Drarry - It Was All Just a Game (REWRITE - MATURE VERSION)

CHAPTER 36 - BANDAGE

TW: Bloody arm. No one actively self-harms, but the thought of a bloody arm might be triggering.

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The first few days after the breakup were unsuccessful. Why unsuccessful?

What a peculiar way to describe a breakup.

It was unsuccessful because Draco, though heartbroken, sore and exhausted, thought he was free from Harry. And though devastated, it meant that he didn't have to worry about Harry while working on the cabinet. He didn't have to think that Harry was stalking him on his map because seeing his name on it was supposed to bring him too much pain

Or so he thought.

Because when he went to the Room of Requirement at about five o' clock in the morning, he thought he was in the clear.

As he scoured the piles of junk, he suddenly began to feel his arm burn.

Draco's lips parted at the shock of it, and instead of taking a left, he took a right. Harry didn't know that Draco's arm burned around him, which Draco once saw as horrible issue was now the best tracking device in the entire world. Because he knew when Harry was around in an invisibility cloak.

What a stalker. And then Draco thought, I knew you didn't trust me.

And so, Draco improvised and meandered, ensuring he didn't take Harry anywhere near the cabinet. Though, it was difficult not to hold back tears. Harry just loved him so much, and he loved Harry, and he'd do nothing more than just turn around, rip off his cloak, and kiss him mad. But instead, he randomly looked at things, and even thought of a coverup while his arm burned and burned. He found a golden pair of scales that he found because they looked valuable.

This didn't happen every day, but it was often enough for Draco to fall behind on the cabinet because he couldn't work on it given Harry following him. He just had to read random books on one of the couches in between the piles, or again look for valuables for fun.

It was enough to confused Harry but not reveal what Draco was actually doing.

And of course, Draco didn't want to let Harry know he could sense when he was there with his arm; that was a tool he couldn't let go of.

Time passed and Draco's heart got sorer and sorer as being around Dark Magic began to weaken him. As Christmas got closer, Draco was forced to reside in the Common Room after a week or two because knowing Harry was following him made him hate himself as a Death Eater, and miss him too much to bear as an ex-boyfriend.

His nightmares were so severe that he woke up screaming, his bed soaked in sweat. Anxiety lived all over his body, and his self-hatred grew more and more. Death Eater, Death Eater.

Seeing Harry in the halls, well, was devastating. Harry looked sad, because he was sad. And Draco was sad, too, but he was able to push through it knowing the purpose of pushing him away.

But he knew this breakup wouldn't last. It wasn't painful enough for Harry to hate him. This was why he had to do what he had to do. Look at Harry, he couldn't leave him alone for a day let alone several weeks. And maybe Draco would blame his decision on Harry needing him, deep down, Draco needed Harry more than Harry needed Draco; Harry's soul protected him from the Dark Magic he faced.

It was only when Draco crossed Blaise in the Common Room when he realized he needed to wipe the board clean and get a fresh start.

"Hey, what do you think—Why do you look so nice?"

Blaise smirked. "Slughorn's Christmas Party."

Pansy met up with them, wearing a dark blue gown that sparked and highlighted her eyes.