Bruised & Broken // D.M.

Fifty-six
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It was one more night until the O.W.L's would start and everyone was tense. There was not one fifth-year student seen without a book in their hands.

The past few weeks, the fifth-year Slytherins took terms in questioning each other for each subject and practising different spells and potions.

Every possible muscle in Amara's body was under constant tension and the stress robbed her of a relaxing sleep most of the nights.

This morning she and her brother received a letter from their parents, wishing them good luck and their father casually telling them between the lines that he spoke with the examiners in advance.

"He just did that because he thinks I will fail," Theo said, annoyed and rolled his eyes.

"Don't be ridiculous Theo," Amara protested and folded the letter to store it in her robes, "don't think about it," she said with a reassuring smile and grabbed his hand, stroking the back of it with her thumb.

"There they are," Pansy, who sat opposite them, whispered and nodded her head towards the door.

"We should go and study," Amara said and stood up, leaving her food untouched. She grabbed her brother's arm and dragged him with her out of the hall.

It was only stressing her out more seeing the examiners arrive, reminding her of all the things she needed to go over again.

She heard quick, long steps behind her —following her.

"You haven't eaten," someone whispered in her ear, while they continued walking and he placed his hand on her lower back.

Her face heated up immediately, feeling his hot breath caressing her skin.

"I'm not hungry," she mumbled, staring at her feet while walking. Her hair fell into her face, hiding her flustered cheeks.

"But you haven't eaten properly in days," the blonde protested and stopped her by grabbing her wrist.

"You're stalking me now?" she spat. She was stressed and worried, constantly, resulting in a lot of mood swings these past days.

Who Draco mostly was the victim of but he didn't say anything, he just swallowed his annoyance with her constant snapping down and only tried to be there for her.

He knew how much she stressed herself when it came to school.

"I-I'm just worried," Draco said, his hand still holding onto her wrist, spinning her around so she had to look at him.

"Well there is no reason to be," Amara snapped and pressed her lips in a tight smile. She yanked her wrist out of his grip and continued to walk away with her brother.

"What did he do this time?" Theo asked while they walked down the steps to the dungeon.

"What do you mean?" she frowned.

"You're rude to him without a reason," Theo said.

"I-I wasn't- rude," Amara said and looked at her brother with a confused expression. She didn't think she was rude, she was stressed.

"Yes you were," he laughed and muttered the password so the bare stone wall opened —revealing the passage leading into the Slytherin common room.

"I-I'm just stressed and he- he is so calm that it drives me crazy," Amara sighed. She knew he was just trying to take care of her when she clearly was forgetting her basic needs, like eating or sleeping but it drove her insane how calm he was all time, how he seemed not to care yet managed to be one of the best students in their year.