Chapter Fifteen

For a month, Lauren had managed to avoid Marcus Flint. During meal times, she never looked in the direction of the Slytherin table and kept herself surrounded by Gryffindors when going around Hogwarts. Still, everyday she thought a little about him, but quickly had to stop herself from thinking about him every time. Sebastian had requested more dates many times since their first visit to Hogwarts, and sometimes Lauren agreed to go, but most of the time used her schoolwork as an excuse to turn him down.

It was a hot summer's day and Lauren was sitting on the stands watching the Quidditch players from Sytherin and Gryffindor soaring through the sky. So far, Slytherin had managed to throw three quaffles into the goal hoops earning them forty-five points. Lauren could see the Gryffindor seeker, Harry Potter squinting his eyes in search for the golden snitch. Suddenly Katie Bell had scored another goal and the Gryffindor students roared in excitement. Lauren had never been interested in Quidditch and seemed to be the only one in the crowd not paying attention. She looked up to see Marcus Flint, screaming orders to his team. He was concentrating extremely hard and from watching him, Lauren could admit that he had skill. She saw his girlfriend, Heather from far away sitting on a bench, looking at her reflection in a small pocket mirror. Lauren didn't want to admit it, but she was gorgeous.

Suddenly everyone jumped up in the Gryffindor stands and cheered. "Harry Potter has once again captured the golden snitch!" Lee Jordan, the school's sports commentator exclaimed. Lauren had missed it, but didn't care. She looked up to see Marcus' face, filled with misery…and she felt bad for him. But why? Why did she care? Then it hit her…she was in love…with Marcus Flint.

After the game when the crowds cleared, Lauren was left, sitting on the stands. She refused Sebastian's proposal that they head off to Hogsmeade again, opting to sit alone…she needed to think about things…to clear her mind. She saw the Slytherin players on the field below. Marcus appeared to be scolding his teammates, shaking his head and clenching his fists. They then walked off the field while he remained sitting on a bench on the side of a field. It began to drizzle and Lauren got up and walked down to the field. He looked up when he heard her coming. "I…was just leaving", she said.

"Where's your ass of a boyfriend?" Marcus asked, obviously still upset about the game.

"Where's your cheap little number?" Lauren replied angrily.

"Why are you so pissed off?!"

"You started it!" Lauren replied.

"I'm angry!"

"It's just a game!"

"Not just at that, Lauren!"

Lauren's heart skipped a beat. For a whole month she thought that Marcus had finally gotten over her. Was it possible he still hadn't? "You're dating another girl! You got over me pretty easily!"

"What was I supposed to do?! You were pretty goddamn clear about how you felt!"

"Why her, Marcus?" Lauren asked, looking as if she was about to cry.

Marcus looked at Lauren uneasily, "Why does it matter?" he asked.

"It doesn't!" she screamed.

"Well, why him?" he challenged.

Heavy raindrops began to fall from the sky.

"I…"

"Lauren, you've told me so many times…this isn't going to work out…look, I want you to be happy…that's what you want, and that's how it's going to be", Marcus said calmly. He began to walk away.

"Marcus!" she called out. The rain was pouring now.

He turned around and sighed, walking up to Lauren, "I'm not going to play this stupid game anymore, Lauren! The more we don't see each other, the better! Every time I see you with him…it kills me! I suffer everyday thinking about you…knowing that the one girl who might actually be the one is the one girl I can't get!"

And then suddenly, she did something unexpected. Lauren pulled Marcus towards her and kissed him, wrapping her arms around his neck. He put his arms around her and didn't let go. Finally they broke apart to breathe. He looked down at her in silence, still holding her gently and stroked her hair. "Is this what you really want?" he asked, regretting what he had said in case she had decided to take back what she had just done.

"I tried to fight against what I felt…but I can't" she said, "…I just don't know if we can do this".

Marcus looked up at the sky and sighed, "We could keep it a secret…"