I walk into my uncle Haymitch's bar and fall into the seat next to a blond curly-haired man before ordering my usual from Darius. As I'm taking a sip of my rum and coke, the man next to me clears his throat, "Come here often, gorgeous?"
My eyebrows raise. "How drunk are you? You must be pretty wasted if you think that that would have worked on me."
"I'm sorry, sitting next to a pretty girl like you and consuming liquor isn't a good mix for me," he laughs, his blue eyes mesmerizing me. "I never think what I say."
Darius takes my empty glass and gives me another one.
"If you were sober, how would you approach me then?"
Staring down and stirring his drink, he says, "I would have been a bit smoother, charmed you with my words then gotten your number, we'd go on a few dates, get engaged in a few years, marry and have two kids and live happily ever after." He's biting his lip to keep from laughing but it's useless, we both lose it. "See?" he asks after we calm down, "you never know what's gonna come out of my mouth." We stare at each other, smiling like idiots. After a moment, he stretches out his arm for a handshake, "My name's Peeta by the way."
"Katniss." Warmth radiates from the tips of my fingers to my toes at his touch; it feels so good, so impossibly good, that I know I will not be the first to let go. A snap of fingers out of the corner of my eye catches my attention.
"Hey brainless, when you're done ogling Adonis here, I need you to grab an apron. Your old man is nowhere to be found and you know how Friday nights get around here," Johanna, my best friend, tells me as she hastily fastens the strings on her apron. I turn to Peeta and wonder what I am going to say when he places his hand on my knee, squeezing it briefly before letting go.
"I'll still be here. I can wait," he winks, causing a fluttering in my chest. I smile in reply before climbing the small stairs that lead to the back of the bar, and for the next two hours, I help Johanna and Darius with the Friday night rush.
Every now and then I look to the corner of the bar for Peeta to see if he's left, but true to his word, he stays. He's either on his phone, watching me, or catching a glimpse at the drunken folks singing on our karaoke machine. Once I'm finished, Johanna clears me and I eagerly return to my spot next to Peeta.
"I am so sorry, Peeta—"
He waves me off and swallows his sip of water before reassuring me, "No big deal, Katniss, really."
I see that Rue is asking for takers on the Karaoke machine and suddenly get an idea. I ask Peeta something I would never ask anyone, "Do you want to sing with me?" He glances at the stage warily. "It could be fun," I offer before he can object, "and I owe you for abandoning you without asking what names our two children would have?" I say in an attempt to make him smile, and he does. His grin makes his face twice as attractive, causing me to blush.
He takes a quick breath and releases it. "Alright, gorgeous. Lead the way."
Rue sees me and does a double-take as I grab two microphones for Peeta and me. I never sing in front of crowds anymore since my dad was taken from this life and I lost the appeal, but this man makes me do things I normally wouldn't. I search for the first duet I see on the list and tell Rue.
"Ready?" I've had stage fright before, but my dad encouraged me to "imagine something or someone that centers you." I'd always envision me singing to him; he was my happy place. Seeing Peeta now, staring out into the crowd, frozen in shock, I realize why he was a little reluctant at first. I hold up a finger to alert Rue to hold on just a second before grabbing Peeta's sweaty palm and grasping it tightly. "Hey, I'm right here. If you don't want to do this—"
"No, it's okay," he interlocks our hands, "I want to." His blue eyes meet mine with determination. I give Rue a nod and the song begins.
I'm certainly sitting on your last good try
Here I am again with half a goodbye
Wonder if you're really gone this time
Just when I'm about to lose my mind
There you are again on my phone
The moon is rising and you're all alone
Maybe we could just hang a while
Maybe we can make each other smile
Oh no, here I go
Peeta stares at me while I sing Blake's intro, but before I hit the chorus, he has his mic up and starts to sing along with me.
Why don't you go ahead and break my heart?
Why are you waiting, is it way too hard?
If moving on is what you wanna do
Why don't you do it? Why don't you do it, baby?
You can't tell me that we'll still be friends
And maybe someday we can try again
If you really need a brand new start
Why don't you go ahead and break my heart?
I'd never ever meant to get so into you
Thought I was using you just to get me through
You know I'm broken, I don't trust anyone
Last thing I needed was to fall in love
You've got me dreaming, got me thinking, I've got some hope
There is nobody else I wanna get to know
But I'm so scared, I don't know what to do
How did you get me so into you?
Oh no, here I go
Peeta starts twirling me and I lose myself in the song; his soft voice compliments mine so well I can't believe he was nervous to begin with. As we near the end of the song, he gets bolder and wraps his left hand around my waist, swaying us back and forth.
Yeah, you can't tell me that we'll still be friends
And maybe someday we can try again
If you really need a brand new start
Why don't you go ahead and break my heart?
Oh, go on and break, go on and break my heart
Go on and break, go on and break my heart
We're both leaning in when the whole bar applauds our performance, thus ruining the moment. We head back to our seats, a beat of silence passing before we say anything.
"Katniss—"
"Peeta—"
Laughing, Peeta locks our hands together, "Can I get your number?"
Smiling so wide my cheeks hurt, I reply, "Yes."
Peeta's drunk prediction came true. After a few dates, he proposed two years later. They got married within a year. Prim, Katniss' sister and maid of honor, added the song they claim is their song to their first dance on their wedding night, to which they happily sung together as they danced. During their honeymoon, Katniss surprised him by revealing they were going to be parents sooner than they expected. They had a daughter first, then a son immediately afterwards. Peeta finally told her what their children's names were going to be when he first texted her, "the night Peenis came together" Johanna jokingly recalls: Willow and Rye.