Disclaimer: This fanfic is rated 'M' for language and sexual content. I do not own any of the characters of The Hunger Games (although I wish I did).


After Katniss had left him on the curb in front of his house, Peeta wondered if her parting wink was her way of tipping him off that she was aware of the state she'd left him in: awestruck…and with a raging hard-on.

Upon entering the empty house, he dropped his bags at the door and made a beeline straight for the stairs, taking two steps at a time as he raced up to the second floor and locked himself in the bathroom. He peeled off his stuffy clothes and settled in for a long hot shower, feeling only slightly ashamed for picturing Katniss in her tiny little tank top and coveralls as he jerked himself off. Needless to say he slept well that night, better than he had in months…years even, and it was all thanks to her.

The next morning he spent on the phone, juggling calls between galleries interested in showcasing his latest paintings and his father's accountant who was busy tying up the final pieces of paperwork for the sale of the bakery. The last call left him uneasy, as though he was about to lose a part of himself after tomorrow when he was expected to sign off on the deal, but deep down he knew this was long overdue. It was a disservice to his father's reputation to keep the family bakery closed any longer. It had always been a place of warmth and life, and seeing it dark and empty—well, he knew it was wrong. The place was better off in the hands of someone more capable, who could dedicate the time and effort it required. Just like his car.

They were the remaining things in this world that he associated wholly with his father—the bakery and his car, and it was the main reason why he'd put off selling either for so long. But after this weekend, all he'd have left was his car and the bittersweet memories that came with it.

To pass the time until Katniss was to arrive, Peeta started on the arduous task of going about the house, sifting through the years worth of stuff that had accumulated in each room and packing up anything of sentimental value. He tried to not get emotional as he went through his parent's bedroom, carefully boxing up cherished framed photos and his father's old apron, but at times Peeta had to pause and take a break, more for his own sanity than fatigue.

Although he kept busy for most of the morning, his mind kept drifting to the possibilities of what Katniss had in store for their…non-date. He still hadn't figured out what to call it, whatever it was they were doing, but maybe it was better that way. Less complicated.

From what he could remember, Katniss had been big into archery and hunting and pretty much anything that dealt with the outdoors. He recalled the magazine he'd flipped through while in the waiting room of the auto shop and realized it was most likely hers. Perhaps she was taking him to the shooting range. But then again, the thought of witnessing her archery skills in action was downright sexy, and if luck was on his side, maybe she'd suggest teaching him how to shoot with a bow.

When 3:45 rolled around, he sighed in relief and waited in the living room by the front window, wondering if his choice of a t-shirt and shorts was a good idea. But this was Katniss; she lived and breathed the outdoors so he was certain they'd be spending the afternoon outside.

At two minutes to 4:00, the rumble of an engine caught his attention as Katniss's Jeep came into view and rolled to a stop in front of the house. He was on his feet when she honked the horn twice, grabbing his wallet and keys off the coffee table before he locked the door behind him and made a conscience attempt to slow his eager steps.

Although she'd left it vague as to the details of their "non-date", he couldn't help but feel the first time jitters as if it was an actual date. The twist in his gut and the increasing dampness of his palms were obvious as he approached the vehicle.

"Hey," she greeted with a playful smile, tapping the empty seat beside her. As he hopped in he caught a quick glimpse of her cut-off jeans, and he smiled to himself at the sight of her plaid shirt and white tank top that peeked out from underneath. Her hair was pulled back in her signature braid and as a breeze blew by he caught a brief whiff of coconut, the immediate association between her and the scent already forming in his mind.

"So, where are we off to?" he asked as she started the engine and they pulled away from the curb.

"Nuh uh, no hints. I told you it was a surprise."

Peeta held up his hands in defeat as they turned down the street that led to the highway. He leaned back and enjoyed the ride, the wind blowing through the cab of the Jeep without the obstruction of a roof…or doors. It was a little hard to get used to at first, barreling down the highway in a vehicle without doors, but after awhile he realized that it was somewhat liberating. Besides, he loved the way the loose strands of hair whipped around Katniss's face, carefree and wild—just like her.

"So, how's my car looking?"

Katniss fiddled with a knob on the dash until she was satisfied and then look over. "Actually, they forgot a part in the shipment this morning and by the time I left the shop it still hadn't come in. Haymitch said he'd pick it up so I could finish later on tonight."

"Oh, uh, sorry about that," he muttered. He couldn't help but feel responsible and guilty that he was the reason for her having to go back into work on a Saturday night. He was sure she had much better things to do with her free time than fix his car, and besides, who was to say that their "non-date" couldn't spill over into the evening?

"Don't be. It's not your fault." Her reassuring smile helped to alleviate some of his guilt. "Besides, that car of yours is a dream to work on. I've always wanted one you know, just like yours. Although I'd take one in green."

"Is green your favorite color?" he ventured, wondering if it was a piece of information he should tuck away in his memory for later.

"Yeah, and let me guess…yours is orange?"

Peeta nodded. "The car was my dad's though, so the color's a coincidence. He was so proud of himself the day he brought it home, but you should have seen the look on my mom's face." He shook his head and chuckled at the memory. "She was livid, and she lectured him on how there were healthier ways to deal with a mid-life crisis than wasting their hard earned cash on a pile of scrap metal. It took her a few days but she finally relented when he said it was an investment, a long term project for my brother's and me…but, uh, it kinda got put on hold after the, uh, accident."

He wasn't sure why he'd broached the subject. Even though he'd made peace with it years ago, it was a topic he didn't consciously choose to remember. He easily could have glossed over it, but something about Katniss's presence made it seem safe to do so. Besides, she knew what he was talking about, everyone in town knew.

The accident that claimed the lives of his mother and two older brothers while on their way back from an out of town wrestling tournament was deemed "a horrific tragedy" by the newspaper headlines. Peeta and his father had struggled to pick up the pieces of their shattered lives, and over the years a lot of things had fallen to the wayside and were forgotten. One such thing was the car that sat in their garage, collecting dust but still harboring painful memories of what could have been.

"So anyway," Peeta continued with a wave of his hand, his voice dismissive in an attempt to lighten the mood. "It was a total surprise when I came home one day for a visit and found the car parked out in the driveway and my dad tinkering away beneath the hood. When I asked him why he hadn't just sold the thing already to make some room in the garage he said, 'You'll thank me for this one day'."

Peeta paused as he considered his father's words. Then he smiled to himself when it finally dawned on him. Huh. His father was right.

He looked over to Katniss who was still listening to him quietly, and when she glanced over to find him staring at her, their eyes locked as they shared a moment of mutual understanding. The urge to reach over and tuck a rogue strand of hair behind her ear was overwhelming, and so he fisted his hands against the hem of his shorts instead.

"Thank you," he eventually said.

"For what?"

"You know what for," he answered with a tight smile and she nodded in response.

She knew exactly what he was talking about; he could see it in her eyes. Katniss was no more a stranger to loss than he was. They'd both suffered the loss of a parent and siblings, but at least his surviving parent had stuck around for the aftermath instead of mentally checking out for years after like hers. Sympathy was the last thing he wanted from anyone, or to be reminded of how little control he had over what had happened. But Katniss understood, and he respected her for it.

Neither one of them spoke as they continued down the empty road. For once in his life the silence didn't bother him, but rather he found comfort in it and he knew it was because it was spent with her.

When they reached the town limits, she turned down a dirt road that ran parallel to an outcrop of trees. He'd only been out this way a few times before when he was a teenager, when he and his high school buddies used to sneak out to the woods for a night of underage drinking. But when they passed the entrance to the park where he thought they were headed, he looked over to her and narrowed his eyes.

She laughed in response to his worried face. "You ever been mudding?"

"Have I ever been what?"

She chuckled. "I'll take that as a 'no' then."

It didn't take long for Peeta to learn what "mudding" was. He should have known it was exactly what the name suggested. When he asked her if it was legal, she laughed out loud and assured him that it was. She explained that she and her friends from work had found a secluded meadow out in the woods one day after a heavy rainstorm and that she'd frequented the spot numerous times before.

He gripped the edge of his seat, his knuckles white and eyes wide, the first time Katniss pushed the gas pedal to the floor, sending them shooting through what he considered a "lake" but what she swore was just a "puddle." He was prepared the second time though, grabbing hold of the metal bars overhead, finally understanding their purpose as she turned abruptly, sending a splash of muddied water into the air as they rolled to a stop. The grin on Katniss's face was priceless and when she dropped her head back against the seat, her hair and face splattered with flecks of mud and her chest shaking as she fell into a fit of giggles. He swore he'd never seen her look more beautiful…or sexy.

The afternoon blew by in a flash and before he knew it, the sun was threatening to begin its descent below the tree line. He didn't want this day to end, didn't want the smile on her face to ever leave. So when she turned to him and asked if he wanted to drive their last run, he found himself nodding dumbly. Only problem was, he didn't have a clue on how to drive manual.

It was a minor detail he should have mentioned as they switched spots and he buckled himself into the driver's seat. He stared down at the dash and pursed his lips; it didn't look much different than his automatic. How hard could it really be? Then he looked down to the gear shift, panic rising in his throat when he realized the gears weren't labeled.

"Well, what are you waiting for?" she asked as she looked over to him, raising an eyebrow expectantly.

Peeta released a shaky laugh and scrubbed his face with his hands, dropping them into his lap in defeat. Who was he kidding? He'd have to come clean; there was no way he'd be able to pull this off. "Um, you're gonna think I'm an idiot, but…I don't know how to drive stick."

He waited for her laughter to ensue, but when it didn't come, he glanced over hesitantly. He somehow felt less of a man for never learning the ins and outs of a manual transmission, but cars were never his thing.

"Really?" Her eyes widened, but then her features softened and she reached over to place her hand on top of his, which was resting on his thigh. "Well then, I'll just have to teach you."

His body stiffened when her pinky finger brushed the inside of his leg, mere inches away from his cock, which was now straining against his shorts. She had to have noticed it and the effect she was having on him, so he held in a breath as she took his hand and placed it on top of the gear shift, urging him to take hold of it.

"OK, see that small pedal down there?" With her free hand, she pointed between his legs to the floorboard. "That's the clutch, I want to you push all the way down on that with your left foot." He did as he was told and waited for the next instruction. "Now, we're currently in neutral and that's where you always want to start." She closed her fingers around his and wiggled the shifter gently. "Feel that? Feel how it moves around freely? That's how you know you're in neutral."

Oh he felt it alright, right in his groin. Peeta swallowed thickly, the feel of her hand around his causing a bead of sweat to form along his temple.

"Ok, so now you can go ahead and start the engine." He took a deep breath and turned the key, jumping slightly in his seat as the Jeep roared to life causing the entire cab of the vehicle to vibrate and hum. "So, while keeping your foot down on the clutch, we're going to shift into first gear. Ready?"

He responded with a shallow bob of his head, his palms already starting to sweat as her grip around his hand tightened again and began to move, pushing the gear shift forward and to the left. "So now we're in first. That wasn't so hard, was it?" Her reassuring smile caused his breath to hitch and he shook his head slightly. It hadn't been hard at all, but he sure was. "Now, I want you to put your right foot on the brake and release the parking brake."

With a shaky hand, he released the parking brake and sucked in a sharp breath, expecting the Jeep to shoot forward. When nothing happened, he sighed in relief and looked over to find her still smiling sweetly at him. "Now, this next part can be a little tricky, I want you to slowly lift off the clutch with your left foot but at the same time, release the brake with your right foot and press down on the accelerator, that'll get us moving. Got it?"

"Got it," he repeated with a firm nod, echoing her works in his head. He could handle that.

Peeta sucked in a deep breath and gripped the steering wheel as he ran through her instructions one last time. When he felt confident enough, he lifted and pressed his feet as she'd instructed, but his heart leapt into his throat when he heard the engine rev loudly and the Jeep shot forward into a puddle of mud ahead of them. He slammed his foot down on the brake and his arm shot out towards Katniss as the Jeep came to an immediate halt.

"Fuck!" he shouted before whipping his head around to make sure she was all right. But he frowned when he found her laughing her head off, struggling for breath as she wiped a tear from her eye.

"Oh my god, you should have seen your face!"

He looked away as another round of laughter overtook her.

"I'm glad my ignorance amuses you," he muttered under his breath, but once his heart had dropped back down into his chest, a smile tugged at his lips. He couldn't stay upset with her, not when she looked so happy and god damn beauitful.

"Sorry, sorry, I'll stop laughing," she said after taking a deep breath. "It's OK, you just let the clutch off too late. Let's try it again."

He stared back at her with wide eyes. "What? You want me to try that again?"

"Hey, it's fine, practice makes perfect, right?" When her eyes dropped momentarily to his mouth, the adrenaline pumping through his veins urged him to lean forward, to capture her lips in a kiss. But the moment passed when she grabbed hold of his hand and placed it on the shifter, ready for him to try again.

Peeta steadied his rapidly beating heart and cleared his mind as they went through the steps again of getting the vehicle in gear and ready to go. This time he was prepared in case they went shooting forward again, but when the Jeep made a horrid grinding noise and they came to an abrupt stop, he cursed out loud in frustration.

"Shit! Did I break it? I'm sorry!"

Katniss was prepared this time too and kept her laughter under control as she grinned back at him. "No, you didn't break it, stop worrying! You just stalled us, but it's no big deal. That's what happens when you let go of the clutch too soon."

He'd stalled them all right—right in the middle of a shin-deep puddle of mud. He looked out the side of the Jeep and sighed. This was why cars weren't his thing.

"Looks like I'm pushing," he said as he reached down to unbuckle his seatbelt.

"Here," she said as she grabbed his shoulder. "Switch spots with me and I'll get us out of this mess." She sat up and gestured for him to maneuver his body back into the passenger's seat.

Once he was seated, she was still standing in front of him, her ass hovering just inches away from his face as she lifted a leg over the center console. Fuck. He couldn't take his eyes off her as she shimmied her other leg over and plopped down onto the driver's seat, winking at him as she buckled herself in. His face flushed, knowing full well that he'd been caught staring, but she apparently didn't mind.

True to her word, they were out of the puddle and back onto the highway in no time. During the drive back to his house, he felt like he did when he was a boy in elementary school, stealing secret glances at her as she sung quietly to herself, an ear-to-ear grin plastered across her face.

The entire way he was beaming too, trying not to overanalyze the way she kept throwing him blatant smirks. His body was humming with nervous energy as he debated whether he should kiss her. He really really wanted to, and there had been numerous times throughout the afternoon that he could—should—have.

When they pulled up to the front of his house, as dark and quiet as it was the night before, she shut off the engine and sat back in her seat, her hands fidgeting in her lap. The way she chewed on her bottom lip was both endearing and mesmerizing, and the urge to soothe her reddened skin with his lips soon became too much. That was it; he had to make a move.

After steeling his nerves with a deep breath, he carefully leaned over across the center console, lining his face up just inches away from her cheek, but at the last moment, she turned unexpectedly and his lips caught the corner of her mouth awkwardly instead. She reeled back, almost smacking him in the chest with her flailing arm.

"Shit! Sorry!" he gasped, falling back against the seat.

"No! No, it's ok!" She lifted her eyes to meet his and grabbed hold of his arm. "You just took me by surprise, that's all."

"Oh, sorry." The evidence of his embarrassment stained his cheeks as he looked away. Too forward. Way too forward. He ran a hand through his damp curls, cursing to himself for screwing up what would have been their first kiss.

He was ready to cut his losses and leave with some semblance of pride for at least trying, but the clearing of her throat caused him to freeze in place.

"Um, can we try that again?" Her question hung in the air as he stared into her eyes blankly, unsure if he'd heard her correctly. "I'm ready now."

As her words sank in, she leaned in slowly, gripping his arm for balance as she reached across the center console to close the short distance between them. But then she stopped, her eyes eager and searching his as she waited for him to try again. His gaze dropped to her lips and his tongue to dart out to moisten his own. This time his lips hit their mark and brushed up against hers, tentatively at first, before she pressed forward, tilting her face as her movements became more purposeful. Her mouth fused to his, warm and soft and everything he'd imagined it'd be…and more. He cupped the side of her face in his hand, and the faint smell of motor oil and coconut mingled with that of the outdoors, which clung to her windblown hair. The result was an unexpected combination that caused a flood of heat to rush to his groin, and he could feel his cock twitch against his thigh.

The effect she was having on him was intoxicating—the way she claimed him, coaxing the seam of his lips to part with her tongue, how she took her time exploring every inch and crevice of his mouth. Damn, the woman sure knew how to kiss. She tasted like wintergreen, just as he'd thought, and his mouth started to water just thinking about what the other parts of her body tasted like.

His mind started to wander as he tilted his head the other way and his other hand came up to snake around her neck, pulling her body towards him over the center console. He needed her closer, so much closer. A low groan vibrated at the back of his throat when she finally climbed on top of him, positioning her knees on either side of his hips and sinking down into his lap.

The heat radiating from between her legs seeped into the front of his shorts. Holy fuck. He couldn't control his hands as they snaked down the length of her back, on a course set for her ass where he dug his fingers into her soft flesh to keep her where she was. The urge to lift his hips off the seat and press into her was overwhelming, especially when the intensity of her kisses increased and she began to slowly grind her center up and down his erection.

Slow down, slow down, slow down. He needed to make this last and get her inside the house. And into his bed.

The movement of her hips suddenly stilled and he felt the warm exhale of breath from her nose before she detached her lips from his briefly. Their eyes met in a heated stare for a fleeting moment before his hungry mouth was on hers again, this time his lips trailing deliberate kisses from the corner of her mouth up along her jaw and then slowly down the column of her neck.

Everything about this felt right. So right.

Then why was she pulling away?

"Peeta," she panted breathlessly, shaking her head as she surfaced from her passionate haze. Her features shifted to a mixture of embarrassment and realization and her imploring eyes burned a hole through him as she searched his. "I-I'm so sorry, I don't…uh…normally do this." She shook her head again. "Peeta, what are we doing?"

His mouth hung open for a moment, trying to pull a coherent thought from his addled mind. "I-I don't know," he replied honestly, although the way her face fell made him want to reach over and pull her onto his lap and cradle her against his chest.

What were they doing? It was an honest question, one that deserved an honest answer. His body knew what it wanted, and the longer he stared at her, he was certain that so did his heart. He wanted to keep her, plain and simple.

But he knew it wasn't really that simple. She lived here and his work was in the city. They were leading completely different lives—hers filled with the quiet comforts of a slow paced lifestyle that only came from small town living and his was filled with fake smiles and the exhausting task of upholding a certain façade.

Where did he expect this to go? A one night stand? She deserved more than that, and he sure as hell wanted more than that.

Katniss slowly released her hold on his arms and crawled back to her side of the Jeep, pausing to shake her head before starting the engine. "I should probably go," she whispered as she ran her palms along the worn leather of the steering wheel. "I still need to finish up your car."

"Oh, right," Peeta said before releasing an uneasy breath, panic starting to rise in his chest. Was this it? Was this how it ended? He didn't want her go, but what was he supposed to do? Whatever he chose he was being selfish.

"Your car should be ready by tomorrow morning. You can pick it up any time after ten."

"Ok…," he trailed off as he willed her to look at him. When she made no move to do so, he dropped his shoulders and sighed heavily. "So I guess I'll see you tomorrow morning then?"

"I don't work Sundays," she replied, her voice detached as though her mind was elsewhere. He hated the way she wouldn't look at him. "Haymitch will take care of you."

The silence that followed was unnerving. She kept her eyes trained ahead as she waited for him to get up, but his feet felt like boulders, impossible to move. The engine idled loudly for a few more minutes before he was finally able to force himself out of the seat, and she muttered a faint "good bye" before shifting into first gear. As the Jeep began to roll away, he considered calling out to her but the words died in his throat.

His feet were frozen in place until the glow of the taillights became tiny specs in the distance, and his chest tightened when they finally disappeared around the corner. Just like that, she'd driven away and out of his life forever.

He'd never felt more alone.


Come visit me on tumblr: pookieh