It all started with a dance

12

Draco was in class along with his friends, they were talking in hushed voices, neither were paying attention to the teacher

Suddenly there was an explosion and a small fire, Draco felt his body go rigid and remembered back to the room of requirement and seeing one of his oldest friends fall into the fire

He fell out of his chair and took off running, leaving everything behind and just running

He ran past someone and shoved them, not looking at them he continued running all the way to the second floor girls bathroom and collapsed, leaning against the wall he tried to open his chest

He felt the heat of the fire, he felt the bathroom on fire, no matter where he tried to move he felt the fire move with him, it was like if he was in a bubble, he was trapped and he couldn't get out

Draco scratched his forearm, the mark burned just like everything else, but this one burned his soul, tainted it with smog and left coals in it's wake, he felt a weight on his body, one that no matter how hard he tried he couldn't get rid of, sobs broke out of his chest, it should have been him, it should have been him that should have fallen into the fire, late at night he would often wonder if maybe, if maybe he should have let go, that maybe Harry Potter shouldn't have saved him, maybe he was supposed to die

He broke through his skin and began drawing blood, someone put a hand on over his, but he didn't stop his movements, he was focused on the blood seeping through his cut

"Malfoy..." he faintly heard

He ignored them and continued scratching, tears and sweat ran down his face

"Malfoy" they said louder, he looked up and saw Hermione in front of him, "Focus Malfoy" she told him, he looked back to his arm

"It should have been me" he whispered

Hermione moved beside him, he tried to stop crying to no avail, putting his face in his hands he dug his palms into his eyes

"Why are you here Granger? Go away" he said

"Funny that's what I told you and you didn't listen"

"Leave me alone" he ordered

"Why should I?" She asked

"Because I'm telling you too, go away Granger" he said

"Want me to get one of your friends? They're outside" she suggested

"Why did they send you in? We aren't friends" he said

"You're head boy, I'm head girl, house unity and all that crap" she repeated what he told her the night before "and you shoved me so you owe me an apology" she added

"Just go away Granger"

"I'll go away, but someone else will come in, they don't want you to be alone" Hermione told him

"Why?"

She pointed to his arm, it had healed itself once again leaving in its trace the drying blood

"They're worried"

"I'll be fine, just go away" he ordered "I want to be alone" he said

"Do you?" She asked him

"Yes, that's why I'm telling you to leave me the hell alone" he told her

"Then tell me" she said "look at me in the eyes and tell me that you want me to leave you alone and I will, and no one else will come in" she told him

He turned to face her and tell her to sod off, but when he looked into her golden brown eyes he noticed that he didn't want to be alone, even if his only company was the know-it-all beaver