Maybe It Can Be Real

Chapter 27

ALL RIGHTS GO TO SUZANNE COLLINS. I OWN NOTHING.

ENDING OF LAST CHAPTER:

I hold my apple out to see if he wants a bite, and he takes a bite, mumbling a Thanks.

We're quiet for a few minutes after that. I'm just thinking about random things. Nothing important.

I stand up and walk over to the window. I open it up and toss the core out, leaving the window open as I walk back to the couch.

I sit back down and lay my head on his shoulder. I close my eyes and breathe out, "I love you."

He kisses my head and says, "I love you too."

****

I rest my head against the warm smooth glass of the window. I bring my legs up to my chest and put them in just the right spot so I won't fall off the wide windowsill. I take in a deep breath.

My eyes search for little bits and pieces of the town that I can see between the trees of the Victors Village. I really want to see all of the changes done to the houses from here.

I sigh when I can't see much of anything of the town from my spot.

"What's wrong?", Peeta asks from his spot on the couch. I turn my head to look at him. He is drawing something in a sketch book. His head is turned down toward the paper, his blonde hair falling across his forehead. His tongue is peeking out of the corner of his mouth and his forehead is creased in concentration.

"I can't see the new houses from here," I pout. "I want to see what they look like." I rest my chin on my knees.

He looks up from his sketchbook. "I can go walk with you over there if you want."

I think about it for a moment. "Sure."

I hop off the windowsill and slide into my father's old hunting boots. I throw on his old jacket too. Peeta makes his way over to me and grabs my hand.

We walk outside into the warm, spring air. I take a deep breath and smile. It's nice to be outside.

Out of the corner of my eye, I can see Peeta as he looks over at me and smiles when he sees my smile.

I look all around, taking in everything in my surroundings. Today is absolutely perfect. Birds are chirping, flowers are blooming, and small animals are scurrying around without a regard to who (or what) they bump into.

A breeze is slightly blowing, the sun is partially hidden behind the clouds, and the sky is a beautiful, light blue with clouds few and far in between.

But the most perfect thing is that Peeta is beside me.

My heart swells up in my chest every time I think of his... personality? Looks? Skills? No, just... just everything about him, not only those three aspects.

He is alway there for me, and he can make me feel protected just by touching me. His love is limitless, and he shows it in so many ways. I don't know what I would do without him.

I just can't put into words how much he means to me.

"Hello? Anybody home?", Peeta asks, interrupting my thoughts.

I shake my head. "Uh, what?"

He chuckles. "I've been talking to you, but apparently I'm not important enough to have your attention."

I dig my shoulder into his side. "You are important to have my attention. The most important, actually."

He suppresses a smirk. He already knew that he was the most important person in my life.

"So, what were you saying?", I question.

"I was just asking you what you wanted to do after we looked at the houses," he replies.

"Oh, uhm, I don't really care. We can figure it out when we get to that."

He nods his head. "Sounds good."

We fall silent. My heart starts beating faster the closer we get to the houses. I'm not sure why I'm nervous... well, maybe I'm not nervous, just excited. Yeah. Excited. Let's roll with that.

"We're almost there, right?", I ask. Peeta nods his head in response. A smile grows on my face.

We round a corner, and I can see the beginning of a line of houses. I drop Peeta's hand and run toward them. I stand in front of them, my mouth agape. A slight gasp escapes my mouth.

The houses are beautiful. I mean, they're not as nice as ours, but compared to the old houses, these houses are pure gold.

All of the houses are built the same: a small garden out front, black shingles, one story, red brick chimney, white painted wood on the outside, square windows, and - Effie would love these - mahogany doors.

I jog up to a seemingly empty house and brush the door with my hand. Peeta comes up behind me.

"Pretty nice, huh?", Peeta says.

"These doors are so expensive," I state. I walk over to a window and peer inside. I was right; this house is empty. The only thing I see is a fireplace to the left of the room.

I walk down the line of houses, sometimes reaching out and lightly dragging my fingers along the surfaces of the houses.

We reach the end of the line of houses, and we turn right on the dusty, brown road.

A feeling of nostalgia washes over me, making me stop in my tracks. Time seems to come to a stop. My hand shakily comes up to my mouth, and my other arm crosses over my stomach, almost like I'm about to be sick.

Flashbacks cover my vision. Memories just bombard me, coming from all sides.

First it's of my mother holding Prim as a baby, my mother brushing out my hair, my father shaving in the mirror, small family meals in the dingy kitchen, and so many more.

I stumble forward blindly and fall to my knees. This place has so much meaning to me, and yet I didn't even know that we were so close.

I mentally kick myself for not realizing how close I was. It should've been my first thought. The first, no if's, and's, or but's.

I close my eyes and rock back and forth.

Suddenly, something that I haven't heard in a while runs through my head, only slightly modified this time:

My name is Katniss Everdeen. I am seventeen years old. My home is District 12. I was in the Hunger Games twice. I escaped. I started a rebellion. My sister was killed by a bomb. Peeta was taken prisoner. He was hijacked. He was rescued. He's here with me now. He's in love with me again.

More memories and flashbacks bombard my mind. I ball my hands into fists and put them on the side of my head. I squeeze my eyes shut, and tears leak out.

"Make it stop!", I yell through my tears. "Please make it stop!"

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Hello beautiful/handsome people! How are you all? Fabulous? Great(-:

Shoot straight and be brave my fellow lovelies,

Weezabeth <3