[This chapter and the previous one are about THE hardest thing to write about – don't judge me too much! I had as hard a time writing these chapters as Peeta and Katniss have talking about the subject in my story!]

(Point of View: Peeta)

Katniss said, "You're so quiet," at the dinner we had for our wedding.

I was quiet about her comment too. Then I thought she might think something was wrong, and I told her that I just wanted to remember everything. That was true. I was also very distracted, which was going to make it hard to remember anything! How could I not be distracted? I hadn't been able to take my eyes off of Katniss all day. That image, at least, would be with me forever. Our few guests kept talking to me, and I just smiled politely before I went back to watching Katniss! Hopefully, they understood.

Katniss looked amazing. She'd been made-up by people from the Capitol many times, and I thought she looked lovely then. This time she looked beautiful in a different way though. Her dress was simpler than the ones from the capitol. She smelled of light spring flowers instead of the heavy fragrances they used there. Delly braided her hair elaborately yet tastefully. You wouldn't think I'd notice such things, but I noticed everything about her that day. Katniss looked like a beautiful woman from my home, which was exactly what she was.

Anticipation about our first night together was never far from my mind either. It was hard not to wish everyone would leave! Haymitch stayed the longest, and I think it is possible that he did it to annoy us! Maybe it was because I'd allowed him to bring liquor. When everyone did leave, we made the fire for the toasting. I'd made several different kinds of bread, and I simply asked Katniss to choose which one she liked best. She chose the one that was identical to the loaves of bread I'd given her when she was 12 years old. I kissed her lightly.

"That's sweet, Katniss. Thank you."

"You are the one who kept me from starving – twice. I should be thanking you!" She replied.

We toasted the bread. I tore off a piece and put it to her lips. Katniss laughed. She was teasing me. She did eat it though. I ate some too. It did make me feel officially married. It was a lovely tradition. Of course, then my attention shifted to even more intimate matters. I thought, maybe we should just make love in front of the fire. It was the first time though. I wanted her to feel more comfortable than she could possibly feel on the floor in front of the fire. We'll save that little adventure for another time, I thought. So instead, I lead her up the stairs to her room…our room.

I'd never been with anyone else and neither had she. I knew it would be awkward despite the fact that we'd made out hundreds of times. This was different. Though I had no personal experience, my oldest brother had told me a few things about…this kind of thing. Of course, only half of it was probably true, but that half might still be useful. It was just like making out at first, but she seemed hesitant. I tried not to take it as rejection. I told myself that she was either self-conscious or afraid, probably both. I'll just have to help her feel more comfortable, I thought. I supposed that knowing we were going to finish things this time might be a little stressful for her.

Other than being uneasy about what I would do and how she would feel, making love to Katniss was wonderful for me. I had dreamed of it for so long! There were a few times that I had to remind myself that it was really happening! Not only that, that it was going to keep happening! Happiness doesn't begin to describe what I felt. It was more like euphoria. She was mine. The Capitol hadn't forced her to choose me with threats. District 13 hadn't manipulated her into anything with obligation. She hadn't come to me out of poverty. Instead, she had chosen to be mine and vowed to stay mine of her own accord. How wonderful was that?

Katniss woke me up on the morning after the wedding with kisses and giggles. It was a side of her rarely seen by others. Even I didn't see it much before she fell in love with me. I had seen her act that happy with Prim when we were children, but it was mostly before their father died. Knowing I could bring this joy out in her was thrilling.

"Good morning, Mrs. Mellark." I said with a smile.

She nudged me with her elbow.

I kissed her.

"You were wonderful last night." I told her.

"I didn't do much, Peeta." She said.

"Yes you did; you trusted me. That's priceless." I replied. "Besides, I'll give you plenty of chances to do more if you'd like."

This time she kissed me. She giggled again and said, "I can't believe we didn't put our clothes back on!"

"Why should we?" I said.

"I don't know. We've just never done that before." She answered.

"There were several things that we did last night that we've never done before! Besides, I couldn't have handled sleeping this way before." I said.

She giggled. "No, I couldn't have handled it either."

She kissed me again and slid across the sheet to close the space between our bodies.

"Peeta, let's do it again." She whispered.

I looked down into her eyes. They were the brightest gray, well-rested, alive. There was no trace of the despair and affliction that I'd seen in them when I first came back to district 12. Her face was fuller and she'd gained enough weight to look healthy. I was so glad she was better.

"I'd love that." I answered.

But this time this act of love is going to be all about you, Katniss. I thought.

I tried to remember every time we'd been close. What had she liked and responded to? I tried to do all those things again – slowly and deliberately. I moved from one to another but always came back to those I knew she liked best. She tried to talk a few times but seemed to be too caught up in pleasure to finish what she was trying to say. I just smiled. She never stilled my hands or my lips to clarify. I pulled her body up so it was laying over my own and moved us against one another. Then I felt her take over. I smiled to myself. I watched her face, amazed that she'd finally let herself go. As she collapsed on my chest, I kissed her on the forehead.

"Peeta," She gasped, "Now I understand what you do to me."