- Chapter 22 -

I immediately make my way down to the dungeons. I run down the stairs and within a matter of minutes I arrive at his office. I don't know what got into me, but I do know I have never run so fast in my entire life. I take a few seconds to get my breathing back to a normal rhythm before I open the door, I don't want to look completely shaken and out of breath when I enter that office of his, I don't want to give him the impressing I came running after him even though I did. Once my heart rate and breathing are steady again, I take a deep breath and open the door.

My eyes fall on the chair behind his desk, which is unoccupied. I scan the room and my eyes quickly fall on the back of Severus, standing before a table where it looks like he is chopping some ingredients for a potion he is currently brewing. His cauldron is omitting some sort of purple smoke and is standing in the middle of the long table. I decide not to push my luck and wait for him to acknowledge me.

After a while, he puts the ingredients in his cauldron and begins to stir it. I am still waiting patiently in front of his desk. Out of nervousness, I start fidgeting with my robes. I keep my gaze fixed on the floor, not sure where to look.

After a painful 10 minutes, he finally stops stirring his potion and turns around. His gaze immediately lands on me, he is watching me with as little interest as possible. He knew I was there. He looks me up and down before making his way towards me. I curse myself for not having fixed my appearance before coming here. My hair is all ruffled and I probably look like I have just run a marathon and afterward swam the pacific ocean and to top it off have climbed Mount Everest. I probably smell like it too. I probably didn't look too good before but the running here absolutely did not help my appearance in any way. I suddenly feel very self-conscious. I quickly start to flatten my hair in order to get it less bushy and more decent, which Severus quickly notices. He gives me a small satisfied smirk, happy he got to me.

"What are you doing here, if I may ask?" He asks, the pauses in between his sentence making me shiver.

I look at him, not sure what to say. He wanted to talk to me right, so why does he now act like he doesn't know for what reason I could possibly be here? I clear my throat and try to form a sentence, keeping my voice steady. "I thought you wanted to talk to me?" I ask.

He raises his eyebrows. "And however, did you get that notion in your head?"

I look at him, baffled. How dare he act like he didn't just wait for me. Like he didn't just see me hugging Fred and then stomping off like a 5-year-old who didn't get the toy they wanted. I can feel the anger once again starting to boil inside me.

"Oh now don't go play some stupid game, Severus. We both know you were clearly trying to communicate to me that you wanted to talk so apparently you had something important to say otherwise you wouldn't have waited for me." I say. My voice sounding louder than I initially intended.

His forehead suddenly turns into a sharp frown, anger forming on his face. "I have absolutely nothing to say to you, Ms. Black. So I would appreciate it if you would let me out of your weird imaginary events next time"

My mouth falls slightly open, I can't believe what I'm hearing. How can he change his opinion so damn fast? I really don't have a chance with this guy.

"Oh cut the crap already, I think we are past the last name basis already. I think it might have happened somewhere between you kissing me and me responding to it,"

He gives me a sour look. "How dare you, we are certainly on the last name basis, you are my student and I expect you to treat me like the superior I am. We can never be more and you know it,"

I take a step back, my expression going from anger to hurt. I blink away the tears that are trying to escape, I can't let him see me cry. I can't.

"No Severus, You want it to not be possible that doesn't mean it isn't," I say, my voice barely audible. I can see the look on his face turning into shock just before I turn around and exit the room.

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March 1, 1996

"We should definitely steal some mandrakes from Sprout's greenhouse and place them in Umbridge's office," Fred says, a devious smirk spreading across his face.

"Yes that's a fantastic idea, when should we do it?" George answers while giving his twin brother a high-five. I roll my eyes at them, laughing.

"Aren't you forgetting something?" I ask, eyebrows raised.

They both turn their attention towards me, confusion visible on their faces. I chuckle at the sight of their confused faces.

I sigh. "There's no way into Umbridge's office, remember?" I tell them. Flashbacks from that night start protruding my mind. It definitely did not go as planned, but the twins and their stupid pranks did manage to get me alone with Severus, which I failed to succeed in numerous times beforehand.

Only this time it hasn't been him who's been avoiding me. No, this time it's the other way around. I have done everything in my power these last few days to avoid being alone with him at all costs. The events from our last conversation still fresh in my mind. A wound has woven itself inside my heart and it's hurting. I know the only way to heal it is by letting him go, otherwise, I don't know how I will survive with the constant ache in my heart. A wound this big will definitely scar, although I have let it get to this point and it is up to me to fix it now.

I don't know what to do with the 'Severus problem'. Some big part of me wants to just run to him and make him realize that I'm not going to back away, that I'm here to stay and will do everything in my power to not let him get hurt, by me or anybody else. Some other part of me, the wise but weak part, wants to ignore him, ignore this problem I'm facing and just turn the other way.

I turn my attention back to the twins who are now arguing over the best possible way to place the mandrakes inside Umbridge's classroom. I look at the two boys in front of me, the way their freckles cross their nose towards each end of their cheeks and the way their eyes lit up whenever they are talking about some new prank they have come up with. I sigh contently, even though my life is definitely not what I would've wanted it to be at the moment, I'm still very glad I found a place with these two boys.

"Okay so now about next Saturday..." Fred says after having won the argument.

"We should definitely meet up in the common room 30 minutes after curfew, if we are lucky the teachers and prefects will have stopped patrolling the corridors thoroughly and most of the students will have retreated to their dorms which makes it safe for Eva to join us," George adds.

I quirk my eyebrow in surprise at the two of them sitting in front of me. What on earth are they talking about?

"And may I ask what it is you are planning on doing that particular evening, which for some reason involves me without my knowing?" I inquire.

George shrugs. "Fred and I thought it would be fun to have a little get-together, which would involve a shit ton of alcohol and food," He says while a devious grin now covers the faces of them both.

I give them a thoughtful look, contemplating the consequences of this before I shrug. "Oh well if it involves alcohol...., count me in," I say while giving the boys a devious grin in return.

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Any guesses of what's coming?;)