Chapter Five

Disclaimer: ...yeahhh... whatevs. by the way, sorry bout this, my comp crashed and it took me like a week to fix it. Thanks! Lol...

After reading that letter, Hermione was truly confused with her emotions. She wanted to cry, but she felt as though she was all out of tears; as though she had nothing left to cry about, as well as nothing else to live for.

Draco was sort of choked up; he had not a clue what to say to this, because when he lost his father, he was actually happy about it. It meant he no longer had to live under his strict enforcement and no longer had to be a death eater, the sure doom that would await his Hogwarts graduation. I mean, sure, he'd dealt with his mom a lot, who actually loved his father, though only God knows how. But she had a lot of depression anxiety about his death and he had helped her... But he hadn't a clue how to help Hermione; it was a much greater loss to her, it seemed..

So instead, he just picked her up, as she was now curled up in a ball with her eyes closed, and carried her like a baby to her bedroom. As he laid her down and pulled the sheets up over her, he heard her mumble, "Stay in here, Draco... Please... Don't leave me alone..."

So he changed his clothes and got right back in there with her, laying on the couch beside her bed, coaxing her into an uneasy sleep with his soothing words.

–The Next Morning–

As Hermione awoke the next morning to see Draco lying on her couch, fast asleep, she began to wonder what had happened and why she felt so grumbly... But then she remembered the letter.

Then Draco started to stir in his spot on the couch, opening his eyes restlessly and instantly seeing Hermione in her dressing gown and slippers.

"Good morning, Draco. Sleep well?" she asked.

"I suppose, but it's really you I'm worried about, Hermione. Are you alright? Do you need to talk about it? I'm sorry I wasn't much help last night; I really meant to be, but I didn't figure you wanted to talk about it last night... That fast and all..."

"What you did do was far better than talking about it. I was really... It helped a lot. Just... Thanks..." she said, blushing.

"Hermione, it's fine. How could I do anything different? I just wanted to help you as much as I could... Because I really think I'm starting to... Well..."

"Well?" Hermione said.

"I... I think I'm starting to fall for you, Hermione..."

"Wow... I... Wow."

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing, Draco... Except... One thing..." she pauses. "I think I feel the same way," she said, with a huge smile on her face for the first time in a few days.

He took her in his arms, right there in her pajamas and with her hair up in a messy pony tail, and kissed her. Full on the lips... With no hesitation.

When they finally pulled away, Hermione interrupted by asking, "So, Draco... I don't mean to ruin anything by asking... But what is there between us, now?"

"Anything you want, Hermione. I mean, traditionally... Would you go out with me?"

"Of course, Draco, of course! I've never been as happy as I am with you, even through all the stuff that's going on with my stupid ass family and everything. I mean, over the summer, if I would have gotten that... Terrible letter... I would have just cut about it. Harry and Ron don't really know what's going on with my family, and so I wouldn't have said a word to them, and they were really my only friends. I mean... I don't know what I'd have done without you, Draco..."

"I love you, Hermione," was all he said to that, and she could see a tear forming in the corner of his eye.

They had pretty much been exempt from a lot of their classes, and were just doing the homework, because Hermione was having such a hard time. Professor Dumbledore gave her his deepest sympathy, and allowed Draco to stay with her since they'd gotten so close. Nothing, in Hermione's eyes, had ever been as perfect as her relationship with Draco; finally, something that was real. It was real to her, and she couldn't imagine life without it.

But, as always, there was a downside to it. Harry and Ron, Hermione's two best friends of 6 years, didn't know a thing about it. Sure, they'd only officially gone out for a week before she realized it, but they needed to know... Even though she was having second thoughts about telling them, afraid of what they'd say about it.

After about their 8th day of officially "dating," Hermione decided to tell Draco that Harry and Ron had to know...

"Draco, I know you might not like them, but they're the only ones that have been there for me for the last 6 years... They've watched out for me like no other, and really, should be adopted as my brothers. I love them both, Draco, and I think they need to know."

"First off, Hermione, I don't have a problem with them anymore. Of course they should know... But first, I want them to respect me. Nothing's worse than having your best friends disprove of your boyfriend."

"Good point. Aw well, I'm going to talk to them." she retorted, and got up from her spot on her bed. "Sooner than later. I'll be back before dinner to meet you... Don't leave without me! I love you!"

And with that, she was gone. She walked downstairs to the Gryffindor entrance, the portrait of the fat lady, and said the password. In she went, and up the stairs to the boys' dormitories, to find Harry and Ron sitting around playing Wizard's Chess.

"You guys, we need to talk," she said, scaring the bejesus out of them.

"Holy – Hermione!" Ron said. "It's you! We haven't seen you in ages; you haven't been to any classes in forever! What's been wrong?"

She sat with them on Harry's bed and told them everything, from top to bottom, about her mother, and "stepfather," everything about her summer, her cutting, and about how the most unlikely person – in their eyes – was the one to help her through it all.

"You see, the one that's been there for me this whole time was Draco. I mean, I'm not saying you guys weren't, because I never really gave you the chance, but I found out that he's a truly sweet guy. I found out a lot about the reason he was so terrible to us before now, which was his father, but his father passed away over the summer break and so he's free to be however he wants."

"So what are you getting at, with all of this? I mean, fine time to explain everything to us, by the way. We were honestly going mad without you, Hermione... Why not until now?"

"I'm sorry, I really am... He was there, trying to help me, and I couldn't help but tell him... I love you guys so much, but one of the real reasons I'm here is to tell you something else... I just didn't want to tell you until I thought you had a better, more respected image of Draco."

"Well, I do, but I still don't understand..." Harry said, and Ron nodded in approval.

"A few days ago, when I got the letter from my mom, Draco sat there with me all night... He even carried me to my bed and slept on the couch in my room with me. The next morning, he asked me out, and I accepted... I wanted you guys to know that I haven't been this happy in a long time... And I wanted you to approve of it."

"I approve of anything that makes you happy, Hermione. But I don't know how much I love the idea of you dating someone that's called you a mudblood for the last 6 years."

"Just... Come back to my dorm with me, and talk to him. I'm sure you'll be friends before the day's end."

And with that, she got up off of his bed and led them out of the dorms, down the hall, and to the dormitories she shared with Draco.

"This is it," she said, silently praying for the best.

How was this? I'm sorry, again, for the long wait, and I don't mean to have excuses, but my computer crashed.. :(. So I had to reformat and stuff, whatevs. REVIEW!