"Lily!"
James runs over to the red haired girl who is slumped against the wall in the corridor, her body heaving with silent sobs.
James kneels beside her and she doesn't lift her forehead from where it rests on her knees. She just shakes her head dismally.
"Leave me alone," she says. "You're the last person I want to see right now."
James is hurt, but he doesn't show it. He expects this when he talks to her. She still doesn't like him, after all.
"What's wrong?" he asks, reaching a hand towards the alabaster, freckle-spattered skin on her forearm. He stops centimeters away though, longing to touch her, but unsure of her reaction.
"Nothing that has anything to do with you!" she snaps suddenly, lifting her head and glaring at him through eyes stained with tears.
James flinches at her sudden anger. She notices and sighs, leaning her head back against the wall. "My boyfriend; you probably don't know him, he's in Hufflepuff; was snogging some other girl! I went looking for him and they were going at it in an empty classroom. I ran before he saw me, but…" she trails off, closing her eyes.
"His name is Connor, isn't it?" James asks.
"How did you know?"
James dismisses the question with a wave of his hand. "I'll beat him up for you," he offers.
Lily shakes her head. "No, don't."
James shrugs. "Just offering." He sits back against the wall beside her. In the ensuing silence, he thinks about how she now feels the same way he's been feeling for months. He's had to watch Connor and her flirt, hold hands, snog; and every time he'd seen such a thing, he'd broken a little more inside.
Lily looks over at him, frowning at his pained expression. "Are you alright?"
He quickly rearranges his features from a frown to a smile, but Lily can tell that it's forced.
"Yeah, I'm fine. Just thinking."
Lily studies him for a moment, then, tentatively, she leans her head on his shoulder. He has a sort of magnetic pull that she is unable to resist. He smells like grass and summer rain.
James' eyes widen in surprise, and then a genuine smile replaces the fake one. Slowly he reaches a hand over and begins to stroke her hair. She doesn't pull away.
She is noticing that there is a side to him that no one ever really sees. He's the Quidditch star, the Marauder, one of the most sought after boys in Hogwarts. But she is finding this side to him that is gentle and careful and she wonders why she had never let him touch her before. She closes her eyes. The repetitive stroking motion is lulling her and calming her tears. Something about James Potter makes her feel like she'll never have a need to cry again.
And, suddenly, James' hand is on her chin, tilting her head towards him. The look in his eyes makes her catch her breath.
He touches his lips gently to hers, kissing her so softly she isn't really sure if their lips are touching or not. However, all too quickly for her liking, he pulls away, waiting for a reaction. And she does what he least expects.
She smiles and her eyes are sparkling. "Thank you, James." It's the first time she hasn't called him by his last name.
She gets to her feet and looks down at him, her expression soft. "Thank you," she says again before turning around and walking off down the corridor.
James stares after her, puzzled by her reaction. He had thought that she would have slapped him, or something, but this…
She had let him touch her, kiss her, a fantasy he had been entertaining for six years, and that was more beautiful than he had ever imagined. Sure, that wasn't all he wanted, and the next day she would probably hate him again, but for ten minutes, he had been in heaven.
I can be you hero baby
I can kiss away the pain
I will stand by you forever
You can take my breath away
Song: Hero by Enrique Iglesias. Love. Review. Let me know :)