centerCHAPTER: FOUR/center
Draco was in a conference meeting when his cellular phone rang, two months after he had almost kissed Cho. He excused himself to his colleagues and went outside the conference room. "Draco Malfoy."
"Hey Draco! It's Cho. I hope I'm not interrupting or anything."
Smiling, he spoke, "Hey Cho. No, that's fine. What's up?" He looked at his colleagues from outside. All of them were in a bad mood. They were discussing a very critical litigation case. They couldn't go on with the case because Draco was their boss. It was already six in the evening.
"I have some good news. You will never guess what happened." By the sound of her voice, Draco noted that this news must have a celebration.
"I give up. All my brain can tell me is about this case my colleagues are discussing about."
"Oh, I'm sorry to hear that. But if it makes you feel better," she paused, "I have my own gallery!" she almost shrieked at him. Draco felt a little tingling inside his ear when she spoke.
"Great news that is, Cho. Where is it?" Bob, one of Draco's colleagues tapped on the glass wall then tapped at his watch. Draco nodded and showed him his palm to tell him to hold on.
"It's at Connecticut and M Street. Just off the corner of Conn. Oh my god, Draco. I'm so happy." She was almost shouting again.
"I'm sure you are," Draco chuckled. "Can we celebrate? I'm almost done here."
"Sure, why not. I'm just two blocks away from your office. I'm still here at the gallery. Just call me when you're done. I still have to speak with the contractor."
"Sure thing, Cho. All right, see you later."
"Mmkay, god I still can't believe it. Oh well, all right, I'm stopping. Bye." Then she hung up.
Draco went back inside the conference room. All of his colleagues straightened up as he sat down.
"Okay, let's drop this tonight and discuss it further on Monday at eight in the morning. We still have a month to deal with this and we are almost done." He looked at his colleagues and all of them nodded in glee. "All right then, meeting adjourned." They slowly stood up, not touching the scattered papers on the table. Joan, another lawyer who worked with Draco in this case, left a post-it with a message to the cleaners; saying not to touch anything inside the conference room on the glass door.
center~~~~/center
"Wow, Cho. This is a huge gallery!" Draco exclaimed as he stepped inside of Cho's new art gallery. They just had dinner and Draco insisted to check the gallery out.
"I know. I still can't believe I have one." She was grinning from ear to ear.
"Well, you do deserve to be known, Cho. I mean, your art are really priceless. Sometimes I wonder what took you so long to paint," Draco looked at her with a teasing smile.
"Oh, stop it. Don't ruin my night, Draco. Come here, I want to show you something. I already put some paintings and I'm thinking if that painting should be placed at the entrance." She gestured him to follow her and brought him to a secluded area of the gallery.
What Draco saw was not expected. It was a painting of Cho and Harry when they were in Hogwarts. Draco felt the burn of jealousy on his chest and couldn't speak for a moment.
"I did this when Harry and Severus were here last weekend. You were at Detroit that time remember? Anyway, Harry saw a picture of ours when we dated back then and told me to paint it. They were both impressed."
Draco didn't say anything. He only nodded. Not even meeting Cho's eyes, even though he knew she was looking at him.
"Is there something wrong, Draco?" Cho moved a little closer and looked at him.
Draco's face felt hot. He knew it was absurd to be jealous but he couldn't help himself. iMaybe I was expecting something that deals with our relationship./i
"Draco?" Cho touched Draco's shoulder.
"I'm fine." He quickly turned around and past Cho. "That painting would be an appropriate painting for the entrance." His back was turned against Cho as he spoke. He heard footsteps. Cho was moving closer to him. He couldn't stand it. He wanted some air. He couldn't breathe. Jealousy was suffocating him.
"Draco, it's..."
"No really," he faced Cho, not showing how jealous he was. Her face was in confusion. She was searching into Draco's eyes what was wrong. "You and Harry really look good on that painting, as I have said, you have the talent for it. That would be a good painting for the entrance," he said dryly.
She moved closer, "But it's..."
Finally, he couldn't breathe. He needed to leave. "I have to go." He turned his back against Cho once more and slowly walked away.
"Draco, what's wrong?" She slightly raised his voice. She was getting irritated with Draco's actions. iOne minute, you were fine. And now, you're not. What the heck is wrong with you?/i
"I don't know Cho," he said, still not facing Cho. "I just.... I can't explain it. It might be too soon or too late. I just... I need some air. I'll talk to you tomorrow." With that, he left the gallery.
Cho couldn't move. She was too stunned with Draco's statement. "What was he talking about?"
center~~~~/center
Draco went back to his office. He felt his face was hot. He was angry with himself for being rude to Cho and stopping her for speaking. But he couldn't help to be jealous. He was deep in his thoughts as he saw an owl sitting on top of his computer. Draco was shocked when he saw it. He looked around and noticed that his window on the far most corner of the room was slightly opened. When he came close to the owl, he immediately detected who owned it. It was the Malfoy's eagle owl and there, lying on top of his keyboard, was a letter with his name on it.
He saw his name written on the envelope in black ink. He looked at the back and saw the Malfoy's crest. He opened the letter and began to read it.
centeriDraco,
I know that you are still angry with me but please, read my plea before you tear this letter.
I'm sorry for not giving you the perfect family. If I only knew what kind of a man I married, I would definitely change my mind about it. But Draco, I tried to get in touch with you but it seems you already put distance between us and that distance is aching inside my heart. I love you, my son. Don't ever think that I don't.
I want to get to the point, Draco. I am terribly ill. I won't live long enough. The doctor told me that my time has come and that won't be long. I have leukemia and no doctor in the world can help me.
I beg you, my son, to visit me here at the Manor. I long for your warm embrace and the gentle kiss you always give me on my cheek. At least, if I die, I would be happy. This is my final request to you, my son. Please come and visit me.
I love you my son, Mother/center/i
Draco slowly folded the letter. He couldn't control his emotions and began to cry.
center~~~~/center
Cho just got home. She immediately checked her answering machine if she got any messages. None. There was no message in her answering machine. She checked her cell phone's voicemail but still, no message. She checked the time. It was already twelve midnight.
iWhat's wrong with you, Draco?/i She wondered.
center~~~~/center
Cho woke up with a headache. She walked slowly to the bathroom and took one headache relief tablet from her medicine cabinet. While she was washing her face, there was a knock on the door.
"In a minute," she wondered who would be up at eight o'clock on a Saturday morning. She gently dried her face and went to the front door. She opened the door.
"Cho Chang?" an old man, maybe in his late forties, asked Cho. He was a courier for UPS.
"Yes, that's me. May I help you?" Cho said as she adjusted the tightness of her robes.
"You have a package," he gave Cho a large envelope. "And I need you to sign here," he pointed at the sheet where random names and signatures were usually signed.
Cho clipped the envelope under her arms as she signed her name. She said thanks to the courier and wished him a pleasant weekend.
Cho closed the door and looked curiously at the package. There was no return address. She sat on the sofa and immediately opened the package. What she saw inside was a plane ticket and a small note that read:
centeriCho,
By the time you are reading this, I'm on the plane to see my mother. I have enclosed a plane ticket for you, if you wish to follow. I could not wait for you and I left after three hours we parted. I need to see my mother immediately.
Mother wrote to me and asked to see me. She needs me since she's close to dying. I need to end my matters with my mother. I will tell you everything about it when I see you.
I don't have any explanations for my actions last night, but Cho I need you. You are the only one who understands me. If you wish to stay there, I understand. I'm sorry Cho for what I did. I know I was acting a like a jerk last night but I couldn't explain it to you thru this letter.
Please forgive me, Draco/center /i
Cho carefully folded the letter; her eyes wandered thru the window and began to think.
*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+**+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+**+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*
A/N: Please leave review!!! Thanks!
Draco was in a conference meeting when his cellular phone rang, two months after he had almost kissed Cho. He excused himself to his colleagues and went outside the conference room. "Draco Malfoy."
"Hey Draco! It's Cho. I hope I'm not interrupting or anything."
Smiling, he spoke, "Hey Cho. No, that's fine. What's up?" He looked at his colleagues from outside. All of them were in a bad mood. They were discussing a very critical litigation case. They couldn't go on with the case because Draco was their boss. It was already six in the evening.
"I have some good news. You will never guess what happened." By the sound of her voice, Draco noted that this news must have a celebration.
"I give up. All my brain can tell me is about this case my colleagues are discussing about."
"Oh, I'm sorry to hear that. But if it makes you feel better," she paused, "I have my own gallery!" she almost shrieked at him. Draco felt a little tingling inside his ear when she spoke.
"Great news that is, Cho. Where is it?" Bob, one of Draco's colleagues tapped on the glass wall then tapped at his watch. Draco nodded and showed him his palm to tell him to hold on.
"It's at Connecticut and M Street. Just off the corner of Conn. Oh my god, Draco. I'm so happy." She was almost shouting again.
"I'm sure you are," Draco chuckled. "Can we celebrate? I'm almost done here."
"Sure, why not. I'm just two blocks away from your office. I'm still here at the gallery. Just call me when you're done. I still have to speak with the contractor."
"Sure thing, Cho. All right, see you later."
"Mmkay, god I still can't believe it. Oh well, all right, I'm stopping. Bye." Then she hung up.
Draco went back inside the conference room. All of his colleagues straightened up as he sat down.
"Okay, let's drop this tonight and discuss it further on Monday at eight in the morning. We still have a month to deal with this and we are almost done." He looked at his colleagues and all of them nodded in glee. "All right then, meeting adjourned." They slowly stood up, not touching the scattered papers on the table. Joan, another lawyer who worked with Draco in this case, left a post-it with a message to the cleaners; saying not to touch anything inside the conference room on the glass door.
center~~~~/center
"Wow, Cho. This is a huge gallery!" Draco exclaimed as he stepped inside of Cho's new art gallery. They just had dinner and Draco insisted to check the gallery out.
"I know. I still can't believe I have one." She was grinning from ear to ear.
"Well, you do deserve to be known, Cho. I mean, your art are really priceless. Sometimes I wonder what took you so long to paint," Draco looked at her with a teasing smile.
"Oh, stop it. Don't ruin my night, Draco. Come here, I want to show you something. I already put some paintings and I'm thinking if that painting should be placed at the entrance." She gestured him to follow her and brought him to a secluded area of the gallery.
What Draco saw was not expected. It was a painting of Cho and Harry when they were in Hogwarts. Draco felt the burn of jealousy on his chest and couldn't speak for a moment.
"I did this when Harry and Severus were here last weekend. You were at Detroit that time remember? Anyway, Harry saw a picture of ours when we dated back then and told me to paint it. They were both impressed."
Draco didn't say anything. He only nodded. Not even meeting Cho's eyes, even though he knew she was looking at him.
"Is there something wrong, Draco?" Cho moved a little closer and looked at him.
Draco's face felt hot. He knew it was absurd to be jealous but he couldn't help himself. iMaybe I was expecting something that deals with our relationship./i
"Draco?" Cho touched Draco's shoulder.
"I'm fine." He quickly turned around and past Cho. "That painting would be an appropriate painting for the entrance." His back was turned against Cho as he spoke. He heard footsteps. Cho was moving closer to him. He couldn't stand it. He wanted some air. He couldn't breathe. Jealousy was suffocating him.
"Draco, it's..."
"No really," he faced Cho, not showing how jealous he was. Her face was in confusion. She was searching into Draco's eyes what was wrong. "You and Harry really look good on that painting, as I have said, you have the talent for it. That would be a good painting for the entrance," he said dryly.
She moved closer, "But it's..."
Finally, he couldn't breathe. He needed to leave. "I have to go." He turned his back against Cho once more and slowly walked away.
"Draco, what's wrong?" She slightly raised his voice. She was getting irritated with Draco's actions. iOne minute, you were fine. And now, you're not. What the heck is wrong with you?/i
"I don't know Cho," he said, still not facing Cho. "I just.... I can't explain it. It might be too soon or too late. I just... I need some air. I'll talk to you tomorrow." With that, he left the gallery.
Cho couldn't move. She was too stunned with Draco's statement. "What was he talking about?"
center~~~~/center
Draco went back to his office. He felt his face was hot. He was angry with himself for being rude to Cho and stopping her for speaking. But he couldn't help to be jealous. He was deep in his thoughts as he saw an owl sitting on top of his computer. Draco was shocked when he saw it. He looked around and noticed that his window on the far most corner of the room was slightly opened. When he came close to the owl, he immediately detected who owned it. It was the Malfoy's eagle owl and there, lying on top of his keyboard, was a letter with his name on it.
He saw his name written on the envelope in black ink. He looked at the back and saw the Malfoy's crest. He opened the letter and began to read it.
centeriDraco,
I know that you are still angry with me but please, read my plea before you tear this letter.
I'm sorry for not giving you the perfect family. If I only knew what kind of a man I married, I would definitely change my mind about it. But Draco, I tried to get in touch with you but it seems you already put distance between us and that distance is aching inside my heart. I love you, my son. Don't ever think that I don't.
I want to get to the point, Draco. I am terribly ill. I won't live long enough. The doctor told me that my time has come and that won't be long. I have leukemia and no doctor in the world can help me.
I beg you, my son, to visit me here at the Manor. I long for your warm embrace and the gentle kiss you always give me on my cheek. At least, if I die, I would be happy. This is my final request to you, my son. Please come and visit me.
I love you my son, Mother/center/i
Draco slowly folded the letter. He couldn't control his emotions and began to cry.
center~~~~/center
Cho just got home. She immediately checked her answering machine if she got any messages. None. There was no message in her answering machine. She checked her cell phone's voicemail but still, no message. She checked the time. It was already twelve midnight.
iWhat's wrong with you, Draco?/i She wondered.
center~~~~/center
Cho woke up with a headache. She walked slowly to the bathroom and took one headache relief tablet from her medicine cabinet. While she was washing her face, there was a knock on the door.
"In a minute," she wondered who would be up at eight o'clock on a Saturday morning. She gently dried her face and went to the front door. She opened the door.
"Cho Chang?" an old man, maybe in his late forties, asked Cho. He was a courier for UPS.
"Yes, that's me. May I help you?" Cho said as she adjusted the tightness of her robes.
"You have a package," he gave Cho a large envelope. "And I need you to sign here," he pointed at the sheet where random names and signatures were usually signed.
Cho clipped the envelope under her arms as she signed her name. She said thanks to the courier and wished him a pleasant weekend.
Cho closed the door and looked curiously at the package. There was no return address. She sat on the sofa and immediately opened the package. What she saw inside was a plane ticket and a small note that read:
centeriCho,
By the time you are reading this, I'm on the plane to see my mother. I have enclosed a plane ticket for you, if you wish to follow. I could not wait for you and I left after three hours we parted. I need to see my mother immediately.
Mother wrote to me and asked to see me. She needs me since she's close to dying. I need to end my matters with my mother. I will tell you everything about it when I see you.
I don't have any explanations for my actions last night, but Cho I need you. You are the only one who understands me. If you wish to stay there, I understand. I'm sorry Cho for what I did. I know I was acting a like a jerk last night but I couldn't explain it to you thru this letter.
Please forgive me, Draco/center /i
Cho carefully folded the letter; her eyes wandered thru the window and began to think.
*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+**+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+**+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*
A/N: Please leave review!!! Thanks!
