Seventy-six

                                    

                                          
George was giving me a piggyback ride. Sure, we apparated to my mum's house, but I was already so tired after everything that happened today, so he had told me to hop up.
                          
My arms were wrapped around his neck but he had a hand on my arms to keep me from choking him, while he had another hand behind my thigh, supporting me.
                          
My head was resting against his upper back, enjoying the way he smelt. I loved his smell. It reminded me of comfort.
                          
"You wanna hop down again, babe?" George asked, tapping his fingers against my thigh. "Or do you need me to carry you inside as well?"
                          
"No, no." I breathed, letting myself slide down from his back. "I'll walk."
                          
I opened the door to my mum's house, announcing my presence before my eyes landed on William and Marco who were talking together while sitting on the stairs.
                          
"Wait— aren't you two supposed to be on your honeymoon?" George asked from behind me.
                          
"Well, we couldn't miss our favourite girls birthday." Marco grinned as he and William stood up.
                          
Marco opened his arms, expecting me to hug him, but instead I walked past him and hugged my brother who at first seemed taken back but then repaid the hug.
                          
"Excuse me?" Marco laughed in disbelief. "What the fuck?"
                          
"You okay?" Will asked as he held me tightly.
                          
"She's had a long day." I heard Fred say. "And I didn't exactly help to make it better."
                          
"What did you do?" Marco asked him at the same time as I pulled away from William to look at my best friend.
                          
Marco was wearing black skinny jeans with a black thin loose button-up shirt with white polka dots on it. The the four top buttons were left unbuttoned and his silver cross necklace was hanging over his tattooed chest.
                          
"Can I... speak to you?" I asked, motioning towards the stairs. Marco looked at me weirdly, then looked at William who shrugged, because he nodded at me and led the way up the stairs.
                          
"What's up?" He asked as we walked down the hallway together. "Why didn't you want to hug me? You always want to hug me..."
                          
I opened the door to my bedroom. I hadn't actually stayed here during the night before but it was nice having a room, just in case.
                          
When I closed the door behind us, I turned towards Marco and leaned back against the door.
                          
"Are you okay?" He asked, resting his arm against the poster of the bed, flexing his arm while gripping the frame with his hand.
                          
His sleeves were rolled up and his arms were almost covered in tattoos. After we finished school, he had a lot of tattoos done. Way more than I have.
                          
"Fred told me you two slept together in school." I said, watching as Marco's expression didn't even change. His eyes were glued to me. "And that he cheated on Lee by kissing you."
                          
Marco nodded in a way as if he expected me to continue, then frowned when he realised that was what I wanted to talk about.
                          
"What?" He laughed. "That's it? You didn't want to hug me... because I fucked Fred? I thought it was quite obvious that we had slept together. Have you never noticed how touchy we can be?"
                          
I now frowned.
                          
"Oh, don't get me wrong... I am not interested in him, but having sex kinda gives you a new type of relationship. It makes you more comfortable around each other... well, sometimes it does."
                          
I let out a breath of relief.
                          
"I'm assuming by your reaction that when you slept with him, you weren't with Will."
                          
Marco looked at me for another moment before widening his eyes and raising his eyebrows.
                          
"Oh... that's why you didn't want to hug me!" He said. "You though I cheated on Will? Oh, no babe... don't think that. The thing with Fred was before I was with Will. Before you started dating George. We weren't even friends with them. It happened after that small after party in year five when Gryffindor won against Slytherin and we snuck in to have fun. Remember when I disappeared?"
                          
Oh...
                          
"Shit." I cursed. "What— so you and Fred had sex when you were fifteen? Why didn't I know that?"
                          
Marco laughed as I pouted at him.
                          
"You didn't tell me!"
                          
"Just like you didn't tell me when you lost your virginity." He fired back. "I only found out because you couldn't give me back the condom I gave you."
                          
I rolled my eyes.
                          
"I know you're stressed right now, babe." Marco said. "But hey, I'm not gonna hurt your brother. I love him. I wouldn't betray him like that."
                          
"I know." I sighed and walked closer to him. I lifted my arms and while he wrapped his arms around my back, I wrapped mine around his neck. "I'm sorry I assumed that you did."
                          
"Nah, that's fine." He said, rocking me from side to side. "Fred said you've had a long day. Why is that? Because he told you the things that he did?"
                          
I pulled out of the hug, rubbing my eyes from feeling tired.
                          
"I had a therapy session this morning." I said. "I'm always tired after those but you know that... George did let me take a nap this afternoon but I'm honestly exhausted."
                          
Marco grabbed my face in his hands, making me chuckle as he took a look at my face.
                          
I had missed him even though it had only been four days since the wedding. One day without him simply feels like weeks. He's a big part of my life and he means the world to me.
                          
"You do look a bit tired." He said before he hugged me again. "You actually though I cheated on Will?"
                          
"I don't know." I sighed against his shoulder. "I didn't want to believe it but I was scared that it was true."
                          
"I get that." He told me. "I know you don't like cheaters."
                          
I hummed in response.
                          
"Do you want to go back downstairs?" He asked. "I know your mum has been excited to see you."
                          
I yawned against his shoulder which made him laugh and as I pulled away, I couldn't help but laugh myself.
                          
"Yeah." I breathed. "I have to convince her to name my little brother Michael."
                          
Marco smiled and folded his arms over his chest.
                          
"After Michael Jackson?"
                          
I hummed.
                          
"Yeah." I said with a small grin. "It's so weird, y'know... I mean, I'm happy for my mum but I'm nineteen and I'll have a little brother around June."
                          
"Well, look at Will." He told me. "The man turns twenty in June. When the new baby is thirty, Will will be fifty. Oh shit... that means—"
                          
Marco gagged.
                          
"I'll be forty-nine. We'll be forty-nine. I am not looking forward to that. I need to stay hot! I won't be hot when I'm fifty. I'll be old with wrinkles and Will will be too disgusted by me to fuck me."
                          
Then he sighed.
                          
"I'm such a bottom."