Written for Dramione Fanfiction Forum's Drabble Challenge.
Requirements: Must include beach, blanket, bingo, and the phrase "You call these bikini bottoms?" with a 1,000 word limit
Draco had been waiting all summer for the opportune moment to finally put an end to the months of fruitless flirting between him and Granger. If he had to walk past that delectable witch and feign ambivalence to the way she eyed him like a treat one more time, then he was going to lose it. But nothing was going to happen as long as Potter, Weasley, and the rest of her meddling crew were around, blocking him from the one-on-one time he needed to settle this once and for all.
Well, he had had enough. If his father had taught him anything, it was that no problem couldn't be solved with a healthy dose of scheming and a clever use of money. And now everything was going precisely as planned.
Draco stood at the bottom of the stairs, covered in a heavy blanket despite the summer heat that radiated throughout the beach house he had rented for him and his friends. To the naive mind, also inviting her friends may seem counterproductive to his mission, but only fools analysed situations so superficially.
"You sure you can't join us?" Blaise asked.
Draco faked a cough. "Just need to sleep it off."
"You heard the bloke!" Ron shouted from the door, itching to run to the sandy shores. "If he's not feeling well, leave him behind already!"
Draco gripped the blanket around him. As soon as they left, he would be golden.
"Fine," Blaise sighed. "Feel better, mate!"
The door clicked closed, and the smirk of success stretched across Draco's lips.
Oh yes, everything was going as planned.
A few weeks back, he had overheard Granger mention that she wasn't a fan of the beach - something along the lines of loving the water, but hating the mess of sand. Draco had filed the information for later, just in case it would come in handy, and now it had.
When Draco had organised this so-called "Hogwarts reunion" getaway, he never doubted that Granger would tag along despite her apparent distaste for the beach, especially if her friends would be there and the beach house he selected just so happened to include an outdoor pool. He needed to create the illusion that all this was nothing more than the extension of an olive branch between two feuding friend groups so that none of them would suspect his ulterior motives for staying behind. A little cough here, a heating charm on the forehead there, and the untimely sickness was just as believable as saying that the Chudley Cannons were going to lose their next Quidditch match.
And now, all of their friends were gone, sure to be plenty occupied by the bliss of the ocean's waves, while he had Granger all to himself.
Draco dropped the blanket and the facade of sickness, and headed out back to where he knew Granger was already enjoying the morning sun. Her towel was draped over the chaise lounge with a stack of books set beside it. Granger, however, was alone in the pool, casually swimming across its length, unaware of the man watching her.
Draco leaned against the door frame and grinned, admiring how her slender frame cut through the water. When they were younger, he had been so preoccupied with other aspects about her to notice much else, but the past few years had been a wake-up call in more ways than one. Sure, the witch could still be an insufferable swot, but he had learned to appreciate the curious mind that laid underneath that wild head of hair. He liked other things about her as well, but he was too distracted by the minimal amount of fabric that covered her form to think of them right now — not that he was complaining, of course.
Granger reached the closer edge of the pool and pushed down against the concrete to bring herself up. When she wiped the water away from her eyes and noticed Draco, she chuckled and shook her head.
"You were faking it, weren't you?"
Draco pushed himself off the doorframe and smirked. "Bingo, Granger."
She rolled her eyes. "I should have guessed."
Draco followed her to the chaise lounge where she picked up her towel and started to dry off.
"What can I say?" Draco said, coming up behind her and running a finger up the length of her bare thigh. "You're a difficult woman to get alone."
She gave him a short glare and stepped away, only to then lean over the pool, wring out the excess water from her hair, and then peer over her shoulder to flash her own smirk at him.
Oh, for the love of Merlin! It should not be legal to have an arse like that!
She had teased him for too long. It was time to kick things into high gear.
He moved behind her and danced his fingers over the ties of her bikini. "You call these bikini bottoms?" he growled in her ear, pushing her damp curls over to one shoulder and settling a kiss on her shoulder.
She tensed at his unexpected touch, but based on the way her head knocked back, he knew she didn't protest.
"I don't know what else you'd call them," she responded, her breath caught short as he grazed his fingers along her waist.
Draco smirked. "Well, I'd call them the last thing standing in my way from finally having you."
He turned her around so that she was now facing him.
"Draco Malfoy, are you hitting on me?" she said with a coy smile.
Draco returned the expression. "You bet I am. But Merlin knows I'm not the only one in this game." He brushed away one of the curls that had fallen over her eyes. "So the real question is, are you done playing childish games, or are you ready for the big leagues?"
She gulped, but based on the sparkle in her eyes, he knew he had won.