Susan Bones was lying in bed, staring at the white curtains that were draped above her head. Dinner had went well. Her mother hadn't made any more accusations towards Theodore and the atmosphere had been less tense. She had even genuinely smiled at him, when he had complimented the food. Susan could still sense that Theodore was on edge around her parents though. She hoped being here wasn't too stressful for him.
She turned on her side and watched her boyfriend's breathing. He was laying with his back to her on the mattress on the floor. It couldn't be very comfortable, she thought.
"Theo?" she whispered. He stirred on the mattress but didn't respond. "Are you awake?"
Theodore turned around and she could feel his eyes landing on her in the dark. "Yeah."
Susan twirled a strand of her hair around her finger. "Are you comfortable down there?"
"It's okay," he replied.
Susan bit her lip. "You can lie next to me, if you want?" she tried.
There was a pause. Then Theodore spoke slowly: "I don't know if your parents would like that."
This made Susan giggle. "My dad gave you a Contraceptive Potion today. And I just want to cuddle."
Again, there was silence. Then she heard rustling and Theodore stood up. He crawled into bed with her. As he slid under the duvet she wrapped her arms around his middle and laid her head on his chest. Theodore rested his hands on her back and pressed his lips to the top of her head.
He was only wearing a t-shirt and boxers. She was in her nightgown. Her legs brushed against his and her skin tingled at the contact.
"I'm sorry for what my mother said to you," she mumbled to his chest.
"It's okay," he whispered.
Susan pushed her leg between his. Her breathing became a bit heavier because he was so close to her. She started taking slow and steady breaths to calm herself down. It was clear to her that Theodore wanted to take things slowly, even though as far as she was concerned she would climb on top of him right now.
His hand was in her hair and she could feel the beating of his heart against her ear. Damn, she needed to get a hold of herself. It took all of her willpower to not slide her hands under his shirt. She wanted to feel him. She wanted to taste him.
"Suzy?" The way he whispered her name sent shivers down her spine. "I'm tired."
Susan gulped. It was a subtle hint, but she understood. He didn't want to do anything right now. Which was totally fine.
She turned around and Theodore settled in beside her, his hand on her waist. Susan stared at the wall. It was difficult to fall asleep when she could feel Theodore's hips against her bottom. His hand was warm and she couldn't help but think of all the places she wanted him to touch her. She listened to his breathing, for it was clear that the boy had already fallen asleep. Susan closed her eyes, but all that did was make her brain summon an image of Theodore's hand between her thighs which wasn't very helpful. To counter the thoughts she tried to think of professor Slughorn, because if that wasn't a turnoff she was definitely beyond help. At last, she finally fell asleep.
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Theodore Nott woke up with his nose in Suzy's hair and his arm hanging over her waist. He breathed in her calming scent. Then he became aware of her ass pressing against his crotch and to his discomfort he noticed that he was hard.
He tried to move without waking her up and was able to put some distance between them. This was what he hated the most about being a boy, the random morning boners he had never asked for.
Susan mumbled his name and turned around, her eyes still closed. She laid her head on his chest and trapped him before he could get up. Her hand knotted his shirt and she pulled it up a little. A moment later, she loosened her grip and her hand slid down. She accidentally touched the tip of his boner with the back of her hand and she jerked awake.
"Shit, I'm sorry," she said while sitting up straight. Theodore felt the heat rise to his cheeks. That was embarrassing. He had hoped to get out of bed and put his trousers on before Susan woke up. At least, he was covered by the blanket.
"It's okay," he said. "Did you sleep well?" Maybe switching to a different subject would make the shame he felt go away.
"Yes," she replied while stretching her arms. She yawned, then looked down at him. She smiled and ruffled his hair. "You're cute."
Theodore relaxed a bit. He grinned at his girlfriend, sat up, put his hands on her middle and started tickling her.
Susan cried out in laughter and fell down on the mattress, her legs kicking in the air. "Stop it!" she screamed.
Theodore obeyed but held his hands just above her nightgown to remind her that he could start again at any given moment. "Now who's the one being cute," he told her.
"You Slytherins are so unfair," Suzy said while pushing him off her.
"And you Hufflepuffs are way too sweet," he replied while getting out of the bed. He opened the closet and selected some clothes. "What are we doing today?" he asked Susan while deciding how warm he should dress himself.
Susan sat up on the bed, the blanket wrapped around her legs. Her hair was messy. She was beautiful. "I was thinking of going to a Christmas market," she said.
"A Muggle one?" Theodore asked.
Susan shrugged. "Yeah, why not?"
"Okay," he said. "But I want to take you to the National Gallery tomorrow."
"Deal," Susan smiled.
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Susan Bones held Theodore Nott's cold hand and rubbed her thumb across the back of his hand in an attempt to warm him up. Why the boy hadn't bothered with gloves, she didn't know. It was freezing outside.
They were walking between all the different stalls, the scents of various foods drifting towards them. Susan could see her clouds of breath as she exhaled.
"What do you want to try?" she asked Theodore.
He looked at her sideways and grinned. "Mulled wine."
"Alcohol?" she said with one eyebrow raised.
"I need to keep my Slytherin reputation high," he spoke airily. "Besides, it will warm my hands."
Susan scoffed. "I don't know why you're not wearing gloves."
"I forgot to pack them," Theodore replied while dragging her along the crowd towards a stall that sold several hot drinks. "What do you want?" He looked at her questioningly.
"I'll have the same as you."
Theodore ordered two cups of mulled wine and Susan handed the seller some of the Muggle money her parents had given her before they had left this morning.
With both hands wrapped around their cups, they moved through the crowd until they found an empty high table to lean against.
Theodore blew at his cup and looked at her with his very pretty eyes. She loved how they could twinkle with mischief or how he could tell her he loved her with just one look. Now, it looked like he was doing both.
Susan took a small sip from her cup, feeling the warmth of the drink settle in her stomach. Theodore had got them both large cups. Maybe that was why he looked like he was plotting something.
"What?" she asked with one eyebrow raised.
"You have a bit -" he pointed to the corner of his mouth.
Susan wiped the wine from her mouth with the back of her hand.
"Better?" she asked.
"I don't know," Theodore said, his brown curls falling over his forehead. "I kind of liked how it looked on you."
Susan blushed.
They stood there for a while, sipping their drinks and chatting about this and that. Susan could feel the alcohol rising to her cheeks, making her more giggly than usual.
When their drinks were finished Theodore asked: "Where do you wanna go now?"
Susan shrugged. "I don't know. Let's just walk around a bit and see what else we can find."
He nodded.
They walked along the stalls again, hand in hand. Susan noticed how Theodore's hand was getting colder again, just as her eyes fell on a stall selling scarfs, hats and gloves.
"Wait here, Theo. I'll be back in a sec," she said and she slipped into the crowd.
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Theodore Nott scanned the crowd nervously for his Suzy. He had lost sight of her as soon as she had let go of his hand and he missed her already.
He sighed in relief when he saw a flash of her red hair appear. A moment later she stood in front of him.
"I got you something," she smiled and held up a pair of black gloves.
"You didn't have to," he stammered but inside he felt his chest warm at how considerate she was. No one had ever done something like this for him. It robbed him of words.
She took his right hand in hers and put the glove on, then she did the same for his left hand. Theodore stared at her, amazed at how gorgeous she was.
"Maybe I didn't have to," she said. "But I couldn't bare to feel you getting cold."
She looked up and caught him staring. "What's the matter?"
Theodore shook his head and smiled. "Nothing. Just, do you know how amazing you are?"
Susan's cheeks reddened and she looked so cute. He wanted to kiss her, so he bent down and did just that.
"You know what I was thinking about?" she said as they broke apart.
"No, but do enlighten me please."
"Ice skating."
"What?" he laughed.
"I want to go ice skating with you."
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Not much later they were standing on the ice. Susan had spotted an ice rink when they had just arrived at the Christmas market and it just seemed like something that would be fun to do with Theo. Even though she had never done it before.
Now, she was regretting that decision. When she saw other people skating, it always looked so elegant. But when her feet hit the ice, they apparently stopped cooperating altogether.
She slipped again and her hand slid off the railing which she hadn't dared to leave. Theodore caught her around the middle and steadied her.
He had told her that he had also never done this before, but she didn't know if she believed him. It came so naturally to him.
"Just follow my lead," he said as he kept his arm around her waist.
Susan looked at her clumsy feet next to his graceful ones. She managed a few paces without slipping until her left foot slid forward too fast. She lost balance and fell backwards. Theodore reacted immediately and caught her just before her head would hit the ice.
"Maybe this wasn't such a great idea," he said as he pulled her up. "I don't want you to get hurt."
"I just thought it would be romantic," she sighed a bit disappointed.
Theodore pulled her to his chest and kissed her.
"You buying me gloves was already extremely romantic," he said as he looked into her eyes.
Susan melted. When Theodore Nott was near her, the temperature always seemed to rise. She could sink through the ice and not get cold as long as he was there to catch her.