Drinny FF

Chapter 15

The week after the kiss was unbearable.

I have never been one to dwell on things – I liked to think of myself as composed, in control. But after that night with Ginny, everything seemed to spiral out of my grasp. I kept replaying the kiss in my head, the softness of her lips, the warmth of her body so close to mine. It was like nothing I'd ever experienced before. But then it was over, and Ginny was gone, and for the past seven days she had been avoiding me like I didn't even exist.

In the corridors, during meals, in every shared class – it was like we had reverted back to the cold indifference of our earlier years, only now it hurt in a way I couldn't have imagined. Every time I saw her walking in the opposite direction, my chest tightened. Every glance she dodged made my heart beat faster, not with anger, but with a hollow sort of panic.

I tried not to care. I told myself I didn't care. But every night when I lay awake in bed, staring up at the ceiling., I found myself thinking of her. Wondering why she was pulling away. Wondering if she regretted it.

The uncertainty of it all gnawed at me, my mind swirling with a thousand questions. Had I crossed a line? Had the kiss meant nothing to her? Or worse – had it scared her off?

For the first time in my life, I, Draco Malfoy, didn't have the answers, and it drove me mad.

A week passed, and I was growing more and more frustrated. I tried to corner her after class once, but she slipped away before I could even get a word out. It was like chasing a shadow – every time I thought I was close, she vanishes, leaving me alone with the weight of my thoughts.

But then, it happened.

I was walking through one of the quieter corridors after dinner, my mind preoccupied with everything I should have said, when I spotted her. Ginny was just ahead, the sight of her making my pulse quicken instantly. She was walking quickly, as if she was trying to avoid something – or someone.

Before I knew what I was doing, I moved forward, my legs carrying me before my mind caught up. I had no plan, no idea what I was going to say, but the silence between us had stretched on long enough. I couldn't stand another moment of it.

Draco: Ginny!

I called out, my voice echoing down the empty corridor.

Ginny froze, her back stiffening at the sound of my voice. She didn't stop, though, as she kept her head down, walking faster, trying to pretend like I wasn't there. I closed the distance in between us.

Draco: Ginny!

My voice was louder now, sharper. I reached out and grabbed her wrist, gently but firmly enough to make her pause. She jerked her arm out of my grasp and spun around to face me, her eyes blazing. For a moment, neither of us spoke.

Draco: Stop walking away from me.

Ginny: Listen, Malfoy, I appreciate the effort, but it's no use. You're a Malfoy. We will never be able to converse like normal people. So, just, let's just stop pretending like this is able to be anything more than what we'd like.

Ginny's face was flushed, and her jaw was set tight.

Draco: I – what happened, I didn't –

Ginny: Don't you fucking understand. I don't care what you have to say. So, just… leave me alone. Please, Draco.

I blinked, taken aback by the sudden uncertainty in her voice.

Draco: You don't mean that.

Ginny: I do mean it.

Draco: You're lying. You're just scared –

Ginny: Scared? Don't fucking flatter yourself, Malfoy. I'm not scared. I just don't want this.

Draco: you didn't act like that the other night.

My voice was cold, trying to mask the hurt.

Ginny: That was a mistake.

Her words hit me like a slap as I took a step back. I felt the weight of her words pressing down on me, suffocating me. Ginny's walls were up, and she wasn't letting him in.

Ginny held my gaze for a long moment, her expression unreadable, before she turned on her heel and walked away. I didn't stop her.