#this one involves snogging!

answer to @jilytoberfest prompt: We aren’t dating but we are so not platonic right now and one of us just kissed the other in public accidentally

(I modified the prompt slightly because I live by my own rules)

read on ao3 / ffn

James set his quill down, rubbing at his eyes under the rims of his specs. Outside, the dreary October weather persisted. Rain lashed at the window panes, the forceful patter almost drowning out the distant howling of the wind. The library was bathed in shadow, the only light emanating from the soft glow of the candles placed throughout the library. 

Leaning back, he stretched his arms above his head and caught sight of Lily on the floor, her back against the wall. The two students had decided an hour ago that the table they were sharing was far too small for the both of them along with their frightening number of books, so she had relocated, which in their tiny secluded corner meant sitting practically underneath the table. 

He watched as she leafed through the potions book propped on her knees, sighed at something she read, then vehemently crossed several lines out on her parchment. Next to her, another large tome lay open, surrounded by broken quills and what looked like ink stains. 

“Whatcha doing?” he asked after a moment. 

Lily started and hit her forehead against the edge of the table. “Ow!” she groaned, rubbing at the bruise while trying to stabilize her book. “You mean other than getting concussions?" 

He grinned sheepishly at her. "My bad. Here, I finished the transfiguration questions." 

She smiled, her head resting against the wall behind her, neck exposed, face upturned towards him. “Bless you,” she said, taking the offered paper with what they both knew were the correct answers and dropping it in her bag. “Stupid questions almost gave me a stress ulcer.” 

"You're not going to read them?" he asked, feeling a twinge of disappointment.

"I will, but I've got to finish this first.” She turned back to her books, quill scratching rapidly at the parchment.

James hesitated for a moment while Lily wrote. After a few seconds, he extricated himself from the tiny table and settled down next to her, peering over her shoulder. “What are you writing?” he asked quietly, so as not to disturb her too much. 

She let out a surprised huff at the sudden proximity. “Potions,” she responded softly. 

“Exciting,” he muttered.

“Why are we whispering?” she murmured, turning to look at him.

“You’re awfully close,” he whispered back. 

They were in fact seated so close now that they were practically nose to nose. 

The two students stared at each other in silence. Something was tugging at James, but he remained motionless, afraid to disrupt the tenuous balance that had suddenly made itself known. Leaning forward meant plunging into an abyss he didn’t want to, or simply couldn’t, take the first leap into. He couldn’t, however, bring himself to lean away. Time had stopped, taking a running leap out of the window and leaving them trapped in limbo.

Except. 

Lily’s eyes, which had been fixed on James’, suddenly flicked down to his mouth. The movement was swift, her eyes gone from his for only a fraction of a second, but James caught it, the way he caught every minute detail about her, collecting them like treasures. 

His heart began beating so hard that he could feel the thumping throughout his entire body, pounding in his limbs and making him ache. He watched, uncomprehending, as Lily leaned in, her face so close to his that his eyes had to dart from feature to feature, the freckle beneath her eye, the smudge of ink on her cheek, her slightly parted lips…

James lurched to his feet. "I should go," he said, taking a step back and gripping the edge of his chair to steady himself. Lily didn’t respond, taken off guard by the sudden flurry of movement. "I'm done, so I'll just get out of your way and let you finish up," he muttered, throwing his books haphazardly into his bag. 

"Sure…" she responded. She straightened, looking bemused and a little hurt. 

"Bye, then," called James, already disappearing from view. 

“Bye,” she whispered hoarsely. 

Lily sat in a stupor for what felt like hours, though it was only moments before she was frantically stuffing her belongings into her school bag. She had waited far too long, and far too patiently, for this to be it. Pushing her apprehension aside, she threw the bag over her shoulder and rounded the bookshelf, only to come face to face with James. 

They both froze. As she watched him draw shallow breaths, steadying himself, all Lily could do was hope against hope that the warmth spreading in her chest wasn’t unfounded.

“James–” she uttered, just to fill the silence, and then James was crashing into her, lips settling on hers. She melted into him, her bag dropping off her shoulder and hitting the ground with a thud. His palms ran down her face and onto her neck, one hand gripping the back of her head while the other rested in the hollow of her throat, fingers splayed like he wanted to touch as much skin as possible. 

Lily made a noise which caused his fingers to tighten, and she gripped his hair in response, pulling him closer. Every one of his touches seared through her, making her brain short-circuit and leaving her mind blank, but none of it mattered because the smell and taste of him were enveloping her, keeping all her worries at bay. All she could do was kiss him harder, reveling in the delighted hums she elicited, feeling his groans everywhere. 

James’ mouth slid from hers down to her jaw and she took a deep breath, suddenly realizing how little air she had left. “James,” she gasped. The thought of pulling away was unbearable, but James had started wheezing as he buried his face in her neck, though he was valiantly trying to hide it, so she covered his cheeks with her hands and pulled his face away. 

“James,” she said again, waiting for his eyes to refocus. Her cheeks hurt from smiling. 

“That was an accident,” he blurted, though his hand was still buried in her hair and his gaze lingered on her swollen lips. Contradictory feelings battled it out across his face. He vacillated between looking distinctly pleased with himself, shocked at what he had started, and terrified at the implications. 

But not even James’ idiocy could pull Lily down from the fluffy cloud she was floating on. “It didn’t feel very accidental,” she stated with a smirk. 

The boy turned even more pink, though his face was already so flushed that it was hard to tell. 

“Shouldn’t we talk about this?” she prompted, feeling immensely pleased with herself as well but choosing to act mature for his sake. 

“Can’t talk,” he said quickly, reluctantly releasing her and taking a few steps back. “Got to sleep. Goodnight.” He turned on his heel and sped away as fast as his long legs permitted.