In the Shadows - Sebastian Sallow x reader (English)

Chapter 36

I was as excited as I was before my first day at Hogwarts as I got closer and closer to the bare wall in the Astronomy Tower. My hands began to sweat, and I quickly wiped them dry on my pants before opening the door and stepping into the room. I was amazed there. The Room of Requirement was lit by several dozen floating candles. In the corner, a gramophone quietly played a gentle tune, and the scent of roses hung in the air. So this was what Sebastian had to do? I looked around in amazement and placed my bag on the nearest planting table. "Do you like it?" Sebastian asked behind me. He came down the stairs to the bedroom, and my jaw dropped. Sebastian wore a black dress shirt and matching pants. He had tried to tame his hair, but it was still a mess. He looked good enough to eat. He came toward me, smiling, one hand hidden behind his back. "Well, yes," I replied when I found my voice again. "You really tried hard." Sebastian now stood before me and gently stroked my cheek with his fingers. "Of course. I wanted it to be nice here when you come back." "You succeeded," I grinned and put my hands on his chest. I could feel Sebastian's heart racing as I touched him and looked into his dark eyes. His hazel eyes looked almost black in the candlelight. My heart raced with his as we lost ourselves in each other for a moment. Sebastian went to grab my hip with his other hand when he realized he was still holding something in his hand. "Oh... um..." He cleared his throat and looked embarrassed. "These are for you." With a crooked grin, he held out a colourful bouquet of roses to me. My eyes widened, and I gratefully accepted the flowers. "They smell fantastic," I enthused after sniffing the flowers. Sebastian's grin grew even more comprehensive, and he took my hand. "Come on, I have another surprise for you." "Another one?" I followed him curiously as he led me to the beach vivarium. "Okay, close your eyes," he said before we walked through the door. I did as I was told and let Sebastian guide me blindly. The sound of the waves grew louder as we stepped further into the vivarium. Suddenly, Sebastian stopped, and I ran into him. "You can look," he laughed. I blinked a few times until my eyes adjusted to the bright light. Then, I saw a blanket at my feet and was once again speechless. Sebastian had put together a little picnic. A blue Diricawl desperately tried to peck at a piece of melon. "I knew the protection spell was a good idea," Sebastian remarked, shaking his head with a grin. "These greedy little beasts. Shall we?" He gestured with a hand towards the black checkered blanket for us to sit down.

I sat cross-legged on the blanket and placed the bouquet beside the picnic. Sebastian stretched out his legs next to me and smiled happily at me. "Did you do all that?" I asked in amazement and grabbed a handful of blueberries. "Deek helped me," Sebastian explained, opening a bottle of Butterbeer for each of us. I nodded and tossed the piece of melon to the Diricawl it had been coveting all along. We ate and drank silently for a moment, and my stomach thanked me for the most considerable portion in days with a stomach ache. You just can't please it, can you? I ignored the stomach cramps and let my food sink in. "I'm sorry, Y/N," Sebastian blurted out. I looked at him with wide eyes. "I shouldn't have made you use Crucio on me. That was wrong." He shook his head and lowered his gaze. "It's hard to believe that I jeopardized our relationship out of pure self-hatred and selfishness. I'm a complete idiot. I really don't deserve you." I gently placed my hand on his. "I don't want to hear that. Neither of us are innocent souls, and you know that." I knelt down and moved closer to him. I carefully stroked his cheek, and Sebastian looked at me from below. "But thanks for apologizing. I hope this is the last time you let the dark arts get to you." Sebastian nodded. "I hope that too. I've already done too much damage." His words stabbed me in the heart, and I wrapped my arms around his neck to pull him into a hug. Sebastian returned the hug and gently pulled me onto his lap. He accidentally touched my wounds from my attempt to wash Leander off me. I sucked in a sharp breath as pain ripped through my body. Sebastian looked at me, worried. "Everything okay? Did I hurt you?" I shook my head. "Everything okay. Don't worry." "Or is it because of Leander? If you don't want to be touched somewhere, please tell me. I can understand if you..." "Sebastian, everything's okay," I cut him off, my voice harsher than I intended. I sighed. "Sorry. I just don't want to think about Leander. Especially not when I'm here with you." The Slytherin nodded, but the concern in his eyes remained. "I'm just worried, that's all." "And I'm very grateful to you for that. But you can't protect me from everything, and you shouldn't." I let my forehead fall against his. "But you can just enjoy the moment with me now." With that, my lips landed on his. The kiss was reserved yet passionate. It reflected all of our emotions from the last few days and, at the same time, washed away everything negative for the moment. Fireworks exploded in my stomach, and I melted in Sebastian's arms. The scent of cedar wood enveloped me. I missed that so much. I had missed him. He gently held me closer to him and stroked my back. My whole body tingled, and my mind shut down. I sank into the moment. With one hand, I pulled his head even closer and stroked his skin with my thumb. In response to my touch, Sebastian sighed into the kiss, eliciting a happy giggle from me.