Chapter 12: Bull's eye
(Peeta's POV)
"Oh fuck."
The words slipped from Peeta's mouth before he even realized what he was saying. Katniss gasped, her hand flying up to cover her mouth.
Haymitch stared back at them, a mixture of surprise and smugness decorating his features. He raised an eyebrow at them in the bright moonlight, his arms crossed and his mouth in a thin line. "Well well well...What do we have here?"
Peeta's mind tried to function, but it was nearly impossible given how nervous he was. His palms began to sweat as he gulped and looked over at Katniss.
"He was just…coming by to make sure I made it back to my cabin. I took a walk and um….I got…lost?" she finally squeaked.
Haymitch didn't buy her lie, and it was clear she didn't even believe herself by the way she groaned. "Musta been awfully hard to help you with his tongue in your mouth," he finally grunted, giving them both a pointed look. "Get to bed. Campers arrivin' day after tomorra'. Get some rest."
With that, he turned on his heel, staggered slightly, and made his way up the path towards his office. "And keep it in your pants!" he called out. Peeta felt his face flame with embarrassment, and he was sure Katniss' was doing the same. They remained frozen until he was out of earshot. Both let out a heavy breath and gaped at each other with shock.
"I didn't even hear him walk up," Katniss gasped, pushing her hair off her face. Her cheeks were indeed pink with embarrassment as she stared up at him. Peeta shook his head and clenched his jaw. This was not good. Surely an incident like this would set them back, right? Katniss was already freaked about the idea of them hooking up, but now? Surely she would call it off and be done with him for good. He tried his best to figure out how to rectify the situation.
"I didn't either. Look, I don't think he'll say anything. He's not liked Effie; I mean…he seems cool."
He crossed his fingers and hoped for the best. He didn't think his heart could take another rejection after the year he had. Would she ever want to fool around ever again, or, at least make out as they had been doing? Peeta watched her as she paced nervously in front of him and realized he really wanted to get to the fooling around stage with her. If only, he thought.
He didn't mean to have such a one track mind. He wanted to get to know her too. The idea that the unique, interesting and beautiful girl had taken a liking to him was still a miracle in his mind. Peeta wasn't sure how he had managed to catch her eye, but he didn't want to give her up anytime soon. He was ready to give his heart to someone who would cherish it.
He hoped that someone was Katniss.
"You think so?"
"Yeah, I really do. Haymitch hates all that gossipy bullshit. I heard him tell Effie to can it once when she was talking about someone else. He wouldn't tell her anything – that would just fuel her even more."
Katniss gave him a skeptical look. "I hope you're right. I just…I don't usually…do this…type of thing. Like….ever," she stammered, gesturing between them. Peeta caught her hand and held it in his. Their skin sizzled pleasantly together, and he watched as her eyes darted down to their joined hands. Another blush started to rise in her cheeks.
"I don't either."
Slowly, he leaned in closer to her small frame. Katniss froze up and stopped breathing, her eyes fluttering shut just before he touched his mouth to hers. Peeta kissed her gently, letting his lips linger on top of hers with as little pressure as he could. He pulled away only slightly to whisper, "breathe," She did, exhaling swiftly against his mouth. She smelled like toothpaste and the Dove soap his mother used, he realized. Smiling to himself, he opened his eyes to see her staring up at him with wild eyes.
"Why me?" she breathed. "No one ever picks me. I spent my Saturday nights alone in my dorm room."
"Why not you?" he said quietly, staring down at her. "No one ever picks me either. I'm the guy girls get to know so they can hit on my taller, hotter, richer friends."
"But….it doesn't make sense for you to like me."
"How could I not? Look at you. You're just….so different from everyone else. It's so refreshing. You're real, Katniss."
Katniss' tongue slipped out of her mouth to wet her bottom lip, and he watched it carefully. "Peeta…"
"No, Katniss," he said softly, reaching up to cup her cheeks, "I'm beginning to feel lucky that no one ever paid attention to me until now. I'm really glad I met you."
With that, he placed another slow, lingering kiss on her lips. It was much different to kiss her in an un-frenzied manner, although he did enjoy both ways. Slow and sweet, hurried and rough. Katniss leaned into the kiss, her soft lips moving with his in a gentle dance. Their teeth hit together softly as they both smiled, caught up in the moment. He grinned even wider as he pulled away; letting his hands drop back down to her sides. Katniss crossed her arms and seemed to not know where to look suddenly.
"I'll um….see you at breakfast," she muttered, her cheeks flushed and her eyes wild. Peeta grabbed her hand and stopped her, grinning from ear to ear. Keeping her eyes down, she hurriedly stood on her tip toes and pressed her warm lips to his cheek. He smiled bigger as he watched her hurry around to the front of the cabin, still wearing his sweatshirt.
"Like I can sleep after that!" he called quietly, shaking his head at himself. Chuckling, he slowly made his way through the moonlit night back to his cabin.
The next morning at breakfast, Peeta watched as Katniss held her breath and stared Haymitch down from across the cafeteria. The shaggy, blonde haired man staggered in, grabbed as much coffee as he could carry, and sat down at his table with Effie. Based on the bored look on her features, he hadn't told her anything. All too soon she said something irritating to him, and he grabbed what was left of his coffee and left.
With a sigh of relief, he looked over at Katniss. She gripped her fork and snuck a glance back at him. They shared a secret smile before she turned back to listen to what Annie was saying.
Finnick smacked his shoulder and hissed, "I gotta talk to that girl again."
Peeta looked over at the girls' table and frowned. "Which one?"
"The brown haired one that's talking to Catnip or whatever Gale calls her. Gale's friend. The one next to Gale's friend, yeah. I gotta talk to her again."
"Finnick, Annie despises you. Come on man," Peeta chuckled, splitting his bagel apart. He carefully coated the round piece of bread with cream cheese, making sure not to waste any. When he was satisfied, he looked up to see Finnick still staring at the girls' table.
"I think that's why I like her."
Peeta raised an eyebrow at his boisterous roommate. "You're joking, right? Usually it at least works in your favor if she'll talk to you without acting like she's talking to a four year old, right?"
Finnick shook him off. "Nah, today I'll talk to her. It'll be great," he whispered, more to himself. "She'll see I'm not….well, she'll see."
Peeta bit into his food and snorted. "Good luck with that," he said once he had chewed. It was refreshing to see the calm yet slightly condescending way Annie spoke to Finnick. Not that he blamed her – Finnick had every girl at camp drooling after him except for Katniss and Annie. When he tried to pull the same suave routine on the brown haired equestrian that he had with all the other girls, she had coolly put him in his place. As much as he liked his bunkmate it was a welcomed sight. He glanced at Katniss again and bit back a smile the same way she did. Ignoring each other in public would be harder than he thought.
Especially when all he could think about were the kisses they shared. The thing that he loved about the whole situation as how cold and indifferent she could appear in public yet be the complete opposite when they were together. She was open, warm, and had seemed completely open to his advances. He stared into his coffee as he remembered the way her lithe body had curled against his, their fronts completely flush as their mouths met. Her lips had moved completely effortlessly against his, inviting and soft….
"You alright?" Finnick asked suddenly. Peeta coughed and nodded, giving his friend a wry smile.
"Just tired. Stupid mattress is old," he lied. He was glad he was sitting at a table for at least a few more minutes and that Finnick seemed to buy his answer. The hardness in his jeans seemed to relax for a second as he shifted in his seat and tried not to think of Katniss or the way her breasts felt pressed against his chest.
It was going to be a long day.
Later that afternoon, Peeta was instructed to help Gale with the mowing. Camp Panem had almost a thousand acres of woods, fields, lawns, and cabins, so there was a lot to do in the way of yard work. The two boys set off together after breakfast with the task, happy to have something mind numbingly easy to perform. Gale was slightly hung-over and Peeta was exhausted from lack of sleep. They mowed for the first four hours without interruption, and to their delight the morning flew by. Before he knew it, they were slowly making their way across the main field to the wooded area. His heart raced a little faster when he realized that was where Katniss would be instructing archery every morning. With each row mowed, he slowly got closer to the little clearing with the targets in it. He could only hope she was there setting up.
"Let's take a break!" Gale called, motioning to Katniss. Peeta nodded, parking his lawnmower and killing the engine. Gale gripped his head and winced, wiping the sweat away from his brow.
"Never again?" Peeta guessed.
Gale could only nod. "Shit," he grumbled. "Hey, Katniss is over there. Let's take a water break with her, yeah?"
"Oh, um….sure," Peeta said casually, following Gale. He silently rejoiced that he would get to spend his free time with Katniss that morning, even if he would have to pretend like he didn't know her. As he had thought, she was in her area, setting up.
"Catnip!" Gale called, his voice a low groan. She looked up in surprise, frowning until she saw who it was. She smiled softly as she finished pulling a couple arrows from a target. Her eyes moved to Peeta, who gave her a simple wave. She nodded and looked away, her pinks turning slightly pink as they got closer.
She would make a terrible actress, Peeta thought smugly.
"Need water?" she guessed, reaching into a small cooler. She produced two bottles, tossing one to Gale with a flourish. She handed Peeta his, letting their hands touch momentarily before she yanked her fingers away. Peeta stared at the ground and tried to not let his dick get hard again.
"I'm never drinking again. Figures Haymitch would make me mow. I think he knew," Gale groaned, shuffling over to a bench. He collapsed in the shady spot, flinging his arm over his eyes with a defeated grunt. Peeta sipped his water awkwardly and watched as Katniss bit her lip. It was a cute gesture; a nervous habit of sorts, but it always reminded him of how her lips tasted against his. He licked his own and tried to shake the thought.
"I just want to rest here," Gale groaned. "Just rest…"
"Oh God," Katniss groaned. "Every time he drinks…"
"How's your morning going?" he asked casually.
Katniss glanced nervously at Gale, who was still on the bench with his eyes covered.
"Fine. Just um…getting ready for the kids."
"Yeah, uh….they get here tomorrow. That's crazy. Guess summer is finally kicking off," he offered.
She smiled and nodded, tucking a stray piece of hair back that had fallen out of her braid. His eyes lingered on the way it fell over her shoulder, the curly tip landing just above where her nipple would be. The one that was pressed against his chest, sans bra just hours before….
"Yeah, I guess. So….it's hot out," she said slowly, picking up her own water bottle. Peeta gave her a quizzical look before following her gaze to Gale.
Oh, he thought. She's afraid Gale will guess something is up between us. Biting back his disappointment, he nodded to tell her I get it.
"Are you excited to see your sister? Prim, is it?" he asked.
"Very. I miss the kid."
"Will you introduce me?" he asked after a small pause.
"To my sister?"
"Yeah."
"Um….sure."
Katniss picked up an arrow, twirling it lightly in her hands. "I was just brushing up," she muttered. "I haven't shot in a few months."
"Are you any good?"
She snickered to herself and picked up her bow. He watched with rapt fascination as she lined the arrow up, pulled back, and let the arrow fly. It whizzed through the air and hit the target twenty yards away. Bull's-eye. He gulped back his initial intimidation and gave her a grin.
"You're really good."
She smirked to herself and met his gaze. "I do alright."
Peeta glanced back at Gale, who was now softly snoring. "He's asleep."
She followed his gaze and laughed softly. "He's passed out again. I bet he was still drunk."
"Go easy on the guy, I like him. I see why you're friends."
Katniss grinned as they fell into the same effortless conversation from the dock. "I um…I'm sorry about last night. I was just a little…freaked I guess that Haymitch would say something."
"I told you he wouldn't," Peeta playfully chided her. "It would have been worth it."
Katniss looked up at him skeptically as she loaded another arrow. She pulled it back and let it fly again. It hit the spot right next to her other arrow with a soft 'thunk'. "I'm glad you think so," she murmured.
Peeta scratched his head and looked over at Gale, who was still snoring in the shade of the archery clearing. "Look, Katniss…I don't want last night to….I guess I mean I….."
She paused, turning to look at him. She was close enough that he could smell her Dove soap and it was almost making him crazy. Her gray eyes stared up at him as her cheeks turned their familiar pink shade. "What?"
"I want to hang out….with you. Again. I meant what I said last night. I like you."
She thought a moment, her expression thoughtful. "I don't hang out with most guys." She fired off another arrow, making Peeta jump slightly when it landed.
"Ah…alright. Well I'm not most guys. And I think we owe it to ourselves…"
Thunk. Another arrow.
"…to at least see where this goes. If you don't want to tell people…"
Thunk.
He frowned, realizing he wasn't even beginning to mess with her concentration. How could she be so nonchalant about it? He was suddenly a nervous wreck. "So what do you say?"
Katniss ignored his question and kept shooting. Thunk.
"I still have your sweatshirt you know."
Peeta toed the dirt and smiled. "Keep it."
Katniss laughed. "Afraid I'll get cold?"
He thought a moment, picturing the way her nipples had stood out against the thin nightshirt. "It's not a bad sight, but….I want you stay warm."
She caught his meaning and laughed. "Oh. Yeah, um…I wasn't expecting visitors."
"Believe me. It was okay," he chuckled. "Um…so anyway, what do you say?"
She put down her bow and looked at him again.
"You want to keep hanging out?"
He nodded. "I want what you want. Whatever….um, whatever that is. But no one has to know."
A faint smile danced on her lips. "Like a secret?"
Peeta grinned, jamming his hands into the pockets of his shorts. "If I could tell the whole camp I made out with Katniss Everdeen I would. But since Cato's campaigning for asshole champion on the world and Glimmer is a gossipy bitch, then….if you want to keep it secret, fine."
He watched at Katniss nodded to him, pursing her lips as she pulled back her bow and let another arrow go. "Fine then. Our little secret."
I know I know...Peeta is a horny bastard. Don't get me wrong, he cares about Katniss a LOT already, and they WILL spend more time talking and getting to know each other. Right now though, he's always the tag along wingman and he's wearing his heart on his horny little sleeve. He's watched people like Cato get ass for years now, so I'd imagine he'd still be sweet but a hornball.
I'm a review reply fail again - but I DID spend all my extra time writing, I swear! I'll be on vacation for the next week buttt...let's just say if we hit 500 reviews I might be coerced to post during vaca. I'll have my laptop so...hit that little review button!
