"So then, everything is going to plan."
"Surprisingly", Rory conceded while shredding a daffodil absentmindedly. "I thought Gale would've ripped Mellark a new one for hanging out with Katniss. And he even acted ok with Undersee after school."
"Madge can take care of herself. She's always held her own. It's Peeta and Gale we really have to watch out for. Peeta's breaking out of his shell, but it's happening to slowly."
"What do you have in mind?"
"Well. Peeta invited us to his bakery to help with the cupcakes. And if you happened to stop by because you're doing errands for your mother and just happened to ask me to come with you….they'd be left alone."
"And getting some alone time might make Mellark buck up and get the ball moving?"
"Exactly."
"Well…I guess that could work…"
"Of course it'll work. Be a little more enthusiastic about it won't you? Besides, they haven't caught on yet right?"
"Well…no. But what about Gale and Madge?"
"Hmm…that's a tricky one."
"The Harvest Festival is coming up soon…maybe that could be used to our advantage."
Her smile widened, her cheeks warming as she moved closer, gripping his shirt with both hands. "Rory that's perfect! Madge is always one of the participants in the 'win a date' contest. Usually the Head Peacekeeper's son wins though, which could be potentially problematic."
"Well we'll have to stuff the ballots and when Gale wins he'll have to go on a date with her."
"We can't get caught by the peacekeepers though. They'd throw us in the prison for tampering with an official sanctioned event."
"Which is why we'll have to be sneaky. Thank god I'm a Hawthorne Prim. I've learned from Gale."
"Mh. Though I'm not sure that's necessarily a good thing. Hopefully you don't take after his thick-headedness."
"I'd take offense to that, if it wasn't so true." He grinned, relishing the chance to insult his older brother without the immediate pounding afterward. Apparently boys got a kick out of it. "I'd be dead if he heard that."
She giggled, then immediately felt embarrassed because of it and tried to back pedal to the conversation, pushing a strand of hair behind her hair. Except Rory decided at that moment to poke her in the side, causing her to squeal and fall backward onto the ground.
He climbed onto her and began to mercilessly run his fingers up and down her sides, causing her to writhe on the ground and laugh, pushing against him and trying to struggle. Finally, he stopped, and leaned down closer, grinning up at her.
"I win?"
She huffed, "not that it was a fair fight, but yes."
He grinned wider, and winked at her "I like it when you laugh."
"Really?"
"Really…"
She was acutely aware of how close they were becoming. Her heart was pounding in her chest. "We…we should go! Katniss will be looking for me soon…a—and your mother will send Gale out if you aren't home to help her with dinner."
His smile faded some, but he complied, scooting off of her and then helping her to stand. "So… I'll see you tomorrow?"
"Definitely. Remember to come to the bakery so that I can escape and Katniss and Peeta can get some time alone."
He nodded, cleared his throat as if to say something else, then waved and started walking toward his house.
The rest of the way home she kicked herself for stopping what could have been their moment.
…
"So the first thing we have to do is spread the icing evenly over the top. The more even the coating, the easier it'll be to decorate, and the more appealing they'll be to customers."
They were in the Mellark bakery on a slow grey Thursday learning how to ice cupcakes. Surprisingly, she was enjoying herself; even with the ridiculous cotton aprons they were forced to wear that starkly contrasted their coal dusted clothes.
"We have any color icing that you want…so just pick whatever color attracts your attention."
She hesitated, her eyes sweeping over the clay jars of icing, unsure of what to pick. Prim on the other hand, was busy dipping the dull blade of her knife into the jar of pink icing, a smile spread across her face.
"I think you should use green."
She glanced sideways, and felt her cheeks heat up, though she couldn't understand if it was from a blast of heat emanating in waves from the oven or because of Peeta's close proximity. No matter the case, she quickly dipped her knife in green. Not because he had suggested it of course. No.
"Now how did you do that little duck?" Her cupcake was frosted, and looked about as good as one of the display cupcakes in the Mellark's scratched and fogged windows. The ones she could never have afforded for her sister.
"Peeta helped me."
She got caught up with watching as, with deft fingers Peeta poured more icing into little clear plastic bags, twisting the ends tightly with firm movements. When he looked up from his work and saw her, he smiled, another blush forming around the apples of his cheeks. She couldn't deny that her cheeks weren't heating up. Definitely not from the heat of the kitchen.
"Now comes the fun part. The base is done so now you can create any design you want. It's the freedom of expression that you don't usually find in this world that makes this job so much fun."
"Can you help me make a flower?"
"Of course. Here." He helped Prim hold one of the little bags filled with pink icing, and with slow, methodical movements began to help her squeeze out icing, the form of a petal beginning to take shape. With each petal, Peeta guided her less and less until the moment arrived where Prim discovered that she alone was making the designs that she had so intently stared at before. And although they were nowhere near as good as Peeta's, they were wonderful in her mind.
"Katniss do you need any help?"
"No." It came out harder than she had meant too, and though she started to apologize, she saw Peeta's shoulder's deflate and knew the damage had already been dealt. She promised herself to be nicer to him, and settled to slowly, as to not waste any icing, to draw a bow on hers.
…..
She had just finished her first cupcake and was busy preparing her second, laughing and joking with Prim and Peeta, who had been impersonating people around the district when the door had blown open and in had bounded Rory.
"Hullo Katniss, Prim, Peeta. What are you two doing so far from the Seam?"
"Peeta invited us to help him decorate cupcakes. It might be one of the best things I've ever done."
"What are you doing here Rory? Gale bring a little extra money from the Hob today?" Katniss felt self-conscious, with her newly bleached apron tied tightly around her figure.
"Ma sent me to run some errands before supper and I saw you through the window. Prim, do you wanna come help me collect the laundry from the Pruitts?"
"Sure." She threw off her apron as she spoke, and although Katniss wanted to protest, her voice got caught in her throat as Prim's smile shown at her and waved frantically. Instead, she watched helplessly as their forms retreated through the bakery.
"So…do you want me to help frost the rest of these so you can take them back?"
She nodded, struck silent by the sudden realization that she was alone and had no way to escape without being completely obvious.
"What color…"
"Peeta?" She said it so fast that she wasn't sure if he at first was sure that she had actually spoken. But she had and now that she had started she couldn't seem to keep the words inside of her. They had been burning a pit in her stomach since her their walk home.
"Yeah?" He had stopped his ministrations, dropping the bag of icing onto the counter, and although a small trickle of the stuff seeped out onto the table, he made no move to clean it.
"About what you said? Why?"
"Why? I don't understand." He cocked his head, took a step forward, then shoved his hands into his pockets quickly, blushing and diverting his eyes to the window.
"You said you'd never pity me. That you never could. Why?"
His laughter startled her, and she took a step backward, wondering if maybe her question had somehow pushed him into a fit of insanity, but he just shook his head and smiled. "Because, you don't need it Katniss. You never needed it. You are strong, and you rise above everything thrown into your path. You take care of your sister. Not just yourself. And that's why I don't pity you. I wish that you would be able to understand that not everybody does"
She nodded, her mouth suddenly dry. "I…I'm sorry. I didn't realize. I just assumed that…well. You know with the bread and you walking us home and talking with Prim that…you know."
He nodded. "Don't. Don't apologize. I don't want that either. I just want you to see, at least once, that everyone you call a 'townie' doesn't use you to make themselves feel better. That some of us can actually care about your wellbeing without making it all about us."
She nodded. They were close. Very close to each other. Close enough that she could feel the heat radiating from his chest. She stepped back quickly, another blush appearing on his cheeks. Peeta had turned and walked to the window, leaning heavily against the window's ledge, and breathing deeply before turning around.
"Katniss…"
"Yes?" She tucked a piece of hair behind her ear, and smiled.
"Will you be at the Harvest Festival?"
"Yes. You?"
"Mhm. I have to. I promised Madge I'd watch the crowd and bid on her if nobody picked her. She's doing that picnic bid again, you see."
Katniss nodded, biting the inside of her cheek, her eyes roaming the freshly done cupcakes.
"Maybe we can hang out. When we get there?"
He looked so hopeful. And truthfully, there was a small part of her that had jumped at the proposal, though she couldn't decide quite why.
"I'd like that."
A little OC I think, but I might like it actually. I'm not sure though. Tell me what you think? I have to try to equally place Katniss and Peeta in here too, but I promise that this is Gadge and there will be HEAVY Gadge coming up soon! I promise! Please tell me what you think? Only a small percentage review, and it only takes a second. I need the feedback, because it's the most ingenious way for me to get better at writing. Thanks!
Josh
