Chapter Ten

"We already talked. You're free to sow your wild oats, or torture Gryffindors, whatever tickles your fancy. You are no longer bound to be my fake boyfriend," I told him politely.

He must not know that I enjoyed that kiss. Because I have no doubt that he will misuse that information to torment me for many decades to come. Never will I be able to escape the anguish that admitting I enjoyed it would cause.

Malfoy waved a hand airily in front of himself, making a nice little breeze which without which I think my face would have turned redder much, much faster. "We don't need to talk about that, we need to talk about you."

I gasped falsely, and clutched a hand to my chest. "Me? How selfless of you, Malfoy? And here I was thinking you were completely without a heart," I formulated drily.

"I meant," he sighed, "you AND me. The two of us. Weasley plus Malfoy."

I frowned slightly at his terrible attempt at a mathematical sum, and feigned confusion, knowing this would annoy him more. "What about us? There is no us. We're over."

At that moment, two things occurred simultaneously. One, Lorcan piped up from two seats down the table, where he had been pretending not to listen to our conversation (badly), "OVER?".

And two, Malfoy leant forward and pressed his lips to mine for approximately 5 seconds. I must approximate because the first several seconds were spent in a mingled condition of pure shock at him having the audacity to attack me in public, and pure elation at having his lips on mine.

But then it ended.

Unfortunately.

I mean, fortunately.

I mean…I don't even know what I mean any more.

"Did you feel anything?" he asked, his hand still resting on my arm, and I was so aware of the fact that he was touching me that I could have sworn I could feel his heartbeat.

Or maybe that was mine, it was being so loud. No one else can hear it can they?

Well, whether or not everyone else could hear my heart beating at about twice its maximum capacity, the entire hall was still looking in our direction, the conversation dimming down to silence.

"Of course I did, I felt your nasty smirking lips touch mine."

Malfoy rolled his eyes, though I could see the slightest hint of a smirk touching on one corner of his mouth. "Tell me if you felt something…or…" He paused, presumably for dramatic effect, now that the whole hall was listening in. Nosy sods. "…or…I'll do it again."

An interesting predicament.

"Err…I felt nothing."

My, my, I have an inner Slytherin after all. His lips touched mine again, eliciting the same response as before, but with more elation and less shock. And that is when I decided. I don't care if he might do a Lorcan and go off with some blonde bimbo who can't tell her kneecap from her bum.

I can't keep pretending I don't like him. The bloody feelings just refuse to be buried. Damn them.

"Well," he demanded, looking a little like a petulant child, "Anything now?"

"Still nothing," I told him, looking pensive about it. "Maybe we should try again. Third time lucky, eh?"

This comment, made Malfoy grin for a split-second. But I knew what was running through his mind. I had more or less admitted that I liked him, but that isn't enough for the mighty Malfoy. He doesn't want some half-ditch attempt to convey my feelings, he needed me to say them out loud.

I was cursing the day this boy was born. Why did he have to do this right now? IN FRONT OF THE ENTIRE SCHOOL?

"Did you feel anything…or not?"

I decided that I was just going to annoy him a bit more, as payback for choosing such an inopportune moment. "Why do you want to know, anyway?"

"Because," he tutted, giving me a look that suggested he thought this conversation about as pointless as teaching a flobberworm to sing the national anthem, "you appear to be under some deluded impression that me kissing you in the common room meant nothing."

A collective gasp ran through the crowd, followed by a sharp but clearly heard, "WHAT?" from Lorcan's direction. McGonagall's eyes were wide at the teacher's table, though I noticed she wasn't doing anything to stop this embarrassing torment.

She is no longer my favourite teacher.

"It didn't mean anything….to you anyway, you've kissed every girl under the sun," I muttered, trying to be quiet, but of course, in a deathly quiet hall even a whisper echoes.

"Rosie, it meant something."
Rosie. My name has never sounded so lovely.

"It can't have meant something. You don't like me. I'm your best friend's freakishly frizzy haired cousin, and you're Malfoy who used to play tricks on me and push me into swimming pools."

Malfoy stifled a laugh. "That was once, and it wasn't because I didn't like you."

I folded my arms and the sarcastic tone overcame me. "Oh, do you regularly push your besties into chlorinated water, or am I just one of the lucky few?"

I could see Al out of the corner of my eye laughing his head off over at the Slytherin table.

"I pushed you in for…well, my own agenda, shall we say," Malfoy admitted, looking a little bit bashful about it. Bashful but incredibly hot. That jumper really went with his eyes, I concluded quickly in my thoughts.

"What agenda?" I asked.

"Put it this way, I calculated that if I got you wet you would at some point have to remove your sodden garments," Malfoy smirked. Several of the boys in the hall tittered loudly, and many of the girls let out indignant gasps. Though I did hear a few girls (shamefully on the Gryffindor table) muttering that they wished he was there to watch them remove their sodden garments.

"You're disgusting."

He raised his left eyebrow. "It worked, didn't it?"

"You are actually, officially, disgusting," I said, shaking my head.

Malfoy shrugged his shoulders. "Yep, I am. But I'm not a liar." His grey eyes locked onto mine and the intensity of his gaze made me blink several times, and embarrassingly turn the darkest shade of magenta I could possibly ever have imagined was possible for a face to turn. "And that…that….that kiss…It meant something to me. And if it didn't to you, that's fine. I understand I'm not your type, you like bookish dorky freaks like Scamander…" Lorcan let out the loudest and most unattractive snort I had heard in many a moon. "No offence, mate…and I prefer Quidditch to literary masterpieces."

Lorcan stood up, his chair dropping to the floor behind him. Apparently that was one insult too many from Malfoy for him to take. "Were you two ever actually dating? What kind of sick joke is going on here?"
Oh dear. Now is the time it is going to come out. What an epic fail. Though, at least Al has stopped laughing at this point. He's probably saving it for several seconds time when Malfoy reveals our plan to the entire school. "We weren't dating, we were fake dating to make you realise what you were missing, you long-haired twerp."

I choked back a laugh.
Malfoy continued. "Though why you needed your ex-girlfriend to date a magnificent God like me to make you realise she's amazing is beyond me."

Amazing?

Did Malfoy just call me amazing?

From now on I shall call him Scorpius. As a mark of respect, you know. I grinned widely.

"So, if you two aren't dating…" Lorcan stumbled over his chair and stood in front of me. "That means you and me can try again. You know I'm sorry…"

MERLIN! Could this day get any more embarrassing?

"Shut up, Scamander," Scorpius snapped, rather rudely. "I was in the middle of confessing my undying devotion to your ex-girlfriend and you are ruining the moment!"

"You're devoted to me undyingly?" I interjected sarcastically. There is no way Scorpius would ever be devoted to someone at all, let alone in an undying fashion.

"Nah…I just thought it sounded more dramatic than me just saying that I think you're cool," Scorpius shrugged.

Fair enough.

I don't want undying devotion anyway. If I wanted that I would have asked for a Labrador for Christmas.

Lorcan folded his arms, and faced Scorpius smartly. "How touching…" he mocked sarcastically.

"Scamander, seriously, I am this," Scorpius pressed his finger and thumb together to indicate a small amount, "close to hexing your balls of right now."

Bye, bye Head Boy badge.

He turned to me, after Lorcan was silenced by his outburst. "Rosie, I know this is awkward because you know, the whole school is listening, but can you please just admit you find me attractive and want to carry on what we started in the Head's quarters…" Scorpius flashed me is goofiest, cutest grin and I felt my insides clench. Damn that smile!

Lorcan pushed Scorpius towards the table, in a way that suggested he was gearing up for a fight. I really do not want two guys fighting over me. I am HEAD GIRL. I must set an example, and this is not how to do it.

"No need to discuss that in public, you sick ferret, and get away from her." Lorcan decided that this was an opportune moment to kneel down in front of me. What a twit. "Rosie. Sweet, kind, Rosie. I was an idiot, but I accept that, and I…I love you, Rosie. And I want us to be together."

Scorpius looked entirely outraged at this outburst from Lorcan, and I was outraged too. Who was he to be telling me that he wanted to be together when he abandoned me at the drop of a hat for a random girl?

"On second thoughts, I'm not going to ask you ever to go out with me, as long as you promise never to go out with him either!" Scorpius growled.

I flashed him a death glare, but he still looked like he wanted to murder Lorcan. Why weren't the teachers helping me here? For heaven's sake! Do they not want to preserve the reputation of their Head Girl?

"Lorcan, I'm sorry," I said, quieter than the boys had been shouting. "I've moved on, but I'm sure you'll find someone that you really like and you'll move on to…"

"Bollocks! What braindead bimbo is ever going to want to-"

"Malfoy, shut up!" I shot at him, trying not to burst out laughing. "As I was saying, Lorcan, you're clever and nice and I know you'll be happier with someone else." I have to say, I think that was very diplomatic of me. I deserve a Nobel Peace prize. Or at least an award for services to the school.

"Hmph." I heard Scorpius shuffle his feet a bit.

"And you," I spun around on my heel, "You irritate me no end. You are the most obnoxious GIT in the entire world…no, the entire universe." I could hear Al laughing again. "But, yes, I'll admit that I…may have…at one point…found you slightly less repulsive than usual."

Scorpius looked as though a combination of Christmas and a sale at Weasley's Wizard Wheezes had come early. "HA! I knew it! You like me!"

What. A. Child.

He is so incredibly immature, it actually sometimes causes me physical pain to see him jumping up and down on the spot in such an uncouth manner. Why was this boy chosen as Head Boy again?

"You like me too!" I retorted, resorting to childlike methods to combat his childlike behaviour. "In fact you liked me first!"

"How could I have? You fell for me the moment you saw my floppy blonde locks on the train in first year," he grinned.

What a complete lie!

"Actually, I didn't start liking you until you felt me up under the table at the beginning of term!"

I cannot believe I just admitted that.

Nor could McGonagall, judging by the squeal that she emitted, and the gnarled hand that clamped over her mouth. Suffice to say, I don't think I shall be Head Girl for much longer.

"I knew he was feeling you up!" Lorcan shouted from behind me. I ignored him.

"When did you start liking me, Malfoy? Go on…Tell us. We're dying to know."

Al was roaring with laughter, but in one gasping breath before he broke out into more chuckles, he managed to let out, "Go on, Malfoy, me old pal. Now's your chance. Tell her!"

I had never seen Scorpius look so embarrassed in his entire life. He darted his gaze around everywhere…the floor, the ceiling…anywhere, but my eyes that were smirking at him evilly.

Oh yes. I am evil now.

"Since fourth year. When I pushed you in the swimming pool."
I may be evil now, but I'm not going to be cruel. I'm nice evil, if that were possible. Upon this statement, deciding that I had pretty much officially already lost my Head Girl badge, so it didn't matter any more anyway, I flung myself at the poor buffoon standing embarrassed in front of me and pressed my lips to his.

Heaven.

We broke apart, and a flash of light caught the corner of my eye. Was that Hugo? With a camera?

Mr G Weasley

Weasley Wizard Wheezes

Diagon Alley

Uncle G

I have loads of Rosie and Malfoy snogging pics. If you want them for yours and Al's secret plan, please let me know. But they are pretty hilarious and I think I might enlarge them and plaster them over every wall in our house.

I think dad would really appreciate that, and I am nothing if not polite to my dearest father.

Hugs from Hugo

Helloooo :) I hope you enjoyed this chapter.

I have plans for what is to come and it will probably take another two or three chapters, so hang on in there and I'll post it as soon as I'm happy with it. Let me know what you think of this one, and also if you have any ideas etc.. you want to give me the go for it.

G X