A/N: Chapter 3 is complete! More to come. Let me know what you think :) Thanks for reading!
Ron felt his heartrate speed up and his blood begin to boil. His stomach twisted as he realized Cormac certainly felt no qualms about sitting too close. He was practically in her lap. Ron felt a pang of jealously and betrayal before he noticed the look on Hermione's face.
Her cheeks were pink, lips pursed and eyebrows drawn in what Ron recognized as her look of indignation. It was the same look she would get when he made fun of S.P.E.W. or suggested she break a school rule. He secretly liked it, though he would never admit that to her. Part of the fun in goading her was the passionate glint she would get in her eyes as she focused her gaze on him. Frightening but sexy.
In this context, however, it simply made him outraged. Especially when he saw her leaning against the armrest of the sofa, straining to put some space between them. Ron snapped out of his stupor, marching up to them as he demanded of Cormac, "What are you doing?"
Cormac glanced up at Ron before looking away dismissively. "Oh, hey, Weasley," he said lazily, "we were just having a conversation." He looked back up at him pointedly. "A private conversation, if you know what I mean," he added, winking.
Hermione let out a noise of disgust while Ron pulled his wand on Cormac, aiming it at his throat. "Get lost, McLaggen," he said through gritted teeth.
Cormac's face turned instantly red, twisting into an ugly scowl. He stood and stepped toward Ron, puffing his chest out as a means of intimidation. But, Ron had a couple of inches on Cormac, and merely looked down his nose at him, wand still poised to attack.
"Don't tell me she came here with you," he mocked with a mirthless laugh.
The insinuation stung, prodding at his own insecurities as he still wasn't quite sure why she had asked him to come with her at all. His eyes flitted involuntarily toward Hermione, who was watching the scene unfold before her, brows knitted in concern. Turning his attention back to Cormac, Ron steeled his gaze. "As a matter of fact—" he began, but Cormac cut him off.
"It's not as though you were going to make a move," Cormac sneered. "You haven't got it in you." He smirked, crossing his arms over his chest. "She's fair game as far as I can see."
Ron dropped his wand, opting to use his bare hands instead as he pulled his arm back and swung, his fist landing with a satisfying crunch against Cormac's face.
"Ron!" he heard Hermione's shout, but kept his eyes fixed on Cormac.
"What the hell, Weasley?" Cormac sputtered as his hands flew to his face, a stream of blood leaking from his nose.
Ron picked up his wand again. "I told you to get lost," he growled.
Cormac shot him one last scathing look before stomping off through the crowd.
Now that the adrenaline in his system was starting to wind down, Ron noticed some students nearby watching with wide eyes and whispering to each other. He looked down at Hermione uneasily. Her cheeks were red, her mouth slightly ajar as she looked at him with an unreadable expression in her eyes.
"Erm," he mumbled, not quite meeting her eye, "maybe we should get out of here." He glanced over at the group of whispering students, then down at the ground where he noticed the two overturned goblets. He must have dropped them without realizing. Sheepishly, he picked them up and set them on a nearby table. Muttering a quick cleansing charm for the carpet, he waved his wand before stashing it back in his pocket.
Silently, Hermione stood. He took this as an agreement to leave and started to lead the way out of the party. As he pushed through the crowd of milling students, he realized how badly he'd screwed things up. Maybe I shouldn't have overreacted, he thought as his hand throbbed painfully. He flexed his fingers. This is not how I wanted this night to go.
He pushed open the door and held it back, waiting for Hermione to pass through as he stared at the ground dejectedly. As she moved past, she paused beside him. He watched her feet in confusion, wondering why she'd stopped. Then, he felt a soft hand fit itself into his. Swallowing, he looked up quickly, searching her eyes. She said nothing, but only turned and began walking again. He let the door fall shut behind him as she gently tugged him forward.
Their footsteps echoed against the stone as they walked side by side down the long corridor. Ron's heart beat rapidly in his chest. He wasn't sure if it was a residual effect of the confrontation he'd just had or if it was caused by the feel of Hermione's soft palm against his own. This in itself was a puzzle. Wasn't she mad at him?
"I—I'm sorry, Hermione," he blurted suddenly.
Her footsteps slowed as she looked up at him. "I can't believe you did that," she said.
