Must Have Done Something Right / Scorbus

Chapter 26 / Green Ties and Silver Eyes

Sybil squealed with excessive delight when she saw what Albus was wearing. He had taken Scorpius' advice and decided to wear a Muggle suit to the Halloween Party, despite his girlfriend's attempts at discouraging him from doing so. Mel had wanted him to wear traditional wizard dress robes, but Albus figured that Scorp would probably know more about clothes than she. And if Sybil's reaction was anything to go by, Scorp had scored a winner.
"Albus!" the mirror shrieked. "You look gorgeous!"
Albus smirked. He couldn't deny the feeling of self-assured pride that spiked up him as she crooned. Granted, she was a mirror, but the compliments were well appreciated. "Thanks, Sybil."
The suit itself was black, but, on Scorpius' further orders, his tie was green. Scorp told him that it served a twofold purpose. "One, it's our house colour, which judging by your pride in Quidditch, is not something you'd ever turn down," Scorpius explained. "And two, it matches your eyes." A brilliant pink flush had coloured Scorp's normally pale cheeks, while he bit his lip—a sight Albus had not been able to forget.
Sybil's cries of glee brought him back to the present.
"How handsome! Oh the girls will be drooling when they see you!0 she continued to gush out. "That suit just makes you, Albus! Just the right fit, and, my goodness, you are built! Mel will adore you."
Inexplicably, Albus frowned. The thought of Mel adoring his attire didn't mean as much to him than what Scorpius' reaction would be. During the process of finding, buying and wearing the suit, the hope that Scorpius would approve of it always influenced his decisions. It was Scorp's opinion that Albus sought more.
He coughed. "I better go, got a party to attend," he said. "See you later, Sybil."
"Ooh I am so envious that I won't be there!" the mirror exclaimed in frustration.
Albus didn't wait around to placate her—mostly because he really couldn't—and instead opened the door that led to the dormitory, where he knew Scorpius was getting ready. He couldn't wait to see what Scorp looked like tonight. The boy always dressed impeccably, but Albus found himself impatient to discover what new look he would pull off. Tonight was, after all, a special night.
He walked into the room, where he immediately saw Scorpius was standing in front of the mirror.
Albus stopped short.
Oh, wow.
Scorpius looked incredible.
Without pausing to figure out what the hell that realisation meant to him, Albus continued to stare at Scorpius. He was wearing a crisp white shirt designed with pinstriped soft gray stripes; the top two buttons undone with a skinny silver tie knotted loosely around his neck. The tie was tucked into a buttoned-up dark gray vest that hugged his body perfectly, leading down to a slim black belt that held up pants of the same chrome colour. They fit directly over the contours of his legs. His feet were fitted with modestly pointed black shoes than shone in the candlelight. His outer dress robe, in the same dark gray colour was draped carefully on his bed ready to be worn.
But as if his attire wasn't perfect enough, Scorpius' face demanded much more of Albus' attention. His light blond hair was styled into an organised mess, his fringe falling over his forehead in a look that suggested he had just walked through Hogsmeade on a windy day. On Albus, it would look like a chaotic disaster. On Scorpius, it looked amazing. Gray colouring and a darker black lining surrounded his silver eyes, which looked far more intense than Albus had even seen them. He felt physically pierced by Scorpius' stare. His thin, pointy nose was centred between pale cheeks and above light pink lips that shimmered in the dim light. His neck was slim and almost white, making his Adam's apple look far more prominent as its centrepiece before it disappeared beneath his under collar and tie.
It was then Albus realised that Scorpius was observing him with the same scrutiny, and he was filled with that desperate need again for Scorpius to approve of him. He was sure that if Scorp told him the suit was terrible, Albus would probably have changed. He needn't have worried though.
"You look amazing," Scorpius said in a quiet, yet admiring, voice. Albus saw his eyes dart up and down his frame.
"Nothing compared to you," he found himself replying. He swallowed, and Albus thought the sound was deafening in the silent room.
Scorpius ducked his head, but Albus didn't miss the embarrassed look that he wore. He didn't know why he was shy. Scorp had nothing to be embarrassed about. He looked...
"Beautiful," Albus said softly.
"What?" Scorpius drew his head back up again.
Ignoring the heat on his own cheeks, Albus said it louder. "You're beautiful." He didn't know what had made him say something he would never normally, but the sight of Scorpius looking as incredible as he did had Albus spewing out opinions he would normally keep silent and hidden.
Scorpius appeared to have stopped moving; his unblinking wide eyes frozen on Albus.
Unable to think of what else to say, and not wanting of another awkward silence, Albus moved toward Scorpius' bed and picked up his outer robe. He carried it over to where Scorp was still facing the mirror, and stood behind him, holding out the robe in the intention of helping him into it.
"If I may..." Albus said, looking straight at Scorpius' reflection in the mirror, locking their eyes together.
Scorpius slowly moved his arms back to fit them into the sleeves while Albus shrugged it into place on his shoulders. Standing so close to Scorpius, Albus was able to detect the cologne he had chosen to wear. He looked down and saw that the collar of the robe was twisted. Gently, he lifted his hands to fix it. He didn't know what possessed him to let the back of his fingers drag against the white skin of Scorp's nape, where the tips of his light blond hair were nestled. Immediately, he shivered at the surreal touch, and saw Scorpius do the same. Hundreds of little bumps appeared on the back of his neck.
"Albus," Scorpius whispered. Albus sensed a note of confusion in his voice, which was entirely justified. What on earth was he doing?
Albus had no answer, but he knew that the moment they were in was unlike anything he had ever felt. A pleasant sensation tingled through his body. Scorpius' soft skin was fire and ice at the same time—a paradox that Albus was eager to experience again. He looked up once more at the mirror and saw that Scorpius hadn't diverted his clear penetrating gaze off him. It made him feel like his entire soul was laid bare before this boy.
"We should go," he said, though he was loathe to follow through on his own suggestion. He wanted to spend the rest of the night here, exploring this newfound sensation; this newfound feeling of having Scorpius so near to him, like nothing else mattered. Nonetheless, he lowered his hands back to his side, and stepped back, out of Scorpius' personal space. Instantly, the smell of Scorp's fragrance left him and he felt unaccountably hollow.
Scorpius turned around and tilted his head upward a fraction to face him. "We should," Scorpius agreed. Then, effectively shattering their fragile connection, he said, "Our dates are probably waiting."
He was right, Albus thought angrily. He had told Mel to meet him at the Entrance Hall. Eamon, on the other hand, was likely waiting outside the Slytherin Common Room right now, ready to escort Scorpius up to the Great Hall. Albus selfishly wanted to stall for time and keep Scorp away from Eamon for as long as possible.
"Ready?" Scorpius asked, a hint of uncertainty ringing through his simple question.
No, was Albus' true answer. But, instead he delivered a final look to Scorpius, extended his hand in the direction of the door, mustered up as much gentlemanly-like manners as he could and said, "After you."
He followed Scorpius down the stairs, into the Common Room—amidst murmurs and whispers of some of the younger students who were forbidden from attending the Halloween Party—and out through the door.
As Albus had predicted, Eamon was there already. But what Albus had not foreseen, he noted with a sudden spark of fury, was the single white rose held aloft in his hands, ready to be given to Scorpius.
When they had fully exited the doorway, Eamon's eyebrow flew upward toward the hairline of his moused hair, which Albus thought was far-too-shiny to look good. Eamon stared, agape, at Scorpius.
"Scorp," he said eventually. "You look fantastic."
Scorpius flushed his usual pink, while Albus seethed at the nickname Eamon insisted and persisted to use. 'Scorp' was his name for Scorpius, dammit! In an insane moment, Albus debated the repercussions of smashing Eamon Hudson's ugly smile up towards his nose. He figured the consequences outweighed the merits, as Scorpius would probably be upset with him afterward.
"Thanks, Eamon. You look very well yourself," Scorpius replied. Albus swore he heard falseness in Scorp's voice as he complimented Eamon. Or maybe Albus was trying too hard to see things that weren't there. Albus spared a glance at Eamon's dark blue wizard dress robes, his shiny hair and cheap smile—Scorpius was being way too kind with his flattering remark.
Eamon sent him a deliberate look and motioned with his eyes, clearly sending Albus the message to leave them alone.
Albus pretended to not understand. "What?"
Eamon gave him an insincere smile. "I think I can take it from here. Don't you have a girlfriend to go to?"
His stomach jolted uncomfortably at the reminder and he glared at Eamon for bringing it up, ready to retort back with something witty. Scorpius must have sensed his immediate distaste and hurriedly rushed in to pacify him. "I'll see you at the Great Hall, okay?"
Albus took a breath and forced a smile on his face. No need to get worked up over something so tiny, even if leaving Scorp in Eamon's hands was about as agreeable as eating Flesh-Eating Slug Repellent. "See you there," he replied, before turning away in the direction of the Entrance Hall, unable to watch Eamon lean down and give Scorpius a kiss on his mouth, seething in fury that the two were locking face behind him.
He was out of breath by the time he reached the top of the staircase, and saw Mel waiting for him by the entrance to the Great Hall. She didn't look too happy, and it was then Albus realised that he was at least fifteen minutes late.
"I'm so sorry I'm late. Got caught up in something with Scorp—"
"Whatever," she replied hastily, as she always did whenever Scorpius' name came up in their conversations. Albus had the distinct feeling that Mel's dislike towards Scorp had multiplied by a hundred recently. Then, eyeing his outfit with all the scrutiny of a hawk, she said, "You went with the Muggle clothing after all." Her face gave nothing away.
"It's not that bad is it? Scorpius said—"
"It's fine." Deadpan.
Albus decided to turn the tables, figuring that conversation would be safer if they talked about her instead of him. "You look great," he opined, and she really did. Her long brown hair was let out, styled into soft-looking curls that draped across her shoulders, where two thin, red straps were holding up her silk dress of the same scarlet colour. It suited her tremendously. Albus was about to ask her if she chose the red as a deliberate connection to Gryffindor, when he remembered that he had done the same with his tie.
"Thanks," she said. Albus caught a glimpse of a smile shaping her red lips, and thought that her pokerfaced expression would be much improved with a grin. "You ..." she began, then stopped as if to rethink what she was about to say. Eventually, she finished with, "You don't look so bad."
It was a fair bit shy of Scorpius' declaration of "You look amazing" before, but at this terse point in their relationship, Albus took it and ran with it.
A pair of seventh-years ambled past them to the doorway into the Great Hall, letting out a flood of celebratory noise and music from the crowd inside when they walked in. Albus turned to his date. "Shall we, Miss Gordon?" he asked, crooking his elbow and holding it out to her, trying his utmost to forget the awkwardness between them and act like a proper boyfriend.
She slipped her slender white gloved hand around his arm. "Let's do this," she agreed.
He led her inside.