There were three things on Enzo's mind for the first few weeks of school.
The first was, of course, Quidditch. Quidditch had always been on his mind and would probably stay there until he died. His mind was constantly thinking of strategies, ways he could be better, things he could do to further the team. If he wasn't thinking about Quidditch, he was playing it or planning his next training camp or sleeping (where he just dreamt about playing Quidditch). Most of Enzo's breaks from school consisted of going somewhere abroad to intensely practise Quidditch and most of his time at school was spent reaping the rewards of his hard work. It was safe to say that until very recently, Quidditch was Enzo's entire life.
The second thing on Enzo's mind was a new but welcome addition. Aria. Enzo had always thought about her but it wasn't until recently that he actually felt close to her. Being abroad for most of his breaks coupled with Aria staying at Beauxbatons whenever she could didn't exactly make them the closest of siblings. He would do anything for her but he'd always assumed she didn't exactly care to be bothered by her clingy older brother. But now that he saw her every day, he knew that was far from the truth. Enzo got to see her smile as he joined her for meals or listened to her talk about her classes or just teased her like an older brother was supposed to. Perhaps he was always just busy and Aria was just shy. No matter what, his heart had never been happier than when he had his baby sister with him.
The third thing on his mind was also new and very confusing. Cassiopeia Crane. Enzo wasn't used to having a girl take up so much of his brain power. Honestly, it was exhausting but he wouldn't trade it for the world. Sitting next to her in charms and smelling her sunshine and fresh flowers scent or seeing her smile reflected in the daylight was bloody incredible. He loved it when she looked at him with those pretty brown eyes. It made him feel like maybe he wasn't a clueless idiot—like if he could make her that happy, then maybe he wasn't useless.
His eyes sought her in every hallway, his lips aching to kiss her, his heart begging him to be near her. Enzo wasn't used to thinking about anything but Quidditch and all of a sudden, he couldn't stop thinking about the two women who were very quickly becoming more important than the sport he'd focused his entire life on. He had no idea how to react to it. All he knew was that he was either with Aria or searching for Cass, as if his heart knew that he needed to be around one of them to survive.
Now, Enzo was on his way to see both. Well, he was really just looking for Aria so he could convince her to go to his first match as captain but he couldn't help but wander through the hallways, hoping he could get a glimpse of the pretty girl with the golden curls.
Maybe it was a bit creepy of him but Enzo knew three spots he was likely to find Cass (beyond her classes or the Great Hall, of course). There was the corridor outside the Hufflepuff dormitories, the one near the kitchens. Then there was the courtyard, which is where she almost always was on a sunny day. And then there was the balcony at the farthest edge of the castle, the one that overlooked the Black Lake. It was there that Enzo "happened" to see her walking back as if she'd spent the morning in the sun looking out across the water. He couldn't help but smile when he saw her. She was like pure sunshine.
"Hey! Cass!" he said brightly.
She turned to look at him with surprise but gently smiled back. She was wearing the yellow sweater that drove him wild, the one with the little daises embroidered on it. Cass began to fiddle with the sleeves and Enzo wondered for a moment if he made her as nervous as she made him. It was then that he saw she was carrying a small purse. Enzo immediately offered to carry it, which Cass accepted with a somewhat confused but pleased look. "Oh, hey Enzo."
"Umm... how have you been?" he asked because his brain went blank whenever he saw her.
"I've been good." Merlin, she's so beautiful. I didn't even know people could be this pretty and I've met all of Maman's damn veela friends. He just wanted to feel her curls in his hand and wrap his arm around her tiny waist and feel all over her curves—
Cass coughed under her breath. "So... did you need something or were you just very curious about how I've been?"
Her voice was light and her eyes nonjudgmental but Enzo still cursed himself for being so awkward. He was always so confident but Cass brought out this fumbling side of him that he wasn't used to having. His cheeks burned with a blush that was unfamiliar. "Sorry... erm... yeah, I was just wondering if you were going to the match today."
"The match?" Confusion marred those brown eyes that looked like honey.
"Slytherin versus Hufflepuff." Enzo might have been bothered that Cass didn't care about Quidditch but if anything, it made her seem more adorable. Bloody hell, he was down bad. "I'm captain of the team this year. And it's your house we're playing."
"Oh, um, I dunno. I guess I haven't thought about watching Quidditch since Andie..."
Cass trailed off and Enzo felt like such an asshole for not thinking about how hard it might be for Cass to go to matches since she lost her sister. "Fuck. I didn't even think about that. I'm so sorry. I'm really such an ass, I—"
"Would you like me to come?" Cass asked, completely catching him off guard with the way she looked at him. He wanted her to look at him like that forever.
The warm feeling appeared again on his cheeks; Enzo knew that the damn blush was back. "Erm, what?"
Cass's eyes widened. "Sorry! I must have read too much into what you were asking. I just thought that—"
"No!" Merlin, we're so awkward, Enzo thought with a chuckle because, in his mind, she was bloody adorable. Him? He felt like a baby bird trying to fly, looking like the ugliest little thing in the sky. "You weren't reading too much at all," Enzo breathed. "I... it's just... I mean..."
"I'd love to come watch you," Cass said sweetly as she played with the sleeves of her sweater.
"Really? That'd be amazing." He ran a nervous finger through his hair at least a few times.
She smiled before looking down at her outfit with a frown. "Yeah. I better change before the match, though."
"What? Why?"
Cass gestured to the daisy-filled top. "I mean, it's yellow, and I just thought that if I were coming to watch you, I should probably not wear the other team's colors."
"I love the sweater—" he started to say before he realized how ridiculous he sounded. Enzo cringed while Cass gave him a soft smile. Deep breath, Berkshire, he told himself. She's just a girl. A wonderful, lovely girl but still just a girl. No need to lose your head yet. It felt like lies but Enzo just hoped that he could try to be normal around her, even for five minutes. "I just mean that you can wear whatever you want. I won't be hurt if you want to support the Puffs but if you want to wear Slytherin gear, I'm happy to lend you some of my stuff."
Please say yes. Please say— "Sure! I'm not sure how good I'll look in green but I'd be happy to wear it anyway."
"You'll look beautiful," he whispered. Cass tilted her head and Enzo had the feeling that she hadn't heard him. Thank Merlin. Get a hold of yourself. "I'll bring you something after breakfast if that works?"
"Sure!"
Enzo looked at her. She was so bloody pretty. And a terrifying but wonderful thought entered his mind as he looked at the way the sweater fell off her shoulders and the smile danced at the edge of her eyes. You can do it. Just ask. He took another deep breath before rubbing the back of his neck and saying, "Do you want to do something tonight after the match?"
Cass's eyes widened even more. "Like what?"
Shit. He didn't think he'd get this far. "Whatever you want. We can just hang out. Just be casual." Yeah, like the way your heart is thudding is "casual", a snarky voice in his head said. "No pressure though and I totally get if you're busy or if you don't want to. There'd be no hard feelings, I—"
"Enz," Cass said softly, placing her arm on him again and moving closer. He could see all of the freckles that dotted her nose. Enzo wondered if he could kiss them if he just leaned in. Cass smiled. "Sounds like fun. We can talk about it after the game and maybe plan something for after dinner?"
Enzo resisted the opportunity to correct her on Quidditch—it was a match, not a game—but to be honest, he was just so damn happy that she agreed that he'd ignored even her little blunder. "Yeah. Yeah, that'd be great."
He blinked and just like that, Enzo realized he was standing in the Great Hall. Had they been walking this entire time? He was so focused on Cass that he'd hardly noticed. "Blimey," he said, looking over at the Slytherin table where Aria and Astoria sat together, giving him curious gazes. "There's my sister. I've gotta run and talk to her but I'll find you in a bit, okay?"
"Okay." She nodded and went to turn away but Enzo's voice stopped her before she got far.
"And Cass?"
"Yeah, Enz?"
"I'm really happy you're coming." Cass smiled and Enzo could feel his face widen to match. He just couldn't help it. The idea that this girl was coming to the game to watch him play, repping his team while she did it, and then spending the evening with him was just more than he could handle. He was practically skipping as he walked up to the Slytherin table and sat next to Aria.
It took some convincing but he finally convinced his baby sister to go. Hell, he even convinced Theo. Enzo still wasn't sure how that happened; Theo hated Quidditch but he'd readily agreed to go, even going as far as saying he'd keep an eye on Aria. It almost felt too good to be true.
"Theo, you keep an eye on Aria," Enzo said. "Don't let her leave your sight. You know these things can get crazy."
Theo grinned. "Oh, I wouldn't dare. I'll be all over her. Promise."
Wow. He's a really good friend, Enzo thought. "Then it's settled," he said with a wide smile and a clap of his hands, grateful that all the people he cared about would be there to support him. The sight of Cass walking in the Great Hall distracted him once again. She was walking with that Margot friend of hers over to the Hufflepuff table. Shit, he realized. I've gotta grab her something to wear. "I've gotta run. I'll look for you after the game!"
He kissed Aria's cheek and nodded at Theo before darting out of the Great Hall and up to his dormitories. He ran to his room and grabbed one of his spare jerseys before going back to the dining hall and walking over to the Hufflepuff table.
Dozens of eyes watched as he—the somewhat legendary Lorenzo Berkshire—strode confidently up to a pair of girls sitting at the Hufflepuff table. Enzo could hear them whisper about him—most of them hoping that he would be bringing them his jersey—but he ignored them all in favor of the blonde who sat with her back to him.
The brunette with a blunt bob stared at him oddly as he walked up next to their table. "Hey!" he said chipperly.
Cass turned and smiled warmly at him. "You're back so soon."
"I owe you a jersey." He held out his in response and Cass admired it for a split second before shrugging off her sweater. She almost gave him a heart attack doing it, even though she wore a white camisole underneath. The sight of her bare shoulders was almost too much for him to handle. Enzo pictured himself cupping them before running his lips all over the exposed skin. But just as soon as they were there, they were gone. Enzo snapped his mouth shut to avoid drooling over the sight of the girl he was quickly becoming enamored with wearing his jersey.
"Thanks! This is really comfy."
"You can keep it," he said softly. "It looks really good on you."
The Margot girl looked like she was about to burst but Cass just seemed oblivious. She rubbed her hands along the seams before smiling. "Maybe I will. Only if you win, though. Can't be seen wearing a losing jersey," she teased.
"Oh, we'll win. I can promise you that."
"I'll be counting on it. I'll see you there."
Enzo smiled. "See you, Cass."
He walked away, leaving the most beautiful girl in Hogwarts with his jersey and a friend who looked like she was about to have an aneurysm. Enzo couldn't help but whistle as he made his way down to the Quidditch pitch. This was about to be a bloody good day. He could feel it.
And the Enzo fic is BACK baby! Man, I feel like I'm on a roll here! Three chapters (the Mattheo fic is finished for those who haven't seen it) in one day. Wow!
I hope you love their relationship as much as I do because I think they're freaking adorable. And it only gets better from here.
