Work Text:
Albus startles and looks up from his book as Scorpius lets out a particularly loud snore beside him. He’s curled up in the corner of the sofa, his feet tucked into Al’s lap and his own book is in danger of falling to the floor. The fairy lights on the Christmas tree are casting multicolored shadows over his face, softening his sharp features as the fire pops and crackles in the hearth.
It’s late, Albus thinks, as he catches a yawn with his hand. And while the living room is cosy and the sofa comfortable, Al doesn’t relish the idea of sleeping out here.
“Scorp,” Al says, squeezing Scorpius’ socked foot lightly.
Another soft snore escapes Scorpius’ parted lips and Al sighs. His boyfriend is exhausted from all the extra hours at St. Mungo’s, though he’d never admit it. Malfoy pride and all that. But the holidays have proven to be a busy time at the hospital and Scorp has been pulling double shifts more often than not this month.
Albus should shake him awake and drag him to bed. But a sleepy Scorpius is a grumpy Scorpius and he’d rather not open that can of doxies tonight.
An idea starts to form in Albus’ mind. A disgustingly sappy idea and Al worries for a brief moment that he’s possibly turning into a bit of a Hufflepuff. No offense to Hufflepuff’s of course, but still.
“Fuck it,” he mumbles, sliding out from under Scorpius’ feet and standing up.
Surely he can manage to carry Scorpius down the short hall and into their bedroom without waking him. He knows he could use magic and accomplish the task much easier but somehow, that feels like cheating.
Albus stands there and gazes down at Scorpius’ sleeping form. His blonde lashes are fanned out, fluttering almost invisible against his pale skin. His lips, the softest shade of pink, have pulled into a pout as he sleeps.
Dear god, Scorpius really is breathtaking.
Albus shakes his head, as if he can physically dispel the distraction from his brain and tries to decide on the best plan of action. He realizes, a moment later, that there’s probably no wrong way to do this, so he supposes he should just get on with it.
One arm goes under Scorpius’ bent knees and the other wraps tightly around his shoulders. Al lifts him up, cradling him against his chest and trying his best not to jostle him much. Scorpius stays asleep and Albus counts that as a win.
But fuck, his boyfriend is heavier than he looks. All long limbs and lean muscle. One of his bony elbows digs uncomfortably into Al’s chest, making him wince. But he’s committed now and he’ll be damned if he’s gonna give up so easily.
He can do this. One foot in front of the other.
He starts to make his way across the living room, taking care not to grip Scorpius too tightly, while also holding on enough not to drop him.
He’s about halfway across the room when his foot catches on the edge of the stupidly ostentatious area rug - the rug that Scorpius insisted would ‘pull the room together’ - and before he can correct his balance he’s falling, twisting his body at the last second so that he lands on his arse, with Scorpius landing heavily on top of him.
“Wha-? Al? What are you doing?” Scorpius mumbles, his voice gravelly with sleep, grey eyes unfocused as he looks around.
“I. Well, um…” Albus struggles to sit up properly. He keeps his eyes firmly fixed on the green vase sitting on the mantle, “Nothing,” he lies, embarrassed at being caught out.
“Al...were you trying to carry me to bed?” Scorpius asks, his lips pulling up into an amused grin.
Albus sighs, pinching the bridge of his nose, “Possibly.”
“And you dropped me?”
“No! I may have tripped but I didn’t drop you!” Al insists, head snapping up, adamant in the fact that he most definitely did not drop his boyfriend.
Scorpius lets out a snort of laughter and when Al just glares at him, he covers his face with his hands, giggling uncontrollably. Albus’ lips twitch at the corners, the glare fading and he ducks his head to hide it.
“Why didn’t you just wake me up? Or use Mobilicorpus?” Scorpius asks, shoulders still shaking with the laughter he’s trying to suppress.
“I was trying to be romantic,” Al mutters, his face flushing, “You’ve been working so much and you’re tired...Merlin. Just forget it, let’s go to bed.”
“Albus, that’s.. incredibly sweet,” Scorpius says, his hands coming up to slide into Albus’ messy hair.
Albus thinks it’s more ridiculous than sweet, considering they’re sitting in a tangle of limbs on the cold floor at 1 o’clock in the morning but Scorpius is still smiling, so Al keeps his opinions to himself. Instead, Albus brings their lips together in a soft kiss, his hands cupping Scorpius’ face gently.
“It was stupid,” Albus says with a sigh, pulling back a little and letting their foreheads rest together.
“Come to bed and let me show you how very not stupid I think it is,” Scorpius replies with a sly smile. His eyes look like molten silver and the promise Al sees there makes his breath catch.
“Yeah, okay,” Al says as they both get to their feet. He scoops Scorpius up into his arms again and Scorpius just smiles, nuzzling his cold nose into the crook of Al’s neck.
As he carries Scorpius down the hall towards their bedroom, Albus thinks that he’ll count this somewhat botched attempt at romance as a success and he silently hopes that he gets to keep this forever.
Loving Scorpius Malfoy isn’t always easy but it’s an adventure and Albus, well, he’ll only take what he can carry.