Learn to Love Again | George Weasley

09. Unexpected

Eloise stepped back from Fleur and glanced at the clock on the wall behind her head that read just after noon. The two had completely skipped breakfast in the flurry of anxiety that morning and were growing quite hungry.

"Fancy some lunch? My treat." Eloise offered.

"That sounds lovely" Fleur replied with a grateful smile.

-

The women found a lovely little cafe on Diagon Alley called "Night Owls Tea & Coffee" as they walked by Fleur had mentioned that it must have been opened after the war since she had never noticed it before. Eloise thought it was absolutely adorable and reminded her a bit of the cafes in her hometown, she all but begged to have a look inside. The two of them decided to split a vegetarian croissant sandwich and Eloise ordered a cappuccino while Fleur opted for water to avoid having too much caffeine. They sat at a little table outside the shop for nearly an hour chatting away when the topic of George suddenly came up.

"So where did you and George sneak off to during the party?" she asked slyly as she raised an eyebrow before taking a sip of her water.

Eloise nearly choked on her coffee at the question, she had gone weeks without being asked anything about George. Naively she somehow thought that she had gotten away with leaving the party unnoticed, but she should have known her friend better than that after all these years.

"We just went on a walk." Eloise answered casually, hoping the discussion would end there.

To her dismay Fleur continued her interrogation, "A walk?"

"Yes, around the house."

"Why?"

Eloise shrugged, "He looked miserable sitting there watching everyone have fun, so I just offered to go on a walk with him. Nothing happened."

Fleur had an amused look on her face, one Eloise had seen many times before any time she took even the slightest interest in a boy.

"What do you think of George?"

What didn't she think of him was an easier question, what she thought of him was a nearly endless list. She thought he was one of the most handsome men she had ever met, tall, tanned, gorgeous with freckles all over every inch of his face, and that fiery red hair. She thought it was incredibly enchanting the way he effortlessly occupied her mind despite being alone together only a few times. She thought he was mysterious and she was so curious to learn everything about him as if she was a detective cracking a case. She thought about the way his brown eyes seemed to warm her entire body whenever they looked at each other. She was almost afraid to look at him sometimes, thinking he would somehow make her fall in love with him with just a glance. But Eloise knew she couldn't admit any of this to Fleur.

"He seems quiet. Gentle, but a little moody."

Fleur nodded, "You should have seen him before Fred passed, those two together were nothing but trouble."

"So I've heard, I find it hard to picture him like that from what I have seen."

"He is very different now." Fleur agreed.

"But I like him the way he is. Though he can be a bit hard to read sometimes."

A small smile quirked up on the corner of Fleur's lips, "Why don't we go see him?"

"Now?"

"Now." Fleur stood up and grabbed Eloise's hand to pull her up as well, not giving her any say in the matter.

-

A bell rang above the door and Charlie greeted the two of them warmly.

"Wasn't expecting to see you two lovely ladies stopping in today. Looking for anything specific?" the charming redhead asked.