The sun was well on its way to setting when Harry finally stepped into the elevator of Phoenix Pharmaceuticals. He punched the button for Tom's floor and leaned back against the wall, where he scrolled through his messages, making sure none had been missed on his drive over. When he was satisfied all was good, he reread the text Tom had sent twenty minutes earlier and couldn't stop himself from smiling.
Are you coming?
And then, before Harry had been able to respond, a second had come through.
Scratch that. You better not have come yet. But seriously, are you on your way? This is not the night to be late, Harry.
Oh yeah, Tom was in a mood, and Harry had to admit it was exciting to see this side of him again. He was more than ready to get this little reunion of sorts underway.
When the elevator reached Tom's floor Harry slipped his phone into the back pocket of his jeans and stepped out into the elegant corridor. The only lights in the entry were the low security lights and the display spotlight that illuminated the Death Eater Pharmaceuticals sign.
Harry, now a regular around the offices, headed straight through the glass doors to see several people still working at their desks, and the conference room at the back of the main floor lit up with about half a dozen people inside, standing around talking and drinking champagne.
He waved at a few of them, and smiled as he headed in the direction of Tom's office, looking for the man they must've been celebrating tonight, and as he approached, he noted the door was shut. H was about to go ahead and knock before entering, when he spotted Stan walking down the hallway. Harry stopped as the other man waved and took a sip out of the tumbler he held, and then he reached out to shake Harry's hand and spoke as he embraced him in a jovial hug.
"Hey there,"
Harry eyed the drink in Stan's hand and spoke,
"Hey, yourself. I hear a celebration's in order tonight."
Stan nodded happily,
"That it is. He really outdid himself this time."
Harry crossed his arms as Stan took another sip.
"That's what I heard… I can't even imagine how he must be feeling."
Stan laughed,
"Pretty pleased with himself, I would say… and tired, apparently…"
Harry asked, not quite understanding.
"Tired?"
"Uh huh. Your man is dead to the world in there."
Harry looked at the shut door as though he could see through it, and then turned back to Stan,
"You're kidding, right?"
Stan inquired,
"About him being tired? Or asleep?"
Harry started laughing, the irony of it all not lost on him. Tom was finally free for the first night in months and he was too tired to stay awake past seven,
"Of course he's asleep."
Stan chuckled,
"I mean, I probably shouldn't have given him the third glass of scotch. But he was adamant you would drive the two of you to dinner."
"Oh, he was, was he?"
Harry reached for the handle on the door beside him and shook his head,
"Well, let me go and wake him and see if he's in any condition to actually eat."
"Harry?"
Stan said with a smile,
"Don't be too hard on him."
"Hard on him?"
Harry asked, confused.
Why would he be hard on him?
"Yeah. He's been beating himself up about all the time he's been spending on this deal and he was worried that you might be getting"
Stan looked slightly uncomfortable. Harry raised an eyebrow,
"Might be getting what?"
Stan lowered his gaze,
"He thought you might be getting bored with him."
Harry's hand froze on the door handle as Stan's words sank in,
"Bored with him?"
Stan shrugged,
"I told him he was being irrational."
"Which I'm sure he loved hearing."
Stan's chuckle told Harry he was right, but his words confirmed what Harry had been thinking about earlier today. He and Tom needed to sit down and talk this out, because clearly they were feeling the same but neither was wanting to bring it up,
"Don't worry,"
Harry said,
"I'm anything but bored with him. I miss him, that's all."
"That's what I told him, but you know him…"
He did, and Tom was always worried about the fact that he might just decide to leave him someday even though he'd convinced him multiples times that he would never,
"We're fine, I promise. But I think it's time I had a little chat with him."
Stan nodded,
"I think so too. He did something wonderful today, and he should feel amazing."
Stan winked and raised his glass in salute,
"He also made us very rich. See you Sunday."
Harry couldn't help but grin as Stan waggled his eyebrows and then turned to walk back to the conference room. He was spot-on. What Tom had accomplished today was incredible. Harry remembered when Tom had first thought about the idea of buying Phoenix Pharmaceuticals. With Dumbledore gone, they'd expected that the company would run itself into the ground but that hadn't been the case and their management had put on quite a fight. Tom had become determined and this had become a personal crusade… A final act of vengeance. And though it had taken a slight toll on the two of them, Harry had never been prouder of Tom than he was tonight.
He pushed open the door to the office, and as he walked inside, he saw the lamp on Tom's desk switched on, but that was the only light in the room as he shut the door behind him. He glanced around the familiar space, scanning for the man he'd come in search for, and when he landed on the three-seater couch, a slow smile spread across his lips.
