sweetener; drarry

5; tired eyes

TRACK 5
lonesome town
ricky nelson

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harry turned to leave, a feverish glow spreading across his cheeks like wildfire. a sensation of unpleasant nausea burned in his belly and he dared not look at draco again. his entire body shifted one eighty degrees to the left, his head following shortly after. just as he picked up his right foot to take a huge stride forward, slender fingers laced themselves around harry's wrist.

fear dawned on the brunet. if draco tried to turn him, harry would surely have to ludicrously explain why his face was as red as a tomato and why he looked as though he would be sick at any given moment. harry panicked, straining to breathe as he was forcibly yanked back around by the blond.

the green-eyed boy must've completely forgotten who he was blushing over because as soon as draco saw the uncomfortable expression on harry's face, he let go of the brunet and pushed him backwards with such force harry almost toppled over.

"don't you dare throw up on me, you scruff!" the blond hissed, pulling his blanket up to meet his eyes so that he had a shield — had harry decided to projectile vomit.

the brunet didn't even reply, using draco's powerful push as leverage to dash out of the hospital wing and throw himself down the corridors leading to his dormitory. he thundered down hallways with heavy feet, completely disregarding any growls or shouts from filch and mrs norris aimed his way.

in record timing, harry had managed to race through the gryffindor common room — startling the poor fat lady guarding the door — and up into his shared dormitory. as he tore into the room, slamming the door behind him, ron awoke with a start.

"where the ever-loving fuck have you been?" the redhead sighed, rubbing his tired eyes.
"hospital wing, remember?"
"oh, right."

harry swallowed the lump in his throat, draping his robes across a night drawer and crawling into bed. a sudden wave of tiredness crept over him and he cuddled up into his warm bed sheets, that were so much more pleasant than the chilly air in the hospital wing. another pang of guilt ricocheted through his chest as he imagined draco trying to sleep in such a cold room, shrinking in his bed as he did so.

"i hope you know it's almost 4 o'clock," ron sighed, "i was having the most wonderful dream as well." (had it really been that long?)
"what were you dreaming about, ron?" harry asked, barely paying attention as he closed his heavy eyes.
"i dreamed that you weren't obsessed with a bloody git, it was heavenly." harry could feel the redhead's sly side-smirk.

the brunet didn't reply, relaxing his tense muscles and allowing his mind to drift into a hazy sleep-like state.

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morning came almost as fast as the night had slipped through harry's hands, for the brunet. he awoke with the most disgruntling headache and heavy, stiff eyelids. a scowl etched itself on his face as he recollected his memories from last night.
"you look grumpy as anything." ron stifled a chuckle, earning some serious side eye from harry — who, in time, heaved himself from his warm bed and into the chilly november air that loomed throughout the castle.

harry decided it'd be better if he tried not to communicate with his roommate, after all, a silent harry was far better than a grumpy one. ron seemed to understand.

it didn't take long for both boys to gather their supplies for the day and throw their robes on, fishing their wands out of their pockets and shoving them back in just to check they were still there. with a look of queasy tiredness from harry and an expression the brunet could only describe as 'i told you so' from ron; the pair headed for their first lesson of the day — potions with professor snape. perfect, just what harry needed when he could hardly keep his eyes open.

the bell had just sang its usual chime when harry and ron greeted hermione at the door to their classroom. ron shot her a glare and with a single glance at harry, she understood. hermione flashed a reinforcing smile at the brunet to which he simply nodded in return, as unresponsive as a corpse. he yawned, opening and closing his eyes lazily as he tried hard not to fall asleep right then and there.

it was only when draco malfoy — lacking his posse of bullies — rounded the corner that harry shot upright, eyes wide and alert. the blond boy (with skin so pale it almost appeared glittery transparent in the warm sun that shone through the windows) scowled at harry as soon as their eyes met. the brunet gulped — hard — before smiling weakly at the other. draco's face twisted from blatant anger to utter confusion and...disgust? no, it was more like surprise. not the secret birthday party kind of surprise, but the hearing a burglar in your living room type. harry wasn't sure, he never was very good at reading facial expressions, anyway.

what happened next confused everybody, even harry himself — ron even tried to pull the green-eyed boy back, before hermione scolded him for it. harry james potter; enemy of draco lucius malfoy, beelined straight for said boy and smiled again.
"good morning." he said.
"i-wuh...i'm sorry?" draco cocked his head and squinted his eyes in mock confusion — or real confusion — harry couldn't tell, "just because you stalked me yesterday and almost threw up on my bed doesn't mean we're friends."
harry let that snide remark wash over his head.
"are you okay, now?" the brunet asked whilst gesturing towards draco's injuries, from which he acquired during a dreadful defence against the dark arts lesson.

maybe the sun had risen to a point were it reflected off the windows just right, perhaps it was where harry was standing, whatever it may be, it allowed harry to admire draco all over again — just like yesterday in the hospital wing.

the blond, just like harry himself, had purple abrasions under his eyes and a hue of fatigue spread on his cheeks. he had a smooth jawline and perfect hair. harry glanced down at draco's hands, he wasn't sure why — but he was so glad he did because draco had painted his bitten down nails with clear, shiny nail polish. the blond must've realised where harry's eyes were as not even five seconds after he'd noticed, his fingers were neatly tucked away in his robes' sleeves.

"i'm...i'm fine." draco finally responded, clearly flustered. harry opened his mouth to say something, he wasn't entirely sure what — just something — but before he could, snape had appeared in his peripheral vision and his entire body grew cold. that same tiredness as before overpowered him and he keeled away from draco, back to hermione and ron (who both looked extremely bewildered).

"stop chattering about meaningless nonsense and get inside my classroom, all of you." snape nasally called above the sea of students — who, one by one, filed inside the terrifying professor's room. harry sighed silently, eyes glued to the back of draco's head.
"stop staring at him, harry. snape's bound to catch on!" ron whisper-hissed, but the brunet wasn't listening.

it was only when it was far too late that harry realised he probably should've tuned in to what the ginger was saying.