"How?..." spluttered Nikki. "Oh the sample! I thought that was new this morning; that was your doing was it?"

"I'm sorry," Harry admitted.

"You really want me like that?" Nikki asked, referring back to Harry's previous admission.

Harry nodded.

"Then why wouldn't you kiss me that night?" she asked simply.

"I have no idea, Nikki. I must have been practically unconscious. I was probably terrified of being useless and never getting a second chance," he replied.

"Well, you've blown that now," she said.

"How so?"

"Well, if you came storming in here without wearing protective gear on the assumption that I had morning sickness and not some nasty plague virus and it turns out I haven't got morning sickness, then you're on shaky ground."

"I had to see you," Harry said any frivolity gone from his voice. He reached up and stroked her cheek tenderly.

"Were you upset, worried?" she asked.

"What do you mean? I've been worried sick about you for days."

"No, I mean worried when you thought I was pregnant?" she asked shyly, the words sounding odd in her mouth.

"I thought I would be," Harry confessed. "But the more I thought about it, the more relaxed I became about it all."

"Really?" she asked surprised.

"Really," he replied. "Well it would have to have been better than Hanta virus."

"There is that," she agreed.

"I was disappointed though."

"Disappointed?" she repeated.

Harry nodded. "That I didn't remember and it wouldn't be a great start for a kid's life if neither of its parents could even remember the night it was conceived." Harry paused for a moment and then began dramatically: "Well it's like this son, I was very drunk and drugged and your mother was drunk too, but we love you very much…" he trailed off happy to hear the sound of Nikki laughing. He could always make her laugh, well almost always he thought.

"I'm sorry about that time in the pub, sorry about all this" he said seriously.

"Harry, it's ok."

"How are you feeling?" he asked.

"OK," she replied truthfully.

Nikki shuffled along the bed a little and leant into his chest. Harry snaked an arm around her shoulders and they sat in silence for a while. There wasn't much more to be said. There would be nothing more to know until the results of the blood work came back and that could still be hours and hours away.

"Do you want to play Hangman?" Harry asked, spotting the notepad by her bed.

"Go on then," she replied.

Harry turned over the page so the annihilated stick Harry was no longer visible and wrote out the dashes.

_ / _ _ _ _ / _ _ _

_ _ _ _ / _ _ / _ _ _ _ / _ _ ?

Nikki stared at the first row, and looked up at Harry's goofy smile. She began guessing vowels.

I / _ O _ E / _ O U

_ O _ E / I _ / _ I _ _ / _ E ?

Nearly at the end now, promise I'll have it up before the big day. Thanks to Lizziginne, tigpop and Charlotte for reviewing the last section, you are always inspiring. All reviews and guesses for the hangman gladly appreciated.