Broken Pieces: Part 1

Chapter 41: Katniss's POV:

The war ended soon after Peeta's resurrection. No one seemed to ask many questions about Peeta's sudden reappearance, but we didn't want to explain either, so we kept it to ourselves. Boggs went on a mission to take out President Snow, and succeeded. When he came back, everyone was celebrating our newly found freedom from the Capitol and cheering for him as he went by. I had never seen him smile before, but now I think he was smiling so big that he wouldn't stop, ever. Prim got a job as a nurse at one of the nearby hospitals. She was so excited to be doing more for the people she cared about and making the world a better place, it made me realize how grown up she has become. Finnick and Annie got married. I had never felt more happy for someone in my entire life as I saw Finnick's smile for the first time in months. "We are moving back to 7." He told me. "We are going to start our lives together in a place we are both familiar and safe with." They were holding hands, and I thought I saw a small baby bump forming on Annie's stomach. I looked up at Finnick with my eyebrows up, no need for words. He smiled even bigger and nodded slightly, kissing her on the head. Peeta and I grow together quickly. Ever since I told him I love him back, he has been on Cloud 9. He grabs me from behind and I squeal with delight. "Well, I guess we will leave you two alone." Finnick says. He winks and then walks away with his arm around Annie. Peeta looks down at me. "So what do we do now? The war is over, and I really don't want to stay here." He says with a grin. I smile back. "Me too. I just want to see the sunshine again." He kisses me on the nose and then turns serious. "Katniss, I....um.....I understand if you say no, but I was thinking we could go back to 12, start rebuilding. The Victor's village is still in tact. We could live there." I can tell he is nervous about asking the next part. "I was also thinking that.....um......maybe we could live together? I completely understand if you say no but I...." I lean in and kiss him to make him stop talking. I feel him sigh with relief when we pull away. "Of course I will, silly. Don't be so nervous. There is no way I want to stay in a house by myself with the nightmares that I have every night." I hug him and he hugs me back. "I'll never let you sleep alone again." He whispers into my ear. It sends a shiver down my spine but I take his hand. "Good." I whisper back, biting my bottom lip. He makes me crazy, but in a good way. I can tell I do the same for him, but with even more and for a longer time. But time doesn't matter. Not anymore. We have all of the time in the world to rebuild our lives and start over. Begin a world without the Capitol, but with a strong government that treats everyone equally. We grab each others hands, still afraid to let go for too long, with the fear of losing the other. We walk through the maze of elevators and security until we finally walk out into the room away from fresh air and sunshine. I'm about to turn the handle, the starting point of the rest of outer lives, when Peeta places his hand over mine. "Together?" He whispers so only I can hear. I look up at him. So much has happened in the past 3 years. He looks slightly older, but more broken. Although I probably look the same. I think I'm finally ready to let go of all the burdens and broken pieces of the past and be set free into a new world. A world with Peeta. A new life with my boy with the bread. Before I turn the handle, I look up at him. "Together." I push on the handle and take a deep breath of fresh air flowing into the lungs that have know nothing but stale air of the below the surface.

And I take the first step.

✨The End✨ Book 2 coming soon!