Lemon Grass and Sleep

THE CURSE OF THE WEASLEY JUMPER

Sharing a bed together had been oddly wholesome between the two of us. I know when I think of two teenage boys sharing a bed...I don't know, I usually would think something naughty would be going on if they both swung that way. But Fred hadn't done more than pulling me close under the covers, maybe a kiss on the neck or something like that, but nothing we'd get caught doing.

"Funny meeting you here," he said, sidling up to me at the bathroom sink as I brushed my teeth.

"Mm," I spoke through my mouthful of toothpaste, watching as he pulled out his own toothbrush and paste.

My arm tingled where his brushed against mine, and I tried to spit out my toothpaste in the least disgusting way possible. Fred followed suit quickly after, leaving the two of us just sort of standing in the bathroom.

With a subtle glance in my direction, Fred slowly closed the door behind him, giving me a knowing look. We had been stealing little moments like this wherever we could, just to get a quick kiss or to hug for a second.

It wasn't like this was the most ideal situation to start dating in, but it could've been a lot worse I suppose.

"Did you sleep good?" He asked, slinking his arms around my waist and pulling me flush against him.

"Y-Yeah," I faltered, hands gripping his upper arm in surprise at the sudden closeness.

Fred dipped his head and planted his lips on mine, tilting his head just enough to make it feel deeper than it was. He was beginning to get a little bolder, which I somehow knew was going to happen but still wasn't prepared.

Almost experimentally, Fred nudged his knee between my legs and pulled me further forward. Surely, he must know what he's doing? That I have to go eat breakfast with his family soon, that I would have to sit next to him as his family opened Christmas presents and pretend like this didn't happen.

"Fred," I hissed, pushing him away lightly, "What are you doing?"

"Is that not right?" He asked, seemingly genuinely.

"No it's-" My cheeks were aflame with embarrassment...and a bit of something else. "It's definitely right," I muttered, "But I'll have to go downstairs soon..."

"Then I'll keep it in mind," his hands gripped my hips and he leaned down to steal one last quick kiss. "Take some time to cool down before you follow me down, they'll be waiting on you anyways."

"Yeah, thanks," I said sarcastically, leaning on the sink as Fred left and shut the door behind him. Now that he had gone, I could hear the liveliness of the family downstairs, filled with Christmas joy. I felt a bit out of place, but it was definitely better than spending the holidays alone at Hogwarts like usual.

"You know, Tom," Molly said as soon as I stepped off the last stair, "I have no idea how you sleep in so late and still have such horrible sleep circles."

"At this point I think they're just a part of my face," I smiled, rubbing my eyes as if that would make the purple underneath my eyes disappear.

"Probably from all that studying you do," Arthur mumbled from behind his newspaper, "You should be relaxing, take a break on your holiday."

"He's right, if I catch you studying on Christmas day I'll make you sleep in the garden."

"It's actually quite cozy out there," George comforted, patting me on the back.

Tucked in the corner was a large Christmas tree whose underside had been filled with presents overnight. I was honestly shocked at the amount of presents under the tree, they spilled out into the living room and snaked around furniture.

"Alright, on with it then," Molly clapped her hands excitedly as she began passing out presents and wrapping paper began to be shredded and tossed to the floor.

Of course I couldn't help but pay attention to Fred's gifts especially, and I watched him toss an acid pop in his mouth before moving onto his next gift.

"This one's for you, Tom," Molly handed me a square box that was wrapped simply with just a gold ribbon.

"Oh," I remarked quietly, surprised by the gesture. "I wasn't expecting anything."

"Nonsense, it's Christmas." It had gotten a bit quieter in the room, or maybe I was just going deaf.

"Thank you, Molly," I smiled up at her before pulling the ribbon away carefully. The box revealed a knitted sweater with the letter 'T' in gold yarn. The sweater itself was a deep emerald green, and it took everything in me to not tear up.

"I will be expecting to see you in that before you go," she laughed, patting me on the shoulder before giving me a brief side hug. "Merry Christmas, Tom."

"Merry Christmas," I murmured, brushing my hand over the yarn. She must've worked on this every single day since I had gotten here to have this done, and how did she even know my measurements.

"I see the famous Weasley jumper curse has become contagious," George joked, and I looked up to see him already wearing a red jumper with the letter 'G' on it.

"Ah, another victim claimed by the notorious Molly Weasley," Fred piled onto the joke, earning him a smack from his mother.

I pulled the twins' pullover off of me and replaced it quickly with the sweater. I was assuming she used their measurements for me due to how it fit. It was a bit loose, but that was how I liked my sweaters to fit anyways. I couldn't contain a smile that broke out over my face when I looked around and saw everyone wearing a sweater that looked just like mine.

Here I was, sitting surrounded by people who cared for me and being included in their little tradition. Just last year, around this time, I was sitting in the Hufflepuff common area, tossing a ball back and forth with Samantha, a girl who also never went home.

"Alright, everyone get to the table and eat up, the food isn't getting any hotter."

Fred slunk his hand under the table to rest on my knee, a safe distance away from anything inappropriate. His fingers tapped a familiar rhythm against my pajamas, his eyes still focused on his food. It was a small little subconscious action, but I felt like I was less of an intruder on their Christmas and more of an invited guest.

Not only was Molly smothering me with affection I hadn't had in years, but everyone here looked like me. There were so few redheads at Hogwarts, and here I was in a house filled to the brim with them.

I found myself with an unbreakable smile on my face again. As Fred tapped his fingers on my knee and hummed quietly beside me, I thought I would for sure be at the Weasley's for next Christmas--no matter how many concussions it caused me.