A/N: This is my first fanfic. It's in Hermione's POV.

Disclaimer: I (unfortunately) do not own the Harry Potter series. If I did, I wouldn't be writing fanfics, would I?

I am sitting in the common room reading when I hear footsteps on the stairs. I look up and my heart skips a beat. It is my best friend, Ronald Weasley. I watch him come down the stairs, laughing along with my other best friend, Harry Potter. But it is Ron that makes my heart jump.

I love watching him laugh. The way his eyes light up, and the way his mouth moves. I also love the way his ears turn the same color of his hair when he is having fun. Red. Bright red. They also turn red when he is mad or embarrassed. More often when he is mad. At least, when he's around me.

We always fight. Every single day we always find something to fight about. I hate it. I hate it even more than he does. Because I am hopelessly in love with my best friend. And he doesn't know it, nor does he feel the same way. He can't feel the same way. To him I am just Hermione. The best friend who just happens to be a girl. Not that he noticed I was a girl until fourth year, when he didn't have a date to the Yule Ball. I would've gone with him if he had asked sooner, or if he hadn't of asked so rudely.

I don't know why I am in love with him. Sometimes he is rude, and unconditionally mean. He is idiotic, rash, and he swears a lot too. But at other times he is funny, and kind, even caring. Sometimes I think he has feelings for me too. Like when our eyes meet he looks away quickly. If our hands touch, he blushes. And at times, I catch him staring at me.

I try to give him signs. Like, I do his homework, even if I am dropping with exhaustion. Or I sit close to him on the couch in the common room. But I don't know how to show a boy I love him, especially my best friend!

"Hermione?" his voice jolts me out of my trance. "What are you looking at?"

"What? Oh, nothing, Ron." I reply. "Just daydreaming."

"What about?" he asks, as Harry walks away, looking apprehensive.

"Nothing, Ronald!" I snap, trying to cover up the fact I had been practically drooling over him.

"Oh, come on Hermione!" he pleads. "You don't tell me anything!"

"I tell you things!" I say, irritated. "You just don't listen!"

"What?" he asks. He had been watching Harry's chess game against Dean Thomas.

"Exactly my point!" I yell, angry now. God, he irritated me. "I always tell you things, but you never listen! You're so full of yourself you don't even care what anyone else thinks!"

"I didn't come down here to get in a fight with you-"

I cut him off, "You never do! But you always end up provoking me into a fight!"

The room goes quiet. Everyone is watching us now. But I don't care. All I care about is the angry boy in front of me. I hadn't meant to start a fight. They just sort of, well, happen.

"Me? Provoke you? I believe you have it mixed up, Granger!" he shouts, his ears turning that bright red color I love so much. "You're the one who always starts bloody yelling at me for nothing!"

"It's not for nothing! You never listen!" I screech. I felt an ache in my chest. He'd never called me "Granger" before. I wanted to cry. So I yelled some more to keep the tears back. "You great, stupid prat!"

"Maybe I'd listen if you weren't lecturing me all the time!" He bellows. "You just love to show off how much of a know-it-all you are!"

"I'm not a know-it-all!"

"Yes you are! And for your information, no one listens to you!" he screams. "No one cares what you have to say! I hate you!"

Now that hurts. That hurts really badly, and he has no idea. I break down, "You don't mean that, do you?" I whisper.

He just stares at me, shocked at what he had just said. I start sobbing and run from the room. I hear Harry saying "Now you've done it Ron. She'll never forgive you," Before I get out of the portrait hole. I don't hear Ron's answer because I'm crying too hard. I run down the marble staircase, surprising a few first years along the way, and out the front doors into the grounds.

I run all the way out to the lake, where I collapse, sobbing, onto the ground. It's cold outside, and I'm shivering. I had on only my favorite shirt and a pair of jeans. I get up and move over against a tree, where I wrap my arms around my knees. Then, to complete my misery, it starts to rain. Freezing cold droplets start to fall from the sky. This had to be the worst night ever.

I start to get up, when I realize that I wouldn't be able to face him, or anyone else for that matter. I think back to what he had said.

"You just love to show off how much of a know-it-all you are!" His voice echoed in my head.

"No one cares what you have to say!"

"Granger!"

"I hate you!"

I start sobbing again. Hehatedme. He hated me! My chest hurts. It feels like he had stuck a knife in my heart. I clutch my chest and curl up in a ball on the ground, rain pouring down and soaking me to the skin. I stay there for what seems like days when I hear a voice say timidly, "Hermione? Are you all right?"

It was him. I stand up, forcing my cramped muscles to move. "Of course I'm not alright, you idiot!" I shout, wanting to hurt him like he hurt me. "My best friend told me he hated me, and I just spent an excruciatingly long amount of time curled in a ball, sobbing, on the hard ground. In the freezing rain, no less! And then you have the nerve to come out here, and ask me if I'm all right? Seriously, Ronald!"

"Hermione, I'm sorry!" he pleads, cowering at the look of fury on my face. "I really am!"

"You think that cuts it?" I yell. "You hurt me, Ron! You hurt me way more than you could ever know!"

"Then what do you expect me to do?" he asks.

"I don't know. I really don't know." I whisper. "I don't think our friendship can survive this… I'm sorry… goodbye, Ron." I start walking towards the castle. I don't want to do this, but it's best. It would've torn my heart out, had my heart still been in my chest.

"Wait, what?" he asks, horrified. "Hermione, no!"

I look back. He's just standing there, arms outstretched halfway towards me, as if to pull me back towards him. The rain is still pouring down. He looks so pitiful, and beautiful, I want to run and kiss him and tell him it will be alright, but I don't. I just keep walking down the path to the front doors. I don't look back again. If I did, I'm afraid I wouldn't be able to restrain myself.

When I get back to the common room, everyone sees me, looks behind me to see if Ron is there, and then back at me. I shake my head, and they all groan. Harry walks up to me.

"Hey. Are you alright?"

"I'm fine." I say stiffly, avoiding his eyes. He gets the message, and backs off to start struggling over his potions assignment. I quickly run up to the girl's dormitories and change into dry clothes. I lie on my bed and close my eyes, but sleep never comes. I keep seeing Ron, standing in the freezing rain, arms reaching out to me. I sigh, and get up, wincing. My whole body hurt from being curled up so long, but my heart hurt worse than anything.

I leave the dorm and walk down the stairs. Thankfully, Ron isn't back yet. There are only a couple of people in the common room. Harry is still working at the table.

I might as well help him. I walk over and sit down next to him. He looks up questioningly. I just shrug my shoulders and force a small smile. He smiles back, and I reach for his parchment. Harry settles back against his chair in relief, then tenses up, staring at the portrait hole. I turn around quickly, spilling a bottle of ink on accident. The few people left in the common room, including Harry, hastily stand up, and, muttering excuses, flee upstairs. Standing at the entrance to the portrait hole, dripping wet, is Ron.

I stare at him. He stares at me. Finally, I turn around and remove the ink off Harry's essay with my wand.

"You better get out of those clothes, Ronald." I say. I'm surprised I can say it without starting to cry.

"W-what?" he stammers, confused.

I roll my eyes and turn around. "Your clothes. You'll get hypothermia if you just keep standing there."

"What's hypothermia?" he asks, looking anywhere but at me.

"Never mind." I sigh. "Just go get changed."

He nods, and goes upstairs. I start to go to my dorm, but something holds me back. He reappears five minutes later in dry clothes. I nod my approval. We just stand there, awkwardly, until he breaks the silence.

"Hermione?"

"What?"

"You know I'm sorry, right?" He looks hopefully at me. And, of course, he makes puppy-dog eyes. Oh, his eyes, his beautiful blue eyes. My heart practically stopped. Is he trying to kill me?

"Yes." I say, my voice higher than usual.

"Those insults just slipped out. I didn't mean them! I wasn't thinking. I was just so mad! I'm-"

"Ron! I get it!" I interrupt him. He was making my heart hurt too bad. Even though I hate him right now, I am still madly in love with him. He was just so cute when he was begging my forgiveness. But I had to be strong! What if we were together? That wouldn't be good in the fight against Voldemort! We would be distracted! What about Harry? What would he think if his two best friends were dating? Why am I even thinking about this? There's no chance that would ever happen! He doesn't love me. He's only wanting forgiveness because he is my best friend. My ex-best friend. My crush. My soul-mate. The love of my life.

"Then why won't you forgive me?" he cries.

"I have forgiven you. I just don't think we should be friends anymore." Be strong, Hermione. Be strong.

"Why not?"

"Because… um… we… I think- Oh who am I kidding?"

I throw my arms around him and knock him to the ground. I press my mouth to his. Fireworks explode in my head. It's the most wonderful sensation I've ever experienced. I tangle my fingers in his hair, and he responds just as enthusiastically. He tastes like pumpkin juice! His lips are softer than I've ever imagined. I wrap my legs around his waist as we roll around on the floor.

When we finally break for air, he looks at me quizzically, "Hermione, what-"

"I've been wanting to do that for a long time." I say. "I still don't think we can be friends though."

"What?" he looks disappointed. "Why not?'

I roll my eyes. "Why would you want to be friends after that kiss? Wouldn't you want to be more?"

"Oh… In that case, I don't want to be friends. Want to move to the couch, Hermione? This floor is really hard."