Weasley Family Fallout

Chapter 22: A Drunken Mistake

As soon as the six stepped out on the sidewalk, Trenton and Neil each pulled out a pack of cigarettes. When he was twenty, Bilius had gotten Trenton into the bad habit and Neil had always smoked socially or when he was drinking. They both offered one to Stacy and Alexa before Trenton offered one each to Arthur and Cindy. He had always refused, but there was something about tonight that caused Arthur to accept.

After everyone had accepted, Cindy complained that it was actually quite chilly, her friends following suit. As if by instinct, the brothers wrapped an arm around their respective partner's shoulders. After all, they had each been married and had gotten used to this with their ex- wives – or in Arthur's case, wife.

After they all lit up, Arthur unsuccessfully stifling a cough, Trenton pointed out the scars that peeked through the two open upper buttons on his little brother's shirt. "Say, Arthur, how'd you get those scars?"

Glancing down at the discolored marks on his chest, Arthur replied with a bit of an attitude, "I was in the Order of the Phoenix, remember?" He knew what his older brother was doing, and he did not appreciate it. Around people he didn't know well, Arthur was quite self-conscious about his scars. He wasn't one to brag either.

"You're Arthur Weasley? That Arthur Weasley?" Cindy inquired, excitedly. "I read about that in The Daily Prophet. You received an Order of Merlin, First Class!"

"He nearly died too," Neil put in, obviously catching on to what Trenton was doing.

"That's so brave," the blonde cooed, leaning closer to Arthur.

"Do you know Harry Potter?" Alexa, the dark-haired one, asked.

"His daughter is dating Harry Potter," Trenton answered helpfully. "Harry's like another son to him."

"You don't look old enough to have a daughter that age," Cindy commented.

Before responding, Arthur took a puff from his cigarette. The smoke burned his throat and he resisted the urge to cough this time. "I'm forty-eight."

"No!" Cindy exclaimed, genuinely shocked. "I didn't think you were much older than me."

"And how old are you? If you don't mind me asking, of course," Arthur added hastily.

"Thirty-five," she answered, blowing smoke into the cool night air. "I've always tended to be attracted to older men though, so this shouldn't have surprised me."

This exchange made everyone curious of what each other's age was. Stacy, the brunette with Trenton, was thirty-six. Alexa, the dark-haired woman with Neil, was thirty-five. Neil proudly announced that he was forty-four since he was the youngest of the brothers present. Trenton, however, tried to play it off like he was forty-two, but was caught in the lie by Stacy because he had already told them he was the oldest.

After everyone finished their cigarette – or cigarettes in Trenton and Neil's case – the group went back inside to buy more drinks. Instead of getting more drinks, however, the girls talked the guys into having a contest to see who could take the most shots. Unsurprisingly, Trenton won by a long shot. Arthur came in second, and Neil wasn't too far behind in third.

Not long after the contest, the effects of the liquor began to kick in. They had all been buzzed, but now they were highly intoxicated. It didn't take any effort this time for Cindy to get Arthur onto the dance floor. Arthur couldn't help his mind wandering to what he'd like to do to this breathtaking woman as he watched her move with the music. Several songs later, the band slowed the tempo dow. As the song finished, Cindy leaned in and planted a soft kiss on Arthur's lips. When he didn't stop her, she deepened the kiss, her tongue seeking entrance into his mouth. Instead of jerking away, Arthur pulled her closer to him, running his hand down her side and resting it on her lower back. It was like he had no control of what he was doing. Part of him knew this was wrong, but another part didn't want to stop. When Cindy pulled away, he didn't bother hiding the disappointment on his face.