Thing about surprises

Long, pale lashes fluttered across smooth skin as beams of sunlight peaked through the hastily shut curtains, the blue linen almost translucent as light filtered through, it’s white sheer lace décor swaying slightly as the breeze from the air-conditioner swept throughout the bedroom.

Awareness seeped into Draco’s consciousness as he felt the warmth of the sun dance atop his exposed skin, groaning as the bright streams flash persistently behind his eyelids, prompting him to place his left arm on his closed lids.

He could feel a warmer presence pressing against his side, his girlfriend’s soft body half cuddled and half draped over him, her wild curly hair strewn messily across their pillows, with several strands on his face and chest, surrounding him with her scent.

In that moment, he couldn’t think of anything better than what he was currently experiencing.

He took a cautious peak once he knew the beams weren’t directly on his face, wincing slightly as the yellow painted room enhanced the brightness of the early Saturday morning. Despite it being a week into September, the sky was bright enough to chase away the shadows of the night, promising a chance of clear skies and dry socks.

A niggling at the back of his mind doubts the sun would last until noon, though, and that voice was usually right.

Which was fine, either way, as they had no plans of leaving his flat. They planned on staying inside the whole day and laze around like cats, relaxed and uninterrupted, enjoying a quiet day surrounded by books, the smell of rain— which he knew would come late into the afternoon eventually, a chill in the air, soft blankets and tea.

They deserved the down time after several weeks of tedious work, with him assigned to grueling missions alongside his fellow aurors, and with Hermione swamped with paperwork in DRCMC, they barely had time to spend together.

Excluding the time when they meet along with their friends, of course, since they haven’t told anyone of their relationship, they couldn’t express their affections in the open. Not because of anything serious, with their friend groups merging quite nicely, they both know their relationship wouldn’t be met with disdain from any of them. The same can be said with his mother, despite his initial nervousness, she accepted their relationship quite warmly.

Although perhaps he just hadn’t given his mother proper credit that time. After the war, with Lucius a permanent resident in Azkaban, he and his mother had visited his aunt Andromeda after several weeks of communication with letters, and after an emotional reunion and reconciliation, they’ve been meeting regularly since then. Draco noticed his mother seem less tense after fixing her strained relationship with her sister, no longer deathly pale and the worry lines on her face had gone.

Her genuine reaction to meeting Hermione as a possible daughter-in-law had silenced all his doubts, and for that, he was glad.

The opinion of the public is rather unpredictable, and they found out that they hadn’t had a fig about what other people would think, so there’s that.

They did, however, enjoyed the thrill of meeting up in secret. The silent conversations through eye contact, the mysterious unsigned notes and letters, the hand-holding under tables, and the time they could have alone, uninterrupted.

Draco wonders when should they come clean with their friends, as they will at some point, and on how they would do it. Perhaps they could plan on it today, an added bullet in their list of things to do, under food, sex, books, and cuddle sessions.

He leaned towards Hermione, laying down on his side to face the still sleeping witch, hand coming up to gently pull the covers up to her chin before snaking his arm around her waist, the other bent on his pillow, supporting his head.