𝙉𝙤𝙩 𝙎𝙤 𝙂𝙤𝙡𝙙𝙚𝙣 ―𝐣𝐬𝐩

𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐓𝐡𝐢𝐫𝐭𝐞𝐞𝐧- 𝐂𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐫𝐲 𝐋𝐢𝐩𝐬

Martha

I was sitting in the library, leaning over Gwen's essay and trying to explain a tricky bit of Aguamenti charm theory to her, when I noticed her eyes kept darting up to me. It wasn't unusual—most of the younger students did that these days, especially since the whole school thought I was dating James Potter. The James Potter, Gryffindor Quidditch captain and the king of our house. It was ridiculous how much weight that title carried, but at Hogwarts, it was like being royalty.

Gwen was twirling her quill between her fingers, her gaze wide with curiosity. "So, um... what's it like? You know... dating him?"

I bit back a smile, finding her nosiness a little amusing. "It's fine," I said, trying to sound casual. "He's not as scary as he looks."

Gwen's face lit up. "But he's, like, so cool! He's the best Chaser at Hogwarts, and everyone talks about how amazing you guys look together. Are you going to the Halloween feast with him?"

I was about to answer when I heard someone behind me clear their throat. The air around us shifted, and I already knew who it was without turning around—James had this presence about him, an annoying mix of confidence and recklessness that could make anyone stop what they were doing.

"Hey, love," James said, his voice lazy but with that edge of mischief that was so him. Again, the way British men say the word "love" should be illegal.

I glanced up, trying to hide my surprise. We hadn't planned to meet here, but the second I saw the slight smirk on his face, I knew something was up. His uniform was as messy as ever—tie loosened, shirt untucked, and his hair was a complete mess. He looked like he'd just rolled out of bed, yet somehow, he made it work.

James ignored my look and turned to Gwen, his smirk vanishing into something more impatient. "You mind, kid? We need the table."

Gwen's eyes widened, clearly torn between being in awe of him and being terrified. "Oh, um... s-sorry! I'll, uh, go..." She quickly gathered her books and parchment, practically fleeing the table.

Once she was gone, I glared up at him. "Did you have to be rude? She's twelve."

James shrugged, dropping into the chair Gwen had vacated. "She'll live. Besides, I'm doing you a favor, remember?"

"Is this your idea of a favor?" I raised an eyebrow. "Scaring off second-years?"

James smirked, leaning back in his chair and stretching his legs out in front of him. He looked way too comfortable for someone who had just barged in on my tutoring session. "No, this is me giving you a heads-up. Xavier and Katie just walked in."

I froze. "What?" My heart skipped a beat, and I instinctively glanced toward the entrance of the library, but I didn't see them. "Where?"

James pointed with his chin toward the far side of the library, near the Charms section. "Over there. Probably here to do some 'studying.'" He made air quotes, and I rolled my eyes.

"So what? I don't care what they're doing," I lied, trying to play it cool, even though I could feel my pulse racing. Of course I cared. This whole stupid fake dating thing was because of Xavier. I wanted him to see that I had moved on, that I wasn't some pathetic girl pining after him. And it was working—sort of. But now James was here, clearly planning something, and I had a feeling I wasn't going to like it.

James leaned forward, his voice dropping to a low whisper. "I think it's time we gave them a little show."

I blinked, staring at him. "What do you mean by that?"