A/N: Hello again! How are you? Yeah, I'm posting the entire story in one go. I thought it might made you all happy. I hope you're enjoying it. See you at the bottom, guys!

Disclaimer: I don't owe anything

~*2*~

I watched him as he chattered happily along with her, looking so happy and carefree for once. And I sighed heavily, feeling the exact opposite of him.

So sad and careworn.

"Why don't you tell him, Hermione?"

I felt my lips curling in a sad, wistful smile at his comment. Before I slowly turned in my seat to face a pitiful and concerned looking redhead.

Ron.

I sighed again, suddenly feeling all drained before I shook my head at him sadly.

"I can't," I said, my brown eyes seeking his blue ones. Before my eyes - out of habit - drifted towards the source of my distress, and end up sighing again. "Besides, I'm not worth it. For him, at least."

Ron tsk in disapproval before he take one of my cold hands in his warm ones.

"Oh, c'mon, 'Mione." he chided gently. Tugging on my hand slightly, he continues, "You know it's not true. He do cares for you." I give a short, hollow bark of a laugh at his comment.

"He is happy, Ron." I murmured softly, my eyes slowly and unwilling drifting from his chuckling form to look into Ron's solemn blue ones. "For once and for all, he is happy." I shrugged lightly before I duck my head and muttered to my lap, "That's all I ask for him."

"But are you?" Tears prickled at the corner of my eyes, and I swallowed hard.

"If he is," I whispered in a low tone, my voice shaky. "Then I am." I finished in a firm, stubborn tone.

"But..-" I shook my head at him, adamant to put a full stop on this absurd conversation.

"No, Ron." I said sternly, still shaking my head before I turned to shot him a daring look. "Drop it. It doesn't matter."

I was happy, however, when he complied with my wishes when we heard someone's coming from in front of us.

But I instantly freeze on my spot when I noticed who it was.

"Hey, guys!"

Ginny bounded over to our side, and leaving his the moment we were within the hearing range. And try as I might, I cannot stop my eyes when they swivel around and meet his eyes.

To only to see him smiling.

My breath hitch up in the throat, and suddenly, I wanted to get out of this place. And that too, as soon as possible.

I bolted from my seat just as Ginny was about to take her seat beside me. And I noticed, couldn't really help it - when she frowned at my unexpected sudden movement.

"What's wrong, Hermione?" she asked me politely, looking sincerely curious and puzzle at my abruptly tense posture.

My eyes - which have found the structure of the table top in front of me quite fascinating thing in the entire world - hesitantly lifted to meet her eyes.

"Library!" I blurted out the first possible thing that popped up in my head, and was relieved when she simply nodded in understanding, looking highly amused.

"Leave it to you to abandon morning breakfast for a Library tour," she jokes, making both the present parties to chuckle in humor.

But I only lowered my eyes to its previous position as I quickly maneuvered my way out of my seat, blushing in half shame and half embarrassment.

I didn't bid them farewell when I sharply turned around for the nearest exit, feeling oddly at edge and on the verse of tears.

Goddamn it. I thought with a tint of frustration. Why can't things be so easy and unruffled? Why does everything have to be so befuddled?

"Hermione, wait!"

A voice called out from behind me and I momentarily freeze dead on the spot. My heart rate spiked at the tone of his voice, so deep, rough, slightly soft and just . . . him.

But I snapped out of it - whatever trance it was, and just continued to walk, trying to pretend as if I didn't hear him.

It's for the best, I told myself. The lesser of the two evils, yes.

But he didn't seem to be deterring in his quest in the slightest.

Because the next thing I knew, he had caught up with me, easily keeping up with my brusque pace. Bugger.

"Hey there," he greets me tentatively, his voice somewhat hesitant as if I might round upon him. Not wanting to explain my weird behavior to him, I decided to play dumb.

Mock-gasping, I jumped slightly in my position, and whipped around to look up at him with a surprise, confused state.

"Oh, hey, Harry!" I greeted him with a mock-breathless tone, turning back to look at the corridor, and blowing out a nosy exhale. "God Harry! You could really use some kind of a bell with you." I told him seriously, as I lifted my right hand to run light circles around the area near my heart, mock- wincing.

I hear him chuckling in the earnest. "Well," he drawls. "It's really not my fault that you're unexceptionally unobservant." He teases me.

This time, I gasp out aloud, offended. "Hey!" I protested loudly, glaring. But he only laughed, highly entertained and amused for my liking.

"Anyways," he said while I huffed in annoyance and sped up my walk, angry at his interruption and furious at myself to let him get on my nerves like this - when I was in a vulnerable state. But I quickly found myself tagged along with a still chuckling form of a boy - who seems amused at my behavior. "I'd been meaning to ask you something, but you completely sidetracked me." He continues to chuckle, and I grew more annoyed at him.

"Harry?"

"Hm?"

"Do you have multiple personality disorder?"I asked him severely. Looking up and meeting his dancing emerald eyes behind his round rimmed glasses.

Again, he chuckled. "You're doing it again." He reminds me.

I grumbled incoherently under my breath and looked away from him, suddenly self-conscious around him.

And so small and vulnerable. I sighed for what seems like the tenth time of the day. "What do you want from me, Potter?"

"Ah, well," From the corner of my eyes, I see as he lifted a hand to run it through his messy, beautiful jet black hair. Uncertain and sheepish all of a sudden.

And I melted.

"What is it?" I ask, stopping dead on track and facing him properly.

"I, uh . . . it's - umm?" he stammered, coloring as he tried to grope for words.

I don't know what possesses me to do. But I took a step forward and lifted my hand hesitantly towards him. He noticed my moments before his eyes snapped down at me, looking curious, nervous and perplexed. Swallowing hard, I let my hand drift up. . . and up . . . and up . . . with my heart going all thump . . . thump . . . and thump . . . before it reach it destination.

My cold fingers slowly curled around his lukewarm ones, and lifted them from its clenched pose around the locks of his hair.

"Don't." Was all I said before I made a mistake of looking at his eyes.

Instantly, I felt a chill run my spine; my cheeks begin to heat up; my heart skipping a beat or two before it begins to thud in an uneven rate when I notice how . . . softly was he staring down at me. How much . . . warmth they posses.

And how did it make me feel all tingly and elated.

And how sappy are you sounding, no Mione? My inner voice butt in, and I was instantly jerked out of reverie. I quickly stepped back, my hand drawing back so fast as if he'd burned me.

"S-sorry!" I stumbled over my apology, my eyes slightly wide as I noticed how . . . smouldering his eyes were. Oh god. I moaned inwardly. What did I do? "Yo-you were sa-saying?" I gulped lightly, getting genuinely scared by how his eyes were looking at me.

"Right," said he slowly, still staring at me with his . . . unusual gaze. I averted my eyes hastily when I find that I couldn't meet his gaze any longer. God, was it nerve-wrecking? "I'd been meaning to ask you," I hear him speaking deliberately, as if choosing his words very carefully before he continues, "about Ginny."

And whatever I'd been feeling until then, it went all puff in the air.

Slowly, so slowly, I lifted my head to meet his now normal previous uncertain and sheepish looking eyes.

I wonder if I've transfigured myself into a mechanical robot?

"What about her?" I ask him, my voice all stoic.

Just as I'm feeling my entire demeanor and pose.

Yeah, all robotic.

"I-I'm . . . I'd been meaning to - Oh god!" he groaned in frustration, face-palming himself before he looks back at me a confident face. "I want to court her," he said plainly, all serious.

I felt my heart frowned heavily, before plummeting and diving to my feet's, and stopped beating. "Oh," Really, what a genius response. I deserve an Oscar Award.

"I- Oh god, Mione!" he moaned, before he buried his face in his hands, shaking his head in shame as I watched him, feeling like a statue. "I can't believe this!" he declared, sounding mortified. "I really should have thought this through. I mean, you're the one who has always helped me, and here I am, can't even go after the girl I clearly liked as hell!"

Can't even go after the girl I clearly liked as hell...

I gulped painfully, suddenly fighting against the growing stupid lump that have erupted in my Adam's apple.

Please. I pleaded pathetically to myself. Not here. Not in front of him.

"It's OK," I hear myself say, but my voice sounded odd even to my own ears. Like an Alien. But - thankfully or maybe unfortunately - he didn't seem to notice. He simply shook his head in denial and moaned again. "It's natural."

Hearing my comment, his head lifted to look at me wearily. "Really?" I nodded. "So, what do you think I should do?" He asked me, more like pleading. "Ask her out." I deadpanned.

He simply stares at me as if I had grown a third head or something.

"Yeah, right." he said, giving me a funny look. "And Ron is not food-o-holic." He begins snickering at his own joke, and I rolled my eyes at him, all the while trying to smile a little.

Yet, failing in it all the same.

"Chocolate and flowers," I told him, and ignored his blunt questioning look which he gave me. "Girl's love those, try it."

And with that I turned to walk away, not waiting to hear his response.

A/N: How was it? I hope you'll like it Leave a review, eagerly waiting for one. Thanks for reading it though. Much love.