Be My Shelter

Chapter 1 - A New Beginning

Peeta unpacked the last carton with the inscription 'Kitchen' and stowed the final pair of dishes into the cupboard. He sighed silently and glanced over to his father who was standing in the hallway.
He looked back at Peeta and then smiled softly at before he made his way towards the cellar door.
Peeta, who still stood in the kitchen, turned around and looked at all the empty cartons that formed stacked hills that made their way up to the entrance. He was relieved that they were finally finished with unwrapping and tidying up the most important things.
Even though Peeta felt like a huge load was taken off his shoulders, a queasy feeling started to spread in his stomach at the same time. The thought of a new high school, new surroundings, new people and new adaption scared him. He knew he had to start all over again and he hoped it would be easier this time.

One year ago Peeta's family made a summer vacation in their beach house in the Hamptons. On their last night a terrible storm raged down the coast. Peeta and his father just came back from a walk at the sea and ran towards the building as the disaster took its course.
A terribly loud lightning forced a huge fir to crash into the roof of the beach house. Tragically Peeta's mother and younger brother Lucas had been inside the house which was right in front of their eyes all of a sudden wrecking into million pieces. Peeta and his father had to observe how the huge dark, almost black tree destroyed everything underneath with an explosion-like, crashing sound.
Peeta and his dead screamed, called their names and screeched for help in hope of getting answers or callbacks from their loved ones but the only sounds that were audible were the whistling wind, the smashing wood and the loud sobs coming from Peeta's and his father's mouthes.
Within seconds the vacation house had been completely destroyed and Peeta's mom and Lucas had to be dead in seconds. There were no doubts.
The final reason to take the step to move to Silver Lake, which is closer to the center of Panem, occurred when 3 months ago a terrible incident happened to Peeta. That one dark and lonely night was meant to change Peeta's personality and life forever.

Peeta stepped towards the kitchenette and took a medium big carton, which was laying on the kitchen table, into his hands. He looked at the white note that stuck on top of the cardboard, and read its inscription to make sure it was the right box. It said 'Peeta's Stuff'. He picked up the carton and left the kitchen.
Peeta walked down the empty, grey hallway that was only filled with a black wooden shelf and a few pairs of shoes. When he reached the stairs he blunderingly stumbled over the first step which caused him to let the box fall to the floor whereupon a few things fell out of the carton and scattered on the ground. Peeta kneeled down and put the things back into his package. After that he took the box back in his hands and walked upstairs. When he entered the first floor he immediately focused his gaze on the white wooden door that was at the end of the hallway. He stepped towards the bright door, pressed the door handle and walked into his new room.

It was bigger than his old room but also scarily blank and silent. It had two big windows that were hidden behind grey curtains and a pale big burgundy red carpet laid on the dark parquet floor and gave the room a slightly warmer feeling.
Peeta's glace traveled up to his new bed that had bed linen and cushions in the same red color as his new carpet. It stood in the right corner by the right side of the door and had a chestnut brown dresser with a white lamp on it. Next to the lamp stood an alarm clock and the drawers of the dresser were still empty. On the opposite side of the room there were a hazelnut brown desk and an equally colored chair that stood next to a big white shelf. The walls in the room were plain white and had no wallpaper.
Peeta turned his head and looked at the few moving boxes that stood next to the door frame and were filled with his clothes, books and other several personal things. Peeta sighed tiredly at the thought of still having to unpack his stuff and let himself fall on his new bed, which was very soft and padded with many pillows. He loved to feel secure and protected; a feeling he didn't sense for a while and if so only found in his bed under the sheets, where the warmth was comforting his body.
Although Peeta still had to unbox a lot of cartons he yet needed to catch some fresh air and clear his head. He stood up from the red bed, grabbed his black wool jacket and walked out of the door.