Chamber of Love

Chapter 53

Not me updating every time I gain 100K reads,, I swear I'm not doing it on purpose;(

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  When the sun was finally down and the owls were up, students were gathered in their cozy rooms to get ready for bed. Juliette, sitting on her sheets, untied her braid and let the loose curls bounce off of her shoulders. The confrontation with Zacharias and the glares he sent her during the class was still fresh in her mind. She tried her best to avoid him for the rest of her day, not willing to find out what he'd say or do if they were ever alone. His behaviour was unexpected. He loved messing with her on occasion but he's never been violent. He made her uneasy.

Juliette reached for her hairbrush, but stopped immediately when she noticed the slight tremble of her hands. It was almost unnoticeable, but she felt it. With a tired sigh, she let her hand drop back on her lap. She was happy and excited about everything the other day, and now she was back to square one because of a small inconvenience. She wished that she wouldn't let things get to her all the time, that she could be dismissive and let go just for once.

Juliette didn't brush her hair that night. She curled up on the bed and hid her hands under the sheets, watching Cedric's smiling face until her lids became too heavy to resist.

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Two days before the tryouts, Juliette found herself sitting between the tall stands of the Quidditch Pitch, watching others practice with Draco by her side. Blaise was sitting one seat beneath them, his elbow touching Draco's shoes. Juliette was surprised when she saw him with Draco as they waited for her arrival in the Courtyard. She was nervous to find out if Draco said anything about... the current situation she was in, with the tryouts and Zacharias being her opponent and everything. She wondered if Blaise would think she was stupid for even thinking about joining the team and mock her. He didn't do any of those things, yet.

"What do you think?" Draco asked, leaning forward and placing his elbows on his knees.

Juliette squinted at the students riding Shooting Stars. Most of them looked like they knew what they were doing. Their precise movements were radiating confidence. It was something she lacked.

"Maybe I should quit before it's too late." She replied, turning her gaze down to look at her hands. The cold air was turning her skin dry.

"What?" Draco sounded surprised. Blaise was quiet, but she knew he was listening.

"Look at them," Juliette pointed at the students on brooms. "I'm nowhere near as good as them. And two more days won't change anything."

Draco frowned, looking confused and frustrated with her sudden change of mind.

"They're not your opponent, are they? I didn't bring you here so you could quit. You should be watching and picking up different techniques."

"It doesn't matter." Juliette sighed. "Zacharias said he's been training-"

"Who cares about what that scumbag says?" Draco interrupted, surprising her with the hostility in his voice. "He probably can't even sit on a broom without losing his balance every five seconds."

"We're about to find out." Blaise spoke for the first time in a while, never turning around to look at them. His eyes were carefully watching a new figure step onto the pitch, wearing an Hufflepuff Quidditch sweater for training and carrying a broom. Zacharias Smith arrived with a frown on his face and the mere appearance of him caused Juliette to tense up.