Chapter 10

"Come on, and be quiet," whispered James to Lily as they sneaked around the corner from the bottom of the tower on top of which they had spent their night. They had spent several long, silent hours watching the moon trace across the sky and the stars twinkle and fall against the black night. So long that now they had to sneak to the common room lest they be caught and punished.

"You are way too good at this," commented Lily in a hushed tone as James pulled back an embroidered wall drapery to reveal a secret passage that Lily had never even heard rumors of before.

"Well, I am an expert," he replied as they entered the darkness of the passage. She let him lead her, her hand in his, down the pathway until, several minutes later, it opened up behind a moving wall into a corridor Lily recognized as being a floor below Gryffindor Tower's entrance.

"Careful," James instructed, peering carefully down the poorly lit hallway both ways. Hands still held, they went together down the corridor towards the staircase, walking on their tiptoes. Everything was going alright…until they heard the voice of none other than Filch and spotted the light of his lantern coming swiftly upon them from the opposite end of the hall. Both James and Lily paused, Lily more so in shock.

"Run," he said.

"What?!" she asked breathlessly. Hadn't he told her as they left the tower that they had to be quiet and take their time?

"Run!" he urged again in a shouted whisper, tugging at her hand, breaking her from her stunned trance.

They took off violently. Their footsteps echoed loudly and unmistakably off the walls. Filch, hearing them, tried to race after the unidentified offenders, but was quickly winded. He was no match for two young kids. Instead he yelled threats and curses at their retreating backs, but Lily and James never even stopped to listen.

They raced down the next corridor before swerving so sharply around a corner that Lily stumbled. Only James, arms around her middle, kept her from completely falling. After she paused and regained herself they tore up the nearest set of steps and headed to their common room.

They skidded to a stop in front of a familiar portrait. James, gasping for breath, called out the password. The Fat Lady reprimanded them for being out so late, before swinging open to allow them entrance.

Together they stumbled into the empty common room. Lily made her way to an armchair and collapsed into it.

"Merlin," she swore between her rough breaths, clutching a hand to her chest. "My heart is beating so fast…"

"I know," James replied, quite literally breathless, sitting on the floor next to where she sat on a couch.

"That was so-" Lily said between her heavy, yet calming, breaths, "So exhausting… so terrifying…so… fun…"

"I know," repeated James, though this time with a smirk, looking up at her knowingly.

She raised her eyebrows questioningly.

"Maybe you can appreciate now why I have never stopped breaking the rules. It's more fun this way." He said.

"I'd think I'd die if I had to do that again," replied Lily, shaking her head with a small smile on her face.

"You could do it again," James assessed, staring into the dying fire. "If you couldn't, you wouldn't have called it 'fun.'"

"I guess you're right," agreed Lily, adding silently in her head, 'again.' This seemed to her like the millionth time that day when he explained something to her and she just had to agree he was correct.

James glanced at his watch. "Eleven fifty-eight," he announced, not meeting her eyes.

Lily was silent for a few seconds before asking, "Does your watch happen to be fast by any chance?"

James glanced up at Lily and shook his head, confusion showing in his features at her question.

She sighed outwardly and pushed herself out of the chair. James got himself off the floor and they stood, facing each other. They stood closer than friends usually stood, but still distant enough to feed doubt to the other's intentions.

"I know I asked you this before, about halfway through the date, but now that we are at the end…" he trailed off, hoping his explanation would suffice. Lily nodded for him to continue. "Do you regret going out on this date with me?"

Oh, it was that question he was referring to.

It wasn't a bad day, but it didn't make it any less hard on her. He had made her doubt herself too much, but was it worth it…

"Maybe," she answered elusively.

"Have you fallen for me yet?" he asked next with barely a hesitation.

Merlin, how was she supposed to answer this truthfully?

"Maybe," she said, trying to keep her voice from wavering.

She knew what was coming next…

"Can I kiss you?"

She paused.

"No," she replied.

A half a moment of nothingness. No him, no her, just that word that hung in the air in between them. Neither understood it, or maybe neither wanted to understand it. It came without hesitation and was accepted without shock. Everything, even the air they breathed seemed dense. He didn't want it to end this way, and, funnily enough, neither did she.

She took half a step forward just a tense second or two later, rose onto her toes and planted a kiss, ever so softly and chastely, on the corner of James mouth, as if she couldn't decide between kissing him on the cheek or on the lips.

"But that doesn't mean I can't kiss you," she explained in a whisper. "Night, James," then she turned and fled up the stairs to her dormitory

"Night," he whispered hoarsely, long after she had disappeared.

He stood alone in the common room. He didn't know what to think or what to feel. Lily Evans, the girl of his dreams, had just kissed him. The problem was he wasn't sure if it had been a kiss of loving acceptance, or a kiss of soft rejection.

He hoped it was the former, but he didn't want to get his hopes up. He would like to think that after all he and Lily had been through today that it was a kiss of undoubting but shy acceptance…of like…of love…of whatever romantic term it could be labeled under. Another part of him…well, another part of him wasn't so optimistic.

He trudged up to his dorm. He snuck in carefully and quietly because he didn't want to disturb his dorm mates, for selfish reasons rather than being polite. He didn't want them asking questions to how it went, if he and Lily kissed, or if he had gotten the beautiful redhead to fall for him when he himself didn't know yet.

He lay down on his bed and drew his curtains without undressing. So what if he was wearing his shoes to bed, it didn't matter to him right now… nothing seemed to matter.

He knew he was going to have a very restless night.

-

Lily had also avoided her friends, swiftly changed, drew the curtains aground her bed. She was now wrapped in a blanket, sitting on the center of her bed, much too awake than she should be at this hour.

She cursed herself out loud in a whisper. She couldn't believe that she did that. She had fully anticipated turning down James Potter, but instead she had kissed him, giving him the entirely wrong impression.

She buried her face in her hands in half-hearted aggravation, as if only half of her being regretted such actions.

Yet, there was still tomorrow, this could still be made right… right?

Even if she could 'fix this' did she want to? Is that really what she wanted? Would that actually be the right thing to do?

'Gaa! Stop doubting yourself, Lils!' she yelled mentally. "It's Potter," she said hushed voice to herself. "James Potter… James," her voice cracked as she said his name, threatening tears.

Lily was too stubborn and prideful to let herself cry over a boy, so she cried over herself instead…and the mess she had gotten herself into.

Aki- I didn't think I would get this up this weekend because I had SAT's, a birdal shower, and a college visit, but I made the time. I figured I'd had a bunch of murderous people after me if I didn't update...

Oh yeah, if you think this is almost the end you are soooo... wrong.