A/N: Hello loves! This will be a brief two chapter fluffy-lovey fic. I didn't do much back story for this one, but think of it in the same vein as my stories You Called Me 'Darling', and A First Time for Everything. If you haven't read those and like the relationship you see here, you may enjoy reading those as well - but this will be a stand alone piece.

Short and sweet - enjoy! Please comment and tell me what you think! xoxoxo

I do not own Harry Potter.

His day began with a late start. That alone made him a bit flustered since it so rarely happened and as the day wore on, it only went from bad to worse. Rescheduled appointments, an unproductive meeting with an absolute prick of a client, a newly hired (and basically helpless) assistant, a missed lunch, and a spilled coffee filled his morning and afternoon hours….only to be rounded out by a tongue-lashing from his department head for something that was not his fault. Needless to say, Draco was glad to have this train wreck of a day over.

He took the floo straight to Hermione's flat rather than going home to change. After the day he just had, a quiet night was just what he needed and he couldn't wait to talk to her since they had only seen each other a few times in passing that day. As the green flames died down and he stepped out of the grate into her living room, he could already feel the tension he had been carrying begin to dissipate.

Collapsing into her overstuffed couch with a heavy sigh, he leaned back and closed his eyes as he kicked off his shoes. "I'm here, Granger." He called out in no direction in particular.

Moments later, Hermione appeared in the doorway. She smiled to herself as she examined him, sprawled across her couch, eyes closed, hands clasped where they rested on his waist - he looked completely wrung out.

"Hey - I was wondering when you'd show up." She finally spoke up as she finished putting in her earrings. "You didn't feel like changing?"

"No. I came straight here." He answered without opening his eyes.

She smirked at him. She knew he had had a rough morning, but apparently his day did not end well. "So how was your meeting with Granderson?"

"Dreadful." He grumbled.

She stepped behind the couch and began massaging his shoulders - she giggled when he groaned dramatically. "Would you like to talk about it?"

"Heavens, no." His lips curled into a crooked smile. "But you could keep doing that for an hour or so, if you'd like."

She rubbed his tight shoulders for a few minutes before bending down to kiss his forehead and whisper, "I'm ready. I just need to grab my shoes." And she walked out of the room.

"Ready?" He scrunched his face in confusion. "Ready for what?"

"It's Thursday." Came the simple response from the hallway.

Fuck. It's Thursday.

Thursday nights were typically spent out with their friends at The Leaky Cauldron. Normally, it was a genuinely fun time. But normally he was not in such a foul mood.

"I completely forgot it was Thursday." He rubbed both hands roughly down his face with a heavy sigh and only then did he actually see his girlfriend in the doorway. She was wearing his favorite v-neck green jumper with her "going out pants" (as she called them) which were black and followed her every curve. To top it all off, she was wearing those shoes...they were strappy and black and made her perfect bum look somehow more perfect.

"And you look amazing." It was most definitely a compliment, but his tone was one of irritation. He really did not want to go out tonight.

"Don't sound so excited." She teased.

Standing from the couch he walked toward her. "I'm sorry, love. You do look amazing…..I just...I am really not up for going out tonight."

She smiled up at him as she reached for his loosened tie. "Was your day that awful?"

Draco toyed with her curls as he nodded and pouted pathetically. "It really was. I'm not fit to be social." He kissed her sweetly. "I'm….surly."

"You know I don't mind you when you're surly."

He couldn't help but laugh at her persistence. "I know you don't, but other people definitely don't appreciate it. Why don't you go ahead without me - I'll just head home."

"I absolutely will not." She scoffed with furrowed brows, shaking her head emphatically. "Why would I go out without you?"

She's absolutely adorable when she's feisty.

"Granger, you're all dolled up! You were obviously looking forward to going out!"

She laughed and swatted his chest with the back of her hand. "I got 'dolled up' for you, nitwit!" She leaned into him as he wrapped his arms around her. "I certainly don't go through all this effort for anybody else."

He smiled warmly at her as she blinked up at him coquettishly through her lashes. "While your effort is appreciated, it is most definitely unnecessary, witch." Bending down to kiss her forehead, he whispered against her skin. "You know that I always find you irresistible."

"You're very sweet - but you're changing the subject." She pushed away from him, her tone now all-business and headed down the hall. "I'm not going out."

"Granger… I don't want to ruin your plans!"

She spoke over her shoulder as she headed into the kitchen. "And I told you, I want to spend tonight with you." Her voice trailed off and he heard cupboards opening in the kitchen. "We'll still need to eat dinner….Let me see what I have - we may just have to order some takeaway…"

By the time he entered the kitchen, she was rummaging through the freezer, naming off their options and cook times. "I dunno, babe, I think we should just order pizza…"

"I love you."

She paused her foraging and peeked around the freezer door at him. "I'm sorry...what?"

The weight of what he said brought their banter to a halt. His feelings for her had been strongly implied and definitely understood by her over these last few weeks. Their relationship was new but was based on a solid friendship - they both knew how much they cared for each other but that particular word had not been spoken out loud. He knew it to be true for ages, but thought it best to keep it under wraps until an appropriate time - apparently his mouth thought that that time was now.

He stepped toward her, putting the box in her hand back into the freezer and shutting the door. Cradling her jaw with both hands, he kissed her softly before whispering against her lips.

"I said 'I love you'."

She blinked at him - struck dumb by those words. Not to mention the fact that her knees turned to goo when he held her face like that.

"I…" She blushed as she stammered. "What…where did that come from?"

He smiled warmly and dropped his hands to her shoulders with a gentle squeeze. Hermione Granger at a loss for words - who'd have thought?

"I've known you were amazing for ages - I just keep finding new reasons why."

She smiled and leaned into him with her hands on his chest but wouldn't meet his eyes. "Draco… I… I…" She scowled in frustration at the words that refused to come.

Raising her chin with two fingers, he looked in her eyes. "Hermione, I didn't tell you that because I'm expecting you to say anything you don't want to say." The last thing he wanted was for her to feel the need to speak words that weren't true.

Her voice was barely above a whisper. "But, I do - I just….I can't. Not just yet."

Wrapping his arms around her, he felt her exhale in a heavy sigh in his chest. He knew that she cared for him - much more than he ever thought he deserved - but she couldn't say it just yet, and that was okay. In a way, he was glad he was the first to actually say it out loud. His adoration of this witch was deep and it felt like a relief to finally allow himself to give voice to those feelings.

"Well, darling," he cleared his throat in hopes of breaking the tension, "since I was the one who ruined your plans for the evening, I must insist that you choose what we order."

She relaxed in his arms and looked up at him, glad to have a lighter subject. "Pizza sounds fabulous."

"Then pizza you shall have, my dear." He announced with a flourish of his hand as he reached in his pocket for his phone and started to dial.

Hermione giggled as she stepped toward the hall. "And since you have ruined my plans, do you mind if I go put on my comfy pants?"

He smirked. "Of course not. Do you mind if I watch you walk down the hall?" He laughed when her jaw dropped in mock indignation. "What? Those pants…"

She turned away from him with a confident air and swayed her hips a little more than necessary as she walked away. "I suppose I can't stop you."

He froze with his phone in one hand and a takeout menu in the other as he leaned out of the kitchen to watch her saunter away. "Da-amn." He breathed emphatically after she disappeared into her bedroom.

"…. hello?"

Only then did he realize that he had dialed the pizza place and the poor bloke who answered the phone was listening to him oggle his girlfriend.

"Sorry, mate. I was a bit distracted." He laughed as he brought his attention back to the task at hand.

"Rough day?"

"It really was - but it keeps getting better."

Thanks for reading - I hope that wasn't too awful cheesy! Make sure to favorite/follow so you don't miss chapter 2. Tell me your thoughts!