Who Are You? (Draco Malfoy)

Chapter 20: Hot-headed and Beautiful

It's been a few days ever since Draco's been hospitalized, I've yelled at Harry, and I last fought Lucius out of my head. 

Draco's been released today, which was such a huge relief. He was completely patched up with no trace of an injury anywhere. It was so relaxing to see him strutting down the halls again like he usually did. He would even smirk every time he saw Harry, only because Harry would duck his head and turn the other direction every time Draco came into his sight.

I guess that's partly my fault, since I did scream and threaten him. But in all honesty, Harry had it coming for him. So I don't feel as bad as I should right now, but I'm not sure if that's a good thing or not.

On the other hand though, this whole ordeal has brought Draco and I closer to one another. He seems a lot more relaxed now than he used to be and he's telling me more than he did before. I don't want to make it a one way road, so I've done the exact same, and it's not awkward at all for me to tell him more than usual like I thought it might be. 

There was one topic that we've been avoiding and it almost seems like taboo to bring it up: Lucius. 

I didn't particularly want to talk about that man, and neither did Draco since his father used him to do Voldemort's bidding. But I had a horrid feeling that the more we delayed the talk, the worse it was going to get.

But I didn't have the courage to be the one to bring it up. Not now that everything is finally settling down. The break has been over for a few weeks now and the spring term is in full throttle. The trees are starting to bloom again and there are more birds in the air that sing.

Everything is beginning to grow and I don't want to ruin that by bringing up a topic that both Draco and I loathe to talk about.

The thought weighed on my mind as I walked through the halls, going outside of the castle to walk along the pathway, fresh grass beginning to grow. It was Saturday and I was supposed to meet Draco by the lake. 

The lake had thawed by now so it was a perfect place to go just to talk. 

My feet crunched on the ground as I walked and I hummed a tune to myself as I neared the lake, the sparkling surface making me smile. He must've gotten here early, because as I walked down towards the banks, he was already leaning against a tree, tossing rocks into the water. 

I was ten minutes early, so it surprised me to see him here already. 

With a shrug, I walked over to him, giving him a smile as he spotted me. "You're early." I say and he chuckles, pulling himself away from the tree as he walks to me, placing a hand on my waist and pulling me closer to him.

"Couldn't help it." he says winking before leaning down, our lips meeting in a sweet moment before he pulls away, taking my hand and leading me to the edge of the water. "The water is a little chilly, but it feels good." he says and I smile, bending over to feel it.

The icy water hit my fingertips and I shivered, pulling my hand out and drying it on my pants. "A little chilly? It's basically frozen!" I say and he smirks.

"Well, it wasn't that cold to me." he says and I give him a small glare, shaking my head as we take a seat on the banks, looking out at the crystal water. 

"It's beautiful, isn't it?" I ask, staring at the ripples in the water as the wind blew across it. "Not as beautiful as what I'm looking at." Draco murmurs and I turn to him, my face getting red whenever I realize he had been staring at me. 

"That's..." I trail off, not knowing how to reply to such a compliment. He chuckles, kissing my temple and leaning back on his hands, a small smile on his face. "It still makes me laugh how innocent you are, even through all of this." he says and I pout.