She had him addicted to her, and she wasn't even trying. What made it even more unfair was the fact that she didn't seem to feel the same way. Whereas, his eyes followed her everywhere, hers never sought him out, unless it was to glare at him when she felt he was misbehaving. Right now was one of those times, and he planned to milk it for all it was worth.

"I can't believe you," she practically growled.

Trying not to look like a love sick puppy, he forced himself to stay focused on the papers in front of him. "I'm not sure what you mean."

The sound of her books hitting the coffee table echoed throughout the room. "You must be joking," she scoffed.

Slowly, he raised his gaze to her gloriously flushed face. Lifting an eyebrow, he secretly enjoyed the way her eyes narrowed dangerously. "If you're referring to what happened at breakfast...well, that wasn't my fault."

She stomped closer to the lumpy couch, looking for all the world like a drill sergeant. "Not your fault? If it wasn't your fault, then whose was it?" she screeched.

"If you feel the need to blame someone, Granger, then I would suggest you blame that pauper you call a friend," he retorted casually.

He watched as she closed her eyes and took deep, steadying breaths. He loved that he could get her so riled up.

Huffing, she ran a hand through her impossibly curly mane. "Ron was just trying to help me, Draco."

Crossing his arms, he leant back into the cushions. "If by 'help', you mean 'attack', then, yes, Ron was just trying to 'help' you."

"It's not like that." She sighed, looked down at the fuzzy carpet, and pinched the bridge of her nose. "He can be a little harsh, but he was just trying to be a good friend."

Tired of hearing her defend her pathetic excuse of a friend, he jumped to his feet and stormed over to stand directly in front of her. "He called you unattractive, Hermione."

She refused to look him in the eye when she said, "It was meant to be constructive. And you have to admit- he has a point," she finished in a whisper.

Without meaning to, he gripped her shoulders to force her to look at him. It almost brought him to his knees when he saw the resigned sadness in her chocolate colored eyes. "He's wrong." He shook her a little bit when she turned her head to the side. "Are you listening to me?"

"Why do you even care?" she questioned. "You spent our entire childhood trying to tear me down, and I'm glad we've called a truce, but that doesn't mean you have to protect me, Draco."

The urge to break eye-contact was strong, but he held out. Her self-esteem was more important than his stupid pride. "I was a prat. I was a spoiled little brat and I felt threatened by you. I was so lost back then, Hermione. So lost, and I was afraid, but things are different now," he murmured. "I'm different now."

Shaking him off, she took a few steps back. "I know that. You've changed, but I haven't. I'm still the girl who reads too much; I'm the same girl whose hair is still too wild."

"You're gorgeous," he replied, perhaps a bit too fiercely. "You're the prettiest girl in this whole damn school."

Her startled eyes watched him suspiciously.

Feeling more brave than he ever had before, he attempted to close the distance between them. "No one else smiles like you do when you get a good grade on a test. No one's hair shines like yours does when the sun hits it just right. You've got eyes that sparkle and legs that go on for miles." Smiling, he cupped the side of her face. "When I say you're gorgeous, I mean it."

"Draco..." Sucking in a lungful of air, she crossed her arms over her chest. "If this is some sort of joke, then you're not the person I thought you were."

Leaning to rest his forehead against hers, he rubbed his thumb back and forth across her smooth cheek. "This isn't a joke, Hermione. I know this is sudden, but I've felt this way for awhile now."

"I'm-I'm not sure I believe you."

It was hard for him to hear, though he could hardly blame her for her lack of faith in him. He certainly hadn't given her very many reasons to trust him. It was only in the past year that he'd turned his act around, and started treating her like she deserved. It had taken 7 years and a war, but he'd eventually become the kind of person he could be proud of. When he'd learned that Hermione and him would be sharing a dormitory as Head Girl and Boy, he'd been cautiously hopeful because it was the perfect chance for him to make amends. He'd never dreamed she would grant him forgiveness but she had, and he'd grown to love her for it.

"I don't blame you," he replied, his voice quiet. "I just wanted you to know."

"So that's why you hexed Ron?" she asked after a moment of silence.

Releasing her, he nodded. "He had no right to say those things, Hermione. I don't care what his intentions were."

Not replying, she turned around and bent down to pick up her books. Before he could process what was happening, she was safely up the stairs. He ran a hand down his face and stared down at the floor, feeling a little like the boy he used to be- insecure and alone. He wasn't sure what he'd expected, but her obvious rejection hurt a lot more than he thought it would have.

Feeling more than a little numb, he made his way towards the kitchen faucet. He was on his second glass when he heard Hermione's soft footsteps clomp down the stairs. He turned right when she appeared in the doorway, and the hesitant expression on her face made his heart start to race. Little tendrils of hope curled around in his stomach, but he fought it down when she just stood there, still as a statue.

"Hermione?"

"I want to believe you," she said. "I realized that I want to believe you, and I think that means something."

"What do you think it means?"

Taking a few steps into the room, she let her mouth twist up into a small smile. "I like you, Draco. I think I have for a while now, but I wouldn't let myself acknowledge that because I was scared."

Letting go of his own fear, he reached out his hand towards her. When she took it, he finally let himself grin like the idiot he was. "Are you not scared anymore?"

"Oh, I'm still scared, but I think you're worth taking a chance on."

He tugged her close. "I won't let you down."

Wrapping her arms around his waist, she burrowed her face into his chest. "I'm counting on it. I need someone to love me more than all the others do."