Girl Crisis

[Jessica Park]

Now that school had started back up Jessica was looking forward to seeing her teammates again so they could train harder for their upcoming international game. But truthfully as much as Jess loved all things Quidditch, she was looking forward to talking to her teammate and captain again for an entirely different reason. She didn't even know if Grace would be able to help her but Jess just needed someone to talk to about her crush. She had been holding in her feelings for Asaiah and now she just needed to admit it to someone who didn't know him or Hannah or why she was so conflicted about it. She had asked Grace to meet her in the courtyard of the school and brought two hot chocolates for them since it was still the dead of winter. She brought the mug up close to her so the steam could keep her warm but she didn't drink any just yet since it was still too hot.
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[Professor Grace Holland]

Grace was happy school had started again. Seeing her family over the holiday break was nice, but exhausting. Her sister was a quiet girl, so she often forgot how loud young girls could be. Her cousin Rose was always quick to remind her, though. Her young cousin had gifted her misshapen mittens, and Grace had reluctantly put them on today. Even though they weren't very pretty, they were surprisingly warm. She was happy to go meet Jessica, considering the younger girl a friend. After being surrounded by girls under twelve, she really needed to talk to someone her own age. She spotted Jessica at once in the courtyard and waved in greeting as she approached. "Hi Jessica! How was your break?" She spotted the hot chocolates and grinned. "Is that for me?" She asked hopefully, she loved chocolate.

 

[Jessica Park]

Jessica smiled when she saw Grace approaching and waved at her from afar. "Hey!"" she greeted her. "My break was great!" she said happily, already feeling her cheeks heat up from thinking about it, but she would just blame her flushed face on the weather if Grace happened to notice. She chuckled and said, "It sure is!" and picked up the extra hot chocolate to give to Grace. "How was your break?" Jess asked in return, her accent still slightly noticeable even after all these years of speaking English. She nodded towards a bench so they could head over there and the fifth year took a seat, leaving room for Grace to sit beside her.
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[Professor Grace Holland]

Grace sat down with Jessica, eager to hear about her break. She had a feeling the girl wanted to talk to her about something, though she wasn't sure about that. Jessica must have a much more interesting life than Grace, she just seemed like the type to get into all sorts of trouble. Grace was more of a rule follower in general. "My break was... hectic." Grace said, taking a sip of her hot chocolate. "I love my family but it sort of sucks being the oldest. I swear I'm still finding glitter in my clothes after one of my little cousins decided I needed to be sparkly." She sighed. "Please tell me you did something interesting on your break so I can live vicariously through you?" She smiled at Jessica encouragingly, hoping to coax something out of her.

 

[Jessica Park]

Sica took a sip of her hot chocolate now that it had cooled down a bit and she listened to Grace talk about her break. She giggled over the rim of her cup but nodded in understanding because she was the oldest as well. "You'll probably be finding glitter for the next year," she chuckled as she regretted to inform her. "How old are your cousins?" she wondered. Two of her younger sisters were just a year apart from her and each other, but her youngest sister had a significantly larger age gap between them all so she was still such a kid in Jessica's mind.

Jessica smiled when Grace brought up her break and laughed at her friend's comment, unsure if Grace would find her break particularly interesting but she wanted to tell her anyway, as that was the whole reason she had invited her to hang out. "Well, I visited New Zealand again," she began, her cheeks already turning pink. She had previously asked Grace if she could stay at her family's house during a weekend in November so she could meet Asaiah, but she hadn't given her too many details on who she was meeting. "I stayed with my friend, her name is Hannah, and she graduated from here about a year ago, except it wasn't really her I was visiting. I mean, yeah I missed her and it was good to hang out with her too," she said quickly, rambling and clearly getting to what she wanted to talk about. She looked up at Grace and admitted, "I was mostly there to visit her brother and now that I say it out loud I feel so guilty about it, but he's so cute and he's so funny and - " she let it all out at once, laughing nervously and shaking her head. She hadn't even explained how she and Asaiah had started talking but what she really wanted to ask Grace was, "Am I a bad friend?"
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[Professor Grace Holland]

Grace groaned. "I will, won't I?" She sighed. "If anyone asks I'll just tell them it's from my shining personality." She grinned and flipped her hair back before laughing at herself. "My cousins are between twelve and ...seven? eight? I forget. But there's four of them." Grace wasn't the best with ages of her younger family members. She liked them well enough, but she wasn't too involved in their lives. "And my little sister is ...six." Or was she still five? Grace didn't want to admit to Jessica that she wasn't entirely sure, so she just smiled. Having such a big age difference between her and her sister meant that their lives were fairly separate. She only saw her during school breaks, and that had been the case for as long as Violet had been alive.

Grace couldn't help a knowing smile as Jessica talked about New Zealand and blushed, there had to be a special person there somewhere. Grace had had that feeling ever since Jessica had wanted to stay over back in November. Now she was getting confirmation. She listened to Jessica's explanation quietly, sipping her drink. "So let me get this straight," she said, lowering the cup. "You went to visit your friend in New Zealand but you were really there to visit her brother, who you like." Her first concern was this boys age, if Hannah was older than Grace, an older brother might not be appropriate for Jessica. "He's her younger brother?" She asked subtly, hoping to keep all judgement out of her voice. "I don't think liking her brother makes you a bad friend, Jessica. Honestly, you can't help who you like. If he's that cute and funny, why wouldn't you like him?" She smiled in what she hoped was an encouraging way. "Hannah should understand, if you ask me. I know there is this weird thing about dating siblings of friends, and I guess I can sort of see why but it also seems kind of silly. Doesn't it? She knows you're great, so she wouldn't have to be worried about her brother's heart being broken by some mean girl. And if you ever get married to him, you'll be sisters!" She nudged Jessica to show she was joking around. "But seriously, my own sister is six like I said. I don't entirely know what Hannah would be feeling, but if it were up to me I would say it's not a big issue." She paused. "Now tell me everything about this boy. Do you have a picture?" Her own dating life had been quiet for a while, and she had missed talking about boys with other girls. She sort of wished she had a boy of her own to talk about, but this conversation should be about Jessica anyway.

 

[Jessica Park]

Jessica looked at Grace with wide eyes, silently asking for relief from her guilt and smiled anxiously when the girl gave it to her. She nodded and said, "Yeah, he's her younger brother," not realizing the potential alarm it could've caused if he had been an older brother. "He's a fourth year," she added. Asaiah was technically younger than her too but not by much for it to matter. She was glad that Grace didn't seem to find an issue in her crush and chuckled when she said Hannah should not be worried about her breaking his heart. "I don't think that's necessarily the issue," she said, shaking her head with a laugh. "You see, they both think the other is kind of annoying, you know, in the way siblings usually do," she explained, rolling her eyes, not at the Murphy siblings but in familiarity with her own sisters. She recalled the way Hannah and Asaiah bickered and the way the two of them spoke about each other to her individually.

In his letters Asaiah had expressed how he didn't know why Jess was friends with Hannah and Hannah had said similar things to her at their home, apologizing for her brother being so annoying. It was all harmless and funny to Sica and she knew they still loved each other as siblings, but she would still feel awkward admitting to Hannah of her crush. "I think if I told Hannah I liked him, she would think something is wrong with me," she joked. "She'd tell me I can do better or something but..I really like him," she sighed with a helpless grin on her face. She snapped out of it when a sudden horrible thought came to mind. "And what if...what if she makes me choose between them or something?" Jess considered anxiously. It had been hard enough over Christmas break to hang out with Asaiah without Hannah dragging her away at times.

Despite her worries, Jess's eyes crinkled as she smiled brightly and nodded when Grace asked if she had a picture of him. "As a matter of fact, I do!" she giggled. She put down her hot chocolate and swung her bag around to open it and dug around in there, looking for something. She pulled out the letter Asaiah had written to her and unfolded it to take out the picture he had sent along with it. She looked down at it and laughed and was about to hand it over to Grace before she pulled it back and held it against her chest and said, "Don't laugh!" even though she was already laughing at the picture. "That's him," she said, handing her the picture Asaiah had sent her. "As you can see he was very proud of himself for having figured out how to work a magical camera," she explained, giggling at the picture and looking at it fondly. "His name is Asaiah, and he's a Beater for his school's House team, just like me! Well, he was," she added, realizing she hadn't said his name yet and unsure of his status as a Quidditch player overall.
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[Professor Grace Holland]

Grace was relieved to hear it was Hannah's younger brother, she was feeling quite protective of Jessica just because she was a couple of years younger than her. It didn't faze her that the boy was also a bit younger than Jessica, it was such a small difference. She listened quietly to Jessica's explanation, wondering if her prediction was right. "If I know anything about siblings, their 'dislike' of each other is probably greatly exaggerated for effect. Like they both think its what they're supposed to do, you know? If Hannah would really be difficult about you liking a person she shares so much DNA with, she should really reconsider her own qualities first." She smiled. "But I think you might be worrying too much, Jessica. Hannah might joke about it a little, but I think any sister would want a good match for their sibling, even if she finds that sibling annoying sometimes. And you're a good match for any boy. Or girl." She hastened to add. "And at the risk of sounding mean, I think she wouldn't be a very good friend if she made you choose." Grace could be efficient to the point of rudeness sometimes, though she tried not to be, she didn't want to make this conversation too black and white. "I'm sure Hannah wouldn't do that if she's such a good friend."

She hoped she had helped even a little, though she wasn't sure. It seemed so complicated and she wondered if Jessica wasn't really overthinking it. She laughed when she looked at the picture, even though Jessica told her not to laugh. "That's cute, kind of silly." He did look a little young to Grace, but he looked a good age for Jessica. The fond look on the girl's face really said enough. She did feel a little alarm at the last thing the girl said. "Was?" She asked. "Was he kicked off?" She frowned. "Is he a troublemaker? Or bad at Quidditch?" Grace wasn't sure which she disapproved of more.

 

[Jessica Park]

Jessica picked up her hot chocolate again and took a sip as she listened to Grace's reasoning, it was calming her down. She nodded when she said siblings' dislike of each other was greatly exaggerated because she knew that all too well. "Yeah, I say I hate my sisters all the time and I get so annoyed by them, but I really do love them," she considered. She knew the same was for Hannah and Asaiah who may have bickered at times but she knew they really did like each other. If anything, she and her sisters bickered way more than them. Jess smiled over the rim of her cup as Grace said she would be a great catch for anyone and was already feeling more comforted and her thoughts seemed to be untangling in her head. Jess sighed and said, "You're totally right. I think I'm probably just worrying for nothing." She bit her lip and added, "I think the reason why I keep stressing over the possibility of 'choosing' is because he lives in New Zealand and I live here, so it'd be long distance. If I were to go and visit him, I'm worried she'd think I don't care about her as a friend if I don't hang out with her too." If she got to see Hannah and Asaiah more frequently she wouldn't be so worried about one of them monopolizing her time because she could spread out her time evenly, but with the possibility of a long distance relationship, she'd have to maximize her time with Asaiah and she didn't want Hannah to think Jess didn't care for her.

The pink haired girl chuckled as Grace picked up on her use of past tense when referring to Asaiah's status as a Quidditch player. She shook her head and said, "He is definitely not bad at Quidditch," offended on his behalf, good-naturedly. Jess could hear the disapproval in Grace's tone and hesitated to tell her about what Asaiah had done because she looked up to the girl and wanted her to approve of the guy she liked. But she also didn't want to lie to Grace because she had already hinted at it so she figured honesty was best. "He and his friends pulled a pretty bad prank at his school and they got caught, so they got kicked off their teams," she said apologetically, chewing on her bottom lip. "If he hadn't been kicked off, we'd probably be facing him in the upcoming game against Hogwarts New Zealand," she said regretfully. "But he's not a troublemaker, I swear!" she added quickly.
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[Professor Grace Holland]

Grace smiled when it seemed like she was calming Jessica down a bit. That's what she wanted to do. "I think it's probably the same deal with Asaiah and Hannah." She said reassuringly. She understood Jessica's reason and hesitated. "I get that, and Hannah might have some trouble at first having to share time with you, but she'll get used to it." She said with a smile. She took a sip of her hot chocolate, nodding at the girl. "Well, if he's good at Quidditch..." She sighed. "He sounds like a bit of a troublemaker but I think that suits you." She smiled and nudged her friend. "You're too funny and bright for some boring boy, just make sure he's not too much trouble." She smiled. "I would love to meet him sometime." She sighed. "It sounds exciting." She said, sounding a little wistful.

 

[Jessica Park]

Jessica was feeling considerably better now after having talked to Grace. She knew she had just been overthinking things, but she just needed to voice her concerns so now that they were said aloud they didn't seem so bad after all. "Yeah, and Hannah and I had years together in school, so in a way hanging out with Asaiah wouldn't come close to how much we hung out," she laughed a little at her reasoning. It'd be like making up for lost time in a sense. She grinned when Grace said a troublemaker suited her because the older girl was right, someone who was no fun would bore Jess too much. "Yeah you'd be surprised, I tell him to stay out of trouble, he tells me to study, it's works out well," she said proudly. She grinned and nodded her head excitedly when she said she'd love to meet him sometime. She felt happy and hopeful, she wanted Grace to approve of Asaiah and also be proud of her for trying to focus on her classes because this was her OWL year. But as the older girl's tone seemed longing, Jess pursed her lips thoughtfully and curiously asked, "What about you, is there anyone you're interested in?"
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[Professor Grace Holland]

Grace was glad to see that Jessica looked less worried about her situation than she had before. The girl was so happy and cheerful, it was hard to see her be down. She smiled. "That makes sense, I'm sure she'll understand." Grace laughed. "I'm glad he's telling you to study, how is your OWL year so far?" She felt bad for the girl, remembering how stressful she herself had been for her OWLs. Though, she had a feeling she was slightly more focused on her grades than Jessica was. She wondered if the other girl had less pressure from parents to perform well in school, her own parents were very focused on that. "I could always help you with revising if you want." She offered, though she had before.

Grace's question made her blush a bit and she laughed it off. "No, not right now." She said with a shake of her head. "I guess I just sort of wish I was, if that makes sense? It's been ages since I had a boyfriend and I sort of miss the whole feeling when you like someone. I guess you talking about your New Zealand boy made me miss feeling that way myself." She sighed. "That's silly, though, isn't it?"

 

[Jessica Park]

Jessica shrugged casually as Grace asked about her OWL year and said, "It's going well so far, but I guess that remains to be seen at the end of the year." She took a sip of her hot chocolate. "I'm trying to keep up with my studies now so that I don't get overloaded with it later on," she said, hoping it would prove beneficial for her in the long run. She just wanted to get this year over with already so she wouldn't have to focus on these big tests and also so Asaiah wouldn't be under house arrest anymore. Jess giggled when Grace talked about missing the feeling of having a crush and shook her head when she said that was silly. "Of course not! I totally get that," she assured the girl. "Flirting is half the fun of liking someone," she said cheekily. She did wish Grace had someone to of her own as well because Jess thought she could use a little fun in her life, other than Quidditch, but as a captain she had responsibilities and standards to uphold, which took some of the fun out of the game. "Maybe you need a New Zealand boy too," she quipped, "I hardly think none of the boys here are worthy of you," Jess said with a small laugh, though she was half serious. Grace was smart and beautiful and a great catch for anyone, but there weren't many Beauxbatons boys that lived up to what Jess thought the older girl deserved.
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[Professor Grace Holland]

Grace nodded and smiled at the younger girl. "That sounds smart, I hope you can keep it up. I bet you'll do well on your OWLs and then you have the whole holidays to hang out with your boyfriend." She grinned teasingly, taking a sip of her own drink. She was glad Jessica said it wasn't silly and that flirting was half the fun, it was sort of how she was feeling right now. She laughed out loud when she mentioned a New Zealand boy. "Look at you, one cute New Zealand boy and you're ready to write off all the boys in France." She teased gently. "As exciting as that sounds, it's not very practical. I think I would like to look a bit closer, at least at first." She paused. "Though it would be a lot less awkward if you break up and they're not in the same classes as you. Maybe you have a point." She shrugged with a carefree smile. "Maybe if you have any free time during the holidays we can go out, you can be my wing woman." This wasn't really Grace's style, but something about Jessica made her want to do things she didn't usually do. Sometimes she was tired of always being responsible.

 

[Jessica Park]

For some reason Jessica blushed slightly when Grace mentioned the word 'boyfriend' and ducked her head behind her drink as she occupied herself by taking another sip. She wouldn't go as far as to call Asaiah her boyfriend because she was still not completely sure they were past the flirting stage yet. She did like the sound of it though, but she wouldn't admit it just yet. Jessica laughed and nodded her head when Grace teased her for about writing off the boys in France. "I bet you'd agree with me too if you met a New Zealand boy like Asaiah," she countered, jokingly, thinking of the Beater fondly for a moment before focusing back on the conversation at hand.

Then the pink haired girl chuckled as Grace talked about the practicality of relationships; although she did make very good points. But love wasn't rational or logical at times. Jess tutted in disappointment as she shook her head. "Grace!" she scolded, "You can't be open to the idea of finding a new fling if you're already thinking about break ups!" she pushed the girl slightly, laughing afterward. "Now I definitely need to be your wing woman," she scoffed with a chuckle. "Let's see, what is the criteria that needs to be met to date Grace Holland?" Jess asked, overly formal, though she giggled afterward. Knowing her friend she was bound to have some sort of list in her head for what she liked in someone.
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[Professor Grace Holland]

Grace smiled a little at Jessica's blush. That had been her intention and she was glad to see the other girl a little embarrassed, it was cute. She sipped her hot chocolate as well, sad to see it was nearly gone. "Perhaps I would, but New Zealand is still awfully far." She said with a small smile.

She laughed when Jessica scolded her shrugged. "I can't help it! I just like to think ahead." She smiled. "I'll try not to focus on it. Do you have any more Jessica tips for finding a new fling?" She wrinkled her nose a bit at the last word, it didn't suit her. Jessica asked her criteria for boys and Grace didn't hesitate. "Well, he needs to be smart." She told her. "Nothing extreme but he has to be able to keep up with me. He can't hate quidditch, but he doesn't have to love it. But if he wants me to train less often he's out." She paused. "And I like it when a boy is funny." She added. "Not too silly, but a good sense of humor." She paused, thinking if she had more.

 

[Jessica Park]

Jessica nodded her head glumly when Grace said New Zealand was far. "Yeah that's the only part that sucks, especially when you're not allowed to visit them because they're in trouble," Jess said wistfully. But at least Asaiah was a pretty good pen pal so she looked forward to getting a letter from him often. Although it didn't really help her stop missing him, it sometimes felt like a no win situation, but she made the best of it so far.

Jess laughed when Grace said she liked to think ahead and wasted no time in launching straight into a list of qualities she liked. The fifth year listened closely nodding her head in approval at her criteria and trying to see if she knew of anyone who could fit the bill. She smiled cheekily when Grace asked if she had any more Jessica tips and replied, "I'm sure you want to be as prepared as possible, but this is flirting, don't worry about it!" She chuckled a little as she grouped her thoughts together. "If you have this idea of what you should or shouldn't do, you'll only be getting in your own way - and that is the only actual piece of advice I'm giving you!" Jess declared with a grin and a small nudge. She finished off the last of her hot chocolate, which had gotten lukewarm over the conversation, and said, "Alright you know what you'd like in a guy, what about things you don't like? Any deal breakers?"
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[Professor Grace Holland]

Grace could tell Jessica was amused by her praticality, but she couldn't help it. That was just the way she was, though it was refreshing to have a friend with such a different view on life, and boys. She had to admit Jessica had a point, but Grace wasn't really the casually flirty type. Her advice made Grace shrug. "So you're saying I shouldn't think too much?" She asked, knowing that was a lost cause for her. Still, she was willing to give it a go. Jessica's last question gave her pause, and she thought about it before answering. "Well, mostly if they try to stop me from doing what I love." She shrugged again. "I don't want a boy that starts complaining I study too much or practice Quidditch too much, you know? I want to do things that are important to me, even in a relationship." She didn't want a guy to pin her down, which is why she largely kept them at a distance. She liked doing her own thing and focusing on her own priorities.

 

[Jessica Park]

Jess laughed but nodded her head as she said, "Yes that's exactly what I'm saying!" She listened as Grace described the types of things she didn't like in a guy and nodded her head in complete agreement. "Good, good," she agreed, "So nothing like 'Can't love pickles' or anything weirdly specific, that's good," she giggled afterward, clearly joking. Though it was good that Grace wasn't overtly picky which wouldn't make finding a date for her hard. "Those are all basic decencies to ask of someone," she said, nodding her head thoughtfully. She wouldn't let Grace settle for anyone who didn't meet those basic requirements. "But it doesn't help narrow down the search," she sighed dramatically, grinning playfully afterward. "Is there anyone you think is cute? That's a good place to start," she nudged the older girl.
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[Professor Grace Holland]

Grace laughed softly. "Do I seem like the type to make unreasonable demands?" She teased, then paused. "Okay, I could see that. To be fair, I am sort of critical... I should probably work on that a little." she sighed. "I'm a bit of a perfectionist, and that influences relationships too." She was being more open than she was used to being, but she trusted Jessica. Grace didn't really know how to answer her last question, she thought about it. "There's a few boys in my year that are sort of cute." She said slowly. "There's Isaac Ashworth in my year, he's sort of cute. And Dominik Milne as well, in a bit of a dorky way." She snorted. "I think your fellow beater could be cute, if he smiled once in a while." Peter was too serious, even for Grace. "Is there anyone else you think would fit? As you're being my wing woman and all." She joked, though she was a bit curious about the answer.

 

[Jessica Park]

Sica laughed at Grace's comments but she shook her head when her friend began to critique herself. "No no, there's nothing wrong with setting standards!" she said immediately. "I think it's good that you know what you like and don't like!" she encouraged. Jess smiled at her reassuringly, knowing that Grace was somewhat reserved and private so she was happy that she was being so open with her. It made Jess want to help her more and flirting and dating was her area of expertise. She liked that she had originally come to Grace for advice on how to navigate her feelings for Asaiah and now she could return the favor. Jess chuckled when she mentioned a few of the boys, but then laughed when she brought up Peter. "I know right? He's so grumpy all the time," she said with a giggle. Peter would probably hate that they were gossiping about him right now, but the idea made her laugh even more. Still, she didn't think of Peter as a real contender for Grace since he didn't seem interested in dating anyone, so she considered the other options, smiling proudly when Grace called her her wing woman. "I think Joseph Wright is pretty cute too!" she considered after thinking of some of the boys in Grace's age range. Jess didn't know them all too well because they were older than her, but she knew enough of them to try and gauge who would be a good fit for Grace. "They are pretty cute really, but I can picture you with someone like Dominik. Both equally as brainy," she laughed, choosing a tamer word to call them both nerds. "I bet if anyone can get him to stop thinking about dragons for more than two seconds, it's you," Jess said confidently, giggling a little. "I say you should go for it! Next time you see him, you should try to talk to him!" she decided, nudging her friend a little.
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[Professor Grace Holland]

Grace smiled at her friend. Jessica was such a sweet girl underneath her teasing, and she seemed quick to compliment anyone that was too hard on themselves. She really appreciated that about her. "Thank you." she said with a smile. "I suppose you're right." It wasn't really mature to giggle about Peter and his grumpy face, but Grace was enjoying herself too much to really care about that. "It's funny that you two are beaters together, you're like opposites."

She had to agree about Joseph, he was cute, but she hadn't really talked to him. "That's true, he is." She told Jessica with a small shrug. The talk about Dominik made her smile, though. He really was obsessed with dragons, so much so that students in other years knew about it. But she herself was obsessed with Quidditch, and that just seemed to be a little more socially acceptable so not as many people seemed to notice. Her teammates did, though. She took the sport more seriously than some of them and knew a few of them found her a bit strict. It was easy enough to agree to what Jessica was suggesting now, though she was aware she might regret it the next time she saw Dominik. "I think I will." She said. "Though, I don't think I can flirt the way you do, but talking is a start right?"