Closed Third Wheel Activities

[Amory Raven]

Quite honestly Amory had no idea why he was here. He was sat across from Fifi and Mania. The Slytherin was awkwardly sipping on his water as he tried not to stare at the two that were sat close to each other. How had he found himself in this situation? Being the clear third wheel of whatever those two got going on? Amory couldn't tell you the answer even if he tried to. Honestly he'd just agreed to hang out with Felix and probably missed the part where the Gryffindor said Nia was joining them. Now they'd been sat in the abandoned classroom in silence for close to an hour, Amory hadn't known what to say and the only sound had been him gulping down his water.

Clearing his throat Amory put his cup of water down, he pursed his lips together, considering how to go about what was on the top of his mind currently. "Sooooo..." He started, raising both of his eyebrows and leaning back onto one of his arms as he kept his eyes on his best friend. "Should I now like expect that your girlfriend tags along with you everywhere, not that I mind Nia you're cool and all but I thought I should probably just you know, know if you two were just a package deal now." Merlin he was glad for Fifi but like was he going to be stripped of his bestie time and forced to endure third wheel duties for the rest of their years?

 

[Mania Athanasiou]

Mania had been happy to tag along with Felix and his best friend Amory at first, however as they'd sat down and a deadly silence had descended upon them she wasn't so sure about it anymore. Don't get her wrong, she was enjoying spending time with Fifi and his friends in and out of school, but somehow the abandoned classroom felt too big for the three of them and too silent. Maybe for the first time in her life Nia hadn't dared to slice through the silence more than a random whisper here and there to Felix or Amory, the way the Slytherin was just staring at them too with that calculating, awkward expression of his was unnerving.

Mania was about to burst from the need to break the silence when Amory did it for her, only his words had her eyes bulging out of their sockets. A nervous laugh bubbled out of the fourth year as she looked between Felix and Amory. "GiRlfRieNd?" She choked out immediately with an alarmed pitch to her voice. "Since when? What, we aren't like that?" She didn't think so at least. She'd chatted with Hera about it over the holidays but like she was just crushing... right? Had Fifi told the Slytherin something else? For all her shock Nia still didn't make a single move to put any space between her and Felix, if anything she might have just leaned more into his side.

 

[Felix Layton]

It was a little awkward, to be sandwiched in the room between Amory and Nia. He loved them both but obviously in a very different way. It was paining him that they were barely speaking as the three of them hung out in the abandoned classroom, a room they'd visited often over the last few years although between them it was usually a lot more lively in here than it was right now.

Had Felix been taking a drink he probably would have spat it out at Amory's observation. "Sorry.. what?" He nervously glanced between the pair, trying to recall if he'd just heard correctly. He knew the Slytherin well enough to know that he was just messing, getting between them and ruffling some feathers, but at Nia's question he had to follow it up with more than just joke. "No, we're not together. She's not my girlfriend," There was perhaps a little bit of sharpness behind his words, that slipped out more unintentionally than he realised. Flicking his gaze toward Nia he daren't move, but the hammering of his suddenly increased heartrate threatened to give the game away. "We just like each other's company I guess," it was true they did spend a lot of time together recently, but surely that wasn't too much.

 

[Lilith Ilves]

Lili wasn't even here.....

 

[Amory Raven]

Amory gave the Gryffindors his best you sure about that look as he raised his cup back up. Taking an unnecessarily loud gulp of the water he swallowed. “Yeaaaah right, okay, sure.” He told the duo nodding his soul away, though his face betrayed just how much he believed them. “Right yeah, I kiss all my friends too. Right Fifi? Like aaaaaalll the time.” He said with a crack of a smile.

 

[Mania Athanasiou]

It was Mania's turn to gulp, only she had nothing to gulp down. Her throat had turned dry as a desert out of nowhere and she just glanced between the two boys. She'd just denied being Felix's girlfriend, but somehow him saying it with the sharpness he did made her want to take some distance between them, but she didn't. Just stayed in place and stared ahead. "Yeah, what Fifi said, we like each other's company." She agreed with a frown.

Nia's frown only deepened and this time she did push off the other Gryffindor, eyes narrowed at the Slytherin. "Well no. I mean I don't kiss all my friends? Still doesn't mean we are dating though." She said, casting an involuntary glance at Felix, trying to decipher any reaction from him that would indicate he might do this with all his friends actually.

 

[Felix Layton]

Fifi snorted, "That doesn't mean a thing!" He could have kicked the Slytherin right now if he was close enough. Nia clearly had the right idea and it was a relief to know they were on the same page, but now if only he could tell his heart that too. Felix couldn't help thinking back to what she'd told him over the summer, how she had a family friend staying with her for weeks. Felix knew Nia had met his friends recently too, but it wasn't as though that would make them exclusive. Did he even want to be? No, no definitely not. "What about Alex?" he blurted out before he could stop himself, "not even him?"

 

[Amory Raven]

Amory sat back and observed.

 

[Mania Athanasiou]

Mania looked back to Amory, if only to hide the disappointment that probably was all over her face and eyes. She didn't know why she was disappointed even, surely both thinking they weren't dating was a good thing, right? Whipping her head around at the mention of Alex she frowned and took even more distance. "Alex? Ew. Definitely not. I don't even consider him a friend." She said shaking her head with a disgusted expression. "I don't kiss my friends, well I did kiss Alex once, but like that was a year and a half ago he rejected me after but I got over it and over him. It was silly really, I don’t like him nor do I really want to be around him. Mama doesn’t share the sentiment though." She explained, the fact that Felix thought she'd kiss Alex bothered her a lot more than it should have. "Do you... kiss your other friends then?" Mania asked to clarify.

 

[Felix Layton]

Felix couldn't help the slight smirk that appeared on his face at the ferocity of which Nia was adament she didn't like Alex. Well, that was good to know. He supposed they hadn't actually put anything on the table, all the cards were still in their pockets, hidden away. They'd just sort of drifted together over the last six months, the Yule Ball last year the catalyst for their.. whatever they had.

"Er, no. Not anymore," Felix shrugged, "Besides Amelia barely even talks to me after last year." It was probably for the best. He enjoyed the company of his friends but things had quickly gotten awkward with her at that point in his life. This time around, things were different. Not completely void of complication of course but he supposed they were pointing in the right direction. "I'm not complaining though. I don't want to be kissing anyone else," the Gryffindor expressed, making sure to get it out there once and for all.

 

[Mania Athanasiou]

Mania noted the small smirk on the prefects lips at her insisting that she did not like Alex in any way, shape or form. The smirk made her feel weird so she had to purse her own lips to hide the small responding smile. Had she hit her head recently? Nia wasn't sure, shifting she glanced at the Slytherin that was still sipping his water rather loudly and watching the two. Busybody.

Nia's head whipped around involuntarily at the way Felix said not anymore. The next words set something in motion and she recalled how one of the girls had looked at her a little weird first when they'd arrived to hang out with Felix's friends. The way she'd refused to really look Fifi's way. It all made sense now. "Oh... Okay, that makes sense." Nia said, nodding softly. The Gryffindor was still thinking back on the interactions she'd had with his friends when Felix spoke again. "What?" She asked, blinking a bit until her brain caught up with her. "Oh..." Mania suddenly blushed a little and had to almost look away, however she wasn't backing down. Instead she just stared straight at Felix, flushed cheeks and all. "Right. Me neither." She admitted, this time didn't even hold back the stupid smile.

 

[Amory Raven]

Amory was watching this sappy interaction between the two Gryffindor's now, almost gagging but decided against it. He needn't get kicked out of here now that the tea had begun spilling. Taking a sip at their confessions the fifth year wiggled his eyebrows and said over the rim of his mug. "Told youuuu... togetherrr.." His voice was more teasing than anything else and the grin on his face could be seen and heard from miles away. This was fun! He should third wheel more often.

 

[Felix Layton]

Felix could have kicked Amory in the shins for his incessant nagging. "Not together. Not now.." not ever. Although he couldn't bring himself to finish that sentence. It was too harsh, even if the reality of it scared him he didn't want to hurt Nia. The way she was looking at him too like a puppy only made his discomfort grow in his stomach. He had to do a double take at the way she smiled at him, and it only made the prefect feel even worse about this whole situation. This was precisely why he'd never wanted to get her involved in the first place, why he'd tried to keep his distance.

"If we were actually a couple.." It was strange to be saying this in front of Amory but it wasn't like he wouldn't have updated him later anyway, "..well, you don't want that. Last time I had a girlfriend," if he could have even called Esme that, given they'd spent two years never actually labelling their relationship either, "I like what we have right now, just as things are. I only care about you but I don't want to make things complicated and.. weird." He knew the moment things started to get serious, that his body would flip out before his brain had a chance to catch up. "I wasn't good to her, and you wouldn't want that either."

 

[Amory Raven]

 

[Mania Athanasiou]

Mania barely acknowledged Amory's comment, she was just looking at Felix. Though the way he said they weren't together, not now, sounded like he was going to add something like not ever or who knows maybe tomorrow, made Nia shift uncomfortably. When had she let herself get this attached to Felix and his company. Suddenly the realization hit her. She liked him. A lot. What if he stopped liking her? Wasn't that why she'd sworn not to crush on any boy for more than a few days after Alex situation had happened? Not that it was much of a situation, a simple kiss and rejection afterwards but to a teenage girl it had been the end of the world. Yet now she was crushing on Felix and becoming weirdly attached to his company, even though it was quite clear he didn't want more than the fun no strings attached flirting they had currently. It shouldn't have made Mania sad, but it actually did. Very sad.

Blinking and shifting her focus back from her thoughts to the prefect, Nia shifted again as she listened. "I like it too." She admitted, she really liked it but maybe she was hoping one day they could go on proper dates and be a proper couple. It was what teenagers did after all, wasn't it? "What do you mean you weren't good to her?" She asked confused. Merlin things should have never taken the turn they had at the Yule Ball last year, because she wasn't sure she could handle another stupid rejection. Not after the way she'd handled the last one and not with Felix because what if she lost him as a friend too. If only she could call or run and ask Hera right now.

 

[Felix Layton]

Felix was feeling a little trapped as the room went quiet, Amory glancing between them and Nia unusually and suspiciously more quiet than she would normally be. He wasn't really expecting a follow up question either, so he turned his attention to anything but the people around him as he spoke, "I don't know.." he felt as though he'd gotten better at opening up to people over the last year, but it was obvious he could still close up again in an instant as the words failed to leave his mouth. He didn't really understand it himself. "I suppose I don't trust myself not to mess it up," after all that's what he did last time.

"Esme never did anything wrong, I guess we just grew apart," it had been a relief to him in the end. It wasn't even that he hadn't care about her either, only that the longer they'd been together the more claustrophobic he was feeling. "Or I grew apart?" Maybe he was just broken. He was fiddling with his own fingers at this point, feeling a little lost in the conversation although was more than aware no one else was going to be able to fix it for him. "I'm not a good boyfriend, that's just how it is," he said, fully believing that himself.

 

[Amory Raven]

 

[Mania Athanasiou]

Mania was well aware Felix knew she liked to talk and that her being quiet was probably a red flag. It gave away the fact that she was feeling nervous and uncomfortable, but it was more of her inner turmoil. Something she'd already faced with her Boggart. Sort of anyways. He did say he doesn't trust himself not to mess it up, so it had to be a good sign. Right? It meant he liked her and didn't want to mess things up between them, but Merlin what if Mania messed it all up. Maybe she should, that way he wouldn't do it and wouldn't have to worry about it either. No she didn't want to do that, because she too didn't want things to get messed up between them.

What would Hera say in this situation? What would Amortentia say? She needed to think her words through carefully, it felt like she was very close to a wild deer right now and one wrong move or sound would send it fleeing and Nia didn't want it to flee. Didn't want him to flee. "I'm sure that's not true, but I also cannot choose for you. In the end if you want to keep things as they are then we'll keep them as they are but if you decide you want to try another way I suppose the option is there too." It wasn't the craziest thing she'd trusted her heart into, probably. She'd likely done much dumber things before. Probably... Or maybe not, not if the way her heart was clinging to her chest with every beat was anything to go by. "Can I, can I have some water?" She asked reaching over to the bottle in front of Amory and taking a cup from the floor and pouring some into it.

 

[Felix Layton]

Felix wasn't sure if Nia said what she did for his benefit or her own. It sort of sounded like she was trying to calm herself down more than anything. That meant she didn't want to scare him, which in turn meant she was serious about him. How had things gotten here so quickly? The prefect said nothing as Nia continued to explain their options although frankly none of them were making him feel any better.

The fifth year took the break of Nia asking for water as a chance to move his body, feeling as though he'd been stuck inside a coffin for a few years the way his muscles were suddenly shifting. Amory had known he hated the idea of labelling anything but had tried to do it anyway, and now it was clear that Nia wanted to make things official, it was as though the air in the room was getting increasingly tight. "You're better off finding someone else," he regretted it the moment he said it. Perhaps it was a way of him protecting them both from the inevitable heart ache later on, but it still didn't feel great to say out loud.

 

[Amory Raven]

Well then, things had taken a turn. Amory offered the water, regretting having said anything at all at any point. Maybe for once he should had kept his gob shut. Though maybe they both needed to figure it out before things got further? Who knows, not Amory, not even the two Gryffindor's in the room with him apparently. He shot Felix an apologetic look and looked down into his cup like it was the most interesting thing ever.

 

[Mania Athanasiou]

The thing was, Mania hadn't given the whole situation much thought herself. Not until Amory had brought it up and now she was just confused because she liked Felix and wasn't sure what they were or what she even wanted them to be. Mania gulped down all the water in one go before placing the cup down on the ground. Having crushes was stupid and useless.

She glanced at Felix as he said she was better off finding someone else. Had the fourth year not been so riddled with anxiety she might have snorted because even the thought was absurd. She'd never really wanted to start dating, having crushes was fun. Having a new crush every week to fawn over was fun. Having one boy that you liked and wanted to spend time with was scary. Collecting her thoughts Mania took a deep breath in and let it out. "Maybe, maybe not." She wasn't keen on finding out, she wasn't even sure if she ever wanted a relationship. Amory had thrown her into a whole loop with his comment. It wasn't fair to blame it all on the Slytherin though, she knew that. "Listen, I don't know what I want. This whole conversation threw me into a loop, I'm not sure of much but I do know I like what we have, I don't even know if I want more or not." That was the truth and it was all she could offer in this moment.

 

[Felix Layton]

Amory was looking as though he wished he could take back his original questions, and it served him right too given the situation he'd created. Hearing that Nia also seemed thrown by the questions though at least made him feel a little less alienated. If she was telling the truth, then maybe he didn't need to be panicking. Felix thought back over the last year or so, the way they'd spent many an afternoon together just the two of them, or how she'd met his friends in the summer, or how he'd started opening up to her like he had to his best friends too. Surely that wasn't something to throw away, even if they didn't make things official either.

The prefect sat forward in his seat, turning more to face Nia and block Amory from view. The Slytherin was doing a good enough impression of blending into his chair that it wasn't too hard. He'd have words with the boy later. "I like things as they are too," he repeated, feeling as though he needed to do what he could to rescue the situation. "We can't take advice from someone like him," he nodded his head toward Snort, "he doesn't know what he's talking about." As far as Felix knew, he'd been stuck in a situationship for the last three years at best. He could hear the rise in Amory's voice as he started to protest, but Felix's foot found his leg before he could get anywhere.

"I don't know if this is all we have, and I don't know how long this will last, or how it will turn out," he told her, imploring the fourth year to listen. "But I like you, and I think we have fun, and that's enough for me." It was true, he didn't need anything else to feel like he was making it. "Maybe we don't do what others think we should do, but I can tell you that title or not, I.. only.. think of you.. in that way." Amory staring at them was making things so much more awkward than it needed to be.

 

[Amory Raven]

When Felix said they couldn't take advice from someone like him, Amory touched his chest and leaned back. Feeling very offended by it. He was about to protest and tell that he'd figured a lot of stuff out on his own when Felix went and kicked him. There he thought they were best friends, the betrayal was astounding. Instead the fifth year just shut up, huffed a few times and stared at the two twice as hard, just to make it more awkward for them. He could be petty for special occasions such as the one they were currently in.

 

[Mania Athanasiou]

Mania was sort of going down an epic rabbit hole of doubt and anxiety over how she felt. How was one supposed to know when they wanted to date someone and when not, weren't they allowed to just like things as they were? What had Amory even been up to, he probably hadn't meant anything bad by it but it was sending Nia into a different kind of orbit.

Turning her attention to Felix as he began speaking she gave a reluctant, unsure, nod. Fair enough, he liked things as they were too. That was good, right? She then glanced back at Snort when Fifi said they couldn't take advice from someone like him and her frown slowly morphed into a small smile. The way the Slytherin seemed so genuinely offended was funny. As though he hadn't just been playing the Devil's advocate. Raising her brows she returned her attention to look at Felix.

"I mean, it's enough as long as we know what's going on and that's that we enjoy each others company, right?" She asked, hope fluttering in her chest again and it wasn't at the fact they could be more but at just continuing as they were. Not taking any pressure about stupid labels and other things. Just enjoying things as they were. The fourth year blushed when he told her he only thought of her that way, feeling Amory's eyes on them wasn't helping the situation. Mania leaned forward so that she could kind of hide her face into Felix's chest and smiled into it. "That's good because I don't really like anyone else either and it'd be a shame if you did." She mumbled against him. "Can you tell him to stop staring or should I?" She added, knowing full well the prefect probably would understand who she meant.

 

[Felix Layton]

There was certainly a sense of relief that they were both on the same page, the moment before evaporating away as he realised he didn't actually need to make a decision right now that changed anything. His smile grew as Nia leaned toward him, partially using him to block her increasingly red face from Amory. Felix moved one hand around her and to the back of her head, the tips of his fingers lightly running up and down in short motions through her hair in comfort. "Bro," he finally turned his head to the Slytherin, "can you give us a mo?" He didn't want to be rude, but he thought this would have been easier for everyone involved without such a focused audience. "I'll come and find you, you'll get your turn next," he grinned.