I'm Already There

Prolouge

Katniss

I'm sitting in my room, packing for college when I get a text from my fiancé.

Peeta🍞:
Hey, meet me at the meadow. I need to talk to you.

I raise my eyebrow at that. He usually isn't so formal and he calls more than he texts. But I just shrug as I put the last of my books in their box and quickly text him back.

Katniss🌿:
Okay. I'll be right there.

I grab my phone and my hoodie with my wallet and car keys and walk out of my house. Prim stops me on the front porch as I pass.

"Where are you off to?" she asks. I look at her, standing on the porch, her blonde hair in two long braids that hang over her shoulders and her pale blue eyes curious. At fifteen, the boys are already on her tail but she puts them in their place quick enough.

"Peeta asked me to meet him in the meadow," I reply. "I shouldn't be too long. I'll call if I will though." She nods and smiles.

"Tell him I say hi!" she calls after me as I walk of the porch. I wave goodbye to her and open the door to my dark green Jeep Grand Cherokee. I start it up and begin driving back to the little hollow that Peeta and I call the meadow. It's a quiet little valley covered in grasses and wildflowers. It was the place we first met, where we first started dating, where we had our first kiss. And the night after graduation, he asked me to marry him there.

I never saw my life happening that way. Engaged at just barely eighteen. I never saw myself getting married period. But that was before I met Peeta. He changed my life. So now, in the matter of a year or more, we plan on getting married here.

As I stop on the edge of the meadow, his bright orange Dodge Challenger pulls up beside me. God do I love that car. I love it nearly as much as its driver. It's a classic 1987 with a scoop on the hood. If I had the money his family does, I'd take the same thing in dark green. I climb out of my Jeep and walk over to Peeta as he comes out.

"Hi," I say and he pulls me close to him, making the slight worry in my stomach skyrocket. I return his embrace but find it hard to control my fears. "What's wrong?" Peeta loosens his grip on me and I can see an uneasiness in his almost unnaturally blue eyes.

"We need to talk Sweetie," he says as he leads me over to stand in front of his car. We sit on the hood and Peeta pulls a folded up envelope out of his pocket. He carefully opens it and hands the letter in it to me. Before I can actually get a hold of it, he pulls it back away. "Please promise you won't get too mad about this." I look at him questioningly.

"Why would I get mad?" I say as I take it from him. He looks very solon so I try to lighten the mood. "What? Is it a paternity test or something?" I let out a little laugh but he doesn't. Instead, he just looks at the ground.

"No," he says. "But please, don't get mad at me." I open the envelope and and official looking letter falls out. I unfold it and read:

Dear Mr. Mellark,

It is our duty to inform you that you have been selected to start your training for the U.S. Marine Corp. on August 27, 2015. Your service is greatly needed and we are happy to know that you have decided to join the Marines. Your application was phenomenal and we will be happy to aid in your education once your service is complete.

We look forward to working with you, Private Mellark.

Sincerely,

The United States Department of Defense

I turn to look at Peeta and I feel a tear run down my cheek.

"What is this?" I ask him.

"I'm in the Marines," he says.

"And you didn't think it would have been nice to tell me before you got the letter?!" I say standing up. I feel the tears welling up in my eyes and Peeta stands up and takes my shoulders in his hands.

"I didn't want to worry you until it was a done deal," he says. "This is something I just felt I had to do."

"But why?" I ask Peeta as I hand him back the recruiting letter. "I thought we were going to get married and start a family?" Peeta gently takes my hand in his and kisses my knuckles.

"And we will," he says. "As soon as I come home, we'll start our family."

"But it's entirely possible for you to not come home," I say. "I couldn't handle that Peeta. How am I supposed to live my life without you in it?"

"We can write Katniss," he says. "We'll never really be apart. And I won't be on the front lines. I'll be very careful. I'll be home before we know it."

"But how can I say goodbye to you months at a time?" I say.

"You'll have school and I'll try to call you almost every night," he says. "You'll be fine." He wraps his arms around me and we share a gentle, passionate kiss. When it ends, he pulls me close and I lay my head on his shoulder and feel him gently rub my back as I cry.

How am I meant to tell him he's going be a dad in seven months when he's leaving in less than three weeks?