A/N: Hi there!

I know it's been a while since I've made an appearance on here, and I'm sorry for that! Life was/is really hard right now.

Hence my current plan of „sorting stuff out" etc., I decided to edit every piece of fanfiction I've posted so far, as well as post a few new ones. Let's just hope this next year will be better, especially with my updating plans!

cheers xx

Taking Chances

„Ugh."

Dean looked up as his best friend Seamus groaned in a weird, nearly animalistic way. The Irish boy was sprawled over a sofa opposite of Dean, red-and-gold striped Gryffindor tie hanging around his neck loosely, shirt halfway unbuttoned, the laces of his shoes undone and sandy hair messy because he'd run his fingers through it way too often.

„You okay mate?" Dean asked and stretched his arms, proceeding in cracking his neck as well. His hands and back were hurting from clutching a quill and bending over the table for all of this afternoon, and his right foot had fallen asleep a while ago, a sensation he didn't particularly enjoy. A sigh escaped his lips as he noticed that he was only half done with his Potions essay, which was due tomorrow. He would have to spent most of the night working on it when he'd already sat here for hours on end.

„Did I ever mention how much I hate school?" Seamus said, dropping his head on the pillow he'd stolen from Dean's bed years ago.

It used to be Dean's favorite pillow, and when he'd noticed it was gone, he totally freaked out. He'd turned the whole dorm upside down and cried for hours when he couldn't find it. That evening, Seamus had snuck into his bed and cuddled with him for the rest of the night. The next day, Dean asked him why, lightly embarrassed because let's be real, best friends simply did not cuddle while spending all night in the same bed, which had caused Seamus to just shrug and reply: „I'm just taking me chances," before walking away quickly.

Dean had never understood what that was supposed to mean. After about two months of pointless wondering, he'd decided to not think about it that much and go on as usual, not wanting their friendship to change because of something as stupid as a pillow. That had been during their third year.

„About a gazillion times," Dean replied, grinning. Though he totally understood Seamus's dislike of schoolwork, shared it, even, it was kind of ridiculous just how much Sea complained about it. But while everyone else would've gotten annoyed by that habit easily, Dean just thought it was kinda cute.

„That's not funny, yo mean lil piece o' chocolate," Seamus said, glancing at him.

„Yeah, you're right. It's absolutely not funny to crack jokes about my skin colour," Dean stated, still grinning. Seamus was the only person in the world allowed to do that, and to Dean's disadvantage he knew.

„Oh, Dean Thomas, you are an absolute piece of chocolate, dark and delicious and sweet, and you know that," Seamus replied lazily and closed his eyes.

„Er...Sea? Did you ... did you just call me delicious and sweet?" Dean asked, half embarrassed and half wondering whether Seamus had meant what he'd said, or if it had been just another one of his jokes. Sometimes, he did have a weird kind of humor, Dean had to admit.

„Nope," Seamus answered, shuffling into a more comfortable position, legs crossed, left arm slung across his face lazily and with his shoes kicked off.

„Uh... what are you doing?" Dean asked, looking at his best friend, whose face was peaceful and kinky at the same time – if that was even possible.

„Taking a nap, what t'hell does 't look like?" Seamus answered, making Dean laugh helplessly. He knew for a fact that Seamus was far from done with all of his homework, but of course he was the kind of person to not give a damn and take a good nap anyways. The Irish boy opened one of his eyes and grinned at his still mildly amused mate. It always made him kinda proud when Dean laughed at his jokes. He felt so warm then.

Now, lying in the Gryffindor common room, where he was warm and comfortable, he drifted off to sleep quickly, the last thing he heard being the pleasant rumble of Dean's chuckle. He was out like a light before Dean's laughter had faded.

Dean stopped laughing and looked at his sleeping mate, smiling. Seamus looked so cute when he was asleep.

Wait.

Did he just call his best friend cute?

Dean startled at the thought, his eyes wandering around the empty common room, but avoiding his sleeping friend. He didn't. He couldn't. Seamus and Dean were friends, and that was that.

After half an hour of doing nothing, he sighed, packed his stuff and brought it up into the dorm he shared with the other boys. Doing the essay now was pointless anyways. He'd proved himself quite unable to focus on things that seemed so ridiculously small and uninteresting when the so much more interesting Seamus Finnigan was around, causing Dean's mind to wander, always landing on inappropiate thoughts somehow which made him blush terribly often enough.

Seamus.

Dean would've sworn he remembered every single moment they had ever shared. Pick a random date, and Dean Thomas would gladly tell you everything about what Seamus and he had done that day, remembering every single detail from the weather to the color of Sea's socks.

Like for example the first time they had ever met. It had been the day Dean had taken the Hogwarts Express for the very first time in his life. He had been stressed, and nervous, and worried, and he'd sat alone in an empty train compartment. That was until the door had opened, revealing a sandy-haired boy with stunning blue eyes and an incredibly wide grin who, in condradiction to everyone else, did not scare him at all.

„Hi, me namah's Seamus Finnigan," the boy had said, a strong Irish accent prominent in his voice, before lifting his suitcase in to the luggage rack and sitting down. He did not ask if it was okay if he stayed, nor did he ask for Dean's name, and Dean noticed that he didn't mind at all, a fact that suprised himself. Seamus had just assumed Dean wanted him to stay, and if he was honest, Dean had wanted him to stay ever since.

They bonded really quick, and soon had the most beautiful, completely normal guy friendship that the inhabitants of Hogwarts had ever seen. Completely normal, except for these few incidents.

It had all started with the pillow during third year. After Dean and Seamus had cuddled all night long, and their weird conversation, and Dean pretending nothing had ever happened, things went back to normal. At least for a while. Dean caught Seamus looking at him more often than usual, sure, and he even started to enjoy being the subject of Seamus's interest, but he never saw too much into that. They were best friends, it was just natural that they were interested in each other.

But soon he caught himself thinking about his best friend in a way he really shouldn't be thinking, especially not about a guy, on several occasions. Seamus touching him subtly whenever possible didn't exactly help, either.

Then he'd found the pillow he'd been missing so badly in Seamus's bed. He literally freaked out once again. After a really bad fight with his used-to-be lad they didn't talk for a whole week, Dean refusing to forgive Seamus for stealing his favorite belonging all too easily. And even if Dean was pretty mad at Seamus for taking his favorite pillow (which in the end became a part of Seamus' property without further questioning), being without Sea made him feel sick to his stomach. He was unbelievably glad when things went back to normal again, even if they didn't, not really.

In their fourth year, during the Yule Ball, when Sea somehow ditched his date because Dean had no one to go with and they ended up dancing together for the whole night, Draco Malfoy became meaner than ever. He started to call Seamus names, and when Sea came running into the dorm crying pretty hard, sobbing desperately because Malfoy had called him „Gay-mus" (how mature and unbelievably intellectual, Dean had thought) in front of the entire school, Dean got really mad. No one hurt Seamus, especially not in such an immature way that Malfoy did. He made Malfoy pay for that one and took four weeks of detention plus walking around with a black eye for several days without a single complaint, because he knew it had been absolutely worth it. Seamus was worth anything.

They slept in the same bed once more – this time it was Seamus's – and cuddled through the entire night. Months later, when the fifth year already had begun, Dean started to feel bad. They slept in the same bed more often now, cuddling tighter each time, and whenever he asked Seamus about it, the only reply that he got was: „I'm just taking my chances."

Dean didn't understand what his mate meant, and then he started to go out with Ginny Weasley to make himself feel better. Maybe dating a girl would make him forget about the inappropiate feelings he was having for his best friend, who was, in fact, a guy. Dean knew, he'd checked several times. Not that he'd ever admit that.

But it didn't really work. Every time he kissed Ginny, his mind began wondering how Seamus' lips would feel against his; whenever he slid his hands into her long, red hair, he involuntarily compared the feeling to running his fingers through Seamus' soft, short locks, and when they hugged, he couldn't help but think of how freaking soft and curvy her body was and how he preferred Sea's strong, slender figure anytime. He continued feeling bad, then grew worse, and the worst part was that Seamus wouldn't talk to him for six unbelievably long months, until Dean and Ginny eventually broke up. And even if Dean was more glad than anything that their relationship was over, he let Seamus comfort him all through the night. That was in the beginning of sixth year, and now they were right in the middle of it. And here he was, standing in the dorm, trying to sort out his swirled-up feelings, and there was his best friend, sleeping in the Gryffindor common room and taking his chances.

And finally, Dean understood.

He sprinted down the stairs faster than Snape being chased with a bottle of shampoo, stopped for a second and watched his sleeping friend. A feeling of total awe rushed through him, and suddenly he found himself on his knees, next to the sofa, his lips only millimetres away from Seamus's own. He knew what he felt now, and he guessed he'd known for a while. He had just been too afraid to admit such a possibility.

Seamus parted his lips a little bit, and Dean took his chance.

The kiss was absolutely amazing, the best he'd ever had, and he immediately wanted more.

In that very moment, Seamus opened his eyes, smiled and kissed him back lightly before whispering: „Uh, you very sweet and very hot dude, what are you doing?"

Dean smiled so wide it felt like his face was ripped apart.

„I," he said, kissing Seamus once more, „am taking my chances."