A/N: Ok, I said hiatus on my profile, but I came up with this so I'm posting it. I'm afraid this is a filler chapter and there is nothing very interesting in it. I needed it to start the transition between the angst from the previous chapter and the happier days to come for our two lovebirds (they are unnerving, but we love them, don't we?).

It may look as if there are huge narrative holes in this chapter, but the next one will be more of Harry's POV and I didn't want to tell everything from Ruth's side for that reason.

MyladyLilith, hopefully this chapter isn't too angsty (I don't think it is at all), and I promise the fluff will come in the next chapter. :)

Thank you all for the amazing reviews you left me for the last chapter. xx

As soon as she calmed down, Ruth grabbed her phone immediately and called Harry back. Hopefully he would pick up, even after eight unanswered messages. She hoped so. Beth had been tactful enough not to ask Ruth what troubled her and just went to her bedroom without stopping. Ruth was grateful; if she had had to try and explain, it would have probably ended up with more tears.

The phone kept ringing, and Ruth was wondering if she would have to leave him a message this time, when he finally picked up. The relief in his voice was genuine and she had to stop him from apologizing again. Their conversation was brief, Ruth didn't want it to last too long for she felt she'd betted not risk another emotional episode over the phone. She asked him if he wanted to meet the next day. He said yes immediately and they agreed to go to dinner. He wanted to pick her up but she didn't want to. She wanted them to truly meet. And she knew the right place for it.

She spent the next day wondering whether she had handled the phone conversation well. Had she sounded too cold, too proud, or too eager to meet him? The wait was killing her. To distract herself and stop thinking, she decided to take a look in her closet and decide what to wear. She had bought a new dress a few days before. She was afraid she was turning into one of these women who bought clothes to cure unhappiness. She used to buy books to do that. Lately she had been keen on dresses, though. Mid-life crisis? Oh, call it what you like, she thought.

She chose a deep-blue velvet dress, and matching heels. Simple, but elegant. She left her hair the way it usually was, she didn't want to look like she had spent too much time taking care of her looks. When she was ready to go, Beth wasn't home yet, so she sent her a text message explaining she was going out and didn't know when she'd come home. Beth responded to said text message in the following way: 'I'll be fine. Have fun with the boss. Beth.'

Ruth sighed. She wasn't exactly expecting Beth to know what she was doing, but she wasn't surprised either. Maybe she should just give up on the idea of keeping her private life private.

A few passers-by turned around to look at her while she was walking between her flat and her usual bus stop, which made Ruth blush deeply. She wasn't used to men looking at her in that way. She didn't even want them to. Of course it was always flattering but she couldn't quite cope with men showing that they might desire her since George. Except for Harry. She was longing for this kind of looks from Harry. But it was always this way, wasn't it? Harry always was a big exception in her life. The feelings she felt for Harry she would never feel for anyone else. He was the only one who could make her be brave enough to fight for happiness.

Seven is the number of bus stops between Ruth's home and the place where she and Harry had arranged to meet. She could have taken the Tube to get there but she chose the bus instead. She had a book in case she wanted to keep herself busy during the journey, but as she was trying to read she realised she couldn't focus on the text, so she put it back in her handbag. There were only four or five people in the bus, it was all very quiet, and yet Ruth was far from being calm. She was sat next to a window, and the seat next to her was unoccupied, so she put the handbag on it.

She wanted to look outside, but the window wasn't clean enough, and she had to press her forehead against it, as she had done with Harry's door, to see through it. It seemed everything reminded her of Harry; her posture, the simple fact of being in a bus. She took a deep breath. 'No need to worry, she thought'. She knew this couldn't go wrong, or at least she really hoped it wouldn't, but she still felt nervous. She didn't want to ruin the evening. Most of all she wanted to make amends and leave the past behind them. It wasn't going to be easy, but surely they could make it.

As she was getting close to her stop, the light was slowly fading. It had been a beautiful day, and the sunset light gave a glow to the city that made it all the more beautiful to Ruth. Or maybe it was because for the first time in months she was actually noticing it.

She was so lost in her thoughts she nearly forgot to get up when the bus reached her stop. As she was getting out of the bus she felt the fresh evening air on her face. Fresh, but not cold. Just what she needed to keep a clear mind. She walked for ten more minutes before she arrived to the rendezvous' place. She'd chosen the place herself, for a particular reason. There weren't as many people as there were on the first time they were there, though. It had been earlier in the day, but somehow Ruth felt like she was living the moment all over again.

For a moment she felt out of place, with her dress and heels, surrounded by people who had gotten out of work late and were eager to go home. She couldn't see Harry. Her heart started beating faster. She was already a bit late, so where was he? He'd seem so happy the night before when she had called, so why wasn't he there? Ruth was starting to panic. She tried to calm down as she didn't want the people around her to notice her more than they already had due to her clothing. She was about to start walking again when she felt a hand on her shoulder. Surprised, she turned around quickly.

There he was, smiling at her.

'Hello, Ruth', he said.

Like I said, Harry's POV next time. Please forgive me for the lousy plot and bad writing in this chapter, it is a weak one I know...

Please leave me a review (it makes my day, especially after hours of studying). :)

xx