familiar ; draco malfoy

CHAPTER THIRTY EIGHT

Draco sat in his place, not moving his eyes from the dark sky as bright sparks bathed the night. He was not seeking peace. He couldn't know it; not when he was so far away from her. Though something about the fireworks that evening warmed him in the cold, as if their stray sparks passed into his blood.

Quite far away from the Zabini home and on a windy balcony, Ramona was staring at an entirely different set of fireworks. They blurred before her eyes and she put down the drink she had in hand, deeming it enough for an evening. Ramona wasn't a drinker. She didn't make it a habit to pick up alcohol and she could count on one hand the amount of times she drank. It was an ugly thing to her. But that evening, she indulged.

She was smothered in hug after hug as her equally intoxicated friends welcomed the New Year. But she could not share their excitement. She continued to stare at the sky until the fireworks passed and she was the only one left outside. 

„Come on, Mona. Chin up. They just probably got too drunk to come or something," Mary reassured, walking back out onto the balcony and swinging an arm around her shoulders. The girl was smothered by a large, yellow coat, her jean-clad legs and chunky boots peeking out from underneath. Her hair was in box braids, the ends of each braid adorned with colorful, large beads. They clacked against each other as she walked, creating a rhythmic noise and warning Ramona of her presence even before she spoke.

„Don't be ridiculous, Mary. I'm not sad about that," Ramona replied, scoffing and dismissively waving her hand.

"Then what are you sad about?"

"I'm not sad at all."

But Mary was not fooled. Ramona was one of the reasons Mary had come back from New York that winter and one of the few people she looked forward to seeing.

„I've known you long enough to know that when you scrunch up your nose like that, something isn't right."

„I'm perfectly fine, thank you."

„You never knew how to lie, Xanthos, I see right through you. Don't worry, I'm sure they are fine. They can still show up," Mary reassured. Ramona was annoyed at herself for letting the boys' absence ruin her fun; but she was really looking forward to seeing them both. These people, apart from Mary, were barely her friends. But more than anything she was just hoping that they were both alright. Deep in her gut, she felt that something was very wrong.

„Thanks, Mary. I'm just not feeling it tonight, that's all. I'll make it up to you guys another time."

„Yeah, well, I'm not in a partying mood myself. But I am sad that I didn't get to meet the boyfriend, and the fit cousin," Mary prompted, wrapping both her hands around Ramona and squeezing tight. Even though Ramona didn't expect Mary to return from the US for the holidays, she was glad she did.

„He's not exactly my boyfriend," Ramona warned, feeling foolish by even doing so. She fleetingly mentioned that her cousin and a friend were supposed to come along, but Mary could distinguish the way in which she spoke about Draco from the way she'd spoken about anyone else before. Even though the information she received was limited, she knew Ramona cared deeply for him. Very deeply.

„Sure, sure," Mary mused, rolling her eyes. "I'm just sad about the fit cousin then."

The two spent the entirety of the evening exchanging stories, the rest of their group blending into background noise. Ramona didn't consider most of them friends anyway, Mary was the only reason she came along in the first place. The two saw each other so rarely that that short window where they could spend time together felt like a dream. But a third party was dearly missed and his absence lingered in the air between them.