The Hunger games - I'm still breathing (Everlark)

Chapter 5

*A week later*

I wake up with a start, wondering what could have caused this sudden alertness. I didn't have any nightmares that I remember but something seems to have unsettled me. I automatically reach my arm out for Peeta and instead find an empty space where his body was just a few hours ago. I immediately feel the panic rising inside of me, sensing that something isn't right. Peeta stays with me every night now, he wouldn't just have left me would he?
It's then that I hear a smash coming from downstairs. I jolt out of bed and quickly make my way down the stairs. The house is silent for a few seconds while I try to locate where the sound came from. Then I hear the terrified mumbles from the kitchen. I tiptoe towards the room, my heart pounding in my chest. I stand in the doorway, deciding to count to three before I turn the light on. When I do, I am in no way prepared for what I see.
Peeta is hunched over the back of a chair, his knuckles gripping on so tight that his hands appear ghostly pale. If it wasn't for the blood dripping down his left hand you could mistake them for thin air. His eyes are squeezed shut and he's muttering something to himself that I can't quite make out. The light hasn't broken his trance.
I edge slowly closer to him, seeing the broken glass scattered over the table and the floor. My movement rouses Peeta as his eyes shoot open, wild and alert. The eyes that bore into me are not Peeta's eyes. The crystal blue eyes I'm normally used to have taken on a misty haze, appearing cloudy and grey. This is hijacked Peeta.
"Peeta..." I whisper, getting even closer to him, knowing that this could be a death sentence.
"Get out, Katniss," he says coldly, any feeling gone from his voice.
I shake my head stubbornly, taking another step towards him, making a beeline for his injured hand.
"Did you hear me?!" He shouts, backing up away from me as if I'm the threat.
"You're hurt Peeta, look at your hand. I want to help you," I say, calmly.
"No, you want to hurt me even more! All your good at is hurting people!" He yells, crouching into the corner.
Although I know it isn't really Peeta talking, his words feel like a slap round the face. I push through the sting of his words though and stride forward, crouching down in the corner with him.
Remembering how it helped bring him back before, I lean forward and kiss him. At first, he freezes under my touch but then he hesitantly starts to kiss me back. I feel his hands snake up to my neck and I flinch back, recalling what his hands did to my neck the last time he was in that state. When I meet Peeta's eyes this time, they are blue again.
"Where did you go?" I ask him, helping him to stand. As soon as he's upright, I wrap my arms around him, holding him close. He returns this gesture, as I feel his strong arms wrap around my waist.
"I don't know, I was getting a drink of water and I dropped the glass. While I was picking it up I cut myself and then it all went dark," he replies, his lips moving against my neck.
"Let's sort your hand out," I say, leaving the embrace and leading him towards the chair. I find a clean cloth, wet it and gently clean the wound on Peeta's hand.
"I didn't hurt you, did I?" He asks, looking up at me with nothing but remorse painted on his face.
"Not a single hair on my head," I smile at him. He rewards me with one of his loveable smiles.
When I'm finished cleaning and bandaging his hand, we make our way back up the stairs, out fingers intertwined.
We fall asleep in each other's arms, once again defending one another from the nightmares to come.