Chapter 21: Jealous

I wish that you were me,
So you could feel this feeling.
I never broke one promise,
And I know you're not honest.
Now you got me yelling.
That's because I'm jealous.
If you're keeping your promise,
I'm keeping mine.

Sometimes I wanna walk in your shoes,
Do the type of things that I never, ever do.
So I take one look in the mirror,
And I say to myself:
Baby girl, you can't survive like this.

-Beyoncé

"Come on."

"No."

"Come on."

"No."

"Scorpius, please."

"Rose. No."

"Scorpius."

"Rose."

"Twenty minutes."

"No."

"Ten minutes."

"No."

"…five?"

"My god, Rose! We are not going into Knockturn Alley!"

Scorpius stopped walking abruptly and turned to face me and glared. I turned and glared back as people walked around us on the sidewalk.

"We're supposed to be on a date."

I smiled in spite of myself.

A date.

Scorpius and I were on a date.

And bloody hell if it didn't make my stomach flutter with butterflies like this was actually only our second date and everything was new and fresh and the possibilities were endless and no one had been hurt and the only problems we had consisted of who would pay and who would grab whose hand first and whether or not he would kiss me again when the date was over.

He looked like he was trying to stifle a grin, which just made me smile harder.

"We are on a date," I said. "But I did notice that you haven't tried to hold my hand yet."

He faltered. "I didn't think—"

I laughed, cutting him off, stopping his adorably flustered expression. Scorpius Malfoy. Flustered. I never thought I'd see the day.

Yesterday's second first date had been absolutely bloody perfect. He had been perfect. I don't think I had stopped smiling from the moment I got home and started recalling everything until the moment I fell asleep. My face actually hurt from smiling when I remembered the flirting and the handholding and just being able to talk to him again… and that kiss.

My god, that kiss.

I would probably be thinking about that kiss until the day I died, remembering how his hands felt on me, his tongue in my mouth, his lips forming to mine, his lips on my neck, my hands in his hair. It had been… sublime.

"Look," he said, now grinning. "Why don't I compromise? I'm an easygoing guy." I scoffed and arched an eyebrow, which Scorpius gamely ignored. "Can't we just go to this place you want to go to and be normal?"

I opened my mouth to protest but he held up a hand. "And then…" He sighed, looking just a bit nettled despite his amusement. "I'll take you to the manor and you can look around for anything you can find on the curse."

Instead of protesting more, instead of ruining a perfectly good day with just the two of us when we were already doing so well and working our way towards being in the kind of strong, solid relationship that I wanted, I simply smiled and slipped my arm in the crook of his, wrapping his bicep up and clutching onto it to pull us closer. "Okay," I said. There was no reason I couldn't compromise. If he was willing to set aside his adverse attitude that he was horrible at hiding when it came to me searching for information about familial curses, then I was willing to compromise and not push and push and push until he snapped.

Scorpius gazed down at me, his eyes full of love and devotion, with a generous dose of amusement and the desperate need to roll his eyes at me, and before he could say or do anything else, I stood up on my toes and pecked him on the lips before going back down to my feet and putting my head on his shoulder as we walked along the streets of Diagon Alley.

I just loved it here. Since I was a little girl, one of my favorite things to do was just walk around Diagon Alley while my mother ran errands or my father would bring me with him when he worked in the joke shop. The thing I loved most about it was how old and historic everything looked—old brick shops smashed together, cobblestone streets, wrought iron lamp posts—while also seeming to just glow and teem with magic—brooms zooming overhead, owls hooting in shop windows, goblins, elves, and centaurs traipsing down the street. To me, there was no other place like it, and in November in the chill and London mist, streets lit with festive lights and the glow from within the shops, it was even more beautiful and perfect.

"It's so pretty here in November," I said to Scorpius as we walked along and I looked in windows and watched all of the other people go by. It was different when all the kids were at Hogwarts, but it made me feel even more special to be here, like I was a part of some secret that I could only know when I was older, sort of like when my parents started letting me stay up until ten instead of nine, letting me in on that secret nine to ten world of which only few could be apart.

Scorpius hummed in response.

"I can't wait until everyone starts hanging up more lights, until we get a little snow on the ground. Then it will be perfect," I said, grinning at a little girl with dark skin and wild braids as she ran past, being chased by another boy with brown hair and freckles.

When Scorpius didn't say anything again—not even a hum this time—I looked up at him and followed his line of sight to a group of kids—probably about a year away from being at Hogwarts—who were standing outside Quality Quidditch Supplies, all with the same types of hats on their heads.

"Scorpius?"

"What is that?" he asked, frowning at them.

They weren't wearing traditional wizards' hats, but instead were wearing the same kind of hat that my granddad wore every time he and Uncle Harry went fly-fishing.

"They look like fisherman's hats," I said, looking at the kids as we passed by.

Scorpius craned his neck to keep staring at them as we moved along. "I've seen other kids in those hats. Is that the new trend or something?"

"Why?" I asked, laughing as I put my head back down on his shoulder. "Do you want me to get you one?"

Scorpius laughed and shrugged. "Well, you know I like to be hip."

"Oh, you do?" I said as I looked up at him with a disbelieving look. "You—who told me that you refused to wear glasses even when you needed them because they were in fashion at the time—you like to be hip?"

"Well, that wasn't the only reason I didn't want to wear glasses," he said, clearly trying not to smile as he avoided eye contact with me. "I didn't need them."

"According to you," I said under my breath.

"Oi!" Scorpius shot me a look, feigning offense. "If I needed glasses, how would I have been able to see the snitch all those years without them?"

I shrugged and tried not to smile. "Sometimes you just have to fake it until you make it," I said. "As they say."

He narrowed his eyes at me. "And what's that supposed to mean, exactly?"

I shrugged again but didn't say anything.

"I don't like what you're implying," Scorpius said, clearly trying to hide his own smile as well. "But if you're suggesting that you—what?—fake it until you make it with me, you must be a world class actress."

I grinned at him. "I could be."

He arched an eyebrow, but when he spoke, he had lowered his voice. "Nobody screams and quivers and begs and practically faints when they're faking it," he said, his voice husky and controlled.

I stared at him, my jaw dropping slightly as a flush broke across my skin, making me shiver, and I felt a swoop in my stomach and a pressure between my thighs as my limbs started to tremble with adrenaline. And he just gazed back at me, his eyes dark and stormy and challenging me, just daring me to say another word. I swallowed and licked my lower lip quickly when my mouth had gone dry. His eyes darted down to my mouth and I sucked in a breath, and then I waited, hoping he would and needing him to kiss me.

Instead, he just smirked and turned back to face ahead as we continued to walk the streets, knowing exactly what he was doing, exactly the affect he had on me. "Anyway, my parents would never let me wear any stupid stuff like that."

"What?" I breathed, trying to get some semblance of control again, trying to come back down to earth.

"The fisherman hats," Scorpius said, smirking knowingly down at me briefly before looking ahead again. "My parents would never let me wear anything like that."

At the mention of his parents, I was reminded of something else and I tucked my head against his shoulder again before I swallowed and tried to get past the arousal that just a few words had caused to sweep through me. "By the way," I said, realizing how breathy my voice still sounded and knowing there was nothing I could do. "Are your parents going to be okay with me… you know… coming over to the Manor to look for things about the curse?"

"Sure," Scorpius said, frowning slightly and glancing down at me for a moment before looking out again. "What do you mean?"

"Well," I started slowly. "The last time I saw your father… well, I don't think he's exactly my biggest fan right now."

"My father loves you," Scorpius argued, sounding slightly bemused. "Wait, when did you see my father?"

"I never told you?"

"Well, we haven't been exactly chummy these past few weeks," Scorpius said with a laugh.

I smiled and nodded. "Well… well, I was here, actually, Diagon Alley… It was a few weeks ago. He saw Leo and me here. He was—I mean, he was pretty upset, it seemed, that I didn't tell them about Leo, so…" I trailed off, not knowing what else to say.

"What did he say to you?" Scorpius asked sharply.

I looked at him, taken aback by his sudden tone. "Erm…"

"Rose, tell me," he said, his voice only slightly softer, but still demanding.

"He didn't—well—he didn't say much," I said slowly, trying to recall. "He asked me to bring Leo by the Manor… and erm… I apologized for not telling him about Leo because I could tell he was upset—"

"You don't have to apologize," Scorpius said quickly and a bit loudly, looking down at me and frowning. He shook his head. "You don't have to apologize," he repeated after a moment, softer this time.

"I shouldn't have kept it a secret."

"I shouldn't have left you like I did," he countered.

I opened my mouth and closed it, and Scorpius sighed. There was no point in arguing about who was more wrong when both of us had made mistakes. "My father loves you, Rose," he said quietly, almost so quiet that I could barely hear him over the hustle and bustle of the Alley. "He… let's just say my father thinks I'm a fucking idiot for leaving like I did. So…" he laughed a bit. "He's on your side." I didn't say anything, just kept watching him, soaking up this information and wondering what conversation Scorpius and Draco must have had about this situation. "And my mother… she can't hate anybody, so you know, there's no hard feelings. I'm sure they would love to see you, especially if you bring Leo," he finished with a grin that just barely managed to reach his eyes.

I smiled and hugged his arm close just as we finally managed to reach this chocolate shop that I had made Albus take me to at least a dozen times while I was pregnant. According to our parents, this shop—Le Flor—used to be home to an ice cream shop that Uncle Harry had particularly loved but had been destroyed in the war, and they had built it up again and the owner's son had opened this in its place, the name a tribute to his father.

I was still hugging close to him when we got inside, suddenly feeling like I couldn't get close enough, like I needed to be nearer, to feel him in my arms, so I was clinging to him like a child might cling to her parent, but I didn't care. The need to just be near had suddenly overwhelmed me and I didn't know where it had come from, but I was struggling to get the contact. And I kept staring at his profile, thinking about how gorgeous and perfect he was, when he finally looked down at me, a small smile playing at his lips as if he had caught me at something. I blushed but I kept looking at him as I smiled.

"What do you want?" he asked, nodding toward the counter at the front of the shop.

"Whatever you want," I said breathlessly, almost reverently, like a love struck teenager—which I basically was.

Scorpius rolled his eyes but grinned. "How about a small fondue pot?" he suggested. "That way I can finally convince you to let me feed you."

I laughed and nuzzled my cheek against his shoulder. "Sounds good," I said, not even commenting on him feeding me—no, never—because I was just too content at the moment.

When we got to the front of the line, I gazed at Scorpius as he ordered for us. I watched the way the muscles in his jaw moved, the way his lips curled over and under words, the way he was confident and polite and kind, but still seemed to have this way of commanding those around him but in the best way possible. Scorpius had always had this undying and subtle strength and confidence that I had always admired, that had always kind of turned me on. The way he walked—his shoulders straight and broad and pulled back—the way he held his chin just slightly higher than most people, the way he spoke coolly and precisely—it was all part of the package that left me weak in the knees and so pushed to the precipice of my control that I could hardly stand it.

"You're staring," Scorpius said without looking down at me as we moved to the end of the counter to wait for our order.

I blinked rapidly as my breathing was slowly becoming more labored, and I felt the stirring inside me that always alerted me to how badly I wanted him. I could remember when I had first begun to feel those feelings—the desperate need for him to touch me, to take me to the edge—and how overwhelmed I had been at first. I couldn't tell if it was better or worse after giving into the feelings and just accepting them for what they were, but I could say that acknowledging them didn't make them less powerful. If anything, accepting them for what they were just seemed to arouse me even more, make me more attuned to every touch, every move, every feeling that threatened to overwhelm.

"So?" I breathed. "I'm allowed."

He hummed in response and browsed the bakery cases as we waited, and I kept myself wrapped around his arm, wanting him so badly that the insistence between my legs was starting to become unbearable.

"Rose," Scorpius said without looking up, apparently very interested in a pile of chocolate chip scones in the case. "If you keep this up, this date isn't going to last."

I breathed shakily. "Scorpius."

"We're supposed to be going slow," he murmured so that no one in the busy shop could hear him. "And it's hard for me to keep that promise to you when you're thinking those thoughts and I'm already dying to fuck you."

I inhaled sharply as the ache got worse. I practically gaped at his profile and after a moment, he turned to look at me—eyes blazing, pupils dilated, arousal obvious—and I swallowed hard before looking at his mouth and then smiling weakly up at him.

"Stop it," he said hoarsely.

"I can't," I whispered.

"Order number 39, please, small fondue pot with strawberries, marshmallows, and pretzels!"

I jolted, suddenly realizing that we were still in Le Flor, surrounded by people, not in private where I could jump his bones and not even care. I heard him suck in a sharp breath through his nose, and I sighed as I was forced to release him so he could go retrieve our order.

I suddenly felt hot all over, and I pressed a hand to my chest, hoping the coolness of my fingers would do something to alleviate the heat as I moved to find us a table. There were several tables set up, but it was a busy day and most of them were occupied. I frowned, looking around, keeping my hand on my chest, and suddenly I felt a warmth at my back and breath on my ear.

"Back corner," I heard Scorpius whisper huskily.

I gasped and looked up to see a couple leaving a secluded table in the corner, which happened to be a circular booth. Shit. A booth—a goddamn circular booth—wasn't conducive to soothing the flush that had erupted all over my body. I bit my lip before Scorpius nudged me and I was forced to head into the corner, unsure if the pounding in my chest was anxiety or excitement.

When we got to the corner, I slid in, grateful for the coolness of the booth against the skin of my thighs, and as soon as I settled in, I immediately removed the jumper and the scarf I had put on over my dress, feeling too hot to keep it on. It was a chilly day, but the sun was out—a rarity in London at this time of year—so I had decided to wear this green cotton dress with short sleeves that pulled in at the waist, showing off the curve of my body from waist to hip, along with my jumper, a scarf, and a pair of knee-high, brown, heeled boots. I was grateful, now, that I had worn the dress, despite the chill, because I probably would have suffocated in my own heat and arousal if I'd worn anything else.

Scorpius set the tray in the middle of the table, the small pot in the center, and the treats fanned out around it, and then he moved into the booth, sliding in so that there was a small distance between us, but so that our thighs were so close to touching that I could feel the heat from his thigh radiating to my own.

Before I could say anything or do anything else, I reached for a pretzel, needing to keep my hands occupied, and I dipped it in chocolate and popped it quickly into my mouth. Scorpius grinned and, although he wasn't looking at me, had a knowing look in his eyes as he took a strawberry and dipped it in the chocolate.

"Remember the last time we were in Diagon Alley together?" Scorpius asked casually. I exhaled in relief, the tension seeming to flow out of me when he struck up normal conversation. I swallowed a marshmallow that I had just covered in chocolate and nodded.

"Last Christmas."

"Seems like forever ago, doesn't it?"

I nodded and thought back to that last trip to Diagon Alley. "It really does." It had been right before I told him about the continental tour, and he wouldn't know this, but I had been so sick with nerves that day that I had almost vomited after we'd gone to visit my Uncle George in the joke shop. I had known precisely how he was going to react, and I had been terrified, so terrified that that was really the only thing I could remember about the trip.

"This Christmas will be better," Scorpius said, glancing over at me.

I nodded again. "No tour, no drama—"

"Our first Christmas as a family."

My head shot up and I found him smiling at me with this new shy smile that had come out of nowhere over the past few weeks. My heart stuttered in my chest.

"I was thinking we could get away this year," Scorpius said when I didn't say anything after a long pause. It was insane how thrown off Scorpius could make me with just a few words, and his hints at the future had always seemed to get to me, even when we had both known that there was no future but each other. And now it was even more powerful after the separation that had convinced me my future would never be the one I had envisioned for two years. It was dizzying.

"Where would we go?" I asked.

Scorpius shrugged.

"My family's got a place in France," he said. "Or Tuscany."

I smiled to myself, staring at our tray as I grabbed another pretzel. The thought of spending a romantic Christmas with Scorpius in Tuscany was a heavenly thought—sitting out on the porch, drinking coffee in the morning sun, watching the Tuscan sunset, making love all night every night, strolling along cobbled sidewalks as Scorpius pushed Leo in his pram and I kept my hand through his elbow. It was easy to get lost in the thought.

"That would be amazing," I said. Scorpius looked over at me and smiled this full blown, megawatt smile that caused all that arousal that I had managed to tamp down to come out swinging in full force. My breath caught for a moment before I smiled back and he moved closer so that our thighs were touching. "But we can't," I said, trying to remain casual.

"Why not?"

"Well, you said you wanted to spend Christmas as a family, and to me that means the whole family—"

"Leo will come, obviously," he said, frowning slightly.

"Yeah, but I meant the whole family. My parents, your parents, my aunts and uncles and cousins and grandparents."

"Jesus," Scorpius murmured, making me laugh.

"Sorry," I laughed. "But Christmas means Potters and Weasleys, and—"

Scorpius slipped a hand onto my thigh and cupped the inside of it. I shivered as he spoke. "But what about sunshine and fucking and Italian food?"

I looked over at him, our faces inches apart, and bit my lip before I spoke. "How about snow and fucking and my granny's mashed potatoes?"

Scorpius narrowed his eyes and tried to hide a smile. "I could probably work with that."

I leaned in quickly to peck him on the lips. "I thought so," I said when I pulled back. His hand slid a bit higher on my thigh and my heartbeat picked up.

"So Potters, Weasleys, the whole clan, huh?" he said nonchalantly, as if his hand wasn't pulling up the edge of my dress. "I guess that's what I have to look forward to."

"For life, baby," I said with a smirk.

"Fine," he said, looking at me like he wanted to say something else, something that was sure to knock me off my feet, but when he opened his mouth, he was interrupted.

"Rose, hey!"

I dragged my eyes away from Scorpius and looked up to see Nate MacMillan—the keyboardist for our band and my cousin Lucy's future husband—walking toward us, one hand holding two Le Flor bags and the other waving.

"Oh, Nate, hi!" I said waving back. I tried to scoot a little away from Scorpius but I felt his hand squeezing my thigh, holding me firmly in place, and I shot him a look before looking back at Nate.

"Hey," Nate said as he sidled up to our table. "Prof—Scorpius," he corrected himself from calling Scorpius "professor." "Really good to see you again. We're all really happy you're back," he said with his sweet smile, his brown eyes warm behind his thick black-framed glasses.

"Thanks, Nate, I'm glad to be back." Scorpius turned and smiled at me before I shot him a smile back and then turned again to Nate.

"What are you doing here?" I asked.

"Oh." I saw Nate's cheeks pink a little bit and I smiled through a frown, amused by his apparent embarrassment. "I—erm—wow, I didn't think this through. I guess I just didn't expect anyone to ask me that," Nate said with a nervous laugh.

I narrowed my eyes at him and tried not to react when I felt Scorpius's hand inch slightly up my leg, his thumb beginning to run slow circles on my inner thigh as his hold was blocked by the table and the table cloth that draped down from it. "What are you up to?" I said, a bit more breathily than I would have liked.

"I was just getting some, erm, treats for the… well, for the wedding night," Nate finished, his face turning beet red.

I burst out laughing as I heard Scorpius snicker next to me.

"Oh my god," Nate groaned. "Don't tell Albus or Lysander."

"Oh, I am definitely telling them," I said, still giggling a bit.

Nate rolled his eyes, trying to hide embarrassment, amusement, and something else. "Whatever, I have to go. Scorpius, good to see you, I'm glad you're coming to the wedding. Rose." He glared and I smiled bigger. "You look really pretty," he said, taking me aback and sounding annoyed despite his sweet words. "And happy. I'm glad."

I laughed, shocked and amused. "Thanks, Nathaniel," I said. "Tell Luce I said hi."

"I will. See you." He waved and turned and I called out that I loved him, laughing as he gave me an annoyed wave. Nate was and always would be the sweetest person that I knew, even when he was pissed that I was making fun of him.

Scorpius chuckled and I looked at him. "What?" I asked with a laugh.

He shook his head and swallowed a marshmallow. "Nate and Lucy," he said with a shrug. "I never really got it."

I smiled. "What do you mean?"

He shrugged again. "I don't know them that well, but I had Lucy in class, and from what I know about Nate…" Scorpius huffed a short laugh. "They just seem like an odd couple."

I snorted as I dipped a strawberry in the fondue pot. "I used to think the same thing. A lot of people did. She's so… spacey. And he's so… chill and relaxed and down to earth. But for some reason that makes them fit perfectly. Someone who's up in space and someone who's on earth… they make it work perfectly. I—I mean, I can't imagine them with anyone but each other. I really can't."

Scorpius nodded, smiling slightly to himself, and we fell into a comfortable silence, his thumb running circles on my thigh still, making me practically tremble with need, wanting his hand to move higher but also knowing that if it did, we'd be kicked out of Le Flor and asked to never return due to our indecency. We continued to eat the little snacks situated around the fondue pot, and I regarded him out of the side of my eyes.

"People might say the same thing about us, you know," I said, trying desperately to sound casual.

"Say what about us?" Scorpius asked, glancing up at me, thumb making my body heat.

"That we don't seem to fit."

Scorpius frowned at me. "Why would anyone say that?"

"Well," I shrugged, butterflies sweeping through briefly. "You were my professor, after all, and… I can be… difficult. Fiery, my uncle says. He says it runs in the family," I said with a laugh. "And you're… cool, calm… collected," I finished carefully. I was staring at a spot on the table, tracing it with my finger.

"I don't think anyone would say that we don't fit." I gasped when I felt Scorpius's breath close to my ear. "Anyone who knows us knows that we're perfect. We're a perfect balance, you and me. I love your fire," he said with a small laugh. "And you make me feel that fire and that passion. I never felt that before you. You… Rose." When I heard the low, desperate tone of his voice, I turned to look at him, barely able to meet his eyes because we were so close. "You bring out all the best parts of me."

My breath caught, and he held my gaze, obviously trying to show me how much he meant what he was saying, how much he wanted and needed me to believe what he was saying. He was gripping my thigh tightly now, urgency in his grip, and I couldn't say anything. There was nothing really to say and I was too caught up in the way he was looking at me to form any words anyway. His eyes flicked to my lips and my chest began to heave slightly and my lips parted in anticipation of what I wanted so badly to happen.

And then suddenly he turned his head, without another word, and I exhaled heavily, watching him, wondering what was going through his mind and wondering why the hell he hadn't kissed me.

"We should get some of this to go," Scorpius said, breaking into my thoughts and the silence between as he pointed to the little fondue pot of chocolate that he was currently pulling a pretzel out of.

Shakily—over-stimulated with need—I grabbed a strawberry and brought it to my lips, biting into it carefully. "I thought you didn't even like chocolate," I said with a mouthful of strawberry that slightly covered up how shaky and breathy my voice sounded.

Scorpius hummed thoughtfully and then shrugged. "It's growing on me." He paused. "But what's especially growing on me is the thought of licking this off of you."

I started coughing loudly, choking on strawberries, and gathering looks from people around the small shop.

I heard Scorpius laughing as he patted my back and I tried to swallow past the bits of strawberry that had gotten stuck in my throat. I felt him moving closer to me and I looked up at him, my eyes watering as I managed a weak smile.

"You arse."

"You love it," he said, grinning. And then, without warning, he gripped the back of my neck and pulled me to him to press our mouths together. I froze for a moment, and then I gripped his shirt at his stomach and tried to get closer before he backed away, the kiss ending as quickly as it started. I felt dazed for a moment, so dazed that I hardly noticed when his hand slipped so far up my thigh that his pinky was dangerously close to my knickers.

"Scorpius," I hissed as one hand clenched into a fist on the table and the other moved to grip his wrist. He simply grinned, loving the affect all of his actions had on me—clearly—and before I knew what was happening, he leaned forward and gently tugged my lower lip in between his teeth. I sighed heavily and arched toward him, not knowing or even considering the fact that we were in public around plenty of people, people who might recognize either me or him. I didn't care. The only thing I cared about was the way he felt, and my hand on his wrist slid up his arm to move to grip his shoulder. This time, when I said his name, is was in encouragement against his mouth rather than a warning that we should stop. He smiled against my mouth, nipped at my lip and pulled back, leaving me there, heaving, mouth open, caught unawares, so that when he dipped the marshmallow in chocolate and moved it toward my mouth, I could do nothing but let my mouth fall open as he slipped it in.

Dammit. I knew I would never be able to live it down that he was finally able to feed me.

Two can play this game, I thought a moment later, and before he was able to move, I clamped my mouth around his finger and slowly pulled back after he had put the treat in my mouth. I heard his sharp intake of breath as I pulled my mouth off his finger and arched an eyebrow.

His eyes moved to my mouth and as he leaned in, he murmured, "You've got some chocolate here," before he placed his lips on the corner of my mouth.

"Scorpius," I breathed before I gripped the back of his neck and turned my head to meet his mouth. My tongue rolled against his briefly before he pulled back, cheeks slightly flushed, pupils dilated, still close enough that it was difficult to meet his eyes.

"Yeah," he rasped. "We're definitely getting some of this to go."

"I can't really say much," Scorpius said as we walked back out into Diagon Alley, his arm around my shoulders and my arm around his waist, hugging him close to me as my cheek occasionally glanced across his shoulder as I tried to burrow closer and closer.

"How did you hear about it?" I asked, gazing up at him.

"McGonagall told me about it, actually," he said. "I told her I didn't know how much longer I could stay at Hogwarts, be apart from… my family, I told her, and she said she would keep her eyes and ears out. Someone she knew retired from a position at the Department of Mysteries and she approached me and told me to apply for the opening. So I did."

"And?"

"And… I didn't hear anything for a long time," he said as we strolled along, his other hand holding a bag with a container of the dark, melted chocolate he had taken to go from Le Flor. "Then a few weeks before I came back to London, I got an owl." We turned a corner into the bustling area near Gringotts. "The first interview was by floo, and after that one, they told me they wanted me to come to the Ministry. I interviewed at the Ministry the day after I got back to London, and they offered me the job on the spot."

"That's amazing, Scorpius."

He shrugged, smiling down at me. "It's pretty cool. I, erm, I work with potions and… some powerful, powerful magic. I've primarily been training for the past month and a half, but it's been a lot already—"

"Scorpius?"

Both Scorpius and I started, having both been so absorbed in each other that we hardly noticed anything going on around us. I looked up at Scorpius as his face fell in shock and then a broad smile broke across his face as he dropped his arm away from me, and I looked ahead toward the source of the voice as Scorpius rushed toward the owner of it.

"Abby?"

I frowned when I saw the girl with dark skin that I didn't recognize as Scorpius enveloped her into an enormous hug. "What are you doing here?" The girl—Abby?—laughed and hugged Scorpius back.

"I can't believe I actually ran into you," she said into his shoulder.

I crossed my arms in front of me, quickly and unexpectedly feeling confused and… out of place… like I was intruding on some kind of private moment and I had no business being there. I didn't like that feeling, and the fact that I was feeling it made me feel suddenly angry as I watched the two of them.

He pulled back and looked at her, laughing. "I can't even—what are you—?"

She grinned back. "You talked so much about your apprenticeship and how much you loved it and how good it was for you and… well…" Sadness swept over her features for a moment. "Bailey and I, we… it's over between us." She paused and then smiled again. "So I decided on a fresh start, and granddaddy knew someone over here so…" She trailed off and held out her arms, and Scorpius laughed again before pulling her into another hug.

The girl Scorpius was hugging was—there was no other word for it—beautiful. She had dark, unblemished skin and long black hair that she had pulled back into a ponytail. She was wearing these strange, exotic clothes that sort of made her look like what books portrayed gypsies to look like, with multiple necklaces around her neck and earrings in her ears. But it was her eyes—when she blinked them open and looked at me over Scorpius's shoulder—it was her eyes that really got to me. They were such a light brown that they were nearly yellow, and they were piercing and eerie and captivating, and as I saw some kind of recognition come into them, I couldn't look away.

"Rose?"

"Erm."

She pulled back and looked at Scorpius, a look of excitement coming across her features. I couldn't see Scorpius's face, his back to me, but Abby gripped his biceps and looked over his shoulder at me before looking back at him.

"Did you…" she started quietly, looking at him. "Did you get everything… figured out?" She had an accent I had never heard before, but from what I knew from films and television shows, it was some kind of accent from the American South. She was looking at Scorpius with this kind of loving, reverent look, and I couldn't hear what he was murmuring to her, but fury surged through me as I forgot all my happiness from just moments ago, knowing that she knew things about him that I didn't, that there were parts of him he had shared with her but not with me, that he had left me and during that time he was gone, she was in his life. I wasn't there, he wouldn't let me in, but he let her in. She gave him a sad look for a moment before she released him from her grip and turned to me, flashing brilliantly white teeth.

"Hi," she said with a wave as she took a step toward me. I frowned and took a step back, wanting to keep my distance from everything that was happening. She noticed the move and stood her ground. "I'm Abby."

I ground my teeth briefly before I said, "Rose." And then after a pause, "But you obviously know that."

She smiled warmly, and it only served to make me hate her more. Scorpius was looking at me with a frown on his face when Abby said, "Scorpius told me so much about you."

"Funny," I said with a laugh and a tone that indicated there was absolutely nothing I found funny about my current situation. "He's told me nothing about you."

"I met Abby when I was in New Orleans," Scorpius said carefully. "Her grandfather was trying to help me with the curse."

"Interesting," I said, smiling coldly and looking between both of them. "I also knew nothing about that curse until around a month ago."

"Rose—"

"Well, Scorpius is a bit of a dummy," Abby said with a genuine smile. "I'm sure we both know that." She was clearly trying to diffuse the situation, and under any other circumstances, her tactic might have worked. I might have even found her charming, but right now I was so furious about what was going on that I couldn't focus. Here was something else—yet another thing—that Scorpius had kept from me, some part of his life with a beautiful girl with perfect dark brown skin who knew about me, about the curse, about Scorpius, and he hadn't said a word. Not a word. And from the way she looked at him and the way he had practically shoved me aside and leapt out of his skin when he'd seen her, there was something between them, and fuck if Scorpius Malfoy was about to get both of his testicles removed from his body if I had my way.

I smiled tightly at the pair of them. "Well," I said, gesturing between the two of them. "Why don't you two catch up? Nice to meet you, Abby." I glanced at Scorpius. "I'll see you later," I said before I turned and held my head high as the tears burned the back of my eyes and I tried to retreat with my dignity.

I hadn't even made it a few feet before I felt a hand gripping my elbow.

"Rose."

I yanked my elbow out of Scorpius's grip. "What?"

"You're mad."

I gaped at him, at the confusion and concern on his face. "You've got a lot of nerve," I hissed.

"I met her in New Orleans. She—"

"Yes, I got that," I cut him off. "So why don't you catch up with your friend, and I'll—"

"I'm sorry." I snapped my mouth closed when I heard Abby speak from over Scorpius's shoulder where she had stepped up. "I'm gonna go, Scorpius," she said. "We can catch up later, another time. Rose." She smiled at me. "It was—really—it was so nice to meet you."

Abby squeezed Scorpius's arm and smiled at him, which he returned, before she turned and began to walk away from us. When she was out of earshot, Scorpius turned back to me.

"Rose—"

"I'm going home," I snapped as I turned to walk away.

"Don't be mad, Rose, I—"

"Don't follow me," I hurled at him over my shoulder before I turned on the spot and was gone.

"It's killer, Rose."

I grinned up at Albus and Guy who were listening to me play a new song I had been working on since Scorpius had come back in town. We were at the label's studio space, just Albus, Guy, Leo, and I, and I felt remarkably more relaxed than I had for the past couple days since I had found out about Abby. After sulking for the rest of the afternoon and most of the following day, I had decided that I just wasn't going to anymore. I needed to get a handle on my thoughts, I needed to clear my head, and the best way—the way I had always done it—was music. So I had called Albus and told him to meet me at the studio the next day, and he had eagerly obliged.

"Really? You think?" I said, smiling.

Albus nodded in agreement with Guy. "We gotta get the other guys in here to hear it. They'll love it."

"Fat chance getting Nate in here for the next month at least," I said as I put my guitar in the case and bent down to zip it up. Guy was sitting on the piano bench and Albus was sitting across from me, a guitar in his own hand, which he had used to join in the harmony with me after he had gotten a sense of the melody of the song. It never took him long to pick up songs that I wrote.

"Ah," Guy said, nodding with a smile. "Newlyweds."

Albus laughed and I stood up.

"Well, I need to get going," I told them as I stretched a bit. "Leo's starting to get fussy, and you don't want to be around when he goes into full-on banshee mode."

Albus stood up and leaned forward to kiss me on the cheek. "See you tomorrow," he said.

I nodded and headed toward the piano, where Guy was still sitting on the bench and Leo was in his seat on top of the piano where Guy had placed him after holding him for most of the time I'd been there.

"God, he's cute," Guy said as I began to bundle Leo up against the chill outside today.

I grinned up at Guy. "Isn't he?"

He nodded and smiled back. "Incredibly," he said. "He's so small."

I laughed as I heard Albus snort behind me. "Well, he's still pretty much a newborn." I avoided his eye contact at the next question I was about to ask, and I kept myself busy readjusting Leo and looking for nothing in his bag. "You're coming tomorrow, right?"

"Of course," Guy said in his smooth, mild French accent that had always had a way with me.

I blinked a few times. "Are you bringing a date?"

"I'm gonna go listen to the playback," Albus said as he came up behind us, completely oblivious to the conversation we were having. "Bye Leo," he said as he leaned down to kiss his forehead. Then he looked at me and squeezed my arm with a smile and nodded at Guy before he left the room and headed for the sound area on the other side of the glass.

Guy turned to me with a small smile. "No date," he said. "Just me." He brought his hand up to the piano and began fumbling with a few keys. "You're bringing Scorpius?"

I nodded and looked at him as he looked at the piano, and I wanted to say something—to apologize or something to make him feel better after he'd gone out on a limb and I'd rejected him so soundly.

"Guy—"

"Well," he said, standing abruptly and putting a forced smile on his face. "I'll see you tomorrow then. Bye Leo," he said, leaning to brush a hand across the top of his head, and waving me off as he went to go join Albus.

I stared after him for a moment before I shook all the thoughts out of my head and went to grab my jacket from the hook on the wall. I couldn't worry about Guy or his feelings or whatever he wanted from me when I was worried about my own feelings and what was going on with Scorpius and all the things that had been kept from me for the past seven months.

I grabbed Leo's seat and headed for the back stairwell that led to an alleyway behind the studio, which in turn led to the busy street where I had parked my car. I waved over my shoulder at Albus and Guy one last time before I pushed through.

When I was in the alleyway and headed toward the street, I squinted against the sunlight, and when I made it to the entrance of the alley, I held up my hand to shield my eyes and I looked left and right to try and remember which side I had left the car, Leo's seat in my other hand. I was squinting to my left and walking slowly in that direction when a familiar head of blonde hair caught my attention.

Rage ripped through me at the sight about half a block away. I felt my blood boil and my limbs tremble as I saw them—Scorpius and Abby, walking down the sidewalk together, her arm hooked through his as she threw her head back and laughed at something Scorpius had said and he grinned in her direction, not noticing me or his fucking son standing a short distance away. I stood on the spot, hand moving down to clench in a fist at my side as they approached.

When they finally reached me, Abby stumbled back a bit, her smile fading, and Scorpius's eyes widened in almost comic horror.

"Rose."

"Rose, hi," Abby said in her adorable accent. "It's so good to see you again."

I managed to force a smile, too overwhelmed with rage and heartache to do much else, and I knew that if I tried to I would either attack Scorpius or burst into angry tears, neither of which I could do and maintain my pride.

"What are you doing here?" Scorpius asked me.

I gaped at him for a moment before I closed my mouth and took a deep breath. "I came to the studio to work on some stuff," I said, gesturing toward the building that he knew was the label's studio space. "With Albus and Guy," I added, knowing how Scorpius felt about Guy and wanting him to feel just a fraction of the pain I was feeling.

I watched his jaw clench as Abby's arm slid out from his. I watched the movement for a moment before I smiled at them. "Well, I need to get the baby home, so have fun." I stormed past them to where I had finally spotted my vehicle, and I heard Scorpius's voice as I was putting Leo in the back, murmuring something to Abby. A moment later, he was behind me and when I turned around to face him, I glanced over his shoulder and saw Abby retreating in the other direction.

"Go to hell," I said suddenly, as I tried to push past him, but he put his arms on either side of me on the hood of the car and blocked me in.

"Why are you mad?"

I gaped at him. "You're serious?"

"She and I are friends," he said, and I ignored the way he was looking at me and how close he was. "You and I are also… friends. You can't be mad that I have other friends, Rose."

I stared at him, incredulous, in utter disbelief that he would throw that in my face, before I pushed his hand away and got away from his cage. "Fuck you."

"Rose."

I turned, facing him on the sidewalk as he stood next to the open car door. "Who is she?" I practically shouted as I flailed one arm out.

"Abby," he said.

I glared at him and crossed my arms, and he sighed.

"When I went to America, I went in order to try to find a way to break the curse."

"Yes, I know that."

He held up a hand, trying to somehow stem my angry tone. "When I was there, I went to New Orleans to work with a man who I thought could help me. He was her grandfather. I was in New Orleans for months, doing research, trying to find ways to break the curse while Abby's grandfather worked on a potion. Abby and I became friends in that time. She showed me around the city and tried to take my mind off of how fucking much I missed you," he said, moving a bit closer to me as my breath caught. But I stepped back, maintaining space and anger. "We couldn't break the curse, and after that I told Abby I was coming back, and I thought I would never see her again.

"Rose, Abby was there for me in a time when I really needed someone. She was kind and patient and she let me go on and on and on for hours about… well, about you," he said. "We became very close friends, and I'm happy that she's here because she meant a lot to me when I was there—"

"You know what, Scorpius?" I said, as the anger edged away and turned into agony at his words. "I could have been there for you. I needed someone. We could have been there for each other, but you left. I am—god!" I threw up my hands. "I am so sick of the secrets and the lies and everything. Do you know how much it hurts to know that there's this part of your life that I wasn't apart of?"

"I've only known you for a few years, Rose. There are many parts you weren't apart of."

"You know what I mean," I shouted, garnering looks from a few passersby. "There's this huge gap in our history, a life you lived without me, and here she comes, this girl, to practically wave a sign around that says 'I was with Scorpius when you weren't.' And that's your fault," I said, shoving a finger in his direction. "There's this whole time when we were apart that I didn't know what you were doing or who you were or what your life was and she was there. She was in it, and the fact that you kept that from me—"

"I didn't keep it from you, Rose, I swear," Scorpius said, looking fervent and desperate as he took a few steps toward me, fear glancing over his features as he heard my words and absorbed them. "I just… I didn't think about it, I didn't think to tell you."

"The same way you didn't think to tell me about the curse?" I hissed. "I just… god there's just so much I don't know! And you took that from me, Scorpius. I can't—god, I can't deal with any more secrets," I said, stomping my foot. "The fact that you left me and had this life and there was someone else—"

"It wasn't like that," Scorpius said, clearly trying to remain calm. "Don't say 'someone else' like that, Rose. It wasn't like that."

"How would I even know?" I said, barely below a shout. "I wasn't apart of your life, and she was!"

"You're right," he said, nodding, looking distraught. "I shouldn't have left, and I hate it, too—I hate that there was a time when I was apart from you. Every day I wished that things were different—every day I wished I was with you, and I know it was my fault that I wasn't," he added quickly when I opened my mouth to interject. "I know it was my own doing, but it doesn't change the fact that I left and she was a friend when I needed one."

"Does she know you're mine?" I asked abruptly.

Scorpius looked taken aback. "What?"

"Abby. Does she know… does she…" I trailed off, suddenly feeling absolutely ridiculous and completely embarrassed at the question. My face burned and I looked away.

"Hey."

I didn't look up.

"Rose."

I looked up at him, his mouth hanging open slightly as he stared at me, his eyes hard with… something… possessiveness, something predatory. He tilted his head just ever so slightly. "She knows," he said simply.

I felt something like relief tingle through me momentarily, along with a rush of love for Scorpius for remaining fairly calm despite how badly I was taking this Abby situation. But it was just so much. Knowing that there was this girl, this girl who represented our separation and to have her thrown in my face. It was heartbreaking.

"Fine," I said finally as I slammed the car door. "I have to go." Scorpius looked like he wanted to protest but I held up a hand before walking up to the driver's side and opening the door. "Don't. I need to think."

"Rose—"

"It's okay," I said, just a bit more gently this time as I held open the door and he frowned at me, his eyes darting all over my face to try to get a read on me. I sat in the car and looked up at him before I moved to close the door. "I'll see you tomorrow."

A/N: READ THIS. If you don't read any of my other notes, that's fine, they're mostly rambles but READ THIS. I have been going back and forth and back and forth about how to say this so as to both not spoil and not upset anyone one way or another. So I've decided that all I can say is this: this is not a Dramione story. I want to say more but I can't here, and I'll just reiterate that: THIS IS NOT A DRAMIONE STORY. If you have questions/comments/concerns about what that means, you can message me privately here or on tumblr and I can help answer them to the best of my abilities. Ughhhhh I need to say so much more on the topic but I cannot. So. Anywaaaaaay hope you liked the chapter! I was squealing most of the time I was writing it and wishing that Scorpius were my boyfriend. Thanks for reviewing, plz keep doing that, luv u like xo.

P.S. changed my tumblr handle! info on my profile page.