Several weeks had passed since Hermione's incident with Draco and she had made as much progress at keeping Draco out of her life as she could mentally handle. He had obeyed her wishes to never make any contact with her again and Hermione was going out of her way to avoid anything that might cause her to think of him.
Spring had finally arrived and the icy weather had receded. Hermione was just about to leave work to pick the twins up from the Burrow. She had recently found the twins a babysitter, a middle-aged witch with two children in Hogwarts and one who had just graduated and was now studying magical creatures in Bulgaria. Mrs. Prescott was taking a quick holiday to visit her son, so Mrs. Weasley had offered to watch twins for the week.
Hermione locked her office door and turned around to see Ginny waiting in the main entrance.
"What are you doing here?" Hermione asked with surprise, though her voice sounded overly joyful as if she was really about to emotionally break down.
"We haven't done anything fun in a while and mum's watching the boys too, so I thought we could maybe have dinner then wander around Diagon Alley." Ginny informed Hermione with a wide, enthusiastic grin.
"Does your mum know I'll be with you and won't be able to get Tristan & Emily?" Hermione questioned with a guilty hope that she could leave.
Ginny nodded, "She said its fine. Where do you want to eat?"
"I remember there was a nice tea shop type of place near Flourish and Blotts." She suggested, stepping out into the fresh spring air.
They moved quickly in silence, only speaking to make sure they were going the right way. When they finally reached the miniature restaurant, Hermione took a glance inside, through the large front window. Her eyes immediately spotted a man with very light blonde hair. Without knowing if the man was actually Draco, Hermione turned her head and stopped walking.
"I forgot. This isn't the right place. The food here made me sick last time." Hermione said in one breath.
Ginny paused, her hand almost on the door handle. She peered in through the window. "That's not him, Hermione. That guy looks like he's fifty years old."
"What guy?" Hermione tried to sound confused.
"You cant honestly think I don't know what's going on with you?" Ginny exclaimed, stepping away from the door and moving back to Hermione's side. "You're like a zombie or something! All of your responses are so forced, I'm surprised you aren't speaking in monotone. I haven't seen a real smile on your face in weeks and it's killing me to just imagine how you must really feel!"
"I'm trying so hard to keep a straight face Ginny! I don't know what else to do!" Hermione admitted, putting her face in her hands.
"You don't have to pretend you're alright. I'd almost rather see you burst into tears than have you act like a boring, empty person." Ginny put an arm around Hermione to comfort her.
Hermione lifted her head. Her eyes were still dry. "I just want everything back to normal! You don't know how much I'm trying to just forget him and move on, but I can't! Everywhere I go, I think I see him. Everything I see reminds me of him. It's as if he's haunting me and following me no matter what I do!"
"But he's hurt you so much more than you could ever deserve! I don't even think you deserve even the slightest fraction of the crap that he's put you through. I can't understand how you're still in love with him!"
"I didn't say I was in love with him." Hermione corrected quietly.
"Well, are you?" Ginny asked, but it was more like an order for Hermione to tell her.
"I can't possibly think of a reason why or how, but I am." Hermione replied, seeming ashamed with herself. "My brain is telling me to forget him and move on, but my heart just won't let go, as if there's still a gleam of hope."
"You've always listened to your brain. Maybe you shouldn't stop. Maybe you're better off without him." Ginny advised, hoping Hermione would agree.
"I don't know how to." Hermione sighed, frustrated.
"Yes, you do. You're just not allowing yourself to do it." Ginny pointed out and Hermione knew it was true.
Draco stared up with hazy eyes at the high ceilings of his house. His hands were under his head and he was spread lazily across his largest couch. There were dark circles below his grey eyes, for he hadn't slept well since everything had ended with Hermione. He hadn't left the house in almost a week, and he was barely eating anything. The only thing Draco had made an effort to do was come up with a plan for the situation he was in. So far, he was unsuccessful.
A sudden outburst of noise came from the main entrance to Draco home and he barely flinched as his door was knocked into his wall.
"Draco, are you alive?" Blaise's voice echoed from the other side of the room.
Draco eyes lowered to meet Blaise's as he let out a low grunt in response. His eyes then shot back to the same section of the ceiling before he rolled himself off the couch to see what mess Blaise had made upon entering.
"You could have knocked…" Draco muttered, fixing the broken door with his wand.
"I was knocking for the past five minutes." Blaise confessed, studying Draco appearance. "What's wrong with you?"
"Nothing."
"Sure, and I'm becoming Headmaster at Hogwarts." Blaise sarcastically told him. "You look like you've fallen into a pile of garbage."
"Fine. Everything is wrong." Draco admitted and began telling Blaise of everything that had happened in the past few weeks.
"Why don't you just tell Hermione how you made a huge mistake?" asked Blaise after he heard the whole story.
"She doesn't want to see me and I'm pretty sure she hates me right now." Draco yawned although it was still late afternoon.
Blaise thought this was a stupid point. "So? If you really love her, isn't it better to tell her than to sit around wondering what she might do?"
"But…" Draco hesitated and shifted in his chair. He didn't want to make it harder for Hermione by showing up on her doorstep, yet he didn't want to live the rest of his life not knowing what would have happened.
"Just go talk to her. What's the worst that can happen? She tells you to leave and that she doesn't love you? Big deal." Blaise stated plainly. Draco couldn't fight his friend's reasoning.
"I'll go when figure out what to say to her." Draco had no idea how he was going to honestly explain his affection for Hermione. She wouldn't believe him and he knew it.
"Don't think too hard. Say whatever comes to mind." Blaise instructed, standing up. He wrinkled his nose slightly, "I'm going to head back home. You're starting to smell… When was the last time you showered?"
"I don't remember. I haven't done anything lately." Draco smirked, stepping closer to his friend who moved back toward the door.
"Well, I suggest you clean up a little before paying Hermione a visit, and don't come any closer to me." Blaise opened the repaired door, "Don't forget to tell me how everything goes." He gave a slight wave and headed down the path back to Hogsmeade.
Draco lay back down on the couch. He knew what he had to do. He didn't care what Blaise said, he couldn't walk up to Hermione without planning what he would tell her. Draco would figure that part out before going to sleep, and in the morning he would shower and head straight to Hermione's house. He wasn't going to put it off; it was either now or never.