Closed Too Red for Valentines

[Noelle Maxwell]

Fourth year on school events. The Hufflepuff was on a mission that night. He had not seen the girl he was looking for all day before the dance which made him even more determined to find a certain redhead. Dressed to impress, Noelle headed down to the Great Hall and stood by the entrance. In his hand was a long box with a small present for the girl. Now, all he had to do was wait for a certain Gryffindor.

 

[Willow Cullen]

Willow could not believe that she had been asked to the valentines day dance. She had attended last year but only because she had missed dinner and was hungry an spent the night with a couple of her roommates. tonight was a different story. She had taken care to dress nice it was a little bit of a crazy dress but she wasn't the one to go sage with her fashion. It sort of showed off her stomach but thankfully she had inherited her dads slim fraim and her mums lean build. she made her way down to the entrance hall hoping to find her date there. Thankfully the Hufflepuff wasn't hard to miss. she walked over to him. "Good evening Noelle" she said as she drew nearer. not sure if shew as meant to give him a hug, or kiss on the cheek she settled to doing nothing and leaving him to make the first move. "you look very striking in red, I like it. it isnt often i get out redded." she said. tonight she had actually gone for black with a dash of her almost trademark red as a fluffy bottom to her skirt.

 

[Noelle Maxwell]

Noelle did not have to wait long as he saw Willow approaching him. Standing up straight, he greeted her with a smile. The box was on his left hand behind him. As soon as she was within his reach, he gave her a one arm hug while placing a kiss on her cheek. He did not know what came over him but he was glad that he did. "Willow, hi.", he greeted him, growing fond of the girl as days passed by. Gesturing to his outfit, he rubbed the back of his head, "Is it too much?", he asked, worried about her opinion. Glancing at her, he smiled appreciatively, "You look lovely today.", he complimented, bringing out the box to the front. "This is for you.", he said softly, hoping she would like it.

 

[Willow Cullen]

Willow smiled as she caught noelles eye. ever since they had spent an afternoon skimming stones together last year she had enjoyed spending time with him not that she had had much time to spend with him. and when he had asked her to the yule ball she had felt so bad that she had already agreed to go with syris even though they had just been going as friends. she hugged him back and felt him kiss her on the cheek. her cheek flushing slightly with the touch. she shook her head when asked if it was too much. she felt bad that he was nervous. there was no need for him to be, she was just her she wasn't scary, at least not unless she wanted to be. "no, I love it. there is no such thing as too much, it is better than a boring suit." she said rambling a little. she hadn't realised how tall he was before, even now with heels on she was looking up to him. not much but up. "thank you" she said as he complimented her dress. it was a fun one and she was glad she had chosen to wear it. it wasn't until Noelle brought a box out from behind his back that she realised he had been holding something. she tentatively took it from him "you shouldn't have" she said though her curiosity had already sparked up and she started to open the lid.

 

[Noelle Maxwell]

Noelle shrugged his shoulders, trying to play it cool. "Thanks, I was debating whether to go with a dark suit when I realized I am going out with redhead from a house with red colors on an occasion that loves red.", he joked, referring to all the reds on Valentines Day. Willow was a fun person to be with despite the short times they got together. He guessed it all started on that skimming stones time they had. Since then, he made an effort to talk to her even just before classes. Seeing her brightened, though shy, at the box, he smiled."And I did. Hope you love it.", he replied. Originally, he was going for a red rose but changed to pink at the last minute to give it a twist. Willow may be a redhead Gryffindor but for the Hufflepuff, she would look lovely in pink. Offering a hand, he asked,"Shall we?"

 

[Willow Cullen]

Willow laughed as Noelle had said he had decided to go with the red suit instead of a black one. She had nt taken him as the kind of guy who usually went for the daring option with things but she was proud of him for making the bold choice. She opened the box and saw that inside was a pink rose. she smiled. "It is beautiful she said looking from the flower to him a huge smile in her eyes. She tried to remember the colours of the roses last year. yellow was friendship. that was what she had sent and received. Red was meant to be love though she had sent a red one as a joke in the place of a yellow. but pink she couldn't remember. she loved it anyway. she would have to ask fleur or Chante or one of her roommates to remind her. she leaned towards her date and gave him a hug and a kiss on the cheek once again blushing slightly. she then tucked the rose into the top of her dress so it was visible and less likely to get bashed around than if she was carrying it. "Lets" she said taking Noelle's offered hand and making their way inside.
The room looked beautiful like usual at the feasts. the decorations hung and floated where there was nothing to hang them off and everyone was dressed up in dresses and suits, not quite as fancy as the ball but not too far off. As they passed a snack table she picked up a glass filled with punch and offered it to Noelle. "mould you like a drink or something to eat?" she asked before taking a glass for herself. She took a sip "Wow that is sweet" she exclaimed. she wasn't sure what else she had been expecting from a very pink drink at a valentines dance but it still surprised her.[/B]

 

[Noelle Maxwell]

Noelle smiled at Willow and almost stammered at her hug and kiss. It was one thing when he was the one doing it to her but another when he was on the receiving end. He was suddenly brought back to the memory of rose deliveries with the rose colors had their meanings. With Willow's hand in his, they made their way inside, still marveled at the hall transformation for every event. Willow surprised him when he was offered a glass to which he accepted, "Thanks.", his eyes steady on her. She looked wonderful tonight and was lucky she agreed to go with him. Taking a sip himself, he agreed as to its sweetness before arranging a plate of food for them. Being the observant one, Noelle took into consideration the ones he often noticed that Willow ate at meal times. He also added some cake into the plate before gently guiding her to a nearby table. Placing the place on the table, he pulled out a chair for his date. "Mademoiselle?", he said in French with a playful wink.

 

[Willow Cullen]

Willow could not help but smile a little as to how awkward Noelle looked. "Sorry, i didn't mean to make you uncomfortable" she said. but, well, he had kissed her and she wanted to kiss him back. not a proper kiss, but a cheek kiss was appropriate right.
She started to load a plate before realising that it seemed like Noelle was filling one up for the two of them there was no other explanation for the amount of cake. she re-topped their drinks and got a bottle of water for them both in case they needed something to wash away all the sugar from the punch. She smiled as she let him lead her towards a table. he was being so sweet. she didn't know why he was being so sweet to her but it was nice it made her feel special. she didn't stop smiling as he pulled out a chair for her, in fact, the gesture even small made her smile wider. "Takk" she said. She knew he has spoken to her in French but she couldn't think of what the French for 'thank you' was and her mormor had been teaching her a bit of Norwegian and Takk had just come out.
her gaze followed him as he took a seat it was only then that she realised what he had picked on the plate. all of her favourite foods, almost exactly what she would have chosen. "how did you know all of the food I was eyeing up" she said picking up a small round of bread topped with ham and mustard in one hand and a small tart filled with strawberries. before taking a bite of the bread her eyes kept drifting over to him she was so glad that he had asked her to be his date for the night. she was having such a good time.

 

[Noelle Maxwell]

Noelle recognized the Norwegian word Willow used and being the bookworm, the Hufflepuff knew a couple of basic words from some languages. Smiling at Willow, he made sure she was comfortable before taking a seat next to her. Most times, he would sit across the table but since they were at a dance, he wanted to be closer to her so that they did not need to raise their voices when they talked and they could see the others together while sharing a plate. When the Gryffindor noticed the plate that he fixed, he chuckled before answering, "I happened to be observant and sensitive to what are the likes of the people I care about.", grabbing a table napkin and gently wiping the mustard off the corner of her lips," and you happened to stand out in your table with your red locks. Which came helpful for me.", he added playfully. He took a bite from the macaroons he picked before taking a sip of the punch that she refilled for them. Willow's eyes drifted to him making him lean closer to her ear, "Wanna dance?", he asked, inhaling the sweet scent of her perfume.

 

[Willow Cullen]

Willow shuffled a little closer to Noelle as he sat beside her liking the feeling of him being close. she wasn't sure what to make of the fact that he watched what she ate. In some ways it was sweet in others it was a little creepy. instead of dwelling on it she instead thought to what she did eat. how was her diet diferent to anyone elses? She did eat quite a bit of meat. and she liked her meat on the rarer side a trait passed on from her parents along with restlessness at a full moon and energy at a new one. she also ate a lot of fish thanks to her dad being a fisherman. and she liked vegetables. she generally didn't like her food too processed. there was like always exceptions to the rules but she couldn't think of them right now. the other hting she had said made her wonder. he was observant about the people that he cared about. why did he care about her. she hadn't cared about him. well her was a friend but not as special to her as he made her feel though she was starting to feel more towards him as the evening went on. She frowned slightly as he wiped some mustard from her enough. she could do that herself. but the frown didn't last more than a second as his next comment made her laugh. "there is no point to life if you are just going to blend in." she said. she had been blonde the previous year and while she had enjoyed it she much prefers being a redhead. she already had an idea as to how she wanted to change her hair next time. they were lost in their own thoughts for a few minutes as they ate. willow was thinking bout Noelle and how she hadn't really taken the opportunity to get to know him and deciding that she would make a bit more effort towards him in the future. As they finished the food noelle leaned in closer and asked if she wanted to dance. she looked at the dance floor and at her ear caught the song that was playing. she nodded. "That would be fun, I like this song" she said already starting to stand up and running her hand across her skirt to fluff up the feathers again. before spinning around then taking his hand to move towards the dancefloor.

 

[Noelle Maxwell]

Noelle, ever the observant, almost chuckled as many emotions passed over Willow's face. The laugh she made was refreshing, making the Puff laughed as well. "That is indeed true. Uniqueness is a breath of fresh air.", he replied with a smile. His thoughts were on the Willow. Maybe, she was a bit creeped out of his actions awhile ago. He had to check and be cautious next time. This was new territory to him and needed some practice. One thing he liked about Willow was she was unpredictable. In a good way. She was not like some of their other classmates who would pretend. Willow was not. She was this independent girl that would surprise everyone with her choices, no matter how unique they were. One proof was that moment. The moment he suggested dancing, his date stood up, spun around and took his hand, leading the way to the dance floor. Chuckling aloud, he got hold of his bearing and took the lead this time. He spun her around before catching her in his arms, one hand on her waist, the other on her hand. "This okay?", asking her this time. He had been enjoying every moment with her.

 

[Willow Cullen]

Willow spun on the dance floor/ music had always been her escape. a place she hid in when she wanted to be alone with her thughts. or where she just wanted to forget thinking and just let her body take control. also a place she visited when she wanted to express something or just use energy. tonight dancing was where hse was letting her thoughts wander and just living in the now. She had assumed that they would just start dancing like most f the other couples here holding each other and swaying or sort of shimmying along to the music. She let herself be spun and landed against Noelle she felt his arm around her and his hand in hers and the beat of the music guiding their movements. and she realised that he was moving with more purpose than most people as if he was actually memorising them over to dance. she frantically tried to cast her mind back to the term of dancesport they had done in primary school where they had learned dances but the only thing she could remember was that the man leads. so she held herself with one arm around his back and her other hand in his and let herself be lead across the dancefloor. after a few moments she felt herself relax into him and the music a little and the less she thought about it the easier it was to anticipate where they were going to move and when she was going to be spun. the hardest part was trying not to stand on his feet with her heels. "Where did you learn to dance Mr full of surprises?" she asked as the song came to an end and the tempo changed as a new song came on.

 

[Noelle Maxwell]

Noelle laughed as he enjoyed watching Willow laughed as she was being twirled around. Thank Merlin for the dance lessons he endured with his twin. Other students were looking at them but they did not care. Some were even laughing along with them. They were just two fourth-year students enjoying the dance as much as the next couple. He noticed the redhead was still conscious of her feet but Noelle did not mind, instead, he smoothly carried her through the dance until the last chord lingered in the air. "Dance lessons. With my twin sister for a partner.", he chuckled as he twirled her around just in time for the next song to play. It somehow fit what he wanted to say and show her. He had listened to the song already for a couple of times to know the words. Leaning toward her ear, he softly sang the words he wanted to tell her. "...But you with me 'cause in your company, I feel so happy oh so happy and complete...", grateful he could still sing. Leaning back, he gazed into her eyes as he continued singing. "...That I love to use baby I know what to do baby I, I will love you, I'll love you, I'll love you..." He knew his ears were red but he cared less as he slowly leaned in to kiss her on the lips. Mere inches and they would meet, yet he controlled himself to give her the choice to meet his in a kiss or step back.

 

[Willow Cullen]

as the music paused and Noelle answered her question, it made sence. She was glad that she didnth ave to do dance lessons with her brother. the term in school had been enough. besides she was five years older than him. she had done sport. she had chosen athletics whereas her brother had fit in well with a soccer team even though he didn't seem to like the sport. "I forgot you had a twin sister" she said. remembering only now the other Maxwell in their year she had never had much to do with her. even in classes she couldn't remember them ever being put together.
The next song started it was a slower acoustic song with a guitar as the main melody. she continued dancing this time slower than the last song. her fingers absentmindedly twitching as if reaching for chords and strings. as the song played they moved closer together. until they were leaning into each other. his lips near her ear. she smiled as he sang along it was sweet. but when he started to say I'll love you I'll love you I'll love you she tensed for just a moment until she was able to remind herself that he was just singing a song, a love song that was playing because it was the valentines dance. he wasn't saying that he loved her. thst was a more relaxing thought. as he stepped back and continued singing she felt herself go red. well there is another point in the not blending in the book she thought. smiling though whether it was because of his actions or her joke mental joke she wasn't sure. he leaned in to kiss her she felt her face go as red as her hair. as she felt half the eyes on the dancefloor on them. ther was really no choice to it. shew as not that shrew who didn't kiss after such a gesture. hell, she had been planning on kissing him anyway. he had just got there first. she kissed him gently before adding a little feeling behind it before pulling back. why was everyone still watching? it wasn't her first kiss. that has been during the game of spin the bottle just over a year ago; but it was her first kiss with someone that she had chosen to kiss and it felt totally different to the kisses in the game. she spun away as the next song started. she wasn't going to kiss him properly with everyone watching. this was between them. it wasn't a game to be watched. By this time the next song had begun and everyone was back to minding their own business. this song had a bit more of a beat. they continued to dance. she looked up at him a twinkle in her eye and mischief in her smile as she sang along. A rush at the beginning I get caught up, just for a minute But lover, you're the one to blame All that you’re doing Can you hear the violence? Megaphone to my chest before she leaned forward and whispered quietly to him. broardcast the boom boom boom. let them all dance to it" before she kissed him again. this time la proper kiss not a half felt one.