Who: Katie Bell & Oliver Wood What: News Where: Oliver's Home When: Friday, October 6th Rating: Low Status: Closed/Incomplete
Katie arrived at Oliver’s with a stumble and immediately braced herself against the kitchen counter. She'd apparated straight from her appointment after checking Oliver was home alone and had aimed for the lounge knowing that at the centre of the house he wouldn't be too far away.
She hadn't expected to arrive in the exact place she'd pictured- the brain fog that came with all the pregnancy hormones having already started playing havoc with her concentration- but the fact that she was a different room entirely spoke volumes as to how nervous she was feeling about the news she was here to deliver.
It wasn't bad news. In fact, in the grand scheme of things it was likely the better outcome, but with Oliver and Alec having both played their cards close to their chests in terms of how they felt about the prospect of being a father, Katie still couldn't be sure that Oliver wouldn't be crushed by the news.
After a moment stood with both hands flat against the worktop and upon hearing her friend’s footsteps approaching, Katie moved to straighten up. Her mind was racing a mile a minute and the folded pieces of paper in her pocket felt like they were burning a small hole through her jeans, but once Oliver came into view she couldn't help but feel her whole body relax a little.
-
Mid-season break meant Oliver spent more time at home than usual; this often upset the very strict schedule he and Puddlemere kept for himself, though he couldn't deny waking up just a bit later than usual and not having to rush to the pitch was rather enjoyable. So he'd added making coffee to the morning routine and sitting on the balcony before a morning run as a way to pad the day.
It was also a distraction from checking for owls or his phone for messages from Katie: anything that might have the results of the paternity. Unfortunately, the mid-season break had come when he needed the distraction the most. This morning had been particularly rough, Oliver found himself with a feeling of standing on an edge of an abyss and looking down. Sure, Charlie's chat had helped some, but deep down the maelstrom of emotions continued to rage. What if the baby wasn't his? What if it is? Was he really ready for this? How could he take care of Katie?
A small pop in the kitchen alerted him to Katie's arrival. She'd messaged earlier and he could only guess what it was about. Oliver leapt up from the couch and hurried to the kitchen.
-
Katie tried to read his expression, to try and gauge whether the expectant look upon his face was lined with hope that the baby was his or whether he was praying it wasn't. He'd promised he'd be there for her either way and that he was happy to go along with her decision to keep the baby or not, but once confronted with the results of the paternity test was that going change?
Releasing a breath she hadn't realised she'd been holding and Katie moved from her spot besides the counter. She'd thought of how she wanted to do this, had concocted dozens of scenarios where she revealed the news to Oliver- ones where she was blunt and to the point, others where she'd had him work it out for himself- but now she was in the moment none of those things felt at all appropriate. For one, Oliver looked almost as on edge as she felt, and so she did what she felt was most familiar and after offering him an apologetic smile (for what, she wasn't quite sure) she moved to wrap her arms around his neck, drawing herself in close and then after an initial hug moved to balance on her tiptoes.
"My back pocket." She whispered beside his ear, using one hand to guide his down and to where she was talking about, before returning it to his neck. She waited a moment until she felt his fingers find the slip of paper* she'd been given at her first appointment of the day. "That's the baby." She managed. "It's still small; the size of a lime she said, but it's healthy and," A shaky breath, her heart hammering in her chest. "it's yours."
-
Somehow, in ways Oliver would probably never understand, Katie's tiny frame completely enveloped him with her hug. He didn't dwell on this fact, but rather her gentle yet firm hand guiding his along her backside to the pocket containing the results.
He drew back a bit to look at the paper: a black blob with splotches of white that didn't make sense, though somehow Oliver knew it was the baby. It's healthy. Relief flooded through him, numbing the mind in a fog of joy. It's yours.. In that moment the world shrank to the two tiles Oliver and Katie stood, while his blue eyes flicked upward from the photo to hold hers.
"It's...mine?" Oliver stood unnaturally still, trying to process the life altering news: this photo was the proof of Katie and him. By next year, if nothing happened, they would be parents. Tears brimmed at the corner of his eyes while letting out a cry of joy and scooping Katie off her feet.
-
Katie nodded, her eyes searching his for a brief moment, at least until she felt her feet leave the ground and the weight of the worry she'd felt at the idea that he might go into some sort of shock at such news vanishing as she laughed, wrapping her legs around him so he could hold her there.
He was happy. Not just pleased either, but actual eye watering like happy and the thought that Oliver might have wanted this... well, the relief was immense, her heart swelling with affection and gratitude, not just for him and his reaction, but at the universe, at fate. Katie loved Alec, but they'd both started to move on and this new thing with Oliver... Katie had known from the start that the baby being his was the outcome that had the most potential to bring something positive to both of their lives and the look on his face right then just confirmed that she'd been right.
"You're pleased? You're happy?" She asked, her own eyes glassy with the threat of tears. She'd was holding both palms to either side of his face, thumbs level with his jawline just watching the emotions flitting over his features.
-
"I'm absolutely fooking chuffed!" Oliver managed to choke out as the tears slid down his face. All the worry, anxiety and negative scenarios melted away in Katie's embrace. Or may not have been his ideal way to start a family but at the very least it was a start. "Merlin... Katie... Just-" he buried his face in the sheet of blonde, unable to form any proper sentence. Words were useless anyway.
After several long beats (and a few times Oliver hugged even tighter with a little shake of her body) he placed Katie delicately on the floor. "Do you know what it is yet?" He asked visibly buzzing with excitement.
-
God, this felt like a dream. Katie hadn't allowed herself to hope for a response as positive as this and as Oliver buried himself in the mass of her hair and squeezed her tight, she moved to wrap her arms around his neck again, wanting to cling to him and his uncanny way of making her feel better, lighter, more hopeful.
Of course, it was impossible to forget the mass of obstacles that were in their way, the sheer fact that they both lived in very different worlds, but right then and none of that mattered.
Shaking her head at his question, Katie moved her gaze to the picture in his hand, her own going to take his other and squeezing it tightly as if to confirm he was really there. "A couple more weeks and we can find out. It's too small to see anything yet- it's barely the size of a lime," She added, not realising that in her excitement she was repeating herself. "but he or she is growing fast and by the end of April they'll be here. Baby Wood." She added softly, her eyes fixed on the vaguely baby shaped outline and feeling deeply affected at the thought that she and Oliver had created another human being together. That no matter the obstacles that stood in their way, the fact remained that this baby was going to be thoroughly loved regardless.
-
"April," He felt dizzy. "That's getting close to playoffs. I'll make sure to take time off." Puddlemere be damned if they would keep him from the birth of his child. Looking down at the photo once more he felt a bit embarrassed that the picture made little sense to him. Still, the reassurance of Katie's gentle squeeze helped keep Oliver's thoughts rooted. "Have you thought of any names?” A sheepish grin slid across his features; Oliver, having the desire to have children for as long as he could remember, had long picked out the perfect - in his opinion - names.
-
"I've given it a bit of thought, though I wanted to know who's it was before I made any kind of short list. But wait- does that mean you want to be there? At the birth? Will you even be able to get time off?" She asked, not wanting to spoil the moment, but finding herself unable to keep from asking. "What will you tell management? If anybody finds out..." Katie shook her head, squeezing his hand again, this time unconsciously, almost as if she were afraid to let him go.
-
"I'll make them." Oliver nodded with resolution. The look on Katie's face made his heart hurt; how could she doubt he would do everything in his power to be there? Even if he wasn't Puddlemere would lose given the lack of focus he would have. He wove his free hand through the soft locks of Katie's hair and smiled. "It's going to be okay, Katie, we're going to figure this out."
Truthfully in the back of his mind a taunting voice whispered everything wouldn't be okay: the obstacles ahead seemed insurmountable. The brilliant smile dimmed slightly at the thought of Katie pregnant and on the run, but at the same time he couldn't ask for her to give up fighting for the cause against the Ministry no more than Oliver was ready to give it his career.
-
Katie wasn't convinced, even despite the confidence with which he delivered his reassurances, but she still nodded, leaned into his hand and turned to place a grateful kiss to his palm before exhaling deeply. "I hope so. I really do. I know neither if us wanted this, but now it's happening... it just- it doesn't feel wrong, does it?" She asked. "I don't believe in fate or any of that rubbish, but this- now it's happening..." Katie closed her eyes, trying her hardest to blink back the threat of tears she felt building. Her morning really had been like a rollercoaster in terms of the highs and lows she'd suffered and having found that not only was Oliver so wanting of this baby, but that she herself, for the first time since finding out she was pregnant, was actually excited about the prospect of having his child, a shock to the system.
"I'm sorry," she managed, pulling away to rub at her damp cheeks with the back of her hand. "I don't mean to get all deep on you," She added, half sobbing, half laughing. "I didn't sleep much last night and today has just been a bit much." There was also the fact that she'd been worried about Remus, having not heard from him since he'd supposedly turned himself in on Wednesday, but that wasn't something she would bother Oliver with, not now at least.
-
Oliver traced a thumb across the delicate, damp trail on Katie's cheek and the dimming smile turned into one of gentleness.
"I've always wanted kids," he reassured, omitting the fact the plan for children had been very drastic from their current circumstance. "So don't say this wasn't wanted. This," Oliver pressed his hand to her still flat belly willing to feel some kind of firmness. "Was absolutely wanted. C'mon, sit down." Suddenly it dawned on Oliver he didn't exactly know what to do for his guest; sure he'd been around during his sister's pregnancy, but this was completely different somehow. "Em, you want some tea?"
-
Looking down at his hand on her belly and Katie felt her heart turn over. She'd wanted children too, but had been resigned to the fact that the opportunity to do so would never come. It seemed silly to think so at only twenty-three, but the rebels were making no headway in their plight, and until very recently her love life has consisted of holding on to the thin threads of a love that had changed beyond all recognition. This thing with Oliver though... Katie could barely remember what triggered it all, but right then, with his palm warm against the flat of her stomach and slightly too high to be above the spot where their child was growing inside her and she found she didn't care. Instead she returned his smile and nodded.
"Yes, please, with two sugars too, if you have any." Katie didn't usually drink her tea sweetened, but she felt tired, no doubt having burned through most of her energy reserves that morning. "So, do you want to find out what it is?" She began, sitting herself back on the sofa and pulling her feet up beneath her. "I think I’d quite like to, but I can wait too. Or at least attempt to keep a secret.” She added with a playful smirk.