Melanie,

Forgive the intrusion to your work day. Your office address is the only address I have for you. Enclosed, please find your slores. You left them in the park, and, truthfully, I have no idea what to do with them. You enjoy slores, so I thought they should be returned to you.

I have given a good deal of thought to what you said when you were storm leaving last night. In retrospect, I understand why you’re upset. I did not explain myself very well. To be honest, I believed you saw me as a pal-type. I never meant to give you the impression that I was searching for anything more than that, but looking back, I realize my actions may have told a different story.

All things considered, I feel as if I owe you an explanation. The reason I do not enter into romantic entanglements is because I am chronically ill. I’ve been sick for nearly as far back as I can remember. Some days are good and I lead a nearly normal life. Other days aren’t. I don’t know how much you remember about me from school outside the fact that I was friends with James Potter, but if you recall much else, you likely remember that I missed a significant amount of class time. Those were some of the bad days, and I was in the hospital wing under Madam Pomfrey’s care. This is also the reason I haven’t been able to hold down steady employment. Employers don’t like it when you miss a lot of work because you’re incapable of getting out of bed. You’ve talked about trips you want to take when you’re 115. I will never see my hundredth birthday. I will not get married, or have a family, or do any of the things normal wizards do.

When I said you didn’t know me, and that I was trouble, this is what I was talking about. What I said last night was not intended to hurt you. If things were different for me, I would be one of the many men vying for your attention. You’re an incredible person. You are beautiful, smart, and confident. You are going to do amazing things with your life. You clearly don’t need to be saddled with a broken wizard who is incapable of taking care of himself. I suspect that now you realize these things and you understand why I said what I did. I hope we can remain friends, but I understand if you prefer otherwise.