I impatiently glance at the clock. 3:21 PM. After my visit to the bakery, I went straight to my mother's house and asked her to help Peeta. At first, she was confused by my request, she had probably only met Peeta once or twice before. I myself, haven't stayed in touch with him, besides the occasional times we run into each other on accident. I can't quite explain the look my mother gave me but all I can say is it looked very quizzical. She probably thinks I'm in love with Peeta. Of course not. I'm with Gale, I can't have people thinking I'm in love with Peeta.
But I can't help thinking of Peeta. Especially the day he gave me the bread. Even to this day, I can never shake the connection between this boy, Peeta Mellark, and the bread that gave me hope, and the dandelion that reminded me that I was not doomed. And more than once, I have turned in the school hallway and caught his eyes trained on me, only to quickly flit away. I feel like I owe him something, and I hate owing people. Maybe if I had thanked him at some point, I'd be feeling less conflicted now. I thought about it a couple of times, but the opportunity never seemed to present itself.
Prim walks into the room and frowns at my expression. "Hey, Katniss. Want to hear a joke?"
I wave her offer away. "Not now, Prim."
Prim pouts and plops down on the couch facing me. She watches me nibble my lower lip as I look around. Finally, she can't hold it in anymore. "Where did Susie go during the bombing?"
I stop examining the room and look at my sister, my grey eyes full of shock. "What?" I brush a strand of hair behind my ear, unaware that Prim envies the reddish brown hair that was currently tied behind my head in a braid. Prim rolls her eyes at me and smiles.
"Where. Did. Susie. Go. During. The. Bombing?"
I look uncertain. "I don't know, and I am not sure I want to."
"Do you want the answer or not?"
"Whatever."
Prim takes a deep breath. "Where did Susie go during the bombing?" She bites back a giggle. "Everywhere!"
I gasp. "Prim . . . that is so . . . morbid." I shake my head at her craziness and look down at my hands in my lap, twiddling my thumbs.
Prim just watches me for a few more minutes before speaking again. "Knock, knock."
I look up briefly. "No, Prim. I don't want to do anymore jokes right now."
"Knock, knock."
"No."
"Knock, knock."
I throw my arms up in frustration. "Do we have to do this right now?"
"Yes."
I bury my head in my lap. "Gah, fine, whatever."
"Knock, knock."
"Who's there?" I mutter, still hiding my face behind my legs.
Prim leans forward and flashes a smile. "Not Susie."
I look up, my eyes disbelieving. And then a snort of laughter left my mouth. "Okay, I admit, you got me there. But really, why are you so morose lately?"
"I'm not. Peeta taught me that one."
My eyes narrow. "Peeta?"
Prim nods. "Peeta."
I stand up from the couch. "I shall go speak to him right now. See you later, Little Duck." I leave the room without saying anything else.
Prim gives me a small smile. "Quack."
When I finally arrived at Mellark's Bakery, I looked at the time 4:31 PM, perfect timing. I push open the glass door, and make my way into the bakery. Once inside, I see Mr. Mellark behind the counter. I wave politely at him, and he waves back.
"Can I help you with something, miss Everdeen?" He asks, courteously.
"Oh, no thank you," I tell him, "I'm just waiting for Peeta to finish his shift."
"Ah really? He will probably only be a few more short moments, but I'll let him know you're here. Hopefully that will generate some motivation for him to work harder," Mr. Mellark blithely tells me.
I nod my head in thanks towards him, and he turns around and walks into the back of the bakery. A few minutes later, I can hear what sounds like several pots fall down and Mrs. Mellark begin to scream. I smile at this, wondering which Mellark boy was the cause of the mischief. I already can guess that it wasn't Peeta because… well because it's Peeta! Just then, I am greeted by those unclouded, clear blue eyes.
"Hi," he says, curtly.
"Hey," I get off the chair at a table, and walk over to where he stands.
"I'm really sorry about making you wait… Aidan dropped several dishes of icing on the floor… He then ran out of the back of the bakery saying he's late for something, and so I decided to clean it up before my mother became overly irate," Peeta explained.
"Don't worry about it, that's fine," I say honestly, "I just hope that you didn't hurt your leg anymore when you bent down to clean the mess."
I am now concerned about this kids well-being.
"Nah, I doubt it," he casually assumes, "If anything, the walk to your mom's house will be worse."
"I'm sure you will be able to survive!" I playfully tell him, while I loop my right arm around his left arm and pull him towards my mom's house.
As we leave the Mellark's Bakery, I remember what Prim told me earlier this afternoon. "Oh and Peeta... I was wondering why you told Prim such morbid jokes about a dead girl named Susie. Care to explain?"
Peeta literally turns bright red at my question. "Uhm.. It was just a bit of fun. I wanted to make Prim laugh, I didn't actually think she would pass on my awful jokes to you..." Peeta won't meet my eyes. God, this boy is so adorable. I can't help but smile at him and say "Peeta the jokes were actually really funny..." I giggle as I remember the jokes. Peeta finally meets my gaze, proud. "I thought you would hate it because it isn't remotely nice..." I roll my eyes and keep walking towards my mom's house with a soft smile on my face.
