When He Became Mine
Alyakeiram
*
Some secrets need to be kept
Some stories should never be told
Some reasons shouldn't be understood
They just might turn your blood cold
- Hilary Duff, Dangerous to Know
"I'm gay."
Astoria's voice was steady, though her gaze faltered as she looked down at Draco. He was on one knee, holding a black velvet box with a princess-cut diamond ring gleaming inside.
For a moment, the words didn't register. Draco felt like the world had gone quiet, the wind slipping through his ears like a hollow echo. His hand wavered, the box trembling slightly as he stared at the woman he had imagined spending the rest of his life with.
"Draco—" Astoria dropped to her knees before him, her hands covering his, grounding him. "Draco, are you okay?" Her voice sounded muffled.
His blurred vision began to clear, but the weight of her words pressed down harder than ever. She didn't love him. Not in the way he loved her. He swallowed thickly, trying to find his voice.
"I—I don't know if okay is the word I'd use right now," he muttered, his tone somewhere between disbelief and devastation.
Astoria reached up, her fingers gentle as they cupped his cheek, guiding his face back to hers. She wasn't crying, but there was a softness in her eyes that spoke of guilt and regret.
"Why?" he asked, his voice tight with hurt. "Why are you telling me this now?"
"I've been trying to tell you for a long time," she admitted, her voice quiet but steady. "I just… I didn't know how. I suppose I didn't have the courage."
"I thought we told each other everything." Draco's voice was quiet, barely above a whisper, but the weight of his words hung heavy in the air.
"We do—well, almost everything," Astoria admitted, her hands wringing together nervously. "Draco, I love you dearly, darling. Truly, I do. And I'd be happy to marry you, to live out this fantasy life your parents have dreamed up for you. But it wouldn't be fair—to either of us."
"Fair?" Draco repeated, his voice rising. The anger building inside him felt foreign, raw, and uncontainable. "And you think this is fair?!"
"N-no! Please, Draco, don't be angry with me!" Astoria pleaded, her voice cracking. "I... I need you to understand. Gods, I'm so sorry! I'm unforgivable for not being who you want or need me to be."
Draco's jaw tightened as he stared at her. Then the question slipped from his lips, sharp and accusing. "Are you in love with someone else?"
Astoria's face froze, her eyes wide as if she'd been struck.
Draco let out a bitter laugh, shaking his head. "You haven't been honest with me for a long time, have you, Storie?" He snapped the box shut with a click, the sound slicing through the tense silence. Rising to his feet, he stepped back, putting space between them. "I wish you nothing but the best in all of your future endeavors and loves. I'll have Donner pack your things and send them to your parent's estate—or should I send them to your lover instead?"
"Oh, that really isn't fair, Draco, and you know it!" she cried, stepping toward him, her voice trembling with desperation.
"No, Astoria!" Draco turned on her, his face etched with anguish and fury. "What's not fair is that you let me believe we were building a future together. That we'd have a beautiful life, a family. And now, none of it—" His voice broke slightly, and he turned away, his shoulders stiff. "None of it matters anymore."
Astoria's eyes filled with tears as she watched him retreat. Guilt and heartbreak churned inside her, knowing how deeply she had hurt him. She had let this go too far. She'd known for a while that she couldn't be the person he needed, yet she hadn't stopped him from falling deeper in love.
Draco didn't look back. Humiliated and heartbroken, he wanted to disappear, to avoid the pitying gazes of friends or, worse, the predatory eyes of the press. But fate, it seemed, had other plans. Unbeknownst to him, across the square, the daughter of none other than Rita Skeeter, Liza, stood with her cronies, her camera clicking and her mother's hand-me-down, Quick-Quotes Quill, furiously scribbling notes for the next Witch Weekly exclusive.