A/N: WOW! 17 reviews for one chapter!?! Thankeez, hugz and kisses to all you lot who reviewed! Mwah! Now, people, I am warning you, that this is SLASH!!! If you don't like it, don't read it. You think you know who the person besides Draco is? You think you know? Do you??? Well, I'm not gonna tell you in this chapter, BUT . . . read the A/N at the end of this chapter. grins sheepishly

Let Me Bleed

I lay in his arms quietly, eyes closed, waiting for the pain to end and numbness take over.

"Draco?" I hear him say softly.

I don't answer.

Why should I?

There's no point.

I'm just gonna die anyway.

"Drac?" he says again, apprehension in his voice.

"I'm still here," I manage to say quietly, without opening my eyes.

I can't bear to look at him after what I did.

It was my fault. My fault, my fault, my fault, all my fault ...

He nearly died ... the operation was nearly ruined ... because of me ...

I hear his heavy breathing. He must have run all the way here, looking for me.

"Don't worry, Drac. Help's coming ... they're on their way, Drac, everything's gonna be OK," he whispers.

No. No, it isn't.

It isn't going to be OK.

Nothing's ever going to be OK again.

All because of me.

He starts stroking my hair.

Such softness ... such gentleness in his movements ...

No.

Stop it.

Why are you doing this?

I can't stand it. How can you be nice to me when I ... he ... they ...

This is wrong. You're not supposed to be like this. You're supposed to hate me. Not help me. That's not how it's supposed to go.

"Why?" I manage to choke out.

"Why what?" he asks, never ceasing stroking my hair.

"Why are you ..." I can hardly get the words out. "After ... what I did ... how on earth can you still ...?" I trail off.

"It wasn't your fault Draco," he says firmly.

"It was," my voice sounds frayed, worn out ... old.

"It was not. Stop blaming yourself, Draco. What's done is done," he says gently, yet firmly.

"But I ... he ..." I am unable to go on.

If I had never ... with him ... none of this would have happened ...

You're so stupid, Draco. Stupid.

Stupid stupid stupid stupid stupid worthless piece of filth.

Why did I have to betray his trust? Why?

For his own good.

Was it? Really?

Yes.

No.

I don't know.

I honestly don't know.

I betrayed his trust ... betrayed him ... and yet he still stays here with me, stroking my hair, whispering words of comfort into my ear ...

Potter.

It's all Potter's fault.

Potter's the one who made him cry, not me. Potter's the one who ran around announcing that he had shagged the infamous Draco Malfoy, not me. Potter's the one who didn't give a damn about him when he asked how his best friend could do that to him, not me.

Stop it Draco. Stop it. You're wrong. Because it wasn't Potter's fault, was it? It was yours. All your fault ...

I choke on a sob, making him curl his arms around me and rock me backwards and forwards like a child.

The pain is getting number, now. The pain in my body, I mean.

But not in my heart.

The pain in my heart is getting greater and greater ... until it feels like I cannot breathe anymore.

I squeeze my eyes shut tighter.

"Sleep, Draco. Sleep."

A/N: Err . . . that was very strange. And, no, Draco isn't dead. He's just fallen asleep, 'K? Well, who do YOU think Draco's mystery man is? (And, yes, it is a man). I want you all to place a vote in your reviews please – either who you think it is, or who you WANT it to be. So, DON'T FORGET TO REVIEW. I know you're all nice people, so you'll REVIEW won't you? Please? makes cute puppy-dog eyes that no one can refuse