ash .ᐟ

In your defence, you were bored.

Verity couldn’t stop talking about the dating site while both of you were restocking U-No-Poo together. You couldn’t blame her; the wizarding world definitely upgraded once the second wizarding war ended. You're starting to see some wizards start selling pens instead of quills and ink; it was subtle, but it seems like the wizards and witches are starting to like using them. 

“I’m going on a second date with him,” Verity said with a grin, trying to hide her blush. It seems like the dating site really worked for her; Verity recommended it to you once, and you definitely saw the advertisement on the Daily Prophet. 

“The guy you met on that bloody website?” You raised an eyebrow at her with an amusing glance. The blond nodded eagerly before she got interrupted by Fred, “What are you ladies talking about?” 

Both of you and Verity immediately went quiet. Fred is quite noisy when it comes to overhearing his coworkers' conversation and the worst of it, he’s not ashamed of it. Most of the time, he calls it ‘bonding’ towards his coworkers, but to you, he’s just being meddlesome. 

“It’s a girl's talk,” you replied as you crossed both of your arms. 

“No, it’s alright. I feel like we should tell him about the website,” Verity exclaimed. Fred raised both of his eyebrows, you can tell his curiosity piqued as soon as he heard Verity's words. The woman later then continued to tell Fred about a website that some wizard made recently, the main purpose of which was to connect other wizards or witches around the world through the internet. You somehow wonder how Verity managed to find a date from that silly website but alas, you’re happy for her.

“So if I go to this website, I can find a date?” Fred asked as soon as Verity finished explaining to him, “A hot date?” he continued.

“Don’t exaggerate,” you replied. It's almost funny how this guy is clueless when it comes to learning about muggle technologies despite being surrounded by it now. 

The older twin shrugs nonchalantly, “I'm just saying, maybe I could find the one there!” 

“What happened to Angelina?” Verity questions with a glint in her eyes. 

Fred immediately froze, you shouldn’t be surprised anyway. They always had an on-and-off relationship since the 7th year. Everybody knew. No one was surprised. 

“Oi,” a voice called from the side of the shop. It was George’s. “The shelves aren’t going to fill by themself!” The three of you groaned as you and Verity continued your work, while Fred immediately retreated to his office.

—

Looking back, it was a stupid conversation anyway. You’re not really interested in some dating sites or hell—A date that you found online. One of them could be a creep anyway, you thought. Verity was lucky enough to find a decent guy to go on a date with, but you have to admit that the woman could be naive sometimes. Alas, you shook your head and tried to forget about it. 

But sitting on the couch in the living room while waiting for the twins to come upstairs with your laptop. Tempting. Almost tempting, to say at least. You were almost dying of boredom anyway. 

After minutes of silence and contemplating, you finally open your internet browser. In your defence, you were bored. The sound of the keyboard clicking immediately fills the room as you type ‘woothewitches.com’. What a silly name, you thought. 

“Evening,” George greeted you as you heard the door of the flat open. “Hello,” you responded without looking up at him. 

The website itself is all full of pink and hearts. You can see profiles of people lining up on your screen. 

‘Anthony. 26. Half-blood. Likes muggle films.’

Such a performative guy, your immediate thought after seeing the first profile that pops up on your laptop. And before you could see another profile, another pops up on your screen. Asking you to make a profile to see more. 

Clever. 

George immediately exclaimed from the kitchen, filling the silence of the small flat, “Did you know there was a woman who bought fifteen boxes of fever fudge today? I pray to Merlin she’s not using them to poison someone.”

“Yeah, yeah,” you mumbled in response, but your focus has now been distracted by the website. He quickly noticed your indifference; usually, you would engage in conversation and laugh with him. It’s something that George cherishes at the end of the day after a tiring day at the shop.

“What are you doing?” George asked as he sat beside you while eating your leftovers. “Making a profile,” you murmured while typing on your laptop again, “where's Fred anyway?”

He immediately snickers while putting his bowl down, “Going out.”

“Oh?”

“He got a date from a bloody website,“ the younger twin explained as he took a look at your laptop. “You're not actually listening to Verity, right?”

You shrug nonchalantly while you focus on your laptop and the website. But you quickly realise how George wasn't actually around when you, Verity, and Fred were talking about the weird site. 

“How did you know what Verity was talking about anyway?” You raised an eyebrow at him, and he quickly froze, then shook his head in disagreement. Seeing his first reaction was already enough for you to know that he’s hiding it. “Fred told me about it.” 

Fred definitely did not tell him about the website. 

You know that for sure. After all, you’ve been friends with both of the twins since your second year. Fred might be the type of guy who tells everything, but he knows how to use his words. You are certain he just told George that: “I’m going out tonight, I got a date!” And if his night is going well? He’s going to tell his twin about the website and brag about how he can get a date there.

You only scoff in response, of course. “What?” George asked with a frown as he took a quick look at your laptop again but you quickly put your laptop away, not letting him look. 

“Curious much?” 

“Come on, let me help you with that.”

You raised your eyebrows again as you tried your best to hide your smile, “Alright then.” You scroll down as the page asks your gender preference to date, “Male?” George asked. 

“It doesn’t matter,” you mumbled. It doesn’t matter, indeed, because you’re not planning to take this seriously, but some part of you just wants to test the waters with him to see his reaction. 

The next thing the site asks is your interest. Perhaps someone with similar interests might be a perfect match, at least that’s what the website thought. 

You grin as you type, ‘literature, magical creatures, gentlemen’. “Bloody hell,” George immediately commented as he rubbed his forehead. 

“What? It’s honest!” you exclaimed dramatically, but seeing his frustration is almost entertaining to you. “I thought guys like honest women,” you taunted as you could see he tried his best to hide his fuming.  

George crossed both of his arms to his chest, “Just keep it simple, will ya?” 

“It’s my profile, George. Or do you want me to make yours instead?” you asked with a sarcastic grin etched on your face. His face immediately reddened as he argued, “No! Keep going with yours.”

You shook your head and shrugged, “Nope, it’s done.” George leaned in closer instantly, taking a glance at your laptop with a glare. 

A notification immediately pops up on your screen, “Ooh! Look at that, a prince charming is messaging me,” you said with a sarcastic tone, but it seems like he didn’t catch it and scoffed. 

“Let me see,” you moved closer to George as you both opened the message from the site.

ArchieKing79: DTF?

George frowned as he glanced at you, “What does that mean?” But you quickly shook your head and immediately blocked the stranger, “It means he’s asking for sex.”

You can see he almost raised his hand to put down your laptop but instead, he just rubs his forehead again in frustration. The corner of your mouth slightly twitched. For some reason, it’s almost funny to see him getting riled up over this stupid website. 

“You’re kidding,” that’s all the word he managed to say. 

“Obviously,” you answered with a sigh. You turned to him while he leaned back on the couch, “Oh, look! There's another guy—”

“Come on, you know you don’t need that.” George quickly interrupted while carefully closing your laptop on your lap. 

You shrugged again, pretending to be oblivious. “Need what?” 

“A bloody website to find a date,” he groans in exasperation, “your standards are too high anyway.” 

You grinned as you glanced at him, “Obviously.” 

George’s eyes meet yours, and all of a sudden, his bitterness is gone from his face, replaced by a warm look that clearly makes your stomach full of butterflies. 

“I’m just riling you up anyway,” you said, leaning your back on the couch as you nudge him playfully. 

He lets out a bark of laughter, “You are a git.” 

“It worked,” you grin mischievously, “you should've seen your face earlier.” 

It's his turn to nudge your shoulder as you can see his cheeks reddening. Both of your laughter slowly died down, leaving you with the sound of the fireplace and people talking in Diagon Alley. It's rather a cosy silence than an awkward one, something you both enjoy if Fred isn't around. 

“You could've just asked me, you know,” George murmured, his hand reaching towards the strand of your hair and just playing it gently. 

You raised an eyebrow at him, “What?”

“To go on a date,” he said with a sheepish smile, you glance at him as you see George trying to avoid your gaze. It's something that he does every time he's flustered or embarrassed. “You have me right here.”

You blinked in a daze, processing his words slowly, only to make your heart feel warmer, “Did you just—”

“Yeah, yeah. No need to rub that on my face,” he rubs his whole face as if trying to hide the fact that his cheeks are redder than his hair. 

“Oh, George,” you said, leaning on his shoulder with a hint of sarcasm. It’s a tone you often adopt when trying to hide behind George's charm, even though you know deep down that you always fall for it. “You know how to swoon a woman like me.”

He immediately scoffed, his reaction as he found himself stroking your hair again in a gentle manner: “You're absolutely evil.” 

“Well, how could I say no to that?” 

George chuckled, tucking your strand of hair into your ear. “Go on,” he murmured, “say yes.”

You roll your eyes in response while nudging his head away playfully, “Yes.” He glanced at you with an expectant look and continued, “Say ‘yes, I agree to go on a date with George Weasley—’”

“Fuck, no!”

His arm immediately wrapped around your shoulder as he yawns, “You’re in for a treat then.” 

You shook your head, trying to hide the fact that your heart might be beating too fast for your own good. “Great, then. I cannot wait.” 

‧₊˚♪ 𝄞₊˚⊹

The group has planned this road trip for months.

As soon as you heard that Angelina's family has a lake house, you're all excited to go there and spend the summer in a cool lake while enjoying the hot sun. After all, it's going to be the last year in Hogwarts for you all as soon as the summer break is over. So Lee gives the idea to spend the summer at Angelina's lake house.

Thankfully, Angelina's father was kind enough to lend the group a van for this trip. And you, being a muggleborn, same as Lee and Angelina, had no choice but to take turns driving until you reached the lake house. The plan was simple: drive for 4 hours, refill the petrol, and keep an eye on the map.

The problem is, Angelina's lake house is out of nowhere.

And it's definitely a problem because the three of you, being the drivers, sometimes take a wrong turn whenever there are two roads in front of you. Not to mention, Fred and George couldn't keep their mouths shut for the whole ride. So for the entire trip, you all have no choice but to listen to their chatter filled with not-so-funny jokes. It's sort of clear to you that the ride is starting to bore them, so they just did what they had to do. Annoy people, you'd consider.

"For Merlin's sake, can you two be quiet for a while?" Alicia groaned on your shoulder. She's been trying to fall asleep for the entire trip, but Fred has been talking about the time when he and George pranked his poor brother Percy.

"What's the problem, Spinnet? It's a bedtime story!" exclaimed George as he laughed along with his brother. His gaze turned towards you as he asked, "You don't mind, do you?"

You shrugged as you let Alicia lay her head on your shoulder again, "Just let her have her peace."

George playfully scoffed as he heard your response, clearly not impressed by your answer.

"That's a bummer. I'd rather you be the driver instead. I feel sick now!" Fred complained sarcastically. He's fully aware that it's Angelina's turn to drive right now, and he knows that she and Lee are struggling to keep an eye on the map right now.

"I have ears, Weasley."

"Shocking!"

Alas, Angelina just decided to ignore Fred's behaviour. Still, you can definitely see that they're both struggling in front of the car. "Everything alright there?" you asked with concern etched on your face. It may be your turn to keep an eye on the map now. But unfortunately, you can't move since Alicia has finally fallen asleep on your shoulder.

"Can you read the map?" Lee turned towards you as he passed the map. The van stopped while you tried to read the map, and a frown immediately formed on your face. "I'm sure we're close by now?" You raised an eyebrow as you threw the map back towards him.

"I see no lake," George murmured.

"Say, Angelina. How come you have no idea where your lake house is?" questioned Fred while looking out of the window. You're all stuck in the middle of nowhere, few cars are passing by, and the six of you are stuck between two roads given, and you don't know which one to take.

Angelina scoffed as she tried to defend herself, "Do you think I paid attention every time I went to the house every summer?"

"You go every summer and still have no idea where the house is?" Lee asked with genuine curiosity. He frustratingly threw the map to the backseat again. George immediately caught the crumpled paper and sat beside you as he helped you to navigate the road again.

"Bloody hell," you groaned with a sigh as you could feel Alicia shift a bit as you continued to speak, "Just turn right! What the hell are we arguing about?"

Angelina and Lee immediately turned back to you, their eyes widened. "Are you sure you're not bluffing?" You pass the map to Lee again with a glare, "I swear on Merlin.”

Finally, after a minute of discussing, Angelina turned the van on and started driving again. You can feel that you're all already close to the lake house, a hint of relief finally coming through you as you can see a glimpse of the huge lake through the window.

"It's pretty, isn't it?" George asked as he glanced at you, but before you could answer him, a popping sound on the road was followed by a flapping noise.

"Shit!"

"What is that?" Alicia mumbled while yawning, slowly gaining consciousness after sleeping for almost 30 minutes. Angelina is the quick one to panic and immediately hits Lee as she says, "Go check it!"

"Can't. I'm holding a map here so we won't get lost— You check it!" Lee responded as he pointed at you, "Oh, hell no. I can't move!" you reasoned while patting Alicia, who's still half-asleep on your shoulder.

"George? Fred?" You raised an eyebrow at the twins. You can tell that they're starting to bicker again just to decide what's happening to the van. "Get out of the car," George argued while swatting his twin brother, "No! She calls your name first— She wants you to check it!"

"That doesn't make any sense—"

"Are you two seriously arguing about this?" Angelina shouts, still with her panicked tone. Of course, you'd understand why she's panicking, after all, it's her father's van and it took her almost weeks just to get him to convince her that she'll take care of the car. Undoubtedly, she feels like she might face another scolding from her parents again.

You slowly take a glance at George, and surprisingly, it's quick enough for him to return your glance as you nod, wishing him just to check the goddamn car.

"Fine," George grumbled as he slid the van's door. While stepping outside, he checks around the van, they're stuck in the middle of the hill with… A flat tyre on the back of the car.

"Flat tyre!" George shouted, still observing the tyre with a frown. "What did he say?" Fred asked tauntingly inside the van, "A fucking flat tyre! You heard me!" he shouted back.

The people inside the van immediately panicked, you're all in the middle of nowhere and have a flat tyre. That's great, you thought, that's just so fucking great.

While outside, George starts to notice that the van is slowly moving, but instead of going forward… Is it going backwards? Stupidly enough, he immediately ran to the back of the car and tried his best to get in the car.

"The handbrake!"

His voice is muffled inside the car, and it's not helping that Angelina is panicking in the driver's seat. "Is that your lake house, Angie?" Alicia pointed out while rubbing her eyes. You slowly shifted to take a better look at the house. It's true, there's an old house there at the side of the lake.

"Oh— Oh! Yes! That is my lake house!" Angelina cried happily, "We can just walk to the house and leave the van here, right, guys?"

"Hold on, why are we still moving?" Fred frowns while holding his chin up, clearly everyone of you started to notice that, indeed, the van is moving backwards, down the small hill. "You idiot! The handbrake!" Lee exclaims as he finally pulls the brake to hold the van.

A sound of a thud was immediately heard by everyone in the van. You guys must hit something or someone.

"Do you guys hear that—"

"George!" you exclaimed with a pang of worry as you immediately got out of the car, only to find George Weasley lying down on the muddy ground, completely unconscious.

Everyone gets out of the van as soon as possible. "Oh my god, did we just kill him?" Lee asked as he knelt on the ground, observing the poor guy on the ground. "Don't say that," you argued back with a glare, while Fred and Lee just checked on George with no worries at all on their faces. Perhaps you worry too much; after all, George had been through worse, such as getting hit by the bludger in the middle of the Quidditch practice.

"Girls, let's carry him," Fred offered jokingly while he slowly put George's left hand on his shoulder, preparing to swing carry him.

"No thanks," Alicia murmured, and Angelina just nodded beside her.

"You want to help me carry him, right?" Fred turned to you with a smirk. As if he knows something that you don't. It's irritating, you admit, but he's always been annoying when it comes towards you and George. "Why can't Lee help you?" you raised an eyebrow, still eyeing the unconscious George.

"Oh, no, no. He's busy; he'll carry all the luggage we have in the backseat. You will help me, m'lady," he replied smugly as you rolled your eyes. You were so close to slapping him, but decided not to. Perhaps it's best to help one of your closest friends first before taking it all out to his twin brother.

"Just wrap his hand on your shoulder and hold his leg with your other hand," the older twin commanded, and you only nodded in desperation. If George is conscious right now and aware that you were helping him, you know damn well that he's either going to semi-consciously flirt with you, or it's Fred who's going to tease both of you for being 'lovebirds'.

It's sickening.

But it's also sickening that you happen to be head over heels for George. It's never part of your plans, after all, you just happened to be one of his closest friends. But you couldn't help it. You couldn't help but just stare at him while you were helping him with his potion essay, and you couldn't help but fluster every time you caught George staring at you during classes.

"Blimey, how could someone this skinny be this heavy?" you complained while walking towards the lake house, but at the same time, you feel a bit of relief that you're all arrived at the destination safely (except George, of course).

"Where's the key, Angie?" Alicia asked as she put down some of the luggage while admiring the lake. You can tell she couldn't wait to dip into the lake as soon as possible.

"Oh, wait. I must have left it in the van then," Angelina answered while she walked back to the car. Lee, on the other hand, just took a look around the lake house and murmured, "It's a bit creepy, isn't it?"

You scoffed in response to him, "Aren't you a ray of sunshine?"

"Oh, come on! Aren't you a bit scared? A flat tyre? George getting hit? What's next—"

You all immediately turned to Angelina, who was shouting from afar, trying her best not to panic, "Guys! I couldn't find the key!"

Everyone groaned, including you. Perhaps this trip is starting to get doomed. Lee turned towards you and gave his 'I-told-you-so' look.

"Blimey, hold him." Fred removed George's hand from his shoulder and walked back towards the van.

"Hey!" you're about to protest, but it's no use; that boy leaves you with his heavy, unconscious twin brother in your hands on purpose. You immediately struggled to keep holding George and could only keep him from behind by his underarm as his body was limp and heavy in your grasp.

After a while, you can see Fred running back towards the group as he complained, "For Merlin's sake! There are no keys!"

"Are you fucking serious?" Alicia scowled, "because if you do it's not fucking funny!"

Angelina tried to catch her breath as she spoke, "Fuck it! We're breaking in—" she reached out for the nearest pebble and immediately hit the window and broke the glass.

"Bloody hell, woman," Lee murmured. It's actually very rare to see Angelina Johnson crash out like that, at least not in front of the boys.

You raised an eyebrow at her, "Have you ever thought of unlocking charm?" You can feel George slowly sliding down in your arms. After all, holding him through his underarms is not the best way to carry an unconscious person. Not to mention, he's incredibly heavy.

"Can't you mention it sooner—"

"Found it!" cheered Fred as he raised his hand to show the key. Turns out, he's been checking the dried flower pots around the lake house while Angelina has a mental breakdown about her carelessness.

—

The group finally settled inside the lake house, while you and Fred slowly tried to lay George down on the nearest couch. There's still no sign of him being awake anytime soon.

"We're lucky… for now," Lee mumbled behind you. "You gotta stop that!" you raised your voice, putting your hands on your hips.

Alicia enters the living room after putting down her luggage, "Now to think about it, maybe Lee's right. What if bad luck is following us?"

"You all need to stop taking divination class," you frown. "You guys act like Trelawney, I swear to God! It's so stupid, there's no such thing as bad luck—"

"What is that?" Angelina pointed her finger at the window. You, Alicia, and Lee immediately approach her, looking out the window. Sure enough, there's a figure near the van that Angelina parked outside the house. You couldn't tell what it is, but it looks like Bigfoot? A man?

“What the hell?” Lee cursed.

“Don’t be stupid, it’s probably the twins who tried to scare us,” you reasoned, mostly trying to convince yourself that everything’s fine. “Ouch, I’m wounded,” said Fred dramatically. He was actually kneeling in front of George, trying to see his brother's injury, but then he decided to get up and tried to look out at the figure you were all whining about.

Alicia stepped back and groaned, “That’s it, we’re cursed! First, we have a flat tyre and George’s dying, we couldn’t find the key to the lake house, and now someone tried to kill us!”

“Don’t you think you’re all being too dramatic?” you asked the others, but you couldn’t hide the fact that you’re starting to have goosebumps because of the situation.

Then a lightning strike.

Which is odd since it’s summer and now it’s raining. But what makes it worse is that the electricity went off after another lightning strike. You’re starting to think that maybe the others were right. You are all cursed for no reason at all. “That’s it. That’s my final straw,” Lee sighed as he threw his hand in desperation. “We’re trapped,” Angelina murmured, staring at the heavy rain. “Oh, poor Georgie,” she continued. At this point, you couldn’t put up your words anyway.

“Guys?” a voice mumbled weakly.

“It’s like he’s still with us,” Lee said as he put his palms together. The group stared at the window together, watching another lightning rumble for the third time.

“Can I get a glass of water please?” George whispered.

“He was a good man,” Fred joined. The atmosphere is solemn, and a part of you thinks that your friends are a little bit dramatic, but perhaps they're right in some ways. You all truly are cursed by now. “He was,” the others agreed with a sad tone.

“Guys…?”

“Would you shut the fuck up, George?!”

The group immediately turned towards the finally conscious George on the couch. George being finally awake brings a sort of comfort to you; at least you're not so doomed for now. “Now, now. Be careful, head trauma causes memory loss. What if he thinks we kidnapped him?” Alicia asked with genuine curiosity.

“Don't be daft,” you answered as you knelt down to check if he was bleeding or not. “Who's the president of the United States?”

George turned to you with a frown, “I don't know that… Do you know that?”

You shook your head, admitting it was a stupid question coming from you. “Look, I'm fine, I think,” George said as he sat down.

“You think?” you scolded him. Now, everyone stared at him weirdly, “He's showing signs of concussion.” Angelina crossed her arms sarcastically, and the group just nodded in agreement.

“I.. I saw a tunnel,” George mumbled, his gaze turned into a solemn stare. “Only it was made out of a tree… Hundreds of trees are overgrown and intertwined. Then there's a light at the end of the tunnel, and a voice as if from nowhere… Whispering to me… ‘walk towards the light,’ it said.”

You all listened to George ponder in silence, but as soon as he closed his mouth, Fred interrupted, “I'm absolutely starving.”

“Aye, me too,” agreed Lee as he got up and was followed by the others. “Now I wonder where all the food might be,” Alicia mumbled while following the others. The sky is getting darker due to rain, and you can definitely feel another goosebump coming right through you again. It’s also not helpful that the power outage makes the house feel creepier than it should.

—

Now, the situation is that you all forgot to stop at a supermarket just to buy food. Luckily enough, Angelina’s mum packed some instant soup for the six of you to eat for a night. “I made us some broth,” she offered while the others just sat lazily on the couch. “It's called soup,” Fred commented while yawning; his words were mostly just an attempt to get a rise out of Angelina.

After all, it’s just pure boredom right now. No electricity, no food, just stuck in the heavy rain, and what makes it worse is that the lake house is way more creepy at night, especially if there’s no source of light.

“Soup is broth, broth is soup. Vice versa,” she argued, giving out the bowls of soup to each one of you.

“Soup is soup, and broth is something used to poison people in a horror movie,” Lee said as he refused to take the bowl.

Alicia continued, “Seriously, Angie. As if this place isn’t creepy enough!”

You only watch your friends argue while sipping your soup in silence. “It’s freezing,” George whined beside you. Everybody suddenly turned towards him. “There’s no electricity, George,” Lee stated in a bitter tone, “I am so fucking bored!”

“Don’t even start, Lee,” you grumbled. “You’re the one who started with this bad luck bullshit.”

Alicia, on the other hand, just casually wanders around the living room with her wand as the light source. “Bloody hell, look at this!” she exclaimed as she picked up an old photograph. The group immediately approached her with curiosity.

Betty and William. 1941.

“Are they your grandparents, Angie?” you asked, looking at the old couple in the picture. “No, my great-grandparents,” Angelina answered. She looks interested in the picture as well, perhaps she has never noticed her great-grandparents' picture before. Alicia then flipped the picture and gaped, “His dead notice!”

“He died really young,” she murmured, and you all nodded. “William didn’t fight it. He walked towards the light!” George points out with an enthusiastic gaze.

“For Merlin’s sake, will you shut the fuck up about your near-death experience, George?” Fred complained. It’s been an hour and George still couldn’t shut his mouth about a tunnel he saw when he was unconscious, but the five of you decided not to listen to him every time he brought up his tunnel.

Lee stepped back as he turned off the lightning charm on his wand. “Maybe William’s still here.”

“What? Like in one of these vases?” Fred questioned with a frown. “No, I mean his spirit is still here… Maybe he loved Betty so much that he wanted to stay and watch over her.” Lee continued, you couldn’t tell if he’s trying to mess with you or not, but you find yourself leaning toward George's presence just to find comfort. “Hey, you're okay,” he whispered to you, slowly sliding his hand onto yours.

“Lovebirds,” Fred mouthed in front of you both, making you irritated on purpose.

“...Maybe they both are,” Lee mumbled again, “I know this sounds really mad, but I do feel something here… like a presence, it’s like we’re not alone.”

A silence in the room. You all switched up your gaze towards each other, not knowing what to do next.

Until you hear glass smash.

The problem is that there are six of you in the living room. You, George, Angelina, Fred, Alicia, and Lee. No one else. What the fuck could that be? Alicia is the first one to react; she immediately screamed at the top of her lungs and ran upstairs. You and Angelina followed her directly, and you’ve never felt this scared before. Even if it’s one of the twins' and Lee’s prank ideas, you admit this is too far, but seeing Fred and George's reactions, it looks like Lee’s words start to get through to them too.

—

The six of you ended up hiding in the master bedroom. Angelina said that this room also happens to belong to her grandparents. Which is great, that also means this room has been passed down from generation to generation!

But for now, you all are just pathetic teenagers who are trying to hide from whatever the fuck is happening out there. You are even willing to squeeze each other just to fit on the bed. Perhaps sharing a king-size bed with five people is already a bad idea, but you have all agreed for the boys to lie down across you girls.

“They’re angry at us,” Alicia said while hugging a pillow, seeking any comfort from it. “Why would they be angry at us? What the hell have we done to Angelina’s great-grandparents except try to enjoy a nice vacation?” Fred grunted, but his gaze immediately fell towards you and George as he noticed you both were communicating through your eyes.

“What?” George frowned as soon as he realised Fred had been inspecting you two again.

“You and your damn tunnel, that’s what it is,” the older twin grumbled.

Alicia sighed dramatically, “Oh, we will perish here! We will perish in this place!” Lee throws his hands in desperation, “Great. I’m going to die a virgin.”

“To be fair, that was always on the cards,” Fred commented in a low voice.

The sound of thunder rumbling for the umpteenth time made the atmosphere more tense. You slowly try to steal a glance towards George, who’s sitting across from you, only to find he’s been staring at you too. An awkward silence lingered between both of you, not to mention Fred has probably already noticed that you and George are communicating through eyes again, and he’s not going to be silent about it. “Look, we have to keep our wits about us tonight,” you said as you pulled the blanket.

Everyone immediately nodded. “Be alert and be on guard,” Angelina followed while lying down and getting ready to sleep. “Goodnight,” George whispered softly, his voice so low that you’re sure that only you could hear it. You must be tired already. At the end, you’re all exhausted after a long trip and decide to go to sleep (even though the six of you are still scared as hell).

—

Sunlight finally appears after a dark night, and it calms you down as you open your eyes. You were the first one to wake up out of six of you, and the first thing you noticed was that Alicia was spooning you in her sleep. You immediately pulled away and walked downstairs.

The living room is just as you left it last night. What makes you curious is that there is no broken glass to be seen, whereas six of you heard a glass smash last night. You take a look around the house, and it is less creepy than you thought. Perhaps you may have overreacted, but you’d rather blame Lee and Alicia for scaring the shit out of you.

The picture of Angelina’s great-grandparents piqued your interest as you grabbed it. While observing it, you hear a step behind you.

“Well, aren’t you really brave? Wandering about down here on your own,” George chuckled with his hoarse voice as he approached you. “Alicia was spooning me. There’s nothing scarier than that,” you answered as you smiled.

The two of you examine the picture in silence. It wasn’t an awkward silence, just a peaceful one. “They look really happy,” he mumbled, and you nodded in agreement.

“Listen…” George turned towards you nervously. Making you frown as you make eye contact with him, “Something changed when I was standing at the end of that tunnel.”

He won’t stop talking about the tunnel, won’t he?

“You know, the light… The voice, the brush with death. It scares me,” he continued as he stared deeply into your eyes. “But what terrified me the most was all the things I hadn’t done—”

“—Like turning Mr Filch into an ugly toad,” you interrupt unconsciously. The sentence is supposed to stay in your brain, but you somehow managed to blurt it out.

“What?”

You blinked dumbfoundedly, “Err— I remember you always complaining about him and wanting to turn him into a hideous toad.”

“No… I looked into it. It’s illegal, I could end up in Azkaban."

“Wait, really?”

George rubbed the back of his neck as he answered, “Mr Filch is a squib, that’s why it’s illegal— Look, can I just get my point?” You nod your head slowly as you apologise, “Yeah, sorry.”

He clears his throat, preparing himself for whatever he’s about to say. It looks like he’s about to say something serious, by looking at his nervousness and his reddened ears, but you’re not sure by yourself since the only thing he talks about is his near-death experience and the so-called tunnel, “What terrifies me the most was all the things I hadn’t done and all the things I hadn’t said because I’d been too pathetic or too nervous.”

“Hey, don’t say that,” you quickly responded while reaching out to his shoulder and giving him a reassuring squeeze.

George shook his head as he stuttered, “No, no. I… I—”

You waited for his words. It’s very rare for a person like George Weasley to struggle with his own words since he’s always confident about everything that comes out of his mouth. The look of vulnerability is showing on his face, making your gaze soften as you watch him stutter.

“Are you alright?” you asked, trying to lighten the situation.

He then finally burst out with a sigh, “Look, I… I like me… I really do.”

“...Sorry?” A frown creeps onto your face.

Seeing your reactions, he blinked in a daze. At first, he really thought you might take his words the wrong way, but then he realised he might have used the wrong words.

“You! Shit, I meant you. I like you, and I think I’ve really liked you for a long time,” George swallowed as he continued, “And I don't expect you to say anything, seriously. I just want you to know that I think… you're really beautiful.”

You blinked, clearly trying to process everything he said to you. He can be really sweet at any time, and you can melt at his words every damn time. Besides, what are you supposed to say anyway? George Weasley just fucking confessed to you right after his near-death experience.

“Merlin, help me,” he rubs his entire face while trying his best to hide his bashful grin.

You can feel your feet unconsciously move closer towards him right now. Merlin, you don't know what you are doing at this moment. You keep moving closer and closer, the sound of your heartbeat pounding louder inside of you. George is also aware of this tension, and before you know it, your lips meet his.

And it somehow feels so right.

You let out a soft gasp as soon as George kisses you back. It starts as a warm and gentle kiss, until you can feel his tongue slowly seeking entrance into your mouth. What started as an innocent kiss quickly turned into a passionate snog, and he clearly knows how to deepen the moment, as he successfully sets your whole body feeling warm all over.

“What the hell?”

Both of you immediately pull back from each other as soon as you hear the voice right in front of you. It’s Lee, still with messy hair and a yawn on his face, but seeing George and you making out in the living room definitely wakes him up for good. “Lee, I swear if you tell anyone—”

“Merlin’s beard, maybe your head injury was much worse than we thought! And you’re temporarily possessed by whatever evil spirit wanders around this creepy house, which caused you to lose your fucking mind and kiss her!” Lee bluntly explained with a panicky stutter tone, almost like Trelawney in her class (perhaps that’s why you dropped her class). You almost scoff at his words before Lee turns to you with a serious frown, “You have to stay away from George!”

George quickly pointed out as he crossed both of his arms in front of his chest, “For fuck’s sake, you’ve gone bonkers!”

“What’s going on?” Angelina yawned while climbing downstairs, followed by the others behind her. Your bicker with Lee certainly woke the others up. “They snogged! George is possessed by the evil spirit that lingers in this house!”

“Lee!” you and George quickly sneered at the same time.

At this point, you just couldn’t see the group’s reaction to Lee’s exposition. From the side of the room, you can feel Fred’s smirk forming on his face. You don’t need to look at him to see it; he’s just spiritually like that. Angelina, on the other hand, couldn’t help but pique at Lee’s words when he mentioned ‘possessed’ and ‘evil spirit’. The silent morning has now become chaos as soon as Lee exposed that you were making out with George.

“No— I am not possessed by the evil spirit!”

Fred asked with an annoying smirk, “Are you sure they were snogging, Lee?” You almost die of embarrassment.

“Holy shit, is that the evil spirit you were talking about?” Alicia pointed out as she stared outside the window.

“Who?” The six of you immediately turned to the window. To your surprise, there was a tall figure approaching the lake house but you couldn’t see their face, adding to the more eerie feeling that lingered from last night. Lee groaned as he rubbed his forehead in frustration, “Fuck, we are so doomed! I think that’s William!”

“Angie’s great-grandparents?” asked Alicia, as the six of you stood there in panic while the appearance moved towards the house.

The tall frame walked closer to the lake house. You squint your eyes and before you could finally tell the face of the figure, Angelina gasped instantly, “Holy fuck! Is that my father?”

“WHAT?!?”

She rushed to open the door and greet her father in front of the house. “What is he doing here?” Fred murmured as he glanced at the father-daughter moment outside the lake house. “Must be the evil spirit,” you answered mockingly while glaring at Lee, who’s now embarrassed by his antics.

“Morning, lads,” Mr Johnson greeted with a grin, while the five of you just stood there in confusion. “Sorry for scaring you all last night. Angie forgot the key to this house, and it caught me! You’re all teenagers staying here, unsupervised! I couldn’t let that happen!”

Turns out, Angelina indeed forgot her key to this lake house, but luckily Fred found a spare key inside one of the old dried pots (right after she smashed out the window with a pebble). How ironic, you thought. The glass-shattering noise you heard last night was actually a rat, which you spotted just after Angelina’s father had served breakfast to everyone (you guys refuse to eat after that). Eventually, things finally went back to normal, and you get to enjoy summer in a relaxing, not-haunted lake house with your friends—Until you realise that you kissed George earlier this morning.

You immediately rushed to find George, only to find that everyone was at the lake except him. As you’re about to reach the living room, George appears with a towel in his hand.

“Looking for someone?”

You grin slowly as you respond, “You almost frightened me.”

George chuckled, leaning against the wall while towering over you with his goody-goody smile. You almost want to remove that face from him and just kiss him again, but alas, you tried your best not to act impulsively again. “I’m sorry about earlier,” you murmured quietly while crossing both of your arms as you turned around to see the others near the lake.

“Don’t apologise,” George answered with laughter, “Lee ruined it. I’ll never forgive that git.”

You smile at his response as an awkward silence lingers around you both. There’s nothing much to say anyway, you thought. But something inside you wished for something else.

“I quite enjoyed it,” he continued while rubbing the back of his neck.

You looked up to him with a sheepish smile, “Yeah?”

“Yeah.”

A sound of splashing can be heard from outside as you hear your friends finally dip into the lake, but none of that matters to you right now. “I’d love to do that again, perhaps when it’s just the two of us and no ghost talking around us,” George offered as he placed his towel on his shoulder.

“How about a date then?” you offered, trying your best not to feel giddy. “As soon as the semester starts, at Hogsmeade.”

The younger twin smirked immediately, clearly amused by your offer. “Deal!”

“Now let’s head to the lake before everyone starts to suspect anything weird,” George immediately takes your hand, and both of you walk towards the other.