The past 2 months had gone by in a blur. Lily and James could barely keep away from each other. Both Marlene and Sirius had a shared annoyance at how lovestruck Lily and James had been acting. Remus liked having someone who wasn't an avid prankster around the marauders. And Peter liked to see James happy. James had never been so happy in his life.

One particular morning, James seemed extra cheery. Sirius shot him a questioning glance. "What's got you so dopey this morning, Prongs?"

James grinned. "Everything. It's a sunny day. I aced my transfiguration quiz. Quidditch game today. 2 months with Lily." At the last sentence, he couldn't help but grin even wider.

"Ahh, so that's what's got you looking so loopy," Sirius waggled his eyebrows at James.

"Ah, stuff it, Padfoot. I'm not loopy. Just in a good mood."

"2 months, it's like you're practically married," Sirius fake-swooned.

"Shut up." James muttered with a smile. You wish, a voice in the back of his mind said. If he was being honest, he wanted to marry Lily someday. He was completely head-over-heels for her. He wanted to tell her those three words that would convey how he really felt, but at the same time, he didn't want to scare her off. He had a feeling she didn't feel the same just yet.

He was pulled out of his thoughts by Sirius eating, as James saw him gobble up 3 sausages at once. James tried to eat what breakfast he could, but he was too nervous about today's game. He had been out of quidditch for a while, and although he had been practicing for the past month, he was still worried something bad would happen. On the other hand, he was always nervous before a game, so he shook off the uneasy feeling.

A minute later, Lily and Marlene joined them at the Gryffindor table. James immediately perked up when Lily sat next to him. She gave him a quick kiss on the cheek. "Happy game day."

He wrapped an arm around her. "Thanks, Lils." He leaned in slightly so he was right by her ear. "Happy 2 months," he whispered.

Lily rolled her eyes with a smile. "Are we really going to be that couple that celebrates every month-aversary?"

"Every month with you is magical, so yes." James grinned. Lily looked at him with her beatiful green eyes, which laughed along with her smile. James ate a few more bites of breakfast, and then he stood up from the table. After another round of well wishing from his friends, James headed to the locker rooms.

The changing rooms were full of tension, as none of the Gryffindor team wanted to lose. They all got ready in silence and headed out to the field. As they reached the sunlight, McLaggen gave a quick pep talk.

"Alright, everyone. Be on your best game today. I wouldn't put it past Slytherin to play dirty for the cup, so be on the look out. Everyone give it your all, and we'll be one step closer to the cup. Go Gryffindor!"

The team rallied up and got onto the field, where the sounds of cheers from the stands could be clearly heard. Madam Hooch gathered McLaggen and Avery, the Slytherin captain, onto the center of the field. They shook hands, and Madam Hooch called, "Alright everyone. I want a clean game. On my mark!"

All the players mounted their brooms as they awaited the familiar shrill whistle. The whistle rang out through the stadium as the crowd cheered even louder. All the balls were released into the air, and James dove for the quaffle. He grabbed it and hugged it towards him as he swerved past Slytherins. He threw the ball with all his might towards the goal posts, and sunk the ball into the top one. The Gryffindor crowd went crazy.

Two hours later, Slytherin was in the lead 340-250. It wasn't an easy game, but neither team would let up. Slytherin had the quaffle, and James was chasing Avery in an attempt to get the ball back. He was flying fast, but Avery was still faster. He threw the ball at the Gryffindor goalpost, and scored 10 more points for Slytherin.

James cursed aloud. At this rate, they were never going to win the game. He flew back towards center field, where another Slytherin player had the ball. This one was much slower than Avery, so James caught up with him fairly fast. But just as he was about to grab ahold of the ball...

James felt something large hit the back of his head. He lost his balance and was falling off his broom. He was vaguely aware he was falling, but he was losing consciousness. The pain in his head was throbbing, and he couldn't concentrate on anything else. He felt the cold, hard ground, and then he saw nothing else.

"Don't wake him, Wormtail. He's trying to get his beauty sleep."

"Not a great time for joking, Sirius."

"Oh, you know you love my humor, Moony."

"Would you lot be quiet? He's waking up." James heard Lily's voice clearest of all.

James groggily opened his eyes and took in his surroundings. He was in the hospital wing, an all too familiar setting. He looked around his bed to see Sirius, Peter, Remus, and Lily.

"And he's awake. I told you he was fine, Moony." Sirius said.

James tried to sit up, but was overcome by dizziness and a sharp pain all along his back. He groaned. "What happened?"

All four pairs of eyes looked at him with worry.

"You got hit by a bludger and fell off your broom, mate." Sirius explained. "Nasty fall, Hooch had to stop the game, McGonagall was down there-"

"Did we win?" James cut in. His heart was racing as he awaited Sirius' response.

Sirius broke into a smile. "We won by 50 points. Your fall gave McLaggen enough time to spot the snitch. He caught it when the game started back up."

James relaxed. So he hadn't made them lose again. He actually helped them win. His injury suddenly didn't seem too bad.

Lily huffed. "Is all you two care about winning quidditch?!"

"Yes." James and Sirius replied in unison.

Lily rolled her eyes as Madam Pomfrey came bustling up to James. "Severe concussion, three cracked vertebrae. You're quite lucky to be alive, Mr. Potter."

James shot up again, and was met once more with the back pain. Madam Pomfrey placed a cup into his hand. "Drink up. You have a long night of recovery ahead of you." James drank and immediately had the urge to spit it out, but held it down.

Madam Pomfrey continued. "Could've had much worse injury to your spine if Ms. Evans here hadn't cast a body binding spell to keep you still." James looked to Lily who he could tell had been worried sick. He grabbed her hand and squeezed it. She gave him as much a smile as she could muster.

"Alright, time for Potter to rest. Visiting time is over." Madam Pomfrey shooed the four teens away as she handed James some dreamless sleep potion.

Peter, Remus, and Lily looked back at James with concern, while Sirius saluted him. James drank the potion and felt himself enveloped in a deep sleep.

After what only felt like 2 seconds, James opened his eyes. He saw it was dark now, which meant dinner had ended. He shifted slightly, and groaned at the pain in his back. Apparently 3 cracked vertebrae was a fairly serious injury. He barely caught the light footsteps approaching from the doorway. Even through the dark, he could see a flash of red hair.

Lily was carrying a plate of food. She smiled at James. "Hey."

James face immediately brightened. He tried to sit up, but clenched his teeth at the discomfort.

"I brought you something up from the feast. I figured you must be hungry by now."

"Very, thank you."

She handed him the plate as she sat down. "How are you feeling?"

"Spectacular." Lily didn't seem to appreciate the sarcasm, but she also didn't seem to have enough energy to be mad at him. She helped him sit up to eat, and James tried to focus on her grip rather than the searing pain in his body. He ate as Lily watched him, seeming like she was trying to relax but still showing worry in her big green eyes.

"Brings back memories, doesn't it Lils?" James said with a smile.

"What do you mean?" said Lily with an airy laugh.

"Last time we were here, when you came to visit me. When you agreed to a date." James saw tears forming in her eyes but she laughed as she whispered, "Yes, I remember, James."

"Merlin, I'm not dying, Lily. Just a few broken bones. Nothing Pomfrey hasn't seen before." James waved a hand of dismissal.

"It's your spine, James. You could've died." Lily choked out.

"But I didn't." He flashed a smile as he reached to wipe Lily's tears. She laughed as she held his hand to her face.

"And technically, you saved my life with that body-binding spell."

"Sitting in the hospital wing." Lily whispered. "Some way to spend our 2 month anniversary." She laughed lightly.

James used the hand holding her face to pull her into a kiss. He felt the pain again but nothing outweighed the feeling of Lily's lips against his own.

She pulled away and placed a kiss on his cheek. "You should rest."

"I should, but you're here, and I'd rather stay in your company."

"If Pomfrey sees me here, she'll make me scrub the bedpans."

"Well then, I'll just have to assist you."

Lily laughed, one of James' favorite sounds in the world.

She stayed with him for a few more minutes, before he eventually drifted back to sleep. As Lily left the room, she saw a peaceful James sleeping, and couldn't help but think back to the first time she visited him. She smiled as she whispered, "Goodnight, love."


Hey guys! Hope you enjoyed this chapter! Remember to follow the story if you want to be updated when I post! I'll see you all next Wednesday!