Sometimes I think about how Peeta recognized that Katniss had chosen Gale after his whipping, and never brought it up to her. Never pressured her about what that meant for them. Never made her feel guilty or held the threat of the Capitol to keep up their romance over her. And instead he kept up the act when he needed to in front of Peacekeepers and cameras, and otherwise took care of her and kept her company when she couldn’t walk and helped her on a family project and brought her cheese buns. And then I cry.
I think about this a lot, too. In most of Catching Fire, Peeta is like, I’ll be there for Katniss in whatever capacity she wants me. If she wants him to keep his distance and just be a friend, he’d be that and won’t even flirt with her. If she wants him to stay in her bed and comfort her until she falls asleep, he’d do that and won’t even question anything.
Imagine if Katniss asks Gale to stay in her bed, Gale would be like, “What are we? What are we? What are we?”
Peeta does whatever he can to make her happy and comfortable and doesn’t assume things when he actually SHOULD ask questions. Like he should ask her why she’s staring at his lashes when he’s drawing, but he doesn’t. If he asked whether Katniss wants him to be more affectionate with her after the QQ announcement, she’d be like, YES! She’s grudging about him not touching her, she just doesn’t say it out loud.
But Peeta doesn’t ask her questions, he only does what is asked of him. When he thinks Katniss has decided she doesn’t need him as anything other than a friend, he doesn’t question anything.
He breaks my heart on a daily basis just by being selfless.
If there was no rebellion, and Katniss succeeded in her plans for the quarter quell, Peeta would have been the victor.
Which means, she would have died, and her mother and Prim would have lost privilege, the money and the house.
Why would Katniss risk Prim’s safety (and her mother as well), something that was always her driving force, to save Peeta’s life?
Because she knew he would have taken care of them.
Book 1 we see Katniss asking Gale to take care of her family.
Book 2 we see Katniss assuming Peeta would take care of them, without even asking.