Title: Unfaithful
Summary: Came to me after many hours of listening to 'Unfaithful' by Rihanna. Hermione and Ron are happily married, or so it seems… underneath the blissful exterior is a betrayal of love and trust… one-shot…
Authors Notes: Ok so I just wrote this then. I should be at work, but our computers have totally died and my job is data entry and I need a computer, so I've been sent home for the day- or until the computers get fixed. So I just wrote this then, very quickly. I hope you enjoy. If it doesn't make sense, I apologise now.
~*~
Story of my life
Searching for the right
But it keeps avoiding me
Sorrow in my soul
Cause it seems that wrong
Really loves my company
He's more than a man
And this is more than love
The reason that this guy is blue
The clouds are rolling in
Because I'm gone again
And to him I just can't be true
The figures on the alarm clock glowed luminous red and Hermione opened a bleary eye and read them slowly. 5:27am. The alarm would go off at 5:30am so that Ron could get up and get ready for training. She stretched carefully, so as not to wake him yet and stole out of the bed and out of the bedroom. She padded softly and quietly into the kitchen and grabbed her wand from the bench where she had left it the night before. She pointed it at the coffee machine, and the toaster and the stove. By the time Ron emerged from the shower twenty minutes later, she had a full breakfast and coffee on the table for him.
'Morning love,' she said, forcing a smile on his face. Ron just grunted and she knew better than to expect anything more from him early in the morning. She watched him in silence as he ate his breakfast and then hardly noticed him kiss her forehead in goodbye as he disapparted to Quidditch training.
Once he had gone, she took his place at the table and stared at his empty plate… things weren't right between them. Things hadn't been right since… she sighed heavily.
And I know that he knows I'm unfaithful
And it kills him inside
To know that I am happy with some other guy
I can see him dying
It had been a year that very day since… since Hermione's life had changed. She and Ron had been married for three years at that point, having married straight out of Hogwarts. They were happy then, and they still would be happy if it hadn't been for Quidditch.
Ever since she had joined the wizarding world, Hermione had despised Quidditch. She tolerated it through her school days, but her tolerance had all but vanished since. Ron had joined the Cannons and his life became consumed with the team. Everything was about the team.
Desperate to escape, she had fled to her parents property for a week. And she had discovered her mothers secret.
Teachers had warned her right throughout her Hogwarts days that students from Muggle family's often found it hard to go back to the Muggle life after Hogwarts and their family's found it hard to have them. There was a chasm between the worlds and it always caught Muggle born students. Hermione had laughed them off, she was very close with her parents. They were a close family, they would be alright.
The reason Hermione was so close to her parents was that they almost hadn't been able to have her. Her mother had never really elaborated on the story to her only daughter, just that it had took them fifteen years to have Hermione and they were grateful to have her.
But much to Hermione's dismay, her being a witch did cause a distance from her parents. They couldn't understand her world or what went on in it. Hermione was always honest with them about most things. They didn't know about Voldemort. Or at least they didn't whilst she was at school. They didn't know about the war. They didn't know the bad- only the good. But having to be so secretive with them had hurt their relationship and by the time she had left Hogwarts, she barely knew them.
They had been supportive when she had married Ron, although her mother had said they were rushing it. And life just took over Hermione- she was always busy, too busy to see her parents.
The week she spent with them was meant to be happy and restful. But it was being around her mother that made Hermione realise how old and frail she was suddenly. And so her mother had told her the truth.
She had cancer. And she didn't have long left.
The news crushed Hermione. She fled the farm, fled back to London, wanting to crawl into Ron's arms and never leave. But when she got home, Ron had left a note explaining that he would be in Lithuania until the end of the month, at a training camp.
So Hermione went to the only person aside from Ron that she trusted and loved with all her heart.
Harry.
And for that month that Ron was away, Hermione and Harry had become closer than they ever had been. Harry was there for her as her mother got sicker and sicker. Harry was at the hospital with her when she passed away.
Ron was in Romania.
It was three weeks after her mothers death when things had truly changed between her and Harry. He had invited her over for dinner and it was a wonderful evening. Ron was playing an away game and he hardly seemed to notice that Hermione had stopped coming to his games.
It wasn't until she went to leave that she realised she didn't want to. And she let her emotions take over for a moment and she grabbed Harry and kissed him like she had wanted too for so long now.
Harry kissed her back just as hard and they found themselves being caught up in the moment. They were on his sofa, his hands cupping her breasts as they kissed furiously, before Hermione realise what she was doing. She fled, without a word.
Ron came home and she spent the next two weeks by his side. But every thought she had was of Harry. He had almost possessed her. And as soon as Ron left for another away game, she was straight back in Harry's arms.
She had kidded herself for a few months that Ron didn't know. How could he, they were very discrete. Hermione knew that if other people found out it would be the scandal of the year. But she was happy. For the first time in her whole marriage to Ron she was happy, and he couldn't not notice it.
But Ron was ever the gentleman. Not once since he had figured out what was happening had he said anything. He carried on as normal, though he had confided in his sister that his marriage was over. He didn't know why he didn't just end it for good- but Ron was an optimist when it came to Hermione. He had waited seven years to be with her, he wasn't going to run away after four years of marriage. Besides… it was an affair… it couldn't last forever…
I don't wanna do this anymore
I don't wanna be the reason why
Every time I walk out the door
I see him die a little more inside
I don't wanna hurt him anymore
I don't wanna take away his life
I don't wanna be
A murderer
Sighing heavily still, Hermione got up from the table and went back into the bedroom and laid down and stared at the ceiling. She had the day off from work that day and she had made plans with Harry to have lunch at his house. She was counting down the days inside until Ron went away again- they had a game in Finland the following week and he would be going there the day after next. It was a given now that when he went away she would stay with Harry. Ron knew that she wouldn't be home and didn't bother to ask where she was going. He knew. And she knew it broke his heart to watch her go to work on the morning of a trip away, because he knew she wasn't coming back in that door until he came home.
For the past few weeks Hermione had been telling herself that perhaps it was time to just walk away. She and Ron were no more than casual friends. They hardly spoke, hardly did anything. There were whispers all over the community that their marriage was in trouble- they were a common feature in wizarding gossip magazines these days, debating over whether the marriage was on or not.
But Hermione knew better than to just walk away. She couldn't. Despite the fact that she knew Ron knew, she couldn't just leave him. She knew that it would be his death.
I feel it in the air
As I'm doing my hair
Preparing for another date
A kiss up on my cheek
He's here reluctantly
As if I'm gonna be out late
I say I won't be long
Just hanging with the girls
A lie didn't have to tell
Because we both know
Where I'm about to go
And we know it very well
Ron was home early from training and she was in the bathroom, drying her hair after her shower. She didn't notice as he stood there and watched her for a moment, before coming in and kissing her on the cheek.
'Where are you off to?' he asked friendly.
'Just lunch with Lavender and Parvati,' she replied, forcing a smile.
'Don't be too long,' he said, walking out, his hands in his pockets, head down.
Her heart broke watching him. Some part of her still loved him. Some very small part. Ron would always have part of her. Harry knew that as well and it was after even after a year he never pressed her to leave him, never pressed for them to have a future. He knew that one day, when the time was right, she would leave him.
He just had to wait for that moment.
Cause I know that he knows I'm unfaithful
And it kills him inside
To know that I am happy with some other guy
I can see him dying
Ron sat on the lounge and listened to the hair dryer and looked at the photo of their wedding day that sat on the coffee table. His mother had warned him, she had told him that they were too young. That sometimes your first love wasn't your lasting love.
His mother had always told him that Harry and Hermione fitted well together. Ron had always ignored it. He was in love with Hermione and he was going to have her. Harry wasn't going to beat him at this.
But he was. Ron hadn't seen his best friend in months. He had slowly and quietly lost contact with him. Harry had betrayed his marriage. Although Ron knew that it part it was his fault. And that was what ate him up most. He hadn't been there for her when she needed it. He had wanted to be near her, but he had been faced with a choice. His career or his Hermione.
He chose wrong. He knew it. He knew as soon as he made the choice that it was wrong. But it was that choice that meant they had such a comfortable life. Their apartment was nice, the furniture all matched and Hermione had every she wanted, no objection or questions asked.
And Ron was dying inside, knowing that the one thing she truly wanted, he couldn't give her.
I don't wanna do this anymore
I don't wanna be the reason why
Every time I walk out the door
I see him die a little more inside
I don't wanna hurt him anymore
I don't wanna take away his life
I don't wanna be
A murderer
She called goodbye to him as she ran out the front door, coat and hand bag flying on her arm. Ron barely lifted his head and she could see him as she turned to shut the door. His head was sinking lower and lower and Hermione felt the same stab of regret and hurt she felt every time she left like this.
She was tired of hurting him… she had to stop the hurt. For both of them.
Our love, his trust
I might as well take a gun and put it to his head
Get it over with
I don't wanna do this
Anymore
She was quiet all through lunch. Harry knew better than to ask questions, he just pretended things were normal. They went back to his apartment afterwards and Hermione knew what she had to do.
She kissed him goodbye and walked back to her own apartment. She let herself in and just stood inside the door. Her heart was beating. Ron came out of the kitchen and they stood there and just looked at each other.
I don't wanna do this anymore
I don't wanna be the reason why
Every time I walk out the door
I see him die a little more inside
I don't wanna hurt him anymore
I don't wanna take away his life
I don't wanna be
A murderer
She didn't have to speak the words. She started crying softly and he walked towards her slowly and took her hands in his.
'I can't…' she whispered. 'I can't do this anymore.'
Ron couldn't speak. He had been waiting for this… he just hadn't expected it to happen yet…
'I don't want to take your life away.'
The lump in Ron's throat increased in size.
'I'll… I'll just get… some clothes…'
He felt like his heart had just been ripped out of his chest and used as a bludger. He watched in silence as she packed a small bag and stood at the door and looked at him, tears streaming down her cheeks.
'I still love you,' she whispered, closing the door.
Ron had to lean on the wall to hold himself up. He let out a loud, anguished scream. Hermione heard it but couldn't bear to stand outside the door any longer. She ran down the stairs, out onto the street and Harry was waiting, with a taxi.
She hadn't even told him what she was doing.
'I had a feeling,' was all he said, helping her into the taxi. She fell into his arms sobbing and looked up at him, her face tear stained and etched with pain.
'I killed him,' was all she could say as the taxi pulled away from the curb. She fell onto Harry's chest and cried even harder.
Ron had managed to get to the window and he had watched Harry help her into the taxi, watched as it pulled away from the curb, watched as it took his love away from him, to start her new life with her love.