Today is the day.
Today is the day Kallista agrees to take Draco's hand in marriage. Agrees to become a Malfoy just for the sake of their reputation.
She never thought she would see this day coming, but here she is, listening to the clock tick as time goes by. Perhaps she should escalate the window and leave. But she is not a coward. Not today.
Standing before a large mirror, Kallista stares at her reflection, her brows deeply furrowed as her hands graze the fabric of her white dress. The window being ajar, she listens to the chants of the birds, a beautiful melody leading to an exquisite day in a big château in the French Riviera.
The Malfoy's have always gotten married in France. Draco thought it would be a great idea to follow the tradition.
"Why not South of France?" He had suggested. Kallista was sitting next to him, her gaze roaming over the menu they had chosen for the banquet.
"The same place as the engagement party?" Narcissa inquired.
Kallista and Draco exchanged a glance. "Maybe another château," he proposed, shrugging, then raised his brows at his fiancée. "Is that okay with you?"
"Sure," she only replied.
It was starting to become so real. Too real.
Every time she faces her own self in a mirror, she can't help the heavy weight rippling at her chest, thinking of what happened a few weeks earlier. She hasn't spoken to Draco in two weeks—except for small talk in the mornings whilst brewing coffee. He has been caught up in work, working long shifts and leading missions—or perhaps he has been keeping himself occupied to avoid Kallista.
Kallista would already be asleep when he came home, and she would leave before him the next morning to head into work. But she would sometimes hear the faint creak of her door echo when he would open it just to check on her. She would pretend to be fast asleep when he came to step on her side of the bed and brush her bangs away from her forehead.
In nearly twenty-five years of existence, she has always despised being treated like some fragile flower which would loose its petals if someone's touch would be too brutal—or on the contrary, too careful. But feeling Draco's fingertips caress her skin as though he has been afraid to shatter her makes her inevitably tremble with turmoil. Because she likes the delicacy of his touch. The tenderness veiling his eyes. The sensitivity swirling along the edges of his starlit irises.
She has betrayed him, unintentionally so, but she knows the whole situation has hurt him. She doesn't know what to do to mend the broken pieces. And it has hurt her, too. More than she will ever care to admit.
And now, they are getting married. They have to pretend they like each other. Have to take the Vow—and in the back of her mind, she keeps convincing herself it won't work.
A knock on the door startles the witch, her pulse drumming in her ears. She comes back to reality, a sudden wave of chills coursing down her spine as though she has been bathed in a pool of ice as she faces today's reality.
"Yes?" She calls out, a slight waver heard in her voice.
"Kallista, sweetheart." It's her mother's voice. Soft and delicate and careful. "Can I come in?"
She exhales. "Of course."
Kallista takes a deep breath in and turns around just as the door opens. The moment Carina lands her gaze upon her daughter, a soft gasp erupts from the back of her throat, an instant veil of a mixture of both tears and joy coating her eyes.
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BEHIND CLOSED DOORS | D.M
Fanfiction18+ | In which hate gets out of control and turns into an unexpected burning and desired romance, after sworn enemies are forced to get married and hide the truth behind closed doors. | "It was the number one rule; we swore we wouldn't fall in love...
