Bound by secrets

Chapter 2

Home sweet home.

We all tumbled into the common room. Theo, Blaise, Lucas, and Malfoy immediately claimed their usual spots on the emerald green leather sofas. Theo and Lucas sprawled on one couch while Blaise took the other. As for Malfoy, he sank into his favorite armchair by the fireplace, the one he always sat in next to Blaise.

Meanwhile, Pansy, Nora, and I needed to get ready. We headed to the corner of the common room where the spiral staircase to our dormitory began. As we ascended, Pansy let out an exaggerated groan.

"Why are we so high up?" she complained, dragging her feet.

"Pans, we're literally on the second floor," I laughed, shaking my head.

"Feels like we're on the tenth," she grumbled.

"Quit being such a drama queen," Nora teased, bouncing up the last few steps.

"I'm not a drama queen, Nora," Pansy whined, following close behind.

"Whatever you say, Pans," Nora shot back with a smirk as we reached the top and stood in front of our dorm room door.

I unlocked the door, and we dragged our trunks inside, setting them down on our beds.

"Y/N, did you bring your Muggle speaker?" Pansy asked while unlatching her trunk.

"Yeah, I think so," I replied, rummaging through my own trunk for it.

"Thank Merlin! I need music to get ready," she sighed, relieved.

"Let me find it," I said, digging deeper until I finally pulled out the speaker. "Got it!" I placed it on my dressing table and connected it to my phone. Wizard music was so dull—just endless classical, which I couldn't stand.

"Can you put on Chase Atlantic?" Nora asked, setting her makeup bag on her dresser.

"Yeah, play 'Friends'!" Pansy shouted from the bathroom.

"No, put on 'Swim.' It's their best song!" Nora whined.

"I'm not putting either of them on," I teased, smirking. "I'll start with 'Into It' and queue the others next."

"Whatever," they both huffed in unison.

I hit play, and the music filled the room as we all started to get ready. The clock was ticking—it was already 8:45, and we only had 45 minutes left.

I hurried to unpack my skincare and makeup, setting my makeup bag on the dresser before heading to the bathroom. Pansy was already in there brushing her teeth, singing along with the music. I squeezed in next to her and quickly washed my face, then grabbed my toothbrush.

Needing to pee, I didn't bother with any modesty. After six years of sharing a dorm, Pansy and I had seen each other naked countless times. I quickly finished, flushed, and returned to the sink to brush my teeth.

"You guys done in the bathroom yet?" Nora called, hovering by the door.

"Yeah, all yours," Pansy said, sitting at her vanity.

"I'm done too," I added, taking my place at my own dressing table.

Nora slipped into the bathroom, announcing, "I'm just going to take a quick shower to freshen up." Moments later, I heard the water running as Pansy and I worked on our makeup as quickly as possible. It was already 9:00—time was flying.

Not long after, Nora emerged from the bathroom wrapped in a white towel.

"Nora, you know you only have 30 minutes left, right?" I said, applying foundation.