Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or any of the characters.

Chapter Ten

Confessions

The last week wasn't any better for Ron than the first week after the break-up. He had to go back to work on Monday, but he still refused to go on any missions, even arguing with his boss until he was given a mountain load of paperwork. But he knew, and so did his boss (though he didn't want to admit it), that he would be a danger to himself, and anyone he was working with if he went out of the office. He was still drinking every night, and he hated that, but he couldn't stop himself from doing it. Harry would come over every few days to check on him, and Ron knew his friend didn't approve of his drinking, but as of yet Harry hadn't said anything about it. Harry didn't have a drink with him since the first night, but he didn't really expect that, Harry was responsible for Bess after all. Ron was just grateful that his friend had come to visit him for a few hours, distracting him, letting him wallow, but most importantly not judging him.

It was very early on Saturday morning and Ron was just starting to stir. He opened his eyes, but then closed them immediately, it was much too bright in the room. However, it was the fact that he had a splitting headache that really made him want to keep his eyes shut. As he laid there, rubbing his head, he tried to remember what had happened the night before.

"You know," the voice of Lavender Brown said from somewhere, causing Ron to immediately sit up, looking at her with terror (ignoring his hammering head), praying to Merlin that he didn't do what it looks like he did. "When I asked you to bring me back here, I thought we would at least share the same bed."

Slightly relieved by that comment, Ron was able to take in his surroundings and realized that he was in his living room, on his couch to be more precise. He also noticed that he was in the same clothes he was wearing the night before when he had gone to a pub so he could get drunk. "Merlin Lav, you scared me," Ron sighed and looked back up at the now frowning girl.

"Ron, what happened last night … why did you leave?" Lavender asked frowning.

"I'm not really sure … last night is kind of a blur, mind filling me in," Ron said still feeling disoriented, but he got off the couch and headed for his kitchen, knowing that's where the hangover potion was. He downed the potion, feeling the immediate relief of his headache, but knew it would take several minutes before he could think clearly. "Do you need some?"

"No, I'm okay," Lavender said and he saw that she was still frowning when he turned to look at her. "I didn't drink that much … er … al least I don't have a hangover."

"So, what happened?" Ron looked at her warily. "How far …?"

"You said you weren't dating anyone," Lavender said. "That you've broken up with that Muggle girl you've been seeing."

"I'm not seeing anyone," Ron stated, trying not to let her see how hard it was for him to say those words, how his heart seemed to break saying that out loud. But more, he didn't want her to see how impatient he was to have her answer his question already … didn't she realize he needed to know how much he had effed up last night. He already knew that he had gone to a pub to get smashed and taken a girl home with him, and not just any girl, but his ex that he had an arrangement with. He pretty much did every damn thing he told himself (and her) that he wouldn't do again. He turned away from Lavender and started gathering ingredients for breakfast, hoping that would encourage her into continuing.

"Well, I just had a very messy break-up with Johnny," Lavender sighed.

Ron paused what he was doing, some of the details of last night started to become clearer to him. He remembered that he sat next to Lavender when he had spotted her at the Hog's Head, and how the two of them had talked about how crappy they had felt. He remembered having several drinks before she started rubbing his arm and giving him that look. He had ignored the look, and moved away from her, but he had stayed, and he had continued drinking … then he didn't know what happened.

"I thought we could cheer each other up," Lavender said.

"How far did it go?" Ron asked again; he was still wearing all his clothes, so it hadn't gone that far, but even the thought of kissing her made him queasy.

"I offered to take you home, you were in no shape to get here yourself," Lavender said frowning. "And then we made our way to your bedroom, and I sat on your bed, and you were standing over me for a few minutes … you muttered something about your knee … and then you left, and I fell asleep before you came back."

"My knee?" Ron questioned, but as soon as he said the words, he knew what he really said. He was thinking about Hermione, and how much he knew that she would hate him being in this situation. How disappointed she would be in him. It sounded like things weren't too bad last night, though he still wasn't sure if they had kissed or not.

"I was hoping that you just took too long trying to fix your knee or something," Lavender sighed. "But the truth is you just didn't want to be with me, right?"

"I'm sorry, Lav … I wasn't in my right mind last night," Ron sighed and walked over to the very upset girl and sat near her on the couch. "But I really don't have any intentions of being with anyone like that right now … and probably not for a long time. I'm just not in the right head space."

"But isn't that why we made this pact in the first place," Lavender said, and Ron tried not to flinch at her words. "Aren't we supposed to be there for one another when the other was down? I could cheer you up."

"No, you can't," Ron said honestly. "It would only make me feel worse, knowing how Mione felt about this … I can't do it."

"Mione," Lavender narrowed her eyes knowing that was what he had said last night. She looked away from him not wanting him to see how much pain that word had caused her. "Your ex, I take it."

"Yeah," Ron said gravely. "I'm sorry if I made it seem like I was available."

"You didn't," Lavender groaned, hating that he was apologizing for this, it just made her hurt more. "I just really wanted last night to happen. I forced you to allow me to bring you home … and to get you in your room. But Ron, you broke up with her … why can't we …?"

"It doesn't feel right," Ron said looking at her not knowing how to explain it to her. He didn't think Lavender wanted to hear that he wasn't ready to give up on Hermione, even if he couldn't see how things could be fixed between them. He definitely didn't want to give up his feelings and the hopes he started to have when he was with Hermione … the ones he had when she was sleeping in his arms.

Lavender was looking at Ron closely for the first time. The previous night she was too preoccupied with trying to get what she wanted, but now she could see how much pain he seemed to be in. Swallowing her own pain, she tried to be his friend. "You can tell me about her, if you want. It might make you feel better."

"I doubt it," Ron groaned, there was no better for him.

"It couldn't hurt," Lavender pushed, "I doubt you've talked to anyone yet."

"I told Harry," Ron answered.

"I don't think that counts," Lavender rolled her eyes, the Harry Potter after the war was a shell of who he used to be, and though she knew he still cared, she couldn't see him being there for Ron like he needed.

"Fine," Ron sighed, he knew that she was underestimating how helpful Harry was to him during the break-up, but it wasn't worth setting her straight. Besides, Lavender was a girl, so she might have a new perspective to everything that happened. So, he explained everything that happened starting with Hermione telling him about her set-up date, to witnessing the kiss (that wasn't really a kiss), and finally getting to the real issue.

"… And then she said, 'I don't know," like she was still trying to get me to stay or something," Ron finished feeling emotionally drain, repeating the situation just made him feel hopeless, how was he ever going to fix this? He wasn't the one that cause the problem!

"And then you left her," Lavender said in frustration.

"What the hell was I supposed to do!?" Ron spatted bitterly, he had expected Lavender to be sympathetic, not frustrated with him. "She practically said that she was going to leave me the second her parents told her to!"

"Actually, she said 'she didn't know'," Lavender said coldly, trying to keep her anger out of her voice (for a more personal reason). "And I would appreciate it if you didn't yell at me!"

"Hmph!" Ron huffed crossing his arms. "I thought you were supposed to be on my side?"

"Just because I don't agree with you, doesn't mean I'm not on your side," Lavender pointed out, and then sighed. She knew if she didn't calm down, he wouldn't listen to her. "With everything that she said … and did before that … well, I can see why you would react the way you have. I can see how much this has hurt you. But don't you think that you owe yourself more than to just walk away from your relationship?"

Ron shook his head; she didn't understand at all. "I couldn't bear it if I cared any more about her and still have her leave me because of that."

"So, you left her instead!" Lavender said coldly. "Instead of talking it through … you just left her. Did you even try to make her maybe into a yes … did you even try to show her how much you need her in your life?"

"I …?" Ron was stunned by what she said. Could he have made her maybe a yes? It hurt him to realize that Lavender was right, he hadn't even tried. He had been frozen in fear the moment he realized that she could leave him that he started building up walls … tried to tell himself that he had to get away from her or this pain would be worse … "That wouldn't have worked," he heard himself mutter without any conviction.

"You didn't even try Ron!" Lavender glared at him. "If you knew that it would hurt you more to lose her later, then why couldn't you see that she might feel the same way? Isn't it conceivable that she might feel the same way? But no, you had to run away from this … just like you always have!"

"Huh?" Ron said, feeling hope and dread as he listened to Lavender talk, if she was right … but then she said something that confused him. "I've never ran away from anything. Besides, I've never felt this way before."

"I know," Lavender sobbed as she looked away from him again, this time not being able to stop herself from crying.

"Lavender," Ron was completely caught off guard by her outburst as he made a move to comfort her, but she just moved away from him, crying harder. He realized what he had just said to her was very insensitive. She was his girlfriend once, the closest thing he had to a serious relationship, and he just basically told her he never cared about her. Which wasn't true, he did care about her, but he knew it was never enough.

"Just … give … me … a moment," Lavender said through sobs as she tried to gather herself. She sat there crying for ten minutes before she was able to speak. "Sorry."

"It … er … what … er … why are you crying?" Ron finally asked not wanting to sound like an arse, but he didn't know what else he could say.

"Because I just realized what a fool I've been," Lavender chuckled bitterly. "And how much time I wasted on you?"

"On me … er … what do you mean?" Ron said sadly, he had a bad feeling about this.

"I've liked you for a while now, Ron," Lavender confessed sadly looking at him. "Really liked you, not like I did when we first went out … though I think I had more feelings about you even back then."

"Lav," Ron sighed, feeling even worse about this rebound relationship with her. Hermione was right about this. Of course, someone was going to have more feelings if you mess around with them.

"It's not your fault Ron, you were honest about your feelings from the beginning," Lavender sighed choosing not to look at him because it would hurt too much to say if she saw his reactions. She was planning on telling him all of this soon (maybe even today), but she was hoping that it would be the beginning of something new, not the end of their relationship altogether.

"I thought you were going out with someone for the last few months … please tell me that you didn't break up with him because of me," Ron said frowning.

"I didn't," Lavender said smiling oddly. "But only because I wasn't really going out with anyone in the first place. I … er … I made him up."

"What?" Ron said looking at her incredulously.

"Yeah, I know, pathetic, isn't it?" Lavender grimaced. "I hoped that if you thought that I was going out with someone too … I don't know … I guess I was just waiting for you to break up with your girlfriend. Or at least I was at first, especially after I saw how happy you were, you are such an infectious person when your happy, Ron. Did you know that?"

"So, you wanted me to break up with Mione," Ron said coldly.

"At first," Lavender bowed her head. "But at Christmas I came clean to Parvati and she set me straight. She told me I was being ridiculous with this whole made up boyfriend thing and that if I opened my eyes that I would see that you were really happy. She was right … over these last few months you were happier than I've seen you in a long time. So, I decided to leave you alone, but then last night you said you broke up with her and … I don't know … I thought, well here's my chance, I can be with Ron again."

"I'm sorry Lavender, but that's not going to happen," Ron sighed but he looked a little annoyed too. Hermione had not been pleased when he had gone to meet his Gryffindor friends every other Thursday night knowing that Lavender was there, but he had told her there was nothing to worry about. Nothing but a scheming ex-girlfriend trying to get into his pants.

"I know," Lavender said rolling her eyes. "And that's not why I'm telling you this."

"Then why are you telling me this?" Ron frowned.

"Because I want you to be happy again Ron, even if it's not with me. I like my smiling friend a lot better than the slightly gloomy guy that you were before you met her," Lavender said.

"Gee thanks … but this didn't really help me much," Ron pointed out.

"I started liking you after the last time we went out," Lavender said going straight to her story, the reason why she was telling this to him at all. She didn't pause for his response or even looked at him, she just continued with what she had to say. "Remember when we spent that weekend at that lodge … just the two of us."

"I remember," Ron sighed, having a good idea where she was going with this now.

"It was the best weekend of my life," Lavender smiled; at least she would always have that. "It felt so real … so right … and I never wanted it to end. I tried to give you hints about how I felt, but they just made you pull away from me faster."

"I didn't feel that way about you, I didn't want to lead you on," Ron groaned, he should have realized then that this wasn't a good thing. "Which I've obviously failed at miserably."

"I saw it in your eyes, Ron," Lavender said in a harsh tone, finally looking at him and making sure he was looking at her. "When you decided not to take things farther with me … to remain friends."

"Lav," Ron sighed, she was right he had contemplated trying to take their relationship more seriously but decided against it. He knew now more than ever that he had made the right decision then; he knew what it was like to really be in love now.

"I know it's not the same thing … I know you never felt about me, they way you feel about her," Lavender said nearly crying again. "But don't you see that you stopped yourself from feeling something then, and you're doing the same thing now. You're afraid of moving into uncomfortable territory, because you know that you can be hurt by it. But Ron, you have to give this a chance …"

"But …" Ron said shaking his head.

"I know she hurt you when she was undecided," Lavender said knowing that pain all too well. "And I know it could hurt all the more in the end. But Ron, she makes you truly happy!"

"So, what do you want me to do? Crawl back to her on bended knees!" Ron shouted.

"I don't know Ron!" Lavender rolled her eyes, she so was not suggesting that, and he knew that. He was just reacting defensively … running again. "But do you really want it to end like this!?"

Ron looked at her for a few moments before he turned away. No, he didn't want it to end like this; he didn't want it to end at all.

"I better go," Lavender said getting up. "Just think about it, Ron."

"I will," Ron agreed, and she kissed him on the cheek before she left his flat.

O

Hermione woke up that morning from a restful sleep, it seemed that just knowing that she was going to see Ron and that she had some kind of plan made her rest peacefully. However, by the time she got out of bed she started going into her plan with more details and she was starting to get nervous. How was she going to make him understand that she was choosing him and what that really meant to her? And then, as she made herself some breakfast, she looked at the clock and noticed that it was only eight in the morning, and she knew she had to wait until eleven at least to give Ron a chance to wake up. Which meant that she only had more time to think … and worry … and her sense of dread grew. What if he doesn't like me anymore or doesn't want me back even after I tell him how I feel?

It was almost twelve by the time she got to the building that Ron lived in. She had started walking to his flat almost an hour ago, the walk normally taking only fifteen minutes, but she kept turning around or sitting on benches or a number of other ways she could think of to stall. The thing that always got her moving again was her belief that it would all work out in the end. That Ron and she would make it through this.

However, when she saw the blonde-haired blue-eyed woman walking out of Ron's building, her heart seemed to stop. Though she had never met the woman (not to mention she could have been coming from any number of flats in the building), she knew exactly who this was. It wasn't just the fact that she feared that Ron could do this, rebound with his ex, after all he had told her that was what happened between the two of them, but she had hoped that after their conversation that he wouldn't do this. It was also the fact that there was just something different about the woman. It was in the same way that Ron, Harry and even Bess had felt different, though by no means did she have any friendly feelings for this woman.

"Excuse me … Lavender," Hermione found herself calling to the woman, needing to make sure that she was right, but hoping that she wasn't so she could see Ron in peace. But there was no such luck, the woman turned to her (looking rather upset about something Hermione was please to note). "I knew it must be you," she added bitterly, trying to figure out what she was supposed to do now. So, Ron slept with his ex, even though he knows how I felt about this, he wasn't my boyfriend at the time … I can't hold him to that, she tried to convince herself, but it felt like a dagger went through her chest at just the thought of them together.

"I'm sorry, do I know … oh?" Lavender started to ask looking confused but as she looked the other girl over comprehension drawn on her face. "You're Hermione," she said and for a fleeting moment seeing the pain and hurt in the other girl's face and knowing what conclusion she came up with, she wanted to lie to the girl. She wanted to tell the other woman that she did exactly what she's been longing to do with Ron for almost a year now, but she didn't. Her vengeance withered away as soon as she thought of the pained look on Ron's face, and she knew that she would never have him. So, she took a deep breath and looked at the other woman that had stolen Ron's heart and made him forever out of her reach (noticing that the girl was quite pretty in the natural homely kind of way) and said, "he talked about you a lot."

"Hmph …" Hermione huffed, but she looked away from the other woman not wanting to show how much she was hurt by those words.

"Nothing happened between us," Lavender said realizing the girl thought she had been bragging or trying to be hurtful. "I wanted to … I've wanted to for a while now … but last night …" she wasn't sure why she was saying this, but the words just flowed out of her mouth.

"You stayed over," Hermione said coldly, it felt like her heart was breaking all over again … so maybe they hadn't slept together but she was still here. She also noted that Lavender admitted that she was trying to sleep with Ron while they were together, but that was pushed to the back of her mind.

"He didn't even kiss me," Lavender sighed. "And believe me I was throwing … er …" she blushed, she didn't want to tell this … not to this girl, but …. "Don't let me be the reason you don't see him … for him not being happy."

Hermione watched her go, it was obvious the girl was in pain, but at the same time she couldn't help but feel hearten by this encounter. She could have done without Lavender being there at all, but since that can't change this was the best outcome she could hope for (better than she thought possible). Doesn't this show that Ron still wanted her? Doesn't this show that they can still work things out? So, with this extra courage she walked up to Ron's flat and knocked on the door.

"Did you forget something, Lav?" Ron asked before answering the door, looking annoyed when it opened only to notice that it was Hermione standing there instead. His mouth dropped and he looked shocked, embarrassed, guilty and very nervous. But honestly, he never been happier to see anyone in his life … he was just so terrified that he had called her Lavender, and she would be upset about that and shout ….

"I don't think she would have come back even if she did forget something," Hermione commented shrewdly, noticing how good he looked with his hair still messy, rumpled work clothes, and her heart couldn't help but flutter at the sight of him. "Can I come in?"

"Er … um … what?" Ron said completely confused (and completely adorable), stopping his spiraling thoughts and allowing him to breathe again. "You saw Lavender?"

"On my way in," Hermione frowned. "It almost made me turn around, but I need to talk to you. Besides, it didn't hurt that she told me nothing happened between the two of you, despite her intentions."

"Right …" Ron had no idea what to say to this, so she knew what happened … the good and bad of it. Still, that didn't explain something, so he asked, "what are you doing here?"

"Can I come in?" Hermione asked again, she couldn't tell what he was feeling when he asked that question … was he annoyed that she was here? "It's a bigger discussion than a hallway could allow," she added hoping that he wouldn't turn her away, that he would want to talk to her too.

"Yeah," Ron said stepping aside to let her in. As he watched her take a seat on the couch his heart filled with hope, she hadn't looked angry, and she wanted to talk to him … hopefully she wanted to make up … and even if she didn't, he could swallow his pride a little to ensure she stays in his life. Lav was right, he hadn't tried last time because he was so bloody afraid … and he ran. But now he knew what it was like without her ….

"Sorry to just show up here like this, I probably should have called," Hermione said, she had noted that the couch clearly showed signs of being slept in and that made her feel even better. Still, she was nervous, and wasn't sure how to start this conversation.

"It's okay, I don't really use that bloody thing, so I probably wouldn't have answered it," Ron said sitting in the chair nearby. In truth he had kept the phone charged in hopes that she would call, but her showing up was the better option (though it was nearly disastrous).

Hermione nodded, in truth calling him had never crossed her mind, as she remembered that he had never answered his mobile, especially not when she had called repeatedly a few weeks ago … she had thought he had been screening her calls, but it turned out his phone wasn't charged. But why was she thinking about this, that didn't really matter she had to get to her point.

"I need to tell you why I was so hesitant to choose," Hermione said biting her lip, her heart racing.

"Does it really matter?" Ron asked coldly, unable to hide his disappointment, so she was just here to explain things to him and not to try to get back together. Well, he would just have to change her mind.

"Of course, it does," Hermione said looking hurt by his question until she saw his expression and she realized the mistake that she had made. She shook her head and looked at her hands smiling sadly.

"You're smiling!" Ron said, he couldn't help but be hurt by this reaction.

"At myself … it seems I have forgotten to say something very important," Hermione sighed and then got up and walked over to him looking him in the eyes.

"And what is that?" Ron gulped as he watched her until she was standing over him, his heart was hammering in his chest.

"To tell you that I choose you." Hermione said softly, still looking into his eyes and moving her hand to stroke his cheek.

"Mione," Ron moaned as he looked back at her he could see how sad, nervous, happy, excited, fearful, and every other feeling that he seemed to be feeling at the moment, but most importantly he could see the truth in her eyes. He smiled, his heart lightening a hundred percent as he stood up so he could cup her face and lean down to kiss her.

It was like the first time they kiss, it started with the relief of finally being able to feel her lips on his, and then they parted slightly so they could smile at each other almost shyly. Then their lips met again, and it was all consuming as he bit her lip, and she was opening her mouth, and their tongues were moving together gloriously. When he needed to breathe, he pulled away only so he could move to her neck. She moaned and then leaned into him, one hand threading through his hair trying to bring him closer to her.

He started moving forward, backing her into the couch and was happy when she got the message. Though they had a short silent battle on the positioning (their lips never leaving the other), where Ron eventually found himself with his back on the couch. He had wanted things to be the other way around, but as his hand grabbed her arse, and he felt the vibration of her responding growl, he had to admit this had its advantages too.

O

"Well, that certainly was nice," Ron said after they had finished snogging, Hermione was now resting her head on Ron's chest as he stroked her hair, and they had enjoyed the peace for several minutes. He would have liked to just stay like this to be honest, but he knew there was so much that hadn't been said yet … and he didn't want to start worrying again. I choose you; he could hear her say again in his head, vanquishing his nerves.

"Yes, it was," Hermione agreed, but she wasn't talking about the snog (though that was definitely more than nice). It was the feeling that she got when she was in his arms.

"Are you ready to talk?" Ron asked after a few more moments of peaceful silence. He felt her nod her head, but she didn't speak. "You wanted to tell me about your hesitation," he tried to prompt her.

"It so much more than that," Hermione finally said trying to think about it. "It's like my deepest-rooted fear … and I don't even know where it comes from."

"Mione, why don't we wait to talk about that," Ron said feeling how stiff and uncomfortable she had become, and she had barely said anything yet. He tried to shift them so he could hold her better, but he was finding it difficult.

Hermione leaned up to look at him, he had just brought the subject up and now he wanted her to wait. Before she could think anymore on the subject he was talking again.

"I think this is a bedroom kind of conversation," Ron said softly, his eyes pleading her to listen to him and she had to smile. He was right, they had their most intimate conversation in bed, where they could easily hold each other when needed. As comfortable as she had been a few minutes ago, she knew there wasn't enough room on the couch to seamlessly move around. Seeing her agreement before she voiced it, he asked her, "why don't you tell me what made you decided to talk to me today, so you could brighten up my life."

Hermione smiled at him, though this too was an intimate conversation, it wasn't one that filled her with gut wrenching terror. "I was talking to Harry …."

"You saw Harry? How?" Ron asked surprised.

"Actually, I've seen Harry a few times in the last week," Hermione admitted, hoping she wasn't getting Harry in trouble. "He's my friend too, you know."

"He told you that, didn't he," Ron smiled as he could see how happy Hermione was when she had said that. He knew that Harry had to have been the one to seek out Hermione, because he was sure that she would avoid any place that Ron might be. She wouldn't want to intrude on Ron's space. "I guess that's a good thing, especially since it's made you come here. And I guess I know where he was the days he wasn't checking up on me. But I still don't see why he didn't tell me he was seeing you?"

"He was probably trying not to hurt you," Hermione said reasonably, "I know he never mentioned you … well until last night that is … even though I'm sure we were both thinking about you a lot, I know I was."

"I supposed he didn't want to mention the hippogriff in the room," Ron agreed.

"Right," Hermione found it odd he had used a little-known mythical creature and not elephant, but she knew what he meant.

"You know, I should be shocked that Harry had willingly left his house to socialize with someone," Ron said thoughtfully, he couldn't remember the last time that Harry did that, "but I'm not really. I've seen how much he's changed since meeting you …"

"Honestly that probably has more to do with you," Hermione rolled her eyes.

"Yeah, I'm sure that's true, but I could see that you mean a lot to him," Ron shrugged. "I'm sure Bess had wanted to see you too, it's easy to see how close she's gotten to you."

"Yes," Hermione answered simply as she remembered Bess's expression when they had first seen each other again, and then how she had to read several stories to make up for the ones that they had missed. "I was so grateful when Harry came over, knowing that I could have them back in my life again. I thought I had loss them too."

Ron didn't say anything, just squeezed her closer to him as he too was grateful to his friend.

"Anyways," Hermione said getting back to her point, "I was talking to Harry last night, and that's when he mentioned you for the first time. I don't know how it happened, but somewhere in the conversation he got me to admit … something …"

"Something?" Ron questioned with a raised eyebrow.

"Mm." Hermione hummed her agreement; she wasn't about to tell him what that something was quite yet. "Before that, I had been going over all the stupid things I put you through and how it was all my fault. I also thought that if I tried to fix things, I would only hurt you more and I kept telling myself that so that I wouldn't come to see you."

I wish you had come, Ron thought but didn't say. He knew she hadn't been ready then, and neither was he, but he still wished that she would have come sooner.

"But Harry turned things around," Hermione said. "He got me to see that I was focusing on the wrong issue. We can get through … well … the stuff I still have to tell you about." She looked at him sheepishly here before continuing, "He made me focus on you."

"Me," Ron repeated, with a raised eyebrow.

"Yes, on my feelings for you, to be more precise," Hermione said sitting up so she was hovering over him, looking into his eyes. "He made me see what I've always known was there but was too afraid of saying out loud."

Ron's heart hammered as he listened to her in anticipation of her next words ….

"Ron, I love you!"

And now he was weightless, floating away as he listened to his beautiful girl say the words he longed to hear for so long … that he had feared in the last few weeks he would never hear, or even know for certain that she did. He continued to stare in her eyes for a few seconds, it was the same look that she had given him a thousand times before, but now he could see the love that was always there.

"Mione," Ron sighed out sweetly and he smiled his lob sided grin that always seemed to make her melt, and he brought his hand to her cheek (in her hair). "I've known from the moment that I first saw you that you're the only one for me. I love you, Hermione!"

"Ron," Hermione breathed out as tears formed in her eyes, and he pulled her (and she leaned) down for another spectacular kiss.

A/N: When I had originally written this chapter, I had Hermione explaining her relationship with her parents, but I don't feel like I did it right. So, when I got to that part this time, I realized that this chapter would likely be over 10,000 words long if I had the proper conversation, and I really didn't want that (this chapter is already around 6,500). However, I still wanted their confessions of love to be in this chapter, I didn't want to wait any longer for them to say that. So, I cheated a little and I just made them postpone that talk and skipped right to the confessions. Hope you don't mind.