Never Crossed Their Lips
By ThatRomantic

She knew. She’d always known that this day would come, that he’d have to leave. They were from different worlds, different classes of people; they couldn’t be together. Not really. They had fallen in love against their own better judgment but that didn’t seem to matter much anymore. Not to them. They stood there facing each other, knowing that the end was nigh. They couldn’t really meet each other’s gazes. Not now. Not when they knew the inevitable was to happen. The mark on his arm was an indication of the invisible line between them, the symbol of the epitome of the many differences between them. They were silent for a long awkward hour before he had to leave and she had to follow her friends.

They were both too stubborn to admit it but they both knew they didn’t want this anymore. They wanted middle ground, a medium between their differences so that they didn’t have to say goodbye like this. He checked his watch. Ten minutes. He was once told that if you have a relative dying of a terminal illness that draws out death in a cruel way, that one should say everything one wants to say before it’s too late. But he couldn’t. The three words that hung in the air would never be uttered by either of them and he couldn’t help but think that the advice had gone to waste. He looked up at her briefly, taking her in before lowering his head again and turning away. He was about to walk out of the door and give her some space, when he heard her voice.

“Will I ever see you again?� she said, which they both knew translated to: Are we going to ever be together like we were again?

“No.�

“Can I see you again?� Would it work if we weren’t who we are now?

“I don’t think so.�

“I want to meet up again, in ten years time.� Be happy without me. With someone else.

“You’ll be with him then no doubt.� Be happy with him. You deserve him.

“Yes, I suppose I will be.� No, I want you.

“Can I ask one thing of you, please?�

“What?� Anything.

“Don’t run after me. Stay here with them.� Remember me as I am, not for who I will be. Don’t chase after this person. “Promise me.�

“As long as you promise me something, too.�

“Yes?� Just say the word.

“Don’t die tonight.� Don’t kill the man you are.

“I’ll try.� I can’t promise you that.

“Please. Just this one thing. Promise me this one thing.�

“I-I... Yes.� I really can’t promise you that, but I will try as hard as I possibly can.

“I promise not to run.� You’ll always be this person to me.

“I have to go soon.�

“I know,� she said, and she did. She knew he had to leave soon to pay his due but she didn’t want him to. She wanted him to stay, for him to hold her in his arms and never let her go, tell her it would all be alright, and when the sun came up in the morning all of the hate that would come if their relationship was revealed would not be there anymore. They’d buy a flat in the middle of London, and it’d be too small for his tastes but they’d call it home. They’d make love in every room and never tire of exploring each other’s bodies. They’d get married and all her friends would be there, and his mother and they’d have happy tears in their eyes. She’d get pregnant and they’d move out of their crappy little flat and live in a small town house to raise their child.

Their whole life together flashed before her eyes before the tears came rolling down her cheeks. She didn’t lose eye contact but stared into his blue-grey eyes begging him to make the other choice. Begging him not to step through the door. His eyes were distant as though attempting to be cold toward her open display of emotion but not quite succeeding. He paused at the door before pulling her into his strong embrace.

She sobbed violently into his shoulder, pounding his chest with her fists relentlessly. He just took it, letting a few lone tears fall from his own eyes.

“Don’t do this.� Her cry was muffled into by previously dry, well pressed shirt. “Don’t walk out the door.� Don’t leave me.

“I have to.� I don’t want to.

“Why?�

“I have no choice.� I don’t want you to leave.

“Please, I’m begging you. Don’t.� He had no answer for her then. He only held her tighter, holding himself back from saying those words. Eventually he choked out some words in reply.

“You know I have to.� Don’t make me do this.

“But... But you don’t,� she voiced. “You can still back out. You don’t have to leave.�

“If I don’t then it would only make things worse.� If I don’t, I could lose you.

“No, it won’t. We can protect you.� You’re losing me now.

“Please. Don’t say these things. You knew that this would happen.� You’ll never lose me. You will always have my heart. Don’t make me risk your life. This only made her sob harder. His tears were more constant now, falling down his pale cheeks and landing on her curly head. He held her as tight as was humanly possible for him, wanting to hold her all night and through the morning. Wanting what was going on around them to halt, wanting his father to not have such a hold over him, wanting to be braver than he was, wanting to be as strong as she was. That was why he liked her so much. She was strong and brave and beautiful. She could stand up for what she believed in and was not afraid to show her feelings. He would never doubt that she returned his feelings. That was enough for him. To know that when he walked away from the room, she, for now, felt the same as he did. He looked at his watch again over her shoulder. Two minutes. He had to leave if he wanted to get there on time. He decided to take the chance to say what they both wanted to say.

“Hermione, I –� but instead of finishing the sentence, he was cut off by her kiss. It was desperate and passionate, telling him that she knew, that she understood, that she did, too. Eventually, she pulled away.

“I know, Draco,� she whispered, tears still falling down her cheeks. Don’t say it. That would make this real. At this he simply nodded and kissed her again, before leaving through the door of The Hidden Room without a glance back; the words having never crossed their lips.