Chapter 67: Show off
Eris blinked as he went down on his knees beside Azure. "Huh? How did it happen? When did it happen? How come I didn’t know?"
"It just happened," Azure said. "Besides, she’s our mate. So it’s natural for it to happen, isn’t it?"
Eris blinked some more. "I can’t believe the nerdy Azure did it before me..." He bit his lower lip.
Azure continued, "...She needs some rest. So I think we should let her get some rest..." He ran his hands through her stomach. "She needs a lot of it.. she’s been working so hard..."
Karl blinked. "No wonder you were being so nice to her. She’s actually carrying your cub."
"That’s a good thing then, right?" Luka stared at them.
"It’s definitely a joyous thing!" one of the women exclaimed with a smile. "It certainly calls for a celebration!"
Another said, "Right now she’s so weak and tired, probably. So I think she needs to take some soup that will help. I know the right one."
Another agreed. "Yes! It’s a local soup we know that will help her body calm down. We’ll certainly make it."
Azure asked, "Is it safe for her to take? Are you sure nothing will happen to her if she takes it?" He was being cautious.
Karl and Eris stared at Azure while shaking their heads.
"Look at him being so responsible and showing it off..." Karl said.
"He’s definitely doing it on purpose..." Eris bit his lower lip.
"She’ll be okay, right?" Little Black asked, worried.
Zuna smiled. "Don’t worry. She’ll be fine. She’s so strong; this is nothing. Besides, you should be happy. She’s going to give you a nephew or a niece!"
Little Black pouted. "Is that so?"
"Then we’ll be fathers too?" Luka asked.
Eris shrugged. "I guess you can say that too. But I doubt Azure will share," he cast him a judging look.
The women had set off to make use of the pot in preparing the soup. It was a simple soup, and its ingredients were easy to get, so they took their time gathering them.
The rest stayed in there, watching over Sunnie who was still unconscious.
Azure didn’t leave her side. He knelt there, running his hands through her hair while making sure she was doing fine.
He also felt her stomach from time to time.
Karl simply sighed at such a scene. "What a show-off."
The women soon arrived with the soup. Azure insisted on tasting it first, and when he had done so, he proceeded to feed it to Sunnie himself.
They all watched as he fed her all the soup. And when he was done, he felt her forehead, chest, and stomach again.
"How’s she doing?" Little Black asked.
"Fine," Azure nodded.
The women said, "I think it’s time we wash her up with the medication from our homeland."
Another nodded. "Yes. Let’s take care of her from here so she can calm down."
Azure was worried. "Will that be okay? What if something happens to her?"
One of the women smiled. "We understand your worry, but don’t worry at all. She’ll be fine in our care. We might not have had cubs of our own, but we’ve taken care of a lot of women in this state."
Another nodded. "Yes. And we’re quite experienced in it. So you all should step outside and let us handle it."
"Yes. We’re women after all. You men certainly know nothing," another teased.
Eris nodded at Azure. "I think they have a point. Stop worrying about her and leave it to them. They’ll take good care of her."
Azure hesitated and then nodded. "Okay. Remember to call us if anything comes up. Okay?"
The women smiled. "Don’t worry. Rest assured."
Azure and the rest soon began leaving the cave. And with the four women left, they shared the duties to begin the work of taking care of Sunnie.
Two had stepped out to get the water ready. They boiled some water with some local leafy medication and then added some more stuff into it.
While they were doing so, two were inside massaging Sunnie and getting her ready for the cleaning.
The two other women soon arrived with the water, and they used it to slowly clean Sunnie’s body up. They rubbed it against her while soothing her as she lay unconscious.
They did that while the others stood outside, waiting for news or something.
Eris walked to Azure and asked, "So...? When did it happen? Let me in."
Azure stared at him. "It just did."
Eris blinked. "You... You’re hiding stuff from me now." He sighed. "Okay then." He turned and walked off as they sat around, waiting for something.
---
The women were done with Sunnie while she slept peacefully. She had slept unconscious all night without waking up.
But at least she was breathing, so everyone was at ease.
They prepared the soup for Sunnie that night as Azure, who was sitting by her side, fed her. Everyone else ate the chicken soup Zuna warmed up for them all.
They gathered around Sunnie, watching her sleep and waiting for her to wake up while passing time. But it was already getting late, and she still wasn’t awake. They all began sleeping off.
Soon, everyone had slept off except Azure, who was sitting beside her.
He stared at her while she slept, running his hands over her forehead from time to time to check on her, covering her up properly with the animal skin clothing. He even listened to her stomach from time to time to see if anything could be heard.
Azure stood there quietly and calmly without saying anything, staring at Sunnie as though he was calm.
But Azure was panicking inside, worried about the cub and if it was doing okay inside. If it was having some issues or needed anything he could potentially provide.
He worried about all these calmly without letting anyone know. It was his first time having a cub and feeling this way, so he was extremely anxious about the cub inside her and if anything was wrong with it.