Six months had passed since and he was closer to his due date. Elias found himself having a hard time walking around with a big round bulging stomach. His fair skin was radiant and glowing, due to new remedies he had applied during his pregnancy period. His six-pack-abs were no longer visible and he had gained lots of weight over the months. His natural blue hair grew quite long as well and it was at the depth of his shoulder length. He could not find the time to trim his hair short since he had been working non-stop throughout his pregnancy period. At first, he was concerned with how people would view him. As months passed, it did not bother him anymore, as the majority thought he was someone overweight with an alcohol addict. Though it was a bad assumption, he was able to work in peace.
As he was making his way down the stairs, he felt his legs had gone numb. It took a while for him to get through one step at a time. No one knew of his current condition; not even his mother, and his ex-lover. He did not wish to impose and bother them, especially his mother who was currently living in the countryside and was a four-hour drive away from him. As for his ex-lover, Kyle, Elias had no desire to see him again. After months of doing everything he could to move on and rebuild his life without him, the last thing Elias wanted was for Kyle to come back into it.
He was halfway down the stairs when, unfortunately, he missed two steps down and slipped. His back collided with the stairways as he was dragged downwards. He tried to shield his stomach as much as he could. As he landed at the bottom of the stairways, he let out a low groan and he felt wetness slipping through his pants. He slowly sat up and leaned against the nearby wall. He could smell the scent of iron coming from himself and there was another light scent mixed along with it. He knew then his water broke and he felt his stomach churning painfully.
Then, Elias wanted to scream for help badly. However, he bit his lips and swallowed back the whimpers of pain. He knew no one was going to help him, neither would anyone bother to check on him. He needed to be strong for the little one and himself. He choked back a sob as he reached out for his phone on the nearby coffee table. Trembled fingers hastily keyed in the passcodes before going through his call list and dialled in the emergency number. Then, he placed the phone onto his ear and listened to the ringing on the other line as he laboured his breathing.
"XXX. What is your emergency?" The operator picked up the call after three consecutive rings.
Elias swallowed his saliva with difficulty before he answered in a hoarse voice, "H-Hello... I-I am Elias... I am in n-need of the h-hospital... P-Please... Hurry... My b-baby will die…"
Before he could manage to finish his sentence, his head was wrapped in a whirlpool and all he could see was blank spots. His body numbly collapsed and his hand weakly let go of his phone. His vision was blurred with tears and the only thing Elias could do in his weakened state was; reaching out his hand for the phone weakly as he desperately muttered quiet pleas of "help" countlessly before he was greeted with darkness.
"Baby, what are you thinking about?"
Elias felt a pair of familiar, strong arms wrap around his lean yet muscular body from behind. A chin rested against his left shoulder, and he could feel the warmth of the man's breath brushing against the side of his neck.
They were staying in a hotel, enjoying a week-long vacation together. Elias remembered this moment vividly. It had taken place a year ago, when they were in Dubai celebrating their first anniversary.
Unconsciously, he reached for the man's hand and held it tightly.
A part of him had been yearning for this—for the warmth of their bodies pressed together, the familiar scent of his lover, and the sweet nothings they used to whisper to each other when they were alone. He had missed these little moments more than he could ever put into words.
He knew it was only a dream. Somewhere deep inside, he was painfully aware that the man standing behind him no longer existed in his present world. Yet, as much as he wanted to wake up, he couldn't bring himself to do so.
He was forced to see through it all.
"Nothing. I was just wondering..." Elias hesitated before turning his head slightly to look at his boyfriend. "If we ever had a baby, whether through a surrogate mother or adoption, what would you want to name them?"
The next moment, Kyle gently turned him around until they were facing each other. He leaned forward, resting his forehead against Elias's, their noses barely an inch apart. His arms settled around Elias's waist, pulling their bodies close until there was hardly any space between them.
"If you're asking me, I want my babies to have precious names," Kyle answered softly. "It doesn't matter whether they're biologically yours or mine. They'll still be our babies, won't they?"
Elias smiled faintly and nodded.
"If it's a girl, she'll be named after a princess. Krystal McKenny."
Kyle punctuated his answer with a gentle peck on Elias's lips, making the latter chuckle under his breath.
"What about a boy, then?" Elias asked curiously.
"Hmm..."
Kyle pretended to ponder the question, his eyes drifting toward the ceiling before returning to Elias's face with a big smile. That was the last thing he saw of Kyle before everything around him went dark.
"If it's a boy, I'll name him Kurt."
"... Aiden. His name is Aiden Bennett."
Elias signed the birth certificate, carefully filling in the remaining details before handing the document to the nurse waiting beside him.
For a moment, his gaze lingered on the name he had written.
Aiden. Not Kurt.
He could almost hear Kyle's playful protests if he were here. He could imagine the exaggerated pout, the teasing complaints, and the inevitable argument about whose choice of name was better.
A small, sorrowful smile tugged at Elias's lips.
"Oh my. That's a very sweet name for this little bun," the nurse chimed in as she carefully grabbed the documents and the pen before pushing the baby tray gently and situated it next to the new father's bed.
"Do you need help holding him? Or do you wish to rest?" Asked the nurse with a gentle tone.
Feeling exhaustion creeping in him, Elias decided on the latter, "I'll rest first. Thanks."
"No worries. It's my job after all," The nurse smiled gently before looking over to the newborn.
"This little bun is still sleeping. He had not drunk any milk yet. Maybe you should feed him. Which milk is better than the milk his father provides?"
Upon hearing the last few sentences coming from the nurse, Elias froze and stared at her in bewilderment.
"B-But… I'm a man… Man can't—"
The nurse stopped him, "It's not impossible, Mr Bennett. I've seen other fathers provide milk for their children when their wives couldn't produce it. You should give it a try. I know it's difficult to do so right now since you had just undergone C-section delivery hours ago. But, please do give it a thought. We can still feed him normal formula milk. Though, studies have shown newborn children prefer the milk their parents developed, to the formulated milk by powder."
Elias remained silent and the nurse took that as a queue to leave the father and newborn son alone, "I'll get going now. Please rest well and don't forget to press the bell bar if you need anything else. See you around, Mr Bennett."
She then looked over the newborn on the tray and mimicked a baby voice gently, "Good night, sweet little Aiden~"
With that, the nurse left with the necessary documents in hand. After she left the ward and the door was closed tight, Elias let out a deep sigh. He still could not believe he had undergone caesarean delivery and even though he had given birth to his healthy baby boy hours ago, he still felt the pain around his abdominal area. He carefully brought his hand over to his flat stomach and buried it underneath the t-shirt he was wearing before gently tracing over the visible scar.
He looked over to his left where his son was sleeping peacefully on the tray, all bundled up. A tear slipped past one of his eyes as he stared in amazement. He thought he would lose Aiden after such a great fall. He was glad Aiden was safe and healthy.
As if feeling his father's distressed, Aiden groaned out as he moved around fidgety. Despite being in a weak state, Elias carefully got up from the bed with the help of the railings at the side of the bed for him to hold onto. He slowly used his leg muscles for support as he stood by Aiden's bed.
His hands reached down and delicately picked up his son, making sure he was comfortable in his arms before pulling him closer to his chest as he sat on the edge of the bed.
"Hey, Aiden, baby," he whispered gently.
Aiden's small eyes blinked slowly before opening wide and looking at his father. Elias let out a soft sniffle upon witnessing how beautiful his son was. His left eye has a mixture of blue-green and the other pair was pure blue. His hair, despite having little hair, Elias could see black and blue being mixed together. He was thankful for being blessed with a son and he loved his son more for being born special. He had always wondered how his baby would turn out to be and he was happy with the outcome. More tears flew out as he smiled down at his bundle of joy.
"Aiden, it's me. It's Daddy. Welcome to the world, buddy," he uttered out emotionally and kissed his son's forehead before inhaling his scent. The baby whined quietly but he did not push his father away. If anything, he welcomed the love and affection his father was showering on him.
Elias proceeded to lie on his bed and carefully placed his son on his chest, making sure he was comfortable and breathing well.
"Life is going to be a little difficult for us after this, Aiden. But I can assure you we'll be fine. Daddy will work hard and will be the best dad for you, Aiden. We don't need Kyle. Daddy is enough," he muttered and pecked his son's little-hair-head.
The father-son pair stayed in each other's embrace till they fell asleep together.