Baby of Panem

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"I want to talk about names... I have some I like but I know you probably have your own picked out. I want to know."

"Peeta, we still have a while to think about this. I don't think we need to discuss it right now."

"Katniss, we might not have a while. We go into the arena in just a couple of weeks and from there, anything could happen to me." He doesn't know how wrong he is as he says this. Nothing is going to happen to him, but I decide to play along anyway.

"Okay... if it's a girl, Rue. Rue Primrose Mellark." Peeta laughs lightheartedly. I look at him trying to figure out if he hates the name, "What?"

"Nothing. I just figured that Rue would be included somehow... and I didn't know if you'd want to use my last name."

"Yes. I want our baby to have your last name."

"Have you thought about a name for a boy?" I bite down on my lip; I have thought about this name a lot. But I know Peeta won't be happy with it. I want to name our baby after people that are special to us... to me.

Cinna Gale Mellark" I glance down, not meeting Peeta's eyes, already knowing he won't approve this name.

"No. We are not naming our baby after him."

"Okay."

"The fact that you even would consider naming MY son after him, after everything he has done, after everything you've done.." Peeta stands up, dressing quickly and shaking his head, "Do you want everyone in Panem to think this baby isn't mine? Do you want everyone to think you got pregnant with Gale? Snow to think you got pregnant with Gale? Your cousin as far as they know?! Because that will do it. Name the baby after Gale, name MY SON after Gale. My answer is no. I will NOT name my son after him." He walks toward the door.

"Peeta, where are you going? I'm sorry, I knew you wouldn't like the name."

"For a walk and if you knew that, you shouldn't have suggested it." With that he walks out the door, shutting it harder than necessary.

I get out of the bed and pull my clothes on, walking to the balcony, overlooking the rest of the capital. The sky is light brightly with all the party lights from the street below, all the capital citizens celebrating the start of what the refer to as festivities for the Hunger Games. I wish I could be back home in twelve, where I could see the stars outside. I cradle my stomach, this isn't a world I want my baby to know, but this is the world I am bringing them into. I can only hope after these games, after I die, that this baby can live. That Snow will leave this baby and Peeta alone if I'm no longer attached to them. I feel a mild pain in my stomach, I know my baby doesn't like the idea anymore than I do. I assume the baby is kicking me in rejection to my ideas, just like their daddy. I turn around to head back to bed, feeling better after getting some fresh air, but Peeta is standing at the doorway.

"I'm sorry. I was just leaving."

"No. You need to hear me out for once Katniss." I don't respond to him, instead I just stand back by the railing. He walks over to me and stands beside me, neither of us looking at each other.

"Katniss, you know that I love you. I have loved you ever since school when you sang the entire valley song in class. As much as you might have thought I regretted it, I never regretted throwing that bread to you, even though my mom put me through hell for it. When they called my name last year, the only thing I could think of is how I never got to tell you how I felt, and how I could help you get home. Ever since that day, my every thought has been how to keep you safe, and for the last few months, how to keep our baby safe. I was so happy when you decided to keep the baby and that night on the train, it was one of the best nights of my life. I'm sorry that I reacted the way I did to the name, but I don't want his name to be associated with our baby. He has been associated with your life as long as I have known you and I just want something that is completely mine, I want our baby to be completely mine. As selfish as it sounds, I'm tired of sharing you Katniss. I love you, I love our baby, and I want us to be a family."