I Want to be Your First Choice, Harry Potter

Chapter Twenty Four

Ron and I talk while we wait for the rest of the team to come out of the locker room.

"I'll bet you'll get a good grade on the Charms essay." He says. I get a pit in my stomach.

"What essay?" I ask. He looks surprised I don't know what he is talking about, then tells me that we also have a paper due tomorrow. I try not to cry when I find out. How could I have not known? Oh, maybe because I spent the whole class talking to Harry. I'm such an idiot. Now I have to write a whole essay after dinner. I can't focus on quidditch now that I know about the essay.

The chasers are practicing shooting but I keep missing.

"What's wrong with you today?" Ginny asks.

"I don't know I've been stressed out lately." I say. Usually quidditch is what takes my mind off things but now all I can think about is failing the essay. I keep trying to distract myself from it but I can't.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

At dinner I must have made it obvious that I was stressed.

"Are you ok?" Harry asks.

"No actually, we have an essay due tomorrow and now I have to do it tonight and I'm going to fail because I'll be too tired." I say. I start to get a lump in my throat after saying that.

"Oh, you'll do fine. You're smart. I guess I'll just do it later or before class tomorrow." He says. I look down so nobody can see my eyes watering.

"No, I won't do fine." My voice cracks. I can tell I'm starting to draw some attention.

"Gab, I think we should go talk in the hallway." Harry says. He's just trying to get me out of the great hall before I embarrass myself. We both get up and go into the hallway. "Ok let it out." He says.

"No, I'm being overdramatic." I say. I don't want to cry right now especially because this is no good reason to cry. He crosses his arms.

"I'm not leaving until you cry or at least talk to me about how you feel." What is he a therapist or something?

"I'm just stressed that I'm going to fail all my classes right before winter break and then Percy's going to judge me at The Burrow." I laugh at the last part. Percy is so stuck up but we all make fun of him too.

I go to The Burrow every christmas break because my parents are good friends with the Weasley's. The Weasley family is like my family, that's why I am so close with Ginny. I'm like the sister she never had but she definitely deserves to balance out all of those brothers.

"Gab, if Percy judges you I'll knock him off his broom." He jokes. "I'll help you do your essay tonight." He says. All he is going to do is distract me but I can't tell him no.

"Ok, thank you Harry." I say. I start to walk back into dinner but Harry puts his hand on my shoulder to turn me around.

"Are you sure you're ok?" He asks. I was going to be able to hold it in until he just had to ask. My eyes start to fill with tears. He pulls me in for a hug before he can see the tears stream down my face and my eyes become puffy. I don't want to pull away because I'm embarrassed of how I look. I don't want to ruin his robes with my makeup so I try not to press my face up against him that much.

————————————————————————