The first kiss is like eating your first strawberry.

When you taste it, you want more.

-Tom Corr

KATNISS

It wasn't the first time he kissed me nor was it the last.

I was eight when he first kissed me.

We were walking in a line during our field trip to the botanical gardens. I loved the many flowers and butterflies. They were all colorful and very pretty. I have seen primroses and katniss flowers, the plants my sister and I were named after by my hip parents.

But the place was packed and it seemed like there were couples everywhere unashamedly flaunting their love for each other. And by unashamedly I mean not suitable for kids and even grown-ups alike.

The rest of my class were whispering to each other. The more advanced kids in class called it kissing. I see my parents do it in the morning and evening when Dad goes to the office or comes home, even on special occasions. and It didn't bother me before but somehow my classmates were all buzzing because of it.

I heard one girl said kissing gave you the cooties. I didn't know what cooties were and I didn't care. But then my parents did the same although the kissing people do here was in no way like my parents. It looked like they were eating each other's face.

Gross! Maybe that's how you get cooties. I swear I'm never going to kiss anyone!

Just then one boy spoke up and broke my thought.

"That's not true! I'll prove it!" he said.

And in front of everyone, that little boy who dared disprove cooties came up to me and kissed me right on the lips. It was over just as it began like a butterfly ghosting over my lips followed by this weird fluttering in my tummy.

Oh no! cooties! I ran as fast to the teacher and told her what happened.

I told her that Peeta Mellark gave me the cooties.

PEETA

My name is Peeta Mellark and I've only ever kissed one woman in my life.

I met her when we were 8 and her family just moved in beside our house. She seemed like an ordinary girl, nothing special about her. In fact she seemed small for her age. But my parents wanted me to get to know her and her sister and play with them.

I tried but all she ever wanted to do was run. And she was quite fast, her long hair in two braids trailing behind her smelling of strawberries. All I ever did was chase her around and it was tiring.

Her little sister, Primrose, loved her dolls and was left to her own but she always followed Katniss around on her short legs.

One time Prim tripped and scraped her knee. Katniss got all concerned and cleaned her wound and put on a band-aid. She cried all the while so she sang to make her feel better. After finishing her song, Katniss kissed her knee and smiled at her widely. She stopped crying.

If I was hooked with her singing then I was a goner with her smile. How could a little girl hold a voice and a smile that could stop a kid from crying? Somehow I felt envious of Prim's knee.

That day, I swore that I'll do whatever it takes to get a kiss from Katniss Everdeen.

The opportunity appeared when our class went out on a fieldtrip in the botanical gardens. Everyone was talking about kissing and cooties that I thought about kissing her and showing the class it wasn't real.

Unfortunately, my plan backfired and Katniss told the teacher what I did. The teacher scolded me for stealing a kiss and told me that you only kiss the one you love.

I was surprised to learn this. I knew my parents kissed and that they loved each other. But is that how I felt for Katniss? Is that why I wanted to kiss her?

I felt my cheeks burn at the thought and could not look at her.

The good thing that came out of my action though was that Katniss decided to forgive me and be my friend.