Enjoy!
John knew something was going on. He had to. He was a smart kid, even if he was five. Gabriel was a little worried about the age difference, though he probably would no matter what it was. Originally he'd just wanted to convert John entirely to baby food before they tried again, but then they hadn't gotten around to it for a while. He and his brothers were barely a year apart, and they'd spent a great deal of time arguing and fighting. Well, except for him and Castiel, but mostly because Castiel was the calmest and most reasonable of his brothers. Meanwhile Dean and Sam had four years age difference, and they'd gotten along really well, they still did, but Gabriel wasn't sure how much of this had to do with the fact that Dean had felt the need to look after Sam so much.
What if they fought all the time? What if they hated each other? What if John got mad? What if something happened and John started asking why he wasn't a big brother like they said he'd be? What if-
An arm snaked around his shoulders, tugging him gently back against a broad chest. Gabriel grimaced, not taking his eyes off the boy putting together a train track with wooden track pieces. John seemed oblivious to his hovering parents, content in his work. Sam dipped his head down, pressing a kiss to his cheek.
"Relax. He'll be fine," he murmured gently.
"How can you be so sure?" Gabriel protested quietly, turning to look up at his mate.
Sam managed a smile, his free hand drifting down to press against the Omega's lower belly. It was subtle, easy to hide still, but the flesh was firmer than normal, and rounded. This wasn't their first attempt, after all. Gabriel knew all too well that not every time worked out. John had been the third in three positive bouts of pregnancy tests, the first two ending in early miscarries. It had broken Gabriel's heart each time, but eventually they would try again, determined to have a child. He'd been genuinely surprised when they'd made it to the four month mark on the first try. He hadn't even had a heat. Who knew getting fucked in the kitchen could be so advantageous?
"Just trust me. Besides, we kind of have to. I think he noticed we've been buttering him up."
Gabriel grimaced. They'd planned to tell John today, and had been playing nice as they put it off. Chocolate chip pancakes for breakfast, and a whole afternoon at the park followed by ice cream. Maybe if it was just Gabriel he might not have suspected, but it was Sam who'd taken him to the park and let him fill up on ice cream. They hadn't even scolded him when he hadn't finished his dinner.
Weary, Gabriel stepped into the living room, Sam at his side. "Hey, um, John? Can you put that down for a minute? We need to talk to you."
John turned to look up at them, setting down the engine he was attaching to a long strain of cars. "Why?"
"We need to tell you about something," Sam hedged as they both sat on the couch.
The boy sat back on his heels, looking between his parents. "Did I do something?"
"No," Gabriel hurried to assure him. "It's nothing you did."
John's face began to crinkle. "You're not getting a divorce, are you?"
At that, Gabriel and Sam exchanged a look. It was Sam who asked incredulously, "Why would you ask that?"
"Because you've been really nice all day, and Cody said his parents were like that before they got a divorce," he informed them, naming a classmate from preschool.
"We're not getting a divorce," Gabriel informed him. "Cody's parents are Beta's, remember? Things work differently for them."
"So what's wrong?"
"Nothing's really wrong, there's just going to be a change," the Omega said carefully.
"How would you feel if...if you were a big brother?" Sam added.
John frowned. "You mean like Mary's gonna big a big sister?"
"Yes, exactly like that," Gabriel confirmed.
"But papa isn't fat," John protested. "Uncle Castiel is really big, and you said that was the baby."
"I'm not big yet," the Omega confirmed, a little miffed. "We're going to have another baby, John. You'll be a big brother."
John didn't stop frowning. "Is it gonna be a sister or a brother?"
"We don't know yet," Sam admitted. "It might be a while. So you're okay with this?"
Their son folded his arms, informing them haughtily, "I want a baby sister."
For the second time in as many minutes, Gabriel exchanged a look with his mate. "We don't know what it's going to be yet, and we can't decide."
"Mary wanted a baby brother, and she's getting one," John argued. "I want a baby sister so I won't have to share my toys or my room. And I get to beat people up."
Sam looked both relieved and worried. "What does beating people up have to do with it?"
"It's the rules. I'm allowed to not be nice, but if someone else isn't nice to her, I get to beat them up."
A little worried, Gabriel pressed, "What if it's a boy?"
John pouted. "I want a sister. But if it's a boy, I want it to be an Omega. If I'm gonna be an Alpha, I can still beat up other Alphas."
Gabriel sighed, slumping back against the couch. It was as good as they were going to get, it seemed. John stood up as Sam slipped his hand into his mate's, lacing their fingers together. The child climbed up onto the couch on Gabriel's other side, and started poking at his stomach.
"What are you doing?"
"Where did the stork put it?"
Biting back a grin, Gabriel caught John's wrist. When the boy stopped trying to poke at him, he let go and pulled his shirt up a little. "It takes a while for the baby to grow, so it'll be half a year before I'm as big as Castiel."
Fascinated, John put his hand on the now just visible bump. "This is the baby?"
"Yep."
"How does it fit?"
Gabriel chuckled softly. "Like I said, they need to grow. When a stork brings the baby, it's really tiny. It needs to be inside me for a long time before it's ready to be born." They'd had to explain the stork when Castiel had gotten pregnant a second time, and John had come back home from a play-date demanding to know where babies came from.
"So what are you gonna call it?" John asked, taking his hand away.
"We haven't decided yet." They'd decided to name him after Sam's father, something Gabriel had only agreed to because the man was dead. He didn't mind the whole naming someone after someone else business, so long as only one was around at a time. It confused things otherwise. They hadn't really discussed what they'd name the second one.
"Can we call her Artemis?"
Gabriel arched his eyebrows. "Why Artemis? And where did you hear that?"
"Ms. Harvey tells us stories during naptime, because not all of us fall asleep. I thought it was pretty, and Artemis was dangerous. The best hunter ever. So can we?"
The Omega tilted his head up, looking back at Sam inquiringly. His mate looked vaguely impressed, brown eyes thoughtful. He gave the Omega a slight shrug, as if to say, 'I don't mind if you don't.'
Turning back to John, Gabriel informed him, "If it's a girl, we'll call her Artemis."
John gave a satisfied nod and climbed back off the couch, returning to his trains. Gabriel leaned his head against Sam's shoulder, watching him. He shivered a little as the Alpha slipped an arm around him, laying a hand on his still bare belly.
Warm lips pressed to his temple as Sam murmured, "See? He'll be fine."
Gabriel didn't argue, though he was still a little worried if the baby didn't git into John's criteria. Sam must have sensed it, because a low hum rumbled in his throat, and the arm around the Omega tightened. "Mine," he murmured roughly. Fingers gently stroked his belly, and the Alpha added, "Ours."
The Omega shivered, closing his eyes. "Ours," he agreed softly, so John wouldn't hear.
BREAK/BREAK\BREAK
Dean almost didn't hear his phone ring. He was tapping the wheel to the beat of a particularly good Aerosmith song, in an abnormally upbeat mood as he headed home from work. As it was, the ring just managed to catch his attention. He glanced at the screen, then smiled as he turned down the music. If it was their home phone, it was probably Castiel, wondering when he'd be home so he'd know when to start dinner. If memory served, he'd been planning on burgers tonight.
"Hey Cas."
"Dad?"
Dean frowned a little. "Mary? What's up?" Mary didn't usually call him, but it wouldn't be the first time.
"Um, something's wrong with Daddy. He keeps saying he's fine, but...he's been sitting in the tub for a whole hour."
The phone cracked as Dean's hand went tight, the needle inching upward on the speedometer. "Does he know you called me?"
"No. I didn't think he would let me. What's wrong with him?"
"You need to hang up with me and call Uncle Gabriel, okay? Tell him to come over, and you're going to be staying with him for a few days."
"Why? Is Daddy sick?"
Dean winced as her voice broke. "He's fine, don't worry. He just needs to go away for a while. I'm almost home, I'll explain when I get there. Now hang up and call Uncle Gabriel."
The dial tone blared in his ear. Dean tossed his phone down and coaxed a little extra speed from Baby. Castiel had been having Braxton Hicks contractions for a while now, like he had with Mary, but they'd never been bad enough for serious false alarms. Dean vividly remembered jolting awake in the middle of the night to find his mate curled up in the bathtub, face fearful and pain stricken, liquid trickling down his legs as his water broke. Later they'd learned the extra pain was because Mary had turned herself around in the womb, so she was descending breech, and it was too late to try and turn her. If Castiel had retreated to the tub again, it was as good a signal as any as far as Dean was concerned, even if it was early. The doctors had put the due date at almost two weeks from now.
Breaks squealed in protest as Dean pulled up in front of their house, scrambling out and running inside. Mary met him halfway to the bathroom, the landline clutched in her hands, blue eyes wide. "Uncle Gabby is coming. He said the baby's coming. Is it true?"
"I think so. Go pack."
"But-
"Now, Mary."
Before she could protest further, Dean slipped into the master bathroom, quickly closing the door behind him. When he turned, he had to immediately duck a flying shampoo bottle. It was soon followed by body wash and shaving cream.
"Whoa, Cas, take it easy," he protested, carefully approaching the tub despite the artillery.
"Don't tell me to take it easy!" Conditioner. "This is your fucking fault!"
"Jeez, keep it down until Mary's gone, would you?"
Castiel glowered at him darkly, hands white knuckled as he clutched the tub's rim. He groaned, shoulders tensing, feet jamming against the tub's opposite end. Dean edged closer, a little uncertain. Castiel didn't swear, even before Mary. Never. The one exception had been when he'd gone into labor.
"Shut the hell up. Your kid is trying to get out early."
"Why didn't you call me?" Dean protested, grabbing a small duffle resting just inside his mate's closet. It had a few toiletries and a change of comfortable clothes, enough to last the Omega until Dean was willing to tear himself away for a trip home.
"Because I thought it was some more of those damned Braxton Hicks until my fucking water broke," Castiel bit out.
"How long ago was that?"
The Omega made a face. "When she called you. Damn it. Please tell me someone's coming to get her."
"Yep. Can you stand?"
Dean had managed to coax the avidly swearing Omega out of the tub, but only just, when someone knocked briskly on the door.
"You good? Or are you going to give birth here?"
"Either do something useful or get your ass in here so I can kill it!"
Gabriel whistled, poking his head in. "I'll take that as 'awesome'. Don't worry, I've got Mary. Drop a line when the kid gets here."
Castiel flipped his brother off with his free hand. Gabriel winked, then disappeared. Dean silently thanked every deity he could think of that his brother-in-law was one of those special people who found it hilarious when Castiel swore like a sailor.
Five minutes and some creative curses later, Dean managed to get his mate into the Impala. Gabriel stood on the front porch with Mary and John, grinning as they waved. Not for the first time Dean was very glad he and Sam had opted to live in the same neighborhood. It made times like this very convenient.
"Don't tell me you're choosing now to obey the fucking speed limit," Castiel growled. "Damn it, Dean!"
"What?"
"Son of a motherfucker he wants out!"
Despite himself, Dean had to bite back a smile. It was adorable, like having a kitten hiss at you.
"Are you smiling?"
Shit. "No."
"I'm having your goddamn kid and you're laughing?!"
"No, hell no."
"Who's shitty idea was this anyway?"
Dean decided now would be a good time to stop talking. He'd gotten his nose bitten off when he'd tried to be funny the last time Castiel was in labor. He'd cursed such a blue streak the former Navy sergeant across the hall had been impressed. From this point on the only guaranteed safe words he could utter were "Yes" and "Dear", exclusively in that order.
"Can't you go any faster?"
"Um, it's rush hour."
"What kind of shitty excuse is that? When has the damned traffic ever stopped you before?"
It took half an hour and a good deal of endured abuse, on Baby's part as well as Dean's, but they managed. The nurse took one look at the Omega as they lurched through the emergency entrance doors and called for a wheelchair. After that Dean felt marginally calmer, though if memory served his instincts wouldn't let him relax fully until both mate and child were back home again.
8 hours later...
Castiel slumped against his bed, still catching his breath. He'd never felt so exhausted before in his life, so drained. He was very sure he looked as bad as he felt, sweaty and disheveled and very messy. They'd just moved him to a recovery room, the door clicking shut, Dean still hovering at his side. Vaguely he felt a little guilty for what he'd put the Alpha through, but not enough to mention it. Maybe after he'd had some sleep and a shower.
Dean hadn't budged from his side in the entirety of those long eight hours, had taken what abuse the Omega had thrown at him and not uttered a single complaint, even when Castiel distinctly felt bones start to crack in the hand he was crushing. If memory served the nurses would make quick work of the cleaning and health check process, mostly because it was unwise to push a tightly wound Alpha. Castiel was a little annoyed they were more worried about his mate than him at the moment, but he didn't blame them.
Fingers brushed his hair, and Castiel forced his eyes open again, stirring.
Dean leaned down, kissing his cheek and stroking his damp hair. "You're amazing, you know that?"
The Omega felt his lips twitch a little. "I don't think I deserve that right now."
"You kidding? You just made a kid. That's awesome." There was a smart knock on the door, then a clunk as it swung open. "They're bringing him in now, see?"
At that, Castiel struggled to sit up. He grabbed one of the bed's plastic rails and dragged himself into an upright position, just in time to see one of the nurses hand a bundle to his mate then take a few hurried steps back. A whine escaped his throat, eyes locked on the blanket. His baby, he needed to see his baby. In this state both parents would be on instinct highs, and the medical staff knew this all too well. Alpha's became highly territorial and protective, Omega's very defensive and desperate to maintain contact with the newborn.
Dean turned as the nurses left, cradling the bundle reverently. He looked up, meeting Castiel's eyes, and smiled. Wordlessly, the Omega reached out both arms. He felt better with the child in his mate's hands than anyone else's, but he needed to see him.
Obedient to his mate's wishes, and just short of purring with pride, the Alpha stepped back over to the bed, gingerly handing over the swaddled bundle. Even when he'd handed the baby over, Dean stayed put, hovering, one hand combing through his mate's hair soothingly, one eye on their child.
Castiel mostly ignored this, though a part of him was more or less purring at the attention. Instead he gave the baby his full attention, relief flooding through him. The nurses would have said if there were problems, but they hadn't, even if he was early. The face surrounded by cloth and topped in a little knit cap was pink and pudgy, the eyes closed.
"Hello." Castiel cleared his throat when the word came out rougher than usual. "Hello Henry."
At that, those eyes opened. Castiel caught his breath. He knew their eyes tended to change color, usually starting as brown or blue, but it seemed Henry was ignoring that. He blinked piercing green eyes at his mother's voice, and began to squall.
Castiel glanced helplessly at his gown, but relaxed as Dean slid his hands deftly around, undoing the back tie and pushing it down. He glanced gratefully up at his mate, gingerly shifting Henry up to nurse. It took a moment, but soon he was latched and sucking contentedly.
Warm lips brushed the back of his neck. Castiel's eyes fluttered, head already bent over the baby in his arms. "Dean?"
"Yeah?"
He turned to look up at his mate, and the Alpha pulled away, worry crossing his face.
"I'm hungry."
Dean's lips twitched. He pressed a hand to his mate's cheek, then stepped away, fishing out his phone. "I need to call Sam anyway. What 'cha want?"
"Burgers."
"As it more than one?"
"Yes."
Henry didn't stir as his father gently kissed his mother, then stepped away. It was one thing Castiel could really appreciate about infants, they had their priorities straight. A part of him tingled in worry when his mate was out of sight, but he forced it down. Dean had promised to let more than one person know when everything was said and done, in addition to the food. Ellen and Bobby had been planning to come down next week, to help lighten the load. They'd want to know their third grandchild had come early.
When Dean came back in, he still had his phone to one ear, a sheepish look on his face. When Castiel raised his brows in question, he said, "Daddy's tired, I don't know if he can talk to you or not."
The Omega sighed, glancing down at Henry. "You're going to be a handful too, aren't you?"
Henry didn't respond. Castiel took it as an affirmative, then jerked his chin, indicating for Dean to bring the phone over. Mary had inherited stubbornness from both her parents in abundance. Might as well get in a 'Hi, I'm alive, now doo what you're told', while he was still feeling tolerant.
Please Review!
