Why Don't We Go There (A Dramione Story)

Thirteen

Draco's moment turned into a week long silence, and then two weeks. Finally, as the third week approached, and just as I was about to go insane, I came back to the common room from a day of classes to see him waiting outside the entry portrait.

The overwhelming relief I felt melted into anxiousness the second I saw the expression on his face. He pushed himself off the railing of the staircase when our eyes met and nodded in my direction once without so much of a smile before he turned around and walked back down the stairs. I hugged my books closer to me and followed him.

Draco didn't slow his pace until we reached the Black Lake, he led the way over to a patch of grass shaded by a large tree and sat down underneath the canopy.
"Thanks for coming." He said after a moment of silence.
"That's okay." I answered, waiting for him to continue.
"I'm sorry it's taken me so long..." He furrowed his eyebrows, I fought the urge to reach out and hold his hand. "I had a lot of things to think about." He finally finished.

"I understand." He glanced at me from the corner of his eye and I gave him a small smile to encourage him to keep talking.

"I actually have something I need to tell you."

The sudden look of uneasiness made me swallow back another encouragement. I waited patiently with what felt like my heart in my throat.

"I don't think we should be together." Draco let out in a rush. I stopped breathing for a second too long, my next breath in made me sound as though I was gasping. Maybe I was.

"What?" I said as soon as I could get a breath.
"I don't think it's a good idea if we go to the dance together either."
"I don't..." I trailed off, afraid that my voice was going to give away just how much that affected me.
"There's no point to us going together." He leaned back against the trunk of the tree, watching me.
"How can you say that?" I whispered, "Is this because of what Ron said?"

"No, it's because I'm a... and well you're... Not" It took me a moment to fill in the blanks but the moment I did, I was on my feet.

"Oh my god." I heard myself say. "It still matters to you."
I didn't bother saying anything else as I walked away, and honestly, I wasn't sure if I was capable at the moment. The shock of everything he'd told me had seemed to have taken my tongue.
I was only vaguely aware of where I was walking before I stopped at the familiar area. I sat down underneath the tree that shielded me from anyone passing by and tried to make sense of what had just happened.

I stayed in the same spot until the evening chill started to settle around me. Reluctantly, I made my way through the castle and back up to the Gryffindor Common Room.
"There you are." Ginny acknowledged me from one of the seats near the fireplace. "I was about to send out a search party for you."
"Sorry." I mumbled as I passed her and Pavarti Patil.
I heard Ginny mumble something to Pavarti as she followed me up the staircase.
"What's wrong?"
"I don't want to talk about it." I said quietly, afraid that if I spoke too loudly my voice would crack.
"Okay." Ginny murmured after a moment, sitting down on my four poster.

We sat in silence for a couple of minutes while I fidgeted nervously with the book in my hands. Finally, I couldn't hold it in anymore.
"Draco broke up with me." Saying the words out loud made it feel too real and all of a sudden, everything came out in a flood.

I wasn't sure how long I was talking for but eventually no more words came out, Ginny was silent.
"I just can't believe its over." I finally whispered.
"Surely it's not, not after everything you guys went through to be together." Ginny said, I sat down on the bed next to her, the book still firmly in my hands.
"You didn't hear him, he sounded so sure, like he'd already accepted it."

"I'm so sorry, 'Mione." Ginny finally murmured, resting her arm around my shoulders.
"It's okay. It was bound to happen one day I suppose." I muttered, "Harry and Ron will probably be happy now that I'm not going with him." The words came out sharper than I'd intended but once they were out there, I realized that I didn't want to take them back.
"Come on, I'm sure that's not true." Ginny insisted, "they'd want you to be happy."

"Well it really didn't seem that way to me." I sighed, suddenly exhausted. "I'm going to go have a shower and get ready for bed."

"Alright," Ginny said reluctantly, "I'm here if you need to talk some more."
"I know, thanks."

I grabbed my pajamas when Ginny left and slipped out of the common room silently, seeing no sign of Harry or Ron. I was lost in my own thoughts when I rounded the corner and ran into something hard.

"Ouch!" I let out a cry of pain.

"Ow!" I heard the other person say, a voice I recognised instantly. I struggled to get out an apology but the words stuck in my throat. Draco's face showed his annoyance.
"Usually when you run into someone, you apologise, Granger." I tried opening my mouth to say something but all I could think of were his words at the lake.
Impatiently, Draco shook his head. "Forget it." He muttered before stalking off, his arm lightly brushed mine as he passed and I fought the urge to reach out for him.

I stayed in the corridor for a few heartbeats, foolishly hoping that maybe he'd come back. When it became apparent that he wasn't, I shook my head to clear it and walked the rest of the way to the prefects showers, relief washed over me when I saw that it was empty.
I stayed under the water until my fingers turned to prunes, trying to forget about everything that had happened today.