Chapter Text
Ron didn’t understand what went wrong in his relationship with Lavender. They’d been dating for a year and their relationship seemed great. Lavender would possessively fawn over him and call him pet names, and Ron…got the snog with her all the time.
His thinking was cut short by Harry and Hermione walking through the portrait hole into the Gryffindor common room.
They both walked over to the couch and looked happily over to Ron, before noticing the face he was making.
“What’s wrong mate?” Harry asked, a concerned look on his face.
Ron looked at each of them and as they sat down Ron explained that after almost a year of dating, Lavender had dumped him.
They sat in silence, each one of them mulling it over for a moment, before Hermione spoke.
“You should have listened to me, I knew she wasn’t worth it from the start.” said Hermione
“You know how she goes on and on about Professor Trelawney”
Harry cringed, over the past several years, their Divinations teacher Professor Trelawney, had time and time again, predicted Harry’s impending demise.
Ron snorted, “Yeah, she must have read “Unfogging the Future” about a million times.”
“Plus she never could understand that me and Ron are just friends.” Hermione piped back up again.
“Oh come on now Hermione, that’s not fair, you know she’s gotten over that.” Ron said.
“I wouldn’t be so sure of that, she hardly talks to me when we’re all together, and she always wants to come with us if we go to try to do something alone together.” She said.
Ron furrowed his eyebrows and sprawled himself across the couch, laying his legs across Harry’s lap, and nearly swiping Harry’s glasses clean off his face.
“Hey!” The dark haired boy complained.
“Oi, I’m in distress here.” Ron retorted.
“That’s hardly a reason to nearly take my eye out.” Harry said, shoving Ron playfully.
“I’m just so…confused.” Ron said with a sigh
“What else is new?” Said Hermione with a grin, causing Harry to smirk.
“Haha, you’re hilarious, but I'm serious guys.” Said the ginger boy.
He covered his hands with his face and let out a muffled groan, to which his friends reacted with sympathetic looks.
“Why are women so bloody confusing?” Ron asked after a moment, to nobody in particular.
Hermione was about to snap back at him when she noticed the look on his face.
“What if I’m just bad at love?” He asked.
“You aren’t bad at love Ron.” Hermione answered.
“Yeah? Well I thought I was in love with Lavender, and I thought she was in love with me, and then she dumped me, so clearly i'm not a great boyfriend.”
Ron’s words hung thickly in the air, neither of the friends daring to try and put a positive spin on things.
The silence continued until Harry spoke again.
“I know what will cheer you up Ron.” He said, and then began to search for something.
“What are you doing?” The redhead inquired.
“Looking for a space bit of parchment.” The boy replied.
“Oh, I've got some right here!” Said Hermione, picking up a brown satchel filled with what seemed to be books, and apparently, parchment.
She handed a sheet over to Harry, as he sat at the table behind the couch with a quill in hand, and an ink well in front of him.
“What are you doing Harry?” Ron asked curiously, sitting up to observe the boy more closely.
“I’m writing to Sirius and I’m telling him I want to spend the summer staying with you at The Burrow.” Harry said, while scratching away at his parchment with his right hand.
Ron’s face lit up. Harry was right, that was just what he needed, a friend to cheer him up. Ron looked over to Hermione, who seemed to be thinking about whether or not this was a good idea.
“Harry, won’t you miss being with Sirius and Remus over the holiday?” She asked.
“I’ll still go and visit once and a while, but for now, I think our top priority should be helping Ron get over Lavender, and have a good time.” The dark haired boy said, still scribbling away.
“OUR top priority?” She said, with a puzzled look on her face.
“I can’t spend all summer away from my parents, Harry.” Hermione said it in a tone that both Harry and Ron had heard too many times before.
“I have studying to do for next term, I-” She was interrupted by the screeching of Harry’s chair as he stood up, letter in hand.
“Hermione, I know you want to study all summer and spend time with your parents, but as Ron’s best friends, it’s only right that we should be helping to cheer him up after a clearly devastating event.”
Harry and Hermione shared a look and Harry sat down on the couch next to Ron again.
“This summer is going to be great Ron, the whole holiday at the Burrow with your best mates!” said Harry.
Hermione made a disapproving sound, but then smiled a bit as if giving into Harry’s plans.
Ron sat up, “Yeah, a summer to do what I want, a summer free of girls!” He said, truly smiling for the first time in the conversation.
Hermione cleared her throat loudly and glared over at him.
Ron rolled his eyes, before adding “Besides you Hermione.” with a sigh.
They all smiled. With a week of classes left, now all they had to do was finish the school year.
The week passed in a flash, and soon it was the last day, and Harry and Ron were waving their wands to finish packing their bags before getting the train back to London.
Ron had managed to avoid Lavender for the past week, but he was still mulling over his relationship with her.
To be honest, he wasn't sure he was in love with Lavender. She was pretty, nice enough, and cared about him, but there was just something off about being with her.
Nevertheless, Ron still felt their relationship ending to be a great loss. She had been his first in everything relating to romance, and it was nice to have a girlfriend, something Fred and George couldn't make too much fun of him about.
But they had been dating for almost a year, and Ron felt like surely that should've been a good sign, if he had been a bad boyfriend wouldn't Lavender have ended it earlier?
"Hey" Harry said, turning around to face his redheaded friend, seemingly done with his packing.
"Huh?" Ron said.
"Are you alright?" Harry asked, in a concerned voice.
"Yeah, yeah fine, just my head hurts a bit is all." Ron said, smiling weakly.
Seamus, who was also packing near his bed called over in a playful voice, "Still crying about Lavender?"
"Come off it Seamus" said Dean, swatting his friend in warning.
Seamus looked back over to Ron, "I didn't mean it like that mate, she was mad batty anyway, most girls are you know." he said.
Dean shook his head in annoyance and walked toward the door, "Everyone ready to go now?" he asked, as Ron piled the last few belongings into his trunk.
After a chorus of affirmatives from all the voices of the boys in the dorm, one by one they carried their stuff out of the room, and Ron realized excitedly, the summer that lie ahead of him. what better way to get his mind off of his love life, than to spend all his time with his friend Hermione, and the person that knew him best, his best mate, Harry.