Closed Lovesick

[Eamon Tulloch]

Half a year had passed and still neither of them had said a word about. In fact, it seemed that the two of them were now actively trying to avoid each other as much as possible. He was still very much embarrassed by the words he'd written down on the note and quite frankly didn't know if he could actually say them aloud to his friend. He liked their friendship and did not want to ruin it by his feelings for her. What if it wouldn't work out the way he wanted it to do? He tried to get his mind distracted from the girl by putting everything into his studies but at some point, Eamon was finished with studying for the day and he would find himself thinking of Lavinia again and what they could be doing instead had he not been too cowardly to tell her how he felt about her to her in person. Eamon packed up his notes and textbooks for the third time that day, having been unable to concentrate for more than ten minutes for no particular reason. Some days his brain just didn't want for him to study. It was good that this was only the start of the year, he could permit himself this distraction now. Once the Gryffindor was sure that he would leave nothing behind, he stood up from the armchair he'd been sitting in and walked towards the exit. Hopefully, he would be able to cram a few notes in before he'd go to bed.

 

[Lavinia Benivieni]

It had been months since Lavinia had spoken or seen her best friend, actively trying to avoid him but not doing it on purpose for a silly reason. She just...hadn’t known what to say, at all. Eamon was her best friend, how could she have responded to the pink rose and note that he had sent her? The hufflepuff had gone through so much the past year and the boy had been there for her when she needed him most. She didn’t know what to feel or how to express herself to him. So, month after month had gone by without a word to Eamon. She felt bad, he had only been honest with her. The girl got up from the sofa in the common room, deciding she needed to do something, anything about the situation. She had made him wait long enough. She thought the first place to look would have to be the student lounge, he was bound to be there than anywhere else at this time of year. She knew him better than most people. As she entered the room, she spotted him immediately and her heart fluttered. Suddenly nervous, she began to walk towards him, glad to have caught him before he left. She stopped to a halt directly in front of him, blocking his path. "Hi," she said, surprised at how quiet her voice was. As she looked at him, all the words she wanted to say to him, what she had planned to tell him, vanished, making her mind completely blank. Lavinia stood there, frozen, as she stared at him, unable to open her mouth to speak.

 

[Eamon Tulloch]

Still fidgeting with the straps of his backpack, Eamon hadn't noticed that someone was walking towards him. It felt like the pit of his stomach was doing somersaults as the teen looked up at his friend's eyes. Her gorgeous hazel coloured eyes. ''Uh,'' Was all he was able to let out for a moment. Eamon had all summer to ponder over his feelings for Lavinia to know that the way he felt about the girl now was true and not something in the heat of the moment. He'd missed her during those days apart, wanted nothing more than to spend time with her and discuss anything and everything that would come to mind with her, things such as school and what they'd be doing after graduation. He hadn't, though. Instead, Eamon chose not to write to his friend or to visit her in Italy like they had discussed earlier that year. Letting out a big sigh, he knew that he shouldn't be avoiding Lavinia any longer, not if he wanted her to be his girlfriend. ''Hey, how are you?'' he asked, figuring that it was most likely the best thing to ask right now, especially as it had been a while since they last talked to one another. ''What are you doing here?'' Eamon added almost immediately, feeling stupid for doing so.

 

[Lavinia Benivieni]

Lavinia wasn’t sure what it was that disabled her to say all the things that she desperately wanted to let him know, but he seemed just as lost as their gazes met. She willed herself not to burst into tears or to throw her arms around his neck, wanting more than anything to get rid of the invisible wall that seemed to have come between them during those months apart. They hadn’t even written to each other - Lavinia had written the letters but had never sent them to Eamon. Instead she had ripped them and thrown them away, having felt pathetic for writing them in the first place. "Oh you know...not too bad," she said slowly, shifting her feet uncomfortably. "What about you?" she returned quickly, knowing that soon the attention would be brought to her once she told him how she really felt. At the boy’s question, Lavinia hesitated. "I actually...came looking for you," she said, taking a deep breath and releasing it softly. Her gaze shifted towards the ground as she said this, too nervous to see Eamon’s reaction.​

 

[Eamon Tulloch]

Eamon smiled weakly when she told him that she wasn't doing too bad, and nodded when she returned the question to him. ''Yeah, not too shabby myself,'' he replied. It was the best he could say at the moment. Surely things couldn't have gotten this awkward between them? It had been absolutely stupid of him not to write to the girl in front of him. And quite frankly he couldn't believe that she still wanted to talk with him after another holiday of not writing to her. Knowing Lavinia, the Gryffindor had half expected her to kick him or something to show him how unhappy she'd been about the whole thing. But she was just as, well, awkward about it as him. Did this mean what he thought it did? Or was it his words that had made everything one big uncomfortable mess? ''You... did? Well, here I am. In the flesh. Still alive and kicking.'' He couldn't even talk normally to her. God, this was embarrassing.

 

[Lavinia Benivieni]

This interaction seemed a little ridiculous to Lavinia. Surely, just because they hadn't been speaking or spending time with each other or simply writing each other letters it would not change anything? Maybe too much time had gone by, she thought sadly, but she wanted to make things right and right now was the perfect chance to do so. When she had entered the room minutes earlier, she wasn't sure if she would be relieved to see him or whether she was dreading it. The old Lavinia would have demanded her best friend to list off reasons why he hadn't sent her owls, before she realised what she felt for him. It was difficult to say the words, because she knew how he felt about her and she didn't want their friendship to be ruined. Then again, seeing him again after months of being able to distract herself because she didn't make any effort to keep some sort of connection during the winter break was certainly not a piece of cake. "That's good," she finally responded, feeling stupid for doing so much later than she was supposed to. "Oh, yeah...it's good to see you again," she said honestly, glancing back up at him and meeting his gaze. God, the way he looked at her. "I, um...wanted to talk to you about what happened, before the break," she said before she could chicken out of it.​

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I'm sorry this isn't great lol ​

 

[Eamon Tulloch]

He smiled a little when she told him that it was nice to see him again and nodded along in agreement. It was more than good to see her again, especially after such a long time of actively trying to avoid one another. It seemed that he was right to think that Lavinia wanted to talk to him about what happened before the break. At least some part of his brain was still working properly. He sighed before speaking, it would be a hard thing to admit to her out loud with words, but if he ever wanted their friendship to go back to what it used to be, Eamon knew that he had to stop acting like a coward. ''I meant what I wrote on that note,'' the teen told her. ''I meant it and I... I still do. I don't know what this will do to our friendship, and I don't like what it has already done to it, but I just wanted you to know how I felt about you. How I still feel about you.'' Instead of avoiding her gaze, the Gryffindor had looked Lavinia in the eyes as he spoke. He could only hope that she would feel the same way about him as he did about her otherwise it would've all been for nought. He didn't think that he could forgive himself for ruining what they had if this turned out to be nothing.

 

[Lavinia Benivieni]

Lavinia was going to say more, there was just so many things on her mind, she’d had so much time to reflect on the situation and yet as she now stood looking at her best friend she was at a loss for words. She was glad that he decided to speak and it took the girl a moment to register what he was saying. He...he still felt the same. Her heart skipped a beat, wanting nothing more than for their relationship to return to normal. But then again she doubted it could, considering what she was about to tell him. "Eamon, I don’t...want to ruin our friendship either," she said honestly, finally gaining the courage to respond to him in a decent manner. "I love the friendship we have, and I’m flattered that you admitted your feelings to me. No, I admire what you did, I’m sure it could not have been easy." She paused for a breath, preparing herself mentally for what she was about to admit to him. "I...I feel the same way," she said quietly, her gaze not leaving his. There, she had told him.​

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Ok i’ll stop changing fonts i swear​

 

[Eamon Tulloch]

Eamon nodded when she told him that she didn't want to ruin their friendship either. It was already damaged by them not keeping in contact with one another over the break like they used to do before he left the school, so how much was there really left to ruin now? If they truly were best friends surely their friendship would survive this too if it turned out to be nothing. He hoped. Eamon frowned a little when she continued to say that she admired him for letting her know how he felt about her, and looked at her incredulously. Well, of course, it wasn't an easy thing to admit to someone, he didn't think that it ever would, but did she honestly think that he would continue to let it go on like it was going at the moment? He knew he was stupid for not acting on his feelings earlier, waiting for almost an entire year was stupid, sure, but he did want things to go back to how they were before, with some small alterations obviously. He couldn't stop smiling when Lavinia admitted that she felt the same way about it. ''Must not have been easy to admit,'' the Gryffindor said teasingly, grinning slightly. ''So you like me and I like you,'' Eamon continued, looking up into Lavinia's hazel-coloured eyes again. ''I think we should try it, you know, the whole dating thing.''