Disclaimer: All the characters that you recognize belong to J. K. Rowling. The plot of this story was greatly inspired by the movie, How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days.

Author's Note: Thanks to JPx3LE, zuska1985, ourlittlesecret7, laurahonest, siriusforeva, lizziee, pyscho-pyro-shrink, JeNnIfEr88, Regina Scorpio, NJ MacReiley the Helpless Romantic, Dancer girl923, Moony's Warebabe, Lillith Potter, Hannah, Rajal, greenmaiden, Miss Myrtle360, and GossipGirlQueen for reviewing! It means the world to me!

"Close your eyes; and no peaking," James ordered, watching Lily as he tightly shut her eyes.

"Where are we going?' she asked, eyes still clamped shut and hands on her hips.

"If I told you, it wouldn't be a surprise," he answered, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

"James," she complained.

"No peaking," he said, sternly looking at her.

"This is stupid, I can't see where I'm going," Lily commented. "What if I trip and fall?"

"You won't trip," he assured her.

"How do you know that?"

"Do you trust me?" he asked.

Without any hesitation, she replied, "Of course."

"Good. Now keep your eyes closed and I'll guide you to the spot," James told her. She suddenly felt his warm hands on her shoulders, forcing her to walk forward. She felt tingles up and down her spine, loving the way his rough, manly hands felt against her bare shoulders.

In no time at all, they came to an abrupt stop. "Open," he whispered into her ear.

Her eyes fluttered open, revealing a breath-taking sunset. It looked as if buckets of radiant shades of pink, orange, red, and purple were splattered across the sky. It was gorgeous. Lily gasped, taking in just how beautiful it was.

She turned to face James and smiled, it was incredible. No words could explain how much she enjoyed her surprise. More than that, however, was the look she saw on James's face. It was a look of utter bliss, one she hadn't seen before. The cocky grin he once wore was gone, revealing nothing but genuine emotions. His pearly white teeth were visible, his eyes danced across the sky, and seemed relaxed.

Just looking at him made her heart melt; he made her melt.

James wrapped an arm around her waist, pulling her closer to him. She could smell the fresh scent of shampoo and soap on him, making him smell like home. Not home as in her house in England, but home as in close to her heart. He felt like he belonged with her, nothing there to break them apart.

"Do you like it?" he asked, whispering sweet words into her ear.

"It's beautiful," she answered, looking up at him.

He bent down slightly and she knew he was about to kiss her. She could feel his breath radiating from his mouth, making her heart race. This was the moment she'd been dieing to have for the past few days. She yearned to feel his lips against hers, soft, yet fierce. She wanted nothing more than to have her deepest, darkest desire filled. She needed James Potter.

He was coming closer, slowly inching forward. The butterflies in her stomach were bouncing off the walls, about to burst. She needed his lips on hers.

"BEEP…BEEP….BEEP."

Lily groaned, but her eyes shot open. She grabbed her wand off her bedside table, sending sparks out of it that hit the alarm clock that sat across the room. She sighed, but yawned and sat up.

It was all a dream. None of it happened. James didn't lead her to a romantic sunrise, where they could finally share a romantic kiss. She didn't feel the luxury his touch against her lips. It was all a dream.

Grumbling, she tossed her blankets off and reluctantly got out of bed. She made her way over to the showers, washed up, got dressed, and was ready to go within forty minutes.

Lily sighed, knowing that she needed to meet James at the gate to Hogsmeade in a few minutes. Her stomach flipped a bit, but she wasn't sure quite why. Was it nerves of romance or nerves of anxiety? She honestly couldn't tell.

Part of her believed that it was because of nerves of romance, especially after her dream. What she couldn't figure out, was why. Why did she suddenly find James Potter attractive? Why did she suddenly want to kiss him?

Lily tightly shut her for a moment, wishing she didn't just ask herself those questions. She didn't have any romantic notions towards James, she just couldn't. She was trying to lose him, not love him. In fact, there was no possible way that she could ever love him. After all, he was mean, annoying, obnoxious, rude, smart, talented, attractive…

Shaking her head, Lily backed her mind up a bit. No, she told herself. She couldn't have those thoughts; they weren't normal. She wasn't supposed to feel that way. Lily wasn't going to allow herself to feel that way.

Still, why did she find him irresistibly attractive? True, he had a perfect smile, nice eyes, and a terrific body. And, of course, as much as she hated to admit it, his messy hair made him look handsome.

"No," she whispered to herself. She needed to stop thinking like this.

Then again, she could find him attractive, but still repulsive, couldn't she? There was nothing wrong with that. It was completely normal. Tons of girls found James handsome, but that didn't mean they all wanted to date him. Because she certainly did not want that happening, at least for much longer.

Yes, she decided, she could find a man attractive without wanting to be with him. James Potter was the perfect example of that. Despite the fact that she was beginning to find him gorgeous, she could still drive him away. She didn't lose her will power for that.

Smiling, Lily left her room, wearing a beautiful, new sundress. She was going to make his life Hell today. He was going to regret the day he asked Lily Evans to go to Hogsmeade with him. In fact, by the time she was done with him, he was never going to set foot the in the village again.

In no time at all, Lily found herself waiting outside the gate that lead to Hogsmeade, waiting for James. She impatiently tapped her fingers on the armrest of the metal bench she was sitting on. Typical, she thought to herself. Typical James Potter, always late. As Lily sat there, she watched as other young couples left for the first trip to the village of the year. They all looked so happy and nervous, knowing it was the first date with their respected partners.

While staring off at the other couples around her, she didn't even notice James come up behind her. "Miss Evans."

She jumped at the sound of her name, turning to look at James. He had a large grin on his face, wore jeans and a t-shirt, and held one white lily in his hand. He extended his hand, giving her the flower, which Lily graciously accepted.

"You know, you didn't have to get me this," she informed him, blushing slightly as she spoke.

"I know, but I wanted to," he replied, taking her hand in his and leading her through the gate and into the village.

"What do you want to do first?" she asked.

"You choose."

Lily thought about it for a moment, not sure what to do. She'd been to Hogsmeade loads of times, sometimes with her friends, sometimes with potential boyfriends. However, when she went with boys before, she genuinely liked them. And she definitely did not like James, as she constantly reminded herself that morning. Even when he gave her the flower, she did not like him. That little flutter she felt in her stomach was nothing, especially not a wave of joy.

"Do you want to go into some stores first?" she asked.

"Alright," he answered. "There's Honeydukes." He pointed to the store, which was filling quickly with students. Honeydukes was by far the most popular shop in Hogsmeade. It sold something for everyone, it was like candy galore. There wasn't a single type of wizard sweet that the shop didn't have.

Suddenly, Lily was hit with inspiration. She hid her true emotions and put on a sour face. "Honeydukes?"

"Yeah, what's wrong with Honeydukes?"

"It's nothing really, I mean, you're free to do whatever you want," she began. "It's just that, well, sweets are really unhealthy, and I don't think it's a good idea."

"What?" he asked, bewildered by the fact that Lily was suggesting that they not eat sweets.

"They give you cavities, and are full of sugar. Just think about it; every bite you take is like rotting away your teeth. Not to mention what they do to your heart…I knew a guy that ate too many sweets. One minute he was standing there, talking as if everything was normal. The next he was on his back, dead."

"From eating sweets?" James asked, still in disbelief.

"Yup," she replied. "But you know, if you want to eat them and die, go for it."

James sighed, hating that she made it sound so bad.

"Personally, I can't even go in the shop. Just seeing candy makes me feel sick…but go ahead," she told him. However, from the tone of her voice, it was obvious that she would be angry if he entered the candy shop.

"Its fine, I won't get anything," James said.

Lily smiled brightly at him before squealing, "Good! I'm so excited that you feel the same way I do, most people just think I'm crazy."

"Really?" he asked, agreeing with "most people."

"Shocking, isn't it," she commented.

Changing the subject, James suggested, "How about we go into Zonko's?"

"Are you kidding?" she asked, playing up her act.

"No," he quietly answered.

"Zonko's is a joke shop. I hate practical jokes, as I'm sure you remember. I can't stand that shop. Whoever started it, should be hexed," she sternly said.

James's eyes only widened at her response. Was he hearing her correctly? Did she not like Honeydukes or Zonko's? This was insane. He couldn't believe it. How could she have such bad taste? And why didn't he know this earlier?

"How about that nice quill shop, Scrivenshaft's," Lily said.

Now it was James's turn to ask, "Are you kidding?"

Lily looked him up and down, trying to find what could possibly be wrong about the shop she suggested. "Why would I kid? I personally enjoy quill shops…I collect quills."

"You collect quills?" he asked. Okay, this was somewhat weird. Who collected quills? If she was going to collect something, at least make it something rare and interesting. Quills though? Quills were common, and not the least bit extraordinary.

"Yes, I just find them fascinating," she lied.

"Okay then, into the quill shop," he sighed.

When the young couple entered the shop, they were the only ones other than the shop owners inside. Honestly, neither Lily nor James were very surprised by that. The quill shop was not the most popular place for Hogwarts students to attend. Generally, older witches and wizards entered the shop. Occasionally, a younger person would, but only for a brief moment to replace an empty ink bottle.

"Oh wow, look at them all," Lily said, putting a fake smile on her face. Truth be told, Lily had only been in the shop a few times before, to refill empty ink bottles. Even then it was a get in, buy it, and get out situation.

"There just so many options," she said, looking up and down the isles.

"Don't they usually have all this," James said, surveying her as he spoke.

Shit. How was she going to convince him that she did visit this story on a regular basis, yet explain how there were so many options. "Well, you see, they must have just gotten anew shipment. I haven't been in here since the last Hogsmeade visit, you know, since I'm muggle-born."

"Oh right."

Lily sighed; thank goodness she was muggle-born. Otherwise, there would have been no way to talk herself out of that dilemma.

For the next half an hour, Lily looked up and down the aisles, trying to find the perfect quill. Meanwhile, James walked along with her, trying to pretend he was the least bit interesting. Of course, it took a lot on energy for him though, trying to keep himself from falling asleep on the spot.

"Okay, I've got," Lily finally announced, picking up a quill sporting golden edges.

"Alright, let's get out of here," James said, sounding very excited to leave the dull shop.

Once Lily paid for the quill, they found themselves wandering the streets again. From an outsider's point of view, they looked like the perfect couple. They walked hand in hand, carried on a conversation, and appearance wise, they complimented one another. However, this was very far from the truth.

Up close, they were both fighting the urge to slap Lily, herself included. She was acting obnoxious, lecturing on and on about the dangers of eating sugary and fatty foods. By the end of their conversation, James learned more about clogged arteries than most doctors did! It was a dreadful experience, to say the least.

Suddenly, Lily caught a glimpse of Kelsey and Sam walking down the street. She desperately needed to talk with them; it was an emergency. To Lily, it felt like a life or death situation. She turned to James, explained that it was urgent she speak with the two girls fro a brief moment, and hurried toward her friends, leaving James to stand alone on the street.

"Kelsey, Sam, wait up a second," she called, running after them.

"Lils, what's wrong?" Kelsey immediately asked, both girls halting to a stop and turning to face Lily.

"I need a huge favor," she explained.

"What? Did something happen? Do you need us to be obnoxious in front of James?" Sam asked, firing questions at the petite redhead.

"No, no, no I can handle that on my own, I've got huge plans for today…But the favor I need, it is kind of related to the plan," Lily slyly said.

"What is it?" Sam questioned.

"I need you to go to Honeydukes and buy me two sugar quills, a pack of Droobles Best Blowing Gum, and five chocolate frogs. That should last me until the next trip, so here's some money," Lily said, shoving a few sickles into Sam's hands.

"Buy your own sweets," Sam remarked.

"I can't…I made up some lame ass excuse so that I could force James out of going there," Lily explained.

"Nice thinking," Kelsey informed her friend.

"Thank you," Lily replied. "Please, please, please buy me the sweets."

"Okay, fine."

"You're amazing…but I've got to get back to James now, I'll see you both later," Lily called as she walked away from them and jogged over to where James was standing.

"What do you want to do now?" he asked once she was within hearing distance.

"How about we go to some café or something," Lily suggested.

"That sounds great," he lied, knowing that she would want to go to Madam Puddifoot's café. James hated it there; it was filled with pink and frilly napkins. Not to mention it was always so stuffy in there, James often felt like he was trapped while inside. Of course, he was willing to put up with it though, for Lily's sake. After all, it was the Hogwart's hotspot for romantically inclined students. Inside the gaudy tea shop, young couples were always seen, kissing and holding hands over a cup of coffee or tea.

Little did James know, but Lily also despised the place. She found it to be excruciatingly painful to be inside. There was so much pressure put on her when she entered the place. It was expected that she would be lovey-dovey with a boy in there, which she wasn't keen on while many other students were around.

"So, do you want to go to Madam Puddifoot's?" James asked, gritting his teeth and giving her a smile.

Honestly, Lily didn't want to go, but she knew she had to. She needed to drive him away, and that was the only way to do so. After all, she wasn't born yesterday; it was a common fact that most guys found the tea shop just as painful to be in as she did.

Just as Lily was about to answer him, she remembered a small health food restaurant that Sam had complained to her about. It was very unpopular, and most students didn't even know it existed. The restaurant didn't serve any normal food, only odd herbs and plants that could only be found in odd gardens.

"You know, there's this cute new place down the street that Sam is always raving about, I was wondering if we could check that out instead?" Lily asked.

James sighed a sigh of relief. He didn't have to go into the flashy tea shop. This was probably the best Hogsmeade date he ever went on! He managed to escape from absolute torture. It was miracle.

However, once the young couple walked into the restaurant, James wished he was at Madam Puddifoot's. Just by looking around, he could instantly tell that this was not his kind of place. For starters, the waitresses all looked like hippies. They all wore their long, frizzy hair back in low ponytails, flower elastics holding it in place. Their outfits were bizarre too, containing more bright colors than James had ever seen in his entire life. Additionally, the place was felt very smoky, almost hazy. All of the tables were made from earthen materials, and had the appearance of an old stump. Along the walls, magically summoned waterfalls ran. In the background, soft birdcalls and rivers running were heard.

"Well, this is, well, interesting," James commented as he took a seat.

"I know," Lily replied. "It's incredible. I really love it." Of course, this was all a lie. She hated the place and wasn't sure what she was going to be able to find to eat. But it was for the plan, so she would have to somehow manage to choke down everything.

"You love it?" he asked, a look of disbelief on his face.

"Yeah," she said, smiling brightly. "How couldn't I? This is like my dream place."

"Um, yeah," he said, trying his hardest to pretend to enjoy it. "I love it too."

Lily was quiet for a moment, still looking around at her surroundings. She felt her heart leap for a moment, unsure if she should do what she planned, but in the end went with it. "I love it almost as much as I love you."

James nearly choked, spitting his water back into the glass. Did he hear her correctly? Did she really say that she loved him? This was impossible, absurd really. This was only the fifth day of their relationship, she couldn't love him. In fact, just last week she despised him. There was no way she loved him. He must've heard her incorrectly.

"What did you?" he gasped.

Lily smiled, knowing that this was going to set him off. She was really going to lose him now. "I said, I love this place almost as much as I love you."

Crap. He did hear her correctly.

"What's wrong?" she asked, looking at his scared expression.

"Nothing," he finally replied.

"Well," she pestered. "Don't you have something to say to me?" She stared at him, slightly batting her eyelashes at him.

James gulped, did she expect him to say he loved her? He glanced at her; she had a large grin on her face and her eyelashes were beating faster now. Crap. That's exactly what she wanted to hear. Could he say it? Could he lie to her and tell her that he loved her? After all, he did love her at some point. Now, of course, was not that time. In fact, by spending time with her for the past few days, James realized that he didn't love her at all. True, there were some days when he found her irresistible, and he was completely leaning toward falling in love on those days. However, the other times, similar to right now, he couldn't stand to be in the same room as her. It was as if she was trapping him, like a mouse caught in a trap. He was the mouse, she was the trap.

"I, I love spending time with you," he half lied.

Her face became sour and she glared at him. "You what?"

"I love spending time with you," he nervously repeated.

Lily grabbed her napkin from the table and held it against her eyes. James could hear loud sobs coming from her petite form. Shit. He made her cry, again.

"I can't believe you, James Potter," she cried out, her voice jumping with hysterics. "I opened my heart to you and all you can say is that you like spending time with me?"

"Lily, don't cry," he begged, reaching out to touch her arm.

She jumped back, as if his hand was a rattlesnake ready to bite. "You know James, I may love you, but I don't necessarily want you to touch me right now." With that said, she got to her feet and stormed toward the restroom, leaving James speechless at the table.

Frustrated, James ran both his hands through his messy hair, grasping the ends of it and pulling it tightly. He then leaned his head down, his elbows resting on the table. What was he going to do? He wasn't sure if he could take much more of Lily's nonsense. Of course she didn't love him. And even of she did, she had no right to tell him that after only five days of dating.

James contemplating ending things with her. He was fed up with the entire situation. Sure, he loved the good Lily, but the Lily that he had to deal with for the majority of the time was not worth it. He couldn't put himself through this much stress any longer.

Still though, he had the bet to consider. Fifty galleons was a lot of money. Did he want to risk losing that much? After all, Lily just confessed her love for him, which was what he needed to win the bet. He could hold out for another five days, couldn't he? He was half way there; he wasn't going to back out of the task now. Besides, James never left missions unaccomplished, and his relationship with Lily was definitely considered a mission.

With a sigh, he lifted his head from the table and stood up. Slowly, he made his way toward the women's restroom and gently knocked on the door. "Lily."

No answer.

"Lily, please, come out," he begged.

The door swung open, but to James's disappointment, their waitress walked out. She gave James a large grin, one that suggested she knew something that he didn't. It made him feel uncomfortable, but he ignored it once he heard a deep sob coming from inside the bathroom.

"Lily, please, I'm begging you, just come out," he repeated.

"No," came a muffled voice from inside.

"Fine, if you won't come out, I'll just go in there," he warned.

After several minutes, Lily still did not come out. James groaned, but pushed open the door, keeping his word that he would enter. Not very surprising, the bathroom looked very similar to the rest of the restaurant. Small, fury creatures were painted on the walls, magically charmed to move every so often. The same nature music was playing softly in the background, and the bathroom gave a vibe of being very in tune with nature.

He immediately saw Lily standing in the corner of the room, a paper towel at her eyes. James went over to her and put a comforting arm around her shoulder, forcing her to cry into his chest. "Lily, please don't cry…I didn't mean it."

"Yeah right," she stubbornly sobbed. "You don't love me."

"That's not true," he said before choking out, "I, I love you very much. You just, um, shocked me when you said it and I didn't know what to do. I was being stupid." Okay, so it was a complete lie. But what was a guy to do? He needed to lie to win the bet, and he was willing to do anything to win.

"You do?" she asked, looking up at him with a look of disbelief on her face.

"Of course I do," he softly replied.

Now it was Lily's turn to panic. Did James Potter really love her? This wasn't supposed to happen. She was supposed to drive him away, not bring him closer to her. No, she decided, he must be lying to her. He must have said that just to bullshit his way from being in trouble…typical James Potter.

Using his deceit to her advantage, Lily smiled brightly at him and wrapped her arms around his neck. "Oh James, this is the happiest moment of my life." She then pulled his head down towards her and kissed him deeply on the lips.

Even though he was completely revolted by her actions, James still found that her kisses made his knees weak. He wasn't sure what it was, but he ended up wrapping his other hand around her petite waist and forcefully returning her kiss. He noticed that she tasted like strawberries, as if she just applied lip balm.

Soon enough, James had lifted Lily up into his arms and gently placed her on the sink counter of the bathroom, bringing her closer to his height. Her legs wrapped around him, trapping him within her grip. Her fingers ran through his untamed hair, tangling it in her fingertips. Lily found herself loving the wild mop he liked to call hair. She couldn't believe that for all those years she despised it; it was so soft and touchable.

James's kisses soon eased up a bit, escaping from her lips and running down the length of her neck until they rested against a particularly tender spot. Lily let out a slight moan, adoring his butterfly kisses.

As his kisses began to become fierce again, suctioning onto Lily's neck, she brought herself back to reality. She couldn't do this; it wasn't part of the plan. How could she drive him away when she was kissing him?

Lily removed her hands from James's neck and lightly put them on his chest, pushing him away from her. "We can't do this," she said, breathing heavily as she spoke.

Caught up in the moment, James asked, "Why?"

Lily felt a blush rise to her cheeks and replied, "It's wrong, not here. Not in this bathroom."

With his hands still around her waist and her legs still wrapped around his waist, James was having trouble controlling his natural urges to kiss her. He leaned forward once more and rested his forehead against hers. "Why do you do this to me?"

"Do what?" she asked.

He ignored her question for a moment and kissed her once more on the lips before detangling himself from her legs and taking a large step backward. "Every time I kiss you, you pull away," he told her, finally answering her question. "Why do you do that?"

She stared at him, still seated on the counter. "Honestly?"

"Honestly."

"I don't trust myself around you," she replied, not breaking eye contact with him at all. Her voice was calm as she spoke, despite the seriousness of the sentence. Although it wasn't an ideal answer for her plan, Lily couldn't help but tell him that bit of information. After all, it wasn't a lie, it was fact. She didn't trust herself around him. There was something about him that melted her heart and drove her wild.

With that said, Lily jumped down from the counter and exited the bathroom. James stared after her, his eyes wide open. He felt his heart skip a beat. This was the Lily Evans he was in love with. This was the girl that put the rest of Hogwarts to shame. She was cool, sexy, and beautiful. She was what drove him wild, her response only driving him to want her even more than he already did.

Once James's mind was focused on reality again, he ventured out of the bathroom and saw that Lily was seated at their table, sipping her mug of green tea. He walked over toward the table and sat down across from her, suddenly having a new outlook on their relationship. The crazy Lily that he saw once in a while was worth it. Anything was worth seeing one glimpse of the Lily that he saw in the bathroom.

"I've got a question," Lily said once he was seated.

"Shoot."

"Every month, where do you and the rest of the Marauders sneak off to?"

James stared at her, stunned. How did she know that? He needed to cover, she couldn't know Remus's secret. "I, um, um, I don't know what you're talking about."

"Yes you do, don't lie to me," she said with certainty.

"I'm not lying."

"Yes you are, you looked down as you spoke," Lily replied. She smiled at him, remembering their first genuine conversation, day one of their relationship. He smiled back at her, glad to see that she was paying attention that day.

"Okay, fine, I do know what you're talking about, but I can't tell you."

"Why not?"

"It's not my secret to tell," he answered.

"I respect that," she informed him, eyeing him as she spoke.

"Good."

Just then, their waitress approached the table and asked if they wanted anything else to eat. Lily looked back and forth between James and the server as James proceeded to order another glass of water. She wondered if she should carry out with her original idea. It sounded so solid moments earlier, but now she was getting along so well with James.

It was a dilemma, one that twisted and contorted her mind and heart. Her mind was shouting at her, telling her she was an idiot for even being nice to James at that moment. He was a prat and didn't deserve her attention. She was supposed to be driving him away; this idea would help her complete her task.

On the other hand though, her heart was fighting back. It kept on telling her that he wasn't so bad after all and he deserved a chance. Besides, their conversation was going well and the moment they shared in the restroom was enticing.

In the end, Lily's mind won the battle. She narrowed her eyes on James, jumped to her feet, and yelled, "I can't believe you; you're hitting on our waitress!"

The waitress stepped back a moment, a shocked look on her face. James stared at Lily, a look of disbelief on his face.

"You filthy pig! You tell me you love me and then go ahead and stare at this poor woman's breasts. I can't believe you!" Lily shouted. She stormed off to the bathroom once more, fuming as she left.

James sat there, still stunned. What just happened? The waitress, along with everyone else in the building stared at James.

"I wasn't looking," he stated.

She gave him a look before stomping away toward the bathroom where she quickly met Lily. "He doesn't seem so bad," the woman said.

"I know, but it's a long story," Lily replied. "Thanks so much for going along with it."

"It's no problem, anything to help another witch," the waitress responded.

Lily flashed the woman a smile before transforming back into angry Lily again. She stomped back into the restaurant and marched towards James, who was standing now. "I don't know about you, but I'm leaving."

James didn't say anything, but followed the red-haired girl out of the building, leaving money on the table for the bill.

"James Potter, you make me so mad sometimes," Lilt announced, stopping in the middle of the road and facing him.

"Lily, you're acting crazy," he began. "I wasn't looking at her at all."

"That's what they all say," she snapped.

"But I'm not most guys," he told her, grasping her arms as he spoke.

"Don't touch me," Lily snarled. "You're a pig, a filthy pig."

"Lily, come on," he whined. "Why would I ever even look at another woman, let alone hit on another one?"

"I don't know, men are idiots," she suggested. "They can never settle with just one."

James was starting to get mad now. "Just one? That's not fair, nor is it true…And even if it were, don't you think you're enough woman to last me a life time?"

"What's that supposed to mean?" she snapped.

"God, Lily. One minute you're cool, amazing, and fun to be around. The next you're flipping out because I don't say the right thing."

"You didn't say you loved me back," she argued.

"You got pissed off at me for wanting to eat dinner with my friends!" he exclaimed.

"Don't even start with me," Lily hissed.

"You fucking accused me of being gay," he violently whispered. "And now you think I'm staring at the waitress's breasts. What is it Lily? I mean, you're up, you're down, you're everywhere!"

"Shut up," she snarled. "My God James, you can be such a brat."

"Only when you're being a bloody psychotic woman," he retorted. So much for the crazy Lily didn't come close to the cool Lily. He couldn't stand this Lily. No one was worth this much pain and suffering: no one.

"Is that so?"

"You tell me."

"So, are we over then?" Lily asked. Her brain was praying for a yes to escape his lips, but her heart was wishing for a no.

"I guess so," he answered.

With that said, Lily turned on her heel and walked away. It was somewhat reassuring to know that the whole situation was over. She didn't have to pretend anymore. She could go back to hating him again, and openly referring to him as "the annoying boy that won't go away."

Yet, at the same time, she felt empty. For the past five days, she was constantly surrounded by James. Now however, she was about to enter a life where she wouldn't ever see him again, apart from classes that is. It was an odd feeling, one that made her heart throb.

Lily looked back and saw that James was walking toward the other end of town. She couldn't believe he wasn't even trying to get her back. He wasn't even watching her leave! If it had been a week earlier, he would have been kissing the ground she walked on. Now, however, he wanted nothing to do with her. How could this happen?

She miserably made her way closer to main shops in town. She needed to talk with her friends; she needed some sort of comfort. First, she walked into The Three Broomsticks, but didn't see any sign of them. She did see Rina and Tracey, but decided they weren't who she wanted to speak with. She needed Kelsey and Sam.

Her next stop was Honeydukes, which to her delight contained her two best friends. She quickly walked over to them and sighed.

"Lily, what are you doing here?" Sam exclaimed.

"It's over," she answered.

"James?" Kelsey asked.

Lily nodded her head, averting her eyes to the ground.

"Congratulations, you've officially lost James Potter," Kelsey said, a smile on her face.

"And in record time too, only five days," Sam added. "I think we should celebrate with a few butterbeers."

This was not what Lily had expected. She thought they would console herm tell her everything was going to be okay in the end. Lily expected to be engulfed in a large embrace, a sign to show their sympathy.

However, as soon as the thoughts entered her mind, she mentally slapped herself. Losing James was the goal; it was something that she dreamed of for years. Of course her friends would congratulate her, in their eyes, it was a job well done.

Lily sighed, knowing she should feel the same way as her friends. Yet, she couldn't shake the feeling that she was missing something. A part of her enjoyed the constant attention he gave her, his goofy smile, and the way he was so certain about himself. She missed him already.

"Lils, are you there?" Kelsey asked, waving her hands in front of Lily's face, snapping her back into reality.

"Huh?"

"Do you want to get some butterbeers?" Sam asked, it was obviously the second time the question was asked.

"Sure," she faintly answered. The soothing liquid would cheer her up, right?

Little did the three girls know, but the Marauders had just entered The Three Broomsticks, where they sat at their usual table near the back of the room. Once Lily and her friends entered the bar, Lily felt her heart drop.

"He's here," she muttered to her friends.

"James?"

"Yeah," Lily whispered, snapping her gaze away from the black haired boy and dodging toward the nearest empty table.

Sam went up to the bar area and ordered them all drinks. Once she was back, Lily grasped one of the butterbeers into her hands and swiftly put the bottle to her lips. Every once in a while, she would slip a glance up at James. At times, he was smiling, which made Lily's stomach flutter. Other times, he looked as if he was agonizing over something. Lily sighed, she wanted nothing more than to be with him.

A radar signal in her brain suddenly went off. Did she just think that? It couldn't be possible. She hated James, why was she thinking these crazy thoughts?

She didn't have time to ponder it any longer though. Just then, James approached the table and looked straight at Lily.

"Can I talk to you for a minute?" he asked.

"Okay," she replied, standing up from her seat. She followed him outside, neither of them speaking as they walked.

"I'm sorry," he bluntly stated.

That was not what she had been expecting. "You are?"

"I shouldn't have been so rude, and I apologize…I'm sorry, Lily. I was acting stupid, and I don't know why I let you get away. I do, I do love you," James told her, a slightly pained look on his face. He couldn't believe he was actually doing this. He certainly didn't want to get back together with Lily; in fact, he wanted nothing to do with her. She was an absolute basket case and he could only pray that she was taking some sort of medication that made her this way.

"No, its okay…I'm sorry too, I overreacted a little bit," she admitted. "So, um, James, what do you want to do about us?"

"I'd, I'd love it if we stayed together," he said, taking a deep breath before and after he spoke.

Lily smiled and took his hand in hers.

Author's Note 2: Hey guys, I hope you liked the ninth chapter! I know, it was kind of jumpy at times, but I hope you don't mind! Also, I promise that they will start being nice to each other soon, just give it time! Please review, it helps the writing process a lot!