A\N: Thanks for everyone who reviewed. Sorry this came out a little late,
but I was just so busy. I spent Spring Break in L.A and being lazy, sitting
around when I could be writing and so I'm sorry. Anyway, here is the
chapter you've all been waiting for and leave me lots of reviews.
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Chapter Thirteen
How it Hurts to have Hurt the One You Love- Draco Malfoy
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The silence between them was thick. Draco stood there, glaring at Blaise who looked at him smugly. He could have murdered her right there. It was all her fault that Ginny got hurt. If she hadn't said anything, Ginny never would have found out.
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He wanted to stop her earlier when she ran away. He wanted to hold her against him, to feel her heart beating against his, and to tell her that he was sorry. He never meant to hurt her, it was never his intentions.
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"It's all your fault," he spat at the girl before him. "You hurt Ginny."
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.
Blaise crossed her arms over her chest and sat down casually, picking up his silver book that Ginny dropped on the ground in her haste to get away from him. She flipped through it and stopped on the last page with writing on it where Ginny's name was. "Your week's up," she said to him.
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.
Draco glanced at the clock that read exactly midnight, but it didn't bother him. So what if he didn't get into Ginny's pants. All he wanted now was to make her happy the way she was before.
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"You planned this out, didn't you?" he accused Blaise, his voice calmer than he felt. "You were the only one who knew where I kept this damned thing."
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In three quick strides, he was around the bed and in front of Blaise. He grabbed the silver book in her hands and threw it into the fire, watching the flames lick it into ashes.
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Blaise smiled even more smugly and stood up. She was as tall as he was and their bodies clashed together, but Draco didn't feel what he would have if that had been Ginny. He stood his ground and glared right into Blaise's brown eyes.
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"I told you that if you gave me what I wanted, I would keep my mouth shut," she whispered, her breath dancing along his cheeks.
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Draco pushed her away harshly and she fell back onto the bed where she had been sitting. He glared down at her, remembering what had taken place just a few days ago.
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* * *
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Draco slipped off her shirt and began to kiss lovingly down her neck. He didn't want Blaise, but he wanted to do this to her, he wanted to do this so she'll keep her mouth shut because he couldn't let Ginny find out the truth. What would Ginny think of him?
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What would she think of him doing that right now? Draco paused on his way to unbuckling Blaise's bra. Ginny would hate him if she found out that he slept with her. But he had to do it, didn't he? Blaise would tell Ginny.
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Draco continued on his way to her bra and unbuckled it. His fingers slid down her back and Blaise let out a voice deep inside her throat. He laid her down on his bed and she opened her legs so he could lie between it.
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.
She tugged his shirt off of him and he let her, still kissing down her neck until he reached her soft breasts. For an instant, Draco looked up, but instead of Blaise's face, he saw Ginny.
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He jumped back in surprise and stared at Ginny who slowly returned to looking like Blaise again. "What's the matter?" Blaise asked.
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Draco ran a hand through his hair and threw Blaise's clothes back at her. "Get out," he growled at her.
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"We had a deal," she protested.
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He didn't say anything. Blaise dressed herself and went to the door, but before she left, she turned back to him. "This isn't over," she threatened.
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* * *
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It took everything of his not to slap her. He didn't hit woman although it was a very tempting thing right now. "Get out of here right now," he growled at her.
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She looked up at him in fright because she's never seen him this mad before. Draco never got mad like this. He was always cool and collected although his heart never was. But this, this was just too much. Blaise made him lose Ginny and he would never forget that.
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"Get out!" he shouted when Blaise still didn't budge. The girl jumped out of the bed and walked away. When she reached the door, she didn't stop but continued on her way. When he was sure she was gone, he collapsed into his bed and laid there for hours.
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What would he tell Ginny now? She knew his secret and she hated him, he'd be lucky if her brother didn't kill him.
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It didn't take long for him to fall asleep, but his night was filled with nightmares of Ginny.
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* * * .
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She wasn't at breakfast that morning. Mudblood Granger was there with Scarhead and Weasley, but his V.S.W wasn't there. Could he blame her? It was Blaise's fault after all. If that girl had stopped trying to mess with his life, everything would have been okay.
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The porridge in his bowl was drying up, but he didn't touch it. He sighed heavily and glanced at the people who were staring at him.
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That morning when he entered the Great Hall, he was bombarded with questions about last night. Everyone wanted to know how it was, whether he got it or not. But Draco didn't answer any of them.
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He shot Blaise a glare who happily answered the questions that she was asked. Damn her to hell for all he cared.
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Draco stood up and strode out of the Great Hall, leaving behind a hushed silence. Even the Dream Team was looking after him, something that would have pleased him earlier but didn't anymore.
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He needed to get out of there, out of that crowd that he was drowning in. He was so stupid, so crazy to do something like that. Had he known that this would effect his life, that Ginny would effect his heart, he never would have done this or chosen Ginny.
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He was outside and the cold air was beating against his face. He was freezing, his body shivering, but he didn't care. He stood in front of the lake and stared across it, wondering why he had to be who he was.
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Right then, Draco would have settled for being anyone else but himself. He wanted a life away from things like this, away from a heart that didn't agree with a brain.
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Half of him wanted to be pleased with what he did. It wanted him to take pride in what he had done to the Weasley's daughter, but the other half didn't want that. It wanted him to find her and to apologize. Which side to agree with? He had no idea.
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Draco yelled in frustration and kicked the ground. His shining shoes were smudged with dirt, but he didn't rub it off. Instead, he kicked it more until it was so dirty, he couldn't recognize it to be his own shoes.
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Why did he have to be a Malfoy? He wanted to be someone else, even Potter would have been better. At least he wouldn't have to battle between being prideful and doing the right thing.
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The morning soon turned into afternoon, but he didn't go to class. He didn't think he would be able to face the V.S.W's brother. No, Ginny's brother. And it wasn't just that. He didn't think he could handle the pressure of being Draco Malfoy because being Draco Malfoy came with a price that he could not pay.
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Lunch came around and he popped his head into the Great Hall just to check if Ginny was in there, but she still wasn't. He waited in the corridors for her, but her friends came without her. At dinner, he went to check if she was there, but she still wasn't.
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He's never done this for any other girl before. After he slept with them, he dumped them and never spoke to them again, except for the Slytherin girls maybe. But Ginny, she was a Gryffindor and it hurt him to know that he hurt her. That Blaise hurt her, that is. He didn't have anything to do with it. It was all Blaise's fault.
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Draco headed down into the dungeon without a sense of direction. He was just walking where his legs were carrying him and it didn't matter where he ended up, as long as he didn't have to face reality.
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The corridors led him on forever. He kept walking as if it was never going to end, but that thought didn't disturb him. He hoped it would never end because for it to end, it would mean that he had to turn back and he just didn't want to.
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Around each bend, everything got darker. The torch light seemed to be fading out, as if there was something foreboding back there and it didn't want Draco to go, or maybe it was simply hiding him, he didn't know.
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Finally, the path came to an end and he stopped in front a stone wall, staring upwards where wall met ceiling. He stared at it for a long time, hoping that an answer will come to him, but nothing did. He grew tired then without having eaten anything all day. Draco slumped to his knees and kneeled there, staring blankly at the wall.
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.
Was this how it felt to soar and then fall? Because that was what Ginny did to him. That little time that she had spent with him, those short hours that they spent together felt like flying. And now, he felt like he was falling forever without anyone there to catch him when he reached rock bottom. Or was he supposed to be there to catch Ginny when she fell?
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Something occurred to Draco that never did before. She had agreed to sleep with him, not because of his charm but because of something else. Ginny wasn't like the other girls he slept with, she didn't act anything like them. She was in control of herself and knew exactly what she wanted. If he thought she had slept with him because of his charms, he had been wrong.
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She was a little upset when he found her outside, but she agreed to sleep with him. Could it be that she—loved him as well? Did she love him too? Draco was so confused now.
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It would have been better to think that she was like the other girls because he could leave her behind without caring much, but he couldn't. He cared about her and he cared that she loved him. Many other girls have fallen for him in the short days that they've been together and he knew that, but he just didn't care. At least he pretended not to.
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When he saw Pravarti Patil cry the day after he dumped her, it hurt him inside, it really did, but he just wouldn't let himself think of it. Why wouldn't he allow himself to? Because he believe what his father said. He believed that a Malfoy was never to look back on what he did, but he was going to because he was rebelling.
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Draco was a rebellious Malfoy, so why should he still listen to his father? He loved Ginny, he cared about Ginny, and he would never hurt her the way he hurt the other girls. He had to apologize to her and tell her how he felt before it was too late.
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And to apologize to her, wouldn't that mean that it was his fault she got hurt? The truth hurt, but it was true. He was the one who hurt Ginny, not Blaise. True, if it hadn't been for Blaise, Ginny wouldn't have found out, but it was he who made up this stupid idea to rebel.
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Draco felt like kicking himself, but there was time for that later. A wave of dizziness struck him and he slumped to the ground, having gone unconscious before he even hit the stone floor.
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* * * .
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The Hospital Wing was cool and comforting. The throbbing in his head was beginning to go away and he could finally hear himself think. It felt like a dream, that whole episode with Ginny and the rebel thing.
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Draco settled into the pillow for comfort. As far as he knew, he needed to speak with Ginny. He needed to apologize to her and tell her how sorry he was.
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Easy you may think, but it's not. He was a Malfoy after all and to tell someone he was sorry would be like his father telling him how much he loved him. But that's not the point. The point is that Draco was going to apologize, whether Ginny was going to hear him out or not.
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The door into the Hospital Wing opened and he heard footsteps scuttling throughout the chamber until they came to a rest by his bed. Draco, not wanting to speak with anyone right now who wasn't Ginny, closed his eyes, pretending he was asleep.
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Whoever the person was, they took a seat by his bed and he could hear robes shuffling like they reached out a hand, but decided against it. Draco kept his eyes closed, afraid he'll open his eyes to see someone sitting there that he didn't want to see.
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"How're you feeling?" Pravarti Patil asked, her words coming out so low, Draco had to strain to hear. "I know you don't care that you ever dated me or that you ever slept with me but I do. After I gave myself over to you, it's like you became a part of me or something because I can't really think about anything else but you. You're always on my mind and it should be a crime to want someone so much, especially if they were off limits."
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Draco's insides shriveled up. He's never thought about this before. All he cared about in the past was to get what he wanted; he never even stopped to consider how this would affect the girls who were involved.
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"Lavender told me," she continued on. "You were with her right before you were with me. And then I just found out that after me, there was Ginny. What do you think you're playing at? Is this some sick joke to see how many girls you can sleep with because I know for sure you did not get into Ginny's pants."
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The words stung Draco. He never meant to hurt anyone, although hadn't he known all along that someone would? He knew what he was getting himself into, he just hadn't cared. Not until now when everything was going so wrong.
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"You never cared about any of us," Parvarti's voice was getting even lower, Draco resisted the urge to open his eyes and shake her to make her speak louder. "We were all just another girl and I guess that's okay. I mean, it has to be because we don't have any choices right? I can't tell you what to do nor can anyone else and I'm not here to tell you what to do. I just want you to stop hurting girls. I just want you to stop hurting Ginny.
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"We're older and we've been through all kinds of heartbreak, but she's younger," Pravarti's words were so true and it struck Draco's heart. "She hasn't experienced betrayal until you came along and I wish you wouldn't do this anymore. I wished you would just tell her how you really felt because I know you love her in some kind of demented ways that you Malfoys do. Why am I telling you this? Because I know what it feels like to be hurt by you and I don't want her to feel the same thing. She's not my sister, this is really supposed to be her brother's job, but I'm doing it for him since he doesn't know yet. If I don't have a chance for you, then give her a chance. She deserves it after all she's been through."
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Then he heard more robes shuffling, footsteps padding away, the door closing with a silent thud, and then everything was silent, eerily silent. Draco opened his eyes to stare after the door, afraid of what he's done to all these girls who deserved so much better. They all deserved better, especially Ginny.
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He'll leave her alone if that's what she decided, but he'll need to hear that from her before he made his decision. He would find her and apologize to her before he made sure she never saw his face again.
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* * * .
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Draco walked through the corridors, heading down into the dungeons. His hands dug deep into his pockets and he hung his head low. He just got out of the Hospital Wing after a long lecture from Madam Pomfrey about eating correctly and all he wanted to do was find Ginny and get it over with. The sooner he's out of her life, the better it'll be.
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He pulled his hands out of his pockets and stared at the letter in it. He received it just a while after Parvarti had left. It was a letter from his father and it was exactly what his fate would be, all decided by his father.
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His life was already planned out for him, a path that began from beneath his feet until the end. All his father wanted him to do was walk it, although he found it hard to do that. He's come upon many obstacles, all of which he passed. He's gotten lost a couple of times, having found his way back, but now, he's standing before a fork in the road and he couldn't decide which way to go. Would he continue to follow the path that his father laid before him, or make his own path, all of which is still a jungle?
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Draco crumbled the paper with one hand and threw it on the ground, unaware that he was being watched. He looked up from where he had been staring at the cobblestones and found himself looking into angry brown eyes.
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He's chosen his path a long time ago; he's only gone astray when Ginny came into his life. But that would end there because he wasn't going to go down that path of jungle. His father laid a path for him, a future that he could see, not something that was kept hidden from him like a secret.
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Chapter Thirteen
How it Hurts to have Hurt the One You Love- Draco Malfoy
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.
The silence between them was thick. Draco stood there, glaring at Blaise who looked at him smugly. He could have murdered her right there. It was all her fault that Ginny got hurt. If she hadn't said anything, Ginny never would have found out.
.
.
He wanted to stop her earlier when she ran away. He wanted to hold her against him, to feel her heart beating against his, and to tell her that he was sorry. He never meant to hurt her, it was never his intentions.
.
.
"It's all your fault," he spat at the girl before him. "You hurt Ginny."
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.
Blaise crossed her arms over her chest and sat down casually, picking up his silver book that Ginny dropped on the ground in her haste to get away from him. She flipped through it and stopped on the last page with writing on it where Ginny's name was. "Your week's up," she said to him.
.
.
Draco glanced at the clock that read exactly midnight, but it didn't bother him. So what if he didn't get into Ginny's pants. All he wanted now was to make her happy the way she was before.
.
.
"You planned this out, didn't you?" he accused Blaise, his voice calmer than he felt. "You were the only one who knew where I kept this damned thing."
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.
In three quick strides, he was around the bed and in front of Blaise. He grabbed the silver book in her hands and threw it into the fire, watching the flames lick it into ashes.
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.
Blaise smiled even more smugly and stood up. She was as tall as he was and their bodies clashed together, but Draco didn't feel what he would have if that had been Ginny. He stood his ground and glared right into Blaise's brown eyes.
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"I told you that if you gave me what I wanted, I would keep my mouth shut," she whispered, her breath dancing along his cheeks.
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Draco pushed her away harshly and she fell back onto the bed where she had been sitting. He glared down at her, remembering what had taken place just a few days ago.
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* * *
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Draco slipped off her shirt and began to kiss lovingly down her neck. He didn't want Blaise, but he wanted to do this to her, he wanted to do this so she'll keep her mouth shut because he couldn't let Ginny find out the truth. What would Ginny think of him?
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.
What would she think of him doing that right now? Draco paused on his way to unbuckling Blaise's bra. Ginny would hate him if she found out that he slept with her. But he had to do it, didn't he? Blaise would tell Ginny.
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Draco continued on his way to her bra and unbuckled it. His fingers slid down her back and Blaise let out a voice deep inside her throat. He laid her down on his bed and she opened her legs so he could lie between it.
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.
She tugged his shirt off of him and he let her, still kissing down her neck until he reached her soft breasts. For an instant, Draco looked up, but instead of Blaise's face, he saw Ginny.
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He jumped back in surprise and stared at Ginny who slowly returned to looking like Blaise again. "What's the matter?" Blaise asked.
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Draco ran a hand through his hair and threw Blaise's clothes back at her. "Get out," he growled at her.
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"We had a deal," she protested.
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He didn't say anything. Blaise dressed herself and went to the door, but before she left, she turned back to him. "This isn't over," she threatened.
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* * *
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It took everything of his not to slap her. He didn't hit woman although it was a very tempting thing right now. "Get out of here right now," he growled at her.
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She looked up at him in fright because she's never seen him this mad before. Draco never got mad like this. He was always cool and collected although his heart never was. But this, this was just too much. Blaise made him lose Ginny and he would never forget that.
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"Get out!" he shouted when Blaise still didn't budge. The girl jumped out of the bed and walked away. When she reached the door, she didn't stop but continued on her way. When he was sure she was gone, he collapsed into his bed and laid there for hours.
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What would he tell Ginny now? She knew his secret and she hated him, he'd be lucky if her brother didn't kill him.
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It didn't take long for him to fall asleep, but his night was filled with nightmares of Ginny.
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* * * .
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She wasn't at breakfast that morning. Mudblood Granger was there with Scarhead and Weasley, but his V.S.W wasn't there. Could he blame her? It was Blaise's fault after all. If that girl had stopped trying to mess with his life, everything would have been okay.
.
.
The porridge in his bowl was drying up, but he didn't touch it. He sighed heavily and glanced at the people who were staring at him.
.
.
That morning when he entered the Great Hall, he was bombarded with questions about last night. Everyone wanted to know how it was, whether he got it or not. But Draco didn't answer any of them.
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He shot Blaise a glare who happily answered the questions that she was asked. Damn her to hell for all he cared.
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Draco stood up and strode out of the Great Hall, leaving behind a hushed silence. Even the Dream Team was looking after him, something that would have pleased him earlier but didn't anymore.
.
.
He needed to get out of there, out of that crowd that he was drowning in. He was so stupid, so crazy to do something like that. Had he known that this would effect his life, that Ginny would effect his heart, he never would have done this or chosen Ginny.
.
.
He was outside and the cold air was beating against his face. He was freezing, his body shivering, but he didn't care. He stood in front of the lake and stared across it, wondering why he had to be who he was.
.
.
Right then, Draco would have settled for being anyone else but himself. He wanted a life away from things like this, away from a heart that didn't agree with a brain.
.
.
Half of him wanted to be pleased with what he did. It wanted him to take pride in what he had done to the Weasley's daughter, but the other half didn't want that. It wanted him to find her and to apologize. Which side to agree with? He had no idea.
.
.
Draco yelled in frustration and kicked the ground. His shining shoes were smudged with dirt, but he didn't rub it off. Instead, he kicked it more until it was so dirty, he couldn't recognize it to be his own shoes.
.
.
Why did he have to be a Malfoy? He wanted to be someone else, even Potter would have been better. At least he wouldn't have to battle between being prideful and doing the right thing.
.
.
The morning soon turned into afternoon, but he didn't go to class. He didn't think he would be able to face the V.S.W's brother. No, Ginny's brother. And it wasn't just that. He didn't think he could handle the pressure of being Draco Malfoy because being Draco Malfoy came with a price that he could not pay.
.
.
Lunch came around and he popped his head into the Great Hall just to check if Ginny was in there, but she still wasn't. He waited in the corridors for her, but her friends came without her. At dinner, he went to check if she was there, but she still wasn't.
.
.
He's never done this for any other girl before. After he slept with them, he dumped them and never spoke to them again, except for the Slytherin girls maybe. But Ginny, she was a Gryffindor and it hurt him to know that he hurt her. That Blaise hurt her, that is. He didn't have anything to do with it. It was all Blaise's fault.
.
.
Draco headed down into the dungeon without a sense of direction. He was just walking where his legs were carrying him and it didn't matter where he ended up, as long as he didn't have to face reality.
.
.
The corridors led him on forever. He kept walking as if it was never going to end, but that thought didn't disturb him. He hoped it would never end because for it to end, it would mean that he had to turn back and he just didn't want to.
.
.
Around each bend, everything got darker. The torch light seemed to be fading out, as if there was something foreboding back there and it didn't want Draco to go, or maybe it was simply hiding him, he didn't know.
.
.
Finally, the path came to an end and he stopped in front a stone wall, staring upwards where wall met ceiling. He stared at it for a long time, hoping that an answer will come to him, but nothing did. He grew tired then without having eaten anything all day. Draco slumped to his knees and kneeled there, staring blankly at the wall.
.
.
Was this how it felt to soar and then fall? Because that was what Ginny did to him. That little time that she had spent with him, those short hours that they spent together felt like flying. And now, he felt like he was falling forever without anyone there to catch him when he reached rock bottom. Or was he supposed to be there to catch Ginny when she fell?
.
.
Something occurred to Draco that never did before. She had agreed to sleep with him, not because of his charm but because of something else. Ginny wasn't like the other girls he slept with, she didn't act anything like them. She was in control of herself and knew exactly what she wanted. If he thought she had slept with him because of his charms, he had been wrong.
.
.
She was a little upset when he found her outside, but she agreed to sleep with him. Could it be that she—loved him as well? Did she love him too? Draco was so confused now.
.
.
It would have been better to think that she was like the other girls because he could leave her behind without caring much, but he couldn't. He cared about her and he cared that she loved him. Many other girls have fallen for him in the short days that they've been together and he knew that, but he just didn't care. At least he pretended not to.
.
.
When he saw Pravarti Patil cry the day after he dumped her, it hurt him inside, it really did, but he just wouldn't let himself think of it. Why wouldn't he allow himself to? Because he believe what his father said. He believed that a Malfoy was never to look back on what he did, but he was going to because he was rebelling.
.
.
Draco was a rebellious Malfoy, so why should he still listen to his father? He loved Ginny, he cared about Ginny, and he would never hurt her the way he hurt the other girls. He had to apologize to her and tell her how he felt before it was too late.
.
.
And to apologize to her, wouldn't that mean that it was his fault she got hurt? The truth hurt, but it was true. He was the one who hurt Ginny, not Blaise. True, if it hadn't been for Blaise, Ginny wouldn't have found out, but it was he who made up this stupid idea to rebel.
.
.
Draco felt like kicking himself, but there was time for that later. A wave of dizziness struck him and he slumped to the ground, having gone unconscious before he even hit the stone floor.
.
.
* * * .
.
The Hospital Wing was cool and comforting. The throbbing in his head was beginning to go away and he could finally hear himself think. It felt like a dream, that whole episode with Ginny and the rebel thing.
.
.
Draco settled into the pillow for comfort. As far as he knew, he needed to speak with Ginny. He needed to apologize to her and tell her how sorry he was.
.
.
Easy you may think, but it's not. He was a Malfoy after all and to tell someone he was sorry would be like his father telling him how much he loved him. But that's not the point. The point is that Draco was going to apologize, whether Ginny was going to hear him out or not.
.
.
The door into the Hospital Wing opened and he heard footsteps scuttling throughout the chamber until they came to a rest by his bed. Draco, not wanting to speak with anyone right now who wasn't Ginny, closed his eyes, pretending he was asleep.
.
.
Whoever the person was, they took a seat by his bed and he could hear robes shuffling like they reached out a hand, but decided against it. Draco kept his eyes closed, afraid he'll open his eyes to see someone sitting there that he didn't want to see.
.
.
"How're you feeling?" Pravarti Patil asked, her words coming out so low, Draco had to strain to hear. "I know you don't care that you ever dated me or that you ever slept with me but I do. After I gave myself over to you, it's like you became a part of me or something because I can't really think about anything else but you. You're always on my mind and it should be a crime to want someone so much, especially if they were off limits."
.
.
Draco's insides shriveled up. He's never thought about this before. All he cared about in the past was to get what he wanted; he never even stopped to consider how this would affect the girls who were involved.
.
.
"Lavender told me," she continued on. "You were with her right before you were with me. And then I just found out that after me, there was Ginny. What do you think you're playing at? Is this some sick joke to see how many girls you can sleep with because I know for sure you did not get into Ginny's pants."
.
.
The words stung Draco. He never meant to hurt anyone, although hadn't he known all along that someone would? He knew what he was getting himself into, he just hadn't cared. Not until now when everything was going so wrong.
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"You never cared about any of us," Parvarti's voice was getting even lower, Draco resisted the urge to open his eyes and shake her to make her speak louder. "We were all just another girl and I guess that's okay. I mean, it has to be because we don't have any choices right? I can't tell you what to do nor can anyone else and I'm not here to tell you what to do. I just want you to stop hurting girls. I just want you to stop hurting Ginny.
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"We're older and we've been through all kinds of heartbreak, but she's younger," Pravarti's words were so true and it struck Draco's heart. "She hasn't experienced betrayal until you came along and I wish you wouldn't do this anymore. I wished you would just tell her how you really felt because I know you love her in some kind of demented ways that you Malfoys do. Why am I telling you this? Because I know what it feels like to be hurt by you and I don't want her to feel the same thing. She's not my sister, this is really supposed to be her brother's job, but I'm doing it for him since he doesn't know yet. If I don't have a chance for you, then give her a chance. She deserves it after all she's been through."
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Then he heard more robes shuffling, footsteps padding away, the door closing with a silent thud, and then everything was silent, eerily silent. Draco opened his eyes to stare after the door, afraid of what he's done to all these girls who deserved so much better. They all deserved better, especially Ginny.
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He'll leave her alone if that's what she decided, but he'll need to hear that from her before he made his decision. He would find her and apologize to her before he made sure she never saw his face again.
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* * * .
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Draco walked through the corridors, heading down into the dungeons. His hands dug deep into his pockets and he hung his head low. He just got out of the Hospital Wing after a long lecture from Madam Pomfrey about eating correctly and all he wanted to do was find Ginny and get it over with. The sooner he's out of her life, the better it'll be.
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He pulled his hands out of his pockets and stared at the letter in it. He received it just a while after Parvarti had left. It was a letter from his father and it was exactly what his fate would be, all decided by his father.
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His life was already planned out for him, a path that began from beneath his feet until the end. All his father wanted him to do was walk it, although he found it hard to do that. He's come upon many obstacles, all of which he passed. He's gotten lost a couple of times, having found his way back, but now, he's standing before a fork in the road and he couldn't decide which way to go. Would he continue to follow the path that his father laid before him, or make his own path, all of which is still a jungle?
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Draco crumbled the paper with one hand and threw it on the ground, unaware that he was being watched. He looked up from where he had been staring at the cobblestones and found himself looking into angry brown eyes.
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He's chosen his path a long time ago; he's only gone astray when Ginny came into his life. But that would end there because he wasn't going to go down that path of jungle. His father laid a path for him, a future that he could see, not something that was kept hidden from him like a secret.