Thicker Than Water {a Draco Malfoy story}

two.

-O L I V I A-

I don't know what had gotten into Draco, but I liked it. At some point today, he went from scheming and childish to a mature gentleman. He danced with me. He pulled out my chair. He even held my hand. Somehow, we even managed to hold a conversation for longer than a minute without a single snide remark.

And now, as the dance floor began to clear and students retired to their dorms, I swayed to the sound of my favorite Weird Sisters song, Magic Works, with his arms around me. "You know, you're a pretty good dancer," He said, a smile on his face.

I could feel my cheeks going red. "You're not so bad yourself," I whispered bashfully as I glanced down at our feet.

He was quiet for a moment before he sighed, "Vance, I can't believe that I'm saying this, but I've had a really good time with you tonight."

I suddenly became very aware of my heartbeat racing in my chest, almost choking on my own pulse. "I'm glad," I said, "because I've enjoyed my time with you as well."

"I'm sorry that my friends are a bit unpleasant."

I shook my head, "It's okay, I've gotten used to it by now."

"No, it's not okay," he insisted, "They were totally out of line. I shouldn't have let it go that far."

My hand slid down from where it rested on his shoulder, landing on his chest. "Do you maybe want to get out of here? We could go somewhere quiet and talk. After all this, I'd like to get to know you a bit better."

My gaze raised to meet his. "That sounds wonderful," He whispered, dropping his grasp on me and grabbing my hand. "Do you have a particular place in mind?"

"The boat house on the lake?" I suggested. He nodded in agreement. "Would you mind if I went and changed into something a little less... stuffy? I'll meet you there."

"Of course."

And we parted ways.

"Someone looks cheery," I heard as I was on my way back out after swapping my ballgown for a cozy jumper and jeans.

I jumped, stopping in my tracks. To my relief, it was only Fred, leaned against the mantlepiece. "What are you still doing up?" I asked.

"I could ask you the same thing," he pointed out, "how was Draco?"

I shrugged, struggling to for words. "He was surprisingly pleasant."

"I saw you two dancing. He actually looked happy for once. I don't think I'd ever seen him smile so much before," Fred laughed. He was right. Draco was never truly happy, even when he was torturing poor first years.

"I seem to have that effect on people," I said arrogantly, "Now if you don't mind, I've got somewhere to be."

He stood up straighter, watching me carefully. "And where might that be?"

"Somewhere," I repeated, slipping out of the common room before he could question me further.

The boat house was dark and eerie, though I always found a strange sort of comfort there. The sound of the water lapping against the docks was steady and calming. The lake gave off a cool breeze, gently rustling my long hair. But it was quieter than I had expected. Draco hadn't shown.

I felt another wave of tears hitting me, similar to at dinner earlier tonight. I leaned back against the wall, feeling defeated. I don't know why I had expected anything different of him. He only went on this date with me because his bonehead friends told him to. Of course he wouldn't sneak out of the castle to see me.