"Nice to see you got yourself a date, Harry." Cedric smiled, sliding into the empty seat next to the younger boy. His hair was artfully tousled and Harry caught the sparkle in his eye before tearing his gaze away. 'Not your date, not your date.' He thought to himself.
"You and Cho looked great out there." He replied, gesturing to the dozens of twirling couples filling the centre of the Great Hall. It was the truth as well. They looked idyllic together, and with the exception of Hermione, Harry could see all of the other girls there burning up with jealousy. He tried his best not to do the same.
Cedric grinned. "The Yule Ball is certainly … more than I expected."
Harry looked down with a smile, not wanting to meet the Hufflepuff's eyes. He forced himself to keep his hand still, to not fiddle with the table cloth, but Cedric was so close.
"Alright, Potter?" Malfoy's dull voice cut through the cool air, and Harry squeezed his hand into a fist. "Having fun with your boyfriend over there?" A chorus of wolf-whistles went up from the other Slytherin boys, and a few Gryffindor boys joined in. That stung.
"Oh Malfoy, you jealous that Harry's found someone else?" Cedric called back, lazily dropping an arm over Harry's shoulder. Heat raced up the back of his neck and he could feel his ears going red. Draco looked as if he'd been slapped, and the boys around him fell silent.
"As if! Potter!" He spluttered, his cheeks staining crimson as he sneered and turned to shove his way through the crowd.
Grinning, Cedric leaned close and murmured in Harry's ear; "I bet his father won't be hearing about that."
Harry could do little more than choke on surprised laughter. He was hyper-aware of the warm weight on his shoulders, and he didn't dare move in case Cedric took his arm back. For a split second, he wondered what it would be like if he leaned up and kissed the older boy, right there. But he didn't get the chance to work up the nerve before Cho appeared, beckoning for Cedric to join her on the dance floor.
"Duty calls." Cedric sighed, standing up. He gazed down at Harry warmly and opened his mouth as if to say something, before shaking his head. "See you round, Harry. Oh, and if Draco says anything, you have my full permission to tell him we're passionately in love." He winked once before walking out to meet Cho.
Harry's brain was still in overdrive when he and Ron returned to their dorm room at the end of the evening.
