Chapter Twenty-Seven

Peeta

She came into the world a minute before midnight, crying a wonderful tune, as soft and delicate as a flower petal.

Her face scrunches up in a scowl that amazingly resembles the same her own mother often wears on her features. When my gaze falls on Katniss, I instantly notice that the scowl that often takes over her face is non-existent.

Instead, her tired eyes are shining with happy tears and the smile that graces her lips is filled with joy. My wife's messy, dark hair is in her usual braid, though some lose strands are sticking to the sweat covering her face. Her cheeks are red from the painful experience she had went through only moments ago.

Yet, in this moment, she has never looked so beautiful.

I stare at the woman I get the honour of calling my wife, my best friend, the mother of my child... and I am hit in the face with the realisation of how spectacularly, amazing she is.

"Thank you," I whisper, so quiet that only Katniss can hear. She drags her eyes away from our daughter only long enough to hear what I have to say.

"What for?" she asks, her voice as quiet as mine.

"For existing. For being my wife. For giving me a daughter that is just as beautiful as you are," I explain.

"You're welcome," she replies.

"I love you," I tell her, though I'm confident that she already knows this.

"I love you, too," she says and presses her lips to mine.

She pulls away and rests her head against mine as we look back at our daughter, who is now sleeping peacefully as her grandma and aunt cleans her up and makes sure she is healthy.

Finally, Prim comes towards us with our baby in her arms. "Here you go, Mummy and Daddy," Prim says as she hands my daughter over to me.

I take the bundle into my arms and hold her close as I inspect her little, pink face. I take in the dark tuft of hair on top of her head, her cute button nose, her bow-like lips... and my heart melts. The foreign feeling of holding something so special, that I helped create, overwhelms me.

"Hello," I whisper. "I'm your daddy."

The tiny human stirs and her eyes flutter open a little to reveal sparkling, blue eyes. She seems to gaze up at me before she once again stirs and settles back into sleep.

"You're so beautiful, my daughter. I already love you so much," I say as a tear trails down my cheek.

I turn to my wife and find her eyes on me. I kiss my daughter and then lower my baby into her mother's arms. I watch as she holds our daughter close and I can't help but notice how natural she looks. My heart fills with love and joy as I watch the two people I love more than anything in the world.

Katniss looks up at me with a content smile on her face. "The worry and nervousness from before," she starts. "It has all seemed to just disappear."

I lower myself to the side of the bed and lean over to kiss Katniss's forehead.

"What do you want to name her?" I ask.

"I don't know," she says. "I want it to be a name that means something to us."

"I think she should be named after a flower in your father's old plant book. She is as delicate and as radiant as a flower," I reply.

"I love that idea," Katniss says. I smile down at her before I stand and walk over to a box against the far wall. I rummage around for the plant book and find it right at the bottom of the box.

I take it into my hands and carry it back over to the bed.

We start to flip through the pages and look over plant names, what they look like, their meanings.

For a while, nothing seems to catch our eyes.

However, when I turn to the very last page, I hear Katniss let out a small gasp.

"Perfect," she whispers.

I look down at the page, which has the name 'Aster' written in beautiful handwriting in the top corner. In the bottom corner is a drawing of the flower in a range of different colours; with their long, green stems and fragile petals.

My eyes flutter to the middle of the page, where a small paragraph has been written:

Aster

The name Aster derives from the Greek word for "star" and symbolises patience.

The Aster flower is said to bring luck and to protect against evil.

Today, the Aster flower holds the meaning of an unexpected surprise.

"'An unexpected surprise,'" Katniss says, her eyes meeting mine. "That represents everything to us."

"I agree," I reply. "Aster. I love it. Happy birthday, Aster May Mellark. Happy birthday, Katniss."

Katniss looks down at our daughter, who is slumbering peacefully in her arms.

"It really has been the best birthday."