Ice and Emeralds (A Scorbus Story)

- Chapter Six -

Albus got very little sleep that night. He had wandered the school corridors until the wee hours of the morning, safe under the Invisibility Cloak James had agreed to share with him. By the time he returned to the Slytherin dorm, the portrait of Horace Slughorn was infuriated at being woken so early in the morning.

He had done a fair bit of thinking in his aimless stroll, finally arriving at two conclusions. The first was that he liked Scorpius Malfoy. Second, Scorpius potentially liked him back.

Their kiss was ... something else. Whenever Albus had imagined his first kiss, he had never dreamed it would be with Scorpius, but now he couldn't believe he ever wanted to kiss anyone else. The more Albus thought about it, the more he desired to kiss those lips again.

He remembered last year, when his father, the famous Harry Potter, had forced Albus to stay away from Scorpius. It had almost killed him. It was then when Albus realized he couldn't live without his best friend. Even now that they had so many other friends, none of them came close to Scorpius. This frightened him. What if the kiss had ruined their friendship? What if things never went back to how they used to be? Scorpius was dating Rose. Surely he hadn't told her about the kiss. She would have ripped both of their heads off.

Albus considered how Scorpius had reacted to him breaking the kiss and giving him the cold shoulder. He had looked heartbroken. Did Scorpius like him back? Whatever happened to his feelings for Rose?

Cold and exhausted, both physically and mentally, Albus got to bed a few short hours before the sun rose and a bright blond boy rubbed his back and told him to rise and shine.

The next few days passed without much improvement and with very restless nights. Albus did not speak to Scorpius or anyone else. He felt himself fading into the background as the shock of Scorpius and Rose becoming a couple wore off. His best friend made countless attempts to strike up a conversation, but Albus didn't want to talk. He went to bed early each night before Scorpius could try to pull him into another heartfelt chat. Whenever his other friends asked him what was wrong, he lied and said he was fine. A part of him resented the way Rose looked at Scorpius, complete adoration in her eyes. Another part of him hated the way Scorpius gave her a half-hearted smile and shrugged away from her kisses. He felt guilty for the way he had been treating Scorpius and for how his actions would hurt Rose, yet his head still pounded with raging jealousy each time she tried to kiss his best friend.

Overall, Albus was more miserable than he'd ever been at Hogwarts, including the time he was forced to end his friendship with Scorpius.

The weekend came again. Albus rolled out of bed on Saturday to find the dorm empty. His watch sat on his nightstand, telling him it was nine thirty. He lazily pulled on a t-shirt and a pair of jeans.

The door creaked behind him. Scorpius entered slowly, not meeting his eyes. He was wearing his jade green sweatshirt, a look of apprehension on his face.

"Can I talk to you, please?" he said hesitantly.

"You don't need to ask." Albus started to make his bed.

Scorpius walked over, clasping his hands. "Albus, we need to talk about the kiss."

Albus didn't look up from his bed sheets. "You're dating Rose. The kiss never should've happened."

Scorpius took a moment to reply. "You're saying you didn't ... like it?"

Albus sighed. "Of course I liked it. It was amazing."

He saw his best friend blush, that cute little smile tugging at the corners of his mouth. "I thought so."

"But you're dating Rose," Albus repeated.

"I know." Scorpius smiled sadly. "I'm going to break up with her."

Shocked, Albus asked, "Why? You've liked her since first year!"

"That's true." He bit his lip. "But I think I like someone else now."

Only the silence answered. Then Albus said, "You're going to break my cousin's heart because of me?"

"I don't think she's all that attached to me. But I have to tell her we kissed and that my feelings have changed."

Albus didn't know what to say. "What are we going to do?"

Scorpius took a deep breath. "I'm not sure what you want. All I know is that I like you, Albus Potter. Very, very much."

Albus dropped the sheet he had clenched in his fist. A million thoughts raced through his mind at once. "Scorpius," he began, "I ... I like you, too. Obviously. I think I always have. The night we kissed is what made me finally realize it. But what does this mean for us?"

Scorpius gave a small laugh and shrugged. "It means we hold hands in the corridors. You kiss me on the cheek and tell me I'm funny and I call you my -- "

Albus cast him an alarmed look. Scorpius bit his lip again.

"And I call you my boyfriend." He said the last word almost like a question.

Albus smoothed out the sheets on his bed. His head and heart seemed to ache in unison.

"Scorpius, do you even know what we're dealing with?" He looked sadly at his best friend. "This could change everything, ruin everything."

"I'm not worried," Scorpius whispered, "about what people will think. My dad's talked to me about stuff like this before. He's always told me he'd accept me no matter what. If you're worried about what your parents will say, your dad's a great man, he won't have a problem with -- "

"Is that what you think this is about?" Albus interrupted. "You think this is about boys liking boys? That's not the problem, Scorpius. You are my best friend. If this goes wrong, who am I going to turn to? If we mess this up, I don't think I'll be able to take it."

Albus took a deep breath and resisted the urge to collapse onto his bed. The painful past week had taken its toll on his weary heart and he was starting to feel it now.

He looked into Scorpius's eyes. They sparkled in the morning light, the colour of diamonds.

"I don't know what I want," Albus whispered softly.

He welcomed Scorpius's lips like a blessing and felt his own face being cupped by two cold hands. The bright dormitory disappeared into green smoke. Like last time, it was broken far too soon.

"I do," Scorpius said firmly. Then he turned slowly towards the door and vanished down the stairs.