[Grounds] Drama Free (Alexis)

[Shaun Zinn]

Weird things had been happening around the castle making things between Shaun and Alexis a little rocky. Everytime they were supposed to meet up, something strange would happen and everyone would be forced back to their common rooms causing the two's meeting to be cancelled. This happened on more than one occasion but it didn't break Shaun's spirit. He was determined to make his relationship with Alexis work no matter how hard the Castle seemed to be doing him in.

At breakfast, Shaun had sent a letter to Alexis to meet him on the grounds outside the castle doors for a walk. He figured the strange events in the castle couldn't do much harm outside and if he was wrong, he'd try again tomorrow. He still wasn't quite sure if him and Alexis were even in an actual relationship. When he was going to ask her out properly, something had come up and his opportunity had been passed. It didn't dim his mood any though. He was still anxious to ask her out or at least figure out what the two were if they were anything.

So there Shaun stood, just outside the castle doors like he told Alexis he'd be. It was spring so the weather wasn't too bad but he had a nice gray zip-up on and an extra navy blue one folded over his arm just in case Alexis needed it. He figured he'd try to be the perfect gentlmen for Alexis today and try not to make a fool out of himself, if ever that was possible. He just hoped she didn't blame him for all their cancelled 'dates' and if she did, he was going to try to make it up to her the best he could.

[Alexis Heart]

Her friend tapped on her shoulder and informed her she had bee left a note. Alexis' brow furrowed as she wondered who would be sending her anything. Her parents were out of the country on vacation having fun somewhere so she doubted it would be from them. Taking hold of the note she recognized the writing right away. The note was from Shaun and despite not wanting to she smiled like a little school girl. They hadn't been around each other in so long, things at the school hadn't gotten any better and every time they made plans something went wrong.

He kept trying though and Alexis had to give him an A for effort. Opening the note now she saw that he wanted to try and see her again today. There was no way she was missing it this time. Even if she had to jump out the window in order to get to him she would. There were things they hadn't gotten to discuss last time around things she wanted the answers to and that wasn't going to happen unless they saw each other face to face.

So getting up she threw on some jeans and a t-shirt, not exactly hot girl gear but she looked cute enough. Leaving her room she couldn't help but look up and down the halls to make sure there was nothing out there that could stop her from getting to the doors. Things seemed quiet enough so she didn't chance it she ran flat out making sure that she didn't look back cause bad things happened to you when you stopped to look back.

The doors were in her sight she could hear something behind her but she didn't bother to look back she simply threw the doors open and ran out right into someone. Slamming into them she ended up on the floor. Looking to see who she attacked she saw it was Shaun. "Sorry so sorry this place is freaking me out I thought I heard something coming and I sort of bolted through the door" she didn't even bother to get up just looked at him with a look on her face that said sorry.

[Shaun Zinn]

Waiting for someone always felt like ages, especially when you were Shaun who had a pretty short attention span to begin with. He tried going through an entire song in his head until he realized he only knew the chorus. Shaun even tried going through his Charms homework in his head but that was no use either; he couldn't remember which charm did what. Maybe Shaun would be more prepared to face the Castle if he would actually pay attention in his classes.

He was just making a mental note to find someone to help him with his homework or to get a teacher to tutor him when he felt something collide with him. He wasn't exactly sure what had happened but suddenly, Shaun found himself on the ground with Alexis pretty much on top of him. He couldn't help it. Shaun felt himself go red in the face as she apologized to him. He gave an embarrassed laugh as he let his head hit the ground so he was staring up at the sky. At least they finally got to meet up, that was one step closer than the failed attempts.

"No need to apologize, the place freaks me out too. You never know what's around the corner and things are always popping out in the strangest places at the most inconvenient times," he said referring to all of their canceled meetings.

Shaun lifted his head so he could see Alexis. Her apologetic look make him chuckle and he brought an arm around and messed up her hair a bit. "Don't give me that look. I'm not broken yet. You have all afternoon to break me, Alexis," he said with a laugh before letting his head fall back to the ground with a small 'thud' making him wince slightly.

[Alexis Heart]

"Oh I'm so sorry" she apologized again. Lately anytime spent in the castle made her freak out. She holed up in her room most of the time wishing to see Shaun. Now she was with him or well on top of him and she suddenly felt awkward. She started to blush a bit trying not to look at him. They hadn't seen each other in weeks and now here she was sprawled on the floor with him underneath. At least she can say she made a real entrance this time around.

He didn't get mad which was what she liked about Shaun he was cool. Things like being knocked down didn't get to him. So much so that he found it in him to muss her hair. Alexis started to giggle, a sound she herself hadn't heard in a while. Things had been so dire lately most of the time she found nothing to smile about about.

She moved off of him now, just as his head hit the floor she saw the wince and wanted to say sorry to him again, but she didn't she knew that people hated to hear that word over and over again. Getting up she held out her hand to him of course it was unorthodox for a girl to help up a boy but hey she was unorthodox.

"Come on handsome I think you look better upright anyway" she winked at him waiting. It felt good to see him again they had been apart for what she'd like to consider way too long.

[Shaun Zinn]

Her laugh. That was what Shaun missed the most about Alexis. It seemed he could always make the Ravenclaw girl laugh; mostly at his expense but none the less, he loved seeing her glow every time she smiled. Shaun had closed his eyes when he let his head hit the ground but when he felt Alexis' weight lift off his body, he opened his eyes just the slightest to see Alexis looking down at him with an arm outstretched.

He pretended not to notice at first but the smile that formed on his lips gave him away. Besides, her 'handsome' comment made him chuckle. He opened his eyes fully and turned so he could see Alexis, outstretched hand and all. He could've been a normal guy and dismiss her offer to help him up but Shaun was anything but normal. He grabbed her hand and pulled himself up, only using Alexis' hand as something to hold rather than leverage.

Now Shaun was upright and still holding Alexis' hand as if it was a everyday activity for him. He stared at her for a moment with a rather sheepish grin before he realized she was only in a t-shirt and the wind was blowing just enough to give you goose bumps. Shaun let go of her hand and held out his navy blue zip-up for Alexis, "Here, I didn't know how cold it would be or if you'd have a jacket but I brought an extra one for you."

Before Alexis could grab it off him, however, he unfolded it and held it up so he could just help her slip it on. "You look beautiful by the way. Should've been the first thing I said but you know me. I tend to say the right things at the wrong times," he said with an embarassed laugh.

[Alexis Heart]

During the time it took for him to get up Alexis took her time to examine him he was just the most attractive boy she had ever seen. He put all the other guys to shame with his model good looks. Alexis often wondered what it was he saw in her because she was as plain as you could get. Not that she was complaining because she had to be the luckiest girl at school. Shaun asked her to meet him out here not someone else and that made her smile so bright she felt it inside too.

Then he smiled too and she lost all thought for a moment. He was just gorgeous but when he smiled the phrase light up a room came to her mind. Trying not to act like she had a short attention span she gave him a thoughtful look while she waited for him to get up. He was spending a long time on the floor maybe he was hurt and didn't want to tell her. Before she could ask he took hold of her hand and soon was standing in front of her not letting her hand go.

It would have stayed that way too if she thought to bring a light weight jacket. The wind picked up and her skin betrayed her by giving her goosebumps he must have seen them because he dropped her hand in order to offer her his zip up. Their hands letting go was a disappointment but since he was being such a gentleman with her she could look past it.

He held out the jacket for her in such a way that all she had to do was slip her arms in. Turning she did that, arms slipping through each sleeve. Once it was on she could see that it was a little big but that was OK it was his, it smelled like him too. Boy she was so lucky he was just what most girls wished they could have. Zipping the jacket up freed up her hands and she wondered if she dared do what she wanted to do. Alexis wasn't bold when it came to boys heck just trying to talk to Shaun and not sound stupid took a lot of effort. So wondering whether she should grab his hand herself made her feel almost ready to pass out.

Staring down at his hand she bit her bottom lip she could do it she wasn't repulsive to him he did let her wear his jacket after all. So she should be a big girl and do what the big girls do. Moving her hand down to his she slid hers closer until she felt the heat from him and she slowly slipped her hand underneath his slipping her fingers in between his and locking them in place. While she was doing this her heart was beating so fast she could barely hear a thing. She did it she took a boys hand how cool was that. Hopefully he didn't mind that cause it would suck.

[Shaun Zinn]

Shaun watched as Alexis slid her arms into his jacket and when she started zipping it up, he let his hands slide down her arms slowly until they were at his side again. He wasn't usually like this infact, one he realized just how close he was standing to Alexis, he cleared his throat and stepped just a little ways away so she'd have some space. He didn't want Alexis to think he was crowding her. He was trying to be careful with what he did for now, he wasn't sure how him and Alexis stood just yet. Were they in a relationship? Weren't they? Were they close enough for him to act like so? The only way to find out was to just ask. Besides, if they were already a couple, it wouldn't hurt anything, would it?

Shaun was looking at the ground trying to figure out just how to ask Alexis his question when he felt someone take hold of his hand. It wasn't a forceful touch, it was a gentle one, a soft one. Shaun turned his head just enough so he could catch a glimpse of his hand. Following the hand that held his up, he noticed that it was Alexis' hand. Well of course it was, it wasn't like there was anyone else around. Shaun just wasn't that bright sometimes plus he didn't think Alexis was the kind of girl to take the initiative but she proved him wrong and it wasn't a bad thing. It gave Shaun a bit more courage to actually find out what was going on between them.

Shaun gave Alexis a warm smile. Deciding he needed to say something, he cleared his throat a little before taking a few steps away from the castle, pulling Alexis along with him. He wasn't exactly sure how to start it off, but a little walk always helped clear his mind. They walked a bit without talking until Shaun finally stopped and faced Alexis. "Alexis, there's something thats been bothering a little lately. I mean, it hasn't been bothering me but its been, well confusing me to be honest."

Shaun really wasn't sure how to go about asking Alexis but he was working up to it. He just hoped he was't confusing her or making her think the wrong things, that would be terrible. Shaun paused and took a deep breath, "I'm not the greatest with this, but I'll do it anyway. Alexis," he said before putting on a slightly worried expression, "Will you be my girlfriend?" There, he did it. He asked. Now it was just the matter of an answer.

[Alexis Heart]

Oh boy this wasn't going at all how she expected it to. Her mind was working over time trying to piece together the last few minutes. In choosing to be bold, and grabbing at his hand did she just make things all awkward between them. Of course Alexis was normally very shy especially around boys so taking one she liked by the hand wasn't something you'd associate with her. Now she knew why girls didn't do these things.

Neither one said a word to the other. The only good thing was that he didn't pull his hand away from her surely that had to be a good sign. Or did it? Maybe he was just being polite not wanting to hurt her feelings by being rude or something. Truth be told that's why she wasn't pulling her hand out of his. This boy girl stuff was proving to be a bit complicated. Now she knew why she had avoided it for so long.

Soon she'd start to feel embarrassed which would only make things work. Being a metamorphmagus it was hard to separate your emotions from your power. If she became really really embarrassed not only would her cheeks flame red but so would her hair. That already happened in front of Shaun once and it was mortifying she couldn't stand to see it happen again. He turned and smiled at her, all she could do was the same in return. Neither one had spoken and it was starting to get weird. Inside her head she had to wonder if maybe he was regretting asking her to meet him today. Boys were fickle or so she'd been told. Maybe he was starting to have second thoughts especially since he looked like he had something to say but couldn't say it.

Again she wanted to be bold stop walking and ask him what was going on, but she had been bold enough for one day and so far it wasn't paying off. The first thing he said was that something had been bothering him. Boy oh boy oh boy not the words a girl wants to hear from a guy. What had she done? She tried to think of something and besides holding his hand she couldn't see what. Then he amended the statement saying something confused him. Now that didn't seem so bad. Confusing she could live with hopefully.

Whatever it was she wished he would ask her because she was starting to freak out. Freaking out wasn't a good thing for her. She was lousy at controlling her powers and feared she'd turn her nose into a ducks bill or something silly. This didn't seem like a moment for silly. Trying to maintain focus Alexis watched him her eyes locked on him then he asked what it was he had been wishing to ask her. The words came out but she didn't seem to hear them. Her mind was like a VCR and his words were on pause. Her eyes bulged out of her head while she tried to wrap her mind around it. Then as if set to play her mind started working again. He asked her to be his girlfriend. Shaun Zinn Mr hottie Hufflepuff was asking her Alexis the nerd of Ravenclaw to be his girlfriend. Whoa this was like the coolest day ever and she realized she had kept him waiting too long. A smile burst forth from her so big and bright that she didn't think she would ever be able to stop smiling. "Boy you know how to make a girl nervous Shaun. I would love to be your girlfriend." Somehow she had been wanting him to ask, but didn't say anything in case it wasn't what he wanted.

Another strong urge formed inside her and she acted on them this time tap kissing him on the lips. "You now have the best girlfriend ever' she winked squeezing his hand gently meanwhile giggling.

[Shaun Zinn]

Okay. So once the question was out there was complete silence. Shaun was starting to think that maybe he shouldn’t have asked just yet but it wasn’t like he could take it back now. He stared at Alexis, fear showing on his face as she stared back silently. Shaun was starting to get a little nervous now. If his heart wasn’t racing before, it definitely was now. What scared him more than the answer was how Alexis would respond physically. Would she slap him or just walk off? Maybe he was thinking too much into the worse case scenario which was exactly why Shaun waited so long to ask her. Shaun would’ve looked away if Alexis’ eyes weren’t glued to his. Truth was, he was afraid to look away at the moment until she answered him.

What Shaun wasn’t quite expecting was the smile that illuminated Alexis’ features. At first Shaun thought she was going to laugh at him until Alexis had actually spoken. She had said yes. Shaun gave a sigh of relief followed by a laugh. Now he wished he had asked her in Hogsmeade a few weeks back but at least he had finally asked and had gotten the answer he was hoping for. He was able to mutter a small “Sorry,” before Alexis’ lips tapped his own. A blush crept its way onto his cheeks and he looked away shyly which wasn’t like him. He laughed at her statement that followed; he didn’t doubt her in anyway. He grinned as Alexis squeezed his hand.

Pulling Alexis into a hug, he let go of her hands so he could wrap his arms around Alexis. “Well in that case, you now have the best boyfriend ever. Or at least, I’ll try to be,” he said with a chuckle before kissing her forehead softly. He held her for a moment before pulling away slowly. He grabbed Alexis’ hand in his once more, entwining their fingers again. “Shall we walk then, Miss Heart?” he asked before kissing the top of her hand. Alexis was beautiful, especially when she smiled and Shaun couldn’t help but continue to glance her way, smiling any time she caught him. For once, Shaun couldn’t find something cheesy to say, instead, he opted for something more practical. “So,” he started off, “I joined the Hufflepuff quidditch team.” It was something he wasn’t sure he wanted to do after his quidditch accident back in his third year but Shaun figured that the first way of getting over it was to ‘get back on the horse’ so to speak. “It seems we’ll be rivals now. That should be pretty interesting,” he said with a laugh before sending a wink in Alexis’ direction.

[Alexis Heart]

Through the dark times comes some light. Hokey as the words were it made her feel better. Everything within the castle was a total mess she never imagined anything like it. Now she was out here it was sane and quiet and Shaun was with her after just having asked her to be his girlfriend. This was turning out to truly be one of the best days of her life. Wanting something and finally getting it were like night and day. Of course she thought about him asking her but it was just wishful thinking. Nothing could have prepared her for the moment when he would actually speak the words. Of course they caught her off guard but she had enough sense to say yes.

His reaction was one she was happy to see. He was relieved she felt the same way and happy that she said yes. After her kiss on his lips he grabbed her into a hug of course this made her giggle like mad he was too cute and not afraid to be affectionate with her at least when they were alone. Her smile widened if that was even possible. Shaun was just what she pictured in a boyfriend. Cute, smart, funny, sweet, and he liked her.

He told her that he would be the best boyfriend he could be. That was something she didn't feel she had to doubt, from the moment she met Shaun he had remained the same sweet guy from the library that day. Alexis didn't trust a lot of people but Shaun was different. He kissed her forehead gently as if sealing his words with a kiss. Oh yeah this was the best day ever.

The two started to walk the grounds were eerily quiet save for the two of them which suited her just fine because she liked the quiet. During their walk Shaun informed her that he joined the Hufflepuff Quidditch team. Alexis had heard about it but was wondering if he would bring it up. Apparently the two were going to be rivals. "I heard that you joined up. I love quidditch it's one of the only things I ever really wanted to do when I came to school here. Can't wait for the first match. Don't know how I feel about us being rivals, but then it's all part of the sport right." They walked on the lake starting to come into view. "So what position are you playing?" That bit she didn't know since they never really spoke about Quidditch before today she had no idea about his preferences.