The memory of Draco’s eyes when you first met him remains as vivid as ever, as if carved into your mind by time itself.
It was early autumn, and you had just sat down beside him in the corner of the library. His eyes met yours, not with their usual cold disdain but with a gentler, more curious and almost shy look.
“Why do you always sit here alone?” he had asked quietly.
You shrugged, your heart fluttering in a way you hadn't expected. “Because it’s peaceful.”
Over the following weeks, Draco’s eyes often met yours across classrooms or crowded corridors.
Years passed. The warmth in his eyes grew deeper. Sometimes, you caught him watching you when he thought you weren't looking.
One evening, Draco had pulled you aside near the lake, his fingers trembling as they brushed yours. “I don’t care about the name, or what my family says,” he whispered. “I just want you.”
The vulnerability behind his bravado had been the closest thing to love you’d ever seen.
But love, you learned, is fragile.
As the secrets between you piled up, his gaze shifted. The tenderness faded, replaced by something wary and cautious, as if he were bracing for a storm.
Then came the turning point.
Draco’s eyes, which had once been soft and filled with light, were now full of accusation. The warmth had gone, replaced by betrayal and bitterness.
“You never understood,” he spat.
He no longer sees you as the girl who once held his heart, but as a rival and a threat — someone he must keep at arm's length, if only to protect himself.
And yet, when your eyes meet by chance in a crowded corridor or across the hall, for a moment you can almost see the ghost of what was once there: the boy who loved you, buried deep beneath the armour of pride and pain.
Your voice is steady but you are trembling. “Why? Why did it have to end like this, Draco? We could have fought for us.”
He looks away, his jaw tight. “You think it was that simple?” His voice is low, almost a whisper. “I did fight. But sometimes… love isn’t enough.”
The silence between you stretches, heavy with everything left unsaid.
“I never wanted to lose you,” he admits.
“And yet here we are,” you say, your voice breaking.
Draco’s eyes soften for a heartbeat — then harden again. “Maybe some loves just can't last forever.”