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She nodded, staring up at the dark ceiling.

"I have no doubt."

Tonight she had a feeling sleep would be a long time coming. At least, until Peeta drifted off, she would have some one to spend the hours with.

The arm around her shoulders suddenly held on a little tighter, almost afraid of letting loose because it would mean he'd give in to the comfortable bed and warmth of her body, to his tired mind. He didn't want to fall asleep yet. Not when he could stay in this bubble with her a little longer.

"So Gale was here too..." he brought up a little awkwardly, though it hadn't been his intention to sound that stiff. "I'm glad he's all right."

Gale.

Letting go and being with Peeta, while they were going into the Quarter Quell had been easy. She would never see Gale again. No choice had to be made, because there was no choice.

Now there was, again. And once again, things had shifted, deeply, and change everything between her and Peeta. Which changed things between her Gale.

She knew his question had more under it, but she wasn't sure what to say to that. So she ignored it.

"Yeah. I was glad he was there too. So it wasn't just us and Haymitch."

It was probably one of the most awkward times he could have brought him up but he wanted to fill the silence with something... anything at all, even the hard things they failed to discuss very well. He knew Katniss hadn't appreciated what he'd pulled with the locket in the arena but he still genuinely believed if he didn't make it, Gale was someone she should and would rely on. They all needed to just survive in this world, didn't they?

"He looked like he wanted to talk to you but we were kinda in a rush."

"There's a lot to say..."

She meant about 12, the fire, the Games...all the world around them. But she realized, as soon as it was out of her mouth, that there was more to it then that. The thing that tied the three of them together.

"Yeah, I can imagine."

And he knew. This whole situation was more than any of them bargained for and he was sure he and Katniss standing in front of District 12 at their first reaping never knew they would one day be in the center of political warfare. Hell, Peeta had not even expected to be alive past the first day or two. But here they were...

"Whatever happens I hope you know I've never regretted a single second."

"There might be a few I regret."

She twisted to look up into his face again, smiling. There were deeper things there, but none she want to pick at tonight.

"But most of them...I think we managed better than expected."

He met her gaze with a small smile of his own, not looking away. If he could have changed the way things went, how they met... sure, he probably would have chosen a better scenario with less... casualties. But considering what they've been through, the mere fact that they are still alive and together is beyond amazing.

"We've survived two Games together, Katniss... I'd definitely call that better than expected."

It was a pretty inarguable point. They're were survive two of the same Hunger Games together. Back to back.

"It's strange that...we went into the games barely knowing each other."

Well. She barely knew him.

He had this big urge to lean in and kiss her at that, his emotions still in a silent whirlwind inside, but he wasn't sure she'd find that appropriate when they were like this. When the cameras were on them at all times it was different. Rejecting him meant killing the Capitol's image of their love. In here they were just Peeta and Katniss, not star-crossed lovers.

But he still wanted to.

"I guess we had good chemistry?" He half-teased yet also believed, despite how much they had butted heads before the Quarter Quell.

She let out another snort of laughter. "You can say that again."

Enough good chemistry to save them in a situation they shouldn't have lived through. And it must have been something...Peeta's feelings, the truth in how he was...couldn't have been enough, alone, to overcome her awkward attempts as playing in love.

But there must have been something they saw, to move a whole nation. She looked up, studying his face, trying to see him, them, without everything she knew.

When she looked up again he felt his heart rate quicken, idly wondering if she could feel it since her head was practically leaning into his chest. He locked gazes with her despite the dark, able to see her eyes.

Why was this so much easier when they were fighting for their lives and covered in blood and dirt?

"I er..." His fingers started to fiddle with the ends of her hair, finding comfort in it. "So let's say hypothetically I wanted to kiss you..."

Real smooth.

Her eyes went wide, not sure what to say. Because it was like her brain went to a screeching halt right then.

"Uhhh..."

What if he did? It wasn't like this would be their first kiss. Her mind went back to the kisses on the beach, and it wasn't a bad place to go.

And this was their room. And no one was here. This was their place.

But something was still resisting, illogically. Maybe not illogically. There were other factors.

And all of this lead to her just staring up at him wide eyed.

... Crap. What kind of guy asks something like that?

His heart was still racing but for more than just nerves now, if the flush in his face had anything to say. This was Katniss after all. He didn't want to screw up their friendship by making silly mistakes with his feelings, but at the same time he wanted her to know how he felt. He didn't want to ignore that.

This was so different though. They'd never really done this.

"Sorry... that was really dumb to ask, wasn't it?"

Something about his apology got her brain out of the loop of thoughts and back in the moment.

The moment where he was waiting. For her.

Their first kiss that was not on film, that was...100% their choice, because they wanted to, with no string attached. No death waiting the next day, no political agenda.

Something about that might her feel so light, so giddy. And before her mind could pick it apart, she pushed herself up, pressing her lips to his.

It was like that moment in the cave almost when she first kissed him, when despite knowing it was for the people watching, he had still felt that spark and that warmth that was special just for them. It was the same here in their room underground with the beds pushed together and responsibilities too ominous to avoid waiting for them at the other side of the closed doors.

A simple kiss but one that made him feel happiest that he had all day. All month. All year.

Peeta found it so easy to just relax and kiss her back, one hand that was resting on her back squeezing gently.

Luckily all the fake kissing had gotten Katniss prepared for the real kissing, and she knew where to put her hands, how to tilt her head. It made her feel that warmth flood into her belly. And this time without the feeling of anyone else watching them.

She shifted, moving her body closer to him, wanting a less awkward position. He felt warm and solid under her as she leaned into him, pressing her hands into the pillow at the side of his head.

The privacy made this a lot more intimate and he was glad they were able to relax enough with each other... that Katniss was okay enough to do this with him. He was always unsure of how far her own feelings traveled but this right here made things a lot clearer.

His arms accommodated for her when she moved, loosening a bit before they found their comfortable spots around her middle again. His palms pressed gently against her lower back and spine, lips moving slowly against hers but with that same spark he couldn't ignore.

This was...nice. Nicer than she expected. Better than any of the other kisses, and up until now the kisses on the beach had been what she thought would be the pinnacle of kissing.

She made a small sound as his hands moved over the small of her back, pressing into them.

The longer they kissed like this, the quicker he realized it was indeed nice. A bit too... nice.

And honestly, at the end of the day, stripped from the Hunger Games and the politics and titles of tributes, they were teenagers. And he was a teenage boy kissing the girl he loved. Feelings... happened.

Though he was doing his best to put those thoughts at ease to enjoy this because he had meant for this to be innocent and wanted to keep it that way.

Luckily for him, Katniss wasn't even thinking about that sort of thing. Although she knew the bare basics of the birds and the bees (her mother was a healer, after all and she had been present for far too many births) the leap between those words and this wasn't being made in her mind.

Even the sensations going up her spine, pooling in her belly just left her wanting...more. But she wasn't really sure what more she wanted.

So she kept kissing him.

He was content with kissing. As long as it was with Katniss and they were in their bubble of happiness in this makeshift bed. He'd will those thoughts away the best he could because... because he didn't want to stop and because she felt so nice and warm just from this and he was happy with that.

One of his hands began to move up though, sliding away from her back so he could gently rest it on the side of her neck, his thumb brushing against the soft line of her jaw.

Leaning into his strong, rough hands, she let out a soft sigh. Hands that baked and protected her. Held her through long nights full of nightmares. Painted, and even killed. Not as easily as her, but he had.

She let out another sigh, pressing their lips together again, not knowing any time she'd felt more...at peace.

His thumb continued to brush lovingly against the soft skin of her jaw, enjoying the closeness of being able to touch like this... and kiss and not feel like it was an obligation. This was definitely no act. Though it didn't keep him from having so many more questions...

Peeta couldn't help but smile slightly at her sighing, the corners of his lips twitching up without his control. Sue him, he was happy...

He wouldn't let it ruin the kiss, even when he chuckled a bit, meeting her lips softly with his own each time despite the stupid grin.

Wait, was he laughing at her?

She was too mellow, and warm and heavy to really feel any sort of anger. But she also wasn't going to let Peeta get away with laughing at her.

However, she also wasn't going to pull away from this right now. So without thinking too much about it, she opened her mouth, catching his bottom lip in her teeth in a gentle nip.

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I just kissed a pillow to figure out this angle.

LOL research for the rp is necessary :D

Luckily no one saw me!

fufufu your secret is safe with me. and... whoever reads this.

boner.

boner...

Now for Katniss's hand fetish

we can work with that cough

>3