Chapter 3:

Lily did go with Frank to Hogsmeade, and the whole school (who were all too aware of James' "crush") relished the chance to smile knowingly and pityingly at him in the corridors, and talk loudly about how much 'studying' Lily and Frank were doing.

James...was not coping very well. He would sit in his classes, and she would come walking in, a beacon of hope shining on a dark horizon, flicking the tumbles of auburn hair out of her beautiful eyes, with a smile on her lips that could light up the darkest of places...and he would imagine her, trotting off with her friends that weekend to go and see him. James had never thought of Frank as a bad guy, but now he saw him for what he really was: a know-it-all pretty boy with no dick to save himself.

'James, you're staring.' whispered a voice in his ear. He turned around and saw Sirius with a half-amused, half-pitying look on his face. Sirius studied him for a moment. 'You poor fuck. You really love her, don't you?'

James made no reply.

o

o

o

And so another month passed. There wasn't any more talk of Lily and Frank, except for the odd whispers in the corridors, which James had learned to ignore. He had been avoiding Lily, and trying avidly not to look at her. Or so he thought.

'Honestly, James, she just had a drink with him, it was nothing!' said Remus, coming out of nowhere one day in the corridor. 'Why the sullen face and the no so subtle staring? Just go and ask her again, for God's sake. If she'll have a drink with him, she'll have a drink with you. They're not boyfriend and girlfriend.' At least I don't think so, he added silently to himself.

'Yeah, you're right.' said James, cheering up slightly. 'They haven't talked to each other for ages, have they?'

'Um, no.' said Remus, quite unsure.

'Yeah. Hey, do you know where she'll be?'

'Library, I'd say.'

'Thanks. I'll see ya later then, aye?' said James, making his way to the library, humming to himself.

'Hey, Lily!' he said, catching sight of her familiar face. He strode quickly to take the empty seat next to her. Lily rolled her eyes, and muttered:

'Hello, James.' James grinned.

'I still love the way my name rolls off your beautiful tongue, like a-'

'Be quiet, POTTER. I have homework to do.'

'Oh, yeah. Whatcha doing?'

'Transfiguration.'

'Really? I finished that ages ago...' Lily glared at James, and looked back at her parchment.

'I could help, if you like.' James offered, tilting his head to read her writing.

'Thanks, but I don't need help from a bloated idiot like you.'

'Well, this bloated idiot got 'Outstanding' on his Transfiguration OWL, so if you're turning down his help, you better hope you know damn well what you're doing.'

'I'll be fine, James.' James smiled slowly and said under his breath 'James'. Lily ignored him

'So, anyway, I was wondering ...made any plans with Frank?' Lily snapped her head around, and glared at him suspiciously.

'Why?' she asked.

'Just because...well, just because.'

'Not that it's any of your business, Potter, but no, I haven't.' James smiled.

'Well, if you're going to be at Hogsmeade this weekend...you don't have to go with me or anything,' James added hastily, catching the look on Lily's face, 'We could just maybe meet up for a drink or something, yeah?' he asked, his voice rising with hopefulness

Lily sighed, and looked James straight in the eyes.

'I don't ever want to go anywhere with you. I DON'T LIKE YOU.' James' face fell.

'Anywhere? Ever?'

'Nowhere. Never. It would be wonderful if you would just leave me alone for good.'

'But you'll go with Frank.'

'Yes, Potter, because unlike you, he has a HEART.' This time Lily saw a new emotion in James' eyes. Was it anger? No, it couldn't be. James was never angry with Lily.

'You really want that? You want me to leave you alone for good?'

'Yes, James, that's what I've been wanting for a long, long time.' Suddenly, he stood up, so fast that he knocked the table and sent many people's books rattling around the table, but he appeared not to have noticed.

'Well, you know what? This is your lucky day! I give up. I'm sick of it. You drive me fucking crazy! I try so hard, my whole life is based around you and you treat me like shit! I just can't take it anymore! You win. I'll leave you alone. Forever. For good! SATISFIED?' shouted James. Everyone fell silent, staring at James. He turned around, and stormed off.

Suddenly, a bubble of talking built up, and burst, jolting Lily back into thinking. She shook her head, reminding herself that she should be happy, but as she watched the last of James Potter disappearing out of the library, she felt anything but.