Chapter Text
Jisung sucked in lungfuls of air as he all but collapsed on the couch of the dance studio. He was exhausted. His back was killing him today and he couldn’t figure out why. Rehearsal had been going for hours and he was ready to tap out.
“You okay, Sung?” Changbin asked, hovering over him.
“Just need a minute.” Jisung didn’t want to concern any of them. He probably just over exerted himself and pulled something. He just needed a heating pad and an ibuprofen, that’s all.
“We’re almost done.” Chan promised. “Another hour and we can head home.” Thank the gods.
Jisung forced himself up off the couch, his lower back screaming in protest. He could get through another hour. He was a professional. He’d worked through pain before.
…
Jisung’s body was screaming at him by the end of rehearsal. All he wanted to do was lay down as he forced his body to move out of the studio. They still had to pick up Minseo and Seonu from the daycare, and it was supposed to be Jisung’s turn to get Jinae from school.
Thankfully, noticing he was not fairing well, Seungmin offered to go in his place. Jisung could have cried in appreciation.
He went through his routine mechanically, having to stop repeatedly when waves of pain rippled through him. It radiated from his lower back down through his pelvis, knocking the wind right out of him. It took him ages to get himself showered and changed. By the time he sat down for dinner, he was exhausted. He knew his mates could tell.
“I’m alright.” He was not convincing in the slightest. “Just a pulled muscle.”
“Why don’t you take it easy tomorrow?” Chan suggested. “Or do you want me to call the ortho?”
“I just need a little rest I think.”
“Would a massage help?” Felix asked.
“Maybe.”
“I’ll give you one once the kids go to bed.”
“Thank you.”
…
Felix’s massage did little to ease the pain in Jisung’s back. He was up most of the night tossing and turning.
When everyone’s alarms, aka, their six, four, and three year old, woke them for the day, Jisung felt nothing short of miserable.
“Damma Sungie.” Jinae tried shaking him awake. “Can you do my hair for school?” She looked at him with Felix’s pouty eyes. He couldn’t say no when it was Felix. How could he possibly deny their daughter giving him the same look?
“Sure, Baby.” Jisung forced himself up, holding back a sound of pain. “Go wait for me in your room. I’ll be right there.”
“Okay!” Jinae skipped off.
“Jisung, Baby, you don’t look okay.” Hyunjin’s concern was evident on his face. “I’ll help Jinae.”
“I can do it.” Jisung managed to pull himself out of the nest. “I can manage some braids.” Jisung had mastered braiding the best out of all of them, and Jinae typically asked him to do her hair in the morning.
“Are you sure?”
“Yeah. I’ll come back and lie down when I’m done.” He grit his teeth through another wave of pain. “I-I’ll be right back.”
Jinae was waiting in front of her little vanity for him, having already picked out all the bows and clips she wanted for that day.
“Okay, Kiddo. Do you want one braid or two today?” Jisung sat down behind her, combing his fingers through her hair.
“Two!” She held up two fingers.
“Two it is.” Jisung set to work, trying to get through the task as quickly as possible. He could feel another wave of pain building, his fingers fumbling.
“Ouch!” Jinae whined when he accidentally tugged on her hair.
“Sorry, Sweetheart.” Jisung tried to continue, but the pain was getting worse. He only managed to finish one braid before it became too much to bear. He clutched his abdomen, crying out.
“Damma!” Jinae jumped up and away from him, startled. “I’ll get help.” Jisung could only cry.
“Papa!” Jinae ran right for Chan in the kitchen. “Papa, help!”
“Whoa!” Chan crouched down in front of her. “What’s the matter?”
“Something’s wrong with Damma Sungie!” She had tears in her eyes, clearly distraught.
“Where’s Damma Sungie?”
“In my room.” Jinae tugged at his hand. “Hurry!” Chan broke out into a sprint down the hall.
Jisung was laid on the floor, curled in on himself.
“Jisung!” Chan gathered him in his arms. Jisung was clammy, breathing shallowly.
“It hurts so bad.” Jisung clutched Chan’s shirt. “Make it stop.”
“What hurts, Baby? Talk to me.”
“Just make it stop.” Jisung wailed.
“Okay. Okay. We’re going to go to the hospital. It’s going to be alright.”
“What’s happening?” Jinae stood in the doorway, tears falling down her face.
“I have to take Damma to a doctor.” Chan tried to keep calm while explaining it to her. “I need you to be brave for me a little longer and go get Damma Minnie from the den. Can you do that?” Jinae nodded. “It’s all going to be alright.”
Jinae ran off to find Minho, and Chan turned his full attention back to Jisung.
“It’s all going to be okay.” He repeated. He stood, lifting Jisung off the floor, and started walking him out towards the front door.
“What’s happening to me?”
“We’re going to figure it out. I promise.” Minho caught up to them, their five mates not far behind. Jinae was in Felix’s arms, hiccuping sadly. “Min, come with me. The rest of you, stay with the kids.” Minho nodded. “We’ll call you when we know more.”
…
Chan sped to the hospital, likely breaking multiple traffic laws in his panic to get Jisung help. The scent in the car was pungent with fear, and Chan couldn’t help but be reminded of what happened years ago.
He met Minho’s eyes in the rear view mirror. It seemed he was feeling the same.
When they finally arrived, they didn’t wait long. It seemed Jisung’s screams of pain were enough to get them attention quickly. They were ushered into a room, several nurses rushing around to get him situated.
A doctor stepped into the room startlingly soon, her demeanor calm. She didn’t introduce herself, instead set to immediately looking Jisung over.
“Jisung-ssi,” her voice was gentle as she worked, “can you tell me what the pain is like?”
“Like stabbing. A-and pressure.” Jisung was squeezing both Minho and Chan’s hands so tight they were half convinced they would break.
Another ripple pulsed through him, the pressure building to a pop. The sheets beneath him were suddenly soaked.
“Wha-what was that?”
“I’m going to do a pelvic exam, but I believe your water just broke.”
“What?! But I’m not pregnant!”
“Take a deep breath. We’re going to figure it out, okay?” The doctor pulled up a stool.
If not for the pain, Jisung would have been embarrassed as the doctor examined him.
“Well, it certainly seems you’re in labor. You’re eight centimeters dilated."
“No. I’m not.” Jisung shook his head, crying harder. “I- I can’t get pregnant.”
“That can’t be what’s happening.” Minho was in almost as much disbelief as Jisung. “It has to be something else.”
“We can run an ultrasound. Get a good look to be sure.”
“Please.” Chan was pale.
“Alright. I’ll be back in a moment.” The doctor stepped out of the room.
“I can’t be pregnant.” Jisung’s voice wobbled. “I can’t get pregnant.”
Chan and Minho didn’t say anything. The signs were there, weren’t they? But it was just too impossible to believe.
It was, to their surprise, Dr. Park who entered the room with the ultrasound machine.
“Thank the gods.” Minho said. “Now we can actually get to the bottom of this.”
“When they paged me for a cryptic pregnancy, I was surprised to see your name.” She confessed, setting up the machine with smooth efficiency. “Now, let’s take a look.”
The ultrasound made Jisung’s heart catch in his throat.
There, clear as day before them, was a baby. An actual baby. Not just a little blob on the screen that could be one. This one had fingers and toes and facial features.
Jisung was having a baby.
“But… but how?” Chan sputtered. Jisung squeezed his hand as another rush of pain, contractions he supposed, crashed over him.
“Cryptic pregnancies are much more common than you’d think.” The doctor explained, studying the ultrasound. “She’s definitely measuring at full term.”
She. It was a girl.
He barely had time to breathe before another contraction came barreling through him, this one with the overwhelming need to bear down.
“I think she’s coming right now.” Jisung started to panic, breath coming in shallow, quick bursts.
“She’s impatient, huh?” Dr. Park chuckled. “Let’s see.”
Jisung must have blacked out after that. He thinks he was told to push. He couldn’t remember. But, the next thing he knew, there was the sound of cries. And a tiny, pink, wriggly baby, his baby, was being placed on his chest.
She was beautiful, even through her wailing as she got used to her lungs. And what a wail it was. It was loud, and strong. She made her presence known.
“Oh, hi. Hi.” He forced out, still in a daze. Someone handed him a towel to wipe her down with. “I don’t even know who your sire is.”
“How… how did we not know?” Chan asked, his eyes never leaving the pup.
“If you’re not experiencing typical symptoms, and if it’s not something you’re looking for, it’s entirely possible to miss. It happens more often than you think.” Dr. Park explained. “Especially given that Jisung’s heats are irregular due to your condition, there’d be no reading for you to even suspect it.”
“Is she okay?”
“I’ll page Dr. Yang to do a full work up on her to make sure she’s alright.”
“We should, um, tell the others.” Minho said. “We’ve got to get one of the cribs out of storage. Find the baby clothes. Gods, what do we tell the kids?”
“Min, hey.” Jisung called his attention. “Just be here, with me, right now. If you spiral then I’m gonna spiral.”
“Sorry. Sorry.” Minho finally looked at the pup. She’d stopped crying, having fallen asleep on Jisung’s chest. “She’s beautiful.” Jisung pressed his nose gently against her head, being met with the scent of strawberry and linen.
Seungmin.
“Oh.” The tears hit then, blurring Jisung’s vision. “Oh, he’ll be so happy.”
…
The pack was anxious as they entered the hospital. All they had been told was to get there as soon as they could and to bring the pups, they’d explain when they got here.
Chan and Minho were standing outside of the room waiting for them.
“Okay,” Chan coughed, “before everyone piles in there, he asked to see you first, Seungmin.”
“Me?” Seungmin looked to his other mates. Mates far more likely to be able to comfort Jisung in whatever way he needed. “What’s going on?”
“Just go.” Minho had a faint smile on his face. So it couldn’t have been that bad.
“You’re freaking us out here.” Changbin said. “Is Jisung okay?”
“Jisung is alright.” Chan assured them. “The rest of you can go in just a minute. He asked to talk to Seungmin first.”
“O-kay.” Seungmin pushed the door open and entered the hospital room. Jisung was sitting up, waiting for him with a tired smile. Immediately next to the bed was a bassinet. A bassinet holding a sleeping baby.
“They called it a cryptic pregnancy.” Jisung explained. “I had no idea.”
“Are they okay?”
“Dr. Yang gave her a clean bill of health.” Seungmin looked down at the pup, still not sure why Jisung had asked for him. “You should hold her.” Seungmin hesitated.
“I’m sorry. I’m having a hard time wrapping my head around this.”
“Believe me, I’m still in shock.” Jisung chuckled. “But she’s real. And I’m sure she’d like to meet her sire.”
“Her sire? Wait. Me?” Seungmin looked between the pup and Jisung.
“She smells almost more like you than she does me.” Seungmin stood frozen for a minute, brain not computing quite right. But his wolf, usually calm, was going crazy. Insisting he pick up their pup.
She made a sweet little noise as he lifted her from her bed, and settled almost immediately in his hold.
“She looks like you.” Jisung said. She had the same sloped nose and pouty lips. Seungmin bent his head down to breathe in her scent, and there it was. His own scent reflected back at him.
“Does she have a name yet?” Seungmin’s voice cracked, filled with emotion.
“I’m having trouble thinking of one. Help me?”
…
The pack took the news about as well as they could. Felix and Hyunjin cried. Changbin and Jeongin couldn’t seem to get their jaws off the floor.
When they finally heard Jisung’s voice through the door, telling them all to come in, they all raced to be the first in.
Seungmin was sitting beside Jisung on the hospital bed still holding the pup.
“Hi, everyone.” Jisung said quietly. “Meet Dohee.”
“Das a baby!” Seonu shouted.
“This is your little sister.” Seungmin explained. “Come say hi.”
Jinae walked up to Jisung’s side of the bed, looking up at him with watery eyes.
“Are you okay?” She asked.
“I’m just fine, Sweetheart.” Changbin lifted her up so she was on the bed with Jisung. “You were very brave today. I’m sorry for scaring you.” Jisung kissed her head. “I promise. No more scaries.”
“She’s cute.” Jinae looked at Dohee.
“Yeah, she’s pretty cute.”
“Do you want to hold her?” Seungmin asked.
“Yes please.”
“Me next! Me next!” Minseo’s hand shot up.
“You can hold her next.” Jisung confirmed.
“Me too!” Seonu said.
“Yes, you too.” Jisung giggled.
He still felt off kilter, a little shell shocked. But, whether he believed it just yet or not, he’d gotten what he’d always wanted. The little baby currently using her little hand to blindly explore her big sister’s face was his.
There was a lot for them to figure out. But she was here, and they’d love her endlessly.