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11. hangovers and serious talks

a/n: hi everyone! i just wanted to start off with saying, this chapter has some very triggering themes. if you are triggered by RAPE or SA, for your own safety, please skip this chapter. this will not affect the plot significantly, it's just giving some insight into what occurred with Lorelei and Adrian prior to the start of this. please read at your own risk, and stay safe.

LORELEI WOKE WITH A RAGING HEADACHE. Maybe Hermione was right, and alcohol on the first night wasn't the best idea.

Most of the other girls were up, getting ready and such.

She smelled pancakes, then remembered that Potter had promised to make breakfast their first morning here. He appreciated him for it.

Lorelei sat up, hand to her head as she groaned.

"Here." Esmerelda said, tossing her a bottle of Advil.

She took two, downing it with the water that was placed on the bedside table. She didn't know how or when it got there, but she was thankful.

"Get up Lo. Breakfast is almost done." Hermione called from the girls bathroom, and Lorelei stood.

"Draco came in here this morning. He said he wanted to talk to you about something." Ginny said, walking over to Lorelei and pulling her trunk out from underneath the bed.

Ginny picked out a bikini, shorts and a t-shirt, handing them to Lorelei before walking back into the bathroom with Hermione.

Lorelei undressed, knowing the girls didn't mind. Most of them lived together, or have been friends since Lorelei's first year. They were comfortable with each other.

Lorelei put on the bikini, having Pansy tie the back as she slid on her shorts.

There was a knock on the door, and Theo's voice followed. Informing everyone that breakfast was done.

Lorelei threw her t-shirt on, brushed her hair, and pulled it back into a claw clip. Those clips were a gift sent from Merlin above.

The girls all walked out, giggling and such, before making their plates and heading over to the dining table.

Draco sat next to Lorelei, planting a kiss on her cheek before he dug in.

Potter was also another gift sent from Merlin above. These pancakes were delicious.

After everyone was done with breakfast, Theo and Esmerelda offered to do the dishes while everyone finished getting ready.

Lorelei ran to the bathroom to brush her teeth and wash her face.

In the midst of her brushing her teeth, Draco walked in and shut the door behind him.

"Good morning." She said, as she bent over to spit her toothpaste out.

"Morning." He said, leaning against the counter next to her.

She grabbed her face wash and a hand towel, wetting the towel before putting some cleanser onto it. She rubbed it into her face as Draco watched her.

"We need to talk," He said, eyeing her, "about a few things."

"Go on." She said, and he turned to face her.

She continued scrubbing at her face, going particularly rough at a spot on her forehead that had somehow sprouted a pimple overnight.

"First, I want to talk about Adrian." Draco said, and Lorelei stilled.

Lorelei let out a shaky breath before nodding, continuing to scrub her face.

"I just want to know what happened, Lo. That's all." Draco said, and Lorelei rinsed the wash cloth before ringing it out and tossing it into the laundry basket.

She sighed as she rinsed her face off, grabbing the hand towel and patting her face dry.

"Where do you want me to start?" She asked, grabbing her moisturizer and sunscreen.

"The beginning."

"Okay. Um, basically- Merlin this is hard." She said, avoiding eye contact as she massaged the moisturizer into her skin.

"Last year, as you know, I was on and off dating Adrian. I liked him, a lot. Which resulted in me wanting to make him happy in any way possible. The thought of making him upset or mad at me would make me sick to my stomach. So, when he proposed having sex, I agreed. Even though I wasn't entirely ready, I agreed because I would rather him be happy than care for myself." Lorelei said as she shrugged, and Draco watched her take her sunscreen and rub it into her skin.

"It was hard. More often than not, I would come back to the dorm crying. I wasn't ready for any of it, really. I mean, kissing was nice, sometimes. But the idea of being that intimate with someone terrified me. I was only fifteen." She said, putting her things away.

"There were times when I wasn't feeling it, and I tried to tell him that, but we always ended up doing it anyways. Because it's what he wanted. After a while, I was starting to get kind of fed up with it. One day in particular, I felt so sick. I was stressed, nauseous, and just all around not having a good day. I said no, multiple times, but he forced himself on me. Finally I shoved him off, and he kept asking what my problem was. I told him that I had said multiple times I wasn't feeling it, but he didn't care. He started yelling. Said I was a slut and only good for my body. Told me he never actually liked me and that no one ever would. It was hard to process, but I ended up leaving and just breaking down as soon as I entered my dorm. The girls helped me, a lot. That's when I started getting closer with Hermione, Ginny, Harry and Ron as well."

"Sometimes I still doubt myself, and obviously with the way he treated me, I don't think I'll fully ever trust anyone again. It sucks, because I want to, but I don't know if I can." Lorelei finished off, and Draco wrapped his arms around her, pulling her into such a tight embrace that she thought she was going to suffocate.

It was nice, though, knowing he cared.  

"If anything I do ever, and I mean ever, makes you uncomfortable, please tell me. I will stop whatever I'm doing in a heartbeat. No questions asked." Draco says as Lorelei looked up at him, eyes filling with tears.

"Thank you." She said as Draco kissed her head, slowly releasing his death grip on her.

"What was the other thing you wanted to talk about?" She asked, and he sighed.

"I wanted to talking about last night."

She tried to remember what had happened last night. Then she remembered, and her face burned.

"I'm sorry if I came off too strong-"

"No, you didn't. It's okay." He said, and she looked at him. He seemed nervous, and she turned to face him.

"What's up?" She asked, placing her hand on his bicep. He glanced at it, before looking at her.

"Lo, I've liked you for years. I know we barely knew each other, but from the way Theo would always gush about his little sister being the sweetest and most caring person in the world, I fell for you. Hard. Last night, I was kind of taken aback by your forwardness. I knew you were drunk, I was too, but you have such a lasting affect on me."

"I wanted to go further, you know I did. But I couldn't let myself do that to you. Not when you were drunk and making impulsive decisions. That's not fair, not after all you went through. I want it to be special, not when we're both drunk and your friends are in the room. You deserve better than that." He said, and she groaned, falling into his chest.

"You're too good for this world." She said, speaking into his chest.

"Maybe if we're able to get more than 10 minutes of alone time, we can try. But that probably won't happen for a bit, so it's going to have to wait. Which in my opinion, makes it so much better." He said, planting a kiss on her head.

She looked up at him and smiled, standing on her tip toes to plant a kiss on his lips.

"I think you're right."