Disclaimer: Not mine.

"Door," was all my dad said as he walked past my bedroom where I had been peacefully reading a book.

Rolling my eyes, I climbed out of bed, moving to my dresser to quickly brush my hair and grab my purse. Heading for the door, I heard a soft hoot and I turned to see Midnight staring at me imploringly. Smiling, I moved back to the black owl, unlocking his cage and opening my window. "I'll leave it open but please don't fly far or into the neighbor's yards. Dad nearly had a coronary when you flew past his window."

The owl hooted again, gently pecking at my fingers before hopping from his perch and onto the windowsill. Ruffling his feathers gently, I hurried out my door, closing it behind me and running down the stairs.

Cedric stood waiting for me at the open door. To say I was surprised was an understatement. Sure I had known it was going to be him but dad never left Cedric standing alone at the door. Maybe after two months he was starting to get used to him.

"I still don't understand it," Cedric was saying as I approached, staring behind him at the cars that drove past. "I'll prefer brooms and flooing to cars any day."

"Maybe I'll teach you the joys of driving one day," I said, coming up to him.

He grinned. "That'll be the day I teach you to ride a broom." He leaned down to press a brief kiss against my lips. "Ready to go?"

"Ready," I said. Over my shoulder, I called, "I'm leaving dad!"

The man grunted from upstairs, which was all he ever really did anymore (grunt) I mean. Rolling my eyes once more, I closed and locked the front door behind me, Cedric taking my hand in his.

"Things still tense?" he asked.

"Worse," I said, though I was smiling. "And they're not going to get any better if you keep doing 'odd' things. Dad was certainly not pleased with you buying me an owl."

"Yes well, I suppose he'll have to get used to me eventually," Cedric said, smirking. "I don't plan on going anywhere anytime soon."

A blush came to my face and I had to look down for a moment.

This time last year, if someone had told me I would be dating the Cedric Diggory, I would have laughed right in their face. But here we were, two months after realizing we liked each other, and going strong. He was wonderful, Cedric: smart, kind, responsible, dedicated, funny, not to mention incredibly handsome. Add on top of that newly instated Head-Boy for our school and you've practically got the perfect boy on your hands.

Two bad he was a wizard which made him automatically unworthy in my father's eyes . . . though, since I was a witch, the same applied to me.

It was fine, however, because I was happy with Cedric and not a thing, not a person could tear us apart I'm sure.

"So where are we going today?" Cedric asked.

"Since you got to pick where we went last week, it's my turn," I said, grinning. "And I was thinking we catch a good movie."

"Movie?"

"Yeah. Maybe a good horror film where the monsters are cheesy and the blood is made out of corn syrup and food dye but I'll still scream anyway just so you can wrap your arm around me." I looked up at Cedric only to see that he was confused. "Oh . . . that's right, you've never been to a movie before."

"You've caught me there," he said grinning.

"Don't worry, I'm sure you'll like it. It's like watching a giant tapestry at school."

"I think I would have preferred the tapestry."

I laughed as Cedric rubbed his eyes, trying to get used to the light outside again. "It wasn't too bad was it?"

"I guess not. It was, what was the word you used, cheesy, but almost scarily accurate. I don't think a Muggle would have really known all that stuff about vampires and werewolves do you?"

"They get it from the books wizards and witches write," I said. "Want to go for a walk?"

"Sure."

I led him towards the small park near the theater. It was a warm sunny summer day, thank goodness, because it had been raining off and on. Kids were running around, screaming, hopping on the playground equipment while parents watched nearby, mums talking with first aid kits in their laps just in case.

"Is your leg okay?" I asked.

Though he hadn't died, the Avada Kedavra curse had grazed Cedric, slowly killing his nervous system. If it hadn't been for Harry Potter, I would have lost Cedric for good. Cedric lived to tell the tale but for the last two months he had to walk with leg braces and though those had been removed last month, he still walked with a limp, favoring his left leg. I know he got tired of asking me if he was fine, but I couldn't help it.

"I'm fine," he said, chuckling. Looking around the park, he sighed. "Can you believe that this is our last year?"

"Hardly," I said. "This time next summer we'll be looking for jobs."

"And maybe even a small apartment for two, just on the outskirts of Diagon Alley?" Cedric said, wiggling his eyebrows.

I stopped turning to face him with a smile. "If I didn't know any better, Mr. Diggory, I'd say you were making some kind of proposal."

"Just a suggestion, Miss Josephs," he said, grinning. His face became slightly more serious as he pulled me towards him, wrapping his arms around my waist. "I love you."

My heart skipped a beat but I smiled anyway, leaning up to kiss him. I couldn't say it. For some reason, those three little words would not leave my mouth. Of course I loved Cedric, I always have . . . but saying it out loud?

I was scared, is what my friends Daniel, Myra, and Michelle told me. I've seen Cedric date some of the prettiest girls in our school and have also seen their hearts broken when he moved on. What if I was next? What if this . . . what if none of it would last?

And so I couldn't say I loved you, at least not out loud. Not until I was sure that this was real and that I wouldn't wake up from a really bad dream.

"How's Harry?" Cedric asked, interrupting my thoughts.

A frown settled on my face. "Worried. He says I'm the only one who he's really heard from since the holiday heard from."

"Ron and Hermione don't write him?"

"He says they do but that there letters are . . . cryptic, like they're hiding something. Worst of all, he got caught do magic outside of school for the second time."

"The second?"

"First time was supposedly Dobby, a house elf. And this time, he says dementors attack him and his cousin."

Cedric frowned. "Don't you find this a little hard to believe? Dementors don't normally go around attacking random people."

"Harry isn't exactly random is he?" I said. "Besides, why would he lie about something like that?"

Cedric was quiet for a moment. "You really care about the kid, huh?"

I snorted. "He's hardly a kid. But yes, I do. You see everything he goes through Ced. It's hard not to want to help him. I feel like he's a little brother I never had." I smirked, adding, "Don't tell me you're jealous of Harry Potter."

"Of course not," Cedric said, laughing forcibly. "Forget the fact that he's famous and almost every other girl in our school is after him."

"Good thing I'm not every other girl then, huh?" I said, turning to him.

Cedric visibility relaxed. "Too true. You're definitely a different brand all together."

"Glad to hear you know that."

Cedric glanced at the watch on his wrist. "I've got to get you home before your dad comes after with his sword."

"My dad doesn't have a sword."

"That's not what he told me."

Laughing, I wrapped an arm around Cedric's waist.

It had been the perfect day.

A/N: So here it is, finally, the sequel to Notice Me. I told one of the readers that it would be up two weeks ago but my computer broke and I had nowhere to type till I got home yesterday. Thanks for reading and I hope you liked it.