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Updates might be slow, but please enjoy!

PS: It's omega-verse, but heats are a synonym for period. :)

Prologue ; part 1.

Everyone had a talent. Something they excelled in. Some had the voice of angel, others had the voice of a soul-queen. Some could bring drawings to life on paper with a few strokes of a pencil or paintbrush, while others could transport you to an entirely different world with either words or drawings. Some broke records while others saved lives. Some invented things or mastered a sport while others had a talent that seemed insignificant but was part of them.

Takaba Akihito's talent was seeing ghosts. Believe it or not, it was true. His parents didn't believe him, but his grandfather did. His grandmother must no doubt have her suspicions, but she never said a word of it when Akihito showed up at their door-step at two in the morning, distraught, pale faced and looking over his shoulder as if he was being chased. From the way he appeared during the day, nobody would ever be able to tell what secrets he carried.

On the surface, Takaba Akihito was just a regular teenager. In his second year of high school, he was rather popular with his peers. He had a foreign appearance with dirty blonde hair falling slightly in front of his light hazel eyes. There was always a bright smile on his face and someone around him he could talk with. It wasn't unusual for him to get called out of class by someone who wanted to confess their feelings for him.

But a reality check came whenever he spaced out, distracted for a few seconds even when someone was talking to him. It was in those moments that Akihito was looking at things only his eyes could see. Most of the girlfriends he had had didn't like the fact that he spaced out like that and demanded to know what it was that had his attention more than them. The blonde had learned a long time ago that whenever someone busted him with staring at empty air and asked what it was, that he should lie.

In elementary school, it had gotten him into trouble often enough, to the point the teacher had send child-services to his parents to ask them about their family affairs and his mental health. His parents had been anything but happy with this and had gotten the teacher who notified the child-services fired, but only after they had gotten Akihito back from the observation that had been done on his psyche. Clearly, even they must have had their doubts.

When Akihito had come back from the week he had spent in the psychiatric ward of the hospital after the doctors had pronounced him healthy and sane, his grandfather had been the one to pick him up. Takaba senior had had some wise words for his grandson that Akihito would live the rest of his life by. Some things really just were better left unsaid. Akihito had kept his gift a secret for the past 8 years after being suspected of having a mental illness.

But sometimes, remaining silent was the greatest poison to the soul there was. Keeping everything bottled up, it was unsurprising that Akihito started to rebel against his parents. He had no intention of becoming a doctor or lawyer like they wanted him to. He also had no intention of sitting around when they laughed with stories of the imaginary friends he had had in his youth, who for him had been anything but imaginary. He barely talked to his parents and mostly kept himself locked up in his room, until his father tried to get him outside with a camera as bribe.

It had worked, but not in the way his parents had hoped. At least not entirely. Now, instead of sitting inside with them or showing interest in his father's job as photographer, Akihito was always outside. Either he was wandering around, he was at a friend's place or he was at his grandfather's shrine. Sometimes, he stayed outside until the early morning the next day, after which he would get a firm scolding for not letting his parents know. But what did they expect when they had had a fight before every emergency escape the blonde made until the early hours?

Luckily, ever since Akihito started working, he had less time to fight with his parents, though it didn't happen as often as he made it seem. In fact, since he started getting interested in photography, he could count the fights they had had on one hand. But that also didn't mean that everything was peachy between them since things were always tense with each of them carefully watching what they said. They were a normal family, but every family had its own issues.

"Akihito, table 5, 8 and 12" Mizuki said, calling the blonde's attention so he could bring the bowls of ramen to the mentioned tables. The owner of the shop was an older man who had needed the help when Akihito needed the money to save up for his dream. Though the man was rather grumpy, his ramen was the best in town, proven by the many costumers that were visited his modest restaurant. There was never one quiet day, which kept him busy. Just the way Akihito liked it. At least in normal circumstances.

"Got it!" the teen said as he picked up the bowl, ignoring the squeezing pain in his lower stomach. The pain had been there for quite some time now, coming and going. It had started out as some cramps he was used to having when he had his first day of his heat. It wasn't anything special, but it did get slightly worse. He'd started having them the evening before, but he brushed it off, knowing he had work to do and that Mizuki really did need the help. Besides, Akihito was used to his heat coming irregularly and varying of intensity, so this was nothing new to him as he easily carried the tray with bowls to the tables.

"Here you go" Akihito said with a smile as he put the last bowls down before moving on to an empty table to stack the empty bowls onto his tray, taking the damp cloth out of the pocket of his black half-apron to rub the table clean before moving on to the next one.

"Aki!" a regular costumer, aka his best friends Kou and Takato, called out to him, making the blonde look up from his third table.

"Coming!" he called back before picking up his tray, the stack of bowls swaying dangerously yet the teen carried it confidently as he walked over to the table that held his best friends and other schoolmates that were on the same soccer-team as Kou and Takato. They had just returned from a game and clearly wanted to enjoy the flavour of the restaurant that was the hot-spot close to their school. It was the place to be for the cool kids who wanted to be tough and have their lunch off school-grounds. At noon, Akihito was usually with them, but he was not a member of the soccer-team, but the go-home club. Or better said, the go-to-work club. However, no-one on the team ever minded the fact that the blonde always sat with them.

"What's it gonna be?" Akihito asked as he took out his notepad and a biro to jot down their order as they called it out, the tray placed temporarily on the table until he could report back to the kitchen. Having given through the order of the biggest table in the restaurant, Akihito took a short break, leaning against the wall next to the door, standing out of sight of the costumers at the bar counter. Closing his eyes, he rubbed his lower stomach, feeling the cramps pull through to his lower back as they gained a bit in strength. He was thankful for the towel wrapped around his fore-head to catch the sweat he could feel forming onto his skin, dripping down the back of his neck and soaking into his black T-shirt.

"Akihito? You okay?" Mizuki asked and though he sounded grumpy, Akihito could see that his frown was worried instead of displeased. The man really was easy to understand once you knew how to do it.

"I'm fine, Mizuki-san. Just some pre-heat cramps" Akihito said and pushed off again. If there was one thing he hated more than his parents making fun of his ability to see ghosts, it was worrying people. Mizuki harrumphed, turning back to preparing the orders.

"If you're in pain, you shouldn't be working" he said and Akihito snorted with a smile as he picked up his tray again.

"Then who will be helping you out to manage the restaurant?" he asked and the older man huffed again, throwing the white bottom of the chive at the blonde's head as he ducked out of the kitchen, returning to work with a smile on his face, pretending he wasn't having any cramps. When the evening rush had passed, Akihito couldn't be more grateful. The cramps were getting stronger, strong enough to have him hunch over, hiding it by cleaning the tables.

"Akihito, you can finish up for today" Mizuki said as he exited the kitchen, placing two bowls of ramen in front of the businessmen sitting at the counter. Akihito released the breath he had held it through his cramp as he looked up over his shoulder at the restaurant owner.

"You sure?" the blonde asked and Mizuki jerked his head towards the door with a grunt.

"Drop off a delivery before you go" he said and Akihito stood straight to turn around.

"Got it" he said, glad that he could go home. The cramps were getting worse than he had anticipated even after going to the toilet and he just wanted to lie down and try to get some sleep. In the back-room of the kitchen, Akihito took off his apron, sighing relieved as he undid the towel he had used as bandana. His bangs were matted to his head as he hid his hair under a cap, grabbing his old jacket that held his phone, his wallet and his key.

After receiving the address and the delivery box, Akihito stepped outside. In the chilly early-evening air of April, the blonde zipper up his jacket to the top before burying his mouth and nose into the collar. He spared a single glance at the man squatting at the door, sloppily dressed in a black and white suit with his tie half-way undone. The man was clearly drunk with red cheeks and nose as he mumbled to himself. However, the chill down that ran down Akihito's spine and the low buzz-tone in his ear betrayed the man's nature. His body was no longer among the living, even if his spirit was.

Akihito knew from experience that the drunk souls were highly troublesome to deal with, so like every day he left or entered the restaurant, the blonde ignored the spirit. He had a policy regarding the dead. If they did not approach him, he was not going to approach them. However, because he had the ability to see them, he wasn't going to leave them alone when they were confused and wanted help. But he was more careful after the child-service incident.

He had been eight. How the hell was he supposed to know it was not okay to help the husband of his teacher talk to his wife and tell her she hadn't lost her wedding-ring but had left it on top of the fridge when she had remembered she was still wearing it when she had started doing the dishes?

Akihito didn't get much time to get annoyed at the memory, as he felt the muscles in his lower stomach tighten again, this time to the point it was painful enough to make him pause in his walk. He hunched over with a hiss, placing his hand on his stomach as he tried to breathe through the pain. This was one of the worst pre-heat cramps he'd had, yet it wasn't the worst. Because of this, he clicked his tongue at himself, knowing that he still had a delivery to make. After that, he could go home, take a warm bath to ease his back-ache and the craps and then go to sleep.

However, half-way home, he doubted he would make it. By then, the cramps were too much for him to handle while walking. Not to mention that he felt like he really needed to go to the toilet, despite having gone before. He was glad when the park close to his home came in view. Or rather, the public toilets inside the park at the play-ground. Akihito dragged himself towards the small building, forcing himself to walk upright when the cramps allowed him to. The initial gratefulness he felt upon sitting down disappeared as another cramp felt like it was gripping his lower stomach. As he looked down on his underwear, he felt fear squeeze his chest at the sight of the blood staining the fabric.

Akihito had thought nothing of it, brushing it off with the knowledge that it hadn't been the first time he had gotten a small wound from pushing too hard. But this amount was hardly normal from such a small wound he should have received from going to the toilet at the restaurant before he left. A period wasn't possible either, since male omegas, while they did have a something akin to a period like women, they didn't leak blood, but slick. Slick was not red.

Panic started to set in as he frowned, his head racing to come up with reason why he would be bleeding, only to shut down when a cramp washed over him again, so badly he groaned soft though his clenched jaw, his hand moving out to brace himself against the wall off the toilet stall he occupied. His other hand moved to rest on his stomach, hoping the heat of his palm would elevate the tightness of his muscles as he leaned forward. He needed help, now.

As he reached for his phone in his pocket, ignoring the fact that his pained noises had alerted the lost souls in the restroom, Akihito bit on his lip, trying to bite through the pain. His vision blurred with tears and his hands trembled as he moved through his contact list, trying to find the number of the person he trusted the most before pressing on the green horn. Soft pleas fell from his lips as he let his head hang, holding the phone against his ear as he waited for the person on the other side to pick up.

[Aki-boy? Why are you calling so late?]

"Obaa-sama, i-is Ojii-sama around?" Akihito asked, the distraught clear in his voice as his fingers attempted to dig into the flimsy wall.

[Yeah, he's here, playing shogi with your father. What's wrong, honey? You sound like you're in pain]

"O-obaa-sama, I need help. I-it hurts. I-I can't move" Akihito said, the voice of his loving grandmother making his fear worse now that he had someone to fall back on. Someone who would remain stronger than him. However, his grandmothers next words were cut off by Akihito's soft whine that turned into a pained moan as an intense pain once again claimed his lower abdomen.

[Akihito?! What's wrong, boy? Where are you now?]

What's going on with him?

I don't know, sweet-cakes. But he's in pain, that's for sure.

As if the pain wasn't distracting enough, the young child looking through the stall-door together with the rather young woman decided to have a conversation about him. Besides, he couldn't figure out the look the female spirit was giving him, as if she had an idea of what was happening to him. Akihito had no idea, so he couldn't answer his grandmother's first question. The second one, he was reluctant to answer because he knew his parents and grandparents didn't come together often because of his parent's busy schedules and Akihito didn't want to bother them. But he was just in too much pain.

"I'm at the t-toilets at the park. Remember that small park close to our house?" Akihito asked and his grandmother hummed as the female soul approached the blonde thoughtfully.

[The one where you fell and broke your wrist and didn't tell us for an entire day?]

"Y-yeah, that's the one" Akihito confirmed and if he had been in any less pain and panic, he would have felt ashamed about that. But if he had to be honest, he'd rather get his arm broken again than the pain he was currently experiencing. At least then he knew what was going on.

[We're coming, honey. Hang on, okay? Hidenori and Yoshio are taking the car]

Clearly, Takaba Sachiko knew that Akihito wouldn't have called them if it had been nothing. She also knew that Akihito's situation would likely require muscle to lift him, since he wouldn't contact anyone crying if he was still able to walk on his own. The Takaba's were like rocks, pretending to be immovable in the face of pain, each and every one of them. They preferred to grit through it on pure willpower before they contacted anyone else. However, Akihito was really grateful he had put his pride aside, keeping his phone in his hand as the call ended. The relief he felt about the assuring words of his grandmother were gone as soon as he became overly aware of the gazes directed at him.

"Could you please back off?! I'm not some kind of disaster-show" he hissed before it turned into another groan that had him hunch over again, the phone in his hand cracking with the force he squeezed the device with, yet it was still not as strong as the pain in his abdomen. Both souls were perplexed, the little boy even going as far as to jump back while the lady just blinked at him. Akihito wanted to curse himself for his inability to control his tongue.

You can see us?

"See, hear, converse. I can do it all, except touch" Akihito admitted and panted, blinking as a drop of sweat landed into his lashes before he blinked it away. The ghost boy looked curious as he tilted his head, peeking into the bathroom stall through the door.

I-it's been a long time since anyone could see us. My name is Izumi, what's yours?

Izumi-kun, not now. Young man, are you in labour?

The question brought Akihito to a halt. In labour? B-but he wasn't pregnant. He couldn't be. He hadn't… Oh. No, he had.

"B-but I only had sex with a man one time" Akihito said as he looked down on the jeans wrapped around his ankles.

"It was only once! That's too much of a coincidence! There are tons of people trying to get knocked up for years! I can't have gotten pregnant after one time! Besides, I cleaned up after it!" Akihito said, his panic rising. Pregnant? A child?! He was a child himself! He was only sixteen! He was too young to take care of a baby! He still had school and other things he wanted to do! He couldn't be pregnant and certainly not in labour! But apparently, his body was proving him otherwise, sending another cramp through his bowels, one he now recognized as a contraction.

Let me see.

"Excuse me?!" Akihito lashed out affronted as he looked up at the woman who gave him a look that was supposed to reassure him. But when she was basically asking him to show her his ass, it wasn't working. Not even in the slightest. And that was counting out the fact that she was dead.

My name is Hisagi Sayuri and I'm a midwife. I have done this many times before, though not in these circumstances. Let me help you.

Akihito regarded her, the name raising a flag in his head. He had heard his father talk about a rape victim in the park that had been stabbed to death when she had struggled too much. Yoshio had still been a brat back then, but he had remembered the name because it had been such a spectacle back when it had happened. But before Akihito could ponder about his own situation, another contraction tore through him, ripping a soft cry from his widely parted lips before he snapped his mouth shut. There was no time to doubt. If he really was delivering a baby, a ghost-mid-wife was better than none at all.

"W-what do I do?" Akihito groaned as his body urged him to push, yet his mind resisted. Apparently, that was not the right thing to do.

If you feel the need to push, push. But you might want to get off the toilet unless you want your baby to fall in.

Well, that wasn't a pleasant sight, even in his mind. Akihito listened, remaining hunched over as he moved away from the toilet-bowl, thankful that it was at least a western one. He wouldn't have known what to do if it had been a squat toilet. Though he didn't know what to do now either.

"What now? Do I sit on the ground?" Akihito asked, his breathing a little rougher now that the need to push had finally grown too strong for him to ignore.

You can sit on the ground, squat against the wall, sit on your knees and use the toilet as support. Whatever feels comfortable to you.

Is he going to get a baby?

Yes, he is. Now go play for a while, Izumi-kun.

Akihito ignored the ghosts talking as he tried to find the position he was most comfortable in, kicking his jeans off one of his ankles so he could kneel down and lean onto the closed toilet lid. From his biology lessons, he somewhat knew what was about to come and if he was already this loud, it would be better if he bit down on his arm to muffle himself. He shrugged off his jacket, feeling too hot even when his body was shivering.

"Do I need to call an ambulance?" Akihito asked as his body automatically started to rock back and forward in an attempt to relief the pain.

Yes. Now, how many time is in between the contractions?

"I don't know? I started having pre-heat cramps yesterday evening before dinner. They started getting worse this morning, but not enough to worry me. At least not until the last three hours of my work and I only know that because evening rush stops at the same time every day, three hours before I'm done" Akihito said as he flipped open his phone again, shakily typing in the number of the ambulance. As expected, in the presence of a lost soul, his phone lagged slightly, but the call managed to get through to the call-operator.

[Hello, what is your emergency?]

"I-I'm in labour" Akihito said, his body tensing up as he felt another contraction coming. He turned his face toward his arm, biting down on his flesh to muffle his soft grunts as his muscles instinctively beared down in time with the contraction, relieving the pain slightly as his groan turned into a hissed curse.

That's it. Keep pushing. You're doing good. Hold on.

[Sir, are you still there? What is your name and location?]

Akihito panted when the contraction had passed, his body relaxing from the pushing and allowing him to answer, though his voice was rather breathless. From the corner of his eye he could see Sayuri try to rub his back without success. But he was already grateful enough that he wasn't alone and that there was someone with him who knew what to do. It calmed him down enough to reply the call-operator who told him they were instantly sending an ambulance when Akihito informed them he was already pushing.

[Has your water broken already, Tabaka-kun?]

"Y-yeah, I think so. I went to the toilet a couple hours ago, about two, I think. I thought it was just my bowels cleaning for my heat or something" Akihito answered as he leaned his forehead onto his arm, still attempting to catch his breath.

[Is this your first child?]

"I didn't even know I was pregnant! I'm sixteen, for fuck's sake!" Akihito snapped, though he knew that the call-operator couldn't have known and couldn't do anything about it. However, Akihito was quickly approaching another peak in his contraction, shaking his head with his eyes closed so he didn't have to see how blurry his vision was with the tears streaming freely down his cheeks, mostly from shock.

"I can't do this! It fucking hurts! I can't!" he mumbled, hating how weak he sounded, but hating the pain and confusion even more.

Nonsense! You can do this. You have to do this. You can't exactly stop in the middle of labour. Just breath with me. You'll get through this. You're doing great.

[The ambulance is on its way. It'll be there soon. Just hang on and breath. You can do this]

Both voices were drowned out in Akihito's mind by the searing pain of feeling something large inside of him move lower and lower, his grunts threatening to grow louder unless he muffled them by biting his arm until he tasted blood. Akihito was in a state of shock, barely keeping it together as his body literally pushed through child-labour, bringing a child into this world he hadn't even known he had been carrying. But currently, the only thing he could think of was the pain his body was going through and the fear of the child being anything but healthy because of his carelessness.

That's it! Keep going! Keep going! Keep going! You're doing great, Akihito-kun! So great! I can see the head coming! A little more, come on! You can do it!

With a last curse, Akihito felt a strange sense of, not relief, but something akin to that. It was painful, yet he felt like he could breathe slightly better. But even that turned into fear and panic when he registered the words Sayuri had said. The head. What if it fell? Wouldn't it crack his skull?

Hold your hand between your legs and try to hold the head. You need to catch them.

Akihito swallowed thickly as he reached between his legs, pulling his hand back startled as he could feel a wet ball that shouldn't have been there, but was. However, the fear of the baby remaining stuck was bigger than his shock, allowing him to put himself over it and to carefully cradle the head like instructed. What kind of thing he was doing, delivering his baby in a public toilet with the help of a dead mid-wife and the ambulance-sirens in the background who had made it there before his family had.

Still, Akihito couldn't focus on it as he felt another contraction, quickly informing Sayuri as he dropped his phone to reach both hands between his legs. With a last push, Akihito's body sagged backwards onto his heels, bringing his now full hands forward. He stared down at the bloody mess in his arms, staining his pale skin. There was something wrong. Something terribly wrong.

"He isn't crying" Akihito said as he looked over his shoulder at Sayuri, who uselessly moved aside for the ambulance nurses who would have walked right through her anyway.

"Please hand him over" the nurse said and instinctively, Akihito cradled the lithe body closer to his chest, his eyes wide and fearful at the foreign hands stretched out to him. His baby wasn't crying and this man he didn't know was trying to take him away. The blonde's attention was drawn back down to the newborn in his arms at a wet gasp that was quickly followed by a soft cry and some cramped, awkward movement of his little limbs. The relief that washed over Akihito nearly made him faint, the tears starting all over again without his cheeks having a chance to dry.

"Takaba-kun, we need to check him and you" the nurse urged and this time, Akihito did allow the man to take his child, his arms shaking and his eyes locked onto the newborn. All throughout the initial check-ups, Akihito was unable to focus on anything other than the child crying, barely even looking away when he was hoisted onto a stretcher. His arms awkwardly but eagerly reached out when his child was handed back to him for now, his eyes finally shifting to the two lost souls watching his departure.

Please be healthy, Akihito-kun.

Come visit us again!

Akihito mouthed a heartful thank you at the two souls, knowing he wouldn't have been able to do anything without Sayuri, and receiving a smile in return before the doors of the ambulance car closed. He brought his attention back to the newborn in his arms studying its half-cleaned features as it was waddled in a blanket to keep warm. As his mind struggled to catch up to the events that had just happened, a smile slipped onto his face without him even realizing as he listened to the nurse telling him what he had been able to find out about his son's condition and following his advice to try and feed the newborn.

Thank you for reading!