I felt a nervous fluttering in my stomach as Draco awkwardly stuffed his hands in his trouser pockets and turned towards me.
There was something about the way Blaise had suddenly suggested leaving with Pansy that struck me as odd.
And then here was Draco, looking at me strangely, as if we hadn't been cohabiting for the past two weeks.
He looked as though he wanted to say something to me but was struggling to work his voice. And when he did eventually manage to locate his tongue; the sentence that came out of his mouth wasn't what I was expecting in the slightest.
"Have you ever played Scrabble?"
"Scrabble?" I asked bewilderedly, not being able to help but raise an eyebrow.
I was expecting him to say he was turning in for the night; or at the most, offer me a hot chocolate to take to bed with me where I'd often go early to read or draw.
But this was the first time he'd suggested playing not only a game - but a Muggle one at that.
"We don't have to," Draco said quickly, suddenly looking flustered and very un-Draco like. "I just thought - it's not late yet... and... uh..."
"Draco, is everything okay?" I asked, frowning up at him as he nervously scratched the back of his neck. "Did Blaise say something out there on the balcony?"
Draco's mouth opened and then shut again. He looked guilty about something.
And then I thought about the way Blaise had squeezed me extra tight as he hugged me goodbye.
"You told him, didn't you?" I said slowly, trying to keep my voice steady, "You told him about Percy."
My stomach gave a sickening twist just from saying his name. The idea that Draco was discussing what he saw in my head with others, even if it was with Blaise, made me want to retch quite violently.
"I promise I didn't tell him anything more than he needed to know," Draco said at once, crossing the room to me and taking my hands in his. "I just wanted him to know enough so that he could look out for you when I- when I no longer can."
"So what's this about?" I asked, looking back confused towards the lift doors where Pansy and Blaise had just disappeared. "Why did they leave so suddenly?"
To my surprise, Draco gently pulled me to him. "I've got just two weeks left with you," he murmured huskily, releasing my hands to cup my neck in his long, slender fingers; lowering his face so close to mine that I felt his warm breath tickle against my lips, "and I don't want to waste a second of it."
I closed my eyes, suddenly feeling extremely giddy as my knees started to buckle beneath me. The sensation completely overwhelmed me and I suddenly panicked, needing desperately to ground myself.
"But why Scrabble?" I asked, my eyes flying back open as I willed my racing heart to calm.
He let out a low, soft chuckle; his silver eyes twinkling through the creases of his smile. "I've got Twister if you'd prefer?"
"Given your reaction to my sister's suggestion of spin the bottle," I said, and - despite my flustered state - not being able to help but smile back at him, "I'm amazed you would own such a product."
"You never know when such things may come in handy," he smirked, the wicked glint in his eye telling me I really didn't want to know.
Feeling an uneasy heat rise to my cheeks, I took a step backwards so that his hands dropped away from my neck, falling back down to his sides.
The smirk on his lips withered and died as I cast my eyes awkwardly away; the atmosphere suddenly uncomfortable.
"Fuck," he hissed suddenly, driving an aggressive hand through his hair. "I just want to spend time with you, Ivy... whilst I can."
I looked back up at him, my heart swelling in a mixture of sadness and endearment. He was trying, and I wasn't making it easy.
Making an immediate decision, I stepped back up to him; and his eyes widened in surprise as I boldly took his hand in my mine, entwining our fingers together.
"Well then," I whispered, a small smile tugging up at my lips, "let's go and do just that."
*****
"Fucktard is not a real word, Draco."
"Yes it is. I read it somewhere."
"Use it in a sentence, then."
"This game is a load of fucktard nonsense."
"It was your suggestion to play!"
Draco's response to this was to moodily throw the remainder of his Scrabble tiles across the coffee table, sending the rest of the carefully placed words askew.
"Are you sure you wouldn't have rather gone dancing with Blaise?" I asked, raising my eyebrows amusedly up at him as I knelt down by the table to start tidying up the ruined Scrabble game.
"I don't do dancing, Parkinson," he drawled, his lip curling up in a disdainful manner.
I found myself freezing as he said this; an image of him dancing at the Yule ball with my sister flashing in my mind; causing a nasty twisting sensation to occur in the pit of my stomach.
He looked up, and I saw the unmistakable flicker of guilt flash in his grey eyes as if he knew exactly what I was thinking.
Pansy; the sister that had always been between us.
Suddenly feeling completely heavy hearted, I abandoned the mess; grabbing my drink as I sank myself back down onto the sofa.
"You broke her heart, you know," I said quietly, twirling my champagne glass morosely in my fingers.
"I'm sorry," Draco murmured, his voice low and gravelly in its sincerity, "I'm sorry for the way I treated both of you."
And suddenly I felt like the shittiest sister alive because I realised I spent my entire childhood being in love with the boy that was hers; coveting him for myself.
"She looked after me, during the battle, you know," I said. "I always thought she hated me, but she stepped up when it counted."
I could feel Draco's eyes studying me intently as I stared fixedly upon my glass.
"I couldn't have gotten through it without Pansy." I continued, closing my eyes as I was taken back to the horror of that day. "I was so frightened, and she knew because she held my hand the whole time. Pansy - my sister who used to freak out in case anyone mistook us for twins - she didn't let me go once that day because she had made a promise to my parents that she'd look after me."
My voice broke on the last word and I realised, too late, that tears were splashing down my face.
"Hey," Draco hushed, immediately sliding across the sofa to me, taking my glass out of my hand before pulling me into his arms.
I sighed into his embrace, burying my face in his neck; pressing my wet cheeks against his skin. He smelt so good, so familiar, so comforting.
That night he crawled into bed with me, cradling me tightly in his arms as we wrapped ourselves around one another. I sighed at the feel of his lips pressing down firmly against my forehead; our hearts beating rhythmically side by side.
I had so many conflicting feelings of fear, love, guilt and heartache. I squeezed my eyes shut tight as I nuzzled against him, wanting to stay there in his arms forever.
But time wasn't something that we had the luxury of; and so, even though I fought against it, I still found myself drifting off into a night of disturbed sleep.
At least it was in his arms.
*****