A/N: I haven't done any het in such a long time. Onward with the RWHrG!

The song is Empty Apartment by Yellowcard.

.-xXXx-.

Call me out
You stayed inside
One you love
Is where you hide

"Hermione?"

There was no reply. The dusty curtains didn't even twitch.

Ron stood on the sidewalk, gazing up at her apartment. He knew she was in there, because he knew she didn't have anywhere else to go.

The rain fell all around him and he knew that, somewhere upstairs, Hermione was sobbing.

Shot me down
As I flew by
Crash and burn
I think sometimes
You forget where the heart is

He stayed on the muddy concrete and watched her window. The faintest flicker of light could be seen through the curtains.

And so he stood there, forgotten, cold, and wet. Hermione had light, she had warmth, but her apartment was lonely.

A few fat couches sat in the lounge room, she had central heating (Arthur Weasley had gone into raptures when they helped her move in), but she had no human company. She only had Crookshanks. She was deluding herself.

Ron had to save her, because she couldn't save herself. He had to save her from herself.

Answer no to these questions
Let her go, learn a lesson
It's not me, you're not listening
Now, can't you see something's missing
You forget where the heart is

"Hermione?" he called again, as the rain subsided. A silver moon shone behind the pale clouds as he watched her motionless window.

He sighed, walked to the oaken front doors and pressed the buzzer.

Before long, a surly doorman swung open the door and let him in. Ron stepped into the marble-tiled foyer, red hair slicked to his forehead, clothes sticking to his body and freckles dark against his pale skin.

Take you away from that empty apartment
You stay, and forget where the heart is
Someday if ever you loved me you'd say, it's okay

The elevator dinged as he stepped into the hallway on the third floor. Casting a quick glance around, he half-walked, half-ran to her door and pulled out his wand.

"Alohomora," he whispered. There was a soft click as the door unlocked and he turned the knob and pushed.

There was a loud crack as Ron discovered that there was a security chain on the door.

Bloody hell, he thought, as Hermione's footsteps neared the door. Fooled by a Muggle device!

Waking up from this nightmare
How's your life? What's it like there?
Is it all what you want it to be?
Does it hurt when you think about me?
And how broken my heart is

"Ron?" Hermione's sad voice echoed in the hall. She tried to peek through the narrow crack in the door, but her un-brushed hair obstructed her view. "Ron, what are you doing here?"

"I'm here –" Ron swallowed the lump that appeared in his throat when he saw Hermione. "I'm here to save you."

"Thanks, Ron," Hermione said softly. "But I don't need you."

There was a quiet click as she shut the door on Ron's bewildered face.

Take you away from that empty apartment
You stay, and forget where the heart is
Someday if ever you loved me you'd say, it's okay

Ron sat on the carpeted floor, his back against Hermione's door. He hadn't come this far, just to go away after she shut the door.

"Go away, Ron," her voice was muffled from the other side of the door.

"Hermione," Ron said loudly. "Do you remember the very first time Harry and I saw you, on the Hogwarts Express?"

There was a pause, then a quiet "Yes."

"You were helping Neville look for his toad," Ron continued.

"You didn't like me," Hermione said sulkily. "You made me cry, don't you remember?"

"But then we saved your life," Ron replied. "We saved you from the troll. Hermione, I'm here to save you again, whether you like it or not. Harry's not here anymore. You just have to – you have to accept it."

"I know he's dead, Ron," Hermione snapped. "Thanks for reminding me that my best friend is dead, great. Go away now."

A few people in the neighbouring apartments had poked their heads out to see what the fuss was. Ron tried to wave them away.

"'Mione, I know you're finding it hard to deal, but you don't need to hide away anymore."

"I'm not hiding. I'm doing the world a favour. Nobody out there likes me. Harry did. You don't, Ron, so stop pretending. I know he made you promise."

"No, Hermione," he admitted quietly, and he heard her angry movements stop on the other side of the door. "You're right; I don't like you, I… I love you."

It's okay to be angry and never let go
It only gets harder the more that you know
When you get lonely if no one's around
You know that I'll catch you when you're falling down

Ron fell backwards as the door was swung violently open. The spectators quickly disappeared back into their doors, but Ron only noticed the wafer-thin, bushy-haired girl he was looking up at.

"Do you?" Hermione said in a small voice. Ron was stunned by how vulnerable she was, how messy her hair, how thin she had become.

"Yeah, I do," he said, getting to his feet. She swung around on one slippered heel and stormed inside, and he followed her before she could slam the door.

Her apartment was neat; far too neat for someone to actually be living in it. No, Hermione Granger did only exist in her lavish apartment. Crookshanks seemed much fatter, but Hermione seemed thinner.

Ron glanced at her, standing in the centre of the room, tears silently pouring down her cheeks.

"You don't," she hiccoughed. "You can't."

"I do," he said simply.

"Nobody can."

"What –?"

"Go away, Ron."

We came together but you left alone
And I know how it feels to walk out on your own
Maybe someday I will see you again
And you'll look me in my eyes and call me your friend

"When was the last time you smiled, Hermione? As in, really smiled?" he demanded. "When was the last time you let your heart rule your head?"

"Not since Harry died," she screeched. "I can't afford to live like that anymore, Ron! Too many things are at risk, too many!"

"And so you hide away in your apartment, hoping that fate will pass you by?" he shouted in reply.

"You – how dare you!" she shrieked. She threw herself at him, but instead of attacking him, she fell into his arms.

Take you away from that empty apartment
You stay, and forget where the heart is
Someday if ever you loved me you'd say, it's okay

"It's okay," he whispered, a lone tear rolling down his cheek as he held her. "It's okay…"

"It's not," she sobbed into his shoulder.

"We'll make it okay, then," he said softly.

"We're a long way from perfect."

"We don't need to be," he whispered, kissing her cheek.

She offered him a watery smile in return.

.-xXXx-.