Everything Changes // Fred Weasley

chapter 24: an extremely boring yet equally eventful second task

February 24th, 1995

After that night in the greenhouse, things between Fred and I changed for the better. Things were as perfect as they could be when half of the relationship only existed to a select few. Because of this particular obstacle, Fred and I decided it would be fun to keep our relationship a secret, like one big prank being pulled on all of our friends. Although, after the first week of attempting to keep this secret, I was sure that everyone knew.

We were absolute rubbish at hiding it.

The first class after Valentine's day, Fred forced George to switch seats with him, despite the fact that George would now be sitting with Angelina, who had known them for almost six years now and could easily tell the difference between the two by their mannerisms alone.

It was lovely though, sitting next to Fred, but it was far too obvious.

Even Snape met the two of us with raised brows, eventually deciding that we weren't worth his time, and ignoring us altogether.

After that one magnificent class period, Fred and George went back to their original seating arrangements. I found myself filled with an unreasonable amount of jealousy the next time I went to potions, staring at Fred while he was laughing with Angelina as they always did. Every now and then, though, he'd sneak a quick glance back at me, curving his mouth into a soft smile and winking quickly before turning back to Angelina. 

It was much easier to be close to Fred during meal times. No one thought it was weird if he sat on the other side of me, allowing me to continue the charade of Naomi above the table, but under the table, his hand was on my thigh, or laced in my own, our ankles twisted beneath the bench.

It was exhilarating, having yet another secret to keep within this castle. At least this one would have less repercussions if it was leaked, and it was much more fulfilling than pretending to be Naomi.

The greenhouse became our own sort of secret oasis. A perfect escape from the hustle and bustle of the castle and the prying eyes of all of our friends. We spent almost every night there after that very first night. Fred even transfigured a few of the pillows into a mattress so we wouldn't have to sleep on the floor any longer.

By the time the second task rolled around only a couple weeks after Valentine's day, I was sure that at least Naomi knew, but she was too considerate to say anything about it.

"Are you sure you don't want to go?" I asked Naomi that morning. I had already gotten ready and was about to head out the door, but I felt obligated to ask. She had told me weeks ago that I could go to the second task of the tournament, but I still felt horrible making her miss out on such an important event. "I really don't mind staying up here." I added, placing my jacket down on my bed.

"It's fine, Gem." She replied sweetly, picking my jacket back up and handing it to me. "I'll go to the last task." She continued, "Besides, Fred's been talking about this all week."

She said this last bit with a sly smile on her face, her eyebrows raised in an accusatory style.

"Why should I care what Fred says?" I replied, far too quickly.

Naomi laughed softly, turning away from me and shaking her head.

Yeah. She definitely knew.

I ignored her, throwing on my jacket and pulling my hat over my hair, making my way down to the common room. I was later than I had intended, since I spent more time getting ready than I would like to admit.

Yet another reason Naomi definitely knew that Fred and I were more than we were letting on.

"There she is." George said, hopping up from the couch as I turned the corner into the common room. "Freddie here was worried sick you were gonna stand him up."