"I love you."

Johanna bit her lip as her mouth spread into an instant smile. With baited breath, Katniss watched Johanna closely, waiting for a reaction. As her eyes poured over Johanna's face, Katniss suddenly felt shy and vulnerable. The most powerful three little words had fallen out of her mouth effortlessly and she hadn't given a single thought to Johanna's reaction until it was too late. She held her breath as she felt Johanna's hands drift to her waist to pull her even closer. Relentlessly, Johanna stared into her eyes before saying, "It's about time you caught on," and gently pressing her lips to Katniss's.

Katniss felt her heart pound as she met Johanna's lips eagerly. Her hands swiftly wandered over Johanna's shoulders to the small of her back where she loosely clasped her hands together, trapping Johanna in her arms. The kiss intensified as Johanna realized she was completely surrounded. Katniss was everywhere and everything she could feel. She arched her back slightly and reached her hands behind her, capturing Katniss's wrists in her grasp. Still frantically kissing her, Johanna craned her neck and pushed forward, sending both of them stumbling into the adjacent wall. She kept Katniss's hands in her hold as she brought them up over their entwined bodies, effectively pinning Katniss to the wall. Katniss felt a groan escape from the back of her throat before she could help herself. She inhaled sharply as Johanna kept one hand pinning her wrists to the wall and let the other hand trace down her side, just barely touching her. Katniss bit her lip to keep from smiling as she felt Johanna's fingers teasing their way down to her hips. Johanna pulled her lips away and looked down at their tangled legs against the wall. Short dark hairs fell in front of her eyes as her head turned down and Katniss strained forward. Johanna looked up sharply and tightened her grip on Katniss's squirming wrists. She leaned in slightly and paused, gauging her reaction. As Katniss leaned in to meet her lips, Johanna pulled back faintly, teasing her even further. Rolling her eyes, Katniss could tell Johanna was enjoying this game entirely too much. Playing along, she tried to move her lips closer. Again, Johanna pulled away with a wicked grin spreading over her face as she looked Katniss in the eyes. Katniss leaned forward a fraction of an inch and found Johanna frozen. She pushed forward until their lips barely brushed together. Johanna remained still. She dropped her gaze and whispered, "Don't make me beg," against Johanna's lips.

The enthusiasm in Johanna's kiss almost lifted Katniss off the ground. The hand that had kept Katniss's hands pinned to the wall came crashing down. Katniss felt both of Johanna's hands graze past her hips before reaching around to the backs of her thighs. In a fluid motion, Johanna swooped Katniss's legs from under her and turned towards the bed. Katniss tightly locked her legs around Johanna's waist and looped her arms around Johanna's neck, gluing their lips together as she felt the room spinning. Their breathing grew heavy as Johanna carried the two of them to the edge of the bed. Her shins bumped into the mattress before she leaned forward and set Katniss down on the edge of the bed. Afraid of falling backwards, Katniss's hands tangled in Johanna's short hair and she kept her legs wrapped around Johanna's hips. Johanna sighed almost inaudibly as Katniss's hands drifted down over her shoulder blades to the hem of her black tee-shirt. Without a moment of hesitation, Katniss grabbed the fabric in her fingers and pulled her hands up. Johanna gasped as she felt Katniss's hands gently yank her shirt over her head before tossing the discarded shirt to the floor. Katniss brought her hands back to Johanna's face and edged her way backwards into the center of the bed. Her lips moved impatiently against Johanna's while her hands tousled Johanna's dark messy hair. Johanna moved with her to the center of the bed, propping herself up on her hands and knees over Katniss. She leaned to the side and dragged her hand over Katniss's flat stomach, undoing the top button of her jeans. Katniss arched her back off the bed and let go of Johanna to help wriggle the jeans down her skinny legs.

They both paused to look at each other. Katniss's eyes drifted over Johanna's bare midriff as Johanna watched her face intently. After a few moments, Katniss pulled herself off the bed and rolled Johanna onto her back. Straddling her, Katniss quickly leaned down to Johanna's face and let her lips grab at the skin of Johanna's neck. She moved her mouth down to the base of Johanna's throat as she heard a desperate noise escape Johanna's lips. Katniss smiled against Johanna's neck and lightly bit the skin of her collarbone. Johanna arched her back off the bed, struggling to move closer to Katniss who was still raised above her. Katniss had never felt so empowered before, her skin blazed with heat as she clumsily moved her hands to Johanna's waistband. Johanna's arms were around her neck now as she tugged at the tiny zipper. She unbuttoned the top button and slid her fingertips into the waistband of Johanna's pants. Johanna pulled her arms away and quickly kicked the material to her ankles before letting them fall to the floor. Katniss lay down on her side as her hands wandered over Johanna's bare stomach to the delicate fabric at her hips. With a rush of desire, Johanna quickly flipped Katniss over. Her hands pulled Katniss's shirt off in a single fluid motion. Katniss's hands knotted in the hair at the base of Johanna's neck as she felt Johanna's hands slide her bra straps off her shoulders. Johanna leaned to kiss the hollows at the base of Katniss's neck and was pleased to hear the quiet sounds growing at the back of her throat. She slowly moved her lips down Katniss's chest, gently sucking at the skin of her abdomen. Katniss felt Johanna's hands clasp on either side of her hips and involuntarily took a shaky breath. Johanna's teeth grazed her hipbones while her fingers slid under the delicate fabric at Katniss's hips. Her lips grew more urgent as she felt Katniss's body shiver underneath her. She swirled her tongue in a circular pattern before carefully grabbing the slight fabric in between her teeth. Katniss's mind raced with indecision. She hadn't thought things completely through when she had burst through the door just a few minutes earlier. Katniss couldn't help but feel a surge of sheer panic at the effects that Johanna clearly had on her. Katniss's breath rasped in the back of her throat as she frantically reached for Johanna. She grabbed her chin before Johanna had the chance to slide the thin material down her legs. Johanna looked into Katniss's face with concern as she let Katniss pull her back up to the pillows. She could see the slightly panicked look in Katniss's wide eyes. Katniss had never been intimate with a girl before, this much she knew. Johanna nodded her head with understanding and smiled before she pushed her lips to Katniss's again.

Katniss sighed with relief as Johanna slowed down. At the back of her mind, Katniss knew that Johanna had been with other women before, which suddenly intimidated her. Up until this moment she hadn't had the chance to think clearly about what she was doing. Their shared touches and kisses had all seemed so natural to her. With Peeta she was constantly concerned with how to act and what to do, but with Johanna everything had felt simple. Her body fit with Johanna's in a way she had never realized. Johanna pulled away briefly and propped herself up on her elbow, admiring Katniss. She reached out a hand and thoughtfully brushed a few strands of hair behind Katniss's ear. Her hand lingered on Katniss's neck for a few moments before her mouth curled into a smile. Katniss rolled onto her side to face Johanna. She reached out a hand and dragged her fingertips down the side of Johanna's face, continuing down her arms to the curve of her waist. Goosebumps erupted underneath her fingers as she reached Johanna's navel. Johanna visibly shivered before she wiggled closer. Sitting up suddenly, Katniss reached for the blankets at the bottom of the bed. She carefully pulled them over the two of them as she settled back into place. Johanna's arms wrapped around her shoulders as Katniss tucked her head into the crook of Johanna's neck. Without a moment of hesitation, Katniss slid her arm around Johanna's waist, letting her hand fall onto the mattress behind her. Johanna lightly stroked Katniss's hair as she listened to the sounds of their breathing. After countless minutes, Johanna heard Katniss's muffled voice against her shoulder, "Are you mad we stopped?"

Johanna leaned back to look at Katniss's face as she replied, "Of course not, why would I be mad?" Her eyebrows drew together in concern as she waited for Katniss to explain.

Katniss failed to look her in the eyes as she mumbled, "Well I know you've been with other girls before and I just…" her voice trailed off. She was suddenly very interested in watching her own fingers which were now skating across Johanna's hipbones.

Shaking her head in disbelief, Johanna laughed softly before saying, "You make me sound like I'm some kind of womanizer or something." She felt goosebumps rise across her skin again as Katniss's fingers slipped over the skin at her waist. Nuzzling closer, Johanna muttered, "Other girls have nothing in comparison. It's only you, now…and believe me I'm fine with waiting." Katniss subtly sighed with relief as Johanna's arms tightened around her shoulders. She waited several seconds before Johanna slyly continued, "Although you are one hell of a tease."

Katniss pushed away in indignation as she huffed, "I am not a tease!"

Johanna laughed aloud now before playfully arguing, "Hell yes you are. Not just now but in general…admit it."

Pushing out her lower lip slightly, Katniss mumbled, "I'll do no such thing."

Inching closer, Johanna tipped Katniss's face up to look at her before apologizing, "Fine, you're not that much of a tease…happy?" She brought her lips to the base of Katniss throat, gradually moving her way up to the curve of her jaw. Johanna let her tongue lightly drag across Katniss's skin as she zigzagged along her neck. She could hear Katniss's breathing hitch slightly as she skimmed her lips along the curve of her jaw. Almost painfully slow, Johanna's lips moved in miniscule increments to Katniss's mouth. She hesitated momentarily before Katniss leaned forward to meet her lips. Katniss cupped Johanna's face in her hands as she crushed her lips to Johanna's again. Struggling to catch her breath, Johanna pulled away first. She whispered, "Happy?" against Katniss's lips before closing the distance between them again.

Katniss felt a gentle groan rising in her throat as she allowed Johanna's hands to distractedly wander over the skin at her arms and waist. She kissed her back before mumbling, "And you say I'm a tease…"

. . . .