It's Never That Simple
Chapter Three
Ginny shivered in the cold night air. It was after midnight and they had just gotten in to Boston, Massachusetts for "Thanksgiving," a holiday that had something do with British colonists and Native Americans that Ginny still didn't understand. As little as she understood this American holiday, Ginny did understand that it was important to Steve and since they spent Christmas at the Burrow, she was more than willing to take a plane - "a large broomstick that carries more than one person" was how she explained the Muggle concept to her family - to the States and celebrate with her in-laws.
Six years had passed since Ginny had last seen Draco and, although she sometimes found herself dreaming what life would be like if she hadn't married Steve, she never truly regretted her decision. Steve loved her and Annabelle and provided for them, and Ginny was comfortable and happy. So what if she wasn't head over heals in love. Steve was her best friend, and that was enough.
"Steve! Ginny!" Mrs. Warren exclaimed quietly, rushing out of the house.
"Hello, Mom," Steve said, putting the bag down on the sidewalk to give his mother a hug. "How are you?"
"Oh, I'm fine, dear. Hello, Ginny," Mrs. Warren said fondly, turning to greet Ginny. "How was your flight?"
Ginny shifted Annabelle to her hip and smiled at her mother-in-law. "Hello, Mum," Ginny whispered, giving Mrs. Warren a one-armed hug. "It was fine. A bit long, but fine."
"And is that my little Annabelle?" Mrs. Warren cooed. "Aw, look at the poor dear. She's fast asleep. Oh, she's gotten so big."
"And heavy," Ginny muttered, shifting her to the other hip.
"Here let me take her," Steve offered. Ginny handed her over gratefully.
"Well, come inside," Mrs. Warren said, leading the way inside. "Your father fell asleep in front of the television again. He's ordered this new program that gets every single ice hockey game. I can barely tear him away from the television for dinner anymore." Mrs. Warren sighed, then beamed at her little family. "Anyway, can I get you anything to eat or drink?"
"No thanks, Mom. We're exhausted. We're just going to head upstairs."
***
"Annabelle Belita Warren, come back here this instant!" Ginny called, her hands on her hips. "Your father is going to be home in an hour and you still need to take a bath."
Five year old Annabelle stopped running and turned around. One look at her mother sent her scampering back across the yard to her mother's side.
"Thorry, Mummy," Annabelle said sheepishly, wrapping her arms around her mother's leg. She looked up at Ginny, her eyes wide. "I love you."
"Those puppy dog eyes may work on your father, but they won't work on me. Come on, into the tub," Ginny said, hiding her smile as she ushered her daughter into the house.
Half an hour later, Ginny was starting to prepare dinner and Annabelle was sitting at the kitchen table, studiously working on her coloring book, when the phone rang.
"Hello," she said, cradling the phone between her shoulder and her ear as she attempted to get milk out of the refrigerator.
"Who ith it, Mummy," Annabelle asked, her tongue poking out from between her teeth as she continued to draw.
"Oh, hi, Steve," she said happily, setting the milk down on the counter. "It's your father, sweetheart. I was just going to start dinner. Do you want chicken," Ginny paused as Steve cut her off. "Again? That's the third time this week. No, of course I understand that you're working on a big case, but Annabelle misses you. No, I'm not mad. Really, I'm fine. Okay, I'll talk to you later."
Ginny hung up the phone and stared at it, chewing her bottom lip.
"When'th Daddy coming home?"
"What? Oh," Ginny said, coming out of her reverie. "Daddy has to work late tonight, so he won't be home until after you're asleep."
Annabelle's bottom lip jutted out and Ginny could feel the waterworks coming on. "How about this," she said quickly, trying to keep the faucet off, so to speak. "Why don't we go out for a special Mummy-Daughter dinner? Does that sound like fun?"
"Can I get dethert?" Annabelle asked cautiously.
Ginny laughed. "Of course you can, sweetheart."
***
"Mummy, I'm thweepy," Annabelle murmured as she laid her head on the table.
Ginny laughed quietly. "I thought you wanted dessert." Annabelle shook her head and yawned. "Okay, sweetheart. I just need to pay the check and we can go."
By the time the check was paid, Annabelle had fallen asleep. Ginny smiled happily and gathered up her daughter in her arms. Ginny was halfway to the door when she stopped so suddenly that a waiter almost crashed into her. She stared, completely dumbstruck, at a table for two about halfway across the restaurant. She blinked and shook her head, trying to clear her vision. When she opened her eyes again, the same sight greeted her.
Steve was locked in the embrace of a woman that Ginny recognized as his secretary.
***
Ginny paced the living room, unable to sit still. She looked at the clock again. It was nearing one o'clock in the morning and Steve wasn't home yet. Ginny had no doubt were he was and the more she thought about it, the more livid she became.
"Big case my ass," she muttered angrily to herself.
The front door opened and closed and she heard his quiet footsteps in the hallway. Ginny calmly seated herself on the couch and stared at the doorway, waiting to confront her husband.
"Ginny," Steve said, stopping suddenly in the doorway. Ginny could almost smell his nervousness. "What are you still doing up?"
Ginny shrugged, keeping her temper and other emotions in check. "I couldn't sleep, so I decided to wait up." Pause. "You're home rather late."
"I was working," Steve explained coming into the room.
Ginny nodded. "Annabelle misses you. I had to take her out to dinner tonight to keep her from crying."
"Well, I'll take her out this weekend and make it up to her," Steve said casually.
Ginny nodded again. "We went to Chaucer's." Ginny watched Steve's face pale in the dim lighting.
"Really? That's not a little too grown-up for her?"
"No, she likes the macaroni and cheese." Silence. "So, how's your case coming along?"
"Fine, I made a lot of progress tonight."
"Good. Is your secretary helpful? What's her name? Rebecca?"
"Yes," Steve said tersely. Ginny pretended not to notice.
"Good, I'm glad." Ginny stood up and moved closer to him. "Isn't she married? What's her husband's name again?"
"Actually, she's in the process of a very messy divorce."
"I'm so sorry to hear that." Ginny pondered for a moment. "She's probably very lonely. Maybe we should have her over for dinner tomorrow night."
"No," Steve said a little too quickly. Ginny's eyes narrowed.
"No?" she asked softly. "Why not?"
Steve let out a deep breath. "It's just not a good idea to mix business and pleasure."
"Oh," Ginny said, realization dawning. "So it would be frowned upon if, for example, two people at your firm were shagging on the side?"
"Yes," Steve said tensely. "It would be."
"Oh, okay," Ginny said flippantly. "So it would probably be a bad idea for me to tell your boss that you're having an affair with your secretary?" Ginny asked, giving Steve a falsely innocent smile.
"Wh-," Steve started to say, then stopped. He cleared his throat and started again. "What are you talking about, Ginny?"
Ginny glared at him. "You know exactly what I'm talking about, Steve, and don't you dare play innocent bystander in this one," she hissed angrily. "You're secretary? Really? Could you be more of a cliché?"
"Ginny, I-"
"If you even think about lying to me, I swear to God that I will first castrate you with my bare hands, then announce to your parents that the reason our marriage fell apart is that you cheated on me."
"Ginny, you've been cheating on me since we got married!" Steve exclaimed, now equally angry, his voice low.
"What the hell are you talking about, Steve?" Ginny snapped irritably, crossing her arms over her chest.
"Not a day has gone by since we got married that you haven't thought about Draco. How do you think that makes me feel? I loved you so much, and all you did was shove it back in my face."
"I never shoved it back in your face," Ginny said defensively. "You knew what you were getting into when you married me. You knew that I still loved Draco and you married me anyway."
"And trust me, I've been regretting it ever since," Steve shot back angrily.
Ginny could feel the tears prickling at the backs of her eyes and she angrily brushed them away with the back of her hand.
"Ginny, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have-" Steve began softly, immediately regretting his words.
"Well, I'm sorry that our marriage has been such a waste of time to you, Steve," Ginny interrupted, the hurt evident in her voice. "But you still had no right cheating on me like that. Do you think this entire thing has been easy on me? Do you think I've enjoyed living with a man, knowing that I will never be able to love him as much as he loves me? No, you have no bloody clue.
"You think that I don't know how hard this has been for you, Steve?" Ginny continued, the tears now rolling unabashedly down her cheeks. "I pray every night that you'll forgive me for everything that I put you through because, believe it or not, Steve, I realize that this must be hell on earth for you. But I also thought that maybe it wasn't so bad because you had Annabelle. Does she even mean anything to you, Steve?" Ginny asked, her voice breaking.
"Of course she means something to me, Ginny!" Steve yelled angrily. "Why do you think I'm still here?"
They stared at each other in silence, each pair of hands balled into fists. Upstairs, they could hear shuffling, then the sounds of footsteps on the stairs. They both stared at the staircase in unconcealed horror. Annabelle was standing at the top of the stairs, rubbing her eyes tiredly. Ginny turned her back quickly lest Annabelle see her tears. Steve stared at his daughter sadly.
"Daddy?" Annabelle mumbled quietly.
"I'm here, Angel," Steve said quietly, moving to the foot of the stairs and opening his arms to her.
"Daddy!" Annabelle exclaimed, running down the stairs and into her father's arms. "Mummy thaid that you had to work late tonight," she pouted.
"I did have to work late," Steve said, ignoring the daggers from Ginny's glare that were digging into his back. "But guess what," he whispered conspiratorially.
"What?" Annabelle whispered back eagerly.
"I'm going to take you out for a day on the town this Saturday. Just you and me."
"Really?" Annabelle asked disbelievingly. Steve nodded. She smiled for a moment before frowning again. "Why ithn't Mummy coming too?"
"Mummy got to see you all week," Steve said, mock pout in place. "I need a little alone time with my Angel. Now, it's time for you to go back to bed."
"I want to thay goodnight to Mummy," Annabelle responded, slipping out of Steve's arms and running across the room to Ginny. "Goodnight, Mummy."
Ginny leaned down and gave her daughter a big hug. "Goodnight, sweetheart," she whispered.
"Mummy, why are you crying?" Annabelle asked curiously.
Ginny tried to laugh lightly. "I'm not crying, silly," Ginny responded, glancing over Annabelle's shoulder at Steve. "I have something in my eye. Now, it's time for bed."
Annabelle kissed Ginny before returning to Steve, who promptly picked her up and carried her upstairs. When they were gone, Ginny sat down on the couch and began to sob into her hands. She couldn't bear the adoring look in Annabelle's eyes as she stared at her father. What would happen to Annabelle if their marriage fell apart?
When Steve returned from Annabelle's room, Ginny was still crying silent tears into her hands. He crossed the room quickly and attempted to put his arms around her.
"Don't you touch me," Ginny said coldly, almost choking on her tears as she pulled away.
"Ginny-"
"No, Steve. If you're unhappy enough to have an affair, maybe we need to reconsider this whole arrangement. I have always given this marriage everything that I had. I put aside everything I've wanted for myself to create a happy home for my daughter and my husband. If you're not one hundred percent in, then this isn't working out." Steve opened his mouth to say something, but Ginny stopped him.
"Don't," she said quietly. "I'm taking Annabelle to my parents' house in the morning. You tell me what you want to do. If you want out, fine, I won't fight you on it. All I ask is that you stay a part of Annabelle's life. But if you're in, you're all in."
***
Ginny put down the two small suitcases and kept a firm grip on Annabelle's hand.
"Mum? Dad?" she called loudly.
"Ginny?" Mrs. Weasley said worriedly as she entered the kitchen.
"Grandmum!" Annabelle squealed, pulling away from Ginny and running to her grandmother.
"Hello, sweetheart," Mrs. Weasley said, scooping Annabelle up and giving her a big kiss. "To what do I owe this special surprise?"
"Mummy thaid that we were thtaying with you and Grandpa for a while."
"Oh?" Mrs. Weasley said, raising an eyebrow at Ginny. Ginny shook her head, plainly telling her mother that she'd explain once Annabelle had left. "Why don't you go play outside, darling? Later, we can bake cookies."
"Really, Grandmum?" Annabelle squealed.
Mrs. Weasley laughed. "Of course, dear. Now, run along."
Once Annabelle left, Ginny sank down into a chair, her head in her hands.
"Ginny dear," Mrs. Weasley said, sitting next to her at the table. "What's wrong? Is Steve okay?"
Ginny gave a hollow laugh. "Yes, Mum. Steve is just fine. Our marriage, however, is not," Ginny managed to say before bursting into rather noisy tears.
"Oh Ginny," Mrs. Weasley said, putting a sympathetic hand on her daughter's back. "I'm sure it's not as bad as all that. Tell me what happened."
Ginny shook her head. "We just had a row. A very bad row."
Mrs. Weasley sighed. "This sort of thing happens all the time, dear. It will blow over in time. You both just need to cool off a bit."
"Somehow, I don't think this is going to blow over, Mum."
***
"Mrs. Weasley?" Steve asked nervously, stepping out of the fireplace.
"Oh, Steve dear, how are you? Ginny is out back with Annabelle. If you send the little darling in, I can watch her so you two can talk. Well, go on," Mrs. Weasley said quickly, not letting Steve get a word in.
"Thank you," he said uncertainly. He wasn't completely sure how much Ginny had told her mother about their fight, but Steve knew that somehow, no matter who tried to spin the story in his favor he would come out as the bad one.
Steve found Ginny sitting on a chair, a distracted smile on her face, as Annabelle raced around the backyard, flying a kite his parents had given her last Christmas.
"Ginny?" he said nervously, announcing his presence. Ginny turned, and her face tightened. Steve cringed at the look of acceptance he saw on her face, as though she already knew what he was going to say.
Before either of them had time to say anything else, however, Annabelle noticed her father and raced across the yard, the forgotten kite floating towards the clouds. Sighing, Ginny retrieved it with a quiet "Accio kite" and lay it on the table next to her chair. By this time, Annabelle had reached Steve and he had scooped her into his arms, giving her a hug and kissing her forehead.
"Daddy!" Annabelle squealed, her arms clutching his neck.
"Hello, Angel," Steve said, giving his daughter another hug. "Mummy and I need to talk, but I know Grandmum wants to see you in the kitchen. I think she has a special surprise for you," he whispered conspiratorially.
Steve watched his daughter scamper across the yard and into the kitchen before turning his attention back to Ginny. She was hugging herself tightly, as if she was cold, despite the eighty degree weather.
"Hello, Ginny," Steve said calmly.
"Hello, Steve," she responded quietly.
He sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "Listen, Gin, we need to talk."
Ginny nodded and cleared her throat. "I know." They sat down across from each other at the table in the yard. A tense silence followed, neither of them managing to look the other in the eye. Finally, Ginny broke the silence.
"Let's get right down to it, Steve," she said, her voice devoid of emotion. "You know where I stand. Now I need to know where you stand."
Steve took a deep breath, steeling himself for the worst. "Ginny," he began, finally meeting her eyes. "I love you-"
"Don't," Ginny said, closing her eyes as if she were in pain. "I think I know where this is going and if you try to be nice about, it will hurt more. Say what you have to say and get it over with."
Steve took another deep breath. "Ginny," he began again. "I can't do this anymore. I want out."
Ginny let out the breath that she didn't know she had been holding. While she had been expecting this to happen, she didn't realize how much it would actually hurt. Putting aside her self-pity for later, Ginny nodded. "I understand," she said quietly.
"It's not that I don't love you," Steve began hurriedly.
"It's because I don't love you," Ginny finished for him. Steve nodded sadly.
"I can't say that I didn't think this was going to happen." Ginny laughed slightly hysterically. "Did we really think this was going to work out?"
"I guess we did, but it's not fair to either of us anymore, Ginny."
"I know."
They sat in silence for a few minutes.
"I have some other news," Steve said rather nervously, finally breaking the silence.
"Oh?"
"I've been made a partner at the firm."
"Congratulations," Ginny said, her voice slightly dull. "If anyone deserves it, you do."
"I don't know if I'm going to take it though. I wanted to talk to you first."
Ginny sighed. "Steve, we're getting a divorce, you don't need to involve me in all your decisions anymore."
"It has to do with Annabelle."
"Why?" Ginny said cautiously. For some reason, it seemed that her lungs weren't working properly and she couldn't get enough air into them.
"If we were still together, I wouldn't even think about taking it," he said quickly. "I know how important your family is to you."
"And let me guess," she said slowly. "You'd be transferred to the States." Steve nodded. "You're not taking Annabelle," she said immediately. "And I'm not moving to the States. If we were still together, I would. But we're not and my life is here."
"Of course I'm not taking Annabelle, Ginny," Steve said, a hint of exasperation in his voice. "Something tells me that it wouldn't be the best change for her. But I do have to think about what's best for me."
Ginny put her head in her hands in a gesture of defeat. "This is just bloody fantastic." She looked up at him. "Look at what a mess we've made."
Steve gave her a small smile. "Now we just have to clean it up."
***
Ginny nervously stared at her parents, who stared back, trying to hide their excitement. It was Saturday and Steve had taken Annabelle out for their day on the town, leaving Ginny alone with her parents at the Burrow. They had both decided that it would be best if they told their parents separately about the divorce.
Ginny tried to smile, but her lips felt numb. "I…er, well, I have some news," she said, wringing her hands nervously.
Mrs. Weasley beamed so brightly that Ginny felt the urge to shield her eyes. "You're pregnant, aren't you, dear!" Mrs. Weasley gushed. It wasn't a question.
"Now, Molly," Mr. Weasley admonished lightly, despite the smile on his face, "let her tell us herself. Go on, Ginny."
Ginny's heart sank. Fan-bloody-tastic. Now, not only did she have to tell her parents that her marriage was ending and her husband was moving to the States, she also had to tell them that she wasn't, in fact, pregnant.
"Actually," Ginny said anxiously, "I'm not pregnant." She took a deep breath. Now or never. "Steve and I had a rather large fight."
"All couples fight, dear," Mrs. Weasley said exasperatedly. "Time will mend itself."
"Steve and I are getting a divorce," Ginny blurted out.
Even the birds stopped singing.
After several minutes of silence during which her parents stared at her, completely thunderstruck, Mrs. Weasley finally managed to squeak, "A divorce?"
Ginny nodded dumbly. How stupid she had been to think they would take this well. "It just wasn't working out," she tried to explain.
"Ginny, just because you have one fight does not mean that you need to break up your home." Ginny could tell that her mother was working herself up into a temper and that, if she wanted to live to see the morning, she would have to cut it off at the knees.
"It's not just one fight, Mum. Steve and I haven't been happy for a long time now. This fight just…put us over the edge, I suppose," Ginny finished lamely.
"What about Annabelle?" Mrs. Weasley demanded, horror now fully replaced with fury. "Don't tell me you're just going to give her up too."
Ginny gritted her teeth and tried to control her temper. If they only knew how many loops she had jumped through with Annabelle's best interest at heart. "No, Mum, I'm not giving Annabelle up. Steve and I are going to share custody, although she will be living with me for most of the year."
"Oh, Ginny, how did you let this happen?" Mrs. Weasley moaned, making a clean transition into despair.
"Mum, you don't know the half of it, okay!" Ginny exploded. "You have no idea what I've been going through for the past six years. Steve and I never should have gotten married. I don't even love him, for God's sake!"
Mr. and Mrs. Weasley simply stared at her. "You don't love him?" Mr. Weasley asked, the first one to recover this time.
"I used to love him," Ginny hastened to explain. "I guess we just fell out of love."
"One does not simply fall out of love," Mrs. Weasley snapped. "That's not how it works."
"Well, that's how it worked for us!" Ginny yelled angrily. "Listen, Mum, Dad. I know you mean well, but this is it, okay? Steve and I are over."
***
Ginny looked over the rim of her cup of tea at Harry Potter. She had spent the better part of the last hour explaining all the gruesome details of her breakup with Steve.
Contrary to popular belief, Harry and Ginny had never had a wildly passionate fling or a secret romance or even had any inclination to begin any sort of romantic involvement. No, Harry and Ginny had simply become incredibly close friends. It had all started when Ron and Hermione had begun dating. After one particularly heavy bickering match - which ended in a particularly heavy snogging session - Harry and Ginny had looked at each other, rolled their eyes, and been friends ever since.
Harry was the first - and only - person Ginny told about her affair with Draco during his final year at Hogwarts. He was the one who told her to be fair to Steve and that being fair included giving Draco another shot. And he was the one who Ginny was telling the truth about her divorce with Steve.
"So I told him that either he was completely in, or he was out," Ginny sighed and set down her mug. "And he said he was out."
"Oh, Ginny," Harry said, laying a sympathetic hand on her forearm. "I'm sorry things didn't work out."
She gave him a weak smile. "Thanks. But?"
" 'But'? What 'but'?" Harry asked affronted.
Ginny smiled. "I've known you since I was ten, Harry James Potter. There's a 'but'."
"No…okay, fine. There's a 'but'…" Harry took a deep breath. "…at least you can marry Malfoy."
"I am not going to marry Draco Malfoy. For one thing," Ginny said after a moment's pause - during which she stared at Harry in shock - beginning to tick off the reasons on her fingers, "he has probably moved on with his life by now. He's not the type of bloke to sit and pine. Secondly, that's not fair to Steve. I can't bring Draco into Annabelle's life considering he's the reason our marriage fell apart. And most importantly, I have tried to make things work with him twice now, and both times I have failed. I think it's safe to assume that that ship has sailed."
Harry shrugged and picked up his mug. "Ginny, I hate Malfoy. I'm always going to hate Malfoy. But even I don't think that ship will ever sail."
***
"Mummy," Annabelle asked, looking curiously up at Ginny from the middle of a pile of boxes. "Why don't we live at home anymore?"
Ginny sighed and sat down on the wood floors next to her daughter. "Don't you remember, sweetheart? Daddy moved back to Boston to be with Grams and Pop-Pop."
"Doethn't he love me?" Annabelle asked, her bottom lip starting to quiver.
"Of course he loves you, baby," Ginny said, wrapping her arms around her daughter. "But he needs some time away from Mummy right now."
"Why?" Annabelle demanded petulantly.
Ginny sighed again and tried to explain for what seemed like the millionth time. "Do you remember when Uncle Ron and Aunt Hermione went away for a few weeks and Henry stayed with us?" Annabelle nodded. "And do you remember how by the time Uncle Ron and Aunt Hermione got back, you and Henry were fighting and needed some time away from each other?" Annabelle nodded again. "It's like that, sweetheart. Daddy and I just need some time away from each other. Do you understand?"
"But why doeth he want to be away from me?"
"He doesn't want to be away from you, baby. He just doesn't want to share you. So do you know what he's going to do?" Annabelle shook her head. "He's going to take you to the States so you can spend two whole weeks with him, all by yourself. Does that sound like fun?"
Annabelle nodded furiously, her curls bouncing and all tears forgotten. She scrambled away from Ginny and began searching for her coloring books in the many boxes they had brought with them from their house.
Ginny leaned back against the couch and watched her daughter for a minute. After everything she had put herself through to create a happy family for Annabelle, she was right where she had been trying to avoid in the first place: a single parent, raising a child by herself.