Scattered Pieces (Drarry Fanfic)

Chapter Two: And So It Begins Anew

Inside out,
Upside down,
Twisting,
Beside myself.
Stop that now.
You're as close as it gets
without touching me.
Don't make it harder
than it already is.
I feel a weakness coming on.

It's not meant to be like this.
Not what I planned at all.
I don't want to feel like this.
So, that makes it all your fault.

— The Walk by Imogen Heap

~oOo~

Breathless, Draco careened out of the main storefront, blindly crashing into one of his coworkers. The latter yowled in shock at the unexpected impact.

Reeling back from the collision, Draco blindly lunged towards the other man once again, grasping the front of his shirt and urgently whispered, "Mike, if a customer looks for me in there, deny it. There's no Draco working at this place. Please, mate."

Draco was almost in a frenzy, his voice strained and thick with panic. Mike stared at him, aghast, feeling the tension and horror radiating off Draco in waves.

"What the bloody hell happened?!" Mike hissed under his breath as he grabbed the younger man's shoulder, dragging him off towards the office, keenly aware of how Draco was shaking like a leaf against a particularly strong gust of wind.

Mike shoved the door open and unceremoniously deposited Draco inside, surprising the cafe owner in the process. Their boss, Simeon Stubbs or Old Stubbs as people tend to call him, shot to his feet, a rant ready to explode from him, but it quickly died in his throat when he took notice of Draco, shivering, a haunted look in his dull grey eyes as he hugged his middle, looking like he wished to disappear.

"I'll mind the cafe." Mike said as he grasped Draco's shoulder, giving it a reassuring squeeze before he quietly left the office.

Stubbs rounded his desk, stopping in front of Draco, quietly taking in the young man's predicament. It had been quite awhile since he'd seen the boy in such a panicked state. In the beginning it had been particularly bad. Every little thing seemed to trigger an attack. Over the years, however, as Draco got better, these episodes came less and less. He'd thought the boy to have recovered well, doing a splendid job of overcoming his past. But today proved him wrong. The boy was in a terrible state. It was just as bad as the early days.

"Come on, then. Take a seat and let's get some tea in you." Stubbs guided Draco towards a worn setee. He watched as Draco mechanically sat down. Stubbs sighed as he stepped out of his office.

He knew Draco was a wizard. He, himself, being one. He had long removed himself from the Wizarding World to escape the tumult and chaos brought about by the rise of the Voldemort. Even after the latter's first defeat at the infant hands of the Boy Who Lived, Stubbs had chosen to remain as he was, quietly running his cafe, living amongst the Muggles. Although he was content, he couldn't deny that he did indeed miss being amongst his ilk. As such, in a flight of fancy, he'd posted an advert in Diagon Alley for his cafe in Muggle London, looking for a young witch or wizard keen on learning the ways of running a Muggle cafe. Time marched on and Voldemort once again met his demise, yet not a single witch or wizard showed up at his doorstep. Eventually, he'd forgotten about the advert until one gloomy day, Draco Malfoy, an infamous Death Eater's son, walked into his cafe and asked about the job, looking for a new beginning. The rest, as they say, was history.