issue | james potter

10 | MIDNIGHT ASTRONOMY

issue
act 1; part 10 | midnight astronomy
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FOR THE FIRST time in a really long time, Diana James was met with absolute silence. She had been "dating" James Potter for a couple of months now and even though she was alone at the moment, she could still hear his voice in her brain, nagging her on how they don't look like a couple enough. The silence seemed strange to her now, perhaps almost foreign. Being with James made sure there was always someone she had to listen or pay attention to as he babbled about anything and everything and just when they had finished talking about a certain topic, he was already beginning a new one.

She sighed and shook her head with a smile as she thought about him. She stared at the sky above her then the ground below the astronomy tower. Nothing could be heard except for the wind blowing and the crickets chirping. The silence was almost uncomfortable, maybe bordering on unbearable. Being with James almost made sure that she had always someone to talk to. She used to hate small talk and just talking to other people in general. James loved to talk but he always stopped so he could here her answers, rebuttals, and comments. Realizing this, she wished James were there with her to fill the silence in the air.

HE KNEW THAT she went to Astronomy class thirty minutes before class began and everyone arrived. He never understood why, the tower was too creepy, dark, and rather quiet. It made him almost uncomfortable, yet here he was bounding up the stairs to the top of the tower twenty two minutes before class began.

His hair was already a disgruntled mess and running as fast as he could did not help. He didn't know why he was racing to see her, he could've just walked. It would save him his energy and his breath. However, it was almost an instinct and he wasn't all too sure why he was going through this. His glasses were slightly askew when he reached the top flight. He took a few seconds to catch his breath and bent down slightly.

SHE WAS SURPRISED to hear footsteps frantically racing, the class would begin in twenty minutes and students usually arrived at twelve midnight on the dot. She turned around, surprised to see none other than James Potter with a sly grin on his face. 

"What are you doing here? Hold on, did you go for a run or something?" She asked with furrowed brows, noticing the thin layer of sweat on his forehead.

"What? No." James scoffed, wiping the sweat with his coat's sleeve.

Diana turned, facing the large window. "What are you doing here so early?"

"Maybe I don't want you to be all alone in the dark. Knowing all of the things that happen here at Hogwarts." James joked, making his way to stand beside her.

"I can fend for myself, James." She replied, rolling her eyes but a small smile was on her face. "And how many times to I have to tell you that I'm not actually your girlfriend."

"Am I not allowed to care for you as a friend?" James asked, his head tilted to the side, looking at her; however, she wasn't looking back.

She stared straight ahead, not even sparing him a glance. "I like to think we're more than just friends." She mused with a slight smirk on her face. 

James was caught off guard by her statement. "Why is that?" He asked, not even bothering to hide the shocked tone in his voice.

"Well, I don't know a lot of people who are friends that are in the same situation as us. Then again, I'm not really friends with a lot of people." Diana said, smiling sadly.

"Yeah, I feel you."

Diana scoffed. "No, you don't. You're the great James Potter. Everybody likes you. It seems like everyone at Hogwarts is your friend." 

It was James' turn to scoff at her. "No, not everyone at Hogwarts is my friend. They only think of me as this some sort of image of popularity, they don't really know me. I only have four actual friends: Sirius Black, Peter Pettigrew, Remus Lupin, and Arabella Arroway."

Diana nodded in understanding. "Why didn't you mention me? Am I not your friend by now?" Diana asked, turning to face him.

"I thought you said we were more than that." He replied, turning to face her. 

James felt something. He didn't know what that something was. It felt like a strong tugging on his insides. Almost like a magnetic pull, pulling him towards her. He couldn't keep his eyes off of her. The way everything about her seemed to light up under the moonlight, the light breeze blowing through her hair. His body had a mind of its own, taking tentative steps towards her.

Diana didn't know how to feel as she took tentative steps back until she could no longer take any more. She put her hand on his chest, stopping him from coming any closer to her. It felt like electricity coming off from her fingertips when she did this, sparks seemed to radiate off her warm touch. Diana was nervous and unsure, yet she didn't want him to further the distance between them.

"Why are you really here?" She whispered softly, looking up at James through thick eyelashes.

"I thought you wanted some company." He whispered lowly, his eyes darting back and forth between her eyes and her lips.

Diana gulped nervously as she noticed this. "Really?" she asked, an eyebrow raised.

"I wanted your company." James said, and it was true. A truth that he was just now acknowledging.

"We don't have to do this. We don't have to act and pretend that we're in love. No one's here." She said, refusing to meet his eyes and tilting her head down.

"Oh, I know." He said lowly, putting a finger beneath her chin and tilting it up so that her lips could meet his.

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