Author's Note: Hi everyone! Here's a little- well, not so little...- one-shot, actually AU: Hermione's the Head of the design department of sorts of an advertising company, and Ron, a designer, is one of her employees. Their 'relationship' is very 'weird', as Hermione can't stand his carelessness, while Ron is somewhat 'forward' and sometimes sarcastic with her; but that only until Hermione accidently finds a file of his and then everything turns upside down for both of them... ;)
Well, I'll just stop now and I'll let you read... Enjoy! :)
~The Drawing That Can Bring Us Together~
"For Goodness' sake! When are you intending to finish your project, Mr. Weasley?"
Her yells could be heard at the whole floor, but Hermione Granger didn't seem to care less; when she was furious about the delay of some of her department's projects, she would be even colder than ice and angrier than a barking dog- oh yes, she was very furious…
Ron Weasley was sitting at his desk at the moment, looking at the numerous papers and designs before him without much interest- he seemed rather bored with the situation and that made his boss even more fuming.
"With your yelling, the drawing isn't going to finish earlier- it probably has the opposite effects…" Hermione heard his deep, so irritatingly confident and casual voice, like nothing happened; she exhaled angrily and people around thought that they saw steam escaping from her nostrils- they hurriedly made their way out from the room.
"You supposed to finish the sketch for the advertisement by nine- it's noon, for heaven's sake!" she exclaimed furiously, but saw none different reaction from her employee- he yawned showily.
"Anything else that's new? So far every single thing you've said was so, so original…" he said with this tone of his which was full of sarcasm- this tone of his that infuriated Hermione so terribly much…
"I want your project by six, and if you are belated once again, I'll make sure for you to be on the dole first thing tomorrow morning!" she said in her low, warning tone that she knew it made everyone shiver; Weasley just half-smiled confidently and gave her a greeting-like gesture, like the ones sailors, or pirates for the matter, do- her blood was coming boiling hot to her head and she cast him a look with her narrowed eyes.
"Everything for you, Miss Granger!" he said casually and swung around himself with his chair, until he was facing her once again. "And if you want me on the dole, we could make it quicker- who stands to wait till tomorrow?" Hermione thought that that was enough- she couldn't stand his rudeness anymore.
"Get out from here!" she cried out, but with annoyance she noticed that the unsufferable red-haired hadn't even flinch- his bright smile became even brighter and wider.
"I would do that with delight, miss, but I actually believe that you are in my respectful, tiny office…" he replied with the self-assurance of the whole world, while he showed his white teeth on a dashing, so handsome smile that irritate Hermione more. She threw him one last, poisonous look and she left swiftly, not standing his behaviour a moment longer.
"Have a good day, Miss Granger!" Hermione heard his exclamation, which she chose to ignore completely, and she headed towards her office, while she was trying to take breaths from her nose, just to ensure her mere cool- Ron Weasley had a very successful, indescribable way to fury her without even saying something rude or disrespectful to her; what a charisma indeed!
She got in her huge office and shut the door behind her with a loud 'bang!' (in her furiousness, she was fully enable to hear him in her head snickering 'cause of his successfulness on exasperating her). She let a loud lungful of air to escape from her body and she sat down, rubbing with her fingertips her tired, closed eyes.
Times like this particular one, she so often wondered and challenged herself to answer to this question:
Why had she ever let Ronald Bilius Weasley to work at her Department? Or at the company, for the matter?
She sighed from slight exhaustion as she was thinking of the one person that annoyed her too much in her life. Ron Weasley gained his job two years ago, while she had been having the same position at the company as at the moment. Hermione immediately noticed his so open, oblivious and without-hint-of-tact character and she tried to stay as far as possibly feasible from him, but as being his boss, she had to endure him greatly every single day.
Of course you'll wonder why then she didn't get him the sack; well, with quite shame she would answer to you that she'd do it with delight at any moment, but the problem to her plan was that Ron Weasley was simply one of the top in his job and it would be actually considered an, at least, unwise thing to do to the company she worked.
Truth to be told, despite her great dislike towards him, she quite admired his great, rather breathtaking work- even though she wouldn't admit this even to herself sometimes… His work all these years was successful and, as a result, a great cause of huge incomes for the business. For this, Hermione was quite proud, as such great talents were under her guidance and responsibility and she would be praised for this, as well as for her exceptionally good work, from her bosses, but the flaw in this story was that, even if she wanted sometimes to pass the praises from her to him, his so showing-off behaviour would stop her and irritate her in a tick. Wasn't all these enough for her to detest him?
'Enough with all these about Weasley, Hermione; you need to get back to work!' she vividly thought then and after taking a huge gulp of air, she pushed aside any other thought and went back to the work she so much loved…
…
Her eyes jerked instantly up after long hours of work, looking expectantly at the clock on the opposite wall. 4 o' clock already. She sighed and lightly rubbed her closed eyes, taking a breath after so much work. She had already finished all her work for today and for a moment she thought about already going back home, relaxing a bit after many weeks of hard work, but instantly remembered that she had to take the sketch from Ron Weasley, so she decided with some irritation that she had to go and find him for the second time that day, seeing if he had finally finished what his-work-for-weeks supposed to be…
She inhaled once more before standing up at last, making her way towards the so-known, little office of the redhead. She walked with strength and some sort of finality in her pace, just preparing herself for what most probably would be another epic row from her side- from him, it would probably be just a funny moment to have. When she reached the small 'box' where his desk was, she found… nothing: just a desk full of papers and pencils and an abandoned chair. She sighed defensively and looked around, just hoping to catch a glimpse of the red-haired and finish with this already. But of course, no sight of the tall figure anywhere near, but Hermione saw suddenly another person walking down the corridor.
"Fiona!" she exclaimed immediately, trying to catch the other woman's attention. When she turned around, looking at her expectantly, Hermione continued: "Have you seen Ron Weasley, by any chance? I need his project."
"Oh, yes, I believe I saw him going to the canteen, muttering something about dying from starvation because of cruel working conditions or something…" Fiona said lightly, laughing a bit in the end. Hermione felt a bit irritated with his words, but smiled a little to Fiona, letting her go. She exhaled softly and looked at the man's desk, choosing that she hadn't much time to wait, so she'd just look for it in all these papers- it must have been somewhere there!
She looked around for the project, her eyes scanning through the papers with slight expectancy, but that only until—
Her eyes rested for half a second on a weird drawing, something that mustn't have been for work. At first she thought that it would be just some sketches of his, nothing important, nothing to keep wasting time over. But then, she accidently took a glimpse of bushy hair, of crazy looks, perfectly drawn by a good artist…
She heard herself gasping a bit and felt her eyes slightly widen, as a very-well-hidden paper made its appearance on the surface of the desk, its half in a file while the other half was exposed for a curious look to see. Hermione's heart suddenly adopted a rather more uneven rhythm, and she suddenly looked around, at the so empty corridor, making sure that no one was coming. Unexpected curiosity took the best of her and she took the file in her hands, taking out the hidden-by-numerous-other-papers drawing, examining it very closing, making absolutely sure that the signals of her eyes weren't mistaken, that her heart wasn't pacing crazily for any reason…
The paper was almost full, not much space remaining free either from drawing or from thousands of little words… Hermione took the paper like it was fragile and with piercing, rather curious eyes, she saw a painted form, drawn from behind- a perfect image…
The form was drawn from behind; a body that seemed like silk, smooth curves that would enchant every man, long legs that could easily make someone shiver. The body was all bare, except for a small sheet, hugging beautifully the hips, only reaching the mid-thighs. On top of round, fine-looking shoulders, a mane of dark curls was evident, some sort of lack of tameness evident on the brilliant, breathtaking image. And then, behind all theses crazy locks of hair, a face on its profile could be seen, a calm face with glowing eye and a small, pretty smile; Hermione's eyes widened a bit more and let one of her quite shaky hands to cover her slightly open mouth. Was- Was it really—?
Her tangled thoughts and confused mind were somewhat unable to comprehend a thing, and the only things seeming to well function were her eyes, which were wandering around the piece of paper, this time making out various words on it.
Angel… beauty… my entire breath… love…
Her own breath was now caught from the so new, tangible surprise that was rushing in her veins, making her pulse having such a brisker pace now. Surely this couldn't be possible, all these were just a very mean joke, and how he would describe her as—
It was too much to comprehend and she took a very deep breath, trying to steady her slightly shaky body. She decided that she have to investigate this as much as possible, so she took the folder with her, putting it tightly on her chest and after looking around carefully, making sure no one saw her, she quickly went to her office, closing the door loudly behind her and going to her desk. She took a few deep mouthfuls of air slowly, making sure she wasn't dizzy or something while she was looking at those papers. She closed her eyes for a brief moment, trying to find in her a kind of courage she couldn't identify fully, but she finally opened them and opened the dossier slowly, looking at the many papers with wide eyes.
All of them had either drawings, written words or both of them, like pencils had actually had been on fire. She took one randomly, looking at the small picture that was covering almost half of the page: a very similar, almost identical picture of her face- she was utterly sure of it now- with half-closed eyelids and the head slightly leaning backwards; on the half-opened lips, a thumb was clearly evident, caressing the bottom lip gently, while the rest of the huge palm was on her jaw-line- it was unbelievingly realistic, as if you're expecting them to move, to breathe normally like any other person, to look you in the eye and make you shudder because of their gazes. Hermione felt a shiver shaking her sitting form, affecting her despite her want not to. Next to this brilliant, roughly spectacular sketch out of pencil, she saw trains of many words, an actual praising. Her pupils followed the lines with somewhat curiosity and awe of what would follow, but she kept on reading…
"Her lips are so perfect and angelic, like they're painted by the most adept, classical painter. She's like a Michelangelo's sculpture, though she's ever more flawless, like she's the purest creature molded by God, a probable incarnation of Eva herself, even though nothing seems sinful in her appearance- she must be an angel's friend…"
Her breath was lost somewhere unknown as her eyes were glued on the so surprising words; she just couldn't believe it, it was downright inexplicable! How the one person that she'd thought would actually despise her greatly, could actually… not do this? Was it even possible?
She eagerly took another paper in her hands, so terribly eager to find out a truth she had so blindly dismissed and let unnoticed before. The not-as-neat, obviously quickly-made handwriting was standing proudly before her wide, shining eyes, words full of worship were now dancing before her restless pupils, which only were seeking for a trace of solid truth…
"Today I saw her with that rather tight, black skirt of hers, which gracefully reaches her calves… I'm just grateful I managed to breathe normally and not to drool over the table, because then I'd raise suspicions, and I just fear that mere prospect… Anyway, she was dreamful with that skirt and I just can't wait to see her again with this one, so I'll be able to inscribe the image in mind and then be able to draw her with it on, making her a lovely goddess of… of something precious and vital, but I'm not actually sure what exactly; she seems to be everything to me...
And as I was staring at her, and when I heard her shouting at me once again, I surely confirmed myself that I'm in love with her. Oh, yeah, I love her… I love her so unbearably much. I just want to gain her with all my thirsty being- a king of thirst that would only be quenched if her lips part, if her melodic voice lingers in my ears as pronouncing the so simple words of completion that would actually make my heart fill with warm bliss, while my love-sick spirit would be finally free… But I want to be honest with myself, and I know that I don't really deserve her, I cannot possibly have her as mine- this just reach the most dark, hidden expectations of mine.
…Sometimes I dare to fill my mind with so… unreal, yet astonishing images: of her so silken-made lips making contact with my dead ones- what a way of rebirth, indeed! I can't actually know what my reaction would be; would I let the sleeping-for-years passion to wake up and take control of me? Would I faint from inability to breathe- due to forgetting how to do so, of course? Would I step back and leave without even a word behind me? This so infuriatingly desired prospect seems too far away from grasping it, even too far away from the bounds of reality and plausibility, too far away from me… so I'd be able to consider it more carefully by myself, but only as an unreachable dream that'll always be further than my fingers to catch… Well, at least, I've left with my undying, humble hope and love…"
Blank…. Her mind was a total, so tangled blank that wouldn't be put aside even after a millionaire flowing… This was just… unreasonable…
Hermione suddenly wasn't able to fully appreciate the way universe was working… Every single theory of hers, even her all world, was just a pile of useless ashes, only phantoms of something that once seemed to be very true, even though it was nothing. Now all things- well, almost all- seemed to heading towards one thing: Ron Weasley, employer of hers for two years, who had been in—
She sucked her breath rather forcefully, the reality still massive to get into even such a brilliant brain. Because a man- a man who, till very recently, seemed to dislike her as much as she did to him- was now proved to have different feelings for her, way too different than dislike… All this teasing and pretence and sarcasm were apparent because of… love?
She really couldn't understand how universe works… And the worst part was that she didn't have a mere idea as to how she felt about it, too…
…
8:17 pm…
Hermione hadn't done a single thing after finding the dossier on Ron Weasley's desk. She looked over and over again at the numerous scraps of paper just for mere confirmation, but the fact didn't seem to change even a bit- and in case it did, it was only to enhance the new-found situation, rather the previous one. The sound of the clock was echoing in the room dully, as the woman's eyes were resting on the front of the now closed file; 'This is property of Ronald Bilius Weasley- M.H.J.G.'
A little knife of guilt stabbed her crazy heart as she was reading continually the mere words; she wasn't supposed to read the private life of anyone's, she wasn't supposed to know what those letters at the end meant, like everyone else- she wasn't supposed to know that those capital letters were actually her…
Miss Hermione Jean Granger…
She inhaled deeply, letting the somewhat cool air to be some sort of relief to her clenched stomach. The feelings and the thoughts were mixed altogether, becoming a crushing weight on the chest and heart that she couldn't comprehend. Everything was confusing, maybe except of one, little thing:
She wasn't actually disgusted by his hidden feelings for her… not at all…
Another 'tick' noise from the clock made her escape temporarily from her train of thinking, making her realize for the first time what time it was. She thought that it was really time to go back home- deliberating there would be much better. She took all the things she needed- the only thing that it wasn't at all hers was put safely in her paper-case- and exited the office hurriedly, feeling the necessity to go back to her own place just now.
The small corridors where half-lit and totally empty; everyone had already gone like they were supposed to. Hermione quicken her pace unconsciously, in her mind words had been put into an unstoppable replaying that made her rather numb.
"Miss Granger?"
She froze at the spot immediately. No, her mind must have found it amusing to trick her some way- yeah, that must be it, just a tr—
"Miss Granger, is that you?" she heard the voice once again. No, it wasn't a joke of her mind, it had to be true. She turned around slowly, inhaling deeply for not fainting, and she faced the one person whose appearance she didn't know how to handle- things seemed way too fragile now, even though the other party of this must be totally oblivious to the matter.
"I didn't know you were still there" Ron Weasley said rather curiously, taking in her appearance with rather narrowed eyes and furrowed eyebrows. "Although I've guessed…"
Hermione wasn't even able to look him in the eye- something vast kept her from doing so. "Is something you want to tell me, Mr. Weasley?" she said as casually as she could, her voice rather shaky from the still so apparent shock inside her. She saw Ron Weasley staring at her a moment longer before talking once again.
"Well, to be honest, I was just surprised I saw you there, that's all…" he said with a relaxed, yet a bit soft as well, tone as he let his hip to rest at the back of his chair, his arms loosely crossed on his broad chest; for the very first time she noticed that he had broad, firm chest. She felt herself getting a bit hot at the cheeks.
"I could tell the same thing about you; what are you still doing here?" she said then rather curiously, looking at his face quite searchingly, realizing the situation just now.
"Well… I'm looking for something…" he said a bit more uneasily this time and rubbed the back of his neck with his palm. Hermione thought her heart skipped a beat as she heard the words being out aloud. "I had a file with me and now I cannot find it anywhere!"
"A-A… file?" she croaked with false casualty in her high-pitched tone; she instantly gulped a big lungful of air to compose herself as much as feasible.
"Yeah… A light grey dossier. Damn it, I can't find it anywhere!" he exclaimed rather annoyingly and looked at his desk, which now seemed much messier than usual. Hermione just swallowed hard.
"Well… I guess you'll be able to find it… someday…" she said with a very normal tone, one that could raise some hint of suspicion to others if they paid attention; Ron just turned his head quickly towards her, looking at her with wide, incredulous eyes.
"You must be kidding me right now!" he cried out disbelievingly and without waiting for some sort of answer from her, he just exhaled noisily, his fingers making their way in his silken, golden-reddish locks… Was his hair always so… soft-looking and striking?
"Look… can you just give me a hand?" Hermione then heard his deep voice and suddenly woke up from her slight daydreaming- a daydreaming full of images of her hands traveling between those soft locks, of delicious, full, red lips on top of—
"Err…" was her only response. Ron Weasley looked at her curiously.
"Whatever…" he muttered to himself before clearing his throat softly and speaking again, this time to her: "So are you up to it?" Before taking the reply of hers, he just said "Ok" with some sort of finality and then he started looking around for the item. Hermione just stared at him absentmindedly, getting once again lost to her own little world of confused thoughts, until she thought she shouldn't just stand around and do nothing- he had asked for her help, after all!
"Well, what did you say you've lost?" she asked as innocently as possibly feasible, trying very hard not to blush deeply and give everything away. Ron turned his head around, looking up to her from his currently kneeling position.
"It's a grey file- it has my name on it." the man said with a very smooth, soft tone and made her shiver, as his sapphire eyes were glued on her face. Hermione get unconsciously lost in that bottomless sea of his brilliant irises, of the eyes she never cared to notice before; it seemed downright stupid now.
She nodded once and she started looking around with false interest while knowing that those tries would be absolutely fruitless; because that mere object the red-haired man was looking for was resting into her innocent, leather paper-case…
They were searching for it for almost an hour, over and over at the same spots. Hermione wasn't actually trying much, already knowing that it was pointless, so while pretending to be deeply into her job, she was examining her company, her dark brown eyes scanning almost his every move, scrutinizing his lean, yet strong form, his handsome characteristics; she couldn't remember one time when she had actually seen even a little thing on him and she couldn't reason such a habit right now.
She heard him sighing heavily- that made her focus back on reality. She looked up to him with a curious expression on her face as she saw him looking somewhat desperate.
"Don't worry- I'm sure you'll find it sooner or later…" she said with a soft, rather sweet tone that surprised even her, but she just put it aside. Ron looked at her face with a rather tired face.
"I can't just not worry!" he exclaimed slightly irritated before taking a deep breath from his nose, probably to compose himself; while this, Hermione found the time to speak first:
"Well, you can just search some more tomorrow or even can ask some others- maybe someone saw it somewhere or anything…" she said casually and looked at him as normally as possible, just praying on the inside for him to follow her advice and go, so she would put it somewhere for him to find it tomorrow. Ron looked at her with his huge, round eyes.
"I cannot just go home and wait till tomorrow morning! This file means everything to me."
The last part was out aloud with a softer, more emotional tone and the redhead man stared at her with shining eyes, showing her a million of things he thought she wouldn't be able to understand even in the slightest… But as Hermione felt her heart fluttering in her chest crazily, as her stomach becoming warmer, as her breath was slightly caught, she was completely sure she would identify every single thing in his eyes, which was ironic and odd, as she didn't care less about him some hours before; now, everything seemed so very different…
She probably meant everything to him…
They remained like this a couple of moments, making her, as a result, having brisker and brisker rhythm of pulse, feeling quite uncomfortable and awkward. The navy blue eyes of his remained rested on her, while his mind seemed to be lost somewhere else, far, far away from that mere office; Hermione just hoped he would do something about it soon, 'cause she was too numb at the moment to take any matter in her slightly trembling hands.
"By the way, I finished the project" she suddenly heard his voice echoing in her corridor, making her jump a bit from the startle. She peered at him with wide eyes and saw his arm stretched towards her, a transparent file on his hand. She hesitantly looked up and in his enormous orbs, seeing the innocence there was there, and that made her quiver almost imperceptible to him. She quite unsurely approached him, her eyes quite unable to look away from his own ones as her arm stretched only a bit, taking the file from him with much carefulness, not daring to see what would have happened if brief contact had taken place; Ron smiled a little.
"Wow, I'm really impressed!" Hermione heard his voice lingering in her ears and saw the laughter on his pale face- wow, indeed…
"What are you talking about?" she asked rather curiously, even though the hypnotizing feeling had taken the best of her. Ron smiled more widely this time, his piercing blue eyes shining more beautifully now.
"When I thought about giving you the project, the least I could imagine was temporarily losing my hearing, but surely not this!" he exclaimed comically, shaking his head a bit in disbelief. Hermione wanted to laugh a bit, but just thought against the thought in a tick.
"Probably I just thought about giving you a break- besides you seem at a loss right now…" she said rather seriously, not daring to show him her immense confusion. "And I really think you should go back home- I'm sure tomorrow morning, being less tired and such, you'll be able to find it more easily." she continued, just wishing he would actually go back to his place and not sleeping there.
The man exhaled exhaustedly. "You're probably right; I should go and look for it tomorrow, otherwise I'll sleep on the floor…" he finally gave in and after putting his fingers once again through his hair, he started to look for some of his stuff on his very messy desk. Hermione gazed at him for a brief moment, her mind wandering around various scenarios, before finally speaking.
"So, goodnight, Mr. Weasley… and I hope you'll find your dossier tomorrow" she said kindly, looking at him from under her eyelashes.
"Goodnight, Miss Granger" he told her softly, looking at her with these intoxicating, ocean blue eyes. Hermione nodded once and smiled briefly before making her departure, no longer standing to be in the same room with him, alone- she really needed some fresh air…
…
She was pacing back and forth in her office, her mind was wandering as well, but around things that were being thought too much the past few days.
The past week, her mind was mostly- if not at all- at the one person she hadn't ever thought she would think that way: Ron Weasley.
The night after discovering his true feelings for her- with the most unbelievable way possible-, she didn't sleep nearly at all, but staying on bed, reading and examining over and over again his drawings and words, losing herself in a sea of new-found sentiments, in a whirl of new-born questions she wasn't sure for their answers- everything seemed unfocused and odd, just unreal and against the world she was used to living in.
The next morning she had been at work really early, so she could put the file somewhere in his drawers, so he could find it, but not easily enough- that would just raise unwanted suspicion. After that, she just was careful to avoid him as much as physically possible, not really having the courage to handle this as seriously as she wanted- besides, who said she was actually sure about her own feelings? Of course, that didn't seem as weird to others; they all must have assumed that she had just got angry with him for some reason and she was trying to stay away from him, but certainly, that assumption was miles away from the truth…
At first she felt ambiguity; almost her entire, well-structured world had become mere ashes and she was just standing there, not knowing how to react. How could she react? A man was deeply in love with her- a man she never really gave much thought, nevertheless!
Then, she felt a bit of dizziness and numbness, as realization hit her fully; this just couldn't be real…
Mere uncertainty followed- what if it was, in fact, true? How was she supposed to react? Then, as this question was rather hard to be answered, a number of some other feelings ensued: warmth, hesitation, a hint of shyness, surprise, awe, admiration, sort of nervousness and calmness altogether, and during the last couple of days, another feeling showed up to light:
Care. Love.
She knew that it was so out of her to feel such strong things so easily, so spontaneously, so without-much-deliberation. She knew that it probably was even ridiculous to claim that she had even passed under the doorway of such a 'dangerous' field as falling in love, but she also knew that that was exactly it:
Feeling so amazingly free, like there are no bonds or chains to keep you imprisoned to dull reality; there are wings on your back, letting you fly away towards perfection…
A smile appeared on her face as these thoughts emerged her mind, and then this long train of thought went elsewhere, yet no very far away- to the one provoking such emotions inside her.
If someone had told her that she would one day fall in love with Ron Weasley, she would laugh sarcastically and reply that that would be with the end of the millennium… It was still 2009, right? Things seemed to not be as stable or sure as people so often value them- they can turn upside down in a matter of milliseconds and prove every single theory wrong; that's what, more or less, happened to her. But strangely enough, despite the raw surprise she had to deal with, that didn't irritate her or got her afraid; she accepted it with actual delight and slight anticipation for what was going to happen next, even though she was quite nervous about the oncoming future.
That was, in point of fact, the reason for her pacing back and forth in the office; the thought of the future that was close by, just behind that mere door…
Knock-knock…
She jumped a bit from the momentary startle, but she quickly took a deep breath and threw a glance at the still closed door, thinking for a moment before going and standing in front of her desk, her fingertips on the belt of the taupe-grey gabardine she was now wearing. Ok, this is it- it's now or never.
"Come in" she said softly and looked down, feeling quite nervous about what was going to happen. She listened to the small, almost inaudible sound the opening door produced, and her senses caught the presence of a human being standing half-in, half-out of the room; she inhaled so she wouldn't faint from the slightly apparent tension inside her.
"You asked to see me, Miss Granger?" Hermione heard his deep voice and actually wanted to sigh, but she just held it. She glanced up to his handsome form for half a second and then looked down again, feeling her cheeks getting rather hot.
"Yeah, that's right, you can come in, Ron" she said gently but she instantly felt her face even hotter- it was the very first time she had called him 'Ron' out aloud. "Err, you don't mind me calling you Ron, do you?" she asked nervously, not a second after her previous words, while she shyly looked up to him again through her eyelashes.
"No, of course not" he said quickly and a brilliant, wide smile appeared on his face, as his eyes shined differently than usual… she wondered for a moment if such a little thing as calling him 'Ron' could make him so delighted.
"Well then… can you come in?" she repeated to him kindly, yet nervously, and he obeyed without much hesitation- he closed softly the door behind him and took a small step inside.
"Can you, as well, lock the door?" she whispered shyly and when she saw the curious look on his face, she elaborated: "I just don't want anyone to come in and interrupt us, even though most of the employees have already gone."
Ron still seemed a bit confused but he once again did as he was said- Hermione clearly heard a small click from where he was. She slowly turned around, so her back was facing him, and she firmly closed her eyes, the uneasiness now at the form of a clenched stomach; she just hoped this would end up well…
"I can't understand; what's—"
She never heard him finishing his sentence, as she gradually took off the article of clothing, only to reveal a bare, pale body, covered only by white underwear and a very short, also white, pair of shorts that reached her upper thighs. Hermione heard him gasp with shock so evident in his voice and she unhurriedly turned her head a bit, her profile looking towards the tall figure behind her; a small, shy smile appeared in her rosy face and she just waited for him to understand…
Ron seemed quite unable to speak for a few moments, only staring at her with wide eyes and parted lips. "W-Wha—?" he started, but he stopped abruptly, then another soft gasp. He realized it.
"How… how…?" he only managed to tell her after a minute or two, his voice holding such a surprise and puzzlement, even a hint of edginess. Hermione sighed softly and turned around, not looking at him completely in the eye; that was the part she feared the most.
"I found your file on your desk the other day… that's why you couldn't find it- I had it…" She took a very deep breath without even glancing at him and continued. "I'm really sorry for interpreting so cruelly in your privacy and I'll understand perfectly if you hate me now… I just…" she said softly with her sincere and apologetic tone, and then trailed off, not knowing what else to say to show him her true remorse; she just hoped he'd forgive her and they'd do something as to be together- she actually needed it…
He remained silent for some moments, moments which mostly seemed to be entire centuries. Hermione didn't even dare to look at his shoes as they stood still, her still holding her breath and waiting for his answer- some mere words that either would sent her to hell or to heaven.
"I really cannot ever hate you…"
Her head shot up immediately, not really sure if that bare whisper she heard was a fact saying of the man before her or just a figment of her desperate imagination. She peered at his face hopefully as her heart was beating in her chest wildly, and she saw some remnants of the previous shock still there, but also a mere hint of weakness and innocence, but mostly, love…
It was really true.
"And now I understand that I've never really hate you, either…" she whispered back, confirming the probable assumptions in his head. She looked into his almost round eyes, admiring the brilliant dark midnight blue that was apparent now in his perfect irises, as these same eyes were staring into her own ones meanwhile.
They took the necessary steps rather hesitantly, yet at the same time urgently, both seemed to need each other. A couple of steps still between them as they remained quiet for those past minutes- silence told everything for them. Ron looked at her with a soft look in his eyes and then he glanced down to her half-naked body and instantly stepped nearer her and after bending down, he took in his hand the neglected coat. He stood up again, towering her safely and looked into her eyes for a second before helping her put the cloth once again.
"Put your coat on" he whispered softly as his arms stretched around her shoulders, helping her own arms finding their way in the sleeves. "I don't want you to catch a cold and honestly, I find you breathtaking, but I think I can live without this for a bit more- it's still early for this…" he finished and both breathed a small laughter for a second as his hands fastened the clothing around her body. Hermione felt her cheeks getting warmer, as well as her insides, and gazed into his wonderful eyes thankfully- she thanked him just for everything…
They stared into each other's eyes easily, like they did so since the birth of planet Earth- it was easier than breathing and more vital than the crazy beating of their hearts. They came closer to each other, their bodies making contact and starting to emit such a different way of balm- the strongest bond ever. Their faces came closer and closer to each other, like they were body and soil, like it was gravitational force that made them brushing their noses together with such affection and care.
"This can't be true…" he whispered to her with a rather hypnotized-like tone in his rich voice. Hermione felt exactly the same in his warm embrace; his manly, yet sweet scent calmed her perfectly.
"But it is" she answered with smooth passion in her voice, trying with perfect desperation to show him how very right this was. They half-closed their eyes and their lips searched for each other almost blindly, until the first, so precious contact was made; a God-sent gift that both desired to keep till even forever stopped existing, but their love would remain intact- until time expired and even after that…
The man pulled away from their perfect kiss rather unwillingly; Hermione tried to take all the needed air after such an awe-inspiring motion of affection.
"I want to be with you- I just yearn to be yours" he whispered while trying to catch his breath himself. His large palm cupped gently her hot cheek and as a result, she felt her pulse becoming more rushed and her heart filling with unexpected delight and pureness.
"Only if you let me be yours in return" she told him lowly, her shining eyes peering at his half-opened ones like they were sky itself, like they were the ultimate source of life.
"You being mine…" Ron murmured softly, an ever so small smile appearing on his full, scarlet lips. "It's wonderful, being possessed by you, even a slave—"
"No" she told rather firmly, wanting so badly to take this mere idea out of his head. "You're not to be my slave; we'll be in this relationship as equivalent people that respect and… and love each other" she said seriously, yet a shier tone could be heard as the last words were out. She looked up to Ron's face and saw a sweet smile capturing his characteristics.
"I'd love to be in such a thing…" he said sweetly and his thumb stroked her cheekbone like a feather. "I love you, Hermione" he whispered soothingly and her heart yelped from the utter joy, both of hearing his confessed love to her and of her name coming for the first time out of those flawless lips- it was magical. "Thank you for wanting me…"
"And I thank you, my love, for opening my eyes, for showing me the light…" she answered him with the immortal passion and love her soul had never experienced before. She once again looked deep into the eyes that inspired her like nothing else, into the eyes she knew she would never get bored staring at, and leaned closer to him once again, sharing another heavenly lovable kiss…
~o~
-Well, how was that? Is it good, bad or whatever...? I just want so badly to know your opinion, so your precious REVIEWS would be so, so much appreciated!
-And thank you so much for reading this one-shot; I hope you all enjoyed it... Until the next time, my pals... Kisses. :) xxx