Finding out that Oliver Wood was your soulmate was the easy part, the hard part was all everything that came after that.

It was your third year at Hogwarts, and Wood was playing for the Gryffindor team for the first time, and you were in the stands with your housemates. You two had never met before, different schedules, different houses and different friends, somehow you had managed to never lay eyes on each other. It all happened during that first game of the year.

You didn't see him when he entered the field, nor when he defended the first ball, you were very distracted by a Slytherin player that you had found attractive, but everything changed when by intuition you moved your gaze a little to the left and saw him there, looking at you as well.

The world took on colour as Wood fell to the ground after being thrown off the broom by a Bludger, for the distraction you had caused.

You thought that would be the end of your story, you would meet and fall in love like normal soulmates, but Wood had other plans.

"I'm not dating you until I win my Quidditch Cup." He created a sort of personal challenge, "It'll keep me motivated."

He didn't ask how you felt about it, or if you were willing to wait, but you thought it was okay if it was for a little while. You didn't expect this to last four years.

At first Wood paid attention to you, and you became friends in some way, taking classes and eating together, and even exchanging letters during the holidays, but with each defeat he seemed to pull further away and focus more heavily on Quidditch, until he seemed to have totally forgotten about you, just exchanging a few words during classes and in the hallways.

It wasn't a good feeling to be traded for a sport, and as much as you tried to be understanding of his passion, it was hard not to feel hurt.

If that was a taste of the rest of life with Oliver, you didn't want to live it. You couldn't bear to be the second choice of the man who was meant to be for you, so you gave up. You didn't send him a letter or a memo warning him, he was unlikely to care anyway, you just decided that you wouldn't wait any longer for him to achieve his dream before giving you the value you deserved.

You couldn't lie to yourself, even if you lied to others, Oliver Wood was in your heart and you liked him. You went to every game and tried not to look in love whenever he showed up on the field, watched him from afar thinking about how handsome he was and got annoyed when other girls approached him. You even rooted for him to get the trophy he dreamed of because you wanted to see him happy, but none of that changed the fact that he didn't value you, and you couldn't lend yourself to a relationship like that. Sometimes love isn't enough.

The day finally arrived for Oliver Wood's last Quidditch match at Hogwarts, and he still hadn't won the cup as captain. You thought about not going, he wouldn't care if you were there or not, but you wanted to root for him even though you thought he didn't deserve it, you wanted to be there so you could feel the joy if he finally got the biggest wish of his whole life .

This was the final, Gryffindor only needed to win one more game.

Your gaze alternated between Wood and Potter as you felt your heart race hoping the Seeker would catch the Snitch. 'Just one more time, Potter' you thought, squeezing your hands tightly to relieve the anxiety. You only realised that Harry had really made it when everyone around you erupted in celebration and shouts of victory. You finally breathed a sigh of relief, Oliver had succeeded.

You left and returned to the castle before the players even left the court. There was nothing else for you there.

At dinner that night, the entire Gryffindor table was celebrating, and Wood was congratulated and given plenty of gifts and attention, an honour he deserved after so many years of hard work. You were happy for him, even if you were a little resentful, but you were trying hard not to stare as you were sitting with another guy on a sort of informal date.

Slytherin's Miles Bletchley wasn't exactly what you were looking for in a man, but he was handsome and he liked you, so you saw no reason not to give it a go. It was better than feeling like an idiot feeling like you were waiting for Oliver to finally notice you. That was perhaps your third meeting, it was difficult to follow since you had never done anything official. You knew it wouldn't last, in a week you'd leave Hogwarts for good and not see him again, but it was good for distracting your attention from someone.

Oliver looked around the tables and smiled when he found you. Excusing all his agitated colleagues, he walked towards you with visible difficulty hiding his teeth. When you noticed him approaching, you struggled to seem even more interested in what Miles was saying and to pretend that you hadn't seen him, even though your heart was almost out of your mouth.

"Hi, big day isn't it?" He said as he stopped beside you, his Scottish accent making you want to melt "Can we talk?"

"I'm having dinner with Miles, Wood." You tried again to look like you didn't care, giving him almost no attention.

"Oh, I didn't know you were friends" He kept smiling, he hadn't looked so happy talking to you in a while

"We're dating, man," Miles replied quietly, and you remembered that he didn't know about your situationship with Oliver. The word "dating" was a little strong, but it worked.

The expression on Oliver's face slowly changed, from an excited smile to a death glare and straight lips.

"You're kidding, aren't you?" He asked directly to you.

"Can we not do this here, please?" You knew how this was going to end, and you didn't want to make a scene in front of everyone.

"Where do you want to do this? What is this?" He looked a mixture of annoyed and disbelieved, in a way you'd never seen him.

You took him by the arm and pulled him out of the hall and into a secluded hallway.

"Are you really seeing other guys? We had a deal!"

"No" You corrected "You had a deal, I was thrown into it without my consent and left to the sidelines for four years. You can't possibly have thought I'd be okay with that!"

"I didn't leave you…" He corrected himself when he realised what he was going to say "Alright, maybe I haven't been very present lately, but I was busy! I was fighting for the Quidditch cup, which I just won today !That's no reason to abandon me."

"But was Quidditch reason to abandon me?" Oliver fell silent.

"You're being unfair" His voice was now calm, almost sad "Quidditch is my dream, it's what I want to do with my life, and I'm really good at it. You know it's not just a sport for me, you were there, you saw me playing, it's my future! "

"I didn't see you, I wasn't at the game" You lied, you wanted to hurt him like he hurt you, and at the time you didn't mind being childish.

"Oh." Looking at him was almost like seeing glass shattering.

"I understand how much you love Quidditch, and I hope you succeed at it. You are the best keeper ever" You touched his hand, enjoying the feeling because it would be the last time

"But I can't live being your second priority"

"Is that how you feel? You're not my second choice."

"And what am I to you, Oliver?" You asked knowing you were right.

"You are the woman of my life" He replied, stroking the back of your hand with his thumb "All these years I worked hard so we could be together."

"I can't be that, because you created this obstacle" You carefully pulled your hand back "Good night, Wood."

You thought he wouldn't talk to you anymore, that you two wouldn't have contact with each other anymore, but the next morning he sat next to you at the breakfast table looking agitated.

"I know you don't want to talk to me, but I need you to listen" You motioned for him to continue "You can't go home, you have to go to my house."

You almost choked on the apple you were eating.

"What are you saying?"

"It's my mother, all these years she's always wanted to meet you, she writes all the time asking about you. I mean, you're her son's soulmate, you know?" You still didn't understand what he was trying to say, but yet he continued" I need you to stay at my house for a few days when we graduate, it's not her fault, please."

"No way," your response was immediate.

"She has the right to meet you and she invited you, are you going to refuse her invitation?"

"I thought the invitation was yours."

"It's both of us." He shrugged his shoulders.

"Wood, I'm not spending summer at your place."

And yet a few days later there you were, outside the Woods' house, a small building next to the woods with a mini Quidditch pitch in the back and a lake that could be seen in the distance. You didn't even know why you were there, spending the holidays at his place wasn't a good way to keep your distance from him, but he had managed to convince you.

Your fingers were tense as they held your luggage and your heart pounding, you were looking forward to meeting Wood's parents, as well as the various possibilities of what could happen in those days.

"I can feel your tension from here" Oliver said beside you as you waited for someone to answer the door "Relax, they won't bite you."

"Is it too late for me to turn back?"

"I think so" He held your hand without warning, surprising you "Oh, and they think we're dating, I forgot to tell you. Mom!"

You didn't have time to yell at him before a lovely woman in an apron opened the door, smiling as if she were looking at the gates of paradise.

"My son, you're back!" She took Oliver's face in her hands and kissed his cheeks, then turned to you "And you, dear! You should have come sooner, I was dying to meet you. My boy kept you under lock and key, didn't he? But he talked a lot about you."

"I imagine so." You replied, squeezing the hand of the boy next to you, who had to suppress a groan of pain. You wouldn't go on with that lie, you had to tell that kind woman the truth.

"Mind if I give you a hug? Sorry I've waited so long!" She was so cute that you didn't see how to refuse and agreed, and soon you were getting one of the best hugs of your life with little arms around your neck.

"How impolite I am, come in!" She seemed to realise that you were still out of the house "Darling, be a gentleman, carry the suitcase for your girlfriend" The word tickled your ear, it was horrible to be in love with someone you did not like. Oliver took the luggage from your hand and you went inside the cosy living room.

"Your house is lovely" You saw fit to say.

"That's very kind, dear." She turned to her son "Oli, take the things to the room, please."

He nodded and walked up the wooden stairs with the two suitcases, leaving you alone with your fake mother-in-law.

"I've always been very worried about my son's obsession with Quidditch" said, sitting down and motioning for you to do the same. "I was afraid he'd forget about life for real, but he said you help him with that , so thank you very much."

" …" You opened your mouth to deny the situation but were interrupted.

"I know he's not easy, but I'm glad you're patient" Behind her, standing at the top of the stairs Oliver watched the conversation, staring at you, silently asking you not to reveal the truth "And how long have you been dating? Oli did not tell me the details."

You looked at the boy standing there, hands clasped in a plea for please.

That woman was genuinely good, and she was happy for her son and for you too, and Oliver might have his faults, but he was still your soulmate. All right, you could do that for him.

"Only three months" You got into the lie "We decided to focus on studies before anything else."

"How wonderful to hear two young souls so mature!"

Oliver finally got back on his feet and went downstairs, sitting next to her.

"Where's father?" He asked.

"He left to run errands at work, but he'll be back for dinner, don't worry" Oliver nodded "Are you hungry? I just made tea, and there's a pie being baked right now"

"We just ate" Oliver answered for you "We'd better save room for dinner."

"Okay, so take the girl upstairs honey, she must be tired from the trip."

"Thank you, " You said getting up from the chair "See you later, excuse me."

You kept smiling until Oliver led you to the bedroom and closed the door behind you.

"We're dating?! " You exploded " Didn't you think to let me know?"

"I thought you wouldn't accept it, but it's not that terrible, you'll be pampered by my mother for as long as you're here and the place is quite beautiful" He looked unsure "You're staying, aren't you?"

You sighed as you sat down on the bed behind you, hands covering your face as you thought about what to say.

"I'll do it for you" Your eyes met his "But I don't want any more lies."

"Yes ma'am" He smiled, looking relieved. You hated how beautiful his smile was.

"You can go to your room now, I need to rest alone." You motioned for the door but he didn't move.

"This is my room."

Your brows drew together in confusion.

"Take me to the right room then."

"This is the right room too, we're going to share" You could hardly believe what you were hearing.

"Are you saying your mom puts you in bed with the first girlfriend you bring home?"

"It's the room we have, but you can sleep with them if you prefer. Your choice, lass."

You went back to covering your face with your hands to stifle the screams of frustration. This was not going well.

Oliver ended up agreeing to stay locked in the bathroom for a while so you could adjust and unpack, and left when you knocked on the door saying you wanted to shower.

When you got out of the shower, Oliver was lying on the bed in casual clothes you'd never seen him wear with both arms crossed behind his head, which made your heart flutter.

The sun had already set and the two of you were waiting to be called to eat, in the meantime you took the opportunity to explore the room without caring that he was watching.

There were Quidditch medals and trophies everywhere, as well as team posters and even a picture of the Gryffindor team. The study table in the corner was covered in dust and looked as if it had never been touched, but there were a few books piled on top of it, surprisingly not all about Quidditch, like three well-worn volumes of poetry. You were surprised, you didn't know Oliver liked that.

"It's a secret hobby" He explained, noticing you looked intrigued "Muggle poetry is really fantastic."

"You're a poet?" You asked while exploring the drawers in the bedside table.

"Reader only" Oliver took your hand when you reached the last drawer, but you had time to realise it was locked "And how's the process of becoming an Auror going? That's what you want, isn't it?" He changed the subject and you got the message, taking your hand off the handle. It was probably gross man stuff you didn't want to see anyway.

"Difficult and exhausting" You replied thinking that at least he knew what you wanted to do with your life "I won't even ask yours."

He smiled sitting on the mattress.

"Am I that predictable?"

"In a positive way" You smiled too.

Three knocks on the door announced that dinner was served, before you left the room, Wood held your hand, yet another performance of your fake three-month relationship.

When you went downstairs, Mr. Wood was already seated at the table and his wife was finishing to fill the last glass of pumpkin juice. Seeing you, Oliver's father got up and walked over to you, squeezing your free hand.

"Nice to meet you, lass! We've heard a lot from you, welcome." You thanked him and said you were very happy for the invitation, but 80% of your mind was focused on the feel of Oliver's hand in yours.

"Sit down, dears" The mother signalled and everyone sat down.

Dinner was very good, and the Woods were pleasant and tried to engage you in conversation and make you comfortable. You thought that if things had turned out differently that would have been your second family, and you would have enjoyed it.

Mrs. Wood offered you a salad tray with small tomato cubes. You didn't like it, but you didn't want to be rude and were getting ready to help yourself when Oliver spoke up for you.

"She doesn't eat tomatoes." You were surprised that he knew a detail you hadn't even thought to mention in all your years of knowing each other.

"Oh, it doesn't matter, dear" The woman said when she noticed that you looked a little embarrassed "I know you'll like the desert, Oliver said it's your favourite."

You looked at the boy beside you, surprised by the initiative and wondering if he really knew what it was. It wasn't hard for anyone who knew you to guess, you always ate more than one piece when you had the chance, but Oliver wasn't exactly someone you thought would pay much attention to you. Still, he was right and your favourite dessert was served a few minutes later, filling your face with a smile, which consequently made Wood smile too, even though he tried to hide it.

"Everything was fantastic, thank you so much" You thanked them before saying goodbye and going back up to the room with Wood guiding you with a hand behind your back.

That was the part that made you most anxious, sharing a bed. Oliver had arranged everything carefully, putting extra pillows and the best bedding, but even though it wasn't a single bed and there was room for the two of you, you worried you couldn't control your body's response to his proximity.

"Don't worry" He said when he noticed the scared way you looked at the bed "I'll make a pillow barrier, I won't touch you."

"I hope not."

Not long after you were lying down, the barrier of pillows prevented you from getting too close to each other. Sleep didn't come easily, but it ended up winning you after a few minutes because of the tiredness of the trip. Oliver on the other hand didn't seem to have had any trouble when he passed out right after turning to the side and closing his eyes.

During the night you woke up shivering and realised that Wood had pulled all the blanket over him in his sleep.

"Unbelievable" You said before pulling your part back. Not too many minutes later, he pulled back the covers again, and again, and again, until you were tired.

"Oliver!" You shook him trying to wake him up, receiving in response some "Hm?" confused

" You're leaving me uncovered."

"The blanket is small" He moaned, still half asleep "Come closer." He took one of the pillows that separated you and threw it to the other side.

"I won't get any closer to you!"

"Then stop bothering me" He said before going back to sleep, giving the blanket another tug.

You sighed in defeat, not for him but for yourself, because you hadn't had the strength to refuse the perfect excuse to be close to him, to touch him. You slept much better after that, feeling Oliver's body heat next to yours and being mesmerised by the peaceful breathing beside you.

When you woke up the next morning to the rays of the sun l bothering your eyes, Wood was no longer lying beside you, and there was no sign of him.

You went downstairs after getting ready, only to find sitting in the kitchen reading the newspaper.

"Good morning, dear" She greeted when noticing your presence. "Did you sleep well? It's late but we didn't want to wake you up."

"I slept well, thank you" You ran your eyes around the house, looking for signs of other people " Where's Oliver? I didn't see him leave."

"He left early with his father to help him with some ministry matters, but he's back soon."

Your eyes took in the flowers in the vase in the centre of the table, your favourites.

"How pretty" The woman smiled at your comment.

"Oliver said they were your favourites, and then sent some seeds for us to plant in the garden. They are really beautiful."

"Did he do that?" She nodded. "But they grew really fast then." You couldn't imagine how they could have grown those flowers in less than a week.

"Oh no! It took a long time. Oliver sent the seeds three years ago." Three years ago was the only time you'd mentioned the fact to Wood, casually during a herbology class. You didn't think he would have paid attention but it looked like he did, and you hoped Mrs. Wood couldn't see your cheeks turning red.

Maybe you were unfair to Oliver, maybe he wasn't good at expressing himself or showing that he cared. Anyway, you had a week to decide if you were right.

When Oliver returned that afternoon, he didn't understand why you seemed so much more open and approachable, but he felt this was his second chance, and he was determined to make it work this time.

You spent your days playing board games, tending the gardens, sharing memories of Hogwarts and talking about the future. You couldn't understand how anyone wouldn't fall in love with Oliver Wood, because you yourself had lost that battle a long time ago, and every day you felt less bad about it.

It wasn't hard to act out to his parents that you were dating, not when you were hoping he'd take your hand and blush whenever he said you looked beautiful, and you didn't know it, but to anyone watching from the outside it was obvious by the way you looked at each other.

It was a Wednesday and the sun was starting to set, you had convinced Oliver to watch a Muggle comedy movie and the two of you were setting up the room for the occasion when an owl pecked at the window.

"Can you get it for me please?" He asked with his hands full making the popcorn.

You offered the owl a tip of seeds and unfolded the paper as it flew away.

"It's the guys, they're inviting you to a Quidditch match at Lee's house." Your voice was weak as you passed the message, sad to know that your night was ending there.

"You can write back, say I won't go."

"You're not going?" You asked in disbelief that he was rejecting Quidditch.

"I don't want to go" He sat down on the couch taking a handful of popcorn to his mouth "I'm happy here."

You struggled to hold back your smirk as you sat down too, as far away from each other as possible since you were alone in the house and there was no reason to pretend.

Oliver thought the movie was fantastic, and you who had watched it several times were amused by his reactions to Muggle culture and the sound of laughter whenever a bad joke happened.

The movie was almost over when you heard the door to the house open, indicating that Mr. and Mrs. Wood had arrived, making Oliver pull you hard towards him, your head resting on his chest and his arm around your body. You hoped he couldn't hear your heart rate racing wildly.

"Pretend to be asleep" He asked and you obeyed, closing your eyes.

The two adults quickly passed not wanting to disturb the two of you and went upstairs to the bedrooms. You opened your eyes after a few seconds and waited for Oliver to let go of you, but he didn't move.

"They're gone, you can let me go." You said.

"I don't want to" Your heart sped up even more at those words, and you pulled away carefully, locking his gaze with yours.

"Oliver…" He interrupted you.

"You're the kind of person others write poems about, you know?" He took your hand in his, wrapping it carefully, "Merlin knows I've written several, but aloud…I can't even formulate a sentence to tell you what I feel. You drive me crazy, really crazy."

"Oliver…What are you saying?" He brought your palm to his chest, and you could feel his heart pounding.

"That I'm sorry for not being who you deserved, that I made a mistake, and that I want to make it up to you."

"What do you want from me?" You asked, your voice almost muttered.

"I want to marry you, I want to have children with you, to wake up every day and look at you like I did this week." He used his free hand to tuck a lock of hair behind your ear "I want to celebrate with you when I win a game, and I want you to hug me when I lose. I want, no, I need you to forgive me and give me another chance, because I love you and I don't know what else to do."

You joined your lips to his without even thinking, and the feeling you had dreamed of for years was even better than you could have imagined, kissing Oliver Wood was your personal Heaven and you couldn't think of ever having to part with him for a moment.

You swung your legs to the side, sitting on his lap, both hands resting on his face as his hands roamed all over your body, exploring. You felt your heart would burst, and that no closeness was enough. His scent, his touch, his breath against your skin, you couldn't ask for anything more.

It was Oliver who backed away first, one of his hands on your back preventing you from doing the same.

"Is that a yes?" hHe asked.

"I love you" Was your reply.

"That's all I need." He leaned closer once more, placing a gentle kiss on your lips.

"Oliver" You called after a few seconds and he pulled away, giving you space "I lied when I said I wasn't at your game, I was there…I was at all of them."

The boy grinned from ear to ear, squeezing his hands tighter behind your back.

"I'm really happy to hear that, I hope you're in the next ones too."

"I'll be" You leaned your face into his neck, inhaling the scent you knew well. "So you said you wrote poems about me?" You teased him.

"I did, they're in the bottom drawer next to my bed" You remembered that was the drawer he wouldn't let you open.

"You know I'll read them as soon as we go up, don't you?"

"I don't care, they're for you anyways" He replied, placing a kiss on the top of your hair.