"You like her, don't you Draco," my mother asked me during the summer after my third year of Hogwarts. I had never thought of the idea before now, but it couldn't possibly be true. After all, Hermione was a know-it-all that had to prove she was smarter than everyone else, plus she was a bookworm and worst, a mudblood. If I were to like her and my father found out, there was no telling what wrath would be unleashed. My mother always was gentle, but my father tended to be harsh and unyielding, especially to mudbloods.
"No, I don't like her, why would you think that?" I asked. After all, it's not as if I had friends that had mentioned it and I had only just mentioned her a little while ago.
"You've been talking about her like a lovesick puppy for the last hour, and you don't talk about any girls, especially one of muggle descent." She thought for a moment, "what color are her eyes?"
"They are a chocolate brown," I said without any hesitation before I could stop myself.
"Now how would you know what color her eyes are if you aren't at least a little interested in her?" My mother asked me. I was shocked. How did I know what color of eyes she had, when I never talked to her much? I didn't, couldn't like her. Could I? "Are you going to tell her, or leave her in the dark about how you feel?"
"I don't know," I sighed. "I need to find out if I really do like her first, but I won't see her until next week or so."
"Well, if you need any help, remember that I am here."
At times like this, he really appreciated how gentle his mother could be to those she loved and he hoped he would never forget her kindness.
The next week went by quicker than ever before for Draco, causing him to slightly panic the day everyone was returning to Hogwarts. This was the day that he would see Hermione again, was his hair and tie alright? He sure hoped so since he had spent extra time getting ready this morning. His mom had come in to see if he was up yet and he was messing with different styles for his hair. Apparently it was funny to her, and she soon came over to assist him.
When Draco saw Hermione, she was walking down the path to Hagrid's hut with Harry and Ron. The way that the wind blew her hair, and the way she walked made his heart flutter. It was official; he had a crush on Hermione. Making up his mind, he went to the Slytherin dormitory to get parchment and a quill to write his mother a letter to let her know of his discovery.