Written In the Stars | s.b |

FIFTY-FOUR

Ariah slumped herself against Dylan's side, sighing in a highly over exaggerated way. Meeka glanced up from her book, giving her best friend a squinted look. "What's your issue?"

"Yeah, you've sighed aggressively six times since we sat down," Dylan said.

"I have not..." Ariah grumbled.

Dylan held up her parchment which had, 'how many times Ariah sighs exaggeratedly and lays down dramatically: 8 dec., 1975,' scrawled over the top in a smooth cursive font. Six tally marks were drawn neatly underneath.

"You keep count?" Meeka asked.

"She does something dramatic at least six times a day," Dylan said, blankly with a shrug. "It's fun to keep track."

"Okay... well what's wrong?" Meeka asked, ignoring the Slytherin who continued doodling on her parchment.

"The Ball is in a week..." Ariah grumbled, watching Dylan draw the giant squid holding Snape upside down. Ariah chuckled despite her melancholy mood.

"You do realize that, that's on you," Meeka said.

"You have had eight different guys ask you to the ball," Dylan said. "And you said no to all of them."

Ariah sighed, glancing out the window of the transfiguration classroom they were hanging out in. Outside the boys were having a snowball fight. Sirius wore a beanie with some curls peaking out and a large black winter coat with a red flannel underneath. He looked undeniably... beautiful.

It was beyond frustrating between them now. Every time they tried to have their conversation, something would come up or someone would interrupt or Peeves would throw water balloons or something else at them. It was as if the world was laughing at their torture. They tried talking at Sirius' fifteenth birthday but the gryffindor quidditch team 'kidnapped' him as initiation to become an 'official' quidditch player. Ariah wasn't sure what that really meant as the Hufflepuff team didn't have anything like that, but she was irritated nonetheless.

She just wanted the awkwardness to stop.

"I kissed Sirius," she said.

Meeka spat out her pumpkin juice, Dylan in the splash zone.

"What the bloody hell," Dylan exclaimed, shaking her parchment off.

"Don't, "What the bloody hell," me, What the bloody hell her!" Meeka exclaimed. "What the bloody hell do you mean!"

"I mean that I kissed Sirius," Ariah said. "Exactly how it sounds."

"When? Why? What happened after? I need answers!" Meeka exclaimed.

"It was after I woke up from the incident at the World Cup," Ariah stated. "It just... happened..."

"That's why you guys are so awkward! Why haven't you idiots talked about it!" Meeka shouted.

"We've tried!" Ariah shouted back. "But every time we go to talk about it, something comes up or someone steals one of us away and... our stars just aren't aligned right now and I want them to be but they aren't!"

"Okay, I know you're an astronomy guru, but that's ridiculous," Meeka said.

"You should ask him to the ball!" Dylan exclaimed. "I've got the perfect idea!"

"No! She has to let Sirius ask her," Meeka said.

Dylan crossed her arms over her chest. "Who says the girl can't ask the boy?"

"Literally everyone, not that I agree with the sexist patriarchy society we live in," Meeka said. "But, he.... well you just can't. And I can't tell you why because he made me solemnly swear and it's far too close to the ball to risk the boils!"