I remember waking up after my first treatment. I was drenched in sweat, my head was pounding and my body had felt sore, though at the time I hadn't known why. The first thing I could think of was Jennifer. I kept picturing a little baby with jet-black hair and amber-coloured eyes and I couldn't help but realize how perfect it was that I'd be having a baby with a woman that looked so similar to Harry. My second thought was whether or not Harry had left me again. I'd gotten someone pregnant, I'd be having a child and family with someone other than him. It was all I could do to hold myself together.
Panicked, Ron searched the room, breathing heavily, sweat still dripping down his face. He heard an all too familiar giggle get closer to his room.
"Jer!" giggle "Sh! You'll wake him!" giggle "Stop! I'm going in now, cut it out!" Hermione's tone contradicted her words. Ron could hear the smile on her lips and strangely calmed him down. He sat upright and flung his legs to the side of the bed, ready to stand. The door opened and Hermione entered quietly. When she saw him, she jumped.
"Ron! Merlin, you scared me, I thought you'd still be asleep! What are you doing? Lie back down, Ronald!" The worry in her voice was all-too evident and Ron chuckled lightly.
"I feel fine, 'Mione, really," he tried to reassure her, looking around her to the door, hoping to see Harry come in.
"You're positively drenched in sweat and pale as a sheet of paper! Ron just- what are looking- oh, Ronald, he's having a shower lie down," Hermione told him as she tried to push him back to a lying position.
"He's here?" Ron asked, nervously, his voice breaking slightly.
"Oh, honestly, Ronald, did you think he'd leave? He's been here the whole time you were out, didn't leave once. He even sat with you and supported you as you got your treatment. It completely knackered the poor boy, he slept for nearly a day. I'm starting to think you are rubbing off on-"
"Treatment?" Ron interrupted her. She finally settled him back under the sheets and sat down on the edge of the bed, facing him. She explained it all to him matter-of-factly, trying her very best not to let him know how scary it had been to see the magic from all the Healers entering his fragile, listless body. She didn't want him to know that she'd cried at the sounds Harry had made, as though he was fighting against something that was five times his size, holding Ron for dear life the whole time. She didn't want him to know that he'd been in a sort of coma for nearly four days and that for the first three of those days everyone had been nervously perched in his room, watching him and waiting for him to wake up. It didn't surprise her that he didn't remember waking up the night before, as he'd only woken for a moment, searching the room for Harry before finding him sitting at the edge of the bed, tugging at his arm to lie down, and then cuddling up with him on the bed, falling into an actual sleep as everyone, relieved as all get-out, left the room to finally eat and shower and become human again.
When she was done telling him about the treatment and the treatment plan, he sighed heavily, understanding why he wasn't feeling sick anymore. He found her eyes again and very seriously said, "What about Jennifer? He didn't leave me after she…you know…"
Hermione tilted her head in question. "I'm not sure what happened with Jennifer, but Harry most certainly did not leave you after she left."
Ron considered telling Hermione what had happened, but he decided that he wanted to find out how Harry felt about it all, first. Then the thought crossed Ron's mind that Jennifer could have made it all up. Maybe Harry had spoken with her and it had just been her trying to take the piss. He didn't have much time to think about it further because Harry entered the door just then, towel in hand, hair wet and disarray, shirt sticking to his damp skin, face pink from the hot water. He looked up and caught Ron's eye, dropping his towel to the ground and crossing the room in three strides, kneeling next to the bed and grabbing Ron's hand.
"Welcome back, love," was all Harry said, and Ron felt his stomach flip and his heart clenched. He'd fallen in love with Harry all over again in that moment. It was then that Ron made a personal goal for himself to fall in love all over again with Harry each and every day that they got to spend together. Ron stared into Harry's green eyes, his breathing somewhat heavy, feeling as though the only thing keeping him grounded to the Earth was the hand that was holding his own, and the other hand that was making its way to the side of Ron's neck. Harry rubbed his thumb along Ron's earlobe and it made Ron shiver.
"I love you, too," Ron told him lightly, realizing he'd never said it back to Harry all those nights ago when he'd returned. Harry's eyes smiled and he leaned in to kiss Ron gently.
He knew he needed to ask Harry about Jennifer. He knew that he needed to discuss why Harry had left and why he'd come back. He knew that they needed to discuss a course of action for Ron's treatments. But the fact of the matter was that he hadn't slept with the man he loved in far too long and Ron was finally starting to feel like he actually could, the sickness wasn't in the way anymore. So he pulled Harry into the bed so that Harry was lying on top of Ron. He removed Harry's shirt slowly. And that evening, he showed Harry that the words "I love you," meant a lot more than either of them could ever explain.
Next chapter soon to come! Hope you enjoyed this one. Let me know what you think!
