Author's Note: I hope you enjoy the next installment! Please let me know what you think. As I've said before, it is so motivating, inspiring and helpful to know your thoughts!
Chapter 53
Draco
I get a letter from father the day after warning Lucia. It has only five words.
Last warning.
Do not interfere.
My hands tremble and I rip up the letter in as many pieces as possible. I watch Lucia laugh with her friends from across the room as I rip it smaller and smaller. Then, from farther down the table, spot Vladimir watching me, his eyes dark and a smirk on his face. I look away and toss the papers under the table so all the little scraps flutter and scatter. When I look back up, he's gone. I glance back at Lucia, but find she's no longer there. Only her friends, chatting. Only Cayden, staring off at the front doors of the Great Hall. There really is only one way to make Lucia listen to me…if she doesn't…is there even any hope?
Lucia
The next morning, Alex was sitting at our usual table in the back of the classroom, holding three seats. It was one of the only classes me, him, Angie, and Gabbie all shared together. They hadn't gotten there yet. As soon as I sat down, Alex shifted closer to me and whispered, "Did you tell them?" while taking out his notebook, quill, and ink bottle.
"Not yet," I whispered back.
He glanced at the door and didn't respond until he was sure that they weren't there. "Could you let me know when you do, so I'm prepared?"
This time, he looked at him when he spoke, his eyes wide in a nervous smile. I laughed and nodded.
"Thanks for leaving it up to me. I mean, they're your friends too, you know," I whispered back.
"Yeah, but you share a room with them, so it should probably be up to you."
I smiled at him. Then, the professor cleared her throat and Angie and Gabbie slipped in at the last minute and slid into their saved seats, shooting me and Alex a quick wave and smile before turning to the front.
The rest of the day was uneventful. It felt like it took forever. I saw a lot of Alex, but nothing seemed to have shifted between us, except for the fact that he seemed more…comfortable. I wondered if it was because he was hopeful. Or if he felt more comfortable, or even happy that he had finally been honest. Whatever it was, everything felt smoother.
And then, when dinner finally arrived, there he was—across the hall—down the table from Draco. I hadn't been able to shake the thought of Jonathan since our almost-kiss, and then since Draco's threats. The pit of my stomach fluttered and when he finally met my eye, he nodded towards the door and I smiled back. When Alex saw me getting up, his smile fell and I hated myself for everything I was doing. It wasn't fair. It was plain selfish. But I excused myself quietly anyway, and then slipped out of the Hall.
"Miss me?" said a voice from behind my ear. I jumped back and felt my face heating up when I saw Jonathan behind me.
"Sorry about Draco yesterday," I said.
He smiled. "What made him get all protective all of the sudden, anyways?" he said.
I shrugged. "You know…the whole older brother thing."
Jonathan nodded, but his expression was blank. He held out his hand. "Want to walk?"
I smiled and began walking, not taking his hand. He followed me, stuffing his hands into his pockets. We walked through the halls out the doors to the gardens, where we sat on the grass. It was a colder night than yesterday and I shivered a bit. Jonathan took off his robes and draped them over me. I rolled my eyes internally, thinking about how cheesy it all was. My life was not a fairy tale. Things never went as expected.
Jonathan reached out and took my hand. My skin tingled where his met mine. When I looked up at him, his eyes were focused, intense, and I wanted to look away, but couldn't. Then, he placed one of his hands on my cheek and kissed me. He didn't ask, like Alex had. He just moved. We kissed for a long time and then he finally came up for air. Then he repositioned himself and started to gently push me back towards the ground. I pulled away, sliding back and pushing him away with my feet as I moved.
"Slow down," I said, out of breath.
He pouted. "I've been thinking kissing you since I first saw you, Malfoy. So, you see, it's quite hard to slow down."
I raised my eyebrows. "That's pretty creepy." As I spoke, I pulled myself back up to a sitting position. Jonathan moved closer and took my hands in his. He slid my hair out of my face with his other hand.
"It was everything I imagined," he whispered.
"We're not together," I said quickly.
He smirked as he raised an eyebrow.
My face flushed and I felt it turning red at that moment. "I just started to get to know you," I sputtered.
"Oh I see," he said, with a disbelieving look on his face. After a few moments, he shrugged. "I'll take any chance I have." Then he reached in to kiss me again. I only let it go on for a moment before pulling away.
"That's not really slowing down," I said, in between breaths. He pulled away and then laid down on the ground, positioning his head so he could look right up at me.
"Is that even possible? I love this spinning feeling."
I hugged my knees to my chest and didn't meet his eyes.
Jonathan's face switched from a nonchalant, carefree expression to a more serious one. He sat up straight and sat cross-legged across from me, not close enough for our knees to touch. He placed his palms on his thighs and then finally spoke. "Hey, I'm really sorry. I got a bit carried away."
I nodded at him. "It felt good. But. I just needed to stop for a moment. You're only the second person I've ever kissed, you know."
As soon as I said it, I wished I hadn't. Jonathan's eyebrows flew up and he smiled, teasingly.
"Oh? Who was the first?"
I looked away. "It doesn't matter. It just doesn't happen often, okay?"
He nodded. His eyes seemed to grow distant all of the sudden.
"It doesn't for me either. At home, all my parents ever cared about was my skills and studies. It was all work, study, practice, all the time. There never really was a lot of time for any socializing of any sort. I was homeschooled up until I got my Hogwarts letter."
I wondered what it would be like to almost never see other children, to grow up like that. "Is it the same with your younger sister?"
Jonathan's face darkened even further. "She's pretty much a wallflower. She's invisible. No one pays attention to her so she goes to school and pretty much does whatever she wants. I don't know why."
My eyes were wide as I listened. "It was not that way for me at all," I whispered back. "For me…it was…well it was either fun or it was hell, depending on who Father was favoring at the time."
Jonathan nodded. His body slackened and he leaned back on his arms and extended his legs. I finally relaxed as well and laid down on the grass, looking up at the darkening sky. After a few quiet moments, I heard his whisper.
"Hey, Luc?"
It still sounded different than when Alex said it.
"Yes?" I asked.
"Can I kiss you again? That's all I'll do."
I glanced at him and then, finally, nodded. Slowly, he crawled over to where I was lying down and gently settled himself over my body with his, holding himself up with his arms. Then, he kissed me. And it was everything I had imagined.
