PEETA

Jackpot!

I was just fucking amazing!

Damn, never in my life did I think it would go this good! Sure, my plans didn't go exactly my way, but instead, it went even better.

The whole thing was to scare that Hawthorne boy away from Katniss. Who'd want to marry a girl with nasty rumors, anyway? If you aren't stupid, of course? Just a small rumor whispered straight into his mother's ear that was known for her irrational actions. And the flowers would just prove the point. Your so-called "daughter" isn't what you want? Shame, give her to me instead. I didn't give a fuck about what others thought. I had nothing to lose.

But I was really shocked when Katniss cried by the table and claimed that her family knew about them. How could that be possible? I knew that the plan could go wrong. Hazel could've just told Katniss that it was me who came the other day with false fact or Katniss could just prove them wrong and shut down the rumor with just a shrug with her shoulders. I didn't expect Katniss to cry in my arms and ask for forgiveness. That she wasn't careful enough.

It must have been a misunderstanding.

I love misunderstanding! I'd never guess that Katniss' family would be so wicked and "blackmail" her to marry Gale, as Katniss expressed it. To use the rumors for their own advantage. Maybe I'm not the only fucked up person here in District 12. And when confronting Katniss, she must have thought it was about our relationship and not the rumors, since she's totally unaware of them.

I smile, tapping away the ash from my cigarette through the window, watching the crumbles flow with the wind. Glancing over my shoulder, I see Katniss asleep on my bed. Braid in a mess and hickey on her neck.

I can't hold in a grin.

The odds really were in my favor!

I tied an apron around my waist, and Katniss did too. We had just gotten back from the court signing. She couldn't stop smiling, and it lit up her face. We decided to make a cake to celebrate and she got out the ingredients. We baked in a comfortable silence, and I could tell she was enjoying it. Together we frosted the cake, using a light white icing. I let her pick what design we would use to decorate, and she went with flowers of all kinds. Daisies, roses, tulips, and more, that we delicately iced onto the beautiful cake.

"This is nice Peeta."She said gently after a little.

"Yeah, it really is." I responded. "Ï like this, just being with you. Knowing you will always be here for me.'' She said with a smile. The look in her eyes, filled with love and happiness, made me want to look at her forever.

"Me too."I said looking back at the cake with a smile so I didn't mess up on the details.

Katniss started humming a little song, and for once, I almost felt happy.

We sat by the window after finishing the cake, just sitting there as the sun traveled across the sky, slowly getting lower casting long shadows over the unpaved ground. She laid her head on my shoulder, leaning in to me. I smiled. I liked having this moment with her, caught up in the serenity of the moment, the peacefulness. I turned to her, a smile still on my face. "Hey there kid."I said with a wink. She looked up at me faking like she was offended.

"Peeta Mellark," She said with a mischievous glint in her eyes. "Did you just call me a kid?"She said sitting up.

"Maybe I did." I said with a smirk.

"Oh I see how it is!" She said with a laugh. She stood up and went over to the counter and picked up a bowl of cake batter. It dawned on me what she was about to do and she knew it. An evil smile spread on her face, and she picked up a handful of sticky cake batter, completely ignoring the mess on her hands.

"Any final words?" She asked with a grin. "Just kidding, no second chances!" She said, throwing a handful of cake batter, and letting out a laugh as it landed in the middle of my apron.

"Oh you're gonna regret that!" I said. I grabbed the bowl out of her hands and she gasped. I picked up a bit of batter, and threw it at her and it landed right on her chin.

She laughed, and threw more at me. By the time we were finished, we looked like a mess, with cake batter all over us, in our hair and in our clothes.

We took a towel and tried to clean some of it off. I looked at her as she scrubbed at her apron,

She looked up at me as she felt me staring at her. "What?" She asked.

"Oh nothing, it's just that you have a bit of batter right..." I said, rubbing my thumb over her cheek where some cake batter was left. "There." I said, finishing as she blushed stepping closer to me.

"Well, it seems as if you also have some on your face." She said with a smile, and leaned into me. Her soft lips met mine tasting of cake. She kissed me tenderly, and pulled away, a smile on her face.

I held her tightly in my arms and we stood in the kitchen. The smell of the cake baking filled the room. It made my senses go to overdrive. Not only for the sweet cake, but for something else. Katniss.

"I think the cake is done now, Peeta." She says.

I let her go. "Probably. It does smell good." I say.

I put on the oven mits and go to open the oven. The cake has risen and smells heavenly. I set it down on the cooling rack.

"Shouldn't be long. Then we can ice it." I say.

"Okay. What should we do while we wait?" Katniss asks and sits down in her chair.

A smirk grows on my face. "Oh, I have a few ideas," I say in a low, seductive, tone.

I go closer to her and lift her chin to look at me, before capturing her lips in mine. She warps her arms around my neck and stands up. The pace of our kiss grows more frantic. She's getting better at this. She's more daring and tries to dominate me with her tongue. Yet, I still am more experienced. I take the lead and she gives into being controlled. I run my hand along the small of her back. I reach her bottom and hike her leg to wrap up around my waist. A small moan slips from her lip when I rub against her sensitive area.

"Peeta," She gasps, and throws her head back.

"I know, honey. I know," I say and trail kisses along her neck. I nibble on her jugular and her ears.

"Wait, Peeta.." She whispers.

"No second thoughts now, Kitten," I purr into her collar bone.

"No, it's not that. I..want to do something," She says.

"Already for it? Alright then. I thought it would take more than this," I say.

"No, not that. It's.. something else," She says and I feel her tense.

Something is wrong with my Katniss, I think.

I get out of my mind and stop. "What is it? Is this not what you want, Katniss?" I ask.

"No, it is. I just.. I want to do something. A tradition, in the Seam," She explains.

"Oh..Oh. Okay, of course. Anything for my Katniss." I say and hold her hand.

"Thank you, Peeta. It's.. the least I can have, since my family aren't." She says sadly. Lupus comes to her and she pats his head.

"You have me now. That's all we need," I say and take her hands in mine.

I place her hands on my chest. She looks at me with a smile. A genuine Katniss smile. A smile I have grown more and more in love with.

"Start the way, Kitten," I say and kiss her gently.

She takes her hands out of mine and goes around the kitchen. I lean back on the table and watch her with loving eyes. She grabs a loaf of bread and cuts two slices. She places them on a plate. She pulls our chairs to the fireplace in the corner. Lupus comes over to her and rests on her feet. She grabs two fire toals and places the bread on them. She looks at me with a smile. I go over and sit on my chair. She hands me one of the sticks with bread.

"What is this?" I ask.

"A toasting. It's a Seam thing I think. It's just a marriage starter. To toast to the new and to share it with the new couple. We toast the bread, and we share it with each other. I have yours, and you have mine. If that makes sense." She explains nervously.

"It sounds perfect," I say.

We toast our bread slowly together. The atmosphere is soft, yet intense. I have never seen this side of Katniss. It makes me want to take Katniss ever more. To share this moment with her will be better than anything I could dream. Anything in my life. I would die for this girl. I will die for this girl. She's the love of my life. And I will do anything for her. The bread turns dark and we pull it out of the fire and set them on the ledge of the fireplace to cool. Once they cool, Katniss takes mine in her hand, and I take hers. We feed each other the bread. The crunch of the crust and the nuts in the bread are an amazing flavor.

Once we finish our foreheads rest on each other.

"I think I'm ready for our night now," She whispers.