Better Than Ice Cream
He knows the smell of her perfume so well. He knows the way she looks when she's giddy on life. He loves the way she says the word ghastly. He knows that her favorite thing of all time is ice cream. He knows all this about her, yet she knows nothing about him.
If anything, she hates him. And she has reason to, he knows this as well. But he doesn't want her to hate him anymore, he's fallen in love with her smile, her determination, her bright red hair.
She's a Weasley, and he's been enemies with the Weasley's since before he was born. He's liked her for a year, watched her go out with looser guys. None of them are good enough for her, only he is good enough for her.
He's never said more then a few words to her before, and those few words have always been daggers aimed to hurt. Now he wants to take that all back, now he wants more. But she doesn't trust him, and she likes Harry Potter.
He hates Harry Potter more than life; he sees him dead in his dreams and Ginny running into his arms because he saved her. It's a hell of a fantasy, but he has it often.
Ginny just joined the Gryffindor Quidditch team as a Chaser. She's fairly good – he has been watching her out his dormitory window.
He has tried to summon up the courage to talk to her, but talking to her is like knocking over a single domino in a line of dominoes, all of them will fall over.
She's never taken notice of him, her eyes are always on Potter, trying to show off for him; but Harry has never taken notice of her. If Potter had, he had no idea what he would do.
At Hogsmeade, he watches her silently as she munches on a chocolate mint ice cream and laughs with her friends. She's never seen him watching.
He's at his breaking point. He doesn't know how much longer he can stand to avoid her. Why couldn't he hate her? That would be so much simpler.
It was vacation now, and he had spotted her in Diagon Alley. She was all alone, or so it seemed, and she was walking down the street towards her brothers joke shop.
This is it. He thought wildly. I'm going to talk to her.
That was, until she saw him first.
"Malfoy?" Ginny stopped. "What do you want?"
He stared at her, watching her angered face. Her freckles were adorable, her mouth so appealing – he just wanted to kiss it.
"Hey, Weasley," he said. He cursed himself for reverting to old habits with her. "Where are you going?"
She raised an eye at him. "Why do you care to know?"
He shrugged, and tilted his head, wondering what she was thinking.
"Uhm..." Ginny trailed off.
"Do you want to get something to eat?" he asked her. He left the door wide opened for her to smash in his face.
"Do I want to what?" Ginny asked disgust and confusion clear across her face.
"Something to eat, do you want some?" he repeated.
"I uh-" Ginny paused. "No thanks, Malfoy."
She started to walk away.
"Ginny, wait, please." He rushed after her.
She turned to face him, her eyes wide.
"You just called me-"
"-Ginny," he finished her sentence. "Please, I just want to get ice cream or something. No harm in that right?"
Ginny eyes were untrusting.
"Ice cream?" she asked.
"I can buy you your favorite, chocolate mint," he said.
"My favori- How did you know?" Ginny demanded.
She placed her hands on her hips and glared at him. She never looked more adorable in that one instant. If only she knew how he felt about her...
She was so much stronger than her brothers when it came to dealing with him, but she never put her guard down for an instant.
"I know you better then you think," he told her. "Please, just one ice cream, and I'll explain."
"Well...Err, Harry is going to be meeting me..."
A rage of hatred boiled through him at Potters name.
"Screw Potter!" he snapped. "Just listen to what I have to say."
Ginny paused, and looked from the joke shop to him.
"Ten minutes, Malfoy," Ginny insisted. "That's it. I can't be late."
"Ten minutes," he nodded.
He lead her into the ice cream parlor and bought her a cone, and himself one, both of chocolate mint – he couldn't help it that he had fallen in love with the flavor ever since he had watched her devour it.
They sat at a small table outside underneath a green parasol, and Ginny didn't immediately take a bite of her ice cream, instead she watched him. It was unnerving, having her eyes on him, but he kept his composition cool.
"You look really good today, Weasley," he told her, his eyes couldn't help but roam her body.
Ginny turned slightly red in her ears, but also looked awkward and embarrassed at the same time.
"Malfoy?" Ginny asked. "Why are you complimenting me?"
"Because it's the truth," He shrugged. "So, why are you meeting, Potter?"
His jealousy could not be concealed.
"We're on our first date," Ginny said.
Panic, anger, hatred, and jealousy washed through him.
No! He can't have noticed her!
If Harry noticed her, then she would never notice him.
"Why are you so curious?" Ginny asked, licking the dripping ice cream.
"You know, Weasley, we ought to hang out more," he said discreetly, avoiding her question.
Ginny let out a hollow laugh. "Us, hang out more? What are you on, Malfoy?"
"What, you don't like your ice cream?" he asked, grinning slightly. "I'll take it off your hands for you."
Ginny pulled her ice cream away. "It's not the ice cream, it's you. When have you ever been nice to me?"
"Today," he whispered. And every day in my head.
"Yes, that's true," Ginny nodded. "Though I don't know if I count this as being nice, a little weird maybe."
He nodded, and watched her take a bite out of the soft crunchy sugar cone.
"Are you going to explain why you invited me for ice cream, and why you called me by my first name?"
"I um." He looked off over her shoulder, and saw Ron and Hermione walking hand in hand, heading towards them, though they hadn't seen them yet. He knew that the moment they saw him Weasley would attempt to pound on him.
"I love you," Draco said as he looked her in the eye.
Then he swiftly got off his chair, tossed the rest of his cone into a trash bin, and left before the two could notice him, but not before he heard Ginny's reaction.
"You what? Malfoy wait..."
But he had around gone around a corner. He didn't stop until he reached a deserted alley. He placed his back against the brick wall and held his breath. He had made his first steps towards getting her, he just hoped it wasn't too late.
---
She stared after the retreating Draco Malfoy. Had he really just told her he loved her?
"Hey, Ginny," Ron said. "Who you looking for?"
She snapped her head back to her brother and saw he was with Hermione.
"Hey Ron, Hermione. Err; I was just...looking..." She trailed off.
"Aren't you meeting Harry soon?" Hermione asked her.
"Oh, yeah, I am." She nodded. She had completely forgotten about her date with Harry, and it was all because of...Malfoy.
The expression on his face, the way he was staring at her. If she didn't know any better she'd say he was serious about her. Was he?
"Gin?" Ron said. "Who was with you earlier?"
"What do you mean?" she asked.
"I saw a guy with you when we were heading over, who was it?" Ron asked.
"Oh, nobody," she said dismissing it. But it was somebody, it was a Malfoy somebody.
She stood up.
"I better go meet Harry," Ginny said.
She left the table, leaving Ron and Hermione to stare after her as if she had gone mental. And maybe she had, because for some reason Malfoy's words were striking into her heart. Why was she feeling like this? She hated Malfoy; he hated her...didn't he?
Harry had just arrived when she did, and he had a bright wide smile on his face...and for the first time, she didn't feel anything.
"Hey," he said. "You look amazing."
She glanced at him, and Malfoy's words entered her head. 'You look really good today, Weasley.'
Oh God! she thought desperately. Get him out of my head. Look who you're with!
---
If he would have known how much that one encounter had messed with Ginny's head, then he probably wouldn't have taken off so fast, he might have even put up with a verbal beating from her brother.
He now had to wait for the holidays to end, and for the term to start back up. That's where he'd make his next move on her, if she was interested that is.
First day back at school and the last thing he expected to happen, did happen. He was headed down to the dungeons, and he found Ginny leaning against a wall her arms folded across her chest, waiting for...him.
"Malfoy," Ginny said when he came into view. She slid off against the wall, and headed towards him. "We need to talk."
"Alright," he said.
"Did you mean what you said?" Ginny asked, her eyes narrowing. "When you said you loved me?"
"Of course I meant it," he said coolly.
"Oh." Ginny looked down lost in thought. "But...You hate me..."
"No, Ginny, I should hate you, but I can't," he told her honestly. "I can't get you out of my head, my heart. You're everywhere."
"I..." Ginny paused.
"You hate me," he suggested.
She shook her head. "I don't know you."
"Then let's fix that." he leaned down, and kissed her quickly and softly on the lips, and then left towards his common room.
He waited until Friday to make his next move; he waited for her by the Quidditch pitch, waiting for practice to be done. He caught up with her as she headed towards the locker room.
"Hey, Ginny," he said.
She jumped and turned. "Oh, hey."
"Meet me tomorrow in Hogsmeade, Three Broomsticks at four."
"Okay," Ginny said, and then she headed into the locker room.
He smiled; maybe there was hope for them.
---
She didn't understand what she saw in Draco, she didn't understand what he saw in her. But she knew she had a date with him this afternoon. She was terrified and excited, and Harry didn't know she was going. What would he do if he found out? What exactly was she doing with Draco Malfoy, or better yet, what was he doing with her?
She was dating Harry...shouldn't she feel complete?
She made her way to the Three Broomsticks and arrived at four sharp, Draco was already waiting there. He was in all black, his silver-gray eyes glowing in love, love for her. It was so inconceivable.
"Hey, love," Draco greeted. His words sent icy chills down her spine.
"Hey," she said, giving him a bright smile.
"Come on," he said.
She followed him out of the Three Broomstick, and the chilly autumn wind breezed through her hair. "Where are we going?"
"For ice cream," he answered.
"Are you mental?" she asked. "It's cold out here."
"What do you know that's better than ice cream?" he asked, giving her a warm smile.
Her heart melted, and she forgot about the cold.
She followed him into the parlor and they ordered small cups of ice cream.
"How did you know this was my favorite?" Ginny asked taking a scoop with her spoon.
"I dunno." Draco shrugged. "I just paid attention."
Her eyes watched his.
"What's your favorite?" she asked.
"This," he said. "Chocolate mint, because it reminds me of you."
She turned red, embarrassed, and shivered slightly from the cold.
Draco pulled up his chair next to her, and placed an arm around her shoulder.
"You're warm," she whispered absentmindedly.
Draco smiled at her, and pulled her into a warm kiss. She leaned into it, closing her eyes, and breathing in his scent of peppermint and chilly air.
She knew everything and nothing about him at the same time. He knew her so well, and now she had a lifetime to figure him out.
This was perfect. This was special. This, well this, was better than ice cream. She pulled away, and told him so.
Draco's eyes danced, he smiled and he whispered to her, "I quite agree."
They kissed again, his lips sweet with chocolate mint.
She smiled inwardly. Better than ice cream.
FIN