An Affair to Remember (Fred Weasley)

62) Bags

The next two days at the lodge were peaceful. Adrienne and Fred spent the time to get to know each other. Really get to know each other. It started from their favourite colours and ranged to their deepest fears and insecurities. Thinking about it, they had never really learnt the small things about the other, and now that the opportunity presented itself, they wasted no time.

"Y'know what? You've never really told me what your favourite colour is" Fred said from the kitchen as he poured a glass of lemonade for Adrienne. She was in the living room, engrossed in a new muggle TV series. Fred found it adorable how she wouldn't budge from the living room the moment 'Twilight Zone' started streaming on one of the channels the box TV had to offer.

"I haven't got one" Adrienne mumbled, barely paying attention to what he had asked.

"Everyone has a favourite colour!" Fred exclaimed, grabbing both the glasses of lemonade and heading to the living room. He sat down next to her and handed her one. She took it from him, keeping her eyes on the television as she sipped from it.

"Yellow"

"Why?"

"Because it's pretty. What about you?" Adrienne asked.

"Dark brown"

"Why?"

"Reminds me of The Burrow" Fred shrugged. The credits of 'Twilight Zone' finally rolled on the screen and Adrienne shut the TV, now settling on the couch to face Fred. "Why are you suddenly curious about my favourite colours?"

"Say I wanted to get you a little something, like a gift perhaps, it'd be embarrassing to get it in the wrong colour" Fred chuckled.

"In that case, I also like very expensive cars and dresses" Adrienne smirked.

"The most I can get you is a yellow baby chick from the backyard" Fred retorted.

"Why on earth would I want a chick?" Adrienne laughed, downing the last bits of lemonade in her glass.

"To keep in that little bird's nest I made" Fred suggested with a playful smile.

Conversation between them became simple, easy. They knew where to start with each other, they knew when to stop. Apprehension melted away the more they talked, paving the way for something deeper and more meaningful.

There was no moon in the sky tonight, nor a single star. All that could be seen were the wispy grey clouds that hung around lazily, drifting to destinations known only to them. Adrienne and Fred still sat on the couch, and they still talked.

"Okay I'll ask you a different one this time" Fred said, grabbing a cushion and resting it under his chin. He wrapped his arms around it, hugging it close to his chest as he settled himself in a more comfortable position, "If there's one thing you could change about yourself, what would it be?" he asked.

Adrienne glanced up at him, picking on the loose thread poking out from under her t-shirt, "How did you go from asking me about my favourite movie to this?" she smiled, her eyes now drooping heavily from tiredness.

"I don't know, I was just curious" Fred shrugged. In reality, he was enjoying the time they spent together, and he wanted to stretch it as long as possible.

They had lit only a few candles to break the darkness, enough to wash their faces with oranges and yellows. The night was cool, breeze slicing through the crack in the windows, causing them to pull the sofa throw over themselves. Fred sat on one side of the couch while Adrienne sat on the other, the sides of their legs touching.

"Selfishness. I can be very selfish" Adrienne answered, she didn't have to think much about it, it came to her straight away.

Fred frowned, "Really? Even after I told you yesterday that you're not?"

Adrienne crossed her arms over her chest, avoiding the question, "C'mon then Weasley, what's one thing you wish you could change about yourself?" she asked.

Fred let his head lean back, the skin on his neck pulled taut as he thought of an answer. Adrienne watched his eyelashes touch his cheeks as he closed his eyes "Perhaps if I wasn't assumptive and maybe if I didn't always jump to conclusions I'd feel much better about myself"

Adrienne watched his eyes wander around the lodge, drinking in every little thing about him. The scar between his eyebrows became deeper as he furrowed them together, as if he was ruminating on something.

"What's on your mind?" Adrienne asked softly, nudging his leg with her foot. Fred looked back at her, "N-nothing"

Adrienne didn't push it. A yawn escaped her lips and she realised that they had been talking for a long time. "Well I'm off to bed, I'll see you tomorrow Fred" Adrienne said, getting off the couch with great difficulty, her legs cramped.

They still slept in different rooms because taking one step at a time mattered much more to them than anything else. There was no rush, nothing to chase, making it the most beautiful thing about starting over.

But one cannot just forget to love the other, and so their hearts still raced when they were close, when they brushed against each other or when they were caught staring. Goosebumps still rose on their skins and their cheeks still flushed.

"You're going to bed?" Fred asked, getting up from the couch too. A small part of him wanted to call her to his bedroom and hold her close as they drifted off to sleep together. Perhaps, it was too early for that.

"Mhmm" Adrienne hummed, waiting for him to say something else. Hoping, for him to say something else. But he didn't. He simply nodded and said: "Good night, I'll see you tomorrow". And then, he disappeared through the door, leaving her in the hallway.

Adrienne yawned, making her way back to her bedroom. With one last glance to the place where Fred had stood only a few moments ago, she shut her door close and called it a night.

Fred spent the whole night tossing and turning in bed. Even though they had decided to take it slow, he had to admit, he didn't like the distance between them. It was painful to be in the same house as her, yet so far away.

He wanted to do nothing more than just her hold her, kiss her forehead and fall asleep to the rhythm of her breaths. But he didn't know how to tell her that, he was afraid to bring it up. 

That is when an idea popped into his head.

He got up from the bed, quickly throwing the covers off of him and carefully pushing the door open so that the creak wouldn't wake Adrienne up. It wasn't very late into the night and if he acted now, he could set his plan in action.

Tip-toeing down the hall, he reached the small side table, and on it rested the telephone that had not been used for a long time. Fred wrapped his hand around the receiver, the dust sticking to his skin as he clutched it tightly and picked it up. From the phonebook, he retrieved the number he needed and dialled it gingerly.

The phone rang for a few seconds before there was a click and Fred let out a huge sigh of relief.

"Hello?" the voice spoke.

"Hey, I need your help with something" Fred spoke excitedly into the speakerphone, his heart thumping at the thought of his little plan.

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A/N: I'm sorry this chapter was so short, there's loads of stuff that's suddenly happening in my life at the moment and I haven't been able to focus on writing as much as I used to. I will finish this book, but my new books (one for Fred and one for George) may unfortunately take a backseat once I'm done with AATR.

For those of you asking, no, I am not continuing FAKE any time soon. I have written way too much smut for my own good and I really need a break :)