Five days later

Hermione had gotten a couple of more letters from Alice, although not much was written in it as it had similar information as to the ones before. The only new information that she did get was the fact that Alice had made up with Jasper and that she was still going to come to Slughorn's party as Viktor's guest, but only as a friend.

Ever since the date, her relationship with Cormac was all over the place. There were the ups, where he had been nice to her, waving hello every now and then. And then, there were the downs where he completely ignored her, treated her awfully, and was just absolutely pathetically rude.

And then, there was Zacharias.

"Are you honestly going to stay mad at me and all?" he asked her as Professor Binns dismissed everybody.

Hermione ignored him as they both packed their things before walking out of the classroom. She could feel Zacharias' gaze searing painfully into her back, causing a sudden warmth to spread all over her body. She was honestly mad at him. Did he honestly expect to her to forgive him just like that? And after ignoring her for ages too!

He had only started talking to her three days ago- or rather communicated with her- firstly by throwing all sorts of things at her, starting with paper balls. From paper balls, it went onto gum, then it went onto quills, and now he was throwing the muggle pair of scissors she had gotten him! If he honestly wanted her to forgive him, why would he try to hurt her more by throwing a pair of sharp scissors at her?

"Oh come on," he moaned, although Hermione could sense a smirk plastered on his face. He was following her. "Are you honestly going to stay mad at me and all?"

She turned around a corner, before later finding herself leaning against the cold walls of the hallway with Zacharias leaning against the wall with his face in hers. How had they ended up in that position?

She looked around, noting how nobody was in the hallway they were in, put aside the few first years who were trying to avoid looking in their way. She felt her face burning up with fury as she didn't want anybody to get the wrong message!

"What in Merlin's name do you think you are doing?" she hissed.

Zacharias gave her a puppy eyed look and frowned, causing her to inevitably smile at how cute he looked, although she immediately suppressed the look on her face.

"I need you face me when I'm talking to you, right?" he said. "Where are your manners?"

"Zach! We are going to be late for class!"

He smiled at her. A gleam of happiness appearing in his green eyes. "So we're friends again?" he asked. "You said 'we'!"

"No we are not!" She grabbed her wand. "If you do not step back from me this instance I am going to hex you!"

"I thought you liked the closeness between us."

"I do not!" She paused to take in some air. "You still have detention with me this Sunday!"

"But I've apologised to you already right? We should be all right. Oh, come on."

She crossed her arms, noting how close he was getting to her. She was reminded up the scene last week between Zacharias and Pansy and found herself disgusted. She wondered what colour the stone aroubd Viktor's neck was now. She had a feeling the colour on her face hadn't abated yet. Definitely heating up from anger...

"You haven't apologised yet. You just moaned the same sentence everyday as soon as we bump into each other! 'Oh come on...'" she paused. "For merlin's sake Zach! Do you honestly think I'd want to listen to the same sentence everyday? A simple 'I'm sorry' would do if you want me to forgive you already!"

Merlin. She could not believe she had just said that. She was supposed to be still fuming at him!

He stood up and stared at her curiously, giving her space in between them. "Really?"

She just gave him a look and stuck her tongue out.

He smirked. "I'm sorry."

"Did I hurt your pride? Zacharias Smith never apologises."

He smiled at her. "I know..." he hadn't broke his gaze on her yet. "I was just wondering why you stuck your tongue out at me."

"um.. Because we are late for class!"

He grabbed her hand. "Well come on then!"

He began to drag her and she tried to catch up with him as her legs couldn't run at his pace.

"Should I slow down for you?" he asked, turning his head around.

She rolled her eyes.

Zacharias slammed the door open when they got to their classroom.

Oh no... Hermione thought. We're having potions right now!

Professor Snape gave them a glare as they took careful steps into the classroom. Hermione could feel everybody staring at them.

"Why are you late for class?" Professor Snape asked, enunciating every word clearly. He didn't give them time to answer. "Late for class, walking into class holding hands and not even apologising for being late to everyone? Five points of Hufflepuff. Twenty points of Gryffindor."

The Slytherins burst into laughter.

Hermione looked at him, wondering why it wasn't Professor Slughorn teaching them. She then remembered hearing that Professor Slughorn had taken ill for today and sighed, not looking forward to today's lesson.

"Why are you taking twenty points off Gryffindor?" Zacharias asked.

"That is none of your business." Professor Snape hissed. "I do not expect myself to repeat today's lesson so just read the board and get on with the experiment." He glared at Hermione. "And I would have expected better from you. I wonder if you need to supervise your own detention this Sunday?"

"You can leave that to me, Professor." a voice suddenly said.

Hermione turned around as everybody else did and was surprised to find Cormac McLaggen's standing by the door.

"Mr. McLaggen?" Professor Snape said in an amused tone. "What are you doing down here in the dungeons at this time of the day? Shouldn't you be in class?"

"It's my free time, actually, sir" he said, looking at Hermione before adding. "I was hoping to take some bone bending potion of some sort with me."

Professor Snape's eyes narrowed. "What for?"

"Katie Bell's had a bit of an accident whilst flying. She's got a simple fracture. As does Warrington."

"And why isn't she and he with Madame Pomfrey?"

"She's at a convention at St. Mungos." Cormac said. "Professor Dumbledore himself sent me here."

Professor Snape looked around the classroom, appearing to think about what to do. "Well, I'll go with you to make sure the potion is used correctly. You know how Gryffindor's are when it comes to using potions..." he gave everybody a look, as he got to the door, with the bone mending potion suddenly appearing in his hands. "I expect everybody to behave properly whilst I'm gone for a few minutes."

"Yes, Professor." everybody chorused.

"Well get to work then!"

Cormac gave her a wink before leaving the dungeons with Professor Snape.

Hermione couldn't help but smile at his gesture, but the smile faded as soon as her eyes met Zacharias'. She didn't know why it did though. Maybe it was noticing his displeasure. But what did his displeasure have to do with her? It wasn't her job to keep Zacharias happy.

"What's that tosser doing all the way down here?" Zacharias mumbled as he passed Hermione the equipment as listed on the board.

"You heard what he said. He's down here because Katie and Warrington are hurt."

He ignored her comment.

"Zach, don't feel so bad. It's not like he's done anything to you."

He smiled at her. "True that."

"Oi! Keep the noise down here." Ron suddenly said, glaring at them.

"Mind your own business!" Zacharias hissed, throwing an ingredient at them.

"Zach!" Hermione groaned as the classroom erupted into a mass food fight.

Two hours later

"Mr. Weasley!" Professor Snape hissed. "What did I tell you about no magic?"

Hermione shook her head as Zacharias snickered at Ron's telling off. Honestly She thought. Why are boys so childish? She sighed as she scrubbed at the floor, angry that the food fight that SHE had NOT been part off was put to blame on her as well. The whole class were going to miss half of their break time, cleaning up Professor Snape's classroom. No spells as he had warned over and over again. Surprisingly, even the Slytherins were kept behind.

"Remind me why we are here again?" Hermione glared at Zacharias.

He squinted his eyes and made a face, in attempt to make her laugh. "I'm sorry!"

"Shut up, blondie!" Draco hissed, just as Professor Snape left the room to go to the loo.

Draco looked from left to right before standing up and tossing his scrubber to a side. "May I have a word with you, Granger?"

Hermione stood up, curious as to why he wanted a word with her. She felt a rush of wind behind her and knew that Zacharias had too, stood up, and was now standing behind her.

"What do you want, Malfoy?" he asked, politely in the sarcastic manner.

"A word with her." He turned to face Hermione. "May I?"

"I suppose we could."

She had a feeling Zacharias' jaw had dropped.

"Come along then."

Hermione blinked. "Right now?"

He didn't answer her and just left the room. She followed after him cautiously, feeling Zacharias looking at the back of her head. She knew that he was worried, worried about what Draco might do to her. But because Professor Snape might come back any minute, she was going to be somewhat safe.

Draco stopped walking when they were far enough so that nobody could hear them. He turned around and smiled at her.

"Malfoy, you do know that Professor Snape could come back any minute?" Hermione said, with her arms crossed.

He shook his head, causing his beautiful platinum hair to sway from side to side. "Well, that's where I've had it all planned out."

Hermione cocked her head.

"I've put something into his morning tea. He's going to take quite a while in the loo."

Hermione blushed as a mental image of her potions teacher 'taking his time' in the toilet materialised in her head.

"Well, what did you want to tell me."

"I'll just get straight to the point I think I love you."

Hermione smacked her forehead with her hands. And there it was. The other part of Alice's predictions. She sighed. "No you don't."

"Yeah I do. And this is coming from me too- I know what I'm talking about!"

"You don't like me, Malfoy. It's all just an infatuation." She told him.

"No way."

"Yes way."

"I know how I feel!"

"I'm telling you, it's just an infatuation." She pressed on. "You spent so much time teasing me and such, you've just got the idea in your head that you like me when you don't. You just enjoy being with me, that's all. You like me as a friend."

Draco scowled. "This emotion that I am feeling... it's real!"

"You love me as a friend, Malfoy."

"I do not!"

"But even if you did love me, I'm afraid that it cannot be reciprocated."

"But this is coming from a Slytherin to a Gryffindor!"

"Do you feel anything in your heart when you're near me?" she asked.

"I don't know."

Hermione sighed, and decided to test something out. "Malfoy, bend down a bit, you're a bit too tall."

He did.

And she kissed him on the lips, taking in the scent of his spicy cologne. The kiss felt wrong. Terribly wrong. But she forced herself through it to make her point to him. She moved apart a few seconds later, wanting to see the reaction on his face. He held a blank look. A confused look.

"Did you feel anything?" she asked, wanting to wipe her lips. She didn't though because she didn't want to offend him.

He sighed. "No."

She put her hands to her hips. "What did I tell you?"

"Let's go back to the classroom now. The other's are going to find us taking too long a bit weird." he continued.

When Hermione turned around, she found Zacharias staring at her with an incredulous look on his face. She felt a sudden pang of guilt hit her as he continued to stare at her. "Oh God... Zach, it isn't what it looked like."

"I think I've seen enough." He growled, before slamming the door behind him as he walked back into the classroom.

"You still have detention with me on Sunday!" she yelled to him.

"Well that didn't go very well," Draco muttered, rubbing his hands together.

She nodded, feeling a bit teary eyed.

She made her way to the classroom anyway but was stopped as she got to the door by Draco.

"Just before you go in- was wondering whether we are on first term names now." Draco said.

"Sure. I mean, it's fine by me."

"Really?" he said, with a smile. "It'll make me look better too, being friends with you."

Hermione laughed at his joke, thankful that he was trying to make her feel better. She then remembered something that Alice had written about Draco and Ginny. "Hey, Draco." she said, finding his name hard to say as it sounded so foreign to her.

"Yeah?"

"Make your way to Hagrid's hut tomorrow in the morning. Any time will do."

His eyes went wide. "Are you mad? To the half bloods hut? Don't you know what happened to me the last time I went there?"

She crossed her arms. "Just listen to me. It'll do you good."

"Fine."

Hermione then sighed and opened the door to find Zacharias completely ignoring her return. Now she was being shunned by the whole class except for Draco, who was being shunned by a lot of people too. She sighed again, hoping that the day would just go by swiftly.

A/N Hey everybody! Sorry for the late update again! I've just found it difficult trying to write this story because I found that I've completely lost the plot. I find it better writing one story at a time as I usually do much better focusing on just one story. I'm almost finished with my other one which is why I've come back to this story. Sorry for the long wait! I'll try and update by tomorrow!