Chapter 6

For the first time in a month, Hermione felt peaceful. She had slept well, she was warm and she was… happy.

Although for the whole week before telling Ron she'd convinced herself that all she had to do was tell him and then they'd get things sorted, she knew that the decision to go through with this pregnancy had been the right one in the end.

She didn't know the first thing about babies, but she liked learning, and she could learn how to be a mother. Falling asleep last night with Ron beside her felt right. It certainly wasn't how she'd imagined her life to go, but maybe a bit of mystery was what she needed.

Delving into this unknown, though, was a really massive step. But she knew she could do it.

She pulled the duvet closer to her and rolled over. She opened one eye, a good morning for Ron on the edge of her lips, and she paused. He wasn't there.

She lifted her head as if she expected to see him in the room, but she was alone. Comfortable, warm, but alone. Just how she'd spent almost every morning of her life since Steven had ended things with her. It was normal, yet it bothered her today.

Her stomach was much better than it had been twelve hours ago; she almost felt as if she could actually eat something. And the restful night had given her energy that she hadn't possessed in a month.

But still, she wished Ron was there. She'd kept her feelings for him bottled up for so long, maintaining a happy facade whenever he introduced her to another girlfriend he had, that she didn't want to have to pretend anymore. She wanted him all to herself — at least for a little bit.

Had she imagined the night before? She had been out of it, sick and exhausted. Maybe she'd just fallen asleep and dreamt that he had come back, that they had spent some time on her sofa just… kissing. Had she dreamt about asking him to stay with her? And had her brain convinced her that he'd said yes?

No. The kisses had been too real. She could still taste him on her mouth, still feel his hands on her.

He must have had to head into work and didn't want to wake her. It was a Saturday, one of his busiest days. He usually had to open up early — especially with three shops in different locations now. It was his job to check on all the employees before he headed back to Diagon Alley.

She smiled, pushing herself up into a sitting position. Maybe she'd go and see him at some point.

God, you're so pathetic, Hermione, she scolded, but it didn't stop her smile from turning into a grin. Maybe, for once, she was allowed to be pathetic. This had been fifteen years in the making. She'd allow herself a few days. After all, she knew how much of an idiot she'd been at his place five weeks ago, so she could continue being one now.

Still wearing her smile, she climbed out of bed and picked up her dressing gown that was hanging over her doorknob. She tied it around herself and walked slowly into the kitchen. She really did feel okay today — as if a huge weight had been lifted from her shoulders.

"Morning."

She jumped, turning to the sofa she and Ron had sat on last night sharing kiss after kiss, making up for years of lost time. This time, she could remember even the slightest of details, particularly her strong desire to throw herself at him again, to have him do everything to her that he'd done before. But she'd resisted, remembering the consequences of last time.

Though, she didn't suppose she could get more pregnant.

"Oh, I thought you'd left," she said, pleased that he hadn't.

"No, but you slept in." Ron stood up, coming over to kiss her. She relished in having him so close. No one had ever kissed her like Ron kissed her. "Though, I did go out briefly, just to check on the shops. All's good. Called in Franklin to cover for me. He was asking just the other day if he could work more, so it was his lucky day."

Hermione tilted her head to peer up at him. He was dressed in different clothes, which meant he'd probably gone home to change at some point too. "You've had a busy morning," she said.

"And you slept until ten," Ron answered.

Hermione stepped back, shocked. "What?"

"Yeah," Ron said. "You didn't even stir when I got out of bed. I left at seven, got back a bit after eight and you were still out of it."

Hermione couldn't quite believe that she'd slept for so long. She couldn't remember the last time that had happened. Her day usually started at six-thirty — whether she worked or not. She now felt as if half her day had gone — half her weekend.

"You hungry?" Ron asked, not nearly as bothered by her sleeping in as she was. "I know you didn't eat last night. I'll make you something."

"You really don't have to," Hermione said.

"I want to." He smiled down at her, pressing a kiss to her forehead. Why didn't it feel weird? Odd? He'd been her friend for fifteen years, her partner for two nights. Yet, there was nothing awkward or uncomfortable about the sudden transition. It felt natural, like it really should have happened years ago. And truthfully, it probably should have. How much time had they wasted by keeping their feelings locked away for so long?

Ron went to the kitchen, pulling out pots, pans and food. She came to the bench, watching curiously.

"Oh, no… not that," she said as she watched him take out some bacon. He paused.

"You don't like it?"

"My stomach doesn't like any form of meat right now. Just talking about it is making me feel queasy."

"Right." Ron returned the bacon. "Eggs?"

"Toast. Just toast," Hermione said. "It's all I've been eating for the last week." She sighed. "It's all I've been able to eat."

Ron looked at her as if he wanted to say something, but seemed to change his mind. She couldn't help but wonder just how difficult this all was for him. He'd been strongly against going through with the pregnancy and then she had told him that she planned to. Although she genuinely had not expected him to be involved if he didn't want to, she wondered if he felt as if he had no choice. Admittedly, it would be difficult for him to ignore with a living, breathing child in her life to remind him every day.

She hadn't really considered that last night.

She sat on one of her kitchen stools. "Ron, you're… okay with all of this, aren't you? I mean, me having the baby. Us… being together?"

He didn't answer immediately, busying himself with finding two plates — he really hadn't set foot in her kitchen before, had he? But then he nodded. "Yeah, I am. It'll take some time to wrap my head around it, but I am. Besides, what kind of person would I be if I just left you to do this on your own? I don't know the first thing about kids, nor do I think I'm all that great with them —"

"You run a joke shop. Your biggest customers are kids."

"Yeah, but I sell to their parents. They're the ones with the money."

Hermione indicated that he should continue with a nod.

"But I've had some time to think about it and I think I'll be okay. We'll be okay. And as for us being together? I wouldn't have it any other way." He grinned at her, placing two pieces of toast on a plate and passing it to her.

Hermione accepted the food with hesitation.

"I really am okay," Ron assured. "It's a huge shock, I won't lie, but… I'm fifty percent responsible for this, so I need to act responsible."

Hermione nodded, taking a small bite from one of the toast slices. "I just can't believe I'm actually going to have a baby soon. Honestly, I didn't even know if that was a future I saw in my life. I have been so busy, I wasn't even attempting to date anyone or anything like that. Five weeks ago was the first time I'd had sex since… well, Steven."

Ron scowled. "That asshole."

"He's not a —"

Ron shrugged. "He's mad at the very least," he said. "Anyone who breaks up with you is crazy. Besides, it became a habit to hate anyone who was interested in you."

Hermione smiled. "Then you don't hate many people then." She pushed the plate away, feeling queasy. "I'm not easy to be around at times. You should know that."

Ron shrugged again. "I do know that. Probably better than anyone. And I'm still here, aren't I? I've known you since you were eleven — pretty sure I can handle it."

"That makes one of you," Hermione answered.

"I'm kind of glad there's no one else. Listen, Hermione, I know we agreed to take things really slow, but I was just wondering… I have the day off, you have the day off… why don't we… go out?"

Her lips quivered into a smile. "You mean like… a date?"

Ron's ears turned red. "Er… I guess. But if you're not comfortable, that's okay too. I don't want you to feel pressured into anything…"

"I tell you that I plan on to keep the baby you don't want, and you're worried about pushing me away?"

He winced. "When you say it like that, it sounds… I sound like a dick. It's not that I don't want —"

"You won't push me away, Ron," Hermione said quickly. "Besides, we're having a baby, we've seen each other with our clothes off… what harm can a date do?"

Ron chuckled. "Well, you remember Claudia, right?"

"That girl you started going out with just after Hogwarts?"

"Yeah."

"Yes, she was nice."

"We went to get ice cream at Florean Fortescue's. Innocent, right? Well, I can assure you, that date didn't end with just ice cream."

Hermione raised an eyebrow.

Ron blushed. "Anyway, what I'm saying is… a lot of dates can do a lot of harm. That was the first time I had sex and it wasn't all that comfortable behind the ice cream parlour, knowing that anyone could see you." He frowned as if an unpleasant memory had found him. "She was a bit too wild for me, I admit."

Hermione hopped off the stool, for some reason enjoying this conversation despite its topic. It left everything open and honest, which she thought was what they needed. "Well, we won't get ice cream then," she said. "What do you suggest?"

"Lunch?" Ron offered.

Hermione shook her head. "Unless you want it to consist of me running to the bathroom every ten minutes, then no food."

"Alright…" He thought for a moment. "How about we take a trip to Hogsmeade? We can wander around, maybe look at some of the shops, just spend the day together?"

She was hit with a sudden rush of affection and love for Ron. "I'd like that," she said. "I'd like that a lot."

…

Hogsmeade was boring, especially because the only interesting places there involved food. When Honeydukes and The Three Broomsticks were not options, there really wasn't much else to do. He could go to Zonko's and see if they had something that would attract the attention of the kids, but he didn't think Hermione would appreciate that on a date.

Then again, it was Hermione, and knowing her it would probably be an ideal date to talk about work.

The most enjoyable part of the day was holding her hand. He had been nervous to do it at first, because he'd promised her they would go slow and he wasn't quite sure just how slow she wanted them to go. He'd spent the night at her place, and she seemed happy to have him hanging around her more than he usually would as her best friend. She also didn't mind all the kissing. So, honestly, hand-holding was probably okay, but he started overthinking it.

Great, Ron, he thought as she stopped in front of a window displaying the latest potion books, you're happy to rip her clothes off of her, but too afraid to hold her hand. That makes perfect sense.

He found the courage when they neared the Shrieking Shack, slipping his hand into hers.

She looked at him and smiled and she didn't pull away.

It was all still rather surreal to him. Not two days ago he was still thinking about how much he'd messed up their friendship by sleeping with her. Then almost a day ago now, he had been left in shock when he'd learned that she was pregnant from their sole night together — even more so when she revealed she planned to have the baby. And now, just a mere forty-eight hours later, he was walking through Hogsmeade holding her hand and in some kind of romantic relationship with her. He didn't want to call himself a boyfriend yet, because that would take some time, but holding her hand and kissing her was a pretty good start.

They reached the end of the street, the Shrieking Shack growing closer the longer they walked. He didn't think going there — despite now knowing it wasn't actually haunted — was right for a date, but no one else was around and they were alone.

He'd been alone with her plenty of times before, always something at the back of his mind telling him that maybe he should kiss her and see what happened. But the stronger part of him always ditched the idea in favour of keeping her in his life as a friend. He realised now that all those times he'd contemplated the idea, that maybe she had been thinking the same thing and if he'd just done it… well, things would be different.

They came across a bench seemingly in the middle of nowhere.

"Has that always been there?" he asked.

"I don't think so," Hermione answered. "I don't remember seeing it before. I haven't been to Hogsmeade in years, though."

"Let's sit." He guided her to the bench and they both sat down. The moment that they did, he realised why it had been put there. It gave them the perfect view of the Scottish mountains that stretched far beyond them. "This is nice."

"Yes, it is. I suppose they're trying to remove the stigma around the Shrieking Shack by making a nice stopping point."

Ron let go of her hand and moved his arm around her shoulders. To his pleasant surprise, she leaned into him. They sat in silence for a moment, Ron's mind wandering to what lay ahead for them. He tried his best not to dwell on the baby aspect of their future. Despite his promises to Hermione — one he truly meant when he said he'd do his best to be there — it still bothered him. Not in a way that he thought he was going to wake up one morning, flip out, and run to the mountains to escape; just that he still couldn't quite get used to the fact that she — no, they — were going to have a baby. That part of everything felt more like a bad dream than reality.

If he focused too hard on that part, he worried that none of the good parts — the Hermione part — would seem real anymore. But he knew that he'd eventually have to deal with that fact that he was going to be a dad, because it wasn't going to go away.

"So…" he began. "I suppose we should talk about… things. You know… about the baby stuff."

Hermione lifted her head from his shoulder. "What do you mean?"

"I mean… what do we do now? It may have escaped your notice, but I don't have any kids, so I've got no clue where we start or what the hell I'm doing."

He could feel Hermione watching him.

"What?" he pressed.

"I just didn't think you were ready to talk about this yet."

"It still scares the fuck out of me, Hermione, but I guess the more we talk, the better it'll get. So… what do we do?"

"I think maybe we should tell the important people about it. And about us."

"Really? So soon?"

"Well, we're having a baby, so the rest should be easy. Besides, if we tell our parents we're together, we don't have to confess what really happened. I don't know about you, but I don't fancy telling my mum and dad the truth. If we say we're together, maybe they'll just assume we have been for a while and won't question it too much."

"Huh." The thought that he'd have to reveal to Molly and Arthur that they were going to have another grandchild had never even crossed his mind. But Hermione was right — he definitely didn't fancy telling them just how it had come to be. It would be better for them to assume he and Hermione had been seeing each other in secret for a while.

"And maybe Harry and Ginny too," Hermione added.

"Oh… yeah."

"They might be a good help," Hermione reasoned. "One, they kind of already know, and two… they're parents themselves."

"All I told them was that we had sex once after the party," Ron said.

"And I told Ginny that I was pregnant due to some random hook-up at your party. She knows and she's probably filled Harry in."

"Yeah, so they know." Ron leaned back against the bench, sighing loudly. "At least we are slowly fixing the mess we got ourselves caught up in. Fun in the process, hard to deal with afterwards. Story of my life."

Hermione smiled, returning her head to his shoulder. "Maybe a good start," she said, "would be for us to stop calling this a mess and start thinking of it as an opportunity."

Ron nodded. "Yeah, you're right. I'm sorry. Do you see what I mean when I say I'm not good at this?"

Hermione cuddled up next to him. "I think you're better than you think. And for what it's worth — and take this in any way you want — I think you'll be a very good father."

"Really?" Ron questioned, not at all agreeing with that statement.

"I do," Hermione said, and although he couldn't see her, he could hear the smile in her voice. "You're just… you have a big heart and I think that as you grow accustomed to the idea, when the baby's born, you'll enjoy it."

"Hmm," Ron said, hugging her closer. "I hope you're right, because right now the only thing I feel is terror."

And pity, he realised. Pity that some poor kid was going to be born and stuck with him as their dad. No matter what Hermione said, he didn't think that could possibly end well.

"So, tomorrow we tell our families?" he asked.

"Yes," Hermione agreed. "Tomorrow, we tell them."

Your enthusiasm is heartwarming! Thank you all so much!

Also, I'll let you know that I have finished writing this and have made the decision to split the final chapter, so rather than 11 chapters, there will be 12 :)

Thank you once again cheesy for the beta!