Together

Chapter 24

Katniss P.O.V.

I hear the front door open and shut and know that Peeta must be home. I finish making Willow's bed, and then walk out of her room into the hallway to see her running towards me with wide, panicked eyes. 

"Mommy! Mommy!"

She looks up at me and I pick her up. "Willow, what's wrong?"

"Daddy hurt," Willow says with tears in her eyes. 

I know she's probably being a little dramatic, but I can't help getting worried. "Willow, stay here. I'll be right back." I sit her down on the floor and quickly start down the stairs. "Peeta!" I reach the bottom of the steps to see him knelt on the ground untying his shoes. He looks up at me with a concerned look on his face. I stop and take a deep breath when I see he's okay. 

"You don't look like you're dying," I say. He raises an eyebrow at me and stands up. 

"Um… I didn't know that I was?" Peeta says in a questioning tone. 

I laugh a little bit. "Your daughter just came to me panicking and saying that you were hurt."

Peeta rolls his eyes. "I burnt my arm a little bit. I'm fine though."

"Let me see," I say. 

"Katniss, it's nothing."

"Let me see it," I say again. Peeta holds up his left arm and I shake my head. "What is it with you two? Willow acted like you were at death's door, you say it's nothing, and neither one of you are even close to the truth."

Peeta laughs. "Katniss, what are you talking about? It is nothing."

"Peeta, you have a blister that starts at your elbow and goes all the way down to your wrist," I say. "I don't think that falls under the "nothing" category."

"Katniss…"

"I'll call Mom and have her to come over to look at it."

"No," Peeta says. "It's fine."

I look at home and sigh. "At least let me bandage it up."

"Would that make you happy?" Peeta asks.

I smile at him. "Yes, it would."

"All right. Let's go." Peeta follows me upstairs to our bathroom. He hops up onto the counter and Willow comes running towards us. 

"Daddy," Willow says. "You 'kay?"

Peeta chuckles. "I'm okay, baby."

"Why don't you go play in your room, Willow?" I ask her. "Mommy and Daddy will be out in just a minute."

"Okay, Mommy," Willow says before she goes running back out of the bathroom. 

"She's so worried about her Daddy," I tell Peeta as I start rubbing burn medicine onto his blister. 

Peeta laughs. "What did you two do today?"

I take a deep breath. "Well, Mom dropped Willow off about ten minutes after you left for work this morning. As soon as Mom left, Willow started crying for 'Grandpa.'" I roll my eyes and Peeta chuckles. 

"That kid is so rotten," Peeta says. 

"Tell me about it. Of course, she got her way. She's been over at Haymitch's house until thirty minutes before you got home. Willow was so tired that she fell asleep in Haymitch's arms as he was carrying her over here. So she's been playing and napping all day."

"Let me guess," Peeta says. "You've been cleaning all day."

I shrug my shoulders. "Something like that." I start loosely bandaging Peeta's arm as he talks to me. I don't listen to half of what he's saying though. I don't want to tell him yet, but I finally can't take it anymore. Without taking my attention away from Peeta's arm, I butt in on whatever sentence he's in the middle of.