Chapter-18

Chapter 18

The first night back from the Games, without Peeta, I must've screamed my head off. The nightmares were overwhelming, and it wasn't until tonight that I realized just how much Peeta under me helps. I wake up to a nightmare every hour it seems.

So on the third night of not getting any sleep, and keeping the whole house up in the process, when Prim slips some sleep syrup in my tea, I don't call her out for it. I drink it, hoping it will let me sleep tonight.

This isn't the case. This time, when I'm in the nightmare, I can't wake up. The sleep syrup seems to hold my brain in a prison of my nightmares that I can't seem to escape. I urge myself to wake up, to fight off the sleep syrup holding me hostage, but it's no use.

I dream of Peeta, dying over and over again. Cato killing him with his sword, him dying because Haymitch couldn't get him the medicine in time, Clove killing him when he saved me. And each time he dies, I get there a second too late. It's like my dreams are taunting me, making sure I watch him die, but never allowing me to save him.

"Katniss, it's okay, wake up. It's okay, it isn't real, you're safe, I'm safe, we're not in the Games anymore. Just wake up Katniss."

Peeta? How can I hear him?

"Please Katniss, just wake up, we're alright."

It's when I feel strong, warm arms enclosing around me that I wake up. I see Prim and my mother standing by my door, looking petrified, and feel Peeta hugging me and rubbing soothing circles in between my shoulder blades. He knows how much I love when he does that.

"Oh, Katniss, we were so worried. You were screaming and crying, yelling for Peeta to run, and we couldn't wake you up," Prim says, fighting off tears. "I slipped you sleep syrup hoping it would help you sleep, but it only made it worse. We tried everything to wake you up, so I went and got Peeta when nothing else worked."

"I know you put sleep syrup in my tea, Prim," I whisper as I poke her in the stomach. "I was hoping I'd be able to sleep too."

Peeta gets up, and I immediately feel his warmth leave my body. I don't want him to leave.

"Goodnight Katniss," he says as he starts walking towards my door. He can't leave, I haven't been able to sleep since the last day on the train. The last day I slept with Peeta. Coincidence? I don't think so.

"Wait," I say loud enough for him to hear, but still almost a whisper. "Don't go."

He turns around, and sits in the chair next to my bed, but that isn't close enough for me. I can't hear his heart, or feel his breathing from over there.

I lift up my blanket, a silent invite for him to lay down next to me, but he doesn't move. I know why, though. Because Prim and my mother are standing there, watching us. Prim's smiling widely, while my mother looks almost… mad.

"Please Peeta," I whisper. "I haven't slept well since the train." My mother's face hardens further.

"Me either," he says with a laugh, but still doesn't join me. He's starting to make me mad with how respectful he's being. I know he's just being Peeta, but any other guy would've jumped at the opportunity to sleep in a girl's bed. Why does he have to be so gentleman-like?

"Peeta!" I say almost in a yell, and with that, he looks at my mother. She looks angry, but I don't care.

"Fine, we'll play your games then," I say as I get out of bed and walk towards his chair. I climb into his lap, nestling my head into the crook of his neck. I can feel his face get hotter by the second, and hear Prim giggling behind me. His arm wraps around my waist, securing me in place, before I hear my mother.

"Katniss!" she says loudly. I get the feeling this isn't going to end well.

"Yes, mother?" I say innocently, like I don't know why she'd be calling my name.

"Get off of him!" she yells.

"Mom, Katniss needs to sleep," Prim says quietly. Thank you Prim!

"But they're…" she says before trailing off. "This isn't appropriate for them!"

This isn't appropriate? I'll show her what isn't appropriate. I hear a loud gasp from my mother as I pick my head up and kiss Peeta on his lips. My head feels heavy, and my eyelids won't stay open, but this is well worth fighting to stay awake for.

"Katniss!" she yells again. But I don't stop. This is the longest kiss Peeta and I have had, besides the one before our interview with Caesar. But this one isn't for the cameras. It's for my mom, which may be worse…

"Come on mom, let's go," Prim says as she drags my mother out of my room. I've never loved Prim more than tonight.

I stop kissing Peeta and drag him into my bed, where we lay how we normally do, and fall asleep fast. Sure enough, there were no nightmares.

I wake up to faint voices, and as I slowly slip back into consciousness, I realize it's my mother and Peeta talking. I keep my eyes closed, trying to eavesdrop on their conversation. Maybe it's wrong of me to do that, but I can't help that I'm nosy.

"What do you think you're doing with my daughter?" my mother asks. Oh God…

"Mrs. Everdeen, I was, um, just trying to help. You know, with the nightmares," Peeta replies nervously.

"It doesn't matter, it's not right. You're both too young," she says quietly. I'm getting a little bit angrier at every word she says.

To my surprise, Peeta laughs. "You remind me of someone," he says, still laughing. "Sorry, I don't mean to be rude, but you and Effie would be great friends."

I let out a soft laugh, trying desperately to stop it. But my cover's already been blown.

"Katniss, stop eavesdropping," my mother says as Peeta laughs harder.

When I finally get control over my laughter, I speak. "Mom, I can't sleep without Peeta. Maybe I took it too far with the kissing, but I do need him next to me to sleep without nightmares. Or did you forget what those sound like?" I ask sarcastically.

"You're 16! That's far too young to be sleeping with Peeta!"

"Oh, I get it! 16 is old enough to get reaped for the Games, but too young to sleep in the same bed with a boy," I say, my voice dripping with sarcasm.

"Katniss, she's your moth-" Peeta says quietly, but I don't want to hear him side with my mother over this either.

"She might be my mother, but she can't dictate how I live my life now. I think she's given up that right when she abandoned us for all of those months," I say angrily.

"Katniss, I know what I did was unforgivable. I don't blame you for being angry at me, but I'm just trying to help," she whispers.

"I know. It's just, since Prim was reaped, I haven't had a night where I didn't wake up screaming from a nightmare unless Peeta was with me, and for you to try and stop that… It makes me mad, and I don't want to be mad at you. I realized that life's way too short to be angry your whole life, which is something Peeta's taught me. Just… Please don't make me have to sneak over to his house every night," I say jokingly and seriously at the same time. That's exactly what I'd do if she said no.

"I just don't want you to doing something you might regret," my mother said with a tiny laugh.

"Don't worry Mom, we haven't done anything like that. We just sleep, right Peeta?" I say as I look at him.

"Once we're done kiss-" Peeta says before I cut him off.

"Peeta!" I say as I throw a pillow at him. He dodges it with ease while laughing, still in the Games mindset I guess.

"I'm kidding. Mrs. Everdeen, we just sleep, I promise," he says, still trying to stop laughing. But I think she doesn't mind, because she's laughing too.

"Um, alright, breakfast will be in a few if you kids are hungry," she says.

"Thank you," Peeta says before turning to me. "You hungry?"

I watch my mother walk out of the room and hear her footsteps as she walks down the stairs. Prim's footsteps follow close behind, meaning she was eavesdropping on us.

"I think I could eat a little," I say as I grab Peeta's hand, dragging him back into bed.

"You didn't listen to a thing your mother said, huh?" Peeta says while laughing.

After another 10 minutes of us laying together, we get up and head downstairs. Of course the first sight I see is Prim standing at the bottom steps, arms crossed and a grin on her face.

"Are you guys done making out up there?" she asks.

"We weren't making out!" I say, getting annoyed already.

"Oh yeah? Then why are you blushing?" Prim says laughing. Peeta laughs too, until I elbow him in the ribs lightly.

"I'm not blushing! And you," I say pointing at Peeta, "stop laughing!" This gets another round of laughter out of them, including my mother.

We all sit around the table and eat eggs, bacon, sausage, and muffins Peeta's father made yesterday. Apparently he stopped by last night while Peeta, Prim and I were playing cards together.

"So Prim, how have you and Rory been since I've been gone," I say while nudging her shoulder.

"Fine. Why do you care?" she says, trying not to blush. She failed miserably, though.

"Oh, I don't know. Maybe because you've had a crush on him for a year," I say as she kicks my foot under the table.

"I have not!"

"Then why did you always peek out the window when Gale picked me up to go into the woods? I see you every Sunday in that window, and when Rory is with Gale, you rush to the door to say hi," I say laughing.

"Katniss, leave your sister alone," my mother says while laughing.

"Is that why when I told you Peeta was coming over to help me study for math, you'd make sure to come home early from the woods so you could sit in the living room with us and sneak peeks at him? Did she ever tell you that, Peeta?"

"Prim!" I yell. It doesn't help that Peeta's laughing at the two of us, like this is funny.

"Or how I could always tell when she got squirrel, because she'd come home smiling. I guess trading the squirrel at the bakery and seeing Peeta there didn't have anything to do with that, did it Katniss?" Prim says.

"Will you stop?" I ask her, which only makes her laugh even harder. Peeta is at least trying to hid his.

The doorbell rung right before I could go back at Prim. When I got to the door, I almost gasped, because it was Peeta's mother.

"Is he here?" She practically yelled. "He didn't show up for work today!"

"He's, um, in the kitchen. I'll go get him." I turn around and go into the kitchen, where I see Prim and Peeta laughing together, and my mother with a small smile on her face. "Peeta, you're Mom is here."

"Oh, um, thanks," he says with a look of sadness on his face. "Um, thank you for breakfast, Mrs. Everdeen. Bye, Prim." They both waved and said goodbye, and I led him to the door.

"So you think because you've won the Hunger Games, you can ditch work and stay at your girlfriend's house?" she yells at him. "Well, you can clean up by yourself for the next two weeks!"

"Sorry Mom," he says quietly. I've never seen him like this before.

"You think sorry makes up for the two hours of missed work so that you could spend it at this… This slut's house?" she yells.

"Don't call her a slut," Peeta says, a little louder than his last sentence. If it weren't for who he were talking to, I'd be happy for him sticking up for me. But it kind of angers me that he'd stick up for me and not himself.

That is until she slaps him in the face, leaving a red mark on his cheek. I gasp, suddenly angry that she'd lay a hand on him after all he'd been through.

"Don't talk back, you know how well that's worked for you in the past," she says.

She grabs his wrist and yanks him away, towards the exit of Victor's Village. I didn't think she'd ever hit him in front of anyone.

I spent the next couple hours with Prim, trying to make up for lost time. But I can't stop thinking about Peeta, and why he didn't fight back. She hit him! I can't help but feel guilty for being mad at my mother when his beat him anytime he did something wrong.

"Katniss, I'm going to get something to eat, want anything?" Prim said. I shook my head no, and with that she left.

Prim was taking a while, so I decided to go downstairs to check on her. I could hear her talking to someone, but I couldn't really tell who. It didn't sound like Gale or Rory, and Peeta was at the bakery, so I crept down the stairs.

"Is there anything you can do for his arm?"

"I can give him some ice until my mother gets home, she should be back soon," Prim said. "Hold this to your face, too."

"Thank you Prim."

I crept around the corner into the kitchen, where I saw Peeta's back. He was sitting on the table, next to his brother Rye, and Prim.

"What's going on?" I asked as I walked in to the kitchen. I still couldn't see Peeta, but he was holding ice to his face. Nobody answered my question, but it didn't matter, I knew exactly what happened the second I saw Peeta's face.

"What the fuck! She did this, didn't she?" I asked Rye while pointing at Peeta.

"Katniss, I fell… down some stairs, that's all. It's fine, really," Peeta said. I can tell he's lying.

"Peeta, I watched her hit you this morning! Don't sit here and lie when I know it was her! What did she use Rye?" I ask.

He looked at Peeta before answering. "A rolling pin… He um, dropped a tray of cookies he was taking out of the oven because I scared him. He's jumpy now, ever since the Games. But she… she didn't care about why he dropped it, and just started hitting him with the rolling pin in her hands. He put his hand up to block one of the hits to his face, but I think she broke it…"

"Rye," Peeta pleaded for him not to tell me the rest.

"She was hitting him because she was already mad that he left us for the Games, like he had a choice. So she just kept hitting him, even when I begged her to stop. Dad eventually had to pin her against the wall to stop her," Rye finished.

"I'm going to kill that bitch!" I said as I ran to the door.

"Katniss! Wait!" Peeta called after me. "Don't do anything. If you threaten her, she'll tell the peacekeepers and you know Snow's not happy with us. Please, just… drop it, alright?"

"Drop it? You want me to, what? Forget she beat the shit out of you over a tray of cookies? Look at your face!" I yell.

"I'll deal with it, alright? Just… just calm down. There's no need to do anything that would give Snow a reason to…" He leaned in and whispered in my ear. "to 'harm' anyone you care about."

"Whatever, where's Mom?" I say to Prim.

"In town, getting bandages and medicine now that we can stock up on them," Prim says.

"Well, is there anything you can do? I mean, look at him!"

"I don't want to do anything without Mom's permission. He has to wait until she gets back," she says.

"Prim, he's in pain, look at his face!" I say as Peeta smiles at me. "Quit being a smartass."

"Katniss, language!" Prim yells. "It's unladylike!"

"Oh my god, Effie would love you guys!" Peeta says excitedly. I can't help but laugh, even though I'm getting annoyed. Thankfully, my mother walked through the door before I made a smart remark.

"Oh, Peeta, I didn't expect to see you back so early. And you brought your brother too," she says. "Nice to meet you."

She walks towards us, and her eyes widen slightly at the sight of Peeta's face. Then, her face is expressionless, as begins to grab things from the cabinet in the kitchen.

"How'd this happen?" she asks.

"The stairs and I got into a fight," he says laughing. "I think you can guess who won."

"Interesting. From the looks of your face, it looks like you were being hit by something… How'd the stairs hit you, Peeta?" she asks sarcastically.

"Stop covering for her!" I yell at him. "She hit you with a rolling pin!"

"What happened, Peeta?" she asked again, hoping for the truth this time.

"Alright, fine! Rye scared me, I dropped some cookies, she hit me a couple times with the rolling pin, alright? It's not a big deal," he yells.

"Take off your shirt," my mother said.

"Mrs. Everdeen, it's okay, really. I'm fine," he says.

"Peeta," she says sternly.

He lifts off his shirt, sucking in a sharp breath at the action. His chest and sides were covered in bruises, already darkened. They're only going to get worse tomorrow.

"Shit," Rye said to himself.

"Peeta, how many times did she hit you?" I yelled.

He just winced when my mother began touching his ribs, checking to see if any are broken.

"Well, you have 2 broken ribs. You're lucky you don't have a broken jaw, and your wrist is fractured. It'll take a month or two to heal. You're going to have to rest for a few days before being able to move around again, though," she said. "Katniss will help you get home when I'm done."

"Home? Look at him, Mom, he has to stay here!" I yelled again.

She wraps his upper body in the new bandages she got today, and begins working on his face, and wrapping Peeta's hand.

"Fine. Rye, can you help Peeta to the living room?" she asked.

"I can get there myself," Peeta said as he slowly got to his feet and started walking towards the living room.

I helped him get on the couch, grabbing some blankets and pillows for him so he'd be comfortable. I grab a few extra for myself, because I'm not going to be able to sleep in my own room tonight. I probably won't be getting any sleep at all, to be honest.

"How are you feeling?" I say as I sit down next to his legs. It's late, Rye already left and Prim and my mother will be going to sleep soon.

"I feel great," he says with a laugh, which draws a wince out of him. "Except when I move."

"Hungry?" I ask with my own laugh.

"Nah, just tired. I'll probably go to sleep soon, hopefully," he says.

"Me too," I say quietly. "Well, goodnight Peeta."

"Where are you going?" he asks with a smile. "How are you going to sleep up there when I'm down here?" He grabbed my hand and gently pulled me towards him. I laid my head softly on his chest, asking if it hurt, but he said it didn't. I know he's lying, but I also know he'd be upset if I didn't, so I gave in and laid there, eventually falling asleep.

When I wake up, I can feel Peeta's still asleep. I can't help but smile, feeling every rise and fall of his chest. I absentmindedly start tracing small patterns on his chest, not wanting to get up for the day. It still looks early, maybe five or six o' clock. My mother and sister won't be up for another hour or two, and what better way to spend that time than wrapped in Peeta's arms?

After maybe ten minutes of lying here, I hear Peeta wake up. I pretend to be asleep, hoping he won't attempt to move, until I realize he can't. My smile gives away that I'm awake, but it doesn't matter. Peeta's stuck on the couch for at least two more days, and if it weren't for my mother and sister, I'd be stuck on the couch with him. But that doesn't mean I can't enjoy this now.

"Good morning," Peeta says sleepily. "How long have you been awake?"

"Half hour maybe," I say with a grin.

"And you didn't wake me?" he asks.

"Well you looked peaceful and I-" I said before he cut me off.

"Sure, that's the reason you didn't wake me up," he says with a laugh.

"How are you feeling?" I ask, poking his chest.

"Better today, I guess."

We lay there for another hour, enjoying each other's presence before my sister comes downstairs. I already know exactly what she's going to say before she even makes it into the living room.

"Awww, you guys are so cute together," she says. Peeta just laughs at her, and I give her my infamous scowl.

"Are you hungry Katniss? I can go make all of you guys breakfast," Peeta says.

"Peeta, my Mom said a few days of rest, so rest," I say, laying my head back down on his chest. He lets out a laugh, and goes back to rubbing my back. "And keep doing that, it feels good."

"Good to know," he says with another laugh.

After another ten minutes, my mother walks downstairs. She walks into the kitchen first to greet Prim, then starts towards the living room. As I hear her footsteps get closer, I whisper to Peeta, "here we go."

"Good morning Peeta," she said as she walked towards us. She doesn't know I'm here yet.

"Good morning," I say, hoping to keep her from yelling at me for sleeping with Peeta when he's injured.

"Oh, Katniss, I didn't know you'd be down here already," she says.

"Well, I just wanted to check on Peeta," I say. "I was worried." Peeta tries not to laugh under me, knowing I'm being sarcastic because I've been here all night.

"Then what are you doing laying on him?" my mother says sarcastically. Peeta can't control his laughter now that she's caught us.

"Mrs. Everdeen, it's fine, it doesn't hurt anymore and I wanted to make sure Katniss was able to get some sleep," he says politely.

"Stop being a suck up, Mr. Mellark," I say with a laugh.

"He's not being a suck up, he just has good manners. Something you should learn," she says with her own laugh. I join in after attempting a scowl.

We eat breakfast with Prim and my mother before she leaves for the market, saying she'll be back in a few hours.

I help Peeta back to the couch, and plan on lying down with him until there's a knock on the front door.

"It's probably Rye, I'll go get it. Be right back," I say as I get up.

I open the front door, and realize it isn't Rye. It's Gale, with all of his mining gear in his hand. He was 18 this reaping, so once he was safe, he got a job as a coal miner. This is not a conversation I wanted to have today.

"Come in Gale," I say as I move to the side so he can enter. I lead him to the living room, where Peeta is. Once we sit down, Gale gets right to business.

"Is it true? Between the two of you?" he asks.

"Is what true?" I ask. I know what he's talking about but I need time to answer this question.

Is what me and Peeta have true? Do we really love each other? Are we together? That's what he's asking, and I don't know the answer to that question.

"Are you guys really together?" he asks.

"Um, no, we're just friends Gale," I answer. I glance over at Peeta, and the pained look on his face almost breaks my heart. Am I leading him on? By sleeping with him, am I making him believe I love him?

"Oh, Okay, I thought it was all an act, but I heard Prim tell Rory you guys were together this morning, so I wasn't sure," he says. "Alright, well I'll see you guys later, I've got to get to the mines. Gonna have to run to make it there on time."

"Alright, bye Gale," I say as I lead him to the door.

"Bye, Catnip," he said with a smile as he walked out.

I turn around and start walking back to the living room. I don't want to face him. He's probably heart broken, thinking I'm just using him to get a good night's rest. I guess that is what I'm doing, isn't it?

I walked in, watching him for a few seconds before sitting down on one of the chairs. He wouldn't look at me, but he didn't look mad. He just looked… sad.

"Peeta, I'm sorr-" I say before he cuts me off.

"It's fine, Katniss," he says, a little bit angrier than normal. I feel incredibly guilty now, because he doesn't deserve to be put through what I've been putting him through. "Sorry, that sounded wrong. I'm not mad at you, I guess I'm just mad at myself," he says a lot softer this time.

"Why?" I ask, confused on why he's mad at himself and not me. Prim walks in just as he begins speaking.

"I should have known you didn't feel the same way about me as I felt about you," he says with a laugh. "I don't know why I thought differently."

"What?" Prim asks. "Katniss does feel the same way about you."

"She doesn't Prim," he says with a laugh. He sounds so heartbroken, it's making me feel even more guilty, even though I know he isn't trying to make me feel this way. "I'm actually going to go home, I feel better today so…"

"You can't, not until my Mom looks at your ribs," Prim says.

"Don't worry about me Prim, this isn't my first time," he says back. I can't help but wonder how many times she's injured him like this.

He slowly gets to his feet, and starts toward the door. He turns around, says goodbye to both of us, tells me to thank my mother for him, and leaves.

"So, why did he want to get out of here so fast?" Prim asks angrily. "You had Peeta Mellark, and you threw him away! What is wrong with you? Even the girls in my grade drool over him!"

"Prim, it's not that simple," I reply sadly. "Gale came over and asked if Peeta and I were a thing, and I told him no. How was I supposed to know he was going to get upset about it?"

"Oh, I don't know, maybe because he's in love with you? Or maybe because you're the only person in his life, other than his mother, that doesn't treat him differently after winning the Games!" Prim yells.

"What do you want me to do? I don't know if I love him or not!" I yell back.

"I don't know, maybe be his friend at least? You practically ignored him the first three days you got back, making him think you didn't want him around. Then, when he comes over and gets you to stop screaming after a nightmare, you make out with him in front of Mom, making him think you love him. Then, you tell Gale you don't love him, making him confused. He's probably feeling used right now, because the only time you've showed him any attention was when you wanted to make Mom mad or when you wanted to sleep," she says.

"Alright Prim, I get it! I fucked up, I know!" I yell at her. She's right, but I hate that she's right.

"Obviously not! You just pushed him away after all he's done is help you. You need to stop being stupid and fix it," she says angrily. When did Prim grow up so much?

"Okay, okay, I will. I just don't know what to say to him," I say quietly, biting my lip.

"Well, do you love him?" she asks.

"I don't know, Prim," I reply.

"Well, when you figure that out, you'll know what to say to him," she says a lot less angrily than before.

Before I get a chance to respond, another knock on the door pulls me away from this conversation. When I open it, I see a drunk Haymitch on my doorstep.

"Can you get the boy?" he asks me.

"Get him yourself," I say as I point to his house.

"Oh, I figured he'd be here. Lover's quarrel?" he asks sarcastically. "Well, I need to talk to both of you, so come on."

I follow Haymitch to Peeta's house, not sure what to say to him. What does Haymitch have to say to us?

Haymitch just walks in, not really having any boundaries. Peeta's sitting at the dining room table, eating a loaf of bread he must've just baked. His house is always warm and inviting, yet lonely and empty.

"What the fuck happened?" Haymitch yells at Peeta. It just registered to me that we never told Haymitch about his 'fight with the stairs'.

"What?" Peeta says confusingly.

"Your fucking face! How the hell did this happen? We've got the ceremony in two days, and you decided to get into a fight?" Haymitch yells even louder. I've never seen him this angry before.

"I didn't get into a fight," Peeta says calmly. "Besides, I'm sure my prep team can fix me up, right?"

"Yeah, your face, but what about your hand? What the hell happened?" Haymitch says a little quieter this time.

"His mother decides to use him as a personal punching bag, that's what happened," I say angrily.

"Is she stupid? Does she realize that if word gets to the Capitol about her hitting him, she'll be killed? You don't touch a Victor!" he yells again. "Damn it! I need to make a call, I'll be over tomorrow. Peeta, be ready for a rough day," he says with sarcasm.

Haymitch leaves, slamming the door on the way out. I look over at Peeta, who looks as confused as I am.

"Um, can we talk?" I ask him after a few minutes of awkward silence. He just nods and walks towards the living room, leaving the bread on the table for later.

"Prim told me I was being stupid today," I say with a quiet laugh.

"Why's that?" he asks with his own laugh.

"She was mad about what I told Gale," I say, looking down and biting my lip. "She wanted me to 'fix things.'"

"Oh, well it's alright, I get it," he says with a laugh. "It's not fair of me to expect you to love me when I practically threw myself at you before the Hunger Games. Plus, I knew you were with Gale and I still did that. You were just doing what you needed to survive, that's all. And I'm sorry I made things harder for you to be with Gale," he says.

He thinks Gale and I were together?

"Peeta, Gale and I aren't together. He's practically my brother," I say with a laugh. "And yeah, you did kind of throw yourself at me during that interview. But it worked out in the end, right? We're still alive, so I really should be thanking you."

"Right," he says with a sad smile.

"I just don't know what I feel right now. I- I feel differently about you than I do for Gale or Madge, but I don't know what it all means, I guess. And for some reason, I can't seem to figure it out," I say, not daring to look him in the eyes.

"It's okay Katniss, don't worry about it," he says with a smile. "I have to get to the bakery, I'll see you later. If you're hungry, you can have the rest of the bread on the table."

"Alright, thank you," I say as he leaves.

It's Friday, so the bakery opens at twelve o' clock today and tomorrow. During the week it opens at six o' clock. Sundays are the day that the ovens are able to cool down enough to be cleaned, since Sunday is the day when most shops shut down for the day. Even the mines close for the day. That's why the ceremony is being held on Sunday, so it doesn't disrupt the mining hours.

I decide that today's a nice day for the woods, since it's the middle of August. It's still warm, but not unbearable. I go home, get dressed in my old hunting clothes and my father's old jacket, and head to the opening in the fence I normally slide out of.

Since the last reaping, Gale has been working in the mines, so I haven't been able to hunt with him since I've been back. Hopefully, the snares will have fresh rabbit and squirrel, and not week old game. The other animals will have gotten to it if it's old.

I don't need the game anymore, but hunting helps me clear my mind, and well, I need to right about now. Two days until the ceremony, which I've been dreading all week. Not to mention, Haymitch's conversation doesn't seem to leave my mind. Why did he tell Peeta to be ready for a rough day tomorrow?

I grab my bow out of the hollowed out log, and start towards our snare line. I check the snare line, finding two squirrels that are still fresh, and head to Gale and I's normal hunting spot. Before I make it, I see a couple of footprints from a fox. It's not often I run into one, but they can be rewarding. I follow the footprints to a den, where I see just one fox. If I can kill it and get out of here fast enough, I won't have to worry about any others.

I draw my arrow back, and release it, hitting Cato in the eye. I scream when I realize who I just shot, and squeeze my eyes shut, trying to get the image out of my head. When I open my eyes, he's gone, and it's just the fox I'd killed. I'm still in the woods, not in the arena. I was only imagining it.

I grab the fox and make my way back to the fence, deciding I've had enough of the woods for today. I got enough game to take to Hazelle, Gale's mother.

I head home, clean my kills, and head to Hazelle's with the game. If a peacekeeper were to catch me with game on me before the Games, I'd most likely be whipped. But now, a peacekeeper wouldn't dare touch me, in fear of Snow retaliating.

Hazelle thanks me for the game, and invites me inside, but I decline. I want to go home and take a warm bath in hopes of relieving some of the stress from the day. My muscles won't seem to relax after what happened in the woods. Plus, it was nearly five o' clock now, and Peeta would be home around 6:30, and I've missed him.

I run my bath, letting the tub fill before I slip in. Running hot water is definitely one of the things about winning the Games I don't regret. I never knew how much it could help. Instead of having to boil water in a pot and dumb it in a tub filled with cold water, all I have to do is turn a knob and hot water appears.

I feel a little more relaxed after my bath, but I'm still a little tense. Hopefully, sleeping tonight will help. My mother came home while I was in the bathroom, and she isn't very happy that Peeta isn't resting. She was definitely pissed when I told her he was at the bakery working. She started yelling, "he can't just rest for one day, can he?"

After another thirty minutes maybe, I see Peeta walking home with a box in his hand. I step away from the window when I see him heading towards my house, hoping he didn't see me. I hear his knock, and slowly make my way over to the door, hoping he won't think I was waiting for him.

"I brought a small cake for you and Prim," he says with a small smile as he offers me the box.

"Thank you, I'm sure Prim will love it," I say. "You can come in if you want."

He steps in, discarding his shoes in the closet next to the door. My mother would make a comment about how well mannered he is right about now if she were with us, because I never remove my muddy boots when I get home from hunting.

"Are you hungry, my mother's cooking dinner right now. It'll be done soon," I say, hoping he'll accept. I don't want things to be awkward between us any longer than it already has.

"Um, sure, thank you," he says with a smile. It's contagious, because I find myself smiling back.

I lead him to the living room where Prim is playing with Buttercup. I find myself not hating him as much as before, now that we have enough to feed him, but I still can't stand him. If it were up to me, we'd have a dog. I need a reliable hunting partner now that Gale works six days a week.

"Oh, you told Peeta how you felt?" Prim asks when she sees Peeta with me.

"Um, no, I just… I, um, just told him I was confused," I say nervously.

"Why do you have to be so difficult," she says, rolling her eyes. "Everyone can see you love him, but you."

"Oh yeah? Well how come you haven't told Rory you like him then? Everyone can see you like him, but you," I say, mimicking her tone.

"Shut up!" Prim yells, trying desperately to hide her blush.

We eat dinner together, Peeta and Prim talking about her art class that I have no interest towards, while my mother and I observe them. She actually looks kind of happy while watching Prim and Peeta get along, with a slight smile on her face.

When we finish dinner and eat the dessert Peeta brought over, we all retreat to the living room to play cards. After a while, my mother heads to her room, telling Prim and I not to stay up too late. Prim goes to her own room after Peeta catches her cheating, getting a laugh out of all of us.

Peeta and I decide to go to sleep too, still nervous about what Haymitch has in store for Peeta tomorrow. Wrapped in Peeta's arms, I have no nightmares.

A/N: So, what does Haymitch have in store for Peeta? This chapter was a little longer, but I'd like to shift into longer chapters, because there's still a lot of the story I'd like to tell, and I don't want an 80 chapter story. It'd get boring quickly if I wrote it that way.

I know this chapter may have seemed all over the place, but Katniss doesn't seem like the type of character to flat out say "I love Peeta," even if that will be the end result. So I had to make her confused about her feelings, which will lead them to grow together more instead of jumping straight into a relationship. Remember, they are still 16 years old. Suzanne Collins may have made them mature more in her version, but I'd prefer to keep them more child-like for a little before progressing them forward, if that makes sense, instead of flat out skipping the girlfriend boyfriend phase and just getting married.

Sorry for the long author's note, but I felt like I needed to explain myself a bit. Have a great week! :)