AN: Another chapter for you guys that I hope you enjoy. I imagine that there are big expectations for this one so I hope it pleases most.
Just One More Thing
Chapter 36
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They stood there for a few moments not knowing exactly what to say to each other. Hermione still stood by the door rooted to the spot as Harry stayed by the sofa.
"I didn't think that you'd come home so quickly," Harry spoke first breaking the silence. "Even though I prayed to god that you would. I wanted to come to you, only I didn't know whether I would make things worse or not, not that I could've I suppose."
"I had to come home," Hermione said. "I had to come home as soon as you asked for me to."
"Why?" he asked in a whisper.
"Because I love you," Hermione answered simply. "And because I don't want to be a hypocrite."
Harry smiled when she had told him her first reason but the last part of her reply only confused him. "I don't understand."
"I can't have you have hard feelings about me, for the very reason that I used to resent you back in school," Hermione told him. "Whenever a problem arose causing you to run away and hide, I use to always find you in order to resolve it."
"I see," Harry said finally understanding.
"If I didn't come back when you asked to see me, then I would have been turning my back on a belief that I have had since I can remember, which would make me a hypocrite," she explained further.
Harry licked his lips which kept going dry. "Hermione, you could have kept me hanging for as long as you wanted and I still would have been here waiting for you."
Hermione sighed heavily then wiped a tear away from her eye.
"I know you would have," she smiled shakily. "Because you let me get away with every unreasonable thing that I do to you. Yet I let you get away with nothing."
"What do you mean?" he asked her gently.
"I mean that... I'm sorry that I kept pushing you," she replied, before bursting into tears.
"Oh sweetheart," he said worriedly.
Harry's stomach dropped at the sight of her breaking down and was over to her in an instant. He tentatively wrapped his arms around her and hugged her to him, delighted when she melted into him.
"I'm so, so sorry," Hermione cried into his chest.
"I'm sorry too," Harry said stroking her back.
Harry wouldn't be able to say how long they stayed like that for, holding onto her for dear life while she cried into his chest, but it was a relief to have her back in his arms. It was where she belonged.
After what seemed like hours Hermione slowly raised her head up and gazed into his eyes. Harry couldn't help himself and reached up to wipe away some of her tears.
"Harry?"
"Yes princess," he replied still wiping away her tears.
"I didn't...you know...mean what I said earlier," she told him trembling.
"I know," Harry said cupping her cheeks. He smiled at her then reached down to take one of her hands in his. "Come with me."
Hermione allowed him to lead her over to the sofa where he then let go of her hand, laid down, and gestured for him to lie on top of him. She took her coat off and threw it across the back of the settee, then settled down against him. Laying her head on his chest, she sighed contently when she felt his arms wrap around her protectively.
Harry kissed the top of her head. "You remember the last time we did this?" he asked her referring to their current position.
"Yes," Hermione replied softly. "It was night we got together."
"Uh-huh," Harry said, happy that she remembered. "And it was also the night we had a nice long chat."
"Mmmm," Hermione murmured. "Which I think is what we need now Harry."
"I agree," he said and started to stroke her hair. "You can go first if you want?"
"Ever the gentleman," Hermione chuckled before turning serious. "Don't you want to know why I said it?"
"Said what?" he asked, already having an idea.
"What I said about our baby," she replied softly.
"Hermione, I know why you said it."
"You do?" she asked in a whisper.
"Yeah," Harry answered calmly. "You wanted to hurt me and you knew it was the best way to do it."
Hermione closed her eyes briefly. "Yes."
"I understand."
"How could you understand that?" Hermione questioned in awe.
"You wanted to get me back for hurting you, which I know I did terribly, so you said something that you knew would destroy me."
"And you think that you can forgive that?"
"I know I can," Harry told her smoothly. "I already have."
"How?"
"For the same reason you forgive me," he said simply. "Because I love you. And trust me when I tell you that there is nothing that you can do or say that will ever change that. Ever."
Hermione couldn't believe how easy it was for them to discuss this. But then, they had both let out enough anger for one day. At least now they were actually having a real discussion and not playing some stupid game with each other.
"I was so afraid that it was over," Hermione admitted sadly.
Harry knew she was referring to them, because he had thought the same thing. "Me too."
"At the very least I was expecting us to have a heated quarrel or something like it," Hermione said.
"Me too," Harry grinned. "Maybe we're just really starting to grow up."
"Yeah," Hermione agreed quietly. "I do prefer to talk about problems in this manner."
"It sure makes it easier to talk about things in more depth," Harry mused. He then thought how opening up to her wasn't so bad on occasions, especially when they were in a comforting environment such as this one, wrapped up in each others arms. "I'm really sorry Hermione."
"For?"
"For not being honest with you," Harry replied throatily. "I don't want you to think that it's because I don't trust you or anything like that, it's just..."
"Difficult for you at times," Hermione helped him finish.
"Yeah," he admitted. "But I know that you're right and I want to tell you things, believe me I do. I just forget what's important sometimes."
"Which is while I'll always be here to remind you," Hermione told him comfortingly. "But it was wrong of me to push you. I should have been more considerate of your feelings."
"And I should have been more considerate of yours."
Hermione smiled and raised herself up on her arms so that she could look at him. "Are we going to disagree about who should be the most sorry now?"
"It seems the safer option," Harry said, stroking her hair back with both hands before grinning widely. "How about we take an equal stake?"
"I think that's fair," Hermione said happily.
Harry then looked at her seriously. "I promise to never keep anything from you again."
"I don't want you to do that," she said earnestly.
"What?" Harry asked confused.
Hermione cocked her head to one side. "I don't want you to make promises that you can't be sure of being able to keep. Just say that'll you try and I'll be happy enough."
"You will?" Harry asked sceptically.
Hermione crossed her arms on his chest and leant her chin on top of them. "If from time to time there is something that you feel you can't tell me, which undoubtedly there will be, then I want you to really think about why you're keeping it to yourself? Because the one thing that I can't handle Harry, is when you keep things bottled up for the fear of hurting me. If it's because you need time to figure things out for yourself before sharing them with me, then begrudgingly, I will give you time. And the only reason that I will accept that is it because I know it's what makes you who you are."
"I really hurt you when I keep things inside don't I?"
"Yes you do," Hermione said truthfully. "But like I said, I know that you have your reasons and while I may not understand them, I will try my best to accept them."
Harry sighed and crossed his arms around her back, hugging her tightly to him. "Why?"
"Because I meant what I said to you sometime ago," she said gazing into his eyes. "There is not a single thing that I'd change about you."
He remembered when she had said that to him. It had been in Seamus and Lavenders cafe the day after she'd gotten engaged to that idiot ex of hers.
Harry grinned. "That's a lie and you know it. You would want me to open up all the time."
Hermione matched his grin. "Ok yes I'll give you that, but you know what I mean. I only want the honesty that you are prepared to give me."
"That would be enough for you?"
"I think so," Hermione said candidly. "And I promise I won't push you anymore into telling me things that you're not ready to. I just want to be there for you, like you're always there for me."
Harry gazed into her eyes. "Hermione, aren't you like changing your beliefs by saying that it's ok for me to take my time when it comes to our problems?"
"At first," Hermione admitted. "But our relationship has to be about compromise, Harry."
"Which I don't do very well," Harry said sadly.
"You do it without even realising," Hermione said with a sparkle in her eye.
Harry's eyebrows furrowed. "I do? Like when?"
"Like now. You just called your problems...our problems," Hermione told him simply.
Harry shook his head and let out a chuckle. He had just called his problems their problems, which was a very big step to him. He was completely astounded by Hermione's understanding of his weaknesses. But then that was what an honest, trusting, loving relationship was all about. It was about accepting each other unconditionally, and loving the other not for their weaknesses, but in spite of them.
"I promise you that I will try my best to open up as much as I can to you," Harry said softly. "Always."
Hermione looked deeply into his eyes and was surprised to see nothing but complete honesty. "I love you," she said softly.
"I love you too."
She leaned in and kissed him softly on the lips, before going back to the position she was in before. "So, what shall we talk about now?"
Harry looked thoughtful. "How about, the reason I pushed you away last night."
Hermione raised her eyebrows. "Do you want to talk about that?"
"Yes," Harry said openly. "Yes I do."
"Ok," Hermione said with a smile. "Tell me."
****
Natasha had felt immediately guilty after she had punched Dean in the face, and had repeatedly apologised to him until he told her to forget it, because it was what he deserved. He sat down on a nearby wall until his nose stopped bleeding, Natasha staying with him the whole time. There was an uneasy silence between them afterwards until Dean finally broke it by asking her to go for a walk with him. She hesitated a little before accepting his offer, but she was happy she did in the end.
"I'm sorry about earlier," Dean said, as he walked through Hogsmede with Natasha.
"So am I," Natasha said sincerely. "You just managed to piss me of so bad that I couldn't see straight."
"Yeah I felt that," Dean smiled at her. "Nice punch by the way."
"Thank you," she said, pleased he wasn't upset with her. She thought she had gone a bit too far but was stunned by his reaction. To burst out laughing after someone punched you was certainly an interesting thing for anyone to do.
"So are we ok?" Dean asked her.
She turned her to face him as they kept on walking. "Yeah."
"Good," Dean said before clearing his throat.
They walked in silence for a while when Natasha shook her head and smiled. "I never thought of you as the jealous type."
Dean stopped walking and laughed. "I don't get jealous Nat."
Natasha stopped and looked at him, clearly amused with his answer. "You don't?"
"No," he smiled.
"So then what was that all about back there?" Natasha asked raising her eyebrows.
"I don't know," Dean replied not phased by her question, he knew how to keep cool through years of practise. "But it wasn't jealousy."
Natasha knew he was fibbing, but decided not to push the issue. "So what shall we do now?"
Dean stepped closer to her and licked his lips. "We could always go back to my apartment," he said huskily.
Natasha folded her arms and smiled. She wasn't offended at his suggestion as he was just simply being him. "I don't think so."
"Oh come on," he said getting even closer. "You know you want it. That's the reason that you left that guy hanging back there, to come and be with me."
Natasha couldn't help but love his confidence. He was so sure of himself but he wasn't arrogant. "First of all, I am not with you," she said trying not to laugh. "And second of all, at least the guy that I left hanging back there as you call it, was polite enough to buy me dinner before putting the moves on me."
Dean chuckled. "So then why aren't you still in there with him?" he asked cockily.
Her mouth bobbed up and down. "B-b-because I needed to...hit you, obviously."
Dean nodded as if he was prepared to drop it. "Ok."
Natasha narrowed her eyes. "Good."
"Fine," he smirked, his eyes gazing deeply into hers.
Natasha let out a small laugh. "Dean, you can take that look off of your face because this," she said gesturing between them. "Is as far as it's going to go tonight."
Dean kept on smiling at her.
It took only moments before they burst through the door of his apartment kissing intensely and frantically tugging at each others clothes.
****
Harry had just gotten through telling Hermione the reason for his pushing her away in bed the night before, and how he had still not forgiven himself for what he had done to her earlier in the week, even though she had forgiven him.
She was still settled against his chest, her heart aching after what he had told her. "But Harry, that's so...irrational."
"I know it was dumb," Harry said as he stroked her neck. "Now that is."
"So you've been beating yourself up all week over something that I already put behind us?" she asked. "When you were already so stressed out and tired from work as it was?"
"I just couldn't believe that I had done what I did," Harry said feeling ashamed. "And I know that it was wrong of me to lie to you when I said that I was tired, because even if I was it wouldn't have made any difference. I could be up for 24 hours and still make love to you if you wanted me to. I wanted to respond believe me, but I was just so disgusted with myself and I felt as though I had no right to even touch you after what happened."
Hermione sighed a little frustrated. She was mortified at finding out that he had been thinking on it all week and dealing with it by himself. "But Harry, I forgave you minutes after it had happened."
"But I couldn't forgive myself," he whispered. "You give your body to me willingly, and when I did...what I did...I hated myself for it. I had never seen you look at me like that before. It was like you were scared that I would hurt you or something."
A lone tear fell from Hermione's eye as she heard the anguish in Harry's voice. She raised her head so that she could see his face. "That wasn't fear Harry, it was shock."
"There's a difference?"
"Of course there is," Hermione told him in a matter of fact tone. "I was shocked because of something that you did in the heat of the moment Harry. I could never actually be scared of you, because I know that you could never be violent towards me."
Harry snorted. "Is that why you yelped in pain when I did it?"
"That was only because I wasn't expecting it," she said quickly. "Kind of like how I slapped you that time. Remember?"
Clever witch.
Harry couldn't argue with that. It was an ace card that she had thrown down in order to make him understand that she could be just as bad at times in the heat of the moment. "Good one."
Hermione smiled. "So please, don't worry about it anymore."
"It will never happen again," Harry said firmly.
"I know and I appreciate that," Hermione said softly. "But I understand how easy it is to get lost in the moment."
"Tell me about it," he commented quietly.
"So are we good?" she asked him.
He stroked her hair. "We're good. We love each other too much not to be right?"
"Exactly," she replied, before pecking his lips gently.
Hermione was happy that they had discussed openly what had happened between them that week and was pleased that they had manage to resolve their issues for now.
She traced his jaw with her fingers. "I think that's it for today's session Mr Potter, don't you?"
"Yeah I think so," Harry smiled, relieved that everything was now out in the open.
"What do you want to do now?" Hermione asked.
"What do you want to do?" he whispered.
"Well we have had a long day," Hermione said thoughtfully.
"Yes we have."
"Do you fancy an early night?" she replied, her breathing suddenly heavy.
"That tired huh?" he asked playfully.
"Maybe not that tired."
"Sure, why not?" Harry grinned. "I could do with a shower though."
"That's funny," Hermione said broodingly. "I could do with one too."
"Wanna save water?" Harry asked her huskily.
"Well, we all need to do our bit for the planet," she replied beaming.
****
Natasha's hands gripped onto his waist for dear life as her body began to convulse, her orgasm shooting through her body and making her scream out in ecstasy. Dean forcefully thrust into her a few more times before his own body finally succumbed, making him come harder than he had in years.
Dean collapsed to the side of her onto his back, his breathing coming in short pants. He could not quite get over just how good that had been. Dean Thomas had had a lot of sex over the years, with a considerable amount of women. But never, had any of them gave him pleasure like Natasha just had. He had come so hard that he thought he was going to pass out. It had been raw. It had been passionate. It had been fucking fantastic.
As his breathing started to stabilise he reached down under the covers and removed the condom from himself. He sat up and wrapped it in some tissue that he had by the side of his bed, and then threw into a nearby bin, before collapsing back down onto the bed close to Natasha.
Dean glanced sideways to see that she had been watching him and quickly noticed that her breasts were still showing. He wiggled his eyebrows. She saw what he was looking at and quickly pulled the covers up over herself.
"Spoilsport," he joked.
They smiled at each other before both staring up at the ceiling, wondrous expressions on their faces.
"So," Natasha said dreamily.
"So. That was unbelievable," Dean said.
"Hmmm," she hummed suddenly feeling tired. "It sure was."
It was silent for a few minutes and Natasha was starting to nod off.
"Do you want to do something tomorrow?" Dean asked casually.
Natasha's eyes shot open in surprise, she had been falling asleep but his question was like injecting her with a shot of energy. Was he really asking her out on a date? Natasha knew that she shouldn't get her hopes up but couldn't stop herself.
She turned her head slightly until he was in view and saw that he was still staring up at the ceiling. "I'd love too," she replied.
Dean was quiet for a while and took his time before he finally turned his head to face her. "Ok then."
Natasha smiled at him warmly, before the back of her fingers reached up to smooth the side of his face. Dean shut his eyes briefly getting lost in Natasha's sensitive touch, before opening them again and finding her peering at him. Suddenly his eyes widened.
Something had startled him.
He slowly reached up and took Natasha's hand from his face.
"What's wrong?" she asked, noticing his change in mood.
"Nothing," he said unconvincingly, before clearing his throat. "It's nothing."
"Dean--"
"Do you want a drink?" Dean asked quickly then jumped out of bed. "I know that I do after that workout."
He pulled on some jogging bottoms then turned around to see Natasha leaning up on her hand, staring at him with a weird expression.
"What is wrong with you?" she asked sounding upset.
"Nothing," Dean replied smiling nervously, he was acting as if everything was fine when it clearly wasn't. "I'm jut getting a drink, do you want one?"
Natasha closed her eyes in disappointment, it was like one step forward and two steps back with him. She opened her eyes and nodded reluctantly. "Sure."
"Cool," Dean said as he started to leave the room. "I'll be right back."
When he got outside his bedroom he froze for a moment facing a wall. "What the fuck was that?" he thought feeling petrified. It wasn't Natasha stroking his face that had frightened him. It was the way that his body had reacted to it, more significantly, his heart.
He let his head bag against the wall a few times, cursing each time there was a thud. "Fuck, fuck, fuck."
He composed himself finally and went into the kitchen to get their drinks. On his way back to the bedroom, for the first time ever in his adult life, Dean Thomas started to feel nervous at the prospect of being around a woman.
"Fuck."
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Relax faithful readers, this chapter covered the fluff, the smut will return next chapter! Hit that review button.
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