CHAPTER: My Good Opinion Once Ruined...

"Excuse me miss but I think you made a mistake." He took his eyes of the dessert and looked up at the person who had served him. "Merlin's Beard!!"

There with an almost smiling face, was Lily Evans.

Of all the bloody shops he could have stepped into, he had to go in the one shop with Lily Evans. "What are you doing here?"

She scoffed. "I work here. What are you doing in this obviously muggle establishment. This must be blasphemy.

"I'll have you know," he started picking up his desert fork. "That I have just now acquired employment to assist me in my comprehension of the least desirable inhabitants of this fine country."

Lily mumbled what he said to herself, as if trying to understand it. "So you got a job, working for a muggle."

"Not quite the same but in essence yes, I got a job."

She rolled her eyes. "Whatever." She took out a note pad and took a pencil from behind her ear. "Can I get you anything else, ice-cappuccino maybe?

He nodded. "Yes I think I will try a cup." He waited until Lily was out of sight to hold his head in horror. Him eating ice-cream and cake...it did nothing for his image. She must have thought that he was some sort of a nancy boy. But he couldn't act embarrassed, that would only make it worse. He had to do this with dignity.

Lily returned from beyond the counter with a cup of foamy cappuccino, with whip cream and shavings of chocolate on top. She placed it next to his plate but she didn't leave, she took a seat opposite him. He looked at her with raised eyebrows.

"I'm on my break..." she said seeing his face.

She took out of a small brown bag with a sandwich wrapped in wax paper. She took a small bite of the sandwich and frowned. "Oh my god, what is that." She said looking down at it.

He took a small piece of cake. "It appears to be corned beef."

"Yes, I can see that. It's just that it taste horrible. I think my sister is trying to poison me."

"You have a sister?" She nodded. "Is she not a witch?"

She nodded and reached over the table and took up a spare fork on the table. "Do you mind?" she asked gesturing to the cake, and before he had a chance to answer she dug her fork in it. He looked at her in shock; he did not recall telling her that she could eat his cake. But all the same... there was something about the site... him and Lily Evans sharing a dessert... Anyone who walked in might think they were a couple... and this alone was enough for him not to protest. So he let her eat off his plate.

"So where do you work?" she asked casually.

"A book shop, it's a few stores up."

"Whiteman's?"

He nodded.

She had now moved on from the cake to the ice- cream that was melting. "I know him, he wanted me to come and work for him. I turned him down. I think he's a bit of an old pervert."

He smiled at this because there was some truth to it. His boss was a bit of a pervert, he seemed to always give personal attention to the youngest girls to walk in the store and he would order a bunch or gentlemen's magazines that would never make the shelves. Severus was certain he kept them all for himself.

When Lily was just about finished eating half of his cake and ice-cream she stood up and looked at the time. "I have to get back to work." She got up quickly and took her place behind the counter.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Severus spent his entire lunch hour in the shop, every now and again taking a glance at Lily. She looked as beautiful as ever. Even though she was wearing pink serving uniform and her hair was tied in a bun under a hair net and a hat.

It wasn't like he didn't notice it before now. He always knew that Lily Evans was the most beautiful girl in school. She wasn't the prettiest, no, that was Narcissa but Lily was the most beautiful. She had this soft hearted goodness that always made you feel privileged to be in her presence. She would sometimes wave at him in the halls and his heart would do cartwheels. He never connected that feeling with him actually fancying her. He had only noticed it just now. When she left the table and she left her fork on the napkin, he actually switched it with his own. It was the closest to kissing Lily Evans he would ever come. He knew it was a pathetic thing to do, but he allowed himself a moment of disgrace. It wasn't like she was going to offer her actual lips to him, not after he called her a mud blood. Her opinion of him was ruined forever.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Severus had never eaten so much cake in his life. It was the only excuse he had for showing up every lunch time in the shop where she worked. It had become a bit of a ritual. He would come and order some ridiculously large order and she would come and sit with him and they would share it. She must have thought that he loved sweets but really they were making him sick. But it was a small sacrifice to pay because sooner than later the benefits were met. She invited him to go shopping with her after work. He protested a little so he wouldn't seem too desperate. Then he agreed to it.

They spent a great part of the day walking through stores and looking at clothes. Every now and then Lily would have a fit over some blouse or skirt and he would have to remind her that she had a budget. Time literally flew.

When they stepped outside the sky had gone completely dark. " Oh No!" he shouted.

"What is it?" she asked.

He looked at the watch on his hands. "I've missed the train. It left an hour ago."

She actually at this point put a reassuring hand on his shoulder. He could have died. "You'll catch the next one," she said.

"That was the last one out of Liverpool to London."

"You live in London?"

"No but the only fire place I know with a floo network is in London."

She shook her head. "Oh I'm so sorry I kept you."

He shook his head. "It doesn't matter. I'll figure something out."

She looked as if she was trying to come up with a solution. "I know, why don't you come to my house for the night?"

He wanted to burst out in a dance but he controlled himself. "Are you sure, wouldn't your parents mind."

"No, they'll be okay with it. My sister might have a problem but...whatever. It's my fault you missed the train." He nodded. Of course by this point he had already come up with various solutions to the problem. He could have easily take the Knightbus but he neglected to tell her this. He was not about to pass up an opportunity to spend the night with Lily.