Chapter 2

Days passed and Ginny never uttered a single word to Draco since that night. She took different routes to her classes to avoid bumping into him, and skipped meals whenever she could. Harry, Ron and Hermione had noticed this, but neither of them mentioned anything. They could tell something was wrong, and they knew it involved Draco, as they had noticed him staring at her whenever she was around.

One night, Ginny felt hungry after skipping lunch and dinner that day, and decided to sneak out to the kitchens and grab a bite. She tickled the pear on the painting when she arrived at the kitchen door and entered. Dobby stood beside the door, welcoming her in.

"Ah, Mr. Potter's friend. Welcome, welcome!" Dobby exclaimed. Ginny took a seat and started eating the food that had appeared on her plate. Dobby looked eagerly at Ginny, waiting for some praise.

"This is absolutely delicious Dobby, wonderful!" Ginny said with a laugh. Suddenly, the main door swung open and a tall boy with amazing blonde hair and a pale, handsome face walked in, taking a seat next to Ginny. He stared at her for a long time, and Ginny noticed the confusion, hurt and anger all mixed together in his eyes.

"Why have you been avoiding me, Weasley?" Draco asked loudly. Ginny's guilt began to show on her face, but she quickly covered it up and asked Draco in an even louder voice, "How did you know I was here, Malfoy? Have you been stalking me!"

"I saw you sneak out again. You promised me that you would stay in your room and avoid any trouble!" Draco fought back.

"What are you doing hanging around the corridors, watching me?" Ginny screamed.

"I wasn't, I just happened to be there! And I am head boy; I have every right to be patrolling the corridors and looking out for you, especially at this time of night!" Draco said loudly, standing up. "And," he added in a softer voice, "I wanted to make sure that you were okay..."

Ginny stood up too when Draco said that last sentence, heading for the door. "I've had enough," she said bluntly. The house elves that were standing nearby in the shadows, eavesdropping on the conversation, scattered to their rooms, leaving Draco and Ginny alone.

"Ginny… c'mon Ginny, where are you going? I'm sorry for shouting at you… stay. Let's talk… please stay…" Draco pleaded. His pleading reminded Ginny of the dream, and she shivered.

"Okay…" Ginny sighed. "We can talk. But not here, let's go to the lake again," Ginny said. Draco obediently followed her, taking her hand as they walked there together.

"So… What do you want to talk about?" Ginny asked, sitting down on the soft, damp grass.

"About us… I don't know why, Ginny, but you make me feel so alive. I've never felt this way before about any girl. It's amazing, this feeling… You give me a reason to smile. A reason to live," Draco said softly. Ginny didn't say anything. All she did was look into his eyes, and it told him everything. He slowly moved towards her, until his face was only inches away from hers. Ginny didn't know what to do. It took her a moment to realize that she hadn't been breathing the whole time.

"Draco… I…" Ginny whispered.

"Shh…" Draco put a finger on her lips. As they were about to kiss, Ginny suddenly stopped and pushed him away. She didn't know why, but she felt that she just wasn't ready.

"Why, love?" Draco asked, taking Ginny's hand.

"I can't… I love you, Draco, I do. But I'm not ready for a kiss. To tell you the truth, I've only kissed twice in my life, of all the boyfriends I've had. I'm not really the type of person who snogs a lot," Ginny said.

"Alright, I understand. Let's head back and we'll try again when you're ready, okay?" Draco said, pushing the strands of Ginny's red hair behind her ear. They strolled back towards the school, the same routine, holding hands and glancing at each other once in a while, just like the other night.

"Should we go public?" Draco suddenly asked after a long silence.

"No! Definitely not, Ron will kill me if he ever found out," Ginny said, rolling her eyes to herself as she thought of how Ron would be showing off to everyone about how it would be a piece of cake to beat up Draco.

Draco sighed, letting go off Ginny's hand. "There you are. I'll see you in the morning. This time, keep your promise and don't sneak out again," Draco said, kissing her forehead. Ginny smiled and went to her room, pulling the blanket sheet over her and falling asleep, only a certain someone in her mind.

For many days, the secret couple hid in the bathrooms or behind stacks of books in the library to meet up. They never talked much every time they were together; they just kept quiet, Draco holding her in his arms and Ginny resting her head on his chest, listening to his heart beat. Each other's presence was all they wanted.

"I love you, Ginny. I really do. I just want you to know that," Draco said, whispering in Ginny's ear. They were in a deserted boy's bathroom on the fourth floor. "And promise me this, my love," Draco said.

"What is it?" Ginny asked, looking into Draco's beautiful eyes.

"You'll always love me, and never leave me," Draco said. Ginny smiled at him, and pulled him closer to her.

"I promise."

The couple continued meeting up like this for a few more days. But it was getting hard for them, as they couldn't smile or look at each other in public; they had to sneer and smirk at each other whenever people were looking. Ginny soon begin to get fed up with having to lie about her love life, telling people she was still single when she wasn't. She decided to tell Draco about this problem and work it out with him.

"Draco, I can't take it any longer. Having to keep us a secret, I dislike the idea," Ginny said. "But I can't tell anyone! Ron will hate me; my whole family will hate me!"

"We'll have to take the risk then, if it's not making you happy. Maybe it's time to tell them all," Draco said, tightening his grip on Ginny's hand. She looked at him and hugged him. He's right, Ginny thought.

It was time to let the truth out.

"Ron, I have to tell you something," Ginny said in the common room that night. Ginny thought it was a rather appropriate time to tell him, as he was doing his homework by the fireplace alone.

"What is it, Gin? Make it quick, that bloody Snape assigned us to a foot long essay on Hibrothessia, and its due tomorrow morning!" Ron said. Ginny took a seat beside him, counted to three, and blurted it out.

"I'm dating Draco," Ginny said. Ron didn't answer her; he just stared at her with his jaw hanging. Once Ginny had said it out, she couldn't stop herself and just kept going. "I've been dating him for quite a while now, almost a month. I love him, Ron. Draco is really a nice person when you really get to know him. I'm serious about this whole relationship. I think we're soul mates," Ginny said, smiling. Then she saw the look on Ron's face.

"WHAT!" Ron shouted, standing up, his research books dropping to the ground with a thud. "HOW COULD YOU, GINNY. MALFOY IS A BLOODY ASS! WHAT ARE YOU DOING DATING HIM? AND DON'T EVER CALL HIM BY HIS FIRST NAME EVER AGAIN!"

"Look Ron, it's complicated. You have to understand. When you fall in love, it doesn't matter who that person is! What matters is that you're happy," Ginny said, trying to explain. "And I, I am definitely happy."

Ginny got nothing but silence for the next few seconds. Then Ron opened his mouth, and spoke.

"You better finish with him. And do it soon."