Chapter 5: "My middle name. It's Bilius."
"So Hermione, huh?" Ron said as he zipped up his backpack.
Hermione looked back at him with a furrowed brow. "Excuse me?"
"Hermione. It's not a name you hear every day."
"Oh, right." She stepped out of their study room while he held the door and lowered her voice as they moved through the stacks of the library. "It's from Shakespeare. Hermione is a character in The Winter's Tale. My parents always wanted me to have a name that was different, and they're big fans of classic literature. So, Hermione."
"Shakespeare's cool, I guess. I'm just named after my great-uncle or something."
"Yes, well, trust me, sometimes it's nicer to have a name that people are familiar with. I can't recall the last time somebody pronounced it correctly on the first try."
"Maybe. But I don't know, I like it. It's unique."
Turning back to him, she squinted, the corners of her lips rising a bit. "Thanks. I suppose I like it too, even if it is frustrating sometimes. Also, I only have one great-aunt, and her name is Mildred, so I'm glad I wasn't named after a family member. Ron is a perfectly good name, but I wouldn't want to go through life as Mildred."
"Well, technically my parents just picked Ron. My great-uncle's name is actually my middle name."
"And that is?"
"Oh, I'm not telling you that," he replied, laughing to himself. "It's horrible. Even worse than Mildred."
"Really? It can't be that bad."
"It sure as hell can be."
As they reached the bottom of the stairs, she laughed along with him. It was a cute laugh, and Ron had to give himself a subtle pinch on the thigh to refocus his mind.
Why is she having this effect on me? Sure, she's a little hot in that librarian kind of way, but she's so…not my type.
"Now you have my curiosity piqued," Hermione offered, turning to face him once they exited back out into the winter weather.
"Well, I'm afraid it'll just have to remain a mystery," Ron answered, the smile growing wider on his face.
She laughed and shook her head. "And after all I'm doing for you."
The way her face scrunched up when she laughed was adorable, which contributed to his decision to soften his stance. "Alright, tell you what. Since you've been so helpful with all of this, I'll tell you, but only if I see results. If I get a ninety percent or higher on the exam, you get to learn my middle name. We'll consider it…payment for your services, if you will."
"Hmm, interesting offer."
"And I can assure you I'm going full try-hard mode here. I've got my Ultimate Frisbee career to think about."
"Okay," she responded, sticking out her hand. "You've got a deal."
Giving it a hearty shake, he nodded back at her. "Deal."
"Alright, well good luck with your studying, and I'll see you next week."
"Thanks, I'll see you then!"
In the week since their first meeting, Ron had dreaded their next session. But in hindsight, he admitted to himself that it hadn't been that bad. Their studying had been much more tolerable, especially since he had made sure to attend all of the lectures leading up to their lesson. He was still glad to be heading home, of course, but he felt much better about the tutoring he was receiving.
Over the last week, he'd tried hard to reframe the way he thought about the whole situation. It was evident how helpful the first session had been in his understanding of the material, and he did his best to use that as motivation when going back for the second. Every useful study period with Hermione improved his chances of staying on the Ultimate Frisbee team and relieved a lot of his stress about the class.
So, while he would still prefer to not need the extra help, he was starting to understand just how beneficial it could be. Plus, it seemed as though Hermione had been suitably impressed that he had been much more prepared than the first time around. She had even been willing to engage in some small talk throughout the hour that they were studying together, and for the first time, he had actually seen her smile.
And what a smile it was. He'd always had a thing for girls with dazzling white teeth, and Hermione Granger did not disappoint. Coupled with her wavy brown hair, hazel eyes, and petite figure, she was actually quite attractive. At least when she wasn't hyper-focused on proteins or lipids or something like that. Biology still wasn't something that interested him, and he felt that her style of teaching was too intense for an introductory class, but he was at least starting to see the fringe benefits of having a cute biology tutor.
The wind picked up a bit as he headed westward back to his house, and he upped his pace to a jog to get out of the cold faster. When he walked in the door, Seamus and Harry were reviewing their notes for class and listening to Khruangbin.
"Oh good, you're both here. Madden? Madden anyone?"
"You're on," Seamus replied, gleefully tossing his textbook on the floor and reaching for the controller.
Harry continued to study but glanced up briefly at his friend. "How'd it go, Ron?"
"Fine," Ron said, already distracted by the video game. "Helpful, even. But whatever, enough of that, time to kick Seamus' ass."
The next week passed in a blur of activity, and between studying and frisbee, Ron barely had time to think about anything else.
By the time the following Wednesday rolled around, he found himself once again scrambling to gather his things before his tutoring session. He was trying not to be disappointed about missing out on a team dinner for something as boring as studying biology, but his exam was coming up in less than a week. He needed the time to prepare no matter how much he'd rather be doing just about anything else.
As Ron dashed through the halls looking for his backpack, he indulged Harry's pestering. It certainly wouldn't do for his roommate to know that he found Hermione attractive. No, better for Harry to just think that the whole thing was a big pain in the ass.
"It's only one hour, Ron. No big deal," Harry said.
"Last time wasn't too bad, I guess," Ron replied.
"See, that's great. And you said you feel like you're going to do better on your next exam, so it sounds like a win-win."
"Yeah. Hermione takes everything super seriously, though. I don't think she gets that this is never going to be my favorite subject, you know? At least she lightened up compared to the week before."
"Maybe she just needs to come out of her shell a little bit. You're usually good at helping people do that."
"Sure, but, like…why? She's just my tutor," Ron said, digging through a pile of jackets in the corner of the entryway.
"Doesn't mean you can't have a friendly relationship."
"I guess. Still not a fun way to spend my Wednesday nights, but whatever. At least I'll be able to stay on the team."
"Exactly, stay on the team. That's why you're doing this, right? Anyway, I'm going to go work on some homework before meeting up with the guys, I'll see you later."
"See you later, man."
Moments later, Ron tracked down his stuff and slipped out the front door.
See? It's just about the grade. I need the grade to stay on the team. I didn't actually enjoy spending time with Hermione. I bet I was just excited because I was finally understanding things better. Yeah, that must be it.
It was still bitterly cold outside, and his heavy coat wasn't doing as much as he hoped it would at keeping out the chill during the ten-minute walk to the library. But his disappointment at missing the team dinner faded once he stepped into the library and out of the frigid winter air and, somewhat surprisingly, it only improved when his gaze swiveled to the bench where she always waited for him.
"You know, one of these days, I'm going to beat you here," he said as he walked towards her.
"Unlikely," Hermione replied as she stood up and made her way up the stairs toward their normal study room. "I'm a very punctual person."
"Yeah, I can tell. I'm not too bad, though, am I?"
Glancing back at him, she gave him a small nod. "Not too bad."
Once they arrived in room 2-713 and got their materials set up, Hermione launched directly into a discussion of cellular components.
"So, are there certain organelles that you're having more or less trouble understanding?" she asked after briefly reviewing each one.
"Umm, maybe?"
"...Such as?"
Ugh, I bet I wouldn't be getting the fifth degree if I had just gone to the Ultimate dinner.
But her question was telling. It was clear that she was still disappointed in his poor study habits. The concepts should already be clear to him. At the very least, he should only be confused by a couple of the cellular structures. Why hadn't he prepared just a bit more?
But no, wait, who cares? That's why I'm here, right? Besides, it's not like I'm trying to impress anyone. She already knows I suck at this stuff.
"Do you think we could just go through them all?"
Hermione gave him a reproving look as she picked up the dry-erase marker and started drawing the inside of a cell on the whiteboard.
"What? Isn't that the point of all this?" he asked, sitting up straighter in his chair.
"It is, but I thought you were going to review all of this ahead of time."
Fuck, of course I should've! Dammit, this is all Seamus' fault, he just wanted to hang out all weekend. How was I supposed to find time to be prepared? Now Hermione's pissed at me!
"I mean, I did. But there's just…I don't know, there's a lot to keep track of." His head hung low with frustration and a bit of shame, and he muttered to himself, "It's not like college is supposed to be all about studying."
With one last glare, she looked away and turned her attention to the board. "Alright, pay attention."
Over the next hour, Hermione led him on a guided tour of a human cell, explaining every individual component along with its basic role. Ron followed along, taking notes along the way, confident that he was understanding everything way better than he had after the initial lecture by Professor Sprout. There was something about the way she explained things that just made sense to him. Her voice was pleasant and easy to listen to, and it didn't hurt that he was having a harder and harder time taking his eyes off of her.
Perhaps that's why he noticed, like clockwork, that she pulled out her bag of gummy bears again at precisely half past seven, slowly chewing on them in between drawings of various cellular elements. It perplexed him that someone who seemed so grown up needed candy in the middle of studying, and his curiosity finally pushed him to pose the question.
"I'm sorry, I have to ask," Ron blurted out as she was going over the function of a lysosome. "What's with the gummy bears? Does your family own stock in whoever makes them or something? Or is your dad, like, Willy Wonka?"
If it had been last week, he suspected that she would've chastised him for disturbing the flow of her lecture. Instead, he was pleasantly surprised to see her put down the marker and turn towards him, holding out the bag.
"No, quite the opposite, actually. Both of my parents are dentists. They're just my little vice, I guess," she replied. "Would you like some?"
He reached into the bag and grabbed an orange one, his favorite flavor. "Thanks. Sounds kind of dangerous, especially since I took you for a rule stickler. Do they know about this filthy habit of yours?"
Hermione's lips spread into a coy smile, and she ducked her head. "What they don't know can't hurt them, right? Besides, I brush my teeth exceptionally well, sometimes three times per day."
"Jesus, three times? Talk about an overachiever."
"My parents have shared some horror stories with me over the years. It sort of scared me straight."
"I have so many brothers and sisters that I think my parents were satisfied if even half of us brushed our teeth each night."
"Did you have many cavities as a child?"
Grinning back at her, he gave a shrug of his shoulders. "What do you think?"
"I see."
"I mean, I'm better now, though. Probably not perfect, and certainly not three times per day, but pretty solid."
"I'm sure you're doing fine, you have a great smile."
He gulped, not quite sure how to respond. "Umm, thanks."
Is she flirting with me?
All of a sudden, she straightened up in her chair and cleared her throat. A hint of a blush appeared on her cheeks as her eyes darted around the room, finally settling on her textbook. "Anyways, the lysosome. It's mainly responsible for the digestion of macromolecules and response and repair after bacteria or viral attack. Does that make sense?"
"Yup," Ron said, taking her cue to move the conversation along. "Yup, I got it."
The minutes continued to tick by, and all the while Ron was feeling more confident about his readiness for the upcoming exam. Half an hour later, Hermione checked her watch and gasped.
"Oh, I'm sorry, it's already five past eight," she exclaimed. "We still have another two organelles to cover, but we can stop here if you like."
Ron pulled his phone out of his pocket, surprised himself at how fast the time had passed. "Oh, yeah, so it is. Umm, well, I guess…I mean, if you have to go, that's fine, but I'm okay with finishing up if you are."
Once again, Hermione smiled at him, and he was stunned into silence. "Sure, we can do that."
It took another fifteen minutes to review the rough and smooth endoplasmic reticula, after which they both started to pack up their materials.
"So, how are you feeling about next week's exam?" she asked.
"Honestly? Not too bad. Much better than I was a few weeks ago."
"That's good. I hope these meetings have been helpful for you."
"Absolutely. I feel like teachers usually know their material so well that they can't really understand what it's like to not know it, you know?"
Hermione nodded as she pulled on her jacket. "Mmhmm, I've been there."
"But you? I don't know, not to say that you don't understand it; you clearly know this stuff backward and forward. But you have a way of explaining things that makes it…easy to understand, I guess."
"Thank you, Ron," she said, her face reddening again. "I'm happy to help. For what it's worth, I think you've shown excellent progress, and I think you'll do very well."
"Here's hoping. Should we still meet up next week? Or is that kind of pointless since we will have just had the exam?"
"Well, it's up to you. I'm happy to meet with you if you like. There will be new material during the lecture the day after the exam, and it's never too early to get started on your preparation for the next test."
Ron allowed her to catch him rolling his eyes a bit, inspiring a glare back at him. "I'm kidding, I'm kidding. Yes, next Wednesday sounds good. I'm sure I'll thank myself for staying ahead of the game."
She froze, a surprised grin spreading across her face. "That's an excellent attitude. Now, as always, feel free to email me if you have any questions leading up to the exam."
"I will, thanks. See you next week?"
"Yes, next week."
As he walked back to his house, Ron had to shake his head in disbelief. He'd actually stayed at the library past the required time frame. Throughout his educational career, Ron had been the type of person who counted down the seconds until school was over, rushed through his homework to get it done as quickly as possible, and half-assed his studying even for the most important tests and projects. So the thought of voluntarily staying past eight o'clock to study with Hermione left him with a dazed feeling in his head. And did he just volunteer to do extra studying right after the exam as well? Strangely, it didn't exactly bother him, though, and at the moment it had been an easy decision. What was that all about? Had he developed a secret love for biology and found it super interesting now? Or could it be…did he just want to spend more time with Hermione?
Questions like those continued to swirl through his head over the next five days, even consuming his thoughts when he was fully engaged in other endeavors. He had mentioned it briefly to Harry, who grumbled some comment about Ron finally taking responsibility and buckling down.
Yes,that was probably it. Ron just wanted to make sure he was doing everything in his power to stay on the Ultimate team.
Part of that desire was born out of the success the team was having. Their practices had been high quality and intense over the last week or two, and everyone could tell that they were building towards being a dominant team in the national championships later that spring. If anything, that only motivated Ron even more to stay on top of his school work, not wanting to jeopardize his spot on the roster.
With that impetus pushing him forward, he ventured out on Monday evening to take his biology exam. Hermione was sitting in the front, helping to proctor the exam along with Professor Sprout and Neville, Ron's TA from his discussion section. He gave her a small wave once he settled into his seat, which she happily returned.
As soon as the professor told them they could begin, Ron flipped open the exam booklet, immediately recognizing the diagrams on the first page. Continuing to go through the exam at a more rapid pace than he usually did, he waited for the questions to get harder. But unlike the last exam, which he could've sworn was written in Greek, everything on the current test seemed blatantly obvious. By the time he reached the last page and answered the final question about the difference between a purine and pyrimidine base, only a few other students had finished their exams. He wasn't used to being the first one done, so he went back and reviewed each answer in sequence. With only one or two exceptions, though, he was confident in all of them, turning it in to his professor only forty-five minutes after starting and winking at a pleased-looking Hermione on his way out the door.
Two days later, he headed back to the library again for his weekly meeting with his tutor. The professor hadn't posted grades yet, but he hoped that Hermione might have some inside knowledge that she'd be willing to share. He even made sure he knew where all of his books were so that he could leave the house ten minutes early, hoping to beat her there for once.
When he arrived, though, she was already sitting on her bench, reading a book for a different class while she waited for him.
"I thought I had you this time!" he cried as he picked his way through the sea of students to get to her.
"Not quite, but close," she replied, still looking like she was trying to withhold a bigger grin.
"Is it okay that I'm early? I didn't mean to disturb you if you're working on something else."
Sliding in a bookmark to save her place, she tucked the book into her bag. "No, it's fine. I'm actually rereading this for the second time, so it's kind of just for fun."
"You have pretty strange ideas about what constitutes fun, but that's fine."
"I like this book, it's for my evolution class. It's based on the writings of Charles Darwin."
"Oh yeah, I've heard that guy's the life of the party."
"It's very interesting material!" she chastised with a glare over her shoulder. "Charles Darwin revolutionized the world of biology through pure observation."
"I'm sure he did. Birds, right?" he asked, pulling open the door of study room 2-713.
"Technically finches, but that's very good! See, you know more biology than you give yourself credit for."
He chuckled as he tossed his bag into one of the empty chairs. "All I hope is that I knew enough about what was on the test a couple days ago. I don't suppose…I mean, you don't happen to know how I ended up doing, do you? Professor Sprout hasn't posted anything yet."
"It just so happens I do," she hinted with a smirk. "Neville graded yours already and gave it to me when I told him I'd be seeing you tonight."
Waiting with bated breath, he watched as she dug through her computer bag, finally extracting a familiar-looking collection of papers. After thumbing through and finding the one with Ron's name on it, she handed it to him with a sly smile. In the top corner of the front page in big red writing was a large circled "97". It was an A-plus. The best grade he'd ever received on an exam at college so far. It had been so long since he'd been truly impressed with his own academic performance. He'd excelled at other things, and he'd always done fine in school, but he rarely surprised himself. As a warm, tingly feeling spread through his body, though, he finally felt pride in his achievement in a way he hadn't experienced in quite some time.
"You've gotta be kidding me!" he yelled, beaming back at her. Before he could control himself, he lunged forward and threw his arms around Hermione's neck, causing them both to sway precariously. Once he steadied them, her arms circled around his midsection and gave him a gentle squeeze. The way she hugged him back was tender and almost caring, way better than he thought it would be. He enjoyed the way her hair tickled his nose, and he couldn't help but think that her petite body was an excellent fit against his tall frame. Even though he could barely remember how he got there, he knew he didn't want to leave.
He was also reminded of a pact they'd made a few weeks earlier. Her help was critical for him to achieve such a fantastic outcome, so he knew it was time to pay up.
"Bilius," he said.
After another second or two, Hermione pulled back and dropped her arms to her side, her face flushed. "Bilius?" she asked as she squinted back at him.
"My middle name. It's Bilius. You held up your end of the deal, so I'm holding up mine. Bilius."
"Oh! Oh, right. Well, that's not…I mean, it could be worse, although…"
"It's fine, I've admitted it, you can too; it's horrible."
"Yeah, pretty horrible," she replied with a small snicker.
Tension hung between them for a short silence, which Ron finally broke with a quiet cough. "Umm, anyway, thanks again for helping me. I couldn't have done that without you."
"You absolutely could've done that without me, but I was happy to help. You've really shown that you're willing to put the work in. If you keep it up, I think you'll finish with an A in the class."
"I'll do my best."
"I'm sure you will," Hermione said as she sat down and pulled out her books. "And to make sure of that, let's get started, shall we?"
"Right, good thinking."
The next hour was spent reviewing the material from the next round of exams, mostly focusing on the details of the cell membrane. Already having a solid background in the contents of a cell definitely helped Ron's understanding, and the hour flew by. Admittedly, they probably got a bit less work done than they usually did because their conversation had started to take more tangents, which he enjoyed even if it was at the expense of studying. But that's what made studying tolerable, right?
Once they were done and started packing their things, Ron snuck a quick peek at his tutor. Not only was she slowly becoming someone he actually enjoyed spending time with, he couldn't help but feel that he was more taken by her every week. There was a force acting from somewhere that he couldn't identify, pushing him to extend every conversation and find ways to spend more time with her. Three weeks ago, he couldn't wait to get home after his tutoring session with Hermione Granger. After their current session, though, he was somewhat sad to see her go.
Just as he was about to look away, he noticed her expression morph into one of confusion, then of concern. She quickly shook it off and continued getting her things together, and Ron did the same. As he pulled on his coat, he watched as she placed a hand on the desk, almost as if she was steadying herself the way an elderly person would. Then, as she tried to stand up gingerly, her knees buckled, and he dashed forward to catch her before she fell, absorbing her body weight against his chest.
"Woah, Hermione, you okay?"
Small beads of sweat appeared on her forehead, and she looked pale. Slowly, he lifted her back to a standing position, keeping a firm grasp on her arm just in case.
"Oh, umm, yes, I'm fine," she replied, still gripping the edge of a chair tightly as she took a deep breath. "Probably just dehydrated. As you can tell, I'm quite bad at remembering my water bottle."
Ron tilted his head and peered back at her, trying to read her facial expression. "You're sure? Here, would you like a sip of mine?"
She held up her hand to stop him as he pulled his water bottle out of his backpack. "No, I'll just get something when I get home. It's okay now, it just happens occasionally when I stand up too fast. I promise I'm okay."
Hesitant to release her arm, he grabbed her bag and threw it over the same shoulder that already held the strap of his own. She released the chair and took a step toward the door, pulling it open and stepping out into the library. Her face was red, and he suspected she was more embarrassed than anything. Still, he couldn't shake the fact that she looked worried before she even stood up as if she knew it was going to happen.
"Do you want me to walk you back to your house? You know, just in case?"
"Oh, no, you don't need to go to all that trouble. I'm fine now, I swear."
"You're sure?"
"I'm sure."
"Okay, if you say so. Maybe take a drink from the water fountain before you go, at least?"
"That's a good idea. I think there's one by the bathrooms. I'll go get a drink then head home."
Something was pushing Ron to stay with her, but he didn't want to be annoying or overbearing. She was a grown woman, for God's sake, and one who had things together better than just about any other college student he'd ever met.
"Alright, good. So I'll still see you next week, though?"
"Yes, next week. Have a great night, and congratulations again. You really did excellent work."
"All thanks to you. See you then," he offered, handing her bag back to her.
"Bye!"
As Ron headed downstairs and pushed open the door to the outside, he still didn't feel right about it. Maybe he should have insisted? Or he could've called her an Uber? Or even given her a ride himself?
All the while as he mulled over his decision, the same thought continued creeping into his head.
I really care what happens to her.
