"You've really messed up this time, haven't you Draco?"
This sentence kept replaying over and over in Draco's mind until he was on the edge of insanity. It had been a couple of days since he'd called Hermione that awful word, and yet the guilt still hovered over him like a dark cloud. The only way to relieve himself of the guiltiness, Draco thought, would be to apologise to Herminone. But how on earth would he be able to talk to her after treating her so horribly. There would be no way she'd want to have anything to do with him. So many issues kept arrising to stop Draco from redeeming himself.
It was the end of a boring Tuesday afternoon being stuck all day in class. Draco had left his last class of the day, History of Magic, and was returning to the Slytherin common room for a bit of much needed leisure time. On the way there, Draco passed and then stopped in front of Moaning Myrtle's Bathroom - a place out of order to everyone since the murder of a student named Myrtle 50 years ago, who was now a permanent resident there as she was a ghost. But today Draco heard something from inside the lavatory, a sound to which sounded like sobbing. It certainly wasn't Myrtle, is at was much more softer sounding.
It was only then when Draco recognised who it was, as he could recall hearing the same sobbing before - it was Granger.
For a good thirty-seconds, Draco stood outside the bathroom, debating whether or not to enter and talk to Hermione. After all, it was a girl's bathroom, and to just waltz in would be a bit of an alarming thing to do. Eventually, Draco finally made the decision to go in. He couldn't just leave her crying because of his wrong-doing, and besides, no-one uses the bathroom anymore anyway. The "Out of Order" sign outside isn't just there for decoration, you know?
"Hermione?" Draco called out quietly so only she would hear him. Hermione quickly turned her head to meet the Slytherin's gaze. She was sitting on the floor, her back against the cold, stone wall, her cheeks tear-stained.
"What in Merlin's name are you doing here, Malfoy? This is a girl's lavatory!" she exclaimed.
"An abandoned girls-lavatory, actually." Draco corrected her.
"So, what do you want?" asked Hermione.
"I was walking by and I heard you crying in here - not that I don't know why. That's why I came to say I'm sorry." he explained.
"I don't want to hear your petty apologies, Malfoy. What you said to me was vile, discriminating and unacceptable and I will never forgive you." Hermione said, seething with anger.
"I know what I said was inexcusable," Draco explained, walking over and sitting down beside Hermione, who scooted over uncomfortably, "But I only said it to protect my reputation. If I had just stood there and said nothing, the other Slytherin's would have thought there was something wrong with me. I swear, I never meant what I said at all."
"But out of all things to say to me, you had to say that. What were you thinking?" questioned the bushy-haired Gryffindor.
"I don't know. I've heard my father on several occasions using that word, so I guess I thought it wouldn't hurt to say it myself."
Hermione shook her head in disbelief, "You are unbelievable, Draco Malfoy."
"Trust me, I know." huffed Draco, resting his chin on his hand. There was a short silence between the two of them, before Hermione broke it by asking a worrying question.
"There's something I don't understand. Why are you so persistent as to apologise to me? I mean, on all the other occasions where you've tormented me you've never once said you were sorry and now all of a sudden you're all apologetic."
Draco's heart began to race. He couldn't tell Hermione that he liked her? She'd probably hex him until he begged for mercy, or worse, walk away from him and never speak to him again. He realised this was the only chance he'd ever get to to tell Hermione his true feelings towards her, and he decided he would, no matter what the consequences may be.
"Hermione, there's something I need to tell you," Draco started, although Hermione already seemed surprised by the fact he called her by her first name. "The reason why I want to apologise to you is because...I like you. And by that I mean I 'like' you."
"Is this a joke? Did your Slytherin friends put you up to this - because if so, I swear, Malfoy, I will..."
"No, it's not a set-up," interuppted Draco, hoping Hermione wouldn't get the wrong idea, "I genuinely have feelings for you. I know it's totally unexpected, and myself being probably the last person you'd expect to have a crush on you. But ever since we bumped into each other on the train at the beginning of term, everything has changed. I can't focus in class anymore, I get nervous everytime you make eye-contact with me, and I don't want to be that selfish, arrogant git that everyone knows and hates anymore. Please believe me, Hermione. Whether you feel the same way or the complete opposite, I can't keep hiding my emotions anymore and that's why I have come clean - in hope that maybe we could start over and forget what's happened in the past."
For a moment, Hermione just sat there, taking in all what Draco had just said. She then turned her head to meet the gaze of a pair of ice-blue eyes, "I appreciate you apologising to me, Draco, I honestly do. But this is all rather strange. You developed feelings for me after just bumping into me on the train."
"Obviously so. I don't quite understand it, either, but it was like when we colided it triggered something - like all those false emotions of disliking you had suddenly been washed away...that sounds ridiculous, doesn't it?"
Hermione broke into laughter, "Yes, it does," and Draco also let out a chuckle. "But I believe you."
"You do?" asked Draco.
Hermione nodded, "Of course, it's going to take me a while to get used to the fact that Draco Malfoy, the Slytherin Prince, has feelings for me."
"And it's going to take me a while to get used to the fact that Hermione Granger, the Gryffindor Princess, has accepted my love towards her." Draco smirked.
"Shut up," Hermione nudged Draco, "So, what do you say we get out of here? After all, we're not supposed to be in here, especially you."
"Good idea." Draco agreeed and the two of them got up and headed towards the door. They exited the lavatory and stood in the empty hallway.
"Well, I guess I'd better head back to the common room now. Harry and Ron will be wondering about my whereabouts, no doubt," Hermione told, "Thank you for being honest with me, Draco. It's nice to know that your attitudes towards me have changed for the better."
"Does this mean you like me back?" Draco asked, keen to know.
Hermione hesistated for a moment, but replied, "Um, let's just say the future looks bright for us."
"Okay." said Draco.
Then, Hermione did something that caught Draco off guard and completely by surprise. She leaned in, put a hand on his shoulder, and planted a gentle kiss on his cheek. Draco's normally pale face became bright red in a matter of seconds, but Hermione just smiled.
"See you later." she said and strolled off down the corridor, slinging her satchel over her shoulder, and leaving Draco standing there with a goofy grin on his face.
Things had gone well for Draco, and he knew they were going to get even better.
