The Moon and His Night

03

"Is that so?" Leo turned to face me fully, causing me to tilt my head up the slightest bit as I turned to do the same, "Well, if I think back to–hmm, lets see...last year," he taunted with wide eyes and a grin, "I can still clearly see the somber faces of Slytherin house as they accepted their brutal defeat."

"If you hadn't fouled me, made my broom snap in half, and forced me to use an old school-owned broom for the rest of the game, it would've been a different story." I cocked my head to the side, pursing my lips and raising my eyebrows at him.

He pressed his tongue against the inside of his cheek with a smirk, rolling his eyes quickly. "Yeah, keep telling yourself that."

"Don't roll your eyes. It's the truth." I huffed a laugh, an involuntary smile spreading across my lips, "I mean, I guess I should be flattered you had to resort to fouling me in an attempt to get ahead. It's good to know you feel threatened by me."

"As if you weren't trying to foul me that entire game too!" he pointed out, chuckling.

I opened my mouth to say something but promptly closed it, nodding and shrugging in defeat and agreement. "Okay. Maybe I was." I admitted. "But I'm not doing that this year. This year, I'm using pure talent to beat you."

"Yeah?" he cocked an eyebrow, and suddenly my stomach felt fluttery and my thighs pressed together.

"Yeah." I challenged back, not showing how flustered I felt, "I'll even bet on it." I shrugged nonchalantly, lifting my cup up to take a sip but stopping just before reaching my lips, "Unless you're too scared to, of course..." I took a sip, still holding his eyes over the rim of my cup.

His green eyes squinted just slightly, his brows twitching in an expression of confusion and curiosity. When his gaze flicked up and down my frame quickly, it took everything in me not to choke on my butterbeer. He wasn't even subtle about it.

My heart started to race faster.

"What's the wager?" he questioned, taking a sip of his own drink, still holding my eyes over the rim of his cup.

I think I'm starting to sweat. Is that my heartbeat I feel in my throat?

I shrugged again, "I'm sure you can think of something creative."

He raised his eyebrows at me, a mixture of amusement and subtle surprise painted across his stupidly perfect face.

I swear to Godric, this boy was chiseled from marble or something. It was almost unfair.

"If I didn't know any better, I'd say you were flirting with me right now." he said low and with subtle amusement, his gaze narrowing on me and making a shiver travel down my spine. A single look from this boy and I'm covered in goosebumps. In a panic, I tore my eyes away from his and cast them down to the cup in my hands as I scrambled for a response to his forward–and correct–assumption.

"Maybe I am." I answered lightly, looking up to meet his eyes again and trying not to let my confident tone falter too much.

It almost appeared as if my response caught him off guard. It caught me off guard too, but I didn't regret saying it, which was weird for me. I avoided situations like this one like the plague because of how easily I found myself getting embarrassed. I knew how to flirt, I just hated the act of flirting. It always felt like I was sales-pitching myself to a guy (that most likely didn't deserve me) so he could determine whether or not I was worthy of his attention for the night.

But this was different.

The playing field here felt equal. I was flirting, he was flirting. I didn't have to contort myself into the type of person I think he would like in order to get his attention or approval.

I was just being me. Talking as me, bantering as me, flirting as me.

And he liked it...I think.

"Interesting." He mused almost to himself, turning his eyes to the crowd of dancing people not too far away from us, "I don't think your boyfriend likes you talking to me." he glanced at me before jerking his chin to the side, motioning to someone.

I glanced over that direction, immediately seeing Malcolm on the other side of the dance floor, staring daggers at Leo and I as he took a long sip of his beer.

Malcolm did not like Leo. Leo didn't particularly like Malcolm either.

"We...aren't together anymore." I replied with an exhale, using it as an opportunity to step the slightest bit closer to Leo without making it noticeable.

Leo and I both looked away from Malcolm at the same time and our eyes locked again. Except this time, we were much closer. Almost chest to chest. Any closer, and I was sure he was going to be able to feel how fast my heart was racing.

"Hm..." He hummed, a ghost of a smirk twitching at the corner of his mouth as his eyes burned bright with something I'd never seen in him before. Something that made my own eyes light up in response. "What a shame."