In The Next Life - Theodore Nott Fanfic

Chapter 38

The first few weeks of summer felt how it always did. Theo and I would spend most of our days either reading and taking pictures, swimming in the lake, or playing the piano. We never seemed to get tired of doing the same thing repeatedly, until today. Today was his day; his birthday.

I had asked him earlier in the week how he wanted to celebrate, but I would always receive a cold shoulder or a well thought out explanation of why we didn't need to celebrate his birthday. I had decided to settle on just giving him a gift and calling it a day, until he surprised me.

On the morning of, he had asked if we could grab coffee in one of the village cafes, in which I gladly accepted. That morning, I was excited more than ever to celebrate him. It was an extra special day to me. Not only was it my dearest friends birthday, but it was also the summer we were finally turning 16. 

"We haven't been here in forever," I smiled, once he had set the latte in front of me. "Remember when you threw a fit just because they didn't have the pastry you wanted?" I laughed, in which he just rolled his eyes. "Mum spent the rest of her day perfecting it, just so she could bring a smile to your face," I finished, as I took a sip of my coffee. 

"And it was the best pastry I've ever tasted. Even better than the ones here," he smirked, as he took a sip from his mug, but it quickly faded. I desperately wanted to know the reason behind his suspicious behavior lately, but I knew that if I was to ask, it would ruin his day.

"I've got a little something for you," I smirked, as I carefully pulled out a box from my bag. "Flora, you know I --" he began, but I quickly shushed him and urged him to open the present. I watched in anticipation, almost like I didn't know what it was, as he slowly opened the box. 

"Holy shit! Is this the one I saw?" he shouted, as he swiftly brought the new camera out of the box and examined it. "Yes! You wouldn't imagine the amount of muggles I had to outbid for it," I sighed, as I wrinkled my nose up at the thought; they were ruthless when it came to vintage items, especially cameras. 

"Thank you so much, Flo," he sighed, setting it aside, before he leaned across the table and offered me a warm kiss. "Anything for you," I smiled, before he sat back down and offered me a genuine smile. 

"You know how much I love you right?" he asked, his expression growing serious now. I just huffed out loud, as I leaned back into my chair with a perplexed look. "You've only asked me this question everyday for a week now," I complained, growing a little annoyed with how fast his mood had changed. 

I noticed he was still waiting for an answer, so I quickly leaned back into the table and took his hand into mine. "The answer will always be yes, Theo," I assured, as he slowly squeezed my hand. "And I would never do anything to purposefully hurt you," he admitted, his body instantly tensing up, as if he had meant to say anything but that. 

"Theo, where is this all coming from?" I asked, but he just shook his head, almost as if he was hesitant to tell me the truth. "I'm just -- worried. You know, about you and Vol--" he started, his voice dropping into a whisper. "Voldemort. I couldn't imagine what would happen if he--" he continued, but I quickly squeezed his hand to bring him back to reality. 

"Theo, I'm right here. He hasn't gotten to me yet," I pointed out, and he just shook his head slowly in understandment, before he quickly shook his thoughts away. "I'm sorry," he added, before he plastered on a half-smile. 

Although, I could feel something was different. He knew something I didn't, and it was killing me that I couldn't figure it out. Maybe I could get him to open up by the end of summer. 

But little did I know, that we would no longer be spending the rest of summer together. This was our last meeting before he would leave me.

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