OPHELIA LET HERSELF FALL BACKWARDS into her favorite armchair on the common room, sighing tiredly and rubbing her forehead with her fingers.

As she sat, there came a yowl, and Princess Cleopatra leaped up from the very same chair she had been about to sit, her cat thoroughly annoyed by being awoken.

After the blonde sat, her cat settled itself in her lap. 

Colin, on the other hand, was laughing without shame. 

"That's the what— seventh person today?" he asked, fighting to hide his smile.

Ophelia sent him a harsh glare. "Do not even start," she growled, her pink, glossy lips puckered into a pout.

"You shouldn't have been so cruel, Oph," Colin continued, the edges of his lips twitching upwards. 

"Creevey, I swear to God— One more word—" The blonde threatened. Yet she couldn't deny that the nickname he'd given her sounded kind of... perfect coming forth from his lips.

But she couldn't get distracted, at least not right now. She had more pressing matters to deal with. Like the current problem at hand. Where Colin Creevey was teasing her about the seven random people who'd decided to try their luck and ask Ophelia out to Hogsmeade for Valentine's day.

She rejected them all.

Colin merely laughed. "But you love lilies," he continued. "Why'd you have to be so mean?"

"Did you see his face?" Ophelia asked sarcastically. "I'd never be caught going out with someone like him."

"Yes, but his soul was pure—"

"COLIN CREEVEY, WOULD YOU JUST SHUT UP?" Ophelia screeched loudly.

The entire common room went quiet.

Ophelia could feel all eyes on her.

Slowly, she sunk lower in her chair, a fierce heat spreading from the tip of her nose to her cheeks and ears. Her heart was beating alarmingly fast, and she quickly covered her face with a book.

Colin was smirking.

Once the common room went back to normal, Colin nudged the blonde, who was scowling.

"I hate you," she scowled.

"Aw I know, sweetheart," Colin said sympathetically, patting her head. 

The blonde took her chance to kick his shin as hard as she could, her jaw clenched.

Colin didn't even flinch. Instead, his grin only seemed to grow wider. 

She scowled, and proceeded to kick him harder, but Colin grabbed her ankle firmly, and pulled her off the couch, calling her to fall onto the carpet, a squeal of surprise leaving her lips.

She fell down with a loud 'oomph.'

Her hair was half out of her updo, golden blonde strands covering her eyes and cheeks, as she sat up. 

Scowling at her best friend, she blew off a strand of hair away from her eyes, and lifted her arms up to redo her hair, only for Colin to gently place his hands on her wrists.

"Don't," he said softly. 

Ophelia suddenly felt breathless.

Her cheeks heated up once more, and she could feel the warmth creeping up to her nose and ears. 

All her anger towards her best friend seemed to have vanished. 

Her grey eyes moved upwards, looking at his tender expression, a look of confusion written all over her face. 

Colin slowly moved to a position behind her, and gently, he took off her pink ribbon, letting her soft blonde waves fall down her shoulders like a sheet of gold.

Tenderly, his fingers moved to brush the hair out of her eyes.

Only after he'd placed the ribbon in her palm is when he retracted his hand.

It took a few seconds for Ophelia to come back to her senses. Clearing her throat, she brushed off the unsettling feeling she felt in her stomach. "Th-thank you," she said quietly. "I erm— I need to go to bed, it's... It's quite late," she continued, standing up.

"Me too," Colin stood up with her. "We've got potions tomorrow, first thing in the morning."

"Goodnight," the blonde hummed softly.

"Night, Oph," Colin replied, before his arms reached forward, pulling her into an embrace.

Before Ophelia could comprehend what was going on, Colin had already pulled away from her, and with a final pat on her shoulder, he was already making his way up the stairs to his dormitory, leaving Ophelia completely befuddled.

A Hogsmeade visit on Valentine's day was exactly the sort of occasion where the most dramatic scenarios would occur.

Love triangles, squares, and sometimes even octagons were rather common on this day.

It was the day where all the couples would try their best to outdo each other; where all the girls would compete to see who had the best boyfriend.

If Ophelia had to hear about that stupid boyfriend of Ginny Weasley's one more time, she was sure she'd throw up all over her brand new skirt.

Oh, and Harry Potter had made it clear that he was going with Cedric Diggory's ex-girlfriend, Cho Chang.

The blonde was pretty sure she also heard the Weasley twins bragging that they had dates, and she definitely could not forget that Pansy Parkinson had thrown a huge hissy fit when Draco asked a Ravenclaw out to Hogsmeade for Valentine's day.

Apparently Theodore Nott had some date too, but Ophelia couldn't be bothered less.

The thing that left her feeling lonely was how Colin said he'd be going with Abigail, but Ophelia couldn't complain, because it was Valentine's day, and she was happy for him.

She chose her outfit very carefully today.

She didn't want to wear red or pink because of Valentine's day, so instead, she wore a light yellow, pleated skirt with a white blouse, and long, white socks. Her white shoes were heeled, and dainty, and she wore a matching yellow hairband.

She left her hair down. She didn't do this much, as it made her look slightly older, but she just wanted to wear her hair down for some reason. She accessorized her outfit with quartz earrings, and she wore the necklace Colin gave her for Christmas. Then, she finished off with her usual makeup.

Walking alone was something she was quite accustomed to. Swinging her white tote bag in one hand, the blonde watched her surroundings as she walked across the cobbled street, taking the all too familiar pathway to H&M Establishment.

Letting herself into the bookstore, the blonde was surprised to see Mr. Harper already making tea.

"Hi," she said brightly, though she did not feel particularly bright anyway.

"Ah, have a seat, child, I was just expecting you."

Ophelia's lips twitched, and she sat opposite him. "It smells like lavender," she remarked, sniffing the air.

Mr. Harper was mixing sugar into a steaming teacup. "Indeed. This tea does have a fresh sprig of lavender in it," he told her. "As well as sage leaves and cinnamon."

"It sounds lovely."

She took a teacup, and after sipping her first sip, she instantly knew that she now had a favorite tea. 

"Oh, this tea is remarkable!" Ophelia exclaimed.

Her mother's favorite tea was lavender tea. Narcissa could not sleep without taking this tea exactly an hour and a half after dinner, and Ophelia had grown accustomed to the soothing scent of lavender.

"So, Ophelia, what have you been up to?" the old man asked, stirring his own tea continuously.

The blonde shrugged. "The usual. Classes, and quidditch, I suppose. I'm now the beater for the Gryffindor team."

"How wonderful," he said kindly. "And pray, how do you classes go?"

"I'm doing well in all of them," she said proudly. "And Professor McGonagall is training me on advanced transfiguration, and how to become an Animagus."

Mr. Harper's cup almost flew out of his grasp. "That's brilliant!" he coughed, clearing his throat.

Ophelia had been bursting with this news, and finally, after having gotten it out her chest, she did feel so much better. "I'm still struggling with the Patronus part though," she said sadly.

"Wait here," Mr. Harper told her. "I've got just the thing."

And he stood up, and slowly made his way to the back of the shop, coming back with a thick, dusty volume.

The Complete Guide to Discovering Your Patronus.

It was a signed copy, and obviously very valuable, and no doubt, it was exactly what Ophelia needed. But she refused, knowing the book was very valuable. 

He forced the book into Ophelia's hands, despite her protests, and after she thanked him profusely, she stood up, and began making her way to The Three Broomsticks.

She passed by Madam Puddifoot's Teashop, which was crowded with couples being cheesy, and making out, and Ophelia found herself wondering if Colin and Abigail were one of those couples. 

Passing by Honeydukes, she stocked up on Sugar Quills, before deciding that she would get a butterbeer for herself.

Right as she could see the door of The Three Broomsticks, she heard a loud shriek and the sound of laughter.

It sounded familiar.

Then she realized why.

Colin's laugh.

Turning her head slightly, her mind and eyes were not prepared for what she saw. Colin and Abigail were messing around a few feet away from her. 

They did not see her, too busy wrapped up in their own little world.

She quickly darted behind a tree.

Her heart was beating alarmingly fast, in fear for being discovered. No, she did not want Colin to see her alone, and miserable, lest he'd cancel his date and hang out with her. He looked so happy, she thought.

Was he unhappy with her? Was she a bad friend? Did he smile like that when he was with her?

No, for the life of herself, Ophelia could not fathom why she was suddenly thinking thoughts like this.

Thoughts like this were unwanted. 

She peeped out from behind the tree, and cast her eyes at the pair.

She regretted it.

She wished she had never looked.

But it was too late.

Her eyes had seen what they saw, and now her gaze was transfixed firmly onto the couple.

Colin had wrapped his arms around Abigail, hugging her tightly, and had leant down to kiss her.

They were kissing. 

And Ophelia found herself wanting nothing more than to rip them apart with her bare hands, and tear off Abigail to shreds.

A fire-breathing dragon had wedged itself into her chest, angrily clawing her ribs, begging to be released, so it could pounce on what she saw.

Her eyesight became blurry.

The blonde could not even think on why she felt this way.

All she knew was that she hated Abigail.

Abigail, who had waltzed into her life, and taken the one person she actually cared about.

Her Colin. 

Her best friend.

But it was too late, for after a kiss like that, Abigail and Colin were inseparable.

So she did the only thing she was good at.

She ran.

She ran in fear of being seen, and to get away.

And she did not stop as she past all the small shops and the shouting shop-owners that marketed their goods.

She only stopped when she passed through the door of the bookshop she was at only minutes ago, and she collapsed straight into Mr. Harper's arms, and sobbed for what her life was worth.

"Calm down, my child, tell me everything," Mr. Harper kept whispering soothingly into her ear. 

And after another cup of tea, Ophelia stopped shaking, and her tears had stopped long enough for her to tell him what she saw.

"H-he's m-my best friend," she blubbered. "She's- she's taking him away from me. H-he won't be my best friend any longer," she cried.

"Oh, Ophelia," Mr. Harper sighed, rubbing her back softly. "I'm sure he'll always be your best friend. You are a lovely girl, and he would be a fool to ever leave your side."

"N-no, he was my best friend first," she continued, sniffling into his shoulder. "He barely knows her."

"Ophelia, my child, wipe your eyes," Mr. Harper handed her his handkerchief. "Look at me."

Her grey eyes slowly looked up to meet his blue ones.

"Listen to me very carefully," he whispered. "I think... I think your feelings for Colin go a little more than friends."

Ophelia choked on her breath. "N-No, that's not true. I d-don't have feelings for him. And even if I did, I c-can't. He's... My father would never... he's a muggleborn...."

"Think, Ophelia, think," Mr. Harper said quietly. "You smile when you think of him. You blush when you speak of him, and your heart beats loud, whenever he is near."

She said nothing. "I do not like him that way," she pursed her lips. 

"If your feelings towards him are only friendly, then you should have no problem with Mr. Creevey kissing his girlfriend," Mr. Harper pointed out.

"Y-you're right," Ophelia stood up. "I shouldn't. Thank you, Mr. Harper. I was just being... overprotective. I.. I lost myself for a moment."

"Take care, my child."

Ophelia found herself walking down the cobbled pathway, unable to stop thinking of the conversation she just had, only minutes ago.

It sounded so, so absurd.

But then, she caught a glimpse of Colin and Abigail holding hands near the Shrieking Shack, and the fire-breathing dragon in her chest came to life again.

Her ears felt red, and hot, thinking of how they were kissing only a while ago.

She could not get the image out of her head.

Most of all, she hated Abigail. No, she loathed Abigail.

The dragon in her chest only seemed to calm down as Ophelia imagined herself kissing Colin instead of Abigail, and all at once, it hit her like a fast-moving Bludger.

Ophelia hated Abigail, because she was jealous of her.

And she was jealous of Abigail because—

"No," Ophelia whispered to herself, shaking her head to deny what she was feeling, out loud.

It was because—

I love him, she thought, and the dragon in her chest roared in the storm that brewed within her chest.

Indeed, nothing could protect Ophelia from this now. Not even Lucius.

She had done the one thing her father had forbade her from doing, and this only made her furiously shake and start crying once more.

She fell for a mudblood.

Nothing could protect her from the wrath of her father. And if the Dark Lord found out... Heaven forbid.

Lucius would hate her. How would he look at her the same? How would she tell him?

It was enough she got sorted into Gryffindor, and Lucius had been willing to overlook the fact that she befriended a mudblood.

All these thoughts made her cry more, thinking of how she'd be disowned, or hated by the one person in the world that meant the world to her.

But after all, this was the predicament she found herself in, and this was what she had to deal with now. Indeed, Ophelia should have thought before she fell, or at least, distanced herself away from her best friend before she fell.

But it was too late.

No, it was far, far too late to do anything.

Because Ophelia Malfoy was in love with Colin Creevey.

{ hey guys ,, so i'm finally back !! i know it's been a couple of weeks since i last updated.. about two weeks. but i finally finished my first year of uni on thursday, and i'm going to go on vacation to the states for the summer, so i doubt i'll update daily... i'll be traveling alone for the first time ever and i'm so excited !! anyway, i hope you enjoyed the chapter, and i'll try updating soon. i'm leaving on 20th of june, so that's about 22 days away from now. i CANNOT wait. anyway, take care, my luvs. please spam me with comments :))
love, jasmine. }

{JUN 18. 2023}