Falling

Chapter Nine

Draco stood and helped Quinn off the floor, leading her to the bed. He sat down and motioned for her to sit next to him. Quinn swallowed hard and slowly lowered herself to sit next to him. She didn't know how to tell him this. She didn't know how to put it into words. She opened her mouth but nothing came out. The words wouldn't, couldn't form a sentence. She closed her mouth and cleared her throat, trying to fill the silence and give herself a moment more to think.
"Quinn, what is it? What else could you possibly have to tell me?" Draco sighed, leaning forward and placing his head in his hands trying to take in everything that was happening.
"Uhm- I- well..." Quinn stuttered.
Suddenly, there was a knock at the door. Quinn jumped to her feet and slammed her hands over her mouth. Draco held his finger to his lips, telling her to stay quiet.
"Yes? Who is it?" Draco muttered, trying to sound half asleep.
"Black." His voice boomed through the room.
Quinn could feel her heart drop to her feet and her blood run cold. The air was sucked from her lungs and suddenly she couldn't move. Her eyes grew large as she glanced up at Draco. He began spinning around, glancing from side to side.
"Under the bed!" He quietly ordered her.
She fell to the floor and scrambled as quickly as she could, tucking herself tightly under his bed. All of a sudden the door swung open and Quinn could see Black's boots tracking across the floor. She slowly raised her hands once more, covering her mouth.
"Sorry for the late night visit. I'm not interrupting you, am I?" Black asked, throwing looks around the room.
"Uh- no. I was just... getting ready for bed. From what o understand I have a lot of work to start tomorrow." Draco slyly responded, watching Black carefully.
"Right. I just wanted to make sure you were settling in comfortably and that Quinn made sure you understood what I need from you." Black crossed his arms over his chest and raised an eyebrow.
"Yeah. She explained it all, crystal clear." Draco plopped down on the bed and ran a hand through his hair.
"Good. Sometimes she has a mind of her own, ya know?" Black laughed.
"Well she is her own person, right? She does have her own mind and the right to do as she pleases? She's not a prisoner!" Draco scoffed.
"Eh. I love the girl but she needs to know her place. Anyway, tomorrow I have a meeting after breakfast but after that I would like your thoughts on a few matters. I'll have Thomas fetch you when my meeting is over. Get some sleep, you have an early start!" Black turned in his heels and headed for the door. "Oh and one more thing, that man you were brought here with, Blaise? I kept him alive, but had him transferred to my military unit. You won't be seeing him unless they stop in for new orders. Just thought you'd like to know" with that, Black left.
Once Quinn heard the door latch shut, she let out a deep breath. She wiggled out from under the bed and quickly jumped to her feet.
"Blaise?! He was here?" Quinn quietly asked.
"Uh, yeah. I was supposed to be meeting him at the train station, when we were both ambushed I guess." Draco explained. "Why him?" He quietly asked, looking at his feet and resting his elbows on his knees.
"What-"
"Why. HIM!?" Draco shot to his feet and hovered over her.
She swallowed, staring up at him. She knew that Black saw her as another person to control and she knew Draco picked up on that.
"He loves me. He was the only one there for me." She tried to explain.
"He doesn't love you. He loves controlling you." Draco growled, turning away from her. "I'm going to bed. We can talk more tomorrow."
"Draco." Quinn whispered, feeling her heart beginning to break again. "No matter what you think, just believe me when I say that I have ALWAYS loved you. Even when I hated you."
"You.. hated me?" Draco gasped, whipping around.
"For a time, yes. I felt forgotten, abandoned. I felt left behind. I needed you, WE, needed you." She quietly responded, heading for the door.
"We?" Draco asked.
"We will talk more tomorrow." Quinn softly smiled.
She turned slowly shutting the door. She heard footsteps quickly approaching her. She turned around just in time for Draco to crash his lips into hers.
"I love you, Stillstone." He whispered, pulling away and resting his forehead against hers.
"I know. I love you too, Malfoy." Quinn replied.