A/N: Written for QLFC Round 8 reserve Chaser 1 for the Wasps - Write about someone looking forward to the future.
Optional prompts: (1) color - baby blue, (2) character - Harry Potter, (15) word - unexpected
Word count: 1,433
Albus stared straight ahead as he and Harry walked across the grounds. He wanted to believe that the tears he'd noticed in Harry's eyes were because of nostalgia from being back at Hogwarts and not any sense of pride over Albus finishing his education. Emotions weren't something Albus was comfortable with unless it was with Scorpius, and even then, he was still working through some hangups.
Harry's hand found his shoulder as they walked. Albus kept his head forward and focused too much energy on not showing that he was unsure of himself. It wasn't that he was uncomfortable around his dad. It was just that… Well, he'd been uncomfortable in his own skin for so long, and he was still navigating how to behave now that everyone knew the truth.
"You know, your mum and I were surprised when you mentioned becoming a baker."
Albus grunted in acknowledgement. That wasn't news to him. His dad's first reaction to his confession had been, "Really?" It hadn't left any doubt that Albus wasn't going down their expected path. Albus couldn't blame them for being surprised though. He'd avoided baking at home for years out of some messed up belief that he'd get made fun of for it. As if his own father wasn't the primary cook in the family. Draco hadn't been surprised when he'd caught wind of Albus' plans. He'd seen the aftermath of Albus and Scorpius' baking sessions at Malfoy Manor.
"But I'm glad you'll be doing something that makes you happy," Harry continued, giving Albus' shoulder a tight squeeze that was meant to be reassuring. All Albus felt was that he was trying too hard.
"Thanks, Dad."
They walked in silence for several minutes. There were others around, especially recent graduates walking with their own families. Most of them were in large groups. Albus didn't understand why his dad had needed to get him alone just to tell him he was happy about his future career, but he wasn't about to ask. He was scared of what might come next, and if the way his dad kept fidgeting was any indication, he was just as nervous about saying it.
"I wanted to talk to you because we hadn't seen each other in person since your letter."
Albus took a deep, shaky breath. He'd exchanged at least one letter a week with his parents for the whole school year, yet he knew which one his dad was referring to: the one that he'd sent in mid-April when he needed to get everything out and couldn't wait until he'd see them in person again. He had been hoping to get by without ever acknowledging the letter itself out loud.
"Oh yeah…" he replied, rubbing at the back of his neck. "That letter."
"It was unexpected," Harry admitted. "Not because…" He trailed off before clearing his throat and trying again. "Not because you being gay is something that's shocking or bad. It just wasn't something I'd given a lot of thought to before, and it's hard to respond to something like that in a letter. Not that I… I understand why you did it. I'm not saying you should have told us face to face if that was too scary for you, but now we know, and I wanted to tell you in person that you don't have anything to worry about."
Albus cut him off by latching onto the sleeve of his robes and giving it a strong tug.
"Dad, it's fine. Really. You don't need to get all—" he gestured around as he searched for the right word "—mushy."
Harry laughed and pulled Albus into an actual hug, squeezing him tightly. Albus awkwardly wrapped his own arms around Harry's waist and stayed there until Harry pulled away and settled for keeping an arm around his shoulders.
"Sorry if I'm being embarrassing," he said as he used the arm around Albus to begin guiding them forward again. "It's just that I know keeping that secret must have been difficult for you, and I want you to understand that I support you." He hesitated for a second before adding, "And I know that we had some, for lack of a better word, difficulty when it came to you befriending Scorpius, but I want you to know that I really do think you made a good choice with him. He's been a great friend to you, and I'm sure he'll be just as great of a boyfriend. We're happy that you've found someone who cares about you that much."
Albus' cheeks burned, and he thanked Merlin that they were almost back to the spot where they'd left the rest of the family.
"Thanks, Dad," he muttered.
Harry gave his shoulder one last squeeze before he released him.
"You have a bright future ahead of you, Albus. I can't wait to see what you do."
Albus gave him a bashful smile and tried to ignore the tears that were shining in his eyes again.
"I hope so," he said. They stood in front of each other awkwardly for a moment before Albus caught sight of Scorpius walking towards them, apparently having left his family somewhere else. "Uh, Dad, could i…?"
He motioned towards his boyfriend. Harry's eyes widened when he caught sight of Scorpius for himself, and he waved at Scorpius, who gave a hesitant but friendly wave back.
"Sure," Harry said. "I'll be over there with your mum and everyone."
He nodded towards the tree where the Potters and Weasleys were sitting together. Rose was there and appeared to be babbling excitedly while the others listened. It was probably all about the internship she'd managed to get at the Ministry. She'd been just as enthusiastic when talking about the interview over Christmas.
"Yeah, see you soon," Albus said, hurrying away before his dad could say anything else.
He pulled Scorpius into an embrace the second he reached him, elated that he no longer had to worry about what his dad would think if he saw them.
The baby blue robes that Scorpius had worn for the ceremony brought out the blue of his eyes in the best possible way, and Albus couldn't resist kissing him. Scorpius giggled against his lips, ending the kiss almost immediately.
"I love that we can just do that now," Scorpius admitted, his pale cheeks dusted with pink as he smiled at Albus. He glanced over Albus' shoulder in Harry's direction. "What did your dad want?"
Albus shrugged even as he answered. "To congratulate me and stuff. He told me he was proud of me."
He looked around as he said it, too embarrassed to make eye contact. Scorpius grabbed his hand in his own excitement.
"That's nice," he said with more enthusiasm than Albus frankly felt about the whole situation. "You know, my dad already told me that you could spend every holiday with us if your family acted weird after you came out."
Albus didn't know how to respond to that. He was thankful that Scorpius hadn't told him that before because it would undoubtedly have made him nervous around Draco if he'd known about it. The man had always been cordial to Albus. Thankful, Albus assumed, that Scorpius had had a good friend. But inviting him over to every holiday was something else.
"I don't think I'll need to take him up on that offer," Albus said.
"As much as I would have loved having you over every Christmas, I'm glad," Scorpius said, knocking their shoulders together. Maybe we can make both our families celebrate together this year instead. Then it would be the best of both worlds."
Albus laughed. "You sure about that? It sounds like a disaster waiting to happen."
Scorpius shrugged. He was bobbing on his feet, which Albus knew was a sign that he would work to make the idea a reality no matter what Albus said.
"It would be fun though. Maybe we could host it at our place."
"Scorpius, our flat has, like, three rooms. It's not Malfoy Manor or even the Burrow."
Scorpius waved a dismissive hand through the air.
"We'll work it out. Promise. We have loads of time to plan."
"Right," Albus said. "Let's focus on getting moved into the place first."
Scorpius gave him a huge smile, and Albus couldn't resist giving him a kiss on the cheek. He knew he would inevitably give in to Scorpius' plan for Christmas, but whether disaster befell them or not, he was looking forward to the future more than he ever had in years past. And that was something at least.