"What are you still doing here Granger?"
Draco looked at the bushy haired witch still sat at her desk and sighed. No one could say they were friends. After the war they were far from it. But he wasn't a monster and it was Christmas.
Granger had her head bent over a long piece of parchment, scribbling away. When it became clear she hadn't even noticed him, he went over and ripped the parchment out of her hands.
At her furious glare, he shrugged. "It's Christmas, Granger, go home."
She leant back in her chair and gave him a long look. It made a difference from the dismissive glances and sneers he usually got. People preferred not to notice Death Eaters, or their children.
Granger's staring was now beginning to make him uncomfortable so he snapped, "Do you plan to stare at me all evening?"
His smug satisfaction in seeing her blush quickly disappeared when she said "2 years we've worked in this office Malfoy and that's the first time you've spoken to me."
"Its Christmas" he repeated, then realising how lame that sounded added "You might not be my favourite person but even I would feel bad leaving you here this late."
Granger looked back down at her parchment "Well I'm perfectly happy here so you can go now." She said stiffly. She glared at the parchment in his hand until he placed it back on top of the others.
Draco rolled his eyes and went to walk out. Stupid witch wasn't worth it. Before he got to door though he turned round and looked at her again,
"I thought you would be rushing off to for a loud and unappealing family gathering at the Weasel's?" he said eyebrow raised.
"Unfortunately, Ron's family can be even more loud and unappealing than you imagine. And that is why I would much rather stay here" Granger muttered, stabbing her quill ferociously into her parchment.
Draco couldn't pretend that this didn't surprise him. He, and the entire office really, had been waiting for her to walk in one day wearing an engagement ring. The Prophet would probably do a spread on the war heroes young love. To find out that she didn't even like her supposed childhood sweetheart was certainly interesting.
Not that he could blame her of course.
Still, he couldn't leave her like this so he walked back over to her chair and roughly pulled her out of it ignoring her cries of protest.
"Granger, you need to go home to the Weasel or anywhere else. Just don't stay here." He looked into her eyes and noticed, not for the first time, what a rich deep brown they were.
"Its not that I don't like Ron" she stammered, "I just don't have a lot in common with his family…" she trailed off and there was an uncomfortable silence in which Draco tried very hard not to look into her eyes again.
Finally, she broke the silence, "Maybe I should go home."
Draco nodded, relieved "Yes you should."
She touched his arm "Thank you" she murmured and Draco tried to ignore the sudden knot he felt in his stomach.
A tinkling noise made him look up and sure enough, mistletoe had begun to circle down towards them. It was like the young receptionist who had insisted on putting it everywhere so it could suddenly appear every time you left your desk had planned it.
"Mistletoe" Granger whispered then when he smirked she blushed furiously, "not that I meant anything by it of course, just that it looks nice and - "
He cut her off by gently pulling her towards him and brushing his lips against hers. It was over as quickly as it started but for that brief moment, she hadn't pulled away. Just kissed him back.
"It'll be our secret" he whispered and she nodded wide eyed.
Eventually, she would go to the loud, overbearing Weasley's gathering and he would see her come into the office in the New Year sporting the ring that everyone had expected her to get.
But she would look at him and smile sweetly and that, he thought, was enough. Would always be enough.