7th year – Winter Holidays
Rose tried to convince herself that she was not disappointed that Scorpius hadn't shown up for Christmas at the Burrow. She already heard that the Malfoys had spent Christmas under the weather with nasty case of Dragonpox during the holiday, so she knew he had a fully understandable reason for not having showed up to the Burrow.
But still.
He hadn't been there. And Rose did not know how to describe the feeling she got when she heard he would not be there. Even though she had gone out of her way to let Grandma Weasley know to make her Weasley Christmas sweater a dark navy color after Scorpius suggested the maroon clashed with her hair. Even though she had put in the effort to charm her curls to be tidier than usual. Even though she had even worn the stupid necklace that Scorpius had given her for her birthday.
So Rose Weasley had gotten even drunker for this year's Christmas celebration, so drunk that she didn't even manage to sing – her favorite drunken activity. Her hangover could not even be nursed back to health with Lily's procured hangover recovery potion. She was still recovering when December 30th rolled around, a full 5 days after Christmas. She told herself she would never drink again.
Then, Albus told her Scorpius had recovered his health and would be coming to the Burrow for New Year's Eve instead, and he tried to ignore the fact that Rose also made a miraculous recovery after hearing this fact. He tried not to notice how the flush of her cheeks returned and her eyes visibly brightened. Because noticing these things would only earn him more trouble. And he was going to let them figure it out on their own.
Rose tried to convince herself that she was not excited the next day as she wore that stupid necklace again and once again charmed her curls to be tidier than usual. She found a navy blue dress to wear for the celebration (which had nothing to do with the fact that Scorpius once suggested she looked good in the color). She also may have decided to cover up a few of her freckles and the bags under her eyes. And she may have even decided to put on some of the makeup Lily got her for Christmas but only because it was polite to use the gifts your family members got you.
So when Scorpius Malfoy arrived, looking as effortlessly handsome as ever (yes, Rose would admit that he was a good-looking bloke), Rose felt almost embarrassed at the effort she put into her appearance. But when she locked eyes with him, the embarrassment faded because he was smiling at her, revealing that devilish dimple on his face. And she found herself smiling back.
The whole clan greeted him and said how thankful they were for his fast recovery. And as he disappeared into the crowd of Weasleys and Potters, Rose felt annoyed at her family for taking up all of Scorpius' attention and time. Ahem…correction: she meant that she felt annoyed at her family for being so buddy-buddy with Scorpius when he was still just the Malfoy kid.
Once Scorpius was finally freed from the clutches of Ron Weasley requesting to play another game of Wizards Chess with him before the evening celebrations began outside of the Burrow with the charmed bonfire and endless flasks of firewhisky, Rose was finally able to say a proper hello to Scorpius.
Rose didn't know why but she suddenly felt shy, even though it had been less than two weeks since they saw each other in school and were bantering like always about Heads duties.
Scorpius Malfoy noticed the soft flush of pink on her cheeks and the way Rose stared at her toes and wondered how he could get away with taking a picture of her in this moment and cherishing the memory forever. But instead, he gave her a pat on the head and smiled at her, practically beaming once he saw the necklace around her neck.
"Hope you had a good Christmas, Rosie." He ruffled her hair as if to tease her.
"It was great because you weren't here." Rose puffed out while rearranging her curls.
He chuckled at her because her comment had absolutely no bite and absolutely no menace. And he knew they were different now than ever before.
"Well, I would have had a much better Christmas with you." Scorpius said while walking towards the door to go outside.
Rose widened her eyes in surprise at his sincerity. She stammered, trying to look for a witty comeback to break the heavy mood that surrounded them both. Instead, she felt herself blushing further much to her annoyance.
"You look beautiful today, Rose."
Scorpius got in the last word as he left Rose inside and walked out the door to join the clan in their evening festivities.
…
As the countdown came and went, Scorpius watched as couples around him kissed and people cheered, clanging their glasses and giving hugs all around. He saw James and Fred light fireworks from the ends of their wands and tease Roxanne about her fear of the resulting sparks. Albus laughed beside him.
And on the other side of Scorpius was Rose Weasley, whose presence he was always so aware of. He couldn't help but feel a bit disappointed when the countdown came and went and Rose did not even give him as much as a high five. He didn't know what he expected exactly, but maybe at least a hug? A 'happy new year'? A kiss on the cheek?
He knew things had changed. They studied together in the common room and ate breakfast together in the great hall. Even without Al. They poured over Heads duties together into the latest of nights and laughed at the worst muggle movies together. He had even gotten the habit of buying her something sweet from Honeydukes on Hogsmeade weekends. And she had begun revising every one of his writing assignments before he had to turn them in.
After years of denial, maybe Scorpius was now willing to admit that maybe he had hoped for something else from Rose. Perhaps an upgrade on last year's Christmas incident? Was it so terrible that he had hoped for something when he saw her wear his present? When he saw her soft blush at his compliment?
Instead, he got a quiet nod and a soft smile before she went and celebrated with her other family members.
Scorpius took a large sip of his drink.
And, later in the night, Scorpius headed into the Burrow to gather his things to head home after a long night of celebrating when he saw her again coming back from fetching something from the kitchen.
Now, though, he was Tipsy Scorpius and she was Drunk Rose, which was always a dangerous combination.
Tipsy Scorpius never knew what to do when coming face-to-face with Drunk Rose. Because Tipsy Scorpius did not have the brain power to be able to handle Sober Rose might as well rambunctious Drunk Rose. But even if he did not know what to do, he could still enjoy himself and let himself take in the presence of Rose Weasley. Though even Tipsy Scorpius was still a little bitter that she barely gave him the time of day once it became the New Year. And he was determined to stay aloof.
At least, he was determined until Drunk Rose decided to give him a hug the moment she saw him.
"Happy New Year, Scorpius" Drunk Rose beamed at him.
And how could Tipsy Scorpius ever stay aloof when Drunk Rose was beaming at him like that?
"It's a little late for Happy New Year, Rosie." Tipsy Scorpius still attempted to keep up his front and make it known that he was still feeling a bit insulted by her lack of attention earlier in the night.
"Don't be silly, Scorpius. It's still New Year's!" Drunk Rose said, spinning around in a circle.
Drunk Rose decided to sing, as was her specialty. Except she began singing 'Happy Birthday' as if forgetting what holiday it was she was supposed to be singing for. But, seeing her spinning around and singing off-key in celebration mood made Tipsy Scorpius realize that maybe there was never any point in being annoyed at her because his annoyance would never get anywhere.
"Wrong song." Tipsy Scorpius chuckled, stabilizing Drunk Rose as she stumbled over her own feet.
"There's no such thing. A song is a song!" She giggled.
"Happy New Year, Rosie." Scorpius said softly, looking down at the girl in front of him. His hands were still on her elbows from stabilizing her a moment before. He didn't really want to let go.
"It's never too late for a Happy New Year, Scorpius."
Tipsy Scorpius slowly watched as Drunk Rose pulled out her wand and pointed it at the ceiling right above them. With a flick of her wand, Drunk Rose had conjured up small fireworks to go off in the air right above their heads. He watched the literal sparks went off above him in both awe and amusement.
She then began to whisper.
"10…9…."
Scorpius swore he could suddenly feel himself sobering up with the sound of her whisper. He wondered how it was possible that he could hear her more clearly when her voice was so low.
"8…7…"
Rose was looking at him with such a look of resolve that he wondered if maybe she was sobering up too. A look that almost dared him to look away.
"6…5…"
Scorpius held his breath as she continued to count down because she was suddenly closer than she was just five seconds ago. So close that he could count her eyelashes.
"4…3…"
He knew his breath hitched and his fingers trembled ever so slightly. He hoped Rose didn't notice because it was embarrassing how nervous he felt. He wondered if she could feel the vibration of his heartbeat from his fingertips on her arms.
"…2…"
He suddenly didn't think about anything anymore because Rose Weasley had a mischievous glint in her eye that he swore was burned in his memory.
"…1"
And, suddenly, her lips were on his.
Soft, warm, inviting.
He paused for a moment, half-expecting her to run away, yell, or laugh. Instead, he was met with the movement of her lips and a slight tug on his arm to bring him closer, actions that he could only take as encouragement. And with that, he began to massage his lips against her own, praying that this moment was not in his imagination.
He moved his arms from her elbows and brought his right hand to the side of her face, allowing his fingers to get enveloped in dark red curls while his thumb softly stroked her cheek. She followed in suit by moving her own hands to his chest, leaving a burning imprint across his skin. As she slowly gripped his sweater, he moved his other hand to support her waist, bringing her closer to him. He couldn't even describe how he felt when he felt her breath hitch at the contact.
He moved his lips alongside hers, driving all fear and hesitation from his brain as he took in the taste of her mouth, the smell of her hair, and the warmth of her skin. Because if this was the last time Rose Weasley was going to kiss him, he might as well enjoy it. And when he felt her tongue slide across his bottom lip, he smiled against her lips because kissing Rose Weasley was everything he had imagined.
Passionate, purposeful, unexpected.
And when they finally broke apart to take a breath, he felt a wave of disappointment at the loss of her touch. His second taste of bitter disappointment of the night. Though he almost smiled when he saw Rose's soft pants, swollen lips, and tangled hair before him, all a product of his ministrations.
He bent down again, almost waiting for permission to recapture her lips.
Rose stared at him teasingly, which was really quite torturous for Scorpius in that moment.
"Rosie.." He tried not to sound like he was begging.
"Happy New Year, Scorpius. I told you it was never too late to celebrate!" Rose interrupted him while smirking.
She turned around as if to leave, and Scorpius could not have that because how could she leave after a kiss like that? And what did this all mean anyway? Would he be able to kiss her again? Was this just a one-time incident? Why was she wearing the necklace he got her?
He grabbed her wrist softly.
"Wait, Rosie, what does this…"
And Scorpius was once again interrupted when Rose turned to face him again and gave him a soft peck on his cheek.
"It means 'Happy New Year.' I'll see you at school." She gave him a soft smile, a squeeze on his shoulder, and disappeared back into the Weasley-Potter celebrations outside the Burrow.
Scorpius was left gaping.
A/N: AHHH
