Draco had become a nervous wreck.
Wringing his hands together in a show of anxiety but trying to hide it away just the same. It wasn't as if he asked for this, and his mother had told him numerous times that he cannot deny his heart. He had done that too many times before, it was time to start paying attention to what Draco wanted.
But he knew better than anyone that it was never going to be that easy. It wasn't just a walk in the park to decide - oh okay, I want that - and then go for it. To do anything and everything you can in your power to achieve what you wanted, because life just wasn't that fair.
Especially to people like Draco Malfoy, an ex death eater. If he thought on it, that was the only downside of wearing his name. Everything else about him was magnificent.
His name, stemming from a pure blood line centuries back. He was the first Draco in the family, and wore his name with pride, even if it did bring shivers and looks of disgust from so many others.
His untold beauty. Sharp aristocratic features that were defined in his stunning face, and his perfect peach colored lips. His gorgeous throat that any lover would love to mark. His nimble and perfectly manicured fingers and nails.
Draco abhorred filth. Which explained why he spent so much time in the showers, grooming and titivating until his perfect self emerged. Shiny and new.
And he was academically - in all ways - a highly intelligent young man who always, always had an answer or a comment, or better yet an insult to hand out.
Which made this new look that he wore very confusing to those who knew him. And it only happened at certain times of the day, where he would become quiet and subdued. Sometimes in class, sometimes during a Quidditch match, and other times when he was in the great hall.
His friends had been paying close attention to him ever since their return to Hogwarts, and had started to notice the subtle changes in him. Theo had even gone so far as to suggest that maybe the castle wasn't a safe haven for Draco anymore and had begged Mcgonagall to do something about it.
Pansy and Blaise however had other ideas. Paying him all the mind they had to offer, they had come up with a theory. They didn't take this theory to Draco however, wanting to spare him the humiliation if it were true - because they knew he would be - that his new mannerisms and anxiety stemmed from being in the company of someone.
Of course it was Potter.
During any class in which they were paired, Draco would withdraw. Not as insulting or as verbal as he used to be, silently praying for the class to be over. Being so close to the savior was having an adverse effect on his mental state. So much so that he tried to avoid him at all costs, but this wasn't always possible.
They saw how, when they played a friendly game of Quidditch, Draco wouldn't bother to even look for the Snitch, but kept his eyes peeled on his once arch nemesis, following him around the field with his eyes. Sometimes scowling when he saw Potter talk to others, and sometimes smiling when he heard the savior laugh.
During meal times he would stare at him while he ate, glare at him if he dared to look back, and act all depressed when the hero didn't even bother to show up for dinner or lunch, making it so unbearable that Draco would hardly eat himself.
They wanted to help him, but they didn't exactly know how to be discreet about it. After a lot of thought, they finally decided that a direct approach would get them what they wanted to confirm. And the support that Slytherins had for each other, would carry them through this, whatever this was.
And so shortly after class the one day, they did just that. Pansy had told the others that she would speak to him first. It didn't have to be alone, they had no secrets, well none that she knew of.
