CHAPTER ONE - IF ONLY...

Hermione woke up at 7:00 a.m., and got ready for her usual day at Hogwarts. As she went into the common room, she saw Harry sitting alone on a corner. She went to him and eyed him for a while.

"Hey" she said.

Harry gasped and looked up. "Hermione… I… um… hi" He was acting really weird.

"Is something wrong?" asked Hermione.

"No… no, I was just thinking" He was looking down at his feet now, and clearly, he was embarrassed.

"Oh ok… so where's Ron?" He looked up at her with a suspicious look.

"Upstairs… Why?"

"Just wondering…" she said.

Harry stood up then, annoyed. She couldn't understand what was wrong. They looked at each other for quite a while, without actually knowing they were.

"Hey guys!" Ron said as he came down the stairs from the boys' room. Harry and Hermione quickly turned and smiled at Ron. "It was time you came man…" said Harry.

Hermione couldn't help but stare at Ron. He looked so hot when he wasn't combed. All his hair messed up like that... really hot! She had liked him secretly since sixth year, which was one year and a half now. They were all on their seventh year at Hogwarts. Hermione had kept it a secret because she thought Ron didn't want anything to do with her, as something else than friends of course. They were constantly fighting about something. But actually, she enjoyed it. Although he was very, very stubborn. But what she didn't know was that Ron had the same feeling for her. But he thought she would never see him as something else that her friend because she was so smart. He just hoped some day he would have the courage to tell her what he felt.

The three of them went down to the Great Hall and had breakfast. Then, they went to Potions class. There, Professor Snape asked the class about the Swelling Solution and the only one who raised her hand was Hermione, as usual. So when Prof. Snape didn't call her, she just talked.

"DETENTION, tonight at 7 p.m. you'll come to my office Granger" he snapped at her.

"That is unfair! She was just answering your question" Harry shouted. He really hadn't meant to say that, but he just couldn't help it.

Snape looked at Harry with a malicious smile. "Well, well… what do we have here?" he said very slowly "Were you defending Granger, Potter?" Harry looked at him but didn't talk. "If you are so interested in her then why don't you join her in detention?" Snape said a looked at Hermione and then at Harry. "Both of you meet me in my office at 7 p.m." He shouted at them.

Hermione was so angry she couldn't even pay attention to the class.

--------------

That night…

"Harry! We have to go, we're gonna be late!" shouted Hermione and Harry came rapidly down the stairs and smiled at her.

On the way to Snape's office Hermione said to Harry: "Thank you for defending me earlier... there was no need to actually" she smiled and Harry looked sort of embarassed.

"It's ok... Snape was really unfair..."

"He always is"

"I know..." Harry said almost in a whisper. After that, they didn't talk at all. When they reached Snape's office Hermione knocked on the door and after a minute Snape opened the door.

"Good ev..-" started to say Hermione

"Follow me" interrupted Snape without looking at them. He stepped out of the office, closed the door and started to walk down the corridor with Harry and Hermione following. They reached the charms classroom and Snape opened the door but did not enter, he just stood there expecting Harry and Hermione to go inside.

"There, you have to cleat it." he said "Give me your wands"

They both gave Snape their wands and went inside without saying a word to him. He closed the door and Harry and Hermione looked around. The class was a real mess. There were parchments all over the floor and the desks had ink on them.

"Looks like Peeves was here" said Hermione. She went to one of the nearest desks and touched the ink to see if it was dry. It was.

"Yeah..." said Harry looking at her. He started to pick up the parchments on the floor and kept looking at her. Hermione noticed he was looking at her and smiled. After some time, she could feel him looking at her again.

"Ok, what's up?"

"Oh... nothing... I just... nothing." He looked away, but Hermione didn't give up. She knew him too well as to believe him. "Come on… you know you can tell me everything." she said with a smile.

"Hermione.. I..." started Harry, but he just couldn't find the words. It was so difficult. But he had to tell her, he had waited enough time. "I like you... not just as my friend. Actually, I have liked you for quite some time now and I don't expect you to say you feel the same way toward me, but I'd like for us to at least try... you know... go out maybe?" he said it almost as if he'd memorized it, but meant every word of it.

Hermione was speechless. "No, this can't be happening to me.." she thought as she looked at Harry with her mouth slightly opened. The thought that Harry might have ever said that to her had never crossed her mind. Not in her most remote dreams would she'd ever have thought of that. Never, she always thought of Ron in that way.

"Hermione?" asked Harry slowly, she had been lost in her own thoughts and didn't remember where she was. "You okay?"

"I.. yeah.. It's just that.. I.. I never thought that... that you liked me," she said feeling terrible. "I mean not in that way..."

"Oh well.. yeah.. but don't worry you don't have to answer to me right away," he said and grinned at her.

"I... Harry... the thing is... I.. I like someone else..." she said it with such sadness that he could almost feel it. But when he heard that, the only thing he knew was that he had been an idiot to tell her what he felt and he was angry at himself. "I'm sorry Harry... I really am" and she looked it, but he just couldn't see it.

"Oh... um... yeah... I... don't worry." He turned and walked around Filtwick's desk and started to clean the board, Hermione wanted to say something to him but couldn't find any words to do it.

They didn't talk to each other during all of detention. When they finished, they left and Harry suddenly said: "I'll meet you later..." He didn't want to walk with her to the common room. He felt too embarassed.

Hermione was about to answer but saw that Harry was already walking down the corridor. She went to the common room alone and sat at a chair by the fire, staring at it.

"I'm guessing detention sucked," said a voice behind her. She turned and saw Ron smiling at her. "Mind if I join you?" he said pointing at the chair next to Hermione's.

"No problem," she said and managed to smile at him.

"You okay?" he asked looking concerned.

"Yeah... I'm just tired..." she couldn't tell him what had happened. But she suspected Harry would. Or maybe not... she couldn't know now... she just couldn't think... she was still too shocked from what Harry had told her.

"You sure?"

"Yeah... thanks for asking though." she smiled at him. If only he had said the things Harry had told her... but that was what she thought all the time... if only... "Hey I'm really tired... sorry... I'm gonna go to bed now.. good night," she said and stood up.

"Bye..." answered Ron.

Author's Note: Hey, this is the first chapter to my story... I hope you liked it. Please review!