the one | h. potter

51. issues

Oh no.

Plastered on the front page, making out in a garden with a view of the River Thames in the background, are Harry and me. His hand is gripped possessively around my waist, my hand tangled in his hair, our mouths gnawing at one another until the picture loops around and starts anew. You can't even see our faces from this picture, but the editor has strategically printed two photographs directly below the larger one, making sure Harry's scar and my face are clear as day. The title proclaims to know all about 'The Savior's Secret Girlfriend,' and, of course, it's penned by Rita Skeeter. I have to physically restrain myself from hurling the paper across the room. I was holding it this whole time, all I had to do was look!

At least this explains the glares and the stares, and the... shit.

A surprised "Oh" slips through my lips.

Draco's still glaring at me, face less than a foot away from mine. I want to scream, admit to him that I was going to tell him, apologize. He's trying to crowd me against the wall, I realize (a technique I taught him to do when antagonizing people), so I sidestep away and scurry towards the center of the room to where Katie's standing.

"I was going to tell you," I admit, dumping the newspaper onto my desk.

This just makes Draco angrier. "No you weren't," he snarls.

"I was, I swear! I was just waiting for the right time."

"The right time? We've been in this office for over a month! And you didn't find the right time?!"

"I knew you'd overreact!"

"I wouldn't have acted like this if you had told me!" His voice softens. "I found out from fucking Rita Skeeter, not from my supposed best friend."

I struggle to find a response. "I-"

"And it had to be him of all people, didn't it?" Draco interrupts. "The guy I hate? That I've hated for eight years?" His eyes go wide and all of a sudden he's shrugging off his robes and unbuttoning the shirt he's wearing underneath. "The guy that gave me these?" I stare at Draco's pale chest, which is filled with crisscrossed, faded, silver scars, going all the way from his hips to his collarbone. I hear Katie's mouth open with a low pop, realizing what he means.

"You know why," is my whispered response.

"You were wrong about me! You could be wrong about him!"

I'm sick of this.

I walk up, right into Draco's face, and bare my teeth. "It is not my fault you can't get over me!" I yell.

"You're the one who left! You're the one who left after promising me forever!"

"Breakups happen all the time, Draco, get over it!"

"It wasn't just a breakup!"

"It's not my fault you fell in love with me!"

"Liz?" Harry's voice carries from the doorframe. He sounds concerned. My feet hit the ground hard, as if they weren't planted there in the first place. The edge of my vision is blurry and strong arms are steadying me from behind, pushing me into a chair, tipping a sparkly purple vial that tastes of pomegranates into my mouth. Bright, worried green eyes stare into mine, a thumb pad caresses over my cheekbones, drawing hair out of my eyes. The world slowly comes back into focus the more I look into Harry's gorgeous eyes. I blink the bleariness away and am drawn into a crushing hug.

"I saw the papers, love, it's okay," Harry's reassuring voice whispers into my ear. "It'll be okay."

I take a deep breath and give a terse nod, which satisfies Harry. He gives me a last squeeze before pulling himself away and turning towards Draco, who's staring at us as you stare at monkeys in a zoo.

"Get out, Malfoy," Harry says.

Draco's eyes go wide. "No."

"Get out, Draco," Katie hisses.

He visibly gulps, turning his head to look at me, like he honestly thinks I'm going to let him stay.

"Out," my voice commands, sounding a lot more confident than I actually feel right now. Draco sends me one final glare, turns on his heel, and strides out of the room.

After a minute of deafening silence while watching the closed oak door, it's broken. 

"What. The. Fuck. Was. That?" Katie grinds out.