It's Never That Simple
Chapter One
"God damn it, Draco, you can't just strut back into my life and expect me to forgive you," Ginny yelled furiously, her hair falling out of the elegant chignon that had taken her hours to perfect.
"I know I made a mistake, Ginny," Draco said calmly, "but-"
"Made a mistake?" Ginny whispered disbelievingly. " Made a mistake?!" she shrieked. "You practically broke a rib from laughing as you tore my heart out and stomped all over it!"
"You didn't use to be so poetic, Ginevra," Draco replied thoughtfully. "What else have the years done to you?"
"Shut up," Ginny snapped. "You don't know me as well as you think you do." She turned to leave the room, but stopped when he called after her.
"I know you aren't happy," Draco said quietly.
Ginny turned around slowly, her arms crossed over her chest. "And what gives you that impression?" she asked coldly, daring him to go further.
"Isn't it obvious?" he said, raising an eyebrow in a way that used to make her knees melt. Now all it did was succeed in fueling her anger.
"I will have you know," she began slowly through clenched teeth, "that I happen to be the happiest I have ever been in my life."
Draco studied her for a moment, then said quietly, so quietly she had to strain to hear him, "You were happy with me."
***
"Are you ready, love? The guests are beginning to arrive."
"Almost," Ginny Weasley, soon to be Ginny Warren, called back. She put the finishing touches on her hair, and stood up, admiring her reflection in the full length mirror. She was wearing a black floor-length dress with a slit that reached to mid-thigh, barely avoiding the point of indecency. It gathered at the left shoulder, leaving the right shoulder bare. She nodded with satisfaction, and went to meet her fiancé.
"You look beautiful, darling," Steve said as Ginny approached him. She blushed as he kissed her on the cheek, then offered her his arm. "Shall we?"
Ginny nodded, and he led her to the ballroom of the five star hotel.
***
Draco Malfoy was far from perfect and the relationship they had shared had been a total disaster from the start.
"What're you doing here?" Draco asked as he entered his private room at Hogwarts.
Ginny turned around from her perusal of his desk and stared at him. "What do you mean, what am I doing here?" she asked, keeping her voice purposefully casual.
"I mean," Draco said slowly, "that you don't usually come on a weeknight, and while I know I'm simply irresistible, I do have a rather large Transfiguration test tomorrow."
"I thought you might want to see me tonight," she said coyly, looking at him earnestly.
Draco gave her a once over. "I'm not really in the mood."
Ginny stared at him in disbelief. "I didn't mean for a shag!" she shrieked in indignation. "How dare you assume-"
Draco stared at her in confusion. "Weasley," Draco said slowly, "all we do is shag."
"I thought I might mean more to you than a shag," she said dispiritedly.
"Oh, Ginny girl," Draco said tenderly, gathering her in his arms. "You're not just a shag."
"Really?" Ginny asked hopefully, her eyes shining.
"Of course not. You're a bloody fantastic shag."
"Draco!" Ginny exclaimed, pushing him away furiously.
"What?" he asked, completely confused.
She sighed in annoyance. "Don't you know what today is?"
He hesitated before answering. "Tuesday," he said confidently.
And then she slapped him. Hard.
"Bloody fuck, Weasley! What the hell was that for?" he yelled angrily, his cheek already starting to turn red.
"It's Valentine's Day, you bloody wanker!" Ginny shrieked furiously.
"So?" Draco retorted petulantly.
"So," Ginny hissed. "We've been together for a month."
"Valentine's Day is for people in love, Weasley. We aren't in love. We're in lust," Draco explained patiently.
"No, you unbearable prick, Valentine's Day is for people in a relationship."
"We're not in a relationship," Draco said coldly.
"Too right," Ginny growled. "Because if we were in a relationship, I would actually be able to be in the same room as you without vomiting!" she yelled furiously, the last word coming out as a high-pitched scream.
"Then maybe you had better leave," Draco sneered. "God knows I wouldn't want to make the House Elves clean up Weasley vomit. Even I'm not that cruel."
"Fine!"
"Fine!"
Ginny stormed out of Draco's room. Draco seized a vase and threw it at the wall.
***
Steve Warren was a Muggle lawyer from the States. He had dark hair and blue eyes (the kind you can drown in, Ginny would often say to her friends with a sigh), and a contagious smile that never failed to make Ginny want to laugh (which got relatively annoying when all she wanted was to be miffed at him). They had met at a Muggle book store three years ago when Ginny had been looking for a book for Hermione's birthday - apparently, after having read all the books in the wizarding world she was attempting to conquer the Muggle literacy world as well (as if that was really necessary, Ginny complained to herself as she entered the store). Later, Ginny thanked Hermione and bought her three more books off her list.
After two years of serious dating, Ginny told Steve that she was a witch and he asked her to move in with him. She agreed. A year later, he asked Ginny to marry him, and once again, she agreed. And while Steve often expressed his feelings, Ginny had a harder time. Steve had always understood.
She hadn't always had this much trouble admitting her feelings. In fact, there was a time when she had been completely open and honest with them. Things, however, often change.
***
"Ginny, I'd like you to meet my Aunt Emily and Uncle Roger. Aunt Emily, Uncle Roger, this is my fiancée, Ginevra Weasley," Steve said with a smile.
Ginny smiled and shook hands with Steve's elderly relatives. She felt like she had been introduced to every person above the age of fifty in the world in the past hour, and her face was starting to feel like she had a coat hanger in her mouth from all the smiling.
"I'm so pleased to meet you," Ginny said kindly. "Steve has told me so much about you." Steve's aunt and uncle beamed. They chatted for a while before the couple made their excuses and walked away.
"How many more people do we have to meet?" Ginny asked as she unscrewed her smile. "My face is killing me."
Steve laughed. "Can I get you anything?"
"Alcohol," Ginny groaned, causing Steve to laugh again as he walked away. "And lots of it!" she called after him with a smile.
"May I have this dance, Ms. Weasley?" Ginny turned around and a genuine smile spread over her face.
"Why, of course, Mr. Potter," she said and let Harry escort her to the dance floor. "I haven't seen you in ages," she complained as he twirled her around. "Where have you been?"
"Oh, here and there," he said mysteriously. Ginny laughed. Harry never told anyone where he went when he disappeared for long periods of time. "So, how're the wedding plans coming along?"
"Oh, well, you know…" Ginny said, trailing off. Harry felt her stiffen in his arms.
"Ginny?" he asked, concern etched onto his face, as he stilled their movements. "Are you alright?"
"I'm fine," Ginny responded after a second's hesitation. Her voice sounded higher than usual. "I'm perfectly fine. I've just remember that I have to take care of something. Can you tell Steve that I'll be back to meet the rest of his family soon?" And before Harry could respond, she was walking away.
When Harry followed her path with his eyes, he immediately saw the source of her discomfort at the door to the grand ballroom. Draco Malfoy stood with his hands in his pockets, waiting for Ginny to come to him.
***
Ginny's hand made a satisfying crack as it firmly connected with Draco's cheek.
"You bastard," Ginny hissed angrily.
"Hello, Ginevra," Draco said, rubbing a hand over his sore cheek. He was completely nonplussed by the way sparks were shooting from her eyes.
"Don't you 'hello' me, Draco Malfoy," Ginny hissed furiously. "What the hell are you doing here?"
Draco gave her an exasperated look. "Isn't it quite obvious, Ginny?" he asked quietly.
"Apparently not," Ginny seethed, tapping her foot impatiently.
Draco gave her a wry smile. "I'm here to rescue you."
Ginny laughed mirthlessly. "I thought rescuing people wasn't your style."
***
"Draco?" Ginny asked as they lay in his bed in his private Head Boy chambers at Hogwarts.
"Mmm?" Draco asked, his fingers idly playing with her hair.
"I need to tell you something."
"Then tell me," Draco replied nonchalantly.
Ginny turned away from him, not able to look him in the eyes. She buried her face in her pillow and mumbled something Draco didn't quite catch.
"Ginny girl, if you need to tell me something, perhaps you should talk to me, not the pillow," Draco said, a hint of exasperation in his voice, as he attempted to make her face him.
"I said," Ginny said louder this time, her voice still slightly muffled by the pillow, "that I love you."
All the blood rushed out of Draco's head. Had she just said what he thought she had just said?
"What?" Draco said as calmly as he could.
Ginny turned to face him, her face red. "I love you, Draco."
Draco stared wonderingly at her for a moment before he got up and began searching for his pants.
"Say something," Ginny pleaded, pulling the heavy comforter tighter around her.
"You want me to say something?" Draco asked coldly as he pulled his shirt on. Ginny nodded. "Fine. Who the hell do you think I am, Ginny?" When Ginny didn't respond he continued. "This isn't real, Ginny. None of it is. Everything we've been doing for the past year is a complete and total lie. You don't love me…"
"Yes I do!" Ginny interrupted, beginning to cry.
"…and I certainly don't love you," Draco continued as if Ginny had never spoken.
Silence filled the room as Draco's emphatic rejection sunk in. After a moment, a rough sob filled the air. Ginny scrambled out of his bed and began to get dressed, not bothering to put everything on, just the bare essentials. The faster she got out, the better off she'd be. She was stupid to get involved with Draco Malfoy to begin with.
"Did you think I was your knight in shining armor, Ginny girl?" Draco asked quietly. Ginny heard something in his voice that she couldn't quite place. "Because I'm not. I can't rescue you from anything, and frankly, I don't want to."
As Ginny ran from his room, her tears pouring down her face, she realized what she had heard in his voice: pleasure, as he broke her heart.
***
"It's not like that anymore, Ginny girl," Draco said. His eyes were pleading and Ginny took a certain amount of pleasure in denying him the one thing he wanted.
"Don't ever call me that again," Ginny said coldly.
"I love you," he said quietly.
Ginny laughed. "You don't love me, Draco," she said calmly.
"Yes I do," he replied fervently. "I've always loved you."
Ginny shook her head. "You never loved me," she explained tiredly. "You loved what I gave you. You loved the power you had over me. You loved the fact that I was yours, the littlest Weasley. It was the ultimate revenge, even if no one knew, and you loved the thrill it gave you. You loved that everything we did was right under the noses of Saint Potter and the Weasel King, and you loved the fact that if your father ever found out what you were doing with me, even if you told him it was only to spy on Harry, that he would be so fucking pissed off he'd want to kill you. But you never loved me, Draco."
"That may have been true then," Draco said, moving to stand right in front of her, "but I swear on my honor as a Malfoy that I am telling you the truth. I love you, Ginny, and I want to be with you."
Ginny stared disbelievingly at him. "Why are you telling me this now? It's been five years, Draco, and you pick tonight, the night I am celebrating my engagement to another man, to come back into my life and destroy the one thing that has given me a semblance of happiness since you broke my heart."
"Then you're not happy?" Draco asked hopefully.
"Of course I'm not happy, you bloody wanker! I'm about to marry a man that loves me more than anything else in the world and I can't even bring myself to tell him that I love him back. And do you know why, Draco? Because I gave my heart to you five years ago, and you broke it. There's nothing left to give him, and that's your fucking fault! It's your fault that I will never be happy again. So go! Get out of my life and don't come back. I never want to see you again." Ginny knew she was crying but she couldn't stop.
"Ginny," Draco said, a pained expression on his face. He tried to wrap his arms around her but she pushed him away. "I love you, Ginny."
"No," Ginny said firmly, although her voice cracked. "I hate you, Draco Malfoy. I hate you."
She fled from the room, tears still pouring down her cheeks.
***
"Ginny!" Harry exclaimed as she collided with his chest. Ginny attempted to stem the flow of tears that was successfully soaking Harry's shoulder. "Are you okay?" he asked worriedly, trying to get a good look at her. "Did he hurt you? I swear to God, I will kill that bastard if he laid a finger on you!" Harry threatened dangerously.
"No," she managed to get out. "He didn't hurt me. I just…" she trailed off and looked hopelessly over her shoulder at the room from which she had just fled.
"Gin," Harry said quietly, "Steve's looking for you." Ginny seemed to snap back into reality. She whipped around to stare at Harry, her eyes as large as Quaffles.
"Harry," she said pleadingly. "Can you tell him that I'll be back in a minute? I just need redo my makeup and hair."
"Ginny, you need to tell him. It's not fair to lie to him."
"Just tell him for me, please, Harry."
Harry nodded and Ginny rushed off to make herself presentable once again.
***
"Ginny!" Steve exclaimed as Ginny reentered the ballroom, a smile plastered on her face. "Where have you been? I was worried about you. Harry thought he'd seen you go off…" Steve trailed away. "What's wrong, Gin?"
Ginny opened her mouth to assure him that nothing was wrong, and that she had just needed a break, but the look of utter concern in his eyes stopped her. She closed her mouth and started again. "Do you remember that bloke I told you about?" she said quietly, guiding him into a corner of the ballroom where they wouldn't be disturbed.
Steve nodded, his expression suddenly guarded. "Well, he showed up here tonight, and I just had a bit of a chat with him. It was nothing serious, but it upset me a little." Ginny gave him a small smile that didn't quite reach her eyes. "It's really nothing to be worried about, Steve."
He sighed. "Ginny, I think we need to talk."
***
Steve ran a hand through his hair. Oddly enough, it reminded Ginny of Draco. She shook her head to clear it.
"Ginny," he began, then stopped. He started pacing the room. Mid-pace he stopped and stared at her curiously. "I love you."
Ginny smiled. "I know, Steve."
"Do you love me?" he asked carefully. He struggled to keep his expression blank.
Draco never had to struggle to keep his emotions hidden, some part of Ginny's brain commented. She told it to shut up.
"You know that I do," Ginny said, trying to put her arms around him. He held her away.
"Then say it." Ginny stared at him in confusion, and he sighed again. "If you love me enough to marry me and spend the rest of your life with me, then I need to hear you say it."
Ginny tried to say it, she really did. Three words. It was simple, really. People all over the world say them to loved ones everyday. But things were never simple for Ginny. The last time she had told someone that she loved him, her world had come crashing down around her. And somehow, no matter how much she cared for Steve, she would cherish that pain more than any amount of love he could ever give her. And he knew it.
"I can't," Ginny whispered, tears coming to her eyes once more.
Steve smiled. "I know," he said quietly, wiping her tears away with his thumb. "Ginny, I love you and I want to spend the rest of my life with you. But it's not fair to either one of us to go through with this wedding. I can't live the rest of my live knowing that my wife would rather be with another man, and you can't live the rest of your life knowing that your husband is not the man you love."
Ginny nodded. It truly wasn't fair. "I'm so sorry, Steve."
Steve smiled sadly. "Me too," he said simply.
***
It was raining outside, and Ginny's elegantly re-styled hair was beyond hope at this point. She had been walking around in the rain for half an hour, trying to find Draco. Instinct told her that he hadn't gone far. He was a Malfoy, and Malfoys didn't give up on the things they wanted that easily.
Steve had told Ginny to go after Draco and make things right with him. He had insisted that he would be fine dealing with all the guests. A simple white lie would do. Ginny wasn't feeling well and went to bed early. Then, in a few days, they would announce that they were breaking off the engagement for mutual reasons, and that they planned on remaining good friends.
Ginny sighed. What had happened to her? Yesterday she was engaged and happy. And today she was wandering around the streets of London, looking for a man that had broken her heart five years ago. And, she was soaking wet.
She was about to Apparate home when she saw a figure in the distance. It seemed to be a man, and although she couldn't make out his features at all, she was positive that it was Draco. He was leaning against a lamppost, a halo of light surrounding him. She moved closer until she was standing just inside the circle of light.
***
Draco had been wandering around the streets of London for the past hour. Not wanting anyone that might know who he was to see him, he had taken the chance and Apparated into the garden of the hotel. After that, he didn't really have anywhere to go. So, he had begun to wander. Somehow, he had ended up in front of a streetlight and, having nowhere else to go and nothing else to do, he simply stayed there.
When he felt someone approaching him, he ignored them, thinking it was yet another drunk, like the other five that had passed him this evening. When the person stopped right behind him, however, Draco turned around, never expecting to see Ginny.
They stared at each other for a moment, then Ginny spoke.
"This doesn't mean that I forgive you, Draco," she said firmly.
Draco gave her a half-smile that made her knees melt. "I wouldn't expect anything less," he said as he held out his hand for her. Cautiously, she placed her hand in his and he pulled her into his arms. Ginny immediately relaxed into his embrace.
"I love you, Ginny girl," he murmured.
Ginny sighed and raised her face to his in a silent request, and when he kissed her, she could taste the rain on his lips.