It's True
A creak of a door roused Theo from his sleep. Shit. He hadn't meant to fall asleep here, what the fuck was Draco going to think?
But it'd been so late, and Hermione was so upset, and there had been so much clearing up to do, he couldn't have left her alone. So he'd cancelled on his date for the night and stayed with her to help clear up the mess Draco had made.
Another movie night gone wrong. Hermione had suggested the afternoon this time, hoping to catch Draco in a good mood, before he started drowning his sorrows. It also meant Theo could watch a movie and then still go on his date with Adrian Pucey at 8pm. Not that he was particularly invested in Adrian, but occasionally Theo needed to remind himself that he was a single man who could date who he pleased.
They'd had a good first hour, getting halfway through When Harry Met Sally, laughing at the jokes, Theo even trying to tease a little, comparing Draco and Hermione to the titular characters, knowing each other for a long time before finally getting together.
But then the Prophet had arrived and it had all gone tits up. “OUR TOP TEN REFORMED DEATH EATERS AND WHY YOU SHOULD CONSIDER DATING THEM!” by Rita Skeeter.
Draco wasn't on the list. Obviously, Theo thought. The wizarding world knew that he and Hermione were an item, had been for years. Why would he be on a list of anyone people should date, regardless of death eater status?
Draco didn't see it that way. Finishing his bottle of tequila, he went on a rampage about how everybody hated him, he had no chance for redemption, and nobody would ever look at him differently. It didn't help that Theo was number 2 on the list.
He'd trashed the place. Hermione couldn't even bring herself to cry, just sat there in shock as he smashed glasses and blasted cushions. He'd passed out in the bathroom after an hour of yelling.
Theo was furious. So he'd stayed. He'd stayed to help clear up the mess his best mate had made, and had accidentally fallen asleep on the sofa. And he was pretty sure Draco was currently looking down at him and Hermione, asleep on said sofa.
So Theo took the coward's way out, and pretended to still be sleeping.
“So it's true then? You are sleeping together,” he heard Draco ask.
He felt Hermione stand up next to him.
“What the fuck, Draco? Are you serious? Do you remember nothing about what happened last night?”
“All I know is that I was hurting, and I've come downstairs to find my girlfriend and my best mate cuddled up together!”
“You're fucking deranged, Draco. We're on opposite ends of the sofa! Theo stayed to help me clean up YOUR mess! He missed his date because of it!”
“Oh yeah, I bet he was so happy to cancel his date to spend the night with you.”
“Theo had to carry you from the bathroom to your bed last night, he cleaned up your vomit, and made sure you didn't choke on your own tongue. And here you are, accusing him of sleeping with me? Do you have any idea how insane you sound?!”
“I'm just saying it how I see it!”
“Well you've been seeing it wrong for a long time!! I've done /everything/ to try and help you Draco, and so has Theo!! We love you so fucking much, and it burns us inside to see you like this, but we keep sticking by you because we KNOW who you can be. We are here to HELP you! But we can't help you if you don't want to be helped!”
“I don't need your help!” Draco screamed at her.
Theo couldn't pretend to sleep anymore. He hated watching his best friend destroy himself, but he refused to let him take Hermione down with him. He stood from the sofa and stalked towards Draco.
“Drake. That's enough. I can't do anything about you treating yourself like shit, but I won't let you speak that way to me or Hermione. I'm taking her to Harry’s. Call me when you're ready to work through this, but I'm done trying to force your hand.”
He turned back to Hermione, tears flowing down her cheeks as her chest heaved with sobs. Grabbing her hand, he took her to the fireplace and floo’d her to Grimmauld.
He loved them both. Truly. But there was nothing more he could do for Draco.