𝙉𝙤𝙩 𝙎𝙤 𝙂𝙤𝙡𝙙𝙚𝙣 ―𝐣𝐬𝐩

𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐅𝐢𝐟𝐭𝐞𝐞𝐧 - 𝐂𝐨𝐜𝐤𝐛𝐥𝐨𝐜𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐌𝐲 𝐆𝐢𝐫𝐥𝐟𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐝

James

It's been a long day. The meeting with McGonagall about the Gryffindor team went well enough, but I'm tired, and all I want is to get back to the common room, maybe take a shower, and have a smoke. As I'm walking down the corridor, though, I hear voices—familiar voices. My feet stop on instinct when I recognize one of them.

Martha.

I peer around the corner, and there she is—my fake girlfriend—pinned against the wall by her ex, Xavier. The sight of him with his stupid blonde hair and perfect blue eyes pisses me off immediately. He's American, transferred from Ilvermorny, and ever since, he's been strutting around like he owns the place. And right now, he's got Martha backed against the wall, all giggly and biting her lip.

She's never giggly with me. Never looks at me like that.

Her skirt is shorter than usual, showing off those long legs, and she's wearing her high heels—the ones that make her legs look even longer, even more perfect. Her Louis Vuitton bag is on the floor, forgotten, as she gazes up at him. And that's when I see it—he's leaning in, way too close, and his hand is brushing her waist.

He's going to kiss her. The bastard is going to kiss her, and I see red.

Doesn't he know she's mine? I mean, I know we're not really dating, but he doesn't know that. And to everyone else, we're a real couple. So how dare he touch what's mine?

I storm toward them, ready to cause a fucking riot. My fists are clenched, and I'm already imagining slamming him into the wall when Martha looks up and spots me. Her expression shifts—she looks so relieved to see me, her eyes lighting up like I'm her knight in shining armor. That gives me just enough pause to keep me from throwing the first punch.

But I don't stop. I shove Xavier off her, hard. He stumbles back, glaring at me like I've lost my mind.

"Back off, mate," I growl, standing between him and Martha. "She's mine."

Xavier's eyes narrow, and before I can blink, he throws a punch, catching me off guard and landing a hit on my jaw. Pain explodes across my face, but it only fuels my anger. I shove him again, harder this time, and we're in a full-on altercation.

"She's not yours, Potter," Xavier spits, grabbing my shirt. "Just because you're dating her doesn't mean I can't talk to her. I'm still allowed to talk to my ex!"

"You don't talk to her like that," I snarl, yanking him closer. "You don't touch her like that. Go back to Katie, or whatever her name is."

"You're a possessive asshole, you know that?" Xavier snaps. "You can't handle someone else being close to her. You think you own her?"

"You don't know a damn thing," I snap, my grip tightening on his shirt.

"James!" Martha's voice breaks through the haze of anger. Her hand grabs my arm, pulling me back, and I finally let go of Xavier, shoving him away one last time. He stumbles but doesn't fight back. He just glares at me, then turns to Martha.

"You're making a mistake with him," Xavier mutters before storming off, leaving us alone in the corridor.

I stand there, my breath coming fast, my knuckles still tight from the fight, and then I turn to Martha. She looks at me, eyes wide, but then—boom—her expression changes. The second Xavier is out of sight, she shoves me in the chest, hard.

"James!" she snaps. "He was going to kiss me, damn it! You bloody cockblocker!"

I stare at her, dumbfounded. "I just saved your ass from kissing your ex, and this is the thanks I get?"