Chapter 9: Roadtrips and Hallway Happenings
"So why is it again that we have to rent a bloody car thingy again?" Ron was lugging everyone's luggage into the trunk of the rental car. "We don't even know how to get to Salem!" Ron threw the last bag in the trunk and slammed it shut.
"Because there are no Amtrak trains running to Salem from New York and the quickest and easiest way to get there from here is to take a car. Now get in. Harry, you're up front with me."
Ginny stepped into the driver's seat and turned on the car. Harry got in, looking around the car before strapping in. "This is nice. Better than the Dursley's." Ron knocked his head on the frame as he got in. "Dammit! Bloody hell…" he mumbled curses to himself as he got settled in the back. Ginny strapped in and turned on the car as the boys fumbled with their seat belts.
"Are you two ready?"
"Are you sure you can drive this thing?"
"Ron," Ginny, looked over her shoulder to back out of the parking lot. "It's just a car. I have driven one before. Yes, in the States, Harry, there's no need to look at me like that. And out of the three of us, I'm the only one who has a license, so, buckle up!" She pulled out on the road and sped off laughing, leaving Harry and Ron making sure their buckles were tight enough.
As they were driving, Ron stared out the window. He was in a foreign country ruled by muggles, riding in a muggle contraption (that could break down and leave them stranded at any moment, who could trust muggle magic?) and in about four hours he would be in a strange city about to talk to a girl he hadn't seen in months. He had no idea what to expect from the whole adventure, but he found himself smiling as he imagined standing in front of Hermione, hugging Hermione, kissing Hermione, telling Hermione…
Telling Hermione what? That's what Ron realized he had absolutely no idea what the hell he was going to say to her. He leaned back in the seat and closed his eyes as he thought of all the opportunities he'd had in the past to talk to her and how he'd blown those. Why would this time be any different? He hadn't talked to Hermione in 9 months; he hadn't even received a letter from her. He knew he would need to say something very suave and sophisticated and well articulated to be able to compete with whatever men Hermione had surely met while in America. He grimaced. He couldn't pull that off if his life depended on it.
Sighing, Ron opened his eyes and glanced up front. They'd been gone for two hours already and Ron had just begun to notice the strange behavior of the two up front. He looked at them curiously. Harry was looking at Ginny with an unfamiliar look in his eyes; Why the hell is Harry staring at my sister like that? Ron could feel an old familiar rush of temper flaring up inside him. Breathing heavily out, he let it go. He didn't want to assume anything, act rashly like he so often did and blow this day before it began. Harry and Ginny were doing him a huge favor by coming on this trip with him. Hell, they were saving his English arse. If it hadn't been for his sister, he wouldn't be here right now…
Yet, yet he couldn't help but notice how Ginny sparkled when she laughed with Harry or that she had inched her right hand over to rest on Harry's leg. Ron opened his mouth to say something about it, but shut it when his sister burst out laughing again. He smiled; he loved seeing his family happy. And he'd been wondering when they'd finally get back together.
He closed his eyes, trying to ignore the increasing flirtation occurring in the front seat and forget the increasing nervous butterflies in his stomach.
"Hey Ron, you ok, mate?" Harry had turned around and was looking at Ron. "You don't look so good." Ron hadn't realized that he had scrunched up his face and was holding his stomach.
"Oh, no. I'm fine. Just…just nerves I guess. I dunno…" He looked out the window. Ginny looked in the rearview mirror back at her brother before changing lanes and speeding up. "Don't worry big brother, we should be there in a couple hours."
"I know. That's why I'm a little tense."
Ginny smiled. "Ron, why are you so nervous? Its just Hermione."
"Exactly."
Harry turned back to face the front. "Ron, its not that big a deal. Just tell Hermione that you're madly in love with her and want her to come home with you."
"Harry! It's not exactly that easy. I can't mess this up. It has to go perfectly."
"Ron,
no matter what you say, Hermione will be glad to hear it. She'll
just be glad to see you. Besides, from what I understand, she already
knows."
Ron looked sharply up at his sister. "What? What does
she already know?"
Harry turned to face his dense friend. "How you feel. I thought that you guys practically told one another the summer after 6th year?"
Ron sighed, "Ok, well, technically I guess that's what we were doing, sure, but it didn't exactly go as planned, and we've never actually, I guess, confessed how we really feel. It's all been a bunch of assuming. And we all know what happens when you assume."
"Yep. It makes an ass out of you!" Ginny's eyes twinkled as she smiled at her brother.
"Hey! I do that enough on my own, thank you very much." Ron slumped back in his seat groaning. "I don't know what I'm supposed to do. And no, Harry, I don't believe it's that easy. Besides, when have you ever confessed to a girl that you had serious feelings for her?" Ron looked pointedly at Harry, who shifted uncomfortably in his seat and mumbled some incoherent response. He didn't exactly feel like getting into the subject of his and Ginny's love tryst in Paris. "Yeah, that's what I thought." Ron said triumphantly.
"Ron, if you want to know the truth, a girl just likes to hear that someone loves her. No matter how you say whatever you choose to say, Hermione will start crying. You know that. It doesn't matter what you say as long as you mean it, and we all know you're very serious about how you feel for Hermione." Ron noticed that Harry was staring avidly at Ginny as she spoke and when she finished, she looked at him and smiled contentedly. Something was going on, Ron knew it. But he didn't need any more stress, so he let it go.
"I hope you two are right." He unbuckled and stretched his lanky body as far as it could go in the back seat. "Wake me up when we get there."
"Christine! Yes…please. As soon as you can…..what? No! He's not here….please just come back to the apartment….I don't care if he's using whip cream and chocolate sauce, you can see him tonight. I need you here now…..no, I will not bring out the whip cream, for Merlin's sake, Christine!" Hermione hung up her phone in a huff. Sometimes Christine could be so crude.
Hermione was ripping through her closet, pulling out clothes and throwing them on her bed. She was still wearing the too-small pajama bottoms but had put on a long-sleeved blue t-shirt. Her hair was a mess, but pulled back. She was on her knees, crouched down, looking under her bed for something, cursing to herself when she heard the front door open. She scrambled to get up and tripped out of the room.
"Bloody hell, what are you wearing?"
"Language, Hermione!" Christine smiled at her friend who was rubbing a stubbed toe. "You sort of interrupted us, so I just threw on whatever I could find." Christine didn't look any better than Hermione, in a pair of blue and white striped boxers, a football jersey, socks and flip-flops; her hair, too, was pulled back and Hermione noticed a bit of whipped cream on her hair line. She just shook her head not even wanting to know. "Now, what the hell was so important that you had to pull me away from a wonderful mid-morning romp."
"Christine, it's 11:30 in the morning. I didn't think you'd already be whipping out the ice cream toppings. No, but that's not the point. No, I don't want to know what else was going on. I just need your help." She walked back into her room and Christine followed her.
"Looks like the last battle was fought in here." Hermione glared at her roommate who flushed. "Sorry about the reference. Just slipped out. Anyway, what are you doing? And why is your suitcase out?" Realization dawned upon her. "Oh my God! Are you going to England? Did you dump Kevin? Are you going to go to that red-headed muffin cake of yours?"
"He is not a muffin cake and yes, I suppose I am going to England. That's what I wanted to talk to you about. I…I, well this morning, I talked to Kevin and realized you were right. I need to, uh, well, go back and...face what I've been running from. And since you're leaving in a couple days for that internship (Christine beamed at the mention of her accomplishment), I was thinking that I would just, uh, go with you?" Hermione looked at her friend for some sort of approval. "Do you think it's too soon?"
"Too soon! Hermione are you crazy? It's been too long! Hurry up and pack, we'll leave tomorrow if you want."
"Tomorrow! Oh, I don't know if I can go that soon!" Hermione sat down on the side of the bed, wringing her hands. Suddenly she became very nervous. "What am I supposed to say, Christine? I haven't seen or spoken to him in months! What if I get over there and make a big fool of myself for nothing. What if he's found someone else?"
"So what? Tell him you know he loves you too and smack the bitch –"
"Christine!"
"Ok, so don't smack her. Just ask her kindly to stop humping your true love."
"Christine!"
"Sorry,
been around Paul too much…But seriously Hermione, don't worry
about it. I'm sure he'll be ecstatic." Christine smiled and sat
down next to her friend. "I know he will be very happy to see you.
You've been gone too long."
Hermione sighed. Maybe Christine was right. Ginny mentioned how much Ron longed for her in nearly every letter she sent, but sometimes Hermione felt as if Ginny were exaggerating to just get her to come home. She did miss the red-headed witch, and the rest of the Weasleys, but she just didn't know how she would go home. It seemed like it'd been forever. And Harry…she wondered how Harry had been. He had seemed so different last time she saw everyone; much quieter and happier. And rather in love with Ginny though she wondered if he ever realized that and told her?
Hermione looked at Christine who had found the whipped cream and was trying to get it out of her hair. Laughing, she said, "Whipped cream? Really? What ever made you want to try it?"
Christine smiled. "I dunno, it just seemed interesting. You should try it Hermione! Walk up to Ron's front door carrying a can of whipped cream and when he opens the door say, as seductively as you can, mind you, 'I've been a bad girl for not coming home sooner and need to be punished' before covering yourself in whipped cream." Hermione just stared at her friend. She could never imagine herself or Ron doing such a thing. "Um…no…no thank you. But what am I supposed to say?"
"Nothing. Just kiss him."
Hermione sighed. Christine sure had a one track mind at times. "Ok, since you're not being helpful there, will you at least help me figure out what to take to wear? I'm useless at being a girl."
The girls stood up and surveyed Hermione's strewn wardrobe. Christine started pulling pieces of clothing together as Hermione stooped on the ground searching under her bed again. "Aha!" She pulled out a small wooden box with a flourish but stopped suddenly.
Someone was knocking on the door.
Ginny exited off the highway and looked at her map. "We're pretty close now. Here Harry, you can read maps can't you? Be navigator. Which way do I need to go?"
"Ok, go straight on Center St. and when you get to Winter St., make a right."
Ron sat up straight, and tried stretching. His nerves were causing him to sweat. He'd done a lot of things in his life that were far more frightening than talk to Hermione. But at that exact moment, facing a gaggle of Dementors or challenging Malfoy to a duel seemed less intimidating and a bit more fun.
Zoning out, Ron didn't hear Harry's last slew of directions, or notice the various wrong turns and U-turns they made, but as soon as they pulled up to an old apartment building and Ginny turned off the car, Ron snapped back to reality. Ginny and Harry turned around to face Ron. "Ok, Ronnikins. Ready?"
"As ready as I'll ever be." Ron opened his door and stretched. He tried to calm himself, but scenes from the past kept shooting through his brain: the Yule Ball, the day in Hogsmeade, the night in the park, last Christmas… He shook his head to clear his mind and Ginny stood on her tiptoes to fix his hair. "There ya go! You look fabulous!" She kissed him on the cheek and locked the car. Harry walked around the front of the car, carrying a small back pack, putting his arm around Ginny. She smiled at him, causing Ron to frown at him. Harry removed his arm, laughing nervously, hoping his blunder wouldn't upset the red-headed giant.
"Harry," began Ron, as he stepped towards his friend, "I've been meaning to ask you…"
But Ginny intervened. "Oh, look at the time! Ron, we better get a move on. Apartment 312." Ginny motioned towards the brick building. "Good luck, Romeo."
Ron sighed and looked up at the building. "Alright, you guys wait here?"
Harry nodded. "Uh, sure-"
"What? I thought we were going to-"
Harry stepped on Ginny's foot. "I'll keep her out of trouble." He placed his arm around Ginny's shoulder, but Ron was far too nervous to notice. He opened the lobby door and stepped inside.
"What the hell? Keep me out of trouble? I thought-"
Harry shushed her and unzipped his backpack. "Calm down, Gin. Don't you trust me? I didn't fly 3000 miles not to see this historic moment. Its been waiting to happen for more than 7 years!" He pulled out a silvery cloak and dropped his backpack. "Tada!"
"Oh Harry! You're brilliant!" Ginny threw her arms around his neck and kissed him fiercely. Harry pulled his cloak over the two of them, casting them into the world of invisibility.
Hermione
came back from the front door into her bedroom to find Christine
going through her underwear drawer. "It was just some little boys
raising money for their baseball team. They've been around here six
times in three days already…Christine! What are you
doing?"
"Looking at your very sexy granny panties." She
held up a large elasticy pair of underpants. "I bet Kevin got a
kick out of these."
Scoffing, Hermione ripped her underwear out of Christine's hands. "Would you refrain from putting your dirty paws on my underpants! And no, Kevin did not see these." She dropped them and pulled out a cute purple pair of bikini bottoms. "He saw these." She giggled at herself as she put her underwear back in her drawer.
"Well, you have to throw those nasty old things out and only take the normal sized ones with you to England. Full-bottomed undies are one thing, but when they come up past your waist, they are too big and I don't think Ron would appreciate-"
Just then, another knock on the door. Hermione heavy sighed. How many times had she told those kids to bugger off? Christine put down a particularly hideous blouse of Hermione's and suggested she go tell the little pests to go away.
"No Christine, you will scare them!"
"No I wont. I promise." Christine walked out of the room before Hermione could stop her. "Christine! Please, just let me handle it. I don't want any angry parents coming to my door! " She ran out of the room and practically leapt on her roommate to keep her from harassing some poor, innocent children.
Ron stood in front of the door to apartment 312. He rose his hand to knock and then lowered it. Stop being a chicken shit, he told himself. Its just Hermione. Just be cool. This is no big deal. Its just… "…the biggest moment of your life." He said out loud. George's words came back to him
… And you are going to find her, and the first thing that you are going to do when you see her is pull her tight to you and kiss her harder than you've kissed anybody in your entire life. And then you are going to look her squarely in the face and say four things: I love you, Hermione. I always have and I always will. I'm sorry for being an idiot. Please come home with me…
Ron snapped out of his reverie and stood up straight. He smoothed his shirt and raised his hand, again, to knock. Knock, knock.
He stood still, waiting, very tense. A few seconds went by.
Maybe she's not home.
Then some noise coming from inside. A few more seconds.
Maybe she knows it's me and doesn't want to see me…
More noise. Girl voices. Voices? Ron leaned forward to put his ear to the door and listen when the door was suddenly thrust open. He moved forward to follow George's instructions and stopped suddenly, surprised, because it was not Hermione who answered the door.
Christine, who was about to say something very rude to a bunch of 10 year olds, opened her mouth in surprise. Standing in front of her was not a bunch of short, scruffy, annoying 10 year olds, but a tall, handsome, red-headed English man. She glanced quickly behind her (to see Hermione struggling to stand up after leaping and falling) and back at the tall, very attractive man who had a very confused look on his face. "Who-?" she heard him say just before slamming the door in his face.
Ron stood there, dumbfounded. This was supposed to be Hermione's apartment…maybe that was her roommate. But why in the world had she looked at him like that? And why in the bloody hell did she…
"…slam the door in my face!" Ron stood there, indignant. Now that he was irritated, he had completely forgotten how nervous he was, and started pounding on the door.
"Christine! What was that?" Hermione stood up, staring at her roommate who was standing very stiffly up against the door with a plastered smile on her face.
"Nothing. No one. Nothing at all." How was she going to handle this? Hermione would have a cow seeing the very red-headed man on her doorstep that she was running to England to tell she loved. She looked a mess. She needed to change. She couldn't let him see her like this. "Maybe you should change."
Hermione did not understand, or like, her roommate's strange behavior. "Why? Why do I need to change? Who was it?" She was beginning to get suspicious. "Move. Let me see. Who is it?" She pushed Christine aside who now stood off in the kitchen, wringing her hands.
Hermione looked at her friend, shaking her head and opened the door.
Ron was about to start shouting at the very rude American girl when the door opened again. He opened his mouth to say something but stopped, surprised to see a very disheveled and wide-eyed Hermione standing in front of him. She opened her mouth to say something but closed it.
"Hermione, I - " he stepped forward, but before he could finish his statement, she slammed the door in his face.
"Hermione, what did you do that for?" Christine stepped out of the kitchen, hands in the air. "That was your chance!"
"Why
is he here? Did you call him? Oh Merlin's beard, do you see what I
look like? Why is he here! How did he find me! Oh, no! This is so
bad!" Hermione's voice got higher and more panicked with every
statement. Christine, who was just as surprised as Hermione was to
see Ron, put her hands on Hermione's face to calm her down.
"Hermione. It's him. It's Ron. You know Ron. Just talk to
him."
Hermione looked truly panicked. Her eyes were wide and
her hair had started coming madly out of her pony tail. "No. No.
Not like this." And she ran into her room, leaving Christine alone
in the kitchen.
Ron stood there, completely flabbergasted for a few moments before regaining conscious thought. Hermione had just seen him and slammed the door in his face. Fantastic. He hadn't even spoken, and already she was slamming doors at him. Well, fabulous, this day was turning out to be just great.
He knocked again. Even if it wasn't going very well, he hadn't said what he had come to say and that was the least he was going to do, if anything.
No answer. He knocked a little louder. Still nothing.
So he turned the knob and peaked inside. The girls were nowhere to be seen. He opened the door a bit wider. "Hello? Hermione? Uh…is it alright if I come in?" He stepped inside the apartment and wiped his feet on the rug. "Um…I'm coming in? Christine? Hermione?" He saw that the door to the bedroom was shut, so he quietly closed the front door and approached the bedroom door handle. He knocked quietly.
Out in the hallway, two very audible sighs could be heard.
"My God, I thought he was never going to get in."
"I know! That was ridiculous."
"Rather amusing, though, you have to admit. I wish we could have recorded it and replayed it later for them, just so they could see how silly they were all being."
"I'm just glad he didn't see us."
"How could he have seen us, Ginny? That's why this is called an invisibility cloak! Hey, watch it!"
"What?
You said it was invisible. So no one could see me do it!"
"So,
someone could walk by and hear you-"
"Well, then we'll just have to be very quiet, now won't we?" And she kissed him, just to shut him up.
