• Forever •

Chapter 37

Chapter 37:

Today Peeta comes home. It's the first thing I think of when I wake up. His train doesn't come in until 2 and I woke up at 8 today. That's still 6 hours without him.

I get up from bed and clean up the bedroom. I get dressed, fix my hair and and head downstairs for breakfast. While I'm cooking my eggs, I realize that Christmas is only 3 weeks away. I haven't gotten any gifts yet! I only have to buy for three people, but I'm still procrastinating. I decide on doing that before Peeta gets home. Go shopping to keep busy.

As the eggs start to harden, the smell hits my nose and I feel like I'm going to be sick. I try to hold it down but I can't. I lean over to the sink and vomit what feels like my whole stomach. Once I'm done I rinse out my mouth and throw the eggs in the garbage, not daring to try to eat them. This feeling I feel is a very familiar one. Not like a virus feeling, or a food poisoning, but morning sickness.

I try not to come to too many conclusions too quickly, but before I can stop myself, I'm running up the stairs to the bathroom. I dig under the cabinet to get the old pregnancy tests Peeta had gotten for me months ago. I take 2 and wait the 5 minutes, pacing back and forth in my bedroom. When I hear the beep I go in and check. They're both positive. I put them back in their boxes and put them in my bedside table under some scarves, I know Peeta won't go through.

I immediately pick up the house phone and call the local doctor's office to make an appointment. Their earliest is noon so I tell them that's fine and decide to shop while I'm waiting. I also decide on not telling anyone until I tell Peeta first. Peeta. I don't even know how I'm going to tell him. I bundle up and head into town to try to find Peeta, my mother and Haymitch Christmas gifts.

When noon rolls around, I have finished my shopping, thank God, and I don't have time to stop home to drop off my bags. I got my mom a heart locket with a picture of Dad and Prim on the inside with a beautiful quote about loved ones passing. It was hard to do, getting a picture of them without her knowing and seeing the finished product without breaking down, but I know she'll love it. I got Haymitch a winter coat. Not a cheap one, but a nice, Capitol crafted one, lined with fur. Hopefully, he'll use it on his drunken nights and not freeze to death on his porch. And finally for Peeta. I got him a new cooking set. It has 3 different size fry pans, a sauté pan, 2 different size sauce pans, and I large pot for boiling water.

As I'm on my way to the doctor's, I pass a baby clothes store. I walk in and look around. I see cute baby clothes for boys and girls. While I'm in there I get a great idea for an additional gift for Peeta. I get a plain pink onesie and a plain blue onesie. I'm going to wrap them and put the pregnancy test in the box with them. On my way out I see a sign for the owner with a poll next to it that says "Blue or Pink? What do you think?" For the gender of her baby. I love the quote and decide to use it in my gift.

When I'm approaching the doctor's office my stomach is in knots, hoping all goes well, and this pregnancy goes as planned. I don't think Peeta or me could take any more bad news. I also can't wait to see the look on Peeta face in three weeks when he opens his gift!

I walk in to the empty waiting room and my go to the receptionist's desk.

"Hi. I'm Katniss Mellark and I made an appointment this morning for noon." I say.

"Okay, sign in and the doctor will be right with you." She says with a smile.

I write my name, the date, and the time on the sign in sheet and then sit in the waiting room chairs, shopping bags still in hand. I've only been waiting for about five minutes when they call my name.

"Katniss Mellark?" The nurse says.

"Hi." I say following her into the room.

When we get in I put my bags on the floor and sit on the table. She checks my blood pressure and heart rate and then leaves and says the doctor should be right in. I asked to see Dr. Mathews again because I loved the way he treated me last time.

He comes in a few minutes later.

"Katniss! How are you?" He says shaking my hand.

"I'm good, how about you?" I ask.

"Same old, same old." He says. "So tell me what's going on."

"Well this morning I was making eggs and the smell of them made me throw up so I got suspicious. So I took 2 pregnancy tests and they both came out positive." I said.

"Okay well we can do an ultrasound and check." He says.

I lay down and he smears the familiarly cool gel on my stomach and starts to move the wand all around.

"Katniss, see this little peanut looking thing?" He asks.

"Yes," I say.

"Well that's a baby. Congratulations, you're pregnant!" He says. "You're about 6 weeks along."

"What are the chances of me having another miscarriage?" I ask wiping off the gel.

"Very low. Most women's first pregnancy ends in a miscarriage. It's not something to be too worried about. I'll send you home with some prenatal vitamins to keep you and the baby healthy." He says writing on his sheet.

"Okay, thank you." I say getting up.

He stands up from his chair and shakes my hand.

"I want to see you monthly throughout your first trimester and then every 2 weeks once you start your second, and then once you enter your third, weekly. I want to make sure everything is fine for you and the baby." He says.

"Thank you, I'll make sure to make the appointments soon." I say grabbing my bags and heading home.

The walk home was cold but peaceful. When I get home I hide the presents in the coat closet downstairs where I know Peeta won't look. I go upstairs and shower to thaw out my freezing body. Before I get in I look at my stomach in the mirror. It's still flat but soon, it'll get a little bump and then it'll get bigger and bigger and then we'll have a baby. I don't know why I was ever afraid to have children. I think I was born to be a mother and I can't believe it took me this long to realize it.

Once I'm out I see that it's one thirty so I bundle up for what feels like the twelfth time today, and head down to the train station. Not many people travel in and out of twelve so like when Peeta left, I'm the only one here again. I check the clock on the wall next to the ticket booth and I see I have about 10 minutes. I pace back and forth until I hear a faint horn in the distance. Within minutes I hear the train gliding along the tracks.

When the train slows and the doors open, I try not to run in and find Peeta. I'm not surprised when he's the only one that gets off. When I see him I run into his arms and wrap my legs around his waist. In surprised he can breath, I'm hugging his neck so tight. He dropped his bags and wrapped his arms protectively around my back.

"I missed you!" I say leaning my forehead against his.

"I missed you more." He says slyly. He leans into my face and our lips connect, sending sparks out all around us. I place both of my hands on his cheeks and lower myself so I'm standing.

"I love you." I say getting teary eyed. If I'm already emotional because of this pregnancy, it's going to be a long road ahead of us.

"I love you too. More than anything." He says making my heart skip a beat.

We walk home hand in hand and the whole way home, all I can think about is how hard it's going to be for me to keep my mouth shut about the pregnancy for three more weeks.