Disclaimer: It all belongs to JK Rowling.
Chapter Five
"So…" said Rose, regarding Scorpius with a nervous smile. They had ducked into a cosy Muggle café for tea, and, well, this little question had been nagging at Rose for a couple hours now. She really, really wanted to know. But how to ask?
"So…" prompted Scorpius, setting down his teacup.
The redhead bit her lip. "Is it—can I… I'm curious—"
"Oh, are you?"
"Yes." She sighed. "Okay, I just—I guess I'm just a little curious about this—"
"You don't say."
She scowled half-heartedly at him. "You are so annoying."
"That's what all the ladies tell me," replied Scorpius, grinning. He leaned back, one hand supporting his head, and nodded. "Just ask me, Rose."
She huffed. Fine. She would, perfect wording be damned. She took a deep breath. "Whendidyoufirstfancyme?"
"Pardon?"
She folded her arms. She'd play it cool. "You heard me."
His smirk was a little too knowing for her tastes. "Maybe you should learn to enunciate."
Brown eyes narrowed. "I can enunciate," she insisted, clearing her throat. "But fine… when did you, you know—first… fancy me?"
His smirk widened. "Now, was that so difficult?"
She stared back challengingly.
Scorpius chuckled. "Right. Someone's impatient." He was silent for a moment. "I suppose it was… sixth year."
Both of her brows shot up. "But… I hardly knew you. We never—oh… Prefect rounds." Rose had never been paired with Scorpius for patrol, but she had run into him. She remembered the night she'd found him engaging in some decidedly not-so-prefect-like activity with Brie Wexler. It had been the first time they'd ever spoken to one another—well, more like he stood there while she yelled…
"I found the yelling really hot," he admitted.
Rose rolled her eyes, fighting a smile. "Really?" She laughed softly. "It's just… I had no idea."
Scorpius nodded. "Yeah. Rose, you—you're that girl. You seemed to be everywhere to everyone else—yet so unreachable to me. To borrow a Muggle phrase, you were on a different wavelength, one that just seemed brighter, more vivid—one I couldn't quite reach. And so I did what any bloke would do. I tried to get to know you better, despite… other complications." He looked her straight in the eye. "You're the only reason I continued as prefect for seventh year."
Her mouth fell open. "You—I… really?"
He rolled his eyes. "I swear, if you say anything about inspiring school service or—"
Rose smiled now, moving over to slide into his side of the booth. "I wasn't," she murmured, burying her face into his neck. "That has to be the sweetest thing anyone has ever said to me."
She could feel his arms wrapping around her. The uncharacteristic scepticism was gone when he drawled, "I don't doubt it."
She could feel his grin against her hair, and laughed. "You're kind of a tosser."
"But you like it."
She lifted her head from his neck, only to rest it on his shoulder. "Maybe a little bit." She smiled, and they remained that way for a little while, her lips only rearranging themselves into a frown when her mPhone vibrated.
"What's wrong?"
She shook her head. "Nothing, I just forgot I had to babysit tonight."
"Oh?"
"For Mackenzie, my cousin's daughter," she explained. Molly was a single mum, and all of the cousins took turns helping take care of Kenzie. Molly's younger sister Lucy had invited her immediate family to a VogueWitch soiree that night, and so Rose had offered to hang out with her niece.
Scorpius nodded. "Sounds fun," he said with a smile. "I babysit my nephew, too."
Rose didn't know why she was so surprised, but she was. It was just odd picturing Scorpius—the cool, charming Quidditch star—around kids. The thought made her smile. "You do?"
"I do." He chuckled. "Liam. He's almost four."
"Oh, so is Kenzie!" Her eyes lit up. "Maybe they can play together." None of them (Molly, herself, or the rest of their family) knew children whom were Kenzie's age. And with Kenzie's dad out of the picture, they were all adamant to create as normal a life as possible for their little niece.
"Liam's always down to make new friends. I'll talk to Nate and Camille," said Scorpius. Then he smirked, pressing his lips to her hair. "But what about you and me?"
Rose raised a brow, biting her lip to refrain from smiling. "What? Do you need me to schedule you a play-date, too?"
"I was thinking just a date. With you." He smirked. "The eighteenth?"
She blushed. "Isn't that two weeks from now?" Her brows furrowed. "Are you playing hard-to-get, Mr. Malfoy?"
He pretended to think. "Is it working?"
She shook her head solemnly. "More like backfiring."
"Damn." He chuckled and took her hand. "Well, Quidditch boot camp starts tomorrow. And it lasts twelve bloody days. Trust me when I say that I'd rather be with you than 'bonding' with my teammates."
"Aren't you sweet." Rose rolled her eyes. "I'm sure it'll be fun, Scor. And who knows? You might even get to see me on the eighteenth."
"Might?"
She nodded, eyes sparkling mischievously. "For all you know, I could stand you up."
"Then maybe I should take you with me," he murmured, pulling her closer to him. His hot breath against her ear caused a shiver.
"I'm not sure I want to be around a bunch of sweaty Quidditch players," she breathed. "Well, except you."
"Now I'm definitely taking you with me."
She laughed, and it struck her suddenly that she hadn't felt this happy in a very long time. After not seeing each other for over two years, and only spending time together twice—in the span of a week—it seemed inexplicable that she should feel so comfortable with a man she knew only casually in school, but she did. She and Scorpius just seemed to fit.
Rose smiled gently, tugging on his hand. "Do you believe me when I say that I honestly wouldn't mind? For now, though, I've got to get to Molly's."
He acquiesced with a sigh, and after depositing a few Muggle bills on the table, he allowed her to drag them both out of the booth. When they were outside, she twined her arms around his neck. "Have fun at boot camp."
"I'm sure I will," he muttered dryly. Pressing his lips to her forehead, he smirked. "Try not to miss me too much."
"Oh, you're going somewhere?" she asked innocently. Scorpius rolled his eyes and she laughed. "I'll see you in two weeks," she said, kissing his cheek.
He echoed her promise, and after a few more moments in his arms, the redhead finally pulled herself away and Apparated to her cousin's front door.
"Late as always," teased Molly as she let Rose into her flat. "How was your day, hon?"
Rose smiled apologetically, hugging the statuesque brunette. "Good! Well, actually—dress fittings for Victoire all morning, so…" She shrugged, making a face. "At least she finally picked a dress! And it looks gorgeous, too. Now, we just need the bridesmaids' dresses." She sighed dramatically, looking meaningfully at her cousin. "You are so lucky you have Kenzie to use as an excuse to escape fittings. I'm dragging both of you to the shop next time."
Molly simply chuckled and offered Rose some tea. "My daughter is more than an all-purpose excuse, Rose," she admonished lightly, waving her wand at the kettle. "By the way, did you change perfumes? The new scent is lovely."
The redhead frowned. New scent? She sniffed the collar of her sweater, a smile springing to her lips. She did smell wonderful—like… well, Rose couldn't quite put her finger on it. The scent was fresh, comforting, distinctively Scorpius…
Rose's eyes widened. She smelled like Scorpius! Merlin, he did smell delicious…
"Rose? Rose. Are you in there?"
Rose glanced over at her cousin, biting her lip guiltily. "Oh, sorry! Yeah, I just spent some time in this new, er, perfumery in London. You know how overwhelming all of those scents can be."
"Uh, right…" Molly looked dubious, mainly because Rose was a dreadful liar and also partially because the brunette wasn't born yesterday.
Rose flushed. She didn't mean to be disingenuous, but she just wasn't quite ready to share Scorpius anyone—not yet, at least. And she certainly was not at all ready for her family to know. Although Molly wasn't a gossiper, somehow, things never stayed secret in the family for long. Besides, who knew how long this thing with Scorpius would even last?
Rose smiled faintly and tried to change the topic. "So, have you decided on what to wear for tonight?"
The brunette shrugged, seeming to decide that whatever Rose was being shifty about wasn't of too much concern. "I've narrowed it down to two," she said, motioning for Rose to follow her to the bedroom. "Come on, it's time to wake Kenzie anyways."
A little girl with springy brown curls blinked sleepily at them from the bed. "Auntie Wose?"
"Hi, sweetie," said Rose, grinning at her niece. She kicked off her shoes and lied on the bed, hugging Kenzie. "How's my favourite niece?"
"V'racious!" she exclaimed. "I read two whole books by m'self!"
Rose laughed. "That's wonderful, Kenz. You know," she said conspiratorially, "You're going to be smarter than your mum soon."
Kenzie's eyes widened, sceptical but delighted. "Really?"
Rose nodded. "And since you're so smart, you have to help your mum pick out her party dress! Can you do that, Kenzie?"
The little girl nodded seriously, fixing her attention on Molly, who had fished two long-sleeved dresses from the back of the wardrobe.
"Try the burgundy one first," suggested Rose.
Molly nodded, and as she slipped into the dress, asked, "So Dom has the flat to herself tonight?"
"Mm-hmm, but she's checking out some new club in Downtown Diagon. Resonance, I think?"
"Oh, sounds fun." Molly sighed apologetically. "Thanks for babysitting tonight, hon. If Lucy hadn't made such a fuss about it, I probably wouldn't even be going."
Rose shook her head and assured her cousin that it wasn't a problem. She wasn't much of a party girl anyways, preferring a quiet night in to a trendy dance club. "Besides, Kenzie and I will be having much more fun—right, Kenzie?"
"Right!"
Molly chuckled and twirled around timidly in the burgundy dress. "What do you think?"
"You look gorgeous!" said Rose. And it was true. Though long-sleeved, knee-length, and with only a shallow boat-neck, the dress was fitted and featured lacy sleeves—the overall effect was classy and tastefully sexy. Rose approved. "You should definitely wear it. What do you think, Kenz?"
"You look very pretty, Mummy!"
Molly sighed, eying herself critically in the mirror. "I don't know. This is more your type of dress, Rose. I don't quite have the figure for this sort of thing."
"Don't be silly, Molls. It's beautiful and you look great."
"Yeah, it's a birthday gift from Aunt Fleur," she replied absently, still scrutinizing her reflection.
"Well, there you go! If anyone knows style, it's Aunt Fleur. She knew you would look great in it, and you do." Rose frowned. "Did someone say otherwise? About the dress, I mean."
"Ah, yeah. Lucy," admitted the brunette sheepishly. "She didn't think I… suited the style."
Of course. "Okay, listen, Molls. Lucy may be a fashion editor, but that doesn't mean her opinions are tasteful—or sound or normal, for that matter. I mean, what's the latest craze these days? Hippogriff feather headpieces?" She shook her head in bewilderment. Lucy could be quite insensitive and self-absorbed. "Don't listen to her. You're only twenty-five and you look wonderful. I think you should wear the dress, Molls. Really."
"Yeah, wear it, Mummy!" Kenzie's green eyes were wide, hopeful, and imploring.
In the end, Molly caved and wore the burgundy dress. Rose discreetly high-fived her niece while Molly went searching for shoes.
When it was time for Molly to leave, she reviewed all of the instructions and emergency potions with Rose once more. "And don't forget there's food in the fridge. Thank Merlin Nana brought over some pre-cooked meals yesterday. Godric knows you couldn't feed anyone if your life depended on it."
Rose rolled her eyes. "Harsh, Molls. You've only reminded me about a dozen times already. Besides, I can always order takeout. I'm capable of that, at least," she said, winking. "Now go. Enjoy yourself!"
Molly kissed Kenzie on the cheek. "Okay, and don't forget that Kenzie's bedtime is ten o'clock. I might not be back before then, so make sure—"
"Oh for Merlin's sake, just go, Molls! I promise we'll be fine."
Molly sighed and pulled her daughter in for another hug. The little girl squealed. "Love you, Mummy!"
After another round of hugs and kisses, Molly finally left. Rose turned to her niece. "So, Kenz, what do you want to do?"
The little girl grinned and pulled her over to the small living room, pushing a small pouch with a Muggle Blu-Ray disc into Rose's hands. Rose smiled and set up the mPlayer. While Wizarding films existed, there were far more Muggle ones, and so the magical device accommodated both types.
Rose and Kenzie spent the rest of the night watching animated films (and eating Nana's lasagne). Their favourite was one in which a princess, a queen, an ice salesman, a talking snowman, and a reindeer worked together to save their kingdom. Kenzie fell asleep at an early hour, and after levitating the little girl into her bed, Rose curled up on the couch, drifting into dreams about a certain blond Quidditch player.
A/N: Thank you for reading! Please review to let me know your thoughts.