Chapter Text
It takes Hermione three days to break the news to her parents. Three days since she had been crying on her bathroom floor with the positive pregnancy test in hand, those two pink stripes looking mockingly at her.
She didn't know what to do. After spending the remainder of the day and night sobbing in her bedroom she decided to contact her closest friend, Ginny. She is a year younger than Hermione and is in her first year of university. Ginny stays in the university dorms with her roommate, Luna. Even though it’s a small dormitory with barely any space for both Ginny and Luna; Hermione knows that the doors are always open for her.
Hermione is in her second year of University studying English. Her father did not agree with her choice of career at the time, Hermione was about to resign and choose the career her father had wanted for her when her mother, somehow, convinced her Father to let her study English.
Her father and Hermione do not have the best relationship. He never seems to agree with any of Hermione’s choices. No matter what she does or how she does it, it is never enough for him. She already had come to terms with it. Her choice of career is not enough, she had been born to be a dentist just like her parents, and that is what her father always liked to remind her. Her choice of partner is not enough either. Being with a man eighteen years her senior is not appropriate.
She had tried to introduce her parents to Draco. But her father does not listen to a single word she says. He does not comprehend the pairing. And if she’s being honest, she would never have imagined dating a thirty-eight-year-old man being only twenty years old.
Even after a year of dating Draco, her father refuses to meet up with him. Even when Draco showed up at their door.
Her mother is just a bit more comprehensive and accepts her relationship with Draco. She even met up with Hermione and Draco at a coffee shop a few months ago behind Hermione’s father’s back. Her mother had fallen for Draco’s charms just like every other woman in the universe does.
Draco does not know about his upcoming fatherhood. In all truth, she’s scared of his reaction. They had talked about having children, yes. But they always come up in a very distant future. Draco comes from a conservative family and they frown upon women getting pregnant before marriage.
That was why, before taking the courage to go talk with her parents about her pregnancy, she had made her bags, ready to go to Ginny’s place.
Hermione is going to tell Draco in her own time.
She is never the one to lose hope, but she does know her father. And he would very much likely throw her out of the house and beat her up rather than support her pregnancy and relationship.
Her father has the idea that Hermione would remain untouched till marriage. And she had unconsciously agreed to wait. That is until she met Draco.
She had been scared to have sex for the first time. Did all of the horrible things her father said would happen, would happen?
Would Draco take her and then dispatch her, get rid of her; like she was nothing more than a cheap slag, like her father says?
Or was he going to look at her with no respect and use her only for sex?
Or the one that’s still haunting her; was he going to knock her up and leave?
Draco had proved her father wrong in more than a hundred aspects. He treated her with even more respect after having sex, but what would happen when he learned about her pregnancy? Would he leave her? Would he deny this fatherhood?
There’s only one way to find out.
But first things first.
Her hands shake as she takes a seat on one of the sofas in the room where her father watches television.
The usual sweating beer on his hand. The game in front of him has his undivided attention.
That’s why she chose this moment to tell him. His eyes are focused on the game and nothing more.
He does not acknowledge her till she clears her throat twice.
“What do you want, kid?” He asks, his eyes still on the game.
“I wanted to talk to you.” She hopes her father does not notice the slight shake in her voice.
He takes a big gulp from his beer before saying, “Then talk.”
She wants to throw up. Her heartbeat is the only thing she’s listening to, not the loud game on the telly, or the blender in the kitchen.
She feels small and fragile so that’s how she says it “I’m pregnant.”
He turns off the TV immediately and turns to look at her with furious and wide eyes “What did you just say?”
Her hands shake horribly on her lap.
A fury takes over her father’s features.
Hermione’s scared of what he’s going to do to her.
“That I’m pregnant–”
It’s so fast, she does not even see it coming.
In the blink of an eye, the sweating beer is spilling freely on the floor, and her father’s hand is slapping her right cheek.
The only sound filling the room is the big slap, the contact of his hand with her now wet and red cheek. Even her mother stopped whatever blender she was using.
“It is that bastard, isn't he?” He yanks her ponytail, hard. “You are the whore of that bastard, aren't you?”
“Dad—" She sobbed loudly. From pain.
Pain in her cheek and pain at his cruel words.
“You are the easy slag that he gets to fuck every time he wants.” She’s sure all of the neighborhood, all of England can hear him in that moment.
“Richard.” Her mother whispers from some point behind them.
Her father ignores her “I will kill him.”
“No, no, no.” She sobs harder, trying to get out of his clutches. It’s been a while since he has beaten her. “Please—"
But right now, she’s only thinking of her unborn child. The poor innocent baby who doesn’t deserve to suffer.
“Bloody slut that you are.” He slaps her harder this time if that was even possible.
Her right eye hurts and she could feel it getting swollen. Shaking sobs do not stop coming from her.
“Papa, please—" She whispered, not having any more energy.
He throws her to the floor, like a rag doll. Her head hits the ground hard and when she looks at the carpet it has a red stain on it. “Don’t call me that. I’m not your father anymore.”
Somehow those words hurt more than any of his blows and beatings over the years.
The never-ending tears join the red on the once pristine white carpet.
“And now get out of my house before I do something we’ll regret.”
Hermione is sure that once he gets to actually beat her up, he will not stop. He will kill her. But Hermione has no energy to stand up from the floor.
Her head hurts.
Her cheeks hurt.
Her arm hurt. She must have broken a bone for sure.
It could have passed mere minutes, hours, or even days before she felt something cool on her cheek.
When she opens her good eye, she watches as her mother cries. She’s kneeling on the floor and trying, but failing to heal the bruise from her cheek.
“Oh, Hermione.” She sobs, her chest shaking uncontrollably in Hermione’s face. “I’m so sorry.”
That only makes Hermione cry harder.
“You need to go to the hospital.” Her mother wipes the tears from Hermione’s eyes. “How can I contact him?”
With the only strength, Hermione possesses she shakes her head and says in a whisper “He doesn't know.”
“Oh, you stupid girl” Her mother embraces her tightly. So tight it hurts.
Between coughs, Hermione says “Call Ginny.”
In all truth, she can barely walk, but somehow, her mother has managed to secure her in a cab.
She found Hermione’s packed bags and put them in the trunk.
After paying for the cab, her mother whispers in her ear “You know I cannot go with you. He would kill me.” Her voice shakes with terror. “Go to the hospital, Ginny will meet you there.”
Hermione does not have the strength to even nod.
“He deserves to know, Hermione. He’s a great man.” She hugs Hermione one last time “Take care of yourself and the little one. I’ll try to stay in touch.”
Hermione barely feels that her mother hiding some money in her front jeans pocket.
Sensing the impatience from the car driver, her mother kisses her swollen cheek one more time “I love you, Hermione.”
The next time she opens her eyes, she finds herself in a hospital bed. Ginny and Luna are at her side.
“Call the Doctor.” Ginny hurriedly says to Luna.
Hermione tries to talk but only coughs get out of her. After drinking a whole glass of water, she asks “What time is it?”
“Five o’clock.”
Hermione frowned. 5 o'clock? It had been late afternoon when she had broken the news to her father.
“You’ve been out for a whole day.”
She can hear her heart beating faster, her hands and legs shaking “Is my baby okay?”
She rushes the question, needing to know, but also dreading the answer.
“Yes, Miss Granger.”
A middle-aged man with a gray mustache enters the room “I’m Doctor Davies.”
Hermione nods“Everything okay?”
“Nothing to worry about, Miss Granger. We had to give you a couple of stitches in the back of your head. But besides that, you are going to be okay.”
Hermione sighs. She thought it was going to be so much worse.
“The best medicine for this is rest,” Dr. Davis says as he writes in the hospital register “I would give you some pregnant-friendly painkillers.”
Hermione nods, not having the energy to say anything more.
“I’ll leave you to it.”
After the doctor leaves, Ginny and Luna do not pressure Hermione to talk. And she doesn’t. Not after a long nap anyway.
They now know she’s pregnant, but they don’t know she is dating anyone.
“I’m pregnant,” Hermione says without preamble “The father has no idea of my pregnancy. And I’d like it to stay that way.”
Ginny’s the first to break the silence “You didn't tell us you were seeing anyone.”
Hermione feels shame for the first time “I know, it was just really complicated and at first, I was keeping it a secret from my parents”
“We’re not your parents, Hermione–”
“Oh, Hermione,” Luna interrupted with her dreamy voice “You don’t have to worry about it. We are going to be here for you. No matter what.”
Hermione smiles for the first time in all of this ordeal “Thank you, Luna. I’ll appreciate all of the help I can get.”
Luna reaches for her hand on top of the bed.
“For starters, I don’t have a place to stay–”
“You will stay with us, Hermione. All of the time you need.” Luna squeezes her hand. The generosity and kindness on Luna’s face make her cry.
“I'm sorry, it's just–”
“I’m here too, Hermione. We will do everything to help you, okay?” Tears fill Ginny’s eyes.
Hermione nods in thanks.
By the time they make it to the dorm the next day, she has hundreds of missing calls and texts from Draco.
It’s been the longest time they have gone without talking or seeing each other.
He’s been on a business trip in Romania for the past two weeks and he’s returning in one more week.
The girls are in classes and Hermione decided to rest for a change. She already sent an email to her professors about her current situation and most of them were supportive.
Hermione decides to take one of his calls. She takes the call with strength and a happiness she does not feel.
“What happened?” His way of greeting her for the first time in days. “Why were you not taking any of my calls?”
Hearing his voice after all of this made her eyes well up, she needs him more than anything.
“Nothing.” She clears her throat and lies “Just been busy with exams.”
“Tell me what happened” He commands. Draco’s voice always makes her feel safe and taken care of. She has always complied with whatever he said but this was too important, she can’t break the news over the phone. She wants to see him one more time.
“I’ve missed you like crazy, that's what happened.”
“Baby…” He does not sound convinced.
“I’ll tell you when you get here, okay?”
“You’re scaring me, Hermione.” He tsks. “You know I don't like when you hide things from me.”
She feels like a little girl arguing with her Papa. Hermione can not help to feel guilty for keeping this from him, but she promised herself to wait and make a decision before telling him.
She can not hide the sob anymore. Her tears come out freely now “I need you, Draco.”
“No, no, no” He whispers sweetly “Don’t cry, sweetheart.” Even though he whispers sweet things to her, he sounds worried and almost… mad. She hopes not at her.
“I just miss you so much.” She sobbed harder.
“I miss you too, Hermione.” He sounds firm when he says “Only one more week, I promise.”
“Okay.” She whispers sadly. He’s on a business trip, he has things to do.
“I want to have you in my arms, baby. I can’t wait to see you.”
Fresh tears fall from her eyes. She hopes it’s not the last time she’ll hear those words.
“I can’t wait to see you too.”
It’ll be just humiliating when she tells him about her pregnancy and he just leaves her. But right now, she’s going to listen to his sweet words and believe him.
The next few days are a blur, Hermione feels she’s imposing in Ginny’s and Luna's dorm even though they tell her she’s welcome.
It’s already a very tight space for two people. Two small bedrooms and one small couch. Ginny insisted on taking the couch for the time being, but Hermione always agrees somewhat hesitantly; she always agrees thinking of the sweet child growing inside of her.
Hermione only has the few pounds her mother had given her that night to find somewhere to stay.
She really needs to get a job. Ginny offered to talk with her manager at the sports pub she works at. It’s not the best environment for a pregnant woman, but that will have to do.
Hermione needs to save up for a lot of things. She refused the idea of still imposing on her friend’s dorm; she would find a flat of her own.
The baby needs its own space to grow up, and Hermione will provide it. She doesn’t care if she needs to leave University or work all day and night to provide for her baby.
Abortion is simply not an option. She already loves the child growing inside of her. And that baby will have everything Hermione can offer. Even if she can’t provide a father for her child because deep in her heart Hermione knows that Draco and his family will never accept her. A woman pregnant out of wedlock. She now knows her father is right.
She does not care. Hermione can take care of herself and the baby.
Ginny hooked her up for a job at the pub. A waitress. Even though she does not know anything about waitressing, she takes it.
She misses her first orders. Serves six beers for a table of four and apologizes to a customer for making him repeat his order three times.
But nothing can prepare her for all the manhandling. She does work in a sports pub after all. But that does not justify the leering stares and the eventual hand on her bum. The first few times she blushed furiously in anger and it took her ten minutes to calm herself and cry back at the kitchens.
When she brought it up to Ginny she only shrugged and said she will get used to it.
She never told Draco about it though.
Hermione can not even find the strength to tell him she has a job. He will ask why and… Her heart starts to beat furiously at the thought. Hermione loves Draco very much; she does not want to lose him. But it’s inevitable.
“And hurry up, girl.” A hard squeeze to her bump brings her back to reality. The old man has a missing tooth and he’s devouring her with his dull eyes.
She shivers and leaves to bring his order.
He keeps ordering beer after beer. Every time he asks for the drink he squeezes her bum and calls her a slag or something.
To think this’s going to be her life now.
Who will give employment to a single mother with no university title? Hermione already made amends with it.
She’ll do everything and more to protect and provide for her baby.
Her shift was about to end. Only one more hour to go. She’s counting the seconds to get back to the dorm, take a good shower, and get to bed.
It was one in the morning, not the best time to go to bed now that she was pregnant. But it’s one of the lesser sacrifices she needs to make.
The old man is still drunk and still manhandling her. He went from calling her a slag to telling her he was going to marry him and give her ten pups. She wants to throw up. But he’s still a customer and her manager said she needed to treat them with respect no matter what.
He must be passing the line, right?
In the end, it does not matter. The day will be over in just an hour.
She was waiting for an order to be ready to serve when her cell phone rang in her pocket. Hermione had no head to think and she just picked up the call. Her eyes are closing and her feet are killing her.
“Where are you?” That makes her gasp. It was Draco. She goes to hide in the kitchen to avoid the noise of the pub, but Draco already has heard.
“Draco.” She whispered.
“Hermione, where are you?” He has never used this tone with her. He sounds mad and he’s about to yell at her “I called you multiple times to no avail, then I went to your house and you weren't there. So now I ask again, where are you?”
“I–” Tears are starting to form in her eyes. He was talking like her father. Mad and disappointed. “I’m working.”
“Working?” Confusion is clear in his voice “Where?”
She hesitated. Hermione knows that Draco does not have his women working. She has told him multiple times in the past that she wanted a job to pay for books and coffee. He instead, just gave a gift card for Starbucks and Barnes & Noble “In the sports pub close to campus–”
“Don’t move. I’m coming.”
He abruptly ends the call.
Hermione’s now crying freely. She really regrets not telling him. What’s she going to do now? She’s not ready to tell him about her pregnancy.
She’s not ready for Draco's rejection.
“Ready to serve, Hermione”
She’s brought back to reality. “Sure. Coming.”
Hermione left the order to the disgusting man on autopilot, the only thing on her mind was Draco.
She does not even realize when the old man not only squeezed her ass but forcefully tried to kiss her lips. She starts to fight against his strong clutches “Please no—" She cried.
He is disgusting.
“Don’t you dare—" She turned around to see Draco yanking the pub’s door open.
Draco yanks her from the man’s hold with a tight hand to stand beside him.
It all happens in a second.
The man’s on the floor clutching his bloody nose and Draco punching him in his ugly face.
“Draco, you’re going to kill him.” She gasps, trying to get his attention. This is not happening. Her manager is going to kill her. “Draco, please!”
He puts some space between the agonizing man and him “You’re a piece of shit.”
When he turns around to look at Hermione, he has the look her father had when he used to beat her up and for a moment Hermione fears that Draco would do too.
His white Oxford shirt was rumpled and sweaty. The first time Hermione had seen him like that. Platinum hair disheveled and all.
“We’re leaving.” He takes her hand and leaves the pub with a hard push to the main door. Her hand started to hurt from the tight hold when he deposited her in the copilot seat of his car.
“Draco, I’m sorry.” She pleas when Draco starts to secure her security belt.
He still looks at her with violence in his eyes which scares her but says nothing.
The journey to his house was silent. Only Hermione’s sobs accompany them. They enter the house, hand in hand. Hermione still tries to talk to him, but he says nothing. Was it possible that he already knew?
“Wait here,” Draco orders and signals to the big couch in his living room. A moment later she hears the shower.
Hermione waits patiently. She always preferred this sofa. It’s big and comfortable, yet elegant.
Everything’s big and elegant in Draco’s house.
It’s a two-floor house with five bedrooms. Draco’s the only man living in the big space. She had asked once why he lived in such a grand space, his answer was simple, he wants a big family.
Her grandmother used to say; Be careful with what you wish for, you just might get it.
She swallows.
Draco appears around the corner with a fresh pair of black slacks and a black shirt; his hair is wet from the shower.
He takes a seat at the big armchair facing the sofa “Talk.”
“I-” Where should she begin?
“Why were you working in that poor excuse of a pub.” His face betrays no emotion, but his posture is rigid, and she can feel the tension coming from it.
He’s not going to like this.
“My father kicked me out.” She could not bring herself to look him in the eye. If she did, Hermione is afraid she will not say it. “He found out I’m pregnant.”
Her vision started to blur, her tears were now flowing freely down her cheeks.
This is the moment. The moment he throws her out of his life and calls her a gold-digging whore.
Suddenly, he’s on his knees, trying to make her look at him. A warm but firm hand grabs her chin “Hermione, look at me.”
She does, and what she finds confuses her.
Is it triumph in his gray eyes? A lighting storm of emotions. A smirk on his face.
“Draco–”
“Oh, my love.” He embraces her. Strong arms enveloped her in a tight hug. Hermione can not utter a word.
“I love you so much.” He caresses her face with gentleness. She can feel the adoration coming from him.
“B-But—" She shuttered “We’re not married, I thought you would not want this–”
He quickly shuts her up with a deep kiss. She sighs and returns the kiss with all of her strength. It was not much, she’s really tired. Hermione is pliant in his arms.
“You think I’m not going to marry you?” He lets her breathe and changes his course to that sweet spot where her neck meets her ear. Goosebumps erupt all over. Hermione sighs.
She always feels like this with him. Like she had no responsibilities, no tension, no stress. She’s free in his arms.
“We will get married as soon as possible, my love.” He kept nobbling and leaving love bites on her neck. Her only response was another sigh of pleasure, he squeezes
her hold on her waist.
She’s in a daze, in the clouds, but does she hear him right? Will he marry her?
He mistakes the tears in her eyes “I would not let anyone touch you again. I promise.”
“But” He started to massage her breasts and that was only making her lose her train of thought “I need to keep the job. I want to help you with–”
He shuts her up with another kiss. She was now lying on the couch, Draco spoiling her with kisses on her mouth and neck. “Don’t be ridiculous, Hermione.”
“But–”
“You will stay here and I will take care of you and the baby.”
When he says it like that, it leaves no room for discussion.
She really wishes they could have this conversation another time. When his lips were not bringing her pleasure and when she was not dying from tiredness. But she’s not complaining.
“You can drop out of university. We have no use for a degree, you’re staying home to raise our babies.”
Drop out? Babies? What’s he saying?
He makes a trial of kissing from her neck to her clothed breasts and now to her stomach. With gentle hands, he helps her out of her simple work shirt to drop light adoring kisses to her still-flat stomach.
“But I still want to go–”
“It’s too much stress for the baby, sweetheart.”
He kisses everywhere but where she needs him the most. Why does she still have her pants on? She feels drunk with desire.
“But–”
“You can study from home, I guess.” He pinched her nipple, the flimsy fabric still In the way.
“Thank you–” She sighed and then remembers, “I don’t think my parents are going to pay for it anymore–”
Her pants are gone, and Draco’s fingers are teasing her slit through the fabric. She whines
“Papa will take care of it.” Hermione gasps a strange feeling taking over. His fingers caressed her entrance through the fabric.
“Please—" Hermione’s done with the teasing. “Please, Draco. I need you.” She grabbed his platinum locks tightly to try to get him to understand her need.
Her brain is not functioning correctly. Right now, she’ll do anything he asks. Anything. If he only relieved her need.
“I know, baby.” Now with her knickers out of the way, somewhere on the floor, he finally touches her there. Right where she needs him.
“Yes,” She encourages him. After lightly caressing her clit, one tick finger slides inside of her. She immediately clenches around it, needing more.
Hermione can feel her heart beating furiously down there.
“So wet.” He whispered.
She tries to move her hips, anything to get the friction she needs. He finally starts to pump his finger in and out. Very slow for her liking.
“Please, more—" She whines, trying to chant her hips more forcibly.
Hermione feels fuller. She feels two fingers inside of her. It’s a tight fit, but it was relieving some of the ache.
Draco is now pumping more forcibly, touching that spongy spot very deep inside of her. Only he can touch it, Hermione had tried to do it herself, but it only made her wrist hurt. She could not bring herself to pleasure like only this man knew how to do so.
She’s close.
Every pump in and out makes her more sensitive.
In.
Out.
In.
Out.
Small sex noises fill the room without her permission.
He touches her clit and circular motions bring her to the edge. She’s about to fall. “Ah–”
“Come for me, Hermione.”
With one last stroke, she came undone. Pained whines come out of her. God, it had been weeks since she found relief.
“So beautiful.” He keeps petting her folds, making her more sensitive. The overstimulation makes her want to cry. “Draco, I–”
“Shh..”
“It's too much—" Tears were streaming freely to her cheeks, and he kissed each one of them.
“I know you can come again.”
“Ah– Please” She sobs in pain. Too much. Her head feels light and Hermione is sure, she is about to pass out.
“Come for me.” He pumped his finger more forcibly.
Somehow, she finds the strength to do it. Her second orgasm is even more blinding than the first; if that’s even possible. Too blinding.
She alters between sobbing and whining in pleasure.
Hermione must have passed out because one second she is in Draco’s arms, and the next he’s tucking her in his bed.
“My beautiful wife.” He kisses her forehead before she feels the other side of the bed cracks with his weight.
With her back to his front, he embraces her. Arm secured around her waist “Such a good girl, carrying my baby.”
She lets sleep take her.