Title: Unspoken
Pairing: Draco/Hermione
Summary: Post-Deathly Hallows. Draco Malfoy seeks a meeting with Hermione Granger.
Author's Notes: I've been wondering about the possibilities of a Draco/Hermione romance after their marriages to their respective spouses, and it's still possible (hurrah for fanfiction). Anyway, this is my take on what would happen if they were to meet—and talk—again after they've both started their own families. Written on August 10, 2008.
A woman in her late thirties sat alone outside a small, quaint café. Her legs were crossed, her right foot tapping the floor with no exact rhythm. Her eyes constantly swept her wrist, taking in the time from her trusty watch. She seemed to be waiting for someone, yet it had been past an hour since she sat on the chair and ordered a cup of coffee, which up to that moment still had not been touched.
She took a deep breath. Perhaps what—or who—she had been waiting for wouldn't come after all.
With a sigh, she opened her bag and took out a red purse. Inside the purse were coins; after thinking for a bit, she took out a few bronze ones and placed them on the table. The woman was about to stand up from her seat when—
"I apologize if you waited too long."
A man stood a foot away from her table. He was decidedly tall and wore sophisticated clothes. He looked like a man of excellent stature. But she knew better.
He sat down the chair opposite from hers. They weren't looking at each other, but there was something in the air that felt like they were very aware of the other's presence.
She cleared her throat and took a swift glance at the man. If he noticed it, he hid it well.
"Well, at least you came."
At these words, the man smirked. She scowled at his smirk; it had been quite a long time since she saw that smirk, yet it felt only like yesterday. Perhaps it was because she remembered that expression all too well, or perhaps the reason was unknown, even to her.
"So why did you owl me? You're the last person I'd expect to ask for a rendezvous. It's not like you."
She was waiting for another smirk—she was ready for one. But it did not come. Instead of the usual smirk, what she saw was a painful smile on his face. It didn't suit him, at the very least, and she knew that he wasn't willing to show this expression to her. But he did. She didn't know why but she understood.
She knew his next words even before he spoke in reply. "Actually, I don't know, either."
They both sat in silence for a few minutes, ending only when he requested for a much too complicated coffee, which the waiter did not completely understand. She was amused at his interactions with the waiter—he was talking too fast for the waiter to remember everything that he was saying about the coffee, and the waiter was much too inexperienced to grasp the detailed order of the meticulous customer in front of him. A few more minutes passed and luckily, the waiter was able to get the gist of his complicated order.
They sat in silence still, either of them not looking at the other. They looked like a couple in an intense mental fight, yet in fact they weren't. A couple. That was the farthest anyone could get to the truth about them. They weren't even friends.
The waiter came with his coffee and went back to work. Still, they weren't talking. He took a sip of his coffee, and another one. Still, they weren't talking.
It was almost thirty minutes after his first coffee sip when he spoke.
"Actually, I do have something I wanted to say."
She looked up and met his eyes. Her chocolate brown eyes peered through his gray ones—he wanted to look away but found that he couldn't. This time it was his turn to clear his throat—it was probably his way of breaking the discomfort of the gaze. She blinked.
"What is it?"
He couldn't say his reply quickly—it was like he was reflecting something in his mind.
"How is your family?" His voice cracked when he asked his question. There was something different with the way he talked, but she could not have noticed.
"That's not something you say, that's something you ask. What do you really want to say?"
He let out a chuckle. "Still the know-it-all, Granger?" He avoided the question. She was aware of his deliberate conversational diversion, but did not ask any questions. Instead, she let out a small smile.
"Once in awhile," she said.
Silence once again. He was still looking at her; she was trying hard not to look his way.
"Ron and our two children are very fine, thank you for asking. Rose is doing well in school, and Hugo is starting to become just like his father." She was looking at him curiously, as if waiting for a snide remark or two, but just like the smirk from before, it did not come. He only nodded as she continued with the small talk.
"What about your family?" It was her turn to ask.
"We're doing well. My wife is heading another charity event, and I believe my son Scorpius is doing very good with school as well. He has told me all about his competitor, of course, who, coincidentally, is your daughter."
She smiled. "I don't think there's any competition at all. She is, after all, my daughter." At that, he couldn't help but smile as well.
What started out as an awkward meeting became an interesting sharing of life experiences. They still had different views on many things, but they were grown enough to respect the other. Neither of them noticed but their cups slowly emptied through the passing of minutes and (even) hours. It was only when the sky started to darken when they noticed that they had been conversing more than they were supposed to.
"Well…it's a…pleasure to talk to you…I guess?" She added that last bit reluctantly, trying not to offend the other party. He chuckled at that.
"I guess so."
They both stood up. He insisted on paying their measly coffee—she, of course, insisted that they split it halfway, but in the end he won the argument, saying that he was the one who asked for them to meet.
Both of them walked slowly; he looking at the night sky, she looking at the cobbled pathways. There was still that silence hanging in the air, but for once it was welcome.
They walked for a few more minutes, and then came to a fork road. He stopped walking, and so did she. He nodded to her, and turned to go.
"Wait."
He stopped walking and looked back, waiting for her to say something. She hesitated. If there was anything that she wanted to say a second ago, she did not have the courage to say the words anymore.
With a small breath of air, she said, "goodbye."
He smiled. He knew that 'goodbye' wasn't exactly what she wanted to say at the time, but felt that it was for the best. For them. For everyone.
He replied with a meaningful "goodbye" and went on his way.
She watched as his figure slowly became farther and farther away. When he was entirely out of sight, she released the air she was holding back, realizing only then that she was holding her breath.
She took one last glance at the direction he went. Slowly, she too walked away.