Even more embarrassing than being caught skiving off class, is having everyone else in the school thinking you were caught shagging in a broom closet. I'm sure that there was a slight flush o my skin the entire day after that. Luckily though, Hermione didn't tell father and Ginny. I'm just hoping James will keep his mouth shut.

Speaking of James, he's so…James. He ignores me in the halls and in the common room. It's as if we were complete strangers and didn't live together or even blood related! I feel horrible though. I didn't try to approach him, so this…ignor-ance was just as much my fault as his. But that's going to change. I'm not entering my home to only be walking on eggshells again.

Catching sight of Honeyduke's, Maleah dragged Michaelson toward it. She wanted to buy some chocolate and a little souvenir for James so she could begin a conversation with him.

"Come on," Maleah whined when Michaelson refused to budge.

"Come on, Potter, don't make me go in there," Michaelson groaned.

"Honeyduke's? Oh, suck it up, Michaelson," Maleah snapped.

"Yeah, but there are guys in there! They're going to think I'm completely whipped," Michaelson shot back.

Maleah dropped her hand and placed it on her hip. "Excuse me?" she asked dangerously. "Is there something wrong with entering a shop with your girlfriend?"

Michaelson remained quiet. Chances are that whatever he said was going to be interpreted in the wrong way so he decided to remain quiet. "Maleah," he settled for her name.

"Forget it, William."

Michaelson winced at the sound of his name. "You didn't have to use the first-name, you know? You want to go into Honeyduke's, come on, let's go into Honeyduke's," Michaelson gave up. He took her hand and walked inside the shop with her.

"Thank you," she said sweetly.

"Yeah, whatever," he muttered under his breath. His roommates were already ribbing him for spending so much time with Maleah. He glanced at his watch. He was supposed to meet his friends at the Three Broomsticks in fifteen minutes. "Can we make this quick?"

"You got some place to be, baby?" Maleah asked as she perused the Sugar Quills.

"Yes," he said pointedly.

Maleah looked up at him. "Fine. Help me then. If you want to buy a guy some sweets in order to start a conversation, what would you use?"

"Bertie Botts Every Flavor Beans," Michaelson replied promptly.

"Hmm."

Ten minutes later, they left the shop.

Michaelson kissed Maleah. "I'll catch you later."

Maleah nodded. "You don't want to spend anymore time with me?" she asked jutting out her bottom lip. According to her dream, her father fell for it when her mother did it, so maybe it'd work for Michaelson.

"Nice try," Michaelson said, running his finger along her lip. He nearly caved, but his pride wouldn't let him. "I'll take you for a walk later, okay?"

"Fine," she pouted, but walked toward Gladrags, where Ananda and Maria were, anyway.

"So he ditched you for his mates?" Maria asked as she perused a rack of pink robes.

"Back away from the rack," Ananda commanded. "Those will clash hideously with your complexion. You'll like that Witch of the Great Lake girl did at the premiere."

"Only you watch back episodes of W! Entertainment," Maleah laughed.

"Tell me I'm wrong," Ananda challenged her.

"Never said you were wrong," Maleah pointed out. "But, yeah, he ditched me. I really wanted to spend the day with him."

"You're with him all the time," Ananda exclaimed. "The only time we see you is when you go to bed!"

"Is that so wrong?" Maleah asked quietly. She dropped the blue robe she was holding. "To want to spend time with someone you care about?"

"I think it's your own insecurities," Maria piped up.

"What?"

"You're worried that, if you don't spend every waking moment with Michaelson, then he'll cheat on you," Ananda explained.

Maleah frowned. "That's the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard."

"Not really," Maria said, shaking her head. "You dated Charles and you guys were, like, never together. He was cheating on you. With Raymond, you guys never spent that much time together except on weekends and he was cheating on you. Face it, babe, you've got some issues."

Maleah thought quickly and realized that they were right. She didn't have issues, but both of her previous boyfriends had cheated on her. Maleah sank into a chair. "Is there something wrong with me?" she asked in a small voice.

Maria and Ananda exchanged glances. "Of course not!"

"Maybe there is if both my boyfriends cheated on me."

"Michaelson never cheated on you," Maria pointed out.

"We weren't dating long enough for him to cheat last time, and we're always together this time," Maleah said. "Maybe, I should just-."

"If you want to go check up on him, I will smack you," Ananda snapped. "Michaelson is not going to hurt you so relax. Stop suffocating him."

"Stop suffocating yourself," Maria agreed.

While Maria and Ananda were trying on robes, Maleah took out her Wiz Phone and sent Michaelson a message: How about we cancel tonite?

Why?

Girl nite 

No Problem

Maleah smiled and put her phone away. "How about girl nite?"

"With Jakey-Poo?" Maria asked.

"Yeah, we'll sneak him in," Maleah said.

"I'm in," Ananda called.

Later that evening, when Maleah entered the common room, she caught sight of James studying in a corner. She rushed upstairs and dropped the new robes she bought on her bed and took the candy she bought earlier down with her.

"Candy?" she offered.

James looked up and glared. "I'm studying."

Maleah felt her confidence waver. "Oh, um, I just thought you'd like to take, like, a study break or something? I got you some Bertie Botts," she lifted the box.

James took the box. "Thanks," he said suspiciously.

"Look, Jamie, we haven't talked since you started school," Maleah started.

"You were too busy shagging Michaelson," James interrupted.

"That is so not true," Maleah protested. "I am not sleeping with him."

"Hmm."

"Anyway, I was just checking up on you."

"Why?"

"Why?" Maleah frowned. "You're my brother. I was terrified my first year here, I just –I thought-."

"You thought wrong," James snapped. "I don't need you to look out for me, I'm fine."

That hurt, Maleah realized. "Oh," she let out a breath. "Sorry. I just-never mind. I get it. I'll see you around then."

She dropped a Chocolate Frog onto James' lap and went back to her room. She took a long hot shower and sat on her bed with a brush in her room. Ananda and Maria walked in a moment later. She held out the brush to Ananda.

Ananda sighed as she took the brush and knelt behind Maleah to brush her wet locks. "What happened?"

"Does your brother hate you?" Maleah asked watery.

Maria took out her stash of chocolate frogs and threw one to Maleah. "Here we go," she muttered.

"My baby brother adores me," Ananda said shooting Maria a dark look because of her comment.

"Then why does mine hate me?"

"Because he's a world class wanker?" Maria offered.

"Yeah," Maleah let out a bitter laugh.

"Don't worry about James. Sirius worships the ground you walk on," Ananda said.

"I suppose so. Where's Jake?" Maleah asked, changing the subject.

"Breaking up with his Hufflepuff girlfriend," Maria said.

"Why?" Maleah gasped.

"He's says that she moves a little too fast for him," Ananda laughed. "He's not ready to take that step yet."

"Are you kidding?" Maleah asked. "What guy-."

"Jake," Ananda and Maria said simultaneously.

"Bloody hell. If only all guys could be like Jake, huh?"

"Preaching to the crowd," Ananda said.

Okay, so...shoter chapter. Excuse: I got no time to have life, so...trust me when I say I have no time to write. Um, I'm trying to update as regularly as possible, but, I'm taking all Honors classes and they tend to give you tons of homework and projects. HOWEVER, I plan to have this story done by December and finish Crying is a Sign of Weakness after that. So, until further notice, Crying is a Sign of Weakness is on hiatus. I will be posting the one chapter I ahve done for it right after I post this one, so...yeah, that's about it.