In the side view mirror I can see my campus shrinking as we drive away from the chaotic movements of classes dismissing. The low rumble of the old truck vibrates my body but all I can think about is the wonderful boy behind the wheel, Peeta Mellark. His arm drapes across my shoulders as I curl against him on the bench-style seat. He came back for me, even when I had almost given up on him. The feelings of doubt I felt just moments ago in my lab had melted away when I saw his truck. My head hadn't been completely sure it was him, but my heart knew it was that beautiful boy I met on spring break. The music plays on the radio, one country song after another. We drive for quite some time before I think to ask where we are going.
"Where are you taking me, Mr. Shows-up-after-several-days-with-no-warning?" I ask Peeta.
"Wherever you want my darling." He coos. "Sorry it took me so long to find you." Peeta apologizes. That's a good point he's making. It did take him several days come, even after I left my name and phone number at the front desk of the hotel.
"Yeah, what took you so long? I left my name and phone number at the front desk of the hotel for you." I say.
"I didn't even think to ask the front desk clerk." Peeta sighs and smacks himself in the forehead dejectedly.
"So how did you find me then, not having any information on me? All you knew was my name."
"Well, after I dropped you off at the hotel I went for a quick surf out in the ocean. I was just so happy that you were interested in me after too nights I had to burn off some energy. I was bouncing off the walls, Finnick was getting annoyed. So after my surf I went back to the shop and Finn told me you had left. I felt so hurt and rejected all I did was drink and mope for two days. But after my sadness had worn off I got a little ticked at you for leaving without saying goodbye."
"I tried, I ran to the shop and found Finnick, told him to relay the message about the hotel clerk but he must've forgotten." I interrupt defensively.
By this time Peeta has pulled off the main road and into a diner parking lot. "I believe you, and of course Finnick forgot, he has a shit memory when the message doesn't involve him. So anyway, after my drinking and moping was over with I decided to try and find you so I could give you a piece of my mind. I began with what I had, you name. I began looking for you on Facebook. The only Katniss Everdeen on Facebook is a soccer mom out in California, so I knew that couldn't be you. Then I googled and searched online until I found an article from your hometown's newspaper with your name in it. The article was about you winning your county's science fair, I think."
I nod in remembrance, that silly article was printed a year ago. I had done tests on the creek in our county to show the pollution levels had risen over the years due to the coal mining that sustains the majority of our counties families. My research sparked a huge debate in town over whether the drinking water was safe for people to drink. It was a huge debacle that still goes on even today. The newspaper thought it was worthy enough to print about. "I'm still getting flack from people at home about that project. It sparked a huge issue in town and because of it I'm even more of a pariah." I explain.
"Yeah, that one. Okay so do you remember the last few sentences of the article?" Peeta asks me. I shake my head no. "Well, it says you're planning on going to Duke University in the fall to further your studies in science. Luckily I have a buddy who also goes to Duke." Peeta says with a wiggle of his eyebrows and smirk creeping across his face.
"What did you do, Peeta Mellark?" I ask accusingly.
"Well, my buddy is a computer science major and I may have paid him some extra beer money to hack into the school database to find you. You're pretty easy to find at this school, only one Katniss Everdeen. So after that I had him look up Delly's last name because you failed to tell me that information when I briefly met the very drunk Delly at the party." Peeta scolds me teasingly.
"Wait, why did you need Delly's information?" I ask trying to put the pieces together and failing.
"Well, she struck me as the busy body type who would love to help plan the reunion between the star-crossed lovers of Spring Break." Peeta says with a large toothy grin peeling across his face. "And after he got Delly's last name, Cartwright by the way if you didn't know" he chimes with a wink, "I looked her up on Facebook and found a picture of the two of you with Johanna in front of the Duke University sign on what I assumed to be your first day of classes. Anyway, after a few messages back and forth, Delly agreed to assist me with surprising you. She got me your class schedule and the buildings you'd be in with directions on how to get there. She's really glad you finally like a boy by the way. She told me she was concerned you would be a hermit your whole life." I could feel my face flush with embarrassment. "Once I had the plan I drove up here yesterday, crashed on my buddy's futon last night and found you this morning. That is how I, your Prince Charming, found my princess." Peeta declares proudly.
"I hate to break it to you bub, but I'm no princess, if anything I'm more close to a frog in this fairytale. But I am so glad to see you again." I lean in and kiss Peeta lightly, just barely brushing my lips across his. "Okay Peeta, I'm famished, this surprise of yours has left me starving, what do you say about grabbing some burgers and heading back to the dorm to relax?" I ask.
"Sounds like my kind of fairytale." Peeta says as he puts the truck back in gear as we drive off toward the local burger joint down the road.
Going through the drive-thru was definitely an experience with Peeta. After several changed decisions and debating on whether to get the large fries instead of the medium we finally receive our food. I got my usual, Hawaiian Turkey Burger, onion rings, and a root beer float, Peeta got a Triple Cheeseburger with Hot Sauce, the large fries, and a grape soda. We snack on the fries and onion rings on the drive back to my dorm. Once we find a parking spot in the garage we make the trek up the 7 floors to my dorm room. My dorm hall is set up a little different from the others on campus, all the rooms are single-occupant but are connected by a bathroom and a small hallway that leads to another single. So while I have my own room, I share a bathroom with Johanna and her room is on adjoining side. The school calls it Suite-style living, I call it an odd use of space. I have no issue with sharing a room with someone, I shared my room with my little sister Prim for all of my life leading up to college. We open the door to my tiny bedroom and Peeta wastes no time making himself comfortable at my desk. He plops the bag of food down on the table and begins dividing up the burgers. Not knowing where I will sit to eat I just stand awkwardly in my doorway, leaning against the jamb.
"Oh how rude of me" Peeta exclaims, mouth full of cheeseburger. "Please have a seat." He says as he pats his hands on his legs as if saying he wants me to sit on his lap. I give a slight shrug because my only other options are my bed or the floor so his lap is as good of spot as any to eat my grub. I unfold the foil on my burger and begin to chow down. The room is filled with sounds of mouths hurriedly chewing food so that one more moment won't go wasted, not talking to each other. My burger is finished in minutes, I hadn't realized how hungry I actually was before I started eating. Peeta isn't far behind me. We pile our fries and onion rings together and snack on them as I begin informing Peeta all that he missed while he was searching for me. I tell him about the long car ride back from Florida and the fight between Delly and Johanna. I'm still not sure what sparked the quarrel but all I know is that I'm not allowed to speak of it in front of either of them. I leave out the parts about me crying at night missing the few nights I spent with him.
"Wow, sounds like a complete mess," Peeta sighs, "I'm sorry you had to deal with all of that."
"It's not your fault," I tell him, "You had no idea that would happen, neither did I really. But that isn't important right now, what's important is that you're here now." I tell him with a sheepish grin. I'm slightly embarrassed how much I missed him after only knowing him for a few days. I never knew that I would be so invested in him even after just the few days I was on vacation. The bond between us is so strong, I feel like I've known him my entire life. We connect on such deep levels. As our food begins to disappear our conversation grows. I tell him more about my life growing up, losing my dad at a young age, helping raise my sister Prim. He tells me about his family, his father's great success with the bakery chains, and brothers relentless teasing. I can't help but laugh when he describes the torture his older brother put him through as a prepubescent boy. "Their favorite thing to do was stick chewing gum in my hair while I was sleeping." He tells me with a chuckle. "They would wait until I fell asleep after school and then they would begin chewing as much bubble gum as they could then placing in my hair. My hair was much longer and curlier back then so it was the devil when I woke up and had to get the gum out of my hair." I let out a burst of laughter at the image the pops in my head. Imagining little Peeta, all pimply and awkward, trying to get sticky pink wads out of his blonde curls. I feel guilty for laughing as much as I am but the image is too funny to shake.
"I'm sorry, Peeta, but you're brothers got you good with that one. How many times did they get you before they stopped?" I ask.
"I think it was a grand total of 13 times before I got wise and cut my hair really short. Even then I wore a ball cap while I slept, all night sometimes." Peeta chuckles. "I loved my hair. As weird as that sounds, I loved it then. I just think my brothers were jealous because they didn't have curls like I do. Their hair just looked dirty most of the time. But my hair was awesome. I loved it." He gushes.
"Well, I love you hair the way it is now." I tell him as I run my fingers through the curls at the nape of his neck. I kinda twist and lock my fingers in the blonde waves back there and after a moment of holding my hand there Peeta places his hand in the same place on my head and pulls me down for a kiss. I expected it to be a quick one like earlier today when I saw him in his truck, but no, this kiss fiery, and not only from the hint of hot sauce on his breath. I can only describe this kiss as filled with want and red hot desire. I feel Peeta's tongue probe my mouth with such fervor that the passion nearly knocks me off his lap. However his steady grip on the back of my head and the arm that he sneakily snaked around my waist keeps me from falling. I move my other hand up to the nape of his neck and pull him in harder. I anchor myself onto him as the kisses grow more intense. The hand that Peeta has around my waist is slowly creeping its way underneath my t-shirt and the feeling of his calloused hands on my skin at the small of my back sends chills up my spine. Those chills send my head whirling, but I can feel the tension stir in my abdomen. I kiss him deeply and I grasp his bottom lip between my teeth and give it slight tug, a low groan rises from Peeta's chest. I slide my hands from the back of his head to hold him steady at his jaw. The stubble on his chin bristles against my palms with the movement of his jaw in conjunction with mine. With one swift motion, suddenly Peeta has lifted me off his lap and stood up. My heart stops for a brief moment with fear he'll drop me, but that fear subsides with the presence of passion on his lips. He cradles me in his arms as he walks us over to my small twin sized bed. Peeta breaks our kiss, still holding me in his strong, sturdy arms, a glimpse of a grin creeps across his face as his tongue darts out to lick his lips. He gently lays me down on my bed making sure my head is on my pillow. Once his arms leave my sides I slide a little on the bed and he slowly climbs onto the bed overtop of me. I lay my head back down on the pillow as he places his hands on either side of my head. He lowers his face closer to mine as I reach up with my right hand. I pull him down all the way and his lips crash into mine. The feeling of his stubble scratches my lips ever so slightly as we move together. His body weight on top of me adds to the tension building in my center. He moves his lips so deftly across mine I almost don't have to think about moving mine with his. He is in complete control right now and I couldn't be happier. Just when I think I can't take any more of this kissing, Peeta sits up and rips off his shirt exposing his bare chest to me once more. I follow his lead and lift off my t-shirt to find that I'm wearing my ratty cotton bra. I would be embarrassed by this but Peeta doesn't give me anytime to be. Just as quickly as my shirt came off he is back kissing me once again. We are so distracted by our movements against each other that we don't hear Johanna slip in my door.
"Whoa, Katniss!" Johanna shouts and I'm so startled that I nearly bite Peeta's lip clean off. I forget that after Johanna's organic chemistry class she likes to vent about the "idiots" she has to deal with in her study group.
"Oh my god Johanna do you ever knock?" I shout back at her while I struggle to find my shirt and cover myself back up. Johanna stumbles back a few steps as she covers her eyes.
"I've never needed to before. Throw a sock on the door the next time you decide to fuck a random guy after class!" I find my shirt and throw it over my head as quickly as I can. Peeta still facing away from Johanna has finally got his shirt back on as well then turns around.
"I'll have you know that I'm not some random guy." Peeta says wryly.
"Jesus Christ, what are you doing here? Didn't she leave you Florida where you belong?" Johanna snorts at Peeta. She can be so abrasive sometimes that I'm not sure she knows how to be a normal human, you know, with emotions. It seems that Peeta doesn't give her comments a second thought as he rolls his eyes and grins.
"Yes, she so rudely abandoned me in Florida," Peeta responds "However I don't think it was entirely her decision to leave PCB so early. Hmmmm?" He raises his eyebrow accusingly at Johanna and her face flushes with embarrassment. She knows that she and Delly are the reasons that I had to leave our trip early. It's their fault that I abandoned Peeta in Florida, so she is aware that she is on my shit list right now.
"Wow, rude much?" Johanna hisses. "Well, whatever you two lovebirds are up to, just keep it down. I've got an exam to study for and the walls are paper thin. I really don't need the sounds of you guys fucking to accompany the torture that is O-Chem." Johanna spins around and slams the door on her way out.
"I forgot how delightful she was." Peeta whispers. I burst out an abrupt laugh.
"Why are you whispering?" I ask him, also whispering.
"Because we mustn't disturb her majesty." He whispers pointing to the wall adjoining the two rooms.
Johanna's demeanor doesn't even phase Peeta. He is so cool and calm when it comes to her I can't help but smile. Peeta smiles back at me and pulls me back in for a kiss. Just as our kiss grows in passion again, Peeta rolls us so now I'm laying on top of him. Suddenly my stereo speakers across the room start blaring the beginning notes to Dancing Queen by ABBA. I break the kiss and shout "No! No! No!" I lift myself off Peeta's chest by pressing my palms into his firm pectoral muscles and spring across the room to turn off the sound. I fumble with the various buttons to make the song stop but before I could silence it, Peeta is singing along with the words.
"You can dance, You can jive, having the time of your life. Oooo see that girl, watch that scene…" Peeta trails off as I finally find the power button. "You cannot catch a break, can you Dancing Queen?" Peeta teases me while I slump to the floor. It's true though. I really can't catch a break. The guy I've been thinking about every day since I left Florida is finally here and I can't even seem to get my act together long enough to kiss him properly. Why did my stereo turn on all by itself? My head snaps up in realization.
"Get up." I command Peeta. He looks at me quizzically but complies. I lift myself off the floor and lunge to my bed. I rummage underneath the covers and there it is. Right where Peeta was laying is the remote control. I raise the remote to show Peeta. "I must've left it here when I got out of bed this morning." I tell him. Peeta doubles over with laughter.
"You listen to ABBA in the morning?" He asks between laughs.
"Yeah, so what?" I defend. "It puts me in a good mood." I begin laughing along because it really is a laughable moment. Peeta doesn't know very much about me, but now he knows I dig ABBA. Just as I am about to say something else I hear a pounding on the wall coming from Johanna's room. Muffled words travel through the wall and I think she said something along the lines of "Keep it down!" Peeta runs over to the adjoining wall and slams his fist against it right back at her. He shouts back at her "Make us!" And now I'm falling off the bed where I was sitting just moments ago, laughing so hard at the thought of Johanna being angry at us. It's really easy to get her riled up and sometimes I find it entertaining just to mess with her. This is one of those times.
Peeta and I spend the rest of the afternoon relaxing in my room. We shift between sitting on the floor and exchanging stories from our past and cuddling in bed while listening to music. Peeta quickly discovered that my stereo speakers were connected to my record player as well as my CD player. Once he saw all of that he demanded that he see my records. As he perused through my collection he found an old Miles Davis album that had been tucked between two other dusty albums. He gently placed the record on the turntable and began listening to the smooth sounds of Miles. Peeta crawled back into the bed with me where we fell asleep while listening to the soft jazz.
It wasn't until 8:30pm when we woke from our impromptu nap. The sound of knocking on my door shook me from my slumber. I slipped out from underneath Peeta's arms to answer it. Johanna had learned her lesson from earlier and was standing on the other side when I opened the door. "Are you two okay in there?" she asked quietly when she saw Peeta asleep in my bed.
"Yeah we're fine. We just fell asleep I guess." I reassure her. "Sorry about earlier, Jo." I apologize as I step into the corridor and close the door behind me.
"What is he doing here?" Johanna whispers. Well,
"He found me." I tell her. "He went through this whole thing to come find me. I don't know. He was just there when I got out of my lab."
"Well, how long is he staying?"
"I'm not sure. We haven't really talked about that yet."
"I think you should figure that out, and fast. You don't need some random guy you met on spring break hanging around with no end." Johanna warns me.
"He just got here. I don't want to scare him away." I whine softly.
"Fine, I'll ask him." Johanna storms past me and into my room. "He loverboy, wake up." Peeta startles awake and rubs his eyes to adjust to the light.
"Oh hey Johanna, what's up?" Peeta mumbles sleepily.
"What's your plan? Are you going to be hanging around here for a while or what?" Johanna interrogates Peeta.
"Yeah…about that…" Peeta trails off as he sits up in bed and runs his hand through his blonde curls. "I was planning on transferring into Duke for next year, so I'm hoping to go on some campus tours and audit a few classes during the day."
"That's all well and good," Johanna starts, "but where do you plan on staying because I'm not sure I'm comfortable with some random guy staying with Kat and me."
"Oh." Peeta replies dejectedly. "The other part to this whole trip is for me to find an apartment in the area, but I didn't really have a plan for where to stay. I guess I was hoping I could stay with Katniss." Peeta looks to me in hopes for a response. I'm just trying to absorb what he said about transferring.
"You're really transferring?" I ask under my breath. Peeta lets a giant grin creep across his face as he nods in response. Johanna jabs me in the ribcage with her elbow. I cringe at the pain but shake it off. "I have no problem with him staying with me. If he promises to stay out of your way and keep quiet, will you be okay with it?" I ask Johanna with my best attempt at a pleading look in my eyes.
Johanna rolls her eyes before answering. "Fine, just keep it down from now on." She turns and storms back through my door. I know she hates not getting her way.
As soon as the door is safely shut, I bounce back to Peeta on the bed and tackle him with a hug. "I'm so happy." I whisper into his ear.
"Me too, Katniss, me too."
—
Peeta spends the next two days just as he said he would, taking tours of campus and auditing classes. Each day we wake up together, get dressed and begin our days together. Then at the end of classes in the afternoons we come back to my room to relax, take more naps, or in my case work on the mountain of homework I've developed. It isn't until Friday afternoon that Peeta tells me he has a surprise for me.
"What kind of surprise?" I ask with a concerned look on my face.
"The kind of surprise that requires me to go to the grocery store before tonight." Peeta quips. After giving him directions to the closest supermarket he leaves me in my room to go on his errands. Before he left I gave him my cell phone number just in case he got lost but after about an hour I received a text from him telling me he needed me to be out of the room when he got back or else it would ruin the surprise. By now I'm really nervous but I find that now is as good of time as any to practice for the archery tournament in a few weeks, so I head off to the gym. I spend about 45 minutes at target practice, hitting every bullseye that I'm given, before I pack up and head back to the room. I stop myself just as I'm leaving the building and shoot Peeta a text telling him I'm on my way. Even though I'm nervous about this supposed surprise I'm still excited that he's planning something for me. I've got the same butterfly feeling in my stomach I had the night he picked me up to go to the bonfire with his friends. The anticipation of seeing exactly what he has in store for me has me all but running back to the dorm.
I get back to the dorm and Peeta is nowhere to be found. However I do find a note on my desk from him.
Hey Beautiful
Get cleaned up then meet me on the lawn in front of the student union building
I'll be waiting
P
I make a giggle noise I didn't know my body could make. I really am excited but I don't want him to know exactly how excited I am. At any rate, I hop into the shower to wash off the sweat caked on my body and in my hair. I wash my hair and body as quickly as I can. When I'm finished in the bathroom I hurriedly dress myself in a black tee and slim jeans. I pull my hair back in my standard braid and slip on my tan moccasins. Just before I slip out the door I take a step back and grab my leather jacket, I'm not sure what he has planned so I want to be prepared for anything.
Just as I am approaching the student union I see the big white screen hanging from the building. Oh no. What has he done? It takes me a minute to find him but there he is sitting on a blanket on the grass facing the screen. I walk up behind him and nudge my foot into his back startling him.
"Ok, what's going on here." I ask Peeta as he stands to greet me.
"It's good to see you too, Katniss." He says sarcastically while pulling me in for a hug.
"Yeah, yeah. Now tell me what is happening. You didn't do all this just for me did you?" I ask with a shaky voice.
"No, I'm not that powerful just yet," he says gesturing to my spot on the blanket. "No, I saw a flyer while out on my tour the other day advertising 'Movie Under The Stars' tonight, so I thought I'd make us a little dinner and we could have a small date night. I hope that's okay?" He asks giving me the sweetest smile I've ever seen.
"Of course it's alright!" I lean in and give him a kiss on his cheek. "What movie are we seeing?"
"Well, from my understanding it's a musical featuring the talents of Meryl Streep and Pierce Brosnan."
"Mamma Mia?!" I shriek
"That's the one. I may have bribed the Activities Board to show this movie instead of the one they were planning, The Heat. I couldn't resist taunting you with ABBA a little more." Peeta chuckles as he opens the basket in front of him. "And for dinner tonight we have an assortment of sandwiches, potato salad, and of course some popcorn." As he is describing our meal he pulls each item out of the basket. "Last but not least, some nice cold beers." He announces triumphantly.
"Keep it down." I hush him. "You can't drink in public around here. This isn't PCB."
"Nice cold beers." He whispers.
I let out a little laugh as he pulls out two plastic cups and pours each of us a cup of the hoppy liquid. We sit together and eat our sandwiches and potato salad, saving the popcorn for the movie.
Just as the sun sets behind the building the movie begins. Peeta and I sit close together snacking on the popcorn and sipping the beers secretly. Every now and then I catch Peeta humming along with the songs playing on the screen. Never would I have ever guessed Peeta new the tunes to ABBA songs, let alone be humming along with them.
Our movie ends quicker than I wish it would and we pack up the basket and blanket. It had gotten a bit chilly since the sun went down so I donned my jacket, internally thanking myself for bringing it along. Peeta scoops up the basket and grabs ahold of my hand as we set off back to the dorm.
Slowly, we walk hand in hand through campus, not saying much to each other but rather just enjoying the time together. When we finally reach my room, I unlock the door and we both make our way to the bed and collapse on top of it. And as I'm drifting off to sleep I can't help but wonder what adventures Peeta and I will get up to in the days to come.
In the quiet darkness I whisper "Goodnight, Peeta."
He whispers in return "Goodnight, Dancing Queen."