Chapter 2:

The rest of the day was a bit of a blur. Though they had kept up through letters, they still had a ton of stuff to tell each other. Ron showed Hermione some of his lessons from Auror training, and she told him all about this year at Hogwarts. They gossiped about Neville and Luna, who were an item now too over lunch in a cute pub in Diagon Alley. They stopped by to say hello to George, who was delighted to see Hermione and hear how she was doing. It was just like it had always been.

Harry got home from work around dinnertime, and he and Hermione said their own hellos. The best friends hadn't seen each other in so long. They ate a meal of pizza together, a muggle treat Hermione had turned them onto and then sat around and talked till bedtime. Harry announced that he was heading from work to the Burrow tomorrow night for dinner, so he could see Ginny, so Ron and Hermione would be on their own. Soon, the day had slipped away, and it was time to say goodnight. As the three retreated to their rooms, Harry winked at Ron, who grinned like a fool as the tips of his ears turned red. He was about to spend the night with Hermione, and even if nothing physical happened, it was a big deal. They were a real couple now, and this is what real couples did. "Night you two," Harry called after them in a bit of a teasing tone, as Ron turned around and shot him a look. He didn't want Harry's teasing to make Hermione more uncomfortable than she already was.

Hermione giggled nervously as they stepped inside Ron's room. "Well, here we are," she said as she walked to the dresser and started pulling things she needed out of the beaded bag she'd left there earlier in the day. Ron walked over to her and put his hands on hers, so she would stop. "Hermione, look at me," he said, and she did. "Listen, I can tell you are nervous about this, so let me say again, I promise I'm not going to try anything, okay? We can just sleep." He wanted her to feel safe with him, and he was bummed she was freaked out. "I know," Hermione said looking into his eyes. She was embarrassed. "It's not that. I trust you. It's just strange is all; I've never done anything like this before. I'm sorry; I'm being so silly," she said as she buried her head in her hands. Ron grasped her wrists and pulled them from her face. "It's not silly," he said. "New is strange. I know that, but I'm excited. I've been looking forward to just being close to you."

His sweet words were enough to help melt the nervousness away. She leaned forward and kissed him lightly on the lips. "You are so good for me, you know that?" she said. Ron smiled at her compliment and relished in his victory. "Be right back," she said grabbing the stuff she'd pulled out of her bag. She retreated to the bathroom to get ready for bed. Meanwhile, Ron changed into a pair of maroon sleep pants and a nearly worn out Chudley Cannon's Quidditch tee. He turned off the overhead light and lit a small lamp next to his bed with his deluminator. The room now felt softer. He pulled back the covers on the bed, but didn't get in. He just sat down on the edge to fix his alarm clock for the next morning. He was waiting to use the lieu himself and brush his teeth for bed once Hermione emerged.

A few minutes later, he looked up when the bathroom door opened, and out waltzed Hermione looking beautiful. Ron's breath caught. She was wearing a thin light pink tank top that looked great against her skin and showed off her curves, and she had on rather short pink and white striped pj bottoms that made her legs look a mile long. Her hair was down in ringlets around her face and shoulders, and she had on just a touch of lip gloss. Ron had seen Hermione ready for bed a million times, but at the Burrow, she'd always worn a tee shirt and sleep pants, and they'd slept in full clothing when they'd been hunting horcruxes because it was always so cold. He'd never seen her in this few clothes, and he was in awe.

Ginny had helped her pick up a few new pj sets on a weekend trip to Hogsmeade. Though Ron was her brother, Ginny was eager to help Hermione with relationship advice. "You want to look cute even if nothing happens," Ginny had said as they were shopping. "Trust me, these outfits will have my brother eating out of your hand." Hermione wasn't usually the type to care about such things, but she loved Ron and wanted to please him, so she'd bought a few things she thought might at least satisfy his view of her. She wasn't sure if she was ready for more than snogging yet when it came to their physical relationship.

"All yours," she announced bringing him out of his trance. "Hermione, what are you trying to do to me?" Ron said standing up. "You look amazing." She blushed and smiled as she looked down at her outfit. It wasn't revealing by any stretch, but she knew it hugged her in all the right places. "Perhaps I need a cold shower before bed," Ron said winking at her as he retreated into the bathroom. Hermione smiled to herself as he closed the door. She'd never thought she was pretty until she started dating Ron, and she loved it when he said stuff like that about being attracted to her. It made her feel wanted and powerful.

As Ron got ready for bed, Hermione slipped under the covers. The sheets were cool and soft, and she felt comfortable. The nervousness she'd felt just minutes ago was gone, and she was now letting herself feel excited about the possibility of spending the night wrapped in Ron's arms. In the bathroom, Ron splashed cold water on his face. "She's going to kill me," Ron thought to himself smiling in the mirror. Sometimes Hermione was such a mystery. Here she was nervous about sharing a bed with him, although, she had clearly prepared for it. He knew that those pjs were new and didn't think it was likely she'd been wearing them for the other Gryfinndor girls. She'd worn them for him. "Girls," he thought to himself as he brushed his teeth and headed back out to bed.

Hermione was already snuggled underneath the covers, and he lifted the sheets and got in beside her. He clicked his deluminator to turn off the lights, but there was enough moonlight and street light streaming in through the window that they could still see each other pretty well. "I'm glad you're here," Ron said reaching out and pulling Hermione close to him. Physical contact was one thing Ron had no problem with. Though he'd been slow to the gate actually confessing his love for Hermione, since they'd actually been dating, he was always free with his affection. It was a good thing too, because Hermione was much more timid and reserved about such things, so they may never touch if it was up to her. Once he initiated it though, she was more than willing to return the gesture.

As Ron held her close and rubbed small circles into her lower back with one hand, Hermione slid her hand around his neck and started playing with the bottom of his hair. He closed his eyes and took in the moment as her simple touch felt so good. She was equally in Heaven. Hermione's eyes were fixed upon Ron's handsome face; his eyes were closed in response to her touch, and Hermione couldn't help but lean forward and capture his lips in a kiss. It was innocent at first, but pretty soon, Ron had slid his hand up Hermione's back and tangled his fingers in the back of her hair, so he could deepen the kiss. They'd kissed many times since their first during battle, and it was always wonderful, but they didn't have much time for making out since they were rarely alone in the Burrow. Hermione's stomach did flip-flops as Ron gently slipped his tongue in and out of her open mouth. When she mimicked his movements, she felt his grip tighten around her. It was like he couldn't get enough.

After a few minutes, Ron broke away only long enough to send a trail of kisses down Hermione's neck to her collarbone. This move was something new for them, and it felt amazing. "Mmmm," Hermione moaned surprising herself, but she couldn't help it. Ron took note and continued, planting small but open mouth kisses up her neck close to her earlobe before capturing her mouth once again. As she ran her hands up and down his back, Hermione pressed just a touch harder, so that he could feel her fingernails lightly scrap his back through his worn tee shirt, and it felt so good. His budding erection immediately sprung to attention, and not wanting to scare Hermione or make her feel uncomfortable if she felt it, Ron reluctantly pulled back scooting his lower half just enough away from her hoping he could cool down quickly. "We should probably stop," Ron said as their lips parted. Hermione's brown eyes sprang open, and he could see she was disappointed. "Oh," she said quietly looking down at his chest. "Did I do something wrong?" Hermione was confident about most things, but Ron was the first boy she'd ever really dated, so she was always nervous her inexperience was a turn off.

"Not at all," he said quickly cupping her face and forcing her to look up at him. "The opposite, in fact; I was just getting super turned on is all, and I didn't want to break my promise not to try anything." He blushed at his admission, but it was the truth, and he certainly didn't want Hermione to feel like he didn't want her or did anything wrong.

"Oh," she said blushing too as she realized what he meant. She suddenly became aware that he was keeping a distance from her on purpose, and even though she didn't know much about this sort of thing, she could guess why. She noted how sweet it was that he was thinking of her and not wanting to make her uncomfortable.

"Sorry," she said sheepishly laughing a little bit. "Don't be," he said also laughing and pulling her back into his arms and planting another kiss on her lips. He'd cooled down just enough to touch her again, but he still kept his lower half away. "It's my fault for having the sexiest girlfriend in all of England." Hermione laughed and smiled. She knew it wasn't true, but Ron did make her feel that way, and she loved it.

"We should probably go to sleep anyway," Hermione said peering over his shoulder at the clock that now read 11:15. "You have to work tomorrow." "Ugh, don't remind me," Ron said rolling over onto his back and putting the back of his hand over his face in disgust. "I wish I could stay here with you," he said opening his eyes back up and looking at Hermione. "Well," she said leaning over to give him a final kiss goodnight, "missing me during the day will make it that much better to come home. Harry said he would be gone, so I'll cook you dinner, k?" "Sounds like a plan," Ron said smiling as Hermione nestled onto his shoulder. He closed one arm around her and pulled her close. She laid her hand on his chest, and he covered it with the hand on his other arm, and in no time, they drifted off to sleep.