Red-Heads On The Battle Front

39. At Long Last

We paid and left.

In the fall air, something had definitely changed. We were treading on eggshells around each other because something had changed.

"Want to go to the park?" he said and I nodded. Something's happening, something's happening, something happening...

He didn't try to hold my hand again, and neither did I, but we walked closer together than we normally would have, our shoulder brushing. He laughed as a tendril of my hair escaped and tickled his cheek. I blushingly tucked it back and laughed with him. What we had...it was small and it was good.

He led me to the tree under which I'd taken a nap so long ago, when I'd first thought that maybe, just maybe, I liked Devon Whitfield. The realization made me smile.
"What're you smiling at?" he said, sitting down under the tree.
"Nothing. Memory" I said and then wrinkled my nose "It's cold. Let's sit on a bench"
"Well if your bum is cold, you can sit on me" he said winking. I scowled and aimed a kick at him, which he successfully dodged. "I'm not sitting on you" I said primly. He stuck his tongue out at me and then patted the ground next to him. "If it's cold, we can leave" he said and I complied, leaning again the wide trunk. He scooted next to me and I smiled to myself.
"So the pranking was good, hmm?" I said grinning. He laughed
"Well, it infuriated me, but that was better than nothing at all. You're clever"
"Thank you. You're a git"
"Idiot"
"Moron"
"Weasley"
I laughed again "The nicknames! I'd almost forgotten" He fake-gasped at this, earning another chuckle from me.
"How dare you! I was so creative too!"
"Shut up. You are so not"
"You insult me, my fair maiden"
"I'm not your fair anything" I said chuckling. He glanced at me and narrowed his eyes mischievously.
"Oh really, now?" he said, shifting his body so he was facing me. I gulped and weakened. It would not bode well for me if I didn't.

"Can I be your fair dragon?"
He looked surprised and seemed to think about it.
After a moment, "Well alright then"
"Huzzah" I said, with the air of someone who'd escaped great peril, and settled back. His mouth morphed into a roguish smile and very nonchalantly, he snuck his arm around my waist and pulled me closer. My face flamed.
"Stop that" I mumbled, flicking him on his forehead. He scowled and rubbed his forehead, but then brightened.
"Kiss my boo boo?" he said innocently, bringing his forehead down to my lips. I brought my lips closer, and then flicked him again.

"Idiot." I said and then shook him off as he scowled again "Bum's cold. Get up" I said nudging him. He sighed.
"So demanding"
"I'm demanding?" I said incredulously and then imitated him
"'Fair maiden', 'Kiss my boo boo' I'm demanding he says" I muttered and he snickered. Getting up and dusting his pants off, he held his hand out and pulled me up.

"Home?"
I nodded and we set off.

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"Dev?"
"Yeah?"
We were almost home, but we stopped and I turned to him.
"This was good" I said. He stepped closer, regarding me with his beautifully dark eyes. The look I'd seen so often in passing was back in his face except this time, I was sure it was there.
"Yes, very. I do hate our sisters, though" he remarked drily. I smiled.
"And Dev?" Closer now, our toes were almost touching.
"Mhmm?" The last time he'd been so close, I'd run. Not this time, no, not this time. He seemed to be holding his breath, as was I, but this time it was my move. That much was clear. He'd tried last time, and this time it was my turn.

I'm impulsive, sure, but I like planning. I like clear plans and clear executions. This was not part of the plan, but I did it anyway.

My arms went around his neck in a trice, fingers interlocking behind his neck as I reached up, pulled him closer, closed the gap between us and pressed my lips to his. He stiffened and for one heart-stopping moment he didn't respond. Ah crap, I was wrong. Again. Stupid Gwen, stupid Gwen, stupid-

And then his lips moved against mine, drinking me in hungrily like I was him, one hand on the small of my back and another tangled in my loosened hair. He pressed his body to mine, as if even the smallest gap that could come between us was blasphemy. I smiled against his lips as the heat warmed me from the inside, combatting the cold that was all around us.

Sparks.

Who knew?

The butterflies in my stomach were incinerated by the heat that spread throughout my body and I tightened my grip around his neck. We swayed in the chilly autumn air, consumed by this strangeness that I had never experienced before.

When we finally broke apart, he was looking at me dumbfounded, lost for words for the first time. I must've looked worried because he shook his head wonderingly and cupped my cheek, pressing a chaste kiss to my forehead. I sighed happily (but also because my glasses were fogged up and I was more or less blind)

And then, as if like a man possessed, Dev swung me around, laughing as he hugged me closer, touched his forehead to mine and looked at me like I was good, great, better than anything. Then howling, laughing, as I laughed too at his madness.

"Gwenwyn Taylor! Be my girlfriend! Be the Lily to my James, Ginny to my Harry, Weasley" he added with a twinkle in his eye "To my Mr. Moron"
"The funny thing is, we could easily cosplay as any of them" I laughed and he yelped and hooted, punching the air like he'd won something, "So you will be?" he asked, wonder in his voice and his face. I laughed and nodded, earning another twirl from him.
"Dev, the neighbors are going to come out" I laughed as he set me down on my feet and he beamed at me
"Let them. I don't care!" He shouted the last part and I laughed hysterically. Oh gods.

When he'd finally calmed down a little, he reached into his coat and brought out a plastic bag. My eyes widened. No way.

"I don't have a ring, and we're not getting married anyway, but think of this as a present, and a long overdue one" he said tenderly, handing it to me. There were a few streaks of dirt here and there, as if he'd wiped it in a hurry, but years of being under the ground had turned the bag brown anyway. With trembling hands, I unzipped the Ziploc and reached in.

The cover had faded but a little, otherwise it was in a fabulous condition, the leering faces of dwarves, the smaller impish ones of pixies, a little apple tucked away in the corner – all vibrant as they were the day I bought the book. The paper had browned too, but that's what made it even better. The smell was heavenly, old paper, almost parchment.

"Grimm's Fairy Tales" I read, my voice quavering. My book, I had my book. "Oh Dev!"

I launched myself at him, hugging him, holding onto him for dear life, because without the support, I don't think my legs would've held me up. He laughed, caught me and spun us around again, laughing giddily along with me and then proceeded to dance me all the way to our houses.

I leaned on him, my breath taken away, still laughing.
"You're the best" I said, leaning up to kiss him again. I didn't care that our mothers were possibly crying from joy at their respective windows. He responded just as enthusiastically.
"I know" he said simply. I grinned and then made a face
"Time to go explain" I said. He grimaced
"Ah yes, mothers and sister and all that"
"Well, the sooner we get over with it, the better" I said, steeling myself.
"I think they might just die. Come to the funeral?" he said, regarding his house gloomily. We could make his mother and sister's shadows out from the curtained windows.
"Only if you'll come to theirs" I said, gesturing to my own house. My own mother's hazy face has just disappeared from the frame. We sighed together.

"I'll see you tomorrow, Weasley?" he asked and I nodded.
"And every day after that, Mr. Moron" he smiled and kissed my forehead again, before we parted ways. From his porch, he waved, as did I, and we pressed the doorbells together.

As my mother descended upon me, demanding I satisfy her motherly curiosity, like she had done all those evenings ago when he'd first followed me up to my door, I couldn't help but smile.

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A/N: I AM ON A ROLL TODAY. DO YOU NOT LOVE ME? I MADE THEM KISS, ARE YOU HAPPY?? SHIP HIPPO FTW YAY! Also, almost done, my lovelies. One more chapter and we're almost done. Sit tight, it's coming soon. And possibly very soon.

xxx
Sage