Work Text:
~🍪~
It was another peaceful night on Jabberwock Island, and all the residents were sound asleep, the air filled with the soothing sounds of the ocean waves crashing against the island shores.
Well, everyone was asleep… except for Kazuichi Soda, who was in the hotel restaurant, looking for something to eat.
While searching through the restaurant pantry, Kazuichi was slightly amused with himself. Unlike his friend Teruteru, he was not pregnant, yet was still hit with late night hunger.
Snack runs did crazy things to people, regardless of what time it was or whether they were pregnant or not.
The mechanic’s thoughts abruptly came to an end when his eyes fell upon something: an unopened packet of chocolate chip cookies.
But they were not any ordinary chocolate chip cookies; they were stuffed chocolate chip cookies filled to the brim with melted chocolate.
The moment Kazuichi’s eyes fell upon the packet, his eyes lit up and he immediately started drooling. This is perfect for a late night snack! he thought to himself.
Not wanting to hesitate any longer, the mechanic grabbed the packet of cookies and-
“Good evenin’, Kaz…”
“AAAHHHHHHHHHH!!” Kazuichi let out an ear-reaching scream as he heard a voice behind him, prompting him to turn around and use the packet as a shield. “I’M SORRY! I CAN EXPLA-“
The mechanic stopped yelling the moment his eyes fell on the person who spoke to him.
That person was none other than Teruteru, who Kazuichi recognised right away from not only the former’s oddly adorable piglike features, but also from his well-rounded pregnant belly, which had gotten bigger over the months that had passed.
“Teru…?” the mechanic spoke quietly as he slowly moved the packet of cookies away from his face. “Dude, you scared me…! I thought you were Gundham!”
“Well, you got dat wrong, ah can tell ya dat,” Teruteru muttered tiredly, rubbing his beady black eyes. “But if I ain’t troublin’ ya, can ah join ya in ya snack run? Ah’m kinda hungry, an’ so is da l’il bun…”
“Uh… sure!” Kazuichi nodded. “Just don’t tell the others what I’m doing, okay?”
Teruteru nodded at that. “Don’ worry, ah have no intention ta’.” he replied with a small, reassuring smile. “Besides, ah only came ‘ere ‘cuz ah was cravin’ dose stuffed cookies ya got, but…” He then sighed a little. “It seems like ya got to dem before me… ah’ll see if ah can find somethin’ else-“
“Oh! No no no! You don’t have to, dude!” Kazuichi quickly cut the chef off, passing the packet of cookies to him. “I changed my mind, you can have them instead!” The mechanic knew how easily emotional his friend could get now that he was three weeks away from giving birth.
“Wh- really…?” Teruteru said with surprise as he took the packet. “But… ya know ya don’ have ta…’!”
“No, man, I insist!” Kazuichi replied as he ran back to the pantry shelves. “Besides, I… kinda changed my mind about those cookies. They look TOO filling for me. I’m gonna find something else.” As he spoke, the mechanic grabbed two more packets of the stuffed cookies and passed them to Teruteru.
“Awwww, yer too kind, Kaz!” the chef said with a warm smile as he accepted the other two packets. “Well den, ah might as well head out an’ wait for ya… though ah might end up gettin’ peckish~!”
“Alright.” Kazuichi nodded as he continued searching through the shelves, leaving Teruteru to head out of the pantry.
The chef headed towards the kitchen counter, placed the cookie packets on top and - using all the strength he could muster - climbed up onto onto of the chairs.
The moment Teruteru got himself comfortable, he gazed at the packets of stuffed cookies in front of him. Typically, the chef was the absolute last person who would pick out pre-packaged food.
He hated pre-packaged foods with a passion; those kinds of food were made with processed ingredients and unhealthy amounts of sugar. A culinary chef would NEVER be caught dead buying, let alone eating, such products!
Yet when Teruteru gazed at the packaging, the picture of the chocolate chip cookies with the melted chocolate oozing out of them, he could not handle it.
Those cookies looked so, so, so, so good, and the longer the chef looked at the packaging, the more he desperately wanted to tear open the packets and stuff his chubby face with that processed chocolatey goodness.
Teruteru drooled at the thought of eating those cookies, yet he still frowned as he looked down at his baby bump, left exposed thanks to the fuzzy cropped singlet he was wearing.
“Ah’m so sorry ‘bout what ah’m gunna do, l’il bun,” he sighed as he placed his hands on his bump. “Ah know ya want dose cookies just as much as ah do, but…” He looked at the packets again. “But oh mah goodness, do dey look…”
He rubbed his baby bump, resisting the urge to scratch it from how itchy it felt. That was the reason why he left his belly exposed in the first place; he really needed to put moisturiser on it sometime soon.
Of course, he needed a distraction for the time being as well, like those packets of delicious cookies, waiting to be opened up and devoured like there was no tomorrow, eaten up into absolutely nothing…
It was at that moment Teruteru could not resist any longer, and the next thing he knew, he was tearing open one of the packets like a hungry beast and stuffing one of the cookies in his mouth.
As expected, the cookie tasted like heaven on earth; the dough was soft and squishy yet decently baked, and the sweet and rich chocolate melted in the chef’s mouth.
“Mmmm~!! So good~!!” Teruteru yelled to himself as he grabbed two more cookies, stuffing them into his mouth.
He had no clue why such processed junk tasted so good, but at that point in time, he did not care. Whatever his baby girl wanted, he wanted as well.
“Oh, thank god!” Kazuichi’s voice could be heard as he emerged from the pantry, holding a plastic bowl of chocolate bars. “It’s just you! I thought we were being attacked by a hungry bear!”
The chef looked at Kazuichi with a slightly amused expression. “Maybe not a hungry bear, but definitely a very hungry momma-ta’-be!” he joked as he rubbed his baby bump, then he frowned. “But still, ah can’t believe dat, outta all the foods da baby coul’ want, she chooses processed cookies…”
“Well, at least it’s not THAT bad, right?” Kazuichi replied as he approached the counter and sat down, glancing at the packets of cookies. “Not that I’m judging, but it’s better than the time you ate those corn dogs with soy sauce…”
“Honestly, ah think da corn dog an’ soy sauce combo weren’t dat bad… an' ah hate corn dogs!” Teruteru shrugged as he grabbed another cookie. “Ah think mah worst so far were dose onion rings dipped in chocolate milk…”
“Oh, man, I remember that one got me…” the mechanic shuddered, his face turning pale. “That one made me throw up…”
The chef winced at his friend’s comment. “Right, sorry ‘bout dat…” he replied. “But ah can’t control what da l’il bun wants…”
The two friends spent the next few minutes eating and talking about general things on Jabberwock Island, including the children.
Teruteru mentioned that his pregnancy and his unborn baby girl had also been going well, aside from the usual aches and pains and (obviously) the weird cravings. He also talked about how, with each passing day, his baby girl’s movements were becoming more frequent - and slightly more painful - now that he was weeks away from giving birth.
Even with that, however, he talked about how his baby girl’s movements gave him reassurance, not to mention they looked adorable at times!
“Well, that’s nice to hear,” Kazuichi said with a small smile as he ate one of the chocolate bars, then he frowned. “But I’m still not gonna have a baby myself in the future. It sounds painful!”
“Fair enough,” Teruteru simply nodded. “Ah ain’t gunna force ya ta’ make decisions.” He took a bite of the cookie in his hand, then glanced at it for a few seconds. “Hmm… dese cookies are missin’ somethin’…”
“Oh?” Kazuichi uttered as he looked at the chef. “What exactly are they missing?”
“Ah dunno,” Teruteru shrugged. “Ah’m gunna head ta’ da pantry an’ look for somethin’.” He then turned around, struggling to push himself off the chair.
“Whoa, do you need help, man?” the mechanic asked, noticing his friend’s difficulty in getting down.
“Mmmmmph…” Teruteru mumbled as he looked at his friend. “Ah… ah think so…”
Knowing that his friend needed a hand, Kazuichi got up from his chair and went to the chef, helping him down.
Teruteru breathed a sigh of relief as he felt himself being lifted back onto the floor, the fuzzy socks and slippers he was wearing cushioning his swollen feet. He then thanked the mechanic before heading into the pantry again.
Hmmm… what would go well with stuffed chocolate chip cookies? the chef thought to himself the moment he entered the pantry.
He spent the next few minutes looking through the pantry shelves, and the more he looked around, the more he realised something…
Every sweet and sugary topping would taste horrible with the cookies, regardless of what it was; whipped cream, sugar glaze, powdered sugar, chocolate sauce, caramel sauce, maple syrup, honey, jam, strawberry sauce, all of it.
While they may have sounded like perfect combinations to others, the mere thought of a sugar overload made Teruteru want to throw up, and the last thing he wanted was to toss his cookies in the middle of the floor… literally!
All of a sudden, before Teruteru could give up on searching, his eyes fell upon a different kind of topping: a fresh and unused canister of Easy Cheese, sharp cheddar flavoured.
It was strange; Easy Cheese was another food Teruteru hated with a passion. He always avoided the stuff like the plague - he could not stand the sight of that canned radioactive yellow slop the Americans falsely marketed as “cheese”!
Yet at this point in time, the taste, smell and even the sight of the Easy Cheese made the chef feel something strange. He knew right away that he desperately wanted to eat it, to guzzle it all down like it was spring water.
Teruteru even made a realisation: that the Easy Cheese would taste delicious on top of the chocolate chip cookies.
Without a moment’s hesitation, the chef grabbed the canister of Easy Cheese and headed back out to the counters, where Kazuichi was still sitting and eating the chocolate bars he got for himself.
“There you are, Teru!” Kazuichi said the moment he saw his friend place the canister onto the counter and climb onto the chair. “I was wondering what took you so long!”
The mechanic’s eyes then fell upon the Easy Cheese, which led to his eyes widening with surprise. Teruteru? Grabbing Easy Cheese? he thought to himself. That is totally unlike him! This has got to be some weird dream…
“Hold up, is that Easy Cheese?” Kazuichi asked as he glanced at the chef. “I thought you said you hated that stuff! What changed your mind?”
Teruteru sighed as he looked back at his friend. “Da l’il bun changed mah mind,” he replied, placing a hand on his baby bump. “An’ what ah’m ‘bout ta’ do next, ya might wanna avert ya eyes…”
And that was when Teruteru did the unthinkable.
He popped open the bottle of Easy Cheese, grabbed yet another cookie… and squirted some of the Easy Cheese on it.
Shortly after that, he shoved the whole Easy Cheese-covered cookie into his mouth…
…and much to the chef’s shock, the combination tasted like heaven!
The rich and sweet flavour of the chocolate chip cookies combined with the sharp and salty taste of the Easy Cheese was surprisingly good!
Why have I never thought about this before? Teruteru thought to himself as he savoured his… “creation”. Actually, no, what am I thinking? Why does this garbage taste so good?!
He had plenty of mixed feelings for the Easy Cheese-covered cookies; he was enamoured, confused, disgusted…
And he wanted to eat more of that combination.
“…what the heck, man?!” Kazuichi yelled out, horrified and also disgusted at what he was seeing. “Chocolate chip cookies and Easy Cheese??”
“Ah can’t help it,” Teruteru replied in slight dismay. “Now dat ah’ve tried dese, ah want dem so, SO badly!” He ate another Easy Cheese-covered cookie, which caused his eyes to sparkle. “Mmmmm… so good~!!”
The mechanic gagged at the sight of his pregnant friend eating his weird food craving. “I… I don’t know about you, Teru,” he said nervously. “But I think I lost my appetite…” He pushed the bowl of chocolate bars away from himself.
“Mmm… can’t blame ya,” the chef shrugged as he continued to eat his culinary abomination. “Hopefully dis will end once da l’il bun is out, but until den, ya may wanna keep lookin’ away…”
Thankfully, the conversation about weird food ended there and the two friends continued talking about their plans for tomorrow and their hopes for the future… all while Kazuichi continuously looked away from Teruteru’s weird food combination.
~🍪~
An hour had passed, and both Kazuichi and Teruteru had finished eating whatever they wanted and packed everything away.
Of course, they decided to remain in the restaurant’s lounge area, since neither of them wanted to head back to their cottages to sleep… especially Teruteru, who was bothered by insomnia and body aches.
The chef had also been bothered by an itchy belly, but that was no longer the case when he realised he had a small bottle of moisturiser in the pocket of his fuzzy lounge shorts. He completely forgot that he had that bottle in his pocket in the first place; “pregnancy brain” was certainly a strange and real thing.
Right now, Teruteru was lying on the couch, cradling his baby bump as he felt his now-awake baby girl kicking and squirming around. Kazuichi was on the ground next to him, having a feel of the unborn baby’s playful movements.
“No, seriously, how are you able to handle this?” Kazuichi asked as he smoothed his palms over his friend’s bump, which was still soft from the moisturiser. “It looks painful as heck!”
“It CAN be painful… but only when she kicks hard enough,” Teruteru said as he watched his friend touching his baby bump. “Besides, her l’il kicks are cute ta’ watch once ya get used ta’ it!”
Both men then gasped as they saw Teruteru’s unborn baby kicking the left side of his belly, a visible ripple forming. The baby girl held her position for a few seconds before retreating to the coziness of her “mother”‘s womb.
“Wh- HOLY CRAP!!” Kazuichi yelped after seeing his friend’s baby’s movements. “What the heck, that was terrifying!! I thought she was gonna BURST out of there!!”
Teruteru chuckled a little, amused by his friend’s reaction. “Ah, don’ worry ‘bout it, Kaz! She ain’t gunna burst out!” he replied as he gently rubbed his belly. “Just a very active l’il bun in here…!” He looked down at his well-rounded bump. “It’s funny, she seems ta’ move around when ah’m lyin’ down… and after eatin’!”
Kazuichi raised an eyebrow as he looked at the chef’s baby bump again. “Well, if this baby girl gets so excited after tasting that Easy Cheese cookie abomination,” he replied. “Then I question her taste in food…”
Teruteru frowned a little. “Ah question dat as well,” he sighed. “Den again, it might just be me who’s cravin’ all dat processed garbage and dose weird combinations…” He patted his baby bump. “Either way, ah can’t wait ‘til she’s out in just’a few weeks from now! Ah’ve been waitin’ so long, an’ ah can’t wait ta’ meet her!”
Kazuichi immediately looked worried. “Dude, you do realise that you have to go through CHILDBIRTH in order to meet her, right??” he almost yelled. “Have you even heard how painful childbirth is?! We both know from when Sonia had her first kid!!”
Teruteru nodded. “Ah’m aware of dat…” he replied nervously, but he still smiled. “But ah know dat whateva’ happens an’ how much pain ah’m in, it’ll be worth it!” He turned back to his baby bump and gently rubbed the middle. “Right, mah l’il bun?”
The baby girl, enjoying her “mother”’s affection, kicked back at Teruteru, the latter chuckling at the tiny bumps forming and disappearing on his belly.
“Awwww, ah love ya too, mah precious l’il princess!” the chef cooed at his bump, continuing to rub and cradle the baby girl warm and snuggled up in the womb.
“Whoa, that’s… actually kinda cute…!” Kazuichi said with a small, slightly amused smile, then he began thinking. “Hold on, I’m gonna try and get her to kick again!
The mechanic then went back to touching Teruteru’s baby bump, carefully poking the soft skin with his fingers.
“Hey, baby! Are you in there?” Kazuichi talked to his friend’s bump in a babyish voice. “It’s me, Kazuichi!” He then pulled his hand away, waiting for a response from the baby girl.
The baby girl kicked in the same spot the mechanic poked, causing both him and Teruteru to gasp and chuckle at the sight.
“Mhmhm~ Ah think da l’il bun likes ya, Kaz!” the chef said as he patted his baby bump. “Try pokin’ her again!”
“She does?” Kazuichi replied, a little surprised. “Well, in that case…”
Kazuichi poked his friend’s baby bump again, then walked his fingers across the curve, hoping to get a reaction from that.
Again, the baby girl responded to the mechanic’s touch by squirming and kicking, trying to follow where his hands were.
“Holy crud, she DOES like me!” Kazuichi said, shocked yet amused at the sight; the slight fear he had from the baby girl’s visible movements faded now that he knew his friend’s baby liked his touch. “And she isn’t even born yet!”
“Ah noticed dat!” the chef chuckled as he patted his baby bump again. “Den again, da l’il bun likes e’erywun here!” He then looked down, feeling his baby girl moving again. “Oh! Ya wanna keep feelin’ her l’il kicks? She’s still goin’ strong!”
This time, Kazuichi did not hesitate to keep touching Teruteru’s belly, his way of saying “yes” to the latter’s offer.
The two friends spent the rest of the night feeling and watching the chef’s baby girl kicking and squirming around in his belly, gasping, chuckling, commenting on the way she moved. Kazuichi joked that the baby girl would probably be as strong as Nekomaru, which Teruteru playfully agreed to.
As the night went on, their conversations shifted back to their plans for tomorrow and beyond. While talking about his future plans for himself and his baby girl, Teruteru realised that he had - in some way - changed Kazuichi’s mind about wanting children of his own.
“You know, maybe I DO want a kid or two in the future,” Kazuichi had told the chef, then he smiled sheepishly. “I should probably stop watching horror movies, especially the sci-fi ones… where they have those people giving birth and… eugh…”
“Well, don’t worry,” Teruteru chuckled as he reassured the mechanic. “Ah can tell ya dat bein’ pregnant is totally different from da movies!”
Either way, it was still a lovely night for Teruteru and Kazuichi, who could feel their bonds strengthening over the former’s unborn baby, a little girl who would certainly be loved by everyone on Jabberwock Island.
And despite the weird beginning to their hangout, and the odd food combination that Teruteru ate, getting to feel and see the baby move after was always a treasure.
The two friends would probably be beyond exhausted and fall asleep by the time sunrise came around, but for now, they decided to make the most of the early morning night.
After all, it would only be three weeks until Teruteru and everyone else would finally meet his baby girl. 💕
~🍪~