You waited by the Slytherin Common Room's door patiently as you hugged the papers that Pansy answered yesterday. You looked down at your shoes, still waiting.

Waiting.

And waiting.

Still waiting.

'Where the hell is she?' You sighed and were ready to give up until the door opened, revealing Pansy. You faced her and frowned. "I was waiting for so long."

"I had to arrange some things, alright." Pansy rolled her eyes. "Besides, we never invite any Gryffindors inside until you. Now come on."

You entered the Slytherin Common Room and instantly felt the chilliness of the room. You noticed that no one was around, possibly at their own dorms seeing how it was already late at night. Pansy sat down on the couch while you sat down on the floor. "Um, Stark, there's a reason why chairs and couches exist, you know."

You looked at her. "Oh, I'm fine here on the floor. I got used to sitting here anyway."

You placed the papers down on the table and showed them to Pansy. "You're doing great at Potions. I decided to teach you one more lesson before we part."

Pansy nodded silently, having no mood for a sarcastic comment or a snarky remark. You pressed your lips into a thin line, thinking of what had happened to Pansy but decided to shrug it off and pulled out a book. Pansy stared at you before snickering. "I can't believe this is your first time coming here. I expected Malfoy to drag you in here and be the first Slytherin to bring a Gryffindor in our common room."

"You would've made my stay a living nightmare." You chuckled.

Pansy scoffed. "Stacey Doom would've made your stay a living hell. Be glad that she's not around, and she's in her room complaining to Millicent about her breasts being uneven in size."

You paused for a moment before bursting into laughter while Pansy shook her head as she softly laughed. It was odd of you and Pansy to get along, but you have to admit, it wasn't exactly unpleasant.

"I swear to Merlin, that bitch is too full of herself. Makes me and Draco look like a saint, honestly." Pansy added.

Your smile instantly dropped when you heard Draco's name. It's been a while since you've heard his name nor seen him. You thought it was for the best since the Slytherin Prince decided to end your friendship with him. Your eyes widened in the realization that he could be in his room and could enter the common room any minute now.

Pansy noticed your drastic change of mood. "You alright there, Stark?"

You looked at her and nodded. "Mhm. Just... thinking."

"I assume it's about Draco?"

"Lucky guess." You huffed before turning some pages in your book.

"Well, of course," Pansy replied. "Your thoughts are way too loud. When do you not think about him?"

"And when do you not think about Daphne Greengrass, hm?"

Pansy sat up straight and crawled down to the floor to sit next to you. "You better watch your mouth, Stark."

"Or what?" You questioned. "Since you keep on teasing me about Malfoy, I wanted to return the favor by teasing you with Daphne. You two were inseparable."

"And that doesn't mean anything."

You stared at Pansy as she pulled your book towards her, trying to occupy herself with the potions she was reading. You dragged your legs towards you and hugged them closely. "I'm not a Ravenclaw, but I'm not dumb, you know. I can see the way you look and act when she's around."

Pansy clenched her fists as her jaw tightened. "It's nothing."

"She's the reason why you're conflicted with your feelings towards Draco. Why don't you ask her out and--"

"Because people will look and judge, okay?" Pansy snapped as she faced you with her reddened face. She huffed before pushing the book away, causing it to drop on the stone-cold floor. "From the moment I met Draco, I told myself I'm claiming him as mine. As my boyfriend. Until you showed up and ruined it, so I tried and became desperate like Stacey."

Pansy hesitated to continue, but when she looked at your eyes, she saw how you were interested in listening and genuine with this blossoming friendship you two were making. Pansy sighed. "However, Daphne was there all the time. No matter how many times Draco has rejected or ignored me, she was there. She was the reason I managed to keep my sanity when things are tough here on Hogwarts."

You continued to listen as Pansy continued. "But I was confused and conflicted. I didn't realize I liked her too much until I decided to avoid her. I feel useless and worthless without her." Pansy looked away. "And I don't want people judging Daphne and me just because I fancy her."

There was a moment of silence between you and Pansy. Pansy was clawing her knees in anticipation as she waited for your response. You sighed and grabbed the fallen book on the ground. "The Pansy Parkinson I know doesn't give a shit about what people think of her nor her life." You faced her and smiled. "Be proud. What matters is the love between you and Daphne."

Pansy stared at you in surprise while you leaned against the table to continue reading. You glanced at her. "Now. Still want to study about Baneberry Potion?"

°•○●○•°

You slowly woke up into an unfamiliar bed and new surroundings. It was chilly, so you pulled the soft blanket closer to you, shivering slightly. It took you a second to fully open your eyes and register where you are.

You sat up and looked around the dark and green walls around you. 'This is not my room.' You looked at your clothes and found yourself with no robes, but you were still in your uniform. Looking up from your uniform, you discovered your robes hanging by the black leather chair.

"Oh, good. You're awake."

Turning your head to the side, you saw Draco entering the room wearing a neat black suit. You raised an eyebrow. "Really? Is that your casual outfit?"

Instead, he did not reply and placed down a green jersey with a white skirt and some socks near you. "You can take a bath and change. Just don't use my toothbrush. The skirt is from Daphne. She said you could have it. The socks and undergarments are from Granger. I asked her if you could have an extra pair."

"Granger."

"Malfoy? What are you doing waiting by the Gryffindor Common Room? (Y/n) isn't here right now--"

"She needs an extra pair of... well..."

You blinked in surprise and finally realized where you were. "Hang on. Why am I in your room?"

Draco stared at you for a moment. "You fell asleep at the Slytherin Common Room, darling. Remember? You and Pansy were studying together."

"She didn't wake me up?"

The blonde-haired boy shook his head. "She fell asleep too. Daphne had to bring her to their dormitories."

"They fell asleep?"

"Mhm. I'll bring Pansy to her dorm room. You bring (Y/n) to yours."

"Wha-why?"

"Oh, please, Malfoy. We both know you've always wanted to bring (Y/n) to your room since--"

"Alright! Now shut your mouth before I hex you."

"Then why didn't you bring me back to the Gryffindor Tower?"

Draco sighed heavily. "You ask a lot of questions, don't you?"

You shrugged. "Just curious as to why you could've brought me there instead of here. After all, you're a Prefect."

Draco turned around and fixed some of his things on his desk. "I don't want to be anywhere near the Gryffindor Tower. Especially around Potter."

Your lips twitched upwards into a playful smirk. "Why? You fancy him already?"

Draco turned to you and sent you a glare. "You do know the only person I fancy is you. Now get up and take a shower. Your friends must be worried about you."

He walked out of his own room, leaving you speechless and blushing. His sudden confession, although you both know that you two fancy each other, still managed to heat your cheeks up and make your heart beat faster.

But you realized that he decided to end the friendship you two have formed since kids. You were now confused and conflicted.

You slowly took the jersey and walked towards his bathroom. You stretched your arms out to scan the jersey. It was Draco's Quidditch jersey that he wouldn't even use because he barely plays now. You heard about his teammates asking where he is or if he's still going to play matches. Apparently, Draco was one of their best Quidditch players.

Sighing, you started stripping your clothes off and glanced at your reflection. You cringed at your own face. 'That scared me for some reason.' You cleared your throat and stepped into the shower, and started taking a bath.

It wasn't a long bath as much as you wanted it. You usually take long baths in your own bathroom, but you felt shy when using different bathrooms, especially when using Draco's. It doesn't help that you used his bath products, and now you feel like you smell like him.

You stepped out of the bathroom with your new clothes on and found Draco sitting on his bed, reading a book quietly. Your footsteps seemed to have alarmed him that you were finished, so he looked up, and his expression softened.

You were wearing his oversized Quidditch jersey, slightly tucked into Daphne's skirt. You grabbed your Gryffindor robe and started wearing it. Although green and red don't match Draco's eyes, he still thinks you look adorable and beautiful whatever you wear. You made it seem like red and green matched for some reason.

Draco cleared his throat and placed down his book, standing up to fix his black necktie. "You look good." He quietly commented.

You cracked a smile. "I guess I have to wear your clothes more often."

Boy, did that statement alone make his heart thump faster. He wanted you to wear his clothes since your third year, but he was a coward to do so. And now here you are wearing his Quidditch jersey. Draco slowly smiled. "You should've been in Slytherin. Green's definitely your color."

You stood next to him and smirked. "Why? Does red not suit me?"

Draco shrugged. "Oh, I think it's cute on you." He leaned against your ear. "But I think green looks sexier on you."

You gasped and playfully slapped his arm, earning a small laugh from Draco, ignoring the fact that your heart was beating faster than before. "Excuse you! I look sexy in red too, you'll see."

"I'll see?" Draco asked; his tone was suggestively and curiously. "Then I look forward to it, darling."

If you two were in a relationship, you would've kissed him right then and there. But you had to compose yourself from doing such a thing. What you didn't know what Draco was feeling the same way.

You cleared your throat as you looked away when you realized the conversation you two just had. 'Malfoy, you're making things confusing and complicated.' The two of you exited his room and realized he had a different room than the others. 'Of course.' It was an advantage of being a Malfoy.

Draco glanced at you as the two of you exited the Slytherin Common Room. "You were having a nightmare."

You looked up at him in curiosity. "Really?"

He nodded quietly. "You didn't scream, at least. But you were squirming."

You looked down and scratched the back of your head. "Sorry, you had to witness that. I hope I didn't bother you much."

"I slept on the couch."

"Oh." You briefly closed your eyes. 'Of course, he did. Why would I even think about him sleeping beside me.'

You continued walking with him as you hugged your clothes close, covering the Slytherin jersey you were wearing. Draco glanced down at you again as he remembered what happened to you.

You looked at him and smiled. "I'll get going now. Thank you for walking with me." You winced. "I-If you were. Maybe you just happened to walk with me, and I thought that maybe--you know what, I'll stop talking. Bye."

Draco watched as you walked away. He tucked his hands to his pockets, faintly smiling.

Draco opened his eyes when he heard whimpers and soft crying. He jolted up when he saw you squirming and clutching the blanket you were wrapped in. "No, please, don't." He heard you whisper.

He sat on his own bed and brushed your hair away to see your cheeks covered in tears. Draco gently shook you. "(Y/n)? Hey, darling." He cooed.

You shook your head vigorously as if a violent thing had just happened. "No! Stop! Please!" You cried out. Draco noticed your uneven breathing causing him to help you sit up and place your head on his shoulder, rocking you gently. "(Y/n). If you can hear me, you got to wake up."

Still, you have no response but continue sobbing. His hand rubbed your back and placed a soft kiss on top of your head. "I'm here. Please listen to my voice. You're safe, okay?" His eyes looked down at his left arm that was covering a mark that he hated so much.

Slowly, you managed to calm down, but you were clinging to Draco. Draco remained close to you, never bothering to release you from his grasp. He softly combed your hair before laying down beside you, pulling you towards him closer as your head lay on top of his chest.

"Mhm..." You hummed as a small smile formed on your lips. Draco smiled back and placed a kiss on your forehead. "Sleep well, beautiful." He whispered before closing his eyes.

°•○●○•°

You stared at your dress, contemplating if you should go or not. After what happened between you and Draco, you were hesitating to attend the Christmas party. You didn't even know if he would still attend or not.

The door opened, revealing Hermione wearing a pink dress and a look of nervousness. Hermione frowned. "Are you not getting dressed? Come on. I don't want to go to the party without my best friend."

You chuckled. "Fine, I'll get dressed. But I'm only doing this for you."

Hermione smiled before leaving your room. You glanced at the dress and sighed. "Is it really required to have a date at that stupid party?"

After dressing up and styling your hair, you finally got out of your dorm room to find Hermione sitting on a chair, waiting anxiously by the fireplace in the common room. She was with Ginny, who was wearing a stunning blue dress, and her hair was simply styled. Ginny and Hermione lifted their heads up to see you. "Blimey, (Y/n)." Ginny gasped.

You smiled in return as you finally set your foot on the bottom of the stairs. "So, ladies. Ready to go?"

Ginny and Hermione smirked at each other before pulling you towards them and out of the Gryffindor Common Room. You were surprised by their eagerness until you realized as soon as you got out of the common room, you bumped against a familiar blonde boy.

Ginny and Hermione practically pushed you out of the common room.

You steadied yourself and looked up to see the familiar pair of grey eyes staring into yours. Your eyes scanned him from top to bottom, impressed and surprised that he was well dressed for the occasion.

The Slytherin Prince was wearing a silver vest underneath the black suit along with the emerald green tie that was neatly tied around his neck. His hair was slightly pushed back, not too much gel was placed, unlike the first-year Draco you met years ago.

You snapped back to reality when you heard snickering from behind you. You instantly turned around to see Ginny and Hermione waking back to the common room. "Ahem."

Hermione and Ginny turned around to face you. "Our dates aren't here yet." Ginny excused. "We'll meet you at the party, (Y/n)."

Before you could protest, Ginny shut the door. You sighed in defeat and rested your hands on your hips. "Wonder if it's too late to unfriend them." You whispered with a chuckle.

You turned around to see Draco, who was still standing behind you. "I didn't know you were going to come. After you decided to end our friendship, I thought--"

"Look, ending our friendship is the stupidest idea I have ever done." Draco interrupted. "I mean, I told you that you should stay away from me, but recently, you slept on my bed after studying with Parkinson in our common room."

"Not to mention, you told me you like me so..." You trailed off as you cleared your throat. "This way too complicated, Malfoy."

Draco sighed. "Yeah, it wasn't easy for me too." He took a deep breath and stretched out his hand for you to take. "Why don't we forget about those problems just for one night and have fun at the party."

You cracked a smile before intertwining your fingers with his. "I'd love that." The two of you walked together, unknowingly being spotted by Megan Stark, who just happened to pass by. Megan pressed her lips together as she hugged her books tighter.

"You know you can't stop them."

Megan turned to see Peter walking beside her. "I know it's fucked up that his father killed yours, but the two at least deserve to be together for just one night."

"I never wanted to stop their love." Megan corrected. "I'm just... bothered and worried. What will their future kid ask when their Grandpa Edward is not around? And what will they answer? That Grandad Lucius killed Grandpa Edward? It's weird, alright?"

Peter chuckled as he crossed his arms. "I can't believe you're worried about their future."

"Well, I am (Y/n)'s nosy little sister," Megan replied. "All I want is (Y/n) to have her happiness."

Peter hung his arm around Megan's shoulders, pecking the side of her head. "I think we all want that for her."

You and Draco arrived at the party. The Slug Club members, old and new ones, were dancing and talking to each other along with their companions and dates they brought. Slughorn was busy talking to another member of the Slug Club, but as soon as he glanced at the entrance, his smile grew to see you. "Ah, Ms. Stark! I was afraid you would miss this out!"

Draco leaned towards your ear. "I'm going to get some drinks. You want any?"

"Yes, please." You smiled. Draco smiled back at you and left to gt drinks. You made your way to Slughorn, who patted your back. "It's an honor to be here, sir." You told your professor.

"I hope your sister doesn't have any hard feelings nor hold a grudge against me when I didn't invite her," Slughorn replied apologetically.

You shook your head. "Oh, she's fine. She was actually relieved. She hates social gatherings and communicating with other people."

Slughorn nodded in understanding. His attention was snapped when an old student of his came, so you took the chance to walk away and look for your friends. You looked everywhere to find Harry talking to Neville. When Neville walked away to serve more party guests, you walked towards Harry. "Hello, Harry!"

Harry smiled. "Hi! You look ravishing."

You chuckled and smirked. "You look dashing too, Potter."

Harry chuckled but stopped when he spotted something. You looked around to see someone hiding behind the drapes. You and Harry shared a look before going towards the drapes. You both saw Hermione. "Hermione, what are you doing?" You asked.

"And what happened to you?" Harry asked.

"No, I've just escaped," Hermione replied, fixing her hair. "I mean, I left Cormac under the mistletoe."

"Cormac?" Harry asked, gasping.

"That's who you invited?" You asked in disbelief.

Hermione frowned and shrugged a little. "I thought it would annoy Ron the most." She defended as she crossed her arms. "He's got more tentacles than a Snarfalump plant."

Then a waiter came in with a plate full of food in his hand. You looked at it in wonder. "What are those?"

"Dragon tartare." The waiter replied.

Hermione shook her head. "No, I'm fine, thank you."

"Just as well." The waiter said. "They give one horribly bad breath."

Harry chuckled while Hermione thought for a moment before huffing. "On second thoughts," She took the plate and grabbed a handful of Dragon tails, stuffing them inside her mouth. "It might keep Cormac at bay. Oh, God, here he comes."

Hermione gave the plate to Harry before crouching down and running away just as Cormac joined you and Harry behind the drapes.

"I think she just went to powder her nose." You lied, pointing outside.

"Slippery little minx, your friend. Likes to work her mouth too, doesn't she?" You gave Cormac a look while Cormac took a Dragon tartare and ate it. "What is this I'm eating, by the way?"

"Dragon balls," Harry replied, causing Cormac to widen his eyes.

The drapes opened, revealing Snape with a stern expression. Suddenly, Cormac vomited on Snape's shoes. Cormac looked up fearfully, gulping. Harry started to play with the drapes while you awkwardly looked around, trying to contain your laughter.

"You've just brought yourself a month's detention, McLaggen." Harry and you quietly exited the scene, but Snape stopped Harry. "Not so quick, Potter."

You patted Harry's shoulder. "Looks like you're in trouble, mate. I gotta go."

Harry sighed and nodded. You hesitantly left him and found Draco alone, drinking with Luna just a few feet away from him. You approached Draco and smiled. "Hi."

Draco looked down at you and smiled back. "Hey." He brought you a drink, and you gladly took it, taking a sip. You turned to Luna and waved at her. "Hello, Luna. You look beautiful!"

She faced you and smiled sweetly. "Hello, (Y/n)! You look beautiful too." She looked behind you and slightly nodded. "I see you brought Malfoy."

You glanced at Draco, who continued to drink, and you nodded at Luna. "Mhm. You're Harry's date for the night, yeah?"

Luna nodded. "Yes." She looked at Draco again and back to you. "You two look great as a couple."

Your eyes widened while Draco choked on his drink, meaning he heard what Luna said. Draco glanced at Luna before coughing. "Bloody hell." He muttered.

You chuckled nervously and shook your head. "W-We're not a couple, Luna."

"I think you two should be." Luna smiled before walking away. You turned to Draco, who was looking away, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand. You scratched the back of your neck. "Sorry about that."

Draco remained quiet for a while before turning around to face you. "If we have the chance, do you want us to be together?"

You stared at him in awe. "I... what?" You shook your head. "I don't care if we have a chance or not. Draco, I've always wanted to be with you."

Draco glanced around the party to check if someone was listening to your conversation with him. He took your hand and dragged you to a corner to have more privacy. "Even now?" He asked. "Do you still want us to be together? No matter what happens?" He sighed. "This year... it's too difficult for us, you know, with everything that's happening. The Dark Lord has returned and then my father... y-you know... and--"

"And what?"

Draco closed his eyes before looking down at his left arm. You looked down at it as well, and your breathing hitched. Your eyes widened, and you softly gasped, clasping a hand on your mouth. "It's true then? The rumors? You're..."

Draco opened his mouth to speak but was interrupted when Snape approached you both. "We need to talk," Snape stated with his usual monotonous voice.

"Professor, I'm in the middle of--"

"That wasn't a request, Mr. Malfoy."

Draco hesitated and clenched his jaw but walked away with Snape, leaving you all confused and shocked. You turned around to watch Draco leave the party.

You looked at Harry, who was staring in the direction where Draco and Snape went. You watched as the Chosen One left the party to follow them. Ginny tapped your shoulders worriedly. "Hey, are you alright?"

You looked at her and slowly nodded. "Mhm. I'm okay. Thanks, Gin."