Chapter 6: because of a few private lessons…
Wednesday, 6:30 pm.
The business number 37 of the straight street used to be a very famous and sophisticated florist's called "The Blue Violet." I remember that once, when I was only nine years old, my father took me there because he wanted to buy my mum a bouquet of roses due to their anniversary. When he saw how all the flowers marvelled me, he let me pick one to buy for myself.
After enjoying and walking through the store, watching every type of flower in the place, I made up my mind to the one that was called the same as the florists: a violet with blue petals. When I held it in my hand, fingers touching the fresh leaves and stem, I knew that it was exactly the flower I wanted, so that's what I said to my dad, who, at the time, was already carrying a big and beautiful bouquet of red roses.
"A blue violet," he commented after we had left the store and I was still looking at the flower. "Strange choice that shows me that you are going to be a good girl when you get older"
"What do you mean, Daddy?" I asked, curious.
"Did you know that all flowers have meanings?" he said and I denied with my head, just like any other innocent girl, "Well, they do. Blue violets symbolize confidence, self-confidence, independency, and naturalness. And believe me when I say you are going to be just like that. The things others think doesn't matter; only what you think is important, remember that."
"Really??" I said looking at the violet in my hand. "And how do you know all that?"
"I had to learn something from your mother". He said laughing and touching the petals of the red roses softly. I contemplated the intense red of the roses.
"Daddy? What's the meaning of the red roses?" I wanted to know.
He laughed once more.
"You know how much I love your mum, don't you?" I nodded. "I'm giving her these flowers so that she knows that after all these years I still love her, because red roses express a feeling that you will feel someday: love."
That conversation with my father was one of which I liked the most. I will remember it forever because it showed me that my father was a romantic. And I found out that giving red roses is a way of expressing to a person how much you love them.
That's why, this morning, when Nigel Weasley delivered me a single red rose with a little folded note, saying, with not very well concealed laughter, that his uncle was the one who gave it to me, I couldn't stop surprising my self.
I had a quick look at the café, which, throughout the years, had substituted for the store where I had bought that blue violet. It was different now. The big poster in the awning and wall said "Café: The Blue Violet" and I thought that maybe the name was kept because of the old florist's. Anyway, I was surprised that Ron had picked that place to meet each other.
Yes, we have arranged again, to my joy. The note, which accompanied the rose, said, "I'll wait for you at half past six this afternoon in the café on the street straight, business 37. I have a surprise that I know you are going to like. Please, don't be late. Ronald B. Weasley."
I still have the note; it was nice to see Ron's handwriting again that had changed a bit with time. Yes, I still have the note... So what? I think I am even going to keep it for a while longer.
The windows were dark; that is why I could not see if Ron had already arrived. After admiring the façade, upon which, one day, years ago, were painted with blue violets nowadays, are just white, I got closer to the entrance and pushed open the door.
The environment was calm, respectful. Nobody looked at me when I entered; nobody, except a girl with long red hair who rushed towards me and left me astonished.
"GINNY!" I said leaving my purse so as to give her an enormous hug.
"HERMIONE!" she shouted at the same time, proving to me that this was Ron's little sister, one of my old best friends, who was hugging me, "It's been such a long time," she rubbed my back with force, "let me see you…"
We moved apart and she looked at me; I looked at her. She had really changed, jut like Ron and Harry. Her brown eyes were painted with a light blue, which combined with her tight blue dress; over it, she had a jean jacket to warm herself. Her hair was longer; I calculated it reached almost her middle back. She still had the little freckles, almost invisible, above her nose… she had hated freckles in school days; she had that nice expression in her face, typical of all Weasley's. It was Ginny, the same Ginny I remembered.
"Wow! Just look at you… you are great!" she said smiling happily. "This straight hair… those eyes with make up… where is the real Hermione Granger?" she joked.
I laughed heartily
"And what do you say about YOURSELF? You are much better than I had imagined!"
I had been writing letters to Gin, at least for the first years after leaving. At first the letters were almost daily, with time they were shorter and as the years went we both stopped writing, unconsciously, I haven't had news of her for a year. Ginny was aware of my feelings when I left; in every letter she said she wanted to see me… I always had the same negative answer, so I hadn't seen her since the day I left. Another life I had missed.
We smiled at each other and we hugged once more. This time, from above her shoulder I saw Ron… handsome as usual, coming our way with a big grin in his face.
So this was the surprise… a reunion with Gin. Just like he had done with Harry. How sweet and thoughtful.
I kept on looking at him while hugging Ginny. He reached our side and I dedicated him a smile, grateful, and he understood. Finally we moved apart and I looked at him.
"Have you liked my surprise, Hermione?" he asked pointing at his sister who made a model face.
"A lot," I said, grinning widely. "Oh Gin, I've missed you so much… why did you stop writing?"
"Me? You were the one who stopped answering me!"
"Nonsense, you were —"
"Actually, I think it was both of you…" cut off Ron, shrugging funnily. He kneeled and picked up my purse from the floor. "Here, it fell," he said, smiling sweetly and giving me the bag.
"Thanks," I whispered.
When I stood there, staring at him, and he staring in return, Ginny smiled happily, me not knowing why. Later I would find out from her mouth that she had realized that my feelings for Ron were still the same.
And effectively, they still were.
0.o.0.o.0.o.0.o.0.o.0.o.0.o.0.o.0.o.0.o.0.o.0.o.0.o.0
After and hour and a half of talking, Ginny had to leave. She had to stopped by at Harry's because her plane would take off in a few minutes and she wanted to say hello to him, after all, her interview wasn't finished; she had only come because Ron called her to say that he was to see me again… the minute she was told, she wanted to see me.
Ron and I were left alone.
We were sitting at a corner table, next to the big window. Since Ginny's departure, I had been watching the people passing in the street. I wasn't capable of looking at him; I had the feeling that if I did I would start talking nonsense or just leave my mouth open like a fish trying to find something interesting to say.
"Do you want to drink something else?" he asked then, making my desire of looking at him inevitable.
I just denied with my head. Ron made a head gesture to the waiter and left a paper on the table. He stood up and indicated me to do so too.
"Come on, I'll give you a ride home" he said grabbing my arm while we were walking out of the café.
"Eh… No, don't bother, I'll go on a bus," I wanted to refuse him; he had given me a ride yesterday night.
"Don't be foolish, you'll come with me… I hate buses; I've never been on one but I don't want to repeat the experience of the Knight Bus ever again." He made a face and we crossed the street where his taxi was parked. "Come on, get in," he said opening the door.
I knew that any excuses I made would fail; Ron would end up convincing me, like he always did. It seemed that my bossiness had loosened a bit with the years and that his was taking effect. Well, at least I did anything he asked.
Before he started the engine, while we were sitting in the taxi, Ron's aroma enveloped me completely. I don't know how, I do know that, thanks to that, I suddenly had the urge of telling him everything I felt. I took his face in my hands suddenly, much to his surprise and mine, and looked at him straight in the eye.
"Ron, I have to tell you something," I said, breathing heavily.
"Ok, let me breath first," he said and I loosened my grip on his cheeks. "What's it about?"
To say I was nervous is an understatement. Damn urges. I realized I wasn't ready to tell him yet. I blushed scarlet and the only way out was to lie.
"Eh... it's about Nigel," I said the first thing that came to my mind, moving apart from him, embarrassed because of my audacity.
From the corner of my eye I saw Ron smiling with exasperation and looking down, disappointed.
"Is this really about Nigel?" he asked with sharpness.
I looked at him. He already knew. He knew I was lying. I couldn't do anything else… I flushed, and then frowned.
"What makes you think it isn't about him?" I snapped at him.
"Your eloquence, for example," he answered sarcastically, smiling playfully. "Is there something you want to tell me, Hermione?"
How could he be so cheeky!
"Of course not!" I answered determinedly; I felt my cheeks burning, though. "I just wanted to tell you that…" I tried to come up with something convincing I searched and searched in my mind until I found the jackpot. "It would be convenient if you helped Nigel with some school subjects. He is not doing well… and I think if you helped him…."
"Who? Me?" he asked, pointing to his chest with his finger, laughing sarcastically. "No way, you know that I hate any kind of subject that involves books," I raised an eyebrow, reproaching him with my eyes. "I wrote that damn book because I needed to feel better doing something," he denied sadly with his head. "I didn't even want to published it; Harry made me. The thing is… I have no idea what muggles study; don't make me study with Nigel because it will be a loss of time for him and for me"
"Ok" I said shrugging. "Why don't you pay for a particular teacher for him?"
"What? Did I hear 'pay'?" Ron made a face. "I have enough with the bills of the house to add another thing to my bank account… the answer is no."
I sighed. I didn't know why I took so much effort in making him help his nephew with school; I had gotten away with the lie, so I had to keep with the game.
"Well… what about this?" I said and Ron looked at me. "Maybe some afternoons I can come to your place to give Nigel private lessons for free…maybe this way he will be encouraged. What do you think?"
Yes, there was a trick in that proposition. It's not like I wasn't concerned about Nigel's grades, in fact I thought about them quite frequently, but truthfully I wanted to go to Ron's house that, like Harry and he had said the day before, was a chalet by the mountains. Of course, I wanted to have an excuse to see Ron more times a week.
He seemed to be thinking it; finally, he smiled.
"Very well, miss, you win," he said, holding out his hand for me to shake it, which I accepted in order to seal the deal. "I don't think it can be at my house, though," my first wish crashed. "It is too far away for you to come and go… I think I can ask Harry to borrow his apartment for a couple of hours…" he scratched his chin and I shivered; he looked so smart doing that! "How many days do you think you will be able to come? How many hours?"
I thought this over, forming in my mind my weekly schedule.
"What do you think: Tuesday and Thursday, from seven to nine P.M.?" I suggested.
"Yes, perfect," answered Ron without even thinking about it twice and smiling at me. "So, if I know the days of the week… you have to come tomorrow!"
I chuckled.
"Yes, very good, Ron, tomorrow is Thursday," I joked with a motherly voice.
A smile appeared on his beautiful face.
"You don't know how strange it is to hear sarcasm coming from you," he said to make me angry. I raised an eyebrow but said nothing, just smiled. "By the way… isn't it time for us to go?"
Ron left me in front of my building, just like the other night when coming back from Harry's, and, like that night, I felt nervous when the time to say goodbye came. This time, I wanted to get out of the car quickly.
I opened my door in order to leave, but felt that Ron held tightly my shoulder. I turned around with my heart threatening to come out of my chest. I saw in his eyes the intensity I saw some nights ago, and they were sparkling more than usual.
"Aren't you going to say goodbye?" he asked with the voice of a kid that wants a sweet and can't have it.
"Mhhhh…" my voice seemed to get stuck in my throat. "Eh, well… good night Ron."
He raised his eyebrows with a contradicted smile.
"Come on… just that?" he said pulling me by my arm while he came closer too.
'God… what on earth is he going to do?' I thought hysterically, hearing the beats of my heart in my ears and looking at him while he got closer and closer. However he just took my face in his hands and gave me a kiss on my left cheek. Although, the kiss lasted five seconds and the sensation of his lips on my skin made me melt.
"See you tomorrow, Herms," he moved back a little bit and whispered that in my ear. Then he moved away completely and moved his grip on my arm so I could leave. "You know… at Harry's house, don't be absent."
"I-I-I'll be th-there" I babbled, dizzy, still looking at his ocean blue eyes. He had me hypnotised.
I tried to feel the taxi door to get out, without success because we were looking straight at each other's eyes, straight at our souls. Ron saw what I was trying to do and smiled fondly.
"Maybe if you look at what you are doing you would open the door," he suggested chuckling.
I blushed again even harder, and because of the embarrassment I could take away my eyes from him and get out of the car. I turned around when I reached the entrance and saw Ron's hand out of the window saying goodbye.
"Bye," I said with my breaths uneven as the car disappeared into the traffic.
I let escape a breath and entered my home, wondering how long I will last until I finally confessed my feelings to the red head and attack those lips…
0.o.0.o.0.o.0.o.0.o.0.o.0.o.0.o.0.o.0
Ding-dong.
Nigel Weasley opened the door with an unfriendly face; I smiled at him.
"Hello, Nigel. How are you?" I asked him to gain his trust.
He frowned and took a look at the books and folder I had under my arm. He didn't take so well the fact that he was going to have private lessons.
"Very good" he answered looking daggers at me with his black eyes. "Until you came"
My smile faded. I hated when children behaved towards me like one of them. Until a point I could understand, but there were some details that drove me mad, one was this insolent attitude from a little kid to an older person. It was not that I felt better than him because of my age; the kid sometimes just went too far.
"Nigel, don't talk to your teacher like that!" Ron scolded appearing from behind and hitting him in the nape.
"Ron! Don't hit him! I'm sure he didn't say it seriously, did you Nigel?" I said to Nigel giving he the "ha!-See-what-you-say-now" look.
The red head kid didn't look away from me and rubbed the part where Ron had hit him and then he ran into the apartment. "Ungrateful" I thought as I entered the flat when Ron invited me to do it.
"Where is Harry?" I wanted to ask.
"In Hogwarts" he answered slamming the door, "don't you remember? The professors have to stay there during the year"
"But, the other day…"
"He asked permission to Dumbledore to come to see you… you know, after all he is the boy who lived" he said imitating contempt toward his best friend. "By the way…" he took me by my shoulder and guided me to an aside of the dinning room. "Don't pay attention to Nigel, he is being sensitive about this…he said there was no fun in having more classes apart from school"
"I understand him" I stated.
"Yeah, me too." Said Ron laughing, "It's just a while though, until he gets to know you better and trust you…"
"I wish…" I said looking at Nigel, who was lying down in the sofa watching television with a bored face.
"Well… go on." Cheered me Ron, giving me a little push in Nigel's direction and smiling, "I'm going downstairs a moment to buy some things I need. I leave you two alone, ok?" I nodded. "Good luck herms"
I stood still until I heard the door close, Ron had gone. I took a deep breath, tidied my hair and came with firm steps into the room. I got near the furniture that held the television that Nigel was watching with great interest and pushed the turn off button. Immediately the screen made a "click" and it turned black.
Nigel's reaction was expected. The kid jumped off the sofa and starting yelling desperately, saying something how the soup opera was in its best moment and thing like that, I didn't give in.
"Come on, time to study Nigel." I informed him while I sat in the big table and opened a few books I had brought."
He was strangling me with his eyes, I knew, in his little mind there were for sure millions of ideas of how to cut my neck, everyone think that of their teacher sometime. And more likely when the teacher goes to your home to give you private lessons.
I had to get along with Nigel, it would be hard.. but I had to.
The red head advanced to me and sat down in the chair in front of mine, our eyes met his look full of rage. I sighted and tried not to pay attention to his hateful attitude, pretending I was looking something in my folder. I heard that Nigel was grumbling, impatient. "All Weasley are the same" I thought, finally looking at his freckled face.
"Ok, let's make this clear" I started, "I know you don't like me being here, I know because I don't want to be here either", liar screamed a voice in my head. "But if I have come it is because I want to help you pass the year. I don't think of you as an ignorant, quite the opposite Nigel, I believe that you can be a good even excellent student if you want to. Do you agree with me?" he had looked away but made a head gesture that I understood like a "yes". "So, the best will be if we can get along from the beginning. I promise not to pressure you and don't give you too much to do, only if you behave properly. What do you think?"
I hold out my hand friendly, so he could see that my intention was to deal with children and adults, the same. Only if the other person didn't abuse the deal, of course.
Nigel took a quick look at my hand with mistrust. However, after a few seconds he took it. I smiled.
"Well, where do you want to start?" I asked him in order to make him feel better about the whole thing, and then I changed of idea. "Do you know the verbs formation?" he denied with his head. "We will start from there then"
I took out photocopies and gave him a clean sheet of paper and a pen.
"Write: present perfect, present simple and simple future" I dictated him. When he finished I said him without dictating anything. "Tell me two verbs Nigel. Any two you want one regular and another irregular"
"Two verbs?" he looked thoughtful. " mmhhh "eat" " I allowed a smile appear in my face when I remembered how gluttonous was Ron when a teenager. " and…"
"Love" I finished immediately. He looked at me with and arched eyebrow and I shrugged. "It's regular, it's a good example"
"The verb –love- is only for girls" he mumbled in his seat.
"What are you saying?" I exclaimed. "Don't talk about things you don't know, and now tell me the verb –eat- in present simple"
Nigel straightened up in his chair, and rubbed his neck thoughtfully.
"emm.. I eat" he suggested.
"very good" I approved, " see it wasn't that difficult, now you can tell me it completely."
When Ron arrived Nigel had already finished saying the tenses of the first verb, leave the part I have to help him a bit, and had already written them down. I was beginning to feel proud of him.
"Look uncle!" he said the minute Ron came full of bags. "I've already known some tenses with the verb –eat-"
Ron came to our side and looked above his nephew shoulder to see what he had written, and then he looked at me to see my approval. I nodded smiling.
"Now we were going to start with the verb-love. " I explained him.
"really?" he said looking at the paper. "Then it will be…" he looked at me straight in the eye and my legs turned to water although I was sitting. " I love…" he whispered and blinked without taking his eyes away from me. "You love…"
I couldn't look away, what was he trying to do? I felt I was blushing, not knowing the reason.
"He loves, she loves, we love and they love!" concluded little Nigel, ignoring the fact that his uncle and teacher didn't look at anything but themselves. "And the simple past…"
"I loved" I took part, dedicating Ron a sad look.
"You...loved" completed him with a sad tone too.
What were we doing?! I didn't know, the only thing I knew was that Ron's eyes never seemed so beautiful before.
I heard Nigel, exited and happy, complete the persons that were left of the verb, his words were far away the only thing that was in my mind was the worry of keeping my gaze in those eyes.
"Hey!" a small hand moved in front of my face, breaking my visual contact with Ron. I looked to my right; Nigel was waiting for an approval from me. I, still baffled, looked at my friend but he was already looking down.
"Eh… what?" I babbled, coming back to the real world. "Ah! Yes... Yes, yes very good Nigel. I see that you've learned it correctly. Do you know the conditional?"
"What use has that?" he asked intrigued.
"To say things that you could do if something happens" I explained. "I mean, for example, I would eat if I was hungry, do you get it?"
"Yes.." said Nigel, writing down immediately the example I've said.
"And for example a sentence with the verb love…"said Ron, surprising me with his audacity. He looked straight at me again, and my tummy started tickling. "I… would love you…if… if you asked me to"
I felt the world floating around me and my heart tempting to jump out of my chest. Ron and I looked at each other intensely, so intensely, that I thought time had stopped. Was that sentence directed to me? Or he had just said it to take part in the class and has looked at me for an approval? I didn't know what to think. Well, I couldn't even think.
When I was opening my mouth to say something to him, anything, Nigel's voice stopped our hypnotism once more.
"ewwww, grouse uncle Ron!" exclaimed the little red head. "It will be best if you kept that sentimentalism for your next book!" he looked quite happy, have I finally got along with him?
Nigel gave Ron a friendly punch in the arm, and this one, looking disappointed put a small smile in his face, looked at me briefly and left the room.
"What's biting him? Asked Nigel while I looked at the door which my love had disappeared.
I sighted again I tried to focus in the subject I was teaching the kid.
"I hope nothing…" I answered Nigel's question, still shocked.
With a lot of effort I focus in Nigel's class again, and I could forget I was under the same roof as Ron to explain the boy all subjects correctly.
Until the time I had to leave arrived.
"ok Nigel, I think I'm going now" I informed him when he finished copying a note about adverbs.
"Really?" he said glimpsing at his watch. "Wow! Time went flying!"
I smiled.
"That's because you have liked the class" I said while I grabbed my books and put them under my arm. "Is true isn't it?"
Nigel cleared his throat and blushed a little.
"Well, I will only say that I didn't get bored" he said in a whisper looking other way,
I chuckled fondly and caressed his hair affectionately: he looked just like Ron when he didn't want to say something.
Ron! I haven't seen him in an hour! Where was he? With only got up and think of something else I stared missing him. Before asking for him, I turned to Nigel:
"So, tomorrow the same time?" I asked hopefully.
"em, yeah..sure." he answered doubtfully. "Wait a minute; I'm going to say to my uncle to walk you to the door"
"Ok" I accepted.
I hung my purse, left the room and looked how Nigel ran trough the corridor to look for Ron in the others rooms.
I entered the living room again. When I was leaving there I saw something from the corner of my eye that caught my attention, in the bookshelf by the wall behind the door. In a shelf of rustic wooden I saw a book. It was blue, with letters written in white that said " in your arms". It was a book, yes…the book that Ron had written! The one that he hadn't let me read! There it was, in front of me, screaming for me to grab it.
I looked cautiously in the corridor. There was no one.
My hands trembled when my fingers touched the cover. Finally I grabbed it, and realized it was quite thick; like I liked them. For the moment I didn't pay attention to the drawing, I paid attention to a few letters written above the title "Ronald. B. Weasley." His writer name. Very original.
The curiosity was killing me. Why didn't Ron want me to read it? Did it talk about me? Nonsense! Too barefaced! Then…?
I had to find out. I heard voices getting closer to me, Ron's and Nigel's, so quickly I put the book between the others I had brought, hardly hiding it. I left again with a nervous smile, suggesting that I have just "borrow" a thing it wasn't mine. I met Ron, If I hadn't stopped we would have crashed into each other. I looked above and saw his eyes stuck in me. I blushed.
"Are you leaving already? Don't you want to stay for dinner?" he said while going to the hall.
"No, don't bother" I said wanting to escape from there as fast as I could, so I could read the book peacefully. "I'm coming back tomorrow…same time?"
"Whenever you want" he replied smiling, still looking sad from what happened earlier, though. "Harry is leaving the flat for us all week, and we are leaving for my place in the weekend so you can come the times you want"
"And you don't work?"
"I have taken a break. I can allow it" Ron shrugged.
I didn't insist. I opened the door and looked both sides before I left.
"Until tomorrow Nigel… bye Ron"
"Bye herms" he simply said.
I observed the last one with interest, hoping something more from him; like the other night when we said good bye in the taxi when he kissed my cheek. I begged him with my eyes to say or do something, but it was in vain. He was limited to look at me with his hands hiding in his pockets.
I sighted, looking away, and closed the door behind me. I closed my eyes forcefully so as not to let tears come down my face. Ron was mad at me, for sure, for what happened nine years ago. Maybe he remembered it with pain and was hard for him to play the "nothing has happened" game. I groaned, still stuck there, my back to the door…
And then someone opened the door again. I felt a hand on my shoulder and lips on my cheek. When I looked aside I wasn't surprise to see Ron standing there smiling at me.
"I had forgotten" he said in an apology manner.
I looked down, while warn was taking over me, and smile widely.
"And I had missed it …" I laughed of my own shyness. I looked at him again. "Well, goodbye Ron"
"Goodbye princess" he said making me blush again.
I walked to the end of the corridor, where the lift was, smiling happily, more happy than ever and conscious that Ron's eyes were still on me.
thanks to natalie for her amazingwork in the first part, if you find mistakes it's because i couldn't wait to update.
the minute she sends me the email i will change the chapter with the corrected version.
now review!D
florciss