Get Some Tail

The day wasn't too warm. Tai hadn't really picked it specifically for that; the pleasant weather was just a bonus. He walked with his jacket tied around his waist and a backpack on one shoulder, crossing the street and heading out toward the wilderness. He'd been feeling needy lately, and with little else to occupy him, he may as well do something about it.

Birds flitted overhead as he walked, settling in the trees and on telephone wires. He reached the end of the cul-de-sac where the bus had dropped him off and then he circled around the barrier indicating it was off limits to vehicles. From there, a gravel path meandered down a small hill and then disappeared into a vague, wandering line through scrub and squat trees until it hit a taller, thicker forest maybe a half mile away. Tai followed the gravel, shoes crunching, and then continued on as the path sunk into the soft detritus of an old forest.

Eventually, even that path wasn't really a path anymore. It spread between the trees simply because nothing else could grow besides clumps of ferns and bushes where the branches of the tall cedars and pines thinned. Tai still wandered along through the trees, picking his way around large rocks, fallen logs and decaying stumps. He climbed a short hill, then back down the other side and around a swathe of blackberry bushes and salal, toward the low sound of water.

What he was looking for was a creature. Not really an animal, not as far as he could tell, but also not really anything close to human. The creatures didn't talk, or at least didn't respond to English, nor did they seem to pick up much on body language. Tai wasn't even sure they were sapient, not that it mattered. What mattered was what they did.

And what they did was lay eggs.

The trees dwindled as Tai made his way closer to the sound of the small creek, and the soft ground grew darker with moisture and less spongy, rockier. He stepped over a wad of roots and climbed down closer to the water, still a good six feet from the stream bed.

So, he'd found the water. Now all he needed to do was find one of those alien jellyfish.

The creek went for miles, probably ending up in another river at one end, and no doubt coming from the mountains or a lake or something at the other, so if one of those things wasn't nearby, he doubted he'd find it at all. He resigned himself to a long search and started by following the creek toward its origin. The water being skinny enough to jump across helped a little; if some half-dead bush or fallen tree blocked his path, he could just skip over to the other side instead of climbing back up and around, though he still had to scramble up the bank occasionally when more lively foliage draped into his path and obscured an easy way forward.

He'd climbed up the squat ridge where the water eroded away in winter, then hung onto a tree branch so he could scoot back down on the other side of a layer of blackberry bushes clinging to the side of the oak. The branch, however, didn't like the extra pressure, cracking and then snapping and throwing Tai's balance off. His foot caught, and he slid down, smacking his knee and hip and coming to a halt just above the water line.

Rubbing his leg, he grumbled and flicked the stick away, mumbling "fucker" under his breath.

Then again, he probably shouldn't be too mad. He might have missed the shape on the other side of the water if he'd been standing. It looked sort of like what might result from a jellyfish fucking an octopus; it was pretty big, and a little translucent. It blended into the moss and leaves with its sort of blueish-green coloration and its vaguely shiny skin.

"Huh," he said. "That was easier than I thought."

He got up and dusted his hands off, picked up his backpack, and took a run up to jump the water. The creature didn't move, though Tai didn't really expect it to. However they managed to get from one place to another, they probably did it slow, like starfish, which meant he didn't need to worry much about scaring it off.

He swung his bag down in a practiced motion, unzipping it and pulling out his rolled up towels. One he spread on the ground a few feet away from the gelatinous body. He knelt alongside his backpack and took off his shirt and binder- the latter with slight hesitation. But he didn't have to pay attention to that right now. Instead, he tucked his second towel around himself and finished undressing, stuffing his clothes into his bag and leaving it next to him as he sat down and faced the creature.

He'd done this before, once. Let one of these creatures fuck him and then shove its eggs into his womb. That first time had been a surprise in more ways than one, but the mess of it had left him honestly wanting to try again, wanting to have it happen a bit more on his terms. Not that he could control much but coming back in the first place. This time, though, he wanted it.

So here he was, clad in only a towel, sitting on the bank of a creek and waiting for what was probably an alien to fuck him and stuff him full of its eggs. It was crazy, of course. What idiot would knowingly get himself knocked up by some random octopus-jellyfish?

Tai, that's who.

He didn't know how long it would take for the creature to get curious, or if it even would at all, so Tai lay down, crossing his leg over his other knee and using his bag as a pillow. The ground was a little cool, but the towels helped protect from it some, and the sun was still warm despite being only mottled along the ground where it managed to pierce the canopy. Really, more than a couple hours of waiting, or getting to the point where he got hungry was about what Tai was willing to give. Not that he didn't want to wait for as long as it took, but he also didn't want it to get dark before the creature decided to explore.

Tai hummed to himself and tapped the rhythm of the song on his stomach, closing his eyes. He could have brought a book, probably, or his old mp3 player or something, just to keep himself busy. He could, he supposed, also mess with his phone, but it was already low on battery and he didn't want it to die in case he needed to call an Uber or something. So he lay and tried to imagine himself onstage or with a band, though that was unlikely; he liked music, but his singing and playing left a lot to be desired.

Just as he was about to turn on his side, he felt a tentative, lukewarm touch on his foot. It surprised him, and he forced himself not to kick it away as he sat up and glanced down to see what it was. And what it was, was a tentacle. The finger-sized appendage was smooth and translucent, the color of watered-down blue jell-o but less shiny. It tapped his foot, then slid over it, feeling its way halfway up his shin before it seemed unable to climb higher, and then worked its way down to the ground again. But it didn't give up- it inched along the towel, its tip searching this way and that as it edged closer to Tai. He still wondered how it found what it was looking for, but figured it was just warmth or maybe a smell somehow, since that was how most other animals picked homes or whichever.

He followed the line of it with his eyes, spotting another two tentacles coming after it. They slithered outward from the body that Tai could see in the undergrowth, near but not in the water. It sat on the bank, its color darker under the shade of the leaves, and its body gently moving like it was breathing, in, and out.

The first tentacle perused Tai's thigh as the two- no, three? others came closer. Tai carefully moved his other leg, unbending it and moving so that he sat with them spread in a V, around the first and now second tentacles.

"Four, huh?" he said to himself, looking back to the pulsing creature. Two of the appendages led back and under what looked like a gelatinous skirt low on the main body, closest to Tai. The others seemed to come from different sections of it, or maybe the other side. He almost wanted to get up and go examine it, but the new tentacle distracted him by sliding along his inner thigh.

The two tentacles explored him individually, one slinking its way over his hip outside the towel, the other prodding gently underneath, between the fold of his leg and torso. He loosened his grip on the towel slightly, allowing the first tentacle a bit more room to snake beneath it while the additional limbs followed suit.

Tai squirmed, the tip of one easing against him, teasing, prodding carefully against his dampening folds. Whether it was the warmth or the closed space or the dampness, he didn't know, but the first entered him, wiggling its way inside.

One of the others followed after a moment, sliding in alongside its counterpart. The remaining ones explored a moment more, but then one slipped down next to the others and after a short deliberation, joined them. The last explored further; Tai finally leaned back on his elbows, cocking his knees to spread himself wider, and that allowed it a tentative probe at Tai's ass.

"Nnh," he mumbled, reaching for it. It pressed into him and he bore down against the pinch- it wasn't bad because it was small, but unlubed, it wasn't the best sensation. He tried to grasp it as it forced its way in, but by the time he got a grip, he didn't have the leverage to tug it back out. It snaked deeper, the flesh between it and its brethren in his slit rubbed deliciously with their movement. Tai let go, lifting himself up with his toes, and groaned.

At first, it felt like some small, finger-sized toy to Tai, soft and malleable but strong, with a slight mind of its own. Three of them were no trouble, not even stretching him, and the fourth in his ass wiggled deeper without help, squirming against his insides.

"Wow," he breathed, letting his head fall back. "That's like… fuck, two more of you an' I'd be set." He bucked against the wriggling appendages inside him, watching as more and more of their length slithered into him, filling him, sliding against his walls and tensing against his muscles.

He flexed, squeezing his hips just a little, and they jostled, stuffing him even fuller, enough that he caught a breath. It felt damn good; he rocked his hips against them and they pushed back against the sensation, making him tingle. "Mmn."

They wormed around in him, sliding against each other, further in, until Tai felt like he couldn't fit any more. He rolled his hips, trying anyway, trying to get them to fuck him, to make him come, but they stayed where they were. Their barely-warm bodies pulsed; a rush of heat slathered Tai's insides with a gurgle, and Tai shuddered. They'd come in him, slicked him up for the next part.

He didn't even bother glancing down- he knew what was next. He felt more than saw the other, larger tentacle grope its way forward, a brush of it against the side of his foot and the slip of it against the others and his slit, coating itself in his fluid and its own come.

The thing was maybe three times as big as the smaller tentacles, its tip tapered instead of rounded, and a slight bulge several inches below that. Tai, not wanting it to get the wrong idea of where it should go, reached under his propped-up leg to keep it away from his ass and the tentacle that was already there. It didn't fight at all, instead sliding forward to press itself between the other three appendages. They guided it forward and Tai felt the whole of its tip slip in, and then one more slip a few moments later when the small bulge tied them together.

Now all he had to do was-

His fingers brushed the tentacles as he withdrew his hand, passing over another, larger shape. Was that an egg? Tai tilted his head, pushing himself up a little, and in that same moment, felt the stretch. It took him a second to process what was going on; four of the smaller tentacles, one larger one, each and all of them getting ready for their next task. He could see the lumps already having begun to travel down the length of the larger tentacle, a couple feet from him. But then there was another-

The head of the second large tentacle, having felt its way toward Tai and pressed against his slit, pushed its way in alongside the first. Tai gasped, face pinching, and cocked his knees wider without thinking, lifting his hips half to help and half to get away from the sensation.

"What-" he started, but was interrupted by the pop of the head passing around the first tentacle's small bulge, the smaller tentacles retreating somewhat and flattened by the girth of the two ovipositors. "- the fuck-"

Tai's abdominals twitched as he curled up on himself. God, this was-... Wordlessly, mouth hanging, he breathed. The second tentacle slid against the first, slicked with silvery come and Tai's dampness, pushing it deeper. Tai's knees shook. The tentacle curled, then straightened and wiggled. The creature's come oozed, dripping, the first tentacle feeling like its tip would force its way even deeper than Tai could handle… the second tentacle wiggled again, forcing itself in behind the first, its bulge passing beyond Tai's lips, and he came.

Jesus Christ.

He hadn't even had to touch himself and already he felt well-fucked. Blearily, he rode out his orgasm, hips grinding onto the two ovipositors stuffed inside him, the small tentacles still surrounding them. He'd never been this full in his life, and there were still eggs coming!

He blinked, trying to focus on the tentacles, the eggs that he'd seen slowly making their way toward him.

There were not one, but two sets of eggs traveling down the tentacles toward him, and the first of one tentacle's eggs was just inches from his slit. "Uh," he said, dazedly. How was all that supposed to fit? How was one creature doing that?

What if it was two?

Tai let himself fall to his back again, the slight pressure of an egg now fully against his entrance and his mind quickly sobering with realization. What was he supposed to do now? They were stuck in him! What if they couldn't get the eggs in?

What if they could?

The pressure increased, and Tai forced himself back up so he could watch the eggs. Each of them only looked about as big as his fist, and the first was already trying to slip into him. He couldn't quite focus enough to study0 the creature those few feet away, but it didn't really matter. Now, it was all about what was right in front of him.

Tentatively, he bore down. The first egg pushed forward, but it didn't get far, his entrance too stuffed with tentacle for it to fit. Another was already coming up behind it, not to mention the other set of eggs alongside the first, but that one didn't quite make it. Again, Tai bore down, and again the egg moved forward, but nothing. Slowly, the gaps between the eggs started to lessen, and soon each tentacle was a long, evenly lumpy line. The second tentacle still had a bit of empty space between Tai and its eggs, the room taken up by the first tentacle and the start of its clutch.

And then came a push, and the first egg, forced on by its siblings, breached Tai and slipped in a rush into his entrance. The small tentacles withdrew to give it space, and then curled and pushed against the body of the larger, forcing the egg toward its tip.

But as they did that, the other tentacle tried its hand at competing with the first. Each of them pulsed with a rhythm that Tai couldn't quite get, too busy being overwhelmed. He sank back down to lay, knees spread wide around the mass of eggs and tentacles between his legs, and closed his eyes. The first egg started something, and quickly after it came a second; Tai couldn't tell which was which without looking, and instead just felt the way the first egg slid deep within him, followed by the second, and then the slight stretch as one tentacle drew back a hair and forced the broad end of the egg against his cervix.

Slip.

It slid deep inside him, followed moments later by a second slipping sensation, the eggs pushed beyond his cervix with the help of the ovipositors' quick thrusts, and then, with yet more pressure, he felt the shape of another egg fill him, followed closely by a second.

Each small thrust tugged at him, each egg filling him more than the tentacles that had lodged inside him. The appendage in his ass thrust with the passing of each egg, drawing out to give it space and sliding back in, slick with its silvery fluid, the flesh between it and the other tentacles flickering with sensation.

It wasn't quite an even rhythm. One egg sometimes slid in faster than another, or didn't slide in at all, the tentacles mindlessly shoving them forward. But eventually, one pushed at the right time, the other pushing after, and each helping the others' eggs forward.

Tai opened his eyes eventually, tilting his head against his chest to see his belly already beginning to expand with the weight of the clutches as they settled in his womb. He followed the lines of the tentacles; each was distended with their eggs from where they pressed against him to the creatures themselves. Not only that, but Tai hadn't been counting. How many eggs had already disappeared into him?

He let one knee fall, got an elbow underneath himself and turned on his side with his other leg still angled to keep him spread. The shift forced the eggs into him, slip, slip, making room for more, and the tentacles obliged, one egg pressing and pushing in to fill Tai while another followed behind, forced by the creature and its other broodmates.

Thrust… thrust… the smaller tentacles worked the eggs to the tips of the ovipositors, and then- thrust, thrust- they slipped inside him, his womb stretching to accommodate and his belly round with spawn.

Thrust, slip, thrust, thrust, slip-

Tai shook. He gripped his towel, gripped his belly. Felt the shape of an egg beneath his hand.

Thrust… slip, thrust…

Tai came, knees shaking, belly clenching against the fullness within. His muscles spasmed and two more eggs pushed their way in. He tried to breathe but everything fuzzed white, exploded behind his eyes, and each little movement caused another shockwave. Sweating, openmouthed and panting, Tai cried out in his mind for two seconds' relief from the sensation, dropping his knees and squeezing them shut.

In those moments, too overstimulated and distracted, Tai failed to notice the tentacles exploring the warmth of the back of his neck and head. They slithered along, attracted by who knew what, and paused momentarily as Tai breathed against the ground, and against them.

The creatures continued to push, but with the sudden weight of Tai's legs pushing back against them, the eggs didn't manage to slide forward. Tai kept breathing, shuddering, and reached to readjust the towel he'd let go of, trying to drape it over himself without moving much, and without opening his eyes, so the spots behind them would go away.

For a moment, his mind registered the scent of kelp. And then he felt lukewarm, rubbery shapes on his tongue, slightly salty and algae-ish, and he jerked back, blinking. The two smaller tentacles curled, one slipping just under his tongue, the other next to his teeth on the inside of his cheek. The third and largest tentacle- barely larger than the other two- had curled around one of the others, and it snaked higher, its tip brushing Tai's lips.

The surprise had him scrabbling up, trying to get sitting, but as he opened his legs, the creatures pushed their eggs, and two slipped into him. He curled into himself, reflexively biting at the two tentacles invading his mouth, but their flesh was thick and rubbery and his quick bite did nothing more than make one wiggle while the larger of the tentacles prodded at his lips to gain entry.

"Hn-mm," Tai mumbled, curling his lips around the tentacles worming their way into his mouth. They weren't slimy, but they didn't have much texture to them, which let them poke and stretch beyond his teeth; his effort didn't help, nor did a shaky grip on them to try and tug them free. Drawing his head back didn't help either- he got distracted by the simultaneous entry of two more eggs into his womb and their replacement with yet more- and the large tentacle still probed, its task eased by the spaces left between the two other tentacles. Honestly, Tai wasn't sure which was worse, the tentacles staying in his mouth, or what might happen if he tried to bite them.

He didn't have to find out about the latter. The tentacles working their eggs into him kept up their pace, filling him with them one after another and his belly slowly showing the signs of their clutches within. No longer did Tai have only some belly fat to deal with; his stomach lay in front of him, impregnated with the creatures' spawn, rounded so that the towel was already having trouble covering it.

Two eggs slipped into his womb, then two more almost immediately, and Tai couldn't help but groan.

And then the tentacles in his mouth pressed deeper. He felt them pulse, and suddenly his mouth filled with hot, silvery slime, sticky and weirdly sweet-salty. Tai nearly choked, but closed his mouth around the tentacles as best he could and swallowed, a dribble of the come dripping to the ground. He coughed once, and then again, trying to clear the thick taste from his tongue, but his open mouth was all the last tentacle needed.

Its tip slipped in, lubricated by its own come, and pushed deeper, past Tai's teeth and further. The small bulge on the tentacle, too, slipped easily past Tai's lips despite the pressure he put on it, and when he tried to tilt his head away, he found it stuck, just like the rest of him. Trying to pull on it only caused it to thrust further in, helped into place by the smaller appendages alongside it. Breathing through his nose, he turned more onto his side, legs cocked wide.

Slip, slip.

Thrust, thrust.

His belly grew, full and heavy of what must be a couple dozen eggs. He hadn't kept track, not at all, but the creature- no, it had to be creatures- in the underbrush kept going. Their long tentacles still held the shapes of more eggs, and Tai couldn't tell if the number was dwindling, or even if the creatures had gotten smaller.

He followed the tentacle in his mouth with his eyes, down over his shoulder and to the water where it disappeared into the burbling river.

Huh, he thought in a daze, as four more eggs filled him, jostling the multitude of others in his womb, so they do live in water.

And then he saw more.

These oval shapes were smaller, closer to the size of chicken eggs. Of course they were; the tentacles were smaller, so maybe it was a smaller creature. Younger, maybe? Or just… smaller.

Tai forced himself to breathe, to pay attention to the tentacle in his mouth rather than the ones working the rest of him, but it was so hard to concentrate against the feeling of those eggs, the thrusting of the ovipositors against his cervix and the wiggle of the smaller appendages. Thankfully, he could at least still breathe at all; the tentacles in his mouth hadn't decided to try and delve any deeper, keeping Tai from gagging around them.

He shuddered as more eggs slipped into him, the outer shape of his belly shifting and ballooning as they clamored to fill whatever space they could manage with their oval shapes.

An egg pressed against his mouth. He crossed his eyes to look at it, reflexively pursing his lips against the feeling. The smaller tentacles retreated on either side of the larger, and then it pressed again as the smaller creature tried to impregnate him just like the others. For a moment, he wondered if the eggs would stay in him, or what would happen if they did.

Tai opened his mouth.

The egg slipped in past his lips and teeth and he felt the shape of it within the ovipositor, similar to the bulge at its base. He pressed his tongue up under it, but the smaller tentacles took over, curling under it and pushing it to the tip. The sensation was like choking for a moment; Tai breathed half a breath, then the egg hit the back of his mouth and he swallowed, its rubbery shape deforming, sliding out of the tip and down his throat. He swallowed again reflexively, but the egg was already gone, squeezed down and down into his belly.

And then it was just eggs.

His womb expanded with each new oval thrust into it, belly long-stretched into roundness and continuing to grow. Slip, slip, went each set of eggs, with each thrust, thrust of the two fat tentacles working inside him.

Thrust, thrust. The smaller tentacles wiggled in and out and brought Tai to the edge of orgasm.

Slip, slip, went the eggs. The tentacle in his ass tickled just the right spot, and Tai saw stars.

He breathed around the tentacles in his mouth, clamping his lips and teeth over them as he came, trying to stop them from choking him as his body convulsed. He managed, barely, and breathed through his nose until he thought he could handle it.

He opened his mouth, and an egg pushed onto his tongue. To the back of his throat. He swallowed the rubbery mass, and another took its place.

This one he could force into a rhythm. Another egg. It sat heavy on his tongue. He bit down and swallowed. Breathed. Opened his mouth. The oval passed his lips, and the smaller tentacles pushed it forward.

The larger creatures had slowed; only a few eggs remained for each, their tentacles half-full and no other ovals appearing. Tai's belly, swollen and heavy, pushed out of him like someone had stitched a beach ball to his torso. It strained against the shapes of the eggs cloistered within, and now grew even more as he gulped down yet another clutch, his stomach expanding around them.

He opened his mouth as two more eggs slid into his womb. The smaller egg squelched out as the tentacles pushed it forward, but this time he didn't bite down. Another of the eggs eased beyond his lips. For a moment, he panicked, unable to swallow with the mass holding his mouth open around it. But then the second egg moved just a little more, and he managed to purse his lips around it, pressing with his tongue and finally swallowing the first.

Again, he let the egg be pushed, and another quickly followed. As soon as he could, he closed his mouth around it as well as he was able, which not only allowed him to swallow again, but let it move and another take its place.

Soon, Tai found himself able to swallow each egg after only a half-second's pause, just enough to allow him a quick breath in between.

He felt massive. Not that he was fully paying attention, but he thought he could barely move. It could just be the exhaustion of being worked by… how many was it? Nine tentacles? Dozens of eggs? Or it could be that he couldn't see his feet anymore, under the roundness of his belly.

His stomach, too, felt overfull. It squeezed around the brood within; Tai didn't know what would happen to those eggs, but he was sure he'd find out.

He gulped down four more in quick succession, as another two were deposited in his womb. Feeling a little sick and lightheaded, he swallowed two more anyway.

Slowly, the pressure of new eggs dwindled. One slipped into him, and after several seconds' pause, another. Tai struggled with more of the slick, rubbery spawn stretching his jaw and managed to down another five. The large clutch in his womb expanded. Three more ovals joined the ones sloshing in his stomach.

Another slip, and then with one final thrust, one tentacle's last egg breached him and settled among the clutches. Tai couldn't hum his pleasure at it; instead, he forced himself to swallow three more times, his throat squeezing the spawn rhythmically downward to meet the rest of more than a dozen and a half eggs roiling in his gut. Its job done, the first tentacle tried to ease its way out, but it was trapped by the second and its remaining eggs.

Thrust, slip. Tai swallowed, then swallowed again.

A large egg eased into Tai, and then the smaller tentacles wiggled it against his cervix. His stomach gurgled as three more small spawn squeezed their way into it. He swallowed two more while the larger tentacles sat still within him, one last egg resting at his entrance. Quickly, he glanced down at the smaller tentacle in his mouth and counted each as he swallowed. Five more.

Four.

Three.

Tai gulped them down, his stomach straining, squeezed by the eggs he'd swallowed and the ones pushed into his womb. The last small oval touched the back of his throat, and then it was gone, leaving the empty tentacle resting against Tai's teeth. It retreated quicker than the others, wiggling and pulling back out with a pop, unwinding itself from the smaller tentacle it clung to.

Those smaller ones then curled under Tai's tongue, around it, touching the top of his mouth, and then sliding further back. He schooled his gag reflex as they wormed their way to the back of his mouth, and then that same hot, sticky fluid pulsed from them, coating the back of his throat. He swallowed, then again as each squirm shot more come into his mouth.

One last gush, and a final swallow, and the tentacles seemed satisfied with their seed as it, too, disappeared into Tai's stretched stomach. They drew back and Tai opened his mouth, their slivery-coated lengths plopping to the ground and withdrawing as Tai caught his breath, wincing against the feeling of fullness everywhere and the final press of an egg into the ovipositor still lodged against his cervix.

The tentacles thrust, pushing the egg against his opening and depositing it among the rest. Finally finished, the second fat tentacle decided to tug itself away. It did so slowly, its bulge trapping it for a moment and stretching Tai before it finally popped free; the first tentacle gushed out in nearly the same instant. With little else to do, they retreated, leaving their smaller counterparts to do the rest.

Still in Tai's ass, the lone appendage wound its way deeper. Meanwhile, the others took the route of the larger ones, pressing to the very back of Tai's canal. One after another, they prodded their way inside, forcing their slithery bodies past the dozens of eggs, squirming between them until it felt like Tai was pregnant with not only the eggs but one of the creatures itself.

His belly gurgled as the tentacles tensed, spurts of their come filling the spaces not taken up by the eggs. Each gush felt as if it was another whole shape on its own, the creatures' seed coating Tai's insides and oozing among their spawn, filling Tai to the brim, his massive belly straining with the slight, final expansion.

Tai had little choice but to stay where he was, with the tentacles still firmly squirmed beyond his cervix and their massive clutches pinning him under their weight. The heat of their come slowly ebbed, and with it, they began to move among the eggs again, as if they were turning them, pushing them to be fertilized. Tai, dazed and exhausted as he was, still managed to watch one tentacle as it pressed against the outer wall of his womb, its slithery body sliding along and then disappearing among the shapes of the eggs within.

One by one, the sated tentacles plopped free and retreated, the one in Tai's ass leaving a trail of sticky fluid in its wake and Tai unable to stop the dribble of come as he lay there on his side. He felt as if he could barely breathe, every free space in his body stuffed with those three creatures' spawn.

The mass within him had finally settled, his belly distended beyond a normal- or human at all- pregnancy. Tai ached, shivering with sensation, feeling full and dizzy and sick. He didn't know how many of the creatures' offspring now nestled inside him, but it was far more than he'd have thought his body could manage. His lungs felt small and tight; he could barely get a full breath if he tried, his organs displaced and his stomach feeling like it had been forced up under his ribs. It, too, sat heavy with the twenty or more eggs shoved down his throat.

Aside from all of that, though, he felt sated. Tiny twinges of electricity still jolted through him, the tail ends of orgasm still lingering despite the exhaustion. He lay, barely covered by his skewed towel, not that it could have covered his girth completely anyway, and rubbed the side of his belly, pressing with his knuckles to feel the eggs within.

"Mmn," he mumbled to himself, running the heels of his hands as far as he could reach downward, his fingertips only barely managing to grasp beneath and far from touching each other.

His main problem now, besides getting dressed, was getting home. He had planned, of course, but he hadn't planned for this. Tai tugged his backpack closer, dragging his old clothes from it and adding his extras to the pile.

Pants were the hardest. Trying to sit up made him feel a bit sick, so he used one hand and turned to put one foot through his boxers and the sweatpants he'd brought, then wiggled his way into them. Reluctantly, he packed his binder away with his jeans, though he was tempted to try and stuff himself into it; he doubted it would be anywhere near comfortable with the way he would have to roll it up, unable to stretch the tight material over his belly. With a bit more adjusting, and a quick rest, he managed to at least pull his shirt on, though even this one, the largest he had, barely managed to cover him. As it was, his girth hung a few inches from beneath the hem. But at least he was dressed, even if he was still laying in the middle of a riverbank on a come-stained towel.

One step at a time.

He pushed his arm underneath himself, moving his knee to do the same, and breathed in, then out, and rolled onto his front so he could get all fours on the ground. The clutches, now victims of gravity, sloshed together, making and filling new and old spaces. Tai's belly hung, huge and oval, brushing the ground as he adjusted to the sensation.

"Fucking Christ," he mumbled to himself, slowly moving his hips side to side and allowing the eggs to properly settle. This way, too, he felt less sick, the smaller brood contained in his stomach having eased slightly.

He moved one knee like he was going to crawl, then put one hand on it to lever himself into straightening up, grabbing his bag and towel with the other. Again, the eggs jostled for new positions as they dragged Tai's belly lower. He set his foot flat in front of him and braced against his knee, then heaved himself to stand and nearly fell over before he kicked his other leg out and stopped.

"Ngh. Fuck." Tai backed up enough to lean against the short bank, stuffing the dirty towel in among the rest of his clothes and zipping his bag. That done, he paused to catch his breath and look around. Back the way he'd come, the bank dipped down and gave a bit of an easier walking path, and then it was maybe a ten minute walk to the nearest bus stop.

He glanced up. The sun was low in the sky, but it would still be a few hours before dark. He could try to take the bus home, but at this size and with no help, he'd draw more stares and questions than he was ready to deal with. He could try and stick around a while and wait for dark, but a bus ride even then seemed out of the question. Walking home would take him until dark anyway with how drained he was and imagining the couple miles just made his back hurt.

One Year Later...

"Rue, I want a hot dog," Tai grumbled. Sat in a chair and flicking through his phone, he'd grown bored, and suddenly had a craving.

"We have, um… sausages, dear," Rue replied, from the bedroom.

"I don't want sausages, I want a hot dog," Tai insisted. "The kind where it says 'mechanically separated pork' on the package and the bun is like, fluffy glue, and they're only like two dollars but you get 'em at the stadium for like ten bucks."

"Oh." Rue came out of the bedroom with two decks of Tarot cards in hand. "You mean junk food."

Tai nodded. "The shittiest you got."

Rue sighed, smiling. She glided over to him and bent to press a kiss to his forehead, one which he leaned into. "Shopping, then?"

"I can go, too."

"Are- are you sure?"

"I'm fine, I keep saying."

"I just-"

"I know, but seriously, baby," he said, pushing himself up. "It ain't even that far. An' you said exercise is good for me."

Rue quieted, and from that, Tai knew that he'd won. He patted her hand. "Look, I'll fuckin'... get one of those plug-in carts or something if I get tired. But I'm not tired right now, I wanna go too. And I know you like it better when I do."

He turned, patting her hand again, and went to take his jacket from the hall closet. Rue followed after a moment, shrugging on her own large sweater and slipping her sandals on.

She did offer her arm almost immediately. Tai took it just so she wouldn't fret, but let go so he could slide into the car himself.

The grocery store wasn't particularly busy. It was early evening, the time when most people would be getting home from work and doing anything but shopping, so it was perfect for Rue, who still wasn't too fond of anyone, really. Honestly, Tai wouldn't have minded if she wanted to stay in the car, but she wouldn't let him be on his own anyway and followed meekly in.

While there, not only did they find a package of cheap hot dogs and buns, but Tai suddenly felt like he needed a caesar salad kit and some macaroni and cheese, so he added that to the handbasket. He reached for a box of hamburger helper too, which let him catch a lady staring at him out of the corner of his eye. When he turned, she abruptly moved her cart and went down the next aisle.

He snorted at her. Rude.

By the time he and Rue made it to the checkout, he'd also added a seltzer water to the handbasket, alongside some potato wedges from the deli. He didn't even particularly like deli potatoes, he just wanted them.

Rue, bless her, played along, unquestioning of his purchases.

"Hello!" The cashier greeted them with a smile, her eyes flicking briefly between Tai and Rue, and down, but all that happened was that her smile grew. "How are you today?"

"We're good," Tai said. He rubbed his knuckles into his hip a little, moving out of the way so Rue could pay.

"That's great." The cashier paused. "Sorry, um. I just wanted to say, you look nice. Are you- um- pregnant? I don't want to assume…"

"Oh," Tai said, looking down at himself and his rounded belly. "Uh… yeah. It's, what, twenty-five weeks?"

Rue entered her pin, then glanced up and nodded.

"Aww," the cashier cooed. "Well congratulations. I hope it goes well."

"Um, thanks?"

Tai took the lighter of their two bags, Rue grabbing the other. He absently rubbed the side of his belly and felt one slight movement in response. "It's still weird," he finally said.

"Um, people asking?" Rue asked. "It's- well, it's only been a little since… since they started noticing."

"Well, yeah, but like… in general. Feels like ages, but- aw, man, you're right. They're gonna keep wanting to yammer on about babies for months, huh?"

She chuckled. "Probably."

"Fuck. Maybe this was a bad idea."

"Oh, was it?"

Tai paused. Rue's tone didn't imply anything like regret or concern- she knew Tai wanted this. And Tai knew he wanted it too, he was just…

"It's a little scary," he said, opening the car door. "Like, not this part, this is old hat. But like… what comes after."

He sighed, levering himself into the seat. Rue put her bag in the back and then got in.

"It is," she admitted. "But… I think- it's okay."

"Yeah… even if I'm a fuckup, you'll be a good mom."

"You won't be a fuckup." She reached, brushing his hair back. "You're good just like you are."

"Oh, like this, huh? You just want me knocked up all the time? You know that can be arranged." He smirked.

"Tai- you know what I mean-"

"Yeah, I know, I know." He sat, and slowly ran his hands over his taut belly, watching them and trying to imagine what was beneath, trying to feel the movement of the two little bodies inside.

The drive, like the past several days, was uneventful. And really, they'd landed the perfect time to take a little vacation. The national parks usually kept marked trails fenced in the off season, but with spring having begun, the roads had opened, despite the lack of tourism. They passed five or six before picking one almost totally hidden by a bush to one side- even they had passed it at first and then turned back around. Rue's car wasn't exactly off-road friendly, but she took the dirt track slowly, potholes becoming short dips and washboard gravel at least not rattling their teeth free.

The road ambled along for a couple miles, thick underbrush and moss hiding the bases of the trees. The forest wasn't thick enough to blot out light, but it wasn't thin enough to angle a car in between the trunks; mottled sunlight bathed the ground before them.

The trees thinned a few minutes later and Rue slowed, pulling as far off the road as she could. Tai looked up from the map he was consulting on his phone and rolled down his window.

"I think there's a river. It says there's a bridge, too." He quieted, listening. "Sounds like something, anyhow."

"I think… we're as close as- as we can get," Rue agreed. "Stay here."

She got out of the car, hitching up her skirt so it would 't get caught on any of the underbrush. Thankfully, it looked like all the smaller plants remained flatter to the ground, because Rue walked along without much trouble. She made her way closer to the noise as far as Tai could tell, and stopped probably twenty feet away to turn back.

"The- the river is high. But it has a… a bank." She gestured with her hand, drawing a flat plane that dropped and then curved downward.

"So here's good?" Tai asked, opening his door to get out.

"I think so. I… think it's the best we can do."

Tai nodded. Anything, probably, was worse. He trusted Rue's judgment anyhow. And parked this close, they didn't really even have to worry about hiking anywhere. "I wanna stick the tent poles together."

They ended up taking quite a few breaks, the brood's movement quickly sapping Tai's energy so that Rue had to do most of the arranging. Using the tent for storage rather than sleeping made much more sense once they'd emptied out the back of the car, too.  The seats in Rue's old hatchback folded flat once their supplies were gone, and with the driver's and passenger's seats pushed all the way forward there was enough space for even Rue to stretch out, and she was taller than Tai by almost six inches. Tai did have to take a bit of effort to climb into it, but with a few pieces of foam arranged inside, sleeping bags and pillows for both her and Tai, it was damn near homey.

That, and neither of them begrudged the warmth of lying next to each other, Rue's arm slid over Tai's middle, undisturbed save for the fluttery movements within.

Everything was so simple. Or seemed that way.

The second evening of their woodland stay had Tai in a bit of pain. The car was definitely better than the ground, but it was nothing like the bed back at the apartment. He did get sleep eventually, but the seats squeaked when he moved, and while the river in the background kept up some white noise, the otherwise resounding quiet gnawed at him as much as any sound would have. So the lack of sleep put him in a sour mood, and the stiffness didn't do him any better. All he ended up being was antsy.

His back hurt, his legs hurt, and his belly hung heavy so that he felt like he needed to support it with one or both hands. He paced, digging his knuckles into the brood, leaning against a tree every so often so he might try and get the eggs to change position in a more comfortable way than they were trying to do on their own. They gurgled and sloshed in his womb, wiggling against each other, pressing into his hips and making him desperate for any sort of relief, but the most he could get was just trying to sleep.

He'd crawled into the car early in the evening, before their fire had even burned low. Rue stayed out with it as the sky darkened, and a few hours later, Tai felt the dip of her weight crawling in beside him.

"M'not asleep," he mumbled, having spent the last little while rubbing at the underside of his belly and the achy, tired muscles.

"I- I didn't wake you up?" Rue asked, finding his hip with her hand.

"Didn't even sleep."

"Maybe we- we should have brought some, um. Some sleep aid." Rue patted his hip and lay down at his back so she could rub with her knuckles.

"I dunno," he replied, closing his eyes and continuing to massage. "Would that even help? They won't shut the hell up."

In response, a few of the eggs wiggled, which wiggled most of the rest, and the whole brood shifted against each other. Tai bit the inside of his cheek as his muscles reacted, squeezing at them. "Ouch, goddamn it."

"O-oh dear," Rue murmured, reaching back over to rub with the heel of her palm too. "At least try."

"Been," Tai grumped. But there was little else to do but try and sate his tiredness. He closed his eyes and concentrated on Rue's gentle rubbing over his belly and the brood.

Tai woke to pain. He opened his eyes and briefly wondered if he had, in fact, opened his eyes. It was deeply dark out, the moon hidden by clouds and trees, and nothing but the small red indicator light of Rue's in-car phone charger.

Rue's arm had settled across his middle, her fingers curled against the waiting eggs, and Tai lay still, only his eyes shifting to glance at the blackness outside the window. His hips hurt, as did his back, but the eggs were strangely quiet for all the squirming they'd done the day before. Every so often Tai felt a small movement, but no more, like they were asleep, or like they were waiting.

And yet, something felt different. He felt heavier, as if the whole brood was pulling on him even as he lay with his belly propped on pillows and blankets. He felt like he had to pee.

He moved a little, shrugging Rue's arm off, and reached for the car door. In order to get out that way, he had to turn feet first and then slide sideways a little and push himself to his feet. It was a bit of an ordeal, but he managed it, although the squeak and movement of the whole car stirred Rue.

"Tai?" she mumbled.

"Uh-huh," he said back. "Bathroom."

"Mm. If you-"

"I'm okay. Won't go ten feet."

Rue didn't reply, which was good enough for him. He eased the door closed and leaned on it until he heard it click, then stayed for a bit longer. When he'd stood up properly, the eggs had shifted again to sit low in him. His hips protested the change, as did most of the rest of him, and as he pushed himself away from the car, he dug his knuckles into his side to try and focus on something else.

It wasn't until the next slow bleed of pain that he realized what was happening. He'd taken a slow and waddling walk around to the other side of the car, leaned against a tree to give himself a short rest, then used the flashlight on his phone to illuminate the path that led closer to the water. As the sound of the river gurgling over the rocks became louder, a wash of pain oozed from Tai's hips and under his belly, spreading across the entirety of his torso and squeezing. It didn't knock the wind from him, but it did startle him into stopping, both hands cupped over the throb. Somewhere inside him, an egg jostled, and a pressure pulled at him.

"...Fuck," he muttered. A quick look at his phone told him the sun wouldn't be up for hours yet- it was barely one in the morning. Which meant the birth was happening now, and it was happening in the dark.

It took him several long minutes to return to the car. He had to stop three times- once to ride out the pain, then once to rest his back, then another so that he wouldn't crumple from the ache.

Yet another wave- a contraction, he was sure, nothing else felt like that- hit him so that he had to lean against the car and wait for it to be over. There was a constant burn in his hips now; he felt like if he had to walk, it would be slow and cumbersome, the waddle more pronounced as he subconsciously widened his stance.

He opened the car door. "Rue."

She let out a long sigh, tucked warmly into her sleeping bag. Tai almost felt loathe to wake her, but he didn't want to be alone, not out here and not like this. "Rue," he said again, louder. "Hey, Rue I- need help."

The prodding made her shift, and as she woke up, another contraction hit, stealing Tai's words for several moments.

"Tai, what is it?"

"Nnh," he replied around a breath, and he couldn't really see her that well, but with that, she moved, rustling about.

"Oh dear. Tai, um. Is it...?"

"Hurts pretty bad," he said, once the squeeze died down.

"Is it- you're starting?"

Tai nodded. Or at least, he thought so. The overwhelming urge to push hadn't come yet; he was just restless and hurting, his hips feeling full and heavy. Rue shuffled around some more and Tai could see more of an outline now as she pulled on her coat and opened the door to climb out.

She pulled Tai's sleeping bag free and wadded it up, then dug in the front seat to get him his hoodie and another blanket. Tai watched, his gaze interrupted for several moments as another squeeze overtook him.

"Should- should we go to the water? Or do you- should we stay here?" Rue came up beside him and draped his hoodie over his shoulders. Tai breathed through his nose.

"I dunno. Um. W- water, probably."

"Okay, um…" Rue paused. "Wait. Um, stay here."

"What?"

"I'll- I'll be right back."

She put the extra blanket over his shoulders, then walked around to the other side of the car. Tai heard wood clack together, and then Rue turned her phone flashlight on and pocketed a couple more things. And then she hurried off down the path that Tai had taken to the water.

She came back empty handed in the middle of a contraction, the fourth since she'd left. Tai bore through them, leaned on his arms against the car with his knees cocked and belly hanging. He let out a breath he'd been holding, and then Rue touched his shoulder, taking his hand. "Okay?" she asked.

"Sorta," he managed, standing upright slowly and clinging to her hand. "S'worse."

"I- I know. But it'll be okay." She let him lean on her as much as he liked, and he let her lead him down the trail. Again, he had to stop, but this time it was nothing but contractions. One welled up and his knees shook, but he breathed through it on Rue's suggestion. The second came as he was stepping around a log, and he trembled, then eased his way down to sit, rocking, his face against Rue's stomach. He sat there long enough, Rue rubbing slow lines up and down his back, that yet another came and went; the tail end of it was sharp, and he groaned, clinging to Rue's jacket.

But she urged him up after that, and they made it to the more open clearing closer to the water before another squeeze pressed Tai's breath out of him. Rue held him up and they swayed together, almost like dancing, until the small noise issuing from Tai's mouth ceased. Rue slowly let go of him, raising his hand to rest against a tree, and went about arranging the bits of wood she'd brought from their camp to start a fire.

Tai saw the glow after two more contractions, and it quickly rose to engulf the dry wood. Each squeeze came nearly after the next now, and as Rue stood, the pressure on Tai's hips and belly jumped sharply.

"Ooow, ow, ow, fuck. O-ow…"

And then Rue was at his side again. "D-do you want to- um, lay down? Or, um…"

"Nnh, I dunno, I dunno- ow-" Tai balled his hands into fists, head buried against one, the other pressed hard against his belly. "I don't wanna… nhh. Fuck, I don't know."

"Okay. Okay, um, just… just breathe." Gently, Rue took one arm and then the other and turned him around. He clung to her coat immediately, and she wrapped her arms around him and swayed. "Like this. Like this."

Tai tried. The movement helped a little, but the more they did move, the more the eggs moved. Pretty soon, even the swaying didn't help anymore. One contraction squeezed at Tai's middle so hard the eggs even protested by wiggling. But it also squeezed at his hips, and then a new pressure surfaced, a swelling pain that had his legs shaking. Rue hung onto him as he clung back, trying to support himself and swearing into her coat. "A-ah, fuck-!" The exclamation cut off and droned into a moan, and Tai's hips felt like they were on fire.

Once he could breathe again and the haze of pain had diminished slightly, he managed coherent words. "I gotta- I gotta push, Rue, I- fuck- now-"

He cut off as a contraction squeezed, and sank lower, hanging onto Rue's middle to keep balance while he gulped a breath, held it, and pushed. The pressure immediately spread and grew, forcing its way lower against his pelvis and stretching his insides. He shook with the force he put into it, with the feeling of the eggs pressing against each other and between his legs. Rue clung to him, too, holding him steady. "Okay," she murmured. "Okay. We'll- lay you down when… when you can-"

Tai nodded, sucking in another short breath for a quick push as the contraction dwindled, and eased his way to the bank near the fire. Rue had folded his sleeping bag in half as a makeshift bed on the spongy ground, close enough that a bit of warmth bled into it. Tai crouched, getting to his knees just as his muscles squeezed again; he let go of Rue and leaned forward, his belly brushing the ground as he bore down on the feeling with a groan.

"Uugh, fuck, fuck." The pain had slowly grown with each passing minute. Now, in the moments between contractions, it stayed heightened, Tai's body stretching itself wide to accommodate the passing of the two dozen eggs nestled within.

"Here," Rue said, kneeling in front of him. "Up-"

He dragged himself straight, which allowed Rue to work his pants down around his legs.

"It hurts," he whimpered, draping his arms over her shoulders. "I don't wanna… ngh…"

"I know," Rue said, as Tai caught his breath and pushed through another contraction. His body shuddered with it, and he jerked as a spike of pain rammed into the small of his back.

"Aah-" he cried, eyes watering. "Nnh- goddamn it, this- this is stupid, fucking- shitty… shitty ideaaah! Fuck, fuck fuck fuck-"

He cut off on half a breath, forced to push under the pressure of the mass of eggs lodged inside him. The spike of pain stayed jabbed into his back, bleeding into his bones, and finally, he let himself inhale again, only to hold it and bear down.

Tai let one of his arms fall from Rue's shoulder, reaching to try and feel beneath his taut belly, but he couldn't quite tell, his touch kept at bay by his girth and revealing nothing. "Shit, it- it feels like it's there, but-"

The next contraction didn't wait for him to finish. It rolled over him like a steamroller, and he felt dizzy and sick. He groaned through his teeth, and the noise turned into a moan, and then a shout, muffled against Rue's coat. He jolted again, sitting up straighter as he felt his slit bulge, instinctively pushing and yet trying to keep his knees closed.

"Tai-" Rue spoke up then. "Do you need to- to move? Um, lay? Or-" She hesitated, then seemed to come to a conclusion by the way she stiffened against him. He tried to breathe, but his head was fuzzy with overstimulation, and so all he could focus on was the egg breaching between his legs and the rest to come.

He felt the shift as the squeezing dwindled again, Rue pushing on his shoulders to get him to sit. He rocked to the side, his muscles protesting the push on the egg and its retreat the few inches back into his birth canal. Rue kept pushing, hanging onto him so he wouldn't flop backward, and got him laying down, then he felt his legs get moved and the cool of the night as she freed him from his pants.

When the next contraction struck, Rue had begun to push Tai's knees up, spreading him wider, and balancing his feet against her shoulders. He pushed, not only from his belly but with his feet, and she leaned into him, and the egg eased its way down again. Tai's slit bulged around its ovoid form, but the moment he stopped, just to catch a breath, it began to slip back in. So he sucked in a second's worth of air and pushed again, gritting his teeth and forcing the same breath back out between them.

His slit stretched around the egg, its tapered end now free and allowing Tai the briefest respite. He felt Rue push his knees again, and bore into it, and-

The large, grapefruit-sized egg gushed out, a small amount of fluid dribbling after, and the beginnings of the second making its way into Tai's birth canal. He was too focused on pushing to pay much attention, but he did feel Rue lean to one side, her shoulders shifting under his feet before returning to their original position as his stirrups.

With the buildup over and Tai's contractions in full swing- the tail end of one sliding into the beginning of another with just enough space for him to grab a breath- all he could do was keep going.

He pushed, and with each long squeeze the eggs adjusted to each other, clumped low in his belly and feeling as if they were fighting for their turn. The second egg breached after two pushes, and on the third, it popped from him only to leave its next kin still stretching his canal around itself.

Tai whimpered. The eggs almost felt like he was pushing out a human baby each time, his slit aching from their girth and the whole of him trembling with exertion. But his body didn't give up, and he let his head fall back, grabbing at his knees and spreading them wide as the third egg slipped out and rolled into his sleeping bag.

Each time, Rue bent, probably to clear them away; it was dark enough even with the fire that Tai only saw an outline of her, and still, he couldn't focus long enough to glean more than that.

Two eggs passed in rather quick succession, another small dribble of fluid accompanying them, and another two pushes saw the advent of the next. The sky had yet to lighten at all; the stars shone brilliantly above them though they provided little help as Tai pushed out yet another huge egg.

These were not like the previous births. The first was a surprise, sure, but in comparison it was over quickly. The creature that had first bred him, not to mention its brood, seemed small compared to this one. Even the one after, despite circumstance, felt somehow simpler. He should have expected something more when this creature couldn't even breed him properly, when he couldn't even help push its spawn into himself. Barely halfway through the first dozen and he was already exhausted, sweating and panting when he could get a breath in edgewise. His legs felt numb, his belly squeezed nearly solid, and his back and hips on fire. His nethers ached, and he shuddered, overworked muscles twingeing and still grasping to shove the eggs free.

He managed three more eggs before dropping his hands to his sides, breathing through his nose and letting his feet sit against Rue's shoulders limply. She touched his knee gently, and he looked blearily up at her. "Fuck, I can't-" he moaned, turning to try and let the weight of his belly lean to one side. The eggs jostled within, the change in position sloshing them together, but when the next contraction hit, Tai didn't bother pushing. He felt the next egg in him, squeezing slowly downward without his help, but it was so very slow.

"Tai?" Rue asked softly, an edge of worry in her voice.

"M'tired-" he muttered through his teeth, squeezing his eyes shut. "It's- it hurts, goddamn it…"

"I- I'm sure it does, but-" She paused, cut off by a whimper from Tai, and reached to find his hand. When she couldn't, she instead laid her hand on his belly, rubbing along its side.

"Get'm out…" was all the more he said. Rue couldn't do much more than she was already doing, but he felt her push on his knee to get him resituated on his back, belly weighing still heavy on him. She reached around his legs, keeping them in place, and leaned so he was spread open, but this time she rested her hands on either side of his belly, pushing gently with the heels of her palms and massaging.

"You can do it," she said. And really, he had to; he took a breath and bore down all over again, the eggs working against the shrinking space of his womb.

The massage did help. Tai moved his grip from the sleeping bag to press his hands under his belly, clinging to keep it taut. Another two eggs popped out of him and he felt Rue shift to clear them away one at a time, a third slipping out as she did so.

It was such slow going, though. Each egg took an agonizing couple of pushes before it gushed free, and immediately there was another waiting, Tai stretched wide around it.

"Fuck," he repeated for what felt like the hundredth time, when one of the eggs- now counting into the double digits- plopped onto the sleeping bag. "Just fuckin'... get 'em out…"

It was a stupid idea, but at that point, Tai was too addled to care. One hand still pushing from beneath his belly, he grabbed for one of Rue's arms with his other and flattened her palm over his navel. "C'mon," he prompted, not worried about whatever would happen in between and simply looking toward an end goal.

Rue hesitated- Tai realized she probably would. But something in her clicked, too. Maybe it was a greater worry for what would happen if the birth kept dragging on into morning. After all, the sky was beginning to lighten; Tai's labor was nearing six hours. Or maybe it was that she trusted Tai's judgment, or any of a few other things. But then she splayed both her hands around Tai's navel and gently leaned into him.

The pressure changed immediately. Rue shifted, switching to leaning on her arms so she wasn't pushing in such concentrated spots, and the eggs responded by sloshing against each other and filling whatever space they could. Tai's abdomen squeezed, pushing them further, and his own hands flattened under his belly provided even less space for them to slip into. The only other way was out. And with that he could acutely feel how his womb contracted, see how each of the shapes of the remaining eggs lay inside him. Achingly, he lifted his foot, tried for and missed Rue's shoulder.

His womb protested, jolting, and he gritted his teeth against it, the narrower end of another egg slowly widening him as he tried again and managed to keep his foot up.

The other was way more difficult, but Rue dipped lower to help, which let him arrange both feet and spread himself wide around the half-birthed egg. One push later, it popped free, but this time Rue didn't move to clear it away.

Tai moved his hands, gripping his belly and pushing. He felt Rue lean into his feet, and yet again a massive egg slipped free, another already crowning.

One push, and it plopped free, nestled with the others and waiting through two more pushes before the next of its kin slid out alongside some slick fluid.

Tai could see Rue properly now; the campfire had died to nothing but dull coals and the sky had lightened to pale blue-gray, which funnily matched the translucent eggs between his legs.

Four more of them plopped free, each clustering against the next with a push or two.

After another slid free, knocking the others out of the way slowly, Rue sat up and Tai was vaguely aware of her clearing those away too. He pushed three more times in quick succession, one more huge egg popping out, and two more pushes heralding another, with a squelch of fluid.

But then there was nothing else for Tai's muscles to expel. He let go of his belly, letting his arms flop to the ground and his legs slide flat as well. Rue pushed the last of the eggs down the bank and into the river where they disappeared with two small splashes, and then turned back to him. She reached, getting to all fours over him, and touched his damp hair.

"Okay?" she asked.

Tai moved his hips. They ached, but other than the exhaustion and slowly easing pain… He cocked his elbows, hefting himself halfway to sitting, and closer to Rue's face, then turned his head and kissed her.

"Yeah, m'okay. But I'm pretty sure I don't wanna do that again."

Rue, pink, laughed softly, and awkwardly. "That's, um… yeah. Probably a good- yeah, a good idea."

"But," Tai continued, breathy and drained. "M'gonna stay with you, yeah?"

The ride back to Rue's apartment was awkward, to say the least. Tai, heavy and full of over two dozen huge eggs, needed her help not only to put his pajama bottoms on, but also to move the front passenger seat back so he could slide in. Even with some messing around and trying to get his seatbelt on, Tai had to end up simply holding it mostly closed over his girth.

Oh, yeah, and he'd sucked Rue's dick, so that was an unveiled topic of conversation that he knew she wouldn't want to talk about.

So they drove home in silence, as the sky darkened from afternoon rust into evening gray, up until Tai turned on the radio just for the sake of background noise.

He knew it was weird, too. That was what stopped him from talking about it, or making light of the fact that Rue had basically assisted with his forced impregnation of what was either a weird animal's or more likely an alien's spawn. Usually, he would offer something- anything- and then snipe back at the person who commented first, but not with Rue. He still kind of hoped she understood, but he didn't want to risk her embarrassment over her body's own response, funnily enough. He just wanted it to go smoothly. He didn't want her to kick him out. Or worse yet, want to kick him out but think she was unable because of his 'condition.'

So when he finally stopped fidgeting with the seatbelt between his hands and said, "that went well," he didn't really know what to expect.

What happened was that Rue's face flushed as she turned into her parking space. "It- um. Something like that," she mumbled, and turned off the car. And then, in what seemed like an effort to skip over that conversation, she opened her door and added, "I'll help you out."

And Tai… well, he took the help without more than a nod, Rue bracing and hefting him up with Tai's own helpful grip on the edge of the door and his knees spread wide to keep the weight even. Once to his feet, he could at least waddle along on his own, to Rue's blessedly street-level door. He did, vaguely, wonder what the neighbors thought, if they even paid attention. Most of the time, just like Rue's, their blinds were closed but that didn't mean they couldn't snoop around. Not that there was anything weirder than the sudden appearance of his pregnant belly going on, and even if they did gossip, what more was there to say? This was a gentrified neighborhood; it wasn't like they could call the cops on him and get anything out of it.

Still. He hurried inside and closed the door behind them both.

What he expected after that was for Rue to hole herself up in her room until such time that she forced herself outside of its confines. What he got was her crossing over to the kitchen and the sink turning on, an indication that she was making tea. The pop of the kettle's on button confirmed it. He stood there, back already starting to feel the twinge from the weight balanced at his lower abdomen, and then decided it was best just to stay quiet for now. He took one of the pillows from the couch and put it in the second of the two high-backed chairs that adorned the living room. With that behind his back, he levered himself down and let out a breath.

Oof. Already he felt like he shouldn't be as big as he was- with his elbows at his sides, he couldn't touch his fingertips over his belly at all, the mass hanging round and heavy and taut. He rubbed the heel of his hand over it, pressing enough to be able to feel the shapes within him, and if he pushed hard enough, he thought he could maybe even get them to shift under the pressure.

What he should do was shower. He was still damp with sweat and come- both his and the creature's- and he smelled like sex and dirt. He just didn't think he had the energy just then. He'd been out in the woods for a good while, wandering around, and the creature's weak attempts at impregnating him had taken long enough even aside from Rue coming to help. Leaning back, Tai closed his eyes, the slow, repetitive motion of stroking his engorged belly lulling him into a haze.

He did at one point hear vague footsteps and the sound of a teacup and saucer being placed on the coffee table, but he only opened his eyes a sliver before letting them close again. The next disturbance came a few moments afterward, with a tentative touch on his shoulder and a mumbled, "Tai?"

"Mn," he answered, face scrunching. He blinked.

"If you're… why not sleep in… in a bed?"

"But then I gotta get up," he grumbled back.

"I'll help," Rue offered, taking his elbow. He sighed and let her pull him to his feet, then guide him into the spare room. She stayed next to him while he sank down, then as he turned and adjusted to get comfortable on his side, she fluffed the pillows and arranged them between his legs and behind his back and under his brood-thickened belly. As her penultimate act, she threw a blanket over him and tucked it over his shoulder, and then, very briefly, touched his hair, brushing her fingers through his bangs.

And then she left him to sleep.

When Tai finally woke, the sun was long-up. His hand went, almost automatically, to his belly, stroking over the rounded surface, then harder, pushing so that the eggs sloshed against each other and resettled. He sighed, pushing himself up, more used to the weight than he had been before, and much less exhausted.

He took his time gathering new clothes, digging through to find the biggest T-shirt he could, and a stretchy pair of cotton pajama bottoms. All the while, his belly dragged at him, stretched and full, but at the same time, the thought of Rue's quiet pulled at him too. Maybe… after this, he should get out of her hair. Make it less awkward. Give her her room back. Not that he wanted to, it might just be better.

Undecided, he slunk across the tiny hall, as well as he could, to the bathroom.

He wanted a hot shower, hot enough to scrub the filth from his skin all by itself, but he couldn't stand that temperature. As it was, the eggs seemed to keep him cool, like they were little ice cubes, so when he did try turning on hot water and the steam began to build, the disparity started to make him sick so he turned it down just enough to be comfortable but not cool.

Despite that, he stayed in the shower for a while, washing the grime from his hair, soaping up a loofah and cleaning every inch of himself he could reach, and letting the water run over his head as he leaned against the wall with his belly hanging low.

The mirror had barely fogged up by the time he got out and toweled himself off, and sat on the closed toilet to pull his pants on. Usually, he ignored his reflection, it never being exactly what he wanted, but with the condensation already having gone he didn't have much choice, and what he saw… What he saw was himself, hair cut short enough to be a shaggy black mess, a determined pinch to his oval features. He'd already resigned himself to being unable to wear his binder, previous experience telling him it was a bad idea if he wanted to, you know, breathe, and so his breasts hung free. However, under the oversized shirt and against his massive middle, they looked almost like he was wearing his binder anyway. He ran his hands under his belly, pushing at it to force the eggs to move.

He looked… like he wanted to look. It was a weird feeling, knowing that was actually himself, and not what anyone else wanted him to be.

Tai left the bathroom with the ghost of a smile on his face. He found Rue in the kitchen, a tupperware and cooking pot in hand.

"Oh, um," she said, as he padded in. "I- I didn't know when you- um. When you'd be up so I- I was putting this away, but, um… if you're hungry…?"

She offered him the tupperware, a portion of mac and cheese in it, half-covering a piece of chicken. Considering she was vegetarian, she must have made it with him in mind. It… made him feel a way, that she remembered, or even cared.

He took the tupperware. "Thanks."

Then came a pause. Rue looked at him. He reached like he was going to take a fork, but didn't open the drawer. "Hey," he started. "So… when this is over, you just… want me to go? 'Cause then it doesn't gotta be weird, and I've got all this other stuff to keep me going so I won't mooch off you anymore…"

Rue tilted her head. "I- you don't… have to go," she said, her tone making it a question. Her nose went subtly pink. "Or I… if you want to go, you- you can but- Tai, I want you to stay- here."

"Yeah, 'cause it's safe, but if I don't do this anymore-" this he said with a gesture at his huge belly- "then I'll be fine. And you can have your room back, and it won't be weird."

"Tai, I don't- it… it doesn't matter. It wasn't- it…" Her blush burned deeper, and she curled her hands in her skirt. For a moment, she went quiet, and then she mumbled, "I liked it."

"...Oh," Tai said, not really sure how to reply to that. She'd liked it. Well yeah, she better have- Tai damn well knew what he was doing when it came to sucking cock. And of course her body had betrayed her in the first place, but for her to admit it? "Hah." He laughed feebly. "Could always try an' get away with rent payments courtesy of BJ."

"What- I…" A pause. "Oh- n- no- Tai, I-"

"Kidding! Kidding, jeez, don't have a heart attack."

Her blush hadn't faded. Rue wrung her hands, avoiding his glance, and nodded silently in confirmation.

"Look, I just don't like owing stuff," Tai clarified.

Rue nodded. "But you-"

"Yeah, you said I didn't. I'm just making sure I don't end up owing you any more, 'cause I know I do, for that, an' don't say I don't, 'cause minus the dick suck, that was a fuckin' mess."

He turned to take a fork as Rue contemplated his meaning. "That's… Tai, you still don't. I- it's fine if you think you do but… but I don't. You pay rent and- and you cook, and clean, and… you're- you're good company. So… I want you to stay."

Tai poked at the macaroni. He shifted his weight, his back protesting, and set the bowl down so he could dig his knuckles into the swell of his abdomen. "...Okay," he finally said. There wasn't much more he could say. Staying, that was what he wanted, too.

"You… you should relax," Rue said. "I can make tea."

"Okay," Tai said again, and meant it.

***

Over the next few days, Tai and Rue fell back into routines. As big as this brood was- his belly already pushed out as if he was carrying a set of late-stage triplets, and no doubt going to expand even more- there was little he could do that didn't put strain on his back or legs and cause them to flare with pain. He did still try to stay active, waddling around the apartment, trying his hand at more complicated recipes, and at least making an effort to clean. But really all that made him was quickly achy and tired, and relegated to either laying in bed or sitting in a chair with pillows for extra support.

He couldn't help but notice Rue's insistence that he stay on bedrest, too. He did as much as he dared, of course, but when he ran out of energy, Rue was there immediately, encouraging him to relax, guiding him to the closest comfortable surface. She doted on him, was what he realized. He didn't have to get up or move to get anything, nor did he have to ask with the way Rue kept checking on him.

And she liked it, too. She smiled, small of course, but a vastly different expression to the quietly worried pinch or hesitant purse that she normally wore. While Tai wanted to refuse the help he carefully kept himself silent on the matter, but did at least keep his requests to a minimum since that feeling of owing her still sat at the back of his mind.

As the days went on, though, he got restless. Where he would usually be walking, he was sitting, and the months without being pregnant had been so wildly different that when he did become tired much easier, he also became grumpy. He wanted to go outside and wanted to walk or go dancing, but it wasn't just the weight that concerned him. A small part of him still welled with anxiety at the thought of leaving home without his binder, not to mention that his generally male-looking self would draw a lot of eyes where such a heavy and awkward pregnancy came into play. They didn't live a small-town life, not in the least, so their neighbors knew their faces but not much else, and yet even Tai coming home the first day surely would have raised some questions and eyebrows.

That, and the stirrings of the creatures inside their shells had begun. Tai hadn't even noticed it right away, and it wasn't until he'd simply been sitting and a sudden tremor gurgled through his belly that he remembered it at all. He pressed his hand onto the brood, and another small shift came from the eggs, signaling they were one step further into their development. And that told him it was also going to get worse.

So Tai did the best he could, but there was only so much even Rue could do when he became frustrated. They at least worked out a sort of late-night schedule, Rue helping him to the car after the streetlights had long-come on, and driving to the only nearby park that was open after dusk. It was usually empty, the occasional late runner or guy with a dog happening by, and no questions asked when Rue followed after.

There was yet another problem, though, and that was that Tai was restless all around. He took up a good deal of time on six or eight of his projects at once, keeping his hands busy, and of course Rue stayed busy with her own work and clients. But Tai felt squirmy, even more than the movements of the eggs made him. He finally gave into it late one afternoon when Rue's client had finished their appointment.

He waddled into the living room, almost a week and a half gone by and his belly having expanded to match, very definitely looking as if he was either carrying quadruplets or he'd swallowed a rather large dog. Rue sat on the couch, gathering up her tarot cards and putting them away, and Tai sat next to her, then turned and leaned against her like a pillow.

"Um, hello, Tai. Did you… need something, since I'm finished?"

He sighed, adjusting a little, and Rue put her card deck aside, running her fingers through his hair soothingly. Or what he thought was meant to be soothingly. Right then, it just made him more desperate. "I want sex," he said, and Rue's hand paused.

"I- um-"

"I don't care what," Tai continued, turning so he could sit up more, against the back of the couch, then clambering awkwardly to try and crawl closer to Rue. "I'll… suck your dick, or you can fuck me, or something, I just wanna get off."

"Tai-"

"Please, fuck me," he whined, halfway to crawling into her lap, though his girth didn't allow much more.

"Tai, it's okay," Rue insisted, resting her hand on his arm. He quieted, and she patted him. Despite her blush, she smiled softly. "I can… I'll always help."

She looked at him, and he looked down at himself, and back up. "The… the bed will be… easier for you," she continued, standing and offering her hands so Tai could heft himself from the couch.

And now- not that he wasn't thinking about it before- but now he was very aware of the anticipation of what came next. He followed after, Rue having not let go of his hand, whether subconscious or not, and while no one was going to come into the apartment, he shut his bedroom door behind them.

Tai eased himself onto the edge of the bed, but again didn't let go of Rue's hand. He kept her there, murmuring, "Hang on," before he let go and proceeded to try and slide to the floor. It took Rue a moment, and a questioning noise, before she helped him sink to his knees, his belly nestled between them, wide and round. One of the eggs jostled and sent a few others into their own movements; the curves of their shells distended Tai's belly as they changed position.

"C'mere," he said, changing his grip and tugging her closer, pushing her to stand. Just from that, and the way he let his hand linger on the front of her skirt, he could tell she was getting hard.

And this time, instead of sliding his hands up under her skirt, he brushed them over her hips, finding her waistband and tugging it down so it pooled around her feet. "Y'know," he said as he ran his hands over her soft thighs, "It's funny to me how you wear them fancy underwear."

He hooked his fingers under the lace of her panties, pulling them down and letting her straining erection bounce free. She whimpered, knees twitching, and he leaned into her leg. "Don't get me wrong, I like 'em on you. Just goes to show what kinda person you are… under all them skirts and long sleeves."

"I- I-" she started, but didn't get far. Tai flattened his hand under her navel and drug it downward, pressing his palm over her cock and then wrapping his fingers around it.

"You should facefuck me," he mumbled, sitting up just enough to brush his lips over the tip. She shuddered, and he opened his mouth, settling her on his tongue. He knew she wouldn't; she was too gentle so far to even think of it, maybe even thinking she might hurt him somehow. So he left it at that and took it upon himself to do the fucking for her.

He stuck his tongue out as far as he could, bathing the underside of her clock with saliva and closing his lips over the tip. She jerked under his hands, and he smirked, especially when her flustered hands found places to grip- one clinging to the hem of her blouse and the other settling in his hair. With that, Tai adjusted a little, scooting forward, his belly brushing her shins and her stance widening just a little, both for her own balance and so he could get closer. And closer he got, leaning to take her almost fully into his mouth, schooling the urge to gag as her cock brushed the back of his throat.

Rue twitched like she wanted to thrust, but kept herself in check and let Tai do as he liked. Hand still around the base of her shaft, he squeezed gently, stroking as he pulled back, tongue pushed to the underside of her cock and lips pursed. He only managed to stroke twice more before Rue's grip tightened.

"W-wait," she panted, and he paused, nose brushing her pubic hair. Deliberately, she let go of his hair. "You should… get- get back on the bed."

Tai's face pinched. He pursed his lips and dragged his mouth over Rue's cock, letting it go with a pop. "But I wanted-"

"I know." Rue breathed. "Just… please."

Tai hesitated, then let his hands drop from Rue. She reached to help him up, and with effort, he returned to sitting on the edge of the bed. She took up her skirt as well, pulling it back over her hips; it tented over her erection.

"Be right back," she mumbled, and stepped away, leaving Tai wet and needy and- he glanced at the floor, where she'd left her panties. ...Oh.

She returned maybe a minute later, seeming unchanged. She even left her panties where she'd stepped out of them and instead went to Tai, touching his arm again. "Lay down?"

This time, he did so without argument. He could still see the way her skirt lay, showing off how hard she was. Tai lay down on his side, and Rue took the time to at least put a pillow under his heavy belly.

"Tai," she murmured, hand lingering, then brushing down the front of his belly and to his side, and then his hip. "There's… there's something about you. I don't- I don't know what… it is," she said, hooking her fingers under his pajama pants' waistband and tugging at them.

Tai, now fully understanding exactly what Rue was planning, shifted so she could free him from his pants. He struggled briefly with his shirt too, ducking into the tent of fabric and shoving it off as best he could. Rue, meanwhile, shimmied her skirt off. Her erection bobbed free, that minute she'd spent now revealed in the condom it wore, and Tai squirmed in anticipation.

"Aw, fuck, Rue-" he started, and she moved, sliding her hand under his knee and raising it, opening him wide to her.

"I'll… I'll take care of you," she said, rubbing his raised leg and guiding herself into his damp and waiting slit.

Tai took her easily; Rue sank into him, Tai bearing down against the sensation. It wasn't like the tentacles, not wiggly and squirmy, but just a solid, constant pressure, the drag of Rue's cock against his inner walls, the texture of the condom playing at his slit. "Oh, god, yes, fuck. That."

Rue stayed put, her thumb rubbing Tai's leg. "I- I like you, Tai," she said softly. And then she began to thrust, and Tai fell into a wash of feeling.

Each thrust picked up into a rhythm, and before long, the slap of skin-on-skin timed with how the push and drag moved Tai's body, back and forth. His belly, too, moved, but out of synch; Tai clung to the blankets with one hand, the other pressed flat under his girth and feeling the shape of the eggs, how the movement pressed them against each other and how they in turn moved, as if they were complaining against the rocking motion. As Rue picked up speed, she angled differently, spreading her knees wider so that she sank fully into him each time. Tai shivered, panting, head tilted into the mattress. The eggs jangled against each other, and then they shifted, making and filling space in a new configuration; Tai felt the pressure change and groaned, and Rue did him one better in sliding her hand over his and pressing, then sneaking beneath his belly to find his clit.

Fingers damp from his wetness, she slipped them across herself and his slit, then over his clit, and Tai came undone. He shuddered to orgasm, mouth open and silent against the feeling. Rue thrust twice more and leaned over him, buried deep, as she, too, came, thick and hot even behind the barrier of the condom.

Rue stayed in him, Tai's leg clamped over her and preventing her moving anyway. "Are- are you okay?" she asked quietly after several moments.

Tai laughed breathily, taking a few big gulps of air, then moved his leg and pulled at Rue's arm. "M'good."

Rue went willingly, turning and pressing herself to Tai's back, and then after a moment, sliding her hand over his belly too. Tai, warm and sated, also suddenly realized he felt… content. Comfortable, and right. Something about that made him tense, but Rue petted his belly, and tucked her face against his hair, and it slowly bled away.

That was, until- "Rue?"

"Hm?"

"I gotta pee."

***

Tai didn't want to think about what was to come. The eggs needed to be-... 'born,' was the closest word either of them used for it. And really, it was Rue that started worrying. Tai's stomach strained against the huge eggs, and Rue had wondered if he could even manage to have them without some sort of medical involvement. They both understood that Tai even going to a doctor or hospital for an ultrasound would make news at the very least, and have him put under observation and testing, let alone anything else. So they came to the mutual agreement that whatever happened, happened, unless it went really wrong.

There was no under-the radar doctor as far as Rue could find, but she did put an emergency number in her phone, just in case.

Planning the rest of it, however, proved difficult.

If Tai had them at home, then there was the issue of transporting them back to water, but the overall process would be more private, and they wouldn't have to worry about being in the dirt while Tai was in labor. On the other hand, the creek wasn't too far away; once Tai went into labor, they could load some things into the car and get him close to the water, or even in it.

To Tai, both options sucked. Having to stay holed up didn't do him any mental good despite the privacy, but being outside, there was always the risk of a passerby. Not that he was much for thinking clearly about it anyway; the little creatures in the eggs grew more and more wiggly each day. Tai could not only feel them moving almost constantly, but could see them more frequently, too, in the way the eggs slipped against each other, pushing in and out and distending him around their soft shells so that his belly looked lumpy with them. They reacted to his own changes in position too, his stomach hanging low and heavy when he stood, or squashing longer like a torpedo when he lay down.

Two days later, with the eggs settled into a sort of loop of activity- sloshing and jangling against each other whether Tai was up and about or sitting-, Rue presented a sort of third option. No doubt it would be uncomfortable for a little while, but she suggested, showing Tai a map on her phone, one of the national parks. Trailheads littered those types of areas for miles, and if they drove as far as they could, they could make their leisurely way closer to the mountains and the creeks and rivers there.

Tai pursed his lips, but it did make sense. If they packed and camped for a couple days, they killed a couple birds at once. Up closer to the mountains would keep them away from prying eyes for not only the birth but for depositing the eggs in the water. The only problem lay in what might happen if things went awry, but Rue worried more about that than Tai did. He had to not think about it, because if he did, he'd go down a rabbit hole. Besides, there wasn't any other way to do it.

So he agreed, and they set about packing supplies.

He'd not been keeping track of how long his pregnancies had been, exactly. All he knew was it was something like a couple weeks. This time, it was a bit easier to keep track, even with the rush to put everything together for their camping trip, and they were nearing a sort of mid-end point, with maybe a couple days left, if they were right. Which meant, for the most part, that they had to go out shopping instead of buying things online.

Tai wasn't so big that Rue could justify leaving him behind, either, even with the constant shifting of the brood. He frowned at her when she suggested it, more out of his own restlessness but also because he knew the entire reason she'd hired him for shopping in the first place was her fear of people. So he went with her, wearing his biggest shirt and his hoodie with the hood up. Leaning on shopping carts helped a great deal, too, not to mention that a Wal-Mart spree wasn't exactly the classiest of options. But then, it was at least a one-stop trip.

They returned home probably a bit overloaded with sleeping bags, a tent, extra and larger clothes for Tai, a few days worth of canned and dried groceries, and a few other things that included a firestarter, tin plates and cups, and a first aid kit. It looked like too much stuff, if Tai was honest, but at the same time, the food wouldn't go to waste, and the other things they could use around the house. Plus, it was easy enough just to leave them in the car and add to it the remaining backpacks they'd already packed.

And then… well, then it was just time to wait for the uneventful days to be over.

Being that neither of them knew the when, Tai took the liberty of pretending to be Rue's assistant, switching the few remaining clients she had to the next week over the phone, since she hemmed and hawed and felt abysmal for having to do it, whereas Tai didn't give a lick. And Tai, unoccupied with a steady job, was ready to go as soon as Rue was.

He, with her help and one hand rubbing his knuckles into the side of his belly, waddled to the car. She helped him in, hand lingering on his shoulder, then shut the door while he arranged the seatbelt across his massive girth and held it in place, the straps far too short for him to even try and buckle it.