Never Be The Same {SCOROSE}

Chapter 7 - Rose [UPDATED]

"They don't know what you've done to my heart"

The door slammed shut behind Malfoy, and if anyone had been left in the empty classroom, they would have seen me wince at the noise. Staring at the empty space where he'd been standing, I sunk onto the nearest desk and took a deep, shuddering breath.

It needed to be said. It did. I needed to distance myself from this thing. To put it behind me. To forget.

So why couldn't I stop seeing the wounded look on his face? Why couldn't I stop hearing the break in his voice? Why couldn't I stop feeling like I should chase after him?

I had a class I needed to get to, but my legs refused to carry me. Five minutes ago, I'd been in an absolute fury... Now, all I felt was numb. I couldn't remember ever shouting at someone with so much... so much passion. In the moment, it had felt good to scream at him. I'd done nothing but think for twenty-four hours, and I needed to get the anger out of my system. But in the aftermath, my stomach was twisting. It didn't feel good anymore - it just felt wrong.

Damn it, Rose. Pull yourself together.

Swallowing hard, I made myself stand up and pace, thinking it might help me clear my head, but it did no such thing. I must have spent a quarter of an hour walking back and forth, trying to banish the thought of Scorpius Malfoy from my mind. In the end, I was only moderately successful.

Glancing at my watch, I saw that my class had already started. I didn't want to go in late; it would only raise questions, and while I was a good liar, I really didn't feel like making up excuses at the moment. Instead, I decided to head to the library, where I would hopefully be unbothered until after lunch. With a cursory glance around the classroom to make sure nothing had been disturbed, I schooled my face into something neutral and slipped out the door.

I'd thought I was at least partially recovering my good sense, but was proven wrong when, rounding the corner into the library corridor, I ran smack into someone.

"Oh, bloody..." I exclaimed, and then trailed off as I registered the tall, stocky brown-haired Hufflepuff in front of me. "Oh," I said, my tone more embarrassed than surprised. "Hey, Andy."

Andy MacDowell smiled at me, tapping on his Head Boy badge as he said, "Hallo. Shall I have to take points from Gryffindor for your carelessness, Weasley?"

"You wouldn't dare, MacDowell," I replied, giving him a half-hearted smirk.

Andy and I weren't close friends, but we were plenty well acquainted. He'd always been the sweet, friendly type, and I enjoyed his company. We'd actually gone out briefly back in January, but I'd never had serious feelings for him. I wasn't sure if he'd had serious feelings for me. To tell you the truth, I'd mostly gone out with him because Scorpius' constant propositions were getting on my nerves. But he was nice when I broke it off, and things weren't awkward between us at all.

"Are you feeling alright, Rose?" I looked at him, and found his brow creased. "You look a bit pale."

I laughed, but it came out slightly strained. "Yeah, I... I'm fine. I've just not been sleeping well, is all." It was basically true. I'd slept hardly at all the previous night - I was too busy thinking about how well I had slept in the Room of Requirement, with Malfoy's arms around me. It was a bothersome fact.

Andy frowned. "Ah, that's too bad. Have you seen Madame Longbottom? Perhaps she could give you a potion or something."

"Yeah, that's... that's a good idea," I said, honestly just wanting to leave this conversation before I slipped up and exposed myself. "I might go over there now."