Closed Hooked On All These Feelings

[Harley Tsuji]

The Yule Ball. Their first Yule Ball. A real, proper date at last. Sure, Harley and Hayley had been to the ball as friends before, but now everything was different. She gripped Hayley's hand tightly as they entered the Great Hall, looking around with a bright grin on her face. "Man, I can't believe this is our last one of these." She said slowly, taking a moment to just take everything in. How had Harley never really appreciated the Yule Ball before? Seeing the whole school dressed up to the nines, everyone just talking and laughing and having fun together. That was the kind of thing Harley wanted to treasure about her school experience, happy times where everyone was all together. Still smiling, she turned to her girlfriend, heart warm. "What should we do first?"

 

[Hayley Elridge]

Hayley couldn’t even remember how long she’d dreamed of this moment. Though it had only been a couple of years, it seemed like forever ago that she’d realised she loved Harley. Back then it had felt impossible that they would ever be together - and yet, here they were. Their last Yule Ball at Hogwarts, their first Yule Ball as a couple. She squeezed Harley's hand as they walked into the hall, striking in their matching outfits. "I know, right? This time next year we'll be out of here!" And who knew what they'd be doing instead? But in this moment, Hayley couldn't see that it mattered, as long as they were together. Hayley looked around the hall, at all the familiar faces and colourful dresses, then back at her girlfriend, and grinned. She was tempted to check out whether the drinks table might have anything alcoholic for those who were allowed to drink, but right now there was only one answer to Harley's question. "Dance with me."

 

[Harley Tsuji]

Harley laughed, nodding in agreement. "I know, right? Wild. We'll have to have a, like... grownups Yule Ball at the Medley or something." She grinned. "Or just... go get plastered at least." Harley laughed, looking around the hall. As keen as she was to finally be in charge of her own life, part of Harley knew she would miss things like this. Such a big event uniting the whole school for a party. When Hayley said they should dance, Harley's grin brightened, and she glanced at her girlfriend. "Okay, but if I step on your feet you're not allowed to laugh at me." She joked, heading towards the dancefloor happily.

 

[Hayley Elridge]

Hayley giggled at the idea of a grownups Yule Ball; it seemed so incongruous with all the teenagers she could see around her. She was sure there were dances for adults, but she couldn't honestly see going to them. "We should definitely go get plastered," she agreed. "Damn, I'm so keen for like, adulthood. Just, being able to do that sh*t, whenever we want." She was scared, too, of course, not knowing what the future would hold - but she knew Harley would understand that without her saying it, and she didn't want to bring up such thoughts tonight. Tonight was for having fun, and dancing. Hayley's grin widened as she allowed her girlfriend to lead her towards the dancefloor. "Babe. Neither of us are exactly graceful. It's equally likely that I'll step on your feet."

 

[Harley Tsuji]

Harley laughed, glad that Hayley was on board with her plans for the future. She sighed, nodding in agreement as Hayley continued. "Yeah, for sure. But I'll definitely miss some of this. Like, there's people we see every day that we might just never ever see again. That's wild." Harley paused and took a moment to just look around, allowing the thought to soak in that this was a limited time in her life, and a moment that would never repeat itself. But then the dancefloor was beckoning, and she let those thoughts fall away, grinning as she pulled Hayley close. "Then it's a contest to see who can step on whose feet first." She grinned, jokingly stepping close to Hayley's foot as she began to move to the music.

 

[Hayley Elridge]

Hayley nodded, more thoughtful than she should be on a night like this. “Yeah, you’re right, there’s a lot I’ll miss about this place . . . but also quite a lot of people I’d be pretty happy to never see again. It’s all just . . . a lot.” Her time at Hogwarts had been a wild ride, that was for sure, and looking around the hall now, with Harley by her side, it really struck Hayley how much things had changed. She giggled at Harley’s comment. “You’re on,” she said, as they finally started to dance. Their first dance as a couple. Hayley was very aware of the warmth where Harley touched her skin. This felt right. Whatever the future held, wherever they went after, this moment was perfect.