******************************************************************************Hey Everybody, thanks for your patience for today's chapter. I also want to thank you for supporting me on last week's chapter! We broke 10,000 views and I can't thank all of you wonderful readers enough! I loved all of your name suggestions and picked one from a viewer submission! Anyway, here's today's chapter!
"Hi sweetie, your mommy and I picked a name for you, your name is…. Baylyn." Peeta rests his hand on mine, which is on top of our daughter. She immediately kicks at her name. "She likes it." Peeta smiles at my comment and kisses my forehead. "It's nice to not have to call her "the baby"…Kat, this moment right here…right now is perfect… You're truly happy that Baylyn is on the way…real or not real?" If there's one thing Peeta has remembered and fully embraced…is our special game, real or not real. "Real. I like her name." "So do I. The meaning seems fitting already." We both stare at the screen, I reread the meaning over and over again in my mind, until I have memorized it completely; it reads:
Creative in practical ways, as Peeta is with his baking, painting, and cake decorating. The name Baylyn also describes the child as enjoys the simple pleasures of life especially activities that take you outdoors, exactly like me…and maybe…just maybe. If I'm lucky she'll enjoy hunting as much as I do.
I don't ever want to close this webpage. It's the place where I found our daughter's name…the place where it feels like the start of what seems like the road to happiness. By the time I look back up, it is dark out. "Come on let's go inside, it's already dark." I sigh and let Peeta pull me to my feet. "Peeta, I love her name. I also think the meaning sounds like her. Between your baking, and creativity, and then the love of the outdoors…it does seem like how our daughter will turn out based on this second trimester." Peeta stares down at his feet, with a smile wider than the meadow. As soon as the door to our house is shut, I can feel Baylyn start to kick again; my knees weaken by the intensity of pain, and Peeta catches me before I drop to the floor. "That last part about, loving the outdoors seems…. spot on." I manage to half smile, through the pain. "Why don't you try singing Peeta? It may help her calm down." Peeta lifts me up with ease and carries me back to our bedroom, and lays me down on the bed. I turn towards him and hope his singing will help this kicking spell subside. "Wait? What song am I supposed to sing? One of yours.. or something like, the valley song?" "You can use one of mine…Baylyn will hear more of the valley song then she ever would want, when she starts school." Peeta smiles in the remembrance of when I sang the valley song when we were five. "Maybe the one I heard your dad sing for the first time?" "Sure." What song was that? Wasn't it deep in the meadow?
"Are you are you coming to the tree where they strung up a man, they said murdered three."
"Peeta!" "What?" "Why would you sing the hanging tree?" "Is that what it's called? I remember when your dad went by the bakery when I was little and he sang that song…maybe you should sing the lullabys." "I can't right now…her kicking is making me short of breath." "I'll try the one you sang to Rue." I nod happily in remembrance of Rue's sweet face, how it made her happy…how. Peaceful it made her in a time of panic.
Deep in the meadow, under the willow
A bed of grass, a soft green pillow
Lay down your head, and close your sleepy eyes
And when again they open, the sun will rise.
Here it's safe, here it's warm
Here the daisies guard you from every harm
Here your dreams are sweet and tomorrow brings them true
Here is the place where I love you
Peeta's voice isn't as perfect as my father's was while singing that song…but then again, nobody will ever replace my father's beautiful voice. But the love and effort Peeta applied made it sound almost as perfect. And when I sang the last line with him, Baylyn immediately calmed down, and seemed to have drifted back to sleep. "I better try to get to sleep before she wakes up again." "That would be good for you. You deserve the extra rest." I smile over to my wonderful husband and scoot closer to him and soak in his warmth. I drift off to sleep a second later, my last sight is Peeta's calmed, yet happy face resting beside my own. Baylyn? Baylyn… Baylyn. I like it. Goodnight sweetie.
Peeta kisses my cheek awakening me to the next morning. "Baking day!" I cringe at the thought of the promise I made to Peeta last night, not to mention his voice is booming through my head. I enjoy the quiet…and Peeta has disrupted that. "Don't you know not to bother a pregnant lady!" I slam a pillow on top of my head and grunt; "Well then you leave me no choice." Oh my god…what new kind of torture is Peeta going to succeed in doing to wake me up? My entire body goes stiff, Peeta brings in my hunting jacket and throws it towards me, "smell this Kat." I slowly raise it to my nose and breathe in the relaxing smells of the woods. All of a sudden Peeta snatches it away from me and holds it above my head. "Peeta! Baylyn is kicking! Either give it back or grab the bread!" I desperately reach for the jacket, even on my tiptoes I can't reach the jacket. "Fine! I'll go get the bread we brought home last night." Peeta just laughs, "You finished those loaves around two in the morning."
"Peeta Mellark! Your child is kicking, and I want it to stop! Now!" I scowl and Peeta scoots over to the doorway and kisses me and bolts down the stairs. "Catch the jacket if you can!" The stupid pregnancy has seemed to make me irrational, because I do, run down the stairs in a desperate attempt to get my jacket. I finally catch my breath and I'm in the kitchen, fully awake. He's managed to do it again. He's managed to get me up and alert by using my one weak spot. Baylyn. I look on the counter and see an entire meal of bread, watermelon, and a bunch of other stuff that looks incredibly yummy. I immediately dig in and when I finally take a breath and look up Peeta has his hand over his mouth in amusement. "It's been like a whole five hours since I ate anything." Peeta walks by and kisses my forehead as I finish devouring the last piece of watermelon. "I'm going to take a shower, I'll lay out your clothes for today." "Thank you." I bat my eyes sarcastically and smile with mouth full of watermelon seeds.
After finishing my breakfast….for now anyways. I climb the stairs and find a green t-shirt with plain black type in simple letters that reads Mellark Family Bakery. I smile at the shirt and pull it on, with some black pants. When Peeta emerges from the shower he has on a matching orange shirt, but he already has his apron on. "I see how it is…we can have the matching shirts, but me and Baylyn don't even get aprons?" Peeta smiles and pulls out a black waist apron with Baylyn's name carefully painted on the front. He ties it on for me and her name lies right above the baby bump. I smile and rest my head on his chest while, he braids my hair for me. He's one of the few men that can do anything to hair. He says it because he's seen me do it so many times and that artists notice these kinds of things. I can feel his breath as he kisses my cheek, and forehead. "Ready to head over to the bakery?" I nod, and find that I'm actually kinda excited to try my hand at baking again.
Peeta has closed the bakery for today so he can focus on helping me not burn the bread. Just the smell of the dough is enough for Baylyn to decide she's wants to keep kicking for more and more bread. "We just ate breakfast!" At this point I'm tired of eating anytime she pleases. Peeta feeds me a bite of bread, while I use that long rounded thing...I believe Peeta called it a rolling pin. "See Kat you're not killing the bread!" "Trust me that time will come." I smile and stare back down at my work.
**********************************Peeta's POV**********************************
Katniss looks so beautiful in the natural light being let in through the window. Not to mention she's just beautiful every day, but seeing her here doing something I love, and appears she is starting to enjoy it fills me with joy. With Baylyn inside of her and showing through makes Kat all the more beautiful to me. I'm sure she'd deny it but, I guess I'll never understand why she dislikes her own appearance, but yet, likes my own pasty white skin, with the blonde hair my parents had to pass onto me. I try to shake thoughts of my own face and focus on Kat's. She so preoccupied by rolling out the bread, I pull out a spare sketch pad and begin sketching out her stunning face for the hundredth time.
I'm just adding in the details when she looks up. "Peeta! Why would you be drawing right now?" "Don't mind me…I'm just drawing my beautiful wife…" She shakes her head and grunts; I can tell she's trying to hide her face. But every single memory I have of her have come back fully, and I remember ever detail of her perfect face. Just as I make the final piece of hair that falls in front of her face, she looks up with a huge smile. "I finished three loaves Peeta!" I look down at the loaves, they're a little lumpy but they're Kat's very first successful loaves of bread so I express my excitement. "That's great Kat!" I pick her up and spin her around; even on my prosthetic leg I can lift her with ease. "Are you ready for the moment of truth?" Our gazes switch over to the bread ovens. Katniss picks up the pans and makes her way over to the ovens. "Here goes nothing." She pops the pans in and watches through the oven door, like an excited child. Happy pregnancy hormones…gotta love them… I smile and wrap my arms around her waist and watch as the bread rises.
Katniss opens the oven door and starts to reach out for the pans. "Kat! You can't just use your hands!" I pull out an oven mitt and hand it to her. "I knew that…" I raise my eyebrow at her playfully, she pushes my shoulder, and I almost fall over. I begin laughing and so does Katniss. Her eyes widen at the bread and the steam rising from them. I can tell she's just counting down the minutes until she can sink her teeth into a loaf. I take her hand and kiss her lips. "I love you, thanks for trying to share in something I love." "I liked baking but this means you get to come into the woods with me and swim." I shake my head, she presses her lips on mine. She flutters her eyes open, she knows I'm a sucker for the beautiful shade of silver that they are. "Yes, it does mean that." She lets out a light laugh and heads back over to eat the bread she made.
***********************************9 Weeks Later******************************
I extend my arm out and wait to feel Peeta's warmth; instead I find the startling cold sheets. I snap my head around and scan the pillow for a note, or a sign of any sort. I swing my legs off the bed, "Peeta?" I yell down the hallway, I run through the house and still no Peeta. Bakery? Grocery Store? Meadow? He always leaves me a note before leaving the house…where did he go? I walk over to the door and pull on my old hunting jacket and open the front door. I see Peeta's blonde hair, and I walk towards it. As the rest of the yard appears I see flashing lights. Peeta's strong arms shove me back into the house. I land on my bottom and am somewhat disoriented, I shake my head and look out the peep hole. I see Peeta's head and a lot of black things covering my yard. What are those? Flashing…black things…they're cameras. Stupid pregnancy brain…you're going to be the death of me…Peeta! I left him out there alone! "Stay in the house Kat!" All of a sudden, the door flings open and my head is slammed on the door, next thing I see is Haymitch, busting through the door with four other people close behind. Two of which are having to be pulled through the door.
And again I am on my bottom, sprawled out on the floor. Dizzy and disoriented, and confused. I was right. Pregnancy brain will be the death of me. I try to pull my eyes out of the fog they've fallen under. "Get up, Sweetheart!" I feel two guys pull me up to my feet from my arms. "Where's Peeta?" I start looking around frantically, and extending my arms trying to feel around for Peeta's broad shoulders. I feel somebody's face; I run my hands all down it, pausing at the mouth and nose. It's no use; I can't tell who it is… "Having fun, Sweetheart?" "Sorry Haymitch. But does anybody want to tell me where Peeta is?" By this point I'm passed frustrated, I feel somebody cup my face in their hands, "Haymitch! I'm not going to stop till I find Peeta." I try taking a swing for where his face would be.
"Kat, Kat, Kat! Relax! It's me, Peeta." Much to my happiness my vision finally begins clearing, and I see the two beautiful blue eyes staring back at me, that I love more than anything in this world. "Peeta! Are you okay?" "So…your vision blurs completely, and you fell down onto the hard wood floors… and you're asking me if I'm okay?" "Isn't that all that matters?" Peeta presses his lips onto mine, and I enjoy this moment…until I look around to see a group of people awkwardly staring at us.
It takes another second for me to absorb who all is in my house. I knew Haymitch was already here…but the green eyes coming from two opposite sides are unmistakable, "Hi Effie. Hi Annie." They wave with a sad smile. I take a look at the last pair of eyes, and they are dark, and I hadn't seen them too long ago. "Hey Johanna." "Brainless." I shrug it off and pull Peeta's arm around my shoulders, and huddle close to him. I stand up on my toes and whisper in his ear. "What is everybody doing here?" "Well Sweetheart, it's time to get you all ready for tonight." Haymitch is pulling me by the wrist towards the mirror; he rests his hands on each of my shoulders. My eyes almost pop out of my head at how much my stomach has grown in the last several weeks. "It's either do a couple interviews or it appears you have quite a few new neighbors, living on your lawn." "If this is about my baby…why is everybody else here?" "They won't leave our houses either…we're screwed unless you, lover boy and baby Mockingjay do the interviews."
******************************************************************************Hi Guys! What'd you think about today's chapter? Love it? Hate it? Let me know in the reviews below! How do you guys feel about the name I selected for the newest little Mellark? I am still taking suggestions if you guys would like her to have a middle name… Did you like the happy fluff in the beginning or do you want more action? Happy some of the other characters have made their reappearance? Let me know! I love you all so much! Talk to you at my next update!
~Freezethemoment
