MAUVE, draco malfoy ✓

008

MAUVE VIOTTO

"CAN YOU BELIEVE THE NERVE HE HAS?" Alyssa doesn't bother to be quiet as she stomps up the stairs of the Ravenclaw tower. Thank goodness I casted a Muffilato in the common room before opening the door for Lyss — I had a gut feeling she wouldn't walk in calmly.

She sprawls onto the couch as soon as we reach the top of the stairs, continuing to complain. "Out of all insults, he blames it on my house? Fucking hell," She mutters, running a hand through her dark hair. "Stupid fucking Blaise."

I shake my head, sitting near the girl's feet. "Why are you so worked up about this?" It's half an hour before midnight, and Alyssa had been angrily knocking on the wall beside the painting as soon as she ran over. Her and Blaise got into an argument which seemed meaningless to me, but it seemed to bother Alyssa more than I thought it would.

"I— fuck, I don't even know." She groans, staring up at the high ceiling of the tower. The dim light of the moon is the only source of brightness as it seems through the large windows. "He just— ugh, something about him just pisses me off. "

I hum, letting her rant. I know that she can't do any proper thinking unless she gets it all out, so I only sit and listen as she goes on about our Slytherin friend.

"Merlin, who does he think he is? A fucking twat— that's what he is. I would love to shove my wand up his loud-mouthed arse, or maybe down his throat so I won't have to hear the bullshit he spits out."

"That's a bit harsh, no?" I raise an eyebrow in amusement.

A loud sigh escapes Alyssa's mouth as she slumps into the couch. "You're right. But, ugh, I just don't know why I'm so mad right now." A few beats of silence pass.

"Well, you don't seem to hate him this much on a regular day," I point out. "What's different right now? Did you have a bad day?" I ask concerned, shuffling to face her completely.

Alyssa shakes her head. "No, and I don't hate him at all."

"Any feelings of resentment?"

"No."

"Any feelings?"

"... What?" She sits up, looking at me wide-eyed.

From the other end of the couch, I shrug. "It was just an idea— did that get your head spinning yet?" I inquire, noticing the thoughtful look that had fallen over her features.

She nods, "I think so, but I don't want to talk about it yet."

I give her a small smile, "and that's okay too. Don't stress yourself, babe." I throw a pillow at her lightly. She rolls her eyes, huffing as she sits up, still leaning her head back to face the ceiling. Her eyes are closed and she hums.

"Thanks, Mauve."

"I'm always here, Lyss." I promise her.

"That goes both ways," she reminds me, prying an eye open. She turns her head so that she's still facing me whilst being in the comfortable position she's in. Though, I'm sure if she falls asleep like that, her neck may feel strained tomorrow morning. "You wanna talk about Malfoy?"

Just the sound of his name makes me shiver. I sigh, staring past my best friend and out the window behind her. The sky is a very dark blue, almost black. The trees of the forests nearby are a mere silhouette in the night. "I don't know."

"You've been getting closer." She points out, a small smile on her face when she sees the hopeful look in my eyes. "How d'you feel about that?"

"Happy. Excited," I start off with the good emotions, my smile dropping to a ghostly frown. "And scared... really fucking scared."

"Scared?" She questions. I nod. "Why? Of what?"

I fiddle with my fingers, not used to having such deep conversations. Usually, I'd play it off with a joke, or get the attention off me by teasing the other. But this is Alyssa. Alyssa who I've known for almost 7 whole years, and had stuck by my side through the thick and the thin. "Scared of rejection. Of losing him—and our friendship. I like where we are right now, if I get rejected..."

"You don't want to risk your friendship." Alyssa finishes for me, and I nod. "I get it. But you should also take into consideration that this is the furthest you've gotten. If you never tell him, you'll never know." She encourages me, repositioning herself to sit cross-legged with her body turned towards me.

Hesitancy swarms in my eyes, and I know she can see it too. "I don't— I'd rather stay friends than go back to strangers." I gulp, "plus, we don't even know if he likes me back."

Alyssa scoffs, "are you kidding?" She gives me a dead-panned look, scooting closer to my side of the couch. "He's always staring at you— if he doesn't like you now, he will soon. That boy looks at you the same way Parkinson looks at him, it's almost repulsive." She grimaces.

I roll my eyes, blushing at the thought of him staring at me. Did he really?

While deep in thought, my friend yawns, momentarily snapping me out of my gaze. "I think I'm going to head back now. Will you be okay?" She gives me a look of concern as she gets up to stretch her joints.

I nod, "you could take my bed if you're too tired to walk all the way back." I offer, but Alyssa is quick to decline.

"No thanks, I did that once and Cho flipped when she saw me." She shudders at the memory. "Are you not sleeping yet?"

I shake my head, "I've got some thinking to do." I give her a small smile. She begins walking towards the door when I speak again, "don't get caught." I call out teasingly.

She spins around in record time, rolling her eyes. "When have I ever?" Many times. "Night, love you!" She blows a kiss before disappearing down the stairs.

I stare out the window, a blanket now draped over my legs. I never thought I would have progress with my crush on Draco— granted, I never thought I would still like him to this day. Back then, I thought it would be a simple infatuation that I would get over. But as the years passed, Draco seemed to become more attractive to me. His hair grew out, and he dismantled the slicked back hairdo he had during our first two years. Granted, my crush had started in year three, but I had always noticed him beforehand.

It was hard not to, really.

He was grace. The way he presented himself with just the right amount of confidence to achieve a powerful aura, but didn't come off as over-confident. And he's intelligent too— Hermione Granger might be the top of our class, but Draco's name is right under. He's hardworking and beautiful and terribly misunderstood, yet none of this seemed to matter to anyone else when he's both a Slytherin and a Malfoy.

It's more than just a pity, it's disgraceful.