"I love you."

Surely the first time someone says "I love you" it's supposed to be an amazing feeling? Katie thought to herself as she looked back at Jack. Then you say it back and it's been playing on your mind for weeks, on the tip of your tongue and you're wondering who'll say it first and all that. All this was running through her mind but she couldn't say it to him, could she? She was speechless. How was she supposed to respond to that? She wasn't sure if she wanted to be with him next week let alone long-term!

"Umm… Thanks. I think I like you too." What kind of a response is that? She chided herself. I can't say it if I don't mean it though, she justified. "I mean, I love spending time with you." She could feel her face reddening as she tried to dig her way out of this hole.

Three weeks passed but not much changed. They'd been together for nearly five months now, not that long in the grand scheme of things but it was her longest relationship. It had been great to start with. Little pixies in her stomach when she saw him and the smile didn't leave her face for days. They'd met at Leanne's 21st birthday party. He was a friend of a friend. He'd caught her eye and bought her a drink; they'd talked and danced together for most of the night. The potential between them was almost tangible. She'd left the party before 11, she'd had an early shift the next morning, but she'd hugged him and given him her business card as she turned to go, leaving him laughing and shaking his head behind her. At lunchtime the next day, he'd turned up at Flourish and Blotts, where she was a sales assistant, and insisted on taking her out for a meal and that, as they say, was that.

But that feeling was long gone. Her heart didn't race anymore when she saw him, she no longer looked forward to seeing him and pixies no longer somersaulted in her stomach when he kissed her. The spark had gone.

He hadn't said I love you since that first time but she still felt pressured to say it back and guilty that she couldn't. She could feel that it wasn't going anywhere but at the same time he was so nice and caring and sensitive and had such lovely eyes that she couldn't bear to break his heart.

Just look into those eyes. Katie told herself as she lay on the double bed next to Jack. Get lost in those beautiful blue eyes and find whatever it was that attracted you in the first place. She was practically pleading with herself. It was only a couple of days after the concert; they were up in her little flat above the Fabien Fortesque's Ice Cream Parlour and Café. He'd been discharged from St Mungo's the day before - escaping with only a few bruises to his chest and only a little damage left to his lungs, having had his ribs fixed in an instant - and had stayed over so she could keep an eye on him, as per the healer's instructions.

She looked over at his mop of curly blond hair, his fringe was just that little bit too long and when he was awake the flicker of his long, fair eyelashes caught it as he blinked. But he was sleeping now, she was fairly sure of that. Sleeping off the cocktail of medication and potions the healers had filled him with to help with the shock, seal his lung and strengthen his ribs. As she lay on her side gazing at him scenes from their relationship played in her mind which began to reignite that spark - that first lunch out, their first kiss, the first love bite… A smile flickered across her face as she remembered the wave of passion that had coursed through her body as she squirmed and writhed in pleasure at his touch.

At that moment, Jack let out the most humongous snore and the spell was broken, the spark extinguished faster than pouring water over a candle. She frowned slightly and sighed to herself as she thought: it wasn't enough. If she was completely honest with herself, it never had enough. Slowly, Katie shook her head and rolled onto her back, listening to the gentle pitter-patter of raindrops on the roof above her. Through her reverie she heard the sound of a bell in a far off tower chiming nine times, carried on the breeze. It was Sunday morning. She had the day off from work and, until two days ago, had been planning on spending the day with Leanne, hitting Diagon Alley in the morning, starting off with a coffee and cauldron cake at Fabien Fortesque's (he'd taken the parlour over from his grandfather after the war), wandering up the street, having lunch and a catch up with Hannah Abbott at the Leaky Cauldron before exploring muggle London in the afternoon. Secretly, she'd been looking forward to a Jack-free Sunday but he had to go and get himself a concussion and a punctured lung, didn't he? She thought resentfully. Now she was stuck babysitting.

Her mind began to wander again. This just wasn't working for her anymore. Thinking about it she wasn't sure that it ever had. She knew he was a lot more invested in the relationship than she was. She knew it would have to come to an end sooner or later.

At that moment a movement next to her interrupted her thoughts; Jack was stirring. Something hard rubbed against her leg as he rolled onto his side to face her. No doubt I'll be the one to sort that out, she thought resentfully.

She felt a hand begin to stroke her inner thigh, a thumb begin to caress her through her cotton knickers, a pair of lips begin to kiss her neck. 'Someone's feeling better,' she murmured, half joking, half annoyed. His fingers found their way beneath the waistband of her pink, spotty underwear and a single finger began to stroke her clit. Oh Merlin, this is going to take a while! She sighed to herself. Unfortunately her sigh of frustration was misconstrued as one of enjoyment...