Her fingers lightly traced the cover of the photo album, Ginny could feel a lump in her throat and her eyes well up with tears. It took everything she could not to cry, but she kept looking at all the moving photos taken at her wedding. As she was flipping the pages, one photo in particular caught her eye.
It was of her and Harry at the altar. She was smiling and he was looking down at her with such love it made Ginny's chest tighten. She could remember that day so clearly.
It had been a beautiful day to have a wedding outside. The field behind Ginny's parents house was filled with relatives and friends that had come to see them get married. Her mother had outdone herself with the décor and it was so beautiful, Ginny thought she would cry all over again.
The sun was shining in just the right place, making everything bright and cheery and warm. At that moment she was only focused on her soon-to-be husband standing at the altar, not at the many guests chattering wildly about how beautiful she was. She knew she looked beautiful too.
She had chosen to wear her mothers' off-white dress and her ginger hair was pinned perfectly with butterfly clips to hold it in place. On her neck was a strand of delicate pearls that caught the sun and sparkled.
Once she reached the altar, Hermione gave her a quick smile and she seen Ron's hand clasp Harry's shoulder. He took her hand, giving it a gentle squeeze. Ginny was bursting with joy and excitement. Once the Priest began to speak and call attention to the crowd, her butterflies vanished.
"You may now kiss the bride." Were the last words she could remember. Harry had swept her up and she was lost in the moment.
Everything had been so perfect.
It was now their two year anniversary and Harry was nowhere to be found. He had left yesterday morning for his office at the Ministry of Magic. They had gotten into a fight of something Ginny could not remember because it was so silly. He took off when Ginny started to raise her voice.
She couldn't help but feel a little guilty and hurt.
Their marriage hadn't been perfect. Like any other marriage, they had their fair share of ups and downs. Recently, Ginny had begun to feel alone in the marriage. She tried to confide in Harry but he would put up a wall that she couldn't brake down no matter how hard she tried.
But Ginny was done. She was done with the crying, done with feeling depressed all of the time. She couldn't feel sorry for herself anymore and blaming herself for her failed marriage wasn't helping. She couldn't keep carrying that burden anymore.
She had tried for two years to get their marriage back on track and it was destroying her. She had no fight left in her anymore. If he wasn't trying, why should she?
Ginny closed the photo album and put it gently onto the coffee table. She was fingering her pearls out of habit. She had never once, took those pearls off her neck. She stood then and looked around the living room. They had so many memories here.
One memory flashed through her mind. It was Christmas Eve and she was wearing her loose forest-green dress, the one Harry had splurged and surprised her with. They were sitting by the fire and Harry had been staring at her.
"What?" she said with a giggle.
"I love you." he said simply, out of nowhere.
Ginny felt her heart ache, she so desperately wanted that kind of attention from him now. But she could barely get him to say how his day went let alone his feelings. She tried to tell herself he was stressed out and he'll come around. She tried to tell herself every excuse possibly and she realized now that it was pathetic. She was pathetic.
As if on cue, the fireplace stirred and Harry stepped out. He didn't look at her at first, just at the suitcases by the front door. Finally, his green eyes looked up at her. She could feel the tension and her stomach panged with anxiety.
"Where are you going?"
He said it dully and Ginny knew he meant something along the lines of "What happened to us?".
He wasn't going to fight for her. How could she have been so stupid and naïve to think he would?
"Do you love me anymore?" she blurted out, not thinking. "Did you even love me at all?"
He looked away from her eyes. She already knew the answer before she asked. Harry once told her they had rushed into marriage too quickly and he didn't have time to figure things out.
"Two years I've wasted." she continued, Ginny was surprised at how calm she was. "You see, I kept telling myself that you were still in love with me, so I gave you time. But I see now it was my own imagination."
She didn't wait for him to speak. She gently unclipped her necklace and placed it on the table. Those pearls had once meant so much to her, now it was all a lie. Their marriage was a lie.
"Ginny -" he stopped when she held up a tiny hand.
"I don't have to live like this, I deserve to be happy."
She gave him one last, long look. She was leaving the man she thought she loved. Maybe he did love her once and maybe she pushed him to far. Ginny knew his love for her didn't exist anymore. She could see it in his eyes. Some part of her though, would love him for all eternity. But she knew she couldn't make him love her like she loved him.
She regretted saying those things to him. She'd also seen the hurt in his eyes when she said them. It was the best two years she's ever had in her life and will always cherish the good memories.
She didn't say goodbye, because this certainly wasn't goodbye. Ginny didn't know how she knew it but Harry would always be apart of her life one way or another. She picked up her suitcase and walked out.
Ginny didn't take the photo album with her, it just reminded her of all her failed attempts at happiness.
She didn't know where she was going, but she had a feeling that something good was on it's way.
Ginny Weasley would have her turn for happiness.