Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter.

AN: Hi, I finished this one-shot awhile ago. It doesn't have a happy ending if that's what your're looking for.

I don't want to take up anymore of your time so just tell me what you think.

Regrets

There are a lot of things that Ronald Weasley regrets in life; an most are due to his quick temper and his jealousy. But his biggest regret of all was not being able to keep his wife's love. Five years ago she went to him asking for a divorce, but he couldn't let her go even though he'd known for a long time that she didn't love him that way anymore.

He never gave up hope that one day she would change her mind and realize that she was making a big mistake because everyone knew that Hermione was never able to admit she was wrong. So he's been hoping for five years that she would change her mind. He'd even gone so far as to continue the charade with his family. As far as any of them knew they were still together. He could see the doubt and pity in their eyes every time he went to visit them without her. They knew that Hermione had left him, but they allowed him the illusion. But even he knew it was getting old.

Ron heard a familiar knock on his door. The clock read, twelve, right on time.

Once again, like every three months, she was here at his flat. A home that they once shared, but now only served as a reminder that she was gone.

"May I come in?" Hermione asked politely.

Ron smiled. "This is your home, you're always welcome."

Hermione could tell that this meeting would end like all the rest but she had to try. She set the papers on the counter before him, but he pushed them away like every time before.

"Ron, please." She asked desperately.

He could see the strain their meetings had on her as well. She was so tired of trying and he hoped that meant she would give up soon. "Will you be staying long?"

Hermione's entire body stiffened. "Why do you do this to me? Five years, Ron. How can you not accept it and let me go? Why won't you set me free?"

"Because you're making a mistake. We love each other and this is just a phase you're going through because you think you need change. We've been married for so long and I know you need a break before we can be a family again." Ron responded flippantly. It was speech he'd come to recite whenever she came to visit.

Hermione stepped back when he looked at her tenderly. "You just don't get it. We've been apart longer then we'd been married. What does that tell you? Just sign the damn papers." Her voice started to rise angrily.

Ron shook his head. "I can't."

"I'm not in love with you anymore. I haven't been in love with you for over five years now." Hermione growled harshly. "An no matter how much you think you love me, you don't. So do us both a favor and set us both free."

"I can't. I love you." Tears started to trickle down her smooth cheeks at his declaration. "Don't cry, love. I hate when you cry." He tried to reach out for her, but she pulled back sharply.

"Then why are you so good at making me?" Hermione turned away from him once again and left the small flat without a second glance and Ron's heart broke a little when he heard the door slam.

"One day you'll understand why I can't let you go." He whispered into the empty room. He magicked the dishes clean before settling down for a quick nap. He was due for a visit at the Burrow and he didn't want any evidence of his talk with Hermione on his face. It was best his family not know of his problems with his wife.

-

"RON!!"

Ron bolted up from his place on the couch. "What? Ginny?" He asked drowsily. "What are you doing? What's wrong?"

Ginny's crying face was seen within the flames of his fireplace. "It's Hermione. She's in the hospital. They don't think she's going to make it."

"What?" Ron roared. "I'll be there in a second."

Ginny nodded and her face disappeared with a soft pop. He turned around to glance at the clock in the kitchen and noticed that less then half and hour had passed since she'd left his apartment.

He grabbed some floo powder from the mantle. "St. Mungos."

"Ron!" Mrs. Weasley wrapped her arms around her startled son. "Oh, Ron. It's horrible. They don't know if she'll make it."

"What happened?" He asked his mother, but she wasn't in a state to answer questions. "Ginny, what happened?"

"She was hit by a drunk driver. He didn't even stop to see if she was ok, just left her lying there in the road. Someone saw her and they flooed to St. Mungos. It was a wizard, they recognized her." Ginny swallowed her tears back. "I'm so worried. They won't tell us anything."

Ron's heart almost stopped. "I'll go talk to them."

"There's something you should know first." Ginny started.

"Not now, Ginny."

"But Ro-"

He cut her off and started to make his way to the receptionist when it happened. He was knocked clear off his feet with a roar. Ron turned around just in time to see his attacker, Harry Potter.

"Harry? What is bloody hell is wrong with you?" Ron growled angrily.

The Weasleys gathered around Ron to make sure he was ok, but Harry remained seething in anger as Bill held him back.

"This is your fault!" Harry yelled. "Hermione is in that hospital bed because of you!" Harry pointed at him accusingly and pulled himself out of Bill's hold.

Mr. Weasley stepped forward calmly. "Don't be ridiculous Harry. A drunk driver hit Hermione, Ron wasn't the one that hurt her."

"He might as well have!" Harry spat. "For five years she has gone over to his flat to ask for a divorce. Five bloody years. Its been so long you can even time her by it. She goes to see him the first of January, April, July, and November. Twelve o'clock on the dot. It was when she was leaving from her talk with him that she was hit by that driver. Once again you turned her down. Couldn't let her go, could you Ronald. She doesn't love you anymore and she hasn't for five years. This is your fault." Harry slumped to the ground and tears dropped down his cheeks. "This is your fault!"

The Weasleys were shocked. They had known that things weren't exactly good with Ron and Hermione, but they hadn't known that it had been going on for that long. They turned to Ron, hoping that he would shed some light on the situation.

"She's my wife." He growled.

Harry's head shot up and his green eyes gleamed dangerously. "Unwillingly."

"But she's still my wife!"

"An that's good enough for you? It doesn't hurt, knowing that she doesn't love you?" Harry taunted.

"She does love me." Ron said angrily.

Harry shook his head. "No, she doesn't." He stood up gracefully and walked toward the receptionist. "Not anymore."

"You don't know anything! She loves me and you're just jealous that she's mine and not yours." Ron yelled, his face resembling the color of his hair.

Harry turned around and laughed pityingly. "You're right. I am jealous. I'm jealous that you got the chance to marry her and love her and I will never be given that chance because you're selfish!"

"I'm not selfish!"

"Oh, really. What do you call five years of denying her her happiness? You were too selfish to let her go even though you know she's not in love with you anymore." Harry stared at Ron expectantly, waiting for his answer.

Ron's eyes widened in realization. "You're sleeping with her!"

"That's none of your business." Harry said without blinking.

"It's my business because she's my wife."

"She's been separated from you for five years and she can sleep with whomever she pleases." Harry said emotionlessly.

Ron scoffed. "Always knew she'd want to leave me for you."

Harry's eyes steeled. "Wrong again, Weasley."

"What? You think I don't know that the great Harry Potter was always first in her mind? But I did and I loved her anyways." Ron spat viciously.

"'Mione and I didn't get together until three years ago. Two years after she first asked you for a divorce. So get off your high horse, thinking that we've betrayed you. You betrayed yourself." Harry growled. "Nothing romantic developed until well after she made it clear to you that things were over. You were just too stupid to accept that."

Ron opened his mouth to reply, but a sharp beeping interrupted him. They all turned around and Harry's eyes widened when he realized just where that noise was coming from. He ran and the Weasleys followed behind him.

They entered the room and saw Hermione's prone body and the Mediwitches surrounding her. They were trying to revive her. When they saw Harry and the Weasleys they asked the question they were all dreading. "Do we go about trying to resuscitate her or do we call it?"

"Resuscitate her!" Ron yelled, but they weren't looking at him. "Why aren't you listening to me." The twins were holding their brother back.

"Mr. Weasley, you aren't the person she chose to make these decisions." The Mediwitch responded calmly.

Ron tried to pull out of his brother's grasp, but they held strong. "But I am her husband! It is my decision."

The Mediwitch lifted Hermione's file up so she could see it better. "It says here that she was in the process of a divorce and her current fiancé, Mr. Potter, is to make all these decisions."

"Resuscitate her." Harry said softly.

Ginny turned to see Harry's face and she could see that he loved Hermione dearly. She had known for years that Hermione and Ron were having problems. It seemed only Ron was the one ignoring this fact. She had been shocked by the news of Harry's confession, but a part of her could see.

It was obvious to her that Ron was the type to ignore Hermione's plea of divorce and choose to not let her go. She wished with all her heart that this wasn't true, but it made too much sense. It helped a lot of things that had happened in the last few years make perfect sense.

She turns back to Hermione's pale face and watched as the Mediwitches perform spell after spell on Hermione, but her heart began to clench as she realized that none of them were working.

Hermione was about to die after fighting for her life for the last few hours and then the words that made all of them die inside came forth.

"Time of death, 3:49."

Harry threw himself onto her prone body and lost it. His whole body shook with uncontrollable tears as he screamed into her dead body.

"'Mione, baby, come back to me." Harry whispered as he nuzzled her neck affectionately. "Come on, baby, we're all here waiting for you like you wanted. We can all be a family, one big happy family. We just need you to wake up." His voice shook the more she didn't respond. "You promised that you'd never leave me. Please, come back. Come back."

Mrs. Weasley wept into her husband's sweater as he watched Hermione in shock, she was too young to die. Bill and Charlie stared at the Wizarding world's broken hero with solemn eyes. The twins had a hard time believing that Hermione was dead, and they wished they didn't have to witness Harry's breakdown. They felt as if they were intruding. Ginny felt as if her heart stopped before she felt arms wrap around her waist, she turned her face into their chest and let it all out.

Ron stood stalk still as he watched Harry whisper sweetly to Hermione's prone body. He couldn't move.

Harry turned around and stared at Ron with lifeless emerald eyes. "She was gonna marry me, you know? Promised me that as soon as you were ready to accept it we'd be together. Said it was only a matter of time before you finally realized, but I knew you wouldn't."

Ron opened his mouth to yell and scream at him, but he just couldn't.

"Why couldn't you let her be happy? Why couldn't you let her free?" Harry's voice trembled.

Those words triggered something in Ron and before he knew it he ran out of the room when his brother's grip loosened. He ran as quickly as he could to the hospital's floo and didn't stop even as he heard his family yelling for him. He flooed into his flat and rummaged in his drawers before he found the papers he was looking for.

He sat down at the kitchen table and stared at them for what seemed like hours. He closed his eyes as he lifted the pen to the paper. Ron took a deep breath and after five years, he signed his divorce papers, hoping to make amends for his mistake.

"Forgive me." He whispered brokenly.

There are a lot of things that Ronald Weasley regrets in life, and most are due to his quick-temper and jealousy. But his biggest regret of all was never setting Hermione free when she was alive to experience it.

The End