Hiya everybody! This chapter has a HUGE turning point in Katniss and Peeta's relationship. We also have a time change. Katniss and Peeta have now graduated, Katniss got accepted to Julliard (Yay!) and Peeta go into culinary school. I once again am at a loss of words for your support in this story. I couldn't be happier that you guys are still here no matter what I do and I am truly honored. Thanks a lot!
Me: Well, this chapter will make you want to kill me
Peeta: Why?
Katniss: Yeah what are you going to do to us?
Me: Can't say, if I do then no one will read the chapter duh
Peeta: But you're an awesome writer. They'll read it no matter what
Me: Hey, I'm no Suzanne Collins; I can't just make people love my stories with one word. I have to work hard to earn their respect.
Peeta: I guess, but before the chapter I want to do this *leans in and kisses Katniss* No matter what SG does to make you hate me, me hate you, or me hate each other, I will always love you. You are my everything.
Katniss: Oh Peeta *hugs him fiercely* I love you too. Please don't royally screw up
Me: Oh he's going to royally screw up. Your would be lucky that I love Everlark so much or he would be out your life forever
Katniss: Okay, bye Peeta
Peeta: Bye Katniss *tear runs down cheek*
XXX
Graduation Day
Katniss's POV
I rearrange my graduation dress over and over again as I sit on the couch while ironically watching High School Musical 3: Senior Year. I watch them dance in the grass and I momentarily wonder if that will happen in my school. My dress is a soft blue and my heels are silver. I think that I look ridiculous in heel but Prim assures me I look gorgeous. She wears a yellow sun dress with matching heels as she takes pictures on her blackberry of me.
"Katniss you look fine, now smile wider," she says and I do. The light flashes and I blink right before the picture is taken.
"She's right honey," my mom says. Her dress is a pale white and she stands behind my dad who is wearing a black suit.
"You look beautiful. I'm sure that Peeta would think so," my dad says and I blush. Although Peeta and I have been friends for years he's never met my parents. He's supposed to visit us when we finish graduation so they can have a proper meeting. I check the time and see that it's half an hour until graduation and we need to get there. I tell this to everyone and we pile into my car and go.
I get out and I'm immediately tackled by Annie and Johanna.
"Hey Katniss," Annie says, "Let me see your dress."
I open the gown to reveal my dress. Annie gasps and says that it's beautiful and Johanna nods in approval. Annie shows me hers and it's a pretty strapless pink dress and Johanna is wearing a gold one. We talk a while more before three dashing men start walking up to us.
"Hi."
"HI."
Peeta leans in and kisses me and I wrap my arms around his neck. His arms snake around my waist and I smile into the kiss. It doesn't last as long as I would've liked because my family is watching.
"Let me see your suit," I ask him and he opens his gown.
"Oooh snazzy, you look good," I say and he grins.
"Not as good as you do. That dress is beautiful," he says. I blush slightly and tell him that my stylist and friend, Cinna, made it. He's supposed to come today so I have to keep my eye out of him. I take Peeta's hand and lead him to where my family now stands.
"Peeta!" my sister shouts and she runs up to him. She gives him a huge bear hug and Peeta almost falls.
"Hey Prim, how's my Junior High Graduate doing today?"
"She's fine. Comes meet our parents," she says and takes his hand. She practically drags him over there and I start laughing and try to catch up to them.
"Mom, Dad, this is Katniss's boyfriend Peeta Mellark," Prim says. I scowl at her and she just smiles before going to mom's side.
"Hello Peeta, I'm Susan, this is my husband Joseph," my mom says. Peeta shakes her hand and smiles at her.
"It's my pleasure to meet you. Katniss has told me nothing but wonderful things," he tells them. I've only talked to him about my father. My mother has always been a subject that never mattered a lot to me so I felt it didn't matter to my relationship with Peeta as well. I don't voice this of course. Instead I just loop my arm through Peeta's, rest my head on his arm, and listen to how he makes my family fall in love with him the way I did.
It's about 10 minutes later before Johanna comes and tells me and Peeta that the graduation is starting. I part was with them to go to the graduate's area and I cling to Peeta even more. Today is technically the last day of school as well so this will most likely be the last time I step foot in LaGuardia high school. I sit and grasp Peeta's hand for dear life. The whole ceremony starts with a bunch of speeches and the band plays and just a bunch of things that are going on. I honestly don't pay attention to any of it and instead I close my eyes and only open them except for Annie's turn.
"Annie Josephine Cresta."
Annie gets up and gives us wide smiles before walking onto stage. She accepts her diploma and shakes hands with all her teachers. When she sits down she has tears running down her eyes.
"You did it."
She turns to me and smiles through her teary eyes.
"Yeah," she pauses to wipe under her eyelids, "I guess I did."
I close my eyes for the rest of the students and open them quickly when a familiar name is called.
"Katniss Elizabeth Everdeen."
I get up and smooth out my gown before walking up stage. I hear everyone clapping and feel Peeta's eyes on me the entire way and the thought that I'm graduating finally clicks. Tears form in my eyes and I realize that's why Annie was crying as well. I wipe them as soon as I get close to Snow and accept my diploma. Since I was failing math all through this semester he thought I wouldn't graduate. I, being the rebellious girl I am, asked a math wizard named Gale Hawthorne to help me out and I ended up being second best in my class. The first was Gale.
"Here you go Ms. Everdeen," he says with a curt voice. I can tell that it infuriates him that I pulled through.
"Thank you Principle Snow. I'm honored." He nods curtly and I turn to all my teachers. I shake hands with them and say polite words but when I approach Ms. Paylor I engulf her in a huge hug.
"Thank you for being there. Thank you for helping me achieve my goals and exceed my expectations. You will forever be my biggest influence," I whisper through tearful eyes. When I pull away she is crying and gives me a sweet smile.
"You will always be my favorite student," when she says this I have to choke back a sob. Instead I nod and kiss her cheek before going back to my seat and hugging my friends. I thank Gale for helping me and he just brushes it off.
"That's what big brothers are for right?" he said to me. I smiled at him and actually watch the rest of the graduation.
At least 8 kids go since it's not by class and when Gale's name is called everyone erupts in cheers. He's graduating as valedictorian and everyone is happy for him. He gives Snow a firm hand shake and a glare that can be seen from here. He thanks everyone and pays close attention to Darius like I did with Ms. Paylor and Darius pats him on the back.
"You're a good man Hawthorne. Don't let Julliard change that," and with that Gale is off the stage and next to Johanna. He grips her hand for dear life as he fights of the tears I know what to come.
The next person up is Johanna and she is ecstatic. She basically runs up the steps and almost trips' making everyone laugh, and hugs Snow when he hands her the diploma. After hugging her teachers she runs off stage and everyone is falling out of the chairs laughing. It takes about 5 minutes for us to calm down and then its Peeta's turn.
"Congratulations," I tell him and kiss him. He smiles and then walks upstairs. He takes him diploma and hugs Ms. Paylor whose eyes grow wide when he picks her up and spins her around. He kisses her on the cheek before sitting down next to me and kissing me again.
Finnick's the most civilized out of us all when it comes to graduation. He gets up and walks to Snow and shakes his hand firmly before doing the same to all the teachers except Ms. Paylor who he hugs. He slinks back to his seat and Annie talks his hand in her and he smiles. Out of all of us, only Annie and Peeta won't be attending Julliard. She wants to go to this fashion school and all though she'll still be in New York, Finnick acts as if she's moving to Africa. We watch the last person go up, then the Valedictorian's speech and other speeches before we meet us with our families.
"I did it!" I squeal and hug Prim. She wears a big grin and my dad picks me up and spins me around.
"My baby's a high school graduate!" he shouts as he spins me. My mom just hugs me but we've never been close and it does little to nothing to my good mood.
Peeta, Rye, Bannock, and Mr. Mellark come up to us and I hug Peeta. The rest of them congratulate me and I smile. Gale and the others come and we all hug and basically act like little kids.
We're college freshmen now. We can do whatever we want.
We walk hand in hand until Delly shows up asking to talk to Peeta. Being the softie he is he agrees and I spend the rest of the time fuming. While everyone's talking and laughing I slip away back in the direction they went. When I see them I stop dead in my tracks.
They're kissing.
I only feel sadness for a blink of a second before the fire that rests in the pit of my stomach has gasoline poured on it by none other than Delly fucking Cartwright.
I storm over to them and pull Delly away from him by her hair.
"You fucking bitch!" I shout and slap her. She stumbles and falls in her ridiculously high heels and I turn to Peeta.
"I thought you said you loved me! You said that I was the best choice you ever made and you go and cheat on me with her. That bitch that broke your heart. It's not fair. I gave you my heart and you just chewed it up and spit it out. You are nothing to me," I try to walk away when he grabs my arm.
"Katniss please let me explain-"
"There's nothing to explain. You screwed up and how you'll have to deal with it. I hope you have a happy life with Delly," I walk away and this time he lets me go and tears fall from my eyes. I text Johanna everything and I know that she'll tell them. I walk home and Johanna comes with my family a few minutes later. I run straight to her and she holds me while I cry. If there's anyone's shoulder I would want to cry on its hers. She rubs my back and whispers reassurances and Prim snuggles into me. My dad strokes my hair and my mom goes to the kitchen to get cookie dough. It takes an hour for me to stop and the second I do Johanna starts talking.
"Katniss, I don't think Peeta meant to cheat on you. I was talking to him on the way here and he was a blubbering mess. It was Delly that kissed him Kat. Not the other way around. You know that he loves you more than anything and would do anything to get you back."
"No, he's the one who let me go. Who didn't stop me when I yelled at him. If he really loved me, he would've stopped me and explained. He means nothing to me anymore." She doesn't reply because she knows that I won't listen. Prim just hugs me and tells me it will get better as we eat cookie dough. Gale and the others come over after a while and tell me that Peeta's basically turned into a walker from The Walking Dead. I tell them that I don't care and they nod while getting some cookie dough for themselves. This is always how we mourn together. Eating cookie dough with Prim sitting on my lap. It's not until 5 o'clock in the morning that it finally it's me.
Peeta cheated on me. Our relationship is over.
AWWWWW! They broke up. Don't worry you guys know I'm an Everlark supporter so the next chapter will be how the reunite as college freshmen. It will be well into the new semester by then. I'm still crossed between April and May for a timeline because I hate the winter. I again want to thank all of you for your support in this. Your reviews and favorites bring a smile to my face and I couldn't be happier. I'm also sorry for the delay in this chapter. I know I usually update within a few days but this chapter I've been anticipating and when the time came I was stumped. Please continue your support and review and favorite. I love you all!
SchoolGirl123
