Albus laughed with his cousins. James and Hugo went on about Quidditch, insisting that their team was better than the Slytherins. Rose and Lily laughed about boys. Albus argued amiably with James, told Lily he would have to talk to these boys first, told his parents school was going fine. He acted completely normal, but underneath it all he kept thinking about Scorpius. No one noticed he was acting differently. He stared in envy at the happy couples around him: Teddy and Victorie, mostly. They couldn't keep their hands off each other.

Al wished he and Scorpius could do that.