Bound by secrets

Chapter 21

I woke up feeling Draco's warm body pressed against mine, the soft rise and fall of his chest a steady rhythm that kept me grounded. Last night had been... well, it had been a lot. But waking up like this, tangled in sheets and Draco's arms, made me feel safe, even with everything looming over us.

"Morning, love," Draco murmured sleepily, his voice rough with sleep as he tightened his grip around my waist, pulling me closer.

"Morning," I whispered back, stretching out lazily. "We should probably get up. Everyone's probably waiting for us."

He groaned in protest, burying his face into the crook of my neck. "Five more minutes?"

I chuckled, nudging him gently. "We don't have five more minutes. It's Friday... the ball's tonight, and we need to meet everyone downstairs."

Reluctantly, Draco let go, though the lazy smirk on his face told me he'd much rather stay in bed. We got dressed quickly, the soft murmur of our conversation filling the space as we headed down to the Slytherin common room.

Sure enough, Pansy, Blaise, Nora, Theo, and Lucas were already sprawled out on the couches, talking animatedly about the ball and what they were planning to wear.

"Finally," Pansy called out when she saw us. "We thought you two were never going to make it out of bed."

I rolled my eyes, but I couldn't help the smile tugging at my lips. "You wish."

"Oh, come on," Nora teased, leaning over Blaise with a sly grin. "We all know where you spent the night. Got your fill, did you?"

Draco's arm slipped around my waist, pulling me closer as he smirked at the group. "She's hard to resist."

I elbowed him playfully, my face heating up. "Alright, that's enough."

Before anyone could make another snarky comment, the sound of the common room door opening interrupted us. Astoria walked in, looking nervous and fidgety, her usual cold demeanor softened. The room quieted as we all turned to look at her.

"Y/N, I need to talk to you," she said quickly, her voice barely steady.

I raised an eyebrow, exchanging a glance with Draco before stepping forward. "What is it?"

Astoria bit her lip, looking around at the group. "It's... about your father."

My stomach dropped at her words, and I could feel the mood in the room shift. Draco's grip tightened around my waist, and the others straightened up, their faces serious now.

"What about him?" I asked, trying to keep my voice steady.

Astoria's eyes flicked nervously between us before she spoke again. "He... he's threatened me again. He wants me to help him... capture you."

My breath caught in my throat, but I stayed silent, waiting for her to explain.

"I didn't want to," she continued quickly, her voice trembling slightly. "But I don't have a choice. He's threatened me, my family. He's planning to make another move soon. He wants me to lock you in one of the classrooms today... so he can abduct you. For real this time."

A cold chill ran through me, but I forced myself to stay calm. I looked over at Draco, his jaw clenched tightly, and then back at my friends, all of whom had the same concerned expression on their faces.

"I'm done with him," Astoria said, her voice stronger now. "I'm tired of being used. I want to help you stop him."

I crossed my arms, narrowing my eyes at her. "Why should we trust you? You helped him once already."