I stood aimlessly in the shower for a couple of minutes. The water had stopped, my mind had not. I kept having flashbacks of the Games last year and I thought I'd just about gotten my head around continuing my life. I knew that Snow wouldn't just let it go. There was no way that the idea of the tributes being picked from the existing pool of victors had been concocted 75 years ago. It's too coincidental.
I hesitantly stepped out, grabbing my towel. I dried myself off and put my gown on. It's snowing outside, and that's just reminding me of President Snow and his sickening blood breath. I pressed my fingers gently against the window and watched the droplets of the snowflakes slide down.
"Katniss!" a voice bellowed from down the stairs.
"I'm in the bathroom, Prim!" I replied. "Hold on. One minute."
Prim. My little sister. My world. I made sure that my gown was securely fastened and bounded down the stairs.
"What is it?" I asked.
"I was just seeing if you were ok. You'd been in there a long time." She looked nervous, so I hugged her.
"Did you think I'd tried to escape, Little Duck?" I chuckled. Prim just looked up at me and gave a smile.
"You're my hero, Katniss." She whispered whilst leaning her head on my chest. "You're the best sister anyone could ask for."
That got to me. "You'd better have some food." I said to her, so that I could make a quick escape. A hero can't show their weak emotions. I mean, I'm going back to the Games soon and I'm not coming back. Well, lightening doesn't strike twice, right? There's no way I'm going to outsmart and beat any of the others. They're all allies, they've known each other forever and they're all ferocious killing machines. And then there's Peeta and Haymitch. Whoever my partner is, only one of us comes home, and I couldn't bear being victor without them. That reminds me. Peeta. I ran upstairs and put my going out clothes on and fastened my hair back in a braid. "Back soon!" I yelled as I grabbed my jacket and ran outside.
I almost slipped on the ice that had formed beneath the soft snow. Before I knew it, I was at Peeta's door. "Hello? Peeta?" I asked, through the letter box. "Peeta?" I repeated.
"Coming!" I heard in the distance. He opened the door in a towel. I bit my bottom lip, and I felt myself blushing.
"Bad time?" I asked, innocently.
"No, no. Come on in, I just need to fix myself up to, you know..." he started, pushing his hand into his hair and pouting "...look pretty." He laughed.
"Oh shut up!" I replied. "You're always pretty." I winked. "But in seriousness, is this a bad time?" I said, straight faced.
"No, sit down. Have some tea." He came over with a fresh pot of boiling hot tea and filled a cup up for me. "What is it, Katniss?" he asked, whilst towel drying his blonde locks.
"I was lonely. I missed you." I said, bluntly, whilst blowing on my scolding liquid. I could feel Peeta looking at me in the mirror. "I can see you, you know." I said, with a slight giggle to my voice.
"I can see you too." He smiled. He turned towards me and pulled me up from the arm chair, putting his arms around me. "That means you'll see me do this." He leant in and kissed me.
"Woah, woah, woah, Peeta." I exclaimed stepping back.
"What is it?" Peeta asked looking confused. "Are you ok? Is everything ok?"
"I'm fine." I laughed, "It's just..." I gestured to his naked body, covered in only a towel.
Peeta looked down at himself, "I'm not on show." He laughed "Like I've said, I don't care if you see." He laughed to himself whilst walking upstairs, shaking his butt. "You know you want this." He joked.
I sat back down, shaking my head in jest. Taking small sips from my tea. Peeta returned moments later, fully clothed. "Ah! There we go! He does own clothes!" I joked.
"Yeah, yeah. Take this and be quiet." He giggled, throwing a bun at me.
"You could have taken my eye out!" I exclaimed.
"With a bun? Oh no, call the Peacekeepers." He winked, again.
"Got something in your eye, Mellark? You seem to be closing one of them quite excessively. I'm worried."
He raised his eyebrows in a flirtacious manner. "I do have something in my eye, as a matter of fact." He began. "Wanna know what it is?"
"Oh, if I have to."
"A twinkle. You gave it to me."
I made a fake retching noise, "come on! You're a baker not a cheese maker!"
He smirked. "You know you just melted inside, am I right?"
I shook my head, standing up. Letting Peeta hug me. "No. You're not right. And we're not right."
He pushed the hair out of my eyes. "What do you mean?" Peeta frowned
"What if we're both going ba-"
"Stop." He interrupted. "We are both going back. I've told you, I've told Haymitch."
"I know, but Peeta it was so hard the first time. And now we have to do it again. This time, we're not going to both be coming back. Not alive. I'm coming back in a box, that's for sure."
He pushed his finger to my lips. "Shh." He looked me right in the eyes. "I'll protect you until my dying day. I mean –" he took the bun from the table next to the chair I was sitting on. "I loaf you." He giggled, and then took a massive bite out of the bun.
"Come on, Peeta! I'm being serious here. And that was my bun!"
He looked at me with his puppy dog eyes, and then savagely took another bite out of the bun. And another. Until it was gone.
"Hungry?" I asked sarcastically
"Starving." He replied. "What about you?"
"Oh, I'm good. I have a bun." I laughed.
"So you don't need another one then?" Peeta asked, gesturing to the kitchen.
"Oh, if you insist." I rolled my eyes.
Peeta began to walk to the kitchen, and then suddenly stopped. "Katniss." He said, it sounded as though he was gulping. Swallowing hard, before saying something important, "Just hear me out, ok?"
"Ok."
"No interruptions?"
"No interruptions." I repeated. "I promise."
"Ok." He started, "At the reaping, we know you're going to be a tribute, being the only female and everything. And I'm hoping that my name comes out. I mean, hoping more than anything ever. Completely the opposite of last year where I hoped that the ground would just swallow me up and kill me right there, instead of having to go to the games. When Effie read out my name I could have just froze. But the reason that I walked right on up there, was the fact you were already on that stage. Looking so... perfect. I want my name to come out. And if it doesn't, if it's Haymitch, well, heck, I'm volunteering faster than you can say 'Prim' and I swear, I am. I will. You're not going into that Quarter Quell without me, and you're not leaving with me. I'm going to keep you alive in there. You're going to come back and you're going to live a long life. You're going to get married. Despite what you think now. You're going to have kids. No matter what you say. And you're going to go on and forget. About me. You're meant to live. You're the reason I'm alive. And I need to return the favour."
"Peeta, you're the reason I'm alive." I felt kind of choked up, he really does have a way with words. "With that bread, that day in the rain. I was so close to just giving up and dying, right there."
"That wouldn't have looked good for the bakery." He smirked.
"Come on, we were being all serious." I exclaimed, pushing him.
"I know. We are. And just remember, you're my priority until my dying day."