Hermione stared at Draco, momentarily incapable of speaking. She didn't know what to say, she hadn't at all been expecting that response.
"So you really don't know who the girl is." he asked, but it sounded more like a statement than a question. Hermione shook her head, and Draco chuckled quietly. "You didn't notice ANYTHING when you were staring at me all week?" he asked, and she shook her head again. Hermione blushed deeply, realizing she'd just admitted to staring at him. Draco must've noticed this as well, because he laughed aloud. Though, not in a mean way. In fact, it sounded nervous and soft. Hermione bit her lip as it finally hit her. "The girl is me." she said, looking away.
"You're brilliant in class. But it seems you're rather daft when it comes to people." Draco stated. Hermione resisted the urge to roll her eyes.
"Did you share with your friends what you read? Is that why you're here, to taunt me?"
"No, I didn't. And no, it's not." She answered, her annoyance very clear. "I actually don't know why I'm here at all." Hermione said, getting to her feet and taking a couple steps towards the door. Draco stood quickly and grabbed her arm, "Don't leave." he told her. They stared each other in the eyes for several seconds and there seemed to be no noise in the room. Hermione broke their gaze and sat back down on the couch, never saying anything.
"You're the only person who seems to notice that I still exist." Draco looked away, hiding his face.
"I don't know what to say." Hermione said, absentmindedly stroking the scar on her left arm.
"You don't need to say anything." He said, and they sat in silence again. "Why did you write about me?" she asked curiously. Draco shrugged. "Because I noticed you staring."
"Yes. I get that. I highly doubt I'm the only person who stares at you." Hermione said, taking in the details of Dracos face. He had a good facial structure.
"No. But, the only one I noticed." Dracos voice sounded rather sheepish when he said that and Hermione was utterly confused by it. "Okay?" She asked, her tone slightly rude. Obviously, Draco was just trying to get a reaction out of her and she wasn't going to buy into it. He looked offended. Hermione felt bad, "I'm sorry. I just don't know why you're telling me this." She told him.
Draco bit his lip, something Hermione had never seen him do before. He shrugged. "I see the way you look at me. You look lovesick." He said, a familiar cocky smirk crossing his face. Hermione rolled her eyes. "That's ridiculous. I do not. I was merely curious about what girl would willingly stare at you. I'm going now." She got up to leave, but Draco pulled her back again, this time kissing her abruptly. Hermione resisted at first, but soon let herself give in. She kissed him back, his lips were extraordinarily soft and felt as though they fit perfectly against hers. The room around her didn't exist for a second, and the smell of his cologne stung her nose in a fairly pleasant way.
Hermione pulled away, suddenly angry. "What was that? Why in Godrics name would you kiss me?" she demanded, still standing extremely close to Draco. He shrugged, "I just wanted to see what you'd do. You can go now, since you think I'm not even worth staring at." he said, smirking and returning to his seat. Hermione stood there, dumbfounded. "Right. Okay." She said, and exited the room. She made her way back to Gryffindor tower and headed straight towards her dorm.
"Hey, wait up, Hermione." She heard Harry say, and she turned around. "Where've you been? Do you want to come to dinner with us?" He asked. Hermione shook her head, "I was just studying." She told him, "I'm not really hungry. I think I'm just going to go to sleep." And without another word, she went and changed into her nightgown and laid in her bed. She laid there and reflected on her day. It was weird and it didn't make sense, and yet she felt very strongly about it. What had her kiss with Draco meant? Was he really just trying to push her buttons, or did he only say that as a defense? Hermione closed her eyes and sighed. She was not allowed to feel this way about him, but she couldn't deny the burning sensation in her chest. She deeply desired to know Draco on the inside, to know that he was good underneath. Eventually, Hermione drifted off, after she decided that she would return to the room of requirement yet again the next afternoon.