Crash Landing

Caroline waltzed into the library, heading straight for the back to her table. She surprisingly didn’t have any homework to do and had just come to catch up on some reading. The Ravenclaw loved to read but when she at school, she didn’t get to do it as often as she would have liked. She spent the majority of her childhood turning the pages of the books that occupied the shelves in her home library, it had become a passion of hers and she hated that she could hardly find the time to indulge herself anymore.

She noticed a familiar figure sitting with their back facing her as she passed and her eyes immediately narrowed. Couldn’t she ever go anywhere without Jason Colt being there? Seriously, she felt like she could never get away from him. The guy just seemed to be there every time she went somewhere, causing her blood to boil and heat to rush to her face as anger coursed through her veins. Caroline couldn’t understand who she hated more, Jason, or herself for allowing him to get to her so badly. They hadn’t spoken since the last time they’d both been in the library and the git had decided it would be a good idea to annoy her further and sit at her table. He had ended up with a throbbing calf and she with ink spilled down the front of her. It hadn’t been pretty but since then, they’d only seen each other in passing in what classes they had together and Caroline had been perfectly okay with that. She didn’t spare him a second glance as she walked passed him, strutting quickly to her table and setting her novel down.

But as she sat facing him, she couldn’t help but stare in curiosity, immediately noticing that something was off about the Ravenclaw who usually held himself with so much poise and arrogance. Jason’s broad shoulders were now slouched slightly and his haughty head was bowed over his textbook, his brows furrowed together in what could only be frustration. Nobody would have noticed in passing but Caroline did, seeing as how she spent so much time glaring at him, she knew when he clearly wasn’t himself.

She wondered what could have happened to make him look so down and she was intrigued by how utterly defeated he looked. A part of her felt bad for him and the goodness in her was shining through slightly as she felt the urge to console him. But then she thought about if the roles were reversed – if she were the one having the hard time – and she knew that he wouldn’t miss the chance to comment on her weakened state. Caroline wasn’t generally a mean person but with Jason a mean streak was what seemed to show itself most of the time. Deciding she wasn’t going to hold back, she stood and walked over to stand on the other side of the table from him, staring directly at his slightly disheveled head of hair. He didn't even glance up at her like she was expecting and cleared her throat to get his attention. “You know that’s not even the right page for the homework, don’t you?” she asked, though there was ice in her voice. “No wonder you look like you’re struggling so much over here.”

His reply was short and monotonous, unlike his usual pompous comebacks that he was always quick to think up and Caroline’s curiosity pushed her further, suddenly extremely interested in what had the boy so completely wound up that he could hardly spare a glance in her direction. As much as she wanted to take advantage of his obvious vulnerable state, there was a little voice in her ear that was whispering to her, telling her to try to console him in any way possible.

Caroline scoffed to herself. Console Jason Colt? The idea nearly had her laughing hysterically. She was still bitter about their last encounter, her nature of being a grudge holder definitely shining through in a time like this one but she knew she couldn’t be outright rude to him, not when he looked so completely….defeated. She had been raised to be compassionate and she was, she just wasn’t sure if she had any left to spare for Jason. How was it that she was able to see past it all? She didn’t care for him, not in the least – so why was she able to notice his distress so quickly? Surely someone else had to have noticed, right? Not just her.

With a long, overdramatic sigh, Caroline placed her hands on her hips and stared down at him, brows raised in question. “What’s gotten into you?” she demanded but there was a softness to her voice that hadn’t been there before. “And don’t try to tell me that nothing’s wrong. You’ve got a History of Magic textbook out to do your Herbology homework.” She told him, her eyes wandering to the book and then back up to meet his crystal blue eyes, not allowing herself to admire them as much as her body seemed to want to.

What in Merlin's name was wrong with this kid? First he insults her and then he apologizes for it? It didn't make any sense. Never had she ever heard the words "I'm sorry" come from Jason Colt's mouth and they sounded just as crazy as she had thought they would. There was something seriously wrong with him and Caroline couldn't help but feel the need to find out what it was.

She didn't hesitate to follow him when he got up and stalked away from the table. As much as she knew she probably should have let him be and not make it any worse, she couldn't resist. Jason infuriated her and she was positive that he would do the same to her if he ever had the chance. Plus, she could see the look in his eye, could see how he was trying to hide something and she wanted nothing more than to know what it was. "Since when do you apologize for being a right arse?" she asked, following closely behind him as he made his way through the long shelves of books. "Have you actually acquired a sense of good behavior?"

She smirked to herself at his comment but it lacked the usual ice in his tone and she once again wondered what had gotten into him. "You know it's not nice to keep secrets, Jason," she said teasingly although she had a feeling it wouldn't elicit a response. It wouldn't have bothered her as much had it been anyone else but considering Jason was acting completely out of character, her curiosity was overwhelming and she couldn't resist prying. Plus, it was kind of rewarding to see him like this although she'd never admit it out loud.

They were out of sight from any wandering eyes because of the bookshelves and Caroline leaned her back against the wood, crossing her arms over her chest. She was facing him and was able to get a good look at his face so that she could try to gauge his reactions, although he wasn't giving much away. She was going to have to do some more digging to find out. "Alright, I give up," she said and raised her brows at him quizzically and made her voice firm. "What's wrong with you?" She wasn't sure why she thought that he would tell her anything but she couldn't stop herself from trying to get it out of him. Maybe if she kept pushing, eventually he'd give in and tell her.