Peeta POV

Peeta stood in the doorway looking at a vision. Her hair was down in soft waves and wearing a classy outfit that accentuated her lovely figure. And her eyes…oh, her eyes. Grey the color of mist that seared straight through him. She's even more beautiful than I could have ever imagined.

His anticipation for this evening had built ever since that auspicious moment he first called her. He laughed inside at the memory of Katniss hanging up on him, so sure that a joke was being played on her. At the time, Peeta had been shocked by her bluntness and afraid he had lost an opportunity. He was left confused and thoughtful on his couch for a couple of hours afterward. Something about this girl just left him wanting more.

Determined, he finally made the decision to try a gently worded text and see if he could somehow smooth things over. Katniss responded and told Peeta how her sister and friend had entered her into the contest and failed to tell her. No wonder she acted like she did. She apologized and agreed to let him take her out.

Once Katniss had agreed, Peeta went to work of planning the perfect date. He wanted to really make it fun for her. Something told him that this girl had not had an easy life, and that she truly deserved a night out to not think about her troubles. Not knowing much about the area, he searched the Internet for restaurants and other places to go in District 12. Checking out the reviews and taking notes, he eventually came up with an idea of how they could spend their evening.

Throughout the week, Peeta texted and called Katniss a couple of times simply to talk with her. And the more he did, the more he couldn't wait for Saturday.

-So are you the kind who likes flowers on their dates?

-LOL. Well, considering I'm named after one, there is a good chance that it wouldn't hurt.

-Katniss is a flower? Wow. Learn something new every day.

-Well then, turnabout is fair play. Your turn to tell me something new.

-OK. My favorite color is orange.

--Orange? Really? That's different.

-Maybe it is. But I'm not talking about bright orange. I like a softer shade. Like the sunset.

-Oh! I can see that. Very nice.

Their phone conversations were all in this same tone, and Peeta found himself enjoying every minute of them. If Katniss was everything she seemed over the phone, then Peeta had maybe found the girl of his dreams. Adventurous spirit, caring heart, and strong willed, she was definitely a complete package that worked for him. Every night trying to sleep was torture with the anticipation. Finally, Saturday blessedly arrived. Peeta packed a small bag, and early in the morning gathered his usual disguise to head to the airport.

Amazingly, the sunglasses and hat still worked, so that Peeta was able to get on the plane without being noticed. Escaping detection by the paparazzi and fangirls was getting more difficult by the day. He breathed a sigh of relief when he finally sat down in his seat and buckled in. Peeta tried to read some of the scripts Haymitch had given him as a way to keep him mind busy and not worry about the evening. It was difficult, though. He had all of this nervous energy about the date built up, and time just could not move fast enough.

After what seemed like forever, the plane mercifully landed. Donning his cover once more, the young man got off the plan and made his way to the carousel to gather his luggage. He let Katniss know that he had made it in, as well as his plans for dinner. He was glad to know that she seemed okay with the idea. Once he grabbed his bags, he rented a car to take him to the hotel. The attendant at the check in desk looked a little strangely at him and for a moment Peeta though he had been caught. But since using his fake name and identity papers, managed to escape recognition.

Peeta couldn't stand just sitting there in the hotel room for long, so he spent the rest of the afternoon resting and passing the time by sending a few more texts to Katniss. He found that he loved this after a week of messages back and forth with her. Her responses were fun, but not necessarily flirty. If this was typical of her personality, he really liked it.

-Hey! I know I said "see you later" earlier, but I can't help myself but to keep talking with you. What are you up to?

Peeta hit send then got up to turn the TV on. By the time he got back to the bed he heard his phone buzz.

-LOL! You sound as anxious as I am right now. I'm baking dessert with Prim to keep me busy. When will 6:00 get here?

He smiled as he typed his response. Katniss was as excited as he was for tonight, it seemed.

-Not soon enough. Dessert sounds good.

The fun tone of their conversation calmed Peeta down.

-Yeah. We make some pretty mean brownies out of a box here.

He laughed out loud then.

-: ) I'm sure you do. I'll have to try them sometime.

He hit send one more time and almost immediately got an answer.

-I'll save you one.

Peeta typed out a final text.

-You do that. I better go for now. Almost time to get ready.

He got a quick reply

-: )

With that, Peeta finally put his phone down and ran his hands through his hair. God, he hadn't even met this woman yet, and he was already halfway in love with her. Just from texting. How does that happen? It made him even more anxious about actually showing up at her door. It was time for a shower.

Peeta felt some of the tension drain away as he washed up. He dried off and got ready while a couple of Discovery Channel shows played on the television. Finally, it was about 20 minutes until 6:00 and he could mercifully leave to pick Katniss up.

Hopping into the rental, he used the vehicle navigation to head to the address she had provided him a few days previously. Peeta pulled up to a modest, well kept, older house. Peeta put his hat and glasses aside, as he wanted Katniss to recognize him as he was. When he reached the front and rang the bell, a young girl with blonde hair flew open the door and started talking at 100 miles an hour. Obviously a teenager. It must be Katniss' sister. After a few moments of the endless chatter, though, the door opened more and there she was. Peeta found himself holding his breath as he saw her. As Primrose left, Katniss looked up at him. The moment seemed to be full of electricity as their eyes locked on each other for the first time.

It took a moment for either one of them to speak. "Hello Katniss," Peeta finally said.

"Hi Peeta," she replied with a cautious smile. "It's really you." He raised his eyebrow up at her. "Up until now, I was still kind of in disbelief that this was real. But here you are." She turned to grab her purse off a table then stepped through the doorway. "I'm glad you found the house okay." She stopped then as if she was unsure what to do next.

She's as nervous as I am. Peeta thought this as he replied, "It wasn't hard. Are you ready to go? I've got a car here." He pointed to the small silver sedan parked out front.

Katniss nodded and they walked the pathway towards his car. He opened the door and let her in, and then got in himself before they set off. As they drove Peeta could see Katniss fidgeting in her chair. Like him, she was probably trying to think of something to say. Why was this so hard now when conversation had been so easy while they were texting? Peeta racked his own brain and finally found a conversation starter.

"Your sister seems great." he told her.

Katniss smiled at him, grateful to have an easy subject to talk about. 'She's sixteen and impossible. I'm still punishing her for not telling me that she put me in the contest."

"Don't be too hard on her." Peeta said. "I'm glad she did." He looked over at this beautiful girl for a moment before turning his eyes back on the road.

Katniss blushed at this, and he continued. "The name of the place we are going is Romano's Italian Restaurant. The reviews said the food was fantastic. Are you sure that okay with you?"

"Sounds perfect," she replied. "I've heard about it but never had a chance to go there."

"Really?" Peeta replied curiously. "It's not far from your house. I would have thought you would know all about it."

"We don't eat out a lot," Katniss told him. "Have to save our money. Going to restaurants just would cost too much."

Peeta understood in a way. His childhood had been more like that. "I understand," he finally replied. "That should make tonight even more special."

This made her smile. "Yeah, it does," she replied, and they went on as he put some music on. The drive wasn't long before they reached a small hole in the wall place. As they got out of the car, Peeta put his hat and sunglasses back on.

Katniss gave a chuckle and commented, "Don't want to be seen with me?"

He laughed with her, "I have absolutely no problem being seen with you. But unless you want to be surrounded by autograph seekers and cameras all night, I highly recommend me wearing this."

Katniss seemed to understand and they walked in then. When the maître d approached, Peeta asked for a place in the back of the restaurant. They were led to a cozy dimly lit booth. They sat down and with his back to the front of the restaurant, Peeta felt easy enough to finally take the disguise off. They were given menus and looked them over for a few minutes before deciding to share a pizza once they found out they both loved mushrooms and pepperoni. The waitress came to take their order and she looked at them funnily when she saw Peeta. But, after looking at Katniss the girl seemed to dismiss her nagging feeling of recognition. With that they were left alone to wait for the order. There was that awkward silence again, before Katniss spoke.

"You know," she started, "I find that I'm at a disadvantage here. I've read so many articles that I feel like I know just about everything about you. It's hard to think of what to ask."

Peeta laughed again at her insight. "You know, I never would have thought of that. Trust me, though. There is a lot about me that isn't in the magazines."

"Really," she said, intrigued. "Like what?"

He moved closer for her to hear. "Like did you know that I can make the best cheese buns?"

"No way!" she playfully slapped at him. "I love cheese buns. Where did you pick that skill up?"

Peeta told her about his upcoming role as a chef and how he had been taking classes to look more realistic in the scenes where set in the kitchen. He regaled her with his adventures in cooking and had her almost rolling on the floor. Katniss was fascinated as he talked about it all, and felt like she could listen to him for hours.

"Sounds like you may have found a second calling," she commented when he finished.

"Actually, it's more like going back to my roots." Peeta explained. "You see, I was born in District 9. Grain country. My family owned a bakery there. My dad taught my brothers and me everything he knew early on."

"You didn't end up in the family business, though." Katniss replied.

"No." Peeta said sounding a little sad now. "There was a fire when I was 8. It destroyed the bakery and our living quarters above it. I had been sleeping over with a friend and was the only one who wasn't home that night. My parents. My brothers. They…didn't make it out."

Compassion for him flooded Katniss. "I'm so sorry."

"It's okay." He answered. "I've had a lot of time to work through it. I've lived with my aunt and uncle in District 1 after that and they were great. They supported me through everything. And when I told them I wanted to be an actor they were behind me one hundred percent. I couldn't' have asked for better."

"They sound amazing," she noted.

"They are." Peeta affirmed. "But with this class I've been taking. It's like going back in time. I would be baking and the smells and the work have brought back so many memories. In a good way. I feel like in a way I am connecting with them again."

Katniss placed her hands over his and gently smiled at him.

"I'm sorry," Peeta said with a more cheerful air, "It's probably not a good idea to sound so depressing on a first date. I'm actually a very happy and positive person, you know."

Katniss looked at him so softly. "I can tell. And don't be sorry. You're just being open with me and I appreciate that." She looked away from him. "I know what it's like to lose your family. I've been taking care of Prim by myself since I was 16. It's hard and it sucks. But you work through it as best you can and go on living."

Peeta was floored at Katniss' words, only because for the first time it seemed like here was someone who could really understand him. He was smiling as the pizza was then brought to their table.

"You're right. So, why don't we talk about living in District 12 and working in a library?"

Katniss laughed. "OK. I'll tell you about this one kid who asked me for a copy of War and Peace by Tolstoy."

"That doesn't sound too strange." Peeta remarked.

"It is when the kid is only 8!" Katniss told him and her date laughed so loud she was afraid every eye in the restaurant would turn towards them.

"What about you?" she continued. "Any juicy tidbits from the set? I would love to hear all you know about Rue Williams. She's my favorite."

Peeta gave her a fake pout. "Oh, and somehow I thought that I was your favorite actor?"

"We'll see," she said with a smirk, and once again he couldn't help but laugh at the interaction. He regaled her through the rest of the meal with stories from his previous movies. Conversation flowed easily until they finished eating and Peeta paid for their food. He still sensed that the waitress recognized him, but left a large tip in hopes that would convince her to keep silent.

They both got up from the table, and Peeta picked up his hat and glasses. Disguised once more, they left and went out onto the sidewalk, where he turned to her. "I read about this karaoke bar down the street. It's supposed to be a lot of fun. Would you like to go?"

Katniss looked at him in honest surprise. "Karaoke? Really? I'm not sure. I've never done it before."

"Well then, there's always a first time. Let's go." He took her hand then and led her along the sidewalk for two blocks before stopping in front of a bar named Swan Song. It was another small cozy place with a lot of smoke, but Katniss could tell that people were everywhere inside and the music was blaring.

Peeta looked at her in question and she nodded. They went in, and after a few minutes of working their way through the crowd they finally found a small table where they could sit and order drinks. The two looked through the list of songs in the folder on their table and after going back and forth for about ten minutes finally agreed on one. They wrote the title on a piece of papers and gave their names to the host.

Once decided, Katniss and Peeta relaxed. Together, they laughed and cheered people singing songs that were good, bad, and ugly. They got so riled up in the atmosphere that when it was finally their turn, they could barely make their way through I Got You Babe because it was just so silly being on the stage in front of everyone. Both of them couldn't stop laughing during their lines. The crowd loved it, though, and the couple got thunderous applause as they left the stage and sat down.

"I have to admit that is one skill I just don't have," Peeta commented as the next song began. "I am a terrible singer."

"You were fine," Katniss replied. "From what I can tell, it's not about how good you sing anyway. It's about having fun."

"You're right," he agreed. "But you have a nice voice. You should do a solo up there."

She immediately shook her head, "No, I don't think so."

"Oh, come on. You've already been up there once," he argued.

"That was different," she shot back at him. "You were with me. Singing alone is different. I haven't done that in a long time."

"Katniss," He said giving her puppy dog eyes that were hard to resist. "Please? Do it for me?"

Katniss didn't respond for a moment, but after a minute of looking into his baby blues finally gave up.

"Okay," she said.

Katniss went over and looked again at the list of song choices. After a few minutes, she wrote something on a piece of paper and whispered in the ear of the host as she gave it to him. The man nodded and Katniss came back to the table to wait her turn. She didn't offer up what song she had chosen.

"Aren't you going to even give me a hint?" Peeta asked, trying to wheedle it out of her.

"Just wait and see," she told him and he gave up.

Eventually, Katniss' name was called. Peeta gave her thumbs up and she tentatively went up on the stage and took the microphone. Soft music began to play and she began to sing.

Turn down the lights, turn down the bed
Turn down these voices inside my head
Lay down with me, tell me no lies
Just hold me close, don't patronize - don't patronize me

Cause I can't make you love me if you don't
You can't make your heart feel something it won't
Here in the dark, in these final hours
I will lay down my heart and I'll feel the power
But you won't, no you won't
'Cause I can't make you love me, if you don't

Peeta sat there, transfixed by what he was hearing. She was amazing. Her voice was so strong and sure. He had to think it was one of the most beautiful things he had ever heard in his life. He couldn't take his eyes off of her throughout the entire song, but just gazed upon her glowing in the spotlight. His goofy grin must have shown as Katniss finished and walked back to the table.

"Was I that bad?" she asked.

"On the contrary," he gushed, "you were fabulous. I think everyone was in awe of your voice. Especially me." She blushed as he was telling her this with his face just inches from her. The feeling was electric, but it scared her and she looked away. Peeta didn't comment any more and they went back to enjoying the music.

It was midnight when they decided to finally leave the bar. Slowly they walked back to Peeta's car, both trying to make the most out of the time left. As they travelled along the sidewalk, somehow his hand found itself laced with hers, their fingers entwined together. It seemed like such a natural thing to happen.

They drove back to her house, and Peeta opened her door to let her out when they arrived. He tried to drag out every step towards her porch. This night had been great, and he really didn't want it to end. The light was on above the front door, and they stopped under it. Peeta realized he needed to make up his mind quickly whether he was going to kiss her or not. I want to so badly, but we honestly just met. I don't want to rush things. He finally decided to give her a hug, which he did. He placed his arms around her shoulders and felt her warm arms come around his neck.

"I have a lot of fun tonight. I haven't sung in so long. It was a really good feeling," she said.

"Yeah, I haven't laughed that hard in a while either," Peeta replied. Then, ever so gently, he kissed her forehead. "Good night, Katniss."

She looked up into his eyes. "Good night, Peeta. Have a safe trip home."

He nodded, and letting go, she turned and began placing her keys in the lock of the door. When it clicked, he watched her open it and walk in, giving a wave before closing it. With a sigh, Peeta turned and walked back to his car.

The drive to the hotel was uneventful He returned to his room and got comfortable. The events of the evening were still swirling in his head. As Peeta turned on the TV and relaxed on the bed, he couldn't help but send a text to Katniss. He didn't know if she was still up, but he was going to take the chance that she was.

-I just wanted to let you know that I had a really good time tonight.

He pressed send and waiting for a few minutes. It buzzed and he looked at the response.

-Me too. Thanks for everything.

Relief flooded over him that Katniss had enjoyed the evening. He sent one more note.

-You're welcome. Get some sleep now.

It was silent after that, so Peeta guessed that she took his advice. As he relaxed, he thought that the evening couldn't have gone any better, even in his dreams. The connection he felt with Katniss had been nothing short of amazing. He only wished he could have made the night last longer. Then, sitting upright in bed, he knew that he could. Peeta picked his phone up and pressed number one on his speed dial. A familiar gruff voice answered.

"So my boy, how did it go? Was it the worst experience of your life? Or the best?" Haymitch asked.

"I would have to definitely say the second," Peeta began. "So much so, that I've decided I'm going to change my flight and leave tomorrow night instead of in the morning. I want to see her again."

The young man could feel the smile on his agent's face through the phone as he let out a whistle. "Really? Then it must have been great. Congrats, kid. Did old Haymitch come through for you, or what?"

"Yeah, Yeah," Peeta joked. "Don't get yourself all puffed up any more than you already are, old man."

"Don't' worry," the agent replied. "Just remember you have to be here on Monday. There's a read through rehearsal for the next gig."

"I know," Peeta conceded. "I'll be on a flight tomorrow night, I promise."

With that the two hung up, and the young actor went back to lying on his bed and staring at the ceiling. His mind was full of Katniss. He couldn't get the vision of her singing up on that stage out of his mind. As he began to fall asleep, he finally came to one big conclusion about the girl he had spent the evening with. If he had been halfway in love with Katniss before even meeting her, he knew that it was full blown now.

Peeta Mellark realized that he was a goner.