Sorry there wasn't a million updates in one day like normal, I had to go back to school :/
Anyway, here's a pretty long chapter to make up for it and I'm hoping to get another one out to you before I go to sleep! Enjoy!
"I take full responsibility," says Haymitch quickly. "If I hadn't sent you that note, you wouldn't have felt so comfortable doing it in there. I was too focused on making everyone believe that you guys were really together. I didn't realize this was even a possibility."
Peeta and I don't say a word. I'm pregnant. Pregnant. Just the word is foreign in my ears. I never wanted children. Any child of mine was guaranteed a slot in the Games, especially since Peeta, another victor, was the father.
"There are procedures," Haymitch says. "We could . . . get rid of it."
I suddenly find my voice. "No," I say. It's scratchy and I can tell I'm about to cry.
"Give us a minute, Haymitch," Peeta says. Haymitch nods.
"I'm so sorry," he apologizes and walks out the door.
Peeta turns to look at me, but I'm staring at the ceiling. "Katniss?" he says softly. "What're you thinking?"
"How could we've been so careless, Peeta?" I say, turning to him. The tears that I've been holding back begin to fall.
"C'mon, Katniss," Peeta says, scooting over and pulling me close to him. I feel safe in his arms. I'd never felt more comfortable anywhere else. "It's going to be alright."
"We're sixteen and I'm pregnant, Peeta," I say. "My mother's going to rip your balls off herself."
Peeta laughs. "Katniss, if we hadn't done all the things we did in the arena, we might not be alive right now. Would you rather die or have a child with me?"
I smile. "When you put it that way . . ." He gives my shoulders a reassuring squeeze.
"And we can hold this over Haymitch's head for eternity," Peeta says.
"Unless it was the night on the roof of the Training Center," I say softly.
He pauses. "I'd kind of prefer it that way," he says. "That was my favorite night, of them all."
"Mine too," I say. "I think it might've been because we weren't on camera."
He laughs. "So we're having a baby," he shrugs. "Big deal, right? We survived the Hunger Games, we can raise a baby."
I kiss his cheek. "Yeah?"
"Definitely," he says. "And anyway. Eight or so months from now, we'll be seventeen."
I laugh. "Yes, because that's so much better."
"The important thing to remember," he says, eyeing me carefully, "Is that now, we're loaded. We could have a million babies and support them comfortably. And I'm going to be here for you through it all, okay? Whatever you want. Foot massages, back massages, cravings, mood swings . . . anything. Okay?"
"I'm really glad you said that, because I'm really craving something right now," I say.
"I'll call the doctor, I'll have him bring it in right away," Peeta says, reaching for telephone. I pull him back.
"Peeta," I laugh. "It's you."
He smiles and plants a single kiss on my lips. "Not here, in a hospital bed. I want our first time out of the Games to be in District 12." He sighs. "But we both know I won't be able to wait that long."
I laugh. "I know you won't be," I say. "But I'll make you wait."
"Yeah?" he asks, his eyebrows raised.
"Of course," I say. "I like that idea, too. Like breaking in our new place in Victor's Village."
"Our?" he asks. I blush.
"Well . . . I mean . . . I just assumed that . . ." I say, but he laughs.
"Katniss, did you really think I was going to let you live away from me while you're carry my child?" he asks. "Did you really think I was going to let you live away from me period?"
I smile. "No."
"We'll get two houses," Peeta says. "We give one to your mother and Prim and we share the other."
"What about your family?" I ask.
"They have the bakery to run," he shrugs. "And between you and me, I have a lot of brownnosing to do to get in with your mother. Was the whole 'not allowed to have a boyfriend' thing true? I meant to ask you that awhile ago."
"Well . . . yeah," I say. "When we get back to District 12, we're dead. Just so you know."
"Thanks for the warning," he laughs.
Peeta and I are taken back to our quarters in the Training Center that morning. Effie greets us with lots of squealing and shouting. Cinna and Portia are all smiles. I get the impression that Haymitch hasn't told them what's actually happened. When we sit down to lunch, we discuss the after-Games interview, which will be held tonight.
"You two were nauseating in there," Portia says. "It was so sweet."
"It was inappropriate," Effie says haughtily. "You're lucky the Capitol is filled with such sex-crazed romantics." We all look at her. "Well, it's true!"
"Speaking of this," Haymitch says. "There's something we need to talk about." Everyone looks to him. "Katniss is pregnant."
Effie spills her wine all over herself, which is completely hysterical. Cinna and Portia look to each other like they knew it was coming.
"It was bound to happen," Effie snapped. "Haymitch, you should've sent them protection."
"It wouldn't have helped," Peeta says, grabbing my hand. "We think that it may've happened the night before we went into the Games, on the roof of the Training Center. Which would mean, Haymitch, you're off the hook."
Effie jumps up and runs off, grumbling. I shake my head. "Well, congratulations," Portia says warmly. "A baby is always a blessing."
"Yes," Cinna says. "This is a cause to celebrate."
"To the baby," Haymitch says, holding up his drink. We all do the same. We can hear Effie shout something rude from the living area.
That night, Peeta and I sit with Caesar Flickerman for the final interview. Tonight, we'll board a train and be taken to District 12, where we'll have to face my mother's wrath.
"Welcome, welcome," Caesar says as we take a seat in the chair they've provided us. And by chair, I do mean chair. There's room for a total of one person. Originally, I'm sitting in the chair and Peeta's standing behind me, but Caesar insists that Peeta sit and I sit on his lap. I sit facing the crowd and Peeta keeps one hand on my back and I keep one arm around his neck so I don't fall. He holds my other hand and rests them on my knees. "Well, I don't know where to begin!"
The crowd roars for us still. Caesar waits for them to quiet down before continuing. "Let's start with that night before the Games began," he says. "What was going on up there?"
"I surprised her with a picnic," Peeta says. "I knew she was going to be nervous and scared and I wanted her to have a good time."
"Is that all that went down?" asked Caesar. "You don't have to lie, we're all friends here."
"There might've been something else," Peeta says and I blush.
"Now, Katniss," says Caesar. "When the Gamemakers went home to find your family and friends, your mother was not at all happy with the way you were behaving. In fact, I believe the Gamemakers were interviewing the first time that cameras caught you and Peeta getting . . . comfortable in that cave." I cringe. "How much trouble do you think you're in?"
"Grounded for life sounds accurate," I say. Caesar laughs. "You think I'm kidding," I say.
"You'll be fine, babe," Peeta says, squeezing my hand. The crowd sighs together. I notice the use of 'babe', though. Peeta's always thinking.
"Tell me about the baby, I'm just dying to hear about it!" Caesar exclaims.
Peeta and I both look at each other and he nods. "Well, Caesar, sadly Katniss lost the baby during the Games," he says. The crowd lets out screams of anguish and sadness.
"But it's okay," I say, shrugging my shoulders. "Because I'm kind of pregnant again."
Caesar's mouth drops open. "No!" he says. "It just seems that you two are destined to have a baby! That just makes my heart burst with happiness! How far along?"
"About a month," Peeta says. "The doctor says that it was probably that first night, the night we killed Marvel and Glimmer."
"You did it so many times; I'm not surprised you're pregnant again!" Caesar says. "There's something so romantic about how you two can't manage to take your eyes off of each other."
"Well, it's hard not to love Katniss," Peeta says, quoting me from our original interview. "I mean, look at her!" I lean down to kiss him and Caesar lets us kiss for a long time. Eventually, Haymitch walks onstage and pushes us apart by our foreheads. He's smiling good-naturedly, though. Peeta playfully pushes him away and kisses me on the nose before we turn back to Caesar, who's smiling like an idiot.
"Now Katniss," he says, getting very serious. "I know that this has to be hard for you to talk about, but what was going through your mind as Cato was . . . well, you know."
My breath catches in my throat. "It's okay," Peeta murmurs. "It's just a question."
"At first, I was terrified," I say. "I mean, Cato was a complete monster. Once I saw that Peeta was coming at him, though, I let it happen. I was still terrified, but I knew Peeta was going to get him."
"While I was watching, I was terrified for you," says Caesar. "When Cato grabbed your chest, you mouthed Peeta's name. Why?"
"I did not like that his hands were on me, Caesar," I say, and the crowd gives a laugh. "His hands just felt like . . . like fire and they were burning me. I wanted to scream Peeta's name to get him to hurry up, but I knew he was coming as fast as he could and I didn't want to draw any attention to that."
"Peeta, how did it make you feel?"
"It made me want to kill somebody," Peeta teases. The crowd roars in laughter.
"In total, the two of you only killed four of the twenty-two dead tributes," says Caesar. "Normally, the victor kills at least five. Why did you lay low the entire time?"
"We didn't, really," Peeta says. "I mean, Cato, Clove, Glimmer, and Marvel did all the dirty work, and we just killed them."
Caesar smiles. "You guys made a fantastic Games."
"Thank you," we say. We watch the recap of the Games, which is completely awful, and then we're dismissed with the Panem anthem. We take one last look at the Capitol before we're boarding the train which will take us home to 12.
Home to my absolutely furious mother.