He was tall. Really tall. But then, to her, everything was tall. Especially the Weasley boys. All of them were so bloody tall, with flaming red hair, more freckles than she could count, and every single one of them had that damn grin that she just couldn't get away from. Every single angle of the Burrow's living room was supplying a ginger-haired, too tall, freckle faced grin looking at her. She couldn't take it anymore. Eventually, she decided that what she needed more than anything in the whole wide world was a change in scenery.
And so, with a quickly mumbled excuse, and a general goodbye to all of those damn grins, she apparated to the Leaky Cauldron.
It is increasingly important for the reader to understand that Miss Hermione Granger, 23, was in fact not one to rush off to a bar and get completely shit faced. In fact it had never before happened in all of the years of her existence. But today…today was a special occasion, wasn't it?
Today was the engagement party of Ronald Weasley and Lavender Brown. Needless to say, it was a day that required a drink or two. Or twenty.
Not that Hermione wasn't over dear Ron, please don't get such an idea, oh no, she was plenty over him. But the facts still remained. Hermione Granger was alone. Desperately, completely, one hundred percent alone.
Harry had Ginny. Ron had Lavender. She had a delightfully full bottle of firewhiskey and hangover potion at home just waiting for a night like tonight. Not exactly the same thing, but it would have to work.
"Hey there, Granger. How are you holding up?" She looked over the rim of her glass to see Fred Weasley sitting on the stool next to her, the bottle of firewhiskey in his hand, and what appeared to be a concerned look on his face.
"I'm just fine, thank you. There's no reason for me not to be." She reached for the bottle that was currently guarded by Fred, offered him a glare, and rolled her eyes when he continued to refuse to hand it over.
"You're not in the slightest bit upset that your ex-boyfriend is celebrating his engagement to your mortal enemy?" he prodded
"Viktor is engaged to Malfoy is he? Interesting."
"Hermione Granger, even though you think so, I'm not stupid. I know that you're upset." Fred said, keeping his voice low.
"Oh, Fred. I know that you're not stupid. You're actually quite brilliant, but that doesn't change the fact whatever you think I'm feeling, you're sorely mistaken."
"I think that you're feeling left out. That you feel like you're all alone and the rest of the world is moving on together. I think that you're sad because you want to be happy for Ron, but you don't know how, because you still…love him." He looked away from her when he reached the last two words. As if he was giving her permission to cry at his statement.
"You know, you're smarter than most people give you credit for, Fred. You were almost spot-on, except for the last bit there. I don't 'still love' Ron. I don't think I ever loved Ron, at least, not as anything more than my best friend. I thought I did for a while, but we knew we weren't meant to be together. Dating Ron made me realize, however, that not only am I not meant to date him, I'm not meant to date anyone. He even told me so during one of our more potent arguments. Looked me right in the eyes and said 'Hermione, you're lucky that I keep putting up with you. No man in his right mind would ever want to be with you.' And he's right, which is why I've been single since the breakup. Not because I just can't get over Ron, as everyone seems to think, but because Ron was right. He was the only man stupid enough to want to be with me, and then even he came to his senses. So you were right about most of it. I do feel left out, and alone, but it's because I am. And I'm getting closer to being able to accept it, but I'm just not there yet, so I would really appreciate it if you would hand over the alcohol, and go back to the party and tell everyone I'm not feeling well and that I send my best."
"Hermione, Ron is an ass. You're too good for him. You're too good for most men, to be honest. You're the smartest, most wonderful woman I've ever met. Not to mention you're bloody gorgeous. You can't take things that Ron says when he's in the middle of a row seriously. Hermione, he's with Lavender because she's much more his caliber. She's meant to be a housewife who wants nothing more than to be on Ron's arm for the rest of her life. He can't handle a woman with dreams and ambition. He doesn't deserve you. One day you're going to find a man who does deserve you. One who can fully appreciate just how completely wonderful and beautiful you are. It might take a while, because boys are stupid, but it's going to happen. I guarantee it."
She looked at him quizzically. This was Fred Weasley she was looking at, right? She went over the list in her head: two ears, the bluest eyes she had ever seen, shaggy red hair, freckles, that damn grin, and to top it off, the ever familiar feeling in the pit of her stomach that was a cross between a dragon trying to fight its way out of her belly and little butterflies flying from the bottom of her core to the tip top of her throat. Yes, it was definitely Fred Weasley. No one else gave her that unfortunate combination of feelings.
"Fred…thank you for saying that. Your girlfriend is very lucky to have someone like you in her life." She said, blushing crimson and finally grabbing the bottle from his now empty hands.
"Well thanks! The second I get a girlfriend, I'll be sure to tell her how lucky she is to have me."
She couldn't help it. Hermione giggled, and she giggled loudly. "How is it possible that you're single? Weren't you at that party with Angelina?"
"Nah. I mean, she's at the party, yeah, but she's a friend of Lavender's. I was just catching up with her."
"I could have sworn Ginny told me you were dating her…" she mumbled into her empty glass.
"Not since the Yule ball. And even that could hardly be considered a date. You're not the only single one alive, Granger."
"Well it definitely feels like it sometimes. When Charlie walked in with his girlfriend tonight, I thought all hope was lost. The unattainable dragon-keeper bachelor had a girlfriend. I have no excuse." She laughed out her statement, but Fred could tell she was upset about it.
"You're gonna find someone. You know that, right? There's no way you won't. You're perfect." He said, grinning at her.
"Stop."
"What did I do?" Fred was confused. All he did was compliment the girl! Why was she so angry that she couldn't even bring herself to look at him?
"You're doing that thing! That you do! The grinning thing. I can't handle it tonight."
"Hermione, you aren't making any sense...grinning thing?"
"All you bloody Weasley's with your bloody grins, and you in particular! Of everyone at that party, tell me, why are you here? You with your damn grinning face and blue eyes. Where's Ginny? Doesn't she usually get sent after me when I'm an emotional mess?"
"Don't pretend this is a regular occurrence. I can tell by the face you make when you get a whiff of the firewhiskey that you, my dear, are not a drinker. Tonight, however, you've seemed to make an exception, and you've apparently lost your bloody mind, because for the first time in all of the years that I've ever known you, you aren't making a lick of sense." Fred said, closing the bottle of whiskey and sending it back behind the counter.
Hermione was looking at Fred intently. In fact, one might call it staring.
"Do you want to kiss me, Fred?" she asked, leaning in as if to tell a secret, but not lowering her voice.
"Because if you do, I won't stop you."she watched his eyes flick down to her mouth quickly before zooming back up to her eyes.
"I want to escort you home." he said, paying for Hermione's drinks and gathering her bag and jacket.
"Don't wanna go. Just wanna kiss you." she refused to move from her seat, closing her eyes and puckering her lips, waiting for Fred to make his move.
She knew she sounded ridiculous. She hated herself for it, too, but for whatever reason she couldn't control anything that had to do with her body. She could have conscious thoughts, she just couldn't act on them, apparently.
Her head was informing her body to please stop behaving in such a manner, but her body was screaming back for her head to shove it, she wasn't moving without a kiss from the boy she fancied.
And then it must have happened. He must have kissed her, because she felt a twirling in her tummy, a quick lurch, and the feeling that all of her insides were being squished through the eye of a needle.
"That was the most terrible kiss I've ever taken part of, Fredrick." she said, eyes still closed, a tiny pout on her mouth.
"That would be because it wasn't a kiss. I apparated you home, silly." he replied, taking her shoes off for her and carrying her to her bed.
"Fred...you don't want to kiss me?"she opened her eyes and saw his face looking tight, no sign of a grin on it now, he looked grown-up, as if he were speaking to a child.
"You're a bit too drunk for that."
"I'm not. I want to kiss you, honest! Fred, I've wanted to kiss you for a long time, but Ginny said you were with Angelina, and I'm no homewrecker. And Fred, everytime I see you I want to kiss you, but you never want to, so can't you just kiss me tonight, and then I can pretend I just dreamed it and I won't have to keep thinking about it anymore?"
"Hermione Granger, don't you ever think that I don't want to kiss you." he said, that stupid grin back, before he tucked her in, put her hangover potion on the bedside table and left the room.
"Way to go, Hermione." she mumbled before passing out.
The next morning proved very annoying to Hermione. The second she woke up, she felt her head attempting to split itself in half. She rolled over to her side to see the potion on her table instead of in the bathroom where she had left it the day before.
She shrugged and downed the potion, feeling her headache dulling slightly. She got up to realize she was still in last nights clothes (but at least she was in clothes) with make up leftover on her face.
Without bothering to change the disaster that was her face, she trudged out to her kitchen, where she found her counter filled with food. Fried eggs, fried potatoes, steaming hot coffee, awaited her.
"How in the hell..?" Hermione started, only to be interrupted by the sound of someone munching on toast. She whipped around (far too quickly, causing her to grip her still pounding head) to see Fred sitting at her small table, scarfing down his breakfast.
"Fred! Hi! I didn't think you would still be here!" she exclaimed, dragging her fingers under her eyes to clean up the make-up she now regretted leaving on.
"I couldn't leave you here alone last night, I didn't know if you were going to start drinking again after I left, or what exactly you were planning to do, so I stayed on the couch. And cooked you the best hangover breakfast around. Trust me, after George's bachelor party, this was the only cure."
Hermione laughed as she fixed her plate, carrying it over to the table and sitting across from him.
"So, listen, I want to apologize for last night...I feel like an idiot. I'm so sorry I threw myself at you...repeatedly..." Hermione mumbled, looking down at her plate to hide her embarrassment.
"Nah, don't worry about it. I always say, if they don't want you sober, don't sleep with them while they're drunk." he looked at her, his eyes seeming a full shade darker than usual, before continuing. "Although, I have to admit, you were making it pretty hard to say no. Rarely does a witch as pretty as yourself insist that she wants me." Fred said with a quick laugh, his eyes moving back to his plate quickly.
Hermione's face was red.
She knew that now would be the best time to confess to Fred that even sober, she would have wanted to kiss him last night.
"Fred...I...I just think that it's time for me to make myself very clear on where you and I stand."
Fred looked up at her with sad eyes. "You really don't, Hermione. I'm not an idiot. I know I don't stand a chance with you."
"What? Since when would you like a chance with me?" Hermione asked, her face brightening up a bit.
"You're joking, right?" he mumbled. "Hermione, I've been crazy about you for years. Since you became a Prefect and started bossing George and I around back at school. And lately its been even worse, you've been spending more time down at the shop, and at family gatherings we were hanging out more, and I know that's just because Ron is with Lavender and you're feeling awkward, but I just love being around you and - "
He didn't get a chance to finish his sentence, because Hermione threw herself across the table and pressed her lips to his, frantically kissing him.
He responded after a second of shocked stillness. The two remained locked in their heated embrace for what seemed like an hour, neither one ready to end their exchange.
"Hermione...that...wow." Fred breathed against her lips. "You're not still drunk from last night are you?" he whispered into her ear.
"No, I'm quite sober, Fred Weasley. And I've been praying for a confession like that for about two years."
Fred grinned.
Hermione decided that maybe that grinning thing wasn't so bad after all as she leaned in, an identical grin on her face, kissing him once again.