"Class is dismissed."

Joonmyun Kim wouldn't ever imagine such three words would make his world felt lighter. He quickly scrambled the notes for next week's homework, which was a foot a half long of essay about why Honeywater should be needed in brewing the Volubilis potion and why it would alter the potion’s color into pink. This would meant a hell of time would be spent in the library for research, and as much as he loved reading, this weekend would be a Hogsmeade's weekend, Godric damn it. Why would Snape give the students such torturing works?

"Are you finished?"

Joonmyun looked up to see Yixing Zhang, his working partner, waiting for him expectantly. Yixing packed his things already, including all the potions kit. Joonmyun took a glance towards his working desk, which was still quite a mess.

"Just in a bit," he said, finally finishing up his notes. He quickly closed down the textbook and shoved it down his messenger bag. He pulled out his wand from his pocket. After checking that Snape was out of sight, he mumbled a spell under his breath. The graceful swish of his wand brought his potion tools back into their original place in the small container. Another spell, and Joonmyun made the container shrunk so he could put it in his bag.

Yixing whistled. "You really need to teach me that advanced Accio, O Master-of-Spells. Really comes in handy everywhere, you know? The Ravenclaws would be mad if they find out."

"You're exaggerating," Joonmyun blushed a bit. "Let's go, I don't want Sprout to give us detention for being late." Although both of them knew how Professor Sprout was never one to give detentions, least of all for her student being late to the class.

Still, Yixing was quick to match Joonmyun's hurried steps. He didn't say anything to Joonmyun's rather obvious bad mood, though. Joonmyun appreciated that. Yixing wasn't the type to prod at people's problems. He would rather have them come to himself if they wanted to tell him.

The trip from the dungeon to the greenhouses was actually not long, but it was spent in silence that Joonmyun started to wonder when they would reach the greenhouses. It wasn't like Yixing was a bad companion, really. He just couldn't work out what was in the other's mind. It was slightly creepy.

"Joonmyun Kim?"

Joonmyun was stopped by a Ravenclaw-probaby a third year, or second year. The girl had pretty blond locks, and her cheeks were sporting a pretty shade of pink. Joonmyun remembered seeing her being sorted in the Great Hall. The girl should be in class, probably Transfigurations. If McGonagall found out...

"Yes?" He asked.

"I-" she hesitated. Her eyes flickering between him and Yixing. Perhaps the other boy's presence was unnerving her. As though he could feel it, Yixing walked away to give them space.

The girl fished out something from her robe - a letter - and handed it to Joonmyun. It didn't say who it was addressed for, nor who it was from.

"Is it for me?" Joonmyun had to ask.

"Yes," the girl nodded her head. Her locks of hair fell nicely around the frame of her face. "He told me to give it to you when you're alone. But you were with your friend, so..." She gave a nervous glance towards Yixing who seemed absorbed in a tapestry draped over the wall.

"It's okay. Who is he?"

The girl shook her head. "I don't know. He said you wouldn't need names to know."

Joonmyun's heart skipped a beat at this. He only knew one person to give him such life difficulties - besides Snape, anyway.

"Thank you," Joonmyun gave her a warm smile. "You may return to your class."

The little girl happily obliged. Joonmyun tucked the letter safely in his robe pocket, along with a few sickles he always carried around. He could read it later, after he made sure the letter meant him no harm.

"Let's go," he said, catching up with Yixing. With no words exchanged between them, they hurried towards the greenhouses, hoping the class wouldn't even start yet.

Fortunately, they arrived just in time. The Professor was happily telling them to wear their dragon-hide gloves. Joonmyun sighed as he pulled up his gloves, eyes staring at the pots with Snargaluff in front of them.

"I am so not taking Herbology for my OWLs," he muttered.

Yixing laughed. He looked at ease with the hideous gloves on his hands. His wand was at ready, pointed precisely at wild vines that looked really dangerous and all threatening. Joonmyun had suggested for him to be a Herbologist, because Yixing had been known to be the one with Gifted hands. But he refused, saying he wanted to be a Curse Breaker instead. That kinda explained his comfort with dragon-hide gloves, which Joonmyun highly loathed.

"Watch out!" A Ravenclaw girl next to him shrieked, causing him to jumped a little bit.

One of the thorny vines was advancing towards him, and Joonmyun was only quick to cast a Protego before Yixing professionally casted a perfect Diffindo at the plant. The plant squirmed down, startled by the spell. Joonmyun let out a breath he didn't know he was holding. He glanced at his friend, and Yixing was grinning at him, quite widely.

"Five points for Hufflepuff, for demonstrating the right treatment to the plant in such a short time," Professor Sprout announced happily.

The other Hufflepuffs in the greenhouse cheered immediately. Joonmyun laughed, giving Yixing's shoulder a brief squeeze while his other hand took the clipboard and quill.

"Well, Mr. Green Hands, let's see where your mighty knowledge would lead us in this research project."
 
Joonmyun insisted that Yixing could go to the Great Hall for dinner without him. Zitao was going to be at the table, anyway. He didn't have to worry about Yixing losing his way back to their dorm.

The tricky part of having Yixing Zhang as a best friend was where you also had to act like a mother hen to take care of him. He often found losing his way around the castle even if he had been a student for almost five years. Once, Joonmyun found him lingering around the Owlery almost at midnight. If it were not for his prefect instinct, Yixing might left freezing with only his pyjamas that night.

They parted ways after Joonmyun made sure Yixing remembered the way to the Great Hall. He even made sure the other to remember which table Hufflepuff's was. At Yixing's assuring wave, Joonmyun quickly turned around and made his way towards the staircases that led him towards the Basement.

He was not hungry, but he had to admit that he was a little bit tempted when he went past the kitchen. Pressing the heel of his hand onto the stomach to prevent hunger, Joonmyun moved on to the barrels that hid the secret passage towards Hufflepuff Common Room. He pressed the barrels in a pattern only Hufflepuffs would know. It was their advantage, he thought, while the other houses had passwords, Hufflepuff had secret code. Which was way cooler.

The common room was almost empty, for almost no one in the house would miss dinner in the Great hall, only the pets were occupying the sofas. He immediately spotted Zitao's persian cat staring at him.

"Hey, Panda," Joonmyun greeted the cat. He still thought it was weird to name a cat another animal's name. Zitao insisted though, promptly pointing at large black spots around Panda's eyes that quite made her, well, a panda. "Enjoying your free time?"

Panda pulled herself into a sitting position, alarming another cat that was sleeping next to her. "Meow," she said. The other cat shifted, then Panda lowered herself back into a sleeping position. With a satisfied purr, she closed her eyes slowly.

Joonmyun took that as a cue to leave. Dealing with cats was not exactly his specialty.

He let out a relieved sigh once he was in the bedroom. No one was there but him. He had around half an hour for himself before his roommates would come down. Better use the alone time well, he thought. After putting aside his school robe, Joonmyun climbed up his bed and settled for a comfortable position.

It was still early in Spring, but Joonmyun had to cast a bit of warming charm around his bed despite the lit up fireplace in the bedroom. He just had a little sensitivity towards the cold. He was just glad the Hufflepuff residence provided more warmth than the other houses did. It was always sunny in the Hufflepuff house, he once heard a senior saying when he was just a freshman.

He pulled out the letter and turned it around in his hands, examining it. It looked like an ordinary envelope, with ordinary seal that was charmed so that only him could open it up. Joonmyun was impressed. Even his parents never bothered to put such a charm on their letters.

He opened up the neatly folded paper with his heart beating to a nervous rhythm. Slowly, he began to read the letter.

The owls have been saying that you're good in Charms.
I am afraid Flitwick might hate me for not being able to master the swish-and-flick.
Care to tutor me?

The letter ended there. No signature. A small smile slipped up Joonmyun's lips. If the writer - whoever they were - thought they would be able to fool him, they were wrong. It wasn't like the handwriting wasn't something Joonmyun wasn't familiar with. In fact, he was very well aware of the owner of that certain writing. He shook his head amusedly. It was either he had to ignore the nonsensical letter, or to play along with it.

Suddenly, the loud bang of the door being opened startled Joonmyun out of his musings. Two boys in Hufflepuff robes barged in.

"Oh Great Merlin, you're not dead yet. Yixing was worried you would starve yourself to death," the one walking in the front said, jerking his head back to reveal a relieved looking Yixing trailing behind him.

"You're exaggerating, Zitao," Yixing sighed.

Zitao frowned, "Okay, maybe not. But he wanted to stop at the kitchen so he could ask the house elves if you had come down for food tonight."

"That was me suggesting, because you were being worried to death when I didn't show up with Joonmyun to the Great Hall earlier."

"Well," Zitao shrugged. "Better to be sure of something, don't we?" He grinned. He walked towards his own bed across Joonmyun's and stripped down his school robes. "Besides, I'm not the only one being disappointed of Joonmyun's lack of appearance in the Great Hall tonight."

Joonmyun lifted up his head from his letter, finally getting interested in the conversation. Zitao sent him a wink when their eyes met. "What do you mean?" He asked calmly.

"Nothing," Zitao spoke with his eyes twinkling mischievously. Joonmyun raised his eyebrows, and Zitao faked a cough. "I was just saying that," his eyes flickered to an oblivious Yixing folding his socks on his own bed, "perhaps someone might want to see you at the library tonight." He wiggled his eyebrows.

"You know about this?" Joonmyun frowned, gesturing to the letter that was still in his grip.

Zitao squinted his eyes. "No," he said, blinking back his eyes to get his normal sight back. But that was not very convincing.

Joonmyun sighed. "Great. Thanks."

He folded back the letter into its original form neatly. He grabbed his robe and put it back on himself. He made sure the prefect badge was being securely pinned on its place before he retrieved some books from his bag.

"Going somewhere?" Yixing asked when Joonmyun was just about to open the door.

"Yeah. I need to research the material for Potions' essay," he easily said.

"Okay."

"Oh, hyung?"

Joonmyun turned around to see Zitao's amused eyes. "Yes?"

"If you meet Panda in the common room, please tell her to come up."

Joonmyun rolled his eyes, "Alright."
 
It didn't take long for Joonmyun to spot a certain blonde in Slytherin robes in the library that night. Not especially when this certain blonde has the height over average within the boys of their year. Joonmyun took a deep breath, as if it would do anything to his fast beating heart. The blonde was not sitting alone, his friends were around him. They were chatting lowly instead of burying their noses in the books. Madam Pince would not approve, but it was out Joonmyun's concern.

It was now or never. Joonmyun didn't really have a choice.

Joonmyun approached the blonde silently, hoping his nervousness would be hidden well. He knew the blonde had sensed his arrival, but Joonmyun kept his mouth shut. He took the free seat next to the blonde, promptly dropping all the books he brought with him so it caused a little noise on the table. All pairs of eyes on the table were suddenly trained to him, including the blonde's. Now that he got what he wanted - the blonde's attention, of course -, Joonmyun found difficulty in continuing the little scenario he had running in his head.

He cleared his throat.

"Yi Fan Wu," he called out.

The blonde hummed in response.

"I can tutor, but only if you meet my requirements," he said without looking up, eyes still on his own books.

"Oh?" Yi Fan sounded amused and pleased. He knew the blonde was raising an eyebrow. He didn't need to look to know. "And what is that?"

Joonmyun looked up to meet Yi Fan's piercing gaze. It took him a lot of courage not to whimper and squirm under those eyes. It would be embarrassing, seeing how Yi Fan's friends were having their attention at him and Yi Fan interracting. Joonmyun knew the other two Slytherins rather well - thanks to Zitao. Chanyeol Park and Sehun Oh were always fun to keep around, but not with their eyes staring at him like he was a zebra in the savannah.

"This Saturday, meet me near the Whomping Willow at eleven."

"But that would be Hogsmeade's weekend," Yi Fan protested.

Joonmyun shook his head firmly, "Cancel your other arrangements for that day. That, if you want me to tutor you, of course. You could look for other tutor if it doesn't seem to fit you."

Yi Fan groaned. Chanyeol and Sehun tried to hide their snickers behind the books but very much failed.

"Fine," Yi Fan said, biting on his lower lip slightly.

Joonmyun smiled. This went better than he expected. "Very well. It's a deal, then."

"Yeah." Yi Fan nodded. His corner of the mouth was twitching, like he was trying hard to hold back a smile.

Joonmyun stood up, collecting up his books back in his arms. "I'll be leaving then," he said, ready to take a step over the bench.

"Wait," Yi Fan said. His hand was fast to grab on Joonmyun's arm. "I didn't see you at dinner. Where were you?"

"In my bed," Joonmyun replied, his cheeks are turning pink. Chanyeol's laughter was no longer subtle. "Reading. Why?"

"Nothing," Yi Fan let loose his grip on Joonmyun's arm. He looked a bit disappointed. "See you on Saturday." He gave Joonmyun a broad grin which caused the Hufflepuff's heart to do a little jump.

"Yeah." Joonmyun nodded. He turned to give a curt nod to the other Slytherins. "See you later." Then he briskly left the table, ignoring the pair of eyes piercing into his back as he took his leave.
 
He actually managed to finish a foot length of Potions essay that Snape had assigned them today. It surprised himself no less. Doing homeworks in the library seemed to be more effective than doing them in the common room. Madam Pince had intentionally cleared at Joonmyun's table, causing him to startle a bit. She reminded him that the library would be closed in a while, and that he should start doing his prefect duty soon. Joonmyun didn't forget to thank her before he exited the library.

He skirted around the ground of the castle with his books heavy in his hands. Higher levels were usually handled by Gryffindor and Ravenclaw prefects, since their dorms were closer. It was usually him and a prefect from Slytherin splitting works to patrol around the first and second level of the castle, with additional dungeon for the Slytherin and the basement for him.

Tonight, too, he didn't find any suspicious thing along the corridors. Hogwarts had been relatively peaceful since the rebuilding after the war, which was quite a long time ago. People had moved on. They were living their present to the fullest and forgetting their past. House rivalry still existed in the school, but it wasn't as uptight as it used to. Gryffindors hanging out with Slytherin wouldn't be a rare scene to see these days.

He made sure no one was lurking for the last time before he headed back to the dorm. He went straight past the kitchen towards the barrells, ignoring the loud sound of protests his stomach let out at the thought of food. He was more sleepy rather than hungry at the moment. The thought of his warm bed sure was more tempting than warm shepherd pie.

Joonmyun was relieved when he saw that the common room was empty. The pets weren't even there, which meant Zitao must had been taken care of his cat himself. Which was great, seeing how Joonmyun was not in the mood to deal with any cats right now, or pets in general. He patted the pocket of his robe, feeling the outline of the letter with his palm. Both his cheeks were starting to get warm again.

He chose a couch closest to the fireplace to sit on. The letter felt heavy and warm on his hand. Joonmyun contemplated if he should throw the letter into the dancing fire, but the attached part of him won. He was not a person to throw things easily.

A small smile played on his lips as he remembered the short conversation in the library. He thought of Saturday and how much he wanted the time to pass quickly. It was selfish, but Joonmyun couldn't help it.

Slipping back the letter into his pocket, Joonmyun stood up. He collected back his books and made sure his essay weren't left before he climbed the stairs that led to the boys' dormitory.
 
Saturday came like other days didn't exist at all.

Someone woke Joonmyun up from his deep slumber by yanking the curtains around his bed open. He shivered from the coldness of air hitting his bed.

"Wake up, it's Hogsmeade day!" Zitao's voice was too cheerful, even for a fifth year Hufflepuff that was just too excited to grab some sweets from the Honeydukes and go to Three Broomsticks for some glass of Butterbeer.

Joonmyun groaned, wriggling further into the cover. He closed his eyes and let the warmth his bed provided to seep between his toes, to his blood, up to his fingertips... Warm...

He heard Yixing chuckled from the bed next to his. "I told you he wouldn't wake up."

Zitao sighed. He shook Joonmyun's body, earning a grunt from the other. "Hyung. Saturday morning, remember? Saturday breakfast, toast, marmalade jam, pie--"

Joonmyun's eyes shot open at the mention of 'pie.'

"I'm awake," he announced to the room as he pulled himself into a sitting position. "I'm awake. Wait minute."

He hopped down from his bed. Scrambling around as balance tried to have a grip on himself. It took him quite a while for him to finally chose a decent maroon sweatshirt and a pair of black trousers to wear. Bringing the clothes in his left arm, Joonmyun left for the bathroom. He was at least being careful not to step on Panda's swinging tail when he walked across the room.

After putting on the fresh clothes, making sure no strand of hair was out of place and had the mirror praising his look for today, Joonmyun joined both of his friends at the Great Hall.

Zitao was already having his second Yorkshire Pudding, while Yixing was calmly picking around his chicken drumsticks. Joonmyun took the free seat next to Zitao. His hand immediately reached out to the warm apple pie served in front of him.

"You dress so nicely today," Yixing commented. "What's the occassion?"

Joonmyun raised his eyebrows, shrugging. "I always dress nicely," he said between his pies.

Zitao snickered next to him. He shook his head. "Oh, that's an understatement, hyung. Even the castle knows how you always dress up amazingly everyday."

"Shut up, Zitao," Joonmyun waved a fork in front of Zitao's face, hoping to threaten the other boy. Zitao poked his tongue out in mockery. Joonmyun sent him a glare. He cleared his throat. "I'm not going today, by the way. To Hogsmeade, I mean."

"Why?" Yixing asked. He sounded surprised even when his face kept passive.

"I have other engagement," Joonmyun simply replied.

"Other engagement," Zitao mused. "Is it what they are calling it nowadays?"

Joonmyun pinched Zitao's thigh in warning. Zitao yelped. He quickly shoved Joonmyun's hand away. Yixing blinked his eyes twice.

"What's an 'it'?" He asked.

"Oh, you know," Zitao wiggled his eyebrows. His left hand was busy rubbing the sore spot on his thigh. "Dating," he mouthed, causing Joonmyun to gasp rather too loudly.

"It's not a date!" He protested. "He asked me to tutor him, and I agreed. Why did you know anyway?"

Zitao grinned. "There are always benefits from befriending the Slytherin, you of all people should know that. Besides, 'tutor' is just another code for 'date' in the school."

Joonmyun scoffed. "Says who?"

"Says me," Zitao said proudly.

Yixing shook his head. "Oh, Zitao. Being around that Jongdae Kim too much has turned you like this."

Zitao shrugged, "Jongdae is an okay companion. I like him."

"I feel like I should start counting to the day you wear all house badges on your robe," Yixing smirked.

"House unity," Zitao nodded proudly.

Joonmyun sighed. He turned his head around to steal a glance at the Slytherin table. He spotted Yi Fan's blonde hair almost immediately. The latter seemed to be sensing this, for he looked up and met Joonmyun's eyes straight away. The Hufflepuff quickly looked away, before anyone would caught the small exchange of nothing between him and the Slytherin. He hung his head low, wondering how many people would suspect that.
Joonmyun intentionally came to their meeting place five minutes later than their agreement. He was actually afraid of the idea of waiting. A little part of him was whispering him little scenarios in which the Slytherin boy would not show up and Joonmyun would die waiting. It was not logical at all, yet he was frightened. He did not want to be seemed so eager, so looking forward to the meeting. He could picture Yi Fan's sly smirk if he was caught feeling a little bit too excited for their tutoring session. He did not want that.

"You're late," Yi Fan said when Joonmyun approached him. He was wearing a simple green polo shirt and khaki trousers, and, Sweet Merlin, he looked dazzling in them. "It's five minutes past our meeting time." He had his hands crossed in front of his chest, making him looked superior.

"Sorry, I had to finish something before I could get here," Joonmyun smiled innocently, knowing it would break Yi Fan's walls down. "Let's find somewhere else. I don't think the Whomping Willow would appreciate us practicing spells around it."

Yi Fan shrugged. "You choose the place, not me."

Joonmyun nodded. He led both of them to a clearing near the cliff where they could see the Great Lake quite clearly from the distance.

The grasses there were not tall, just the right size for them to sit on. Flower buds were starting to appear here and there in every spectrum of color, welcoming Spring in their own ways. They were to bloom in the meantime. The clearing would be a beautiful temporary garden then.

"It's nice here," Yi Fan commented once they were settled down on the grass. His eyes were scanning their surroundings, taking in each of the scenery laid before them.

"I always like it here," Joonmyun said. He took out his wand and casted a warming charm around them. It had become a habit. He wouldn't survive without the basic charm.

"Do you come here often?"

Joonmyun shrugged, "Only when the weather allows me to." Yi Fan only hummed in response.

Joonmyun had to hold back a disappointed sigh. It was stupid of him to think that they would actually talk a lot, besides the tutoring business anyway. He had missed the other too much. He tried to think of the last time they were able to have peaceful moment to spend together. Nothing came up.

He gave up. He pulled his bag and took out a few books regarding basic charms he picked at the library the day before. Those were the books he thought would be suitable the most for Yi Fan's problem. If they weren't, well, they could always arrange another tutoring session, couldn't they?

"Joonmyun?" Yi Fan put his hand on Joonmyun's shoulder, startling him from his musings. When Joonmyun turned to look at him, all he saw was amusement.

"What?"

"You didn't think this was an actual tutoring session, did you?"

Joonmyun blinked in confusion. "Huh?"

Only then Yi Fan burst out into laughing. His hand was still clutching on Joonmyun's shoulder. And despite how the grip was starting to get tighter, Joonmyun didn't mind at all. He actually rather liked the warmth Yi Fan's hand left there. It was comforting, like assuring him that Yi Fan was there with him.

"Oh," Yi Fan wiped out the tear that came out on the corner of his eyes due to laughing. His mouth was still split into a wide grin. "Joonmyun, you do realize that 'tutor' is another code for 'dating', right?"

Joonmyun's cheeks started to get pink. He remembered Zitao saying that, but he didn't even think that it would be true. "I- Since when?"

"Since forever," Yi Fan said, still amused. His hand now lingered on Joonmyun's arm, spreading warmth straight to his stomach.

"Merlin's beard," Joonmyun breathed out. He shook his head, thinking of one thousand and one reasons why Joonmyun Kim was stupid and so outdated with the latest school's gossips. He was a prefect, after all. He should at least knew secret codes like this. "Are there other codes? Like 'I like Snape's hair' for 'I love you'?"

Yi Fan chuckled. "That's such a turn off. Why did you think of that?"

Joonmyun shrugged. "Is this a date, then?"

"Yes," the Slytherin answered firmly.

"We could have a nice date to Hogsmeade," Joonmyun groaned.

"Not my fault that you insisted tutoring should occur on the school's ground," Yi Fan smirked. "Besides, no one would spot us here."

Joonmyun pouted, "So? What now?"

Yi Fan smiled. His thumb started to on Joonmyun's arm, spreading the warmth even wider. Joonmyun wondered if he should take out the warming charm he casted earlier, because now Yi Fan was making him even warmer. The other was leaning close to his ear, hot breath ghosting over his sensitive skin. Joonmyun closed his eyes, trying to calm his heart down. "Well, we can start by kissing, and other things should come up later?"

"Yi Fan," Joonmyun turned his head so he was now facing the other. "Don't be such a Slytherin and just kiss me already."

"Impatient," Yi Fan tutted. His thumb moved to give slow on Joonmyun's lower lip. "My little impatient Hufflepuff."

Joonmyun smiled. He leaned up and met Yi Fan's lips halfway. The press of Yi Fan's lips against his was not foreign at all, but it was missed. Their last encounter was before the Easter break, and they hadn't met since then. The tutoring session they arranged today sure answered some thirst they had been experiencing for a while.

Joonmyun thought that it was sickeningly Hufflepuff thing to do, but still he laced their fingers together. It was nothing, but it was the closest to intimacy Joonmyun has ever experienced. He liked to feel Yi Fan's fingertips against his. It was like connecting something deep within them. He knew Yi Fan didn't mind, even when the other would prefer to have Joonmyun's fingers somewhere else.

Yi Fan had moved to attack Joonmyun's neck, and nibbling on every inch of skin. He trailed down to Joonmyun's collarbones, his favorite spot to mark, and kissed it like it was the first and the last time he would be allowed to appreciate Joonmyun's perfect imperfections. It wasn't like the usual - slow and sure -, Yi Fan had little patience after months missing Joonmyun's warmth.

"Yi Fan," Joonmyun whimpered. He pressed tighter on Yi Fan's hot palm. It was getting too warm, too hot, even when the wind blew harder against them two. Joonmyun couldn't take them at once - both hot and cold. It was too overwhelming for him. "," he pushed Yi Fan back gently. "If you want to eat me, the kitchen is most appropriate place of all."

Yi Fan stared at him dazedly before he laughed. "Is that an invitation I heard?"

"Shut up," Joonmyun rolled his eyes. He pulled out his wand to cast glamor charm on the red marks Yi Fan had aggressively left on him.

"You know, sometimes I wish we wouldn't have to hide," Yi Fan said. His eyes were trained to the silver glow radiating on the tip of Joonmyun's wand that slowly concealed each of the red marks. "Sometimes I wish I would show the world that you are mine, and mine only."

Joonmyun pursed up his lips. He finished the glamor with a flick of his wand. He turned to look at Yi Fan. His eyes were calm, but Joonmyun knew it was typhoon in his heart. Yi Fan was rather easy to read. He was an open book under Joonmyun's observing eyes.

Smiling, he put a hand on Yi Fan's thigh. The muscle felt firm under his touch. The Slytherin had practiced quidditch a lot during the break, he was aiming for the captain position in the Slytherin quidditch team. Joonmyun had gathered as much from the only letter the other had sent him during Easter break.

"You made me forgot which one of us is the Hufflepuff just now," Joonmyun chuckled. Yi Fan pinched his cheek in respond. Pouting slightly, Joonmyun arranged the other's leg so they were stretched out straight. He put his head on the thighs, using them as a pillow. "I thought your friends know," he said, eyes fluttering close. The sun was getting even higher now.

"Well, that doesn't mean I could hold your hand when we walk together to the Great Hall," Yi Fan murmured.

Joonmyun's eyes shot open. He stared at Yi Fan's honest eyes, finding no hesitation there. "You want to hold my hand when we walk to the Great Hall together?"

"You're making it sounds so weird," he protested. "I want us to do what other couples able to do."

"Yi Fan," Joonmyun paused, trying to find the right words to say. He knew that both of them had agreed to keep their relationship as a secret, and that they would accept any consequences of having a secret affair. But he never predicted Yi Fan was the one to be insecure about their relationship.

Sure, he had thought of little scenarios in which their relationship was made to public. It would be okay to lace their fingers together as they walked to class or sneak one or two kisses in the library. They would go to Hogsmeade together, buying loads of sweets and walking together without having to be afraid of people's judging stares on them.

Their friends might have accepted their relationship, but public hadn't.

Joonmyun took Yi Fan's hand in his, squeezing it assuringly. "It's enough for me to have you here. I have you all for myself, just what more I could ask for?" He faked a smile. He hated that he had to. Deep down he wanted Yi Fan just as much as the blonde wanted him, wanted to show him off to the whole school population. But if he didn't act strong, Yi Fan would be even more worried. He didn't want him to worry.

"You're such a Hufflepuff," Yi Fan grinned. He stuck his tongue out in mockery.

"Speak for yourself, Mr. Romantic," Joonmyun replied, chuckling slightly. His finger traced the lines on Yi Fan's palm. They were still like he remembered from last month. He wondered how they would read if Yi Fan took the Divination class.

Yi Fan wiggled his eyebrows, "I'm only a romantic when it comes to you."

"See! Exactly that," he laughed. "How do I put up with you, I don't even know."

"You love me," Yi Fan said softly.

"I do," Joonmyun smiled.

Yi Fan smiled back, just as warmly. He looked like he wanted to say something. His eyes were showing that he was having deep thoughts running in his head. Joonmyun waited, looking straight at those eyes as if he was challenging him. But Yi Fan shook his head, swallowing all words that crossed his mind. Joonmyun would be lying if he said it didn't disappoint him.

Yi Fan bent down so he could kiss Joonmyun's worries away. The kiss was different with the one they shared earlier. This was slower, more languid, more heartfelt. In each of his lips against Joonmyun's, he assured the other boy just how much he felt the same way. Because he couldn't describe his feelings in words, not when the feelings were stuffing up his chest that he was afraid it would burst out anytime soon.

When their eyes met after they broke the kiss, identical smiles immediately crept to their faces.

Even without words, they know they were not going anywhere for a little while. The plan was to spend time in each other's company until the night falls. Until then, nothing was going to change their minds.
 

 

--fin.