This is just a short story that I couldn't get out of my head! I tried to write it down and ended up with two other versions that are completely different from this one…maybe I'll finish and put those up someday when I can figure out an ending for them…

Anyway, I hope you all enjoy!

…and please pardon my mentions of women's feminine items!

It was his smile that she noticed first.

She first met him inside Waitrose. They had both been in the sweets aisle at the grocers at the same time and bumped carts. She nearly hexed him from the surprise.

"Sorry."

"Pardon me."

They spoke simultaneously. He merely smiled at the awkwardness as they helped each other pick up their fallen items. He held up a package with a menstrual cup and blushed harder than Hermione.

"Thank you!" Hermione squeaked, snatching the sealed box from his hands and hurrying away.

That was totally embarrassing.

She thought she had buried that box under the produce.

He tapped her on the shoulder in the check-out line. She knew it was him from his reflection on the sliding doors. She hesitated to turn, but she did so slowly just as he raised his hand to tap her shoulder again.

She was mortified when he handed her a bottle of Sanex.

"Oh Merlin," she groaned, her face even redder than before as she accepted the bottle.

She could tell he was doing his best not to laugh.

He was even biting the inside of his cheek.

She turned and placed it on the counter.

No need to be even more embarrassed.

"Price check for Sanex Intimate Care," the lazy cashier said.

Hermione wanted to die.

He lost his battle and laughed into his hand.

Hermione lost it.

She grabbed the cashier by his collar and told him exactly how to enter the barcode since it wouldn't scan. Needless to say, the boy learned how to correctly operate his register that day.

He's lucky she wasn't channelling Severus Snape.

"Excuse me."

She was afraid to turn.

Hopefully she didn't forget the back-up liners at the register.

"I wanted to give you this," he said, coming around to face her instead. She looked down at the bag of lemon biscuits he was handing her. "I hope it brightens up your day."

"Thank you," Hermione murmured. "You didn't really have to."

"I wanted to," he said with his lips slightly upturned.

"This is a large package," Hermione said.

"Ah, erm, that's my favourite brand," he said, shuffling his feet uncertainly.

"Now I cannot possibly accept all of them," Hermione said. She blushed at the thought of her next suggestion. "How about we go to that tea shop right over there," she said, pointing to a small corner. "You can have tea and your lemon biscuits and I'll just run," she added and he laughed.

"How about we have tea," he said. "On me," he added quickly. "And you can choose for me because I have no idea what kind of tea I like. Then we'll have some of the cookies together."

"Hmm, no," Hermione said as they walked toward the tea shop. "I like my suggestion better. Run and hide from mortification…and today was such a lovely day not an hour ago," she sighed.

They made it to the counter, and she was becoming especially partial to his laughter.

"Do you prefer strong or light flavours?" Hermione asked.

"I would say somewhere in between," he answered.

"Hmm, maybe mint tea," she murmured to herself. They both had the mint, peppermint. It was actually a good cup, but he had no background to say it was excellent. He opened their package of biscuits and offered her the first.

"So your day was actually good until we bumped into each other," he started their tea conversation.

"Hmm," Hermione said. "It was, but if you get me started on why I'll end up spewing out the last few years of my life to a perfect stranger." He smiled.

"The perfect stranger," he said, raising his cup and taking a sip of the scalding liquid. "How do you drink this?" He laughed after burning his tongue.

"I suspect the same way Americans drink coffee, scalding hot is the best," she said with a soft laugh.

"Touché," he said, raising his biscuit to her this time before taking a bite. "As I was trying to say before burning off any remaining taste buds I have," Hermione laughed at his humour, "I'm the perfect stranger. I'm sure we may never meet again unless we exchange information, why not get everything off your chest."

"You're willing to lend an ear?" Hermione asked sceptically.

"Try me," he offered.

"Alright," Hermione said hesitantly. "But if you are better than my best friend than I may have to ask for your email," she laughed quietly.

"I'll give it if you ask," he promised.

"Well," Hermione said. "I finally got my ex to get his things out of my flat this morning," she said. "It was very relieving. I thought he would never do it because his sister said he wasn't really sure about the end of our relationship."

"And you are sure?" He asked.

"Definitely," Hermione said, looking straight into his brown eyes. "I admit, my first thoughts that we weren't the golden couple everyone tried to group us as was a bit heart-breaking. I've known him for over seven years before I started thinking for myself," she said quietly.

"You were going with what was easier?" He questioned.

"I was," Hermione said. "His family is like my second family. After my parents went missing, I couldn't think of anything else but officially being a part of his. I started having second thoughts when he started," she paused with a slight blush, "when he started pushing for intimacy."

"You weren't ready," he said carefully.

"It didn't feel right," Hermione said. "Not with him at least. I stepped back from our relationship a few months ago and realised why I wanted it for all the wrong reasons.

"In the long run, we both would have been very unhappy," she said. "We are too different and like different things."

"I'm sorry to say this, but when a man is determined he doesn't give up all that easily," he said. "This may have been a small defeat to his hopes, but there is still a larger war to rage." Hermione shivered at his mention of war, and he mentally stepped back to really notice the young woman sitting across from him.

She seemed as if she were barely recovering from malnourishment. She held herself and was careful to notice every passer-by without looking like she was taking note. And…the more she talked about her ex, the more she did her best not to twitch her left arm, almost as if she wanted to hold it.

Was she recovering from an abusive relationship?

It didn't fit the profile she painted of her ex.

Then there was her reaction to his casual mention of war…she was too young to have fought in any wars though, he was sure.

But she seemed to hold herself like a commander, a general.

"Oh Merlin," she breathed with wide eyes and ducked her head.

There was that reference again. Why 'Oh Merlin' instead of 'Oh God'?

"Is something wrong?" He asked.

"I must go," she said hurriedly, putting down a few bills on the table, but he stopped her.

"My treat," he said handing them back to her. She quickly thanked him before grabbing her bags and heading toward the back exit. He followed her curiously with his eyes until she exited.

"I could have sworn it was her!" A red-head grumbled as soon as he and his companion entered the tea shop. "She must be hiding in the loo!" He said loudly, and headed toward the ladies' room. "Hermione! Are you in there?" He knocked and yelled, grabbing the attention of the whole shop.

"You need to let this go, Ron," his companion said. "Hermione is going to skin you when she finds out you've placed a tracer on her."

"She just doesn't know what she wants," Ron the red-head said. "I have to show her." His companion shook his head. "You there! Hermione was sitting with you! What were you doing?" He demanded.

He carefully studied the red-head before answering, "I was having tea with my girlfriend." He could have smacked himself the moment those words left his mouth. He picked up his bags and noticed a forgotten one.

He tried not to laugh at its contents and the black-haired young man had to hold back his friend and wrestle him out of the shop when he smiled at the bag.

"You're still here," he said, exiting the shop the same way as Hermione. "I met your ex."

She looked horrified.

"I hate to do this to you, Hermione," he said, handing her the forgotten Waitrose bag.

She looked like she wanted to die on the spot.

.

.

.

Inside the bag was a bottle of lubricant for her menstrual cup.

I kept laughing as I wrote this whole first chapter. If you all got to the end I hope you enjoyed it!

There's two more chapters to this that I'm planning on posting within three days, and they're both short like this one.

Nearly forgot to say…I own nothing (t_t) I wish I did, but I just came up with the plot…