||Now It's Just Us||

Chapter 21

It was an unspoken agreement to not bring up the kiss in any conversation. Hermione had fretted over it the entire night. Sleep was far, far away. She tossed and turned and sat up several times. Her thoughts wandered to a certain boy with platinum blond hair and storm colored eyes and how they had both shared a kiss. A forbidden kiss. 

Hermione was not ashamed to admit to herself that the kiss had actually felt…nice. It wasn't harsh or rushed. He hadn't taken advantage of the fact that she had been emotionally unstable and taken it forward. It had been just a kiss. 

Only it wasn't. Hermione couldn't stop thinking about it. It had made her feel an inexplicable feeling. No matter how cheesy it sounded, it had felt like fireworks had gone off around her and inside her. Her heart had been thundering away and she had been afraid that he might hear it.

Inspite of the truckload of feelings, she didn't act on them. They kept things exactly the way they were before. The only thing that changed was she would glance at him a little more often, and often she would find him already looking at her. They'd both hastily look away. They'd brush their fingers past each other whenever they walked, and when sat at the table for a meal, they'd make sure their legs touched. It was all just subtle signs.

Otherwise, it was as though that night had never even happened.

And in all honesty, it hurt.

She wondered if he had been buried in a truckload of emotions as well, or if it had been only her. What if he felt nothing at all? Maybe this was just a kiss for him and nothing more. Hermione assumed kisses were no big deal for him, given the fact that he's broken almost every girl's heart at Hogwarts. 

Hermione didn't know what he felt. 

"......with us?" 

Hermione snapped out of her daze. Penelope Clearwater was peering at her through her glasses.

"I, uh," Hermione was mortified, "I'm sorry, I didn't quite h-hear you?"

"I asked if you're still with us," Penelope said, not coldly, but something about her tone made Hermione feel very small.

"I'm sorry, I drifted off," Hermione brushed a strand of her off her face and looked down at the wood of the table. She heard someone snicker.

"When are we supposed to turn it in?" a man who Hermione had never spoken to asked Penelope.

"By this Friday, and no later," Penelope clarified, "meeting dismissed, you all may leave. Hermione, please stay back."

Hermione's heart dropped to her feet. She had never been asked to stay back for a special address. Even at Hogwarts.

The room cleared out, and sooner than she would have wanted, it was just her and Penelope.

"Is something bothering you, Hermione?" Penelope asked. She was surveying Hermione like a mother would her child.

"Not at all," Hermione mumbled.

"You haven't been yourself lately," Penelope pressed, "you barely managed to turn in work on time, and keep zoning out during meetings or conversations. Not to mention you haven't spoken a single word of input today. Do you even know what we were discussing?"

Hermione's cheeks heated up, "Not really, no."

"Well, that doesn't matter really because it was anything important," Penelope straightened her skirt and smoothed out the creases, "what I'm saying is you seem disturbed. Preoccupied."

"I'm sorry, it won't happen again," Hermione said.

"Good," Penelope nodded, "if you have anything you want to talk about, you can. You may leave."