The Ravenclaw Nine || BTS Harry Potter AU

Chapter 22

Jimin's Point of View

Jimin's hopes began to rise when he overheard that an accident had occurred in Potions class. Perhaps Jin had been temporarily incapacitated – oh, how the thought warmed Jimin's heart – and the experience would knock some sense into his arrogant head. Even better, maybe he had been hit with an Obliviating spell that made him forget why he ever wanted to bully Jimin in the first place.

Naturally, however, when the news spread that Chloe Bennett was in the hospital wing, all thoughts of Jin disappeared from Jimin's mind.

He didn't care how much of a ruckus he was making so late into the evening as he ran through the corridors – even the sight of Mr. Pringle clutching his cane threateningly couldn't convince him to slow down. His heart pounded with terror at the thought of losing one of the only people who genuinely cared for him.

"Chloe?" he panted, throwing open the doors to the hospital wing.

"Hush!" one of the matrons exclaimed, pressing a finger to her lips.

"Where is Chloe? Chloe Bennett," he clarified, wringing his hands anxiously. Had she been hit by a wayward spell? Did a potion explode and harm her? Was she...? He couldn't bear to think the word.

"Jimin?" a soft voice echoed from the back of the room, and Jimin's heart skipped a beat in pure relief. The evening sunset poured through the translucent drapes, illuminating the pristine hospital bed upon which Chloe sat. Bandages trailed up her arms, but the smile on her face suggested she wasn't in much pain.

Irrelevant words stilled on his tongue as he rushed to her side, aching to touch her but fearing that he might cause her pain. "W-what happened?" he stammered weakly, sitting beside her and brushing his fingertips against the back of her hand.

"Our Elixir to Induce Euphoria went wrong," she explained, smiling sadly. "I think Jin added too many Sopophorous beans."

"Of course, Jin was involved," he muttered through gritted teeth. "I wouldn't be surprised if he intended to hurt you."

Chloe shook her head disbelievingly. "No matter how many faults he may appear to have, I am certain he has a gentle soul."

"Well, I suppose one could gather that, but only if you exclude the time last summer that he used the Cruciatus Curse on me for spoiling his food; and the day he gave me a solid beating simply because I was a wizard; and all the years of my childhood where he delighted in torturing me both physically and emotionally." His words came out harsh, fueled by disappointment that Chloe would even consider liking such an awful human being. It was bad enough to enter the Ravenclaw common room and find his brother moments from kissing Chloe, but to hear her defend him...

"He is a complicated person," she admitted, "but I can't reduce him to something purely evil."

Jimin bit his tongue before he could press the situation further, knowing it would only hurt his relationship with Chloe. "So, how long have you been here?"

"A few hours, I think. The general potions didn't work on the boils, so the matrons had to employ harsher medication. As long as they see an improvement in my condition, I am free to go in the morning."

As much as Jimin hated Chloe's affection for Jin, he had fallen deeply in love with her – she could have stomped on his heart and he wouldn't feel any less for her. "You don't mind if I stay, do you?"

Her eyes widened. "But don't you have schoolwork?"

"Not much," he lied, "and I wouldn't be able to complete any of it without knowing you were well. Let me stay with you for an hour, at least." No one, much less Chloe, could resist Jimin's pleading gaze, and that hour of talking and laughing turned into an overnight venture. She fell asleep to him reading a work of Muggle literature aloud, and his voice trailed off as he admired her unique beauty. She looked positively stunning even in sleep, her blonde hair partially obscuring her fair features – Jimin couldn't fathom how he had gotten so lucky as to meet her...