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Chapter 4

The new couple kept up a pattern for the first few dates: Eat dinner in a new restaurant and talk, and then Draco would walk Harry home.

On the seventh date, Harry changed things up a bit. "You should came have dinner at my house." Harry suggested.

Draco couldn't contain his elation. "Are you a good cook?" He asked.

Harry shrugged. "I can cook, if that's what you mean. I suppose it tastes alright.

"I'll see you at seven?" Harry said.

"Wouldn't miss it for the world." Draco walked out into the sunny (when does it ever get sunny in London?) afternoon towards his apartment. He sat down at his desk and took out a thick notebook. As he hastily wrote down paragraph after paragraph, the time quickly slipped away. He glanced up, and spotted the minimalistic wall clock that hung over his desk. 6:40.

He sprang up, grabbing his coat and keys, and taking the notebook with him by accident. He practically ran down to his car and most likely broke the speed limit several times. When he arrived, a quick glance at the car's clock told him he made with  two minutes to spare. And with that, he realized he'd forgotten to style his hair in his rush to be on time.

His platinum blonde hair was usually meticulously styled, every hair in place, as a company heir's should. Now that he wasn't a CEO, the habit still stuck around. He thought other people wouldn't like his hair any other way. He silently cursed his hair, which was most likely sticking up in certain places, and opened the car door. He rang the doorbell and the door almost instantly swung open. A beaming Harry invited him in and the smell of good, home cooked foods instantly hit his nose.

"It smells good in here." Draco said.

"Ah, um, I just finished cooking. All the food is set on the table."

A small table with a beige table cloth and two candles sat atop it stood in the corner, overlooking the quiet street. The food looked absolutely delicious.

Harry fidgeted nervously. "It looks wonderful." Draco breathed.

Harry smiled and politely pulled out a chair for Draco. They sat and began eating. The first bite of chicken that hit Draco's tastebuds tasted like a slice of heaven. "My goodness, this is delicious! Where did you learn to cook like this?"

"My foster mother, Molly, taught me." Harry said proudly. "I've always loved to cook, especially for people I love."

Draco blushed a deep rose color. This felt so right, to be with Harry, eating dinner at Harry's home. This felt like a family to Draco.

"Ron and Hermione are visiting next week, would you like to meet them?" Harry asked.

"You've told me so much about them, I feel like I already have!" Draco joked. "Of course I'd love to meet them."

They ate, and conversed, and felt sort of like a family for once in Draco's life. He decided, right then and there, he was going to be a family with Harry. He loved him so much, and he was always thinking about Harry. His lightly tanned skin, brilliant green eyes, and gorgeous midnight hair always managed to creep into Draco's thoughts.

"So how are you liking not having to work in an office?" Harry asked.

"It's wonderful, I get to spend all my time writing."

Harry looked up. "Writing? Are you working on a book?" He inquired, excited.

Draco looked away. "Yes, I'm working on a novel." He remembered his rush to get out of the house and into his car. He'd brought the notebook with him. "I actually brought it with me by accident."

Harry clapped. "Can I read it?"

"Let me go out to my car to get it." Draco replied.

He walked out and unlocked his car. After a moment of digging around, he emerged with a simple blue spiral notebook. Draco handed the notebook to Harry, who excitedly began to read it. Draco watched anxiously as Harry's eyes moved across the pages. When he'd reached the end of what Draco had written, he beamed brightly at Draco. "It's amazing! You should send this to a publisher!" Harry remarked.

Draco blushed. "It's not even finished yet!"

"Whenever it is finished, you need to share this with the world! It's perfect!"

They talked about books, all the books. As it turned out, they were both avid readers, reading anything they could get their hands on. After a lengthy discussion, Harry looked up at the clock. "Oh dear, it's almost 11. You should probably head home soon, before it gets too late." Harry remarked.

Draco leaned in and gave him a slightly drawn out kiss. "I'll see you tomorrow, at Phoenix?"

Harry giggled. "I'll be there.

"I- er- I like your hair like that. It looks better unstyled." Harry commented.

Draco froze like a deer in headlights. "Thank you." He replied as calmly as possible, beaming with joy.

Draco left, got into his car, and drove home. He walked into his apartment, still distracted by the whimsical night he'd had and amazing food he'd eaten, he scarcely noticed the light in his window was on. As he unlocked the door and set his notebook on the kitchen counter, a deep voice spoke that terrified Draco to his very core.

"Where have you been all night?" Said Draco's father, Lucius Malfoy, who sat on the couch of Draco's living room.