It was Killian's old crib.
"Oh my god," he said.
"Oh, Killian," Scout said with a gasp. "Is this — was this yours?"
Killian was speechless and could only answer his mate's question with a nod. Scout slowly stepped up to the crib and held his hands hovering above it, as if it was a priceless work of art he wasn't allowed to touch.
The king chuckled. "Go ahead."
"A-are you sure?" Scout asked. When the king nodded, Scout carefully lowered his hands to the smooth, polished beams. He ran his fingers over the dark wood, taking in the feeling. "It's beautiful..."
"It is," the king agreed. "And it's yours now."
Killian and Scout both gasped.
"What do you mean?" Killian asked. His heart was racing and he didn't know why. The nostalgia and sudden rush of memories associated with the crib had come back to him with such intensity that he almost staggered. He shook his head. "I — we don't — we don't have any use for this."
"Of course you do," the king said. "It's for you, this whole room. This crib. For your own children. That's why I've made absolutely sure this room will be cleaned in time."
The mates exchanged glances.
"But we don't — we aren't expecting right now," Scout said quietly.
The king looked stunned, and glanced towards Killian for reassurance. But the prince only shook his head. "It's true. We haven't even talked about kids yet."
With his brow furrowed in confusion, the king waved the pair into the hall where they could talk in peace. "I don't understand," he said. "You've been together for some time now. Surely you've..." he trailed off and gestured. Killian sputtered and stepped in before he could finish his sentence.
"Yes, of course we've — done that," he said. "But that doesn't guarantee anything." He looked helplessly at Scout, who was just as taken back by this as he was. "We've never even brought it up. I mean... kids are such a big deal and... I don't know."
The king looked gravely at both of them, considering their words. "I see," he said after a long pause.
Killian suddenly felt guilty, like he had hurt his father's feelings after he had gone through all the trouble to do something nice for them.
Scout apparently had the same thoughts. "That doesn't mean we don't appreciate what you've done, though!" he said. "I'm sure one day we'll put this nursery to good use."
"Right," Killian agreed. In a gentler voice he added, "Sorry, father."
"No, it's alright," the king said. "Times are different now, I suppose. I didn't consider that you two would decide to wait before conceiving." He sighed softly. "This room needed to be cleaned up anyway. Might as well finish doing that."
He waved a quick goodbye before heading back into the nursery, leaving Killian and Scout alone and glancing at each other uncomfortably in the hall.
"I feel... bad," Scout said with a sigh.
"We didn't do anything wrong," Killian said. "But I understand how you feel."
He put an arm around Scout's shoulders. "Come on. We'll probably feel less shitty if we help clean up."
