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He showed up in the early morning hours with shadows carved beneath his eyes and words juxtaposing throughout his mind. In his hand, he held what he had wanted to give but had no courage. Now he had gathered up some miniscule ounce of courage and was going to give it to her.

Fuck the consequences. Too much time had passed since he saw a genuine smile on her gorgeous face. To him, this was more than unacceptable. He hoped to be the one to bring the special sparkle back to her eyes and a small smile to creep up on her face.

The door opened with a resounding creak and he was greeted by Delly Cartwright. She crossed her arms over her chest and stared at him with unsurity piercing her eyes. She closed the door behind her softly and stepped onto the porch in her bare feet, shivering from the early morning chill in the air.

"I knew you would be here," she greeted him with a smile and then gasped when she got a closer look at him.

He appeared to have had a really rough night, his hair was disheveled, stubble coated his face, and there was blood on his wrinkled clothes.

She ran a hand over his mouth and sighed. "I don't think she could handle you looking like this. She is still alseep. Please, come inside and get cleaned up. I have some extra clothes of my brother's which should be about your size. She will be happy to see you."

He shrugged his shoulders and followed Delly inside. He placed his special gift inside of his pocket, saving it until he would get to see Katniss again.


Katniss awoke in a cold sweat, clutching the thin blanket to her chest and trying to catch her breath. Her mind registered she was not home and panic set in. She spun her head around the room, gauging her location and trying to calm her rapidly beating heart. Being alone made her uneasy and her fingers ached to feel the strong muscles of Peeta's back.

The smell of coffee and oatmeal wafted to her nose, and she threw off the sheet to follow the smell. She poked her head down the hall and realized where she was. Last night came flooding back to her images...Gale...Peeta...Peeta telling her to leave...coming to Delly's. Katniss wrapped her arms around herself as she walked into the kitchen and found someone most unexpected sitting at the table with a mug of steaming coffee in his hands.

Katniss said nothing, just rushed over to him and threw her arms around his chest. She placed her face in his neck and ran her fingers up his back. She intertwined her hands at his neck, faintly feeling his pulse. He responded by placing his arms around her and pulling her close. She curled up into him and closed her eyes.

"I thought you would be here sooner," she murmured, fighting back the tears pooling at the edge of her eyes. Katniss only wanted to focus on the fact Peeta had come back to her, he was here and he was mostly himself. She would find a way to make sure he was okay. As long as he didn't push her away, everything would work out in the end.

"I had some thinking to do. You know, wanted to clear my head of thoughts where I murder you," he deadpanned.

Katniss dug her fingers into his skin and held him close. "I don't care. I am not going to leave you anymore. Neither one of us can handle life very well without the other around. It makes me...uneasy to wake up and find you are not lying next to me. I don't handle things very well when you are not around."

Peeta stroked her hair absently and said, "All I ever wanted to do was marry you and show you I could be everything you needed. It is hard for me to compete with Gale when there seems to be some kind of magnetic force which keeps driving you both together."

"He means nothing to me. I love you, not him. All he does is remind me of the way I am never going to see my sister again."

He scoffed. "Then why would he show up here?"

Katniss sighed and pulled away to look him in the eyes. "You really don't understand, do you? He came here because he knows I would never leave you. He wants to drive a wedge between us because he is jealous of you. He always has been. Because I love you and not him."

Peeta blinked and then crashed his lips against Katniss's. He kissed her with all of the emotion he had been holding back for weeks. His tongue probed hers, and she melted into his kiss.


He held the token in his hand, causing her to let out a small gasp.

They had been sitting at the table eating oatmeal and sipping coffee while Delly was hovering in the background. She kept a close watch on the couple because she wanted to make sure neither of them were harmed. Delly was aware of the demons Katniss and Peeta had to fight. The young couple had so much going against them, she wanted to make sure they still had some time for happiness. Genuine happiness and contentment was rare for people who had been through so much, neither had emerged unscathed and still had a lot to work through.

Katniss reached out to grab the small thing from his hand and hold it in her own. She turned it over in her hands, looking at the roundness and small size. Katniss knew she was holding a ring in her hand, but she did not understand why. Never had the word marriage and engagement come up since the time of the Rebellion. The facade of being engaged and married to please the Capitol were as close as they had ever come. But now, the ring was in her hand and Peeta was looking at her with pleading eyes.

"I don't want to bring children into such a fucked up world. I can't see bringing life into a world like this," Katniss whispered, slowly slipping the ring on her finger. She stared at how strange it looked and took it off quickly.

Peeta sighed. "I am not asking you to choose right now. But having a family with you would mean everything to you. For all of these years, you were everything for me. I never thought there would be a chance for us and then the Games... You are all I have left. Children would be a way – to regain what we have lost."

She slid the ring back towards him and shuddered. "I can't imagine becoming the way my mother was. All despondent and depressed, unable to do the most menial tasks for my family. I don't want to be like her. And I can't imagine having a child with blonde hair-" she choked on a sob. "Who, who, who looks like Prim."

"Just marry me, okay? Don't start dwelling on children right now. We can just get married. Finally have a chance to be happy. That elusive happiness which likes to fuck us over." Peeta stood up from his chair and walked over to Katniss. He took her hands in his and got down on one knee. "What do you say, Katniss? Make me the happiest guy in the world and marry me?"

Katniss smiled for the first time in days, causing Peeta's heart to skip a beat or two. She reached out and grazed his tousled hair with her hand. "You love me. Real or not real?"

"Real," Peeta echoed and kissed her softly.

Katniss pulled away from the kiss. "Then of course I will marry, Peeta Mellark."

Times like this made it easy to believe the odds were in favor of Katniss Everdeen and Peeta Mellark.


Looks like Katniss and Peeta are getting married.

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