Disclaimer: I own none of the characters here. I just use them for my own amusement. JK Rowling and co. own them No copyright infringement intended.

Summary: When two old enemies meet up again, will they be able to look past their differences and get along? What happens if they fall for each other but he's slated to marry someone else? Will he follow his heart or his parents' wishes? Dramione.

Author's note: Lyrics by Taylor Swift

Wildest Dreams

You see me in hindsight
Tangled up with you all night
Burn it down
Some day when you leave me
I bet these memories follow you around

The next few days at work passed quickly. Hermione had brought photos from home to display in her office and Draco put up the stick figure drawing of him and Hermione holding hands. That was the only picture he contributed because he had nothing else he wanted to display. And he thought the stick figure drawing was good for a laugh. He even put up the ones of him lying dead under paperwork and Hermione laughing over his coffin. She was amused by him and found herself laughing in his presence more often than not. He brought out a side to her that not a lot of people had seen in a long time. It was side to her she wasn't even sure existed anymore, but with him it all felt so natural. He was also a good employee and had learned the ropes incredibly fast. He was already setting up trials for her which gave her little to no actual work to do except attend the meetings. He was the best assistant she could ever ask for, and an even better friend. It was hard to keep things professional because they were so fond of each other. Draco would burst out into song on occasion, singing with the radio. And he'd even gotten her to dance again once. She protested his advances, but she did so very weakly. She secretly loved the attention. Now that it was Friday, the weekend was nearly here, and all Hermione could think of was that she and Draco were going to go out again. She couldn't wait.

"Are you excited about this weekend?" she asked him as they both sat at their desks with their own sets of paperwork to peruse.

"Very excited. Are you ever going to tell me what we're doing?"

"Nope. Not until we get there," she said mischievously.

"I don't know if I like this idea. I like to plan what I'm doing. How will I know what to wear?" he asked curiously.

"It's very casual, so wear jeans if you have them."

"Check. Casual. I like it. Alright. Should I eat first?"

"No, we'll eat there."

"So it's a dinner place?"

"Not exactly. But they have food and drinks."

"It's a bar then. Like the one I took you to," he said thinking he'd figured it out.

"No, it's not. Stop guessing! You'll ruin the surprise. Don't you have work to do?" she asked trying to put him off.

"You're the one that asked me if I was excited about the weekend," he pointed out.

"Yes, well, it was a quick answer and didn't involve me giving hints."

"Alright, alright. I'll live in suspense," he relented with a sigh. "Have you told Potter we're working together?" he asked seemingly out of the blue.

"What?"

"You heard me. Did you tell him?"

"He kind of sort of found out that you worked here. I guess he saw you and then he asked me about it. So I told him the situation. But all I said was that you worked for me. I didn't mention our outings," she explained nervously.

"Outings? You mean dates?" he smirked at her.

"They were friendly friend dates! That's all. And he doesn't need to know about them. They're secret remember?" she reminded him.

"I never said the 'outings' were secret. Just the things we talked about on them. But it's fine. I just wondered if he knew. I saw him this morning but I didn't think he saw me. I wasn't about to go up to him," Draco shook his head.

"He said he felt sorry for me having to deal with you. But I told him you'd changed. He didn't buy it," she said with a sigh.

"Of course he didn't buy it. Why would he? He probably still hates me a lot," he lamented.

"I think so. But I defended you. I said you weren't so bad. But he said he'd believe that when he saw it. Of course if you two avoid each other constantly, he'll never see it for himself."

"I think avoiding each other is probably good. Weasel doesn't fucking work here does he?" Draco suddenly wondered.

"Not anymore. He used to. But now he works at the joke shop with his brother."

"Joke shop?"

"Yeah, it's in Diagon Alley and it's really amazing. You'd probably like it, even if you'd never consent to be seen shopping in there," she said making a face at him.

"I don't think it would be me who wouldn't shop there, so much as they would probably kick me out if I showed up."

"You're probably right," she admitted with a grimace.

"It's okay. I don't need a joke shop. But I wish your friends didn't hate me so much," he said sadly.

"I don't care what they think. It doesn't matter to me."

"It matters to me though."

She got up and walked over to his desk. She touched his arm.

"Don't let it get to you. They don't know what they're missing."

He looked up at her and smiled slightly.

"As long as you give me a chance I'll be okay."

"You don't have to worry there. I've got your back," she smiled.

"I don't deserve your support, but I'm grateful for it," he smiled back.

"You'll always have my support."

"Thanks."

Draco wished that things were different and that Harry didn't hate him. He wasn't sure why he cared though, but he did. Part of him wanted to prove to everyone that he'd changed, and not just to Hermione. She'd seen the good side of him, but unless he was stuck with Potter for some reason and they were forced to interact, he didn't imagine Harry rolling out the welcome mat for him. He tried not to let it get to him though. He had Hermione and that was more than he ever would have dreamed he'd have. Her support. And her friendship. And whatever it was that was passing between them. It felt bigger than friendship, but she kept being insistent that it was a friends only type of situation. He wasn't going to push her. But he hoped maybe one day she'd see him as more than that.

When the weekend came, Draco got dressed in jeans and a nice button up shirt along with his black loafers. He looked polished even if he was wearing Muggle clothes. It was almost impossible for him not to look that way. And Hermione noted it when he showed up at her door. This time without flowers, but with a camera in his hands.

"What's that?" she asked as she let him into her flat.

"It's a camera, you ninny. What does it look like?" he teased her.

"But why do you have it? I said no pictures!" she protested.

"Too bad. I have no idea where you're taking me, but pictures are a requirement. What if this is something crazy that I want captured on film or else no one will believe I did it?" he offered.

"It's not that exciting. Trust me. You don't need a camera," she shook her head.

"But I want it. So when are we leaving?" he asked eagerly.

"I've just got to grab my purse. But please don't take pictures of me," she said with a pout.

"Why not?"

"I don't know. I hate how I look in them most of the time. And we're so not putting up any pictures of us together in the office."

"Well maybe I'll put the pictures on the walls of my home? Would that be alright with you?" he wondered with some amusement.

"Fine."

"Good. Now let's get going. I'm dying to see where we're going."

He held onto her arm and she apparated them away to a place she knew in the city. They walked out of the alley and went across the street and she held up her arms at the big neon sign over the door.

"Ta-da! This is our date place," she said happily.

"Lucky Strike Lanes? We're bowling?" he said unsure of the destination.

"Yes! They have this thing called electric bowling and it's all dark with nothing but black lights on in the place. It's spectacular," she said excitedly.

"Love, I don't know how to bowl. I've never done it before," he admitted scratching his head.

"Oh it's easy. I'll show you the ropes. And maybe this time I'll beat you in a game since you murdered me in darts and pool," she informed him.

"Okay. But if I end up being naturally gifted at this, don't cry too much when I win," he smirked at her.

They walked into the bowling alley and it was already dark and had a neon glow all around them. It was like a nightclub except it smelled like old shoes and floor polish, Draco noted. They walked up to the counter to pay for the game and rent the shoes and Draco took one look at the shoes and shook his head.

"Oh hell no. I'm not wearing those fucked up shoes," he said adamantly.

"You have to! They won't let you play if you don't," she explained.

"But they're so ugly. And other peoples feet have been in them! That's just unsanitary and gross," he made a face.

"Just get the stupid shoes, will you? They spray disinfectant in them. They're not smelly," she tried to tell him.

"They look smelly. And did I mention really ugly?"

"You mentioned that. Just get a pair please."

He finally relented and told the man his size and then they took their ugly shoes to the assigned lane. Draco noted lots of people with special shirts and less ugly shoes that they'd apparently purchased for themselves instead of renting them. He wished he would have known and he would have just bought shoes. But he was being a good sport about it. He took off his loafers and put on the horrid shoes and then he watched Hermione as she went to pick out a bowling ball. So he followed suit and tried to pick the right one, except he had no idea what the right one would be like. Did he want it lighter or heavier? The lighter balls had smaller finger holes so he assumed they were for children or small women, so he went with a larger ball. It was white and glowed in the dark. He had to admit the place looked really cool.

"So we gonna play or what?" Hermione asked him with a big grin on her face.

"You go first and then I'll see what I'm up against," he urged her.

She went up to the lane and rolled her ball and she hit all but one pin. Then when the ball came back she managed to knock over the last pin. She jumped up and down and cheered for herself. Draco didn't think it looked that hard. So he felt confident he'd be good at it. He stepped up to the lane and launched his ball and waited as it rolled right into the gutter.

"Damn it! That shouldn't count. I wasn't ready!"

"If you weren't ready, why'd you let go of the ball?" she inquired with a raised eyebrow.

"It just slipped," he lied. He didn't want to admit it was harder than it looked. "I should get a do-over."

"Nope. No do-overs. Just try again and aim for the middle," she said helpfully.

He just sighed and grabbed his ball again as it had now returned in the little slot. He aimed again and this time he hit one pin. He groaned and pouted to Hermione.

"This game sucks," he complained.

"You're new at it. It takes practice. Just watch how I do it," she assured him as she picked up her ball and went to the lane again. This time she got a strike and she jumped up and down and clapped for herself.

"Okay, you've gotta be cheating," he informed her with a raised eyebrow.

"I'm not cheating! I just used to play this with my family when I was a kid," she shrugged.

"You said this place had drinks eh? I need a drink to continue on. Maybe I'll get better if I'm drunk?" he laughed slightly.

She just shook her head but agreed to get the drinks. She showed him where the bar was and he went over and grabbed some beers and brought them back to their lane. He took a long swig and then proceeded to roll another gutter ball. Hermione felt bad for him a little because it was clear Draco was used to being good at everything he tried. So she went up behind him and put her arms around him to try and show him how to roll the ball properly.

"You just flick your wrist like so," she explained. "It's really quite simple once you get it down. Try it with me helping you."

He was momentarily rendered mute by the feel of her warm arms around him, but he realized she was just trying to help him at the game. It wasn't a come on. So he took a deep breath and let her guide him. He rolled again and this time he knocked over two pins. It was better than nothing, he deduced. But he still sucked hard at this game. But they kept playing and she kept getting good shots, to his terrible ones. She won the first game easily. That's when Draco got more beers and some cheese sticks from the bar area. He was hungry and bored because he was losing. But he didn't want to give up because she was having so much fun. So they kept going. He decided to let his competitive nature aside for a bit and just cheered for her when she did well. It made the experience more pleasant. Then Draco had taken to literally throwing the ball down the lane because rolling it wasn't working. Hermione couldn't help but burst into giggles over his awful bowling style. But he actually knocked over some pins with that technique, much to her dismay.

"See, I think I'm getting the hang of this!" he said proudly after his small victory.

"You're not supposed to throw the ball though. You'll break the lane!" she laughed at him.

"So what? It works! At least I didn't throw it into the other person's lane next to us," he grinned at her.

"You're hopeless as a bowler."

"Love, this was your bright idea. I'm just making due with it," he told her simply.

"Watch me bowl another strike. You wanna bet money that I make one?" she asked, trying to make things interesting.

"I'm gonna lose this bet if I bet against you," he chuckled.

"Maybe I won't make it? Ten galleons says I make it. You wanna bet against me?" she inquired with a raised eyebrow.

"Fine. Ten galleons says you don't make it," he smirked at her.

Now the pressure was on so she tried her best to get her concentration going. She really didn't want to lose. And normally getting a strike was fairly easy for her. She took a deep breath and then Draco came up behind her and poked her in the side, startling her and she dropped the ball onto the lane and it promptly rolled right into the gutter. He started laughing heartily and couldn't stop.

"I win!" he shouted raising his arms in the air.

"No fair! You cheated! You poked me! Who does that?" she said in disbelief.

"I think it's funny as fuck. You were concentrating so hard that when I poked you, I actually made you scream a bit. I'm never forgetting that," he smiled widely at his ill-gotten victory.

"I don't think I should pay you when you so clearly distracted me. I want a do-over!"

"Nuh-uh. You said no do-overs. So just take your lumps and fork over the cash."

She went to her purse and pulled out the money and plunked it in his hand.

"You suck, Draco Malfoy. I hate you," she said with a pout on her face.

"You still have one more shot to go. This time I swear I'll stay right where I am," he held up his hand in promise.

She just stuck her tongue out at him and then went back to the lane and this time hit four pins. He had driven her to distraction now and she couldn't get her groove back so easily. But if he wasn't gonna play fair, then neither was she. When it was his turn to go up she ran up to him and smacked his bum making him launch the ball into the air and it came thudding down before rolling into the gutter.

"What the hell are you doing, woman?" he asked trying not to laugh.

"Payback's a bitch."

"My ass hurts now. Why do you always hit so hard?" he lamented.

"I guess I don't know my own strength," she shrugged.

"No fair smacking me. I should smack your ass and see if you like it," he said challenging her.

"I'd like to see you try," she stuck her tongue out at him.

So he began chasing her around their lane area threatening to smack her ass. She kept laughing and screaming out for him to stop and leave her alone, but he wasn't having any of that. He finally caught up to her and grabbed her around the waist. He lifted her up and smacked her bum as hard as he could. She cried out and burst into giggles.

"Stop it! Put me down! That hurt!"

"Now we're even!"

"You suck so hard. I don't even know what I'm doing with you here," she pouted as he put her down and she rubbed her sore ass.

"You like me. Face it. I'm charming."

"I do not like you. I hate you."

"Liar."

She thought for a moment, then she just burst out into giggles again.

"Okay, so I'm a liar. But do not ever smack my bum again!"

"Don't smack mine either!"

"Fine."

"Fine."

"Just bowl."

So they got back to the business of bowling, but it was really a lot more fun when they were deliberately trying to fuck each other's shit up. But they tried to refrain and just play a fair game, but Draco lost again and he'd had enough. She wiped the floor with him, even after his shenanigans.

"Okay, I'm done with this game. I hate losing," he told her with a sigh.

"I love winning, so it's been a pretty good night for me," she grinned at him.

"You're so awful. You knew I was going to suck at this. That's why you brought me here," he pouted.

"I didn't know that. For all I knew you could have been a bowling champ. It's not like I know that much about you," she admitted.

"True, I suppose. But can we take off these ugly shoes now? I want to put my own shoes back on. We can just sit in the bar for a while, can't we?" he asked her.

"Oh, alright. If you've really had enough," she sighed.

"I have. But just so you know, I did get pictures of you when you weren't looking," he smirked at her.

"What? When?"

"When you were so deep in concentration. They're gonna look great in my albums. But we really should get one of the two us posing with the ball and the ugly shoes. What do you say?" he offered excitedly.

"Alright. Since I did in fact wipe the floor with you, I guess I can give you one little picture," she relented.

He smiled and picked up the bowling ball and took off his ugly shoes. He held them up and she grabbed the camera and scooted into the shot and they took a hilarious selfie of the two of them laughing in the bowling alley. Draco tried to play it cool, but he really was thrilled to have photographic evidence that Hermione Granger spent time with him of her own free will. Not that he was planning on sharing it with anyone. But he still owned it and that pleased him. They each put back on their real shoes and turned the ugly ones in and then they went to the bar area where people were playing shuffleboard and darts and pool while listening to music that went along with the strobe lights in the alley. It was a fun atmosphere, even if it did smell like old shoes and cigarettes inside there. They sat at a high top table and ordered two more beers. There was a bowl of nuts on the table and Draco dug into them while they waited. He just kept looking at Hermione who was so beautiful tonight, he thought. Maybe even more radiant than when she dressed up fancy and went to dinner with him. This was her element. A smoky, stinky bowling alley made her feel at home for some reason and he just thought it was adorable.

"So you really came here a lot with your folks?" he asked finally, trying to break the silence that always settled over them for some reason.

"Not this particular place, no. But bowling, yes. It was part of our family fun nights we used to have when I was growing up. We'd also miniature golf and drive little go-Karts. We had a blast," she said wistfully, missing her parents.

"That sounds fun actually. I wanna drive a go-Kart," he noted with a smile.

"Maybe next time?"

"It's a date."

"Why are we going on these friend dates, Draco? It's kind of weird don't you think?" she tossed out as she sipped her beer that had just arrived.

"You think it's weird? I thought it was fun," he said, feeling slightly wounded.

"It is fun. It's just that I'm your boss. We should probably make sure we keep it friendly," she said, belying what she actually felt. She was attracted to him deeply, but it was wrong of her to think like that.

"It is friendly. Just because we smacked each other's asses doesn't mean it's not friendly," he said with a slight chuckle. He was disappointed to hear her say this, but it didn't surprise him. She was stickler for rules. Like not dating your subordinate at work. But he could really care less.

"Okay. Just so you don't get the wrong idea," she said waving her hand in the air.

"I don't have the wrong idea. It's fine."

The truth was, he did sort of have the wrong idea. He couldn't help himself. He really liked her a lot. He fantasized about kissing her on a daily basis. But she was hell bent on being just friends. He wondered if she was doing that because it was how she really felt, or because it was the so-called right thing to do? He wasn't sure. But he was afraid to find out, so he kept quiet about it.

"I'm glad you understand how I feel. I mean, I enjoy your company a lot. You're the most fun I've had in a long time. I just don't want to complicate things," she explained, trying to convince not only him, but herself.

"I said it's cool. You wanna be friends. I could use a friend. I don't have any of those left. But friends go out and do stuff. And I want to do the go-Karts next. What do you say?" he offered with a smile, that masked the hurt feelings he had.

"Okay. I hope you can drive. Can you drive?" she wondered with a laugh.

"Nope. I've never driven a car before, but how hard could it be? Your ex flew a car to school once. So if he can fly one, I can drive a little go-Kart," he scoffed.

"That was pretty wild what Ron did with the car," she chuckled over the memory.

"I hate the bugger, but I have to admit I was a little jealous I didn't make such a grand entrance to school as he did," Draco laughed.

"You jealous of Ron? Did I hear you correctly? I wish I still talked to him so I could tell him that," she giggled.

"Shut up. Don't fucking tell him that! Remember everything we talk about on our 'outings' is to be private," he reminded her.

"Okay. True. I forgot. Nothing leaves my lips."

"You better not forget it."

They just sat together in silence again and sipped their beers. They both had so much they wanted to say, but didn't say for fear that the other person didn't want to hear it. Hermione knew she was falling for Draco, despite her vehement protests that they remain friends. And Draco was already head over heels for Hermione but he wouldn't ever admit it, so long as she was so adamant they be friends. He wasn't going to make a fool of himself. But here were two people who were crazy about each other and neither one of them would say anything about it. Which in turn made both of them slightly miserable inside. But neither one of them thought there was anything to be done about it.

"You wanna play pool with me again?" Draco asked trying to get rid of the awkward silence that settled.

"You just want to go away from this evening gloating about your win," she teased him.

"Maybe I do? Is there anything wrong with that?" he joked back.

"Fine. We can play. But I get to break," she told him as they got up and found an empty table to play on.

They played pool and drank beer and talked shit about each other endlessly. They were getting really good at teasing each other in a playful way, whereas their teasing in the past had been anything but playful. But now they had a rapport with each other and it made things that much more fun. So when Draco got pissed that she knocked his shot all to hell, he called her a bitch. That just made her laugh even harder.

"You're the little bitch," she shot back at him.

"Bite your tongue. I am not," he protested.

"Draco gets so upset when things don't go his way. I've never seen a more competitive person in the world."

"Really? Try looking in a mirror, sweetheart," he stuck his tongue out at her and flipped her off.

"Fuck you, Malfoy," she stuck her tongue out right back and flipped him off too.

Then they both just dissolved into fits of laughter, fueled by the beers they'd drank and the fact that they loved ribbing each other like this. It kept things exciting between them. And they were both feeling that pull of attraction, but they tried hard not to act on it. But once it was deemed the evening was at its end, Draco insisted on seeing Hermione home this time. He wasn't eager for the night to end even if it was really late.

"You don't have to come to my place. I can get home just fine," she insisted.

"I'd rather make sure you get there safely. Just humor me?" he said with some exasperation.

"Alright."

They made their way to a deserted alley and apparated to Hermione's flat. She threw her purse down and kicked off her shoes and Draco just stood there watching her.

"Can I have a nightcap?" he asked, trying anything he could to give him a reason to stay in her company.

"Sure. What do you want? I only have wine and some vodka," she informed him.

"No whiskey eh?"

"Afraid not."

"Do you have anything to mix with the vodka? Otherwise it tastes like rubbing alcohol," he laughed slightly.

"I have juice."

"Perfect. I'll take a vodka and whatever juice you have."

She went to the kitchen and poured them both a screwdriver, using her orange juice from breakfast. She didn't usually drink the hard stuff but she had the bottle from one of her darker moments when she wished to obliterate all her thoughts. But now she'd have one stiff drink with Draco and then maybe he'd go home. She wasn't sure why he wanted to stay so badly. But she gave him his drink and then they sat on the couch together. He was petting her cat and Crookshanks was loving the attention.

"Your cat really seems to like me," he noted as he took a swig of the strong drink.

"He does. Maybe he's broken?" she teased him.

"Ha-ha. Very funny. You know I never much cared for cats before. I always had dogs at home. My father's prized possessions. They were show dogs and not really pets. But I was always playing with them when he wasn't looking. One time I took them outside after it had rained and we all played in the mud. You should have seen my father's face when his dogs were completely filthy and so was I. He nearly whooped my ass for that one. We had to take the dogs to be groomed and I wasn't allowed out of the house for weeks," Draco recalled the memory from his childhood.

"That's funny. Your dad sounds so awful though," she remarked, taking a sip of her drink and making a face at the taste of the strong liquid.

"Did you ever get in trouble like that, or were you always a perfect child?" he asked curiously.

"I got in trouble plenty. But usually it was for not getting good enough grades in school. My parents wanted me to be the best at everything. So when I'd bring home less than perfect marks, I'd get my playing privileges revoked. I was to stay in my room and study until I could prove I'd do better next time. I loved my parents, but they really messed with my head about being the best at everything. They had me tested once back in Muggle school and I scored as gifted on it, so they put me in the hardest classes and expected me to be the one to cure cancer or something. But once I got my Hogwarts letter all of that changed. They didn't really understand the magic, but I still wanted to prove I was the best. In my third year at Hogwarts, I used a time turner to take twice as many classes as my peers. It was ridiculous," she admitted with a little laugh. She'd never told anyone except Harry about that. But for some reason she wanted to tell Draco.

"A time turner? How the fuck did you get one of those?" Draco was in awe of her story.

"McGonagall gave it to me. I think she thought I was a little left of center for wanting to stretch myself so thin, but she also knew how important it was for me to succeed. I wanted to be miles above all the rest. But all it did was exhaust the hell out of me. And in the end, it didn't even matter. I never finished school. Me, Hermione Granger, the biggest nerd in all the land, was a dropout."

"That's not entirely accurate. I mean, you had reasons for skipping your last year. Plus you could have gone back," he pointed out.

"I know. And I almost did. Except I was offered this job by the Ministry and I decided to take it instead. But part of me regrets not finishing," she confessed.

"You put too much pressure on yourself. You would have aced your last year anyway. It always used to bug me how you'd beat me in all my classes. I thought it was ridiculous that someone who wasn't even pureblooded could beat me. God, I was stupid," he sighed.

"Well you used to keep me motivated, believe it or not. I knew you were smart and just behind me in our marks. So I worked even harder just to stick it to you," she laughed.

"Really? I had no idea you thought of me at all in school. Except to punch me in the face."

"I did. I thought of you way too much, honestly. And so did Harry. I swear you were the topic of so many conversations, even when you weren't actively making our lives a living hell. Harry was always convinced you were evil, and I was just determined to not let you beat me."

"That's really funny. Because I thought of you lot way too much too. Especially you. It drove me mad how good you were. I used to complain to my father all the time about it."

"I know. I remember meeting him for the first time and he said you'd told him all about me. I thought it was weird, but it also made me feel good that you saw me as a threat," she smirked at him.

"You were a threat. But now look at me? I'm your assistant. A fucking assistant! I should be the boss," he sighed loudly.

"Well keep up the good work and you just might be a boss one day," she smiled at him.

"Really?"

"Yeah."

"You know getting this job was the first thing I've ever done all on my own, without Daddy's help. He wanted to help me but it turns out no one really gives a fuck about his social standings anymore, so he couldn't even pull strings. In fact, it hurt me to have him attempt to intervene. They all hate my father. But I was able to get them to look past his mistakes and let them give me a chance on my own clout. It felt really good, even if I am just a lowly assistant," Draco explained drinking down more of his drink.

"You should be proud then. I assumed your father did have some say in you getting this job," she admitted.

"No way. It was all on me. It felt good to be set apart from the family and do something good on my own."

"Maybe you don't need them after all?"

"I wish. I mean, don't get me wrong. I'm proud of myself. But the pay sucks. I still need my trust fund to live properly. I have a house to maintain and a lifestyle I'm accustomed to. And let's face it, an assistant makes shit money," he told her seriously.

"At least it's an honest wage. Don't you just want to break free from your family altogether and have your own life?" she wondered.

"I wish I could. But I can't. My father still owns me. Unless I want to live in a hovel and eat pot of noodles for every meal. No thanks."

Hermione couldn't help but feel sad over that. Draco should be his own man. But apparently he wasn't quite ready to do that. And she supposed she didn't blame him in some ways. It would be hard to go from riches to rags. But if it were and she had controlling parents like that, she'd much rather strike it out on her own than live under their thumb. But Draco was different. He always had a silver spoon in his mouth. He couldn't be just a regular Joe.

Once their drinks were finished, Hermione was ready to sleep. She was wiped out and the vodka drink only lulled her to sleep faster. She yawned and looked at Draco.

"I think I'm gonna call it a night. I'm very sleepy," she admitted.

"Oh. Okay. Well, that's my cue then," he said wearily as he stood from the comfortable couch and readied himself to leave her.

"I had lots of fun tonight," she smiled at him.

"Me too. It was great. Even if you won all the bowling games. I'll do better at go-Kart racing," he assured her.

"You got a deal then. We'll see who's the better race car driver," she laughed.

He stood there and faced her and wanted so badly to kiss her. But it wasn't allowed. It wasn't in the friendship guidelines. But he just leaned over and kissed her forehead lightly.

"Goodnight, Hermione," he said gently.

"Goodnight, Draco," she smiled up at him.

And with that, he apparated himself out of her flat and back to his own. He hadn't wanted to leave her at all. And she hadn't wanted him to leave either. But they had an agreement. Friends only. Too bad they both thought the agreement sucked. But for now, they were stuck with it.

To be continued…. Please leave feedback! I love reviews! They keep me writing faster….