"Potter, seriously. Stop it," Lily hissed in exasperation as James attempted for the umpteenth time to distract her from the Charms essay they were both supposed to be writing.
Unperturbed, James turned his head to smirk up at her, hazel eyes twinkling devilishly behind his glasses.
"Oh, so it's back to Potter now?" he asked, quirking an eyebrow and fighting to keep himself from laughing at the adorably frustrated expression on Lily's face.
He wasn't sure why she was so adamant about finishing their essay today. It wasn't due for another two days, and it wasn't as though the topic was difficult for either of them. They had been in the Library for the entire free period, and that, in James' humble opinion, was more than enough time spent in a place where you weren't allowed to talk and were highly discouraged from smiling or even having the slightest bit of fun.
Ignoring his comment, Lily tried once again to unlink their arms, but James just moved his and trapped her forearm between his elbow and the table.
Pursing her lips, she glared down at him with narrowed eyes and said, "Very funny. You can let go of me now."
"But I don't want to let go of you," he responded, unclasping his hands and reaching instead to twine his fingers through hers. "I spent such a long time chasing you, and now that I've finally caught youÉ"
"James!" Lily protested in a half whisper, a blush rising in her cheeks as she tried half-heartedly to pull her hand out of his grasp. Madame Pince had a zero-tolerance policy for public displays of affection in the library, and Lily did not fancy being hustled out of the room by the hawk-nosed, eagle-eyed librarian. It was nearly impossible to remember that, however, when James was looking at her like this.
Recognizing that her will was wavering, James seized his advantage and pressed it further.
"Besides, we have until Friday to turn in our essays," he said. "That's plenty of time to finish them. Free period's almost over anyway."
"Well I'll finish by Friday. You haven't even started yours," Lily pointed out.
James rolled his eyes.
"Will you let me worry about that?" he asked.
Lily opened her mouth to respond, thought better of it, and sighed.
"Sorry," she murmured, dropping her gaze to their clasped hands, which were still resting on the table.
"It's all right," he said, lifting their hands so he could press a kiss to the back of hers. "You're awfully cute when you're worrying about me."
Lily raised her head, her lips twitching in a fond smile as their eyes met.
"Yes wellÉ can I at least finish my sentence?" she asked.
Before James could respond, a shadow fell over their table. They both looked up, and Lily flushed scarlet as she recognized Madame Pince standing over them, her arms crossed and her expression dour. Even James had the grace to look sheepish, and he immediately let go of Lily's hand.
"Are you aware, Potter, that this is a place of learning?" Pince demanded, her eyebrows narrowed in extreme disapproval as she glared down at the Head students.
"Yes ma'am," he responded, his face the picture of innocence. "I was just erÉ taking a break." In order to make this claim more believable, he picked up his quill and began scribbling on his parchment.
Madame Pince had enough experience with James to know that this was not likely to be the case, but since both students were now occupied with their essays, she could find nothing more to reprimand them for.
"Humph," she grumbled and shot one last glare at James before turning and stalking away.
James glanced sideways at Lily, saw that she was busily writing again, and sighed. Slowly, he reached into his booksack for his Charms textbook and set it open on the table in front of him. With one hand resting idly on his knee, he cradled his head in the other and began to read.
His reluctant bout of studiousness was interrupted a few seconds later when he felt Lily reach under the table and clasp his free hand. Surprised, he turned to look at her, but she just winked and squeezed his hand briefly. With renewed enthusiasm, James returned his attention to his textbook. Perhaps a bit of studying wouldn't kill him after all.