The Hunger Games - I'm Still Burning

Chapter 11

I sit on the couch with my knees pulled in to my chest. Peeta wraps a blanket round my shoulders and hands over my lemon tea. I hold on to the mug tightly, allowing the heat to warm my chilled fingers. Three days my baby has been moving for and my sleep has been broken and riddled with nightmares ever since.

"I think you should come to the bakery with me today, Katniss. I don't want to leave you here like this," Peeta says. He's sits beside me and rests his hand on my thigh.

I blow on my tea and shake my head, brushing away his concern.

"I'm fine, Peeta," I aim for a smile that will convince him of this. It's no good, he knows me too well.

"No you're not, you've been like a zombie this week, not eating, not sleeping. It's a sudden turn around from last week when you were eating cheese buns by the dozen and keeping me awake all night with your snoring," he says.

"I don't snore!" I protest.

He shoots me a smile, provoking a grin out of me in return.

"I know, I just wanted to see you smile properly," he says.

I roll my eyes and curl into his side, careful not to spill the tea on him. His arm instinctively wraps around me. I close my eyes and listen to the steady sound of his beating heart. The solid rhythm lulls me into a state of calmness, blocking out all the worries that have been trapesing through my mind.

"Maybe you should go back to bed," he says, quietly.

I suck in sharply and draw back from him. Sleep will only unlock new horrors. I try to make myself as alert as possible when I reply.

"No it's okay, I'm fine. I might go into the woods for a bit," I say.

He studies my face closely, probably taking note of the bags under my eyes that give me away.

"You're not going to the woods, anything could happen in there, to you and the baby," he says.

"I'm pregnant, Peeta, not an invalid," I sigh.

"I know but I don't want you getting hurt. I can stay here while you sleep if you want, if you're scared of having nightmares?"

I shake my head. "No, Peeta, you have a bakery to run, you need to be there."

"Then come with me? Lily's been asking for you quite a lot, you should come and see her."

My ears perk up at the sound of her name.

"Though you should probably brush your hair first, you don't want to scare her," he adds quickly.

I laugh and comb my fingers through the straggly bits of my hair that stick out at all angles from the restless night.

"You're not supposed to insult me, I'm carrying your child," I say.

"Our child," he corrects me.

He leans over and tilts his head. Ever since I told him that I wanted this baby, a subtle glow has slowly taken over his skin, even though the reverse should be true. I admire it now as he gets closer and feel it steal my breath as he presses his lips to mine.

My lips burn from his touch and and my old friends, the butterflies, start to swarm my chest, making me feel alive for the first time in days. He lifts his hand up to... stroke my face? Play with my hair? I don't know, he knocks the tea out of my hands before he gets to me.

"Peeta!" I half laugh, half sigh.

He jumps back and pulls up the bottom of my sodden top, ignoring the discarded mug that's rolled onto the floor.