Flirtatious
Chapter 3
December 10, 1975
Dear Journal,
I am paired up with James Potter. James Potter?!?! Can my life get ANY worse? Now, not only do I have to see him every Wednesday and Friday in potions, but I also have to spend my weekends with him to help prepare for this STUPID DANCE. And to top it off, Dumbledore is forcing each pair to go to the dance together, like as dates, and we have to actually appear like we're enjoying ourselves. Why? Why me? Why did Dumbledore have to randomly schedule this unnecessary excuse for a social gathering? I mean... sure, when he first announced we were having a Yule Ball I was excited, but not now! Why can't I be paired up with Gavin McGregor? What the hell does Dumbledore see between James and I? I mean, he has a flipping girlfriend for Pete's sake! Plus, I hate him just as much as any Slytherin in this cracked-out school! GOD!! BUT WHY DOES JAMES STILL HAVE TO BE SO CUTE??? His hair still falls in the same messy way, and his blue eyes still glow when he pulls that handsome half smile... Lily! Do you hear yourself?? I'm pathetic. Well... I guess I haven't really given James a chance to try to straighten this situation out. I mean, I shouldn't be so upset with him simply because he has a girlfriend. And Natalia is really pretty and everyone says she is really nice. But still, he didn't have to act like I had a chance. FLIRTY PEOPLE SUCK! Hmm... someone knocking on the door. Peculiar. Be back later.
Love from,
Lily
I closed my diary and placed it on my nightstand. "Come in!" I yelled, expecting Neda or Lara, the two other girls who shared the Gryffindor girl's 5th year dormitory to step inside. James, however, was the one who opened the door.
I bolted up immediately, pulling down my skirt that had risen up while I was lying in my bed writing in my diary. What was he doing here?
"I'm not disturbing anyone, am I?" James asked tentatively, searching for anyone else in the room.
"No," I muttered, not making eye contact with him. I stared down at the floor, wishing more than anything that he would turn around and exit through the door he had just entered. But I knew very well there was a slim-to-nothing chance that he would simply leave without a sensible reason. After all, he must have visited me a million times in this dormitory without me protesting.
"Lily. Now, I know you're upset with me and you're definitely not going to tell me why, as I have been trying to get you to tell me for nearly six weeks now, but we do really need to work on this project of ours with the dance only 15 days away." James looked at me, innocently.
Was this supposed to be some kind of guilt trip? It wasn't going to work on me! Ha! I wasn't about to let James win me over again...
"What's the assignment?" I asked, purposely sounding uninterested.
James looked at me, his eyes filled with... was that disappointment? He appeared as though he was hoping I would warm up to him and once again become his friend. My brow furrowed in confusion.
"Um... James?" I asked. James gave his head a little shake and looked at me hopefully.
I debated whether to forgive him or not, then decided..... not. Not yet, at least. "The assignment?" I asked, twiddling with my quill and looking at him with my eye brows raised.
"What? Oh... Oh yeah... Um... Dumbledore says... He says he wants us to go to Honeydukes and buy the sweets needed for the dance. He gave us 50 galleons to work with."
I smiled slightly as I remembered the walls of candy and barrels of chocolate covering every square foot of the popular store. "Honeydukes... not bad. But how are we supposed to get there? The carriages are only prepared for scheduled Hogsmeade visits."
James smiled at me. "Lily, Lily. Don't you know who you're talking to?"
I looked at James and almost started to laugh. I thought I knew who he was until I found out he was dating Natalia...
James however, did not seem to notice the expression on my face... an expression of disgust. He bent his knees slightly and started to prance around like a little kid. "Oh man, Lily. Meet me downstairs in five minutes."
"We're going now?" I asked in disbelief, not to keen on wasting the rest of my Friday with James Potter. However, he was already out the door. I rolled my eyes and reluctantly stood up, grabbing my cloak from the depths of my trunk.
"Great," I mumbled. "Just great."
"What great, Lily?" Keta asked. Arya and Keta had just walked into the room, their arms filled with sweets from the kitchen.
I laughed at the image of my friends, sweets piled nearly a foot in front of their faces. "A little hungry, are we?"
"Erm... a bit," Arya giggled. "But we brought all this stuff up mainly for you... thought you could do with some cheering up after being paired up with gross, disgusting, slimy, smelly, yet exceptionally handsome James Potter."
I smiled, gratefully. "How fast do you think we can scarf these down?"
Arya and Keta looked at each other, then back at me, thoroughly confused. "Sorry?" Keta asked.
I shook my head. "You know that simply wonderful James Potter you're talking about?" I asked, sarcasm dripping like molasses from my voice. Keta and Arya nodded. "Well... I have to meet him in the common room in like... oh wow... 30 seconds to work on our oh-so-fantastic project that Dumbledore so kindly assigned us."
Keta and Arya crinkled their noses. "Disgusting," they said in unison. Then they looked at their plates of treats, obviously unsure of what to do with them.
"I'm sure I won't be gone that long," I added. "Mind if we save them for later?"
Keta and Arya smiled and nodded, setting a plate of treats on my nightstand.
I began walking to the door, and then retreated. "Mind if I take an éclair for the road?"
Arya and Keta laughed, holding out a plate and allowing me to grab the 15-centimeter pastry. I made my way down to the common room, a feeling of dread building in my stomach. I knew if I didn't have a giant éclair in my hand, I would have been madly thinking up excuses to say to James as to why I didn't think it was appropriate to go to Hogsmeade on a Friday evening. But right then, all I could focus on was the flaky crust, rich, milky chocolate, and smooth cream filling, simply overwhelming my taste buds.
"Yummmmm..." I smiled, licking my fingers after the last bite.
"Good?" a voice whispered in my ear.
Surprised, I jumped about a foot. "Um... yes," I responded, wiping the sticky glaze on my hands on my robes.
James smiled at me. "Well, what are we waiting for?" He grabbed my now-clean-hand and led me out of the common room. I stared down at my hand and his clasped together. Umm... EWW!! He could let go of my hand now! James, however, either didn't notice or ignored the very sour look on my face, and held my hand tightly until we were in front of a statue of a witch. After rummaging around in his pockets for a few minutes, he pulled out his wand and a grubby piece of parchment.
"I solemnly swear I am up to no good," James muttered, waving his wand. He stared down at the parchment. "Good, no one coming."
"What?" I asked, intrigued, but James had already stuffed the paper away and was now tapping the hump on the witch.
"Dissendium!" he whispered, and stepped back, watching the witch spring forward, revealing the secret passage.
I stared at him in awe. "How did you find this?"
James stared back at me, mysteriously. "I have my ways," he smiled. "Ladies first." I felt my heart flutter. Why did he STILL have to be so cute? Focus on Gavin, Lily. Gavin, Gavin, Gavin...
I slowly walked forward, before sitting down and pushing myself down the slide. I looked around at the dark stony passageway, amazed that such a tunnel existed and wondering how many more were located around the school. I heard James behind me, and could sense him smiling at my shocked and anxious face.
"Cool, isn't it?" he asked.
"Yes," I gushed. Then I felt myself blushing. I hadn't been so warm to James since... since I had found out about Natalia. I felt myself shutter, a scowl forming on my face. Eww... Natalia.
"So..." I started, tepidly. "How are you and your girlfriend?"
James stopped and looked at me. "You know about Natalia?"
I stared back at him confused, unable to read his tone. "Am I not supposed to know?"
"Yes. I mean, no. I mean, she and I are... I dunno... Fine, I guess," he shrugged.
I looked at him reticently. "Riiiight. I completely understand."
James looked at me seriously. "How long have you known?"
I sighed, "I don't know... a while now." I didn't want to be too specific or he might figure out why I had been mad... I mean, was still mad. Yes. I was still mad... sort of.
James looked down, and seemed relatively upset.
"You all right?" I asked, surprised by the concern in my voice.
James continued to look at the ground. "Yeah... yes. I'm fine." He paused for a minute, "Are you and Gavin some sort of thing?"
I could feel my face begin to blush. "Haha! I wish! Gavin's only the cutest available guy in all of Hogwarts. I don't think he'd ever really go for me though."
"He'd go for any pretty girl," James mumbled.
I stopped and looked at him. "What's that supposed to mean?"
James stared at me. "He's just, you know, not that reliable of a boyfriend."
"What are you trying to say?" I asked, narrowing my eyes.
James shuffled his feet. "He's just, well... he's just had a lot of girlfriends."
I rolled my eyes. Was he actually trying to give me this lecture? The King of Flirts was trying to give me dating advice.
"I think I can decide who's right for me," I snapped, annoyed that James was trying to tell me who to like.
"Suit yourself," he muttered.
I looked back at him. Was there a hint of... jealousy in his voice? We walked on in silence.
I stopped, my brow furrowed, and looked at James until he looked me in the eye. "If you don't think I should date Gavin, then who do you suggest I date?" I continued to stare at him.
James didn't look away, but he didn't do much else either. He sort of opened his mouth a few times, stuttering and shrugging. I raised one eyebrow, confused. Suddenly, a light bulb went on. I understood.
"James," I said and he stopped mumbling. "I understand why you don't want me dating Gavin."
"Really?" he asked, his eyes widening.
"Yes, of course," I replied. "I've known you for what? Five years now?"
James nodded.
"And I know the kind of feelings you have for me," I stated back thoughtfully.
"You do?" he asked seriously, his face going stark white.
"You don't have to protect me. You may think I'm like your little sister, but I really can take care of myself."
James looked at me blankly. Umm... Now was the time he was supposed to nod back and say, "Yes Lily, you are like my little sister," and help me finally get completely over him! COME ON JAMES, SAY SOMETHING!!!
"Ummm... Lily?" he finally began, but he was staring down at his feet and blushing furiously. "I don't think of you like a little -" BUMP!!
"Oww!" James cried, rubbing his forehead. "It appears we've arrived at Honeydukes."
I opened my eyes wide. UMM... REWIND PLEASE! Can we go back to what he was saying before? He doesn't think of me like a little... sister? Was that what he was going to say?? Wait a minute... What was going on here? Was James coming on to me? BLOODY HELL! WHAT ABOUT NATALIA!? I stared in to the dark, furious. James was so greedy. Not only did he want to have Natalia, one of the prettiest girls in the school, but he also wanted to keep me hung up on him. I grinded my teeth together. I never should have come on this little excursion. I should have forced James to go on his own. I should have known I would have fallen for him again. No! I haven't fallen for him. I looked over at him and squinted my eyes. He was peaking through a crack in a trapdoor leading into the Honeydukes cellar. His eyes were concentrated and face was serious. He was so... perfect. I closed my eyes and shook my head, disappointed. I was still totally hung up on him...
"I think we're clear to go," he mumbled, taking my hand again and opening the trap door. A chill swept down my spine and I couldn't help but squeeze his hand back. He seemed to notice and looked at me and smiled. I knew what I was doing was wrong. I couldn't allow my feelings to build for him again. I had been doing so well... for nearly 6 weeks I avoided him completely. But now, I couldn't ignore the butterflies in my stomach and fluttering in my chest. I didn't care that he was dating Natalia or that he was the most unloyal boy in the school. At that moment, all I wanted to do was get closer to him, snuggle in his arms.
He led me up a small staircase and looked through a glass window on the door. Seeing that the owners were across the store helping a group of small children, James opened the door and we both snuck out from behind the counter. With his other hand, he pulled out the bag of 50 galleons Dumbledore had given us and fiddles with a few in his hand.
"What do you suppose we buy?" he asked grinning.
I shrugged. "A little of everything?"
James nodded.
"Well, actually," I said, changing my mind. "We could probably do without acid pops or cockroach clusters, and sugar quills are really expensive..."
James laughed. "We'll get all of the good stuff."
"Can I help you dearies?" the plump shopkeeper asked.
"Yes, please," I smiled. "We're here from Hogwarts. We have 50 galleons to buy enough candy for our Yule Ball being held on the 25th."
The plump lady smiled. "Why yes of course. Dumbledore warned me he may need a big shipment of candy soon. Just point out what you want and I'll make sure it gets up to the castle."
James and I walked around, our hands still clasped, shouting out the treat and amount we thought were appropriate for the dance. After nearly 20 minutes and nearly cleaning out the entire store, we decided we were done. We walked up to the counter, staring at the amount of candy the shopkeeper had summoned. The entire counter and floor were covered with bags upon bags of chocolates and colorful sweets. James and I stared at the floor in awe. James handed her the bag of 50 galleons.
The lady smiled back at him. "It only comes out to be 49 galleons, lad. Why don't you take your lovely lady here out for a butterbeer?" She flipped him a galleon.
James smiled. "Will do. Thank you, ma'am."
I glanced a James. He was taking me out for a drink? Almost... almost like a date? My glance obviously lasted more than a second because James looked up at me. Before I could look away he was beaming at me and his eyes were sparkling brightly.
"Shall we go to the Three Broomsticks?" he asked.
"Sure. Why not?" I nodded. James pulled his hand away from mine and held the door open for me. As we exited the shop, an icy wind blew hard at our bodies, cutting through a cloaks and making each of us shiver. Instead of taking my hand again, James put his arm around my shoulder and pulled me close to his body. I felt so comfortable, so right. Like this was where I belonged; in James's arms. I snuggled close to him, slipping one of my arms inside his cloak and around his waist. We walked slowly to the Three Broomsticks and he opened the door for me once again when we arrived.
"I'll go get the butterbeers," James said. "Mind finding a table?" I nodded a glanced around the crowded tavern. A table was open in the back, halfway hidden by a Christmas tree. I sat down, and James soon joined me, sitting behind the Christmas tree.
"Thanks," I smiled. I took a sip of the butterbeer. YUM. I felt my body instantly begin to warm. I set my hand in the middle of the table and drank heavily from my mug.
"No problem," James smiled back. He put his hand on top of mine and began to play with my fingers. Unconsciously, my fingers responded back, and we sat there, drinking our butterbeers and playing with the others hand. I honestly couldn't have been happier. James actually seemed interested in me. I smiled up at James and he smiled back.
"You know," he said. "I've liked you for a really long time."
I stared back at him. Were my ears playing tricks on me, or did James just tell me he liked me?
"And I didn't really figure it out until you stopped talking to me. I know it sounds weird, but when you began to avoid me, I realized how much I like everything about you; the way you flip your hair, the way you'll never let me win a fight, how you never miss a homework assignment, your sense of humor, your glowing eyes." He looked deeply into my pupils and I couldn't help but blush and smile.
I tore my eyes away from his gaze. I was about to poor my heart out to him and tell him how I really felt. Suddenly, the door to the tavern flew open.
"Natalia," I said.
James looked at me, then shook his head. "I know. That's all been a mistake. Don't worry about that now."
"No," I interrupted. "She's here."
A/N: MUHAHAHAH!! I LOVE CLIFFHANGERS!! Well, as an author, that is. As a reader, I HATE them... lol.. that's a bit hypocritical. Anyway, hope you enjoyed the finally posted chapter! I thought it would be proper to post it on Harry Potter's birthday... He's the big 22! Go Harry! And happy birthday to JK ROWLING! And to Dan Radcliffe if his bday is today... but it may be the 23rd... I dunno. WHATEVER. Well, REVIEW PLEASE AND I'LL PROMISE TO POST FASTER! If I get up to 100 reviews before monday I'll promise to write the next chapter while I'm on vacation and post it before school starts on the 27th. Haha.. 30 reviews in 5 days... that's 6 reviews a day! You can do it people! lol. Well, thanks for reading! love from, Kate