Note: MANY of you have been asking for this, so here it is! There will actually be a part 3 after all. Thanks for being so patient! Like I said, I'm working on my own stuff right now, so I haven't been doing a lot of Fanfic writing. :) But thanks for sticking with me!
If you like this chapter, I'd love it if you'd leave me a review. What do you think will happen next? (Which you can answer at the end of the chapter). To be honest, I'm not sure myself. (gah!) :D
Thanks so much!
-Homey
Title: Present (Part Two)
Oneshot Number: Six (6.3)
Premise: Katniss and Peeta fell in love in the future. How about in modern times?
Why I liked it: C'mon! Present Katniss and Peeta are fun to write! What's not to like? :)
This oneshot is dedicated to ily26. Thanks for this awesome idea, and thanks for reading You Love Me. I appreciate your support!
-Homey
P.S. A part three will follow. Eventually.
Disclaimer: The Hunger Games does not belong to me. Which I am very sad about. (as you can imagine...)
©HomeschoolGirl 2012, or at least this actual post is. The characters, not so much. But anyway, please don't use this as your own. Thanks!
He wasn't there.
"Why didn't he come?" I asked Delly as innocently as I could manage.
She shrugged. "Sometimes he needs to be alone, I guess." She tapped her temple with a manicured fingernail. "He's so screwed up."
"It's a good thing he has you," I replied wryly.
She laughed. "Oh, Katniss. I'm the last thing he needs."
That girl had a way of making me feel naïve.
I slept my coke hangover off until noon the next morning—six cans of soda were way too much. Even then, when I woke up five hours later than usual, I could only manage to get a few saltines down. My stomach churned.
I went on another walk, watched a cable movie, and drank lots of water. By Sunday morning I was recovered enough to down two huge heaping bowls of cornflakes, and three cups of coffee. My energy was unsustainable.
I took to the park for a brisk jog and ended up spending half the morning talking to a cute, hunky guy who was name meant to hit someone. He wrote his cell number on the back of my hand.
Hm. Maybe I didn't need Peeta after all. Not.
Walking into Lit Monday morning was similar to walking into the dentist. You get that gnawing in your stomach—I was unsure of what to expect. It was like being blind. Would you have a cavity or would everything go so perfectly the dentist would take one look inside your mouth and exclaim, "Teeth! Perfect!" Not that I was expecting Peeta to yell, "Katniss! Perfect!" when he saw me, but still. It would have been nice.
He was at his usual desk, minus Delly, who was seated by Madge. I ghosted right past him and stopped at my seat, waiting.
Delly smiled up at me. "Good morning, Katniss. You look lovely."
"Thanks," I said with a tinge of annoyance. "May I sit?"
"Madge is helping me with an algebra problem. We have the same class. Maybe…" She snuck an inconspicuous glance at her friend. "Maybe you can trade places with me? Would you care?"
"Yes I would care." Each word came out in a sharp hiss.
Madge rolled her eyes and pointed the tip of her pencil to the empty spot beside Peeta. "Sit. Now."
"But-"
"It's okay." Delly stood, much to my relief. "I'll move."
"No." Madge put her hand on her arm, and the blonde beauty sank back down. "No, you will not. Katniss, quit acting like a shy idiot and go sit next to him."
"I'm not in the mood for your matchmaking."
"It isn't matchmaking," Delly explained. "She really is helping me."
I took in their two hopeful faces. "Ugh. Fine. But I want both of your cookies at lunch. If Peeta brings any."
"Why don't you ask him?" Madge giggled.
I turned around. Peeta was staring right at us. Fan-tas-tic.
"Did you hear that?" I asked sheepishly as I shuffled over to him.
He dropped his head. His blonde bangs fell into his eyes. I had the overwhelming urge to run my fingers through them. "Yeah."
"They're being…" I plopped down into the hard plastic chair.
"Annoying."
"Insufferable."
"Incorrigible."
"Perfect. They are incorrigible." I groaned. "They won't give up!"
"On what?"
"Nothing. They just-"
"They just-"
"They just get an idea into their little heads and won't shut up." I grew quiet as our close-to-dead teacher shuffled around, handing out worksheets.
"I thought you've only known them for a week," he whispered when the teacher passed. I shivered as his breath blew against my ear. It was warm.
"Yes. But they're very easy to figure out," I whispered back.
"Eyes on your paper, Everdeen," the teacher snapped.
I raised my hand.
He sighed. "Yes, ma'am?"
"My name is Katniss."
"I am aware," he replied, drawing each word out to a horrible death. He wheezed a little. "As you can imagine, I am not in a state to be dealing with ungrateful delinquents such as yourself. Please listen, and refrain from questioning my authority. No fraternizing with the Mellark boy."
"We're hardly fraternizing, sir," I said softly.
"But you should be," Delly mumbled under her breath.
I glared at her. "Delly, please. I hardly know you. You're in no place to question my life or anything I do with it."
She looked a tad shocked by my outburst, and I was, too. What was happening to me? I stood, chair legs scraping loudly against the floor, and scooped up my books. I hurried from the room, ignoring my teacher's protests.
Peeta, of all people, stopped me in the hall. "Hey. Wait."
"What?" I snapped, turning around.
He recoiled. "I just…"
"I don't want to be here. I knew this was a bad idea." My face crumpled. "This isn't going to work. I should be home, helping my mother with Prim." I told myself to stop talking, but I just couldn't. No, no, no. Shut up, Katniss. "I hate everything about this place. The campus and the teachers and even the kids."
Peeta flinched. "You don't even know us."
"Do I have to?" My eyes watered. I was going to cry. "Maybe all I need is to know that you don't like me and that Delly and Madge are nice because…"
"They like you," he said simply. "Don't ruin it. Please."
I buried my face in my hand. "Ugh. This is way too stressful."
He put his hand on my shoulder. I froze.
"Come have dinner with us. Me, Madge and Delly. We'll get to know each other."
"And if I don't?"
He grinned. "Then you'll be missing out." He headed back toward the classroom. "See ya, Katniss."
I apologized to Delly and Madge the next morning. They forgave me readily, even though I didn't really deserve it.
"So you will come to dinner with us?" Madge asked hopefully as we headed to lunch. She exchanged a smile with Delly.
"I guess." I shrugged. "When is it?"
They gave me the details, and I promised to see them that evening.
Getting dressed was a chore. I tried on pair after pair of pants, shirt after shirt, until I was satisfied. I pulled my hair back and dabbed on a bit of makeup. There.
The first person I saw upon walking into the restaurant was Delly. She was wearing a cocktail dress, with a little split up the thigh. I suddenly felt terribly underdressed in my plain black slacks and frilly blouse. Blah.
"Katniss!" She screeched when she saw me. "You look amazing. That shirt is so cute. You'll have to lend it to me sometime."
I allowed myself to be hugged by her, a bit warily. "Is Madge here yet?"
"No," she pouted. "Madge can't make it. Her mother's not feeling well. She gets, like, the most terrible headaches. So it looks like it'll be you, me and Peeta."
"Oh," I said. "Great."
Right at that moment the devil himself waltzed through the door, so beautiful it hurt to look at him. I lowered my eyes as he walked up to us, pecked Delly on the check, and nodded to me.
"Sorry I'm late," He said, twirling his car keys around on his finger. "I stopped by a friend's to compare English notes."
"You should have told us, Peeta; we'd have helped."
"I know, Delly. But their house was on my way, so…" He smiled at me, and my stomach turned somersaults. "Plus, I'd rather spend the time getting to know Katniss. That's much more fun."
"Yeah." Delly giggled. "It sure is."
A waiter came to seat us. Delly stole the chair by Peeta's, leaving me directly across from them, the perfect place for scrutiny. I stared at the menu because I seemed to have absolutely nothing else to do.
What a loser.
"So," Delly said in her chipper way, after we'd ordered drinks. "You came here from Kentucky, right? And who's back home?"
"My sister, Prim. My friend, Greta. My mother."
"No dad?"
"No. He died…a few years back."
"Oh." She placed a hand over her heart, happiness fading. "That's…that's terrible. I'm so sorry."
I shrugged. Apologizes didn't bring him back, so I'd always found it strange that people did that first. Then came the questions.
Except, there weren't any from Delly. She just changed the subject.
"So. What's your sister like?"
I pictured Prim. Beautiful, golden hair. Bright eyes. A warm smile.
"Like me…only nicer. Prettier. Happier," I said after a moment.
Delly smiled. "Well, you're all those things, Katniss. Isn't she, Peeta?"
"Uh-huh," He muttered politely, frowning at something on his cell phone. For someone who had seemed so excited to have me along, he was very lackluster now.
"Is everything okay?" Delly whispered.
"Fine," He answered distractedly.
I pretended not to see the exchange, opting instead to stare at my plate. Fascinating. The white-on-white was very, um, classy. Gorgeous craftsmanship, too.
Ugh, I thought. Say something. Be bold! Greta says that's what gets guys' attention. So do it! Say something!
But Delly beat me to it. "I am just so tired! I'm, like, on my cycle right now, so don't be surprised if I started PMSing." She winked.
I wrinkled my nose in disgust but Peeta just laughed.
"That's your specialty isn't it, Del?"
Oh, great. They were better friends than I had thought. I mean, she was comfortable talking about periods with him. God.
"So am I," I said, straightening up a bit. Liar, liar. And gross! Who even says that at the dinner table? In front of two people you hardly know?
Only me.
"Just kidding," I tacked on. "Ha-ha, so funny, right?"
Delly finally cracked a smile, although it looked forced. "Mm. So funny!" Her enthusiasm seemed to grow and she barked out a laugh. "Hilarious!"
A beep sounded from Peeta's phone. He looked at it. Again, the frown was back. It didn't suit him in the slightest.
"There's a bit of an emergency, at home," He muttered, looking up at Delly.
Something flashed in her eyes and she seemed to understand. "Oh. Okay. Well, go. Be safe? Okay?"
Another kiss on the cheek (this time from her to him), a non-committal pat on my back (when the kiss would have been better) and Peeta was gone, leaving behind the slightest tinge of cologne and the scent of old spice.
"This sucks," I said softly, deflating in my seat.
Delly smiled sympathetically. "We can plan something later, if you'd like."
"I don't know…" I stood up. "Maybe…I should head on home."
She looked over her shoulder. "I see someone I know. Mind if I stay?"
"Sure." We said our goodbyes and I headed for the exit.
Peeta's cologne offered a sort of trail down the bustling sidewalk. It was intoxicating. Without really thinking, I followed it. Screw going home—I wanted to make something out of this evening, and if following him pathetically like a stalker was what that entailed, then so be it. Besides, we were friends, right? And friends followed friends down crowded streets at eight o'clock in the evening on a daily basis.
It was completely sane. At least, that's what I told myself.
Up ahead I saw him, walking, hands shoved deep into his pockets, shoulders drooped. He looked so alone.
"Peeta!" I called, on a whim. He turned around and saw me. No expression crossed his face other than an angry one. That was a bit discouraging, but I decided it probably wasn't directed at me. I jogged up beside him.
"We can take my car, if you want," I offered. "You know, might be faster."
"No, thanks. I'll walk." He turned away.
I grabbed his arm.
He looked back at me.
"Hey," I whispered. "It's fine. I'm not going to ask questions. Besides. It's…cold." I shivered. "Brrr, right?"
Finally, the slightest hint of a smile crossed his beautiful lips. "Right."
"Then let's go."
"Fine."
He followed me back to my car, wordlessly. I offered to let him drive but he declined. So instead I found myself, fifteen minutes later, following directions down a totally unfamiliar street. The houses were ramshackle, to say the least. Peeta finally told me to pull over to the curb. I did.
"You can go on home now," He murmured. "Thanks." He opened his door but hesitated and, so quickly it could have been my imagination, leaned across the console and kissed my cheek, lips barely brushing the corner of my mouth.
I melted.
"Y-you're welcome," I replied, but he was already gone, shutting the door softly behind him. I watched as he loped down the sidewalk, finally vanishing in the darkness of a burnt-out streetlamp.
Panic seized me once I could see him no more. What was he doing out here, in this horrid neighborhood, so late? Surely he didn't live here. I doubted it. No way.
So this was what? A drug deal? God, please don't let it be that! If it was and the police found him then he'd tell them I was an accomplice and…wait. Peeta didn't do drugs. He was clean-cut. Keen. Handsome.
So obviously, this was something else. But what?
Finally, I just decided to see for myself. I unbuckled my seatbelt, slung my purse over my shoulder, letting the strap settle on my chest, the way you're supposed to, you know, to keep people from stealing it.
I stepped out of my car, slowly shut the door, and locked it.
Okay, Katniss. You can do this. Just…walk.
So I did. I walked. I followed his direction. The smell of dirty garbage and B.O. overrode his cologne, though. Goodness. How did B.O. even linger out here, when there was absolutely nobody in sight?
I hesitated before the streetlamp. It was so black from here on out, I could see absolutely nothing. I pulled out my cell and dialed 9-1-1, hand posted over the SEND button, ready to be pressed at any given moment.
I stepped into the blackness.