DISCLAIMER: I don't own Rose, Scorpius, birthdays, or Ron and Hermione Weasley.
Conclusion to Getting it Right.
Blurb …
Six years later, I'm still best friends with Bea, still cousins with Al and still in love with Scorpius Malfoy. Oh, and still trying to get it right. My conclusion … oh, I don't bloody know. :Scorpius/Rose sequel to GIR postDH NextGen:
This chapter is dedicated to Sophie (or rather, my friend Sophie, not Scorpius's Sophie) for suggesting the title 'The Twenty Third One' for this chapter. Thank you so much, Sophie!
Chapter 20: The Twenty Third One.
"Roooooooosieeeeeeeeeee!"
"Ughhhh …"
"Roooosie! Rosie! Get up! Happy birthday!"
"Go away."
"Rosie!" Bea thankfully stopped bouncing up and down on my bed, only to jump down next to me. I groaned into my pillow and rolled over to face away from her. "Please get up? I have a present for you! I can't believe it, you're 23 today! God, we're old," Bea jumped over me I could see her pull a face. You wouldn't think she was old; maybe about five. "I'm next! But today's your birthday, so you have to GET UP!"
Moaning, I eventually let Bea rip my duvet off me and I practically rolled off my bed. I was normally an early riser, thanks to my crazy work schedule often starting at ungodly hours of the morning. However, I was being put on nightshifts for our current work cycle, so I had to spend twelve hours in one of the children's wards in Magical Diseases. I basically spent all night cleaning and making sure the kids were ok as they slept, but for some reason, I was finding that I liked it. Some kids would be cured pretty quickly, but there were some who had a sickness that stuck with them permanently and there was even one boy who practically lived at St Mungo's. Despite their grim situation, those kids made my job amazing.
But I was still not going to tolerate being woken up at ten in the morning, after only being able to crash around seven when I got home from work.
"Bea, I've only had about three hours sleep!" I complained as she dragged me by the hand down the hallway. "Couldn't you have at least waited until mid-day–?"
"HAPPY BIRTHDAY, ROSIE!" several people suddenly yelled and I leapt a mile once we entered our lounge. For some reason, my mum, dad and little brother were all standing together, holding what looked like a homemade sign that flashed what they had just yelled at me in different colours.
"What the hell?" I asked, pushing back my mess of hair and making sure that I was seeing things properly.
"It's my birthday present for you!" Bea told me, throwing her arms around my waist. "I knew, what with you working nights for the past three weeks, you hadn't been able to see your family in ages, so I organised it with them and got them to come down here and spent the whole day with you!"
"Happy birthday, sweetheart." Mum said, her arm around Hugo, and Dad holding a giant picnic basket.
"I … I'm still in my pyjamas …" I said, honestly quite touched and I hugged my best friend back. "Bea, thank you."
"You're welcome," she said, letting go of me so she could shove me towards my family. "So go on, have fun! Oh, and we're having a birthday party for you tonight!"
"Oh, no, Bea–" I tried to protest, but my family was already crushing me in a huge Rosie-sandwich.
It wasn't that I didn't want my birthday being celebrated. I mean, yeah, woo, I'm 23 now, so bloody old that I'm surprised Bea didn't just get me a wheelchair for my present. But the last party I'd been to was James' Desperate Party last month, and that hadn't exactly ended well.
Well, from my point of view at any rate. Blackmailed, insulted and yelled at all in one night! But from James' point of view, the night couldn't have gone more brilliantly. He might have told me thank you at some point, but soon after getting off with Libby in the corner, the two had completely disappeared and the entire month, I'd barely even seen them. Probably too busy shacking up in their little love cave or whatever the hell without so much as a thank you card!
"Happy birthday, Rosie!" Hugo was saying brightly, pulling back along with Dad, so now it was just Mum squeezing the life out of me. "Sorry about Bea waking you, we were willing to wait a few hours, but she sort of insisted and–"
"Hugo, it's fine!" I said. Then, I tried to push Mum away, gasping, "Mum! Squeezing! Too tight!"
"Oh, I'm sorry," Mum pulled away thankfully, sweeping back my hair so she could see my face. "I just can't believe my baby is 23 already! Ron, we're getting old." she added to Dad.
My dad just grinned at me and I could tell he was resisting the urge to mush up my hair. You never would have thought that Dad had just turned 49 last month from the way he acts; in that respect, he's probably like your average 12 year old. While Mum's turning 50 this year and she actually acts her age, with her now collar-length curly hair, Dad will bounce around, jabbering about the latest evil wizard he's interrogated. Only his greying hair and lined face would make you believe he was his actual age.
"Aw, Hermione, you know you're only as young as you feel," Dad said. "How old do you feel, Rosie?"
"About 15, to be honest."
"There, see?" Dad said. "We're far from getting on a bit! Eh, Hugo?"
"I'm just starving." Hugo answered, picking up the picnic basket from the floor and heading for the door. "C'mon!"
"You had breakfast an hour ago!" Mum sighed.
"Your point?"
Once I was actually dressed, ready, and had said another thank you to Bea, my family and I headed out to the reserve that was down the road from our block of flats for our picnic. Though of course today couldn't go without any hiccups and sure enough, we happened to step outside into the hallway the exact same time as Scorpius did.
"Oh, just what I wanted to see this morning." I said.
"Here we go …" Hugo muttered.
Mum and Dad looked slightly awkward as Scorpius just scoffed, carrying a large bag of washing under his arm. "Lovely to see you, too." he said, rolling his eyes.
"Don't use sarcasm against me, that's cheating," I told him. "Have a good day! Hope you get hit by a bus!"
"Rose!" Mum scolded and I just turned and stormed for the stairs. I was failed to be chastised however, since Dad had snorted, "Nice one!" and slapped me a high-five as I walked past. Unfortunately, Scorpius rushed forward as well, apparently determined to beat me, and reached the door to the stairs at the same time as me.
"What the–? GAH!" I yelped as he practically bashed me over the head with his washing to get through the door first. I slammed him back against the wall in retaliation and he yelled, "Oi!" We continued to struggle in some bizarre wrestling match as we both tried to get through the door first. "Would you stop being so bloody pathetic?!"
"You're the pathetic one, trying to get through the door first!"
"Y'know, I was actually going to suck up my pride and wish you happy birthday, but I don't think I will now!" Scorpius scowled at me. We seemed to have lodged ourselves in the doorway, Scorpius's washing trapped between us preventing either of us from moving any further into the stairwell.
"Oh, like hell, you so just made that up!" I told him, kicking him in the shin in hopes that he'd recoil out of the way. "What the hell are you even doing here? Would have thought you'd be at Sophie's or something!"
"You're not really helping yourself in sounding any less jealous, Rose," Scorpius rolled his eyes. "Just move!"
"YOU move!"
"I've got an idea!" Hugo suddenly stormed forward and kicked Scorpius's bag of washing. The force made Scorpius and I both go crashing through the doorway and stumbling into the stairwell. "There we go! Mum, Dad, we can get going now!"
I glanced back and saw Mum and Dad just standing there in the corridor, apparently having just stared at the debacle in he stairwell with half-shocked, half-bemused expressions.
Yeah, probably not my finest hour.
"Rosie, are you going to explain what happened back there with Scorpius?" Mum asked me a little while later as we strolled through the reserve.
"Back where?" I asked, even though I obviously knew what she was talking about. I made the mistake of catching Mum's eye and I quickly added, "OH! You mean back in the stairwell? That was nothing, nothing at all …"
"Rosie," Mum sighed. Dad and Hugo didn't seem to be listening as they walked on ahead of us; in fact, Hugo had pointed out an ice cream van and was currently dragging Dad over by the hand, like he truly was a little kid again. "You were squabbling like a pair of ten year olds! I don't think I've ever seen you two act like that since the first time I picked you up from Platform Nine and Three Quarters after your first-year!"
I remembered the incident quite vividly. I had happily run out onto the platform to greet my family, having completely abandoned my trunk in the middle of everyone's path. When I went back to get it, however, it was to find that Scorpius had written 'Weasley Monster' on it with him laughing at me. Despite the mediocre insult (trust me, the real humdingers came in the later years), I had lashed out and pushed him. Scorpius had yelled out for his mum (he was always a mummy's boy. Astoria would have honestly been proud of him) and basically, there had been a rather large argument in the middle of the platform.
Mum had made me apologise, even though I clearly didn't start it. "Aw, geez, Mum," I muttered. "Did you have to bring that up?"
"If you're going to behave like a first-year again, then I will!"
"Well, you know what, inwardly I still feel like a first-year!" I found myself snapping. "I don't know why they invented birthdays!" And I stalked off after Dad, Hugo and the ice cream.
I felt sort of bad about yelling at Mum, but only occasionally had I been able to feel close to her. I was always Daddy's little girl. I might have my mother's brains, but I also had my dad's Weasley brashness. If I had a problem, I always went to him because I just felt like he understood my Rose-ness a lot more than rational Mum. I can only think of two incidences where I spilled out everything to her, and the first was when I had first told my parents that Scorpius and I were going out and the only other option was being murdered by my dad. Naturally, Mum was the safer choice there. The second had been just after Scorpius and I broke up.
Is it sad that both occasions were because of him?
But Mum didn't push the subject of mine and Scorpius's childish brawl in the stairwell, which I was thankful for. She always seemed to know when I just needed to cool off until I could talk more sense. After Dad and Hugo got their ice creams, we chose a sunny spot in the reserve so we could have our picnic.
The reserve was conveniently very close to our flat and it was a great place just to get outdoors. There weren't many green, leafy places like this in central London, so we took advantage of the warm weather as much as we could. It wasn't very large, one big main path leading through the middle and connecting the two blocks on each side, but it was big enough to attract joggers, ice cream vans and families going on picnics, just like us.
Today, there were heaps of people, just normal Londoners walking their dogs or couples holding hands. The only downside to this place was the potholes; I had once gotten a twisted ankle after going for a jog here (granted, it had been about four in the morning and I was very extremely drunk at the time, but still). Dad spread out the blanket and Mum tried not to make it noticeable that she was pulling that seemed like an entire three course meal out of the one measly basket.
"Are you trying to break the Statue of Secrecy?" I asked when eventually, Mum pulled out an entire birthday cake.
"Shhh," Mum told me. "I've cast a few spells of my own. No one's looking."
"Who cares, Rosie?" Hugo told me, already sticking into the savoury pies. "It's cake! Go on, blow out the candles!"
Even though my mother was a lot of handle, my brother was currently stuffing his face and my dad was … well, my dad, I realised that this had to have honestly been the best present Bea could've gotten me. I really had missed my family so much, even if they are a bunch of weirdos. I laughed at Dad's jokes, listened to Mum's latest work story and even endured all three of them belting out 'Happy birthday dear Rosieeeeeee … happy birthday to you!' Of course Hugo practically ate half the cake himself and Dad asked me how work was.
"It's actually brilliant!" I told him. "I mean, everyone's been so high-strung this year, considering it's our last training year, but this last cycle has been really great. I'm working in children's diseases and I really love it."
"Reckon that's where you want to work once you get full-Healer?" Dad asked.
"I might not get full-Healer," I reminded him. "But yeah … it's only taken me five years, but I think it might be."
"Oh, you'll totally get full-Healer! Do you even get a choice of where you want to work?" Hugo asked me, his mouth full of chocolate cake.
"Depends who you know," I rolled my eyes. "The bloody vultures normally get first picking, generally because they know a few people. They're not technically supposed to, but then they probably weren't technically meant to be on the course in the first place. They tend to overlook that sort of thing. Nah, we kind of just get put wherever and we're supposed to take it, since y'know, it's our first proper job! But I heard rumours that they try to take your preferences into account. Ally wants to work in potion mixing, though I have no idea why. Gerald's still deciding, but if Ally decides to work overseas, he'll probably go with her."
"Oh, is that that couple you were talking about last time we saw you?" Mum asked me with a smile.
"Rosie always has the best gossip." Hugo said.
I grinned. "Yeah, that's them. Finally got together when the shop exploded. How's the fixing going, by the way?" I felt really bad, considering that I had only managed to make it down once to help out my uncle rebuild his shop.
"Really well!" Dad told me. "They reckon it'll be ready for re-opening soon! Fred and James will be banned completely, of course."
"Is Uncle George actually kicking them out?" Hugo laughed.
"Ah, I'm pretty sure he was just joking," Dad said. Then, he really thought about it and added, "Er, well, maybe."
"Well, you can tell him that I'll come and help with the finishing touches," I said, determinedly. "And that I'll be there for the re-opening, of course."
Dad agreed and then he did something that generally made me duck for cover; he glanced at Mum for permission to say something. It wasn't often he did it, but it usually meant that Dad wanted to say something wildly inappropriate. Apparently, they had established the look right back when they first started going out, but sometimes his words would slip through. This time, instead of shaking her head frantically, Mum actually appeared to agree.
This was a first. Hugo and I exchanged rather scared looks. This isn't boding well!
"There's also something we wanted to tell you two," Dad said to me and Hugo, Mum encouraging him along. Oh my god, he's going to announce that he wants to be a merman or something. Either that, or Mum's pregnant again. "We're not really sure how you'll feel about it, so we weren't going to do it on your birthday, Rosie, but this is the first time we've been a family together for over a month, so …"
"So we're telling you now," Mum said, gently. "We hope this won't come as too big of a shock …"
They've decided they're going to join a nudist colony! Or they're going to start selling mine and Hugo's body parts. Actually, no, Hugo's too scrawny. No one would take him, except maybe his stomach; that thing must be huge.
Mum moved to place a hand on Dad's shoulder. Yep, definitely pregnant.
"For Merlin's sake, just say it already!" I cried. "Dad, I promise to love you, no matter what species you are! You want a fish tail, you go for it! Mum, is it a boy or girl?!"
"What?" Mum looked utterly bewildered. "What are you–?"
"Mum, you may not have noticed," Hugo snorted. "But Rosie talks a lot of shit when she's nervous. You're not like, pregnant or something, are you?"
"Oh, god no!" Mum cried and Dad looked shocked. She caught Dad's look and quickly added another, "No! No, Ron!" Dad looked significantly better. Mum was almost laughing now. "Rose, Hugo, I know you've always wanted a younger siblings, but trust me, we would have had one years ago if we were going to. Your father decided that two was quite enough."
"Grow up with six siblings and it kind of gets to you …" Dad muttered, still looking rather unsure.
"No, goodness, you two," Mum sighed. "Nor is your father growing a fish tail! We're selling the house, that's what's happening!"
Oh. Not nearly as cool as the merman option, but whatever. Hugo's face completely fell. "What?!" he yelped. "You're selling our house? Why?"
"It's too big for us," Dad shrugged. "Obviously we needed the space when you two were running around, but now you're all grown up and living your own lives without us. When was the last time you came home, eh?" Dad eyed the two of us and I immediately felt guilty. I had helped drive Mum and Dad out of the only family home we'd lived in.
"But how could you just … sell it?" I said in disbelief. "Just up and leave?"
"It was a difficult decision to make," Mum admitted. "But we want somewhere smaller, somewhere out in the countryside where I can finally have that lovey garden I've always wanted! We've been looking at houses nearer to your Uncle Harry and Auntie Ginny."
"Don't we get a say in this?" Hugo grumbled, folding his arms in a huff.
"What about all our stuff?" I added.
"We'll keep all your old things," Mum reassured us. "But we've decided, I'm afraid. We would have told you sooner, but we wanted to tell you together as a family."
"So now it's my fault!" I said.
"Oh, Rosie, don't be so dramatic," Mum sighed. "I understand it's your birthday, but–"
"You might get that, but you obviously don't understand what that house means to us!" I snapped back. I jumped to my feet and stormed off before Mum could even call after me. I didn't even really know where I was going, just that I didn't want to have to think about this. I loved our house! It was the place I was taken after I was born, it was the place I would have sleepovers with Al, it was the house I grew up in. How dare they take that away without even asking first?!
"Rosie!" Dad had caught up to me, but I shook off his hand on my arm.
"I don't want to talk to you, Dad!" I said.
"Aw, stop acting like a little girl," Dad slung an arm around me, making me come to a halt underneath a tree just to the side of the reserve's main path. "You're my big 23 year old now! Why are you really so upset?"
I glanced up at my Dad. Back over at the picnic basket, I saw Mum talking to Hugo. He didn't look like he was buying much of what Mum was saying, but Dad deserved to know what I was thinking. "It's just something that hasn't changed," I told him. "My entire life, that house has been the one constant! The one thing that was just always there and if you sell it, then who's to say that anything in my life will stay the same again? I've already lost heaps as it is!"
"Look, Rosie, I may not have the sight," Dad told me, leaning against the tree's trunk. I copied him, nestled into his side. "God help us if I did! But I'm pretty certain that there are a lot of things in your life that have been and will always stay the same. Your best friends, for one thing."
He was right. Al and I had been together basically ever since he was born just a few months after me. Bea and I had been inseparable since we were eleven. "And yes, Rosie," Dad continued. "Things are going to change, that's just what happens. But you've got your friends and your family and they are always going to be there for you, as long as they're alive. Even that boy of yours."
I actually scoffed at him. "What, Scorpius?" I practically laughed. "You do know he hates me, right?"
Dad snorted. "With him living down the hall and you two still seeing each other every day? Yeah, you're right, he so hates you."
I just stared at my dad. I knew he could be sarcastic at the best of times, but this was just too bizarre. "Dad, you can't stand Scorpius."
"Yeah, sure, he's a little bastard for hurting you," Dad nodded. "And I've never really liked him. Too confident. Bloke should always be able to be brought down a peg or two and that boy never seemed to have a button to press, it annoyed me. But for some reason, you loved him and I reckon he's still hanging around for a reason."
"He has a girlfriend now," I told Dad, bitterly. "Sophie. At first I thought he'd just made her up to spite me, but I've actually met her."
"Even better!" Dad said and I gave up, resting my head against his shoulder. "He hopes that a torrid love affair with another woman will have you screaming with jealousy!"
"… you are hearing yourself, right?" I asked, considering this was my dad talking. He was sounding like he'd just leapt from one of those day-time soap dramas that Al secretly likes watching so much.
"Hey, I got used to him," Dad shrugged, jostling my head and making me look up. "And even after you've broken up, he's still around. That scene in the stairwell this morning? No matter how many girlfriends he may have, I get the feeling that that boy is here to stay. Now are you ready to be good and come back and eat your cake nicely for your mother?"
Somehow, I had ended up actually listening to my dad and I had thought hard all throughout munching on the delicious cake. Eventually, my brain couldn't take it anymore and I had to stop before I exploded. Instead, I just tried to concentrate on my day with my family. Mum talked about her ideal new house while we wandered London shops together, had a late lunch at a small café and Hugo told me that he'd buy me whatever I wanted for my birthday. Once it was getting late in the evening, I had to tell them goodbye.
"Thank you so much for spending the day with me," I said into my mum's shirt as she hugged me tightly outside my flat. "I didn't mean to go a little crazy, I swear."
"That's quite all right, darling, I'm used to it," Mum said, her smiling showing through her words. She pulled back and kissed me on the cheek. "Happy birthday, my little Rosie."
"I love you."
"Love you, too," Mum said back. "Right, you lot!" she yelled at Dad and Hugo, who both automatically snapped to attention. "Time to let Rosie get ready for her party!"
After some more kisses and goodbyes, Mum and Dad finally left me and Hugo in the corridor. "You going home then?" I asked my brother.
"Nah," He just shrugged with a mischievous grin on his face. "Reckon I'll stay around a bit."
"Ok …" I said, looking at him uneasily. The reason for his grin became apparent when I opened the door to my flat and I had about twenty-odd people packed into my living room scream,
"HAPPY BIRTHDAY, ROSE!"
"What the hell?" I said as everyone cheered, throwing balloons and streamers everywhere and waving the flashing banner around. Once I got over the sheer noise, I started to notice that these people were all my friends; Al and Bea, who were darting forward with grins on their faces, Jo and Toby waving the flag, Trevor waving, many of my St Mungo's mates and even James and Libby had managed to drag themselves from their love-cave. I ended up laughing when Bea ran forward to hug me.
"I know you said you didn't want one, but–"
"I love it," I muttered into her hair. "Thank you."
I knew that Bea must be smiling and I saw over her shoulder Al and the rest of our friends approaching. I made to pull back, but Bea held on, saying something in my ear,
"I know you're hurt at the moment," she whispered. "I kind of hate Scorpius, too. But remember that I will always love you, no matter what."
I tightened my arms around her and tried not to cry. "I know."
Bea pulled away with one last squeeze and she grinned as Al took his turn to throw his arms around me. "C'mon, everyone! Get your drink on, let's party!"
I'll admit it. I loved my birthday party. Everyone here were people I actually liked and wanted to be around, I was given the weirdest assortment of presents (a 'scrying bowl' from Libby that she had apparently stolen off her recent flatmate who was into 'freaky future stuff' being the one of the more sensible ones) and the cake Bea had got everyone to sing happy birthday around tasted divine.
"You didn't make this, did you?" I had asked when cutting up the cake, everyone jostling around for a piece. Several actually paused when I'd asked that.
"Oh, hell no!" Bea had cried and everyone had relaxed. "I bought it at the shop, what's wrong with you?!"
Able to eat without the fear of dying, I happily cut myself a slice, despite it being the second cake I had eaten today. Oh, well, I'm sure there's an upside to having a huge arse somewhere. I was plonked on the sofa and in the middle of devouring it when, much to my surprise, Libby came over, dragging James behind her.
"Loving the party, happy birthday, Rosie!" she said, dropping down next to me to give me an enthusiastic hug. "You're practically an old woman now!"
"I'm surprised you came at all," I told her, almost dropping my cake at the force of her hug, although I thankfully managed to keep hold of it. "Oh, and I'm sorry, you are …?" I added to my cousin. James rolled his eyes, sitting of the arm of the sofa behind Libby.
"Aw, c'mon, I still see you–"
"Um, no, actually!" I pointed out. "I throw a party just for you, you get off with the woman of your dreams and you skip off into the bloody sunset without so much as a thank you!"
James and Libby exchanged looks. Honestly, these two had to be the weirdest couple I've ever seen. The other day, Bea had even pointed out that their couple name would be 'Jabby'. I mean, seriously? It was either that, or Limes! There was no hope for them from the start. But for some reason, they giggled. Like, actually. "Well, thank you!" Libby told me. "Sorry it's about a month overdue, but it's not like we've left the flat much. This time, my flatmate decided she was going to move out on her own! Apparently couldn't stand the noise, but the accidental free strip show was probably the last straw."
I promptly choked on my cake and James laughed and leaned down to wrap his arms around Libby's shoulders. "That – that is quite enough information!" I managed to gasp out.
"Hey, we have you to thank for it," James said, kissing Libby on the side of her head. "If you want, we can say it's all your fault!"
"Does Auntie Ginny happen to know about your wonderful new girlfriend?" I asked, having finished the last of my cake.
James' face fell and Libby stifled a laugh. "I'm going to take that as a no …?" I said.
"No!" James said, holding out his hands in defence as if was going to attack him or something. "No way! You can't tell her, not yet, please? Dad I don't care about, he won't mind, but Mum will go mental!"
"What, because her eldest son has actually found himself a proper girlfriend for the first time in his life?"
"Exactly," James told me. "She'll actually go crazy. Let's face it LL's trawling the world and Al's already getting married! I'm her only chance at any more potential in-laws! Not that I'm suggesting we get married …" he hastily added to Libby, who just snorted.
"My dad didn't care much," she said, shrugging. "Mum … she's a bit of a long story. But my brother was the most interesting and that was mainly so he could hunt James down and punch his face in."
"Look, if you don't want Auntie Ginny to know just yet, I will of course keep your secret," I told my cousin. "You did it for me. Though you do know that she will somehow find out, even if you never tell her? Ginny Potter has her ways …"
"I'm hoping to put off that moment until I figure out a way to tell her without her trying to force me down an aisle," James said, rolling his eyes. "But honestly … thank you, Rosie. I'm really the happiest I've ever been."
"I think he's exaggerating!" Libby added, but she was grinning and seriously … James was telling the honest to god truth. I could see it in his eyes, the way he never seemed to let go of the girl sitting on front of him. James and Libby somehow got it right and, even better, made it work. They might be weird, they might be Jabby, but in the end, they loved each other and it was written all over their faces.
"Uh … Rosie," James began hesitantly. "Did you invite, erm, Scorpius by any chance?"
"No," I said, eyes narrowed. "I didn't even throw this party, that was all Bea. Why?"
"Er, well, I don't want to be the source of more drama, but he's right over there …" James pointed out across the room and I turned to indeed see Scorpius talking to Al near the entrance to the kitchen. I had no idea what the hell he was thinking showing up here, but I felt my blood boil and I knew he was going to get one hell of a tirade once I got over there!
"Excuse me please," I told James and Libby. "I believe there's a scene I must go and cause. Feel free to go and run off back to your little shag-nest!"
"Rosie!" Libby called after me, but I was already halfway across the room. My anger had forced my vision basically into one long tunnel, focused on nothing but chewing out Scorpius for even daring to come to my birthday. But, fortunately for him, my path was blocked by yet another person coming to wish me happy birthday.
It was unfortunately for me, since that person turned out to be the wonderful as ever Sophie, Scorpius's new girlfriend.
"Hi, Rose?" she said, tentatively. Without the Greek dress, she looked possibly even more pretty than before, which I hated. Her dark blond hair was so beautifully straight, it made me want to strangle her. Seriously, ever since I could complain, I'd wanted straight hair like that! Not the curly mass of monstrosity that sat on my head now! In her flowery skirt and denim jacket, she made several boys at the party stop and stare. Toby actually walked straight into the coffee table, his mouth hanging open.
"Sophie," I said, trying not to let my bitterness seep in. "What're you doing here?"
"I came with Scorpius," she said, gesturing behind us to where said Scorpius seemed to have noticed me chatting to his girlfriend. I wasn't surprised at the look of oh, shit on his face. "Trust me, we're only here because Scorpius needed to talk to Al! We were meant to be going out, but–!"
"Don't worry, I'm going to murder him later," I growled darkly. Then I noticed Sophie looking at me like I was about to cut her leg off or something and I said, "Oh, come on, I'm not going to kill you."
"You're not?" she asked.
"No, he's the one whose life is in danger!" I said, pointing behind me to where Al was visibly holding Scorpius back from intervening. Smart boy, that cousin of mine. A murder at a birthday party really would put a damper on things. "So long as you didn't suggest it, I'm fine."
What was I saying? I wasn't fine with this at all! Sophie seemed as shocked as I was at my declaration and she actually smiled. "I'm so sorry, Rose," she said. "But happy birthday."
"Thanks." I said, shortly.
"So how old are you now?" she asked.
"Twenty three," I answered with a shudder. "It's so old I don't even want to think about it."
"Oh, I know what you mean!" Sophie said, nodding vigorously. "I felt the exact same way when I turned twenty!"
Bitch, I immediately thought, but I didn't jump down her throat. Instead, I found my mouth doing that whole thought-splurge thing that I can't control, "So how did you end up working in Muggle Relations?" I asked her. Like I was interested.
"My dad's a Muggle," Sophie told me. "I learnt so much about the way Muggles and Muggle-borns were treated during the war and I just found myself wanting to make a difference. I've basically had my mind set since I was about thirteen. What about you?" she asked, politely. "Was it the same with you and Healing?"
I snorted. "I left Hogwarts working at my uncle's joke shop. Then, my cousin cracked his head open and I decided I'd try my hand at it."
I could tell Sophie wasn't entirely sure whether she believed me. I tend to have that effect whenever I tell my stories. What the hell was I doing? Why was I talking to this girl like a normal person? I was supposed to be telling her to piss off out of my flat and that Scorpius was way too good for her, but … I didn't want to. For some reason, I had the thought that, perhaps, Sophie was too good for Scorpius. Maybe it was her peppy young-ness sinking into me and messing with my brain.
"So, erm," Sophie seemed to be trying to find something else to ask. "How did you and Scorpius meet?"
Oh, god. We had to go back that far? "Uh, we were eleven," I admitted. "First train ride to Hogwarts. He made fun of Hufflepuff's, so I decided on the spot that I hated him."
"He made fun of Hufflepuff's?" Sophie looked outraged. "I would have killed him!"
"I take it that was your house?"
"Hufflepuff and proud!" Sophie declared. "You were Ravenclaw. Trust me, there wasn't one person in that castle who didn't know who you and Scorpius were. I even saw that screaming match in the Great Hall!"
"Ah …" I normally tried to block out that particular memory, along with most of that school year.
"… oh, god, I'm so sorry," Sophie suddenly seemed to realise the awkwardness of the situation. "This must be horrible for you. I swear, I had no idea about you when Scorpius asked me out. I didn't remember him from school, we never talked, but I should have, it's not a very common name is it? We just work in offices next to each other and I liked him for ages, but I never said anything, then we got talking one day and–"
"Wait, he asked you out?" I suddenly cut in. That was like a blow to the stomach. Here I was thinking that some bitch had waltzed in and stolen Scorpius from me. The thought of him actually being the one to move on was …
"Er, yes," Sophie looked apologetic. "I sort of mentioned that I liked him and he took the initiative and just asked me. I didn't even know you existed until he warned me about his deranged ex-girlfriend who may possibly try and kill me."
"Yeah, I considered that," I said, honestly. "But really, at this point, I just want to kill him more. Did he tell you anything else about me that I should know?"
"All he told me was that you went out for six years and you're a little bit crazy …" Sophie admitted.
"He what?" I said. "Oh, you've got to be kidding me … I mean, I am crazy, but what right did he have telling you?"
"Look, if you ask me, I didn't think it was right of him to be going out with someone so soon after breaking up when you'd been together for that long," Sophie told me. "But … I'm sorry, this is so awkward … I don't mean to cause any trouble, but you need to know, I really do like him, Rose …"
"I – no, no, I get it," I sighed. What? I do? What the hell, Rose? "He's … Scorpius. I fell for him, too, though I am wondering why now."
"So … you're ok with this, then?" she asked me and I stared at her hard. "Me and him …?"
No, I wasn't ok with it. No way in hell. But when Sophie asked me, the only thing I could think about was that I was so thankful that it was her and not some random girl he had picked up at a nightclub or something. "To be honest, Sophie," I said. "I hate it. I've always had this thing, even before we got together, where I didn't want him to ever have a girlfriend. I was afraid he would just forget about me and I guess it was because I pretty much wanted him all to myself. That hasn't changed. I … I don't want him like that," I wasn't sure if that was entirely true, but whatever. I'll face that another day. "But I don't want anyone else to have him, either."
"Ah," Sophie looked uncomfortable. "If it helps," she added. "He also told me that you'd stick around in his life?"
"Come again?"
"Well," Sophie thought for a moment. "On our first date, we sort of exchanged histories. I told him about my ex-boyfriend from last year and he told me about you. He made sure to mention that no matter how over you he was, you were always going to stay in his life."
"Really?" I couldn't believe this.
"Well, yeah," Sophie shrugged. "I mean, your cousin is his flatmate. And he is getting married to your flatmate. Of course you'll be hanging around," She gave me a small smile and I felt myself almost smiling back against my will. What is happening to me?! "But I'll be around, too. I just don't want there to be animosity between us because we both want the same man. That's not going to happen, is it?"
I didn't know how to answer her. No, I didn't want Scorpius to have a girlfriend who wasn't me. No, I didn't want him back. Yes, if I kept telling myself that enough times, it might start being true. Did we honestly both want the same boy in the way Sophie was suggesting?
"I severely hope not," I eventually told her. "And I'm very sorry, but I'm afraid after tonight, you may not even have a boyfriend, because I honestly am going to kill him!"
Sophie just outright laughed at that. "Rose, can I say that I like you?"
And my mouth somehow said, "Sophie, I like you, too."
In the end, it didn't take long to flay Scorpius alive.
The moment I left Sophie, I stormed straight for him. Al finally let go of Scorpius's jumper and he exchanged looks with me. I could tell that he would support whatever I did; it was his fault for making Scorpius come here, after all. Scorpius's eyes went wide as I approached and held up his hands in defence as I slammed a hand into his chest and forced him into the kitchen.
"What the HELL?!" I yelled at him. The few people who were in the kitchen were pretty quick to flee. We were soon alone and I had a painful flashback of several good memories I'd had with Scorpius in this very room. To describe them would break my resolve, so I shook it off.
"Hey! Look, I know you're mad, but you don't need to–"
"The HELL I don't!" I roared, shoving him in the chest once again. "You keep acting like everything bad that ever happened between us was MY fault! Did it ever occur to you that it wasn't all just me?! Was is easier, perhaps, to keep thinking that–?"
"What the hell are you on about–? Well, it wasn't all just me, either!" Scorpius spluttered.
"That's not the POINT!" I yelled over him and he fell silent. "We BROKE UP, Scorpius, there are BOUNDRIES! You can't keep waltzing into my flat like you own the place any more! I don't care if you had to talk to Al, it could have waited until after the party! You can't tell stories about me to Sophie! I don't know whether you're trying to make her hate me or whatever, but it hasn't worked! I spoke with her and she's nice – far too nice to be with you!"
Scorpius was standing in front of me, his mouth gaping open slightly. I don't think I'd ever seen him looking so shocked. I didn't even know where this was all coming from. All I knew was that it needed to come out. "I don't know what you're trying to do, but you can't 'win' our break up by being the first to go out with someone else! Have fun in your normal and perfect relationship while you can, because like it or not, I KNOW you, Scorpius Malfoy, and I know that you're going to be bored of it soon enough! I'm sick of you treating me like everything is my fault and I'm not going to stand around and take it anymore! You're SUCH a BASTARD! Now GET THE HELL AWAY FROM ME!"
For a long moment, I didn't think Scorpius would move. Then, his leg jerked, and without saying anything, he practically ran for the lounge. I followed and stood in the doorway, watching him wave a hasty goodbye to Al before taking Sophie by the hand and pulling her with him out of the flat. The look in his eyes almost seemed scared.
I folded my arms as I leaned against the kitchen doorframe and smirked. That had felt good.
Conclusion to turning a year older, suddenly becoming unwitting friends with my ex's new girlfriend and screaming my head off:
-Scorpius had it coming. See if I bloody care about him anymore.
-I'm not entirely sure why my brain keeps saying that I like Sophie. I want to be angry and jealous, because that's all I've ever really known. Now … I'm something else and I don't know what it is yet.
-Despite the pain and humiliation, my parents, friends and this party have actually made it bearable. I'll even tolerate turning a whole year older.
Rose: 20, Scorpius: 18.
(It's MY party and I'll scream if I want to!).
A/N: I know that Scorpius has been a colossal douche as of recently, so I hope you all liked this, because he NEEDED telling. Rose is in a place now where she can get on with her life and see what it's really like to not have Scorpius in it.
I also know that 23 is not that old in hindsight, but everyone always thinks so whenever they reach a year older. I freaked out when I only turned 21!
I know that this isn't the easiest of stories to fluff along with. I like drama. I like making things difficult. I won't change my story just to please people. But so far, you've all been really supportive and I want to thank you for it.
Please tell me what you think!
Until next time -
- Moon. :D