A/N: I'm soooo sorry everyone. I've been busy like you wouldn't believe. End of the school year stuff and finals. Then I went on a 2 week cruise and when I got home I had to plan my birthday party, but no excuses. I was going to make it longer for you, but I'm leaving for a week so I thought I better give you this until I get back. Enjoy!

Chapter 5 - Confrontations

After Hermione left the common room Draco started to rummage through the books and papers left on the coffee table. Nothing but half finished essays and schoolbooks littered the table until Draco came to the bottom of the pile. Underneath all of the clutter was Hermione's journal. Draco opened up the book and started to flip through it. There were just some doodles and poems and Draco was about to put it back until he found something that drew his attention.

I'm confused by the things I feel

I just want to hide them or make them disappear

My heart is sore from all these emotions

But this is better than being broken-hearted

I can't let him see this part of me

I can't let him know what I feel

Draco slowly reread each line. He shut the book, but before it could put it back where he had found it he had a hand flying out towards the journal.

"What the hell do you think you're doing!" Hermione screamed.

Before Draco knew what had happened Hermione slapped him.

"OW, YOU DAMN MUDBLOOD!"

"Well that's what you get for looking at things that don't belong to you!"

"How was I supposed to know what it was!"

"Don't give me that crap, you knew! Are you happy now? Satisfied that you know my weakness? Now you're just going to use this to torture me too aren't you?"

After Hermione's rant Draco reached down caressing her cheek. He then took Hermione's lips in his. He slowly massaged her lips with his causing shivers to run down her spine. She responded by opening her mouth to allow him access. Shocked, Draco pulled back from the kiss.

"Oh my God," Hermione blushed, and before Draco could say anything, Hermione grabbed her journal and dashed back up to her room.

xxx

Later, in his dormitory, Draco was writing a letter to his father to update him on the progress of his mission. He hated what he was doing. An unsuspecting girl was being used and having her emotions toyed with. Normally that wouldn't upset him, but for some reason he seemed to be having a problem with it now. Something felt different about her. Draco didn't feel as appalled as he thought he would feel after kissing a mudblood. He actually found her to be a very good kisser. He knew he shouldn't be thinking about her that way. He was only putting on this charade for the Dark Lord. So why did it feel so real?

'I just need some sleep,' he thought.

Back at the Malfoy Manor none was the wiser to Draco's thoughts. Lucius rather proudly told the Dark Lord of his son's progress thinking it all to be pretend.

xxx

The next few weeks passed with not much contact between the two. Hermione successfully avoided Draco with the exception of classes and Draco gave up his attempts for the time being.

By the end of September Draco still hadn't gotten any further with Hermione so he opted to staking her out at the library.

By 7 o'clock she had finally entered the library and was heading to her usual table until she was pulled behind a stack of books. She started to scream but a hand covered her mouth before a sound escaped. Trying to see who the hand belonged to she fought back until the strong arms spun her around. Her eyes met silver orbs looking back at her.

"What do you want Malfoy?"

"To talk to you," Draco simply stated.

"Why's that? You usually do your abusing with an audience."

"I know, but I don't think an audience would like to know about that kiss we had."

"I was trying to forget that."

"Well I wasn't. I want to know."

"You want to know? Don't you think maybe I'd like to know what the hell you were doing reading my journal then all of a sudden you kissed me. That's not normal Draco."

Draco smiled softly. Not a smirk, a genuine smile. "You called me Draco."

"Oh, I didn't-I mean…it was an accident."

"No I like it."

Hermione looked up into his eyes again, but couldn't find any emotion to confirm if he was telling the truth or not.

"Listen Hermione I'm sorry about stumbling upon your journal, but I wanted to find out whom that him was that you wrote about."

"What are you talking about?"

"In the poem you wrote,'I can't let him see this part of me

I can't let him know what I feel', well who's him?"

"I don't see how that's any of your business considering you shouldn't have been reading it anyway Malfoy."

"Oh back to Malfoy now are we? Well alright Granger, forget it. I just thought maybe you were referring to me." Draco knew he would get a good reaction out of her now.

"You arrogant prat! Why would I be referring to you? You don't mean anything to me except for an ugly little ferret."

"Then why did you kiss me?" For once Hermione couldn't answer right away because she didn't have an answer. "Exactly what I thought. You're falling for me Granger."

"I am not!"

"Oh but you are, you just don't know it yet." And with that Draco side-stepped Hermione and left.

No longer able to think Hermione gave up studying and went to the Gryffindor common room instead.

When Hermione walked into the common room she spotted Ron's bright red hair across the room and next to him she saw a mess of dark hair. She made her way through the maze of students in her way and sat down next to the boys.

"Hey 'Mione," Ron said as he moved one of his chess pieces forward.

"Hey guys."

"Hermione, is something wrong?" Harry questioned taking in her disheveled appearance.

"No just got a lot on my mind that's all. You know with all this homework and everything." Harry nodded in response.

"Checkmate!" Ron yelled triumphantly. Harry mumbled some obscenity under his breath before gathering all of his chess pieces back up.

"So Hermione, what are you doing here tonight? Shouldn't you be in the library?"

"What do you mean Ron? I have as much right to be here as you!"

"Gosh I'm sorry I just meant that since we got a potions essay assigned this afternoon you would be working on that."

"Oh well, I couldn't concentrate so I thought I would see what you two were up to."

"I see, well we're just playing a couple of games of wizard's chess if you would like to join."

"No thanks I think I'm just going to go back to my common room to relax and read a book."

"Alright, talk to you later."

"Bye guys."

On her way back to the common room, Hermione thought about what Draco had said to her earlier in the library. Why did she kiss him back? It's not like he was being exceptionally nice to her. For God's sake he was snooping in her journal and reading her private thoughts. Maybe it was just impulse? She was caught off guard, that's just it. She didn't know what she was doing. From now on just don't be caught alone with him, she thought.