Aster's POV

I was late.

I had an inkling that Draco didn't like it when people were late.

That very thought made me slow down.

I strolled leisurely up one of the hundred and forty-two staircases towards level six. This one was narrow and rickety and I had to remember to jump at the right time.

There was a reason why most students wore trainers.

I gracefully landed on level six and started to pick up the pace once I realised that I was very late.

Blaise had been determined to finish our charms assignment tonight and I couldn't leave him abruptly without telling him where I was going. He knew I was helping Draco but I didn't tell him when or where. That was more for his own protection that anything.

It was cold and silent in the hallways and after passing the empty transfiguration classrooms I was starting to feel odd chills running up my arms. I pulled my sweater over my palms and hurried my steps.

After passing a few empty portraits, a hand unexpectedly grabbed my wrist and pulled me into an empty alcove. Air rushed painfully out of my lunges as I was thrown into the cool stone wall.

"What the f-" I cried out, before Malfoy dropped my hand and placed his over my mouth.

"Shut up Flint. You're late" he hushed between clenched teeth. He had pushed me up against the wall and I could feel his body tense against mine.

He looked pissed off, his eyes were narrowed but there were heavy bags under his eyes.

I ignored him and instead pushed his hand off my mouth and looked around at the small alcove I had been pushed in.

"Does this remind you of anything?" I tease, giving him a smirk and running my eyes up and down his body.

His silver eyes narrowed again.

"Remember? When you fucked me with your fingers in that empty corridor?" I teased, fully aware I was trying to distract him from my lateness.

His eyes flashed at my words, but they quickly narrowed again.

"Are you always horny Flint?" he chided, pulling me away from the alcove and into the empty hallway.

"Only around you" I whispered, smiling to myself.

It was too easy to tease him.

He chuckled behind me. I twisted around and found him staring at a blank wall, his face impassive.

"What are you doing?" I laughed, pulling my sweater down over my fingers again.

Suddenly, an impressive large oak double breasted door appeared on the wall in front of him. My mouth gaped at the sight.

"What in merlins- ?" I cursed under my breath.

Draco pushed the doors open with ease and reached out to grab my arm to pull me in. I gasped as my arm felt like it was going to be pulled out of its socket.

"Fuck Malfoy, calm down" I said rubbing my shoulder before looking around.

The entire room was full to the bursting brim with knick knacks and broken things. I scrunched my brows at the sight. There was an odd lightness to the room and I searched for the source but couldn't find anything.

"What is this place?"

Draco started straight for the center of the room, passing between a pile of broken odd chairs and odd broomsticks. I quickly chase after him, annoyed at his inability to explain anything.

"Malfoy!" I yelled after him.

After a few complicated twists and turns, we stopped at a large narrow prism-shaped cabinet. It was fairly old and rusted at the hinges with black and gold trimmed the edges. It would have been quite beautiful if it didn't reek of dark magic.

"Is this it?" I asked him, as I traced the edges of the cabinet with my fingers.

"Yep. Now stop touching it, I wanted to try and few spells that I found at home in the library" he muttered angrily.

I stepped backwards and watched as he waved his wand around the cabinet, muttering a few spells I had never heard of. His white hair was pushed back and I noticed it had grown longer on the sides during the holiday. His pale eyes were focused and heavy as he concentrated, his lips pulled in a straight line. He looked quite handsome when he was focused, he looked older and more mature.

After he finished experimenting with his spells, he grabbed a green apple from his pocket and placed it inside the vanishing cabinet. I furrowed my eyebrows in confusion.

He closed the cabinet again, muttered another spell and waited. I flicked my gaze from his face to the cabinet until he opened the doors again.

"Fuck!" he cried out angrily.

I peered inside the cabinet and found the apple still sitting where he placed it.

It didn't work.

"Well surely you didn't think it was going to be that easy?"

He flashed his eyes at me in annoyance.

"My dad has spent half his life studying protective spells. One time he spent five years just working on the theories behind the ancient protective spells at the Ministry" I explained, perching myself on a wonky armchair that had been shoved to one side.

I looped my legs around the arm and pulled my wand out.

"I forgot my notebook but I know enough about breaking protective spells to have a quick go. I don't think the basic spells will work.." I mumbled, sorting through my thoughts.

He stayed quiet, his eyes still watching the cabinet in front of us.

"The spells I normally use wont work on this, it reeks of dark magic"

"You normally use?" he asks, cocking one eyebrow.

"Yeah I've been breaking protective spells since I was 11" I explained, twirling my wand through my fingers.

He scoffed.

"What?" I retorted.

"You are so full of yourself" he mutters, his gaze still on the cabinet.

"Fuck off" I mutter.

"The only thing I'm good at is charms. I'm hopeless at everything else" I admit.

He scoffs again.

I glare at him until he looks at me.

His eyes are cold and serious.

"You are good at a lot of things Flint, aren't you like in the top three of most classes?" he asks.

I stare at him confused. Why would he know that?

"I mean yeah, but I'm not naturally good. I study pretty hard"

He raises his eyebrows at me and twists around again to face the cabinet.

I take this as an opportunity to stand up and start trying out the few spells I can remember at the top of my head. I start off with a few spells to gauge if the cabinet is protected by any spells I was familiar with but I only feel dark magic.

After 20 minutes of back and forth, I give up and slump myself down on the armchair.

"Thought you were helping me Flint" Draco piped up.

I swing my head to look at him. He had sat on the floor as I worked, his back against a lone chest of drawers. He looked exhausted, his eyes were squinting in the dim light where he was sitting.

"You look like shit" I mumbled, keeping my eyes locked on his.

He chuckled.

"Thanks"

"I mean, you look like you haven't slept in days" I explain awkwardly.

"I haven't" he quickly replies.

I raise my eyebrows at him surprised.

"How come?" I ask.

He shakes his head at me and goes back to staring at the cabinet.

I stare at his side profile, admiring the way his lips rest and the sharpness of his jaw.

"Stop staring at me" he grunts.

I smirk and turn my gaze back to the cabinet.

"What is this place anyway?" I ask.

"Room of requirement" he mutters uninterested.

"Room of what?"

"Its the Come and Go Room. Did you not hear about when Potter and his poor excuse of friends used it for their stupid little army last year?"

I stared at him confused.

"You seriously don't know?" he stared back.

"I'm not obsessed with Potter like you, I don't keep a subscription to the golden trio fan club" I mutter back.

He gives me a glare worthy of a trophy.

"This room appears when a person is in need of it. My father got told this cabinet was still here and I was walking by one day and the doors just appeared out of nowhere" he explains in a monotone voice.

"Ah' I say, letting the sound roll off my tongue.

"I'm not obsessed with Potter" Malfoy grumbles from my side.

I press my lips together to stop the laughter bursting to escape.

"You are a bit" I retort, flicking my eyes to him and then back to the cabinet.

"He's the enemy Flint, I keep an eye on him, its my job" he mutters angrily back.

"You think he's the enemy?"

He flicks his gaze to me and searches my face. I feel my cheeks grow hot.

"Well he is?"

I let this revelation sit in the back of my mind.

Potter wasn't a friend of mine but I wouldn't consider him and his group of friends enemies. Sure, he was blatantly many of the professors favourite and his incessant need to get into all sorts of trouble was incredibly annoying but the way Malfoy had always been so irritated by his very existence was weird and borderline obsessive.

"You truly believe all this crap about how purebloods should be in charge and muggle-borns shouldn't be allowed to practice magic?"

His eyes stare into mine but they have a soft gaze about them.

"Its not just about that" he finally says.

I narrow my eyes at him.

"But is is?" I press, annoyance slowly bubbling in my chest.

"He's an extremist and anyone that follows him is out of their mind insane" I add hastily.

His eyes waver and he pulls his gaze from mine.

"I'm way too tired for this conversation" he says his voice low.

"Fine." I snap impatiently. I much preferred angry Draco to this numb groaning git.

"Can we just not talk about that for like one second?" He groans.

"What's up with you tonight?" I prod, lowering myself down to the ground and sitting next to him.

"Nothing" he snaps, avoiding me.

I inspect his face, his brows are furrowed and his nostrils flare.

"Are you still annoyed about what happened earlier in your room?" I ask quietly, tucking my wand into my skirt pocket.

"No" he mutters angrily, "you're obviously feeling better though".

"Yeah Blaise and Nott were trying to finish the charms homework before I got here, it was pretty amusing watching them both trying to figure out the right way to move their wands for each cleaning spell," I chuckled remembering the way Nott, flicked his wand and doused Blaise is a bucket full of soapy water.

"Nott?" Malfoy asks, twisting round to face me.

"Yeah?" I stutter seeing Malfoys eyes narrow again.

"Why were you hanging out with Nott?" He presses, his tone cross.

"Um...I dunno him and Blaise are mates I suppose"

He faces back towards the cabinet but not before I see a flash of something I hadn't seen in a while.

"Are you jealous Malfoy?" I tease, watching his jaw clench.

I bite down a smile.

"Fuck off Flint why would I be jealous?" He taunts, but he doesn't face me.

So I decide to tease him further.

"So you wouldn't care if I got to know Nott a bit more?" I say, keeping my tone light and my voice teasing.

Dracos eyes quickly flashes to face mine, anger and jealousy flickering behind his small pupils.

"Why would I care? Notts a good looking bloke, go for it" he spits.

My lips tremble from the laughter that eventually  spills from my mouth, his eyes dart to them and his mouth opens but he leaves it open and I watch as his eyes grow confused.

"Are you serious?" I laugh at the very notion of Draco truly believing I would see someone else, someone other than him.

He searches my eyes hotly but he doesn't say anything.

"It's hot when you're jealous" I say giving him a smirk.

He rolls his eyes in response but I quickly spy the corner of his lips turn up in amusement.

"Draco..." I whisper.

"I'm only seeing you, no one else and I don't plan to" I awkwardly admit.

His eyes soften but his lips clamp into a stern line.

"I don't want to push you into anything but it would be nice to know what we are" I say, my heart thumping in my rib cage.

We sit in silence, the air thick with an odd tension but it's not awkward. I know him well enough to know that he won't admit to anything real anytime soon. But I know we both know it's more than just a hook up now.

"I like you, can't that be enough?" He finally says, his voice breaking slightly.

I press my thigh against his, both of us staring at our outstretched legs. I take the opportunity to lean my head on his shoulder, enjoying the comforting smell of his cologne. His shoulder tense but after a few seconds I feel his muscles relax.

"I think you like me a lot more than that" I try to tease but my voice comes out wobbly.

"Yeah I do" he whispers back.

"I think I like you a lot more than that too" I murmur.

A/N ahhhh they finally admitted they actually like each other but sorry no I love yous...yet 😉 I don't think someone like Draco would easily be able to say I love you, 😢