"Neville?" I asked.
At first, I didn't think he heard me, so I opened my mouth to repeat, when his eyes caught mine. I was suddenly pulled into a state of unknown, unsure, vulnerable, weak. Before I even knew what I was doing, I leaned in and kissed his mouth. It lasted only a second, just a quick brush against his lips, but it was long enough to have me wanting another.
As I quickly pulled away, and wiped my hands down my skirt, I found Neville to be just as astonished as I was. He didn't seem disgusted or confused, just astonished. Like it had taken him by surprise, but he didn't mind it.
I wanted to apologize- that was the respectable thing to do, but I didn't.
Instead, I quickly said, "You. Me. Yule Ball." I then hesitated for a second, and added, "Please."
I was so embarassed that I didn't even wait for his reply before I ran off, into the girls dormitories. I shut the door behind me, and found myself face to face with Padma Patil.
"Oh, Padma!" I gasped. I didn't expect anyone to be in at this time. Most students were roaming the school with their dates, or if they didn't have one, asking people. But, it's needless to say that Padma wasn't one of them people.
"Ginny Weasley," she said, giving me a suspecting smile, "What have you been up to?"
I stumbled, eventually saying, "N-nothing. Just... reading."
She seemed to be one step ahead of me, "And what have you been reading, to make you blush so much?"
This time, I couldn't respond. She had caught me out, I know she had.
"No reply? My... we have been up to mischief, haven't we?" She said, jokingly.
Finally, I gave in. Padma was one of my dearest friends, and I knew I shouldn't hide anything from her.
"I asked him," I whispered.
Padma, looking startled asked, "Who, Harry??"
"What?! No! I told you. I'm over him!"
Padma let out a sigh of relief, "Oh, yeah. Of course. I know. It's just... Well... I kind of--"
"You like Harry?!" I interrupted, astounded that I hadn't realised sooner.
She'd been mooning over him for months now, but I was completely oblivious to it all. Looking back, I realised how obvious it had been. She always blushed when his name was mentioned, and she was so relieved when I had first told her I had moved on from him.
She blushed and said, "Well, yeah... But... So does Pavarti. And she's better with boys than I am, and I know she'll end up with him."
This didn't surprise me. Padma and Pavarti were identical in most ways, but Padma lacked in confidence.
"Well, why don't you ask him before she does? I don't believe he'll be able to find anyone, after Cho turned him down," I suggested.
"But Pavarti will be so upset, and I won't be able to forgive myself." She sighed and added,"I guess I'll have to go with some loser like Neville Longbottom.... Anyway, who did you ask?"
Neville? A loser? No! Yes, he wasn't the brightest, but he was so sweet, and kind, and caring and handome, in that adorable kind of way.
Maybe I had overlooked the fact that going with Neville meant my reputation hitting an all time low. What if I become the school loser? I had only just gained back some cred, when I made it out of the Chamber of Secrets alive, but I could lose it all if I went with Neville...
"Hello? Ginny??"
"I... I have to go."
I ran out of the dormitory and straight into the common room, where I was confronted with...
