When you love two

After two of the most amazing days in his life, he was sad to know it would be over soon. They had to go back to London.

He missed Romania when he was away, missed the reservation, his dragons and his friends, and seeing them again had been great. As soon as things got calmer in the Ministry, he was planning on going back to his old job; now maybe he wouldn’t have to do it alone.

She had been excited about the trip, eager to learn everything she could about the place’s history, the culture, and most of all, about the dragons, although he could tell those still scared her a bit.

The few hours he had spent working, she had stayed with him. Not wanting her to get bored, he had suggested maybe she should go to town with someone from the reservation, but she had reminded him he had promised he would go with her, and that he wasn’t getting away that easily. Besides, she had explained, she wanted to see how dragon tamers worked; she had said maybe she could learn a thing or two about taming wild creatures, and then mumbled something about Harry and Ron.

They spent their days outside, walking and talking, and their nights inside, lost in each other’s bodies, making love for hours on end, until they were too exhausted to move a muscle, and then falling asleep, sated, and with her wrapped firmly in his arms, as if he feared he might lose her if he let go.

A part of him did fear that. He was happy with her, and he could tell she was happy too, when she was around him; but other times, when she thought no one was looking, her expression saddened, and a faraway look took over her eyes. Those times he knew she was suffering too. She might have left the man she had been involved with, but it was clear she still loved him. Would that change soon? Could he make her forget him? Charlie wondered at those times if she really felt for him the way she said she did. Did she really love him or was he just convenient? Those were harsh words, and he knew she would never use him, never hurt him intentionally, but reason had little to do with the way he was feeling.

Determined to make her forget, he had spent as much time as he could with her. They had spent hours and hours together before, but that was different. Now he was allowed to hold her hand as they walked, not having to worry about what she might think, or if that simple gesture would give his secret away. He was allowed to kiss her, to caress her skin, to hold her in his arms while she slept. It was even better than before, and the possibility of losing all that terrified him.

Now they were going back to London, to real life, and even though he trusted her, he was sure the other man would seek her out. No man in his right mind would ever just let her go, and Charlie wasn’t any different. He was determined to fight for her if he had to; he loved her too much to lose her.

The Portkey had transported them to Diagon Alley that afternoon, and as much as he wanted to walk her home, he had to stop at the Ministry first. With a slow kiss, he said goodbye, promising to see her in a few hours, and they both went their way. It took him a few minutes to remember she had the files he needed to give his boss.

Knowing her, he turned around and started walking in the opposite direction. She was probably walking all the way home, and it would not take him long to catch up with her. He was glad he now had an excuse to see her sooner, to kiss her again. It was strange, really; he had never felt that way about a woman before.

Walking down Diagon Alley, he suddenly heard her voice as he walked past a dark alley. Wondering what she would be doing there, he stepped into the side street, and gasped at what he saw.

Even in the darkness, there was no mistaking her, and neither the man standing in front of her, with his arms wrapped around her waist. His own brother.

“I love you, Bill, but I don’t think I can be happy with you. I cannot be the other woman any more. I cannot…”

He gasped in shock, surprised and confused at her words, and more so when his brother leaned closer to her and kissed her. What was going on?

After a few moments, they broke the kiss, Charlie still too shocked to say something, or do anything other than watch.

“I can’t, Bill. I love you, and I don’t think that will change, but I can have a future with him, he’s all I…”

Then she saw him. He heard her gasp loudly, her eyes wide as they met his, but he couldn’t bring himself to move a muscle. He heard her call his name, and then push Bill away as she almost ran to him.

He felt her hands on his face, trying to make him look at her, but he couldn’t tear his eyes from his brother. Bill seemed to be just as shocked to see him there as he was. Charlie heard her call his name again and again, heard her say she was sorry, that it wasn’t what it looked like, but he wasn’t really listening. He was trying to read his brothers expression, guess what was going through his mind.

“Was it him?” he asked, turning to Hermione for a moment. It couldn’t be; it was just impossible. There had to be another explanation.

Then he saw the change in Bill’s eyes, from anger to understanding, to lust. What was going on?

Charlie watched him walk closer to them, like a predator moving in on its pray, and he wrapped his arm around Hermione to push her out of the way. He knew that walk, that attitude; he just wasn’t sure how it fit there.

Then he understood; Bill was the married man Hermione had been seeing. He was the one that had caused her so much pain. He was the reason she was unhappy, that it was taking her so much to move on. Bill was the one trying to take her away from him. He could feel the anger take over his body, and without thinking, he locked his eyes with his brother’s and then hit him on the face so hard he stumbled and fell to the floor.

“Merlin, what are you doing?” he heard Hermione scream, standing between the two of them, her eyes moving from one to the other.

“Fuck,” Bill muttered, as he stood up. “That is one powerful punch you got there, brother. Could have broken the jaw,” he said, although Charlie knew that was not true. Ever since he had been bitten, Bill didn’t get hurt easily.

Angry, Charlie took a step closer to him, ready to hit him again, but Hermione’s hands on his chest stopped him.

“Charlie, please stop, just leave him” she whispered.

“You are defending him? After everything he has done?” he asked confused, hurt, and still angry.

“I am not defending anyone, but this will solve nothing.

“Everything I have done?” Bill asked, paying Hermione no mind. “And what is it that I have done?”

“Do you have any idea what you put her through, they way you made her feel?”

“That is between Hermione and me.”

“It is not, because I was the one there, the one by her side when you went back to your wife, the one that stayed with her every time you broke her heart.”

“You think that is what I wanted?” Bill asked angrily, stepping closer to Charlie.

“Stop it, both of you!” Hermione screamed, one hand on each of their chests, trying to keep them apart. “I am sorry, this is my entire fault. I should have told you the truth, should have been honest from the beginning,” she said, looking from one to the other, as if her words were addressed to both of them.

“It’s not your fault, Hermione,” Charlie replied, not turning to her.

“I never meant for this to happen. It shouldn’t be like this,” she mumbled, sadly.

“Just go home, Hermione. Bill and I have things we need to discuss,” he said, with his voice low and his angry eyes still fixed on his brother.

“No. Come with me, Charlie, please,” she begged, now turning to him. “We need to talk about this. I know we can still make it work. Please.”

“Not now. Just go home; I will be there later,” he said, removing her hand from his chest.

“Bill, this is insane,” she said then, turning to his brother. “We have discussed this already.”

“Charlie is right, Hermione. You should go home.”

“No, I won’t do that. We have to talk about this like adults,” she insisted, but they were not listening.

“You better stay away from her,” Charlie said to Bill, trying to control his anger.

“That is not going to happen, brother.”

“Bill, please…” she tried again.

“Just stay out of this, Hermione,” Bill said angrily, before turning to Charlie again.

“What the bloody hell were you thinking?” he yelled at Bill, stepping forward and grabbing him by the shoulders.

“What was I thinking? What about you?” he yelled back, as pushed Charlie against the wall.

“Just leave her alone,” he said, so focused on Bill he didn’t even notice Hermione sigh in defeat and whisper she was sorry before Apparating away.

Bill, however, did seem to notice.

“Hermione,” he yelled, trying to go after her, but Charlie flipped them over, so that now he was the one pushing Bill against the wall.

“Why can’t you just leave her alone?”

“Because I love her. What is so hard for you to understand?” he asked, pushing him away.

“You love her? How can you say you love her, and treat her the way you did?”

“I did my best, gave her everything I could…”

“Then left her behind every time, to go back to your wife,” he interrupted.

“What was I supposed to do?” Bill asked, angrily.

“We all know you don’t love your wife; we know your marriage is a fake. You think we haven’t noticed the way she treats you, the way she looks at you? Even dad noticed, and you know he thinks the best of everyone.”

“And you think I haven’t? Trust me; I would leave her, if I could?”

“If you could? If you loved Hermione, you would have left Fleur long ago!”

“Do you think I didn’t try?”

“Try? What is there to try? If you want to leave her, then you do.”

“I can’t!” Bill yelled, angrily.

“Why the bloody hell not?”

“Because she knows!”

“What?” Charlie asked, suddenly confused.

“About us, she knows about us.”

“Knows what?”

“About you and me. She threatened to tell everyone if I ever left her.”

Charlie was shocked at what he had said for a moment, and then he started laughing.

“What the fuck is so funny?” Bill yelled angrily, pushing him back against the wall, harder than before.

“You haven’t left her because she knows about us?” he asked, disbelieving and still laughing. How could his brother be so stupid?

“She will tell everyone!”

“So what?”

“What? Have you gone insane? Do you know what will happen if hey find out?”

“Why do you care?” he asked, sobering up. “You thought everyone would reject you after you were attacked, but it didn’t happen. Why would it be any different now?”

“Because it is different,” he said, beginning to sound desperate.

“They would understand, Bill.”

“What about you?”

“I don’t care, I never did. You can’t live your life worrying about what others might think.”

“And what about Hermione?” he asked then.

“You should leave her, let her move on.”

“She was the one you were talking about that night, wasn’t she?” Bill asked him, but it was clear he already knew the answer.

“I love her,” Charlie said, simply.

“Would you leave her, if you were in my position?”

“I wouldn’t have had a relationship with her if I were married and not planning on leaving my wife.”

“You say you love her, then how can you not understand?”

“Do you have any idea how much you hurt her?” Charlie asked, anger flaring again. “All you talk about is how you feel, what you thought you had to do. Do you ever stop to think about her?”

“You have no right to say that,” Bill retorted, just as angrily. “You have no idea what it has been like, living like this for so long.”

“I know more than you think, Bill. Hermione and I have been friends for years; I know exactly what it was like for her.”

“How nice of you, isn’t it?” Bill asked, tilting his head to the side and stepping forward, and Charlie could see a wicked gleam in his eyes. “Such a good friend, comforting her when she was hurt. I am sure you wanted nothing out of it, other than her friendship, right Charlie?”

“I was just helping her, Bill. She needed someone.”

“Of course,” he said, with a wolfish grin. “But was that before or after you talked her into your bed?” he continued, still walking closer and making Charlie step back.

“I didn’t talk her into anything. I was always honest with her. I never used her, like you did,” he retorted, the situation making him feel slightly nervous. He knew the look in his brother’s eyes and it rarely led to something good.

“So, is that what I did?” Bill asked, and he nodded. “Such a good boy, you are,” he mocked, and when Charlie’s back finally hit the opposite wall, he grinned again. “You never lied to her? Never did something just because it was better for you? Never made a selfish decision, a bad choice, because you knew you could never live if you lost her?”

“I never did anything that I knew would hurt her, never let her give up her life just to wait for something that would never happen. That is what you do when you love someone,” he said, trying hard to keep his breathing and voice steady, not wanting to show Bill the effect his closeness had on him.

“But you never told her all the truth either, did you?” he asked, with a triumphant smile. “For someone who claims not to care about what others might say, you surely kept a big secret from her, brother dear,” he said, taking one last step, until their bodies touched.

“She doesn’t need to know. It’s over, remember?” he said, although his voice didn’t sound as strong as before.

He gasped when he felt Bill lean against him and part his legs with one of his knees, before pushing his hips forward, rubbing his thigh up and down between his. Charlie had to bite his lip to stifle the moan that threatened to leave his lips.

“It doesn’t have to be,” Bill whispered against his ear, and Charlie could feel him hard against his thigh.

“I already told you I love her,” he said, even as his eyes fluttered shut.

“What would she think if she found out?” Bill taunted, as he nibbled on his neck. “What would she say, if she saw how much you wanted this, if she knew how you react to my touch, how hard I can make you?” he said, his hand now cupping Charlie’s erection, making him groan. “Over, you say? I don’t think so,” he whispered, before kissing him hungrily.

“No,” Charlie said, although Bill’s kiss muffled the sound. He moved his hands between them, up to Bill’s chest, and after a few moments managed to push him away. “No,” he repeated. “I won’t do this.”

Bill’s wolfish grin was back, even as he panted slightly. His eyes were dark with lust. With a quick motion, he pushed Charlie’s arms away from him, and moved closer, until their bodies met again. Charlie pushed him away a second time and this time Bill wrapped his fingers around Charlie’s wrists, pushing him against the wall and keeping him pinned there as he kissed him again, hungrily. It hadn’t been long, but Charlie felt as if they hadn’t been together in years.

He wasn’t sure why his body reacted that way whenever Bill was around, why he could think of nothing but feeling him, touching him, kissing him. Some might think it was wrong, but it felt so good.

After a few moments, he started responding to the kiss. He just couldn’t help himself; his mind was no longer in charge. Bill had been right; they both needed it just as much.

He felt Bill fumbling with his belt, and then his hand slipped inside his trousers, cold fingers wrapping themselves around his erection and making him groan.

“Stop,” he whispered as Bill’s hand started moving up and down, but they both knew he didn’t mean it. With slow but firm strokes, Bill soon managed to turn him into a mumbling mess, and the smirk on his face showed just how aware of it he was.

Unable to hold back any longer, he rested his head against the wall and closed his eyes. His hips were moving of their own accord now, pushing against Bill’s fingers. Charlie kept his hands by his side, not sure whether he wanted to push Bill away or pull him closer. He bit his lip hard, trying not to moan again when Bill started fisting him harder.

“You like it, don’t you?” Bill whispered by his ear, in a husky tone. He couldn’t bring himself to deny it, so he chose not to answer.

He could feel his body tensing, and he knew he wouldn’t last much longer. He felt Bill shift slightly, and then heard him mumble a few words, vanishing his jeans before putting his wand away. Bill’s hand moved between them then, and he felt one of his fingers teasing his entrance before slipping inside. Charlie groaned again, and heard Bill chuckle softly, but when his thumb started rubbing the head of his erection the world around him vanished, and he came harder than he had in a long time.

His knees were weak and his breathing ragged, and even though his eyes were closed, he knew Bill was looking at him and smiling smugly.

After a moment, he felt strong hands on his shoulder, pulling him away from the wall, turning him around, and then pushing him back against it. When he weakly tried to push away, Bill pressed his body against his back, pinning Charlie against the wall and making him feel his arousal.

“What, you thought we were done?” he asked huskily, before licking up the side of his neck. “No, brother dear,” he whispered against his ear. “I am far from done.”

“Fuck, Bill,” he moaned, when his fingers, now slick with his own release, found his entrance again. Far from being gentle, he pushed two fingers inside of him, finding the right spot within seconds, making him groan in pleasure and push back against him. After a few moments, Bill removed his fingers, but before Charlie could say anything, he felt his erection pressing against his entrance.

“You want this?” he asked, by his ear, as he started pushing forward, ever so slowly. Charlie could only nod. “Say it,” he ordered, as he stopped moving. Charlie pushed his hips back, but Bill’s hands kept him in place.

“I want this,” he finally admitted in a low voice.

“I know,” Bill whispered, before burying himself inside of him in one hard thrust. He remained still for a few moments, giving him time to adjust before pulling back. “Does she make you feel like this?” he asked, and thrust deep inside him again. “Can she make you come as hard as I do?”

“Not. The. Same,” he groaned, as Bill’s rhythm increased.

“Of course not,” he panted against his ear. “You want this, Charlie; you need this like I do.”

It was true, he needed Bill, but he needed Hermione as well. He would have said so, but Bill’s hand moving down his chest, and then his fingers wrapping themselves around his hardening member again prevented any coherent sentence to form in his overheated brain.

“It’s not the same with her,” Bill continued to whisper, his hand moving in time with his hips. “You can’t touch her the way you touch me, can’t fuck her the way you fuck me. Hard. Fast. Rough. And she can’t give you what I give you.”

It was true; with Bill, he could do things he couldn’t do with her, and she couldn’t give him what his brother did. That didn’t mean he didn’t want her, or loved her. The nights he had spent with her had been just as amazing, but in a different way.

Bill’s thrusts were soon becoming more frantic, and so were his hand’s movements. He shifted his hips, hitting the right spot again as he stroked him harder, and after a few seconds Charlie was gone again, pushing Bill over the edge with him.

After a few moments, Charlie felt Bill rest against him, his twitching erection still inside him and his hand still stroking him lazily. They were both panting and trying to recover their strength.

After a few moments Bill stepped away from him, and Charlie turned around. The first few buttons’ of Bill’s shirt were now open, and he could see some deep scars on his chest.

“What’s that?” he asked, and as soon as Bill noticed what he was talking about, he started buttoning up his shirt.

“It’s nothing.”

“Bill, stop that,” Charlie said, pushing his hands away and stepping closer.

“Just a few scars from the full moon,” he answered with a shrug. “You know how long those take to heal.”

“But you hadn’t hurt yourself since the first few months,” Charlie replied, confused, but didn’t stop Bill as he started doing up the buttons again.

“Well, I hadn’t been alone during the full moon since the first few months.”

“Why didn’t you say something?” Charlie asked, his eyes still on Bill’s chest, even though the marks were now covered by the shirt.

“Like what?” he asked. “I told you I needed you there, but you still left. What was I supposed to do?”

“I had to, Bill. I love her, and if I am with her, I cannot be with anyone else. I wouldn’t do that to her, especially after all she has suffered for that same reason.”

“I tried to leave Fleur, you know?” he asked, and Charlie shook his head. “But she threatened to tell everyone about us. If I had let her do that, I would have lost Hermione.”

“She is more understanding than you think.”

“Why haven’t you told her, then?” he asked, and Charlie remained silent. Just like Bill, he feared she would leave him if she knew. “I love her, and that is not going to change.”

“I will fight for her if I have to,” Charlie replied.

“You don’t have to. If she understood about us, then we could find a way to make it work.”

“If she understood,” Charlie repeated slowly, shaking his head. He doubted that would happen, and wasn’t sure whether he wanted it to or not. Not knowing what else to say, he reached for his wand, and performed a quick cleaning spell before charming his jeans back on. “I should talk to her; maybe it is time I tell her the truth,” he said, turning around and taking a few steps away from Bill.

“She turned me down, you know?” Bill muttered, just as he was about to Apparate away. Charlie turned around to face him, but said nothing. “When you got here. When you found us. I’m not sure how much you saw, but I thought you might want to know. When I kissed her, she pushed me away. She told me she was seeing someone else. I said I needed her back, but she turned me down.”

“I know,” Charlie said softly, “but that doesn’t mean it’s not you she loves,” he whispered sadly, turning away again.

He Apparated on her sidewalk and stood there for a few moments, trying to gather the courage to walk to the house. He was trying to decide what he would say, but nothing seemed good enough, nothing seemed right.

Thinking it would be better to simply improvise, he walked to the house and knocked on the door. No answer. He waited a few moments and knocked again, but still got no response. He knew she was in there, she had asked him to go there with her, and so he was sure she was inside. Why wasn’t she answering then?

Reaching for his wand, he took a step back and in a few moments had lifted the wards around the place. She had told him how to do that a long time ago. It may not be polite, entering her house that way, but he really needed to speak to her.

Taking a deep breath, he reached for the doorknob and pushed the door open, stepping inside. A quick glance told him the living room was empty, but he could see light coming from the kitchen, so he went there next.

“Charlie,” she said, slightly surprised, when she saw him standing by the door. She was sitting at the table, her hands firmly wrapped around a steaming cup of tea. He noticed her eyes were red and swollen, as if she had been crying, and it hurt him to know it was partly his fault.

“I knocked a few times, but you didn’t answer.”

“I thought it was Bill. I don’t think I want to talk to him right now.”

They both remained silent for a few moments, and then she spoke again.

“I am sorry,” she whispered, her eyes now fixed on the cup in her hands, avoiding looking at him. “I should have told you it was Bill, should have told you long ago.”

“Why didn’t you?”

“It was supposed to be a secret, and I wasn’t exactly proud of it,” she answered. “As time went by, I wanted to tell you, but I didn’t know how. I was afraid you would say or do something to him, I don’t know. And I was afraid of what you would think of me,” she continued, finally meeting his eyes. “I can’t imagine my life without you in it, Charlie, and I was afraid I would lose you if you knew the truth.”

He wanted to tell her she never would lose him, but he wasn’t sure of what he would have done, if he had known about Bill. She was right about one thing; if he had known it was his brother making her suffer so much, he would have confronted him long ago.

“What you saw earlier, between Bill and I, it wasn’t what it looked like,” she said softly, when he didn’t speak.

“What was it, then?” he asked calmly, still not moving from the doorway, where he had been standing all along.

“I was walking back home, and he just appeared out of nowhere and dragged me down the alley. He said he wanted me back, but I told him I was with someone else now. I did not want to kiss him, Charlie, I swear. It’s over with him; I wasn’t lying when I told you I had left him.”

He remained silent as he watched her. He could see the sadness on her face, and he could tell what had happened earlier wasn’t the only reason for it. She loved Bill, and being away from him hurt her, maybe even more than being with him had.

Charlie wondered if she loved him that much, too, if not being with him would hurt her as much as being away from Bill did. He knew what he would feel if he lost her, but did she love him as deeply as he loved her? Would she feel not being with him was pure hell, or would she simply miss him as one misses a lost friend? Would she move on, find someone else to be happy with, and just think of him every once in a while, remembering him as little more than a rebound she needed, to get over her one true love? All the insecurities were now magnified, all those fears playing with his mind until he could barely think. But as much as the possibility of her feeling that way terrified him, he did not want to know the truth; he would rather live with the doubt and her by his side. He could make her happy, and would do anything for her.

“I am so sorry, Charlie,” she said, after what felt like hours, bringing him back to reality. “You don’t deserve this.”

He wasn’t sure what she meant, or if she was right, but he couldn’t bring himself to speak.

“You deserve someone that will love you alone, someone who is free to give all their love to you, to give you everything.”

“You could be that person.”

“I love you, please don’t doubt that for one second, but I am not good for you. All I have done is hurt you. You are so good to me, and make me so happy, but all I seem to do is cause you pain.”

“That’s not true, Hermione,” he said, stepping closer to the table. “We could be happy together.”

“Could we?” she asked, sadly, as she got up and walked to him. “Do you really think you could be happy with me?”

“What are you talking about?”

“I saw your face when you saw me with Bill; saw how much it hurt you. I know what that feels like, because I have felt it too. I want to be with you and you alone, but that won’t change the way I feel about Bill. Could you ever be happy with me, knowing that I love him as much as I love you?”

“What would happen if Bill left Fleur, if he wanted to be with you too?”

“That will never happen, Charlie,” she muttered. He realized she hadn’t answered his question, but didn’t want to insist. Sometimes silence said more than words did.

“What if I told you it could happen?” he asked. He didn’t want to discuss that any more, but he needed to tell her the truth, needed to know how she would react, once and for all.

“I am just a toy for him. If he loved me, he would have left her long ago. Why would that change now, because I am with someone else?”

“He does love you, and he tried to leave Fleur, but she wouldn’t let him.”

“He is a grown man, Charlie, and doesn’t need you defending him, or making excuses.”

“I haven’t been completely honest with you, Hermione, and I think it’s time I told you the truth,” he said, lifting his hand to caress her cheek, fearing it would be the last time.

“What truth?”

“It’s about Bill and me. We are closer than most people think,” he started hesitantly. She looked at him, not interrupting, just waiting patiently for him to continue. “Being with me helps him, in the nights of the full moon; it helps him remain in control.”

“How so?” she asked, quietly.

“He doesn’t have to worry about hurting me, or scaring me away. He can let his instincts take over, and that helps him keep control the rest of the time.”

“I don’t think I understand what you are saying,” she said, frowning slightly.

“We have been involved, Hermione. Sexually,” he finally admitted. The truth had been harder to express than he would have thought.

He saw the surprised look on her face, and then she parted her lips to speak, but no words came out. After a few minutes of silence, he spoke again.

“It really helps him during the full moon, he is more…”

“How long?” she asked, interrupting him.

“It started a few months after he was attacked.”

“I remember him being very violent, and hurting himself. Then suddenly it all stopped.”

“Yes, that is when it started.”

“That was long before Bill and I…” she trailed off.

She fell silent again, and the small frown on her brow told him she was thinking about what he had just told her. He stood silent as well, giving her the time she needed, not wanting to put her under any pressure.

“But he is hurting himself again,” she muttered, almost to herself, after a few minutes.

“Yes, I saw that.”

“Why?” she asked, her eyes meeting his again.

“Because I ended it. When I decided I wanted to be with you, I told him it was over. I love you; I want to be with you, Hermione, and that means I can’t be with someone else.” Again, she remained silent, and he continued. “Fleur found out about us, and threatened to tell everyone the truth if he left her.”

“Why didn’t he say something, then?” she asked, in a whisper.

“Because he was afraid of what you would think, afraid he would lose you because of it.”

“And why didn’t you tell me before?”

“I guess I was afraid too.”

“Did you know about Fleur?”

“That she knew and that she was blackmailing him? No, I found out today.”

“I just…” she started, looking away from him again. “I wish you would have told me.”

“I was afraid to lose you.”

“You shouldn’t have been,” she said, shaking her head, and he could see the tears welling in her eyes. She met his gaze for just a second, and then took a step to the side and walked past him, out of the kitchen.

“Hermione,” he called, as he walked after her. As he stepped into the living room again, he finally noticed the changes. When he had walked in earlier, he had been so focused on finding her that he hadn’t even realized what he was seeing.

“What is this, what is going on?” he asked, as he looked around at the almost empty bookshelves and the boxes on the floor.

“I am leaving,” she said, standing in the middle of the room with her back to him.

“What? No, you can’t leave, please,” he said, as he walked to where she was standing. With his hand on her shoulder, he made her turn around to face him. “What is going on?”

“You were right,” she said, with a small smile, still avoiding his eyes. “It wouldn’t take me long to find a new job, a challenging one. In fact, it took me about a day.”

“What are you talking about?”

“The day I left my other job at the Ministry, I visited a few private companies, and that afternoon I was offered a new position,” she explained.

“Why didn’t you tell me?”

“Because we were going away, and I wasn’t even sure I wanted to accept it. The job is abroad.” They looked at one another in silence for a few moments, and then she spoke again. “They gave me a few days to decide. I was not planning on taking it, because I wanted to stay here with you, but now I see it will be for the best.”

“No, it will not,” he said, and she smiled sadly as she pressed a finger to his lips, silencing him.

“I cannot stay here, Charlie, I don’t want to hurt you any more. I can’t make you go through all the pain I went through with Bill. It is not fair to you. I love you too much to do that.”

“It won’t be like that, Hermione, it doesn’t have to.”

“I wish I could believe that, but I don’t see any other way. All three of us will end up even more hurt if I stay, no matter what.”

“There has to be another way. I know you love Bill, I can accept that. All I want is to be with you, to make you happy.”

“I want that too,” she said, smiling at him and stroking his cheek. “I wish things were different. We could have been happy together.”

“Hermione, please,” he said, wrapping his arms around her waist, pulling her closer to him. “It doesn’t have to be this way.”

She smiled again at him, but when he leaned closer to kiss her, she stopped him.

“Don’t make this any harder than it already is,” she whispered, the tears now falling down her cheeks. “You should leave now, Charlie. I still have to finish packing, and I don’t a lot of time.”

“I won’t leave, Hermione. I won’t just let you walk away.”

“You are only making this harder. I have already made a decision, can’t you accept that?”

“How could I ever accept it? You tell me you are leaving so you won’t hurt me anymore; don’t you see nothing will hurt more than losing you?”

“You may see it that way now, but in time you will realize it is the right thing. You will move on, find someone who really deserves you, and you will be happy.”

“Not without you by my side,” he said, but she didn’t reply. “Where are you going?” he asked then.

“Does it matter?”

“How long?”

“I don’t know, a few years, probably. Maybe in the future I can come back, and we can be friends again.”

“Friends,” he repeated, bitterly. How had things changed so much in just a few hours?

“You should leave, Charlie,” she said, pulling away from his arms.

“I told you I wouldn’t,” he replied.

“I will not change my mind. I will accept the job first thing tomorrow morning, and be gone in two days.”

“How can you do this?”

“I already told you, I am doing this because I love you, because I want you to be happy. That is all that matters to me right now.”

“Please, Hermione,” he started, but she shook her head.

“Don’t. Just accept my decision, and move on.”

“I can’t do that.”

“I was hoping you would understand,” she said, and then stepped closer to him, kissing him softly for only a second before pulling back and whispering, “goodbye, Charlie.”

It took him a few seconds to react, and by then it was too late. She was walking to the door, about to leave the house, seeing as he wouldn’t. He ran after her, trying to stop her, but it was already too late. As soon as she stepped outside the house, she Apparated away, leaving Charlie behind, alone and heartbroken. He had lost her.