About a month after Katniss and Peeta begin their memory book. And I'm sorry, I love this song!
"Peeta? Are you all right?" I touch his shoulder; feel how taut the muscle is. His head snaps up and his grip on the chair tightens. His knuckles go white. "What's wrong?"
"Just – wait," he chokes out, and as I come around to face him, I see in his eyes the tortured look that I thought was gone forever. I take a step back. A long moment passes before he lets out his breath in a slow hiss between his teeth.
"Peeta?" I repeat.
"Katniss," he says. His tone is relieved but uncertain – careful. He unclenches his fingers. "I'm so sorry."
"Sorry for what? Peeta, what happened?" What could cause him so much pain?
"I – I remembered," he says, still cautious. "I didn't want to, but suddenly I was just there – back in my cell in the Capitol. I'm so sorry, Katniss," he says again.
"Come with me," I say gently, and take his hand. I hold on tightly so that he will stay here with me. I guide him to the sofa, make him sit down. "Can I help?" I ask when I'm seated beside him. He doesn't answer, just leans into me.
We stay there for a few minutes. I think about what has just happened. Back in the Capitol, he said. The Capitol, where he was hijacked. Where he thought I was trying to kill him. The scene flashes before my eyes: he runs toward me, reaching out, just as I do to him. But his fingers go not to my face, but to my throat. And they squeeze.
I blink and come back to myself. The living room of my house in District 12. The Victor's Village. Panem. Then I remember the person next to me. His eyes are closed. He begins to hum and I recognize the tune. Without thinking, I sing the words.
Every night in my dreams
I see you, I feel you
That is how I know you go on.
This song has brought us endless comfort since the end of the war. Perhaps it will help now.
Far across the distance and spaces between us
You have come to show you go on.
Near, far, wherever you are,
I believe that the heart does go on.
Once more, you open the door
And you're here in my heart
And my heart will go on and on.
It's an old song. Nobody knows its origins but we like to think about it. The words speak of sadness but also of hope, something that we all desperately need.
Love can touch us one time
And last for a lifetime
And never let go 'til we're gone.
Peeta sighs, his hands twisting together. I wonder what he's thinking – is he still lost in flashbacks?
Love was when I loved you
One true time I hold to
That is how I know you go on.
Near, far, wherever you are,
I believe that the heart does go on.
Once more, you open the door
And you're here in my heart
And my heart will go on and on.
As the last note dies away, I look over and see him gazing at me. "Thank you," he says, "That was beautiful."
"Anytime," I answer. And go back up the stairs.