Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter. All characters belong to J.K. Rowling, etc., etc.
A/N: Written for the last kiss challenge over on the forum here on FF. Al and Scorpius' last kiss. I was feeling angsty so...yeah. Angst galore~ Enjoy :)
Oh, and much thanks to one of the judges for my word prompts and my line prompt, which got used near the end. It really helped.
"Please don't do this," Al insisted, reaching out to touch Scorpius, needing to touch him and feel him, someone who would anchor him down and stop him from feeling weightless.
"It's not as if I'm doing anything that shouldn't have been done a while ago." Scorpius backed away. "I'm not yours, Al, that was never what this was. It was just mindless fucking, sex without meaning. The second you started wanting more, I knew I had to end it."
"I'm sorry, I don't want anything more. I just want to be with you," Al said quickly, knowing that he was whining, knowing how pathetic he sounded but not really caring. He took a step closer, and felt a hot blush creeping up on his neck. Scorpius' eyes flashed, bright blue, at the sight of his conquest flushed in embarrassment...or was it anger? Or something else entirely?
"You want me to be with you. I can't be your...your boyfriend, Al. I've a wife, and a baby. I have responsibilities. You and I weren't anything more than a release." Scorpius took a deep breath. "I'm sorry."
"Fine, we don't have to be in a relationship. We can go back to the way things were before."
"Not anymore. Every time we were together, all I'd be able to think about is how you were wishing we were something different. I can't do that to you." Scorpius reached out and caught his hands impulsively, knowing how much that small gesture would mean to Al.
"You wouldn't be doing anything to me. This hurts worse than that ever could." Al said quietly.
"I know. You'll see in time what a favor I'm doing for you right now. You can find someone who's willing to go all out for you, who's willing to stand next to you and be proud to be with you." He stopped, seeing the look of devastation mixed with anger on Al's face.
"You wouldn't be proud to be with me? Am I that awful?" Al thundered.
"No, you're not awful. You're not awful at all." Scorpius dropped his hands and stood close to him. In a quiet voice he said, "In another world, Al, where I didn't have responsibilities and obligations to my family, I'd be lucky to have you."
"You mean, in another world where you weren't a bloody coward and afraid to tell your stupid family who you really are," Al said coldly. "When did you change, Scorp? When we first started...seeing each other, you were so fragile, so needy. This thing between us, you said it defined you, and made you recognize what you'd been needing your whole life. When did that change?"
Scorpius cast his eyes upward at the gray sky, that looked for all the world as if it would crack into a million pieces. "We don't change. We just get better at covering up our flaws."
With that Scorp leaned forward and kissed Al, long and hard and with meaning. It was the kind of kiss that meant something, the kind of kiss that would stay with someone for a very long time. When it was over, Al pulled away first, wanting to salvage his last bit of dignity, to be able to say that he had ended things first, no matter in how small a way. Scorpius nodded at him, bit his lower lip, and walked back to the life that he had chosen. The only thing Al could do was take the nugget of truth and hope that Scorp had given him-you can find someone who's willing to go all out for you-and try to realize it.