Little Miss Diggory || A Draco Malfoy Love Story

Chapter 55

Layla

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Layla Dress:

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I am officially done with this Slugclub business.

Here I am sitting at a table, in complete silence, with a guy I don't even like. This was the same guy who has spent the whole night flirting with me. I was miserable, to say the least.

I know it's my fault I am here with him in the first place, but I wish Pansy or Eleanor had told him I was pretty much drunk. But no, he thinks I like him.

"Are you having a good time?" He said with a cocky grin and a wink. I cringed furiously at his failed attempt to start a conversation. I shrugged, not wanting to lead him on any longer. Tonight I would deal with it, but tomorrow I would explain that I wasn't in a good state of mind. Suddenly I felt a hand rest on my shoulder and play with the strap of my dress. Or I won't wait.

I pretended to shiver, knocking his hand off me. He begged me to take his jacket which, I declined multiple times. I needed an escape, but one that wouldn't upset Sebastian.

Suddenly, Mr Filch walks in, a blonde held tightly in his grip. What was Draco doing here? He wasn't invited, was he? Suddenly he spoke, answering my question.

"Professor Slughorn, sir, I just discovered this boy lurking in an upstairs corridor," Filch mumbled in his usual matter. I stood suddenly, causing Sebastian to look at me strangely and also stand. "He claims to have been invited to your party." Slughorn looked Draco down, confused as ever. Draco clearly realised that that cover up was no longer going to work.

"Ok, ok. I was gatecrashing. Happy?" He was lying, I could tell by the look on his face. I will say that look put me at ease, knowing he not once looked at me that way. Snape looked over to me with a look that said, how much more stupid could this boy get. Then he walked over and informed Filch he would take Draco from here. That, my friends, is what I call an opportunity.

As Sev started to leave, he looked over at me. That is when I put my escape into action. I gave him a look, causing him to stop before mouthing, "help." He furrowed his brows, not understanding. But when I nodded my head towards Sebastian, he understands.

"Are you ok?" He asked once again, trying to give me his jacket.

"Yeah, just... A stiff neck." He smiled and offered me a shoulder rub. As if this couldn't get weirder.

"Layla," Snape called, "you will also be joining Mr Malfoy and me."

"Oh-"

"Why?" Sebastian said disappointedly. Snape's eyes widened. He was stumped on what to say, so looked my way,

"Potions work," I mouthed.

"She didn't hand in an assignment for her potions tutoring, so she will come to finish it now." I acted disappointed to be leaving and thanked Slughorn for hosting before rushing out the door behind Snape and Draco.

I had to admit, it was much colder out here than inside the party. I pulled my arms across my front and rubbed my arms in an attempt to warm up. But what happened next caught me off guard, Draco noticing I was cold, handed me over his jacket with a proud smile on his face. I felt my cheeks burn red before I looked up at Draco, whispering a thank you. Snape was fuming at what I assumed to be Draco getting caught.

So, when we arrived outside Snape's office, I was sent inside while Draco and he discussed. Though most were muffled, they didn't go quite far away enough for me to hear. Protect you, unbreakable, I was chosen, fail him, obvious, assist you, no, my moment. I shuddered constantly as I tried to piece the words together, but the lack of sleep made that difficult.

And by the time Draco and Snape re-entered the room, only one stayed in my head, assist you. Draco stood awkwardly by the chair next to me until Snape told him to sit. I awaited Snape to come and join us, but he didn't. Instead, he waited at the door for a moment before saying, "I want to see you to friends again. I refuse to watch you both single-handedly destroy yourselves. So have fun." He shut the door behind himself, leaving Draco and me in awkward silence.

My leg started bouncing as I watched Draco's face contort to one of sadness and despair. I felt my eyes well up. "I'm sorry," he croaked quietly, "I just wanted to keep you safe, but I'm not sure that's possible anymore anyway." My heart stung as I watched a tear roll down his cheek. At that moment, there was only one thing I could think to do. I leapt over and wrapped my arms around his torso. He didn't hesitate to wrap his arms around my shoulders and pull me closer. It was as if he hadn't touched anyone else all year. I felt him bury his head into my neck and let a loud sob. As if it was possible, It only made me hug him tighter.

Eventually, his crying died down, but we remained hugging, both knowing it was far more painful to let go. I rested my head on his shoulder before beginning to talk.

"Are you ok?" I whispered the fact that I had been crying clear in my voice. He let out a shaky sigh.

"I'm scared," he said, his voice breaking. "I thought I could keep it together on my own, but I can't." Finally pulling away, I pulled my chair closer, so we were just touching knees.

"You know you don't need to tell me what's going on, right? I just want to know you are alright." I grabbed his cold hands with my warm ones for comfort. I felt my mind trail back to the nights spent with Mirtle awaiting another wave of sickness due to my constant worry. I felt my heart sink. "I was worried about you, you know that?" I whispered.

"Your brother said," he laughed quietly. "I wanted to talk to you so bad."

"You should have," I giggled, noticing how ignorant we both were.

"I was scared to. I didn't want to hurt you. But now I guess I realise we were hurting each other more the way we were. I nodded in agreement. The realisation of what he had just said finally hit me.

"Does that mean we can talk again?" I whispered, scared of being rejected. He instantly nodded, smiling again.

I melted, seeing the way he grinned, that grin I hadn't seen in so long. So, I once again threw my arms around his neck, causing him to laugh.

"I missed you," I whispered into his ear.

"I missed you too."