Connie was still terrified of hospitals.

It was a fear that would probably stay with her for the rest of her life, her mind instantly taking her back to the horrific memory of her mother's death. Hospitals were meant to be places you'd go to get better, and nurses were there to look after you, not the sort of place where someone who's sole purpose to help gets murdered. It didn't matter how long ago it was, anytime Connie went near a hospital she felt as if she was mentally reliving her mother's death, the fact that she hadn't directly witnessed it meaning her imagination ran wild in the worst possible way.

That day was no exception. It wasn't just the fear of hospitals or the thought of her mother that had her on edge, but as she went with one of the nurses and did the pregnancy tests she felt as if her insides had tightened, constricted by anxiety as her mind automatically reminded her of every previous test she'd taken. Every negative test. She'd just got her mind around the thought of not having children, she'd just made peace with the past, now it was all getting dug back up. If it was another negative, if the vomiting and late period had just been an odd fluke, Connie didn't know how she was going to react. Would it bring back the troubles with George again, the long silences and awkwardness, neither of them able to face the other? Would she get over this test as badly as she did the last one? After what the doctor had said to her last time, the whole trip out of the ashram to the medical centre felt like a pointless activity that would bring both her and George nothing but further upset.

Still though, she went along with it for George's sake. She didn't tell him her doubts or fears any more than she already had done in their bungalow, but as soon as the taxi had dropped them off at the medical centre in Rishikesh, he could feel her nerves. It was different to the medical centres back home, but on the plus side no one really knew who they were so they had proper privacy, and as they signed in they were seen to by an American doctor who had apparently come over to India for work experience. It was quiet so they were assigned their own room, and after Connie had done all the necessary tests, she and George sat alone side-by-side on a hospital bench, both of them silent as they waited for the doctor to return with the results.

George had his hand intertwined with Connie's, and as more time passed he began to feel her shiver. She was normally quite good at hiding her fear and controlling her emotions, but clearly the situation was a bit much for her. He was surprised he'd managed to talk her into going at all considering how angry she'd been when Paul suggested she see a doctor. She was usually so stubborn that when she didn't want to do something she'd not do it at all, so he was actually really proud that she'd agreed to go. Maybe after his revelation even she knew she'd need medical attention, even if she hadn't yet admitted it to him.

Gently he squeezed her hand, offering her a reassuring smile when she looked up from the floor to meet his eyes for a split second. With a small sigh, she leaned into him, resting her head on his shoulder, and he responded by pushing a gentle kiss to her forehead.

"Will you sing for me?" She asked, her voice ever so slightly croaky, as if she was straining it from not shaking. "Take our minds off it?"

"Now I know I'm not handsome, no good looks or wealth, but the girls I chase say my plain face will compromise their health," George began to sing quietly, his choice of song making Connie let out a quiet snort of a laugh. "Now I know fellows worse than me bow-legged and boss-eyed, walking out with lovely women clinging to their side,"

"Now if women like them like men like those, why don't women like me?" she sang along with him before drifting off so she could hear his voice better.

"Look at Empress Josephine, the most attractive women that was ever seen, yet Napoleon short and fat captivates a lovely looking dame like that," George continued, and Connie couldn't help but let out a quiet gasp. "Now if women like them like men like those, why don't women like me?"

"You finally learnt the second verse then?" Connie teased with a tired laugh. "Empress Josephine and Napoleon?"

"I know it was your favourite bit as a kid, you always did love a strong female historical figure like Josephine," George shrugged. "It's a good song isn't it?"

"Yeah," Connie nodded. "You've written better though. You're the best George,"

George grinned at her with a small chuckle, wrapping his arm around her shoulder to bring her closer to him, pushing a kiss to the top of her head. Physically she was there with him in the hospital room, but mentally his song had transported her back to Liverpool, back to being a teenager. Ten years ago she'd been laid on her living room floor as he played her that song, and she'd told him how she thought the sixties was going to be a good decade. That had turned out to be a bit of an understatement, but what stuck out to her the most was how ten years she'd have never thought they'd be where they were in that moment.

If she could go back in time and tell a teenage version of herself everything that was going to happen, how she would have a great career in the capital, still have the most amazing friends and be married to the love of her life, she'd have never thought such good things could happen. It was funny how things changed, and it was also funny to think how much both of them had grown up in the time that had passed but without really realising it. In Connie's mind that was a good part of marrying her childhood best friend, a constant tie to the past, whilst also having someone to go into the future with. Even with everything that had happened, every down moment of their past, she wouldn't change any of it, deciding that it was all their journey, and there was no one she'd have rather been with on said journey than George.

"Y'know whatever the outcome is we'll be alright," George told her, hoping that he was reassuring her a little. "It doesn't have to be like last time, we'll be okay,"

Connie didn't get chance to respond, as that was when the door opened and the doctor walked in. She was tall and clever looking, with long dark hair pulled into a low ponytail. Something about her just made Connie trust her instantly, feeling a little more at ease as the woman offered them both a kind smile, her eyes squinting slightly with the expression. Perhaps there was a flicker of recognition across her face, realisation that her patient was the wife of a world-famous musician, both of them sat across from her, their fate in her hands, but this doctor was much too professional to express any sort of excitement about the situation, something both Connie and George were grateful for.

She sat down at the desk across from the bench the Harrison's were sat on, and Connie's gaze immediately went to the red file she was holding to her chest, feeling her heart pound as she knew the results were in there.

"I hope I didn't keep you waiting too long, it's Mr and Mrs Harrison isn't it? I'm Doctor Hale," she introduced herself, shaking both of their hands before opening up the file, looking over the details. "So, Mrs Harrison, you've come in for a pregnancy test, with symptoms of nausea and a late period? When did you first start noticing these symptoms?"

"Honestly I didn't even notice the period thing until George pointed it out earlier, I think my last one was in December? Just before New Years I think, and I probably started boking around when we first came to India so a few weeks ago," Connie explained, trying to keep her voice flat and not let it shake.

"Well that definitely makes sense given your results," Doctor Hale nodded, smiling at both of them again. "By your test results, I would say you're around eleven weeks pregnant, congratulations,"

"Are you shitting me?" Connie asked bluntly, the words leaving her before she could stop herself. "I- I think I need to do the tests again, it's a false positive, I can't be,"

"We were told that this wouldn't happen, that it was really unlikely," George explained calmly, feeling like he needed the doctor to understand Connie's cursing, as well as to wrap his own head around it all. "Are you sure?"

"I'm very sure, yes," Doctor Hale smiled at them once more, this time the smile being more sympathetic as she pulled her seat up closer to them, handing the file to George who immediately began to look through the results himself. "Sometimes this can happen. Couples who have previously struggled or been told it's unlikely luckily manage to conceive, it's actually quite common,"

"But... are you sure?" Connie asked again, her hand tightening around George's.

Her grip on his hand was tight to the point it was almost painful, but he refused to say anything about it. If anything her tight grip was keeping him focused and not spiralling into shock as he looked over the file, realising there had been no mistake in the results. He nudged her with his elbow, gesturing for her to look and see the proof but she ignored him, too caught up in her denial and disbelief to want to look at the results, scared in case they were wrong and both George and the doctor had read them incorrectly. Neither of them had though.

"I mean, she doesn't really look pregnant," George pointed out the last bit of doubt sticking in his mind as he handed the file back to the doctor before looking to Connie almost nervously, who was staring at the floor looking as if she was trying not to throw up. "No offence, obviously, love,"

"It's very common for first time mothers not to show until later on," the doctor explained, offering the two of them another smile.

None of what the doctor was saying felt real. It felt absurd. Up until a few years ago she didn't want kids. She wasn't maternal, and hated the thought that she'd bring life into the world only to inevitably disappoint it. Then after marrying George she realised she did actually want a family with him. Their whole relationship was surrounded by the chaos of their careers, but a family would be something normal, something just for them, and she wanted that. She wanted to start a family with George, she wanted a son who acted like him or a daughter with his looks. She imagined kids that were the best parts of the both of them that they could give every opportunity to, showing them music and taking them to Liverpool to show them round where she and George grew up, raising them as honorary scousers. She'd thought about how, even though they were going to be kept away from the press, she could take the kids to visit George in the studio or take them into her office so they grew up knowing both of their parents worked hard to provide for them to give them the best possible life.

Connie wasn't maternal, but she'd set her heart on all the things she could do with a family, only to find out it might never happen. It had hurt, but she'd just gotten over it all. She'd just wrapped her head around the idea that all the things she'd fantasised about would never happen. Now it was, apparently. She couldn't believe it, part of her refusing to believe it, unable to let herself get hurt all over again. She was in a state of disbelief, so bad that she didn't even look up to George to try and guess how he was feeling. He made it quite clear though, as he squeezed her hand tightly, as if he was desperate to let her know she wasn't alone and he was with her, both of them stuck in the pain of their past that refused to let them believe it was actually, finally happening.

"I understand that your history might make this rather hard to get your heads around," the doctor said, getting both of their attention. "There is however something we can do to make this all a little easier to comprehend,"

***

Neither of the Harrison's knew technology like this existed, not until Connie was laid on a medical bed with her shirt lifted up, exposing her pale, flat stomach. The doctor had told them both the scanning machine was on loan from a hospital in America, 'just like her' she'd joked, though neither of them had laughed, far too caught up in their nerves.

It all felt a little too surreal, so Connie was glad George was stood at her side, his hand wrapped around hers tightly. The doctor was stood working on the machine, fiddling with a screen that was meant to display the image of their baby, but that idea was still too difficult for Connie to think about. It seemed to her that the whole situation was just a cruel joke, that the screen would remain blank and she wasn't pregnant at all, a false positive after all. She tried to keep her mind off it, mentally repeating the meditation mantras George had been teaching her, knowing he was probably doing the same, but it was hard not to think about what was happening as the doctor gently placed the device against her stomach.

Out of nerves, Connie shut her eyes, deciding that it was all too much. She felt the cold wand against her stomach and fought against shivering, trying not to think about how she felt a little sick and instead focus on George as he stroked his thumb across her knuckles. She shut out everything else except for the noise of his slow and steady breathing, though after a moment she heard him let out a breath that sounded like a gasp and she opened her eyes, curiosity getting the better of her only to see a grainy, staticky image had appeared on she screen.

It was black and white, and at first Connie couldn't quite figure out what they were meant to be looking at. She didn't focus on the picture for long, not as the machine soon began emitting a faint echoing sound. The noise filled the room and made Connie's chest tighten in nerves, feeling overwhelmed and out of depth. She took a deep breath and looked to George, though her husband was frowning, focusing on the screen.

"What's the noise?" He asked, knowing Connie was also about to ask the same question.

"That's your baby's heartbeat," Doctor Hale told them before pointing at the screen, adjusting the wand against Connie's stomach. "And that, is the little one there,"

Unsure what else to do, Connie let out a laugh of disbelief. She felt like she was watching television, watching someone else's life. She couldn't believe that technology like that existed, and she couldn't believe it was being used on her, feeling like it was all so impossible to her. Surely this wasn't happening. Surely this wasn't real life, just a fantasy that she would wake up from any second. Perhaps she'd finally mastered meditation and she'd projected herself into this ideal life, perhaps she was only moments away from losing focus and then she'd be back on the grassy field behind her bungalow, back to normal and back to a life where she couldn't have children.

It felt cruel to look at the screen, as if she was taunting herself with something she'd never have because she'd told herself for so long that it would never happen. The doctor had literally told her that this might never happen, and she'd started to believe it with her whole self. It was difficult to now think something was possible after finally accepting it as futile. Except as she looked away from the screen she could still hear the quiet thudding noise all around the room, impossible to ignore.

"It's... real?" She managed to ask, looking to Doctor Hale, and when she saw her nod, she let out another laugh. "Fucking hell,"

"Is... is everything alright with it?" George spoke up, his voice sounding flat and emotionless, though his tight grip on his wife's hand told her he was definitely feeling something.

"Yes, all seems fine, it looks as if you've got a very healthy baby growing there," the doctor told them both. "Congratulations both of you,"

Neither Connie nor George knew what to say or how to act. They were in a situation they thought would never happen, and even though they were both shocked, they were both also overjoyed. Connie felt the fear in her subside slightly, the disbelief fading the longer the heartbeat sound echoed around the room, and as she dared another glance to the screen she found herself glued to it. It was such a grainy image that she struggled to figure out where the baby actually was, to the extent the doctor noticed and pointed it out on the screen once more. Once she could make it out, she squeezed George's hand as if to get his attention, not knowing he was also staring intently at it though he'd occasionally look down at his wife in adoration.

"You did it, Con," George breathed out in amazement, his voice low as if he daren't speak up over the sound of the heartbeat.

"It wasn't a one-woman job, Georgie," she reminded him with a small laugh, smiling as she felt him raise her hand to his lips, kissing each of her knuckles. "We made that... Are you crying?"

She'd eventually glanced around at him, only to see the glossy, red look of his eyes. He was like her, the pair of them hardly ever cried, so she knew the situation must have really gotten to him. Seeing George cry made her struggle to hold back her own tears, and as she met his gaze she squeezed his hand, the two of them caught in a bubble of joy.

"Sorry," he muttered quietly, not looking at his wife but instead at the screen. "Bloody hell, Con, a baby...I didn't realise how much I wanted it until..."

"You don't need to be sorry, it's alright, I know how you feel," she told him with a small smile, wiping her own tears away before she looked to the doctor again. "And you're sure everything's okay? It's healthy?"

"Yes, I'm sure, Mrs Harrison," the doctor nodded with a grin. "Both you and the baby seem completely healthy, and I think it's going to be a very lucky child that has two parents who clearly love it and each other so much,"

***

Their taxi dropped them back off at the ashram in darkness, the rest of their group nowhere to be seen. It was a relief to both Harrison's, considering they'd snuck out to avoid the worry of their friends and neither of them fancied a welcome back party. They weren't in the mood to be questioned or fussed over, both of them still too shocked in their joy to even consider having to talk to anyone else about it just yet.

Connie was exhausted, so as soon as they got into their bungalow George insisted that she should go to bed, and she complied happily. He laid with her for a while, holding her hand as he had done all day, occasionally stroking his spare hand through her hair knowing she loved it when he did that. Eventually she drifted off to sleep, feeling so safe and content with George. She wasn't sure how long she was sleeping for, but when she did wake up he was gone.

As soon as she woke up, the earlier events at the doctor's instantly came to the front of her mind. Before she could stop herself she gently placed her hand on her stomach, feeling a grin spread across her face, but she couldn't help but feel lonely, wishing that George was still in bed with her. She didn't want to be alone, still too happy to comprehend not sharing every second with George.

Deciding to track him down, she got up, and when she couldn't find him anywhere in the bungalow she decided he must have been outside somewhere. After forgetting to pick up a jacket even though she knew the temperatures dropped at night, she made her way up to the roof where she found George. He was sat on a couple of cushions with blankets around him, and he was chanting quietly in meditation. Even though she was facing the back of him she could tell how at peace he was, and it definitely made a nice change to how he was at home. He'd been so stressed with work and life in general, anxious about fame and constantly being viewed in a spotlight, so it was a relief to see him so relaxed, especially considering just how much their lives were about to change.

Even in her need to be with him, Connie didn't want to disturb him. It had been a big day for both of them, and she hated to think she interrupted his meditation to make him focus on her instead of his own emotions. She decided to head back down to bed and wait for him to be done, but George had clearly noticed her already as his chanting stopped. He turned his head to look over at her, offering her a small smile and beckoned for her to sit next to him. No time to feel guilty, she took her place on the cushion at his side.

"Jesus, Con, you're shivering!" George muttered protectively, quickly pulling one of the blankets around her shoulders. "Are you alright? Is something wrong?"

"I'm fine," she promised, offering him a small smile as she tried to hold back a small laugh. "You don't have to be all careful with me, you heard the doctor, she said I'm perfectly healthy,"

"Yeah, she also said you're nearly three months pregnant so forgive me for wanting to make sure you're okay," George joked with a small laugh as he adjusted the blanket further around her, though they both knew he wasn't just kidding.

The truth of his words settled with both of them, and their eyes met, neither of them able to stop smiling. They weren't excited, giddy grins of triumph like earlier, more like content ones, as if they were just peacefully happy. George adjusted how he was sat to move closer to her, but just before he had the chance to wrap his arm around her shoulder, Connie stopped him, instead taking his hand and holding it to rest on her stomach, watching as George looked down at her nervously, rubbing his thumb over the fabric of her shirt.

"We're gonna be parents," he said eventually, breaking the peaceful silence, his eyes still fixed on her stomach.

"Yeah," she nodded in quiet agreement, wondering if she'd ever wrap her head around it all, but soon her mind fell on the past and before she could regret it she added, "I'm sorry about everything, about the pressure we put on ourselves and the way I've been these last couple of months when I thought this wouldn't happen,"

"Con, there's nothing to apologise for," he reassured her, leaning over and kissing her forehead. "But I'm sorry too. It's alright now though, everything's alright, isn't it?"

"Yeah," she smiled, placing her hand on top of his intertwining their fingers together.

The two then moved to lay down, both of them covered in the blankets, George's hand still resting against her stomach. He pushed a kiss to her temple, wanting her to know just how much he loved her. Connie felt so old in that moment, as if she had grown up all of a sudden, and she wondered where all of the time had gone. It only felt like a few days ago that she was a scared scouser moving to London, head over heels in love with her best friend without really knowing it. Now though she was married to her best friend, pregnant and about to start a family with him, and even though it seemed terrifying she felt so ready for it, knowing that she always felt like that with George. She was always sure of herself, but being with him she seemed to get a boost to her confidence, feeling as though she could take on the world. They were the perfect team, she was sure they would make good parents too.

"It makes sense, y'know," George said quietly after a while, and when Connie turned her head to frown at him he laughed quietly. "You being pregnant. I mean, other than throwing up constantly. You've been a lot more emotional than usual,"

"Yeah, here I was thinking I'd finally grown up and was more open to showing how I felt but it just turns out you'd knocked me up," she shrugged sarcastically. "Plus it'd explain why I've proper been craving a steak and kidney pie lately,"

"We're vegetarians, Con!" George exclaimed with a laugh.

"Be reyt," she shrugged again, looking away from her husband as she instead looked up to the sky, the lack of light pollution resulting in a dark canvas entirely lit up by stars. "This is all I wanted to do, this whole trip, just lay up here on the roof with you and watch the stars,"

Their peace did not last much longer, not as both of them heard footsteps on the stairs up to the rooftop, the pair of them letting out groans as they realised who the imposters would be. Sitting up, their instincts proved them right as John and Paul were both stood at the top of the stairs, Paul looking worried whilst John merely had his arms crossed on his chest, looking irritated. George sighed, moving his hand off her stomach quickly in case either of them saw as he got to his feet, and the moment he noticed Connie moving to do the same he held his hands out to her, helping her up. She rolled her eyes, but didn't resist, not even when he wrapped the blanket back round her shoulders, actually finding it quite sweet how determined he was to look after her.

"Y'alright?" George greeted the two of them with a wave, though John scoffed annoyedly.

"Y'alright?" John repeated, rolling his eyes as he stormed over to the two of them, Paul following him closely. "Did you not fancy telling us you'd come back?"

"More like did you not fancy telling us you'd gone away?" Paul cut in, looking between both Harrison's nervously. "Where've you been?"

"Okay, we get it, sorry," Connie said, trying not to roll her eyes. "I feel like my parents have just caught me sneaking out, y'know we're both adults and can do what we want?"

"Oh bugger off," John muttered irritatedly. "Where've you been then?"

"I took Con to the medical centre," George explained simply.

It was almost amusing how John quickly joined Paul in his worry, the two of them no longer defensive over being abandoned without explanation. Connie practically flinched at their response of shouting as many questions as possible, knowing it was just because they cared, but it was the exact thing she'd wanted to avoid. She shot George a look as he wrapped his arm around her shoulder, pulling her closer to him as he tried not to laugh at his bandmates.

"One at a time please, boys," Connie muttered as they both continued to bombard them with questions.

"Well, what's wrong with you?" John exclaimed, almost anxiously.

"Food poisoning or stomach bug?" Paul asked, remembering to leave out his previous suggestion, not knowing he'd actually been right.

Connie merely shook her head, though her silence bothered both of them to start shouting questions at them again. She was only quiet though because she didn't know how to tell them, not to mention she felt bad that telling them would leave Ringo being the only one out of the loop since he'd gone home. John and Paul were like brothers, to her and George, and neither of them had thought through how they were going to tell them about the baby. They thought they wouldn't see them till the morning, and part of Connie had even considered hiding it from everyone until they were back in England so the two of them had time to get their own heads around it. That seemed impossible now though, and as she felt George squeeze her shoulder she knew they would have to tell them.

"How do you both feel about being uncles?" George said, silencing both of them.

"You what?" Paul asked in shock, whilst John stared at them, stunned.

"I'm pregnant," Connie told them both bluntly, trying not to grin at the words as well as how George put his hand on her stomach again.

"You what?" John exclaimed loudly, and Connie couldn't tell if he was happy for them or if he was upset.

"She's pregnant," George repeated, feeling a little nervous over his reaction.

"But you said-" John began to almost protest, looking at Connie with wide eyes in shock.

"Yeah, I know, but..." she drifted off with a shrug, not really knowing what to say considering only the day before she told John she couldn't have kids. "We didn't think it would happen but it has, the doctor was really great, she talked us through it all and I had a scan and everything, we got to hear it's heartbeat and see it and-"

She didn't get to finish, getting cut off as Paul pulled her into a hug as she laughed in surprise. Whilst his arms were wrapped around her shoulders he leant over and ruffled George's hair, who merely watched the embrace with a grin, trying to hide how suddenly protective he was over his wife. Paul didn't really notice, far too thrilled for his best friends.

"I knew it! I bloody said didn't I?" Paul exclaimed excitedly to Connie before he looked at George, practically gasping. "Can I be godfather?"

Paul's request seemed to kick John back to life. He'd previously been frozen, merely watching the excited scene as he tried to pull together how he felt about the situation, but upon hearing the fact that Paul wanted to be the godfather to a child that he'd only just found out existed set off his family instinct. He stepped forward, gently shoving Paul off Connie as he instead wrapped his own arm around her shoulders.

"Family first, Paul," he muttered, making Connie snort out a laugh. "I'm really happy for you, both of you,"

"Thanks, swine," she grinned, ruffling his hair in appreciation. "You two are the only ones to know so far,"

"Shitting hell, when you gonna tell your parents?" John asked, fighting back a laugh as he thought about how Connie's father was going to react.

"More like when you gonna tell Ringo? He'll be gutted he's missed all the drama," Paul added.

The four of them fell into a discussion about how they would have to keep the news quiet. Connie and George decided they'd have to go and see Ringo as soon as they were home from India, and then take a trip up to Liverpool to tell their parents. Other than a few of their other really close friends they would try and hide it for as long as possible. The prospect of hiding the pregnancy didn't seem ideal to Connie, considering she would be back at work when they were back home, but she just decided she'd face that problem when they came to it.

Eventually the conversation changed from the baby, and the four of them sat down on the cushions George had set out earlier. George sat next to Connie, holding her hand tightly as he and John were talking about something she'd not really been listening to. She was instead studying George's profile, thinking just how beautiful he was to her and just how much she loved him.

"Hey, Paulie?" she asked quietly, turning to her old neighbour as he was sat next to her. "Thank you,"

"For what?" he frowned confusedly.

"You once said," she shrugged, trying not to laugh as she realised just how much her next words would stroke his ego. "You said one day that I'd say 'Paul, remember that day you introduced me to George Harrison, that was the best thing you ever did for me'. So, turns out you were right... Thank you,"

***

Word count: 5589

***