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All his life Harry thought something was weird with him, obviously when he was a kid all the things that moved on their own when he had strong emotions were worrying but they weren't so much when he turned 11, when he realized he was a wizard and that all the things that had made his family say he was a monster were actually normal for who he was and that he wasn't alone the real problem became his body temperature. For as long as he remembers Harry had always felt like he was burning, like there was an immense fire within his body that no one felt except himself. And since no one saw it, no one felt it unless they touched him, no one could turn it off, including himself. But when he learned that he was a wizard he had believed for a moment that his body was against him because he was holding back his magic so he thought all he had to do was wait, use his magic as much as he could. After all in class they had explained to them that they all had a core of magic, that they should not reign their magic... Harry had ignored it so maybe his core was taking revenge, making him suffer to punish him. Harry never dared to talk about it to anyone for a long time, his uncle and aunt had taught him to keep quiet, not to complain, so Harry suffered in silence, rejecting hugs from his friends and distancing himself from everyone, he didn't want to burn them. But rapidly he understood that he couldn't do anything, that it was a curse that will never disappear, that no matter what time it is, the day, the month, the season he will be boiling. Even if the whole planet is freezing. No matter what.
Hermione and Ron had finally discovered his secret, Harry remembered, he was in fourth year in the middle of winter the day had been freezing apparently everyone had spent the day chattering their teeth covered by layers and layers of clothes Harry, as usual, had thought he was going to die of heat forcing himself to put on a sweater so as not to arouse suspicion but now it was night and he couldn't stand the heating spell that had been cast in the dormitories so he was in the common room in his boxer shorts and t-shirt sitting on the floor his back pressed against the stone wall. His eyes stung, he was about to cry, it often happened to him to cry because of the heat so when the first tear rolled down his cheek he didn't mind trying to think of something else. But that when Hermione decide to appear out of nowhere, feeling the immediate need to go to the library to check some information in a book she had read the day before, obviously she had noticed him crying in a corner and being the good friend that she is she had immediately run towards him sitting on the ground and taking his hand in hers. That night she had bombarded him with questions until her hand ended up getting burned by Harry's. That night he had thought he had lost his friend when she had recoiled, screaming in pain and yelling at him to know why he had done that. He had been unable to explain himself and the next day Ron knew everything. He had found himself alone for a week before being able to explain himself properly. He remembered thinking they were going to abandon him, call him a monster, but they stayed. They even had supported him when he could no longer stand the heat, trying to cool his spaces, going so far as to fill his pockets with ice cubes that wouldn't melt. Hermione had also tried to understand what was happening to him, looking for remedies without ever finding anything.
Harry was now 18 years old and with his friends he had decided to return to Hogwarts for an 8th year. 18 years he lived with this fucking curse that was ruining his life. He was always sweating, needed one hundred showers per day to survive in summer, couldn't sleep properly, most of the time he ended up sleeping on the floor. He hated people who light fireplaces in winter, hated shopping in winter because he couldn't find any short-sleeved t-shirts and shorts. Also, lately the curse had gotten worse, making him often at his wits' end. In fact, his fire had apparently decided that he wasn't important enough, so now Harry was surrounded by a bubble of hot air, forcing people to move away and making the air around him unbreathable. But at least his friends were there. They were all there and all in couples. Ron and Hermione, Seamus and Dean, Neville and Hannah. Harry felt so lonely, he knew it, he wasn't an idiot. No one could ever love him and even if they could, it's not like they could go out together anyway. Because oddly nobody wanted to cuddle or sleep or just be around a freaking moving fire able to burn them at any moment of the day. All this heat that emanated from him was truly suffocating. For everyone including himself.
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When Draco was born everybody thought he wouldn't make it. His parents, the medicomages, honestly all the people that had seen him after Narcissa gave birth to him. So much so that even though Draco was crying, a sign of good health, the healers asked Narcissa and Lucius to think about his probably soon to be funeral. It had even taken Narcissa more than a week to name him, for the simple reason that Draco was dangerously cold and despite all their efforts it was impossible to warm him up. Draco felt like he had crushed ice in his veins, his body was cold, slow and painful. He was constantly freezing like crazy. And for as long as he remembers he always spent his time shaking, his teeth chattering, and there was nothing he could do about it. He also remembered his father looking at him with terrifying eyes when the chattering of his teeth became too loud to the point of becoming the only source of noise in a room, but also his mother who took extra clothes everywhere they went, chasing him so that he could put a second pair of gloves or earmuffs under his bonnet. Growing up, he had learned to keep a neutral face despite the cold, biting his lips to make them pink rather than their natural blue-ish color and biting the inside of his cheeks to hide the chattering of his teeth. He knows that if he hadn't been raised by pure-blooded people so preoccupied with their image, his teeth would be chattering incessantly, and his whole body would be constantly trembling. Because he understood really young that even if the whole planet burned he wouldn't even feel the heat. Only cold. All the time. From birth to death. His curse never leaves him alone. In the summer he is, obviously, freezing and the clothing store only sells t-shirts, shorts and swimsuits, no sweater, gloves, pants or padded socks. He never wore swimsuits, why would he? Go in the cold water to cool off? No. Even in summer he needed at least two tshirt and one sweater to not feel like dying. Winter is a nightmare too, of course, because he is freezing but everything around him is freaking cold too. Also, no matter the season he needs at least four blankets to hope to have a semblance of a pleasant night. And as he grew up, he found new consequences. He was now 18, and almost all of his friends had exes or people they flirted with, and more if there was a connection. But Draco knew his turn would never come. His body temperature was that of a dead man, no one could get too close without starting to tremble, and the more time passed, the more dangerous touching him became. His mother had paid the price several times, burning her hands from the cold. Draco felt that the older he grew, the more his body tried to push others away.
But now he was 18 and back at Hogwarts with his friends, enduring his curse more than ever. He felt so alone, his father was in Azkaban, his mother was under house arrest, unable to communicate with the outside world, and Draco wasn't allowed to leave Hogwarts because of his war crimes. Luckily, he had been spared prison and was able to choose to continue his studies under supervision thanks to Harry's testimony. But he was alone, without his mother to comfort him, with friends who knew his secret, who had been sworn not to tell, but they didn't really try to understand him more than that, even if they sometimes reheated his meal and went to get him an extra blanket. He was alone, no one seemed to understand him, no one seemed to be going through the same thing, no one could approach him. There were days when sitting by the fire wasn't enough, days when he wanted to sit in it, let the fire burn him, but he wasn't sure if that thought was only due to the cold of his body.
It was late in the night when Draco felt the need to be by the fire so he had woken up and walked to the 8th year common room, when he got downstairs he immediately lit the fireplace and sat down right in front of it. It didn’t really help though he was still completely frozen. Even though he was now sated in front of a gigantic fire and covered in three sweaters when someone joined him.
-Damn Malfoy! Put out this fire immediately! What are you trying to do? Melt us? I could feel the heat from my room!
Harry strode toward the fire, wand in hand, ready to extinguish it, as Draco had stood up to stop him. Harry found himself having to push Draco aside, not caring about burning him, as the heat from the fireplace rose to his head, threatening to kill him. And then, as he raised his wand, he froze. He lowered his wand and turned to face Draco, who had also frozen a few inches away from him. It was probably just a heat-induced hallucination, it wouldn't be the first time, but Harry had felt... cool when his palm had made contact with Draco's shoulder, as if his fire had dimmed.
-Did you… did I burned you ?
Draco was a bit taken back by Harry’s question but he still nodded his head. No, Harry hasn't burned him, but he has made him feel quite..warm, which was odd.
-Did I ? Burned you ?
-No…in fact you felt rather… nice. I think.
-You… did felt nice too.
They stared into each other's eyes for several seconds, weighing the pros and cons of what they both wanted to ask. Knowing the risks but not being able to bear the thought of not having answers, of giving up when they finally thought they could feel normal and at peace in their own bodies.
-Would you mind…holding my hand ?
Harry reached out to Draco, who looked at him silently for several seconds before giving in and placing his hand on Harry's. And that when they felt it for the first time of their life, the calm of their two bodies.
-You feel cold.
Draco nodded, yes he was cold, not frozen. He felt his body melt pleasantly, as if he were really just a huge ice cube. He felt his blood warm up, accelerating in his veins. For the first time in his life his joints weren't painful and he could feel his toes, fingers, ears and nose he didn't even know those problems were related to the cold.
-I am. You feel warm.
Harry nodded too, yes he was warm not boiling. He felt his body relax pleasantly, as if he were really just a volcano about to erupt. He felt his blood cool down, slow down. For the first time in his life, his muscles didn't cramp, and the pain in his temples eased. He didn't even know his problems were related to the heat.
-I am.
For the first time in their lives, Draco and Harry felt normal and understood.
After that evening, Draco and Harry became inseparable. As long as they touched, their bodies remained at a normal temperature, the further they moved apart, the more capricious their bodies became, but never as they had been before. Their forced proximity quickly forged their friendships, and more slowly, their loves. Because thanks to each other all those years of extreme cold/heat were over. Their curse had been broken. And their love sealed that same evening.