Disclaimer: JKR owns these characters. I am just shipper trash.

A/N: This is my first piece of fanfiction so please be kind. Leave a review and tell me how I did.

She was plotting a murder at the two-hour mark. Her head was pounding and some git thought it was a grand idea to mess with the light switch, flipping it on and off as if they were in some kind of discotheque. Closing her eyes she counted to ten and began to breathe deeply to try to calm herself down and make the nausea vanish, but even deep breathing proved to be a herculean feat and she could feel herself fading quickly. Lily lifted her head to look around for Marlene with a new sense of desperation. She could feel her stomach twisting, trying frantically to dispel all of the alcohol she had foolishly ingested and her body was uncomfortably hot, her head feeling like a cotton filled balloon.

Finally, she spotted Marlene standing in a dark corner obviously flirting with her latest crush, a good-looking bloke from her English Lit class. Stumbling and weaving, Lily made her way over to her best friend.

"Lily! Oh," said Marlene as she took a closer look at her friend, "You don't look so good sweetie." Lowering her voice and glancing at sexy English bloke, Marlene leaned into Lily. "Lils, just give me a minute to say goodbye and I'll take you home. Why don't you go sit on the sofa, okay? You look pretty fucking pissed." Lily considered this for a moment. Marlene was such a good friend and she'd been in a real slump since her last boyfriend dumped her for spacey Stacey. Making a rash, emotional, drunk decision Lily quickly shook her head, an act that left her whole body reeling.

"Marlene, s'fine. Stay. Have fun," Lily slurred, gesturing as discreetly as a drunk person can in the direction of Marlene's friend who was awkwardly shifting from foot to foot trying not to pay attention to the odd conversation occurring a couple feet away from him. "I've got a ride on the way already," Lily told Marlene with a large, goofy grin. It didn't matter that that wasn't exactly true in that moment because Lily just wanted to help her amazing, kind, awesome friend get lucky. She deserved that. Lily opened her mouth to tell Marlene just how amazing she thought she was when Marlene cut her off. "When did you arrange that? Are you sure Lily? I don't want to leave you alone-"

"I'm- I'll be fine, Marly. You're such a wartywor- worrywor- worrywart. You're such a worrywart, Marls. I'll be outside. Have fun," Lily exclaimed obnoxiously with an obvious wink over her shoulder. She turned then, tripping over a rug before righting herself and stumbling away from an extremely concerned Marlene.

Outside, under the influence of fresh air, Lily realized that now she actually had to find a ride. Looking around the tiny porch and only slightly bigger front yard, Lily noticed that she was alone except for a lone smoker checking her out very indiscreetly and a couple aggressively making out on the porch swing. Shuddering a little under the heavy eyes of the creep still working on his ciggy in the corner, she quickly pulled out her cell and tried to type in her phone's passcode with drunkenly clumsy thumbs.

"Shit," she mumbled under her breath after her third incorrect entry. With a deep breath she held her thumb as steady as possible staring at her phone screen with squinted eyes as she finally hit the 3 then the 0, the 0 again and finally the 1. Releasing the breath she had been holding she searched her home screen for the contacts icon, which in all honesty she could only find about half the time when she was sober. An embarrassing amount of time later she finally found it and started scrolling to the Js. With any luck, Jamie, Marlene and Lily's neighbor who sometimes watched their cat, would be free to give Lily a lift back to her flat. Holding her phone up to her ear while glaring at the creep in the corner who, having finished his cigarette, had taken to licking his lips and making rude gestures and kissy faces at Lily, she waited for Jamie to pick up.

"Hello," came a scratchy sounding voice on the other end of the terrible connection.

"Jamie, I am very drunk," Lily slurred into the phone, "and it would be ve- real- really kind of you if you could come an' pick up me. No. Pick me up." There was a sigh on the other end and for some reason Lily found that absolutely hilarious. "Please," she managed to get out through a fit of giggles.

"Stay where you are," she made out through the scrambling noises coming through the receiver. Looking around once more to find that ciggy creep had apparently gotten bored and wandered back inside and that the couple was still in a very compromising position, Lily heaved a gusty sigh and sat on the steps to await Jamie.

She must have dozed off because she woke feeling worse than before, her head resting on a support column and a big hand gently shaking her shoulder. Lily groaned, closing her eyes, and slowly started to sit up. "Alright Evans? You don't look too good," Jamie said in a deep voice which didn't really sound like Jamie at all. Her eyes snapped open and her head began to spin as she swiveled to face him.

"Potter," she exclaimed, way too loud for her suddenly throbbing head. "What the hell are you doin' here?"

James Potter, seeming to be fluent in mumbling drunk, pulled his handsome features into a frown mirroring Lily's. "What do you mean? You called me?" Lily's insides fell. She glared down at her stupid, fumbling, drunk thumbs. Why did the names James and Jamie have to be so close together in her contacts? Why didn't she have more 'J' friends?

"Shit! Shit, shit, shit, shit, shit!" Lily began to stumble back into the house to start a search for Marlene. Marlene didn't need to get laid after all; she just had to save Lily from this terrible situation. James grabbed her hand before she could reach the doorknob and Lily thought of a night not too long ago when he had done the same thing. That night she had kissed him. Tonight she was probably more likely to throw up on his shoes. Not only was she drunk, she felt unsettled around him. They hadn't talked about that night since it happened and Lily had made sure that they hadn't been alone together in the week since.

With her chin pulled down, Lily turned to face him. "Lily you're pissed. You really shouldn't go back in there. C'mon, lets get you back home." Lily looked up into his face and studied him carefully. He didn't look any different than he normally did. He looked mildly exasperated with her drunken antics, and a little tired, not at all like he wanted to pester her relentlessly about why she had kissed him and then ignored him for a week, but a warning flag was up in Lily's mind. Could she really handle being alone with James in the state she was in now, when lately whenever she was alone with him she wanted to jump his stupid, prattish bones.

"Lily," James said tiredly. "C'mon. Just get in the car." Lily heaved a resigned sigh and nodded her still pounding head, kicking herself. She could already tell this was going to be a long night.

James pulled her hand, the one Lily hadn't realized he was still holding, and Lily reluctantly followed him to his car, a flashy red '73 Cortina. Finally letting go of her hand James walked around to the driver's side and folded his long, lanky frame into the car. Lily stood on the sidewalk for a long moment having a silent debate with herself about whether this was a good idea or not before pulling open her door and practically falling into the seat and quickly shutting her eyes.

After about ten minutes of silent driving, during which Lily had dozed off again, James announced, " We're here." Lily's eyes popped open and her hand went to the door automatically, ready to sprint to her apartment's door no matter how utterly terrible she felt. She looked up to James' face for the first time since she got into the car to say a quick thank you and an apology for rousing him from bed, because she really did feel quite terrible about that, when she realized they were not stopped in front of her apartment. They were, in fact, parked in the lot for the local, 24-hour diner that Lily frequented right around the corner from her and Marlene's apartment.

"I cannot in sound mind allow myself to leave you in your apartment, all alone, while you're like this. My mum would slaughter me. We're sobering you up."

Lily began to protest immediately. At least she meant to, but even she could not make the sounds coming out of her mouth sound like words and she knew for a fact that once James started his whole gentleman act, he wouldn't drop it for anything. Lily briefly wondered in awe for what seemed like the thousandth time what kind of woman Mrs. Potter was to have instilled such a strong set of morals in her wild son. She looked into James' face, admiring for a second the way his sharp jaw was set in a look of steely determination and the way his glasses reflected the neon lights from the diner's 'open' sign, before sighing and simply saying, "Alright."

James gracefully pulled himself out of the car and Lily clumsily followed, stumbling a bit before pulling herself up to full height, only to find that James had walked around the car and grabbed her arm. Lily blushed slightly as James smiled at her and she rushed to return a queasy smile of her own. Her stomach was rioting and not just from all of the alcoholic beverages she had consumed.

Ever since the start of uni James had been having this effect on her, and it had only worsened since she snogged him in that stupid, drunk, panicky, earth shattering, amazing moment. He's had her blushing more in the past week than she has in the entire seven years they've known each other. Forget butterflies, her stomach has had angry moshers in it and her heart has been trying to eject itself out of her throat. Her whole body has been rebelling.

It's not that James makes her nervous; Lily would probably prefer that in all honesty. James makes her feel safe. He always has, even when he was being a huge prick in those first few years they knew each other. No, Lily is worried because she could have ruined everything with one of her best friends all because she kissed him on a fantastical drunken whim and then ran away. So what if she cared for him more than a friend should? She was perfectly fine ignoring that for the greater good. So what if James used to care for her like that too? She could pretend it didn't bother her that his feelings had changed if only to keep this friendship that made her feel as comforted as her mother's hands through her hair or her father's big booming chuckle.

She needed James Potter in her life, stupid feelings regardless. So she steeled herself and let him lead her into the diner. James gave a charming smile that made Lily's stomach go crazy to the waitress at the counter. "'Lo miss, can we get a booth for two?" The pretty, young waitress nodded taking her time to thoroughly check James out and Lily felt a stab of jealousy sharper than the pounding in her head.

They followed the waitress to their booth and sat down. "What can I get you to drink, handsome," the waitress asked while obnoxiously popping her gum and fluttering her heavily mascaraed eyelashes at James. Lily wanted to punch her.

James looked across the table at Lily, a look in his eyes that Lily could not decipher. "Uh, I'll have a water," James said still holding Lily's stare, "and she'll have a water, an orange juice, and a coffee. Ta," James said finally breaking eye contact to look back at the waitress. Lily looked at him quizzically, wondering why he had just ordered her three drinks. "You need to be hydrated," he said, correctly interpreting her look, "Believe me, you will not want to wake up tomorrow morning if you don't hydrate now. Remember we have that head students meeting with McGonagall tomorrow at nine." She groaned and put her head down on the table, enjoying the feel of the cold plastic on her hot skin.

"Don't remind me," grumbled Lily. She made plans to kill Marlene later for dragging her out to the party tonight. Sure, it might have been her own fault that she got completely wasted, but Marlene had to pay for her awful influence. The sound of James clearing his throat pulled Lily out of her murderous thoughts. She slowly peeled her cheek off of the table and looked up into his expectant face. "What," asked Lily, starting to panic, hoping he wouldn't mention this past week.

"You've been avoiding me," James said, eyes earnest behind his specs and a slight smirk gracing his thin lips. Lily groaned quietly and blushed. Of course James would be upfront about what was bugging both of them. Lily hadn't expected any different, even if she was dreading it.

"No I haven't," Lily lied lamely. The corner of James' tempting mouth twitched up and he chuckled with his head thrown back at Lily's poor attempt at dishonesty. That stupid laugh had started this whole thing. Lily loved everything about James' laugh, how when he really got going it seemed like he was laughing with his whole body, how it made his face look boyish and impossibly happy, how it seemed to rumble from his very core as if it was the very essence of him. James had been laughing just like this when Lily, driven by temporary insanity, assaulted him with her lips.

"Lily," James admonished with traces of laughter still in his voice, " I know you better than that. Try again."

"I've just been busy. Schools crazy, you know that. Winter hols are coming up. People have been crazy lately. We've had so much paperwork as heads," Lily rambled. Technically all of this was true, but it wasn't the real reason and judging by the disapproving look on James' face that had erased the laugh lines, they both knew it. James shook his head, giving Lily that same undecipherable look that he had before.

Luckily for Lily, the waitress chose that moment to bring their drinks. "Alright handsome. Here is your water," she said taking her time to set James' drink in front of him while giving him a great view of her ample bosom. Unfortunately for the waitress and for Lily, he hadn't taken his searching eyes from Lily's face. Frowning, the waitress hastily removed Lily's drinks from the tray and set them down in front of her, being sure to slosh them before storming off.

"Start with the water," James said as he reached for her coffee and put two packs of sugar in it, just the way she liked it. "You're full of it, Lily," James stated bluntly. "You're actually blaming head duties for us not seeing much of each other this past week? You do realize we're both head students right? That we do this job together?"

Frustrated, Lily blurted, "Then why do you think I'm avoiding you James, if you're so smart?"

"Nuh-uh, don't flip this on me. I want to hear you say it. Why are you avoiding me Lily." Pulling her lips away from her water straw Lily let her forehead fall onto the table with a tiny thump.

"Because I'm an idiot. Because I kissed you. Because I ruined everything. Take your pick," Lily said to the tabletop in a dejected voice.

"Why does kissing me, make you an idiot and what exactly have you ruined," James asked with a concerned voice. "You aren't even close to being an idiot. You're about 10 times smarter than me. You're top of the class. As far as I'm concerned, you haven't ruined anything, except maybe your liver. Better keep drinking that water, love."

Lily lifted her head just enough to reach her straw and, still glaring down at the table, missed James' smile. "You know what I mean," Lily sighed grumpily. I've gone and fucked up our friendship all because I felt like snogging you. Now I've made things all weird and you probably never want to talk to me again. You're one of my best mates and you don't feel that way about me and now its all ruined because sometimes I want to shag you-" a loud snort interrupted Lily's drunkenly honest rambling and Lily looked up into the face of a hysterical James.

"I'm sorry," he managed to get out through his laughter. "Did you just say you wanted to shag me? Oh Merlin!" Lily dropped her head back to the table, her face flushing to a deep red as she realized everything she had just said. Now he was laughing at her. She was never going to live this down. Maybe she could move to the Americas, change her name, join the traveling circus she had read about. Of course she'd have to find a cool talent. Maybe she could take up juggling, get a pet monkey- She felt a warm hand on her arm and realized the full on laughter had subsided to a heavy sigh. Oh no, here was the rejection she had been dreading this entire week; the real reason she had been avoiding James. Fear forced her throat closed, but she owed it to James and herself to face this like a grown up so she looked into James' face, her cheeks and ears burning.

James was a lot closer than he had been previously. He leaned across the table, cupping her chin with his large, calloused hand and Lily grew confused. This really did not feel a lot like rejection…unless he was letting her down easy. That must be it. She looked down. "Lily," James said softly, she looked back up, afraid of what was about to come and-Holy shit! He was even closer now. Lily had no clue what was happening. Where was the rejection? James lips were an inch away from hers. Her nerves were on fire. "What makes you think I don't feel the same way about you," he asked, his voice low and hoarse. Then his lips were on hers.

A while later, long after James had moved to Lily's side of the booth and a short while after James and Lily had lost their jackets and Lily's hands had disappeared up James' shirt, they were interrupted by an enraged waitress who slammed their check down on the table and ordered them out.

"How 'bout we get on with that shagging business now, yeah," James asked with a cheeky wink as he grabbed Lily's hand and led her out of the diner to his Cortina. Lily laughed, head thrown back, hair flying in the cold night breeze as she tucked herself against James' side. She hadn't ruined anything after all. She guessed the circus would be all right without her.