After the war, life in District 12 is calm but tinged with the weight of healing. Peeta has rebulit his family bakery. While Peeta busies himself with baking each morning, Katniss stays home with their infant daughter, Willow. She treasures these quiet moments, trying to provide the stability she never had growing up.

Though Peeta enjoys his work, baking also serves as a way to cope with his lingering trauma, filling his days with purpose. Katniss notices the toll it takes on him, his slight exhaustion and distant looks when he comes home in the evenings. She wants to do something special to lift his spirits and show him how much he means to their little family.

Katniss begins teaching Willow to say “Dada” in secret, hoping to surprise Peeta. Each morning, she sits with Willow on the floor, smiling and encouraging her with gentle repetitions of “Dada.” Willow giggles and babbles back, her little voice growing more confident each day. The small moments of Willow’s laughter and growing vocabulary bring warmth and joy to Katniss’s heart, reminding her of the life they’ve created together.

One evening, Peeta returns home tired from a long day at the bakery, flour dusting his hair and hands. As he steps through the door, Katniss holds Willow close and whispers, “Are you ready?” Willow’s face lights up, and with a bright, excited voice, she reaches out her tiny hands and says, “Dada!”

Peeta’s eyes well up as he gathers Willow into his arms, his heart brimming with love and pride. For a moment, all the pain and weight of his memories fall away, replaced by the pure happiness of his daughter’s first word for him. Katniss watches them, feeling a sense of peace that she thought she’d never find. In that instant, their small family feels whole.