She had not considered her words before they came tumbling out of her mouth, as she was prone to do. Thinking was not something that came naturally to her, as she tended to rely on action above thought. He had tried to stop her, but she knew she had to keep going or she would swallow it all and let him go and never fix anything and then they would never see each other again until an awkward run in ten years down the run and he’d be married with kids and she still wouldn’t have a real job and everything would be super awkward and-
Dude, stop.
She managed to clamp her mouth shut at about the time her brain managed to stop itself from going down an irrational track – something she was not capable of doing very often. He grabbed her shoulders, massaging them to bring her comfort. She looked up searchingly into his face, wondering why he wasn’t looking at her. Had she disappointed him that much? Maybe… she really hadn’t considered it… but maybe he really had been hurt by her? She had assumed that it had just been manly, professional pride that had been bruised, but perhaps… perhaps their ‘relations’ (ugh) had really messed with him.
It was only then that Dom remembered the little admission he had made the night of the Yule Ball. Declan was a man used to being left high and dry. And she should have thought of that before she let it get as far as it did. Because, even though it made perfect sense to do the deed and leave it at that, it was probably harder for a man who was used to being treated like he wasn’t a permanent sort of guy.
He wasn’t looking at her because she was a painful reminder.
He took her hands and she looked down at them, before slowly lifting her eyes back to look at him. His eyes were still cast downward and his tone was still full of sincerity as he apologized for what he had not done. Dom took in a deep breath and stepped forward, pulling one hand away to bring it to his face. Her fingers gently rubbed up his jaw line as she forced her gaze to meet his. Her big blue eyes blinked as she squinted at Declan.
“I’m sorry,” Dom said, rubbing her thumb across his cheek. She slowly reached up and placed a gentle kiss against his lips. It was short, it was quick, but it meant more than just a night. It was one friend trying to convince another of deep-rooted affection, or strong belief, of deep remorse.
She pulled away and dropped her hand. She strode over to the door, beating a fist against the door. “Peeves! I’m telling the Baron about what you did in the girls’ loo!” There was a click and the door opened, though Peeves was obviously hiding. Dom took a step into the doorway and looked back at Declan.
“-But I’d break your heart.”
And you deserve better than that.
She gave him a rare look of seriousness, and walked away.
by Dom Weasley Sun Jun 14, 2015 4:49 am
