Love Against All Odds // Jeverus

Chapter 22

As promised, James met Severus at dinner. He had been looking forward to it all day, as he had something special planned. It was another reason why he had insisted on going to Hogsmeade.

He decided to surprise him once again by waiting outside the common room. Slytherins stared at him like he was a piece of meat to devour, but James wasn't fazed, staring back at them with the same intensity.

After 20 minutes of waiting and having a staring contest, Severus finally emerged. He raised an eyebrow at the sight of James.

"You should stop that" Severus walked past him, and James quickly fell into step beside him.

"Stop what?" He asked.

"Hanging outside the common room"

"And why not?" It was James' turn to quirk an eyebrow.

Severus rolled his eyes "It's dangerous. You know how Slytherins are, they could hurt you when you least expect it"

"Aww" James grinned "You worry for me"

"I worry about the house points we'll lose" Severus grumbled "The nerve to say that, James"

James laughed "I can handle myself, don't worry about me. Besides, who would hurt Severus' boyfriend?"

"Cocky asshole" Severus gritted his teeth, kicking the back of James' knee, making him stumble a bit.

"You love me" James said with a cheeky smile.

"Die"

"You wouldn't want that"

"Yeah, i won't"

Both had smiles on their faces as they walk through the hallway. When they neared the Great Hall, James took hold of his hand and pulled him in another direction

Severus matched his pace, looking at him in confusion "Where are we going?"

James ended up not answering his question, the smile not disappearing from his face. Severus accepted his fate and let him drag him.

It wasn't until they were outside that Severus asked again "Why are we here?"

Again, no response from him.

They walked together, and he noticed they were heading towards the lake. Not just any lake, the lake where James had approached him that one night and asked for forgiveness.

As they got closer, Severus noticed a white tablecloth spread on the grass with food on top. But what truly caught his eye was the bouquet of carnations, his favorite flowers.

Severus froze, taking in the scene before him. James approached the setup, grabbed the flowers, and stood up straight, smiling at him.

"I felt that asking to court you in the middle of the alleyway was improper" James began, his face reddening. "It was unplanned, and I was really in the moment. So, I wanted to make it up to you by preparing this for you....for us"

Severus stayed silent, the only noise the gentle breeze rustling the leaves around them. James shifted nervously from foot to foot.

"This was the only thing i could think of" James mumbled.

Severus swallowed the lump in his throat
"No, it's perfect" He approached James, who extended his hand for him to take the flowers.

"Really? Are you sure? I mean..it's okay to be honest. It'd be better so i could improve next
ti-"

There was another silence that followed when Severus did something that James can't imagine. He pecked his cheek.

James froze, and they stared at each other.

"I hope that was convincing enough since your head can be hard at times" Severus said as he walked past him.

Slowly, a smile spread across James's face as he touched his cheek, still feeling the lingering softness of Severus's lips. 

Severus was already sitting at the tablecloth, watching his back in amusement "Weirdo" He whispered to himself.

James joined him by the time he was done. He hurriedly gave Severus his plate of food and utensils "I figured that you don't want to eat in Great hall after everything...so picnic it is"

Severus was honestly lost for words. That's why his last resort was to kiss James on the cheek to show he was thankful. It was the first time someone had made such an effort for him, and he was overwhelmed.

He took a deep breath, trying to steady his nerves "James, this is...really thoughtful. Thank you"

"Well, is that a yes then? You're willing for me to court you?" James beamed while Severus look at him in confusion "Like, willing, willing?"

"Of course it's a yes, asshole. My answer never changed"

James made a victory gesture, throwing his hand up in happiness. Severus shook his head, but there was fondness in his eyes.

They sat in comfortable silence, eating the food James brought. After a while, Severus broke the silence by asking how the trip to Hogsmeade went.

Apparently, they had to go to Diagon Alley to buy the flowers. It took a while for them to find his favorite and none of them thought to ask the florist. Until Remus pointed it out.

When they were finished eating, they sat side by side, shoulders touching. The scenery of the lake was astonishing. Especially the moonlight casting over the water. But for James, the real beauty was sitting right beside him.

Severus was breathtaking in ways James could hardly put into words. The way the light played across his face made him look like something out of a dream. That's right, is he dreaming? Because he couldn't believe he had someone as amazing as Severus with him.

His brown eyes met with his black ones, and a faint blush painted Severus' pale cheeks "James"

"Hm?" He hummed, admiring the color traveling to his neck.

"You're staring" He murmured softly.

"Am i?" James looked back into his eyes "Sorry, you're just too pretty"

"Shut it" Severus' whole face was burning as he slapped James' knee "You're doing too much"

James chuckled and tore his eyes away from him to admire the scenery. Meanwhile, Severus tried his best to calm his racing heart.

Every word James said affected him greatly. He was falling quickly, and he didn't know how to feel about that.

It felt too early, too soon to be feeling this deeply, but Severus couldn't help it. He had liked James for a long time, and now that he was here beside him, those feelings had only intensified.

Was 'like' even the right term for what he was feeling? Or was it something more?