My name's Jake. When I was 19, I volunteered at a support group over the summer as a way to kill time and get some experience outside of college courses. I had a vague idea of where I wanted to be after college - hospitality, counseling...maybe something healthcare related? My major was still undeclared after my freshman year, so I thought this might help give me more direction. On top of that, I had an odd fascination (let's call it a fetish) with pregnant dudes.
I drove to an estate in the Hollywood Hills one morning. I double-checked the brochure in my hand to make sure I was at the right place. "The Nest - A support group for pregnant fathers." This was still a new thing at the time. It had been about five years since the restrictions on stem cell research had been lifted by the federal government, but in that short amount of time the amount of research produced and new therapies unveiled had been enormous.
Before I get into too much detail about The Nest, I should probably give a little more background on the science involved. Obviously, men are unable to conceive and carry a fetus within their own bodies without a little outside interference. Prior to the restrictions being lifted on stem cell research, doctors had attempted various methods of transplanting wombs into males, either as artificial creations or live organs from females of the same or closely-related species. Some were successful with test animals, but the results didn't generalize to other mammalian species. That line of research dropped pretty quickly. The artificial uterus had a much higher success rate, but was prohibitively expensive and would take decades of refinement to get right with the limited amount of funding available. On top of that, most guys who wanted to carry a child weren't comfortable with the idea of becoming cyborgs.
That all changed when stem cells became readily available. Coupled with bioengineering and gene therapy, researchers were able to give test species the necessary organs in just a few months. On top of that, they were able to make those organs work harmoniously with the rest of the animal's body (something that prior lines of research had struggled with indefinitely). It wasn't long before human trials became a thing, and not long after that, womb transplant services started popping up all over the east and west coasts of the United States.
Of course, other therapies outside of male pregnancy grew just as quickly. Diseased and dying organs could be easily replaced. One's looks could be easily modified without resorting to plastic surgery. Even the body mod freaks had doctors ready to cater to their needs. Want a prehensile dick? Want TWO prehensile dicks? Want to be a hermaphrodite? Six boobs? Teeth in your vagina? The amount of crazy shit I'd seen online blew my mind.
I didn't realize it at that time, but in retrospect I was grateful that I got to live through that period of history.
I was just a fairly average, if a little gay, 19 year old looking for some extracurricular experience.
I walked up the long driveway and marveled at the beautiful landscaping and architecture of the place. I rang the doorbell and was greeted by a tall, handsome guy in his late 30's.
"You must be Jake," he said with a grin, and we shook hands. "I'm Dr. Stevens. Come on in."
The inside of the place was as extravagant as the outside. Dr. Stevens took me on a tour throughout the different rooms of the house while we talked. Most were bedrooms, but a few on the ground floor were filled with monitors and lab stuff - very scientific.
"I realize this whole thing is a little out of the ordinary. Please, I'm happy to address any questions you have."
I struggled to pick just one of the many thousand that were flying through my brain.
"Well...I read the brochure, but I'm still a little confused. What exactly do you do here?"
He chuckled. "We do it all, Jake. If a couple comes in and the guy wants to get pregnant, we take care of that. As you might expect, most of the couples who come here are gay. Some men who arrive have already had the womb implantation procedure, but most are totally new to this whole thing. Other guys come here because they're carrying and want a safe space to be with similar individuals. We also offer long-term housing. After the babies are born, we offer neonatal support services and healthcare."
I nodded, trying to wrap my head around it all. "That's much different than what I was expecting. I thought this was a place were pregnant dudes come once a week to air out their problems." His laughter had me smiling, and I was finally a little more at ease with all of this. "So how do people afford this?"
"Some of my clientele are pretty well off. For those who can't afford everything, I take care of most of the expenses in exchange for their consent in my research. No, I'm not a mad scientist or anything like that. A lot of these findings are still very new and not every patient goes through the same treatment plan. There are new treatment methods emerging almost weekly, so we test those out and document the findings. I promise that it's all safe and ethical - we're regularly audited, so I couldn't get away with anything evil even if I wanted to." He said that last part with a devious grin and then winked at me. "That research secures all of the funding that allows me to keep running this place. Not a bad deal, if you ask me."
We finished our tour of the house before he led me to the backyard. "Let's introduce you to some of our residents."
The yard was not disappointing and was what you might expect for the area. The pool looked very appealing after stepping into the bright sun, but I might have been drawn by the three obviously pregnant guys floating around there.
"Come on out, guys," Dr. Stevens said. "I want to introduce you to Jake. He's interested in doing an internship here for the summer." They excitedly hurried out of the pool to meet me.
