A/N: Happy New Year's everyone! I can't believe that it's 2010 already and I have to go back to school next...damn. Anyways, I'm going to be busy for the whole month of January because I have to work on my Junior paper. I'll try to get the next chapter up as soon as I can, promise! Chapter 7
"Rika, you need to stop hanging around Malfoy. Nothing good will come from it," Hermione told me in the Gryffindor common room, the same night she, Ron and Harry found me in the music shop with Draco.
"Why not? I want to hear reasons."
"He's a slimly foul git. That's the only reason you need," Ron said darkly.
"He isn't always like that. Sometimes his kind and gentle."
"Are we even talking about the same person?" Hermione asked.
"Yes, yes we are. I mean, I know Draco and be a bit…rough around the edges. But he really is a good person."
"Rika, his parents are death eaters," Harry said to me seriously. "It's best not to get mixed up with people like them."
"Yeah, but that doesn't make him a death eater…"
"Rika!" Harry barked out, but quickly changed his tone of voice into a gentler one. "Rika, promise me you'll stop hanging around Malfoy?"
"But Harry…"
Harry looked straight into me my eyes and said, "Promise me."
I closed my eyes and turned my head away. "I don't think I can promise that, Harry." And without looking up at him, I left the common room to go to the music room on the third floor, but when I opened the door, I found the room to be empty.
Days turned into weeks and Draco never did come into the music room again. I have been seeing him in classes and sometimes we pass each other in the halls, but every time our eyes met, he'd always look away. He didn't look angry when he looked away or shy; he seemed emotionless towards me. I know that I should confront him on this, but I'm too afraid.
I sat at a table in the library, chewing on the bottom of my lip. I really didn't understand this transfiguration homework. I sighed to myself, closing the book I was borrowing from the library. Maybe I should ask Hermione for some help or maybe I should ask Draco. He's decent in transfiguration. Yeah! I can ask him for help and things will go back to the way it was before…I began to hit myself with the book. There's no way things can go back to normal so easily; we haven't spoken to each other in weeks.
"Rika, what the bloody hell are you doing?"
I looked up to see Ron, standing beside the table. "Ah…I was…nothing," I muttered, placing the book back down on the table.
"Yeah, well Lavender was asking me if I had seen a few seconds ago. She told me if I saw you to tell you she's in the common room."
"Oh…did you come here just to tell me that?"
"No, Hermione wanted me to drop a book of here in the library. Anyways, I gotta go to quidditch practice. See you."
I nodded. "Bye." I stood up from my seat and left to reshelf the book I borrowed. Just as I was placing the book back in its original spot, I heard a feminine voice draw near.
"Draco! You shouldn't say such things!" I heard the feminine voice giggle.
"Why not, they're true." I look to my left to see Draco, holding hands with a fairly pretty girl. She had dirty blond hair and hazel-ish eyes. Draco and the girl stopped walking and I simply just looked at them.
"See Draco," the girl whispered. "I told you there'd be people in the aisles. Why didn't we go to a broom closet instead?"
I blinked. "Oh no, it's fine. I was just putting something back." I quickly brushed past Draco to leave the library. I couldn't bring myself to look at him. Before leaving, I could hear the girl say, "A shame isn't it? She'd be pretty if she didn't have those things on her face…"
Instead of going back to the Gryffindor common room to meet Lavender I went to the music room. I sat at the piano staring at the keys. I lifted my hand and traced the stitches on my face. A feeling grew inside me. It caused tears to form in my eyes and roll down my cheeks. I didn't like it at all.
I got up to leave. I didn't feel like playing the piano; I just want to sleep. I headed for the door, which opened just as my hand reached out to turn the handle. In front of me stood a boy from Slytherin, Blaise Zabini, that's his name isn't it?
He looked down at me. "So you're the girl Draco kept sneaking off to see?" I didn't say anything. I simply looked back at him strangely. "Well well, what's this?" He asked, using a finger to wipe a tear away from my cheek. "Have you been crying, my dear kitten?"
I frowned slightly and moved back a bit. "Uh, no…I was just…just…"
"Don't tell me…it was raining, right?" He smirked down at me.
"Yeah…" I replied, with a hint of sarcasm. Zabini walked past me and looked around the room. "This the first time I've ever been in this room. It's quite amazing." He continued to walk until he got in front of the piano. "I never knew this room existed, until Draco told me about it."
"He told you about it?" I asked, my voice seemed quieter than normal.
"Yeah, I've noticed him missing from the dormitories, even on nights when he didn't have prefect duty, so I confronted him about it. He is my best mate after all." Zabini answered, while he was observing the piano before him.
"I see…"
"So tell me, my dear kitten, why were you crying?" He asked suddenly, turning to face me.
"I…I don't really want to talk about it."
"Let me guess, did Draco walk away and never come back," He began walking back towards me.
I looked at the ground. "I guess you could say that…"
"Don't think anything about it, love. Draco usually does things like that. He'll come back, eventually. But then again…sometimes he just gets himself another girl…" he trailed off once he saw the expression on my face. "But it's different with you," he said quickly. "When he kept sneaking off to see you…he changed, in a way. I was probably the only one that noticed, since I'm his best mate and all…"
I looked at Zabini strangely. "Why are you being so nice to me? I mean you're…"
Zabini raised an eyebrow. "A slytherin? I thought you of all people would know not to judge a book by its cover." He came closer to me and began to trace the stitches on my face. "Even with these stitches, you're rather lovely."
I looked into his eyes. "Really?"
"Yeah, and as long as you have a vagina, I'm sure any man would fancy you," he said grinning. My face contorted and I spun on the spot, leaving the room. I could hear Zabini's laughter as I stormed away. He must be one of those perverts.
