Hang up that red dress
Let down your hair
Ron was leaning against the kitchen counter, his lanky legs protruding across the floor, when he heard the door open. "Hello, love. How was your day?"
Hermione came into full view and sighed, rubbing her hand over her face. Then, she smiled brightly at Ron. "Horrendous. I'm exhausted."
Ron chuckled, pushed off the counter, crossed the kitchen and planted a kiss on Hermione's forehead. She exhaled slowly, leaning into his chest while he wrapped his arms around her.
"Do we have to go to dinner tonight?" Her voice was small against her chest but Ron understood - she didn't want to offend him. He was the one who had insisted on weekly date nights.
"No, love, not if you don't want to. Go get changed and we'll have date night in." Hermione smiled into Ron's chest and withdrew herself from his arms.
Cancel those reservations
There's no need to go nowhere
Hermione returned in a beat-up pair of jeans with holes in the knees and an old Quidditch shirt of Ron's, which gave Ron a warm feeling in the pit of his stomach. She was tugging at the tie at her hair; it kept catching on her curls, but with one finally tug, her hair sprung free and fell about her face messily. She brushed it back impatiently; Ron fought the impulse to bury his hand in her hair
Ron approached her with a bottle of wine and a large bag of crisps. "This alright for dinner? I couldn't figure out how to work… how to order-in food. It's not much but you know… wine is always good. "
"Looks wonderful," Hermione sighed gratefully, as she sank onto the couch. Ron sat next to her and she snuggled into his side, taking a sip of wine from the bottle. She lowered her head to her shoulder and he occasionally fed her a few crisps, passing the wine bottle in between them.
Gimmie that girl with her hair in a mess
Sleepy little smile with her head on my chest
That's the you that I like best
Gimme that girl
Gimmie that girl lovin' up on me
Old t-shirt and a pair of jeans
That's the you I wanna see
The pair sat there for a moment in the quiet, save the crunching of crisps. After fighting the war, fighting and living while so many died, quiet was never taken for granted. Quiet was relished. After a moment though, Hermione grew restless - she stretched and handed the wine over to Ron, rejecting the crisps he offered her. He took the bottle, popped the crisps into his own mouth, and watched her bum appreciatively as she walked towards the kitchen.
Pulling her wand out the front pocket of her jeans, Hermione turned the radio on. An old song hummed on, with a few crackles before it smoothed out. It was a Muggle tune and so Ron watched in fascination as a bare-footed Hermione threw open the kitchen cabinet, singing along with the song in an overly loud voice.
"Did you write the book of love and do you have faith in God above, if the Bible tells you so… Do you believe in rock and roll, can music save your mortal soul…and can you teach me how to dance real slow" she sang in one shrill breath, pulling out ham, cheese, tomatoes, bread, mustard and lettuce. Ron came in from the living room to get a better view of his girlfriend.
Barefoot in the kitchen
Singin' her favorite song
Dancin around like a fool
Starrin in her own little show
"Mione, did you not like the dinner I made for you?" Ron teased her. He had known she wouldn't be able to eat just crisps and wine but appreciated the effort.
She blushed, looking a tad embarrassed, and said "You know I love you, Ron, but a cook you are not. Did you even look about to see if there was more food? Now, I'll make you a sandwich, if you promise not to make any sort of male-dominance jokes."
Ron nodded. "No lettuce, please. Can we still have the crisps and wine? With the sandwiches?"
"Of all the things you eat, I can't believe you don't like lettuce" Hermione laughed, nodding in agreement to his questions.
Ron watched as Hermione assembled the two sandwiches, one sans lettuce. All the while she sang along and danced and was, in general, very un-Hermione like. Ron quite enjoyed it - he liked when Hermione smiled and ignored work but he was curious that her mood could have changed so quickly. Once they were resettled on the couch, with sandwiches and crisps and a shared bottle of wine, Ron questioned Hermione.
"Am I not allowed to sing and dance and be a fool sometimes?" Hermione asked, arching an eyebrow.
"No, no… I bloody loved it. That's not the problem… it's just not like you." Ron was cautious with his next statement. "I thought you had a bad day. I just figured you'd be a bit more…sulky."
"You made it better. And I felt like singing. Sorry, I've got the worst voice" Hermione admitted, blushing a pretty shade of pink.
Ron's ears turned red at her admission. He pulled her to him and took her in - messy hair, old clothes, barefoot, radio in the background and her lips shimmering with wine. He kissed her, deep and slow and perfect. "Your singing is wonderful. I love you."
"I love you, Ron. Now hand over the wine," said Hermione, snuggling back into Ron's chest, quite intent on finishing her dinner.
Gimmie that girl with her hair in a mess
Sleepy little smile with her head on my chest
That's the you I wanna see
Gimmie that girl lovin up on me
Old t-shirt and a pair of jeans
That's the you I wanna see