Chapter Nine
Scorpius followed his friends through the busy corridors. He seized Albus's arm as they turned a corner and passed the Potions classroom.
"Should I break up with Rose after dinner?" he whispered anxiously in Albus's ear.
Albus shrugged. "If it were up to me, you'd break up with her as soon as possible. But it's not up to me."
Scorpius nodded. "I think I'm going to do it. Before Heiress beats me to it."
"You don't think she was bluffing?" Albus asked as they skirted around a group of seventh years.
"I don't know," Scorpius said. "But Rose should hear it from me."
They had reached the Great Hall. Students poured into the room as the floating candles hovered above their heads.
The Slytherins sat together. Scorpius took a seat next to Albus and held his hand under the table. He had a sick feeling in the pit of his stomach. Without meaning to, he made eye contact with Rose, sitting at the Gryffindor table. She winked at him and smiled. The knot in his gut tightened.
Scorpius didn't eat with much enthusiasm. He was too fearful to indulge in the spectacular feast. In his mind, he tried to work out a gentle way of breaking up with Rose. He hoped she wouldn't be too angry with him. He hoped she wouldn't take her anger out on Albus.
Dessert didn't appeal to him much either. All the while, he sat as close to Albus as he could, resisting the urge to rest his head on his shoulder. Albus's warmth seemed to provide him with some comfort.
Professor McGonagall dismissed them for bed. Scorpius felt a thrill of terror. Albus gave his hand a tight squeeze.
"You can do this," he whispered. "It'll be okay."
Scorpius looked at him, wanting to kiss him very much. Instead, he mouthed the words thank you. He experienced a small boost in confidence, smiled warmly at his boyfriend, and went to find Rose in the immense crowd.
He pushed his way past countless students. He kept seeing Rose's bright red hair bobbing along just in front of him, but he struggled to reach her. Finally, he caught up to her just as she was about to enter the Gryffindor common room.
"ROSE!" he called over all the noise.
She turned, her smile widening when she saw him. Next to her stood Hugo, James, and Lily.
"You lot go on," she told them. "I'll catch up with you later."
James said something that made Lily and Hugo giggle as they continued to the Gryffindor tower, glancing back over their shoulders as they did.
Rose rushed up to him, pulling him into a tight hug.
"I missed you," she murmured, kissing him softly on the lips.
"Yeah," said Scorpius numbly. "Why don't we go for a walk?"
Rose nodded. "Good idea," she said, cheerful as ever. "I have to patrol the halls, anyway. We could do it together!"
Scorpius had forgotten Rose was a school prefect, like both her parents had been. She wore her gleaming badge on the front of her robes.
They walked down the corridors together. Rose wrapped her arm around Scorpius's waist. He was too afraid to wriggle out of her hold.
He listened to her chatter merrily as they wandered about the school, looking for trouble-makers. Rose talked about how she was preparing for her O.W.L.s and how Gryffindor would most likely lose to Slytherin in the match for the Quidditch Cup.
"Your Chasers are so good," she explained. "We probably won't stand a chance."
As they approached the Entrance Hall, Scorpius's legs felt weak and shaky. They sat down on the marble staircase and watched various students and teachers pass by. Rose lay her head on his shoulder and Scorpius's stomach rolled over.
"You know," she muttered. "I'm so glad I agreed to go out with you. I've never been happier."
Scorpius tried not to wince. His hands started to become very sweaty.
"I wish I'd known a year ago how great we'd be together," Rose continued. "I would have gone out with you sooner."
"You needed time," Scorpius said hoarsely. He was still trying to think of ways to let her down. His mouth was becoming increasingly dry.
"I know, but still. It would have been nice to know. And to think I used to be so mean to you."
"That's alright," he said quickly. He was running out of time.
"I'm sorry for the way I treated you, Scorpius. You didn't deserve to have all those people making up that rumour about you being You-Know-Who's son. No one should have to deal with something like that. And then losing your mom … that was just dreadful."
"It's okay, Rose," Scorpius said. He was rather touched by her words.
"No, it's not okay. Because I like you a lot, Scorpius. And I want to show you how much I like you. I want to make up for all the bad things that have happened to you."
She lifted her head off his shoulder and began to fiddle with something on her wrist.
Scorpius's heartbeat leaped as she removed a silver, jingling charm bracelet. The bracelet adorned only one bead, a ruby-coloured rose.
"This was a gift from mum and dad for my thirteenth birthday," she explained. "I want you to have it."
Scorpius didn't know what to say. "No, Rose. I can't accept this."
"I know it may be a little early," she admitted. "But I truly care for you, Scorpius. This bracelet is really special. Now, whenever you look at it, you'll think of me."
He took the charm bracelet with trembling fingers.
"It represents how strongly I feel for you," said Rose firmly.
Scorpius knew he had to do it now. His heart couldn't take any more.
"Rose," he began breathlessly. "There's something I need to tell you. It's not going to be easy for you to hear. You'll probably end up hating me."
Rose quickly shook her head. "Nothing you could say or do could possibly change the way I feel about you."
He grimaced. "Alright," he said apprehensively. "I kissed Albus."
The Entrance Hall seemed to become several degrees colder. "What?" Rose asked weakly. Her face was frozen in shock.
"It happened one night in our dorm. We were playing chess and it just sort of happened."
He saw the look on her face. "I am so sorry, Rose," he told her. "I never meant for this to happen. But Albus and I ... we really like each other. I wanted to tell you sooner, but I was afraid of hurting your feelings."
Rose's eyes had filled with tears. Her bottom lip began to quiver. "When?" she said in a tiny voice.
"Sunday night," he said. "The day after the Hogsmeade trip."
She had begun to cry. Fat tears leaked out of the corners of her eyes. Her lips were pressed together in misery.
"Don't be angry with Albus. This is all my fault. He didn't mean for this to happen either."
"Rose?" said a voice.
Scorpius looked up to see Albus walking towards them.
"You!" she yelled, jumping to her feet. "You're not supposed to be out of your dorm."
Then she fell back onto the stairs and broke into a chorus of sobs. Scorpius and Albus both scrambled to her side.
"We're very sorry, Rose," Albus said, patting her shoulder.
Scorpius felt very cold. The charm bracelet was still clutched in his numb fingers.
Rose sprang to her feet once more. She hastily wiped the tears from her face with the back of her hand. Puffing up her chest, she took a deep breath.
"Albus," she said dangerously. She withdrew her wand from the pocket of her robes and pointed it at him. "If you dare break Scorpius Malfoy's heart, I will curse you into oblivion. He's an angel and you're bloody lucky to have him."
Albus swallowed hard but nodded. Rose had a bright spark in her eye that was somewhat intimidating.
"And you," she snapped, turning to aim her wand at Scorpius's chest. "If you break my cousin's heart, I'll have you in detention for the rest of your natural life. Do you understand me?"
Scorpius nodded fearfully. "Yeah, of course," he said.
Rose lowered her wand, eventually shoving it back into her pocket and opened her arms. With a quick glance at Albus, who shrugged unknowingly, they let her wrestle them into a great bear hug.
Scorpius held out the bracelet. "It's not right for me to take this," he said. "Not after what I've done."
But Rose pushed his hand away. "No," she said. "I still want you to keep it. This doesn't change a thing."
He felt the tiny rose-shaped bead pressed against his palm. He quickly hid it inside his pocket before Albus could ask about it.
"Now," Rose said briskly, standing tall. "Off to bed, both of you. I don't want to see either of you in these corridors again tonight."
Scorpius looked at Albus. He smiled nervously. Together, they dashed down the steps and shot towards the corridor. Scorpius glanced over his shoulder as they sped off to the dungeons. He saw Rose fall onto the stair behind her, her face hidden behind her hands. Her shoulders shook.
