Irvin scoffed and shook his headb he didn't want to believe it, but his back was tight and he couldn't see straight for a long few minutes, his hips didn't stop. But he did sit up from the wall and pushed his fist into the curve of his back,"They sure do know when to pick a time." He groaned in complaint, closing his eyes and taking in a breath as he relaxed into the selkies firm hands. They grasped him and he laughed,"You did say it takes a week? Maybe more?" He glanced back to him,"We could get there before they come." He tried to spread his hope to his lover, his hands moving to the others as he turned to face him,"Hey... I should be the one worrying." He murmured gently to him and leaned up to kiss his chin softly and then his lips, leaning into his chest and relaxing. "It's natural, I'll be fine." He said it and it was more to convince himself and his lover as well while they held each other.
"yea... it's natural. we will be fine." Max looked at Irvin with his large and wet eyes, taking the human into his arms holding him on the deep arch, then sighed. "yea, we will be ok. They will come on their pace and.... well, I odn't know if i want you to labor long enough for us to arrive, or would i want you to get through it quick and have them on board here, alone." he whispered, rubbing his low hanging belly to feel its weight. this time he dared not lift it up as high in fear that he would stop the babies from descending.
They stayed like that for awhile, but the next ocntraction didn't hit too soon after. "i guess it's not that fast..." the anticipation was killing Max and the selkie grumbled anxiously. "shall we move out? i think the breeze from the sea could be good for them." he said tugging the sweater down to make sure it covered the entire belly, then held him close holding Irvin while they ascended the stairs, holding him precariously while they moved through the narrow doorway.
"hmm. Let's see, maybe i could get us some fish to eat for the next few days." Max settled Irvin on the deck and peeked out ot the ocean, sniffing and determining their location. "Gotta stock up, or it would be more difficult when we got to teh North Sea." He said already removing his own clothes.
Irvin almost laughed, Max had said 'we' instead of just him, he smiled softly at the other man as he relaxed against his chest in his arms. He hummed,"I can handle it until they come. I'll do my best to wait." The human murmured, he pulled away to follow his lovers hands against his belly and sighed, the long contraction had passed and left him with the anxiousness of waiting for another. Though it didn't come as soon as they thought it would, he rubbed his face and knew that this would take a while, it wasn't as if they could feel it but he thought it would too. "Sure. That sounds good." He murmured, smiling gently as his sweater was pulled down over his belly, it had risen up somewhat and he almost wanted to go back to sleep but knew fresh air would be better. As he waddled slowly to the stairs, struggling up them even with Max's help,"Mmhm, I'll sit on deck and wait for you then." He was sat down on the resting place against the half wall that sheltered the small cabin below deck and leaned against it. "I'll be here, you do what you need to. We have salt and a small ice box in the cabin, if we keep it stocked we could have enough to last us a month. But I know we won't be on sea that long." He reclined in a warm quilt and held his belly, watching the selkie undress,"Come back safe."
"you're the strongest human i've seen, Irvin." The selkie looked at him with bright eyes, being straightforward as always. "How could i not love you." he rubbed and snuggled close to Irvin, wanting to show his affection loud and clear to Irvin.
They headed up to the deck and Max howled towards the sky, opening his arms in the sea breeze. "i'll be right back." he flashed him a bright smile and leaped into the water, transforming in the process into his plump seal form. He swam fast and quick, diving down and was exhiliarated with the cool and familiar water enveloping his body.
In his 'fishing' trip, he was unaware that another contraction was looming. He had almost forgotten time chasing after a whale, only to find that he had swam far away from the boat. He came back to throw fish after fish on deck, stocking up for the next few days of travel, prepared that he would be able to constantly stay by Irvin's sides while his brave human mate battled through the contractions.
It was almost 2 hours before max returned, with even some shells and squid to add onto the variety of food they had. He climbed back up the deck, in his human form, excited. "Irivn! look at what i found.... we could make something out of this seaweed i'm sure." he raised what was on his hand, eager to share it with his mate.....
The human wasn't sure what prompted the selkie to say what he did, but he was proud of the way he complimented him, he smiled at him and wrapped his arms around him. Embracing him as he was nuzzled,"I love you." He breathed against his ear and kissed his head, then letting him go as he stood up again, he looked up at him and smiled. Proud of his lover, he sat on the deck and relaxed as the selkie left him though he didn't expect him to be gone for hours as he had.
Though a few hours of suffering would be worth being able to keep Max by his side for as long as he could when they had enough food. He looked off to the sea as the boat swayed gently and he held his belly, wondering just how many children they would have. As he took a net and collected the flopping fish Max tossed onto the deck beside him, though slowly he was feeling tired again. He hadn't slept very well and relaxed as he stroked his middle slowly, comfortable with the amount of food Max brought. Deciding he could finish on his own as he closed his eyes, relaxing against the wall of the cabin, drifting off into a light sleep until his lover returned. Two hours hadn't felt long enough as he groaned in complaint, his back hurt and he was afraid that it was the start of another contraction but Max distracted him from the fear,"Have we got enough food?" He asked as his eyes opened again, looking up at the selkie as he climbed back on board.
(LOL did i confuse you with that 'strongest human' thing? i intended for it to be a praise for Irivn to have endured through the contraction.... i guess that causal relationship was lost when i moved on to develop their next move xD)
Max was entirely wet and he shook himself dry, almost like a dog. His flappy hour was everywhere when he came forward to his mate. "yea i think we got enough... should get us through the week. I remember you have a small stove around for simple cooking? we could also air some so it would become more like a jerky type of food for us to chew on." Among all the human food, Max fell most in love with the dried salmon jerky snack available everywhere. He loved that chewy texture and the light salting on top.
'Y-you are alright, right? Sorry. i didn't notice how long i've spent underwater..." he scratched his head noticing Irvin's wince when he tried to move, catching up with him he yanked him up, holding him steady supporting the belly. "Any more contraction while I'm gone?" he asked, he was still dripping so he tried keeping his distance to not make Irvin wet.
((Oh okay. ))
Irvin smiled at Max and reached for him to stroke his head, pushing his wet hair away from his face,"I'll try to keep up my appetite, but you know how it is with pain." He said and sighed as he shifted forwards with a slight grimace,"Yeah, I'll cook while you steer." He held his cheeks and kissed his head softly, rubbing his back as he embraced him, just wanting to hold his warm body for a moment. Not caring about how wet he might be, he just wanted to hold his mate, he had missed him.
"Yeah, I'm okay." He murmured against his ear, his skin was so soft and warm, he almost purred in content while holding him," leaning back with him against his belly and milky chest. "It's okay. You're back now." He hummed, loosening his grip after a moment and sinking back again as he placed his hands on his belly. "No, no contractions." He sighed, stroking his large belly but groaning as he pulled him up to his feet, groaning,"But I think you're just in time for one." He laid his head against the others chest, not caring if he got wet, he just wanted to be in his arms. His back was tightening slowly and Max could feel his carriers belly tighten as the human whined softly in complaint. "Mmnnn..." He rocked slowly from side to side, grimacing into his skin.
Max smiled at his lover clutching tight on him. His swell pressed gently on his front and he closed his eyes for the gentle kiss on his forehead. He liked physical touches a lot, and being the youngest of the family, he got patted on the head a lot. It was a new expereicne for him to be taking care of Irvin now. He was excited, but at the same time also craved the occasional doting gestures from Irvin that reminded him of the feeling of family.
He followed Irvin forward when his pregnant mate leaned back, smiling at the curves underneath that was his breasts and his bump. He was careful not to put his full weight on him, but it wasn't that easy and he was soon sitting up himself. "that's good.... oopsie." he grimaced when he heard Irvin's warning that another one was building up. He enclosed Irvin in his arms, lettin g him rest and pant on his chest, rubbing his back. He swayed with his human mate, feeling the squirm and quickened breathes from the building contraction. "You're doing great.... keep this up." he muttered, looking down at the top of Irvin's head, hoping this would soon pass. It didn't though. WIth the continuing building up of the contraction, Max tightened his grip on Irvin and cupped his contracting belly. "keep breathing..." he muttered, that was the only advice he could give Irvin anyway, and he kept still to give Irvin the anchoring he would need now.
Irvin relaxed in Max's arms as he held him, rubbing his back while he laid his head against his chest though he didn't feel as if he was dealing with this well. He swayed with him and moaned briefly as the pain peaked, his belly was tight and he could barely stay up right if it wasn't for the selkie holding him up. He complained to him with small whines, he gripped his shoulders and grimaced as he whined and he wrapped his arms around his lovers waist. He felt sick from the pain, it felt as if it got as bad as it would for a while but of course that wasn't true. As he felt his back tighten more and more, he swallowed down the nauseous feeling and listened to his mates words as he dragged in slow steady breaths. Hands cradled his belly and he was so relieved that he had Max there with him as he rocked his hips and groaned, waiting for that contraction to ebb. As he didn't move for a solid minute and his hands loosened their grip on the selkie,"I'm tired... I should lay back down." He said, panting softly and laying his head on his chest again, swallowing.
Max watched Irvin turning paler and paler as the contraction built up. it was not a comforting sight to look at, and he was really worried fo Irvin when he looked liike he wasn't breathing properly. He clutched him tight and maintained the sway, hoping the shift on his centre of gravity would have helped a little on the pressure.
It was a relief when the grip finally loosened, which meant ht econtraction was over. max wasn'tsure how long this should be, but to him, it felt like it was way too long. He grabbed Irvin's waist and nodded. "yea, you go lay down. I will take care of the fishes before coming to you." Max knew irinv might not welcome the fishy smell too much at this moment. Max hoped he wouldn't be too mindful of how fishy his mouth must taste... the selkie couldn't really do anything to remove that smell from himsefl. He ate fish all his life, he was gonna smell fishy all his life as well.
Max was careful lowering Irvin back inside the cabin. He laid him down and tugged him in. "i'm right outside, call me if you need me ok?" he smiled softly at the human, wanting to kiss him by his lips but turned to kiss his cheek instead.
Irvin sighed as he laid his head against Max's chest for a few moments after, catching his breath slowly and lifting his head finally as he released the larger man. "No no, I'll be fine on my own. I'm just going to sleep a little. You cook and make sure we're on the right course." He sighed and walked with Max's help back down into the cabin, he waddled heavily but didn't complain much as he did so. He just wanted to lay down, which he did, leaning back against the pillows with the quilt covering him. "Thank you."
The human sighed and closed his eyes, his hands resting against his belly, though moving to hold his cheeks and lean in to kiss his lips. He held his breath, a tactic he had learned to do as he noticed nothing could wash the selkies sea smell away. When he wasn't pregnant, he enjoyed it, but now he didn't with the risk of almost puking when he smelt it. "Mmhm. I will." He smiled softly at him and laid his head back, letting sleep come over him again.
A few days passed and the contractions never stopped, they even got worse, lasting more than a full minute at most and leaving Irvin restless with tears in his eyes. As the week came to an end, Irvin could barely leave the bed for more than a half hour before he was begging Max to help him back down into the cabin. He couldn't walk on his own that well and Max was helping him to the bathroom since he couldn't make it himself. As they grew closer to the selkie's home, labor was at its worse so far, he was curled up in bed, his entire body riddled in agony. All he could do was let Max help him to the bathroom and feed him, as he was stuck in the midst of the large quilt and pillows, twisted up and stiff with pain. He spent most of his time slipping in and out of sleep and groaning into the pillow beneath his head as he pressed his palm to the tight ball of flesh that was his belly now.
Max wasn't sensitive enough to notice his mate was holding his breath when he kissed him. overall, the selkie was a happy soul and he went along with their routines as much as he could. It wasn't until the ocntractions became a lot harsher on Irvin that it started to worry the selkie. Max stayed close to Irvin as far as possible. Whenever he was on the deck he was feeling alone and guilty of being unsupportive to Irvin. He would sneak down to the cabin to look at Irivn, and time and again he would be devastated seeing even in his sleep, Irvin wasn't getting any peace, still constantly struck by contractions.
He took Irivn everywhere. For the first few days he was just a helping hand to Irvin, but later, as the contractions wrecked the human further, he practically had to half-lift him up. There were times when he was woken up from his sleep by the whimpers of Irvin, who cried sometimes when he was asleep, possibly letting his guard down and let that moment of weakness consume him.
Max tried his hardest to keep Irvin hydrated and fed. He would lift him up gently from the bed, letting him maintain his curled up position and spoon fed him, urging him to tkae one more bite of everything. "Good boy. You are my strong mate." he said holding his belly, rubbing the bottom of it gently while he gave Irvin another spoonful of stew. He put down the spoon when Irvin shook his head telling him he would have no more food, then went on to snuggle with him.
He took Irvin on his lap and rubbed circles on either sides of his belly. Over teh days, Irvin's belly had dropped further. the pups had shifted, with at least one crashing into his pelvis making it much more difficult for him to walk. "Toilet break?" Max whispered, nudging his own face against Irvin's pale and sweaty one.
Irvin wouldn't complain about being carried out of the cabin, he actually liked feeling the cool air of the sea on his face in comparison to the stuffiness of the cabin. He had two sort of nests set up on the boat, on on the deck against the half wall of the cabin and the other on the cabin bed, it was those places that were where he liked to be most. The human kept up a healthy food intake, he maybe even gained more weight as he laid there in the nests the selkie had helped him create than when he was in the village.
He tried his best to keep his spirits up for Max but as the birth of their children grew closer the pain wore him down more and more. A whine escaped him as he was lifted up against Max's chest when came down into the cabin with dinner for him, he grimaced even when he was praised so highly. He tried to smile and laid his head against his shoulder, it felt good to have his stomach stroked, it almost soothed his pains when his big belly was held within his lovers palms.
They laid together and he closed his eyes, wanting to try and get some more rest with his selkie rubbing his Jelly so soothingly, his hands warm and touching every part of his belly. He sat with his hips forward to counteract the pressure of the pup pushing right against his pelvis and bladder, his hips felt too narrow to hold all that pressure. His stomach was tightening again and he was moaning again, hand grasping Max's wrist tightly and struggling to nod,Mmhm." He couldn't move, his stomach was too tight.
Max was so strong, he couldn't really feel the weight change of Irvin, but now that he was cupping Irvin's belly, he was beginnning to notice the change. Aside from the drop, it felt like the babies had grown a little bit more. His hips had also grown wider and in general he was gaining a thin layer of fat over that woudl have him prepared for the later large consumption of energy when the pushing starts. Max pressed butterfly kisses on Irvin's cheeks, keeping his hands where Irvin had clutched him, letting the warmth seep through to the again tightening belly.
The contractions never let up and that had made it difficult for Irvin to get any continuous sleep. Max held Irvin as best as he could, controlling his strength and waited for the contraction to die down. The contraction had continued to build up, Irvin was squirming unconsciously and Max cradled him gently. "Shhh keep breathing. Doing good Irvin. you are a very good mommy..."
Max could see Irvin's pupils dilated wtih the pain seizing him, there were mindless whimpers escaping Irvin's pale lips. the selkie looked at him and clutched Irvin closer, holding him and purred with the appreciation he was feeling for the human.
At the first sign of his belly softening, Max straightened up a little and lifted him up. "Good job IRvin, that's another one down." he pressed a kiss on his forehead and made their way towards the toilet, cradling him in his arms waiting for him to recover from it.
Irvin purred weakly with Max's praises and he knew he was doing well even if he didn't feel like he was, he moaned softly as the contraction let up and he was lifted into the air. He wrapped an arm around Max to counteract his weight and grimaced as he was carried from the bed to the small bathroom in the cabin,"It can't be much longer, right?" He asked him weakly, he didn't think he could even push his own pants down, but as he was stood up with Max's help he pushed down the waistband of his pants. Gripping onto his selkie partner and the sink as he sank down onto the toilet with a groan, tucking himself into the bowl,"Give me a minute." He said and let go of Max after he sat down, his hands going to rest on his tight belly, as he breathed slowly in and out, leaning his head back. It had only been a few moments since his last contraction and he struggled with the pain as it grew again and he groaned. It was faster now that he was up and moving about and he couldn't do anything but deal with it as the firm flesh contracted beneath his palm. "Oh god." He complained and pressed his face against the nearest wall, gripping the toilet roll and moaning, it felt like it was really coming this time. Though in the back of his mind he knew it just might be a bad contraction, he had a few of those before. Just like he thought, the pain passed and he was left panting, sweating as he held the toilet roll,"They hurt so bad, Max." He complained finally, he felt like he was at a breaking point, he just wanted their children to come already. He was sick of the pain.
This marathon of labor had gone on a few days, but the selkie had no way of telling if they were closer to the midpoint or the end point. It was said that when the time really came the carrier would have the urge to push, but so far it had been more pain than anything.
The selkie noted the deterioration of Irvin's condition. He nudged close when he lowered him onto the bowl and took a small step back letting Irvin finish his business - only to find him shruggling through another horrible round of pain. Visibly the belly was squeezing into itself in a deathly grip. Even Irvin's thighs were trembling from the pain and Max was feeling exceedignly sorry for him. His mate was shruggling so bad because of their babies... and now he started disliking the fact that he had gotten Irvin pregnant in the first place.
Max wrapped Irvin up in his arms and he was finding his visual blurring with the tears building. "I'm so sorry Irvin..." he muttered in his broken voice, desperately trying to make the human feel better but his hands were tied.
The contractions peaked judging by the whimper of Irivn, leaving the human panting. Max sincerely hope this would be the turning point where Irvin's body was becoming ready, and his inner cavity could finally prepare for the dilation and pushing of the babies.
Irvin looked down when he felt Max kneel before him and embrace him in his big arms, though even with how long his partners arms were his belly still made the reach hard. He rested his hands in the others thick curls of hair and he shook his head at the apology, leaning down just a bit to kiss his head softly,"Don't be sorry, Max." He replied and he held his face to his chest, he didn't blame him for anything. He didn't blame anyone for what he was going through, he just wanted it to end already, his labor was no ones fault but natures and even then it was a weak argument.
It was possibly because he was human that it was taking so long for his body to prepare, the babies would be well sized and he was just a simple human man who wasn't even made for birth. Yet here he was, struggling to bring their children into the world, he sat with Max and did his business in the bathroom before he was letting Max stand him up again after cleaning himself off. The week of painful contractions were coming to an end and he almost thought they might make it to the island for him to give birth on solid ground. Until he felt it, the strongest urge he had ever felt in his entire life, it was like his body was overwhelmed with animalistic instinct and he could barely remember how to speak. "Water-" He blinked and he turned his head to Max quickly, his hands supporting his gravid belly,"I need a tub or- or... Something-Ngh..." Irvin moved his hands to grasp the bedsheets, trying to push himself up to his feet but he couldn't, he was too heavy and with the pain that soon assaulted him he was paralyzed there on the bed. Screaming when a true contraction tore through him, the previous pains he had been through were like thunder in a storm and lightening was what he was feeling now.
"Max! Water!" He didn't know why he needed it, his body was just screaming at him for some big body of liquid, he needed to submerge himself in it. He thought he might die if he couldn't get what he wanted, and luckily enough the ship had a wooden tub just big enough for the heavily pregnant human.
The selkie didn't know exactly what Irvin was asking for - he hadn't experienced any births on ground, and although it was said selkies needed to be born inw ater to gain their natural power, he thought they'd made it to somewhere with water - not right now... . and juding by the desperate whimper of Irvin, he knew that this probably would be the time.
He nodded at Irvin but didn't make a move - then there was a contraction and Irvin was screaming. He didn't feel like he could move away from his mate. "Ok, ok breath!" he said, looking around scanning through things. Seawater might be better for the babies... but for the human salt water could hurt a lot if there was any internal tears or cuts. There were a million thoughts rushing through his head but he didn't make a move on any one of them.
"Irvin s-stay calm ok!i'm fixing the water for yoU!" he said holding and his legs were trembling in his extreme anxiety. "I'll make it.. stay here ok!" he didn't know why he was saying that, but he was getting rather panicky. He rushed tot he tub and pushed it towards the hose where water was drawn directly from the sea. He had decided on that - they wouldn't have enough freshwater, they would need to save that up for water that Irvin need to stay hydrated.
"You are going to be fine Irvn...." he returned to the cabin seeing Irvin curling into his sides on the bed, seemingly unable to move yet in such agony. "We are heading to water..." he lifted him up. There was no heating, but Irivn himself was burning up, that shouldn't be a problem.
The human man did his best to breathe but his body felt like it was being ripped apart from his belly outwards, he sobbed as he gripped the wooden rails that made up the headboard. His belly was tight and the sheets between his legs were soaked with birthing fluids within moments of his water breaking, he buried his face into his arm. Panting weakly as he tried not to let the pain take over his mind, but every one of his senses were screaming at him to push out their pups. But he needed water, he was struggling to contain himself, his belly wobbling above him with each heaving breath he took in,"Max..." He whined, he couldn't move from his position, not without help, he was weighed down and every part of him ached, he wanted his mate. But in the back of his mind he knew he needed to be away from him briefly to actually help.
Irvin groaned, he was paralyzed with agony, only able to lay limp in Max's arms as he was lifted up so easily still, his body trembling as he groaned. The contractions wouldn't let up, they were less of contractions and more of just constant intense pressure that forced its way through his hips. He felt like he was dying, his vision blurred with tears and he only felt relief as he was laid gently in the cold sea water, he gasped in a breath. Panting and gripping his belly, rubbing every inch the tight ball of flesh as he sunk into the water, the top of his belly and his head still poking out of the clear water. His eyes were shut and he leaned against the edge of the tub, moaning when he felt like he could finally push, bearing down on their first pup.
Max ran around the cabin, looking for something and nothing at the same time. he wanted to find something to help Irvin, but nothing on board seemed to be helpful. He heard the scream and rushed back to Irvin, seeing the omega in his first proper push after the week of agony.
"Irvin..." he squatted down in front of Irvin, covering his hand that was gripping so tightly on the edge. His knuckles went white and Max was watching nervously as the human's face scrunched up at the intensity of everything. He watched, muttered encouraging words, and couln't help with the rising panic in his heart. this would be it... their pups. finally.
He knelt down to raise himself up higher for a sneak peek into the water - nothing yet. He contented himself staying there, pressed a kiss distractedly at Irvin's messy mob of hair, and watched some more when the human suddenly let go of the push and panted.
"G-good job Irvin, that's p-pretty good." Max staggered watching the exhaustion that was written all over Irvin's face. He rubbed his neck against Irvin's neck as customary for seals, showing his affection.