Oblivious

Chapter 12: I'm With You

~H~

As I sit on my bed that evening listening to my new CD, Avril Lavigne's Let Go, I ponder over the vision I had in the Malfoy's kitchen for the millionth time.

There's something about that man I saw. I feel some kind of connection to him, but what is it? It's almost as if I . . . But that can't be! I love Draco. At least, something in my mind tells me I do. Well, if I do, how come I don't feel it then? I feel it with this redhead. I wonder, is he even real? Does he know about me? Does he feel the same way? Ah! So confusing!

Still as puzzled as ever, I go over to my desk and pull out the CD jacket from the case to read along with the lyrics.

I'm standing on the bridge

I'm waiting in the dark

I thought that you'd be here by now

There's nothing but the rain

No footsteps on the ground

I'm listening but there's no sound

That's exactly how I feel. I feel so lost right now, so alone. I know this wedding isn't right, but how can I explain it to Mum and Draco and everyone. They're hiding something from me; I can feel it, and it's something big.

Looking down at my ring, I continue listening.

Isn't anyone trying to find me

Won't somebody please take me home

It's a damn cold night

Trying to figure out this life

Won't you take me by the hand

Take me somewhere new

I don't know who you are but I

I'm with you

This redhead can "take me home," wherever that is; it's not here, that much I know. O Mysterious Redhead! Where are you? Who are you? And why aren't you here?

I'm looking for a place

I'm searching for a face

Is anybody here I know

Cause nothing's going right

And everything's a mess

And no one likes to be alone

Could I really love this man? If so, why am I with Draco? And why does my mum seem to have some part in this?

Isn't anyone trying to find me

Won't somebody please take me home

It's a damn cold night

Trying to figure out this life

Won't you take me by the hand

Take me somewhere new

I don't know who you are but I

I'm with you

I'm with you

Why is everything so confusing

Maybe I'm just out of my mind

It's a damn cold night

Trying to figure out this life

Won't you take me by the hand

Take me somewhere new

I don't know who you are but I

I'm with you

I'm with you

I'm with you . . . whoever you are. Please, come soon. Prove that I'm not going mad. I look down at the ring, tears in my eyes. Feeling suddenly angry at Draco for deceiving me, however and why ever he did it, I pull at the piece of metal on my finger, intending to flush it down the toilet.

But it won't budge. It almost hurts to try to take it off; something in my chest wrenches each time I tug, so I give up.

"Draco's put some kind of curse on this bloody ring with his magic," I say. Then I laugh at the absurdity of my statement. "There's no such thing as magic."

Tired of listening to such thought-provoking music, I turn off the CD player and decide to read instead. I pull out a nice, thick Stephen King novel and settle into my bed, engrossing myself in the world of Louis and Rachel Creed in Pet Sematary.

About an hour later, there is a knock at my door.

"Hermione, it's Draco."

I set down the book on my bedside table and call, "Come in." I decide to try to hide as much as possible my suspicions.

He enters my room and closes the door behind him. Turning to me, he dons a half-smile and dims the lights before walking over and sitting next to me on my bed. He takes my hands and pulls me up next to him. Then he wraps his arms around me. My brain rejoices at the sensation of his hands caressing my cheek and back, the feel of his breath on my face, the warmth of his body next to mine.

But my heart tells me that this isn't right, that there is something cold in his touch. I shudder involuntarily, and he takes this as a sigh of pleasure. He kisses the top of my head and lifts my chin so I look directly into his silver eyes. They are glimmering with some strange sort of light.

I play along as a fiancée should and smile up at him, gently touching my hand to his white-blonde hair.

Suddenly but gently, he forces me to lie down on the bed. He leans over, placing a hand on either side of me, and says quietly in a husky whisper, "What do you say, darling?"

A tremor of disgust forces me to shudder slightly again, but his smile just widens. Lowering his face to the skin on my chest which is exposed in my low-cut blouse, I feel his lips gently caress my skin, and a warm wetness tells me that his tongue also made contact. Biting my bottom lip, I close my eyes and try to imagine that Draco is the redhead in my vision. I imagine that the redhead is undoing the top buttons of my blouse, that the redhead's hands are running the length of my body, that the redhead is beginning to make love to me.

But I can't.

Pushing Draco off of me with all my strength, I jump up and run to my bathroom, locking the door behind me. Leaning my back against the door, I slide to the tiled floor, crying and trying to rebutton my blouse with shaky hands. I look down at the ring, and the vision I had earlier returns, but with more details and clarity.

I was sitting before a grand lake at nighttime with the moon reflected in the still water. Small, twinkling lights danced in the trees, and I heard a soft melody.

Looking to my left, I beheld the redhead, but I saw more than just his red hair this time. Freckles dusted his handsome face, and his brilliant blue eyes were darting every which way but into mine. For reasons unknown to me, sitting on the bathroom floor, this frustrates me.

I placed my hand on his wringing hands and he stopped, looking up at me. "Ron," I said, "I've never seen you so nervous. What's the matter?"

Ron? I think to myself. So his name is Ron.

He took my hands in his and began talking. "Most men start these kind of speeches with, 'From the first time I saw you, I knew I loved you,' or something cliché like that. But it would be a lie if I said that. From the first time I met you, you angered, infuriated, and annoyed me more than anyone, especially my family, and at times, even more than Malfoy."

Malfoy? As in Draco Malfoy? How does he know Draco?

His nervousness suddenly disappeared as he gazed intently into my eyes. "But you also make me feel the most wonderful, most satisfied, most complete. When I'm with you, I forget all the darkness in my life. You are y light, my life, and my love."

He pulled a small box from his pocket and opened it.

But I don't see what's inside it, as at that moment, Draco begins banging on the door.

"Hermione! Hermione, get out here now! What's your problem? Alohomora!" He growls exasperatedly, and I hear him stomp away.

As soon as I'm sure he's gone, I rise from the bathroom floor and reenter my room, after locking the door and positioning a chair underneath the knob. Sitting back down on my bed, I gaze down at the ring again.

What was in that box? And what does Alohomora mean?