Relaxing

[Dominik Milne]

While the teen was sad that the holidays were over, because it had been a really good one with the date in Paris and writing and receiving letters to and from Grace, he couldn't help to be glad to return to school, even if it somewhat bothered him that he was back. It was all going to be over soon and the fact that he had only one semester left made him realise how much he was actually going to miss the castle and its surroundings. Dominik figured that he would just have to make the best of it while he still could.

Dominik let himself fall on the couch and dropped his backpack next to him on the ground. He was tired and wanted to nothing more than to close his eyes for a few seconds but knew that if he would allow himself to do so, he wouldn't wake up until the sunlight would hit his face in the morning. Besides, the teen couldn't fall asleep yet as he had asked Grace to spend some time with him before actually going to bed. He had been so busy with homework and other activities that there was little time left to hang out with her without having to do any school-related things also. So, having finished all of his homework earlier that day, Dominik was looking forward to spending time with the girl and just relax.

 

[Professor Grace Holland]

The Christmas Holidays had been mixed for Grace. The date in paris was wonderful, and a memory she thought back to a lot. But the time she spent with her parents lately felt more and more stifling. They kept pressuring her about her career after school, and she still hadn't told them she wanted to try her hand at playing Quidditch profesionally. Now that she was back at school she could put it to the back of her mind for now, though, and focus on her NEWTs. As well as her boyfriend.

Said boyfriend had asked her to meet, which made her happy. The two were both very busy with their final year of school, so any time they had together was wonderful. A grin split her face as she noticed him, he looked exhausted but adorable. She walked up and leaned down to kiss his cheek. "You look like you're half asleep." She said fondly. "I hope you weren't waiting too long." She took a seat on the couch next to him, scooting close and cuddling up to him. "I missed you." She said softly. "I forgot how busy we both are when we're here." She told him with a sad smile. "How are your classes going?"

 

[Dominik Milne]

Dominik's face reddened when Grace kissed his cheek and chuckled at her comment. ''Nah, just got here myself.'' the seventh year told her. He put his arm around her when she cuddled up to him and looked at her with a tired smile. ''I missed you, too'' the boy replied. Although they shared classes and walked to Quidditch practices together as often as they could, the two hardly ever had time to just sit and talk to one another and that was why he cherished moments like this one right now. Moments when they wouldn't be talking serious business all the time, but when they could be their normal selves. ''Alright, so far,'' he answered, ''As long as I don't get distracted by looking at a certain someone, I'm all good.'' he added with a small chuckle. ''How about yours?'' Dominik asked in return.

 

[Professor Grace Holland]

Grace was rarely as affectionate as she was with Dominik, and it still felt somewhat odd to her to cuddle up next to him. Odd, but nice. The more she got to know the boy, the more she felt at ease with him and felt like she could trust him. Guarded as she usually was, it was hard for Grace to open up emotionally. Still, she did her best, as she wanted their relationship to work. She laughed softly when he mentioned getting distracted, and then faked a stern expression. "Oh no, you're not blaming me for doing poorly on your NEWTs, sir." She told him, though a small smile fought its way onto her face. "We could always study together more." She paused. "And I do mean study." She added with a kiss to his cheek. "For me I think I'm doing alright. Though my parents never fail to make me feel like I'm not doing enough. They seem to think every second I spend on Quidditch is one I wasted by not spending it on school. It's like they don't understand I need to do more than just one thing, if I don't want to be driven completely mad." She let out a deep sigh. "But I'm still allowed to be on the team for my last semester, so that's something. Let's hope it actually results in something this time." The bitter loss against Hogwarts last year still stung.

 

[Dominik Milne]

Dominik grinned at the comment she made about not blaming her and started playing with a lock of her hair. ''We'd still be studying, just not what we actually should be studying,'' he said playfully. He listened as Grace told him how things were going for her and bit his lower lip when she mentioned her parents and what they thought of the sport. ''Have you thought about doing what I did?'' he asked, his fingers still playing with the lock of hair. ''I mean, if it wasn't for Dad seeing first hand how serious I am about becoming a Dragonologist he would never have convinced himself and my Mom to actually let me study dragon's once school's over. Perhaps you should do the same and invite them to the match against Hogwarts?'' Dominik suggested carefully. ''Perhaps if they would see you in action and see how, please excuse my language, f*cking amazing you are as a Chaser, they might think differently about you doing Quidditch.'' the teen said. ''Or perhaps me writing tons and tons of letters to them will do the job,'' he added jokingly, though wondered if she could appreciate it, as it was a very serious matter.

 

[Professor Grace Holland]

Grace laughed softly at his comment, blushing slightly. Dominik was cute, and a lot more comfortable talking about romantic things than she was. But when he mentioned his way of convincing his parents about his passion, she sighed. "That won't work. It's not going to be that simple for me." She said, her posture tensing at once. She shifted slightly away from him. "Even if I invite them to the match, and play the best I ever did in my entire life, they won't allow me to do this professionally. There's no future in this, they're not even wrong about that. you can be a Dragonologist for the rest of your life. A Quidditch player only gets to play for the prime years of their life." She didn't really enjoy his suggestion of writing tons of lessons, and sat up. "I doubt it." She said seriously, her face a frown. "They're still not thrilled about me having a boyfriend at all, as it also distracts from my studies. My parents take my life very seriously, Dominik. If they thought you were trying to convince me to play Quidditch even more than I already want it myself, I bet you anything they would tell me to stop seeing you." She ran a hand through her hair. She liked Dominik a lot, and being with him, but sometimes he didn't take things seriously enough. At least, he didn't seem to get why she did.

 

[Dominik Milne]

Dominik instantly regretted his suggestion of inviting her parents to the match against Hogwarts and listened quietly to his girlfriend, feeling the comfortable mood that had been here moments ago slowly slip away. He disagreed with the girl that there wouldn't be a future in Quidditch once your prime years were over but wasn't so sure if he wanted to voice his opinion on the matter, as he did not want Grace to be upset with him at the moment. Dominik huffed when she said that her parents would tell her to stop seeing him if he tried to convince her to pursue a career in Quidditch and shook his head disapprovingly. He could not believe that she was actually still going to listen to her parents once she was out of school, but that was also something he knew he shouldn't mention out loud so instead asked, ''What do they want you to be if not a Quidditch player?'' hoping that it could somehow swing the mood back around eventually.

 

[Professor Grace Holland]

Grace forced herself to take a deep breath. Dominik hadn't been trying to push her buttons, and she knew what he had said was harmless. Still, it frustrated her. Not Dominik's suggestion, but the fact that it would never work with her parents. She leaned closer to him again and put a hand on his arm. "I'm sorry, I know you meant well. I just wish it would work on them. But I'm just sure it wouldn't," she said with a sigh. "It's kind of depressing to think this upcoming match against Hogwarts could be the very last official match I ever play." She muttered, her eyes downcast as she cuddled back against him. "My father wants me to work for the ministry, like him. He seems to think it's the most worthwhile option, though he does prefer some departments over others." He wouldn't approve of her working for the Department of Magical Games and Sports, though she had considered that as an option. It wasn't the same as being a quidditch player, but it was closer than being on some other department. "My mother doesn't really mind as much, she just wants it to be something respectable and with enough of a future in it. Anything but quidditch, in other words." She ran a hand through her hair, sighing. "I don't want to disappoint them, you know? They're always saying how I have to be an example for my sister."

 

[Dominik Milne]

Dominik smiled at his girlfriend when she placed her hand on his arm. ''Don't apologise, I know it's a touchy subject, and quite frankly, shouldn't have even brought it up to begin with - we're here to relax, not worry about what is going to happen to us later,'' he told her. He quietly listened to Grace as she answered his question and couldn't help to wonder what Quidditch had ever done to her parents that they did not want her to play professionally once she'd graduate. When Grace cuddled back up to him, Dominik put his arm around her again and kissed the girl's forehead. ''You can always come with me,'' the teen began, he knew this suggestion was very unrealistic and probably was not going to happen since he knew what she thought of his future profession, but it would be nice to have someone there with him, especially her. ''I'll most likely travel by broomstick or apparition so you'd be able to work on your flying skills still, and I figure we can play during breaks with other people at the reserves if they want to.''

 

[Professor Grace Holland]

Grace smiled at Dominik as he told her not to apologize and said he shouldn't have brought it up. Part of her was glad he had, as it was a good thing to talk about. But that didn't make it easy. She sighed and leaned against him, letting her mind wander as he said she could come with him. It wasn't as if her parents would approve of that any more than they would approve of her playing quidditch, but it was nice to daydream for a moment. "That would be wonderful." She muttered, picturing it. But then she shook her head. "I don't think I can, though. My parents will be disappointed if I don't start looking at ministry openings as soon as I graduate." She could hear how pathetic it sounded, constantly bringing up her parents. But that was the truth for her. She didn't want to disappoint her parents, they had a lot of expectations. It frustrated her, but there was nothing she could do about it. Was there? "I'm sorry." She sighed. "I know this is tiring."

 

[Dominik Milne]

It would indeed be wonderful if she would be there with him, but Dominik knew that she would not allow herself to do that. He shook his head and smiled at Grace. ''It's okay,'' he said whilst gently resting his head on the back of the couch. He wondered what he would have done had his parents forbid him to pursue his dream career. Would he have listened to them or would he rebel and act against their wishes? Even though he disagreed with her on letting her parents decide what kind of future she was going to have, especially since he just couldn't imagine Grace sitting behind a desk all day, the seventeen-year-old knew that instead of arguing with her about the matter he should support his girlfriend and perhaps help her with finding something within the Ministry that was best suited for her. ''What would you say if I would help you look for a job at the Ministry?'' Dominik said.

 

[Professor Grace Holland]

Even though Dominik was wonderful, and Grace enjoyed being this close to him, the subject of their conversation was making her sad. When she thought about her future, all she felt inside was dread. The boy sitting with her was the only bright spot in her future, if he didn't get bored with her complaints and leave. It would be difficult to keep their relationship going after school anyway, as he would be traveling and she would be stuck. But they were wizards, traveling wasn't as much of an issue for them as it would be if they didn't have magic. She smiled sadly at his suggestion, knowing he was doing his very best to make her feel okay and support here. If the situation was reversed, she thought Dominik would be strong enough to follow his dream, whether or not his parents disapproved. She wished she could be too. "I would say thank you, and that you're the best." She said with a small smile, taking his hand and entwining their fingers.

 

[Dominik Milne]

He smiled back at the girl and said, ''Not tonight, though, I'm way too tired to do anything now.'' before letting a yawn escape his mouth. He liked this, all cuddled up with Grace on the couch after a long day of classes and homework sessions. Besides, how many times would they get to sit here with each other and enjoy the moment in the next couple of months? Both of them were going to be extremely focused on their NEWTs and knowing his girlfriend and how serious this was to her, he did not want to distract her from her studies - even if she'd allow him to do so. ''For now, let's just sit on this...'' Another yawn escaped his mouth, ''very comfortable couch and do nothing.'' he said to Grace as he closed his eyes and let his head rest on hers. ''If I fall asleep and I'm squeezing you to death, just poke me in my sides, that what usually works for Joe if we're out camping,'' Dominik said sleepily.

 

[Professor Grace Holland]

Grace laughed softly, nodding in agreement. "Of course not tonight, I'm exhausted as well." She told him with a small smile. His yawn made her yawn as well, though she tried to hide it. She agreed with him about doing nothing but sitting here together, it sounded like a wonderful way to spend their time right now. It was the most relaxed she had felt in a while, Dominik was really helping. "Let's do that, sounds like an excellent plan." She murmured, her eyes closing a little. "I'll poke you, but I feel like I might fall asleep too." She said honestly. "Please wake me up if I do, lying like this isn't good for our backs." Grace said softly, though her words lacked conviction.