Chapter 22:

Hermione went through her entire married life so far, in her mind. Over and over and over and over and over yet again till she could replay everything in a single breath. His look, his words, his touche, and his kisses had said something to her, untying something deep within her. She knew she had to know it, trust it, but there was some sort of a block in her head that refused to budge.

She sat just like that, by the window in the den at the Burrow, all through that day and the next two, knees hugged close to her chest, head lying on it. She had screwed it up and how! What did she do now? And what did his tirade mean? She was giving him a chance to make a new life, a chance not afforded to many with the new law and yet he had almost threatened that he would not let her go. Why? The questions plagued her mind. And then finally around mid-day of Thursday, she knew the answer. She stood up and looked around but saw no one. She rushed to the bathroom for a quick shower, fixed herself up as best as she could and left straight for the stadium where her husband would be. She smiled at that, she finally had understood his tirade. I've finally understood him! She dashed off the homestead and then came running back in and stepped into the fireplace screaming Puddlemere United Stadium loudly before disappearing in the green flames.

The four heads that were watching over her from afar since that Monday smiled, both boys looking at each other, knowing their friend would finally be happy after a very long time. And then the boys kissed their wives, expressing their happiness to have them there, in their arms.

!

He saw her walking down the stairs leading to the family box. He felt her presence as a shift in the air around him. Oh, I'm turning sappy! he drawled internally. He just did not know what to do with her any more than say. So he continued with his game. Even quidditch had stopped brightening his mood, he felt that dejected, but he had kept coming here, knowing his responsibilities towards his team.

And now she was here too and he'd be damned if he let her live in her solitary bubble anymore. If she wants to move ahead with me, and I'll bloody well make sure she does just that, she will fight her fears and come through for me, he vouched.

Hermione waited for the coach to signal for the team's lunch break and saw one by one, all of them fly down towards the stand and meet up with their family or move up to the cafeteria. All except the one she had come to see. He, for some weird reason, continued to hover close to those damn hoops of his, shooting an enchanted quaffle continuously, through them all, one after the other.

She waited for him to come down. Minutes ticked by, he remained up in the air. That bastard! she thought, knowing exactly what he was playing at. I don't believe I'm going to do this she mused darkly as she made her way to the closest team member and read the name off his back. "Hi! Uhm... Mathews?"

He turned and saw her, freezing. "Mrs. Wood," he greeted.

She smiled a little wanly at that but asked what she had to. "Uhm... I know it's too much to ask of a professional player, but could I please borrow your broom?"

Of all the things Mathews had expected her to say to him, especially after witnessing the debacle between Tatyana and Oliver two days back, this was not it. "Sure," he smiled a little, "here you go," he handed her his broom. "And don't worry, I'll have Oliver replace it with a better one if it breaks," he winked, trying to ease off the tension off her tiny shoulders but saw his joke have the absolute opposite effect and her hands tensed on his broom. He winced thinking that he would probably need a new broom when she was done with his. He gave her an encouraging smile saying, "All its safety charms are in place, don't worry. Go, get him." She smiled again and walked to the edge of the box, a prayer on her lips. Now or never she thought and jumped with the broom nestled between her legs.

She had a very shaky start but Oliver was proud to see she had taken the plunge, literally. Now for the kill he thought and braced himself, throwing the quaffle again.

She managed to reach him with just enough jerks to break her back. He better take me back after this, she pondered, mood still dark.

"Oliver.." she hovered, kind of, behind him. He did not bother to turn. "Oliver I'm here to apologize for my stupidity."

He kept shooting the quaffle through the hoops, moving from left to right and then back again, making her follow him. He didn't need her apology, he just needed her to say the words he wanted to hear. "Will you please look at me when I'm trying to talk to you?"

"Why?" he asked, continuing his work.

"Because that's the basic courtesy you can offer me now. I'm on a bloody broom trying to talk to you and you can't even bring yourself to look at me?" she snapped.

"Doesn't sound like much of an apology to me."

She bit her tongue at that. "Oliver, I honestly did whatever I did only for your happiness. I really believed that you'd be better off with her."

"So what changed? What got you rushing here?"

That got no answer from her. "Do you remember what I told you when we met at this very stadium the first time?" He saw her nod from the corner his eyes, her head hanging a little low.

"Good. So I ask again. Why are you here?"

"I understood my mistake. I …. I mean if you…" and her broom started its erratic movements.

"Gather your thoughts, Hermione," he instructed yet again. He seemed to be going through the same instruction with her every single time. He saw her death grip on the broom and winced. Not again! "Fuck Hermione," he cursed and zoomed close to her, pulling her up and straddling her on his lap facing him, before her broom gave way beneath her, snapping in two pieces and falling off. "What is it with you and brooms?" he asked amused.

She winced, "Mathews said he'd make you get him a better one if I broke his," seeing the two pieces falling way down and a single tiny figure moving towards it.

He smiled at that, happy to have her back in his arms, knowing he would not let her go now that he had her there, seeing how she subconsciously moved her arms around his neck and locked her ankles behind his back, pushing herself closer to him. "Did he now? We'll have to see what we can do about that now, won't we?" he whispered huskily, tucking a stray strand of her hair behind her ear with his one free arm, the other controlling the broom, keeping it stationed near the hoops. She shivered at his touch and buried her head in his chest. After a few long seconds, she came back up and looked straight in his eyes, "I'm sorry. I acted stupidly. I promise I won't do anything like that again if you'll have me back."

He considered her statements for a second then asked, "And?"

She furrowed her brows, question in her eyes and lips, "And?"

"There's something I really want to hear you say and I can see it in your eyes, feel it in your touches. Voice it and we'll see what we can do.." he said, truly smiling after what felt like years to him.

Her eyes lit and a delicious blush ran up her cheeks, "Oliver I ….. I love you. Since the day you kissed me on our first flight on your broom, I've been falling for you. Nothing we've done was ever a lie. Not the kisses, not the touches, not to me. I just wanted to see you happy. I wanted you to have everything you deserved and more, things I couldn't give. So I …."

Oliver just bent his head down and kissed the remainder of her speech away. "I love you, Hermione. I have liked you from the time you introduced coffee to me on our first date. Did you know, you're the first and as of yet the only person, apart from my parents, that I've spoken to about things other than quidditch for hours? You show me I'm more than my obsession with the game and yet you understand that about me. My feelings for you were clinched when I saw your dastardly performance on the broom that first Sunday and I realized I still wanted to coach you through it rather than abandon you at the first opportunity I got. I wanted to weep in a corner when I slowly realized I was falling for the perfect antithesis of me. On that second Saturday, after our wedding, when you woke up all aroused and wanton under me, I knew I wanted you, just you, all through my life. That look of yours was my undoing. It is still is."

She smiled at that. "I love you Hermione and I hope we won't be doing this again, but I'll keep pulling you back to me, the firmer you try to push me away, the harder I'll pull you back, but I won't let you go. Not now. Not ever." She tugged at his hair and got him down at that. Kissing him with all the love she had for him. When they finally came up for air, he whispered seductively to her, "Hold that thought for me till the evening, will you? It's been weeks since I last saw my wife. I've really missed her way too much…." Her laugh at that filled him with peace and joy. Things will finally be as they were supposed to be he smiled at that happy thought and kissed her again.

When they came up for air, she tried to chastise him about missing his lunch. He just glared at her and pulled her closer, making sure she had much better things to do with her mouth than lecture him, all through his lunch break…