AM I TOO LATE
To Catch a Train
Chapter Seventeen
Ginny plopped down on her sofa and spooned a mouthful of chocolate ice cream into her mouth. Someone banged on her door. She moaned as the cold sweetness melted on her tongue. Glancing at the door, she had no intentions of getting up. Whoever it was, well, could go away.
The knocking grew persistent and louder. Ginny spooned in another mouthful and carefully licked the spoon.
"Ginny!" a female voice shouted from behind her door. "Ginny! It's Hermione! Open up!"
Ginny almost coughed up her ice cream. She shoved the spoon into its dish and jumped from the sofa, but not before she had a moment of panic.
"Coming!"
"What are you doing?" Hermione demanded. "Open up!"
Ginny flung the door open and Hermione rushed inside, a whirl of color and bushy brown hair. "Listen, Hermione, I know you're mad at me but-"
"-it was a complete disaster," Hermione wailed. "Complete disaster. I could have crawled into a hole and died." Hermione dropped onto the couch and eyed the dish of chocolate ice cream.
Ginny stood with her hand still on the doorknob, staring at Hermione. She was confused.
"Uh…what happened?"
Hermione looked imploringly at Ginny. "Ridley is such a great kisser. He is," she said as she stood again and paced the floor in front of the kitchen table. "And truth be told, I didn't want him to stop, but he had to stop because there I was really getting into this…this thing we've got going. And he's lying on top of me and any minute now, I know he's going to…well…never mind that. But things are escalating and suddenly all I want to shout out is Harry's name-"
"-oh Merlin, you didn't, did you?"
Hermione glared at Ginny. "Of course I didn't!"
"Then, what happened?" Ginny asked, realizing that if Harry had intended to find Hermione in Spain, he had not…unless, there was more to the story.
"I made him stop," Hermione said. "It didn't seem right. It didn't feel right. For Merlin's sake, I shouldn't be thinking of another man while Ridley is trying to get my knickers off-"
"-did he get your knickers off?" Ginny giggled.
"This is serious, Ginny."
"Sorry," she apologized. "Did he?"
Hermione groaned.
"Okay, what happened?" Ginny asked. "What made it such a complete disaster? Obviously you opted to come home early."
"I told Ridley the truth."
Ginny gasped. "What did you tell him?"
"That I'm in love with Harry, and it just isn't fair to him."
"And what did he say?"
"That he understood," Hermione said as she crossed back to the sofa and sat down. She dug Ginny's spoon into the ice cream and helped herself. "Oh," she added through a mouthful, "he also said Harry is an idiot."
"Well," Ginny nodded, "he is."
Hermione sighed and swallowed down the chocolate mouthful. "Ridley is a great guy," she said. "He was so nice and understanding I wanted to hex myself to make things right. Too bad I had to fall for my idiot best friend."
Ginny cleared her throat. "So…did you run into anyone else while you were in Spain?"
"No…why?" Hermione asked, raising an eyebrow.
Ginny shrugged. "Just curious."
"That's an odd question."
Ginny waved her hand dismissively. "You never know. Small world and all." She sat down beside Hermione. "What are you going to do now?"
Hermione sighed again and closed her eyes. "I've always wanted to visit Ireland, to see the cliffs and coastline."
"Haven't you been before?"
"Years ago," Hermione said. "But I think I'm going to use the remainder of my vacation and go by myself. Settle things in my head."
"Alone?" Ginny asked. "Why don't you wait until my vacation starts in a few weeks and we can go together?"
Hermione shook her head. "I really need some time alone-"
"-won't that make you more depressed?"
Hermione smiled sadly. "I'm not depressed. Not exactly. I mean, I still love Harry, but at some point I'll need to except that things have changed and he will never see me as anything other than a friend."
"I wouldn't be so sure of that," Ginny said, eating her ice cream again.
"What do you mean? He's getting married," Hermione replied.
"You never know what life has in store," Ginny said nonchalantly. "Things change."
"Starting with me," Hermione said. She stood and rolled her shoulders. "I'm going home to pack. I'll owl you when I get there."
"What are you going to do? Where will you stay?" Ginny asked. "Have you even thought this out? It's not like you not to have things planned."
"I'll manage."
"But this is so unlike you," Ginny continued. "You're always so…so…"
"Dependable? Prepared?"
"Well…yeah."
"Boring? Dull? Predictable?" Hermione asked and Ginny recognized Hermione's change in tone immediately.
"Hermione," Ginny said gently, "that's not what I meant."
"Sure it is," Hermione said in irritation. "That's what everyone thinks. Good ol' Hermione Granger, we can count on her to do just what we expect her to. Well, you know what, Ginny? I'm bloody tired of being predictable. Of being boring and overlooked. I'm tired of being me."
Ginny slid her spoon back into the ice cream dish. "Hermione, you're not boring. So you like to be prepared, so what? It doesn't mean you don't know how to let loose, to have a little fun sometimes." Hermione's scowl softened. "Besides, Ridley definitely didn't think you were a hopeless case. And even if he did, he was still trying to get your knickers off. You aren't overlooked. You're one of the greatest people I know."
Hermione sighed. "I'm frustrated. And I want a real vacation where I can relax and be alone. I need to regroup."
"I'm just not used to you acting spontaneously."
Hermione smiled and shrugged. "You said it yourself. Things change. I'm going to go out for lunch, order cake, go home and pack, catch a train to the coast and maybe ride a ferry to Ireland."
"A Muggle train?" Ginny asked in surprise.
"Why not?"
"It would be easier to Apparate."
"But less of an adventure," Hermione said. "I need a change of scenery." She hugged Ginny and walked to the door. "I'll owl you when I get there. Thanks for being such a great friend."
"Sure…" Ginny said, but Hermione was already out the door.
* * * *
Harry beat on Hermione's door. He grew impatient when no one answered. Where would she have gone? Surely, she would have left Spain and gone back to her own flat. He unlocked the door and shouted for her. No answer.
He did the only other thing he could think of. He Apparated to Ginny's flat.
"I'm coming," Ginny said in exasperation. "What's a girl got to do to relax?" She opened the door and was unable to hide her expression of surprise as she looked out at Harry.
He barged in without being invited.
"Where' Hermione?" he asked.
Ginny frowned. "Haven't we played this game before?"
Harry turned to her. "I went to Spain. She left Ridley."
"Oh," Ginny said in a voice she hoped sounded convincing, as though she hadn't heard it all before.
"Where is she, Ginny?"
"I told you what I knew."
Harry narrowed his eyes. "You're lying."
"I did tell you what I knew."
Harry nodded. "You're not telling me all you know."
"Harry, if you are reading my mind, I swear I will curse your ears onto the bottoms of your feet."
Harry winced then hardened his expression. "Tell me."
"Are you threatening me?"
"I believe you threatened me."
Ginny groaned. "Merlin, Harry, when are you going to get your shite together? Hermione isn't here, okay? She's gone."
"That's what Ridley said."
"Then why are you harassing me?"
"She's come back home only she's not at home, and I know she would have told you what her plans were."
"Maybe she didn't have plans."
"Hermione always has plans," Harry said with a half smile.
"She's not that predictable."
"She's predictably predictable."
"Well, that doesn't make her boring!" Ginny yelled defensively.
Harry looked taken aback. "What's gotten in to you? I never said Hermione was boring."
Ginny plopped down onto her sofa. "Why are you doing this, Harry? What are you trying to prove?"
"I l-love her, Ginny…and I want to tell her," he stammered, "to tell her that I love her and I'm sorry."
"She's moving on," Ginny said finally, but not daring to look up into Harry's green eyes, "without you."
"But I don't want her to."
"That's life," Ginny said harshly. "It's not all sunshine and daisies, Harry."
"Don't you think I know that?" Harry asked as his frustration mounted so high his shoulders tensed. "I can't just let her go."
"You already let her go."
"I never wanted to let her go!" Harry yelled. "I was a complete idiot and assumed that I would have Hermione forever, that she'd never go away, that nothing would ever change."
Ginny scoffed under her breath. "Wishful thinking."
"I would catch Beth a million times over and suffer that feeling of empty betrayal again and again if it meant you would give me one last chance to talk to Hermione…before it's too late."
Ginny sighed and rubbed her temples. "Merlin, Harry. You really know how to turn my insides to marshmallows."
"Please, Ginny."
"She went to lunch, somewhere. I don't know. She didn't tell me where, but then she's going home to pack."
"Where is she going?" Harry asked.
"To catch a train."
"Where?"
"It doesn't mater where, Harry. She's running away."
"Do you think it's too late?" Harry asked, not sure if he wanted Ginny's honesty.
"Not if you leave now."
Harry thanked her and Apparated straight away.
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