Unexpected news, fic

[isamazed]

Title: Unexpected news
Author: isamazed
Word count: approx. 3,050
Characters: Becker/Ryan, OC, mention of Ditzy and the pups
Rating: T
Warnings: pup!verse (Alpha/Omega verse with puppies and mpreg), mention of abortion
Disclaimer: Primeval belongs to Impossible Pictures. I only write for fun…
A/N: Written for fififolle's Valentine's Day Gift Box 2022 on primeval_denial. The prompts I used were 1) Worried sick and 2) Lost for words.
The pups (and pup!verse in general) belong to fififolle. Ditzy belongs to fredbassett. Thanks everyone for lending them out!
Thank you, fredbassett, for your wonderful beta services.
Also, pup!verse is celebrating its 10th anniversary this year. So I thought it would be fun to send their world into upheaval again ;-) 

This follows on from Unexpected circumstances

Becker had felt like shit ever since the last vestiges of his pseudo-heat had subsided.

Yes, pseudo-heat. Just a fluke. Fake.

Apparently, it was the first sign of his upcoming menopause, several years before the average omega experienced it. Ditzy and the omega specialist the medic had made him see agreed that it was probably the years of suppressant abuse and stress catching up with him. Apparently the omegan body really wasn't designed for it. Omegas weren't made for strain like this.

In other words: it was Becker's own fault.

He and Ryan hadn't planned on more pups once their current three were out of the woods. In fact, they had started talking about gearing up for a promotion now that the kids didn't need them all the time any more. But the decision had now been made for them by Becker's body and he couldn't help but feel robbed of a chance and his choice.

Maybe Ryan would have changed his mind when the time came and the kids really were old enough for an omega's body to become fertile again. Ryan was a strong alpha who had a lot to give. And now Becker had taken that possibility away from him and the alpha was stuck with a barren omega.

All Becker could do was hope that Ryan wouldn't resent him for it the way Becker did himself.

He knew that Ryan would never throw him out, as would be his right as an alpha, but living with someone who despised you for ruining their life didn't sound like something Becker wanted to do on a daily basis. He'd rather take his leave if the day came.

So far, Ryan was his usual caring self and supportive as ever, if not more. And he needed to be because Becker surely wasn’t pulling his weight right now. Not at home, and not at the ARC either.

He could hardly sleep although he was bone-deep exhausted all the time. His stomach was in constant upheaval and the only thing that seemed to soothe it the tiniest bit was the ginger tea that Becker drank in the cold season anyway to support his immune system. And then there were the dizzy spells that had never quite subsided. They were rare but still frequent enough that Ditzy had banned him from field duty and him restricted to desk work.

Becker loathed it because it meant everybody now had proof that omegas at work were nothing but a nuisance. More omegas worked now than when Becker first had their pups, but they were still mostly limited to service delivery or entry-level positions without the hope of every climbing up a corporate ladder. And most still didn't want to and dropped out or moved to part-time positions once they had puppies.

Ryan and Stringer were picking up his slack, but they'd had to bring in Mayne, another captain, as an interim solution until Becker's health had settled again.

No one had said anything to him, but he was very much aware of everyone's eyes following him – some sympathetic, some disapproving, some plain gloating. The worst, however, were the worried ones, especially the ones of Ryan and Ditzy.

They were watching and observing him every chance they got, Ditzy constantly checking on his well-being and symptoms and nudging him to talk to the army shrink, strongly hinting that part of Becker's current predicament might be psychosomatic.

Apparently, Becker had lost his edge and poker face along with his fertility.

And, for the record, he wasn't feeling like shit because he was depressed or some nonsense, his body was simply changing its entire chemistry. Wasn't that a good enough reason, for fuck's sake?

Now, Ryan was a different matter. Becker knew the alpha tried hard to keep his alpha instincts in check but still he was offering his help or just doing little things for Becker all the damn time. He'd stopped asking how Becker was doing after a couple of harsh replies from his omega but Becker felt his watchful gaze a lot. It frustrated Becker no end.

Couldn't they just leave him be until his body had found its balance again?

There was also more cuddling and “I love yous“ than previously, and Becker couldn't find it in him to resent that. Ryan's embraces seemed to be full of love and worry and support. Becker soaked it all up like a withering flower soaked up water while he could. Maybe some day soon it would stop.

# # # #

It had been two weeks since the pseudo heat when on Saturday Ryan surprised him with breakfast in bed and the pups exiled to their friends' houses. Becker almost started crying when he saw his alpha entering the room with a big serving tray full of croissants, fresh fruit, scrambled eggs and bacon.

Then the bacon smell hit him and his stomach lurched.

Becker clapped a hand in front of his mouth and bolted to the toilet where he promptly puked his guts out.

He heard the clank of dishes and hasty steps when Ryan followed him into the bathroom. Becker was still heaving, so Ryan kneeled down next to him, rubbed his back and murmured calming words. Once the retching had stopped, Becker flushed the toilet, flopped down on his arse and leaned back against the side of the tub. The day had just started, and he was knackered already.

“Better?” Ryan looked at him and softly brushed a sweaty lock from Becker's forehead.

Becker nodded and proceeded to stare at his hands.

Ryan settled in next to him, not willing to leave him be. Bloody caring alpha, couldn't even leave him be weak by himself.

“Listen, I know you don't want to hear it,” Ryan started. “But I think we should check in with that omega specialist again. She said to expect heat flashes, tiredness, mood changes even. But none of the dizziness and stomach troubles. She was nice enough, right? Surely it wouldn't hurt to see her one more time? Just to make sure everything's how it's supposed to be?”

Becker frowned. Nothing was like it was supposed to be. If it was, none of this would be happening. But Becker knew Ryan was right, just... It was hard for Becker to accept his vulnerability. He was used to a fit and able body. He didn't want to be a burden. Not while Ryan would still have him. But if he didn't go see the doctor and do anything to get better, wouldn't he be even more of a burden?

“I am just worried about you,” Ryan carried on when Becker didn't reply. He took the omega's hand squeezed it lightly.

Becker gave an internal sigh. He knew Ryan was the sensible one here. Time to admit defeat.

“Okay,” he agreed.

“Great!” Ryan's relief was obvious at Becker's quick agreement. “So, I happen to have come across their opening hours yesterday, purely accidental, and they have walk-in hours until noon today.”

Becker side-eyed him hard. “Purely accidental, huh?”

Ryan shrugged and gave him a guilty, lopsided smile

Becker sighed again, aloud this time, and stood up, tugging at Ryan's hand.

“Alright then. Let's get going, you big lug. Purely accidental, my arse.”

Ryan chuckled but was quick to comply. They had places to be.

# # # #

Two hours later found them in an examination room. 'Purely accidentally', the doctor Becker had seen the first time around was on shift that day and after a quick conversation, she'd made Becker go through a whole battery of tests. Wherever possible, they had sent things to the in-house lab marked with high priority. Apparently, Becker's symptoms were highly unusual and when Becker had pushed to learn what they might be looking at, the potential causes for his physical unease were... not good.

Ryan sat next to him stiffly, holding Becker's hand in a death grip. And Becker... Becker felt bad for troubling his alpha once again. Ryan was such a good man, he didn't deserve having to deal with such a pitiful omega.

And then there were the potential diagnosis looming over him. Two or three of the potential causes could be bad enough that he might not even live to see the pups moving out to start their lives as young adults. He worried about leaving them, and Ryan, behind and on their own. He was nowhere near ready for that. Even though death was a possibility everyday he worked at the ARC, he couldn't begin to grasp the idea of it happening like that.

Slowly. Painfully.

Traumatising his family.

The kids had been amazing the last two weeks, helping wherever they could and making sure they were making as little trouble as possible. They'd seen their parents laid up with injury and exhaustion often over the years, and each time they'd stepped up to help. This time was no different.

Becker's heart ached for them. Their wonderful pups.

Then there was also the one possibility, the most unlikely of all, that held a whole other mountain of issues. If Becker's heat hadn't been a pseudo-heat but a real, proper heat after all, he might have got pregnant again. But none of the previous blood tests hinted even vaguely at hormonal levels supporting that theory.

What would happen if he was pregnant though? Becker glanced at his mate out of the corner of his eyes. Ryan's jaw was tight and he stared resolutely straight ahead. It was the look he adopted when he wanted to avoid showing his true emotions at all costs. A blank mask, and nothing else.

What would Ryan say if Becker was pregnant? The three children they had already were a lot. More kids than either Ryan or Becker had ever expected to raise, and the alpha never tired of mentioning the fact that he'd never thought about having children before getting trapped with Becker on the wrong side of an anomaly and Becker's ensuing heat forcing them together.

Becker had wondered if Ryan would leave him for being barren so early, but would Ryan actually want to start all over again and raise a new set of pups? Time hadn't passed by without leaving its mark on Ryan either.

And how many pups would they even look at? Pregnancies usually resulted in a pair of pups but omegas who'd once had triplets had a much higher chance of having them again if they got pregnant a second time.

Becker couldn't fathom the idea that Ryan would be up for raising six kids. Especially with a working mate. It would nigh on impossible to juggle six pups with two military careers, and ones as crazy as the ARC placements at that. So, if he was pregnant, would Becker finally have to give up his job despite fighting to keep it for so long?

He reminded himself that pregnancy was the most unlikely explanation. It was probably just... something worse.

Everything was such a mess. Becker wished he could go back to the morning when they'd sat on the bathroom floor, but this time he would convince Ryan that he'd be better in no time.

He didn't want to hear the answers the medic was going to find.

Tears shot into Becker's eyes and he must have inadvertently squeezed Ryan's hand because the alpha suddenly jerked his head up and gave him a tight smile.

“It's going to be okay, Beck, I am sure of it,” Ryan said quietly, but his voice didn't carry any of his usual conviction.

The omega specialist chose that moment to enter the examination room and sat down across the desk of them. She smiled at them encouragingly. Becker wondered if that meant that she wasn't about to deliver his death sentence after all.

“So, we've just had your test results back, Captain Becker.” She opened her manila folder and busied herself leafing through a stack of papers. “I have to admit, this is going to be a bit of a surprise, I think.”

Ryan's grip on Becker's hand tightened again. They were both holding onto each other like their life depended on it.

“What is it, doc?” Becker didn't want to delay it any longer. Whatever it was, once they knew they could see how to deal with it. But the uncertainty was killing him.

The omega specialist cleared her throat and looked at one of the spreadsheets again.

“As you know, we identified your recent heat as a fluke, so to say,” she smiled at them again. “However, today's blood work paints a different picture.” She paused.

Please, please get on with it, Becker begged silently.

Then her smile brightened.

“I guess congratulations are in order, sirs. Your family is going to grow!”

Did she mean...? Becker sat there stunned. He swiveled his head to face Ryan who stared back equally gobsmacked. His alpha’s gaze dropped and stayed fixed on Becker's stomach.

“Sorry, what?” Becker croaked when he found his voice again.

“You're pregnant, Mr Becker!” She shuffled with the papers and laid one out in front of them. She pointed towards some numbers and started explaining how the results were crystal clear. Pregnant.

Bloody hell.

“How is that even possible?” He was flabbergasted. This shouldn't be possible at all with three pups still in the house. Evolution had made sure to avoid pregnancies in order to ensure existing pups could grow up well.

“Well, it's very rare, I'll give you that, but sometimes when an exceptionally strong alpha mates with an exceptionally strong omega and they're settled in a successful and secure long-term partnership, nature decides that the circumstances are good enough to have more pups in that family. Looking at you two, it appears that is the case here.”

They sat there, completely lost for words.

Pregnant.

“How about we do a small ultrasound, just to make sure everything is okay and to see how many pups you're going to welcome? I don't mean to worry you but with your history and the difficult delivery of your three older pups, I would advise weekly checks. This is not something to mess with.”

Becker just stared at her with his mouth open. He was still trying to come to terms with the idea of being pregnant. Him? He was infertile already! They had said so!

“I...” Ryan's voice cracked, and he quickly made to clear his throat. “I think that's a good idea. Beck?”

His grip on Becker's hand had lightened at the shock but now he squeezed it again. Becker looked at him for a second and then nodded on auto-pilot.

“Great!” The doctor clapped her hands and shepherded them to the gynecological chair and the ultrasound device in the other half of the room.

Becker automatically went through the motions of removing his shirt and popping his jeans open. He was too out of it to remove his pants entirely and just shoved them down a few inches before he climbed on the chair. Ryan took position beside him and immediately grabbed his hand as soon as Becker was seated.

The omega specialist powered up the machine and squeezed some cold goo on his stomach. She placed the wand on his stomach and moved it around in a practiced manner. She stopped once in a while to stare at the screen and mark and measure something only she could make out in the black and white mish-mash that was Becker's insides.

All the while, Ryan's eyes flicked from the screen to his omega's belly and back again.

Finally, the doctor seemed satisfied and she looked up at them. She turned the screen so that they could see and then pressed a button and the sound came on. There were frantic rhythmic noises that Becker knew would be his and his babies heart beats. Oh god.

“Everything appears to be in order, though there is a substantial amount of scarring from the previous birth. We'll need to keep a close eye on that, Captain Becker. If you start feeling off more than you already do, if your cramps worsen or your dizzy spells increase – anything really – I want you to come and see us immediately. Or get to the closest hospital. You hear me? Whatever it is, better safe than sorry.” She stared at them until they both nodded, completely steamrolled. Only then, she smiled. “Excellent, let's move on then. Now, this,” she pointed at some weird spot on the screen, “is Puppy A, and this here,” she moved her finger an inch to the side, “this, is Puppy B. Congratulations, you're having two new pups!”

She did something on the machine and then a black and white printout appeared that she pushed into Becker's hands. He stared at it wide-eyed. Holding the proof in his hands seemed to finally unlock his voice.

“Oh thank god, at least it's not three,” Becker blurted. Because seriously, he couldn't go through nursing three demanding pups again, not at his age.

Ryan stiffened at his side and the sharp gaze of the doctor pierced into him.

She hesitated a moment, then she turned off the equipment and pushed it aside. “I am sorry if I misjudged and this isn't a happy occasion. We can talk about the process of abortion, if you don't feel ready to be parents again. Nobody would judge you, not with your medical history and the three pups still at home.” Her expression was grave now.

Becker didn't know what to answer. He hadn't planned for that to happen at all but he knew deep down that he couldn't abort his pups now that they were there. But what if that was what Ryan wanted?

“I... I think we'll need to talk about that, ma'am. Let the news sink in for a moment,” Ryan's gaze wandered to Becker and back to the omega specialist again. “We didn't expect this at all.”

The doctor nodded at them tight-lipped but sympathetic and a few minutes later they stepped out of the building with a stack of pamphlets in their hands and an appointment for the following week.

Holy shit, Becker was pregnant.

This continues in To Be Expected

Comments

[goldarrow]

Yikes!

Okay, you are officially evil!

This is really angstilly good!

[isamazed]

Evil? Me? *makes innocent eyes*

They needed a little excitement with the pups half grown up already 😜

[fififolle]

Bloody hell, what a rollercoaster, I think I need a lie down!! So much trauma.
AWESOME, ahaha.
Thinking about his suppressant abuse, and how Ryan could throw him out, Damn. So anxiety inducing. Brilliant.
The worry of the medical possibilities, yikes.
And not all roses yet!!
I have to say, this is simply stunning. The level of angst is beautiful.
*prolonged standing ovation*
Thank you!!!!!
And there's more, hells yes!

[isamazed]

Oh, thank you! ☺️ Now I am actually blushing 😅
So happy you like it! The prompts all fit together across the gift boxes, I had a blast writing this 😄

[knitekat.livejournal.com]

What a rollercoster for poor Becker (and Ryan), all the tension and fear and then.. puppies!

[isamazed]

Puppies! *squeeee*
Yes, certainly an emotional rollercoaster.
Thank you!

[fredbassett]

Poor anxious Becker! A great big bundle of confused, pregnant hormones!

I love it!

MORE REAL PUPPIES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1

[isamazed]

LOL, thanks. We love to torture our boys a little once in a while. Good thing they’re only fictional 🤪

[telperion-15.livejournal.com]

That was definitely unexpected news! And as I said on the last part, what's going to happen next?? I shall go and see! *g*

[isamazed]

LOL, enjoy 😉

[nietie.livejournal.com]

Hormones! Argh!

But two new pups! Wow!

[isamazed]

They agree! Wow!