Yes, I combined some chapters together. Made it more fluid. No actual deleted chapters.

Enjoy!

"I want to keep the layout similar to the original, but I'm not sure what to do with the upstairs." Peeta walks around the downstairs of the bakery, hand on his chin as he looks around his semi-done bakery.

I stay by the door so I can take in the whole area, a thought coming to me. "What about a huge office? You could set up a couch and desk, so you can do all the finances in a more suitable environment."

He turns and looks at me for a moment, lost in thought, then nods slowly as a smile appears on his face. "I like it." His eyes widen slightly, his smile growing as he walks over to me, a catalog he got from the Capitol in hand. "I haven't showed you all of the things I'm getting, have I?"

I shake my head, and am actually happy to listen. I'm glad that he's getting so excited over something; he deserves it. "Wanna show me?"

He nods and stands close to me, pulling out pages that he'd marked. "Here are the ovens I'm getting. They're double ovens, which is super cool, especially since I've only gotten used to using electric ovens in Victor's Village. They say they're self-cleaning, too! I'm not too sure what that means, but it'll probably come in handy." He turns the page, "And then, look at this sink! It comes with all of this stuff, like a cutting board – though obviously I'll have to get more, and a strainer. Oh! And the dishwashers. I have to admit, those are pretty handy."

I listen to him go on about the 'awesome' mixers he wants to get, and how he'll probably get two different kinds because he can't choose, and the utensils and different display cases. I can't help but grin at his child-like enthusiasm, and the way his eyes sparkle makes my heart soar. "Sounds like you have everything figured out."

He scratches the back of his head and looks down at his shoes, the smile gone. "I just…I want it to be perfect."

My eyes soften as I gently put a hand on his shoulder. It's no secret he's thinking about his family; how he wants it to be perfect for them. "It is, Peeta." I want to find some way to alleviate the situation, no only to take him out of his miserable thoughts, but also because I've never been good at handling these sorts of situations. In fact, I usually make things worse. "What color are you going to paint it?"

The smile is back, and I feel accomplished. "Well, I was thinking I would use some sort of red. Apparently it makes you hungry." He moves around the room again, pointing out where he's going to paint some designs, and where he wants to hang some paintings. "I was thinking of putting one of those speaker systems in – like what they use at stores in the Capitol – to set the mood. Something soft."

I nod, remembering hearing such a thing before the war. He's really thought all of this through. "Well, it all sounds great, Peeta. Really." I smile warmly, to which he beams back with pride.

"You think?"

I nod, and then look out the window. We have been in the bakery for a good few hours now. For the first couple of hours, he was setting up some of the last changes for the builders this morning. After all this, I was getting pretty hungry – it had to be at least three. "Hey, do you want to head home for some lunch? I can make us a couple of salads with the leftover squirrel."

He nods his head with a smile and leads me out the door. "I'll make some cheese buns to go with. They don't take that long to make." He then takes my hand, and I let him keep it there, oddly enough not caring if any passersby see. Most already have their opinions on us, anyway, I'm sure.

The sky begins to get cloudy and gray on our trip back, and I hope we make it back home before it starts raining. I pull his hand to make him walk faster, a small yelp of surprise coming from him. "I want to get back before it starts raining." I look back momentarily and see him nod, coming up to keep pace with me.

We make it inside right as it downpours, making me lean against the door and laugh, "and that's why we walked fast."

He begins to laugh too, facing toward me when he leans against the door, too. "Thanks to you."

Our laughter begins to die down, and I realize how close he actually is. So close, that all I would have to do is lean up and our lips would touch. I want so badly to turn away, my cheeks flushing, but something has me rooted to the spot. He seems to notice our predicament as well, but doesn't turn away. In fact, he seems to be leaning closer.

Before I know it, we're both leaning in, so slowly it wouldn't be noticeable right away, until our lips are barely touching the other's.

Just then, there's loud banging on the door. I scream and jump away, my heart pounding in my chest at the sudden sound. I curse and walk over to the door, not looking in Peeta's direction, and swing it open with a scowl, knowing it could only be one person. "What do you want, Haymitch?"

Haymitch stumbles through the door with a bottle of white liquor in his hand, soaking wet. He clumsily turns in my direction, his voice slurred when he speaks, "Well sweetheart, I was just coming over to see if you kids have whipped up any food since Good ole' Sae doesn't come around anymore," he glares at us, "but it just so happens to bee pouring outside. Now, how 'bout that food?" He passes us and plops down on a chair at the kitchen table, taking another gulp of alcohol.

Peeta sighs, and I hear him head toward the stairs. "I'm going to go get him a towel."

I still can't bring myself to look in his direction, so I settle for a simple, "Okay." I take a deep breath and head to the kitchen, the scowl returning as I walk past my former mentor and head for the fridge to start the sandwiches.

"Why so flushed?"

I pause what I'm doing for a second, then continue on silently. There's no way I'm sharing this with him; his teasing would be incessant when Peeta comes back down. I hear him snort and the sound of the bottle hitting the table.

"Here." It's Peeta, and I hear the sound of a towel being thrown, as well as a sarcastic 'thanks' from Haymitch. His footsteps come closer to me as he moves to the fridge to get out the cheese and milk to start on the buns. "These should be done in about ten minutes, so we can eat them after the sandwiches."

I nod and brave a glance at him. I see his Adam's apple bob when he swallows, busying himself with mixing all of the ingredients. I finish the sandwiches quickly and hand one to Haymitch, who stands up with the plate in one hand and liquor in the other, stumbling toward the door as he looks between the two of us. "I think I'll take this to go." I watch as he heads straight out into the rain again, reminding me that getting drunk is definitely not worth it.

I set the other two plates down in our regular spots, and notice the slight damage done to his chair, bringing me back to this morning. This is something we need to talk about, as well as letting me sidestep what had happened against the door. "Do they happen often?"

He tenses over the cookie sheet, and I'm scared that I might have set him off. His hands begin to work again, slower than before, when he speaks, "No. Usually they have to be triggered, but sometimes they take me by surprise." He sets the buns in the oven and then plops down in his spot, looking at me thoughtfully. "Dr. Aurelius has taught me to fight off the attacks. What happened earlier, that was only minor. I'm glad, because I wouldn't know what to do if I hurt you again." His eyes turn down, his fingers limp.

I hesitantly reach a hand across the table to grip his, a silent comfort. He takes a deep breath before he continues. "Since that wasn't triggered, that's probably why it wasn't too bad of one. It's common for me to be pretty worn after stronger ones."

I nod, though he can't see; he still won't look at me. I want to make him feel better about this, to let him know that it doesn't change anything. This is a big step up from him locking his hands around my throat – this thought makes me shudder. "Peeta, look at me."

He doesn't.

"Peeta," I say, my voice much more strict, forcing him to look up. I sigh and grip his hand harder, trying to make my eyes look soft; not an easy feat for me. "I'm not afraid of you." I want to say more, but I can't get the nerve to make myself.

It seems to be enough, though, because a small smile makes its way onto his face. He then sighs and looks toward the living room. "Do you…so you think we can skip the memory book today?"

I'm not surprised; actually, I almost feel relieved. The last thing I want is to trigger one of his flashbacks. "Uh, sure." I look out the window above the sink – it was still raining pretty hard, and when I looked at the clock, I'm surprised that it's already six. I then look below and see the cookie sheet, with dough disks still on the sheet. "Um…"

He follows my eyes and then jumps up. "Oh, sorry. It'll only be about eight minutes."

I smile as he puts them in the oven quickly, smiling at me apologetically. At least the serious conversation is over. "You really should pay attention more, Peeta. I was expecting my cheese buns two hours ago," I say with a smirk.

He rolls his eyes playfully and walks back over to me. We wait in silence, and then eat the cheese buns. After, we walk over to the couch in front of the fireplace.

As I sit down, he walks to the fireplace and puts some logs in. "I'm going to start up a fire."

"Okay." I watch as he works, maybe a little too closely. It was nice, the way his muscles in his arms moved while he maneuvered the logs with a poker, and how when he bent down like that-I shake my head.

He walks back over to me with a smile, sitting down a bit closer than usual. Before I know it, I'm leaning against him, his arm around my waist. I'm so relaxed that I feel my eyes droop, and then nothing.

FGTHG

Fire. That's all I see. And then there's more faces, familiar faces.

Finnick. Rue. Cato. Marvel. Boggs. Coin. Snow. Prim.

They're all calling for me, telling me to join in the fire. They're smiling, but not kind smiles. No, they're sneering. I won't go, though. I can't even speak, let alone move.

The fire's getting closer, all of the faces burning, eyes falling out, and then it's so close that I can't get out.

I'm burning, burning, burning…

"Katniss!"

I wake with a scream, coming face to face with worried blue eyes. I close my eyes and cling to him, hiding my face in the crook of his neck.

"Shh." He's stroking my hair, his lips pressed to the top of my head. "It was just a dream, Katniss. Just a dream."

I not, knowing if I speak they will come out as sobs. I feel him lifting my head away, and then a kiss on my forehead.

Before I know it, his lips are on mine.

The kiss is soft and sweet, his lips familiar and warm. He has one hand still around my waist, while the other is cupping the back of my head; both of my hands are on his cheeks to keep him still.

He pulls away from me, breathless, and leans his forehead against mine. "Let's go to bed."

I nod and let him pick me up, carrying me all the way to my room. He tucks me in and then crawls into the covers behind me, swinging a hand around me and pressing a kiss on my neck. "Good night."

I smile as I close my eyes. "Good night."

Kisses! Gettin' the romance on, and more to come. I haven't decided what the next chapter will be yet, but I'm sure it'll have lots of romance.

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