Chapter 12
You would think with how many times he’s been through this, Clint would’ve noticed the signs.
Maybe he was too caught up in the happiness of his new family to notice.
Maybe his body had been through it so many times it just stopped noticing.
Either way, it caught the Omega off guard when he finally realized his body was changing.
And what normally brought Omegas joy - only filled the blonde with dread.
Cause yep, after taking two tests to confirm it - Clint was pregnant.
Maybe I should just get back on my suppressants, the Omega thought to himself after chucking the pieces of plastic in the trash. They had Wade now and it wasn’t like this bundle of cells inside of him would progress any further.
Not to mention how much it put him and his Alpha through whenever they saw that stupid little plus sign.
Maybe he can talk to James about getting a vasectomy. So they don’t have to go through any of this again.
The Omega’s train of thoughts were derailed when he heard his phone ring. James had taken Wade to his gym to practice boxing as promised, leaving the Omega home with Lucky.
Clint had expected it to be his mate but sighed when he realized it was the only other Alpha that knew the blonde well enough to cut through his bullshit.
“Hey Nat, what’s up?”
“...what’s wrong, Clint?”
“Why do you assume something’s wrong? Are you projecting onto me? Something wrong with you and Sam?”
“Nice try, Clint. I can hear it in your voice that something’s wrong. I called to see if you guys wanted to come over for dinner, Sam’s making gumbo.” Clint cursed to himself, since that man’s cooking was always a weakness of his. And that red-headed sneaky Alpha knew that.
“Dammit you witch, you know how much I love Sam’s gumbo.”
“Uh huh. And I know when you’re full of shit. Wanna tell me now or have me guess when you guys come over tonight?” Clint groaned as he pulled the phone away from his ear, silently cursing his supposed best friend.
“I’m pregnant,” he bit out, knowing that at the very least Nat wouldn’t get fake-excited about it. In fact the line was quiet for a moment until she spoke up again.
“I see. Well, come eat some gumbo to drown your sorrows in. Or I can break out my babushka’s vodka?” And man didn’t that sound lovely?
“I shouldn’t get sloppy in front of Wade, as tempting as that is. But we’ll be over for dinner, what time?” Clint could hear Nat ask her mate in the background before answering him.
“Sam says six. Also he’s making peach and blueberry cobbler for dessert.”
“Sounds great, we’ll pick up some ice cream on the way to go with the cobbler.”
“Knew there was a reason I kept you around…”
“Ha ha, see you in a bit Tash,” Clint said before hanging up, glancing at the clock to see it was a little after four. James and Wade would be home soon and Clint still felt the overwhelming sadness wrapping around him.
So, he decided to take a bubble bath.
Clint didn’t always go with his Omega instincts, but pampering was definitely one he welcomed. He focused on his breathing as he rubbed his flat stomach, picturing - if just for a moment - what it would be like to have a swollen belly.
He could picture it if he closed his eyes. What it would be like to be truly pregnant, sitting on the couch with James, Wade and Lucky all wrapped around him protectively.
James was already a wonderful father, but what a delight to think of Wade as a big brother.
Half the time he would protect that baby with all of his little might, the other half spoiling them rotten. Don’t get him wrong, Harley was a great big brother. But Wade would be the world’s best.
With his aids out, he didn’t hear his family come home. It wasn’t until a shadow fell over him he realized he wasn’t home alone anymore. Opening his eyes, he looked up at his sweaty mate who was smiling down at him.
Neither said anything for a moment as his Alpha noticed where his hands were resting on his stomach before offering the Omega a softer smile. Wordlessly, James undressed before climbing into the tub as Clint scooted up to give him room. The water sloshed a little over the rim of the tub, but neither seemed to care.
Instead when Clint leaned back against his Alpha, the brunette wrapped his arms around him and settled them on the Omega’s stomach as well.
Clint took a few deep breaths from that, closing his eyes as treacherous tears escaped. His Alpha knew.
The scent of sad Alpha filled the room, mixed in with Clint’s matching scent. They allowed themselves to sit in that for a moment longer before the blonde sat up and wiped his eyes.
“I came in here to get clean and your sweaty ass is doing the opposite,” Clint sassed as he turned to face him, still not caring about the water sloshing onto the tile floor. James made sure Clint was looking at him again before speaking so the blonde could read his lips.
“You love my sweaty ass,” James said with an adorable pout, getting a laugh from the blonde.
“I really do. How was boxing?” Clint asked as he grabbed the shampoo and began working it into his mate’s hair.
“Great. Made me think of how much Pappy would’ve loved Wade.” Clint chuckled again, thinking about how much trouble the two would've gotten into together. They would've been an unstoppable force of chaos.
“Oh god the two of them together? They would’ve been unstoppable,” Clint said as he helped the Alpha wash the shampoo out before working in the conditioner. “Where is our little trouble maker, by the way?”
“He’s taking a shower of his own.” James just stared for another moment as Clint helped clean him. “I love you, doll.” Clint had heard a million times yet it never stopped his heart from fluttering.
“I love you too. Nat invited us over for Sam’s gumbo at six, not sure what time it is now though. And don't let me forget to pick up ice cream for Sam's cobbler.”
“Pretty sure it’s kiss-a-pretty-Omega-o’clock,” his Alpha said lamely before puckering his lips, which of course the Omega obliged him. Definitely not because of the fluffing of the blonde’s ego, or anything. But it was a long enough kiss for the Alpha to eventually pull back. “Actually it’s almost five thirty so we should probably get out of the tub.”
They helped each other out of the tub and Clint could feel his mate stare at him as they toweled off. And not for the fun reasons. Which had the Omega put his aids in before walking back into their bedroom to dress.
“So, you wanna talk about the sticks in the trash can?” James said bluntly, cause while he was a doting and loving mate - he was also a stubborn and cruel one too.
“What is there to talk about?” Clint asked coolly, happy mood now turning sour. He dressed quickly before plopping himself on their bed, not so mad as to not watch the man get dressed. He was only human, after all.
“Doll I’m just giving you the space if you want to talk, and if you don’t -”
“- I don’t,” Clint snapped, still transfixed as he watched his Alpha put on underwear.
“...then don’t bite my head off…” James said slowly as he stood there in his briefs, hands on his hips as the Omega blinked a few times. Wait, is this cheater really posturing right now? Using his chiseled, sculpted body to distract the Omega...
“Sorry, I don’t mean to bite your head...off.” Clint didn’t stumble, watching his Alpha’s arms cross over his chest and strain his muscles. “Stop it,” the Omega said half-heartedly, the tiniest pout on his face.
“Whatever do you mean?” James asked as he uncrossed his arms, bracing them against the dresser he was leaning against. They've none each other practically their whole lives, so yes both took advantage of knowing the other's weaknesses. And his Alpha's body was definitely one of Clint's.
“You know exactly what I mean, cheater. You’re supposed to be getting dressed, not stinking the place up with your horniness.” He smiled when the Alpha laughed at that, watching as the brunette turned around, bending over provocatively before grabbing his clothes. Which had the Omega laughing in return.
Of course his mate took it a step further and somehow looked sexy putting clothes on, but they were thankfully interrupted from anything else by a knock on their bedroom door.
“Hey! Your foster pup is hungry! This is abuse!” The two adults looked at each other and laughed harder than before. Once fully dressed, the Alpha opened the door where both Wade and Lucky stood in the doorway.
“Shall we call Scott?” James asked sarcastically, giving Clint just a flutter of anxiety from the question. But their pup just rolled his eyes and groaned adorably as he made his way into their room.
“I will if you don’t feed me soon! He made me memorize his number,” Wade said smugly before sticking his tongue out at the Alpha.
“Sam invited us over for gumbo. Does that suit his majesty?” James asked with a smile as he bent down to pet Lucky.
“I’ve never even heard of gumbo. But if Sam’s cooking, I’m in. Plus, you know...Nat will be there,” Wade said as he came over and climbed on the bed next to Clint. The boy’s crush on the redheaded Alpha was both cute and hilarious (especially since it pissed Sam off to no end). The smile on the pup’s face dropped momentarily as he visibly sniffed the Omega. “You smell different.”
Clint felt his anxiety spike as he stole a glance at James who looked equally frozen in place.
“Well,” Clint says, technically not lying about the short term pregnancy if he just didn't mention it, “I did just get out of the bathtub…”
“Also we were totally just kissing,” James spoke up, sticking his tongue out to the pup like the mature Alpha he was. But Clint couldn’t be mad, since one - the pup did it in return and two - it distracted him from what they were talking about. “Now come on! I’m assuming there’s also some homemade desserts waiting for us.”
That got their pup racing to the front door, giving enough time for Clint to take a deep breath to settle his nerves. And give his Alpha a deep kiss in thanks.