Chapter 28: Birthing Pups Ain't Rainbows and Butterflies but Pups Are
"Thanks, Wynn."
"They're okay?" Nick demands.
Monroe watches him waddle back and forth before starting again. "Yes, you can stop worrying. Drew, Cameron, and Austin reunited with the pups with much happiness and crying. All are sleeping now, piled in Wynn's guest bed together," he says with a smile. It was a hard night for the family, they'll need the closeness during their exhausted sleep. Monroe doubts anyone in their circle slept well during the night. Nick hadn't, which means he hadn't either.
"How are you feeling, Nicky? Do you want to lie down?"
Nick waddles back and forth, irritation in every step. "No. I don't want to lie down." He hisses in pain. "Fucking fuck, fuck."
"Nick?" When he doesn't answer, Monroe knows it's serious. "Cypress, could you grab Nick's bag. Fabian, get the car ready."
"No, I'm fine."
"You're not fine."
Fear is stark in Nick's beautiful eyes. "I'm not ready for this."
Monroe cups his face with gentle hands. "Love, it's going to be okay."
"I don't think I can do this."
"You can and I'll be with you every step of the way."
"Ugh, I hate you."
Monroe laughs. "I love you, too."
Like clockwork, between the three guardians and Monroe, Nick is hustled to the vehicle in no time flat and taken to the hospital. Dr. Owens will be ready and waiting for them.
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"It's time to start pushing, Nick."
"I swear to God, I hate you so much right now." This is humiliating and fucking painful! He never imagined he'd be bare except for a jockstrap with his ass dilated for fucking babies to pass through. "Are you sure there isn't another way?"
"I'm sure, Nicholas."
"Fuck." Nick grunts and starts to push as he practiced in the classes he and Roe took. "Fuck, fuck, fuck. That fucking hurts!" After what feels like an eternity, he can feel the baby's pressing through his wet asshole. I'm passing a baby, an actual fucking baby through my asshole!
"That's it, Nicky, you're doing so well," Roe praises.
"You shut the fuck up! This is your fault! You and your fucking dick!" Nick pushes when the doctor tells him to.
"Almost there, Nick," Dr. Owens says.
Nick feels like his ass is being ripped apart. This is not natural no matter what Dr. Owens said or what the classes told him. They're all liars. "Men shouldn't be doing this. Men aren't supposed to give birth. Why'd I hafta be the first male Grimm to get pregnant? What the fuck did I do to deserve this?" Nick pushes, wondering what he did in a past life to deserve this. Then he sees Roe. This is all his fault. "If you come near me again, I'm ripping your dick off! UGH!"
Roe wipes his brow and praises him as the baby slips from Nick's baby with a wet slurp.
"Fuck."
The nurse cleans its mouth and face, giving its body a quick rubdown before swaddling it and setting it on Nick's chest.
"It's a boy. A big boy for a suspected multiple."
Nick stares at the baby in wonder. A minuscule part of him was still in denial but when his child opens his eyes and meets his, it disappears. Nick strokes a finger over the soft skin. "Hello, baby." His son has a head full of dark hair already. He looks at Roe. "Our son." Roe is bursting with pride, it's almost ridiculous.
"It's time to push again, Nick."
Watching the nurse take his son away, he understands why mothers go through the pain of childbirth. "Yeah."
The endorphins flee and pain floods back in. "What hell is this? Next time you get pregnant you bastard! You can push three fucking babies out your ass and see how you like it!"
Roe murmurs sympathetically, wiping away the sweat.
"Don't patronize me. Get Hank in here or Sean. Or Wu. Someone with the gun." Nick looks at the doctor. "Get me a gun."
"Why don't you give me a big push, first?"
Nick meets Zuri's eyes where she watches over his son. "Get. Me. A. Gun."
"You don't really want that, Nick."
"Don't I?" Nick pushes, his ass stretching as he screams through it. Panting. "The gun."
"Nicky."
He jabs his finger in Roe's direction. "You shut your mouth if you know what's good for you. Zuri?"
"Keep pushing, Nick."
"I hate you all." The head of his next child feels like a watermelon trying to come through his sore asshole. "I'm going to fucking kill you. You better hide every fucking weapon, Monroe Neumann! I am going to rip you limb from limb and shove three melons up your ass and see how you like it! FUCK!"
"And here's baby number two, another boy!"
Nick pants tiredly as his son cries for the first time, erasing his anger for a second. Same as his brother, his second son has thick black covering his skull. The second boy is smaller than the first. "Beautiful boy. Isn't it beautiful, Roe?"
"He really is, Nicky."
Roe has tears sparkling in his brown eyes as he kisses the boy's head. Love is practically radiating off the man.
"Nick, it's time," the doctor says in a patient, confident tone.
Exhausted, Nick wants nothing more than to sleep but he's not done yet. "Yeah, okay." He doesn't have it in him to yell anymore. He focuses on pushing until his last baby comes out with a wet pop. "My ass is ruined forever."
Everyone ignores him. "It's a girl," exclaims Dr. Owens.
"She looks like you, Nicky."
"You can't tell that already," he complains but the moment his daughter is placed on his chest he understands. She does look like him. She looks just like he did as a baby. "Hi, sweetheart." He can barely keep his eyes open. The nurse takes her away a minute later. Nick struggles to stay awake to watch over his babies.
"Rest, Love," Roe coaxes. "We'll protect the pups while you sleep."
Knowing they'll be safe with Roe and the Guardians watching over them, Nick sinks into an exhausted sleep.
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"This is weird. Nick is in there. Giving birth. Physically. Real babies are coming out his butt. What is happening?" Hank wonders out loud. Sometimes it feels like he's known about Wesen forever, while other times, like today, it feels like just yesterday he found out.
"Lots of cursing and yelling," Wynn murmurs.
"What?"
Wynn startles. "Sorry, didn't realize I said that aloud." She taps her pierced ear. "Wesen hearing. Nick is cursing and yelling at Monroe from what I can hear. Birth ain't easy, Wesen or human."
"There'll be less cursing at your child's birth," Vivian declares nonchalantly with a pat to his shoulder before walking away.
Hank splutters, whipping around to meet Sean's stunned gaze. Did she just say? "Wait!" He scrambles after Vivian but the seer has disappeared. Staring at Sean, he asks, "Did she just say we're having a child?"
"It sounds like it."
Not much fazes Sean but he sounds as if he's talked to an alien or something. Wait. WAIT. "Who exactly is going to be pregnant?"
Sean thinks. "She didn't say."
Did he want to be pregnant like Nick, if it was possible? He didn't know, it was a lot to deal with.
"She didn't say when either," Sean added.
Hank closes his eyes, well, shit. "Pregnancy tests after we leave." He feels like he's going to throw up.
"Okay."
Sean rubs his back and the stress starts to ease. The shock has left Sean's face and he looks...almost happy. We're going to have to talk about this. Maybe once he's over the shock he can be happy about having a family with Sean but at the moment, he's more scared about possibly being pregnant. "I need to sit down." He collapses into a chair and stares at the floor. Hank is startled out of his daze after who knows how long when Cypress comes into the waiting room.
"Monroe wanted me to give you a quick update until he can come out. Nick gave birth to three healthy babies. Two boys and a girl. All four are doing well. Nick is resting. Monroe doesn't want to leave until he wakes up."
Everyone is talking excitedly but a thought sticks in Hank's brain. What if he and Sean have multiples too? Vivian said child but who knows with seers, they seem to love being all vague and mysterious. Hank nudges Sean and whispers, "What if we're having multiples?" If his hair was long enough, he'd be pulling it out.
Sean smiles with gentle compassion. "Calm down, sweetheart. It's unlikely we'll have multiples. I'm a hybrid, only half Zauberbiest. Multiples are rare for us. Blutbaden always have multiples."
"Thank God for that," Hank murmurs.
Wrapping Hank in a hug, Sean says, "How about we enjoy the birth of Nick and Monroe's triplets and worry about the future of our possible family later, okay?"
Content and warm, Hank agrees. He'll have plenty of time to worry later. Please, don't let it be me. And no multiples.
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"I've never been more proud," Monroe exclaims, gazing down at his three beautiful, perfect pups. "You did good, Nicky."
Nick leans against Monroe's side. "We did good."
"Don't want to kill me anymore?"
"Don't push your luck. My ass still hurts like a motherfucker, the only reason I'm not killing you is them."
Monroe kisses his mate's forehead. "Understood." Nick may not be Blutbaden but he's heard plenty of stories from Alphas to know being yelled at and blamed is normal. "Are you ready to name our precious pups?"
Picking up their baby girl, Nick smiles down at her. "Hi, little one. You look just like me when I was a baby."
"We're going to have beat her suitors away with sticks."
Nick scoffs. "Forget sticks. I have a trailer full of weapons at the ready."
Monroe laughs, sounds like Nick will be one overprotective daddy. "She looks like an Amara."
"Yes, she does. Amara Kelly, after my mom."
"Amara Kelly, our sweet baby girl." Her skin is soft under his fingertips. "She is so small compared to her brothers."
"She's healthy, she'll grow. She might not have inherited your giant genes but Amara is going to grow up to be one badass, powerful woman."
"Whoa, simmer down, daddy! No one is saying otherwise. Amara will be our little powerhouse."
"That's right. Aren't you, baby girl?"
Monroe picks up his first son, love bursting in his chest.
"Do you know how natural you look with our baby in your arms? I feel awkward, like I'm holding her wrong, and you look like you've been holding babies all your life."
"I'm a Blutbad, Nick. I've held a lot of pups." He smiles down at his son. "But never my own."
Nick sniffs, muttering, "Damn hormones."
Careful not to anger his mate, Monroe doesn't comment. "Which of the names we talked about fits this beautiful boy?" One sticks in his mind, he wonders if Nick agrees.
"Storm, Storm Reiner."
"Perfect, that's the one I was thinking too. Grandpop Reiner would've been honored."
Nick passes Amara over to Monroe. He picks up their son. "Last but not least, our middle son needs a name. I think he looks like a Kiran, Kiran Markus. After your childhood friend that died." He staggers under the weight of a realization. "We have three pups, Roe. We're parents, responsible for three children. How the hell are we going to do this?" Feeling like he's having a panic attack, Nick lays Kiran down with care before bending down to try to catch his breath.
"Breathe, Nicky. We'll do this the same way everyone else does: one step at a time. We'll make mistakes but we'll learn," Monroe says in a soothing tone as he rocks Storm and Amara, the two starting to fuss, reading the emotions Nick is emitting.
Nick takes deep breaths, calming his beating heart and frantic nerves until he can stand again. "Shit, day one as a dad and I've already had a panic attack."
Monroe passes Storm over. "Look at his face and tell me, all it won't be worth it."
Looking down, Nick can't help the love that comes over him. Storm is perfect, from his mop of dark hair to his tiny toes. "You don't fight fair, Roe."
"Never said I would, not where the pups are concerned."
"I guess we're doing this, huh?"
With a smile, Monroe looks at his family and says, "Yeah, we are."
Three months later:
Nick wakes up, hearing the cries from the baby monitor. "The little monsters are up."
Monroe snorts. "Those little monsters are finally sleeping through most of the night, be thankful, daddy."
Laughing, Nick drags himself out of bed, "Trust me, I am. The guys keep threatening to do something about the zombie at the station. Might stop looking like a walking corpse."
Monroe wraps his arms around him and kisses his neck. "You're a sexy zombie."
"Yeah, yeah." But Nick gives him a proper good morning kiss. The wailing gets louder until a soft female voice starts murmuring soothingly to the pups. "They woke your mom again."
"She wants to help."
"She talked to your dad lately?"
"No."
"Roe, it's not your fault."
"It feels like it is. She accepted us and Pop couldn't, they haven't spoken since the pups were born."
"Your dad made his decision, knowing what it would cost, just as your mom made hers. You didn't ask her to. She told you she doesn't regret it and she doesn't want you to feel guilty."
"I know."
"Come on, let's feed the pups. We've got a party today."
"I love you."
"I love you, too, Roe."
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With a house packed full of family and friends, the triplets are passed around and Nick and Monroe get some adult conversation.
"Three months already?" Drew asks, holding Amara. "She really is the spitting image of you, Nick."
"I know. Everyone at the station thinks it's uncanny."
They laugh, knowing the people at the station think the triplets are adopted. "How are you doing with new parenthood? You're looking pretty comfortable with Amara."
Drew looks across the room at Delilah and Fiona, a look at adoration on his face. "I never thought I'd be a dad. They're great kids. They're so excited for the new baby. So am I."
"I'm happy for you, man. You deserve it. Everything going well, otherwise?"
"Yeah, my control has greatly increased, my mates are a great help. Life is...life is good."
Amara starts babbling and making grabby hands. "Looks like she was ignored for too long. Roe and I have a feeling she's going to be trouble in the future."
"Yeah, she looks so angelic."
"Don't let that fool you. She's got power. Zuri says she's felt it, more so than her brothers. We're not sure exactly what but she's got fire in her."
Drew shakes his head. "Good luck with this one then, Nick, looks like you'll need it."
A sharp wail catches Nick's attention.
"Oh, daddy, Kiran wants you!" Alice calls.
"That's my cue." Nick leaves to soothe Kiran
Drew passes Amara off to the next waiting set of arms and finds Hank reluctantly holding Storm. "I thought you liked babies?"
Sean smirks, "He's been paranoid since my aunt said we're going to have a baby in the future, as if babies are contagious."
"I have not."
Rolling his eyes, Sean says nothing.
"You still haven't been able to talk to her since she said that?"
Hank grimaces. "No. She's disappeared." Storm lays quietly in his arms watching everything around him with an almost eerie quietness. "Why is he so quiet? Aren't babies supposed to make noise? Do stuff? My niece and nephew did when they were little."
"You really are getting paranoid, you're getting suspicious of a three month old baby now? Haven't you heard Nick gushing about his babies? Storm is the quiet one, likes to watch things. Just how he is. Stop being weird."
"I'm being weird?"
"Okay, I'll take this little guy and you two can have this argument in peace." Drew takes Storm and leaves.
"Is it so appalling, the thought of having a child with me?" Sean asks, sounding hurt.
"What? No! That's not it."
"Then, what is it? Because the thought of having a child with you made me fucking happy but hearing it obviously did the opposite for you."
"I'm scared, alright? I don't know if I can do what Nick did. I don't know if I can bring a child into this world, knowing what I know."
"Hank, are you going to let fear drive you? That doesn't sound like the man I know. Life doesn't have guarantees but I sure in hell want to raise a little boy or girl with you. To have a family that's ours. It'll be scary but we will protect them. We will do it together."
Hank sighs heavily. "Fuck. You're right. I've always wanted a family and I don't want a family with anyone with you."
"Good. I love you."
"I love you, too." Hank kisses Sean. "You're getting pregnant, right?"
Sean laughs. "We'll see."
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Watching the house, she frowns as Wesen after Wesen enters. Even another Grimm comes accompanied by a Wesen. A party with Wesen. Not to kill them. No. She can hear conversations and music, laughing. What is happening? Hours later, the Wesen leave, all alive. This is wrong. What am I going to do? A Grimm living with a Blutbad? Having parties with other Wesen.
Who has my son become?
THE END...FOR NOW
Thank you to everyone who stuck with me. It's been a long road, a hell of a lot longer than I imagined! I hope you enjoyed it! Sorry not sorry for the sort of cliffhanger. Everyone's happy! Just left you with a bit of a mystery of how the whole Nick's mom situation will work out.
The next story will explore all the plot ideas I have yet to write, lots of enemies hiding in the wings, babies to born, and sex to be had. I probably will hold off on posting it for a while, try to amass a chuck of chapters first.
