The second time happened to be a Sunday as well.
The next years after the graduation, Rose and Scorpius continued to be quite close. Not the same as that night in The Burrow, but more than before. They found themselves having meetings alone, which was different. At first because managing times between the three of them -Albus, Rose and Scorpius- turned out to be harder than they imagined, with all the different schedules and compromises; but then because they discovered that their reunions apart, just Scorpius and Rose, were highly enjoyable. Yes, they still goofed around and joked restlessly, but they also let slip important discussions. Sometimes Scorpius found himself running his doubts of being enough to become a healer when it got particularly hard and at times Rose talked to him about her plans of traveling but her fear of leaving her family.
They knew this just happened when the two of them were together, with Albus they were the group of three again, talking about themselves but mostly talking about anything else. They embraced this uncharted territory as a knew level in their friendship, and it worked. For when they met, for when they were with others, for when they thought about it in the privacy of their own thoughts and this helped keeping them for expanding into something else.
Until a Sunday Rose proposed a movie marathon night at her house.
She had all these films her mom had recommended or that she have watched with her a thousand times that were perfect for the occasion, 'You're probably not very acquainted with them, or with muggle movies at all. But you should Scorp! let me tell ya they are kinda simple, nothing to solve with magic, but yet so moving. Movies... moving... got it? ha! Also I've been trying to do this for so long but watching them on my own sounded a little depressing... and apparently only me and my mom share the love for them. I've tried with Lily but she gave up at the first one I showed her. But I'll think you'll be more open to them for some reason', She lived with Lily now, but this weekend she was traveling with her parents for a special event in France, so her house was the perfect place for the marathon, because, 'we can be as loud and messy as we wish!', she said it like that, being aware of the innuendo when the words were out of her mouth, having both of them turn awkwardly to stare at their food until she changed the subject. And as there was no gathering at The Burrow this Sunday, because her parents were out as well and everyone got something going on but the two of them, apparently, 'it sounds like the perfect plan!'.
Scorpius reacted cautiously to this. He knew she had propose it with the best intention, the one of not leaving him at drift on a Sunday -this had become a particular habit of hers, either making sure he was on Sundays at The Burrow, every time they gathered, or sending an owl to check out on him when they weren't-. Maybe she had this idea in her head of him being more vulnerable on Sundays? He found the whole thing weird but really cute, touching almost, she really cared. But the whole plan seemed dangerous because of the threat it posed to whatever relationship they had. They were close, yes, but every time something seemed to drift a little further than that, anything similar to affection or flirting -or even accidental flirting, like the loud and messy comment- made them jump away immediately, the two of them. Which was funny for Scorpius because he usually wan't like this, he was pretty good at flirting and the numerous relationships -hookups, flings, fun times... whatever name you wanted to give them- he have had until now could testify to that. It was only with Rose that that ability seemed to be broken. Maybe because he wanted it to be. Things were good between them as they were, in some way she was family, he felt she was, he didn't wanted to pay attention to any other feeling that might change that. They didn't wanna pay attention to it.
The friendship had work for so many years, anything else that might seem alien to that word could put at risk everything else, and they both knew it. So, Scorpius was very aware that this movie night will be putting them in the awkward spot too much, but he knew that if he said no or made any face of doubt at the idea, Rose would get hurt. She knew the risk but, as he noticed after a while, as much as she seemed to be protecting him of the loneliness of Sundays, she was also protecting herself from them. She wanted Sundays to continue meaning the company they have always meant for her. This movie night was more her cry for not being alone than a help for him.
So when she mentioned her idea, he just gave her a smile and said, 'perfect!', hoping they would be able to manage the night.
But the darkness again, 'It's perfect for watching movies, don't you dare turn on the light! then we will only be able to see our reflection on the screen'. The black, the couch, the food and butterbeer on the table, the warm of her next to him. There was no escaping.
It wasn't the words or the slips that got them. It was the actual closeness. Some time along the third movie -a depressing muggle film about a woman that was dying from a horrible sickness, leaving her kids alone or with was supposed to be their 'new mom'- Scorpius slip an arm over Rose, she was crying and he was attempting to hold her, not understanding why would she enjoy watching something this sad. She didn't react and he didn't either, they could only see the features in each other that the light of the screen let show.
Then, along the fifth movie -a funny story of a guy that took care of another one that appeared to be under a permanent petrificus totalus spell, but could move his face- just when Scorpius was really liking the plot of one of these movies, sleep won them over. They ended laying in each other and sleeping peacefully.
It was until what seemed to be the end of the movie -loud music and words flowing over it- that the comfort they were in got them. Rose slowly opened her eyes along with Scorpius, a little startled by the sudden loudness, and looked at him, sleepily saying goodnight while kissing him slowly and softly in the lips. Leaving them both to drift back to sleep in the ease it produced.
Another path was crossed, and like the first time it didn't came as an "event" but as a natural development of the situation. Scorpius understood her intention, which was why he reacted as calmed as her, this was home.