Chapter Two: All The Reasons My Life Sucks

We left the Burrow yesterday and now my dad, Freddie and I are back in our little flat over the shop. Unlike some people, who think a flat is too small for three people, I like it. It's pretty basic, just a kitchen, a bathroom, a family room and three bedrooms, but it's cozy. The only main problem is that we don't have any means of washing our clothes, so on Sundays we all go to Gran Molly's to get our laundry done. She almost had a heart attack when my dad told her he'd use a Muggle Laundromat.

When my mum was with us, we lived in a big house in Godric's Hollow. There were five bedrooms, two bathrooms, a family room, a kitchen, a dining room and a laundry room. We had a big back yard with a Muggle swing set that my dad had built for Freddie and I. My dad had planted a garden with Marigolds, Tulips and Petunias right next to the house in the backyard so that when the kitchen window was open, we could smell the flowers inside the house. Our lives seemed so perfect.

Gran is always getting on dad about buying a house somewhere near the Burrow. His excuses are always "What do we need that for? When Rox and Freddie go back to Hogwarts, I'll be in a big house all by myself." or "I like to be close to work."
I guess he's right though, we really don't need a huge house when it's just Freddie, dad and I.

I'm not too keen on my dad dating again. I know he's been single for six years now, but Uncle Charlie hasn't had a girlfriend in my lifetime and he's perfectly happy. What if he thinks he's found the "right one," again and she uses him just like my mum did? I realize that not all women are the same, but what else does George Weasley really have to offer? He's got two kids and he owns a Joke Shop. Other than being the "poor sap," that Angelina Johnson ditched, the shop's all he's really got going for him.

So that's why I got so angry this morning when my dad made his little announcement over breakfast.

"Rox, do you think you and Freddie could close up shop tonight? I've got a date." he mumbled those four last words into his coffee.

"What did you say?" I asked.

"I've got a date." he grinned, leaning back into the kitchen chair.

"Will Verity be there to help us?" Freddie asked as my jaw dropped and I choked a little on my pancake.

"Verity's coming with me." my dad was still grinning.

"Dad, what!" I coughed, still trying to get the pancake out of my throat.

"Why is Verity going with you on a date?" Freddie asked, a dumbfounded expression on his face.

"Verity is his date, stupid." I retorted to my little brother.

"Yah, what do you guys think?" my dad asked, he was still grinning. Ugh! I wanted to slap that stupid smile off of his face.

"Dad! Are you serious?" I whined.

"What?" he looked at me, the smile disappearing.

"Verity's been working at the shop for like twenty years." I explained.

"Yeah, and?" My father was completely missing the point.

"If you liked her, why didn't you marry her in the first place?" I exclaimed.

"Roxie, it wasn't like that, back then. She was just a co-worker."

"And now? What is she now, dad?" I was almost yelling.

"Well, if everything goes right tonight, maybe she'll be my girlfriend."

"WHAT! NO WAY! Dad! You can't do that!" Now I was yelling.

"Leave him alone, Roxie." Freddie told me calmly.

"You shut up, twerp!" I screamed at my brother.

"Roxie, I don't know why you're so upset about this." my dad told me. He was just as calm as Freddie and it made me even more angry.

To be completely honest, I didn't know why I was getting so upset either. I mean, it was just a date, but really, why Verity of all people? He could have married Verity in the first place and none of this stupid Angelina stuff would have happened.

I like Verity, she's perky and spunky and really spontaneous. She's pretty, her blonde hair always looks perfect and her teeth are always sparkling white. I just don't get why now. Why not twenty years ago? And why does he have to go out on a date? I'm on the dating scene. My dad can't be, too, that's just insane.

I understand that I'm being completely selfish and bitchy by fighting with my dad. I want him to be happy, I just don't think a girlfriend can make him happy. What if she does the same exact thing my mum did? I don't think my dad can take that again.

"Then maybe you don't understand me!" I yelled, storming into the living room, picking up some floo powder and flooing to Aunt Hermione and Uncle Ron's.

I know that sounds a little dramatic, but I did it. I ran out on my family just as my mum did. Ugh! I am such a brat! Why did I do that?

"Roxie?" Aunt Hermione asked, while I laid on the floor in my soot mess. "Roxie, honey? What's wrong?" she extended a hand and I took it, letting her help me up.

"Hey, Rox. What's the matter?" Uncle Ron asked. Apparently, I'd interrupted their early morning coffee.

"My dad has decided to go on a date. With Verity." I said through clenched teeth.

"Oh, well, honey, that's wonderful!" Aunt Hermione cheered, pulling me into a hug.

"No, it's not." I told her, leaving the room rather rudely.

I headed straight for Rose's room. I didn't even bother knocking on the door. She was still in her bed, snoring as loud as ever. I pulled back her cotton candy pink comforter (which happens to match her cotton candy colored room- walls and carpet included) and yelled "Rose!" as loud as I possibly could.

She nearly jumped three feet into the air. "Rox! What the hell?" she screamed, trying to contain herself.

"I need to talk to you." I told her.

"You couldn't owl me and come over later?" she asked, trying to smooth her frizzy mess of red hair.

"No. It's important." I said, hopping onto her bed.

"Jesus, Rox, what's up?"

"My dad's going on a date tonight."

"Roxie! That's fantastic!" my best friend gushed.

"Ugh! Will people stop saying that?" I rolled my eyes. "It's not fantastic. It's terrible. He's going with Verity."

"Uhh...I don't get why this is a bad thing..."

"Because! It just is!" I exclaimed, hopping off of her bed to pace the room. "What if she hurts him twice as bad as my mom did? What if she turns out to be a real creep who only wants him for his money? What if he decides to fall madly in love with her and she makes him run away to... I don't know... Australia or something and he leaves us?"

"Your dad is not going to run away to Australia with some girl." Rose rolled her eyes at me.

"But what if he decides he really likes her?"

"What did Freddie have to say about this? Was he freaking out like you?"

"No! Freddie was perfectly fine with it. Bloody git." I tugged at my pin straight dark red hair as I spoke. I read somewhere that pulling at your hair was a sign of extreme stress.

"Roxie, I think you're making mountains out of mole hills."

"Roxanne! Your dad sent you a letter!" I heard Aunt Hermione's voice call up the stairs.

"Ugh! what does he want?" I asked Rose, who shook her head in response.

Roxie,
I need you at the shop by four, my date is scheduled at five-thirty.
(Eastern Standard Time)
I hope you're still not angry, but even if you are, I still need you at the shop.
We'll talk when I get home.
Love,
Dad.

"Well, that was very nice of him." Aunt Hermione said as she finished reading over my shoulder.

"No, it wasn't." I replied cooly.

"Now, now, Roxanne." Aunt Hermione scolded. "I think it's wonderful George is starting to date again."

"I don't know, Hermione, I can understand why Roxie's upset." Uncle Ron chimed in. "Seeing as what that scarlet woman Angelina did to him."

"Thank you." I told Uncle Ron. "Why are you the only one that gets it?"

"Well, he still needs you to close the shop tonight and you're going." Aunt Hermione told me sternly. She seemed to know me better than anyone else. I'm a bit stubborn when it comes to being angry. She was right, I wasn't planning on going tonight. "Take Rose with you," she said. "Maybe it'll take your mind off of things."

Seven hours later, I was leaning over the red and gold check out counter at Weasley's Wizard Wheezes, head in my hands, bored as hell and pissed off to boot. Rose was sitting on the counter across from me, biting her nails as usual. It wasn't a particularly busy night, we had only had three customers, but it was still an hour until closing. I kept staring at the clock, trying to remember any spell that made time go faster. Grr! If only Aunt Hermione still had that time-turner.

"Uhhh! I hate this fucking crap!" I said angrily, throwing my head back and standing up.

"Roxie, daddy doesn't like it when you say that word." my little brother said menacingly, peeking his head out from behind the shelf he was stocking.

"Shut up, twerp!" I told him, throwing a Sugar Quill at him. I hate Sugar Quills, but my dad insists on sticking them by the registers to entice impulse buyers. I keep telling him that he doesn't need to do things like that. Everyone that comes in this place spends like fifty galleons at a time, especially right before the holidays are over.

"Chill out, maybe they're having a terrible time." Rose said cheerfully.

"Yeah, like that'll happen. Dad's great fun!" Freddie replied in disbelief.

"That's it." I said, hopping over the counter. "We're closing early."

"Roxie, no, dad always finds out!" Freddie squealed, coming up to me as if he were going to stop me. I quickly scanned the store for customers. I found one bloke fussing over love potions with two handfulls of merchandise.

"Hey guess what?" I asked him.

"Do you work here?" he replied, looking at me skeptically.

"Yes, George Weasley is my father and he's running a special tonight!" I said excitedly. "All that stuff in your hands are free! But you have to leave right now!" I grinned.

"Really?" he asked me as I took his arm and led him to the front door.

"Completely!" I pushed him out the door. "Bye! Tell all your friends!"

I closed the door behind the man and whipped out my wand faster than Rose could say "Frizz!" I tapped the front door three times and said "Mischief managed!" Which made the store's security system activate.

"Come on you guys. Upstairs. Now." I demanded, pushing my little brother up the stairs at the back that led to our apartment.

"Rox! Dad's gonna find out!" Freddie whined.

"I don't care!" I shot back, quickly getting annoyed. I felt really good at the time. It may be hard to believe, but even though I'm the daughter of George Weasley, I'd never done anything this outrageous before. Okay, and I know that just closing the shop early isn't that "outrageous," but compared to what we did later, it so was.

I sent my little brother to bed and took away his owl so he couldn't rat on Rosie and me. I didn't believe it, but Rosie was siding with my brother. We were in my room for like a half an hour and all she kept saying was "You shouldn't have done that! That was really rude!" and I don't mean to sound like a bad influence or anything, but come on, I already did it, so shut up.

Rose and I were just sitting in my room, rocking out to my wireless and I had a fantastic idea. Oh and when I said we were "rocking out," I mean like, dancing in our pajamas like drunken homeless wizards and playing air guitar, the whole nine yards. I suddenly stopped playing the air solo to the Weird Sisters song "Wand of Phoenix Feather and Fir," and yelled, "Do you want to go to a party tonight?"

"What? Roxie, you're being crazy!" Rose scowled, turning off the wireless. She sat on my bed with her arms crossed, frowning at me.

"No, really, I can owl Jess. She'll know of somewhere." Jessica Thomas was most known for partying. She always threw the best "sneak out," parties at Hogwarts and she was always talking about partying her way through the Holidays. She is the bad influence, not me.

I scribbled a quick note to Jessica asking her if there were any parties and where they were. I used Freddie's owl to send the letter, which I'll admit, was a little bratty of me.

I got the reply only a half an hour later saying that Marcella Klein was throwing a little "get together," down Spinner's End, which was only a block or two down from me. I was so excited as I threw on my favorite pair of skinny jeans and the tight black cami my dad never let me wear in public. My make up was still perfect from this morning, all I had to throw on was my jacket and- no. I put on one of my mom's old vinyl trench coats that I used to play dress up with when I was little. It looked perfect. I looked so risque and chic, I loved it.

I let Rose borrow a pair of jeans and a shirt that was a little too tight for her. She looked great nonetheless, and I noticed that once we started getting ready, Rose perked up a little. I'd been secretly hoping that she wasn't going to be a wet blanket the whole night. She could be like her mum when she wanted. I don't even know how my dad and the "infamous," Uncle Fred used to hang out with Aunt Hermione when they were kids. She must have ratted them out for everything!

After we were done getting ready, I peeked my head into Freddie's room. He was sitting at his desk, playing with the pigmy puff that my dad had gotten him for his birthday last year.

"What do you want?" he said sourly, giving me a death glare that was so like my father's it was unrealistic.

"Rose and I are going to her house for a bit." Rose kicked me as I said this. "Uhhh Aunt Hermione needs help with... uh... cleaning." I grinned, trying to appear cheerful while my brother frowned at me and turned his attention back to his pet.

Spinner's End was only a five minute walk from the street where we lived. Being close to everything was the only thing good about living in Diagon Alley.

"Roxie, I still don't think this is a good idea." Rose said hesitantly as we walked out into the cold Winter air. A chill had passed through the both of us and we instinctively pulled our coats tighter. If I learned one thing that night, it's that vinyl is not warm at all.

"Come on, Rosie... you've been to parties before." I tried to cheer her up. "Ooh and maybe Scorpius will be there." I smiled.

"I heard he was in Ireland for the holiday." she said
absentmindedly. Everyone in the entire wizarding world knows that Rose has a crush on Scorpius. I bet even the Prime Minister knows, it'sthat obvious.

"Rubbish. Rachel McCrohan said she saw Scorpius out with his mum the other day."

To this, Rose was silent, I knew she got really nervous whenever Scorpius was mentioned. Whenever he's around, she gets all...well, to be frank, stupid. Once, he said hi to her in the Great Hall and she started jabbering on and on about the grass on the Quidditch pitch, yes I said grass. Rose Weasley blabbers about grass when she gets nervous.

We arrived at Marcella's a few minutes later and that's when I started getting nervous. There were only about ten people I recognized at this party and I hate that. Oh, believe me, I'm all for meeting new people, but I didn't like being in a place where there was alcohol and strangers. It was alright when my cousins and I snuck a few firewhiskeys from Uncle Ron and Aunt Hermione's liquor cabinet, but we were family. You know the saying, "What happens with the Weasley's stays with the Weasley's."

At once, I scanned the room for people I recognized, finding only coincidently, Scorpius and Jessica. Scorpius was standing by the keg (which I found out the hard way is a big metal beer barrel, made by muggles) his blonde, shaggy hair looked perfect, as usual and he was sipping something out of a clear bottle with a purple label on it. I felt Rose flinch next to me, but she didn't say a word. I'm assuming she was afraid of going on about grass again.

Rose and I walked over to them rather quickly. Not to sound conceited or anything, but I swear I could feel the strangers' eyes ogling me. If we were at Hogwarts, I'd secretly like the feeling of being checked out, but we were in a group of strangers and I didn't like it one bit.

"Hey." Scorpius said. "Wow, I never thought I'd see you guys here."

"Yeah. We were feeling pretty rebellious tonight." I smiled, rolling my eyes when he looked away.

"Yeah! We were uh... we closed the shop early!" Rose said... just to say something. Her face flushed bright red and I could tell by the way she was staring at her shoes that she totally wished she hadn't said anything at all. I don't know why she gets like this whenever she's around Scorpius. Rose is down right gorgeous when she tries, she could have him in a hearbeat, she just had to get the talking thing out of the way.

"Oh." Scorpius replied to Rose awkwardly.

"Hey, do you want to get us something to drink?" I said casually, trying to break the obvious tension between the two. Scorpius, looked to the keg and I shook my head no. I wanted something like a Firewhiskey or that Muggle raspberry stuff that Jen Bugner brought to the Gryffindor Quidditch party almost a month ago.

"Hi, Jess." Rose smiled. I had completely forgotten that Jess was there, but when I remembered, I automatically wanted to forget again.

"Hi guys!" she said a little too cheerily. "Isn't Marcus over there a total hottie?" she asked, eyeing this bloke who looked like he belonged in the mountains with the giants. (no offense to Hagrid)

"Uhh no." I told her. My words came out rudely than they had originally meant to be.

"Well excuse me if no guy is ever good enough for Ms. Roxanne Weasley." Jess said sarcastically, walking away from Rose and I.

Scorpius brought Rose and I this cold drink in a glass bottle with lemons on it. The label said "Masz Voux." I'm not quite sure what that meant, but it was worse than Firewhiskey. It tasted good, but the stuff was way too strong for me. And what do us Weasley's do when a drink is too strong for them? We throw it back and go for another, no liquor is ever too strong. Well, at least that was my dad's motto for birthdays and barbecues.

As I was on my third "Masz Voux" (Rose was still on her first. She didn't have the George Weasley state of mind.) someone had turned up the wireless people all around us started dancing. The room suddenly became too hot with strangers' body heat filling the place.

"Lets go dance." Scorpius said more to me than Rose, who looked somewhat insulted. I grabbed her by the arm and led her into the middle of the room, in the center of everyone else, where it was hottest. Scorpius started dancing next to me, as Rose and I were gyrating to the beat next to each other. I was really dancing with Rose and Scorpius just happened to be there.

After a few minutes, the man that Jessica had pronounced as "hot" before began to dance with Rose and Scorpius went from being next to me, to pretty much on top of me. I kept moving back a few inches every couple of minutes but wherever I moved, so did he. I was sweating, I was really getting overheated from the mixture of dancing and everyone breathing so heavy.

And then it happened. I remember the song perfectly, it was called "Invisible," and it's by a Wizard band called "Giants Away!" There's a specific part in the song where the lyrics and guitar drop away and it's just a steady bass line that almost sounds like a heartbeat. I was still dancing, keeping my eye on Scorpius like I had been for the past half hour, to make sure nothing between us got too "inappropriate," when I felt him whisper "So, just how rebellious are you feeling?" into my ear.

Anger spread throughout my body. Why the hell is Scorpius acting this way towards me! Ugh! I turned around, prepared to smack him when he forced his lips on mine. By the time the shock was over and I pulled away, I had turned around to see Rose stepping into the green flames of the fireplace.

"No, Rose!" I screamed across the room.

I immediately followed her, bellowing "Weasley's Wizard Wheezes!" as I flooed home.

When I got there, my house was still dark and empty, just the way we left it. I ran to my brother's room and opened the door, he was playing his Muggle videogames.

"Freddie, did Rose floo back here?" I asked hurriedly.

"I wouldn't know would I? I'm not supposed to leave my room." he said sardonically, keeping his gaze on his games.

"I really need to know!" I said angrily.

"Rosie, is back at her house." I nearly jumped out of my knickers. My dad's voice came from behind me in a not so happy manner. "Where she told her mum everything."

"Heh, heh... Sorry?" I asked nervously.

"Sorry is not the word for it." my dad told me, he was doing that thing he does where he's super angry, but he tries to be calm. "You lied- no, correction- you were going to lie about closing the shop for me, you went to a bloody party and then you snogged Scorpius Malfoy!" his voice kept getting gradually louder, so when he said "Malfoy," he screamed it. I was sure Scorpius, who was still down the street as far as I knew, could hear him.

I kept telling myself to be cute and casual and calm. Cute, Casual, Calm. The three C's.

"No, dad, I didn't snog Scorpius. He... we... okay, we were drinking and then we were dancing and then he kept getting too close and I kept trying to move away but he kept following me and then he said 'So how rebellious are you feeling?' and then I turned around to slap him and he kissed me and when I got away, I saw Rose in the fireplace and she was leaving, so I came home because I didn't know where she went and then you came and now you're yelling." I spoke so fast I highly doubt that my father even understood a word I said. I looked to my brother who was no longer interested in his video games. He was staring at me with his mouth wide open.

"I CAN STILL SMELL THE ALCOHOL ON YOUR BREATH!" my dad's face got really red as he screamed at me. No, screaming is an understatement. He more like, bellowed. I immediately backed away from him. I knew he wasn't going to hit me or anything, but I didn't want to take my chances.

Cute, Casual, Calm
"Dad, I... uh... I don't know what to say." I replied softly.

"I've got a million things to say!" he yelled. He wasn't bellowing, but he was yelling. "It's really pathetic that I had to be Owled in the middle of the first date I've had in six years, by your Aunt Hermione, who was in hysterics because Rose showed up at home half drunk, crying hysterically, telling her everything you two did tonight! Now, not only am I angry at you, not only are you grounded until you're thirty, not only is Verity upset with me and you, but your Aunt Hermione thinks you're a bad influence, your own family and best friend hates you for snogging the boy she's liked since she was eleven, but you... you Roxanne, should be ashamed of yourself. You know what? Pack your things, go live with your mother!"

The words Bad influence, Your family and best friend hate you and Go live with your mother rang in my head. I was so shocked by the last thing that he said, I couldn't even comprehend my own thoughts. My head was buzzing and I felt tears prick at my eyes. Rose couldn't hate me, and my dad could not have been serious.

"Dad... you're joking, right?" I asked, the tears threatened to fall. "You're not serious, right?" he didn't answer me and I felt my face grow paler.

"You've got four days until you go back to Hogwarts. I suggest you start writing her a letter. I don't want you hear if you're going to act likeher" his face was solemn. I had never seen him like this before. It scared me.

"Daddy, I..." as soon as I started speaking, he walked away from me.

I had never felt so alone or unwanted in my entire life. I stood in the hallway in front of my brother's room and cried for about ten minutes before I pulled myself together.

If he doesn't want me here, fine. I'm leaving.