I Never Thought in a Million Years It'd Be You
I Never Thought in a Million Years It'd be You
Haley-Quinn Trumpster plopped down in her usual spot and waited for Daisy, the first year she tutored in muggle studies. Wondering what Daisy’s work ethic would be like today, Haley-Quinn pulled out her Divination research paper folder and her favorite silver quill.
Existence before essence…
She dragged her quill under the print slowly, making sure to cover each letter.
Daisy walked in looking confused as usual. Spacey as she was, she was a genuinely nice girl. Once you get past the obvious smell of pot, that is. She told Haley-Quinn that she had to go make up a Potions lab. Haley-Quinn was on her own today.
The scuffling of feet on tile signaled that a fresh group of students had arrived in the library, either to seek refuge from the cold school grounds, or in a couple of cases, to actually do work. A confident and familiar laugh made Haley-Quinn look up.
Draco was wearing his Quidditch robes, his naturally white-blonde hair tousled over his eyes. Haley-Quinn’s best friend Penelope Clearwater always said she thought he wore mascara with how thick and luscious his eyelashes were.
Haley-Quinn looked down again, straightening her shoulders and sticking her chest forward. Her feet swung over the very floor he walked on.
Gosh, he was a good looking kid. Haley-Quinn instantly put on her most convincing “I don’t care who came into the room I’m too concentrated and cute to look up” face. If he saw her and didn’t know she saw him too, then Haley-Quinn was game.
She tried to take my mind off of him, turning her attention back to her paper. Soon enough, however, she found herself musing about the upcoming Yule Ball.
She sighed, losing her “too focused to bother” demeanor for just a second. The Yule Ball should have been exciting. Her sixth year, a midnight masquerade, and yet here she was dreading every awkward second of it.
She didn’t know how she all of a sudden became the only person in her group without a date, but that’s what happened. Haley-Quinn had gone from a member of the normal crew to the discomfited ninth wheel- the unnecessary and rickety one that didn’t really work with the others.
Normally Haley-Quinn wouldn’t care whether or not she had an escort to a dance. She liked being free to dance with whoever she wanted, not being tied to a single solitary person the entire evening. It was part of her free-spirited, yet innocent nature. But that was when everyone in her group felt that way. Now Penelope had Blaise, Flora had Terence, Kelly had her mysterious Ravenclaw boy… even Pansy had Goyle. Everything was so fresh to them… and to Haley-Quinn? It was the same old news. Waiting for one her ex’s to need a pick me up, looking for her, knowing that she was always there and too sweet to say no. But now they all had girlfriends. They all had dates. And Haley-Quinn was alone.
The worst thing was that this group would pity her. “Picture time! Everyone get in your couples! Oh, Haley-Quinn… We’re sorry! We totally should have found you a date! I’m sure we could have found a lonely loser first year with nothing better to do…”
Ok, so it wouldn’t go exactly like that. But something similar... Haley-Quinn was sure of it.
Dinner conversations were doomed to be separated into couples, and she could only imagine the awkwardness of talking to an empty chair.
If one other person, just one, was dateless she’d be fine. She’d have someone to escape with. Now she was trapped. Trapped inside a group she was destined to be all alone in, if that makes any sense at all.
For the innocent black sheep of Slytherin, the odd, quiet duck in a family of confident pure-blood, for once she didn’t want to stick out. Haley-Quinn wanted to melt into the warm and soothing status quo…with a boy in a tuxedo on her arm…
And the boy she wanted most was Draco Malfoy.
That, of course, would never happen. Draco was the poster boy of Slytherin- it was a common belief that he had hooked up with every girl in Slytherin [except Haley-Quinn, of course]. There was even a rumor that the only reason he didn’t have a date for the Yule Ball was because it was physically impossible for him to pick just one girl.
Especially a freckle-faced strawberry blonde squeaky-clean sweetheart like Haley-Quinn.
A rolled up paper slapped on Haley-Quinn’s table. Her head snapped up as she awoke from my daydream.
“Haley-Quinn,” Draco acknowledged. “What’s up?”
She rolled her eyes, “Oh, you know, research paper junk,” she said noncommittally, toying with her quill flirtatiously. Damn, that was a fast recovery.
“Ick. That’s no fun,” he said.
“Yeah, well, I do what I gotta do.”
He smiled brilliantly. “That’s the way to go.”
Haley-Quinn’s heart thumped. Maybe there was hope yet.
“Draco,” she started.
“Haley-Quinn,” he said at the same time.
“Oh! Sorry! I just wanted to ask you something!”
“Oh no, I’m sorry too! You go first!”
“No, it’s fine, you go ahead!”
“You sure?”
“Yes it’s quite alright.”
“Ok.”
“Ok.”
The two finally took a breath. Draco sat down across from Haley-Quinn, who shyly let her blue eyes wander back to her paper.
“Listen,” he sighed. “I know a lot of rumors go around about me and my... reputation, I suppose. But it’s all just talk. The truth is... the only girl I’ve had eyes for since coming here is you.”
Haley-Quinn blinked with surprise, dropping her highlighter on the floor. “You’re kidding...”
“No, not at all.” Draco responded. “I tried every trick in the book to get you to fawn over me like all these other girls but... nothing. Couldn’t even get you to blink my way. It was a challenge... and I can’t turn away from a challenge.”
“You tried every trick in the book?” Haley-Quinn questioned.
“I believe so, why do you ask?”
She shook her head and finally locked her eyes onto his. “You could have just told me so.”
Draco’s jaw dropped like this was a completely new revelation. Haley-Quinn smiled sweetly.
“Draco, I’ve been enamored with you all along. But... I’m not like those other girls you know. I don’t need to be made jealous or anything. All I need is a simple introduction.”
Draco returned with an adorable smile. “Well then... hello, Haley-Quinn Trumpster. My name is Draco Malfoy. Would you care to accompany me to the Yule Ball?”
“I would love too,” Haley-Quinn placed her hand on top of Draco’s on the table. “I’ve been waiting to be asked for quite some time... and I never thought in a million years it’d be you.”
Existence before essence…
She dragged her quill under the print slowly, making sure to cover each letter.
Daisy walked in looking confused as usual. Spacey as she was, she was a genuinely nice girl. Once you get past the obvious smell of pot, that is. She told Haley-Quinn that she had to go make up a Potions lab. Haley-Quinn was on her own today.
The scuffling of feet on tile signaled that a fresh group of students had arrived in the library, either to seek refuge from the cold school grounds, or in a couple of cases, to actually do work. A confident and familiar laugh made Haley-Quinn look up.
Draco was wearing his Quidditch robes, his naturally white-blonde hair tousled over his eyes. Haley-Quinn’s best friend Penelope Clearwater always said she thought he wore mascara with how thick and luscious his eyelashes were.
Haley-Quinn looked down again, straightening her shoulders and sticking her chest forward. Her feet swung over the very floor he walked on.
Gosh, he was a good looking kid. Haley-Quinn instantly put on her most convincing “I don’t care who came into the room I’m too concentrated and cute to look up” face. If he saw her and didn’t know she saw him too, then Haley-Quinn was game.
She tried to take my mind off of him, turning her attention back to her paper. Soon enough, however, she found herself musing about the upcoming Yule Ball.
She sighed, losing her “too focused to bother” demeanor for just a second. The Yule Ball should have been exciting. Her sixth year, a midnight masquerade, and yet here she was dreading every awkward second of it.
She didn’t know how she all of a sudden became the only person in her group without a date, but that’s what happened. Haley-Quinn had gone from a member of the normal crew to the discomfited ninth wheel- the unnecessary and rickety one that didn’t really work with the others.
Normally Haley-Quinn wouldn’t care whether or not she had an escort to a dance. She liked being free to dance with whoever she wanted, not being tied to a single solitary person the entire evening. It was part of her free-spirited, yet innocent nature. But that was when everyone in her group felt that way. Now Penelope had Blaise, Flora had Terence, Kelly had her mysterious Ravenclaw boy… even Pansy had Goyle. Everything was so fresh to them… and to Haley-Quinn? It was the same old news. Waiting for one her ex’s to need a pick me up, looking for her, knowing that she was always there and too sweet to say no. But now they all had girlfriends. They all had dates. And Haley-Quinn was alone.
The worst thing was that this group would pity her. “Picture time! Everyone get in your couples! Oh, Haley-Quinn… We’re sorry! We totally should have found you a date! I’m sure we could have found a lonely loser first year with nothing better to do…”
Ok, so it wouldn’t go exactly like that. But something similar... Haley-Quinn was sure of it.
Dinner conversations were doomed to be separated into couples, and she could only imagine the awkwardness of talking to an empty chair.
If one other person, just one, was dateless she’d be fine. She’d have someone to escape with. Now she was trapped. Trapped inside a group she was destined to be all alone in, if that makes any sense at all.
For the innocent black sheep of Slytherin, the odd, quiet duck in a family of confident pure-blood, for once she didn’t want to stick out. Haley-Quinn wanted to melt into the warm and soothing status quo…with a boy in a tuxedo on her arm…
And the boy she wanted most was Draco Malfoy.
That, of course, would never happen. Draco was the poster boy of Slytherin- it was a common belief that he had hooked up with every girl in Slytherin [except Haley-Quinn, of course]. There was even a rumor that the only reason he didn’t have a date for the Yule Ball was because it was physically impossible for him to pick just one girl.
Especially a freckle-faced strawberry blonde squeaky-clean sweetheart like Haley-Quinn.
A rolled up paper slapped on Haley-Quinn’s table. Her head snapped up as she awoke from my daydream.
“Haley-Quinn,” Draco acknowledged. “What’s up?”
She rolled her eyes, “Oh, you know, research paper junk,” she said noncommittally, toying with her quill flirtatiously. Damn, that was a fast recovery.
“Ick. That’s no fun,” he said.
“Yeah, well, I do what I gotta do.”
He smiled brilliantly. “That’s the way to go.”
Haley-Quinn’s heart thumped. Maybe there was hope yet.
“Draco,” she started.
“Haley-Quinn,” he said at the same time.
“Oh! Sorry! I just wanted to ask you something!”
“Oh no, I’m sorry too! You go first!”
“No, it’s fine, you go ahead!”
“You sure?”
“Yes it’s quite alright.”
“Ok.”
“Ok.”
The two finally took a breath. Draco sat down across from Haley-Quinn, who shyly let her blue eyes wander back to her paper.
“Listen,” he sighed. “I know a lot of rumors go around about me and my... reputation, I suppose. But it’s all just talk. The truth is... the only girl I’ve had eyes for since coming here is you.”
Haley-Quinn blinked with surprise, dropping her highlighter on the floor. “You’re kidding...”
“No, not at all.” Draco responded. “I tried every trick in the book to get you to fawn over me like all these other girls but... nothing. Couldn’t even get you to blink my way. It was a challenge... and I can’t turn away from a challenge.”
“You tried every trick in the book?” Haley-Quinn questioned.
“I believe so, why do you ask?”
She shook her head and finally locked her eyes onto his. “You could have just told me so.”
Draco’s jaw dropped like this was a completely new revelation. Haley-Quinn smiled sweetly.
“Draco, I’ve been enamored with you all along. But... I’m not like those other girls you know. I don’t need to be made jealous or anything. All I need is a simple introduction.”
Draco returned with an adorable smile. “Well then... hello, Haley-Quinn Trumpster. My name is Draco Malfoy. Would you care to accompany me to the Yule Ball?”
“I would love too,” Haley-Quinn placed her hand on top of Draco’s on the table. “I’ve been waiting to be asked for quite some time... and I never thought in a million years it’d be you.”