Around us || Draco Malfoy

30

Suddenly everything got bright again – at the same time it got cold – and wet. I was blinking rapidly as the cold water seemed to freeze every single part of my body. My instinct's made my hands and legs move as in somekind of poor attempt to swim, but what really kept me above the surface was a protective hand that was wrapped around my waist.

I turned my head from the water in confusion, finding Cedric's smile as he swam with me towards the platform ahead of us.

"Ced?" I screamed, only now realising why I had to speak louder – there was applause.

"Hey, Es! You cold?" Cedric laughed, holding me tighter. I couldn't answer to him because my gaze had already found the reason he was happy – the whole school was looking at us, standing on a floating platform, and they were cheering.

"You won?" I screamed again, happily as it all started to clear up. It had to be the second task. Everything seemed to make sense now. The hints about needing to breathe a whole hour underwater and about having to claim something precious. I was Cedric's task, he needed to save me.

"I think so" Cedric laughed as he pushed me towards the wooden platform, which I grabbed with my cold hand, already missing the protective arm around my waist.

Someone pulled me up and it took only a second for me to have another protective hand around my waist. I tried to turn my head towards the person who was holding me and wrapping a towel around me, but the blonde girl stopped me.

Leona's hand cupped my cheeks, making it impossible for me to turn my head backwards to see who was hugging me from behind. Leo looked like she was about to cry and then she started to laugh hysterically.

"We were so worried about you!" She shouted as her hands dropped from my face.

"I'm okay, I'm perfectly fine. And he won!" I said, smile on my face as I pointed at Cedric who was also lifted from the water.

"We can see that" Leona laughed, also looking at Cedric.

I didn't have to look at the person holding me to recognise him anymore. The scent of his colonge, fresh mint and newly pressed newspaper was all I could smell anymore.

"Missed me that much, Malfoy?" I grinned as I felt the hands around me turning me around. The first thing I saw was his eyes – the mesmerising grey eyes. Then I saw his grin, his hair, him.

"You want to get pushed back to the lake? That can be arranged" Draco threatened, starting to push me back towards the end of the platform. "No Draco stop. I swear to god I'm going to kill you!" I wrapped my hands around his neck so if he would push me in to the lake, it would be sure that he would come right with me. That made Draco slowly stop and his gaze turn to my eyes.

"I'm glad you didn't freeze to death" Draco grinned and planted his lips on mine. I quickly kissed him back, before he lifted me up, carrying me out of the way as the crowd started to applause again. As I turned my head I saw Krum and Granger in the water.

"Are you sure you're alright?" Cedric asked me for the third time now. I was sitting on a bench, holding the towel around me.

"Ced, I'm alright. You didn't let me drown, everything's okay" I said calmly, nodding my head for him to go celebrate with his friends who were waiting for him a few meters away from us.

"Fine, I'm going" Cedric lifted his hands up in the air in surrender. His gaze turned to Draco, who was sitting next to me, still holding me with his hands. "Malfoy – take care of her, will you?" He said, making Draco scoff.

"Oh see Diggory, I don't really take orders from anyon–" it took me only a one hit in the back of Draco's head to silent him. "Thanks" Cedric rolled his eyes and left with his friends.

"He was just trying to be nice. Do you always have to be like that?" I said, annoyed at Draco's behaviour.

"You know I do"

"I hate you, you know that right?" I said and pulled myself from his grip. I tried to look offended, but the way he looked at me was really making it hard to pretend being mad at him. Draco's hand pushed a strand of my hair behind my ear before it went to grap my hand.

"And still you wear this, funny coincidence Diggory" He grinned, rolling the silver ring in my finger.

I groaned as the smile broke through my lips and I had to tear my eyes off his to stop myself from kissing him. "Shut up and take me out of here"

                                                   

"Let's go out of here" Draco whispered into my ear as more and more people started to gather around us in the common room. All the younger students were curious about what was it like being in the water, but since I had no memories of it at all, their questions started to be annoying.

I nodded and took Draco's hand, letting him pull me up from the couch. "Sorry kids, storytimes over" Draco said, grinning at me before pulling me after him, towards the doorway of the common room.

"Where do you guys think you're going?" Blaise asked as we walked past the couch he and Leona were sitting at.

"Out" I simply answered.

"Excuse me? It's like cold as hell out there, and it's late" Leona said, looking at the clock on her wrist.

"When did you guys become so parental? We'll see you later" I said as I was already walking away with Draco.

"Just watch you won't get knocked out by a professor again!" Leona chuckled, referencing to the night few days ago, when professor McGonagall had asked me to come to her office. That bastard lied about some homework and knocked me out with a spell. The next thing I knew was that I woke up in a lake.