Hermione perched on the edge of the conference room table and found herself, once again, staring at Draco's hands while he talked about some aspect of early childhood intervention. She mentally berated herself. It's not that the topic was boring, he was just so damn distracting!
Despite her best effort, it was becoming increasingly more difficult to keep him out of her head. After hearing he'd gone to help Theo, she had to admit she was growing quite fond of him; it had been a very Gryffindor thing of him to do. It had been a while since she'd been with someone, and as Ginny said, Hermione was an adult, and it was totally fine for two consenting adults to have it off without it leading to a complicated relationship that she was sure neither of them wanted. She was in need of a good shag, that much was true. And there was certainly something about Draco Malfoy that piqued her curiosity.
"Granger?" Malfoy prodded. He was smirking at her from where he sat (as always, on the other side of the table), reclining casually.
"Hrm?" The noise was noncommittal, and she found her throat was tight as she was pulled from her rather inappropriate line of thought.
"My, my, Granger, were you daydreaming? Care to share with the class?" he teased, removing his glasses before placing one end in his mouth as he inspected her.
Colour crept up her neck, and her core tightened. Why is it so warm in here? She wondered if shagging him once would satisfy the burning desire that was surging through her, or if it would only fan the flames.
"Sorry, I was just thinking of—" Well, I certainly can't tell him what I was thinking of… Ginny! Yes, definitely Ginny; definitely not his hands or his lips or his... "Ginny," she squeaked.
"Ginny." His tone was flat — he wasn't fooled.
He leaned forward, resting both elbows on the desk, and narrowed his eyes. Both corners of his lips turned up as he noticed her squirming.
She swallowed nervously and wondered if she should sit back down in her chair. She felt oddly exposed, sitting on the edge of the table while he looked at her like that. Her eyes darted to her empty chair and then back to him.
There was a challenge in his eyes, and she refused to be the one to back down. After a few more moments, he laughed and leaned back in his chair, looking completely at ease. Draco seemed much more relaxed lately, ever since Nott started staying with him.
"What is the Weaselette up to these days? I hear she's gone pro?"
Well, apparently Ginny isn't the only one who can't let go of the past, she thought to herself, though she didn't sense any real animosity in his tone. He still seemed more playful than anything, despite the strange change in topic, which gave her a chance to come back to her senses.
"Yes, she's playing for the Harpies now — Chaser, of course."
Draco nodded. "She always was a terror on the pitch. It didn't surprise me in the least to hear it."
It was strange to hear Draco speaking about a member of the Weasley household with anything besides derision. Their families had been feuding for generations, and she hadn't thought that anything would ever change that. But, there were all sorts of strange things happening these days. His innocuous statement, more than anything, signalled to Hermione just how much he'd changed.
"Are she and Potter engaged yet?"
Hermione laughed a bit too loud, still rattled. "Gin and Harry? Oh no, that ended ages ago… I can't believe you didn't read about it in The Prophet."
"Shocking as it may be Granger, I don't spend all my time reading the society gossip pages." He dropped his smirk and his tone turned inquisitive. "So, you and Ginny are both unattached then?" he asked.
"Wrong again," Hermione said, though she wasn't sure why Malfoy was interested in Ginny's relationship status.
Draco tensed up; the casual pose he struck felt almost contrived.
"She's been dating a teammate for the past two or three years. I can't recall how long exactly… You remember Cho Chang from Ravenclaw? I'm still not sure if the real reason that Ginny signed with the Harpies was because she wanted to play for them, or because she was trying to catch Cho's attention."
Draco was quiet, as if waiting for her to say more. After an awkward pause, he spoke up.
"Well, good for her. She always was too big for Potter and Weasel's world. It was obvious even at Hogwarts, just like it was for y—" He cut off with a cough to hide whatever he'd intended to say before continuing. "I'm really glad Ginny is doing well, truly; the war was hard on everyone, and it's so nice to see some of us are thriving."
Hermione's mouth was open slightly — she didn't know what to say. She wondered what he was going to say before he had cut himself off.
"You act like you're surprised," he said, joking.
After another moment of silence, his face turned more serious.
"You are surprised," he said, resigned. He turned his face away from her, his jaw working. "I am not my father, Hermione." Draco swallowed hard as he turned back to look at her. "I wish you could see that," he finished quietly. He looked so vulnerable as his eyes searched hers for the answer to some unasked question.
Not finding what he was looking for, he broke her gaze, looking down at his hands splayed flat on the table. They both stayed where they were, neither wanting to move — as if they might shatter if they did. Soundlessly, Hermione stood and stepped around the table that always separated them, stopping at the corner of the desk, just out of arm's reach. She realised this was the closest they had been since the day Draco had met her in the cafe, when they'd awkwardly ridden the lift to the DMLE, shoulder to shoulder in a similarly tense silence.
She felt a shiver run down her spine at a realisation that the physical boundary had been crossed — one that they'd both been carefully maintaining as part of an unspoken truce. Hermione twisted her hands together nervously, unwilling to step back, but not wanting to be the one to close the distance between them either.
He still hadn't looked at her.
"I do know, Draco," she breathed the words softly, willing him to believe her.
She was surprised by the sudden urge to reach out and lift his chin — if he would just look at her, perhaps she'd be able to understand what he was feeling — but she resisted the impulse and stood rooted to the spot instead.
"I don't feel that way anymore... and I'm sorry that I made you think I did. I believe you; you're not that man anymore." She started at the realisation. When did that happen?
His hands trembled slightly, still pressed to the surface of the table. There was a strange tension in the air and they remained frozen, as if they'd each cast Immobulus simultaneously. Slowly, Draco raised his gaze to meet hers. His grey eyes burned with a mix of emotions she couldn't discern.
A charge of electricity filled the air between them, growing stronger the longer they maintained eye contact. Something was coiling tight around her chest, becoming unbearable… an inevitability.
Draco rose slowly from his chair and took a small step towards her — she could reach out and touch him if she dared. His gaze flitted to her lips, and his tongue darted out to wet his own nervously. "Granger, I—"
Harry burst into the room, slurping coffee noisily.
She jumped away from the table as if singed, and Draco's face reddened — whatever spell that had held them was well and truly broken.
Harry didn't notice.
"Afternoon Hermione, Draco," he greeted them cheerily. "Just stopping by to see if you need anything. I told Shacklebolt that everything was fine, but he insisted I check, anyway."
Hermione and Draco both hastily assured Harry that they had everything they needed to continue the project. She promised she'd tell him if there were additional resources or information necessary.
Harry turned to leave, and she practically sighed in relief. Harry was usually shockingly perceptive, but there were also times when he was entirely oblivious — thankfully, this appeared to be the latter.
"Still on for the Leaky after work, Hermione?"
"Of course," she said, forcing her voice to sound normal; she wasn't sure that it was very convincing.
The atmosphere in the room was different after Harry's exit. It was as if, now that the invisible barrier had been breached, they were both holding their breath, each waiting to see what would come next. Personally, Hermione was interested to see if there were other lines that they could blur. The idea sent a thrill through her.
As the day wore on, she tried to ignore the growing tension that she felt between them. Perhaps he'd also felt the shift before Harry had interrupted, and wasn't sure where that left them.
Draco began gathering his things to leave, and Hermione felt her heart rate spike. She'd been debating whether or not to do this all day, and gave herself a quick pep talk. Grabbing her cloak and folding it over one arm, she took a deep breath, willing herself to stay calm, and chewed her lip nervously before turning to him.
She attempted nonchalance but was only partially successful. "So, are you coming?" Was her voice always that high pitched?
Draco froze in his preparations to leave, not meeting her eyes.
"Is there an appointment I'm unaware of?" His voice sounded strained, but the drawl in his voice made her shiver. Merlin, she needed to get a hold of herself.
"Well, it's just that we're heading to the pub after work and I thought… if you weren't busy that is…" His stare was unsettling and she looked awkwardly down at her cloak, playing with the clasp. Merlin, this was a terrible idea… What was I thinking?
A pair of dark glossy shoes entered her field of vision and Hermione startled — she hadn't even heard him cross the room. She closed her eyes, bracing herself to meet the rejection she knew she'd find in his eyes. Clearly, she had misjudged the situation. She was the one who had started this; of course he wouldn't want to spend time with her outside of work — they weren't friends.
She felt the press of his fingers on her jaw as he lifted her chin. A shiver ran down her spine at the unexpected contact, and she was only barely able to suppress her gasp. She pressed her lips together instead.
"And crash your date with Potter?" Draco grinned wickedly, eyes flashing. "I can't think of anything I'd rather be doing."