"Kaaatniss, wake u-up." I wake to my darling Peeta's face too close to mine to focus.
"Come on sweetheart, we need to get on the road. "
"No, too early."
"I know but you can sleep in the car."
Peeta has been a geek about this total eclipse for months. Getting me up before dawn to drive to some god-forsaken lake he visited as a kid has been all he can talk about. It seemed ridiculous, we could see a partial eclipse perfectly from our backyard but Peeta insisted we chase something called "Totality". But Peeta has a way of making even the ridiculous fun. So here we are.
I get up; dress in the clothes I laid out last night and stumble into the bathroom. When I emerge, the teeth are brushed, hair is in a braid but that's all I'm doing at 3am. Peeta greets me with a kiss to the nose.
"The car is packed just missing you. Ready?"
"Errm." I moan but another kiss to my nose turns me toward the door. I slip on a pair of flip-flops and tumble over my own feet to the car. Peeta opens the door for me. As I sit in my seat he fastens my seatbelt like he would a child. But then he lowers the back of my seat and produces a pillow from the back seat. He thinks of everything, my Peeta. It doesn't take long for me to nod off again. I wake a few hours later when Peeta pulls off the interstate at a rest area. The place is packed with families and people of all ages. I see Peeta sitting on a bench, talking to an elderly man. He throws his beautiful blonde head back in laughter at something the old man said. I make my way to where they sit. I slip my arm around Peeta's shoulders and kiss his head.
"There she is. You awake now? Katniss, this is Roger. He's heading down for the totality, it will be his first total eclipse too."
"Good morning, Roger. You're into all this too."
He laughs and looks around him. "We all are. It could be a once in a lifetime experience for me though. I might not make the next one in 7 years."
"Next one? In seven years? I thought this was the 'once in a lifetime'. Peeta?
"Well, we need to get going... Nice meeting you Roger, we'll see you at the next one." Peeta shakes the old man's hand.
Roger slaps him on the back and tells him "Good Luck with that one." And with a wink to me he heads back to his family van.
"What?" I say to Peeta who has a big smile across his face.
"Nothing."
We get in the car and Peeta turns on his playlist. The overly dramatic melody of Total Eclipse of the Heart comes over the speakers. I give Peeta a sideways glance and a smile. Walking on Sunshine and Blue Moon follow it.
"Peeta?"
"Yes, Katniss."
"Did you make an eclipse playlist?"
"I did, three hours of moon and sun themed music from multiple decades." He says with smug smile. I love that smile. I love all his smiles. I love that he's made this day special for me even though I've grumbled the whole way.
"How much longer do we have?"
"About another two hours on the highway then we'll get off and it's country roads until we get to the cabin." Peeta's family didn't take many vacations growing up, having a family business doesn't allow much time off but they did go to an uncle's fishing cabin one summer. Peeta loved it there and he's always wanted to go back. And apparently this cabin is on the line of totality.
The hours pass quickly with Peeta's eclectic mix of music or maybe it's just being with him. I've turned sideways in my seat facing him. He's wearing his aviator sunglasses that accentuate his jaw line. His left hand rests on the steering wheel as he watches the road in front of us. His right hand is resting on the console between us. I'm caressing his fingers, tracing each one and holding his hand as we open and close our grasp to feel them move together. I wonder if it's just because he's so good that I'm so happy. Would another girl be as happy with him as I am or would he be as happy with another girl if I never existed in his life? Would I have ever found this with someone else if we never met? Without saying a word my answer comes when he pulls my hand up to kiss it. There could never be anyone else for me. I'm just lucky we met in grade school and never looked back. "I love you." I say. He smiles at the road ahead. When we finally make it to our exit Peeta is surprised by the amount of traffic. Luckily the cars seem to be headed to the other side o f the lake. "I think there's a park over there and it looks like they are having a viewing party. I guess my private lake isn't so private." When we finally make it to the cabin I'm surprised that it's really a rustic cabin, I love it. I don't know why I expected something different. I guess I can't see Mrs. Mellark existing anything less than luxurious surroundings.
"Please tell me there's a bathroom?"
" You mean inside the house?" Peeta says with a smirk and I just hit him on the shoulder. "Yes, there's indoor plumbing, hot and cold water too!" He teases. "Aren't you nature girl Katniss Everdeen? Didn't think it would matter. I almost brought a tent!"
"I am – I just like to know what I'm up against and well, I gotta go."
"Go ahead." He says, "Here's the key, I'll set up out here."
"Set up?"
"It's a surprise!"
When I make my way to the lake, Peeta has set up a table, between two chairs. He's pulling small packages wrapped in paper from a cooler, there's a cutting board and bread.
"Cheese!" He says, "You know because the moon is made out of cheese."
"You're made out of cheese. You sure know how to pound a theme home." He laughs that deep laugh that makes me tingle and hands me a piece of crusty artisan bread smeared in Gruyere cheese. "Mmm. Forget I said anything, continue with the theme." I say sitting in my chair to enjoy my treat. Peeta pulls out two sets of paper eyeglasses.
"Don't look up unless you're wearing these." I take a pair and put them on. I am blinded.
"I can't see anything"
"You're not supposed to - look at the sun." And there it is a distant orange circle with a notch out of the top.
"Oh, wow."
Across the lake we can hear the party going full swing but we enjoy the day together with our bread and cheese and wine "made by the sun" Peeta says. I think he's stretching the theme a bit there. Every so often we look up through our glasses to watch the orange circle get overtaken by the darkness.
"Here it comes." Peeta says and we find ourselves standing side by side as we watch the last sliver of orange disappear. Cheers and whistles come from across the lake. "We can take the glasses off now." Peeta says.
I am staring at the single most amazing sight I've ever seen. The sun is gone, it's become a dark and the temperature has dropped. "It's…" My usually verbose boyfriend is at a loss for words.
"Wonderful" I finish his thought for him. And it is. It is wonderful and mysterious and terrifying at the same time. I know the moon is there but it looks as if a hole has been punched in the atmosphere and we are staring into the universe. I imagine ancient people seeing a sight just like this and how they must feared the sun would never come back. I feel a connection to them. I feel a connection to everyone across the lake too. But mostly I feel a connection to Peeta.
"Peeta?"
"Yes, Katniss."
"Thank you for bringing me here."
"Thank you for coming with me." His fingers reach for mine and we hold tight as we stare at the totality, each of us lost in our own thoughts.
The heavens are aligned above us and suddenly I know my place in the universe. It is standing right here with this man. If this were the end of the world, this is the man I'd like at my side. If the sun never came back, he would be my sunshine. He is all I need.
"Peeta?"
"Yes, Katniss?"
"Will you marry me?" Before he can answer a bright light peaks from behind the moon. Another cheer from the partygoers floats across the lake. I look down and search out Peeta's eyes. They meet as the daylight returns. There are tears in his eyes as he fumbles to pull something out of his pocket.
"I was going to ask you." He says holding up an engagement ring. "I just didn't expect it to be so, so… much. I couldn't stop staring."
"I know, I understand. Peeta?"
"Yes, Katniss."
"Is that a yes?"
"Yes, Katniss, it's a yes." he says as he puts the ring on my finger and takes my face in his hands kissing me until my knees go weak. "Finally! " he yells. He tilts his head back and gives a loud "Whoop!" to the sky. He picks me up and swings me around. I join in his call to the heavens and we laugh.
I wonder if they hear us across the lake.