When We Fell In Love

Chapter 16: New Beginnings

Lily had never slept so well as she did that night, sharing the bed with Mary, holding her tight, her back pressed against her chest. The wake-up was sweet; they exchanged languid kisses, despite Mary's protests about her parents and siblings being in the house, and their morning breath. After several minutes spent in that surreal bliss, they heard a light knock on the door.

"Girls, get up! Breakfast is ready, and then we need to get moving or we'll miss the train." No one opened the door, and Lily was very grateful for that.

"You know, I really appreciate that your parents respect your privacy," said Lily as she sat up in bed, lazily rubbing her eyes and scratching her scalp. "Good morning, gorgeous ."

Mary's cheeks flushed red, and her smile lit up the entire room and Lily's whole world. "Good morning to you, and happy new year."

"I'm sure it's going to be a fantastic year." Lily truly believed it. After all, she had just woken up next to the most beautiful person in the universe, after sharing an embarrassing number of kisses and caresses. Nothing could go wrong, and the universe was smiling at her.

On the return train, they looked for a compartment where it could just be the two of them, along with Marlene and Dorcas. They did not need the boys' company, and besides, they had all the time in the world at Hogwarts to be surrounded by that chaos. As soon as the train started moving, Lily made sure the door was firmly closed, then turned to the three girls in the compartment.

"Okay, girls, we need to clear a few things up. I'll start: Mary and I are together." Lily watched Mary nearly choke on her own saliva. "Mary? Isn't that right?" The uncertainty in her voice was palpable.

"Yes... I mean, I guess it is. It was just unexpected hearing you say it out loud." Lily looked at her with affection, love, and understanding.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to spring it on you like this."

"No, Lils, it's fine, I'm happy to be with you."

"Hey, you two, could you stop making googly eyes at each other?" Dorcas' voice snapped them out of their trance. "For the record, Marlene is my girlfriend, and I'm hers." They held hands, exchanging smiles.

"Argh, this is amazing! Finally!" exclaimed Lily. "Dorcas, you did it!"

"What do you mean, Lils?" asked Marlene.

Lily's gaze shifted from Dorcas to Marlene, desperately looking for help.

"Well, might as well say it," said Dorcas. "Mary, listen up, because this might interest you too. Marls, a few months ago I discovered I'm not the only queer–" At that word, all three of them momentarily held their breath. "Oh, come on, it's not a bad word! I thought we were all on the same page!"

Lily nodded slightly, taking a couple of deep breaths to calm herself. Dorcas continued: "As I was saying, I found out I'm not the only queer person at school, and I started meeting up with these people. It's wonderful, and it's the only place where I truly feel like myself."

Lily could perfectly understand what she meant.

"That's wonderful," said Mary. "But I still don't see what this has to do with Lils."

"A dear friend of mine dragged me to one of these meetings, and there I met Dorcas, and we opened up to each other. I've known about her crush on you for quite a while, Marls, and I'm sorry I didn't tell you, but it wasn't my place to out her."

"I get it, Lily, really."

"And Lily here confessed to me about your first kiss," Dorcas added, gesturing between the two of them. "For the record, you two should come as well." She was looking at Mary and Marlene. "We could all be together in a safe space without constantly having to hide."