A MOMENT OF BETRAYAL
It had been a hard day at the office, and I was exhausted. I was looking forward to arriving home to the sight of a hot cuppa and toasting my toes in front of the fireplace. Brrr – the weather had turned even colder overnight. I shivered as I grabbed the keys to my slick black Toyota. Then I drove off through the cold, frosty night.
***
I was dressed in my favourite, most comfortable pair of PJ's: the purple ones with the frosted cupcakes all over. I sipped my coffee and snuggled comfortably onto the sofa. I switched on the TV to catch up on the late news. After my first week of surviving my most recent job, I hadn't had any opportunities to rest at all. Come to think of it, I still had to finish off that news report for Gary. Urgh. Even thinking about it had stopped my looking forward to the remainder of the week. I sighed, thinking about the old days at Hogwarts. Oh, how I missed Ron. Ever since he had been appointed a new job at the Ministry, I hadn't heard from him at all.
Only Harry seemed to be getting along well with his life. He had just recently married Ginny. I could still clearly remember their wedding day. Sigh... that had been simply magical. And to think that I had actually cried halfway through the ceremony. That had been embarrassing. I chuckled to myself at the memory.
That was when I began to pay attention to the news. Something about Valentine's Day... GASP! Tomorrow was Valentine's Day! I was in shock. I had absolutely forgotten about Valentine's Day. A million thoughts began to shuffle endlessly through my head. Was Ron planning a special get-together? Or was he already with someone else?
My heart immediately lurched at the thought of Ron with another woman. But then of course, he did have the right to keep his options open. It had been a while since we last got together. I took a deep breath, and then switched off the news. I was beginning to feel worn out. And with that thought, I closed my eyes, lay down and began to sleep contentedly.
***
I was late. I had forgotten to set my alarm for quarter to seven, and had somehow slept in until 8am. I was flustered and in a terrible mood. I hurriedly dressed myself into something appropriate for work and put on some make-up. I simply brushed my hair, then that was it. There was no time for straightening it, even though it looked appalling. I rushed to the car, and in my hurry had forgotten to bring my handbag with my keys in it. I had to run back into the house and grab my handbag, and then I drove off to work at top speed, blaring my horns at any cars that appeared to be driving too slowly for my liking.
Fortunately when I arrived, Gary, my boss wasn't even in his office yet. Abbey (my closest friend at work) winked at me as soon as I arrived.
"Hey Hermione. You're certainly in luck today. Gary would have freaked if he were here." I rolled my eyes at Abbey, smiling all the while.
"Well, he isn't here, is he? And I'm not planning for Gary to find this out any time soon." Abbey laughed. "Of course he isn't going to find out. My lips are sealed." I smiled at her in triumph. "They'd better be."
"Oh and by the way." I looked back at Abbey questioningly. "A guy named Ron called this morning. He wants you to call him back as soon as you receive the message." Abbey grinned at me. I blushed.
"Thanks for the message, Abbey." I was extremely grateful. "No prob," was her instant reply. I punched her on the shoulder playfully. With Abbey around to keep me company at work, the day was over within seconds.
***
It was 4:30pm after work and I was at home, dialling Ron's number. Thank God he had finally learned to keep a cell phone in handy. The first time he had used one he had shouted himself hoarse, and had nearly caused the person on the other line (being Harry) permanent deafness. I beamed at the memory.
What I didn't understand was why he hadn't called directly to my cell. Why contact me from my work place? I shrugged. No need to worry about that now.
I listened impatiently to the beeping of my phone, waiting for the sound of Ron's familiar voice.
"Hello; Ron speaking." I was overjoyed.
"RON!"
"Ouch, Hermione. No need to shout." I couldn't stop grinning.
"So, why did you call before? Abbey told me you needed me to call you back?" I waited for him to answer.
"Well, since today is Valentine's Day, I thought that maybe you would want to come to dinner with me tonight?" I was silent for a few moments. I was positively hyperventilating.
"Of course! I would love to! Oh my gosh, thank you so much Ron." I could hardly wait.
"Great; meet me in the Abervale Restaurant at around 6:30pm. No need to bring any cash; all expenses already paid for. Cya Hermione."
"Bye, Ron."
Beep. I glanced quickly at the clock hanging on the wall near the kitchen. It read: 4:38pm.
I immediately put away my cell and rushed into my room to search my wardrobe for something suitable to wear. There was no time to waste.
***
It was 6pm and I was finally ready. There was still half an hour left, and the Abervale Restaurant (which was by far the fanciest bistro in town) was just around the corner. But still, I had to make sure I was properly ready.
I gazed at my reflection in the mirror. My normally messy tangle of brown hair was now elegantly straightened and pulled back with a shiny clip. I had chosen to wear my black gown, the strapless one which sparkled. It came up to my knee, and I thought I looked good for once. I usually saved it for extra special occasions, but this did count as one.
My heels were also black to match my dress; they were pointy on the ends and had bows on them. The heels weren't exactly that high, but that suited me just fine. I usually tripped over really high heels. And they hurt my feet if I wore them for too long. I glanced again at the clock. 6:15pm, it read. It was about time to go.
I grabbed my silver clutch bag for the occasion with my cell and purse (just in case) tucked inside. I remembered to switch off my phone in case it caused too big of an interruption. I glanced at my diamond-studded watch. It was 6:17pm, which meant it was time to leave.
***
I arrived at the restaurant at approximately 6:25pm. To my surprise, Ron was already seated at a table and waiting for me. He grinned as soon as he saw me. I smiled back, walking as quickly as I possibly could towards him. He was obviously admiring my look, and that made me feel blissful. I sat down opposite to Ron and he complimented me on my dress.
"You look beautiful tonight, Hermione." I flushed.
"Thank you, Ron. You look great, too." He was dressed in a stylish black suit, with a white tie and matching shoes. His red hair was combed back and he looked irresistibly adorable. A server appeared with two menus.
"Good evening. My name is George, and I will be your server for tonight. What would you like to order?"
"Thank you, George," Ron said at once. I nodded along, smiling. Who knew Ron would have changed that much? He seemed like the perfect gentleman.
"What would you like, Hermione?" I felt Ron and George's gazes on me. I scanned the menu, blushing slightly.
"Umm...I would like to have an escargot meal, thank you." I hadn't eaten escargot for ages. It was a favourite French cuisine of mine. I handed my menu to George. Then it was Ron's turn to order.
"I'd like a plate of vegetable lasagne, thank you. Oh, and a bottle of wine and two glasses please." George turned away with our menus and headed towards the staff kitchen.
I smiled shyly at Ron, who was eyeing me thoughtfully.
"So Ron, what's up with you nowadays? I haven't heard from you since this morning." It was nice to be able to make conversation with someone without having to stutter.
"Oh well, I've been busy with the Ministry and everything. They've appointed me with numerous jobs, and I hardly even have any time to complete them all."
He turned towards me. "Have you heard from Harry recently? I've been too busy, I guess. I have seen Ginny a few times though."
"Um, no I haven't. I was wondering if you had, in fact." At that moment, George arrived with our dishes; he brought mine first.
"Thank you," I said politely. It smelt delicious. I tucked in. Then Ron's dish of lasagne came, and we were soon brought into silence. After we had finished our meals, we each had a small glass of wine each.
George appeared yet again to collect our finished dishes. We kept our glasses in handy. When George finally left us alone, Ron had some apparent big news to tell me. He looked quite anxious, so I wasn't exactly looking forward to hearing it.
"Hermione, you do understand that we haven't really been out much ever since school ended right?"
I nodded slowly. I couldn't seem to predict what he was leading to.
"Well, I hope you don't mind, but well...I've been meaning to tell you this ages ago, but-,"
"Just spit it out, Ron." My voice came out hard and cruel; nothing like I'd expected it to. I was angry all of a sudden, like I knew what was coming. It didn't help that he was taking forever to say it.
Ron looked offended. I calmed down.
"Sorry. Continue." "Well, I have been seeing someone other than you. But-,"
Whether Ron said anything else, I didn't find out. I was too mad to even let him finish. I stood up, knocking my glass of red wine over. I watched the dark liquid spread across the table cloth, staining it in its progress.
"Thank you for inviting me here tonight. But I'm afraid I have to leave now."
It felt like everyone was staring at us. George was standing a metre away, open-mouthed at my outburst.
"Oh, and by the way;" I placed some cash in front of Ron's shocked face. "You don't need to pay for me. I can do that myself." And with that, I walked out of the restaurant, leaving Ron sitting there by himself with a face redder than even his hair.
I grabbed my keys, went into my Toyota, and drove back to my house, fuming. I hardly even paid attention to the road, and received quite a few beeps from passing cars. I didn't care though.
Back at home, I sat myself down in my favourite PJ's, and grabbed a packet of dark chocolate. I switched on the TV and started shoving blocks of chocolate into my mouth. That was what I usually did when I was angry. I felt like taking out my wand and transfiguring the TV into ... well, God knows what. He had hurt me badly by betraying me. I couldn't even stand to think of his name.
That night, I lay in my warm bed, thinking deeply. Most of my anger had dissolved, and now the only feeling I was actually experiencing was guilt. I felt guilty for doing this to Ron. He deserved his share of the story, as well. Oh well. I might as well leave all that guilt for tomorrow. But for now, it was time to relax in sleep. And that was exactly what I did.
THE END