One-Shot
She couldn’t believe it. She just could not believe it. Never had she thought she would actually start to like him.
The night before, Lily was one of the last few people sitting in the common room. It was getting late, but Lily just had to finish this essay because if she didn’t she would forget about it.
Boom!
Lily jumped a little, then simply shook her head and went back to work. In a corner on the opposite side of the room, the Marauders were playing Exploding Snap. When the explosions had first started, she had turned and glared at the boys. However, since they had taken no notice of her whatsoever, she had taken to simply doing her best to ignore it.
Boom!
She glanced back at them, and saw James immediately look away and ruffle the back of his hair to make it look windswept. Usually this would annoy Lily to no end, but, surprising even herself, she simply smiled and shook her head.
As time went on, Lily glanced over more and more. Each time she did, their whispering would abruptly cease, and she got the distinct impression that they were talking about her.
After a while she heard footsteps ascend a staircase.
Soon she felt the hairs on the back of her neck stand up. She wheeled around in her seat, and in a split second a gentle warmth was pressed against her lips. Her mind went blank, and she kissed back automatically.
It ended too soon, but when she pulled away she was dazed for only a moment before it seemed like she had been slapped in the face. James’ sparkling hazel eyes were only inches away from her emerald ones; a wide smirk on his face.
“You are such a hypocrite, Lily,” he said as he softly ran a finger down her cheek. Then, he simply turned and went up to his dorm, leaving Lily gaping like a fish.
Lily Evans was slowly but surely falling for James Potter.
Whenever he would apply the charm, she would turn the other cheek. She had been the only female within the Hogwarts premises to have the will power to do so. Even the teachers couldn’t resist lightening the homework load when James and his buddies smiled at them. His antics annoyed her; they fueled her animosity to the boiling point. She’d only slapped him once, and that was an accident. She believed words could overpower actions more often than not.
He would ask her out time after time, and she would turn him down. Sometimes the question would just pop up out of nowhere, and sometimes he would work up this big scene to catch her full attention.
He defended her when the Slytherins would corner her and insult her. When all was said and done, Lily would be indignant, claiming she could stick up for herself, when in the depths of her mind she greatly appreciated all he did for her.
She wouldn’t admit it, but when she was sad or feeling helpless, she would curl up in a ball under the many warm blankets of her bed and pretend she was wrapped in his strong arms. At breakfast, whenever the Daily Prophet reported more attacks caused by You-Know-Who, Lily would scan the seats at Gryffindor table, searching to make sure James was nearby. As much as she told him to leave her alone, she only felt safe when he was close.
The boy she had always hated, absolutely loathed, was getting under her skin. She’d even questioned her mental health, wondering if she was going insane.
The morning after the surprise kiss, Lily woke up with a terrible headache. Did she like James? Her mind screamed “NO!” by default, but her heart took a slow, burning dip into her stomach at the mere thought of him.
Suddenly the crimson hangings surrounding Lily’s bed were ripped open, letting sunlight beam across her startled face. Aurelie, one of her friends who shared the dorm with her, stood there grinning like a Cheshire cat.
“Lily, get up!” she demanded. She grabbed hold of Lily’s arm and yanked her out of bed so that she toppled onto the floor. Lily didn’t have a clue what was going on. “Throw on something decent! Hurry!” As far as she knew, it was a regular Saturday morning. Then she remembered it was a Hogsmeade weekend. But”she glanced at the alarm clock on her nightstand”it was only 8:23! They weren’t allowed to go to the village until after lunch!
The other girls that Lily shared the dormitory with were nowhere in sight, which wasn’t a very big surprise. Prim and proper as she may be, Lily wasn’t a morning person. As Aurelie threw clean robes at her, she kept glancing at the window, making Lily highly curious as to what may lay beyond it. Whenever she tried to look, however, Aurelie would distract her.
In ten minutes flat, she was ready for the day, since she took a shower last night. Aurelie covered Lily’s eyes and led her to what she could recognize by touch as one of the windows in the dorm. When Aurelie removed her hands, she squealed, “Look!”
Lily peered down warily. She instantly tore open the window and shrieked, “James Potter, what in Merlin’s name do you think you’re doing?”
James stood before her window, a tandem bicycle next to him. She couldn’t fathom how he got it there. He could have conjured it, but Lily doubted he knew what one looked like.
James started singing:
Lily, Lily, give me your answer do.
I’m half crazy, all for the love of you!
It won’t be a stylish marriage,
I can’t afford a carriage.
But you’ll look sweet upon the seat,
Of a bicycle built for two.
Lily was smiling and shaking her head in disbelief. Before she knew what she was doing, she sped from the dormitory and nearly tripped going down the several flights of stairs in her haste. Many students she passed looked at her as if she had gone insane. Lily Evans, Head Girl, prime example of what a student should be, was sprinting down the corridors. No one made to stop her though, so she just kept going.
She flung open the doors and raced to where he stood under Gryffindor Tower. As she neared him, she noticed James wore a mixture of curiosity, surprise, and amazement on his face. For a moment he just stared at her as she partially caught her breath.
“What… the bloody hell… do you think… you’re doing?” she half-heartedly scolded, looking up at him. Before he could answer, Lily took an almighty breath and turned to examine the bicycle with two seats. Fingering each seat in turn, and then the handlebars, she asked, “Where on earth did you find one of these?”
“When you and Remus go off to Arithmancy,” he explained, “Sirius and I go to Muggle Studies. We were going over Muggle transportation, and it gave me an idea.”
Lily turned back to gaze at him quizzically. “How did you know the song?”
James tapped his nose and replied mysteriously, “Found it.”
She rolled her eyes and went back to examining the bike. After a moment, she remembered that he still had something to do in order to make this charade whole. Out of nowhere, masses of butterflies were flitting and fleeting around in her stomach. The sensation of nervousness was new, and it made her feel like giggling and running away at the same time. Mentally counting down from five in her head, Lily awaited the inevitable question.
5…
Should she accept?
4…
After all this time?
3…
Should she stop being so stubborn and give in to the fondness that was starting to surround her like a cloak?
2…
She knew he’d never give up. Besides, the last few weeks he had been giving her space, and it annoyed her. She missed him. She wanted to bask in his attention like old times”only this time, she’d enjoy it.
1…
“Lily, will you go with me to Hogsmeade this afternoon?” he asked hesitantly.
She smirked. “Maybe.”
A truce. Both knew what it meant. It was her subtle acceptance to the tugging at her heart. She was giving in, but for something better than what she was trying to defy.
“I do need to ride my new bike,” she hinted.
“We… have to… ride it?” came his trembling response.
Lily smiled deviously. James has never ridden a bike before.
This could be fun.