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When the lantern goes out, Cedric finally decides to call it quits.
It's obvious she won't be walking by here today, so he won't get a chance to ‘accidentally’ bump into her.
He’s beginning to suspect she’s taken to avoiding him recently; ever since the second Task, in fact.
If 'avoidance' really is the word he's looking for in this case. It isn't as though they were ever close, or even well acquainted to start with.
Still, he can’t figure out what this is about; why she's giving him the cold shoulder all of a sudden. She always treated him pleasantly before.
Did he perhaps offend her in some way, he wonders? Did he come across as over-eager? Does he somehow remind her of those saddos now, of those boys who are constantly gawking at her, practically drooling when they try too hard to impress her and always end up making complete idiots of themselves instead?
Or does this have something to do with Cho?
Is Fleur convinced that he’s romantically involved with his Ravenclaw friend and is that the real reason why she’s keeping her distance? And if so, does that also mean that she considers him to be the type who’d cheat on a girlfriend?
He isn’t.
He wouldn’t.
And Cho has never been his girlfriend. He can’t deny he’s very fond of her, and the attention she bestows on him is pretty flattering, but he’s not the least bit interested in her in the romantic sense, and thankfully Cho herself seems to understand that now too; finally.
He even thinks there’s someone else she fancies, though he hasn’t a clue who it might be, nor does he want to pry, because then she might question him about Fleur, and well, Fleur—
He's just kidding himself there, isn't he?
Maybe the girl even has a boyfriend back home. Someone that pretty and smart couldn’t possibly be single too.
He shakes his head and grins wryly. All these speculations are getting him nowhere.
Maybe he should just go over and talk to her tomorrow. Tell her he wants to learn French maybe, and ask for her help?
No, that would be too obvious. She's no fool. She'd never fall for that.
Honesty might be the better policy, no matter how daunting it seems, but still—
There's a Hogsmeade weekend coming up. Maybe he should ask her on a date.
Yes, he decides. That's what he'll do, and the worse she can do is to turn him down and then ignore him, just like she's doing now.
Which presently leaves him with everything to gain and nothing to lose, doesn’t it?
Having reached his decision, he nods to himself and feeling less glum than he did a few moments ago, he turns around and heads back inside the castle.