A/N: This is the extended version of my 'More' drabble from The World in Snippets collection. I loved it too much to sacrifice it to the 400 word limit, so I decided to post it here – with a few new additions.

Subtext

"You love me, right?"

Draco stared at the redhead in surprise. "What?"

There had always been an unspoken agreement between them to never mention the 'L' word. He didn't understand why she would ask him this now.

Ginny shrugged, stuffing her hands in her pockets as she drew circles in the sand with the tip of her shoe. "Everyone's been talking."

"Oh, really?" he asked, pardonably irritated. "And what have they been saying?"

"They say that you don't really care about me; that you'll just leave me for someone else once you get bored." Her eyes lifted back to his, and he could see the resignation in her expression. "You don't have to deny it; I know it's true. I knew when I first started dating you what you were like."

"Why ask me if I love you at all, then?" Draco asked, turning his back on her. "You seem to have already made up your mind how I feel."

"Because I want to believe that what we have is different," she said softly. "I want to know that I can trust you with my heart."

Draco frowned as he watched the waves crashing against the shore. "And what if I said that I didn't know?"

"Didn't know what?"

He sighed and turned back to face her. "Ginny, if I said to you right now that I love you, it would be a lie. I don't know if I love you; I just know that I like being with you." He shrugged. "You make me happy."

She stared down at her feet, her face pale. Obviously, that was not the answer she was hoping for.

Draco ran a hand through his hair. "I don't know what else to say to you. I know you want me to say those words, but I can't. I can't lie to you."

She shook her head. "It's not enough just to like me, Draco. You say I make you happy now, but what about in a month? What about in two months? I can't be with you if I'm always scared you're just going to leave me. I'm not like you; I can't just let things go and move onto the next person as if nothing has happened."

"Ginny," he sighed, closing the distance between them. He took her face in his hands and looked intently into her brown eyes. "I do care about you."

"Then prove it."

He met her stubborn look and realised that she was not going to let the matter go. She wanted an answer, and she wanted it now. It was just difficult when he didn't know the answer himself. But he also knew that she would walk away right now if he screwed this up. That was the problem with Ginny; she was frustratingly consistent at keeping her word.

"Fine." He stepped back from her, his eyes hard but determined. "You want proof? Then here's your proof. My whole life I've always wanted more: more power, more women – more everything. I could never be satisfied with what I had, because I always knew there was something better out there." His expression softened as he reached out to caress her cheek. "And then I found you."

"What are you saying?"

"I'm saying, Ginny, that when I'm with you I don't want more; I just want you." He sighed, dropping his hand from her face. "I know this isn't the grand declaration of love you were looking for, but—"

Ginny placed her finger against his lips. "Don't."

"Don't what?"he asked in a muffled voice.

"Don't ruin it." She smiled and removed her finger from his lips. "You don't need to say anything more. I understand."

A crease formed on his brow. "Understand what?"

"It doesn't matter." She leaned against him, sharing his warmth. "I just realised something, that's all."

Draco frowned and wrapped his arm loosely around her, holding her close as they stood there together on the beach. He wasn't exactly sure what he had said to make her change her mind, but he was relieved that she had all the same. He'd been afraid that she'd be expecting him to start walking on water or perform some other fantastical feat in order to prove his loyalty to her.

"Draco?"

"Mm?"

She leaned up and pressed her lips softly against his. "I love you."

"Ginny, I—"

"I know," she said with a smile. "You can't say the words back, right?"

He nodded.

"It's okay." She huddled closer to him. "I don't mind."

Because one day you will.

He did not hear her unspoken words, but then he didn't need to.

Draco placed a kiss on her forehead. "We should go inside. It's getting cold."

"Alright."

She tucked her hand in his, giving him a small smile as she walked with him, and together they headed back towards the villa with their hands, and their hearts, entwined as one. He had not been able to say those three words, but then, as Ginny had said, it didn't really matter. The words were still there, and sometimes a simple confession was indeed more than enough.