SCORBUS // consider me yours.

08 | why cant i ever name them (yes, i'm leaving this as a chapter name)

Both Scorpius and Albus — and the Room of Requirement — had been introduced to quite a lot of problems in the past hour or so. Fortunately, Albus considered all the problems officially solved, as of. . . now.

Except for the problem that involved liking his best friend. And the semi-problem, which is that his best friend doesn't know.

For the most part, then, Albus felt satisfied. Only about a minute had passed since Scorpius made Albus' cheeks flush red, but they still hadn't returned to their original colour. In fact, Albus thought they might've been getting even brighter. That, of course, was because of Scorpius, who had placed his head on Albus' shoulder, and was (although he wouldn't admit it) dozing off.

Albus didn't know what to do. He couldn't exactly move without moving Scorpius along with him as well, he couldn't get comfortable because Scorpius would wake up, and he probably couldn't even breathe too loud without having Scorpius open one eye in confusion.

Albus placed his head on top of Scorpius' before he could even register what he'd done. It was like he was racing against himself: do it before I tell you not to.

Albus tried to close his eyes, but it was impossible. Maybe it was because he wasn't tired— or maybe it was because Scorpius' head lay on his shoulder.

"Albus," Scorpius mumbled suddenly. It was quiet, but it still made Albus jump. Maybe he'd woken up because he felt Albus shaking.

Albus lifted his head, thinking he'd done something wrong. Scorpius didn't do the same. Albus tried to look down at him the best he could, and of course it was difficult, what with him being on his shoulder.

"You should go to your classes," Scorpius sighed. He rubbed his eyes and yawned.

Albus shook his head, slightly surprised. He pouted falsely, "But you said I was more important than them."

Albus' breath hitched unnoticeably as he realized: would Scorpius consider what he'd just said as 'leading him on'? No. He couldn't be leading Scorpius on if he actually liked him.

Scorpius stuffed his face into Albus' shirt, and sighed, which came out as a short laugh.

Scorpius smiled, and Albus was disappointed that he couldn't see it. Scorpius shook his head, and Albus' shirt stretched. "Yeah, to me. But you. . . you've missed so many classes already."

"So what's one more?" Albus asked, biting the inside of his cheek. That made Scorpius lift his head up. Albus would've been pleased, but Scorpius' smile had faded.

"Albus." Scorpius voice fell stern. His facial expression didn't exactly match his tone, which was cautioning. Scorpius seemed hesitant, and a tiny smile tugged at his lips. "You need education, you idiot."

Albus hung his his mouth open, and a hand flew to his chest. He scoffed playfully, and Scorpius snorted accidentally. "Piss off."