#enjoy loves

The office wasn’t quite what he expected, either, it was small and, frankly, not in the best condition; paint flaked off the walls, the doors were marred with dings and dents, one of the lightbulbs flickered weakly above. He made his way down the hall to the door with Malfoy’s name on it and then knocked.

“Come in,” a voice, not Malfoy’s, called.

He stepped in, “Err, hi,” he said.

“Hello,” the older gentleman behind the desk replied. He looked Harry up and down with kind brown eyes. “May I help you?”

“I’m looking for Draco Malfoy?” Harry asked, unsure why he’d phrased it as a question.

“Your name?”

“Harry Potter?”

The man looked away from Harry and down at his computer keyboard as he typed something, very slowly, and Harry tried not to crawl out of his skin. “I’m afraid I don’t see you on the calendar, Mr. Potter. And I don’t see you in our client base. Did you have an appointment?”

“No,” Harry said quickly, “I work at Magical Beans, the coffee shop a few blocks from here? And Draco, he was,” he paused. “We went to school together,” Harry added. “But he-”

“Potter?”

He looked over and felt relieved to be able to stop talking.

“I thought I heard an unfortunate amount of inarticulate babbling,” Draco teased. “What on earth are you doing here?”

Harry held out his lunch, his skin felt like it was on fire and he was very grateful, not for the first time today, that he didn’t have Ron or Draco’s complexion to show the fierce blush. “You forgot your lunch.”

“Oh,” Draco said in surprise, taking the bag from him. “This was very thoughtful of you. Thank you.”

“No problem. You’re close by, Greta looked you up for me.” He thrust out the box, “these are for you, too.” He looked around, glancing at the gentleman behind the desk who was watching Malfoy with no small amount of amusement and fondness. “Well and everyone else in your office.”

“What? Why?”

Before Harry could respond, because he didn’t really know the answer, the receptionist (Bernard, Harry was guessing) said, “Never mind about the why.” He stood and walked around the desk and took the box from Harry. “You never look a gift horse in the mouth, Mr. Malfoy.”

“Especially if the gift horse comes bearing sweets, Bernard?” Draco asked teasingly.

“Especially then,” he said with a wink at Harry.

“Let me just grab my wallet,” Draco started.

“No,” Harry said, shaking his head quickly. “That’s alright.” Taking a quick step back and almost knocking over the umbrella stand, Harry wished he could just sink through the floor.

“Harry,” Draco huffed. “You just brought enough treats for the entire office. Are you seriously not going to let me ever pay for anything?”

“That’s the plan,” he said quickly, trying to make his way over to the door.

“Why don’t you just pay him back in kind?” Bernard suggested, smirking around the pastry he was putting in his mouth.

“I am sure that Potter doesn’t want to try any of my baking,” Draco replied with a self-deprecating chuckle.

“Of course he doesn’t. You can’t make toast.”

Draco glared at Bernard, but Harry thought that would explain the bland lunch in his paper bag. And in fairness, why would Draco have ever needed to learn to cook when he was young?

“You’re being even more helpful than usual,” Draco replied, rolling his eyes at Bernard.

“I was thinking perhaps you should invite Master Potter to join you for dinner this evening.”

That charming flush reappeared on Draco’s cheeks and he stuttered, “I’m sure he doesn’t,” before clearing his throat, “I wouldn’t want to impose-”

“I’d love to,” Harry said, genuinely feeling a little better since Draco was obviously as wrong-footed as Harry was.

“You would?” Draco asked with no small amount of surprise.

“I would,” he affirmed. “Very much.”

“Oh. Yes, alright. Good,” Draco managed. “I’ll stop by the coffee shop when I get out of the office, then?”

“Yeah,” Harry said with a smile. “Alright.”

“Well, I’ll see you later, then.”

“Yes,” he said with a nod. “Nice to put a face to the name, Bernard,” he said with a smile at the man sitting behind his desk once more. Bernard wasn’t even pretending not to be watching the two of them talk like it was his favorite program on telly.

He smiled, “Yes. Nice to actually enjoy one of your pastries myself.”

Harry chuckled, “Well, I’d better get back to the shop. I’ll um,” he looked at Draco under his eyelashes, “I’ll see you tonight?”

“No jeans,” he said quickly. “Don’t dress like a homeless person.”

He laughed, “Yes, your highness.”

“See you tonight, then,” Draco said softly, eyes warm.

“Yeah.” He smiled back at Draco and gave a little wave before he left the office, feeling like he was walking on air.

It took a whole 2 minutes for him to start panicking about what he’d just agreed to.

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