Nineteen Candles

Harry took a deep breath. "HAPPPPPPYY BIRTHHHHHDAYYYYYY TOOOOO YOOOOOUUUUUUUUUUU..."

"Oh gods, Harry! Nooo!" Draco wailed and shoved his head under the pillow, trying to block out the sound of his over-enthusiastic boyfriend's well-wishes.

"HAPPPPPPYY BIRTHHHHHDAYYYYYY TOOOOO YOOOOOUUUUUUU..."

Draco groaned and tried to bury himself further down.

"HAPPPPPPYY BIRTHHHHHDAYYYYYY DEARRRRR DRACCCCOOOOOO..."

The pillow made no difference and Draco tried to desperately stick his fingers in his ears.

"HAPPPPPPYY BIRTHHHHHDAYYYYYY TOOOOO YOOOOOUUUUUUU!"

Harry finished with a flourish and a dramatic sweep of his arms. Draco relaxed, pulling his fingers from his ears and settled back down into his duvet.

"Draco, come on! It's your birthday!" Harry frowned at him.

"S'ont care," came the muffled reply. "Sleep..."

"Oh no you don't!" replied Harry. He determinedly strode across their bedroom and pulled the duvet from Draco. He made a grab for the pillow but was hit over the head with it before he could get a grip.

"Harry, you would think it being my birthday you would actually allow me to sleep in," Draco replied, blinking blearily up at the Gryffindor.

"All the more reason for you to get up," Harry said, reaching over to ruffle Draco's sleep-mussed hair. "We have important things to do. Places to go, people to see..."

Draco groaned again, and flopped back down. "You're not going to leave me alone until I get up, are you?"

"Nope!" Harry replied with a grin.

Draco sighed and rubbed a hand over his face. "Okay, I get the hint. I'm getting up."

Harry bent over and placed a kiss on Draco's forehead before heading for the door. "Breakfast will be ready in twenty minutes," he said. Just as he was about to leave, he stopped and turned back around. "Oh, and Draco? Happy Birthday!"

Draco rolled his eyes in response.

***************************

Harry marched through the streets of Muggle London with a bounce in his step. A sleepy and bored looking Draco followed a few paces behind him, dragging his feet, his bottom lip sticking out in defiance.

"Can't I go back to bed?" he asked Harry.

Harry shot him a look of disapproval. "No, Draco. Today is your birthday and I am determined that you are going to have fun. If that means dragging you around until then, so be it."

Draco's lip began to protrude even further.

"Don't give me that look, Draco. It isn't going to work."

Draco blinked and looked up at Harry through lowered lashes.

"The puppy-dog eyes are not going to work either," continued Harry, his resolve melting slightly.

Draco raised first one eyebrow, and then the other.

"Okay, okay!" Harry exclaimed. He moved towards Draco and put his hands on his shoulders. "What do you want to do? If you say 'go home' then I will throttle you."

"I want to go shopping."

"But you went shopping yesterday."

"This is different, Haweeeeeeeeeeeee. This time you are paying."

Harry looked skeptical.

"It is my birthday, after all. You wanted me to come out and have fun. But if you would rather I went back to sleep..." Draco trailed off and began to scuff one of his trainers along the curb, looking up at Harry woefully.

"Fine! We will go shopping. If you max my card out and leave no money for food next week then I will not put up with your whining. Understood?"

Draco's face broke out into a huge smile and he threw his arms around Harry, giving him a huge sloppy wet kiss.

"Have I ever told you how much I love you?" he asked.

Harry sighed, and took his boyfriends arm.

"Come on," he said, pulling him towards the busy shops of Oxford Street.

******************

"Harry, what do you think of this jumper?" Draco asked, peering over the pile of clothes Harry was holding.

"I don't know, Draco, I can't see it. Haven't you got enough here?"

Draco gave Harry a look that said 'Are you crazy?!' and took the pile of clothes from him, placing them on the counter. He held up the jumper for inspection.

"It's cashmere, Harry. Just feel how soft it is."

"I don't care how soft it is, Draco," Harry replied. "I care how much it is."

Harry reached for the label, his eyes widening in shock as he noticed the price. "It's...£300..." he managed to expel with a squeak.

"I know! It's a bargain, isn't it?!" Draco squealed.

Before Harry had a chance to protest, Draco shed his shirt in one fluid motion, leaving it a rumpled heap on the shop floor, and pulled on the jumper.

"It feels so good against my skin," he sighed, stroking his chest.

Harry averted his eyes. "It's too expensive, Draco. I'm sorry."

Draco pouted, but he knew this time it would do no good. He reluctantly took off the jumper and handed it to the assistant, retrieving his own shirt from the ground.

"Okay, Harry," he said. "I guess I am done here."

Harry followed Draco to the cashier desk where he painfully pulled his credit card from his wallet. His eyes flickered over to the huge pile of jeans, shirts, and jumpers that Draco had tipped onto the counter.

"Do you really need that shirt, Draco?" he asked, indicating a shirt on top that was emblazoned with the words 'Drama Club Drama Queen'. Draco shot Harry a look of shock and possessively grabbed the shirt, holding it to his chest.

"Of course I need it!" he cried. "This shirt was meant for me, don't you think?"

Draco turned to the assistant who was busy wrapping the rest of the items.

"You think it's meant for me, don't you? It's perfect! Think how great I would look out on the town, in the bars, the clubs..." The assistant smiled indulgently.

"Hawwweeeeeeeeeeee!" Draco whined, pleadingly. He slid up to Harry and wrapped his arms around his waist. "Don't you want me to look good?"

"Draco, you know you look good in everything."

"That's not the point, and you know it! Don't you want me to look extra-special? Besides, it makes me happy. Don't you want me to be happy?"

With a growl, Harry threw Draco off him, grabbed the shirt and chucked it at the assistant for wrapping. Ignoring Draco's broad grin, he dug into his pockets for some loose change and steered Draco towards the door.

"There's a pretzel stand over there. Go occupy yourself with food so I can pay for these clothes without you adding more to the pile!" Draco stood on tiptoe and kissed Harry on the lips, before he bounded out of the door and over to the brightly decorated pretzel stand on the corner of the street.

Harry watched him go with mixed feelings. He was glad that finally Draco seemed to be enjoying his birthday, but worried about the phone call his bank manager was sure to make when he saw how much Harry had spent on clothes. It was enough to make him wince. But it was Draco's birthday after all, and Harry had decided to indulge Draco as much as possible. After all, it wasn't every day a person turned nineteen.

As he turned back towards the cashier desk, a swath of icey-blue fabric caught Harry's eye. It was the cashmere jumper Draco had been praising. Suddenly feeling super-generous, Harry quickly picked it up and handed it over to the assistant. It felt good to make Draco happy, and Merlin knows they had spent enough time being miserable, what with the war last year, and the aftermath of hundreds of grieving families.

*******************

"Are you going to take me out tonight?" Draco asked, as the pair juggled a collection of bags and boxes up the front steps leading to their house.

"Aren't you tired?" Harry replied. "We have been out all day. First we went shopping, then you insisted that we went to see that homoerotic play at the theatre. Then we had dinner at the new Italian diner. Isn't that enough?"

"But we could go clubbing and I could wear my new shirt."

"I'll think about it. It's already eight o' clock."

Harry rifled through his pockets for the house-key and handed it to Draco, taking some of the boxes from his arms.

"Eight o' clock is early, Harry. We are only nineteen for goodness sake!" Draco said as he entered the hallway.

"I feel about ninety after the day we have had," Harry mumbled behind him.

Draco felt around in the dark for the handle of the living room door, and pushed it open, feeling for the light switch.

"SURPRISE!"

As the light flickered on, fifty or so of Draco and Harry's closest friends jumped out from hiding places around the living room. Draco dropped his packages in shock, glancing around at everyone. Even Pansy and Blaise were there, although how Harry had managed to persuade them into being in the same room as people like Hermione and Ron was anyone's guess.

Suddenly, Draco felt a long slender arm envelope him from behind, and Harrys lips pressed against his ear.

"Surprise, Draco," Harry whispered.

"I...I don't know what to say..." stammered Draco, blinking around at everyone.

"That's a first!" shouted Blaise.

Hermione rushed forward and handed both Harry and Draco a glass of wine. She leant over and kissed Draco on the cheek. "Happy Birthday, Draco!" she said. "I hope you like the party. Harry has been organising it for weeks. It's been quite some effort keeping everything hidden, I can tell you!"

Draco looked up at Harry with disbelief. "You did this all on your own?"

Harry blushed and smiled down at Draco sheepishly. "For the most part, yes. Hermione fetched the cake for me today, and put up the decorations. I couldn't do that because I had to keep you busy!"

Someone suddenly turned on the music, and a pulsating drumbeat flooded the room. The lights were turned down, creating ambience. Pansy, who already appeared to be rather tipsy, grabbed Blaise and pulled him into an energetic dance where she insisted she was the lead.

"Want to go change quickly?" Harry asked Draco. "You could put on your new shirt..."

*****************

Draco smiled to himself as he quickly stepped out of his old jeans, throwing open one of the shopping bags and pulling out a pair of brand new skintight leather trousers. He was about to search through the boxes for his shirt, when Harry entered the bedroom and closed the door quietly behind him.

"Merlin, those trousers look good on you," Harry said, crossing the room in two strides to run his hands down Draco's thighs.

Draco swatted him away playfully. "Not now, Harry. Maybe later. I have a party to attend!" He raised a perfectly plucked eyebrow at his boyfriend.

"You're pleased then?" Harry asked. "I wasn't sure if you would be, but I thought the risk was worth taking."

Draco laughed. "I love it, Harry. I really love it. Nobody has ever thrown me a surprise party before. Thank you."

Draco paused in his search for his shirt and cupped Harry's cheek in his palm. He pressed his lips against his briefly, and felt something else pressing against his hip.

"Tut tut, Harry," he whispered. "This is no time to be getting excited. Now, get back to the party and leave me to dress in peace. I will be out in a minute."

"Just one sec," was Harry's reply. "I have something for you."

"Something for me? But you have already given me so much!" Draco protested.

"If I can't give you lots of things on your birthday, then when can I give them?" Harry asked. "Now, be quiet and graceful like the good Slytherin you are. Close your eyes and hold out your hands."

Draco did as he was told, and Harry watched as his eyelids slid shut. His eyes roved down Draco's body, snug in the leather trousers, and he was suddenly tempted to leave their guests to their own devices for a little while longer while he helped Draco into his birthday suit. But there was always time for that later. Besides, there was something else he had to do once he had given Draco his gift. Something more important than sex.

Harry found the box the cashmere jumper was in and took it out. He placed it in Draco's hands. Draco, upon feeling the softness of the material, jumped a little, his mouth widening in shock.

"Is this what I think it is?" he asked.

"Why don't you open your eyes and see."

Draco's eyes snapped open and he gazed down at the jumper in his hands for a few seconds.

"Oh, Harry!" he gasped, flinging his arms around his boyfriend. "You shouldn't have bought this. It's too expensive and..."

"Shut up, Draco. You looked beautiful in it. I want you to have it."

Draco smiled that slow smile of his when he was embarrassed and feeling vulnerable. He took Harry's hand and gave it a squeeze.

"Thank you," he said simply.

Harry quickly kissed him again. "Hurry up and get dressed now," he said. "You have guests waiting."

*************************

It was five to midnight, and the party was in full swing. Over half of the alcohol had been consumed, and everybody was feeling more than a little tipsy. Hermione was dancing with Blaise, much to Ron's chagrin, and so he had swept Pansy up into a clumsy version of a waltz, much to her delight. Even Professors Snape and Dumbledore looked like they were having a good time, sitting in a pair of leather backed chairs, sipping their firewhisky and discussing how loud the music was.

Harry looked across at Draco, who was busy talking with Charlie Weasley about the latest newborn Norwegian Ridgebacks that had hatched. It was time.

Harry excused himself from the clutches of Ginny, who was tipsy and giggling all over the place, and went into the kitchen to fetch the cake from the fridge. He opened the lid and smiled to himself. It was perfect.

As he re-entered the living-room, he nodded towards Hermione who dimmed the lights with a flick of her wand, and turned down the volume of the stereo with another. All of the guests stopped their dancing and turned towards Harry. Draco caught sight of Harry with the cake and groaned, his face collapsing into his hands. This was bound to be humiliating.

"Happy Birthday to you!" everyone began to sing. "Happy Birthday to you! Happy Birthday, dear Draco! Happy Birthday to you!"

With a final cheer, the song finished for what Draco hoped was at least another year.

"Go blow the candles out, idiot!" a drunken Pansy called, from where she sat in Blaise's lap.

Draco slowly moved towards Harry, his face tinged pink. Harry was beaming, his grin so wide that it threatened to tear his face in half.

"Look at the cake, Draco," he whispered, when Draco was within earshot.

Draco looked down and his heart stopped in his chest.

The cake was an elaborate affair crafted out of chocolate, but despite his previous status as 'Biggest Chocoholic at Hogwarts', it wasn't this that caught Draco's attention, nor was it the nineteen candles that adorned the top. Across the cake, spelt out in pink sugared letters, were the words: Marry me, Draco?

Draco closed his eyes. Perhaps when he opened them again he would see that the letters spelt out 'Happy Birthday' as they were meant to. He counted to five.

One. Two. Three. Four. Five. Draco opened his eyes again and stared back down at the cake.

Marry me, Draco?

He looked up at Harry, and in an intense flood of understanding, he knew that he hadn't drank too many butterbeers, that the words were actually asking him that question. Harry's face told him that he hadn't made a mistake. All at once, Harry looked apprehensive, nervous, excited, expectant. Draco swallowed, his eyes flitting between the cake and Harry.

As if he were asleep in his bed, dreaming, Draco saw Harry hand the cake to Hermione and slip down on one knee. One hand darted into his shirt pocket and withdrew a small velvet box. He opened it and held it before Draco.

Draco blinked again and stared at the contents in amazement. Nestled in it's little case, was a simple elegant band made out of white-gold, embedded with a single blood red stone.

"Marry me, Draco?"

This time he wasn't seeing the words; he was hearing them. From Harry. Draco gaped at Harry for what seemed like hours, and the room held it's collective breath.

Slowly, carefully, languidly, as if swimming back to consciousness, Draco's face began to relax. His mouth snapped shut and curved into a smile. His eyes sparkled and danced, and he looked down at Harry. He sank down to his knees in front of him and took his face in both of his hands, showering him with a million kisses; to eyelids, cheeks, nose, and lips.

"Yes, Harry, yes!" he murmured in between each kiss.

"What did he say?" he heard someone ask from across the room.

"YES!" he cried, turning around and grinning at the room. "Yes! Yes! Yes!"

Everyone began to cheer