#fmulligan

Roman was more nervous than he could ever remember being. Everything was finally ready. He had the ring, he had the house all set up. Now it was just time to actually do it. 

He’d sent Freya an owl saying an emergency at the school would keep him late and that he promised to make it up to her the next day. It was a small lie (one that he hoped he’d been forgiven for, all things considered) designed to keep her at the animal shelter so that he could sneak home early and get everything ready. 

Rose petals covered the floor and the house was lit only by the numerous candles he’d acquired for the occasion. He fingered the small box in his pocket. All he had to do know was wait for her to arrive home. And waiting was agony.

“Okay, come on! It will be fun!”

After disaparating from the festival, Roman had needed sometime to himself to reflect. He’d left Freya a note saying just as much. He knew he’d have to face her eventually, but he was afraid of what she’d say when he did. After a few days, he knew he couldn’t put it off any longer. 

Sighing, he entered their house. It was getting late and he knew she’d be home from work. If it was still home. He found her sitting on the couch, reading. She didn’t look up and Roman wasn’t sure if she’d heard him come in. He waited for a few moments, but when she said nothing, he knew he had to speak up. “Hey,” he said softly. “Can we talk?”

Roman didn’t know where he was going. The last several years had been nothing but mindless wandering. Travelling from No-Maj town to No-Maj town. Living as a No-Maj had certainly opened his eyes in a way nothing else had. He loved it. But lately, somewhere in the back of his mind, a small voice had begun to tell him that it was time to return to the magical world.

That wasn’t as easy as it sounded. For one thing, the only money he had was No-Maj money. The only jobs he’d had for the last few years had all been No-Maj ones. So he doubted anyone would hire him with no magical experience. Well, not no experience, he reminded himself. He had trained as an Auror for a year before...no, Roman shoved the thought away.

It had started to rain, so he ducked into the first building he came across. It wasn’t until he was inside that he realized it was an animal sanctuary. Roman took a step closer, examining some of the cages. A particularly friendly cat, meowed softly. “Well, hello there.” Roman bent down to see the cat better.

Roman’s favorite diner was just a few blocks from the house and it was a nice place to relax and get caught up on some work without being bothered by students or his staff. He took a sip of coffee as he went through several papers, not paying attention to the other patrons. The staff all knew him and knew to leave him alone when he was working. He hummed softly to himself as his quill moved across a piece of paper. So preoccupied with work, he didn’t know who had just entered the diner.

With a loud pop, Roman apparated into the middle of Elkhorn. He was temporarily stunned by the number of people and the sights until he reminded that it was the fall festival. He’d been so focused on finding Freya that he had completely forgotten about the festival. 

Great,  he groaned. How was he ever going to find her in this crowd? He pushed forward, keeping an eye out for her. After about half an hour of searching, he finally spotted her. It was strange. They had been together for ten years, but somehow in this moment, he loved more beautiful than he remembered. Maybe it was the knowledge that he had competition, that their relationship was more fragile than he had believed that made him appreciate her beauty more than he had in a long while. 

He opened his mouth to call out her name, when he realized she wasn’t alone. He recognized the man with her immediately. Rob. Roman seethed. Seeing him with Freya in the photograph had been bad enough, but seeing them together in person was more than he could stand. 

He didn’t know why, but something prompted him to hang back, to watch them. Maybe he was making a big deal out of nothing. Maybe they were just friends and he was reading too much into it...