draco took a screenshot | drarry

forty four

Harry wasn't sure he had heard him right.

"You want me to what?"

"I want you to go international." He repeated before adding, "If you want to, of course."

Harry's mouth hung open slightly and he ran a hand through his hair. International? "What would that entail?" He asked his manager.

"Well, staying in London doesn't allow for as many opportunities. If you're really serious about this, we could travel to different cities and have even more shoots there. There are countless new brands and companies we can work for, just imagine how fast you'll grow . . ." Diggory trailed off as he appeared to be in deep thought. He was either daydreaming about his own success, or his model's. Harry couldn't tell.

He blinked a few times, trying to process what he'd just been told. "How long would I be gone? Could I bring my family with me? And Draco?"

Diggory inhaled and gnawed on his lip, pondering. "A month at the longest, so you wouldn't have to go back and forth from home to each city. And," he hesitated, "I'm sorry, Harry, but taking relatives along really wouldn't do any good. You'd be busy every day."

Harry's face fell and he let out a small grunt. "No time for sightseeing or anything like that?"

"You may be able to squeeze in a little, but there's no guarantee." Diggory could almost see the gears turning behind his eyes.

"It's okay, you don't have to give me an answer right this instant. Just . . . put some thought to it, yeah? It could be the best thing you've done yet, Mr. Potter." He finished telling him in his best sing-song voice.

He waited for Harry to give a small nod before patting his knee and leaving him be.

Instead of meeting Draco straight away, he decided to sit and take in all of this new information for a few more minutes.

The more he thought, the more he wished he could just stop thinking.

—

"I just don't know, honey, that seems like an awful long time to be away."

Harry sat facing his parents on their bed later that night as he filled them in on the news.

"But at the same time, if it'll really help you out that much . . ." Lily paused in the middle of her sentence.

James stayed silent and scratched at his chin, staring off nowhere in particular. He contemplated her words for a moment, before leaning forward from his spot and scooting closer to his son.

"I think you need to decide what you want to do. It's not up to us, or Draco, or that Diggory bloke, it's up to you." He paused to push up Harry's glasses that had found their way halfway down his nose and took ahold of his hand. "Either way, we'll be here to support you. There's no wrong choice."

Lily leaned her head over onto his shoulder. Seemingly reading his racing mind, she told him, "And don't stress over it, dear. It'll be okay."

Harry could do nothing but grip his father's hand tighter and lay his own head on top of his mother's.

This was exactly what he needed.

What Diggory said to him had been plaguing his mind the whole day. All of it was too overwhelming.

Being forced to choose between seeing everyone he loved and his dream career was a tough decision to make, as much as he didn't want to say it. He felt guilty any time he considered one over the other.

Talking things out with his parents always helped.

'Where would I be without them?'

"Does Draco know?" Lily asked gingerly after a few minutes of silence.

Harry shook his head. "Not yet, I didn't want him to get upset."

"Why would he be upset?"

"Because I'd have to leave him here for who knows how long. And you all." Harry felt his eyes begin to sting and tried to blink the feeling away.

"Harry, no. He'd understand, and so do we," James spoke up with an even more serious serious tone, "He went out of his way to help you get here, didn't he? If I remember you saying correctly, you barely knew each other then. So just think of how it would be now—you two are the closest you've ever been!"

A tear fell but he quickly wiped it away. "Yeah, but I'm just scared that I'll be gone and–that I'll be gone for too long." He switched his wording and finished vaguely; he didn't know if he could keep from bursting into tears if he voiced what he was afraid of.

He wanted to hit himself: how much more immature could he possibly sound?

"You won't be. He loves you, doesn't he? Has he ever given you a reason to doubt his feelings before?"

"I don't know if he does." Harry shrugged, "But I haven't doubted him yet."

Harry rubbed at his eyes as James and Lily shot each other a knowing look.

"See? There's no reason to worry." Lily put her arms around him and squeezed him tightly.

Harry nodded, as convinced as his stressed out brain would let him be. He sat in their company a little longer before returning to his room.

Picking up his phone from the bed, he opened his messages.

7:36 pm

harry:
hey sirius
is there any possible way u could come pick me up tonight?