James Potter spotted a red head bobbing in the crowd bustling through the corridors after lunch. He excused himself from his fan club, and best friends. Sirius Black, his best friend, saw the red hair, and threw James an encouraging grin. The girls all stared after him, sighing longingly.

"Hey! Evans!" James yelled, trying to get her attention. The girl, Lily Evans, recognized the voice immediately and sped up her pace. Something grabbed her arm and spun her body around.

"Potter," she growled, yanking her arm from his grasp. Lily pulled her wand from her robes, ready to hex him if he crossed The Line. She had established The Line for James so he would know when to stay within his bounds. The pair had even signed a contract. It stated that Lily reserved the right to curse him whenever he invaded her personal space, made an obscene comment, asked her out publicly, or generally irritated her. Of course, James only signed it because he was sloshed out of his mind, and had not understood what exactly the parchment was.

James raised his hands innocently and smirked arrogantly at her. "So, I was wondering—wait, where are you going? Hey, I was talking to you!" James bellowed after Lily's retreating figure.

"The Giant Squid is still an option, Potter!" Lily called over her shoulder before disappearing in the throngs of students rushing to get to their classes. A dejected James Potter hung his head, feeling defeated, and slipped out the front doors of the castle.

James was alerted to someone's presence by the sound of a pair of light footsteps. He paused for a moment before resuming his rock skipping. The footsteps weren't heavy enough to Sirius, Remus, or Peter, but a swooning member of his fan club wouldn't have kept her existence a secret.

Normally, James would have tried to arrange his features into a conceited grin, but now, after being rejected by the love of his life for the 257th time, he just couldn't work up the energy to put on his usual façade.

Out of the corner of his eye, James could see a pair of small feet stop next to him. He knew those feet, and sighed inwardly. Why did she always turn up when he least wanted her to?

After a few moments of silence, the girl spoke up. "It looks like he finally found a playmate," Lily Evans observed, gesturing towards the Giant Squid and his new companion playing in the lake.

James chucked his last rock, counting the hops it took across the surface of the water, and then stood up. He brushed the dirt off his trousers, and met Lily's gaze evenly with a perfectly indifferent, blank face. "I guess you will just have to find another rejection line then," he said. James stepped to the side so he could go around her, but she mirrored his action, and blocked his path, crossing her arms.

"They're more like excuses anyway," she disagreed lightly. A small smile was tugging at the corner of her lips, threatening to break out at any moment.

He raised one eyebrow questioningly. "Really?" he asked in a politely interested tone of voice. Her head bobbed up and down in a nod. "Well, I guess you'll just have to think up some new ones," James suggested.

Lily discreetly moved a little closer to him, so they were just a few inches away. "Or I could just give in," she offered, taking another tiny step forward.

James frowned at this, not appreciating the way she was leading him on, or how her heavenly floral scent was making his head spin. "And why would you do that? So you can mangle my already broken heart even more?" James snapped, finally breaking out of his detached manner. He instantly regretted his tone when he saw her shocked, slightly hurt expression.

"Is that why you think I turn you down?" Lily demanded in a soft voice. "You think it doesn't hurt me to say no, and watch you walk away looking lost, and beside yourself?" She was getting angry now, and her face was rapidly turning red. Does he really think so little of me? "I assure you, James, it is not easy when you want something so badly, but you know you cant have it!"

James stepped towards her, and cradled her face in his hands, gently wiping away the hot tears that were rolling down her face with his thumbs. "But you can have it," he whispered gently.

Lily shook her head vigorously. "No, I cant, James. You're smart, talented, charming, and Merlin knows, devastatingly handsome… You're untouchable. But I'm…I'm just Lily," she said, cringing as she waved a hand over herself.

James laughed quietly, and brushed her hair back from her face with one of his hands. "Well, if you're just Lily, I think you're pretty well perfect." James leaned in and pressed his lips to hers softly. He could feel her smiling against his mouth.

"Oh, sod it," Lily muttered, and wrapped her arms around his neck, throwing herself into the kiss.

And from then on, they, their love, was untouchable.