Disclaimer: I own none of the characters here. JK Rowling and company own them. I merely play with them for my own amusement. Please don't sue. I have nothing of value anyway.
Summary: Harry is caught in a love triangle to rival all else. He's found himself questioning his sexuality and is owning up to his attraction to Draco Malfoy. Meanwhile Draco is cozying up to Hermione, who won't give him the time of day. And Hermione keeps thinking there's hope for her and Harry to have a future together. It's a tangled web of emotions and will anyone get what they want? Set a couple of years after Hogwarts ended. Told from Harry's POV. Drarry, with undertones of Dramione.
Three is a Crowd
When I went back to the house, I found it seemingly empty. I didn't know if Draco and Hermione left someplace together, and this time I really didn't care. It was obvious they had something going on that I wasn't a part of, so I was just going to let them have at it. It was all I could do. But when I sat down in the living room, Hermione appeared carrying laundry under her arm.
"Harry! You're back!" she exclaimed when she saw me.
"Yep, I'm back. Where's your boyfriend?" I asked curiously.
"He's not my boyfriend. And I'm really sorry I lied to you, Harry. I won't do it again," she promised me.
"Well he's certainly not my boyfriend. He made that much clear. I don't know what he is, except a thorn in my side," I lamented.
Hermione sat down next to me on the couch. She touched my arm.
"He played both of us. He told me you didn't care what he did with me, and I believed him. He's very convincing."
"Yeah, he's convincing when he's got his head between your legs I guess," I said snidely.
"Harry! That was uncalled for. I'm on your side here. I just feel so badly about everything!" she said wiping tears out of her eyes.
"I'm sorry. I guess I'm not being fair. You're right that he played both of us. It's just aren't we smarter than that? I'm not an idiot and you're like brilliantly gifted and yet here we both are letting a man come between us. What's wrong with us?" I wondered with a sigh.
"I don't know how we got to this point. But I told him no more when he left here. I said I was done. And I meant that."
"Did you really? Or do you secretly still want him?" I wondered curiously.
"I don't! I mean, if you didn't fancy him, then I suppose there'd be nothing stopping me. But I don't want to be a bad friend," she explained.
"If you really want him, be my guest. I'm so over him," I said, but didn't really mean it.
"You don't really mean that," she said giving me a knowing look.
"Alright, so you read me like a book. I do want him. But what's the point? He's ashamed of his feelings for me. Whatever they may be. So I say we should just go back to being friends," I told her sadly.
"Harry, you're not friends with him now. I know we said we'd be friends, but that's just a lie. It's always been more, and if you can't have that, you're going to be upset."
"I just hate him so much. Why do I even want him?" I bemoaned.
"I hate him too. I don't know why he's so irresistible. It really gets under my skin how he does that. Worms his way into your heart," she said with frustration.
"And into your knickers," I reminded her.
"Ugh. Don't even say it. I'm so embarrassed."
"Don't be. At least you didn't suck his dick like I did."
"Oh Harry, I'm sorry. I know you thought that really meant something to him," she said, giving me a pat on the back.
"I did! But it turns out it just meant he likes having his dick sucked. Which isn't a huge shocker. So does every other man in the world," I sighed. "At least you got an orgasm out of it."
"Harry!"
"What? It's true!"
"Ugh. Just shoot me. I'm so sorry."
"Don't be. It's over. Let's just move on."
And that's what I thoroughly planned to do. Move on. I didn't want to see Draco anymore. He was nothing but trouble. And Hermione was right when she said we never really were friends. We weren't. I always wanted more. But I was questioning in my mind why that was. Sure, he was a good looking bloke. But so were lots of other people. What exactly was it about him that was making me lose my mind? I couldn't really put my finger on it, but I knew it had to end. Now. He was never going to be what I wanted him to be. I just couldn't believe my best friend lied to me about what happened. I wanted to forgive Hermione and just move on like I said. But some part of me was still angry at her for going behind my back and letting Draco pleasure her. She wasn't even drunk, so she couldn't use that excuse. And Draco? He didn't even offer an excuse other than to say he was a shithead basically. He wasn't lying there. That he was. But then why was my heart still set on figuring him out? He didn't want me to figure him out. And I don't really think he wanted anyone to try and figure him out. That's why he hid behind the guise of not being good at monogamy. Draco was just a confused person, and me and Hermione were his guinea pigs to try stuff out on. But I was done with him this time. And I hoped Hermione would be done with him too.
"Do you really think we can just move on from this?" she asked me quietly, breaking me out of my thoughts.
"I certainly want to try. What else can we do? Unless we're actually both going to date him. Is that something you want for us?" I asked curiously, knowing full well she'd say no. And she did. So then I proposed what else we could do?
"I have no idea Harry. I just don't want you to think I'm a horrible person. I knew you fancied him but I guess I just didn't realize how much it meant. Draco tried to tell me you were okay with him being with me. And I guess some part of me just wanted to believe that," she admitted to me finally.
"Why'd you want to believe it so badly unless you have feelings for him too?" I wondered.
"I might have some feelings for him, yes. But they don't trump yours! My feelings are more lusty than love. You said you loved him. I-I can't compete with that."
"I don't know if I can love him knowing he'll never love me. So if you really want him, then go be with him. I won't stand in the way. I mean it. I've seen the way he looks at you. Like last night when he said you were adorable. He'd never look at me that way. I think maybe he loves you, Hermione," I told her seriously, trying to puzzle it all out.
"But even if he did, which I'm not saying he does, I won't ruin our friendship over a man. I just won't. I'll find someone else. I think we should just say good riddance to Draco. No being friends or anything with him. It only leads to badness," she told me. "I think that's the only workable plan is to sever all ties. No friendship, no nothing."
"You're right. I know you are. But why does it feel so bad inside?" I asked sadly.
Hermione scooted close to me. She put her arm around me.
"I wish I had the answers as to why this feels so bad for both of us. It's all Draco's fault! He led us both on. He's a colossal fuckwit. We knew that about him when all this started, why on earth did we think he'd changed?" she asked herself just as much as she asked me.
I looked over at her.
"He had changed though. Somewhat. I mean, he's still a terrible person, but I don't think he really wants to be. I think he's just messed up. His family messed him up. Because let's be honest here, it's not just me he can't take home to Daddy. It's you too. You're a mudblood, Hermione. Excuse my language, but you know that's what the Malfoy's think of you. He can't be with either one of us and still have his family's approval. Yet he's drawn to both of us. That must mean he actually cares for us, right?" I tried to rationalize everything so it wouldn't hurt so much.
"I know he can't take me home to Daddy, but I'd wager he could do it a lot more than he could bringing you home. What if he really is gay? I'm already in love with one gay bloke, if I go for another, they'll have to commit me to an asylum or something," she joked half-heartedly.
"So then we're back to severing all ties then?" I asked.
She nodded.
"It's really the only way."
And I knew she was right. I kept telling myself all morning that this would be the only scenario that made sense. But I hated giving up hope. I at least felt like I wanted Draco in my life, I just wasn't sure why. That was the puzzle. He made me so mad, why would I want to be his friend at all? It made no sense. So I was just going to go with my gut and Hermione's plan, and just say no to him. Stay away from him. It was the only way I might keep a shred of my sanity.
Life went on after this and at work, Draco tried to come up to us in the cafeteria, but we snubbed him. He didn't take too kindly to that, but he also wasn't going to make a scene at work. Poor Hermione had it harder because she actually worked with him. And when she got the promotion they'd both been after, Draco apparently came to her with his hat in hand and congratulated her. She admitted it was a bit touch and go, but she managed to just thank him for his acknowledgment and not fall into his arms like he was hoping. And for me, he corned me in the men's room once and I told him it was a terrible place for him to come begging me to be his friend. We were at the toilets. And even he realized it was a bit much and asked me to please just talk to him after we were done. But I refused and quickly disappeared back into my office. So for three whole weeks, Operation Avoid Draco was in full swing. But it came to a screeching halt when I got hurt at work. It was my first time going out as the main lead Auror on a mission and I had a younger partner, fresh out of school. They felt like I was finally ready to do this thing, and I was eager to prove my worth. But since this is my life, nothing ever goes right and I ended up taking a blasting curse to the shoulder. Now I wasn't hurt that badly. A wizard can sustain a lot and be fixed up pretty easily. But it was enough that I was out of commission and my young charge had to save the day. He's gonna be good at this, by the way. But that's neither here nor there. I was out, and needed saving. And it was all over the entire Ministry when I got back with my arm in a sling that I had fucked up my maiden mission.
Needless to say I was feeling foolish and not up to the high standards they set for me. How could I screw up the first time they let me out on my own? I was just so distracted by the entire Draco ordeal that I admit I wasn't on my game like I should have been. So I got a busted up shoulder and ended up at St. Mungo's. Hermione was fretting over me like I'd nearly lost an arm, and I had to tell her I was gonna be alright. It was just a scratch. Barely enough to even warrant medical attention. But soon Draco learned what happened too and he stood outside the door at St. Mungo's and begged to be let in. We had said no, but when Hermione went to go get some things from home, Draco slipped into my room unannounced.
"Potter," he had said to me.
"Malfoy. What are you doing here?" I asked, wincing with pain.
He had flowers in his hand and also a bottle of whiskey. I looked at that and he noticed me looking and thrust the bottle of whiskey at me, while setting the flowers down on a table.
"I brought you these. I just wanted to see how you were doing," he told me somewhat awkwardly.
"You didn't have to. I'm fine. And flowers? Really?" I asked giving him a look.
"The flowers were for Hermione. If she comes back. But the whiskey is for you. Unless you want the flowers, then they're for you," he rambled.
I couldn't help but laugh slightly at his totally awkward behavior. It wasn't like Draco at all. He was actually being humble and nice and thoughtful. It was weird.
"I don't need the flowers, but Hermione might just throw them back in your face when she gets back," I informed him.
"Look, I know I was a total fuckwit. I played with everyone's emotions. But I've been trying to tell you two that I'm willing to change. I'm willing to just be friends with you two. Real friends. Not just me saying that to get what I want eventually."
"We considered being your friend already and we decided against it. You can't be trusted. And frankly, I don't trust myself around you and your weird signals," I admitted.
"I promise there won't be any more weird signals. I just want to be friends. I've missed you two. And you know I must mean that or I'd never debase myself like this. I'm practically begging for another chance," he said miserably.
"Don't you have other friends?" I wondered idly, not willing to give in so quickly.
"Of course I do. But like I told you before, they're my father's spies. I don't trust them," he explained.
"But you can trust me? Or am I the only one stupid enough to let you play your head games on them?" I shot back.
"Stop. I said I was sorry. I meant that! And yes, I trust you. You're Harry Potter. Who doesn't trust you?" Draco told me.
"Uh, my partner probably doesn't trust me. After all, I almost got us killed today. And it's really your fault because you distracted me and made me off my game," I informed him.
"My fault? How is it my fault? I've been trying to make nice with you for weeks and you kept shooting me down. I rather thought you hated my guts and didn't think of me at all anymore," he said glumly.
"Bollocks. I wish that were true. But you're under my skin, Draco. And I-I don't know if I can be just your friend anymore," It pained me to admit this to him, but it was the truth.
"Can we at least try?" he offered me pushing the bottle of whiskey towards me on the table.
Before I could answer, Hermione came back and had an overnight bag for me because they weren't letting me go home until the next morning. I needed a few items. She was startled to see Draco standing in my room and she knew I was probably too weak and helpless to make any credible threats against him. But she wasn't. She dropped the bag and pulled out her wand and shoved Draco back against the wall with her wand at his throat.
"Hermione stop!" I shouted at her.
"No, what is this wanker doing in your room? I'll call security," she hissed at him, never lowering her wand.
He held his hands up.
"Hey now! Put that thing away! I'm just visiting a sick friend. I wanted to make nice again. I've changed. I promise I won't lure anyone into my bed. I just want to be friends!" he pleaded his case.
She lowered the wand and looked at me disapprovingly, because I think she could tell I was about to cave in.
"Harry, what did we talk about?" she reminded me.
"I know! But he brought whiskey and flowers for you. Or me if you didn't want them. But the point is, he's trying. And maybe we should give him a chance?" I said quickly before I could talk myself out of it.
"Don't tell me you didn't miss me at least a little bit," Draco offered Hermione as she put her wand away and sighed.
"I didn't think much of you at all, honestly. I tried to put the past behind me," she told him with much aloofness.
"I want to put the past behind us too. Start fresh. Just the three of us as friends. It'll be great. No more confusing kissing or other things that friends don't do," he promised.
"He seems sincere," I offered, trying to get Hermione to see the light because the truth was, I was tired of dodging Draco and pretending I didn't still care. I did still care. As much as I hated to admit it. But this just made me unable to deny that I still had feelings for him.
"He always seems sincere but he never really is. You know that, Harry," Hermione scolded me like I was some child.
"It's my life though. And maybe you don't have to be his friend, but I want to be," I announced, totally unsure of myself, but trying to act like I knew what I was doing.
Draco smiled at this and looked to Hermione to see if she'd agree too.
"I don't want to be your friend Draco. But if Harry chooses this, then I'm not gonna stop him. He's a big boy. But I'm off limits, got it? You two can do boy things together, but I'm not going to be a part of it," she said adamantly.
"Alright. I get the message," Draco told her. "But promise not to threaten me with your wand every time I show up."
"I won't. But if you hurt Harry again, I won't keep that promise. I mean it, Draco. I'm done with you playing games."
"No more games. Just friendship. Promise. And if you change your mind, I'll be around. I promise not to try and get you in bed again."
I just sat and watched them hash out an arrangement that would work. And it seemed like Hermione thought I was nuts, but since I'd just been injured she didn't have the heart to pummel me with a pillow or something like she normally would have done when she felt I was making a foolish mistake. She just kept giving me disapproving glances and she sighed a lot. And then she said she was going to go home unless I needed her.
"No, I'll be fine. I'll be home in the morning," I assured her.
"Yes, well, I'll be at work then, so do you want me to take the day off to come care for you?" Hermione asked me kindly.
"No, no worries. I'll take care of myself."
"But they said you might need help because that arm needs to stay immobilized for a few days," she reminded me.
"I'll take care of him," Draco piped up. "You got your fancy new promotion to work on and I'm just a lowly worker bee. I'll take the time off to help Harry okay? It'll save you the trouble," Draco offered.
"I don't think that's such a good idea," Hermione shook her head.
"Why not Hermione? If he's just my friend, it's okay right? No need for you to miss work if you don't have to. I'll be fine with Draco," I told her assuredly.
She just thought on it for a moment and looked at both of us. Then she sighed and grabbed the flowers off the table and smelled them. She looked at Draco.
"These are nice. Thank you," she told him. Then she chucked them in the bin before turning back to me. "Don't let him play you, Harry. I'll be home at 5:30 promptly tomorrow. If I find you in a worse state than this, someone is going to see my wrath," she said to me, but glanced over her shoulder at Draco, who just stood there not saying a word.
Then she kissed my cheek and left me alone with Draco. I looked at the flowers in the bin and I realized she meant business. She really wanted nothing to do with him. But that was okay with me honestly. I kinda sorta wanted Draco to myself anyway. And I know we said we were just friends and no more funny business, but if something did happen, I felt much more secure in knowing that Hermione wasn't going to be a factor in our relationship any longer. Then I started to wonder if that's why she did what she did. Because I knew for a fact she was taking it just as hard as me not seeing Draco anymore. She wouldn't admit her feelings, but I could tell there were feelings there. But now she was stepping aside for my sake. She really didn't have to do that, but I was grateful she did. Finally Draco spoke again.
"So, Hermione is scary as shit," he laughed slightly. "I lived on her bad side for years, but man, she's really something when she's mad."
"Yeah, you don't want to see her mad at you. Trust me," I laughed along with him.
"She chucked my flowers in a bin. Those cost a fortune," he said as he fished them out and put them back on the table for me to enjoy since she didn't want them. And I wasn't going to chuck them in a bin. I was too nice for that. But it was noted that I was getting recycled flowers meant for someone else. But who cared right? It was the gesture that counted.
"So are you really going to look after me tomorrow? I could just take care of myself," I informed him, trying to let him off the hook.
"No, you can't care for yourself with only one good arm. I'll help you. It's not a hardship. I could honestly use a few days off from work anyway," he said, waving his hand in the air dismissing my idea of going it alone.
"I appreciate it."
"No worries. I have a lot to atone for. I know that. So this will be my first step," he smiled at me.
"Why don't you sit down for a spell? I could use the company now that Hermione left and won't come back as long as you're here," I said with a small grin.
Draco sat in a chair and looked at me. He reached over and took my good hand for a slight second and squeezed it, then let it fall again.
"You had me worried, Potter. I heard you'd been injured on the job and it was all anyone could talk about. I thought it was going to be a lot worse," he admitted to me.
"People like to gossip. I just feel like an idiot. This guy wasn't even so tough but he had a friend hiding in a closet and he took me by surprise. He blasted me with some sort of dark curse that ripped my shoulder to shreds. Luckily the healers fixed me up. It barely hurts now." I lied a little. It did in fact hurt quite a lot. But I wanted to seem tougher than I really was. Harry Potter never complained about injuries. It just wasn't my thing. Mostly because throughout my life, I wasn't used to having anyone care if I was hurt or not. And that stuck with me. I was stoic. I felt like I had to be. But Draco saw through it.
"I'd wager it hurts a bit more than you're letting on. I see the way you wince every time you move," he noted.
"Mostly it's my ego that's wounded. My first bloody outing alone without someone else being in charge and I fuck it up. Such is my life," I lamented with a shake of my head.
"You reckon they're gonna put you back on desk duty again for a while after this?" Draco wondered.
"Definitely. I mean, I'm hurt right now. And when I get better, they probably won't trust me. I have to start all over again."
"I'm really sorry if it was my fault. Like you said it was. I didn't mean to distract you to the point you'd get hurt," Draco said in a small sincere voice.
"It's okay. I'm honestly relived you want to be friends. Like real friends. I missed you too. And I know I was sort of the instigator of our romantic encounters, so I promise you I won't do that anymore. I know you don't feel that way for me, so I won't push it," I said quietly, not wanting to admit my own role in this mess we made.
"Let's just not talk about any of that now, okay? It's all water under the bridge. You wanna play some wizard chess? I see they've got a game board in the corner. I could set it up for us," Draco offered, getting up to go to a basket of games and such that resided in the corner of the room.
"Yeah sure. It'll pass the time at least. And it's a nice friendly thing we can do with our time," I smiled at him, hoping that we really could be friends and nothing more. I still had my wayward feelings and I suspected he did too, but I wasn't going to let that stop us. I needed Draco back in my life. I couldn't explain it, but it was true. I needed him around. I felt empty when he wasn't there. I just hoped this would work out.
The next morning, the healers saw fit to release me into Draco's care. We went back to my house and I was feeling more pain that I wished I would have felt, but they gave me potions to take for the pain. Draco set them up on the kitchen counter and asked me if I wanted to take one. I was trying to be stoic again, but it really fucking hurt, so I caved in and said yes. I downed the potion and it immediately made the pain vanish, but it also made me feel loopy and out of my mind too. I told Draco this and he ushered me upstairs to my bedroom and was going to leave me there to rest, but I asked him to stay. I offered to have him watch the telly with me. He hesitated a moment, but then he climbed into the bed beside me but didn't touch me at all, and sat back against the pillows. We watched Buffy which was a show Draco had never seen before and he loved it. It was a marathon so they kept showing the shows and I was so out of my mind I don't really remember them. But I recalled seeing his face light up and sometimes he'd laugh a lot. He said some of it was very absurd and he couldn't help but laugh. But he said the Buffy chick reminded him of Hermione. That was less good in my mind because Buffy is very pretty. Even I know that and I'm gay. I told him I was partial to Spike, and that made him laugh harder because Spike is a bleached blonde vampire who looks a lot like Draco. But sue me. I have a type apparently. And I'm not afraid to admit it.
When Hermione got home promptly at 5:30 just as she said she would, she found Draco and I in bed together. But it was all very innocent and friend like. We were fully clothed and an acceptable distance away from each other. And I was still a little loopy so I asked her to come join us in the Buffy marathon. She sighed and started to protest, but I put on my best begging face and she relented. She told me to scoot over though so she wouldn't be next to Draco. And then she cuddled up to me as much as she could without hurting me. She loved this show too. But soon she was hungry and decided to make dinner for all of us. Even Draco. She said she didn't want to cook for him, but since he was there, it'd be rude to exclude him. And he offered to help her in the kitchen. She refused though. She told him to stay with me. He really was being a perfect gentlemen the entire day. But it was hard to have him in my bed with me and not want to cuddle up to him. He looked so sexy and handsome, it took all my willpower not to crawl under the covers and service him again. I knew only badness lied there and I wouldn't do it again. But oh, how I wanted to. Draco was tougher to read though. I couldn't tell if being in bed with me had any effect on him whatsoever. He was a blank slate. But before Hermione called us down to dinner, he did lean over and ruffle my hair.
"How are you feeling, Potter?" he asked with a smile.
"I feel pretty good actually. But that's probably the potions talking," I admitted.
"Today has been kind of nice though, don't you think? Have I proved to you that I can be your friend without any weird head games going on?" he asked hopefully.
"Draco, today has been good. But it's like your trial period. Of course you're gonna be good. I think I need more than a day to trust you again," I admitted realistically.
Part of me just wanted to tell him he was right and we could just be friends without any fuckery going on. But anyone could be good for a day. I'd need a lot more time before I could really trust he wasn't going to hurt me. And I needed more than one day, being looped out of my mind on potions, to know if I could be good and not make a fool of myself with him again. It went both ways. I didn't trust either one of us. Hermione I trusted more, but that's because she wasn't suggestible to Draco's friendship. She didn't seem to need him like I did. And that was a good thing. It meant that whatever feelings she had, she could get over. But I wasn't as confident I could. But I was going to try. Draco didn't really say anything to what I said. He just smiled and nestled down into the bed and propped his head on his bent elbow and watched the telly. I guess even he knew it took more than a day to gain trust back.
Before long, Hermione came up and told us supper was ready. She'd made spaghetti which was one of my favorites. But it wasn't a food suited to eating in bed, so we had to pull ourselves together and go downstairs to the dining room. She made certain that she sat at the head of the table and we were both down at the other end. I thought it was a little ridiculous but I think she was just proving a point that she wanted to be nowhere near Draco. He seemed to understand and didn't really try and talk to her much. She wasn't receptive when he did try. And truth be told, the tension at the table was something I was having a hard time eating through. I just wanted everyone to get along.
"This spaghetti is delicious," I remarked, trying to ease some of the tension.
"It really is. You're a good cook, Granger," Draco smiled at her.
"Thank you both. It's nothing special. Just my mum taught me how to make it," she said coolly.
"Well your mum makes delicious food then," Draco reiterated.
"I'd tell her that if I could. But I can't," Hermione said softly, creating even more tension at the table inadvertently. The subject of Hermione's folks was never a good idea to bring up. And Draco knew the story, but I guess he didn't think about it very hard before he spoke. But it seemed to dawn on him when she got ultra-quiet and morose looking.
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to bring up your mum," Draco apologized.
"It's fine. I just don't like to be reminded that my family is gone, that's all."
"I didn't mean to remind you of that."
"But you did."
"It was an accident!"
"Stop! Draco didn't mean anything by it, Hermione," I interjected trying to keep peace.
"I know. I'm sorry. It's just weird for me to be having a civil conversation with the person we both claimed could eat shit and die. I just don't get why we're trying to be friends with him again," she said unhappily.
"Can I talk to you in the kitchen for a minute?" I asked her seriously, rising from the table.
She threw her fork down and got up and joined me in the kitchen. I looked her square in the eye and pleaded with her.
"Look, I know you still think he's scum, and maybe he is? But he's trying. And I need him in my life. I'm kind of glad you don't need him in yours, because I worried maybe you had feelings that ran deeper than you'd admit. But I need him. And I just want everyone to get along," I implored her.
"I certainly don't need him in my life. And we were doing just fine before he came along, Harry. I don't understand why you need him at all. Aren't I enough for you? Couldn't you take back up with Ron again and have him be your friend? You've barely spoken to him at all in months," she said desperately.
"Ron wouldn't understand this new me. I'm afraid to tell him I'm gay. I-I don't know how he'd react. Nor do I know how he'd react if I told him Draco was my one and only conquest. You have to admit, he'd probably go ballistic."
"True. But you wouldn't have to hit him with everything all at once. I just wish you didn't feel like you needed Draco. Why do you need him?" she asked me plainly.
"Because I just do. I-I think I love him. I mean for real. Like as a person. Not just as a sex object in my fantasies. I want to fix him. He seems so broken and I just want to fix him, Hermione," I finally admitted the dark truth to her. I wanted to fix Draco Malfoy. Because I felt like if I did, he'd want me. And we'd be able to be a real couple. But Hermione wasn't having any of that.
"You can't fix someone who doesn't want to be fixed, Harry. He is who he is. And I don't think he wants fixing," she said, bursting my bubble.
"But that doesn't mean I can't try."
"It's your funeral."
"Stop being so dire. He's not going to actually kill me."
"He might. He'll rip your heart into tatters until it can't beat anymore."
"That's not gonna happen."
"Suit yourself. If it really means that much to you, I'll try and be his friend. But I'm only doing it for you. I still think this is a big mistake. But I'll give him a chance, okay?" she told me with a small sigh.
"Thank you, Hermione. You won't regret it. I have a good feeling about this all." Which was a lie. I did not have a good feeling about this. I kind of knew Hermione was right. But my stubborn streak and my heart refused to believe her.
We exited the kitchen and went back to the dining room where Draco was drinking wine and looking at his watch. I guess we were gone for a long time. But when we got back I was all smiles and Hermione tried to be more pleasant.
"I've decided that for Harry's sake, we can be friends. But I mean it Draco, if you so much as lay one unwanted hand on me, I will break all your bones and they'll have to put in traction for months," Hermione told him. Okay, so she wasn't that much more pleasant. But she was trying.
Draco held up his hands in defeat.
"I get it. I won't touch you unless it's a friendly touch. And I won't do anything to make you break all my bones. God, you're one scary bint, you know that?" Draco laughed slightly.
"I just don't like it when people hurt my friends. It upsets me. You already know not to mess with me. I taught you that lesson when we were thirteen. Remember?" she smiled a little.
"I fucking remember. That punch to the face was pretty unforgettable," Draco laughed.
"Don't make me have to do it again."
"I won't. I don't want on your bad side. I'd like to get back on the good side again if possible. You just have to give me a chance," he pleaded.
"I'll give you the chance. But you can be better friends with Harry than with me. He seems to want this more than I do. I'm just along for the ride," she said picking up her fork again and digging into her food.
Nothing more was really said after that. Draco seemed to get the message. And I did too. She was just doing this for me. Not for herself. Which made me feel better about my ideas. It wouldn't work as well if we both wanted to save Draco. I wanted to be the sole survivor in this triangle of shit we'd created. And I wasn't going to stop until I was the remaining victor. I knew I could fix him if only I had the chance. And now this was my chance. I wasn't going to blow it.
To be continued….Please leave some feedback for this story! I'm hoping you all are enjoying this twisted love story.