He grinned as she wrapped her arms around him.  The man wrapped his arms around her back, squeezing for a moment; she was right, it had been too long.  Why didn't he try harder to see her more or talk to her?  For a brief moment, he was fifteen again, a blissful grin meeting his lips.  In fact, it was so second nature to him, he had to remind himself that they were friends and nothing more as the hug broke off and he took his seat.

"I guess a bit different, yeah," He chimed in, nursing his drink lightly as his other hand drummed nervously on the table.  He hung onto every word she had, but still, it took all of his power not to shake as he drank.  He just needed to loosen up a little bit.  "Editing at Oxford too, eh?"  He asked, genuinely impressed, "Don't feel nervous - you've always been an amazing writer.  They clearly hired you for a reason, be proud of that.  Hiding a broom cupboard'll get you fired," He pointed out teasingly, a small smirk on his face as he sipped his drink again.  Oh boy, he was being awfully quiet...  And when he was quiet, it meant he was drinking more than the people who were talking. [i] Just slow down, James,[/i] he had to remind himself, setting the glass down again.

He shook his head, "Don't be sorry, Sashie.  You can talk all you like," He reassured her, tipping his glass her way before taking another drink of it from the straw to control his intake.  Inevitably, she asked about Matt and James had to wonder if he ever told her about Nathan and how that was going over...  Probably not, it only happened in the last few weeks and the two of them hadn't discussed much in detail since Matt's death.  James distanced himself quite a lot after that.  Finally, he let out a breath and gave his ex-girlfriend a sombre smile, "It's okay.  I'm well, really, I am," He told her calmly, leaning on the back two legs of his chair.  He'd always done that in class too...  More than once, it fell out from under him and caused the entire room to erupt into several minutes of uncontrollable laughter.  Actually broke his tailbone in Junior year - what a god awful few weeks that had been...  Old habits die hard, he supposed.

"We actually went to Germany when I was on break a couple of months ago...  The accident site isn't there anymore, of course, but... it was good.  It's a beautiful country, despite everything.  I know my parents still have their days, and I miss him like hell, but I just keep myself busy.  As cliché as it sounds, I take solace in the 'gone but not forgotten' mantra."  The speakers died as a song faded out and James looked around as the sound of a guitar began to strum over them.

He looked at Sasha, realizing it at the same time as she did...  He couldn't help but laugh as 'Riptide' filled the room.  "Wow, this place really plays the oldies, eh? I'll drink to that," He said brightly, lifting his glass again.  James had to wonder what exactly she was thinking about.

"Hmm?  Oh, yeah, I live in Canterbury noworking in the same company as da.  It's great - Boeing and the government both contract them a lot, it gives me a lot of experience...  I like it.  Word around is that we'll be getting a contract for parts on a discovery shuttle to Mars.  Very delicate work.  I know I won't be on the team, but it's a really big deal for everybody, it means we'll all be getting more dynamic jobs and better pay in the next few months, given that the guy with the project doesn't screw it up too bad," He explained with a wink, realizing that now it was his turn to ramble about something that Sasha likely wasn't too itnerested in, as he had done many times in the past.

The topic changed and he quirked an eyebrow at her.  "Now that depends; any friends you want to introduce me to?  When you're not hiding in the broom cupboard, I can go have a good snog," He teased, shaking his head as he took another sip, "No, nobody in my life right now like that.  Had a few dates in uni, but I'm sure you knew a couple of engineers - our workload only grows over time.  No matter how many hours you work, it's always growing," He sighed, "I'm glad to only be schooling part time now.  Nothing teaches better than actually working hands-on, I'm sure you know that as well as I do.  No curfew tonight, Miss Watson.  What about you, still flying solo?"

Words could not describe how relieved he was that she asked if he was single.  It meant that he didn't have to find some way to ask her for himself.  James tapped his leg softly to the rhythm of the song...  Wow did that take him back.  All the way to the little clearing in the woods, before the neighbourhood was developed, when it still felt like their own little private place.