"Just hold my hand and look at me." Draco tried focusing on Harry's voice, which was being swallowed by the noise of hundreds of people at his parent's annual Spring ball. Harry was looking at him and Draco could see the worry in his eyes but his parents were watching them, throwing daggers at them with their glares and after merely showing up with his "boyfriend", Draco was walking on thin ice.
"Draco, can you please turn away from them and look at me?" Harry's voice floated to him again and he turned away when he felt a squeeze of Harry's hand on his own. Draco turned, their eyes met and when Harry sighed in relief, a part of Draco wanted to just leave and have a comfortable night with him instead of stressing him with his paranoia.
"I'm here," Harry said and let go of one of Draco's hand in order to cup Draco's cheek. Draco flinched and murmured something but Harry only smiled. "Let them look. I'm here. We're here. There is nothing they can do about it."
Harry's hand slid from Draco's cheek to his shoulder and he raised their intertwined fingers higher. "Come dance with me."
Draco was being pulled onto the dance floor and even as Harry melted into him, letting him lead, letting him be 'the man', he couldn't help but feel on edge. "Everyone is looking at us, Potter."
"Since when do you call your best friend by his surname?" Harry chuckled and looked up at Draco. Draco looked at him, the furrowed eyebrows never relaxing, his teeth never leaving the inside of his lip unworried.
"Since I decided to take him to my parents' ball in the role of my boyfriend," Draco replied, but only absentmindedly. They were still twirling through the crowd of dancers but there was a slight push of Harry's finger on his back, pushing him backwards, towards the drinks table.
As soon as they stopped, both of them taking a glass of something stronger than champagne, Draco turned away from the crowd and whispered, closing his eyes. "This was such a bad idea."
"No, it wasn't," Harry told him, his hand drawing gentle circles on the small of Draco's back for the room to see. "Imagine coming here alone. Don't you remember the night you told them?"
"Of course I do! It was three days ago!" Draco growled, brushing off Harry's hands. He downed the drink and moved until they were hidden by a small crowd of people standing around the table. "Coming here alone would be a nightmare."
"Yes, it would," Harry agreed and took Draco's hand once more. It was one of the things Harry'd learned of the years of their friendship - touch soothed Draco; even a small brush of fingers could calm him down. "But you're not alone. You've got me right here next to you. You've got Pansy and Blaise, keeping your parents away."
"Yeah, well, they are doing a half-ass job," Draco sneered at the crowd to his left when he was actually watching his parents approach with the corner of his eyes.
"Okay, Draco, remember that I'm here. We're here to spite them, okay? We're happy and not scared and completely in love," Harry repeated as he had before they'd entered the ballroom before they left for the Malfoy Manor, and the second Draco started planning the whole event. "Take my hand, intertwine our fingers. I'll kiss your hand, okay?"
"No, let me kiss yours," Draco shook his head and turned his body completely towards Harry. He slouched as if Harry was magnetically pulling him to come closer and he let his features soften. He was looking at his best friend, at someone he trusted with his life. Harry didn't deserve to be frowned at.
"Thank you for doing this," Draco whispered into space between us, his lungs feeling with new found confidence as his parents came closer at an alarming rate. He pulled their hands up and pressed a long, gentle kiss into the soft skin of Harry's hand.
"I'd do anything for you," Harry said when Draco caught his eyes again and the genuineness of his voice left Draco to wonder whether Harry was an amazing actor, an even better liar or if his love pierced deeper than he had ever thought. Of course, he would have done anything for Harry but neither of them ever said such things out loud - they were friends and saying such things may lead to wrong interpretations of their feelings. Just as his mother and father approached something heavy fell on Draco's soul and he asked himself, his own mind, what the right interpretation really was.
"Draco, Harry," Narcissa greeted with an icy smile. "Didn't know your boyfriend could dance, Draco."
"I know this means so much to Draco," Harry said before Draco could even think to open his mouth. "What kind of a boyfriend would I be if I embarrassed him by not knowing how to dance?" Harry looked up at Draco then, squeezing his hand reassuringly. Draco's mother didn't respond with anything but a long, deadly look.
"Mr Potter, are you enjoying the evening? Have you managed to fit in?" Lucius Malfoy asked and while Draco's mind was running wild with analysing the undertone of his question and things he wanted to say, Harry smiled politely.
"It's a wonderful ball. I tend to enjoy these celebrations if the company is good and I must say, I'm having a great time, thank you."
"And how come your aunt and uncle haven't made an appearance tonight? haven't you invited them?", Narcissa chimed in again.
"I mentioned it to them but I don't think this is the kind of a crowd which they would enjoy," Harry shrugged and glanced at Draco again who was letting his eyes wander around the room, landing everywhere but on his parents.
"They didn't come and yet they let you come? They approve of you appearing on such important celebrations alone?" Lucius asked and this made Harry straighten. His aunt and uncle have always been a heavy topic and Harr didn't doubt that the Malfoys knew that very well.
"They don't approve of a lot of things I do but, Mr Malfoy, with all due respect, I am twenty-three now and I believe that I can very well tell which choices I want to make and which I don't without my family's help." As soon as he finished talking Lucius continued talking, bitter tone lacing all of his words.
"It seems like that attitude of yours has been brushing onto Draco as well."
"Then I believe he is under a good influence," Harry replied, his head up high. He didn't allow himself to cower before Narcissa Malfoy's gaze.
"You think so highly of yourself, don't you, Mr Potter?"
"There is no thinking highly of anything," Harry said, furrowing his eyebrows in confusion. "Some things are simply right and some are simply wrong. Each of us has the right to choose to act whichever way they see fit."
His voice rose louder than he wanted it to go and people were starting to turn their way now.
"So you believe you've made the right choice?", asked Mrs Malfoy. "When it comes to your... preference?"
"He didn't get to choose." Draco's voice was strained, slipping through the tiniest cracks in his forced smile. "It's not a choice one can make."
"Of course it is, my darling," Narcissa laughed then looking at his husband. Lucius was glaring at every person who dared to look their way.
"How can you see it's not at all the way you perceive it?" Draco asked then, stepping forward, into his mother's face despite Harry's attempts to stop him. He had Potter pulling on his arm but with one glance Harry let him go. Harry trusted him not to do anything foolish and Draco respected him for it now more than ever. "Who in their right mind -", Draco asked his mother, his father, the entire crowd that was watching the Malfoys. "- would choose to be hated by their own mother and father?"
Draco asked but no one answered. The room fell into silence and then a soft buzzing of whispering voices spread from the farthest part of the room towards the group of people that stayed glaring at each other. Minutes passed, and they appeared to be as long as hours with Lucius sneering and Hary and Narcissa shaking her head pitifully at her son. Draco rolled his eyes, took Harry's hand and moved away from his parents. He was turned towards the doors when his mother called: "Draco! Draco please, darling..."
"What?"
"I just hope you can see that your father and I want only the best for you," she said, with a pleading look but Draco knew better than to believe her false sympathies. He turned, his anger rising and his face flushed - he was done being composed.
"No," he said sternly. "You only want what's best for you!"
"Draco, you're making a scene," his father glared at him but Draco only huffed.
"It's not a scene if it's true," he replied and with a pull on Harry's hand, he headed towards the door. The room was dead silent and their footsteps echoed throughout the crowd, with few of the people flinching each time their feet touched the ground.
When they were just a couple of steps to the door, Harry caught up with Draco and only then did the blond notice that Harry had been grinning at him ever since they left the Malfoys in stunned silence. Draco looked at him confused, in question but Harry just smiled sheepishly at him and shrugged and suddenly, Draco found an urge within himself to thank Harry for everything and anything he'd done for him, to hold his hand and keep him right next to him, to kiss him.
And in that moment and Harry chuckled, "What is it?" at Draco's dazed face and the entire crowd of people stared at them, Draco cupped Harry's face and without a second thought, he kissed him. He pressed his lips against Harry and Harry froze against him but after only a second or two, Harry gasped. His mouthed opened and he kissed back and right there in from of the door Draco realised that he loved him. That kissing Harry felt like the safest thing to do.
As his tongue touched Harry's lip, as Harry shivered in his embrace, sucking on Draco's lower lip, as they kissed on and on and on, Draco realised that this whole entire thing led to something entirely new blooming between them.
He pulled away and Harry was staring at him with wide eyes and shallow breaths. They were both flushed and panting and when Harry took his hand in his once more, Draco pressed a quick kiss to Harry's cheek which earned him a beautiful grin unlike any other.
He turned towards his parents' shocked face, so far away from them now and said, with such joy lacing his voice: "Goodbye mother. Goodbye father. Don't expect me home for Christmas."