Oliver had been right.
The press went mad over Katie's run-in with the reporter, which Angelina and Alicia took great delight in over brunch the following morning.
"At least your outfit looked cute," Alicia noted as the trio peered at the front page of The Daily Prophet. Angelina winced as the Katie in the photo made hard contact with the reporter's face.
"I can still hear that slap even now," Angelina mused. "I heard the team's decided to revoke that bloke's press credential. Coach was livid when he found out."
"Good," Katie said happily. "Serves him right for being such an insensitive bastard."
"How's Wood doing after all that?" Angelina asked.
"Well," Katie started slowly as she chose her words carefully. "Oliver and I have decided to go on a trip."
"Huh?"
"He's going to talk to the team about it before practice this afternoon," Katie continued. "If anyone disproves, we won't go, but he thinks it'll be good for him to take a few days away to relax and reset his mind."
"I don't disagree with that," Angelina commented as she eyed Katie sharply, "But you're going with him?"
"Well yeah," Katie answered nonchalantly. She knew her friends were going to react this way, but she still was going to try her best to downplay the situation. "Why not? Oliver asked me to go."
"He asked you to go?" Alicia repeated.
Katie narrowed her eyes at her friends. "Have you two lost your hearing? Isn't that what I said?"
"But he specifically asked you to go?"
"Yes!" Katie said with an eye roll. "He said he wanted my company and honestly, it'd probably draw more attention if I didn't go. Everyone's grown used to seeing us together."
"And where are you two going?" Alicia demanded.
"Mexico," Katie replied casually. "We found a nice resort on the beach. Should mostly be muggles so we hopefully won't be bothered too much."
"You're going to Mexico. To a romantic beach resort. With Oliver Wood," Angelina repeated blankly.
"Just for four nights," Katie said. "Then we'll be back and hopefully Oliver will be ready for the next match."
"Katie," Alicia said, her tone apparent with amusement. "Come on. Quit dancing around the point."
"There is no point! We are going as two friends in need of a little vacation. Oliver needs to recharge and I need to get away from the press. It's a win-win situation," Katie replied.
"The point is, you've practically moved in with Wood and now you're going on vacation together?" Alicia pressed.
"Moved in with him?!" Angelina exclaimed as Katie shot Alicia a glare.
"Yes! Katie hasn't slept at our flat in over a week. She spends every night at Wood's," Alicia revealed, shrugging off Katie's annoyed expression. Angelina rose an eyebrow.
"This is news to me," she said. "Katie, what is going on?"
"Nothing is going on," Katie said calmly before she downed the remainder of her mimosa. "I've just been crashing at Oliver's place because he likes the company. He doesn't really want to be alone just yet."
"So you're just sleeping at his place?"
"Yes."
"In his bed?"
"Yes. He doesn't have a spare bedroom, it's full of quidditch gear." Alicia and Angelina shared a not-so subtle glance, causing Katie to leer at them. "What's the big deal? Nothing's going on between us," she insisted.
"And why not?" Alicia demanded in exasperation. "Katie, you're with him all the time, you're practically living with him, you helped out his family when his dad died and now you're going on vacation with him? At this point, you two might as well admit it's real."
"We both need to have feelings for each other for it to be real," Katie said smugly.
The other two women gazed at Katie with expressions of exasperation.
"You honestly are going to sit there and insist you don't have feelings for Wood?" Angelina asked. "Katie, be real."
"I am being real!" Katie answered hotly. "I've told you two time and time again that I'm not interested in a relationship. It's easy to pretend and that's all this is." She stood up, her chair scraping harshly against the concrete floor as she tossed her napkin on the table. "Now if you'll excuse me, I have to go pack for my trip."
Oliver removed his sunglasses and tucked them neatly in his front shirt pocket. He couldn't help but nod in approval as he glanced around, impressed by Katie's planning skills.
Katie had managed to plan and book their trip and itinerary in 24 hours. She reserved a posh suite at a secluded resort hotel and arranged for a portkey from London to Mexico. All Oliver had to do was pack a suitcase and show up per Katie's instructions.
"Not bad, right?" Katie said happily, the sunshine warming her skin. From their room, they had a full view of the crystal blue ocean, which seemed to sparkle beyond the white, sandy beach dotted with palm trees. Katie tossed her bags on the bed and threw open the door to the balcony to welcome the breezy salt air.
Meanwhile, Oliver surveyed the room, impressed by its upscale yet cozy features including a king-sized bed and a mini bar stocked with an offering of drinks.
"You did all right," Oliver said, tossing an arm around Katie's shoulders as he joined her on the balcony. The warm air and vibrant scenery already had him at ease and a new sense of happiness bubbled within him.
"Just all right?" Katie inquired with a grin.
"Okay, you did brilliant."
Katie retreated back inside the room and kicked her sneakers off. It was 3:00 in the afternoon and she was determined to make the most of every minute there. She began rummaging through her suitcase until she brandished a blue bikini. Oliver blinked.
"I don't know about you," Katie said. "But I'm heading down to the pool. I have every intention of returning to London three shades darker."
Before Oliver could respond, Katie had ducked into the bathroom to change, emerging a few minutes later clad in her bikini. Oliver cleared his throat and quirked an eyebrow at her, drawing an eye roll from Katie.
"Oh, please," she sighed. "Don't tell me you're going to get all weird on me now. I've practically been living with you and everyone thinks we're shagging anyway." Oliver shrugged and Katie pushed past him with a playful nudge.
"You go on ahead," Oliver said. "I'll meet you by the pool."
A half hour later, he found Katie just there, chatting with some seemingly newfound friends – a pair of men who appeared to be in their early 30s. Oliver frowned as he spotted Katie sitting by the edge of the pool, her feet swishing in the water. The two men were in the pool, standing in waist-high water laughing about something Katie had said.
Oliver cleared his throat and stood over Katie, who tilted her head backward to grin up at him.
"Oliver!" she said cheerily. "Come sit. No, wait, you need a drink first."
"I'm all right for now," Oliver said, lowering himself to sit next to Katie on the ledge of the pool. He eyed the two strange men sternly and draped an arm around Katie.
"This is my boyfriend, Oliver. Ol, this is Andy and Simon," Katie said. "They're from America."
"Texas, to be exact," the one named Andy added. Oliver had no idea where Texas was, nor did he care. Instead, he nodded politely and refrained from much discussion.
As they chatted, the two men eventually seemed to notice Oliver's hostility. The one named Simon cleared his throat. "You don't have to worry, man," he said, resting a hand on Andy's shoulder. "Your girl isn't exactly our type." Oliver relaxed as he understood and Katie snorted.
"Don't tell me you're getting jealous now, Ol," she teased. She kicked some water at Oliver and giggled. "Lighten up, Ol. We're on holiday. We owe it to ourselves to have some fun."
Katie and Oliver spent the remainder of afternoon by the pool until the sun began to set and the sky shifted to a gradient of orange and pink hues. Katie declared she was famished and needed to eat immediately, so the pair returned to their room to get cleaned up for dinner, where Katie even convinced Oliver to indulge in one cocktail.
After dinner and a stroll around the rest of the resort to explore, Katie decided she was tired and ready for bed. Oliver agreed and fell asleep nearly as soon as they returned to their room.
It was nearly 3:00 in the morning when he was jerked awake by the sound of screaming. The shrill noise was so abrupt and sudden, he fumbled for his wand from the nightstand and scrambled out of bed to his feet.
"Lumos!"
Katie, who still appeared to be asleep, was thrashing violently from her side of the bed. Oliver wondered if she was having some kind of fit and shook her firmly, causing her to scream again.
"Katie? Katie, wake up." He shook her again and her eyes rolled open. "Katie, are you okay?"
It took Katie a moment to remember where she was. She was clammy, her legs twisted in the bedsheets and her mouth felt dry. "Oliver?"
"What happened? I thought you'd been attacked!" Oliver lowered his wand as Katie winced at the light. Through the darkness, he could hear Katie breathing heavily and decided to give her a moment to gather herself.
"I'm fine," Katie eventually said in a quiet voice. "Just had a nightmare is all." Oliver frowned and set his wand back on the nightstand before crawling into bed again.
"A nightmare?" he repeated, gazing downward at Katie, who was flat on her back, still steadying her breathing. "That sounded a lot worse than a nightmare. It seemed like you were having a fit." Katie didn't respond and Oliver sighed. "Sorry," he added. "You just scared me. Can I get you anything? Some water or something?"
"No, I'm fine," Katie murmured. Oliver could hear a quivering in her voice. He rested a gentle hand on her shoulder, sensing that she'd suffered more than a typical nightmare.
Katie, who could detect Oliver's concern, heaved a sigh. She swallowed as she mulled her words over carefully, deciding how to explain herself to him. Though she didn't like the sense of vulnerability, Oliver probably deserved to know.
"These happen sometimes," she finally said. "These night terrors. Ever since… ever since the necklace."
"How often?"
"It's hard to tell. Sometimes I'll go months without one, sometimes I'll have two in the same week. I can't predict them. Alicia doesn't know," she added quickly. "I put a silencing charm on my room at my flat. No one knows."
Oliver understood. "I won't say anything," he promised as he laid back down.
"Thanks."
"Is it… is it always the same nightmare?" Oliver asked.
"Yes," Katie answered. "It's always the same, but it never gets any less scary. It always goes back to the necklace."
That stupid necklace. Katie cursed the moment she had decided to enter the loo inside the Three Broomsticks that fateful day. That damn necklace had nearly ended her life and all these years later, it was still finding ways to ruin it.
"You sure you don't need anything?" Oliver asked. Katie cuddled up to him and shut her eyes, grateful for his presence. He seemed to understand that she'd be fine and she was relieved he wasn't badgering her for more details.
"I'm sure," she finally answered sleepily. "Just need some sleep and another day of sunshine."