The Answer
Draco regretted his decision to stay up all night devising a plan to dig himself out the hole with Maeve, which was confirmed by his ghastly appearance complemented with dark, angry circles under his eyes. He wanted to skip breakfast but a crucial part of his plan was to talk to Maeve as soon as possible. Draco hoped that multiple splashes of cold water on his face would wake up his mind and his appearance.
At breakfast, the only thing that Draco was able to stomach was black coffee and a few nibbles of a scone. He forced down the rest of the baked good to ensure that he wouldn’t pass out again and to give him strength to walk over to the Ravenclaw table.
“Why do you look absolutely awful?” Pansy asked, sliding into the seat next to Draco. He self-consciously rubbed his eyes and took another glug of his coffee.
“I… I asked Maeve to the ball last night,” Draco said quietly, using his coffee cup to shield his humiliation. Pansy gasped loudly and he hushed her quickly.
“I’m so happy for the two of you! She’s been talking about going with you ever since the ball was announced and-“
“Woah, she didn’t actually say yes,” Draco paused with a sigh. He doted on Pansy’s words. She’s been talking about going with you ever since the ball was announced. Draco thought it was a miscommunication between the two girls. Maeve must’ve said the same thing to Pansy as she did Draco, that she really wanted to go and wished someone asked her. But Draco was confused on why if Nott and Potter asked her, why didn’t she say yes? Though it displeased him greatly, they were good looking men that probably cared about her. Draco wasn’t too sure about Nott’s motives, however.
“What are you talking about?” Pansy asked bewildered.
“I asked her last night and before she could answer, we got yelled at by McGonagall. And I got so flustered I just ran away,” Draco confessed to which Pansy roared with laughter. “She hasn’t said anything to you yet?”
“No, but it looks like you’re about to get your answer,” Pansy looked up, gesturing with her eyes towards Maeve who was approaching the Slytherin table like it was a sleeping beast. Draco swallowed thickly, bracing himself for the impending rejection. Pansy waved at her friend excitedly and Draco pondered spells that would make him shrink and disappear.
“Good morning, Pansy. Good morning, Draco,” Maeve greeted politely. Great. Her politeness was matched with a rigid posture and Draco just pleaded that she would get it over quickly.
“I must go grab my things from my room. I’ll see the two of you in class,” Pansy ducked out the situation before it could get explosive, running away too quickly before Maeve or Draco could call out “wait.” Maeve took Pansy’s seat, facing her body the other way of the table. The simple gesture, most likely out of ease, emphasized the divide between them.
“Right… So about last night… Draco, I-“ Maeve spoke lowly and nervously, struggling to make eye contact with Draco. To spare his dread and hers, he interrupted her.
“I asked if you wanted to go to the ball together because I heard there were a few guys giving you grief and I guess… I thought they’d leave you alone if you decide to go with me,” Draco spoke quickly and tried to get a read on Maeve’s stoic expression. A slight smile crept across her lips and Draco’s heat thudded relentlessly in his chest. Then, her smile quickly turned into a frown, and she looked up from her hands into Draco’s eyes.
“Oh! So, as friends…?” Maeve tilted her head quizzically. Draco gnawed on his bottom lip trying to come up with a suitable answer. He weighed the consequences of saying yes, which would friendzone her for the foreseeable future, or no, which could send her running to the hills. He dabbled in the absolute and considered the gamble.
“I don’t want to go as friends… I, uh-” Draco started out, then realized that the Slytherin table was quiet with all eyes affixed on him. Maeve, with her back to the table, was blissfully unaware. He glanced quickly down the length of the table to realize that even the older students, including Nott, were watching intently. He forgot that he was still in public. Draco trailed off his sentence when he noticed Maeve turn bright red and she began to nervously fix her hair. Some of his housemates began to whisper and giggle. Draco lost his train of thought and began to stutter.
“Okay, then let’s not go as friends,” Maeve squeezed Draco’s arm, making him feel dizzy. Draco couldn’t comprehend her words. “It’s a date.”
“D-date. Yeah… yeah. That sounds good…” Draco tried to catch his breath and Maeve laughed at him. The pounding in his chest travelled to his head when silence fell on the Slytherin table. He turned back towards Maeve and placed a nervous hand on her thigh. “It’s a date.”