What Could Have Been, Should Have Been

Disclaimer-I own nothing. All rights belong to JK Rowling and Warner Brothers. No profit is being made.

Author's Note- So this is my response to JK Rowling announcing that she regrets the Ron/Hermione relationship in the books. To which I say I totally agree. I ship Ron/Hermione because it's canon but I have always and still to do this day believe the real relationship was Harry/Hermione. Hope you enjoy and please R/R. This story takes place a little over a year after the Battle of Hogwarts.

"Harry?" she whispered.

Her whisper in any other situation wouldn't have been heard, if it wasn't for the unbearable silence that was only interrupted by their soft breathing and pounding hearts.

"Yes?" Harry whispered back taking in the room and avoiding her gaze he knew she maintained.

She took a deep breath folding her hands over her skirt twisting the ring she now wore on her finger.

"Do you feel. . . Do you think that," she started but then pursed her lips together as if willing the words she was about to speak away.

"Do I feel what?" asked Harry wearingly.

Harry was tired. He didn't want to hear it anymore. The constant boasting of Mrs. Weasley about Ron and Hermione's engagement, Ginny's not so subtle hints regarding their own relationship, the ache in his heart that hadn't ceased since he heard the news. Harry wasn't just tired, he was exhausted. Physical pain was something he was very used to, but this pain, the pain that he felt deep within his heart was something unbearable.

Hermione sat there with her lips still pursed.

There was not much more Harry could take.

"Hermione, this is getting nowhere. You haven't spoken to me in weeks, avoiding me at all costs, owl me so we can schedule a visit and now you won't talk to me. So if you'll excuse me, I should be going," said Harry while standing up, putting his cup of tea firmly on the table.

"No! Please. I have to talk to you," exclaimed Hermione while standing up herself.

"There's not much talking going on here is there?" stated Harry. He knew he was being short with her but the tension was thick.

She stared right at him, took a deep breath and uttered something he never would have thought she would say.

"Do you think you and I could have ever been something? Like what you have with Ginny and what I have with Ron,"

Shock. That was the only emotion he could feel. Out of all the things she could have said, that was the last thing he thought she would have said. Harry answered the only way he could.

"No," he said as he watched her face contort with heartbreak.

"The relationship I want with you is nothing like what you have with Ron and what I have with Ginny. It's so much more than that. It's something I've always wanted but never thought was possible." He told her softly.

He watched as her brown eyes glistened with emotion.

"Why didn't you ever tell me?" she asked.

"What could I have said Hermione? Your relationship with Ron seemed inevitable. It may sound odd, but I knew you were Ron's girl since first year. Yes we were young and relationships were not even in our thought processes yet, but I knew! I couldn't touch that," Harry explained.

"Couldn't or wouldn't?" she asked. He stared at her blankly.

"What is that supposed to mean?" he asked her.

"Couldn't come between what Ron and I had, or wouldn't come between it? Come on Harry, we always synced more than I ever did with Ron and the way you with Ginny. If it was something you always wanted then why did you sit back" She stated sitting on the couch, patting the seat next her asking him to join her. He did.

"Well you gave me no indication for me to believe that we had any sort of relationship other than best friends," exclaimed Harry.

"You told Ron, I was like a sister to you! I may not have any siblings but when the man I love says he loves you like a sister, I know I stand no chance,"

"I said that because I saw how much he cared for you," justified Harry.

" You seemed untouchable, I couldn't…"

He couldn't believe her! Out of everyone, he would have thought she didn't buy into the whole Boy Who Lived propaganda.

"Harry wipe that look off your face, I didn't mean untouchable like that, because of your title," she said.

Harry threw his hands in the air in exasperation.

"Well it sure sounded that way," he snapped. Hermione rolled her eyes.

"What I meant Harry, and you better not interrupt me again, is that I knew you were special and not in a Boy Who Lived, Defeater of Voldemort type way. I knew you were special because of your kindness, and the way you stick up for people who often can't stick up for themselves. The way that you always and I mean always think of others before yourself. The way that you are so adamant in what you believe in. The way you run your hand through your hair when you're nervous. Your smile, your laugh.. Those eyes. Harry. . .please understand."

Harry was beyond confused. This went against everything he knew everyone expected. The expectation was clear. He was to marry Ginny, Hermione was to marry Ron. Hermione and his marriage to the two siblings would unite the trio as family. Their kids would be raised together, go to Hogwarts together and they would marvel at the perfection of it all.

But this? Him and Hermione? This was not expected and he knew this is not what would be welcomed. This would tear the very plan and idea everyone had. This would tear him away from the only family he had ever been a part of.

Hermione was staring at him angling her body on the couch so she was turned directly toward him. He could easily see the love and adoration in her eyes. The girl who blossomed into the gorgeous young woman in front of him what all that mattered. The woman who stuck by his side through thick and thin while all others scurried away. The woman who was here looking at him with a hopeful but uncertain look in her eyes. He wanted nothing more than to hold her in his arms and tell her it would be alright. That they would face whatever opposition came their way.

But that couldn't be the case today. Not today and not ever.

"Hermione. This is everything I could have ever wanted. I never thought this was even a possibility, but… I see you there. With his ring on your finger…and I can't. And I won't. You're a brilliant witch Hermione and I know you. I know you wouldn't have told Ron 'yes' if you didn't feel some sort of connection with him. You're one of the… No you ARE the most self-assured people I know. If it was something you 100% didn't want, you would have said no. I'm not going to do this to my best friend. The both of you."

Hermione ducked her head and he saw the tears fall directly onto her lap.

"You and I are never going to be anything are we?" she asked emotionally.

He smiled sadly at her, reaching out a hand to lift up her chin so he could look directly in her tear filled eyes.

"We will be best friends, like we are now. I'll be Best Man at your wedding and smile non-stop because you'll look so unbelievably beautiful. I love you Hermione and I will always love you but I guess our story wasn't written." He smiled softly at her.

She smiled lightly back at him.

"When did you get so dammed poetic?" she said lightheartedly.

"Well a witch taught me to pick up a book here and there,"

"Who is this witch you speak of, sounds a bit like a know-it-all?" she asked with a teasing smile. Harry was glad to see that look on her face again.

"Nah, I would say she's the smartest witch of our generation," he told her.

There was a brief silence that followed.

"Harry, I'll always love you," she told him, her sad expression appearing on her face once again.

"I'll always love you," he said leaning in giving her a peck on her tear stained cheek. She closed her eyes and nodded willing the tears away once more.

He stood up, knowing that Ginny was going to head to his apartment after work. She was due in about an hour.

Hermione stood up as well wiping the tear remnants from her face.

"Thanks for coming over," she told him. He nodded not finding the strength to say more. Instead he grabbed a piece of parchment and quickly jotted down a passage he remembered and cherished. He folded it and handed it to her letting his hand linger on hers for an extra moment.

"Read this, it's something I found in my studies that has made a lasting impression on me,"

She nodded, watching with a sad but knowing smile as he walked out. It wasn't until she knew that he was out that she let out her true emotions to what had just taken place. Several minutes later, Hermione willed the tears away knowing that Ron would be concerned if he found any evidence of tears.

The house seemed bigger than ever and the loneliness she felt in her heart was almost suffocating. It was then, when she took out the note and gazed upon the familiar scrawl she had come to know and love.

'The greatest happiness of life is the conviction that we are loved; loved for ourselves, or rather, loved in spite of ourselves ' –Victor Hugo.

Several Years Later

"Oh Hermione, he is beautiful. He looks like my Ronald but with your nose," cooed Molly Weasley gently rocking the newborn. Hermione gave her a small but tired smile.

"Oh dear, I can see that you're tired. I'll let you rest," said Molly right after Hermione yawned.

"It's okay Molly, I want to hold him," she said as she extended her arms. Molly hesitated before handing the youngest Weasley to her. It wasn't long after that when she said her goodbyes to the small but growing family.

"You were brilliant," whispered Ron breaking his silence while holding their now oldest child, Rose in his arms. She smiled back at him.

"We did good," she told him as she gazed at her family all occupying her bed.

"So, what's his name?" asked Ron.

Hermione reminisced on the day when Rose was born. Ron wanted her to be named after a flower so they compromised on Rose after much debate. Ron promised her she would name their next child.

"Hugo." She said with a smile. Victor Hugo.

Thank you for reading, Please Read and Review. I am really not a writer, I am more of a reader but this one just wouldn't leave me.