"You are the love of my life," Y/N said. "I love you."
"If loving me comes with shame," Hermione breathed in a shaky breath. "I don't want your love."
In a matter of seconds, Y/N's world came tumbling down. Hermione's words hit her...
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The crowd was louder than Y/N expected — and Y/N had high expectations. She felt anxious before, yes. But now that it's happening, her nerves gnawed at her and a pit formed in her stomach. The tent remained silent, the only sound being Fleur's footsteps as she moved around. Bagman's commentary. And the cheers, gasps, and yells of the crowd.
Y/N wondered how Evangeline would do — she didn't doubt for a second that Evangeline wouldn't be able to get the egg. Brushing that aside, she imagined the match as she listened to Bagman. "Nasty burn! Wouldn't wanna do that again . . ."
After a few minutes, the crowd's shouts became louder. Which only meant one thing — Evangeline got the egg. After the cheers died down, the judges gave their scores and announced the next champion to step in front.
Fleur gave a slight whimper at the sound of her name as she took a trembling step. Fleur clutched her wand so tight that Y/N worried it might snap in half. When Fleur left, Y/N, Harry, and Krum were the only ones left. Harry and Y/N talked to each other to keep themselves sane, but Krum avoided their gaze.
After Fleur, Krum stood the next. The judges gave their scores for Fleur. Cheers, claps, applause. Krum left the tent. Now it was Harry, and Y/N left. They understood each other's thoughts.
"Y/N, I'm scared," Harry admitted, his voice muffled by the cheers of the crowd.
"Me too," Y/N said, hitting the side of his knee with hers. "Fitting, isn't it? My dragon's water."
"That sucks."
"Right?"
They sat in silence for a few more minutes. Then cheers broke out once more. Y/N and Harry covered their ears with their hands when the Chinese Fireball let out a deafening screech, making them wince — followed by the announcement.
"Harry, good luck," Y/N said when he was one step out.
"You too," Harry said.
"We're getting a Butterbeer after this, right?"
"That we are."
Harry left to fight his dragon, leaving Y/N all alone in the tent. Y/N had her head in her hands. Her heart skipped a little faster than usual. Her teeth hurt at how much she clenched her jaw.
"Now . . . our fourth and final contestant."
Y/N's name was called. She couldn't tell if she was relieved or worried — on one hand, she was relieved that Harry was safe; proud that Harry was faster than the previous champions. On the other, she was worried that she wouldn't be able to do it. Worried that maybe she wasn't strong enough to fight a Dragon. Her thoughts ran back to the time when she lost to the Electro Twins. She failed because she was weak. What if it happened again? In front of everyone too; her pride wouldn't let it live down. Every fiber of her being yelled at her to run away.
