A/N: the second chapter! I tried finishing this chapter as soon as i could, so i apologize if the grammer is a little off. This chapter mostly contains flashback of their time together, and how Katniss got sick. Oh, and you'll also find out what disease she has.

hope you guys like it!

Disclaimer: I dont own the hunger games. It belongs to the wizard named Suzanne Collins

The boy walked into his apartment, his cheeks flushed from the cold, and his eyes bright. He removed his sweater and jacket, and sat down on his couch.

He flipped through the sketchbook that was placed in front of him. Beautiful sceneries stared back at him; a meadow, a beach, a forest, a city. They all varied, but had one thing in common.

The girl.

Each scene had her painted on it. The city picture was a reminder of their trip to New York two summers ago. In the picture, Gale, Prim, and Katniss stood together, smiling and laughing in front of Times Square. The happiness that radiated off this page made the boy smile. He flipped to the next page.

The next page had a picture of a forest on it. The trees were perfectly drawn, the light filtering through their leaves in the late afternoon sun. In the shadows, you could see two people, a girl and a boy. The girl was beautiful, with her long flowing braid and her calculating grey eyes. She was holding a bow with an arrow notched in it, ready to shoot. The boy was standing next to her, his blond hair messy and his blue eyes focused. He was looking in the direction that her arrow pointed his hand up, ready to throw the knife that was clutched in his palm. He remembered that day, when he and Katniss had killed their first Buck. He remembered the pride in her eyes.

Over the years, the boy and the girl had become the perfect hunting partners. They started going to the woods more often after her father died around eight years ago. He was driving back home from work one day, when a big black van jumped a red light, and crashed into his car. He was killed on the spot. Katniss's mother was never the same after that. She became a hollow shadow of herself, unable to care for her children. Since that moment, Gale and Katniss had become the breadwinners for their family. Gale worked a number of part time jobs, while keeping up his grades so that he could be an architect when he was older. He immersed himself in his work to cover up his grief, but Peeta saw the despair that was hidden in Gale's eyes. Peeta too had felt this despair after Mr. Everdeen's death, but at a more muted level. Mr. Everdeen was almost like a second father to the boy. Peeta's own father was often overseas, due to his job with a travel agency, so Peeta didn't see him often. It was only natural for the young boy to feel as if this man was a close to a real father as he could get.

The girl had different ways of dealing with her grief after her father's death. Her demeanor was no longer as happy. She maintained a cold exterior around strangers, which was a stark contrast to how she used to act. The only person outside her family that she let down her walls for was the boy. She could be herself around him. After her father's death, she'd gone to the woods with the boy more often, trying to shoot some extra game so that she could feed her family, and her brother could save up his money for the future. With their silent tread, it worked out pretty well, and the boy often took home a squirrel or two to his family when he still lived with them.

He flipped the page, coming to his favorite picture, the beach. A boy and a girl were sitting in the sand, looking at the sunset. They were drawn from behind. Their hands were linked behind them, and the girl was leaning on the boy's shoulder. Peeta felt a smile grow on his face as he remembered this scene. Last year, Gale had gotten a full scholarship to one of the best architectural colleges in Panem, which was three hours away from where they lived now. He'd saved up an immense amount of money to pay for his college years, as well as Katniss's and Prim's. Since the money he saved up for his college expenses was so great, he decided to use some of it to take all of them to Florida in the summer. Peeta remembered the excitement in little Prim's face when Gale told her that they were going on vacation. Katniss's mother didn't want to come, so Katniss hired Mrs. Hawthorne to help take care of her mother while they were gone. Mrs. Hawthorne was the mother of Rory Hawthorne, who was one of Prim's closest friends. She was small, with a kind smile and cheery demeanor. Katniss immediately trusted this woman to keep her mother in check.

In Florida, they stayed in a hotel overlooking the beach. They all booked a double room for their stay. Katniss and Peeta shared one bed, and Gale and Prim shared the other. Peeta didn't get the slightest feeling of awkwardness at this fact. They'd slept in the same bed quite often ever since they were little. They were seven when he first shared a bed with her. She had invited him for a sleepover at her house. That winter night, they both snuggled together under the blankets, trying to keep in heat. The boy remembered how the girl had wrapped her arms around him and snuggled up into his chest. He remembered how the cold didn't seem so biting anymore now that they were sharing body-heat. He wrapped his chubby arms around her as she wrapped herself up into a ball. When they woke up in the morning, they found two new people under the blankets. Peeta felt a small body nestled into his back, and felt the presence of a larger body beyond that. He smiled when he realized that Katniss's little sister and big brother had come in the middle of the night. He felt like he finally had a family who cared about him. Peeta's own two brothers cared, but in their own crude way, while his mother did nothing to hide her distaste towards him.

He remembered going to the beach on the second day of their vacation. He remembered Prim's high pitched squeal as Gale carried her off towards the water. Katniss laughed, a high melodious sound that made Peeta's heart flutter. That day on the beach was one of the best days of his life. He remembered the sunset. How the beautiful colors bathed Katniss's olive complexion in an orange tone. How calm she looked, leaning onto his shoulder. He remembered them talking.

"It's so beautiful Peeta," Katniss sighed, her face forming a content smile.

"Yeah, it really is. I think I might draw it sometime,"

"You should," Katniss said. They settled into a comfortable silence. Suddenly, Katniss spoke.

"Thank you Peeta," she said with a smile on her face.

"For what?" he asked, confused.

"For sticking with me all this time, no matter what happened. You're my best friend, and I can't help but feel thankful for that,"

"It was the least I could do for the woman I love," the boy said, without realizing it. His eyes widened when he realized what he'd said. The girl stiffened beside him.

"Y-you love me," she stuttered, looking at his face. He blushed a deep scarlet red.

"Yeah, but you don't have to love me back," he said. She looked at his face for a really long time, and smiled.

" I had a feeling we were more than friends," she said, her smile growing wider. The boy's eyes widened, and he smiled. He met her eyes, and suddenly, he was frozen. Her gray eyes seemed to entrance him. She was staring at his eyes with the same expression frozen on her face. They slowly inched closer together, until their faces were a mere inch apart. The boy closed the gap between them, touching his lips to hers as they kissed. It was a sweet kiss, full of longing. They broke apart and looked at eachother.

"That was….amazing. Thank you," she said, touching a hand to her lips. She sat down next to the boy and snuggled up into his side.

"I wish I could freeze this moment right now, and live it forever," he said, wrapping an arm around her.

"Okay," she said contentedly.

"So you'll allow it?"

"Yes,"

They sat a bit longer, staring at the sun until it went down. It was one of the happiest days of the boy's life. He brushed his hands across his lips, remembering the scene. The boy closed his sketchbook. He took out his phone, and checked if he had any messages. Gale said he'd call him today to update Peeta on Katniss's condition. Peeta remembered what happened yesterday.

It had been a good day. He and Katniss were in the woods, walking side by side, admiring the rainbow of yellows, oranges, and reds. She'd been breathing abnormally recently, and had developed a dry cough, so Peeta was quite reluctant to let her out of the apartment they shared. She insisted that they go out into the woods anyway. He wrapped a protective arm around her, making sure she didn't get cold. They walked for about ten minutes when Katniss started coughing.

"Are you alright?" he asked her, his concern growing by the second. She was doubled over, coughing.

"Yeah..*cough* I'm *cough* *cough* just*cough* fine," she said, waving him off. He approached her.

"Katniss, seriously, we need to go to the hospital. It's obvious that you're sick." He said, putting an arm on her back and leading her back the way they came from. She stiffened suddenly. He was about to ask her what was wrong when she started coughing and puking up blood. He felt panic clench at his heart. Something was seriously wrong.

"Peeta, I…don't…feel so good," she said after she finished puking. She was pale, and shaky. Her knees started wobbling and he scooped her up before she could fall. Her eyelids were fluttering. Peeta felt claws of panic grip his heart. He started sprinting towards his car, goading Katniss to stay awake. Her eyelids continued to flutter, and though it was around forty degrees outside, she was sweating. Her body felt unnaturally warm. He felt her go limp in his arms.

"KATNISS!" He yelled desperately, increasing his speed.

When they got to the car, Peeta lay her in the backseat and drove like a madman. They arrived in the hospital in five minutes. He picked her up off the backseat, and sprinted in, calling for help. A couple of nurses wheeled a stretcher in, and he placed Katniss on it, blood still leaking from the corner of her lips. He helped them wheel the stretcher down to the ER, and was about to go in when a nurse stopped him.

"You can't go in there sir," she said, holding his arm.

"But…I have to be there for her!" he yelled in a desperate voice, trying to work his arm out of her grip. He was almost free when he felt another nurse grip his other arm.

"You can't go in there stupid, they're trying to figure out what's wrong with her," came a familiar biting voice. He looked over to see one of his former classmates, Johanna Mason, gripping his arm. He remembered that she was working part-time as a nurse now.

"Come on brainless, I'll lead you to the waiting area," she said, her tone softening slightly. He slumped over in defeat and followed her. She led him to a row of empty Plastic chairs, and told him to sit down. He heard her walk away, but didn't care to know where. All he could think about was the girl in the operating room; The girl who owned his heart. He heard footsteps approaching him.

"So, what happened to her?" Johanna asked, sitting down next to him. Peeta didn't respond. He was focused on controlling his tears. He wanted to scream and cry. He felt like sobbing in agony. His face was scrunched up, trying to control his emotions.

"You can cry Peeta, it's alright to cry once in a while," she said in a soft voice. She started rubbing his back. Peeta tried to contain his emotions, but couldn't. He burst out crying. Tears streamed down his face as he sobbed openly, burying his face in his hands and pulling his messy blonde hair back. All he could think about was Katniss.

"I called her brother, and her little sister," Johanna whispered. The boy didn't respond, sobs wracking his body. He couldn't help but feel as if this was his fault. If only he'd been a bit more adamant about her staying home, none of this would have happened.

About fifteen minutes later, his sobs quieted down to sniffling. Johanna had left after a nurse said she was needed someone. She gave him a quick hug before she left.

"She's a fighter, she'll get through this," she whispered in his ear, and left.

The boy now heard the scampering of small feet coming down the hallway. He saw a flash of blonde hair and felt someone throw themselves at him.

"Is she alright! Oh my god what happened? Johanna called me and said Katniss was in the hospital, so I came down here right away!," Prim said all in one breath. Peeta quieted himself down, and cleared his throat.

"We-were in the woods and….." he said, gasping slightly from sobbing so much. Prim looked at him, panic in her small blue eyes, as he told her what happened. At the end of the story, she started crying. The boy put an arm around her, and soothed her, much as Johanna had done to him earlier. He felt himself calm down a bit. He needed to be strong. Katniss was going to get through this, whatever was wrong with her will be fixed.

He sat with Prim for another two hours before Gale arrived, out of breath and hysterical.

"WHERE'S MY BABY SISTER!" he asked in his booming voice. A nurse rushed up to him, trying to calm him down. She calmly explained that Katniss was in surgery. The hysteria in Gale's eyes sent shivers down Peeta's spine. He looked like a madman, with his messy dark hair sticking up and his glasses off kilter. The nurse said a few more things to Gale, and that seemed to quiet him down enough. She pointed to the waiting area. Gale sat next to Prim, taking off his glasses and burying his face in his hands, mirroring Peeta's pose. Prim climbed onto her big brother's lap and started crying. Gale held her close, not willing to let her go.

They waited like this for hours, until a doctor came by. He introduced himself as Doctor Aurelius.

"Are you Katniss Everdeen's family?" he asked calmly. We all nodded. The Doctor looked down at his clipboard and frowned.

"Well, it only says that Mr. Gale Everdeen, Ms. Primrose Everdeen, and Mrs. Sangria Rosemary Everdeen are immediate family members. They are allowed to stay," Doctor Aurelius stated. He looked at Peeta. "I'm sorry young man, but you will have to leave for the night."

The boy stared at the Doctor. He sighed heavily and slowly got up, until someone yanked him back down again.

"No," Gale said icily through gritted teeth, " he may not be family, but he's her boyfriend. He stays."

Doctor Aurelius looked unfazed. "I'm sorry Mr. Everdeen, but this is standard hospital protocol. Only immediate family members are allowed to stay. All others must leave."

The boy looked over at Gale, and realized that this was about to get out of hand. Before Gale could say another word, he got up.

"It's fine Gale, I'll leave. Just call me as soon as anything happens," he said, looking at the girl's older brother. The brother nodded. Peeta left, feeling as if broken glass were cutting up his heart.

He didn't eat that evening. He just lay on his bed, and stared at the ceiling. Around 10:00 at night, he got a call from the girl's brother.

The boy learned that she had Streptococcus Pneumonia, which was a deadly disease that attacked your lungs. It often killed people within the month, unless treated in its early stages. Gale gave him all the details over the phone, his voice cracking every few moments. As soon as Peeta put down the phone, tears sprang to his eyes.

He cried himself to sleep that night, silently praying that they could cure Katniss. He felt sick to his stomach, broken inside. His girl was in danger of dying, and there was nothing he could do about it.

The boy snapped out of his flashback as the phone rang. He gasped a little, trying to catch his breath. The phone rang once more and Peeta picked it up. He read the caller ID and saw Gale's name. The shakily put the device to his ear, fearing the worst.

"Peeta, come to the hospital. Katniss wants to see you."

Woot! so what did you guys think? I was kinda shaky on this chapter, so it might not make sense at parts. I tried my best.

WOW! five reviews within one day! I've never gotten that many on a single day, much less for a single chapter which i half-assed. You guys are amazing.

oh, and shoutout to OpalStars for her great advice on how to improve my story. You guys should check out her stories. They're really good.

Oh, and Opal, i will forever be squiggling ~(-.-)~ ~(-.-)~ ~(-.-)~

~Reaper