Lay All Your Love
“Hi, sorry I took so long,” Lily handed Mary a red solo cup filled with a pink and lemon liquid, “Remus was drooling over posh-o boy over there.” She nodded her head to where Sirius and his friends were talking to Marlene, Peter, and Emmeline.
“Oh, Sirius?” She took the drink carefully so as to not spill on her clothes, or on Marlene’s mum’s couch. Mrs. Mckinnon wasn’t a harsh woman but she wasn’t an easy one either, difficult in ways only Marlene really knew of and despite her ‘I don’t give a shit, we’re throwing a party anyways’ mantra, Mary knew her better than that. Especially given the intense drinking Marlene had insisted on doing. Yeah, Mary understood that.
“Yeah, you know them?” Lily sat down next to her, sipping the pink drink.
“Yeah, I knew them from school.” She explained. “Well not all of them, of them is more like it and not all that well. I dated Sirius when we were younger and Peter was only in a few of my classes. Only really knew of James through them and Emme, never really talked, and then Marls and I have been friends since before I can remember '' Mary smiled to herself, remembering back on her previous school days, everything used to be so simple.
It actually wasn’t that simple, but in comparison, it was enough for Mary to miss it.
“You two dated?” Lily glanced back at Sirius and then looked down at her drink.
“Ages ago.” She waved it off, “It was alright but we both figured we were better off as friends.” Mary watched as Lily clung to every word, playing with her hands that wrapped around her cup.
It took her a minute until, oh, Lily thought-
“And we both realised we had other um.. interests in that department.” Mary added carefully, hoping she was being clear enough.
Sometimes Mary forgot that not everyone was queer and more so, that not everyone in the world knew she was a raging bisexual.
And it was true, what she’d said. During their time dating, she and Sirius had fun. They were always together and it was brilliant but it didn’t last long, they would bicker about stupid things and truthfully, Mary knew it was vital for their friendship that they quit while they were ahead.
And, her interests had changed but she wasn’t about to let Lily know just yet why.
“Oh.” Lily looked up at her, her face a little pink as she did, “That’s good.”
“Is it?” She asked because, why not. It didn’t hurt to hear.
“Yes, very.”
“And you?” Mary already knew the answer to this question from Emmeline but she wanted to hear it from Lily. Because it only meant something if she heard it from her.
“Yes.” Lily laughed softly to herself, “Incredibly so.”
They exchanged a short smile as Mary tried to hide hers in drinking the mixture Lily had brought her. It was sweet with a tang of lemon, and without any trace of booze. She raised an eyebrow at Lily when she swallowed. It took her a minute until she realised what Mary was referring to.
“Oh sorry, I’m driving tonight so I'm not supposed to drink,” Her eyes widened a bit as she blushed, “Didn’t mean to rope you into that, I wasn’t thinking. Sorry, I can get you another, if you’d like.”
“Don’t be, if you’re not drinking, I’m not drinking.” Mary made a cheers motion with her cup and had another sip. It wasn’t like Mary couldn’t have fun without drinking because she could. In fact, some would say she’s more fun without it but talking to Lily Evans was something she wanted to do sober anyways, she wanted to remember everything. So promising to keep sober really wasn’t a bother.
Lily smiled again (there was a lot of instinctive smiling happening) as she leaned her side against the couch.
“So you went to Hogwarts then?” Lily asked, reaching up to fidget with her necklace.
“Yeah, Gryffindor. Same year as you, actually.”
Lily’s eyes widened in shock, “And we’ve never met?”
Actually, they had met before. Once.
Mary had been rushing to maths after a petty argument with Sirius and Lily had also been late for something, she hadn’t bothered to ask what for, but Mary had run head on into the poor girl, sending her straight to the ground. Books everywhere and one very embarrassed and flustered Mary quickly running off down the corridor, after a quick “I’m so sorry”, so she wouldn’t have to face Lily.
Actually, Mary kind of assumed Lily resented her for it for a while, but that would mean Lily would actually have to care enough to hate her or even remember who ran into her, which she didn’t. Which stung in a different way altogether.
Mary had seen her around school before, off and on, always dodging in and out of her classes and slipping through people's attempts to keep her in conversation to run off to the library. She was easy to spot, though Lily seemed to think she was invisible most of the time, with her bright red hair and green eyes that Mary would recognize anywhere.
Over the years after that, Mary developed a sort of interest in the girl. Looking out for her, taking the long way to class to glimpse at her scurrying about, and soon enough, Mary became infatuated with her without even realising it.
And then she accidentally knocked her to the floor and couldn’t get over her nerves enough to stay and help her up. Yeah, okay, not Mary’s proudest moment.
So technically, they had met before.
But Mary wouldn’t blame Lily for not remembering, maybe it was for the best. It was a big school and honestly, Mary wouldn’t even have known Lily’s name to begin with if Sirius hadn’t said something about James having a crush on ‘some redheaded girl’ when they were younger.
If she’s being honest now, Mary had been jealous of James because surely, Lily would swoon for him, right? Lots of girls seemed to but not Lily. And despite many, many others who wanted her attention, Lily never really took any interest in any boys, from what Mary had realised and she sometimes wondered if she even knew that James had a thing for her, if she was even aware of how admired she was, not just by Mary. It was like Lily Evans was in her own little world sometimes and sixteen year old Mary wanted to live in it, to see it, explore it.
Now, eighteen year old Mary was sitting in front of her, watching the pink on her cheeks come and go and her fingers as they twisted in her gold necklace.
“You always seemed a bit busy, really.” Mary laughed as she shrugged.
“Wait so you knew who I was, then?” Lily rolled her head against the cushion, strands of red hair falling across her eyes. Mary had to refocus herself on the question to not get lost in them.
“I hear things and I have my ways.”
“All good things, I hope?” Lily asked teasingly but the worry in her voice wasn’t as hidden as she probably hoped.
Almost regrettably, Mary knew what she meant.
There were rumours about Lily in school. Mean things people would whisper back and forth behind her back and even to her face. Even the nice things were twisted in some way shape or form. Either people wanted her and wanted to be her or they didn't and hated her for it, either she kept too much to herself or spoke up in class too often, and people made fun of her for it either way. There was never one reason really, only that it was horrid and Mary despised every bit of it, cursing out anyone who would partake in it. She did that sort of thing with most rumours but with Lily, it felt personal, whether anyone knew it or not.
“Only the things that were true,” Mary shook her head and rested her hand on Lily’s knee, taking it away just as quickly to see if that was okay. Lily smiled and cradled her cup to her face, cheeks turning a soft pink, so she let her hand return.
They sort of just lingered there like that, sipping their drinks and watching people pass by them.
Mary counted the heads of people coming in, glancing around to check in on her friends, looking briefly over at Sirius, who looked quite pathetically captivated with Remus as The Cranberries song that was playing came to an end. Good on him, she silently cheered him on from a far.
“Did it hurt?”
Mary looked back at Lily to find that she was unashamedly gazing at her. A flurry of butterflies tangled in her stomach at the thought of it. Lily Evans was looking at her. Keep it cool, she told herself again and again.
“Did what hurt?” Another smile pulling at her lips (something about Lily made her more smiley than usual and if it was anyone else, she’d think it was pathetic).
“Your nose ring.” She gestured to the spot on her own nose where Mary’s piercing was.
“Oh, not really. Not as much as I thought it would, honestly.” She shook her head calmly.
“It looks so bloody cool, I hope you know.”
“That's why I got it, love.” She sort of blurted out, under whatever spell Lily calling her cool had put her under. Beyond pleased at the fact that Lily was admiring her, Mary admired her right back.
“So what’ve you been up to now?” Mary rested her head on her arm comfortably on the headrest to match Lily.
“Well let's see, I work at a coffee shop near my flat, well, I share the flat with Remus but same thing.” She explained with her hands. Mary realised that she did that a lot when explaining things and it was endearing and quite honestly mesmerising. Her hands were painted with red polish that matched the shade of lipstick she was wearing, which suited her beautifully.
They were closer now, huddled in a sort of way so the music wouldn’t drown them out and Mary admired her from the newfound short distance. Noting the freckles spotted over the bridge of her nose and down on the top of her lip, the mascara on her lashes that made her green eyes pop.
Lily was lovely, she’d always known that, even from just seeing her across corridors, but this was more than she could’ve ever known. Because Lily Evans is lovely and Mary is here in front of her, getting to witness it.
“We moved in together after school, his dad’s shit and his mum, sweet thing, wanted him to get out so we got a place where he can still visit her,” Lily continued in the same breath, “And it’s not like I had anything better to do, I love my mum and dad but my sister is a pain and she’s not moving out anytime soon so I thought, fuck it, why not.”
Mary listened intently and a part of her thought she could listen to Lily’s voice for hours.
“You’ll have to come visit if you’re in the area!” Lily exclaimed, grabbing Mary’s hand without thinking twice about it and the contact sent chills down her spine. Her eyes fluttered down to their hands as she felt her face grow a bit warm.
Lily squeezed her hand softly then let it go, flushing under the red solo cup that she’d brought once again to her lips.
Mary was a mess. And over what? A hand?
God, she had to get herself together. She’d managed it so far and for so long, but now she was losing it. Unfolding just from the slight touch of Lily’s hand, oh, she’s so screwed.
“Oh my god, I love this song.” Lily almost spit out her drink, looking at Mary with wide eyes.
“Yeah?” Mary brought herself back to pick up on what was playing. Hungry Eyes. Dirty Dancing. Lily was already swaying and singing along with her eyes closed, barely audible.
I’ve been meaning to tell you
I’ve got this feeling that won’t subside
I look at you and I fantasise
You’re mine tonight.
How fucking on brand, Mary laughed a little.
“Well then, Lils, can I ask you to dance?” The nickname surprised even her to be fair, but it just slipped out and Lily didn’t seem to mind it. Her eyes blinked open and that same pink flush came back to her face. It suited her so well that Mary thought about saying it again all night just to see it keep happening.
She stood up and straightened out her skirt, turning to where Lily was leaning back on the couch, extending out a hand and raising a playful eyebrow.
Lily’s face soon mirrored Mary’s grin as she took her hand and let Mary pull her into the already dancing crowd.
She spun Lily twice around under her arm and soon they were both giggling and swaying to the music.
Lily’s hair whipped around her and bobbed from side to side against her shoulders and Mary had to remind herself not to stare. Now inside the warmth of the moving crowd, they were closer together and more often than not, Lily’s arm would brush against Marys’ or a shoulder would touch and a hand would find its way around the other’s. It nearly killed Mary every single time.
The only thing that made it alright was the idea that maybe Lily was feeling half as panicked as she was.
Ridiculous, because she’d only just met her, after all, and Mary has been helplessly er- interested (did she know it at the time? Maybe, maybe not, it isn’t important) over this girl since she was sixteen.
Lily was mouthing and singing along with the song as it drew nearer to a close and Mary couldn’t take her eyes away.
Now did I take you by surprise
I need you to see
This love was meant to be
Absentmindedly, she reached out a hand to tuck a stray piece of red hair behind Lily’s ear. Not that it did much as her overgrown fringe was now scattered across her forehead and into her eyes but it didn’t matter.
“You’re so lovely.” She breathed out, awe-struck and gently rocking as the song’s outro faded into the background.
Whether she’d actually meant for Lily to hear her or not, she didn’t, too busy taking in the rest of the song before the next one began so Mary let the soft words linger in the air between them. Hear me, she begged silently, know that I think you’re lovely, know that I thought the world of you before I even knew you.
Suddenly her thoughts were interrupted as a man with short dark hair and a square jaw grabbed Lily’s arm and twirled her away from Mary, just as Mary had done not a few minutes before.
The next song started playing but it was one she didn’t recognize.
“Lils-” She called out, as she watched Lily be spun around a few times, dancing cautiously with the other man, looking rightfully confused. The nerve of this guy.
Mary sort of recognized him actually, Benjy Fenwick, she tried to remember. She didn’t know him personally but she wasn’t blind and Lily (as mentioned) was a very pretty girl and boys were like this. Assholes who think they can do anything they want, whenever it pleases them, with whoever they like, that is. It was no hidden thing that he obviously was interested in her, or at least enough for him to try and steal her away but no matter how pure Fenwick’s intentions were, Mary was not about to lose her moments with Lily to him.
“Oi, Fenwick,” She called again, pushing past some dancing people, “We were actually dancing, if you don’t mind.” Mary gestured with her hand to the space between them.
“Oh chill out, MacDonald, surely your friend can spare a dance or two.” He furrowed his brows like this was completely okay. The word friend echoed in Mary’s ear because really, what were they? Friends? Acquaintances? Old schoolmates? There wasn’t really a word for it. When people see a boy and a girl together, there's something so loud that's left unspoken but everyone understands it- in fact, they assume it, but when it’s Mary and Lily, it’s friends? Seemed unfair but even she was at a loss for an alternative.
“Mary, it’s fine.” Lily pressed her mouth into a straight line. An imitation smile, not like the one she had with Mary but one that was necessary. Mary despised it, and hated that it was needed.
She gave a quick look at Lily who just nodded again in a silent, I’ll find you after, and Mary gave one back sending a, you better, Evans.
So she slowly backed up, resisting all urge to rip Benjy Fenwick apart for this, begrudgingly making her way outside the crowd where Marlene, Peter, James, and Emmeline were still talking amongst themselves.
“Fuck my life.” Mary leaned against the counter on Marlene’s shoulder, letting herself become a dead weight.
“Fuck your life.” Marlene reiterated with blind confidence that brought back a hint of Mary’s smile. “What's wrong, babes?”
“Benjy fucking Fenwick stole my dance partner.” She scoffed into Marlene’s hair, fighting the impulse to reach for the red solo cup in her hand that she knew would have something stronger than juice in it, but she promised Lily should wouldn’t drink if she couldn’t and well, she wasn’t going to be breaking her first and only promise to Lily Evans, now. Even if it did seem so much more appealing now that Lily was off dancing with some gross bloke that probably didn’t even know how to wash his own ass.
“Oh, so you and Lily are getting along then?” Emmeline raised her eyebrows in suggestion.
“Well, we were.” She bit, throwing invisible daggers at Benjy’s head with her mind.
“Wait, you and Evans?” James suddenly perked up, like he’d just now registered what was going on.
“Yes, Potter, the love of your fourteen year old life that has never even spoken a word to you, yes her.” Mary rolled her eyes, half joking. Her own adolescent jealousy apparently still there.
“Sirius told you?” He looked a bit surprised by it as if he hadn’t been the one making it known to the entire school himself.
“Yeah but I wouldn’t exactly say subtlety is a talent of yours.”
“Oh right yeah,” James rubbed the side of his neck, about to say something else when Marlene cut him off again. James looked around and eventually resorted to telling Peter and Peter made a face as his friend shrugged helplessly. But the way Peter reacted told Mary that it wasn’t about Lily.
It was sort of a relief, really. She knew from Sirius that James had well moved on from Lily when he couldn’t get her to talk to him or confirm his existence or hell, even find her (he wasn’t as observant as Mary was, or even that determined, really) but it was nice knowing she didn’t have to worry about it now.
“It’s jus’ one dance.” Marlene patted her head into the side of her own, clearly a bit out of it. Mary knew it was supposed to be comforting but didn’t make her feel any better.
The song playing was pretty upbeat and Lily was doing circles around Fenwick who was standing unflatteringly in place, bobbing his head and barely moving his arms as he watched her. Lily’s hair was swaying from side to side again and Mary felt the urge to hold a handful of it and let it run through her fingers, just to know what it felt like.
Peter was joking about something and comedically retelling a story from no doubt whatever they had been doing earlier that night to Emmeline and Marlene, with James as backup nodding along and inserting crucial details or facial expressions when needed. They were apparently at Sirius’ family’s house for the Black family party, which She found odd that Sirius would voluntarily go in the first place but then again, Mary only knew a piece of what that family was capable of and even that was enough to give her chills so she didn’t question it. Sirius had his reasons. He always did. Marlene scoffed and laughed and said something to the effect of fuck that, they can all rot, which was kind of funny seeing as thats usually exactly what Sirius would say, word for word.
Marlene and Emmeline didn’t know the boys as much as Mary did, and even as she didn’t know them all that well, she realised that Marlene probably hadn’t known their existence outside of Sirius before this, which made her feel a bit bad for leaving her with them. The feeling was thankfully fleeting as she saw everyone happily and easily getting on with each other. James and Marlene had gotten to talking about art and sports or something and Peter, who knew the most people out of the four of them, was reminiscing on school days with Emme.
The rest of their conversation was a blur and Mary’s attention was concentrated on Lily, counting down the seconds until the song was over.
Finally, the song came to a close but Fenwick was still there, doing whatever the fuck it was that he called dancing and honestly, she expected Lily to be more irritated. Instead, she was smiling and laughing at something, which in itself was enough for Mary to want to rip his head off, but for a completely different reason this time.
“Alright, go get her.” Marlene tapped her head again like a pet, slurring the ends of her words a little bit, which was weirdly comforting this time, as she pushed herself off the counter. The group wished her good luck as she weaved in and out of the flowing crowd of people.
As if on fucking cue, the next song started up.
ABBA, Lay All Your Love On Me.
If Mary wasn’t still irritated and truthfully pissed off by Benjy’s previous interruption, she’d laugh at the song choice. Whoever was choosing the music, she’d need a good chat with them afterwards.
I wasn’t jealous before we met
Now every woman I see is a potential threat
And I’m possessive it isn’t nice
Actually comical, Mary thought, as the music pounded in her ears and vibrated off the walls through her chest
Walking straight for her, she caught Lily’s eye and a smile- a different, brighter smile just for Mary- etched itself onto her lips. It was real and beautiful and it gave her a sudden surge of confidence.
Without so much as a warning, she reached them and took hold of Lily’s hand and spun her around again, the momentum slamming her body forward into Mary’s chest, fitting them snugly together with their foreheads nearly touching and more importantly, their lips.
Lily’s green eyes slowly glanced up to meet Mary’s and they exchanged a breathless smile.
I beg of you
Don’t go wasting your emotion
Lay all your love on me
“Come to save me, hmm?” Lily’s eyes narrowed playfully and it drove Mary insane.
“Not that you need saving, Evans.” She returned just the same, tilting her head so her forehead rested against Lily’s and close enough to feel the lingering warmth of her voice on her chin, “But I am here to ask you to dance- again.”
“Oh, I thought you’d never ask- again.”
They giggled lighty and Lily spun Mary out this time, twirling her so her flared top and black skirt spun with her, giving her nearly no time to catch her breath as Lily caught her again, pressed together again only for a few seconds, hand placed ever so perfectly in the small of her back.
Yeah, Mary was weak.
I still don’t know what you’ve done to me
A grown up woman should never fall so easily
I feel a kind of fear
When I don’t have you near
Okay, Mary really needed to have a serious chat with the person responsible for this timing.
“Hey!” Benjy’s voice interrupted them for the second time that night, which was more than Mary deemed acceptable. They thoughtfully ignored him, looking lazily at each other until Mary finally just flipped him off and told him to get lost. Throwing his hands in the air like a upset child, he gave up and left
“What a dick” They said to each other in unison which only caused another fit of giggles.
ABBA continued to play, echoing in Mary’s ear as she and Lily danced around each other, pulling each other close and laughing about nothing in particular. Lily had taken up to singing along again but this time louder and clear enough for Mary to hear her.
Don’t go wasting your emotion
Lay all your love on me
Something about Lily Evans near yelling those words into Mary’s face sent chills up and down her arms and the back of her neck.
Lily brought her close again and Mary wrapped her arms around Lily’s shoulders, looking at the pink blush spreading over Lily’s face. There was no way Lily couldn’t know. They were both ridiculously sober and Mary was practically all over her. This wasn’t Mary’s imagination or one of her wild hopes, this was real.
It had to be.
Right?
The song was getting repetitive and fading out and Lily’s hair had fallen into her face again from rocking her head back and forth on her shoulders. Her eyelids shut so she could see the specks of glitter that lay a stray on her face. Her fingers that were linked at the small of Mary’s back were fiddling with the fabric of her shirt and she desperately didn’t want this to end. It was all so utterly enchanting and she was a little sad to think that it might stop when the song finally gave out.
Mary watched as Lily’s eyes slowly blinked at her, not saying a single word. She could almost physically feel her heart jump up into her throat and the butterflies that continued to fly around in her stomach, sending her into a warm heavy eyed trance every time. She cupped the back of Lily’s neck with one of her hands softly and brushed her thumb gently beneath her jaw.
Lily Evans was the girl men would’ve fought wars over, Mary thought as she traced the light freckles decorating her skin, but it wasn’t until Lily looked at her like this- like she was the only person in that room- that Mary realised she could actually win.
“Do you want to go somewhere,” The words were out of her mouth before she could fully think it through, “Quieter?”
Lily smiled that smile that made Mary a little weak (a lot weak) in the knees and she leaned in closer than she’d ever done before, siding her face closely to Mary’s cheek. She could feel her breath against her face and her ear and the side of her neck.
Yeah, weak.
“Lead the way, love.” Lily whispered so she could hear her but it was more than that. The music wasn’t even that loud right now, changing in between songs and such, but this was intimate. This was between the two of them. Like a secret only they knew and words that only Mary’s ears would hear. It was nothing, really, but it was everything.
Without hesitation, Mary took her wrist and led her through the sea of people, all wrapped up in moments of their own. Soon they were laughing again and trying to feel the walls as they rushed down the corridor, past the kitchen and closed doors and learned the hard way a couple of times why most of them were closed in the first place.
They reached the door that led to the outside garden area, pushing open the door into the darkness, feeling the rush of fresh air break the warm interior of the house.
“Oi, piss off.” A voice scolded them as Lily and Mary came giggling out into the open.
“Sirius?” Mary stopped in her tracks. You’re fucking shitting me right now.
“Mary?” Perfect.
“I’m with someone here so go have a smoke break somewhere else.” She grumbled but as soon as she said it, it came to her. Oh. Because Sirius wasn’t alone. Remus. Oh, gag. She wished on everything that she didn’t just catch her ex-boyfriend and newly met friend in the middle of a heavy make out, cock-sucking situation. Not that she hadn’t walked in on weirder things but still, it wasn’t something she welcomed seeing.
“Lily?” The other voice came into the mix.
“Remus?” Lily chuckled into Mary’s shoulder, her fingers still intertwined with hers.
“Oh, fucking hell.” Sirius groaned dramatically, running his hand over his face that Mary was only vaguely able to make out, her eyes finally adjusting to the lack of light.
“Alright, alright, get back to it you animals” Mary teased, pulling Lily back to the doorway.
Sirius audibly barked in response to Mary and she made a loud biting sound back, snapping her teeth together before they both broke into jokes under their breath, exchanging a quick high five before carrying on (which Mary prayed was with a clean hand). Remus and Lily did the same, blowing each other a quick kiss and a fistbump before Mary dragged Lily away and they were off again.
Soon enough, they were back racing through the main room and up the stairs, Mary attempting to take them two at a time out of sheer excitement, when they reached another corridor and made their way down it quickly, opening doors and knocking to check for vacancy.
Finally, they found an empty room, Marlene’s guest room that no one seemed to have the idea to check (Mary’s first idea was Marlene’s room until she remembered that it had been locked for that very specific reason, which originally had been Mary’s idea too).
They flopped down on the bed and sighed heavily, breaking out into sporadic fits of giggles and mimicking the faces of people they’d walked in on. The walls were a dim beige and the yellow light was turned down to fit the mood of the house. The bed was fairly large, with blankets tucked in at all corners and a sturdy dark wooden frame that curled into neat designs at the edges. All of which were irrelevant with Lily Evans laying so close to her.
She rolled over on her side to face her, listening to the muffled music from downstairs vibrate through the floor, the lyrics were undecipherable but the beat was relaxing from this far away.
“Hi.” Lily breathed slowly, staring at Mary with those wide green eyes.
“Hi.”
“Lily?”
“Mary.”
“I really like you.” Out of all the things she wanted to say to Lily, that’s what came out. Not that it wasn’t true, it was, it’s just there was more. So much more that Mary wanted to tell her.
“I really like you too.” Lily’s face twitched into a small grin, her red hair falling perfecting into place around her forehead, her hand tucked between the side of her head and the blanket.
They sort of just stayed like that, gazing at each other in the dim lighting. No ulterior motives or underlying reasons, just to simply take the other in. And Mary was more than content with that.
“Mary?”
“Lily.”
“Are you sure we haven’t met before?” Lily’s grin didn’t fade, taking her free hand and drawing faint shapes into Mary’s open palm.
“Not officially.” Mary answered truthfully. Neither of them moved or said anything more, Lily just kept looking at her in a way that made Mary’s heart beat out of her chest and want to explode
Tell her, just tell her, a pathetic sixteen year old version of herself persisted, She knows so just tell her. Tell her you want more than just this. More than just tonight.
“I ran into you.” Mary finally found herself confessing, “I was late for maths and we were sixteen, I was still dating Sirius at the time, and well, I didn't see you coming. I ran into you.”
“You… ran into me?” Lily blinked back at her, clearly trying to hold herself together from laughing or smiling or both but doing a very poor job of it.
“Yes, I spilled your books and papers everywhere, then I got so nervous I just left. Sorry...” Mary groaned, the memory coming back to her. The embarrassment and absolute dread that Lily, a girl she’d never even spoken to, would now despise her. Sixteen year old Mary was a bit dramatic in that aspect, hell, she still was, but Mary would sooner chop her own arm off than know that Lily Evans hated her. Or even mildly disliked her.
“If it helps you feel any better, I barely even remember that.” Lily bit back a smile, stroking her hand warmly.
“You know, you’d think it would.” Mary let out a muffled laugh of her own as she rolled over into the bedsheets, feeling herself go red for confessing something that sounded so silly out loud. Emme and Marlene would laugh at her right now if they saw what a mess she’d become.
She could tell her more, a little voice in her head offered.
How Mary couldn’t stop thinking about the mysterious red haired girl with a friendly smile in the months before and even more in the ones following, how she’d gotten nervous of the fact that she was breathing the same air as Lily, or that she was undyingly interested in her for three whole years. But she decided it’d be pointless. No use embarrassing herself anymore than she already had, especially when Lily was so close and right there, drawing careful stars into the back of her hand.
Maybe later, maybe one day, but not now.
“I really don’t want this to end tonight.” Mary whispered softer than she’d spoken before, gesturing a look between them that meant I don’t want us to end, a bit nervous for what Lily might say. She was being rather bold, really, but it seemed more than worth the risk.
“Then it won’t, Mary,” She brought Mary’s hand up to her lips and kissed her knuckles softly. Oh, her lips. Lily’s lips were soft. Of course they were, why wouldn’t they be. Mary’s mind started to wander. “Not if I have anything to say about it.”
“Good,” She sighed, releasing a breath that she didn’t know she was holding, “You’ve enchanted me, Lily Evans, and now I don’t think I’ll ever be the same again.” Lily smiled and made an endearing noise that passed as a quiet laugh, though Mary was not joking in the least.
The music from downstairs persisted and was a welcome hum of comfort as they watched each other in the steady calmness of just laying together.
“I’m going to kiss you, now,” Mary’s confidence returned ever so slightly, because now she couldn’t stop thinking about how soft Lily’s lips could be and how wonderful they might taste. “Is that alright?” Her voice almost a whisper now as she inched closer.
Lily’s cheeks blushed a bright shade of pink that stretched all the way over her nose and out to her ears, “I won’t stop you.”
Mary leaned in and gave her a chaste kiss, pulling back to test her reaction, when Lily leaned again for another. And another. And another. Sweet and gentle and perfect, it was.
Like fireworks going off in Mary’s brain and warmth spreading all the way to pool in her stomach. There was no way to explain it or describe it, how her lips fit perfectly with hers and how her breath filled her with life she didn’t realise she could be missing.
Kissing Lily was magic.
Lily propped herself on her arm so she was above Mary, kissing her again and again, holding her face with her free hand and coaxing her up into her mouth with the brush of her thumb against her neck. Each kiss became a little deeper and more passionate, each time a little hungerier and neither of them seemed to get enough.
In the few moments Lily broke away to pull her hair over her shoulder to one side, Mary got a quick look at her. How lovely she looked looking down at her and how her green eyes narrowed and softened into something between desire and sweetness. Before Mary could think about it any longer, Lily gave her a sweet smile and pressed a desperate kiss to her parting lips, waiting for Mary to let her in.
And she did, willingly.
So much so, that Mary was convinced she’d lost herself in it and she wasn’t the least bit unhappy about it.
They stayed in the guest bedroom for a long time and Mary was perfectly content, stroking Lily’s soft red hair that draped over her from where she laid across her chest, feeling Lily mindlessly play with the fabric of her shirt. They were both on the verge of falling asleep but both of them not willing to be the first to, whispering here and there to one another and pressing the occasional kiss to whatever scarce patch of skin they could reach. It was way late in the night by now and the music was still distantly playing, some sort of upbeat music that Mary couldn’t quite recognise.
She kissed the top of Lily’s head once more for good measure, secretly wishing to remain in this moment forever.
Because she did it.
Mary won.
She had Lily Evans in her arms and she could think of nothing else greater than that reward alone.