:D Thank you to everyone for the amazing reviews you guys sent me! I have to admit I'm as excited as you are, 'cause the next, say, ten chapters are going to be BIG and IMPORTANT. And I think some of you guys know what I mean... Hehehe… Enjoy this chapter! Oh, and by the way, this chapter is dedicated to one of my best friends Sophie who made me laugh harder than I have in a while. 3 Love ya, Soph. Okay, now you can read.
oOo
Even though I was gone for about a month, it was no trouble keeping up with Peeta as we made our way to the cafeteria. He kept his fingers around mine comfortingly; that was the only place we were touching. Despite what I wanted, I knew that we had to tone it down. It was a different scenario, being stuck in one room for a month. But out here in actual civilization, we can't act the way we did in the hospital. A hint of color crept into my cheeks just thinking of it.
As we got nearer to the cafeteria doors, I found myself speeding up. Peeta just went along with it, and by the time we were there, we had been jogging.
He shot me an amused look and opened the door for me.
If I was hoping for a drastic change of the lunchroom, I was disappointed. Everything was exactly the same as it was the very day I had left. Nothing out of the ordinary was in sight. Except for Primrose giggling her head off, if you could even count that at all.
I walked briskly over to them, and my footsteps apparently made a lot of noise (that's new…), because before I got to the table, Mother and Prim turned to look at me. Prim hopped immediately out of her seat and threw her arms around me. Mother stood up, too, and wrapped her arms around the both of us. At that point, Peeta had let go of me and stepped back.
See, the first time when I was confined in a room in the hospital, people were allowed to come and go to see me, but after I had my surgery, Dr. Tyrwhitt said that I was unstable enough for visitors, and only when I was released I could see anyone else. So I hadn't seen anyone besides Peeta for two weeks. I was okay with the Peeta part, but I missed my family a lot.
"How are you feeling, Katniss?" Prim pulled away, beaming at me with her dazzling sapphire eyes. "We haven't seen you for ages."
"Only two weeks, Prim." I couldn't help but smile at her and kiss the top of her blond head. She was nearing my height, but still had some three inches to go. For a fourteen-year-old, she was pretty small. "But I'm fine. And how are you two?" My gaze flicked up to Mother, who seemed to be wiping tears from her eyes.
"Things have been hard without seeing you, but I have to admit they've been too busy to tell." She smiled tiredly. "My new job has been wearing me down."
Mother had just recently gotten a job as a doctor here in District 13, and—even though she was getting paid for it—to be frank it was taking its toll on her. There is only so much a middle-aged woman could do.
I was still giving Prim a one-armed hug around her shoulders, while I was talking to my mother. "Well, if there is anything I could help you with…"
"No, no." She said quickly. "All you need to do is heal, young lady." Mother scolded with a jokingly stern look on. "What are you even doing here? You should be back in your room resting."
I couldn't help but sigh; I loved my mother, but she didn't understand that when I was trapped in the hospital for two weeks, I was healing. I don't need to anymore. But apparently Mother didn't think so. I gave her an exasperated look. "I am healed. And I wanted to come to lunch to see you." And, as a second thought, I added, "Plus, I'm hungry."
"Peeta could have brought you food, right?" My mother, who was still defending her point, looked at my husband with knowing look. Then she turned back to me. "But, nevertheless, I am glad you are here and okay." And she hugged me a second time.
Mothers…
We (Peeta, Primrose, Mother and I) chatted and laughed, hugged and cried, swapped stories about things that happened while I was away over lunch. Prim sat on my right side, Peeta at my left, Mother in front of the three of us. She seemed to be the most overjoyed of all of us, but she seemed so absolutely worn out. I was almost to the point of telling her to go to her room and get some sleep, but I didn't.
It turned out that there was definite news of Project Rebuild. When I brought up the subject, Mother turned around and pointed to way behind her.
"There are newsletters up near the serving table, Katniss, if you and Peeta would like to read what has been going on." She smiled at us.
I was about to get up when Peeta shook his head. "I'll get it."
When he came back, in his hands was a small, folded pamphlet that was the exact shade of the walls; an off-white, with little dots of grease stains.
Peeta sat down next to me and we both bent over it.
09/06/28
To the residents of the Refuge Quarter, D13
As you know, District Thirteen is hosting what is called Project Rebuild; Starting at District 12 going down to 1, volunteers from all quarters of District 13 will be helping the reconstruction of the District that have been previously sabotaged by the Capitol.
Started from April 20th, 3028, Project Rebuild has been going on for 4 1/2 months, in which time District 12 has been under construction. As rumor has it, the erection shall be completed September 19th, 3028. September 20th is when D13 will be moving residents to District 12 by the means of Hovercraft, in order of ranking.
The reconstruction of District 11 will begin September 30th. See the administrative desk to volunteer.
Jaimee Harvan,
Head Official
For a minute, Peeta and I sat there reading and rereading the information on the paper. I quickly did the math in my head. We have almost exactly two weeks until we get to get on the hovercrafts and go home.
Peeta's eyes—today a curious slate blue—flicked up to mine. "You understand what this means, Katniss?"
I nodded, though all I wanted to do was crawl out of the wrecked astronomy room ceiling and scream at the top of my lungs in joy. But I didn't, of course, because, being Katniss Everdeen, I had to keep my cool. Sort of.
I glanced over again at the paper, than back up to Peeta. "This is…" I was at loss for words. "I just can't believe it. Home. We get to go home." Barely containing my excitement, I looked up at my family, who were sitting around me with shining eyes. A sudden rush of involuntary affection hit me, and I had the urge to get up and hug everyone until they burst. That feeling surprised me, because this did not happen often.
Funnily enough, Peeta beat me to it. He put his hand behind my neck and kissed me full on the mouth. Unfortunately, no matter how much I enjoyed it, the eyes of Primrose and Mother drilled into me.
I had to pull away and scold him. "Everyone's watching, Peeta." And until I actually look around the room, it was evident that my words were truer than I thought.
Eyes from all around the large cafeteria were on the two of us. Some people were giggling into their palms. Some were gaping, wide-mouthed, not bothering to hide their eavesdropping. But most people who were watching Peeta and I just had their backs turned a fraction, but every one of their eyes were visible.
Mother laughed, breaking the silence. "You two count as 'high ranking', too. That means that you'll be with the crowd to go on the twentieth. There has been talk all around. Rumors, obviously."
I broke my gaze with a 10-year-old boy to look back at my mother. "What kind of rumors?" I wondered if I should be worried.
"The spy in the Capitol has reported back that an attack was being planned, but no date was set. People have been talking about the Mockingjay, of course." Mother's twinkling eyes grew suddenly fretful. "I don't want you fighting, Katniss. You're still unstable. There is no way I will be letting you participate in any kind of fighting any time soon."
"Same here." Peeta put his hand down on the table. "Ever, if I get my way."
I didn't like how Mother and Peeta were ganging up on me like this. It wasn't like I was going to sit under my bed the whole time while my friends and family get blown to bits. I had to do something. And the Capitol fight was huge. Personally, I didn't know why Mother and Peeta weren't freaking out about it more, but I guess the fact that it was merely a rumor lightened their hearts a bit. But there wasn't really any point in arguing right now; it was better to be happy and not arguing during a happy reunion. So I did nothing but shoot a look to each.
When lunch was over, and we had exhausted every possible topic under the sun, Peeta and I had to bid my family goodbye. We stood up and another bout of hugging hit me. It took a good ten minutes for Primrose and Mother to get it out of their systems and let us leave the cafeteria.
I sighed, glad to finally have some alone time. Maybe I had grown claustrophobic over the month of solitude.
Peeta, like normal, took my hand. "Where are we going? Your room or mine?"
I shrugged, genuinely not caring. But on the topic of whose room to use, I remembered the day before I got tossed into the loony bin. If my information was correct, Peeta had agreed for us to share a room since it was a right pain in the behind to go back and forth. When I told Peeta this, he blinked, remembering as well.
"That's right! I had almost forgotten." He smiled at me. "Which room would you like to use?"
Why was it me who had to answer all these questions? I took a split-second to think. "Yours. It would be vexing to take down all of your five thousand paintings just to hang them back up on my walls."
A slight frown twitched Peeta's fine lips into a frown. "Should I take them down anyways? You said they were awful. I wouldn't want them intimidating you anymore."
"No, they're fine." Though I spoke too soon. Personally, I hated having to relive the Games every time I walked into his room. But I had been slowly getting use to it. Maybe, eventually, I'll not care at all.
"In that case…" Peeta slowed down to think for a moment, and then he quickly turned down the sector where my room was, before we got too far away. "We'll take a few trips in between the two to get your stuff. I wonder if the officials need to know about the switch…" Then he shrugged, obviously not minding.
When we got to my room, we exchanged glances. To be honest, I was feeling a little overwhelmed.
"Where should we start?" I made a face, then turned to the wardrobe to begin maybe taking the clothes out to sort and fold them for moving.
"I have an idea." Peeta put his arm out in front of me to block my way to the closet. I frowned at him.
"What?"
He tried not to smile, and cast his eyes around the room in fake consideration. "How about we… Start out from where we left off in the lunchroom? Then we can clean."
For a second I had to ponder exactly what he meant. But it clicked. I only had enough time to look up before I was being folded into Peeta's arms and being kissed tenderly on the mouth.
It felt like hours we stood there, feeling the gentle pressure of one other's lips. But in reality, he only let us be together for around seven minutes. When Peeta broke away, it was near impossible to straighten my mind up.
"Peeta, um…" I closed my eyes, taking deep breaths. I reopened them when I felt saner. "We-we can't really do anything like we, um…like we did in the hospital."
He seemed to get what I was saying. But sadly enough, the aftermath of the kiss plus teenage boy hormones left him a little…off. Peeta grinned down at me. "Like maybe making out in a bed?"
"Peeta Mellark!" I smacked him on the chest, scowling.
"Sorry, sorry…" But judging by the smile still plastered on his face, I would say he wasn't. "Let's get your stuff out of this room, now."
I had no choice but to bow my head and follow him as he cleaned out the wardrobe. But in my head I was smiling, too. Ah, the joys of being hormonal teenagers.
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Hehehe I just realized how…not cool that starting A/N sounded. It sounded as though I was going to have Katniss and Peeta do IT, when I didn't mean that at all… "The next, say, ten chapters are going to be BIG and IMPORTANT. And I think some of you guys know what I mean..." Those who actually know what I mean know that I don't have anything of that sort planned for a while. ;D