you owe me {a fred and george weasley story}

XIII. Home For The Holidays

{a/n: warning!!! this chapter discusses the events of the sexual harassment that occurred last chapter. it doesn't go into heavy details, but if anyone is very easily triggered by any mentions of harassment, i wanted to include this warning just to be safe! also i apologize for this chapter being somewhat short, my brain is dead lol. ok enjoy!!}

***

On the train home for winter holiday the next morning, I sat squished between Fred and George on one side of the compartment, Ron and Harry on the other side.

Fred threw quite the fit this morning after George told him what happened last night with Cormac. He wouldn't stop spitting apologies at me, feeling intense guilt for drinking too much and not being able to be there for me. He refused to leave my side during breakfast, except for having to rush to the bathroom to throw up, and he stayed glued to me as we boarded the train.

Ron groaned loudly as he pressed his forehead against the cool glass of the window. The dark bags under his eyes contrasted with the paleness of his face, and Fred looked exactly the same.

"Here," George shuffled through his pockets and pulled out two viles of some dark green liquid. "Whipped up my signature hangover potion early this morning just for the two of you."

Fred and Ron immediately downed the potions and then proceeded to gag and cough while George, Harry, and I laughed hysterically at their misfortune.

"That's worse than polyjuice potion," Ron complained.

"You feel better though, don't you?" George teased as their flushed faces quickly returned to normal.

"So," Ron perked up as his pounding headache seemed to dissipate. "Is anyone going to fill me in on what happened last night? All morning, I've been hearing chatter about a fist fight between McLaggen and my older brother."

I sucked in a harsh breath at the mention of Cormac. Even though George had made me feel better afterwards, I was still uncomfortable and, quite frankly, traumatized by what occurred last night.

George shot me a look, searching for an indication of my permission to talk about it. I nodded slightly. As much as I didn't want to talk about it, Ron deserved to know.

"Seriously, what am I missing? Is everyone okay?" Ron concernedly asked after moments of silence.

After a slight pause, George sighed and spoke up. "Cormac was, um, harassing Bella. Asshole wouldn't let her go even after she told him to stop, so I punched him. A few times."

"Bloody hell, are you okay, Bel?" Ron reached over and placed a hand on my knee comfortingly. I nodded, still looking down at my hands as I anxiously picked at my fingernails.

"As long as you're okay now. We'll make sure he never comes near you again," spoke Harry. "Quite the bruise on your jaw, George. Your mum is going to pitch a fit."

"Nah, I'll just say I was hit by a bludger." Everyone laughed except for Fred.

Fred sat silently with his head against the window. I took his hand in mine in an attempt to reassure him that everything was alright. He wouldn't even look at me.

***

After what felt like an eternity, we finally made it off the train and to the Burrow. We were all greeted with love and hugs from Molly as soon as we stepped in from the harsh cold. I watched as Fred plastered on a fake smile to greet his family before slipping away to his room.

"Are Bill, Charlie, and Percy coming home for Christmas, Mum?" Ginny asked as she set down her luggage.

"Unfortunately, no, dear. Charlie and Percy can't leave work and Bill is spending the holiday with Fleur and her family." Molly frowned, clearly upset with not having the whole family home. "No matter, we have a full house as it is with Hermione, Harry, and Bella joining us! Now, luggage upstairs, everyone, I don't need everyone's bags cluttering my kitchen!"

As we shuffled up the stairs, we all began debating where to sleep.

"I'm sharing Ron's room!" Harry called.

"As long as you don't mind the floor because I'm staying in Ron's bed," argued Hermione. It slipped my mind that she and Ron had officially become a couple after attending the ball together.

"You can stay on the floor in my room, Harry," Ginny offered.

"Right, the floor," Ron joked, wiggling his eyebrows. Ginny smacked him on the arm before ushering Harry into her room. Ron and Hermione headed for Ron's room and closed the door.

"Guess that leaves you with me and Fred," George said, casually, before shooting me a wink. "Can you bring my bag to the room? I'm going to go help Mum with dinner."

"Since when do you help with dinner?" I asked, taking his bag, but he was down the stairs before he could even respond.

As I entered Fred and George's room, I saw Fred sitting on the edge of his bed, facing away from the door.

"Freddie, are you alright?" I asked him, setting the bags down. "You've been quiet all day."

He shrugged as I walked over and sat beside him. He refused to make eye contact with me.

"Fred. Talk to me. Please." I scooted closer to him and took his hands in mine.

He hesitated for a few moments before letting out a large sigh. "I'm just pissed off. At Cormac. At myself."

"Yourself? Why?" I questioned. "Fred, look at me."

Fred finally turned his head as he released his hands from my grip and brought them to the sides of my face. "Because I promised you I would look after you last night. I promised I would be there for you and I wasn't. I was laying on that couch in the common room and I saw everything that happened, but I was too drunk and too out of it to get up and do anything about it."

I paused for a moment, feeling anger start to bubble inside me. I thought Fred was passed out and asleep when it happened. I stood up, letting myself calm back down before looking at him.

"It's okay. I understand," I paused, cupping his face in my hand as he stood up. His large frame towered over me as tears began to slip down his cheeks. "I don't blame you for what happened and I don't blame you for not doing anything."

"But I blame myself! I should've forced myself to get up and beat the shit out of that scumbag!" Fred cried, running his hands through his hair as he turned away from me.

"Fred, don't. You were barely conscious and you could've made things worse if you had done something." I grabbed his arm, forcing him to turn back around to face me. Before he could say anything else, I reached up and wiped the tears from his face. His eyes were bloodshot and watery as he stared at me intensely.

"I'm sorry," He choked out, his voice cracking slightly.

"It's okay, Freddie. I'm okay, George is okay. Let's put this behind us, please, so we can enjoy the holiday together," I whispered, stroking his hair to calm him down. He nodded and cracked a smile before leaning in to kiss me. I kissed him back passionately, wanting to make him feel reassured that everything was okay. I was so focused on Fred that neither of us heard the bedroom door open.

"What the fuck?" 

Fred and I quickly pulled apart as we heard Ron's voice as he stood at the door in shock.