After Hours

Oneshot

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter. Obviously. :)

A/N: My internet has mysteriously returned to me. Yay!

…..

Harry didn't bother turning on the light as he slipped off his loafers. His apartment was quiet, and cold (although he'd spoken to the landlord about the furnace multiple times), and a bit of a mess. He yawned and ran a hand through his hair before stumbling down the hall. It had been his first day at work, and he was exhausted.

When Hermione had recommended him for a position at the up and coming restaurant where she worked, he'd been horrified. Harry had been job-hunting for nearly three months, and though he'd had no luck, he had planned to see a job office about it.

He had no experience, no prerequisites, and his interview at the restaurant concluded with the manager, Severus Snape, insinuating that he was the product of an incestual relationship. Naturally, Harry got the job.

The first day had been admittedly rough. Hermione was assistant manager, and though Harry would have liked for her to train him, she was busy with payroll and seating customers. Unfortunately for him, Snape was completely free, and in his black button-down and slacks, he was a terror.

Harry's first order seemed to be going well enough, and it was only as he was walking away with a sigh of relief that Severus pulled him into the kitchen and threatened to fire him.

"Why? I thought it went pretty damn well."

"Never tell a customer that you are a recent hire. If you make a mistake, apologize and offer the fact with grace. When the first thing out of your mouth is, "Sorry; I'm new.' the customer will think that you are irresponsible and unwilling to own up to your mistakes. And watch your mouth, boy, or you'll be unemployed faster that you can say 'Bullocks'."

With that, Snape left, probably to bitch at another employee. Harry made a face and flipped him off. A chuckle from the kitchen made Harry blush, and he turned to see Ron, his best friend and Hermione's boyfriend, smiling as he sprinkled cheese onto a house salad.
"Don't worry, mate. You'll get used to him. He gripes for a week or two before moving on to the next victim."

Harry nodded and grabbed a nearby tea pitcher. "Was he like that with Hermione?"

"Yeah. I remember when she first came here, all shy and quiet. She stood up to Snape on her third day, and I think he's been in love with her ever since."

Harry laughed. "I guess it's a good thing you propositioned her before he did."

"Yeah. You know Hermione. She might have considered it a 'career opportunity' and said 'yes'."

Harry chuckled, saw Snape staring from the walk-in freezer, and dashed back into the dining room. Ron glanced behind him and laughed. "I think you scared him, Severus."

"Get back to work."

…..

After a few months of being a waiter, Harry thought he was getting the hang of it. He knew the menu like the back of his hand, he rarely fouled up orders, and Snape wasn't peering over his shoulder as much. His corrections were more by the way of suggestions now, and Harry found that when aimed at others, his blithe humor was rather hilarious.

At two o'clock on a Saturday, the largest crowd Harry had ever seen spilled into the restaurant. Severus' eyes narrowed, and he went into the kitchen and came out with an apron. Harry raised an eyebrow. Snape? A waiter? He supposed that he had probably started out as one, but that must have been a millennia ago.

Lack of practice seemed to have no effect on the older man as he made quick work of his tables, taking drink orders, appetizers, stacking enough plates on his arm to qualify for a world record. He was magnificent. Harry couldn't help but smile at the sight of Severus handing an ice cream dish to a toddler with an exaggerated bow. His smile was infectious.

A slight shove from the man himself jerked Harry back from his reverie. "Get to work, Potter. I don't pay you to dilly-dally."

"You hardly pay me at all." Harry smirked, and set to his designated tables.

The crowd turned out to be a wedding reception, and the bride and groom, who were seated at the bar, alternated between laughing with friends and gazing into each other's eyes. Harry found it cute as hell, and in between orders and checking up on his customers, he watched them fawn over one another.

He wanted that. He thought he'd had that with Ginny, but a few weeks before their wedding, he'd woken up and felt nothing as he watched her dress. He moved out a few days later, and as he'd worked as a cashier in her mother's café, he'd been out of a job as well. He still felt the loneliness of it sometimes.

"Isn't it revolting? I should toss them out, the whole lot of them."

Harry smiled as he turned to face Snape. "What's wrong with wanting to be happy?"

"Poor Potter. You'll understand when you're older."

"How much older? Fifty, sixty years?" He squinted. "Maybe a hundred?"

Snape's smirk gave way to a scowl, another one of his trademark expressions. "When you're my age, being in a relationship does not guarantee happiness."

Harry blushed, and as his mind screamed for him to bow out while he could, his mouth opened and the usual idiocy spilled forth: "Maybe you just haven't found the right woman." He looked Snape in the eye, bravery incarnate.

He'd caught Snape off guard, but the older man's expression was down right lecherous as he murmured, "Maybe. Although, it's hard to be when all of my partners are male."

Harry sputtered violently, and as he watched Snape move away to attend his tables, he couldn't help but wonder, Severus Snape, evil boss/sex fiend?

…..

"Goodnight, Ronald!"

"Night, babe!"

Harry smiled despite himself as Ron left for the night, kissing his girlfriend of nearly a year on the way out. The smile on Hermione's face was tired, but happy, and she sighed before resuming her nightly bookkeeping. Harry felt a pang. It was moments like this that he missed Ginny. He had been lectured by the entire Weasely clan, and it was only his friendship with Ron that kept him in touch with them; if Ginny had her way, Harry would be exiled, despite the fact that they were the only family he'd ever known.

When Ron had met Hermione and told Harry all about her, she had sounded too stiff for his liking. After getting to know her a little better, he found that her logical thinking was a refreshing balance for Ron's lack of rationale. Harry loved her like the sister he'd never known he wanted.

As she closed the book for the night and let her hair out of it's usual ponytail, Harry noted that she was beautiful at times, usually after a long day of work, and had a good head on her shoulders, unlike some women he'd had the misfortune of getting involved with.

He accepted her kiss on the cheek with a joke about the newlyweds' whereabouts, and watched her pad out to the parking lot in the worn flats she brought for after-hours duties

"Potter!"

Harry cocked an ear to the kitchen. "Yes?"

"Get in here!"

Harry glanced at the parking lot with a sigh, and when he stepped into the kitchen, what he saw made him laugh. Snape was balancing three large cardboard boxes in his arms, the highest one on the verge of tumbling backwards. Harry rushed to catch it with a soft grunt, and followed Snape into the walk-in freezer. Easing the box onto an empty shelf, Harry stepped back as Snape lowered the boxes to the ground and hefted one onto his shoulder, and onto a higher shelf. After sliding the last box into a corner, he turned to face Harry. "Thank you."

"Why didn't you ask Hermione to help you while she was back here?"

"She worked open to close. I didn't want to bother her."

Harry feigned surprise. "He has a heart." Harry's fingers traced boxes of burger patties, ice cream. His eyes caught Severus' in a moment of clarity. "Is it only open after hours?"

The freezer door closing was a muffled thump, and Harry whimpered as Severus descended upon him. His body was a warm contrast to the frigid air, and Harry found himself shivering, even as those warm fingers held the nape of his neck, and a warm mouth closed over his. His stomach was fluttering, and his heart stopped as Snape pushed him against a nearby shelf and devoured him completely.

…..

A while later, after what may have been ten minutes, eternity, or both, Harry walked out of the freezer, weak in knees and red in nose. Severus followed and closed the freezer door behind him.

Harry turned to face him, and they watched each other for a moment. Severus' smirk was one of satisfaction. Harry's gave a shy smile.

"Can I have a raise?"

"No."

"Well, you can't blame a guy for trying."

"No. No, I can't."

They watched each other for a long moment, and Harry smiled out of instinct.

"Goodnight, Severus."

"Goodnight . . . Harry."