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In general, Katniss does not like Peeta Mellark. In fact, what she truly dislikes is the feeling of being constantly watched. And that is exactly what Peeta is doing now, from the other side of the picnic table: watching her whenever he thinks she isn’t paying attention.
Mr. Everdeen organizes this picnic every year to celebrate the good harvest and the prosperity of his farm. So he invites the whole neighborhood for a full day of food and dancing. And Katniss, as the old farmer’s eldest daughter, is required to attend with a big smile—very different from her usual scowl.
And this year, Peeta seems even more interested in her. Madge whispers as much every time they catch him staring, whether in town or at school. Her friend doesn’t understand why she resists the handsome boy with broad shoulders and bright blue eyes, who also has the advantage of belonging to a good family that owns the district bakery.
Logically, she has no reason to turn him down, but she hates that their entire relationship rests on stolen glances and a debt she will never be able to repay. And every time he looks at her, it feels like he’s collecting on it.
---
Everything happened about three months ago. It’s true that Mr. Everdeen adores his eldest daughter and will do, whenever possible, anything she wishes. Katniss doesn’t consider herself spoiled. She understands that everything her family has comes from hard work and effort. There is no room for vanity.
But she wanted desperately to learn how to ride a horse. Madge had been galloping since she was thirteen, and Katniss wanted to experience it too. But her father was already a man of a certain age, and he couldn’t trust any of his ranch hands with his only daughter’s safety. He needed to find a good riding instructor to ensure she wouldn’t get hurt.
So there was the Hawthorne’s eldest son, Gale. Being a boy who also grew up on a farm, teaching her wasn’t difficult. And within a few weeks, Katniss was already riding the family horse perfectly.
However, she was never known for her prudence. She was far too adventurous, something that often brought her father great distress. And on one particular Saturday, she managed to convince Gale to let her ride his horse: a beautiful dark-coated chestnut bred for racing.
Her father watched from afar while speaking to Mr. Hawthorne about duck hunting season, when he heard his daughter’s screams. His blood ran cold when he saw her being carried off at full speed by the panicked horse. She might have been a good student, and she might have learned fast, but some things require more than a few weeks to master. Nature is merciless when it wants to be.
Even with his knees protesting, Mr. Everdeen ran toward the stables in a useless attempt to reach her. Gale was already mounting another horse to try to catch up to Katniss.
“My God, protect my girl.” Praying was all he could do.
He realized, stricken, that Gale wouldn’t reach her before she was thrown by the furious horse spinning across the grass. But just like in some romantic tale his wife used to make him read before bed, a young man with golden curls appeared out of nowhere.
Riding a handsome gray horse and wearing his Union of Panem soldier’s uniform, the Mellarks’ younger son managed to stop the animal by pulling sharply on its reins. The abrupt movement made Katniss hit the ground with a dull thud.
“She’s dead,” her father lamented when the boy brought his daughter back in his arms, Gale by his side.
“No, just unconscious. She’s going to be fine, sir.” he said, then introduced himself as Peeta.
He had been training on a nearby hill, testing new maneuvers with his horse, when he heard the girl’s screams and rushed to help. Mr. Everdeen insisted he stay until Katniss woke up so she could thank him herself, but he refused, needing to return to the barracks soon.
But he promised to dine with the family the next day. And he kept his promise, arriving at the Everdeen’s door promptly at six, carrying a delicious apple pie.
And that became routine. Her father adored the Mellark boy, always inviting him for dinners, parties, and including him in his duck hunting group for the season.
“Dad told me you helped me up when I fell off the horse yesterday,” Katniss said to Peeta right after dinner, once old Everdeen left the room.
Helping her up was an understatement. She had remained unconscious for a few minutes due to the concussion. But if she wanted to call it a small fall, Peeta wouldn’t be the one to wound a pretty girl’s pride.
“That was me, yes. Are you feeling better?”
“Just a mild headache, but I’ll be fine. I still need to convince Dad to let me go back to riding lessons. He’s still mad at Gale.”
“Maybe he could be persuaded if you had a better instructor. Someone he trusts.”
“I don’t know. It already took a lot to get Gale. Do you know someone?”
And that was how Peeta became the girl’s instructor. When she brought the idea to Mr. Everdeen, it wasn’t hard for him to accept—after all, he owed the boy his daughter’s life. He could trust him.
---
“I think I’m in love with Miss Everdeen,” Peeta confided late at night after a few drinks.
Finnick was his oldest companion, the one who had encouraged him to join the army after realizing he wouldn’t be able to take over the family bakery due to his older brother’s interest.
He would have a place to stay, he could save up some money, and the company of good comrades wouldn’t be bad at all. And Finn was the best of them, at least in the opinion of the men. Women would call him a rake—though some wished to be the one to make him a respectable man.
In contrast, Peeta was hopelessly romantic. Blame his parents’ good marriage and the fact that Mr. Mellark always told his sons, whenever possible, how their mother had been his first and only girlfriend.
“Does she know that?” asked his friend, clearly amused.
“Not a clue. I don’t think she feels the same. Sometimes I almost believe she does. There’s a look, a gesture, a word. But I’m not sure. Maybe I’m just projecting my own feelings onto her actions.”
“Well, my good friend, nothing stops you from asking. Let her clear your doubts.”
“I’m afraid of being rejected. Her father likes me, though.”
“Marry the old man, then. What a perfect ending.” Finnick teased, laughing.
“Don’t be an idiot. Give me real advice. You must have fallen in love at least once, despite all your one-night stands.”
“Not yet. But if you want my real opinion, it’s simple: talk to her. Compliment her beauty. Take her dancing and then kiss her. Women like men who take action.”
“Kiss her… I don’t know if I can. What if she slaps me because she doesn’t want it?”
“You’re hopeless, Mellark. You’ll die alone, unfortunately.” Finnick said, amused.
The next week, Peeta planned to invite her for a walk, just the two of them. Her father didn’t seem to oppose anything. In fact, he even discreetly encouraged Peeta’s closeness to his daughter, though he never said so openly.
The words were always on the tip of his tongue each time they said goodbye after riding lessons; yet he never spoke them.
“You’re right, Finn. I’ll end up a lonely old man,” he told his friend as they walked back to the barracks.
“Cheer up. Her father is organizing a picnic next week, isn’t he? There’s your chance. Take her for a walk, just the two of you, and confess.”
“You make it sound so simple.”
“Love is simple. It’s the lovers who complicate everything with drama.”
---
On picnic day, Peeta has a plan. A very good one, actually. He pulls Mr. Everdeen aside as soon as he arrives and asks permission to court his daughter.
“Of course, my boy. You have my full blessing. Go on. What a wonderful thing it will be to have you as my son-in-law.”
“I would be very happy about that too, sir. But I need to win over your daughter first.”
“She doesn’t know your intentions yet?”
“I believe she suspects. I haven’t told her.”
“Then hurry, boy.”
When Peeta leaves the room with renewed hope, Mr. Everdeen goes to find his daughter to share the good news. Her reaction is far from ideal.
“I’m not going to marry him. You can’t force me.”
“I never said I would. I’m only asking you to consider it. Peeta is a good boy. He saved you once, remember?”
“So you’re offering me as payment for a debt because he saved my life?”
“Once again, you’re twisting my words, Katniss.”
“Well, that’s what it sounds like, Dad.”
“He’s in love with you and wants to marry you. What harm is there in accepting him? Unless you have someone else in mind.”
“I don’t. But that doesn’t mean I have to throw myself at the first man who shows interest.”
“I know. I just wanted you prepared for when he proposes, so it won’t be a complete surprise.”
“Thank you for the warning.” With that, Katniss left the office, stomping away. How dare Peeta corner her like that, going to her father before speaking to her?
---
Unaware of the conversation in Mr. Everdeen’s office earlier, Peeta sits at a place where he can perfectly see his future bride.
The girl notices him staring, and he smiles. She only turns back to her friend, speaking too softly for him to hear. This starts to crack the confidence he had gathered.
And the moment repeats itself all day. He approaches with the best intentions, only for her to receive him without enthusiasm. Her replies are vague, and he seems to be the only one trying to keep the conversation going.
Until he gives up, isolating himself near the bonfire when dusk begins to fall. He’s making no progress at all. Her father loves him, but she doesn’t. Damn Finnick, who made him think love could be simple. It’s a mess.
“Do you dance?” a sharp voice asks suddenly. It’s Johanna, Katniss’s cousin, who is spending a season at her uncle’s house because her parents couldn’t handle her rebelliousness in the big city.
Peeta quickly puts on his cheerful-young-man mask, getting up and taking her hand.
“Not very well, but how could I refuse a lady’s request?”
“And are you a good dancer?” she asks with a flirtatious tone only girls her age can manage.
“You’ll be the judge.” Then he spins her to the sound of the banjo one of the Everdeen ranch hands is playing. The couples around them join in moments later.
He’s sweaty and has nearly forgotten the sting of rejection when he returns to his seat. Johanna talks nonstop at his side, complimenting his dancing, and he can’t help glancing past the fire, finding Katniss’s eyes already on him. And she doesn’t look pleased.
---
Katniss watches him as he spins Johanna near the fire. He doesn’t seem half as in love as her father described, if he can be entertained so easily by another girl.
And before she realizes it, her mood turns sour. She doesn’t like people who can switch from one thing to another so quickly. Was this the boy who wanted to ask for her hand?
“I told you that if you kept being stubborn, someone else would come and steal him,” Madge says.
“Steal what from me?” Katniss says with disdain, trying to hide the discomfort of being caught.
“Don’t play dumb. Obviously I’m talking about Peeta. He likes you, but you treat him with indifference.”
“I’m not indifferent. And he doesn’t seem to mind much right now.”
Madge huffs, nudging her friend when Peeta glances their way.
“I bet he would leave Jo the moment you called him. But that’s not going to happen. You’re too proud.”
“He only likes me because I owe him my life. That’s not love. It’s a debt, and I can only repay it by marrying him.”
“Don’t be ridiculous. He liked you long before that. Everyone knows it. His brother teased him about it all the time at school.”
“Now you’re making things up.”
“Don’t believe me? Ask him.”
---
At dinner, everyone gathers around the table set out on the grass. A string of lights is wrapped around the nearby trees, faintly illuminating the place—just enough for everyone to see the food.
Old Everdeen makes a point of seating Peeta and Katniss side by side, in a very unsubtle arrangement. His daughter can be stubborn sometimes. She doesn’t protest too much.
Peeta brought a delicious dessert from his parents’ bakery. Her expression when she takes the first bite of the small cake pulls a smile from his face.
He can’t hear what she says to Peeta, but it seems like a compliment, because the young man smiles even wider. And for the rest of the night, Katniss seems more receptive to his advances. Her father watches hopefully. Perhaps he might have a son-in-law by the end of the week.
---
It takes a week for Peeta to gather enough courage to propose to Katniss. He ignores all of Finn’s advice, abandons any elaborate plan. He simply asks:
“I know you like me as a friend now. But do you think you could love me someday? As your husband?”
Katniss bites her lip, looking away. Her hands seem very interesting now. She had thought about this moment since the picnic. She knew he would ask, and at first, her mind busied itself with finding ways to gently turn him down.
But now, she has no valid arguments against marrying him. Her father is right: he is a good man. If she thinks carefully, maybe too good for the scowling Katniss Everdeen.
And she has to admit she likes how he looks at her. With an admiration she can’t even understand. She likes how he smiles whenever she walks into the room. And the warm presence of his hand on hers, fingers intertwined, as he waits for her answer.
“I believe so.” she says, and Peeta kisses their joined hands.
“Then you’ll marry me, Katniss?”
“Yes. I will.”
---
It’s certain that Mr. Everdeen is thrilled his daughter accepted Peeta’s proposal. He can already imagine his house full of grandchildren running everywhere.
But that doesn’t mean he’s pleased when he finds his daughter pinned against the barn wall by the boy, looking disheveled and guilty for being caught kissing her fiancé.
“Hmm… good afternoon, Mr. Everdeen.” Peeta says, trying to fix his messy hair.
“Your mother is looking for you, Katniss.” he says sternly. She nods and leaves, leaving only the two men.
Peeta has the decency to look ashamed.
“Save that for the wedding, young man. I don’t want grandchildren before their time.”
“Yes, sir. I’m sorry.”
“And button up your shirt.”
He chuckles to himself as he watches the boy struggle with the buttons. Later, sitting in his rocking chair on the porch, he remembers the day he thought he would lose his dear daughter. Who would have imagined it would be the day he gained a son?