Ch. 9: YEAR SEVEN “ CHRISTMAS DAY
When Lily finally woke the next morning from a long night of tossing and turning, she sat up slowly, tenderly rubbing her painful head. She looked around at the deserted room and then noticed a small note on her nightstand.
Lils,
We tried to wake you this morning, but you were pretty determined not to get up…
Images of her kicking and covering her head with the pillow came back to her in flashes and she smiled sheepishly at the note.
We’ll be down at breakfast, so come and find us when you wake up!
Merry Christmas, love!
-Kate
She wiped the sleep from her eyes, and sat still for a moment, letting all the thoughts lost in sleep rush back. She didn’t much want to go to breakfast, so while everyone was gone, she decided she might as well see what gifts she had been given. Lily put on her robe and slippers, and slowly made her way down to the tree. Besides the regular gift from her parents and the cheap one they had forced Petunia to buy her, there were a few colorful packages from her friends. Kate bought her a necklace she had admired at Hogsmeade, Charlotte a small pocket mirror that gave suggestions to it’s viewer (You really out to get more sleep dear, the bags under your eyes are a disgrace!), and Sirius a box of sugar quills, which he knew she loved to suck on while appearing the always studious Head Girl. She looked around -- nothing from James. Well, that’s to be expected I suppose, she thought resignedly, her eyes downcast sadly. She had, she realized forlornly, grown accustomed to odd jokes and trinkets from the handsome, messy haired boy each year. Just as Lily was about to go change clothes, she noticed a small brown package she had missed. She smiled and without seeing a card opened it curiously, gasping as she realized what it was. Lily instinctively looked around, though she knew she was alone, as if to search for some confirmation to what she was holding. As she realized it was true, her eyes filled with tears as she smiled astonished. She was holding a first edition of Alice in Wonderland.
But who? Who would have known?
Slowly her mind drifted back a few years to Kate’s birthday and a small game of two truths and a lie… James. She collapsed against the chair, unable to imagine the trouble he must have gone through to find it…he certainly couldn’t find it in any Wizarding shops, so he must have had to venture into the muggle world. And even then, it had to be arduous to find, not to mention exceptionally expensive! The more she learned about him the more intriguing and amazing she found him, and the more she liked him.
No…she thought. She had liked Cliff; ‘like’ wasn’t seeing his face in her mind constantly, ‘like’ wasn’t her heart aching unbearably as she took in the fact that she had lost him, ‘like’ wasn’t realizing he was the only one she could ever be with…this was love.
Lily was distracted all day. During lunch she realized she couldn’t eat a thing and excused herself quickly, hurrying outside. She needed fresh air. Okay, she loved James. Now what? It was obvious he couldn’t care for her after the verbal whiplash she had given him last year, and he seemed perfectly over it last night, chatting amiably, back to same old James (the good parts at least)…so what was a girl to do? She was pacing back and forth until finally out of mere exhaustion she gave up and sunk down to the ground, leaning against the Great Oak in front of the lake. She was so tired, physically and mentally, and this tree was actually rather comfortable…
* * *
When Lily woke up she was confused where she was, but then she remembered.
James.
She yawned and looked at her watch; she’d been out for over three hours!
“Feel better?”
Startled, she looked around but couldn’t find him. “James? Where are you?”
He laughed, “Up here!” She looked up and he was resting casually in the tree’s branches. “Come on up!”
She laughed and climbed up to the branch across from him, “How long have you been up here?”
“A while.”
“Doing what?”
“Thinking mostly…you talk in your sleep you know?”
“Oh Merlin, what did I say this time?” He smiled and shrugged; Lily groaned playfully, and then upon meeting his sparkling brown eyes, remembered what had sent her outside in the first place became silent, avoiding his gaze. It was too painful to look into his eyes, to see all she’d lost.
When she finally worked up the courage she spoke cautiously, “James, I --” she took a deep breath, “I never thanked you for what you did, helping me out with Cliff…”
He looked at her thoughtfully and then smiled, “Anytime.”
“And James?”
“Mmhm?”
“Thank you for my Christmas present, it was the sweetest…I -- I can’t believe you found it, I can’t believe you even remembered!”
James licked his lips and then eyeing her thoughtfully gave her a quick grin, “I’m glad you like it.”
They were quiet for a while, both thinking about everything that had happened between them: all the rejected dates, the night in sixth year, the letter, Christmas Eve… Lily was lost in her thoughts about how much she adored him and how she had blown it when he spoke, surprising her and bringing her back to the present,
“Look, Lily, you’re too good to mess with me. If you still feel the way you did last year, then tell me now. I still love you so much. This year has been awful not talking to you, and I can’t take it anymore unless I know for sure...“ He sighed, “Say the word now and I’ll never mention it again.” He avoided her face and played with a leaf he had picked from the tree. It was too much for her to grasp.
James loved her? Still? After she had been wretched to him? She tried to find the words to express everything she was feeling, everything she had felt, but she could find none spectacular enough to even come close. James took a deep breath trying to be calm, and just as he was about to speak again he looked up and saw she was crying.
“Oh Lily I’m so sorry, please don’t cry. I shouldn’t have said anything, we were getting along so well and I ruined it! I’m a git, please stop!” his eyes were so sad. She took his hand and he looked back in her eyes surprised.
Lily smiled and choked back a sob, “James, I love you, too. I love you so much.” He looked at her blankly for a minute, and then smiled the lopsided smile that made her heart flutter.
Seven years he had waited for those words and now he realized he would have gladly waited seventy if he’d had to. He carefully climbed over to her branch and they embraced, Lily crying a relieved sob into his shoulder, James holding her closely, protectively.
When they finally pulled apart, he laughed and wiped a tear off her cheek with his thumb, “You only said one word.”
She blinked at him as she tried to steady her racing heart, “What?”
He took her hand in his, interlacing fingers, and she smiled as she realized they fit perfectly.
“When you were sleeping. You just kept saying one word over and over.”
She squeezed his hand, “What did I say?”
He affectionately tucked her crimson hair behind her ear and leaned over to whisper in her ear, “James.”
His breath tickled the nape of her neck and surprised she laughed.
He grinned back, shrugging, “…it gave me hope.”
They gazed into one another’s eyes, and everything in the past was finally left behind. James brushed his hand over her jaw and shaking from his touch she gasped quietly and closed her eyes. Slowly he cupped his hand behind her head, gently drawing her in to kiss her tenderly on the lips. Seven years of love and passion all brought to this one moment.
As their lips parted she rested her forehead on his, breathing deeply, an electricity of love coursing through her veins so strongly she couldn’t move. Finally she looked up and they both stared into each other’s eyes, unable to quite grasp the magnitude of feelings the kiss had sent flowing through them. Lily leaned in and kissed him again quickly before resting her head on his shoulder, his right arm around her affectionately, his left hand still clasping her own small hand, while his thumb stroked hers tenderly. They sat silently for what seemed like an eternity, in ecstasy for the simple joy of being together. The sun began to set and as they watched the colors paint the sky James kissed her on the top of her head and then rested his own on top of hers.
“Merry Christmas Lily,” he whispered.
She closed her eyes and smiled, “Merry Christmas.”
Well that's it, I hope you guys enjoyed reading it and again sorry for the wait! And, if you have been reading, please do me the courtesy of leaving me a review. :)