If You Got the Gift You Should Use It

[Tristan Collins]

Tristan had gotten many roses this past Valentine's day, and it had boosted his ego quite a lot. A red one from Vivian and two pink ones. One from Jessica and one from a surprising source. Corrine Lagos was a girl that had been in Tristan's classes since his first year, but he had never really noticed her. Apparently, though, she had noticed him. The note she had sent him along with the pink rose had been quite adorable, even if she wasn't really the usual type he went for.With all the attention he was getting lately, though, he felt like he might have to look with a wider perspective. At the very least, he wanted to thank her for the note. Partly because he just wanted to see her reaction.

So as he saw her leave the Great Hall after breakfast a fe days after Valentine's day, he decided to follow her out. In the Entrance Hall he managed to catch up with her, and he tapped her on the shoulder. "Hey there, you're Corrine right? Gryffindor in my year?" He asked her, flashing her a smile. He eyed her carefully, wondering if she would show any signs of her apparent crush on him.

 

[Corrine Lagos]

Corrine knew she should be in a rush. She'd discovered the library book when she went to look for her wand, which had rolled under her bed. She'd completely forgotten about it, figuring she'd turned it in. And now it was almost two weeks overdue. Corrine had heard the rumors of what happened to students with overdue books, everything from having to pay some sickles to students disappearing, never to be seen again. That was slightly alarming, but she was trying to not think too much about it. The Gryffindor figured her roommates would eventually notice her missing. She hoped so anyway.

She was lost in these thoughts when she felt a tap on her shoulder and quickly turned around, her blue eyes going as wide as they could go as she listened to Tristan Collins as he spoke to her. He flashed her the smile she always enjoyed seeing, and Corrine was so flustered she didn't even respond for a moment. Finally, she realized he was waiting for a reply, and she nodded, once, twice, stopping herself before the third one. "Yes" she squeaked out, inwardly cringing at how high her voice sounded to herself. She'd dreamed of a moment like this, having Tristan come up to her, though in her day dreams, she was always dressed in something way cooler than her uniform, and she always had more to say. Corrine was never at a loss for words, but right now, she had nothing.

 

[Tristan Collins]

Tristan could tell he was having an effect on the girl simply by appearing in front of her, it made him smile. She was pretty, and had beautiful blue eyes, but the fact alone that he had never noticed her before getting her rose made him not all that interested in pursuing her. But that didn't mean he had to discourage her crush. In fact, it was interesting and fun, and quite flattering. Why would he want her not to feel that way? It took the girl a while to respond to him, but Tristan appeared not to notice. He smiled at her a little bashfully as he took a folded note out of his pocket. "I got your rose on Valentine's day, though I can't tell if you meant to sign it or not." He said honestly, showing her the note in question. "I just wanted to thank you, and say I'm flattered." He said gently, though he wondered if this had been a good idea. He had wanted to see the girl that liked him, and quite honestly wanted to talk to her in case she wanted to tell him why she liked him, but now that he saw how nervous she was he wondered if he had just embarrassed her. Still, it had been her own fault for signing it if that were the case. He could hardly just ignore something like this. "I'm afraid I'm sort of seeing someone, but since we share some classes perhaps we could sit next to each other sometime." He added with an apologetic smile. Of course he neglected to tell her he was sort of seeing two people, and that it didn't always stop him from flirting anyway.

 

[Corrine Lagos]

Not that Corrine minded in the slightest, but she wondered why Tristan was talking to her. They'd shared classes for years, and he'd never said a word to her. It was baffling to her, that today, of all days, was the day. She wasn't dressed any different from usual, the same school uniform as always. As he reached for his pocket, Corrine's eyes followed, watching as he pulled a small, folded up paper from within. Is Tristan Collins about to-. Her own thoughts were cut off as he spoke, her cheeks burning, really she was surprised her entire body wasn't on fire as he told her what the note was. Corrine thought back frantically, recalling the whim that had led her to send the note in the first place. She most definitely, absolutely had not signed it. Had she? Corrine was panicking as she realized she could not remember.

Wondering where that hole in the ground was when she needed it most, Corrine opened her mouth and tried to speak, but her throat was completely dry. "I, uh, I...". She tried again, but Tristan was talking, and she stopped, instead listening to him explain that he was seeing someone. Probably that October girl, Corrine mused, a twinge of jealousy because she was so pretty, even as he continued to speak, offering to sit beside her some time. Her cheeks burned even hotter. "Uh, you don't have to do that. It's ok. Oh Merlin...I did not mean to..." she cut herself off. The Gryffindor hugged the book to her chest. She'd absolutely meant to send the note, but not to sign it. Corrine was mortified. She didn't want him to sit next to her because he felt sorry for her. "Please don't show anyone. I...I didn't want you to know it was from me" she finished, her voice trailing off as she wished to be anywhere but where she stood.

 

[Tristan Collins]

Tristan could see from the girl's reaction to the note that she was embarrassed, maybe even mortified, and he felt a little bad. But perhaps he could turn this around, as he didn't think it had to be a negative thing. He was quite glad to know Corrine liked him, though he wasn't sure if he wanted to pursue her. It felt nice to be admired like that, and it was nice to know he had options aside from Jessica if he wanted to change up who to take to the next school event.

"I'm sorry." He said, grimacing slightly. "I wasn't sure if you meant to or not. I thought it was pretty brave of you either way, to send a rose at all." He said with a small shrug. "I really liked getting it, it was a nice surprise." He said, watching her expression closely. "Of course I won't show anyone, I'm not that horrible," he smiled at her slightly, "just between us, okay? I promise. I'll save the note somewhere safe." He folded it again, and placed it back in his pocket. "No harm done, please don't worry."

 

[Corrine Lagos]

Corrine could not believe this conversation was really happening. She'd kept her gaze on the ground, but lifted it when Tristan spoke about her bravery. She gave him a small half smile, glad that he thought so. Perhaps once she wasn't so mortified, Corrine would appreciate that moment. Right now, it only made her feel slightly better. She continued to listen, feeling slightly mollified by his reassurances. "Ok" she said quietly. Corrine was standing in front of Tristan Collins, and even though she'd hoped for this for ages, was stricken mostly silent.

She took a breath. "For the record, I don't think you're horrible. It's anyone else finding out what I did that I'm worried about" she said, trying to explain. Corrine didn't think others would quite be as kind as Tristan was trying to be. If she was mortified now, she could only imagine how other people might react. Images of being laughed out of the Great Hall were enough to make her want to run away. "I better go" she finished.

 

[Tristan Collins]

The small smile he saw appear on Corrine's face made Tristan think he was on the right track. At least, he wasn't making the situation worse. Knowing that Corrine liked him was a nice boost to his ego, even if he had never considered the girl much before. She wasn't ugly by any stretch, and perhaps would be a nice date to a future event. Though perhaps that wasn't the wisest choice, it could turn ugly if she thought it meant more than it really did.

Her clarification was sweet, and he gave her another smile. "That's nice of you to say, but I think it would be quite horrible of me to show anyone or tell anyone. Which is the only way anybody else can find out." He mimed zipping his mouth and gave her a wink. "It's between us. Promise." When she said she had to go, he nodded again, though he allowed his expression to turn somewhat disappointed. "Okay, I'm sorry if I embarrassed you." He told her with a small, shy, smile. "Let's be partners in class sometime, okay? Maybe during charms, or something." With that, he gave her small nod, telling her it was okay to go if she wanted.