Chapter 2
~Memories~
~I hope when I get back from where I'm going you
Are still the one that I'm coming home to
Cause if you walk out that door
I'd be to blame~
Waitingstill by Musiq Soulchild
-Scorpius-
I swallowed a groan as I grabbed onto the girl's slim hips and drove myself deep into her. She was a great shag, there was no denying that. I slid my hands up her sides to her breasts, enjoying the way her pale skin and rosy nipples contrast against my darker flesh. She emits a breathy sigh when I flick the taut buds of her nipples, and I clench my teeth, pushing back the inevitable. She's been shagging me for the past hour and I know I've made her come at least four times, but I want just one more before I'll let myself go. She flicks a head of red hair over her shoulder and drags a hand down her stomach, sliding it past the bare skin over her twat, and rubbing the sensitive nub that rests between her legs. I smile as her breathing quickens, as I feel the obvious clenching of her muscles. I feel the tremors start to shake her lithe frame, her nails digging into my shoulders and plunge harder. She gasps my name, a quiet breath, and shatters around me, milking my cock, and I groan, finally giving in to the pleasure.
She collapses on my chest, her breath rushing across my skin, and raising goose bumps. I scoot her off me, and swing my legs off the side of the bed frame, presenting her with my back. I hear rustling behind me and assume that she's gathering up the covers. Behind me I feel her arm lift as if to touch my back and I duck away immediately. I toe the floor until I feel my boxers and pick them up, carelessly sliding them up my legs. I don't want to be near her any longer then I have to. It was a mistake to come to her place, but at least I don't have to deal with her whining about wanting to spend the night.
"Scorpius? You aren't leaving just yet are you?" I hear the pout in her voice, but don't turn to face her. Instead I gather the rest of my clothing and head into the bathroom, making sure to close and lock the door behind me. I hear movement and assume that she is putting on her own clothes, hopefully to see me out.
The dark shadows under my eyes tell their own story and I splash water on my face in the hopes of livening myself up. I'd gone to a pub that one of my mates had just opened, and after quite a few pints, I'd seen red hair in the back of the pub, long and wavy, like Rose's was when we were together. I'd approached her slowly, sure that I had to be dreaming, that Rose couldn't have grown her hair out overnight, and I'd been right. When I'd gently touched her shoulder, afraid that the apparition would disappear if I moved too fast, was too rough with her, she'd turned and instead of the gorgeous navy eyes I'd been expecting, I was confronted with sparkling green orbs. I should have walked away then, but I'd been too entranced by the similarities, had had too much to drink, and I'd foolishly followed the girl home.
Sighing, I brush off the memories. It's too late to dwell on should have's. I take a quick shower, giving a cursory glance to the assortment of body washes, before grabbing the most masculine sounding of the lot, something called Eucalyptus Spearmint, and use my hands to wash my body, unwilling to use one of the washcloths that I see resting in the bathroom cabinet. The shower lasts for about fifteen minutes, the quickest I could manage and still be clean. I toss on the same clothes I'd worn last night, a pair of khakis and a slim fitting dress shirt in a shade of cerulean I'd taken to wearing after Rose said it complimented my eyes, and stroll out of the bathroom.
The sight that meets my eyes is surprising, but I'm not sure why. The girl, I still don't remember her name, is spread eagle on the bed, her open legs facing the bathroom, giving me an excellent view of her nakedness. She gives me an impish smile and a devilish wink, and then crooks a finger in my direction. I shake my head and toss her the towel I'd used to dry myself off, before striding out of the bedroom. I hear a loud, disgruntled groan and feel my lips quirk into a smile as I let myself out of the front door.
-Rose-
I let out what had to be the loudest groan in the history of groans. Dominique laughed and continued to massage the shampoo into my hair. It's been a rough week. Since Scorpius had cleared my schedule, I've had quite a bit of free time, something that is very different for me. I'm used to working from nine in the morning to, every once in a while, eight in the evening. In the past week, I've cleaned my flat from top to bottom, read over Scorpius' case files, rearranged all the food in my cabinets by alphabetical order, read over Scorpius' case files, went for a quarter mile run every morning, read over Scorpius' case files, done more general busy work then I can ever remember, and then read over Scorpius' case files again. When Nicki had phoned to let me know that she had an opening on Friday, I'd jumped at the opportunity, I love being her test dummy. Every other Friday, if she can squeeze me in, I head over to the small salon she has in Hogsmeade, and allow her to try styles on me. Today, she's cutting me into a chin length bob, with just a "little swish" she says.
"Rosie, you seemed awfully relaxed when you walked in here today. Care to tell me why?"
I slit my eyes open, and find Nicki's bright blue eyes staring down at me. She's beautiful my cousin is, she takes after her mother, tall and willowy, with a strangely generous curve to her frame. She keeps her naturally wavy blonde hair long and usually down, so that even now it floats gently around her face, falling to the middle of her back. Her cheeks and lips always have a rosy tint to them, as if she's almost always slightly blushing; I blame it on her Veela heritage. It makes her look alluring and sexy, but at the same time innocent. Add in the fact that her voice has a husky note to it, as if she's just getting over a cold at all times, and it's no wonder Nicki has hordes of men sitting on her doorstep.
"You'll never believe who popped into my flat last week." I close my eyes again, enjoying the feeling of her talented fingers massaging my scalp, and the slight hint of mint in the shampoo she's using. I've also closed my eyes because I don't really want to see her reaction when I tell her the name of my mystery guest.
"Well, don't keep me waiting. Who was it?" She picks up the small hose attached to the sink and tests the water against her palm before turning it towards my hair.
"Scorpius." The spray nozzle jerks in her hand, and I squeeze my eyes tighter, both to block out the unexpected spray of water and the curiosity in her gaze.
"Why would Scorpius be coming to see you? And in your flat no less. You guys are clearly not the best of friends." She runs her hands through my hair, checking to make sure that all of the suds have been washed out, then taps my shoulder, the gesture that means it's time for me to sit up so she can dry my hair. I stand and head over to her chair and arrange the cape she's draped over me so I can freely move my hands. By the time she's washed out the shampoo bowl and headed back my way, I've decided to give her the short and sweet version.
"He just needs some help with a few contractual negotiations. You know Scorpius has never been too big on legalize, and he figures he can bum cheap work off of me." I see Nicki, flitting around behind me, trimming a little here, snipping a lot there. She glances up briefly and her eyes meet mine, I see a shadow of disbelief enter her gaze, before it's chased out, and I feel horribly bad, unspeakably guilty. Nicki is my best friend, we've been inseparable for almost all of our lives, and I've never lied to her about anything. She's one of the few people who knows the real reason I walked out on Scorpius all those years ago.
"Whatever you say Rosie, just….just be careful around Scorpius. I remember the way you were around him. You're different."
I nod solemnly, determined to abide by her request, determined to be honest in this, at the very least. The rest of the appointment was filled with inane chatter, gossip about the family, talk about the latest boy chasing after Nicki, and the depressing void that is my love life. By the time she's finished, cutting, coloring, and curling my hair, I feel much better. Nicki needs these biweekly appointments to practice new hairstyles; I need these appointments to get my feelings off of my chest. Nicki has become my therapist in the years that we've done this, listening to all of my complaints, wiping my tears when I can't help but cry, and eating Double Fudge Ice Cream with me when I'm really down.
When she flips me around so that I can see my reflection, I pause in the middle of my speech. I don't know how she does it, but I'm always flabbergasted by the way I look when Nicki's done with me. This time she's cut my hair so that it falls in beautiful sleek waves to just under my chin, where it curls in ever so slightly. There are streaks of a blonde like color running through my natural coppery red, enhancing the richness of the red, and making me look more like a strawberry blonde. I touch it softly; she always manages to keep my riotous curls under lock and key.
"Okay, this style should be really easy for you. Its wash and wear or flat iron and wear. If you wash it, your curls should peek through, but the shampoo I used is supposed to keep them from becoming to frizzy for the next couple of weeks, that way it'll still hold its shape. If you want to dress it up, just run a flat iron through it, following the part, and you'll look all gussied up."
I stand up, stretching slightly, and run a hand through the sleek bob, to get a feel for it. Nicki smacks my hand away, and I grin, before I walk around the styling chair, grabbing her in a tight hug. She hugs me back, and I can feel her hands rubbing my back softly, a reassuring gesture that tells me she can feel the turmoil I'm trying to hide. I step back and give her a small smile, grabbing my bag from the hook next to her styling station.
"Ring me sometime next week, and we'll meet for tea, okay?"
She gives me a quick smile, which I return along with a nod to acknowledge I heard what she said, before I Apparate out of her shop. The smell of warm cinnamon and vanilla alert me to the fact that I've made it safely home. I drop my purse on the table close to the front door and kick off my shoes, leaving them on the mat next to the table. I haven't taken a shower all day, so I head back to my bedroom. When I reach my haven, the first room I ever decorated by myself, I smile. The walls were painted a light shade of gray, and all of the furniture was white. The bed, a plush sleigh bed, was decorated with a grey duvet cover with coral and white pillows tossed haphazardly around its surface. There were two wooden nightstands on either side of the bed, one of which I used as a vanity table. I undressed slowly, dropping each piece into the small wicker basket that doubled as my hamper, before walking into the bathroom.
When I'd first moved in, I'd had my father and brother install one of those showers that has the preset temperatures, and every time I get into the shower I am eternally grateful. The water pulsed down, and within five minutes the steam indicated that it was the temperature I preferred. I carefully brushed my hair up and out of the way, grabbing a shower cap from the linen closet, before stepping in and smiling in bliss. The shower was perfect. I sat there for a moment, simply letting the stream of hot water pulsing around me soothe away the aches I'd managed to accumulate from a week of running a quarter mile every day, before snagging the rose scented body wash and squeezing some into a body pouf. The familiar scent of it made me frown, and I shook my head trying to clear it. I hadn't realized until just now how many of my decisions Scorpius had influenced, had I? The first time I'd laid eyes on this body wash had been while at the mall with Scorpius.
The day had been excellent. Scorpius had surprised me in bed this morning, with breakfast and a little something extra, I felt my face heating just thinking about it, as a small smile of satisfaction slipped across my lips. I'd thought he was going to be in Oxford for a few more days. He was supposed to be shooting footage for a new set of Broom commercials, which apparently had wrapped up early. I'd woken up to the feel of his lips tracing a very nice path down my spine, and his hands wrapping around my waist to slide up my chest. I shivered just thinking about it. Now we're walking through the mall, just a walkabout, as neither of us really needs anything at the moment. As usual there is a small crowd of hungry photographers, waiting for one of us to do something embarrassing, or funny, or romantically cute.
It's something you get used to I suppose. The constant presence of other people in your everyday life. They were almost always falling us, although most of the time they have the decency to simply stand outside of the buildings or stores we enter. Today as we strolled past a kiosk that stocked fresh flowers, Scorpius took a deep breath and jolted to a stop. I'd turned to look at him, curiosity etched in my expression. He'd grabbed my hand and pulled me off to my favorite body shop, an exclusive little boutique that specialized in body crèmes and soaps that made the skin feel luxuriously soft. It was slightly more expensive than the traditional stuff, but in my opinion, it was worth every penny.
"What are you doing?" I laughed, letting him use a gentle pressure around my wrist to drag me toward the store.
He'd tossed that endearingly familiar devil-may-care smile my way, his grey eyes crinkling slightly at the corners, their sparkling only enhanced by the sharp glare of a camera's flash. They must have decided something interesting was happening just now.
"You'll see."
I'd followed willingly, because Scorpius had never led me wrong before, and within minutes I was watching as he searched the shelves of Body Butter, almost maniacally for something. Finally, after what seemed like hours, but was probably only minutes, he pulled a bottle of pink tinted body wash off of the shelf, and carried it over to me victoriously. He carefully kept the label hidden from me and uncapped it, holding it up to my nose.
"Smell this and tell me what you think." I watched his eyes as I lowered my nose to the bottle's opening and inhaled deeply. The scent was heady. It was sweet and spicy, musky and with a potency that I didn't doubt would make many a man stop and turn when they smelled it. I exhaled and opened my eyes, only realizing then that I'd closed them.
"What is this?" I asked, my voice reflecting the astonishment I felt, it smelled wonderful.
Scorpius grinned, and flipped his hair back out of his eyes; he'd been growing a bang back then. He capped the bottle and grabbed the matching body crème and perfume, a few of each and strolled over to the counter, plopping all of the items down. The cashier immediately started ringing up the items. I'd grabbed his wrist when he started to reach into his back pocket for his wallet and stopped him.
"Scorpius, what is this?" He laughed, amused as always by my inability to deal with a surprise. He reached his hand up, tangling a finger in the waist length strands of my hair, before letting go.
"It's you, Rose. That's how you've always smelled to me, absolutely amazing. Just like your namesake." I groaned in frustration, growing tired of the endless evasion tactics, and finally just dug my hand into one of the already packed bags. I turned the bottle around and smiled when I read the label: Moroccan Rose.
I tilted my head up, letting the splash of water break up my thoughts. I don't know why I still use this particular brand of body wash when there are so many others. I made a mental note to go shopping for a new type of body wash before hurrying through the rest of my shower. When I stepped out of the shower my skin was wrinkly from the amount of time I'd spent in there, and I sighed before grabbing one of the thick towels I keep hanging off the towel racks in the bathroom, running the fibers over my body and letting it absorb the droplets of water from my body. I tucked the end of the towel in between my breasts and snatched the shower cap off of my head, finger combing the strands back into the style Nicki had worked it into. It fell back artfully, with little work and I smiled at myself in the mirror. Time to get into my lounging clothes and watch a few episodes of 'As the Wand Turns'.
