Closed Miscommunications and Misunderstandings

[Derek Tahana]

Derek’s mind had been so wrapped up with everything he was thinking about when it came to Emilia. They had always been so good together, things had been so easy to start with and then things had gotten more and more difficult, now he wasn’t sure he even still felt the same way about her, but perhaps he was overreacting a little. Perhaps he was letting his mind be too loud when it certainly didn’t need to be. The problem Derek really had was that he didn’t have that many friends and certainly very few he wanted to really talk to about it. Maybe there was one, but he’d talked himself out of it in the last semester. But still he didn’t exactly want to seek her out specifically. No, that seemed like a little too much. Instead the boy would just deal with what he was served, Emilia was still amazing in many ways and changing was just a part of growing up and he had to get over it. The slytherin was walking down the corridors when he thought he spotted Diana, she had seemed perhaps upset, stood just near one of the windows of the third floor. Derek walked over, becoming a little more tentative in his steps as he got close, ”Diana, hey, you okay?” he asked. He liked Diana and he wouldn’t want her to be upset.​

 

[Diana Hollis]

Diana was shaking with emotion and tears were stubbornly gathering in her eyes no matter how many times she wiped them away. Simon was such a jerk, but Diana was mostly upset with herself. She had been so stupid, so stupid to believe anything he said. All this time he had been so sweet to her, such a perfect boyfriend, and he'd liked someone else. Had even sent her a rose. Diana remembered how upset she had been after Edmund, or really Theodore, had broken up with her. At least she wasn't flying into hysterics like that time, but she knew she could if she let herself. She wished Domi was still at school, or Winnie. She missed her friends, and thought bitterly about how they were probably having fun without her. She was trying to make her way down to the dungeons so she could cry her eyes out in peace, but wanted to do so without drawing too much attention. The last thing she wanted was for gossip to spread about her crying. Diana had a reputation to uphold. So when she felt tears spilling over, she quickly turned towards one of the windows and tried to seem like she was just enjoying the view so she could discreetly wipe her eyes again. She winced as she heard someone approach, and turned her head slightly to see Derek. "Oh... hi." She said, trying to give him a quick smile. "Not really, actually." Derek was a friend of sorts, as odd as that was. They had no friends in common, really, but things had just sort of turned out that way. "But I'll be fine." She added. He could walk on if he wanted to, she would be fine, eventually.

 

[Derek Tahana]

Derek was surprised as he approached with how she seemed to be upset. He gave her a little smile when she saw who it was, and shared a small sympathetic smile with her as she said that she wasn’t really fine. Derek nodded, ”Do you want to talk about it?” Derek asked tentatively, he’d never had that close a friendship with Diana and he wasn’t sure how best to go about it, but he knew her and liked her well enough that he wouldn’t want to leave her while she was upset. ”Can I give you a little hug? Or just put a sympathetic hand on your shoulder?” the boy asked, he wouldn’t mind if she said no or even if she only wanted a little hug, he didn’t want to presume anything with her, or touch her without consent, especially given that she was upset. He didn’t want to upset her further by over stepping. He knew it probably sounded a little silly but Derek would rather sound silly than to reach out and even give Diana a pat on the back without asking right now. ”Or if you’d rather not talk about it, I could talk about something,” Derek knew it likely wouldn’t be the time to complain about Emilia or his relationship but given that it was on his mind, maybe the distraction would be welcome for her. Derek just kept his gaze on her waiting to see what she’d indicate. ​

 

[Diana Hollis]

Diana half expected Derek to take her reassurance at face value and leave her alone, but instead he asked if she wanted to talk about it and if he could give her a hug. Diana broke. She had been yearning for her friends, Domi and Winnie were gone and she didn't know where Sapphire was. But here was a friend, and she needed one right now. She stopped thinking about the other people in the corridor, and turned to Derek. "I think I would like to talk about it, but you can talk about your thing too, if you want- I mean.. And... I'd like a hug." She said shakily. She then hugged him, allowing him to see a weakness she rarely showed "I broke up with Simon, he liked someone else. For a long time. He sent her a rose." She murmured into his shoulder. "Why are boys s-so stupid?"

 

[Derek Tahana]

Derek was a little surprised at the way that she seemed to almost want to say no, but she turned to her and he held out his arms to her, wrapped them around her and holding her in a tight warm hug. It helped that he seemed to be growing taller and was able to wrap his arms closely around her as she too returned the hug. He ran his hand up and down her back as she spoke into his shoulder telling him what she was so upset about. Her boyfriend, some guy called Simon, like someone else, long enough that there had been a rose involved. God he sounded terrible. ”Hes a d1ck,” Derek told her leaning his head down towards her and nodded at the remark, ”All boys are so stupid, especially that boy,” Derek agreed, he might’ve at any other point argued against the statement but it didn’t seem much worth it right now, not when that really wasn’t the point. ”Diana, honestly, he’s an ass and you deserve so much better,” Derek told her softly, ”Do you want me to go punch his dumb ugly face?” he offered hoping that the little joke would help make her laugh a little, would help make her feel just that little bit better than she did currently. ​

 

[Diana Hollis]

The hug was surprisingly comforting, and Diana found she didn't want to pull away and face the real world just yet. She was grateful to Derek, who had always been nice to her. She remembered their first meeting and how rude she had been to him then, she felt a little guilty about it now. She had definitely overreacted and made a snap judgement, but Derek never seemed to hold it against her. Diana let out a small, surprised, laugh when Derek cursed, and then when he agreed all boys were stupid despite being a boy himself. Diana moved one hand up to rub at her eye, not wanting any tears to fall. "Maybe not all boys." She muttered. His words were ones she needed to hear, and she laughed again when he asked if he should punch his face. She pulled away slightly, though she didn't break the hug entirely yet. "I don't know. It's a nice thought, but he doesn't need to know he hurt me." She said, smiling weakly. "But I would pay to see that." She added softly.

 

[Derek Tahana]

Derek rubbed his hand softly up and down her back in a comforting motion, ”No Diana, it’s all boys. I’m just some dumb quidditch jock,” he joked lightly keeping her in the hug, since she appeared to still need it. He looked at her when she pulled away slightly at his comment, she’d even laughed and he couldn’t help the smile on his own features. A smile, that was good. He nodded in response, she didn’t want to appear hurt to him, and Derek going to him to specifically punch the boy for no reason would definitely indicate someone, Diana specifically had been hurt. He thought about it for a moment, ”I mean, he and I both play quidditch, I could aim my quaffle for his face? It would be a big accident.” He joked lightly but he just smiled. ”You’ll be alright, you are a strong, amazing person and he’s not worth your time anymore,” Derek finished. He leaned in a little keeping her close and place a small kiss on the top of her head, knowing that was what his mother did whenever he or his brother were upset to show they were there and there for them.​

 

[Emilia Manning]

While Emilia liked Hogwarts and her classes and classmates, she was already yearning to be back home. She hadn't expected her fifth year to be so stressful from the start, but here she was, already stressed. She felt like her new confident self wasn't as convincing as she had wanted it to be, and had started to wake up even earlier to make sure she could do her hair properly every day. If she looked nice, she would feel more confident. Right? The club fair had been stressful too. She had never known running a club would be difficult, though she now felt naive for that. She had no idea what her co-president thought of her, though she feared she saw her as a silly little girl who contributed nothing to the club. She had no reason to think this, Athena had been nice to her, but she still couldn't help the thoughts. She was so tempted to start biting her nails again, but she knew that would look awful. It wasn't what a confident girl would do at all.

Emilia was lost in thought about all this while walking throught he corridor, trying not to think about other things like her cousin being possibly upset with her, her OWLs at the end of the year, her relationship with Derek. Derek. She blinked and stopped in her tracks. Derek was right there. She hadn't recognized him at first because he was standing close with someone. No, hugging them. Emilia's face fell as she realized that he wasn't just hugging anyone, he was hugging a girl. A girl that wasn't her. Of course, friends could hug, but - oh, that had definitely been a kiss on the girl's head. And Emilia now realized who the girl was, too. Diana Holland. Emilia didn't know her very well at all, but the girl had always scared her. Emilia had started to dislike her quietly ever since she had organized the spin the bottle game two years ago, the one her boyfriend had gone to without her. And now here her boyfriend was, kissing the head of the same girl who had organized it. Emilia was frozen in place for a moment. Had she been a fool all along? Did Derek like Diana? Behind her back? "Derek? What are you doing?!" Was that her voice? It sounded shrill, and loud. Neither words were often associated with Emilia, but she didn't really think about how she sounded. All she could focus on was the way Derek was holding Diana, and how things between them hadn't been right for ages. Was this why?

 

[Derek Tahana]

Derek kept quiet for a moment, allowing the emotions of the settle, he couldn’t imagine how hard this might be for her. He was broken out of the moment when the familiar sound of his girlfriend called his name in a manner that was so unlike how he was used to. The Slytherin pulled away from Diana and looked around to Emilia, ”Emilia, don’t, this isn’t what it looks like,” he told her pulling his off from around Diana, ”She’s a friend, she’s having a rough moment and I helped,” he told her, nearly pleading with a frustrated tone, ”Don’t you trust me?” he asked. He knew he’d been at that game which Diana had organised and she’d be annoyed at him for that, that he had deserved, this he didn’t. ”I have always trusted you and treated you well, why don’t you trust me?” he felt so tired and frustrated of trying so hard with her when it was just difficult, when they were difficult. He’d just been trying to provide comfort for a friend and be as personable and kind as his parents had always taught him. He didn’t like Diana like that, but he couldn’t help but fear that she didn’t trust him at all. Why would she think he was doing anything. ​

 

[Diana Hollis]

Diana smiled a bit as Derek called himself just a dumb Quidditch jock. "You're insulting Professor Styx, he picked you for prefect so he must see something in you." She said, and as he was cheering her up, she rather thought it had been a good choice. As he said he could aim the quaffle for his face, she laughed slightly. "Oh, maybe... if the chance comes up. But you should probably focus on scoring and winning from Ravenclaw, that would piss him off more." She tried to let his kind words sink in, to really believe them. As the hug broke and he kissed her head, she opened her mouth to thank him for listening to her. She didn't really have anyone else who would have listened to her like this. Rose probably would have, but she had graduated. She felt a lot better already. But suddenly, a voice rang through the corridor. Diana frowned at the Hufflepuff girl, who looked crushed. Ugh, it was Derek's annoying girlfriend. The girl who had been quiet until her fourth year, then decided she could become popular by putting on lots of makeup and smiling all the time. Diana didn't really know her that well, but she knew Emilia Manning had the entirely wrong idea about this. She let Derek do most of the talking, but crossed her arms and frowned at the girl too. "You're lucky to actually have a decent boyfriend, don't go throwing that away just because he has friends." She told the girl sharply.

 

[Emilia Manning]

Emilia heard Derek's words but she found she didn't believe him, not entirely. Maybe he wasn't actually seeing Diana behind her back, but... he probably liked her. He had to. She was so pretty and popular, and why would he be with Emilia if he could have someone like her? She shook her head at his explanation. "That's not all of it, Derek. You haven't been as close to me in a long time. Something has been wrong, we both know it. And now... you're here with her? What am I supposed to think?" She bit her lip, clenching her fists at her side. "Just admit you don't want me as your girlfriend anymore." She said, the words bursting out of her. It had been a feeling she hadn't been able to shake for a while now. Diana spoke up, and that set Emilia off. She had never expected she could talk to Diana Holland angrily, but here she was. "Haven't you done enough? How about you keep your nose out of our business? We know you're just going to tell everyone about it after this!" She yelled at her. "Or are you going to organize some stupid kissing game again to kiss other people's boyfriends?!"

 

[Derek Tahana]

Derek didn’t particularly want Diana to get involved, but he knew that she wouldn’t really be able to help herself. But he just focused on what Emilia was saying, he knew that what she was saying was true. It was true that they hadn’t been that close, that something was wrong, but he just didn’t think that them breaking up should be over Diana. He shook his head at her, the words she spoke, burst out of her and before he could say anything, Diana had jumped in. Which only seemed to anger Emilia more. Derek shook his head a little, ”That’s enough Emilia,” he spoke loudly, resisting the urge to shout, but speaking forcefully enough. ”I’ve had enough. I want to break up. I care deeply about you Emilia, but I can’t keep going with this. It’s not because of Diana or whatever you seem to think is going on,” Derek spoke at his more normal tone, he kept his gaze on her, feeling both terribly sad and a little relieved, ”We’re done Emilia,” he added softly, his eyes brimming quickly with tears but he meant what he said. It felt harsh and it felt like such a pathetic end to a relationship that Derek had deeply cared about, but she hadn’t be close and something had been off for a while. He’d fought to not let it affect him but in the end he hadn’t been able to. ​

 

[Diana Hollis]

There was a part of Diana that recognized she wasn't actually a part of this conversation and should probably leave so they could figure it out together. But the girl's tone was very annoying, and she wanted to both defend Derek and defend herself. She wouldn't say she would never kiss a boy who already had a girlfriend, but she definitely hadn't done it in this case. There was nothing more annoying than being falsely accused. Except maybe this girl's tone as she yelled at her. "I don't need a game to kiss anyone. But I didn't kiss Derek, you idiot." She snapped. Derek's tone of voice when he spoke to the girl surprised Diana enough to make her glance in his direction. He was usually so nice and calm, but he now he sounded forceful and almost angry. There had to be more going on here than just what happened now. She had half expected the girl to break up with him, not for him to take the initiative so firmly. She lingered near Derek, knowing from recent experience that it still hurt to break up with someone even if you were the one doing it.

 

[Emilia Manning]

While Emilia had known things weren't good between her and Derek, and a part of her had recognized they probably wouldn't make it out of this confrontation unscathed, the words from Derek's mouth still shocked her to her core. His tone was forceful and cold, and so unlike all the times he had called her princess and had been kind to her. What had she done to deserve this? She wasn't the one kissing other people. Emilia's eyes filled with tears against her will. "So it's not because of h-her." Emilia said, pointing at the girl, "but you won't say why it is? Is this all the explanation I get?" She felt the tears spilling over, and covered her face with her hands. She hadn't expected it to end like this, even if the fact that it was ending wasn't a complete surprise to her. But for Derek to do it like this... hadn't she deserved more? She lowered her hands and looked at him, betrayed. "I didn't think you were like this. I deserved a proper explanation, not... not.. this, in front of that horrible girl." Emilia spat, glaring at Diana and at Derek. "But you've been very clear. I'll be out of y-your hair." She turned away from them. Oh, how she hated how her voice had shook at the last moment. But that didn't matter now. All that mattered was getting out of here. Emilia headed off, rushing away from them both.