My eyes well with tears at the realization of what just happened. He looks shocked. I look down at my stinging hand, and up at my handprint on his cheek.
I'm abusive. I just hit Peeta. I start to back up, shaking my head. "I'm so sorry," I whisper.
"Katniss-"
"Peeta, I-I can't. I'm sorry!" I turn around and run.
JOHANNA'S POV
"This shit is so fucking foreseeable." I grumble, stuffing more popcorn in my mouth as I flip through the channels. My phone's ringtone blares. "Who the hell could possibly be calling me in the middle of the day!" I ask myself, picking up my shitty phone and pressing answer. "What?" I snap.
"Johanna, I need your help." Peeta says.
"What loverboy?" I demand.
"It's Katniss. We got into a really bad fight and she ran off and I've been looking for her for an hour and I can't find her anywhere."
"Brainless ran away?" I ask, concerned as I set my popcorn down and stand up.
"Yes, I called everyone already and we're all out looking for her-" my front door opens and slams shut again, and Brainless walks in.
I could completely spoil her cover, but I won't. I'm going to be one her side either way.
"I'll go look for her." I hang up on him. "What happened?" I ask.
She drops to her knees and just sobs into her hands. I can't do much, but I just help her off the floor and lead her to the spare room. I help her into the covers and go and get her comfort food from the store. I get her all kinds of stuff and then go home. I make her hot chocolate and mac and cheese and grilled cheese and a ton of other stuff, and then I take it to the bedroom and give it to her.
"I smacked him. We got into a really bad fight and I smacked him and he tried to comfort me." she chokes out. "I'm a terrible person."
"No you're not Katniss." I whisper.
"Yes I am. I am." She whispers.
KATNISS'S POV
I don't go home at all that day, or the next, or the next. When Peeta shows up at Johanna's, I hide. I told her the secret I've been hiding and she swore not to tell.
He sounds frantic and worried.
But then I hear Hallie crying. I feel tears well in my eyes. I miss my baby. I miss my babies
I miss Peeta and his touch, and I absolutely hate myself for hurting him.
And my poor baby girl. I open the bathroom door out and peek into the living room. She's sitting on the floor, screaming. Peeta picks her up, and he's so worried it breaks my heart.
I've hurt him more by leave than I did when I hit him. I walk out of the bathroom and sneak up behind him and take Hallie from his arms. He turns around, and just stares at me.
I set her down, and she clings to me, crying. "I'll be…in the….I'm going to take a shower." Johanna walks away.
"Peeta, I know you hate me, but I'm really sorry. I didn't mean to hit you and I was so scared that I didn't know what to do. I ran away and hid like a child. I'm sorry, I'm so, so sorry."
"She's needed you." he says curtly. "You know I was going to call the police? You know that Finnick had to talk me out of it? You know that Annie had to watch her because I couldn't do it? You know she refused to eat? You know she still hasn't eaten? Or slept? You know that Finnick and Annie have been staying with me? You know they're so pissed at you. Matter of fact, everyone is pissed at you. You know I'm pissed at you? You know I love you so much that I hate you for leaving but never want you out of my sight again?" and then he hugs me. "You know I'm gonna take you home and fuck you so hard that you can't move for a day?" he whispers.
…s…
Peeta always keeps his promises.
After I fed Hallie so she was completely full and got her to sleep, I put her in the crib and was practically dragged to the bedroom.
I mean…I can still move, but it hurts. It's morning. We didn't wake up till twelve, and it was because Hallie started crying. "Katniss?" he wraps his arms around me from behind. I'm out on the deck, which is almost three stories in the air and is held up by stakes. It's glass doors in our bedroom that lead out to the deck and overlook the backyard, which is 11 acres. The half-acre is in our front yard. "I'm sorry." He whispers. I lean back against him.
"For what?" I whisper. He nuzzles into my neck, making she shiver.
"For hurting you." he whispers. He means from the sex.
"I deserve it. Besides, it's a good hurt." I turn in his arms so I'm facing him.
"No you don't, Katniss." He puts his hands on my ass, which is covered by noting but my panties. I'm only in a black bra with a plaid button down shirt that's left open and white underwear. He's just in sweatpants.
"Yes I do. I hurt you, Peeta." I run my fingers through his hair.
"Well I hurt you, so we're even." He says.
"Fine," I whisper.
It's snowing out here, so he pulls me inside. We head downstairs, where Hallie is watching Rugrats. My phone starts blaring upstairs, I have one foot on the stairs before Peeta races past me.
I don't deserve him.
He comes back with my phone and hands it to me, lifting up Hallie and throwing her into the air and catching her again. Her screaming laughter fills the house, so I go down to the basement, that Peeta has turned into his place with the guys to watch the games and stuff.
"Hello?" I ask.
"You have a lot of fucking nerve!" Haymitch shouts at me.
"I can't believe she answered the phone for you!" My mother screams. I can hear them screaming.
"SHUT THE FUCK UP!" Haymitch shouts. "Why the hell did you hit him? You know that your DAUGHTER won't eat because she needs YOU and you left her? You left him! What the fuck is wrong with you? You hit him! You hurt him! You ran off like a fucking baby!"
He keeps shouting everything I already know, and because of what's going on inside me, I start crying. Peeta comes downstairs.
"Kat?" he asks. I shake my head, telling him to go. He completely ignores me and takes the phone from my hand. "Stop it. She came home, she said she was sorry. Back the fuck off. This is between Katniss and I and the only reason I told anybody was because I wanted to see if she was with you. Leave her alone and don't talk to her until you apologize." Then he hangs up. "Don't cry. Stop crying. Stop it." He wraps me up in his arms and kisses my face all over, my neck, my whole body.
"Don't cry. Please, please don't cry."
…..k…..
Valentine's day. My heart is beating very fast and out of rythm.
"Open this." I drop the box in his hands. Jo, Ann, Finn, Prim, Alex and Chase are here, too.
"What? No way Katniss. I'm not opening this." He refuses.
"Please?" I beg.
"No. I didn't get you anything. I'm not opening it."
PEETA'S POV
She refuses to let me get her anything and then gets me something anyways.
Sometimes, I don't understand her. "I refuse." I shake my head.
"Fine." She slides the rings off her finger and holds them out to me. She's so stubborn.
"Fine, you're so stubborn!" I rip the wrapping off the box. Everyone watches. She bites her lip and watches me. It's just a cardboard box. I open it up and just see an envelope. I look up at her and she makes a waving motion with her hand. I sigh and pick up the notebook and open up the envelope. She starts biting her nails, a sure sign that she's extremely nervous.
"Read it out loud." She says.
I sigh.
Hey Peeta…do you remember that time you told me we should get rid of some of Hal's old clothes and toys because she doesn't fit them anymore?
When was that, like two weeks ago? Well…you really shouldn't do that.
We kind of need them.
Again.
Because I've five and half months pregnant with twins. One boy and one girl.
Love you!
We're all silent for a long time. I stare at the paper, and then up at Katniss, really confused.
"Wait…" Prim begins. "Now I have two nieces and a nephew?"
"Well I already knew." Johanna props her feet up on the coffee table.
"You're pregnant?" I ask. She smiles.
"Yes. You guys didn't notice my clothes have been extremely baggy? Why I haven't let you have a shower with me? Why I didn't let you look down when we were having sex? Why I've been crying? Eating weird? Getting pissed?"
"Twins though? You're not even showing."
I turn sideways and lift my shirt up and just pull it off.
I am showing.
I'm showing so much that I'm surprised they didn't notice. I'm showing so much.
"Shit!" Peeta drops his glass of water. "I can't believe I didn't notice!"
…s…
This is gonna be fast
Three months pass, I'm a dinosaur, I'm eight months, and we haven't told a soul in the family. We haven't called them.
Peeta refuses to let me call them. My doctor says it's normal and healthy to be premature and that she has never delivered anyone having twins that come at nine months.
I'm due on May 23rd, and it's the fifteenth and I'm on bed rest. Johanna and I are 25. The family called her to wish her a happy birthday and when she asked them 'What about Katniss' they said 'Who's Katniss'.
I cried for four hours after that, and I refused to let anyone into my bedroom.
They say their identical, too. Hallie can speak mini sentences, and she's starting to crawl a tiny bit, but that's it. Jo, Ann, Finn, Prim, Alex and Chase won't leave. "I'm not getting off this couch until your standing in a puddle of fucking water, Brainless." She stuffs her mouth with popcorn. I sit down on the couch.
"I'm such a fucking fat ass dinosaur hippo thing." I grumble. Peeta just sits down and massages my swollen ankles.
"Don't talk about yourself like that." He says.
I've successfully weaned Hallie off of my tits and onto the bottle.
"Me have baba?" she asks.
"I'll do it." I say.
"No you won't." Peeta says. I stand up anyways. Pain explodes through my stomach and it hurts worse than it did with Hal.
"Mama pee!" Hallie giggles, pointing at me.
"You just pissed yourself Brainless?" Johanna asks.
"No! This is not piss, this is water!" I shout at her.
"Pregnancy water?" She demands.
"What other water!" Finn shouts at her.
Things get chaotic. Prim starts Chase and Hallie and Alex gets the bags and Johanna and Annie get the last minute stuff and Finn runs for the car and Peeta lifts me up and chases after him.
PEETA'S POV
"Mama! Please call my Mama! Please Peeta!" Katniss begs.
"Katniss, they don't-" she grabs my hand with such a painful grip.
"Please!" she begs. "I won't push until my Mama is in the fucking room!" She screams at me.
I dial her mother immediately. "Hello?" her voice is bitter.
"Uh…um…Katniss is in labor…" I admit, knowing I'm on speaker phone. I can hear a ton of the girls burst into tears.
"We're on the way." She hangs up on me.
KATNISS'S POV
"Your nine centimeters dilated," My doctor announces. I clutch Peeta's hand because it hurts much worse than it should.
"I'm not pushing till my mom is here." I say. "I don't give a fuck if I'm twenty centimeters dilated I'M NOT PUSHING!" I scream.
"Peeta, call her mother." My doctor days. I dial Mrs. Everdeen.
"Please tell me you guys are coming! She's nine centimeters and refuses to push without you! She's having twins!" I say frantically.
"We're in the lobby but the bitch won't let me up!" she sounds angry and frustrated. I repeat what she just said to the doctor.
"What's her name?" he demands.
"Lillian Everdeen!" Katniss chokes out as she reaches for my hand again. "Peeta tell her to hurry the fuck up!" she crying now. Her other doctor pages the lobby.
"I need Lillian Everdeen up here NOW!" he shouts into the phone.
Two minutes later, Katniss's mother rushes into the room. Katniss starts apologizing a million miles a minute as Mrs. Everdeen introduces herself to the doctor who says that she can work with him and then checks how dilated Katniss is.
"Start pushing," Mrs. Everdeen says. She's still apologizing, screaming this time. We don't even have names picked out. The boy comes out first, and the other doctor washes his off as Katniss pushes out the girl, screaming how sorry she is. She silences though, when two baby's cries have filled the room. One baby, the boy, is placed in my arms, and the other baby, the girl, is placed in Katniss's arms. Mrs. Everdeen is silent as she stitches her up.
KATNISS'S POV
The actual doctor leaves. I stare at my baby girl. Mama changes the sheets, and kneels down next to me.
"Mama, I'm so sorry. Please don't hate me." I whisper.
"I can't hate you. I love you too much." She kisses my forehead. Peeta and I switch off. I hug her with one arm.
"Brennan," Peeta says randomly. Mama and I look up at him.
"What?" I ask.
"Brennan and Bailee." He says. "Brennan," he nods at the baby boy in my arms. "And Bailee. Spelt B-A-I-L-E-E." he announces "Brennan Ethan." He says. "And Bailee Lillian." He says. I smile.
"I love it." I grin. I scoot over and he sits down with me.
"Want me to go get someone?" Mama whispers.
"Everyone," Peeta says. Mama put on the underwear with the dino pad on me, kisses my head and then walks off.
Prim gets in first, and sets Hallie on my bed.
"Mama!" she screams.
"Shhh baby, you have to be quiet." I whisper. She crawls closer to me and Peeta and leans really close to Bailee.
"Hi." She whispers. I'm not going to speak to them until they speak to me.
"Hi." I whisper back.
I find that when your quite, she's quiet.
"What are their names?" Mrs. Mellark asks.
"Bailee and Brennan." I say curtly.
"So are you going to apologize?" Haymitch asks.
"Don't start this here." Peeta warns.