Thanx for the reviews!

harrynmioneluv: hey, long time, no hear from! My twin! Yeah, my sunburn is not as worse as when I went to my friend's house the time before and FORGOT to put some on my shoulders. Haha. Hurt like hell for about a week! Haha. I just think that if its not SPF 50 and over you're going to burn! Haha.

triximionepotter: ...same as above. Haha. Yeah, I had went on vacation like that. Miserable. And then everyone kept hugging me. Hurt!

Hey, here's ch. 4! Much longer than the last 3.

Chapter Four

Truths

The two teenagers ran hand-in-hand down the sidewalks of London, laughing. Everyone looked at them, but they did not care. Once they got to the end of the sidewalk, Harry turned to Hermione as they waited for the cars to get a red light. "So, what do you want to see exactly?"

She thought for a moment. "Hmm...the park."

"Hyde Park?" he asked and she nodded smiling beautifully.

"Okay, then, Hyde Park, it is." They crossed the street and made their way to the world famous Hyde Park. They walked down the lighted pathway, looking at the trees and beautiful fountains. They even stopped to look at the Peter Pan statue. "Have you ever read it?" Hermione asked him.

"Erm, no, I can't say I have," he replied nervously. He felt stupid around her, like an idiot. She was clearly a bookworm, a studious student. He never did well in class, just good enough grades to pass. She must be a reader. He wished he was one. He was too involved doing chores for his "relatives" to really get into books.

"Oh, it's a magnificent story about a boy who did not want to grow up," she told him, still admiring the statue. Harry looked at Peter Pan and wished he was him. He did not want to grow up. He wanted to stay a boy forever. He wished he could go back to that night and somehow convince his parents not to leave. Maybe cry a lot so they would not go as he would be a baby. Maybe, just maybe they would still be alive. Hermione looked at him and smiled. He smiled back and grabbed her hand and they went sit on a bench.

"So, you're eighteen, right?" Hermione asked him.

"Yeah. How do you know Luna exactly?" he asked one of his own.

"She's my next-door neighbor. I kind of grew up with her," she responded.

"Oh, it's a shame you never came to our school," he said.

"Yeah," she agreed. "So, what happened this night? What was Ron talking about?"

Harry knew she was going to ask this question. He inhaled deeply and let it out heavily. Hermione could sense his discomfort. "Y-you don't have to tell me. I'm so sorry I asked."

"No, it's okay. It's nothing to hide." He looked at his watch. Nine twenty-three. "Exactly-to the minute-seventeen years ago, my parents died in a car crash by a drunken driver named Tom Riddle."

Hermione's eyes widened with disbelief. She could not believe she asked him that. He must hate her for reminding him. "Oh, my God, I'm so sorry."

"No, it's okay. It's fine. Since last year, I go visit their graves in Dorset to pay my respects. I barely knew them, so I guess I got off easily," he replied sadly.

"No, you didn't. Its much harder when you did not know your parents, I think. Because you never got to experience time with them. You never said 'Mummy' or 'Daddy'; or 'Mum' and 'Dad'. At least to their faces. Your Dad never taught you to ride a two-wheeler bicycle. You never crawled into your parents' bed when you had a nightmare or when you thought there was a monster in your closet. It's sad, really." A tear rolled down her tear as she realized that she, Hermione Granger, had always taken her parents for granted; while Harry Potter, this boy she met not even two hours ago, had none. "Who do you live with now?"

"My mother's sister, my aunt; her husband; and their son. They gave me a year to find a place to live. However, I have to do all of the chores around the house," he answered with malice dripping from his voice.

"Well, I can understand that, kind of. I mean, it's kind of like room and board. You're eighteen. You're sort of paying to have a place to stay," Hermione said.

"Yeah, I don't mind cooking, cleaning, weeding, gardening, and washing for them. It's just that-" He cut himself off. "Okay, I've never told anyone this before, not even Ron. They have been making me do that all my life. I've been cooking for them ever since I was tall enough to reach the stove. I have been cleaning the house since I was five. I have been weeding and gardening for them since I was four. I wash their clothes. When I did not do what they told me or did it wrong-" He shook his head. "I can't believe I am going to show you this."

"What?" she asked.

"This..." He stood up, took off his jacket and his sweater and grey t-shirt, baring his torso to the world on the chilly October night. Hermione's hands flew to her mouth as she saw his body. She would have admired his toned and muscular body if not for the many scars that covered it. He pointed to one on his right hip. "My aunt did not really like my Mum and was not happy when I was dropped off to live with her, so she got my uncle to take care of the problem. My uncle flogged me the first time I gardened. I had messed it up because I had no idea what I was doing. I had turned, afraid of what he was going to do to me and he ended up getting me on my hip. Hurt like hell." He turned around and she gasped again. His back was worse than his torso. There were more ugly scars. "These are mostly when he stopped me from turning around. There's a few for every time I dropped a plate. There's one where I accidentally left my cousin's red sock in the washing machine with white clothes and everything turned pink. There's a few for when I was too weak to get out of my cupboard."

"Cupboard?" she asked confusedly.

"Yeah, I slept in the cupboard under the stairs. That's where the bastards kept me until I was eleven when I outgrew it." He put his shirt, sweater, and jacket back on. "I have no idea why I just told you this," he said with disbelief. He had no idea why he just opened his heart up to her. She will probably think he was a freak now and did not want to be around him anymore.

Another tear rolled down Hermione's cheek. If he had not shown her the scars, she probably would not have believed him. She had been hurt by too many guys before. Too many guys who just want to joke around and make her think she was special enough. But Harry had let out his most deepest secret to her. "You've never told this to anyone?" she asked as he sat down next to her.

"No, not until now. I don't know why, though," he replied looking at the ground. He remembered something, though, and looked up at her. "Although, you're not the first one besides for my 'relatives' to see it. A few of my ex-girlfriends have seen it. They all had ran away. They all thought it was something else. None of them thought abuse. Bar fights. Survived being mauled by a bear." He laughed at that second one, but not really meaning it. "Not one of those sluts considered that I was probably abused."

"Do they still hit you?" she asked.

"No, they stopped when I was fourteen when I was strong enough to fight them off," he said.

"Well, I'm glad they stopped, Harry. I'm sorry this had to happen to you."

"It's okay. They've all healed. It's my past. I like to focus on my future, sort of. The only thing that I hang onto my past are my parents," he responded. "But, anyway, tonight is tonight. Tonight is now." He stood up and offered his hand to her smiling, trying to lighten the mood. She smiled back and took his hand, standing up with him. "I believe we need to have fun before the moon leaves and the sun comes up." Once again, they began to run down the sidewalk like they were ten years old again.

After a moment, Harry stopped, smiling as he saw something fun they could do. She stopped as well, since she was attached to him and looked at him, curious as to why they had stopped. "When I came here to Hyde Park for the first time with Dean, we did the most fun thing I've ever did in my life."

"What's that?"

"This..." He let go of her hand and ran with his arms raised and yelled at the top of his lungs. Dozens of pigeons who were on the ground looking for something to eat all of sudden got spooked and flew away into the trees. Hermione laughed wholeheartedly at his childish ways of having fun and joined him scaring away the pigeons. She raised her arms and yelled, running and chasing the pigeons away.

Once they were all gone, they stopped and laughed. "Oh, that was fun," she said trying to catch her breath.

"Yeah," Harry agreed panting as well. He stared at Hermione's gorgeous face, wanting to kiss her pink lips. He mentally shook his head. 'She wouldn't like me. I'm dangerous' he thought to himself and looked away.

Hermione looked down a bit disappointed that he had looked away. After a moment, she composed herself, looked up at him, and asked, "Now what?"

He looked at her and said, "I'm kind of hungry for some candy. Come on, there's a convenient store not far from here." Hermione was a little downtrodden he did not grab her hand this time as he led the way to a small convenient store across from Hyde Park. Harry found a big bag of M&M's and paid for it. They went back to Hyde Park and made their way to a playground. They both went to the swingset and each took a swing and sat on it. Harry sat the opposite way Hermione did so that he was face-to-face with her. He opened the bag of M&M's and let her take a handful. Then he did. They kind of just swayed on their swings as it was difficult to swing while popping M&M's into their mouths.

"So, tell me about you," Harry asked. "You're from Ottery St. Catchpole, I know that."

"Well, I went to Hillcrest Prep School. I'm also eighteen. I live by myself in my parents' old house. They bought a little cottage down the road," she said very vaguely.

"Wow, that was something in which you revealed absolutely nothing about yourself," he teased and she blushed. They both chuckled.

"Sorry, well, what do you want to know?" Hermione asked.

"Well, do you have a boyfriend?"

"I would not be out here with you if I had a boyfriend, Harry," she reminded him.

It was his turn to blush. "Right. Well, have you ever had a boyfriend?"

Hermione looked down a bit after she grabbed for more M&M's, embarrassed. "Actually, no. Never had a boyfriend."

"Are you a virgin?" he asked grinning.

"Yes," she laughed at him playfully pushing him. She got serious again. "I've actually never had a first kiss."

"Really? Eighteen and never had a first kiss?" he asked in disbelief.

She nodded. "Never danced with a guy...until night, of course. Guys just don't find me...interesting."

"I do," he pointed out softly.

She looked at him. "Thanks. But if you knew me, you would not feel the same. If we had went to the same school, you would see how I really was. I'm really into books. I'm not a party girl. Actually, Luna threatened to burn all my books in my sleep to force me to come tonight." Harry chuckled a bit at that. "I'm very studious. I got all A's in...everything. I don't have many friends, so I study. I read. When I read, I get smarter in a way. Guys don't like girls who are smart. Boys like those brainless girls who wear short skirts and tank tops. They like girls who have giant breasts." Harry chuckled again. She ignored it though. "They like girls who will put out for them." Then she remembered who she was talking to and blushed again. He did not seem to notice. "At least, the boys at my school do," she added.

"That's understandable, but not all guys are like that," he said.

"One time, this guy that I had a bit of a crush on asked me to the ball, but he was just kidding. Just joking around. I had said 'yes'," she said.

Harry wanted to punch this boy who did this to her. How could no one see that she was the most beautiful creature on Earth? How could no one see that she was the most interesting person in the universe? She was not like his ex-girlfriends. She was more interesting and more beautiful than them. "So, your Cinderella dream was shot down?"

"Yes, basically. So I just buried even more into my books and studies, excluding myself from the world. My parents and Luna were my only friends. However, Luna could not really be around because she did not go to my school. She went to yours," she said.

Harry nodded, glad she told him something personal about herself like he did. He gave her the last handful of M&M's and then stood up to go throw it in the rubbish bin by the benches. He walked back to the swing and put his hands on Hermione's back. She had finished chewing and looked at him, curious as to what he was doing. "Wha-"

"Hold on, I'm going to push you," he replied.

Hermione nodded and turned forward and allowed him to push her. She let herself go as she swung. She grinned as she got higher and higher, trying to remember the last time she went on a swingset. She tilted her head back, closed her eyes, and laughed. When she opened them, she saw the moon in between two trees. She wanted to just let go of the swing and fly to the moon. Maybe life was better there. Maybe there were people who actually wanted to talk to her. Maybe, even, Harry could come with her.

Harry smiled at her as she looked like she was at peace. He wondered if God was rewarding him for something by bringing him to her.

After twenty minutes of swinging, Hermione called out, "I want to get down."

"Okay," he said back and stopped pushing her. She started to slow down and once she got low enough, Harry grabbed her around the waist and stopped it altogether. Hermione gasped inwardly as his hands came around her waist. When he let go, she stood up off of the swing, moved a step back and asked him, "So, now what?"

He looked at his watch. "Well, it's ten thirty-nine. The Sun does not rise until almost seven so we have about...nine hours to kill." They chuckled once again.

"Let's go cause trouble," he held out his hand for her to take.

Hermione had never caused trouble before in her life. Ever. She was the good girl. Good student. A parents' dream daughter. Harry was different than other boys, but she was not sure about that because of his last comment. She was not sure if she wanted this. She was not sure if she wanted to get too attached. She had gotten too attached to a few things before. And left her heartbroken. Left her hurt. She did not want to be hurt or heartbroken again.

And, yet, she had no idea why she took his hand again.

TBC...

Well, there's the 4th chapter. Hope you liked it. I had not wanted them to tell their life stories in this chapter. I wanted to wait, but that did not happen. Haha.

Next comes the "Say You Don't Want It" inspiration of the story.

Btw, its not that I'm giving up Jane Austen, its just I don't want to read "Persuasion". Haha. Believe me, I love "Pride & Prejudice". Movie was amazing!

Next chapter: causing "trouble" in London (Harry/Hermione style!)

Pleez review!

DREWHHR