Awesomeness. I got so many reviews for that last chapter. Thanks to everyone!

I had to admit I got lost a few times finding my way back to the MI section of the hospital, but eventually we found it. Though the lady at the desk wasn't very happy to see us.

"What do you want?" She said in a bored tone.

I felt Prim take my hand subtly. She seemed as nervous as I was. I cleared my throat. "We came to see—"

"Katniss? Yeah, I know." She pressed little button on her caller and spoke into it. "Is Ms. Everdeen ready?"

I glared at her. How come everyone still thinks Katniss' last name is Everdeen?

"Okay, good." The sour receptionist let go of the button and looked up at us with her bored brown eyes. "Someone will be here shortly to guide you to Katniss' room."

I didn't bother to thank her. We went to sit down in the uncomfortable chairs, not saying anything to each other, but feeling the anxiety roll off of one another in waves. Not ten seconds after we sat, someone appeared next to us. "You two here for Katniss?"

We nodded.

"Please follow me."

Prim stuck close to my side as we followed the nurse guy through the too-shiny halls. I noted the signs on the walls while we walked. When there was one stating the end of the "mental instability labs" and the beginning of the "mental instability long-term wards" I straightened up. Was Katniss really in that bad of shape? The butterflies in my stomach steadily grew into man-eating scorpions from mars when the nurse stopped in front of a door. It was incredibly menacing. The door was made from shiny silver metal, and has so many straps of other metal adorning it, along with a big black keyhole. On the side of the wall next to the doorway was a plastic tablet that read "Katniss Everdeen #721".

The nurse pulled a set of keys and identification cards from his pocket. He had to use one key and one card to open the door.

I was about to nudge Primrose forward into the room, since she was Katniss sister, when she shuffled behind me. "You go first."

Unsure what I would find, I side-stepped into the cold room. Immediately, there was the horrible feeling of claustrophobia. The walls were a horrible off-white, and had visible stitching in crossing patterns, that clearly said "LOOK AT ME! I'M A PADDED WALL FOR MAD PEOPLE!". The strangest looking bed was in the center. It was white also, but instead of looking like a rectangle and such, it was pretty wide, with its edges curving up a foot or two to form a shallow type of half-hollow-cylinder. But that wasn't where Katniss was.

In the very corner of the room, wearing a set of matching white cotton-looking clothes, huddled in a ball, looking half deranged, was Katniss. Just three days could do a lot to a person, I guess. She was visibly shaking as Katniss lifted her head up to look at her visitors. One glance at me was all it took.

She shot up off the ground and barreled towards me at high speed. "Peeta!" And without warning, she flung herself into my arms bawling her eyes out.

I cradled her to my chest. "It's okay, Katniss. I'm sorry, I'm so sorry…"

"Why are you so sorry?" She sniffed and glanced up at me with sunken gray eyes, as if she hadn't been eating.

I cupped her head in my hands, ignoring the question. "Katniss Mellark, have you stopped eating!"

She only looked slightly guilty. "…Maybe."

"You can't do this to yourself!" I said, my voice suddenly harsh. "I will not let you do this to yourself, Katniss! Do you hear me?"

She cringed and said nothing.

I realized I was acting just a little bit too stern on her, seeing the fragile look in her eyes, the weakness in her arms when she put them around me. I pulled her back into my chest. "You scare the heck out of me sometimes, Katniss. I can't lose you. I can't let you lose yourself."

"I already have." Katniss whispered against my shirt. But then she lifted her head up slightly and her gaze fastened on Prim, who was standing a ways off, looking extremely uncomfortable. Katniss drew away from me and held her arms out for her little sister, who came running into them. "Hey, little duck."

They stood there embracing for a second when it was Prim who drew away. She glanced at Katniss glancing at me, and then glanced at me herself. I frowned at all this glancing. Prim sniffed once and shuffled away from both of us towards the door. "I can see you have a lot on your mind. Maybe it would be best if I came back another time."

Katniss immediately looked guilty and somewhat frantic. "No, it's okay Prim, you can s—"

"Really." She interrupted her older sister. "Honestly. I'll come back tomorrow with Mother, how's that?"

"I-I guess…" Katniss sighed, and pulled her little sister in for one last hug. "Love you, Primrose."

"Love you, too." And with a slightly shrewd look at me, Prim exited the room.

I stood there semi-awkwardly before speaking. "So what are the visiting hours of this place?"

Katniss shrugged weakly. "There is none. It's just like a normal room. Except with padded walls. And video surveillance. And locks from the outside."

We stood there a little more, being uncomfortable, until I motioned for us to sit on the bed. To my surprise, it was way more comfortable than I had imagined. Katniss curled up next to me and I allowed her to cry a bit into my shirt. Once she was all cried-out we just sat there curled around each other in a doleful silence. But I couldn't take the miserable air for much long.

"Hey, Katniss?" I bent my head down to look at her. She said nothing. "Three days ago we woke up happy and for a second there, even you forgot our worries. Why-Why can't we do that more often?" It sounded weird even to my own ears, but Katniss knew me well enough to get what I meant.

"Shutting our eyes in front of the firing squad doesn't make them change their mind. We could be laughing and giggling all day long together and ignore everyone and everything, but that would come and bite us in the butt later. There are some things that just can't be ignored."

"Like what?" I raised my eyebrows.

"Our daughter just got killed. That's one." Katniss was trembling, and she didn't meet my eyes. "Plus I just learned that the Capitol isn't down. Snow isn't dead. I murdered my old stylist, who murdered my best friend. I am in the mental hospital for trying to kill the doctor who killed my daughter. I don't think it is possible for me to have any more down time."

She actually had a point, but I had to keep defending mine. "You can't do anything about any of that. Okay, Snow and his little minions aren't gone forever, but that isn't your problem. You can't be responsible for Panem. There are people who are meant to take care of that kind of stuff. Katniss, you're eighteen. You are not in charge of saving the world, or whatever."

She gave me an obviously skeptical look. "Apparently that's what's expected out of me ever since I became the mockingjay."

"But you didn't choose that! That isn't you! You don't have to be that, Katniss. The only person you have to be is yourself." I had the feeling Katniss was staring to understand what I was saying now. "Let the president of Thirteen take care of it."

Katniss looked defeated. "But…But you can't possibly expect me to stop being upset just because I'm not in charge of it!"

"No, but I want you to stop thinking you're in charge of it." I knew I had won this argument.

Katniss didn't say anything.

"If today is your last chance to be happy, do you think you could smile once, just for me?" I looked at her hopefully.

She scowled down at her hands, not meeting my eyes at all.

"Please?" I ducked my head close to hers and let my nose tickle Katniss' neck. If she wouldn't give in to my words, maybe she would respond to my touch.

She shivered at the contact. "You know that's not fair, Peeta."

"Is it, now?" I murmured, quite amused. My breath tickled the soft skin of Katniss' throat. Pretty soon she would give in, if I knew her at all.

"We were having a serious…talk…" She paused when I kissed her briefly on her jaw line. "But you…That's not fair."

"Who says anyone's playing fair?" Grinning slightly in triumph, I tilted her head up with my thumbs and kissed her again.

That did it. Katniss gave up and nearly crumbled into my arms. "I hate you, you know that?" Her words were slurred against my mouth.

"Of course you do."

If Kat heard the sarcasm in my voice, she didn't respond. I felt her fingertips trail against my neck and into my hair. Me: One. Katniss: Zero.

When she finally pulled away, I could tell her eyes were a bit softer than before, but I couldn't say the same for her hair or lips. "Peeta Mellark, you are a rotten man."

"Oh well." It was obvious Katniss didn't like to lose on things like this, but being happy for once would do her some good. I closed my eyes and sat back on the strange bed, letting Katniss be sulky.

"Cheating is not nice." She rambled. "You know very well I can't think when you do that. I'll get you back, just wait."

"Okay." This was all very amusing for me, since I won both ways. Katniss wasn't being emo about her life any more, plus I got her to cave into my kisses. She is so much fun to play these kinds of games with her.

"Are you listening to me, Peeta?" She was pouting up at me. "I said—Mmf!"

I pinched her lips together with my thumb and forefinger. "Katniss… Shh…"

She scowled at me.

"If you can't be quiet yourself I'm just going to have to keep your lips pinched forever, and you know how bad that would be." I smirked down at her. I hope this wasn't too mean.

Katniss relaxed under my grip and I let her lips go. "Now, sit still and enjoy the moment."

Oh, yes, how fun. We are both locked into a mad-person cell after so many horrible things happened. Let's enjoy that, shall we?

Katniss seemed to think the same thing. She glanced around briefly with a cynical look on.

I amended. "We are safe in this…um…room. And we are together in the peace and quiet. Close your eyes and imagine us sitting at the bank of some peaceful lake, rays of warm sunshine pouring onto your face."

Her eyes closed lazily and I could tell from her serene expression the place she was thinking of was very nice.

"Just you and me…" I touched my thumb to her cheek and pressed my lips to her temple. This moment was so utterly perfect (ignoring the location, of course).

Katniss sighed and a few second passed before she said, "Hey Peeta?"

"Hm?"

"I love you."

I felt my heart practically melt at her words. With a finger, I gently swept a piece of her hair back behind her ear. "I love you, too."

Aawwww… If any of you were like me you'd be grinning so stupidly right now… I really enjoy writing in Peeta's POV. It is sweet because he is more of an emotionally-attached, sympathetic guy who doesn't worry much. It makes fluffiness easier to write. Hope you liked this chapter!