These Days

Chapter 6

Emotions

pretty girl is suffering while he confesses everything.
pretty soon she'll figure out what his intentions were about.
and that's what you get for falling again;
you can never get him out of your head.
and that's what you get for falling again;
you can never get him out of your head.

it's the way that he makes you feel.
it's the way that he kisses you.
it's the way that he makes you fall in love.

she's beautiful as usual with bruises on her ego and
the killer instinct tells her to be aware of evil men.
and that's what you get for falling again;
you can never get him out of your head.
and that's what you get for falling again;
you can never get him out of your head.

it's the way that he makes you feel.
it's the way that he kisses you.
it's the way that he makes you fall in love.

LAST TIME- Denna comes back from her big date with Matt Jensen, severely disturbed about something. The girls finally beat it out of her the next morning, and she tells them all about him trying to take advantage of her, and they convince her she did the right thing. Lily seeks out Dylan to find out what's wrong with him, and the rest of the boys help Sirius hide from his girlfriend. Jackson assumes stuff about Lily and Dylan, and while Lily is trying to convince him that it is he who she likes, James walks in. Insert jealousy...

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"Hey baby," Matt said walking towards Denna. She looked to the side of her, and then behind her, and back at him.

"Who are you talking to?" She asked honestly as he laughed and put his arms around her.

"What are you talking about? Who else would I be talking to other than you?" He bent down and kissed her as her knees gave way.

"Oh..." She said quietly, smiling at him.

It had been a week since Matt last talked to her, and she had grown accustomed to him pretending she wasn't there. This sudden outpouring of affection totally caught her off guard, and she was being VERY receptive, something she had vowed not to do. She felt that if Matt was going to play this game, she would just play hard to get. If he wanted her back, she would run away. Well so much for that...

"So wait," Remus said to James from the comfort of the armchairs near the fire, "I thought you said he was ignoring her?" He pointed at Denna and Matt as James turned in his chair to get a better view.

"Well, he has been. I guess he just needs some, and Denna is the ass of choice. She doesn't really seem to mind being blown off these past few days though..." James said shrugging, as Remus slouched in his chair.

"Where's Padfoot?" He asked, as James thought for a moment.

"Probably with Sydney."

"That boner still has a girlfriend? I thought he broke it off when I was gone?"

James chuckled and shrugged, "I give it one more day. She's crazy Remus, I mean, honestly a complete head case."

"Well no sane person would actually go out with Sirius, so yeah, I suppose she'd have to be a little bit on the... well, weird side."

James nodded in response.

"So about this Lily thing," Remus started as James groaned. "No, no, Jamie let me finish. Do you like her or something?"

"I don't know Moony. I don't think I like her, but at the same time, every time I see her with Jackson I just want to go shoot myself. My heart just drops with every glance."

"Sounds like you like her." Remus stated, as James rolled his eyes.

"Yeah well, there's nothing I can do about it, so why don't we just shut up." Remus threw his hands up and laughed as Caydence walked into their circle and plopped down.

"Shh." Remus said to James, "quit talking about Caydence, she's sitting right here."

"Very funny boys." Caydence said as she scanned the room.

"Who're you looking for?" James asked curiously, as she stopped looking around and looked directly at him.

"Who, me? Oh, no one. No one at all..." She trailed off and began searching the common room once again.

"Cough-bullshit-cough" Remus coughed, James laughing as Caydence glared at them.

"What does it matter to you two jerks who I am looking for?"

"Oh so she IS looking for someone!" James clapped as Remus jumped up.

"On to determine who this 'mystery' person is! Now Caydence, are you of male or female persuasion?" He asked.

"Huh?" She answered, unsure of what that meant. Sure she could blend a potion and transfigure a rabbit, but Caydence was lacking a certain worldliness about her. Some may call it commonsense...

"Moony, does she look like a dyke to you? Of course it's a guy she's looking for. Now its obviously not some one in our grade... hmm... maybe older?" James said, as Remus nodded.

"You guys are so stupid!" Caydence said, beginning to get frustrated.

"Now now Caydence, temper temper! Hmmm... could she be falling for an older boys charm, maybe the same charm that young Denna has succumb to?" Remus pried, as Caydence crossed her arms over her chest.

"If you are insinuating that I like Matt, you are VERY wrong."

"Not necessarily Matt..." James continued, as Remus nodded. "But perhaps one of his friends."

"Nope." Caydence said flatly, as Remus and James looked at each other with discouragement.

"Well it can't be someone in our grade, can it?" Remus asked James and James shook his head.

"Ooo! Maybe she's branching out! Now Caydence, do you fancy a Ravenclaw, or a Hufflepuff?" James asked.

"Neither."

Both boys let out loud gasps as they spoke in unison.

"Slytherin?!?!!?!?" Caydence laughed and shook her head once more.

"What do you take me for?" She asked in disgust. "Someone desperate enough to date a Slytherin?"

"Well, desperate times call for desperate measures, Caydence." Remus told her.

"Will you two just give it up?" Caydence half-shouted as she got up and walked away from them... towards the fourth years...

"What is her problem?" James said leaning back into the couch, as Remus continued to watch Caydence.

"I dunno, but I know who she likes."

"Who?"

"Look who she's talking to over there."

"Jace Matthews." James said. "Not bad for Jace, getting in with an older woman. But for Caydence on the other hand... dating a younger man?"

"Keep up with the times Prongsy, its all the rage over in the US."

"Really?"

"Eh, I don't know, I just make up things as I go along." Remus shrugged as James laughed, and they began setting up the Wizard's Chessboard.

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"Lily what do you think I should plan for Tyson and I tonight?" Maleah asked, drawing little hearts all over her potions essay.

"Um, I don't know." Lily said flatly.

"Thanks for the help."

"Well," Lily continued, "I seriously don't know? Are you sure you like this guy? I mean, he's good looking and all, and has a killer body. A promising future, sure. But he has the personality of a wooden spoon."

"Are you saying that he's boring?"

"Yeah, that would be the gist of it." Lily shrugged as Maleah hunched her shoulders.

"I know." She said after a moment of silence.

"You know that he is boring, yet you persist. I'm intrigued." Lily said, probing Maleah for more information.

"I know he's not exciting, but I mean, I want a boyfriend so badly..."

"But not necessarily him."

"I guess."

"Well," Lily pondered, "I think you should break up with him. Granted, you want a boyfriend, but do you really want to just settle? We are young. Do we really need to settle? Honestly."

"I guess you make a point." Maleah said, nodding.

"Of course I do."

"Well, I will just have to think about it for a while. Make my decision later. Ugh I hate relationships, they are so stressful!"

Lily raised her eyebrow with that last comment, and continued practicing her transfiguration.

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"So Denna, I was wondering... Do you want to go to the Ball with me next month?" Matt asked, twirling his fingers in her long blonde hair. Her eyes widened with excitement, as a huge smile came across her face.

"I would LOVE to go to the Ball with you!" She wrapped her arms around him, and then excused herself to go tell all her friends.

"Caydence!!" She squealed, dragging Caydence away from a group of students.

"What?" She asked, confused on how Denna could be so happy all of a sudden.

"Matt just asked me to the Ball!" She jumped up and down, but Caydence didn't share her joy.

"He what?"

"You heard me!"

"And you actually said yes?"

"Of course I said yes!!""

"Are you retarded?"

"What?"

"This guy has been a total and complete dick to you for the past week, he pretended that you didn't even exist, Denna. And all of a sudden he decides to pick you back up again? All he wants is to fuck you and leave you, just like he does to every other stupid little girl that falls for him! Why the hell are you setting yourself up to be so damn easy?! I don't understand what runs through you're mind! People think I'm naïve, but at least I don't CONSTANTLY set myself up to get thrown back down."

"No Caydence," Denna said sarcastically, "don't hold back... Tell me how you really feel. God, when did you turn into such a bitch."

"Ok Denna, alright. You go tell anyone else about this and see if they are happy for you? In fact, you go tell Lily right now, because I want to personally see the look on your face when she tears you apart for being so dumb. You know she's always right Denna. Go ahead. Tell her."

"Fuck you Caydence, I thought you were my friend." Denna's eyes narrowed as she walked away, out the portrait hole and out of Caydence's view.

"God she's stupid." Caydence said, shaking her head and walking over to the couch where Cam was listening in.

"Whoa..." He said as Caydence shook her head. "You were kind of harsh there Caydence."

"Yeah well you would be too if you had to listen to that idiot, bitch and moan about it for the past week and a half. I'm sick of listening to other peoples problems, when it's ALL their fault."

Cam laughed as Caydence turned to him.

"Whatever happened to that one Hufflepuff girl that you liked, I haven't seen her around in a day or two."

"Oh, yeah, well that could be because she's psycho."

Caydence laughed, "why?"

"She was jealous, of mine and yours relationship. I was like, HELLO that's my cousin. Gross."

Caydence just stared at him in disbelief. "Gross times 3. Did she think we liked each other or something?"

"I don't know and I don't care. What a freak."

"Defenitly." Caydence said, laughing.

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"Hey Dylan," Vanessa said as she walked into the boys dorm room. Dylan sat up and looked at her, anticipating what she would say. Maybe she was going to say sorry for blowing him off, or maybe she would just kiss him. Or maybe more...

"Do you know where Sirius is?" His eyes narrowed as he shook his head.

"No."

"Oh, ok, thanks anyways I guess." She turned on her heel and walked out into the hall, quietly shutting the door as she went.

He fell back onto the bed, his anger boiling up inside him. Why the hell, did she want Sirius? He obviously didn't want her! Why couldn't she see that he was here, waiting for her.

He stood up, and faced the wall, and just began punching it. He punched it until he was pretty sure he had broken through to their bathroom. He fell onto his bed and just lay there.

"Someone's been redecorating?" Sirius said when he walked into the room 20 minutes later and poked his head through the wall.

"Yeah." Dylan said, as Sirius looked at him questionably.

"Why?"

"You want to know why, Sirius?" Dylan asked as Sirius shrugged. "Because your stupid ass has Vanessa so in love with it that she can't even breathe without thinking of you."

"Oh, yeah. Do you like her? Because someone really needs to inform her that I do not think desperation is sexy... I need her to get off my back. She scared off my girlfriend, which, to be honest is a blessing in disguise because she was nuts... But still." Sirius sat next to him. "My advice, get your mind off of Vanessa. She's really not all she's cracked up to be. Plus, she's a biter."

"It's hard Sirius. I've liked her for a while now. I can't just all of a sudden get over her." Dylan continued, "And what do you mean she's a biter."

"You know what I mean when I say biter."

"Well that ruins a few fantasies for me..."

"First step in the right direction, Dylan." Sirius said, laughing, "but we better get down to the quidditch pitch. Game tonight."

"Is anyone even going?" Dylan asked as he got off his bed and walked over to the corner where his quidditch bag was sitting.

"Not from our year. Big DADA test tomorrow. Speaking of which I haven't even spent a second studying for..."

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"Do you think we one the match?" Caydence asked the others while flipping through her notes.

"I don't know, I can't really see the pitch from this window. I bet we did though." Vanessa said, leaning out the window of the Gryffindor tower.

"Hopefully." Lily said, as Jackson walked through the portrait hole.

"We won!" He shouted, Cam and Remus close behind.

"Where's Peter?" Maleah asked, as the boys shrugged.

"And where's Denna?" Lily asked, as Caydence chuckled.

"Probably mopping up Matt's sweat and telling him what a great game he had."

Lily's nose crinkled as Maleah laughed.

A few minutes later, the rest of the students as well as the players began to trickle in.

The boys headed up to their dorm to change, while the girls stocked the common room with high caffeine items to curb the desire to sleep.

"Dylan, I think the owl's for you." James said as he dug through his dresser for some sweats.

Dylan grabbed the owl's note and unwrapped it, wondering who would be sending him a note....

Dylan,

I regret to inform you that your father and I have separated. He no longer lives at home, but has moved into his mistress' house along with their unborn child. At the end of the month I will be selling the house and moving in with your Aunt Eleanor. Please make arrangements for the summer, as you know there is not enough room for you at Eleanor's house.

With Deepest Sympathies,

Mother

He shut his eyes and held the note strongly in his fist. He inhaled deeply as he threw the note onto his bed.

"Sams, are you coming?" Sirius asked, as Dylan nodded his head.

"Yeah I'll be down in a second."

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"Guys, its 3 in the morning." James said, as he looked around the group.

"Yeah." Sirius nodded. James rolled his eyes and got up.

"I'm gonna go get some fresh air." He started walking out to the balcony, as Lily got up to follow. Jackson eyed her suspiciously, but decided against following her. He needed to learn to trust her.

"I absolutely hate studying." James said, leaning over the balcony railing, Lily coming up beside him.

"Well, in all reality, I don't think anyone actually enjoys doing it. It's just something you do." She looked out onto the castle grounds. Everything seemed so calm at night, no students flitting in and out of the green houses, no crazed maniacs on broomsticks zooming about. Everything was peaceful.

"Lily," James said, turning towards her, "have you ever liked me?"

"Maybe..." She said after a moment, not wanting him to know her exact thoughts.

"Really?"

"Why, have you ever liked me?" She asked, as this laughable look came across his face.

"You? Hell no." He laughed as her jaw dropped, and she attempted to punch him in the shoulder. He grabbed her fist and pulled her into a hug.

"I'm just messing with you Lee, you know I have been in love with you since the day I first saw you." She laughed as he held onto her for a few moments. She looked up at him, and he leaned his mouth towards her, kissing her lightly.

She pulled away from him and stepped back a few feet.

"James, I can't do this." She ran inside as he stood there, rejected.

"Fuck this." He shook his head and vowed to himself that he will never again even THINK about touching Lily Evans.

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"Jamie, where did you end up last night?" Sirius asked while buttering his toast at breakfast the next morning.

"Oh you know..." James said, Remus and Dylan leaning in to hear more.

"Do tell, do tell." Sirius prodded as James looked up from his food.

"You know Padfoot, I never in my life have slept with a 10. But last night, I was with 2 8's and 3 7's."

"What's that, like 37?" Sirius said, counting with his fingers.

"Yeah." James answered as Sirius and the rest of the boys nodded.

"Hell that's pretty damn good in my book."

Well that took forever and a DAY. I need to keep up with this story, because with the amount of characters, it gets tricky to remember things about them. But yeah, I will try to get the next chapter out in a week or so, but I am making no guarantees. The next chapter will be all about the Ball, so it will be a MONTH later than this chapter. So I'm like, skipping a month. I'm just trying to get the timing right and everything. Ok well you all have a great day and I'll see ya when I see ya!