Always

When Lily ran away and left Severus sitting there underneath the tree, completely alone, he felt more heartbroken and shattered than he ever had before in his entire life. He didn't know what to think as he watched her running away. All he knew was that he needed her in his life...and without her there, he didn't know how to function.

He had been thinking that maybe she might need a little bit of time to get used to his love, or maybe even a few days to think things over. But he hadn't been expecting her to flat out run away from him like that. It was something that Severus didn't know how to deal with. It was something that hurt like hell and he hated himself for having thought she might feel the same. He'd gone and screwed up the only important thing in his life and he had no one to blame but his own stupid self.

"God, you're an idiot," he muttered to himself before he sat back down underneath the tree.

Even though Lily was no longer sitting there with him, he didn't feel like going home. His parents would more than likely still be fighting and he didn't feel like hearing their turmoil when he was going through his own.

He wanted nothing more than to go to her house and ask her to explain why she'd run away from him, but he knew that he couldn't do that. He needed to give her some time, if that was what she needed. All he could hope was that maybe she would realize that she loved him and...Fix things that he'd just ruined.

He still felt as though he was the biggest idiot in the world for having confessed to his feelings. He should have known he wasn't good enough for Lily Evans, he told himself. He should have known she'd want someone so much better than him.

What if they got back to Hogwarts and she went back to James? What if his confession had just made her realize that she loved the green eyed, dark-haired quidditch player who treated him like dirt? Severus didn't honestly know if he'd be able to survive if that was what everything came down to. He'd rather see Lily with anyone else; anyone, as long as it wasn't James Potter.

He pushed his hand back through his hair and leaned his head back against the tree before jumping when he heard footsteps coming closer to him at a rapid pace. Thinking that it was an animal, he pulled his wand out of his pocket, readying it before he looked up to see Lily standing there, a breathless look on her face before she pushed her hand back through her hair as she kneeled in front of him.

"Lily?" He asked her, wondering if she was a figment of his imagination right now. He definitely didn't think she would have come back to him after running away like that.

"It's me," she murmured before she grabbed his hands in hers, wasting no time in doing so. "Sev, I'm sorry I ran away. I was just scared. I didn't know how to--"

"It's okay," Severus muttered under his breath before he looked down at the snow. He was still expecting her to break it to him gently that he didn't want her, but when he felt her hand grab his face so that he was forced to look up at her, a flutter of hope coursed through his veins.

"You're not even giving me a chance to talk, Sev, but you're going to listen to me. Okay?" She told him with a small smile.

Severus nodded, knowing he couldn't do anything else. When she saw that she had his full attention, Lily let out a slow breath before she looked up at him again, this time with a small, proud smile on her face.

"When you confessed to me a few minutes ago that you love me, I didn't know how I was supposed to react. Mainly because I was afraid, I guess. I know you've never really loved anyone before and that it might be hard for you to realize just exactly what love entails," she murmured with a small frown.

Severus opened his mouth to reply, but she shook her head and then continued before he could get so much as a word out of his mouth. "And I know that you've had a really bad draw in life. But I know one other thing about you, Sev. You have me. You've had me since that day we met in the meadow. And you're always going to have me because you know what, Sev?"

His eyes were wide now as he looked up at her and Lily couldn't help but grin when she saw that he was completely surprised about everything she'd just said to him.

It was all true, however. She knew that she cared about him and that they'd have a challenging relationship between one another. It was going to be hard for them to get through everything that had happened in his life and in their relationship, but if Lily knew anything, it was that working through their issues together was definitely worth it.

"What?" He asked her in a quiet voice, letting his hands squeeze hers as he looked up at her again through wide eyes.

Lily giggled before she leaned in close, brushing her lips across his cheek and then surprising him when she leaned in to fully kiss him, a smirk on her face as she did so. She already knew that Severus had never kissed a girl before so she made the kiss as soft and as sweet as she possibly could.

She was happy that Severus was here with her right now in the field, even though it was cold and snowy all around them.

"I know that you're gonna have me no matter what because I've always loved you," she whispered against his lips before she pulled away, looking down at Severus' eyes as she kneeled above him slightly.

He seemed completely shocked at her words, but the look of happiness that crossed through her eyes when she admitted her feelings to him was something she could hardly believe. She knew then that she'd made the right choice; that she and Severus were supposed to be with one another.

It didn't matter to her how badly they were both going to be treated at Hogwarts when everyone found out she was with him and she didn't care how James was going to retaliate when he found out that Severus and Lily had begun dating. All that mattered was that she had Severus now. She loved him and she already knew that he loved her and even if it was a challenged sort of love that would take awhile to be completely whole and stable, she knew that this was a great first step for the relationship the two of them could have with one another.

"I love you, Lily," Severus murmured, his voice breaking the silence between them before he kissed her lips softly with his own. "I love you so much."

"I know you do, Sev. I know," she answered him before she wrapped her arms around him. "But you don't love me nearly as much as I love you."