Chapter Three
A week later…
Ron sat near the fire place in the Gryffindor common room quietly watching the crackling blaze. He had done this every night that week. For him, it was better to sit quietly and stare at things without thinking than to actually feel the hurt he tried to mask throughout each day.
As far as he was concerned, Lavender had been, and was, the only girl for him and he wanted to get her back. Deep down, however, he knew that that wasn't going to happen any time soon. Since their break up, many people had tried to convince him that Lavender just wasn't for him and that he'd find someone better suited for him, but he just couldn't believe it.
Sure; he and Lavender had had their spats and she annoyed him quite a bit of the time, but he was in love with her. At least, he felt he was in love with her, and that was the same thing, right? "Ron?"
Ron looked away from the fire and saw Hermione sitting next to him on the rug. "Can you believe how she's acting?" he asked her quietly, turning back to the fire.
For a moment, Hermione looked puzzled, and then a look of understanding came over her face. "Lavender," she said.
Ron nodded. "The way she's carrying on, like we never meant anything to each other… How can she do that to me?"
As he spoke, Ron turned once again to Hermione with an expression of hurt on his face that she had never seen before. True she had seen him upset and hurt before, but it was never anything like the way he was looking at her now. Blast that Lavender for hurting him in such a harsh manner, she thought.
"Hermione, can I ask you something?"
"Of course, Ron."
"It's sort of a personal question…"
Hermione gave him a soft smile and placed her hand on his forearm for a brief moment. "Ron, you can ask me anything; no matter how personal."
"Do you think I'm a bad boyfriend?"
Hermione furrowed her brow and chewed on her bottom lip for a few moments before asking, "Are you sure I'm the right person to be asking that question to?"
"You're one of my best mates, and you're a girl… who better to ask?" Ron questioned, turning his whole body to face her.
"I've never been your girlfriend, Ron," she pointed out.
"True, but you've been around me when I had a girlfriend so you know how I acted."
Hermione sighed and said, "Well, I can't speak for any private time you had, but I can say that from what I saw; you were an acceptable boyfriend."
Ron's shoulders slumped a bit. "Well, if that's the case, then why aren't Lavender and me still together?"
"I'm not sure, but, to be honest, I'm glad you're not."
To say that Ron was shocked by these words would be very much so, an understatement. He was beyond shocked; flabbergasted. "Why would you say something like that?"
"Because it's the truth," Hermione practically snapped. "I'm happy that the two of you aren't together because now I don't have to sit around watching you snog each other senseless wishing it was me you were snogging."
As soon as she had spoken those words, Hermione's hand flew up and clamped over her mouth. She had not meant to actually tell Ron that she fancied him but she knew that now there was no way she could back track and cover up what she had just said. Ron had heard her, and he had understood her, that much was clear by the mixed expression of shock and curiosity written on his face.
The longer Ron just kept staring at her and not saying anything, the closer Hermione came to tears. She finally pulled her hand away from her mouth and let it drop into her lap, staring down at her hands as she began wringing them together. Finally unable to bare the silence between then any longer, she got to her knees and made to stand up.
"Why didn't you say anything?" Ron whispered as she got to her feet.
Hermione sniffled and wiped at her eyes momentarily before saying, "I was hoping I'd never have to. I thought maybe you'd figure it out and then maybe you'd make a move… but you never did… in nearly seven years, you've never figured it out."
Tears were flowing freely from Hermione's face now as she stood there, looking down at him. "I should have known that you'd never see me as more than your friend," she sobbed quietly.
Before Ron could stand up to somehow comfort her, Hermione turned on her heel and ran up the steps that led to the girls dormitories. Ron sat there, completely helpless as he watched Hermione run up the stairs and out of sight. He sighed and put his head in his hands thinking to himself, what do I do now?
