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You don't know how long I have wanted
To touch your lips and hold you tight
You don't know how long I have waited
And I was going to tell you tonight
Draco looked up as soon as Harry sat down. “What’re you doing here?”
“Uh, it’s our common room?”
“No, you twat. I meant here. With me.”
“Oh, well, I didn’t want you to be alone for the holidays.”
“Or did you just not want to face the female Weasel after your break up?”
“Ginny and I are great. Besides, she’s got a new girlfriend. Fuck, don’t tell Ron that, she’s not told him yet.”
Draco raised his eyebrows at receiving such sensitive information by accident but said nothing, waiting for Harry to continue, which he did in due course.
“Besides, no one should be alone for the holidays.”
Draco glared at him and scoffed slightly. “You don’t need to be the bloody Saviour with me, Potter. I’m fine by myself.”
“Are you?” Harry asked softly.
“Piss off. You’re not my friend. You don’t get to swan in here and act like you are just so you can lord it over everyone when they come back.”
“Are we not friends?”
“Why would we be friends, Potter? Everyone loves you and hates me.”
“I don’t hate you.”
Draco just snorted.
“No, I’m serious. I don’t hate you.”
“You got over that feeling real quick then.”
“Yeah, well, joys of being in a war as a teenager. You have to grow up quick. Not really appropriate to go round hating people for no reason after that.”
“No reason?! Potter have you lost your mind? We have plenty of reasons to hate each other!”
Harry just shrugged. “None of that matters anymore.”
“What the fuck is wrong with you?!” Draco spat, getting even more agitated.
“I just mean I’m done. I can’t hate you anymore so I’m not gonna,” Harry admitted, sounding slightly defeated.
Draco studied him slightly before he spoke, his anger contained down to a simmer. “You don’t just drop feelings like that.”
“Don’t you? So you still hate me then?” Harry asked calmly.
“What kind of a question is that of course I do? We’re enemies or whatever.”
“Or whatever. Is that why you saved my life then?”
“And you saved my life back so we’re even, no need to bring it up.”
“Hmm.”
“Potter, if you’re going to do this fuck off,” Draco said with a bite. He inhaled through his nose before he let out a long sigh and continued in a flatter voice. “It’s the holidays and I just want to be alone.”
“No you don’t.”
“You don’t know what I want,” Draco hissed.
“True.” Harry conceded, “But I know that you don’t want to be alone right now.”
“And how the fuck would you know that?”
“Cause I don’t want to be alone right now.” Harry admitted, looking in Draco’s eyes.
Silence settled over them after that, drawing a blanket over their argument and soothing the energies of the room. They were still for a while after that, not talking but refusing to look away, until Harry broke eye contact to stare off at the common room fire and found the courage to continue.
“Look, I know I could have gone to the Burrow for Christmas and Molly has told me repeatedly that she hopes I’ll miraculously show up tomorrow even after I’ve told her I’m not coming about half a dozen times... it just doesn’t feel right. I can’t go back there right now. I just… can’t.” Harry slumped back farther into his chair, still avoiding Draco’s eyes. “It just doesn’t feel right,” he repeated again, seeming to be reminding himself more than checking that Draco understood him. “Maybe next year I’ll stop being a coward and go back, who knows. Maybe I might just go see Teddy and be with him for the day.”
“Then why didn’t you go do that this year?” Draco asked in a small voice, suddenly scared to raise his voice too loud in case it broke the fragile peace of the room.
“Because I knew everyone else was going home and I didn’t want you to be alone.”
“Potter, I don’t think I’m worth all that fuss,” he tried to play it off as a joke and yet his voice came out too flat, too small.
“Well I do.”
“Sorry?!”
“First of all, it’s not a fuss. All I’m really doing is making sure you’re not alone. Secondly, of course you’re worth it. You’re you.”
“Are you drunk or something?” Draco asked incredulously.
“Nah, promise I’m thinking straight,” Harry said before he chuckled to himself. Draco couldn’t quite figure out where the small laugh had come from, or why it had made his stomach swoop like it did.
“So let me get this straight,” Harry raised his eyebrows and looked like he was fighting another laugh but Draco continued to ignore that, “You decided to ditch your many family members and friends so you get to stay behind at Hogwarts with me?”
“Yes, that’s about it.”
“But why?”
“I told you why.”
“No you didn’t. Not really. All you said was that you didn’t want me to be alone, and that you think we’re friends. That’s not enough, Potter.”
“Best enemies for life,” Harry muttered, back to avoiding Draco’s gaze.
“Exactly. So why would you give all that up for me?”
“Do you really want to know?”
“Why else would I be asking, you tosser.”
“And you promise not to hex me?”
“Why would I… yes, fine, I promise I won’t hex you, just bloody tell me.”
Harry opened his mouth and closed it a couple of times, like a goldfish gasping for air, or a man cursed to be mute still trying to form the right words before remembering that they wouldn’t be understood. Just as Draco was about to snap at Harry to tell him already Harry looked over and something about the furious spark in Draco’s eyes seemed to spur him into action and he hauled himself out of his chair and walked over to Draco’s. His face hovered over Draco’s for a moment before he leaned in and pressed a gentle kiss to Draco’s lips, before he tried to quickly retreat back to his chair. Before he could move back, Draco’s hand had caught Harry’s wrist, holding him in place.
“What the fuck was that?” he said but there was no malice behind it. He sounded almost emotionless as though he was fighting to stay as calm as he possibly could.
“You wanted to know why I stayed for you. That’s why.”
“What happened to being best enemies or whatever?”
“Maybe I see you more as a whatever instead of my best enemy now.”
“I’m -” Draco blinked at Harry, words now failing him too. When Harry ducked his head to look at his wrist Draco followed his moment and found that he had been unconsciously rubbing calming circles onto Harry’s wrist.
“Malfoy,” Harry breathed, looking back into Draco’s eyes and searching for the rest of his sentence in his eyes. “Draco…”
That was the straw that broke the camel’s back. Hearing his name come out of Harry’s mouth with such reverence was too much for Draco and he surged up to recapture Harry’s lips in his own. They got lost like that, losing time to exploring each other’s mouths, as passion gave way to something softer and entirely more precious. At some point Harry had ended up on Draco’s lap and when they finally pulled apart they were both grinning. Harry kissed Draco’s forehead before resting his own against it as they slowly caught their breath.
“Thank you,” Draco said, one hand stroking up and down Harry’s arm.
“What for?”
“For not letting me be alone.”
“Never going to let you be alone again,” Harry promised and Draco’s heart swelled to hear it. He didn’t know what he had done to deserve such a promise but he knew in that moment that Harry had no intention of ever breaking it.
“Hmm, what else are best enemies for?” Draco grinned, leaning in to kiss Harry again.