Ineffable. [D. Malfoy]

sixteen.

The game took precisely over an hour, and she had lost.

Mr.Malfoy was agile. He would stare down at the board for several minutes, contemplating his next move. His eyebrows would raise after she would move her chess piece, or sometimes they would scrunch together after realizing he had made a risky move. 

His fingers would sweep across the board, knocking her pieces down one after the one. And each time, he smiled in triumph. Esme was certainly not impressed. She felt a wave of anger that she was not accustomed to before. It makes her frustrated, and she tended to grow distracted quickly. It was the type of frustration that make her stuck. 

Unable to come up with a new plan fast enough. She had planned and planned her movements, analyzing his and her strategies, but no matter how many detours or new ideas that had sparked in her mind, she had lost.

After Mr.Malfoy won her king, he sat up straight, holding a serious expression over his tight features. He didn't smile, but beyond the hardness of his hues, there was a slight glimmer of happiness. Her eyes narrowed at him in irritation as he sat calmly waiting for her to speak. 

Esme glared at him, watching his lips seal into a tight line. His hands rested upon the table, the ring still there. Her eyes flickered down to it, and she heard him shift slightly in his seat, pushing that hand off the table.

"Good try."

"How did yo- Rematch."

It was another way to get close to him.

Spend time

Get close

Make him vulnerable

Exploit it to get information.

"Correct me if I'm wrong, but weren't you the one that said chess was a game of strategy. I simply maneuvered my pieces to out play you."

"But how- I planned it perfectly."

"You were always one step behind. You lost your focus Ms.Smith."

She rolled her eyes as his hand rested back on the brown table. He leaned forward slightly, his chest pushed up against the edge of it. His eyes were full of curiosity but still closed off. It was hard to figure out his secrets when he determined to refrain from revealing them. 

She would just have to try harder.

Her left hand reached across the board, resting it on top of his. His entire body stiffened as if he had been struck and took the posture of a statue. His face turned blank, white as a sheet. Grey eyes solid. His entire persona had changed in the blink of an eye.

Trying to snap him out of his solitude, she caressed her fingertips on the soft skin of his hand. Mr.Malfoy snapped out of his trance, yanking his hand back from her hold and pushing out of his seat- now standing up. He pushed his blazer back over his shoulders, running a hand through his messy hair. He looked down at her as if she was a curse. His features were hardened, and she caught him clenching both his jaw and hands.

"When was the last time you went outside for a walk?" he snapped.

"With you."

"You haven't been outside since then? Do you have no motive to make your life the slightest bit better?"

He shook his head, and strange disbelief flooded through Esme. This is what he did when she tried to get close to him. He would close up like a clam refraining from any sort of touch or allowing her to see his raw emotions. It was always on his terms, but he never let her do anything to him when she wanted to.