Chapter 4: This Is Why I Don't Have Friends
I walked into Charms earlier than everyone else. I started arriving early to class my first year. I did it so that others wouldn't gawk at me when I walk into the room. I guess I just held up the tradition. Scorpius always gets annoyed with me because of it. It's not my fault, he doesn't have to walk with me, but he's a girl and thinks we have to walk everywhere together so he puts on his bored look and makes sure his hair is presentable while we wait for class to start. The bad thing about being a seventh year is that it's possible for members of all four houses to share a class. And what's really horrible, for me at least is that She and all of her friends are in this class.
Henrietta Smith is the first of the four to walk in she sits close to the front as if it's her assigned seat. She sets up her things and waits patiently at the front. Katherine Ray is the next to walk in. She sees Smith at the front and rolls her eyes before taking a seat in the back, two rows behind Scorpius and I.
Slowly the class fills up Rose and Lucy sit down on Scorpius's left and start giggling in that annoying way girls do reaching a pitch so high I'm sure it will puncture my eardrums soon. I see Redding walk through the door and sit next to Ray. She sees me looking and smirks at me. She has this evil glint in her eye and she winks at me. Crap. I looked away from her. That wink could only mean one thing She knows. Professor Flitwick tottered his way to the front of the classroom, and tapped on his stack of books. Where was she? She's never this late. I wanted to look at Redding again but figured it was better for my health if I never looked in her direction ever again. Flitwick was just about to begin the lesson when the door slammed open and she came running in with Fredrickson, flustered and panting.
"Sorry Professor we slept in." Fredrickson said panting and grabbing a stitch in his side. He was so out of shape, no wonder Hufflepuff lost every quidditch game. Wait, what did he just say? She seemed to realize what he said and she turned beat red.
"He means that we both happened to oversleep our completely separate alarms. We didn't, I mean we weren't, it just sort of happened on the same day. Normally I get up then wake him-" she stumbled over her words not really making things look any better. The class was trying hard not to laugh. I was trying not to curse Fredrickson into the next century.
"Just stop Riles." Fredrickson said placing his hand on the small of her back and guiding her to the only open table in the classroom, right in front of me. I heard Redding stifle a laugh from behind me and I gripped my quill almost snapping it in half. Fredrickson leaned over and whispered in her ear and I could see the tips of her ears turn red. Fredrickson looked right at me and smirked. That's when I really did snap my quill in half.
"Damn Al! What is your problem?" Scorpius stopped flirting with Rose only to glare at me and my arm. I looked down. The quill had been full of ink and had sprayed Scorpius's left arm. I grumbled a half assed apology and turned to glare at Flitwick as he started the lesson. What I wouldn't give to beat Fredrickson's face in. That stupid smirk of his, god it pisses me off. What's his deal anyway? He doesn't even like her like that, at least he shouldn't she's, no he has every right to like her. Fuck I'm sounding like a bloody girl. I need a drink.
I sat there for the rest of class with Redding giggling behind me and Scorpius and Rose smirking at me. The girls didn't bother me, I was used to girls looking at me. Scorpius however was getting on my last nerve he's right after Fredrickson on my list of people I need to punch. The need just increased when Fredrickson made her blush. I tightened my fist so hard my knuckles cracked.
"She looks cute when she blushes." Scorpius whispered out the side of his mouth pretending to take notes. I glared at him. "Awe are you upset that other men are giving your girl attention?" I gritted my teeth.
"She's not my girl. She's at perfect liberty to be with whomever she chooses." I hissed back to him.
"Are you still denying the fact that you like her?" He grinned at me.
"Shut up. I'm not do this shit today Malfoy."
"Oooh testy today aren't we. Huh I wonder if she knows yet." He speculated.
"She does." I grumbled.
"How do you know?" He asked suddenly serious. He sat up straighter in his seat and leaned towards me.
"Redding, when she walked in." He gave me an inquisitive look. "Look I just know they told her okay." I snapped at him and prayed the class would be over soon. Thankfully Scorpius dropped it and looked away.
At the end of class I gathered up my things quickly trying to get out of there. I had Potions next and I wanted to get there as soon as possible. My god brother Teddy Lupin was the Potions professor here at Hogwarts. I wish I didn't have that class, not because I didn't like it. No, it was because of Teddy. He's a great guy and everything, but it's another class I have with her and Teddy has started to suspect the same as Scorpius, and he's a big mouth. If Teddy sees something going on with one of us kids the whole family will know about it within the next 24 hours.
After having Scorpius glare at me for going so fast I waited in the hallway for him and Rose, they walked towards me hands clasped. I hated when they were all couple-y around me. I felt uncomfortable in my own skin and like a third wheel. I grumbled softly and walked next to them to the dungeons. I hadn't noticed but she had gotten ahead of us. None of her friends were in this class with her, they decided not to take the NEWT level. She walked hurriedly down the stairs her ponytail swishing back and forth across her shoulders. Merlin her hair looks soft. Fine I'll admit it, I appreciate the fact that she's breathing. This really wasn't good for my health.
"Stop staring mate." Scorpius said slapping my back. I glared at him but didn't listen. I looked back to her. She had removed her robe in Charms and it was stuffed haphazardly in her bag that was hanging off one shoulder. Her hips swayed slightly as she walked and she tapped out an unknown rhythm on her leg. Her head started bobbing to the side and she made a couple weird steps in her black high tops. It took me a moment to realize she was dancing down the hallway. She turned the corner and I could see her smiling and mouthing the words to a song. She had her headphones in. I don't know how she managed to charm muggle technology to work at Hogwarts. God she's beautiful. I did not just think that, no she's just a normal girl who happens, aw fuck it. I don't care anymore everyone already knows, might as well give up the fight.
We approached the Potions classroom and there was a mass of people waiting outside the door. Teddy didn't let us into the classroom until it was exactly 11 o'clock. Another reason he wasn't my favorite person. She leaned against the wall and continued bobbing her head and swaying her hips. I smiled to myself. I could feel Scorpius and Rose looking at me. I turned my head and saw their matching smirks. Rolling my eyes I turned back to her. She had her bottom lip between her teeth rolling it back and forth slightly, it was probably the sexiest thing I've seen. I could feel my gut churning just watching her. She was concentrating on her music device clicking a button repeatedly. The door opened behind me breaking my concentration and Teddy walked out.
"Okay seventh years file in but don't sit down. We're starting something new today." He winked at me, and I got a different feeling in my gut, a bad one. We all filed in and stood awkwardly around the room. Teddy walked to the front of the room and clapped his hands rubbing them together with a devious look in his eyes. "Attention!" He yelled, even though no one was talking and everyone was staring at him confused. "Alright today we are going to start a special project. We will be brewing Wolfsbane. You will have a partner and six weeks to complete the potion in and out of class. And here's the real kicker. The groups who brew it correctly will have their batch sent to St. Mungo's to help victims of lycanthropy. Those groups will also receive an automatic Outstanding on our next test. Now everyone group together." People scrambled instantly. I looked over at Scorpius and noticed he was nervously avoiding my gaze.
"What?" I asked.
"Oh um well the thing is…I was thinking that maybe we should broaden our horizons a bit. You know experiment." He kept rambling on looking over my shoulder. I tried to turn around but he grabbed my sleeve. "Al you're my best mate, know that I'm doing this for you." It sounded like the bloke was breaking up with me.
"Malfoy what sort of drug are you on? You didn't get it from James did you? Because I'm pretty sure if he gave you something it would fuck your shit up." I said giving him a look.
"What? No. I'm talking about Hamilton being your partner." What did he just say? Rose took that moment to skip her way back over to us dragging a confused brunette behind her. She let go of the Hufflepuff before latching herself onto Scorpius's arm. I looked around frantically. Everyone else had paired up. I was going to kill Scorpius.
"Well we better sit down and get to work." Rose said brightly dragging Scorpius away before I could physically maim one or the both of them, leaving me alone with her.
"I can ask to change partners if you want me to." I whipped around to face her. She had an adorable blush spilling over her cheeks as she looked anywhere but at me.
"Uh, no it's fine." I said sitting in a seat. She gingerly sat next to me subtly trying to move her stool away from mine. She was biting her lip again. I held back a groan and gritted my teeth.
"Are you sure? I mean you don't seem very comfortable around me. And I wouldn't want to make you feel awkward. And I'm really bad at Potions and you're really good at it. I wouldn't want you to get a bad grade because of me. I would feel really bad and-" she would have continued had I not cut her off.
"Stop." I held up my hand. "It's fine." She looked at me uncertainly but stopped rambling none the less. She bent down and got her text book out of her bag and flipped to the index. She found Wolfsbane and flipped through the pages. As she read about the potion she stuck her tongue out of the corner of her mouth. It was kind of cute. I could feel myself starting to smile so I schooled my expression into one of indifference. I could smell her hair from here; it was a mixture of vanilla and mint. A couple strands of hair fell in her eyes and she tucked them behind her ear. Merlin her hair looks soft. She licked her lips making them glisten. She pouted her lips at something she read. God those lips were red. Her very essence was intoxicating. I had to stop myself from leaning toward her. I clenched my fist harder on the desk and bit the inside of my cheek drawing blood. How was I going to survive sitting next to her, working with her, talking to her? I looked down at my book trying to concentrate but no matter how hard I read all I could think of was vanilla mint.
After about ten minutes had passed she huffed and began speaking again. "Do you have a problem with me or something?" My head snapped up to look at her so fast I'm pretty sure I got whiplash. Why would I have a problem with her?
"What?" I looked at her confused face. She looked frazzled and uncomfortable, yet determined, as if she had been thinking about this for a while.
"This has got to be the most you've ever spoken to me, and you just seem really pissed that you had to be my partner. I know we're not friends but I don't recall ever doing anything to make you not like me." I stared at her dumbfounded. I thought Redding had told her. Does she not understand why I don't speak to her? Does she not understand that I can't speak to her? That I have to force myself to look away? She looked at me expectantly and I didn't move, why didn't I move? "Whatever. I'm going to ask Professor Lupin if I can change partners." God dammit, she can't leave. She can't be someone else's partner. This is why Scorpius distracted me so Rose could bring her over. So I could get to know her, so I could spend time with her. So I could smell her hair, wow that sounded creepy even in my head.
She shoved her book back into her bag and pushed her seat back. I couldn't let her leave, not when I was this close to her. It was a split second decision. One that confirmed everyone's suspicions about my feelings for her, one that made my heart stop and made her gasp. I lunged toward her and grabbed her wrist as she stood up pulling her back to me. She tripped not expecting me to grab her, I don't think anyone did. Her face was inches from mine. She looked at me with those wide grey eyes, lips slightly parted in shock. I could feel the eyes of everyone on me, but I didn't care. This was the closest I've ever been and probably the closest I would ever be. My eyes searched her face. I wanted to revel in this moment. I wanted to count every freckle splattered lightly on her nose and cheeks. I wanted to touch her hair, touch her face, her lips. But I stopped myself, I didn't know her. She didn't know me.
"Don't." I don't know why I said it. I could have picked something more articulate or eloquent but the simple word seemed to suffice. She nodded her head still slightly stunned and leaned back sitting down in her seat once again. A bright blush crept up her neck. I turned, feeling eyes on me. Scorpius, Rose and Teddy all looked at me. Rose smiled brightly while Scorpius smirked. Teddy however sent a very unsubtle wink in my direction. I could feel my ears turning red. I looked around at the rest of the class. Some glared, for what I have no clue. Some had their mouths hanging open in shock. And others were grinning like they just won the lottery. Yes, this was going to be a very long six weeks.
