[4] UNREQUITED ENEMIES ━ Draco Malfoy

19. Forget This Happened

NINETEEN FORGET THIS HAPPENED

     The next few days began to pass in a dreary haze as Xander slowly found himself returning to his classes, but he couldn't pay attention to any of them. He couldn't remember a single time he had actually processed information in the last week or so. He had hardly spoken to Diana or Justin, he hadn't seen Draco at all, things just felt numb. He did write to Alecks, making sure she was okay and asking how she was handling things. He was glad she had Jo and that she wasn't alone. He didn't know what he would do if he were dealing with this alone at home. He was just glad that Diana was there if he needed her -- he always did.

"I think I'm just gonna go walk around for a bit, I need to clear my head and nothing on this page is even processing in my brain, it's just... mush," Xander sighed as he slammed his textbook shut, giving up on his homework at the moment. Most of his professors, except for Snape, had heard about the situation and had given him extensions on his work so he knew he had time to get this done when he needed it. He felt like he had been consistently suffocating for the last week and all he needed was a deep breath, but every time he tried, nothing came into his lung.

"Do you want me to come with you?" Diana asked hopefully. He had shut her out more than he would have liked to, but he couldn't help it. Diana couldn't possibly understand what he was going through considering both of her parents were alive and well. He couldn't blame her for such a thing, of course, he just didn't know how to even approach the subject with her. He knew she was trying, though, and that meant more to him than anything else.

He shook his head, pulling off his robes and sweater as he walked up to the dormitories. Salem was sitting on his bed and he smiled, rubbing her stomach and chuckling the way she batted her paws at him. Searching through his trunk, he found the sweatshirt from Alecks and tugged it over his head, falling down onto his bed for just a moment. Salem crawled up onto his stomach and he reached up, scratching the spot behind her ears.

"Hey, buddy," he mumbled, waiting for a response that wasn't going to come. When Salem meowed, he took that as good enough, "Yeah, I miss her, too. I'd do anything to have her back, anything."

Salem didn't respond. She did nuzzle his hand, though, and that meant more than words could so he appreciated it. He forced himself to sit up, placing the cat back down on the bed and telling her to wait, even though he knew she would probably follow him out of the dorms anyway. When he stumbled down the stairs, he was right, the cat was practically nipping at his ankles as if she could sense that he was upset.

"Be careful, it's not too long until dark. Stay inside, okay honey?" Diana instructed, her brow furrowed with worry. She scrunched up her face as she said hello to Salem in a high-pitched voice before turning back to Xander, "I love you, Salamander."