‘I’m sorry, Draco, I don’t have time to make any breakfast,’ Eva’s voice broke him out of his thoughts.
He looked up from where he was lying down in bed, clad only in his boxers with a duvet covering his body. Eva had just gotten out of the shower, taking longer than usual, and was now getting changed into her work clothes. Draco stretched his arms out, watching her get changed.
‘That’s alright. Are you coming home for lunch?’ Draco asked.
Eva turned to him, pulling on her button up shirt that she had ironed the night before. She gave him an apologetic look that told him he would be having lunch alone... again. He sighed and turned to lie on his stomach, putting his face in his pillow. He seemed to be alone a lot these days since Eva didn’t come home until late. He felt her lips kiss his head before she ruffled his hair.
‘Don’t stay in bed all day. Eat breakfast, change the bed sheets, there’s some dirty clothes that need to be taken to the cleaners, we need to go shopping for food as well...’ Eva sighed. He heard her rummage about in their wardrobe. Draco glanced up and saw her take her coat and shoes before putting them on. She stood up and grabbed her bag, looking at him, ‘and don’t smoke.’
‘I’ll do all those things... except the last one,’ Draco said, pulling the sheets away from him. He sat up in bed, watching as she came over to him. After a brief look of disapproval, Eva leaned forwards and pressed her lips to his.
‘I have to go. I’ll see you tonight,’ Eva whispered, kissing him again before leaving.
Draco waited until he heard the door shut and lock behind her. He had all day on his own, without Eva, just like the day before and the day before that. Draco sighed loudly and only then did he get out of bed, stretching his back to hear the muscles crack. He stripped the bed right down to the mattress and waved his wand so that the new sheets replaced the old ones.
Draco took a quick shower, always thankful for the water since he had gone a whole two weeks without showering once while he was on the run. He shuddered every time the memory crept up on him. Once he was showered, he dressed in a button up shirt and some jeans, putting on a hoody over his shirt. Draco got his shoes, jacket, and wand before apparating to exactly where he wanted to go. The restaurant where Hermione... or someone who looked exactly like her, Draco furiously reminded himself, was at was open but not very busy. He peeked in and saw the same blonde behind the register.
Before going in there, he jogged across the street and went into the little shop in front of the restaurant.
‘It’s you! The crazy guy from last night!’ the cashier, the same one from before, looked up from his magazine as Draco walked in. Realising what he had called Draco, he held up his hands, ‘don’t mean to offend you, sir.’
‘That’s alright. That’s exactly what I was thinking last night,’ Draco muttered, his voice low and thoughtful. He looked at the cigarettes on offer, his cravings had begun already even before breakfast. He bought a packet of cigarettes, thanked the cashier and walked out of the shop.
He went across the street again, slipping the cigarettes and his change into one of his pockets. He needed to know, that was all, and then he would go on and let her live her life if she wanted nothing to do with him. He just needed to know.
‘Hello again,’ the blonde behind the counter glanced up at him, surprised to see him again. Draco had obviously made an impression on her if she remembered him from last time. Draco nodded at her, giving her half a smile, as he tried to peek through the chef’s window. The blonde smiled, ‘what would you like to eat? We have a special offer if you get beans with-’
‘Nothing,’ Draco waved her off with one hand, leaning his elbows against the counter. He briefly looked at the menu and then back up at the blonde girl, ‘what’s your name?’
‘Um... my name’s Lisa,’ the blonde blushed crimson as Draco reached forwards without hesitating and touched the necklace she was wearing. It was a silver heart in a small silver chain, ‘the-that was a gift last Christmas.’
Draco looked into her eyes for a second and then withdrew his hands. He took a step away from the counter and looked at Lisa, ‘I need to see the chef. Right away.’
‘Excuse me?’ Lisa raised her eyebrows at his outright, bold statement. A part of her mind wandered if he wanted money from them which was why he was acting so strange.
‘I’m looking for a girl who I think is the chef of this restaurant. She’s quite beautiful with brown hair that’s really curly and big brown eyes. She’s not Australian so I doubt she’ll have an accent,’ Draco explained, rocking back on his heel, ‘and I need to know if she works here. Her name is Hermione Granger.’
‘I’m sorry, sir-’ Lisa had listened to him with her jaw hanging open. That exact lady was in the kitchen right now and was one of Lisa’s friends. Draco held up a hand.
‘Please, Lisa,’ Draco’s tone got a lot quieter now as he stared at her, pleading with his grey eyes, ‘I need to see her. You don’t understand.’
Lisa hesitated, taking a few steps back without realising it. Hermione Granger was in the kitchen behind her and if she wanted she could call her out here to see the strange, pleading man. It seemed as though he was on a drug that he had run out of and only Lisa could supply him with it.
‘I’m sorry,’ Draco muttered as Lisa hesitated just a bit longer than she had to.
He knocked her out with his wand and performed a temporary memory vanishing spell. Hands shaking, he turned the sign out on the door to ‘closed’ and the people outside took no notice as the blonde jumped over the counter and went to the kitchen door.
---
*Hermione’s POV*
‘Ouch! Ouch, ouch, ouch!’ Hermione jumped as the tray of cookies she was taking out of the oven burnt her wrist where the oven glove was not covering it. A red mark appeared on her wrist as she ran it under cold water.
She wondered where Lisa was, chuckling as she imagined her ‘I told you so’ voice when she saw the burn on her wrist. They hadn’t been so busy lately but Hermione had managed to make a batch of cookies even though Lisa insisted she shouldn’t. Hermione ignored her and made them, thinking she could take them home if they didn’t sell well.
Once Hermione had taken care of her burn, she carefully put the cookies in a box, laying over the other. She bit into one to test it. It was soft and chewy and tasted pretty good but she supposed it could be better.
‘Hey, Lisa!’ she called out as the door of the kitchen opened up, ‘I bet you want some of these cookies right about now!’
‘I don’t know about the cookies but I do want to see you.’
Hermione’s heart stopped in her chest and for a second she couldn’t hear anything except the loud beating of her heart in her chest and the hum of the oven. It couldn’t be him... she had suspected it was him after walking past a blonde haired man but she hadn’t glanced twice. But that voice! It was the same voice that made her weak at the knees and the sound of his deep voice wove like silk through her ears.
‘Please,’ the same voice, the same man, whispered, taking a step forwards. The click of his shoes sounded against the well polished floor of Hermione’s kitchen and it made her head spin, ‘turn around for me.’
Every bone in her body shrieked at her to run but Hermione didn’t listen. She could take care of herself if need be... She turned, slowly, hesitatingly, feeling her joints lock together. She lifted her eyes to meet his own and it felt like every memory she had made with Draco rushed through her eyes. Draco wasn’t smiling, he looked pained. His grey eyes showed something of a barrier to what was really inside him and even physically, he had changed. He no longer wore suits and had instead opted for a large hoody.
‘It’s really you,’ Draco whispered, taking in every single inch of Hermione his eyes could see at once. His expression didn’t change as she pulled out her wand and pointed it to him, ‘no need for that. I won’t hurt you.’
‘Where have you been?’ Hermione asked, her hand was shaking now and Draco could tell as her wand didn’t lock onto a specific target. She saw it too and stowed it away but came forwards, grabbing Draco by the shirt, tears threatening to spill, ‘I lost a lot of blood, Draco! I was in a coma and every thought I had was of you and how when I woke up I would see you and all this would be over! I waited for you!’
The end of her sentence came out as a shriek that would have woken Lisa if Draco’s spell hadn’t worked so well. Draco could hear her heart break in that sentence, emotion flooding out of her in the form of tears.
‘For the first two or three years since I moved here I kept thinking about that unbearable pain that I felt. All of the blood surging out of my body and my hands losing their feeling and my eyes slowly closing and slipping into a coma that lasted a whole year!’ Hermione shook her head, her grip slackening against Draco who was silent. She sobbed into his chest, ‘I waited for you... I did!’
The rest of her sentences were demolished by her sobbing. Draco just held her, his mind still couldn't comprehend the fact that his love was alive and in his arms even though it seemed like she had been through so much pain which was all his fault. Draco didn’t know what to do. He closed his eyes, letting her sob all she wanted.
‘Granger,’ Draco started as she pushed him away from her. Draco watched as Hermione frantically wiped away at her tears and turned to glare at him.
‘Go on, Draco! Tell me why you weren’t there for me. You said you’d-’ Hermione was cut off as Draco took a couple of intimidating steps towards her.
‘Granger, I said a lot of things that I meant. I thought you were dead! I was the one by your side, my hands and knees soaked with your blood, as I watched your eyes droop. It was my fault and I haven’t stopped punishing myself for it! There were moments where I didn’t want to live in a world without you...’ Draco shook his head, gritting his teeth, ‘if I knew you were alive-’
‘You would have ran like you’re running now!’ Hermione yelled at him, their faces close to each others.
‘If I knew you were alive,’ Draco repeated, stroking her face with his thumb, ‘I would have killed to get to you.’
‘Don’t,’ Hermione said, although she had softened at her touch. She moved away from him and regarded Draco for a second, ‘how did you find me?’
‘Doesn’t matter, does it?’ Draco asked, putting his hands in his pockets. He didn't take a step forwards but kept his eyes locked onto hers, ‘can we talk after you get off?’
‘I have nothing to say to you,’ Hermione shook her head, crossing her arms over her chest. Draco took in her chef’s apron for a second and then looked back up at her, his eyes pleading. Hermione paused and the clock ticked loud enough for the both of them to hear. She finally nodded, ‘come here when I get off from work tonight.’
‘I will,’ Draco said quietly, his eyes never leaving hers. Hermione watched him go and through the chef’s window she could see him reverse his spell on Lisa and then leave, turning the ‘closed’ sign to ‘open.
She breathed a sigh, not realising she was holding her breath.
---
After doing what he had been told by Eva, which included giving in their dirty clothes to be cleaned and shopping for groceries, he left Eva a note explaining that he wouldn’t be home for dinner. He left out Hermione’s name in the note. It was dark by the time Draco got to the restaurant but there was still a few minutes to go until the restaurant had to close.
Draco looked around at the empty street as he stood near the bin, smoking. He had been smoking quite a bit today, hoping it would calm him down. He glanced at the restaurant as the lights went out and the door opened. He quickly flicked the cigarette into the trash and looked up as Hermione came out.
Hermione’s eyes flickered to the bin and then to Draco, ‘let’s go to my apartment.’
‘I usually wait until I’ve dated the girl before going to her apartment,’ Draco joked before he could shut his mouth. Hermione didn’t respond to that and only walked past him to the alley way. Draco sighed, cursing himself, and followed her.
‘Take my hand,’ Hermione ordered, not looking at him.
A slight breeze passed by them as Draco took her hand. She glanced at him and a moment passed in that single glance before he was wrenched into darkness. Draco’s feet hit the ground and as soon as they got there, Hermione let go of his hand and dug in her bag for her key. Draco watched her as she opened the door and led him in but stopped as soon as she got in. He nearly bumped into her but held out his hand to stop himself, touching her waist. Hermione jumped at his touch, going red in the face.
‘Hermione, dear?’ a woman came out of the small kitchen and looked at Draco and then at Hermione. Hermione was still red in the face, ‘who’s your friend?’
‘Mum, what are you doing here?’ Hermione asked, worry straining her face now.
‘Well, I’m here with-’ Hermione’s mother gestured to the kitchen, still glancing at Draco.
‘I thought you were going to your house,’ Hermione insisted, running a hand through her hair.
Mrs Granger just looked at her daughter, frowning a little. Hermione took a deep breath, the worry clear on her face, and turned to Draco, ‘there’s something you should know. Just don’t freak out... I-I... I have a four year old daughter called Rose.’
Hermione bit her lip as Draco’s eyes widened considerably. Before anyone could say anything, Rose came out of the kitchen. She had Hermione’s eyes but her hair was a little darker than Hermione’s brown but the same curls were in them. She hugged her mother and Draco felt his heart thud when Hermione hugged her back.
‘I can take her over to my house if you want, dear,’ Mrs Granger said, ruffling Rose’s hair as she giggled. The sound was beautiful but Draco couldn’t help but wonder how this had happened.
‘No,’ Hermione shook her head, glancing at Draco, ‘I should put her to bed. Thanks for taking care of her, Mum.’
Mrs Granger smiled and hugged her daughter and granddaughter goodbye. She glanced at Draco, nodding, before leaving the apartment and closing the door behind her. Rose looked at Draco, asking her mother who he was but not waiting for an answer as she went over and hugged Draco by the knees.
‘Rosie, finish your food so I can put you to bed,’ Hermione said quietly as Draco stood there like a statue. Rose did as she was told and went into the kitchen. Hermione looked at Draco, ‘I... I got lonely.’
‘You got lonely?’ Draco spat out, feeling his throat constrict, ‘and made her? Where’s the father?’
‘It was a one off thing. He didn’t want anything to do with her and I didn’t want to give her up,’ Hermione kept her voice down as Rose called out to her. She looked at Draco, ‘let me just put her to bed and we’ll talk.’
Hermione let Draco sit on the sofa as she put away Rose’s plate and picked her up, letting her talk about her day. She felt Rose play with her hair as she quickly got her dressed into her pyjamas and put her into bed.
‘Mummy?’ Rose asked, her voice sounding sweet and angelic as Hermione smoothed her hair and tried to put her to bed, ‘who is that man?’
‘A friend, dear,’ Hermione said although that was entirely wrong, wasn’t it? Draco Malfoy was not just a friend... Draco Malfoy was not even a friend. It was just easier for a four year old to understand. She smiled, ‘close your eyes, love.’
After finally consoling Rose to sleep, Hermione left the room and closed the door behind her quietly. She sighed and went into the living room, expecting to see Draco sitting on the sofa, waiting for her.
‘Sorry about that,’ Hermione started but then stopped, looking around.
Draco Malfoy was no where to be seen.
---
A/N - Dedicated to Lunalovegood114 even though she's not on here much. She's a great person though and very supportive and a great writer :)