"Good morning, Katniss." Peeta sweetly whispers in my ear, kissing my cheek lightly. When I don't wake right away, I feel the covers lift a bit and Peeta inch closer to me. I ignore it all and try and get back to sleep. He wakes up way too early in the morning, so it can't possibly be that late into the morning, and I didn't sleep well last night.
Peeta has managed to wake me just enough and move me to the couch downstairs every morning before leaving home. Yesterday morning when he lifted me into his arms, my belly felt heavier than normal. All day long I gazed at my bump to see if it had grown at all, but I couldn't tell. When Peeta got home that afternoon, I had him study my bump to see if he could find a change.
We never settled whether or not my stomach had in fact grown, but I felt so uncomfortable all day and it only got worse at night. It took me forever to get into a position comfortable enough to fall asleep and once it finally happened I had to pee.
Peeta snuggles his face in the crook of my neck, resting his chin on my shoulder. He places a hand on my belly and begins to rub circles on my still teeny bump.
"What time is it?" I groan.
"Time to wake up sleepyhead," Peeta says warmly.
I whine, "Are you sure? I feel like I fell asleep only minutes ago."
"Yes, I'm sure," Peeta laughs, kissing my shoulder. I groan. "You alright? I could feel you tossing and turning all night."
"Your child is getting bigger." I state, annoyed.
I can feel the air blow on my neck from Peeta's smile.
"You make that sound like a bad thing," he says.
"Little bug is getting heavy," I complain.
Peeta continues to stroke my stomach and it helps soothe me back to a sleepy state.
"Kat," Peeta whispers. "You can't go back to sleep."
"How come?" I fuss.
"Did you forget?"
I just lay there silently because I did, in fact, forget.
"Your house call?" Peeta quizzes me, but I still don't respond. "Dr. Roman is stopping by today... to possibly take you off bed rest."
Oh yeah. She called the other day and asked if I would have a problem with her coming here to check on everything versus having me spend more time on my feet, just in case I wasn't ready to be up and moving again.
"Can't she just exam me while I sleep?" I grumble.
"I'm afraid not," Peeta says before he kisses my neck.
I roll over onto my back and gaze up into Peeta's eyes. With each passing day my hormones get more and more intense, making my want for him grow even more. His tiny tokens of affection only add to that.
"What?" he chuckles, detecting that my mind is elsewhere.
"Nothin'," I smile.
"Are you ready for breakfast?"
I nod, biting my lower lip.
Peeta pecks my lips and scoots away from me, inching his way out of bed. He walks out of the room for a brief second and returns with a breakfast tray before I even get the chance to get up and follow him.
"Breakfast in bed for the woman of my dreams," he says, walking around the bed.
I move myself into a sitting position so Peeta can place the tray across my lap.
"Everything looks delicious," I say, starring at the food in front of me.
"I made you strawberry stuffed french toast with a cream cheese syrup glaze, vanilla yogurt, a cut up banana, and a glass of milk," he informs me, sitting next to me on the edge of the bed.
"Why do I smell bacon?"
"I made myself some bacon and eggs."
"Ew," I say, sticking out my tongue and making a face. The last time Peeta made bacon and eggs, which was a few days ago, I couldn't handle the smell and I threw up. Just the thought of them and the hint of the bacon aroma still in the air is making me nauseous.
"I'm sorry," he apologizes. "I made myself breakfast awhile ago, hoping the smell would disperse before you woke up."
"It's ok, it's not your fault," I reach over and place my hand on his cheek, stroking it with my thumb. "Thank you for breakfast."
"I love you," He grins and lightly kisses my lips again.
"I love you more."
"Not possible," he beams. "I'm going to go clean the kitchen. Enjoy your breakfast and I'll come get your tray when you're done."
"How did I get so lucky?"
"I ask myself the same question everyday."
And with that I'm left to eat my meal alone.
...
*Ding Dong*
"Peeta," I yell. "Doorbell!"
"I heard," he shouts from the bathroom connected to our room.
Seconds later, the door flies open and Peeta storms out of the bathroom and rushes downstairs. His footsteps are louder than usual as his legs carry him as fast as they allow him to go.
I hear a few mumbled greetings and the front door close.
"She's upstairs," I catch him say before hearing them ascend up the stairs. "It's the door at the end of the hall, right across from the top of the stairs.
It isn't long before Dr. Roman enters the room with Peeta following in tow.
"Good afternoon, Katniss," she greets. "How are you feeling?"
"Uncomfortable," I complain. "Tired."
"Already?" Dr. Roman asks, a little surprised.
I nod, "My belly feels really heavy."
"You're a skinny girl, so I guess that shouldn't surprise me," she cracks a small smile. "And I'm guessing that's what's making you tired. Still can't get comfortable enough to sleep?"
"Yeah," I frown.
"Can I interest you in a cup of tea?" Peeta inquires Dr. Roman.
"Oh, you don't have to go through all that trouble," she says.
"It's no problem," Peeta insists. "I was going to make myself some anyway."
"Well in that case I'll take one."
"Sugar?"
"I'll have two lumps. Thank you."
"Katniss?" Peeta asks.
"Maybe later," I decline.
Peeta nods and exits the room, leaving Dr. Roman and I to our exam.
"So you're 14 weeks today," Dr. Roman smiles. "That means that baby Mellark is the size of your clenched fist, their hair is growing, and since the last time I've seen you their vocal cords, intestines, and the roof of their mouth have fully developed."
I take my hand off my belly, which I've noticed has been subconsciously going there very often lately, and make a fist to get an idea of how big the baby is.
"It's so weird to think there's something that size inside of me, and in five and a half months that something is going to be coming out of me a human being," I say in disbelief.
"It's weird but magical, isn't it?"
"Yeah." I say, letting out a sigh.
"I've had a lot of mom's who've had trouble grasping the reality of it."
"It's just hard to imagine, especially since this is something I never wanted or dreamed I'd be doing."
"I didn't know that... I would've talked to you about your options, Katniss. You—"
"No, no," I interrupt. "I want this baby. I do. When I was younger I never wanted children. That's why it took Peeta and I so long to agree to have them, he wanted them and I didn't. After ten years of him begging and pleading, I decided we would try for him. I wanted to make him happy, and in the end... it's made me really happy too."
"Good," Dr Roman smiles. "Besides tired and heavy, how have you been feeling?"
"Pretty good," I say. "I haven't had morning sickness since I've been in the hospital. Although I've started having some heartburn, but Peeta is cooking meals to help suppress it. If I get a decent night's rest, I have more energy during the day. My boobs have exploded, which is slightly painful. Other than all of that I feel fine."
"And you've been staying off your feet?"
"Yep."
She gives me a side-eye glare. "Be honest."
"I am! I've only gotten up to get lunch while Peeta is at work and to use the restroom. I haven't even taken showers. Just baths."
"Wonderful," Dr. Roman cheers. "How about your stress? Have you been able to manage it and keep it low?"
I nod, looking down so she can't see my eyes. I don't want her to be disappointed that I couldn't follow all of the rules.
"Peeta and I got into a fight the morning after I was discharged."
"Katniss, that's not good for your stress."
"That's not all," I sigh. "When we were making up, we got carried away and almost had sex, but we stopped before it could go anywhere. Everything has gone well since."
"Well, I'm glad you didn't let it go too far. I wasn't trying to prevent you from... scratching the itch if you will. Just wanted to look out for your best interest."
"I know," I say.
"Well, if everything checks out today... you'll be able to continue on as if none of this happened," Dr. Roman smiles. "Are you ready to get your exam done?"
"Yeah, will you shut the door? I don't think Peeta would want to walk in at that moment."
Dr. Roman laughs, "You remember what to do?"
Unfortunately, yes," I frown and adjust the way I'm sitting to accommodate Dr. Roman for the examination.
"You're going to feel a slight amount of pressure," she warns.
After a minute of her poking and prodding, she removes her fingers and pats my knee. She gets up from her spot at the foot of the bed and removes the gloves she put on before beginning.
"Is this the bathroom?" she asks, pointing to what is in fact the bathroom door.
"Yeah, you can use it if you need," I say.
Dr. Roman nods and makes her way inside the room. I hear the sink start running, which means she's probably washing her hands. A quick moment later, she returns to my bedside. About that same time, Peeta knocks on the door.
"Is it safe to come in?" his voice is muffled.
"You can come in," Dr. Roman says kind of loudly.
Peeta turns the door handle and walks in carrying a cup of tea.
"Tea, two lumps of sugar," Peeta smiles, handing her the glass.
"Thank you," Dr. Romans accepts the tea and takes a sip. "Mhmm, it's lovely."
"Peeta makes the best cup of tea," I brag, making Peeta blush.
Snickering, Dr. Roman takes another sip of her tea before setting it on the dresser in front of the bed.
"So," Peeta changes the subject. "Have you looked at anything yet?"
"We just finished the internal exam and so far everything looks splendid. I have a feeling your small amount of time on bed rest did what it was supposed to, despite the challenges you faced your first morning home." Dr. Roman says.
"Come sit with me," I beg Peeta and he does.
"I think I might have something that'll help you get comfy at night to sleep. Do you have any spare pillows that you don't use while you sleep?" Dr. Roman asks.
"All the ones in the spare bedrooms," Peeta answers.
"What position do you sleep in?" she asks, turning her attention back to me.
"On my side usually."
"Perfect, this will work out great then," She says. "Take two of those spare pillows and I'm going to have you place them around you while you sleep. One of them needs to go between your knees. The second, can go either underneath your stomach or your back. Whichever you prefer or find more comfortable."
"Ok," I say. "That doesn't sound terrible, I'll give it a try."
"Lovely," Dr. Roman says. "I brought a couple of portable machines to look at baby, shall we?"
"First I want to check the fetal heart rate before we do anything else," Dr. Roman says, searching through her bag. She pulls out what looks like a smaller version of a doppler and a small bottle of the ultrasound gel.
"Katniss, go ahead and lift up your shirt," she adds.
I'm leaning on a pile of pillows Peeta transformed into something like a chair. I roll up my shirt so it's just below my bust. Peeta takes a sip of his tea and quickly rubs his hand on my belly. While he's getting his quick fix, I roll the waist of my sweatpants down a bit as well to allow more room for Dr. Roman to roam the wand around when she gets the ultrasound.
"I know you already know, but this is going to be a little chilly," Dr. Roman says.
Peeta removes his hand and Dr. Roman squirts the gel on my stomach. She places the wand on my stomach, griping onto the other part of the machine. Her eyes are fixated on the miniature square screen, studying whatever numbers are flashing. The familiar sound of whooshing fills the room as our baby's heartbeat plays through the little speaker on the portable machine.
"158 bpm, beautiful," Dr. Roman beams. "Only a few beats higher than when you were in the hospital, but hey. Stronger is stronger. We'll do an ultrasound next. The screen is very small, but if you would like to see the picture, I'll be happy to show you." Dr. Roman switches the machines and begins the ultrasound. "This is more for fun, I don't really need to look at the baby, but I figured you guys would want to," she smiles.
"You know," Peeta starts, looking at me. "Last time I said I was going to miss seeing the baby on the machine, but after you pointing out that we'll get to see the baby all the time after it's born, all I want is the baby to be here with us."
"I'm not surprised," I say.
"What do you mean by that?" Peeta asks.
"Peeta, you've wanted this baby for ten years. Ten years. So it's not shocking that you want this baby here right now."
Dr. Roman starts laughing, resulting in Peeta and I's heads turning in her direction.
"What's so funny?" I ask.
"The baby squirms every time Peeta speaks."
"Really?" he asks, happily.
"Say something," I insist, hoping it will get the baby to move in response.
"Like what?" he asks.
I think for a minute. "Tell them the story of the first time you saw me," I grin.
"You hate that story," Peeta laughs.
"It might not be my favorite, but I haven't heard it in so long," I practically beg.
"Alright," he agrees.
Dr. Roman turns the mini monitor toward us and Peeta begins telling the story of the first time he saw me.
"Well little bug, your mama and I were five years old and it was our first day of school. Before walking in, my father, your grandpa, pointed out your mommy to me. She was in a dress, which I now know she doesn't enjoy at all, and two little braids," Peeta says and the baby definitely moves around. "Now she just wears one. In fact, she's wearing one right now. It's kind of her signature look and I bet if you're a little girl, you'll want to wear one just like she does."
"Keep going," I quietly command.
"In class, our teacher asked if anyone knew the valley song. Your mama's hand shot up into the air and the teacher called on her and asked if she would like to sing it for everyone. The moment she opened her mouth and began to sing, was the moment I fell in love."
"That's such a cute story," Dr. Roman smiles.
"I've been hooked ever since that day," Peeta says.
I lean over and give Peeta a kiss. "I love you."
"I love you too," he says.
Dr. Roman puts away the portable machine before grabbing a paper cloth and cleaning off the remaining gel from my stomach. She gets off her spot at the edge of the bed and walks into the bathroom, I'm guessing to throw away the cloth used to wipe off the gel.
"So would you say everything is how it should be? You know, enough for Katniss to get off bed rest?" Peeta inquires when she returns.
"I would say so, yes," Dr. Roman answers, packing up the rest of her belongings. "The fetal heartbeat is strong, and Katniss' cervix isn't dilated at all. Plus the baby looks really good. I still want you taking it easy and keeping your stress level down," Dr. Roman adds, tossing the bag over her shoulder. "But I don't see why you going back to your normal daily routine would be a bad thing."
"I'm cleared?" I ask, practically jumping for joy.
"You're cleared," Dr. Roman smiles.
"Even for..." I ask, raising my eyebrows.
"Even for that," she says, with a giggle.
"I've be waiting to do this," I say, swinging my legs over the side of the bed and pushing myself into a standing position. I let out a sigh, "This feels so nice."
"Your legs still work," Peeta jokes, chuckling.
"Shut up," I lightly laugh. "Let me walk you to the door."
"Already enjoying your new found freedom?" Dr. Roman asks.
"I don't think normal people would complain about having to spend two weeks in bed, but it's just not realistic for me," I say, leading Dr. Roman downstairs.
"I understand," Dr. Roman says. "I'm still actually shocked you listened to me. You know given your... let's just say history... I had a feeling you wouldn't."
"I'm still not exactly sure how I feel about this baby yet, but I do know that if I lost it, Peeta would want to try again and I would be too heartbroken and devastated that I wouldn't want to go through it all again, even if everything did work out ok the second time around."
"So I'm guessing that means no baby number two?" Dr. Roman asks, stopping at the front door.
"Probably not," I say. "The rest of this pregnancy would have to go absolutely swimmingly without any more complications for me to even consider another one."
"I'm stunned she still even agreed to this one," Peeta pipes in, wrapping his arms around my waist and pulling my by his side.
"It's only because I love you so much," I say, leaning in to kiss him.
After we pull away I walk over to the front door and grab the handle. I pull the door open and hold it so Dr. Roman can leave.
"Thank you for coming to the house," I say.
"It's no problem," she smiles. "It was merely a safety precaution."
"Well we appreciate it," Peeta says. "Not to mention it was better to be safe than sorry."
"You're right about that," Dr. Roman says. "You guys take care."
She steps out of the house and heads down the stairs from our front porch. I'm about to close the door when Dr. Roman whips around to look back at us.
"Oh," she says, stopping in her tracks. "I don't see you for another six weeks, but you know you can get ahold of me at any time. Don't hesitate to call me for any reason."
"I will," I nod.
"And in that six weeks you need to finalize your decision about whether or not you want to find out the gender of your baby."
"Ok," I say, looking at Peeta.
"We'll make sure to have a decision by then," Peeta says.
"Here's a note with your appointment information. I'll see you then. Take care," Dr. Roman says as she leaves our porch, waving goodbye.
"Bye," Peeta and I say in unison before I close the door.
He takes the card from my hand and walks to the kitchen. I follow him because I just got my mobility back, I don't want to sit down.
"What do you want for dinner?" Peeta asks.
"I can think of something better," I say seductively, walking up behind him and wrapping my arms around his core.
"Oh really," he says charmingly. He turns around in my arms and places his hands on my cheeks, planting a soft, but meaningful, kiss on my lips. "Tell me what you want for dinner first."
"Lamb stew," I answer right away. "And cheese buns."
"You're gonna turn into a cheese bun," he snickers. "Either that or the baby will."
"Come on," I say, taking his and in mine and pulling him upstairs.
"Shouldn't we have dinner first?"
"It's the afternoon," I whine.
"Its the early evening," Peeta corrects.
"If you do this for me, I'll help you cook dinner," I bribe him sweetly.
"Deal," Peeta says and then kisses me hard on the mouth.
He leads me over to the stairs, not breaking this kiss for more than a second. Each one growing more and more passionate. My hands go to his waist and grip on to the sides of his shirt. My grasp is as tight as can be. With him walking backwards, his balance isn't very steady and my center of gravity is off from being pregnant. I don't want us to fall, knowing it will only end badly for the both of us.
Sparks are flying everywhere. My body is so responsive to his touch and all we are doing is making out. At some point his tongue slipped into my mouth and I just now notice because he does this thing that always pushes me over the edge. A moan is about to escape from my mouth when Peeta breaks away, stopping our connection.
"I know it's been hard for you to obtain from sex with your raging hormones and all, but it's been just as hard for me too," he says. "Just knowing your carrying my child is a turn on, but seeing your belly grow... it's beyond intoxicating."
I blush and kiss his lips, trying to get back on track to what needs to be happening here. But he pulls away again.
"You have no idea the effect you have on me and how sexy you look when you're pregnant."
"Well, then what are you waiting for. Take me to bed, Mr. Mellark," I say seductively.
He lifts me into his arms and begins to sprint up the stairs.
"Peeta," I squeal.
When he reaches the top of the stairs, he dashes into our room and carefully sets me down on the edge of the bed. My hands were still clinging on to the bottom of his shirt, so it doesn't take me long to decide that his shirt is the first piece of clothing I'm removing from his body.
Before doing so, I pull on it to bring his body on top of mine. I inch my face closer to his and plant a quick kiss on his lips. I glide the cotton material up his torso and over his head, revealing the muscular arms he's gained from lifting heavy bags of flour at the bakery. I leave a trail of kisses as I inch down his arms, thinking about how his strength is such a turn on for me.
Once I've decided I've had enough of playing around I let my hormones take control and get down to business. It's time to get down to what we came upstairs to do. I quickly remove as much of his clothing as I can before starting on my own, trying not to waste anymore time.
"Woah, easy tiger," Peeta chuckles, stopping me from trying to take off my shirt. "I want to do that."
His eyes leave mine and travel to his hands at the hem of my shirt. He grabs onto it and slowly brings it up, exposing my belly. He stops and runs his fingers up and down one of my sides, kissing below my bust and testing my patience. I let out a whine, not satisfied with the pace this is going. I don't want to mess around. I want him. I need him.
"Peeta...," I drag out. "Please."
"Be patient, Katniss," Peeta soothes, kissing the crook of my neck.
I feel him harden slightly against my thigh. I arch my back, knowing I need to get him more erect to get this show moving, and move my hips around to grind against him. I softly run my fingernails from the small of his back, up his spine, and between his shoulder blades. I feel him grow even harder and he quickly removes my shirt, putting a smile on my face because I know my tricks did exactly what I needed them to do.
When I see his face light up at the sight of my red lacy bra, the lust in the air intensifies.
"Do you like it?" I ask, biting my lower lip. He just nods quickly in response.
"Then you'll definitely like what I have on underneath my pants," I smirk.
Peeta tucks his hands underneath my body, sliding them in between my back of the waistband of my pants before beginning to yank them off. He slowly tugs on each pant leg, slowly revealing the red matching pair of lace underwear.
"I told you," I beam, seeing his mouth drop to the ground. I may or may not have prepared for this evening, hoping that I would in fact get cleared.
Peeta looses all control and starts kissing me all over. When his lips connect with my mound, I moan. Now he knows exactly what I want. His hand slides in from the tops of my panties and his fingers play around with everything like a little kid in a candy shop. He slips two fingers inside me and I gasp. He pumps them in and out, slowly at first but then gradually increases his speed.
It doesn't take long for me to feel something building up in the pit of my stomach. I never orgasm this soon. Dr. Roman was right, sex while pregnant is definitely more pleasurable. Either that or my body wasn't used to the lack of sex, considering just how often Peeta and I were trying.
"Did you just—" Peeta questions.
I nod, unable to speak from the high my body is still under.
"Wow..." Peeta says. "I wonder what else I can do to y—"
I interrupt him by attacking him with my mouth. I wrap my arms around his neck and start kissing him more and more passionately. He moves to my neck, kissing from behind my ear down to the edge of my shoulder. His hand he had placed underneath my neck slides down between my shoulder blades and to the clasp of my bra. He unclips the hook and pulls my bra off one shoulder, across my chest, and exposes my breasts. He switches hands and removes the second strap from my other shoulder, tossing it across the room.
I hike my feet up, for the first time for something other than an exam, placing them at Peeta's hips. I take the elastic band between my toes and start pulling them down to free his member. The fall to his ankles and he kicks them off and the land somewhere in the mess of our clothing on the floor.
Peeta lifts my hips off the bed and slides me further onto the bed, turning us so we are in a better and more comfortable space on the bed instead of at the edge. As he crawls over closer to me, I remove my underwear quickly anticipating what's to come next.
Peeta has a serious look on his face, the one that means he's ready to get down to business. His eyes communication a question of 'are you ready?' and I simply reply with a light kiss. Just before I'm about to break it and dive into one thats more erotic, he presses himself into me. A gasp escapes my throat and my head is thrown back in ecstasy. Before thrusting into me again, he gives me a moment to adjust.
He pulls back and gets ready to slam into me again. After doing so, he groans and I dig my fingernails into my shoulder. He begins to pick up the pace a bit, ramming into me tenderly but forcefully. It feels so good but the second I feel my lower abdomen tighten, I catapult my head up to gaze at my bump between myself and Peeta. I must have a frightful look of worry on my face because Peeta immediately stops and looks at me with concern.
"What's wrong?" he asks.
"I... I don't know," I stutter.
Nothing feels wrong, my belly just feels tight. However, Peeta not pushing himself back and forth inside me is making it relax. It must of just been a more powerful orgasm building up.
"It must just be a change in the way my body is sensing pleasure, because now everything is fine. Just keep going. I'll let you know if I think something is wrong," I encourage, squeezing my arm around him.
He slowly begins to pick up the pace again. I can feel the similar tightening and completely let loose. A few sounds escape my mouth that I didn't even think I could make, nor do I think I have made before. I open my eyes to find Peeta looking down between us. He peeks back up at me and stares into my eyes, a look of discomfort crossing his face.
Now it's my turn to ask what's up.
"Are you ok?" I ask.
"Do you think this is hurting the baby?"
"No. Remember Dr. Roman said it was perfectly fine," I kiss him, trying to ease him back into the swing of things.
He slowly thrusts into me a few more times, but the uneasy look on his face doesn't lighten up as much as I would've liked.
"If you are uncomfortable we can stop," I say, trying not to look unhappy. I've had the yearning for this for weeks and I've finally been cleared and now he doesn't want to do me. Dr. Roman mentioned this frisky mood might not last forever and that soon I'm not going to want to be touched at all when I was in the hospital.
"You don't look like you want to stop though," Peeta states matter of factly.
"It's not gonna work unless we're both into it," I huff.
"I just feel awkward."
"That's fine. We should probably get some sleep anyway," I say, coldly.
"I'm sorry," he apologizes, pulling out and rolling away from me.
"It's not a big deal."
"You're angry."
I roll my eyes, "And?"
"Kat, don't do this."
"Do what?" I snap.
"Get angry because I'm not doing what you want me to."
"I'm doing no such thing," I say, crawling off the bed.
"Yes you are."
I walk around the room picking up my clothing piece by piece, heading towards the door to the hallway.
"Where you going?" Peeta asks.
"I'm gonna sleep in a different bedroom tonight," I say calmly. "I need my space."
"Katniss, you're over reacting," he barks.
"I am? You realize us fighting is what put me on bed rest in the first place, right? How I almost lost the baby. All I'm doing is trying to prevent that from happening again."
"Are you? Or are you using that as an excuse to avoid me right now."
"Oh my God, Peeta!" I shout. "Did you not learn anything from our last screaming match? I'm not risking that again!"
"I don't want that to happen either," Peeta snaps.
"Then why are you trying to argue with me?"
"You're the one yelling!"
"Serious—," I scoff and sigh. "Look, we both need to cool off before talking about anything if we don't want to put the health of our baby at risk. Yeah I may not be the happiest camper right now, but all I was trying to do was be nice. You said you could feel me tossing and turning all night last night, so I was trying to do you a favor and let you sleep comfortably this evening."
"I don't believe you, but whatever."
"Peeta, you don't have to understand, but you also can't change my mind. I'll talk to you in the morning," I say calmly and then walk out the bedroom door.
I turn down the hallway, away from the stairs, and think about which of the empty guest bedrooms I want to take over this evening. I decide on the only other one with an en suite bathroom because I have to pee. I open the door, step in, and close it behind me. I toss my clothes onto the neatly made bed and walk into the bathroom. After peeing, I decide to take a shower.
With a towel wrapped around my body, I step back into he room and walk over to my clothes and begin to put them back on. I take off the extra pillows and place them on a chair in the corner of the room. I turn back to the bed and start moving the covers down to the foot of the bed. I climb and and just as I'm about to place the covers over my body, I remember the pillow trick Dr. Roman mentioned. I sigh and get off the bed, heading over to the chair to grab two of the extra pillows. I climb back into bed and adjust the way they're supposed to be placed around my body.
I'm actually quite comfortable and totally forget that I'm totally alone. I feel my eyes get really heavy and as soon as I feel myself drifting off to sleep my stomach rumbles. Realizing we never made dinner, I groan because it means I have to get out of bed yet again to go find something to eat. When my feet touch the ground I hear something being set on the floor and a knock at the door. I know it's Peeta.
I hesitate to open the door because I don't want to talk to Peeta just yet. I realize it's stupid for getting upset with Peeta for not having sex with me, but my confidence level was low to begin with and ever since I got pregnant it's just gotten lower. Even though Peeta said I'm the sexiest I've ever been now that I'm pregnant, I just feel like I'm not attractive enough for him.
When there isn't a second knock I walk over to the door and slowly crack it open. I peek out into the hallway and don't see Peeta. I look down and see a tray with a bowl of soup and a plate with a few cheese buns and a small glass of milk, along with my bottle of pre-natal vitamins. I take the tray inside and sit on the bed to eat my dinner.
After I finish eating, I place the tray on the dresser across the foot of the bed and crawl back into bed. I cover up, adjust myself and the pillows, and drift off to sleep. It only lasts for what feels like a few seconds when my nerves jolt my body awake with the fear of potentially having a nightmare. I reach across the bed in search for Peeta, only to remember I'm not in our bed.
I toss the blankets to the opposite side of the bed and drag myself out of bed. I leave the guest bedroom, travel down the hallway, and gently open our bedroom door and quietly walk inside.
"Peeta," I question softly, standing in the doorway. "Are you awake?"
He doesn't say anything.
His back is turned towards me so I can't see his face, but the way that his back is rising and falling in rhythm with his breathing tells me he isn't asleep.
"Peeta, please. I can tell you're awake," I sigh.
"What do you want, Katniss?" Peeta grumbles.
"I'm scared I might have a nightmare. Can I come get back in our bed? Please?"
"I never kicked you out," he says as he rolls onto his back and turns his head so his ocean blue eyes look over at me.
I go over and creep into bed with Peeta. I curl up next to him and snuggle into his arms, which immediately embrace me. I take a deep breath and let it out, relaxing further into Peeta's arms.
"I'm sorry," I speak quietly.
"No, I'm sorry," Peeta says. "I should've been more sensitive."
"Honestly we were both stupid. We were arguing about sex."
"You know it not that I didn't want to," Peeta says. "It's just that I was afraid I was going to do something to the baby."
"I understand, but you realize that we actually had sex while I was pregnant before we found out and Dr. Roman said it was ok," I say. "She wouldn't let us do something that would put the baby in a risky situation."
"You're right," Peeta says and then kisses my forehead. "Mhmm, you smell good."
"I showered," I smiled, closing my eyes and letting myself fall back asleep.
"You know," Peeta says, dragging out. "We could... try again."
"Only if you're up for it," I say, yawning.
"You're tired," he states.
"Very much so."
"Well, we have all day tomorrow to do whatever we want so you should sleep."
"Thank you," I say, doing my best to hug him.
"Good night, Katniss."
"Good night, Peeta," I say, sleepily. "Good night, little bug."
"Good night, baby," Peeta adds.