Everlasting 2 (Draco Malfoy x Reader)

The Real Awakening

Draco lifted the cup to his lips, gently sipping on the water from it. He could not find the will within himself to speak. He could not say anything, even if he wanted to. There was so little for him to say, despite all the racing thoughts in his mind. 

"Still nothing?" Ginny finally asked, gulping. 

Draco's eyes drifted downwards to the dining table, gazing at the food solemnly. His silence said it all. Ginny was left to sigh and drop back down in her seat, frowning in frustration. No one else could say anything. Everyone could only look back and forth at each other. 

"I'm sure she'll be back soon, Draco," Blaise finally exclaimed, "she's gotten through worse than this."

"I ... just want her back already," Draco whispered, "I feel like she's somewhere distant. I see her eyes sometimes ... twitch. As if she's dreaming."

"Individuals in a coma often experience dreams. Sometimes they're nightmares," Hermione said quickly, "let's just hope ... she's not having nightmares."

"Considering how mentally fucked she is," Ginny shook her head, "she's probably seeing death all around her." 

"Can you not say this now?" Draco huffed. "Talk about it when I'm gone." 

"Sorry." 

"I can't believe all of this has happened. I mean - what are we going to tell her if she wakes up?"

"When." Draco snapped. "When she wakes up. Not if." 

"Right," Blaise nodded, understanding. "When she wakes up, will she even remember what happened? I really don't want to have to ... tell her everything again. She doesn't have to relive it." 

The tapping of the rain on the ceiling and glass panes of the Great Hall filled the atmosphere. Not many people in the dining hall spoke today. Everyone felt wearied, and the rain was probably partially the cause of it. The thunder and rain hadn't been there since the night everything happened. Today, as it rained, as it occasionally thundered, it reminded everyone of the night. 

"If she doesn't remember," Ron finally opened his mouth, sighing deeply, "we will have to tell her about the explosion."

"She will never forgive herself, Ron." Hermione snapped. 

"Ron's right," Ginny agreed. "She would rather know the truth."

"She already blames herself for Harry's death," Blaise said, "are you sure you want to tell her how many more people her scream and explosion killed?" 

"She better hear it from us than someone else." Ginny said. "We will have to tell her. We'll just wait." 

"Draco," Blaise said, placing his hand on Draco's back, noticing the solemn and deadened expression on his face as he stared ahead of himself blankly, deep in thought. "Come back to reality. She'll wake up. Just give her time." 

"Snape said," Draco began, inhaling deeply, pausing often as though doubting whether he even wanted to acknowledge the words he was about to say, "he said there's been some trauma. The explosion, the emotions, her magic, all the stress, and the venom. He said that ... whilst it saved her ... he is unsure whether ... whether it'll all continue to be okay. He says that ... " Draco breathed slowly. "There's a chance she may not remember anything that happened ... she may not remember us. She is healed physically ... but may not be emotionally."

And silence filled the room again, with everyone staring ahead of themselves. No one dared to say a word. The fear and anticipation of the situation rose more and more everyday. 

"He doesn't know if she'll wake up anytime soon, even," Draco finally whispered out, clenching his jaw tightly afterwards. 

"Hey," Ginny scoffed, "it's only been two weeks. There's still plenty of time, and you said yourself that it seems like she's been having better days." 

"Sometimes," Draco huffed, "when I talk to her, I feel like she can hear me."

"She probably can," Hermione added, "or at least, she's acknowledging that you're beside her. Either way, when you're near her or speaking to her ... she probably knows you're waiting for her. Maybe you're in her dreams when you're near."

"Is that possible?"

"Yes. It's quite common, really. Comas are ... interesting." 

Silence fell amongst the group again. Though, this did not last long. After some minutes, a second year student rushed into the Great Hall, hair looking rough, red cheeks, and evidently out of breath. Standing at the door, his eyes quickly scanned the entire hall, whereupon he met Draco's eyes and consequently burst into action.

"Malfoy! Draco Malfoy! You must come!"

"Come?" Draco asked, lifting his head and eyes in interest, knowing something was wrong.

"It's [F/n]! She's not breathing! Snape and the nurses call for you!"

Draco did not wait to get up and rush out of the Great Hall to the infirmary. The rest of the group, too, stood up, ready to run out and after Draco, only for the second year boy to quickly stop them. 

"Snape says only Draco. She cannot be crowded." 

Draco was in the infirmary before anyone could even realise that he had left the dining hall. He had rushed in, pushed everyone aside, feeling tears already building in his eyes, as he quickly rushed over to your bed and noticed the action going on. The nurses, alongside Snape, were all crowding around you and working their magic; pouring potions into your mouth, placing their hands against different parts of your body, checking for signs of your life. Whatever was happening, it was not good. They were fighting hard, all of them, as they rushed back and forth, quickly attempting every single act of magic that could possibly save [F/n] Potter's heart to keep on beating but, as the evidence showed, the lack of breathing slowly began to slow the heart rate down. 

"Save her!" Draco cried out. 

"It seems ... it seems she does not want to be saved," one of the nurses whispered, slowing down her fight for your life. 

"Don't slow down!" Draco spat out, barging through to the front, only for Snape to quickly grab his arm and gently pull him back. "Don't let her die!" 

"Draco," Snape breathed quietly, "take a seat." 

...

...

...

...

The infirmary was empty. Only your motionless body lied on the bed, with Draco's eyes staring ahead of himself onto the ground, emotionless and empty. Only Snape remained with him, but at a distance, mimicking the expression of Draco, staring ahead in anguish. The rain and thunder passed many hours ago, leaving only a dreadful silence in the infirmary, which spread across the entirety of Hogwarts. 

The stars were twinkling through the occasional window, but no one noticed them. No one noticed beauty in this world. 

Only a single tear rolled down Draco's cold and pallid cheek. 

"I love you, [F/n]," he cried out, gazing ahead of himself, as though he were speaking to you, but not quite. "Please," he sobbed, "please ... you can't leave me. Not after everything, [F/n]. Please ... come back to me. I can't do this ... not without you."

Silence. 

You did not speak. He did not hear you. 

...

...

The silence continued to spread, and Draco's tears continued to pool. All he wanted was to hear your voice, to hear your heartbeat, to hear your - 

Your breath!

"She's breathing, Snape." He cried out. In a panic, Draco rose from the chair he was sitting at, for he had been sitting beside your bed. He turned to you upon the realisation that the silence had been broken by your breath; he could hear you breathing ... he could hear you alive. It all became true; it was confirmed when he looked at your body on the bed, seeing the chest begin to rise, and the eyelids begin to twitch, and the nostrils begin to flare. Life ... was coming back to you. "She's breathing! She's alive! Get water!"

The bright light from the infirmary almost blinded your eyes. It was directly above your head. But you recognised this ceiling - it was the infirmary of Hogwarts. You'd been here many times before. And you recognised the softness under yourself; you were on the infirmary bed.