we're bigger than we ever dreamed [marin]

“What? Wini, no…” Marin didn’t flinch at her hand, but instead stopped and turned his rather intense gaze to hers. The boy’s eyes searched his friend’s, trying to find out if this was a real reaction or just another one of the things she did when she wanted to find something out. The boy shook his head. His voice was soft as he continued. “You’re my best friend.” It was true. Wini said things like that all of the time, but Marin didn’t. It felt strangely weighty.

“Please don’t…” hate me. “…Think that.” Marin was anxious that Winifred might just take all of this as a sign of bad friendship and decide that she didn’t want to be friends with him anymore. Would he mind fading back into obscurity? There were certainly parts that he’d enjoy, like being able to draw in the common room in peace or being able to people-watch without being constantly interrupted. Keeping updated on Rupert Hartwood or 3spelled’s love lives really wasn’t something that he cared for, and losing that part of their friendship would really be more like a benefit than a loss. His eyebrows came together in a concerned frown.

This being said, Marin didn’t want Wini to stop talking to him. He’d never felt this kind of urge to keep the peace. Maybe he was overthinking the way that friendship worked, but he was just scared. Wini was his first real friend. “I’m sorry, Wini,” he said weakly, “It’s… embarrassing.” He tried to give a soft shrug of his shoulders, but it was stiff. He felt anxious and all tied up inside. The boy’s gaze dropped to the ground underneath them. Eye-contact only made him feel more stressed. His eyes scanned their shoes, searching for little details to focus on that would distract him from the way that he was feeling.

The little blonde appreciated the fact that Marin was no longer avoiding her gaze. It was much easier for her to see what he was feeling when he wasn't always avoiding eye contact and the simple fact that he was looking directly at her, calmed her much more than she could have imagined it would. She smiled a trembly sort of smile at him, her brown eyes bright, even in the midst of her dissipating worry. "Really?" she couldn't help asking. "I am?"

She was his best friend! The bestest one! She was so happy she could have jumped up and down. Wini didn't realize how much the words meant to her until he had say them aloud. She knew they were friends, and knew he sorta liked to be in her company, even if she had her moments of doubt. But he had never called her his best friend. The third year looked up at her friend and gave him a look paired with a knowing smile. "I'm going to hug you now," she told him, just before she wrapped her arms around him and squeezed him in tight. After a moment, she nudged his arms with her elbows, wanting him to hug her back, not moving away until he did. She smiled into his jacket and said, "You're my best friend too, Marin."

She reveled in the comfort she felt with him for a few long moments before she stepped back with a glorious smile. The stress of him keeping secrets from her didn't seem like such a big deal anymore. It was a big deal, no doubt, but she wasn't so upset that he didn't want to share somehow. "Hey Marin," she said as she tilted her head and tried to make eye contact with him again. "You know you don't have to be embarrassed about anything with me, right?... Right?" she asked again when the quiet stretched between them.

Wini sighed, not realizing how much tension had built up on her insides and took to scuffing her shoe in the dirt. "How about..." she started, not really wanting to offer the deal she was about to lay out on the table, but doing so anyway in the interest of their friendship. "How about I don't ask any more questions about her as long as you promise to tell me one day what happened. Or!" she said, giving him another option as the idea occurred to her. "You don't have to tell me about her ever--" even if it killed her "--but you do have to tell me stuff. You have to share with me sometimes too instead of me doing all the talking. Alright?"

“Of course,” he answered, still frowning a little. Who else would be his best friend? he barely talked to anyone else. Wini was the only person he saw every single day in more than passing. They sat together at meals now. It was nice. Winifred looked fairly pleased, though Marin’s tummy still felt like it was in knots. Was she really unsure of his friendship? The blonde girl was the one with a ton of friends and a wide circle of acquaintances to hang out with if she wanted to… He was just an outcast. It wasn’t entirely a bad thing, and Marin quite liked being alone most of the time, but she really had nothing to worry about. He might cringe at her level of enthusiasm from time to time, but really… she was all right.

His housemate warned him that she was going to go in for a hug and he nodded stiffly, awkwardly placing his hands on her back when she nudged him to do so. There was something comforting about this action, though the fact that she’d actually warned him about what she was about to do rather than tackling him randomly must have contributed to that. Marin didn’t like hugs most of the time. They were too personal. Her next words made him a lot happier than he thought they would. She bandied terms like that around all of the time, but this felt more special somehow. He marvelled at the fact. Was this a higher level of friendship they were achieving? Best friendship, rather than the regular kind?

Her beaming smile was something of a surprise, but Marin couldn’t help but smile faintly in return. “Mmm?” The girl brought up the secrets thing again and he stayed quiet, a slow frown appearing again. She urged him to speak, but he didn’t want to. His arms dropped to his sides and he waited for her to say something again. The offer she laid out was not one he wanted to take and he was about to reluctantly say something to that effect when she interrupted his train of thought. After a moment’s hesitation, Marin nodded decisively. This was a friendly compromise, wasn’t it? “I promise I’ll tell you… stuff.” Though his crush on Kiera obviously didn’t fall under that category. “If I ever kiss anyone again, you’ll be the first to know. Deal.”

The boy smiled a little, holding up the Honeyduke’s bag. “Blood pop?” he asked sweetly. It was the closest thing to a joke he’d made all day.

"Deal!" Wini agreed with a smile as she held out her hand, pinky extended. She looked at him expectantly before she wrapped her pinky around his and bobbed their hands up and down in a handshake sort of way. "And when I kiss someone, I'll tell you first too," she added after a moment so Marin would know she was determined to keep this deal as fair as possible. She was so excited he had promised her that because, to be honest, she wasn't sure he was going to.

Wini couldn't help asking though, just one last time. "But if you do want to tell me about her, I'm always willing to listennnn..." she trailed off with a bit of a singsong voice as she smiled at him, brows high on her forehead. When Marin held up his Honeyduke's bag, the little blonde grinned at him and swatted her hand at him with a laugh. "Ew, no. Why did you buy those?" she wrinkled her nose in slight disgust as she shook her head. But that didn't stop her from taking a step closer and pulling the bag open a bit more as she peered into it. "Did you buy anything good?"

She stuffed a hand in there and rustled around a bit before she found a licorice wand. She brandished it with a smile before bit a piece off the end. "Do you need some more drawing pencils or anything?" Wini asked around a mouthful of licorice as she nodded at the little shop that sold a variety of things, including a very small section of artsy stuff.