THE Party

Chapter 7: Confessions and Conclusions

I just owled Alice's red bikini top to her. We finished cleaning the yard a few minutes ago and we sent all the girls back to their houses.

"Iced Tea?"

"Err, yes please, Mr. Evans." James wipes a bead of sweat from his forehead. I stop myself from protesting in case my father decides to poison it.

"Would you like one too, Lilian, or d'you prefer to share one with him." He jerks his chin in James's direction. I grit my teeth.

"Oh, yes please. Don't even bother with an extra straw."

"Coodies, gross." James mutters quietly under his breath. I smirk. Apparently dad doesn't find it as funny.

"Did you say something, Jameson?"

James drops both hands his hands to his sides. "Mum! Look at what you've started! First Lily, now this? I am flabbergasted! Outraged! I cannot even believe that you made my life joke!"

Mrs. Potter smiles at her son. "Did I ever tell you that you are the biggest drama queen I have ever met?"

Several seconds of silence separate these statements.

"Drama QUEEN?" He asks desperately. "My life is lying joke! How could you do this to me mum? I can't even show my face anymore. I'm moving to Canada and living under somebody's stairs!" His voice rises in hysteria and cracks at the end. I burst out laughing and find the urge to duplicate his distress.

"Well that explains a lot!"

Mrs. Potter looks at me. "And what exactly is that supposed to mean?"

"You don't even want to know Mrs. Potter." I snicker.

"Paddy, you know I'm among the male species, you know that. Right?" He sobs onto a blatant looking Sirius's shoulder.

"Well, that's a mental image I really didn't need." He crinkles his forehead.

"And what exactly is that supposed to mean?" Remus worriedly inquires. Sirius just turns to look at him.

"Whatever you think it means, Short Straw."

Remus looks helplessly at me. I shrug.

"Sooooo…" He starts awkwardly. He lets out a short laugh. "Ha."

"Yep." I grimace.

"Howdynoyernahpruhant?" He says loudly. I blink.

"Cheese?" I guess.

"James?" he sighs in exasperation. James looks up from Sirius's shoulder and stares at his friend for a couple seconds.

"Well… We don't, I guess we just play it by ear." He shrugs. Sirius looks at his two best friends with complete joy.

"So I am godfather?"

"What on earth are you talking about?" I almost yell at them.

They mumble incoherently.

Mrs. Potter gently pats my shoulder. "Remus asked how you knew you weren't pregnant, sweetie."

The woman's kind gesture awakens an uncomfortable anxious feeling throughout my gut as the full blow of our situation hits me. What if I am pregnant? I would actually be supporting a little child. I'm not even done school and my father would obviously set the kid up for adoption or something. My kid. He couldn't do that. I would have to quit school to raise a child all on my own. That wouldn't be fair for a helpless little baby. Subconsciously, I feel my hand rest on my stomach.

Mrs. Potter brushes my hair over my shoulder.

"Don't worry, Lily. James has done this to plenty of girls and even while intoxicated, he always manages protection. If you want, we could go to St. Mungo's to be sure."

Her statement does absolutely nothing to help me. In fact it makes me feel worse. I'm just one of those girls on that night. I always knew that James Potter only liked me because I showed no interest in him. I can't believe that I completely dropped my dignity in one night. He will just go about acting like nothing ever happened and go off to another girl at another party while letting me slip away from his thoughts. I knew he was like that. I've known it for a while. I still fell for it. I was drunk out of my mind, but those feelings must have been there somewhere.

That's why there are tears in my eyes. I blink them away to smile at the woman in front of me. I mutter something about going to the bathroom and run up to my room, not able to shake the feeling of self-hatred and abandonment.

As soon as the door closes, I drop to my knees. I don't cry, but my breathing quickens and I shut my eyes. I can't believe that I let James Potter get to me. Not just last night but when I was sober. Today, all it took was for him to look at me differently. That really says a lot. Someone could just walk up to me, smile and say something to make me laugh and I would be in love with them. Stupid. I hate James Potter. I hate myself for being pathetic and weak. I'm not mature enough to be a mother. I can't raise a child on my own.

I take a deep shuttering breath to try and calm myself as I shakily get to my feet. I sit on my bed and put my face in my hands, allowing a few tears to escape.

"Lily?" A tentative voice calls from the door. I bet you can guess who it is. I rapidly wipe the wetness from my cheeks and turn around to face him.

"Potter" I sneer. "There's this thing called knocking, you know."

He looks at me. "Oh, so it's Potter again then, huh?"

"There a problem?" I bite the inside of my cheek to bring out more anger. I hate sadness and crying. It does absolutely nothing for your gain.

"Well, apparently yes, there is a problem. Feel like sharing?" He raises his eyebrows.

No, I don't feel like sharing my problems to you, you thick headed arrogant, self-centered git. "Ugh! You're pissing me off! Why are you here?!"

"How am I pissing you off, Lily?" He says evenly.

I glare at him. "You just are. You are an arrogant toe rag. You never think of anyone but yourself. You don't take anything seriously and I hate you." I almost scream in frustration. James clenches his jaw.

"You can't tell me I don't think of anyone but myself, I don't recall you taking the heat for your party, at least I actually stayed to help you clean your mess-"

"It's not like you had that much of a choice considering we had to owl your mother." I spit back at him, clenching my fists.

"I have my apperation license!" He exclaims.

I cross my arms to fight back the urge to punch him. "You still have always and will always be an arrogant self-centered prick. I don't know what girls see in you. Never will you change and for all I care, you can grow old shagging a different girl every night and walking away, leaving them heart broken and abandoned!"

He processes this with an unreadable expression on his face and doesn't say anything for an eternity.

"What?!" I yell as my patience evaporates. "You know what? I don't even care. Was there a reason you barged into my sleeping quarters unattended?"

James looks up at me displaying a perfect poker face. "I came up here to ask if you were okay. I did not wish to upset you in any way, shape, or form. Obviously you have some kind of problem right now and if it's about what happened last night, then you already know that I am truly sorry. It hasn't really been a joy ride for me either. At least my mother likes you." His face slips into a cool mask that is foreign to his features. I grit my teeth but none the less, my anger boils over and, having no patience, it comes out.

"James, that's not the point! I might have to drop school in order to care for this child!" I gesture to my midsection incredulously. "This probably doesn't even faze you since you do it all the time and fail to see it as anything but a joke so just- just get out of my life!" And much to my dismay, a tear escapes down my cheek. Next thing I know, I am in his arms, crying into chest.

"Shh… Lils don't worry. You don't need to cry, it'll all be okay." He murmurs into my hair.

"How can you say it'll all be ok-kay when I'm going to have to quit school and get a job- I can't get a job without an education! I guess I could… shovel hippogriff shit and sell it on the streets in Knockturn Alley… Or I could-" I cut off hysterically

"Lily, you're talking nonsense. You don't actually believe that I would abandon you, do you?" I can hear the smile in his voice.

"Huh? B-but you're mum s-said th-" He puts his hand on my mouth.

"Say no more. My mother under estimates me. I haven't ever err… not used protection. I have done a few one night stands… but I promise, the witches involved knew perfectly well that it wouldn't last." He pushes me back to look in my face. "Lily, if you were to be baring a child, it would be half my responsibility and I would not let you go through that alone." He wipes my cheek with his thumb and adds a small grin. "We're in this together right? Partners?" I give him a small smile at the corny statement.

"Right." I pause for a moment. "Would you really drop school for me?" I ask sweetly. James looks at me as if I had grown another head.

"Course not, you kidding? It's for the baby!" He grins. "If there is one."

"If there is one." I repeat.

"Is there an echo in here or something?"

"Echo?" I ask. He laughs, I do too. He tilts his head.

"What?"

"You have a beautiful smile." He says it so simply that it throws me off guard.

"Huh?" I say unattractively.

"And your eyes light up with it. It makes everything else smile with you."

"Err… Thanks." I smile. "Did I ever tell you that you still have that dimple on your left cheek?" I do something I thought suiting for this particular moment. I stood on my tip-toes and kissed his cheek. The one on his face, don't worry.

The smile fades quickly from his face. A sparkle comes into his eye. "That's it?" He turns his head the other way. I grin and lean in to peck the other side when he snaps his face to the side. My side in particular. The next thing I know, James is kissing me. It's gentle and sweet. I can't help but smile into his lips and kiss him back.

I feel like I'm floating, like there are butterflies fluttering in my body. I'm sure that if you looked at us, you couldn't tell whose hands were whose but I don't care, I could do this forever. After a few seconds, or… hours, maybe even weeks, a voice penetrates the silence, causing me to jump away from James.

"Coodies, gross! Merlin, no one wants to see that. Get a room!"

"Shut up, Moony! Can't you see they're busy? And they do have a room, you're just in it."

"What is it with you guys and coodies?" I sigh longingly and look at Sirius and Remus who are standing at the door.

"Coodies give one diseases." Remus informs me.

"I don't even know what to say to that. You're supposed to be the one with all the intellect." Sirius clears his throat. "I mean…err brain cells, the smart one. Ha ha. Y'know."

I look at him. "That's the biggest word I have ever heard you use."

"Lily, can I have more diseases?" James slurs looking some-what dazed.

"Oh, great Godric! Give it a rest, please, my eye is starting to shrivel!" Remus exclaims, clapping his hand over his face.

"That's supposed plural." Sirius points out.

"Ope, no. No, no. These two spit swapping children cost me my other whence we walked in."

I look at the black haired boy in front of me. He lifts an eyebrow. "Then maybe you should leave."

Sirius sniffles. "Prongsie, you make me so proud."

"EWW! What in the ruddy hell is that?!" Remus points mortified under my bed. Sirius crouches down to pick it up. James makes a noise about to protest as his best friend sniffs the… it.

"Looks like a deformed balloon." He stretches it and lifts it to his mouth. In a split second, James bounds over and snatches the other end, attempting to pull it from his best friend's grasp.

"Ahch! NO. Padfoot, release! Let go! Bad boy, c'mon… Release!" He flicks Sirius's nose and he lets go making James stumble back.

"Why? I found it." Sirius whines.

"Actually" Remus cuts in. "I do believe that it was I who did the finding. You just did the retrieving, like a dog."

James sighs. "You always were terrible at puns. Anyway" He shakes his head. "This, my friends, is a… The protection. There is no baby!"

I can't help smiling at him and sighing in relief.

"What?" Sirius says looking heartbroken "You mean I'm n-not the godfather?" His eyes flash mischievously as he looks at James. "You can fix that, right?"

I walk up to him, smile warmly and give him the hardest backhand he has yet to receive.

And that, ladies and gentlemen, is how I started to date James Potter.