Hurt Loves

Chapter 3

Hurt Loves

Aravaeya

~~)~*~(~~

Disclaimer: I own none of this, and I don’t need to make any money off of this as I have enough of my own. J

~~)~*~(~~

I am understandably silent at our late dinner, having spent my entire afternoon reflecting on the events at hand while sitting by the gently lapping lake. Hermione chatters away happily to Ron, Francesca, Neville, Seamus, and all the rest of our other Gryffindor friends, Harry sitting behind her with his arms around her waist. I am part of their group, but I do not offer my opinions on anything, content to just listen and be silent. I let my eyes wander over to the Slytherin table, and I do not see Draco there. I hope that he is still in his rooms. He shouldn’t be moving around to freely yet, and as it is almost 10:00, I want him to be there when I get there after dinner. I see Crabbe and Goyle gorging themselves with food, and my mind automatically recalls what Draco said about him not being able to associate with them anymore. I wonder what happened. I think that I’ll have to ask Draco about it when I see him next.

Harry’s eyes wander to me occasionally, studying me intently. I know that he wants to know where I’ve been, what I’ve been doing, and why his invisibility cloak hasn’t been returned to him yet, but I do not feel ready to answer him. I am so confused myself, and I do not know what to think about what I have been doing and what has happened as a result.

I do not regret helping Draco – on the contrary, I am extraordinarily happy that with my help, he has recovered as well as he has. I am confused about what I am feeling towards Draco. I first helped him out of compassion for a fellow schoolmate, a fellow human being, but now, I help him because I want to be around him. I want to know him. His thoughts, his feelings, his story – I want to know it all.

I also know what my parents and brothers would think if they knew that I had spent the night in Draco’s bed, and that he had kissed me, if only for a millisecond. I know that they would be unhappy, disappointed, and Ron would be absolutely livid, but yet, I want to be there again. I don’t want anything – physically intimate are the only words I can think of – yet, but I like that I can be a little freer with him. I want him to talk to me about what he’s going through. I want to be able to watch over him in the night. I want to be allowed to care for him. I want to see him in his damn boxers again! And I want to see  him in them when he’s not all bruised and broken. When he’s not being abused. When he’s not hurt. I sigh. When he’s not hurt…

“Ginny!” I glance up, surprised at the hand that I see waving itself in front of my face. As my eyes come back into focus, I realize that it is Hermione calling me.

“Umm?” I murmur, embarrassed that everyone else around me is looking at me as if I have four heads and a dragon’s tail sprouting out of my arse.

“What happened to you?” Hermione asks, laying the back of her hand on my forehead. I’m all flushed, and I know it. Thinking of Draco Malfoy in his boxer shorts will do that to you. And I do feel a little sick anyways. “You feel really hot. Maybe you should go and see Madam Pomfrey.”

I nod, glad to have an excuse to leave the table handed to me like that. “Yeah, I haven’t been feeling to well lately, I think I will go.” I smile weakly at my friend, and see Harry’s face over her shoulder, looking at me with a sorrowful look on it.

“Good,” Hermione says, and I get up from the table and begin to walk away, glad for the escape, glad that now I can go and see Draco.

“Wait, Gin, I’ll take you there.” I turn to see Harry rising from the table, coming towards me, a nervous smile playing on his face. I smile back so that I will not seem ungrateful, and sigh softly in exasperation as he takes my arm and leads me through the Great Hall.

When we leave the Great Hall I stop in the entranceway, pulling away from him and turning to face him. “If this is about yesterday-”

“It’s not, Ginny,” he says quickly, and I become quite, waiting for him to explain himself. “Actually, it kind of is-” I begin to feel anger rising within me. “but not in the way you think, Gin.”

“Enlighten me,” I demand. I can’t help but feel bad for snapping at him, but I really don’t know what’s come over me.

“I want to apologize for accusing you of sleeping with Malfoy,” he says, true regret shining in his eyes. “It was wrong of me, and I jumped to the wrong conclusions, and I’m sorry. I just thought that you were making a big mistake, and I don’t want to see you hurt like that, Gin. I love you as if you were my own sister, and to see you chewed up and spite out by Draco Malfoy would kill me inside. I know that you said that you weren’t with Draco, and I believe you, but I jumped to conclusions, and my mind ran away with me. I thought that Draco was using you, and I would kill him before I let that happen.”

I smile gently at him, letting him know that I’m not preparing another snapfest. I grasp his hand and lead him down one of the relatively deserted side corridors to a small alcove with a bench. I sit down and motion for him to do the same, which he does.

“Harry, I am going to tell you something in the strictest confidence. You can tell no one, not even Hermione. Do you solemnly swear to keep this a secret?” I look at him pointedly, and he nods earnestly. “I was with Malfoy.” He starts to look a little angry but I hold up my hand, willing him to stay quiet and hear me out. “I was not sleeping with Malfoy. I was helping him.”

“Helping him?” Harry questions, and I nod in reply.

“I found him the other night, badly hurt, and I have been sneaking off at night to help him with the medicines and salves that he needs for his injuries,” I explain. He looks at me, intrigued I can tell, wanting to know more, but I have resolved that this is all that I will tell him. It is what he needs to know to stop questioning me, and not enough that he will start assuming other things about our relationship. I do not want to betray Draco’s confidence, although he did not swear me to secrecy, and I will not tell Harry the details of his injuries and how he acquired them.

“What happened?” Harry asks, halfway concerned that a fellow wizard is hurt, and halfway eager to find out what has happened to his arch rival.

I smile kindly and take one of Harry’s hands in my own, patting in gently to reassure him. “I can’t tell you anymore, but you can stop worrying about me now, okay?”

He looks a little disappointed that he has gained no more information, so I wrap my arms around him and hug him tightly. He slowly puts his own arms around me and squeezes me strongly.

“I couldn’t bear it if anything happened to you, Gin-bug,” he whispers slowly, kissing the top of my head softly, “It would tear me apart. Be careful with him.”

“I will,” I reassure him, hugging him tighter. “Don’t you worry about me, Har.”

“I love you, Gin,” he whispers, pulling back slightly to make sure that I see the sincerity in his eyes.

“And I love you too, Harry,” I say, smiling at him reassuringly, letting him know that all is forgiven. “If I didn’t have you as a big brother, I’m not sure what I’d do.”

He suddenly looks immensely happy, as if I have just given him the best birthday in the world.

“Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have a patient to see.”

He smiles, no protest in his eyes, and I lean forward and give him a soft kiss on the cheek before I make my way back into the main area of the castle.

~~)~*~(~~

“Draco?” I whisper as I enter his suite of rooms. I hear no reply and I cautiously make my way further into the main room. It is empty. My heart races with fear. Where is he? I did not see him downstairs at dinner. What if his father came for him?

Then, I hear the slightest noise which gives me immediate hope. I hear the gentle splash of water and turn towards the bathroom, relieved to see Draco immersed in the tub. His eyes are closed, and I slip my shoes off, tiptoeing into the room. I lean up against the counter and watch him as he lies there, relaxed, with a grin on his face. I’m careful to let my gaze focus on the upper half of his body, and not the lower, which is fuzzy with the lapping of the water and the bubbles of soap. I am content to sit here and drink my fill of his beautiful physique while he doesn’t know that I’m here.

“Enjoying the show?” He smirks, cracking open one eye and glancing towards me.

I gasp in shock and quickly turn red. “Draco! How did you know I was here?”

“I’m pretty adept at hearing even the smallest of sounds, and I heard you enter my rooms,” he says, opening the other eye and leaning his chin on the side of the tub to look up at me. I gently lower myself so that I am kneeling on the floor next to him, my eyes level with his. He grins his trademark half-smile, and I grin back. “I’m glad you came, Ginny. I was almost afraid that you wouldn’t come.”

“Of course I came, Draco. I told you that I would.” I reply, watching him carefully. We just watch each other for a couple of moments. “How are you feeling?”

He gives me a thumbs up sign with one hand and a thumbs down sign with the other, grinning slightly. “I think the question should be, how are you feeling, Ginny? You look a little pale.”

I sigh and lean against the side of the tub, wiping the sweat from my brow. I have been feeling quite lightheaded and queasy for the last few minutes, which was part of the reason that I joined him on ground level. I shrug, not meeting his eyes. He sighs, and I hear him splashing around a little more.

“Can you pass me a towel?” he asks, and I slowly lift myself off of the floor, feeling a little more dizzy as I do so, and hand him the towel closest to me. He smiles appreciatively and I sag down against the sink as he gets out of the bath. It doesn’t even occur to me for a second that he was just completely naked in front of me. I’m just suddenly feeling to sick to care about anything, and I dive for the toilet as I feel what little I have eaten today, most of it remaining from our brunch, heave itself up and out of my tired, achy body. I gasp for air and clutch the sides of the porcelain basin so hard that my hands turn completely white. As another round announces itself, I feel him pull back my hair with one hand and gently rub circles on my back with the other. His tenderness helps to relax me, and slowly I start to regain control over my stomach.

We sit there until my sickness passes, and when I am finally convinced that it is over, I relax away from the toilet into the side of the bathroom counter.

“Are you okay?” Draco asks, and I nod my head weakly, embarrassed, looking up at him with a grateful smile. “What happened?”

“I don’t know,” I say wearily, “It was so sudden. But I’ve been feeling dizzy and a little nauseous since dinner time. I think I need some sleep.”

He looks like he’s sorry for something, and I throw him a questioning glance.

“I’ve kept you up far to long these past couple of nights,” he says, “You should go back to Gryffindor Tower and leave me be. I’ll do just fine.”

I vehemently shake my head. “I don’t want to go to Gryffindor Tower, Draco, I want to be here. I want to be right here.”

He looks surprised, but says nothing in reply. He offers me his good hand to help me regain my footing, and I gradually rise from the floor to a standing position. I still feel weak and we put our arms around each others shoulders for support as we hobble out into the main room.

I can tell that his broken ankle is still not completely healed yet because he is wincing every time that he steps down on it. I nudge him towards the bed while I stop at his dresser, grabbing a pair of red boxers and a black t-shirt from the draws that I am not familiar with. I make my way over to the bed where he is sitting and give him the clothing. He points to my satchel, which holds my pajamas from last night, sitting behind him on the duvet. I grab it and move over to the other side of the bed. We change quickly, neither one of us looking at the other out of respect for the others’ privacy. When we are both finished, I pull back the covers, and motion for him to situate himself comfortably on his side of the bed, which he does. I climb up next to him and lean over him to access the nightstand, grabbing the few bottles and bandages that I need to finish my work.

Despite his protests, I quickly re-wrap his damaged ankle and apply the healing salve to the rest of the bruises that remain, namely, the large one on his lower abdomen, and a couple of large ones on his upper chest. I gently prod his collarbone and find that it has healed nicely, being the least damaged of the bones that were broken. I test his wrist and see that it too has come along quite nicely, even though Draco still winces a little when I bend it, and says that there is still some pain.

I’m starting to feel dizzy again, and Draco says that I’m starting to turn pale as well, and he insists that I lie down, so I do. I breath in and out deeply, and I feel my insides start to settle.

The clock on the mantle chimes twelve midnight, and Draco mutters the charm to extinguish the lights.

“Do you mind?” I ask, motioning to the bed and then to myself. He smiles soothingly and lifts the covers so that they are surrounding me in a nest of warmth and comfort. I am surprised at his tenderness, but I do not argue, feeling myself slip into the realm of the subconscious.

The last thing that I feel before losing myself to slumber is Draco scooting up close to me so that our foreheads are almost touching, and so that his warm steady breathing lulls me into a peaceful sleep.

~~)~*~(~~

“Wake up, Ginny.”

I hear a voice whispering to me gently, and as I reluctantly open my eyes to let in the morning light, I see Draco, sitting beside me in the bed, leaning over me.

“W-what?” I stutter, not wanting to wake up this early. “Draco? What time is it?”

“Seven thirty,” he replies.

“I don’t have class till nine thirty and it only takes me an hour to get ready,” I mumble, closing my eyes once more.

I feel him relax back into the mattress next to me, and suddenly the awkwardness of this situation hits me. I’m sleeping in Draco’s bed for the second night, and I’ve practically lived here for three days. What is happening to me?

“What?” Draco asks, turning on his side so that he is facing me.

“Huh?” I murmur ineloquently, struck by the utter sexiness of his ruffled bedhead hair and sleepy looking eyes. My own eyes drift down to his lips, and our brief kiss of the day before fills my memory. Glancing back up to look in his eyes, I can sense that the same thing is running through his head too.

“Ginny,” he says softly.

“Umm?” I reply, the soft noise rumbling from the bottom of my throat.

“Do you feel uncomfortable with this?” he asks, motioning in between us and at the bed.

I shake my head. “No.”

“I’m glad,” he replies, and I raise my eyebrows, eager to know his meaning, but he does not offer an explanation. I watch as he slowly leans his head in once more, tilting it so that he can access my own face better, and I close my eyes in anticipation. His lips brush against my own, and I relax a little, lifting my head slightly so that they brush again, and then again. I play with a couple of strands of his velvety hair as our lips touch again, a little less softly than before. I feel his warm soft palm against my cheek, and I feel him whisper my name against my forehead, and I open my eyes to find them just an inch or two from his own.

“I’ve never done this before,” he whispers, and my eyes widen in absolute surprise.

“You’ve never kissed a girl before?” I ask, and he shakes his head, a sheepish look flashing across his face. Wow. The great and popular Slytherin king, Mr. Draco Malfoy, has never kissed a girl before.

“Well, don’t worry,” I reassure him, “I’ve never kissed a boy before either. We don’t have to rush this.”

He looks rather surprised at my confession, because last year Seamus and I were quite a well-known Gryffindor couple.

I pull away from him, giving him a kind smile of reassurance, and slip out of the bed.

He smiles back and gets out of the bed as well. “Are you feeling better this morning?”

“Yeah, Draco, I am, thank you.” I search around for my satchel only to realize that I don’t have any clean clothes with me. I glance back up at him with a thoughtful look, wondering how I am going to acquire a school uniform.

Draco seems to realize what I am looking for and hobbles over to his dresser, reaching into the topmost right-hand drawer, one that I’ve never searched before. He pulls out an outfit that I recognize as being the one that I wore here on Friday, the one that he had in with his soiled laundry. He hands it to me with a worried smile, and I check it through, making sure that I have everything that I need. The uniform is complete and I shoot him a weary smile and make my way into the bathroom where I proceed to run a hot bath with some bubbles that I found in the bottom of the medicine cabinet. I undress, tossing my things into the laundry, and slowly sink into the steaming water, my muscles aching quite painfully. I relax into the water and stretch out as much as I can, resting my head against the end of the elegant tub, eyes closing in bliss.

I just lay there, letting the hot water work it’s magic when I hear a slight movement in the room.

“Enjoying the show?” I smirk, cracking open an eye to see Draco sitting beside the tub as I was last night.

“Oh, very much thank you,” he replies smartly, but I can see the tenderness in his eyes. His expressions towards me have changed so remarkably over the last few days. He used to look at me with no expression at all, or with one of hatred, loathing, and anger and now, when he looks at me, I see tenderness and care in his eyes, it makes my heart flutter in anticipation of what will come.

I relax into the water once more, letting my eyes slip shut, letting him watch my face, the only part of me not shrouded in bubbles. I suddenly feel a warm trickle of water run down the side of my neck, and open my eyes to see Draco pouring it gently over my head from a large ivory water jug. I sigh softly as he takes the shampoo and massages my head as I did for him previously, relaxing me even more. I’ve never had anybody else wash my hair before.

He leans down towards me and presses a gentle kiss to the corner of my eye, and I think to myself how easily I could get used to this…

Used to long baths in the morning. Used to waking up next to someone in a large cozy bed. Used to someone lavishing affection on me. Used to falling in love…

~~)~*~(~~

Please Review. This is my first Draco/Ginny fic, and, like any other author, reviews are what make it all worth it!