Scorpius and Rose

Chapter 12- Strange Conversations

I sit at a table in the library, surrounded by books. Where is she? I wonder.

Finally, the library door swings open, revealing Rose, her face flushed. I catch a glimpse of the huge crowds swarming outside of the library. She slams the door shut and takes a deep breath, adjusting her robes and smoothing out her frizzy hair. She glances around the library before noticing me with a small smile.

"Hey," she says, sliding into a chair across from me. Her eyes scan the books stacked on the table and pulls one off the top.

"A History of Magic?" she reads aloud.

"Homework," I say, and she sets it down, nodding.

"So is this like... a date?" she asks.

"Yeah. Sort of," I say, feeling heat rise into my cheeks.

"Okay," she says slowly.

"Okay," I say back.

She grins at me, setting her elbows on the table and resting her chin on her fists. "So."

"So," I repeat.

"Homework," she says, playfully raising an eyebrow at me.

"Yes, right," I say, looking down at my parchment. I'm supposed to be summarizing A History Of Magic, but I can't help but glance up at Rose as I write, watching as her hair slips from behind her ear and in front of her eyes, blocking them from view.

She reaches up and tucks her hair back, keeping it up with a hair clip she seemingly pulled from thin air. Her brow furrows as she works on her potions homework, chewing on her thumbnail absentmindedly.

I return my focus to my homework, refreshing my ink and continuing to write. A librarian walks by, smiling down on us as she restocks the shelves. I try to ignore her but it's hard not to as she openly watches us, her eyes feeling like needles on my back.

"Is it just me or is that librarian staring at us?" Rose whispers to me.

"She is definitely staring at us," I agree.

We both glance up at the librarian, who suddenly is out of books and hurries off.

I grin at Rose, who giggles slightly. She checks her watch then sits up with a start.

"Oh no! We're going to be late for class!" She says, gathering up her parchment and ink and stuffing them into her side bag.

...

We rush into Potions a few minutes late, with a disapproving look from Professor Engleman. "Ten points from Ravenclaw for tardiness," he says.

I wince. "He always had a thing against being late," I whisper to Scorpius, who nods.

When I look at him, I feel a bubble of happiness grow inside me as I realize, for the second time that day, that he asked me out, and that we're dating.

He gives me a smile, the corner of his lip turning up, before turning back to our empty cauldron.

On the board reads the instructions for brewing Veritaserum, the truth potion. "Get along with it then," Professor Engleman says, waving at us with his hand.

"I wonder if Professor Engleman would notice if I slipped some into his drink," Scorpius whispers to me, nodding at the flask Professor Englman is drinking from.

I giggle quietly, which Professor Engleman hears.

"No talking while brewing!" he snaps. "This should be where 100% of your attention is," he hisses, pointing at my cauldron. "Five points from Ravenclaw."

After we brew the potion, Professor Engleman assigns us homework, an essay about Veritaserum.

"I hate Engleman's strict rules!" I groan as we exit the class.

"Yes. I agree that they are quite extreme," a voice says from behind us.

I turn around to see who it is. "Oh, hey Alaska." I wave at her. She smiles back. Lorcan's standing next to her, his hands shoved into his pockets, and a scowl on his face. I choose to ignore him. The arse.

"You ready for the next game?" Alaska asks. She's always kind of quiet, especially when playing quidditch, but it seems to be the only thing she'll willingly talk about.

"Only if you are." I snap my fingers and point finger guns at her.

She laughs, her head leaned back for a harsh bark of a laugh. "I hope so."

I smile nervously and look back to where Lorcan is. I find him glaring at Scorpius, and I'm eager to knock him over the head with one of my books and tell him to knock it off. I suffice for kicking my leg out behind me and hitting him in the shin.

Lorcan quickly turns back to me with a forced smile. "Anyway, Alaska and I have to go. Come on!" he says, grabbing her hand and pulling her away towards the courtyard.

She looks bewildered. "But-"

"No, no, we'll be late for class!" He says with forced cheer.

"I wonder what that was about," Scorpius says.

"Yeah," I agree. "I wonder."