The Keeper

Chapter 15

This chapter's songs are God Save The Queen by The Sex Pistols, But It's Better If You Do by Panic! at the Disco and Stand By Me by Ben E. King.

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*

The end of the holiday was bittersweet. I definitely did not like the fresh loads of homework being dumped onto my plate. But it was also a welcome distraction from the overlying issue of Oliver. Not that he himself was an issue. The problem lay within the minefield that we call emotions.

In our lessons together, I couldn't look at him for more than a second in case somebody caught me. Naturally, I was, therefore, dreading the Ravenclaw-Gryffindor quidditch match. The idea of having to score with him in front of me was terrifying.

At quidditch practice, Sasha sensed my tension.

"Don't think about Oliver," she said as we hovered in front of the hoops. It didn't help that he was sitting in the stands.

"Yes, but my paranoid brain likes to pretend he's watching my every move," I reminded her, wiping the sweat off my palms. "I'll do my best, though."

"Breathe, Y/N," Sasha told me. "Breathe. Relax, and you'll do wonderfully."

I took a few deep breaths and started to feel myself relax.

After the first whistle blew, I snapped into my game mode. I made some great passes and scored. All thoughts of Oliver were, thank God, at the back of my mind. Until break, that is.

Sasha flew to sit near him and dragged me along with her.

"We're gonna sit in front of him so he notices us," she told me. "It worked before, it'll work again."

 I rolled my eyes but was proved wrong when he did take a seat next to me.

"Any secret tactics you'd like to share before the game on Friday?" Oliver asked.

"This is just an invitation for us to give you our fake strategies," I pointed out, "but if you really want to know..."

"Please?"

"Make me," I countered, before leaning back on Sasha.

"The tension is building," she whispered. "I might just have to stir it up further."

Suddenly, I felt a small hand on my shoulder. I whipped around and was met with Gillian. I had enjoyed her absence over the holiday. Her presence was foreign to me.

"Hey guys!" she said. Her voice had a fake layer of cheerfulness that made me want to laugh. She squeezed herself between Oliver and me, forcing us to move apart. "I missed you all so much!"

"Thanks, Gillian," Sasha said dryly. "Are you going to watch the game?"

"Of course," she replied. "I wouldn't miss it for the world. My favourite people are playing, after all."

By favourite, I got the idea she meant Oliver. Sasha took my wrist and gave it a gentle squeeze. She jerked her head in Oliver's direction. I followed her gaze. Oliver was visibly leaning away from Gillian and he looked generally uncomfortable. I hoped against hope that Gillian wouldn't take him from me.

*

Friday came quickly. The adrenaline in our changing room was electric. We hadn't played against the famous Harry Potter and were buzzing to do so. Richard, our seeker, was being given a frantic pep-talk by Felix. He was determined to beat Gryffindor.

Sasha rounded us all up. She loved to pump us up before we flew out. "Listen, everyone," she started, "this is it. We've been waiting for this game all year and it's going to be tough. Youngest seeker in a century, after all. But we can play better, play faster and play harder than he can, better than Gryffindor can. Our practices have proved that. So get out there and make us all proud!"

We lined up at the opening to the pitch. I was standing just behind Sasha so I could see the small red figures of the Gryffindor quidditch team. Oliver was in the front next to Harry. They were talking. Oliver was probably trying to forget the incident that removed him from the Gryffindor-Slytherin game.

Soon, Madam Hooch, the referee for the game, called us out to the middle of the pitch. We mounted our brooms.

"I want a nice clean game!" Madam Hooch announced over the roar of the crowd. "Hopefully that should not be a problem." She gripped her whistle in her mouth and straddled her broom.

I held my breath.

She launched the quaffle into the air and the game began.