A/N: Hey! Wow, so, it's been a long time since I've updated and I'm very sorry for that! And also, today is the last day of summer (kill me now) and so it'll be even harder for me to update quickly with school in the mix but I'll try my best. This chapter is a bit short, and a little unexciting, but I wanted to update before tomorrow. : ) Hope you like it.

Chapter 14: A Second Chance

Ron woke up the morning after his date with Hermione sprawled across his bed in the clothes he'd worn the night before, minus his shoes. He stretched and yawned, before sitting up and swinging his legs over the side of the bed. It was then that he remembered the night before, and how beautiful Hermione had looked, the way she'd seemed nervous when he held her hand, and that captivating kiss at the end of the night which had only left him wanting more.

He sighed, and stretched once again, before he stood up, and made his way into the kitchen. He was pouring himself a glass of juice, and watching the eggs he had on the stove, when he heard a familiar tapping noise coming from the Living Room window.

Making his way out of the kitchen, he saw that the owl at the window was Harry's: Ginny had given it to him as a Wedding gift, Ron remembered. He opened the sliding door so that the owl could come in and then took the scroll from his leg. He unfurled it, and read,

Ron,

How was your date with Hermione? I want to hear all about it,

Ginny

Ron put the letter in his back pocket, and wondered why in the world his family was so obsessed with what happened between him and Hermione. It really was none of their business, and it quite frankly pissed him off.

He decided not to write back. "Thanks, Waco, I don't have a reply for you." The owl hooted, and then flew quickly out the open door.

Ron made his way back to the kitchen, and finished his breakfast. He took it into the Living Room, and opened yesterday's Prophet as he ate. He sighed in disgust when he saw a picture of Malfoy on the front page, handing over a check to the Department of Magical Law Enforcement.

"What bull shit," Ron muttered, thinking about that day he'd found Malfoy with his ex-wife. There was no way in hell that that man was donating money without some ulterior motive.

Ron finished his breakfast, took a shower, and then apparated to Harry and Ginny's flat. He'd only been there once or twice because they spent so much time at the Burrow, but he'd always liked their place. He hoped they'd be there when he arrived.

Ron knocked on the door to apartment 452, and waited quietly for a few moments before Harry came to the door.

"Hey Ron," he said, smiling wanly at him. He ran a hand through his disheveled hair, and said, "What's up?"

"Just decided to stop by, and ask you why you two are so involved in my relationship with Hermione."

Harry sighed: "Come on in," he said. "I'll go get Ginny."

Ron followed Harry down the short hallway which led to their living room, before sitting down on the leather couch across from the fireplace. The walls were painted a calming blue color, and the room was always well lit.

He heard Harry and Ginny whispering in the adjoining room, and rolled his eyes, yawning. They were so ridiculous sometimes.

After a few moments of silence, Harry came back out of the bedroom with Ginny.

"Hey, Ron," she said, as she sat down next to him on the couch. "Harry would you go get us some butterbeer's?"

"Not for you," Harry said, smiling at her. She smiled back, and then rubbed her stomach softly. Ron blushed, feeling like he was interrupting something.

A few moments later, Harry handed Ron a butterbeer, and then sat down in the chair across from them with his own. "So…" he said, raising an eyebrow at Ron.

"What?" Ron asked, pretending like he didn't know what they wanted.

"Shoot," Ginny said.

Ron sighed. He then launched into a full explanation of the night before with Hermione, minus a few minor details, such as what he'd though of when he'd seen her bedroom, or how good her hand had felt in his as they'd walked up her driveway. He thought about leaving out the kiss, but he guessed Hermione would tell Ginny either way, so he might as well.

When he was finished, Harry was grinning smugly, and Ginny looked pretty pleased. "I'm proud of you, Ron," she said.

Ron shook his head at her. "You're not my mother, Ginny. I don't need you to approve of how I act around the women I like."

Ginny opened her mouth to retort, but stopped abruptly, and then stood up and ran from the room. Ron was worried for a moment, but then Harry stood up, calmly said, "Morning sickness," and then followed her into the bathroom. Ron sat alone on the couch for a few minutes, trying to ignore the sound of Ginny retching, and was on his way into the kitchen to distract himself, when he heard a knock on the door.

Without thinking anything of it, he made his way down the hallway to the front door and opened it.

"Hermione?" he choked in surprise. She stood in front of him in a pair of tight, faded jeans and a red blouse, her hair pulled up into a messy bun at the back of her head.

"Oh, Hi Ron," she said, before bringing one of her hands up to rub the back of her neck. She looked at him nervously, before adding, "What are you doing here?"

He gestured for her to come in, and stepped aside: "I was just visiting with Harry and Ginny."

"Oh, I see," she said. She made her way into the living room and Ron followed quietly behind her. When they found the room to still be empty, she turned around to him and asked, "Where are they?"

"Bathroom," Ron said, and Hermione raised an eyebrow at him. Realizing his mistake, he hastily added, "Morning sickness."

Hermione laughed. "Okay, that makes sense." She sat down where he'd been on the couch just minutes before, and Ron decided to sit down beside her. 'I'd offer you a drink" he said, "but I don't know where anything is."

Hermione waved her hand in dismissal. "That's okay," she said.

Ron nodded, and then they sat in an awkward silence as he looked at anything but Hermione, until she spoke: "I, um, wanted to thank you again for last night. I really had a wonderful time."

Ron turned around to face her, and grinned sheepishly. "I did too," he said. "I'm glad you enjoyed yourself as much as I did."

Hermione's eyes twinkled and she nodded her head quickly in approval. Ron felt himself leaning in to her again, and he could feel her breath on his nose, until…

"Oh! Hey, Hermione!"

Ron pulled back, his face warm, and found Ginny standing behind the couch, watching them. He grimaced at her, as Hermione greeted her, and then Harry came back into the room with his eyebrows raised. Ron pretended not to notice.

"Sorry about that," Ginny said. "Sometimes I have really bad morning sickness."

She sat down where her husband had sat previously, and Harry brought her a glass of water. He kissed her forehead and then sat on the arm of her chair. Ron noticed out of the corner of his eye that Hermione was looking around the room, avoiding having to watch their slightly intimate moment. He wondered if perhaps he wasn't the only one made uncomfortable by such gestures.

"So," Harry said, "Were you two planning on doing anything today?"

Ron looked over at Hermione. She was blushing furiously and trying hard not to look at him. He turned back to Harry.

"No, we hadn't planned anything."

There was another moments silence, and for a moment Ron considered running out of the room, but then Ginny spoke: "Well, Harry's got to get to work, and Hermione and I were going to go baby shopping so…"

"I'll head to the Burrow and practice for the Cannons Try-outs," Ron said. Ginny nodded and smiled at them, then excused herself to grab her coat, and then Harry hugged them both goodbye. "See you tomorrow for brunch at the Burrow?" he asked.

Ron and Hermione nodded, and then they were left alone.

Hermione spoke in a small voice, her eyes trained on the floor. "I really do want to see you again, Ron," she said. She looked up at him: "I mean, out… somewhere."

Ron didn't reply: He just leaned into her again, his hand brushing the curls out of her face, as hers came up to cup his cheek. He hesitated only a moment before brushing his lips against hers as he had the night before, and pulling her closer.

He reveled in the taste of her, her scent enveloping him, and the sound of her breath growing quicker as she wound her arms around his neck. He shuddered, and hoped that Ginny wouldn't interrupt them again, as Hermione's mouth opened wide enough for him to slip his tongue inside. That was when she pulled away from him, her eyes smiling but her expression solemn.

"Sorry," Ron murmured, looking away from her. He felt her warm fingers pull his chin back towards her, and then she kissed him once quickly, and shook her head.

"It's alright."

Ron decided that was the best time to leave, though he knew it wouldn't be much fun to do so. He stood up from the couch, took one last sip from his butterbeer, and then said, "How does dinner, Monday night, my place sound?"

Hermione nodded. "Sure," she said. "It sounds great."

He smiled at her, shouted a goodbye to Ginny, who was probably listening at the door to her bedroom, and then left the apartment quickly.

What a morning.

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