Angels Brought Me Here (George Weasley)

Rest of my Life

Working alongside Lee Jordan initially felt incredibly strange for George, who hadn't seen his former best friend since the day Fred died. It wasn't that he hadn't wanted to see him, he had thought about sending him a letter numerous times, but it had never felt like the right time, and he could never seem to find the right words.

Jenny had been excited to meet Lee, but equally quite nervous, wanting to make a good impression on a boy she knew had been humorous and charismatic when they were at school together. 

Thankfully, Lee took to Jenny very quickly, and it would appear he was quite fond of her, which was a relief for Jenny and, more secretively, George. 

It was the week before Christmas, and therefore a week before George and Jenny would celebrate the anniversary of their first date, and both were excited for the occasion. George hadn't decided yet whether Christmas Eve was going to be the night he would propose to her, he didn't know if he quite had enough courage that soon, but he knew he would certainly consider it. 

"Why don't you two take a night off? Go for a drink or something," Jenny suggested, conscious that the two old friends had yet to have a moment alone together since Lee began working at the shop. Jenny was always around, and whilst the three of them always had a laugh and enjoyed each others company, there was an air of tension around the two men, who naturally had some things to discuss from their months of estrangement. 

"I don't know Jen, there's a lot to do here..." George seemed awkward and anxious at the idea, and it reminded Jenny of all the times she had asked him to go and visit his parents and he had found excuses not to, and she resisted the urge to roll her eyes at him, or to remind him that he was lucky to still have Lee. After all, her best friends, Lottie and Kelly, were both dead. She knew, however, that to bring that up would be cruel, and not to mention quite selfish. 

"Come on, mate, we can do all this tomorrow. Let's let loose a bit, and get out of Eve's hair," Lee winked in Jenny's direction as she rolled her eyes, but refrained from making a comment. He had disliked the nickname Jenny when he met her, despite the fact she had been referred to as Jenny for the entirety of her life. No, he preferred a special nickname exclusively for him to use, so he had taken the end of Genevieve, and selected Eve. She hated it, but had realised after little over a week that the more she resisted, the more he used the stupid nickname. 

"I would like some time to myself," She shrugged in agreement, ignoring the insanely attractive look on George's face as he silently pleaded with her to agree that he should stay home. 

"See," Lee stated, and George sighed deeply, before forcing his face to contort into a smile, and Jenny visibly relaxed as he agreed that they could go out, so long as it wasn't too late, and they didn't drink too much. 

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

And that was how, three hours later, George found himself in his old faithful Leaky Cauldron, a little passed the point of tipsy, having caught up on all of the pointless shit he and Lee had done in the months they hadn't spoken. 

And now, as the Leaky Cauldron began to wind down for the night, the public dispersing onto Diagon Alley, and the residents retreating to their bedrooms, it felt right to bring up the more serious stuff. 

"How have you been coping, then?" Lee asked, and he noticed how George avoided his gaze, "And don't pretend you don't know what I mean,"

"It's been fucking rough, there's no point in lying to you. I never left the house other than to come here and get blackout drunk, I barely ate, I grew a fucking beard," Lee laughed at the latter comment, unable to imagine George letting himself go.

"And the family?" Lee enquired. 

"I didn't see them, for months and months. I just couldn't. I didn't go to the funeral, I couldn't bring myself to look at them and see them sad. It was hard enough being sad myself," George explained, and it felt nice to be able to talk about all of this without breaking down.

"If it's any consolation, I didn't go either. We're both shit, in that regard," Lee laughed, but there was nothing funny about what he had said. 

George forgot, sometimes, that there were other people in the world who had loved Fred. Lee was close with them for years, they did everything as a trio. For all Fred and George were twins, it had always felt like they had a triplet, growing up.

"He wouldn't have even wanted a funeral. Too depressing," George shrugged, taking a swig of his beer. 

"You're right there," Lee agreed, "so, what changed?" 

"She changed everything," Lee noticed the expression on George's face soften as he spoke about Jenny, and he had never seen his friend so completely besotted before. 

"Yeah?" Lee urged George to go on, and the man was never going to waste an opportunity to talk about the woman who made the world turn. 

"I wanted to die, truly. Before I met her, I mean. She literally came into my life and turned the light back on, made me realise what was important. I could not help but fall in love with her, she just got me completely. She told me when I was being stupid, she comforted me when I wasn't. I couldn't do this life without her. I wouldn't be here if she hadn't saved me," George was rambling and he knew it, but the more people who knew how much Jenny meant to him, the better. 

"When's the wedding?" Lee laughed, but he stopped abruptly when he realised George's face remained completely serious, as he pulled a little velvet box out of his coat pocket.

"Soon, I hope," He said, opening the box to present the dainty engagement ring he had selected for his girlfriend, following his conversation with Ginny. 

"Holy shit, mate," Lee commented, taking the box to have a closer look. "How long you been keeping that in your pocket?" 

"Weeks, I just don't know when the right time will be. Soon, I think," The grin returned to George's face as he imagined for the millionth time how he would ask her to marry him. 

"Do you think she has any idea?" Lee questioned, and George shook his head. 

"Nah, I reckon I've got her convinced I'm not planning on getting married any time soon. I want it to be a proper surprise. We've not been together for a year yet, I don't think she would expect it for a good while yet," George explained, and Lee nodded in agreement. 

"I reckon she'll absolutely lose her shit, but in a good way," Lee laughed, and George only hoped he was right.