I'm trying to rake the leaves in my front yard, but your dog just ran through all of my piles and I want to be mad, but you're both really cute
Hermione loved fall. It was her favourite season and she loved the pumpkin lattes, the way the leaves changed colours and how Halloween was just a few weeks away. What she didn't like was the fact that her front yard was always full of leaves she had to rake.
"You never thought you would have so much trouble when you bought this house, huh?" Hermione talked to herself, arranging the leaves in little piles. "At least they look pretty."
Looking at her piles, Hermione was actually very proud of her hard work. She didn't know it was going to take so long to rake all the leaves, but the little piles looked pleasantly aesthetic. Smiling to herself, Hermione got ready to mount the last of her pile, when someone yelled from somewhere on the street.
"Donut! No! Bad dog!" a male voice yelled and when Hermione turned, she had to stop a scream of surprise. "No! Donut, please don't!"
Donut was a handsome boy, Hermione had to give it to him. He was a golden retriever the colour of chocolate, and she could understand where his owner's mind had gone to name him Donut. What she wasn't so keen on, was the fact that he was walking towards her piles of leaves.
"No! Bad dog!" Hermione said, trying to make the dog stop, but he just kept running around her yard. "Why are you running? This isn't a game!"
Donut only barked at her, making Hermione laugh despite herself.
"Are you trying to charm me to not be mad with you? Because this isn't going to work," Hermione said, biting her lip to stop a smile from appearing. She realised she was talking to a dog, but what could she do?
"Donut is a master when it comes to trying to stop people from being mad with him, especially when he knows he did it wrong," a voice from behind her said and Hermione turned. "I'm sorry for him."
A man is standing up tall, looking at her with a small smile on his lips and Hermione suddenly loses all of her capacity for forming coherent thoughts. He was tall—taller than her, at least—with curly hair that begged her to pass her hand through it, with the bluest eyes she ever saw.
"I'm really sorry for Donut, he doesn't have manners, apparently," the man said, coming near her. Donut seemed to hear him, and walked towards him, "You're in so much trouble, boy."
"No, don't be mad with him, he was just having fun," Hermione said, holding her rake and trying to discreetly brush her hair. "I'm Hermione."
"Nice to meet you, Hermione. I'm Theo, and I guess you already met Donut," Theo chuckled and Hermione fought not to swoon. "I'm really sorry for the trouble he gave you. Can I do something to help?"
"No, you don't need to do anything!" Hermione said, feeling a little flushed. "I'll just start again."
"Well, in this case, I beg you to let me help you," Theo said, rolling up the sleeves of his shirt. "Donut need to learn a little lesson."
Hermione didn't know what to say, just stared at Theo grabbing the leaves and putting it all together again. Chuckling to herself, she went to help him.
She would have to buy some dog treats for Donut later, afterall, he was the reason why she met his owner.