Chapter 8
Everything was looking great with the pregnancy, prompting the pair to decide to start telling people.
They decided to get the toughest critic out of the way first and honestly, the one who’s opinion they valued most.
Harley.
“Bambino, come sit with us,” Tony told his son, one hand over his now visible tummy as the pup put down his legos to go over to the pair. He and Steve were sitting on the couch together and Tony pulled the pup between them. “We wanted to talk to you about something…”
“Is everything okay, Daddy?”
“Yes baby, Steve and I...we have some news for you. You know how Steve and I are bonded and he moved in with us? Well...it turns out that we’ll be adding more to our family…”
“Daddy, are we getting a dog??” Harley asked excitedly, causing the two adults to share a look.
“No, Harley we aren’t getting a dog,” Steve answered for him. “You’re Daddy and I...we’re having a baby.” The Omega nodded and put both hands on his belly.
“I’m pregnant, bambino. You’re going to be a big brother!” Tony added, hoping his enthusiasm would catch. It did not.
“You’re having a baby?” Harley asked carefully with the slightest of frowns on his face. Tony and Steve shared another look, this one with panic.
“Yes, but that doesn’t mean we’re replacing you. We’re just adding to our super cool team, okay? And you’ll get to have so much fun as a big brother!”
“Yeah Harley, I love having Bucky and Becca as my siblings!” Steve added with a chuckle. “I mean, they drive me crazy sometimes but I love having them as my brother and sister.” Harley just remained silent for a moment while the two waited impatiently.
“But I don’t want you to have a baby!” the six year old suddenly cried out, standing up off the couch and glaring at the pair.
“Harley…” Tony said sadly, heart breaking a little from his son’s reaction. There were even tears forming in his pup’s eyes as he practically snarled at the two.
“This is your fault!” the pup yelled at Steve, pointing his tiny finger at the hurt Alpha.
“Harley, talk to me. Why does this upset you bambino?” Tony said patiently, reaching out for his pup only for the boy to swat it away. “Hey, we do not hit Harlan James,” the Omega snapped at the boy, frowning when his son’s response was to burst into tears. He tried reaching for his son again when the boy turned around and high tailed it to his room.
“Well,” Tony said, flinching when they heard a door slam, “that went well.” The genius fell back against the cushions, bringing both hands to rest on his belly. Steve immediately wrapped his big arms around him, hands also resting on his belly while he nosed Tony’s gland on his neck.
“He’ll come around, love. He’s barely getting used to me being around all the time.”
“But I didn’t raise a brat, Steve. Oh who am I kidding, this is clearly all my fault. He’s a spoiled pup and I failed as his Daddy and I’m going to fail this one too -”
“- Tony, baby stop. You are an amazing Daddy and Harley is a great pup. We won’t know what’s got him all upset until we talk to him. Well...maybe not me, since he thinks it's my fault,” Steve said with a chuckle, somehow genuinely calm right now. Unless he was somehow masking his scent…
“How are you calm about this, Steve? My son hates our little peanut!”
“Alright, first of all, you know I consider Harley as my own. And yes, it seems our son strongly dislikes the idea of the little peanut...but I know for a fact he’s going to love this baby almost as much as we will. Harley just needs time, my love.”
“Yeah, you’re right. I should go talk to him. Come with me and sit outside the door,” Tony said with a purr, smiling when Steve’s smell changed to happy and he felt appreciation push through their bond.
“I love you,” the Alpha said before pulling the Omega into a kiss.
“Love you too,” Tony said with a blush, grabbing his mate’s hand and leading the two to Harley’s room. Tony gave his mate a smile and leaned up for one more kiss before letting go of his hand.
Gently knocking on the door, he let himself in and kept the door open. Harley was under his covers, evident by the lump on his bed.
“Alright bambino, sit up so we can talk about this,” Tony said as he pat his son on his little leg. The pup mumbled something but his voice was muffled by the blankets. “I didn’t hear you baby, come out and talk to me.” The Omega sat there, only waiting another moment before his son pulled the covers back enough to reveal his face. “There’s my handsome boy. Now tell me what all that was about.”
His heart broke a little when he saw Harley’s eyes water.
“I don’t want you and Steve to have a baby, Daddy.”
“Oh honey, why not? You know this won’t change things between us, right? I know a lot has changed with you in the last few months...with me and Steve bonding, then us moving into this house and now I’m pregnant...but baby, It’s not like you're going anywhere,” Tony said as a joke, feeling bad when his pup shut his eyes and actually began crying. “Bambino,” the Omega murmured, reaching over to grab his boy and bring him into his lap.
“That’s not what he said,” Harley whimpered in his arms.
“What? Who are you talking about, baby?”
“Father.” Tony felt instant anger hearing his baby so upset, which must have come off his scent cause his son just whimpered more.
“No, no Harley Daddy isn’t mad at you bambino. I’m mad at Tiberius. Now, you’re not in trouble, but I need you to tell me what he said.” The Omega focused on tampering down his anger to hear his son out.
“Father said...he said Alpha’s don’t want another Alpha’s pup. He said that with lions, the Alpha will eat the other Alpha’s babies! So it’ll only be their bloodline! And he said Steve will get you pregnant so he can have an heir! And...and when you do, he’ll push me out of the family. And I’ll have to go live with Father,” Harley said in between hiccups before bursting into more tears.
It took everything in the genius to stamp down his anger towards his ex.
He just filed it away for later, the whole killing that stupid Alpha thing.
Right now, he needed to focus on his son.
“Bambino, I need you to look at me, my love,” Tony said slowly, offering his son a smile before continuing. “First of all, in what universe would I ever allow anyone to push you out? If Steve even hinted at that, I would kick him to the curb, understand? You are not going anywhere. Maybe not even when you become an adult,” Tony teased, smiling when it got the desired giggle from his pup. “He was telling the truth about lions, but they are wild animals. We are domesticated animals. Plus...bambino do you honestly believe Steve would do any of that?”
“Well...no I guess not. But...then why would Father say that?” Ah, and here was the million dollar question.
“You know...I don’t know why he would say something mean like that. I think Tiberius might be jealous of Steve since he gets to be around you all the time. He’s also an old fashioned Alpha and probably doesn’t know how progressive Steve is. I can’t tell you, baby. But what I can tell you, is that I love you, Steve loves you and your little brother or sister will love you too.”
“Really?” his pup asked in the smallest voice.
“Yes my sweet bambino,” Tony said as he carefully put his son next to him on his bed, grabbing his pup’s hand and placing them on his belly. “Do you wanna say something to them? They can hear you.”
“The baby can hear me?” Harley asked, trying to hide a smile as he leaned closer. “Hi baby, I’m your brother. We have the same Daddy, but know he was mine first.” Tony chuckled and hugged his son again, planting a kiss on his pup’s head.
Telling everyone else was easy, since everyone’s reaction was ecstatic.
Steve’s parents had wrapped the two up in their collective arms, crying and talking over each other. And because they were the wonderful people they were, they went around bragging about not having one but two grandchildren.
Their friends were happy for them, even if some thought it was a little soon. But once everyone had found out about the soulbond and Steve’s childhood sickness, they all got excited with them.
Sam - who apparently could knit like a grandma - made them a baby blanket.
Natasha got them the latest, safest and most secure stroller on the market. That hasn’t even come out yet.
Pepper and Rhodey sent over a plethora of clothes and stuffed animals.
Thor built them a crib. From a tree on his property.
And Clint offered endless babysitting opportunities - which Bucky promptly shut down.
Even his own parents, who they told over lunch at their mansion. His Mama burst into tears again, but this time with obvious tears of joy. His father, who was holding Harley in his lap, congratulated them before kissing the pup’s head.
“Jarvis! Champagne please and sparkling grape juice for my first grandpup,” Howard called out, clearly already a little tipsy from the scotch he had with their meal.
“Dad…”
“Don’t fret Master Tony, I brought you grape juice as well,” Jarvis said, appearing a moment later with glasses and a plastic one for Harley.
“How far along are you bambino? Do you know the gender yet?” Maria asked, reaching over to rub Tony’s belly.
“No, Mama. Steve and I want to wait until he or she comes out.” Tony felt Steve grab his hand, giving a gentle squeeze and feeling love pushing through the bond in response.
“Harley, are you excited to be a big brother?” Howard asked the six year old. The pup was playing with his tablet, only answering with a shrug. “Well that’s alright pup, I didn’t like having a little brother either.”
“Dad, we’re trying to get him excited about the baby,” Tony said, pointedly looking at the man who simply smiled back at him.
“You just don’t understand as an only child, Tony. Steve, back me up here. Were you excited when your Mama said he was pregnant with your little sister?” Howard asked Steve, who shifted a little next to Tony.
“Yes, but to be fair it was because I was tired of Bucky and wanted a little sister.”
“See? Tired of having his brother. It just comes with the territory, son. Let Harley pout now about no longer being the baby and later they’ll be thick as thieves. You’ll be wishing they were more separate instead of joining forces and plotting against you two...which...can come from two boys.”
“Girls too...sometimes Becca was the brains of the operation,” Steve said absently, laughing when Tony poked him in annoyance.
“Well regardless, Harley pay attention to the bonding part of having siblings...not the getting into trouble part.”
“How would I get in trouble?” Harley asked, only half way paying attention to the adults.
“Oh my grandson, have I got some stories to share with you,” Howard said, standing up and grabbing the pup’s arm. “Come along to my study, I have a few photo albums to show you.”
“Wait, Dad seriously?!” Tony exclaimed, watching as his son and father left the room together, much to the others delight.
“Oh calm down dear, it’s perfectly innocent.”
“Mama...does Dad still have the pictures of him and Uncle Frank being drunk and setting the yacht on fire?” Tony asked just as the smile fell off the woman’s face.
“Steve, sweetheart, be a dear and make sure Howard stays pg please,” Maria said to the blonde, who chuckled and kissed Tony’s cheek before following the two out of the room. “Now, how are you my bambino?”
“I’m fine Mama, the doctor says I’m perfectly healthy.”
“I wasn’t talking about the pup, love.” Tony looked up at the older Omega, wondering if he’ll ever have the same mind-reading super powers that came with having kids.
“It’s...it’s been really hard. Apparently Ty told Harley that Steve wanted to have a pup with me to then push him out of my life. I want Stone out of our lives but...Harley wants to know him. I feel like I owe it to the pup.”
“Tony baby you are the parent, you get to decide who’s a part of his life. He can change his mind when he’s eighteen but right now you decide what’s best for him. And it’s not like the pup is without an Alpha...you picked a good one, bambino.”
“Yeah,” Tony said with a smile and blush, wrapping his arms around his stomach and feeling butterflies whenever he thought of his Alpha. “You’re right.”
“I’m always right,” Maria said with a smile which made Tony chuckle in return.
“When do I develop the mind reading powers Mama?” he asked, which got a chuckle from the older Omega.
“All in due time my love, all in due time.”