"Rebirth Instead of Destruction"

Peeta sat in a corner clutching his head tightly, he was fighting off the flashbacks. Katniss was still nowhere in sight, she was still gone from hunting like she always do everyday. It was just a few months after the war ended, Peeta lived alone. Sometimes, Haymitch would visit him. But when Haymitch deiced to build up a store of wines, he rarely visits Peeta. With this, Katniss decided Peeta moved in to her house since she's technically alone, she has stopped Greasy Sae from checking on her now that she's got Peeta with her.

Peeta's room was just right across from Katniss'. She would run to his room if ever she'd have one of those nightmares and curl up to his side. This was one of the reasons why she wanted Peeta with him. She got loads of horrible nightmares after Prim's death and she couldn't turn to anyone at night. Whenever Peeta would have his episodes, Katniss would just leave him there to calm down and after a few moments, she'd enter the room and find it a mess. Broken glasses, furniture's smashed, sometimes even the windows. But right now, it was all worse than before. He had been trying to calm himself down for almost an hour now, usually his flashbacks only lasts for a few minutes.

He sat there, sweat was dripping down his face, and he was shaking hard. Then the front door swung open. He heard footsteps ascending the stairs.

"Peeta, I'm home! I got you one of those rabbits that you like." Said Katniss in the hallway. "Peeta?" she called out. Nobody replied. He heard her footsteps getting closer to his room.

"Don't come in!" he screamed out. He managed to stand up and just before Katniss twisted the knob, he clicked the lock.

"Peeta, what's going on?" asked Katniss, her voice worried. This never happened before, it hadn't gotten this worse that Peeta would lock the door to keep her from coming in. "Let me help you," she pleaded.

"Just… stay away." Now he was on the floor. It was when Katniss heard him scream when she rushed to the basement for the keys.

When she pushed the door open, she found Peeta curled up on the floor, still shaking.

"Oh, Peeta." she knelt beside him and tried to brush his hair to calm down.

"Go away! Don't make me hurt you!" he was screaming at her which Katniss was used to by now. "Go! Please!" Peeta pleaded.

"I won't leave. You know, I won't." she said as she lifts Peeta up but he pushed her away and ran across the room now he stood ten feet away from her.

"Don't come any closer. Please." His voice serene and pleading. He needed her to go before he could put his hands on her. He clutched both of his hands resisting them to do anything unmanageable. "Leave me now! I'll be fine!" he was growing impatient now. "Don't you understand Katniss? What if I killed you? Do you think I'll ever forgive myself?" he grabbed a broken glass tightly it made his hand bleed.

"Don't," was all Katniss managed to say. Before she could do anything, Peeta already threw the glass to Katniss' direction missing her by an inch but left her a wound on the thigh.

"It's starting." Peeta said as he knelt down and took another glass. But this time, Katniss know what she needed to do. She quickly to his side and grabbed his hand making the glass drop.

"Look at me," she said trying to catch Peeta's eyes. When his blue eyes found hers, his expression softened but it didn't make it go away. She held both of his hands, they were trembling.

"You love me, real or not real?" she asked knowing Peeta always said real. But this time, he didn't reply, he just stared at her.

"You love me, real or not real?" she asked again holding his hands even tighter. He shook his head as if trying to remember something. "Real or not real?" she asked hoping and longing for the right answer. Her eyes began to swell up and tears began to form. "Real or not real?" she asked one more time, her voice breaking. But Peeta didn't reply. When she thought she was about to lose him, she pressed her lips against his. It was warm and soft like they always are, the kiss tasted like tears as her tears began to flow without realizing it. She wasn't going to let go, this was the only thing she knew that would stop Peeta. But when there was nothing happening she thought of pulling away. Just then, Peeta kissed her back. It was a passionate kiss and with that, she knew he was back. Peeta arms began to wrap around her waist as she wrapped hers around his neck. They both drank the moment and held each other. When they pulled away, they just stood there and locked their eyes on each other

"I'm sorry." Peeta looked down. "I just... I can't help it sometimes." That's when he noticed the side of her thigh bleeding. "Katniss, you're bleeding." But Katniss didn't say a word. "No." he said shaking his head upon realizing it was his fault. "No." he pulled away and sat at the end of the bed, his face was buried on his hands. "No." Katniss crouched down and placed her hand on his chin and lifted his head to her face. He was crying.

"I don't mind bleeding, Peeta. It's nothing."

"It wasn't the pain I'm talking about. It was the fact that I wounded you."

"You said you can't help it and I understand that." She said holding her bleeding thigh. "Look at your hand," they were bleeding as well. "If I left you alone, you would've gotten worse."

"If you left me alone, I wouldn't have wounded you." This time, Katniss sat on the bed beside him.

"Who cares about these wounds? All I care about is you." Katniss said as she held Peeta's bleeding hand.

She didn't know when she had come to love the boy with the bread but she knew it was even before the war. Even before the Quell. Peeta is all she's got left now. And Katniss is all Peeta has got left. There was something about him that Katniss can't live without. His ocean blue eyes that meant everything were going to be okay and his strong arms that warded off the nightmares. Everything about him completed her. He was simply her dandelion in the spring. The bright yellow that means rebirth instead of destruction the promise that life can go on no matter how bad our losses, that it can be good again.

So, after, she whispered, "You love me, real or not real?"

Without hesitation, he tells her,

"Real."