Blue moon ; George Weasley

Thirty-three

Esme shut her eyes. Her head rested against his chest and just his scent alone calmed her down.

She could hear his heartbeat and she could feel his hand on her arm. Some of his hair tickled her forehead and she could feel the warmth from his cheek.

She tilted her head back a little and looked up at George who offered her a comforting smile.

She ran a hand to the nape of his neck, then leaned in to kiss him, but as their lips touched, George moved his head back a little.

That caused Esme to fall over the edge again, dropping her head against his chest as she once again cried.

"And now you won't even kiss me."

"Oh, Essie." George tried hiding his laugh. He hugged her closer. "You know I'd always love to kiss you, but right now, you're feeling upset and I don't want you to regret kissing me because of a weak moment."

"I hate you." Esme whispered, shutting her eyes as she relaxed against him. "But at the same time I don't, and I hate that too."

George chuckled, leaning back on the sofa, pulling Esme with him. They laid there, cuddling, and George smiled to himself, finding comfort in having her there with him.

A few minutes passed with neither of them saying a word. Her breathing changed and that's when George realised Esme had fallen asleep in his arms.

He pulled her blanket up to cover her shoulders and then pressed a kiss to her head while shutting his eyes to try and sleep as well.

The next morning, George woke up as Fred's shadow covered him. He looked up with squinted eyes, seeing his identical brother hovering over him.

Fred looked rather smug, hands pushed into the pockets of his trousers.

He glanced at Esme and then looked at George again with a cocked eyebrow, smirk glued to his face.

"Oh shut up." George scoffed. "She had a nightmare."

"Sure." Fred nodded, grinning, before looking to the side. "Oi! Lee! Come see!"

A second later, Lee was there, gasping when he saw George and Esme cuddle.

His gasp woke her up.

She muttered something against George's chest, stretching her legs while she ran a hand up his chest to feel at his face.

When she realised she was on the sofa with George, she sat up as quickly as she possibly could, her hair wild and messy and her eyes wide.

She looked directly at Fred and Lee who was staring right back at her, and then she looked at George.

"What time is it?" She asked.

Lee looked at the clock on his wrist, then shrugged.

"A quarter to nine."

"What?"

"A quarter to nine... yeah, you missed breakfast."

"But we brought you a bun!" Fred pulled a wrapped bun from his pocket and threw it at Esme who managed to catch it.

"Oi! What about me? I'm fucking starving!" George explained and propped himself up on his elbows.

"Then go grab something to eat." Fred scoffed. "What am I? Your servant?"

With that, he and Lee disappeared from the common room with their things, and George and Esme was left back, alone in the room.

"I— here." Esme placed the bun on his chest before hurrying off of the sofa, rushing up the stairs and into her dorm.

She had fifteen minutes until charms class started and she was stressing. She was pulling different parts of her uniform out of her dresser, pulling it on in a rush, and then she pulled her messy hair back in a ponytail without brushing it first.

When she walked back into the common room, George was standing by the sofa, picking at the bun.

"Here. Eat something." He said, shoving it in her face but she made a face and turned away. "Es..."

"I'm not hungry." She said while struggling with her tie, messily tying it around her neck.

"Es, stop rushing."

"Stop rushing? George, I have—" she reached for his wrist and looked at the watch that he got when he turned seventeen. "...seven minutes until my charms class starts and I can't be late. I just... I can't."

"Esme." George walked towards her, grabbing her hands to stop her from fumbling with her tie. "Take it easy. Deep breath. Would you rather show up in class looking like a mess than showing up a little late?"

"I can't be late for fuck sake. That's what I'm bloody saying!"

George tugged at her tie, loosening the knot before carefully tying it again to make it look more neat.

"Tuck your shirt in. You know how strict Umbridge is."

"I don't give two shits about that pink fucking toad."

"No I know." He said. "I just don't want to see you earn yourself detention."

Esme didn't answer. She just stared into George's chest while tucking her shirt into her skirt.

George tightened the knot on her tie, then folded the collar down, smoothing the material out.

"You're missing your robes." He said. "Go get them and your books. I'll get you to class in time."