Happy Friday! It's the start of a three day weekend for me. I love long weekends!

Chapter 19
"Call Draco," Hermione said the moment Blaise Apparated her to the hospital. He nodded and started to walk away from her to make the call. "Wait, don't leave me!"

He chuckled despite himself. "Which is it?" he asked.

"You have a mobile," she reminded him. "Call Draco and stay with me."

She was wheeled into an exam room with Blaise by her side. "I'll call him," he promised. "Just remember to breathe, and don't worry. I'm sure she's fine. The best healers in the world work in this hospital. You and the baby will be fine. I'm not going anywhere. Even when Draco gets here, I'm staying by your side until they send you home."

"What if something's wrong though?" she asked worriedly.

"Then they'll take care of you," he replied. "Nothing bad will happen, Hermione. I promise."

She sniffled as tears leaked down her cheeks. "You can't make that promise, Blaise," she told him. "Could you call Draco now?"

He nodded, pulled out his phone to dial Draco's number, and took her hand. He spoke calmly, but she could hear Draco's growing panic on the other end of the line. The call disconnected quickly after Blaise gave him Hermione's exact whereabouts, and seconds later, Draco Apparated into the room. He rounded the bed and took her other hand.

"I was only kidding when I told you to go into fake labor," he told her, smoothing back her hair with his free hand. "Has someone been in yet to see you? Do they know if the baby's alright?"

Hermione shook her head. "We only just got here ourselves," Blaise told him.

"Can you...would you mind finding someone to look at her?" Draco asked. Nodding, Blaise left the room. "What happened?"

She told him about the shooting pains she had started to have once she arrived at Blaise's office. "I thought it was just gas or the baby kicking too hard, but she hasn't kicked at all today. It felt strange, like contractions or something. I'm only 27 weeks. What if-"

"Don't even think about finishing that sentence," he warned her. "You've read all the books, love. This could just be false labor. And if it's not, if she's born today, she will survive. We will have our baby, and we'll watch her take her first steps and hear her first words. She'll be okay, and so will we."

Hermione reluctantly nodded as the door opened. Her heart raced as a middle-aged woman smiled and removed her wand from an inside coat pocket. She asked a series of questions, but Hermione only had one response - "Is the baby okay?"

The smile the older witch wore fell. "The pains you were feeling were contractions, dear," she explained. "Based on the position of the baby, I fear we may have to induce labor soon."

Hermione sobbed and clutched Draco's hand tighter. "Is there anything we can do?" he asked, his own voice beginning to crack.

"Rest. We'll keep Ms. Granger overnight for observation," she replied. "Right now, the best we can do is monitor the baby. We'll give you a few potions that will help make her stronger so that if she does come early, she'll have a better chance for survival. I'll be back soon with the potions."

Blaise stood by the door, opening it for and closing it behind the mediwitch. "I should call Pansy," he said softly, slipping out of the room.

Draco wrapped his arms around Hermione's shoulders and held her close while she cried. "It'll be alright," he whispered. "Yeah, she'll come a bit earlier than we planned, but she'll be strong and healthy. You and Pansy can buy some new things for her, smaller things."

"We never picked a name," Hermione said. "I thought we had more time, but we don't. She needs a name."

"We still have time," he assured her. "You need to calm down though. It's not good for her if you're overly anxious."

Nodding, she took several deep breaths and closed her eyes. "How did it go with Pansy?" she asked, needing something to take her mind off of what was happening.

Draco was silent as he formulated how best to tell her about his conversation with their friend. "It went...well," he finally said. She gave him a look that said she didn't believe him. "She was upset when I got there, and more upset when she asked how things were between you and me."

"What did you tell her?" she wondered.

He shrugged. "The truth," he replied. "That I messed up and I was afraid that I ruined things with you. And then she started sobbing, so I shut up."

Receiving a gentle tug on his hand, he moved closer to sit on the side of her bed. One hand guided his chin closer until she could kiss his lips. "You're here now," she said when she pulled away. "What happened in the past will stay there. It won't affect us from now on. You love me and our baby, and you want to be here. That's all that matters."

"And I'm not going anywhere," he vowed. The mediwitch returned and watched as Hermione drank down three potions. She advised her to sleep, and promised to check on her again soon.

She felt her eyes grow heavy, but increased her grip on Draco's hand. "Don't go," she murmured.

"I'll be right back," he replied, kissing her forehead. "I'm just gonna tell Blaise to go home. I'll be quick. You won't even have time to miss me. Just try to sleep."

Her head lolled against the pillows. "Can't sleep," she mumbled. "Too nervous."

Seconds later, she was asleep, and Draco managed to extricate his hand from her hold on it. He slipped out of the room to find Blaise waiting outside the door. "Tell Pansy that she's okay," he instructed. "I don't want her worrying. They gave her something that's knocked her out for now, so you might as well head home. I'll call if anything happens."

"I'm really sorry, Draco," Blaise said, resting a hand on his friend's shoulder.

"This isn't your fault," Draco replied. "Thank you so much for getting her here. I don't know what would have happened if you hadn't been there."

Blaise shook his head. "No, I mean for what I said, what I told her," he said remorsefully. "None of you deserved to be treated that way. I just hope my wife will take me back."

Draco smiled. "That's exactly what she wants," he told him. Blaise removed his hand and turned to leave. "Um, wait. There's something I need you to do first. Can you stop by my flat? There's something in the bedside table drawer that I need."