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petals2fish · 3 months

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Pinky Promise (Tummy Hurts)

He’s in love with her.

Lily Evans couldn't shake off the irritation that manifested as a clenched jaw as she observed the way James Potter gazed at Cassie Gregory during the first five minutes of the Quidditch game. She hadn’t been able to eat that morning, anticipating this scenario in countless ways in her head. It was worse in real life, and now anxious bubbles were building in her stomach, making her queasy.

Cassie Gregory was a remarkable blonde standing at an impressive six-foot-one, perfectly complementing James' towering six-foot-three frame. It was no surprise that she seemed to captivate him, she caught everyone’s eye. Lily observed Cassie's radiant golden locks glimmering in the sunlight as she confidently leaned on her broomstick, overseeing the Quidditch field with sharp, hawk-like eyes in pursuit of the elusive Snitch for Gryffindor’s victory. Cassie's determined jawline and flawless physique were evident even from Lily's elevated position in the stands.

Lily knew why James was smitten with Cassie, but that didn’t make the matter any less annoying. (Read on A03)

Cassie was older, a skilled Quidditch player, and embodied the attractive sports girl aesthetic. Despite her popularity, Cassie's leadership in the dueling club, coupled with a penchant for jinxing those who crossed her, revealed a somewhat narcissistic nature.

Naturally, Cassie prioritized personal victory over the team's success. She wasn’t captain of the Gryffindor Quidditch team, but she sure as hell acted like it sometimes. Even now she was shouting orders at Marlene, one of Lily’s friends, to stop missing passes. Lily half wished Marlene would tackle the blonde off her broom, but Marlene was better at self control than Lily was.

“And Potter’s got the quaffle, he’s heading down the field!” The commentator announced loudly.

Lily looked through her binoculars and found James, leading a chase with the quaffle down field. His arm muscle flexed over the ball, and Lily felt her heart jump when he turned his head and she got to see his cocky smile directed at his opponent. She’d give anything to see that smile aimed at her, in a dark hallway.

Sadly, they were just friends, and she likely couldn’t hold a candle to Cassie fucking Gregory. Lily was the opposite, as far as Cassie was concerned. Firstly, she was James' age; secondly, she did not fly a broomstick. To top it all off, her tits might be good to look at, but her arse was no contender as it was flatter than a pancake. At five foot two, she was tiny standing next to him and probably reminded James of a third year. Her compassionate nature and tendency to care deeply also made her quick to erupt into tears, thanks to her big heart.

Good tits and a big heart, Lily had certainly thought that’d be enough until now.

As James passed by Lily’s side of the stadium, a high-five exchange with Cassie ensued, briefly illuminated by the sun. Lily's discomfort intensified when Cassie blew James a kiss. Her face collapsed and anyone who actually cared about her, would’ve noticed she’d gone completely still. Stillness was never a good sign where Lily was concerned.

She heard James’ laugh chase the wind, and she felt her knees weaken. He had the biggest, loudest, most intoxicating laugh she’d ever heard. Jealousy sprung into her throat as she realized he was laughing because of something Cassie had said, and that was not okay. Lily didn’t understand why it wasn’t okay, but Merlin, she’d love to block Cassie from even looking his way.

Lily sighed deeply.

"Ugh," came an agreeing tone next to her. "Two jocks flirting in mid-air. They're disgusting."

"For what it's worth, they'd make beautiful babies," she murmured to Severus Snape, her best friend, trying to sound as if she were casually discussing the weather rather than the stomachache she had from realizing she wasn’t even in James’ league.

"Yeah, and raise them up to be a couple of monsters like their mother and father," Severus rolled his eyes.

“They aren’t monsters, Sev.”

"People as dimwitted as those two airheads shouldn't be able to reproduce."

“Cassie is the best dueler in her year, and James is—”

“A bully?” Sev counted off on his fingers. “A idiot, a showoff, a arrogant toe—”

“He’s all of those things,” Lily placed a hand on Sev’s knee to calm him down, “but Potter can still outpace us both in test scores.”

“He probably cheats,” Sev picked lint off his robes. “I’m sure he cheats, actually.”

“Okay, Sev.” Lily rolled her eyes, knowing for a fact James wasn’t cheating; he was just too smart for his own good.

It’s what got him into trouble the most.

It got Lily in trouble too.

Turns out, she had a type, and arrogant jocks with good grades were it.

Lily chewed on her lip, her green eyes zeroing in on James, who had just captured the Quaffle from Ravenclaw. Actually, no, Hufflepuff was playing. Oops . Lily just didn’t really care to notice, given that she’d been fixated on the interplay between Cassie and James. She was obsessively trying to decipher if the rumor about them was true, and it was eating her alive inside.

She hadn’t even been able to eat breakfast that morning.

Severus nudged her gently, breaking her concentration. "What's with you today?"

She tore her gaze away from James and Cassie, glancing at Severus with a half-hearted smile. "Just not in the mood for Quidditch, I guess."

Severus raised an eyebrow, unconvinced. "You love quidditch."

Lily sighed, admitting defeat. "Not today, I don’t."

Severus snorted. "Well, then why did you drag me out when we could’ve been looking for bowtruckles for my potion?”

As Lily tried to redirect her attention to the match, her mind continued to wander back to the topic of James and Cassie. The Quaffle passed between players, and she half-heartedly cheered when Gryffindor scored. The game was fun, but Lily couldn't shake the knot in her stomach, wondering about the truth behind the rumors.

Everyone was buzzing about James Potter supposedly snogging Cassie yesterday in Hogsmeade. Lily had been occupied with prefect rounds and missed the first half of the Hogsmeade trip, while everyone else seemed to have witnessed it. Even her own housemates claimed to have spotted James Potter and Cassie Gregory engaging in a passionate display.

Marlene McKinnon had practically erupted in outrage when she returned, screaming at Mary MacDonald about the alleged incident. It wasn't necessarily because she wanted James Potter for herself; Marlene genuinely despised Cassie with a fiery passion. This animosity had ignited when Cassie 'accidentally' broke the rules at the dueling club to beat Marlene in a duel of charms. Anytime anything good happened to Cassie, Marlene took it as a personal affront.

Lily couldn't blame Marlene for her tantrum. She, too, had been furious. She had closed the curtains to her bed frame and cried into her pillow for thirty minutes after hearing the news. It felt like a knife in the back, as if she'd been betrayed by the young black-haired Quidditch star.

After all, Lily had kissed James three weeks ago.

The kiss had been a secret one.

But the fact was still a fact.

In the quiet solitude of the library stacks, they had found themselves alone. Engaging in a casual conversation, the topic shifted to the revelation that neither James nor Lily had ever been kissed. James expressed his frustration, feeling out of step with their peers who had already experienced such things. In response, Lily shared her own apprehensions on the matter.

Lily, perhaps impulsively, had offered to be James's first kiss.

Initially he had conveyed uncertainty. "I don't know if it's a good idea. I don't want to ruin our friendship.”

“I pinky swear it won't ruin our friendship.” Lily had stuck her pinky finger out, grasping it with his own.

His eyes were lighting up as she forcibly shook their pinky fingers together. “A pinky swear doesn’t seem legally binding.”

Then he kissed her anyway.

Officially, he had kissed her more than once. After the initial kiss, neither of them had separated for more than a brief moment. It felt as if he were a magnet, drawing her in each time. She had even tried a little tongue on the last go, the way Witch Weekly said, carefully tracing his lip. That had only intensified his grip, keeping her securely in place.

As it turned out, Lily discovered that she liked kissing.

The sensation of their lips meeting was a delightful surprise, and she might have gladly continued the exchange if not for an unexpected interruption. James had pulled back, and had been touching her cheek adoringly. Then, in the midst of that peak romantic moment, Sirius Black stumbled upon them, catching them standing mere inches apart, their faces flushed with feeling.

Caught off guard, James hastily conjured a feeble excuse, claiming he was searching for a nonexistent quill mark on her cheek. The awkwardness hung in the air as he and Sirius hastily retreated, leaving Lily to stand in solitude for what had felt like an eternity, her mind swirling with a mixture of confusion and amusement.

In that thirty minutes, she somehow became totally enamored with him. She loved the way he kissed her back so slowly, so methodically, she could practically hear his brain overthinking every move. She loved his hazel eyes, which were darker in the stacks, and held her with such an intense golden warmth. She replayed the meeting once, ten, or fifty times before heading back to her dorm for a long and hot shower.

Having her first kiss at fifteen must have done something to alter her brain chemistry because she spent that night drawing hearts next to his name in her diary. She hadn’t done that since second year, and never in her life had she imagined doing it around James’ name. They’d been friends, always friends, and now she wanted him as more than friends.

Sadly, the next day after their rendezvous in the library, James totally ignored her.

Then the day after that, he acted like they hadn’t kissed behind the stacks at all.

Lily felt a tinge of disappointment, her affection for him somehow deepening despite the letdown. She yearned for him from a distance, reluctant to jeopardize their five-year friendship over something as trivial as a couple of kisses.

Yet, the crush persisted.

With each stolen glance in his direction, her infatuation intensified—beginning with a subtle blush and escalating into a chaotic whirlwind of thoughts. She found herself captivated by him, and was wondering if Severus was beginning to discern her secret feelings for him. Suspicious looks from Sev had become more frequent, especially when James lingered nearby.

Even now, as she stared out at the field, Severus eyed her with suspicion.

“Go, go, Gryffindor!” the voices in the stands erupted, some cheering for James.

Lily took a deep breath as James skillfully maneuvered his broomstick, tossing the Quaffle to Charity Jones. Unaware that Hufflepuff had caught the Snitch simultaneously, Lily's focus was on James, their eyes meeting in midair. He mouthed her name, accompanied by a wave. A rosy blush crept up her cheeks as she eagerly waved back.

Severus, reacting with disgust, lightly shoved her. Lily laughed, attempting to brush off her embarrassment as she watched James descend to the ground. The game had ended, but her heart continued to race, wondering if he was experiencing the same surge of emotions. The intensity was almost unbearable, leaving her jittery with unspent energy. She knew it was stupid, but the desire to kiss him in the stacks again greatly outweighed anything else at that particular moment.

“I can’t believe you waved back,” Severus muttered moodily as they stood up to join the crowd funneling down the stairs. "Do you like him or something?"

“James?” Lily feigned disgust a little too well. “Sev, he’s got a head so big, I’m surprised he can even fly a broomstick without toppling over from being top-heavy.”

Sev chuckled, tossing his hands into the pockets of his cloak as he responded joyfully, “he and Cassie have ego in common.”

“I just can’t believe he’d date her,” Lily remained even-toned, though the topic infuriated her.

“I know,” Sev let her through the stairwell door first before following with the quip, “I thought Black and he were a thing.”

Lily laughed out loud at that, earning an appreciative look from her usually reserved friend. “You can hardly see one without the other,” she commended, “but I can’t say either one of them has been caught snogging the other—unlike Cassie.”

Sev’s hooked nose scrunched up. “Why do you even care who is snogging who?”

“Because James is my housemate, he’s my friend,” she ignored Sev’s almost perpetual eye-rolling when James was involved. “And I personally think he deserves someone who’ll keep him humble.”

“Humble and James Potter don’t belong in the same sentence as the other.” Sev snorted as they both left the field and started walking back to the castle.

“You don’t know him like I—“

“Lily!”

The butterflies in her stomach had turned to lead weights. Her feet stopped dead in the frosty grass, her face heated back up, and her shoulders straightened. Severus was quick to disappear at the sound of the voice. Lily glared after him for abandoning her, but he just ignored her and fell into step with someone else.

“Lily!” James called her name again, this time he was closer, almost right on top of her.

Lily turned, and James was suddenly right there, inches away. He hadn’t changed from his Quidditch gear, and he had no glasses on, just his goggles pushed up his forehead. Lily eyed his wind-swept hair, admiring the twists it made on top of his head. His hazel eyes sparkled—no, they glowed with happiness at the sight of her.

God, she’s in love with him.

“Hi James.”

“Did you enjoy the game?” James asked cheerfully as students funneled around them.

Lily blinked widely before answering, “yes.”

She would have liked to have said, ‘I enjoyed you,’ but that seemed a bit forward.

“Good.” He walked closer, damn him, and slung a confident arm around her shoulders, leading her in a walk back to the castle. “I saw you in the stands near the end; you look really pretty with your hair down today.”

Lily looked up at him, twirling one long red strand of said hair around her finger. “Thanks, I guess.”

“You guess?” He scoffed, “take a compliment, Evans.”

And then, because she was stupid, she blurted out, “how was Hogsmeade with Cassie?”

She hoped he looked like he was in as much pain as she was because he actually winced when she mentioned Cassie. “Oh, you heard about that, huh?”

“It’s all over the castle,” Lily mused, “I think the student population truly believes you two might be one snog away from bringing peace and prosperity back to our hallways.”

James pinched her shoulder. Hard.

“Ow!” She pushed him away. “That hurt!”

“You deserved it for that snark, Evans.” He rubbed his own arm as if she had bruised him.

Lily eyed him grumpily, noting that he shared her expression. She fell back into step beside him as they crested the hill, the castle rising up over the landscape. It was a rare moment alone with him, despite the sea of people. Lily was hardly ever without Sev, and James had his own ‘glued at the hip’ friends as well.

She preferred them like this, alone, together.

“She’s pretty,” Lily commented, trying to keep her voice even again for the sake of prosperity.

“Who?”

“Cassie Gregory.”

James’ hand reached for his messy hair, and he ruffled it as if agitated. “She is,” he agreed shortly.

“Do you like her?”

His hazel eyes skirted to her green ones. “Why do you care?”

Because I like you. She was too scared of rejection to say it out loud. “Because I’m your friend.”

James’ expression remained taut, and then he hip-checked Lily playfully. “Well, just like all my other friends, you’re going to have to wait for the details on my love life.”

“But you will tell me, right?”

“When I’m in love?” James asked with a sharp tone.

She held out her pinky finger to him, “I’ll tell you, if you tell me.”

His smile widened, he was likely thinking back to their last pinky promise. She held his gaze, not for one second regretting asking him. She liked when she flustered James, normally it was the other way around.

James’ pinky suddenly looped with hers. “I promise, once she’s ready, I’ll tell the whole school who I’m in love with because I won’t be able to hold it in.”

Lily's stomach fluttered once more as she recognized the sincerity in his words. He had that earnest gaze, the one he reserved for moments of honesty. Blushing, she averted her eyes and focused on her feet, feeling the nervous energy radiating from his intense stare. He held onto her pinky, only letting it go once they started walking again.

“Well,” she muttered, attempting to inject humor, “save me a seat at the wedding.”

James snorted, as if finding something ironic in her comment. “You'll be right up front, I don’t even need to pinky promise that.”

"I'm sure Cassie will love that." Lily said smoothly, pretending to check her nail beds to avoid looking directly at James.

"As if I'd marry Cassie," he scoffed, and her heart flew joyfully at the words. "She's a sore loser."

"You said it, not me." Lily almost hugged him, she was overjoyed by the news.

James grinned down at Lily perceptively, "I knew you didn't like her."

"I for one, am disgusted you didn't get my approval before snogging her." Lily mocked, her mood lifted by the turn of the conversation.

James laughed once, tugging on her red hair playfully with his free hand, "I didn't kiss her, it was just a rumor."

He didn't kiss Cassie.

Lily allowed her grin to widen as they entered the Great Hall together. James was immediately bombarded by his friends, who had been searching for him, providing Lily the perfect opportunity to slip away before potentially embarrassing herself. She seamlessly blended into the group of girls near the doorway, stealing one more glance at James. She felt a surge of happiness when she saw him returning her look with a wink.

She waved.

He waved back.

Later that evening, during dinner, James took a seat beside Lily, and she ate everything on her plate.

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