Hermione had been too shocked at what happened to react fully to it. The moment Draco's lips had touched her cheek, she felt this jolt of electricity spark from the contact, an unusual warmth spreading through her face and down her entire body. She had never felt anything like that before, so she didn't know what to do. There was just too much going on in her mind, her thoughts completely tangled in a jumbled mess.
She did the only thing she knew she could do: hold up her hand to stop Draco's stuttered apology, and suggest they concentrate on their work, ignoring what happened completely. She knew the feverish color to her cheek gave her feelings away (what a magical kiss!), but they had to concentrate before all hell broke loose.
Hermione felt bad for not actually acknowledging what Draco had done, for not letting him into her thoughts about the kiss. It seemed, to her, to really affect him, and not in a good way. He had sat down without saying anything, stayed there for what seemed like an eternity. When Draco had finally stood back up and looked at her, his eyes had lost their shine. They were completely empty, just grey voids in his face. He showed no emotion, not even just the tiniest whisper of happiness found in them anymore.
She wanted to say something about it. To bring Draco back out of wherever he had retreated, but she knew in her heart he wouldn't return. Not today, at least, not with her. So she remained quiet, avoiding looking at him the best she could. Looking at him, seeing his empty and almost-soulless-like eyes hurt her deeply, especially because she knew she was the source of this emptiness. Hermione hadn't realized just how much her lack of a reaction had affected him, and knowing it was because of this that he had shut himself down.
Hermione wanted to cry, to curl into a ball and shut herself off as well. She worked instead, all of her thoughts and attention on preparing the remaining ingredients they would need to finish their first of who knows how many potions for St. Mungo's. Draco, too, focused all of his attention on helping her with the rest of the ingredients, completely silent and still cold towards Hermione.
It was late at night when both Hermione and Draco finally emerged from the empty classroom, finished with their task. They said a quick goodbye and went their separate ways, Hermione going one way towards Gryffindor Tower, Draco the other, towards the Dungeons.
Hermione was completely exhausted. She made her way up to Gryffindor Tower slowly, both her body and mind dragging as she walked. So much had happened in only 36 hours, both between the work they did and between herself and Draco. She had been fighting an internal battle since Draco had kissed her on the cheek, leaving her mind completely drained of everything. Her mind had been going so much during the last few hours they worked that she felt that, if she were to think of anything, her mind would explode.
Saying the password to The Fat Lady, she entered the Gryffindor common room and went straight up the stairs to the girl's dormitory. She hadn't even said a word to any of her friends and classmates while she walked, brushing them off with a wave of her hand. Once at her bed, Hermione stripped and changed into her pajamas and laid down in bed, asleep before her head had even hit the pillow.
That night, Hermione's dreams had been both good and bad at the same time. She dreamt of two possibilities of her future: being with Draco and remaining with Ron. Both dreams, and both scenarios had their good and their bad moments. It was hard for her, in both dreams, to know whether she had made the right choice in her love life. By the end of the dream, her subconscious self was even more confused and more flustered by what she should do. Her dream-self had screamed in frustration before burrowing her head in her hands, admitting total defeat.
Hermione woke up the next morning refreshed and feeling better than ever. She hadn't remembered her dream from the night before, so she didn't remember just how frustrated and confused she had been with her choice of man. Hermione sat up in bed and stretched, in no hurry to actually get up and start her day. She sat there for a few moments, enjoying the quiet and calm morning, the rest of the girls in the dormitory still asleep.
Dressed and ready, Hermione headed down the stairs towards the Gryffindor common room, only to find it empty. She knew it was early, but she wasn't sure just how early it really was. The sun was up, and it appeared that it had been up for at least an hour, if not longer. It was only Thursday, so she knew everyone wasn't sleeping in like they would on the weekend. Sighing, Hermione went back up to the girls' dormitory, grabbed her school bag and all her books, and brought them back down to the common room. She had already finished any homework assigned to them previously, so instead she studied, grabbing her Transfiguration book first.
Not much time had passed before the common room slowly began to fill, the rest of the Gryffindors finally waking up. Noting her place in her Transfiguration book, Hermione replaced her book into her bag and waited for Ron. She didn't have to wait long, though, for soon she could see the top of his bright red hair appearing over the rest of the students, a dark haired Harry next to him. Catching his eye, Hermione smiled and waved. Ron only scoffed and left Gryffindor tower without so much as a 'hello' back.
Hermione felt scorned, completely stung by Ron's actions towards her. She had no idea as to what she had done or why he had acted the way he did. He couldn't possibly know… Could he? She thought as she walked her bag back up to the girl's dormitory. No, there's no way. There has to be something else going on. Something he isn't telling me. Soon her hurt changed into anger. As far as Ron knew, she hadn't done anything wrong. Technically, she really hadn't done anything wrong. It was Draco who kissed her cheek, not the other way around. Sure, she hadn't exactly told him not to or that it was wrong, but still. To Hermione, she had done nothing to deserve Ron's treatment of her that morning.
Hermione's anger grew more as she went down to the Great Hall. By the time that she got into the Great Hall and sat down at the Gryffindor table, she was furious. How DARE he? She thought, I have done NOTHING to him. She sat fuming while she ate, unaware that she was taking her anger out on her food, slamming her fork into her plate as hard as she could, her face contorted in fury. Her fellow students completely avoided her, giving her a wide birth and avoiding any sort of eye contact.
It wasn't until Hermione had looked up and registered her surroundings that her anger began to subside. As usual during meals, she found herself focusing on a bright blonde head on the opposite side of the hall, her mood instantly changing. Draco had been staring at her, too, nothing but concern found on his face and in his eyes. Seeing the way he had been looking at her had made Hermione's anger vanish almost instantly. It didn't take more than a look from him for her to feel calm again.
Unknown to both her and Draco, a red headed Weasley had been watching the exchange from a few seats away.
AN: Hey everyone! I'm so sorry it's been nearly a year since my last update. As per usual, things have been absurdly crazy in my life. I think the worst of it is the fact that my "creative juices" went completely out the window. I'd been stuck on a chapter I'd wanted to get finished before I updated this story, and it made all of my confidence in this story dissipate.
But, just when I thought I'd be updating this story to say it was officially abandoned, I got an incredible review from a guest user named Melodie H. That review just, I can't even accurately explain it, but it really made me want to keep writing. So, if you're still here, Melodie, thank you so very much for your review. It honestly helped me when I needed it most.
Hopefully it won't be yet another year before the next update. I'm quite a few chapters ahead of what all of you are, and still writing strong. I've said this so many times before, but I'm going to say it again. Thank you all so so very much for sticking with me throughout the long updates and for your amazing reviews. You guys are the reason I'm still able to keep writing.