All at once, Albus felt like he could puke and punch a wall and burst into tears. But above all, he felt betrayed.

For nearly a week, he waited for Scorpius to say something. He waited for him to at least have the decency to break the truth to him. They never kept secrets from one another. At least…Albus hadn't ever kept any. But this made him wonder about their friendship. This made him wonder what else Scorpius must be hiding from him.

With a clear of his throat, Albus broke after six days of holding his anger in. "So…I think I might be ready to date again," he stated from the window seat. His tone was measured and even, but inside he was shaking with anger. "I think I'm stable enough for it now."

Without missing a single beat, Scorpius replied with a highly supportive, "That's great! Hey, that Belby kid is still into you. I heard him asking Rose if he might have a shot at another date with you. Or…or I'm sure we can find another guy for you to take to Hogsmeade this weekend."

Albus would be lying if he hadn't at least been partially hopeful Scorpius would assume he'd meant the two of them getting back together. It was half what he really meant, anyway. He was more than ready for the two of them to start dating again. All Scorpius had to do was say the word and he'd be all in. Even after this secret he was keeping. "Uh…yeah, we can find someone, I'm sure. But, uh…what about you, Scor? Are you going to date someone this year? We could give us another go…." He added a soft laugh at the end, trying to make it seem like a joke. Testing….

"Nah," Scorpius chuckled back. Perhaps sensing the importance of the conversation, he closed his textbook and settled his chin over linked fingers on his pillow. He always studied like this, on his stomach on his bed. The curtains at the side of his four-poster were drawn, but the one on the end remained open. He was closed off but still accessible. There were many things Albus loved about him, but this was one of the top ten. "It's not fair on the world if I keep you all to myself." That wink he gave was top five. "And besides, I'm way too busy to date this year. You probably should be, too. We can't make Healer on low N.E.W.T. scores."

"So…kissing my cousin out by the lake…is that part of your strict studying regimen?"

The smile slipped from Scorpius' lips as soon as the question made sense to him. It slid off his face like a broken mask. "You saw?" he asked on just the barest whisper.

Albus merely nodded, turning his eyes down to his own textbook. His anger had faded in a half-second into a deep pit of quiet sadness. Scorpius wasn't even trying to deny it. He had moved on and he was obviously happy about it. He seemed just so content.

"This isn't how I wanted you to find out."

"You were in bright and shining public, Scor. Of course I found out."

"Are you mad?"

"I'm just mad you were hiding it from me," Albus lied, snapping his book shut. He stood and crossed to Scorpius' bed, sitting next to his pillow. Coursing his fingers through the boy's hair. Trying to be a good friend even though his heart was breaking. "Both of you. When were you going to tell me?"

Scorpius shrugged, falling to the side and nuzzling into Albus' thigh. "I shouldn't have kissed him out there. Louis doesn't want to go public," he muttered. "He doesn't want people to know he's…like us. He's not even sure he is, yet. I wasn't hiding it from you, Al. I was just protecting him. He's scared in a way we never were. He's scared of the way people might talk, especially when people find out it's me he's dating. He doesn't want people to think anything unsavory about you."

People Albus cared about were hiding things from him and calling it a favor. It sounded absolutely ridiculous. But he would be incredibly rude to stay outwardly angry about that. And he might never get Scorpius back if he pushed him away now. "Take the time you guys need. I completely understand," he lied and pushed the hurt down even further into his belly.