"Okay, it's almost time." Hermione muttered under her breath as she stood beside her front door, staring at herself in the mirror on the wall. She fixed her hair and made sure her bobby pins were keeping her low bun in a twist. "I look fine, nothing seems to be out of place ..." She smoothed down her hands over her black dress. She and Ginny had gone shopping for hours until finally, she found the dress. The black strapless dress that went just a little above the knees but nothing more. Simple, elegant, and classy, or so she thought.
Another five minutes passed. Hermione anxiously looked at the time as she bit her bottom lip. It was 6:05, five minutes late. "Where is he?" She asked herself as she began to pace in front of the front door. "Should I open the door to see if he's there or .. no! Hermione, no, don't be that girl. If he comes, he comes. If he doesn't, oh well. You bought yourself a nice dress to wear to another occassion. All is well." Hermione convinced herself, but she couldn't help but feel that weird flip her stomach did whenever she was nervous. "Maybe just a peek out the door?" She gave in, stepping up in front of the door. She took a deep breath and grabbed the door knob, twisting it and opening the door to see Draco Malfoy standing in front of the door with a fist raised just above Hermione's head. He was decked down in a simple but classy black suit. How funny, they matched and they didn't even have to try.
"Knock, knock." Draco said as he awkwardly put his hand down. "Uhm, y-you're ready."
"You came." Hermione answered with a sigh of relief. "You came." She repeated, grabbing her clutch from inside of her house and her jacket. She closed the door behind her and stared at Draco. "Let's go, we're late."
"H, how'd you know I'd come?" Draco asked, furrowing his eyebrows.
"That same reason I got dressed up and waited for you. We can't afford to make any mistakes, we need to show people we're in love, so we can't miss an opportunity like this." She reasoned rationally, staring at him. "Well, why did you come?"
He looked at her for a moment hesitantly, opening his mouth to speak but pulled back. "Same reason you waited." He answered momentarily, clearing his throat. "Come on, Pansy's going to get upset if she thinks we stood her up." He said, offering his arm for her.
She looked at his arm and then back to him. "Oh, look, manners." She said mockingly, linking her arms with him.
"Don't push it, Granger. Our acting starts, now." He said and apparated them away.
---
"Wait, back up, what?" Harry asked as he sat down next to Ron on the couch. "What?"
"Hermione's with Malfoy - like, romantically." Ron answered wearily. "How the bloody hell did that happen?"
"No, but where's the proof? How do you know?"
"He knows where she lives, they talked to each other in a way that friends do, and he called her love. I think those are perfectly good reasons to assume that they're together."
"Unbelievable. No, but there has to be something more."
"What more is there? Look, I broke up with her, she found herself someone new. I just wish ... it was anyone but Malfoy."
"No, it happened way too quickly. Hermione's not the kind of person --"
"Yeah, well, I wasn't the kind of person who would ever get drunk and cheat on his girlfriend, but look how that turned out? Look, things happen, people change ..."
Harry grimaced as he took in a deep breath. "Well, did you apologize, at least?"
Ron avoided eye contact with his friend, whistling nonchalantly as he cleared his throat. "I, I was going to but then Malfoy rudely interrupted and ..." He sighed, staring at his friend. "I, my anger and surprise got the best of me. I didn't."
Harry gave his friend a look for what seemed like forever and tightly clasped his lips together. "Okay, fine, I'll be on your side for this. You're right, I'm sure I would've done the same."
"I, I really do need to apologize to her and t-tell her the truth. But I just can't wrap my head around the fact that Hermione is with Draco Malfoy. And so soon." Ron whispered, a flash of pain running across his face. "I guess I can never get her back." He mumbled, rubbing his chin as he sighed. "I made a huge mistake."
"You did." Harry agreed, nodding.
"We could be planning our wedding right about now if I had just ..."
"Ron, stop it. You made a mistake, there's still time to apologize, though."
"Yeah, I know." Ron heaved another deep breath as he got up. "Well, I better go. Ginny probably hates that her older brother is crashing her house every night."
"Damn right I do. Go away, Ron." Ginny walked into the living room as she tied her hair up. "I don't need my brother to ruin my beautiful home with his crying and moaning of agony. Go, get cleaned up, and get some sleep." She said, walking over to the kitchen as she opened the refrigerator.
"Bye," Ron waved goodbye to Harry before he apparated out.
Harry sighed, slumping his shoulders. He turned and narrowed his eyes on his wife, walking over to her casually. "Ginny, what do you know?" He asked, getting straight to the chase.
Ginny took out some pasta from the pantry as she stared at her husband suspiciously. "Know what?" She asked, cocking up an eyebrow.
"I heard something really funny today. I heard that Hermione is dating Malfoy."
"Huh, really?" Ginny asked with wide eyes as she scoffed. "No, that's impossible, Hermione would tell me." She lied easily with another sneer. "Harry, why are you lying to me?"
Harry lowered his gaze on her, sighing. "Ginny, I know you're lying."
Ginny stared at her husband for a while and finally cracked. "Oh, fine! Okay, I'll tell you, gosh. Stop looking at me like that," She exclaimed, throwing the pasta into the pot. "Yes, they're dating, okay. The truth's out, please don't tell Hermione you know. She will kill me." She said, begging for mercy. But in the back of her mind, she felt a guilty conscious wash over her for she was lying yet again.
"How did that happen?" Harry asked, taking a seat on the stool, staring at his wife intently.
Ginny looked around the place, trying to think of something to say. She finally recalled what Hermione had told her and sighed. Hermione, please don't kill me. "Okay, but you have to promise not to tell anyone - even Hermione."
"Of course,"
"After that night, Hermione went to the Leaky Cauldron because you know, she had just gotten dumped! She had a few drinks - several, actually. And she happened to meet Malfoy there and ... well, it doesn't take a genius to figure out what happened next." She said with a nervous chuckle, focusing on her cooking.
"Are you serious?" Harry asked, his eyes widening with horror.
"Don't tell a soul, especially Ron!" She warned, raising the knife up in front of Harry. "Oh, sorry, sweetie." She chuckled, setting the knife down. "But really, don't tell."
"Y, yeah, I won't. I just ... I'm shocked. Wait, is she pregnant?" Harry suddenly asked, panic and fear surging through his body.
"No! No, of course not. No, look, nothing like that. They're just ... getting to know each other better, I guess." Ginny calmed her husband down. "Come on, help me cook." She said, quickly changing the subject with a sigh of relief.
---
"Okay, Blaise knows about us, so he'll be there to help us. But Pansy - Pansy thinks we love each other and she's going to do the whole let-me-see-if-you're-worthy-of-my-best-friend's-love-thing and she's going to ... what do muggles say, grill you."
"Oh, that's just lovely." Hermione muttered under her breath, sighing. "Okay, let's just get this over with." She said, dragging them up into the restaurant. She greeted the hostess nicely with a sweet smile. "Hello, good evening."
The hostess smiled back sweetly and looked over at Draco. "Dinner with Ms. Parkinson and Mr. Zabini?" She asked politely.
"Yes," Draco answered and followed the hostess to the seat in the corner where Pansy and Blaise sat looking impatient.
"You're here, finally!" Pansy exclaimed, jumping from her seat and hugging Draco. She pulled away and flashed Hermione a smile, the kind of smiles strangers give each other when walking down the same street. "Nice seeing you again, Granger."
"Yeah, nice seeing you, too, Parkinson." Hermione forced a tight smile on her face, awkwardly waving. "Oh god, kill me." She whispered to Draco before taking a seat next to him in front of the other duo.
"I hope you don't mind, but I already ordered the food. It should be out soon. Does steak, medium rare, and some red wine sound good?" Pansy asked, folding her hands together.
"Yes, of course." Hermione nodded, feeling her hands start to get clammy.
"You look uncomfortable." Pansy remarked, staring at Hermione with big eyes.
"Oh, I'm just, just a bit nervous, to be honest. I feel like I have to impress you guys." She answered truthfully, shifting in her seat.
"Oh, relax! No, you have no one to impress, we're just Draco's friends. I just wanted to see who the lucky girl was to steal my friend away. And I'm surprised it's you."
"That makes two of us." Hermione replied and quickly cleared her throat, avoiding Draco's glare. She looked down at her fingers, wondering what to say next. Her mind drew a blank. Wait, no, Hermione. Parkinson is right, you have no one to impress. Just act however you want. You have no one to impress.
"Why?" Pansy asked, smirking as she stared at the couple. "So how did you two meet?"
Blaise sighed, giving Hermione an apologetic look. "Honey, maybe we should just wait until the food comes out?" He suggested, trying to calm his fiance down.
Pansy sighed as she frowned at the thought, but to her delight, the waiter came over with their food. "Oh! Perfect timing, so, how'd you two meet?"
Hermione glanced Draco's way and their eyes locked. "We, uhm, well, we met ... through a one night stand." She answered meekly, shooting Draco a glare. "Yeah, he was drunk, I was drunk and then we slept together."
Pansy's eyes widened as she stared at the couple in front of her. "You're joking."
"I wish I was," Hermione smirked with a wink. "Yeah, and before you ask, yes, I was dating Ron at the same time. See, I'm a two-timing whore and after I slept with Malfoy that day, I just knew I had to break it off with Ron as soon as I could. So I did eventually, and then the articles all blew up but I didn't care because I'm with Draco now." She continued gush with confidence, placing her hand on Draco's arm. "Anymore questions?"
Pansy cleared her throat, trying to process everything as she shook her head. "N, not right now." She replied, her lips growing dry. She reached for her wine glass and her eyes widened as she stared at Hermione. "Are you pregnant?"
Draco stared at Hermione with a knowing grin. "That is the only question I hear from you people. Do I look pregnant?" She asked, reaching for the wine glass. "No, I'm not pregnant. Look, he and I slept together once and he's not that amazing to knock me up in one night." She scoffed, gulping the wine down. She slammed her wine glass down on the table, wiping her mouth.
Draco, Blaise, and Pansy exchanged glances. Draco gave Hermione a look as he cocked up an eyebrow. "Well, I don't know about that, I am pretty amazing in bed." He stated as he lifted his wine glass into the center. "Cheers," He said and clinked his glass with his friends before taking a sip.
Hermione sighed as she lifted up a finger. "Right, I should've waited for that." She commented with a small grin. "Oops,"
"Uhm, Draco, can I talk to you for a second ... in private?" Pansy asked, clearing her throat and getting up.
"No, I really just want to ea--"
"Now, Draco Malfoy." Pansy hissed as she dragged Draco away from the table in a blink of an eye, leaving Hermione and Blaise alone.
"You, you're putting on quite the show." Blaise initiated small talk as he grabbed a piece of bread, spreading some butter on it.
"Yeah, well, I figured I don't have anyone to impress - no offense. I mean, I'm not in love with Malfoy, I'm not going to marry him, so I really don't have a reason to make you two like me." Hermione said coolly with a shrug, taking a bite of the bread. "Am I pushing Parkinson's buttons or something?"
Blaise sighed as he sat back in his seat. "She probably dragged Draco away to tell him to break up with you because of your ... bold demeanor."
"Right," Hermione said, rolling her eyes. "God, I don't even know why I'm trying so hard. Up until this point, I've been trying to impress Narcissa even though I told myself I really didn't need to. And meeting you lot made me realize that I can do whatever I want and not face any dire consequences. Malfoy's already ruined my reputation with preposterous one night stands and infidelity, so I have nothing to lose at this point." She reasoned rationally, munching on the bread.
"You're right, you have no reason to impress anyone."
"Thank you, Zabini. I think so, too. You know, I think we're going to be good friends if we keep this act a little longer." She said with a grin.
---
Pansy glanced over her shoulder back at the table to see Hermione conversing with Blaise. She whipped her head back to face Draco. "What the bloody hell?" She asked, snapping her fingers in front of her friend to catch his attention. "Is she really the Hermione Granger? The Hermione Granger who we hated - the Hermione Granger who's friends with Potter and Weasley, the --"
"The one and only, Pansy. What are you trying to get at?"
"She - she's so different. What happened? I mean, one night stand? A-and she cheated on Weasley, what is going on?" Pansy asked, scanning Hermione with her beady eyes. "Something's not right, you're not telling me something."
Draco chuckled, placing a hand on Pansy's shoulder. "You're extremely paranoid. Look, people change. We were drunk and we shared a one night stand ... and we just thought something was there, okay? The heart wants what the heart wants, Pansy." He convinced her, putting on a sincere face. "Look, I ... I love her and I just really want my best friends to like her."
Pansy bored her eyes into Draco's, hoping he'd crack. She finally huffed, blowing a raspberry. "I hate you." She commented with an eye roll. "Well, I guess I do like Granger's new ... refreshing and bold demeanor. It's so much better than a boring, strict know-it-all like she used to be." She said through her teeth and finally looked at her friend. "Do you actually like her?"
"I love her,"
"But the articles of her split with Weasley only came out a week ago. How are you in love with her? It's only been a week, right?"
"No, bloody hell. Look, we had a one night stand months ago. And it took her this long to break it off with Weasley. It's not very easy to tell your significant other that you're seeing someone else, especially if that someone is me."
"I see your point, I guess. But, something doesn't add up." Pansy sighed, crossing her arms across her chest.
"What now?" Draco asked with a restless sigh, rolling his eyes.
"What happened to that girl? The one you met when you went to the muggle world for a few months? I thought you were ... crazy about her."
Draco's face hardened as he sighed, shaking his head. "Well, I'm here, aren't I? It would've never worked, which is why I came back. And thankfully, I met Granger and ... sparks flew." He said weakly, lacking the conviction he had just a few moments ago. He felt his throat turn dry as his face paled. "Don't bring her up, she's in the past."
"Does Granger know about her?"
"No, because it's stupid."
"But you said that you thought you found the --"
"Well, she obviously wasn't. Okay? I'm in love with Granger, and that's final. Can we please drop it?" He asked, furrowing his eyebrows. He loosened his tie as he walked back to the table, leaving Pansy alone.
Hermione looked up to see a look of anger and anxiety cross his face. "What happened? Why do you look so pale?" She asked with concern, reaching over to put her hand over his forehead. "Are you feeling okay, Malfoy?" She asked, leaning into a whisper.
Draco stared and nodded, taking her hand off his forehead gently. "Yeah, of course."
"You look pale." She fought back with sharp eyes.
"I'm fine, Granger." He whispered back as he looked back at Blaise. "So, what were you two talking about?" He asked once Pansy came back.
"Oh, just the weather and ... other things." Blaise replied with a thin smile.
Hermione tried to smile and converse but couldn't help to notice how tense Draco was through the rest of the night. If only he just let her talk to him. She felt this annoying scratch in the back of her head as she stared at Draco who looked as if he'd seen a ghost. Did something happen back there with Parkinson?
---
Ooooh, who's the girl? I don't know, either. I'm just going with the flow. xD (dun hate me) well, yeah here it is. I put in some dramione moments but nothing romantic.I hope you enjoyed, please drop a comment below and tell me what you thought about it :)