What If? -Drarry

Part Four: Chapter Seven

Chapter Seven

The flat smelled of warmth and cooking, reminding Harry of the Burrow. It was a comforting, homely feel, unusual for his cold, impersonal flat. He was checking the lasagna one last time when a pop outside the door announced Ginny's arrival.

"Hey," She smiled, giving him a quick kiss, "What've you made? Smells amazing."

"Lasagna. Your mum gave me the recipe, but I made a few adjustments of my own. And for dessert, I got Ben and Jerry's."

"You what?"

"A Muggle brand of ice cream - Jesus, when are wizards going to start using Tesco like normal people?"

Ginny laughed as she walked into the flat, but the sound died away slightly as she looked around.

"Bit messy," She commented. Harry sighed.

"I know."

"You said you were going to clean up."

"I... I never really got round to it."

Ginny's eyes hardened. "Harry, I'm a bit concerned that you haven't 'got round' to anything for about three months now."

"Cleaning just didn't seem like the most important thing to do."

"It's not about that, is it?It's about you not finding a job, about you barely leaving the house, about you not trying to move on."

"I just-" Despite Ginny's anger, Harry spoke quietly. "I just wanted us to have a nice dinner together. I feel like we haven't been doing anything recently."

Ginny's shoulders fell a little, and she sighed. "Okay. Sorry. Let's just have dinner."

Awkwardness permeated their conversations like damp air as they ate the meal, which, Ginny commented, was delicious.

"It's surprising your mum lets you come over here," Harry said as he went over to the freezer to get the ice cream. "Isn't she worried we're having sex or something?"

"It's a bit late for that, isn't it?" Ginny smiled properly for the first time since they'd sat down to eat. "No, she's not that worried. She likes you, and she trusts you, and anyway, I'm old enough to do what I want now, so she can't really stop me."

Usually Ginny might have stayed the night, but neither the idea of sex, nor of talking, seemed very enticing to either of them at that moment. Ginny slipped on her leather jacket, thanking Harry for the dinner.

"My pleasure," Harry said. "Glad you enjoyed it."

As Ginny was about to leave, she turned back, biting her lip. "I'm worried about you. You seem stuck. You're not doing anything."

"There's nothing to do."

Ginny sighed.

After she'd left, Harry gathered the plates together and put them in the dishwasher. He looked around at the flat, which still didn't feel like a home despite the fact that he had lived here for several months.

He went to bed.

0o0oDraco0o0o

"Draco," Blaise smiled. "My main man. How's life?"

"Well, I'm still in prison," Draco smirked. "I would rate my stay two stars out of five: food's alright but beds are uncomfortable and the room service is simply appalling."

They both laughed.

"So," Draco continued. "How's Pansy?"

"Single," Blaise said triumphantly. "I dumped her a few days ago when she threw a tantrum about - get this - me blinking too much."

Draco snorted. "My good man, you made the right choice. Welcome back to the real world."

Blaise shook his head, smiling. "I guess after a while I was just liking her out of habit, I never really stopped to consider why. But as soon as we started going out it was like being slapped back into reality. I think the only reason it lasted as long as it did was sex."

"Good?"

"Very. In some circumstances, it isn't a bad thing to be crazy."

"I bet. So, you got your eye on anyone else?"

"I think it's polite to be single for a while before moving on. I'm taking a break. I want to work on the career."

"Oh yeah? What do you want to do?"

"Journalism."

Draco raised his eyebrows in surprise. "I never knew you liked writing."

Blaise shrugged. "I want people to know the truth. I thought I could even start my own newspaper. God knows I don't want to work for that rag, The Daily Prophet. Which, by the way, is almost out of business."

"Good," Draco wrinkled his nose in disgust at the Ministry-owned newspaper. "They deserve to shrivel up after taking his side in the War. Well, Blaise, I hope your ambition is realised."

"Thank you," Blaise smiled. "So, has Potter still been visiting with Teddy?"

"Yup," Draco smiled. "I've seen Teddy twice now. He's amazing, you know? I never realised I like kids but he's so brilliant. Harry says he's much further ahead than any of the other kids in his nursery - he's almost walking now!"

Blaise smirked. "How precious. Never took you for a mumsy type."

Draco shook his head. "No one could meet this kid and not like him."

Blaise raised his eyebrow. "And what about Potter? I noticed you're calling him Harry again."

"Yeah, well, times change. He's becoming something dangerously close to a friend."

"You sure you don't mean something more than that?"

"Blaise, he's with Ginny. I'm not going to try to come between something that's making him happy."

"But do you still like him?" Blaise and Draco had both automatically lowered their voices as they began to talk about Harry. Draco set his jaw.

"Of course I still like him," He said, finally. "I never stopped liking him. You know that."

Blaise grimaced. "When you guys were younger I thought you were just saying you loved him because... well, you know, I thought you and Potter were young and stupid. I didn't realise how much you meant it."

"Well, I guess I did. He moved on, though, and I'm glad because I think Ginny seems nice."

"Very mature," Blaise smiled. "Who knows, though. Maybe something'll happen."

"Don't say shit like that, it doesn't help." Draco said flatly.

"Okay," Blaise raised his hands. "Sorry."

"Don't worry about it." Draco smiled to elevate the tension. "So, have you thought about how you're going to become a journalist?"

Hostility averted, the two lapsed into the usual easy conversation once more. By ignoring the guards and the hospital-smell, Draco could almost imagine that they were getting lunch together at a cafe somewhere in London.