keegan delaney has always been a part of george weasley's life. they were never close, though they both were always there for the important moments. it's only after hogwarts when keegan gets a job in a cafè right across from weasley's wizard wheezes...
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
CHAPTER THREE: HONEY BOY (trigger warning: mentions of ptsd, death and signs of distress)
■■ ■ ■ ■
THERE WAS A MOMENT in time where Keegan Delaney wondered if her feelings for Cedric Diggory could ever be anything more than platonic. It was the beginning of their fifth year and they'd just returned back to Hogwarts. They were sitting by the Black Lake, the sun shining down on them. Cedric was laughing at something dumb Keegan had said, his head of bronze curls thrown back as he grinned. Keegan paused in her own laughter to look at him, to smile, and she wondered if the love she had for him would ever be anything more. She knew their mums often joked about it but it was the first time Keegan had ever given it any genuine thought.
The idea just didn't resonate with her, though. She loved Cedric with every piece of her heart but she knew she wasn't in love with him. Or at least anything close to genuine love that a fifteen-year-old could possibly experience. He didn't have red hair or a cheeky grin. He didn't sport red and gold with such pride that made Keegan question her own feelings towards her house. His laugh didn't make her chest warm up or her cheeks turn red. He made her happy, yes, but in the way that a best friend would. Not a lover.
Looking back on it two years later, Keegan questioned how the ache in her chest would feel if she had loved Cedric in that way. It was hard enough losing her best friend. She wasn't sure how she would have coped if she'd lost a boyfriend too.
Keegan remembered every memory she had of Cedric with perfect clarity. Every joke, every laugh, every tear. The good moments, the bad moments, the times in between. The hugs, the rants, everything. Sometimes, it made her feel happy, she had so many memories of such a brilliant boy to honour and cherish. Other times, it made her heart thrum with longing, pining for a boy who she would never get to see again. It tainted her fondest memories with a layer of sadness she just couldn't shake away.
Take now, for example.
Keegan Delaney was dreaming. She'd spent so much time pouring over her textbooks that she barely noticed the sky grow dark outside as her eyes slipped shut. The darkness shifted and soon Keegan was back by the Black Lake. Her skin was glowing with warmth from the afternoon sun, her black and yellow tie loose around her neck much like Cedric's own tie. He was sitting right beside her, so real that Keegan almost forgot what was waiting for him in the years to come.
"Keegs," Cedric snapped his fingers in front of her face, his laughter fading to faint chuckles as he caught his friend's lingering gaze. "Hello? Earth to Keegan?"
Keegan just blinked at him, sparking another round of laughter that she soon joined in on despite her dazed state. It quickly faded, and Cedric rested his head on her shoulder with a content sigh. "Do you ever wonder what our future holds?"
