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I sit up and scoot over to give her more room. She settles comfortably next to me, and grabs my hand with both of hers. We're so close our thighs touch and I can't help the tingles that spread through my body. Naturally I stiffen at her touch because it's what I do.
I can't help it.
My physical self restraint is sort of impeccable when it comes to her. I'm so wound up I fear that were I to let go I probably wouldn't be able to control myself, and I'd never forgive myself if I did anything to make her feel uncomfortable.
She looks down at our hands and has her bottom lip between her teeth.
I envy those teeth.
"Hermione, what's going on?"
"I'm sorry for waking you.. You played a very tough game today, and I'm sure you must be tired," she's hesitant, "but I must speak with you."
I'm not sure if it's because she's nervous, but she's looking at my blanket like it's the most interesting thing in the room.
"Don't worry about it. I have all the time in the world for you," I tell her. "What did you want to talk about?"
This must be serious if the inner turmoil flashing through her eyes is anything to go by. As I wait patiently for her to gather herself, I'm assaulted by mounting sense of apprehension. My overactive imagination is about to go into panic mode, and the once steady beating of my heart is quickly rising in tempo.
"Ginny, I need to tell you something of great importance, and I fear if I don't tell you now I won't ever muster up the courage to do so."
No butting in then. Got it.
"You can talk to me about anything, Hermione."
This impending conversation is becoming a bit unnerving. Though we've been friends for the better part of five years, not once has she come to me in this state over something not schoolwork related. And that includes the incident with my brother.
That was a bad week for me.
Never before had I wanted to inflict so much bodily harm to one of my brothers as I did Ron. I wanted to hex the smile off his face every time I saw them together which was too much in my opinion. I barely get to see her that week, and when I did it wasn't for very long. Thankfully, I never witnessed anything more than innocent hand holding because I'd probably be down a brother.
But someone else did.
She was in the library when Ron, being the insensitive idiot that he is, decided it was the opportune moment for their first kiss. How wrong he was..
She didn't take kindly to his advances, and tried to tell him to let her do her schoolwork. Apparently after being friends since first year, my brother has yet to learn to leave her alone while she's studying? When that didn't work he took it upon himself to convince her by grabbing her and forcing his tongue down her throat.
Kevin came out of nowhere like some bloody knight in shinning armor and saved her from Ronald's clutches. A few weeks later they got together. That isn't to say that I'm not grateful he was there to save her.
I just wish she were with me instead.
Wait!
She is here with me.
"You're one of my best friends, Ginny. Have been since third year. We've been through so much together.. And I want you to know that it's been a privilege to bear witness in the making of who you are now, and who I know will be a most spectacular human being. You are such a beautiful person that it's no surprise it's manifested itself externally as well," she runs the back of her hand down the side of my face, and I can't help but lean into her touch. Her gaze following her movement. "But there's something I've never told you."
She drops her hand and looks down again.
"From the moment I met you there's been this one thing nudging me toward you, and it's taken me a very long time to not only figure it, but to come to terms with it. You captured my heart from the very beginning and have yet to relinquish your hold on me."
What?
"For so long I've had to suppress the way I feel out of what I can only describe, as Gryffindor nobility. That it took, being in a sham relationship for almost an entire year to get to where I am now is a testament to how afraid I was of losing you. However, recent developments have brought to light things that I previously chose to ignore."
This has got to be a dream because there's no way the girl I've been pinning over is pouring her heart out to me.
"Ginny, I'm in love with you"
I must look totally stupid because all I can do is look at her. No words, I can't find a single one. I don't even know if I'm breathing because all I can feel is the beating of my heart. I wonder if someone spiked the butterbeer I was handed on my way up here because there is no way this is really happening.
I'm brought out of my thoughts to find a pair of smiling brown with a hint of.. worry? "Are you alright? You were out of it for a moment there." She's going for humor when I know deep down she is terrified. I know her too well for my own good. Five years is a long time when you're in love with someone you think will never love you as you do them.
"Yeah, no I'm good. Just a bit tired from the game." How lame is that? Did I just dismiss what she just told me? She drops her hand from it's place under my chin, and looks down. When did her hand get there?
"This is a bad time," she looks up with a sad smile, "I'll come back when you're not so tired. I'm sorry to have bothered you, Ginny." She makes to get up, and I realize 3 things: she's leaving because she thinks I don't feel the same, I might not get this chance again, and I'm a bloody idiot.
She's on her feet and I see that our hands remain linked, and before I know it I pull, more like yank, her and she lands on top of me. I can see the surprise in her eyes turns into something I've only ever seen a few times. Like when she walks into the library, or the few times I've caught her looking at me. I just thought she was looking at something else.
Those chocolate orbs turn almost black, as I'm sure mine do also, then they travel down to what I assume are my lips. I lower my gaze to her own in time to catch her lick them. I reach up with my free hand to cup the back of her neck and close the distance between us.
My lips brush against hers and I can't help but close my eyes the moment she kisses me back. She releases my hand to caress my face whilst my newly freed hand makes its way down to her waist as I trace my hand up from her hand to her shoulder and down to the small of her back. The banging of the door breaks our moment, and thus ends the memory.
That night we snuck up to her Head Girl room. Where she explained how she and Kevin were only together to cover for each other, and how she only dated Ron to figure out if it would help with her feelings for me. Then we kissed.
A lot.
After putting the pensive where it belongs, and replacing the memory in the vial I exit the library in search of my wife. I find her in our bedroom folding clothes sans magic, so I sit on my side of the bed and watch her. She's just as beautiful now as she was that fateful night thirty years ago.
"Ginny," brown orbs search my face, "love, have you heard any of what I've just said?"
"Sorry, no I was lost in though. What was it?"
" I was asking what you were off doing whilst I've been doing the laundry," she says teasingly as she makes her way to me.
God I love this woman.
"I was taking as trip down memory lane"
"And which memory were you revisiting this time?" I smirk up at her, grab her hand, pull her on me, grab the back of her neck, and close the distance between us.
"This one."
A/NSorry it took so long. I hope a did alright, given that this is my first time. For those that followed, commented, etc.. Thank you very much!
