UNVEIL | D.M (UNRAVEL BOOK 2)

[ 17 ]

"What are you doing with him?" Harry blurted as he looks at Aine, feeling betrayed by the scene. His good friend hanging out with his arch-nemesis.

Surprised by the hurt looks her friends were giving her, she couldn't quite understand why. Just because Harry and Draco had bad ties between them, Aine didn't have any of that with Draco. "Aine?" Hermione calls out to her, glancing between Draco and herself, expecting an answer.

"Oh! Hello." she awkwardly replies.

Her eyes met George's and he shifts his eyes away, avoiding it. "Well?" Ron urged as Draco glares at the Gryffindors.

"We just hung out." Aine replied shortly and Harry squints his eyes through his glasses at the Slytherin boy, "You got any problem with that, Potter?" Draco snarls.

"As a matter-of-fact, yes, Malfoy," Harry replied, his tone low and threatening.

Aine didn't like this, she could understand the bad blood between the boys, but what was wrong with a Gryffindor and Slytherin hanging out with one another, let alone being friends? She could sense the drop in the mood between them all and she had to do something.

"Well, suck it up then." Draco cooed, and Ron's face was fuming with red, like his hair.

"You--"

"Alright, time-out!" Aine interjected, stepping in before the matter got any worse, everyone was obviously feeling too sensitive, especially her friends. She stares at them: Ron and Harry's fists balling, as Hermione's eyes glared and Fred and George's lips were twitching as if wanting to remark something. She watches Draco, he was trying hard to keep his cool, he knew how much she hated seeing them fight after all. And he was doing his best to not do anything rash that would make her hate him.

"Aine, why were you with him?" Harry turns to her instead and asks, his voice softer than before, clearly hurt and it made Aine too. She swallowed, knowing how much she disliked the fact that she was the middle person between Harry and Draco. She looks to him, her eyes gazing straight at his pupils, "We just hung out, like what friends do."

Draco twitched, friends, he heaved in a deep breath through his nose. He could feel the frustration rising up in him, friends...

Aine turns to Fred and George, who simply gave her a sad and awkward smile, before they slowly slipped away from the group, not wanting to interfere.

Harry and Draco continued to exchange sharp stares between one another before Aine finally turned to Draco, who breaks eye contact with the boy and looks at her. Her eyes softened and she gave a small smile, "I think I should go now... Thank you for today." she said earnestly, eyes moving to the side to her friends.

The blonde Slytherin eyes her, "Some filthy low people clearly had to break the mood, causing someone to go because they had bloody annoying friends." he snaps at her causing her to flinch at his remark. She felt a pang with his brutal insults to her friend, but before she could say anything, Harry seethed and lunged forward. However, before he could inflict an attack, Hermione and Ron pulled him back as Draco smirks. He gave one look at Aine before turning around and walking away, his hand raised as he waves to Aine.

She sighs and whirls around to her group of Gryffindor friends. "What the bloody hell was that all about, Aine?" Ron exclaimed, "You can't be serious, you're actually hanging out with that scumbag?" he added.

"It's true though..." Aine mumbles, and Ron's eyes widened, lost for words.

Hermione looks between the boys and Aine, she took a step nearer to Aine and looks to the boys, "Well, we don't choose who she should be friends with. Let's just respect Aine's relationships with others, shall we?" she said, ending the conflict.