Archive of Our Own

The warm June sun shone brightly through Katniss’ bedroom window as she awoke, and the soothing sounds of birdsong drifted through the air as she opened her eyes. She glanced at the snoring, slumbering, Peeta-sized lump next to her in bed and smiled widely.

It was a big day for Katniss- the day she would hopefully be losing her virginity to Peeta, and he would be losing his virginity to her. He didn’t know it yet, but Katniss had been planning this for months. She only hoped things would go the way she wanted them to. She felt that she and Peeta had reached a place in their relationship where they were ready to take the next step, and Katniss was looking forward to the plans she had made for them that day.

In the time since the war had ended, the romantic relationship between the former “star-crossed lovers of District 12” had come incredibly far. Their no longer platonic union was now rock-solid as far as Katniss was concerned, and the past year had brought them closer together than they ever had been.

They both still struggled with nightmares of feral mutts and lifeless children, and Peeta still had the occasional flashbacks of concrete-walled torture chambers, but they had each other to lean on when their pasts came back to haunt them. As a result of their connection, Katniss and Peeta were stronger both individually and as a couple than she could have ever hoped for. Peeta continuously made her happier than she ever thought possible after experiencing the amount of heartbreak and loss they had, and she was immensely grateful for his steady, reassuring presence in her life.

During the time since Peeta had returned from the Capitol fourteen months earlier, he and Katniss had slowly and steadily grown back together. The initial uncertainty and awkwardness Katniss had felt between them on the day she discovered him planting primroses around the perimeter of her home in Victor’s Village in honor of her sister abated gradually over time, and they were now much more than friends. They were really and truly allies, partners, and most importantly, lovers. And the best part of it all was that it had been their choice to become a couple this time, and no one had forced their hand.

Katniss and Peeta could finally be together without the prying, critical eyes of President Snow and the Capitol, and they were fortunate that the fledgling nation now known as New Panem had allowed them to heal in peace after the war. There were no more cameras, no more propos, and no more expectations. They were no longer referred to as Victors, and only the stipends they received each month from the new government hinted at their former status as Capitol darlings. They could finally, thankfully, just be themselves: Katniss and Peeta, nothing more.

The former tributes of District 12 had taken full advantage of the fact that they had been given a fresh start. They spent most of their time together, focusing on healing and reconnecting. Katniss had initially been reluctant to attend her weekly phone calls with Dr. Aurelius, but Peeta’s dedication to his own recovery had inspired her, and two months after his return she had reached out to the good doctor on her own.

Since then, they had conducted their therapy sessions on Thursday mornings, one after the other, in Katniss’ study. They gave each other ample privacy during their appointments and ensured they spent time together afterwards. Their conversations with Dr. Aurelius were trying and difficult, and they relied on each other to get through the dark memories their phone calls often recalled.

They typically spent time together on the couch in Katniss’ living room on Thursday afternoons, recovering from the onslaught of painful memories their therapy sessions bombarded them with. Their weekly routine consisted of wrapping themselves in a cocoon of cozy knitted blankets, holding one another tightly, and sipping steaming mugs of chamomile tea. They often didn’t speak at all in the hours after their respective phone calls, choosing instead to spend their time in silence. They both knew that it took time for them to fully come back to themselves after they delved so deeply into their psyches. They understood that recovery would be an ongoing, arduous process for them both, but they had decided to tackle the challenge as they chose to do everything else in their lives: together.

Thursday nights were always spent working side by side on the memory book, since they both usually felt more like themselves after supper. Peeta drew the portraits and Katniss wrote the captions, continuing the tradition that began before the Quarter Quell, when they had worked together on Katniss’ family plant book. Dr. Aurelius had been encouraging of their decision to create the memory book, telling them that journaling was an often-used psychological tool for those who were recovering from trauma. They had struggled on certain pages more than others, especially Prim’s, Finnick’s, and Rue’s, but relied on each other as they worked through their emotions, always feeling a bit lighter afterwards. The memory book had been a critical part of their healing journey, and as each week passed, they both slowly began to feel more whole.

The majority of their days, other than Thursdays, went very much the same: they awoke wrapped up in one another in Katniss’ bed and ate breakfast together before she left for the woods to hunt. Peeta joined her on occasion when the weather was nice, taking the time to sketch in a scenic spot while she foraged and hunted. Saturdays and Sundays were rest days, and they rarely left the house other than to check on Haymitch. Katniss and Peeta were both self-professed homebodies and enjoyed the domestic tranquility they had found in Katniss’ home in Victor’s Village. They had developed a routine that worked for them, and the comfortable repetition helped them heal almost as much as therapy did.

Most weekdays, when he didn’t join Katniss in the woods, Peeta baked while she was away- for them and for Haymitch, but also for the rest of the district’s population. Peeta liked feeling useful, and he had decided that the best way he could contribute to the district was to help feed its residents. He used Katniss’ kitchen as his home base, spending the entirety of his mornings baking various types of loaves and rolls to deliver to the small population of District 12. Katniss returned from her hunting trips around noon each day, at which point Peeta had usually finished preparing lunch. He always took a plate of food over to Haymitch, who never left his spot on the tattered, filthy couch in his home before three o’clock in the afternoon.

Katniss and Peeta spent their afternoons doing chores around her house before starting dinner. They cooked side by side, enjoying the peace and quiet before Haymitch stumbled into the kitchen for dinner around six o’clock. He was surprisingly punctual for being inebriated the majority of the day, a fact that would have made Effie proud.

They heard from their former escort via spontaneous letters on occasion, but Effie had yet to visit them. Katniss suspected it was too painful for her to see District 12 the way it was: a bombed-out shell of its former self. District 12 had never been glamorous by any means, but it looked even more desolate now than it had before the war.

It would take many long months for the residents to work through the entirety of the rubble. The number of corpses was staggering, and though Thom’s team worked hard to clear the debris, their progress was slow going. Ever since the first time she had been to the town center the day Peeta returned to the district, Katniss couldn’t stomach going past it on her way to the fence bordering the woods.

She and Peeta had purposefully avoided seeing the bulk of the wreckage in the heart of town again until six months after Peeta’s return, both being too mentally fragile to handle seeing the level of destruction that had taken place. When they had finally gathered the courage to do so, it had taken them both three days to leave Katniss’ bed afterwards. Seeing evidence of the Capitol’s wrath had debilitated them both in the worst way, sending Peeta straight into a flashback and Katniss into a major depressive state. Haymitch had been the one to get them out of it, tending to them both until they were able to leave Katniss’ bedroom. The old drunk had made a surprisingly attentive caretaker, doing whatever his former mentees needed to get back on their feet.

All three of them had made it a point to avoid town after that, asking Thom to let them know once the reconstruction efforts were further along. He had agreed, understanding why it was so difficult for them. He contacted them three months after that, letting them know that his team had finally gotten the debris in the center of town out of the way and that reconstruction had begun in earnest. Katniss and Peeta walked to town the next day with Haymitch in tow, all of them impressed and surprised at how much progress had been made in such a short time.

Thom’s crew had recruited additional helpers from District 10, allowing them to double the speed at which they worked. The result had been an open space where the town’s former businesses could be rebuilt. Peeta hadn’t once mentioned wanting to re-open his family’s bakery to Katniss, and she suspected he may never be interested in doing so. Their recovery was almost a full-time job, and they both knew they needed to prioritize their mental health above all else. Peeta was happy to continue baking for the district on his own time, footing the bill for the ingredients he ordered from the Capitol, but she didn’t see him wanting to take on the responsibility of running a business. They had fought hard for the peaceful life they now enjoyed, and they were fortunate that neither of them had any financial need to work. They wanted to spend as much time together as they could, and Katniss felt they deserved it after all they had endured.

For the first time ever, their lives were theirs to do with as they pleased, and they intended to enjoy every second they had. It was cathartic to finally be in a place of tranquility after the horrors of their past. Life was good, and a year and a half after the war, Katniss could finally, blessedly, say that she was happy.

There was only one thing missing from her life, however, and that was a true physical and sexual connection with Peeta. She crossed her fingers and hoped that the plans she had put in place for that evening would yield the result she wanted, which was making love to Peeta.

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Peeta and Katniss’ journey towards intimacy had been a long, slow process, especially for Katniss, who had felt ready to pursue their romantic relationship only four months after Peeta’s return to District 12. Their friendship had developed steadily as they began to heal and spend time together, growing increasingly more comfortable with one another over the course of several months.

One day, as they ate dinner together, it hit Katniss that the feelings she once had for Peeta had reemerged. Her sister’s death had made her numb to most things, but over time, after many lost days, Katniss had slowly come back to life. Her feelings for Peeta had been buried deep beneath the many levels of pain and trauma she had been forced to endure, and as she progressed in her therapy, Katniss felt her shattered heart begin to mend.

She had seen changes in Peeta as well, noting that he looked at her with more affection with each passing day. She often wondered how long it would take for him to catch up to what she was feeling for him, realizing that it was important she be patient, since he had gone through many psychological changes during his torture and imprisonment in the Capitol. As she came to grips with her no longer dormant feelings for Peeta, Katniss promised herself to give him as long as he needed. She wasn’t going anywhere, and there was no one she cared about as deeply as she did Peeta. She resolved to wait patiently for him, no matter how long it took.

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Six months after his return to District 12, on a beautiful October morning, Peeta had surprised Katniss by kissing her during one of their hikes through the woods.

They spent nearly all their time together, and had started sharing a bed one month before, after Peeta heard Katniss cry out loudly during a particularly severe nightmare. Since then, they had slowly started becoming more physically affectionate with one another. Peeta hadn’t spent the night in his own bed since the first time he had slept over, and Katniss never wanted him to leave. She was starting to think of her home as their home, since he was always there, and she reveled in their newfound closeness. It felt as if things between them were the way they were supposed to be, and that they were meant to be together constantly.

The day of their first real kiss, Peeta had been in a fantastic mood as he sketched a squirrel hiding in the leaves of an orange-hued maple tree. Katniss sat next to him, lying back on a blanket observing him work, when he leaned towards her and said, “You’re the best thing that’s ever happened to me, have I told you that?”

Katniss hadn’t been able to hide her blush as she replied, “No, you haven’t, not in so many words. It’s nice to hear, though. You’ve made my life pretty awesome, too. Especially these last few months.”

Encouraged by her words, Peeta had leaned towards her and kissed her temple, as he had recently begun doing when he was in a cheerful mood, and then moved his face lower so that their lips were only a hairsbreadth apart.

“Is this okay?” he asked her. “Because I really want to kiss you right now.”

“It’s more than okay. I want that, too. Kiss me.”

Peeta hesitated only a moment before pressing his mouth firmly against hers. His soft, lush lips made contact with Katniss’ smoothly and surely, and despite how long it had been since their last kiss in the sewers of the Capitol, it felt as natural as breathing to be so close to him again. Peeta’s kisses were like drinking a cool glass of water on a hot summer day; satisfying, fulfilling, and dare she say, necessary. How had Katniss survived the past nine months without kissing him?

She relaxed into their kiss, relieved that even after his hijacking and the atrocities they had experienced in the Capitol during their time on the Star Squad, Peeta still wanted to kiss her. She had long feared that whatever feelings he had for her before his torture and imprisonment, whether he had truly loved her or merely been very strongly in like with her, had died the night they had been separated in the Quarter Quell. To know with certainty that he still possessed the desire to kiss her, and that he could do so without experiencing a flashback, was like a balm to her weary, battered soul. Katniss was ecstatic that Peeta had finally initiated romantic activity between them and basked in the way she felt when his lips touched hers.

Feeling bold since he had been the one to initiate the first kiss between them that hadn’t taken place under scrutiny, pressure, or duress, she shyly used her tongue to caress his bottom lip, licking the seam of his mouth and hoping he would let her in. He immediately parted his lips, allowing her tongue to tangle with his. They moaned contentedly in unison once they felt the hot, slick warmth of each other’s mouths. They kissed for several long minutes, enjoying each other’s affection immensely. Katniss felt like she was ten feet tall after the way Peeta had kissed her.

He pulled away suddenly, disappointing Katniss greatly. She hadn’t been ready for their embrace to end.

“Katniss,” he breathed. “I missed this. I missed you. I missed us.”

“I missed us, too. I’m so glad you came back to me,” she replied.

They resumed their kissing, and Katniss wrapped her arms around Peeta’s neck, gently toying with the ashy blonde curls at the nape. She loved his hair, always had, and tugged it slightly as their kiss went from warm and comfortable to needy and passionate.

Peeta slipped his arms around her waist, pulling her closer, and began kissing her with the same passionate enthusiasm they had shared on the beach during the Quell. Katniss felt his want, his yearning for her, hard and throbbing through his pants. She had felt it before, on the train when they first woke up each day during the Victory Tour, but he had never pursued anything with her back then despite how much she knew he wanted her.

Things had been different between them then, but now they were at a completely different place in their relationship. As they continued kissing, Katniss wondered how far Peeta would want to take things. The same hunger she had felt for him months before had returned, and she wasn’t sure she ever wanted them to stop what they had started.

Katniss decided in that moment that though this was technically their first real kiss ever, she wouldn’t be the one to say they couldn’t progress forward in their physical relationship. If, and when, Peeta ever showed her he desired more from her, she would be a willing, enthusiastic participant.

Peeta had been the one to eventually end their kiss, a fact that didn’t surprise Katniss, as he was the one dealing with the most trauma due to his hijacking. She felt it important that he be the one to set the pace and tell her when he wanted more, not wanting to pressure him or instigate anything further before he was truly ready. She was thrilled with the fact that he had initiated things with her that day and considered it a huge step forward in both their recoveries that only six months after Peeta had returned home, they were already healthy enough to sincerely want to kiss each other.

He reassured her of his genuine interest in being affectionate with her when he kissed her tenderly on the nose and said, “That was amazing! I think we need to do a lot more kissing going forward.”

Katniss enthusiastically agreed, then sat back in her previous spot on the blanket to resume watching him sketch. She felt like they had reached a turning point in their relationship that day and knew that things between them going forward would never be the same, hopefully in only positive ways.

The next morning, while Peeta was asleep, Katniss snuck downstairs to call Dr. Aurelius. She asked if he could write her a prescription for birth control, telling the doctor that she didn’t want Peeta to know about it, and asking for his discretion. The doctor had wisely not asked questions, merely telling Katniss that it was smart of her to get ahead of things.

“Being young and in love is exciting, Katniss, and sometimes things happen in the moment that people aren’t prepared for. I commend you on being prepared for the inevitable. The last thing you and Peeta need to be dealing with right now is an unexpected pregnancy. If you ever decide you want children, you can stop taking your medication. In the meantime, however, this is the best course of action for both of you,” he had told her.

Katniss had started taking her pills as soon as they arrived on the Capitol train, ensuring never to miss a dose. She concealed them inside an old perfume bottle she had washed thoroughly and kept hidden in her bathroom cabinet. Each day before she showered, Katniss dutifully took her birth control, hoping Peeta wouldn’t discover where she kept her stash.

Eight more months passed, however, before she decided she wanted to go all the way with Peeta and take advantage of the contraceptive properties of her medicine.

Katniss had slowly been getting closer and closer to wanting to be intimate with Peeta but wasn’t yet ready for him to know she had been planning the eventual loss of their virginities for several months. She knew it would be a big deal when they finally came together, and she was both nervous and excited about experiencing sex for the first time. Peeta was the only person she had ever considered being with in that way, and she knew based on a conversation they had almost a year after he had returned to District 12 that he felt the same way.

Despite his popularity in school, Peeta had never kissed anyone other than Katniss, a fact he had revealed to her one warm March night on her front porch, thoroughly shocking her. They had been snuggled up together, cozily drinking peppermint tea, when he unexpectedly confessed that she was the first and only girl he had ever kissed. She knew he had long harbored feelings for her, but she had always suspected that he had dated a merchant girl or two before he had been reaped. He was a wonderful kisser, and he was so confident in the way he showed affection to her that she had assumed he had some type of experience.

Though she didn’t like thinking about Peeta with anyone else, Katniss had accepted the fact that her sociable, well-liked boyfriend had a past before her, and she had come to terms with the fact that she probably wasn’t his first anything. To hear that he was still a virgin, like her, and that he had never kissed anyone else was a surprise, but a completely welcome one. Katniss was jealous by nature and didn’t like anyone touching what was hers. As stunned as she was, she internally rejoiced at the information he had shared with her.

After seeing Katniss’ astonished expression, Peeta had merely shrugged and told her, “I wasn’t exaggerating when I told you in the cave that though I noticed just about every other girl in school, you were the only one to ever make a lasting impression. There were a few girls who made their interest in me known over the years, but I never wanted to pursue anything with them. I was busy with studying, wrestling, and working at the bakery, and in addition to that and my feelings for you, my mom didn’t let me stay out past 9pm, so I never attended any merchant parties. My first kiss might have happened because of the Games, but I’ll never regret that it was with you. Your lips are the only ones I’ve ever been interested in.”

In addition to surprising Katniss, Peeta’s confession had deeply touched her. She had wished on several occasions that Gale had never kissed her that fateful day in the woods, and that she could say she had never kissed anyone besides Peeta, but she knew it was pointless to waste time thinking of such things. The reality was that she and Peeta were a couple now, and that they practically lived together, though neither of them made a big deal about it. They had each apparently found it completely normal when Peeta’s clothes started slowly appearing in Katniss’ empty dresser drawers until his closet was empty and he hadn’t stepped foot in his own house in months. Neither of them ever brought the subject up, and things between them felt natural, so it was never an issue.

Katniss was happy with the way things between them were progressing, but one day she woke up with the realization that she was ready for more. She knew that the next step in the evolution of their relationship was to become intimate with one another, and she desperately wanted that, but she wasn’t sure how to go about bringing up the subject. She suddenly wanted much more than just the sweet, innocent kisses she and Peeta exchanged each day in the kitchen, or in her bed, or on the front porch. She wanted him to undress her, caress her naked body, and make love to her. She wanted to give him everything, and she wanted to do it as soon as possible. She only hoped that Peeta would be ready when she finally gathered the courage to make her intentions known.

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One of Katniss and Peeta’s favorite things to do together was trek through the woods whenever the weather permitted it. He joined her at least once per week when she went hunting, and she welcomed his company now that she no longer needed to rely on her hauls from the woods to survive. He wasn’t as loud as he once was, either, having become stealthier and more light footed over time. Peeta’s new prosthetic helped tremendously with that, as well, since it had been upgraded shortly after Coin’s death, and before he returned to District 12. Beetee had engineered him a new, state-of-the-art leg that was as strong and intuitive as the flesh and blood one he had lost after the first Games, and Peeta took any opportunity he could to exercise with his new appendage.

He had taken up running several months after moving back home and was as fit and robust as he had been before the Quarter Quell. He had no issues keeping up with Katniss in the woods and often teased her that he could run circles around her. She was always game for a bit of friendly competition, enjoying the way Peeta’s eyes lit up when they raced each other through the leafy, verdant forest she loved so much.

They had started venturing further into the woods each week until one unseasonably warm April day she took him to her favorite place on earth, her father’s lake. She had never shared the location with anyone else, long considering it sacred, but the day eventually came that she wanted to share it with Peeta.

The way his stunned face had looked when he saw the clear, blue water for the first time was worth the two-hour hike it took to get there. He looked around in awe at the seemingly never-ending expanse of water, silent for several minutes while he took in the beauty of the lake.

“Katniss, this is incredible! The water looks so much like the ocean in District 4! Thank you for bringing me here. I know this place was yours and your father’s. It means a lot to me that you’re willing to share it with me, too.”

He thanked her further with a playful kiss, tickling her as he molded their bodies together and slowly backed her up into a nearby pine tree.

“Hey! You’re not playing fair! You’re more than twice my weight, and you’ve got me pressed up against a tree! How am I supposed to get away from you when you have me pinned?” Katniss had exclaimed in surprise.

“I guess I didn’t coach you well enough before the Quell, then did I? Do you not remember our wrestling lessons?”

“Oh, I remember them all right, but you didn’t have me all hot and bothered then, and I was angry with you for being such a bossy trainer, so I actually wanted to get away from you. Now, however…”

Katniss blushed in embarrassment as she realized what she had just said out loud. She and Peeta had been kissing with increasing frequency over the past six months but had yet to take things further. All their clothes had stayed on each time they kissed, even when it happened in her bed.

Katniss had recently started wondering if Peeta would ever try to advance things physically between them and was frustrated that their many heated make out sessions hadn’t pushed him along. She knew with certainty that she was ready for more between the sheets with Peeta but had no idea how to voice her desire.

Peeta smirked down at her and replied, “I make you all hot and bothered, huh?”

Katniss huffed, mortified at the confession she hadn’t meant to make, and grumbled, “Maybe just a little.”

“Well, I’m obviously not doing a good enough job of kissing you if I’m only getting you a little bit worked up. You’ve always been able to get me going with minimal effort. I suppose I just need to try harder.”

He descended on her with fervor then, catching Katniss off guard with the intensity of his kiss. He quickly moved down to suckle her neck, something he had never attempted before, wrenching a moan out of her with ease.

Peeta abruptly stepped back with a proud grin on his face and said, “I think we found your weakness. It apparently takes neck kisses to get you all fired up. Now that we’ve established that, it’s time to move on to more pressing matters. The last one to the water is a rotten egg!”

He took off like a shot, quickly stripping off his shirt and sprinting full speed ahead towards the lake. Katniss stood stock still, panting in unsatisfied frustration as she watched his chiseled, muscular form make contact with the frigid water. He didn’t venture far, staying in the shallow part of the lake where he could stand, as he was still not completely comfortable as a swimmer despite the lessons she had given him in their second Games. He stood smiling cheekily at Katniss as he watched her glare at him.

She was more exasperated than ever with the slow pace of their physical relationship. In addition to feeling aroused by his affections, though, she was annoyed. She had the strong suspicion he was purposefully goading her. Did he want her to be the first one to bring up sex? He still had no idea she had started taking birth control all those months before and had never once mentioned progressing their kissing into something more carnal. Was this his way of hinting at wanting sexual intimacy and testing her reaction to the idea?

Katniss had no idea what to make of Peeta’s behavior, but as she followed him into the chilly water on that sunny April day, she formed one definite conclusion.

Peeta Mellark was a grade A tease.

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Another two months passed before Katniss gathered the courage to make her move. Peeta had been a bit more amorous since their first day at the lake, but they had continued to keep their clothes on whenever they kissed, much to Katniss’ disappointment. She had even tried straddling Peeta’s waist in bed one night, hoping that would encourage him to try more. Unfortunately for her neglected libido, he had primly placed his hands on her hips and continued kissing her before saying goodnight and spooning with her like he always did.

Afterwards, Katniss had laid in bed for hours as she listened to his soft snoring, frustrated that the ache between her thighs had yet to be satisfied. She considered taking matters into her own hands and masturbating, but despite many attempts over the years she had never been able to achieve the release she so desperately needed. She knew from prior conversations with Johanna that sometimes women needed more stimulation than men did to achieve orgasm. She wondered what it would take to get Peeta naked, suspecting that she could get closer to the climax she wanted so badly if he was part of the equation. She decided to put more effort into things from that point forward. She had no experience with flirting or seduction, but she had reached a point where something had to change. She had needs that weren’t being met, and she very much wanted to do something about it.

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By the beginning of June, Katniss had begun to feel almost frantic with the need for more intimacy with Peeta. She started actively planning a way to seduce him, and after much deliberation decided to use the lake as the location for what she hoped would be their first ever sexual encounter.

They had returned there several times since their initial visit together. She spent time teaching him to swim, until he was confident in his abilities to float and move in the water. He soon got to a point where he could almost keep up with her, and they enjoyed visiting the lake together with increasing frequency, taking advantage of the warmer than normal spring weather that year.

On Katniss’ nineteenth birthday, Peeta had surprised her with a gift he had somehow smuggled to the lake without her knowledge. He woke her up with gentle kisses to the forehead, singing ‘Happy Birthday’ to her in an adorable, off-key baritone before informing her that he was taking her to the lake for the day.

She had been pleased to discover that he had thought of everything, packing a picnic basket and his sketchbook before leading her by the hand to the lake. When they arrived, she saw that he had procured an old truck tire from somewhere and used a rope to tie it securely to a willow oak tree. He had proceeded to grin as she gaped at him, and then ran towards the tire swing, launching his body into the chilly water after swinging back and forth several times.

Katniss had been thrilled with his lighthearted gift, and the pair acted like giddy children for several hours as they took turns jumping off the tire swing into the water and splashing one another. That day was one of Katniss’ favorite memories with Peeta, ever, and she thought of it often.

The lake had quickly become a special place for them, and Katniss considered it their home away from home. She knew the adjacent cabin was the perfect spot for them to take their relationship to the next level, not to mention the fact that they wouldn’t be interrupted by their nosy, drunk neighbor there. The lake was a romantic and private spot, perfect for what Katniss had in mind.

They had been to the lake only twice since her birthday, and one early June morning as she watched Peeta snoring softly beside her in bed, she decided they were overdue for a visit.

Several days later, after secretly preparing things while Peeta was busy making bread deliveries around the district, Katniss informed him that she planned to take him camping that day.

“Camping? Do we even have a tent?” he asked.

“No, but we don’t need one. We have a perfectly good cabin we can sleep in. It even has a fireplace.”

Peeta looked intrigued at her plans, telling her, “That sounds like fun! I say we do it. What time do we leave?”

She told him that they would be leaving an hour from then, explaining that she had everything taken care of and that he only needed to get dressed. He excitedly ran up the stairs and got ready immediately, bounding back to the kitchen only fifteen minutes later.

Encouraged by his enthusiasm, Katniss dressed quickly as well before leading him out the door with their sleeping bags and overnight gear in hand. They laughed and chatted the entirety of the two-hour hike there, both excited for their camping trip. Katniss was nervous that he would turn down her advances that evening, but she forced herself to think happier thoughts and focus on the wide grin on Peeta’s face as they made their way towards their destination.

When they arrived, Katniss showed Peeta around the cabin. They had never ventured inside the small dwelling together before, choosing instead to soak up as much sunshine as possible on their visits. Despite its shabby, dilapidated exterior, however, the interior of the space was clean and partially furnished, to Peeta’s surprise.

“Has it always looked like this, or have you been maintaining it all these years? It looks great for having been abandoned so long ago,” he asked.

“I recently cleaned it up a bit and brought a few small pieces of furniture with me, using a cart I borrowed from Thom. I planned to stay overnight with you at some point, so I wanted to get it ready.”

“You did a great job! This place is perfect. All it needs is a little tender loving care and a few coats of paint and it could be a proper second home for us.”

Delighted at his words, Katniss replied, “You like it that much?”

“I do!  It’s nice to get away from Victor’s Village occasionally. I like Haymitch, you know I do, but sometimes he and his geese get a little demanding, and the time away whenever we come here provides the perfect opportunity for a break. It’s tranquil out here, and I feel like we’re both happier whenever we return home after our visits. Having a place where we can stay the night is the icing on the cake. I say we put a little work into fixing it up further so we can ‘camp’ out here more often.”

Katniss gave him a grateful kiss and agreed with him before dragging him out of the cabin and leading him towards the water. They swam and horsed around for hours before finally stopping around dinnertime to eat the food she had packed.

As they relaxed on the blanket after their meal, enjoying the cool evening breeze, she decided she was ready to initiate her plan. She had originally wanted them to make love in the cabin before they went to bed, but the moment felt right, and she decided to go with it.

Peeta was smiling at her warmly when she leaned in to kiss him. She slanted her mouth firmly over his, embracing him tightly as she wrapped her arms around his neck. He enthusiastically returned her affections, bringing his body closer to hers before draping his arms around her hips. Katniss straddled his lap, increasing the intensity of the kiss by dipping her tongue in his mouth. Peeta moaned contentedly, clearly enjoying what they were doing.

Feeling emboldened by his response, Katniss started kissing his jawline and neck, suckling the skin lightly. She had never tried that before, but she had enjoyed the way it felt when he did it that time against the pine tree on their first visit to the lake. She hoped he would like the way it felt to have her mouth on him, too.

Katniss could feel Peeta harden almost immediately after she had begun her exploration of his neck. He groaned as she continued trailing kisses downwards, towards his clavicle, and since he was still shirtless from their swim she had complete access to his firm, muscular torso. He hadn’t stopped her yet, so she continued her journey down his body until she reached his nipples, tentatively using her tongue to flick at the left one. Peeta’s response was instantaneous; she felt him buck against her as his already hard erection swelled to what she assumed was full mast.

“Katniss,” he moaned, “What are you doing?”

Katniss pulled away from kissing his chest and replied, “I’m showing you how much I want you. Do you want me to stop? I don’t want to make you uncomfortable or push you for something you’re not ready for.”

Peeta looked at her in surprise and said, “There’s no way I want you to stop what you’re doing. Believe me when I tell you that I’ve wanted this for a really long time. I wasn’t sure when you’d want us to cross that bridge, though, so I never asked to go further than kissing. I promise that there’s nothing I want more than for us to learn each other’s bodies, and I’d really like to make love to you, whenever you feel you’re ready for it. I’ll gladly wait as long as you need, though. There are other things we can explore before we reach that point. We don’t have to go all the way to be intimate with one another.”

Katniss couldn’t believe what she was hearing. It turned out that she and Peeta had both secretly been harboring a desire to further their physical relationship, but neither of them wanted to be the first one to bring up the subject in case it was too soon. She wanted to laugh at their mutual naïve considerateness. By worrying about each other’s needs so much, they had inadvertently forced themselves to wait for something they both wanted. She was suddenly glad she had garnered the courage to try for more that day.

“I’m ready, Peeta. I’ve been ready for a while now, but I felt the same way you did, like I didn’t want to be the one to broach the issue before the time was right. It sounds like we’re on the same page now, though, right?”

Peeta’s reply was a searing kiss. He swiftly moved over her, covering her small body with his larger one, and situated himself between her legs. Her thighs opened automatically for him, another sure sign that her body wanted him, badly. They kissed for several heated minutes before Katniss moved her hands up to Peeta’s chest to slowly start caressing him. He leaned down to kiss the spot on Katniss’ neck that had driven her wild two months prior, laving at her pulse point with his tongue until he had her almost desperate for him.

“Peeta,” she said. “I want you.”

He pulled away from her, and as he worked to catch his breath said, “We don’t have any contraception out here, though. Haymitch gave me a box of condoms a few months ago, but it’s in one of my dresser drawers, two hours away.”

Katniss shyly looked at him and said, “I might have been planning this a bit longer than you think. I’ve been taking birth control since October.”

Peeta smiled widely at her and replied, “Oh really, now? If I had known you were protected this whole time, I would have jumped you a long time ago.”

Katniss groaned resignedly and asked, “Are you serious? You mean I’ve been sexually frustrated for the past eight months for no reason?”

Peeta chuckled and replied, “You’re not the only one. I’ve been going crazy when we kiss, hoping each time that you’d try for more. Every time you touch me, I feel like I’m going to explode.”

“At least you can reach orgasm easily when you’re by yourself since you’re a guy. I’ve never been able to manage it on my own. I’ve tried many times, and it’s never worked.”

Peeta gave her a reassuring smile and said, “I don’t have any experience with the female body, but I can assure you that if you’ll allow it, I’ll gladly try everything I can to get you there. All I want is to make you feel good, Katniss. I’ll work as hard as I need to, for as long as I need to, until it happens.”

Katniss felt the sensitive bud between her legs throb insistently at his words. The knowledge that Peeta was so enthusiastic about giving her an orgasm made the hunger she felt for him surge until she felt almost ravenous.

She wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him back down on top of her, kissing him unabashedly. Peeta took the hint and placed his hands on her tummy, slowly massaging the skin there until he had worked his way up to her breasts. He squeezed them once, gently, before using his thumbs to tenderly rub her nipples over her shirt, causing a pleasurable jolt to run through her body.

“Peeta,” she moaned into his mouth, “That feels so, so good.”

He moved his lips away from hers and down to her neck, finding her favorite spot again as he tentatively slipped his hands beneath the damp tank top she had worn for their swim. She wasn’t wearing a bra, allowing Peeta’s hands to make instant contact with her small breasts. His hands were warm and felt amazing against her skin, and as he resumed his prior ministrations and tweaked her nipples lightly, Katniss threw her head back in bliss.

She felt as if she would burst with pleasure at the sensations he had brought forth in her, and started slowly grinding her pelvis against his, seeking relief. Peeta returned the movements by pushing his rock-hard length against her over and over, before finding the spot she so badly wanted him to touch. Noticing how much she enjoyed being stimulated there, Peeta moved one of his hands from her breasts to beneath her cotton shorts and underwear, massaging her folds until she nodded in encouragement. He used one finger to explore her opening further until she said, “Right there!”

Katniss swiftly pulled her shorts and panties off to give him better access, baring her lower half to him for the first time. He stared down at her, seemingly mesmerized, before he looked her in the eye and said, “You’re so beautiful. I can’t believe this is finally happening.”

“Shut up and kiss me,” she replied, smiling at him sweetly before leaning towards him. Peeta grinned back before latching his mouth to hers and resuming his earlier attentions to her clitoris. He rubbed softly at first, hesitant to do more until he knew how it felt for her.

She nodded and pulled her mouth away from his before saying, “Yes, that’s it, but try a little more pressure, please.”

He pushed against her swollen, needy bud and added another finger, stroking firmly until she was panting and shaking in his arms with her release. Katniss swore she saw stars as she came, moaning loudly into the warm June air. There was no one but them there, save for a few waterfowl, and she reveled in the knowledge that she could be as loud as she wanted.

When she opened the eyes she had screwed shut in pleasure, she saw an awed Peeta staring back at her.

“Wow!” he said. “That was the single most amazing thing I’ve ever seen. I feel like some sort of hero for making that happen.”

“That was my first orgasm, ever, so I’d agree. You’re definitely my favorite person right now,” she replied cheekily as she worked to catch her breath.

“Just right now?” he asked, with a proud smile on his face.

“Well, I suppose you’re okay all the time, but I’m especially happy with you at the moment.”

“I can think of another way to make you happy, if you’re feeling up for it?” he asked, with a hopeful smile.

Katniss looked down at his tented swim shorts and nodded.

“Yes,” she said. “My answer is yes. I’m ready, Peeta. I’m ready for everything with you.”

“I know from conversations with my brothers that this is likely going to hurt you at first, but the fact that you just climaxed, and that you’re aroused and wet down there, should help. I promise to go slow, though, okay? And I want you to tell me if I’m doing something that doesn’t work for you, or if you want me to stop. You can say no at any time, and we can just cuddle and enjoy the rest of our camping trip. You can change your mind at any point, and I’ll understand.”

“I don’t think I’ll change my mind, but I really appreciate you saying that. The same goes for you. If you need or want to stop, just say the word.”

Peeta kissed her tenderly and replied, “Okay.”

No other words were spoken as they reverently undressed one another and admired each other’s bare bodies for the first time. Peeta was riveted by the sight of Katniss’ bare breasts, and though she was initially self-conscious that he would think they were too small, the fascinated look on his face eased her concerns immediately.

As he gazed down at her naked form, he told her, “Katniss, I’ve always thought you were the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen, but seeing you like this takes it to a whole different level. I love you so much. I need you to know that, okay? I know I’ve never said the words out loud, but it’s been true for a long time now, and despite everything we’ve gone through together, it’s always been true. You’re it for me. You always have been. Even when they tried to twist my memories of you, even when I hurt you when I wasn’t in my right mind, even through all the pain and suffering, it’s always been you. I’ve never wanted this with anyone else, and now that we’re here I need you to know that I adore you. You’re the love of my life.”

Katniss teared up instantly at his admission, wholly caught off guard by the passionate way he had spoken to her. She knew she loved him, too, and had known it for months, but she was tongue-tied with both desire and awe as she took in his brawny, athletic body in all its naked glory for the first time. The sight of Peeta, so obviously aroused and ready for her, combined with what he had just told her had Katniss completely at a loss for words.

So, instead of replying, Katniss chose to do what she did best; she showed him her feelings through actions rather than words.

She placed her hands near his muscular, defined abdomen and ran her fingers through the fine, blond hairs there before trailing her hand lower, to his rigid shaft. She timidly grasped him in her hand and moved her fist up and down for several moments, from the root to the tip, before increasing her efforts.

Peeta watched Katniss, completely enthralled by the sight of her hands on his penis, and moaned her name as she continued to pleasure him. Eventually, he placed his hand on top of hers and said, “That feels insanely good, but if we want to do more, we should probably stop. I want to be inside you, badly. Do you still want that, too?”

“Yes.”

Peeta lied down on top of Katniss, resuming his earlier kisses to her neck before moving lower, towards her chest. He wrapped his hot, warm mouth around her left nipple and tenderly sucked, causing her to cry out in pleasure, before taking himself in his hand and placing his erection near her opening. He gently slid the tip forward before removing his mouth from her breast and asking, “Are you ready?”

Katniss nodded and watched, fascinated, as Peeta slowly sheathed himself inside her. He moved gently and smoothly, pausing every few seconds to give her time to adjust, before their hips were completely flush, and he could go no further.

His handsome face was scrunched up in pleasure as he told her, “Katniss, my love, you feel incredible. This is even better than I imagined. Are you okay? Am I hurting you?”

“I’m okay. You feel good. This feels perfect,” she breathed. He was large, and she felt quite a bit of pressure with him inside her, but she didn’t feel pain. It felt wonderful and meant to be, to be joined with him so intimately. Gazing lovingly into the stunning blue eyes of the man that had changed her life in so many ways, Katniss knew that what was happening between them would have eventually happened anyway. They were always meant to be connected like this, as one, in the same way they tackled everything in their lives; together.

As the sun began to set over the lake, bathing them in the soft orange color Peeta admired so much, he made love to Katniss tenderly and sweetly. She was in a state of pure bliss, thoroughly enjoying the way it felt as he thrust inside her over and over. She had never imagined it could feel that divine to be joined with him so intimately. Everything she had wanted, everything she had craved for months was finally happening. She wanted to feel the way she did in that moment, forever. That they had ultimately arrived at this place, making love by their lake after everything they had suffered, felt right. To know that life could be good again, despite all their losses, was reassuring in ways Katniss had never expected. She knew then that only Peeta was capable of giving her that level of peace.

After he reached his release, Peeta finished Katniss with his fingers for the second time that day. They basked in the afterglow of their lovemaking, wrapped up in one another on their blanket, for several blissful minutes before Peeta turned to her.

“You love me, real or not real?” he whispered, looking sated and content.

She gave him a dazzling smile in return and replied, “Real.”

THE END