~What Am I Feeling?~
~Part 3- Acceptance~
~Chapter 40- Just Albus And Scorpius~
Albus and Scorpius sat on the sofa in Malfoy Manor, the chess board scattered on the table in front of them. Scorpius was spread over Albus' lap, one arm flung around Al's neck, hitching himself up to stay steady. Albus was sitting cross legged, with both arms wrapped tightly around Scorpius' waist. They were so comfortable with each other, so natural and they fell into this position easily.
It had been just over two months since Albus and Scorpius were together for the first time. It had been the first of many. In fact, they had found it hard to keep their hands off of each other since the first time. Sex had turned out to be something they truly loved and loved to share with each other. Every night, after doing their homework of course, the first thing they would rush back to their rooms to do was sleep together. They were always tender and passionate and like the way they acted together, it came naturally to them.
If anything, it had strengthened their relationship even further. They were able to trust each other with their bodies and it brought a whole new dynamic to their relationship. Trust was always an important thing. Not just that, it brought fire. As well as being able to share themselves in another way, they had no limits with what they did of spoke of. Whereas before they would be hesitant about a kiss getting too hot, now they didn't. Whereas before they were careful with what they spoke of, especially Scorpius, now they could talk about everything, including sexual things.
Albus had come to Malfoy Manor to stay for a week during the Summer, much to Mr Malfoy's reluctance. Scorpius had insisted Albus come for a while and forever the good father, Draco finally gave in. He had been there a few days now and Draco seemed to disappear a lot. Not that they cared, it meant they got to spend more time with each other not having to worry about Scorpius' dad walking in on them.
Nobody understood how the two boys could spend another week together in the holidays, after being together constantly throughout the whole year. Except for the few who knew about them, anyway. But despite people constantly asking them whether they were sure they wanted to stay with each other again, they always replied that they were always happy to spend time together. They almost didn't understand how more people didn't realise they were together.
As for the situation with George and Teddy, that had also got better. George was working part-time in the shop again, though Ron was still the one who was running it fulltime because the fuss with the media still hadn't died down, especially because Angelina still continued to give statements to the paparazzi and the story just carried on and on. George still couldn't run the shop by himself. The best thing was, more of the family were starting to accept them again. Ron had begrudgingly accepted them, really he had from the start, he was just far too stubborn to admit it. Many of the others had too, or were at least on better terms with George and Teddy.
Albus leaned over and moved his queen in line with Scorpius' king. They had decided not to play Wizard's Chess this time as the last time they did, they had got so competitive that the pieces had been destroying their opponents quite literally into dust! Some of the repaired with a quick charm, but others wouldn't either repair with magic. It had been funny at the time, but when they didn't have a chess set left, the amusement died down.
"Check." Albus said confidently, looking at Scorpius cockily and waiting for his next move.
Scorpius rolled his eyes and casually moved his bishop and whacking Albus' Queen over, "Not for long. And check mate."
Albus concentrated in the board, reluctant to admit Scorpius had won but it was clear, that yet again, he had, "Damn you, Scorpius…" Albus growled and grabbed Scorpius' sides, earning a small squeal from the other boy, "Why do you always win, Scor? It's so unfair!"
Scorpius giggled but replied, "I won fair and square, Al!"
"Fine; why are you so clever, Scor?" Albus laughed, tickling Scorpius even more. He loved tickling Scorpius.
"Why are you so annoying, Albus?"
"Oh no you didn't!"
After a bit more of wrestling around and arguing, the two finally settled back on the sofa, curled up together. They were still laughing to themselves slightly but overall it was peaceful. Albus kissed the top of Scorpius' head and closed his eyes.
"Do you want to go out this evening?" Albus suggested.
"Just us two?" Scorpius questioned while stroking Albus' palm affectionately.
"Just us two. We could go to Muggle London… that way nobody will know about us there and we could just be... Ourselves."
Scorpius nodded, "Sounds good…"
"I'm going to treat you, bring you out to dinner," Albus nuzzled his nose into Scorpius' hair, "Treat you like a lady."
"Al, I'm not a girl!" Scorpius growled and then with a slight smirk said, "You of all people know that."
Albus chuckled, "Yeah, guess I do."
"Where in Muggle London will we go?"
Albus paused a second and then grinned, "I know, we could go to Soho. It's really nice there, we've been a few times. And they really like gay people there!"
"What do you mean they really like gay people there?"
"It's a bit more liberal there… a bit more free."
Scorpius shifted and shrugged, "It's like that a lot of Muggle places now. Muggles are really accepting over gay people nowadays."
"I just mean you see gay people walking down there, holding hands, kissing, without any worries. It's nice," Albus pecked Scorpius' cheek, "I-I wish I could be like that with you all the time, everywhere."
Scorpius sighed quietly, "I know, Al…"
"But it's okay," Albus reassured Scorpius, tilting the blonde's chin upwards, "Because when we do get to be together like that, it will all be worth it. And we'll be happier than we ever have been. I can't wait."
Smiling softly, Scorpius joined their lips together.
~X~
After running it past Scorpius' parents, Albus and Scorpius got ready to go to Soho. Despite being Summer, the weather wasn't particularly nice at the moment so they wore smart Muggle shirts with jackets to keep them warm.
Albus was the one to floo first, straight to Diagon Alley. Scorpius followed closely behind. Once there, they made to the Leaky Cauldron so they could step straight into Muggle London together. Albus led Scorpius to the Muggle trains, the 'Underground', which he had used many times with his family.
They climbed down the busy stairs, Scorpius hanging onto Albus' sleeve as bustles of people bashed past them in a rush.
As they bought their tickets, Scorpius looked around, stunned at the people scooting past him to go on the trains. To him, it looked like they were pushing and shoving. He had never seen such disorganisation in a public place. It made him glad that magic kept things much more orderly. As much as he admired Muggles, there were still benefits to having magic.
They approached the ticket barrier and Scorpius looked at it with a frown. Before Albus could explain to him, he awkwardly tried to swipe it over the front of the gate. When it didn't open, Scorpius glanced around to Albus, who was laughing and some Muggles were staring at him as they walked past.
Scorpius flushed red and Albus stepped forward to help him. He took the card from Scorpius' hand and slipped it into a little slit at the side of the gate and it then popped up again.
"Take the card now and the door will open."
Still blushing, Scorpius took the card and ran through the gate before it closed. He was suddenly standing alone without Albus' guidance and he cringed as people barged past him.
Though it was actually quite quickly, Scorpius felt like he was standing there forever by himself until Albus joined him on the other side. As soon as Albus had past the gate too, he grabbed onto Albus, provoking another chuckle from the other boy.
Following more struggles through the crowd, the couple finally reached the train which happened to be extremely busy too. There were no seats free so Albus and Scorpius had to stand. They were pushed into one of the corners of the train as more and more people loaded onto the carriage.
Scorpius was clinging onto Albus for dear life, not wanting to lose his boyfriend in the unfamiliar crowd. He was pressed up against the wall, Albus standing in front of him, protecting him from others around them. Albus was finding the whole thing rather amusing and just slipped his arms around Scorpius' waist, holding him close. There were no worries here about what people thought or having to keep secrets. It was nice. They were slightly too aware of people looking at them but there was no disapproving looks like they thought there might be. And here, they were a Potter and Malfoy. They were Albus and Scorpius, just two boys in love.
"This is absolute madness…" Scorpius whispered, glancing around at the other people around them.
Albus chuckled and pulled Scorpius closer, "This is the underground."
"Do people really do this everyday? How can they stand it?"
"It's rush hour. Everybody's finishing work or starting work now. It's the busiest time of the day, we were just unlucky to be caught at this time."
"I don't like it at all." Scorpius shook his head and leant his head up against the wall.
"It was a good experience though, let's just say that." Albus smiled, leaning forward to press a kiss to Scorpius' lips.
Scorpius' head shot back, surprised, "A-Al! W-"
"No one's looking… and no one here knows who we are anyway… they just don't care."
Scorpius' lips quirked to the side and this time he was the one to kiss Albus, "You're right."
"And anyway, they probably all think you're a girl anyway."
"Albus! I'm not a girl!"
The train journey was fairly short, only a few stops and Scorpius was relieved to get off the busy carriages and back up onto the surface of the earth.
When they stepped out into Soho, Scorpius instantly sensed, even without using his power, that this place was very free. The people who were walking around were quirky individuals, dressed in unusual clothes and random hairstyles. It looked like a place Teddy would come to hang out, for sure. He had already seen about twenty people who could be Teddy's best friend.
The most noticeable thing, for Albus and Scorpius anyway, was the different couples walking around liberally. There were a number of gay couples, men and women, walking hand in hand or sharing quick kisses. Some of the gay men where quite flamboyant, nothing like Albus or Scorpius, but they instantly had respect for them. They were so confident with who they are and obviously didn't care what others thought. Albus and Scorpius couldn't wait until they were that confident too.
Their fingers were already entwined so they walked down the road, still shyly, but no one looked at them. They were just two boys in love, just Albus and Scorpius.
Dinner was lovely. The couple went to an Italian market restaurant, where they would pick the food like they were in a market but the seating was quiet and romantic. They chatted without any worries and kissed when they felt the need to, not taking any thought to their surroundings.
They were eating desert when another couple, two men, sat down on a table next to them. They gave them small smiles, but the shorter of the other couple was very… camp and flashy. He reminded them of Louis.
The man grinned widely at the two of them and spoke, "Romantic date? Oh, you're such a cute, young couple! Aaron, do you remember when we were like that?"
The other man, Aaron smiled sheepishly, "Yes, Ed, sit down and leave the nice couple alone. Sorry."
Albus shook his head and smiled, "No problem."
They left the restaurant soon after, saying goodbye to Aaron and Ed who they probably would never see again, though they were really nice.
They decided to go for a walk around the shops in Soho and Scorpius noticed there were a lot of music shops. He was curious.
"Lots of music shops… can we go in one?" Scorpius said while peeking into a smaller piano shop.
"Sure, though I don't know why you would want to go into a music shop. You don't play anything." Albus shrugged and laughed.
"I'm curious."
Scorpius dragged Albus into the piano shop. It was completely surreal; there were pianos stacked upon other pianos, sheet music scattered around messily. All the pianos were also open, as if every single one had been tested. It was a strangely comforting environment, quite homely and happy.
The owner of the shop was no where in sight, probably in the back, not expecting any customers towards closing time, which left Albus and Scorpius completely alone.
"I honestly think pianos are so beautiful." Scorpius said, running his finger over a black key and making a sharp note chime through the air.
Unexpectedly, Albus sat down at one of the pianos and positioned his hands above the piano. Scorpius watched in disbelief, slowly stepping towards Al who was breathing hard and concentrating solely on the piano.
Before Scorpius could speak a word, Albus' fingers descended on the piano and a beautiful string of notes followed. Together, they created a peaceful melodic dream, which captured Scorpius, the way only few musicians could. He instantly found himself lost in Albus' sinfully short piece, fascinated by Albus' hands gliding over the piano and the way Albus himself also looked so taken by the music.
The piece was only about two minutes long and once Albus finished, Scorpius found himself desiring more.
They were silent for a moment, both letting the music revel and ring in their ears.
Albus was nervous for Scorpius' reaction but he turned to Scorpius with a hesitant smile, "It's called 'Scorpius' Lullaby'… Just because I wrote it, thinking about when I see you asleep and how peaceful and just… striking you look. You look beautiful when you sleep… not that you don't always… I just… I felt the need, the itch to write music which fitted that… something that maybe one day would send you to sleep so I can see you so peaceful and beautiful and I would know it's because of my work…" Albus sighed, swinging his head back around to face the piano, "I don't know, Scorpius… sometimes I just get the urge to write music. I can't force myself to write music… I just know, when sounds and melodies run through my head that it's time and that's what makes a good song…
"Honestly, most of the time the songs are about you," Scorpius blushed but let Albus continue, "You provoke so many emotions from me which I just have to capture in sound! The last year, I've written lots of songs… I have a few songs about other stuff… I actually wrote one about Teddy and George, and a few about my family. There was one I wrote about last Summer, when we were on the beach and we were all so relaxed and happy. I love writing music and playing music, Scor… but I've never had the courage to share it with anyone. Because I'm worried what they would think… I do over think everything… Maybe that's why I wasn't put in Gryffindor, because I'm not brave when it comes to telling people stuff which might end up in me getting hurt. Because my music means a lot to me… and it someone were to say something bad to me about it, I would be ups-"
"Albus, you have nothing to worry about!" Scorpius enfolded his arms around Albus' neck from behind, leaning his head against the brunette's, "That was one of the most beautiful things I've ever heard. Because I could feel it was from the heart and I could feel how much it meant to you."
Albus still looked nervous and he ducked his head, "You haven't heard me sing yet."
"If your singing is anywhere near as good as your piano skills and song-writing skills, then you must be brilliant," Scorpius turned Albus' cheek towards him, "Al, you're amazing. Thank you so much for sharing that with me. I really feel honoured. And… even more honoured that such a beautiful song was about me."
Albus' smile grew into a beam and he closed the gap between their lips for a peck, "You are my inspiration. Everything I love about you, the way you love me, it just spills out when I'm writing. It's like… my version of a diary. But I would have nothing to talk about, nothing to write or make music about, if it weren't for you. So thank you Scor, for being my inspiration.
Scorpius' eyes teared up slightly at Albus' touching words. They met again in the middle for a passionate, emotional kiss.
However engaging the kiss was, they had let their guard down for once and at the completely wrong time.
Standing outside the shop after following them around for most the evening was Annabel Skeeter, daughter of Rita Skeeter.
Annabel had taken after her mother with her career path and was just as nosy when it came to getting a good scoop. When she spotted the Potter and Malfoy together, she just has to follow them and found out much more than she ever would have expected.
She snapped a quick picture of the two kissing and smirked to herself. She couldn't have wished for anything better.
~X~
A/N: I had so much fun writing this chapter! I'm gonna keep this short because I need to go somewhere but next chapter is going to be even more fun... I've been looking forward to it, drama ensured!
Please read my re-posted Without The Flick Of The Wand! First chapter is up!
And just to make it clear, none of my stories have been deleted by fanfiction, I deleted them myself :)
Thank you for reviewing the last chapter, Satary, Curly Wurly Me, XxBandersnatchxX, CandePFeatherSnitch95, HPnextgenfan, AFLlover, Lizzy0308 and Full-Empty-Spirit!
Next chapter:: Everyone finds out. Including the person they were dreading telling.