Too Little Too Late

Chapter 20 | Edited

"You're studying? Actually studying? With books?" Layla gaped dramatically at the dark haired boy sitting at the library table in front of her.

He grinned up at her, "NEWTs are coming, and I wanna be an auror, remember? Join me?"

Layla couldn't help but to grin as well, she had been getting so much closer to Sirius and it had been one of the best experiences that she could have imagined. Although she had decided to never, ever give the boy the time of day again, she couldn't help but think now that she had been right about him all along. Despite his arrogance, he really was a good person and he made her happy, something that was rare for the current climate of fear. She sat down next to him with a smile, unpacking her books and getting her homework out, thinking about how it really wouldn't be that bad if she were beginning to redevelop her old crush on him.

A couple of hours later Layla was ready to give up on her potions essay. "I just don't get it. Why does it have to be stirred counter clockwise? It doesn't make sense Sirius." She complained with a sigh, collapsing on top of her essay.

"Hey, careful not to get ink on your face." He replied with a bark like laugh. "Here, you can read over mine if it would help."

Layla took the essay from his extended hand with a grateful 'thank you', before beginning to read the essay.

She froze mid-sentence.

Something was definitely wrong here. Or maybe, something was definitely right here. She couldn't quite place her finger on what it was that had made her heart stop beating and then beat at an accelerated rate.

"What's wrong?" He asked her, looking concernedly at her expression. "Layla?"

"Did you write this?"

"Uhm.. yeah, why?" Sirius replied, slightly confused.

"So this is your handwriting?" She enquired, looking at him now, instead of the essay (as she had been thus far).

"Yeeeeeeeeah."

"You know, I think I've seen this handwriting before. Specific instances are coming back to me." She was making steady eye contact with Sirius now, wanting to see whether there was any flicker of recognition on his face. Could it really have been him? Did he really do it? "Did you write me those notes Sirius?"

"Oh."

His lack of response had made Layla's heart drop and she began to feel very embarrassed for even daring to think that Sirius could have been the person who had sent her those notes in the previous months. Whoever it was had stopped anyway, they had probably decided that it wasn't worth it anymore. Even if it was Sirius, he would probably have felt too embarrassed to say so as that would mean admitting to her face that he had liked her for a while and no longer did. She felt so stupid for even asking him. Why would she have done a thing like that? Did she want to be embarrassed further?

"Yes. I did." Layla was snapped out of her thoughts by these words, and only just noticed the slightly embarrassed expression on his face and the slight blush covering his aristocratic features. "I knew that you hated me and I- well I guess that I just wanted you to like me even if you didn't realise that it was me. Stupid, I know. When we became friends I stopped, I didn't want you to think that I was being creepy and to stop being friends with me. I'm sorry Layla." He confessed to her, nervously. Layla doubted that he had been that open with many people before and she felt a faint glow of happiness that he felt he could be that honest with her.

"Don't be sorry, Sirius. That was really sweet, and the notes themselves were really sweet. I liked reading them. I didn't know that you could even be that romantic." She admitted quietly, smiling up at the boy who was smiling nervously back at her.

"I still really like you Layla, and I want you to know that. I don't want to do anything that could affect our friendship, I really, really like being friends with you and just hanging out with you."

Layla blushed lightly, hearing these things from Sirius, after she had admitted to herself that she did in fact have a crush on him once again, was something that she hadn't imagined would happen and made her heart flutter. "I really like you too Sirius." She admitted quietly, her blush intensifying.

Sirius' mouth fell open slightly in shock. After spending the year trying to impress her, and being turned down, he had begun to feel like she would never like him in that way again. Then, as the realisation set in, he smiled widely.

"Will you go on a date with me Layla?" he asked with a broad smile on his face, already thinking about all of the possible date ideas he could prepare. He could take her to hogsmede, he could set up a blanket on the quidditch pitch again, he could take her to the astronomy tower at night.

"Yes Sirius, I will."