Work Text:
“…And the air sings like a crudely made arrow shot from a still bloody gut string and that’s when you know everything has ended. This has been brought to you by Kellogg’s Cerea- wha- Carlo- mph!” Cecil was caught off guard by his husband suddenly rushing into his booth, turning his chair around and kissing him passionately, the radio host flushing a deep wine hue. Cecil could have gotten lost in that kiss if it weren’t for the fact that he was on the air and he had a certain level of professionalism to maintain. Though is pained him to do so, he pushed away, still blushing furiously, and picked up his microphone. “Sorry about that, listeners, it seems my dearest Carlos couldn’t wait to celebrate our good news. And as much as I’d like to be whisked away for the night by my spouse, I feel that I should remind him that I am a working professional and I still have a broadcast to finish.”
“Cecil…” Cecil’s resolve almost melted instantly at the sound of disappointment in Carlos’s voice though, looking back apologetically with what Carlos called his ‘kicked puppy’ eyes. Carlos’s shoulders slumped as he let out a defeated sigh before smiling. Cecil could see the excitement still in his eyes as he made a movement for Cecil to continue. The other man nodded reluctantly before turning back to the mic.
“And now, traffic. There seems to be some slowed traffic out on the freeway today, as apparently something that appears to be a wooly mammoth died right in the middle of it…”
--
“…And now, I bring you the weather.” Cecil couldn’t punch the button to roll the weather recording fast enough, pulling off his headphones and all but leaping into his spouse’s arms, Carlos just as quick to embrace him.
“God, Cecil, I couldn’t get here fast enough when I heard it. It really worked? You’re pregnant?” Carlos gently pressed his hand to the soft swell of Cecil’s stomach that would be expected at this point in his cycle, the other man placing his own hand over it, his smile wide and bright.
“Yes! It’s really happening! I’m pregnant!” Cecil seemed to vibrate with joy and Carlos chuckled before kissing his husband again, smiling against his lips. The kiss deepened a little more than it probably should in one’s work place where anyone could see, but Cecil couldn’t care less, letting out a soft, wet sigh when they finally pulled apart.
“So, six huh?” Carlos asked, looking a little worried amid his joy.
“Yeah.. A lot, I know. But we’ll manage. We already knew it would probably be six or seven anyway, right?” Cecil leaned in and nuzzled Carlos’s neck, drawing in his warm scent. “You’re going to be an amazing father.”
“I certainly hope so…”
“I know so.”
The two of them stood quietly in their embrace until Cecil reluctantly pulled away when the weather started wrapping up so he could finish the broadcast. He glanced once more to Carlos, who mouthed ‘I love you’ to him, making Cecil grin and mouth the reply ‘I love you too’ as he pulled on his headphones. By the time he’d started to speak, Carlos has left the booth and that was all right. They could celebrate properly when they got home.
--
“Have I ever told you that you are such a tender lover?” Cecil mused that night once their breathy and hot panting subsided, the two of them curling together, naked and sweaty in their bed. Cecil traced a finger over the perfect, dark, delicate skin of Carlos’s chest, thumbing over his beautiful raven chest hair. His husband chuckled.
“More times than I can count, but this time with good reason. You’re sure you feel all right after that? I’m just…” Carlos paused, concern on his face as he cupped the small swell of Cecil’s stomach, which was beginning to tint purple again.
“I feel wonderful. More than. That was amazing. I always wondered what pregnant sex was like. And you were just the right amount of rough and the right amount of gentle.” Cecil purred, kissing his husband’s neck and finally coaxing a proper smile out of the man.
“All right. If you’re sure then.”
“Ab-so-lutely.” Cecil crooned, snuggling in closer to his spouse’s warmth. Carlos chuckled, burrowing his nose into Cecil’s hair and stoking his back. Cecil yawned and closed his eyes, a serene smile on his face. “We’re going to be parents, Carlos..”
“Yeah, we are.”
“I can’t wait.”
--
Usually Cecil was grumpy and annoyed during his cycle, but the following week, there was nothing but joy surrounding him. The radio host glowed, always smiling and excited, a hand almost always lovingly cradling his stomach. People congratulated him on the streets and he even received several small, but meaningful gifts from other station staff. Even management gave him a gift.. Well, he assumed that the gelatinous red blob filled with eyeballs that he found on his desk one morning was a gift. For all he knew, it could have been a wayward sneeze. Nonetheless, he’d given it to Carlos to study, so in a way it was a gift as it gave his husband something to do other than worry.
Cecil’s voice rang every broadcast, most of the town knowing that he was just bursting at the seams to tell everyone how excited he was about becoming a parent. If anyone noticed more announcements and news involving family planning and infant care, no one said anything. The voice of Night Vale was happy and the city itself was happy for him.
Carlos took him to lunch every single day, eager to make sure that Cecil was eating properly and looking after himself while they both had to work. Most of these lunches were filled with Cecil’s excited ramblings on the newest infant formula and rune-engraved cribs and other things he’d heard about. Another important subject they discussed during their midday meal was names.
Both Carlos and Cecil had lists of names, seeing as they were going to be having six little ones to name without knowing any of the genders. It was a complicated subject, because according to Cecil, apparently naming your child the wrong thing could summon troublesome spirits and occasionally hedgehogs. So the two always spent a lot of their time together throwing name’s back and forth, Carlos occasionally having to put his foot down when Cecil started to suggest names that had twelve or thirteen letters and only one or two vowels, rather keen that they were not calling any child of theirs Rghftylsogth.
“Zorion.”
“Hm…Maybe.. I kinda like it actually... Isabella.”
“Oooh, I love the way you say that. Say it again.”
“Isabell-mph!”
These sessions also tended to be interrupted by a great deal of kissing.
--
“Hey love?” Cecil prodded Carlos’s shoulder and bit his lip, telling himself that is was for a good cause that he was waking the man at this hour. He poked his shoulder again. “Carlos.”
“Hm? What is it Cecil? ‘S everything all right?” The dark skin man peered over his shoulder blearily, blinking continuously before turning over to face his spouse, who now was looking incredibly embarrassed. “Wass wrong?”
“…I’m hungry…” Cecil admitted, his stomach growling to back up his point.
“Cecil… it’s.. really early in the morning.” Carlos replied, almost looking to the clock out of habit. Cecil bushed and looked a little ashamed.
“I know, I know. But I’m eating for seven and it’s so hard to control the cravings.” Cecil told his husband sheepishly. Carlos sighed, his face softening. He could never stay irritated at Cecil for long, especially a heavily pregnant Cecil.
“Alright.. I’ll go to the store. What do you want?” He asked. Cecil bit his lip again and fidgeted.
“…Yak liver.”
--
“Hey, you all right, love?” Carlos put his fork down, looking worriedly at his spouse, who was just pushing around his food and looked a bit on the green side. Cecil glanced up and tried to smile, not wanting to worry his beloved any.
“Yeah, I’m fine. Just not that hungry. Not that much room in there any more after all…” Cecil’s face slipped into that of a grimace, but he couldn’t help it. He just couldn’t shake- Cecil dropped his fork and struggled to stand. “Carlos, sink, now.”
“What- OH.” Carlos rushed to help Cecil to his feet as the radio host clamped a hand over his mouth and quickly led him to the sink. Cecil then proceeded to lose all that he had just eaten as Carlos rubbed his back. “I thought morning sickness was supposed to only happen at the beginning of pregnancy.”
Cecil just groaned. “Who in their right mind told you that…”
--
“Carlos?” Cecil moaned and leaned his head against his pillow, clutching his distended stomach in pain. “Carlos!”
“Cecil?! What is it?!” Cecil could hear Carlos running up the stairs, likely from the little makeshift lab he’d set up in a spare room. It had been there since they moved to the house, mainly so Carlos could perform more experiments at home and in turn, have more time with his husband. The man rushed into the room, his perfect hair mussed from where he had obviously pulled off his safety goggles, and hurried to Cecil’s side to rub his back soothingly. “Are you having contractions?”
Cecil nodded, gridding his teeth until the painful grip of squeezing flesh released him, leaving him panting. Working on automatic, the radio host began to pull blankets around him into a nice, warm nest. He was fortunate that Carlos seemed to remember his last cycle, getting up to get him more blankets and turn off the lights.
Once they were settled, Cecil found himself smiling despite the pain, leaning into kiss his husband and gently taking Carlos’s hand and resting it one his stomach. Carlos looked at him with a mix of concern, curiosity and love and Cecil just had to kiss him again. “Ready to become a dad, Carlos?”
“Yeah, I really think I am.”
--
You’re doing great, love. Last big push.” Carlos murmured as Cecil bore down on the last egg, moaning softly. He was sweaty and tired and he ached, but he still had a little strength he could muster up and this was the last one anyhow. The last one was always weird. It never hurt and he could feel every shift and slide it made in his body. He could feel the pressure, but never the pain. Finally, it slipped out and Cecil sucked in a deep breath, panting heavily, as though he’d just run a marathon.
The laying process had gone all day and Cecil was exhausted. However, this time he was proud too. Oh, so proud and excited. The man stretched and curved his body so the six eggs fit against his warm, now deflated stomach, carefully touching the light green shells of each one. He’d never bothered to spend time with his eggs during his cycles, but this hadn’t been just any old cycle. This had been a pregnancy and now he wanted to be close to his soon-to-be offspring as possible. Carlos seemed to understand that and didn’t even push him to clean up, getting up on the bed so the couple formed parentheses around the clutch of warm, smooth orbs.
“Somehow, they’re more beautiful than any of my other eggs, even though they look exactly the same…” Cecil murmured, entranced as he continued to stroke the shells.
“Yeah, there is something about them, isn’t there…” Carlos replied before gently touching the eggs as well. They were quiet for a long while until Cecil let out a soft squeak of surprise, laying his hand fully on the egg he’d been touching, a look of elation on his face.
“I just felt movement!” Suddenly, Carlos’s hand was wrapped against the egg as well, the man letting out a happy, choked and almost disbelieving chuckle, obviously feeling the little ticks against the shell as well.
“Oh my god… Cecil…” He smiled up at his husband; the two of them beaming at each other like fools until Carlos finally kissed Cecil fervently, cupping his cheek. “God, I love you so much.”
--
“Well isn’t someone a proud father-to-be.” Cecil blushed sheepishly when Teddy Williams, manager of the Desert Flower Bowling Alley and Arcade Fun Complex walked in, a medical bag in hand. Cecil had personally requested that Teddy, being a licensed doctor and all (and the fact that he had “saved Carlos’s life” after the miniature city incident), be the one to give the eggs their first checkup. No one knew when they were going to hatch since this had never happened before, but Cecil wanted to make sure they were healthy from the start, proclaiming Teddy as his intended doctor. However, he was still recovering from the laying and felt a little vulnerable, wrapped in a sheet and curled around his precious eggs.
“Yeah, we’re really excited.” He replied with a bashful grin, glancing to Carlos, who was following behind Teddy. Cecil was asked a few questions about the laying as his husband sat behind him and rubbed his shoulder, the radio host answering to the best of his ability. Teddy then took careful measurements of the eggs and asked a few more questions. Then, finally, he pulled out a stethoscope, pressing it to each egg.
“That heartbeat sounds good and healthy. Oh, that one’s got a marching beat to it, very catchy… Oho! This one’s got two heartbeats. Either you’ve got two little guys in there or just one with two hearts. Probably the latter though.” Teddy went through all the eggs before finally handing the stethoscope to Cecil. “I’ll let you two hold on to this so you can listen in whenever you like. I’ve got to get going. Have a venomous spider themed birthday party to set up. Call me if anything comes up. But not on Thursdays, of course.”
“Of, course! Thank you Teddy!” Cecil chirruped as he left before eagerly pressing the end of the stethoscope to one of the eggs one he’s gotten it in his ears. His face was stunned and filled with joy, his smile almost splitting his face.
“Carlos, you have to hear this!” Cecil pulled them out again and handed the equipment to his husband, who took them up eagerly.
The two of them spent the rest of the night listening to the steady and interesting heartbeats of their children.
--
Cecil never would have thought that there would ever be a time he didn’t want to go to work. However, when he had six precious eggs back home, only a few days old, and his precious husband watching them, the radio host found he didn’t particularly want to be sitting in his booth, reading over what he was going to broadcast that night. But his professional duty to the Night Vale community called, so there he sat.
The man sighed and put the transcript down, stretching a little before picking up a framed photo from his desk top. It was a photo of him and Carlos on their wedding day, four and a half years ago, and it had to be his most favorite photo of all time. Intern Gabriella (bless her poor, charred soul) had taken it at their wedding and given it to him after their honeymoon as a wedding gift. It was of him and his beloved, dressed elegantly in their wedding garb, engaged in a romantic kiss during their first dance. That memory always made his heart swell and flutter, a sappy smile on his face as he gently rubbed a thumb over his wedding band.
Soon his desk would be adorned with pictures of more than just his husband and himself. Soon, photos of his little ones would fill every available surface he could find. They just needed to hatch first and then he just knew he would be one of those dads. He was fairly sure that Carlos was heading in that direction as well. Cecil could just imagine his husband’s lab being littered with beautiful, gory crayon drawings as their children grew up. The scientist had been working constantly to turn another one of their spare rooms into a nursery. Cecil couldn’t be more excited. Them. Parents.
The radio host was snapped out of his thoughts when his phone buzzed with a text message, from his perfect husband no less.
From: Carlos
Cecil, some of the eggs are growing. As in, they are literally changing size. Two of them are definitely bigger than they were this morning. I measured them. Eggs aren’t supposed to do this Cecil.
Cecil rolled his eyes before texting his silly spouse back, a grin on his face.
From: Cecil
Of course they’re supposed to grow. The babies would be so tiny and underdeveloped otherwise. They didn’t have much room to get bigger when they were in me, but now they have all the space that could want to get big and strong! Our little ones are healthy and growing, Carlos! That’s so exciting! =D
Cecil could just imagine that perplexed look his husband got on his face sometimes. It was so cute when he did that, in a rugged, handsome way, of course. The man chuckled a little before his phone buzzed again.
From: Carlos
Right, of course. What was I thinking? Are you still on for the broadcast tonight?
From: Cecil
Reading over today’s news right now.
From: Carlos
I’ll be listening and playing it for the eggs too. Talking to unborn babies is supposed to be good for them, so I was thinking; why not let them listen to their Daddy’s brilliant voice on the radio?
From: Cecil
<3 <3 <3 I’ll be sure to say something special, just for them. I love you, Carlos. You’re going to be an amazing Papa. <3
From: Carlos
I love you too, Cecil. You’re going to be incredible too. I’ll see you tonight and will be listening in, of course.
From: Cecil
<3
From: Carlos
<3
--
“Hey babe?” Cecil blinked a little at the sound of Carlos’s voice, snuggling a little closer to his warmth out of habit.
“Hmm?” He hummed, not really awake in any sense of the word, other than being able to hear the man. “What ‘s it?”
“Can you hear that?” Carlos replied sleepily, lifting his head up a little as though trying to hear whatever it was better. Cecil didn’t hear anything. And, he was about to say so when suddenly did hear something.
Across the room, something squeaked.
Suddenly, both men were on their feet, the lights hurriedly flicked on as they rushed over to the nest they’d assembled for the eggs, both dropping down on their knees so they could get a better look.
Three of the eggs had stayed the same size, while the other three were varying larger sizes, but at the moment, both excited parents-to-be were raptly watching the smaller ones. One of them was almost cracked open, while another was just starting to. The one with the bigger crack squeaked again, a portion of the broken shell wiggling as whatever was inside struggled to get out.
Cecil reached out, carefully jiggling the piece of shell loose with a finger. As the piece fell away, a black-brown scaled snout poked through the hole, followed by the rest of the head, the rest of the body following wetly into the soft nest from the egg.
Cecil felt tears prick at his eyes as the tiny creature righted itself, shook out its legs (all six of them) and blinked at its parents owlishly with eyes the same color as Carlos’s. The little thing then squeaked again and its throat vibrated warmly. Cecil vibrated right back and suddenly, his child leaped into his lap and Cecil cried happy tears of joy.
“Look at you…” He murmured softly, gently stroking his offspring’s soft, newborn scales. However, when he looked up to Carlos, expecting to see his spouse equally happy, he found the man simply gawking, which worried him. “..Love?”
“I… I don’t know what I expected… Our first child is a six legged lizard. How did I not see this coming…” He replied, sitting stock still. Cecil just smiled a little.
“Well, I’ll admit, it is a little unexpected, us both being rather human shaped, but-“ Cecil sucked in his breath, eyes widening when he realized where his husband’s mind might be going. “Oh, no, no, no! I mean, they are yours, I swear! I would never cheat on you, ever! Please don’t even think that for moment!”
Carlos blinked at Cecil for a moment and the radio host was afraid he wouldn’t be believed and that his beloved husband would leave that instance. Until, hesitantly, Carlos reached out and stroked their child’s head, smiling. “I.. can actually tell… he.. she?... has my eyes…. I just.. I wasn’t really expecting it is all. I know you would never cheat on me, love.”
Cecil let out a sigh of relief as Carlos kissed his forehead before turning his gaze back to their child. Now all he really wanted to know was if they had a son or a daughter. Carefully, the radio host lifted their offspring’s tail and grinned. “She. We have a little girl, Carlos!”
“A girl, huh?” His husband finally reached in, to pick up and hold their daughter, Cecil’s heart swelling at the sight of his perfect husband gingerly cradling their first born. Another squeak, this one a slightly different pitch, interrupted his thoughts though, both men’s heads snapping to the other egg that had been cracking.
Another small, dark brown head peered out at them from a large hole in the egg in an almost shy way. Cecil inched a little closer.
“It’s all right, sweetheart. We’re your dads. You’ll be safe out here, I promise. Your sister’s fine, isn’t she?” The little head poked out a little further before the little creature finally decided to push out of the egg, plopping down on the blankets much like its sister had. Cecil carefully scooped his second child up and wiped off its scales, carefully checking under the tail. “A boy!”
This time, Carlos smiled too, hopefully getting used to the idea that these were his children. The little boy nuzzled and hid in the crook of Cecil’s arm and his heart melted. Their girl was looking at her shy little brother curiously and Cecil was already starting to feel like a family.
“What are we going to name them?” Carlos asked, gently stroking their daughter’s spine.
“Josephine and Filipe.” Cecil stated matter-o-factly, using two of the names they had agreed on. He found he didn’t even need to give it any thought. Those names fit these two perfectly. He leaned down and gently kissed the top of his son’s head with a soft smile. “You hear that, little one? You’re name’s Filipe.”
“And you’re Josephine.” Cecil turned to see his husband gently nuzzling their daughter and he felt his tears of joy welling up once more.
--
“Carlos, Carlos, another one of them is hatching!” Cecil shouted as he ran to the kitchen, slipping around on the hard wood floor in his socks. His spouse had eventually taken their two newborns to the kitchen to figure out what to feed them, Cecil staying with the other eggs. He found his beloved supervising their children while the pair lapped at a little dish of raw egg hungrily (chicken egg, of course).
“What, already?” Carlos leapt to his feet, scooping up Josephine and their egg dish, while Cecil swooped in to carry Filipe, excitedly hurrying back into their bedroom. Cecil sat right back down in front of the nest while Carlos set their firstborns up to finish their breakfast before joining him.
This egg was a bit bigger than the ones that had already hatched and seemed slow to crack, the entire egg shaking. Cecil had to take Carlos’s hand in excitement as they watched, their current offspring clumsily wobbling over to sit in their parents laps.
Suddenly, the egg gave a mighty shudder and a tiny fist punched through the shell, Cecil gasping as the rest of the egg cracked apart. Viscous fluid poured out, a much more baby shaped child tumbling out after. Carlos squeezed Cecil’s hand before reaching forward and carefully scooping up the tiny infant, despite the slime, a tender look on his face.
The little girl had raven black hair and a skin color that was mostly Carlos’s, but was tinted the same purple color that Cecil’s stomach had turned when he was pregnant. She had wide, curious eyes that weren’t a distinguishable color and when she stretched out a hand, a thin webbing was noticeable between each finger.
The baby cooed at her Papa, giggling when Josephine perched her front claws on Carlos’s arm and licked her little sister’s cheek.
“Isabella.” Carlos stated suddenly, looking to Cecil, who was beaming at them and crying again. He nodded, holding out his hands to hold her.
“It’s perfect. Fits her so well. May I?”
“Of course, of course.” Carlos handed their newest daughter to his husband, who chuckled at the mess of egg fluid she had left all over Carlos’s shirt. Cecil cradled the little girl, Filipe abandoning his lap for Carlos’s with his sister.
“Gorgeous…” He murmured, wiping away some of the slime from her skin. “We have been blessed with three beautiful children… Three more to go too. I can hardly believe it..”
The five of them then settled in (after they’d cleaned Isabella up. She was still a little slimy and moist, but Cecil got the feeling that was just how her skin worked) to wait for the other three to hatch.
--
Basil arrived around noon from the biggest egg, in a much less messy fashion than Isabella, carefully cracking open the shell with his little fists. He was a big, chubby baby boy, with ruddy cheeks and neon green hair. At first he had blinked at his parents with two eyes before a third opened on his forehead and he had giggled. Silently.
Whenever the boy went to make a sound, it couldn’t be heard, but rather, felt. Cecil found that his laugher felt like a happy, bubbly sensation and was a little worried what it would feel like when his son was upset. Carlos, however, seemed perplexed.
“Is he going to stay like that?” He asked, worried, watching their newest son doze off in Cecil’s arms. “Communication’s going to be hard if he can’t speak.”
“I’ll teach him sign language.” Cecil replied, rubbing the child’s back soothingly. Isabella was already asleep in Carlos’s arms and Filipe and Josephine had curled up on a sunny spot on the floor. “I didn’t talk for most of my childhood life, so they taught me sign language. And now I’ll get to teach it to him.”
“Huh…” Carlos seemed to accept that answer, the pair remaining quiet for a long while. “We should get them settled in their cribs, for now anyway. I can turn on the baby monitor so we can hear… and feel them if they wake up.”
Cecil nodded with a smile, the couple taking their two infant shaped children to the nursery, as their lizard shaped children seemed content to snooze where they were in their sun spot.
Once their little ones were settled, Carlos glanced around the nursery, biting his lip in thought as Cecil turned on the baby monitor. The radio host knew that look. “What is it, love?”
“Well, I set up six cribs, but Josephine and Filipe aren’t really the crib types, are they? We’re going to have to set up some kind of heating pads for them, but something that won’t be a fire hazard… Also, I’m starting to think that Isabella might need something to keep her skin moist, like a misting rig of some sort… And we don’t even know what the last two will hatch into yet.”
Cecil smiled softly, proud that his husband was trying to think ahead for their little ones. The man pressed himself against the scientist’s back, kissing his neck. “You’ll figure it out, my handsome, brilliant scientist. I know you will. Our little ones are so lucky to have such a smart Papa.”
“And their even luckier to have such a loving and open-minded Dad.” Carlos replied, turning in Cecil’s arms.
The two shared a sweet kiss while their children slept.
--
That evening, Cassiopeia hatched and she had to be the odd one out of all her siblings. She was completely normal in every way. Caramel skin and big, dark eyes and even a belly button despite having hatched from an egg, the little girl seemed to be completely human, not a single oddity to be found.
She wailed when she hatched, both of her parents trying to calm her so she wouldn’t wake the others. Carlos eventually was the one to pacify her, gently bouncing the little girl with what could only be described as familiarity. Carlos quietly explained to Cecil as they went to the kitchen to feed her that he often had had to take care of his baby brother with he was a teen and the little bouncy rocking movements had always done the trick.
The little girl guzzled down a bottle of formula (the only thing they had been prepared with, baby food wise) and then spit up on Carlos’s shoulder before finally falling asleep. The scientist put her to bed with her siblings before joining his spouse for the night. The two of them both looked frazzled and tired, both a little shell-shocked from having just become parents. And to think there was still one egg to go. This one seemed to be a late bloomer, but they could wait. If it hatched in the night, they would wake up for it. Right then, the men needed some sleep, both knowing they wouldn’t be getting much in the weeks and months to come.
--
“Hey, love? Brought you breakfast.” Cecil glanced up from where he sat on the floor in front of the nest, smiling tiredly as his husband approached him with a plate of food.
The two of them hadn’t gotten much sleep after being woken up by the sound of a strange, shallow, hiccupping cry coming from the monitor. Carlos had been terrified that one of their children was choking and they had both dashed into the nursery with their hearts in their throats (metaphorically).
It had been Isabella who was making the noise and after fretting for a few long minutes, the new parents came to realize that that was just how she cried. The infant was apparently upset not for usual baby reasons, but rather because she was starting to get a little dried out. Carlos had taken her to the tub and rinsed her down while Cecil had seen to their other children, making sure they got back to sleep if Isabella’s cries had roused them.
A little around 3am Carlos had coached Cecil through changing his first diaper, which he hadn’t been particularly fond of, but supposed it was a necessary part of being a parent. After that, the two of them had gotten a little more sleep before Cecil swore he had heard sounds coming from the final egg and hadn’t moved from in front of it since.
Carlos sat beside his spouse and handed him the plate, kissing his shoulder as he did. They were both a little perplexed as to why their last egg hadn’t hatched yet, the little being inside obviously being a late bloomer, and they were both curious as to what would hatch from it.
“Are they sleeping again?” Cecil asked quietly before taking a bite of his breakfast and leaning his head on Carlos’s shoulder, just enjoying the man’s warmth in his exhaustion.
“Cassie, Basil and Izzy are, Josephine and Filipe are jumping around in a pile of blankets and plush toys I arranged for them. I’ll check on them in a moment. Any change in the egg?” Cecil smiled at the nicknames his husband had already given two of their children. They fit too and he supposed Cassiopeia was a bit of a mouthful.
“No.. no change.. I’m sure there will be something soon though. Little one is just stubborn is all.” He murmured, closing his eyes for a moment as Carlos rubbed his shoulder. Their moment was interrupted by a crash from the other room, Carlos getting up quickly to see what the fuss was about. Cecil just watched the last egg.
--
For the next week, it continued, Cecil actually growing rather distant as he became near obsessed with the last egg hatching. The man spent most of his time in their room, not going to work and rarely tending to their children. Carlos could handle it. The last egg just needed to hatch and then they could be a proper family.
Carlos seemed a little irritated by his actions but never said anything about it, dutifully bringing his husband something to eat so Cecil wouldn’t forget to. Cecil just knew the egg would hatch soon and he wanted to be there for it. Be there for their last little one’s arrival.
Any day now..
--
“Cecil, we need to talk.” Carlos was sitting on their bed when Cecil returned from the bathroom, his countenance tired and despondent, almost depressed. Cecil had never seen him like this and felt a pang of guilt that he hadn’t noticed it before now. Frowning, the radio host sat beside his husband, looking worried.
“What is it?” He asked hesitantly, glancing to the egg before looking back to his spouse. Carlos seemed to tense and then deflate even more, which hurt Cecil to his core. What was wrong?
“Your children need you, Cecil. I can’t do this on my own…” Cecil, looked at the egg again before his gaze drifted to the floor.
“I.. I know. Just… the last egg needs to hatch and then I can focus on us all being one big happy family.”
“It’s not going to hatch, Cecil…”
“How can you say that?!” Cecil squawked, voice choked as he shook his head vigorously. “It.. It’s just taking some time is all.. We need to be patient.”
“It’s been a week. It’s not going to hatch.” Cecil realized now that Carlos’s eyes were glassy with tears and something in his chest tightened.
“No, don’t say that. It’s going to hatch. It has to!” His own eyes pricked with tears. Carlos was wrong. He had to be. Their last little one would come soon; they just had to wait a little bit longer. Just a little bit longer.
“No. It’s not. Cecil, you have to listen to me. It’s not going to hatch.” Carlos’s voice waivered with sadness as he gripped his husband’s shoulders and looked him in the eyes. Cecil shook his head again, eyes squeezed shut.
“No, you’re wrong. I don’t believe you and I’m not giving up on our baby! How do you even know?!” Cecil shouted, tears leaking from his eyes as he tried to push Carlos away. That was when Carlos pressed something into his hand, Cecil vaguely registering that he had been holding it the whole time.
It was the stethoscope.
“I’m sorry, love..” Carlos’s voice was broken, tears now streaking his dark skin. Cecil stared at the object for a long time, his breathing growing shallower until it finally, finally it all welled up and broke.
Cecil’s cry was that of a man in agony. Of a man whose soul had just cracked a little.
It was the sound of a man who had just lost his child.
The radio host sobbed into Carlos’s shoulder, Carlos embracing him, his own tears silent. In the nursery, their children joined in their sorrowful cries, startled by the noise. The pair of them clutched each other tightly until Cecil cried himself into exhaustion.
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His heart hurting, Carlos gently laid his husband down on their bed to rest and then set about a much more painful task. The man wrapped up the unhatched egg, having to stop a few times before he finally got it out the door and to the car with a shovel.
The scientist drove out to the sand wastes and eventually found a suitable spot, in front of an old fence post and a blooming cactus, so they would one day be able to find the spot should they ever feel ready to face this.
Face that one of their children hadn’t made it.
Once the deed was done, Carlos drove home, face streaked with tears. He was shaking a little and his head hurt, but he knew he needed to be home, as much as he wanted to disappear for a while. Cecil needed him.
When he arrived home, his husband was missing from their bedroom, but before he could fear the worst, his found the man curled in the nursery in the soft blanket nest they had made for Josie and Filipe. All five of their children were curled with him, Cassie and Basil in his arms, Izzy asleep on his stomach and Josie and Filipe wrapped around his legs. Cecil himself was asleep again, his eyes still puffy and wet.
Carlos never doubted that Cecil would be a good parent. Cecil would be amazing, and in time, they would get through this loss and heal. But for now, they were allowed to grieve.
Carlos joined them in the nest, holding his husband and children close.
They were a family, and families got through things together.