NEMESIS || Draco Malfoy

65

— I recommend listening to "as the world caves in" by Sarah Cothran while reading this chapter :))) Have fun. —

The moonlight shone right through the bottom window of the staircase leading up to the Astronomy Tower, falling on Draco's face directly and illuminating its pale colour as if he was a star on a stage.

And he looked directly at me, his grey eyes boring into mine with an unapologeticness I had never seen from him before. Other's might've said he was staring— admiring, even.

Though, for me, it seemed like nothing more than another pair of eyes that couldn't divert from the other, even if they wanted to.

And so, with our chest's heaving as our breaths grew heavier by the eye contact alone — knowing what would follow not long after — we didn't dare break the silence that laid underneath our heavy breaths.

Scared that if either of us moved, things would unfold in a manner so predictable yet unpredictable, we didn't dare to.

The first time I broke our eye contact, my eyes flickered up the stairs, scanning our surroundings before falling back on the blond before me. His gaze followed mine, and he sighed as it fell back on me.

"I can't let you go up there and do this, Draco." I swallowed thickly after the words escaped my lips, my voice rough and the sound of it making me draw my brows together tightly.

My head shook at my own thoughts, and a scoff accompanied the gesture. "You know I want to—"

It hurt so terribly to breathe again. My lungs tightening as the wind in them felt on fire — burning throughout me mercilessly.

If anyone ever asked me if there was one single moment in my existence I'd never want to relive again, I'd say it was this one; the one when everything came crashing down. When my walls fell, my eyes brimmed with tears, and he did nothing but watch me.

The first tear rolled down my cheek when I mentioned my sister; what He did to her, what He would do to her.

The promise I'd worked so hard to hold.

I tried my best not to have others follow; blinked my tears away, closed my eyes completely if I had to.

But I couldn't stop talking. It was like a gate opened, and I was unable to close it again. It was like a waterfall of words falling out my mouth. I spoke so fast, mentioned so much; half the time, I was unsure if I even made sense.

I wasn't sure where my eagerness to share my thoughts came from; didn't even notice at first. Eventually, I did.

Abruptly, I cut myself off, a singular gasp escaping my lips as I shook my head vigorously. My eyes batted open to meet his, mine wide in shock and confusion as to why I was talking to him about any of it in the first place.

It seemed he had an answer to my question without my ever having to say it out loud.

"It's what happens when you crack under the pressure—" He explained, his voice calm and his head cocking to the side. My lips parted to disagree, finding offence in the statement alone and wondering how much better he must've felt that I had — in his words — cracked before he did.

But then, he continued his sentence before I had the chance to. "—Lucky for me, it was just Snape there when it happened to me."

Oh.

My mouth closed.

Draco drew a deep breath as his eyes landed on me again, searching my face for a reaction. At this point, I felt like an open book— felt vulnerable with his gaze so intense.