Author's note: Hey, all! When I last posted a chapter, we weren't in the scary middle of a pandemic. Now we're thoroughly in it, especially here in the good old US of A. The events in this chapter aren't currently possible in this climate, so I hope it is a nice distraction.

Many thanks to aihodineverlark for sticking with me all this time. I know life is crazy for all of us, so I appreciate you taking the time to beta my chapters as haphazardly as I send them.

And thank you, dear readers, for taking the time to read and review and favorite and everything. I hope life is treating you well and that you are keeping safe and healthy. Come talk to me on Tumblr (booksrockmyface or hpfanonezillion) any time.

Happy reading!

Chapter Seventeen

"Are you nervous?" Peeta asked as they walked into the stadium.

"Extremely." Katniss looked toward the registration table. "I have to leave you both here. But first," She dropped down and opened up her bag. She pulled out some papers and stood with them held out.

Peeta took them. "What's this?"

"Some basic rules. If you have any questions you can ask Prim or my mom. But this will help you with a bit of it."

"Thank you."

She smiled and pressed herself up on her toes to kiss his cheek. "Enjoy yourselves." She handed over her phone. "Will you hold on to that?"

"Sure." He took it and their fingers brushed. "Do I say 'good luck' or 'break a leg,' or what?"

"'Aim true' is what my dad used to always say."

He gave the papers to Riley and stuck Katniss's phone in his pocket. He took hold of her face and leaned close. "Then aim true." He kissed her forehead and then stepped back. "I'll see you when you win."

Katniss laughed. "I might not."

Peeta squeezed her hand. "You'll do great."

After a quick trip to the bathroom, Peeta and Riley were on their way to finding Prim and Iris. Prim spotted them first and waved enthusiastically, pointing to a pair of seats in front of them as she moved their things out of them.

"Hi, Prim!" Riley exclaimed.

"Hey there, kiddo!" Prim ruffled his hair. "How's Hammy?"

"Fine. He didn't like the snow."

Iris laughed. "I didn't like the snow either."

Peeta asked, "Have to drive in it still?"

Iris nodded. "Some of you folks are lucky. I still have a job even when it snows a million inches."

Peeta caught sight of a young woman about Prim's age sitting close and looking expectantly at Prim. "You must be Rue." He held out his hand.

"I am." Rue smiled and shook his hand. "You must be Peeta."

"That's me." Peeta indicated Riley. "This is my son Riley."

"It's nice to meet you." Rue smiled. It was bright and warm.

"So how do these things work?"

Prim explained, "There are these things called ends and those are the rounds. There twenty ends. Each archer has two minutes to shoot three arrows and then they go to check the score. When it's time to start the end, we'll hear two whistle blasts to signal the archers to approach the line and then one blast when it's time for them to start firing. Three whistle blasts mean the end is over and it's time for the archers to retrieve their arrows and tally the score."

Once the competition officially started, Prim explained the scoring, but it was a little hard to follow. After a while, Peeta started to understand and had a good time by the time the last arrow was fired.

"Did Katniss win?" Riley asked as they were giving out the awards at the end.

"Second place," Iris said. "She was a little shaky."

"I noticed that," Prim said. "Wonder what was making her so nervous. She's usually a rock out there."

Iris shrugged. "But I say she's probably ready for a burger and a shake." She explained to Peeta, Riley, and Rue, "It was her tradition with her dad when she was a kid. After a competition, they always found a little diner and got a greasy burger and a vanilla shake."

They started to make their way out of the seats.

Riley said, "I like chocolate shakes."

"Chocolate is good," Iris said.

Riley slipped his hand into hers as they walked down the steps. Peeta was a little surprised to see it, but pleasantly so.

They found Katniss near the entrance to the main floor speaking with some of the other archers. She spotted Peeta and smiled, lifting her chin up to acknowledge them. A moment later, she left the group and walked toward them.

She grasped Peeta's hand before she greeted her mother and sister with hugs.

Riley tugged on Katniss's arm. "Can I see your medal?"

Katniss knelt down in front of him and took the medal from her neck to let him look at it closely. "Second place. Not too shabby, huh?"

"Yeah, at least you didn't lose."

"Riley!" Peeta scolded.

Katniss laughed. "No, he's right. Keep hold of that for a minute, would you?" She fastened it around his neck and then stood. She wrapped an arm around Peeta's waist. "So I hear there is a diner across town that serves the best vanilla milkshakes."

"What did I tell you?" Iris grinned.

Katniss shrugged. "Tradition." She let Peeta take her hand. "I'm starving."

Katniss hated that she got second place. She had been so nervous with Peeta and Riley in the audience. She knew how to calm her nerves, but they weren't listening this time. Second place wasn't so bad, but it wasn't what she had hoped for. Especially with the winner only edging her out by a few points. Points she would have had if she wasn't so shaky.

Peeta held Katniss's hand as they walked out. "You sure you want Riley wearing that thing?"

Katniss looked down at Riley. "I trust him to keep it safe until we're in the car." She winked at him and he giggled.

"I want to be as good as you, Katniss." Riley said, holding tightly to the medal around his neck and slipping his hand into Katniss's.

"Then we need to start practicing often." She squeezed his hand. "As long as your dad is okay with it."

"We'll see." Peeta kissed Katniss's knuckles.

"That usually means yes!" Riley said. He turned to Iris. "Katniss is going to help me practice so I can shoot a bow just like her."

Iris held out her hand. "Come here and tell me more."

Riley let go of Katniss and ran forward to Iris. He started chattering immediately.

Katniss was grateful for her mother in that moment. Quietly she said, "Second place is first loser."

"Is that what you tell your students when they make second place in a volleyball tournament?"

"No." She admitted reluctantly.

"You were close. She only beat you by a few points. You did great."

Katniss sighed. "Still don't like it."

Peeta squeezed her hand. "I know."

"A bacon cheeseburger will make it all better." She grinned and squeezed his hand.

Riley asked, "Can I ride with Iris?"

Peeta shook his head. "We're not changing the booster over."

"I'm too big for it." Riley argued.

"Nope." Peeta took out his key and unlocked the door. "Climb in." He reluctantly let go of Katniss's hand as he opened it and helped Riley in.

"Can Iris ride with us then?" Riley asked.

Iris smiled. "I'd love to."

In the back seat, Riley and Iris chatted softly. Katniss reached over and took Peeta's hand. She had to consciously think about it sometimes. Touching her sister and mother came naturally. It was getting easier with Peeta, but sometimes she had to remind herself to do it.

He kissed her knuckles. "Is there anything I can do for you?" He asked softly.

She smiled and shook her head. "Not right now. But I'm sure one or the other of us will think of something."

At the diner, Riley insisted on sitting between Iris and Prim.

Peeta put his hand on Katniss's knee under the table and whispered, "Is this okay?"

Katniss smiled and nodded. She rested her hand on top of his.

Iris asked, "Katniss, how is work?"

Katniss shrugged. "It's work. That snow storm got everyone not wanting to focus."

"Well, I know I didn't want to do anything after all that." Rue said.

Katniss laughed. "It's understandable. I wanted to just play in it all day, too." She made a face at Riley across the table. "We made a really cool snowman. Well, it was half done by the time I arrived, but it was still fun."

Riley grinned. "That was the best day ever. We need to make pizza again."

"We sure do."

Peeta hooked his fingers around Katniss's. "Riles, did you want the chicken fingers or a hamburger?"

Riley wiggled his fingers and said in a silly voice. "Chicken fingers!"

Iris laughed and ruffled his hair. "You're a riot, Riley."

The compliment made Riley beam with pride. "Thanks!"

When the waitress came over to take their order, Peeta murmured to Katniss, "Can I order for you?"

She gave him an odd look and then nodded.

He waited until Iris, Prim, and Rue had ordered. Then he said, "The little guy over there will have the chicken fingers and fries and a chocolate shake. The beautiful lady beside me will have a bacon cheeseburger with fries and a vanilla shake. And I will have the same."

"Thank you." Katniss squeezed Peeta's hand.

They talked amiably through the meal. Riley dominated the conversation for a while, but he eventually grew tired of talking and decided to eat.

Peeta asked Prim, "So how did you and Rue meet?"

Prim gave Rue a sweet smile and said, "We had a class together."

"I liked her the first time I saw her." Rue supplied.

Prim leaned her head on Rue's shoulder. "Took me a while until I figured out that I felt the same way."

Peeta shot Katniss a grin. "Sounds like you Everdeen sisters are a lot alike."

Katniss bumped her shoulder against his. "I think it's a little different."

Prim nodded. "I thought Rue was attractive and that I would definitely like to—" she cut herself off and looked toward Riley. "The main difference is I was attracted before the romantic feelings came along."

Katniss nodded. "That sounds about right." She smiled at Peeta. "You have ketchup on your face." She reached up with her napkin and wiped it from his cheek.

She brushed her hand down his arm and he had to stop himself from pulling her into a kiss in the middle of the restaurant. He knew she wouldn't appreciate that. He just smiled and squeezed her hand once it was back in his.

It was late when they pulled into Peeta's driveway. Katniss woke when the car stopped moving.

"Hey, Sleeping Beauty." Peeta's voice was soft in the silent car.

Katniss smiled and stretched. "Didn't mean to fall asleep. Sorry."

"No big deal. You okay to drive home?"

She nodded and reached for the door. "Just the other side of town. I'll be fine."

"Make sure you text me when you get there, then." He glanced in the back to see Riley was still sound asleep and then followed Katniss out and to the back. "I really like how Riley is with your family. And I appreciate that they indulge him."

"He's a good kid. And the first we've all been around since Prim was that age." She reached up and squeezed his arm before she pulled him into a hug. "Thank you for coming with me today."

He kissed her cheek. "I'm glad we could make it."

She stepped back. "By the way, I don't mind if you want to kiss me any time you feel like it."

He smiled and pressed a kiss to her lips. "Thank you."

She picked up her bag and squeezed his hand. "I'll text when I get home." She turned to walk away.

Peeta held tight to her hand. "Let me make you supper tomorrow."

"I have a ton of grading to do." Katniss made a face.

"What if I bring everything to your place? You can work right up to when it's done and then I can clean it all up after we eat."

She smiled. "I don't need you to take care of me."

"But you deserve it. Let me cook and clean and treat you like royalty."

"Okay." She stepped closer. "Thank you."

He kissed her forehead. "I'll call before I head over. I'll see if my dad can let Riley spend the afternoon."

She shook her head. "I want him there. But I think we should plan a date night just the two of us for later."

"We can talk about it tomorrow." He leaned his forehead against hers a moment. "You should go before I make you sleep on my couch."

She laughed and stepped away. "I'll see you tomorrow."

"Let me have one more kiss." He pulled her close and pressed his mouth to hers for a very long time.

Katniss stepped away, squeezed Peeta's hand, and then climbed into her car.