Drarry - The Boggart

FIFTY NINE

Harry and Draco stood in front of the apartment building, holding hands. The side walk was crowded and they kept getting jostled, but they both just couldn't stop staring at it in awe.

Harry loved it. He couldn't believe they'd found such a perfect place. And he hadn't even seen inside yet.

Last night he and Draco had taken their dinner to the living room and ate Harrys fancy meal at the coffee table so that they could look up the apartment on their shared laptop.

They'd been getting loads more muggle technology recently. At first Draco thought it was atrocious to let muggles intrude on their lives, but Harry argued that it was practical and logical. And also that the wizarding world was way behind when it came to modern technology, but that just led to a whole argument (Draco insisted that you don't need modern technology when you literally have magic. Harry argued that that's stupid.)

Draco gave in and was now happily living the glamorous lifestyle of a normal person in the 21st century.

As they poured over their laptop, Harry marveled at the beautiful apartment. It wasn't much, really, and considering how most apartments were, it was definitely sub-par, but they could afford it and that made it twenty times better. It made it twenty times better because that meant it could be theirs. Harry could be living with Draco in their own real apartment as soon as a month from now, if things went well. It would be something they earned. Something that they worked for and owned together. It wouldn't be just Harrys, by extension of his godfather and family. It would be their apartment. No more sad reminders of the past. No more sad reminders of those who'd passed. A fresh start where they actually had a fair chance at living generally normal lives.

Of course, things like the press and gossip and rumors and years of discrimination in the wizarding world would be forever looming over them, making it impossible to be completely normal, but they could get close. I mean, they were really enough to generate the gossip of the century. Harry Potter and Draco Malfoy, dating. Most of the times when they went out, they'd get ambushed by wizards randomly going up and asking them questions, or yelling at Draco that he was horrible, or telling Harry that he was making a huge mistake, or cameras getting shoved in their faces.

But their home should be a place away from all of that drama. All of the craziness. And Grimmauld Place was just one huge reminder of everything that stood between them and normalcy. A reminder that even when they weren't together, their lives were chaotic. A reminder of what an odd couple they were. Of how jarring a change their relationship had faced over the passed years. Enemies to lovers. How romantic. How cliche. How uncommon. How strange.

This new apartment wasn't a reminder of anything but their commitment to one another. And, of course, it provided a secretive roof over their heads. Grimmauld had done a nice job of hiding them away from he paparazzi and the people, but this place would be even better. It was hidden in plain sight, but at the same time it was miles away from the wizarding world. It was with the muggles.

"We have to go in eventually," Draco pointed out, turning to Harry.

The green eyed boy tore his eyes away from the red brick building to see his boyfriend smiling nervously.

"Of course, of course." Harry replied. His actions defied his words, though, when he stayed put.

"Harry, come on, lets go in. Some wizard is gonna see us if we stay here much longer."

"Yeah, yeah, sure, I just... I'm kinda nervous."

"Well me too, this is a big step in our lives. We're officially adults now. But we can't take that step at all if you don't get over your nerves and come inside with me. Plus, it's cold. It's winter in London. We need to seek shelter in the warmth of a heated building."

Harry sighed and walked forward, opening the door when they reached it. Draco dropped Harrys hand as they got to the front desk.

"Hello, we're here to see the apartment for sale. Floor five, room 27?" Draco spoke as cordially as ever and Harry loved that they were talking to someone else and weren't instantly badgered with questions first thing. Sure, it was a muggle, but still a person.

"Of course!" The girl at the front desk was slightly-overly-peppy, her brown pony-tail of long, pin straight hair bobbing around behind her as she talked excitedly. "The open house is today, as you must've heard. The door is open, you needn't knock. Mark, the landlord, will be up there to show any visitors around! You can ask him any questions you have. Enjoy!" She spoke like this was some sort of amazing miracle. Well, to Harry and Draco it was kind of a miracle. But the excitement on her seemed kind of over-done. Harry didn't care. Nothing could weird him out right now. He just couldn't wait to see the apartment. 

~~~

The apartment tour went on as apartment tours usually did. Except for this time there weren't any colossal mistakes, as Harry and Draco were used to seeing on these things. Mark had been a little more blasé than the front-desk-lady. And thank Merlin, too, because Draco kept going on in the elevator about how much she freaked him out.

Mark had shown them around every room, showing off all of the best aspects of the apartment, but not hiding the little kinks in it. Like how the bathroom door would get a little stuck sometimes, or how the bedroom doors lock didn't work, and one of the living room windows didn't open anymore from old-age. Harry and Draco loved it. It was perfect. It was on the high end of their budget, but they could still afford it. At the end of the tour they'd asked for the paper work to further the process of renting the apartment. Mark told them he'd email it to them so that they could read through it all and get back to him about signatures and going further into talking about renting.

"So, we're totally getting this apartment, right?" Draco asked, though the way he said it was more of a statement.

"Of course, as long as someone else doesn't take it first." Harry was feeling jittery on the elevator ride down from the tour. This was all starting to feel so much more real and up-close and... perfect. He loved everything about this whole apartment situation so far.

They walked past the front-desk-lady (whom Harry found out went by "Martha", upon inspection of her name-tag), who waved them goodbye cheerily.

"I can't wait," Harry said as he and Draco walked into the street, his boyfriend wrapping a dark green scarf into his black coat.

"For what?" Draco's voice was muffled through the scarf.

"For everything. For life. With you."

"Ugh, you cheesy bastard. I love you too."

They rarely would just kiss on the streets (unwelcomed stares and attention came with it all too often. Two boys kissing, you'd think Britain had got over the shock factor of it, huh?). But they did just then.