For Liza. Hope you have a good Christmas.
"Haven't seen you around here before."
Percy turns to look at the newcomer. His mouth goes dry. The man is barely taller than him, with short light brown hair and hazel eyes. He's very obviously an omega, judging by the sweet, tangy smell; yet under that, Percy detects a hint of ginger that reminds him of Christmas time. He has never been hit with lust as strongly as this before, and his cheeks redden when he realizes that his scent is probably reflecting his want.
Percy opens and closes his mouth several times, undoubtedly looking like an idiot. The other man waits patiently for Percy to speak, a soft smile playing on his lips.
"I—uh," he stutters, pointing towards the football field. He takes a breath in and manages to force a sentence passed his lips. "My daughter's playing."
"Which one's yours?" the man asks.
Percy smiles proudly. "Number five."
"Ah, Molly. She's a good forward, but she makes a better goalie." The other man must sense Percy's unease because he quickly adds on, "I'm her coach, Oliver Wood. I like to meet newcomers. You never know what type of person shows up just to watch."
"Oh, I uh, I'm Percy Weasley," he says, exhaling shakily. "I was told her practice would be over by now. It's my weekend with her."
He doesn't know why he blurted that out. He drops his eyes and moves to fiddle with his wedding ring when he realizes that he hasn't worn it in six months. Some nervous habits are hard to break, he supposes.
When he looks up, he sees Oliver drag his eyes from Percy's hands to his eyes. He can't discern what Oliver is thinking. "Sorry about that, practice got a bit of a late start. Let me go corral them."
Before Percy can get a word in edgewise, he watches the omega jog onto the field, whistle between his lips. A crowd of red-and-gold uniforms gather around him. Percy's too far to hear what is being said or to spot his daughter's jersey, but not too long after the crowd disperses.
"Daddy!" Molly shrieks as she runs towards him.
Percy kneels down to allow Molly to slam into him. He wraps his arms around her, hugging her tightly. She smells sweaty, but underneath it, she smells like home.
"You ready to go? We're having dinner at Grandma and Gramps' house tonight," he tells her as he pulls away. "And you need to change."
Molly grins and allows herself to be led towards Percy's car, chattering excitedly about her practice. It's easy to get lost in her excitement, but thoughts of Oliver Wood sticks in the back of his mind.
Percy is glad that Molly, Louis, and his nieces are sound asleep when the whiskey is pulled out of the cobwebbed cabinet it's kept in. He swallows a large mouthful, wincing at the burn. Maybe if he gets drunk enough, he'll forget his awkwardness with Oliver earlier. "I just couldn't get the words out," he groans when he ends his tale.
A grin plays on his brother's lips. It seems Bill can't pass up the opportunity to tease him. "You've never gotten tongue tied before."
He glares, but his brother looks unrepentant. "That's beside the point. Don't you think it's too soon or something?"
"It's not like you'd be asking him to marry you," Bill says, his face morphing into something more serious. "It's only too soon if you think it is."
He moves to play with his ring before catching himself. He stares at his hand. If he's being honest, his relationship with Audrey had been deteriorating long before she filed for divorce. He stuck it out for Molly's sake, and even that didn't seem to be enough.
"I just don't want this to negatively affect Molly, you know?" he asks, sighing. He picks up his glass to finish off the rest of the amber liquid.
Bill huffs out a laugh. "Anyone tell you that you worry too much?"
Percy glare doesn't seem to have effect the second time around. "I think I worry just enough, thank you very much. He's her football coach. If something happened, it'll be awkward for her and I do—"
"Look, just ask him for a date," Bill cuts across him. "I'll watch Molly for you, or Mum and Dad will. Try a couple dates to see where things go. The worst that can happen is that it doesn't work out. I doubt that he'll let something like this affect the kids; if he does, he isn't someone you would want to be coaching Molly in the first place."
Percy examines the glass. "Logically, I know you're right, but I don't know if —"
Bill stands, the sound of the chair scratching the hardwood interrupts Percy. "I'm not saying you have to deal now. Sleep on it. But I think I'm going to call it a night; I need to be at my best. We did promise four kids a trip to the zoo tomorrow, and you underestimate Louis' excitement."
His brother leaves him alone with an empty glass and a half-full bottle of whiskey. He may regret it in the morning, but he pours himself a little more. He wishes that he had what Bill and Fleur had. Bill's devotion to his late wife is clear; he still wears his wedding ring even after four years.
He swallows the alcohol, reminding himself that it wasn't completely his fault his marriage fell apart. He is not a terrible person because it didn't work out.
Before long, he drags himself to his old room. He pulls the covers up around Molly's shoulder, sighing at the fact he didn't manage to get her to change into her pajamas from the dress she wore after practice. There are just some fights he won't win. He curls up on his childhood bed, pleasantly buzzed. He falls asleep to the sound of Molly's soft snores filling the room.
Nearly four months later, and Percy is still no closer to approaching Oliver. He's arranged it with Audrey so that he can take Molly to her practices each weekend. He spends the entire time pretending to watch his daughter's performance while discreetly watching Oliver.
Then Molly comes to stand in front of him, dirt streaked on her cheek and in her reddish-brown hair, making it look darker. She looks solemn when she says, "Mr Oliver wants to talk to you privately. I assume it's about me."
Percy frowns, furrowing his eyebrows as he reviews his memories. Maybe he's doing something wrong. "What does he want to talk about?"
"I'm just telling you what he said," she says.
"Okay, well, stay right here. I'll be back real quick," he says, handing her his phone to keep her occupied.
He resists the urge to smooth down his hair; that would be too obvious. His palms sweat as he walks towards the omega. He smells just as good as he did the first day that Percy met him. He waits patiently while Oliver talks to other parents, making sure to keep Molly in his line of sight.
"Oh, hey! I was just going to head your direction," Oliver says, turning to finally give Percy his full attention. He's smiling brightly.
"Well, Molly said you wanted to talk about her. I figured it was important," Percy says. He's glad that he doesn't stumble over his words this time. "Is everything okay?" The silence that he receives worries him a little. And he starts to ask more questions.
Finally, it is as if a switch has been flip. Oliver easily reassures him, "No, no, nothing's wrong. As I said the first day, Molly's a great goalie; a natural really. I just wanted to talk to you because I was just under the impression that you wanted to start coaching."
"Where'd you get that idea?" he asks. But the answer hits him as soon as the words are out of his mouth. He blushes deeply. When he looks at the omega, Oliver is looking at Molly with an unreadable look on his face. "She—Oh my. I can't believe she did this. She's not usually like this. I'm sorry. She had good intentions."
Several heartbeats later, Oliver seems to focus in on Percy. "The only reason you'd have to be sorry is if you turn down getting dinner with me."
"I'm sorry. What?"
"Dinner: you and me. What do you say?" Oliver asks.
It feels like free falling when he says yes. His heart rate picks up, and he's sure that his scent reflects how pleased he feels when Oliver gives him a smile.
He can't bring himself to reprimand Molly for her meddling, even as she flashes him a mischievous smile when he looks in her direction. Instead, Percy says nothing of his impending date, but he does take her out for ice cream.
Abby's: 8. (Dialogue) - "Thank you very much"
BC: Mrs Owens: (character) Molly Weasley, (object) dress, (word) cobwebs
Showtime: 34. (color) red
Em's: 3. (relationship) parent&child
Lo's: C1 - Alt: write a bisexual or pansexual character
North funfair: Scarves: (action) hugging
South funfair: present wrapping - [Trope] Omegaverse
East funfair: paper snowflakes - [Trope] Omegaverse