"I'm in Love With You!"

1. Chapter 1

A/N: Hello again! Hope everyone is having a nice February.

This story is completely pointless. No plot to speak of at all. Just a little Harry/Hermione fluff to brighten your day. Perhaps a little tidbit in honor of Valentine's Day coming up?? Sure, why not.

Set in the 7th year one evening after dinner in the Gryffindor common room. This particular fuzzy idea popped into my head while I was at work today and I decided to write it down. Nothing spectacular, but I hope you enjoy it anyway.

Disclaimer: As usual, none of this belongs to me. Never has…never will.

Only 158 days until July 16!!

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 “Harry James Potter!” Hermione screamed at him. The Gryffindor common room had fallen deathly quiet. It was so unusual to see Harry and Hermione going off on each other like this. Not in public anyway. The tension in the room was rising and everyone witnessing this display of hostility was anxious to remove themselves from it's presence, especially the first years who were terrified.

“What do you want me to say!” Harry screamed back at her. “I'm not allowed to date anyone? Is that it?”

“Ugh!” She threw her books down on the couch, which surprised Parvati and Lavender. Ginny snickered. Hermione always treated her books with the utmost care. This casual display of disrespect was very unlike her. “Of course not!” she shouted, taking a step closer to her raven-haired best friend. “But her? Surely you see that she's only interested in this!” She said, tapping the infamous scar on his forehead.

Harry was fuming. “Perhaps you're just jealous?”

Hermione was stunned. “What? Jealous?” she snorted and turned away from him.

Harry strode up behind her. She could feel the heat radiating from his six-foot frame, she could feel his warm breath tickling her neck. It was sending all kinds of shivers down her spine. Shivers that pooled deep in her abdomen. “Yeah, jealous,” he said into her ear. His words were quiet now, not shouted.

Hermione took a deep breath, then slowly turned to face him. “Don't flatter yourself, Potter,” she hissed, her eyes boring into his. She refused to look away. She was going to win this pissing contest.

The eerie silence between them gave everyone who wanted to escape the chance to do so. Most everyone fled the room, either running up the stairs to the dorms, or out the portrait door. The few that chose to say—Dean, Seamus, Ginny, Lavender, Parvati, Neville, and of course Ron—were riveted to the scene in front of them. The girls just held their breaths. It was all they could do to keep themselves from squealing. Harry and Hermione were so close their noses were almost touching. “Just kiss him already!” Lavender whispered under her breath, resulting in an elbow in the ribs from Ginny.

“You are completely daft, you know that?” Harry asked her, staring her down, refusing to give in.

Her hands moved to rest on her hips in the typical Hermione I'm-Going-To-Lecture-You-Now Granger stance. “Oh, really.”

“Yes, really,” Harry said. After a moment of getting nothing more from her, he blew air through thinned lips and frowned. “What in the bloody hell do I have to do, uh?

“Meaning?”

Harry threw his hands in the air as he turned away from her. “You are impossible woman!” he shouted. He turned back to stare at her. “What do you want from me?”

Hermione was silent. This outward public show of emotion from Harry was unheard of. She had no idea what had gotten him into such a tizzy, but she felt it safe to just let him ride it out.

“Will he do it?” Neville asked very quietly to Seamus standing beside him. Seamus just shrugged.

“He'd bloody well better,” Ron hissed from behind them.

“Do you want me to jump off the astronomy tower while I shout it to the Heavens?” he asked, still gazing at her. “Do you want me to throw Lee out of the announcers box during the next Quidditch match and announce it?” He was getting a bit irritated, and finally Hermione was getting flustered.

“Honestly, Harry….”

“Do you want me to stand on top of Honeydukes and scream it at the top of my lungs for everyone to hear? Do you want me stand up on our table during dinner some night and shout it?”

“What on Earth are you talking about?” she asked incredulously.

Harry closed his eyes, shook his head, and let out a deep breath. “You are the most impossibly stubborn witch I have ever known, Hermione Granger.” Harry just looked at her.

The girls held their breaths, the boys were too mesmerized by the possibility, and Ron inhaled a gasp. He's going to do it!

“I'M IN LOVE WITH YOU!” Harry suddenly shouted loud enough to make the portraits in the room start with surprise.

Parvati let out a squeak which was quickly silenced by Lavender's hand going over her mouth. Ginny's eyes filled with tears. The boys were silent and unmoving.

Hermione's mouth fell open and she gapped at him. “You…you're what?”

In two strides Harry was nose to nose with her. He took her face gently in his hands and looked right into her eyes. “Harry….” He silenced her with a kiss that would have made Eros and Aphrodite proud. Never before in the history of kisses had a kiss ever made a woman swoon like this one did.

Hermione's knees buckled and she nearly fell, but Harry caught her around the waist, holding her up against him, never breaking the kiss. When the need for air became an issue, and as he pulled away, he pulled on her bottom lip gently with his teeth. Lavender, Parvati, and Ginny fell against each other, a sighing heap of female goo. “Oh, wow,” Parvati whispered. Lavender and Ginny just nodded.

Harry watched Hermione open her eyes and smiled at her. “I'm in love with you, silly girl.” His words were mere whispers, not meant for the other occupants of the tower to hear. But the silence in the room was deafening and Harry's statement seemed to echo off the walls.

The brown-eyed witch could say nothing. It seemed that rational thought had escaped her. As well the ability to breathe, blink, or move. “I…I…um,” Hermione stammered, “um….”

“Imagine that,” Harry said, tucking a stray piece of her hair behind her cute little ear. “I've managed to render Hermione Granger speechless. 10 points to me.”

Seamus snorted and Ron smacked him on the back of the head. “Shut it, Finnigan,” he hissed angrily, not wanting anything to spoil this moment for his friends.

Hermione blinked as the world seemed to come back to her. She was suddenly aware of everything. His closeness, how his strong arms felt around her waist, how the length of his body was warm where it was pressed against hers, how his hand stroked her cheek so tenderly, how his lips had felt against hers, and his smoldering green eyes that were mere inches away. “You're a prat,” she said quietly, her voice hoarse and not quite working properly yet.

He chuckled. “Yes, I am,” Harry agreed, kissing the tip of her nose. “But I still love you.” Hermione suddenly felt tears stinging her eyes as she flung herself against his broad chest. He wrapped his arms tighter around her and held her against him, resting his chin on the top of her head. “I do hope those are happy tears,” Harry asked down to her. She just nodded against him.

Suddenly applause broke out in the room. Neville, Dean, and Seamus were clapping very enthusiastically, followed quickly by Lavender and Parvati. Seamus even let lose a couple of wolf whistles. Ginny threw her arms around her brother, while Ron just stood there with his arms folded across his chest, a bright smile lighting up his face.

Hermione pulled her face away from Harry and looked at them, then hid herself again, clearly embarrassed. She had completely forgotten that they had an audience. Harry just smiled and kissed the top of her head. “All right, all right,” Ron said, seeing her obvious discomfort. “I think we should leave the two lovebirds alone, don't you?”

“Hey, this is the common room!” Seamus said as Harry and Hermione looked at them. She kept her head against him, his arms staying loosely around her waist. “Maybe they would like to go somewhere else a little more private?” he suggested, winking at Harry.

He looked down at her. “Want to go for a walk?” he asked her. She looked up at him, wiping her tears. She just nodded. Reluctantly, Harry released her from his arms and reached down to take her hand. “Don't wait up for us,” he said, then pulled Hermione towards the portrait door.

“Have fun!” Lavender and Ginny shouted behind them.

“Yeah!” Parvati said. “Hermione, you'd better tell us all about it when you get back!” The door closed leaving the Gryffindors in silence.

“It's about bloody time,” Ron said, sounding relieved. “Didn't think he had the nerve to do it,” he started upstairs. “You guys coming?” He turned and looked at what the guys were staring at.

The three girls were hunched together on the couch by the fire and suddenly started to giggle insanely. Seamus, Dean, and Neville watched them for a minute. “What is it with girls?” Neville asked.

“Who bloody knows, mate,” Seamus said. They heard Harry's name mentioned more than once and decided it's best that they didn't know what the girls were talking about.

“Anybody up for a game of exploding snap?” Dean asked.

“Yeah,” Neville said, and he, Dean ,and Seamus followed Ron up to their dorm.