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Jason had been feeling anxious for days and at this point it was affecting everyone in their small pack. Tim was even quieter than usual, oftentimes not uttering a single word for hours unless spoken to and even then did he only give monosyllabic replies. Cass had flunked her latest test, despite never having achieved anything but perfect grades before and her frustration was evident action. Steph, who had taken up the habit of stopping by the manor daily, was sighing near constantly, carrying an air of sadness. Even Alfred was clearly worried, something that was entirely uncharacteristic for the butler.
Dick was positively losing it, unable to let their mate out of his sight for more than a few minutes at a time before he rushed back to his side. And Bruce couldn’t blame him.
With Jason being very obviously pregnant at this point, the mere idea of any complications made his chest feel uncomfortably tight and he had to call upon every last shred of his self-restraint to not hover over Jason like a drone.
He’d called Leslie thrice in the last two days, since Jason adamantly refused to go see a doctor. She’d reassured him each time that phases of unwellness were part of every pregnancy and there was little she could do without actually examining the subject. Each time, Bruce had relented and resigned himself to being patient.
It wasn’t out of character for the omega’s past traumatic experiences to return and haunt him and it was times like these that tested the Grayson-Wayne household.
The week boiled down to a crescendo on Thursday, when Bruce received a text message from Dick in the middle of a meeting with some of the biggest shareholders. Despite how impolite it was, he didn’t hesitate to check his phone, freezing up, when he read the two words: Emergency Red.
Without even wasting a second, he excused himself, ignoring the surprised and upset reactions of the others in the room as he grabbed his briefcase and rushed out of the door. He didn’t even care enough to stop by his office and grab his coat, instead he headed straight for his car. The code they shared with the rest of the family was simple: Emergency Green referred to a minor emergency that needed attention but didn’t require them to drop everything else. Emergency Red meant to react immediately. And, finally, Emergency Black referred to a life-or-death situation.
Despite the situation not having the latter urgency, Bruce still found himself ignoring the speed limit, while at the same time calling Dick for an update on the situation. The call went through after the second ring and he could practically hear the panic in his husband’s voice: “Bruce, it’s Jay. He’s barricaded himself in his room and he refuses to come out. He won’t talk to me either. Alfred says he hasn’t eaten since breakfast yesterday.”
Bruce felt his heart skip a beat, having to force himself to remain calm. “Try coaxing him out with some sweets. Or pickles and nutella. Are the children home?”
“I already tried. He didn’t even give in to the blood sausage and marshmallow combination.” Dick sounded like he was about to cry and only partially over the terrible taste their mate had acquired over the last months. “Cassie left earlier to meet Steph in town and Tim isn’t home from school yet.”
That made Bruce sigh in relief. At least the kids were out of the house, so they wouldn’t be too worried about their mom. Off the top of his head he listed another couple things, food and other items, that could possibly lure their omega out of hiding and he listened to Dick try talking to Jason through the door to no avail. He nearly smashed his foot into the gas pedal, when he heard the sound of muffled crying and then Dick completely losing his calm.
He made it home in record time - for his civilian self - and stormed up the stairs to the front door, where a grim faced Alfred was already waiting for him. Bruce didn’t stop long enough to give the butler more than a quick nod before he rushed to find his husbands.
Dick was sitting in front of the door to the master bedroom, his expression one of pure worry, as he chattered away at the door, still trying to convince their mate to come out. There was no sound coming from the inside and Bruce wasn’t sure if it concerned him less than the crying he heard over the phone or not.
Resting a hand on Dick’s shoulder, he raised the other to gently knock on the door. “Jay? I’m here, Jay, everything is going to be alright.”
A rustle answered him and then a sniffle but the door didn’t budge. Looking up at him, Dick shrugged helplessly, his eyes glassy with unshed tears. Bruce sighed and allowed himself to sit down next to the other alpha, instinctively rubbing a hand over his chest as though it could soothe the ache in his heart.
“Little wing, you know we’re going to wait here until you come out, right?” Dick announced, before adding: “Whatever it is, you can talk to us. We’ll always be here for you.”
No response.
Shoulders slumping, Dick stared at the closed door, obviously trying to make it disappear with the power of his will alone. Bruce in the meantime, had already dialled Leslie’s number and was anxiously waiting for the doctor to pick up.
Finally, the call went through and a tired voice answered: “Bruce? What’s wrong?”
Bruce didn’t hesitate to rush through an explanation of the situation at hand, desperately hoping that the other would be able to help them resolve the issue.
Leslie hummed in thought. “It’s his first pregnancy, right? Omegas need a lot of attention during that time. Pack bonding is especially crucial for making this stressful time easier on them. He should’ve already entered the nesting phase at this point…”
“Nesting?” Bruce frowned. “I don’t think he’s done any nesting.”
That earned him a surprised noise from the medical professional on the other end of the line. “Really? It should be an instinct that kicks in with the hormones. But maybe the circumstances of Jason’s resurrection could have overridden some of the more basic habits. It’s possible that his brain is telling him he’s missing something but he doesn’t know what. I would try and help him with this and if it doesn’t change anything, let me know.”
It did make sense. After all they had no idea just how greatly the lazarus pit really affected Jason past the obvious. With a quick thanks, Bruce hung up and turned to Dick, his face set in an expression of determination. “We have to build a nest.”
The notion clearly surprised the other alpha but he was ready and eager to try anything that could cheer up their little wing. “Where?”
Bruce considered the question for a moment, before he decided: “The living room. It has the most space and we can use the couches for a basic structure.”
Dick nodded sternly, pulling out his phone to google just what typical nests contained. If he felt stupid for not thinking of this earlier, he didn’t show any of it. Instead, he enthusiastically threw himself at the task of providing the best nest possible for their beloved omega.
Over the course of the next twenty minutes, they gathered all the spare blankets, pillows and quilts in the living room, throwing them all on a pile to be arranged later. Next were articles of clothing from every member of the pack, even a scarf that Steph forgot when she last visited. According to wikipedia it was important that the omega was surrounded by the scents of his pack, especially when they weren’t around at the time.
While Bruce usually didn’t enter his children’s rooms when they weren’t home, as to respect their privacy, he figured this was enough of an emergency to warrant it and he tried his best to ignore the magazines under Tim’s bed or the comics stuffed behind Steph’s pillow.
When he entered the living room, Dick had already begun building the nest in the middle of the room, using the couches as outer walls. It took them another ten minutes to make it look and feel comfortable enough for their taste but when they were done it looked at least sort of like the pictures on the internet.
Lastly, a corner of the nest was allocated to store snacks, ranging from potato chips to the chocolate chip cookies Alfred had baked earlier that day. And of course, two jars of pickles to quench Jason’s pregnancy cravings.
Once they were satisfied with their efforts - Bruce seriously considered ordering more blankets and pillows to make it even more comfortable but Dick assured him that it was fine for now - they made their way back to the locked door of the master bedroom.
“Hey, little wing. We built you a nest. Come check it out!” Dick announced, his voice hopeful though still a far cry away from his usual cheer.
Trying to enforce the plea, Bruce knocked on the door again. “Please take a look, Jay. We’ll let you choose the movies for the rest of the year.”
That earned him a sceptical look from Dick but to both of their surprise, the door cracked open to reveal a pale face. Jason looked horrible, his eyes were red and sported dark circles that spoke clearly of how little sleep he’d really gotten recently. His brows were furrowed and he was shivering slightly, a sight that immediately threw both of his alphas into protective overdrive.
“Little wing!” Dick cried out, reaching for the omega’s hands to gently pull him out of the room and into a tight hug - as tight as possible with the baby bump. Instinctively, Bruce felt their mate’s forehead to check if he was running a fever, before peppering the top of his head with kisses.
Jason grumbled something under his breath, halfheartedly fighting off the onslaught of affection but ultimately giving in and allowing himself to melt into the loving embrace of his alphas. Relieved to hold their beloved in their arms, it took them an eternity to finally let go of their omega and lead him down to the living room.
The younger man seemed both amused and intrigued by the nest they had built. “You guys really have nothing better to do,” Jason said, though there was no real edge to his comment. Maybe the sight of the construction finally activated those instincts Leslia had talked about or maybe he was just indulging the two of them but he carefully climbed over the couch wall and sat down in the middle of the nest.
Bruce watched as the omega directed his attention to the clothes scattered around the place, picking up one after the other and bringing them to his face to smell before placing them in a seemingly random spot. However, that still didn’t seem to satisfy Jason as he started rearranging other parts of the nest with no apparent pattern. “You two are really bad at this, aren’t you?”
He threw over his shoulder and Bruce knew what Dick was thinking without the other alpha even saying a single word: It’s not like you have ever done this before either.
It was fascinating watching their husband work and when they were finally allowed to join him in the nest, Bruce had to admit that it did feel more comfortable than before. Instinctively, he buried his face in the crook of Jason’s neck, breathing in the wonderful scent that belonged to their omega.
“You are overdressed,” Jason grumbled, pushing against his chest without really trying to get away from him. “This is a pyjamas only place. And that goes for you too, Dick.”
Begrudgingly, Bruce let go of his beloved and headed upstairs to change with Dick close on his heels. “He looks better,” the other alpha commented and Bruce nodded.
“Looks like Leslie was right.”
When they rejoined Jason in the living room, the omega was already snuggled into the nest, his eyes half closed as though he was about to fall asleep. Carefully, Bruce climbed into the nest, lying down on one side of the omega, while Dick got comfortable on the other side. “If I throw up, carry me to the bathroom.”
Lazily, Jason turned his head and pursed his lips. Bruce hurried to follow the unspoken demand, leaning in to bring their lips together in a slow, thorough kiss. Satisfied, the omega turned back to Dick and received an equally tender kiss from the younger alpha.
Jason shifted, linking one arm with Bruce’s and tucking his leg between Dick’s calves, making sure the three of them were properly entangled. “This is nice,” he finally admitted as he rested his head on Dick’s shoulder. “I guess nesting isn’t so bad.”
Bruce hummed, using his free hand to caress the side of his omega’s face, his chest overflowing with affection. He wasn’t sure if it was his own hormones going crazy or if it was just how incredibly, deeply in love he was with his omega but he felt as though the whole world was shrinking until nothing but them existed.
The patter of feet distracted him momentarily and he spotted Tim in the doorway. The boy’s eyes widened for a moment, then, without a word, he ran off. Less than a minute later, he returned, having changed into his pyjamas to match them and crawled into the nest with them. A purr rumbled through Jason’s chest and the omega shifted to allow enough space between Dick and him for the young beta to fit.
Tim gave a little whine that was answered with another purr and Jason nosed at Tim’s hair, sending another wave of pack-yes-love-affection through Bruce’s mind. Pressing his lips against the back of Jason’s neck, he made sure to reward his sweet omega with plenty of kisses. “You’re so beautiful,” he whispered into the other’s ear, earning himself a hand that squeezed his own gently.
Bruce couldn’t tell how long they stayed like this but at some point another pair of feet rushed down the hallway and soon Cassandra had squeezed herself between him and Jason, receiving the same loving caress from the omega.
He remembered how Leslia had pointed out the importance of pack bonding and made a mental note to turn this into a tradition even after the pregnancy. After all, if there was one thing he wanted in the world it was to see his sweet omega happy and surrounded with all the love he deserved.