James was staring aimlessly at his potions book. He did not remember exactly when he had gone from reading to completely zoning out, his mind somewhere else. Beside him Sirius yawned, bringing James back to reality.
"How far are you?" Sirius asked, looking over at James book.
"Uhhhh, page 2?"
Sirius snickered. "I thought having Evans right there might distract you."
Lily looked up from a nearby table and scowled. She picked up her books and Potions Essay and moved across the common room.
James glared at Sirius. "How far are you?" He challenged.
Sirius smiled. "Page four baby, woo!"
It was James turn to snicker, but once both of them saw how little time was left in their free period, they went back to their books. But Lily was still far too close for James to concentrate.
...
"Ugh, how many times do i have to tell you NO? I don't know what you and your friends do but it's really fishy and your just arrogant and you strut around the place like it's yours and-"
Lily cut off. She could have sworn she saw his eyes go moist, but James Potter was far too tough to cry, and sure enough as quickly as it had come, it had gone, and James smiled.
"and?" He questioned.
Lily blushed. "Never mind"
James chuckled. "you'll come around. I'll be here when you do."
"I-wait-what-?" Lily stammered, but James had already walked away, turned the corner and was out of sight. Far too out of sight to see lily's bewildered, blushing face.
...
*CRASH*
"Damn!" Lily rubbed the brand new bruise on her head, looking around at the clattering metal.
"Walk much Evans?"
James came up to her chuckling.
"This is what, almost the end of our sixth year, and you still don't know where the knights of armor are?"
Lily blushed. "I wasn't paying attention-just reading book..." Lily mumbled.
James chuckled again and stooped down to pick up her fallen books.
"You know, I'm sure there's enough time to study without having to do it while walking."
Lily turned an even deeper red. "Oh and you would know all about using study time."
James smiled. "Hey, I study. Not very well, but I still study." He paused. "Maybe if someone really smart could help me, I'd do better."
Lily thought for a moment. "I guess i could let you quiz me, at least you'd be reading the material."
James's smiled widened. "Great it's set. I do have one condition though; No studying while walking."
Lily grabbed her books back and smacked him with one. Chuckling and gripping his, now bruised, shoulder, James left, smiling to himself as he went.
...
"What happened?"
James sighed and sat down in next to Remus.
"Well I quizzed her for a good two hours, she bloody brilliant, knew everything." James paused and sighed again for dramatic effect. "So we got through Defense Against the Dark Arts, then Potions, and I said something like 'wow maybe I should study while I walk too' and that made her decided she would quiz me"
Remus laughed. "How did that go?"
"Fine, at first." James replied, "I knew all of Defense Against the Dark Arts, but then she had to move on to bloody potions and I was horrible. I got nervous so I-"
"-took out your snitch" Sirius said plopping down on the other side of Remus. "You always do that"
James scowled. "So yeah I took out my snitch and Evans said I was a show-off and refused to quiz me if I was playing with it, and then she went off to her dormitory."
"Tough break dude" Sirius replied.
James wanted to smack himself with the potions book, but instead he opened it and concentrated, just in case he was ever quizzed again.
...
"Hey Evans!" James called.
Lily walked over to James. "What?"
"Thanks for all the help with potions. That exam was easier than I thought it would be."
"See? You can do things without the snitch." Lily teased.
James chuckled, and his hand twitched around the drawing he had doodled after last year's Defense Against the Dark Arts exam.
"Yeah, sometimes…" He began. He made to take the drawing out but one of Lily's friends called her over and with a quick "bye!" she was gone. James sighed and looked down at the snitch with the initials L.E. on it. Someday he thought to himself. Someday.
...
"Bye Prongs."
"Oh Padfoot, goodbye buddy. Hey, remember you're always welcome over at my house."
"Thanks man. Write to me this summer, I hate being stuck with no one to talk to besides Regulus."
"Will do. Hey, tell moony I said bye, I think he's already off the platform."
"Aren't you coming?"
"Yeah, in a sec"
"Ok…bye"
Sirius walked off towards his parents and James looked around him on the platform. After looking for a couple minutes he decided that she had already left, and it would be another summer before he would see her again. Sighing, he walked through the barrier to find his parents.
...
He'd known her for seven years now; shouldn't he have memorized how she looked? But seeing her now, at the welcome feast, he realized that none of his visions of her over the summer had done her justice. They hadn't included the way the sunlight hit her red hair, or just how green her eyes were. He hadn't remembered how perfect her lips were or how cute her nose looked when she smelled something bad and it wrinkled a bit-
"Dude, what are you starring at?
James snapped out of it "What? Oh nothing, nothing."
...
She was sitting by the lake with her feet in the water, her long red hair flowing down her back. It was then he realized he was smart to never give up. Without really thinking he walked straight up to her and asked the question he asked her four times before. She looked up at him and smiled. James realized that he didn't mind all the waiting if in the end he would get her.
"Yes"
She smiled sheepishly at him, not knowing that a boy with greasy black hair, right behind a nearby tree, had just realized that he would never, ever, be truly happy again.