Disclaimer: Harry Potter + JK Rowling's glorious world belongs not to me, sadly.

Chapter 2

(Hermione's point of view)

It is one thing to realize you are thinking about a person in a truly incoherent manner, especially if you have just barely become on speaking terms with this person and usually just the sound of his name was enough to make you want to retch.

But it is entirely another thing when you burst into the common room hoping for a friendly friend and a warm fire to get your mind off this someone mentioned above- when instead you are greeted by that very friend and a best friend of yours snogging in the most passionate way you had seen since…

well, ever.

It is probably most embarrassing when these two people turn around to gape at you because you are interrupting their private time and not even rushing out of the room (madly apologizing) to get away from their session.

Not that it's your fault, because it is the shock that is causing you to be rooted to that spot until the humiliation you feel from your friends staring- er, glaring- at you is enough to send your feet speeding you off, off and away.

So by the time I dash out the door provided by the fat lady's portrait ("What's the rush, dearie?") I am so out of breath and blinded by the sight of, well, you know, anyone who saw me would have thought I had finally lost it.

"All that reading and hours alone at the library must finally have gotten to her…the poor thing…" I over heard a fifth year Hufflepuff whispering sympathetically to her friend.

"Shut up or I'll deduct house points for rudeness," I barked before turning away from the jumpy girls, only to smash my head into the chest of an admiringly tall and handsome young man-

Oh owl droppings.

"Granger?" Malfoy blinked, clearly amused at my flustered state, then leered at me joyfully. "I see you just couldn't resist embracing my handsome self, could you?"

My scatter-brained quality of thinking quickly evaporated as I glared at him. "Shut. Up. Draco."

Did I just use his name??? The shock had been immense after all, perhaps I still wasn't thinking very clearly...

"Granger did you just use my name?"

"No. Yes."

Malfoy blinked again, looking absolutely adorable as he did- OH MY GOODNESS GRACIOUS WHAT WAS I THINKING?

Before I knew it, I was again running madly away from this annoyingly (okay, fine, and undeniably) good-looking boy. The most embarrassing part was I heard him laughing like a deranged man as I turned around the corner. Oh, this was not happening. He was not laughing at me, was he?

…………………………….

Draco watched Hermione disappear around the corner before bursting out with laughter. He wasn't really laughing at her, more like at the situation. Most girls who had bumped into him that way had done it intentionally, and they usually tried to seduce him (to no avail) after he had blinked adorably at them. And although not many knew this, Draco never went out with all the good-looking girls that had batted their eyelashes at him. No, a Malfoy was much more sophisticated than that.

However there was another reason Draco didn't go out with girls particularly these days. Sure, he'd let them touch his arm and stroke his hair (for a second only, his hair was his treasure) but there still was a reason he didn't go around letting them kiss him anymore.

It wasn't that he was in love or anything- no, he always felt he was a bit cold having never really received unselfish and pure love from anyone before- but he did tend to think about a certain someone quite often nowadays and he wasn't willing to admit it to anyone yet. This was partly because he was pretty sure she didn't like him in the most remote way, which had been a shock to him at first, due to the fact that no living thing could actually resist the Draco Malfoy. But then again, you couldn't expect a more-than-descent woman to let you sweep her off her feet if you had verbally tortured her for the first six years you had known her.

Hmm, six years eh? Draco thought. It seemed longer than that…like I've really known her for a much longer period of time…

Perhaps it was because Draco never really was committed to one person before. His father certainly wasn't. But besides that, he wasn't interested in a relationship with anyone; all he wanted was respect and acknowledgement from the one he admired. Yes, I admire her, he reminded himself thoughtfully. Not love, I honestly don't think I'm capable of that…not since mother…

Draco brushed the thought away and sighed. Not really the type of emotional eater, he decided to skip supper and headed up to the common room reserved for the Head boy and girl.