Golden Years (Brielle)

[Lawrence Gable]

On the night Lawrence Gable asked Brielle Quinn to marry him, they laid together in Brielle’s childhood bedroom. Lawrence held her close as he observed the ceiling. It was bewitched to appear as if were the night sky, thousands of stars lighting up an otherwise deep, dark, violet nothingness. Two squads of Quidditch players zipped through this artificial sky, locked forever in an endless game. The couple watched this play out from the comfort of Brielle’s bed.

Lawrence hadn’t planned on asking Brielle to marry him on that night. In fact, he hadn’t even begun shopping for rings. They were still kids, less than a year out of school, but Lawrence had known for a while now that Brielle was his person, and it didn’t really matter if he had a ring or a speech or anything like that. It was Michael Quinn, though, who was ultimately the biggest factor in Lawrence’s decision. This Christmas was supposed to represent something official for the couple. The first time that they were all really coming together, the first time Lawrence would be treated like an extension of the Quinn family. He never expected the Quinns to treat him as such, of course, but he knew that Brielle was close with her father and he feared what it would mean to her if Michael didn’t accept him.

And of course, Michael hadn’t. Christmas dinner had been a disaster featuring an appearance from rising Quidditch sensation Vince Kilgour, a man whom Michael had helped make and was now actively trying to insert between Lawrence and Brielle. The gesture had succeeded in making Lawrence feel small, powerless. After dinner, he really didn’t have much choice. Lawrence insisted on apparating home. But, it was only a few minutes later that Lawrence was scaling the lattice of the Quinn home and wrapping on Brielle’s window.

After tumbling—as quietly as they could—onto Brielle’s bed, Lawrence said between long, slow kisses, “I want to love you like this forever.”

And they spent the rest of their evening discussing the future.

They had long lost track of the score on the ceiling, but Lawrence was hardly ever paying as close attention to the players as the beautiful girl next to him. He said to her that night, “I’m going to give you the world, Brielle Quinn.”

Nearly eight years had passed, and so much had changed. But Lawrence was still as in love with Brielle as he was the evening he snuck up to her room and stole her from her father. He hadn’t yet given Brielle the world, but he was trying his best: Lawrence’s first nightclub Glitter had been a huge success among wizard youths, and recently he had opened a second. Club Brielle was Lawrence’s home base and a tribute to the love of his life. He’d opened his second club for several reasons. The first was to expand his club empire, the second to have a lower key place of operations for his other business. Glitter had grown far too popular to continue making deals out of his office there. He’d left the club in the savvy hands of his old friend, Adelaide Connelly, who was a better manager than Lawrence could ever be.

Club Brielle was his legitimate businessman’s social club. The kind of place that celebrities and mafiosos might mingle as equals. On most Saturday evenings, Lawrence would hold meetings out of his office, but tonight he was hosting a special event and had to be present on the floor. It was the biggest event he’d hosted at the club since its grand opening a couple of months earlier. A fundraiser in honor of Michael Quinn, Lawrence’s father in law, the legendary broomsmith and Wizengamot hopeful.

Lawrence was proud that he had the means and the connections to throw an event like this. Ten years Michael had regarded him as absolutely nothing, but now he could be the difference Michael needed to get him a seat on the highest court in magic Great Britain. They would, at least for one night, put their differences aside for the sake of the Quinn family name.

Exiting his private bathroom, Lawrence found Mrs. Gable waiting for him in his office. He tried to look confident as he admired her, but Lawrence had always worn his emotions on his face. He blinked, doubtful that any woman could really look as good as his wife did.

“Wow,” he said with a blink. “You look amazing.” Lawrence had found that one of the keys to a successful marriage was knowing to slow down and admire just who you married.

“Is he here yet?” Lawrence asked, regretting changing the subject to something that wasn’t his wife. He heaved a heavy sigh and said, “I just need this night to be over. Tell me it’s over, tell me we can go home.”

    Brielle Quinn

[Brielle Quinn]

here's to the future 'cause we got through the past

Brielle Quinn’s life after graduation had been yet another rollercoaster. Her time at Hogwarts had been full of violence (mostly on her part), tantrums and enough drama to last her a life time. So when her father decided to make Lawrence's life miserable, she wasn't the least bit surprised. Michael Quinn had never been a fan of Larry and tried his hardest to push Brielle toward literally anyone else; Theo, Vince, the list went on. All Michael accomplished with his schemes was to push Larry and Brielle closer than ever.

Christmas dinner had been a disaster, again as expected, and no matter how much Camilla and Brielle begged Lawrence to stay in the guest room, he was out of there as soon as possible. Brielle had sighed as she walked him outside and she felt the tension radiating from his body. After a quick kiss goodbye, she stormed off to her room, pointedly ignoring Michael on her way. Then Lawrence Gable was in her bed less than five minutes later. It was very unlike Brielle to let something like this happen, especially while her parents were downstairs, but the look in Larry's eyes told her this wasn't something she wanted to miss. And she was right. No amount of snogging by the lake had actually prepared her for the moment she completely gave herself to Lawrence. It was the first time she actually felt what it was like to be one with another person. 

Brielle liked to believe that she knew what was coming at all times, she once had a friend who told her to be alert at all times, but Lawrence took her by surprise twice in one night when he asked her to marry him. She pulled him into another sweet, long kiss as he promised her the world and she had no doubt that he meant it. Lawrence Gable was the love of her life, she'd known it since she was sixteen, and she would do anything to help him succeed.

The years that followed were not easy for either of them. Life as a young, married couple was humbling to say the least. Lawrence started from the bottom at the Ministry of Magic while Brielle put her dreams of becoming an Auror aside to take on motherhood. All they had in their little apartment was each other and the growing baby inside of her belly. Despite financial struggles that led to arguments between the two of them, the Gables always made it out stronger than ever. Larry led the way until they were secure enough for Brielle to get to work. And once she did, they hit the ground running.

Now here they were, stable enough to show her father that he had been wrong about Lawrence all along. 

Brielle sat with her legs crossed in Larry's chair as she impatiently waited for him to finish getting ready. Her blue eyes lit up as he walked out and she slowly stood up from where she sat. She put a hand on her hip as she studied him and before she could say anything, he was complimenting her. It was almost as if no time had passed, she felt her heart race just as it had any time he smiled at her when they were school kids. Then he started talking about her father which, honestly, annoyed her a bit but she let it go. Her hand immediately went up to fix his bowtie then she patted his chest, letting her hand rest there.

"He should be arriving any second now. Remember why we're doing this. That should get you through the night, right?" she leaned in closer to place a kiss on his cheek then whispered in to his ear. "You can do this, Gable."

Lawrence Gable

[Lawrence Gable]

Sitting in Lawrence’s chair, her legs crossed, Brielle looked like the powerful woman that he’d always known she was. Lawrence had promised Brielle the world on that Christmas Eve and it seemed, for a time, that he would be the one to give it to her—it wasn’t long after their wedding that Claire arrived. Brielle was forced to exit the Auror program. They were already a year behind thanks to the summer they’d spent abroad. Lawrence spent the next year making up for lost time in the Ministry. He did it by making friends. He built a reputation as the Wizengamot’s post reliable errand boy. He spent countless sleepless nights working hard on Hester Van Pelt’s reelection campaign. Eventually, he met the Ministry himself and built a friendship that brought him all the way to the Minister’s office. But that wasn’t Lawrence’s dream.

Lawrence had always wanted to be the man behind the man. He wanted to make a lot of money, and he didn’t want to be noticed doing it. In a lot of ways, that’s what set Lawrence apart from the George Weasleys or Mickey Darlings. He wasn’t in this for fame or notoriety. He was in it because it was the only thing he’d ever been good at. Making friends, influencing people, and earning a shit-ton of money. Power was Brielle’s game. And now a decade removed from that Christmas Eve promise, admiring Brielle in his chair, Lawrence saw her for what she was. And he knew that she wasn’t going to wait for him to give her the world anymore. She was going to take it for herself.

He loved her so much more for it.

Lawrence admired his wife as she rose from his chair and approached him. He remembered the gaudy, pink, oversized sweater she’d been wearing the first time he set eyes on her in Hogsmeade and he couldn’t help by feel like the woman standing before him was someone different. Not that Brielle had changed in some fundamental way, not that she wasn’t the same girl he’d fallen in love with at Hogwarts. No, this was who she’d always been, this was who he’d always loved. But now she could wear the hell out of a tight black dress. She was becoming something. Something she had always been. Something Lawrence had always seen, even if she hadn’t seen it in herself back then.

He was entranced by her. It barely registered to him what he was saying when he shared his concerns about her father arriving soon.

She leaned in close to him and said, “You can do this, Gable.” And that really was all Lawrence needed in that moment. For Brielle to fill the space between them. For his hands to find their way around her and to hold her close. He pulled her into a kiss, and for a moment they were kids again, kissing beneath the lights of the annual Masquerade Ball. He always felt the same when he kissed her. He always felt like a stupid boy in love.

“Okay,” Lawrence said as he leaned away. That was all he needed to steady himself, to calm his nerves. “Remember the grand opening?” he asked. Lawrence had earned a reputation for throwing great parties. The event that christened the opening of Club Brielle had been far different than the one he hosted tonight. While half of Great Britain’s magical celebrities made appearances on the club floor, he and Brielle had spent most of their evening downing champaign in his office. He really wished tonight could be that kind of night too.

Lawrence took Brielle’s hand and led her to the door of his office.

“We’re doing this for us,” he said, just short of opening the door. Though he knew the answer and he knew that Brielle knew the answer, he felt like he needed to say it. He needed to mentally prepare himself. Lawrence had worked on a handful of campaigns and had the favor of most of the Wizengamot, but the stakes had never been higher than this. With Michael on the court, it was almost a straight shot for Brielle to Minister of Magic.


    Brielle Quinn