Don't Give, Just Take | F. Weasley

54 | Loose Chokehold

The loud pop of the newly opened champagne bottle echoed along with a cheer from Safe. A huge smile over her visage as she poured the sizzling liquid into her glass.

She sighed in satisfaction, "Mm," Safe hummed, diagonally pointing the rim of her glass towards Lee. "That's it. That's the one. You know you love it too." She beamed, pursing her lips for remnants of the drink.

The man blushed a little, wide smile pasted on his lips. He wore a navy blue suit, white collared shirt under, with an off-white tie.

Lee looked at himself in the mirror, hands on the opening of the suit. "Yeah, I'll take this." He said to the lady who has been assisting them.

Safe passed him a glass as she sipped on her own, "I can't believe you're going to get married before I do." She chuckled, tipsy from the last bottle she single-handedly drank.

"Remember when we made a bet over that?" Lee asked, facing her.

"And I owe you a thousand galleons," Safe rolled her eyes, waving her hand back snd forth as if dismissing Lee away. "Speaking of bets. We never thought of making bets with thousands of galleons. We barely used a sickle when we were younger," She added, a sigh of nostalgia seeping inside her chest.

Lee chuckled, taking the jacket off, "We're all grown up."

"And got richer," Safe chimed in, raising the glass.

"Now, tell me more about this Oreo guy," Lee smiled cheekily, eyebrows bouncing.

Safe rolled her eyes once more, taking a sip as her head began to calculate the words to say. "He's a nice man, a healer and a muggle doctor like me—"

"Oh, please, Safe. We've been friends for years. We don't talk about those anymore. We talk about closed doors."

"Lee!" She whisper-yelled, eyes widened as she kept a giggle out of her lips. A comforting warmth wrapped around her heart, which she was so sure was not caused by the bubbling liquid running down her throat.

She missed it.

The jokes. The comfort.

Every time she ran away to find herself, discover herself, it always felt like the piece she was looking for was nowhere to be found wherever she attempts to search for it.

"What?" Lee asked innocently. "How interesting is this bloke for picky Safe to agree to be a thing?" He interrogated his friend.

Safe looked at him with creased brows, "A thing?" She asked him. When did she announce such a relationship with Avi?

Lee mirrored her expressions, placing the glass down. "Aren't you two a thing? Or whatever Zeal calls it." He shrugged, grabbing a seat on one of the comfortable armchairs.

What were they? She asked herself. A load of questions began to fill her mind. The crease on her eyebrows narrowed the longer she took. "I don't know," She blurted subconsciously. Her eyes darted towards him, "I don't know." She repeated.

"Well, do you like him?"

"Yes."

"There you have it," Lee served, studying the way her face remained confused.

Safe took a small gulp, "You're right..."

"But?" Lee impatiently added, eyebrows raising as he waited for her answer.

"I'm not sure if I want this. I like Avi, I really do. He's a great guy, understanding, thoughtful. But what if we actually go out? What if I put a label on this relationship and things go down after that? What then?" Safe plopped on the sofa in exasperation. "If there's an underlying situation in his past that I have no idea about, what am I supposed to do then?" Another deep sigh.