From Malfoy to Draco

A Wave of Emotions

"How did you know I was up here?" Hermione asked, finally coming back to her senses. "Were you following me?"

"Well, I-"

"I hope you weren't coming to crash the party," she said but she didn't really care about it anymore.

"Yes! Caught in the act, I guess," he said, scratching the back of his neck. "I was on my way to the common room when I saw Weasley and Brown. I heard you crying and followed you but I didn't catch up fast enough. I thought you and the Weasel were, you know..."

"What made you think that? Ron and I weren't together- aren't together, and frankly, he can date whoever he wants. I couldn't care less," she tried to make it sound convincing but it was more for her than it was for Draco.

"Granger, you were crying..." Draco said, he still didn't know why he followed her. It had been days since she broke down in front of him. "Why do we have to keep meeting like this?"

She smiled a little. "I should be thanking you really. None of my friends seems to understand me right now. Funnily enough, you're the only I have been able to open up to."

Draco's demeanour seemed to have changed when she said that. He became rigid and irritated. She started to get a little nervous, she wasn't afraid of him, but she didn't want to ruin this.

This. What even is this? 

She started to wonder why she had talked to him at all. She saw he was clenching his jaw and had his eyes squeezed shut. He wasn't next to her like he was last time. This time he was three steps back and leaning on the fireplace. She stood up and walked over to him, a step at a time, slowly. She was quite close to him now although she didn't know why. Her body was moving faster than her mind. His eyes flung open when he could feel her getting closer.

"Wait."

She immediately stopped.

"I get it, Weasley hurt your feelings but think about what you're doing," his balled up his fists.

"You're right. I'm sorry, I wasn't thinking. You don't deserve that," she walked back over to her chair and sat down. When she faced him again he became a little more relaxed.

"How can your friends not be there for you? I thought you were 'The Golden Trio'," he said, his voice laced with a hint of anger. "I mean, you have P-Potter, why don't you talk to him, or female Weasley, hmm?"

"I tried!" she was starting to get a little annoyed. She glared at him. "Don't you think they were the ones I tried to talk to first? Ginny's with Dean now, so she's almost forgotten about me and Harry, he- he never wants to talk about it! If you don't care, Malfoy, why do you stay? Why do you even care?" she had stood up now and stared at him, waiting for his response.

"Look, just calm down. Forget I said anything, ok?" he was staring right back at her. He was still angry, she could tell, but she was too tired to start anything else tonight.

"You can go if you want. I'm just going to stay here for the rest of the night, anyway," she had made up her mind that she needed a break from the Gryffindors.

"It's alright, I'll stay. I don't have anything better to do," as he said that, he slid down the wall and sat on the floor. He looked exhausted and Hermione didn't understand why he wouldn't go back to his dorm and sleep.

"I... Nevermind"

"No, go on, say it," he looked up, he was too drained to put up a fight but he was still interested.

"I kind of like these talks," and as if by magic, his face changed. The famous smirk she had seen him wear for the past five years was plastered on his face.