A/N: Here goes nothing…and everything. Peeta starts.

"Right." I laugh. I'm just so happy to see him like himself again. "I promise!" I kiss him back. This is how it's supposed to be. But the moment is so perfect...So completely engulfing of my and his senses that we don't hear the front door open. ~

"You don't have to promise me anything." I laugh. "I'm just glad that we got all bad things out in the open and away from us. Now," I push him away a little bit so that I could get a good grip on the bottom of his shirt and I pull it off over his head, "we can have some fun." ~

"So am I." I grab for the base of his shirt. "I know you just put it back on, but still." I give an innocent smile before getting serious. Because I know he's as serious about it as I am. "I...I just like feeling your heartbeat against mine." I admit. ~

"But you were right." I motion for him to just rip the goddamn shirt off. "I'm ready now. And you've always been. So...it's now or never." While he takes my shirt off, I work with his pants, which I noticed he borrowed from me since he has nothing else. "I'd rather have now." ~

I realize what he's saying. "N..now? Are you sure?" I want to, but I want to make sure he isn't because I want to. "Positive?" ~

"Absolutely positive." I pants him as quickly as I can and pull him all over the bed with kisses. "I know you've been wondering for the longest time what I would be like in bed." ~

"I have. I've thought about it constantly...though I have a pretty good idea." ~

"You think you have a pretty good idea." I smirk, then start to take off my own pants. "But you haven't seen anything even remotely close. You're in for a ride tonight, Peeta." ~

I haven't been this close to him like this since the Games, and my heart is absolutely racing faster than it ever has before. "I'll take that as a promise." I smile slyly. ~

"I'd always heard make up sex was the best kind, too." I get on top of him, lying helpless in my bed. "I thought I'd leave some of the work for you." I say, pointing to my pants, which were already halfway off. ~

I only get one more moment of joy with him for the rest of my life. I realize that when I hear the doorknob start to shake, and we hear his voice.

"Cato? Open the door! I didn't get to see you at the celebrations-I've missed you, son!"

I freeze. ~

Oh god. I start frantically looking around the room, anywhere for Peeta to hide. "Under the bed." I whisper, giving him the clothes he was wearing. "Just a second!" I call towards the door, as I pull my pants back up and search for my shirt. Whispering, I say, "Where's my shirt?" ~

At first, I can't move. Then I jump up, gathering my things from Cato's arms. "Where did you put it?" I whisper back. Shit, shit. "There!" I hiss, pointing to his shirt, scrambling toward his closet as quietly as I can.

"What is it?" The voice says. ~

Fucking Peeta, I said under the bed! "I'm just...too tired to get out of bed. Hold on!" When the closet door closes, I put my shirt on and zip the jacket on over it. It's too cold to just be in a tee shirt anyway. "Coming!" As I run over to the door to unlock it, I comb through my hair with my fingers to flatten it a bit. I turn the knob and pull the door open. "...Hi." ~

I couldn't stop myself from holding in my breath as the man walks into the room. "You seem out of breath." He laughs-but it's not a kind laugh, though it's genuine. I can only see this man as bad. "Long day, huh?" ~

I try as hard as I can to suppress my breathing a little bit so that it seems normal. "Yeah, I'm just glad to be back home." Well, it was true. "I think the tour was just what I needed." ~

"How did it all go? I don't know if your mother told you, but I came home to watch the recaps at night with her after work." ~

"Really?" Hopefully my surprise sounds genuine enough for him. How I play this will determine life or death for Peeta. "Did finally seeing me on the Victory Tour make you proud?" Any parent should be proud to see his or her own child alive after the Games, but really, my dad isn't like other parents. ~

He pauses. "I've always been proud of you, Cato." He sighs. "You just make some stupid choices." He smiles. "But that doesn't mean I'm not proud." ~

If half of Panem thinks I faked it, I might as well milk it for all it's worth. "Stupid, or genius?" I raise my eyebrow and smirk. "Did you see how everyone in the Capitol reacted to my 'romance'?" I put air quotes around the word. "That's what you mean, right?" ~

He gives a smile as if he knows what Cato's trying to say. "Ah, exactly. You faked the whole thing to gain sponsors and sympathy, hm?" He pats him on the back. ~

"I didn't get any sponsors." I say flatly. "But I thought it'd be a good show, you know? They all knew I was already the best tribute there, they knew I was strong, but I gave a bit more substance to it, and they're practically throwing themselves at me." I laugh as I remember all those Capitol people trying to pay me off. Like I'd forget about Peeta that quickly. "Besides, it's fun toying with people's hearts like that. Making them think they have a chance with me, as they're at the brink of death." ~

As much as Cato laughs, his father's face doesn't change from the stoic, somewhat stern look he gained when Cato called it a "good show". "Oh, so you were putting on a show?" He said, sarcastically amused. I was a bit confused at why-Cato was playing exactly what it seemed he'd want. "Is that so?" ~

"Yes?" Something tells me that he's not exactly buying it. "Would it ever be anything else? I know you didn't really like seeing that, but...I'm a favorite in the Capitol now. People are tripping over their feet to get a taste of the action." ~

"The action, right..." He says nonchalantly. "So, seeing as your whole romance was fake," he bites the last word. "Do you care to tell me why you've been hiding that boy in our home for two months?"

Fuck. ~

The color drains from my face, and I want to hide that, but if I turn away, it'll ruin the whole effect of the lie I'm trying to create. "Hiding him in our house?" I ask. "Dad, don't tell me you think he's still alive. He's dead. No one can outsmart the Capitol like that, especially some idiot from Twelve." I pause, thinking for something else to add. "You must've just been hearing things around the house while I was gone." But I already know. He must've seen him at some point. Peeta was right. Shit. ~

"Why do you look so sick all of a sudden? Did you think I wouldn't find out? I'm Head Peacekeeper for a reason, Cato. I know how to do my job." He stares him directly in the eyes, not letting his son break the gaze. "I'm also your father. And I know when you're lying." I want to drop dead at this very moment. "Also, based on your eye patterns...I know exactly where he is in here." They must train them like hell. I'd never experienced a real Peacekeeper. Those in Twelve were just...lax. "How ironic." He scoffs. "You can tell your idiot boyfriend to come out of the closet." ~

It's done. He knows. "If I'm not mistaken, Mr. Head Peacekeeper," I start by mocking him, since I already know Peeta and I will be dead soon, so I might as well get out as many shots as I can, "he came out of the closet a long time ago." I pause for a moment, then add, "On live TV. To me. To your only son. And then we made out." ~

His face hardened. I saw it happen in slow motion as I cracked the door to the closet. He quickly snapped, taking the front of Cato's shirt and jacket near his neck into his fist and lifting him into the air. "You listen to me, you little shit. I don't give a fuck what happened before. And you shouldn't, either. Because that boy's going to be dead very soon." ~

Suddenly, I have trouble breathing. "Put me down." I'm not scared; I was expecting this to happen sooner or later. But I was finally able to give it up to him, then this happens. "I honestly don't give a fuck about what you think will happen, but he won't die." I consider yelling at Peeta to run, jump out the window, escape to some other place-anything-while my dad is still preoccupied with holding me, but I don't want to risk him getting killed right here. ~

"Oh, he is. And if you don't believe me-you will soon. Because you're going to get to watch with your very own eyes while it happens."

Together, we said. Together or nothing. I slowly open up the doors and give a hateful glare at the man holding Cato. "Ah, look. The star of the hour." He says, and turns his gaze to me. He has Cato's eyes, but...but these are nothing like the eyes I could stare into for hours. They're the same blue-green, but all these hold are hate. "Now, Mr. Mellark, seeing as everyone present knows what's going to be happening here, why don't you tell my son to calm down?" He looks back to Cato. "After all, the better he behaves, the sooner we put you out of your misery. If he continues to act like a bastard, I'll be sure to use my authority to prolong your torture as long as I possibly can." ~

"Run," is all I'm able to choke out through my strangled breath. ~

"Don't you think you're clever?" His father manages to say before I can even think about listening to Cato. I don't even get time to think after he speaks, because I'm getting hit with something very hard and slamming into the wall behind me. I open my eyes to find myself on the ground with Cato next to me and partially on my legs. He must've thrown him at me. I feel like I have the wind knocked out of me. "Don't even try." He commands. And even if I was brave enough to defy him, my body wouldn't allow it. ~

My head is pounding and I feel blood trickling out fast. I look next to me and see a bloodstained nightstand, and that's when I realize my head collided with the corner of it. Standing up is a wasted effort because I just collapse to the ground again. Instead, I look up to my dad and cover the back of my head with my sleeve. "You're a real asshat, you know that?" I begin. "I know you don't like it, and your job is to make sure he's more than dead, but shouldn't you not hate me? What would Mom say to this, huh?" ~

"You say that as if you think I care." He scoffs. "I never said I hated you, Cato. At least, not in so many words." He glances back to me, and then back to Cato, who I realize is bleeding.

"Oh god, I'm sorry.." I whisper, putting my hand on the back of his head, trying to stop the flow.

"You shouldn't be worrying about his cut so much. He'll be taken to a hospital, don't you worry." The man doesn't break eye contact with Cato, not even for a moment. "You, on the other hand, will face much worse. And I promise, there won't be so much as a cloth to cover your gaping wounds." He looks at me and smiles. ~

I turn to Peeta. "I know you and I said together...but now you see what I mean. I want you to go." He immediately begins to protest, but I continue. "I want you to go. Don't worry about me here." Then, I look back up to my father. "What are you waiting for, anyway? You're all talk, aren't you? Like you've been your entire life." ~

"I'm not going anywhere." I say quietly, completely serious. I told myself that if it did come down to it, I'd stick to together. Even if it got me killed.

"Oh, what-you think I'm going to kill you, my son?" He laughs. "No, that would be a relief for you if you both died. I intend on keeping you alive and healthy for many more years. Only he-" He looks at me. "-gets to die." ~

"Not if I killed you first." I'm being completely serious. I had never given thought to killing a member of my own family, especially one that used to be very fond of me, but that's all out the window now. I try to get up again, but my vision blacks out for a few seconds and I fall to the floor again. "Peeta," I say, "I told you we should've ran." ~

I do my best to get beneath him to break his fall, as short as it is. "I'm not running anymore, love." My voice cracked on my name for him. "I was due for this five months ago..I'm just glad we got more time together." I'm shaking, but I manage to lean down to kiss the bleeding part of his head. "Together, love." I whisper to him. I cannot cry. I am beyond tears now. All I hear is his voice.

"I've got him. I need a team in Victor's Village immediately." ~

I ignore everything that I'm even able to hear. "But we could still go...there's time for us." I won't believe that it's all over now. Someone doesn't just come into my life and change it completely, then leave five months later. I can't let him die. I'd do anything. "I'd do anything." I say. "Anything if you don't take him away. Torture me, I don't care...don't take him away. He should've won, not me...please." I'm begging now, with my eyes still closed and my head becoming dizzier and dizzier with each passing second. ~

"I can't do that, Cato. My job is to make sure a rebel dies and a traitor gets rightly punished for his crimes. And your punishment is that you have to continue living after he's dead and gone." He says cruelly. I know he wouldn't budge on this. The way the man looks at me, I can tell he can't wait to see me suffer. "You'll get to be with him, if that helps you at all." He shrugs, and I hear noises outside. People. Peacekeepers. Faster than I can even think, I feel myself getting pulled away from Cato. I go to protest, but I can't make words. ~

"No! Stop!" I force my eyes open and see Peeta getting dragged out the door by Peacekeepers. "I...love him." My first instinct is to crawl to the door if I can't walk or run, but I'm only able to make it a couple of feet before I officially collapse to the ground. The blood never stopped draining from the back of my head, and the entire room starts spinning. "I'll follow him..." And then everything goes black. ~

A/N: This chapter was posted this morning for fadi. You wonderful person who reviews and has feels. XD You'll have to see what happens, right? I didn't sleep all night, so… this a/n is awkward. But I'd like it if you reviewed please. xx