Marriage of convenience (Draco x Astoria)

6- Night therapy

That night, despite all the tiredness he felt, Draco couldn't sleep. He couldn't forget Pansy 's face when he had rejected her. It had not been a grimace of disappointment, but of hate and furious, evil rage.

It had not been passion that had led the girl to try to seduce him, and it was certainly very unlikely that she had been driven by love. The real reason for all this spectacle was so twisted that Draco couldn't explain it.

He hadn't told his parents. For some reason he was embarrassed to talk about it. He felt humiliated and manipulated.

If it had been the other way around, if it had been Draco who had attacked Pansy, he would have been accused of trying to rape her. But it had been the opposite, and he didn't know how to proceed with that.

He tossed and turned in bed, remembering the scene over and over again. He would never forget it no matter how long he lived. Pansy 's desperation to make him hers...

He couldn't take it anymore and got up, ready to forget one way or another. He got dressed and grabbed his broom, escaping from his room through the window, like the previous nights.

He hoped his parents wouldn't notice his absence, but if they did, he didn't really care. He flew at full speed, trying to exhaust himself physically so he could sleep without dreaming. He made twists and turns. He climbed so high that he could almost touch the clouds and felt his chest burn from the lack of oxygen and his limbs shiver from the cold. He screamed at the top of his lungs, sure that no one would hear him.

When he tried to figure out where he was, he discovered that he had unconsciously traveled east, approaching Greengrass county.

He thought of Astoria and felt like seeing her and talking to her. He was about to head towards the castle when he remembered that perhaps the Parkinsons had sent out surveillance of the county borders, to monitor the Malfoys' visits. He had to take every precaution possible, so he landed in a wooded area and hid as much as possible before apparating.

He managed to appear right on the edge of the county, in the middle of some really thick bushes. He stood still, listening, but it didn't seem like anyone had heard him. Riding his broom he entered the grounds, flying low to the ground and making the most of the relief of the terrain, to avoid being seen.

He could see the window of Astoria's room, at the top of the stone tower, but he did not want to risk it, and proceeded to enter through the door located in the false sentry box.

When he arrived at Astoria's room, he saw that two lit candles were dimly illuminating the room. Draco stepped carefully across the carpet, trying not to make any noise, and approached the bed.

Astoria laid with her eyes closed, breathing softly, and he felt a kind of tingling in his chest at the thought that he was watching her sleep without her realizing it. But Astoria wasn't sleeping, and she opened her eyes, smiling at him.

"Good evening," she greeted him. "You came earlier today."

"How do you know?"

"Well, the candles haven't gone out yet, you haven't opened the curtains to let the light in and... there's a clock on my bedside table," she responded. Draco blushed as he realized his stupidity and smiled in acceptance of his defeat. "Why did you come?"

"I couldn't sleep."

"Me neither. By taking the 'medicine' in the morning I slept all day, and now I am not sleepy."

"And all because my mother needed to measure your finger," Draco muttered. "You know, for the ring."

"Did she want that?" she was surprised. "So, your parents are determined to move on."