"You have some visitors, dear."
Madame Pomfrey's soft voice gently shook Scorpius out of a light doze. Scorpius struggled to lift his eyelids, heavied as they were with fever. He tried to sit up in bed, but the aged Hogwarts nurse pushed him back down again.
"I ought to tell them to come back soon," she mumbled, more to herself than her patient. "You do need your rest-"
"No, I'm all right," Scorpius murmured drowsily, propping himself up on the pillows and looking over at the door just in time to see his best friend Albus Potter enter the hospital wing, Rose Weasley at his heel.
"Five minutes!" Madame Pomfrey cautioned sternly, then left in a billowing of skirts.
"How are you feeling?" Albus inquired nervously, sitting down on the edge of Scorpius's bed as Rose tipped an armload of books onto the bedside table. "Are you still hot?"
"I'm always hot," Scorpius ascertained his friend, wiggling a significant eyebrow at Rose. Rose rolled her eyes but couldn't help a grin breaking out over her face.
"He'll be fine, Al," she assured her cousin. "He's making stupid jokes again."
"Not stupid," Scorpius protested. "How about witty and dashing and oh, Scorpius, I'd simply love to date you right after you get out of this stupid hospital bed-"
Albus and Rose both burst out laughing.
"I hope that last one was aimed at Rose," Albus finally choked. Scorpius nodded fervently.
"So, Rose, how about it?" he asked, winking at the red-haired girl.
"I'm only here because Al asked me to help him with your books," Rose huffed. "Nothing else."
"So, let's change that!" Scorpius offered, pushing himself up again. Suddenly, he slumped back against the pillows. Albus looked anxious.
"Are you all right? What's up?"
"Madame Pomfrey told me not to exert myself," Scorpius mumbled. "And I just realized why."
"Well, don't," Albus interjected quickly. "You should be resting now. Rose and I will leave."
"No offense, Al," Scorpius murmured, sinking into the soft bed and pulling the blankets up to his chin. "But that sounds really good right now."
Albus smiled at his friend, then slowly left the room. Rose looked after him, then leaned over and carefully pushed Scorpius's hair out of his eyes. Scorpius's eyelids fluttered, and he smiled drowsily.
"Feels nice," he whispered. "We should really do this again sometime."
"In your dreams," Rose scoffed, pinkening slightly.
Scorpius's last words were nearly inaudible, but Rose could hear them just fine as she quietly exited the hospital wing.
"Every night, Rose. Every night."