But, Love is Such a Strong Word
It was a cool autumn morning, nothing out of the norm. The wind licked the ends of the curtain of the open window. The steps creaked quietly as a woman tip toed down to the kitchen. She busied herself about the coffeepot, preparing a warm brew for that morning. Soon a man joined her, semi-dressed and well prepared. He took a cup of the chestnut mix, sipping it gently at the kitchen table. The girl, tendrils of flaming hair framing her face, sat down across from him.
"What are we?" she asked, setting down her coffee cup, wrapping her pink bathrobe around her tightly. Draco looked at Ginny, his eyebrow furrowing deep into his forehead.
"Whatever you want us to be," he sighed, getting up. His chair made a loud scooting noise behind him, causing Ginny to flinch. She brushed her crimson tendrils behind her ears, giving her an excuse to fidget with her hands. She lapsed into a silence, deep in thought, though Draco didn't seem to notice. He was busy grabbing his work robe and briefcase.
"I don't want to live like this anymore," Ginny said suddenly looking up at him, a tear glistening in her eye.
"Why, we're doing just fine," he asked sullenly, his grip tightening around his briefcase. He busied himself with papers, trying to brush the conversation away. Ginny could see the sweat beads forming around his forehead, the way his eyes scampered about the room nervously. She sighed, brushing it away from her mind, it was sure to stop her if she did not.
"You may be doing fine, but not me. This..." Ginny trailed off, motioning to everything around her, "This is breaking me inside. I can't live day to day not knowing how I'm going to end up. I just wish you would tell me you love me for no reason. Is this a dead end, because, if it is, I want to move on with my life! I'm twenty three, and I'm not getting any younger," she stopped upon seeing his scrunched face. Feeling suddenly awful, she placed her hand over her mouth. She knew he didn't feel any consolation by this, but she still hoped he would understand.
Though he didn't. He never understood what she said, or what she meant. It was as if she was a closed book to him, though she supposed that she was more a diary no one wanted to open. Not even him. Her heart twitched from a painful jab, her eyes glazing over with tears.
Draco, the man who never shown her his true feelings, walked to the door. He rested his hand on the knob for a second, mulling around thoughts and ideas. Ginny sat back down, taking a sip of her coffee, knowing he wouldn't offer her any more on the subject. He looked at her briefly, shunning his eyes to the floor.
Draco sighed, his blonde hair covering his eyes. "We'll talk about this when I get home." With that he was out the door, gone, slamming the door behind him. Anger bubbled inside Ginny, heat firing up inside her body. It was the famous Wealsey temper. Usually, she never liked the feeling, but it felt appropriate at the moment and she was content.
"He doesn't want to talk about this? Well, I'll see he doesn't have to bother with any of my foolish antics again!" Ginny snapped, pushing herself away from the table. She stomped over to the sink, slamming her cup inside. She blasted the cold water on, reaching for the soap and sponge. Scrubbing fiercely, she mumbled curses under her breath. Seeing that she was scraping the print off the cup, she dried it off, placing it in the drying rack. The cup clanged loudly, alarming even Ginny.
A portrait of Draco and herself gasped, hugging tightly onto each other. The picture Draco wrapped his arms around the picture Ginny, lightly kissing her head. Ginny could have spat with disgust.
"Oh, go tell it to someone who cares," she barked sharply, ripping the picture from the wall, turning it facedown.
With her temper fired up, she stomped over to their bedroom. Stepping above piles of dirty clothes, which lay strewn across the floor she slowly made her way across the room. She approached their bed, sheets all a mess on top, corners hanging down on the floor. Not bothering to scoff at the messy state of her room, she stopped, picking up her ring. She examined the diamond studded band, a large emerald carved into a snake on top. It was the ring he had given her as a promise. She threw it across the room, her eyes leaking salty tears.
Ginny stepped briskly across her room, pausing at the bed. She shivered at the prospect of sleeping in the same bed as... him. He didn't deserve a name she decided, shaking the thought from her mind, scared that it would change her decision to leave. She reached under the cream, silky sheets, pulling an enormous trunk out onto the open floor. Picking up her belongings, which ranged from clothes, to books, to items in the medicine cabinet, she threw them neatly into the trunk.
Hours later it was set... she was leaving. Her friend, Eliana, had reserved a flat in her apartment building. It was cozy enough for the time being Ginny supposed looking at a picture Eliana had just owled her. Setting her trunk down, she walked to the kitchen table.
She hesitated upon reaching for the piece of parchment and quill, unsure whether or not it was the best decision. Feeling compelled, she grabbed each, her quill scratching furiously on the parchment. The liquid seemed to flow about the page, the wording correct, written in the way that she wanted to voice it. Satisfied, she dashed her signature at the bottom.
Abruptly standing up, she cast a weightless charm on her trunk, stepping out the door. Forgetting her key was in her pocket, Ginny slid it gently under the door. She was rid of him; he was gone for good, though it didn't felt like anything she would have expected. Nothing good, she would assure many others later on, but horrible, as if something was slowly freezing her body from the inside out.
Later that day, in the very spot she had sat, writing the letter, Draco Malfoy sat, reading it, fingering something in his pocket. Finishing her note, his walls crumbled down around him just with the simplicity her words, tears forming in his eyes.
He had never cried before, but it seemed so natural now, not awkward like he had always imagined it. He felt guilty; guilty of not being able to form a pleasant environment for the one he cared about most. The one thing in his life he cherished was gone, gone for good, never to return.
Angrily he slammed his fist down on the table. "Damn!" It was all he could say, the only word that could express everything he felt. In a sudden rampage, he tore about the flat, knocking various objects to the ground, shattering pictures with his bare fists.
The feeling of breaking anything filled the empty crater she had caused. It felt good, to be in power, to be able to decide the fate of things. He looked at a vase she had given him. He smashed it to the ground in a matter of seconds. A soothing pain spread though his veins, causing him to crush the flower he held in his hand.
"Damn, damn, damn, damn, damn!" he yelled, sinking into the corner of a wall. He burried his head in his chest, pulling his knees up around his waist. Shaking like he was under a severe fever, Draco relaxed his once clenched hands. All he could do was cry the last sentence of her letter echoing in his head. It was the only one he comprehended out of her entire letter.
I have to leave, but know I will always love you, -Ginny
He didn't understand why she had left. If she loved him, wouldn't it only make sence that she would stay? He sighed, looking back on their past. Hadn't they been happy? Hadn't they been content with each other?
It hadn't mattered that he didn't shower her with gifts every day. It didn't even matter that he didn't tell her he loved her at every moment he could, or had it?
"But, love is such a strong word..." Draco trailed off, his mind twisting hard to work out why he was beginning to doubt himself. She had deserved the single word, it would have made her happy, and it would have been the truth. He did love her, but he hadn't perfected the art of expressing it.
Picking up his coat, Draco turned to the door, stopping momentarily at the portrait laying face down on the floor. Slowly, he picked it up. Upon seeing it was a picture of them, he frowned.
"If you look on the floor, there's the address she went to, not too bright eh?" Picture Ginny smiled, pointing to his left. Draco dropped the portrait, letting it fall down to the floor again, barely hearing an unappreciative 'oof' from the portrait's subjects.
Not caring, Draco picked up the piece of parchment, examining the address. With a soft pop he disapperated into Ginny's new flat.
Seeing she wasn't home from work he waited on her bed, sitting himself down for a long wait. Keeping himself entertained, he fussed with a rose on her bedside table. He couldn't wait to see the shocked look on her face when she walked in.
Indeed it was shocked, and angry, though the latter dominated her face. Her chocolate eyes narrowed, flashing with an unrestrained malice.
"What are you doing here?" she spat at him, backing up as he stood from her bed. All he did was shove a rose in her face. Her eyes flicked to the vase that lay on her bedside table. That cheap piece of crap didn't even buy me a rose! she thought icily, grabbing the rose from his hand.
"I love you," he said, looking deep into her eyes. Her stance softened... her tense shoulders relaxed. She backed away from him, bumping into her dresser. She smiled, a flashback of her first time with him flickering before her eyes. He had cornered her, in the same fashion. Old dogs don't learn new tricks, she told herself looking at Draco, her eyes mellowing out into their normal shade of chocolate. She took in the sound of his voice, how nice it sounded when he told her he loved her. He said he loved her? She jumped, looking into his eyes.
Ginny blinked unbelievingly. "What?"
"I love you Virginia," Draco sighed. Ginny absorbed the wonderful sound, savoring it in fear it was the last time she would hear the lovely word, smelling the rose. Looking down at it, she saw it had an odd appearance as she stared down into the middle. Draco smirked beside her as she looked from him to the distorted rose. Not knowing why, her dainty fingers began peeling away the petals.
She saw a glimmer of gold. Ginny worked eagerly to remove the petals from the delicate flower. Peeling away the last petal, which concealed what was inside she gasped. A golden band lay inside the flower. Ginny looked wide eyed at Draco. He got down on one knee.
"Will you marry me?" he asked. Ginny wrapped her arms around his neck, placing soft butterfly kisses on his face. He grinned, wrapping his arms around her as he stood, swinging her around the tiny room.
"I love you, I love you, I love you!" Ginny cooed in his ear, kissing him lightly on the lips. Draco kissed her back, kissing her with everything he had. Ginny stumbled back breathless, awed by his kiss.
"I was going to give it to you earlier, but you didn't seem to be home," Draco smiled, holding Ginny in his arms.
She grinned. "Well, I'm home now,"