The Alpha and his Omega

Nausea [Domesticity 7]

Eren burrowed deeper into the blankets. He had been feeling unwell for a while now. The nausea came at random times throughout the day, mainly going away around lunchtime. Sometimes he actually threw up, but it was hard to tell when that would happen until the sensations became too strong. In the meantime, the omega had discovered that certain scents seemed to exacerbate the symptoms. Unfortunately, that meant he had to actively avoid certain scents and foods like coffee. The pungent smell of roasted beans only made him want to hurl now. But there were other scents, like Levi's, which became sharper, stronger, and more provocative.

He hated how it felt. At least his company had given him the okay to work from home. It would have been horrible to be in the office, not knowing when he would throw up next. Biting his hand to distract his thoughts from the latest wave of nausea, the omega wondered if he was dying. Before he could break the skin, a gentle, but forceful hand pulled it away from him. Thumbs rubbed soothing circles on his hand which was mutilated by a half-circle of red teeth marks.

"Stop biting yourself." The omega wanted to disagree, but it was difficult for him to do so with how his alpha was acting. He didn't want Levi to worry more than necessary. There was a dip against the mattress and he blearily opened his eyes to see his concerned mate sitting next to him. "You okay, Eren?"

Eren knew that Levi had been worried sick for the last few days. They had gone to the ER after he had hurled the entire contents of his breakfast and then some the day before yesterday. The car ride there had only made things worse and he had to be put on an IV drip for an hour or so due to the lack of fluids. They said it was either food poisoning, gastritis, or some bacterial infection, but weren't sure. A few vials of blood were drawn to isolate the cause, but the results wouldn't be available until later this afternoon.

"I feel like shit."

He had regurgitated his insides about an hour ago, but that didn't help much. His stomach was still doing cartwheels and the hunger pangs only made things worse. It didn't feel like acid in his gut or pain from an ulcer based on what he had read on the web; it was mere nausea. A very horrible bout of it, but nausea, all the same. Despite his need for breakfast, Eren was afraid he'd end up throwing up anything else he ate. He didn't even dare kiss his husband when he was feeling like this. He didn't need Levi catching whatever he had and then both of them throwing up all over the house.

"Is there anything I can do?"

A comforting cool hand fell on his forehead and he leaned into it. All Eren wanted to do was snuggle naked against Levi's hard body, enfolded inside that dark musk, those muscled limbs wrapped around him, ensconced underneath blankets. It was one of the few things that could make him feel better by taking his mind off the nausea rolling in his stomach.

"No... I'll be fine." Still, he couldn't help the small whine that escaped his mouth.

Things had gotten really busy after Erwin's accident. With all the additional work and responsibility his husband had taken on, Levi had been promoted and accepted the new post grudgingly. As a result, his alpha was stuck in more meetings than ever and had already missed yesterday and the day before from taking time off due to Eren's illness. There was an important client coming in today and it had taken them two months of planning to free up the time to meet, meaning that shy of death, dismemberment, or something just as crucial, Levi had to be there. Eren knew the importance of the meeting and that his husband had to go in, but he really wished the alpha could stay.

Erwin and Petra had gotten engaged, mated, and married in rapid sequence a fortnight ago, and had just returned yesterday. It meant not only was Levi's team missing one person, but the workload was doubled in the last few days, resulting in his mate having even less time at home. Sometimes Eren was surprised at how fast their relationship had developed. The excuse they had given was that Erwin was over thirty-five and Petra was approaching that age, and both wanted kids sooner rather than later. It was the opposite of Levi and him, but they were also older and knew what they wanted. The omega didn't begrudge them their happiness, but it was just a pain in the ass because it was his husband that had to stay behind and work longer hours. Shitty Eyebrows indeed...