A/N: Thank you to all you lovely people who have reviewed! Reviews make me happy.
I'm sorry that this took so long to finish but what with OoTP coming out ... and .. other things .... it's taken me months to write this. Oh well. This fic is now AU, as are many others I don't doubt. :(
b Chapter 3
True in her Mind, Though maybe Not in his/b
It was one of those warm, pleasant days when the sun shines brightly but does not shroud you in a sticky heat and a gentle breeze ruffles your hair. Students were dotted around outside Hogwarts castle, some lying down and enjoying the sunshine, others seated on the stone benches in the courtyard, earnestly going through their OWL papers. The actual exams had finished two days ago, but Neville Longbottom still seemed nervous about his results, probably about what his grandmother would say if he had performed abysmally. He sighed and stuffed a dog-eared Potions paper back into his bag, then smiled warmly down at the petite, pretty blonde girl cuddled into his side.
Some thirty feet away from Neville, two lone figures were sprawled on their backs by the lake, their eyes closed, soaking up the warm sunshine. Hermione (who had already been through all her papers) and Ron (who turned green at the mere thought of his OWL results) had decided to come out and enjoy the weather while Harry went up to the Owlery to deliver a letter to Sirius. Hermione noticed he had been gone a while though - maybe he'd bumped into Ginny on the way there. She smirked to herself, glad that after Ginny's years of trying to get Harry to notice her, he'd finally seen her as the beautiful, headstrong girl she was, and not just Ron's sister. So. Harry was with Ginny. Seamus was dating Lavender and Parvati was with Dean. Neville was with a Hufflepuff fourth year. Everyone seemed to be paired off - so much had changed since the beginning of the year ... hormones had raged ... there had been plenty of flirting and kissing among all the fifth years since September. All the fifth years except Ron and Hermione, that is.
Hermione sighed as she stared up into the cloudless sky. It had been six months since the little "incident" with the sweets and her concussion afterwards. She had not talked to Ron all year about where their relationship was going - or where it icould/i be going, she reminded herself quickly. She had been so caught up in the exams and schoolwork ... and then there was the fact that Voldemort had been laying low - suspiciously low for a Dark Lord who had just returned with so much wrath inside him....
Hermione gave herself a little shake, willing herself not to think of such disturbing things - and at that moment, she heard a little snore next to her. She turned onto her side and smiled at Ron's sleeping form. Yes, there had been the awkward moments this year ... every time they had accidentally brushed hands ... the time he had caught her around the waist when she had stumbled on the castle steps .. yet neither had attempted to talk to the other about their feelings. She remembered ithat/i day in the Quidditch changing rooms when Ron had found it so hard to talk to Harry about how he felt - iHarry/i his best boy-mate - so how on earth would he ever work up the courage to talk to iher/i? She supposed it was up to her to make a go of it. And there were only four days left until the end of term. Great.
She watched Ron enjoy his light sleep. His chest rose and fell slowly as the sun beat down on his freckled face. She had never before appreciated how cute those freckles were, and she felt a sudden, unexplainable urge to count each one.
She also felt a sudden urge to lean over and kiss him.
iHermione Granger, you did NOT just think that. Do something about this soppy mood you're in immediately before you really do kiss him and scare the poor lad out of his wits./i
He looked so at peace. And so adorable. She'd have to do something about that. Or she might find herself giving in to the temptation of his freckled, soft-looking cheek. With stealth she didn't even know she had, Hermione stood up and slipped down to the lake's edge. Despite the hot weather, the water was fairly cold and the cool water was a pleasant shock to Hermione's sweaty palms as she leaned over and scooped out a handful. She straightened up and took a clumsy step back towards Ron. Most of the lake water trickled from her hands and soaked into the dusty soil.
"Nice try, Hermione." Ron's voice cut through the peaceful silence and she jumped. He had opened his eyes and was now grinning at her lazily.
iRonald Weasley, don't grin at me with your lovely soft mouth like that or I'll-/i
Without warning, she flicked the last droplets of water from her hands straight at his face, making it his turn to jump. She couldn't help but notice where they all landed: some hung off his eyelashes, some ran off his cheeks, some meandered down his neck and some splattered his shirt. One made its way slowly down to the tip of his nose. She giggled.
"I'll get you back for that!" he grumbled, attempting to sit up; the stuffy weather seemed to have made him lazy and sluggish however, and he flopped back to the ground again. "Later,"
Hermione sat down next to him. It was now or never.
"Ron, I ... I wanted to - to talk to you about ..."
He turned his face towards her. "About what, Hermione?" Was it her, or was that a spark of hope in his eyes?
"About - about ... er ... about how you think you've done in your OWLs," iYou stupid CHICKEN!/i
His face fell for a second, then he raised his eyes to meet hers. He seemed to read her mind in a split second and another lazy grin slowly spread across his face. "Liar," he said, in a voice that was barely louder than a whisper.
Ha. She had found a way to catch him out here. "Am I, Ron?" she said sweetly, "Why, what did you ithink/i I wanted to talk to you about?"
His grin was replaced by a look of pure panic and Hermione swallowed the urge to laugh.
"Er - I thought - maybe ... er-"
Hermione raised a slightly trembling finger to his lips. iOh my God, I'm actually doing this/i "I think," she said quietly, "I think we've been deluding ourselves for far too long." She was surprised at how steady her voice was. His bright blue eyes were penetrating her brown ones so deeply that she was surprised a blue beam hadn't erupted out of the back of her head. "I think that we have something special going here. I think-" She hesitated. "I think I love you, Ron Weasley."
There was silence. For those few moments it was just her and Ron in the world. There was no school behind her. No lake in front of her. No grounds around her. Just her, with the index finger of her right hand pressed firmly against Ron Weasley's soft lips. Everything was still.
Then slowly, very slowly, Ron reached for her hand and gently took her finger from his lips, interlacing each of her fingers with his own as he did so. Hermione felt the warmth of his hand spread through hers and right up her arm, then through her entire body. She noted how their fingers seemed to interlock so perfectly.
She was so busy thinking about their hands that she didn't immediately register that he was covering her mouth with his.
They were kissing.
She wanted to keep her eyes open, to look at him, but her vision went blurry so she let her eyes flutter shut. This wasn't awkward. This was beautiful. It was warm and it was fuzzy and she felt a hundred different sensations explode inside her.
For how long they kissed, she wasn't sure. When Ron finally pulled away, his breathing was hoarse and his eyes seemed a little out of focus. Hermione half smiled.
"Hermione .... we just kissed,"
"You really have a knack for stating the obvious,"
He rolled his eyes. A shadow of the old Ron was back. Hermione was suddenly aware of everything again: the castle, the grounds, the people around them. Ron looked a little awkward. "So ... so does that- does that make us ...."
"I suppose that makes us a couple, yes," said Hermione quietly. It seemed so surreal to be saying it. Saying it confirmed it. She had just kissed Ron Weasley and now they were a couple. iOh, GODDDD!/i
She wasn't sure what to do now. Everything suddenly became a little awkward between them. Slowly, Hermione moved closer to Ron and he placed a long, gangly arm around her shoulders. She leaned into him. All at once the awkwardness disappeared and she decided she had never felt so peaceful and at ease. "A couple," he repeated quietly. "Yeah, that sounds .. that sounds good."
They sat like that for a little while, happily watching the little blue sparkles on the surface of the lake. The leaves in the trees around them rustled peacefully in the wind as though whispering, sharing secrets.
"You two look cosy," Ron and Hermione started but stayed sitting close as Harry grinned and sat down next to them. "So what have you two been up to?"
Hermione smiled up at Ron. "We've been - er - well we've worked things out and now we're - we're-"
"A couple," finished Ron. "We're together." He half smiled, half smirked. "Bet you never saw that coming, did you, Harry?" They all laughed quietly.
The three of them sat and watched the sun go down. Hermione couldn't believe how peaceful and perfect everything was: she was the girlfriend of Ron Weasley and she was sitting with her two best friends in the world, watching the sunset. Then Harry's voice cut through the silence.
"It's going to be hard, you know. Going back to the Dursley's this summer. I mean, it's always difficult, but now I'm with Ginny and everything..." He trailed off. Hermione looked at him, the peaceful feeling suddenly ebbing away.
Ron sat up and looked round at Harry. "I've been thinking about this. Mate, we're having you over to the Burrow the second we can. I'm going to ask Dumbledore the day before we break up if we can have you round in the first week,"
"Excellent," said Harry happily, "Thanks, Ron"
Hermione sat back and smiled at her two friends. She could never remember a time in her life when she had felt more blessed. She leaned against Ron again.
"Hey, Harry?" Ron was talking over her head to his best friend in a would-be casual voice. "I need your help with something,"
"After your invite to the Burrow? Anything," said Harry, laughing.
"Hermione threw water on me earlier. Want to help me get her back?"
"Yeah!"
"NO!" said Hermione, struggling to sit up, but she was too late. Both boys took a wrist each and dragged her towards the lake's edge.
"You wouldn't DARE! Ron, it was only a bit of water!" In that moment, Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley stopped being a couple and went back to being bickering best friends.
"Aw come on Hermione, it's the end of term, plus it's boiling today-"
"I mean it! Push me in and I'll-"
SPLASH.
Both boys burst out laughing; Hermione broke the surface and shook the hair that had slicked down her face out of her eyes. She looked livid.
"Hermione, you did say push you in!" said Ron, rather liking the way the lake water made her robes cling to her so tightly. Hermione glared at him.
"What I imeant/i was push me in and I'll kill you!"
Both boys laughed harder, completely unperturbed. In fact, they were so busy laughing that they didn't see Hermione reach across and grab an ankle each. (A/N: Not iboth/i of the boys' ankles of course, because that would have meant she had four arms, and however brilliant Hermione Granger is, she does not have four arms). With the most astonishing strength, she jerked her hands backwards and before Harry and Ron knew what had happened, they had landed on their arses. With another shot of strength and adrenaline, Hermione planted her feet into the soft banks of the river and dragged the two boys into the water.
It was her turn to laugh as she watched the two boys shake their sodden fringes out of their eyes. "I think you two underestimated my strength just a little bit,"
"Too right," muttered Harry, trying to wipe the water off his glasses with his robes, only to find that they were soaked, too. Ron seemed to be eyeing her with a different kind of respect. "Wow," he said quietly, "That's the last time I try and get even with you again!"
"What on earth are you three doing?" Ginny Weasley had arrived at the lake's edge, eyeing the trio in the utmost amazement. Harry immediately looked very embarrassed. "We're just taking a swim, what does it look like?" he said quickly.
Hermione gave Ginny a knowing grin and the younger girl cottoned on straight away. "Come on, Harry," she said kneeling down by the lake's edge and holding out her hand, "Let's get you out of those wet things!" She raised her eyebrows suggestively.
Ron gave a splutter of indignation as Harry walked hand-in-hand with Ginny back up to the castle. "What did she mean by- she's too young for that- iGet him out of those wet things?/i"
"I think she was only kidding, Ron."
"She had better bloody be."
The awkwardness had settled upon them again. It felt strange to be having such a conversation while treading the cool lake water.
"Ron?" she said quietly, "I'm glad we've - you know - talked. Before we broke up for the summer. I feel better now. Lighter."
"Me too," he said, "I feel a right coward for not saying anything to you for all these months,"
"No, it was me. I already knew how you felt, I heard when I ... you know ..."
"Yeah."
They treaded the water for a few moments longer, just looking at each other. She was just wondering whether she should suggest they get out when she felt his arms snake around her waist and he pulled her towards him. She rested her hands on his shoulders as they moved closer to kiss again. This one was even better than the first now that they were both wet, this was fiery, passionate. Ron varied his pressure on her lips, his hands were everywhere, her shoulders, her bottom, her stomach .... then they started moving upwards.....
Hermione pulled away from him. She gently took his hands and pulled them away. "Not there," she whispered, "Not now. Not yet."
She found it painful to tear her eyes away the longing in his, but she knew that it wasn't right, not just yet.
"That's OK,"
Hermione leaned her forehead against his and smiled. He smiled back. "Tell me, Hermione Granger," he murmured, placing his hands on her shoulders, "Would you rather be in love with the richest, best looking boy in the world ... or be with me?"
She closed her eyes. That had to be the easiest question she had ever been asked, easier than anything any teacher had ever asked her in lessons.
"Simple," she breathed into his ear, "I'd rather be in love...." She planted a small kiss on his cheek, ".... with you."
They embraced in the water for a long time.
i'Cause when I'm with you, I feel whole
And there's no better feeling in the world
But without you I'm alone
And I'd rather be in love with you./i
Michelle Branch, iI'd Rather Be In Love/i
A/N: So, that's it. All done. I had a really fun time writing this, but I'm still trying to improve my writing style, so if you review (and you WILL, won't you? :D) constructive criticism is always welcome.
I'm sorry that this took so long to finish but what with OoTP coming out ... and .. other things .... it's taken me months to write this. Oh well. This fic is now AU, as are many others I don't doubt. :(
b Chapter 3
True in her Mind, Though maybe Not in his/b
It was one of those warm, pleasant days when the sun shines brightly but does not shroud you in a sticky heat and a gentle breeze ruffles your hair. Students were dotted around outside Hogwarts castle, some lying down and enjoying the sunshine, others seated on the stone benches in the courtyard, earnestly going through their OWL papers. The actual exams had finished two days ago, but Neville Longbottom still seemed nervous about his results, probably about what his grandmother would say if he had performed abysmally. He sighed and stuffed a dog-eared Potions paper back into his bag, then smiled warmly down at the petite, pretty blonde girl cuddled into his side.
Some thirty feet away from Neville, two lone figures were sprawled on their backs by the lake, their eyes closed, soaking up the warm sunshine. Hermione (who had already been through all her papers) and Ron (who turned green at the mere thought of his OWL results) had decided to come out and enjoy the weather while Harry went up to the Owlery to deliver a letter to Sirius. Hermione noticed he had been gone a while though - maybe he'd bumped into Ginny on the way there. She smirked to herself, glad that after Ginny's years of trying to get Harry to notice her, he'd finally seen her as the beautiful, headstrong girl she was, and not just Ron's sister. So. Harry was with Ginny. Seamus was dating Lavender and Parvati was with Dean. Neville was with a Hufflepuff fourth year. Everyone seemed to be paired off - so much had changed since the beginning of the year ... hormones had raged ... there had been plenty of flirting and kissing among all the fifth years since September. All the fifth years except Ron and Hermione, that is.
Hermione sighed as she stared up into the cloudless sky. It had been six months since the little "incident" with the sweets and her concussion afterwards. She had not talked to Ron all year about where their relationship was going - or where it icould/i be going, she reminded herself quickly. She had been so caught up in the exams and schoolwork ... and then there was the fact that Voldemort had been laying low - suspiciously low for a Dark Lord who had just returned with so much wrath inside him....
Hermione gave herself a little shake, willing herself not to think of such disturbing things - and at that moment, she heard a little snore next to her. She turned onto her side and smiled at Ron's sleeping form. Yes, there had been the awkward moments this year ... every time they had accidentally brushed hands ... the time he had caught her around the waist when she had stumbled on the castle steps .. yet neither had attempted to talk to the other about their feelings. She remembered ithat/i day in the Quidditch changing rooms when Ron had found it so hard to talk to Harry about how he felt - iHarry/i his best boy-mate - so how on earth would he ever work up the courage to talk to iher/i? She supposed it was up to her to make a go of it. And there were only four days left until the end of term. Great.
She watched Ron enjoy his light sleep. His chest rose and fell slowly as the sun beat down on his freckled face. She had never before appreciated how cute those freckles were, and she felt a sudden, unexplainable urge to count each one.
She also felt a sudden urge to lean over and kiss him.
iHermione Granger, you did NOT just think that. Do something about this soppy mood you're in immediately before you really do kiss him and scare the poor lad out of his wits./i
He looked so at peace. And so adorable. She'd have to do something about that. Or she might find herself giving in to the temptation of his freckled, soft-looking cheek. With stealth she didn't even know she had, Hermione stood up and slipped down to the lake's edge. Despite the hot weather, the water was fairly cold and the cool water was a pleasant shock to Hermione's sweaty palms as she leaned over and scooped out a handful. She straightened up and took a clumsy step back towards Ron. Most of the lake water trickled from her hands and soaked into the dusty soil.
"Nice try, Hermione." Ron's voice cut through the peaceful silence and she jumped. He had opened his eyes and was now grinning at her lazily.
iRonald Weasley, don't grin at me with your lovely soft mouth like that or I'll-/i
Without warning, she flicked the last droplets of water from her hands straight at his face, making it his turn to jump. She couldn't help but notice where they all landed: some hung off his eyelashes, some ran off his cheeks, some meandered down his neck and some splattered his shirt. One made its way slowly down to the tip of his nose. She giggled.
"I'll get you back for that!" he grumbled, attempting to sit up; the stuffy weather seemed to have made him lazy and sluggish however, and he flopped back to the ground again. "Later,"
Hermione sat down next to him. It was now or never.
"Ron, I ... I wanted to - to talk to you about ..."
He turned his face towards her. "About what, Hermione?" Was it her, or was that a spark of hope in his eyes?
"About - about ... er ... about how you think you've done in your OWLs," iYou stupid CHICKEN!/i
His face fell for a second, then he raised his eyes to meet hers. He seemed to read her mind in a split second and another lazy grin slowly spread across his face. "Liar," he said, in a voice that was barely louder than a whisper.
Ha. She had found a way to catch him out here. "Am I, Ron?" she said sweetly, "Why, what did you ithink/i I wanted to talk to you about?"
His grin was replaced by a look of pure panic and Hermione swallowed the urge to laugh.
"Er - I thought - maybe ... er-"
Hermione raised a slightly trembling finger to his lips. iOh my God, I'm actually doing this/i "I think," she said quietly, "I think we've been deluding ourselves for far too long." She was surprised at how steady her voice was. His bright blue eyes were penetrating her brown ones so deeply that she was surprised a blue beam hadn't erupted out of the back of her head. "I think that we have something special going here. I think-" She hesitated. "I think I love you, Ron Weasley."
There was silence. For those few moments it was just her and Ron in the world. There was no school behind her. No lake in front of her. No grounds around her. Just her, with the index finger of her right hand pressed firmly against Ron Weasley's soft lips. Everything was still.
Then slowly, very slowly, Ron reached for her hand and gently took her finger from his lips, interlacing each of her fingers with his own as he did so. Hermione felt the warmth of his hand spread through hers and right up her arm, then through her entire body. She noted how their fingers seemed to interlock so perfectly.
She was so busy thinking about their hands that she didn't immediately register that he was covering her mouth with his.
They were kissing.
She wanted to keep her eyes open, to look at him, but her vision went blurry so she let her eyes flutter shut. This wasn't awkward. This was beautiful. It was warm and it was fuzzy and she felt a hundred different sensations explode inside her.
For how long they kissed, she wasn't sure. When Ron finally pulled away, his breathing was hoarse and his eyes seemed a little out of focus. Hermione half smiled.
"Hermione .... we just kissed,"
"You really have a knack for stating the obvious,"
He rolled his eyes. A shadow of the old Ron was back. Hermione was suddenly aware of everything again: the castle, the grounds, the people around them. Ron looked a little awkward. "So ... so does that- does that make us ...."
"I suppose that makes us a couple, yes," said Hermione quietly. It seemed so surreal to be saying it. Saying it confirmed it. She had just kissed Ron Weasley and now they were a couple. iOh, GODDDD!/i
She wasn't sure what to do now. Everything suddenly became a little awkward between them. Slowly, Hermione moved closer to Ron and he placed a long, gangly arm around her shoulders. She leaned into him. All at once the awkwardness disappeared and she decided she had never felt so peaceful and at ease. "A couple," he repeated quietly. "Yeah, that sounds .. that sounds good."
They sat like that for a little while, happily watching the little blue sparkles on the surface of the lake. The leaves in the trees around them rustled peacefully in the wind as though whispering, sharing secrets.
"You two look cosy," Ron and Hermione started but stayed sitting close as Harry grinned and sat down next to them. "So what have you two been up to?"
Hermione smiled up at Ron. "We've been - er - well we've worked things out and now we're - we're-"
"A couple," finished Ron. "We're together." He half smiled, half smirked. "Bet you never saw that coming, did you, Harry?" They all laughed quietly.
The three of them sat and watched the sun go down. Hermione couldn't believe how peaceful and perfect everything was: she was the girlfriend of Ron Weasley and she was sitting with her two best friends in the world, watching the sunset. Then Harry's voice cut through the silence.
"It's going to be hard, you know. Going back to the Dursley's this summer. I mean, it's always difficult, but now I'm with Ginny and everything..." He trailed off. Hermione looked at him, the peaceful feeling suddenly ebbing away.
Ron sat up and looked round at Harry. "I've been thinking about this. Mate, we're having you over to the Burrow the second we can. I'm going to ask Dumbledore the day before we break up if we can have you round in the first week,"
"Excellent," said Harry happily, "Thanks, Ron"
Hermione sat back and smiled at her two friends. She could never remember a time in her life when she had felt more blessed. She leaned against Ron again.
"Hey, Harry?" Ron was talking over her head to his best friend in a would-be casual voice. "I need your help with something,"
"After your invite to the Burrow? Anything," said Harry, laughing.
"Hermione threw water on me earlier. Want to help me get her back?"
"Yeah!"
"NO!" said Hermione, struggling to sit up, but she was too late. Both boys took a wrist each and dragged her towards the lake's edge.
"You wouldn't DARE! Ron, it was only a bit of water!" In that moment, Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley stopped being a couple and went back to being bickering best friends.
"Aw come on Hermione, it's the end of term, plus it's boiling today-"
"I mean it! Push me in and I'll-"
SPLASH.
Both boys burst out laughing; Hermione broke the surface and shook the hair that had slicked down her face out of her eyes. She looked livid.
"Hermione, you did say push you in!" said Ron, rather liking the way the lake water made her robes cling to her so tightly. Hermione glared at him.
"What I imeant/i was push me in and I'll kill you!"
Both boys laughed harder, completely unperturbed. In fact, they were so busy laughing that they didn't see Hermione reach across and grab an ankle each. (A/N: Not iboth/i of the boys' ankles of course, because that would have meant she had four arms, and however brilliant Hermione Granger is, she does not have four arms). With the most astonishing strength, she jerked her hands backwards and before Harry and Ron knew what had happened, they had landed on their arses. With another shot of strength and adrenaline, Hermione planted her feet into the soft banks of the river and dragged the two boys into the water.
It was her turn to laugh as she watched the two boys shake their sodden fringes out of their eyes. "I think you two underestimated my strength just a little bit,"
"Too right," muttered Harry, trying to wipe the water off his glasses with his robes, only to find that they were soaked, too. Ron seemed to be eyeing her with a different kind of respect. "Wow," he said quietly, "That's the last time I try and get even with you again!"
"What on earth are you three doing?" Ginny Weasley had arrived at the lake's edge, eyeing the trio in the utmost amazement. Harry immediately looked very embarrassed. "We're just taking a swim, what does it look like?" he said quickly.
Hermione gave Ginny a knowing grin and the younger girl cottoned on straight away. "Come on, Harry," she said kneeling down by the lake's edge and holding out her hand, "Let's get you out of those wet things!" She raised her eyebrows suggestively.
Ron gave a splutter of indignation as Harry walked hand-in-hand with Ginny back up to the castle. "What did she mean by- she's too young for that- iGet him out of those wet things?/i"
"I think she was only kidding, Ron."
"She had better bloody be."
The awkwardness had settled upon them again. It felt strange to be having such a conversation while treading the cool lake water.
"Ron?" she said quietly, "I'm glad we've - you know - talked. Before we broke up for the summer. I feel better now. Lighter."
"Me too," he said, "I feel a right coward for not saying anything to you for all these months,"
"No, it was me. I already knew how you felt, I heard when I ... you know ..."
"Yeah."
They treaded the water for a few moments longer, just looking at each other. She was just wondering whether she should suggest they get out when she felt his arms snake around her waist and he pulled her towards him. She rested her hands on his shoulders as they moved closer to kiss again. This one was even better than the first now that they were both wet, this was fiery, passionate. Ron varied his pressure on her lips, his hands were everywhere, her shoulders, her bottom, her stomach .... then they started moving upwards.....
Hermione pulled away from him. She gently took his hands and pulled them away. "Not there," she whispered, "Not now. Not yet."
She found it painful to tear her eyes away the longing in his, but she knew that it wasn't right, not just yet.
"That's OK,"
Hermione leaned her forehead against his and smiled. He smiled back. "Tell me, Hermione Granger," he murmured, placing his hands on her shoulders, "Would you rather be in love with the richest, best looking boy in the world ... or be with me?"
She closed her eyes. That had to be the easiest question she had ever been asked, easier than anything any teacher had ever asked her in lessons.
"Simple," she breathed into his ear, "I'd rather be in love...." She planted a small kiss on his cheek, ".... with you."
They embraced in the water for a long time.
i'Cause when I'm with you, I feel whole
And there's no better feeling in the world
But without you I'm alone
And I'd rather be in love with you./i
Michelle Branch, iI'd Rather Be In Love/i
A/N: So, that's it. All done. I had a really fun time writing this, but I'm still trying to improve my writing style, so if you review (and you WILL, won't you? :D) constructive criticism is always welcome.