Witch Girlfriend Drabble #3
There’s a pleasant little chime on the door to the bookshop that Louis always enjoys. It feels like there’s something more to it than just the sound, but Harry always snorts and says she thinks Louis is reading too much into things. Harry. Her girlfriend who is a witch thinks she’s silly for thinking things are more than they appear. If Louis wasn’t as fond of her as she is, she’d break up with her immediately for such insolence.
She hears it now as she walks into the shop and smiles. Harry rushes in for a hug before the door even closes.
“Oomph,” Louis says –or pants out, rather– then laughs as she threads her arms around Harry’s waist. “Hey love.”
“Hiiiiii,” Harry says in her ear. She pulls back, keeping her arms around Louis’ neck.
“Did you know I was coming by?” Louis asks, raising an eyebrow.
“No,” Harry says, very unconvincingly. Louis raises the eyebrow higher, tilting her head to emphasize it. “I didn’t know, I just had a feeling.”
“Right,” Louis says, dragging out the ‘i.’ She gives her a peck. Harry makes a happy noise and gives her three more. Between kisses, Louis adds, “I actually just stopped by on my way to class.”
“I know,” Harry says, giving her another peck. Louis tuts and Harry laughs. “I actually know that because I know your class schedule, you weirdo. Maybe because I like you or something.” One more peck and then she pulls away. Louis feels butterflies in her stomach and pretends she isn’t blushing.
The bookstore is quaint –somehow very dark but with the perfect amount of sunlight filtering in through the windows so it doesn’t feel dreary– and it seems like the proprietors (Harry and her family) always know what you’re looking for before you know yourself.
Louis loves visiting Harry here. She didn’t want to chance it before she met Harry’s family, but since they’ve crossed that bridge, Louis visits often. She likes to study at one of the few tables stationed throughout the store, hidden around little corners in seemingly-forgotten sections. Sometimes Harry joins her. Often Harry distracts her from studying. Louis’ never that upset about it.
“Are we still on for movie night?” Harry asks.
“Mhm,” Louis says. “I just need to work on my PolySci paper first and then you can come over.”
“Buuuuut,” Harry says, smiling temptingly. “What if you wanted to come over to my house right after class? You could study and then we can watch the movie whenever you’re ready.”
Louis makes a sound that’s both a scoff and a laugh. “Harry, you know I won’t write my paper if I come over.”
“I know,” Harry says devilishly, kissing beside Louis’ mouth, then on her jaw, then on her neck.
Louis giggles and shimmies away. “Let me work for an hour and then I’ll come over.”
Harry sighs. “If you must.”
“I must,” Louis says gravely. “I don’t actually know how you get away with not studying.”
“I do study,” Harry says, sounding indignant. But then she scrunches her nose, which makes Louis think she’s lying. When Louis gives her a look that says so, she laughs. “I do! I just… tend to take more time.”
“Ah,” Louis says, understanding. She takes the same tablet she gave to Louis all those months ago to give herself additional time.
“Can’t do it that often,” Harry whispers, “but I could give you some more time too. So we can do both.”
Louis shakes her head. In a low voice, she says, “You know I don’t like to do that. I know it’s dangerous, even when you try to tell me it’s fine. I don’t want to get anyone in trouble.”
Harry makes a humming noise and her eyes get a little cloudy with something. But it’s gone too quickly for Louis to ask about it. A moment later, there’s some shuffling from around the corner.
“Do you have customers?” Louis whispers, already pulling her arms away.
“No.” Harry holds on tighter with one arm, and pouts as she tries to bring Louis’ arms back around her waist one-handed. Louis obliges, grinning. “Just Nana.”
Sure enough, Harry’s grandmother appears from behind a bookshelf. She sees Harry and Louis tangled up in each other and her expression turns soft. “Hello my dear,” she says, voice light and airy.
“Gertrude, dear, please.”
“Hi Gertrude,” Harry says cheekily.
Nana looks unimpressed. “Don’t start with me, Harriet.”
Nana’s eyes move to look at something behind them and she straightens up. “Apologies for my granddaughter, sir. Young love, what can you do, right? How can I help you?”
Louis looks over her shoulder, but as she suspected, no one’s there.
“Um, Nana,” Harry says. “It’s just Louis and I here right now.”
Nana’s eyebrows furrow. “I know it seems that way, darling, but we can’t ignore customers just because of our pretty partners.”
Louis’ cheeks heat up at ‘partner’ and she gets a lovely warm feeling inside. Partners. Yes, they are, aren’t they? Louis always wanted that.
Harry clears her throat. “Nana… There are only three people everyone can see right now.”
“Hm?” Nana says, still confused. Then her eyes go wide. “Oh! Oh… yes. Yes, um, of course, silly me. I’m just going to…” she raises her voice to say, “go to the back where I can talk to, um, myself or anyone that I see. Away from everyone else.”
Then she turns and walks away. Harry shakes her head.
Louis tilts her head to the side in question, then Harry shakes her head some more.
“Remember how I said she was a medium,” she whispers. Louis nods. Harry looks at her pointedly until Louis gets it.
“Oh,” she says. “Oh. Oh right okay. So just now… there was a …?”
“A ghost, yeah,” Harry says simply. “So, do you want chocolate or just popcorn for the movie-watching?”
Louis ignores her. “I learn a million different things about your world every day. How am I supposed to get used to any of it? Especially when I’m supposed to act like I don’t know!”
Harry grins wide and pulls her in tighter. “Makes it exciting, doesn’t it?”
“I guess,” Louis says warily. In a rare moment of vulnerability, Louis looks down at Harry’s throat instead of her eyes. “Just hope you don’t get bored of me. My life’s not exciting like all of this.”
“Louis,” Harry says. When she doesn’t look up, Harry removes a hand from around her shoulders and uses it to tilt Louis’ face up until their eyes lock. “What makes you think you’re not the most exciting thing in my life, hm?”
A rush of butterflies flutter through Louis.
“Everyday I wake up and can’t wait to see you. To hear what you think. To do stupid, silly things with you. I can’t believe you’re not so weirded out by all of this that you run away. I’m so lucky.”
Louis does her best to hold back her smile. She fails.
