A Time For Love

chapter 16

We went back to Mama's after we dropped the towels off. We it's the day after, and all of us decided to go to the mall. We're here now, and Peeta looks super pissed. Everyone has noticed it.

"Honey, why are you-"

He turns around, and he punches some guy that's been walking behind us right in the face so hard that he falls down.

Rye, Graham, and Finnick grab Peeta and pull him by the shirt away from the guy. We all go over there and Peeta shoves their grip off of him. He's glaring at the guy getting off the ground.

"What the hell was that?" Mr. Mellark snaps at his son.

"He was staring at Katniss's ass!" He snaps back. "First of all, she's my fucking girlfriend, and second, she's not a fucking toy! It's not okay for him to be looking at her like that. Nobody can look at her like that but me, and that's only if she says it's okay!"

"Boy, you just earned my utmost approval." Daddy says.

"But that doesn't mean you punch him!" Mr. Mellark says.

"It does when it comes to Katniss." Peeta says. He's really fed up right now.

When I get a good look at the guy, I realize I know him.

I look away quickly. He turns around and walks off.

Peeta doesn't miss the little exchange.

"Do you know him?" He asks, outraged. I let out a long breath.

"He's my ex boyfriend." I mumble.

Peeta looks back at the guy. "He's that Gale dude? The one that was trying to get more from you than you wanted?" I nod, and he gets even angrier. "God, that douche!"

I let out an long breath. "Just calm down, okay? It's not like he copped a feel!"

He let's out a long breath. "He's still standing there staring at you!" He says.

I turn around and walk over to Gale. "Could you stop fucking staring at me? Your pissing my boyfriend off and your about two seconds away from getting your ass beat." He sighs.

"I still like you." He says.

"Well I love him." I point at Peeta. "So it's never going to happen." He sighs.

"Fine." He turns around and walks off. I go back to Peeta.

"There, he's gone."

"What's you say?" He asks. He'll calm down once he knows.

"I told him to stop icing staring at me because it's phasing you off and that he's about two seconds from getting his ass beat. He said he still liked me and I told him that I love you so it'll never happen and he said fine and left." He's quiet, his arms crossed. "Will you please calm down now?" I ask impatiently. He shifts from foot to foot.

"Fine." He grumbles.

"You're not calm." I say. I stand there with my arms crossed until I know he's calm. "Good. Let's go." I say, and I jump on his back. "Walk." He snickers and takes off running. I tighten my grip on him, and he sprints over the three stairs. I gasp, and he puts me down and pulls me in front of him and kisses me.

"I love you." He mumbles.

"I love you too." I hug him, and everyone catches up with us. I walk in front of him, and he grabs my hips and lifts me up onto his shoulders. "You better not drop me!" I say, and he laughs.

"I'm not gonna drop you." He says.

We walk around like that for a while, and then my stomach growls.

Peeta hears it, and not thinking, bends his head back to look at me, and pushes me right off of him.

Luckily, Finn is behind us, and he catches me before I can crack my head open.

"I'm sorry!" Peeta says once Finn sets me down. "Oh honey, I'm so sorry."

"It's okay." I say, and I take his hand and walk next to him.

Prim gets a phone call, and she's walking with Peeta's little sister because they're friends.

"Hello?" she's quiet for a moment. "I don't know if I can." She says. "because I don't have a ride." She sighs. "I'll ask." She holds the phone away from her. "Mama can I go out to dinner with Cole?" she asks.

"Fine, but I'm not driving you." Mama says.

"Daddy-"

"I'm not driving." He says. She sighs. "Well I can't go without a ride! If I had my license-"

"If you'd raise your grades, you would!" Mama says.

"Katniss?" Prim asks. "Can you drive me to Applebees?"

"I don't want to." I say.

"Please?" she begs. "I'll pay you."

I hesitate. "Fine. You don't have to pay. Obviously if you want to go so bad your willing to pay I'll drive you."

"Thanks." She says, and goes back talking to Cole.

She hangs me up and makes me take her home so she can get ready, and then I drive her to restaurant, and then I go back to the house and call Mama and tell her I'm making dinner, and then I make the whole dinner, and it's done right as they walk in the door.

We all eat, and then I go and pick up Prim, who is clearly in a great mood. She goes right up to her room and shuts the door. Everyone is talking about how Thanksgiving is tomorrow and they're going black Friday shopping. Peeta and I sit on the floor.

"Do you love me?" Peeta whispers.

"Yes." I say.

"How much?" he whispers.

"So much that'll never be able to put it into words." I get up on my knees and fall on top of him so he lays back. The family sees, and they just smile. They don't care. They're very happy for us. "Why?" I whisper.

He grabs my ass and shifts me, and then sits up. "Because." He whispers, pulling my flesh against him. "Finnick really likes Annie, and Annie really likes him, and I know you love Annie...and Finnick wants to move out of Washington and I'm going with him."

I slide out of his lap. "You're moving?" I ask loudly.

He pulls me back into his lap. "Yes, listen-"

"Where?" I'm not mad, I'm upset.

"Alexandria, South Dakota." He says.

"When?" I snap.

"Two weeks." He says, and I start crying. "Oh honey," he sighs. "You don't understand." Finnick is watching closely, and he's whispering to Annie, who looks super happy and is nodding like crazy. He's leaving. "Baby, I want you and Annie to come."

"You do?" I mumble, and he wipes my tears away, nodding.

"Yes. Did you really think I'd move away and leave you behind?" I shrug. "And we're getting a farm." He says, and smiles when my eyes light up. "With horses and cows and chickens, and you an Annie will get to teach us dumbass how it's done." He pauses. "Do you want to come?"

I start nodding, and he smiles.

I hug him.

I'm excited.

.....a.....

We're going Black Friday shopping now for stuff for the house. After arguing about where to go for a while, we take my truck and go to a hardware store and get a ton of wood and hammers and nails and a drill and a ton other stuff we'll need to build the chicken coop. We get iron netting, and then we go to Kane's furniture, and we argue about furniture, and then we get a couch and a recliner, a giant one, and then three more, because it's cheap.

"There." I say, panting as Annie and I drop the couch onto the bed of my truck. The boys got the recliners.

We get a new TV from best buy, and then we get a tarp and cover the bed of my truck and we head back to Mama's. It's five in the morning, and I fall asleep on the couch.