scorbus picnic fic reblog for 9 dabloons
albus stared up at the sky, his eyes glowing with the sun's light sparkling against them. it was warm, though a cool breeze flew through the air and ran its gentle fingers through albus' hair. he smiled. it felt nice. it was early summer, which was the best part of summer, in their opinion. it meant warm temperatures, but not warm enough to be unbearable. it was nearly perfect. of course, something was missing.
albus exhaled, bouncing as he continued to walk on his path. they stared at the ground below them, kicking pebbles and dandelions with every step. it felt weird. he felt.. calm. it was a strange feeling. there was no imminent danger, no threat to his life. there was no more school, meaning no more bullies and magical shit he didn't want to deal with. all they had to deal with was scorpius.
they grinned.
there was something about scorpius. he was different. he wasn't like everyone else in hogwarts. he was truly, genuinely kind. albus felt weird around him.
his heart.. ached.
albus felt some sort of unbridled joy at the mere thought of scorpius. some sort of happiness they had never known before meeting him. a sense of belonging. it felt amazing.
he skipped once he approached the park entrance, squinting as they looked around for a familiar blond boy. his search quickly ended upon spotting scorpius. he was knelt down on the ground, laying out stuff for the picnic which albus couldn't quite identify from how far away he was. their eyes brightened, and they waved ecstatically. scorpius noticed almost immediately, shooting up and waving, bouncing up and down as he did so. albus ran to him, a wide smile on their face.
"scorpius!" they exclaimed, arms wide open as they tackled scorpius into a hug. scorpius yelped with surprise, laughing as the two fell to the ground and rolled over in the embrace.
"albus!" scorpius giggled, pushing the brunet off of him. he brushed his clothes off, standing up with a pink tint forming on his cheeks. albus stood as well, smiling as he looked up at scorpius. scorpius made eye contact briefly, looking away.
"hello, albus," scorpius' voice was slightly higher pitched than usual as he tried to hide his excitement. he stood awkwardly, his legs crossed as he rocked back and forth. albus couldn't help but laugh at the sight of him. they'd known each other for so long, but they still couldn't handle themselves around each other.
"hi, scorpius," they responded, their smile infiltrating their speech. "how long have you been waiting?"
"oh, not long at all, don't worry!" scorpius smiled, turning to the picnic blanket he'd set up. it was pale blue with a plaid pattern, and was rather soft to the touch. there were also plates, forks, and blue napkins laid out neatly. "only a few minutes."
"you got a lot done in 'a few minutes'," albus remarked, to which scorpius beamed with pride.
"d'you like it?" scorpius held his hands behind his back, rocking on his heels.
"of course, it looks awesome!" albus added, sitting down on one side of the blanket. scorpius sat on the opposite side, crossing his legs.
"oh," albus suddenly spoke, setting down a bag and unzipping it. "i brought some stuff!" out from the bag, he pulled a carton of strawberries out, along with a few mini sandwiches. they also pulled out a couple of soda cans, and a ton of candy. scorpius' eyes widened, and a small squeal of excitement escaped his mouth.
"albus," he spoke breathily. "you got SKITTLES?"
"of course, i know it's your favorite muggle candy," albus smiled, looking up. "you better be thankful for this, my mum would not be happy if she knew i bought all of this crap." they joked.
"i am more thankful than words can say," scorpius expressed, immediately grabbing a bag of skittles. about to tear it open, he paused, his eyes widening slightly. his face turned pink as he looked up at albus.
"i, um, brought you something!" he said, his face as full of surprise as albus'. it was as if he didn't even know he'd gotten it. from a beige tote bag, he pulled out a bouquet of flowers. the flowers were a beautiful arrangement of purples and blues, the colors melting together harmoniously. scorpius gripped the stems tightly, extending his arm as much as he could as he held out the flowers in front of albus. he looked away, appearing afraid to see albus' reaction.
albus' mouth fell open with shock and glee. "scorpius..!" they exclaimed, smiling as they took the flowers. he turned the bouquet in his hands, admiring each individual flower. "this is so sweet! what's gotten into you?"
"nothing," scorpius mumbled, looking back at albus hesitantly. "do.. you like them?"
"of course, they're beautiful," albus beamed. "thank you scorpius, i love them!"
"whatever," scorpius perked up, grabbing the tote bag again. he pulled out some more food, including a carton of blackberries, a small cake, and some bags of chips. albus chuckled slightly, noticing his embarrassment. scorpius was never any good at showing affection, and albus knew this. it was admirable, to say the least, to see how hard he was trying to break this habit, despite how much of a struggle it was for him. it was nice to see his growth.
"stop looking at me like that," scorpius spoke, snapping albus out of their thoughts.
"sorry," albus laughed. "i like looking at you."
scorpius blushed profusely. "can we just eat??" he asked, his voice cracking. albus laughed.
"yeah, yeah."
they served themselves portions of food, staring down at their plates and realizing how much food they had actually brought.
"scorpius, i don't think we're going to be able to eat all of this," albus remarked.
"we'll eat it, or we'll get sick trying!" scorpius proudly stated, getting a laugh out of albus. it was probably true.
albus grabbed the two cans of soda, holding them out in front of scorpius. not to their surprise, scorpius grabbed the can of sprite, smiling gratefully. this left albus with the can of fanta, which he was also happy about.
“so,” scorpius’ voice was muffled as he chewed, swallowing the strawberry he'd eaten before continuing to speak. “how's your dad?”
“not as annoying as usual,” albus smiled, taking a bite of his sandwich. “he's been a bit clingy, though.”
“he's probably scared of you running away again,” scorpius commented. albus found this funny, despite scorpius’ genuine tone. “or scared of you disappearing in an alternate timeline.”
“eh, he’ll get over it,” albus beamed, continuing to eat. the two talked about nothing important, happy to be in the presence of each other. it had been a while since the last time they'd been able to just talk one one one. it was nice to just be alone for once. albus loved being with scorpius. they felt safe around him. he knew scorpius wouldn't judge him. they could be themself around him, and he wouldn't have to be afraid of being judged or made fun of for things that made him different. scorpius understood what it was like to be different. their experiences weren't the same, yet, they were so similar. they knew what being an outcast was like, so they never really felt so different and alone. it gave albus a sense of security in being insecure.
“how has therapy been?” albus asked, setting down his fork. they had finished most of it at that point, and was starting to feel full.
“oh, it's been alright,” scorpius picked at his food with his fork, unable to finish it all. “kind of awkward. i think my therapist hates me.”
“why's that?” albus laughed.
“sometimes i just sit there quietly while she desperately tries to get answers out of me,” scorpius spoke. “it's weird telling my whole life story to some person i met less than a month ago. it's a bit overwhelming.”
“i'm sure it'll be fine,” albus responded. “you'll open up eventually.”
“i sure hope so!” scorpius laughed absentmindedly, staring down at his plate of food. albus paused, watching him.
“it's okay, you know,” albus began. “if it's hard for you to open up. it's good that you're trying. that's what's important.”
“yeah,” scorpius mumbled, setting his fork down on his plate. “i guess you're right.” his head perked up and he cleared his throat. “anyways, what are your plans for the summer?”
albus furrowed their eyebrows, looking into scorpius’ gray eyes. uncomfortable by the interaction, scorpius looked away. scorpius tended to switch the topic quite often if the conversation was leading towards something he wasn't interested in, and albus didn't want to push any farther.
“not sure,” said albus. “hopefully hanging out with you.”
scorpius lit up, a smile blooming on his face. “i hope so too!”
“i’m sure my dad won't mind,” albus continued, smirking. “if i don't tell him.”
day faded away, and the sunset brought forth an orange hue which warmly lit up the sky and echoed off the blades of grass. the two of them laid themselves down on the blanket, faced up at the stars which slowly became more and more visible.
albus exhaled, turning to face scorpius. he was looking at the sky, his eyes moving and tracing the patterns of the stars. albus smiled. he seemed so at peace. it was nice to see scorpius like that. it was nice to see him.. happy. it felt like he hadn't been for quite some time.
albus watched scorpius closely, their eyes outlining each bit of his complexion and appearance which he loved. it was all so perfect.
“albus?” scorpius turned his head, noticing that albus had been staring.
“..yeah?” albus asked quietly.
“you're staring at me again like a weirdo.”
“i know.”
scorpius frowned, his eyebrows furrowed. “what-”
“you're really beautiful, scorpius,” albus spoke again.
scorpius’ face turned bright red, and he laughed, tugging on his sleeves. “what is wrong with you?”
“nothing!” albus laughed as well. “i just think you're nice to look at.”
“well, you're nice to look at too, albus,” scorpius replied hesitantly, turning away from albus and looking back at the stars.
“really?”
“no.” scorpius giggled, as if he was proud of himself for that.
albus couldn't help but laugh as well.
they turned to look back at the stars, watching as they twinkled and faded in and out. it had gotten significantly darker at this point, and the only light available was that of the moon and the stars. scorpius glanced over at them, and they looked at him as well. scorpius sat up. albus did the same.
“um, albus?” scorpius asked hesitantly.
“yeah?”
“i have to say something weird and you can't make fun of me.”
“i can't promise anything.”
“wh- albus!”
“okay, okay,” albus laughed. “i won't.”
“alright,” scorpius exhaled shakily, staring up at the sky again. “you said it's good for me to try to open up, so i'm going to.”
he paused. his eyes shut.
“i really- i love you, albus, and i'm scared. i didn't realize how happy i am when i'm alone with you. but i'm scared. and i know it's stupid and it's embarrassing to say this but i love you and you're my favorite person ever and i don't know what i'd do without you. every day is scary because i don't know if somethings going to happen to you and then i won't be able to see you again and then i'll be alone. and i don't want to be alone. i want to be with you but- but the world sucks and everything is scary. cus- cus what if something happens again and you get hurt again? like- like with the time turner. or when we got handcuffed and tortured?? remember that? i don't want you-”
his voice cracked, becoming quieter.
“i don't want you getting hurt.”
albus’ face softened. they looked at scorpius, studying him. he was stiff, and his lips were thinned. it looked as if he was trying not to cry. he hugged himself tightly, adjusting his arm position every so often. albus couldn't respond, they didn't know how.
“i'm sorry, i know it's stupid,” scorpius laughed sadly. “anyways-”
“no, it's not,” albus suddenly spoke up. “i'm scared to lose you too, scorpius. i love you. so much it hurts. but- everything in life hurts. i'm gonna get hurt no matter what. but we’ll be there for each other, won't we?”
scorpius nodded quickly.
“you won't be alone,” albus continued. “i promise.”
scorpius sniffed, looking at albus. their eyes met. albus reached their hand forward, wiping the tears from scorpius’ cheeks.
“i won't leave you. ever.” albus said.
“you're gay.” scorpius smiled, breaking into laughter.
albus rolled his eyes, laughing as well. he moved slightly closer to scorpius, their noses nearly touching. they could feel each other’s gentle breaths as they looked into each other’s eyes.
scorpius leaned closer.
their lips met.
albus felt their heart race as their eyes shut. his head buzzed. it felt like the world around him had disappeared, and it was just the two of them.
scorpius was the first to pull away, his face red and breath heavy. he looked into albus’ eyes for a quick second before looking away.
“wow,” scorpius exhaled. albus started laughing, and scorpius did too.
“we are absolute fucking losers,” albus sighed, smiling brightly.
“i like being a loser with you,” scorpius glanced back up at albus.
albus leaned in this time.
the two of them instantly melted into the warmth of one another, their lips intertwining more passionately than before. albus’ hands moved up the back of scorpius’ head, their fingers intertwining with blond locks of hair. scorpius latched onto albus’ waist, pulling him closer as they kissed.
the moment was broken as albus pulled apart, nearly gasping for air. he moved his hands away, resting them awkwardly in his lap. they watched scorpius, who was catching his breath as well. the blond giggled, tugging on the bottom of his sweater.
“wizzo!” scorpius exclaimed, and albus burst into laughter, shoving him playfully.
“what is wrong with you??” albus joked, and scorpius laughed as well, his face red.
albus grabbed scorpius’ hand. scorpius held albus’ hand back.
“i love you, scorpius,” albus said quietly, a gentle smile on their face. “a lot.”
“i love you too, albus,” scorpius smiled, his eyes soft as he looked at albus.
“ew,” albus looked away, making a vomit noise.
“yeah, that was weird,” scorpius shivered. the two laughed.
albus rested their head on scorpius’ shoulder, sighing quietly as the two of them watched the stars dance across the sky. and everything was alright.
