Little White Lies | Book 4

Chapter 11: Love Hurts

By the time I had arrived in the Gryffindor common room, the party had already began. Ron was being held on the shoulders of a few boys, as everyone chanted, "Weasley! Weasley! Weasley!" I grinned, making my way to the front, where Harry stood with Hermione. She seemed to be scolding him about the Liquid Luck, while he showed her the sealed phial. As soon as they noticed I was there, Harry planted a soft kiss on my lips.

"You did beautifully out there, my love. I'm so proud of you." He told me. I grinned, kissing him again. "It's all thanks to you." Suddenly, everyone began cheering louder, making us turn our attention back to Ron. Honestly, I was shocked by what I saw. There he was, snogging Lavender's face off. Harry laughed, as I started gagging. But, it didn't take long for us to notice that Hermione was no longer in our presence.

I grabbed Harry's hand, and pulled him towards the Portrait Hole, where I saw her exit. By the time we finally made it out, we found her sitting at the bottom of some stairs, watching a few birds chirp merrily, and fly around.

"Hermione?" I said, hesitantly. "What are you doing?" She turned, and saw us standing there. "Oh, I-I was just practicing." Harry sat down on one side of her, while I sat on the other. "They're really good." Harry commented, sympathetically, looking up at the birds. "I know this must be difficult for you, Hermione. But, who says this relationship between them will even last? I may not know Lavender that well, but she's definitely not Ron's type. I bet he'll be fed up with her in about a month." I told her, letting her lean her head on my shoulder.

"I just don't understand," She cried. "He barely knows her, and yet he goes on and snogs her anyway." I stroked her hair, while Harry rubbed her arm. "I reckon she took him by surprise, really. I mean, he clearly doesn't get much romantic attention." He said. "He would've pulled back, but he didn't!" She protested. "That's how boys are, Hermione. They've just got so much pride in themselves. It may be hard, but you just need to stop worrying about it, and focusing on more important matters." I explained, earning a playful glare from Harry. "That's completely untrue."

We all laughed a bit, before we were rudely interrupted by someone's annoying giggling. We looked up, only to see Ron standing there, Lavender clinging to his arm. "Oops! Looks like this room's taken." She said, with a giggle. I glared as she skipped off. "What's with the birds?" Ron asked. Hermione stood up, vividly wiping the tears from her face. "Repungo!" She muttered. Harry and I winced a little, as the birds that had continued flying around, suddenly raced towards the red head, nearly hitting him. He barely dodged each one, before running off in the direction Lavender went.

"Idiot," I muttered, as she sat back down. "You shouldn't be upset about him, Hermione. It's just not worth it. Soon, Ronald will come to realize that you would be a way better girlfriend than Lavender could ever be. I mean, you guys have been through so much together, and shared so many good memories. Just give him some time, and he'll come around." She looked at me, and sniffled. "Do you really think that?" I smiled at her, and nodded. "I really know that. Now, come on, let's do something that doesn't include being sad."

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"I heard about Weasley and Lavender Brown." Draco told me one evening, as we sat in a deserted corridor. "Pretty sure everyone has by now. Every time I see him, he's got his tongue tied with hers. It's gross, really. They should just get a room and get it over with." I replied, making him laugh. "Think he really loves her?" I shook my head. "No, he doesn't. I think he just likes snogging her. He'll get tired of it once his lips get chapped. I sorta knew he and Hermione would end up together when I first met them."

"Bet Granger's pretty upset then, huh?" He asked. "Yeah, she's practically heartbroken. Harry's having a hard time being stuck between them, so he's been with me a lot." It was quiet for a moment. "I saw him with that Weasley girl the other day. Ginny, right?" I nodded. "They seemed to be having a good laugh together. Practically all the boys here want to date her, except me of course." I sighed, and looked at him. "Draco, I know where this is going—"

"No, I'm serious! He was flirting up a bloody storm! Trust me, Riley, I would never joke about something like that. I think he's cheating on you." He wore a sincere expression, making my heart drop. "Well, can't get mad at him, can I? I'm doing no better." I looked down into my lap, and sighed deeply. "Love hurts, Draco. It hurts a lot. Why?"

"It hurts because when you love someone, you really care about them. When you see them hurt, you hurt. When you see them do something hurtful, it really hurts. That's how I feel about you, you know?" I leaned into him, and nodded my head. "I feel that way about you too, Draco, but the problem is, I feel like that about Harry too. I just don't know which one of you I want to keep loving. I hate it." He ran his fingers through my hair, and kissed my forehead. "Well, I hope you make the right decision, love. Go with your gut, and you'll be okay."

I looked up, and kissed him. "Thanks for being so understanding. This is why I love you."