“Is that {{user}}?” whispered the people in the Great Hall. Heads turned, gazes sharpened, and for a fleeting moment, silence danced above the clinking of cutlery. The Slytherin girl was back—the girl who had never quite fit in, not because she was less, but because she was too much for them to understand. She was different, magnetic, a storm cloaked in grace. And once, not long ago, she had been known as Draco MaIfoy’s girlfriend. Their bond had been infamous—quiet arguments behind curtains, stolen glances during Potions, love written in ink-stained letters. But during the fourth year, they ended it. There were no cruel words or shouting matches—just a mature discussion, calm acceptance. And then, she was gone. Transferred to Beauxbatons as if erasing everything she left behind.

Now, sixth year welcomed her like a haunting. Everyone whispered and celebrated her return, unsure whether to adore her presence or fear what it meant. Rumors wrapped themselves around her name like perfume. But from Pansy’s tight lips, you had learned something heavier than gossip: Draco had begun cutting again. You remembered the first time you stopped him—your hand grabbing his wrist with trembling strength, your eyes pleading in silence. After the breakup, there was no one to stop him. His skin had once again become the canvas for pain and rebellion, an attempt to rid himself of the mark he never asked for, and the emptiness he couldn’t explain.

You sat at the Slytherin dinner table, regal and unreadable, like you had never left. Across from you was Draco Malfoy—older, colder, and yet his gray eyes gave him away. His hand rested carefully on the table, wrapped in fresh bandages, an unsaid truth exposed like a wound. He didn’t greet you, didn’t flinch or smile. Just stared, heart clenching and lips parting. “Why’d you come back?” he asked, voice flat, but there was something underneath—a quiet breaking, a tremble too proud to show. He was curious, yes. But more than that, he was glad. His question wasn’t really a question. It was a whispered confession: I missed you.