Summer Holiday

Chapter 4

Sophie
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Sophie woke the next morning unsure if last night really happened or if it was all a dream. She looked down at her hand to see the engagement ring missing.

It was real

The thought of going to class and accidentally running into Fred in the corridors made Sophie shudder. Not enough time had passed, and she wasn't ready to see him. Not yet.

The thing that hurt most was the silent walk as she left him. He hadn't tried to come after her. He didn't even acknowledge that it was over. The radio silence was driving Sophie insane. Before she could get lost in her thoughts she heard shuffling coming from the other bed in the room.

"Morning." Cho said as she stifled a yawn. "You got back late."

"Mm. Yeah. Long night." Sophie said softly still lying on her back.

"Everything alright?" Cho asked climbing out of her bed.

Sophie blurted the words before she had time to stop herself. "Fred and I broke up."

Cho paused in her tracks. "Oh." She carefully chose her words. "I'm sorry. Anything I can do?"

Sophie continued staring at the ceiling. "No. I'll be okay." She wasn't speaking those words to ease Cho's mind. She was speaking them to ease her own. The truth was, Sophie wasn't sure what to do with herself now that things were over. Fred had been her entire world. She didn't have friends, because she had Fred. He was all she needed.

"Okay. Let me know if you change your mind." Cho watched Sophie for a moment before heading into the bathroom.

The day was dreadfully long. Most people didn't know Sophie let alone her relationship, but she felt like everywhere she went people were staring. She avoided the Great Hall at all costs. It didn't matter that she could eat at her own house table, she knew that even if she managed to avoid Fred's eating times, his siblings and his friends would still stare or even ask her what happened. She wasn't ready to talk about it and she certainly wasn't ready to be confronted by his friends and family.

Once her classes had finished she spent the remainder of the afternoon tucked behind bookshelves in the library. She needed to study, but she didn't want to be found.

Didn't want to be found

She let the words roll around in her head for a minute. Yesterday Theodore Nott had told her she could come back to the pier if she wanted. The spot was fairly secluded and he initially seemed shocked by her presence. If there was anywhere she could be unbothered it would be there. It was strange to her that Theo had been kind to her last night. He had even made her laugh in a time of sadness. She chewed her lip for a moment and pondered if it was worth it to be friends with a Slytherin.

Screw it

Sophie shoved her parchment and books into her bag and headed for the doors of the castle.

She reached the doors and headed out onto the grass. The sky was a light pink as the sun set. The wind was blowing slightly causing a faint smell of pollen in the air.

Sophie arrived at the beginning of the pier and saw the silhouette of a boy perched on the edge staring out onto the lake. She took a deep breath and marched across the wooden planks towards the boy. When she made it to the edge she stood beside him and stared at the pink and blue sunset in front of them.

"Beautiful sunsets have always been bittersweet for me." Theo spoke as he remained entranced by the colors.

"Why's that?" Sophie asked softly.