Thank you to mockingjaybrandybuck and hoshiakari7 for your reviews :).

Occupational Hazard

By somekindofwildgirl

Part 2

Hermione burst through the staff backdoor - the cold night air hitting her face - and continued running. She had no destination in mind, only knew that she had to keep going. If she stopped, she would have to face what had happened. So she kept running, her muscles burning with the effort. It took four blocks until she collapsed in a local park.

She couldn't believe that she missed something so vital. During her schooling, she promised that she would never forget that her patients were real people. Hermione hadn't checked on the patient herself, been too exhausted, too burned out.

"Has anyone told you that you are a fast runner?" Malfoy said, collapsing next to her twenty minutes later. "Seriously, you should sign up for a race."

She took a deep breath and swallowed her pride. "Thank you. If you hadn't checked on my patient, he would be dead right now. I can't believe I was so stupid."

"We all make mistakes," he said, putting a hand on her arm. She was surprised by his action; it was both strange and comforting. "I should have talked to you about it and worked with you instead of stepping over your toes."

"How did you know? How could I have missed it?"

He sighed. "One of my duties during the war was to keep the prisoners alive. It sounds easy enough, but it is difficult when they're being tortured repeatedly. I read every medical book available because I knew the cost was severe if they died on me.

"One night, I had a patient that was similar to Mr. Wilson. He was breathing fast, but everything else looked okay. I couldn't give the prisoners pain potions, which is what I thought the rapid breathing was related to. Turns out that he had several rib fractures that I missed. His fast breathing threw his electrolytes and other important blood components out of whack and he died."

It showed strength that he was able to reveal such a personal story to someone he used to hate. Wanting to hear more, she covered his hand with hers. "What happened?"

"I was tortured. It didn't matter that I was a sixteen year old with no medical training. When the war was over, I had families come up to me thanking me for saving their relative. But I couldn't forget the ones that I lost. My family was involved in such Dark stuff that I knew this was the only way for me to atone for my actions in the war."

A comfortable silence fell between them. It was a relief to be able to talk about such serious matters. Despite what the public and her friends believed, no one wanted to hear the things she had to deal with every day at the hospital. People wanted to forget that sickness existed, not be reminded of it. It had made for a lonely existence.

"I don't think I can do this," she confessed, a thought that had been plaguing her since her first day.

"You made one mistake. Learn from it. We all have our bad days, moments we wish we could take back. But that's part of being a Healer. We have to make the difficult decisions. We saved Mr. Wilson tonight. Now you know not to let your pride get in the way and ask for a second opinion. I know we don't have the best history, but I am here if you need me."

She blinked back her tears and hung onto him like he was a lifeline. Everything he said hit home, but she took comfort in the fact that he saw both her strength and weakness. If Draco Malfoy thought she could be a Healer, then she would prove him right. Standing up, she extended her hand. Grey eyes met brown and he grabbed her hand, standing up. He gave her hand a squeeze before releasing it. Together, they walked back to the hospital - he filled her in on what he had done for Mr. Wilson after she had left - before separating to finish their rounds on their patients. Hermione had learned a hard, but important lesson today.

She had expected things to be awkward between her and Draco after that night. Not only did they share a complicated history, but they had both revealed a lot. Before that night, he was the last person she would have wanted to be vulnerable in front of, but now she was grateful it had been him. Draco was in the same position as her and dealt with similar things with patients.

However, the opposite of awkwardness happened. It was like hell froze over as they began to spent a majority of their time together. They both had similar work ethics, were great debaters, and came from different backgrounds bringing a fresh perspective to their discussions. Months passed of this behavior and every day that went by brought them closer together. If she wasn't careful, she could picture how Hogwarts would have been like if things had been different. Their former animosity had been well known, as people kept bringing up their changed behavior.

"What happened between you and Blondie?" Healer Lewis asked, one of the women she tried to avoid as she was a huge gossip.

Hermione grabbed the patient file from the docket. "Nothing. We discovered we have things in common and have become friends."

"Friends," she laughed. "If that's what friendship looks like…"

Hermione slipped into her patient's room, cutting Healer Lewis off. If there was one place she could avoid gossip, it was while she was with patients. Although she didn't have to worry about that, as her day was so hectic she had to miss lunch. Was it really that hard to research spells before you performed them? Eighty percent of patients came in from lack of preparation/mispronunciation. Twenty percent were admitted because they were the victim of a curse. Those were the patients she wanted to spend her time with. The entire day passed before she was able to sit down and start filling out her paperwork. Hours passed before she was interrupted.

"I have a delivery for one Healer Granger."

Hermione looked up and smiled when she saw him holding a brown bag. "That's not what I think it is."

"I had to fight her for it until she found out who I was getting it for," Draco said taking a seat at her desk.

The smell of melted cheese and prosciutto made her head snap up and a smile erupted on her face. "Thank you. This is just what I needed on a day like today."

"And here I thought you were avoiding me," he said handing her the bag.

She took the best sandwich in the city, unwrapped it the heavy brown paper and grabbed half of it. "Lauren Adams released her newest how-to beauty book today. Why she is allowed to publish is beyond me. I've been dealing with her victims all day."

"Thanks for the heads up. I'm sure some of them will be coming our way," he said stealing a bite out of the other half. "Did you know Healer Lewis is spreading rumors about us?"

"That woman is such a gossip. She tried to accost me while I was swamped with work!" Hermione said before quickly finishing the rest of her sandwich. "Thank you for feeding me. I'll pay you back. Unfortunately, I have to get back to work or else I'll be stuck here all night."

Draco nodded and walked to the door. "Hey, want to grab drinks after work tonight?"

"Sure. I will send you a message when I'm finished," she smiled before looking at the folder in front of her. She tried to ignored the tingling feeling in her chest, but was unsuccessful.

By the time Hermione wrapped up her work, it was well after ten. Ginny had sent an owl asking when she was expecting to be home, to which she quickly scribbled a reply to. She gave Healer Jacobs - he was taking over her caseload overnight - a report on their patients and by the time she wrapped that up, she sent Draco a message. She was surprised to get a reply saying that he was still around as all the Healers on day shift had gone home long ago. Quickly changing into her street clothes, she walked to the main atrium to meet Draco.

Her heart stopped and before her mind could catch up, she sprinted at full speed and jumped into waiting arms. His body felt like a stranger's - all hard and lean - and his face was different. He had grown into his features, his skin tanned, but those light eyes were still the same blue eyes of her childhood. She released him and took a step back.

"Ron, what are you doing here?"

He smiled sheepishly. "I thought I would surprise you. I wanted to tell you in person - we won the war!"

"What does that mean?" she asked, her mind trying to process this new information.

"That I'm home now," Ron said with bright smile. An awkward silence passed while Hermione tried to figure out what to say. She was happy that he had returned, but… "What the hell is he doing here?"

Her heart stopped in her chest when she realized Draco must have entered the main atrium. She wanted to run, hide, because this situation wouldn't end well. She turned around and saw Draco walk towards them, his neutral expression in place. That was never a good sign.

"Weasley. I'm surprised to see you here," he said.

"Can't a guy visit his girlfriend at work?"

Hermione wished she could disappear because out of all the things Ron could have said, that was the worst. The thing was that she couldn't completely rebuke it, not right now, and she saw that Draco was pulling away, physically and emotionally. She wanted to reach out to him and hold on tightly. The hurt and betrayal in his grey eyes wounded her and she couldn't take it back.

Time.

Something she thought she would have more of, while she figured out her feelings for both men. Ron was standing with a confidence she had never seen before and she realized that she did not know this man any more than he knew who she had become while he was away. Her childhood love - the man she dreamed she would marry and have children with - had withered away while they were apart. A wave of grief crashed over her but she didn't have time to mourn, not right now.

Her childhood hate had turned into something more. That was the thing about enemies - there was an intimacy there stemming from knowing what buttons to push, analyzing their emotions after a blow, and observing them in case they attacked you. Hermione had always known Draco in some capacity. But after Mr. Wilson, she had gotten to know him in a different way and she craved to know more about him. However, she was stuck in the expectation that she would stay with Ron and hated how her life had been predetermined by everyone. It was time to take her life and future into her own hands.

She chose Draco in the same moment that he turned and walked away.

"He definitely has a loose screw up there," Ron said wrapping his arm around her. "Let's head back to your place."

Hermione quietly led the way, thankfully her apartment was not far from the hospital. As he droned on about what he had been up to in America, her mind was still stuck on the scene that had just occurred. She knew that she had hurt Draco and needed to find a way to fix it. They entered the apartment, walked past Ginny and headed straight to her room.

She ignored the smirks on both Ginny and Ron's face as she shut her bedroom door. She turned to face Ron. "We need to talk."

A week passed since she had turned her life upside down. Ginny was actively ignoring her now while Harry kept Ron busy in the wake of their official breakup. This left Hermione alone to try to pick up the pieces of her life. There were many times that she was tempted to go back to Ron, go back to that easy, predetermined life, but she would catch herself. What was easy did not necessarily equal happiness.

Draco had been avoiding her since that night and the rumors spread like wildfire. She felt like she was back at Hogwarts with the way everyone was acting, felt like the outsider she had been her entire life before Harry and Ron. If she walked into the break room while Draco was there, his table was filled with Healers - women he had once confessed drove him nuts - while she sat alone. It took one more week of this behavior before she reached her breaking point and cornered him in an empty hallway.

His glare reminded her of their childhood, but she ignored her uneasiness. "I'm leaving."

"When are you going to stop and let me explain?" she said as she stopped him from walking past her.

He swung around, grey eyes furious and she was struck by how dangerous he looked in that moment. "Why? So you can lie? Why the hell didn't you tell me about Weasley?"

"It's not that simple and if you gave me a chance, I would explain," Hermione said.

Draco laughed. "That's a load of shit. You're either with someone or not. Weasley clearly thought you were together, so what does that say about you?"

Before she could answer, he stormed down the hallway and disappeared out of sight. She wanted to scream, or throw something. Taking deep breaths to calm herself, she stood up straight and headed back to the Spell Damage floor. She had done all that she could and if Draco refused to listen… She released a shaky breath.

This wasn't how the story was supposed to end.

A peaceful day quickly turned into a day from hell. His arm was around her throat, dark spots blurring her vision. He hauled her to the reception area, her feet dragging behind her and the only thought she had, the only thought she could process no matter how stupid, was that she would need new shoes after this.

She ignored the frightened looks geared at her, the strength this man possessed as he kept pulling her forward. He had lost his wife in the war, wanted revenge on all those who could have saved her. His wife had been killed behind Hermione during the Battle of Hogwarts.

When would they be free of the war? When would the past stop haunting their every waking moment?

He had requested her specifically, telling the receptionist that his Family Healer had recommended her. A Medi-Witch managed to squeeze him into her an appointment slot without much difficulty. Hermione walked into the room reading over his case file, didn't notice him hiding behind the door. She didn't know what he looked like even now, only that he was wearing muggle jeans and cheap cologne that made her stomach lurch.

From across the room, grey eyes caught hers - fear and concern in his gaze - as he saw her helpless position. He had been in the war, knew how this would end for her. Weren't they all just walking ghosts after the war anyways? Would it matter if she died now?

But Draco didn't know that she loved him, had chosen him despite everyone's expectations and she hated this man for stealing that from her. She could feel the darkness closing in on her and mouthed those eight letters, three words to him before everything went black.

She woke up with a gasp. Her arms and legs were flailing, trying to hit her assailant. She would not be recaptured. It took several seconds to recognize the arms that held her, the voice trying to soothe her. Blinking several times, her eyes sore, her vision began to sharpen.

People were running in every direction. Screams and shouts drowned out all other noise. The ground was covered in broken glass and debris, holes and scorch marks littered the walls. Her attacker was being restrained by Harry - dressed in his auror robes - yelling at someone to help him subdue the assailant.

It took four of them to knock out her attacker and she watched as the aurors and magical law enforcers took him away and started cataloguing the crime scene. Healers and Medi-Witches rushed into the lobby and started triaging everyone.

Hermione's brain was still working on overdrive, shock making her thoughts sluggish. She followed Draco as he helped her stand and led her to the third floor. Hermione was surprised when she realized they were in an examination room, but sat on the table and let him look her over.

It was strange being so close to him, to have him touch her so tenderly after weeks of silence and indifference. She wanted to latch onto him with both hands in fear that he was just a dream, a figment of her imagination. She burst into tears the moment he looked at her, really looked at her, the events of the past few weeks and today catching up to her. Draco wrapped his arms around her and held her as she sobbed.

"I almost lost you today," he said kissing the side of her head and pulling her in closer, as if scared she would disappear. "I'm sorry I haven't listened to you. I was an ass."

"I should have told you, should have explained… But it's over now, I promise. I'm sorry I hurt you," she said, pulling back so that she could look at him. "I meant what I said. I love you."

"I love you too."

She didn't know who started it, maybe they both did, but suddenly they were entangled, not sure where one started, nor did they care. He was addicting, the way he moved against her, kissed her, whispered her name in reverence like she was a goddess. He smelled like leather and parchment. How they had survived being apart was beyond her, but she swore she would never hurt him again.

The door burst open, reality rushing in -

"I knew it!" Healer Lewis exclaimed before leaving the room.

Draco kissed her one last time - long and sweet - before he helped her off the examination table. Quickly rearranging her clothes and smoothing her impossible hair, Hermione wiped her tears and took his hand. Together, they walked out of the room. She was tempted to go upstairs and help the injured, but knew that her boss would turn her away immediately. Part of her regretted listening to her conscience as she stepped into the main atrium.

The paparazzi had arrived. Cameras were flashing while questions were shouted at them, all the injured already admitted onto the wards. Draco looked at her uncertainly - neither had discussed how they would handle this publicly as their relationship had been born minutes ago - but she kissed him in front of everyone.

She was tired of being their poster girl, letting the public's opinion dictate her life. Today, she had a close brush with death, reminding her how fragile life was, and she would take control of her life. She would love Draco guilt-free. With a confident smile, her and Draco strode out of the hospital hand in hand ready to take on the hate mail they were certain to receive.

THE END

I have a huge favor to ask of you. This is the first story that I've edited and I was hoping that you lovely readers would give me some feedback (either as a review or PM). I am focusing on sentence structure, flow, and word choice. I will apply your feedback while editing my Bellatrix story.

Thank you for reading :).