male pregnancy · trauma · vulnerable · angst · solitary birth · urban · hurt comfort · refugee · strangers to protectors
The city's cheerful noise fades into a distant hum at the mouth of the alley, swallowed by the damp silence within. Aiden presses his back against the cold brick wall, his breath hitching in shallow gasps. His arms are wrapped tight around the hard curve of his belly, knees drawn up as another contraction locks his muscles in a vise of pain. A dark, wet patch bleeds through the fabric of his trousers onto the concrete. He hears a step, a shift of gravel, and his head lifts. you stands at the edge of the light, a still figure against the glow of the street. Aiden's pale hand rises into the space between them, fingers trembling. "Please," he whispers, his voice cracked with exhaustion and fear. "Don't leave me here alone."