● Twenty-Four ●

                                    

                                          

Izuku whined as he pressed his hands on the side of the hospital bed, feeling his partner's hand press circles on his lower-back. 
"Feel good?" Bakugou asked, glancing over to the alarm clock to his left. Now 2:23AM, April 21st. Midoriya had been enduring contractions since the minute they arrived at the hospital, and had been told to stay put in his private room until he was fully dilated. Up to now, he was 6 centimeters in.
"A little bit, yeah. The epidural's helping." The omega hummed, hearing the door to his room open. 
"How're we doing, soon-to-be-parents?" Kasumi chuckled, approaching the two. Izuku shrugged as his face twisted, watching the man take a seat by his bed. "Can I see if we've dilated more?" He questioned, helping the small man up onto bed. Midoriya didn't hesitate to get installed, as he had done the last three times, letting his doctor check everything he needed to check. It only took a few minutes before Inouye removed his gloves and spoke up again. "Already eight centimeters in. I'll come check in thirty minutes. Buzz if you need me." He smiled, nodding goodbye as he exited. 
Izuku whined as a cramp shot through his lower-back and abdomen, leading him to clutch down on the mattress he was on. 
"I'm sorry I'm putting you through this." 
"What?" The omega choked, looking up to furrowed brows and irritated rubies. "What do you mean? You're not putting me through anything." He muttered, confused. 
"I've been blaming you for this, during this whole pregnancy. When in reality, I was the one at fault. I've known this since the beginning but I hate admitting it. I know this sucks for you, that you're enduring a bunch of pain and shit right now. And I hate knowing I'm the one who put you through this." The alpha hissed through gritted teeth, fists clutching on his knees. "If I would have been able to control myself in your last heat, and if I would have just been patient to buy new, unexpired condoms... You wouldn't be in this situation right now. And, I'm not saying I regret it, because meeting her is something I'm looking forward to. I just... Feel like shit. This was all an accident, pregnancies should be something planned. Something a couple decides to do together, in an act of love." The blond muttered. "I'm sorry, Izuku." 
"Kacchan, don't. It's fine, really. What happens, happens. It is what it is. There's nothing we can do about it now. Plus, this whole pregnancy thing kind of grew on me. I can't wait to hold her for the first time. I wonder what she looks like." The omega chuckled nervously, waving his hands. 
"Still. I should have been more responsible." Bakugou sighed, running his fingers through damp blond strands. 
"It's okay, don't worry about it. We were both at fault, I'm the one who went into heat. You did what I asked of you, that's all. Don't say such things; you're just tired and emotional right now. We both are." Midoriya scoffed, rubbing his hands over his stomach. "Besides, the outcome turned out nice - We're about to have a healthy little baby in our arms. Our very own daughter." 
Bakugou paused, remaining silent as his partner winced to another contraction. He wasn't sure what to do, or think right now. His emotions were all over the place and he wasn't able to control the mixed pheromones that slid off him. 
"Y'know... I wanna thank you, Kacchan." The greenette suddenly spoke up again, his voice quiet. "I know you've been struggling a lot ever since we learned I was pregnant. I've never seen you doubt yourself this much, and it sorta hurt me a little that it was having such a negative effect on your health." He muttered. "But you've been so good to me, and our pup. I'm sure she'll be the happiest and luckiest little girl out there. To have Dynamight as her dad... Such a caring, sweet, strong, confident, strict yet soft guy as a parent." He chuckled, running circles around his belly button. 
"I'm not that good. With kids." The blond breathed. 
"Give yourself a chance." Izuku smiled, looking over to crimsons. His smile faded as he noticed just how the blond's knee bounces and how he picked at his fingernails. The sweat on his forehead and how Katsuki struggled to hold back tears. He looked tired, and stressed. Even though their parents were sitting on the first floor of the building, he seemed alone. Lost.
"It's not important, you're the one we're supposed to be focusing on right now. How're you doing?" The blond suddenly snapped out of his trance, looking up to concerned emeralds. Izuku nodded, looking down. 
"I can handle them. They've been coming every few minutes now, but they're not that bad. Some of them are worse than others, though." He hummed, looking down. "Y'know..." He started, chewing at his lip. A silence roamed as Bakugou seemed to tense. 
"What?" He blurted, trying to gain Midoriya's attention again. 
"It's not too late for you to back out of this." The freckled hero muttered quietly, meeting confused and shocked red eyes. 
"Huh?" The blond chocked, scoffing in disbelief. His body became still, freezing in place as Midoriya continued to speak. 
"I know you're terrified right now. I've seen you scared, before engaging in fights and facing problems you didn't like. But I've never seen you this bad." The omega sadly spoke. "I won't be angry or upset if you decide to stick back. I can raise her on my own, I'm sure." He lied. He probably couldn't take care of a baby on his own - He was just as terrified as Bakugou. But he didn't want Katsuki to engage in something that would only have a negative effect on him. "This is your last chance, before she's born. If you want to step back, I can raise her on my own. You don't have to do anything, if you don't want to. And we can discuss parental shares and conditions later, too." He forced a smile. 
"Are you fucking crazy?" 
Izuku tensed at the alpha's voice being louder than he expected. 
"I'm just saying." He shrugged, unsure. 
"I'm sticking around, you damn nerd." The alpha hissed, clearly angered by the fact that his partner thought he couldn't do it. "My parents did it, a bunch of other people did it... Dunce-Face is doing it, for fuck's sake! I can do it too." He snarled. "I'll do a better job than any other shitty dad out there. I'm raising this fucking girl and there's nothing you can do about it. I'll raise her right, I'll make her happy and I promise you I'll be the best damn father there is out there." He spat his words.
Izuku tried his best to hold back his twisted features as another contraction passed. He smiled wide at the words, tears pricking at the corner of his eyes. "I love you so much." He giggled, closing his eyes with a sigh. 
It felt like only 3 minutes had flown by, but Kasumi was soon walking back into the room to check on the expecting omega. A silence roamed as Midoriya once again took his comfortable position, holding hands with his alpha as his doctor examined him. His body tensed as Inouye sat back on his stool, smiling up to the two as he rubbed his gloved hands together. 
"I think we're just about ready to start pushing."