Unconventional Love

By early-March, Ash had grown considerably with his husband’s babe, so big that Amy worried a bit. He was just a bit smaller than she was the week before her own son’s birth, and he was only six and a-half months pregnant. She wasn’t sure if it was simply because he was male and bound to have bigger babies as a result, or if the child was growing too fast for his body to handle.

They’d already figured out, based on when he and Andy became intimate, that he’d likely conceived in mid-August, meaning that the baby shouldn’t be born until mid-May. That would be a week or two after they celebrated their first wedding anniversary. Still, she wasn’t sure if he should carry that long, if he was even capable of it.

Poor Ash was absolutely miserable from the amount of kicks he took to his ribs and bladder, which often caused him to wet himself if he didn’t make it to the water closet in time. The poor thing lived in an almost constant state of embarrassment now, even though he’d taken to wearing two pairs of under drawers so he didn’t make a mess of the furniture. Even sleeping was uncomfortable for him now, seeing as he had to sleep almost sitting up just so he could breathe. The pressure the from the weight of the child and all the fluid surrounding it, plus that of the afterbirth, was too heavy for him to lay down unless on his side.

Andy did everything he possibly could to make sure his young bride was comfortable, and had even started sleeping propped up, too. The now fifteen-year-old boy still wanted to cuddle whenever he was asleep, and the easiest way for them to do so was for them both to be sitting up as if they were on one of the sofas. Otherwise, breathing was too difficult and the young boy would gasp for breath as if he were choking or wearing a corset that was laced too tightly again.

“Owww,” he groaned, bending over the keyboard of the piano. He rubbed his side from where he’d just taken a hard kick to his ribs, which had made him stop playing mid-song.

“Are you all right, my love?” the young man asked worriedly.

“The babe kicked my rib again,” Ash answered, still grimacing. “And pretty hard, too.”

“I am sorry, Ashes,” his husband murmured soothingly, gently rubbing his side for him. “I know what an ordeal this is for you.”

“It is not like either of us knew I was a medical miracle when we became intimate,” the young boy told him.

“I know that, but I still feel like it is my fault you are with child,” Andy argued.

“It is just as much my fault as it is yours,” he said stubbornly. “Had I not wanted to become intimate and give you such a precious gift, we would not have. Had we not become intimate, I would not be carrying your child.”

“That is one way to look at it,” the young man agreed reluctantly. “I still feel bad since it appears that you are suffering.”

“I do not think of it as suffering,” Ash sighed. “I think of it as a gift, which it is, to be nourishing this babe until it is ready to be born.”

Not wanting to argue anymore, the young man merely wrapped his arms around him and rested his cheek on top of his head. His young bride side and snuggled into his side, his own arms wrapped around his waist, as he rested his head on his shoulder. He was definitely ready for this child to be born, if only so it would stop kicking him in the ribs, but he didn’t want it to be born too early or unhealthy.

When the pain in his ribs had subsided completely and their child had settled down, Ash straightened his posture and poised his hands over the piano’s keyboard once again. They resumed their lesson until Daisy knocked on the outer door of their suite, only opening it when they called out that she could.

She told them that supper was almost ready and that they should start making their way down, knowing it took her son quite a while now. They nodded their assent as Andy rose, ready to help pull him to his feet since he couldn’t get up on his own anymore. His big belly was too cumbersome and always in his way, and he’d found that if he tried getting up without help, he would fall after losing his balance. He’d tried getting up on his own after a nap one afternoon when his husband wasn’t around to help him, having been in the water closet, and ended up winded on the floor beside their bed.

Once he’d finally gotten him to his feet, the young man wrapped an arm around his shoulders to help keep him steady. Ash pressed one hand against his lower spine, which ached from carrying the extra weight, and leaned back a bit more than he used to so as to find his center of balance again. The other hand he used to cup his huge belly to support it as they walked, only removing it to grab the banister as they walked down the stairs. Their pace was slow, but it was better than him falling and getting hurt.

“Good evening, boys,” Amy greeted them, smiling from her place at the table. “How are you feeling this eve, Ashley?”

“Fatigued,” the young boy answered, groaning as he took his seat. His chair had to be turned sideways since his belly was too big for him to get close enough to his food without making a mess now.

“I bet,” she agreed, sounding worried. “You are so much bigger than I thought you would be.”

“I feel like a whale,” Ash admitted, rubbing his belly. “It feels as if this child is too big for my body to handle.”

“It certainly looks like it,” Daisy agreed, sounding concerned herself. “You are bigger than even I was when expecting you.”

“He’s about the same size I was the week before Andy’s birth,” his mother-in-law told her. “That is why I am so concerned.”

His mother made a face, showing that she really was concerned about him.

“And the babe is not due to be born for at least another two months,” Andy said, turning his own worried look on his young bride.

“It is not like I wanted the babe to grow this large,” he said, his temper getting the better of him for a moment.

“We know that, my love,” his husband assured him. “We are just worried since it has.”

“Let us not show our concern any longer,” Chris said. “If need be, the child can be surgically removed by the doctor, which will probably have to happen, anyway.”

They all nodded their agreement, not really wanting to upset the expectant boy any more than they had to. It wasn’t good for either him or the babe during such a delicate time, and even if Chris and Andy didn’t know that, Amy and Daisy did. All talk turned to how they were going to decorate the child’s nursery after its birth, which was a positive note for all of them since they were so excited.

Halfway through his meal, Ash pushed his plate away from himself, grimacing as the child within him kicked his ribs again. He couldn’t eat as much anymore and had been telling the chef not to dish up quite so much for him, but the woman never listened. She said that he needed to eat plenty so that neither he, nor the babe, were malnourished while he carried it, but she’d never had a child of her own before. She didn’t understand that as the child grew, he ran out of room internally and couldn’t eat as much in one sitting.

Andy cast him a concerned glance, and he sat up long enough to whisper in his ear that he was full. The young man cast him a skeptical look, which Amy and Daisy both saw, and they told him that he couldn’t eat as much because the babe took up so much room inside his abdomen.

It was something both women had gone through themselves, and considering that they’d been quite knowledgeable and nothing but helpful thus far, he decided to trust them. Still, Ash stayed at the table, gently rubbing his belly as he allowed his food to settle, and even managed a couple more small bites. Once everyone else was done, his husband helped him up so they could retire to their sitting room to read for a bit and bathe before going to bed. Daisy, Amy, and Chris all decided to adjourn to the parlor for a post-supper cup of coffee and bid them good night as they left the room.

“Let us get you in the tub, my love,” Andy said, gently helping him strip for his bath.

“I want my baby blue silk night gown tonight,” he told him, holding still while he unfastened all the tiny buttons marching down his back.

“I will get it out after you are safely in the tub,” his husband promised. “Lift you leg.”

The young boy lifted his leg as instructed while he tugged his stockings and under drawers off after removing his dress, chemise, and petticoat.

“All right. Upsy-daisy,” the young man said. He grunted and groaned softly as he lifted him up bridal-style and gently lowered him into the tub of warm water.

“You do not have to pick me up, Andy,” Ash told him, concerned for his health.

“If I get hurt helping you, it is the least I can do since you carry my child,” he insisted, uncaring of whether he threw his back out or not.

“I do not like to see you in pain, though,” his young bride pouted.

“And you think I like to see you in pain?” he countered.

Knowing he could argue no further, the young boy began soaping up his wash cloth as he turned for the water closet doorway.

Andy left the door open behind him so he’d hear him if he called out for his assistance, then headed into their bedchamber and over to his wardrobe. He grabbed the night gown he’d requested, a fresh pair of stockings, and a clean pair of under drawers for him. With those garments in hand, he headed back to the water closet to lay them on the wash stand and retrieve a towel to dry his young bride off with.

By the time his husband returned, Ash had managed to get everything but his back squeaky clean, despite his belly being to big and in the way. He pouted as he handed the cloth he was using to the young man, sighing as he washed his back since he kneaded the knotted muscles as he worked.

Once he was completely clean and rinsed off, the young man helped him stand up, then hefted him up and over the edge of the tub once again. He was panting softly from the effort when he set him on his feet on the rug, but thought nothing of it. As he’d told his young bride a short time ago, it was better than having him hurt himself or their child. Andy quickly helped him dry off and get dressed, then helped him to their bedchamber. He was growing quite fatigued again and knew it would take him quite a while to get settled, considering how hard it was for him to get comfortable now.

With Ash in their bed to get settled for the night, the young man returned to the water closet to set up his own bath. He knew that by the time he’d finished bathing, his sweetheart would finally be relatively comfortable and wouldn’t keep either of them up for hours on end tossing and turning as best he could. He sighed as he relaxed in the hot water, letting it soothe the knots in his own back, formed mostly from picking the young boy up so much. He knew it was his own fault, though, and never complained about his discomfort.

“Ready for bed, my love?” he asked a short while later as he reentered their bedchamber again.

“Yes. The babe has settled down at last,” his young bride answered, nodding sleepily.

“Good. It is so active that I am glad to hear it,” he sighed, settling down behind him.

“Yes, the kicks to the ribs are really starting to hurt,” Ash told him. “They are stronger than they have ever been before, and its size does not help matters.”

“Like you, I cannot wait for this little one to be born,” the young man said. “Just for different reasons.”

“Easily another two months of this, then we will meet our babe,” he sighed.

Andy reached over and blew out their lantern before pulling the covers up to their waists and settling down. He threw an arm protectively and possessively around the young boy’s waist, still amazed that his hand barely reached his popped belly button, considering how long his arms were.

He gently kissed Ash’s temple as he nuzzled his pillow, then settled his head on his own pillow as he held him close. Their babe chose that moment to roll over inside its mother, drawing a soft groan of discomfort from his young bride as it grazed his rib, but it settled down again so quickly that they knew it was asleep. It wasn’t long afterward that the exhausted young boy drifted off, his breathing slow, deep, and even, and that soft sound eventually lulled Andy to sleep, as well.

Notes