When she was ready, Peeta was waiting by the door and smiled when he saw her.

"You're a vision."

"You need to have your eyes checked." His smile faded and he shook his head.

"You don't take too well to compliments, do you?" She bit her lip.

"Sorry," she said quickly. "I'm just…not used to them."

"Get used to them. You'll be hearing a lot of them in this house."

He shot her a wink and she suppressed a laugh. He held out his arm and lead her toward the bakery. Katniss was relieved to see the bakery was mostly empty when they arrived. Mr. Mellark was behind the counter, chatting with one customer while another customer enjoyedheir breakfast at a table in the corner. His father shot them a smile when Peeta opened the door and Peeta lead her to another small table off to the side.

"Alright, I'm going to get you some breakfast and get started on those cakes. You sit here and enjoy."

"Oh but Peeta-" but he was hurrying behind the counter, grabbing an apron, and opening the display case.

"What do you think, Katniss? Danish, bagel, or breakfast sandwich?"

"Um…a Danish. Please." He chuckled while he plated one and brought it out to her.

"She likes the sweets."

"Well then she's marrying the right guy," a voice said behind them.

"Delly!" Peeta ran to embrace the young woman and nearly picked her up.

"My god Peeta, is that really you? District 2 changed you! Look at those muscles!"

"Be quiet. It's really look great, Dell!"

"Stop it," she giggled while she playfully slapped his chest. "Peeta! Aren't you going to introduce me?"

"Oh…right, of course. Delly this is-"

"Katniss Everdeen," the blonde girl squealed. "Oh my gosh, it's so nice to meet you! Officially. I mean, I know we went to school together and everything but I've heard SO much about you from Peeta, I mean, he's had a crush on you for YEARS-"

"Ooooook Delly, you can stop now," Peeta muttered, his face a brilliant shade of red. He ran his fingers through his hair, making it stand on end and making him look like a sixteen year old again.

"God. Well, I'm glad I already told you before she outed me ." Delly giggled and nudged Katniss as if they were the oldest of friends.

"Look how cute he is. Seriously, Katniss, you've got a good one here. He's a real sweetheart." Peeta squeezed his eyes shut while Delly gently slapped his cheek. Katniss could do nothing other than

nod.

"Anyway, I need to get going, I just had to stop in and see you since you haven't been to see me yet!"

"I've been…a little busy, Dell."

"Oh I know, I'm just teasing you! You finally got her, Peeta! When's the toasting?"

"Tonight," he muttered. "I was going to come over and invite you after I made the cake-"

"Making your own toasting cake! That's crazy! Hey Katniss, don't let him work too hard, ok? I'll see you both tonight!" She gave Peeta a loud smack on the cheek and for some reason Katniss didn't understand, her hand shook with anger. Peeta shook his head and reached up to rub the back of his neck.

"I am so sorry about that," he mumbled. "She's…very enthusiastic. But she's got a good heart." Katniss nodded stiffly. She didn't want to think about how good they looked together when they were hugging just now. Luscious blonde curls, bright blue eyes, ample chest and thick lips…she was everything Katniss was not. And she was Merchant. Like Peeta's mother wanted. Their children would be beautiful.

"Hey," she registered his hand on hers and she jumped. "Are you ok?"

"Yeah." She jerked her hand back and Peeta's brow furrowed.

"Peeta, I already have four cupcakes cooling so as soon as you frost

them, you can let Katniss taste them," his father called.

"Great…that's great, Dad, thank you." He didn't look away from Katniss but continued to watch as she picked at her Danish.

"Um…I'll just go and frost the cakes and bring them out to you. What kind of frosting do you like?"

"I…really don't know. Just…surprise me?" He nodded and she avoided his eyes. What had happened? They were fine when they woke up this morning. Did Delly's appearance bother Katniss? Her lips were rather thin and she seemed tense.

"I'll be back in a moment." Peeta let himself behind the counter and Katniss sighed as she rested her cheek on her hand.

He wasn't gone long and he had a shy smile when he returned, holding a plate of four cupcakes. He set it in front of her and then sat across from her.

"Alright, this is a lemon cake with a lemon frosting. This one is chocolate with a white frosting. This is vanilla with white frosting. And this one is a chocolate with a chocolate ganache frosting. I've got strawberry, carrot cake, red velvet, and more vanilla in the oven now." Her jaw dropped as she stared at the plate of sweets. She'd maybe had a sweet treat four or five times in her life and here he was, handing her a plate full. He grinned as he handed her a fork.

"Moment of truth. Let's see what your favorite is."

"What if I don't have a favorite? What if they're all delicious?"

"Well then I'll make them all for you," he chuckled. Her eyes widened.

"No, you can't do that. Ok, let's see." He watched as she dug her fork into the chocolate first. His smile grew as he watched her face, her first time tasting so many different delicious flavors. She let out a little moan when she tasted the lemon.

"What do you think?"

"I love the lemon and the vanilla."

"Ok, narrowing it down," he grinned. "Let me get the others out here."

He laughed loudly as she wrinkled her nose at the bite of carrot cake. She actually finished all of the red velvet. The strawberry was much too sweet, in her opinion.

"Here's vanilla again, but with chocolate frosting. You might like the two flavors together." She did; her eyes lit up as she took a bite nd she nodded.

"That might be it."

"Vanilla with chocolate frosting?"

"Wait, you said you liked the chocolate better than vanilla."

"I want to make this cake for you, Katniss."

"But it's OUR toasting," she argued. "So, can we do chocolate for you and vanilla for me?"

"A marble cake," Mr. Mellark chuckled over their shoulders, making them jump. "That one is extremely easy to make. Is that the one, kids?" Peeta's eyes locked on hers and he smiled easily.

"Yes. Mix our favorites together."

"Done," the baker said gleefully. "I'll bring the cake over tonight. Your brothers would like to see you, Peeta. At Bing's house."

"What? Why?"

"Possibly because their little brother is getting married? I'm sure Katniss has plenty to do with her family as well. I'll see you both tonight."

"Thank you, Mr. Mellark." He gave her a warm smile and clapped his son's shoulder.

"Please, Katniss. Call me Bran."

"Dad, shouldn't I stay and help?"

"Make your own toasting cake? Absolutely not. Allow an old man this small happiness, of making a cake for his son and his bride." Peeta grinned and glanced back at Katniss.

"I guess we should uh, get you to your mother's. Want to bring them some breakfast?" She did but she felt terrible asking for it. He seemed to understand and shoved several danishes and other pastries into a bag before he held his hand out toward her.

"Come on."

"Peeta," she said quietly as they walked. "I don't expect you to keep feeding my family."

"That's why you did this, Katniss. I know you just want to keep your sister and your mother fed. They're important to you, so they're important to me. I'll help you. Let me help you." She swallowed but nodded and continued walking.

Prim and Mrs. Everdeen squealed when Peeta stepped on their porch and Katniss rolled her eyes.

"The beautiful bride! And Peeta, you look so handsome today!"

"Thank you, Violet," Peeta said warmly. "Miss Primrose, you are looking wonderful this morning."

"You've already gotten her to marry you, Peeta, you don't need to suck up to me," Prim giggled. Peeta chuckled but their mother threw her a stern glare.

"I need to get to my brother's house but here's some breakfast for you ladies. Katniss and I already ate."

"Aren't you sweet," her mother gushed, peering into the bag. Peeta seemed nervous and tugged on Katniss's hand. Her mother ushered Prim back inside and closed the door. Peeta cleared his throat and rubbed the back of his neck. Katniss was discovering this was a nervous habit of his but it made him look boyish and adorable. She scowled to herself. Adorable? Since when did she think anyone was adorable? What was happening to her?

"Katniss, I…I just want to say…I can't wait for tonight. You've…you've made me very happy."

"I haven't done anything," she said quietly.

"You're marrying me. And that's everything."

"But…how can you be so happy…when all you want is a friend? I mean, you would be better off with someone like Delly, who can give you children-"

"I don't want someone like Delly," he cut her off. "You're the one I've wanted. I thought I explained that to you."

"I just don't understand why," she said with a desperate sort of shrug.

"Well, I don't think it really matters, does it? Oh, I almost forgot. Here's your birthday cake. You can share it with your mother and Prim." He gave her a gentle kiss on the cheek and stepped off the porch. "I'll see you tonight." She nodded and when he was gone, reached up to touch the spot where his lips met her skin. She watched him disappearing down the path and out of the Seam.

When she returned, her mother and her sister started to fuss over her.

"Prim, get her a bath ready and make sure to use my rose wash. Katniss, let's figure out how you want your hair for the ceremony…oh! Come with me." She tugged on her daughter's hand and lead her to her bedroom. At the foot of the bed was a giant trunk that Katniss had only seen inside once, when she was very small. Her mother knelt and pushed the lid open; Prim gasped behind them. Her mother pulled out a beautiful wedding dress of lace and satin and held it out. Katniss stared at her in shock.

"Your wedding gown?"

"I married your father in this and when things got really bad, he wanted to sell it. But I said no, I wanted to pass it down to my daughter one day." Katniss shook her head and took a step back.

"Prim should have it. I don't…I'm not really marrying-

"You may think that it's just a contract," her mother interrupted gently. "But I see the way he looks at you. And when you don't think anyone's looking…I see the way you look at him." Katniss's head snapped up and she wore a frown. But her mother gave her a sad smile and held the dress up against Katniss.

"Please, Katniss. Wear it. For me."

Katniss took it from her mother and turned toward the mirror. Prim and her mother stood behind her, smiling through their tears.

"Katniss…you'll make a beautiful bride," her little sister gushed.

"I'll finish your bath," her mother clapped her hands together like a 5 year old . Katniss had never seen her mother this way, not that she could remember anyway. Prim reached down and squeezed Katniss's hand and the elder Everdeen swallowed thickly.

"Oh little duck…is this really happening?"

"If it was ever going to happen, and we hoped it would, it wouldn't happen with anyone but Peeta Mellark. I know that Gale asked you to marry him on your birthday."

"What," she spun around to face her sister. "How?"

"Rory," she shrugged. "He's got a big mouth. But he told me that Gale asked you to marry him and he was laughing that you said no."

"What a good brother," she mumbled.

"No it's not that. I think his exact words were "Katniss Everdeen is too good for my brother. In fact I think that's why she's stayed single all these years. She's too good for any man around here."

"He did not say that."

"I swear he did. But I think he's right. I think you've stayed single…because you were waiting on someone else." Katniss turned back to the mirror and blinked back tears.

"I thought he was dead, Prim. I never thought he would come back."

"But you wished for it," her little sister said gently. "So a little part of you had to believe that he was still alive." Katniss's silver eyes met her sister's soft blue ones in the mirror. "Let him love you, Katniss."

"I don't even know him, Prim. He said…he said he's loved me since we were kids. But we're strangers! Getting married. And he knows why I'm doing this-"

"And yet he still wants to marry you," her sister said gently. "Doesn't that say something?" Katniss stared at their reflections.

"When did you get so smart, little duck?"

"I've always been smart, Katniss. I get it from you."

"Guys, is this really necessary?" Peeta pulled at the bowtie that was currently cutting off his air

supply. "It's just a District 12 toasting. A casual ceremony."

"A District 12 toasting with the girl you've been in love with all your life," Bing said with a smile. "Now stay still. We should really give you a haircut too."

"No," Peeta's hand shot up to cover his blonde locks. "I just had one in 2. It's short enough as it is."

"Alright fine, no hair cut. But you're going to shave, right? You look scruffy."

"I'm back in my big brother's life less than a week and he's already picking apart my appearance," Peeta muttered under his breath.

"I missed out on three years of your life," Bing said sadly. "Let me enjoy this."

"Let him, Peeta. That way he'll leave me alone."

"You're next," Bing shot over his shoulder and Ryen's smile fell. Peeta chuckled as he pulled on the jacket his brother had set out for him.

"Yeah, Bing I agree with Peeta. I like the jacket but the tie is too much. He looks like he's going to a dinner with President Snow."

"And that's a bad thing?"

"He's marrying Katniss Everdeen," Ryen waved aside. "She's as simple as they come."

"What's that supposed to mean," Peeta snapped.

"Hey, no need to get defensive. I didn't mean it as a bad thing, just that Katniss never cared for fancy things or dresses up like the other girls in the district. She's different. I like her." Peeta tried to do his cufflinks and Bing patiently tugged on his sleeve.

"I'm happy for you, baby bro. Really."

"Bing I thought the baby bro talk would stop when I became a Lieutenant," Peeta muttered as he nervously flattened his hair.

"Not a chance, baby bro," Bing smirked. Peeta rolled his eyes and Ryen laughed behind them.

"Laugh now but your toasting is in two days," Bing reminded him.

"I haven't loved Madge nearly as long as Peeta's been in love with Katniss."

"Did everyone know," Peeta asked softly. Bing and Ryen both snorted.

"You mean like the whole district?"

"Oh please, the day Mom found out, I think all of Panem did too."

"I don't even remember when she found out, to be honest. How old was I?"

"Peet, there have various stages of your life where your obsession has shown."

"I am not obsessed," Peeta protested.

"Alright well you forget, I was in the bakery when Dad brought you home from your first day of school. You were MOONING over this girl you met. 5 years old and already proclaiming love. You kept saying you needed to know how to bake a toasting cake. That you were going to marry the silver-eyed songbird."

"Oh," Peeta's face burned.

"My favorite is when Mom found his sketch book," Ryen chuckled. Peeta's face went even redder at that.

"I, uh, remember her tearing up one particular drawing."

"Yeah and you had like a hundred more. All of her."

"I believe that was the summer we introduced little Peet to Capitol Penthouse." Both boys chortled and Peeta glared.

"Mom found those magazines under MY bed and I couldn't sit down for a week."

"Sorry but we couldn't neglect your education, could we?"

"Ooh and let's not forget when Mom found the birdhouse you made for her when you were 8!"

"I wanted her to have something pretty," Peeta mumbled. "Because when she sings-"

"The birds stop to listen," his brothers finished together. Peeta's eyes widened and Bing winked.

"See? I told you. Everyone knows how you've felt."

"Bing," they heard April call from downstairs.

"Ah, damn. Excuse me, gentlemen, I'll be right back." Bing hurried from the room and Peeta fidgeted in front of the mirror.

"You're the only one who knows the truth, Ryen."

"Peeta," his brother appeared in the mirror beside him. "Just because this is a contract doesn't mean it's not real."

"It's not, though. She did this for her family. Why else would she marry me?"

"Because you're a good man," his brother said firmly. "And you love her more than anyone I've ever seen. It's a little intimidating, man, to be honest with you. I don't know if Madge and I will ever be like that."

"Just because I love her doesn't mean she loves me," Peeta said softly. "I don't want her to feel obligated to love me. I told her that when I showed her the contract. I told her I don't expect anything from her, except friendship."

"So you're not even going to give her a chance to love you?"

"What could I ever offer Katniss Everdeen," he said sadly. "The five year old boy didn't understand what marriage meant. How can I make her happy?"

"She looked pretty damn happy last night when she was holding your hand! Why are you being a martyr, Peeta? Sure it might take some time but she could wind up loving you as much as you love her. You're practically a stranger to her! So become friends. Start there. And then you work your way up to husband and wife."

"District 2 made you pretty smart, Rye." Ryen chuckled as he pulled on his jacket.

"I've always been smart, Peet. I just don't show it often."