the girl with all of the choices

n i n e t e e n

2587 words

june twenty-fourth- the final task

I woke up with my head still on Cedric's shoulder. I looked around and saw that everyone else was still asleep.

I got up and walked over to the kitchenette to grab a glass of water before sitting back down next to Cedric. Everyone looked so peaceful.

Over the course of 20 minutes, everyone woke up. We all just laid there, taking in the anticipation and anxiety regarding today.

I decided to break the silence. "So, what's the plan for today?"

"Well, we should probably eat breakfast," chastised Fawn.

"No duh," I taunted back.

"I have to see my dad before the task," Cedric said monotonously.

"Okay," I said warmly, "so why don't we go to breakfast, come back here and get ready, and then on the way to the task we can stop to see your dad? Everyone like that?"

Nobody disagreed, so we all went up to our rooms to get dressed, considering we were still wearing our clothes from the night before. I threw on Cedric's Quidditch Sweater. I never actually gave it back to him after I suggested he give it to Cho. Part of me felt bad, but I wanted to wear it to the last Task.

We met back down in the common room before walking to the Great Hall together, Cedric leading us as if we were in a superhero movie. As we walked, everyone stared. Some people said encouraging things like "Go get 'em Diggory!" or "Good Luck Cedric," but most just stared. I mean, we were walking with the future winner of the Triwizard Tournament, after all.

As we walked into the Great Hall, all eyes were on us. I saw Draco sitting at the Slytherin table smirking at me, so I smirked back. I might have gone over and said hi, but today was about Cedric. We made our way to our seats and sat down in our usual spots, the encouraging words following us like a ripple effect.

Cedric kept his head high and his shoulder's pushed back, but I could tell that he was a nervous wreck on the inside. Believe it or not, he hated being the center of attention. He wanted to be recognized, but he wanted to be recognized when he wasn't around so that he didn't have to stand in front of everyone and possibly make a fool of himself.

Once we sat, Cedric held his head in his hands, obviously overwhelmed by the attention.

"Don't pay any attention to them, Cedric. You'll put too much pressure on yourself," I reassured him quietly.

We grabbed our breakfast, and I saw Cedric start to calm down. We talked about a whole bunch of things, but nobody brought up the Tournament. I might have known what he was thinking because I'm his best friend, but the others knew what he was thinking because he was the easiest person on the planet to read.

We had fun. Matt joked around like usual. Except for today, his jokes were unbelievably stupid, which made them that more funny. I couldn't eat because I kept laughing so much.

I ended up catching Draco's eyes while we were laughing. I naturally smirked at him, the main way we communicated in public. He stood up abruptly and walked over to our table, stopping only to sit next to me.

Our conversation stopped, everyone looked at Draco.

"What are you doing?" I asked, genuinely confused.

"I came over to ask what's so bloody funny. People are complaining."

"I don't think anybody cares that people are complaining. Until they have to compete in the Triwizard Tournament, they can shut it."