just for you (years 5-7)

chapter 34

on saturday night, i leave the room of requirement for dinner, draco declines to join. daphne tells pansy and i about her date, and theo's eyes go wide as he overhears, quickly bombarding daphne with questions. pansy glares at him until he shuts up, now sitting next to me quietly and listening. i grab a spare plate of food and bring it up to the seventh floor, leaving it on the coffee table for draco before going back to the common room to continue gossiping with daphne.

sunday is much the same. i don't see draco all day. when he misses breakfast, and then again lunch, i grab more food with a sigh and head upstairs. when i enter, i find his dinner plate untouched, his journals strewn across the floor, and him curled up in bed, clutching a notebook and sleeping- still in his clothes from saturday.

opposed to waking him when he clearly needs sleep, i clear the dinner plate and leave lunch on the bedside table. theo asked me to help him with magical creatures today, and initially, i had declined in favor of spending time with draco, but now i head off to the library to find him.

"working?" theo raises his eyebrow as i approach, finding him in one of a pair of armchairs in the front corner of the library.

"yes." i sigh loudly, sinking into the chair next to him, "well, sleeping, actually."

"has he eaten?" theo looks up from his textbook. i shake my head solemnly and pull out my own book.

theo doesn't question me any further than that, going back to quietly reading his textbook. as he finishes a chapter, he has me help him with the accompanying questions. he offers to help me on my potions essay- which draco was supposed to find time to go over with me- and i spend the rest of my day in the library with him until dinner. daphne joins us briefly while working on transfiguration before she spies luna in the corner and runs off to chat with her.

the following two weeks are a little easier. draco goes to all of his classes- i check. goyle's in charge of herbology, blaise is with him in transfiguration and history. the rest i have handled between theo and myself. he comes to all of his meals, although occasionally theo or i have to convince him to leave the room of requirement to eat.

he looks exhausted, coming to quidditch practice run down. pucey leaves us alone, keeping conversation strictly around the practice. whatever memories blaise kept in his head got the message through to him.

i can see blaise stare at draco during practice, a worried look on his face and a frown.

i see the same look on theo's face whenever we're all in the common room — on the rare occasion draco decides to join us.

on a friday night, i make my way up to the room of requirement with a plate of food, and my textbooks. this is the first time in two weeks that draco's skipped dinner. i shut my eyes and take a few deep breaths, wondering what i'm walking into, and then twist down the handle to the room of requirement.

i walk in on draco running his hands through his hair, pacing back in forth in front of the cabinet.

i clear my throat to announce myself, and he turns and meets my eyes.

"i'm busy." he sighs, before turning back to the cabinet.

"you need to take a break." i stare over at him, shocked by his bluntness.

"i can't." he shakes his head lightly, reaching and picking up a book from the desk. he flips through it feverishly, mumbling to himself.

"you need a break."

he doesn't answer, keeping his back to me.