Hello—and welcome, welcome to this new story. This is based slightly off of the book, Thoughtless, by S.C. Stephens—but twisted into my own little Everlark world…

The characters of The Hunger Games Trilogy do not belong to me.

"So, sure, I could just close my eyes.
Yeah, sure, trace and memorize,
But can you go back once you know…"

-Ben Folds feat. Regina Spektor 'You Don't Know Me'

You Don't Know Me

Chapter One: Katniss

"Honey, wake up."

Opening my eyes, I turn to see Cato smiling excitedly at me. My body aches from the eight-hour drive from our last stop somewhere in Maryland. Groaning, I sit up and realize that we are actually in Manhattan as our tiny VW Beetle passes Grand Central Station.

"I can't believe that we're actually here," I tell him as I look out the window.

"We're living the high life, baby!" Cato responds in excitement. His hand reaches for mine and his thumb caresses my knuckles. "And by high life, I mean sharing a flat with Gale's former roommate…"

I chuckle at the sudden drop in his tone. "The guy can't be that bad. I mean he tolerated Gale—asshole that he was."

Gale has been our friend since Kindergarten. He, Cato, and I were all put at the same table. During art time, Gale swiped my yellow crayon—and I smacked him in the face. Cato tried to take the blame which ended up with all three of us sitting in the corner for a time-out.

We've been friends ever since.

In time, however, Cato and I transitioned into more. He had been my first crush, my first kiss, my first date, and my first…everything else.

Gale was the wide-eyed wanderer and when we all graduated, he had made a quick decision to go NYU to pursue his journalism degree while Cato and I decided to attend Panem University, our local college, together.

My best friend, who could've been related to me due to our similar coloring, scoffed when we told him our decision.

"Boring," Gale declared. "You two will never leave Panem." He looked to Cato. "You'll use your photography degree to work at Sears and take Easter photos." Then, Gale looked to me. "You'll never work on your music. You'll just spend your days popping out kids."

He meant it as a joke but Gale could have a fucked-up sense of humor sometimes.

Four years later, Gale is off to London to work as an international correspondent for the New York Times. Cato had been offered a position as a photo editor for an online travel magazine based in Manhattan.

Job offers have been scarce for me. I guess that's what you get for getting a degree in music.

So when Cato told me about his offer and asked me to move with him to Manhattan, I said yes.

"I think that you'll get along with Peeta," Cato informs me. "He's a musician and is pretty popular in the club circuit so Gale said that we would never not have anywhere to go."

He begins to pull into a parking space in front of a large brick building as I look down at my cell phone.

Prim, my little sister, is probably still asleep. There's a three-hour difference and it's only five in the morning in Panem. My Dad might be up as he has to open our grocery store for deliveries.

"You okay?" I look up to see Cato staring, his light eyes concerned. "Are you nervous about Juilliard?"

"Maybe a little," I tell him. Sighing, I give him a half-smile. "What if I don't belong here?"

"Then we can go back home," Cato assures me. He leans out of his seat and gives me a kiss. "But, I know you, Katniss. You've never backed down on a challenge and I think that going to graduate school in New York is going to expose you to a lot of great things."

Cato always knows what to say to comfort me.

I unbuckle my seatbelt and push myself over the shift space to give him another kiss. "You're my hero, you know."

My boyfriend gives me handsome smile. "Katniss, you've never needed to be saved."

Walking out of the elevator, I don't realize that there's a slight gap in the floor and I pitch forward—the box in my hands.

"HOLY SHIT!" Someone yells as the box flies out of my grasp.

I can see myself about to hit the floor and instinctively, I close my eyes.

But, I don't hit the floor.

Instead, I'm engulfed in the scent of warm bread loaves as strong arms encircle my waist.

Opening my eyes, I'm greeted with warm blue eyes and a handsome face staring down at me.

"That could've been really bad," he says in a quiet voice.

My eyes look to the box on the ground next to us, its content spilt forward.

"Well, that box had all my underwear in it and the floor is covered in bras," I respond.

He chuckles at my words and his hand reaches to move away a tendril of hair swept across my face.

"You're funny," the man tells me. "What's your name?"

I'm a little breathless looking into his eyes, cornflower blue and full of depth. His hair is dirty blond, much darker than Cato's and his sculpted face draws down to a strong chin that cradles his bright smile.

He's beautiful.

"My name…" My mouth feels full of cotton. "My name is—"

"KATNISS!" I hear Cato's rushed steps towards me and the man still holding me in his arms. When he reaches us, his and the man's eyes meet. "What happened to her?"

"Tripped over the gap in the elevator," the man informs Cato.

Together, he and Cato help me to my feet.

"Glad you came to her rescue, Peeta," Cato says to him. My boyfriend looks around at the underwear spilt down the floor hallway. "Though it looks like the box didn't make it."

"Geez, I'm embarrassed enough," I say as I recover and turn to look at the man in front of me wearing the fitted dark jeans and white v-neck. Holding out my hand to Peeta, I meet him square in the eyes. "Katniss Everdeen."

He takes my hand to give it a gentle squeeze and I feel a comfort radiating through me.

"Peeta Mellark." His hold lingers for a moment as we stare at one another. "Welcome to Manhattan."

"Thanks," I reply and slowly our hands pull apart.

There's a buzz coming from his jeans pocket and Peeta pulls out his phone. He groans before giving us another smile.

"Gotta go. I work at a bakery two blocks down and our flour shipment is here," Peeta explains. "Make yourselves at home. I don't have much in the fridge but beer. There's a deli market across the street if you want to grab something."

"Thanks Peeta," Cato tells him jovially.

"I'll see you at Haymitch's around six for a welcome drink and introduce you both to the crew," he tells my boyfriend. Leaning down, Peeta reaches and grabs the black lace bra at his feet. Placing it in my hands, he winks at me before opening the gate of the elevator to step into it. "Stay on your feet, Katniss."

I nod wordlessly, trying to keep the heat from rising once again.

"Nice guy, right?" Cato says as we begin to gather my underwear to put it back into the box.

"Yeah…nice," I respond, still remembering the warmth and smell of Peeta Mellark.

Rough lips caress my neck and a moan escapes my mouth. Slowly I come to, remembering that Cato and I had fallen asleep after getting all my boxes. We didn't even bother putting sheets on our mattress.

"What time is it?" I ask Cato as he nips on the soft flesh of my ear. Pressing against him, I feel him hard against the thin cloth of my pajama pants.

"5:30," he responds as his hand wanders to my front and under my tank top. "Do we have time?"

His fingers are teasing my nipples to peaks and my lower half twists, fully awakened and aching to be touched.

I turn to him, throwing a leg over his hip to draw him closer to me. "We can be quick…"

Cato grins and lies back so I can fully straddle him. His hands go to my hips and I shift to feel his cock straining in his jeans.

There's a knock on the door. "Cato? Katniss?" Peeta's voice calls out from outside the door. "Got home early from my shift. You still down to go to Haymitch's?"

My boyfriend meets my eyes and I nod in acceptance as I get off of him.

Cato turns to the door. "Give us five minutes!"

"You don't think that he heard us, do you?" I ask as I reach into one of the boxes to pull out a pair of jeans.

"We just have to get used to having a roommate, sweetheart," Cato says to me. "It'll be fine—and I'm sure in time we're all going to get along."

"Fine," I tell him as I reach to grab my hairbrush from another open box. I give him a smile. "This job better pay you some serious cash, sweetie. Because I don't know if I can take having to be quiet during…you know."

Standing up, Cato walks over to me. "Well, you'll just have to practice." Sinking down to his knees, his hands reach down to the elastic of my pajama pants to pull them off along with my panties. I stand before him, my lower half exposed to his gaze.

I'm throbbing, hurting to have his mouth on me. "What are you doing?"

"Five minute lesson," Cato tells me as his lips are pressed to my inner thigh. "On how to be silent in such a small space."

Haymitch's bar is five blocks down from our apartment building. On our way there, Peeta points out the bakery that he works at during the day as an assistant to Mags, who owns the hole-in-the-wall patisserie. He tells us that most of the people who work at the bar are students who go to NYU with the exception of Johanna, who is actually the business manager.

"I think that Haymitch might be plowing her too—but don't mention that to either of them," Peeta says as we get closer to our destination. He's changed out of his white v-neck and is now in a black shirt and brown leather bomber jacket. "Also, you're going to meet Madge, who Gale had a bit of a thing with before he skipped town."

"He mentioned Madge," I tell Peeta. Often, Cato and I would get drunken phone calls from him spouting out the beauty of Madge Undersee. "He likes her more than he's letting on."

Entering the bar, several voices shout out to Peeta and he waves to everyone before going to the bar. A tall, dark-haired man wearing a ratty shirt stands behind it, cleaning beer glasses. As we reach the bar, he reaches out to shake Peeta's hand.

"Picking up strays?" The man asks with a smirk.

"No, since Gale's abandoned the bar in favor of pubs," Peeta starts. "He helped a starving artist out and brought me a duo. This is Cato and Katniss."

"The photographer and the musician," Haymitch says. "You two any good?"

"I just got a job working for an online magazine as their editor," Cato informs the man. "And, Katniss is going to Julliard because she's brilliant."

Haymitch looks to me, a smirk on his scruffy face. "So, Miss Juilliard—are you going to perform for us?"

"I don't know," I tell him. There is something in me that immediately trusts him despite his surliness. "Depends, really."

"On what?" The question comes from Peeta.

I meet his deep blues unwaveringly. "Convince me. You have to really want it."

Peeta doesn't respond though his eyes rove over me for a moment before he looks to Haymitch.

"I'm going to need some welcome shots for my new roommates."

A slender woman with dark bobbed hair joins Haymitch from the back part of the bar.

"Those better not be on the house," she warns the man. "We have enough hard times ever since we lost Delly to married life. We can't be giving away free drinks."

"YES WOMAN!" Haymitch shouts though there's a wisp of a smile on his lips. "Now let me pour in peace!"

"This is Johanna," Peeta says to Cato and me.

The infamous Johanna shakes our hands, her eyes looking us over. "You two a couple?"

Cato put an affectionate arm around me. "Been together since we were kids."

"I can tell," Johanna scoffs. "You two almost look identical."

Something about her words bothers me. I think it's the fact that even though I'm with Cato, I don't want to always be associated as just his girl. It was like that in Panem—and I didn't want it to be that way in Manhattan.

This was as much of a journey of self-discovery for me as it is for Cato.

Soon, we're joined by the rest of Peeta's friends—Thresh, who is a history major at NYU, Finnick, a law student and his fiancée, Annie, who runs a small boutique in SoHo and then Madge, Gale's sort-of flame, who is also a waitress here at the bar.

"She looks like Gale's type," Cato remarks with a smile as we look at the pretty blonde, who is serving a group of bowlers some beers in the corner of the bar.

"Hey Cato!" Thresh calls out to my boyfriend. "Can you recommend a good camera for night shots?"

Cato turns to me. "Do you mind?" I shake my head and he gives me a quick kiss before going to Thresh's table where the man sits with Finnick and Annie.

I look around the room at the lively bar, watching the people around me having a great time. I feel completely lost. For a moment, I panic. Am I going to fit in? Everyone seems to have carved their own little niche—even Cato.

"Having fun?" I turn to see Peeta standing next to me.

"It's…different." My eyes continue to look over the scene in front of me. "Panem is a small town. I need to get used to Manhattan—and its hugeness."

"Come on, you're going to Juilliard," The boy who smells of bread says to me. "That's pretty cool!"

"Yeah." I smile to myself. "Since I was a kid, I always made up these silly songs and performed them. Sometimes, I'd even make Cato or Gale perform with me. Hopefully one day, I'll get to do what I enjoy for a living. For now, I just need to find a part time job and focus on Juilliard."

"I can help you with one of those things," Peeta says to me. The warmth of the bar has tinted his cheeks with a slight blush. He turns to Haymitch and Johanna, who are arguing over how much should go into a shot. "I found your new waitress." His hand goes to my back to lead me forward. "Hire Katniss."

"You have any experience?" Johanna asks.

"I served drinks at a smoothie bar one summer," I tell her.

Johanna doesn't look convinced.

"Start next Monday at 4:00—and Madge will show you the ropes," Haymitch suddenly says to me.

I'm in shock over the swiftness of it all.

"Really?" The man nods before going back to his argument with Johanna. Turning to Peeta, I beam at him. "Thank you. I really needed a job."

Peeta smiles handsomely, his heated eyes on mine.

"Of course, we're roommates. We have to take care of each other."

Two Weeks Later…

"China?" I repeat. "Wow."

I sit down on our bed in shock. Cato joins me and takes my hand.

"I can turn it down," he tells me. "I know that it's awfully quick—"

"No!" I say to him. "This is your first assignment and you should go. I just didn't think that it would be so soon." Taking a deep breath, I give him an assuring smile. "I'll have a lot of things to keep me preoccupied so the time will pass quickly."

We still haven't finished unpacking. Also, classes start in a week and I've also been filling my time with shifts at the bar. I continue to list all the things for me to do in my head to keep myself from coming to terms with the fact that Cato will be leaving for a cross-country journey for a whole month.

And, that I will be all alone.

"What are you thinking?" Cato whispers into my ear. I turn to meet those sweet blue eyes. I haven't been able to lie to Cato since we were kids. He could always tell that I was keeping something from him.

"A month," I say to him. "A lot can happen in a month."

"I'm going to be traveling in a rickety old van and climbing to temples," Cato replies. "You're going to be in school and at work. The time will pass and before you know it—I'm going to be home and in your arms."

Together, we lay back on the soft mattress and I'm spooned against Cato. His heart beats against my back and press myself into him to memorize those beats coming from his firm chest.

"It's going to be boring here," I whine.

"Is that your way of saying you're going to miss me?" Cato asks and I chuckle at his teasing words. Before long, he is laying me on my back to press his lips to mine. My arms encircle around his neck as he urgently begins to tug at the leggings I wear. "Promise that you will."

My legs part eagerly as soon as Cato throws my leggings, along with my panties, to the ground—and then, he is thrusting quickly into me. My back arches as the pleasure spikes up my chest and causes my nipples to tighten.

"I'll miss you…and this…" I tell him as his hand reaches to yank my shirt up and his lips go immediately to a rosy peak. "More…please!" My eyes meet his and I'm surprised at the tenderness in his. His eyes usually go feral during our lovemaking. "Make me forget that you're leaving…"

I'm surprised by the sadness in my voice; I've never been a sentimentalist.

Cato slows and he kisses me, hooking my leg over his hip. "I'm going to make sure that you never forget this moment, Katniss." He begins to pick up his pace. "Because when I come back, we're going to have a talk about us. You're it for me—no one else. You just have to remember that every day that I'm gone."

The words don't seem real. I know I love Cato, but this all feels likes too much.

So instead of responding, I put my hand to the nape of his neck to silence him once more with my kiss.

"I'll call as soon as I land," Cato assures me, two days later.

It's nearly sundown as I walk him out to his cab. I try to smile at his excitement but I'm disheartened by it, too. This whole Manhattan move was something that we were supposed to experience together.

"Be safe," I tell him and my arms reach to wrap around his neck to pull him in for a kiss. "Don't fall in love with any cute tour guides."

Cato chuckles. "Don't go falling in love with anyone, either." His eyes look over my shoulder. "Make sure of that for me, Peeta!" I turn to see our roommate walking over to us; his shift at the bakery must have just ended. "Make sure none of those Juilliard boys get near my girl."

We separate so that he can shake Peeta's hand.

"Katniss will be fine," Peeta assures him. His eyes wander over to me and he gives me a smile. "She's a lot braver than she thinks."

"Don't I know it," Cato replies. "I better go. I have to meet my team at JFK in an hour." Kissing me one last time, he hops into his cab and I watch it speed away until it disappears down the block.

"I mean it." Turning, I see Peeta beside me. "You're a lot braver than you think."

"You don't know me," I say to him. "So how would you know how brave I can be?"

"Just have a feeling about you," Peeta tells me. "Like you're just on the verge of finding what makes you…you." He gives me a smile. "When it does, I hope I'm there to see it."

I nod before looking out into the direction where Cato's cab disappeared.

Finally, I look to him. "Before that happens, do you want to grab something to eat?"

Peeta stares at me for a moment before a bright grin breaks out on his lips. He looks much younger when he smiles that way and something in me stirs at seeing it.

This is not good. I shouldn't be staring so hard at someone who isn't my boyfriend.

But, I'll have to learn to deal with the enigma that is Peeta Mellark.

Because, he is my roommate—and right now, my only friend in Manhattan.

"Sure," he responds. "Do you like pizza?"

I snort. "You really don't know me," I say. My lips rise in a proud smile. "I can eat a whole pizza by myself!"

He puts an arm around me and leads me down the block. "Now this I have to see."

Just a new little something I'm working on. This began as "Last Words" prompt and now has spiraled into this.

Like all of my trademark fics, the title comes from a song—from one of my favorite artists, Ben Folds.

It's going to be a difficult process to Everlark, I assure you.

As always, comments, reviews and hellos, are always welcomed.

Next, Chapter Two: Peeta

Till Then, JLaLa