Guiltiness

Losing control

"Don't you want to go for a swim? We have a pond in the garden," Draco offered him another option for entertainment. He would do anything to keep Harry from leaving.

That didn't sound so bad after all. At least there will not be any small talk, Harry thought, agreeing completely imprudently. He soon realised that watching is sometimes more challenging than listening. Draco quickly stripped off his shirt and casually elegant trousers. He slipped into the water so nonchalantly that Harry was suddenly entirely paralysed by the feeling of he-is-really-handsome. He imagined his own body with so many scars he'd got in his work as an Auror, contrasted with the perfection he'd glimpsed in front of him for a moment. Draco was no longer as translucently pale as when they studied together. His complexion was light in colour, but he looked very healthy. He was still perfectly slim, and his movements seemed far more confident than before. Harry swallowed hard. He suddenly wanted to run away from here, anywhere, not to be here with Draco. At the same time, however, he was as if chained to the garden swing, on which he was now left alone. He tried to think of a way to sneak away to avoid offending his host.

Draco waved at him from the water; he looked happy and almost cheerful, and his hair was completely wet and dishevelled. Harry nodded at him. "I'll wait for you here," he finally decided. He tried to calm himself by rocking on the swing like a little boy, but his heart beat furiously. He reached for the bottle of wine that Draco had placed on the garden table along with the other treats, drinking faster than he could manage in an attempt to regain his lost composure. It was getting dark, and Draco looked like an apparition to him in the golden glow of the sunset. Like a magnificent Viking god emerging from arctic waters. Harry buried his face in his hands. He no longer had the strength to run away; he was getting sleepy. Draco's call interrupted him from his half-sleep, which seemed to reach him from afar. He tried to regain his vigilance, but it didn't work very well. It was almost dark outside; the mansion was practically unlit. Harry walked towards the light that was probably coming from Draco's wand. He was pretty dizzy. He tried desperately to appear distinguished, but he had much to do to keep himself on his feet. For a moment, he thought he could do it quite well, and then suddenly, he lost the solid ground under his feet and felt cool water in his mouth and nose. He was an Auror, so he was prepared for these situations; he didn't have to humiliate himself for Draco to have to rescue him from the water.

"Are you okay?" Draco, still only in his wet boxers, bent over him carefully.

Harry felt incredibly embarrassed.

"Drying spell," he ordered rather bluntly.

"I don't remember how it's done," Draco said apologetically. It wasn't clear if this was just a Malfoy strategy or perhaps the truth.

In any case, he was now standing close to Harry, bit by bit removing his wet clothes.

Harry would rather sink into the ground. He looked down, hoping to finish it as soon as possible. Draco was looking at him so strangely... He was touching him so gently it was almost pleasurable... Suddenly Harry wasn't even sure if he wanted this to end. He could not look the blond in the eyes, but he did not resist the fleeting touches; in fact, he blissfully melted in them. Suddenly Draco let go of him and whispered apologetically, "Put on my things for now; I'll be right back." He handed him the clothes he'd taken off before going for a swim and strode back to the stately home, still undressed. The whole scene was so surreal that Harry felt like he was dreaming. He dressed in Draco's clothes that didn't fit him as he was more muscular and smaller.

He carefully searched the area, found his wand, and immediately apparated home. He was aware of the inappropriateness of his actions. He knew very well that apparating under the influence of alcohol could cost him his job and was unsafe, but after all this, he was already in complete panic. He sent Draco an owl with an apology and thanks, trying to clear his head. For some unknown reason, he still hadn't changed and remained in Draco's clothing, which, although it was too tight, had an inexplicably soothing effect on him. Although he was utterly alone in his new home for the first time, he did not feel lonely. He stretched out on the couch and buried his head in his sleeve, inhaling the scent of Draco's clothes until he fell asleep.

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Draco ran to the residence and quickly cooled his whole body with cold water. It was almost painful, but it was necessary if he wanted to get back to Harry quickly and not reveal more than he wanted to at the moment. He who digs a pit for others falls in himself, he thought and had to mock himself. Of course, he had known a drying spell, but he wanted to see Harry undressed; he wanted to... for so long... And now his own body betrayed him, and he had to run away before Harry noticed... For a few seconds, he considered a more pleasant solution to the problem, but he didn't want to linger.

When he found his sacrifice was in vain, he uttered a few nasty words and locked himself in the laboratory. He immersed himself in studying for a few hours and forgot about the world. When he was sure no one could hear him at night, he sobbed softly into his pillow until he fell asleep from exhaustion.

Harry awoke with a delightful explosion, immediately replaced by sheer terror as he realised what, or rather who had been his dream inspiration. He quickly removed Draco's clothes, applied cleansing magic to them, then muggle-washed them and used the cleansing magic once more. He handed the clothes back to Draco with a polite thank you and vowed never to come within ten meters of Malfoy from now on. He even considered having Ginny pick up the kids at the station when they returned for Christmas so he wouldn't have to meet Draco. In any case, he immediately declined all invitations from Draco with the excuse of work duties, not realising he was hurting the other man immensely.

Dear readers, I hope you enjoy reading the story. Let me know in the comments. In the next chapter, we will leave Harry and Draco for a while and meet Albus and Scorpius in Hogwarts.