Fragile

Chapter Twelve: About the other Her

Delly.

She ran before him, her blonde curls flying behind her. He eagerly followed as they ran through the field of vivid flowers. She turned and looked at him, smiling as her blue eyes shined brightly. She came to a stopping point. She opened her arms for him, and he accepted her embrace, wrapping his arms around her waist as her picked her up. He could smell her sweet, dessert-like scent. He could feel her soft, sun dress and sun-kissed skin. She was real as she laughed, holding onto him tightly. When he put her down, she looked him in the eyes as he marveled at her. She was even more beautiful than he could remember, especially after the gruesome scene he was left with of her. "Why are you looking at me like that, Peeta?" She chortled.

"God, you're just so beautiful," he breathed, holding her close. She smiled, nuzzling the crook of his neck, breathing in his scent.

"You've said that a million times and every time you say it, it sounds better than the last," she smiled, pulling away and placing a soft kiss on his lips. She still tasted of the sugar cookies and vanilla icing that he had made her hours prior to her death. He smiled, leaning in to receive another kiss. She placed her hand over his lips, smiling. "You'll have to catch me first." And with that, she was off, running.

He chased after her like an animal, running as fast as his legs could carry him, but he could never quite catch up. He started to feel dizzy. He called her name, but she didn't stop. He felt out of breath. His mind became foggy. The world began to spin. He called her name once more, and she turned to look at him. She screamed his name.

Peeta jolted awake, panting heavily. His vision was blurry with tears as he held back a sob. Katniss laid peacefully at his side, her face nuzzled in the crook of his neck contently. He felt guilty. So guilty. He dreamt about Delly, and here was Katniss, right next to him. He tried to catch his breath, but he couldn't. He wanted to cry too much. He sat up, disturbing Katniss from her slumber. He turned and sat on the side of the bed, his head in his hands.

Katniss sat up. "Peeta?" She asked softly. He didn't say anything. He only swallowed hardly and clenched his jaw and tears ran down his cheeks. When he didn't respond, Katniss carefully crawled over to him, wrapping her arms around him from behind. She rested her head against his shoulder blades. Little noise escaped as he cried. Katniss held onto him tightly though.

It was an hour before he finally said something. "I dreamt about her," he murmured. Katniss stirred from her half-sleep.

"Her who?" She mumbled against the skin of his shoulder.

"Delly," he replied, getting choked up once again. Katniss sat up, going quiet.

"W-Was it a good dream?" she asked quietly.

"In the beginning," he answered honestly. "I-It was amazing, a-and I couldn't quite catch her in the end. Only Lord knows what h-happened to me..." He trailed off. She nodded not saying a word. That made him feel guiltier, so he said what was running through his mind, even though he knew it would hurt them both. "I-I still love her," he sniffed. She didn't say anything, so he kept going. "Katniss, d-don't think I don't love you...I-I do–"

"But not as much as you love her..." She said quietly. He turned around and he could see her heartbroken expression. He caressed her cheek, and she leaned into his touch.

"Katniss...I know...I'm better on my own, but I don't want to be alone," he said softly.

"Well...I'm not better on my own, and I really don't want to be alone either, Peeta," she sniffed, tears falling. He wiped away her tears.

It's obvious how much she loves you. Why would you tell her that? Now she's going to think she'll never be good enough for you compared to Delly. He thought. Delly's the passed, Peeta. She may hold a deep place in your heart, but Katniss is now. The stuff you've done with Katniss, you would never do in a million years with Delly, like running away with her. Then again, you didn't have to do that, but even if you had to, you wouldn't  have because it was an insane idea in itself.

Peeta looked at Katniss once again, her gray eyes shinning like silver pools of water in the moonlight. He wanted to drown in them. He wanted to drown in her. He leaned in, pressing a kiss to her lips, which she returned, taking his bottom lip between her own. When they pulled away from each other, he noticed her pajamas. They were different in comparison to her regular, baggy clothing. She had a crop top on that showed off the perfect amount of skin that left Peeta tempted. She wore shorts that showed off her surprisingly toned thighs and legs. Peeta definitely wanted to drown in her and not get saved.

He pressed her down into the mattress, his kisses relentless. He could care less at the moment that she was still seventeen. Katniss was enjoying this and so was he. That's all that mattered to him. He continued to kiss her, his hands moving to her shorts. He carefully pulled them down her legs, and she let him, pulling away to look him in the eyes unsurely. He pressed a soft kiss to her lips. "I'm not going to hurt you," he said softly, tossing her shorts aside. He then pulled her top over her head, admiring her, leaning in and lavishing her neck with kisses. "You're so beautiful," he murmured against her skin. She sighed softly in response, tugging gently at his shirt, which he gladly took off for her. He then took off his sweatpants, returning to kissing her afterwards. She wrapped her legs around his waist, holding him close to her as she kissed him. She rolled them over to where she was straddling him. He looked up at her in awe as she carefully reached behind herself, shyly unclasping her bra, letting it fall off of her shoulders.

x
x
x

She laid, her head on his chest, her ear right over his heartbeat. Their legs were intertwined, the blankets pulled up to Katniss' shoulders. Peeta kissed the top of her head, one arm around her, the other laying lazily at his side. As her heart rate slowed, she looked up at him. He had a content look on his face, his eyes closed peacefully. He wasn't asleep. He snored when he was asleep. "Peeta?" She asked softly.

"Hmmm?"

"You'll love me always...right? Even though I'm not her?" He opened his eyes, looking down at her. Her bangs were all over the place, and he chuckled, fixing them for her, caressing her cheek and getting her to look at him afterwards.

"Katniss, yes, I'll always love you. She was in my past, okay? Yes, I still love her, but you're my present and future, and even though she will always hold a place in my heart, you will always be my number one priority." He kissed her forehead softly, and she smiled.

"Always?" She whispered.

"Always." He smiled.