She dreamt of vows, music, love and fairy lights. She dreamt of Peeta, his lips, his kisses and his eyes. She dreamt of her future. Their future, tiny babies and children who were chased around the sand and laughed until their stomachs hurt and tears fell down their cheeks.
It was a pleasant dream and left her wanting more.
She wakes to the sound of her father; it was still early and dark outside.
She lies in bed deciding if she'd go out to the surf but she was too cozy in bed and drowsy from the lack of sleep.
She closes her eyes and soon finds herself pulled back into a slumber.
She wakes from a dreamless slumber and checks her phone. A few messages sat on her lock screen. A few from Peeta, one from Annie and from Cassia.
She reads Cassia's message thanking her for agreeing to babysit the girls on Thursday. Annie's was a generic one she sent out to everyone, thanking them for their time, love and support and how grateful her and Finnick where to have such wonderful members in the tribe.
Peeta's messages made her heart flutter.
Sam asked me how I knew I was in love. And I told him, 'nothing makes sense without you'.
You're probably sleeping but I hope this puts a smile on your face and makes your day. I love you and you've made me a better man in just a few weeks.
Meet me for brunch. If I can't wake up beside you, staring into your eyes I want to at least share a meal with you and stare into your eyes and remind you how much I love you.
She replies to him, telling him how she loves him, how he did put a smile on her face and she'll look forward to brunch with him.
Prim is still sound asleep and Katniss slips out of the bed. She gathers clothes and carries them to the bathroom. She can hear the adults up and talking downstairs and she devises what she'll say to them.
She comes down the stairs dressed, showered and feeling refreshed. She's in a great mood for once and is able to engage in a conversation with her mother.
"What are you so cheery about?" Paul asks her.
She shrugs and pours herself a glass of water, hoisting herself up onto the bench, her legs swinging against the cupboards.
"Have a good day yesterday?" Michelle asks.
She nods. "It was wonderful and the wedding and reception was just beautiful. Annie and Finnick are such a beautiful couple. They'll have a wonderful life together."
"How long have they known each other for?" Her father asks, dropping his morning paper.
"Five years."
"Oh, they're high school sweethearts, how romantic." Michelle gushes.
Katniss nods and flits her eyes in her mother's direction. Rosie shifts in her seat and scowls slightly. Katniss hides her smirk as she takes a long drink of her water.
"How long until the baby is born?" Paul asks.
"They're due November. The first week."
"Not long to go."
"No, not long at all." Katniss replies. "And I think it's amazing what they're doing."
"They're that type of couple you're always jealous of, the ones who you can see the love they have for each other and just know it'll work. You only see it a few times. It's rare but it happens." Michelle adds.
"So true." She agrees and watches Michelle turn her gaze to her sister-in-law and than back to her niece.
"Oh, young love. It only feels like yesterday when I met Paul."
"Yeah? Was it love at first sight?"
"I wouldn't call it that but I knew I felt something for him. I kept having dreams and finding myself smiling randomly about him. I knew a few weeks into dating him that I loved him and would spend the rest of my life with him."
"I didn't know people could fall in love with someone so quickly." Paul begins to say. "But it happens. Its unexpected but it happens."
Katniss smiles at her aunt and uncle and looks over at her parents. Her father engrosses himself in the paper and her mother's attention turns elsewhere.
"What about you Mom? Did you fall in love with dad right away?"
"Are you kidding me? She heard him sing one night at the college bar and she fell for him instantly." Michelle explains. "They weren't even dating then and she was already head over heels for him."
"You don't say."
"The next thing we know she's on the back of his motorbike and they've taken off for the weekend down the coast. She had only known him a week and was already jumping onto his motorbike and riding down the coast. I thought it was reckless but I could see the love they had for each other." Paul tells his niece. "She introduced him to Mom and Dad the week after and told Dad she was going to marry him. You know Pop; he's a bit protective of his children and always has a thing to say. But he didn't say anything, he told her to make sure she buckled her helmet and to enjoy the ride cause it was going to be a long one until the final sunset. He told her to make the most of it."
"That did not happen." Rosie claims defensively. "You're telling lies."
"Rosie, it happened." Michelle says. "I remember it as clear as anything."
Katniss watches both her parents go red, caught in a lie, and she smiles to herself.
"Stop filling her head with silly stories."
Paul shakes his head, rolling his eyes.
"Want me to get Nan and Pop on the phone?" Katniss asks flashing her phone.
Rosie huffs and storms out of the room and James clears his throat nervously and follows after his wife.
Her aunt and uncle turn to her. "We're trying to help kiddo." Paul explains.
"I know. Thank you."
Michelle smiles at her niece and kisses her cheek, noticing the chain and touches it. "What's this?"
Katniss fishes the chain out from underneath her clothes and shows her aunt. "Peeta gave it to me. He has a matching one."
"That boy is just too good." Michelle exclaims, looking at the dog tag. "Don't you think Paul?"
"He is. Don't ever let him go."
"I won't." Katniss replies softly and tucks the chain into her clothes.
"Get any pictures from yesterday?" Michelle asks.
Katniss nods and shows her aunt the photos she took. Her favourite one was the one at sunset at the edge of the balcony. Her dress looked like it was on fire with the setting sun. Peeta and her had shared a long kiss that she felt everywhere within her body.
"You two are just gorgeous together." Her aunt gushes as she looks at the other images.
Katniss takes her phone back quickly when she realises one of the last pictures they took. It wasn't something that she wanted her aunt to see. Considering the state both her and Peeta were in.
"Sorry, just…" She stammers.
"You have an inappropriate image?" Her aunt asks with an amused grin. Katniss bites her lip and blushes. "Don't worry dear. I don't mind. You two are young and in love, you're allowed to document it."
Katniss sets her phone down beside her and embraces her aunt. "Why couldn't you be my mother?" She asks softly.
"I'd be honoured to have you as my daughter." She replies. "You should feel lucky though."
She scowls as she lets her aunt go. "I don't."
"It's just a rough patch."
"One that will last until the trip is well and truly over?"
"Hopefully not." Michelle replies hopeful.
"Why do Mom and Dad get the love and support for a quick get together and Peeta and mine's has been thrown under the bus?"
"Who knows, only you'll know if you speak to them."
She frowns and her aunt touches her cheek. "It might help."
"They won't listen."
"Make them."
She expels a heavy breath and sighs. "I'm going to brunch. I don't want to ruin brunch by speaking to them. I'll have a chat with them when I get back."
"Who you going to brunch with?" She smiles at her aunt. Her aunt already knows the answer. "Well have fun and don't be too long unless you have somewhere else to be."
"Just tell them I'm meeting with Johanna and Cashmere."
"Will do." Michelle says and kisses her forehead.
Katniss goes and gets her shoes and her purse and leaves the house. She walks to town alone, enjoying the fresh air and the quiet. Peeta was meeting her at a different café this morning and she followed the directions to the café. He waited for her outside the café. Dark circles were present under his eyes and she knows he's hardly slept. Katniss not being by his side would be the major contributor to his lack of sleep.
She kisses him before speaking a word and he holds her steady against him.
"Morning." He whispers against her lips.
She smiles at him and he takes her hand, leading her inside. They sit in a quiet corner together with their fingers still entwined.
"You're glowing."
"I must have had a good sleep."
"Without me?" He asks.
"You were still there with me."
"A good dream?" He asks with a small smile.
She nods her head and tells him about her dream. She watches the smile on his face grow wider as she relays the dream and he's soon flashing his 100-watt smile and he no longer looks exhausted.
"Sounds like a pretty nice dream."
She smiles in response and leans across the table to kiss him.
They speak mostly about the wedding, both of them still on a high from the day before. Katniss can feel her cheeks hurting from smiling so much. Something about the day just made her feel alive, renewed and she had this warm feeling inside of her.
They run into Glimmer and Gloss with Colbie and Cruz and greet them as they sit down at the table beside theirs for a morning coffee.
"The ceremony and the reception was just beautiful." Glimmer gushes, touching her heart. "It's one of the best weddings I've been to."
"That was one of my firsts." Peeta tells her. "But it's certainly raised a bar."
"Oh and you two. You two are magical. I've never seen two people shine so brightly before. You two just connect and it's beautiful to see that happen. I think you two should just join forces and make music together." Gloss tells them.
"Thanks. It was instant." Peeta remarks and smiles at Katniss. "It just clicked."
"I bet the loving is good." Glimmer whispers to them with a grin. Katniss feels the heat come to her cheeks. "Sorry, it just looks as if you two have connected in that way and have made good music. Enjoy it and keep doing whatever is working."
"Glim, leave them alone. You're embarrassing them." Gloss tells his partner with a smile. "Don't mind Glimmer, she says what she thinks and likes to make people uncomfortable."
"Like you can talk."
"You do it quite a lot." Gloss reminds her. "Not everyone is like you, love."
She rolls her eyes, flicking her fishtailed braid over her shoulder. "Just make the most of what you've got. I'd hate to see it end."
"Thanks." Peeta tells her, his voice cracking slightly.
Peeta pays for their brunch and they walk hand in hand to the beach. It's crowded for the Sunday and they find a space that is far away from the crowds. She sits in between his legs, leaning against his chest as they watch the waves roll onto the shore.
"Where'd you stay last night?"
"With Sam."
"You two had a little talk?"
"We did. I told him to pull his head out of his arse." Peeta tells her. "I mean, he's my best mate but he needs a reality check. Madge is a beautiful girl. She's good for him and he'll lose her if he keeps going the way he's going."
"Madge doesn't like to talk about her feelings much but I know this is bothering her." She says. "A girl can only handle so much."
"I know. I told him that. I mean, he's loved her since they've met, it's undeniable."
They don't say much in their time together and he walks her halfway home.
"I'll see you at midnight." She tells him.
"I'll be waiting."
She walks along the beach home, stepping in the hot sand as she navigates her way home.
Madge is in the hammock when she walks through the back gate. Her headphones on and eyes closed as she sways in the breeze.
Katniss touches her arm, bringing her back into the real world.
"You scared me." She claims as she lifts her headphones off of her ears. "Where have you been?"
"Brunch." Madge rolls her eyes and reaches for her headphones. "Talked to Sam today?"
"He's taking me to dinner." She says. "Anything else you want?"
"Wake up on the wrong side of the bed did we?"
"No." She huffs. "I'm just tired."
"Why?"
"Leave me alone or I'll tell."
"We're 18 not 8."
Madge rolls her blue eyes and places her headphones back on her ears before closing her eyes.
Katniss leaves her to be, not wanting to disturb her anymore and heads inside. She steps over River who lies in the sun that filters in through the open French doors and looks around for everyone else. Her father sits on the couch with a book in his hand.
"Hi." She says to him.
He closes his book and removes his glasses. "How was brunch?"
"Scrumptious."
"Yeah?" He asks.
She nods and moves towards him, sitting on the cushion two down from him.
"You enjoy yourself last night?"
"I did. It was nice. It'll probably be the last time we're with everyone before we leave."
"You've made some good friends here haven't you?"
"I have. I'm part of the tribe Dad."
"They really are nice folk around here."
"They are. They are the friendliest people in the world. I don't think I could find a friendlier place."
"The reception has been warm. We might have to come back here for another visit."
"I'd like that."
He smiles and places his book and glasses on the coffee table.
"Katniss, truthfully, we're you with Peeta last night?"
"Will I get into trouble if I was?"
"It'll be just between you and me."
"How can I be sure?"
He sighs. "Don't worry about it."
She rolls her eyes and stands up to leave. "I was with Peeta last night. This is a small town Dad and the chances of running into him are high. He's best friends with Finnick and Annie. I am friends with them as well and we were asked to sing at their wedding. I wasn't going to say no because of this rule. I wasn't forfeiting their happiness for your gain. I much preferred to bare the brunt of your scolding than see the disappointment on their faces. I'm an Everdeen, I don't back out of promises I make. I don't want to owe anyone anything and I make sure I repay my debts. So go ahead and scold me and tell me how defiant I am for being with Peeta."
Her father exhales and edges forward on the cushion. "I won't scold you. And yes I do understand you can't avoid him completely, this isn't home where our population is 18 times the size of here. You'll run into him. It's what you do when you run into him. I want you to be a bigger person and remember our agreement. No running back to that boy or slipping."
She feels the anger building up inside of her.
"We have two and a half weeks left. I'm sure you can follow our rules for that much longer."
"And what do I get out of this?" She asks through gritted teeth.
"Respect, independence and freedom. We'll treat you like an adult if you can follow our rules. And maybe we'll let you choose your preferred premed course."
She bites her tongue before she lashes out and turns on her heel and darts up the stairs. She finds a pillow and screams loudly into it, the pillow muffling the sounds of her screaming.
She texts Prim when she feels lightheaded, asking where she was. Her sister seemed to calm her when she needed it the most.
P - I'm in town. I can come home if you want me to.
K – No, it's fine. I can wait.
P – You sure? Cause I can come home.
She brushes the tears from her cheek.
K – I'm sure.
…
She follows the coast home. The moon is starting to descend in the night sky and the stars twinkle. She left all her love with her busker but inside she feels empty. She feels numb and alone. Even though her love is just a few hundred metres away.
What will she feel when he's thousands of miles away?
She wraps her cardigan tighter around her waist and navigates her way to the house. She's foggy and her mind clouded.
She slides the back door closed behind her and does a quick scan of the downstairs before she steps silently across the floor and to the stairs. She lifts her foot to step onto the stairs and a deep voice stops her.
"Where have you been?" She swallows the lump in her throat and exhales the breath she had been holding. "Katniss, where have you been and don't lie to me."
She turns to face her father who has emerged out of the darkness. "For a walk." She lies.
"This late?"
"I couldn't sleep."
He studies her for a moment, taken in her dismayed appearance.
"Why are you clothes wet?" He asks.
She touches the tip of her damp braid. "I went for a swim."
He cocks his eyebrow at her and she feels like the world is going to implode. She feels like he is going to catch her on a lie and realise she had been with Peeta for the last three hours and that their dash into the ocean was to awake them and refresh them after their session of sex, weed and cheap wine. It was a plunge to clear their heads and mask the smell.
He stands down, his imitating stance and hard face disappearing.
"Go to bed." He tells her. She nods and turns to take the stairs. "We'll have a chat about this in the morning."
She forces the second lump down and takes the steps two at a time. She shuts herself into the bedroom and strips herself of her clothes. Prim's sleepy voice startles her.
"You got caught?" Prim asks.
Katniss nods as she pulls on one of Peeta's shirts.
"What'd he say?"
Katniss climbs under the covers beside her sister.
"He didn't say anything. He'll have a talk to me in the morning." She explains. "He doesn't know I was with…"
Prim nods her head and rubs her eye.
"Go to sleep little duck."
"You're playing with fire Katniss." She whispers.
"Than watch me burn."
…
Late Tuesday afternoon Katniss wanders down the stairs, her hair was still damp from the beach and her skin was sun kissed. Her phone pressed to her ear, Peeta on the other end.
They had not long just departed each other but they couldn't be apart. Madge, Katniss, Peeta and Sam had gone south to Ballina for a day of surfing while the adults and Prim went to a small town just out of Byron Bay.
"I had a great day today."
"Me too."
"One more day."
"One more day." She exhales into the receiver and notices her mother on the back porch with a book in her hands. Everyone else has vanished. "I've got to go." She tells him softly. "I'll talk to you later."
"Everything all right?"
"Yeah. Love you."
"Love you too."
She pockets her phone and heads towards her mother. She knew she'd find out nothing if she didn't ask her. Her aunt kept pushing her to find out.
"Hi Mom."
Her mother looks up and smiles at her daughter. The afternoon is warm and there is a slight breeze blowing in from the beach and clouds starting to form for the late afternoon storm predicted.
"How was your day?"
"Good. I think Prim has been scarred for life." Her mother tells her.
"Why?" Katniss asks, sitting down beside her mother.
"Let's just say these people don't have a lot going for them." Her mother explains.
"Well you did take her to the drug capital of the world."
"We did but it is a lovely town."
"So why has she been scarred?"
"We were offered drugs at nearly every store front." Her mother laughs. "And we stopped to have a conversation with a few people, the guy asking where we were from. Paul was friendly and polite and the woman they sat with had a brown paper bag with cheap liquor in it and was talking to herself. Well we think she was. Prim dragged us away when the mumbling got louder and filled with profanities she thought was aimed at her."
Katniss smiled, imagining how the town would have freaked her sister out.
"She's ensured us she's never touching cannabis and will remain motivated."
Katniss knew the idea was bizarre because her sister will always be motivated and driven; she'd never fall into the nightmare of drug abusing and unemployment.
"I'm not defending them but most of them don't have a role model. They're stuck in that cycle." Katniss tells her mother.
"I know. It's not their fault and the cycle can be hard to break. We parked near the school and I couldn't help but feel sorry for those kids who didn't really have much going for them."
They sit in an awkward silence for a while. Katniss deciding whether she'll ask her mother the one burning question. She chews her bottom lip and begins to crack her fingers.
"What is it Katniss?" Her mother asks, setting her book back down.
She expels the breath she had been holding and asks, "I know you don't want no questions asked about Peeta but I just have to know why your being so harsh on me. Your parents gave you freedom and accepted you for what you wanted to do. Pop didn't bat an eye at you and Dad, and gave you his blessing after you'd only been with dad for two weeks. Why is it different with me and Peeta?"
Her mother groans softly. "Katniss, you promised there'd be no more questions."
"I did but this will be the last question I ask. I just need to know why?"
Her mother closes her book, setting it down beside her and she turns to her daughter.
"I want you to be motivated and driven. You have so much potential and I don't want to see it wasted. Your Pop could see the good in your father and knew how crazy I was for him. He could see how determined your father was to make it into medicine and create a stable life. I wasn't caught up in some silly dream or was love-struck by the fact that he played in a band and rode a motorbike. I truly loved him for all the other parts and knew I couldn't be without him. I could see us with a stable future built on realistic dreams and goals and real love, not just some holiday fling."
Katniss scowls and feels her blood boil. "This is not some holiday fling."
"You're father and I see it as one." Her mother states. "No more questions."
Katniss can feel the anger and she knows there's no stopping her now.
"I am not wasting my potential on something you think is silly and childish. And Peeta is determined. He is the most determined guy I've met my age. He's determined to make a living out of his music and he has started to. It's still only early but he's soaring. And he has a stable life. And I am so crazy for him and I always will be. I'm not caught up in some love-struck obsession because he's a musician. I know it's a cliché but I love Peeta for everything he is, his musician side, he's surfer side, he's homeless side and who he is as a person." She fumes. "And this is not some holiday fling. I fell in love with him and I want to be with him. He's the guy I want to spend the rest of my life with. It's real."
"You're 18, what do you know about love?"
"Everything. Peeta has shown me. Everything you and dad have shown me."
"You're being juvenile Katniss. There'll be no more discussion about Peeta or how much you love him. How driven he is and how you want to be a musician. It's not happening. I knew coming here was a bad decision, it'd fill your head with silly things." Her mother claims. "This discussion has finished."
"You won't even listen to me."
"It's for you own good." Her mother tells her, picking up her book.
"This is so unfair."
"No it's not."
"I'm 18."
"I know."
"I can legally make my own decision."
"We know and we know the number to the bank to cut you from us financially."
"I have my own savings."
"It won't get you very far."
She feels tears building in her eyes and she doesn't want her mother to see because her mother knows how much this means to Katniss. She knows how much her daughter loves the busker much like Rosie had loved her musician when she was just a little older than Katniss.
Katniss just doesn't understand how her parents can be so mean about this.
She stomps away from her mother and back upstairs to her room. Cuddling the pillow to her chest as she lets the fat tears roll down her cheeks, as she doesn't feel understood or heard.
Dinnertime is quiet. She eats as quickly as she can, scrapes her plate and stacks it into the dishwasher before she escapes down to the beach where she sits until it is late and cries silently as she watches the waves roll onto the sand and watches those late night swimmers and beach walkers.
Her sister calls her in when heavy raindrops start to fall and holds her tightly when she's showered and changed into her pyjamas.
"I hate seeing you like this." Prim admits. "Tell me what I can do?"
"Just being here helps."
"You'll win this Katniss."
She smiles gratefully at her sister and brushes away the blonde bangs. Madge had disappeared to Sam's for the night, leaving the sisters to comfort themselves.
She meets Peeta at midnight like promised and he ravishes her until she is boneless and satisfied, the pain from earlier long forgotten and Peeta's words cheering her up.
He kisses her at the door of his van and watches her disappear into the night. She slips upstairs and climbs into her bed unnoticed. Prim out to the world.
She curls into the pillows, cuddling them to her chest and retraces the moments with Peeta. Remembering his loving hands, his lips, his hold and his touch. The way he feels pressed against her bare skin. She falls asleep with him on her mind.
…
The next day couldn't come quick enough.
The parents were leaving them for another week and the girls would be free from their constant watch and rules.
Her father didn't speak to her about her late night disappearance and neither did her mother. Her father having kept quiet.
But she was still upset with her mother after yesterday afternoon and the pain of her words were still raw this morning when she woke up feeling down, even after her midnight meet up with Peeta.
The three girls sit at the kitchen bench while the adults finish packing their things.
Katniss replies to Peeta and then sips her coffee and tries to not think about the fact that they were leaving in two weeks.
Their days in Byron Bay ending too soon.
Madge is too engrossed in her phone, she had arrived back an hour earlier after leaving Sam's.
The two of them had finally made it official, much to Katniss and Peeta's relief. Her parents were accepting of the dreadlocked boy and let their daughter test the boundaries of their newly titled relationship, despite almost fooling around for a year without the word 'love' spoken in that entire time.
"If anything happens…" Michelle starts.
"We know ring and you'll be here in a heartbeat. We know Mom."
"I'm just making sure." Michelle smiles. "Give me a hug."
They embrace Michelle, letting her kiss their foreheads as Paul enters the kitchen, wringing his hands together, ready to get going.
"We'll be back next Friday but please try and come home for a couple of days. Mum and Dad want to see Prim and Katniss and there's also some cool things we can take them to."
"We'll have a talk and think about it." Madge tells her mother with a smile.
Michelle kisses the girls each again and leaves them to head upstairs, obviously forgetting something.
Her father follows in behind her mother and she can see the look on her father's face means trouble.
"Katniss." He calls her over and leads her to the backyard.
She follows his steps to the grass and waits. She knows everyone had picked up on the words Katniss and her mother had shared yesterday afternoon and she was waiting for her father to scold her.
"We didn't have our chat after the other night." She nods. "I didn't tell your mother. But I need your word. You will not see Peeta at all, unless it's an accidental run in. You promise me this?"
"I promise you."
"And no more midnight walks or swims. It's not safe for a young girl to be wandering."
"Dad, you know I could take someone down."
"I do but I don't want you wandering when we're not here."
"Got it."
"If I find out you've been with Peeta, I will be mad." He states. "There will be consequences." She bites her tongue; lashing out would do no good for her. "And you're mother told me about yesterday." He begins. "Katniss, this is for your own good. Forget the boy and focus on your future." He tells her. "And never disrespect your mother again."
Katniss opens her mouth to protest but decides against it. "Yes." She grunts.
He embraces her awkwardly, Katniss feeling the tension between them and he turns for the house. She takes a moment to herself and finally follows him. She doesn't actively seek her mother to embrace her goodbye and neither does her mother.
The girls send the parents off and Katniss bares a smile and a wave. A scowl makes it way to her lips before their front wheels have hit the road and she feels the anger start to surge.
She retreats to the backyard with River at her side and pats his soft fur as she tries to fight back the conflicting emotions building within her.
But a comforting voice carries up the backyard and where she sits with her head bowed.
Katniss is on her feet and jumps from the top of the steps into his arms. He catches her and spins her as he kisses her. A bag is at his feet and she smiles.
"You're home."
"I'm home."
He squeezes her body tighter and she inhales the smell of her Peeta and his warmth.
She's no longer confused with conflicting emotions; she's content because Peeta is here at her side.
In the dead of the night she hears his voice just breaking through the haze of sleepiness she's been woken from.
The evening is humid and the cracked window does nothing for the two lovers.
"Katniss?" He whispers, bringing her out of her daze of consciousness.
"Hmm?"
It's silent for what feels like hours. She focuses her eyes on his eyes and he looks deep in thought, trying to tell her what he woke her for. He worries his bottom lip as he thinks and she runs her finger gently along his lip. He lets his lip go and kisses her finger softly.
"What is it? You can tell me."
"I hate how I'm coming in between your parents and you."
"Don't." She pleads. "Please don't. You're not the reason this has happened. This has been brewing for a long time."
"But I'm the reason you're not allowed to study music."
She stops him with her lips.
"Stop. I was never going to be allowed to study music. It was just a ploy to get me to behave. I realised this ploy before we left for here. I overheard them a few nights before we left, my dad asked when they were going to break it to me that they wouldn't fund me going to college for music. My mother said after this trip had finished so then I wouldn't step out of line. They just wanted me to behave this trip."
"I kind of hate your parents."
She gives him a saddened smile and he understands her hurt in just that smile.
"I grew up in a household that encouraged dreams and creativity, to be a little brave and step into the deep end. We always had encouragement even if it was the craziest idea and my family would be there to watch or praise us even if we did fail. There was never a time an idea was shot down. I think it has made us who we are today. We accept failure and strive for success, even if we know it won't work. We always feel proud of ourselves and our family is proud no matter the outcome. I'm not afraid to fail this venture, my album and the life I have established here. I don't care if it fails. But I know I'll be distraught if we fail, this will be the greatest loss I have ever faced and I don't know if I can recover from such a great failure."
"We won't fail because I won't survive without you either."
"We have to make this work Katniss."
"We will."
"How?"
She takes his hand and presses it over her chest; right where her heart beats and the chain of her dog tag dangles.
"I can feel it right in my chest."
"Real?"
"Real." She confirms.
He kisses her, his hand remaining on her beating heart. She melts into him and savouring the moment of passion and love that is surging.
"What if I ruin things with your parents?" He asks her, his breathing rapid.
"This is worth it." She tells him. "And if they really love me than they accept you. My Pop accepted my dad and seeing how much they loved each other, told her to strap in cause it was going to be a long ride until their last sunset."
Peeta smiles at her and pecks her lips. "I want to strap in. I'm ready for the ride."