I always wanted

When I pretend
Everything is what I want it to be
I look exactly like what you had always wanted to see
When I pretend
I can forget about the criminal I am
Stealing second after second just cause I know I can / but
I can't pretend this is the way it will stay / I'm just
trying to bend the truth
I can't pretend I'm who you want me to be
so I'm
Lying my way from you

~ Lying from You [Linkin' Park ::]

There is no such thing as love. Or is there?

CHAPTER ONE

Hermione had a huge crush on Draco Malfoy. Who wouldn't? He was every girl's dream: handsome, popular, smart, a great Quidditch player - just her type of guy. Every time he spoke to her or even looked at her, her knees had turned all woozy and she had started blushing furiously. The last time, when he handed her back her Potions test (which she of course had passed with flying colours), she had started sweating profusely, to her distinct embarrassment.

But then, it wasn't like she had no competition, Hermione scowled. Every girl- all the girls at Hogwarts gave Draco Malfoy mushy looks, with the occasional drool and dribble.

Draco Malfoy was a bad boy and all the girls wanted bad boys.

"Hey. Mudblood!"

Even that sounded romantic, so hopelessly in love Hermione was, as she dreamily cast her eyes over to her blonde hero.

Ron obviously had a different opinion of Malfoy as he stood up. "What did you call Hermione, Malfoy?" he snarled.

Draco Malfoy looked past Hermione, into Ron's angry blue eyes. "I said: Mudblood, Weasley. Pick a fight with me another day, when I'm in the mood. Or I'll smash your glasses which won't make your mum too happy, seeing that you have no money to buy a new pair," Draco threatened coldly, hitting a sensitive nerve and clearly enjoying the stumped look on Ron's face.

Ron had just got glasses. Because of his bad eyesight, he had failed his OWLS, which Draco Malfoy of course, loved reminding him of.

"Fuck you Malfoy," breathed Ron heavily, who was massaging his knuckles.

"Let's go Ron," whispered Hermione, once she had taken her eyes off Draco (it took much effort) and started putting her plate away. "D---Malfoy, just go away," her lip trembled as she said this and her cheeks burnt. She would not show Draco Malfoy how she felt about him. "Leave us alone and go and hang around someone else, seeing that you have like no friends."

He gave her a narrowing look. "As you wish mudblood. I came here to tell you that Professor McGonagall wants to see you about something like taking extra courses." He gave a dismissive shrug. "If I were you however Granger, I'd give myself a makeover. Because..." here he lowered his voice (suggestively?). "I wouldn't be seen dead with you."

Smiling, as if he had just congratulated her on getting full marks in something, he strutted away without a second glance, and with a hundred pair of eyes staring at him.

"Ohhhhhhh...." moaned Hermione. "I think I'm going to be sick," Ron replied.

* * *

"This term, we are starting....love potions," Professor Snape stared down at them, breathing heavily. "Spit that out, Longbottom," he growled.

Neville quickly gulped down the gum he was chewing on, wishing that everybody wasn't giving him sympathetic looks.

To everyone's surprise, Professor Snape merely said, "Thank you." And began his lesson without ceremony.

"Now, you should have learnt all of this last year, but you didn't. Thanks to your Professor Umbridge."

"Hem hem," imitated Ron and there was a faint tittering and much awkward coughing in the room.

"Silence!" barked Snape who looked murderous. "Five points off Gryffindor. I will not tolerate such ridiculous noise."

Harry, Ron and Hermione gave each other looks. Professor Snape was probably not in his best mood. Umbridge was probably not in his good book either.

"Potter!" he said so suddenly, everybody jumped. "Explain the role of belladonna in love potions."

Harry looked at Professor Snape's shoes. His best friends: Ron and Hermione knew why. The last essay he had written had received a T. Even if Snape was horrible, evil and nasty, the fact was that he didn't give anyone else a T. Quite unfair, seeing that Goyle had earned only a D – his potions essay was only three lines long and had orange peel on it.

Harry stayed silent. This seemed to cheer Snape up and they got throughout the entire lesson, without any more points taken off Gryffindor.

Meanwhile, Draco Malfoy, was flirting with Sarang Hae Yo –a very pretty girl from an exchange program. Hermione, who previously thought that Sarang (or Sara as she had wished to be addressed as) was a very shallow and superficial person, now felt undying hatred towards the Slytherin exchange girl from Korea.

"So, if I was Korean," Draco was saying smoothly," And I wanted to say to you: I love you Sarang Hae Yo, it would end up being Sarang Hae Yo, Sarang Hae Yo?" "I guess so. Since Sarang Hae Yo does mean I love you," smiled Sara. "It does sound so nice when you say it though."

For some reason, Hermione wanted to hit Sara on the head with her cauldron. She couldn't help wishing that she was Sara either, with her porcelain white skin and large brown eyes tinged with the long to-die-for perfect eyelashes.

"Oh my god. I am so sorry." Really, thought Hermione irritably. Sara again. What did the little bitch do this time?

"It's ok," Harry's voice sounded very unclear. "I'm used to getting zero in potions, honest," he muttered.

Turning around, Hermione saw that Sara had managed to spill Harry's potion. His entire cauldron had tumbled to the ground and a thick gluttonous liquid, which was turquoise in colour (it was meant to be purple), was seeping out and dripping onto the floor.

"Oh no, Here, take mine," Sara looked around frantically to see with relief, that Snape was not in the room. "Take my sample." She grabbed Harry's hand and made him take her perfect purple assignment.

"I couldn't..." began Harry. "Oh yes, you couldn't," she grinned cheerfully and with her finger, wiped out her name on the bottle and scrawled Harry on it.

"Harry..." she looked questioningly at him. "Hey! That's a very cool scar. Where did you get that? I have one too. Except it's on my arm."

"Uh...? Scar? What?" croaked Harry lamely.

"The lightning-shaped scar on your head....?"

Draco snorted. "That sounded bad Sara. Very bad."

"What's wrong with a scar on my..." Harry protested. Then he saw what Draco meant. "Very funny Malfoy. You know some people call me scarhead?"

As Draco burst into laughter, Sara whispered, "I don't get these people. Do you?" she asked Hermione.

"No," but before Hermione could say anything much, Lavender Brown interrupted rather rudely.

"Hey, my name's Lavender and you're Sara right? Is it true that you're going out with Draco Malfoy ? Have you guys kissed? Oh my God! What was it like?"

"Ummmmm....we're just friends. Really. Draco, have we kissed?" Sara asked confusedly, but smiling at the same time.

"In my dreams we have," Draco said solemnly and with the air of somebody infatuated. "We also did much much more."

"Uh-huh," Sara waved a hand in Draco's direction. "Ignore him. He doesn't know what he's talking about."

"He knows what he feels for you," Draco battered his eyelashes at her. By then, Hermione felt as if she could die. She envied Sara. Perhaps Draco didn't really like her, Hermione thought to herself. Perhaps, Sara's just the prettiest girl in Slytherin and her family is very important. Perhaps, Sara was betrothed to Draco when they were both born. Hermione knew that some of the very old wizarding families still did that. Perhaps Sara's family is richer and more powerful than the Malfoys, a tiny voice at the back of her head said. Hermione could have laughed at herself, had she been thinking of something less serious. The Malfoys were one the richest and most powerful people in the whole of England. They had estates all over the world. Sarang Hei Yo was just an orphaned girl. What money or power could she have?

"Where is your project Miss. Hei?"

Hermione turned. Snape had returned and was advancing on Sara, who smiled rather nervously.

"I accidently dropped it. Before that I had already cleaned up my cauldron."

Snape seethed silently. "Miss. Hei Yo, do no lie. I know what you are thinking of. I know what you are. Do not try to deceive me," he glared at her, then in a soft voice, which only Hermione heard. "Unlike the others, you cannot lie to me."

When Hermione left the room, she caught a glimpse of Sara's face. It was the palest and saddest thing she ever saw.

--------------------------------------------

Author's Notes/ References

- Lyrics are from the song "Lying from You" by Linkin Park.

Lol, ok this story isn't really realistic. It's a bit like a comedy and yeah. It might get a little more deep and meaningful later on in the chapters though...

Hmmm...review! And tell me what you think =D