Time's Been Sweet To You
House: Gryffindor
Prompts: Good in goodbye by Carrie Underwood
Category: Short story
Word count: 1291
Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter, nor do I own this song.
Please listen to Good In Goodbye by Carrie Underwood as you read this.
I stopped abruptly, my eyes trying to dissuade me from what I knew was real. I guess I'd always known I would run into him one day. The wizarding world isn't so big that we could live out our whole lives without seeing each other eventually. So I shouldn't have been so stunned when I saw him as I was about to enter Fortescue's.
But knowing it was bound to happen didn't make it hurt any less.
He looked so, so happy, with a little girl of about six perched on his shoulders. He held tightly to her tiny feet, clearly very cautious lest he allow her to fall from her seat. His height was somehow even greater than it had been in our school days, and tipping over from up there would be quite the nasty fall.
I looked at the girl carefully, memorizing every detail of her. Even from this distance, I could clearly see her two blue eyes shining brightly, her vivid ginger hair framing her pale, freckled face.
It wasn't hard to guess where she had gotten any of those features from.
I backed away quickly, rounding a corner and leaning against a building, eyes tightly shut. I couldn't talk to him. I couldn't face him, even after all this time. As much as I tried to convince myself that I didn't care anymore, my feelings were still raw and hurt. Maybe I wouldn't feel this way if I had gotten some sort of closure after... After what had happened, but I had run off, avoiding him, and carrying all my pain with me.
I remembered it all like it was yesterday, as cheesy and cliche as that sounds. I remember him telling me we needed to talk, that he needed to tell me something. I wasn't prepared for what he said, though, in hindsight, I was just fooling myself.
"Mione, we need to end this."
"What? You want to...you want to break up?"
"Yes. I'm sorry..."
"...Why?"
"I just don't feel the spark we used to have. It's for the best that we end this before it goes too far."
"It went 'too far' when you said I love you."
"Don't make this into a big deal, please, Hermione..."
"We've been together for three years! Do you expect me to just be okay with this?"
"I expect you to stop holding onto something that's dead and gone."
"...Is this what you want?"
"Yes, it is. I really am sorry."
"Alright then. Consider me dead to you."
"Can't we still be friends?"
"That's not how this works, Ronald."
I let the tears fall, knowing I needed to get out of there; what if he turned the corner, after all? But my body was frozen in place, while my mind was frozen in time. A time where he loved me as much as I loved him...
No, I corrected myself. As much as I had loved him. I wasn't the same heartbroken girl I had been when it all went down. I was stronger now, I was happier now. I had a new love, one much stronger than anything Ron and I may have shared.
And I could face him.
I wiped away my tears, casting a quick glamour charm to make sure there wasn't any lingering red around my eyes. With a deep breath, I rounded the building, walking steadily towards the ice cream parlor.
Entering the little restaurant (don't think about how often you came here with him), I slowly approached the table where he sat with his daughter.
One more deep breath, and I was ready. I extended a hand and hesitantly tapped him on the shoulder.
He turned around, a smile still suspended on his face, though it mixed with confusion as he scanned my own.
"Excuse me, can I help you, miss?" He asked politely. Seems he grew some manners since we last saw each other. Then again, eight years of separation can change a person...
"Hello, Ron," I said, suddenly feeling very self-conscious.
His blue eyes sparked with recognition, and he quickly got to his feet.
"Mione, is that you?" he questioned, seemingly in disbelief.
I smiled, a bit awkward, I'm sure.
"It's... It's good to see you, Ron. It's been awhile."
I'm not sure what I was expecting. Maybe I thought he would blow me off, or give me the cold shoulder. Perhaps he would yell at me and make a scene. I did not, however, foresee him crushing me to his chest in a tight hug.
Then again, I was always awful at Divination...
"I've missed you, Hermione," he mumbled into my hair.
I flushed and pulled back, looking away in embarrassment. Merlin, does he not realize how inappropriate this whole thing is?
"This is your daughter, I suppose?" I said, diverting the subject from the entirely not okay hug he had just given me.
He turned to the girl with a grin that still somehow made my heart melt.
"Yes, this is my Kathy," he said fondly.
The girl looked up at me with bright, curious eyes, just as piercing as her father's, but didn't speak.
"Shy, is she?" I commented. Odd, she didn't seem the type, but then again, some children were uncomfortable around strangers...
Ron shook his head.
"Ah, no. Katherine was born deaf...she can't speak."
Well, this was a horrible situation I had gotten myself into.
"Oh...I'm sorry. Who's the mother?" That was a nice, safe topic.
He scratched the back of his head, looking at the floor.
"Eleanor... Ellie... she passed of scrofungulus a year ago," he muttered.
This reunion was going just fabulously...
"I'm sorry, Ron," I murmured quietly.
He nodded in acknowledgement, and glanced at his daughter again.
"Life's been rough sometimes, but I'm happy. I've got a good job, I've got Kathy... I'm lucky."
I smiled softly, looking at the cheerful little girl.
"Time's been sweet to you," I murmured.
He nodded, eyes locking with mine.
"I'm sorry I put you through what I did. I never meant to hurt you..."
I shook my head firmly. "No, don't apologize. I don't regret the time we had together."
He looked pained. "We haven't seen each other in eight years, Hermione. I hurt you, and I'm sorry. Please, forgive me."
I touched his arm gently.
"Ron... I forgive you. I found someone who made me happy."
He looked relieved.
"Good, I'm glad. Who is the lucky bloke?"
I bit my lip.
"You know him, actually..."
He raised an eyebrow, his eyes traveling over my shoulder.
"He wouldn't happen to be meeting you here, would he?"
I looked over my shoulder as well, smiling to see Draco entering the parlor.
He spotted me, and a nearly imperceptible flash of surprise crossed his features.
He strode over to us, wrapping an arm around my waist.
"Weasley," he said politely, extending his free hand.
"Malfoy," Ron replied, grasping it firmly. "So, you're Hermione's boyfriend?"
The blonde smirked. "Fiance, actually. Proposed a few months back."
Ron grinned, to my surprise.
"Congratulations." He turned to me. "It was great seeing you again, Hermione. We'll have to get together soon and catch up more. I'll leave the two of you to it now."
"Bye, Ron," I said softly, as he and his little girl left.
"You alright?" Draco asked, keeping his arm locked around me.
I thought for a moment.
"To be honest, yes."
He smirked. "So you're saying the past eight years of avoiding Weasley at all costs were for nothing?"
I slapped his arm lightly.
"Seriously, Draco. I'm glad things turned out this way."
He kissed my head gently, squeezing my waist.
"Me too."
Maybe it's a good thing I didn't get what I thought that I deserved.