TOGETHER (A HARRY POTTER LOVE STORY) 4

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MILLIE'S POV:

Harry was hovered over a piece of parchment, hand writing at a rapid pace as he leant on Dean's back to allow him to write effectively, while Dean and Neville argued stupidly over who would beat the other in a Muggle football match. I watched him closely, for he would be leaving any moment to drop this letter at the Owlery, and my heart thumped nervously as I shuffled closer to the concentrating boy.

"Let me go with you," I mumbled in a low voice, trying to avoid being overheard by Neville and Dean.

Miraculously, Harry pushing me into the corner of the room at the Gryffindor party had managed to seclude us from any prying eyes, and our kiss had been hidden from everyone, which meant none of our friends knew about it either. I had told genuinely no-one, mainly due to the shock of it myself, and had remained to keeping my mouth tightly shut for the last few days, consumed with my own thoughts. However, this also meant that I had not yet had the opportunity to speak to Harry individually, and I grasped the chance to now.

Harry looked up at me, green eyes scanning my face quickly, before he nodded. "Yeah, I think we need to..." He laughed, hand grazing mine as he folded the letter up and slipped it into his pocket, strolling forwards and holding open the Portrait Hole for me. "See you two later, yeah...?" he shouted at Dean and Neville, who raised their eyebrows curiously, though did not get the time to question anything as Harry swiftly placed a hand on the small of my back and gently pushed me through.

For the first time ever, Harry James Potter failed to utter a single word as we weaved through the corridors to the Owlery, despite the amount of expectant looks I kept shooting him, waiting uselessly for him to break the tension between us. Even as we began climbing the endless stairs he remained silent, only speaking to tell me to watch my step on the uneven floor. Finally, after an entire trip of awkward silence, we entered the Owlery, and I groaned, crossing my arms.

"You know I came here so that we could speak to each other," I began, raising my eyebrows as he stopped, glancing at me with a guilty expression.

"I know, I just don't want to say anything stupid," he muttered, with a dramatic sigh.

"Harry Potter, the usual smooth talker," I teased, with a small smirk, "you've changed..."

"Oh, you don't know how much I've changed," he said amusingly, looking relieved as he ran a hand through his dark hair. "But you know how much is at stake here..."

Biting my lip, I glanced down at my feet; Harry was right, there was so much at stake...if we messed it up this time, it was highly possible we might not come back from it like last time. My heart panged, and I kept my eyes on the ground anxiously as I pondered whether I meant that much to him that he would want to risk all that...

"So you regret the kiss?" I asked, fighting to keep my voice sounding as unbothered and casual as possible.

"Fuck sake, Mills..." Harry laughed, and I was forced to look up at him as he placed two gentle fingers underneath my chin, lifting my head so that our eyes met. "Not at all," he said casually, and I released a small breath, biting the inside of my cheek to stop myself from grinning along with him. "It just makes things a bit more complicated now..."

"Why's that?" I asked, watching as he turned away smiling and finished tying the letter to Hedgwig, trailing a gentle finger along her feathers.

"Well..." he began, with a hint of amusement in his eyes, "before, I would simply look at you and you'd go all weird and giggly-"

"Harry! Be serious for one second!" I snapped, slapping his arm playfully. Grinning, he hesitated for the smallest of seconds, running his tongue across his upper teeth.