Chapter Eleven: In a Jam
To Rachel's surprise, Cho was waiting for her outside her Arithmancy class – one of the few classes she didn't have with Cedric. When she came through the door, Cho caught her arm and pulled her to the side. In the light filtering through the windows in the corridor, Rachel could see that Cho's eyes were glassy and mildly bloodshot: she'd been crying.
"Rachel," Cho began in a pleading voice, "you have to help me. Ced's broken up with me and I don't know why. Could you talk to him, please? What have I done wrong?"
A sinking feeling settled around Rachel's insides. So, that's why Cedric didn't show up to lunch, she thought. And, unfortunately for her, Cho had decided to come running to her for help. Gathering her wits, Rachel put a hand around Cho's shoulder and said gently, "What did he say to you?" Gently but firmly, she began walking, leading Cho outside to the courtyards.
"Well," Cho replied, wiping at her eyes, "he was really nice about it, actually. He said he really liked me and respected me, but he couldn't keep forcing himself to feel more for me than he does." She chuckled nervously. "I kind of noticed myself that it wasn't the same anymore, but I thought that it was my fault. You don't think it was, do you?" she suddenly asked, turning wide, anxious eyes on Rachel's face.
"No, Cho, I don't think it was your fault. Ced's a little hard to keep tied down. He's kind of… spontaneous, sometimes."
"Okay," Cho murmured, seemingly comforted. Rachel released the younger girl's shoulders and began to just walk beside her. Cho turned to her again, rather suddenly. "You don't think it was another girl, do you?" she asked worriedly.
Rachel felt a pang of guilt and worry. She couldn't do this to Cho. Cho was sweet and kind and innocent, and even though Cedric had made the first move in this scenario, she felt as though she'd stolen him away from the younger Ravenclaw. It would break Cho's heart. Much as she hated to lie, she hurriedly said, "No, Cho. It's not another girl. Not that I know of, anyway."
Cho smiled at last. "And you would know," she said confidently. She stopped and laid a hand on Rachel's arm. "Thanks, Rae. I knew I could trust you to understand. And I'm glad we're friends."
Her words sent another lance of guilt flashing through Rachel's heart and she could only smile half-heartedly in response. When Cedric had kissed her the day before, she'd never imagined that she could be stuck in such a difficult situation. Something needed to be done. She waved a brief farewell to Cho and turned in the direction of the Hufflepuff common room, hoping Cedric would be there.
As she hurried back inside and down the corridor, she almost ran into Eric. Just as surprised as she was, he caught her shoulders, his smile widening as he registered her face. "Well well well, if isn't one half of the Hufflepuff lovebirds," he said teasingly.
Casting an anxious backward glance to make sure Cho was nowhere in sight, she pressed a finger against her friend's lips. "Hush, you!" she scolded. "You're not helping matters!" When he looked confused, she sighed and tugged him into an empty classroom.
"Merlin's beard, Rae, are you playing every guy in Hufflepuff?" he teased again as she pulled the door shut. "I appreciate the gesture, but really, I don't think Cedric would like to find out that you've been snogging me in an empty classroom."
"Really Eric!" she exclaimed in exasperation, "You are impossible! I'm being serious here! I'm in a jam and I need your help!"
His features sobered ever so slightly and he relaxed and crossed his arms in front of him expectantly. "Okay. What's the matter?"
"It's Cho! She just came to talk to me about Cedric breaking up with her!"
"Calm down, Rae," Eric said soothingly, "That's a good thing for you, remember?"
Frustrated, she ran a hand through her hair. "No, it's not. She thinks… I don't know what she thinks, but I told her that Cedric only broke up with her because he didn't feel the way he used to about her. I said there wasn't another girl."
"Well, that was rather stupid of you, seeing as you are the other girl," Eric commented.
"You didn't see her face, Eric! It would have shattered her. She's already emotional enough about the breakup, and if I told her that Cedric left her for another girl – for me no less – she would have lost it completely. I can't do that to her! I can't deal with this! Please, Eric," she pleaded, "I need your help on this."
For once, he had nothing snide or teasing to say. Instead, he regarded her seriously for several seconds, his arms still folded across his chest. Finally he said, "Okay. Here's what I'm going to do for you, Rae. This is your problem that you have to deal with, and how you choose to go about it is your responsibility, but I can at least help by laying off about you and Ced. I'll get the others to do it, too."
Rachel mulled over his words for several more moments. "Alright," she said at last, "the simple truth is, I can't hurt Cho. She is a friend, even if I used to resent her for taking Cedric away. It's not fair to her." She looked up at Eric, pain in her eyes. "I love Cedric. I really do. But for now, we have to keep this whole thing out of sight. I won't go out with him, I won't act any different around him than I normally do. We're still just friends."
Eric bit his lip, obviously disagreeing with her decision, but he nodded. "I may not like this solution much, but I'll help you out, Rae." He patted her shoulder. "Now get going; Ced's waiting for you in the common room."
When she stepped into the common room, Cedric jumped up from his seat on the couch and approached her, smiling broadly. "Hey you!" he greeted her, leaning in to kiss her cheek. She stopped the gesture with a hand on his chest. He leaned back to look at her. "What's wrong?"
Her hand was trembling and her eyes seemed unable to focus on any one thing. Taking a nervous breath, she said, "I can't date you, Ced."
Confusion replaced the sparkle in his eyes. "What do you mean?"
"Cho." She looked away from his face, toward the fire. "She came and found me today."
His eyes suddenly filled with understanding as he seemed to figure out what she was trying to say. "You're right," he said reluctantly, "we can't do that to her."
She met his eyes again. "So we're just friends, right?"
He smiled painfully. "Yeah. Just friends."
"Okay." Gently, she squeezed his arm and moved past him to go up to her room and get her homework.
Ooh! Sadness! I've actually been in a similar situation and it totally sucks. I hope she didn't come off too angsty. She actually has a good reason, rather than that "she's afraid to love and scared to change the relationship" junk that I see too much of. And don't worry, Rae's not going to get all angsty over this "forbidden love" situation in the next chapters. She'll be just as spirited and unconquerable as ever! Let me know what ya'll think, as always! I'm going to keep trying to update pretty quickly because I'm on a break right now and starting next week, I'll be working everyday, so my writing time's going to be cut down. I aim to get this story done before school starts up in the fall, so hopefully I can! Enjoy! And don't forget to check out some of my other stories if you like this one!
Loves!
Elena
