Elusive // The Weasley Twins

76. Admittance

George was patiently waiting for Cosette to ask for her wand back.

He had a perfectly scripted plan in his head for when it would happen. He knew she was stubborn, but he had been relying on the moment that she realized she couldn't live without her wand anymore. Magic flowed through her veins, it was only a matter of time until she remembered that.

George was giving Cosette the space she needed. He was going to let her use this time to figure out what it was she wanted from him and he wasn't going to rush her. Eventually, she would have to come back and talk to him and even if it wasn't about their relationship, they would still have to talk.

And he wasn't going to let her slip away from him again.

Not anymore.

So everyday, George waited just a few minutes extra after closing the shop just in case Cosette was waiting for the shoppers to leave to talk to him. Before he went to bed at night, he left the light in the living room so Cosette could see it from the streets of Diagon Alley. He continuously woke up earlier than normal, anxious and eager for that day to be the one where he would see Cosette.

If he was being honest with himself, he wasn't sure how long it would take until she finally came around, but at the two week mark when George sat in his office, working on the schedule for the following days he heard a faint knock on his door and he just knew.

With the door slightly ajar, George lifted his head up and waited for it to be pushed open and when it finally did, there she was.

"Setty," his lips curled into a smile and for the first time in two weeks it felt like he was finally breathing fresh air. He stood up from his chair, but he didn't cross the floor to greet her. George didn't want to do or say anything that would send her running again.

"Hi," she said quietly, her hand still on the handle. She didn't step into the office, choosing to remain in the doorway instead. She swallowed nervously, fiddling with her thumb on her other hand. That wasn't a habit George had known her to have which left an uneasy feeling in his stomach.

He cleared his throat, "How are you? How's Nick?" God this was hard. All he wanted to do was grab her and kiss her up against the wall, but he fought the urge because he knew now was not the time or place.

George knew how tightly wrapped around her finger he was, but he wondered if Cosette was aware of the effect she had on him.

"Fine," she answered with a faint nod. Her eyes trailed around the office, not once landing on his. She was nervous about something, that much was clear. "I won't keep you long, I just need my wand back."

Her voice was slightly raspier than normal. Had she been crying? Maybe that was why she was avoiding looking at him, "Are you okay? You sound sort of-"

"Just got a bit of a cold," her smile was forced and her answer was very obviously a lie, but George didn't push any further. There was no doubt in his mind that these last two weeks were strange for her. "Anyway, my wand?"

With a quick conjuring charm, Cosette's wand appeared on his desk. He picked it up and held it out towards her, but Cosette seemed hesitant as she stepped further into his office. She made sure to keep distance between them, stepping back immediately after taking the wand from him.

She spun it slowly in her palm before looking up at George, "Thank you."

The second that she started to retreat out of the office, George acted fast, "Wait! Please don't-" he shook his head, desperate to keep her from leaving. "Just stay, won't you? Can we talk?"