Can't help falling in love

[Professor James Cade]

James did a lot of soul searching during the holidays and a lot had changed for him. He and Maddie weren't really speaking after a blow out argument, they both said some things and even after a humorous and somewhat infuriating meet up with her during the holidays he still didn't feel like he was a place to forgive what she said and no doubt she felt the same. Finally able to put what happened between him, Ezra and Misha behind him James was ready to move on, that would include being civil to Ezra, who was now at Hogwarts with him, as long as his brother was civil to him. He knew the older boy all too well to know that was unlikely, but they would have to learn to co-exist for the remainder of their time at school.

In the process of putting everything in the past, Misha, Maddie, the drama that followed them. James had a startling revelation about another girl in their year. Charlotte. As she was Maddie's best friend the two would often be at odds whenever he and Maddie were on opposing sides of something, which was all the time. Over the holidays James found himself thinking more and more about the blonde girl. It all led to him pacing around the entrance hall the day after the welcome speech, waiting for Charlotte to surface out of the common room. He knew she would be up and out soon and he was happy to wait. He had something for her.

 

[Charlotte Owens]

After what had happened last year, Charlotte was unsure whether or not she wanted to go back to Hogwarts this time. A year without Avie was just something she didn't want to have to endure. The incident was obviously an accident but that didn't mean that something like that couldn't happen again, especially with the amount of horrible things that were going about the school. Despite this, Charlotte was getting older now and she felt mature enough to leave all of that behind and start again with a positive attitude. After all, she was almost heading into her OWL year and she didn't want something so little distracting her from something so big.

With a smile on her face Charlotte began to make her way up to the great hall from her common room, eager for a delicious meal. The food was definitely something Charlotte had always missed every year, not that she didn't like her mother's food. There was just something about knowing that an elf made your food instead of a human that made it even more enjoyable. But before the Slytherin could walk through the double doors and into the great hall she spotted James pacing up and down. He seemed nervous, or as if he was simply waiting for someone. Nonetheless, Charlotte was curious and walked over to him. "Hi!" she exclaimed, a bright smile spread across her face. She hoped she hadn't scared him too much. "Everything alright?"

 

[Professor James Cade]

James didn't get nervous very often. He had never been nervous around Maddie, he felt a lot of things around his fellow Gryffindor but nervous was not one of them. So why was he nervous waiting for Charlotte to appear from the dungeon. Perhaps the fact James had never made a move like this with Maddie, sure he'd kissed her in second year but that was a long time ago and he'd got caught up in a moment. This was different, this was planned and it was terrifying. After sometime he finally saw Charlotte make her way up from the dungeon but before he could approach her she came over to him and asked if everything was alright. Did he look that nervous?

"Hi Charlotte," he smiled at her wondering how to start. "I err, well I something over the holidays and i thought it was cute and it made me think of you, and well I haven't been able to stop since," He laughed slightly as he rubbed his hand on the back of his head. This was ridiculous. James pulled out the box from his robe and opened it and handed it to her showing the necklace. "Hope you like it," He smiled a little more confidently.

 

[Charlotte Owens]

Charlotte had never seen James like this before and so she had an eyebrow raised as she waited for him to speak. Had something changed over the holidays? However personal it was, Charlotte hoped that he'd be able to tell her whatever it was that was bothering him and maybe she could cheer him up so as to not see him so sad. Had one of his siblings died? Has his house been burnt down? Did someone steal all of his money? Fortunately, it wasn't anything like that and she knew then that it was her he was nervously waiting for. Why was he thinking about her during the holidays? The Slytherin had many questions she wanted to ask but before she had the chance to, she watched as James retrieved a box and inside was a necklace with a beautiful letter 'C' on it. She held it in her hand delicately and looked up at James, unsure what to say. All along she thought that he might have liked someone else. After all, who would ever have a crush on Charlotte? But now James was proving her wrong. "I-I love it." she said simply, feeling butterflies in her stomach from being so flattered. "Why have you been thinking of me for so long?"

 

[Professor James Cade]

The nervousness James was feeling, and exhibiting, was very unlike him and he needed it to stop if he wanted Charlotte to take him seriously. He smiled broadly as Charlotte seemed happy with his gift, he was happy that she liked it, he would have been in a rather awkward position if she didn't. James gently removed the necklace from the box and undid the clasp, "May I?"" he asked holding it up. Charlotte brushed her hair to one side and James slid behind her to fasten the necklace round her neck. He smiled as it dangled on her neck and Charlotte let go of her hair letting it fall back into place. "It looks good on you," He said with a smile.

When Charlotte asked why he had been thinking about er James really wasn't sure what to say. He shrugged is shoulders as he tried to find the words. "I err, don't know, I mean i got the necklace and ever since then I've been wanting to see you, to see your reaction, to look in your eyes, you have pretty eyes Char," He smiled not sure where all this was coming from. "I guess what I'm trying to say is, I like you,"

 

[Charlotte Owens]

The amount of emotions Charlotte were feeling in such a short amount of time was beginning to become a bit overwhelming. She really didn't know how to feel about it and began to wonder if he had also bought necklaces for Maddie and Amy too. But as he smiled widely at Charlotte's reaction, she was unsure whether or not he would do something like that. Charlotte tried her best not to anxiously shake her hands as she brushed her hair to the side so James could put the necklace around her neck. She couldn't see how it looked on her but trusted what James said and smiled at him, feeling her cheeks slowly become hot. "Thanks." she muttered, unsure what else to say.

The next words to come out of James' mouth made Charlotte blush even more. Why had his feelings for Charlotte escalated so quickly? To her, her eyes weren't anything special at all and to hear James say such a thing lifted her spirits. But it was something about the last three words that made Charlotte speechless which was definitely not like her. There was silence whilst the blonde girl stood in front of the boy with a rush of adrenaline. She didn't feel hungry for food anymore and the people rushing around them were no longer of any worry for what she was about to say. "You also have quite pretty eyes." Charlotte told him confidently. "I guess that could mean I like you too."

 

[Professor James Cade]

Charlotte's responses were exactly what he wanted to hrar, he just hoped that wasn't the reason why she was saying them. He knew it would be weird for the two of them, after everything he had been through with Maddie, some of which Charlotte didn't know about. Maddie had made things pretty clear when they saw each other over the holidays that she had moved on from Felix and clearly James wasn't part of that, so he would have to do the same. Charlotte was everything he liked in Maddie and more, she was more consistent with it too. To his knowledge there wasn't a vindictive bone in the girls body and he liked her for it.

James adjusted the necklace a little before pulling his hands away from Charlotte. She seemed happy and that made him happy, he had never thought much about his own eyes but then she could be just returning the compliment out of awkwardness. He looked towards the door of the Great hall and saw that the crowd had dwindled which meant most were now inside. But before they went in he had one last thing to ask. "Charlotte, will you be my girlfriend?"

 

[Charlotte Owens]

As James let go of Charlotte she had the sudden urge to grab him back and pull him closer, but she kept herself contained and stood still as she waited to see what would happen next. She didn't know how she'd feel if they just left and pretended everything was normal. After all, Charlotte had never said anything like that to anyone and nor had anyone said such a thing to her. It all felt different but the girl knew that she'd be able to handle it. The moment just felt right and she couldn't explain why. Was this how Maddie felt when she first started talking to Felix properly? She hadn't heard much about their relationship but knew that they were over. Luckily, the breakup hadn't hurt her friend too much and she was sure that both Maddie and Felix would soon go back to normal again.

When Charlotte heard the word girlfriend, it took a while for her to process it. Did he just ask her out? Was this how it always happened? Charlotte didn't really recount it happening like this in the stories her mother would tell her before bed when she was small, but this was real life and sometimes many more magical moments could happen in real life than in a small fairytale. Charlotte fiddled with her thumbs as she tried to come up with an answer. She didn't understand the full meaning of girlfriend and boyfriend. The whole concept of it was very new to her. What would her mother think if she came home next holidays and told her that she had a boyfriend? Would she get angry and tell her that she was too young? Truthfully, Charlotte thought the same thing. But James was different and somehow she was very confident in believing that it might be the right thing to do. "Okay." she said quietly, feeling her cheeks go red again. "I mean... yes. As in yes I will be your girlfriend." The girl giggled slightly, unsure why she was being so awkward all of a sudden. "What does this mean now? Do you think Maddie would be alright with it?"

 

[Professor James Cade]

Just like that Charlotte was his girlfriend. He smiled broader than he had in months. He was happy, for once it wasn't fake, he wasn't putting on an act for everyone else. When she said yes he lost himself for a moment and grabbed her and pulled her into a hug. Her giggle following her saying yes was the cutest thing he'd ever heard, but maybe that was just his happiness talking. When she said what's next James didn't really have time to think before she mentioned Maddie and he paused, they would have to tell Maddie.

"I guess we can't exactly keep it from her, she and I aren't speaking right now but you're her best friend, do you want to tell her? Or should we tell her together? Or maybe I can tell her? I don't really know," He stopped his rambling and looked at Charlotte. His hands still holding onto hers. "We'll figure that out, but first, join me for breakfast?" He asked motioning his head towards the Great hall.

 

[Charlotte Owens]

Charlotte couldn't explain how she felt when she saw James' smile. She hadn't realised how beautiful it looked on him and it was quite obvious that it was genuine. The girl hugged him back and her stomach fluttered at the feeling of her body against his. His touch made the room warmer somehow and he was already making her happier than she had ever been. Telling Maddie about what had just happened was one of the first things on her list at the end of the day. But for some reason she didn't know how great it would be if James wasn't there to back her up, just in case Maddie would have reacted in a peculiar way. Her friend was unpredictable and Charlotte wouldn't know what she'd do if she hurt her best friend.

"Could you do it with me?" she asked James tentatively as he held her hand in his. Charlotte felt as though she needed him to protect her and it had only been a couple of minutes ago that they were just friends. The girl didn't realise how hungry she was until James mentioned breakfast. She nodded her head and they started walking towards the Great Hall hand in hand. Unsure what table to sit at, Charlotte hesitated before taking James to the Gryffindor table and sat down. "What are you going to eat?" she asked, eyeing all of the different choices. "Usually I might just have some toast but I think today I'll have some pancakes." Charlotte reached forward to where the pancakes were and began piling them onto her plate, already feeling as if this had to almost be the best day of her life.

 

[Professor James Cade]

James was a little surprised that Charlotte wanted him to be with her when they told Maddie they were together. He had half expected that she would want to tell her best friend alone, but James was glad that he would be there, there was less chance Maddie would try to talk Charlotte out of it with him standing next to her. Though he had no doubt his fellow Gryffindor would have a few choice words about her best friends choice of a boyfriend. He squeezed her hand as they headed into the great hall, conscious of the fact that Maddie may be at the Gryffindor table, if she saw them as they were before they broke the news to her they would both be in the dog house, James even more so than usual.

It was the Gryffindor table where Charlotte ended up leading him to but to his relief Maddie was not there so he settled in and relaxed as he watched Charlotte shovel pancakes onto her plate. "I think bacon, and eggs, and toast, it's better because now Rudolf isn't here to hog all the bacon," He laughed at the mental image of his best friend trying to talk with a mouth full of bacon. James ate slowly, a lot slower than usual, he was distracted at the thought of telling Maddie. "Char, I'm worried that Maddie might try and talk you out of this,"

 

[Charlotte Owens]

Charlotte listened as James spoke. She was a bit unsure who Rudolf was but had heard the name around somewhere and couldn't exactly put the name to a face. It turned out that James had many more friends than what Charlotte knew about and she was eager to meet them all. "Who's Rudolf?" she asked curiously, hoping he wouldn't tell Rudolf that she didn't know him. She didn't want to seem rude, especially if somehow they should have already known each other. The Slytherin ate her pancakes slowly, keeping an eye out to see if she recognised any of the Gryffindors around her yet. Not many had shown up yet and so she just kept eating, hoping no one would disturb them.

"I won't let Maddie talk me out of it." Charlotte replied to James who looked extremely worried about telling her best friend about their relationship. It was pointless to be worrying about it. Besides, what kind of friend would Maddie be if she didn't respect who Charlotte wanted to date? "I don't think you should worry about it." Charlotte smiled at her boyfriend, hoping that wasn't the first thing on his mind now that they were dating. She was happy to finally have a boyfriend like Maddie did and she wasn't going to let her friend ruin that.