An Interrupted Tanning Session

It was a simply gorgeous spring day: there were small puffy clouds slowly drifting through the sky, the sun was very warm and bright, and there was a light breeze flowing through the air. Suzannah held a blanket in her arm and an oversized pair of sunglasses on her nose, and walked through the lush green grass with one of her girlfriends. There were quite a few people laying in the grass or beneath trees with their friends, as well as some very "open" student lovers in the back corner behind the castle.

Suz rolled her eyes at the two students and opened up her blanket, laying it on the ground. "Hm, great day for some tanning, eh Lizzie?" "Indeed, a gorgeous day, Suzie" The two girls were both wearing very short denim shorts, tank tops, and very high heels; the perfect spring outfits, as far as they were concerned. Suz fixed her long, nearly perfect blonde ringlets, and lay back in the sun with her friend.

"Have you seen Becca's outfit today? Total skank. Who wears a high-waisted pink skirt with a black tank and blue shoes? Ugh I find myself mortified whenever I'm with her. She always did wear the most ridiculous outfits." Sure, Rebecca Mulloy was one of Suz's best friends, but the girl could never put together a good outfit! She clearly needed to get "Suzified."

"Oh, I know! Did you see what she wore to the banquet last Sunday evening? Total trash. I think she would look better wearing a paper bag over her head than the getup she wore that night." The two girls bursted into laughter at Becca. Gossip was one of Suzannah's specialties, and she wasn't going to give it up.

"Let's just hope she, nor anyone else for that matter, disturbs us today. It is much too nice of a day for that."

Being in the common room hiding from Callin and Mar(as he called her) was not Jake's best idea. They knew everywhere he hid there, so Jake now found himself outside the castle, running to the lake, his two friend hot on his tail. Before he knew it he was on the ground, having been knocked over by Mar, who jumped on him since she was faster than Callin.

"Okay, okay. You guys got me. Now get off me, Mar!" he said, trying to loosen her grip on him. She finally let go, got up and took a step back. "Geez, what is with you guys? Can't I just be alone for a little while?!" he said, getting up and dusting himself of.

"What's wrong with us?! You're the one who tries to avoid us all day, everu day!" Mar exclaimed as Callin caught up to them and they al headed toward the lake. "Why do you try to avoid us, Jakey?" she asked him, with a hurt expression, using the nickname he hated.

"Yeah, Jake! Why are you always avoiding us?!" Callin repeated after Mar. "Do you not like us anymore?" he asked,crossing his arms over his chest.

"No, it's not that I don't like you or anything. It's just, you guys need to lay off and give me some space." he told them, giving Mar a hug to get rid of her hurt expression. "Okay? But today we can all hang out, alright?" he told them. They walked to the lake and saw that it wad basically packed. Jake felt Callin nudge him on his arm. "What Callin?" he said

"Look at the two babes over there." he said. Mar hit him on his back, like telling him to shut up. Jake just shook his head, telling Callin to be quiet before Mar tried to kill him.

"Callin, shut up. And by the looks of it they must be Slytherins, so don't go near them." he said, as he turned around, walking in the opposite directions of the girls.

It had been some time since the two girls exchanged any words to one another- they were enjoying the day so much that they had not realized how anti-social they were being. Suzannah didn't care, her friend, however, was beginning to get restless. "Oh, Liz, what is the matter?" Suz asked, looking at the redhead. "Nothing! I'm just getting a little bored. I am meeting up with Richard soon" Richard was, of course, Liz's boyfriend.

Suz scowled silently to herself. She had always secretly been jealous of Elizabeth because she had a boyfriend. She seemed to never get a nice boy; or one that wanted a genuine relationship, at least.
"Oh, well if you'd like to leave, then feel free." Suz replied, halfway hoping that her friend would not leave her alone. "OH, no thank you! Look over there," Liz pointed to two boys and a girl walking in their opposite direction, one of the boys, however, was looking their way.

"What about them?" Suz asked blankly. The way she had asked made her seem like she did not want an answer, but Liz replied, anyway. "They're gorgeous! Should we go talk to them? I think we should go talk to them, let's go talk to them!" Lizzie exclaimed hesitantly, already on her feet. "But they're with a girl," Suz said, getting to her feet, "and a sluggish one at that" She remarked, noticing her hyperactivity.

"Hello, there! Nice day, no?" Liz said, already to the pair of boys, to the one who was already facing them. "Hello" Suzannah said almost reluctantly at the other boy. He seemed to be a Gryffindor, a poor choice on Suz's behalf, but she didn't care at the moment. She didn't want to seem like an anti-social idiot. "I'm Suzannah"

Callin couldn't stop talking about the two girl, and it made Jake annoyed. "Come on, let's go talk to them! They're hot, Jake. I'm sure you'd like to talk to them, seeing as you have no girlfriend." Callin teased Jake. He always used that excuse to get Jake to come with him to talk to girls. He could never seem to do anything with out Jake, and that annoyed him more than the talking of the two girls. Mar seemed to get uneasy with Callin's talk. She had always had a crush on Jake, and he knew it. But he had never really paid any attention to her int hat way. He cared for her as a sister, not as a lover or anything else.

"Callin, STOP ALREADY!!" Mar spoke out, having listened to enough of Callin saying how hot they are. She didn't want to hear it, she didn't want him to convince Jake to go talk to the girls. She didnt want to "lose" him. As if she had him in the first place. SHe knew how he felt about her, but she never gave up hope that someday he would see her as something more than a sister.

"Seriously Callin. Stop talking about them already. I don't want to go near them. They are Slytherins. Remember?!" Jake told Callin, a frown crossing him face. As he said these words he saw the two girls coming toward them. One seemed somewhat anxious to talk tot ehm while the other seemed like she couldn't care less. Jake looked over at Mar and saw she had her hands clenched in fists. He didn't want to talk to her right now, not the way she was. She was uncomfortable, he could tell.

Callin immediately responded to the girl that was addressing him."Well, hello." he said, trying to act smooth and cool.

Jake rolled his eyes and turned his attention to the girl who spoke to him. "Hello." he said, rather flatly, basically saying he didn't want anything to do with them. "I'm Jake." Right there Mar knew she had to say something so Jake wouldn't forget she was there. So he would be careful, so as not to do anything that could mess up his friendship with her.

"And I'm Mary." She said sourly. Obviously letting the girls know she didn't want them near her friends, especially Jake. She glared at the girl who was speaking to Jake, and with her eyes she was trying to say she was Jake's girlfriend, just so they wouldn't try anything.

Suzannah was somewhat happy that Liz had decided to talk to the boys. She didn't want to admit it, but she was really getting tired of being alone. Sure, hookups are fun in the moment, but afterwards, they make you feel useless. The boy that Liz had addressed seemed all too eager to be talking to them. The other one, however, seemed like he could care less of the situation.

There was a girl with them, probably the reluctant one's girlfriend. How rude, Suz thought, I never asked who you were, and I don't care at all of your identity Her thoughts were directed to this Mary girl.

"Nice to meet you Jake," Suz hesitated for a moment, "Mary." She said flatly. "It's great to meet you... Oh! I'm sorry, I haven't gotten your name! I'm Elizabeth, but you can call me Liz. How rude of me to not introduce myself!"

Suz rolled her eyes at her friend. She was clearly trying too hard; that was part of the reason why she never got boys. "Where are you boys headed?" LIz asked flirtatiously, clearly ignoring the other girl as well. "Oh, I'm sorry, and girl too. Are you two dating?" Liz asked to Jake, "Or you two?" She asked the other boy, secretly hoping that they weren't.

Jake looked away from the girl who had addressed him and looked at Mary. He knew what she was trying to do. When they had first met he thought it was a joke that she would use when she needed someone to get away from her, but now he knew she had developed some pretty deep ffeelings for him. Although she knew he wouldn't see her as a girlfriend, she never gave up hope and now she was determined to not let one of these girls take him away. But she was worried over nothing, Jake probably wouldn't fall for them, most likely because they were Slytherins.

But Mary didn't seem to get that. She thought he would fall for the first girl he saw, other than her. She felt his eyes on her and she looked up at him, becoming scared that he would say something. He only looked at her the way he was when she had done something wrong. When her gaze met his, he shook his head softly and she looked down again.

"You too." Jake said, flatly. While Mary said nothing else to the girl. She kept her gaze low to the ground. "Nice to meet you, Liz. I'm Callin." Callins said smiling. He obviously didn't care that they were Slytherins, and that made Jake a little uneasy. Before Jake could answer Elizabeth's question, Callins jumped in "We were just on our way closer to the lake." he answered, clearly he had fallen for Liz.

Idiot Jake thought. Callin was the one to fall for girls easily not Jake. But he couldn't say anything to Callin there. He would just have to wait until they got to the common room later. Mary's eyes lit up a little and she raised her gaze to Liz when she asked if she and Jake were dating. But before she could say anything Jake cut in."No, we aren't." he said. Mary lowered her gaze again, and said nothing.

"Eww, I would never date her." Callin said, sounding a little too mean. Jake knew he was trying to inpress the girl by making fun of his friend. Right there Jake knew he had to put Callin in his place. He grabbed his shoulder and turned Callin toward him. Callin knew he was in for something bad and he braced himself. "Enough Callin." he said in a low vioce before punching him in the stomache.

(Oops, forgot to switch accounts, posting as Suzannah)

It was clear to Liz that the Callin boy liked her, and she genuinely liked him back. She had a reputation for liking boys before she actually got to know them. But Callin seemed like a nice guy, as far as Suz could tell. Jake, however, did not seem like much of a keeper. He was good-looking, but seemed a bit blunt, but he was interesting to Suz already. She loved to chase boys, even if they did not seem interested at all. Whatever she wanted, she got, as far as Suz was concerned.

Liz chuckled a bit at Callin's comment, Suzannah, on the other hand, was a bit upset. "That's not very nice," Suz stepped in, surprised at herself. Liz looked over at Suz, disconcerted at her behaviour. It was very unusual for Suz to be kind, and for her to defend someone that had irritated her not two minutes ago was astounding. "She's a pretty girl, in fact, I find it surprising that neither of you have taken her already." Suz smiled at Mary; it felt good to stick up for someone else rather than herself for once, to make someone actually feel somewhat good about themselves.

"Um... Anyways," Liz said, "we were just finished tanning, and we were actually looking for something to do... Someone to be with" Liz winked at Callin.

Callin fell to his knees after Jake punched him. "What the hell is your problem, Jake?!" he shouted, his hand wrapped around his stomache. He couldn't even get up from the pain. Though he smiled as he heard Liz chuckle at his comment. He had gotten what he wanted, to make her laugh, even if it was a little. Jake felt disgusted that Callin would say something like that, just to impress a girl. "What's my problem?! Jake shouted at Callin."You're the one with the problem! How could you turn on one of your best friends, just because you like some girl!" he continued to shout. He wasn't afraid to say things like that in front of other people, especially ones that someone likes. If it needed to be said, then he would say it.

"Thank you, Suzannah." Mary said softly, at Suzannah's compliment. She smiled back but her smile soon faded. "You're a jerk, Callin." she said soflt to him, her voice breaking a little. Callin knew he had hurt her feelings badly, but he wasn't going to apologize, well not with the girl he liked there. Jake scoffed and looked at Mary. "The only reason I wouldn't date her is ,because she's like a sister to me. I don't want to ruin our friendship is things don't work out." Jake said, still looking at Mary but addressing Suzannah.

Callin immediately lit up when Liz said they were looking for someone to be with."Really?! Well you can hang with us today! he said a little to eagerly. Jake turned to Mary since she was the one who was more uncomfortable witht he girls' presence. "Only if it's alright with youu Mar." he said. Mary nodded 'yes' and Callin almost jumped of joy. "Alright!" he exclaimed.

Suz smiled back at the Mary girl; she didn't seem so bad, in fact, she kind of felt bad for the girl. She obviously liked both of the boys that she was with more than friends, and neither of them liked her back. It must feel horrible, Suzannah thought, to not have any boys like you... She contemplated on that thought for a moment. She never knew the feeling of rejection, and she was sincerely grateful to the fact, and she almost always got boys, but never usually the ones that actually wanted a solid relationship. She wondered if Jake was looking for a relationship, but the real question was: did he want a relationship with her. In the pit of her heart, she hoped that he did. She was tired of being alone, and she needed someone to lean on.

Suzannah could feel the happiness radiating from Liz as Callin offered for them to hang out. Suz pulled Liz over to the side and whispered to her, "Are you sure you want to hang out with this kid?" She asked, referring to Callin, "He seems kind of... mean" "Oh, look who's talking, you're one of the meanest people I know... Aside from that one random act of kindness. What was that about anyway? The girl's clearly getting in your way between your chances with... Jake" Liz struggled to remember his name. "Lizzie, I don't think that he likes me much anyways" Suz spat out the truth, the words stung in her ears, boys usually always liked her. "You never know, maybe he's just shy, or something. Give him something 'more' to enjoy..." Liz deliberately adjusted Suz's tank top strap down to the edge of her shoulder, and winked over at Callin. Suz immediately readjusted it. "I don't think that he's that type of guy, he seems rather innocent"

"Just keep trying, he'll come to his senses, trust me" Liz said, turning back to the boys and Mary. "So, what would you like to do? Just walk around the lake? No offense, but that seems rather boring. Besides, the sun is going to be setting soon, and I want to cause trouble..." Liz grinned. "Maybe we can take a trip to the Forest?" Suz said, smiling suggestively at Jake.

Mary looked at Jake and Callin, her eyes a little wider than usual. She was trying to keep from crying over Callin's comment. She knew he would apologize later while they were in the common room, but he wouldn't now because Liz was there. She didn't get what he saw in her, or why he would act the way he did to impress her. He never did that before, and she hadn't really paid attention tot eh fact that they were Slytherins,and that was the reason he had been so mean. Slytherins were usually mean like that, and Callin had only done it to see if she would like it. If she did like it, Callin would keep doing it, and mostly to her because she was muggleborn. Mary also knew that because of the kindness Suzannah had shown towards her, Jake would like her better than before.

While the girls' talked Jake pulled Callin towards him and Mary. "Listen Callin. If they do hang out with us, I don't want you to say anything else that would be rude or that could hurt Mar's feelings, understand?" he hissed at Callin."Fine, whatever. Why are you so protective of her anyways?" he asked, already knowing the answer, since Jake had just said it. "You know why, so I won't say it again." he said. Mary didn't say anything and just stared at the two of them talk. "Mar, are you sure you're okay with them being with us?" he asked her once more, just to be sure. "Yes, I'm sure Jake. Don't worry." she said with an innocent smile.

Both Jake and Mary frowned a little at Liz's comment of wanting to cause trouble, but Callin only smiled and nodded. "The Forest is fine with me." Jake said, smiling at Suzannah. "It's totally fine with me. The lake was getting boring anyways." Callin said winking at Liz. Mary shrugged, she didn't really care where they went so long as she could actually go with them. She didn't want to be left behind, because of the girls.