I know it's been FOREVER sense I updated, but here it is! Enjoy and review!

Chapter Twenty One.

After the argument, Peeta and I fall back into place. It had been a few months, and life was just as it always was. We wake up together and eat breakfast. Peeta bakes, I hunt. Haymitch drinks and raises his geese.

Peeta has had another episode, but it wasn't bad. We were eating dinner (some bread and rabbit stew) when he dropped his glass of water, shattering the glass in all directions. I imediently got up and sat beside him, his hands were gripping the edge of the table so hard that they were turning white. I gripped his arm and buried my face in the crook of his neck, saying the usual things. After a few moments he was back.

We both still have nightmares, too. I always wake up sweating and screaming, which I feel awful about because Peeta never wakes up during his. I see images of Prim mostly, but Peeta kisses them away when I wake up. Neither of us has taken out the tapes; they are still buried in the depths of our closet.

One night I had a particularly bad nightmare, this time about Snow and Seneca Crane. I woke up screaming, my throat already hoarse and tears running down my face. Peeta pulled me close to him and whispered reassurances in my ear, kissing me and eventually I fell asleep.

I open my eyes, the thick air of the morning settling in the room and coming in from the open window. I can hear birds and feel the moisture of the early morning. Both me and Peeta are in the same positions that we fell asleep in after my nightmare. He smiles at me and kisses my forehead, brushing the blonde hair out of his eyes after.

"Feeling better?"

I nod and smile at him. He kisses me, and then slips out of bed and stretches.

"Do you have to go to the bakery today?"

"We have a huge order in. So yes, I do."

I sit up and hug my pillow to my chest, frowning at him as he pulls on his work clothes.

"Please?"

Peeta looks at me and sits down, a small smile on his face.

"You know I would if I could. You have to help Sae with the soup kitchen today, remember? Around lunch time?"

"I guess."

He smiles again and kisses me, pulling me a bit closer by the folds in my sleep shirt. I kiss him firmer, hooking one leg around him in an attempt to get him to stay.

He chuckles into the kiss and gets up, then tousles my messy hair and walks into the bathroom to brush his teeth. When he turns to look at me I stick my tongue out, which makes him laugh again. I sigh and come to the conclusion that he really is going to the bakery today, and that I should get ready to help Greasy Sae in town.

I join him at the sink, brushing my teeth and taking a drink of water. When I'm done I notice that Peeta is looking over at me, a smile on his face and that look in his eyes.

"Do you need something?" I ask, finishing my small sip of water.

"Ya."

"OK…. What?"

"I need you to marry me."

I'm imediently caught off guard, trying to go through all the possibilities of what else he could have said that sounded like "marry me."

My heart jumps into my throught and I stare down at the sink, and then take a deep breath. I manage to look up and him and turn so we're facing each other. I don't know what prompted him to do this, I mean, I caught a glimpse of myself in the mirror and it looks like I spent last night in the arena.

I open my mouth to say something, but close it when I can't think of anything. Peeta is looking at me, the smile still on his face and the look still in his eyes.

"P…Peeta…"

Before either of us can say anything he kisses me, wrapping his arms around my ribcage and pulling me to him so we fit together just right. I feel one of his hands brush back my hair and gently tug, which makes chills go down my spine. He waits until I can't breathe to pull away, and it's now that I realized he moved us so we're back in the bedroom. He starts to speak, his voice a bit rough.

"Before you say anything, I want to say that I love you."

He leans his forehead against mine as he talks.

"I love you so much. I want to be able to introduce you to people as my wife. I want to see a ring on your finger every day and know that I put it there. I wake up to you every day, and I fall asleep with you in my arms every night. We brush our teeth together; I mean… we're married already. I just want to make it official."

"Peeta…"

"Katniss, I hope you know you mean everything to me. Just think about it, you don't have to say anything right now…"

"Peeta!"

He stops talking, and I look up at him and smile, and then took a breath.

"I was going to say that I agree. I see us as already married, Peeta. Of course… Peeta, of course I want to marry you."

He stares at me for a moment, like he didn't hear a word I said. It seems to hit him after a minute, and he picks me up in his arms and kisses me again.

"I love you so much," he whispers into the kiss.

"Me too."

His hands are in my hair and my feet are off the ground, and I feel Peeta lay me down on the bed so the full weight of his body is on me. He's still kissing me when he talks, and I can feel him smile.

"I think I will stay home today."

I laugh and kiss him harder, then I wrap my legs around him and reach to unbutton his shirt at the same time he reaches to pull my own shirt over my head. I kiss him down his cheek and his neck, and he grips my hip bone to pull me impossibly closer to him and I sigh and curse at the same time. He whispers once more into our kiss,

"Forget that. I'm quitting. I'm selling the bakery and never leaving the house again."

We eventually talk about the specifics of getting married. Eventually.

Neither of us wants a large party. We don't want a party at all, really. We decided on going to the city center and signing the marriage license the day after our toasting, which would consist of just the two of us. That's all I want.

Johanna, Annie, and Effie were planning on making a visit in about a month, so when they are all in 12 we will make the official announcement and have a few drinks. I know for a fact Effie will want to plan this huge extravaganza, but I'm adamant that she won't even suggest a party theme without a threat to throw her on the closest train. We could have the traditional song sung then, I suppose.

I'm not as afraid as I thought I would be. Peeta was right, we are already married. I'm not afraid of it, I'm happy. It's stable. I need that. Besides, I've wanted to get rid of the last name "Everdeen" for a while now. I associate it with pain, which is the only thing my family has ever given me. Prim and my father are both gone, so that name has nothing else to offer me.

But Mellark is a good name. Mostly, because it's Peeta's.

So what do you think? ;D

WaffleNinja:

KKLSJFLKJFLKSJF THANK YOU! I was worried, but I really appreciate this more than you know. I hope you like this chapter!

Endor Solo:

Thank you! :D

**I LOVE ALL OF YOU AND YOU ARE MY FAVORITES THE END. :D :D