healed (dramione)

34 : Draco

WARNING: This chapter contains some strong language.

Song for the Chapter: Your Girlfriend ~ Blossoms

Draco's POV

I was rehearsing a speech when Hermione found me.

It was late in the evening, and I was sitting in the great hall with a couple of other Slytherins, trying to do homework while they messed around and bewitched paper aeroplanes. But aside from my charms essay, I was also working on my speech.

The past few months have been great. No, amazing. No...

I scribbled out the last few lines and looked back at my parchment page of notes. You make me the happiest person...no. Cringy. I crossed that out, too, and ran an inky hand through my hair. Why was it so hard?

"I'll come back later, if you're busy," observed Hermione, sitting down boldly opposite me. Immediately the Slytherin guys I was sitting with edged to the end of the bench, but Hermione either didn't notice or didn't care.

I made a yelping sound at the back of my throat and brushed all the papers immediately off the table. I was just going to have to go for it. Tucking my sweating hands under the table, I swallowed and cleared my throat anxiously.

Hermione frowned. "What's wrong? You look like you've swallowed --"

"I'm fine," I interrupted quickly. "I have...well, I've got something to tell you - and you probably won't like it - but --"

Hermione groaned. "Don't tell me. What have you done this time? Hexed my shoes? Because last time wasn't even that funny, Draco, and --"

"It's not...about that," I mumbled nervously. I know, crazy - me? Nervous? Never. But she was looking at me like...well, it was hard to describe. I felt like she could see through me. Surely she couldn't know what I was about to do.

She tilted her head to one side. "Then what is it about?" She demanded. "I brought you chocolate, since you seem to be working so hard," Hermione added sarcastically, dropping two cases of chocolate frogs onto the table. I swallowed again.

"It's about you," I confessed. I immediately regretted it, but if I'm honest there was no going back now, so instead I boldly ploughed on with what was about to be a massacre of a speech.

"Hear me out," I said quickly, when Hermione wrinkled her nose and looked totally bewildered. "Listen. It's been really weird, even just talking to you. And I feel like I'm totally different this year. I feel...different."

Hermione raised an eyebrow. "I beg to differ," she muttered sarcastically.

"And I wanted to thank you," I continued nervously, "For changing me, and making me a better person, and making me think differently. Without you I probably would have ended up in Azkaban."

Hermione's gaze softened. "Seriously?" She asked in disbelief. "That's what you wanted to tell me? It's not me who's changed you, Draco. You did all the hard work yourself. I know. I can see it."

"What I'm trying to say is," I began uneasily, "I think I --"

"So you're calling him Draco now?" 

I turned around to see Weasley stood in the doorway, marching towards Hermione. Did he have some sort of attachment problem? I thought furiously. Hermione looked over her shoulder at me calmly, but her eyes read differently. She looked poised to kill him.

"Ron," began Hermione coolly, standing up inches away from him. "Can I say something to you?"

Weasley looked slightly bemused, but nodded defensively. "All right," he said plainly. "Go on."

"You're not going to like it," she hinted blandly. Her tone suggested she didn't really care if he liked it or not, but thought it would be polite to tell him so.

"Well?" He demanded impatiently.

"Fuck. Off."

Weasley looked as though he'd been smacked across the face. He stumbled backwards, his eyes wide and fearful. Then I leaned back in my chair and started to applaud sarcastically. Was there any possible way Hermione could get any more...cool? Perfect? Brilliant?

"You've never said that before," mumbled Weasley, in a small, hurt voice.

"Well, you'd never told me you wanted me dead before, Ron, but that hurt a lot more than swearing," retorted Hermione huffily. She glared directly at her ex-boyfriend, grabbed his wrist, and said, with enough force to shake an empire, "Leave. Us. Alone."

Weasley didn't need telling twice. He bolted for the door and ran around the corner, leaving Hermione looked flushed but pleased as she sat down.

She folded her hands together and asked politely, "Where were we?"

Author's Note: Hi! Thank you for being so patient with me, I had huge plans for this chapter! What do you think Draco was going to tell Hermione? Vote and comment as always, I can't believe the amount of support you guys are showing so THANK YOU! New chapter soon, hopefully :)