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Chapter two
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Harry
So, they were instructed to approach the bachelor, Draco Malfoy, one after the other only when they were signaled to do so. And Harry started to perspire at the thought of it, a nervous feeling of butterflies fluttering in his stomach.
While he waited for his turn, fidgeting the hem of his shirt, Hermione tried to avert his attention by blabbering some random knowledge. Harry was certainly grateful to Hermione's effort of comforting him, but her on-going chattering was getting on his nerves, nevertheless to say her failure to put him at ease.
After what seemed like a lifetime, when Harry was sick to the point of fainting, he heard a sonorous "Potter, Harry". He jolted from the cushioned seat, messily straightening his outfit. The door to his left was by then opened by the coachman, who actually appeared less haggard than him. This really did not bode well to his emotional well-being.
With Hermione's urging to move along, Harry swallowed his anxiety and stumbled out of the horse-drawn carriage. He strolled towards the host of the popular romance reality series, who was introduced earlier as Blaise Zabini, as placidly as possible.
"Next, we have Mr Potter, Harry, 19, full time model. You might have seen Harry before for he has graced the pages of fashion bibles like Arena Homme Plus, L'Uomo Vogue and The Face. So, here he is to provide more juicy info of himself."
Not exactly putting his mind to it, Harry conversed with Blaise for the benefit of enlightening the television audience a little on his character.
Before he realized it, he was asked to proceed on to get acquaintance with the bachelor himself. Hesitantly, he approached the door steps of the castle where the bachelor was situated at.
When Draco Malfoy came into view, Harry was extremely stunned by his powerful aura. There he stood by the carpeted stairs, in a black dress suit pants and shirt, a silky black tie and a slightly glossy grey blazer with black collar. Wow…with that soft blonde hair, those striking grey irises, and that smooth chiseled face, he's so damn gorgeous. Ugh! What's wrong with me?!!
Resisting the idea of appreciating that guy further (when Harry wanted no part of it in the first place), he heedlessly walked that few steps towards him. Halfway through, he tripped on a bump, falling face down.
And his last thought was, this is so NOT happening to me.
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Draco
On the other hand, Draco Malfoy had met so many "bachelorettes" that he can't even remember who he had met. Well, there were a few beautiful faces that left an impression in his mind, and that's all he knew now. Well, at least none repulsed him thus far for it just would not do if he were to have one as his future choice.
Bidding an entrant, who went by the name of Pansy Parkinson, goodbye, he let out his breath, relieved of her intoxicating perfume. He must really speak to Theo later about certain restrictions that needed to be put in place for the health of his scent. When she hugged him in greetings, he was overwhelmed by her fragrance to say the least. And that itch to rub my nose. If it isn't that unbecoming in the standards of a Malfoy, I would have done it countless times. Seriously.
In a few minutes, he was informed of the entrance of another entrant by one of the production crew through the well-hidden earpiece. Putting on a slight smile, he glanced up to see a tan and slightly built man, dressed in a black dress suit pants almost like his, a light grey wool pullover with a white cuff shirt and a black-dark green striped tie underneath, walking towards him.
To affirm that he was enticed by his arresting emerald eyes and his tousled bed hair was an understatement of the…night.
Draco was going to offer his hand, as the entrant got near, when all of a sudden the entrant fell. And the brunette fell right into his arms, thanks to his quick reflex.
The nice musky smell the entrant set off and his comforting warmth washed over Draco. Dizzily, pulling himself out of a trance, Draco smirked, "Now, am I that irresistible that you have to literally fly into my arms? Nice to meet you too, Mr…"
Before the rapidly red-faced entrant replied, his name was revealed to Draco yet again through the earpiece. In the meanwhile, Harry had pulled away from him hastily.
"Ah Mr Harry Potter, where exactly have I heard your name from before?" asked Draco, amused at the entire incident. Without waiting for Harry's answer, he said, "Well, it doesn't matter for now. I must state that by far, no one has surpassed you on your uniquely marvelous entrance."
"Well, I do hope that this misfortune of mine has entertained you for this is the whole purpose of me being in this show. Likewise, a pleasure to meet you, Mr Draco Malfoy." Harry said in sarcasm, his fury eyes aiming daggers at him.
"Ah Potter, you sure are a funny lad. Well, I'll see you later." And with that, Draco had brushed him away, much to Harry's chagrin.
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Harry
Ugh, what is a man like Malfoy being the main lead of this whole nuisance show, with twenty-five people – no, twenty-four, I'm surely NOT one of them - fighting over him? He's the worst kind of I'm-rich-therefore-I-owned-the-world snob I've ever seen.
Harry shuffled around the waiting hall where the rest of the participants were either gossiping in their little groups, touching on their makeup, or flirting with that bastard. And all these fake smiles that they put on. Wondering what's beneath their smiles, Harry immediately shuttered.
Earlier on, before the director announced that they had started filming, the whole place was so tense with a choking silence as each participant eyed at every other in distrust and loathe (in the case of Pansy and a handful of the others). Harry felt that they were sizing others up like what those police in C.S.I. did before they are interrogating possible crime suspects.
The whole situation could not be any more uncomfortable in Harry's opinion. Finally, when he almost could not take the stiffness any longer, the host came in with a brilliant smile that lightened up the whole room a whole lot, again, in Harry's opinion.
"Ladies and Gentlemen, I'm back and I hope my short absence has nothing to do with the depression that I felt engulfing the hall when I strode in. If it's truly the cause, let me assure you with this fantastic news that you will be seeing more of me as the show proceeds." Blaise shot a winning smile at a general direction before continuing his speech.
"Now, I understand that it has been a long night for all of you, including me. Thus, let me get to the point: I would like to welcome you all to this season's the Bachelor. Like I've said in every beginning since the season one, in front of me, there are twenty-five of you, competing for the love and attention of only one bachelor. At such, I'm glad to say that I'm not competing for hosting appears to be so much less complicated comparatively with all the emotional complex you guys will be experiencing later on."
"Now where was I? Oh, right, five of you will be going back today by the end of the night, with twenty left who are qualified for the next round. So, without further ado, let me invite the bachelor, a best buddy of mine, Draco Malfoy." Blaise took a breath as everyone turned to the bachelor who had entered into the room in a graceful and composed manner.
"You guys probably already know this, but I still need to do my job. So, this lucky smartass was born with a silver spoon in his mouth, and I can emphasize on this fact by the evidence that he had not worked for a minute in his life before. Needless to say, The Times recently released their findings that he is one of the top 5 billionaires at the relatively tender age of 21. Moreover, he will be inheriting all the Malfoy's properties and businesses in due time." Harry raised an eyebrow as he listened halfhearted.
"With this short introduction to let everyone digest over, allow me to brief you on the upcoming event. In a few minutes' time, Draco will be mingling around to get to know more about you. At the end of the event, roughly 2 hours later, he will disappear with me to another room where we will discuss on who to stay and who to leave. A few little advices here: Please refrain from hogging him too long per person to prevent unnecessary unhappiness amid the rest. Mix around and make friends while you're waiting. Do help yourselves to the refreshments. And let the show begins." Blaise winked and moved away to a side. Everyone else broke from their daze and the noise amplified with everyone talking at once and the echoes of their voices.
Sobering himself to the present, Harry saw Malfoy a few feet away from his little group. Man…I'm already beginning to dread it.
When Malfoy reached, Hermione gave Harry a little nudge and greeted him with the rest of the group. They chatted among themselves, while he quietly sipped the wine. When Harry realized that they were busy chatting and he was blocked from the camera, he slipped away to the balcony.
Ah, what a great difference of atmosphere here and in the hall. In this peaceful and refreshing environment with the sound of the nature, he was lost in his thoughts within seconds.
Just as he began to loosen up, he heard some shuffling sound from behind. He whirled around, and demanded, "Who's there? Stop hiding in the shade and come right out."
In a flicker of the candlelight, he saw an unwelcome figure stepping forward with a smug face. Irritated by his suffocating presence, Harry turned back and leaned forward to the railing, purposely ignoring Malfoy.
"Well, you sure know how to catch one's attention, Mr Potter. First you fell over me, and then you deliberately slipped away in a conversation, knowing full well that someone's bound to notice. Do you know that it's rude?"
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"Are you going to continue ignoring me?"
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"Potter–"
"Look, I've taken note to avoid anyone seeing me when I left, okay?!! So, stop making a fuss about nothing." Harry interrupted.
"Then, how do you explain the fact that I noticed your exit? As a matter of fact, your friend, Hermione, knew as well and decided to apologize on your behalf."
"Fine, I was wrong. Guiltily charged. And what is the verdict?" He spat. "Look, I don't want to be here in the first place. So, why not you dismiss me later on? I'll be really thankful of you for once."
"Oh, so you are the mysterious guy who wants to chicken out of this show. Why am I not surprised at all?" The blonde snarled.
"Nice, so are you going to dismiss me tonight?"
"Hate to break you the news, but no. Due to your one-of-a-kind affable behavior, it had become an entertaining night. We shall see." With that, he left.
Harry stood there, fumed at Malfoy, at the show, at the Weasley twins, at himself. What had he done in the past life to possibly warrant him into such a sticky situation?
Damn! Again, can someone tell me why I'm here?
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A/n: Thanks for the reviews, especially I-see-thestrals. I truly forgot about this story until I received your review out of a sudden.
Before you guys get too happy with the quick update of chapters, I must break to you all that I might take longer sometimes for I've lost the draft of my storyline, which was written a year or so back, when I reformatted my computer system. I've actually decided then to stop writing this story as the sequent storyline that I thought of isn't as good as before.
So, no promise here as to whether I will finish the story, but I'll try my best. Bear with me a little for writing isn't one of my greatest fortes. Well, enjoy the story while you can and give me some feedback as to what you think.
P.S. the rest of the "bachelorettes" will be introduced as the story goes on.