The Wingman
Chapter Three: Reactions & Reunions
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"I had a great time tonight, Lily," John said to her as they stood on her front porch. "Your friends are lovely."
Lily beamed up at him. "Really? Oh, I'm so glad you like them--"
"How long have you known that James character?" John interrupted.
Lily recoiled slightly at hearing John refer to James as a 'character', but she ignored the pang of annoyance that filled her stomach at the remark. "Well," she said, "it's a little difficult to explain, but we were Head Boy and Girl together in school, but we were never friends…we were in different Houses. But then our friends--Sirius and Marielle, of course-- set us up on a date, and we just hit it off. He's much more mature now than he was in school," she added quickly.
John frowned. "You dated him?"
She laughed, albeit a little nervously. "Oh, no. It was a blind date, sort of, and those things never…never really work out, do they?"
John didn't reply, but said, "Is he seeing anyone?"
"James? No. He just broke up with someone, actually." She stared curiously up at him. "Why so curious about James?" Lily smirked. "Jealous?"
John shrugged noncommittally. "No." Before Lily could comment further on it, he leaned down and kissed her, catching her a little off guard for a moment before she put her hand on the back of his head and pulled him closer to her, deepening the kiss.
The kiss lasted little more than three seconds before he broke it off. "Good night, Lily," he whispered, his mouth level with her chin, eyes set on her lips. "I'll owl you later."
Lily was about to protest when he Apparated, leaving her standing alone on the porch steps. She sighed dreamily and opened the door to her house.
James was leaning up against the wall next to it, looking highly amused. Marielle and Sirius, who were seated on Lily's couch, had equally cheeky smirks on their faces. Lily immediately flushed pink and closed the door quietly behind her, biting her bottom lip.
Quickly, she asked anxiously, "Well…what did you think of him?"
Sirius spoke up first, "He seemed all right…bit boring, but that's to be expected. He is a book publisher…"
They shared a laugh about that one, and discussed John further, but James was being exceptionally quiet. Lily noticed this, but Sirius and Marielle didn't appear to. Lily decided not to bring attention until they were alone.
*****
James had only just met John Mitchell and already he hated him.
He hated the way Mitchell would just snake his arm around Lily's waist at dinner, and she would giggle like a six-year-old on a merry-go-round. He hated the way Mitchell would interrupt a conversation to ask Lily to tell the rest what he'd bought her the day before. He hated the way Mitchell was so much older than Lily…
Of course, he'd never mentioned his age (it wasn't exactly the first thing one said when introducing themselves-- "Hello, my name is James Potter, and I'm twenty-one years, two months, three weeks, six days, and twelve hours old"), but there were wrinkles around his eyes that no one James's--or, more importantly, Lily's--age possessed. His hair was graying slightly 'round the temples…
James didn't know what it was, but every time Mitchell glanced his way, he got a gnawing feeling in his stomach and he felt like breaking something--but only for a split second, and then the feeling passed.
Which was why he was reluctant to reply when Lily asked him, "You've been awfully quiet. What do you think?"
James looked into her eyes--a stupid move on his part, because Lily's eyes were pleading wit him, practically screaming, 'Please like him, please like him, please like him…'. "I think he's nice," he said finally.
A look of intense relief washed over Lily's eyes, softening her expression. She sighed happily and said, "Oh, I knew you would. John is wonderful, isn't he?"
"Spiffing," James responded.
*******
"Oh, no, James, hide me," Lily gasped suddenly, jumping behind James and grabbing his shoulders forcefully.
Slightly amused at Lily's behavior (but less so at the pain her rather long nails were causing to his shoulders), James began, "Lily, what--"
"Remember Michael? The ex-boyfriend who wouldn't marry me?" Lily muttered breathlessly, still clutching James's shoulders.
James concentrated for a moment, and just as Lily began to get frustrated, he responded, "Yes."
"That's him--no, there--standing in front of Flourish & Blott's." Lily pointed stealthily to a tall, blond man examining a display of books in the window of the bookshop. "Just--walk past him…maybe he won't see us."
No such luck. As soon as James passed Michael, he looked up from the display and caught Lily's eyes.
"Lily Evans!" Michael exclaimed, quickly pulling Lily from James and folding her into a hug. Lily closed her eyes briefly and returned the hug, when Michael abruptly pulled away. "It's lovely to see you again…and who is this?"
Lily, whose eyes were growing dimmer, said softly, "Oh, Michael this is my friend James Potter. James, this is…Michael."
James gave Michael a warm smile, which the other man returned as they shook hands.
"So," Michael said conversationally, clapping his hands and rubbing them together, "how've you been, Lily?"
"Oh, I've been…all right," she said, and her voice was still very quiet. "I'm--I'm dating someone."
"Good for you!" Michael said emphatically, and he truly seemed happy for her. This did not, however, encourage Lily. Rather, her face seemed to fall at his excitement at her being attached. Clearly, she had been hoping for him to be devastated.
"What about you?" she asked politely, her voice growing still softer.
Michael smiled sheepishly. "Oh, well, I'm getting married this Saturday."
Both Lily and James's heads snapped up. "What?" Lily inquired faintly.
"Yeah, yeah. About two weeks after you and I broke up, I met a great girl named Anna….fell in love with her….and proposed a month later."
"A month?" James asked, as Lily seemed to be lost for words.
Michael nodded, still grinning. "Everyone says we're rushing into things, but Anna and I think that we're perfect for each other, and we just couldn't wait any longer."
"How quaint," James said darkly. Lily looked away.
Michael nodded again and said, "Well, I really must be going. Lily, it was lovely seeing you again. James, nice to meet you."
"Mm hmm," James responded, concentrating on Lily, who could only stare at the ground. Michael gave one last smile and walked off.
The two were silent for a bit, standing still in the middle of a swelling, bustling crowd. Finally, Lily looked up from the cobbled street. "I really don't want to talk about it," she said, her voice still remarkably quiet.
James searched her eyes. "All right," he said.
Lily drew in a shaky breath and swiped away tears. "I'm being ridiculous, aren't I?" she mumbled, trying to laugh but failing. "I mean…I've got John…and I'm over Michael; I've been over Michael…"
"Lily," James said, his voice softened, "who are you trying to convince?"
She glanced up at him (he was a full three inches taller than she), and again tried to laugh. "Don't get sentimental on me now, James," she said harshly.
But the question stuck in her head the rest of the day.
**********
A/N: Yeah, sorry that was a really short chapter. The next one will be longer, I can almost promise you that. I simply adore the reviews I've been getting; they're wonderful and constructive, and I'm just thrilled to pieces, which is why I pounded out this chapter tonight, rather than put it off until tomorrow.
