I don't own HP.

It has been two weeks since the beach shoot. Since then, I've filmed one "My Boyfriend Does My Makeup" video, one Ed Sheeran cover, and one family tag, featuring Zach, who is now my distant cousin on my mother's side, and Zach's mother's side. Our mothers were cousins, which worked out well because both our mothers were dead and couldn't verify it.

Things with Zach were awkward at first, but we'd pretty much gotten into a routine. Well, I had gotten into a routine. We'd greet each other when we saw each other, make small talk about the weather, but before we could go into any detail, I'd change the subject, say I have to go, and leave.

It worked well for me, at least.

Plus, I had other things to worry about. Valentine's Day was coming and I didn't know how I was gonna deal with all the amplified romance and all the lovey dovey stuff. Not to mention the number of fans dying to know what Draco and I were going to do for Valentine's Day.

11 February

"What's it this time?" Pansy groaned, keeping her phone in her pocket.

"Pansy, if you would be so kind as to let Hannah speak." Albus said.

"Can you make it quick? I've got a raid in five minutes," quipped Theo, spinning around in a chair, fiddling with his headphones.

We, including Draco, were all gathered at Hannah's desk. She said she had a "big idea" and wanted to share it with all of us.

"Thank you for your attention everyone," Hannah beamed. "So, I think it'd be great if we all took part in a secret Pal-entine!" she announced cheerfully.

"Pal-entine?" I asked.

"Yes, it's like a secret Santa, except instead of Santa, it's Valentines, and instead of Valentines, it's Pal-entines! Get it? Because we're pals?" she smiled widely.

"Now, I've taken the liberty of writing everyone's names on slips of paper, and put them in a hat. So if everyone could pluck a name, that would be great."

The hat was passed around and eventually came to me. There was only one slip left. I reached in and picked up and opened it discreetly.

Theodore.

Huh. Theo. I never really got to know him. This was going to be a pickle.

"Don't forget!" Hannah called out as the crowd dispersed. "Presents by the 16th! That's when Pal-entine's Day is!"

"Says who?" asked Pansy.

"Me! Because Valentine's Day, I feel, should be reserved for romance, while Pal-entine's deserves a whole different day..."

12 February

I didn't know what to get Theodore. I actually did approach Draco about it. Yeah, gasp! I revealed a secret. But in my defence, I really didn't know what to get him. Not that Draco was very helpful, he simply shrugged and suggested I get him some hair wax.

"But what kind?"

"Any kind, he's not picky."

Luna! What are you going to do for Valentine's Day?

Do you know if Draco has a surprise for you?

Do you think Draco will propose?

I scrolled through the Instagram direct messages on my phone, swiping left to delete them. They were all pretty much the same, asking for my Valentine's Day plans. People seemed to be anticipating some grand gesture on my or Draco's part. But really, there was nothing. We were just going to go to the arcade, take some pictures, maybe play a game or two and leave. I didn't know how I was going to live up to their expectations of "the perfect date". I put my phone down and looked up.

"Ah!"

Zach was standing outside my cubby.

"Luna." He greeted.

"Zach." I replied, standing up. I tried to wiggle my way out, but he blocked me.

"I was wondering if we could grab lunch together." he said calmly but resolutely.

"Oh! Yeah, you see, I kind of already-"

"I know you've been avoiding me, and I just want to talk things out. It's not healthy for the both of us to keep it as it is."

I sighed. I guess we had to talk about it sometime.

"Alright." I said, giving in.

We went to the café five minutes away from the office. I ordered a mocha and Zach ordered a chai latte.

"I don't know what you're playing at but I have to know, why have you been avoiding me?" Zach asked.

"I don't know," I said truthfully. "I guess I don't know how to handle all this at the moment."

"This?"

"Is it not obvious that there is something between…" I gestured to him and then to myself.

"Oh, yes."

"And you don't have a problem with it?" I asked, wary.

"Only if you have a problem."

"I do have a problem!"

"Okay… Anything we can do to fix it?"

"Not that I can think of at the moment…"

"Then can you at least, stop avoiding me?"

Just then, another message came in through Instagram.

Luna! Are you excited for Valentine's Day? It's going to be sooooo romantic.

I felt like I was going to snap.

"Okay, I'm sorry, I shouldn't have." I could feel the cogs in my head turning and then it was as if a lightbulb went off in my head. "I'll even make it up to you." I started.

"Really?" he asked hesitantly.

"Yeah, I'll make it up to you!" I have an idea…"

13 February

I still didn't know what to get Theodore. I looked up "gifts for gamers" on the Internet but everything that came up felt superficial. Like mugs, t-shirts. Plus I had Valentine's Day date to worry about. Or you could say, Pal-entine's date.

"You invited Sweatervest Smith to our date?!"

"It's not a date!" I protested. "We're just taking some photos and then leaving, why not bring him along?"

"Because it's supposed to be… a date? Won't people notice?" Draco ran a hand through his hair.

I sighed. "He's just my cousin... It'll be fun! It's a friend date." I looked at him. "What's wrong with some inclusivity?"

He shook his head. "You know what, whatever. I give up. Let's just film this thing."

We both sat down in front of the tapestry in my room and I hit record.

And suddenly I was a completely different person.

"Hi guys!" We both said in unison.

"Welcome to our Valentine's Day tag where we answer your Valentine's Day questions!" I said cheerfully.

"So first question, what is your favourite love song?"

14 February

Borgin and Burkes' Arcade was a brick building covered in neon lights. It looked old, and possibly abandoned if it weren't for the bright flashes of light and the sound of game machines and various theme songs inside.

Zach, Draco and I parked outside the arcade.

"I haven't been here in ages!" Zach said, stretching as he got out of the car. "How about you, Draco?"

"I guess." He grunted.

"I've never been here before," I admitted.

"Then you're in for a treat." Zach said, smiling.

After getting a set of tokens from the counter from a cranky bald man, we set off to wander around the arcade. Though Draco wasn't very open about it, he seemed happy to be here. There was something different about him. He wasn't his usual, grouchy, distant self. There was a spring in his step.

"So, what do you guys want to play?" I asked the guys, as we strolled around the place.

"How about air hockey?" Draco suggested, coming to stop in front of two air hockey tables.

You know how some couples are like, "You're so cute when you play, so I let you win" and all that nonsense? Draco wasn't about that at all. He played to win.

I held the striker firmly in my hand. The puck came out on my side so it was my turn to start. I hit the puck towards Draco. It went darting at lightning speed towards the goal but he blocked it, serving it back. We went back and forth like this for a while. The puck hitting the sides of the table with loud clacks and then hitting our strikers and it kept going and going and going until Draco aimed one very good shot straight for my goal post. I couldn't block it in time and it fell into the slot.

Ding! The machine lit up and his score changed to 1.

Show no mercy. I kept thinking to myself as I placed the puck on the table. And hit! The game went on. Draco hit the puck back with ease. I realised I was working up a sweat while Draco had barely moved. But the adrenaline only made me more hyped up. I deflected every shot till eventually, one well-aimed hit sent the puck striking the side of the table before slipping carelessly into Draco's goal.

"Yes!" I shouted, jumping up and down. He looked at me and I could have sworn I saw him laugh.

In the end, he won 3-2.

After that, we played Pac-Man, which I failed spectacularly at, followed by Street Fighter, and then we came to the claw machines.

"These things are out to cheat your money, I swear!" I hissed, pointing at them.

"Hmm, how about this?" Zach said, "I bet you, I can get you one of those Pokémons."

"Well, sure-"

"Me too." Draco said suddenly.

"After you," Zach said, stepping to the side.

Draco walked up to the claw machine and put in a token. He looked like he was focusing a lot as he maneuvered the claw over one of the plush Pokémons. Eventually he settled on one and hit the button, the claw picked it up.

I watched in wonder as the claw carried the charmander over to the empty lot, only for the toy to, at the very last moment, fall back into the pit with the others.

"Noooo!" I cried, knees sinking to the floor.

"Damn it!" Draco shouted and hit the claw machine.

"Oi! No hitting the goods!" A voice called out.

"My turn," Zach strode up to the machine. "Trust me, I'm an expert when it comes to these guys." he said, confidently.

Draco snorted.

Zach simply smiled at him, "Watch the master at work."

He inserted a token and the machine lit up. Zach deftly moved the joystick, turning it, and then moving it back, and then forward again. He was in deep and utter concentration. "Even the slightest bit to the right can cause you to fail," he said.

"And, here we go." He jammed the button.

The claw descended on the bulbasaur. "No way…" I said as I watched the giant claw pick it up. Then, it moved gracefully over the empty lot and dropped it in.

"Et voila!" Zach said as he pulled the toy out from the bottom and presented it to me.

"That was amazing!" I said and leaped into a hug. Zach hugged me back. It was a nice hug. He was warm and I could smell his cologne. It was nice.

Just then, we heard a cough. We broke apart to see Draco tapping his foot impatiently.

"Sorry," I apologised. I could feel the heat rushing to my cheeks.

Later on, we were all shooting hoops at the basketball machine, each of us in our own game. My score was at six, when I threw the next ball with so much force that it rebounded off the hoop and flew backwards out of the machine.

I whipped around just in time to see the ball fly straight towards a couple. It barely missed them and hit the wall behind them before ricocheting off it and bouncing away.

"Oh my god, I'm so sorry- Mari?" It was Marietta. As in, the Marietta that left us all those months ago. Her arm was draped around a tall burly man, who's face seemed to be in a permanent scowl.

"Luna! Draco?"

"Well, look who it is!" The man said, untangling himself from Mari and walking towards us.

Marcus Flint. I remembered him from school. He... wasn't the kindest.

"Flint." Draco responded coldly. Marcus and Draco were both on the same rugby team in school and if I remembered correctly, Marcus had been pretty harsh on him during their time there. I also remembered Marcus being awfully dramatic, as he was now.

"And Loony Lovegood!" he taunted. Loony. My old nickname. I thought I'd forgotten it

I said nothing as he strode up to me.

"You nearly hit my lady, Loony." he said, face inches away from me. I took a step back.

"Marcus, dear, don't antagonise them." Mari murmured.

But he ignored her.

"It was going to be a great date, a couple at the arcade, just playing some games, until you threw at her face!" he yelled.

"Look, Flint, you don't have to be such a dick about it, it was an accident." Draco interjected.

"Did Draco Malfoy just call me a dick?" Marcus turned to him, amused

"Well you sure are being one!" Zach called out.

"And who are you?" he sneered.

"A good friend!" Zach said, holding his ground.

"They're not worth it, dear, let's go." Marietta said trying to pull him away.

"But something has to be done about it. I can't let them off the hook so easily." He took a deep breath and for a moment I thought he was going to start a full-on brawl with us. Us. One model who probably hadn't picked a fight in ages, one guy in a sweater vest who looked like the type to get his head flushed down the toilet, and a small blonde girl against him.

"I challenge you to…" Marcus looked around the room, eyes finally falling on the Nintendo Switch in the corner. "Mario Kart!"

Mario Kart.

"Excuse me?" Draco asked, clearly as stunned as the rest of us.

"You heard me."

"This could not get any lamer," Mari whispered in horror.

But then, it got lamer. The owner, the bald cranky man strolled up to us. "Is this a fight I'm sensing over here?"

"Yes, sir. This lunatic over here nearly killed my girlfriend." Marcus said.

"Well, that's no good by me. I tell ya what, the winner of your little duel gets 1000 free redeemable tickets."

I looked at Draco but he shook his head. "Whatever," he said and turned around, ready to leave.

"Not so fast, young man, one more thing," the man said raising a finger.

"Just to make the stakes higher, the winner also gets this." The man pointed at a poster on the wall. "A vintage Pac-Man poster from the 1980s signed by Toru Iwatani, the creator of pacman."

I gasped. Theodore would love that!

"We need to win it for, Theodore, it's either that or I ruin his Pal-entine's Day." I hissed into Draco's ear.

"Malfoy, you chicken or what?"

There was a pause, and then Draco looked him dead in the eye. "Fine."

"I'm playing too." I said stepping forward. I needed to defend my honour.

"So am I!" Zach announced.

We were all sitting on beanbags, steering wheels in hand. It was as if we were twelve all over again. I decided to play as Yoshi.

3…

"Go Marcus!" Marietta called from the sidelines.

2…

"Come on, let's go!" Zach said, frustrated.

1…

START!

I gripped onto the remove and hit the forward button.

Just a quick rundown for those who don't know Mario Kart. It's essentially a racing game, that's a no brainer, but there are also power-ups. Power-ups are boxes floating in game that, when players touch, gives them a boost. For example, my kart just rammed into a a box and got mushroom, which gave me a boost. I pulsed the button as my kart surged forward.

This continued on for three laps, steering and navigating the twists and turns of rainbow road, collecting power-ups along the way. All of us in our little karts racing around the multi-coloured track. The background was the night sky illuminated by stars.

And then I fell off the track.

"Damn it!" I yelled as I toppled into the void.

By the time I was hoisted back on the track, the others had zoomed ahead and I was in last place.

I was able to overtake some players by the time we reached our final lap. The competition was close. Marcus was in the lead with Draco hot on his tail. And then it came.

Draco got a turtle shell power-up - now these shells do serious damage, they hit the people in front of you. He aimed it directly at Marcus and hit the button. The turtle shell soared over to his kart and collided with it. The kart stumbled, just in time for Draco to overtake him and cross the finish line moments before Marcus did.

"No!" Marcus cried, slamming the remote on the ground.

"Oi! You'll be accountable for any damage that falls on it!"

Draco wasn't as loud in his reaction though. No fist pump or cries of jubilation, but he was smiling, almost smugly.

Moments later, I finally crossed the finish line. 7th place. Zach came not long after.

"And the winner is this young chap over here." The bald man announced, slapping Draco maybe a bit too hard on the back. "Congratulations, now scram!"

Poster in hand, we left the arcade. Leaving behind an angry Marcus Flint and Mari, who was trying to mollify him.

The air was cool and crisp and the night sky looked very nice with the trees against it. You could hear the sound of vehicles in the distance.

"We should go get burgers. I'm starving." I said as we walked out to the carpark.

"Actually," Zach said, stopping, "I have to go, I need take care of my gran." He looked rather awkward and embarrassed about it.

"Oh! That's fine!" I said. "Bye Zach!" I waved at him.

He waved back. "Thanks for spending Valentine's Day with me." He said smiling softly, and then he left.

Thanks for spending Valentine's Day with me.

I guess I did spend it with him, huh? I could have sworn the birds were chirping in the distance as I sighed in content. I adjusted my coat, buttoning up and turned around, only to see Draco scowling.

And then there were two.

We walked to the nearby burger bar and sat down in a cosy booth.

"That wasn't so bad, was it?" I asked, trying to make conversation.

"Meh," he said and looked away.

"Alright, what's got your knickers in a twist?" Seriously, clearly, there was something bugging him.

And... he cracked.

"I don't know, maybe the fact that you just spent majority of our date with someone else?"

"It's not even a real date!"

"Still, what am I? A wall? Am I even there?"

"Yes, you were- are. You are you won the poster for us."

"Oh, just the poster? That's what it's about. That was because we needed it for Theo!"

"What are you getting at?" I asked, starting to lose control of myself.

"I guess, it kind of sucks that I'm not even important in my own relationship!"

"But we're not dating!"

"Still! It's something-"

"Two milkshakes." A waiter set them down on the table and left, totally oblivious to the tension.

Draco sighed. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have snapped." But I understood, I understood what he meant. I was being a shitty fake girlfriend.

"No, you're right, I should have done more. Or something." I said, how eloquent.

"I'm just never a priority. You know?" he said, glancing at me.

"What do you mean?"

"It's stupid harping on the past... But when I was younger, I felt like my parents didn't really care? They always had other stuff to worry about. They only ever showed up when they were needed, like for parent-teacher meetings and all that. And in school, there was always someone better than me. Like at rugby, in class. It's like I don't matter." He took a sip of his milkshake.

"I think you're being too hard on yourself." I said as our burgers arrived.

"Maybe. But what am I supposed to do? Immediately lighten up? Oh life's good, I'm important! I matter!" he said, pretending to be cheerful.

I resisted the urge to roll my eyes, "It'll take time, but just know that you are important, okay?"

He grunted. There was nothing else to say, so we ate our burgers in silence. Until I had an idea. And don't worry, this was a good one.

"Can you tell me more about you?" It was out of the blue and unexpected, yes. But it was important.

"What?"

"I realised I don't actually know much about you." I confessed.

He snorted. "You just realised?"

"I mean, I thought I did. But I don't."

"You think a lot of things, Luna."

"Let's play twenty questions."

"Okay…" he said slowly.

"What was your favourite TV show growing up?"

"From when I was 5? Bob the Builder."

"Really?"

"Yeah, is that a problem? Sorry. I mean, what was yours?"

"Teletubbies!" I said excitedly. "Where did you go the most when you were younger?"

"Uh... School? I spent most of my time at home or in school."

"Hmm, for me it would be the forest near my house." I smiled as I thought back to all those days I would walk around the clearing barefoot looking for thestrals.

"What do you miss the most about your childhood?" I asked.

"Is this even twenty questions if you're asking all the questions?"

I gave him a pointed look.

He looked down at the table, deep in thought, then he mumbled, "Having fun, I guess."

"Having fun?"

"Yeah, I wish I broke some rules, joked around more, have more fun."

"What happened?"

"I grew up," he said simply. "I had to be more mature than simply play games."

"But you just played a game-"

"Apart from that." He cut in.

"Well, who said growing up and playing games had to be exclusive? Look at Theodore. He literally plays games for a living."

"I don't know, it's different in my case I guess. My parents didn't want me playing games. It wasn't gentlemanly, or fitting for a model."

"Well that's not very fair." I frowned.

"Is a fake relationship fair?"

"No."

"But you still do it anyway. Why?"

I furrowed my eyebrows. I never thought about that. I had just gone with it. I never really questioned Albus. I guess I just saw it as the only option to get famous at the time. But now I was big. And now what?

"How about you? What do you miss most about your childhood?" He asked.

I thought back to when I was ten, running through the forest catching butterflies. The wind in my hair and the trees high about me. I remembered splashing through puddles looking for nargles that liked to rest on the lilypads. I remembered just not having to worry about anything at all. Sure, I was weird, believed in weird animals, got bullied for it. But I was so in my element. And now, I was lost, trapped in this hall of fame I couldn't get out of. Not without serious consequences.

"Being free." I said after a lot of deliberation.

15 February

We were all gathered in a circle, gifts in hand, ready for our secret Pal-entine reveal.

"And my secret Pal-entine was Albus! So I got you some socks!" Hannah said cheerfully, walking over to Albus to give him a pair of polka-dotted socks.

"Ew," Pansy wrinkled her nose. "Anyway, my turn. Oi, Ferret, here." She threw a can of hair wax at him. Ferret was his nickname after he was forced to do a photoshoot with a stuffed ferret. It wasn't a very pleasant experience.

"Luna? Your turn!" Hannah said.

"My secret pal-entine is Theo! Here you go, Theo."

"Aww, thanks Luna." He said, opening up the poster.

"Hmm…" He examined it.

"It's vintage!" I said excitedly. "It's even got the creator of Pac-man's signature on it!"

"Really…" He said, turning the poster upside down and squinting at it.

"What's wrong?"

He laughed.

"This isn't his Toru Iwatani's signature." He turned to his laptop and went to his browser. "This is just a poster off RedBubble." He turned the monitor to face me. On the website was the same exact design as the poster in front of us. I gaped at him.

"And this," he pointed to the pen ink, "is probably just some random dude's scribble."

How could I have been so dim?

"He cheated us!" I exclaimed. "Oh my goodness, Theo, I am so sorry."

"Don't worry about it." he snickered. "At least you gave me a good laugh!"

"Zach, who was your secret pal-entine?"

"Luna," he said walking towards me, hands hidden behind his back. He revealed a miniature sword, just like the one back at Ginny's studio.

"It's from the museum I used to volunteer at. Don't worry, it's real. I checked." He said winking.

At the end of the day, I was about to take my bag and leave when Zach approached me again.

"Luna."

"Yeah?"

"I need to ask you something." he said seriously.

I frowned. "What's wrong?"

"It's not real, is it? You and Draco."

Well, shit.

You know I can't remember when I started swearing. But I learnt that once you start, there's no going back.

"How did you know?" I asked quietly.

He sighed. "It was just a hunch. Plus, you weren't exactly being romantic... on Valentine's Day."

"Zach you can't tell anyone," I said hastily, stepping forward, eyes meeting his. "And I mean, anyone, about this. Not even Pansy knows and-"

"I know, I won't. I'm not daft. But I actually wanted to ask you something."

"What?"

"Will you go out with me?"

"What?!"

"Let me take you out. Okay, that was too straightforward- I mean, I want to get to know you better. I like you, Luna."

I looked at him baffled, shaking my head.

"No one will question a girl going out with her cousin," he continued, "and if anyone asks, we can just say we're hanging out and that we didn't spend a lot of time together growing up and-"

I thought back to when we were at the studio, and Zach asked me about what my goals in life were, and how I'd grabbed his arm when he tried to leave. Then, to the beach when I fell and he gave me the aloe vera gel. And then to the arcade, where he won me that bulbasaur and how I'd jumped to hug him.

And then I remembered my conversation with Draco, about how he felt like he was never important to anyone, how I told him he was important to me, and then how we jumped into twenty questions and had the most serious and heartfelt conversation we'd had for a long time. Or ever.

"Zach, I'm sorry," I said. "I can't."

He swallowed, and then nodded. "It's alright, Luna. I understand. I'm sorry if I came across as brash or-"

"It's fine. We should go."

An Instagram post of a collection of photos of Draco and Luna at the arcade, ending with a photo of them sharing a milkshake at a burger bar with the caption: Happy Valentine's Day love *heart*

It has 15, 726 likes.

Idk what to do with my life other than write lameness that includes mario kart.