Pawns | A Draco Malfoy Love Story

Confessions

A couple more weeks passed in the same way that the others did. I was still isolated from my friends and avoided by all my peers.

Though, Colin had managed to ignore the harassment from people when he tried to talk to me; he attempted to comfort me one night when I was sitting by the fire trying to hold in tears. Harry and Ginny had been across the room sitting with each other while I avoided looking at them at all costs.

Colin came over and sat on the chair's arm. He put a friendly hand on my shoulder and gave me a sad smile. "It's alright," he had said. "You should go up and sleep."

I had just nodded, not saying anything. I let a tear roll down my cheek when I wasn't able to blink it away, and Colin grabbed my homework and put it into my bag for me. He lifted me gently by the elbow and put my bag in my hand.

"Sleep well," he had said softy, guiding me by the elbow towards the stairs, sending me off to bed with a gentle push.

Now that the secret about me and Draco was out, and he was free from the hospital, I was able to see him in the open. We spent some time out on the grounds now that it was late spring, practically summer. He helped me study for my OWLs and I was getting in better shape for them.

When we were walking one afternoon, I asked him about what Myrtle had told me. I approached the topic slowly, basically asking him about what had him feeling so down. But he didn't want to talk about it, and I didn't want to push him when he'd only just recovered. So instead, we walked the rest of that afternoon peacefully, hand in hand.

When we walked together in the halls we were always stared at, but by now it stopped becoming uncomfortable. For a while I tried sitting with Draco at the Slytherin table since I was basically banished from my own table, but Pansy looked like she was going to vomit every time I sat next to Draco. The other Slytherin boys didn't look too happy either, not for the same reason though; it wasn't jealousy, but disgust that was all over their faces.

So Draco and I usually grabbed food from the kitchens and then took it outside to have a picnic. We liked sitting far off in the grounds, under a big tree near the lake.

We continued to see each other on Friday nights. In fact, we met almost every night now that I didn't have to sneak out. It felt odd simply walking out after being so cautious for almost a whole year. I would now leave late in the evening and then stay the night and have breakfast with him down by the tree.

He was the only person I had, and I think I might have been the only person he had too. For the first little while, it took time for me to get used to the loneliness. I slept and ate less, and had a habit of waking up sad and going to sleep even more sad. It made Draco feel really sorry to see me like that and so I'd try to smile for him. But it truly got easier as time passed.

I no longer forced my smiles or made jokes to pretend I was okay; I genuinely smiled every time I saw him, or even thought of him. I was feeling normal again and got into a rhythm of this new life. Every morning under the tree at breakfast he'd tell me how much he loved me and we'd kiss as we laid on the grass, looking at the beautiful spring sky. I almost couldn't imagine not being with him.

Today was a warm Wednesday. It was evening now and I sat reading in the common room on a chair near the walls. The trio were near the fireplace when I saw someone deliver a note to Harry. I kept re-readng my book's sentence over and over again without absorbing it's contents and so I just stopped. I kept my book open though so that it looked like I was reading. But instead, I listened to my distracting surroundings.

"It's from Dumbledore," I heard Harry say. I watched from the corner of my eye as he scanned the writing quickly then left the room immediately .

Hermione and Ron stayed seated and engaged in a light conversation. I tried to pick up my book again and managed to read a few pages. But not long after, Harry came back and looked very rushed. I heard him tell the other two that he was leaving with Dumbledore, going to find a Horcrux. His words caught my attention and I involuntarily turned my head in their direction. They didn't notice; Ron looked surprised at Harry's words, while Hermione looked extremely frightened.