The Triangle: The Summer

Chapter 7

"Thanks for that." You said, clearly relieved. Draco glanced at you but stayed silent. The two of you continued to walk until you reached a big tree. You both sat underneath it, you leaning against it and Draco facing you.

"Ya know, I may be stupid but I can tell when someone's uncomfortable."

You laugh. "You're not stupid."

Draco smiled and looked at you. "Whatever you say." His eyes wandered from your eyes to the necklace he got you so long ago.

"You still wear it?" He asked, smiling and looking at it. He looked up at you, as if asking permission to touch it. You nodded, and his soft hands slowly grabbed the necklace, admiring it.

"Of course I do. Why wouldn't I?"

Draco looked at you. "Well, because Harry might not like it."

You roll your eyes. "Harry doesn't care. Well, he does, but it's just a necklace. And I won't take it off, no matter what he says."

Draco smiled and let go of the necklace. The cold metal landed against your chest.

He turned his head back to the rock he was playing with in his hands. He was clearly deep in thought until you broke him from his trance.

"Your father scares me." You said, staring at the floor.

Draco nods. "Yeah... he scares me too. But he is my dad, and he does open up a lot of opportunities. He's so connected at the Ministry."

You nod, letting a comfortable silence settle. You couldn't help but admire the boy. He was lean, and skinny. He had a nice jawline and his hair always looked nice. He was always looking presentable, and was always well dressed. You wished people would try to see the good side of him like you did. He could be cruel, and mean, and senseless. But he also could be kind, and caring, and sweet. The two of you sit quietly together for a little while before you spoke up.

"Why?" I asked.

"What?"

"Why is he so high up in the Ministry?"

Draco thought about it for a minute. "Well, he was a school governor. And I guess the Minister just likes him. He often comes over for brunch on Sunday's, but he's been busy lately what with the Quidditch World Cup so soon."

"The what?"

Draco looked at you. "You don't know about the Quidditch World Cup?" You shook your head. "It's awesome. The two teams with the most points by the end of the season go against each other at this game. It's a huge event. I can't believe you haven't heard of it."

"Well, obviously I've heard of it. I just don't really look into Quidditch."

Draco shrugged. "It's like, the biggest event in Quidditch ever. Hundreds of thousands of wizards go every year." He said before taking a bite of an apple that seemingly appeared in thin air.

"Speaking of Quidditch, I miss Hogwarts already, Draco. All my friends are there-" Draco scoffed. "Don't you scoff at me. I miss it."

Draco looked up at you and smiled to show he was just playing around. "I miss it too. Summer used to be fun. I could get away from the castle and focus on family for a little bit. But my father has been so involved in his work that I barely ever see him. It's taking a toll on mum, too. She's never this quiet. Especially with guests." Draco thought for a moment. "Having you here helps, though."

You looked at Draco before pulling him into a hug. "I'm sorry. I know how it feels to see your parents drifting away. You saw the picture I have with them. It's from when I was 8. We don't spend all that much time together anymore. My father only cares about work and my mother only cares about-" You paused. "Well, nothing. They're distant and I hate it. I can't stand being with them sometimes. That's why I like being at the castle. It's a distraction. Magic, my friends, real food.... it's just better."

Draco listened to you speak and nodded. He understood. He looked at you and you looked at him. The two of you had an unspoken conversation with your eyes. You sighed and looked at the ground.

The two of you sat in silence for a little while longer.

"Why Harry?" Draco asked suddenly, looking up. "Why him? There's nothing special about him!"

You were shocked by this sudden anger. Whatever had gone on in Draco's mind had caused a lot of jealousy. A flicker of fear flashed across your face and Draco instantly quieted. He looked at the ground and his features softened.

"I'm sorry." He said pitifully.

"It's alright, Draco. I just.... you two are so different. You each have got some good and some bad qualities. One of my bad qualities is that I'm all too trusting. One of yours is that you tend to be a bit of a prick." Draco chuckled. "Harry's is he gets jealous and possessive easily. But you've got good traits, too. Loads of them. Like you, you have a soft spot for me. And you're caring, even if you don't show it too often. And Harry is really passionate and generous. There's no one thing that I'm attracted to."

Draco looked at you, listening intently.

"Speaking of friends, why didn't you tell me Penelope Clearwater lived near me?"

"What?!" Draco asked, his head shooting upwards.

"Your friend. She lives near me. I met her yesterday.

"I- I didn't know! How did you meet her? She never even told me the two of you lived close-"

You chuckled. "I met her while out on a walk. Apparently Oliver Wood lives near me too."

Draco slowly calmed himself from the shock of the last thing, and then rolled his eyes. "Oliver Wood. I hate him."

"What? Why? Oliver's sweet!"

Draco looked at you. "Maybe to you. I'm sick of him bragging about the Gryffindor Quidditch team; they aren't even that good. He bases his who life around it, does he even have any hobbies? He's just a sad hobby-less, pr-"

"Alright, alright! I get it." You said. You and Draco quieted and smiled at each other, your eyes locking, until-

"Draco?" A high pitched voice called. You looked up to see Minny, Draco's house elf, standing timidly in the distance.

"Hello Minny."

"Hello, Miss Y/n. Hello, Draco. Your father would like to see you in his office." Minny said, clearly nervous.

You and Draco looked at eachother. Uh oh.