There’s nothing like the feeling of magic in the air, stepping into Hogwarts after the long journey here. Students hustle around you as they rush to the Great Hall, hungry and excited for the activities about to commence while hearing shouts of friends reuniting after the long summer break. A few friends laugh beside you, grabbing your arm and practically dragging you to the house table as they indulge in the latest gossip amongst students and professors. Not long after the first years are sorted the food appears and you begin to eat, noting how the house elves made some of your favorites. As the night goes on you come to the conclusion that this year will be a great year.

One of your favorite parts about being a Hufflepuff is the entryway into the dormitories. You hold back a laugh as a first year messes up the passcode and gets doused in vinegar. He gets a pat on the shoulder from everyone who passes him to head into the common room and a dejected sigh escapes his lips as he wipes his eyes. A look of surprise crosses his face when you hand him a towel and you give him a sympathetic look, remembering how you made the same mistake a couple of times your first year. He smiles and begins drying himself off, but before he can express his gratitude you’re already gone.

The next night you slip into the kitchens after dinner, giving the pear in the painting an extra coo as you tickle it to gain entry. Leftovers are splayed across the tables as the house elves clean up tonight’s dinner. You quickly head to your corner, greeting the elves on your way. After receiving a few snacks from the elves you settle down with your homework, your favorite getaway to finally get some work done. It was hard to study anywhere else where delightful conversations are waiting to happen with people around. Hardly anyone comes down into the kitchens besides the elves and a few students wanting to beg them for a snack which made it the perfect place to study.

You make it back into Hufflepuff’s common room and dormitories just before curfew, to no one’s surprise. A few people know of your study place ever since you first found it at Hogwarts due to your frequency at breaking curfew your first year here. With a sigh of relief you slink into a couch, unaware of the piercing gaze attached with a kitten-like smile following your every movement.

A few weeks pass and you begin to notice something a little off. Whenever you enter the kitchens someone is there talking to the elves, a boy that looks familiar but you can’t quite put your finger on it. The first time you encounter him he’s speaking animatedly with the elves, but they quiet once you enter the kitchen. You give a small look of confusion and the corners of his lips form a smile, though he misses his chance at a conversation again when you quickly head to your corner, determined to finish your homework quickly.

It seemed he was determined, too.

From then on out you would always see a bowl of treats with little notes perched on top saying “Feel energized!” or “Study hard!” You could tell it wasn’t from the house elves because they would usually just hand them to you. In the back of your head there’s an inkling of who they might be from, but you brush it off, opting to eat the treats and feeling an overwhelming sense of calm rush over you, ready to hit the books.

Finally you had to put a stop to the mystery when the notes and treats came in heart-shaped form. The possibility of them being laced with something unwanted raised alarm in your head.

“Oh, he’s such a sweet boy,” is the response you get when you ask about them, every elf smiling at the thought of your mystery boy. “He’s been coming every day to make you something.”

“Why?”

“Why don’t you ask him?” An elf nods to the entryway as the subject of your questions appears, fiddling with his fingers as a slight blush appears over his cheeks. You take a moment to examine his features: slightly tall and thin stature, short brown hair with ears that slightly stick out from his head, straight eyebrows that seem to curve up in the middle of his forehead where they meet his nose, a smile so bright you almost forget to look at his eyes.

And that’s when you make eye contact.

You both freeze and it seems time has gone still, only to be broken by the elves laughter as they move towards the back of the kitchen. As they walk away you can hear them taking bets on what will happen next and when the two of you would end up together.

He smiles again and you blush, your heart unexpectedly beating faster with each second. You motion to the heart shaped treats and look back at him.

“Are these from you?”

He nods and you pass one to him, which he takes without a word and takes a bite as you take one as well.

“__________.”

“What?”

“My name is __________.”

“I know.”

You stare at him in shock and all he does is smile, the roaring laughter of the elves continues on behind you as they watch the exchange.

“Mine’s Jongdae.”

“Jongdae…”

His name rests on your tongue, already building a home somewhere deep in your heart.

Days pass by and you begin to know more about your mystery boy. You both continue to meet in the kitchen, chatting during the day and studying at night. You find out that the vinegar incident at the beginning of the year was the first time you met him when he thanks you for the towel. He wasn’t a first year but in the same year as you, and how you’ve gone this long without knowing each other’s existence is hard to comprehend. He left all of those notes and treats on the table for you, making them during the day in time for you to get them at night. When you ask him why he confesses, effectively bringing a nice red tone to your face.

-----

“Jongdae, I can feel you staring at me.”

“I’m not staring.”

You glance up from your potions homework, stuffing a small treat into your mouth as you notice his head in his hands watching your every move.

“You’re absolutely staring.”

“I am gazing, merely analyzing a work of art.”

You huff and pop another treat, meeting his gaze with your own. A blush creeps up your face when he doesn’t back down, eyes intensely focused on yours as he smiles with words on the tip of his tongue.

“Shall we try for a date outside of the kitchens?”

“Where did you have in mind?” A smile threatens to form, but you refuse to let it show.

He hums and calculates something in his mind, giving a quick roll of his eyes while in thought. You wait with small anticipation, still trying to hide your smile.

“Maybe a walk around the grounds? I have a few places I want to show you.”

“And if we run into your friends?”

“I’ll introduce you to everyone.”

You pat the empty space next to you and he’s there in a heartbeat, ready for you to settle your head onto his shoulder. His arm snakes around your back, holding you close and secure against him. In this small moment you take the chance to inhale his scent, always enjoying the slight hint of vanilla from all the treats he bakes. He attempts to smell your hair, but having no stealth at all as you can feel the action on your head. His lips form a smile on your head and your lips mirror his, leaning into him further while enjoying the moment.

“Introduce me as…?”

He gulps at your question and he blurts out his answer, giving indication that he’s already thought about this.

“Introduce you as my girlfriend – if that’s okay with you.”

You giggle and look up at him, the familiar heat crawling up your face as you lock eyes with him. “I would like that very much, Jongdae.” You laugh as he gives a small shout of joy, happy that he can finally call you his publicly.

Later that night as you lay in bed your mind begins to wander. You realize that you have yet to cross paths with him in the hallway or even communicate in class, and you begin to worry on how he’ll react. Will he wave hi to you and just keep walking?

Or will he ignore you completely?

There’s no way that he would stop, leave his friends, and come up to you. Although you had friends yourself, you didn’t completely belong anywhere and spent most of your time in the kitchens.

The next morning you go about your classes as usual, and as lunchtime rolls around you decide to head towards the Great Hall instead of going directly to the kitchens as usual. The bustling of students makes you slightly lightheaded, but as you join your fellow Hufflepuffs you begin to enjoy everyone’s company, actively participating in conversations and catching up on the latest gossip.

Suddenly a figure plops down next to you and starts stuffing their face, no time for you to process what was fully going on.

“I’m starving! Hey, what did you think of Professor McGonagall’s lesson today? Bloody wicked in my opinion.”

You stare at him slightly shocked. He picks up on this and turns his head to give you a bright smile, food slightly sticking out from his lips.

“How’s my lovely lady doing today?”

The heat creeps back up on your face and you continue to stuff your face without answering as a chorus of cheers surrounds you.

“Jongdae finally got the girl, huh!” A boy exclaims.

“Byun Baekhyun!”

You look up in confusion but everyone seems to know what was going on. Giggles erupt from the girls and a few boys groaned.

“Should I tell her or do you wanna come out with it?” The boy from earlier speaks again and points at Jongdae, “This boy has been chasing after you for MONTHS!”

You glance at Jongdae and he’s beet red, a shade you’d never seen him in.

“I may or may not have… asked everyone here for who you were, what you did, liked, your schedule, and…” Jongdae stumbles over his words and you can’t help but laugh. The girls around you giggle again and swoon over his romantic side. Alarms go off on your head and you lean over the table to point at them.

“Don’t get any ideas ladies, this one’s mine,” you say light-heartedly. A shout is heard from behind you as Jongdae stands up and does a victory dance, not caring about the laughs coming from his peers as you pretend to not know him. He quickly sits back down and promptly feeds you, enjoying the feeling that all his hard work has paid off. You smile and feel your heart flutter, the heat crawling back up your face again while thinking that it was a good idea to take a detour after all.

This year really is a great year.

----- Epilogue -----

It’s Jongdae’s birthday and he spends all morning looking for you, wanting to spend the whole day with you. You’re nowhere to be found and even your friends don’t know where you’ve disappeared to. He even tries the kitchens to no avail.

Little does he know that when he came in you hid in the pantry until you were finished at lunchtime to get his surprise ready. You’ve prepared a small feast for him in your usual corner along with his favorite cake decorated with hearts and a big “Happy Birthday Jongdae!” on it. When he comes back down once more in hopes at finding you, he sees you with a cake in hand, singing the birthday song as you both approach each other.

“Surprise!” You hold the cake to him and he makes a wish after blowing out the candles, smiling at everything that you’ve done for him.

“You’ve been here the whole time?” He breathes, gaze settling on you as he holds your hands with the cake.

You nod in delight and he leans into kiss you, but the cake proves to be too much in the way. Without looking he sets the cake on the table and leans in again, but the cake disappears as soon as it leaves his fingers. The two of you gasp and exchange a look of worry.

“What do we do?!”

“Quick! To the Great Hall!”

Laughter is heard leaving the kitchens as you both dash upstairs, hoping to grab the cake before someone devours it.

------

Happy Birthday, Jongdae.