"Are you okay?" Draco asked as we walked away.
"Yeah, I'm fine." I still had adrenaline rushing through my veins. I had never stood up for myself like that before.
"What did Granger say to you?" Draco looked at me now.
"She just told me that she was going to make Ron apologize. She and I are on good terms and we get along well. She found me and asked what was going on because she knew I don't really have any friends. Then Weasley and Potter showed up. Weasley is such a git. Potter didn't really do anything. Hermione tried to get Weasley to apologize before you showed up." Draco furrowed his eyebrows.
"Well, Granger obviously isn't very convincing." Draco looked back down the hallway and saw the trio about to turn a corner. We were alone after the three were gone. We stood there for a minute. Neither one of us knew what to say. Draco looked down at his shoes. I moved a few steps back to lean against the wall. Draco looked back up at me. He studied my face. I wondered if he was trying to memorize it for something.
"What?" I asked. Draco just shook his head. He continued to look at me. I could feel a blush working its way to my cheeks. Draco smirked.
"Got you all worked up now?" He asked. I glared at him.
"No. I'm just finding it odd that you're staring at me and I feel like I'm under a microscope. I'm more embarrassed than anything," I told Draco. It was partially true. I was worked up, but I also felt like he was trying to figure out what species of plant I was or something. I didn't enjoy it. Draco leaned against the wall next to me. I got the familiar butterflies again. I could feel his arm pressing gently against mine and had to force my heart rate back down. A group of third year Ravenclaw girls turned the corner closest to us. Draco moved a few inches away. My heart rate returned to normal. A couple girls looked at Draco, admiring his blonde hair and the way it was falling into his face. I could see the mischievousness in Draco's eyes. He rubbed one hand through his hair and looked at the girls. One blushed. Draco smirked and winked. I had to work at keeping myself from laughing. I watched as Draco turned to lean on his shoulder facing me.
"The young ones are fun to tease," Draco said. His smirk seemed to reach his eyes. They looked warmer than usual. He really enjoyed taunting people. I grinned a little back and shook my head.
"You're an ass," I told him. He laughed.
"I've got a damn sexy one too." The butterflies came back. Draco moved a little bit closer. He moved his hand up to my face. I felt his fingers trace under my eye, then he held out his hand. "You had an eyelash," he explained. "Make a wish." I looked into his eyes and blew the eyelash away. "What did you wish for?"
"If I tell you it wont come true!" I teased. I wanted to tell him, but at the same time I really didn't. I had wished that soon, he'd see me. He wouldn't just see me as the girl he knew he could cry to. We heard footsteps coming up the hall from the far side. I peeked around Draco to see who it was. Pansy and Millicent. Draco had turned around too.
"You better go," Draco told me. I knew he was right. "They'd have too many questions."
"Millicent saw us together yesterday by the lake, she's already asked me about it," I said. Draco looked worried. "I told her that you spilled come Tentacula venom on me and came to apologize. I couldn't really think of anything else." He nodded.
I turned to leave and heard Pansy calling for Draco. He turned around and we walked apart.
"What were you doing with her?" Pansy asked.
"That is none of your business," Draco said coldly. I swear I could feel the glares from Millicent and Pansy as I rounded the corner.
The rest of my day passed by slowly. I spent a lot of time in the library studying. Hermione and I sat together most of the time going over notes. We had no reason to dislike each other, especially after what had happened earlier in the corridor. We didn't talk about that though. I was nervous and tense. I was excited about getting back to the common room, but knew that if I went there right after dinner I'd be waiting for close to six hours for Draco to come in.
"What are you doing after this?" I whispered to Hermione.
"Probably going to dinner," she whispered back.
"Mind if I join you?" Hermione shook her head and looked back down at her notes, making sure she translated the runes correctly.
After studying, Hermione and I walked together to the Great Hall. I felt stressed about being with her at the Gryffindor table. We were far enough away from others that we knew that most students wouldn't bother us. Weasley and Potter soon joined the table, across from where Hermione and I sat eating. I pulled out my runes book and set it out on the table to discuss with Hermione. Her friends watched as we talked and ate slowly. I kept one eye on the door to see if Draco was ever going to come in. He never did. Hermione left with me up to the library again after dinner. We were going to work on our Defense Against the Dark Arts essays.
Hermione left after about an hour. I stayed behind to do as much as I could before going back to the common room. At a quarter to ten, I was ushered out of the library by Madam Pince. I headed down to the common room instead.
When I arrived, my roommates were sitting on the floor in a circle. I wondered what they were doing, but didn't bother to ask. I went straight to the study tables on the far side of the room.
"Evie! Where are you going?" Pansy asked. I stopped and turned to face her.
"To study. I'm almost done with my Defense paper and thought I'd just go ahead and finish it tonight," I told the girls.
"Oh pish, tosh. Come play with us! We're playing a sort of truth or dare," Tracey called to me as I set my books down.
"No, that's okay. I don't really want to tonight." They called to me again but I tried to ignore them. Soon, I was absorbed in my study material once again and no longer heard them. It was midnight when I finally finished my essay. I looked around and only one first year that had fallen asleep while studying remained. I walked around the common room a few times before sitting down on the sofa. I had only been waiting for a minute or two before the portrait opened and Draco was being ushered in my Professor Snape.
"I don't want to catch you out of bed this late again. Whatever you're doing can wait until the morning. Get up early if you must, but you can't stay out past curfew," Snape was saying to Draco. Snape hadn't seen me. People had a nasty habit of never seeing me.
"Yes, Professor," was all Draco said. Snape nodded curtly before exiting the room. Draco sighed and looked around. He saw me sitting at the far end of the room and hurried over. He sat down on the couch and breathed slowly. He reached his hand out so it rested on my thigh. He squeezed it lightly and closed his eyes. Draco's fingers were massaging my leg ever so slightly, but enough to get me hot. My breath caught in my throat and I closed my eyes. Draco didn't notice. Instead of letting him continue his slow torture, I took his hand and held it still.
"Are you alright?" I asked him quietly. He shook his head. "What happened?" Draco shook his head again. I didn't push him any farther. He obviously didn't want to talk about his problems. Draco put his head in his free hand. His shoulders shook slightly as a silent sob tore through his body. His fingers squeezed mine as he leaned into me a little bit.
"I'm a failure. I' m an absolute failure," Draco whispered. I squeezed his hand tighter.
"No, you're not." He forced a dark laugh and shook his head. He looked up at the other side of the room.
"You have no idea what I'm supposed to do. Trust me, I've failed. The Dark Lord is not pleased." I worked to keep my face neutral. Everyone knew that Draco's father was a supporter of the Dark Lord, but no one really knew how close his family was. After that admission I assumed they were a lot closer than we all thought. "I shouldn't have told you that. Please don't mention…" Draco's words trailed off as he looked away.
"Draco, you know I wouldn't say anything to anyone. I've kept my promise so far, I intend to keep it still," I reassured Draco. His expression somewhat relaxed as he faced me once again.
"You have no idea how much this means to me."
"I know." Draco let a watery grin creep to his face before wiping away tears quickly. He looked around and saw the first year sleeping over his book on one of the study tables.
"Is he really asleep?" Draco asked. Worry replaced the near-calm features on Draco's face.
"I think so, he hasn't moved in about two hours." I let go of Draco's hand and ventured over to the young boy. I poked him on the arm softly. He didn't stir. I shook him slightly and he groaned. "Hey, it's late. You should probably head up to your bed and get some better sleep," I told the boy. He opened his eyes blearily. "Did you hear me?" The boy nodded. "Do you need help getting up or anything?" He shook his head and sat up a little. His book was wet with drool and some of the ink had smudged onto his face. "Oh, dear. Here, let me help you." I grabbed my wand off of the couch behind me and waved it over the book and across the boy's face. He was clean and through the boy's dormitory door leaving Draco and I alone again.
"You are almost too kind for your own good," Draco told me. There was a slight hint of humor in his voice. "You should have left him. He'd learn not to fall asleep in his books again."
"But he had ink and text all over his face. He'd look moronic in the morning."
"Exactly. Then he wouldn't forget to go up to bed when he got tired in the future." Draco chuckled quietly and stood up. "Speaking of bed, I should probably go. I'm actually very tired. I haven't had a good nights' sleep in such a long time."
"Alright. Are you doing any better?" I asked tentatively. I wasn't sure if he was okay with me asking that quite yet.
"Not really, but you're helping more than you know." The answer caught me off guard. Draco was rather private. He didn't like to talk about his problems. I couldn't help but smile.
"Well, if you need anything, you know where I am." Draco nodded. I watched him go through the door that led to the boy's dorms. I wondered when the next time I'd see him would be before taking myself up to bed.