pretend you're mine (all the damn time)

word count: 638

Sometimes I wonder when you sleep
Are you ever dreaming of me?
Sometimes when I look into your eyes
I pretend you're mine, all the damn time
'Cause I like you

- Delicate, Taylor Swift, Reputation -

"You know, you're going to work yourself to an early grave if you go on in that manner." Draco's hand stopped scribbling out the report. He sighed and bit back a scathing remark.

Every time…

"What do you want, Potter?"

"I want my partner to actually have a life, Malfoy." Harry retorted. Draco rubbed a hand over his face. Harry had been doing this for the past few weeks, insisting that so much paperwork wasn't good for Draco's health and that he actually needed Draco to be alive when they were assigned a mission.

Draco had borne it with good grace. After all, he couldn't possibly tell Potter about the real issue bothering him.

No, that was out of the question.

"And how do you suggest I do that?" Draco questioned Harry, glaring at the man standing beside his table.

"Go out with me."

All of Draco's thoughts came to a spluttering halt as Harry nervously blurted out the last thing that Draco had expected to hear.

"Are you out of your senses?" Draco stood abruptly, stuffing his papers into his briefcase. I can't deal with this.

"I'm certainly not out of my senses. And I assure you, I know exactly what I'm doing."

"Really? Are you quite sure you didn't take a love potion? Honestly, Potter, you're a qualified Auror. I thought you had better sense than to do that." Now Draco was beyond frustrated. A small part of him had been elated with hope when Harry blurted out the words unthinkingly.

But now… He was beginning to doubt its credibility. Was Potter having him on? Oh no…

Had he found out?

Great. Just great.

"I'm waiting for an answer, you know," Harry's voice interrupted his reverie.

"You can drop the joke, Potter. I know you found out that… that I…" Draco broke off. Glaring at the baffled man beside him, he said, "It doesn't matter anyway. You can drop the joke and have a good laugh at my expense with Granger and Weasley."

Draco was about to step out of his cubicle when Harry said, "What the bloody hell are you talking about? I – I wasn't making a joke. You thought I was kidding? Merlin, I was so nervous, I built up my courage for weeks before I asked you and you think I'm joking?" Harry seemed almost as angry as Draco now.

"Well, what did you expect?" Draco was yelling now. "I thought I was the last person you wanted to date. And you've been avoiding me for so many weeks…"

"You've been doing the same thing, you know. You're always scowling at me and brooding all the time."

"I thought you didn't like me! I thought you hated me." Draco's voice subsided.

"Do you think I'd ask you out if I didn't like you, Malfoy?" Harry asked, an eyebrow quirked and lips tugging into a smile.

"I don't know, Potter. Do you like me? Or are you under a love potion?" Draco was his sardonic self but there was a hint of vulnerability hidden in his voice.

"Perhaps I should show you." Harry grinned. "What do you say, Malfoy? Will you go out with me?"

Draco smirked. "I'm rather busy this week. But I think I can squeeze a date into my schedule. Well, see you on Friday, Potter." He waved in farewell, grinning as Harry let out a small chuckle and followed him out of the office.

(And perhaps the Aurors breathed a sigh of relief as the two left the office because it was about time they got together and as Ron so eloquently put it, "You could cut the sexual tension with a butter knife.")

(And maybe Hermione squealed with delight as they told her that they were dating, in a completely undignified and un-Hermione-like move, but she knew that through all the misunderstandings and animosity, they did belong together.)

happy birthday, ria :)

first off... the ending. *cringe* i'm sorry, but i couldn't think of anything better and even this was totally cheesy. sorry. it's not that bad but...

anyway! this fic is dedicated to one of my best friends on ffn... ria! (belated) happy birthday! hope you liked the drarry (this is my first time writing them and i'm lowkey afraid of how they turned out...) and reputation. love you so much. :)