The next day wasn't very different from the one Killian had yesterday or the days before, they were mostly all the same. Henry would be at Grace's this afternoon, so he would have enough time to talk to Mary Margaret.
He was already sitting at the counter of Granny's, nipping on some coffee when she came inside.
"You!" she said with a furious look on her face and he literally jumped up from his chair, holding his hands up in defence, not even knowing what he had done but he was quite sure that it was his fault.
"Me?" he asked in confusion.
"Youuuuuu!" she repeated herself and walked towards him, poking her forefinger into his chest a few times. "You didn't tell me! You sneaky son of a bitch!"
For a moment he just blinked at her before his gaze wandered down to her hand where he could see the ring on her finger. Damn, David went straight for it, apparently. His eyes went back to hers and he grinned, taking his hands down.
"Well, who am I to spoil a surprise?" A smug grin settled on his face and he took his coffee, going over to one of the booths, hoping she would follow him. He sat down with a huff but still grinned at her when she joined him.
"You could have warned me?" she mumbled under her breath and he placed the cup on the table before putting his elbows on it, head in his hands.
"So you said yes?" he asked with a grin, already knowing the answer. Given the fact that Ruby didn't tell him as soon as he had walked in, he figured that the brunette didn't know yet. So if he had to get away from Mary Margaret, he would just say something about a marriage loudly enough for Ruby to hear and she wouldn't leave Mary Margaret alone until she spilled all the details.
"Of course I did," the woman answered with a small blush on her cheeks. "But back to the reason why I'm here. Listen, the new topic for Henry's class is going to be family and some genetic stuff fitting to the kid's ages. You know, family trees and the like. And you still haven't told him yet. I…just wanted to give you a warning, in case the class is going to trigger his interest. I would hate for him to find out on his own."
Killian gulped visibly when he heard the news. He knew that the time would come where he had to tell his son the truth about the adoption but he never expected it to be so soon. One thing he never wanted was that Henry would find it out of his own, it only hurt me, felt more like lying. Mary Margaret, David, Ruby and Granny where the only ones in town who knew that Henry was adopted and he was glad that the black-haired woman warned him before it could end in a huge disaster.
"I mean, you don't have to tell him, of course. But I guess he'll ask questions about his family soon to participate or maybe one of the other kids will say something." She reached across the table to take his hand in hers and he pushed his tongue against the inside of his cheek, nodding slightly.
"I'll have to think about it. I mean, I want to tell him, but…there are no right moments for these kind of things I guess," he said with a sigh and looked down, feeling how she squeezed his hand.
"I wouldn't worry too much. He adores you more than anything, he will understand." She let go of his hand and stood up, holding her arms out. He laughed softly and got up too, pulling her into an embrace. He was glad that she was just an empathic woman, she understood his worries and fears.
"You can do it, Killian. I can push the curriculum back a little to give you some time to think about what to say but not too long. A week at most."
His jaw clenched and he closed his eyes for a moment before she pulled back and he nodded. "That will be enough, thank you so much."
She nodded and placed a kiss on his cheeks before she took her things, explaining that she had a date with David and couldn't stay any longer. Killian understood and sent her out with a laugh before sitting back into his booth with a sigh, sinking down a little. The last time he had been that afraid of something were the moment when he didn't know if Milah would make it and the months after her death when he hadn't know how to handle his life anymore.
Telling his son, the only person he had left, that he wasn't his real father would be such a huge step that he wished that Milah was with him, that he hadn't to go through his alone. How did you tell your kid that they're not really yours? What did you say? How do you react to their reaction?
"Are you planning on telling him right from the start?" the blonde woman asked while rocking the baby in her arms while Killian started down at the bandage of his wrist.
"I don't know," he mumbled, running his fingers over the fabric. It would come off soon, he would be free. When he lifted his gaze he met the small smile of Tink, his best friend. "Milah and I always wanted to." He sighed and ran a hand through his hair.
"But you changed your mind?" she asked and frowned slightly when he nodded.
"Aye. I mean of course he deserves the truth but…bloody hell, I don't know!" He spoke louder than he wanted to, lifting his hands in despair. His eyes widened when he heard how Henry started to cry and he felt bad immediately, watching how Tink just started to rock him a little bit more.
"I'll move away," he suddenly said and Tink's eyes widened at his words.
"What? Why? All your friends are here, we can help you." The desperation in her voice placed a sad smile on his lips. He knew that his friends would be always here for him and his son, would always help them but the memories hurt too much.
"I know and I'm grateful for that but I can't stay here. Everything reminds me of her. The house, the shop, the diner around the corner. I see her wherever I go, Tink. It's driving me nuts. I need a fresh start." He looked at her with pleading eyes, hoping for her to understand.
A silence settled between these too for a long moment before she nodded with a small smile on her lips. She understood.
He groaned and took a long sip from his coffee, thinking about changing it into rum but then he wouldn't be able to drive back and he also had to pick up Henry from Grace's.
For a couple of minutes he sat in his booth, chatting with Ruby and Leroy who came by before finishing his coffee and going out to his car to pick up Henry.
Killian stopped the car in front of Jefferson's house and honked the car horn to give Henry a sign that he was here. Seconds later the boy came out of the front door, waving to Grace and Jefferson before getting into the car.
"Hey, Dad," he said with a huge grin on his lips and Killian raised an eyebrow.
"Why so happy? Did you get a goodbye kiss?" he teased and Henry opened his eyes wide, looking out of the window when the car started to move but he wasn't able to hide the small blush.
"No, of course not," the boy mumbled and Killian laughed. The little man and Grace had grown up together, and had always been best friends.
After a couple of minutes in silence, Henry turned in his seat towards him and chewed on his bottom lip. "Dad?" he asked carefully and the man turned his head briefly to look at his son before looking back at the road.
"Aye?" His grip tightened a little around the wheel, not quite sure what to expect when the voice of the boy sounded like this.
"What do you do when you like a girl?"
In the next second Killian had stepped on the brakes, stopping the car immediately as he looked over, almost in shock. "What?" he asked in confusion and could only see how his son's face was turning into a deep red.
Killian's confusion was quick replaced with a huge grin and he leaned closer to Henry, wiggling his eyebrows, watching how the red turned only a bit darker.
"Oh god, dad! Stop!" the boy said with a laugh and tried to shove him back a little. „And no I don't want The Talk now. I simply want to know how…" Henry drifted off, not quite sure how to describe what he wanted.
"How to win her affection?" Killian asked, still grinning at the younger one next to him. He had expected that Henry liked Grace quite a bit but not that much. Jefferson would probably kill him though.
The brown haired boy nodded and Killian tipped against the wheel with his fingers for a moment before he looked back at the other one. "Well, give her flowers. Make her smile, make her laugh. Tease her just a little bit. Just be around her and show her what a great guy you are."
He couldn't stop smiling through the whole time he spoke, remembering how he had followed his own advice all those years ago. Flowers were the key to every girl's heart he always said, good thing he was a florist.
Henry looked at him with big eyes, trying to keep the information and probably already planning how to use them. Killian's smile turned back into a grin and he leaned over again. "So, about The Talk…" he sing-songed and the boy's face turned red again, turning away from his father to look out of the window.
Killian simply laughed and ruffled his hair before he started to drive again. "I guess we will talk about it when it's time. Just know you can always ask me, okay? And watch out for Jefferson, I would hate for him to rip your head off, at least he might if his new girlfriend can't hold him back."
The lad started to nod but agreed and was deep in thought on their way home. Killian smiled slightly, his baby boy was growing up and he was happy, proud, and terrified at the same time. Growing up meant that he really deserved the whole truth and he only had one week.
The week was filled with David and Mary Margaret making early wedding plans, with Leroy telling the whole town, Granny having way too much leftovers, lots of homework for Henry and a couple of orders for himself. It was quite the exhausting week if he was honest but maybe he used all of this just as an excuse to shove the inevitable conversation back some more.
At first he considered to ask Mary Margaret for some female advice but he backed out, knowing that she would be way too busy with David. He had to do this alone and he had to do it right if he didn't want to lose his son.
Killian decided to tell him today, he just couldn't drag it out anymore. The fear that Henry would find out on his own was growing stronger every day and he would explode if he didn't tell him soon. Henry would always be his son, no matter what.
He drove to school with the truck, wanting to pick the lad up. Sitting on the back of the truck while waiting for the younger one to come out he was greeted by some woman of the town who were also here to pick up their kids. He smiled at them, waving at some of them but never really started a conversation, way too deep in his thoughts on how to explain it to Henry. Everything he had in mind sounded so shitty and he just wanted to bury himself alive.
The bell rang and he looked up from his lap, his eyes searching Henry in the crowd of the kids who were running out of the building into the arms of their parents. He sighed at the view and hoped that the lad would be here soon.
"Dad?" the familiar voice sounded and he turned his head to the side to see Henry standing directly in front of him. How had he missed him coming out? Damn his thoughts were all too heavy right now. "What are you doing here?"
"What does it look like? I'm picking you up!" Killian said, trying to grin as usual while jumping down from the back and taking Henry's bike, putting it inside so they could take it home.
"But you never pick me up when it's sunny" Henry answered in suspicion, raising one of his eyebrows just like Killian did all the time. "Dad, what's wrong?"
Damn that kid for being so perceptive. The blue eyed man scratched behind his ear, his typical mannerism when he was nervous before he closed the truck bed and walked around the car.
"Let's talk about it at home, alright?" He looked at his son pleadingly and the younger one waited for a moment before he nodded and got into the car next to him.
They were silent on the drive home, Killian didn't have any words that wouldn't end up in telling the boy the whole thing in the car. Actually not a bad idea because he couldn't run away while driving. On the other side, he could always jump out and die and as his father, he wouldn't like to cause that. Henry was probably thinking about what was wrong, trying to answer the question on his own.
There were so many voices in his head, telling him to do, how to do it, whispering what he should say to the boy next to him. It felt like crushing the lad's life and he already felt kind of guilty for doing this. It would be easier to simply stay silent about it but he knew that it was wrong.
Liam had kept quiet, back then. Had told him their father had died in an accident and it was only several years later that Killian had found out that the man he had loved so much had just left them in the middle of the night, that he was still alive out there somewhere. It had been weeks before he let Liam talk to him again and today, after his brother's death, he felt horrible for all that wasted time. But the loss of his sibling brought him from Ireland to Chicago where he had Milah. So maybe, just maybe it was the gods playing their sick game with him, maybe it was fate. Or maybe, he was just followed by misfortune but at least he had Henry, his bright spot in his life. And now? Now he was about to lose him, too, with his luck.
While he was driving he prayed to the gods to be gentle on him this time, for Henry to understand why he had kept quiet until now, to understand that he would always be his father, no matter what. Of course he was afraid that the lad would go looking for his real parents, that he would want to replace him, that he would yell 'You're not my father!' into his face.
Just thinking about it hurt.
"Stop doing that, Dad," Henry suddenly said and Killian turned his head, frowning slightly.
"Doing what?" He swallowed like he was just caught in the middle of something and the boy sighed but smiled at him.
"Worrying. You'll only get more wrinkles on your forehead than you already have," the lad answered with a grin and Killian huffed, slapping the boy's back of the head slightly with his hand.
"Oi! No violence, I'm just a kid!" Henry said and held his hand to his head like he was being wounded even through it probably didn't hurt at all.
"Aye, that you are, but you're my kid, so deal with it," Killian said and stuck his tongue out in a teasing way, grinning slightly for the first time since Henry had gotten into the car. He loved their banter, the way they could tease each other, they weren't just father and son but also best friends. He didn't want to lose this.
They arrived at the cottage and Henry walked inside while Killian kept sitting in his seat for a second longer, taking a long breath to calm himself. He was shaking, bloody hell. This was so pathetic but he was afraid to hurt the boy.
He followed his son inside, saw him kneeling on the couch, looking over the back at him with big eyes, literally waiting for him to speak. Killian sighed slightly and chewed on his bottom lip, shifting from one foot to another and scratching the spot behind his ear.
Right when he was about to open his mouth his phone rang and he groaned, shooting the lad an excusing look before he answered his phone, seeing the little picture of David blinking.
"Bad timing, mate", he growled into it and leaned against the wall, running a hand through his hair.
"Hey, are you home? I mean, your truck is there but you're inside the house, right?", the other man asked, not really caring about that Killian was quite annoyed.
"Aye. Why?" He frowned slightly on suspicion and confusion and heard the knocking on the door a second later, noticing that David had hung up on him. Great. This was just great.
He sighed slightly and walked over to the door but looked back at Henry who was still looking at him. "Do you homework first, we talk later, okay buddy?"
The boy simply nodded before he pulled his stuff out of his backpack and Killian opened the door, looking at a grinning David who just walked inside without invitation.
"Bloody hell", Killian muttered under his breath and closed the door behind his best friend, who had both of his hands buried in his pockets and still grinned. "Why are you here?"
"Ah, good that you ask", David said like it was a surprise that Killian was a little taken off guard by the visit. "Okay, just a quick thing, I'm out again in a bit."
The dark haired man raised an eyebrow, crossing his arms over his chest while he looked at David, waiting for him to say something.
"Please be my best man?" The voice of the blond was kind of nervous and Killian's eyebrows shot both up in the air, taken even more off guard by this question. Really, the guy had been engaged for about a week now and now he was here and already asked him this kind of question. "I mean, you don't have to. I just thought-"
Before David could speak, Killian put a hand on his shoulder and smiled widely at the other one. "It would be a honor", he said with a stupid little grin tugging at the corner of his eyes and his mate pulled him into a quick but meaningful hug.
"Thanks, Killian," he mumbled and pulled back, looking over to Henry. "Hey kid, do you want to come to the wedding with your dad?"
Henry lifted his head from his homework, grinning towards them and nodding. "Of course! There'll be free food, right?" The cocky grin was almost matching Killian's and all three started to laugh at that.
"Plenty of it!" David said and clapped Killian on the shoulder again before he made his way towards the door. "I'll tell you more information as soon as I get them. I just wanted to be sure that I have the greatest best man alive." With that, he said goodbye to the small Jones family and closed the door behind him.
Killian just laughed and shook his head, running a hand through his hair before walking over to the couch, sitting down next to his son. "Need help?", he asked while he looked over the math formula and into the book that were on the table.
"Nah, I'm good", Henry answered before he put his pen down and shifted on the couch so that he sat in Indian style, looking at Killian. "But you wanted to talk to me, right? Is it something bad?"
The man's heart sank into his stomach at these words and he swallowed hard, not quite sure what to say. David's surprise visit had totally thrown him off and all the words he had placed in his head were gone within a second.
"Or is it a woman?" Henry suddenly asked and Killian widened his eyes a little before he started to laugh and ruffled his boy's hair, shaking his head slightly.
"No, lad, it's not a woman." He never really knew how Henry would like it if he came home with another woman, introducing her to him, given the fact that Henry never had a real mother.
"It's just…" Killian started but paused, taking a deep breath. "You know I had a boat when I was younger, right?" Henry nodded and shifted a little more around, looking at him with curious eyes. "And I figured we could get one for us. Real life pirates and stuff," he finished, laughing softly.
A smile settled on his lips when he saw how big his son's eyes had gotten and how his mouth stood slightly open before he jumped forward, hugging Killian tightly. "That would be awesome!" he exclaimed and pulled back, grinning.
Killian had always had the idea to get another boat, a small ship on his own but he had always put Henry and his wishes first, so they had never spoken about it, not really. But now, that Henry seemed to love the idea it grow on him even more.
"You can teach me how to sail, right?" Henry asked, moving slightly up and down on the couch in excitement.
"That and so much more, lad," Killian answered with a grin, ruffling the boy's hair again before he got up from the couch. "Finish your homework, I'll make dinner."
Henry groaned slightly but turned back around to his papers while Killian moved into the kitchen, putting his head against the fridge for a long moment. He was an idiot, he had been so close to telling him but he chickened out, he was such a coward. Instead of just telling the boy the truth he had just made him another promise that would be meaningless as soon as the lad would find out the truth.
Killian was torn apart inside, telling him or keeping quiet for just a little longer until he had his thoughts straight. It was a bloody nightmare and he had never expected this to be that hard.
"Come on, dad!" Henry yelled loudly from the middle of the sea at his young boy who sat there on his rubber raft in the middle of the lake behind their house. The weather had been perfect since the second they had woken up and the boy had wanted to play pirates.
"Almost there, lad!" Killian called back and pulled his shirt over his head, only covered in his swim trunks now before he jumped into the water, shivering a little when he made contact with the cold water.
"Look out, Captain! There are sharks!" The man turned around like he would out for the animals, acting like they would be in the open ocean instead of just a lake.
He immediately swam faster before he reached the raft and crawled inside, carefully not to turn it over when his weight filled it. Henry giggled and put a toy head on Killian's head, clearly the captain's head with a skull in front of it.
The boy himself was wearing an eye patch while holding the oar in his hand, grinning up to his father.
"So mate, what are we going to do today?" he asked the boy in front of him and ran a hand through his now wet hair.
"Pillage and plunder, of course!", Henry exclaimed and lifted his oar up in the air, getting a low chuckle from Killian. He loved his boy being like this, he never expected him to grow up so great, even without a mother or any other female on their side.
"Pillage and plunder it is! I think I've heard a story of a great treasure more north. Would you like to bring us there?" he asked with a firm voice, pretending to be the Captain of this little raft. He nodded towards the other end of the lake slightly.
"Aye aye, Captain!" Henry said and pushed the oar into the water, bringing them more north while Killian was watching him with a soft smile on his lips. Being a single father wasn't too bad after all.