That Ol' Wind

Chapter 20: Katniss

"I'm gonna miss this place Momma. Will we ever come back?" Joey asks me as I finish packing up his clothes.

"Of course Chipmunk," I say tousling his blonde curls, "This is our home. It always will be no matter where we go."

"How long will we be gone?" he asks.

"About six months," I say taping up the box.

"It's gonna be a long time," he says.

"I know but we'll be home before we know it," I say trying to pick up my the box but it turns out to be too heavy for me Peeta walks in.

"You need some help?" he asks.

"Yeah, I packed it too tightly," I say. He laughs and takes the box I was struggling with and carries it out of the room.

"Dad's really happy to go back out there isn't he?" Joey says.

"Yes, he really is. Since before you were born, it was his dream to take me with him. Now all of us get to live that life that seemed impossible," I say hugging him.

"Even me and Taylor?" he asks.

"Especially you and Taylor Chipmunk. You were what we dreamed of when we first met," I say kissing his cheek. "Now come on, let's go get everything else ready before we go."

"Okay Momma,"he says and walks out of the room and heads down the stairs to help Peeta. I, on the other hand, head the opposite way towards my daughter's room. When I get there, I find that Taylor's still sleeping. I walk over to her crib and lean down to stroke her cheek. She stirs slightly but keeps her eyes closed.

"You need to wake up Dandelion. We want you to sleep in the car but you probably won't if you keep sleeping now," I whisper to her. She moans a little and turns away from me. I sigh and gently lift her up. When I do she starts crying and I hold her close and kiss her cheek. "Oh I know, I know, but this is how it has to be."

I'm too concerned with calming her down that I don't hear Peeta come up behind me.

"You ready to go Wildflower?" he asks.

"I think I am. It's just so weird leaving this place. I know you've been everywhere but this is the only place I've ever known. I've never even been to Nashville before, even though I've always wanted to," I say.

"You'll love it. It's the most beautiful city Ive ever known. I take you to all the big places while we're there. The Hall of Fame, the Music Strip, even the Opery," he says.

"The Opery?" I ask, "I'll get to see the Opery?!"

"Of course. You know I have a little pull around that town," he says winking. I look at Taylor and smile.

"Your Daddy really knows how to sweet talk me doesn't he?" I say laughing, "Of course if he wasn't, I don't think you or your brother would exist."

"Very funny Katniss," he says, "Come on, let's get going. We should be able to get to the hotel by nightfall if we leave now." I nod and follow him out of the room. He helps me strap Taylor in while Joey runs to the other side of the truck and jumps in. After we finish with Taylor, he helps me into the passenger seat and then runs to the driver side and starts the truck. I watch as our home disappears and feel tears in my eyes but I wipe them away quickly. I lay my seat back and lean into it, allowing sleep to take over for the next few hours.

When I feel Peeta gently shake me awake, I look out the window to see the Nashville skyline. I can't believe I'm seeing it. I never thought I'd see what I'm seeing now.

"Is this it Dad?" Joey asks looking out the window.

"This is it," Peeta says. I just stare out the window as I watch us getting closer and closer to the city.

"It's beautiful," I whisper and can feel Peeta smiling. It takes a while because of traffic, but we get to our hotel eventually. It's a beautiful building with decorative architecture and a huge fountain inside the doors. Turns out Peeta wasn't joking about having a little pull here because we get the top floor, penthouse suite 12, all to ourselves.

When we get there, the rooms are absolutely amazing. I can't really take time to admire them until after Joey and Taylor are put to bed. Then I just stand on the balcony that is attached to Peeta and my room. I'm blown away by all the city lights and all the sounds of the Country Music Capital. And for the second time today, I'm too distracted to hear Peeta come up behind me.

"It's beautiful isn't it?" Peeta says, "I've only ever seen two things prettier than this city and that's you and Taylor."

"It's amazing," I say. "I never thought it would be this big!"

"Well it is. Tomorrow we'll get you a recording secession and see what you want to see. It'll be great," he says.

"There's just one thing wrong with this," I say.

"What's that?" Peeta says looking a little scared.

"You can't see the stars," I say.

"Have you seen the roof yet?" Peeta asks.

"We can go on the roof?" I say.

"Yeah, come on I'll show you," he says taking my hand and leading me to some stairs. He leads me up and when we get out I look up and see in the opposite direction of the city center, the most beautiful sky full of stars.

"It's beautiful," I whisper.

"But only half as beautiful as you," he says. And with that I wrap my arms around his neck and kiss him. It's long and passionate and I feel a burning in my stomach. I drag Peeta back down to our room and let the magic of the night pull us away into bliss.