A Cup of Tea, Please

24 | Cuddles, Cuddles and More Cuddles

As exciting as the start of the year 2000 was, Harry's life quickly fell back into the monotonous pattern it had been in before Christmas. Wake up, go to work, come home, sleep. He hadn't expected for being an Auror to be so boring yet still absolutely draining, as most days Harry came back home miserable and exhausted. The only thing that kept him sane was having Draco. If Harry still lived alone at Grimmauld Place, he'd probably be a living husk by now; no better than if a Dementor sucked his soul dry. He was eternally grateful for Draco letting him unexpectedly move in. Impulse control was something Harry really needed to work on, but he doubted that there'd be any other major decisions he'd be at risk of impulsive about anytime soon so it wasn't one of his biggest priorities.

But right now his biggest priority was letting Draco know that he loved him, as he did every morning.

Harry felt the warmth on his back fade away, prompting him to turn over to check what Draco found more important than making sure that the saviour of the wizarding world was comfortable.

"Draco?" Harry mumbled, rubbing his eyes with his fists to clear up his blurred vision as much as he could (though he still needed his glasses to see clearly). "R'you awake?"

Once Harry's sight finally adjusted, he saw Draco sitting upright with his head in his hands.

Harry then swapped his question to "Are you okay?" as he brought his hand up to caress Draco's arm.

"Yes. I'm fine, Harry. Go back to sleep."

Harry furrowed his brow. "You don't look fine."

Draco lifted his head and looked back down at Harry with half-lidded eyes. Harry couldn't help but notice that his eyes sparkled so much, even now when the only light in the room was the moonlight shining through the window. The blonde then took Harry's hand in his.

"I am fine. Please, just go back to sleep," Draco whispered, stroking Harry's hand with his thumb.

"I don't have work tomorrow," Harry frowned. "But I still can't sleep. I won't be able to sleep knowing that you're upset."

What Harry was saying was the truth: he'd never seen Draco upset like this before ever since he'd moved in and in all honesty, it worried him.

"Are you sure?" asked Draco. "I don't want to worry you."

"Mhm."

Draco sighed, knowing that Harry was too stubborn to refuse an answer. "I'm scared that I'll lose my job. Ever since the holidays ended, the cafe's been getting less and less business to the point where even my boss thinks we have no choice but to close soon."

"How is that even possible?" Harry inquired. "Last summer you were doing just fine."

"That's because we were new. Everyone in the area wanted to check a pretty cafe that's just opened, but now the buzz is dying down and we haven't been getting many customers. There are also so many other cafes in London. It's hard for any new business to survive unless they bring something new to the table."

"But I have a lot of money, that's not something you need to worry so much about."

"I also had a lot of money, but I wanted to get away from that because I didn't like being a leech. I appreciate it Harry, but no thanks."

"Oh. Can't you get another job, then?"

Draco sighed again. "No. I have terrible anxiety. You don't know how much of a wreck I was walking into the cafe on my first day. It's like a second home to me now, and not only do I not want to go through the stress of finding a new job and getting used to the place again, but I also don't want to lose the cafe. I know I'll have no choice when it comes to it, so I will have to get another job at some point, but I'd rather not. It's easier for me and my mental health to not deal with that shite."