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Hannah saw it happen from the counter while she was waiting for another glass of ginger ale. They were sitting at the table closest to the door. Kingston leaned towards Dean. He was hesitant at first, but when she was a few inches from his face, he tilted his head and kissed her. His hand moved up her upper arm.
Hannah supported herself against the counter as she felt the earth shaking under her feet. She didn’t know what happened within her, but she felt her stomach twitch in pain as she watched the scene. In the span of a few seconds, she felt everything: rage, sadness, jealousy.
She couldn’t believe herself. Why would she be jealous? She encouraged Dean to accept Kingston’s invite. She wanted him to date other people. To be happy. But then why did seeing him with another woman hurt so much?
Because you love him
That voice inside her head was too loud for her own liking. The same voice that in the past three weeks had reminded her of what her father had told her. She had convinced herself her father imagined things. That Dean just cared a lot. That once the baby is born, he would realise he had never felt that way about her.
When Dean moved to stand up, she quickly turned her back. She didn’t wanna meet his gaze as he walked past her to go to the bathroom. She took the opportunity to go back to the table, leaving the ginger ale untouched on the counter. She grabbed her things, excused herself with Kingston and made up an excuse to leave. When she walked out of Molly’s and walked a few metres in the cold air, she felt like breathing again.
“Are you leaving?”
The voice came gently from behind her. Her shoulder stiffed istantly. She sniffed, quickly wiping off the tears she hadn't even realised she was holding back. She turned slightly, just enough to look at him. “Yeah, I’m a bit tired.”
“Okay, let me grab my jacket. I’ll drive you.”
“No,” she said abruptly. The words came out sharper than she meant to. “You should stay. Enjoy your evening with Kingston.”
Dean exhaled slowly. “You saw the kiss.”
She nodded slightly.
“I told her I'm flattered, but it’s better if we keep it strictly professional.”
Hannah finally turned fully towards him. Surprise flashed across her face. “Why did you do that?”
“Because she’s not the one I want to spend my evenings with.” He admitted, thinking there was no point in hiding from his feelings anymore.
A moment of silence stretched between them as his words settled within her.
“You don’t really mean that,” Hannah said quietly. Her gaze dropped to her belly, and her hand instinctively moved to rest there. “You don’t feel that way.”
Dean followed her eyes, understanding immediately. “Wait,” he said, with a hint of disbelief in his tone. “You really think I feel this way because you’re having my daughter?”
“Don’t you?!” She said with a humourless laugh, looking back at him.
“No!” He said louder than he intended. Then his voice softened. “Us having a kid together has nothing to do with my feelings for you, Hannah.”
Silence fell again between them, but somehow it felt heavier this time. Their eyes locked. Dean broke the silence first as something in his chest shifted painfully. suddenly he couldn’t hold it anymore.
“I’ve loved you from the moment you walked into that restaurant.” He started.
Her eyebrows furrowed in a puzzled look of confusion and surprise.
“I’ve loved you when you call me out for giving you a hard time your first week on the job. When you made sure I had drunk enough water. When you put neon snakes in my locker.” He chuckled at the memory before continuing. “God, even when I was with Margo. I’ve loved you when I said you are a reason to stay, and when I told you, you deserve more. When you showed up at my door with Crunch Berries. And when you stood in my kitchen and told me you were pregnant.”
He paused for a second and took a step closer to her. “I love you, now. And I’d still love you after our daughter is born.”
“You love me?” She asked after a bit, with a tone that was half-question and half-statement.
“I do.” He said softly but with a tone that left no doubt. For the first time, he said those words out loud, not afraid anymore of their weight. Admitting it felt like he finally took something off his chest. Like he could finally breathe.
She didn’t believe his words. She didn’t want to believe him. Not because he was lying, she knew he would never lie about something that important. And knowing that he was telling the truth made everything scarier. Because she knew that the moment she let herself believe him, things would change again.
“Go back inside, Dean.” She muttered, tears in her eyes. “Please.”
“Yeah, okay. Whatever you want.” He sounded defeated. He felt a sharp pain in his chest as his heart clenched painfully the instant he took a step back. “Goodnight, Hannah.”
Dean walked back inside before she could say something. As he walked away, she fought hard to hold back her tears, and with trembling hands she reached for the car key in her bag. That night, she hadn’t slept. Tossing and turning in her bed all night as her voice in her head kept her awake.
If he had been feeling like this for years, why did he never say anything?
He was lying. He only loves your daughter.
You pushed him away. Again
A few days passed, and Hannah went back to avoiding him during shift, taking longer routes, walking past him without daring to look in his direction. She felt bad, but avoiding him was easier than facing the truth.
‘That man is head-over-heels in love with you’
Her shift ended with no big cases, and she was ready to leave. She stepped into the elevator, pressed the floor button, and just before the doors closed completely, a hand slipped between them. The doors reopened, and Dean was standing right in front of her. he was going home too. Her heart sank into her stomach, and the second her eyes landed on him, she looked away. He stepped inside, and the doors closed again. Neither of them spoke as they stood just a few feet from each other. And yet they had never felt more distant than now.
The ride was awkward, and tension filled the cabin. Suddenly, Hannah reached out and pressed the stop button, and the elevator jolted. Dean turned to her, confused, but stayed silent. Hannah faced him slowly. Her expression was serious, jaw tight, standing with a rigid posture. She spoke after staring at him for a long moment as if to gather the courage she needed.
“Did you really turn Kingston down?”
“I did.”
Her brows furrowed. “But she’s nice. And beautiful.”
“She is,” he agreed without hesitation.
“Then, why did you turn her down?” She asked, almost disappointed.
“Because she’s not you.”
The words felt like a punch in her chest, leaving her speechless. Her hand unconsciously moved to the side of her belly as she felt their daughter shifting. A reminder of everything she had to lose.
“Dean…”
“I thought I could do it. Dating someone else. But I can’t.” He admitted with a shrug. “You’re the one I keep thinking about, and it hurts because I shouldn’t feel this way.” He continued.
“You’ve been pretty firm on the ‘We’re just two friends having a baby’ thing. And I let you, because that is what you wanted.”
Her features softened gradually as he spoke, and the tension in her shoulders eased a bit.
“But I should’ve been honest with you from the beginning. I don’t want us to be just two friends raising a kid together.”
His voice softened, and a smile formed on his lips. “I wanna wake up every morning next to you. With our daughter sleeping in the other room. I wanna make you disgusting green smoothies for breakfast and hear you complain about my poor diet decisions while I eat cereal.”
She let out a chuckle as a small smile appeared on her face. Her eyes reddened with tears as he spoke.
“I want our daughter to have two parents living under the same roof. Not because of logistics, but because I don’t wanna spend another moment away from you…and her.” his voiced cracked as he spoke, and he quickly cleared his throat before continuing.
“I don’t know if I’ll ever be half the man you deserve,” he said quietly. “But God willing, I’ll spend the rest of my life trying to be, because all I ever wanted is for you to be happy. No matter what the situation between us is going to be.”
She stood there, utterly still, as if she moved, the moment might break apart. She stared at him, overwhelmed by the way his words settled within her. They replayed in her mind over and over.
This was not what she expected to hear when she shut down the elevator. But it was what she needed. Something within her shifted, and for the first time, she could clearly see what was right before her eyes.
Dean took her silence as a sign he overstepped.
“You don’t have to feel the same. I understand if you don’t. I just couldn’t keep ignoring it, I needed to say it.” He added carefully. “We can just pretend it never happened and go back to being just two friends having a baby.” He swallowed hard, forcing himself to meet her eyes. “I won’t bring it up again. I’ll do whatever you ask.”
“Say it again.”
Dean blinked. “What?”
“You know what.”
He did know. He looked confused for a long moment, afraid he might’ve misunderstood the situation. Then he took a deep breath, trying to calm his nerves and the frantic beating of his heart.
“I love you, Hannah.”
For a moment, he just looked at her. Hannah saw the tension building up again in his shoulder when she said nothing. She stepped closer to him, as close as she could, until her belly touched his stomach.
She looked down at his hand before reaching for it and taking his hand in hers. She looked back at him, his eyes softened in a way she had only seen once before, when they learned they were having a girl. She saw the same love and care.
“I love you, too”
He let out a breath he hadn’t realised he was holding. Her words hit him like a train, still not quite sure he heard them right. “Yeah?!”
She nodded vigorously, biting her bottom lip to contain the smile. “Yes.”
Dean closed Hannah into a hug, the belly pressing deeper against him, but he didn’t mind at all. Hannah wrapped her arms around his neck as quickly as he did. He hugged her tightly, careful not to crush her belly, as she matched his enthusiasm. Their laughter echoed in the cabin. Years of building tension, months of awkwardness and attempts to ignore what deep down they had always known but were too scared and stubborn to face, loosened in that moment.
When they came back face-to-face, Hannah had tears in her eyes that she quickly wiped off.
“God, stupid hormones.” She murmured. “I’m sorry if I didn’t say it sooner. I was just…”
He shook his head as he grabbed her face between his hands. “Shut up.”
He kissed her, pressing his lips hard against hers. He hung on that kiss, like a desperate man, afraid that she might disappear if he had let go. Her hand moved up on his bicep to steady herself as she melted completely into him.
When they pulled apart, their forehead touched, resting against each other’s. Dean brushed his thumb gently over her cheek.
“She’s moving,” Hannah told him as she felt their daughter reminding her mother she was there, too. “She knows her dad is close.”
“Can I?” He asked, pulling back just enough to look at her.
Hannah nodded, taking his hand and guiding him. Dean felt a faint kick under his palm, barely noticeable but still there. He then bent over to get closer to the belly.
“Hey, peanut,” he said gently. “Your mom just made me the happiest man alive.” He said, looking up at Hannah.
She laughed quietly, running her fingers through his hair. After a moment, Dean straightened again and held his hand out to her. Hannah didn’t hesitate, and answered his silent question, sliding her hand into his and interlacing their fingers naturally. A silent agreement that from now on they’d face things together, as partners.
Dean reached for the button, restarting the elevator. They stood side by side, shoulders brushing lightly, and both of them wearing a silly, uncontrollable smile. the kind of smile that came with the acknowledgment of something they were both scared to admit before.
“Do you wanna come to my place?” he asked, still tentative, turning his hand slightly to face her.
“I’d love that,” she said immediately, squeezing his hand. As if to give her opinion, the baby moved again. Hannah chuckled softly. “She agrees too.”
“Good.”
The doors opened a moment later. They stepped out together with their hands tightly linked. As they walked out of the hospital, Dean glanced down at her, his heart filled with something he had never felt before. It was scary and beautiful at the same time. But of one thing he was certain: he didn’t wanna mess it up.
From there, things moved fast.
They wanted the rest of their lives to start as soon as possible. They had already done things out of order, so moving in together didn’t feel wrong. It wasn’t just a practical decision so that Dean could help Hannah with the baby without going back and forth between their places. It was finally choosing each other, after months of being afraid to name what was happening between them.
Hannah’s presence filled Dean’s house pretty quickly. Her clothes hung on his wardrobe next to his, their scrubs folded perfectly beside each other’s. In the kitchen, her kettle found its place next to his coffee machine. Everything felt so familiar and right, as if it had always been like that.
They spent most nights talking about house arrangements, what color paint the nursery, and what crib to buy. They also started writing down a list of names, but no one felt right. And in between all of it, they learned how to be together as more than just friends. They had promised to talk more, without fear or second-guessing. It wasn’t perfect, nor effortless. But it was worth the life they were going to bring into the world.