Garreth,
I could use some help with my Potions homework.
I’ll be in Sharp's room this afternoon if you have some time.
Emilia
Emilia let out an anxious breath as the owl flew off with the small piece of parchment in its mouth. Garreth Weasley had been making her anxious a lot, as of late. Something about how she felt the butterflies in her stomach whenever she saw his red hair in the halls, or the way his laugh alone could makeher laugh. It didn’t matter why he was laughing, it was just contagious to her.
She hated not knowing why things happened to her. Why his eyes on her made her face burn. Why she felt little jolts of electricity when their hands touched for just a moment while handing each other potion ingredients in class. Why the time she caught a whiff of his cologne she thought she would melt on the spot. Why she found herself looking for him wherever she went in the damned school. She hated it.
Unbeknownst to her, Garreth had been doing his own version of questioning himself. He had been friends with Emilia since their very first day at the sorting ceremony.
Garreth made his way off one of the boats at the school’s dock. His wobbling legs led him to almost fall between the crack separating the wooden ledge of the small vessel and the solid (and very stable) stone face of the dock. The Black Lake smell was dangerously close to his senses. He hadn’t realized he had his eyes closed until he shot them open at the sudden feeling of someone holding onto his arm. He looked back over his shoulder to see another first year staring down at him, Her pale blue eyes shining in the light of the moon and her loose braid dangling over her shoulder as she leaned over to catch him.
“Are you going to sit like that all night?” She asked him with a small smile.
Oh, she’s a jokester, is she?
“Well, I’ll have you know, I quite like the view of the lake from here,” He shot back with a small smirk of amusement.
He realized that maybe that wasn’t the best answer in his current situation–being as she could soon as just drop him. Then, as if that was the purpose of his words, she laughed, her shoulders shaking as she chuckled.
And then he felt his arm slipping through her grip.
Suddenly he was cold and wet and peeved.
After some grumbling on his part, and laughing on her’s, she managed to pull him from the lake without getting herself wet in the process. She didn’t give him much more time to complain at her before she cast a drying charm on him with a quick flick of her wand.
She couldn’t help but tease him the whole way up to the castle. And he found himself shooting teases right back at her.
It was only right that the pair should both be sorted into Gryffindor. Why would someone want to separate such a budding friendship?
He thought about that moment often. How he wouldn’t have his best friend by his side if it wasn’t for a little slip all those years ago. Seven long and brilliant years of friendship with her. She was always right by his side as he tested new potions–and because of that, also right there with him when he gained himself a scolding or detention from Professor Sharp.
She always laughed at his jokes, ever since that first day. He found himself craving the sound of her laughter more and more as of late. Something about her laughing because of him made his chest swell with pride. It was a good thing he was born with the ability to make people laugh, or he might go crazy searching for the sweet sound that escaped her lips.
Her lips.
That was another thing. He found himself watching her lips as well. He couldn’t tell you why, but he found himself imagining what they felt like. Were they soft? Were they as plump as they looked?
And that was just a few of the new problems he seemed to be having when she was around. The list seemed never ending when he found new things to add to it everyday.
He was brought from his thoughts as something light smacked him in the face.
He blinked a few times and looked down at the envelope now sitting in front of him. It was a good thing he had finished his lunch already, or it would have fallen straight into his plate.
He turned it over to see his name in a beautiful cursive. He knew exactly who it belonged to and that made his heart start to pick up its pace behind his ribs.
Without another thought, he almost tore the thing as he hurriedly tried to get to its contents and read the short note.
–
She slowly made her way back to the castle. Each step made her heart beat faster and harder in her chest. He was just her friend. She wasn’t even sure he would have the time to spare. Her mind swirled with more of those thoughts as she walked through the corridors down to the dungeons. The stone under her feet and surrounding her echoing her steps.
She could already smell something brewing as the scent wafted through the hallway. She turned the corner into the Potions classroom to see Garreth already there. He had his head bent over a piece of parchment as he took notes. A cauldron was already being heated and ingredients already strewn about the station.
She couldn’t help the smile that grew quickly on her face as she took in the scene before her.
He had taken his robes and jacket off, opting for just his vest–that he had already unbuttoned–and she noticed his tie hung loosely around the neck of his shirt that he had unbuttoned as well. His sleeves were messily rolled up to his elbows, leaving his wonderfully freckled forearms in plain view for her.
She felt the heat spreading across her face again as she greedily took him in.
“Em!”
She snapped her head to meet his gaze. She realized she had been off in her own world, just standing in the doorway like an idiot.
She smiled and quickly walked over to him, hoping he didn’t realize that she had just been staring at him, “Gar. I see you’re getting started without me.”
He chuckled as he threw a handful of freshly chopped Dittany into the cauldron and stirred it lightly, “So, we’re already starting off grumpy, are we?”
Grumpy?
“I’m not grumpy.” She crossed her arms.
He turned to face her fully, a look in his eyes she could only explain as mischief, “Not grumpy, eh?”
She nodded, “Not grumpy.”
He looked her up and down for a moment, a devious smirk beginning to pull at his lips, “Hmmm.”
And that’s when it clicked, “Garreth-”
She was cut off by her own laughter as his fingers lunged into her sides, tickling her furiously. He was laughing too, the bastard.
She tried to wiggle out of his grip, pleading for him to stop between taking breaths and giggling. He wouldn’t let up, his signature goofy smile on his face the whole time.
That bloody smile that made her feel warm inside. She turned around to run, but to no avail. He swiftly wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her back into his chest, his fingers still attacking her right side as he did so.
She hadn’t realized how strong he was. She tried her best to wiggle out of his grip, which only made his arm around her tighten and her back press further into his chest. After another moment, she felt his fingers slow to a stop, his laughter falling away as well. Her hands that were firmly on his arm a moment ago now gently rested, her skin against his. She could feel his breathing against her back as his chest rose and fell with each breath. She could feel those breaths washing down her cheek and neck as they stood there, her still firmly encircled in him.
She should move, right? Take a step out of his arms. She found, to her surprise, that she didn’t want to. She wanted to stay exactly where she was. Her skin was tingling and her mind was spinning.
Why wasn’t he moving to let her go? Why did she feel like the butterflies in her chest were trying to crawl their way out? Why did she feel safe?
Her mind was brought back to the moment as Garreth gently whispered her name.
She spun her body slightly to look up at him, his hand sliding to rest on her hip as she did so.
Those wonderful green eyes that she loved so much were full of admiration and something she couldn’t quite place.
He spoke, barely a whisper. She wouldn’t have even heard him if they weren’t so close at that moment. She could feel the heat that everyone of his breaths left in its wake on her face, “Emilia…..I’m going to do something, and I don’t know what’s going to happen after, but I can’t hold myself back any more.”
“Wh-”
And then he kissed her.
He kissed her.
If her heart wasn’t already beating a mile a minute, he was now. She took a sharp breath in through her nose as his lips found hers.
His soft, wonderful lips. She had never known she needed something so badly in her life.
Her eyes fluttered closed as his hands made their way to the nape of her neck, thumbs resting gingerly behind her ears. She rested her hands against his chest, which caused him to take another quick breath.
The only sounds that filled the room at that moment were a slowly bubbling cauldron and lips working together gingerly in a wonderfully sweet kiss.
After what felt like forever and not long enough all at once, he spoke again, “I..Wow, I never imagined it would be this nice.”
“Imagined?” She asked, a little shocked at his confession.
She saw his face grow pink under those freckles she found herself loving more as each second ticked by.
“Well, yeah” He chuckled, “I’ve been dying to kiss you for a lot longer than I’d care to admit.”
She found herself smiling up at him, “Oh, well, in that case. I’ll just have to get the answer out of you.”
He raised a brow questioningly at her, “Oh? And how do you plan on doing that, Miss Findley?”
She smirked, “That’s for me to know and you to find out.”
“As long as I can kiss you again, I don’t much mind what you do.”
That was all the invitation she needed to practically leap into him as she kissed him again. His lips fought back with a new hunger that was starkly laking before. Like he was being given water after a long walk through a desert. She wasn’t complaining, she found herself to live for the feeling. The feeling of him thirsty for something only she could give him.
She only hoped that he would continue this little study session, together and alone. Anything could happen, right?
As if he was reading her mind, she quickly felt his hands pick her up and set her on the table next to all of the homework they were supposed to be doing, slotting himself between her legs as he started letting his hands roam. She let out a small gasp as his lips left hers to find the soft skin of her neck, sucking lightly.
She could feel him smile into her skin as she reacted to him, “You do things to me, Em….So many things.”
She couldn’t help but giggle before pulling his head back to look at her, “Well, you can show me what I do to you later. We have homework to get done, and I don’t much feel like failing.”
He pouted, “Oh, come on, just a little?”
She wrapped her fingers around his tie and pulled him in, bringing her lips to his ear, “Later, you can show me whatever you want.”
His breath caught as he felt her breath caress his ear. Oh, he would be showing her a lot after they got this blasted Potions homework done.