Wow, two chapters in one night. xD

Chapter 17

The crowd was silent. Shocked at the young Malfoy's outburst about love, of all things. They all began chattering about it as Hermione ran out the doors after him as fast as she could in high heels.

She found him sitting on a bench near the entrance to the maze, head in hands and muttering to himself. "Draco?" She asked quietly, gaining his attention. "Are you alright?"

He looked at her, concerned and beautiful. Here, because of him. "Yeah, I'm fine. Sorry about that. She gets on my nerves with her bullshit, sometimes." He admitted sheepishly. She smiled and once again he could swear his heart was trying to become a racer.

"I figured that." She said, sitting next to him. She nudged his shoulder and smirked at him. "So, who is it, then?" She asked. He looked at her questioningly. "Who is it that you're in love with?"

He flushed even more. "I can't say." He muttered, looking down, afraid his eyes would betray him.

"C'mon, you can tell me. I won't tell anyone, let alone your mother." She said lightly, making him laugh. "You can trust me." She said sweetly.

He looked at her, pleading to know his answer. But he couldn't tell her. Not because he thought she wasn't ready, but because he was just too chicken to find out. "Sorry, Granger." He smirked. "No can do." He said simply, crossing his arms.

She pouted at him. "Please?" She begged. "If you tell me, I'll... set you up with her." She said, like she knew everything about this person. Which, really, she did. "Do I at least know her?"

He nodded and she encouraged him to tell her more. Well, if she wanted to know, he was going to tell her. "Okay, I'll tell you about her." He relented and she looked excited. "She's smart, beautiful, everything I need and want." He said in one breath and she sighed excitedly. "She's got this way of making me smile, that nobody else does. And she's so different to what is expected that I don't know how to deal with it."

"Does she know you love her?" He shook his head and she frowned. "You have to tell her, Draco." She said softly. "Even if you're afraid. She would probably like to know. And if she's as amazing as she sounds, then she'll love you as much as you love her." She was so compassionate; it was beginning to scare him.

He sighed heavily. "I can never tell her. She would never love me back." He said, putting his head in his hands. He felt her warm hands on his shoulders. "I've been cruel to her in the past."

"I got over that, surely she can, too." She put in.

"She's not ready for another relationship yet. I might screw her up even more. There are so many reasons not to tell her." He told her.

She sighed and pulled his head up to look at her. "But there is one reason you should tell her. Because you love her. And in my opinion, that counts more than anything else."

He looked at her. The light in her eyes was real. It was coming from the light shining in her heart. He couldn't tell her, it would probably make the light fade again. "I can't." He muttered.

"Why not?" She was getting frustrated now. "Why the hell not? If you love he as much as you say, then you should let her know. Don't let her live her life without letting her know how much she means to you. If you don't, then you're not half the man I thought you were."

Her words stung him like a sword piercing his heart. He gulped as she stood up. It was now or never. "Hermione, I-I... It's you." He blurted out. "I'm in love with YOU."

She stopped and turned to face him, shocked. "M-me?" She squeaked. "You love me?" She asked, falling back on to the seat. "No, no you can't."

"Why not?" He asked.

"You said, you said that I was all those things. But I'm not! And – and, I can't love you." She admitted, but immediately regretted it. It wasn't meant to come out like that!

He stood abruptly, unable to speak. His heart was shattering. He gave her one last look, before turning his face to stone and walking briskly to the quidditch shed.

HGDMHGDM

"Hermione?" Someone asked, snapping her out of it. She had been sitting there for a good five minutes, her thoughts blank. "Hermione are you okay?" It was Harry. He sat down next to her, taking her hand in his. "What's wrong? You look like you've just seen Filch in a wedding dress." He joked.

"I- well, oh, Merlin." She made no sense.

"What's wrong? Did something happen between you and Malfoy? Did you have a fight?" She shook her head. "Then, what?"

"He-he loves me." She stated. Harry's eyes widened. "Me." She repeated. "He just admitted that he's in love with me. Right here."

"He... did?" Harry asked stupidly. She nodded, turning to him.

"And me, I was... Oh, Merlin, I was horrid!" She cried. Harry encouraged her to tell him what happened. "I said that I couldn't love him." She finally blurted out. "And I didn't mean it like that... How did I mean it? I don't know!"

"Whoa, wait up. What do you mean you can't love him? As in, you don't love him in that way? Or is it just that you can't love?"

She looked at Harry with a horrified expression. "No, I didn't mean it like that at all. He was telling me how this girl was amazing and how she could never love him, and I just really... I guess it should have really been a question, more than a statement. It should have been 'I can't love you?' and then followed by a 'what do you mean?'"

"He's afraid to hurt you." He muttered. "And you've just hurt him instead."

She looked even more horrified. "Oh God, what have I done?" She asked.

"Do you love him, Hermione?" As much as it hurt Harry to ask this, he had to. It was one of his best friend's love life, after all.

She looked at him, confused for a second. Her mind mulling over the question. She remembered all those times he had hurt her in school, and how much of an arse he had been. But then she remembered how he had held and comforted her when she cried. And how he protected her from Viktor the way he had. She had seen how compassionate he could be, even if he hadn't meant her to. How much he cared for those close to him. How much he cared for... her.

He'd changed. He'd become a man, who had admitted that he was in love with her.

She looked at Harry. "Yes, Harry. I love him." She said loudly, before getting up from the bench, hiking her dress up and kicking off her heels. "I'll see you later." She said with determination in her eyes. "I've got someone I need to speak to." She said softly, trekking toward the gardens, where she knew he would be hitting a bludger around on a broomstick.

HGDMHGDM

As he hit the bludger with the beater's stick, he felt some of his tension melt away. But his mind just kept replaying her shocked facial expression and her answer.

The bludger came back at him with a vengeance and he hit it extra hard, grunting as he felt his wrist joint crack. How stupid could he be? He just had to blurt it out. He had known she wouldn't return his feelings. He had known it would probably hurt her, too.

Droplets of rain began falling down on his head and he ignored them. He didn't care anymore. He should just stop it.

But then her concerned face appeared in his mind and he flinched. How could he not care for her? She was just... amazing. Everything he had said was true. Everything.

He suddenly became aware of someone trudging onto the field below. It was her. He ignored her, keeping in mind how much she had hurt him tonight, and putting all his anger into hitting the bludger into oblivion.

The rain became heavier and still she stood, just watching. She was going to catch her death out in the rain like that. He looked down at her figure, looking up at him, pushing her now wet hair out of her face.

With a sigh, he headed down toward her, his heart beating once more. He didn't dismount. Just looking at her.

"Draco, I'm sorry –"

"I know you are. It's fine. I know you could never love me, blah, blah, blah." He stated in a monotone. "Just leave it be, Granger, I'll get over it."

She flinched and he felt guilt hit him. "No, that's not what I mean. Draco, just listen, please?" She pleaded with him. He nodded reluctantly, dismounting. "I didn't mean what I said, Draco. Nothing. Not one bit. When you told me, yes, I was shocked. I thought it would never be me." She had to shout over the rain.

He transfigured the broomstick into a shelter. "Look, Granger, I understand –"

"Will you shut up?" She snapped. He put his hands up in surrender and she continued. "What I said – it was stupid. I didn't mean to say it. Honestly, it was meant to be phrased as a question. What one earth made you think I would never love you?"

He stared at her. "Everything. You're too good for me, Hermione." He said gently.

Hermione shook her head. "No, no, Draco. Don't you ever think that."

"What are you saying?" He asked suspiciously.

"I'm saying that-that I love you too, Draco." She said honestly. All he could do was stare at her and gape. She cleared her throat. Had he changed his mind? "Draco?" She waved a hand in front of his face, snapping him out of it. "Well?"

"Well... I don't know what to say... only – bloody hell!" He went right up to her and pulled her face toward his, kissing her passionately. Her eyes widened in surprise, and then fluttered shut in bliss.

He hands went to his waist as he attacked her mouth with passion.

They pulled apart, smiling at one another. "Merlin, Hermione. Didn't know I could make you so wet." He joked, pulling her hair. She responded by smacking him upside the head, grinning.

Unbeknownst to them, a certain Slytherin and Gryffindor watched, bit smiles on their faces. Ginny grinned to Pansy, who looked back at the lights of the party, knowing that there was definitely going to be a riot.