Broken Pieces: Part 1

Chapter 39 Part 2: Peeta's POV:

I freeze and my muscles tense up. A single tear spills over my cheek and I break into a thousand pieces. Without thinking, I run up to her and grab her shoulders and start talking. "Please Katniss, let me prove to you its me. Don't make me leave....I have no one else." This is true. My family is all dead and District 12 is history leaving me nothing and no one except Katniss. She has tears in her eyes but keeps her hands by her sides. "Ok." She whispers. "Tell me something that only Peeta has ever told me." She closes her eyes and tears spill over silently onto her cheek. I quickly wipe them away with my fingers and she tenses. I sigh and pull my fingers away knowing she isn't convinced until I tell her something only I would have said. I think for a moment and then remember our moment on the beach, but then decide against it. Anyone could have seen that, it was televised. I run my hands through my hair and then it hits me. The night on the train when she was having nightmares. I had just woken up from one of my nightmares and was shivering and panting in my room. When I heard her scream, I jumped out of bed and ran to her as fast as I could, thinking someone had hurt her. When I realized it was a nightmare, it made me feel even worse. That I wasn't there to prevent them. I know what I'm going to say. Looking deep into her beautiful eyes, I say "One night on the Victory Tour, you had a nightmare." I start. This gets her attention slightly and she looks up but stays silent, so I continue. "I ran into your room to see if you were alright, but...." The next sentence hurts to say. "You were thrashing and screaming like you had just seen the worst thing imaginable." Katniss steps closer to me, but is still at an arms distance. She stays silent but I can see the recognition on her face from that night. I never asked her what her dream was about that night, I didn't want to make her upset, but I can already see the fear in her eyes as she remembers the nightmare. "I...I asked if you were alright," I stuttered. Katniss was so close to me. "and you said that it was fine. Just a nightmare." She is a hand length away from me now and it is hard to focus on talking, but I continue. "I was worried about you, but trusted that you were ok so I went to walk out." She wraps her hands around my waist and I suck in a breath as she lays her forehead on my shoulder. "I was almost out the door when you said my name, so I turned around." I whisper into her ear. She buries her face into the crook in my neck and I slowly wrap my arms around her. ""Will you stay with me?" Is what you asked me." I lean down to her ear and brush away a stray piece of hair with my hand. "I was so shocked and full of pure excitement that I didn't know what to say, so I went over to you and laid down on the bed." My nose rubs up against her ear when I whisper the last part. "You snuggled up next to me and you almost immediately fell asleep, and it felt so good, but I hadn't answered you yet." I take a short breath. "Before you fell asleep, I whispered...." Katniss interrupts me when she leans her head up with her nose against my cheek. "Always." Her voice cracks when she whispers. She moves her face so it is just inches away from my lips. "Always." She repeats. I look into her eyes and they are brimming with tears. Before I can say anything, she wraps her arms around my neck and presses her lips into mine. A shiver goes up my spine and I wrap my arms around her waist. Katniss tilts her head slightly to deepen the kiss and I can taste the salty tears coming from both of us. I slowly pull away and wipe her tears away with my thumbs. She pulls me into a huge hug, sobbing. "It's you.....it's really you...." She whispers into my chest. I hug her back as tightly as possible. "I told you, I never break a promise, ever." I say and kiss her again. My hands slide through her hair, being careful not to tug too hard. My whole body explodes with happiness when she kisses me back, and I can easily say that I am the happiest person ever to have walked this earth.