Worst Birthday

It was Friday evening, the night of her birthday party her friends are throwing for her. She was in her bedroom tossing clothes out of her closet, Fred on her bed watching in amusement. At least a dozen clothes were already lying on the floor, scattered around her.

"You look beautiful in anything, love, just pick something you're comfortable in."

Leah was never a blushing person, but the last week Fred is making her blush more and more, not as much or as red she could blush but still, she was happy her head was still in her closet when he said that.

"They always do a dress code, now it's red and black but still very posh." She rolled her eyes as she poked her head out of the closet. She pulled out a red dress and frowned at it. "Maybe this one?" She whispered to herself before she disappeared in the bathroom.

When she came out wearing the little red lace dress with a plunge neckline, sleeves that just covered her shoulders, Fred stopped breathing as he took her in as she was putting on her heels. When she looked back up, she saw him staring.

"What? Do I need to pick something else?"

"No." He croaked out, the famous Weasley blush creeping up again. He stood up from the bed and stopped right in front of her. "You look stunning." He took in a deep breath as he looked her up and down, stopping back at her eyes. "If it were up to me-" He graced his fingers over her cheek. "You wouldn't be leaving this room."

Her breath hitched at the look he gave her and for the first time she didn't have a reply because she was confused; one time he's telling her things like this and the other he says he just wants to be friends. She closed her eyes and whispered. "Can you hold my hand, like at the burrow?"

Fred reached over without saying anything and wrapped his hand around hers, squeezing it as hard as he could. He knew it worked from the moment her eyes found his again, a smile on her lips. He took in that smile, those eyes, just everything about her.

After a long moment, the bell rang, and Leah stepped back. "We should get going."

"Hm, yeah." He looked down at his own clothes. "Do you think they will let me in?" He grinned.

"I think that won't be a problem." She chuckled.

"Good, don't want to leave a pretty lady alone at the party all night." He winked as she put on her black leather jacket.

"Come on, before the cab driver leaves." She held open the door and they walked down the steps.

"I don't think I'll ever get used to a car ride." Fred said holding his stomach.

"If I can get used to using the floo, you can get used to a freaking car ride." She rolled her eyes, playfully at him. And started walking to the large house the driver stopped in front of.

"Wow! They throw you a party in a mansion?!" Fred said as he looked over the large white brick mansion with two fountains in the front yard.

"It's my friend, Whitney's house. Her parents' house to be exact, they work in the music business."

"Very lucrative business, so it seems." Fred gawked as they passed ugly ass golden lion statues.

"Hm, yeah. It's a very showing-everyone-how-much-money-I-have family." She crunched up her nose to the statues.

"How do you know Whitney?"

"School, we went to the same prep school. Whitney isn't that bad though, her brother is way worse." She said is she reached the large double front doors.

Before she had time to knock, the door swung open. In the doorway, a tall girl with a brown pixie, wearing a floor length black dress with red jewellery.

"Lee! HAPPY BIRTHDAY" The girl cried out as she flung herself around Leah.

"Hey Whit, you'll have to wait until midnight." She smiled as she padded her back.

"Never too early to celebrate. I haven't seen you in forever."

"You saw me at The End a few weeks ago." She pointed out.

"Until you disappeared on me with Loyd's cousin." Whitney started fanning herself with her hand, Leah saw in Fred in the corner of her eye, jaw clenched. "Fuck, he was gorgeous! I was so jealous of you."

"You can pick anyone you want. Just bat those expensive fake lashes and they fall right to their knees." She teased as Whitney locked their arms and walked in. The entrance was big, it was bigger than her flat all together. It was already filled with people she didn't know as the music blared through the house.

"Only if they don't spot you first." She said looking around. "Come on, no one we know is here." She pulled her at the entrance hall to the sitting area. Fred stuffed his hands in his pockets as he followed the girls.

"She invites people you don't know?" Fred whispered a bit accusingly.

"That's Whit, she's a people person. She says she invites them to broaden our horizons." She grinned, Fred just pursed his lips as he looked around the big crowded house. Large chandeliers hung from the ceiling, shaking a bit from the music. Staff passing out drinks and finger food as they walked around the house. They stopped on the terrace, that was decorated with lights.

"The birthday girl is here!" Whitney sang to the group outside. The group turned and began singing happy birthday loudly as they approach. The group was mainly men, Whitney and Leah the only two girls. Leah was being passed around the group as they congratulated her, kissing her on the cheek, or bowing deeply and kissed her hand. When she reached the last one, her heart stopped a second.

Nate, her ex, was standing in front of her; his hazelnut eyes fixed on her blue ones, his wavy brown hair had grown out a little, so it just reached the back of his neck. He smiled at her and before she knew what he was doing he kissed her, catcalls coming from behind them. Before she could push him away, something flew at Nate's head. Nate looked around confused before turning his attention back to her.

"Happy birthday, love."

"Yeah, thanks." She grunted as she pushed him away. "I haven't seen you in over a year and you think you got just go and kiss me?"

"Whit told me you were single, so yeah." He grinned.

"First of all!" She said, stabbing her finger in his chest. "You lost the right to kiss me a long time ago! Second!" Nate's grin faltered fast, while Fred's grew, as Nate stumbled back. "You have no business calling me love." Fred's eyes widened as the wind started to pick up around her and Nate. He recognized a surge of uncontrolled magic radiating from her as his palm starting to sting. "And third, if you ever touch me again, I will cut of that little thing in your pants that you call an anaconda." She laughed, looking down to his pants with a cocked eyebrow. She turned and saw her friends look at her; partly in shock and partly in amusement. Fred on the other hand looked at her curiously.

"You just go screw all the blokes in there then!" Nate called out. "I heard about your one-night stand with Jackson and dressing up like a slut like that!"

Leah turned, already her hand in a fist when Fred had charged for him. And instead of going through him, they collided, making them crash to the ground. The others all looked in shock as Nate seemingly just fell to the ground. Whitney stood up from her seat, giving the man on the floor a pointed look.

"Aiden, Zion? Could you escort that scum bag out?"

"Our pleasure."

The two men picked up her angry and confused ex from the ground and ushered him of the property. Fred had already clambered back up to his feet, glaring at the man.

"I'm sorry, Lee. I didn't invite him."

"It's okay, it's not your fault. I'm just going to freshen up." She smiled at the pixie haired girl before she walked back in the house, followed by Fred.

She didn't stop until she reached an empty bathroom on the first floor. She closed the door behind Fred and started pacing, Fred watching her going back and forward.

"I hate him!" She yelled. "I'm sorry, Fred."

"What are you sorry for?" He asked stepping in front of her to make her stop pacing. When she turned, she looked up in his blue eyes.

"Taking you to this party. Nate..."

"Nate's an ass." Fred said angry. "He's your ex?"

"Yeah." She said putting her hands on the back of her head, through her hair, looking down.

"Leah, love. Sit down with me." Fred said gently. She saw him sliding down against a Victorian bathtub, she pulled her hands out of her hair and sat down next to him. "Want to tell me about it?"

"We were together for two years."

"That's a long time." Fred whispered.

"We met in college. The last few months of our relationship it changed, then my Nan died and he completely abandoned me. He went on a ski trip with his buddies, he didn't even come back until after the funeral. So, the moment he was back I broke things off, haven't seen him since then, it was a messy breakup."

"Did you love him?" Fred asked, afraid of the answer.

"I thought I did." She said locking her eyes with him. Until I met you, she thought to herself. "He tried to get me back for months, calling me, sending me flowers. It just made me madder. I didn't hear from him in months and now -"

"He just shows up at your party."

"Yeah. You didn't have to jump him." She looked at him grinning. "I had my mean right hook ready."

"Oh, I know, I saw." Fred chuckled. "But I got so mad. The way he talked to you; I needed to do something."

"My knight in shining armor."

"Anything for milady." He smiled before his expression turned serious. "Leah... when you were telling him off... the wind started to swirl around you and him; I saw, I felt magic coming from you." He turned his palm up, showing her his crescent scar, the white lines more distinct then normal. "The scar, it started to sting."

Leah frowned as she laid her hand next to his, her lines too were clearer. "I don't understand." She whispered.

"Me neither, I hope that Sunday will bring more answers."

"Maybe we should head home..."

"No, it's your birthday."

"My birthday is tomorrow." She smiled. "Besides the only one I want to spend my birthday with, the only one I would spend all of my time with is sitting right next to me." She traced her fingers over his. Fred swallowed at her confession, not because he didn't feel the same, but for her to actually tell him in such an honest and easy way, it shook him. But because he didn't know what to say, he botched it up by pulling his hand away and saying.

"And George." With a flat voice.

She looked at him surprised, hurt. "And George." She nodded before she stood up and walked out the bathroom.

"Fucking idiot!" He grunted, hitting himself on the head. He quickly scrambled from the bathroom floor and ran in the hallway, but he didn't see her. He checked all the open rooms before he headed down the stairs, just walking through people to get to her as soon as possible.

Then he found her, at the bar as she took two shots of some muggle liqueur back-to-back with Whitney. She pulled a face as she liquid slides down her throat before her friend pulled her to the dance floor. Fred stepped closer as he watched her dance with the pixie-haired girl. Her red dress floating around her as she spun around, she laughed her beautiful laugh as Whitney whispered something in her ear. All the guys around the two girls were watching them with lust in their eyes, Fred couldn't blame them. He couldn't take his eyes away from her either, it was hypnotizing. She was swaying her hips on the music, here hands going through her strawberry blonde locks. The guys around them were getting closer, trying to dance subtly to them. Whitney was the first to find a tall dark-haired man to dance with, leaving Leah to dance by herself, eyes closed as she swayed on the music. But that didn't take long as a guy approached her, asking her to dance probably. For a moment it looked like she was about to turn him down, but then the same hurt expression crossed her face and she said yes. Fred had to watch her dance with some rich, handsome bloke and it was all his fault.

After about half an hour later, or what felt like more than a decade for Fred, she excused herself as she went to the bar. She grabbed a bottle of water before she walked out the room. Fred hurried after her, she looked over her shoulder to him, with sad eyes, when suddenly it happened, a door closed between them. Panic started to form in his chest as he couldn't see her anymore. He ran to the door afraid he might disappear. He was just about to put his head through when it opened, revealing Leah in front of him. He saw her taking a breath of relief before she turned on her heel and walked out the house.

We can all agree Fred had long legs, but still he had a hard time keeping up with her. Her fast determent step causing more and more space between them. Fred had to run to catch up, he finally caught up with her on the Kingston Bridge.

"Leah, wait!" He called only a meter or two away from her.

Leah took in a breath before she stopped and turned. "I just want to go home."

"Leah, I-" A guy on a motorcycle drove by fast, honking. Leah got startled and she tripped on a loose brick behind her, falling over the railing of the bridge. "LEAH!" Fred called as he ran to her. He reached his hand out and grabbed her hand in his before she would plunge in the water, she didn't go through, it was solid in her hand. The most solid he had felt her. He pulled her back over the railing, bringing her close to his chest, both trembling. Leah looked up at him with large eyes as she touched his chest.

"Fred..." She whispered, letting her arms glide over his chest, his arms. Fred looked as surprised as she, looking down as her hands explored his body. Then suddenly she took a step back, unshed tears in her eyes. Fred looked at her, panicked as she stepped away from him, he could finally touch her, and now she was slipping away. "Since you don't disappear anymore when we separate, you can go to George."

"Leah." Fred said with a small voice afraid of what she meant.

She shook her head at him, looking to the ground. "No. I – uhm – I thought..." She shook her head again, trying to get her head clear, before looking up at him angry. "Is that what it was all about? Getting close to me, flirting, whatever, just so I would help you?!" She yelled on the empty bridge, her voice echoing far into the distance.

"No, of course not!" He stepped closer. "Leah, please."

"What? What was it then?" She looked at him as her heart clenched.

"I- I" Fred stammered. He didn't know why he just didn't tell her, but the words couldn't, wouldn't come out.

"Never mind, you played me." She took a step back, the wind started to circle her again as her anger flared up. "You knew I don't let people in my life easily! You knew how I... You just hoped to get a good shag out of this when you got back, didn't you?" She turned again as the tears started to fall.

"Leah." Fred's voice barely above a whisper.

"You don't have to come this Sunday, I'll use the floo at the Leaky Cauldron. You can tell George, he's off the hook too. Bye, Fred." And she walked away, disappearing in the night. Leaving Fred behind on the dark and empty bridge, feeling more alone than he had ever felt.