Traitor: A Draco Malfoy Story

twenty-two

Jenna didn't come back the whole rest of the night. I laid awake in bed, staring at the ceiling and listening to the soft snores of the other girls while I waited, but her bed remained empty. I knew she had other friends, but that didn't mean it didn't hurt when she was obviously not returning because she was mad at me. I didn't even know how she had found out. No one had seen us, to my knowledge. No one who would let anything slip to Jenna at least. I finally fell into a restless sleep near the early hours of the morning, only to wake up exhausted and in a bad mood after the sun had risen.

"Jenna must be really mad at you for her to not come back," sneered one of the girls in my dorm. I knew her name was Pansy Parkinson, but I hadn't spoken to her much before. "What did you do to her?"

Millicent smirked as she sat up in her bed. "Jenna found out that Azalea kissed Malfoy, that's what."

I blushed, glowering at the girl. "He kissed me," I clarified.

Pansy's eyes narrowed, and her cheeks turned a deep shade of red. "He wouldn't do that."

"Well, he did, Parkinson."

She lept off her bed to shove me as I stood next to the furnace, warming up before I put my uniform on. I reached for my wand, but what was I gonna do, flash a light in her face? Those DA lessons better pay off later. I pointed my wand at her with a steady hand. Hers, however, was shaking slightly. "He wouldn't kiss you because you aren't a Pureblood. Not to mention Draco is mine," she hissed, practically seething. How did she know I wasn't a pureblood? I chose to ignore it. She was probably just assuming.

"Yours?" I barked a laugh. "How come I never see him pay a second thought to you, then?"

She let out a bloodcurdling yell, like a battle cry, and went hurtling toward me. I dodged her advance and skirted around the furnace. My natural light steps from ballet made me much more agile and graceful than her, even though she was a fairly decently built girl. I ducked spells as she shrieked them. This girl was way more high-strung than I cared to deal with in the morning, but again, unless she hated lights, I couldn't do much.

"Expelliarmus."

Pansy's wand went sailing across the room and her gaze followed the arc, watching it clatter to the wood floor by her bed. Scowling, she stalked over to it and snatched it up with a grunt. I looked to see who had saved me that battle and Jenna stood in the doorway, pausing for a brief moment before walking inside.

"Jenna, thank god, where were you last night? I--"

She cut me off with the raise of the hand, looking at me with a glare that could whither flowers. She grabbed a change of clothes and slipped into the bathroom.

I sat down on my bed with a sigh. I don't know why I thought it would be so easy. I threw on a uniform and made my way to the Great Hall for breakfast.

As I walked through the hallway, I felt several sets of eyes on me, but every time I looked around to see who was staring, everyone averted their gaze and took a sudden extreme interest in their meal, their feet, or their book. I passed a gaggle of fourth years who whispered, "That's the girl who kissed Draco Malfoy!"

"I can't believe she had the balls to do that."

"I can't believe he let that ugly toad within six feet of him!"

I kept my head down. I just needed to eat, and then I could go to class, hide in my dorm, sleep, and endure this all over again. No biggie. I'd been called worse.

I didn't sit at the Slytherin table, instead, I sought out Ashton. Hopefully, she wasn't as mad at me as Jenna was. If I was really lucky, maybe she wouldn't know anything at all. But those hopes were dashed as soon as I slid into the spot next to her.