A/N.
Took another study break (the things I do for you guys!) so I could write this! This is from Peeta's point of view, but more in his thoughts that the previous ones have been.
Ooooh, I also realised I haven't done a disclaimer, I don't own anything! All of these amazing characters beling to Suzanne Collins!
Enjoy x
Chapter 10 - September (Peeta's POV)
What the hell was that? I was this close, this close, to kissing her, and she just freaked out and ran away. I could hear her crying for hours in her room, and I still have no idea what is going on. It was amazing, our lips were just touching and I swear I could feel a spark pass through us, and then she looked into my eyes and pushed me away. I'll admit, I may have been overstepping my boundaries since she told me not to try anything, but I thought it was what she wanted?
Peeta had been having an internal war with himself ever since he had arrived. One side of him wanted to do nothing but march right up to Katniss, tell her he loves her, and kiss her like they did a couple of years ago. But the other half knew it was a bad idea. Katniss had made it pretty clear that she had almost hated him for leaving, and he needed to repair that damage first.
Katniss had said in her letter that she hadn't had the best of luck with guys, and that some stuff happened. Maybe that was the problem. He needed to talk to Finnick and work this out. It seemed like he knew Katniss more than anyone else. Peeta quickly typed out a text and sent it, just as Katniss appeared in the kitchen in her pyjamas and with her hair in a cute messy braid.
Peeta smiled. "Hey."
Katniss' eyes shot up and met his, and she instantly looked away again. "Oh, uh, hey, I'm sorry about last night, it's just that, well, I just.. Don't want to rush things."
"It's ok. Are you sure you're good though? You sounded pretty upset last night. If you want to talk, I'm here."
Katniss visibly relaxed and smiled back at him, making butterflies rise in his stomach.
They made breakfast in silence, and Prim joined them a while later. "What are your plans for the day, Peeta?" she asked.
"Oh, um, going to visit some old friends I guess. You guys?"
"I have work." Katniss groaned. Prim smiled at her.
"I'm meeting up with Rory, is that ok?" Prim asked timidly, batting her eyelashes at Katniss.
"Fine, but I better not find you guys sucking face again. Especially not in public!" Katniss shot a glare at Prim, causing her to blush and look away.
"Sorry," she mumbled back, still avoiding eye contact. Peeta grinned at how comfortable Prim and Katniss were around each other. Most people he knew would kill for a relationship like that with their siblings. It was just a pity the circumstances they were in. No dad, and a mother that was miles and miles away, and still traumatised over the death of her husband.
Peeta looked after Katniss in the weeks after her fathers death, and it broke his heart over and over again to see her that broken and sad. In the first week he spent days at a time in their house, not even going home sometimes. Their mother was too far gone to care, just sitting in her bedroom holding on to one of her husband's shirts. Prim spent a lot of time outside, sitting underneath the large trees that towered over the house, staring at photos of their previously normal family. Katniss wouldn't even bother to get dressed, wearing the same clothes for three or four days at a time. They would sit on the couch, mostly in silence, with Katniss wrapped in Peeta's arms. Sometimes uncontrollable sobs wracked her body, and sometimes she just sat in silence, muttering the occasional "I can't believe he's gone."
It made him proud to see how strong Katniss was today. The only thing that had changed was her emotional availability. When they first met, Katniss let him in to her life without hesitating; now it was completely different. Katniss had barely told him anything about her personal life the other night. The conversation had safely stayed in the territory of Prim, jobs and college. Nothing about her mother, if she had a boyfriend, or what she was referring to in her letter when she said 'bad things had happened.' This worried Peeta. She clearly wasn't the same Katniss that he had left in America two years ago, and he would have to find out why.
Katniss left for work, taking Prim with her, at about eleven, and Finnick arrived ten minutes later.
"Hey, man! Great to finally meet you!" Finnick greeted him as soon as he was in the door, surprising Peeta with a hug.
"Oh, uh, hey Finnick, it's good to meet you too."
They talked easily, and they both figured out that they had a lot in common. Surprisingly, Finnick was a fan of British soccer, supporting the same team as Peeta did. They both liked the same type of indie-folk music, and they liked all the same kind of movies.
"So, give me all the dirty details on Katniss!" Finnick said through a mouthful of pizza, throwing him a smirk.
"I honestly wish I had something to tell. Almost happened, but she spooked and ran off. Did she say anything? Did I do anything?" Peeta replied, growing concerned.
Finnick's face fell. "I was worried that would happen."
"Why? What happened?" Peeta asked, getting more anxious by the second.
"Look, it isn't really my place to tell you any of this, but some really, really bad stuff happened to Katniss recently. Stuff that shouldn't happen to anyone at all, especially not Katniss. It's been a tough year for her, and you just need to be patient with her. Please don't give up on her." Finnick explained, his green eyes filling with concern.
"What happened to her?"
"I really can't tell you, it's Katniss' decision if and when she wants to tell you. And I think she will. But please don't pressure her. She wants you to be here, but she just isn't great at showing her feelings. Give her time. Be a friend to her and rebuild the trust, ok?"
"Ok."
Peeta got home just a few minuted before Katniss was due to finish work. He began to think of ways to try and get Katniss to open up to him. A date maybe? Nothing too formal, just a casual dinner.
Peeta heard the door open a few minutes later, and Katniss walked in and gave him a nervous smile.
"Hey, Peeta. How were your friends?" she asked him.
"Oh, uh, they were good. I missed them a lot. I was actually wondering if-" The phone rang suddenly, cutting him off. Katniss looked at the caller ID and smiled.
"Hey, Haymitch." Peeta heard a voice coming down the line but couldn't make out what it was saying.
"You're what? Well when's the wedding? This is so great!" Katniss was laughing and grinning from ear to ear. Suddenly her face fell.
"Why? Prim can be my date. Well invite Rory separately and they can stay together all day! This isn't fair. If I don't want to bring a date I shouldn't have to."
Peeta thought he faintly made out the words "Finnick doesn't count" and something along the lined of "I heard loverboy's in town."
"Well congratulations, but this whole date thing isn't over, ok?" Katniss huffed and hung up.
"Well my uncle just got engaged to his girlfriend of only three months. She is absolutely bat shit crazy, but they love each other so I guess that's all that matters, huh? Her name's Effie or something weird like that." Katniss explained, still not smiling but with a distinct twinkle in her eye.
"That's great! When's the wedding?" Peeta asked, not daring to ask about the date issue.
"They're thinking December, but haven't set a date yet. Knowing Effie though, it will probably be something cheesy like New Year's Eve. And he said I have to bring a date. What am I going to do? No one in their right mind is going to want to go to a wedding over the holiday season. Especially not with me." Katniss whined, looking perplexed.
Peeta hesitated. He could just blurt it out, or be subtle. He knew the latter was the better option, but Peeta knew that subtlety wasn't exactly his strong point.
"Well, uh, I could, uh, b-be your d-date? Only if you want to, I mean there's absolutely no pressure at all. And it would be in a totally friendly way."
Katniss smiled at how flustered he was. "Ok, you can be my date. I mean, my friend-slash-date."
Peeta breathed a sigh of relief. That had been so much easier than he had thought it would be.
A/N.
Well haaay! Got 50 reviews so here's your update, and I wanna give a special little shoutout to Beautiful Lie 5105 for all the lovely reviews, they just made my day when I saw them :) Hope you guys like the whole Haymitch/Effie thing, and someone asked when Annie's coming in. I'm not sure how just yet but don't worry, she'll come and cause some trouble!
Ooohhh, and I know my updates haven't been as frequent as I would have liked and the chapters are a little short, but I have a performance exam coming up and I have literally been spending all of my free time sitting at my piano trying to get everything perfected. Things are a little stressful, but give me a few weeks and I'll be back on track with the updates!
Love you all x