the date at the lake
I woke up sitting at my desk in the Room of Requirement. A paper was stuck to my face as I sat up, and my hand immediately rose to my neck. Ouch. I rubbed my neck as I closed the book in front of me. After Sebastian's reaction to my date with Everett, I did not want to spend much time with him. I had spent a large amount of my week in the Room of Requirement. I needed to stay on top of my school studies and my personal studies, but I tended to be so comfortable in the Room of Requirement knowing that no one could bother me here that I ended up falling asleep often.
"Hi, Miss. Can I get you anything? I made you a cup of tea," Deek said sweetly. He took care of me every chance he got. It was as if he saw right through me and knew that I needed a safe place to be.
"No, thank you, Deek. You are so kind." I smiled at him and took the mug from him. He made the best cup of tea I had ever tasted.
"Miss has her outing with Everett today?"
"Oh, yes, Deek. What time is it?" I suddenly panicked about the time.
"It is 12:30, Miss Starling," Deek said.
"I'm late!" I got up quickly and ran into the bedroom within the Room of Requirement. I had brought the things I needed to get ready knowing that I would likely fall asleep. I changed quickly and freshened up.
As I ran down the hallway to the front of the school, I rounded a corner and smacked directly into someone. I was almost knocked down, but they caught me before I had the chance.
"Sebastian?" I said, completely dumbfounded at my ability to fall.
"Hi, Starling. Maybe we should slow down a bit," he suggested while raising an eyebrow at me.
"Sorry, I am just running late for..." I trailed off.
"Your date with Everett. I know. He asked me where you were and I figured you might have fallen asleep in the Room of Requirement again. I don't know what I would have done once I got there though." He ran his hands through his hair.
"What did you say to him?"
"Just that I would go check the common room for you," he said before letting out a sigh. "I was nice. I promise." He threw both hands up and shrugged like he knew I didn't believe him.
"You better have been. He already thinks you hate him."
"No one has ever called him stupid, but hey, you should get yourself to him before he thinks you're standing him up." He was right. I said goodbye and ran to where we had agreed to meet, the fountain in front of the school. As soon as I got near the door to the front of the school, I stopped to take a breath before walking outside.
"There you are! I have been waiting for half an hour," Everett said with a sad look on his face.
"I am so sorry. I haven't been sleeping well since... Well, since forever. Anyway, I fell asleep on my schoolbook while doing some homework." He looked at me as if searching for the truth.
"You're lucky I like you," he said, wrapping an arm around my shoulder and leading me to the side of the building near the greenhouses.
"Where are we going? I thought we were going to Hogsmeade."
"I thought we might want more privacy than that. It seems like every time we spend time together, someone always interrupts." Just then, I realized that Everett was carrying a small basket with him.
"Hey! I know that basket! That's-"
"Juniper's. Yes, she thought the same thing as me, and, well, we decided on a picnic by the lake." I smiled. I loved that he was so close to my sister, despite it being slightly problematic in the way that he has an easier go of it when it comes to figuring me out.
"Ah, you two," I said. "Hey, how was your family event or whatever vague thing you had going on?"
"Relatively painless," he said. "My family can be harsh and hard to deal with sometimes." He looked down at the ground as he walked. We started our walk down the stairs to the boathouse and he released me from his arm, likely for my own safety while walking.
"Why? If you don't mind me asking."
"I don't mind," he paused for a minute. "They just believe some things that I don't, and they tend to hold it against me. They want me to be more like them."
"That reminds me of Ominis. His family is like that too."
"Oh, I know. I saw them this past weekend while visiting my family. My dad is a huge fan of the Gaunt family," Everett said while looking out at the lake after walking down the final step. We found a spot on the far end of the dock. Nothing but the water and trees stretched out in front of us.
"I am a huge fan of Ominis. I can't speak for the rest of his family. They have done horrible things, but they are not my secrets to tell." I sat with my legs crossed underneath me on the edge of the dock. Everett grabbed the food and drinks he had packed out of the basket.
"Juniper helped me gather this stuff. She told me that you loved pumpkin pasties and pumpkin juice." I smiled at him and couldn't help it when I leaned over and kissed his cheek. He sat back and looked at me for a moment in awe.
"Sorry," I paused for a moment. "It is just so sweet how much thought you have put into this. I have never had anyone do anything like this for me before." Definitely not Sebastian.
"You deserve to feel special." He handed me a closed container of pumpkin juice and I smiled at him. I wasn't very hungry all of a sudden. I felt nervous butterflies doing flips in my stomach, but it wasn't just butterflies. I could not shake the feeling that something wasn't quite right. Everett was so kind, but was he someone I could eventually trust with all of the things that he would need to be privy to?
"Tell me more about your family. You seem to already know all about mine thanks to my sister." I laughed.
"There's not much to tell. My mom isn't in the picture anymore. My uncles have always lived here, and my dad decided that it was time to come back to where he grew up. He wanted me to join the family, I guess."
"Well, how are you liking it so far?" I said, taking a small bite of a pumpkin pasty.
"I like being here at Hogwarts. You and your sister have been a big part of that. When I first got here, I was nervous people would not have room for me in their friend groups, being a new seventh-year and everything."
"Well, you weren't the first new student in a later year that we have had here. By far, you are the latest one. I actually don't have many friends. This year is different than the past two. It was basically just Ominis and I for the entirety of our sixth year."
"Where was Sebastian?"
"He took some time to himself after he lost his uncle and sister, but he seems to be doing better now."
"I guess that is a matter of opinion."
"What do you mean?" I said, feeling offended for Sebastian.
"He is not exactly making good decisions. Running around kissing one of his best friends and potentially getting in the way of us." I felt anger rising up in me but decided to swallow it down. Sebastian has not done anything to put himself in Everett's good graces.
"I guess you are right," I said and looked out at the water. Everett let out a sigh.
"I'm sorry. I know you two are close, and I may never understand it. He just gets under my skin."
"It's funny because he says the same thing about you. Maybe you two should date each other." We both let out a laugh which broke the tension in the air.
"He's not a bad-looking bloke." Everett raised his eyebrow at me and laughed again. We sat in silence for a few moments and looked out at the glimmering water. The cool air was caressing my face as I took deep breaths.
"I dare you to jump in," I said.
"What?"
"You heard me," I laughed as I spoke.
"Hell no! Do you realize how cold the water is right now?" I laughed at him and laid back on the blanket he had laid out underneath us.
"I know. I was just trying to come up with a conversation."
"You don't need to force conversation with me, you know? I am just happy to spend time with you away from everyone else." I turned on my side, propped my head up, and looked at him quizzically.
"Why? Why are you even interested in me?" I looked down at my half-finished pumpkin pasty as I waited for his response.
"You are just," he paused. "The most beautiful person I have ever met in both mind and body." He gently tucked my hair behind my ear as he stared at me. I collapsed back down onto the blanket, completely out of air. I didn't think it was possible to ever feel this way about two people at once. He packed up the basket and set it to the side before joining me.
We both looked at the passing clouds, pointing out each one and comparing it to animals and objects.
"That one looks like Juniper!" I laughed as a cloud that looked vaguely like a bearded man passed by.
"More like Professor Sharp," Everett said with a chuckle. I looked over at him, resting my head on the warm blanket as he smiled at the sky. His eyes scanned the clouds for familiar figures and my heart felt as if it might burst in my chest. As if he could hear my thoughts, he looked over at me, his golden-brown eyes looked into mine.
"What?" I laughed.
"Nothing, I just feel very lucky, but also kind of like a pig." He looked back up at the sky, avoiding my gaze.
"What do you mean?" My heart was in my throat.
"Well, you are just so beautiful, and I just can't stop thinking about you. I want to kiss you." My lips parted as breath escaped them. His hand grabbed mine and we lay there for a minute.
"Then do it," I felt myself say as I dropped his hands as I sat up and looked out at the water. I saw him sit up out of the corner of my eye.
"Are you sure you want to?" I looked at him as his eyes searched my face. He knew that my relationship with Sebastian was complicated. He must have seen right through me when I told him that the kiss meant nothing. I shook my head, unable to make words leave my mouth. Everett was so close that I could smell him again, the familiar scent of evergreen and sage hit my nose from that first day. He put his hand on the back of my neck and pulled me into a light kiss. It was quick and he pulled back, as if to check that I was okay. I answered with a deeper kiss. His hands moved to my waist as we kissed, and I felt a tingle underneath his touch.
I felt a drop hit my face, and I looked up just in time to have the rain pour down on us. We both ran into the boathouse quickly to get cover, laughing about the timing of it all.
"We might be stuck in here a while," he said before finding a spot to sit.
"Good thing we have snacks." I laughed and took a seat next to him, hoping it was always this easy.