! :D

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