The Boy In Love // THG Peeta's POV

The Girl

She only nodded wistfully in response, clearly not ready for words. So I merely opened my arms, and she joined me on the floor, falling readily into my embrace as she had countless times before. 

I still remember the first time she did. It was many years ago, when I was only 14.

*flashback*

We had spent the day together after school again, something we did quite often, seeing as we were the best of friends. Instead of going to her house like we normally did, we walked around the district aimlessly, laughing and crying and talking about a million little things that I can't even remember now. For a few precious hours, I forgot all the troubles that plagued me, lost in her company.

As the day drew to a close, we sat on a bench next to the Meadow, having lost all track of time. I remember laughing at how she sniffed the flowers I picked her.

"Peeta?" she asked me, taking on a more serious tone.

"Yeah?" I answered, digging my shoe into the dirt.

"Do you maybe want to... do this again sometime?" she murmured, playing with the hem of her shirt.

"Of course! Today was the most fun I've had in ages," I replied, almost laughing at the ridiculous question. We hung out almost every day, how was this any different?

A brilliant grin lit up her face and her clear blue eyes shone like sunlight sparkling off a lake. I chuckled at her reaction.

"Really?" she queried. "I never thought you liked me very much."

I smiled. "Of course I like you!"

If it was possible, she smiled even wider. The wind blew her light brown hair into her face, but she didn't seem to notice or care about the shoulder length strands tickling her rosy cheeks.

My dopey smile still lighting up my face, I reached out and tucked and errant chocolate-colored lock behind her ear, my fingertips brushing against the sprinkle of freckles across her nose and the tops of her cheeks.

Her expression changed rapidly from joy to shock to something I couldn't quite name. A flush rose in her face and she pondered me through half lidded eyes. Curious about what caused the change, I wondered if she might faint. I pressed my hand firmly to her cheek, checking for fever.

When I found nothing, I drew my hand back, but to my befuddlement, she followed it, closing her eyes and leaning towards me. 

For a split second, I didn't realize what was happening, and I merely sat there, frozen. It wasn't until I could feel her faint breath on my face that I came to my senses and it struck me like a blow to the head. She was trying to kiss me!

I jerked my hand back from her cheek as if I had been burned, and I stumbled backward off the bench, tumbling into the dirt in my haste to get away.

Tessa's eyes fluttered open in confusion which only deepened upon seeing me in the dirt. The light blush remained in her cheeks as she gave a lilting laugh.

"Peeta you dork. Did you fall?"

"I... What...?" I panted, breathless and confused. I swallowed, soothing my dry throat enough to speak. "What are you doing?" I hissed.

Her brow creased in confusion. "What?"

"You... What...?!" I spat incoherently.

Her eyes passed over my panting form, still sitting in on the ground with my hands scraped and stinging from my fall. Her previously shining eyes darkened as she slowly fell further and further into confusion. And then it clicked. "Oh no," she groaned, hiding her face in her hands. "Oh my god I'm such a blithering idiot. Wow, Tessa, wow. You really are stupid, but this takes the cake," she said to herself, forgetting I was even there.