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ra3lynn3 · 5 years

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Hey everyone! I’m here with a little one-shot. Mucho thanks to @promptdumpster for the inspo. Shout out to the reddit user for the ideas behind Gale’s soliloquy, too. Forgiveness on any grammatical errors made, I went unbeta’d on this one. I hope you enjoy :)

Xxx

“What’s up with your friend Katniss?”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean, are you two friends, or are you...friends?”

Peeta laughed at this.

“We’re just friends. It took long enough to get to that point with her, I don’t even bother trying anything else.”

“So, what’s her deal? Is she seeing anyone?”

“I don’t think so.”

“Has she said anything about me?”

“I don’t think so.”

“You’re really not helping here, ya know?”

Peeta sighed, “Ok, listen. She’s coming to the Halloween party this Saturday. If you really want to get to know her and figure out how she feels about you, just get her drunk.”

“I...don’t think that’s such a good idea.” Gale hesitated.

“I’ve been friends with her for over ten years. Trust me. Buy a few bottles of vodka. When she starts getting giggly about stupid stuff, ask your questions. She will tell you everything.”

Gale took a deep breath and nodded as he grabbed two bottles of vodka from a nearby shelf.

Xxx

The music thumped as dozens of costumed party-goers danced around the crowded room. Katniss forced her way through the throng to make her way to the kitchen. She scoffed as she shoved a couple preoccupied with sticking their tongues down one another’s throats out of the way of the drinks.

“Nice costume!” She heard a voice shout over the noise.

She glanced up to see Peeta’s new roommate, Gale, smirking at her.

“Right. Thanks.” She replied turning to walk away.

“Hang on! Can I get you something to drink?”

She stopped to consider him. She shrugged and nodded without a word.

“I’m Gale, by the way.”

“I know who you are. I’m Katniss.”

“Is that why you went with the cat ears?”

She rolled her eyes. “Peeta gave me shit about not being dressed up. It was his idea. Something about irony.”

“Not much for Halloween, huh?”

“Maybe when I was ten.”

He handed her a drink. He tapped his cup to hers before taking a drink of his own. Katniss brought the cup to her lips and took a hearty swig.

“You dance?” Gale asked as the two turned and surveyed the room.

“Not at all,” Katniss replied.

“Ok,” Gale muttered under his breath.

“I’m going to go find Peeta. Thanks for the drink!” She offered before walking away leaving Gale alone.

“Can I go now, please?” Katniss whined as she interrupted Peeta’s conversation with a scantily clad redhead.

“Nice to see you too! When did you get here?” Peeta asked, ignoring her attempts to annoy him.

“Went with the James Bond look I see?” Katniss replied ignoring him back and giving him a thorough once over in his well-tailored tuxedo, and perfectly coiffed hair.

“Women love it.” He cooed seductively in her ear.

Katniss pulled back to look him in the eyes. He smirked at her. She licked her lips seemingly lost in a trance. She shook her head and put a space between them.

“Your roommate is weird. I liked Finnick better.”

“Be nice. He wants to get to know you.”

“No thanks!” She said as she turned to walk away.

Peeta grabbed her arm and turned her back around to face him.

“Don’t make me lecture you! You and I both know it’s been a really long time since you’ve even given a guy the time of day.”

Katniss rolled her eyes and turned to escape. Peeta gripped her arm again turning her back to face him.

“Please? He’s a decent guy. Have fun. Loosen up.” Peeta suggested with a shrug.

“What does it matter to you?”

“You’re my friend and I’m tired of you hanging around ruining my chances of getting laid!”

“The redhead?” Katniss asked incredulously.

“Maybe,” Peeta remarked dismissively looking around the crowded room.

“You can do better.”

“Go!” Peeta said turning her around and giving her a shove back toward the room.

She stumbled a bit but made her way back through the crowd to find Gale where she’d left him.

“Hey! Peeta told me to be nice. Can we start over?” She said holding out her hand. “I’m Katniss.”

“Gale.” He replied taking her hand in his, offering her an award-winning smile. “Did you want to go outside away from all this noise?”

“That sounds like a great idea!” Katniss agreed.

Gale grabbed a bottle of vodka as the two made their way to the front porch.

“And then I said, ‘you can’t put a pickle in there!’” Katniss laughed at the punchline of her anecdote.

Gale laughed along good-naturedly.

“Oh no!” Katniss remarked dramatically. “We’re out of vodka! I’ll be right back!”

She wobbled to her feet, using Gale’s shoulder to steady herself.

“You got it?” He asked snickering.

“Totally fine.” She replied with an air of superiority, tossing her hair over her shoulder.

Her first step was a bit of a stumble, but she managed to find her way inside. As she made her way toward the kitchen, she noticed Peeta had found the redhead again. The two had their hands all over each other. The girl looked like she was devouring Peeta’s neck. Katniss suddenly felt queasy at the sight. Scowling and turning away, she headed for the kitchen grabbing a bottle of white liquor. She tore the cap off and took a hearty swig. She cringed as the liquid burned on the way down. With the bottle in hand, she made her way back out to the porch to sit beside Gale.

“You’re back!” Gale announced excitedly.

“I’m back!” Katniss replied sitting down with a huff.

“You ok?” Gale asked noticing her change in demeanor.

“Totally!” Katniss said a little more excitedly than she had intended. “Let’s play a drinking game!” She suggested.

“Ok. Let’s play truth or drink. We ask each other questions and if you don’t want to answer you have to take a drink.” Gale replied.

“Alright. Who’s the most inappropriate person you’ve fantasized about?”

“Easy. Cressida Monroe.”

Katniss pulled a face. “The actress with the half shaved head? You’re into that, huh?”

“What about you?”

“Umm..” Katniss hesitated for a moment. She glanced behind her at the house before saying, “My ninth grade chemistry teacher, Mr. Mitchell.”

“Next question: what’s the most embarrassing thing you’ve ever done while you were drunk?”

“Fell flat on my face and twisted my ankle. That was a fun ER visit! Thankfully Peeta was there to keep me company. I don’t handle doctors very well. You?”

“Fell asleep butt naked in the front yard of my frat house.”

Katniss barked a laugh, “Of course you were a frat boy!”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Have you looked at yourself lately? You totally fit the mold. Tall, dark, handsome. You know the type.”

“And am I your type?”

Katniss shrugged and took a swig from the bottle.

“Oh! That means you don’t want to say. Is that a good thing or a bad thing?”

Katniss took another swig.

“What’s the biggest secret you’re keeping from everyone?” Katniss offered after cringing and shuddering from her drinks.

“I’ve never been in love.”

“Love.” Katniss scoffed.

“What?” Gale asked incredulously.

“How is that a big secret?”

“I have a reputation to maintain!”

Katniss rolled her eyes, “Forgive me. I didn’t realize you were a Casanova.”

“So...what’s yours?”

Katniss shrugged staying quiet until Gale gave her a nudge, “Well I guess if we’re making confessions... I’m in love with someone and they have no clue.”

“Why don’t you tell him...or her?” Gale asked taking the bottle from Katniss’ hand and taking a swig for good measure.

Katniss shot him a look, “I can’t tell him because it would ruin everything.”

She grabbed the bottle back.

“Or you could and it would set your life in motion in a way you never thought possible,” Gale said thoughtfully.

“Yeah, the worse way possible!” Katniss retorted.

“No. Nope. No way. As a dude, I’m telling you, you should go for it. It might not happen right away, but when a guy first meets a girl he might just categorize her as like ‘roommate’s friend’. But then, like, he gets to know her better. And if they mesh, something crazy happens in his mind.”

“Like what?”

“Well, usually he starts to notice things about her appearance - good stuff. Usually something small like her eye color, or the freckles on her nose. It's nothing he can put his finger on, or describe, really. All he knows is that just looking at that part of her makes him feel good. He starts wanting to do that more.”

“You sound like a bit of an expert. You sure you’ve never been in love?” She glanced at him in disbelief.

“Nah. I thought I was a couple of times though.” He sat quietly staring off.

“So...?” Katniss prompted.

“Oh!” Gale startled, seeming to remember he was in the middle of an elaborate explanation, “So then it turns into the guy noticing an expression she makes. Like it could be her genuine belly-laugh or the way she furrows her brow in concern or scowls when she’s thinking. And then it happens.”

“What happens?”

“He gets a little flutter in his chest.”

“So what? I get a flutter if I run too fast.”

“So, they stay friends for a while, get to know each other better. Then, one day, she hugs him goodbye....and he suddenly can't stop thinking about it. He plays it over and over in his head. Like the feel of her breasts through two shirts, her arms around his back, her smell...he finds these little mental movies of her playing in his head when he's driving somewhere, squeezing out his other usual daydreams.”

“Shortly after that, the guy realizes that whenever he looks at this woman, he feels good. He likes her lines, her curves, her sounds and smells... It's like she's gradually turned from a black-and-white photo into a 3D color movie with surround-sound. He starts wondering what he can do to keep her around, to make her happy. He realizes that he likes looking at her more than any other human being in the world. To him, she is perfect and beautiful.”

Katniss sat dumbfounded allowing Gale’s truth to sink in. Which, thanks to her befuddled mind, took a bit longer than usual.

“So what do I do with that information, Mister Smarty-Pants?”

Gale sighed, “You go for it! Duh.”

Katniss giggled stupidly and took a final swig of the white liquor the two shared between them. She stood on wobbly legs once more and took a purposeful step up the porch toward the house before she turned back to Gale.

“What if he doesn’t feel that flutter? She asked seriously.

“He will,” Gale assured her with a small smile.

That was all she needed to boost her confidence beyond the lack of inhibition she felt in her drunken state. Walking back into the house, her head and chest rattled with the bass pumping from the sound system. She stood and swayed as she looked for Peeta. She caught sight of him in the kitchen digging through a bag of chips.

“Hey.” She offered as she approached him.

“Hey.” He replied, continuing to look steadfastly through the chip bag.

“What are you doing?” Katniss asked after a moment of watching him.

“Looking for the perfect chip.” He replied and shook the bag to one side, his entire face nearly inside of it.

“Why?”

Peeta sighed and put the chip bag down, “Because I’m very drunk and very hungry, and I know the perfect chip is out there. In fact, it’s somewhere in this bag.”

“Does it taste better?” She asked feeling genuinely invested in this quest of his.

“Of course!” He said looking very heavy-lidded. He pulled the bag to himself again and dug through it, “Everything about it is better.”

“What happened to Poison Ivy?”

“She found Batman,” Peeta said nodding in the direction of the redhead who was now making out with a short, pudgy version of the caped crusader. After a moment, Peeta suddenly stopped and pulled a chip from the bag. He examined it carefully on all sides and smiled.

“Is that it?” Katniss asked in disbelief.

“This is it,” Peeta confirmed before opening his mouth wide to stuff the entire chip in.

“You’re so weird,” Katniss remarked shaking her head with a smirk.

“You love it.” He replied smugly.

“Yes, I do.” She said looking Peeta squarely in his eyes.

He swallowed hard, staring back at her.

“It’s really loud in here. Do you want to go out back?” Peeta suggested after the two looked at each other for a while unspeaking.

Katniss nodded and trailed behind Peeta as they exited to the back patio. The quiet was deafening. Katniss felt like she had cotton shoved in her ears. Peeta sighed contentedly as the two sat down on a metal gliding bench. He threw his arm behind her, resting it on the back of the seat.

“I’m glad I came to your dumb party,” Katniss admitted begrudgingly. “And Gale is pretty cool after all.”

“Is he?” Peeta glanced at her questioningly from the corner of his eye.

Katniss shrugged nonchalantly, “I guess.”

“He was asking about you earlier.”

Katniss shot him a confused look.

“Why?”

Peeta scoffed, “You know why.”

Katniss sat thoughtfully for a moment.

“He asked about us actually.” Peeta continued.

“Us?”

“Yeah. Wanted to make sure he wasn’t stepping on any toes, I guess.”

Katniss nodded. “Is he?” She finally asked.

Peeta gave a bashful shrug. Katniss gave him a gentle nudge. They glanced at each other from the corners of their eyes and smirked.

“Peeta?” Katniss said after a moment, her voice shaky.

“Yeah?” His tone seemed hopeful, he gave her a look to match.

“I think I’m-“ Katniss stopped abruptly and searched his eyes.

“What is it? You can tell me anything, you know.”

“I’m gonna be sick!” She admitted before bolting from the bench.

She made it behind the seat just in time to throw up in a nearby rose bush. She felt like she should be embarrassed, but didn’t have much time to mull it over before another wave hit her. She felt Peeta’s hands gently gather her hair from her neck and away from her face. After a while, the sickness subsided.

“Sorry.” Katniss apologized as she wiped her mouth with a shaky hand.

“I’ve seen worse at work,” Peeta replied nonchalantly.

Katniss teetered on her feet in front of him, her eyes feeling heavy.

“Let’s get you inside.” He suggested as he pulled her arm up and over his shoulders.

He casually scooped her up into his arms in the next moment when he could see that her legs were useless for the trek.

“Are you trying to seduce me?” Katniss teased, her words heavy and slow from the effects of the alcohol.

Peeta laid her gently down on his bed, “Yep, you figured me out.” He replied with a roll of his eyes.

He walked off then, much to Katniss’ confusion. She sat up and squinted when he flicked on his bathroom light. She heard the water running and eased back down on the pillow, closing her eyes as he switched the light off again. In the next moment, she felt a cool, wet cloth being pressed to her forehead. She sighed in relief and relaxed deeper into the pillow. Peeta brushed her hair from her face, twisting the end of her braid around one of his fingers. Katniss opened her eyes, taking in the sight of him sitting next to her at the edge of the bed. Her heart seemed to swell as she pressed her palm to his cheek.

“I want to grow old with you.” She whispered.

Peeta blinked and shook his head, “You’re drunk!” He laughed.

Pulling one leg up and then the other, he slipped his shoes off then undid his bow tie and a couple of shirt buttons. Katniss slid over to make room on the bed. She curled into him, laying her head on his chest as he laid down beside her.

“You don’t want to grow old with me?” She whimpered pathetically, feeling on the verge of tears.

Peeta’s chest shook as he chuckled at her once again. She felt his hand making lazy circles on her back as they lay quietly for a moment.

She popped up suddenly looking wildly at him, the washcloth sliding down her face, “Am I a black and white picture to you, or a 3-D movie with surround sound?”

“Umm..”

“Do I give you flutters? Do you like my smell?”

“Katniss, what-?”

“Am I your chip?” She cried, feeling panicked.

Peeta cupped her face in his hands, “Chill. Out.” He said slowly and calmly. “What are you talking about?”

As his blue eyes met her grey ones, Katniss felt like she could melt into his touch. Her mind and heart were whirling wildly with emotion. She gave her head a little shake, suddenly unable to meet his eyes. She muttered something about Gale then decided she needed to brush her teeth. Pulling out of Peeta’s grasp and clumsily climbing over him, she made her way to the bathroom. When she returned to bed she found Peeta fast asleep. She smiled at his sleeping figure and carefully laid back down beside him.

“I love you, Peeta Mellark.” She whispered as she touched her forehead to his temple and quickly fell asleep.

She woke in the morning to an empty bed and a raging headache. Groaning, she pushed herself up to sit and looked around to gain her bearings. Her recollection of the previous night was fuzzy at best. After a moment she stumbled to her feet and made her way to the kitchen where she found Peeta flitting around in his boxers and a T-shirt, cooking.

“Hey, Sleeping Beauty!” He said jovially, catching her eye as she shuffled in and took a seat at the kitchen table.

“Hey yourself.” She grumped as she laid her head down on her arms.

“Quite a party last night, huh?”

Katniss shot him a look and grunted a response. Peeta slid a plate full of food in front of her, taking a seat beside her at the table with his own. Katniss felt her stomach churn and cringed at the sight and smell of the food. She carefully pushed it away from her as if it might explode. She had gone back to resting her head as Gale sauntered in and sat down at the table where Katniss had left her plate. He dug into the food hungrily.

“Mornin!” He greeted them in between bites. “How was your night?” He asked looking between Katniss and Peeta.

“Fine, why?” Peeta asked.

Gale looked at Katniss pointedly waving his fork at her, “I just wondered about you two since our little conversation...”

“I gotta get home. Just remembered I have a ton of papers to grade!” Katniss said jumping from her seat.

The movement made her head spin, which made her nausea worse. Gale’s words had suddenly brought back enough memories from the night before that she didn’t want to stay around and wait for Peeta to get curious. She wasn’t quite ready for her drunk conversation to reveal too much of her sober heart.

“What did you guys talk about?” Peeta asked as he watched Katniss flee from the kitchen and down the hall to his room.

“You.”

“Me?”

“She’s in love with you,” Gale said with a shrug as he went for another bite.

“No, she’s not.” Peeta scoffed.

“Trust me, dude. She is.”

“Dude, no. She’s not.”

Both men turned and watched as Katniss made a hasty retreat with her head down; jacket and bag clutched to her chest.

“Bye.” She muttered quickly as she slammed the front door behind her.

“She is,” Gale said finally, looking Peeta dead in the eyes.

Xxx

“Well hello, Peeta. You’re a bit early for lunch, aren’t you?” An auburn-haired woman greeted Peeta with a knowing look.

“Not here for lunch today, Annie,” Peeta replied with a tight smile.

He ran his hand through his hair as he signed in on a nearby clipboard. He hadn’t felt this nervous in a long time. He clipped a visitor badge to his scrubs and exited the office. He glanced at the colorful artwork hanging on the walls as he made his way down the hall. The sounds of children’s voices filled the air as he stopped just outside a familiar classroom door. Peering in, he noticed Katniss bent near a student’s desk explaining something on a page to the boy sitting beside her. Peeta’s stomach did a quick flip flop as he went to tap lightly on the door’s window. He caught the attention of a raven-haired little girl. She jumped to her feet and made for the door to open it for him. The movement caught Katniss’ attention. She stood and looked his way, an unreadable expression crossing her features as their eyes met.

“Hi, Mr. Mellark! Are you here to read to us again?” The little girl asked in greeting as she opened the door.

Peeta smiled at her, “Not today, Jeannie.” He replied with a small smile.

“What are you doing here?” Katniss asked as she came up beside them.

“Mr. Mellark!” A few of the other students shouted in greeting.

A couple of the children even left their seats to hug his legs once they realized a familiar guest was among them. He smiled and squeezed them back.

“Let’s get back to work, boys and girls. Mr. Mellark was just leaving.” Katniss announced as she gripped Peeta roughly by the arm and walked him forcefully toward the door.

“What gives?” He asked as they made their way out to the hall, giving his arm a rub.

“Aren’t you supposed to be working?” Katniss asked as she crossed her arms.

“Yes, but you won’t return my calls or texts. I was starting to get worried.” Peeta replied.

Katniss seemed distracted as she poked her head back into the classroom to check on her students.

“I’ve been busy.” She said with a shrug as she turned to give him her full attention. “In fact, now isn’t a great time either.” She said as she poked her head back inside the class.

“We need to talk.” He pleaded.

“Ok. Can it wait until I don’t have a class full of seven-year-olds waiting on me, please?” She let out a huff of annoyance.

Peeta nodded in defeat, running a hand through his hair. He turned and took a few steps back down the hallway before thinking better of it.

“I just need you to know something before I go.” He said as he stopped to turn around.

Katniss stepped back out into the hall, a small group of children popped their heads out around the door to watch.

“What is it, Peeta?”

He took a deep breath before admitting, “Katniss, you’re my chip.”

“I’m your chip?” Katniss scrunched her face in confusion.

“Yeah. Always have been.” Peeta said with a shy smile as he rubbed the back of his neck.

Katniss wracked her brain trying to make sense of what he meant as he turned and walked away. As she ushered the small group of children back into the classroom and got them settled into their task, the realization hit her.

“I’m his chip!” She muttered. “I’m his chip!” She shouted as she sprinted for her classroom door.

“Johanna, I need you to watch my class for a second. I’ve gotta take care of something.” She said urgently to the teacher across the hall as she made a mad dash for the front of the building, hoping to catch Peeta before he got to his car.

She growled in frustration as she felt heavy drops of rain hit her. She scanned the parking lot quickly, noticing a pair of taillights as Peeta’s car pulled from its spot.

“Peeta!” She cried as she ran toward his car. “Peeta!” She called again coming alongside his window, hitting it with her hand.

“Katniss, what are you doing? It’s pouring!” Peeta admonished as he rolled down his window.

“I don’t care! I’m your chip!” She exclaimed.

She stepped aside as Peeta got out of his car.

“Katniss, I’m sorry it took me so long, I just didn’t think-“

Before Peeta could finish his thought, Katniss grabbed his face in her hands and pulled him to her. Their mouths crashed against each other. Peeta wrapped his arms around Katniss’ waist as he tilted his head to deepen their long overdue kiss. She slid her hands down his face, lacing her fingers at the nape of his neck.

Peeta pulled back a moment later and whispered to Katniss’ mouth, “There’s rain pouring down my butt crack.”

She threw her head back and laughed. “Thanks for the visual.”

Peeta smiled as he pushed a matted wet strand of hair from Katniss’ forehead.

“I love you.” He said, swallowing hard. “God, I don’t know why I’m so nervous!” He admitted with an awkward chuckle.

Katniss chuckled, “I love you too.”

#everlark #everlark fanfiction #drunkmindsoberheart #its been a while

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