Disclaimer: I do not own any of these characters. Only the general plot/setting is my own. All characters and other references to 'Harry Potter' are solely the property of J.K. Rowling.

The Boy Who Loved

By

Belle. A. Lestrange

Chapter Thirty-Seven:

Moving Forward

The next few days had been taxing on everyone's nerves. Harry didn't talk as much as he had done upon first coming to Grimmauld place. Remus, in his after-moon-paranoia had holed up in the basement and whimpered to himself for over an hour about how Harry must now think he's a great, dirty monster. It had eventually taken a rather on-edge Severus to snap the pitiful man out of his self-pitying stupor and drag him back into the kitchen where he busied himself making food for everyone left in the house. He contently cooked for a little while until Molly came downstairs and ordered the man to sit down with a mug of coffee since he looked like Death warmed up. He grudgingly obliged and sat alone at the table, nursing his mug, until he heard the tell-tale signs of everyone else waking up and moving around upstairs.

Every creak of a floorboard made his ears throb.

Harry and Draco were the first to come down for breakfast. Molly tittered at them and Remus mumbled a good morning as he peered up through his silver-streaked fringe to look at Harry. Though he looked emotionally drained from the last few days, and his eyes looked a little raw from crying all night, he still cast concerned looks over at Remus. He cleared his throat, "How are you feeling, Remus?" he asked in a tired voice, although the concern did push its way to the surface.

The shabby looking mad nodded his head, "I've looked worse, believe me." He managed a wry grin that seemed to make Harry feel a little more at ease. Relief flooded through his body as he took a sip of coffee.

Within the hour everyone was in the kitchen crammed down one end of the table, with Molly and Petunia talking idly between themselves over tea and toast. A desperate act for normalcy that was shattered as Severus brought up the topic they had been hedging around for the last few days. The diagnosis and plan to help Harry.

"You want me to leave?" Harry echoed, his voice dull and empty as his eyes flickered down to his sausages and eggs, his stomach instantly shrinking at the sight of them. They gleamed with hot grease. It made his stomach shrivel up inside him. He slowly placed his fork back down, his hand shaking as he did so. He couldn't believe what he was hearing. When they had told him that there was a possibility to regain the control he'd had over his mind, like when he was younger, he had been relieved above everything else. And now? Now they wanted him to leave. He was clearly becoming too much of a burden on everyone in the house.

He suddenly felt as small and worthless as all eyes rested on the top of his head.

"No we don't want you to leave, Harry," Severus reaffirmed with a strong tone, "We just think that you need to be in a safe environment that isn't surrounded by a lot of magic. This house seems to be doing you more harm than good. As I explained to you, I think the magical energy around you is helping to loosen your grip on your suppressed magic and your own mind, therefore the mental blocks you've had in place from your childhood are slipping away, out of reach. The further they slip away from you, the harder you'll have to work to get them back." He looked up at his son, the tugging at his heart almost choking him breathless, "I want this to be as easy as possible for you."

"By sending me away?" Harry whispered, his voice shaking and latching in his throat. It was true that Grimmauld place was far from anyone's idyllic idea of 'home' but it was already making him feel a lot better than when he had been living under Vernon's roof. He felt safe there. He didn't want to go away to the middle of nowhere and fend for himself like Severus was suggesting. He looked up at the dark-haired man and felt his muscles tense a little, "If you didn't want me around anymore all you had to do was say so," he snapped defensively.

Severus kept his features carefully blank, but Sirius watched as a vein throbbed in the man's neck. Turning his head to view Harry he cleared his throat and tried to adopt a soothing tone, "Harry, we're not trying to get rid of you. Honestly," he added at Harry's dark look, "It will be temporary and if there's no sign of improvement then we can bring you back here."

Harry dropped his head down and rubbed at his temples, "What's the point? Why can't I learn whatever I need to learn here?" he sounded exasperated, which was exactly how he felt, "I thought I'd been doing well! I thought you guys were actually proud of me!"

Sirius reached over and gripped Harry's forearm, "We are proud of you Harry. You've been doing so well, especially with Draco being able to help translate some things on a baser level."

Harry snorted, earning him a weak glare from the blonde beside him. The way Draco sometimes tried to explain a subject would make Harry's head hurt even more. He'd fidget and find himself staring off a few times, before Draco would snap his fingers in front of Harry's eyes and demand his attention. When he was asked if he needed anything else explained, Harry was sure that the blonde was suppressing the urge to throw books at his head. He came back to reality and looked from one face to the other, "I just -I don't want to go and live anywhere else. I want to stay here. I feel safe here! I haven't felt that way in ages!"

Oh, he was a bastard for playing that card, and he knew it. However, a tiny glimmer of regret flashed in everyone's eyes. He bit down on his bottom lip.

"It's not like you would be going alone, Harry," Remus finally stated as he peered up from the book he had been reading. He turned a page lazily and then splayed his fingers over it to hold the page down, "Draco would be going with you as well. And one of us would come by at least once a week so that we can assess your progress and bring you supplies of anything you might need. Or you know, just to see how you both are." He inhaled deeply, his eyes flickering over to look at Sirius and Severus' faces, "We're not any happier about this, you know. It just seems to be the logical solution to see if it really is your over-exposure to magic helping you lose control of your mental barriers."

"So it's like muggle X-Rays?" Harry asked with a frown, implying the numerous effects that radiation could have on the human body.

Remus nodded his head a little reluctantly, "In a way yes, although the consequences wouldn't be as dire."

Harry pursed his lips together and chewed on his tongue as the warm amber eyes spoke volumes. He couldn't argue with the main. He knew all about pain, both physical and mental. Not in a greater way than Remus of course, but it still left him with a good idea to what the man had to suffer for the majority of his life. His stomach seized up and made him fight the urge to be sick. "Fine," he eventually said, "I can go. On a temporary basis," he added pointedly, "But -what about Aunt Petunia?"

There was a moment hesitation before his aunt spoke up, "I need to stay here, Harry. For now. I need to go and identify Vernon's body and sign some certificates. However, once that's done I'll come to you, alright?"

Harry hummed but nodded his head tightly. "Will someone be there the first night as least? To make sure that we're all set up and -um -protected?"

Severus nodded, "Of course. I will gladly stay there the first night if it makes you feel comfortable. I can put some protection up around wherever you go, too, so there's no need to worry yourselves."

Harry felt a strange surge of reassurance ripple through him at the man's words. He relaxed a little as he raked his fingers through his hair and sighed heavily. "Alright," he finally said, a cold tremor running through his body, "I suppose I can handle it. But we can come back for Christmas, right?" he asked, his voice bordering tearful and filled with hope.

Severus inclined his head, "Of course you can. I wouldn't have it any other way."

Harry nodded his head, still mulling things over. "I guess I'll ... go and pack my things then." He pushed himself up and away from the table, not sparing anyone a second glance and made for the kitchen door.

"Harry, dear, you haven't finished your breakfast," Molly chimed in, concern evident in her voice.

Harry looked over his shoulder at the door and simply shook his head, "I'm sorry Mrs. Weasley but I don't think I can stomach anything else. Thanks though." He let the door bang closed behind him. The creak of his trainers on the stairs faded as he climbed up to his floor. The distant echo of his bedroom door closing made a knot of tension loosen in the room.

Draco continued to eat his meal, even spearing the bacon on the end of his fork and putting it onto his own plate. "You can't keep going on like this, Uncle Sev," he stated as he sliced some egg on toast and folded a slice of bacon on top of it with his knife, "You're going to need to tell him at some point."

Severus glared down at the blonde man before him, his lips thinning into a line as he drank from his coffee cup. "Don't concern yourself with these matters, Draco. It won't benefit you in the slightest. The last thing I need is for your father to get wind of the truth."

"That bastard is NOT my father!" Draco sneered as he ripped a sausage off his fork. He chewed and swallowed before pointing his fork at Severus, "And you need to get it into your head that if no one else can get in there -including the Dark Lord -then Lucius certainly can't."

There wasn't really anything to say to that statement. Severus knew it to be true and so did everyone else at the table, including Petunia. He hummed to himself and averted his gaze to the fireplace, "I suppose we will need to find you somewhere decent that you can move into in the next few days."

"You don't already have somewhere?" Draco asked, sounding mildly surprised.

Severus shook his head whilst Remus answered, "We needed to make sure that you would both agree to leaving before we finalized any plans."

Draco nodded, "That sounds fair. So where are you going to go, Petunia? I know you need to finalize some things. Are you going to continue living here?" he asked as politely as possible.

Petunia nodded, "Only until the certificates are signed and then I'm not sure where I will end up. But I will come and visit you and Harry, don't you worry. I like to be updated about everything as much as possible."

"I understand the feeling," he murmured softly as he drained his cup of tea. Once he was finished he took his plate over the sink -a habit he'd gotten into when he'd been living at Petunia's house -and then turned to leave the kitchen.

Just before he reached the door Petunia called out to him, "We were thinking about going to see the fireworks in London for Bonfire night. Would you like to come?"

Draco paused to think about before nodding a hand, "Yeah that sounds like a good idea. I'll go and talk to Harry about it." Without another word he was gone.

Severus sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose, "This is going to be a very long, last night here."

Petunia offered him a tight, reassuring smile, "If it's for their own good, Severus, there's not much else we can do for them but make sure that they're as safe as possible." She reached out and squeezed his forearm.

Up in his room Draco shoved the rest of his belongings into the trunk he had borrowed from Remus, the faded bronze letters on the side of the trunk almost completely peeled off. His few clothes and books were pathetic and he made a mental note to buy more of his own clothes with what little money he'd gotten from Tesco's, wherever they ended up. He couldn't always rely on Harry. As uncomfortable as that thought was, it was true. He slammed the lid of the trunk down and bolted the clasps into place before heaving it off of the bed and putting it beside his bedroom door for later that evening. He heaved a sigh and ran a hand through his hair before deciding to go along to Harry's room and check how he was handling everything. All the moving around and new experiences must be warping his perspective and judgement on life. He didn't need that.

Once outside the brunettes door, he knocked softly on the wood until a mumbled 'come in' caught his ear. He pressed down on the handled and edged inside. "Hey," he breathed softly as he drank in the sight of Harry slouched over in the chair by the window, his trunk still opened and half-packed in the middle of his bed.

Harry looked up and gave a stiff little smile, "Hey. I was a little er ... frustrated about having to move about again. I suppose I can't really complain, can I?" he gave a stiff little snort.

Draco frowned a little and then went over to the brunette and rested a hand on his shoulder and gave a squeeze. "We'll be alright, Harry. As long as we just keep to ourselves we'll be alright," he bent down and pressed a lingering kiss to Harry's forehead. Harry gave a soft hum and leaned into the kiss, the warmth flooding through him and making him shiver a little. He reached up and squeezed the blonde's hand. He reasoned that as long as he was with Draco, without the ever-present shadow of Vernon over their heads, it wouldn't be that bad. He might be able to relax a little more. "Your aunt was also saying something about going to bonfire night. Do you fancy that? Get out of here for a little while?"

Harry nodded his head, "Sure. I'm bored of looking at all of these old tapestries anyway." He gave a wistful smile and then sighed before forcing himself out of the chair and grabbing a hoodie from where it was slung over the end of the bed and then toeing his feet into his thick-soled trainers. He shivered a little and then pinched the bridge of his nose. "Okay, ready. Are you ready?" he asked softly, eyeing Draco up and down.

Draco nodded his head, "Let's go on downstairs. We'll probably be leaving right afterwards to wherever Severus had found for us."

Harry frowned, "Not that soon surely. I thought we at least had tonight here to-" he trailed off and pursed his lips.

"What?" Draco asked.

Harry simply shook his head firmly, "Nothing, I'm just thinking out loud. Let's just get going." With a stiff smile he went over to the door and held it open until Draco relented and followed the young brunette out of the bedroom. He didn't know what the younger man was trying to say or hint at, but he couldn't deny that he didn't feel too great about leaving. There was nothing they could do.

It had been decided.

He leaned forward and hugged an arm around Harry's neck and tugged him back against his chest. He turned the brunette around against him and wound his arms around him and nuzzled the soft dark hair. He felt relieved as his companion relaxed against him, his tanned arms winding themselves around Draco's waist. "What was that for?" Harry breathed as he pressed his nose against Draco's chest, the scent making his stomach knot.

Draco looked down and smiled softly, "I just want to make sure that you know that you're not alone. You have me and Sev and now your aunt, Remus and Sirius. More than enough people." He pressed his lips against Harry's scar, noting the shiver that run through the brunette man in his arms, "It's just for a few months. We've gotten through worse right?" he teased lightly, "Plus, we can practice your wand movements and the potions Severus will bring to the temp place."

Harry gave a wry little laugh, "Oh yeah? And I'll be as good as you in no time, right?"

Draco shook his head, "Not a chance. But I'll see what I can do for you." With a chaste kiss on the forehead, the quickly made their way down to the kitchen.

~0~

The fireworks exploded and glittered in the black sky and sparkling in everyone's eyes. The frosty air caught in everybody's lungs and made their breath rise up in mist. Noses and cheeks were chilled pink and bodies shook side by side. Arms cuddled one another close, warm breath thawing the cold earlobes and startling out a giggle into the air, drowned out by the boom and crackles of the fireworks overhead. Petunia and Remus had large smiles on their faces, the likes that Harry hadn't witnessed on his aunt in years. She looked the happiest she's been ever. Severus had opted to stand away from the hubbub of the thick, stifling crowd and decided to wait down by the Heath by the car.

Harry had been a little disappointed but stamped the feeling down, knowing that he couldn't rely on everyone else as soon as he and Draco were bundled off to their new house.

At least he'd have Draco.

Looking up at the blonde bundled up in 'muggle clothes' would never cease to put a smile on Harry's face. Of course he'd never seen Draco in anything else but it didn't matter. The blonde man still look oddly cute huddled up in a thick wool coat with a grey knit scarf wrapped around his neck and chin and a matching hat tugged snuggly down over his ears. His gloves hands were rammed into his pockets as he tilted his head up to watch the fireworks. Harry wouldn't resist slipping his hand, awkwardly, into Draco's pocket, their gloves fingers twitching awkwardly until they slid together comfortably, reassurance flooring through both their bodies.

Draco peered down at Harry, at his bright eyes and pink cheeks and nose and felt his stomach knot comfortably. He leaned down and rested his head against Harry's and squeezed his hand. It felt so weird and foreign to him -he'd never been able to act so comfortable and happy with someone, none of the purebloods had been so carefree. They didn't want to hold hands, or watch fireworks or just be.

He hadn't realized how suffocating it had been.

But standing there with Harry underneath the colour-dotted sky, the chill drawing each breath out into the air and making them huddle closer together for the beautiful warmth they'd shared almost every night -He had never felt so content.

He gave Harry's hand another squeeze as the last of the fireworks fizzled out in the sky and a hush descended over the Heath. All around them people started shuffling back and forth, long rivers of thick coats and hats weaving their way and pushing and shoving to get to the nearest pub to toast themselves over mulled wine and frothy beer. Harry and Draco tugged themselves out of the throng of people and after a few moments of searching found Petunia in her beige coat and Remus in his thick wool ensemble. They smile when they untangle themselves from the crowd, hunched over and shivering against the cold wind. "So you boys' ready to get out of here?" Remus asked softly as he rubbed his hands up and down his arms.

Harry nodded, his chin bumping against Draco's arm, and the blonde's teeth chattered. He wasn't used to no warming charms on his clothes, "Y-Yes please!"

"We should get back to Severus," Petunia stated, "If you want he can take us up. He and Remus found a nice place for you two to stay. He's added ... I don't know ... Wards or something," she waved her hand, not really understanding what the man had told her, but to Draco is sounded safe as anything. If Severus had personally seen to the wards, then there wasn't a shadow of a doubt that they'd be safe.

Draco looked down at how stiff Harry looked, but instead of relishing in agreeing with the brunette, he nodded his head, "Sooner sounds better than later."

It was agreed as they shuffled along the long, sloping road of Blackheath. They were going to their new house. They hurried up along a curved back road by a church and found Severus leaning back against their nondescript muggle car, his breath spiralling out of his mouth in soft plumes on the frigid air. He looked up as they approached and hurried on towards the promise of the warmth inside the car. He gave a tight smile before turning to open the door with a heavy 'clunk' and started the engine. By the time they walked up the rest of the road, the heater was warming up and was pure relief to their chilled bodies when they all buckled themselves in.

The drive to Nottingham took them around three and half hours, with all the bonfire night traffic cramming the roads.

Severus had to weave around some of the back roads just to avoid the worst of the traffic. The long stretch of empty road was almost soothing as they cruised through the darkness, the sky dotted with tiny stars flickering in and out between the wispy clouds. The journey was silent as they made their way to Nottingham but even so, the lull of the smooth road made the two boys' in the back seat drift off to sleep. It wasn't until the car eventually slowed to a stop did they feel Petunia gently shaking them awake and the bite of the cold wind snapping at their ankles.

Harry grunted and tried to burrow down into his collar but some insistent prodding from Draco made him glare and shuffled out into the freezing night. They huddled on the pavement before Severus pulled out a parchment and handed it to Draco, "It works in the same was as Grimmauld place," he stated matter-of-factly, "It's unplottable and was originally owned by the Ministry but they insisted it was too small for some of their purposes."

Draco frowned down at the paper and could feel everyone's eyes on him. Suddenly, he felt vulnerable and exposed an ugly feeling in his mind, as he was on strange territory. Clearing his throat he read out the address on the paper. They all watched with baited breath as the block of flats in front of them extended another floor, windows sinking into the brick-work, the crunch of wood fixing itself together and the clacking of bricks adjusting themselves into place. Soon they were looking up into their new accommodation.

Harry let his breath whoosh out of him in bewilderment.

"I love magic," he murmured to himself as he shuffled about from foot-to-foot, not wanting to take the lead into their new abode. With a grin over his shoulder, Remus shuffled on forward with Severus right beside him, Petunia bringing up the rear at the two boys' stumbled forward into the warm.

The building seemed clean enough and well-kept at the very least as they manoeuvred their way upstairs to the third floor. They followed Severus down the corridor to the last door facing them, and held their breath as he slipped the key into the lock and turned it. He pushed the door open and led them into their new place, muttering a 'lumos' under his breath as he entered.

Murmurs of appreciation came out of most everyone's mouth as they admired Harry and Draco's new, temporary flat. All the rooms were painted neutral colours. Severus explained that they could decorate however they wanted as it would give them something to do in their spare time as a little pet project. It wasn't huge, but it had enough space for the both of them. The kitchen was a good size and still pretty clean from when it had last been used. There were two bedrooms leading off from the main lounging area, however Severus quirked an eyebrow at them and stated, "If you want you can always use one of the bedrooms as a potions lab and it's warded so that if you do cause any noise or explosions, the neighbours won't hear you."

Draco smirked a little, partially at the thought of concocting intense potions and partly because of the uncomfortable squirm Harry gave at Severus implying them sharing a bed. Not that it had been a secret in the first place. He looked up at his godfather and smiled, "Thank you Severus. This is perfect." He was sincere in his words.

The tall, dark haired man looked down at them both with sincere emotion swimming in his eyes, "I just want the both of you to be safe. This is one of the safest places I could find on short notice outside of London."

"If you two need anything," Remus spoke up, "Then there's a fireplace in here and in the bedroom. Don't worry about ventilation or anything," he added at Harry's frown, "It's connected to the floo network of Grimmauld place."

Petunia gave a watery sigh, "I suppose there's nothing else left for it. We should head off now if we're going to get back to London at a decent time." She wiped at her eyes and hurried over to wrap Harry in a hug, "I'll call you and drive up with one of the others, okay?" she gave a watery smile and squeezed Harry's shoulders, "You'll be alright, you know?" she murmured softly.

He gave a squeeze back and smiled, "I'll be alright, Aunt Petunia." She squeezed one last time before joining Remus over at the front door.

Both boys' turned to Severus as he waved them over to a small cabinet tucked away into the corner. "Now before I leave, I want you two to know that if there is too much on your mind or need to see things in a different perspective, I have installed a pensieve for the both of you to use. Don't over-use it," he cautioned, "And make sure you store your memories somewhere safely when you're not using them."

Harry could only frown but Draco gave him a squeeze on the hand, letting him know that he need only ask if he was confused about anything. Severus hesitated for a moment before grabbing both of the boys by a shoulder and yanking them over to his body. Harry blinked in surprised as the rough fabric of Severus' muggle coat rubbed against his cheek, the warmth flooding through his body and his mind whirling through what they'd all been through up to this point. After a moment of shock he wound his arms around Draco and Severus' back, hugging them all furiously. His eyes pricked with hot tears. He didn't want Severus to go. He couldn't understand why for this reason, but he just couldn't let the other man leave. He had too much to say, too much to ask and not enough time to do either of them.

Draco unwound himself first and gave Severus a small smile before straightening up and shuffling over to get his trunk and move it into the larger of the two bedrooms. He cleared his throat and then started to move his belongings around. Severus rolled his eyes before turning his attention down to the young man still grasping his waist. "Harry, you're going to have to let go of me," he murmured gently, "I need to get Remus and Petunia back home. Sirius will be wondering where we've got to."

Harry sighed and shuffled a step back, wiping fiercely at his eyes and shaking his head. He cleared his throat gruffly, "Sorry," he mumbled, "I just -It's weird knowing that I won't have you there to ... Well, straighten me out," he gave a short huff of laughter.

Severus grasped both of Harry's shoulder and looked down into his green eyes -his beautiful, bright green eyes -and forced his tone to remain calm, "I will be back soon and if you really need to speak to me, ask Draco how to floo-call, okay?" Harry gave a tight nod of his head. Severus sucked in a breath, "I don't want to leave you, either of you, but I need to go and take care of things in London. I can't do that whilst worrying about you two as well."

Harry looked up at Severus and felt a tug on his heart. "I just ... I feel safer when you're near to us. I don't know why, but you've been there for me so much and now ..." he trailed off, not knowing what else to say or how to put it into words.

Severus tried to suppress a smirk, "Believe me, Harry. I know a lot more than you think." With a final tight hug that threatened to crush Harry's lungs, Severus smiled down at him and then called out a 'goodbye' to Draco, before turning to follow the other two out of the front door.

With a loud 'thunk' he and Draco were left alone.

~0~

By the time both of them had unpacked their belongings into the first bedroom it was 3am. Draco didn't make any jokes about how it was like they were moving in together like any other couple. Partly because they hadn't established what they really were to one another and also because he didn't think that that type of humour would have been appreciated considering their emotional couple of weeks. He had waited in the bedroom until he was sure that Severus and the others had left before coming outside and making sure that Harry was alright. He tried to put on a brave face for Draco, but the older man knew that Harry didn't want to do much of anything except to sit down on their sofa and do nothing.

Draco had rummaged around for a throw blanket and draped it over the brunette boy. He had then gone back into the bedroom with Harry's trunk and started to unpack. It hadn't taken too long before Harry had shuffled in in his socks and listlessly helped Draco to unpack the rest of their combined belongings. It wasn't much, considering that Severus had promised to send the rest of their potions equipment via owl.

At 3am they both found themselves back on the sofa and draped by the warm throw blanket, the muggle TV playing some crap show for background noise and neither of them having the energy to move or shift themselves to bed. They felt exhausted but didn't want to sleep.

Draco looked down at Harry who was leaning his head on his hand and his elbow on the arm of the sofa. "Harry?" he felt his chest tighten at the word flooding in his brain, "Can I ask you something?"

Harry turned to look up at the blonde with a soft frown marring his features. He nodded and reached out a hand towards Draco, "Are you alright?" he breathed.

Draco nodded, "Yes I'm fine. I just want to clear something up."

Harry's frown deepened, "What is it?"

Draco licked his lips before shifting over and pressing his mouth against Harry's, his hand coming up to cup at the younger man's jaw. He remained stunned for a moment as Draco's hot mouth moved against his, his wet tongue running over his lips and begging Harry for entrance into his mouth. He reached up and gripped Draco's shoulders and allowed his tongue to slip into mouth, moaning in surprise at how wonderful it felt to have the blonde pressing down against him. When the blonde pulled away for air, and Harry gasped, his eyes wide and his cheeks flushed a bright red. He licked his lips, tasting Draco on his mouth.

"W-what was that for?" he murmured softly.

Draco gave a soft little smile and stroked his fingers through Harry's hair, "I just ... What are we, Harry?"

"Humans?" Harry frowned a little deeper. "Ow!" he yelped as Draco swatted at his head with a glare.

"I'm serious Harry!" he gasped out through a laugh, "Please, I just want to know what we are to one another that's all."

"What do you want us to be?" the brunette muttered softly.

Draco sighed and his eyelids fluttered closed. "I want us to be ... B-boyfriends," he finally breathed, opening his eyes again to look at the boy beneath him. To his surprise, Harry didn't look too distressed by the word 'boyfriends'. He licked his lips and continued, "I'm not saying that so we can go ... further ... I just want us to be, you know, exclusive with one another."

Harry blinked and felt heat pool in his stomach. It was a little uncomfortable and exciting all at the same time. "So ... there's no rush to go any further, right?" he finally murmured gently as he toyed with his fingers.

Draco shook his head and brought Harry's hand up to his lips and kissed his knuckles, "Of course not, I just want us to feel comfortable and open with one another. We take things at your pace, okay? I'm happy to wait."

Harry clamped his mouth shut and tried to suppress a smile, "Okay. I -I'd like to be your boyfriend," he smiled up at the blonde, his eyes shining and his cheeks burning red.

Draco beamed brightly, the most beautiful smile Harry had seen him wear in weeks, before he captured Harry's lips once again in a tender kiss. Harry ran his fingers over Draco's muscles through his jumper before breaking the kiss and burying his flaming face in the crook of the blonde's neck. Draco rolled his eyes and smirked, "I think it's time we went to bed, don't you?"

Harry jerked slightly and stared at the blonde with narrowed eyes, "To sleep, right?"

Draco huffed and swatted the brunette upside the bed, "Of course, scarhead! It's almost four in the morning! I'm tired in case you didn't notice!"

Harry snickered, "You're really not a morning person, are you?"

Draco clicked his tongue before grabbing Harry's arms and hoisting the younger man into his arms. It was a little awkward; he stumbled slightly as he hadn't worked out so much. He was just thankful that Harry didn't weight too much. He made his way to the bedroom and dumped the laughing brunette onto the mattress, "Now get ready for bed!" he commanded with a mock glare before heading off into the bathroom.

When he came back in a pair of his pyjamas and the taste of mint hanging on his breath, he found Harry asleep on the bed in his day clothes, his legs lulling over the end of the bed. With a soft smile, Draco eased off Harry's trainers and eased the duvet out from under the sleeping teen and tucked him in for the night before brushing his dark fringe aside and pressing a tender, lingering kiss to the lightning bolt scar on Harry's otherwise flawless skin.

"Love you, Harry," he breathed gently, rubbing their noses together, "So much."

Without another word, he tucked himself in for the night and switched the bedside lamp off. He soon fell asleep, his arm wrapped around Harry.

A/N: Sorry for the late update, but I was on holiday for about 2 weeks and didn't get to update before I went away. I hope this chapter makes up for it ;) Please read and review!