Falling For You

Chapter 2

The gravel crunches under my feet as I begin the short walk to Haymitch's house. I knock on his door over and over until he answers, looking dangerously sober. "Come in." He allows me to walk in and closes the door behind me. "You look sober today." I note, leaning up against the kitchen counter. "I am." I decide it's better not to ask why, it's only about noon anyway there's still plenty of time for him to change that. "So, you here just to comment on my sobriety?" I glare at him for a while before answering. "We've got another interview soon. What are they saying about the last one? Do they believe us?" Haymitch is my only connection in the Capitol, and as much as I hate to admit it, I need his help. "After that kiss I'm actually starting to believe it. Well done sweetheart, I'm sure Peeta appreciated that." He smirks at me. "but a kiss isn't going to keep them satisfied for long. You know what they want Katniss and you're running out of excuses as to why it's not happening." He suddenly gets serious. I take a deep breath trying to stay calm. "Haymitch I can't. I've told you that. What else can I do? I need more time." I'm not ready to have kids. I want to delay it as long as I possibly can. "You're running out of time Katniss!" He exclaims, frustrated. "Please Haymitch. I need more time." He covers his face with his hand. "Okay, Okay. You need to work on the details. Give them as many details as you can possibly think of even if you have to make them completely up. These people eat that up in the Capitol. They wanna feel like they know you. Also try to be more affectionate with him. You look like you're stuck on that couch next to a stranger not the love of your life. And you can't just kiss him and think that covers it." I nod, thinking about what he's telling me. "You know you could do a lot worse than Peeta." I glance at the bottle of alcohol on the counter. "I know." It's no secret that Peeta is better than me. I take the bottle off the counter and take a sip. "I'm not supposed to let you have that." He stopped supplying me ever since Peeta found out and freaked out about it. Of course, my mother and prim took his side. Prim hates when I drink. Not that I would do it around her, but she can always detect even the slightest bit of alcohol on my breath. "It's just one sip. Peeta won't even notice." I roll my eyes at him and he smiles. "I'll see you later." I walk towards the door. "Details!" I smile as I'm opening the door. "More affection!" I yell back, slamming his door.

When I get home I find a tray of freshly baked cheese buns sitting on the counter. I lick my lips, looking at them. I retrieve a plate from the cabinet and put all of them on it. I find food to be a comforting distraction from my current situation. I sit down on the couch with my plate of cheese buns, just as Peeta is walking down the stairs. I can tell he's just showered because he's changed into sweatpants and his hair is wet. He doesn't say a word as he sits down next to me and wraps his arm around me. I lean up against him and take his other hand and wrap it around my waist like the other. There's no point in trying to ignore how I feel about him, I've had two years to do that. I stare blankly at the wall while I eat, studying the little lines where the paint is uneven. I can feel his eyes on me and I look up, my eyes meeting his, as I suspected. "Do you want some?" I ask. It never occurred to me to even ask him before. "No. You can have them." He assures me. That's good. I already ate most of them, so I go ahead and eat the last two quickly. I pick one of his hands up, playing with his fingers for a moment before I put it back where it was. I can never get used to how soft his hands are, and warm too. "So, I guess this doesn't bother you then?" He asks, moving his hands slightly, then moving them back to their original spot on my waist. "No, it doesn't bother me." I answer honestly. "It feels good, actually." That makes him smile. "Then why don't you let me do it all the time?" I can tell even the smallest acceptance of affection makes him insanely happy. I rarely let him touch me like this, except when I have nightmares. "I don't know." And honestly I don't, I've run out of excuses at this point. "So you'll allow it?" He smiles at me, making me smile almost instantly in return. "Yes." I pull his hands off me and stand up, not releasing his hands. "C'mon, Let's go to bed." I lead him upstairs and to our bedroom.

I open the window, knowing that he won't sleep with it closed. I open my dresser and turn to him. "I'm gonna go get changed." I pull out a t-shirt and shorts and walk into the bathroom. I change, brush my teeth, and brush my hair. Then I walk back into the bedroom. I sit down on the bed next to Peeta and curl up next to him, shifting a little to get comfortable. "Can I ask you something?" His tone of voice makes me nervous He wraps his strong arms around me and looks down at me. "Yeah." I answer, hesitantly, looking up at him. "Sometimes you act like this might be something more than just an act and sometimes you don't and I don't understand why." He says carefully, clearly putting a lot of thought into his words. "I don't know...." I know he deserves an explanation but I'm not sure I can give him one. "I just don't wanna hurt you." I say. Not that I'm doing such a great job at that. "You won't." I hesitate for only a second, then kiss him on the cheek.