Cassiopeia Crane. Cass. Cassie. Cassia. Sunshine. Princess. Enzo was currently thinking about all of the wonderful names to describe the curly-haired girl sitting across the Great Hall. Enzo would have been with her but she'd promised Margot that she'd help the girl with her History of Magic homework and though it had only been a couple weeks since Enzo kissed Cass under the cherry tree, he'd already learned not to fuck with Margot Moore. Especially if it meant getting between Margot Moore and Ernie Macmillian. Considering that this homework was getting promptly done so Margot could hang out with Ernie again, Enzo didn't want to take his chances. If he interrupted and delayed them, the Hufflepuff girl might bite his head off.
"Why's he got that dumbass smile on his face?"
Cass must have felt Enzo's eyes on her face because soon, she was looking up and meeting his gaze with a soft smile that drove his heart crazy. The sun decided to pick that moment to cascade down onto her, illuminating her face in a golden beauty that made Enzo realize that Cass was the woman all of the artists must have painted. She was too beautiful to exist only on this Earth; surely some painter or poet or sculptor would have depicted her already. If not, Enzo would have to use his minimal skills to do it himself.
"I dunno. Maybe we should be wondering about your dumbass face. Eighteen years and it still looks like shit. Maybe the doctors were wrong about your symptoms getting better..."
She waved before tucking a curl behind her ear. Bloody Hell. He wanted to be the one to tuck that curl behind her head before running his fingers through the unruly strands and smelling the lilac scent that lingered on them. It'd only been a couple of weeks and yet Cass already knew that the one way to get him to fall to his knees was by showing him her hair all mussed up and beautiful. "You really like it that much?" she asked with a giggle during one of their movie nights when Enzo couldn't stop touching it. "I fucking love it. It's perfect. Just like you."
"Oh fuck you, Theodore Nott. I swear, the minute I figure out that secret girlfriend of yours, I'm going to take her with this delicious face of mine."
The past few weeks had been bliss. They'd had their movie nights, their Charms classes, and Enzo ate about half of his meals at the Hufflepuff table with Cass and her friends. They snuck in kisses in the corridors and cuddled in the late hours of the night. They hadn't gone farther than kissing but Enzo didn't mind. Kissing Cass was enough to make his heart stop as is—going further would surely kill him. Plus, when kissing Cass meant getting to touch her lovely ass, and when cuddling her meant resting his head on her orgasmic breasts, he didn't need to go much further. He had enough ammo to get him through many nights already.
It was heaven. It was everything. Enzo knew that he was looking at his future whenever he was with her. And his future had never seemed so exciting.
"I think you'd have an easier time taking Enzo's from him. If the bloke doesn't stop smiling like he's sitting on a cloud surrounded by rainbows and unicorns, she'll realize what a ninny she kissed and break up with him immediately."
The sound of his name was enough to break Enzo out of his reverie. He turned to look at his two best friends, who were staring at him with smirks that could only be described as "asshole-y."
"What?" he asked when he noticed the way his friends were looking at him.
"Oh, nothing. Just commenting on how you look like a rainbow's being shot up your ass lately," Mattheo said whilst biting back a grin. "Enjoying your time with the best ass in Hufflepuff?"
Enzo frowned. "Cass is way more than just an—"
"Oh, Merlin, it's like he's pussy-whipped without even getting the pussy," Mattheo grumbled with a furrowed brow before digging into his breakfast. "At least get your balls felt up a little before you tie a noose around them."
"That's disgusting, Mattheo. I don't need to have sex with Cass to have a good time," Enzo said with a wrinkle of his nose. He didn't like the idea of her being referred to as nothing but her body. Sure, it was great, but what was inside was way more incredible to him. "And anyway, she doesn't have me by the balls. I just respect her enough to not talk about her like that."
Mattheo clutched his heart and gasped, turning next to Theodore, who was looking at all of them with a bored expression. "It's no use, Theo. He's gone. We've lost him to the dark side!" he exclaimed with heavy breaths.
"Can we lose you too?" Theo asked dryly.
Mattheo glared at him. "You could never lose me to the dark side. I'm simply immune to the pussy-whipping charms you lot are susceptible to."
"Oh, shit, is that Nora? She looks pissed," Enzo said under his breath, staring over at where Rosier was sitting with Aditi Mondal.
"Fuck!" Mattheo hissed under his breath before getting up and sprinting down the long table to her. "Nora, whatever I did, I'm sorry!"
A few seconds later, Mattheo was trudging back to the table with a sour expression and a bright red handprint on the side of his face. "Fuck. You. Berkshire."
Enzo and Theo just laughed. They all pretended not to notice that Rosier and Riddle were completely crazy for each other. Yeah, Mattheo had always been mad about the girl but it wasn't until recently that he acted on it. Now, they pretended like everyone didn't know for some odd reason—something the rest of them just went along with. How sneaky did they think they were? Enzo was clueless, yes, but he'd walked in on them making out in the hallway the night he found out his mother was a bitch. He tried to forget that night often but who could forget that? They were practically fucking each other in the hallway.
"Nice one, Enzo," Theo chuckled under his breath. "I'll be picturing that handprint for a while."
"If you aren't careful, you're going to get a matching one of your own!" Mattheo huffed.
"What are you lot yapping on about?" Draco drawled as he sauntered up to the table with his hands in his pocket and the usual cocky grin on his face.
"The fact that Mattheo and Enzo are both pussy-whipped," Theo supplied.
"Oh, bullshit, you are too! If you would just tell us who your secret girlfriend is, we'd know who's doing it."
Draco rolled his eyes. "So glad to know that I am the only one actually immune."
Mattheo snorted. "I can't imagine Daphne Greengrass wanting anything from you enough to pussy-whip you. That girl takes care of her own shit."
Enzo frowned at the mention of their friend's most recent engagement. For some reason, he'd always thought that Draco liked Astoria, Daphne's younger sister. After all, the blond bloke could almost always be seen pining after the pretty black-haired girl, even when he was supposedly "dating" Pansy Parkinson or anyone other Slytherin—"dating" because Draco never seemed to care about any of them. And Enzo had always thought that Daphne liked women, even when she was fooling around with boys like Theo or Mattheo for a little bit. It was years ago when she did stuff like that but even then, Enzo thought that she was almost trying to convince herself to like men. He couldn't explain why he thought this but sometimes he swore she looked at her roommate like how he looked at Cass.
Oh well. Guess that was just another example of how utterly clueless Lorenzo Berkshire could be. Thinking his friend was a lesbian when she was engaged to someone else. How ridiculous of him.
Draco turned to Enzo, breaking him out of his thoughts. "Don't you need a girlfriend to be pussy-whipped?"
Enzo frowned—both at the idea of being "pussy-whipped" but also at the idea of Cass not being his girlfriend. "What are you talking about?"
"Well, are you and Cass dating?"
Enzo opened his mouth only to promptly shut it. Were they dating? He could have sworn they were but now as he thought back on it, he wasn't so sure. "Oh, Enzo, don't tell me you and Cass haven't had the talk yet!" Mattheo exclaimed with a laugh.
"'The talk?'"
"Defining the relationship! That's Pussy-Whipped 101. You've got to lock her down as your girlfriend so you're both extra clear about what you are. Otherwise, anyone can snatch her up and you don't want to be pussy-whipped over someone who can be taken at any moment," Mattheo explained very matter-of-factly.
Enzo's blood cooled and his stomach dropped clear to his feet. He looked over at the girl across the Great Hall—the beautiful girl that until this very moment, he was sure was his.
But was she? I don't want to be friends. Merlin, he was so stupid! That could mean a dozen of different things. It could mean that she didn't want to see him ever again at all. Fuck! How could he be so dumb?
Before Enzo could wrap his head around his feelings, he spotted Cass quickly getting up and walking out the Great Hall. Enzo stood to run after her—unable to take the ache in his chest for much longer—but it seemed that literally every other student at Hogwarts had the same idea. Everyone got up too, blocking his quick escape. He lost the head of golden curls in the crowd.
"Cass! Cass!" Enzo shouted, hoping that she would hear him. But his voice was drowned out but the sound of all the chattering. "Fuck."
"Cheer up, mate," Mattheo said, clapping him on the back. "You can just go and ask her now."
"Yeah, don't you have Charms with her, like, right now?" Theo drawled.
"Theo! You're a genius!"
"I know," the grey-eyed boy said but Enzo was too busy sprinting through the corridor to notice. He'd never been so eager to get to Professor Flitwick's classroom in his life.
"Mister Berkshire! Mister Berkshire!" a stern voice shouted.
Enzo winced before turning to look at Professor McGonagall, who was glaring at him. "Yes, Professor McGonagall?" he asked lightly, hoping that she wouldn't hex his face off. Right now, it looked like she might.
"Surely you are aware that there is no running allowed in the Hogwarts corridors and surely you know that, as Head Boy, you should be setting an example to the younger students, not running wildly like a babbling, bumbling baboon!"
Try saying that five times fast, a voice inside Enzo's voice joked but the real Enzo just kept his face passive and said. "Yes, Professor. I apologize. It won't happen again."
She fixed her austere eyes on him, narrowing them slightly before sighing. "It surely won't. Now, get to class. And walk this time."
Enzo took great care not to anger her again but, unfortunately, that meant that he was arriving at Professor Flitwick's just as the class was beginning. Fuck. I need to talk to Cass!
"Hey," he whispered, slipping into the seat next to her.
"Hi, Enz," she whispered back in the voice that drove him crazy. He pictured her using it on him every morning for the rest of his lives, her hair splayed out across the pillow and her cheeks pink from sleep. "Are we still on for a movie night tonight?"
"Wouldn't miss it for the world," he said with a grin. They'd have to pry his movie nights with Cass from his cold, dead hands before he gave it up. He'd seen so many movies with her, really feeling like he understood muggle culture better through them. Still, his favorite was Sleeping Beauty. How could it not be when his princess of golden hair was right next to him, making his fairytales come true everyday?
Cass smiled and turned back to the front of the class. "Erm, Cass," Enzo began.
She brought her warm brown eyes back to him, a smile always lingering on the edges of her face. "Yeah, Enz?"
"I was wondering if I could ask you something?" Merlin. He hated it when he was nervous around her. He turned into a complete mess, which was definitely not what he was used to.
"Of course. Ask me anything," she said gently.
"Well, I was just wondering if you were— I mean, I guess what I'm trying to say is— Shit, this is hard." Enzo took a deep breath. "When you said you didn't want to be friends, did that—"
"Mister Berkshire, if you and Miss Crane are done chatting, I'd like to start class," Professor Flitwick squeaked.
Enzo felt his face warm, as did Cass's from next to him. "Yes, Professor. I apologize." He was thankful that Professor Flitwick wasn't the type to take away House Points—and that Professor McGonagall let him off with a warning.
As soon as the lesson began, Cass settled in and began to take notes but Enzo couldn't pay attention when his mind was spinning. Is she my girlfriend? Is she my girlfriend? Is she my girlfriend? He wished he could have asked her, if only so his mind could stop wondering.
Class took far too long to finish. As soon as it was done, Cass began to pack up her things. "So, what was it you wanted to ask me?"
He looked at the gentle smile on her face and realized that he needed to man the fuck up. He needed to be the man this incredible woman deserved—and that included overcoming his nerves and (hopefully) making her his.
Enzo felt the familiar confidence return to his limbs. "Come on," he said, grabbing her hand and pulling her out of the classroom. Cass stayed silent as he maneuvered his way through the crowd, out into the open air of the courtyard. For November, the day was surprisingly quite warm, though that was probably from the shining sun next to him that made everything seem warm.
I need you to be mine. I couldn't bear it if you aren't. It was that thought that made Enzo go, "Oh fuck it. Are you my girlfriend?" His voice dropped to a whisper.
Cass furrowed her eyebrows. She tilted her head back to look at him. "What?"
Enzo breathed. "The guys made me realize that I never actually asked you to be my girlfriend. Will you be my girlfriend, Cassiopeia Crane?"
To his surprise, instead of saying yes (or even just rejecting him), Cass laughed. Enzo felt his cheeks go warm again. Did he do this wrong somehow? Say the incorrect thing or make a blunder. Oh, Merlin, if his fly was down the whole time...
"Enzo! You had me all worried for a second!" Cass said, wiping her eyes and giggling. "Jesus, I thought we were dating this whole time."
Enzo completely relaxed. "Honestly, I thought we were too. I felt like a fool for never asking you."
Cass grinned and wrapped her arms around his neck. Enzo's arm snaked around her waist and pulled her closely. It felt heavenly being with her like this. Like how they always should be.
"Yes, I'll be your girlfriend. As long as you'll be my boyfriend," she murmured with a twinkle in her eyes.
"I've been yours since the moment we met, sunshine." And when he kissed his girlfriend for the very first time, Enzo's heart sang. So he may have been a little pussy-whipped. But as long as Cass was the one holding the whip, he couldn't care less.
The holidays are over but here's a chapter to get you through the January blues! We're almost halfway through the story (most of my stories have about 38-40 chapters and this is 18!). So maybe we're due for a little spice... I dunno, what do you guys think? We're pretty fluffy now but the main conflict is still to come. Plus, we have to find out what happened the night of the accident so we've still got lots of juicy stuff. It might seem easy now but sometimes the easy is nice for a little.
Also, one song I've been listening to a lot while writing this story is Kingston by Faye Webster. Not my usual vibe but the dreamy lovey vibe fits Enzo and Cass so well and I do love it. Do y'all listen to anything while reading or are you a silent reader? Have a good weekend!
