Deflating
Chapter Seventeen: A Question Without a Definite Answer
*** A/N: ::cowers:: I'm so, so sorry...I'll explain at the end of the chapter. Read on, in the meantime.
***
There was a pillow on his face.
That fact dimly registered in James's mind, as he was half-asleep, and as a result, pretty incoherent.
Why was there a pillow on his face?
He didn't much like having the pillow on his face.
"Geroff," James mumbled, attempting to roll over, but an arm was in the way.
Whose arm was on his bed?
He was steadily becoming more and more alert as he slowly woke up, and it dawned on him that it was probably Sirius, wanting answers so that he could make stupid comments about them.
"Go 'way," James mumbled, swatting absently at where he thought his best friend's head might be.
"Your reflexes are horrible at six in the morning," Sirius informed him, and James could hear him grinning. It thoroughly annoyed him. He had been having a lovely dream...
"Get up, you great prat," Sirius said, shoving James roughly. "You still need to tell us what happened with your Lily..."
"She's not my Lily," James snapped grumpily. "Not yet, anyway."
"Pricky, James," Remus called from somewhere in the room.
"Shove off, Moony," James mumbled back. He sat up, blinked, and yawned. "Okay," he said. "Okay. What do you want to know?"
"The food," Peter said immdiately. This struck James as slightly odd, but he answered it anyway.
"Candy."
Sirius, Peter, and Remus exchanged looks. "Please tell me you ate it out of her belly-button," Sirius said in a low voice.
James made a face and Remus sighed exasperatedly. "No. We had chocolate souffle with raspberry sauce and she's allergic to raspberries, so we had candy instead. Anything else?"
"Did you kiss her?"
"You saw me kiss her," James reminded Sirius, running a hand through his hair as he swung his legs over the side of the bed to get ready for school.
Sirius groaned. "That was the only kiss?"
"That was the only kiss," James repeated.
Sirius shook his head. "I always knew you were lacking in the charisma department, Prongs, but that is just pathetic."
***
Lily felt very disconcerted as she walked down to breakfast. She had been doing a very good job, in her opinion, of making the first steps of getting over this silly infatuation, and it seemed that it had only intensified overnight. On one hand, she was quite furious about this. This was the rational hand. Lily liked this hand, and hoped it took over, or slapped her in the face to make her see things its way. The other hand, the very stupid, sappy, romantic hand, was very excited. Lily hated this hand, and wished she could amputate it.
She spotted James sitting with his friends, eating a muffin lazily as he smiled at something Remus had just said. James glanced up, spotted her, and waved her over.
Lily sighed inwardly, but put on a bright smile and sat down next to Sirius across from James. Sirius eyed her, grinning, and Lily put her elbow on the table and covered her face with her hand because he was really starting to creep her out.
The five of them were all quiet for a few moments, before Sirius cleared his throat, and in a high, falsetto voice, said, "Well, James, I had a really lovely time last night."
Lily and James both turned to face Sirius, who fluttered his eyelashes at them.
"Um, yeah, I, um, me too," Remus coughed, in a very deep voice that was clearly supposed to be James. "Do you, um, want to, um, go out with me?"
Sirius emitted a shrill, happy shriek that made Lily wince and Peter jump. "I would simply love to!"
"I don't talk like that," Lily informed him coolly, eyes narrowed. She stood up and walked over to Charlotte and Emily, who were watching her intently from the other end of the table.
James watched her walk off, scowling, before turning back to Remus, who was cringing, and Sirius, who was holding in sniggers. "What'd you do that for?" he demanded.
"Well, you weren't doing it," Sirius said sourly.
"Yeah, well, that doesn't give you an opportunity to do it for me," James snapped.
He reached for another muffin and tore into it savagely with his teeth.
"Aren't you going to go after her?" Remus asked tentatively.
James looked up at him blankly. "Oh," he said dimly. "Yeah." He stood up and started to walk away, then doubled back, grabbed his muffin with a sheepish smile, and trotted down the length of table to where Lily was sitting. "Hi," he said, very close to her ear as he slid into the seat next to her.
She met his eyes, then looked down at her plate, where she was pouring ketchup over her eggs. "So," she said briskly, "have your friends stopped acting eleven years old?" Lily reached for a piece of toast and glanced inquiringly at him as she scooped her eggs onto her toast.
James looked down at her plate and grinned. "You're making a ketchup-and- egg sandwich, aren't you?"
"Take your attention away from my eating habits for a minute," Lily replied calmly. "Are you going to ask me out or not?"
James very quickly jerked his head up from her plate to look at him, his eyes wide in alarm. "W-what?"
Lily raised her eyebrows, put a smirk on her face, and bit into her sandwich.
"Would you say yes?" James asked tentatively.
"You haven't even asked me yet," Lily pointed out.
James gaped soundlessly at the girl in front of him. Lily smiled, tore off a piece of her sandwich, and inserted into his mouth.
"Chew and swallow," she said pleasantly.
James did as told and gulped. "You want me to ask you out?"
Lily did not reply, but smiled cheekily up at him.
James gulped again. His mouth felt rather dry all of a sudden. "Um," he said brilliantly, "Lily, will you...will you go out with me?"
Lily took a bite out of her sandwich, chewed very slowly, and said, "I'll think about it."
***
Thursday, February 15
Approximately...oh, I can't even care what time it is!
SHE SAID SHE'D THINK ABOUT IT!
She's just being coy; she's going to say yes.
"Hi, I'm James, and this is my girlfriend, Lily."
That sounds nice.
Really nice.
I'll ask her again after class.
Right after class.
Right.
***
A/N: Right. ::deep breath:: My computer crashed on me. I don't even have the internet anymore (feel sorry for me, I need the sympathy!) I'm over at a friend's house, writing this. I might be able to manage updates maybe once a week, once every two weeks? It's negotiable. But I'm so, so sorry to keep you waiting like this. Thanks for all the reviews, it was lovely to come onto a computer for the first time in four days and see 140-odd reviews waiting for me (and, whoa! 140 is a big number, you guys were busy).
(Oh, look at this: . Kinda remind you of something?)
I'll see you guys as soon as possible!
Chapter Seventeen: A Question Without a Definite Answer
*** A/N: ::cowers:: I'm so, so sorry...I'll explain at the end of the chapter. Read on, in the meantime.
***
There was a pillow on his face.
That fact dimly registered in James's mind, as he was half-asleep, and as a result, pretty incoherent.
Why was there a pillow on his face?
He didn't much like having the pillow on his face.
"Geroff," James mumbled, attempting to roll over, but an arm was in the way.
Whose arm was on his bed?
He was steadily becoming more and more alert as he slowly woke up, and it dawned on him that it was probably Sirius, wanting answers so that he could make stupid comments about them.
"Go 'way," James mumbled, swatting absently at where he thought his best friend's head might be.
"Your reflexes are horrible at six in the morning," Sirius informed him, and James could hear him grinning. It thoroughly annoyed him. He had been having a lovely dream...
"Get up, you great prat," Sirius said, shoving James roughly. "You still need to tell us what happened with your Lily..."
"She's not my Lily," James snapped grumpily. "Not yet, anyway."
"Pricky, James," Remus called from somewhere in the room.
"Shove off, Moony," James mumbled back. He sat up, blinked, and yawned. "Okay," he said. "Okay. What do you want to know?"
"The food," Peter said immdiately. This struck James as slightly odd, but he answered it anyway.
"Candy."
Sirius, Peter, and Remus exchanged looks. "Please tell me you ate it out of her belly-button," Sirius said in a low voice.
James made a face and Remus sighed exasperatedly. "No. We had chocolate souffle with raspberry sauce and she's allergic to raspberries, so we had candy instead. Anything else?"
"Did you kiss her?"
"You saw me kiss her," James reminded Sirius, running a hand through his hair as he swung his legs over the side of the bed to get ready for school.
Sirius groaned. "That was the only kiss?"
"That was the only kiss," James repeated.
Sirius shook his head. "I always knew you were lacking in the charisma department, Prongs, but that is just pathetic."
***
Lily felt very disconcerted as she walked down to breakfast. She had been doing a very good job, in her opinion, of making the first steps of getting over this silly infatuation, and it seemed that it had only intensified overnight. On one hand, she was quite furious about this. This was the rational hand. Lily liked this hand, and hoped it took over, or slapped her in the face to make her see things its way. The other hand, the very stupid, sappy, romantic hand, was very excited. Lily hated this hand, and wished she could amputate it.
She spotted James sitting with his friends, eating a muffin lazily as he smiled at something Remus had just said. James glanced up, spotted her, and waved her over.
Lily sighed inwardly, but put on a bright smile and sat down next to Sirius across from James. Sirius eyed her, grinning, and Lily put her elbow on the table and covered her face with her hand because he was really starting to creep her out.
The five of them were all quiet for a few moments, before Sirius cleared his throat, and in a high, falsetto voice, said, "Well, James, I had a really lovely time last night."
Lily and James both turned to face Sirius, who fluttered his eyelashes at them.
"Um, yeah, I, um, me too," Remus coughed, in a very deep voice that was clearly supposed to be James. "Do you, um, want to, um, go out with me?"
Sirius emitted a shrill, happy shriek that made Lily wince and Peter jump. "I would simply love to!"
"I don't talk like that," Lily informed him coolly, eyes narrowed. She stood up and walked over to Charlotte and Emily, who were watching her intently from the other end of the table.
James watched her walk off, scowling, before turning back to Remus, who was cringing, and Sirius, who was holding in sniggers. "What'd you do that for?" he demanded.
"Well, you weren't doing it," Sirius said sourly.
"Yeah, well, that doesn't give you an opportunity to do it for me," James snapped.
He reached for another muffin and tore into it savagely with his teeth.
"Aren't you going to go after her?" Remus asked tentatively.
James looked up at him blankly. "Oh," he said dimly. "Yeah." He stood up and started to walk away, then doubled back, grabbed his muffin with a sheepish smile, and trotted down the length of table to where Lily was sitting. "Hi," he said, very close to her ear as he slid into the seat next to her.
She met his eyes, then looked down at her plate, where she was pouring ketchup over her eggs. "So," she said briskly, "have your friends stopped acting eleven years old?" Lily reached for a piece of toast and glanced inquiringly at him as she scooped her eggs onto her toast.
James looked down at her plate and grinned. "You're making a ketchup-and- egg sandwich, aren't you?"
"Take your attention away from my eating habits for a minute," Lily replied calmly. "Are you going to ask me out or not?"
James very quickly jerked his head up from her plate to look at him, his eyes wide in alarm. "W-what?"
Lily raised her eyebrows, put a smirk on her face, and bit into her sandwich.
"Would you say yes?" James asked tentatively.
"You haven't even asked me yet," Lily pointed out.
James gaped soundlessly at the girl in front of him. Lily smiled, tore off a piece of her sandwich, and inserted into his mouth.
"Chew and swallow," she said pleasantly.
James did as told and gulped. "You want me to ask you out?"
Lily did not reply, but smiled cheekily up at him.
James gulped again. His mouth felt rather dry all of a sudden. "Um," he said brilliantly, "Lily, will you...will you go out with me?"
Lily took a bite out of her sandwich, chewed very slowly, and said, "I'll think about it."
***
Thursday, February 15
Approximately...oh, I can't even care what time it is!
SHE SAID SHE'D THINK ABOUT IT!
She's just being coy; she's going to say yes.
"Hi, I'm James, and this is my girlfriend, Lily."
That sounds nice.
Really nice.
I'll ask her again after class.
Right after class.
Right.
***
A/N: Right. ::deep breath:: My computer crashed on me. I don't even have the internet anymore (feel sorry for me, I need the sympathy!) I'm over at a friend's house, writing this. I might be able to manage updates maybe once a week, once every two weeks? It's negotiable. But I'm so, so sorry to keep you waiting like this. Thanks for all the reviews, it was lovely to come onto a computer for the first time in four days and see 140-odd reviews waiting for me (and, whoa! 140 is a big number, you guys were busy).
(Oh, look at this: . Kinda remind you of something?)
I'll see you guys as soon as possible!