𝑆𝐴𝑉𝐼𝑁𝐺 𝐷𝑅𝐴𝐶𝑂 𝑀𝐴𝐿𝐹𝑂𝑌

𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝟐𝟖 - 𝐠𝐚𝐭𝐬𝐛𝐲 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐝𝐚𝐫𝐤

╭────── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ──────╮

𝐃

I felt two weeks passing silently. The passage of time tortured me as we were slowly making our way towards the last week of November. The snow had melted and fell again and then melted once more. The season was tricking me. Autumn wanted to make me feel as if the years had come and gone.

Blaise stormed inside and purposefully made as much noise as he wanted. He kicked a trunk that was standing in his way and pulled the heavy drapes of the bed open.

"You need to get out of the room, man," said Blaise.

He flicked his wand. At once, the smell of alcohol and tobacco that had drenched each inch of our small and dark room had disappeared and was replaced by the sweet smell of clean linen. Blaise, messy though he was, liked everything smelling good. We had that in common, but it was a need I had recently neglected.

"I have a fever," I declared and scrubbed the sleep out of my eyes.

"It seems like a very persistent fever," he said. If there was a fever, Blaise would be the first to have noticed or cared to give me a potion. "When did you sleep last night?" he asked.

I tried to recall any trace of memory I had from the Friday night I'd spent closed in that room. I realise I didn't remember Blaise in the picture. There was a chance he had slept in Maya's but there was a chance that I was too drunk to notice.

"At 2?" I estimated.

"Have you been sleeping for 16 hours? That's a first... I thought you were married to insomnia." Blaise put his hands on his waist and looked around the room. He was looking for another thing to fix or clean or tidy up. I suspect he didn't know how else to help me put my life back together.

"Wait. It's afternoon already?" I asked.

"It's dinner time, Draco! Take a shower, put on a fresh shirt and come downstairs, okay? Maya and I will be waiting for you," he said in some exhaustion.

"No. Don't wait for me. I need to shave and all..." I let out an honest cough. I had just woken up and I always had to clear my throat after a long night of smoking and binging.

"You seriously have got to stop smoking," he said, shaking his head. "You're a mess."

"You were the one who introduced me to it."

"Yes, at a party, Draco! I thought it was a one-time occurrence for you, too. And anyway, this is exactly why I feel responsible for your current situation. I offered it to you and now I am taking it back!" Blaise held a hand out and waited stubbornly. If I knew anything about him, it was that he wouldn't back of once he had asked for something. We had that in common as well. It was easier to give him my pack now and steal it back later. I unwillingly reached for the cigs on the nightstand.

"You're so annoying."

"You're welcome!" he snapped. "Anyhow... I'm off. And we are going to Hogsmeade tomorrow. You need to see the light of day."

"No," I said at once. "Not Hogsmeade," I was begging.

"Well, then we are going flying. Anywhere you want."

"But-"

"Ta-ta-ta! You need exercise. And next Saturday there is going to be a party in the Room of Requirements. You won't be allowed anywhere near the drinks but everyone is going and you need to socialize or at least get out of this bloody room," he stated and opened the door to leave. "Oh, and," he hesitated, "someone was looking for you."