Chapter Nine

Albus and Lily were fully arguing in a matter of seconds.

"What are you doing with that guy?" Al demanded, breaking away from Kayla and stepping towards Lily. "You and Kevin just broke up!"

"Al, we have talked about this literally a million times," Lily retorted, hands on her hips and standing defiantly straight. "You do not get to decide who I date!"

Kayla remembered a time at Hogwarts when Lily was around fifteen and begun to date. It was with Liam Corner, a normal bloke, but Albus and James had both gotten in a terrible row with her when they found them kissing by the lake. Liam Corner, thankfully, made it out unscathed. Since then, Lily had an agreement with her brothers not to get in the way of her love life.

"You are not dating that guy," he replied, gesturing wildly to her bedroom, "obviously."

"So?" She raised an eyebrow. "It's my life, my body."

Al's face coloured considerably at this. "I didn't mean it like that, you know that."

"Could've fooled me," she said coolly.

"Do you even know him? He could be a serial killer or rapist or something –"

"He's not!" she shouted immediately. "He works at the Ministry, in another department –"

"Like that's much better –"

"Don't give me that!" she said forcefully, poking him in the chest. "I know you've had hook ups in the past, just because you didn't like them very much doesn't mean no one else can –"

"They're stupid!" Al interrupted, both hands going into his hair. He looked extremely frustrated. "There's no point to them, so why bother?"

"Just because you say something loudly, doesn't mean it's true," she shot back. Then she rounded on Kayla, who was still standing at the door, wishing she could run away. "Are you hooking up?"

"We're –" Al began, but Lily cut him off again.

"You can't hook up with my best friend," she told him angrily, poking him in the chest again. "

"We're dating, Lily," Kayla said in a small voice. Her hands stuffed themselves into her pockets to stop them from shaking. She couldn't quite look Lily in the eye.

"What?" Her voice had lowered considerably. She looked in between Al and Kayla, back and forth, as if the answer was written on their faces.

"We just started dating," he put in.

Lily hands fell from her hips as she turned to him. "You're such a hypocrite."

"What?"

"You are!" Her face was reddening too, now. "You demand to know every single aspect of my love life, but you don't tell me anything from yours until months after it happens! The second I do anything you don't know or approve of, you're yelling at me in my own goddamn flat! You don't get to do that just because you're my brother!"

"Lily, I –"

"Get out!" she cried. Al inhaled very sharply before he turned around and stormed out the still-open door. He didn't look at Kayla as he left and slammed the door shut behind him.

Lily was wiping her eyes as the slamming echoed in the room. She didn't even look at Kayla. "How could you not tell me?" she asked, her voice broken.

Kayla opened and closed her mouth, but she couldn't find herself to say anything, and she didn't know why. She wanted to hug Lily, but also run after Albus. She wanted to tell Lily everything, but Lily didn't tell her about this man and she felt hurt about that, too. She felt pulled from either end.

After a moment, Lily decided for her. She went back to her room, also slamming her door, and she may as well have slammed it in her face.

Kayla's hands couldn't stop shaking.

Guilt was haunting Kayla.

She wasn't so sure exactly why she felt so guilty. It wasn't as if Lily told her about what was going on with her friend-with-benefits, but Kayla tried to reason that maybe she should have noticed. And she would have, if Al hadn't completely distracted her for the last two weeks.

But Kayla was used to telling Lily absolutely everything. She knew about the time she failed a Transfiguration exam in Third Year, all her firsts with Daniel Finch-Fletchy and the time she spotted Rose and Scorpius kissing in an abandoned corridor – before they were public, of course. Lily had always confided in her, as well.

It made her wonder what else Lily had hid from her.

After tossing and turning most of the night, Kayla nearly bailed on Rose and Scorpius' cake tasting for the wedding. She wasn't even sure why she was invited, as she wasn't even a bridesmaid. After downing two cups of coffee, Kayla made it a few minutes late at the bakery on the other side of Diagon Alley.

She was still out of breath as she sat down at the only remaining seat at the table. Lily didn't look at her and kept her arms folded across her chest. Rose's face lit up when Kayla dropped down beside her.

"Oh, good. I'm so glad you made it," Rose said happily, waving over the employee at the counter. "Hannah got pulled into work." Hannah Wood was Rose's best friend from Hogwarts.

"Happy to be here," Kayla said, trying to smile but failing. "How's the wedding planning going?"

"Oh, you know…" Rose was a very clever, detail-oriented person and loved to do planning; in school, she'd organized an End of Year Ball while she was Head Girl. Rose proceeded to talk for the next twenty minutes about colour schemes, designs and the intricacies of planning a wedding. Kayla was realizing why Lily's expression remained stoic as Rose spoke – she'd had to sit the napkin decisions the day before.

Different samples of cake were served as Rose prattled on about the wedding. As she went on, Lily and Kayla hardly got a word in and focused on tasting the cakes. After a while, Lily cut in sharply with an opinion.

"I think the red velvet is out," she said loudly over Rose's chatter. "It's alright but it'd be cheesy, you know? Since half our family's got red hair."

Rose paused, realizing she hadn't been paying attention to the cakes at all. "Oh."

"I liked the vanilla," Kayla supplied. "It's traditional." Lily shook her head.

"Nope, too boring," she said dismissively.

"I like the Pink Champagne," Rose said, trying out the pink coloured-cake with white frosting. "It will go with the candles on the tables with –"

"Pink Champagne is good," Lily cut in hastily before Rose went on another ramble.

Kayla cleared her throat. "I think the Lemon would be nice. It'd be nice and fresh for spring, you know?"

"What do you think, Rose?" Lily asked forcefully. "Pink Champagne or Lemon?"

Rose didn't seem to pick up on Lily's strange, forthright behaviour, but Kayla did. Lily liked to pretend as though she didn't care about weddings and marriage, but when it came down to it, she already had a wedding dress picked out. Kayla looked at her best friend, trying to read her face, but all she could see was that Lily was in a big hurry for this to be over.

Rose, however, was taking her sweet time. She tasted one cake after the other, smacking her lips. She hummed after tasting the Lemon, and then tasted the Pink Champagne again.

Just as Lily looked as though like she would explode, Rose slammed her fork down.

"Pink Champagne," she said decisively.

"Wonderful," Lily drawled, scooting her chair back. "Well if that's all, dear cousin, I am off –"

"Wait!" Rose said quickly, holding onto Lily's arm. "You haven't told me who your plus one is yet. You had Kevin down before."

Her face flushed. "I'm cancelling my plus one."

"What? Are you sure?"

"I'm on a bit of a break from men."

"Really?" Kayla spoke up in disbelief. Lily shot daggers with her eyes.

"Break from relationships," she corrected, tugging her arm out of Rose's grip and throwing on her beige trench coat. "No plus one, Rose. I'll see you at the dress fitting on Thursday."

And then Lily was gone. Kayla cleared her throat a little awkwardly.

"I guess I should be going, too," she muttered. Rose stared at her.

"Is she alright?"

"Yeah, we're just arguing right now."

"Oh." Rose considered this. "Should I rearrange your seats at the wedding?"

Kayla laughed, but Rose looked entirely serious. "No. We've fought before, we'll be fine." This was certainly true, but Kayla could only point out three times that she had Lily had serious fights. They almost never got into fights if she could help it.

"Well I hope not about whatever's going on her love life," she replied before wiping her mouth with a clean napkin. "Sounds like she's really wrapped up in something, there. She hardly ever tells me anything."

"Yeah." Kayla's voice felt distant. Why hadn't Lily talked to her? "I guess."

"Al was telling me he wants to sit with you at the wedding." Kayla's head practically spun around to face Rose, who was grinning. "You okay with that?"

"Uh," she answered intelligently, feeling her face burn red. "Yeah. Of course."

Rose studied Kayla's face for a moment, then rolled her eyes. "Fine. Don't tell me anything. But come to the dress fitting on Thursday, yeah? Maybe you and Lily can sort out your spat after a bit of champagne."

"Sure, sure," she replied, shifting her chair back and grabbing her jacket. "I'll see you then."

"Yes," Rose agreed, already distracted by the cake in front of her. "Should I have pink champagne to go with the cake? Or Rosé? No, that would be too cheesy…"

Kayla couldn't get out of there fast enough.

"Flobberworms have to be the most disgusting creature in the world. Even worse than Erklings. And Trolls."

Kayla rolled her eyes at Hugo. They were sitting on the wooden floor, elbow-deep in the new soil planters in her room, digging for the Flobberworms that had begun to evade her plant growth. They were going to be quite small at that point, but they ate new roots essential for the plants, so she had to dig them out.

And since Hugo had shown up announced for dinner, she'd roped him into it.

"Ugh," he groaned as he pulled another one out. He dropped it in the jar Kayla had popped open so she could take the Flobberworms to the shop later. "I'm going to need to take three showers later."

"You'll be fine," she reassured him. She pulled a clump of soil out in her hand so she could search through it more carefully for eggs. "How was your weekend?"

Hugo shrugged. "It was good. I only had one shift at the Wheezes so it was relatively open. Though I had to listen to Al ranting about Lily for all of lunch today."

"Really, now." She tried to keep her expression impassive.

"Yeah, something about how he feels bad but also does not approve and won't apologize for having an opinion." He pulled out another Flobberworm with a shudder and dropped it in the jar. "What opinion does he have, anyway? He never mentioned it."

"He doesn't approve of Lily's relationship with her colleague," Kayla explained, placing Flobberworm eggs in another container beside the jar. Both were very useful for potions.

"Friends with benefits."

"Yeah." She thought back to an hour ago, when she and Hugo were eating sandwiches on the couch and Lily had come home with the same man from the night before. Lily had pulled him into her bedroom and locked it, and she still hadn't come out.

"I just don't see what Al's so wound up about," Hugo told her. "I could not give two shits if Lily's hooking up with guys. All I want to know is that she's using protection."

Kayla wrinkled her nose. "I dunno. Al cares too much and he's overprotective. Something about Gryffindors, I'm sure. James would probably rip him apart just on impulse."

"Yeah, Al's not that violent, though."

"True." There was a pause.

"He did say he was going to apologize," Hugo continued, looking at her pointedly. "I don't know why, though."

"Oh…" Kayla focused on the soil plot, still searching for the tiny eggs to avoid his eyes. "Well. Lily might have found out last night. That Al and I are dating."

"Might have?"

"She did."

"Huh." She could see from the corner of her eyes that Hugo was trying very hard not to laugh. "And did she like that you were dating without telling her?"

"Not particularly."

He snorted then. "So he's apologizing because Lily doesn't approve of you two."

"She didn't say that."

"What did she say?"

Kayla put a few eggs in the container so she could look at him. "She said she was hurt that I didn't tell her."

"I see."

"And she's barely said a word to me since."

"She'll forgive you," Hugo said dismissively, going back to his planter and digging through around the leafy plant. "You guys can't fight more than twenty-four hours without crying and making up."

"It's been more than twenty-four hours," Kayla pointed out, and she couldn't keep the worry out of her voice.

"Well, Al seemed pretty guilty for yelling at her. He kept going on about how he knows he needs to let Lily make her own mistakes and leave her alone." Hugo made a face when he pulled out a particularly fat Flobberworm, about the size of his hand. "Ugh, gross."

"He said that?" she asked, ignoring him.

"Yeah." He practically threw the worm into the jar before looking back at her. "Why? Do you disagree?"

"No." She shook her head. "I'm glad, actually. I don't think he should be so overprotective. Lily's old enough to make her own decisions."

"Do you care that Lily's… you know." He jerked a head towards Lily's still-closed bedroom across the hall. Luckily, they couldn't hear anything thanks to silencing charms.

"No," she said, shaking her head. "I mean, it's her life. But I wish she had talked to me. She's been going on about this marriage stuff for a while, and I would have supported through her this she'd just told me about it."

"She is going through a rough breakup."

"At least he didn't –" Kayla cut off quickly before she mentioned the word cheating. "Anyway, she usually talks to me about everything. But I've been completely out of the loop for this."

"Me, too." He looked a little concerned, but then shrugged. "I'm sure she's going to figure it out in her own way, friends with benefits is not the worst thing in the world. Lily's smart, she'll protect herself."

Kayla knew he was right, but couldn't help but feel worried anyway.

They worked in contemplative silence for a few more moments before Hugo blurted out, "Gemma asked if we could… you know. Make this a thing."

She stared at him. Hugo was never nervous, but now he was digging through the soil with intense focus, ears turning red.

"Don't you fancy her?

"Well, yes."

"Didn't you say she's been great? And that she doesn't care that you have two jobs, and she said she'd cheer for the Chudley Cannons with you if they ever made it to the finals?"

"It could still happen!" Hugo said loudly. Then he sighed and pulled his hands out of the soil, brushing them off. "I don't think I can be her boyfriend."

"Why not?" she asked, confused. He hadn't had a girlfriend for a couple of years and definitely hadn't been happy about it.

"There's something I haven't told you." He slumped against the large wooden frame that held the planter, fiddling with his muddy hands uncertainly. "I got an invitation to open for this renowned comedian. He's based in Amsterdam."

Kayla blinked. "Open? Like beginning the show?"

"Yeah."

"With your material?"

"Yes," he confirmed, still staring at his hands. "It's sort of an audition, but I think it's a sure thing. He happened to see me perform last week while he was in town and wants me to tour with him all over Europe if the show goes well."

Her jaw slackened in surprise, and she felt like standing up to cheer. "Hugo, that's incredible! Did you tell Lily? Not now, but –"

"I will," he said, still staring down at his hands. "I haven't told anyone else yet. I don't know if I'm going to do it."

"What?" she said loudly, more confused by the moment. Why did he look so sad? "Hugo, you have to do it. That's what you've been wanting for the last ten years."

"I know."

"This means you can stop working two jobs! You can use all the money you saved and perform all over the country –"

"I know, Kayla," he said again, very quietly. "If I get it, I'm going to be gone for four months."

Kayla dropped a Flobberworm that she was about to put in a jar. "Four months?"

"Yeah."

"You're leaving?"

"Yeah," he repeated, looking up when he heard how small her voice had become. "I mean, I'll probably be able to visit. But not very often. I'd have to arrange Portkeys and get them approved, or I might be too tired to Apparate…"

She stared at him, her mouth still wide open. She felt like the world had suddenly started to spin wildly. "Holy shit."

"I know."

"Holy shit." Her best friend might leave. For months and months on end. She hadn't been far away from Hugo since Hogwarts, and that might have only been a month, at most. She shook her head, trying to relieve the shock. "You have to tell Lily."

He looked at her pointedly. "And Gemma."

"Oh." She let out a long breath. "Holy shit."

"Please stop saying that," he said, sounding tired. "I know I have to break up with her. It's not fair to ask her to wait for four months, and then I don't even know where I'll be. I might not even move back to London."

Kayla suddenly understood. "You're thinking of not doing it for Gemma?"

"Yes."

"But…" She struggled for words, trying to say it as delicately as possible. "You've wanted this for so long. And you've only been dating Gemma for like… two weeks."

"It's stupid," he muttered, sounding very sad. "She's just really amazing. I really like her. And now I'm going to have to break it off and chase after a pipe dream."

"It's not a pipe dream, Hugo," Kayla replied, frowning. "It's really built to something. This is an amazing opportunity."

"I know," he repeated for the umpteenth time. His eyes dropped to the floor. "I feel like that Flobberworm."

It hadn't moved an inch from where Kayla had accidentally dropped it on its back.

"I think it's time for ice cream," she decided, sticking the worm into the jar and closing her containers. "This has been a shit weekend, thanks to Lily and wonderful opportunities being thrown in our faces. Let's go to Florean's and eat our feelings?"

Hugo nodded, smiling for the first time since he'd begun talking about this. "I'm up for that."

After she and Hugo washed their hands very thoroughly and before they'd left for late-night ice cream, a cinnamon-coloured owl Kayla didn't recognize flew to her window and tapped on it insistently. After letting it in, it dropped a small scroll of parchment in her hand and flew off. She opened it immediately, not knowing what to expect.

In squished but mostly neat handwriting, a note was written:

Kayla –

I'm sorry for storming out without saying goodbye last night. I know Lily is probably fine, but I just get a bit worried about random blokes taking advantage of her. I'm going to apologize to her tomorrow, but it was probably best that we both cooled down today.

I had a brilliant time with you yesterday.

See you soon,

Albus