White.

I stare at the ceiling. Soft blips and whirring from the machine at my bedside assure me that I'm still alive. My body aches, but I can't move. Not yet. I close my eyes and take a breath.

"Draco?"

I open my eyes again. Mother? I frown in confusion.

"Oh, thank goodness." She presses kisses on my forehead. Her nails dig into my shoulders. "How are you feeling?" she asks rapidly. "The doctor said that you might feel discomfort when you wake up." I smell her familiar perfume. It's her. "Th-they won't let us take you. You're in a Muggle hospital, Draco. They won't let us transfer you to a Wizarding one."

I glance towards the foot of the bed. Father is standing there, arms folded against his chest and mouth stretched thin with worry. My parents are here. How?

"We just got here this morning," Mother tells me. She moves away to pour some water for me. "You got hurt. Do you remember?" She helps me sit up and then hands the plastic cup to me. "You've been asleep for a few days. You had to have surgery. We didn't know until today."

I wet my parched throat. Few days. "What happened?" I mumble.

"You were attacked," Father says quietly. "In your home, Draco. You said you were being careful. You said no one knew where you were."

"Two men…" I remember two men. "I couldn't see their faces. But they were wizards. I don't know how they found me. They shouldn't have been there. I was…" I wasn't alone.

Seth.

I whip my head around the room. "Where's Seth?" He isn't here.

"Who?"

"He was with me. He was hurt."

"Oh, you mean that man?" Mother starts when I look at her anxiously. "He's outside. The nurse said only family members are allowed in here. She said you will be-"

"He's outside? Right now?" I glance at the door, but it's closed. "Is he sitting out there?"

"Yes…"

Then he's alright. I have to see him. "Seth?" I call out, my voice cracking midway. I sit up straighter and fold my stiff legs in. "Seth? Come in here."

The door opens slowly.

I can finally breathe easy when I see him at the doorway. He looks awful, like he's nearly dead from exhaustion. But he isn't dead. So it's okay.

I think he's about to cry.

"I'm fine," I tell him.

His expression twists. He lurches forward as though his feet didn't know how to move. The bed creaks when he sits down. Then he pulled his legs up and curled into me.

I wrap my arms around him, letting him lean against me. He must have been scared. "Could you give us a minute, Mother?" I mumble. I don't hear their response, but they close the door behind them as they leave. I don't want them to be here when Seth is around. "It's alright now."

"Why did they hurt you?"

I grimace.

"They hurt you so bad, Draco…"

"I'm fine now," I try to reassure him. I don't know what to say to calm him down. "I'm not hurt anymore."

"Why did they do that?"

I gingerly lean against the pillows again. He sticks close, keeping his chin tucked to his chest. He is gripping me so tight. I don't think he will ever let go... "There's a lot you don't know about me."

"It's not fair."

"I know." I stroke his hair. "You're tired, aren't you? You sound tired." I wonder how long he's been sitting out there. "Are you hurt?"

"No…"

"Good. I'm glad."

"I won't let them hurt you again. I swear. I won't."

His words have grown heavy. "Hmm." I'll let him sleep. "You shouldn't worry about me like this. It's not worth it."


I woke up from the most wonderful dream.

"Hey."

"Huh?"

"I have to use the washroom."

"Okay." I move my arm away from Draco's waist so he can get out of bed. I watch him shift around under the sheets until he's swung his legs over the side.

Then he just sat there. He must have sat there for at least two minutes. Did he fall asleep?

I yawn loudly and reach out to prod his back. "What are you waiting for?"

"Can't feel my legs at the moment."

I shoot upright. "Oh my God." I look around. I'm in the hospital. "Oh my God." I fall out of bed and struggle up to my feet. "Draco, you-Are you-Can you-I'm sorry, I totally-" I rush around to the other side of the bed to kneel in front of him and clutch his hands. "Do you need help?"

"It's alright." He brushes his thumb against my knuckles. "Give me another minute."

"You got hurt." I don't want to think about it. I can't even remember the past few days. "It was so scary. I-"

"You haven't slept."

"I couldn't."

He clicks his tongue, but he doesn't sound irritated. "You saw it, didn't you?"

I stare at him, trying to read his pale eyes. "Saw what?"

"That monster?"

"Oh…"

"I wasn't sure if I had dreamt it or… But I'm sure of it. I heard it." He closed his eyes. "I heard what it did to those men. Are they dead? Do you know if they died?"

"They won't bother you again."

He sighs and looks at me again. "What was it?"

I push down the lump forming in my throat. "It… looked like a wolf." A monster? I was only trying to protect Draco. I'm not a monster. Even if everyone else calls me a monster, I don't want him to say it.

"A wolf?"

"Yeah."

"After what it did to them," he mumbles, "I thought it was going to come after me."

No. I would never. "Don't think about it," I tell him as waves of pain run down my chest. "It won't come again. Don't think about it anymore." I pull my hands away from his because they've started shaking. I look down and clear my throat. "Can you feel your legs now?"

He nudges my chin up. "Don't think about it?"

"No…" I smile at him. "It's alright. You're safe."

"It won't show up again?"

"No."

"That's good." He wipes a tear from my cheek. "Because he keeps eating all my food."

I press my forehead to his knees as more tears slip out. He really is the most wonderful person.