A/N: despite all, I managed to add a small (extremely small) quote from friends. It's said quite a lot from one character. :D Not sure how you'll find the chapter but I found it extremely depressing and frustrating to write. JAMES IS SO STUPID! Feel intrigued? GOOD. :P Warning: There's only one chapter left to go after this… Please don't kill me! Review instead! ~rowanx
Throughout breakfast James had constantly been looking around for Lily, wondering where she was. He had barely touched his food and wasn't feeling hungry anyway. The thought of what he had to do was making him too nervous to eat. He saw Lyndsay come in and stood up so quickly to greet her that he knocked his pupkin juice onto Sirius who was the only one not to find it so funny. "Hey Lyndsay where's Lily?" he asked.
"Wow, you really don't bother with small talk, do you." Lyndsay laughed.
James blushed. "It's just, me and Lily were supposed to um, to go to Hogsmeade today, so I was just, you know, I mean, it doesn't matter, not like it's a date or anything, but, um…"
"James, relax!" Lyndsay said, grinning. "You are allowed to want to know where Lily is, you know." James did relax. "She's already gone down there. Said there was something she needed to do and she said to tell you to meet her in the Three Broomsticks in half an hour." Lyndsay scaled on past and sat down with her friends.
James breathed in heavily and sat down again, playing around with her food. He'd barely been sitting down for a second though when he jumped up again. "You know, I think I'm just going to go and get ready," he said. "I'll see you guys at dinner." With that short note, James quickly left the hall, anxiety and worry making his breath short and deep.
When he had left the hall a voice called out behind him. He turned to see that Freddie had followed him out of the hall. "What do you want?" asked James quietly.
"Are you alright?" asked Freddie.
"Yep, yep I'm fine," James said tightly.
"Well, it's obvious you aren't," Freddie said. "I overheard you talking," he admitted. "So, you've decided to tell Lily?" James hesitated, then nodded. So did Freddie. "That's good to know." He opened his mouth to speak again but shut it almost as quickly.
"Freddie, I'm really sorry – about everything."
Freddie nodded in understanding. "I know, mate. It's ok." After a small awkward silence, the two turned and walked off in opposite directions.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~
James sat in The Three Broomsticks with his hand around a butterbeer. He didn't dare lift it up, he thought he might drop it his hands were shaking so much. Christ…how was he going to explain all this to Lily? He had been planning it for hours and hours – and he still didn't have a clue.
The door of the pub opened and James looked up to see the gorgeous red-head bounce in smiling. He smiled shakily and waved to her. She spotted his hand, grinned, and walked over. "I got you a butterbeer," he said as she sat down.
"Oh, cheers James," Lily said smiling.
After a few moments of awkward silence, James said, "So, what was this little errand of yours that you had to run that couldn't be done with me by your side?"
Lily grinned mischievously. "Wouldn't you like to know?"
James laughed, despite all. "Fine, be all secretive, see if I care." He loved how Lily could make him shake all his troubles away and just laugh, but within moments of thinking this, his grin faded. "Lily, there's something I… Um, there's something that…that I need to tell you…"
Lily gulped down a bit of her butterbeer and set it down on the table. James laughed. She had a bit of froth around her mouth. Lily frowned. "What? What is it? Are you laughing at me?!"
James just laughed more. "You've just got…a little…" He gave up explaining and leaned forward to wipe it from her mouth. As his fingers connected with her lips he paused, feeling the rush of electricity shoot up his arms and all over his body. She obviously felt the same thing from the look on her face. James made no sign that he had any plan to move his fingers away from her. Mesmerised in her eyes, he traced his fingers along her cheek and leaned in to kiss her. After a slight hesitation, he felt her kiss him back, and it was the best feeling he'd ever had. Licking the froth away from her mouth, James heard Lily groan at the extra contact. She wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling him in for more.
James slowly pulled away, but stayed close to Lily's face. Not knowing what to say, he said the first thing that came into his head. "Will you go back out with me?" Not giving him a chance to change his mind, Lily leaned in for a second kiss, giving James the satisfaction he needed. "I'll take that as a yes," he whispered against her lips, moving in to kiss her again.
"You don't miss anything, do you?" she chuckled softly.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"You did what?" Remus exploded, standing up.
James ran his hand over his face. "I know, I know…" he whispered.
"Well, I don't think you really do," said Remus, reacting just as James knew he would.
At that moment Sirius walked into the common room smiling. "Hello children," he said in his annoying superior tone. He looked at the scene in front of him. James was sitting in a red chair his head in his arms, and Remus was standing arms folded glaring at him. "Right then," said Sirius slowly, moving over to Remus. "What has naughty boy James done now."
"Maybe you should ask what he hasn't done," Remus said quietly.
Being the intelligent superior being that Sirius was it didn't take him long to figure out what Remus meant. Turning to James, he said, "What happened?"
"I don't know!" James burst out, standing up. "I have no idea! I was all ready to tell her and then she had froth on her mouth from the butterbeer and it looked really funny and I laughed and she frowned and I moved to wipe it off and I kissed her and then I asked her out and she said yes and…" James stopped, breathing heavily.
Sirius shook his head. "Well that was stupid," he said, stating the obvious. "You do know that this is only going to make it harder when you do tell her, don't you?"
"Of course I know, you don't have to remind me," James snapped irritably.
Lily walked in from the portrait hole, Lyndsay by her side. Both were smiling a lot. When Lily spotted James she ran over and kissed him. "Hello," she said smiling.
"It's so great that those two are back together, isn't it?" Lyndsay whispered to Remus and Sirius. The two boys exchanged glances and didn't say anything.
James gulped. "Hey Lily," he said, trying to sound enthusiastic. Obviously, he didn't fool his love.
"What's wrong?" Lily asked immediately. She stepped away. "James, if you don't stop playing with me…"
"No, no, it's nothing like that," James said quickly. "I want to be with you. We're together, and nothing's going to change that." Lily moved forward again hesitantly. "Ok?" James asked. Lily moved into James' embrace and hugged him tightly. James tried to avoid his friends' looks as he whispered into Lily's ear: "We'll always be together…"
A/N: AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH JAMES IS SO DUMB sorry for lack of lengthyness as my friend would say, but I care not. :P the next chapter will probably be the last, unless I decide to be cruel and make it into two :P review! ~rowanx
