My Father Can't Hear About This | Draco Malfoy

Talking

"What do you mean you can't have me? I don't even know what that is supposed to mean, Draco." He rested his fingers against my cheek, allowing me to feel his ring against my skin. He leaned in just a bit. I shove him away. "Don't touch me. Talk to me."

"I'm not the person you think I am." He pauses. "I'm not a good man."

"I think half the fucking school thinks of you as a bad man already." 

His eyes bolted to mine. "Watch the attitude." He snapped. "I'm opening up to you here. Do you not want me to do that?" He was right. I needed to calm down a bit, though I was still angry at him for the things he'd been doing to me. I couldn't help it. I nodded for him to continue.

"People see me as a bully. I understand that that's how I portray myself. I learned from my father how to be a true pureblood. To be better than everyone else. And he taught me to hate anyone that was not worthy of my time." He inched a bit closer to me, then stopped and lowered his head. "But you are an exception. My exception..." His words drifted away from him, and I could see in his face he was beginning to break down. 

"What is it?" I urge him to tell me more. 

"You are not pure. You are not worthy of me. Not in the eyes of my family."

"What about in your eyes?" 

He paused, just staring into me. "You are my weakness, Eleanor. And I can't fucking figure out why." He stomps away towards the bed and sits down, covering his face with his palms. I am glued to the floor. The part of me that cares for Draco wants to give him the hug he may need, the other part of me is still pissed at him. 

"Draco..." I approach him slowly, making him raise his eyes towards me. I stop at his shoes. "Get up."

"What?" His voice cracks. Aw, how cute.

"I said stand up." He slowly straightens himself in front of me. I wrap my arms around his waist, allowing him to hold on to me and hug me back if he wants to. 

He was stiff at first, not knowing how to react since the girl that was just yelling at him was hugging him. But he loosened up and let his arms embrace me. We just stood there as one for a moment, his cheek on my neck, just being close with one another. 

I step back to look at him. "Thank you for opening up to me tonight. But I need to go, Draco." 

He opened his mouth to say something, but the only thing that came out was "Okay.." He tugged at his long sleeves and he let me go. He seemed like he was holding something back, but I wasn't ready for any more heart-to-hearts tonight. Even though I enjoyed the night we shared, and I enjoyed the hug we just had, I was still too furious with him to hear more. Why would he tell me how much he cares about me in private, and then treat me the way he does in public as if these conversations didn't exist? 

~~~

I wake up the next morning and Iris had already left the dorm. That's odd. She's hardly ever up before me. I hurry out of bed and throw on some jeans and a t-shirt and grab my black coat as I run out the door. 

Rounding the corner towards the common room I hear a commotion. There were a lot of people in there, that's for sure. I found what seemed to be a good majority of the Slytherin house gathered in the common room, all chit-chatting and whispering among each other about who knows what. 

I find Iris on our normal green sofa, speaking with another girl from our house that I wasn't necessarily best buddies with. She turned to greet me.

"What's going on around here?" I ask, looking around at everyone engaged in their own conversations. I spot Draco Malfoy on the other side of the room looking down at his feet not participating in any conversation.