in the dark | d malfoy

chapter seventeen

people had forgotten all about us in the next couple weeks. they stopped staring, moving on to gossiping about the second task as it rapidly approached.

cedric refused to speak to me, and my heart ached every time i saw him. draco hadn't been in class for multiple days, and i hadn't seen him at all. i avoided going near the dungeons, not wanting to have to deal with any confrontation from him. it bothered me that i didn't know why he kissed me, nonetheless left me in the dark.

cedric's words were constantly running through my head. did i feel something deeper for draco? i never thought i did. he was nothing but a dick to me, ever since i met him. he called me an annoying, dirty hufflepuff. but then why did he want to spend time with me? why did he care so much about my relationship with cedric?

eventually, i gave up on my fear of seeing him, even as curiosity took ahold of me. however much i wanted to deny it, there was some part of me that missed him. i'd grown used to our chats during class, and to having him as a 'friend.' kind of.

jan and alfie didn't question me further, they instead stayed by my side. the day of the second task approached quickly, and i wore a tight sweater the day of the task, as the wind was chilly. we all headed down towards the lake where it was placed, and my eyes immediately trained on cedric, who was standing with the rest of the champions, excepting harry, who was missing.

cedric's eyes fought through the crowd, and suddenly connected with mine. he paused, and i smiled at him. good luck, i mouthed at him. he hesitated, then gave me a stiff nod, turning back to the judges. i didn't know what more i could expect.

harry came tearing down the hill, and i noticed him in an intense conversation with one of the judges before they began to announce the task. they counted down, and suddenly, the champions were in the water. cedric was out of sight in seconds, and i took a deep, heaving breath.

jan looked at me, a frown on her face. "hey, it's okay. i've talked to him. he has the task figured out. he will be fine, kat. don't worry about him." i nodded, swallowing harshly. my eyes searched the crowd, until they stopped with a halt on a moving figure down the stands.

draco.

he hit the bottom of the stands and disappeared around the corner, and before i knew it, i was standing up. "be right back," i whispered in a hurry, and i tore down the stands and towards where i had last seen him. the stands were full, leaving the grounds empty, and i caught sight of his striking blonde hair, further down the lawn. i ran as fast as i could, coming to a halt behind him.

"draco," i panted. he turned in a rush, his face stone cold. "katherine. i'm in the middle of something. if you could leave me alone,"

"no." my eyes blazed at him. "you can't just avoid me forever, draco. i want an explanation." his eyes softened. "i don't have an explanation for you, king. there's nothing for me to explain. i'm sorry about diggory, okay?" he scratched his head, and i observed his face quietly while he spoke. "but... i didn't know. and- i don't have an explanation for you. i'm sorry. please leave me alone."

he turned, and i puffed out a sigh of anger. "you can't just do that!" my voice was raised in annoyance, and he turned back, his eyes clouded. "katherine, i don't know what you want me to do!" his voice sounded strained. "it meant nothing, okay?"

i stepped forward, grabbing his face and pressing our lips together. he kissed me back for half a second, his lips chilly against mine, his breath burrowing into my mouth. he didn't kiss like cedric kissed me. his kisses were harsher. it was hard to tell what feelings he was putting into them.

he broke the kiss in less than a second, his eyes blazing back at me. "what are you doing? you don't like me, katherine. we aren't friends,"

"you can't do this." a frown edged on my lips. "you can't make me see this side of you, force me to see you in a different way, and leave me stranded. you can't tell me that i don't mean anything to you." my eyes searched his once more, but he wasn't looking at me. he was staring at the ground.

"i'm back with pansy, katherine."

i stared at him, tears welling up in my eyes. "no." i said, my voice faltering. "no, draco. you can't do that! you can't kiss me and then leave me in this confused state of not knowing what i feel for you! i don't know how i feel, but i know that i want to know you. you're a hurt person. i can tell that. and i want to help. i want to be there for you."

he glanced up, his eyes cold. "no you don't, king. you don't want to. i know you think that, and i'm sorry i did that to you. i wasn't thinking." he rubbed his temples, a habit i noticed he did constantly.

"i'm sorry i kissed you, okay? but it didn't mean anything. i'm with pansy, and you need to go back to diggory, where you belong. we aren't meant to know each other. we aren't meant to be friends."

and he was gone, heading back towards the stands, leaving me with tears of confusion rolling down my cheeks. i brushed them off harshly. anger burst through my body as i stared after him.

"fuck you, malfoy!" i screamed after him. "you're a fucking prat!" but he didn't hear me. he was already too far away. i brought my hand up to my lips, brushing over them where a drop of saliva from malfoy's mouth had remained on my lip. why did i have to kiss him? all i had done was make matters worse for myself.

because now i knew i felt something for him.

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