Matters of the heart are not easily discussed. Lily Evans, wise for her sixteen years, learned that early on in life. People asked too many personal questions that Lily didn't feel comfortable answering. Hardships were, in a way, more difficult to deal with when her friends or family got involved. This mentality of keeping everything emotionally difficult, that made her feel sad and angry and anxious, away from the prying eyes of the public helped Lily move forward. Without the hindrance of these kinds of problems attacking her, she felt like she could accomplish anything. Lily felt enormous pride for all that she accomplished by pushing away aggressive, nosy people who harmed her in the name of trying to do something good.

Without warning, and without explanation, her heart began to beat faster for fellow sixth year Muggleborn Christopher Roberts. He wasn't much to look at, Lily noticed whenever he would stroll around the corridors of Hogwarts with his unassuming gait. His dark hair was always styled in an unflattering way around his square face. Christopher's mahogany eyes were his most remarkable trait. They glittered like a gemstone because he looked at the world around him fascinating with a childlike enthusiasm. Christopher asked questions without remorse, because his world would expand at an exponential rate if he got satisfactory answers. He smiled whenever he gained a new fact to expand his world, as if nothing could let him down as long as he found something in his surroundings to feed his ever-inquisitive mind. Lily appreciated that Christopher's positive attitude never ceased to falter, even when something harsh

It seemed cliché to gush about Christopher to Lily's friends. It would make her seem sentimental and sappy in ways she didn't know how to deal with. Don't get Lily wrong: sentimentality wasn't a bad thing, and she didn't look down upon it. But it was an emotion she felt didn't suit her.

Maybe I should try being more sentimental, though, Lily mused aloud when she had a quiet moment to herself in the common room, sitting on a comfy couch in front of the fire on a cold day, it wouldn't hurt to try something new; it works for Christopher and it'll work for me. It seemed out of character to take on a new philosophy because of a boy. She followed her own path because it was the one she knew best for herself. Nobody could tell her where to go and how to embark on her life but Lily herself.

This giddiness that surged through her veins by adopting a more positive outlook made Lily want to conquer the corridors of Hogwarts. She skipped out of the Gryffindor common room. Waltzing through the corridors with a new way of looking at the sturdy browning bricks of the castle made Hogwarts seem different and new. Lily stopped in her tracks when she saw Christopher with a fifth year half-blood, Rachelle Lawson. She seethed, then wanted to cry; these mixed emotions overwhelmed her. This one-sided lovesickness that plagued her mind was a direct result of her desire for sentimentality. This crushing disappointment, all felt from afar, was punishment for feeling like she could include the world in her own happiness.

"Love hurts, doesn't it?" a familiar voice said, ringing too loud in her ears for comfort.

"What would you know about love?" Lily asked in a terse tone before she could realize that it was James Potter. He was such a romantic. Loving came easily and without conditions; it was this particular attitude that made him so genuinely well liked.

"Lots of things. Enough to know that you're hurt by Christopher in some way." James draped an arm around her shoulder, as if to tell her that she could trust him. Lily didn't question this action because it was comforting to have physical reassurance that she wasn't wrong for feeling like her worldview collapsed like a house with an unsteady foundation. It was nice to not fight with James' affinity for contact. In fact, Lily welcomed it; she leaned into his wiry frame with a smile.

"Thank you." He smiled.

"Anything for you, Lily. I'm always here." There was a silence that wrapped around Lily and James. Lily basked in James' presence, quiet and unquestioning. This sweet moment would stay with Lily for a while. Christopher and Rachelle left Lily's field of vision after a while. Forget Christopher! All Lily wanted was to freeze this moment with James.

"How do you get over heartbreak?" Lily asked, in a casual attempt to make some conversation.

"You don't," Lily was startled but intrigued by James' blunt answer, "because it becomes a part of how you look at life. When your heart breaks, it's life telling you that you've gotta change your perspective. And when you mend your heart, it'll inevitably remember the past broken pieces, because brokenness doesn't always leave you. It shapes you."

Lily smiled, stunned.

"That was the most profound string of words that I've ever heard out of your mouth. I'm proud."

James let out a toothy grin, wolfish and similar to his typical demeanor.

"I've practiced that for so long. You don't know how glad I am to finally unleash that wisdom onto someone like you." Lily punched him in the arm jokingly; James feigned pain, but laughed too hard to keep up the charade.

"You're so beautiful when you open up. It softens you." James said. It was intended as a compliment, Lily knew that for sure, but Lily wasn't sure to be offended at the implication that she was only beautiful when she was vulnerable or flattered that she got a compliment at all.

"Thanks, I guess."

"It's a straight-up compliment. I promise." Even though romantic love hurt sometimes, there was always a solace in platonic love like this. Matters of the heart were not always discussed, but Lily could get used to thinking in a different way.