Darker And Colder

2.08: Weeks Go By

Chapter 25
Katniss's POV

Every day for the last 2 weeks, I go to visit Peeta. I try to stay as long as I can, but eventually someone will come and tell me I need to leave. I have visited Finnick and Annie a couple of times too.

There are barely any doctors around because they are all with one patient who is a 'special admission'. Apparently they rescued them from the Capitol.

I lie on the bed in my compartment, staring at the ceiling. I was kicked out of Peeta's hospital room earlier after being in it for four hours. I hear a knock on the door, and get up slowly to answer it. I fling it open to see Peeta. He has crutches, and a lot of stitches. "Hey," he says.

I smile. "Come in."

He limps into the room and I show him to sit on my bed. He rests his crutches against the grey wall and I instantly lean in to hug him.

"How are you?" He asks me.

"Why are you asking me? You're the one who Snow held in the Capitol."

His eyes smile along with his mouth. "You're the pregnant one." My mouth twists up and I guide his hand down onto my protruding stomach. He laughs a little as the baby kicks. I lean against him and he wraps his free arm around me.

Suddenly, I can see it. A life with Peeta. I can see myself waking up with him next to me, with our child. In the meadows somewhere. I would teach them to hunt, and he would teach them how to fight. We would be a family. Maybe I'm only seventeen, eighteen in six months or so, but I can see my life with Peeta. With a family. And I want it.

◇◇◇

"No," Coin says. "That is pointless and too much work for nothing."

I stand in a grey room with Peeta holding my hand. His face is confused and slightly angry. His voice is mildly assertive, "What do you mean no? Why not? There would be two compartments anyway?"

She sighs. "Look, Mr. Mellark," he flinches a little when she days his name, "we would have to give you the appropriate items, of which we would have to resupply which is expensive. And you two aren't legally married, so you wouldn't be allowed to. No matter what you did before, that's our rules here."

I can visibly see Peeta's jaw tighten, but he clearly realises it isn't a good idea to go any further with Coin, so instead we just walk out.

We walk back along the stretching grey corridors to Peeta's compartment. He is supposed to share it with Finnick when he is released tomorrow. Annie had her own so she swapped with Johanna to live with me. I can't blame Johanna really. We don't exactly get along, and she isn't the making friends type.

"See you later I guess," Peeta says. He has a look in his eyes, expecting me to be disappointed or upset with him.

"It's okay. It's not like we will be in 13 long, and when I have the baby, they will have to give me a bigger place and I won't stop until they let their father stay with us." I smile, and he smiles back, before pulling me into a quick embrace and glancing back one more time before he closes the door.

When I get to my compartment it is empty. It feels wrong still being in here. Lonely.

◇◇◇

Peeta's POV

I close the door and she is still staring at me. With that smile. Yellow- white teeth gleaming in a soft olive face. Her eyes are grey like the ash from the fire. They are silver like the bow she held in the first games. Warm like a raging fire and cold like a lake of ice.

As soon as the door clicks into place, I want to run back out to her and be there with her. I've been away from her for so long. I don't want to be any longer.

I sit on the bed. I have another week until I have to start on the normal timetable. It is printed on people's arms every day.

I wait for a long time and finally go down for lunch.

◇◇◇

Katniss's POV

The meat is tough and hard to chew.

I eventually decide to leave it, I wasn't too hungry anyway. I am just about to walk to the bin when Haymitch comes to sit down and stops me.

"Eat up, sweetheart. You need to feed the baby too now."

Peeta follows a couple of minutes after. We sit together in silence.

◇◇◇

My last week of freedom is dull. Every day I wake, visit Peeta, eat, and sit staring at the ceiling.
At least I'm not on a hard regime.

The next week is about to get a whole lot worse.