Hi! Not much to say, but here's another chapter!

Because I have a few time gaps that I'm trying to fill in, if anyone has anything you want to see happen in this universe (has to be realistic bc I can't change the main storyline, of course) please let me know, and I can try and add it somewhere!

I gave cheesy and be11a a chapter off because they are busy with Romione Trope fest stuff and I feel guilty asking them to beta, but they are still amazing! Speaking of, Trope fest fics start coming out in march, so be sure to CHECK THEM OUT as there will be many many awesome fics- including (hopefully if i can get them done on time) a few from me!

oOo

"Wake up, birthday boy."

Ron cracked his eyes open, barely able to make out Hermione's blurry yet familiar form standing next to his bed. She was smiling down at him, her wild hair pulled back from her face, a plate in her hands.

"What are you doing here?" he asked as he rubbed the sleep out of his eyes, a loopy grin spreading across his face.

"Your mum made you breakfast, but I came to deliver it," she replied. "Scoot over."

Ron pushed his body to the other side of his bed so Hermione could climb on. She sat down, moving so that her back was against the headboard, her legs stretched out on top of his blanket. He groaned as he stretched, his arms bumping into her as he did so. "What time is it?" he asked with a yawn.

"Your alarm clock should go off in about ten minutes."

"Going to school on your birthday should be illegal," Ron mumbled as he sat up and scooted so that he was sitting next to Hermione, the side of his body snugly against hers.

"Yeah, well maybe you can make it a law one day."

Ron sighed, leaning his head against hers as he took the plate she offered, his mouth watering at the sight of the three stacked pancakes topped with a mountain of whipped cream, chocolate syrup, and sprinkles.

"Bloody brilliant," he said as he took the fork from the plate and started to dig in. "Have I told you that you're the best person in the entire world- no- the entire universe?!"

Hermione laughed. "A few times, actually. But as I said, I am just the deliverer."

Ron turned and kissed her on the cheek, hoping his breath didn't smell too bad. "Then you're the greatest birthday pancake deliverer in the world."

He cut a piece from one of the pancakes that only had a small amount of whipped cream on it, and held it out on his fork to Hermione.

"It's yours, Ron," she chided, not moving to take the bite.

Ron rolled his eyes. "And what's mine is yours, Hermione. So taste it."

Hermione sighed, but after he stuck his lower lip out for dramatics, she leaned forward and took the bite, Ron watching the way her mouth fit over the edge of the fork before sliding off.

"Not bad," she said after she swallowed.

"Fucking delicious is what it is," Ron responded as he took another bite.

"I wouldn't go that far. It's still a bit too sweet for my taste."

Ron chuckled, taking a dollop of whipped cream on his fork and smearing it on her cheek.

"Ron!" Hermione half screeched.

"It's my birthday!" he said hurriedly. "You can't be mad at me on my birthday!"

Hermione glared at him, but she kept her mouth shut. Ron chuckled again, taking his finger and wiping the whipped cream from her cheek before popping it in his mouth.

"You're seventeen now," she started, Ron's mouth once again full of his birthday pancakes.

"Mhm," he hummed.

"Practically an adult now."

Ron swallowed. "Nah. Adult means responsibility. Who wants that?" he asked, shaking his head.

"So, as an almost adult, what do you plan to do today?" Hermione continued, ignoring his remark.

"Well," he said in a slow voice as he cut another piece of pancake with his fork. "After school, I plan to spend the rest of the day with my favorite person in the entire world."

"Really? And who would that be?"

Ron shrugged. "I don't think you've ever met her."

"Oh, is that so?" Hermione said, her mouth twitching. "Who is she to you then?"

Ron put the last piece of pancake in his mouth. Chewing, he set the plate down carefully on his end table before turning back around to face Hermione.

"What's it matter to ya?" he finally asked, raising an eyebrow.

Hermione said nothing for several seconds, but then she slid off the side of his bed and stood up, looking down at him with a blank expression on her face.

"I guess it doesn't." She shrugged. "But if you're going to be like that…"

She only took one step backwards before Ron lunged for her. He wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her towards him, pressing his face against her neck.

"I was talking about you," he cried. "You, you, you. Always you."

Hermione let out a breathless laugh, her arms moving to wrap around his shoulders. She squeezed him tight. "That's what I thought you said, Ronald Weasley."

With his face still in her neck, her chest flush against his, Ron could feel that both of their hearts were beating at a rapid pace. Neither of them were moving away or saying anything, and he closed his eyes, contemplating if Hermione could possibly be feeling the things he was currently feeling. As soon as the thought surfaced, however, he pushed it down again, knowing it would only lead to disappointment on his end.

Still, he took the moment to breathe her in, loving her proximity. His hands splayed out on her back as he pulled her closer, inhaling deeply.

"I love you," he murmured, the words coming out muffled and barely legible, even to him. He grimaced, hoping Hermione hadn't understood. He'd told her he loved her before, of course, but never like that. Never had he said it in a way that would ever make her wonder just what kind of love he was talking about.

"What?" she asked, her hands skimming over his shoulders.

Even though he was pretty sure from her tone that she hadn't heard him correctly, Ron internally berated himself for the mistake. He pulled away from her and sat back, clearing his throat. "Thank you," he said in a weak voice. "For the pancakes, I mean. They were really really good."

Ron thought he saw a flicker of disappointment flash across Hermione's face, but the next second she smiled at him and he wondered if he'd imagined it. "You're welcome, Ron," she said. "But once again, I only delivered them."

Hermione was now staring at him as if she were trying to figure out a complicated math problem, their faces only inches apart. Ron didn't move, waiting for her to either say something or move away first, but she didn't. Just when he was about to question how long he could hold himself back from kissing her without going insane, Hermione moved her thumb up to run it across his bottom lip.

"Saving this chocolate syrup for later?" she asked in a quiet voice as she held her thumb out to him.

Without thinking, Ron took her hand in his and slowly licked the chocolate off her finger with his tongue. Hermione's breath hitched, and he immediately dropped her hand as if it were on fire. His stomach did a flip as he realized that the look Hermione was now giving him looked a lot like- dare he think it- desire.

He felt faint.

At that moment, the loud sound of his alarm clock made them both jump, Hermione giving a startled squeak as Ron cursed under his breath. Letting out an uncomfortable chuckle, he reached his hand out to turn the blasted thing off, his hand shaking as he did so. His heart was pounding in his chest, and it wasn't only because of the alarm clock scare.

"Well, I'd better let you get up and get ready for school," Hermione said, stepping away from him. "I have classes of course, but I took the day off work, so I'll be home about thirty minutes before you."

Ron nodded. "Sounds great," he said, his voice raspy.

"Happy birthday." Hermione leaned down and gave him a quick kiss on the cheek. "See you tonight," she added before turning around and walking out of his room, leaving Ron to wonder what the fuck had just happened.

For a moment, it had seemed as if she- no. He pushed the thought away. Ron knew Hermione cared about him- he wasn't a complete idiot- but there was no way she was in love with him. However, from the look she had given him mere minutes ago after he'd licked her finger (what the fuck had he been thinking anyway?) Ron knew she could very well want him- or at least she had in that moment.

His whole body tingled at the thought.

Groaning, he rested his head in his hands. Even if Hermione did want him though, that was only because right now there was nobody else in her life. Ron knew she hadn't shagged anyone since McLaggen, so it wasn't presumptuous to assume she was… lonely in that aspect.

The thought that Hermione might want him like that, even if only for that one split second, should have made Ron happy, but it didn't. There was no way that he'd ever be able to do the whole friends-with-benefits thing with Hermione. He snorted. There was also no way that she would be open to that idea either.

No. With Hermione, it was all or nothing, and Ron knew he'd never get all, so he had to settle for nothing.

What happened earlier, he couldn't let it happen again. It was too risky. He was playing with fire, and he was going to get burned beyond repair if he ever allowed anything to happen between them. He needed to hold himself accountable. If Hermione ever threw herself at him in a moment of weakness (however laughable that mental image was) Ron would have to be the one to put a stop to it. (Which, of course, was another laughable idea because he knew he'd never be able to)

He stood up, grabbing a few clothing items before heading towards the bathroom. He needed to get ready for school, but first, a shower was definitely needed.

oOo

"So you liked it?" Hermione asked as they walked around the small lake right outside of the movie theater.

Ron squeezed her hand. "Yeah. It was okay."

"Don't even pretend that you didn't get emotional! I saw tears in your eyes!"

He chuckled. "Nah. The theater was just dirty. Dust in the air, you know."

Hermione shoved him with her shoulder. "You're lying Ronald Weasley!"

Ron gasped, pretending to be highly offended. "I would never!"

"What other deep dark secrets are you hiding from me?"

Ron was only hiding one secret from her, but of course, he'd never let that one slip.

"Okay, okay, I'll tell you," he laughed.

Hermione's eyes lit up with excitement, and she leaned forward, eager to listen.

"My secret is I bet that you can't beat me to that light pole over there" he whispered before letting go of her hand and taking off, running as fast as he could.

He ignored Hermione's loud cry of outrage, and when he reached the grassy spot next to the light pole about five seconds later, he turned, smiling as he watched her still running towards him.

"That-wasn't-fair," she panted. "You didn't- give me- a fair chance."

Ron shrugged. "Even if I had, you still would have been left behind in the dust."

Hermione let out a laugh before tackling him. Ron caught her in his arms, but the force of her hit caused him to stumble, and when he did, his foot hit a dip in the ground. Ron fell backwards, flat onto his back, all the air leaving his lungs as he hit the grass, Hermione landing on top of him. He took a few deep breaths in order to regain what had been knocked out of him, and once he could breathe again he noticed that Hermione hadn't moved off of him.

"You okay?" he rasped, opening his eyes to check on her. She was cradled between his legs, her chest against his.

Hermione only nodded in response.

"You sure?"

She nodded again, but didn't say anything. Ron remembered how she hadn't been able to get off of him fast enough all those months ago when they had been on his bedroom floor in a similar position. This time, though, she looked comfortable- happy even.

He reached up and smoothed a few loose tendrils of hair that had fallen into her face. "You haven't said anything, and you always have something to say," he said in a soft voice.

It was too much. She was too close. Hermione licked her lips, and Ron almost lost it. "I think I-" he started, moving his arms back so he could push his body up.

Hermione sat back, her cheeks pink. "Are you hurt?" she asked.

"No, I-" Ron reached into his back pocket and pulled out the candy bar he'd gotten from the movie theater. "It's broken," he laughed, flopping the wrapper around.

Hermione smiled. "And melted as well."

Behind Hermione, Ron spotted someone sauntering towards them. "Shit," he muttered under his breath when he recognized bloody Cormac McLaggen.

Hermione turned just as McLaggen reached them, her eyes widening in surprise.

"Hermione! How are you?" he asked in an overenthusiastic voice.

"Cormac. Hi," Hermione responded, a tight smile on her lips.

McLaggen then turned to look down at Ron. "You're the neighbor, correct?"

Ron bit his tongue, determined not to start something with McLaggen, as it would only upset Hermione. "Ron. Yeah."

McLaggen smirked, and opened his mouth to say something else, but was interrupted by a voice calling out his name. Ron, Hermione, and Cormac all turned to see a beautiful dark-skinned woman approaching, her ample cleavage nearly falling out of her tiny dress as she ran up to them.

"I've been looking for you," she said in a whiny voice, grabbing onto McLaggen's arm as if it were a lifeline.

"See you later," McLaggen said as he shot Hermione a wink, and the two walked away together.

"I cannot believe you shagged that asswipe," Ron muttered, watching as McLaggen reached down and gave the girl's bum a squeeze.

Hermione didn't say anything, staring after the two with a contemplative look. "Well," she finally said. "He certainly moved up."

"Moved up?"

"Yes. She's way more beautiful than I am."

Ron frowned. "She was hot," he admitted. Hermione's face fell, and Ron hurried to clarify. "But she was no Hermione Granger."

Hermione snorted. "Yeah, well that makes me feel better!"

He shook his head. "You don't understand what I mean."

She crossed her arms "Then explain."

Ron thought about it. "It's the way you talk," he started.

"The way I talk?" Hermione asked in a slow voice.

He nodded. "You're brilliant Hermione, and everyone knows it as soon as you open your mouth." Hermione rolled her eyes, and Ron continued, not even close to being finished. "But it's so much more than that. You light up when you talk about something you care about, and I love watching you when it happens. "

She looked taken aback, and her frown changed to a look of curiosity. "Go on," she urged him, a small smile on her face.

"You have depth to you," he went on. "And maybe not even in an obvious way, but those who really know you see that you are so much more complex than the average bird. Not only that, you are beautiful in a classy way, and you don't need a shit ton of makeup, or revealing clothes to make you that way." Hermione's eyes were glassy. "You're just so much….more," he finished.

Hermione let out a small laugh as she reached up to wipe at her eyes. "As sweet as that was, Ron, I'm not positive I understand what you mean by 'more'."

Ron thought about it for a second, and then shrugged. "Dunno. No other way to explain it." He placed his hand on top of hers, his fingers moving over her knuckles. "You're my best friend, Hermione."

Ron let out an oomph as Hermione flung herself at him, wrapping her arms around his torso as she burrowed her face into his chest.

"Why do you have to be so sweet sometimes?"

"Sometimes?" he laughed, poking her sides.

"Yes. Sometimes."

"I take offense to that," Ron said as he lifted her up. Holding her bridal style, he took off running.

Hermione screamed, but she wrapped her arms around his neck and held onto him. Ron ran out onto the small wooden dock that stuck out onto the lake, stopping when he made it to the end.

"How often am I sweet, Hermione?" he warned.

Hermione screamed as he leaned forward as if to drop her in the water.

"Water looks nice and cold," Ron went on. "I could easily toss you in."

Hermione pulled her arms from around his neck and crossed her arms, staring up at him with a challenging stare. "You wouldn't."

Ron arched an eyebrow. "Would I?"

She shook her head. "No. Because I trust you."

Ron pulled his arm out from under her legs, helping her gain her footing with his other arm that was still wrapped around her. He groaned. "That's not fair! Using your trust in me like that!

Hermione smiled. "It is fair." She moved in and gave him a quick hug and a kiss on the cheek. "And you're sweet about eighty percent of the time."

"Eighty, huh?" he asked, pulling her closer when she went to move away. "I guess I can deal with that."

Hermione looked up at him and Ron stepped back, taking her hand instead. "Let's head back. It looks like it might rain," he said as his eyes scanned the dark and cloudy sky.

oOo

Luckily it didn't rain that night, and after Ron had turned off his bedroom lights, he decided to write to Hermione.

Hey.

Hi.

Just wanted you to know that I had fun tonight.

And what else?

Um. Dunno.

How about you admit the truth? Those were real tears in your eyes.

Fine. Yes, Hermione. It was really sad, okay? I mean, the ending. Really?! She died and went back to the bloody ship where Jack was there waiting for her! Of course I cried! But you know what else I thought about?

What?

That poor sod who she married. She spent years with him, had kids with him and everything, but when she died she went back to the man she knew for a week? It's like a bloody love triangle for dead people- or ghosts- or whatever they are.

Ron watched Hermione laugh as she read his note.

You're right. I didn't think of that. That is rather sad.

They both could have fit on that door, you know. Jack didn't have to die.

While I agree, there was significance in his death. Rose was able to do all the things that they'd talked about once she was free of her old life.

And she couldn't have done it with him?

She could have, it was just more profound that way. She needed to find herself without him.

So you're saying that when you fall in love with some bloke, it's okay if he dies because it will have meaning?

NO! Mygod, Ronald, I'm not saying that at all!

You're kind of scary, you know?

And yet you keep wanting to spend time with me.

I never said I made the smartest choices, did I?

Oh hush it! Anyway, It's best we get to bed. I'm pretty tired.

Alright. I'll just go and cry myself to sleep then.

You will not.

Fine. I'll see you tomorrow.

I hope you had a good birthday.

I did.

Giving him a smile that made him feel warm all over, Hermione shut her window. It took Ron several long seconds to do the same, and when he lay down in his bed, he tried to imagine a scenario in which Hermione loved him as much as Rose loved Jack.