Things got better after that.

I mean, I wasn't sure if Katie was getting over me, or if she was just really good at hiding her feelings, but she did appear to be getting on very well with Fred.

But the awkwardness? Gone. Untraceably, without a doubt, sure as can be, gone. I mean, you could tell she didn't feel awkward any more, because when we were in the locker room after practices, she didn't turn beet red if I accidentally saw her in just her bra.

Not that I looked…

Nope.

Ok, ok, fine! I looked once or twice! But I couldn't help it! She was good looking! And come on, it's not like she's really my little sister, and lots of people can tell that their friends are good looking without liking them like that. So really, I wasn't doing anything wrong.

At least, that's what I kept telling myself.

But then Fred would walk in and wolf whistle, and I'd have to remind myself that not only did I not have feelings for Katie, but she was with Fred.

It bothered me that I would need to remind myself of either of those things.

Quidditch was canceled for the rest of the year. The Chamber of Secrets and all that. For a while there, I was pretty scared. Of course, everything went down smoothly, and once again good ol' Harry came out above you-know-who.

All's well that ends well.

*****

I rounded a corned and stopped when I heard two familiar voices talking.

"I'm sorry Fred," Katie said softly. "I just don't want to be in a serious relationship right now."

"I understand Katie," he replied sadly, though I could tell that he very well did not understand.

"You're one of my best friends," she continued. "And I don't want this to come between that. It won't, right?"

"'Course not," he answered, and I could tell he was being sincere.

I heard footsteps walking this way, so I did the only thing I could think of. I walked a couple steps backward and then made it look like I'd just come over.

"Oh, hi Oliver," Fred said miserably. I looked over and saw Katie walking in the other direction.

"What's wrong Fred?" I asked, though of course I already knew.

"Katie…she broke up with me," he replied.

"Oh, wow, I'm sorry," I said, feigning surprise.

"It's okay, I guess. She used the 'I want to be friends' line, but at least I know she meant it."

"Yeah," I agreed. "That's always good."

"I didn't think it would hurt this much," he told me, as we walked toward the Gryffindor common room.

"You knew she was gonna dump you?" I asked, and she he winced at my not-so-delicate wording.

"Yeah. I could tell she just wasn't interested. She seemed all happy and stuff the first couple weeks, then it was just…weird. I'm almost glad we're just going to be friends," he admitted. "Except for the fact that I like her so much."

"I don't know what to say besides, 'go snog someone, it'll help you get over it', but that doesn't seem like good advice."

He laughed. "No, not really."