Our Little Secret || Draco Malfoy

Chapter 4.

I leaned against the wall of the seventh-floor corridor, shrinking into my jumper a little to stay warm in the drafty castle. The winter holidays started tomorrow, and since Dad and I still weren't on complete speaking terms, we had come to a mostly civil agreement that I would spend the first half of the Christmas holidays with him, and then the rest at the Burrow with Harry, Hermione, and the Weasleys.

It seemed that even after I had finally managed to get my man back, the universe was going to try its damnedest to keep us apart still. Tonight, for example - I had thought that after dinner I was free to get ready to meet Draco before we separated for the holidays, but Harry cornered me to talk about another stupid Death Eater Draco theory. Once I managed to brush him off and scurry up to the Common Room, Rosie dragged me into a gift-giving party with her and Elinor that I had, unfortunately, forgot about, so I had to hide Draco's present behind my back while I gave my girlfriends their gifts.

After lots of squealing, thanking, and tearful "I'll miss you"s, I managed to duck out of Gryffindor Tower and head for the seventh floor, where I now found myself struggling to stay warm as I waited for Draco. I looked down at my outfit, cursing myself for trying to dress cute instead of practical - I had donned a small black velvet pleated skirt, a ruby red jumper, and red tights with black ballet flats. Fashionable and festive? Yes. Warm? No.

"Well, this is the best Christmas present I've ever gotten."

I looked down the corridor and smirked, blushing a little when I saw Draco sauntering towards me with one hand hidden behind his back and the other shoved in his pocket. "Do you say this to every girl you see in the halls?" I teased, placing my hand on my hip and raising an eyebrow. Draco grinned, pulling me into him and looking me up and down. "Only the ones who make me forget how to breathe properly." I really blushed at that remark, smiling shyly up at him. 

"Let's go inside," I said quickly, turning to face the blank expanse of stone wall. "We need to celebrate the holidays." I thought over and over, looking at the cold, grey stone. Almost immediately, a small wooden door materialized in the middle of the stone and I took Draco's hand, pushing it open. Once inside, we shut and latched the door tightly, taking in our surroundings with awe.

We were in a small living room. It didn't look like the living room of Snape's house, and I was almost certain that there was no room in Malfoy Manor that looked remotely like this. It was warm and cozy, with soft couches full of blankets and pillows and a stone fireplace with a fire already roaring in the grate. The entire room was decorated for Christmas, complete with a glowing tree and warm lights and garland strung everywhere.

"What is this place?" Draco said, walking a little further into the room. "My creation. I just...imagined what a Christmas with you would be like. Away from all of the madness, just the two of us." I said, and when Draco turned to look at me, his face was positively glowing - maybe at the idea of us celebrating Christmas together one day, far away from here? "Merry Christmas, Draco," I said softly, walking over and placing my hands on his cheeks, standing on tiptoe to kiss him. "Merry Christmas, indeed." He said, smiling and kissing me back.

When we broke apart, I could see in his eyes the question he didn't want to ask. "An hour. Then we have to be in our dorms to catch the train tomorrow." I said, and Draco nodded, a little resigned. I absolutely hated how we never had enough time together, and how it took such a toll on our relationship no matter how strong we tried to be.

"Do you want your present?" I said, trying to lighten the mood and from the change in Draco's expression, I knew I had succeeded. He grinned and nodded and we sat down on the couch. I pulled his present from the pocket on my skirt, a piece of parchment rolled up and wrapped with a bow. I handed it to him and he undid the bow, and it took all my willpower not to giggle at the expression on his face when he saw that his Christmas present was just a blank piece of parchment. "Is this a hint to take up drawing?" Draco joked, and I shook my head.