Jerome Gamp had come to library for a peaceful study session with his friend Hugo Weasley before dinner. He had not come to the library to watch Lily Potter shuffle through endless pieces of parchment and groan. And yet, this shuffling and groaning pre-dinner show was what he had been given. When Lily had sat down at his table moments before she had promised emphatically that (1) she would only sit with him until Hugo turned up so she could ask him something about her Potions homework, (2) her sitting with him was no indication that she was warming up to him as a person, and (3) she would be quiet. There was no doubt in his mind that she would fulfil the first two, but the second one? Lily was groaning again.
"What's wrong?" Jerome snapped.
"What?"
"You keep fidgeting," he said," and you're frowning." He raised a long, pale finger to Lily's brow, pointing out said frown.
"I know where my forehead is," she cried, swatting his hand away. "Can you just let me concentrate?"
"Can you concentrate a bit quieter? Preferably in silence?"
"Fine."
"Thank you."
Lily bent down over her parchment once more, scribbled a few words, threw her quill down, and promptly buried her face in her hands with yet another groan.
"Aw, poor lamb," cooed Jerome, smirking. "Are you struggling with your essay?"
Lily glared at him through her fingers.
"Oh, shut up, Jerome," she said.
"I can help you if you like," he said. "Is there a specific part you need help with or is the whole thing just too difficult for you?"
Jerome leant over to take a look at what she had written already but Lily snatched the parchment out of reach.
"Fine, be that way," he said.
Refusing to look at Jerome, Lily asked angrily, "When is Hugo supposed to be here?"
He shrugged.
"Well until he gets here I think we should just work in silence."
"Fine," he said, raising his hands in defeat and returning to his own work.
"I came here so Hugo could help me with my potions essay not so you could take the mick out of my Potions skills," Lily pressed on."
"Yeah, got it."
"Besides, I don't know what makes you feel as though you've got the authority to tell me what to do."
"I thought you wanted silence?" asked Jerome.
Lily scowled.
"I do," she said.
"Well shut up then."
Lily glared at Jerome once more but, already looking back down at his work, he did not seem to notice. Thinking it would be pointless to try and continue her essay without Hugo, Lily slumped back in her chair, waiting. The silence calmed her for a moment, until her ears picked up on a squeaking from under the table. With a glance down, it became clear that the squeaking was coming from Jerome's feet, which he was rubbing together as he worked.
"Do you like them?" said Jerome, noticing Lily staring at his feet.
"What?" she asked, still distracted by the squeaking.
"My shoes. You were staring."
"They were making a noise," Lily explained. "I thought we weren't talking anyway?"
"They're nice though aren't they," continued Jerome, sliding one foot out from under the table so that Lily might get a proper view of his shoe. "Dragon-hide. Very expensive. My mum sent them last week for my birthday."
"Good for your mum."
"They're nice aren't they?"
Lily glanced down to take another look. They were nice.
"Not really," she lied. "Maybe they're not my taste."
Because Jerome, for all his faults, did have fantastic shoes.