I Love You, Peeta Mellark

Chapter Ten

Katniss' POV:

I look over at Peeta. His pupils have dilated. "Willow. Did Seth say where he had heard that?" I whisper. I doubt Annie and Finn had told him. She shakes her head, "No. He just kept saying it. What does it mean? Is it bad?"

Gale looks over. He heard her say it. His face is pale. He looks at me grimly. I don't want her to know about the past. I don't want them to know the horrors that fill my past.

Soon Joy and Alder walk in. "Willow. How are you feeling, Sweetheart?" Alder asks. She smiles a little. "I hurt," She whispers. Joy walks over by Peeta and I. Alder stands beside Willow's bed, "Honey. I can make you feel better. I promise. Can you hold out your arm?" She nods and pushes her arm out from underneath her blanket. "Good girl. Now, I'm going to put this little needle in the bend of the arm. It won't hurt, I promise. It'll help me make the pain go away. You might start feeling sleepy," He puts the IV needle in her arm. She starts yawning. When she's asleep, Alder unhooks her bed from the wall. "Wait. What's going on?" I look up as he leaves the room with my baby girl.

Joy pats my shoulder. "Alder wants to remove the destroyed part of her leg. It will be much like her father's leg, minus the port. He also wants to insert artificial bone in her fingers. The bone was crushed by the car. He's going to fix her rotator cuff during the surgery as well. It'll heal better if he does. Alder will prevent bad things from happening. He is great with the kids up here. Gale. Kat is doing very well. Minor issues but she's good. She'll stay the night just so we can watch her. Make sure she's okay. She broke her leg, but she'll be okay. Peeta we should get you back to bed. This will be a long process for Alder. You need your rest." I sigh.

Peeta's POV:

Next thing I know, I'm working my way back down the hall to my room. I'm halfway to my room and I've stopped 5 times. Joy encourages me to keep walking, but it hurts so bad. Katniss walks slowly. Her stomach protrudes out past her. She's not even to her full term. I worry about her. She strong, but I'm not sure about what could happen with her like this.

"Peeta. You are doing so well. We are almost there. A few feet to the door," Joy says encouragingly. I groan and walk super slowly to the room. I go inside and get to my bed. Joy helps me lay down. I relax and take the prosthetic leg off.

As Joy leaves, Colleen walks inside. Katniss is sitting beside me, holding a cool washcloth to my forehead. I'm sweating like I ran 5 miles. Colleen smiles, "Hello Katniss, Peeta. Do you mind if we have a chat?" I nod. All of my support leaves me. She sits on the edge of the bed. "Katniss. How are you feeling?"

Colleen has always looked extremely familiar. She has long red hair and green eyes. She's a bit younger than Katniss and I. She's thin and small. She's not real tall either. Prim doesn't know her, even though she's about the same age as her.

"Peeta, how is your leg doing?" Colleen looks at me. Katniss is still holding the washcloth to my forehead. "Fair enough. Painful to walk on. I feel like I've ran a few miles."

"Katniss. You're getting close to being full term. It's going to start being a hindrance. You've been walking in the hall, and that helps. But since you're getting so close, that's going to be harder. I'm going to put a wheelchair in here. Use it if you need it. I don't want you to overstretch from walking and causing labor issues. Call me in if something doesn't seem right. Send someone or have Peeta push the call button twice," She explains. Katniss nods slightly. She's been so sore. I feel really bad because I can't make her feel better.