Chapter 4
I was sitting on the benches outside on the Quidditch fields as the common room was filled. My mind was too tired to focus on starting a new drawing from scratch, so I just drew a landscape of the field.
I suddenly felt something fall into my lap. James had chucked a weather beaten old book into my lap. It was called Quidditch Through the Ages. "Why are you giving this to me?"
James was dressed in his Quidditch robes holding his Firebolt. "You're going to see the match tomorrow, so you need to understand it."
I sighed. "James, you know I don't—"
"Come on," he wheedled. "This will be my first match as Captain of the Gryffindor Team. Can't you support your brother?"
If I supported Gryffindor, I would just increase the dislike of my fellow Slytherins to outright hatred. If I didn't support James, he would be hurt by my lack of encouragement, and would probably be pissed at me for the whole year. It was the worst dilemma imaginable.
"Come on, James!" One of the Beaters called out.
James grinned at me. "See you at the match tomorrow!" He jogged towards his teammates, already barking out orders.
Sometimes, I felt jealous of James' natural ease around people. People would just naturally gravitate towards James, as he gave off the aura of leadership. People liked having someone to depend on, and everyone depended on James. I used to rely on James for a lot of things, until I realised I couldn't do that anymore because I was an outsider. I was the only Slytherin in the Potter family, which had never happened before. My grandparents had been Gryffindors as well, and probably my great grandparents.
"Oh god. Is it me or did things just get slimy?" Someone joked.
I looked up to see the Slytherin Quidditch Team marching on to the field in their emerald green Quidditch robes. The Captain of the Quidditch team was Royce Boor, who was also a certified douche. He was a big beefy red faced guy with a shaved head, and big nostrils.
I spotted Scorpius standing to one side, looking quite bored. My hand instinctively touched the love bite that I had covered with a scarf. Damn him. We hadn't spoken to each other since our Care of Magical Creatures lesson, much to my relief. I was still angry at him for giving me a love bite.
A cold expression appeared on my brother's face. "What are you doing here? We reserved the field for today."
"So? We don't give a shit." Royce proclaimed, smirking.
"Well you should." James' voice was taut with anger, which was never a good sign. If things didn't calm down, someone would be vomiting slugs soon. James had done it to me once, and it wasn't very pleasant.
"Is that a threat, Potter?" Royce asked, his hand moving to his wand.
Scorpius snorted at this. "Please. Potter is too much of a pussy to threaten us."
James cocked an eyebrow. "At least my mother's pussy isn't open to everyone."
Scorpius' face flushed. I could see that he was really angry, but he was trying to hard to remain calm. Maybe he was trying not to let James win in letting him know that he had been wound up. "You better shut your mouth, Potter."
I sighed. This was the worst thing to say to James because he would always do the complete opposite of what you told him. James smirked, a devious glint in his eyes. "I wonder if there is such a thing as a slut gene. From what I've heard, your grandmother was doing it with five men, and now I bet your mum would probably suck the Giant Squid's tentacles if she could."
Scorpius was so fast. He whipped out his wand, pointing it at James, and James was suddenly flung backwards. He didn't even have to say the words out loud! Only the most talented wizards could think spells and they would happen. I only admired Scorpius for a second, before my attention turned to my brother.
"James!" I yelled.
Scorpius spun around, glaring at me ferociously. I tried not to flinch under his scorching gaze. He honestly couldn't expect me to not worry about James. By now, everyone on the Gryffindor and Slytherin teams had gotten out their wands, and was hurling hexes at each other.
"Hey!" I cried out, trying to doge hexes hitting my head. "Stop it, you morons!"
Scorpius waved his wand in the air, and everyone froze. He must have used some sort of advance spell. He walked over to me, grabbed me by the arm, and started dragging me away.
"Let go of me!" I tried to shake off his grip, but he just tightened it. "Where are you taking me?"
"Stop squirming," he snarled viciously, causing me to wince. "Now come on."
Scorpius led me inside and towards our dormitories. There was no one inside the dormitory as people were probably enjoying the nice sunny weather. No one would want to be cooped up when it was really hot. He waved his wand, and my sketchpad floated out of my trunk. "Draw me."
"What?" I blinked in confusion.
"Draw me." Scorpius stretched the syllables out as if I couldn't speak English.
I was confused by this random request, but I thought it was safer to just oblige. Scorpius didn't look like he was in the mood for arguing, and I didn't want to be at the receiving end of his wand. Oh, god that just came out sounding wrong. I dismissed any thoughts of that, and opened my sketchpad. "Just sit down on the bed."
"Can I lie down?"
"If you want."
Scorpius threw his broom on the floor, and stretched out on his bed. "Do you want me nude?"
"No," I replied dryly. "I don't want to go blind."
He flashed me a lewd smile. "Of course. That will only happen tonight."
I stopped drawing, panic starting to eat in on my chest. "What?"
"You think I'm just going to let you remain a virgin while you're with me?"
"Who says I'm a virgin?" I snapped indignantly, even though I was. I hated the way Scorpius just naturally assumed things about me. I had never thought about losing my virginity like other boys my age. I knew for a fact James wasn't a virgin, but he never talked about stuff like that with me. It would just be too awkward. The rare times I did imagine my first time, I had always pictured it being with a girl, despite the fact that my first crush had been a boy.
Scorpius snickered. "You're so defensive, and you blush way too much. What are you, a twelve year old girl? Well, I guess that's what I like about you."
"So you have a fetish for a twelve year old girl, you perv."
Scorpius laughed. It was the first time I had heard him genuinely laugh without it being bitter or mocking. I thought his face looked much nicer and less harsh when he smiled. I decided to draw him in that moment. It was his best moment, and I really liked his face that way.
"Are you really going to give up the wizarding world for the muggle one?" Scorpius asked.
"You've read my journal." I still felt sour about that.
"Well yes, but I can't imagine living without magic."
"I can." I knew most muggles would love to have magic, but they didn't understand how disruptive it was. There was always danger, and I felt I belonged in the muggle world. I just wanted to be ordinary which was impossible as I was from the Potter family. My dad had defeated Lord Voldemort for god's sake and was head of the Auror office. How could I possibly ever be normal in the magical world?
"Is there anyone you'd miss?"
"I'd obviously miss my family, but I will go see them."
"Anyone in Hogwarts?"
There was no one at Hogwarts who I talked to. Scorpius was the first person outside of my family who I had shared a proper conversation with (as well as a few kisses and other stuff). Of course, I could never tell him that. "The drawing's finished." I passed my sketchpad to him.
Scorpius examined the drawing appreciatively. "You got talent, but I don't look like that. Maybe you are blind."
"I'm not blind. That's how you look when you are really smiling."
He looked up from the pad and at me. "So you think I'm hot."
I felt my cheeks go hot. "Don't be ridiculous! I think you're uglier than Peeves!"
"Really?" He handed my notepad back to me. "I feel like going out today. Want to go to The Three Broomsticks?"
"Now? But it's nearly five. We won't get back before curfew."
"Such a good boy," Scorpius taunted. "Your mummy would be so proud."
I shouldn't have let him goad me, but I wasn't good at dealing with Scorpius. I hated his condescending attitude, and I wanted to prove him wrong. "Let's go."
Firewhiskey was the best drink to ever have been made. At first, it left a burning sensation in my throat, but eventually it gave me a weird feeling. I drained my third glass, and slammed it down on the table. "I want some more!"
"You should take it easy," Scorpius had only taken three sips of his first glass, and he was staring at me doubtfully. "You'll get drunk."
"Shaddup! You're the one who told me to taste Firewhiskey."
He rolled his eyes. "Whatever. It's your call."
The barmaid came with a bottle of Firewhiskey and refilled my glass with me. Her dress was really low cut, revealing the top of her boobs. She kept smiling at Scorpius, but the guy was oblivious to her. He was staring out of the window, a distant look on his face.
I took a sip of my Firewhiskey, and closed my eyes in ecstasy. Man, it tasted so good. I could drink it everyday, and I still wouldn't get bored of it. The Firewhiskey drove away thoughts of my current problems with James and my family. For once, I could just forget about all my worries.
"You're actually a cool guy," I said to Scorpius. "If it weren't for you, I would have never discovered the pleasures of Firewhiskey."
"Maybe I should introduce you to AA." Scorpius muttered.
"Ha-ha," I leaned back into my chair. "I'm not drunk."
"I know. If you were drunk, you'd be doing a leprechaun dance on the table right now."
"People do that when they're drunk?"
"I've seen it happen. You're just a little bit loopy."
"Oh."
Silence ensued again. I could tell something was bothering Scorpius, but I had no idea how to ask him. We weren't exactly friends. I had no idea what we were! We'd kissed but I didn't want to at that time, but now I did. Wait, what was that thought just now? I didn't want to kiss Scorpius of my own will. I was forcing myself to do that because he was blackmailing me, and a relationship could help improve my art. That was it. Nothing else.
"Why are you staring at me?" Scorpius enquired.
"I was just thinking about why I had the sudden urge to kiss you." I said absent-mindedly.
"What?"
I clapped my hands on my mouth, suddenly realising my Freudian slip. The Firewhiskey must have slowed down my thinking. Damn it! Now what was I going to do? I tried to think up of a way to cover my slip. "I um…I uh…"
Scorpius cupped my chin, his grey eyes shining. "I accept your proposal, Albus."
"Wai—!" His lips clamped down on mine, and I gave in immediately. I missed the warmth of his lips, and I craved them with a passion. The kiss deepened, and his tongue wrapped around mine.
He broke away. "Not here. Somewhere more private."
"Like where?" I came out sounding desperate.
Scorpius got up, smiling. "I have the perfect place."
