Title: The Photo on the Nightstand
Disclaimer: Oh, I wish. *sighs*
So, Hello! If you have read "No Place Like Home" , then this kinda a sequel., not really though. It's in the same storyline.
By the way, I just saw that quite some people have read the other fanfic, but only few have reviewed. I'm just wondering, is it because you didn't like it or just didn't feel like saying anything?
There are countless houses in London, both muggle and wizarding, and there is no doubt that each and every one of them hold many memories and stories in them. But if you stumble over one of the many muggle neighborhoods and ask about one of the normal looking houses from others, you won't find much useful information.
Most would tell you it belongs to a couple who had been there for some years. Some would tell you they still can't believe the two men are together, since they have nothing in common in their eyes. The one with black hair and green eyes, Harry, was usually friendly and social. Almost all of them have talked to him at least once or twice and would say he's a nice guy. Talking about appearance, he's usually messy haired and his choice of clothes holds no resemblance.
The other one with blond hair and silver eyes, Harry called him Draco, wasn't anything like him. He barely talks to anyone and always keeps his distance. On the rare occasions that his voice has been heard, Royalty is evident in his words. His white blond hair had not once been seen messy or disheveled. He clothes are either formal or even more formal.
No one understands how these two handle and put up with each other. They are complete opposites in the neighbors' eyes. The only thing they do actually have in common is a rather expensive white gold chain hanging around their necks.
But none of them know enough about the great Harry Potter and Draco Malfoy. Inside the house, which none of the neighbors had seen, is beautifully decorated with smooth colours. There are two coffee cups on the small table in between a comfy looking sofa and a television. One is simply black, though silver sparks can be seen on it if you look carefully which smelled of coffee. The other is dark blue at the moment, it keeps on changing colors every few days when its owner feels like it, some still hot chocolate is filling it.
A part of the living room's wall is filled with Quidditch posters. In the library shelves you can find a golden snitch among the decorations. In the closet seeker robes can be found as well as a broom, when not being used, there will be a string around it with a card hanging from it. Happy Birthday written on it with a neat handwriting.
The library shelves are filled with books on almost everything. A good amount of them are about economics. In the study room, the desk is tidily covered with sheets of paper and documents. A never ending notepad lying beside all the papers and files with a little smiley and heart drawn on the first page. It has been enchanted so it couldn't be teared off or erased, till the day no attempts had been made to do anything as such to it.
The strangest thing about the entire house is that there are no photos hanging from the walls or on any of the shelves. Except one, though. It's in the bedroom, on the nightstand. The magical photo is of high quality so it has filmed the picture for more than just a few seconds.
The photo starts with Harry's face in the frame, focusing on stabling the camera while biting down on his lower lip. Happy with his work he gives the camera a thumbs up and an excited smile. As if he has heard a voice he looks at his left, then his eyes widen. And runs out of the camera's point of view.
The next thing displayed on the photo is Harry, dragging a rather confused and bored Draco in front of the camera, though he hadn't seen it. Then telling him something, receiving a confused scowl from the other man. He talks again in a more demanding gesture. Draco sighs and rolls his eyes. Turns completely towards the camera closing his eyes.
Harry runs out of the frame and returns within seconds, carrying a heart-shaped box of chocolates and a teddy bear and big grin on his lips. he winks at the camera and tells his boyfriend to open his eyes. And he does, and turns to see the dazzling smile on the messy haired boy and looks down at the box and the stuffed animal which have been offered to him. He looks at them for seconds and shifts his gaze to Harry with a raised eyebrow.
Harry's face falls and shoulders slump in less than a second. Looking at Draco unbelievingly. He brings up the box in front of Draco's eyes, and the camera. Happy Valentine can be read on it. He points to the words and slowly mouths, well he is probably speaking but there are no sounds, Valentine.
Draco finally realizes what has happened and this time raises both his eyebrows, with mild surprise on his face as his lips form an 'O'. Harry his head back in frustration and huffs angrily. Then, with a pout he turns towards the camera, though he completely forgotten it by now, and holds the teddy close to him with his right arm and starts opening the box with his now free hands. Then shoves a chocolate in his mouth, all with a very annoyed pout.
Draco, who has faced the camera again watches his movements all together as he fights a smile, though he can't and a small one appears on his lips for a few seconds and vanishes before Harry sees it. Then he straightens up and looks inside the pocket inside his suit. After that, without looking in Harry's direction he raises his hand and lets a chain swing in the air. He clears his throat to catch the other man's attention.
He does for sure. Harry turns again and looks at his hand confused before noticing the chain. He looks down at the swinging object at the other end of the chain. His eyes widen and his lips part slightly. His hold on the box loosens and he looks up again at Draco with a baffled expression.
Draco who has started watching him the second he saw the chain shrugs easily. "Happy Valentine?" he asks. His face looks like he doesn't care but in the picture his other hand is evidently fisted in concern. The chocolate box falls from Harry's hands without him even noticing. He fingers start tracing down the chain until they reach the end of it.
He holds up a simple and shining engagement ring and looks at it. Still too confused to actually understand what has just happened. He caresses the ring with his other hand and stares at it for more seconds. As each second passes Draco's calm figure turns into an anxious one more but he remains silent and collected and lets his lover comprehend and decide.
It takes some time before Harry finally realizes that he has just been proposed by the seemingly emotionless Slytherin who had raised an eyebrow at his valentine gift. He looks up again and stares into his eyes. Draco raises an eyebrow, again. His lips move to form a single word.
"So?"
In the last few seconds of the recorded photo, Harry suddenly jumps to put his arms around Draco's neck and kiss him on the lips. It startles the taller man and they both fall out of the frame, probably on the ground. The lasts thing your eyes can catch in the picture on their lips, except for the others' lips of course, is a content small smile.
Right now if you look inside the living room, you can see two grown up men on the previously mentioned sofa. One sitting up gracefully at one end, holding a book with one his hands and reading it, the other resting on the sofa's back. The other man lying down uncaring about all manners with his head resting on the other's feet, looking up at the face above him.
If you stay quiet in the room long enough, you'll see the raven haired childishly grab the other one's free hand and put it on his head. You'll see eyes never leaving the book but also a smirk, or a smile, form on his lips as he gently caresses the messy hair under his fingers. You may hear a content hum as well.
You soon will grow tired and have already left when the chapter that was being read comes to an end two or three hours later. So you won't see him as he closes the book and puts it on the little table beside his seat and look down at his sleepy face. It's a shame though, loosing the sight of the blond bowing his back to kiss the lips of the person whose face was already cupped by the same caressing hand.
Outside the house, back in the world, both muggle and wizarding, everyone counts him a git and wonders how have they worked out. Many still can't believe how can the said git only be on good terms with Harry.
That's not something anyone can understand easily. Because they don't see what Harry sees, neither do we. We all have grown tired and have already left the house to see what's really going on. He dated him for five years and didn't grow tired so he saw and understood.
It took Harry five years of dating Draco to have that photo lying on the nightstand and that chain hanging from his neck.
Tell me what you thought of it please?
One last thing: Do you think writing about the same storyline a bit more is a good idea or not?
Thanks for reading :))