A/N: I'm baaaaaaaaack! Sorry it's taken so long...I'm kinda working on some
other things, and just haven't really found the time...but here it is!
Enjoy!
He broke the silence first.
"What," he gulped, "what are you doing here?"
"Essay," she said simply. He nodded in understanding.
"That stupid thing? Snape assigns it every year to whoever he feels is his best student of the sixth year class."
"But why me?" she blurted out. "I'm nowhere near as smart as Colin or..."
"Ginny," he said, holding up his hand to stop her. "I said best, not most intelligent. There's a difference. You could be the most brilliant wizard, or witch, in the world, but Potions is about brewing and mixing, not about quill and parchment, like Creevy. You have skill Ginny. You're damn good. I'm not surprised he chose you."
"Yeah, well right about now I'd give anything to be the most brilliant witch in the world," she muttered under her breath, sighing before returning to her work.
"Do you want some help?" he asked quietly. She looked up at him, her face a mixture of disbelief and shock.
"But...what...are you sure that's a good idea?" she asked hesitantly.
"Ginny look, I know what I said hurt you a lot, but there are things you don't know about me, don't understand. My father..."
"No Draco, you don't understand! Don't you get it? I don't care about any of that stuff!" she burst in. "I don't care about who our parents or our families are, or what they think of each other. I don't care who our friends are or what houses we're in. I don't care! All I care about is what we have, and what we think of each other. And you're right. There are things I don't know and understand about you. But right now, the only thing I don't understand is why you push away the people you care about. I've seen that other side of you Draco, the one you try so hard to bury. Why do you do that? Why are you trying so hard to build a wall around your heart? And don't you dare say I won't understand. I think I've proven that I will." She finished, slightly out of breath and cheeks tinged pink from her outburst.
"It's not as easy for me as it is for you! You grew up in a home, surrounded by people that love you. Me, I grew up in a cold mansion with a father who's only reason to ever talk to me was to tell me how worthless I was, when he was in the mood for talking that is, rather than just beating the crap out of me and telling me to 'toughen up'. And my mother who, despite that fact that yes, she did love me, was too afraid to ever show it. I've never been loved before, Ginny. Merlin, I don't even know what love means!"
"So why not learn now?" she asked softly, her heart going out to him. He wasn't a cold, slimy git; he was just a lost little boy looking for love.
"Because...because...because I'm afraid," he said, hanging his head in deafeat.
"What are you so afraid of?" she asked.
"I'm afraid of...of finding that perfect woman, the one I adore and who is absolutely breath-taking, and falling so completely in love that I lose sense of everything else, and then somehow screwing it up."
"Well, I hate to be the bearer of bad news," she said, "but you kinda already did that. At least, I hope you did."
"What? You hope I did?" he asked.
"Well yeah, 'cuz that would mean that I was that perfect woman, the one you adore," she said, his trademark smirk playing her lips.
He smiled for a second, but then he frowned again.
"What?" she asked. "What's wrong?"
"You are the perfect woman," he said hoarsely.
"And what's wrong with that?" she asked, not following his train of thought.
"Well, it means that I hurt you that much more."
"Oh," she said quietly, and lapsed into silence. She looked up at him, right into his eyes. She saw the pain, the guilt; but she also saw the hope...
"I'm sorry Ginny," he said, barely audible. "I'm sorry for what I said and did, and how I treated you. I'm sorry for everything. If I could take it all back, I would, but I can't. So the best I can do is stand here and tell you how I really feel."
"And how is that?" she asked.
"I think...I think that I might be falling for you Ginny," he said nervously. She smiled and said,
"Well, that's perfect, because I think I'm falling for you too, Draco." He looked at her incredulously, and she nodded as if to confirm his unasked questions. She walked over to him and wrapped her arms around his shoulders, softly breathing in the scent of him. He wove his arms around her waist and stood still, relishing in the feeling of being with her. She pulled back and kissed him softly on the lips. They kissed several more times, chaste little pecks. Then he deepened the kiss, opening her mouth under his. She kissed him back, offering him everything she had to give. Eventually, they ran out of air and broke apart. She smiled broadly and said,
"So...about that help?"
A/N: Only two chappies to go...*tear* It's so sad! I don't want it to be done! But alas, all good things must come to an end eventually, non? But fear not! Another fic is in the works...a little one-shot about Valentine's Day...yes, I know it's late...I didn't get the idea until after V-day and then it's been slow going...but it's getting there, so keep an eye out for it...it's called 'Cheesy Poems and Secret Admirers' I think...au revoir!
He broke the silence first.
"What," he gulped, "what are you doing here?"
"Essay," she said simply. He nodded in understanding.
"That stupid thing? Snape assigns it every year to whoever he feels is his best student of the sixth year class."
"But why me?" she blurted out. "I'm nowhere near as smart as Colin or..."
"Ginny," he said, holding up his hand to stop her. "I said best, not most intelligent. There's a difference. You could be the most brilliant wizard, or witch, in the world, but Potions is about brewing and mixing, not about quill and parchment, like Creevy. You have skill Ginny. You're damn good. I'm not surprised he chose you."
"Yeah, well right about now I'd give anything to be the most brilliant witch in the world," she muttered under her breath, sighing before returning to her work.
"Do you want some help?" he asked quietly. She looked up at him, her face a mixture of disbelief and shock.
"But...what...are you sure that's a good idea?" she asked hesitantly.
"Ginny look, I know what I said hurt you a lot, but there are things you don't know about me, don't understand. My father..."
"No Draco, you don't understand! Don't you get it? I don't care about any of that stuff!" she burst in. "I don't care about who our parents or our families are, or what they think of each other. I don't care who our friends are or what houses we're in. I don't care! All I care about is what we have, and what we think of each other. And you're right. There are things I don't know and understand about you. But right now, the only thing I don't understand is why you push away the people you care about. I've seen that other side of you Draco, the one you try so hard to bury. Why do you do that? Why are you trying so hard to build a wall around your heart? And don't you dare say I won't understand. I think I've proven that I will." She finished, slightly out of breath and cheeks tinged pink from her outburst.
"It's not as easy for me as it is for you! You grew up in a home, surrounded by people that love you. Me, I grew up in a cold mansion with a father who's only reason to ever talk to me was to tell me how worthless I was, when he was in the mood for talking that is, rather than just beating the crap out of me and telling me to 'toughen up'. And my mother who, despite that fact that yes, she did love me, was too afraid to ever show it. I've never been loved before, Ginny. Merlin, I don't even know what love means!"
"So why not learn now?" she asked softly, her heart going out to him. He wasn't a cold, slimy git; he was just a lost little boy looking for love.
"Because...because...because I'm afraid," he said, hanging his head in deafeat.
"What are you so afraid of?" she asked.
"I'm afraid of...of finding that perfect woman, the one I adore and who is absolutely breath-taking, and falling so completely in love that I lose sense of everything else, and then somehow screwing it up."
"Well, I hate to be the bearer of bad news," she said, "but you kinda already did that. At least, I hope you did."
"What? You hope I did?" he asked.
"Well yeah, 'cuz that would mean that I was that perfect woman, the one you adore," she said, his trademark smirk playing her lips.
He smiled for a second, but then he frowned again.
"What?" she asked. "What's wrong?"
"You are the perfect woman," he said hoarsely.
"And what's wrong with that?" she asked, not following his train of thought.
"Well, it means that I hurt you that much more."
"Oh," she said quietly, and lapsed into silence. She looked up at him, right into his eyes. She saw the pain, the guilt; but she also saw the hope...
"I'm sorry Ginny," he said, barely audible. "I'm sorry for what I said and did, and how I treated you. I'm sorry for everything. If I could take it all back, I would, but I can't. So the best I can do is stand here and tell you how I really feel."
"And how is that?" she asked.
"I think...I think that I might be falling for you Ginny," he said nervously. She smiled and said,
"Well, that's perfect, because I think I'm falling for you too, Draco." He looked at her incredulously, and she nodded as if to confirm his unasked questions. She walked over to him and wrapped her arms around his shoulders, softly breathing in the scent of him. He wove his arms around her waist and stood still, relishing in the feeling of being with her. She pulled back and kissed him softly on the lips. They kissed several more times, chaste little pecks. Then he deepened the kiss, opening her mouth under his. She kissed him back, offering him everything she had to give. Eventually, they ran out of air and broke apart. She smiled broadly and said,
"So...about that help?"
A/N: Only two chappies to go...*tear* It's so sad! I don't want it to be done! But alas, all good things must come to an end eventually, non? But fear not! Another fic is in the works...a little one-shot about Valentine's Day...yes, I know it's late...I didn't get the idea until after V-day and then it's been slow going...but it's getting there, so keep an eye out for it...it's called 'Cheesy Poems and Secret Admirers' I think...au revoir!