"Harry, we need to talk."

Harry lifted his head from his Potion textbook and blinked at his best friend. She wore a face masked with a firm look that usually meant that she was thinking hard. Her lips were pressed into a thin line as she observed him. Harry felt confused.

"What is it?" he questioned slowly.

Hermione let out a sigh before taking a look around the library area. After her inspections, she returned her gaze to him. Harry quirked a brow, a mean of ushering her to continue. Finally, she began.

"How long have you been interested in him?"

Harry felt as if ice just swept throughout his body for that split second after the question was asked. Even his heart skipped a beat. He couldn't believe his ears. Hermione knew. He was careful to avoid any means of staring or even looking towards him, but somehow Hermione just caught on.

But she couldn't have. He was careful. Maybe she was talking about something else. That sounds right. Hermione was smart ( anyone could agree to that ), but he didn't think that she would be able to figure something out like this.

Shrugging his worries aside, Harry blinked. "I . . . don't know what you're talking about, Hermione."

Harry watched as her eyebrows threaded together slowly. A frown then tinted on her lips.

"You know exactly what I'm talking about, Harry."

He just wanted to get up and run. She definitely knew. His heart thundered against his chest as Harry attempted to stir up another lie, but before he could even voice anything, she began again.

"Don't you dare lie to me, Harry. I've been noticing your actions."

Harry opened his mouth to contradict the words, but she held up a hand and continued.

"You don't notice Ginny anymore. You usually look straight through me to the Slytherin table when I'm talking to you during our periods in the Grand Hall. You don't voice much of your opinions like previous years when we talk about him. You avoid him as much as you can. Harry, do you think I'm ignorant to your behavior around Malfoy?"

At the mention of the name, Harry immediately shushed his best friend while trying to calm down the temperature that flared up in his cheeks.

Hermione issued a 'hmph'. "I thought so." She crossed her arms and leaned back. Her expressions now read emotionless. "What . . . what are you going to do about it?"

At this point, Harry realized that lying was no longer useful. He exhaled and rested his chin on his palm. "I'm not sure," he muttered.

Hermione fell silent.

Harry took in a breath and let it out slowly before sitting back up and looking away. So he was obvious while looking at Malfoy. Frustrated, Harry ran a hand through his messy locks before turning back to Hermione. "It's . . . it's just a small crush, Hermione. I'll get over it."

Hermione shook her head slightly. "How long have you been looking at him in this way?"

Harry ran through the months in his head. Once the answer appeared in his mind, he couldn't help but allow himself to flush an enriching shade of pink again.

"Almost a year, am I correct?"

To Hermione's question, he simply nodded and ducked his head, embarrassed at the same moment he was ashamed.

"Harry . . ." Hermione's voice was soothing as she called out his name softly.

He peeked up at her. Hermione's brown eyes reflected sympathy, which was something he did not want from her. Yes, he found it pathetic that he was chasing after his arch enemy of six years, but he couldn't help itself. It just happened and now, he was hooked.

"You're not crushing on him."

The confusion that flickered across Harry's face made his best friend smile.

"A crush only lasts for four months," she stated carefully, eyes hooking with his. "Any longer than that, you're in love."

"That . . ." Harry hesitated. "That doesn't make any sense, Hermione."

The corner of her mouth curved up into a brighter smile. "A crush is a love that you can live without. Puppy love, muggles call it. Love is when you can't live without the person."

"I can live without him," Harry declared but with less confidence in his words. Awkwardly, he stood up and gathered his books. "I-I need to go, Hermione. I'll see you later." After giving her a curt nod, Harry hurried towards the boys' dormitories.

After watching her best friend usher away, Hermione turned towards the bookshelves. "He does like you," she stated quietly, her brown hues racking the area for the eavesdropper.

Surely enough, a hidden figure carefully appeared from behind the row of books. His white-blond hair was swept aside as his bright gray eyes shone upon the Gryffindor female. He wore a faint smile of gratitude on his lips. "Thank you," he whispered.

Hermione peered up at the Slytherin prefect, still slightly shaken from what she had recently discovered. "What are you going to do? I just convinced Harry that he's in love with you."

"He doesn't believe you," Malfoy replied pointedly.

Hermione frowned. "He'll remember what I said. It may be a crush now, but it can develop into something more. I . . . I can't believe I never noticed before you asked me to do this." Upset with her own ignorance, Hermione stood up and began collecting her books. Once done, she turned to Malfoy.

"Whatever you choose to do, Malfoy, if you hurt him, I will personally hex you until your ancestors feel it."

Malfoy chuckled lightly, which eased the tension within Hermione's body ever so faintly. "I can't promise you that, Granger. But I will try . . . not to."

Hermione's eyes smiled. "How long have you been attracted . . . ?"

At the start of question, Malfoy gave a faint cough as a faint blush crept its way into his cheeks. "End of fourth year."

This time, her lips reflected the same expression as her eyes. "This will be interesting, then." She gave one look around the empty library before turning back to him. "I must be off now. I'll talk to you later, Malfoy."

The Slytherin prefect gave her a faint nod. "Likewise. Thanks again, Granger."

After giving him another one of her true smiles, the Gryffindor prefect made her way out of the library wearing the biggest grin on her face.

Harry liked Malfoy. And Malfoy liked Harry. It's going to be an interesting year, indeed.

AN: Yes! Another fanfiction up that I hopefully will update quicker. D8 I actually don't have this story laid out. So things may be just randomly made up along the way . . . but anywho, this was based off the like page I found on Facebook: "A crush only lasts for a maximum of 4 months. if it exceeds, you are already in love." Reviews are loved and cherished! Thanks for reading ~ C:

Edit / *Note: The "A crush only lasts for a maximum of 4 months. if it exceeds, you are already in love." is not necessarily true. If you didn't catch on the first time, Hermione was just saying that. "What are you going to do? I just convinced Harry that he's in love with you." Sorry if that confused a few of you. x3