(BL)Alpha Made
Chapter 145: A knee-jerk reaction

Chapter 145: A knee-jerk reaction

Lunch somehow continued on after Andrew and Maxwell so rudely interrupted everyone, and after Andrew had finished crying, even though that was the last thing he had wanted to do, everything sorted itself out.

"Max, do you have to get back to work tomorrow? You know that it’s okay to take a break every once in a while, right?" Mrs. Beckett asked of her son, her eyes wide and serious. They had moved from the large table and were now sitting on the soft loveseats on the platform above.

Maxwell chuckled, shaking his head.

He hadn’t left Andrew’s side after their little moment. He was holding Andrew’s hand, and Andrew couldn’t tell if this was a victory lap on Maxwell’s part, or if he was just trying to comfort Andrew after crying.

It might be both.

"I have to go back to work, Mom. I haven’t shown my face in my workplace for a while now, and Andrew’s been cleared for work and travel. I need to make sure that the workplace he’s going into is actually what I told him it was, and scare a few people who got too big for the breeches while I’ve been away." Maxwell’s smile took a slight sinister tone and Andrew sighed.

"You don’t need to do anything for my sake. It’s already enough that you’re even offering me a place to work." Andrew told him and Maxwell frowned.

"Don’t even attempt to start that right now. I’ll be pissed. Did I, or did I not already tell you I planned to recruit you, nay, seduce you into my company if I had a chance?" Maxwell told him and Andrew flushed.

"S-Seduce me?" He repeated and Maxwell nodded, smirking.

"Yeah. I’m pretty sure I would have done anything if it had gotten you on my side. There’d be added perks, obviously, but I was ready for it." Andrew stared at him in shock before he blinked slowly.

"W-Why me?" He asked curious and Maxwell’s gaze slid to his Father.

"Well, you were really good at your job. When I researched you, as I always do when someone approaches me, I found nothing but praise for you. Did you know that the reason why your old company used to get most of their contracts with the government was because you were on staff? You didn’t even need to do the contracts, your reputation was enough to get you there." Andrew was stunned.

He’d had no idea, and that only made Maxwell pissed.

"Those fucking fuckers. They never gave a flying fuck about how valuable you were. They’re going to fucking regret it, I’ll tell you. Damn idiots don’t even know what I’m about to do to them." Maxwell’s words were clearly a threat since he wasn’t trying to hide it, and Andrew felt something soft and warm inside of his chest.

He raised their joined hands and pressed a kiss against Maxwell’s hand.

"Thank you for always fighting for me." Andrew told him sincerely and watched as the normal Maxwell would have flushed and gotten slightly flustered. Today, Maxwell gave him a confused look, a look of disbelief.

"Of course I’m going to fight for you. Why wouldn’t I?" He was looking at Andrew like he was an idiot and Andrew couldn’t help but smile. Maxwell was a very thoughtful person, very caring, just a little rough around the edges.

"Andy, this goes for all of us, but you’re basically family now. We’re all going to do the same thing. That awful person isn’t going to get away with what she and her family did to you, alright? You aren’t powerless." Mr. Beckett told him and Andrew looked up, glancing around the room at the Beckett family, along with Amir’s grandparents.

They had no reason to care for him this much, and yet they did. It was so surprising to Andrew, and he didn’t know why. Maybe it was just...he was used to having to take care of others? This felt strange to him, having others to rely on.

It’d been so long.

"I...you don’t..." Andrew swallowed when every gaze in the room hardened. He ducked his head. "...Thank you." He murmured and Maxwell reached out, running his hand through Andrew’s hair.

"That’s right. Just be good and let the big scary Beckett’s help, hmm?" Mr. Beckett said with a soft smile. Amir’s grandfather cleared his throat loudly.

"Do not forget that we are here as well, Thomas. Andrew has done us a great service, so our Desai family is also ready and willing to help." Andrew was feeling overwhelmed with their support and had to cover his face.

"Stop. I’m going to cry again." Andrew protested and the others laughed at him.

"It’s okay if you cry again. Max is just going to comfort you. Isn’t that right, Max?" It was clear that Ben was trying to tease him, but Maxwell just nodded seriously.

"Of course. When I have such an emotional boyfriend, it’s my duty to make sure he’s okay." Andrew was having a hard time. They really were leaning in to tease him.

"J-Just because I feel everything doesn’t mean I’m emotional, alright? I’m usually much better than this. I blame the pheromones." Andrew declared, and Maxwell chuckled. He leaned in, pressing a kiss against his cheek.

"Yes yes. Me too. You were a beacon of strength and masculinity before when you were a beta. Does that make you happy?" Maxwell asked and Andrew flushed.

"N-No! I can still be masculine and cry, Maxwell." Andrew declared and Maxwell’s grin grew a little dirty.

"Oh, I know."

"Maxwell Beckett! I didn’t think I’d ever have to warn you, but tone it down!" Mrs. Beckett declared and Maxwell chuckled as Andrew turned into a flustered mess. Ben and Will couldn’t stop laughing and even Amir was giggling into his hand.

That was when everything took a turn, and Amir went as white as a sheet.

Andrew, through years and years of conditioned responses, was the first to find something for him to puke into, and didn’t want to waste time tossing it to Ben.

He jerked to his feet, grabbing the nearest bowl, emptying the contents onto the floor and moved quickly. Amir made it into the bowl while the rest of the group seemed shocked.

"It’s okay." Andrew soothed. "Completely normal." Andrew told him softly and Ben patted Amir’s back, his expression still a little shocked. When it had happened during the wedding, no one batted an eye since everyone had been so tense and on edge. Here? While everyone was relaxing?

That was a completely different story.

"Andy’s right. It’s okay." Ben told him, seeming to catch his breath as Amir convulsed in his arms, his body shaking with the force of his rejection.

"Ugh. I hate this." Amir groaned after he finished, and Andrew looked around for something to wipe his mouth. Amir’s grandmother was there, offering a rather elaborate handkerchief and Andrew only hesitated for a second before offering it to Ben. Ben quickly cleaned up his mouth.

"Hey, it’s okay. I know it wasn’t like this last time, but it’s okay. Every pregnancy is different." Ben told his partner and Amir groaned again.

"Do you think that’s why I wasn’t able to keep it? Because I didn’t suffer enough?" Amir asked and Andrew gasped.

"Absolutely not! Sometimes, things just don’t work out, and you can’t blame yourself for that. You should actually be blaming your husband. It isn’t as if you alone provided something to the egg to make it a baby, now did you?" Amir blinked.

"W-What?" He asked and Andrew frowned.

"A new running theory is that miscarriages come from the sperm, not the egg. The mother is not the one at fault, at least, that’s the new theory. So don’t beat yourself up over it. It’s a good thing you didn’t carry that child to term, because who knows what could have been wrong with them? Would you have rather carried a child to term who could not have survived the air outside, or let that child go to have another chance later on?" Amir was clearly stunned at Andrew’s words, and Andrew worried if he should even be saying them.

He knew that Amir was sensitive to this topic, and that everyone behind him was giving him wide, concerned eyes, but he forged right ahead. He didn’t want Amir to be afraid of this pregnancy too.

"But the readings..." Andrew shook his head.

"Will would know better than I do, but ultrasounds and pheromone readings aren’t the end all and be all. They can give snapshots into what is going on internally, but if the child isn’t lying in a way that we can see exactly what is going on, then we won’t know the problem." Andrew sighed. "What I’m really saying is that every pregnancy is different, and affects everyone differently. If the doctors say you are fine, that means that they have looked at everything, taken in your history, and have decided that you are truly fine. So, throw up when you need to, and don’t feel guilty." Amir stared up at the man who had been near tears just a few moments ago and his own eyes watered.

"Why are you so good at this?" Amir demanded, before he started crying and Andrew smiled.

"Uh, I’d like to say it’s because I have no experience around pregnant people, but that’s just not true." Andrew said and Amir nodded.

"Y-You said something about that when we were getting the pregnancy test too." Amir said and Andrew stiffened. He’d basically gotten into a fight with Maxwell after that, and they only realised after that it was because Maxwell was near his heat.

"Uh, those two things aren’t related." Andrew said and he heard the chuckle behind him. Andrew winced. He was about to be in trouble.