Ginny's All That

Now this is an awkward moment, Draco thought, rolling his eyes.

"You've got something to say, Malfoy?" Harry demanded.

"Yeah, I do," he said. "Ginny is not your girlfriend, and she can do whatever she wants!"

"Or whoever?" Harry asked, a little calmer and more directed at Ginny than Draco.

Ginny looked away and bit her lip hard.

Draco stepped in front of Ginny. "My God, Potter," he exclaimed. "Do you want to know? Do you really want to know if Ginny slept with me?" Ginny looked horrified, but Draco remained relatively calm. "No, Potter, she didn't. Happy?"

Ginny let go of a breath that she didn't even know she was holding.

"You didn't sleep with him?" Hermione asked sheepishly.

"No, Granger," Malfoy interjected. "She came here because she needed someone to talk to, okay? She wanted to talk to someone who'd listen and care and, wow, put her first."

"It's after curfew," Harry spat.

"Right," Malfoy added sarcastically. "Because you lot would have been okay with it in the day time? My goodness, if the fucking dream team would open their bloody eyes, they'd see that this girl is in pain and needs someone who will put her first. I don't care how you lot feel about me, I really don't, but this girl needs me, and as long as she wants me around I'm going to be. Now, if you all don't mind, get your bloody asses out of my dormitory!"

"Ginny, you have thirty minutes to return to your dorm before I tell McGonagall and Ron," Hermione said before she left.

Harry gave her a strange look as he walked out the door and into the hallway. She didn't know if it was guilt, or mistrust, or frustration, or jealousy, or...she really had no clue. She knew that she would have to talk to him tomorrow and work it out, but right now she had bigger concerns. And that concern was looking at her from across the room.

Once the door had shut behind Harry, Ginny bolted across the room and launched herself into Draco's arms. He caught her and held her so tightly that she almost couldn't breathe, but she didn't care. She owed him so much right now for not telling Harry that they had had sex. Draco knew that if Harry had known this, he would have immediately told Ron and that she'd have gotten her head taken off.

"Thank you," she whispered, finally pulling away from him. "And I am so sorry; I have no idea how they knew where I was."

Draco shrugged. "It doesn't matter, Gin," he said sweetly and calmly. He stroked her hair and kissed her forehead. "Tonight was worth it. Not only did I lose my virginity, but I got to fuck the sexiest little redhead..."

She hit him playfully. "You're a virgin?" she asked, shocked.

"Well not now."

She rolled her eyes. "I just -," she began. "I guess I just assumed that you'd been with other people."

"Nope," he said simply. "Just you, Weasley." He winked at her. "What about you?" he asked.

She bit her lip. "I - ."

He stopped her. "Harry?"

She nodded. "But it was just the once..."

"It's okay, Gin," he said, reading her mind. "I don't care that you weren't a virgin. I just care that you are with me now." He stopped and put a strand of hair behind her ear. "And Ginny, just because we had sex tonight, it doesn't mean that you ever have to again. I don't expect anything from you."

She smiled and kissed his cheek.

"I'd better go," she said.

They both stood up and began to walk toward the door. Before she walked out, she looked at Draco and said, "I had fun."

He gave her a weak smile, kissed her cheek, and watched her walk out the door.

He ran his hands through his hair and messed it up. Well, he got what he wanted - what he needed - for his bet. That stupid bet.

He got into bed, still thinking about Ginny. He lied to her, though, when he said it didn't bother him that she had slept with Harry. He honestly thought that the experience that they had just shared was a first for both of them, but it wasn't.

He could still feel her beneath him, still smell her hair, and still taste the sweat on her skin. He looked up on his nightstand and saw her butterfly clip. He gingerly picked it up and held in his hand. He looked at the emeralds embedded in it and imagined they were her gorgeous eyes. He fell asleep holding her hair clip, and he fell asleep happy.

*****

She stepped out of Draco's door and cried. She didn't really know why, but she did. Slow and silent tears streamed down her face.

"Go away," she whispered softly, realizing that someone was behind her.

"Was he good?" Harry asked her.

"What?"

"I'm not stupid, Ginny," he said coldly. "'We dated for over a year, and I know you better than you think. I saw the look on your face when he said you hadn't slept together."

She looked down. "Harry, why do you care?" she asked him, frustrated. "You dumped me."

"That doesn't mean I don't care about you."

She started to walk away, and Harry followed behind.

"Ginny, I care about you!" he exclaimed. "What do you see in him?"

She stopped and stared at him. "What do you want from me?" she exclaimed. "Why can't I be in a relationship with him? And why is it your business? And don't say that you still care about me, because you don't."

He kissed her hard. He backed her against the wall, and nibbled on her bottom lip as she slid her tongue in his mouth. She wrapped her arms around him and pulled him into her.

What am I doing?

She pushed him away. "Harry, I don't want you," she whispered coldly. "And if you tell Ron that I had sex with Draco, then be prepared for him to know that you fucked me first."

She stormed off, her long hair flowing behind her and silent tears still flowing.

*****

April 27.

Ginny didn't want to go to the Great Hall for breakfast the following morning, but she forced herself to anyway. She got dressed in her school robes and put her hair up into a messy bun. She had had a rough night and really didn't care what she looked like today.

She walked out into the common room, and several Gryffindors stared at her, gossiping amongst themselves. She ignored them as she walked through the portrait hole, her bag slung over her shoulder.

She walked past many students in the hall and noticed that many of them were snickering at her.

Now she was irritated.

She marched up to Lavender Brown, got in her face and said, "Why is everyone talking about me?"

Lavender tried to suppress a laugh. "We all know about your late night rendezvous with Malfoy," Lavender explained.

Ginny ran into the Great Hall and saw Harry sitting alone at the Gryffindor table. Apparently, Ron and Hermione had not come down yet.

She stalked up to him and said, "Harry FUCKING Potter."

He looked up, smiled innocently and said, "Ginny."

"Why are you telling people about last night?"

"I didn't say anything," he said. "But your boyfriend may have."

*****

Draco sat at his normal spot, his friends on either side of him.

"So you really did it?" Dex asked. "You nailed Weasley."

Draco smirked and nodded.

"Was she any good?" Blaise asked.

Ginny was standing behind them.

"Yeah, Malfoy," she said coldly. "Was I any good?"

He turned around. "Gin -."

"Don't," she snapped.

He stared at her for a moment and said nothing. He was trying to keep his façade going in front of his friends, but inside his heart was breaking.

"Ginny can we talk privately?" he pleaded.

"What am I to you, Draco?" she asked desperately.

He opened his mouth to speak, but Blaise cut him off.

"Draco, maybe we should just call off the bet," he said.

Ginny's eyes opened wide. "Bet?" she repeated quietly.

Draco opened his mouth but nothing came out.

"What was the bet Malfoy?" she asked again.

"Ginny, let's talk privately," he firmly.

"Blaise, what was the bet?" she asked again.

"He bet he could sleep with you and make you Princess of the Ball," Blaise said, amused.

Draco stood up. "Ginny, please you have to -"

She slapped him, and then she was gone.

*****

She ran out down the steps at the entrance of the castle crying. She couldn't form a thought right now. Draco had lied to her. He used her and pretended to like her and she had slept with him.

I'm such an idiot, she thought.

"I'm so fucking stupid!" she yelled.

"Ginny," she heard him behind her. "Ginny, please talk to me."

She kept walking.

"Ginny Weasley, I will not leave you alone," Draco said. "Ginny, I need to explain this to you, just stop. Stop!"

He caught up to her and put his hand on her shoulder. He spun her around and looked at her beautiful face, streaked with tears. He put a finger under her chin to force her to look at him. She resisted for a moment, but then she gave in.

He looked into her eyes. The beautiful emeralds that he had stared into when they were making love the night before were burned out. The sparkle, the fire that they used to hold was gone, and he knew it was his fault.

"What do you want from me?" she asked pleadingly. "Why won't you just let me go? Huh? Huh, Draco? I was just a stupid bet, and you won! You won the bet and you got some action, what else is there?"

"Listen, Ginny, it started out as a bet, I admit that," he said, trying to stay calm. "But it isn't anymore. I like you, a lot."

She laughed. It wasn't a pleasant laugh, though; her sweet laugh that he loved was gone. She was hollow, hurt, and alone.

"Ginny, can we just keep things the way they were?" he asked her.

"Never come near me again."

She broke free of his grip and stalked off toward the Forbidden Forest. He felt broken inside and miserable, and empty. He realized at that moment how much Ginny meant to him. She was everything he wanted in a girl, and he just let her walk away from him.

He let her go.