Troublemakers • Weasley & Jordan

The Lack Thereof

"But when I need you, baby, you're never there." – Never There by Cake

┈ ✁✃✁✃✁✃✁✃✁ ┈

For the whole day after their argument, things between George and Lee were... tense.

Lee was frustrated, and that was just the tip of the iceberg for George. He had been ignoring Lee for the whole day, between classes, in the common spaces, and when Lee tried to catch his eye across the room in a sort of grope for a truce, George looked away.

He didn't understand why this bothered George so much. It was just Angelina. He even offered him to join the two of them to hang out during the ball! It was just a dance... the only ones taking it seriously were really the underclassmen.

You'd think such a careless goofball like George would give a rat's arse about something like this, he kept thinking.

But the dance was that night, so Lee had to accept that George would likely not be approaching him during the event and get on with it. This did sting, though, considering he was his best friend.

The energy in the castle was electric. During the last class of the day, no one was really focusing, and it had been that way the whole day. Now, it was truly out of control.

"Alright, alright, will you animals please settle down for the last half an hour of class?" Professor Burbage was pleading with an exhausted sigh. Muggle Studies class was proving to be incredibly difficult for the poor woman. "I thought I told you all that this was study time for your group project."

"We are studying!" One student called from the back. "We're studying enthusiastically!"

She gave him a look, her hands on her hips. "I'm hearing quite a few conversations about the dance tonight and not about your chosen topic of study."

"Come on, Professor," Lee teased, leaning back in his chair as he twirled his quill, "are you just jealous of our night ahead?"

She scoffed as the class snickered. "Please. I've had the unfortunate honor of joining the team of chaperones for the evening. I'll be there."

"Save me a dance?" Lee grinned. The class laughed. Burbage rolled her eyes, but she was smiling. The class fell back into their (not-so-productive) group work.

Angelina, who was seated beside Lee, shared his grin. "You're a tosspot, you know that? I swear, I don't know how the Professors haven't begged for your expulsion from the school yet."

"Of course they haven't," he replied. "I provide a certain zest to the 9 to five around here that they can't find anywhere else."

"Oh, I see, your zest," she says, nodding dramatically. Giggling, she picks up her quill again.

"So what exactly should I be preparing for tonight?" Lee asked, leaning forward on the desk. "Should I be greeting you with a bouquet of daisies? Do I need to know how to waltz?"

Angelina smiled and shakes her head. "Gross. No, I don't think that'll be necessary. I'm sure no one there is going to be taking it that seriously. Sure, we'll all be dressed fancy, but we're all just dumb kids under the ruffles."

Lee chuckled. "Fair enough."

"You do have a suit, right?" She asked, leaning back in her chair now.

"I was thinking I could go for a more creative look," he replied, "you know, something that shakes up the traditional style– I was thinking, rubbish bag?"

She whapped his arm with her notebook. "You arse."

"Of course I've got a suit," he smirked. "You think your date wouldn't come prepared? Please. You're working with a professional here."