Shiver

A Cedric/Cho songfic to Shiver by Coldplay.

Read & Review.

So I look in your direction
But you pay me no attention, do you?
I know you don't listen to me
'Cos you say you see straight through me, don't you?

It wasn't fair. How could such heart-wrenching beauty be just? It was cold and brash and unforgiving – superior, even – no hand could steady its profound bravado. Oh, how he wished his hand could be the one to do the impossible; in an allegorical sense, of course.

He watched Cho dash across the open courtyard, clutching a thick pile of dusty library books in her cradled arms. She had her head down to brace herself against the remorseless November wind. He contemplated his plan of attack – his mode of operation.

It wasn't as if he hadn't tried this before, the whole chasing-down-and-awkwardly-conversing bit. But for now it was all he had up his sleeve; his cool and casual Hufflepuff sleeve. He did have reasons to be overly-cautious. Last time he had talked to her she had turned him over like a bed sheet. Admittedly, he had come up with an impetuous line involving a broom and a Snitch.

Now he was left with a girl who had him pegged as a stupid, hormonal jock – and this was the girl he happened to be frantically in love with. It was as though she saw straight through him. He felt like a show of smoke and mirrors after the lights had been turned on: the secrets unmasked.

And on and on
From the moment I wake, to the moment I sleep
I'll be there by your side; just you try and stop me
I'll be waiting in line, just to see if you care

There was a time when he used to be the most overconfident and zealous boy in the school. Now he would kill to just be confident. His shoes felt ten sizes too big and his tongue was tied in such a way that he was convinced someone had jinxed him without his knowledge. But he couldn't keep his eyes off her.

He was starting to think he was on the ledge of a tower peering into the river of obsession. Oh, but with one kiss he would gladly jump. It was all madly nauseating and uplifting. He was going to finally pluck up the courage to ask Cho to the Yule Ball. He'd seen the way she looked at Harry sometimes, yet this was a blessing in a most awkward and ugly disguise.

It gave him a reason to get a move on – to hurry up and get it over with. Had he seriously thought that he would be the only heart in a school of many vying for the affections of one so fair? Well, thank you Harry Potter, my lad. You've provided the starting gun shot in this race and saved me the bullet. Perhaps he'd have to wait in line for her affection, but maybe it was the only way he could get a glimpse into her eyes and see if there was any chance in hell that'd she'd give a damn.

Oh…
Did you want me to change?
Well I changed for good
And I want you to know that you'll always get your way
I wanted to say…

He led her swiftly out of the Great Hall. If this feeling wasn't what you called airy he didn't know what was. She clung loosely to his jacket, her hair flying rebelliously from the sparkling clips and pins. He walked her all the way to the Ravenclaw common room entrance, music still echoing from far away.

She blushed and smiled, managing to look embarrassed and stunning at the same time. You've changed, Cedric, she said, her words like a hymn. He hung to the sound of his name rolling off her lips.

Well, I've changed for good, he said, almost whispering. For you, he wanted to say – I've changed for you! Instead he bent down low and held her delicate face in his hands, treading his lips upon the most foreign and wonderful surface of her own. He was sure at that moment he had touched what only the angels had.

Goodnight, she said, her voice slow and dreamlike. And she turned on the spot and walked away, not before looking back over her shoulder to smile at him. He felt his heart leap to his throat. All she needed do was ask him to be hers forever and he would have said yes. From that moment on he knew she would always get her way.

Don't you shiver
Shiver

Her teeth chattered loudly as they made their way out of the water. The lake's depths were most frigid and desolate, but he would gladly do it again for her. He guided her gently to the dock, though she was admittedly as strong a swimmer as he was. He let her climb up the rusty, iron ladder first. She nearly slipped back into the water, but he caught her mid-fall and helped her up again.

He desperately tried to read her expression as they stepped upon firm ground – was that pity or relief in her eyes? Now she knew. Cho knew that she was his treasure above all else, the thing he'd miss the most. If it scared, troubled, or stirred her, he did not know.

Before a syllable could leave his mouth, Madam Pomfrey was upon them, wrapping Cho in blanket upon blanket. You're shivering, she observed as Cedric stood near by in his still drenched swimming trunks. He laughed somewhat amicably, somewhat nervously, until Madam Pomfrey handed him a towel, mercifully giving him a reason to avoid further conversation.

Sing it loud and clear
I'll always be waiting for you

She wouldn't forget it. She wouldn't forget any of it. She remembered the night after he had pulled from the depths of the lake. Thank you, he had whispered in her left ear, leaning in closely.

Thank you for what? She had asked, her cheeks burning by the firelight.

For not laughing, he replied. She didn't quite understand him, but at the same time she knew him better than anyone else.

And the day she had watched him enter the maze. I'll be waiting for you, she whispered as he pulled away from her embrace.

And he hadn't said anything.

He never said goodbye. No 'see you later', no gesture, no wave.

Instead he had walked toward the maze entrance, wand in hand, his hair flying in all directions at once. And that would have been the last time she saw his face if he had not looked over his shoulder before stepping into darkness, smiling in place of words.

I'll always be waiting for you