PEETA'S POV
"Katniss, what is it?" I ask. I take her face in my hands and make her looks at me.
She stares into my eyes for a long time. "Nothing," she mumbles.
"Katniss, please…tell me. You can tell me anything, you know that, right?" I ask her.
She shrugs. "I know…but I'm not telling you this. I want you to figure this out. Now I'm going home…I'll see you when I see you, I guess." she looks upset.
"Katniss, wait-" she's already getting in a taxi. I sigh and debate about going over there, and then think better of it and head home.
….s…
"What's up bro? What's wrong?" Finnick gets home from work at eleven. He's a manager at a café and he closed tonight.
"Nothing." I snap. He raises his eyebrows.
"Peet? What's up dude?" I know he's not having it.
"It's Katniss! She's pissed at me and I don't even know what I did!" I exclaim.
"What happened?" he asks, sitting down across from me. I sigh and shut off the TV.
"I went to see her at work and everyone was asking if we were dating or engaged or married. I hepped her grade papers till seven something, we walked around the city and then went out to dinner around nine. She had been acting weird and refused to tell me what was wrong. I told her she could tell me anything and she said 'I know…but I'm not telling you this. Now I'm going home…I'll see you when I see you, I guess.' And I tried to stop her but she got in a taxi and was gone." Finn lets out a puff of air and sits up, resting his elbows on her thighs and clasping his hands together. I mirror his position.
"Peet, I don't know shit about girls, but it seems that Katniss is upset about something…like she's wanting you to do something. When did she start acting weird?"
"When I showed up at her work." I instantly reply.
"Before or after the kids bitched and moaned about you tow dating or being in a relationship?" he asks.
"After…" I trail off. He exhales and runs a hand through his hair.
"She wants you to ask her to be her girlfriend. She started acting weird because she wants what the kids said. I guess it had been bugging her since that happened…it made her snap and then she left…now…I don't mean to worry you, but Annie said she came in the door hysterical and refused to tell them what happened-" Johanna storms into our apartment just then.
"You two…we need your help. Brainless locked herself in the bedroom and we picked the lock but the door won't budge. She barricaded it…and she's crying."
Finnick's right. I wanted to ask her out since before we kissed but…I thought she thought we were moving too fast…it has only been a week and like three days, after all…
Finnick and I rise and follow Johanna to her apartment.
"Get her out of the room! Please! She won't eat or anything and she's barricaded the door." Annie's panicked.
"Will she talk to you?" I ask. They both shake their heads.
Easy…I can get her out…its mean, but…I need to get her out.
"Katniss!" I walk over to the door and rap on it. "Prim got in a car accident and she's in a coma…" I hear a long pause, and then a scraping noise and the door opens. She's been crying…hard.
"What?" her eyes are panicked. "Are you lying?" she starts, backing up, but Johanna shoots forward and grab her arm, pulling her out of her bedroom.
"I can't believe I didn't think of that." Annie says.
"Leave me alone!" Katniss fights Johanna, and then punches her in the face and bolts for her bedroom.
KATNISS'S POV
I'm so frustrated. I don't understand. He said he loved me. I don't know how to handle my emotions right now.
Everyone stares at me. It's almost one in the morning.
My phone starts vibrating on the coffee table. I stare blankly it and sigh loudly when I see it's Prim.
"What?" I ask.
"Hey Katniss - wait…have you been crying?" She demands.
"Yes, that's not important. Why are you calling me at one in the morning?" I ask.
"Why are you crying at one in the morning?" she demands.
"It's not important-"
"Are you pregnant, Katniss?" she blurts.
"What! Hell no!"
"Okay…just asking…why are you crying?" She demands.
"I'm going to hang up on you." I warn.
"Fine…so…in five months…" she hesitates. "You're going to have a niece or nephew to babysit." She admits.
"What?" I ask dumbly.
"I'm pregnant Katniss, four months."
"But…but…I just saw you! You are not-"
"I was wearing baggy clothing, Katniss. I'm pregnant and I'm moving in with Alex in New York City this weekend."
"Is this a joke?" I demand.
"No."
…..s…..
I completely ignore Peeta, even though it's killing me not seeing him. It's Saturday morning and I'm standing in the kitchen in a flowing sea foam green loose tee shirt and white jean short shorts and my sea foam green vans. Annie and Johanna are at work. They got pissed at me when I told them why I flipped out and they're not talking to me until I grow up and talk to Peeta again. My hair is flowing down my back in waves.
I hear the front door slam and I don't say anything because I'm expecting it to be Annie. She literally just walked out the door. She probably forgot something.
But someone terrifies me by coming up behind me and pushing me against the cold refrigerator and kissing me furiously. I almost shove the person, but the burning sensation I felt when I kissed Peeta boils inside me, my whole body igniting in flame and desire. The scent of cinnamon and axe overwhelms me and I know who this is.
And I'm not going to shove him because it's been four days since I've seen him. Four days of waking up screaming. Four days of an hour of sleep a night. Four, long, exhausting days. His hands lock on my waist, pushing me against the refrigerator harder.
When he thinks he's made whatever statement he's trying to make, he pulls away, leaving me breathless. "What did I do to deserve that?" I ask breathlessly, my chest heaving, a smirk on my lips with my fingers tangled in his hair.
"You breathed. You live…that's what you did to deserve that." He mumbles.
That's it? No 'I love you Katniss' or no 'be mine?' or 'stop ignoring me'.
"I really need to get going…" I maneuver my way out of in front of him and grab my red and white striped mini backpack, purse thing and pull it on.
"Wait…" he blocks the door.
"Peeta, Prim is moving today and I need to go help her-"
"Katniss, listen…I'm really sorry for…everything." He whispers.
"What are you sorry for?" I ask.
He's silent. I snort and roll my eyes. "I'll see you around, Peeta."
PEETA'S POV
"Stupid, stupid, stupid!" I stand in the center of my bedroom. I broke all the lamps in here, I destroyed my pillows and there's feathers all around. I hurl a picture frame of my family at the wall and then start punching the fuck out of my mattress. "JUST GROW…" I groan and punch harder. "A PAIR AND ASK HER TO BE YOUR FUCKING GIRLFRIEND!" a huge wave of adrenaline surges through my and before I know what I'm doing, I pick up my mattress and hurl it at the wall. I threw it so hard that I knocked over my dresser and spill all the clothes and books and everything for work, sending feathers and papers flying all around the room. I'm so angry at myself! I fucked up so bad! I wish I didn't chicken out!
"Ask who to be your girlfriend?" I look up, angrily pulling the feathers out of my hair. It's May 19th. I shove my nightstand over, sending mre feathers flying.
"You dammit! Katniss, that's why I came over earlier but I'm too much of a fucking coward to ask the fucking girl I'm in love with to be my girlfriend!" I trip over the comforter and fall into the shards of glass, cutting my bare chest, my hands and my whole front except for my face open. "Fuck!" I have shards of glass in my body and I can't get up because I can't shove the glass in further. Katniss walks right into my bedroom and gently helps me to my feet.
"You want me to be your girlfriend?" she whispers.
"Desperately!" I say.
"Okay," she says. I stare at her.
"What?" I ask like an idiot.
"Okay. Yes, I'll be your girlfriend. Now go take a bath and get the glass out." she says.
KATNISS'S POV
He stares at me for a moment and then hesitantly walks off to the bathroom.
I remember very clearly that he has six pillows, all of them feather pillows.
I grab my wallet and jog out of the apartment.
I flag down a taxi and go to the nearest target. I get a cart and six feather pillows, a new bed sheet set because he destroyed that too, I get two bedroom lamps, and a vacuum. I pay over a hundred dollars and toss the receipt in the trash and go back to his apartment. He's in the shower, not the bath. In know he's going to be in there for a while because he has to get out the glass. I leave everything outside of the bedroom door and get to work. I move his mattress back to his bed as I double and triple check for no glass. I get the new vacuum and set it up. I vacuum everything up, the glass and the feathers. I refold all his clothes and put everything back together on his dresser after lifting it up off the ground. I put the picture frame of his family back. I get all his dirty clothes and start his load of laundry. Then I make the bed with his new sheets and put on the pillow cases and put them in their places. I put the lamps back in their place and I make sure it's completely spotless and hide any evidence that I bought anything, even though he'll know. I hear the shower shut off and I lie down on the center of his bed and put my hands behind my head. He's been in there for an hour.
He comes out in his boxers, and his eyes turn to saucers as he sees the room is spotless and everything is cleaned up, the bed is made, the dresser is up, the lamps and everything.
PEETA'S POV
Not only did she say yes to what I'm been choking to get out, but she fixed up my entire bedroom. She lays innocently on my bed, my ankles crossed, her hands behind her head. I pull on a pair of jeans over my boxers and turn to her.
"I owe you," I whisper. I'm covered in cuts from then stupid lamp
"For what?" she asks. I look around my bedroom, gesturing wildly. "Oh Peeta," she begins softly, worrying her lip between her teeth. "You don't owe me anything for this." She whispers.
"Yes I do…" I whisper. "Tell me something I can do and I'll do it. I'm going to pay you back for the stuff you bought." I say. She smiles a little.
"No you won't. I'm not going to tell you how much it was." She says.
"I'll find the receipt." I say, grabbing her purse backpack off my spotless dresser and dig through it. She just watches me, looking stunning and innocent. I sigh and drop the bag on the dresser. "Stand up." I say. She stands up and I check where she was laying. She lies back down.
Oh, I know…her shorts.
I climb on the bed above her and unbutton her shorts and slide them off. Her eyes go stormy as she watches me search her shorts. I toss them back to her and without permission; I sit her up and tug her shirt off, leaving her in just her bra and underwear. I've never seen her exposed like this. The most I have seen of Katniss Everdeen as a woman is her in her underwear and tank top. Which was very breathtaking, but now she's in just her bra and underwear. As child Katniss, I've taken baths with her, but this is completely different because we were like three and I don't even remember it, I've just heard the stories. She was still wearing a one piece bathing suit when she was ten and I was eleven. So I've never really seen was she's got to offer, and technically I still can't.
"Are you going to just stare at me, or are you going to look for the receipt you won't find?" she asks calmly. I blink multiple times and shake her shirts. I frown.
"Where's the receipt?" I ask.
"Not here, that's for sure. Are you going to make me get dressed? I have no problem wearing no clothing, if that's what your prefer." She smirks and I roll my eyes and toss her shirt to her. She smiles and pulls it on, her shorts back on. She drops herself back down to the bed and stares at me again.
"What do I have to do to get you to give me that receipt?" I demand.
"What do you think you have to do to make me give you the receipt?" she asks.
"What do you want me to do?" I ask.
"I want you…to go as far with me as you want to." She says. She's clearly giving me permission to take her innocence. I raise my eyebrows and walk over, slamming the door.
"I can do whatever I want to you?" I repeat.
"Yes." She says.
"Fine then."