A/N: I really piled on the fluff and angst for this fic, but Katniss and Peeta carry a lot more heavier depth than most normal fictional characters. I'm happy with the final result, though, and I hope you guys will be too!

When Gale spoke, Katniss hardly heard him. She was so focused on seeing Peeta that everything seemed to move in slow motion. Her feet urged her to walk and she complied, hands turning the knob to the small hospital room Peeta was in.

His back was turned, but she knew it was him. Even if no one told her that he was sitting in this room, she would have sensed it. There was only one person she knew who had a beautiful crown of golden curls atop his head. Those same shoulders may have been thinner than they were before, but Katniss knew them well.

Those shoulders were part of the same strong arms that held her many times in the night when she couldn't sleep, when nightmares plagued her and kept her awake. Those shoulders belonged to a boy who always gave her comfort without expecting anything in return.

"Peeta," she whispered reverently as she came closer. His back was to her, but she noticed how his spine straightened and his body stiffened when he heard her voice.

Katniss was aware that there were people behind her. Haymitch, Boggs, and a few others. For safety reasons, of course. They didn't know the extent of the damage done to Peeta's mind at the hands of the Capitol, so in this case, it was better to be safe than sorry. She ignored them, focusing only on the boy a few feet away from her.

In a few moments, Katniss had rounded the hospital bed that Peeta sat on and she stood face-to-face with him.

The bruises on his body were harsh and painful to look at. For the first time in her life, Katniss felt like breaking down and crying for someone. Peeta loved her and she loved him. The intensity of her love shook her to her core as her eyes took in her beloved.

Peeta's eyes were tired and he looked so weak sitting there, staring at her wordlessly. It broke her heart thinking about what they might have done to him to make him behave so. If this were the Peeta she knew before they found out about the rebellion, he would have run to her and held her tightly in his arms, telling her that everything was going to be alright.

It seemed their positions were reversed now.

"Katniss...?"

She gently took his hand in hers and gave it a reassuring squeeze. Tears began to slide down her face as she smiled at him. "Yes, Peeta." How she missed hearing him say her name. "It's me."

The blonde's shoulders shook and without hesitating, he launched forward, throwing himself into her arms.

This motion took Katniss by surprise and a tiny yelp left her mouth as she caught Peeta. They both tumbled to the ground and landed in an undignified heap of tangled limbs.

"It's you?" Peeta sounded so afraid, like Katniss might be a mirage. He manoeuvred so they could get in a sitting position facing each other.

Taking both of his hands and moving them over her eyes, her cheeks, her lips, she smiled at him. "Yes, Peeta. It's me. It's Katniss...and I am never going to leave you alone again. I'm going to take care of you."

A shudder left Peeta's mouth and he buried his head into her shoulder. The dampness of her shirt told Katniss that he was crying, but she didn't care. He needed this and she wasn't going to let him go until he was ready.

Katniss and Peeta had gone through so much hell from the Capitol. Being forced to fight in the Hunger Games, being forced to fake a love story, being forced to be the face of governments they never wanted to. There was never a chance for them to rest, to breathe, to relax.

For years, their lives had not been their own. Each day was a fight and no promise for a better tomorrow. Yet, as Katniss held Peeta in her hands, she knew that she could make it. He was her pillar, the one reason she'd fought so hard as the Mockingjay for the rebellion. Katniss didn't want have another sleepless night and not have Peeta by her side.

The boy in question fingered her braid in his hands. The tenderness in his gaze made Katniss remember how fondly he touched her braid in their first Hunger Games when they'd been prepared to eat nightlock berries rather than kill each other for the cameras.

Katniss gently pressed her lips to Peeta's, letting him feel the emotion that he stirred within her. To her surprise, the kiss turned passionate as Peeta gripped her hips in his hands and held her tighter to him. A flutter of lust flared up inside of Katniss and she had to push him away before they took their intimate moment too far.

The look they exchanged was full of heat and Katniss breathed heavily as she watched him. This wasn't the time or the place for her to show him how truly happy she was that he was alive. He needed to be treated and given medical care and she needed rest since she had been up for several hours, waiting for his return.

She rested her forehead to Peeta's and sighed contentedly. Normally, she wouldn't allow herself to be so affectionate around others, but her acute senses told her that Haymitch, Boggs and the others had left the room previously when they determined that Peeta wasn't a danger to her.

"You love me. Real or not real?" Peeta asked this in such a low whisper, but it was loud enough for her to hear it.

A year ago, Katniss would've had a hard time answering that question, but now, after everything they'd been through, together and apart, there was no doubt in her mind how she felt about him.

Katniss placed her hands on both sides of Peeta's face, eyes locked onto his as she replied, "Real."