What if Katniss didn't Volunteer? (Complete) (2013 Watty Award WINNER:)

Part 35

I grab a handful and go back to Peeta. I look into his bright blue eyes and say,
"If you die, I will go into a depression. One I will never come out of. I will just sit at home all day, dead to the world. Like my mother when my father died. Only I won't come out of it. Please, eat these with me." He takes a berry and looks at it, and smashes it. He sees the seeds and all but faints.
"No, NO! I can't do that to Katniss. I can't let you die, for me and for her. NO Prim!" He doesn't see my plan, and I can't explain it. I can give him hints though, and I do,
"Peeta, they can have two victors, or no Victors. Which do you think they will choose?" I say it soft enough so even the cameras won't be able to hear it, I hope. He looks at me and nods. I'm not sure how, but something happens and we both mentally decide what to do. All we have to do is look at the berries, and that's enough to send a voice booming in the speakers.
"Wait! STOP!! Ladies and gentlemen, I give you the winners of the 74 annual Hunger Games." It's actually the head Game maker, Seneca Crane. He doesn't sound happy about announcing us both as winners. Peeta takes the berries from my hand and throws them across the field. He takes my hands and wipes them on the ground with his.
"We got lucky." He says to me as the hovercraft appears to take us away. He picks me up and throws me over his shoulders like he did for the opening ceremonies. They played through the speakers the cheers from around Panem. I felt like I could almost hear District 12. The cries and chants and cheers. It was like I could hear my mother and Gale... and Katniss. I look at Peeta and smile before hugging his head. He smiles to, and I think it's because we are going home. But it's probably because he will actually get to meat Katniss officially. We stand there frozen as the hovercrafts current lifts us into the ship. We take off immediately and are grabbed by doctors. We sit side by side in some chairs while they look over out wounds. The inspect Peeta's wrist and put on a smaller cast than the one that was sent to us. Other than that he is fine. The doctors look at me and it's a whole different story. They say the cut from the arrow hit one of my ribs and that they couldn't perform surgery on it. It would just have to let it heal by itself. The cut in my arm is down to the bone, but it takes them no time at all to patch that up. They stitch above my eyebrow again and Cato's hit to my face gave me a minor concussion. 10 x worse than Peeta. When they doctors are through with us, I feel the hovercraft start to slow down. I can feel us landing. We are on the roof of the Tribute Apartment building when I look up. I can just see the tip of her pink hair.