James Potter wasn't perfect. He chewed his fingernails, he had an awful habit of ruffling up his hair when he was nervous, and he was too tall. He hunched his shoulders, he had a gap in his teeth, and he'd taken one too many bludgers to the nose. There was something about him, though. He didn't just walk into a room - he owned it. He took up all the space in the doorway, demanding attention just by laughing like he hadn't a care in the world.
Lily Evans was fascinated by him. Her green eyes followed every movement he made. She alone noticed his imperfections and each one made her smile. She watched the way he'd have to fold himself up to fit behind the desks in classrooms because his legs were just too damn long. She noticed the way his glasses slid down his long crooked nose when he was studying. She noticed his complete transformation when it came to Quidditch. One minutes he'd be just James Potter bumbling his way through things blind as a bat, and then suddenly he was tall and sure and Captain Potter.
She liked to think it was the utter difference between the two faucets of his life that won her over. The way he'd go from laughing and joking to standing tall and sounding confident. She liked to think it was the way the Quidditch uniform looked on him, how it accentuated his lean frame. Yes, she liked to think it was how completely and utterly grown up he seemed at Quidditch captain.
But that wasn't it at all.
It was the little things that won Lily over to him eventually. It was subtle things at first, the way he stopped hexing people who annoyed him was a nice touch. He came back sixth year and suddenly she couldn't stop watching him, noticing him. He bit his lip when he concentrated. He drummed his hands on the table or his leg when he was nervous or agitated.
Before she knew it she was in love with James Potter and all those little things.