Chapter 19: Partying

                                    

                                          
By the next morning, lots of people heard about Scorpius and me. About five girls came up to me about it before I even left the girl's dormitory. It was quite invasive, I thought, that everyone in the school knew all of my business so quickly. 
                          
It didn't bother me that much though, because Scorpius was waiting for me in the common room. His face lit up when he saw me skipping down the stairs. We walked together towards the great hall, hand in hand, books in the other. 
                          
"Morning." I reached forward quickly on my toes and kissed him on the cheek. 
                          
The whole week went kind of like that. We spent all the time we could together. Whether we were just sitting together in the great hall, studying in the library, or hanging out in the common room, we had fun just being in each other's presence.
                          
On Friday, there was quidditch practice until dinner time. James had been holding lots of practices lately, for our match against Hufflepuff on Saturday morning. We were still getting used to Laura, but she fits in very well with the rest of us that I was sure we were going to win this match.
                          
The way James ran practices were always really effective. First, he made us do drills for our position for about an hour. I got lots of practice because all three chasers were shooting towards the rings at the same times. It was lots of work all at once, but it worked so there was no arguing there. 
                          
The next hour of practice, we ran trial games against each other. By the end of the night, we were all drained and sweaty. After practice, we all sat together for dinner. There were not as many people in the great hall as usual, since dinner was almost over, so we had most of the Gryffindor table to ourselves. it was nice to sit with my team and get to know each of them better. 
                          
I spoke with Emma Thomas for a while who told me that she likes to paint, which I never would have guessed before. She promised to show me one of her paintings sometime, though I'm sure she probably is an amazing artist. 
                          
I loved being a part of this team. Yes, I knew most of them already like Louis, Fred, James and Laura, but there was a special bond all seven of us shared that no one else did. It was the sense that we were part of something, of an amazing team who is kick-ass at playing quidditch, and also a friendship. It warmed my heart just to sit there with them and listen to each other's jokes and stories. 
                          
****
                          
On Saturday morning, I felt the usual excitement that I did for a quidditch match, but this time, I shared my excitement with Laura. We dressed in our team sweaters of red and gold. In the wintertime, we wore the sweaters under our robes so that we wouldn't freeze up in the air. 
                          
Laura and I both wore matching high ponytails and left the common room together. Lots of other Gryffindors wished us good luck on our way to the hall. 
                          
"Good luck Laura!" A girl in Laura's year said. "I know you'll do great!" 
                          
Laura smiled at her, but it faded once she turned her head back towards me. "I'm so nervous," she said. 
                          
"I know," I said. "It's normal, but you're amazing."
                          
"Do you think I'm better than Liam was?" She asked. 
                          
"Of course," I said. And I meant it, Laura was one of the best beaters we've ever had on the team. 
                          
At breakfast, Al and Scorpius sat with us. "If you're not rooting for us," James started with a roll of bread already in his mouth, "then you can't sit with us."