A/N - More underage drinking, swearing, general horny boy syndrome.
Katniss and I stop dancing, a few people watching us as well. I take Katniss' hand and turn us slightly to face Rue, "Rue, this is Katniss, my girlfriend. Katniss, this is Thresh's cousin, Rue."
Katniss holds her hand out politely, "Hi."
Rue just looks at it and then crosses her arms over her brightly colored top. Looking straight at me, "Girlfriend? You kept telling me that you were waiting for someone special. Don't tell me this is her."
Katniss puts her hand back down to her side and I pull her closer to me, wrapping my arm around her waist instead. "This is her actually. Rue, I'm sorry, but I've liked Katniss for a long time now…"
"Bullshit! This can't be the girl that you were holding out for! There's nothing special about her." Rue replies, looking Katniss up and down. I look over my shoulder, Cato, Thresh, and Finnick watching now too.
"Let's all go outside and talk about it, okay?" I suggest but she shakes her curly dark head.
"Nuh-uh. If you can't talk to me here, then forget it!" Sometimes I forget how young she is even though she's only a year younger than us.
Katniss steps forward without really getting out of my hold, "Rue? Listen, this really isn't the place to talk about this. Let's just go outside and Peeta will explain. If you want, I'll stay in here, away from you."
Rue thinks about it for minute and then nods, "You'll stay in here so I can talk to him? For real?"
Katniss nods, "Of course, I'll be in the kitchen with the guys, won't intrude or anything."
I don't know how much I like this, but I guess it sounds good. Rue isn't one to drop things easily. She has had a crush on me since she met me at Thresh's birthday party a couple of years ago. First there was Delly, then Rue. It's kind of weird to me but what can I do?
"That's okay, right, Peeta?" Katniss turns to me finally, asking my permission.
I nod, "Yeah, sure. I'll be right back."
Rue smiles, a giant one, like she's won the biggest prize for a contest. I let her go first so that I can give Katniss a quick kiss, "I'll be right back."
"She'll be fine, Loverboy." Cato claims, walking up to us and throwing his arm around Katniss' shoulder. She looks up at him and shrugs off his arm. I knew he would try something, but I can tell by the look on Katniss' face, she's not interested.
I grab my jacket on the way out, looking back at Katniss one more time as she makes her way to the kitchen. She starts talking to Finnick and I feel better instantly because he has been in love with the same girl for years as well and would never hurt Annie that way.
Once we're outside, Rue turns around and tries to kiss me. I jump back, "What the hell?!"
"Oh come on! Isn't that why you're with her? You want some and since she's older by like, what, a year, you figure it'll be okay?" Rue can be rude, but never have I heard be so crude as well. I figured she must hang out with Thresh too much.
"Umm, no and just because I'm kissing my girlfriend doesn't mean I'll be kissing anyone else." I explain, keeping a good two feet away from her. Rue takes a step forward and I take another back.
"Fine, be that way. You know, I've liked you for a long time and you kept saying no to me." She says, a little bit quieter, calmer.
"I've liked Katniss for a lot longer time and finally got the nerve to ask her out. I didn't think it'd be fair to anyone if I said yes while I still liked her." I say, kicking the ground beneath my feet.
Rue puts her hands in front of her, twisting them together. "So, you never liked me?"
I look up at her face, her brown eyes big like a puppy's. She's trying to make me feel guilty; I've seen her do it to Thresh so he'll give her more of whatever she wants. "Yeah, I mean, not like that, but you're cool. Most of the time."
She giggles, "Yeah, I know I can be a bitch. Thresh won't say it but I know he thinks it."
"Yeah, well, yelling in front of everyone just because you want to isn't going to win anyone over. Listen, you should talk to Katniss, she's really nice and has a little sister, so she knows a hell of a lot more than I do."
"Knows what? How to get over a crush before you were ready to?" Rue asks as she walks away from me.
I don't chase her but I also don't feel good about what she said. I look around, only a few people stopped what they had been doing to take a peek. The only people out here are the ones who are smoking anyway, so I go inside quickly. Rue has disappeared somewhere else in the house and Katniss is still talking to Finnick, holding a red plastic cup in her hand. She sees me and smiles. Finnick stops talking to her and she comes over to me.
"Did it go alright?" She asks me, handing me the cup. I look down at it, giving her a questioning look, "Don't worry, Finnick made it, not Cato."
I nod and take a big gulp. It's sweeter than I would normally care for but I figure Katniss wanted it that way, so I say nothing and hand it back to her. "I guess it'll be fine. She didn't argue with me about it. I've never had to do that before."
"Turn someone down? I doubt that, Peeta." She replies, taking my hand and guiding me back to the living room to dance some more.
Once my jacket is off again, we dance for a few more songs before she tells me that she has to find the bathroom. I tell her where to go and that I'll wait for her in the kitchen. Of course all the guys have been waiting for this moment and pounce on me as soon as she leaves.
"Dude! You didn't tell me she was so hot!" Cato slaps me on the back. I shoot him a dirty look that he shrugs off. He could care less about who he may offend.
"We've all been going to the same school, you see her all the time." I tell him, grabbing another shot. Thresh laughs his booming laugh.
"Yeah, but none of us have ever seen her in skirt, let alone dance. Who knew?" He chimes in.
Cato just feels that he has to add, "Well, you know what they say about the quiet ones."
I punch Cato in the arm hard, "Fuck off! We just started dating, nothing's happened yet!"
He holds up his hands, "Dude! Calm down, I won't go after her…yet!"
He runs off somewhere quickly and I shake my head after him. Thresh just laughs again, "He's just doing it to bother you. He knows how much and how long you've liked her. He can't be that stupid."
"Except he is." I retort. "I'm going to go wait for Katniss in the hallway."
Thresh nods and gives me another shot. "At least you two look good together."
"Thanks." I reply downing the drink and tossing the cup back to him.
I go up to the upstairs bathroom, waiting in the hallway where a line has formed, hoping Katniss is already in the bathroom. I'm happily correct as she comes out, fluffing her hair around her shoulders as she finds me.
"Hey, you didn't have to come up here!" She shouts, because somehow the music seems louder up here.
"No biggie. Are you having fun at your first party?" I ask her, leaning in close to her ear. She smells great still, maybe a little bit of sweat, because of the dancing, but mostly like flowers. I don't know if it's her shampoo or lotion and I don't care because it smells wonderful.
She leans into me, answering straight into my ear which somehow goes straight to my groin as she presses against me, "Yeah, thank you for bringing me. I think I'm done drinking though. That first shot was strong and even though Finnick's probably wasn't as bad as Cato's, I still think it was probably stronger than anything Madge or I would make."
I just nod and pull back enough to look at her. Cheeks flushed eyes wide and bright, no hint of an intoxicating buzz on her face. Then I kiss her, hard and deep. At first, I can tell she's surprised, but then she lets it continue and kisses me back, urging me to calm down with her lips. I feel a burning in the pit of my stomach and all the blood rushes away from every part of me, going straight to my center. When she pulls away to breathe, I put one hand on her face and caress her bottom lip with my thumb.
"You're so pretty." I tell her.
She smiles but looks down at nothing in particular. Her dark eyelashes are thick and long, fanning her face just so as she keeps her head down. That kiss was different from the others, more intense. I don't know if it's just me or the alcohol, but lifting Katniss' face to look at her, I'm pretty sure she felt something different too. I pull her back for another kiss and take advantage when she opens her mouth, sliding my tongue in. Not that I have a lot of experience, but I would guess she's a good kisser and I'm getting all hard again. I don't know how often that can happen before it really hurts or worse, explodes. The few kisses we've shared, I usually get to go home not too long afterward and relieve myself.
She moans a little as I pull her closer to me, against me, and I end up pulling back, embarrassed. Katniss' eyes looked glazed before she realizes what's happened. Her voice is deeper, raspier, when she asks me, "What's wrong?"
I haven't let her go and she slides her hands down to my chest, playing with my tie. "Nothing…I just…it's not going too quick?"
She looks up into my blue eyes with her steel gray ones, seeming startled and embarrassed herself, "I'm sorry, I didn't know. It just…it felt right."
I put my hand on her cheek, "I thought I was the one who had to apologize. I would kiss you all night if I could."
She smiles, tugging on my tie, "I think I'd have other things in mind if we were going to spend the whole night together."
Even in the dimmer light of the hallway, I can see the blush on her cheeks; feel the heat of it beneath my fingers. I was so not expecting her to say that first. All I can manage to say though is, "Well then."
Katniss giggles and then wraps her arms around my waist. Her voice is slightly muffled when she asks me, "Do you want to dance some more?"
I think about it for a minute and then have a much better idea. "How about we go someplace else?"
She looks up at me with wide curious eyes and a smile creeps onto her face, "What'd you have in mind?"
I unwrap her arms from me and tug her along downstairs. Grabbing our jackets, I wave bye to my friends as Cato yells out, "Dude, it's not even ten yet!"
I flip him off and we go outside. The chilly air jolts me more awake and I still have a hold of Katniss' hand. Looking down at her, I explain, "Let's go to the bakery. I'm going to show you how to decorate a cake."
