Theo is finally here! Yay! Who else was waiting for this moment? I couldn't wait for Theo to appear, but he's a stubborn one and didn't want to appear before the right time heheh. Hope you enjoy reading this one.

Hermione was having a hard time stopping her laughter from echoing all around the coffee shop; it seemed almost impossible. Theo had a great sense of humour, and she was beginning to find him even more attractive by the minute—not that she cared.

'Why not?' a voice echoed in her head, a voice that sounded like Ginny's. 'It seems like he was flirting with you, so why shouldn't you flirt back?'

'Because I left a date halfway into it, and I don't think it would be a good thing to flirt with another man so soon,' Hermione mentally replied.

'Weak,' the voice taunted her.

Hermione grimaced. Was that what she thought of herself?

"Is everything all right?" Theo asked. Hermione stared at him like she couldn't understand him. "The look on your face screams that you want to murder someone. Should I be worried?"

"Oh, I was just thinking." Hermione awkwardly laughed and hoped that he didn't think she was too weird. "Have you decided what you're going to order?"

"Not yet, everything seems so good," Theo replied, looking back at the menu in his hand. "What do you suggest?"

Hermione bit her lip, thinking about her favourite beverages and what she liked to eat. She didn't want a replay of what had happened with Terry; she hoped Theo wouldn't be like the jerk she had left behind.

Making her decision, she pointed out what she usually got when visiting the coffee shop. Theo motioned to a waitress, and Hermione braced herself to watch his interaction with the girl.

"Hello, can we have two chocolate scones, a caramel macchiato and a cappuccino, please?" Theo was being so polite with her favourite waitress that Hermione couldn't help but melt. "Actually, make it three scones, one to go, and a hot chocolate to go too, please."

"Coming right up," the waitress replied and waved at Hermione before walking away.

"You come here often?" Theo asked, seeming amused. "The waitress seemed to know you already."

"It's my favourite coffee shop, and Hannah is one of my favourite waitresses, but don't tell the others." Hermione laughed, knowing that the staff already knew her and her friends.

"I promise I won't say anything." Theo pretended to zip his mouth and throw away the key. Hermione wanted to squeal over how cute he was. "So... why is this your favourite coffee shop?"

Hermione leaned back in her chair to think about how to answer his question; she hadn't thought about it before.

"It's the atmosphere, you know? Hannah's mother owns the place, and you can feel that this is very comfortable." Hermione was staring off into space, trying to articulate her thoughts. "It's like you come here to have coffee but also feel like you're in your own sitting room, enjoying a hot beverage."

"I can understand that feeling," Theo said softly. When Hermione looked up, he was gazing at her, a small smile playing on his lips. Hermione blushed and was grateful that Hannah chose that moment to return with their orders.

"Here we go! Two chocolate scones, one cappuccino, and one caramel macchiato," she said, placing everything in front of them. "Your order to go is going to be ready when you leave, so it stays hot."

"Thank you, that's very kind of you," Theo said, looking amused. "Now I understand why Hermione likes it here so much."

"Oh, so you're saying you like our shop, Hermione? I wouldn't have known," Hannah said with a smirk, which in turn made Hermione groan. "How's your scone?"

"It's amazing as always, but the sarcasm is a little overdone," Hermione deadpanned. Theo and Hannah laughed. "Thank your mum; if she wasn't happily married, I would marry her just for the scones."

"I'll pass on the message." Hannah laughed when Hermione's face warmed. "Enjoy your meal."

Theo waited until Hannah had left before saying something, which Hermione was grateful for. "The scones are that good that you'd propose to Hannah's mum?"

"I was joking about the marriage proposal, but yes, the scones are that good." Hermione bit into her scone and tried not to moan at the freshly baked taste. "You should eat yours, or I can't be held responsible for eating it if you're too slow."

Theo laughed and bit into his scone, moaning a little. Hermione lost her ability to focus; she almost drooled as she kept her eyes trained on his mouth. Theo seemed to sense her looking at him, because he asked, "Like what you see?"

Hermione blushed and shot back, "Yeah, I want that… scone."

Theo laughed and Hermione shook herself to stop herself from acting like a creep before she continued to eat her scone. Theo was an excellent person to talk to, and he was always laughing at the things she said and touching her; her hand was atop of the table and he put his hand over it, squeezed a little before pulling away when he finished laughing and Hermione was loving the feeling of his hand on hers. Hermione was finally starting to relax.

She had just allowed her mind to wander towards not-so-innocent thoughts when Theo's phone startled them both.

Hermione tried not to look at the name, but her curiosity got the better of her. The name on the screen said, 'Home 3,' and it made Hermione more curious.

"I'm so sorry, I need to answer this," Theo said with an apologetic look, but Hermione simply smiled. "It'll be quick, I promise."

"No need to worry, Theo." Hermione was curious to know more about the person calling Theo, but she wasn't going to say anything. "Take your time."

Theo said a quick 'thank you,' before answering his phone. "Hello? Hey, love, why are you calling me? No, I have some things to finish before I come home… Yes, I'll bring you something, don't worry... Yeah, I'll see you soon... Love you, too."

Hermione frowned at hearing him talk with someone so lovingly while he was seated in a coffee shop with her. He didn't seem like an asshole cheating type, but she wasn't the best character judge—look at the date she just left. Theo seemed nice, but Hermione felt something nagging at the corner of her mind to say something, but she didn't know him that well to say something.

Theo hung up, and Hermione shoved another bite of scone into her mouth. "I'm sorry about that."

Hermione swallowed, feeling a little confused about the way he's acting, before she replied, "It's fine, it happens. I'm going to grab another scone, excuse me." She stood up and walked towards the counter before he could say anything.

Hermione thought she had escaped a horrible date and found someone better, but it looked like she had the worst luck ever when it came to her love life. Theo hadn't promised her anything, but she thought that they had both been flirting. Now, she just felt horrible for having responded to his banter.

"Are you all right, Hermione? You look like you're going to pass out or murder the next person that crosses your path," Hannah said, making Hermione plaster a fake smile on her face. "Anything you need? I'm sorry I can't give you our kitchen knife, but I can give you another scone."

Hermione laughed and relaxed. "Yes, please. Another chocolate scone. Maybe a double-chocolate one?"

"Something wrong? You only order one of those when you're PMSing or want to slap someone." Hannah grabbed the scone and placed it on a plate before handing it to Hermione.

Hermione sighed and smiled a little less forcefully. "I'm alright, Han, don't worry. I just needed some chocolate to make me happy."

"Always happy to indulge your chocolate obsession," Hannah replied, waving her off when Hermione reached for her wallet. "This one was on me."

"Thank you, Han, you're the best!" Taking a deep breath, she took a bite of her scone before returning to her table, where Theo was looking at his phone. "Is something wrong?"

Theo looked like she had caught him doing something wrong. "Nothing wrong... I just didn't realise what time it was. I got distracted by the company." He smiled at her, and Hermione returned it even if it felt a little strained on her part. She was hurt about the way that he was flirting with her when he was committed to someone else; but she wasn't going to be called impolite.

"Sometimes time flies and we don't even realise," Hermione replied. She wanted to smack her own head at what she had said. "And I always love to spend time here. It's usually where I meet my friends."

"I can see why; it's a lovely place." Theo looked around with a focused look on his face. "I've heard about this place before, but I never came here. I'm glad I took the chance today."

Hermione smiled and finished her scone, not knowing what else she could say. She was already dreading having invited him here, when it meant that he could bring whoever called him here and she would see them being all cute with each other.

When Theo motioned to Hannah for the bill, Hermione decided it was the perfect opportunity for her to leave the coffee shop without making things awkward.

"Thank you for the coffee, Theo. It was lovely to meet you," Hermione said, getting to her feet and pulling out her wallet. "I needed this after the horrible date I had."

"I'm the one who should thank you for accompanying me and introducing me to this place." Theo stood up, looking a little lost. Hermione was trying not to cry out of frustration, like she always did; this wasn't her fault. "Please, allow me to pay for the coffee."

"You don't need to do that—" Hermione tried to open her wallet, but Theo placed his hand over her and halted her movements.

"I insist," Theo said, gazing into her eyes. Hermione couldn't help but swoon a little until she remembered the phone call he had received. "What do you think about doing this again—"

Hermione didn't let him finish. "Oh, sorry! I forgot I need to talk to Hannah's mum before I leave. If you'll excuse me, I need to go before the shop is full again."

And like a coward, Hermione flew from their table and hurried towards the kitchen door, thankful to have an excuse for leaving Theo and not feeling too guilty about it.

"So you went out with another man after ditching the first man who was a total tosser?" Ginny asked Hermione two days later. They were entering the 'Coffeetopia', the same coffee shop where Hermione had taken Theo to. "How is your life not a Netflix movie yet?"

Hermione groaned, wondering if it was wise to have told Ginny about her disastrous date. She knew she had to tell Ginny, or else, Draco or Blaise would question her and she wasn't ready for that.

"You need to stop wasting so much time browsing Netflix and live your life, you know that, right?" Hermione asked, entering the coffee shop. "And it wasn't like that. I don't think I'll ever see Theo again."

"Theo, huh? Tell me more about this man that you don't intend to see again." Ginny was all but glowing. "And I thought the guy we chose was Terry?"

"You say it as if we chose him from a magazine and I bought him," Hermione replied, walking towards the counter. "And yes, I did go out with Terry, but he was such a wanker that I left him at the coffee shop and walked away."

"Now I get why you didn't want to bring him here," Ginny said, joining the line. "But how did you meet the other guy right after?"

Hermione sighed, not wanting to explain what happened. "I left in such a hurry that I didn't look where I was going and I bumped into Theo. We started talking and somehow ended up here."

Hermione didn't say that she had thought she had hit the jackpot when she ran into Theo, only to have her hopes crushed after he had received that phone call. It was too humiliating for even her to explain.

"And they looked like they were into each other until Hermione ran out of here like her arse was on fire," Hannah said when they reached the front. "Hey, Gin! Long time, no see."

"Hi, Han, I'm so glad to have stopped here today!" Ginny was looking like Christmas had come earlier. "They were flirting? How was he? Hermione has been holding her tongue and hasn't told me anything."

"Hermione is standing right here, remember?" Hermione said before Hannah could say anything to her curious friend. "Hi, Hannah, I'll have a double-chocolate scone and a cappuccino, please."

"Oh, chocolate and caffeine! Someone is in need of an extra shot today," Ginny sang, and Hermione glared at her. "Puh-lease, do you think that face is going to make me stop? I'll find out what happened one way or the other."

Hermione huffed but smiled nonetheless; she knew Ginny only cared for her but had a curious way to show it.

"If you really want to know about everything, you can pay for my share and I'll tell you everything." Hermione winked at Ginny, knowing the redhead wouldn't calm down until Hermione told her. "I'll be at our usual table."

Hermione and Ginny spent the rest of the afternoon updating each other about what they had been up to. Ginny learnt about Hermione's date—she agreed he was a wanker—and then she asked the question Hermione had been dreading.

"But what about the other guy, Theo? You said he seemed nice," Ginny said, looking at Hermione for answers. "You two didn't exchange phone numbers so you could get in contact again?"

"I don't think it would have been wise because I don't think he's interested in me like that." Hermione didn't want to explain what had happened to Ginny unless she wanted her friend to go on a killing rampage. "Let it go, Gin. I still have another eleven dates to go on, remember?"

Ginny clapped her hands in glee, and Hermione dreaded what her friend was going to say next. "Oh, yes, let's choose the next date!"

Hermione sighed but accepted her fate. She had signed up for those dates, but right now, she was having second thoughts about them. No matter what, she would continue with them until she found someone she could bring to her family Christmas party.

"All right, Gin, who do you think should be next?" Hermione asked. If the glint in Ginny's eyes was any sign, Hermione knew she was in for a treat.

TUN-DUN-DUN! Theo, my precious cinnamon bun, what are you playing at? Tell me what are your thoughts on Theo.