A/N: I know...this story was meant to be a oneshot.. but i couldn't resist. I'm making this a series of firsts between Draco and Hermione. This chapter is actually a prequel to the original first chapter I had posted. If you find this chapter boring, try the second one. Everyone seemed to like that one! Idk why.. it took like no effort! :P Enjoy! xoxo
"I'll just have a coffee, please?" She smiles at the boy behind the counter and walks towards the seating area, happy to find an empty table next to a radiator. She moved her chair a little to get a fern out of her face. The cafe had undergone a transformation since she had been here last. Now the decor seemed to be trying to break the 'cosy' name it had made for itself.
He was about 16 years old and his voice was still breaking. A late bloomer; just like her. She had gone through her growth spurt two years later than her classmates. Her under-developed body had been the butt of so many jokes. It was only during the summer before her fourth year in Hogwarts that everything had happened. Her hair lost most of its frizz, her hips widened and her chest grew. She grew to be taller than her mother during those few months. No-one noticed until the Yule Ball that she had grown.
A tray lands on the table next to her, scaring her out of her reverie. The boy from before puts her beverage on the table beside her and smiles down at her. Her stomach makes a noise that resembles a dying whale and she blushes.
"You don't happen to do food here, do you?"
"I'll get you a menu." He says and walks away.
A man walks in and sits in a corner by the window, facing away from her. He's wearing a grey jumper and black skinny jeans with a long black coat. He has a black beanie on but Hermione recognises the bleach blonde hair under it. It's no other than Draco Malfoy. Her stomach does a little flip at the thought of him. She looks away, feeling foolish.
The waiter hands her a menu and she orders a toasted chicken Panini. A woman walks into the café and smiles at Draco. He stands up and they hug. The woman sits in Draco's seat and he sits in the one facing Hermione. She frowns. Why did her stomach flip? She and Draco had loathed each other from day one. He never even gave her a chance. She was nothing more than Mudblood scum to him from the beginning.
But, when they both had gone back to Hogwarts after the war to finish their education, something happened between them. The houses were no more, McGonagall felt as if they caused too much of a divide between the students, and Draco and Hermione had started bumping into each other more often. Then they started arranging to meet up. Then, during the Christmas break they had bonded. Neither of them had much of a family to go back to. Draco's parents were shells of their former selves and barely spoke. Hermione's parents didn't remember her properly. It had broken her heart and he was the only one who understood.
He had kissed her. Soft, sweet kisses that melted her insides and made her feel as if she were loved. They had lasted seconds, and then he ran. He didn't speak to her afterwards.
Her Panini lands on the table beside her and she smiles at the waiter. Her eyes flick to Draco's table and she notices him staring at her. She lets her hair curtain her face and blushes. It wasn't until then that she remembered how hungry she was. She tucks in and relishes the warmth of the toasted Panini. It was mid-winter and she was on her Christmas break from Hogwarts. She dreaded going back to teaching Charms to lazy first and second years. They were by far the worst classes she had to teach.
Draco kisses the woman on the cheek and goes up to the counter. He exchanges words with the cashier and then hands over a £20 note. He gets his change and he walks out the door, waving slightly at the woman and shooting Hermione a sly grin. The woman finishes her coffee and goes to walk out the door. The boy behind the counter calls out to her.
"Um, miss? You haven't paid your bill!"
The woman, who Hermione now recognises to be Astoria Greengrass, stalls at the door. She whips around and apologises repeatedly. She pays and then explains.
"I thought my husband paid! I'm so sorry!"
She walks out the door and Hermione stands up, heart heavy. Her husband; Draco is married. That was just great.
She walks up to the counter to pay her bill. The boy smiles and says,
"That man, the woman's husband, paid for you"
Hermione smiles and shoves her money back in her purse. She walks out of the café and the heavy feeling in her heart disappears.
Maybe the kiss meant something after all?