Author's Note: These stories are all one-shot, 1000-word responses to the Summer Writing Series Challenge, so each one is not related to
the next.
Summer Writing Series Challenge (June 15)
Challenge: Harry & Hermione go on their first date. Harry or Hermione initiates the goodnight
kiss.
Title: Forever
Word Count: 999
Hermione closed the front door with a soft click and locked it. Her face was flushed, her palms were moist, and her heart was pounding so hard she could hear it in her ears. She leaned against the door, trying to pull herself together. She was being silly…absolutely silly. She was too old to be acting like this.
Unable to resist temptation, she turned around and peeked out the tiny hole. She chided herself for doing so, but she just had to check. Finally satisfied that no one was there, she leaned back against the door and released a huge breath she didn't even know she'd been holding. Slowly, she raised a hand and touched her lips lightly with trembling fingertips. A small smile crept across her face, like the sun peeking over the horizon at dawn.
Without even realizing it, she slid down to the floor, hand still at her mouth. Her lips were tingling. It was the strangest sensation. They felt puffy and swollen, and she was almost sure she could feel them pulsing. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Her smile grew, and her heart started beating even faster. She wanted to remember this night for the rest of her life.
It had taken him forever to confess. Forever! Three years, one month, eight days, twenty-two hours and some-odd minutes to be exact. In the meantime, she'd completely given up hope of ever being more than a friend to him. She was actually considering accepting a date from a friend of Ginny when Harry broke down and laid his heart out on the table. Literally.
It turned out that he had been harboring feelings for her since fifth year, since the night they lost Sirius. He thought he'd lost her as well. It took that moment, seeing her motionless and unresponsive, for him to realize he'd already loved her for some time. Unfortunately it took him another three years to actually tell her how he felt.
She could have killed him for waiting so long. She'd felt the same way about him even longer than she wanted to admit, and if he'd only told her sooner…well, there was no use in "iffing" about it now. The important thing was that their feelings were out in the open, and they'd decided to give it a chance, to see if they could take their relationship beyond friendship.
The night he confessed was surreal to her, like a dream. He seemed so serious when he showed up at her door and said he needed to talk to her. She was terribly afraid something was wrong. He was so solemn, so nervous, and completely drenched with rain, but clearly focused on one thing and one thing alone; he had to tell her. They sat at her dining table, and her heart raced, fearing the worst. So when he finally collected himself enough to start talking, her mouth fell open and her head began to buzz. The wave of relief that washed over her was quickly replaced with something else; a twisted, knotty feeling in her stomach. He had just told her that he was in love with her. Harry Potter…in love with her? She was in shock.
It only took a second for the tears to start. She didn't even know why. They were just coming, without her control. At first he thought he'd upset her, and he began apologizing. But when she'd calmed enough to tell her side of the story, his relief was obvious.
It was awkward to begin with, those first few moments when feelings were finally revealed and floating like delicate soap bubbles in the space between them. They laughed about it, the awkwardness, and then slowly began talking as their old comfort level came back.
They reminisced for a long time, confessing the moments when they first knew they loved the other, and all the little things that had brought those feelings into existence. When he at last got around to asking her out for their first date, she felt like a schoolgirl again. She accepted graciously with a smile and gently squeezed his hand which she'd been holding. As soon as he left she took a deep breath, then promptly began bouncing all around her flat, squealing and waving her arms.
When the night of their first date finally arrived, she tried her best to maintain some composure. Even though they had been best friends for more than seven years, she was still a bundle of nerves. He picked her up and they went out for dinner, walking to a cozy little restaurant nearby. The food was nice, and the company even nicer.
In ways it was no different than any other dinner together, but at the same time it was completely different. She started noticing the little things; things she now realized had always happened, but she'd just brushed them off as friendliness…like Harry wiping a dab of sauce off her cheek, or laughing sincerely at her sometimes feeble jokes. There was a new energy in the air; a soundless pulse that resonated each time their eyes met for a little too long, or when his gaze lingered on her lips even after she finished speaking.
They sat there for hours, just talking, with an unspoken attempt to bring their bond to an unfamiliar and exciting new level. When it became so late that everything was closing down, they decided to call it a night and he walked her home. They strolled casually, talking, holding hands, enjoying the warm summer night.
Ten paces before they reached her door, she suddenly felt the tension. Would he? If not, should she? Her heart raced. Her knees felt weak. She wanted it, but did he?
As if he heard her silent question, he pulled her close, his eyes searching hers for permission. When she didn't back away, he leaned in and kissed her, and with one simple gesture he changed her life forever.
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A/N: This story has been expanded x4 and uploaded as the new and improved Rapture. It's getting even better reviews
than I'd hoped, so if you liked this one, be sure to check it out. :)