AN: I'd like to start by saying thank you to those who reviewed! Especially to flower123 for reviewing religiously chapter after chapter. But I appreciate everybody taking the time review no matter how short. Constructive criticism is also welcome. I don't really care what, I just wanna hear your thoughts on the story.

This chapter is full of drama. And you may hate Hermione for being such a…I know I do! Her behavior here is based on someone I know who I just wanted to strangle for being stupid. Anyway, I leave it up to you. Let me know what you think afterwards :) Don't forget to REVIEW!

I DON'T OWN ANYTHING FROM THE POTTERVERSE

Hermione froze as she saw Draco walk towards their table. It was only a short distance yet it took forever for him to reach them. Her mind was running so fast that she felt like it was going to explode. She didn't know if she was angry at Ginny for conspiring against her or at him for his audacity to ever show his face after what he'd done to her. But deep inside the recesses of her fragile little heart, she felt a little tingle of happiness. She had missed him—everything about him so much that seeing him gave her heart a little flutter, but she would never admit to that.

She couldn't seem to take her eyes away from him. He looked different now that he was in expensive robes and his hair slicked back—he was definitely back in his element, but he looked handsome either way. Hermione noticed the dark circles under his eyes and wondered if he had sleepless nights too. How she wanted to just be in his embrace again that she thought about just forgetting everything, but no, she had a little pride left. And that proud side of her didn't like being made a fool of because she knew that weak people are always taken advantage of by people like him. She was not weak and showing weakness was not an option.

"What is he doing here?" She hissed at Ginny.

"Did you plan this?"

"No, he did. But he needed my help to get you here." She said nonchalantly. She was nervous at first when she had agreed to help Draco after he owled her early that morning, expecting to be hexed, but now that the cat is out of the bag, she couldn't help but think that maybe Hermione did want to see him too.

Ginny stood up and excused herself as Draco reached their table. They nodded at each other in acknowledgement.

"Thank you, Ginevra."

"Make it right, Malfoy."

Hermione had a scowl on her face, but even with that scowl she was as beautiful as he had remembered. Just seeing her was like breathing again. He didn't realize just how much he needed her in his life until Eva knocked some sense into him. He had never begged or pleaded in his life for something, simply because he always got what he wanted and that Malfoys did not beg and plead. He would beg, plead and even grovel at her feet just to get her back. He didn't care if he was a Malfoy. She was worth it and he was going to fight hell for her.

"Hermione…" She turned to look at him as he sat down on Ginny's vacated seat. She could see sadness and sorrow in his very expressive gray eyes (something he no longer needed to hide now that his father didn't have the power over him anymore) and she almost felt his pain. Almost.

Instead of listening to that tingle in her heart, Hermione put on the perfect I-don't-give-a-shit face worthy of Draco Malfoy. She'd seen him wear that look all too well back in Hogwarts, surely she could do it too. She pushed all those silly emotions to the back of her mind and calmly smiled at him.

"That's Granger to you, Malfoy. Now, what can I help you with?"

"Hermione…" There was a pleading tone to his voice. A tone she knew he'd never used before.

"Well? On with it. I don't have all day."

"I'm sorry. I know it couldn't possibly make up for what I did, but I truly am. What I did wasn't meant to hurt you."

"Then why did you?"

"Would you have agreed to go out with me if I asked you outright knowing what I did to you back in school?"

"No…but—"

"I was going to tell you…but I just wanted you to get to know me without all that baggage of the Malfoy name. I wanted you to see me for Draco and not the boy who you thought hated you. I haven't hated you since before our third year, since before you hit me." He gave her a weak smile and she could feel her composure breaking.

"But you lied to me."

"I'm sorry…" Hermione sighed, feeling the sting in her eyes as she tried to stop the tears from coming.

"Why couldn't you just ask me out like a normal person? I would've said no, but that wouldn't have stopped you. You would've pestered me into saying yes and yes, I would have caved eventually because I didn't hate you too."

"I'm sorry, Hermione. Please give me another chance. What I said before…that I love you, it wasn't a lie." He reached out across the table to hold her hand, but she withdrew it so fast he thought his touch burned her.

"No," She firmly stated as she wiped the tear that slowly cascaded from her eye. She swallowed hard, trying to get the words that won't seem to come out. "I moved back in with Ron and we're trying to fix our relationship. I suggest you do the same with your fiancé." That wasn't so hard to say now, was it? And as simple as that, she regained composure with her chin tilted upwards.

Draco was left speechless as he stared at the only girl he ever loved.

"Well, if that's all you have to say Malfoy, I should get going then. Congratulations in your upcoming nuptials. I wish you both all the happiness in the world." And with that she left without a second glance.

Eva walked around Diagon Alley in search of Draco. He had left the manor to talk to Hermione hours ago and has yet to return. She was getting worried. She had offered to go with him for moral support, but he said he needed to do it alone, something about not being afraid anymore. Although Eva trusted him wholeheartedly, she was still worried sick for him. Knowing the spoiled boy that he once was, she knew that he wouldn't take rejection very well (not that she was hoping that he would get rejected). She wasn't just his best friend, she was like that overprotective big sister always hovering around. She was worried that he might do something stupid or fall into a drunken stupor somewhere.

And that was exactly how she found him in the Leaky Cauldron. She had asked around until she finally got her answer. Tom said he'd rented a room and had the firewhiskey coming since he came that afternoon. At least he had the sense to rent a room first instead of getting drunk where people could see him.

She went ahead to his room and wasn't surprised at all to see the condition it was in. It was a mess! Overturned tables and chairs, firewhiskey bottles everywhere and everything else was on the floor. She spotted him sitting on the floor and clutching his head.

She sat on the floor beside him and put her arms around him. That was when she realized that he was silently crying. That was the first time she'd ever seen Draco this vulnerable. This was the first time he actually lost control of his emotions, allowing her to finally see how fragile he was.

Draco Malfoy never cried in front of anyone before. He seems to be the perfect example of a cold-hearted, emotionless git, but he wasn't like that before. When he was younger, he laughed, smiled and cried. But his father didn't like that. His father had beaten all that out of him, making him cold and heartless. But he didn't care anymore. Hermione taught him what it was to feel again and he was so full of love for her, but she walked away. He had never felt pain like this before and he just wanted it to disappear. He didn't know if crying would help, but he'd heard enough that it was better to let it all out than holding it all in. He cried and he didn't care if Eva could he see him because he was crying for all the pain all those years he couldn't.

Hermione stood up and left without looking back. Draco was stunned at first, took him a couple of minutes to absorb what Hermione had said. He pulled himself up and ran after her. He couldn't let her walk out of his life.

He sifted through the busy streets of Diagon Alley in search of her. He cursed as more and more people filled the streets. He kept running and running hoping he was going in the right direction. He slowed down when he spotted her just a couple feet away from him. Instead of running to her, he stopped as he saw that familiar mop of red hair. She ran up to him and hugged him. Draco could tell he wasn't expecting her. But what Draco didn't expect was her pulling Weasley in to a passionate kiss right there on the street. He was in denial, but he knew he had lost her forever.

During their meeting at the café, Draco didn't know how to act around her. An angry, screaming, wand-wielding Hermione, he could deal with, but a silent, cold one was hard to read. He'd never had to deal with the latter before because she always wore her emotions on her sleeve, but with this Hermione, he didn't know his place. After seeing her run to Weasley's arms, he knew she was never coming back. There was one last thing he needed to do.

"She loves him…"

"Draco…" She didn't know what to say to him. He finally took his head out of his hands and looked ahead of him, avoiding Eva's eyes.

"I've decided to marry Astoria."

"What? What about Hermione? I thought you love her?"

"I do love her…and that's why I'm letting her go. She doesn't love me. I need to stop. It hurts too much now."

Eva gave him a small smile. He never ceases to amaze her. Draco Malfoy was putting someone else ahead of himself. He was being unselfish, letting her go even though it was hard for him, just because Hermione wanted to be with Weasley. Draco Malfoy had finally learned how to love, truly love another person other than himself.

Hermione sat uncomfortably on the couch, snuggled beside Ron as he watched TV. She didn't mean to kiss him that afternoon, much less in the middle of the street, but she knew Draco had been following her and he needed him to see so that he would just give up on her. She felt awful! She had used Ron and now he thinks everything between the two of them was alright. Things were not going the way she planned it. She was supposed forget about Draco first and permanently break it off with Ron (although she kept using that excuse to fix their relationship to quell her friends' worries). She didn't want to be in this relationship anymore and keep lying to herself and everybody else.

Then she had this brilliant idea to tell him about her relationship with Draco. It would be like hitting two birds with one stone. She'd be telling the truth and Ron would be so mad that it was with Malfoy that he'd have to break if off with her. Yes, she could use that to her advantage. Ron still hated Draco despite his change over the years.

Hermione took the remote control from Ron's hand and turned the television off. She moved away from Ron to face him on the couch.

"Hey! I was watching that."

"Ron, we need to talk…"

"What's wrong, 'Mione?"

"When I was away, I was in a relationship with someone…" She paused, gauging Ron's reaction. He didn't even flinch or anything.

"We were…uhh…intimate." Ron furrowed his brow and she was expecting it. She closed her eyes and waited for him to start shouting, but it never came. Instead he took her hands into his. This prompted her to open her eyes and look at him.

"I don't care."

"What?"

"I said I don't care—what you did, whoever you did it with. I love you and I'm not ever letting you go again."

She was speechless.

"Think of it this way, now we're even."

Ugh! He can be so infuriating! The nerve of him! Just because I slept with someone when we I clearly broke up with him doesn't make us even for his cheating on me! Someone up there must hate me so much. This is so not my day.

AN2: Please review! I'm begging you...hehe...I'm hopping to reach at least 100 reviews (wishful thinking!) before the story ends. Isn't that what all fanfiction writers all strive for? Puhlease! Review and make me happy :)

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