Recognition flashed in his eyes and they widened as it all finally dawned on him. "Are you kidding me? You seriously set your life on hating me for something stupid I said when I was a stupid first year, who was stupid for being embarrassed over liking a girl back?"
"Well, when you put it that way, it sounds ridiculous." You frowned, crossing your arms and averting his gaze. He had liked you back?
"That's because it is! You're ridiculous."
"I'm finally agreeing with you and here you are, yelling at me?" You huffed in annoyance. "You're insufferable."
"Oh yeah? And what about you? You're no better than me!" Yoongi finally snapped, his anger getting to the best of him.
All these years of bickering and fighting were over a conversation you weren't supposed to hear, much less walk in on. He was trying to protect you and you failed to see that. Had you not realized the reason why those two pricks never bothered you, despite your muggle-born status? It was all because of him. He had been the one to scare them, threatening to stab their eye-balls out with his wand if they ever so dared as to touch you. And had you not realized that the day after when he had finally found the courage to approach you, it was to apologize to you and confess his own feelings only to have you laugh and tell him it was all a joke?
Tears pricked at your eyes as you let his words sink in. Yoongi was right. You were no better than him. In fact, you were worse. And you felt so terrible.
Yoongi's eyes softened as he saw the tears escape your eyes. His intention wasn't to make you cry. He just wanted you to see things through his perspective. "[Y/N], I-"
At that moment, the door knob twisted and as you felt it open, you stood up straight so you wouldn't lose your balance.
"-I can't believe you had the nerve to lock these two up! They have the power to burn down the entire school. You know better than this, Namjoon. I'm disappointed." Headmistress McGonagall's gaze landed on you, eyes widening at your disheveled appearance.
Namjoon stood behind her and the two of them frowned as they saw you crying. Yoongi didn't look to be in a good shape, either. Headmistress McGonagall had a lot to say to you two but she fought back to the urge to yell. Her expression was now one of concern and she sighed as you brushed past them, running off to your room.
"Seeing as this is now a delicate matter, I am not going meddle in and let you two resolve this problem." Headmistress McGonagall told Yoongi, who could only nod in return. She then turned to the worried Namjoon. "And you, let this be the last time you pull a trick like this unless you want your prefect status revoked."
"Yes, m'am."
Namjoon thought that locking the two of you up in his room would make you and Yoongi better. It had only made things worse. He apologized a million times to the both of you and although the two of you had long forgiven him, he still felt this immense guilt. Two of his close friends were suffering and it was all because of him.
Yoongi couldn't get the image of you crying out of his head and he cursed himself for it every night. He shouldn't have yelled at you. Maybe then you wouldn't intentionally avoid him. He had tried to approach you a few days afterward—he would've approached you right after but he thought it'd be best to give you some space first—and you'd make up excuses that soon turned to you simply turning away at the sight of him.
After all that happened, did you really still hate him?
On the other hand, you couldn't bring yourself to face Yoongi. You were embarrassed by the hatred—or what you had thought was hatred—that you harbored for him all these years over a misunderstanding. It made you feel stupid and often kept you up at night with thoughts such as "if only this" and "if only that."
You sighed as you walked down the moving staircase. You were so used to them that they no longer made you feel dizzy. "Little Miss Muffet?"
Once again, your cat had managed to run off. You were always supportive of her adventures but also, always wary of where'd she run off to due to her eight legs. Many weren't fond of her being different than most cats and would scream at the sight of her. You had meant to keep a close eye on her and you would've if you weren't so distracted with all these emotions you were experiencing. You could only hope she hadn't wandered off into his dorm.
Unlike last time you lost her, it was broad daylight and the weekend, meaning you could wander the halls with no worries of being reprimanded or running into your peers since the majority of them went to Hogsmeade.
"Muffet?" You cooed as you reached the last step of the grand staircase. Where the hell was she?
"Meow."
"Where did you run off to this time?" You smiled in relief as your cat came in to view, leisurely strolling out of the great dining hall.
You sat down at the last step, petting her head softly as she purred into your touch. As you ran your hand past her head, you paused. There was something rough where it shouldn't be. Worried, you glanced down to see a piece of paper attached to her collar.
"What's this?"
Muffet nuzzled her head against your arm lovingly, nibbling at you in a playful manner. You removed the paper from her collar and she turned her attention to your legs instead as you stared down at the crumbled piece of paper. It looked old and worn out as if it had been folded repeatedly for years and as your fingers carefully opened the note, you swore your heart skipped a beat as you realized why.
It was the confession letter you had sent to Yoongi during your first year. Your handwriting was much messier back then and although the ink was faint, the message you had written on it was still legible:
I don't know how you did it but you managed to slytherin to my heart.
But your handwriting wasn't the only thing on the paper. You felt a smile form on your face as you recognized his writing and judging by how clear and dark it was, it was added onto the note recently:
10 points to Gryffindor for stealing my heart.
You were pulled from your thoughts as a tear fell onto the note in your hands and you jumped, startled as you noticed the presence sitting right beside you.
"Why are you crying?" He frowned, eyebrows knitting together. He was genuinely worried that he had screwed up again and you stared at him, watching in disbelief as Muffet hopped onto his lap and instead of being repelled by her as he first had been, his hand reached down to pet her.
The two of them seemed very friendly with each other and before you knew it, you were laughing as you wiped at the last of your tears.
"Why are you laughing?"
"Just shut up and kiss me already, you nargle."
Yoongi's eyes crinkled, his eyes no longer dark and uninviting to you as a broad smile slowly formed on his face. It was amazing how you found such a simple gesture so beautiful. He leaned in close to you, his lips barely brushing yours in a teasing manner as he rejoiced in the way your eyes fluttered close. His lips were just as soft as you had imagined and as he placed a hand on your cheek to pull you closer, you couldn't help but think how perfect his lips felt against yours.
You felt so warm, so giddy, so sweet. Nothing else mattered in that moment, except for him and the way he made you feel. The lights faded out. The sounds faded out. All perception of time and space was lost and the two of you paid no attention to the needy cat whose paws kneaded on both of your laps, demanding for attention.
That is, until, one of her paws swatted at your intertwined lips, making Yoongi yelp and you giggle. You settled Muffet onto your lap to keep her still as the two of you finally pulled away. You both stared at each other in awe, out of breath and with swollen lips.
"This is way better than the way I envisioned it in my dreams." Yoongi whispered.
His hand still rested on your cheek and his thumb traced over your lips. He took in every detail of your face—from the way your eyebrows raised at his touch to the way your pupils dilated. How could he have been so stupid to let you slip away from him all those years ago?
Your heart thumped wildly against your chest as you let out a breathy laugh. "You had them, too?"
