Not A Real Thing

[Zara Cohen-Knight]

Zara's stomach fluttered as she walked to the Great Hall to meet Xavier, not because she had those stupid butterflies from affection, but instead because she knew that Asaiah would be there alongside his two friends and that Darcy would probably be there too. She'd be there and would look better than any other girl but the two were still not speaking because it was hard for Zara to explain why she'd gotten mad. Actually it was impossible to explain to any normal person that she was a freak who had feelings for another girl. It was good that Xavier was a freak too and somehow was okay with faking a relationship. She would never be able to return this favour he was doing for her and he didn't even know how large of a favour it really was to her. Only that he was helping her with something and so in a private conversation they'd discussed events such as the Yule Ball which they would both have to attend and dance together. It would help her seem more normal if she looked to be enjoying the time of a boy even if she had eyes for a girl with eyes as bright as the sun. As she saw the Hufflepuff boy the girl smiled at him and approached, careful not to trip on her feminine black dress and said, "Hi you." This was the best she could do with pretending to date, really. She was trying but it was such a falsehood that she struggled with it. Honestly she had a hard time not looking at the pretty girls standing around them but she kept her eyes focused on Xavier to avoid temptation to look around.

 

[Xavier Jeffreys]

Xavier had cleaned up, borrowed some of Ares' nicest clothes and even slicked his usually untameable curly mess of hair back for the occasion that was the yule ball. But even with his effort to be and appear clean, Zara had a long list of expectations for him to fill that he wouldn't have thought of in his life time. Remembering everything he was supposed to do felt like studying for an exam instead of preparing for a night of fun dancing with his friend girlfriend at the yule ball, but he still continued to relay everything Zara discussed with him as he added the final touches on his suit and made his way down to the great hall. He was helping her as a friend, first and foremost, and despite how unnatural and weird he thought half of his expectations as a fake boyfriend were, he knew he needed to do his best for Zara's sake. So as he spotted her he smiled wide and allowed her to approach him, being sure to compliment her appearance before anything else, "Wow Zara, you look so amazing.". He then held his hand out to her as he said "Shall we go inside and dance, now?"​

 

[Zara Cohen-Knight]

Zara genuinely smiled at Xavier, he was really kind to play along firstly but even more so to go above and beyond. She knew that she had a lot to fake and so his willingness helped her because she was so scared. It was hard for her to think it but with what she was going through she could only depend on Xavier - even if he really didn't know the truth of it all. So she took his hand with a smile, glad that he didn't have worms or bugs in his hands as she said, "That sounds like fun." As they walked into the hall together the dark haired girl looked around the hall and said, "It's so pretty tonight." She would, of course, have preferred to attended the ball with a special red headed girl but Zara expected that her crush was with some boy so she tried her best to have a good time.

 

[Xavier Jeffreys]

Xavier smiled wider as Zara accepted his hand, and then walked proudly alongside her into the hall. He looked around before nodding in agreement since the hall was indeed pretty and decked to the nines, appearing much more fancy than it did on a regular night. While looking he also noticed the many other couples scattered around the room. They were all well dressed, and most importantly seemed to be happy as they talked amongst themselves, shared snacks, and danced together. It almost disheartened him to think that all of them could have been pretending like he and Zara were, but it was instead easier for him to assume that they were together genuinely, instead of for show so he allowed himself to think they were all as happy as they seemed. Xavier soon realized he had zoned out, and quickly blinked back to his senses before he looked to Zara and said "Would you like to get drinks, instead of or dancing, first?" He didn't know how dates worked or how couples were supposed to act on a prestigious night such as the yule ball so he was comfortable allowing Zara to call the shots.​

 

[Zara Cohen-Knight]

Zara smiled as Xavier was being so good to her even if he didn't quite understand why he needed to be this person for her but she appreciated it all the same. More than she could express or even knew how to. There was just a lot she couldn't say and it never really occurred to her that maybe he would like someone - she had just thought selfishly that he wouldn't ask questions and she needed to look normal. This was, of course, when she spotted Darcy with another girl. The quidditch player girl who had been less than pleased with her protests. She didn't even realize for a moment that the two would be on a date until she spotted a little touch and a glance that made Zara feel a pang of envy so she didn't want to stand still where maybe the four would be forced to interact. Instead she turned back to Xavier and said, "This song is good, let's dance?" If Zara was honest she only had heard it once before but she was not being honest lately so one more little lie wouldn't hurt.

 

[Xavier Jeffreys]

Xavier listened and watched intently for Zara's answer to his question in the way he expected a boyfriend should. He therefore noticed the crack in her otherwise stone-like facade and turned in the direction of her gaze out of concern, only to see two girls that in his ignorance he could only assume were friends of hers. He looked back to Zara, allowing their eyes to meet and his own glaze with a mix of worry and curiosity. Though he knew his role was to be a 'boyfriend' and not to ask questions, he felt the urge to ask about the girls grow stronger as he nodded to her decision to dance and took her hand in his own again to lead her to the dance floor. He noticed the way other couples were dancing and assumed the same pose, bringing their intertwined hands to their side while he placed his free hand on her waist. They began to sway to the music but the distraction of the sound and the action of dancing didn't do a thing to diminish the worry he felt for his friend. Eventually, and after a few minutes of silence, he mustered the courage to ask "Who were those girls?" as he looked around the room, trying to pretend that dancing with Zara was more natural than it was a task.​

 

[Zara Cohen-Knight]

Zara tried not to think about how strange it felt to watch Darcy be so close to another girl, clearly flirting. Still she wanted so badly to be in the blonde's shoes that it hurt her but she tried to enjoy Xavier's company. He deserved a good time for the evening too. The Ravenclaw swallowed hard as they swayed in silence because her mind was too loud to think of polite conversation before the boy distracted her. She looked over his shoulder, seeing the two of them once more, and sighed before she looked back into Xavier's eyes. "The red head... That's Darcy. She's my best friend, I guess." Admittedly Zara wasn't sure if the two were friends anymore because of her outburst and following abandonment of the girl for reasons she could not explain. "I don't know the other girl's name. She's a Ravenclaw though," she added, hoping it would quell anymore questions about the topic but in someway she knew that would never happen. She could practically hear the cogs in Xavier's head ticking along.

 

[Xavier Jeffreys]

Xavier hadn't known that Zara had a best friend that wasn't Lennon until that moment. But instead of appeasing his concern, learning about the red haired girl being Zara's best friend only caused more questions to form in his mind. Weren't best friends supposed to make someone happy? The expression he had seen on Zara's face was far from happy, and the thought that she could seem so hurt from giving this 'best friend' no more than a simple glance made his stomach churn further with worry. He continually tried to hide it, however, and looked to Zara with as much of a calm expression as he could muster while they swayed to the music. He hoped that through his intrusive questions, he was still meeting the expectation she had of him as a fake boyfriend and was also keeping the other couples around them from noticing the extent of their conversation. "But if she's your best friend, then why do you seem so uncomfortable?" He asked, still not cluing into the subtext of Zara's words.​