"Wake up!"

Groaning inwardly, Lily rubbed her eyes open, removing the sleep from them. Above her hovered her cousin Dominique, grinning from ear to ear. Lily groaned again and pushed her cousin away, curling up in her bed with the duvet over her head.

"Leave me alone Dom. I was up late finishing my Defence Against the Dark Arts project."

From the other side of the room, Lily heard the worried tone of one of her best friends. "I thought that didn't have to be in for another two weeks," Ariana said, her voice rising with concern.

"It doesn't. Lily just loves to worry us with her over-achievements," Lily's other friend Phoebe remarked sarcastically.

"I do not!" she said defiantly, throwing the covers off her body.

Perched on the end of her bed with a pile of letters in her hand, was Dominique, her grin still fixed on her face. It was clear she had already washed and gotten dressed, styling a blood-red sheer blouse and black jeans to go with. "That got you up. Now open your cards."

"You woke me up for this?" Already Lily was groaning to herself.

"It's Valentine's Day! Not, let's-waste-the-day-away-in-bed-day!" Her cousin moved closer and Lily knew the only way to get rid of her, was to do as she said until she got bored and left Lily alone.

Sitting up in her bed, keeping the duvet wrapped tight because the dormitory window was open, Lily sighed in defeat and let Dominique pass her one card at a time. The fact that she had cards at all was a surprise to Lily. She was a friendly person but to think people actually felt that way about her was weird.

And she knew James would probably hex any boy that came within a five metre radius of her today; unless he was too busy flirting with Alice.

In total, she received seven cards. One was from a very obnoxious first year from Hufflepuff who believe that he could show Lily 'a good time'. Another was from a third year Gryffindor, who invited her to the Valentine's Ball that was this evening. Four more were from some of Lily's classmates, Toby Cannon from Hufflepuff, Noah Barnsley and Tyger Cooke from Slytherin and Ryan Lowe from her own house. The last one came with a big box of chocolates from Honeydukes, each filled with caramel. No one had signed the card. All that was written inside the card was…

"You're beautiful."

"Who said that?" Ariana asked, helping herself to a heart-shaped chocolate.

A confused expression settled across Lily's face. "There's no name." She flipped the card over but the other side was empty. It made no sense. Why send a card and not sign it? Though she knew if she had the nerve to send Scorpius a card, she wouldn't sign it either.

"Oh Lily's got a secret admirer!" Dominique teased and soon Ariana and Phoebe joined in, repeating it in a sing-songy manner.

All of her friends received cards; Ariana got three including one from Hugo's friend Niall Finnigan. Dominique received loads but she kept the number to herself, not wanting to boast. Phoebe received one from Franklin Longbottom, formally inviting her to the ball tonight – although she had already agreed.

After finishing off all the chocolates, with a little help, Lily found something to wear – a blue check shirt tucked into high-waist jeans – and quickly hopped in the shower before heading down to breakfast.

As they entered the Great Hall, Lily groaned. "I hate Valentine's Day." The entire hall was decorated in red and white streamers with hearts everywhere – even the toast was in the shape of hearts. Above their heads, miniature cupids were whizzing around, handing out last-minute cards, giggling in such harsh, high pitches that it annoyed Lily instantly.

"Don't be a bore Lils," Dominique whined, dangling her arm around her shoulder. "If you refuse to have fun today, I won't have you taking away from others." With a kiss on the cheek, Lily watched her cousin dance off, spinning down the aisle with her Veela charm causing every boy's head to turn.

Lily rolled her eyes. However she went and joined her friends who were sat with Seb, Oscar, Ryan, Harvey and Finn – the Gryffindor boys of her year. She was about to sit between Ariana and Phoebe when Ariana moved up the bench, forcing her to sit next to Ryan. Quickly she scowled at her best friend before taking a deep breath and turning to her left.

"Hi Lily!" Ryan was always very enthusiastic, even with homework. "Did you get my card?" There was a bright spark in his blue eyes and although they weren't the same icy blue as Scorpius, she smiled and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.

"I did Ryan. It was very sweet of you," Lily responded, watching a faint blush powder his cheeks. For Lily, this was a first. Never had she had boys falling over her.

But in the back of mind, always on the brink of taking full control, was her longing for the boy she knew would never feel the same way. Of course, Lily knew the impracticalities of wanting Scorpius, the main being he didn't feel the same way. Yet Lily couldn't make her feelings for him disappear so instead, she buried them. Usually they only plagued her when he was around.

Perhaps, with it being Valentine's Day, Scorpius would always be on her mind today.

"Who's up for a game of Quidditch?" Sebastian asked from across Lily. Instantly all the boys chorused in agreement. "Girls?" He looked from Dominique, to Phoebe, to Ariana before settling on me.

"I'm busy getting ready for tonight," Phoebe said.

Leaning into Seb, Dominique almost purred, "I'd love to."

Ariana shrugged. "Of course. Who doesn't want to spend their Valentine's Day with a couple of near-death experiences?" The small group laughed. In their first year, Ariana hadn't had much luck on a broom. Immediately after takeoff, she lost control and flew straight into a wall. Luckily nothing was broken.

"Lily?" Ryan asked, looking at her with wide, puppy dog eyes.

"I'm sorry. I've got a tonne of work to do. Especially my Potions essay." She watched the light fade from his eyes. "But maybe, if I finish early, I'll come down and meet you guys."

His smile seemed to fall slightly and Ryan left Lily alone to eat her loved-up breakfast, which guiltily she was happy about. She had no feelings for Ryan and it was wrong to lead him on. So after swallowing the last of her toast, she said goodbye to everyone and quickly headed back to her dormitory to fetch a book that she had been meaning to read since the beginning of the year.

OK, so she lied. But she knew she could beat all of them at Quidditch, because they underestimate her and she is the daughter of the best Chaser to grace the British and Irish League, and therefore didn't see the point when there were other things to be doing. Plus it was awkward with Ryan.

The weather was quite bright. Above her, the Sun was shining brightly opposite a chilling breeze that showed the ruminants of the winter weather. Wrapping a scarf around her neck and fastening the buttons of her coat, Lily made her way into the courtyard, hoisting herself up onto the wall under an arch. She pulled her knees up and rested her book on her thighs, turning the first page to read.

When I wake up, the other side of the bed is cold.

"What's up Lils?"

"One sentence!" she cried, mentally cursing whoever interrupted her. Looking up, she gasped. "Oh hi Scorpius." Awkwardly, she twisted a strand of hair behind her ear and laughed nervously.

"I'm sorry." He looked amazing, styling jeans tucked into military boots and a plain grey t-shirt suited his eyes. His eyes sparkled like icicles in sunlight and impulsively, Lily felt a smile grow across her face as she took Scorpius in. "I didn't mean to scare you."

"More like annoy," she teased. "I'd literally read just the first sentence." Lily indicated to the book by lifting it up.

With a huff, he lifted himself up onto the wall to face Lily, their legs laced together slightly. "Let me see."

Unwillingly, she handed him the book and studied his face, looking for any sign that he approved or disapproved of her choice in books. It felt like hours before Scorpius spoke again but in retrospect, it had hardly been a minute.

"Can I borrow it after you?"

"Sure," Lily said, hiding the surprise in her voice as she took the book back.

"Scorp!" On the other side of the courtyard, Albus, Franklin and Kaleb were waving Scorpius over. When he recognised his little sister, Al shouted a greeting to Lily.

Hopping off the wall, Scorpius ran his fingers through his hair and shrugged a black coat on. "Enjoy your book," he said with a wink, beginning to head towards his friends.

"Where are you guys off to?"

"Hogsmeade," Scorpius said, swinging around dramatically to face her. "My cousin Eve has set me up with one of her friends so I'm taking her on a date. I'd rather be here reading books like you but I've got to go and be a big boy." Lily giggled but couldn't help but feel empty inside.

He was dating. And it wasn't her. Of course she knew he would never have feelings for her but not for one second did she consider that he could have feelings for anyone else. A bit of a silly assumption to be honest.

"Have fun!" Lily replied, trying to sound enthusiastic.

"You too." And with a fleeting look behind his shoulder, Scorpius was gone and Lily could return to her book - even though she was very distracted at the thought of Scorpius Malfoy on a date.

###

"Lily, have you been out here all this time?"

Looking up from her book, Lily smiled to see Scorpius strutting towards her, his hands in his pockets casually. "What do you mean?" She marked the page with a small fold and swung her legs to dangle off the side of the ledge.

"You haven't moved since I left you this morning. And that was at least a couple of hours ago."

Sure enough the Sun above her had moved across the sky and ducked behind a patch of clouds that weren't there when Scorpius had first interrupted her. At a guess, Lily thought it was about lunchtime. In agreement, her stomach growled.

Lily looked at the ground, preparing to jump. She tightened her grip on her book and pushed off the wall, landing unsteadily and ultimately falling. However hands reached out and grabbed her before she could stop herself. Scorpius pulled her to her feet, making sure she was stable.

"Thanks," she mumbled, brushing her clothes and fetching her book that had dropped to the floor. When she stood back up, she realised how close she was to him, looking into his icy blue eyes and immediately becoming lost in them. If it wasn't for body necessities, Lily could have stayed like it for hours.

But her stomach had other ideas, growling loudly for food.

Scorpius smirked and turned, linking his arm with her. "Let's go and get some food. Your cousin made sure I didn't get any on my date." He led her back into the castle, making for the Great Hall.

"That reminds me," Lily said, trying to move the conversation away from her, even if it went talking about something that had the potential to crush her. "Why are you back from your date so early?"

"One word. Rose."

"Ah!" Lily sighed. She was very conscious of the arm that was linked with her, the warmth spreading through her body from the one connection. It seemed to take a lot more energy to focus on what Scorpius was saying. "What did she do this time?"

"We were sat in the Three Broomsticks, having a really nice time and then Rose comes along and just made everything awkward, constantly bringing up the fact that she was a pity date I agreed to for Eve and I wouldn't have said yes if it wasn't for the fact that Eve was my cousin. I was so close to pulling your cousin away by her hair and kicking her out but Melody suddenly didn't feel hungry and ran out of the pub, leaving Rose smirking in satisfaction. So I left, found Melody and asked her to the Ball tonight to make up for the disastrous lunch."

"Well those of Weasley blood are easily jealous," Lily said as they walked into the Great Hall.

Scorpius led her towards the Slytherin table, gaining a couple of stares. Thankfully there were only second and first years in the hall. It wasn't as if she had never sat with the snakes, talking to her brother about things. However never had she sat there with Scorpius, alone.

"Is that a rule? Because it would explain some of Albus' behaviour and definitely all of James's whenever it concerns Alicia."

"Probably." Shrugging to him, Lily found herself wondering if it was the Weasley blood of her mother that made her feel so jealous of Eve's friend Melody going on a date with Scorpius. She sat down next to him and began filling her plate with some salad.

"How are your classes?" he asked between mouthfuls of pasta.

It took a second to answer, seeing as she had to recover from the emotions of being touched that Scorpius was asking about her. "For the most part, they are good. I'm apparently ahead of everyone in Defence and Transfiguration is really exciting. But Potions is horrible."

"How bad?"

"I blew up my third cauldron of the term yesterday and it's only February!" Ever since Lily's first year, when she sent a total on eight letters home in the first term, asking for a new cauldron, she'd known she was disastrous at Potions. At Christmas, her mother bought a load in bulk and has them in the attic, waiting for Lily's to blow up.

In what felt like a patronising manner, Scorpius patted her on the back, his smirk stretched across his face. "One day kiddo, you'll make the perfect potion and your cauldron won't blow up."

"Really?" Lily raised her eyebrows. "Because Professor Trigg doesn't seem to think so. He's put me at my own desk so I don't hurt anyone with my explosions."

"Lily it wasn't your fault that Dom's head shrunk when you were trying to make a Swelling Potion. So what if the potion did the exact opposite thing it was supposed to do." The sarcasm was dripping from his words.

"Your sarcasm is killing me," Lily mocked.

Both of them chatted easily as they ate their lunches, the conversation moving from Scorpius' lessons to House Quidditch and the upcoming match between Slytherin and Gryffindor. Somehow it ended up back on Lily and her failing inability to do well in Potions.

"Have you got any work for Potions?" Scorpius asked, finishing the last of his pumpkin juice.

Lily nodded, quickly swallowing her food. "Seven inches." It was the essay she was supposed to be doing, or that's what she told Ryan anyway.

"We best get started then."

"You want to help me?" Lily stuttered, her eyes wide in disbelief. He was actually giving up his time to be with her on Valentine's Day. Her heart went into over-drive and started pounding heavily against her ribcage.

He got to his feet, offering a hand to Lily. "Your cousin sort of ruined my plans for the day so as long as you're happy being the next best thing..." He trailed off dramatically and Lily rolled her eyes. Nervously she took his hand and he helped her from the bench, linking his arm with hers. Around them, whispers sparked to life but the pair ignored them.

"Let's go write the best essay Professor Trigg will ever grade," she said and they both laughed their way to the Gryffindor common room.

###

It was quiet in the common room that evening. The majority of the school were in the Great Hall, dancing their way to kisses and blisters, leaving only the first and second years to lounge around to do as they please. Lily had decided to spend her time reading her book, ignoring Dominique and Ariana, who were playing a game of Wizard's Chess.

"He spent the entire day with you?" Dominique asked in a shocking manner. She was concentrating on the board in front of her, waiting for Ariana's next move and trying to map out her own. The pair took these games too seriously.

"It was only the afternoon," Lily corrected, sighing deeply as she put her book down. She was so close to the end and it was annoying that her friend chose now to start a conversation.

"He likes you," Ariana said in a teasing manner. Lily watched as Ariana smiled to herself and leant back in her chair, instructing her knight to move which meant smashing Dominique's last castle to rubble.

"How could you?" Dominique cried. She recovered quickly and instructed her bishop to destroy Ariana's last pawn. "And he does like you Lils."

"I think you're wrong."

"We're not," the friends said in unison. "Just tell him how you feel," Ariana added.

Lily rolled her eyes. "And when he doesn't like me back, I would have made a complete idiot of myself in front of Albus' best friend. I doubt the teasing would ever stop. I'd be ridiculed until the day I died."

"And what if you're wrong and he's just waiting for you to give him a sign that you like him too?" Dominique questioned, smirking as she watched Ariana struggle to find her next move.

"I guess he'll be waiting a long time then," Lily sighed, opening her book once more and silencing her friends.

It was peaceful for a while, apart from the few swears Ariana used to express the fact that Dominique was winning. Lily managed to read the last chapter, finishing the last words just as her brother entered the common room, followed by Franklin, Phoebe and of course, Scorpius. His stare was immediately on Lily and she could feel her best friends laughing already. The boys were all suited in dress robes, Franklin's black, Albus' brown and Scorpius' navy - a colour that match his hair very well. Phoebe looked stunning in her violet floor-length dress too.

"Why are you back so soon?" Dominique asked as Albus lifted his sister's legs to sit down before letting them rest on his lap. Scorpius sat on the other side of Albus and Franklin pulled a nearby armchair closer for him and Phoebe.

"It was so boring," Phoebe answered, kicking off her heels. "If you guys were there, it would have been better."

"How was Scorpius' date?" Dominique said, winking secretly to Lily who simply rolled her eyes as a reflex.

Lily wasn't the only one rolling her eyes. Her brother was too, which gained him a shove from Scorpius. "It was fine," he said politely, running his hands through his hair.

"Fine?" Franklin said questionably. "She was a bore."

"He's got a point dude." Albus murmured, shrugging out of his dress coat. "I've seen more personality in one of the wailing books in the Restricted Section."

"Lay off! She's Eve's friend. Your cousin sure didn't help by scaring her into being extremely shy this evening. I can't believe Rose," Scorpius said. His fingers ran through his white blond hair and Lily noticed he did this every time he was stressed or frustrated.

Making her move, Dominique leaned back in her chair. "Does that mean you'll be asking her out again?" she inquired subtly, asking the question that was on the tip of Lily's tongue. She smiled to her cousin, slightly thanking her for providing Scorpius a chance to give Lily a sign.

"I think I'm done trying to date younger girls," Scorpius sighed, running his last hand through his hair.

Lily looked down into her lap, feeling her heart fall straight out of her body. Although he hadn't directed his words at her, Lily felt as if he had ripped her heart out along with any possibility of them ever being together. Until that moment, she hadn't realised how much she had been hanging onto the tiny hope that her feelings may be reciprocated. However with this latest statement, that hope had quickly dissolved into upset.

"Are you alright Lils?"

Snapping out of her train of thought, she looked up to see Scorpius watching her with concern in his eyes. For a moment, she felt angry that he would dare care about her when he had just stamped on her dreams like they were small and worthless. However after a few deep breaths, the anger faded. It was Scorpius and she could never stay angry at him for long.

"I'm fine," she mumbled, fiddling with her book in her hands. "I finished it by the way." Lily offered the book across Albus to Scorpius, trying to smile as he took the book from her. "It's really good."

"Bloody Merlin Lils. That was quick. Didn't you just start it this morning?" Scorpius said, flicking it open at the first page.

In response, Lily just shrugged. "I guess I'm a quick reader." Scorpius just nodded to himself, becoming lost in the words of the book.

"Checkmate!" Ariana declared, causing everyone to look at the board and see Ariana's bishop strike Dominique's king into dust. She leaned back, smiling to herself in satisfaction while watching Dominique stutter in disbelief.

"How? I was... I don't... What the...? Rematch?"

"No thanks. I think I'll savour this victory before beating your ass again Weasley," Ariana teased.

"This isn't over May!"


Author's Note: I was extremely bored at college so I decided to upload this instead. Right now I'm in a silent class learning nothing but the fact that I'm seriously tired. Anyway, I hope you enjoy this chapter. Things are picking up between Scorpius and Lily, slowly but surely. I'm having a small writer's block with one chapter and I'm contemplating just leaving it out - but there are some underlying plots that must be explored. I'll stop rambling now. Just enjoy!

And remember to REVIEW!

P.S. Can anyone tell me from the first sentence what Lily is reading? There'll be imaginary bonus points and perhaps a next chapter if someone guesses correctly.