Disclaimer: I wish I owned Harry Potter...and Hermione...and Ron...and Draco...and...ok...I'll shut up. JK Rowling owns them *sigh* I just own the plot.

A/N: Wow! cookies to Raine an Frodo and annie14 for reviewing my first ever chapter! you guys are awesome! and you really made my day! so much to where I decided to post up my next chapter. I know, it's only 2 reviews so far,
but reviews really...really...REALLY make me giddy! : ) YAY!!!

Anyways, I thought I'd give a bit of information about this fic of mine. It will be of Ron/Hermione pairing. And I know it's a bit....angsty.....right now. And a bit dramatic. But I mean how would any other 17 year old teenage girl react to her parent's getting divorced and her boyfriend breaking up with her in the same day?!?!?! Trust me, it will get better, and it DOES
have a more complex plot than just "Oh no, my parents...oh no my boyfriend...oh no my friends...oh no, oh no!" Well, I've already got the whole fic planned out to be about 27 chapters, and I've already written 6 of them...so yeah. If you guys really do like it (and I won't know if you do or not unless you R-E-V-I-E-W! *hint, hint, really big hint*) soooo, I'd
appreciate it if you'd tell me!

I hope you enjoy!

***

Chapter Two - The Only One Left Behind

Hermione's dreams that night were haunted with the smiling face of Ron waving at her and saying, "Hey 'Mione!" from behind Lavender, who would mumble "stupid Mudblood," while smirking. Lavender would then turn into her mother and Ron would turn into Viktor. Her mother would whisper, "Hunny...your father and I are getting a divorce." And Viktor would say, "My new girlfriend is prettier than you..."

"NO!" Hermione yelled and sat up quickly, realizing that it was only a dream. She was drenched in cold sweat and was shaking she was so upset. She pressed her palms into her eyes, trying with all her might to remember what her dream was about; but it was fading away quickly.

***
...hey 'Mione...stupid Mudblood...getting a divorce...prettier than
you...hey...Mudblood...divorce...prettier...

***

Hermione shook her head and opened her eyes again, blinking away the little red spots and picking the sleep out of her eyes. She went through her drawers and picked out her clothes for the day and dressed. Yawning, she opened the door and made her way down the stairs.
"---way they influence her, it's for the bad you know."

"She's been friends with them ever since first year, they are fine."

"Yes but, have you seen the kind of trouble they get into?"

"She knows better than that, she would never---"

There was a sound of a fist banging on the table. "You know she's boy crazy."

"Of course she's boy crazy. And I know that, I was her age once."

"What if she likes one of them?"

"Then it's not our place to do anything."

"But---but...they are so..."

"So what? She has a boyfriend anyways, that nice Viktor boy."

"I'm not so sure I like him much either."

"Oh hush, it's not any of our business."

"But they are just so---"

Hermione faked a cough making her dad look up at her from behind his newspaper, his face blushing. Her mom looked up from the stove and smiled a little.

"Breakfast is ready, do you want milk or orange juice?" She said.

Hermione didn't answer right away, she wasn't sure if her parents knew she had been there the whole time.

"Were you talking about Ron and Harry?" Hermione accused.

Her dad blushed a little more and pulled his newspaper in front of his face. Her mom didn't answer and busied herself with fixing everyone a plate.

"Were you?" Hermione demanded.

Her mother laid a plate on the table in front of where Hermione usually sat and poured milk into a cup and sat it down next to the plate. Her mother then sat down and began to eat her breakfast, ignoring everyone.

"Were you?" Hermione asked again...no response. She slumped down in her chair and stared at her plate. There were two eggs, a piece of toast, and a piece of bacon arranged on her plate so that it was a smiley face. She looked back up at her mother who was watching her intently and smiled.

Hermione half smiled and nodded looking back down at her smiley face breakfast. Ok, this is creepy. She thought.

After they finished eating, Hermione broke the silence, "Can you take me to London today?" she asked quietly.

Her dad looked up from his newspaper, "Why?"

"To get my school supplies." She responded. "The Weasley's invited me to stay with them at The Leaky Cauldron until September first, they'll take me to King's Cross."

He sighed and pulled his paper in front of his face again, "Only if your mother takes you, I'm busy today."

Hermione looked over to her mother with her puppy dog eyes; but she was not looking back. She was staring determinedly at the newspaper that was hiding her husband's face.

"You're not busy, your just going golfing again aren't you?" She spat.

"So what if I am?" He replied slowly without taking his newspaper down.

"Ever since you lost your job, you haven't even tried to find another one! You've just been golfing all day, every day, while I'm working my butt off trying to support this family!" Hermione's mother fumed. Hermione's dad's losing his job was a frequent cause for arguing lately.

He slammed his newspaper down on the table. "Fine, I'll take the girl to London, you happy now?!" He yelled, a vain throbbing in his temple.

"Dad...please...it's ok, just--"

"Pack your things, we're leaving in ten minutes." He waggled a finger at her and stomped out of the room.

Hermione slumped back up the stairs and closed her bedroom door behind her, fighting back tears. She quickly threw everything into her trunk and slammed it shut. She heard her dad calling from downstairs for her to hurry up. She heaved her trunk down the stairs and made her way to the car. She put the trunk in the back of the car and turned around.

Brushing the hair out of her face, she watched as her father walked down the front steps, the car keys jingling in his hand. She saw her mother watching out of the living room window, tears in her eyes.

"You coming?" Her dad said gruffly when he got into the car.

She looked at him and then her eyes strayed back to her mother, "yeah...in a sec, I forgot something." Hermione replied distractedly and ran back into the house.

"What are you doing?" Her mother sniffled as Hermione ran into the living room. Hermione didn't answer and ran up to give her a hug.

"I love you mummy." She whispered. It had been a long time since she had called her mother 'mummy.'

"We've done this many times before...why are you making this time such a big deal?" Her mother asked suspiciously.

"It's my last year, there won't be a next time..." Hermione sniffled.

Her mother smiled. "Have a great year...be sure to write me...ok?"

Hermione nodded and left the house again, got in the car and drove to London with her father.

***

"Hermione, over here!" Ron yelled from behind Harry who was waving for Hermione; they were standing next to the back entrance to The Leaky Cauldron.

"Oh hey guys!" Hermione exclaimed and walked over to greet them.

She dropped her trunk and Harry reached out and hugged her. When they pulled out of their embrace, Hermione turned to face Ron, who was blushing slightly.

It was an awkward moment, though they didn't know why. Hermione reached out to hug Ron but he pulled away unknowingly. Ron looked down at his feet.

"Uh...how was your summer?" He asked.

"Oh Ron, just come over here and hug me!" Hermione reached out and pulled Ron to her before he could pull back. Before Hermione knew it, she was not only hugging Ron, but he had kissed her cheek.

Harry hadn't noticed this and was now walking back into The Leaky Cauldron with Ron following.

Did he just kiss my cheek? Hermione thought. But he has a girlfriend...Lavender... Hermione shook her head. Nah, I just pulled him in too fast, his lips just happened to touch my cheek, that's all. She convinced herself that it was an accident and followed Harry and Ron inside.

She pulled her trunk up the stairs where the rooms are when Ron appeared out of nowhere.

"You're sharing a room with Ginny, it's the third on the right..." He said without looking her in the eye and walked off quickly. Or was the kiss intentional? She asked herself, noticing the way Ron ran off without pausing to talk.

Hermione dragged her trunk into her room and sat it on top of the bed next to the window. She could hear the commotion from the Muggle street outside and lay on her bed facing the ceiling.

She touched the spot where Ron had kissed her cheek. "Did I like it?" She said out loud.

"What did you like?" Ginny asked from the doorway.

Hermione sat up quickly. "Oh...nothing." She hadn't known that Ginny was there.

"Uh huh...well I brought some lemonade up for you." Ginny said with a smile, handing Hermione a glass and sitting down on her own bed. Hermione thanked her and took a few sips of the lemonade.

"Lovely day isn't it?" Ginny queried.

"Yeah...beautiful..." Hermione sipped her drink and distractedly touched her cheek again.

"Who kissed you?" blurted Ginny.

"What?!" Hermione jumped, spilling a little of her drink on the bed covers.

Ginny chuckled. "Nevermind...dinner will probably be ready soon, we're all eating downstairs. I'll see you down there." She winked and left.

Hermione sighed and stared out of the window, finishing her lemonade. It was an accident...he has a girlfriend...he wouldn't... She tried to prove to herself. Then why am I obsessing so much over it? I didn't like it...did I?

***

At dinner, Hermione sat in silence listening to bits and pieces of everyone's conversations. Mr. Weasley was telling jokes to Ginny, Harry and Ron were discussing Quidditch tactics and Mrs. Weasley seemed to be watching Hermione out of the corner of her eye, not talking to anyone either.

Hermione caught Mrs. Weasley's eye, smiled weakly and returned to her food. Mrs. Weasley, however, had a sort of expression on her face as if she knew something Hermione didn't, she was smiling as if the thing she knew made her happy...

After dinner, Hermione went back up to her room and lay on her bed again, thinking about the past days events. She hadn't yet told Harry or Ron that she had become Head Girl, or about her parents getting a divorce, or Viktor dumping her, but she decided not to bother them with useless reasons such as this. Obviously to them Quidditch tactics and other such nonsense seemed way more important than her troubles.

She heard Harry and Ron come upstairs and go into their bedrooms and Ginny came into the room once or twice to get something. Hermione never said anything though, she just lay on her bed facing the window, looking out into the night sky.

"I need to ask you something..." A man said outside, just below the open window. Hermione's curiosity got the better of her and leaned up against the window and looked down. On the Muggle street below, was a man and a woman.

The man got down on one knee and opened up a black velvet box, revealing a gorgeous diamond ring.

"Will you make me the luckiest man alive and take my hand in marriage?" The man asked.

The woman chuckled devilishly. "Honestly, you think I'm going to marry you? You really are a moron...I brought you here to dump you...not to accept some silly marriage proposal from you!"

The man closed the box and stood up. "What do you mean? Just last week I overheard you talking to your friend how you wanted to marry--"

The woman slapped the man. "You eaves dropped on me? How dare you! I wasn't even talking about you!" She got to her feet. "It's over! And I never want to see you again!" The woman shrieked and walked down the street leaving the man there.

Hermione watched as the man slumped off into the darkness sniffling. She closed the window and lay back down on the bed. See, there is no love anymore. It's just not worth it...getting hurt... She thought.

After a few minutes of silence, she heard Mrs. Weasley talking to Ron in the hallway.

"I'm giving this to you..."

"Mum? I'm Ron."

"I know that." She spat.

"But you're giving me a necklace...a girly necklace...shouldn't you give it to Ginny?"

Hermione couldn't resist...she got up and tiptoed over to the door. She peeked around and saw Mrs. Weasley standing half concealed by the dark in front of Ron, who had his hand stretched out in front of him. Hermione could see the twinkle of a silver chain dangling from his hand.

"Ron, I am giving this to you. Someday you'll understand why." Mrs. Weasley bent Ron's fingers over so that he was now holding the necklace in his palm.

"Mum...do you expect me to wear it?"

"No...just keep it--keep it with you always."

"Why?"

"Someday you'll understand." She kissed his forehead. "See you in the morning." And she walked into her own room and closed the door. Ron stood there a second looking down at the necklace in his hand. He shook his head and started walking down the hallway.

Hermione, noticing he was coming her way turned around and jumped onto her bed. She didn't do it so gracefully though. She knocked over a vase of flowers doing so. She kneeled over quickly to pick them up, her face blushing out of embarrassment. She wondered if Ron heard.

"Did you hear the big news?" Ron asked, making Hermione jump.

She looked up and brushed the hair out of her face. "What's the big news?"

"Harry asked Ginny out!"

Oh, that's it? Big whoop. "Oh, that's great" Hermione forced herself to say with a smile.

"Yeah, I know, finally..." Ron laughed. Then he stopped, seeing as Hermione pricked herself with a thorn on a rose. He bent down and helped her pick up the rest of the roses that had been in the vase. He bent down next to her and examined her finger...'to make sure she was ok.' When Hermione convinced him that it was just a little scratch and that she was fine, he stood up as she did. Hermione pulled out her wand and faced the broken shards on the floor.

"Reparo!" Hermione said with a flick of her wand and Ron placed the roses back into the newly fixed vase. Ron smiled at Hermione as she stood straight up to look him in the eye. Hermione suddenly realized that she was about a foot shorter than him.

Ron then dropped the necklace that was in his hand. Hermione caught a quick glimpse of it before Ron snatched it up off the floor; it was a clear round ball with tiny white dots floating around inside it.
"What's that?" Hermione asked, trying to sound innocent.

"Oh, it's uh..." Ron began, turning the ball round in round between his fingers. "Not sure really...Mum gave it to me. But--" Ron broke off, and pointed at a little inscription at the bottom of the ball that read in tiny letters, FTOYHFF

Hermione said the letters out loud as she read the inscription. "F...T...O...Y...H...F...F..."

"I wonder what it means...you think it stands for something?" Ron asked.

"I dunno..." Hermione sighed. She could feel Ron's warmth as he stood to her side, leaning into her, holding his hand out with the necklace in his palm. She pulled away from him and sat back down on her bed. He stood there for a second, still examining the necklace when he put it in his pocket and looked round at Hermione.

"So do you know who got Head Boy and Girl?" He asked casually.

"Oh!" Hermione slapped her hand to her forehead. "I didn't tell you...I'm Head Girl!"

Ron congratulated Hermione and even gave her another hug. "I knew you'd be it." He grinned.

"Do you have any idea who's Head Boy?" Hermione asked.

"No, afraid I don't...I hope it's no one awful like Malfoy."

Hermione shuddered at the thought.

They were in silence until Ron chuckled slightly as he said, "Well, I'm dating Lavender, Harry and Ginny are going out...and you're dating Krum, seems like none of us are single anymore. That's funny."

Hermione faked a laugh. "Yeah..." Why would that be funny even if I were still dating Viktor? Does he think it's funny that everyone finally has a significant other? How immature...

Ron was still laughing quietly as he left the room and Ginny took his place instead. Hermione was about to bury her head in her pillow when Ginny squealed. "Harry just asked me out!"

Hermione smiled and said that she was tired so she could get out of Ginny squealing in her ear all night. Hermione lay back down on her bed without bothering to undress or even get under the covers. She heard Ginny walk over and close the door to the room and blow out the candles that were lighting the room before getting in her own bed.

Hermione faced the window and stared up at the bright full moon outside. It wasn't long before Ginny's fast breathing was replaced by low, soft, breaths...a sure sign that she was fast asleep. It also wasn't long before Hermione burst into quiet tears. Harry and Ginny were now officially dating, and Ron had Lavender...Hermione was the only one left behind.

A/N: Well? What did you think? Do you see that little box down there that says "Submit Review" and that nice little button next to it that says "Go"???? Well??!?! What are you waiting for? C'mon you know you want to! Please?....Here I go begging again. Just review already!