A Chance Encounter | Fred Weasley

Chapter 15

Clara couldn't remember the last time she had gotten such a good night's sleep. It seemed like the stresses she had been holding had just faded away in a few hours' time.

As she started to awaken, she could feel the puffiness in her eyes, the slight stiffness of being in one position for so long, and...

Arms.

She felt a pair of strong arms wrapped around her which caught her off guard. Thinking back to the night prior, she remembered talking with Fred and drawing constellations. Then she remembered breaking down and asking him not to leave her alone.

This must have been his method of doing so.

Opening her eyes, Clara found herself tucked into Fred's chest as the morning rays started to filter in through the window behind him. His scent was intoxicating, her mind battling with itself in the decision to wake up for the day or just hide out in Fred's room for the rest of her life.

She shifted slightly, hoping not to wake him up.

"Are you awake?" Fred asked softly.

"Maybe," she replied.

Clara sat up, breaking out of Fred's grasp and rubbing the sleep out of her eyes. She looked back down at Fred. His fiery red hair was a mess after falling asleep and his shirt fell loosely on his frame. He was wearing sweatpants, Clara assuming it was because she had hogged all of the blankets.

He looked cute. It was a picture that she didn't mind waking up to every morning.

"I'm sorry," she uttered as she turned herself towards him.

"For what? I wasn't awake for that long," Fred teased. "And you're a much better roommate than George. Saws logs in his sleep, that one." He gazed at Clara in her large t-shirt and shorts, his mind traveling back to the night he had received his black eye.

Clara chuckled slightly before continuing. "No, I mean I'm sorry for putting you in this position last night."

Fred's smile weakened as he sat up to face Clara. "There's no need for an apology."

"No, there is. This was...unprofessional on my part."

His brows furrowed as he placed a hand on the side of Clara's face to force her to look at him. "What in the world are you going on about?"

Clara took a deep breath. "I have no idea." Her mind was confused as to what was going on between her and Fred. Was it just a friendly gesture? Was there more behind this little sleepover? Was she ready for this next potential step?

He let his hand fall away. "You needed someone last night, and I wanted to be that person. I wasn't going to let you go through this on your own."

Clara nodded. "So that's all it was? Helping a friend?"

Fred paused, his gaze now falling away from Clara's.

His lack of answer told Clara he was just as uncertain about their next step as she was.

"Listen, I know we have a lot of other things to do in the next few days so can we...put this on pause?"

"Pause?" Fred asked, laughing at Clara's version of asking to talk about their situation later.

She pushed him backwards so that he landed back on the bed, smiling as she did so. "You know what I mean."

Fred swung himself back up to a sitting position. Gazing into Clara's eyes, Fred had an inkling that he knew what he wanted to tell her. He had been aching to tell her all summer, but something had always come up. Now it was happening again.