WiP: The Summer Al Tried to Live--Chapter 2
Author: asnowyowl
Title: The Summer Al Began Tried to Live: Chapter 2
Pairing: Eventual Albus Severus/Scorpius
Summary: In the summer before college, Al Potter finally begins living, but can he find the courage to show his family who he really is? In this chapter Al tells Rose and calls Corey.
Warnings: Still none
Rating: This chapter: PG13 (eventual NC17)
Beta: bk7brokemybrain
Word Count: 2359
Notes: Non-magic AU, set in present day, rural America. Setting based loosely on where I live in upstate NY. Please forgive my using 'Corey' for Scorpius's nickname. I tried to come up with a name a muggle teen might use if he were really saddled with 'Scorpius'. But be sure, his name is Scorpius, which will come out later in the fic. Written for week two of the 2009 ass_carnival. I plan on writing in this verse for the full 10 weeks, completing the fic toward the end of August.
Prompts used: Person: Harry Potter, Place: a meadow/grassy area, Object One: a grasshopper, Object Two: glass bottle, Food: grapes, Emotion: jealousy, Song Two: "Green Eyes" by Interpol/Coldplay, Freeform: Something Irish
Part 1 can be found at my journal:
"Chapter 1"
Or at ass_carnival:
"Chapter 1"
The Summer Al Began Tried to Live - Chapter 2
Al stared at his cell phone's contact list. 'CM' stood out as if it was three times larger than the other listings. He scrolled to the entry and pushed 'select' on the keypad, bringing up Corey's number. Though he'd memorized it more than forty-eight hours ago, Al still read it from the screen, number for number. He lightly rubbed the 'call' button as if daring his finger to press hard enough to place the call.
For the hundredth time since the carnival, Al was jealous of James. No matter who James set out to call, he always expected they'd be glad to hear from him, that they'd probably been clutching their phone, staring at the screen, waiting for his number to pop up. And for the most part, he was probably right.
Al pushed the 'call' button just a little harder, the muscles of his finger quivering between further pressure and total retreat. Finally, he snatched his finger from the keypad, and just as quickly selected number one from his speed-dial list.
Rose answered on the first ring. "Rescue me, Al."
Al laughed, letting Rose's familiar voice ground him. "Ready to escape?"
"I've been ready since ten minutes after I got here."
"So come home. Better yet, come to my place. We have to talk."
"I'm babysitting! I can't just leave Molly and Lucy alone. Anyway, Uncle Percy and Aunt Audrey will be home soon. As soon as they're here, I'll go home and put my things away and then come over."
Al'd waited long enough to talk to Rose about Corey. It'd been two days and he was afraid if he didn't call Corey soon he'd completely lose his nerve, but he couldn't do this without Rose's input. He really couldn't. "No. Pick me up on your way home. I can't wait much longer to tell you what happened."
Even over the phone, Al heard Rose huff. "You keep dangling this huge secret in front of me. Why can't you just tell me now?"
Al's heart thumped. For one crazy moment, he almost gave in, but this was something he couldn't handle over the phone. He had to see Rose's face when he told her. "It's just… well… I need to tell you in person."
********
"You've stalled long enough." Rose took a long drink from her bottle of Saranac Root Beer. "Spit it out, Al."
Al dumped the rest of his drink into the grass. He glanced around, fearing Hugo had followed them. Hugo pretty much always followed them, eavesdropping on their conversations. It was a wonder he still hadn't found out Al was gay. But the grassy field behind Rose's house was empty except for the two of them. For a minute or more, he listened to the crickets chirping for rain, watched a butterfly flit from flower to flower, all the while trying to find the best way to tell Rose about Corey. She'd be thrilled for him, and he'd been dying to tell her, but now that the time had come, he worried he might jinx himself if he shared his news. Finally, he handed her his cell phone, open to Corey's listing in the directory.
"CM?" Rose glanced from the phone to Al. It took a moment before she figured it out. "Corey Malfoy?" she whispered. Her eyes darted around the field, presumably also on the lookout for Hugo. "Is this his cell number? How'd you get it?"
"He gave it to me."
"No, really, Al, how'd you…" Rose's eyes searched Al's face. "He gave it to you?"
Al swallowed hard and nodded. "Yeah. But thanks for thinking so highly of me. Weren't you the one who kept saying I should try to meet him? That he'd probably like me?"
Rose looked reasonably ashamed. "Of course I did. I just didn't think you'd ever work up the nerve." She jumped up and hauled Al to his feet, wrapping him in a hug. "How'd this all happen?" she whispered in his ear. "I was only gone for a few days."
"I went to the carnival at his school."
Rose pulled away, eyes huge. "No!"
"God, am I really so pathetic?"
"Of course not! I just thought that if you finally made a move, you'd take me along."
"What? And have him think I have a girlfriend? No thanks."
Rose picked up the remnants of their snack, packing the garbage into her backpack, the glass bottles clinking against each other. She stood and took Al's arm, leading them further from her house. "Tell me everything."
"There's not much to tell. I guess I was watching him a little too closely because after the game he came over to talk to me. Wanted to know if I was a basher or gay."
"What did you say?"
"Well, I have his number, don't I?"
"So what happened when you called him?"
"Nothing. I haven't called."
Rose stopped and turned Al to face her. "What? If I gave someone my number and they didn't call me for two days, I'd think they weren't interested." She pressed Al's phone back into his hand. "What the heck are you waiting for?"
"You. I had to talk to you first. I don't know what to say to him. I'm going to make a fool of myself. You can tell me what to say." When Rose shot him a panicked look that mirrored how he'd been feeling for the last two days, Al said, "You are a rock, Rose. Don't get all scared on me now. You're the rock I stand on…"
Rose took a shaky breath and nodded. "I love you, too," she said, finally grinning. She nudged Al's arm. "But I can't tell you what to say. Just be yourself. Dial that number and talk to him."
Al shook his head. He sat heavily down onto the ground, a grasshopper just barely leaping out of the way before it was crushed. "I don’t think I can do it," he whispered.
Rose grabbed the phone back, punched a button, listened for a moment and then shoved it back at Al. "It's ringing."
Al barely got the phone to his ear, when he heard Corey say, "Hello?"
********
It was almost dinnertime before Al got home, though his stomach was too twisted for him to even think about eating. He couldn't believe he'd finally called Corey. He tried to slip through the house, unnoticed, wanting nothing more than to lie on his bed and relive the conversation.
"What's got you smiling so big, hun?" Grandma Potter beamed up at him, peering over the screen of his dad's laptop.
Al's dad, Harry, was sitting next to Grandma Potter, frowning at the computer. He looked away from the screen and glanced at Al. "Only one thing makes a boy smile like that, ma. A pretty girl. So who is she, Al?"
Al usually didn't like his dad needling him for personal information, but he was in too good a mood right now to care. "Rosie."
His dad's face went from amused to sober in an instant. "I know you and Rose are close, son, but like I've told you before, she's your cousin. There can't be any…"
"Hanky-panky. Yeah, I know. I'm happy because Rose met some guy from Bloomfield. He asked her on a date tomorrow and I'm going along." He shrugged, trying to seem nonchalant, but he knew his words were tumbling from his mouth, falling against one another. "It'll be kind of a group thing and it should be fun. Anyway, Rose is so smart, she sometimes drives guys off. I'm happy for her."
Grandma Potter nodded. "Men have always been that way, scared of smart women." She winked at Al. "It's a good thing your grandfather wasn't intimidated by my brains."
Al's dad snorted. "I don't think James Potter was intimidated by anything."
Pretty much like his namesake, Al thought. Grandpa Potter had passed away a couple of years ago. After his death, Grandma had moved in with them. Al really liked having her around. He did wonder what side of the battle line she'd fall in on when he came out of the closet. She was pretty open minded, but still, how open minded about gays was a sixty-five year old woman going to be?
Grandma had gone back to looking at the screen. "Al, I don't think I wrote some of the HTML codes right for your dad's website. Can you take a look?"
Harry moved over so Al could sit between him and Grandma Potter. Sandwiched between his father and grandmother, Al wished his life would always stay like this: his family happy with him, happy with each other. So what the hell was he doing even thinking about dating Corey, much less meeting him tomorrow? He pushed the thoughts out of his mind and looked at the screen. He tried to stifle a chuckle. On the website, his father's face was bright orange, the background a grape-like purple, so dark the words, Reelect Harry Potter, County Sheriff, could barely be read. Text overlapped with icons, a poll was sitting right over top of a family photo. It was a mess and would take some time to untangle. "I'll help you with it later, Grandma, but until then, make sure it's not accessible to the public. We wouldn't want to lose Dad any votes."
Grandma nodded. "It's a date, then. After supper?"
The word 'date' made Al flush. He nodded and pushed off the couch, anxious to change the subject. "What's mom making for dinner?"
"Something Irish. Stew, I think," his father mumbled distractedly, his attention already back on the computer screen.
"So can I borrow the car tomorrow to drive Rosie?"
"You can drive mine, Al." Grandma smiled and nodded.
Al's dad laughed. "No boy wants to be seen in a battered Taurus, ma. Take my truck, Al, I'll drive the Taurus to work tomorrow. Maybe you'll meet a nice girl. No little lady can resist a man in a pick-up."
********
It took an hour to put his father's website back to rights, and then two more to fix Aunt Hermione's laptop, but it needed to be done. Uncle Ron would stay in the doghouse until Al cleaned up the virus he'd let in. A quick call to Rose to tell her he had the pick-up tomorrow, and Al went to bed. Just before he lay down, he plucked a baseball cap off his dresser. It was the one he'd been wearing when he'd met Corey. He held it in his hands, stroking the brim as he relived the telephone call.
Hi, Corey, it's Al Potter. We met the other day."
Corey chuckled. "I remember who you are. Did you really think I'd forget you?"
Al relaxed a little under Corey's mild teasing. "I could understand if you did." He glanced at Rose, one hand was covering her mouth, her face was flushed, eyes large.
"Well, I didn't. Actually I was hoping you'd call. If you hadn't by tonight, I might have had to come looking for you."
Al didn't know what to say. What was that supposed to mean? He gave Rose a panicked look, shrugging his shoulders, shaking his head.
"I'm only kidding. I'm assuming no one knows you're gay? Other than me, I mean?"
"Only my cousin, Rose."
"Ah. I see."
Again, Al didn't know what to say. Should he explain himself? Should he tell Corey who his father is and how much it could hurt his career to have a gay son? Finally, when the silence was stretching out horribly, he said, "It's just… I guess I just don't dare."
"I dated a guy once who wouldn’t come out to his family. It didn't go well. I'm sure you realize how open I am…"
"Yeah." And Al did. Corey fought for GLBT rights not only in his school, but in the state, as well. Al had read all the editorials he'd written for the local newspaper.
"Damn." Corey's voice rasped with the word. "I'm really attracted to you, but maybe it's not worth starting something if it's only going to crash later because we can't be out in the open."
Al closed his eyes and tipped his head back, not knowing how to answer. At this moment, he wanted nothing more in the world than to be with Corey Malfoy. His stomach twisted as he made a promise he doubted he could keep. "I… I promise, if we get serious, I'll… I'll tell my family." He opened his eyes. Rose stood in front of him, smiling. She'd been pushing him for two years to tell his mom and dad.
"You're sure?"
"Yeah. I am." Jesus, no. He wasn't.
Al could swear he heard a smile in Corey's voice when he said, "Good. So, my friends and I are going to have a pick-up baseball game at Kinney Park tomorrow afternoon. Can you come?"
Al would have better luck turning James into a flaming queen than successfully playing baseball. But at least Kinney Park was quiet, usually pretty empty.
Corey seemed to understand his hesitation. "You don't have to play. Not everyone does, but you could come as my own personal cheering section. What do you say? I'd really like you to be there."
"Yeah, okay. I'd like that. I… I really want to get to know you better."
Rose began jumping up and down, quietly clapping.
Al heard a voice in the background of the call. Corey said, "Yeah, yeah, I'll ask him. Al, Vince wants to know if you have a sister you can bring along to meet him, but since your family doesn't know you're gay, I'm assuming it's a no."
Al smiled at Rose. "Actually, my cousin Rose would love to come along. And I think Vince might be just her type. She's a brain, but she loves jocks."
"Perfect. Vince is a dumb jock who likes smart girls. Ow! Jesus, Vince, you didn't have to hit me."
When he said goodbye to Corey, Al thought he might have to call an ambulance, Rose was hyperventilating so badly.
TBC
Title: The Summer Al Began Tried to Live: Chapter 2
Pairing: Eventual Albus Severus/Scorpius
Summary: In the summer before college, Al Potter finally begins living, but can he find the courage to show his family who he really is? In this chapter Al tells Rose and calls Corey.
Warnings: Still none
Rating: This chapter: PG13 (eventual NC17)
Beta: bk7brokemybrain
Word Count: 2359
Notes: Non-magic AU, set in present day, rural America. Setting based loosely on where I live in upstate NY. Please forgive my using 'Corey' for Scorpius's nickname. I tried to come up with a name a muggle teen might use if he were really saddled with 'Scorpius'. But be sure, his name is Scorpius, which will come out later in the fic. Written for week two of the 2009 ass_carnival. I plan on writing in this verse for the full 10 weeks, completing the fic toward the end of August.
Prompts used: Person: Harry Potter, Place: a meadow/grassy area, Object One: a grasshopper, Object Two: glass bottle, Food: grapes, Emotion: jealousy, Song Two: "Green Eyes" by Interpol/Coldplay, Freeform: Something Irish
Part 1 can be found at my journal:
"Chapter 1"
Or at ass_carnival:
"Chapter 1"
The Summer Al Began Tried to Live - Chapter 2
Al stared at his cell phone's contact list. 'CM' stood out as if it was three times larger than the other listings. He scrolled to the entry and pushed 'select' on the keypad, bringing up Corey's number. Though he'd memorized it more than forty-eight hours ago, Al still read it from the screen, number for number. He lightly rubbed the 'call' button as if daring his finger to press hard enough to place the call.
For the hundredth time since the carnival, Al was jealous of James. No matter who James set out to call, he always expected they'd be glad to hear from him, that they'd probably been clutching their phone, staring at the screen, waiting for his number to pop up. And for the most part, he was probably right.
Al pushed the 'call' button just a little harder, the muscles of his finger quivering between further pressure and total retreat. Finally, he snatched his finger from the keypad, and just as quickly selected number one from his speed-dial list.
Rose answered on the first ring. "Rescue me, Al."
Al laughed, letting Rose's familiar voice ground him. "Ready to escape?"
"I've been ready since ten minutes after I got here."
"So come home. Better yet, come to my place. We have to talk."
"I'm babysitting! I can't just leave Molly and Lucy alone. Anyway, Uncle Percy and Aunt Audrey will be home soon. As soon as they're here, I'll go home and put my things away and then come over."
Al'd waited long enough to talk to Rose about Corey. It'd been two days and he was afraid if he didn't call Corey soon he'd completely lose his nerve, but he couldn't do this without Rose's input. He really couldn't. "No. Pick me up on your way home. I can't wait much longer to tell you what happened."
Even over the phone, Al heard Rose huff. "You keep dangling this huge secret in front of me. Why can't you just tell me now?"
Al's heart thumped. For one crazy moment, he almost gave in, but this was something he couldn't handle over the phone. He had to see Rose's face when he told her. "It's just… well… I need to tell you in person."
********
"You've stalled long enough." Rose took a long drink from her bottle of Saranac Root Beer. "Spit it out, Al."
Al dumped the rest of his drink into the grass. He glanced around, fearing Hugo had followed them. Hugo pretty much always followed them, eavesdropping on their conversations. It was a wonder he still hadn't found out Al was gay. But the grassy field behind Rose's house was empty except for the two of them. For a minute or more, he listened to the crickets chirping for rain, watched a butterfly flit from flower to flower, all the while trying to find the best way to tell Rose about Corey. She'd be thrilled for him, and he'd been dying to tell her, but now that the time had come, he worried he might jinx himself if he shared his news. Finally, he handed her his cell phone, open to Corey's listing in the directory.
"CM?" Rose glanced from the phone to Al. It took a moment before she figured it out. "Corey Malfoy?" she whispered. Her eyes darted around the field, presumably also on the lookout for Hugo. "Is this his cell number? How'd you get it?"
"He gave it to me."
"No, really, Al, how'd you…" Rose's eyes searched Al's face. "He gave it to you?"
Al swallowed hard and nodded. "Yeah. But thanks for thinking so highly of me. Weren't you the one who kept saying I should try to meet him? That he'd probably like me?"
Rose looked reasonably ashamed. "Of course I did. I just didn't think you'd ever work up the nerve." She jumped up and hauled Al to his feet, wrapping him in a hug. "How'd this all happen?" she whispered in his ear. "I was only gone for a few days."
"I went to the carnival at his school."
Rose pulled away, eyes huge. "No!"
"God, am I really so pathetic?"
"Of course not! I just thought that if you finally made a move, you'd take me along."
"What? And have him think I have a girlfriend? No thanks."
Rose picked up the remnants of their snack, packing the garbage into her backpack, the glass bottles clinking against each other. She stood and took Al's arm, leading them further from her house. "Tell me everything."
"There's not much to tell. I guess I was watching him a little too closely because after the game he came over to talk to me. Wanted to know if I was a basher or gay."
"What did you say?"
"Well, I have his number, don't I?"
"So what happened when you called him?"
"Nothing. I haven't called."
Rose stopped and turned Al to face her. "What? If I gave someone my number and they didn't call me for two days, I'd think they weren't interested." She pressed Al's phone back into his hand. "What the heck are you waiting for?"
"You. I had to talk to you first. I don't know what to say to him. I'm going to make a fool of myself. You can tell me what to say." When Rose shot him a panicked look that mirrored how he'd been feeling for the last two days, Al said, "You are a rock, Rose. Don't get all scared on me now. You're the rock I stand on…"
Rose took a shaky breath and nodded. "I love you, too," she said, finally grinning. She nudged Al's arm. "But I can't tell you what to say. Just be yourself. Dial that number and talk to him."
Al shook his head. He sat heavily down onto the ground, a grasshopper just barely leaping out of the way before it was crushed. "I don’t think I can do it," he whispered.
Rose grabbed the phone back, punched a button, listened for a moment and then shoved it back at Al. "It's ringing."
Al barely got the phone to his ear, when he heard Corey say, "Hello?"
********
It was almost dinnertime before Al got home, though his stomach was too twisted for him to even think about eating. He couldn't believe he'd finally called Corey. He tried to slip through the house, unnoticed, wanting nothing more than to lie on his bed and relive the conversation.
"What's got you smiling so big, hun?" Grandma Potter beamed up at him, peering over the screen of his dad's laptop.
Al's dad, Harry, was sitting next to Grandma Potter, frowning at the computer. He looked away from the screen and glanced at Al. "Only one thing makes a boy smile like that, ma. A pretty girl. So who is she, Al?"
Al usually didn't like his dad needling him for personal information, but he was in too good a mood right now to care. "Rosie."
His dad's face went from amused to sober in an instant. "I know you and Rose are close, son, but like I've told you before, she's your cousin. There can't be any…"
"Hanky-panky. Yeah, I know. I'm happy because Rose met some guy from Bloomfield. He asked her on a date tomorrow and I'm going along." He shrugged, trying to seem nonchalant, but he knew his words were tumbling from his mouth, falling against one another. "It'll be kind of a group thing and it should be fun. Anyway, Rose is so smart, she sometimes drives guys off. I'm happy for her."
Grandma Potter nodded. "Men have always been that way, scared of smart women." She winked at Al. "It's a good thing your grandfather wasn't intimidated by my brains."
Al's dad snorted. "I don't think James Potter was intimidated by anything."
Pretty much like his namesake, Al thought. Grandpa Potter had passed away a couple of years ago. After his death, Grandma had moved in with them. Al really liked having her around. He did wonder what side of the battle line she'd fall in on when he came out of the closet. She was pretty open minded, but still, how open minded about gays was a sixty-five year old woman going to be?
Grandma had gone back to looking at the screen. "Al, I don't think I wrote some of the HTML codes right for your dad's website. Can you take a look?"
Harry moved over so Al could sit between him and Grandma Potter. Sandwiched between his father and grandmother, Al wished his life would always stay like this: his family happy with him, happy with each other. So what the hell was he doing even thinking about dating Corey, much less meeting him tomorrow? He pushed the thoughts out of his mind and looked at the screen. He tried to stifle a chuckle. On the website, his father's face was bright orange, the background a grape-like purple, so dark the words, Reelect Harry Potter, County Sheriff, could barely be read. Text overlapped with icons, a poll was sitting right over top of a family photo. It was a mess and would take some time to untangle. "I'll help you with it later, Grandma, but until then, make sure it's not accessible to the public. We wouldn't want to lose Dad any votes."
Grandma nodded. "It's a date, then. After supper?"
The word 'date' made Al flush. He nodded and pushed off the couch, anxious to change the subject. "What's mom making for dinner?"
"Something Irish. Stew, I think," his father mumbled distractedly, his attention already back on the computer screen.
"So can I borrow the car tomorrow to drive Rosie?"
"You can drive mine, Al." Grandma smiled and nodded.
Al's dad laughed. "No boy wants to be seen in a battered Taurus, ma. Take my truck, Al, I'll drive the Taurus to work tomorrow. Maybe you'll meet a nice girl. No little lady can resist a man in a pick-up."
********
It took an hour to put his father's website back to rights, and then two more to fix Aunt Hermione's laptop, but it needed to be done. Uncle Ron would stay in the doghouse until Al cleaned up the virus he'd let in. A quick call to Rose to tell her he had the pick-up tomorrow, and Al went to bed. Just before he lay down, he plucked a baseball cap off his dresser. It was the one he'd been wearing when he'd met Corey. He held it in his hands, stroking the brim as he relived the telephone call.
Hi, Corey, it's Al Potter. We met the other day."
Corey chuckled. "I remember who you are. Did you really think I'd forget you?"
Al relaxed a little under Corey's mild teasing. "I could understand if you did." He glanced at Rose, one hand was covering her mouth, her face was flushed, eyes large.
"Well, I didn't. Actually I was hoping you'd call. If you hadn't by tonight, I might have had to come looking for you."
Al didn't know what to say. What was that supposed to mean? He gave Rose a panicked look, shrugging his shoulders, shaking his head.
"I'm only kidding. I'm assuming no one knows you're gay? Other than me, I mean?"
"Only my cousin, Rose."
"Ah. I see."
Again, Al didn't know what to say. Should he explain himself? Should he tell Corey who his father is and how much it could hurt his career to have a gay son? Finally, when the silence was stretching out horribly, he said, "It's just… I guess I just don't dare."
"I dated a guy once who wouldn’t come out to his family. It didn't go well. I'm sure you realize how open I am…"
"Yeah." And Al did. Corey fought for GLBT rights not only in his school, but in the state, as well. Al had read all the editorials he'd written for the local newspaper.
"Damn." Corey's voice rasped with the word. "I'm really attracted to you, but maybe it's not worth starting something if it's only going to crash later because we can't be out in the open."
Al closed his eyes and tipped his head back, not knowing how to answer. At this moment, he wanted nothing more in the world than to be with Corey Malfoy. His stomach twisted as he made a promise he doubted he could keep. "I… I promise, if we get serious, I'll… I'll tell my family." He opened his eyes. Rose stood in front of him, smiling. She'd been pushing him for two years to tell his mom and dad.
"You're sure?"
"Yeah. I am." Jesus, no. He wasn't.
Al could swear he heard a smile in Corey's voice when he said, "Good. So, my friends and I are going to have a pick-up baseball game at Kinney Park tomorrow afternoon. Can you come?"
Al would have better luck turning James into a flaming queen than successfully playing baseball. But at least Kinney Park was quiet, usually pretty empty.
Corey seemed to understand his hesitation. "You don't have to play. Not everyone does, but you could come as my own personal cheering section. What do you say? I'd really like you to be there."
"Yeah, okay. I'd like that. I… I really want to get to know you better."
Rose began jumping up and down, quietly clapping.
Al heard a voice in the background of the call. Corey said, "Yeah, yeah, I'll ask him. Al, Vince wants to know if you have a sister you can bring along to meet him, but since your family doesn't know you're gay, I'm assuming it's a no."
Al smiled at Rose. "Actually, my cousin Rose would love to come along. And I think Vince might be just her type. She's a brain, but she loves jocks."
"Perfect. Vince is a dumb jock who likes smart girls. Ow! Jesus, Vince, you didn't have to hit me."
When he said goodbye to Corey, Al thought he might have to call an ambulance, Rose was hyperventilating so badly.
TBC