Chapter XI: Phase VI: Scaring Him
--
You sit there in your heartache
Waiting on some beautiful boy to
Save you from your old ways,
You play forgiveness,
Watch it now ... here he comes!
He doesn't look a thing like Jesus,
But he talks like a gentleman
Like you imagined when you were young
-"When You Were Young" by The Killers
--
Thursday
--
"I had a lot of fun tonight," Lily told Benjy with a small smile as the two stood in front of her dormitory after a date in Hogsmeade.
"Me too, especially the part where you ate two times your weight in Italian food."
"Oh shush you, you know how much I love Italian so you can't very well not expect me to indulge myself when we go somewhere as good as Luigi's."
"Of course, it's my fault," he teased her.
"Glad you finally realized," she told him with a wink.
"You're delusional."
"You adore me for it."
"That I do," he told her before pulling her into a kiss.
"Benjy," Lily whimpered when the two separated for air.
"I know, I know, trust me I know," he told her as he detangled himself from her. He kissed her on the check, bringing his mouth to her ear and hotly whispering, "Just once it is over, you are going to be tied to that bed of yours for a week making up for it, deal?"
"You've got it," she told him with a smile. "Night."
"Night, love," he told her before walking away.
--
So why do we choose the boys that are naughty?
I don't fit in so why do you want me?
And I know I can't tame you...but I just keep trying
Cause I love to wash in your old bathwater,
Love to think that you couldn't love another,
I'm on your list with all your other women.
But I still love to wash in your old bathwater,
You make me feel like I couldn't love another,
I can't help it...you're my kind of man…
-"Bathwater" by No Doubt
--
Friday
--
"Okay Lily, we have something to tell you and it may hurt-" Elle began as she and Alice took a seat by her the following day at lunch.
Alice, however, rebuffed all attempts and interrupted her, taking a more blunt approach. "That wanker of yours was fucking the slag last night after your date."
"Oy, I was talking," Elle complained.
"You took too long," Alice told her.
"I was trying to be supportive, unlike someone I know."
"Um girls, that may be hard to do considering Lily isn't even here anymore," Remus pointed out.
"What? Where'd she go? Why didn't you tell us sooner?" Elle asked.
"No worries, James followed her," Sirius told them.
"Oh, okay, he's good at that stuff," Alice shrugged.
"How can you say that? Don't you want to go and help her out?"
"I am the worst person at comforting people; he's great at it, especially with her. Why would I give her second rate support when there's someone that's better at it? I want her to get better, not feel worse, which is all that she'd feel if I tried. Let's be serious, I'm rather callous as far as that stuff's concerned."
"I guess," Elle mumbled.
"You know it's kind of ironic actually, he's emotionally unavailable in every romantic relationship he's ever in, but he's the one that's always there for you when you need someone to spill your heart out to," Elle commented.
"Oh my God, I never noticed that," Alice laughed.
"Hey, do you two think Lily might have a thing for James?" Remus suddenly asked.
"Nah, no way, too hung up on the prick for that, why?" Alice asked.
"I don't, we just think that James might like her… I mean he never said anything, but I don't know… he's different with her. We just thought that maybe since she spends so much time with him she might like him or something."
"Only as a friend. Wish she'd fancy him though, even the playboy is better than the prick, at least he's blunt about his indiscretions," Elle commented.
"They'd make a hot couple too," Alice agreed.
"Maybe, but you also have to imagine what the fights are like now, what if actual feelings were involved?" Sirius said.
That thought was one that everyone winced at.
--
There was a time,
She could never see him
And her fault
Was to always need him
-"So Much Work" by Pete Yorn
--
"Hey," she heard a voice greet her as a body placed itself right by her, but she never turned to look at him.
"Is he ever going to stop, James?" she asked him as the two sat on the floor of the astronomy tower, staring blankly at the sky.
"Do you honestly want me to answer that one?"
"Yes- no-I think?"
"Once a cheater, always a cheater, Lils."
"But there have been instances in which a bloke could change, haven't there? I mean you did, right?"
"Um… well… yeah, I guess, but-"
"I can change him James, I know I can," she said adamantly, a small smile forming on her face at the thought of it. "Thank you so much for that," she hugged him, giving him a peck on the cheek before leaving the room.
"Bloody hell, the woman's psycho," James cried as he threw his head into his hands in frustration.
--
Wedding bells ain't gonna chime,
With both of us guilty of crime.
And both of us sentenced to time
And now we're all alone…
Protect me from what I want,
Protect me, protect me…
-"Protect Me From What I Want" by Placebo
--
"You fucking idiot!" Alice yelled as she entered the Heads' common room.
"So I take it you heard about our conversation," James winced, anticipating the berating to come.
"You think? What kind of an idiot do you have to be to not realize that you shouldn't give her hope? Lily may come off as strong, but when it comes to her emotions-she doesn't fall in love all that easily, but when she does she falls hard."
"I know that and I regret it all. I just want what's best for her, I really do, she's a good mate."
Alice looked at him, analyzing him. With a sigh, she asked: "Do you have a crush on her, James?"
"I think she's hot."
Alice smiled, "So you do?"
"I'm dying to shag her, no doubt about that one, but I'd just fuck it up. We're better off as mates."
"Wow, respect for a girl, that's a new one for you."
"Thanks," he said sarcastically.
"No problem."
"You know, not that I'm complaining or anything, but you do realize that you went from yelling at me to joking with me in two minutes?"
"What can I say, I'm talented like that," she told him with a wink.
--
Who's to say
I can't do everything?
Well I can try,
And as I roll along I begin to find
Things aren't always just what they seem…
-"Upside Down" by Jack Johnson
--
Saturday
--
"Why do you look so happy?" James asked curiously as a Lily walked into the Heads' common room looking extremely satisfied with herself.
"Because I am a bloody genius."
"And why is that?"
"Last night, I saw Benjy and Rachel sneaking off together so I was feeling more then a bit spiteful this morning. I mean, here I am the loving girlfriend and there he is fucking my best mate - it's just, it's too much sometimes; I just feel like I want to give up. Anyway, I decided to scare him a bit.
"Okay, now I am definitely interested."
"Yes, your hatred for Benjy always was a good way to get your attention."
"You already knew that, now get on with the story."
"No need to be so pushy," she teased him. "Anyway, it happened this morning in the Great Hall…"
"Hey love," Lily turned to see Benjy standing before her.
"Hey, I didn't see you," she said, greeting him with a light peck on the check.
"Well here I am," he told her before giving her a proper kiss.
"Benjy no, not in public, you know that I hate it."
"Fine, fine," he told her as he stopped trying. "So I was thinking maybe you and I could leave around noon and stay at a nice hotel for the rest of the weekend."
"Oh Benjy, I'm not so sure if that would be a good idea."
"Oh, do you still have your period?" he asked, wincing as he said the last word with disgust.
"No," Lily said, trying to think of a plausible excuse. "It's just well-"
"What is it?" he asked her worriedly. "You can tell me Lils, whatever it is, I'm here."
"Well I've been having some discomfort-you know…down there, so I visited a healer yesterday and I was told that I have an STI… I mean, isn't that weird? How the hell did I get that when I'm in a monogamous relationship?"
"Wow- um, that's really weird."
"I know, right? How the bloody hell did I even contract it?"
"Uh well-that's odd-but um-well, you know I heard that some STI's can be transmitted by air, I mean that's possible right? If crabs can be spread through something like a toile seat, why can't an STI be air borne?"
"Um, I guess-listen I should probably go-have to-have to pick up some medication," she told him telling him he first excuse she could think of so she could escape and let out the laughter that was dying to combust at the pathetic excuse for contracting an imaginary STI.
So cute, but sometimes not the brightest crayon in the box really.
"That's bloody genius," James laughed as she told him the story.
"It's a spiteful girlfriend," she frowned.
"Yes, but you pull it off so well," he told her with a small smirk.
"Why thank you," she smiled, even if it was a bit forced.
They sat in an uncomfortable silence for a few minutes until James finally interrupted it. "So are we supposed to talk about your feelings and stuff now?"
Lily laughed, throwing a pillow at him, "You're an idiot."
"What? You just mentioned his infidelity, ergo the necessary pressing girl issue, and then there was the uncomfortable silence at which point I usually a run for it come to think of it."
"And the insensitive jackass comes out," she laughed.
"He had to at some point."
"Too true."
"Ugh, I'm bored," James announced, a few minutes later.
"You'll live."
"Let's do something fun."
"Like what?"
"Let's go get drunk, I'm rather fond of Drunk Lily."
"Need something to do anyway, let's go."
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