Romina couldn't remember another time in her life where she'd had this much fun. For the past week, Draco had been sending her letters with just about every kind of way to plead for another bargain. He was adamant that he couldn't spend an hour in the muggle world.

It's the muggle world, for Merlin's sake! You can't do this to me!

Romina nearly laughed with that letter. She was very happy to write back that it was the Muggle World and not hell so he should suck it up and be a man of his word. Interestingly enough, she also got a letter from Blaise congratulating her for triumph. He was a horrible friend but Romina actually liked him better now. According to him, he also respected her more too.

After much pleas and bargaining, Draco finally gave up and they arranged for a date in which he would spend his one hour with her in the muggle world.

"Are you sure you don't want me to drop you and Arden off?" Sage looked at Romina and Arden sitting on the former's bed. "I don't work today…"

"It's really fine, auntie," Romina said, clearing her throat when Arden's lips threatened to turn into a smirk. "Arden and I are going to walk to the park anyways. The store's right there."

"What about Harry?" Sage thought to ask since her repeated attempts to drive her niece and Arden to the park were rejected. "You know I don't like it very much when you two girls are on your own."

"I don't think Harry can go today," Romina said and Arden nearly lost it in a laugh. "Last time I heard, the Dursleys' were making him do some chores."

Sage tutted. "Those people." She never really kept it a secret how much she disliked the Dursleys' but for Harry's sake, she never said it out loud either. "Well, you know you have to be back by six, right?"

"Yes auntie," Romina nodded. "Six sharp."

Sage eyed the girls as she walked out, even closing the door slowly. As soon as the door was shut, Arden burst into laughter. Romina had to throw one of her pillows at Arden before Sage came back.

"How the hell have you ever kept a secret from your parents?" Romina groaned. She got up from her bed and walked to the door. She had to peek out and make sure Sage wasn't lingering about in the hallway.

"This is different," Arden giggled, "This is like a huge difference, mind you. However did you get away with this, Romina?"

Romina locked her bedroom door and turned around, facing her best friend with a clean smile. "I don't know what you mean, Arden. I'm just going to the park and if I happen to see a friend there…"

Arden snorted loudly enough to want to make Romina throw another pillow at her. "I really doubt that Draco is seeing you as anything but an enemy right now. Watch out Harry Potter, you might lose your place."

Romina rolled her eyes, waving Arden off as she walked over to her vanity desk. "Hey, Draco made the bet and now he has to live up to his word. Not my fault he didn't realize who he was messing with."

Arden shook her head. "He's going to get you back for this, you know. I don't ever see him letting go of the fact you are making him spend a whole hour in the muggle world."

"I know, I'll always be so special," Romina feigned an innocent smile before breaking into a laugh.

Arden snorted. "That's one way to think about it. Seriously, only you could get away with this. You have some untapped power right there—use it wisely."

"Untapped power?" Romina looked at Arden through the mirror. She had picked up her brush to do her hair. "I just beat him as his own game. Draco's used to winning at everything and against everyone. Sooner or later, he was going to get a reality check. The honor was all mine."

"You'll be hailed as a hero," Arden laughed and fell flat on her back on the bed. "Oh, I can already hear what Harry's going to say about this."

Romina stopped with her hair for a moment to turn around. "No, Arden, he can't know about this."

"What?" Arden stopped laughing to pop her head up. Her brow had furrowed with confusion. "But this is gold!"

"It's also against the rules Draco and I set."

Arden snorted. "You made them, not me."

"Arden..." Romina put her brush down and reached for her charmed headband on the vanity desk. As soon as she put it on, it turned into a stark red shade. It matched her red corduroy overalls. She fixed the sleeves of her white shirt.

"C'mon, Romina, we're seriously going to keep this juicy secret a secret!?"

"We have to!"

"I know Blaise won't! I bet Theodore already knows about it too!"

"Yeah, because they're Draco's friends and they know that if they said anything, Draco would be on them. Plus," Romina turned again and walked up to the foot of her bed, "If Draco's parents found out about this...he would be in huge trouble. I can't do that to him."

Arden scrunched her face. "Why should we care? He wouldn't."

"His parents are scary, alright?" Romina shuddered. "I can't imagine having to live with them. It's all fun and games to screw with Draco but not to the point where he could get in serious trouble."

"You're too good to him," Arden sat upright and tucked her hair behind her hair. "Luckily, I'm not! And I am so ready for the once in a lifetime opportunity to thoroughly mess with Draco Malfoy! C'mon!" She gleefully hopped off the bed and made a dash for the door.

~ 0 ~

One hour. One measly hour is what he was supposed to waste today to complete the stupid bed he regretted with every fiber of his being. And yet at the same time, when he thought of how things escalated, Draco could not say that he wouldn't do it again.

When someone challenged him, he accepted.

However next time, Draco wouldn't underestimate Romina Oswell. 'Game on' was the mindset...for the future. Right now, he had to get through this hour. And there she was, in some oddly colored red clothing...but there she was. And of course Arden too.

Romina was already waiting to meet him on the street. She was grinning ridiculously wide that it could crack her face in two. "Well hello there," she wiggled her fingers in greeting. "Glad you made it."

Draco rolled his eyes. She was enjoying this. "Drop it, Oswell. I'm here. Wasting my time, but I'm here."

"No," Romina wagged a finger at him. "You're completing your end of the bargain."

"It's not a bargain when you don't gain anything."

"He's got you there," Arden nodded.

"I thought the idea of spending a whole afternoon with me would be the 'gaining' part," Romina said to Draco. "So, how'd you get here in the end? Didn't ask Mum or Dad for a ride, did yah?" Arden snorted beside her.

Draco's eyes shifted between the two girls as he decided who he hated most at the moment. "I would be dead if they found out where I am right now." It truly was an image that Draco didn't want to think about. It was more than fear-worthy. "I had Zabini's house elf help."

"A house elf?" frowned Arden. "What? Like a maid?"

"Worse," Romina said, preferring to leave the topic alone. "So, it brought you here. Are they taking you back?"

"Is that concern I hear in your tone, Oswell?" Draco cracked a smirk at her.

It was Romina's turn to roll her eyes then. "Just curious," she said. "I didn't tell anyone by the way—Harry doesn't know you're here. Nobody else does."

Draco nearly snarled at the mention of Harry. "I can't believe you actually live on the same block as him. How do you manage?"

"He's a friend, and honestly, he doesn't exactly live the best life with his aunt and uncle here. They're menaces. Like proper ones."

Somehow that just made Draco smile. "You do know the right things to say to me."

Romina sighed heavily. "Let's go," she turned away from him. Arden joined them in their walk down the sidewalk.

"Where the hell are we anyways?"

"Don't worry, we're going to put you in some open space," Arden snickered.

Draco sent her a glare over Romina's head. "Does she really have to be here?" he then asked their mediator.

"She does live next door to me, remember?"

"Still."

"Why Draco, did you want to be all alone with Romina?" Arden feigned a sigh with a hand over her chest. "You could've just said so!"

"You know what, King..." Draco stopped altogether to turn towards Arden, the latter doing the same thing.

"Okay!" Romina opened her arms to keep both sides away. "We don't need a murder happening today—it's a really nice day out."

"Then get her to stop before I make her," Draco promptly warned, stepping away and fixing his collars.

Arden didn't make things better when she scoffed. "Forget it, Malfoy. You're in my territory now." She made a gesture to their current spot. "No magic allowed. Old school — something you know nothing about."

"Arden!" Romina snapped. "Why don't you go see if the movie store is open, huh?"

"I don't really feel—"

"Sorry, my mistake, I meant to say: go to the movie store!"

Arden huffed. "Fine."

Romina pulled out a folded piece of paper from her bag and handed it to her. "This is the list." Arden swiped it from Romina's hand and took off. Romina took in a breath then looked over at Draco. "Seriously? You need to control your temper."

"It's not my fault that King is insufferable sometimes," he retorted.

"You think everybody's insufferable!"

Draco's expression pretty much asked her what her point was. Romina shook her head at him.

"C'mon," she led him down the block.

"Where are we going?" he demanded.

"To the park, don't worry! I'm not thinking of sticking you inside a muggle mall or something. I actually thought about you." As soon as Romina saw his smirk, she regretted everything. "I heard how that came out and it's not it."

"I mean…" Draco swayed his head in her direction, lips pulled into, ironically, an insufferable smirk. "I wouldn't blame you."

"Shut up," Romina said. "I meant to say that I put thought into this and I chose the place that completes the bet and doesn't really harm you. That is what I meant, got it?"

"If you say so."

Romina brought him to the entry of the park and even before they actually started walking through, Draco was showing signs of hesitance. The park wasn't at its usual normality, Romina knew that.

"It's just a mini farmer's market," she explained, though it didn't do much for him.

"Oswell, remember where we are please!"

"Okay, but only because you said 'please'," Romina flashed him a smile. "It's like a mini-sale of different foods. It happens every Wednesday."

"What do they sell, exactly?"

"Let's go find out!"

Draco stopped in his tracks and absolutely glowered at the idea. "No, I...I don't think I will."

Romina came to a stop a few steps ahead. She turned around, hands on her hips. Her own eyes narrowed at him but not with the same disdain as Draco's. In fact, only a few seconds later, her lips had pulled into a taunting smirk. "I believe your words were...'scared'?"

Draco raised an eyebrow at her, incredulous that she would ever repeat that to him. The last time it didn't end so well and that was only because Harry had gotten rid of the stupid snake before it got too close to him. Still, she was challenging him again and he just couldn't—for the life of him he couldn't—refuse her.

"You wish, Oswell," he pointed at her. Her smirk widened. That was also nice too.

"Then let's go!" She motioned him to catch up already.

He had no choice but to obey and so together they walked into the open market. She promised him that they wouldn't spend so much time there if it really got to be too much for him.

Draco found that it wasn't so much of a "too much" problem as it was...weird. He had never once in his life perused stores for common-day food, and much less the food they were offering here. His nose crinkled at the scent of something he just knew would be spicy.

Romina chuckled beside him when she noticed it. "That's just bell peppers. They're not spicy, you know. My aunt Sage used to pack them for me for my lunches."

"She did what?" Draco did a double-take on her.

Romina waved him off and stepped up to the stall. She made a clear order for just a few sliced bell peppers. And something called hummus.

"Oswell, I'm not trying that," Draco said as soon as they were off again. Romina held a plastic box in her hands with colorful sliced bell peppers inside and that brown mush on the side.

"It's a healthy snack," Romina said, shrugging her shoulders. "And quite good. Just try one."

"Can't make me—that wasn't part of the bet!"

"I'm just trying to expand your palate." Romina grabbed a green slice and dipped it in hummus. "Here," she offered it to him. "Green's our lucky color, isn't it?"

Draco wrinkled his nose at the slice. "Can't imagine what kind of luck that'll bring me."

"Trust me," Romina said, motioning him to take the slice.

"Can I, though? Can I really trust you?" Draco had retorted sarcastically only for her to respond immediately.

"You can always trust me," she said softly. She even smiled to match her tone.

This was entirely weird for Draco. He couldn't place his finger on what was making it a hell of a lot weirder (besides the obvious change of environment). Ultimately, his hand reached for the damn bell pepper. He kept looking at Romina who, in turn, watched him like a hawk (an eager hawk for that matter) until he took his first bite. He crunched through the pepper, expecting the ravenous spice he had smelled earlier. However he instead tasted something rather...sour? Onions?

"Ugh, Oswell what is that?" His face scrunched up entirely the more he tasted sourness.

Romina went into a fit of giggles. "I'm guessing you don't like the hummus?"

"Is that what that is?" Draco had to force himself to swallow. "Eugh!"

"Try it without hummus!" Romina suggested. "It'll be different, I promise!"

Well, he was already halfway through the thing, he might as well finish it and hope for the best. He dropped the remaining slice into his mouth and chewed carefully. Romina had been right—it was very different from the first bite. Without the hummus, he was able to taste a fresh new flavor. It was mildly spicy and kind of watery? Either way, it wasn't that bad.

"Better?" Romina asked despite presuming the answer already.

Draco nodded. "Yeah, not half bad." Romina offered the box in her hands. He took a few more slices. "You can keep that mush, though."

Romina laughed. "Crossing off hummus, I guess."

"Never again in my life!" Draco declared in a loud huff.

Romina decided to go easy on the next things she would make him try. There were plenty of different snacks she thought had a chance at pleasing his palate. Regular fruit salads were fine, not too much of a commotion. Dried fruit, however, was a no-go.

"How could you not like dried mango?" Romina was absolutely disappointed with him when they left the stand.

"Oswell, I have some concern over your palate if you actually like that rubbish." Draco seriously wished he had some water to drown that horrid taste. "Isn't there anything to drink around here!?"

Romina hushed him before he yelled even louder. "Shut up! Do you want to draw attention to us or what?"

Draco grumbled. He just wanted to drink something. In the end, Romina offered him something that was light red. She almost lost it with the face he made after taking his first sip.

"Before you say anything, it's watermelon juice," she patted his arm. "Refreshing, isn't it?"

"Eh…" Draco preferred to keep that opinion to himself, giving Romina the hint that he may have just liked it.

~ 0 ~

After leaving the market, they caught up with Arden who had been waiting for them at one of the public checker tables with a plastic bag over it. "I thought you guys had ditched me!" She said as soon as they were in hearing distance from me.

"Don't think I didn't mention that to her," Draco said. "Apparently, it wouldn't have been nice or something."

"Yeah, God forbid you were kind for a moment," Arden rolled her eyes. She got up and continued walking with them towards the other side of the park.

They reached the side of the park with the actual playground. Romina called dibs on one of the three swings and made a dash. Arden called the same and, after shoving her bag into Draco's arms, she rushed after Romina, plopping down on the swing next to her.

"What the fuck are you two doing!?" Draco was a second away from throwing Arden's bag to the ground. It didn't help when both girls shushed him.

"Watch your language, there are children present," Romina put a finger against her lips.

"Oswell, with your mouth, I wouldn't talk!"

Arden giggled. "He's got you there."

Romina rolled her eyes and gently pushed herself on the swing. "You could just take the last one, you know," she told Draco and made a nod to the swing on her other side.

"I am not touch that," said Draco flatly. He eyed the last swing as if it held some kind of incurable disease. His gaze then shifted around the playground, his nose once again crinkling. It wasn't as crowded as the market had been but he wasn't so fond of the families around them either. "Why are we here?"

"Because I'm tired of walking," Romina said like it should have been obvious. She had shown him all around the market. "Sit down already. You look like a weirdo just standing there."

"Aaaand I'm about 5 seconds from knocking you with my feet," Arden threatened as she started gaining traction on her swing.

With a loud sigh, Draco moved towards the remaining swing and, after once again eyeing it, he sat down. He would burn his clothes tonight because there was no way he was ever wearing them again. "This is ridiculous, you know. We're not children."

"But we are," Romina said with an airy laugh. "You just seem to adore acting like an old 50 year old man!"

Draco rolled his eyes heavily, especially as both girls started swinging higher and louder. What did they like being so loud for anyways? "So is this what you do when you're home? Act like children—"

"We are!" Arden reminded from up in the air.

"—and waste your time in places like these?" Draco didn't know what he couldn't stand more: the giggling mess of teenage girls across from them...or the ones right beside him. Although the crying baby was a close tie.

"It's not wasting time, it's called having fun!" Romina came to a slow stop on the swing, ultimately digging her heels into the sand to completely stop. "No point in being sour about everything, you know. Sometimes it's just fun to swing on a stupid swing. Haven't you ever done that?"

"No."

Romina rolled her eyes. "What do you do, then? When you're not at Hogwarts?"

"I play Quidditch, I hang out with Blaise, Angel and Theodore—"

"Okay, see?" Romina gestured. "That's what Arden and I do here."

"Yeah, but we don't go on silly swings," Draco pointed out. He couldn't imagine what they would say if they knew where he was right now.

"Then you guys are really sour," Arden said, coming to a stop like Romina. "And you're pathetically sad."

Draco couldn't see the hour finishing quick enough. He then looked at the bag in his arms and was about to shove it off his lap when he heard a curious tune somewhere.

Arden squeaked with joy, crying out 'ice cream!'. She practically jumped from the swing and dashed towards the street.

"Wait — get me something!" Romina called after her. "Mint chocolate! Draco, do you want something?"

"What? What is that!?" Draco followed Arden's direction and saw a truck pulling up to the front of the park. A lot of other muggles were practically zooming towards it.

"Relax, it's an ice cream truck," Romina chuckled.

"On a truck?" Draco couldn't be more disgusted. "That's gotta be the most unhygienic—"

"Relax," Romina insisted. "Your face is gonna stay like that one day, you know. They're perfectly clean." At least that's the hope, she thought to herself. "Do you want something?"

"No!"

Romina smiled to herself. He couldn't be more miserable but he was sticking it through. "You know your hour is almost up..."

"Thank God!"

"C'mon, is it really that bad?" Romina looked at him earnestly. "Because you seemed to have been enjoying yourself back at the market. You definitely liked the bell peppers."

"Yeah, but...it's just not my home, you know?" Draco kept looking around the park. He watched as some teenage boys huddled together to play some kind of game with a checkered ball. "Like...what are they doing over there?"

Romina followed his gaze and saw the boys as they began their game. "Football. Not American footb— never mind. They're playing football."

"Foot what?" Draco watched the boys start kicking the ball between each other.

"Take it as a muggle's version of Quidditch in terms of popularity. It's fun, not really my style but it is for a lot of people."

"Oswell, I say this because I'm genuinely shocked, but how have you lived like this?"

Romina chuckled. "Exactly like this. This has been my childhood."

"I just can't imagine actually living here, Oswell. I mean...absolutely no magic whatsoever? How do you manage?"

"We're not allowed to do magic outside of Hogwarts anyways," Romina reminded him.

"You know what I mean! You have to do things manually, things that you shouldn't have to."

"Why not? I won't cry if I break a nail, you know."

Even if he didn't want to, Draco half smiled which was why he had looked away. "It's just a waste of time considering you shouldn't even be living here."

"It's where my aunt and uncle live."

"Then live with your grandparents!"

Romina pursed her lips for a moment. "I thought about it," she confessed. Draco looked at her with surprise. Romina lowered her head, as if guilty for the thought she had mulled over in secret. Not even Arden knew. "When I was angry with my aunt and uncle, and I visited my grandparents...I thought about asking."

"Well...why didn't you?" Draco asked, his voice less harsh.

Romina shrugged meekly. "At the end of the day, my aunt Sage is like my mother and my uncle Lyonel's like my father. I've known them for 14 years year — they're the only ones I've known. I can't trade them in for people I just met, even if they are my grandparents."

"So you prefer to live here?" Draco's eyes flickered around them. The park itself wasn't that bad but he just couldn't imagine a life without magic.

Romina chuckled. "It's home, Draco. It's all I've known too. And I like it. And I think that you did too..."

At the accusation, Draco stiffened and let out a low scoff. "Never!" he scowled. "You will never catch me in this place again after today. And you better keep your word about not saying anything."

"I told you that I wouldn't," Romina reminded him. "I'll keep my word."

"...don't you have anything better to do, Sloane?" Arden's sharp snap drifted over. Arden was marching, or stalking, towards them, carrying two ice creams in her hands, and with a brunette girl not too far behind her.

"I can't help it, I only get to see you a couple days out of the year. I have to make it count," the girl, Sloane, remarked.

Arden looked like she was fuming.

"Should I even ask?" Draco, more or less boredly, asked Romina.

Romina sighed with weariness. "You know how Pansy is right?"

"Unfortunately."

"Well, that's Pansy Parkinson, muggle edition," Romina made a nod at the girl following Arden, "Sloane Quinn. We used to go to the same school before we left for Hogwarts."

"And let me guess, she has it out for King?" Draco didn't even know why he bothered asking when it was clear as day. He snorted. "King has the best of luck, doesn't she?"

"Shut up," Romina scolded him.

"Oh look, Romina's here too." Sloane had unfortunately come up with Arden despite the latter's firm yells for her to leave them alone. "How's that supposedly fancy school you go to? I honestly think you got sent to the same school the Dursleys' sent Potter to."

"Or maybe we just all wanted to get away from you," Romina remarked, taking her ice cream from Arden. "Seriously Sloane, we're only here for 2 months. Don't you have anything better to do than bother us?"

"Yeah, your lackeys are waiting for you over there," Arden nodded towards a group of girls sitting on the grass against a tree. "Unlike you, we don't plan on wasting the day."

"Please," scoffed Sloane, "You don't have anything, Arden. You never did."

"And you're supposed to have something?" Draco's heavy scoff came as a surprise to Romina, and much more for Arden.

Sloane was startled but quickly moved on from it. Her green eyes narrowed on Draco. "Let me guess," she started, "You're another student, right?" She scoffed.

Draco's split moment of confusion left Romina equally puzzled until he spoke again. "My question was rhetorical," he snapped at Sloane, "Not an invitation for you to talk to me. You don't ever talk to me you stupid mug—"

Romina cleared her throat exceptionally loud to cut him off. He met her look, quite irritated that she had cut him off, until she reminded him with a single look that this wasn't Hogwarts. He couldn't say 'muggle'. Not even if it killed him.

"Well!" Sloane was outraged. Arden snickered behind a hand. "See you're covering your face there, don't know why. Nothing, and I mean nothing, will ever be able to cover your hideous face." Arden dropped her hand and glared at the girl.

"You're still here?" Draco groaned. "Sloane, Slug, whatever the hell your name is, leave already."

Sloane's cheeks flushed red with embarrassment. She 'hmphd' and stormed off.

"She even sounds like Pansy sometimes, now that I think about it," Romina murmured. Arden spun around, her expression too strange even for her. "Arden?" Romina gently asked. "What is it?"

"I'm pretty sure that Draco, over here, just helped me right now," Arden said, setting her hands on her hips.

Romina blinked. That was true. Her eyes flickered to the blonde who very much went 'hmphd' at the accusation.

"Don't even make up any ideas, King," he said, "She was annoying me, that's why I spoke to her."

Arden giggled. "You sure there?"

"Yes," he spat. "But if you mention that to anyone, I will make you regret it."

Romina laughed at the two. "I think this is the nicest moment you two have ever had."

"The threat goes for you too," Draco warned her, shooting her a look.

"Sure!"

Arden started eating her ice cream and in-between warned Draco to keep a good grip on her bag.

"Why am I even holding this!? What even is this!?" He frowned at the bag and opened it up.

"They're the movies we've missed out on this past school year," Arden explained. "Romina, you have no idea of everything that we've missed!"

"What are you talking about?" Draco looked at the two girls who were close to crossing over into crazy territory.

"It's a thing we do every time we come home for the summer," Romina explained while he started pulling out movie boxes. "We like to catch up on all the movies we miss while we're at Hogwarts. It's a pain coming home and hearing friends talk about all these movies that are supposed to be great!"

"So, each summer we get together and buy all the movies that we've missed so we can watch them!" Arden exclaimed.

"That is...oddly smart," Draco admitted, looking very much surprised with them. "So you don't ever know what's going on in your world until you come home?"

Romina and Arden exchanged similar looks of bemusement with each other. Draco sounded genuine for a moment, like it was just donning on him that not everything was wizards and magic perfect. There were things outside his bubble.

"Not really, no," Romina answered him. "I mean, aunt Sage and uncle Lyonel of course tell me if something major happens but as far as trivial stuff like the latest popular movie...no."

"And you have 2 months to catch up on everything? How do you do it?"

Romina was more and more bemused with Draco as he kept asking her questions. Arden thought it was funny watching him realize how much actually happened outside of the wizarding world. Maybe Romina's bet with him served other purposes.

"But honestly, what could you have missed?" Draco ended the moment as he sorted through the cassettes. "They don't even look very appealing and that one—" He held up a cassette cover with three witches, "—just looks offensive."

Arden laughed. "Hocus Pocus? I heard it was really good. It's a Halloween movie."

Draco scoffed and shoved the cassette back into the bag. "And you wonder why I don't like Muggles."

"We always thought it was because of your pureblood nonsense," Romina remarked, making him roll his eyes, "But if this is what upsets you, you should remember they don't know that this stuff is real. To them, it's just a fun way to celebrate Halloween."

"Well they really celebrated last Halloween," Arden said as she listed the movies she'd bought for them. "Hocus Pocus, The Addams Family, the Nightmare Before Christmas.." She whistled lowly. "They were major hits last year."

Draco fixated a deep glare on Romina. "You cannot make me watch any of those. That is where I draw the line, Oswell"

"Don't you worry your overly blonde head about that," she waved him off. "Arden and I are having a sleepover at one of our neighbor's houses tonight. You are free in about fifteen minutes."

"Good," he huffed.

~ 0 ~

After finishing their ice cream, the teens moved to one of the public checker tables. Now that Arden had her bag back, she showed Romina all the movies they were going to watch. In the end, she pulled out a small box of playing cards.

"Isn't that the stupid deck you had last year?" Draco asked, once again bored. An hour was turning out to be way longer than he thought it would be.

"Yeah but these are brand new," Arden said. "Wanna play?"

He scoffed. "Hard pass."

"Afraid you'll lose? Your track record isn't all that great, if I remember correctly."

He looked directly at Romina who'd now found her way through the sweet raspberries they bought earlier. "Exactly how much longer do I need to be here?"

"Hmm?" She stopped chewing halfway. "Umm…" She swallowed down the piece then checked her watch. "You got 10 minutes left. Raspberry?" She offered him a piece. Even through a frown, he still took it.

"Hey, why don't you make it interesting again?" Arden suggested, her lips already forming a smirk.

Romina snickered. "Please, then he'll have to stick around for a whole day in the muggle world."

Draco deadpanned her. "You're so certain that I'd lose again?"

"Uh, yes?" Romina reached for another raspberry only to have it snatched from her. "Hey!"

"One game," Draco said, holding tightly onto the bag of dessert, "Just to settle our differences."

Romina rolled her eyes at him. "Just can't stand it, huh? Okay, I'll bite, I'll give you a shot here. Do you know how to play Speed?"

"No muggle games!"

"It's a simple game!"

"It is!" Arden agreed and started opening the box of cards while Romina pushed away all of the bags on the table. "See, the point of the game is to get rid of all of your cards before your opponent does." She shuffled the cards in her hands, admittedly expertly, then started making a couple decks for both sides. "There's going to be two decks for each of you, two single cards in the middle facing down. You're each going to have five cards in your hands." She was quick to place everything down for them.

"Alright, then what?" Draco eyed his set of cards in his hands.

"The game starts as soon as you turn over the two cards in the middle. You have to put a card that either comes before or after the ones in the middle. So, if there's a 4 and you have a 3 or 5 you can put either one down."

"Sound simple enough for you?" Romina taunted. She was fixing her cards according to the numbers.

"Bring it on, Oswell," Draco nodded. "And just so we're clear, when I win, you owe me that favor."

Romina rolled her eyes, clearly, expecting herself to win again. "Fine. And when you lose, again, I'm going to come up with an even worse hour for you to spend. I'll make you watch Hocus Pocus."

"You're dreaming," Draco spat. "King, you start the game."

"Don't mind if I do," Arden said. She dramatically cleared her throat. "On your mark's, get set...go!"

The cards were flipped over promptly and hands began to move quickly. Arden watched both sides eagerly. As much as she hated to admit it, Draco was actually kinda good at the game. Romina may have just bitten more than she could handle. Little did Arden know that Romina was beginning to think the same thing. It was hard to focus on her cards when she was acutely aware that Draco was almost through his deck.

If I lose, I will never hear the end of it! Romina grumbled to herself. She couldn't let that happen. It would be disastrous, it would be—

"Done!" Draco exclaimed, grinning when his last card left his hand. Romina gasped.

"You actually say speed when you put your last card," Arden informed him, ignoring Romina's glare.

"Oh. Speed!" Draco repeated, smiling every so smugly. "I believe you now owe me one favor."

"I hate you!" Romina scowled.

"Now, now, Oswell, don't have to be a sore loser on me. By the way, I'm pretty sure that it's been 10 minutes. Soo…" Draco rose from his seat.

Romina's eyes narrowed on him. "This isn't over, you know. I will be getting you back for this."

"I look forward to your future attempts." Draco gave a mock bow, making Arden actually snicker on the side.

Maybe it hadn't been a complete waste of an hour.

A/N:

P.S. As always, I have AO3/Wattpad accounts under "noblecrescent" and a tumblr account under "saiilorstars" if you'd like to follow :)