HEAL ME | JAMES POTTER

TWENTY-FOUR

- CHAPTER 24 -

❝It's okay G, you're okay.❞

Hogwarts, Seventh year.

GRACE VALDEZ HAD BEEN QUIET, reserved, and extremely paranoid while at the Potter Manor. The girl knew that she was safe there, but she couldn't help but feel that that way anyways.

The worry she had for Alex made everything much worse, eating her away slowly like a plague as days passed by. No one knew about the horrors the girl had went through while at the Notts, or about her broken engagement that she had with Alex.

Grace just hoped that while they were at Hogwarts, she would be able to see the boy once more.

"What's wrong G?"

"Nothing, i'm fine."

James knew that he had to stay patient when it came to her. But sometimes, the look on her face that she'd get when she was thinking, it was enough to make him go crazy.

"Look at me."

Grace was hesitant at first, she knew that if she'd look into the boy's eyes, her emotions would definitely fail her. The girl did not want to cry, not in front of James at least.

"Please Grace, j-just look at me."

James Potter had hated seeing her like this. And the way she was acting, it all made everything feel much worse. The girl wouldn't even look at him, or talk to him. It was like she was still gone, far away and no where near him to begin with.

Grace was aware of how her actions were hurting the boy, but she couldn't help but be that way. For some reason, Grace had thought that the boy didn't deserve her, but someone a lot better.

The past few days at the Notts had been horrible for her, only filled with pain and misery. Her confidence had been shattered while she was there, courtesy of her own parents.

"You are pathetic Avery Nott, you are not our child!"

Even though Grace had gotten strong after she ran away the first time, being near her parents after so long had broken all the walls that she had put up around herself. And the fact that Theodore, her brother who was always there for her, had become just like them, made everything hurt a lot more.

The way the boy had changed, the way he had acted, it all made the girl feel like she had no family left. Like even though James was around, she would have no shoulder to cry on.

"H-He didn't even look at me James, how could he change so fast?"

James held the girl close in his arms, grateful that a moment like this had occurred after such a long time. Throughout his whole relationship with the girl, he had learned to be patient.

That was what kept them going, patience. They were two people with broken pasts, though not the same, they both needed to heal. And healing takes time, a lot of time.

"It's okay G, you're okay."

Since the very beginning, Grace had thought that the boy was a blessing given to her. But now, looking at how he had waited for her, with so much kindness, she knew that she didn't deserve him at all.

"I'm sorry James, i'm so sorry."

From that day onwards, the two built their relationship together once more, step by step. And when Grace was ready, she confined herself into the boy once more, day by day.

To see the girl smile again, James had wished for that everyday. Not her usual smile, but the one that reached up to her eyes, and made the rooms brighten up like the sun.

Her genuine smile, the one he had yearned to see once more.

"Just one more bite G, you're doing so good."

"I can't James, i'm full."

"Cmon, just one last bite."

It was something quite admirable to see. James Potter, the most active quidditch player, someone who had hated waiting at all, being so gentle, so forbearing, for someone he had loved.

Anyone who knew James would tell you this, he had changed after being in the presence of the girl for so long. He became better, a lot better.

"Okay, i think that's everything packed."

"Did you take your books?"

"Right, the books."

When it was time to go back to Hogwarts, the girl had felt extremely terrified. At every single corner, she could see her parents. And at the face of every other boy, she could see Theodore.

No reassurance from James would help her feel better, except for his hand that would hold hers at all times. It would make her realise the truth, that James was here, and he was right next to her.

"Hurry, all the compartments will get full!"

And when her eyes landed on a certain brown haired boy in the corridor, Grace couldn't help but let out a sigh of relief. He was okay, and he was right in front of her.

"Alex, you're okay."