Mischief Managed | 𝘚𝘪𝘳𝘪𝘶𝘴 𝘉𝘭𝘢𝘤𝘬

Chapter 70

Jenna sighed to herself in annoyance as she walked into the kitchen, away from the crowded hall and the loud noises. She tried to avoid coming across any more relatives, not in the mood for kisses and hugs and greetings.

     So, she sat behind the small and round kitchen table moodily, resting her chin on her arms which were crossed on the table.

     She listened to the gentle sound of laughter and music; to the peaceful piano played alongside violin and cello. She could even hear the faint sound of the magical harp every once in a while. Her feet moved under the table to the rhythm of the light music, though the expression on her face was filled with boredom.

     After long minutes of sitting there all alone, her head shot up when someone said from behind her, "Want a guest?"

    Looking up, Jenna felt a smile brew on her lips when she saw Sirius walking into the kitchen, his hands handsomely in his pockets and his silky black hair falling around his face in a graceful manner that James's hair could never attain.

     "Where's James?" Jenna questioned, trying to keep her face from showing any sign of nervousness or excitement as Sirius took the seat beside her at the kitchen table.

     "As soon as we walked downstairs to come looking for you, another group of old witches and wizards surrounded him." He sniggered. "Poor guy. He looked trapped."

    "Yeah, I don't suppose he'll be able to get out of that one for another half-hour." Jenna giggled at the thought, though they fell into a long silence afterwards, having no idea what they were supposed to say.

     Jenna couldn't understand what was wrong with her and why it was so hard for her to speak in his presence as of lately. Last year she didn't have a problem whatsoever, and treated Sirius like any other friend of hers. But as it seemed, so much had changed since last year.

Jenna stole another glance at Sirius who was sitting beside her silently, but she saw a look of distress over his complexion, his brows furrowed and his gaze fixed on the table before him.

"You okay?" Jenna asked, recovering her power of speech with difficulty.

"Yeah — I mean, no — my mother —" Sirius mumbled, but then he shook his head, falling quiet once more.

"You know you can talk to me, right?" Jenna said in a softer tone, and then, before she could stop herself or think about what she was doing, she reached out and placed her hand over Sirius's and held it.

Sirius stiffed at her touch, his grey eyes now on where she held his hand on the table before them, his heart racing as he tried to control his breathing.

"It's fine," Sirius whispered, even though he was clearly lying. He hated talking about his feelings.

The truth was, he was scared of going back home tonight, knowing that his mother would be furious at him for running away on Christmas eve. But he still thoughts it was worth it, because he would give anything to be here at the Potter Manor longer.

Deep down, he felt jealous of the life James and Jenna had here. He envied their parents, and the way they treated their children. It made him wish want to stay here forever.

     Sirius quickly cleared his throat before he could get drowned in his own thoughts. He then managed a small grin. "We should better go and save James."

Jenna chuckled, getting up from her seat. "You're right. They're probably hugging and squeezing the life out of him."

With goofy smiles on both their lips, they started to make their way out of the kitchen, but before Jenna could take a step outside the doorway, Sirius grabbed onto her wrist, holding her back.

"What?" Jenna asked, ignoring the tingles she was feeling where his hand touched her skin.

    "Look! A mistletoe!" Sirius said with a grin and pointed up as the both of them were standing at the kitchen's doorway. "It's tradition to kiss under mistletoes. Did you know?"

Jenna's heart flipped in her chest and a shiver ran down her spine at those words. She felt her face heat up as a blush ran across her cheeks.

     "Oh..." She bit the inside of her cheek shyly, trying hard to prevent her hair from turning pink.

     At the nervous look across her complexion, Sirius immediately regretted saying those words out loud. It wasn't his intention make her feel uncomfortable, and he was merely stating a fact.

     Although now that she was here, standing alone with him underneath the mistletoe with the light music playing, he couldn't help but to say the words that he'd been thinking about for months now.

     "So..." Sirius started hesitantly, his heart beating rapidly as he tried to make out the words. "C-can I kiss you?"

      Jenna looked up at him with surprise, even though he wasn't much taller than her. Her hair then turned a deep shade of pink, caught off guard at the sudden question.

Sirius kept his grey eyes fixed on her as Jenna looked down at her feet nervously. At last, mustering all the courage and confidence she had left in him, Jenna managed to give a small nod.

Sirius's lips twitched up into a smile. This was the moment he'd been thinking about for months, though each time he had to curse himself for even thinking about kissing his best friend's sister.

His stomach lurched when he saw Jenna close her eyes, and all color drained from his face. He couldn't remember feeling this nervous in his entire life.

He wanted to lean his face forward quickly, afraid that if he took too long she would change her mind and run away. But he stood there on the spot, taking the moment in; from her long wavy pink hair, to her rosy cheeks and her hazel eyes which were shut close.

Jenna's heartbeat started to beat up even more when she felt Sirius start to move closer toward her in small steps, that short second feeling like minutes.

     She didn't know what she was supposed to do when his lips touched hers or where her hands were supposed to go, so she just kept them by her side.

Slowly and hesitantly, Sirius leaned his face down with his eyes closed as well, their lips now only an inch apart, lightly brushing against one another. And then, for a quick moment that felt like eternity, he finally pressed his lips down on hers and kissed her.