"Where did you really go?" Molly asked, biting her lip as to stop her from crying. She refused to look at Lorcan, he had this hold over her. She loved him. So much that she was willing to believe in him, trust him.
Molly doesn't love easily. She doesn't love her mother, who walked out, her father, who ignores everything… she doesn't even love all her cousins and uncles and aunts. But she loves Lorcan and she has done for their whole friendship. She knows he feels it too even though he doesn't say it.
Molly has told Lorcan she loves him three times. Once drunk, once emotionally distraught and once as she was falling asleep. Her response was usually "I know". Molly's decided she doesn't want the first time her boyfriend tells her he loves her to be off the back of one of hers. She doesn't want a "you too", she wants a "I love you".
Lorcan doesn't love easily. He loves his mother, who is always away, his twin brother, who he would do anything for even if he ended up in Azkaban and… Molly.
Lorcan has never told a girl (not including his mother) that he loves them. In his past self as a bit of a manwhore, Lorcan learnt to tell girls what they want to hear. So if they said they loved him he'd respond with a "mmm, yep" or a "yeah, you too". He couldn't do that to Molly. He tried and it just didn't work… He couldn't look his best friend in the eye and lie to her. So he didn't. He didn't know what love was so he felt wrong saying it back when he didn't feel exactly as he knew she felt for him.
But, then he did. Lorcan found himself smiling when someone mentioned Molly, looking for her when she entered the room, wanting to be with her all the time. He'd run out of his classes to meet her just to walk with her and no matter how much shit he got from his mates, he was happy. He was happy because heloved his best friend and he knew for a fact that she loved him.
Now he just had to tell her.
"I told you Mo, I went to go visit my dad." Lorcan sighed sitting himself down on the swing, staring at the ground.
"Don't give me that shit Scamander. You hate your father. I've been friends with you for years, you can't lie to me about your father!" Molly cried out, pacing back and forth in front of the swings.
"Lovegood" Lorcan muttered.
"What?" Molly snapped, whipping her head to look at her boyfriend.
"I uh… changed my name. It's Lovegood now. Not Scamander" He sighed looking up at Molly.
"You… what?" She asked confusedly. "I mean you always said that was something you wanted to do and I know that but then you'd have to-" Molly had trouble finishing her sentence as she found her mouth obstructed by that of her boyfriend's. For a moment she almost gave in, almost forgave him for leaving her with her family for a whole week to go and do who knows what! Then she remembered the bet and went to pull away.
It was Lorcan who spoke first, "I don't care about the bet. I lose, okay. I need you okay. You win. I need you" He murmured with his forehead against hers. "I need you in my day, everyday, I need to wake up next to you, to fall asleep with you. You make me happier than you'd believe… I love you Mo."
He'd said it. He'd told her how he felt. He looked her right in the eyes and willingly gave her his whole heart.
"Thank fuck, I was really starting to die of sexual frustration" Molly kissed Lorcan before pulling away, "I love you too by the way, in case you hadn't gathered that yet" She smiled as Lorcan chuckled, he had a random girlfriend, a beautiful random girlfriend whom he loved.
Molly laughed at Lorcan's groan as she took an extra step back, "You know, kissing me for the first time in three weeks and telling me you love me isn't going to distract me from our conversation… right?"
"Sometimes I do things I shouldn't do." Lorcan said shaking his head. "I do them for the right reasons but they're still wrong and I know that… You have to understand that Rolf is a bad person and he shouldn't be allowed to get away with what he did! I couldn't just stand there and let him… I'm sorry Mo." He looked at the ground and kicked at it a little. "Mr. Potter showed up in the end, to stop me killing the bastard I guess. Arrested him for being an unfit parent and continuous child abuse, as well as I don't know, a whole wad of other charges meaning he won't get out of Azkaban at all. I… uh, changed my name, changed Lysander's, contacted mum… I'm sorry Mo, I just didn't want to get you involved. He was dangerous and… I knew if I told you the truth, that I was going to see my Dad and also at the same time hoping to kill him… you'd try and come with me, to help me!"
"Damn right I would've!" Molly squeaked.
"I couldn't let you do that. Okay? I couldn't put you in that kind of danger! I can't lose you Mo!" Lorcan all but shouted before placing his ear on Molly's chest, tightening his arms around her waist.
Molly ran her hands through Lorcan's hair soothingly, stroking his cheek in an effort to calm him down. "It's okay Xen, you're safe now. He can't hurt you or Lysander or your mum or… anyone anymore. I'm right here and I'm not going anywhere." She kissed the top of his head lightly, "I love you Mr. Lovegood. You and all your strange schemes" she whispered into his hair.
"I love you too Weasley" He responded, feeling as if the weight of the world had been lifted.