KATNISS

Peeta scared me.

I don't know what has happened to him. Just yesterday we had eaten lunch together and he had listened to me with soft eyes as I worried over her friend. He had reassured me, given me a hug and comforted me. Told her to go visit Madge and talk, apologize. It helped me a lot. I felt much better, and I gave him a kiss on his cheek before I left for the day.

But when I came to the bakery this morning, he didn't greet me. I put on the apron by the counter, waiting on the bakers daily greeting but he never came. Already then I felt like something was wrong, worried almost. So I went to the backroom, where I saw him bake. And he baked. Hard . Aggressive. With hard, fast motions that only felt more wicked when I heard mumbling noises, realizing that he talked to himself.

It didn't make the situation much better that all around the room trays of loaves and bread were spread around him. Even on the floor, there were trays that couldn't fit on the table. I realized then that he had been baking the whole night because I had never seen these much pastries in my whole life. It should be funny, this was basically a Bakery Wonderland. But it was the whole opposite.

"Mr. Mellark..." I whispered, afraid to startle him, but also just afraid . He didn't look sane when he turned around. His eyes were dark and hair messy. I even felt a shiver run down my body when he smiled. That same smile that he gave me weeks ago. Like I was just a customer, the ones I myself gave to people by the counter. Just fake and forced. "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine, Katniss just fine." He doesn't seem fine but I don't dare to say anything so I just nodded before he turned around and kept baking.

The day goes by normally and I forget it during the morning rush. It's too much stress and there wasn't time for worries. It isn't until lunchtime that I remember Peeta because he finally comes out of his hiding place in the backroom to close for the hour they ate lunch.

It's quiet and tense. If I had a knife, I could've cut the air. I swallow when Peeta slowly walks to the door to put the sign on. Walking with almost painful and tired steps that echoed against the walls. I just followed his steps with my eyes behind the counter as I sat on my chair and. Waiting. I don't even know what I am waiting for and that bothers me the most.

"Katniss." He turns to face me and like ice running down my body, I shiver the second time today. His eyes held something... sinister. I has seen that look on his face before, like he's a hawk diving down for its prey, ready to just-

"Yes?" I say, confident in my voice.

"Are you alright?" I raise both my eyebrows, a startled noise leaving my throat.

"M-me?" I ask, pointing a finger at myself. He nods, walking casually towards me, leaning on the counter with both his hands on the edge.

"Yes, you." Peeta gives me a smile and like magic, that sinister-scary look I saw just now disappeared. I didn't answer for a long time, just gawking at Peeta, questioning my sight. Didn't he just...?

"Mr. Mellark, I'm fine." I answered back after a few seconds, almost offended. "It's you who seems... off today."

"I'm fine. Just fine."

"I don't believe you." Like a grip around my throat, I suddenly can't breathe and it's when I realized what I said. To my boss. But before my face turns into a tomato, I glances up at Peeta who sighs like he has been defeated.

"Let's talk about this somewhere else." I nod.

Peeta takes me to the living room where I had woken up from sleeping after that awful night. Unlike the kitchen, it felt cold the moment we stepped in. Dead. Hasn't been used for a long time, I noticed by the smooth layer of dust laying over the room. The flower patterned carpets didn't make it any happier, just more depressing. It felt like this room was just for show by the way the furnishings were placed so perfectly and untouched.

Peeta sits down on the couch and as I am about to do the same, he stops me. Glancing at the small space between his legs before looking up at me with a small innocent smile and when I finally understood, my eyes turned wide as balls and cheeks filled with blood because oh no I can't handle it.

I want to reject my shyness. I don't think I can deal with that much contact, but his eyes are beautiful and so is his little smile and he seems so tired today. Like he needs a hug.

So I turn around and sit between Peeta's thighs, feeling like I am about to explode from lack of air, clenching my eyes when he places his arms around my body and inhales my scent, lips pressed to my head.

"Relax." he whispers against my scalp and when I finally do, leaning against his chest and placing my hands over his resting stomach, I can feel his heartbeat against my back. It's relaxing. And it's relaxing for him too, for his shoulder stops to tense and he breathes out.

"Are you going to tell me what's wrong?" I finally asked after a few minutes, patting his fingers with my own. My olive-colored, smooth fingers against his ivory, old ones.

"Katniss, are they still talking about marriage at home?" I stop, my brain working on full mode trying to understand. This is about him. I want to be there for him, why does he change the subject? Or is the subject of me?

"Yes, they do. They keep... waiting, almost." Memories from days ago flow back in my head, my mother pleading me to think about marriage and my sisters glaring over dinner. A lump creates in my stomach, hard like a rock and as heavy too. It never seemed to end. "But I'm not going to. I'm not interested in him."

"Him?" I isn't sure if I want to give him the identity of my friend and admirer, but Peeta probably doesn't even know him.

"Gale."

"Hawthorne?" I freeze, turning my head and glaring up at him with shocked eyes.

"You know him?" I asks embarrassed, feeling stupid, and Peeta raises his eyebrow, squinting his eyes questioningly.

"He hunts with you, right? I trade with him." He looks back at me, a smirk playing on his lips that makes me nervous, turning my eyes back to our hands as the color of magenta covers my face. Of course, he was just here the other day... "Huh. So it's him."

"He's just a friend, but everyone had their stupid expectations and he thinks he has to live up to them." I mutter, cursing myself for sounding like a child. "It doesn't matter, really."

"It does." Something inside me flutters at his words, my hands gripping his as he kisses my scalp, rubbing his nose against me like a wolf. "You're mine, Katniss. Only mine." Peeta suddenly has his gorgeous, plump lips against my ear and I flinch, my breath hitching as my eyes turn wide. Goosebumps appearing on my arms. He whispers in my ear. "Do you understand?"

The way he states the words, the way he says it. It makes me uneasy, almost afraid but with a confusing twist to it. Pleasure. The kind that makes my heart race and legs clench because of the pulses sending to my most private parts like waves. It should scare me because all new, unknown feelings are. But Peeta is different. Everything is different with him. How many morals and boundaries I have broken for him and so far I love it. I loves-

A surprised moan escapes my throat when he suddenly places his hand under my chin, forcing me to look up to him from the side, and I do with big eyes and parted lips. His fingers softly pressing into my skin and eyes dark like the coal from the mines. Just like I had done just hours ago, I feared those eyes. Yet my legs clenched together once again in a desperate attempt to ease the tension and my nipples became hard.

"Do you understand?" he repeats, voice tense and dark. I swallows, eyes glancing down at his lips before nodding.

"Y-yes."

He leans down and kisses me hard, aggressively just like he has been the whole day and I can't do anything but obey his actions. Several thoughts run through my head until it turns into a fog that I can't seem to sort out. Because the fear, the pleasure, the feelings I felt was almost addictive.

I part my lips, meeting his dominating tongue with my own and he immediately does magic that makes me shiver, moan. The grip he had on my chin slowly fell down to my throat and he clenched lightly. And even if it barely hurts, it shows clearly that he was the one in control. A sign of dominance.

I'm not sure what I feel about that.

Our lips part and both breath deeply, yearning for air. I swallowed, turned on and scared, looking up at the baker who licks his lips hungry. A smirk playing on his lips and I saw the same dark eyes as this morning that I was sure I hallucinated.

"Hawthorne." he whispers, almost tasting the name on his lips.

I shiver and ignore the uneasy feeling that screams at me to run.

~

"Hey, is Madge here?" I ask when the maid of the Undersee's opens the door to the mansion the mayor and his family lives in.

The maid, an elderly Seam who's name I don't know, glares at me with disgusted eyes. I don't really care, every time I visit Madge I am always welcomed by those eyes. Even Madge herself told me not to care.

Today was Sunday and Peeta told me that he was closing this one day. He gave me the rest of the day off since he himself had business to take care of. And I really needed it. Yesterday had been odd and... Just scary. I needed some time to think.

Not really thinking. To run away. I needed fresh air, to forget and pretend that those dark, cold eyes didn't exist.

Yes. They didn't exist.

So my first priorities were to hunt, then visit Madge. I even found small, sweet strawberries in the forest that I picked for my friend.

And now, as a friend, I had to be there for her.

"No. Ms. Madge isn't home at the moment." All hope left my body.

"Oh." I sighed. "Well, can you give her this and tell her that I was here?" The maid nods and takes the box of strawberries from my hand before closing the door right in my face.

I swallowed down the guilt I had for some reason before leaving the mansion.