A/N: Thank you to all who have left a review, I'm glad you seem to be liking how this story is going so far. Not my best work so I apologise but I hope you like this chapter and please keep the reviews coming, it makes me inspired and motivated to get the chapter done quicker :)

On Halloween weekend the usual excited buzz was going around the school as it came to the trip to the village. Lily, who wasn't in particular mood to go, had been dragged down to the entrance hall by Alice. Marlene had told her that although time was a healer, James had liked her for years and if she gave James a chance then she'd forget all about Jeremy's hurt. Lily stated that although she had strong feelings for James, she was unsure if giving him a chance at this particular time was the best thing.

Alice, who had been choosing out clothes for Alice to wear when Marlene left their dormitory, was wearing a suspicious grin on her face by the time they both left the common room. It was as they stood in the queue to sign out, she met James's gaze who was standing by the door with Sirius and Marlene. Alice signed the two of them out before saying her goodbyes and rushing off with Frank Longbottom. Marlene and Sirius smirked at her and hurried off down the path, leaving Lily alone with James. She looked at James suspiciously and he shrugged, telling her that hehad no idea what was going on. The two of them walked down the path slowly, wondering what to say to theother.

"Well can I actually say this is a date?" James asked with a grin.

Lily raised an eyebrow, "Who said this is a date?"

"Considering our friends ditched us and the smirk on Sirius's face, I'd say that they had been planning this."

Lily nodded in agreement as they reached the village. It had only been a few weeks since she found out the truth about Jeremy and she still needed some time to get her head around it all. James had been a great friend, he was always there to distract her from thinking about it and was there for her to talk when she wa nted to. But although her feelings for James were still there and stronger than ever, she still feared about giving her heart to him after what had happened with Jeremy.

They carried on walking through the village as Lily explained to James about her favourite Dickens novel whilst James told her his favourite prank that the marauders had ever pulled. They hadn't realised how far into the village that they had gone into for they had stopped at a fountain that didn't work. As Lily admired the old look to the fountain, James unexpectedly wrapped his arms around her waist, causing Lily to gasp in surprise as her arms went around his neck.

She raised an eyebrow at him, "What are we doing?" Lily whispered.

James took one of her hands and stretched them out before moving his feet to waltz. Lily looked embarassed until James took his head to her ear and softly whispered, "Dance with me."

"There's no music." Lily replied.

James smiled warmly as he led them into a dance, causing Lily to giggle as he spun the two of them around. He placed a tiny kisses on her lips, making her blush the same colour as her hair. The kisses were sweet, nothing like the snogs that they had shared. But the kisses still made her feel just wonderful. There was also the fact that they had never shared this much contact with one another in public before, their kisses had always been secret and with no watchful eyes.

It was as James placed another kiss to her lips when they heard a camera click and a light flash in front of them. Both stopped dancing and moved apart, blinking to recover their eyesight. When Lily saw it was Sirius, Marlene, Remus and Mary who had hyena type grins on their faces, she wasn't amused for them interrupting her moment with James.

"You two are so sweet!" Mary gushed.

Lily blushed a light pink which only made James smile even more, their day together had gone so well up until the point of disturbance. Remus chuckled lightly as James awkwardly ran his hand through his messy black hair.

"Come on, we can bug these two later." said Remus.

The four grinned widely and walked in the direction of The Three Broomsticks, causing Lily and James to look at each other rather awkwardly. After a few minutes of affectionate gazing, James held out his hand to Lily. She smiled and took it, not knowing where they were going to go. Lily felt a little confused, she still felt hurt from what Jeremy had done and yet here she was holding hands with James Potter. She had let James Potter kiss her and dance with her. She didn't want to lead him on, she wasn't sure what she wanted at the moment; romantically speaking.

"Lily?"

She turned to face him as they walked up the high street, not caring who was watching them.

"Yes James?"

"What did you want to talk to me about? You know when you came to me before the match against Ravenclaw?" asked James.

"I'd made a decision." Lily replied.

"About?"

"About you." Lily mumbled.

They found themselves walking back to the castle, both not caring where they were going as long as they got to be together.

"What did you decide?" James asked with a grin, knowing full well what the answer was.

Lily raised an eyebrow, "You know full well seeing as I kissed you in the changing room." she replied.

"And does that still stand?"

They walked into the castle and up the marble staircase to head back to the common room.

"I just need some time." Lily whispered.

James didn't look hurt, he simply nodded his understanding. Of course she needed some time, after everything that had happened with Jeremy he didn't blame her for wanting time.

"I understand, but was this our first date?" asked James, hopeful that the answer would be yes.

Lily smiled.

"I'd call it our first unofficial date so maybe if you ask me out on an official date, I might say yes." she teased.

They walked in silence before James pushed her gently behind a suit of armour. Lily giggled as she felt him wrap his arms around her waist once more, it had become the most natural thing in the world to him.

"James-

"Sssh Lily, let me enjoy this." he whispered.

"You're terrible." Lily stated, amusingly.

"I'll tell you what's terrible, I want another feel of those stocking that you wear." he flirted in a seductive whisper.

Lily flushed scarlet as she remembered their last snogging session. It had been the most heated out of all of their time alone together, she couldn't deny that she'd like more.

"You make me feel so alive." he confessed, running a hand through her soft red hair.

"James, I-

He smiled and moved away a little but his hands were still placed on her waist, not wanting to lose the close contact that they were sharing. This is what confused her the most in this situation, she needed time to get her head around what Jeremy had done but she couldn't be without James and the way he made her feel.

"I'm sorry Lily, it's just that when I'm around you I just want to hold you or kiss you. I want you in every possible way."

Lily returned his smile as her greens eyes gazed into deep pools of hazel, knowing that just by looking into his eyes that he was speaking the truth. She had slowly begun to realise that James wasn't just after one thing all those times he bugged her about going on a date with him since he first started asking her. She didn't know how but just by gazing into his eyes told her that he was capable of showing a passion for her as well as genuine concern for her wellbeing and happiness. She could see that he wanted to be the only person she could run to and confide in as well as being the person who made her laugh and feel breathless when things got a bit heated between them. She had never experienced that with Jeremy.

When she had been with Jeremy he had tried to press her further by having the chat with her, and when she said that she wasn't ready to pursue that part of the relationship, Jeremy had smiled and nodded and told her that he understood. She know knew that this wasn't the case given that Jeremy had cheated on her with Georgia, but in truth she had never really been interested in the sexual part of the relationship with Jeremy. All she knew now was that she had strong feelings for James and he was the only one who could make her want more than kissing. What James didn't know was that he made her feel alive as well, he could make her forget who she was just by standing an inch away from her. She could see how he felt in his eyes, and she could only hope that he could see her feelings when he looked at her.

They heard footsteps and the two of them pulled apart before carrying on towards the common room, both walking in silence. Before either of them said the password the minute they got to the Fat Lady's portrait, Lily turned to James.

"What is it you want from me?" Lily questioned.

"I want to be with you Lily." James answered.

"You want a relationship?"

James nodded, "There's only one girl for me Lily Evans, and that's you. I've always wanted you to be my girlfriend and I'm willing to take this as slowly as you like if you want the same. I'm a patient person so I'll wait another year if you want me to, my feelings for you won't fade because I've never been so sure about anything in my entire life."

Lily sighed happily as she made a decision which she hoped that she wouldn't regret. She couldn't let Jeremy's betrayal affect her for the rest of her life, she had to take risks when it came to new relationships and trusting people with her heart. She knew that taking that risk with James Potter would probably earn her with people warning her about being careful but she didn't care right this second. Her feelings for James were stronger than ever and as her heart beat faster in her chest, she felt quite certain in her decision. . She flung her arms around his neck and placed her lips to his, kissing him slowly. James ran a hand through her hair as his other held her by her waist. When they pulled apart, James looked like a kid on Christmas day who had gotten everything he wanted.

"This has to go slow, I'm scared to death but I can't let what Jeremy did affect me forever." Lily whispered.

James nodded, "It can go as slow or as fast as you want. We don't even have to label it if you don't want to."

"James, just do one thing for me?"

"Anything."

"Don't hurt me, don't betray me like Jeremy did."

"I promise, I've waited so long for you. I'll do anything I can to make you happy and not mess this up."

Lily smiled, "I'm sure there are things we'll both do to mess this up but as long as we're honest with each other, then we'll be alright."

"I'm glad you're taking a chance on me Evans."

"I know I said that I needed some time but I've kept you waiting long enough and I think Marlene might be right, Jeremy's in the past now. By moving forward with you it wll help me move on from the hurt he's caused and focus on being happy with you."

James kissed her cheek and gave the password to a very annoyed looking Fat Lady. The two entered the common room and sat in front of the fire, with James wrapping an arm around her as she snuggled into him.

"This isn't so bad is it?" James asked, sighing contentedly.

Lily looked up at him, "This is better than I could have ever imagined."