Christmas vacation is finally over. Emma, Landon and I are on the train, heading back to Hogwarts. Landon I sitting next to me, and Emma's sitting across from us. Landon absentmindedly intertwined his fingers with mine. His hand felt wonderful and warm in mine. It was like an electric current want through me every time we touched. We had become a couple in an unspoken agreement ever since Christmas Eve.
"You know Em, now that we're together, you need a boyfriend." I said.
"No, I'm fine," Emma said.
I rolled my eyes, "Come on, you've got to like someone."
She shrugged, but I saw her blush.
"Oo-ooh, tell me who he is." I said.
She shook her head.
"Yes, come on, what are you afraid of?" I asked.
She sighed, "Oh fine, his name's Seth Barnes. And I doubt he even know I exist."
I grinned, "Then let him know you exist."
"What?" She asked.
"Talk to him; introduce yourself."
She shook her head. I sighed exasperatedly.
"Fine, but you'll talk to him one way or another; I'll make sure of it."
She just rolled her eyes at me.
~*~*~*~
It's been two weeks since the resumption of term. It's after dinner and I'm in the common room doing homework while Landon and Emma were off doing their own thing. I was almost done with Charms when someone grabbed my shoulders. I jumped and let out a startled shout. I turned around in my chair to see a grinning Landon. I smacked his arm.
"You scared me!" I pouted.
He kissed me on the cheek.
"Sorry, go get ready, you have an hour." He said.
"Why? What are we doing?" I asked.
"It's a surprise, Emma's waiting for you, so don't worry. I'll be back in an hour."
He left before I could say anything further, so I just shrugged and gathered up my things. I walked up to my dorm and sure enough, Emma was waiting for me.
"What's going on?" I asked.
"I can't tell you," she said with a grin plastered on her face.
I groaned, this couldn't be good, "Fine."
"Come on, we have to get you ready!" She said in excitement.
I took a shower and then we went through all my clothes—and even some of Emma's—trying to find the "perfect outfit" as she put it. (Even though I still had no idea what for). Finally, we decided on a blue, cotton spaghetti-strap, knee-length dress with a floral pattern. Since it's January, and still cold, I put a black sweater over it.
Shoes were a bit harder. And by a "bit", I mean a lot. Emma was bound and determined to get me into stilettos, and I wanted to wear my converse. Finally we both compromised and I ended up in some black flats. I curled my hair a little and put on some make-up. Just a little to complement my eyes and a little colored lip-gloss.
How we managed all this in an hour, I'm not sure. But by now I had figured out that Landon and I were going on a date. We went back down to the common room to meet Landon, who was waiting just as promised.
Landon was talking to a friend and had his back to us. Emma cleared her throat and he turned around.
He was wearing a light green, long-sleeve, button-down shirt that was unbuttoned to reveal a white t-shirt underneath and some nice jeans.
He smiled when he saw us, his icy blue eyes sparkling. I smiled back, completely unaware of everyone else in the room.
"Are you ready? "He asked as he walked over.
"Yes," I nodded.
He offered his hand and I took it; he led me out of the common room and down a corridor.
"You look more beautiful than usual." He said.
"Thank you, you clean up nicely too, I see." I teased.
He grinned, "Thanks."
"You're welcome, so are you going to tell me where we're going yet?"
"Nope, it's a surprise, remember?" He said.
"What if I don't like surprises?" I asked.
"Hmm, then I guess you'll just have to deal with it." He said I mock seriousness.
"Uh! That's so mean!"
He grinned, "Yup, but lucky for you, we're here."
I stuck my tongue out at him. I looked around; we were in the middle of the seventh floor corridor.
"What? Are you serious? There's nothing here!" I said.
He nodded, "Totally, stay right there."
He walked over to a wall and then walked by it, three times. I gasped; the wall had become a door. He grinned and motioned for me to join him. I walked over and took his hand again.
"Close your eyes," he said softly.
I obeyed and closed my eyes. I could hear the door opening, and Landon led me by the hand into it. The door closed softly behind us.
"Okay, open." He said.
I opened my eyes and gasped again. The room was huge and covered in every kind of flower you could imagine, all except roses. The enchanted roof portrayed the night sky, but there was a netting of yellow lights hanging down from poles in each corner of the room. In the very middle of the room, there was a crystal-clear brook, surrounded by soft, fluffy, green grass.
"Landon, this is so beautiful! How did you do all this?" I asked in awe.
He chuckled, "It's all the room. It'll turn into anything you want it to."
"Wow, how'd you find the room?"
"Teddy. It's good to have friends who like going on late-night escapades." He said, grinning.
"This is so awesome!"
He nodded, "Come on."
He led me through the bushes and flowers and to the little circle of grass in the middle with the brook running through it. We sat down on a stone bench there.
"I know Caleb did something similar, but you have no idea how long I've thought about this." He said.
I smiled at him, "This is so much better, know why?"
He shook his head.
"Because I'm with you." I said softly.
I put my hand on his cheek and moved my thumb gently back and forth. I breathed in his familiar, calming scent. My heart rate increased as his lips met mine. I felt slightly dizzy; our kiss was passionate, but not intense, like it had been with Caleb. When we broke apart, I leaned against his shoulder and he rested his head on mine. We sat there in comfortable silence for a while.
"Peyton, I just want you to know, I'm waiting for marriage too." He said suddenly.
I looked into his eyes, "Really?"
He nodded, "Yes, but even if I wasn't, I'd wait forever for you. You're definitely worth it."
"Thanks." I said.
He kissed the top of my head, "You're welcome."
"Let's go to the brook," I suggested.
"Sounds like a good idea." He said.
We got up and put our feet into the brook. I splashed him and he splashed me back, which lead a splash war. We finally had to stop because if we didn't leave we would miss curfew and get in trouble. That night, before I went to sleep, I wrote a letter to Josh and Kylee; when I fell asleep, I had dreams of Landon.