This can't be happening.
That was the one sentence that continued to cycle through her head, unbeknownst to Ron, who was rambling in the passenger seat of the girl's car. Hermione focused her sight on a small scratch on the steering wheel, on a dusty patch across the dash, on the grass shining in the sun- on anything besides the boy whose long leg bumped against the door and whose head brushed the roof.
That had been a running joke between the two of them- her car. Hermione was a safe driver, unlike Ronald, who forgot the purpose of stop signs and had only been driving for half a year, so he wasn't even a legitimate authority on vehicular operation. Hermione drove Lilly, which was the nickname she had given the small, tan, generic sedan, following the rules of the road and speed limits, which seemed to be a foreign concept to their friends and fellow Hogwarts graduates who hopped on the trend of muggle driving. Ron had frequented Lilly, as it had become a habit to drive to a small cafe in a town near the burrow on Wednesday afternoons, after Auror training and her job. Before now, Ron always had the window down, messed with the radio, and reminded Hermione to keep my eyes on the road, no matter how much of a distraction he could be.
But the windows were up, the radio had been turned off the second Ron shut the door, and Hermione refused to look at him while he spoke.
This can't be happening. We were fine last week. We went to the Ministry's Anniversary Ball last week, for crying out loud. This could not be happening.
" 'Mione?"
His hesitant voice broke the girl out of her whirling thoughts. She broke my mental resolve and turned over to look at him, staring into his glassy blue eyes which were filled with… tears? Hermione quickly scanned him over; Ron was wearing his typical medium wash jeans and t-shirt with a flannel, which had probably belonged to two or more brothers before it was worn by him. His leg was bouncing up and down at quite an alarming rate, and it was obvious that whatever Ron was about to say made him nervous, which in turn made her nervous. Hermione's heart began to speed up as she thought about the fights over the past two days, the awkward eye contact at the Burrow, and the sense of peace she had gained after our talk last night, which is why she was so nervous now.
" 'Mione, we have to talk", Ron pleaded as Hermione angrily walked away from the Burrow towards the apparition point. She heard his footsteps coming behind me, and tears begin to prick in her eyes as Ron's longer legs allowed him to catch up to the smaller girl. She was so confused and hurt about how he'd distanced himself over the past two days, and afraid of what he would say to her.
"What Ron?" She turned around to face him, noting the obvious pain in his eyes that probably matched her own.
"Are we okay?" He murmured, reaching his hand back to rub his neck while he shifted from foot to foot. Hermione shrugged, and wrapped her coat tighter around herself.
"You tell me Ron. After the ball I thought we were on great terms. We've been able to get closer and I thought this one year anniversary of the battle an-and us just meant things were as great as I thought. And then the other day you just changed. I told Ginny it seemed as if you'd stopped pursuing me, stopped loving me." She took a deep breath and stared at the ground, blinking away the tears and waited for her boyfriend to respond.
Next thing she knew, a pair of still lanky but strong arms reached around Hermione and pulled her close. The girl breathed in the familiar scent of clean soap mixed with the outdoors, and the tears slowly gathered, waiting to be released.
"Oh Hermione, I'm so sorry. I know I haven't been the best recently and that I've hurt you. I love you 'Mione, and I promise you this," Ron paused and maneuvered so she was looking up at him.
"I am not going to break up with you, and I still love you. I can't lose you Hermione."
Ron shifted in the passenger seat and broke the eye contact they had made. He straightened his shoulders and blinked, and Hermione's mind whirled and the blood drained out of her face. She'd known Ron since they were first years on the train, and this posture meant one thing- his mind was made up. He'd used this stance in the Forest of Dean, when he stood up to Malfoy for calling her a mudblood, and whenever he dared go up against Molly Weasley- whatever Ron was about to say to Hermione was a firm resolution that he would not budge on.
When he told her, he wasn't looking at her. At some point Hermione had refocused on the scratched wheel and chewed anxiously on her bottom lip. And then, he said it. The sentence he had promised her not even a day ago he would never say. A sentence that came a week after he told her she was the most beautiful girl he had ever seen, a year after they had crossed the line from friends to more than friends, and seven years since she had remarked about a piece of dirt on his nose. A sentence Hermione Jean Granger never planned on hearing come out of the mouth of Ronald Bilius Weasley.
"Hermione, it's time. We need to break up."