I sit against the front door, blocking myself from the outside world. I had finally settled into a new life with Delly, when Katniss comes along and has to ruin it. My arms are wrapped around my legs, my head buried in my chest. She could have lied, she could have told Gale it was his. But what would she say about the baby's blue eyes or blonde hair? She didn't have a choice. She gathered the courage to tell me, and I threw it back in her face. I regret kicking her out, I regret screaming those terrible things at her. But the sight of her tears just made me want to comfort her even more, but I couldn't, I couldn't do that. She needs to be with Gale, it had to be done.
The phone rings loudly and I decide to let it ring out. Who ever it was, they don't ring again. I stay in this foetal position for a good half hour, just running life over in my head. What I could do, what I should do. I know I shouldn't have thrown her out. I should have talked this through with her, conversed over our options. But I know the only option is us. For us to be together again. And what about Delly? And Gale? Then, there's banging at the door im leaning against. I ignore it, just like the phone.
"Peeta!" I hear a male call, "Katniss!"
"Haymitch?" I croak,
"Peeta, open this door now." He replies, stern and unforgiving. What's the bet she went back crying to him, and now he's here to give me a lecture.
"I will bang on this door all day if I have too, and if Delly comes home while im still here, something might slip out."
I scuttle away from the frame and pry myself away from my protective position, standing up and opening the door.
"What?" I mumble grudgingly.
"Nice to see you too, Peeta." He chuckles before pushing inside. "Close the door." I obey. He takes me into the lounge room where I'm sat down in a chair. Just had to be Katniss's old chair, didn't it?
"What did you say to her? What did she tell you?" he interrogates, pacing back and forth infront of me.
"She told me about the baby," I sigh,
"Mmmm?"
"And that it's mine,"
"Okay, so she did tell you. She told me she wasn't going to, then when she came back in hysterics, I thought that maybe you had flipped out. You gave her a scare Peeta, she couldn't stop crying. She couldn't even talk." He whines. I don't say anything to this. I didn't even take that into consideration. What would have happened if I did lose it to the venom? Maybe I did and didn't realise? Maybe I did inflict pain upon her?
"Is she okay?" I ask, my voice shaking.
"Yeah, she's fine. Just a little shocked. I think she may have thought you'd be happy about the news. I don't even know if she's aware of you and Delly."
"Everything would be fine if there was no Delly." I curse. She waited for me though, through all the games, through the rebellion. She had told me she's always been madly in love with me. I guess looking back on it, it was hard to miss. It wasn't fair for me to ditch her again. Who knows what she would do if I ran off with Katniss. And Gale, well, he'd probably hunt me down with a vengeance.
"It's too late," I continue, "Maybe if she had told me a few months ago, but not now, Delly had no one."
I see Haymitch bite his lip, obviously holding in some whity remark.
"Well say it!," I snap, "what is it? Say it!"
He shakes his head, "I don't even know if Delly would mind. Or Gale for the matter."
"What do you mean?" I object, standing now. I can see Haymitch arguing with himself in his head. Im sure if he was still a raging alcoholic I'd be able to get it out of him, but now that he was a sober man, he was tough to crack.
"When," she starts finally, "When the first games were on, Delly did move on to someone else, she thought you were dead for sure. Everyone did. Her and this boy were quite close actually, everyone was sure they would even marry."
"Who?" I exclaim, suddenly feeling a pang of jealousy.
"It was Gale Peeta, Gale."
