"My name is Professor Rigs and seventy-five percent of you will be receiving a C in this class," began a short old man with a sprightly loud and energetic voice, before I had the chance to be polite and thank Draco for handing me my notebook. I heard a few laughs before the professor proceeded to talk about his syllabus, which was being distributed by his teaching assistants. I took one and started to read it. Professor Rigs had white hair and a beard that reminded me somewhat of Kris Kringle. I recalled that Draco and I were majoring in the same area, which meant I wasn't going to have a great time at being able to avoid him. When Professor Rigs was finished giving his detailed introduction, he finally said, "Welcome to Art History 115, Introduction to Visual Arts." When class go out, I hurried to make my way to the next class, a gen ed history course. I really was excited for it, as I didn't know much about Muggle history. After that, I had a small gap in my schedule, during which time I went to lunch and then proceeded to my last two classes of the day. One of them was an English class, which I had no worries about, as I was already a master of the language. My very last class was a biology course which covered another general education requirement. I'd had a pretty full day by the time I got into the lift and made my way to my room. I was honestly surprised to see George standing at my bed, all of my clothes neatly laid out there.
"G-George?" I put my backpack down and closed the door.
"I thought you might want to use the closet," he said, picking up a cardigan and placing it on a hanger, which he then put in the closet where I had yet to store clothes. I just looked at him in amazement. I was honestly surprised that he was still there. I thought he'd have gone by the time I came back.
"I wasn't going to leave, Angie," said George.
"You don't have to prove anything to me, George," I said, walking towards the window and closing it; it had gotten cooler as the sun went down. I heard George sigh. I didn't turn around to face him.
"Okay, then what do I have to do?" he asked. I crossed my arms. He took a few steps towards me.
"Do you want to be my girlfriend, Angie?" he asked.
"Gee, it really sounds flattering when you say it like that," I said, sardonically.
"I'm getting sick of this really fast, Angie," George responded, raising his voice a bit.
"What are you even doing here?" he asked me.
"You'll probably never believe who I bloody saw earlier when I stepped out for a bit of air…"
I turned around to face George.
"Who?" I asked angrily.
"Draco! At first I thought I was losing my mind, but then I was sure of it," said George, wringing his hands and looking a bit nervous. His voice went low as he started to ponder.
"What the hell was he doing here? Doesn't that make you feel weird, Angelina? I think it's too strange of a coincidence, don't you think? …Remember that Quidditch match where you flew into him and made him fall off his broom and sprain his ankle? What if he wants revenge?"
"George, you're paranoid," I said. He looked at me.
"Give it up, already, would you? You're already well off. So just come back home and see all your friends, enjoy your life."
"I am enjoying my life," I said.
"You don't look like you are," said George, noting my tearful eyes.
"I'm upset because you made me that way," I explained, walking around him and towards my bed.
"Me?! What have I done? I only thought of you and decided to pay a visit."
"You're so selfish," I said. George finally became angry.
"What! How am I selfish, Angie? Tell me, because I'd really like to know." I had flicked my wand and caused my clothes to all put themselves away. George fought through them to the side of the room where I now stood.
"I thought you might be able to offer me an iota of support in deciding to come to school here. I thought I'd be able to have some emotional support from you."
"Emotional support? I thought that wasn't what we agreed on…remember? You said it would have been too much for you, that your career wouldn't have allowed it," said George, pointing and closing the gap between us.
"Yeah, you never have enough time for a relationship, but you have enough to come to an entirely different country and go to school for four years—never mind me!"
I jumped a bit. I was honestly startled by his sudden outburst; George usually had the most laid back and comical countenance. But he was angry then and I could tell.
"No, I can't keep doing this. I should've known better," he said.
"I knew one of us would eventually get hurt."
"…George?"
He looked at me angrily for a few seconds before disapparating, leaving me all alone in this room, in this country, in this world I wasn't used to. I felt even more upset and I wanted to cry, but I told myself I wasn't going to. It wouldn't make the transition any easier if I didn't make an honest attempt at getting to know new people. I grabbed my key and ID, shut off the lights, and left my room. I ended up asking for directions from a few students walking around my residential area, and they led me into downtown Amherst, where I conveniently found a coffee shop. I went in. It wasn't as crowded as Berkshire and I found the atmosphere calming. I ordered some jasmine tea, for which they gave me a small teapot and glass into which I could pour it. I found a table in the corner and sat there. I started to think about my argument with George and it made me feel angry, and then I started to cry. Damn him, I thought. I cared about him a lot and we were great friends, but the truth was that I didn't know if I could handle a legitimate relationship; I was afraid of getting hurt, and yet it managed to happen with George. I wiped my eyes angrily and reached for a napkin. As I was doing so, somebody's hand got in my way.
"Oh, I haven't got any left at my table so I was just going to—" Draco stopped short upon realizing it was me sitting there. I looked up at him, and quickly out the window to finish wiping away my tears.
"You again," he said and it sounded somewhat dark, but less rude as he usually sounded.
"Piss off, Malfoy," I said, turning back to him, "Can't you see I'm in the middle of thinking?" He glared at me, but when his eyes met mine, they softened.
"What?!" I asked. I was so loud that a few people looked over. Draco didn't seem to notice.
"Are you crying?" he asked blatantly.
"Do I look like I'm bloody crying?" I asked through gritted teeth, trying to keep my voice down, baring my fist. I knew there were no longer any tears on my face, but my eyes were probably telling.
"Don't have a dragon. I was just getting a napkin," Draco finally spat, the softness leaving his expression. He walked back over to a table where he sat with two guys. They were dressed in all black, long trench coats that to me were a far cry from inconspicuous. If I didn't know any better, I would have thought them to be Death Eaters, and then I shuddered. One of them slowly turned around, following Draco's gaze over to my table. The guy that looked at me had a rather rugged appearance, as if he'd been living on the go, and I knew there was something suspicious going on. I stopped looking at him, hoping he wasn't memorizing my face…
The weeks went on and I heard nothing from George. I assumed he was still angry with me. To be honest, I wasn't even quite sure how exactly I felt. I just knew I didn't want things to have been left the way they were. I started intentionally sitting away from where Draco had sat in the class we both went to. I was certain he still noticed me the way I noticed him, but I tried to pretend he wasn't there. I knew he wanted to pretend the same thing. I didn't go to the Grayson's for Columbus Day weekend but I asked my history professor about it; she smiled and happily told me nearly everything she knew about it historically. I came to feel as confused as she as to why Americans even celebrated it when she explained that Christopher Columbus wasn't, in fact, the first person to discover the country. I guessed it was just that people wanted an excuse for a long weekend. I received an owl from Katie and Alicia, asking me what it was like in Muggle United States, and whether I'd be home to celebrate Christmas back in England. I told them it was interesting and that some people had accents, and that I was going to see them in December when I got home. When Thanksgiving arrived in November, I had no choice but to go home with the Graysons. Mrs. Grayson picked Draco and I up from campus. I managed to fall asleep the whole ride home so I wouldn't be forced to hear Draco's fakeness when he spoke to Mrs. Grayson…I felt someone squeeze my shoulder.
"What?" I said, waking to find Draco looking down at me blankly from where he stood outside the car. He proceeded to turn around and walk up the Grayson's front steps. His interactions with me were still very awkward. I felt safer when he'd keep his distance. I went and took a shower and then went back to sleep in my room, telling Mrs. Grayson that I wasn't feeling very hungry. In all honesty, I just wanted to be alone. I was feeling rather depressed. I woke and it was the middle of the night, two in the morning to be exact. I got out of bed to use the bathroom. I washed my hands and looked in the mirror, when I heard what sounded like voices. I stepped out of the bathroom and started to walk quietly to my room, but I noticed a light coming from under Draco's bedroom door. I paused just past it, and that's where I heard the other voices.
"You've got to get more. Why else would you have been stationed here, Draco?" came a man's voice, although I had no idea whose it was.
"I'm making a few connections still," Draco snapped.
"These things take time, you know. I can't very well just go around asking people if they're witches, now can I? They have to be lured in, feel comfortable before they decide to join our ranks."
"It's been nearly three months and you've only managed one new American division…"
Division? I thought. I heard some footsteps and finished hurrying down the hall to my room. I thought about those creepy guys I'd seen Draco with in downtown Amherst before and pictured them standing in his room. And I had a bad feeling all of a sudden. I had a very bad feeling.