6 YEARS LATER

Adrian's team were celebrating their championship win with a very well-deserved party. They had placed top of the league for the third year in a row and knowing just how important these celebrations were for team morale, I didn't so much as protest when Adrian tentatively brought up talks of the afterparty. Of course, he had promised that he would return home early so that we could celebrate our first wedding anniversary together. He was supposed to have been home hours ago.

The sky had darkened into an inky blue and then into a pitch black, lit by very few stars and I eventually stopped waiting for him. With nothing more than a frown, I asked the house elves to assist me with putting the food away before retiring for the night. I finally made it to bed just after midnight and our first wedding anniversary had passed uneventfully.

Adrian finally stumbled into our bedroom as the hour hand ticked closer to the 1 and he made an awful amount of noise on his way in. A light sleeper by nature, I startled away and groaned, reaching my hand under my pillow to grab my wand. Casting a Lumos, I looked unimpressed at my husband who stood hesitantly in the doorway. Scanning him from head to toe, I rolled my eyes before lying back down again. Turning my back to face him, I closed my eyes and tried to fall asleep. Only, he seemed hellbent on stopping me.

Crossing the room, Adrian kneeled cautiously on the edge of the mattress and reached out towards me. The moment his hand closed softly around my arm, I sighed and rolled over to face him. Apologetic puppy dog eyes stared down at me.

"What?" I asked shortly, eyeing him when he tried to put his arms around me.

"Princess, I –"

"You are going to go to the bathroom and shower and drink the entire bottle of mouthwash if you have to," I threatened, scrunching my nose at the smell of alcohol wafting off of him. "You smell like you drank the entire bar."

Adrian, biting hesitantly on his lower lip, nodded slowly and rose to his feet. He cast me another forlorn look before turning slowly and walking sluggishly out of the room. I listened out for his footsteps disappearing further down the hallway before heading into our bathroom. Closing my eyes again, I settled down to sleep again and hoped that I wouldn't be awoken again. Clearly, it was such an impossible thing to wish for.

When Adrian returned again, this time changed into his pyjamas and actually managing to make it under the covers, he reached for me again. Lying in his arms, my back pressed against his chest, I waited with eyes closed to see what he so obviously had to say.

"Get a move on Adrian," I said eventually as the silence continued to lengthen. "I actually want to get some sleep tonight."

"I'm sorry," he said eventually, smothering a heavy sigh against my shoulder. "You know what these parties are like." When I made an unimpressed hum, Adrian started to soothingly massage the tension from the back of my neck. "I did try to get home early, I swear I did. You know just how important today is for me, how important our anniversary is, but I wound up having to take some of the team back to their own homes because they were too drunk to apparate. I mean, that's my responsibility. I'm the captain."

"I don't want excuses from you," I said with a sigh, trying to move away from him again.

Not that he allowed that to happen. Falling silent, Adrian held me stubbornly against his chest. He wasn't content to let things simmer between us, he was the sort that needed it all to be sorted out.

"I'm so sorry," he murmured again, sounding more and more like a kicked puppy as every moment progressed. "I didn't forget, I would never forget. I even gave you your present in the morning before I had to leave for the match, remember?"

"Do you honestly think that I'm doing this because of a present?" I asked incredulously, sitting up and looking down at him with a scowl. "Really, Adrian?"

"I'm really sorry," he tried again, staring up at me from where he remained lying on the bed and I just rolled my eyes.

"I was going to give you your present," I started, pursing my lips only to shake my head. "I might as well give it to you now."

"You really don't need to –" he protested, rising so that he was sitting up and I batted away his words and leaned around him to reach for our bedside table. Adrian watched me hesitantly as I pulled the drawer open and picked up the small envelope that I stashed away at the back when coming to bed tonight.

Once I had the envelope safety held between my fingers, I pushed the drawer shut and returned to my position and eyed my silent husband. Even though I gestured for him to take it, Adrian searched my eyes for a long moment. Nodding again, I watched as he broke the seal at the back and withdrew the letter. Drawing the card out of the envelope, he opened it and glanced down at the picture that fell out of it.

Putting the card aside, Adrian picked up the photograph with shaking fingers and I found myself watching his reaction. I catalogued the way his eyes widened, colour rushing to his cheeks as an incredulous smile bloomed on his lips.

"Is this," he turned the photograph towards me – an ultrasound that clearly showed our little baby moving their arms-, "is this real?"

"Well it's certainly not fake," I snarked with a roll of my eyes.

"I can't believe it," he began with a delighted laugh, setting the ultrasound gently aside and reaching to put a hand to the back of my neck. Drawing me into him, he kissed me lovingly and I returned it with a smile against his lips.

"Adrian," I started quietly when I drew away from him. His smile was too beautiful not to return.

"Yes, the soon to be mother of my child?"

"You are sleeping on the sofa tonight," I said quietly and he was so deliriously happy that he didn't bother to complain, didn't try to bargain that he'd in bed stay only until I'd fallen asleep.

Instead, he rose to his feet with a kiss to the top of my head and picked up the ultrasound and the card. I watched Adrian's retreat from the room, realising that he was only just getting around to reading the card that accompanied the picture. And as I settled down to fall asleep, I wondered whether I would have the reserve to actually make him spend the entire night out of our bed. Salazar knew that every other time I had caved after a few hours.