𝐒𝐀𝐍𝐊𝐓𝐀 𝐋𝐔𝐂𝐈𝐀

Chapter 18

"Yes, thank you for asking."

The whole day continued without much happening other than Harry and Malfoy accidentally touching each other. Before Harry knew it, evening had come and they were getting ready for bed.

Malfoy was completely destroying the daily routine that Harry, Ron and Neville had developed over the school year by hogging the bathroom more than what was considered normal for an average teenage boy.

"God, Malfoy! What are you even doing in there?" Ron was getting really pissed off. Harry had been smart enough to go in before Malfoy, thinking that this might happen.

With a loud bang, the door to the toilet flew open and Malfoy stood there, in black silk pyjama bottoms, a Slytherin green t-shirt with a toothbrush in his hand and toothpaste in the corner of his mouth. Harry found himself staring at him, his pulse raising and blood going south.

"What does it look like I'm doing, Weasley?" Malfoy said around a mouthful of toothpaste. Harry thought the word "adorable" and then promptly wanted to obliviate himself.

"You've been brushing your teeth for thirty blood minutes?" Ron ranted.

"Of course not, what do you take me for?"

"A vain, self-absorbed ferret?" Ron suggested, and was given one of the darkest looks he had ever seen on Malfoy's face.

"You shouldn't have said that you know. Because I have the bathroom, and if you ever wish me to get out of it, maybe you have to be a little more nice." Draco sneered.

"You're such a wanker."

"You know," Malfoy leaned against the door frame, which did not at all help Harry with his growing problem, and he was ever so thankful that he was in bed under his blanket with a book in his hands, "I could just point out that you should be used to this problem considering how many siblings you have, but I'm going to refrain because you really aren't worth the effort." And with that Malfoy slammed the bathroom door shut.

"Did you see that?" Ron pointed at the door, looking enraged at Harry. For a moment Harry thought that Ron meant how outrageously hot Malfoy had looked, but he soon figured that was not it.

"I can hear you, you know!" Malfoy shouted from the bathroom.

"Piss off Malfoy!"

"Can only wish you the same, Weasley."

"Guys, you need to stop it! Malfoy, please finish in there so we can go to bed. Ron, shut up." Harry finally found his voice and words that actually made sense. Ron just gaped at him like he was insane for telling him to shut up and Malfoy opened the door moments later.

"Did you actually say 'please'?" he asked.

"Er, did I?" He really didn't know.

"Yeah, you did," Ron said and suddenly it dawned on him that maybe that was why Ron was gaping at him.

"All yours, Weasley." Malfoy came out walked past Ron to Neville's bed, and Ron went quickly into the bathroom before Malfoy could say he was joking.

It somehow became really awkward after Malfoy had gotten into his bed, and they were both sitting there, waiting for Ron to come out so they could go to sleep. Not that they really needed to wait for him, and Harry could just continue to read his book, but somehow it felt wrong. Slowly he looked over at Malfoy who he saw laying there, staring up the ceiling.

"Are you okay?" he couldn't help but to ask.

"Yeah." Malfoy didn't give much more, and it felt like there was this big, pink hippogriff in the room that they both were trying to ignore. For Harry, he knew exactly what that hippogriff meant to him, but be could not for the lift of him figure out what was going on in the Slytherin's head.

"What are you thinking about?" he blurted out, being the Gryffindor thathe was.

"I'm –" Malfoy started, but then stopped and closed his eyes, "I'm thinking about how Longbottom's bed smells like one of the greenhouses." he finished.

"Yes, well that's Neville for you. I think that he –"

"Could you – could you just stop talking?" Malfoy interrupted, "I get, being you, you try to be nice and all, but if you don't really have anything specific that you want to say to me, could you just –" he broke off, not opening his eyes to even look at Harry when he said it.

"Fine, whatever Malfoy." He felt as if he'd just been stabbed right in his chest, and he put his book away and took off his glasses, turning off his lamp and laying down. Fine. If Malfoy didn't want to talk to him at all, then Harry shouldn't bother. Apparently that kiss meant nothing to Malfoy, even though it had meant everything to Harry.

Still, those thoughts hurt, and Harry shut his eyes, trying to ignore the sound of Malfoy's soft breathing or his very presence, but failing miserably.

He heard the bathroom door open and Ron's footsteps as he walked to his own bed. Harry didn't have to open his eyes to know that Ron was looking at him, wondering if something was wrong, because usually Harry read or talked to Ron before sleeping. But then he heard his friend get into his bed, and saw under his eyelids how he turned the light off.

"Good night, Harry," Ron said hesitantly.

"Good night, Ron."

"Night, Malfoy."

"Look forward to me waking you up in a few hours," was Malfoy's good night, and after a long time spent trying not to think about Malfoy, Harry fell asleep, his last thought about Draco's angel-voice.

Harry jolted out of bed and ran over to Malfoy's side before he even realized he was awake. Malfoy's scream was just like the one the night before, and he remembered waking up to Nott storming into his dorm shouting his name and that Malfoy needed him. Without thought he had flown out of bed and had run to Malfoy's dorm, hearing Malfoy's cries of horror echo through the hall on the way there.

"Malfoy!" The blond was trembling and twisting in his sheets, and Harry took a hold of him and dragged him into his arms, with Malfoy's chest against his desperate to get him to stop shaking. It was almost worse than the scream, to see Malfoy so defenceless and writhing as if under torture.

"Malfoy, please!" he shouted and felt him jerk in his arms but Harry held him close hoping Malfoy could understand that he was there, that he was safe with Harry.

"Draco," he whispered against the shell of his ear, the name drowned by Draco's scream, "Draco, please look at me. I'm here, wake up Draco."

He felt trembling arms close around his waist, warm and heavy, and it was when Draco lay his head down on Harry's shoulder and breathed heavily in his ear that Harry realized he had stopped screaming.

Instead of pulling away and politely but coldly thanking Harry and implying that he wanted to get back to sleep now which Harry expected, Malfoy grabbed Harry back, burying himself against Harry's chest. It only made Harry squeeze him even tighter.

"You okay?" he whispered, and he felt Malfoy nod against his sternum.

He didn't know for how long they sat there, the only sound was Ron's snoring, apparently he was used to Harry's screams and therefore could sleep through Draco's as well,but after a while Harry's legs were starting to go numb from sitting in an awkward position for too long and Harry felt that maybe it was time to go back to bed. Taking a deep breath, he lightened his grip around Malfoy and started to pull away, but Malfoy just held on to him even harder.

"Please don't leave me..." Malfoy whispered, a voice so small it could barely be heard over Ron's snoring. "Don't..."

He looked up then, right into Harry's eyes and Harry was lost. How could he say no to anything this bloke asked for, how could he try to tell himself that he did not care about what Draco thought? Because he did, so much.

Harry let out a breath that he hadn't realized that he had been holding, and leaned his forehead against Draco's, looking into those eyes that were crystal clear from this distance without glasses.

"Of course," he whispered.

That night he fell asleep holding Draco as close to him as he could possibly manage, their bodies tangled together, feeling Draco's breath wash over his face, smelling like toothpaste and apples. And thinking about how much he loved him.