He should have been ecstatic.

Gryffindor had just completely and utterly hammered Hufflepuff at Quidditch, under his captainship no less, and they would most likely win the final next month, against Slytherin, and he would be leaving Hogwarts on that high note.

Yes, James Potter should have been ecstatic, but he wasn't.

He couldn't even force a smile. Not while his prat of a seeker was standing so close to her. Not while his filthy, snitch-catching fingers brushed aside a lock of her vivid red hair.

It occurred to James that Elliot Thompson was a git and it had been an unforgivable error on his part to give him the position of seeker in the first place, never mind that Thompson had yet to lose him a game.

Elliot Thompson had stubby fingers, James noted, and the unnatural pink of his flesh looked completely out of place tangled in those gorgeous red locks, tracing the outline of her jaw.

He needed some air.

What he most certainly did not need was company.

Unfortunately, so consumed with being thoroughly unecstatic, he did not notice someone slip out of the portrait hole behind him. In fact, it wasn't until he stopped to lean against a fourth floor corridor that he realised he was not alone.

With his back against the wall, he had a clear view of his surroundings. This just happened to include a mass of very red hair. Thankfully, utterly free of Elliot Thompson's stubby fingers.

"Evans," he breathed.

"Oh, so you see me now do you?" Lily grinned, leaning back against the opposite wall. "I thought maybe I'd turned invisible."

"Apparently not."

"Apparently."

His mind worked furiously for something else to say, but it was frazzled from the stress of Quidditch, and the ache of jealousy.

Her presence was making it all worse, tightening his chest, shortening his breath.

He really needed some air.

"Don't let me keep you, get back to the party," he said.

"I wanted to congratulate you. On the match, that is."

"Oh, right. Thanks."

"Well done with all the... chasing."

"Thanks again."

He tried to count the amount of times she blinked in the time it took for them to speak again. It got too difficult after twelve, partly because his brain was still frazzled but mostly because he kept imagining Elliot Thompson drooling over her. He wondered if Elliot Thompson even knew the colour of Lily's eyes. It was unlikely, but this didn't comfort him any further.

"The congratulations should really go to Thompson, don't you think?" James inquired, still staring at Lily.

She blinked twice. "I thought you always said Quidditch was a team game?"

"Yeah, well, let's be honest I could've missed every shot and we'd still have won based on Thompson's catch."

"Yes, but if the Gryffindor chasers hadn't kept possession of the Quaffle then Hufflepuff would've had more opportunity to score and we might've lost based on that!"

James scoffed at that. "It takes more than possession of the Quaffle for Hufflepuff to score. They would've needed a prayer circle and lucky hat at the very least."

"Alright then, it was all on Elliot. He won the game for you. Are you happy now?"

"Ecstatic," he said dryly, because really, he should have been. "Why don't you go and congratulate Thompson then?"

"I already did," she replied.

He had known this beforehand of course. That was nothing new. The guilty expression on her face, that was very new.

"Well," he coughed, "I'm sure he's missing you."

Five blinks.

"Would you like me to leave?" she asked tentatively.

"I don't have a problem with you being here, I just think you and Thompson might be missing each other's company. That's all."

"Well, I wasn't missing him at all actually."

"No?"

"No," she said, very quickly. "I'd much rather be here with you."

It took roughly seven blinks for this to sink in.

"James?"

"Yes?"

"Are you alright?"

He finally cracked a grin. "Ecstatic."

AN: I'm not really sure what this is but it was fun to write. I hope you enjoyed it.

Reviews are like sunshine.

Thanks.