Katniss here's this and understands that even though she may not love Peeta (then) that it's one less person who has to die. (At least that's what I have always thought.) Katniss realizes that if she pretends to be in love with Peeta people will want the capitol to let them survive.
In Chapter 9, as Caesar Flickerman interviews Peeta before the Games, Peeta reveals to Caesar and all of Panem that he's in love with Katniss. Peeta's revelation sets in motion the storyline of him and Katniss as ill-fated lovers that carries on throughout the Games.
Peeta sleeps first. Katniss kisses him on the forehead, for herself, she admits, and not for the audience. She is glad to have him there with her, comforted by the thought that together they can fight Peeta.
The Hunger Games series, much like Harry Potter is for young adults, and the themes and motivations are not hard to understand. Katniss NEVER hated Peeta. She figured she'd have to kill him to survive and had no desire to like him because of that.
peeta being in love with katniss for 3 minutes and 5 seconds straight
When did Katniss realize she loves Peeta?
Katniss Fell in Love With Peeta During the Quarter Quell
However, it wasn't until Mockingjay -- when Peeta got kidnapped by the Capitol -- Katniss realized how much she cared about him and that she couldn't live without him.
It's only implied that they get it on via snuggling and other affectionate acts in close quarters — but if you have read the book, they really imply that they took their relationship to the next level.
Peeta Mellark served as Katniss' crucial confidant, seeing as he went through it all firsthand, not once, but twice. Despite the terror he faced, Katniss viewed Peeta as a symbol of comfort and salvation.
Although his feelings are genuine, he is hurt to discover that Katniss' were not entirely. He and Katniss become friends despite the fact that they are forced to use their fake romance to both placate and subvert the capitol during their Victory Tour and the 75th Hunger Games.
Katniss's focus on survival and her family's safety prevented her from fully considering romance, but her feelings for Peeta and Gale diverged in the end. Katniss ultimately chose Peeta because he understood her trauma and she didn't want to lose him, proving her love for him.
While the Hunger Games film never talked about it, the Catching Fire novel explained why she could only communicate through hand gestures. Katniss briefly mentioned that a previous stroke could have caused Mags' garbled speech. However, post-traumatic stress disorder could have also caused her speech incapacity.
He is "broad-shouldered and strong." Part of Peeta's left leg was amputated following the 74th Hunger Games, forcing him to walk with the aid of a prosthetic leg for the rest of his life. In the 2012 film adaptation, his leg is never amputated.
Katniss is rendered deaf in one ear after she blows up the Careers' supplies, and she doesn't regain any hearing on her left side until afterwards when the Capitol gives her a hearing aid.
Did Katniss actually like Peeta in the first book?
Peeta always loved Katniss. However, she faked it in the first book. In Catching Fire, she began to fall for him. And in Mockingjay, in the end, she loved him..
Katniss rarely sings because it reminds her of her father, but she now remembers a morbid song that her father taught her: “The Hanging Tree.” This moment in the story is significant in multiple ways.
He jokes with her, whispering that it's okay to kiss him since they're madly in love, but once Katniss begins to clean him in the stream, she can see how weak he is.
In the Capitol, during a televised interview with the popular host Caesar Flickerman, Peeta proposes and Katniss accepts. President Snow comes out to congratulate them, but he signals to Katniss that it's not enough.
Snow can't stand to see a young woman betray a young man's affection—his view of what happened 65 years ago. And so he takes out his old, festering wound on Katniss.
Katniss thinks about how she and Peeta are supposed to be in love as she kisses him, and she also points out that she realizes Peeta's feelings have actually been to her benefit. Their relationship has attracted a great deal of attention, which in turn means more sponsors.
Katniss doesn't know why they would go after her and Peeta first, and Plutarch tells her because the revolution lives as long as she does. She's the mockingjay. The tributes kept Peeta alive in the arena because they knew Katniss wouldn't cooperate with the rebels if he died.
She is upset she will be forced to be with Peeta the rest of her life, but that is not what troubles her the most. In District 12, one of the few freedoms people have is the decision of when and whom to marry, or if to marry at all. Before the Games, Katniss had never wanted to get married — to Gale, Peeta, or anyone.
It isn't until the end of Mockingjay that Katniss and Peeta are married; however, this isn't revealed until the epilogue after all of the events of the series take place.
Epilogue. In the epilogue, Katniss and Peeta are married and have a young daughter and a son. Katniss still suffers nightmares about the game and fears having to eventually relay the story to her children.
