MAY 17

The school year was almost over and Jalen hadn't made a return. I had questioned his friends and they were completely oblivious to his disappearance as well. 

I had greatly missed him, missed him so vigorously that my heart had physically begun to ache. 

After a harsh day of executing my prefect duties; duties I couldn't even do properly, catching up with assignments from every given subject, and studying for the upcoming tests, I ate dinner bluntly with my friends seated around me. 

During this time, I had practically forced myself to get over Mattheo. I didn't have a chance. It hurt, it hurt seeing him with his girlfriend, but it felt at peace when I could think of him only as a friend. 

For so long, I had thought of him as mine. 

He was not. He never would be.

My eyes lured over the Professors who were also having dinner, as a bite of ramen noodles deliciously melted onto my tongue. I glanced over at Dumbeldore, who was having a chat with someone I recognized.....

.....Jalen.

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"Where have you been!" I exclaimed, throwing myself on him, his hands circling around my lower back. "You disappeared after the winter break!"

We let go for a moment. "I apologize..."

"My parents are divorced..." He began explaining "...and my mother is quite ill..my grandparents are no use..so sometimes I have to go and take care of her.."

"Oh..." I replied with a glimpse of sorrow. "...you could've lettered though..."

"Couldn't, it's dreadful for the time I stay with her, I swear she hates me because I look like my father.." 

"But..enough, talking about my parents Emerlyn.." He finished, his lanky hands grasping softly onto my fingers, as the moonlight hovering over the astronomy tower glared at us. 

"Do you have an idea of how much I missed you?"

A sense of blush crept over my cheeks, as I stopped myself from smiling. 

"I promise, I missed you more." 

Our lips sealed together, as we shared our first kiss under the moonlight in the Astronomy tower. 

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JUNE 26

"Sorry- I couldn't make it on time!" I rushed to Jalen, catching my breath as I had been running consistently for quite a long time. "I was on Patrol..." 

"You chose your prefect duties over me?"

"I don't have a choice." 

He let out an eye roll. The snacks that I had eaten on my duty, unsweetened.

                                                                               - - - - - 

The picnic was going sweetly as his head rested on my lap as I brushed his brunette hair with my fingers beaming about my academic accomplishments. 

"..Professor McGonagall was telling me...I have a high chance of becoming an Auror if I continue exceeding in the subjects I'm currently taking...that means I passed all the exams!"

My fingers un-tangled from his hair as he sat up facing me directly, a curled strand of his hair decorating his forehead. "You say this so happily, while I'm failing almost every subject." He bitterly stated. 

"I mean...I'm sure if you were here for the year..you would've passed as well...and besides, you have next year to improve."

 "Next year is my last year....and I still don't know what career to choose..."

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JUNE 27. (Last day of the school year.)

"He was acting really bitter when I told him about my accomplishments..." I replied taking a sip of the Butter Bear placed in front of me. 

Mattheo copied my movement and Tom examined both of us. "Perhaps, he wishes he could do the same as well.." replied Tom stealing a sip as well. 

"Yea, don't worry, he'll get over it." Mattheo asserted, the heavy cup clapping against the wooden table. "Are you guys excited for summer? I know I am."

"I am, but I don't know if I'm ready for next year."

"I'm not." Declared Tom shrugging his shoulders. "You both are going to spend your summer lettering your love bugs, while I'm gonna have to watch in boredom."

"You have Serena." The boy burst into laughter aligned with a few chuckles. Gosh, I loved my friends and couldn't bare ever losing any of them. 

"Seriously, what's the point of having a girlfriend or a boyfriend, do you just  exchange bacteria or what?"

"Oh Thomas, it's called attraction. You feel attracted to them and feel a sense of love for them that you don't feel for anyone else." Mattheo explained.

"That's just foolish, you're just wasting your time." 

Part of me wished whatever Mattheo had just stated was about me, foul thoughts corrupted my mind. I shielded those small parts of my heart melting for Mattheo. 

                                                                               - - - - 

Mattheo was still adjusting to placing Serena's luggage correctly as she studied him, while Tom distracted himself in a dark-covered novel; toying around with his wand simultaneously.

 A medium-sized sketchbook rested on my lap with a colored pencil tangled with my fingers. I peeked over the window of the train, searching for inspiration.

I observed as a group of people entered a train. There was that blonde guy who tormented Jalen during the winter, a girl holding hands with him, and two other guys I wasn't familiar with.

I had spotted Mattheo a few times lingering around them.

"Are you friends with that blonde guy?" I questioned Mattheo as he seated himself at last. 

"Which-" 

"Can I sit with my friends?" Serena interrupted the conversation. "I don't want to sit in this compartment...it's quite boring." 

"No, you're sitting here.." Tom answered cockily. 

"Let her go, Tom, what is she going to do here anyway?" I replied. 

"Exactly, you can go sit with your friends Serena." 

Serena shot a sarcastic smile at Tom, amused and satisfied with Mattheo's response as she exited the compartment. 

"Why do you let her have so much freedom!" Glared Tom.

"Thomas..." Mattheo paused, taking a noticeable breath. "I think you've forgotten I'm the older one here.." 

"Besides, Serena's sneaky, and by not letting her do what she wants, she'll grow sneakier and potentially into a liar as well," Mattheo stated. "Now, Emerlyn where were you at?"

"Are you friends with that blonde boy?" I repeated my question.

"Merlin, their so many blonde boys, which one are you talking about?" 

"The one that looks like a lightbulb!" 

"There are dozens of light bulbs in Hogwarts, how about you be specific?" Tom spoke, his eyes never leaving the book.

I tried to describe him. I didn't know his name. In fact, I knew nothing about him.

"Erm...he usually just wears black...he has platinum blonde hair and I'm not sure about the eye color...."

"Oh, Malfoy!"

The name clicked in my head.

"Well, you could consider us friends, in fact, we're actually very close friends."

Jeloasuly spread on my face like wildfire. "Doesn't mean I'm not friends with you anymore!" He protested.

"Sure." I shut the sketchbook in front of me.

"Don't be jealous, you are my first friend and will forever be my dearest friend," Mattheo assured me with hints of comfort flowing in his voice. "And...I have heard of the fact he hassled your boyfriend quite a few times....he did talk about you and Jalen dating once..." the comfort soured.

I shot my gaze at him. "Continue..."

"In all honesty, he told me he just thinks you're too pretty for an average guy like Jalen.....and I somewhat agree.."

"Somewhat?" the edges of Tom's lips curled into a smile. "I fully agree." The air was filled with quiet laughter from both of the boys.

"Shut it!" They paused. "I don't care what people think, I'll do what I want."

"And I want Jalen."

They would never understand how it'd feel to receive an ocean of attention from a person. They would never how it'd feel to be someone's main focus in their world, how it'd feel to have them completely obsess over you.

That feeling of attention was contagious.

It was dangerous. I was attached to it.

 I was attached to Jalen.

A/N: Gonna be busy this week, so updates won't be as often!