Author: WhtChoc

Title: Runaway Love

Chapter Title: About Momma's Home and Brother's Girl

Chapter Began: Monday, December 3, 2007

Chapter Finished: Saturday, January 26, 2008

Chapter Published: Saturday, January 26, 2008

Rating: R…

Disclaimer: None of the HP characters are mine.

Author's Note: Wow—I am so sorry for how long it's taken me to update this story and publish this next chapter. My gods—I don't even know if sorry can cut it. All I can say is I'll be happy if I still have even a third of the support I had before I decided to go MIA. Reasons for that range from going to school, working, traveling, people dying, new friends, old friends, other national writing competitions, reconnecting with my biological family after almost eleven years, and just living and surviving moments of 'Can I actually write?' and 'How the hell am I going to continue after already twenty-four installments when I've never reached this point before?'

I needed to find the Runaway Love story again somewhere here in my body and I've found it again. Hopefully, everyone will be satisfied with the outcome of this chapter—hopefully, you laugh and you're touched and you come away with a, "Yes, I'm so glad this story is updated! I want more!" sort of view by the end.

Anyways, this story is dedicated to you guys and thank you for the support you've shown through reviews and through private messaging. Enjoy!

Chapter Twenty-Four: About Momma's Home and Brother's Girl Previously…

"Lily Evans, will you marry me?"

"James, I need a break."

"What?"

…

A barefooted, half-dressed James Potter cursed when he heard the knocks on his front door. He stumbled down the hallway, rubbing his eyes and the spot that ached on his lower back. He didn't bother to put a shirt on his body, or open the curtains to allow more light in for his supposed guest, but instead opened the door grumpily to see Jordan Gakdut standing in the hallway with his hands stuffed in his jeans pockets.

James frowned, partially because of the bright light of the hallway. He could barely make out the details of Jordan's face.

Jordan cleared his throat and gave a friendly smile. "Hey, can you let a desperate black man in?"

James only grunted and walked away, leaving the door open for the other man to step into his apartment himself. He ruffled his hair and fumbled with a lamp by the couch before turning to Jordan who was closing the front door and turning to face his host. "Sorry but if you're here for Lily…"

Jordan shook his head so James trailed off helplessly. "Nah, I'm actually here to talk to you."

James narrowed his eyes in thought and motioned to the couch. "Have a seat."

Jordan sat down and rubbed his hands together. "You know, I actually haven't seen Lily in a while, I just heard about—"

James nodded slowly. "Yeah, I don't really want to talk about it."

The darker man nodded in understanding.

"How are you holding up? Last time we saw you, you didn't look good at all."

Jordan shrugged. "I heal pretty quickly. Been through worse, you know how it is."

James didn't but he nodded anyways. "So, what did you need to talk to me about?"

The air shifted as Jordan leaned his elbows on his knees and looked at James intensely. "You know this investigation that Detective Moody is heading is going too slow. And I don't know about you but if my kidnapping is any indication, it seems like the Auror Headquarters is quickly running out of options."

James frowned. "What are you saying?"

"It seems to me that even with this Chelsea character, we're not getting anywhere. And I wasn't involved before but when Lucius Malfoy kidnaps me to torture me, I'm in." Jordan took a deep breath. "While I was down there, I heard some stuff. But I need to be sure first."

"Yeah…" James didn't have a clue as to what Jordan was getting at.

"I need to visit Malfoy at the city correctional facility." He paused. "And I need you to come with me."

…

Remus rolled his eyes at the couple sitting in the restaurant booth, anxiously awaiting his answer. He shook his head as he sat down and said, "No."

Bella exhaled loudly and slouched against Sirius. "I thought for sure that Gayle would tell you."

Sirius shook his head at his girlfriend, disapprovingly. "I told you, Bella. Gayle has a crush on me and Yolanda has a crush on Remus. You mixed the names!"

"How was I supposed to know you were right, you big poof?" She whacked him on the arm before sitting up in her seat. "I can't believe they can't just give us Lily's schedule so we'll know when she's working. That's ridiculous. We're her friends."

"As far as we know." Sirius mumbled under his breath and still received dark looks from his girlfriend.

Remus glanced around the busy restaurant. "Well, I'm sure after Moody's stunt weeks ago, that information remains private now. They probably don't want to risk it."

"But he was a cop!" Bella exclaimed. "A-and it's only happened once."

Remus shrugged. "Still. It must've been accepted as policy now."

Sirius groaned. "I swear, Bella, if we come back tomorrow night for absolutely no reason…"

"You'll do what?" Bella challenged, tilting her chin up and eyeing the man sitting next to her. "Order the New York sirloin instead of the steak tips?"

Sirius rubbed his stomach and leaned back, frowning. "My stomach hurts."

"Yes, well, that happens when you order beef four nights in a row." Bella raised her eyebrows. Her boyfriend narrowed his eyes at her before flicking her ear. She shrugged his finger away from her face and smiled. "Come on, Sirius. Every time you do that, you know you lose fingers."

Remus rolled his eyes again and looked around. "They said she's still working nights here. Hopefully, she's alright."

"She's fine, Moony." Sirius sighed. "She's got Mr-I-steal-people's-girlfriends as her knight in shining armor to protect her."

Bella lightly tapped Sirius's stomach. "Sirius, you know that's not how it went. James even said that's not what happened but that he overreacted and—"

"I would have, too!" Sirius exclaimed. "If that guy with the boy charms and the snug jeans hit on you, I would have done the same thing. You're mine, Bella Potter."

"Cute." Remus flashed a quick sarcastic smile. "But, now that we've tried to ask for her schedule and we've successfully failed, how are we going to find Lily and Chelsea? I mean, she's obviously not here right now, she hasn't been at the Shelter—"

"What do you think it's going to be like when we do finally see her?" Bella asked suddenly, quietly. "I mean, how are we supposed to—her and James were—you know?"

Sirius wrapped an arm around Bella and pulled her in closer to him. "Sadly, I do know what you were getting at." He smiled when she smacked him in the stomach again but he continued, "But hey, I'm telling you two… Lily is going to be fine wherever she is, even if she's with that untrustworthy, girlfriend-stealing, snug-jeans-wearing, boyish-looking prat. She's going to be all right. Especially with Malfoy behind bars."

Remus glanced around the restaurant again, even though he knew that Lily wasn't in there, even though she hadn't been there for four nights.

…

One person had occupied the Evans' home for the last three years and she had been Abigail Evans, the once stunningly beautiful and supportive mother to two gorgeous daughters. The carpets used to be freshly vacuumed, the hardwood floors polished to a tee, and the air scented with Star Gazer Lily, Abigail's favorite flower. Clothes used to hang in the backyard on the clotheslines where they would air-dry, giving that perfect feeling of new clothes again. The kitchen, once prized above all rooms in the house, used to smell like cooked marinated meats and chickens, peppers and homemade soups, rice and pastas, and delectable desserts. In bedrooms, the same sort of perfection would be present as well.

But now—now everything was mediocre. Which meant a disaster.

Abigail Evans never did mediocre, never did disaster.

This was what worried Lily as she stared at her mother's still form on the couch in the living room. Even from her spot on the steps leading up to the bedrooms and bathrooms, Lily could see the black and white flickers of the television reflecting against the pale yellow paints. She swallowed back her sadness and again wondered why her mother's new address popped into her mind when she and Chelsea brainstormed on places they could go that would be safe. And that's how it had occurred to Lily to come to her mother's: no one in his or her right mind would think Lily would ever come back, ever.

"I finished putting the rest of the blankets and sheets in the washer." Chelsea said, coming down the stairs and sitting beside her as she watched her mother's helpless, depressed form. "They should be done in a little while. I'll check on them before I go to bed."

Lily nodded and forced a smile. "Thank you."

"You keep saying that." Chelsea said thoughtfully. "And I keep telling you it's no problem."

"I just—I was always the messed up one. Not her." Lily shook her head. "I can't believe we left her like this. I mean—I knew my situation but Petunia?"

"Don't do that." He shook his head and she could hear the frustration in his voice. "Don't blame yourself for what happened years ago. Look where you're at right now—"

"Where I'm at?" Lily narrowed her eyes, fighting the tears. "Do you have any idea how badly I wished I weren't here right now? How badly I wish I could just walk right back into the Underground and blaze? Or cut my anger out by getting fucked? Or get so drunk that all I have to deal with is my physical condition instead of dealing with all these thoughts in my head about—about everything? Chelsea, I fucking hate where I'm at right now."

Chelsea stared at her through the semi-darkness on the staircase. She couldn't really make out his facial expression but the silence said enough.

"Chelsea, I've been away from the Underground for months and I can still taste everything. How I'm able to not go back to those things is far fucking beyond me." She shook her head. "I used to say it was because of—because of…" Her lower lip trembled and she heaved in a breath. "And now I'm not so fucking sure. I don't know why I'm not like her right now."

Chelsea followed the redhead's pointed finger toward the depressed woman laying on the couch, mindlessly watching television and ignoring her daughter. "Because you never were. You're your father's daughter, not your mother's."

Lily's tears fell down her cheeks. "How do you know that? How do you know anything about my dad?"

"Because—because for some reason, Lily, even though I haven't met him—he's as real to me right now as you are. You've made him real to me because of your memories." Chelsea lifted his hand and with the tip of his thumb, he wiped the falling tears from her cheeks. "You're so beautiful, Lily, and you have absolutely no idea. I'm not saying that because I'm attracted to you or because I'm in love with you. I'm saying this because you're the strongest person I know. And you deserve whatever good, whatever break anyone is willing to offer you."

Lily shook her head continually but Chelsea slid down one more step and gathered her in his arms. "Lily, you are. You're a hell of a woman and anyone would be lucky to know you. And it's not because of anyone beside yourself that you've managed to surpass every obstacle people have thrown in your way. The only times you've fallen is when you've barricaded yourself in trouble. Because you are your strongest resistant and you are your greatest strength. Not anyone else."

"But…"

Chelsea shook his head. "But nothing, sweetheart. You're the real deal; I've known that for years. Unfortunately, I'm not the one who'll get to have you in the end but—but if you're happy, I guess I can cope."

Lily laughed at the way Chelsea's voice softened and trailed off. "If James were to—if he were to walk in right at this moment and see you hugging me like this, he'd probably kill you."

Chelsea laughed and said, "I could take him. I wasn't ready last time."

"You looked like it to me." Lily said with a smile on her lips. She wiped at her wet cheeks.

He opened his arms to let her disentangle herself from him. "What? That? Please. Cheap shot."

Lily stood up and rubbed her palms against her knees. "Yeah, well, uh—let me know if that cheap shot needs any more medicating. I stored the antibiotics and alcohol bottle in the medicine cabinet when I was cleaning the bathroom upstairs."

Chelsea touched her shoulder before she could walk away. "What are you—we going to do about your mother?"

Lily shrugged. "I don't know. I'm usually not the one nursing someone back to health, so right now, I'm just sort of focused on cleaning the remaining rooms." She paused and touched his face briefly before saying, "We'll brainstorm."

Chelsea nodded, trying not to feel strongly affected by her affectionate touch. It was a quiet thank you from her that meant absolutely nothing in the romantic sense but when his mind was still reeling with thoughts of her being a lot more to him than just his friend, it was hard to separate reason from fantasy. He was good, though, and only touched her to comfort her. He knew she was vulnerable and he wasn't the kind of chump Potter and his friends made him out to be.

At some point in his life before becoming a Death Eater, he had been a good man.

…

James felt Jordan stiffen beside him when the large doors opened and out came four guards on either side of a sloppily dressed Lucius Malfoy. It was the first time in years James had seen Malfoy dressed in rags. It gave him an odd sense of satisfaction when he saw the chains on Malfoy's legs and arms. He and Jordan shared a sideways glance when Malfoy was forced to sit down at the chair in the middle of the room.

"Potter and Mr. Jordan." Malfoy sneered, bearing his teeth. "I hear an apology is in order."

Jordan narrowed his eyes. "Because you kidnapped and tortured me?"

"No," Malfoy answered slowly, "Because Potter and Lily are no longer together."

James clenched his jaw. "We're not here to talk about her and you know that."

The chains made an awful noise every time Malfoy moved. The clanging reverberated throughout the small room. "So, what do you two want?"

"Information about Tom Riddle. About anything and everything to do with your son of a bitch pals." Jordan said through barely opened lips.

Malfoy laughed. "That's your plan, huh? Just parade in here and expect me to pop open just like that?" He paused, his smile immediately fading from his lips. "You don't have shit to offer me. And if anything were ever offered, it wouldn't be worth three blazes and a bag you know that. You don't have shit with you which means I want shit to do with you."

James glanced at Jordan briefly, thinking that they were finished but the other man was obviously not ready to leave yet.

"We both know that you don't operate when the colors are circling." Jordan smirked. "What difference does it make if the Po isn't down?"

Malfoy stared up at Jordan, with something like surprise and a little bit of respect.

"Again—what information do you have about Riddle and all your little homeboys?" Jordan asked.

Malfoy seemed to weigh his options in a heavy silence before he said just above a whisper, "Ingrid—forty-seven—fifty-five—left—left—right—Slytherin—death."

…

"James!"

"Prongs, open the door!"

Sirius and Remus continued knocking on the apartment door but no one came to answer it.

"I swear—if he's passed out drunk in the same clothes Lily broke up with him in, I'm going to slap him—James, open up!" Sirius yelled, banging his fists on the door.

There was still no answer.

"Maybe he's not home?" Remus asked, inhaling deeply.

"Please. Evans just broke up with him five days ago." Sirius shook his head. "Where else would he be besides moping about, thinking that his life is horrible?"

"Well, if he's not at home, Sirius…" Remus trailed off and rolled his eyes.

There was a loud bang on the other side of the door and Sirius held up a hand to silence an already quiet Remus. The two men locked gazes slowly and they both seemed to harbor the same idea… that either James was in there, ignoring his best friends' loud knocks on his front door or someone else had broke in and upon hearing Sirius and Remus, bolted the locks shut. Or the intruder had attacked their best friend and was beating the shit out of him while they stood outside…?

Remus leaned in closer as Sirius whispered, "That certainly explains why James didn't answer my threatening calls from this side of the door to let us in."

Remus rolled his eyes and motioned to the door. "What are we going to do? We can't just—just walk away. We have to do something."

Sirius frowned. "What the hell do you think we can do, Moony?"

Remus glanced around, looking for objects that might break down the door but there was nothing that could've done the job. He turned back to Sirius who was leaning his ear against the door to hear what was going on. "What are they saying? Can you tell who it is?"

Sirius shook his head. "It's just a lot of—I don't think James is in there." He shook his head and pulled away from the door quickly, "But I think whoever is in there is about to come out so we need to figure out what we're going to do quick."

Remus' eyes widened and seconds later, Sirius's prediction came true. Footsteps could be heard from the other side of the door coming closer and closer. Remus' heart rate sped up as he and the other man searched the hallway for a hiding spot but everything seemed to be straight and "cranny-less". He met Sirius's wide gaze and they both seemed to understand one thing: that whatever was about to happen, they were just going to wing it.

The door swung open slowly and there was barely enough time to register anything before Sirius grabbed the lapels of a much shorter, chubbier man than himself and swung the intruder around so that Sirius could slam him against the far wall. Remus looked on, shocked, as Sirius leaned in, in a threatening manner, and shook the five foot two intruder.

"What's your name?" Sirius asked, gritting his teeth.

Remus glanced down at what the intruder was holding. He held two magazines in one of his hands. It was then that he noticed that the intruder had a bad hand, one that he cradled as best he could even though Sirius was making it very difficult to do so. The man wore terrible, ugly clothes that let off a particularly nasty stench. He was dressed in rags and his hair was matted and blonde on the top of his head. As the man cowered in Sirius's hold, Remus got a look at his spaced teeth that seemed to blow up his already chubby, round face.

"W-w-why should I t-t-tell y-you?" The intruder asked, sounding every bit scared but definitely sounding like he wanted to be anything but, if not for himself—for something else, whatever that may be.

Remus nudged Sirius. "Because my friend here hates it when people break into our best friend's apartment to steal his…" He quickly glanced down at the magazines. "Real estate magazines?"

Sirius frowned, holding the intruder tighter in his grasp but turning to Remus. "We need to get James some playboy…"

Remus ignored Sirius's comment and looked at the other man instead. "Why don't you tell us your name so that next time we see you, we can say, 'hey, there's that man that stole James's real estate magazines' and you can say, 'right, about that… I'm sorry.' Why do we need to call the cops if all you need is an agent to help you with your home issue?"

The intruder frowned, obviously confused.

"What he means to say is," Sirius turned to the other man. "Why the hell did you break in to our friend's apartment?"

"My b-b-boss will hurt you when he f-f-finds out ab-b-bout this."

Sirius and Remus stopped.

"Boss?" Sirius wondered.

"Sirius, he's a Death Eater." Remus whispered, a chill starting at the top of his neck and going straight down to his toes. "Why else would someone break into James's apartment? They're looking for Lily!"

The intruder laughed, making the other two look at him. "My boss could c-c-care less about that—that—that whore. No, he's m-more concerned with s-s-s-something else. Something much more valuable than her."

Sirius shook the man in his grasp hard and gritted his teeth angrily. "Hey, that's my best mate's girl you're talking about so you better watch—"

Remus frowned at the short man. "Let me guess—he's looking for the Book of Six."

"How do y-y-you know about that?" The intruder frowned with a disdainful look.

"How about we bring you to the very cop-like guy we're rolling with and all the questions you won't answer for me and my buddy here, you'll surely feel like answering when he shoves a barrel shoved down your throat?" Sirius tugged the short man from the wall while maintaining a good grasp on his neck and arms.

"C-c-cops don't do that."

"Our cop does."

…

Moody frowned in deep concentration, one hand against his forehead leaning against his messy office desk and the other tapping the glass repetitively. His eyes skimmed the document he was so absorbed in seconds earlier before using the hand that had been tapping to crumple the document and toss it in the trashcan by his feet. He leaned back against his comfortable chair, resting an arm over his eyes and sighing slowly.

He thought he had attained a page of the Book of Six but found that was not true. Lily Evans and that Chelsea character lied to him, or in other words, misled him. Evans had the Book of Six, he was sure of it, but when he called her in to guilt her into giving it to him so that he could glance it over earlier in the day, she told him she didn't have it anymore, that she'd given it to Chelsea to give to a mutual friend. What mutual friend? Moody and that boy had absolutely nothing in common except for the fact that they were both so importantly involved in the outcome of this case. That was it.

What was the Book of Six? Who came up with that awful name? Why did it seem to escalate the need to jail not only ruddy Malfoy and Jacobs but also the whole lot of Death Eaters, right up to their snake-like leader, Tom Riddle? How come it seemed like this whole investigation had been egged on, encouraged by the opposite side? The more Moody tried to wrap his head around the serious issues revolving around this case, the more he started to think crazy things about how this seemed to be a larger battle in the ultimate battle of things in disguise of a smaller war. That his finding the Book of Six and destroying it, bringing down all Death Eaters and Tom Riddle in the process, was paramount to just solving the Potter case.

Moody shook his head. That definitely couldn't be happening. It was impossible to bring down the Death Eaters, to bring down their untouchable leader. The revered gang had been around for years but the FBI sought to keep their crimes under wraps and what resulted was the ugliest monster the entire city of Los Angeles ever harbored. This was definitely larger than the KKK and quite possibly, the Mafia. Death Eaters discriminated against no one, or everyone depending on how one looked at it. But they killed, tortured, and maimed everyone. Who stood in their way.

"Old friend," A voice said softly, causing Malfoy to reach for his pistol before turning to the extra sound, "Things over the course of many years don't change very much, do they?"

Moody's jaw dropped when he saw who was standing in his doorway, blue eyes sparkling with hints of humor and mischief and white-grey hair falling past the man's shoulders. He hadn't seen him in years…

The man walked into the office, smiling broadly at Moody with his arms held open. "You still rest on the job when you should be making yourself useful. What would the commander say if he were still alive?"

Moody swung his chair around, his eyes wide. "I'll be damned."

The man stopped. "Come now, Alastor. How do you greet an old friend?"

"Albus Dumbledore."

…

Lily whirled when she felt an arm touch her shoulder. Her green gaze fell upon Bella who jumped back, shocked by Lily's overreaction at being touched. As soon as Lily saw who it was, her eyes softened considerably and she seemed to relax before hugging Bella tightly against her. The other girl hugged her as well and they parted, glancing around at their surroundings. Lily was on break when she decided she needed to go down to the market to pick up supplies for her mother's house, so they stood in the local shabby store.

"Wow, long time, no see, huh?" Bella said, laughing nervously, "Or talk."

"Yeah…" Lily didn't know what to say. "Yeah, I just—I'm on break right now so, I'm just getting a few things."

Bella glanced at what the redhead was holding. "A toilet scrubber?"

"Well, we sort of have a problem…" Lily's voice trailed off as she made a face.

Bella laughed. "What? Is Chelsea a dirty roommate?"

Lily laughed at that, easing up and shaking her head. "God, no. He's too clean."

"So, how's that going? I mean, I haven't seen you in a little over a week and anytime we try to talk about it with James, he just walks away—"

Lily glanced down, chewing on her lip and wrapping a strand of hair behind her ear.

"And judging by the way you're acting now, you're not going to tell me neither." Bella finished.

"How…" Lily started but stopped. She breathed in deeply before saying, "How is he?"

Bella shrugged. "He seems alright. But it's only been a week and we can all tell he's torn up about—about whatever happened between you two." She paused before adding, "We all were worried… about—about you. And Chelsea. We didn't know where you were. I mean, we went to the restaurant every night but I guess—I guess you weren't there."

Lily nodded as Bella spoke, her eyes glistening with tears already. "I've been… kind of absorbed in stuff."

Bella tilted her head. "What kind of stuff?"

"My mother." Lily said and looked just as surprised as Bella that she revealed the answer so easily. Deciding that what was said couldn't be altered, she continued, "Chelsea and I had to find a place kind of quickly when… and we had to find a place that no one would think to find us and that's when I thought about the postcard my sister sent me a year ago about my mother's new address. So we showed up there and—that's where we've been. It's kind of on the other side of town so…"

"Oh my god, Lily." Bella wrapped her arms around Lily briefly before letting go. "How is she? How did you—are you alright?"

Lily smiled, missing having another girl to share things with. "Yeah, I'm fine. But, my mother is not doing so well so I've had to take days off work to get the house back in shape and to make sure she eats and gets up from the couch."

"Wow." Bella folded her arms across her chest, looking at the redhead in admiration.

"And Chelsea's been helping around too. We just—we just finished the two bedrooms upstairs." She motioned to the supplies in her hands. "We're going to be working on the basement now. It's kind of a big job…"

"I can't believe that." Bella said, smiling wide. "Well, if you need any help doing anything, please call. You know my number and you know Remus and Sirius would love to see you. Remus misses you so much and of course Sirius does but he tries to be subtle about it."

Lily smiled and said softly, "And I miss them."

"And I just stopped by the Shelter earlier and my mother would love to see you as well. She asked about you but—if I had seen you earlier then I would've been able to tell her all this stuff." Bella shook her head. "It's amazing, Lily."

The redhead shrugged. "I'm not so sure but… it keeps my mind actively off… a lot of things."

"James?"

Lily nodded carefully. "Him, too."

"You mean the case?" Bella asked, knowing she was making it a little awkward by mentioning her brother to his ex-girlfriend periodically throughout the conversation.

"Yeah, and still, a whole lot of other things."

"Well, I'm here, you know." Bella said. "I mean, I know you have Chelsea and everything but…"

"Oh god, Bella, I miss sharing things with a girl." Lily said suddenly, shaking her head. "Chelsea's good to talk to with and he gives good advice and he keeps me from going insane, but I really do miss you." She shook her head with purpose. "You're much more preferable to him."

Bella laughed. "Okay then. I should be expecting a phone call to get together—"

"You don't have to wait for a call." Lily said. "I'm not busy tomorrow morning if you want to go out to breakfast just the two of us. Chelsea's already offered a dozen times to keep an eye on my mom if I want to go out and get my mind off things."

"Yeah, that sounds great." Bella smiled; pleased by the way the conversation was going.

"And if you were serious about your comment on helping out at the house, we could definitely arrange a time during the next weekend to get started on the basement. Chelsea and I are dreading doing that part." Lily laughed, scratching her forehead. "We could definitely use some extra hands."

"Of course. I could ask Remus and Sirius." Bella offered.

"Whoever you think would want to help, absolutely." Lily smiled and glanced at the clock on the wall, "Oh, shoot, I only have like—three minutes to pay for this stuff and get back to my shift."

"Do you want me to pay for it so you can get a head start—?" Bella started to ask but when Lily shook her head, she trailed off.

"No, it's fine." Lily waved it off. "The line's long and you probably have other things to do."

"Well, James promised us he would make his favorite meal if one of us went out and bought some herbs to put on the meat." Bella said and recognized that she had blurted out her brother's name again. "Sirius and Remus were out of town for the majority of the day and I was the closer one to the market so…"

Lily nodded, understanding. She sighed. "I miss his cooking."

Bella blinked. "Is that all?" She meant it as a joke—it came out as a joke but maybe not, too.

Lily looked at the brunette. "I do miss him."

"Maybe over breakfast tomorrow, you'll be able to tell me your side of what happened." Bella said, adding 'hopefully' in her mind when she saw Lily gaze away. "It doesn't make sense is all. You both miss each other—"

Lily glanced at Bella suddenly, surprised. "He—he misses me?"

Bella paused, silent and shocked in her own way. How could Lily not know that James missed her?

"Of course he does, Lily. He loves you." She waited for any signs of happiness or relief on Lily's face but when the redhead just continued to stare, she added, "My brother is still in love with you. Until the day he dies, Lily. Always until the day he dies."

…

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