Hi all! I'm so sorry for the late update and I hope you are still following this story. Thanks to those who reviewed the last chapter!

gothpandaotaku : Yeah Usagi is jealous of everything and anything that comes near his Misaki!

hinatagirl18: Misaki talks to the twins more often that he would like to admit :D

puppyfacetwo: Yeah Usagi is kinda like a spoilt little kid inside a grown man, or at least that's my impression of him

Nanami of Falling Snow: Yup I wonder what'll be his next craving after pickles, hehe

Miyuki-chan, Pitty Souza, Bluestar1937 : Thank you! I'm glad you liked the story!

Darkrosetears: Misaki doesn't have much longer to go. I'll be sad to see them part too.

Brookie cookie17: Poor Usagi can't hold out much longer :P

Life 4 Love : I wrote the second half of this chapter based on one of your suggestions.

Chapter 10

It was seven o'clock in the morning. Misaki lay stretched out on the recliner, staring at the lecture notes he clutched in his hand, trying to absorb and retain as much as he could. His silver-haired lover, guardian and mentor sat next to him on the couch, arms folded behind his head, eyes closed. He was sleep deprived after churning out the latest chapter of his novel overnight, but he had promised to give Misaki a quiz to help him revise his lecture notes and was waiting to start.

"Are you ready?" Akihiko growled impatiently as he reached for his cup of coffee, which he relied on to keep awake.

"Yes... er no wait! Five more minutes please!" Misaki pleaded as he continued reading the printed material with furrowed brows, one hand resting on his burgeoning belly. The twins were being very active lately and he was finding it difficult to concentrate with them doing kickboxing inside him.

"Come on, it's only five questions," Akihiko rolled his eyes and stifled a yawn.

"Okay, fire away!" Misaki said, drawing a deep breath as he put away the notes. It was just a simple quiz, nothing to sweat about, but he was particularly nervous because Akihiko had set a rule that if he even got one question wrong, he would have to strip naked. This usually happened whenever Misaki lost a game of chess or cards - which he did all the time - but this time it was different. His body was grossly out of shape now and he dreaded exposing himself as he was sure Akihiko would laugh at him and make him feel like a freak.

The novelist cleared his throat while remaining in the same relaxed position. "Question one: what is the title of the first Japanese novel ever written?"

"Oh I know this one!" The brown-haired youth declared confidently. "The Tale of Genji!"

"Good," said Akihiko, who was coming up with questions from the top of his head.

Misaki answered questions two through four promptly and correctly, and was beginning to feel proud of himself. Now came the final one. After thinking for a few seconds, Akihiko sat upright and took another sip of his coffee. He uttered each word slowly and clearly as he delivered the question.

"People from which European country were the first to reach Japan?"

Misaki frowned. "Er... let me think," he mumbled as he scratched his head and rummaged through his brain.

The disapproval in Akihiko's face and voice was clear. "The answer should be at the tip of your tongue."

"England!"" Misaki cried with wide open eyes.

Letting out an exasperated sigh, Akihiko slapped his forehead and slumped back against the couch."Misaki, sometimes I really wonder how you managed to get into university."

"Wait - give me one more chance, please! I know this one, " the stressed up boy begged frantically. "It's - it's Spain!"

Akihiko coughed. "The answer is Portugal."

"Noooooooo!" Misaki covered his face in dismay.

"You know the rules."

"No, I don't want to!"

"Look, I didn't even try to make things difficult for you. All my questions were really easy, yet - you - couldn't get all of them right." Akihiko's voice raised a notch as he stood up and towered over his young lover. "Accept your punishment now. Strip!"

"No! My body is mine! You can't -"

Akihiko reached out and grabbed the hem of Misaki's sweater. "Don't - ouch!" Misaki yelped, fending the older man off with one hand, the other curling protectively over his belly when he felt one of the twins give his ribs a strong kick. Akihiko released the poor boy and decided to change his tactic. Tucking a finger gently under Misaki's chin and lifting his face, he coaxed in a low voice.

"Listen. If you strip, I'll give you a massage, okay?"

"Really?" Misaki's eyes lit up like a Christmas tree. A massage sounded like a good idea as his sore back was killing him. "I thought you wanted to sleep?"

"I'm not sleepy anymore."

However, the glint of lust in the older man's eyes did not escape his notice. "Just a massage and nothing else?" Misaki asked suspiciously.

"Yes."

"Uh... okay then. I guess I have to do this," Misaki sighed. Slowly, he peeled off his pullover sweater and extra-large tee shirt. After repeated prodding and prompting from Akihiko, he pushed himself up from the couch and reluctantly pulled down his sweatpants, letting them drop onto the floor in a heap.

"Mmm.. sexy," Akihiko whispered as he leaned close, admiring his beloved's naked pregnant body in its full glory. "These have to go too," he sniggered as he tugged at the boy's underwear.

"Shut up, moron!" Misaki snapped, blushing from his neck upwards as he stood there helplessly letting Akihiko pull down his briefs. He soon found himself being marched towards the staircase in his birthday suit, with Akihiko's hand on his back. He climbed up slowly, panting as he reached the top of the stairs. It was the only exercise he had for the past seven months.

Inside the bedroom that they shared, Misaki walked past the floor-length mirror and his eyes instinctively traveled towards it. In the past few weeks he had not dared to look at his reflection, and now he gawked a little when he caught sight of his pale body in the mirror. Although he had not put on much fat on his arms and legs, his belly looked as though he had swallowed a watermelon whole. His hips had also grown wider as they stretched to accommodate two growing babies. He wondered if they would ever go back to their original shape, or he would have to be stuck with those hips forever. However what really made him cringe was the sight of his 'breasts'. Although they were quite small, and Doctor Endo had promised him they would remain so, the sight of his dark and enlarged nipples disturbed him so much that he quickly grabbed the nearest towel and draped it over his chest.

"For goodness sake, put away the towel. There's nobody else here but me," Akihiko said, his violet eyes contemplating the new curves of Misaki's body.

The youth turned crimson again. "It's precisely because it's you," he muttered to himself, dropping the towel as he sat on the bed. "I think I look like a... like a..."

"Move up a bit," Akihiko ordered as he helped ease him into a comfortable position.

Beached whale," Misaki thought as he lay on his side trying to relax while Akihiko gathered a bunch of pillows to support his sides and tummy. Something that smelled like lavender oil dripped onto his skin, making him shiver. Akihiko's large warm hands slid smoothly across his back, drawing moans of appreciation. This was exactly the sort of pampering he needed right now. The ticklish sensation of fingers brushing against his tailbone made him squirm a bit, but soon Akihiko's hands pressed down firmly and worked their magic on his lower back. Misaki let out another soft, contented moan as his eyes fluttered close. He could feel that the twins were also soothed by the massage.

Soon he dozed off in a dreamless sleep, and he stirred to the sensation of Akihiko's fingers caressing him in places that were supposed to be off-limits. "Stop, you bastard," he hissed. "You said it was only a massage."

Ignoring his protests as usual, Akihiko smirked as his hands continued to take liberties with his body. "I love how stupid and cute you are at the same time."

"Wh-what did you say?"

Akihiko answered by engulfing the enraged boy's mouth with his own. Misaki's green eyes opened as wide as saucers as he struggled weakly against the assault. There was no way Akihiko would back off now, after being rejected and starved for an entire week. Misaki himself groaned as his body succumbed to the tender strokes and his lips and tongue melted in the warmth of his partner's. He was lost in the sensations for a while before he realized something wasn't quite right. For some strange reason, he felt that someone was in the bedroom watching them.

Lifting his head, he realized, to his horror, that he was right. His brother and sister-in-law were standing at the door, rooted to the ground, a stunned expression on their faces. Huh? Why're they here? Misaki's mind screamed. I thought they were supposed to be out of town this week? The first time they had almost walked in on them, he had forgotten they had the house keys. But this time, how could he have been so careless again? He pinched himself, desperately hoping this was just a nightmare. Unfortunately, it was not.

Akihiko turned his head to face the couple. An awkward silence filled the room.

"...Akihiko?" Takahiro managed with great difficulty to spit out his friend's name, while his wife continued standing with mouth agape. Turning his gaze towards his brother, his eyes widened with panic. "Misaki?"

The brown-haired teen had fainted.

Misaki heard his name being called and struggled to open his eyes, only to see his brother sitting beside the bed, his face tense with concern.

"Nii-chan...?" Misaki shifted a little on the bed trying to get comfortable, wincing and smoothing his hand over his stomach. The twins had woken up and were pummeling his insides again.

"Are you feeling alright?" Takahiro asked, touching his brother's arm.

Misaki nodded, drawing a long, deep breath. His eyes wandered around and realized that the only people in the room were the both of them.

As though reading his mind, Takahiro said softly. "They're all outside talking to the doctor. I told them I wanted to have a word alone with you."

Misaki blinked a few times trying to recall what had happened. Then it all came back to him. The scene replayed in his mind: his brother walking in on him kissing with Akihiko while butt-naked in bed. His heart sank to the pit of his stomach as he realized how deep in shit he was. His brother knew about it now, and there was there was no way he could reverse all that. He would have to face his brother's anger.

"Nii-chan... I... I'm sorry," he spoke in a trembling voice.

Takahiro looked into his brother's large, apprehensive eyes and said nothing. He pursed his lips and seemed to be thinking of something, and after a few minutes of silence, he spoke gently. "It's alright, Misaki."

"Really?" Misaki gasped in disbelief.

"It's alright. I understand," Takahiro said, soothing his hand over Misaki's hair.

"You're not angry with me at all? Nii-chan?" Misaki looked gratefully at his brother as tears threatened to erupt.

Takahiro shook his head. "Manami and I talked about it just now. We came to the conclusion that you must be confused during this time. It must be all the hormones that made you behave this way."

Hormones? No... Misaki thought in dismay. Nii-chan thinks it's just a phase I'm going through. How can I tell him that it's not temporary? That I've been with Usagi-san, doing all these disgusting and.. and wrong things with him for two whole years? That- that I've always called Usagi-san a pervert, but it was in fact I who chose to stay with him? No...I can't tell Nii-chan, it would break his heart!" A tear started trickling down his cheek.

"Misaki, please. Don't cry anymore, " Takahiro coaxed. "It's bad for you and the babies."

"I'm sorry." Misaki wiped his eyes with the back of his hand. "I just... I've disappointed you Nii-chan."

"No, it's my fault. Our parents left us when you were little and I guess I didn't take good care of you. I was busy setting up my family and practically dumped you in my friend's house. You're at a crucial time of your life now and yet I haven't been there for you." He paused for a while and then patted the boy's shoulder and continued. "But I just want you to know that it's okay, it's normal to want to experiment around. It doesn't mean you're gay."

"No Nii-chan, I wanted to stay with Usagi-san." Misaki lowered his eyes, not daring to look meet his brother's gaze. "He's.. he's not a bad person." Misaki sensed that his brother blamed Akihiko and was desperate to defend him.

"I know, I still trust him. I'll find a chance to talk to him. Things are a little awkward between us now, but I still regard him as a my good friend."

Misaki bit his lip and nodded, his brows still knitted with worry. Takahiro's words kept churning back and forth in his mind. His brother was either ignorant or in denial. He was an old-fashioned guy, and it was clear that he would not be able to accept Misaki being in love with another man. "Nii-chan, does this mean I can't stay with Usagi-san anymore?" Misaki forced himself to ask, fearing to hear the answer. The truth was he couldn't bear life without Akihiko, and the only way he could stay on was to convince his brother that he truly loved Akihiko. But how was he going to do that? He swallowed once, twice, but could not muster the courage to admit what he truly wanted.

"We're thinking that you should stay at his place until the birth," Takahiro said. "We don't want you traveling around or adjusting to a new place at this time. I'll talk to Akihiko about this."

Misaki nodded and touched his bump, realizing that he had to put aside his own messy affairs and think of his unborn nephews first. He was relieved that at least things were settled for now, but later...

"Don't think about it now, okay?" Takahiro patted his brother's shoulder comfortingly. "Just concentrate on keeping well. Nii-chan is not angry with you, I swear."

"Okay."

There was a knock on the door. Doctor Endo came in, accompanied by Manami. Usagi-san isn't here, Misaki thought. I wonder what he's doing or thinking right now.

"Misaki-kun, you will have to minimize movement for the next two months and you'll likely have to be on complete bed rest in the couple weeks leading up to the birth," the doctor instructed.

Misaki nodded.

"We don't want to stress the babies, " she continued, speaking to Takahiro. "And we certainly don't want Misaki to go into premature labor. In a male pregnancy, that would not only be bad for the babies but it could be pretty damaging to the host as well."

Misaki gulped nervously, the thought of giving birth making him break out in a cold sweat.

The doctor caught sight of his face, and as if sensing his fear, she took his hand in hers and gave it a squeeze. "You'll be fine," she said, her serious expression softening into a smile. "It won't be that bad, I promise."

Well that was a quite dramatic turn of events wasn't it? Thanks for reading and keep the reviews coming!

See you next chapter!