It's Always Been You

Chapter Twenty Seven; Mother's Instinct

I didn't anticipate it coming so fast, but I knew the moment I felt something just a few days ago, the baby was coming sooner than later. Peeta's been telling me I have a 'mother's instinct,' to which I've been shutting him down every time he speaks. I don't want to be rude to Peeta, but I'm in so much pain and my hormone levels are off the charts. It seems as if I don't get a chance to feel bad, because I am overcome with excruciating pain every ten minutes.

"Maybe we should get your mother now, Katniss. She'll know what to do and she'll be able to give you medicine."

"This would be a hell of a lot less painful in the capitol. Maybe we should've just gone there." I say angrily, placing my hands on my stomach. The baby kicks quite a bit, putting me in even more pain.

"Should it be kicking when I'm in labor?" I ask worriedly, leaning back and closing my eyes. Peeta bites his lip.

"I'm going to get your mother. We can't wait any longer."

"Wait!" I whisper-yell, staring over at the window. "We can't make it obvious. This is potentially an 'illegal labor.'" I say annoyedly, my anger taking away from the pain.

"Okay, why don't we go there? She has all of the supplies we need anyway."

"That's a better idea." I say, attempting to stand but the pain is too much to bare.

"Can I help you?" Peeta asks, grabbing my hands. He helps me up, and I lean on him for support until we get to the door.

"Wait, Peeta, c-can you grab something for me?"

"Of course, anything." Peeta says with a nod.

"Can you get my father's hunting jacket?" I ask softly. "It's comforting."

Peeta quickly grabs the jacket, wrapping it around my shoulders. I try to force a smile, opening the door as the cold January air hits my face. I shuffle down the stairs on our porch and across the street, walking steadily, trying to look as normal as possible. Peeta follows behind, and it takes what seems like years to get to my mother and Prim's house. Peeta knocks on the door quite hard, but I understand why. I feel as if I'm going to collapse any second.

When my mother opens the door, she gives me one look and immediately knows what's happening. She smiles, opening the door wider. I walk in, hurriedly walking over to the couch. "It hurts!" I groan, clutching my abdomen.

"She's been like this since last night. She said it's getting worse, and I can tell. She has contractions about ten minutes apart."

"Yes, she's definitely in labor. I just worry because she's pretty early. All of that stress put on her with the games, the capitol, and everything else in between is definitely why..." My mother attempts to whisper this, but I hear her loud and clear. I look over at Peeta, who gives me a reassuring smile.

"What's going on?" I ask simply, concern running through my voice.

"We're having a baby, that's what's going on." Peeta says sweetly. He comes close to me, wrapping his arms around me. As another contraction approaches, I know that this is going to be a terribly long day.

+++

Peeta's POV:

"Why don't I go get the bedroom situated for you, Katniss, then we can check how far you've dilated." Katniss' mother says. Katniss nods, gripping onto my hand as a contraction passes. She huffs, staring up at me with tears in her eyes.

"It hurts." She whispers faintly. God, how I wish I could take her pain away. I frown, staring into her eyes.

"It's nothing you can't handle. You're strong. You can do this."

She nods, keeping her gaze in my eyes. "I can't believe it's happening." She says. "It feels like just yesterday was the night we got ourselves into this." She says with a chuckle.

I smile. There's my Katniss. My genuine, sweet Katniss. The past month has been rough, between her hormones and both of our wordiness of the baby...we haven't been ourselves. But now, I feel connected to her all over again. I attempt to lean down for a kiss, but Ms. Everdeen calls for Katniss and I in the bedroom. I sigh. "I'll carry you." I whisper. She doesn't oppose. She wraps her arms around me tight and I carry her upstairs, walking into the spare bedroom. The bed has fresh sheets on it, along with several blankets and pillows, in attempt to make Katniss as comfortable as possible. I lay Katniss on the bed gently, and Ms. Everdeen instructs her to take her clothes pants off. Katniss peels them off of her warm skin, breathing heavily.

"Peeta, can you get me a wet washcloth?" Katniss asks.

"Of course. Do you need anything, Ms. Everdeen?" I ask. She shakes her head.

"I'm just going to check how much Katniss has dilated, but since you're going downstairs, would you mind mixing up the ingredients sitting on the kitchen counter? They're natural herbs to make tea proven to relieve labor pain and help quicken the process."

"Okay, I'll be right back." I say, grinning towards Katniss. Even in labor she looks so beautiful.

I walk out of the room slowly, curious as to how this will go. It's hard for me to believe that I'm going to be a father so soon. Despite my complete excitement, I can't help but be utterly terrified at the same time. I'd never tell Katniss, but I think about it just as much as her; what if one day our child is reaped for the games? I try to push the subject out of my mind as I find the herbs Katniss' mother was talking about. I eye them, shrugging as I pour them into a bowl. I begin mixing slowly, adding warm water and pouring it into a cup for Katniss. I find a towel in the cupboard, wetting it with ice cold water. As I begin walking back up the stairs, I hear Katniss let out a scream, and I run full speed to her aid.

My heart is racing and I am shaking so hard I almost drop the cup.

"It was just a bad contraction, nothing more." Katniss's mother says. I place the wet towel on Katniss's head. She is dripping head to toe with sweat as she clenches her bulging stomach.

"Here," I say, situating pillows so that she can sit up. I help her pull herself up. I readjust the wet cloth on her forehead. "Lift your arms." Katniss does as I say, and I pull her shirt off for her. "So you're not as hot."

She nods, and places her hand on my thigh. I grab the cup of tea. "Drink." I command. She laughs slightly, sipping the warm tea.

"It's 2:30." Katniss whispers, looking over towards the clock. "Prim will be home any minute."

"Good. I know she'll be able to comfort you." I say. "Hey, do you want me to crack a window?" I ask , remembering that it's freezing outside.

"No one comforts me like you, Peeta." Katniss replies softly.

"I'm glad. I want to help in any way possible. I love you."

"I love you too...and for the record, please crack the window."