AN: CHAPTER THREE IS HERE! A huge thank you to everyone who has reviewed or followed :) I hope you enjoy this chapter!

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Rose stared down at her copy of Hamlet and tried to concentrate, but her willpower didn't last long- she couldn't keep her eyes from flickering towards the doorway. Class had started nearly fifteen minutes before, so where was he?

Not important. Read. She read a few more lines. Don't look towards the door. Just keep reading.

She looked towards the door.

And then, just like that, there he was. She felt like her stomach had been possessed by a large number of manic butterflies. Damn him. And his irritating messy hair that she kind of wanted to run her fingers through. And his adorably crooked smile. And his eyes. Especially damn his eyes and the way they lit up when they landed on her. She quickly smiled back and turned away, too fluttery to eavesdrop as he explained to their professor why he was late. A moment later, he slipped into the seat next to hers.

"I got lost," he whispered.

She grinned. "No maps for you?"

"I couldn't read a map to save my own life."

"Well, right now we're supposed to be reading Shakespeare," she said, gesturing at Hamlet. "Do you have a copy?"

He shook his head. "I read it in high school, though."

She laid her copy out on the table. "You can share mine." With that, she went back to reading, trying her best not to react as he leaned over the book and their arms brushed together.

Ten minutes later, Professor Flitwick spoke in his squeaky voice. "Now, let's discuss! Topic of the day: do you believe Hamlet is actually insane, or is he simply feigning insanity?"

A girl with curly brown hair raised her hand.

"Miss Brown?"

"In Act One, Scene Five, Hamlet tells Horatio that he's going to pretend to be crazy, so if Horatio notices any bizarre behavior, that's why," she said. "I think he's just pretending, to confuse everyone else."

"True, true," said Professor Flitwick, nodding enthusiastically.

"And Hamlet doesn't think he's crazy," added a boy seated on the other side of the room.

"Yeah, but that doesn't necessarily mean he isn't," said Rose, jumping into the discussion. "I don't think I'm crazy isn't the greatest guarantee that someone isn't crazy."

"He has a lot of violent outbursts," added Scorpius. "And his mood is constantly changing."

"All good points!" said the professor. "Miss Patil, your thoughts?"

The discussion went on for a while longer, until Professor Flitwick clapped his hands and announced "I look forward to reading your essays. Three pages. Due on Friday. Get to work!"

There were a few groans and some muttering, and then the rest of the class pulled out their pencils and notebooks and began to scribble.. Rose strongly suspected that most of them were doodling pictures of cats.

"So," she said to Scorpius, "what do you think?"

"Of Hamlet?" he said.

"Well, that too," she said. "But I meant the class."

"Ah," he said. "I like it. Flitwick seems cool."

"He's a bit crazy," she said. "You should have seen him when we did Romeo and Juliet. We had to act out all the sword fights with rolled-up magazines. I was Mercutio. It was pretty dramatic."

He laughed. "What was your essay topic for that unit?"

"Whether or not their relationship would have lasted."

"What'd you pick?"

"Guess."

He tilted his head to one side, considering. "I'm guessing no, you don't think it would have lasted."

"Bingo. What about you?" she said.

He wrinkled his nose in careful consideration. "No," he said eventually. "But that doesn't mean they didn't love each other, even if it was just for a little while." And then he smiled, which was really annoying of him, because his smile kind of made Rose want to kiss him and she'd known him for less than three days and Rose Weasley did not kiss people she'd only known for three days.

Instead, she leaned back in her chair. "So you're an optimist."

"Definitely," he said. "Let me guess. You consider yourself a realist, which means you're secretly a pessimist, right?"

"Don't be so critical," she said. "When you expect the best of things, it's easier to be let down. My way, I'm pleasantly surprised whenever something goes well."

Scorpius shook his head. "You're crazy. Looking forward to things is half the fun. Although I will admit I'm not particularly looking forward to this essay."

"Don't like writing?"

"No, I do," he said. "I just can never decide which side I want to defend."

"Optimism and indecision," she said, grinning.

"That's me." He brushed his fingers through his hair and fidgeted before looking up and meeting her eyes. "Is there any chance… I mean, um… would you like to work on the essays together, sometime?'

WORK ON THE ESSAYS?

What does that mean?

Is this a date? Is this just friendship? Is this simply two people bonding over Hamlet's insanity? Or is he just a freeloader trying to take advantage of my essay-writing skills?

Out loud, she said "Sure, why not? Maybe I can help you with your indecision problems."

"That'd be the day."

"When do you want to meet?"

"Five?" he suggested.

"Sure," she said. "Moose Mochas?" Moose Mochas was a nearby coffee shop, well known for its caffeinated beverages and fast internet connection, which meant it was always full of college students writing essays, studying for tests, or trying to speed-read Voltaire.

"Excellent," said Scorpius. "I'll see you then."

At that exact moment, Professor Flitwick called out "Class dismissed!" Rose leapt to her feet and shoved her things into her bag. "See you then!" she said. Scorpius smiled and waved.

She resisted the urge to skip as she made her way out of the building and down the lawn of the campus. She'd made it through her classes without her coffee, she didn't have much homework, and she had nearly three hours to get ready for her date/studying/deceptive freeloading session with Scorpius.

Of course, she also didn't have a ride home. She stared across the parking lot, trying to calculate if Lily was out of work yet and could come pick her up.

A car horn honked. Rose jumped. As though she had summoned her, Lily pulled up to the pavement and waved.

Rose opened the car door and dropped her bag onto the floor. "This is a surprise. How did you know I needed a ride?"

"I didn't." Lily looked grim. "Family emergency. Get in."

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AN: Thank you for reading! Don't forget to review :)