Date: April 1, 2008

Chapter 11: Birthday Present

'Happy birthday, George,' Angelina said, kissing her boyfriend awake. 'I'm sorry I couldn't get you a present.'

'If you really cared that it's my birthday, you'd let me sleep,' George replied, his voice muffled through the sheets. Angelina snorted and swung herself out of bed. She padded down the hall into the bathroom. She walked past the mirror to get her toothbrush, then stopped, turned back, and stared at her stomach.

Where it was usually flat, there was a small, round bump. Angelina lifted her shirt to get a better look. Suddenly, she was overcome with emotions. She was happy, because she could see the proof of her pregnancy, sad because they still weren't married, frightened of what her mother might do when she found out, and angry at her body for betraying her like this.

All these emotions collected and she slid to the floor, head in her hands. It had never seemed so real before, perhaps because she couldn't actually tell she was pregnant. Now that she could, it was only a matter of time before her mum and George's family found out, and what would they do when they realised George and Angelina had conceived a child out of wedlock?

'Ange? Are you okay?' George looked at her in concern as she straightened up.

'I'm fine,' she said, brushing some hair off her shoulder.

'Oh.' George's eyes had shifted lower, where her belly was slightly exposed. She pulled her shirt down quickly, but George moved forward and stopped her. He placed a hand on her stomach. 'Wow,' he said.

Angelina closed her eyes. 'I'm scared, George,' she admitted. 'If I can see it, I'm sure our families will too. I don't know what'll happen now.' She sighed and leaned against George, who put his arms around her.

'I'm here for you. You don't need to be scared so long as I'm around.'

She smiled through her tears and straightened up, clearing her throat. 'Sorry,' she said in a small voice.

'What for?'

'For ruining the morning of your birthday,' she sniffled.

George grinned mischievously. 'Well, I'm sure if you make me pancakes I can forgive you.' She swatted him and he chuckled. Then she hurriedly brushed her teeth and headed for the kitchen.

'How about a day out?' Angelina suggested as she and George cleaned up the dishes.

George thought for a moment. 'That sounds nice. Where to?'

'It's your birthday,' Angelina pointed out. 'You pick.'

'Good point,' George observed, leaning back and tapping his chin. 'What about going to Hogsmeade, and then a picnic in the evening?'

'That sounds lovely,' Angelina sighed, waving her wand to wash and stack the dishes. 'I can pack the food for the picnic if you can get dressed.'

'Will do,' George said, kissing her on the cheek and heading off to the closet.

'Once again, the ratio of chairs to people in this place is skewed,' Angelina said lightly as she spotted a table squished in the corner. As always, The Three Broomsticks was terribly crowded, with people clamoring to get tables and drinks.

'Quite right,' George agreed, flopping into a chair and taking a swig of his butterbeer. Angelina took a slightly more dainty sip of pumpkin juice. Healer Smith had told her not to drink anything with caffeine or alcohol in it, so she was stuck with juice and water. They went on chatting until Angelina realised it was past six.

'Come on,' she said, jumping up and taking his hand.

'Where are we going?' George asked, junking his and Angelina's bottles.

'I thought you wanted a picnic,' she said, picking up the picnic basket.

'Oh yeah,' George said, as if the idea was just dawning on him.

Angelina rolled her eyes. 'Let's go,' she said, and they Apparated to a sunny hill.

'Where are we?' George asked, blinking in the sudden light.

'My dad used to take me here when I was a kid,' Angelina answered, spreading out the blanket. 'We'd roll down the hill together.' She smiled sadly, then shook her head. 'Today's your day, George. I shouldn't be talking about myself.'

'But my favourite thing in the world is you,' George said. Angelina smiled and continued to take out the food.

By the time they were finished eating, the sun was beginning to set. Angelina sighed and lay back on the grass, one hand on her stomach. Then she quickly put her hand next to her, refusing to think of the baby on George's birthday. 'I really am sorry I didn't get you anything,' she said mournfully.

'You'll give me the best present if you say yes,' George answered,and she sat up and turned around to find him on one knee with a small velvet box in his hand.

She jumped up and clapped her hands over her mouth. 'Angelina,' George started, 'I love you. I love you more than anything in this world. I know I'm not the best looking, and I know that sometimes you get frustrated when you try to talk to me and I can't hear you because you're on my left.' Angelina giggled. 'But the thing is, no matter how much you get frustrated, you still stand by me. And I really appreciate that.

'I want you to know that I'm not proposing because of the baby. Even if it wasn't for the baby, I'd still be here with my knee getting numb.' Angelina smiled again. 'I don't care how big you get, and I don't care how angry you'll get at me once you do. All I care about is you.' He flipped the box open to reveal a glowing diamond ring. 'Angelina Johnson, will you marry me?'

Angelina stood there with her hands over her mouth. 'An answer soon would be nice,' George said through gritted teeth as his knee lost most of its feeling.

'Yes,' Angelina whispered. 'Yes!' She threw herself on George and kissed him. He took out the ring and she held out a trembling left hand, onto which he slid the glistening ring. 'It's beautiful,' she breathed.

'Like you,' George said, kissing her. 'I love you.'

'I know,' Angelina said. 'Of course I know. I love you so much.'