The Boy In Love // THG Peeta's POV

The Starlight

After finishing the cake, we moved into an extravagantly decorated sitting room to watch the rebroadcast of the opening ceremony. Effie, Haymitch and the stylists commented on each pair of tributes, but I only had eyes for the raven haired boy I had noticed when I watched the reapings days earlier.

I recognised him instantly, the memory of how he volunteered fresh in my mind. He had stepped forward without hesitation, as Katniss had, but not for family. The boy had volunteered for someone who looked nothing like him, an icy blonde who slapped him for doing so. Before kissing him. 

It was easy to discern why such a display would sear itself into my memory. Someone dooming themselves for love. 

I could almost hear Tessa taunting me. Why so dramatic Peeta? Calm the hell down, if you please. I shook my head, shrugging off her imaginary insults. "Shut up," I thought to myself.

The boy held himself with a graceful defiance, his emerald green eyes shuttered and jaw clenched even as the crowd shouted his name. 

I opened my mouth to ask about him, but the group let out a collective "Ahh!" at the sight of our chariot coming out of the Remake Centre and my chance was gone.

"Whose idea was the hand holding?" asked Haymitch.

"Cinna's," Portia replied.

"Just the perfect touch of rebellion," Haymitch mused. "Very nice."

I nodded absentmindedly. The other couples all stood stiffly apart, never acknowledging each other. Would they have had us do that even if I didn't love Katniss? Was this just part of Cinna setting me up for my big confession of love to the Capitol? My stomach seemed to knot at the thought of telling the world about my feelings for Katniss and I shoved the thought away.

"Tomorrow morning is the first training session. Meet me for breakfast and I'll tell you exactly how I want you to play it," said Haymitch to Katniss and me. "Now go get some sleep while the grown-ups talk."

I nodded and we both headed down the corridor to our respective bedrooms. When we reached Katniss' room, I leant against the frame, blocking her path. I attempted to look nonchalant, but a part of me was still nervous to be around her even after the past day.

"So, Delly Cartwright," I drawled, raising a questioning eyebrow. Well, I tried. I've never been able to raise one eyebrow. " Imagine finding her lookalike here."

Katniss was silent, but I could practically hear the thoughts buzzing around her head, calculating. To tell or not to tell. 

I cocked my head. It seemed she would require some help. ""Have you been on the roof yet?" She shook her head, and I gave her an encouraging smile. If it was safe enough for Cinna to speak of delicate matters, it would be safe enough for us. "Cinna showed me. You can practically see the whole city. The wind's a bit loud, though."

Katniss easily picked up on my not so subtle message that no one would overhear us talking, and nodded noncommittally. "Can we just go up?"

"Sure, come on," I said, heading to the flight of stairs that leads to the roof with Katniss in tow.

Once we reached the top, I stood aside with the pretence of holding the door for her, but I really just wanted to see her face when she caught sight of the glittering skyline. I was rewarded with a gasp of wonderment as Katniss dashed to the railing. The twinkling lights reflected in her eyes, bringing a faint smile to my lips. The artificial glow of the city disgusted me, but reflected in Katniss' eyes the once falsely beautiful lights became stars. The most stunning and awe-inspiring sight nature had to offer.

On hard nights at home, while the whole house slept, I used to sneak out to the meadow in the dead of night. I would just lie on my back in the pillowy grass and let the cold seep into my skin as I stared up at the sky. I never was a person of much faith, like most of the denizens of 12 I believed that the cruelty we suffered was proof that there was no guiding force in our universe.

But on those nights, lying beneath the inky canopy of darkness, I let my wander, conjuring possibilities that filled me with hope. My sense of self drifted away and the stars served to simultaneously make me weightless and keep me grounded. Those little pinpricks of light in the sky filled me with an irreplicable awe that took me away from my problems, everything else fading into the background in the starlight.

Well, irreplicable until now. The twinkling lights reflected in Katniss' wide and awed eyes filled me with that same feeling, the wonder that took everything else away. 

I wasn't sure how long we stood there like that, but soon I realised that it might seem odd that I was staring at her so intently. With a heavy heart, I tore my gaze away from her eyes and cleared my throat.

"I asked Cinna why they let us up here. Weren't they worried that some of the tributes might decide to jump right over the side?" I said. Katniss glanced at me, looking away from the glittering city.

"What'd he say?" She asked.

"You can't," I replied. I stuck my hand across the metal railing towards where Cinna had thrown that object. A stinging pain bloomed in my fingertips as a sharp zap cut through the air and I jerked my hand back. "Some kind of electric field throws you back on the roof."

"Always worried about our safety," Katniss muttered. "Do you think they're watching us now?"

"Maybe," I said. But I knew one place where she could tell me her story without being overheard. "Come see the garden."

***

Wow, I'm SO sorry that took so long. I hope you all enjoyed it! Quick question for all of you: I need new books, any recommendations? (Wattpad or not)

-Siren Song