Disclaimer: After sixteen of these, you'd think everyone would have got the message. It, being, that I do not own Harry Potter or related characters. I do not claim royalties or anything in succession of this fan fiction.
Again, a huge thanks to Lain for editing this chapter! I owe you so much! Your advice has been great!
Big huge thanks to all who reviewed!! You all left such wonderful reviews, full of wonderful compliments, which have inflamed by already big ego lol! Thanks! -).
Chapter Seventeen: I Loved You First.
Monday fell upon Hermione swiftly. She had spent the Sunday prior, with Draco. They had broken the news to Narcissa, Harry and the Weasley's. He had gone relatively okay. Harry and Ron had taken Draco aside, in the pretence of a "manly" discussion, and had promptly threatened him with castration, death or torture, simply whatever would be applicable, if the need ever arose. Draco had laughed in their faces and excused himself, feeling a sweat band form around his lower neck. Harry and Ron had spent the following evening glowering at him menacingly. Hermione had yet to break the news to her parents, deciding that it would best for her to break the astounding news to them over a quiet family meal, in which Draco would just have to be present for.
Mrs. Weasley's exclamation at the news of Hermione's engagement had been Hermione's ultimate favourite so far. It went something along the lines of;
"Well it's about time, dearie. You know you're not getting any younger. Best to snap em up while your young. You're such a pretty thing too! Only a matter of time till this happened. And, oh my, Draco! He's a fine looking young man, isn't he dear? Reminds me of my Arthur" Molly said blushing a rosy hue and continuing to bustle around her kitchen, brandishing a copper pan and waving it in the air, pointing it at Hermione. "So I can expect more delightful children from you two soon, dearie?" Molly had enquired hopefully, casting a curious glance at Hermione's midriff. Now, it was Hermione's turn to blush, she basically shouted "No, not yet", earning herself lopsided, concerned glances from everyone else. She had then hurriedly excused herself and occupied herself near the mantle.
Hermione was currently sat in the staff room at Wands Way. The females were circled around Hermione tightly, like animals circling it's prey and were exclaiming over her engagement ring, and swooning at the details of the proposal. Draco sat next to her, his arm draped casually over her, and a very proud grin marring his features.
"I wish my Eric had been as romantic!" shared Eleanor Evans, the young, mousy haired Transfiguration teacher. "But no! How'd he propose to me? After a stroll down Blackpool pier and a bag of chips!" she exclaimed hotly. "Don't know why I ever said yes!" she huffed; glaring in envy at the huge sparkler perched on Hermione's un-manicured finger, her face sporting a loving expression at the thought of her Eric.
"Dear that's just awful!" agreed Sarah Jones, patting Eleanor on the back sympathetically. "Well Nathan, he proposed on an island in Tahiti, after my friend Angela's wedding. It was beautiful. If only it had lasted. Can't say the end was quite as desirable as the beginning" Sarah said sadly, her long shiny black hair hiding her face from view. She was talking about her brutal divorce case in which Nathan had been caught committing adultery with a hotel cleaner, during their honeymoon in Hawaii. The girl's all hugged her softly, muttering explicit things about Nathan under their breaths.
Draco sat, pretending to be interested in the conversation around him. He didn't understand how one could be interested listening to the life stories of fellow colleagues. He was bored, and oddly frightened by all the clustered females, eyeing him as he her were a piece of prime British Beef. His eyes restlessly followed the hands of the clock, placed above the ornate fireplace. Only a minute till he was freed. He counted down in his head, tuning out the voice of Sarah Jones, focusing on the numbers jumping around in his mind. Finally he heard the bell toll. Jumping up, he attacked Hermione's mouth, departing with a hasty "Love you!" Draco rolled his eyes when the women clustering around his fiancée practically melted. 'Honestly' he thought as he hurried away from the overcrowded room. In fact, he was in such haste; he never noticed the cerulean eyes glaring darkly at him from an alcove.
Hermione had been left completely alone in the staff room, which she liked, as she craved the quiet of solidarity. She had a rare free period this lesson. She began to hum a tune she had heard from the radio, The Killers, Mr. Brightside. Her voice grew louder, as she marked her year fives workbooks in red ink. Hermione was always amazed at the simple mistakes her pupils often made. Honestly the eight times tables weren't that hard. Marking a big X in red ink, she sighed, the diamond in her ring had just caught the sun. She silently admired it; unbeknownst to her she had an audience.
"It's beautiful Hermione", said Rob, closing the door. Hermione jumped startled. Her quill fell free from her fingers, and she blushed. "Um, hi Rob. Didn't see you there" she mumbled as she bent down and retrieved her eagle feathered quill. "Obviously" he stated sarcastically as he sat down in an empty seat across from her. Hermione frowned.
"Draco Malfoy, then Hermione?" Rob said scathingly. "Yes, it is" she said hotly, feeling insulted. She sat back down, and glanced at the shut door, contemplating running away from Rob. She felt oddly afraid. "Why him?" Rob asked softly, his eyes boring into her. "Why him what?" Hermione asked, confused. "Why are you engaged to him?" Rob spat suddenly. "Oh… Well, because I love him" she concluded, her chin held high defiantly, this statement sounding stupid in her mind.
"Really?" Rob asked disbelievingly, laughing slightly, his voice coming out choked. "My Hermione, you have only known him for a week!" he exclaimed. "No, that's not true" Hermione stated. "Draco and I go back. A long way, in fact I've known him since I was eleven!" she said emphatically. "And" she continued "he's the" she stopped, suddenly unsure. "He's the what?" Rob encouraged, his blue eyes darkening to a navy blue.
"The father of my children!" she said hesitantly. Rob inhaled. "He's the guy who got you up the duff, then abandoned you to raise two children, at the age of nineteen?" he asked. Hermione nodded. "And your marrying him?" he asked incredulously.
Hermione blinked. "He didn't know I was pregnant" she countered. "I never told him" she said. Now it was Rob's turn to blink. "Why not?" he asked now interested, yet slightly puzzled. "We had a history. Let's just say he was misguided in his beliefs…" Hermione said faintly, hating the memories that had begun to resurface. "He was racist?" Rob gaped. Hermione nodded, and Rob just sat in his chair quietly, gaping in a mixture of shock and disbelief at Hermione, the girl he loved, who was marrying an arrogant, racist man who had tormented her endlessly in her childhood.
The silence hung thick in the air, the only sound penetrating it, was the scratching noise of Hermione's quill. Hermione's eyebrows contracted in confusion at the barely legible handwriting of a Mister Isaac Burstyn. Grumbling she placed it at the bottom of the pile on her lap, conscious of the uncomfortable, relentless staring of Robert Reid. Shifting slightly, she quickly lifted her eyes up, and was met with what she had expected, the ice cool glare of Rob's cerulean eyes. She sighed and resumed her marking. She wished he would hurry up and get over his strange obsession with her, it was unnerving.
"Why couldn't you have said yes to me?" he said suddenly, his voice broken, his eyes remaining downcast. He was referring to the time when he himself had proposed to Hermione. She had rejected him, needless to say.
"Rob…" Hermione said softly. "You know why… Please, Just drop it?" she pleaded. "No", he replied, his lower lip jutting out defiantly. "Didn't you love me?" he continued. "Not even once?"
"Yes I did love you once. I still do, just not in the way you want me too. I love you as a friend. Not as a husband, not as a prospective father to the twins either" Hermione said, as nicely as she could. "But I love you. I've loved you since I first saw you. Why can't you just love me back?" he said his voice lowering a decibel every syllable. Hermione gazed up at him, compassion burning brightly in her chocolate orbs.
"I was willing, to be yours. I was willing to be a father" Rob whispered. "Wasn't that enough?" he asked eyes pleading with her to say yes. "Say you love me Hermione! Please say you love me!" He begged, his eyes alight with a manic determination.
"I know you'll find someone special one day Rob. Let me go, and I know you will" Hermione said consolingly. "DAMMIT Hermione!!" Rob roared. "I don't want anyone else! I want you!!" he implored. And with no warning, Rob stood up and kissed Hermione forcefully. Hermione was outrageously angered by his antics, and pushed against his chest. He didn't budge an inch. Rob continued the assault on her mouth, pushing hard against her lips. Hermione's fingers felt deftly around in her pockets, looking for her wand. She couldn't find it. She had left it in her coat pocket, which was hanging up near the door. Hermione whimpered pitifully in defeat, and Rob mistook this as a moan of pleasure, began to become engrossed. Hermione struggled against his body, but he was simply too strong.
Hermione, seeing no other way to get free, bit down hard on his lower lip. She felt the coppery taste of his blood inside of her mouth and spat it out. "Stop it Rob! STOP IT!" she shouted at him hysterically. He simply glanced at her, his black hair falling into oceanic blue eyes, his strong jaw line taut, and his lips bruised. His eyes suddenly darkened, and he gasped. As quick as he could, he crawled off Hermione, hanging his head limply in shame.
"I'm sorry Hermione!" he said brokenly, a tear marring its path down the perfection of his face. "I didn't mean too!" he told her, "I just wanted you to know how much I love you!" Rob exclaimed eyes boring into Hermione's head, begging her to believe.
Hermione was in a state of shock. She had just been practically sexually assaulted by one of her closest friends. She was staring at Rob in a sort of apathy, and his pleas were escaping her. "Rob" she whispered, "just leave me alone. I don't love you, I love Draco. Leave me alone, or so help me, I'll tell him and everyone else what you just did," she threatened softly. She stood up on unsteady legs, and began to walk towards the door.
"Hermione, Wait!!" Rob called. Hermione stopped, but did not look at him. "I loved you first!" he told her, as if believed that this would change anything. "I loved you regardless of your blood, I loved you regardless of your friends, and I loved you despite your past" he said irrevocably, "I love you for you!" he cried desperately when he received no acknowledgement.
Hermione continued to walk, ignoring him with derision, her heels making a loud noise in the silence of the room. She reached the door and opened it. Before she left she turned to Rob, "Please don't speak to me ever again. Stay away from my children. Stay away from Draco. But most of all, go and get some mental help and stay away from me!", and with that said she walked out and slammed the door detrimentally.
She walked in confidence along the deserted corridors of Wands Way, the brightly coloured artwork of the children reflecting slightly in the sun's morning rays. Hermione's head was held was held high, and she came to a decision. She would not disclose to anyone what had just taken place. It would only cause harm, and hurt for all. Despite her strong demeanour, a tear escaped unnoticed by Hermione, and ran down her check, her mascara running slightly. Before she knew it, her eyes were brimming with unshed tears. She ran to the nearest girl's bathroom, threw herself into the closest cubicle and cried her eyes out into her hands.
Authors Note: Hey everyone! Sorry it took so long to post this chapter, I was having a mental debate about its content. It took a massive U-turn in my first write of this chapter, my beta; Lain gave me some good advice and basically said it was just a tad too much. Thanks Lain :-)!
I've been terribly busy with my exams, mock GCSEs, in Geography, History, Catering, English Language, and Literature. They ended today, thank the Lord! (",).
I went to a Blink 182 concert on the 7th, and it was just awesome!! Sugarcult and The Kinnison's were supporting, and it rocked! Got a bit squashed as I got pushed to the front, but yea it was great. I was planning on seeing the Manic Street Preachers, who were being supported by Razorlight, but they cancelled, and postponed it to Jan 11th, which I won't be able to make. Total bummer.
On another note, my operation is taking place on Monday morning, so it may be a while till you see another chapter, I'll definitely have posted one by New years though, :-), and it'll be about the dinner taking place at the Granger's. Should be interesting.
Hope you all have a MERRY CHRISTMAS!! Don't forget to leave out the mince pies and milk for Santa now! ;-).
A few personal responses:
Harry Ptoetr Freak: The paintball thing wasn't planned lol, I was just writing and it came into my head outta nowhere!! I enjoyed writing it though, made me a giggle a bit at the imagery. I'm not sure how many more chapters there are to go! Probably about ten, but it's just estimation! Thanks for the compliment, and for the wonderful review! You rock!
Runaway mental patient: Sure, I'll check your fics out the moment I have some spare time!! Which I'll have plenty of in the new year!
EgyptsStar: :-) thanks for your lavish compliments, it made me blush!! Lol, such an ego boost to get a review like yours! You rock!! ), thanks for your review!
Honey-gurl808: Ah, the reactions of the friends and family. Hermione's parent's reaction should be interesting, I hope. And yup, the beach is stunning, and I too want Hermione's ring!! (Sighs). Hmm, I need to find someone like Draco… I wish lol. Anyways, thanks loads for your review! It was one of the best reviews I got for this chapter! :-).
Smay: Perhaps… I debated upon having a small sequel, but I'm just gonna see how this pans out first. It would be fascinating to see Leo and Libby all grown up… :-), thanks for your review!!
Blonde-brain: Hey! I meant to tell you that in your last review, for chapter 15, you were the only one who correctly guessed what Draco's intentions were!! :-). Guess it's not true about blondes being dumb then :p. Lol, thanks a zillion for your review, you rock!!
Slytherin ice princess: The reactions!! I think I should have devoted an entire chapter to the reactions…. Too late now lol. Thanks for your review, and I'm keeping on smiling, see: D!
XxXbloody nekoXxX: No problems! Don't worry hun, I'm not mad! And I agree, it is a pwettyful picture! Thanks for your review!!
Ginny-and-Draco-Fan: Oh my, thank you so much! I hope it'll all be fine too!! I like you :-), you seem truly nice. Thanks for your review; it cheered me up so much!!
Medea Callous: Well I guess Liberty could turn out like him… It was just me not thinking probably, and maybe being a bit sexist, which is weird because I'm against all that… I just thought that as she's only eight, and into the age where fairies and princesses are the top of her imagination, she would prefer a pretty bracelet more than a broom.
Finally-defeated: Lol!! I know his eyes are grey hun, calm down!! :-). You know something; I have absolutely no idea why I made his eyes aqua blue… Spur of the moment thing most likely lol. Plus, I'm a natural idiot/klutz. I myself would simply melt if I were proposed to like that… by Draco, even though he's fictional!! Is it even possible to fall in love with a fictional character? Coz if its not, then I think I've exceeded the impossible! What an achievement! :-), well anyways I'm glad you liked this chapter! I loved the last update of SE, Hadrian's gone slightly evil! He's becoming slightly scary lol. So, tell me what you think of this chappie, please???
Marmalade Fever: I thought you could get pink sapphires?? I know they originally blue, but I checked it out on Google, and yup there are definitely pink sapphires… At least I hope there is lol :-). Anyways, thanks for your review!!
Daunting Darkness: Yup, quite the little heartbreaker he will be! He got all the good looking genes in the family, it's so unfair! :-). I'll be ready to start swatting in a few years, -). Thanks for your review!! :-).