[A/N: A one-shot from Peeta's perspective on the birth of their first child. Not related to my other one-shot from Katniss's POV though there is some overlap. This one just kind of popped into my head so I wrote it down. Peeta's perspective is sort-of my thing! As always thank you so much for reading and please, PLEASE review so I can improve!]
As the two of them were walking hand in hand through town, Peeta could still remember the first time he worked up the courage to bring it up to Katniss. The two of them had finally started to build a life together. Peeta had finally earned his title in District Twelve. He wasn't just a tribute or one of Panem's prestigious victors of the Hunger Games. Peeta wasn't the suave spokesman of a President or known for being a traitor either. No one even referred to him and Katniss as "star-crossed lovers" any longer.
Now, Peeta was the baker of District Twelve. A title that came with more honor and prestige than almost any other title that he'd achieved. Only a few titles meant more to him, those were "husband", "lover", and "son".
The day he finally asked Katniss, he simply suggested that they might be able to handle a child. Katniss had shot him down without further discussion. Afterwards, she lay in bed for almost two days thinking of her. Prim. Peeta didn't bring up the subject again for almost five years and that was just over ten months ago.
Peeta unlocked the front door of the bakery. He had let Katniss sleep a little extra this morning but she insisted that she wanted to help him today. She wasn't sleeping well lately, as the end of her pregnancy was nearing. It was five in the morning when they arrived at the bakery and the sun was still nestled snugly below the horizon.
Overall, pregnancy had suited Katniss well. She had a radiant glow about her even though she spent the first four months feeling ill. She spent quite a few days in bed. Sae would stop by on mornings that Peeta had to get to the bakery. She would make Katniss breakfast though Katniss wouldn't eat often. Usually breakfast would just reappear later, but eventually her appetite returned with a vengeance. At first they thought she had come down with some illness but after a few weeks it became apparent that their attempts at conceiving a child had been successful. Even when she had agreed to try, Katniss was leery of having children. The first time that she felt their child stir within her Katniss went into a state of panic. Peeta had been there though, to comfort her, to remind her that their child would be safe and kiss away each and every one of her tears.
Now, Peeta stepped into the bakery and flipped on the lights. The two of them stepped inside and Peeta helped Katniss out of her coat before removing his own. As the morning passed the two of them fell into their usual routine. Katniss kneaded the dough and molded the loaves of bread. Peeta worked on the cakes until nearly dawn when he pulled out a surprise batch of bacon cheese buns from the oven and set them on the rack to cool.
"Have I told you lately how much I love you?" Katniss laughed flashing Peeta a lighthearted smile. The scent of bacon and cheese and freshly baked bread formed a sweet aroma in the air.
Peeta nodded.
"I thought we could take a breakfast break and watch the sun rise."
And that's what the two of them did. Peeta helped Katniss to sit on the top step of the back stairs and then he lowered himself down next to her. They watched the sun slowly ascend while Peeta admired all the orange and pink hues that filled the sky that morning.
The rest of the day passed almost uneventfully until Peeta looked up and it was late afternoon. He began to remove the cakes from the window for storage for the night. Katniss stored away the left over bread to be sold the next day and then they bundled up in their coats again to bear the crisp afternoon air.
"Wait." Katniss said as Peeta turned the key locking the front door.
"What? What is it?"
Katniss was clutching her abdomen and Peeta's brow knitted in concern. Immediately her fingers curled around his arm and she seemed to be frozen. She didn't answer him immediately. At least thirty seconds slowly passed while Peeta looked at her pleadingly for an answer.
"I think, I think it's time" She finally burst out as if she'd been holding her breath all this time. Then she practically collapsed into Peeta's arms.
The next hours were excruciating. Katniss had chosen to have the baby in their home, a decision that Peeta supported even though they now had a medical center in District Twelve.
"Women had been having children in their homes for years before the rebellion. I'm no better than any one of them." Katniss had said.
Just like that Katniss was convinced that she was no different than any of the women that had preceded her. Her mother had birthed her and Prim in their tiny home in the Seam and Katniss was determined there was no other way to have a child.
After Peeta had carried Katniss all the way home that afternoon, he had immediately called the midwife followed by Mrs Everdeen. Twice Peeta had to put down the phone and coach Katniss through birthing pains. Her agonized cries filled the background but he reassured Mrs Everdeen that she was in good hands. The pains came in waves, progressing in length and consistency as the time neared. The midwife arrived quickly and made preparations for them upstairs in Katniss's bedroom.
Peeta lifted Katniss into his arms. He carried her carefully upstairs, away from her spot on the couch across from the crackling fireplace. Everything was flying by so quickly that Peeta's head was spinning. When Katniss finally fell into an exhausted sleep for a few minutes, Peeta laid his head in his hands and took deep breaths. His hands were red from Katniss's grip on them during her labor pains but he hadn't once left her side. He never ever intended to. He could feel himself slipping away from reality for a moment, something that still happened occasionally when he became overwhelmed. Peeta was quickly brought back to reality when he raised his head to see Katniss looking at him, panic in her eyes.
"I'm okay," Peeta whispered reassuringly giving her hand a gentle squeeze. He could see a flicker of relief washing over her face.
"I thought I was losing you." She murmured softly before he leaned forward resting his lips on her forehead.
"I'm not going anywhere." He whispered against her skin.
In only a moment though, she reached grabbing on to his arm again when the next wave of pain hit her. Peeta remembered a tactic that had worked so many times before when he was falling into an episode. He begin to kiss all over her face. Katniss swatted at him playfully as the pain subsided and he laughed.
"Stop it," she mused. "I'm trying to birth your child."
"Our child", he corrected. "I thought it might help." Peeta smiled.
"Your kisses are the reason that I got knocked up in the first place." Katniss prodded.
"It was a lot more than kissing." He grinned.
He chuckled just as the midwife appeared in the door way again. Katniss shot him a look that conveyed fury and Peeta choked back another laugh as he sat back down next to her on the bed.
Another hour passed as Peeta sat with Katniss giving her sips of water and wiping her forehead with a cool cloth between the painful contractions. Katniss was unrelenting though. Peeta could see the girl he fell in love with almost fifteen years ago. The strong, stubborn girl that he loved so much shined through this day more than ever before.
When the midwife finally announced it was time to begin pushing Peeta's hands trembled, his heart raced, but he never once doubted Katniss's ability to have this child. Her agonizing screams filled the room, sending chills down Peeta's spine. He whispered soothing words in her ear, despite his own fear, and encouraged her to breath. He ran his fingers across the palm of her hand each time the pain subsided then he would kiss her lips reassuringly.
"You can do it, Katniss. You'll be holding our precious child soon. It will all be worth it."
"What if I can't, Peeta? What if I can't be a mother?" She cried but he smiled down at her, running his fingers through her tangled hair.
"You already are a mother, Katniss. We'll get through it, together." He assured her with tears in his eyes. The panic seemed to fade from her eyes as the next wave of pain hit. Instead of crying out, instead of the tears that had been streaming down her face, her expression was replaced with determination. The same determination that Peeta had seen every time he slipped into an episode, the look that she had the few times he had witnessed her track a deer in the woods. The same thoughtful determined look that Katniss expressed the first time that they had made love.
"Last push!" The midwife exclaimed stirring Peeta from his thoughts.
Katniss threw her head back, her fingers laced into Peeta's as she bared down again. The next moment Peeta's heart stopped as the sound of his child's scream interrupted Katniss's own strangled cries.
"It's a girl." The midwife announced happily as she held up the bright eyed, dark haired little girl for them to see.
"A daughter." Peeta murmured into Katniss's ear. She leaned against him, half smiling, half crying into Peeta's chest. He stretched his arm around her, pulling her close and giving her a lingering kiss. No moment had ever compared to this moment, nothing had ever been so perfect.
His pulse pounded against his temples and he couldn't stop the stray tear that slid down his cheek mixing in with her tears. After a moment, Peeta stood up and carefully took his beautiful daughter into his arms, carrying her back over to Katniss.
The two of them stared in awe at her while her bright blue eyes gleamed up at them. Peeta had never in his life seen anything more beautiful and he was committing every last detail to memory to capture on canvas later and never, ever forget.
"Would you like to hold her?" Peeta asked lovingly as he looked over to his wife.
Katniss only managed a nod, the tears still streamed down her cheeks despite her best effort at concealing them. She eagerly outstretched her arms, welcoming her baby girl into them. It was all too much for Peeta. He had dreamed of this day so many times, but living it out, that was better than any dream he had ever had.
It was a bitter-sweet moment when Peeta considered his mother and father, his brothers. He could just imagine their smiles. He swore he could almost feel their presence. He could even imagine his mother bustling around the room, "ooo-ing" and "aah-ing" over the little bundle in Katniss's arms now. When he closed his eyes he could imagine Prim's face alight with joy at the birth of her little niece. Peeta bit the inside of his jaw to hold back the tears as he opened his eyes again letting the sight of his beautiful girls enamor him again.
He reached across sliding his finger into that tiny hand.
"What do you want to name her?" He asked Katniss with a bright smile.
"Ember." Katniss murmured as she smiled down at the dark haired bundle.
Peeta nodded. Ember. The girl on fire, radiant as the sun, and the embers of a love that would never allow the cruel world to snuff it out. Fire beats Snow again.
"It's perfect." He nodded as he leaned over placing a tender kiss on Katniss's lips.
The three of them sat there for hours until Katniss could no longer keep her eyes open. Peeta tucked her in and then cradled the captivating infant in his arms, calming it as it cried out.
Peeta made his way out of the room and down the stairs, still soothing the crying baby. He sat up in the rocker while the fireplace flickered just smiling down at her as she sucked on her fingers. He took in her every movement, every expression, until they both drifted off to sleep.
A few hours later he woke up to the bundle wiggling against him and beginning to fuss. It was perhaps the most beautiful sound that had ever filled Peeta's ears. Instantly he was smiling down at the blankets while the blue eyes matching his own gleamed back up at him. He pressed a gentle kiss to her forehead as he carefully pushed himself up from the rocker.
He shushed the baby calmly as he cautiously padded up the stairs until he was standing in the door way looking over at Katniss. She was already awake and smiling at him until Ember cried out again.
"I think she's hungry." Peeta said quietly before pacing over, passing Katniss the wailing little bundle. Katniss carefully placed the baby on her breast watching as Ember nursed. Then, to Peeta's surprise, she began to sing. Katniss hadn't sung in so long. The few times Peeta had heard her utter a melody were to bring Peeta back from an episode. It was such a beautiful sound that it brought tears to his eyes. Tears he fought hard to keep from falling while he looked on. Once he finally gained his composure again, he made his way back over to the bed, sitting down on top of the covers next to Katniss while she hummed.
"I love you." Peeta confessed to both of them as he held them close.
"I love you too." Katniss whispered in response.
"You're happy, real or not real?" He asked.
"Real." She replied simply, leaving a huge smile across Peeta's face.
That day Peeta had earned a new title, a title that mattered more to him than "baker" or even "husband". This new title encompassed all of that and more. Today Peeta became a father and every struggle that he had ever endured, every desperate measure he had taken to stay alive or to keep Katniss alive, every episode he ever fought off was all worth it. In that moment, life made sense, living made sense and nothing in the world beyond Katniss and their radiant little girl mattered.