"Wait a moment, please, Miss Evans, Mr. Potter."

James and Lily exchanged curious glances. Their friends continued into the Great Hall, swept along with the sea of chattering, hungry students. McGonagall led them into a small room off of the entrance hall.

"Minnie, are you taking our picture for the 'Most Attractive Head Boy and Girl Award?'" James asked, catching sight of the camera around McGonagall's neck.

McGonagall's lips tightened. "Mr. Potter, being Head Boy does not mean you are entitled to use that ridiculous nickname. I am taking a photograph to display in the trophy room, alongside the photographs of all the previous Head Boys and Girls."

"I notice you didn't deny that we're the most attractive Head Boy and Girl, though."

James grinned at Lily; he saw a tiny smile flit across her face before she repressed it.

"Alright, where would you like us, Professor?" James wandered around the room, forming his hands into a square and peering at the walls as though through a camera. "Hmm, I think this spot will highlight our features the best. And what sort of pose should we do? Oh, what if Evans jumps on my back?" He heard a soft giggle; Lily pressed her hand to her mouth and darted her eyes away. "Or I could pick her up–"

"Potter, I don't have time for this," McGonagall said, holding up her hand. "The first years will be arriving any moment now, and I will need to prepare them for the sorting ceremony. Please stand next to each other against that wall – a silly pose is not necessary."

James shrugged. "Suit yourself."

"You're obnoxious," Lily murmured as they settled beside each other.

"You love it."

She didn't argue. Her fingers brushed his hand, and the brief contact flooded his body with heat. He resisted the urge to look at her.

"Hold on a moment." McGonagall's voice jarred James from his reverie. "Your badge is crooked, Mr. Potter."

He reached up to adjust the silver Head Boy badge, but Lily was already straightening it. Their fingers bumped, and she pulled away, blushing.

"Thanks," he muttered.

"Your glasses are crooked, too." She leaned over to fix his glasses, smiling shyly. He caught a whiff of her shampoo and her hands were impossibly soft and fucking hell she was so close – close enough to count the freckles dusting her nose, close enough to feel the heat emanating from her cheeks, close enough to trace the curve of her smile…

"How's my hair?" he asked, running his hand through his hair to distract himself from the overwhelming desire to kiss her. "I want it to have that windswept look. And what about my robes? Sometimes they do that weird bunchy thing – you know what I mean, Professor, don't you?"

McGonagall heaved a sigh. "Your robes are perfectly fine, Mr. Potter. Please stand still so I can take your picture."

"I'm just saying, imagine what the founders would think if one of the Head Boys of this esteemed school was photographed in bunchy robes. They'd be appalled!"

"The point is moot, Mr. Potter, seeing as your robes are not bunchy."

Lily giggled. "The word 'bunchy' is starting to sound weird."

"It is, isn't it? Bunchy." James drew out the word, enjoying the grin lighting up Lily's face. "Bunchy."

"The next person to say that word loses five points for Gryffindor," McGonagall snapped. She lifted the camera to her face. "Smile."

"Bunchy," James whispered.

He glanced at Lily and watched her laugh as the camera flashed.

A week later, James was returning from the kitchens when he passed the trophy room. He slipped inside and bypassed rows of Quidditch Cups and Special Awards for Services to the School until he found the wall of smiling Head Boys and Girls. God, look at these stuck-up tossers, he thought as he strolled to the end where the newest photograph hung in a shiny gold frame.

It was such a sharp contrast with the stiff posture and self-important smirks of the other Head Boys and Girls that James had to laugh. Lily's hand rested on his shoulder as she laughed with her head thrown back. Beside her, James turned away from the camera to gaze at her in unabashed admiration.

I look like a bloody idiot staring at her like that, but I can't help it. He gazed at the photograph for another moment, noticing the way Lily's eyes crinkled when she laughed, and then he whipped the frame off the wall before he had time to change his mind. He pulled out the photograph and tucked it into his pocket, then rummaged in his bag for parchment, quill, and ink. After scrawling a hasty note, he placed the parchment in the frame and hung it on the wall, grinning at his handiwork. As he headed for the common room, he slid his hand into his pocket and traced the edge of the photograph.

Lily nudged him on the way into Charms the following day.

"I know you stole our photograph from the trophy room."

He raised his eyebrows and adopted his most innocent expression. "What are you talking about?"

She smiled and rolled her eyes. "Don't act all innocent. That note you left had James Potter written all over it. This photograph has been removed due to the deplorable state of this boy's bunchy robes. Sincerely, the Hogwarts founders. You even gave them silly little nicknames — Goddy Gryffindor, Ro-Ro Ravenclaw, What the Helga Hufflepuff, and…"

"Salad Czar Slytherin," he added, leaning against the wall and running his hand through his hair. "Or, at least, that's what I would have chosen if I'd written that note, which I definitely didn't."

A laugh escaped her lips. James's gaze was drawn to the little crinkles that formed around her eyes.

"It was your handwriting!"

He frowned. "You sure?"

"James, we wrote letters back and forth all summer. I think I'd recognize your handwriting."

He shrugged. "I dunno, it seems like someone might be framing me. Trying to discredit me as Head Boy — probably jealous of my intelligence and good looks—"

She shoved his shoulder. "Arrogant toerag." Was it his imagination, or did her hand linger a moment longer than necessary? "Why'd you steal it?"

He thought of the photograph hidden between the pages of a Quidditch magazine on his bedside table.

"Like I said, I didn't steal it. But if I did, it would be because it's our first photo together, and you look absolutely adorable in said photo, and I can't look at it without smiling."

That same shy smile was tugging up the corners of her lips, and color tinged her cheeks.

"But, of course, I didn't steal it, so as Minnie would say, the point is moot."

He strode across the room and slid into his seat, smiling like an absolute idiot.

"Can you two fucking date already and stop dancing around it?" Sirius muttered, tipping back in his seat. "It's painful to watch."

James watched Lily take her seat and lean over to whisper something to Mary. Her smile was even wider than his.

"We're getting there, Pads." James opened his Charms book, his gaze still fixed on Lily. "We're getting there."