His touch was rough, but she didn't fight it. She relished in his ferocity. The eagerness that swept caution under the rug made her heart pound against her chest and shortened her breath. Opal wrapped her arms around his neck and gave herself over, letting her body be shoved against the nearest wall. His hands groped and caressed every inch of her, soft fingers smoothing across parts of her she'd never revealed before.

Her mind was spiraling out of control, being yanked left and right by thoughts she couldn't make sense of. Passion and fire erupted in her belly as a sudden burst of aggression urged her to take the upper hand of her situation. Opal nearly growled, her eyelids fluttering as her head tilted back.

Opal clawed at his shoulders as her heavy breathing transitioned into panting. She didn't know what she was doing. Her body was screaming at her to keep going but her mind was cloudy. There were too many words bouncing around in her skull. Her ears were starting to ring. His hands had found the buttons of her blouse when she heard a voice.

"What do you think you're doing?"

Opal shoved against the boy trying to undress her, making him stumble and hit the ground. She stared, wide-eyed, hoping to talk her way out of this situation. But when the owner of the voice moved forward, she lost hope of that.

"Get up!" Draco Malfoy yanked the boy to his feet by his collar and shoved him in the opposite direction. Opal watched, beginning to get angry. He had no right to interfere. "Go back to your dorm. Professor Snape will be expecting you in detention tomorrow night."

The boy ran immediately without a word.

"What the hell is your problem?" Opal snapped, taking a step away from the wall in Draco's direction, hoping she looked menacing. "I was having fun."

Draco turned to face her slowly. His grey eyes were storm clouds, dark and angry. His expression made her next words get caught in her throat. What was that look for?

"Oh, my problem?" He was in front of her now, mere inches away. He was far too close for comfort. She wanted to move away from him but he had her trapped like a small animal. "You're the one with the problem, Caskey. If you're going to be dumb enough to screw around with a Hufflepuff you may as well have tried fucking him in the Great Hall."

"That's none of your business, Draco."

"You make it my business!" He snapped, fire igniting in his eyes. He stepped away from her, pinching the bridge of his nose. She wanted to leave while she could, but she felt rooted in place. "This isn't a brothel."

His words felt like knives in her heart. Opal didn't understand it. It should have just rolled off her shoulders. She could feel tears pooling in her eyes and she pressed her lips together, nodding like she agreed with him.

"I'm going to leave now." Her voice was barely a whisper. Opal turned to walk away, but was stopped by a hand on her shoulder.

"Wait, Opal, I didn't mean—"

She smacked away his hand. "Don't touch me!"

Draco took a step back. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to imply—"

"Except you did." Opal snapped, crossing her arms over her chest. In comparison to Draco's height, she looked like a child. "I'm not a whore. I've never even had sex."

Draco's expression changed and he shifted uncomfortably. "I'm sorry, Opal."

"Stop apologizing. It's getting weird." She looked down at her feet, trying to figure out the sudden change in Draco. He never apologized for anything, even if he was completely in the wrong. She saw everything he did, so of course she knew. They were in the same house, it was hard not to see how big of arse he was.

"Do you forgive me?"

"What?" Her face screwed up into an expression of awed confusion. "I mean... I—I guess. But you better not say anything like that ever again. Or I'll hex you into the second Tuesday of next week."

When he laughed, she couldn't help but allow herself a small smile. That was probably the one thing she genuinely liked about Draco Malfoy. When he was truly amused, his laugh was like a child's—carefree and happy. It was contagious.

"Go back to your dorm, Caskey. And don't let me find you like that again. Or I promise the next time I won't be as forgiving."

"You're a Saint." She said sarcastically, turning on her heel in the direction of the Slytherin commons. With the Hufflepuff boy forgotten, and the only thing on her mind being Draco Malfoy, the trip seemed much shorter than usual. She was lost in thought often these days. Even in class, Opal had the tendency to zone out and think too hard about things. Especially when she encountered a situation she knew she should be familiar with, but was not.

Opal knew she had become a different person than she once was. Even at home during her vacations, she felt like a stranger. Moments she had lost, people she had forgotten... she wanted it all back. Opal couldn't help but feel that maybe she had been given a second chance. Maybe she had done something wrong before, and the accident was like hitting a reset button on her life. Maybe God was letting her right her wrongs.

Whatever the reason, she knew she was missing something. She felt it everyday. It was a hollow feeling, in both her mind and heart. Maybe one day she would find those missing things and finally fill those empty spaces, but maybe she never would. Maybe she was doomed to live like this forever. Forced to rebuild herself without the proper tools. She felt like an alien in her own body. It didn't make sense.

Opal's dormmates had been sleeping for a while by the time she made it to their room. She changed quickly into her pajamas and curled up underneath the plush emerald green blanket, pulling it over her head. She took a deep, calming breath and closed her eyes.

Tomorrow is a new day.