Stop Locking Us Out

Messing With Their Head

"Hey, Charlie?" Eli asked, licking the last bit of whipped cream off his hot chocolate and grabbing his wand to poof more on. The convenience of magic never ceased to impress him.

"Yeah?" They responded, smiling as Jazzy settled into their lap.

"You always mention your mom... what about your dad?"

"That dirtbag left me sobbing and chasing after his car when I was eight," Charlie told him, taking another sip before continuing. "That's when my mom and I moved here. She always wanted me to go to Hogwarts, anyways, she thinks Ilvermorny is for fakes."

"I'm sorry to hear that," Eli said. "I have a cousin who goes to Ilvermorny who will fight your mother on the fake thing, though."

Charlie laughed and shook their head, sipping again before looking up at him. "I don't think she minded it much before her and my dad started fighting. He went there, and he couldn't find a job involving magic, so eventually he took one in the no-maj world. My mom thought he was wasting his powers."

"No-maj, is that like a muggle?" Eli asked, confused.

"Sorry, yeah," Charlie blushed. "I still haven't adjusted to British English, I'm afraid."

"It's alright, I like how you talk," Elijah said, afterwards realizing he had complimented them and blushing. There was a silence following, and he cursed himself as he wallowed in it. Why was this year so difficult?

"What about your parents? You don't talk about either of them much," Charlie pushed, setting their cocoa on the table beside them and putting Jazzy in their lap. Elijah's eyes rested on the cat.

"My Ren and I were never all that close, although I suppose we've gotten closer in the last few years," he told them, his eyes snapping off Jazzy as he brought himself to mention his mother. "My mom and I were always the closest."

"Were?" Charlie whispered, their eyes trained on his face.

"Yeah, were..." Elijah sighed and met their gaze. "She died when I was ten."

"Oh, that sucks," they said, unsure how one should react to that.

"Yeah, it does..."

"Guess what, dipshit," Charlie grinned after a few moments of awkward silence.

"What is it, darling?"

"We've officially had a serious conversation that lasted more than five minutes."

"Woah, a new record," he chuckled. "We should get an award."

"Excuse you, I can have serious conversations."

"You're right, I should get a reward," he grinned, and Charlie began to wonder if he was actually proud of himself.

"Oh? And what would that be, dumbass?"

"Why, a kiss of course!" He smirked, wiggling his eyebrows at them. They hated how their heart fluttered at the thought. They'd have to kill Jack later for putting these thoughts in their head. "What else, darling?"

"If you have the audacity to think I would kiss you, you're more mentally disturbed than I previously thought."

"Geez, harsh," Eli said, shaking his head. He kept his amused smirk plastered on his face as he looked at them, trying not to be blinded by how attractive they looked just then, smiling with the firelight reflecting on their face. He almost kissed them anyway, but knowing it would ruin everything, he turned away instead.

The silence that followed was both awkward and comfortable. They knew one another well enough to have no need for speech, but the feelings that had been and were developing seemed to cloud the air, making it hard for both of them to breathe. Eventually they said their goodbyes, one headed up the stairs, and one going for a curtain across the room.