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He hadn’t been feeling well for a while.
A week ago was when he first wondered if he had eaten something bad.
Keith normally wasn’t picky when it came to most anything, normally breakfast was gone in moments. But he felt weak making it, the scent of eggs and sausages enough to make his stomach turn. Upon plating it and sitting down at the table he found himself unable to will himself to take the first bite. Stomach threatening that it would expel it immediately if he dared.
But he was still hungry.
Keith sighed and settled for bread. At the very least he could stomach it...barely. He nibbled at it for a great many minutes until it was gone. And Kosmo got to eat his breakfast instead, lucky pup.
Keith felt better at lunch, and he thought nothing of it.
Then it happened again the next day. The next and the next until he was convinced he was sick. He was on a grocery run when he decided it, idly thinking to himself that he should see a doctor about his troubles when something caught his eye.
He didn’t even know what he was doing in this aisle.
But the sight made him freeze, staring while his heart skipped a beat. It made him realize the possibility. The strange sensations and morning nausea started to make sense, and it wasn’t as if he and Shiro didn’t have a healthy sex life.
...very healthy, in fact. And they were not the type to use condoms. He supposed the habit came from living in space with no access.
He blushed at the realization and reached over to grab one, curious and reading it with a purse of his lips and a furrow to his brow. It seemed simple, and yet daunting all the same.
Even so, he dropped it into his cart and finished his shopping before he went to the register, embarrassed but determined. He felt the cashier’s eyes on him as she scanned it, though she did not say anything.
Keith was grateful for her silence, and he rode home with an anxious ball tightening in his chest. Something he wasn’t sure he’d felt before. In fact he was unsure how to feel. He’d never really thought about this.
Shiro was waiting in their quarters on the Atlas, resting on the couch with a pillow on his head and a tablet abandoned on his chest.
“Welcome back.” he said, muffled from behind the pillow.
“Get any work done?” Keith wondered, setting the bags down in the kitchen and slipping the test into his pocket. No need to worry Shiro just yet.
“No.” Shiro moaned.
“Good. You need the rest.” Keith smiled as he put everything else away.
“I have deadlines.” Shiro sat up dejectedly.
“I keep telling you to pawn it off on Veronica.”
“That’s rude.”
“She handles it better than you.” Keith teased.
“She does.” Shiro conceded with a sigh.
Keith hummed at his inconsequential victory and washed his hands before he beelined to the bathroom.
Once he locked the door he pulled out the test and read it again. Anxiety rose up yet again.
“Pee on stick...wait five minutes, screen will display the words positive or negative. Positive means positive, negative means duh.” he muttered to himself.
He opened the box and went to sit, a bit awkward figuring out exactly how to go about it without making a mess on himself, but he managed to do it.
Washed hands and a time spent tapping his foot and staring at the bathroom wall later, he stood at the chime of his phone timer.
Keith took a deep breath and stood, planting a hand on the counter and analyzing the unassuming white stick.
“Positive.”
Keith murmured the word and exhaled a breathy laugh of disbelief and pure inability to determine what exactly was the best way to react. Perhaps Shiro was getting to him in that regard, humor to cope with whatever turmoil he felt.
Keith stared at it for a few minutes, then he threw the test away and walked out of the bathroom, pensive as he went to sit beside Shiro where he was tapping away at his tablet. He leaned against him, quiet. Not that silence was at all unusual for him.
“What’s up, baby?” Shiro wondered, planting a kiss on his temple absentmindedly.
“Thinking.” Keith said.
“What about?” Shiro prodded, reading through a report from what Keith could see.
“Unexpected things.” Keith continued, sighing deeply and lifting his head, “I, um...I’m pregnant.” he said.
Shiro blinked and turned to him, his brows working through many things, disbelief, confusion, suspicion.
Keith studied him warily, “What?”
“Um…” Shiro cleared his throat and set his tablet down, “Can you run that by me again?”
Keith huffed, frustrated by his reaction, “You heard me. I didn’t stutter.”
“...okay.” Shiro rubbed at his temples and Keith watched him in his periphery. “Right.” he sighed, and Keith only grew more frustrated by how strange he was acting.
“Well if you didn’t like the idea you could just say so.” Keith said, crossing his arms.
“It’s not that, Keith. It’s just, I didn’t exactly think you would be the type to stoop to that kind of-”
“What?!” Keith jumped to his feet, incredulous, “What the fuck do you mean? Stoop? How is pregnancy stooping to anything? You think it makes me less of a man or something?”
Shiro was wide eyed now, paling, and Keith could tell he was aware he’d made a mistake.
Goddamn right he made a mistake.
“What? No! I...I feel like we’re not on the same page.” Shiro said cautiously.
Keith scoffed, turning on his heel to storm off into their bedroom.
“Clearly.” he snapped.
“Keith wait!”
Unfortunately he didn’t have the satisfaction of slamming the door. Damn modern sliding doors for stealing it from him.
“Lock. Don’t open until I say.” he ordered Atlas, and then he flopped onto the mattress and pulled the blanket over his head, dejected and upset. He hadn’t expected that reaction at all. It felt completely out of character for Shiro and the whiplash was almost worse than his hurt feelings.
“Keith.” Shiro’s voice was muffled and distant, and he ignored him out of sheer stubbornness and spite, determined to punish him with the silent treatment.
And yet somewhat hoping he would explain himself.
He heard Shiro sigh, and then he murmured something about giving him some space and that he’d be there when Keith felt ready to talk.
Keith sat up with a frown, unable to help being more mad that he was giving him space and not insisting on fixing the issue. Apologizing.
He returned to the bed, his anger reinvigorated and following him into deeply unpleasant dreams.
He woke up groggy, head aching with too much sleep, and he checked the time to see it was six in the morning. Fuck, he’d slept through dinner.
Shiro was probably worried.
Keith got up slowly, exhausted despite how much he had rested, and went to the bathroom, washing his face, brushing his teeth, and showering. Then he went to the closet and pulled one of Shiro’s shirts on for comfort.
Feeling somewhat prepared, he went to the door and took a deep breath, “Unlock.” he instructed, and the door clicked before it slid open with a hiss.
“Shiro?” Keith called, walking out idly and glancing around until he spotted him, asleep on the couch and looking rather worse for wear, like he had been rather upset.
He bit his lip and crossed his arms as he studied him, unsure of what exactly had happened the night before, how it became an argument so quickly. He was hurt by the strange reaction of his boyfriend and the words that he had said so flippantly, without thought to the consequences.
It still confused him, why would Shiro think less of him for this? It didn’t make sense-
“Keith.”
He jolted, so lost in his musings and self-pity he hadn’t noticed his waking.
He sat up eagerly, but he seemed to rein himself in and turned a guilty gaze to the ground, hands fisted in his frustration.
“I think there was a misunderstanding yesterday.” he began.
“That’s putting it mildly.” Keith snarked, though there was hardly any energy to his reply. He blushed at the way his tone betrayed just how hurt he was feeling, and how that thought made him feel like he wanted to cry.
Shiro visibly winced at the remark, “I...I just...um...I assumed some things and I think I was wrong?” he continued, “You...weren’t joking, then?”
“Joking? Of course I wasn’t.” Keith turned his head, now he really wanted to cry, “Who the hell jokes about things like this?”
“Oh Keith ...fuck.” Shiro pressed his fist to his mouth, “Shit.”
Keith’s lip trembled and he turned his body to better hide his face.
“Well, I certainly understand why you’re mad. I’m really sorry, Keith.” Shiro said earnestly, “I...it’s just, it was the 1st, yesterday.”
“The 1st?” Keith echoed, turning a confused look his way despite his tears.
Shiro’s gaze went soft, “Oh baby, come here. Fuck.” he gestured.
Keith scowled, stepping back defiantly, “What’s the date got to do with anything?” he demanded.
Shiro bit his lip, “The 1st? April 1st?” he said in prodding, as if he expected Keith to understand what he meant.
Keith only kept his scowl.
“You really don’t know.” Shiro rasped, rubbing at his eyes with a long, groaning sigh, “I feel like an asshole.” he added.
“You are one.” Keith said, biting and yet Shiro only chuckled wryly at that
“April Fools, Keith.” he said, “The annual prank holiday?”
Keith blinked, confused.
“People...um, are supposed to prank others. And sometimes people use pregnancy as a prank and I assumed-“ Shiro finished with a grimace, “It...I didn’t even stop to think it was a coincidence until you got upset and I realized I fucked up.”
...now he felt like crying again.
“So you don’t...you weren’t-“ Keith couldn’t bring himself to finish, he wasn’t one to cry, almost never, but he startled and turned around when tears started spilling down his cheeks, choked up and embarrassed at how much they had both misinterpreted the situation.
Shiro was there, all of a sudden, and Keith clung to him instinctively, hiding his face in his shirt and hunching his shoulders self-consciously.
“It’s okay, baby. It was my fault, I should have been clearer yesterday instead of assuming.” Shiro rubbed his back and pressed a kiss to his hair. “It was stupid of me to think you’d do anything like that.”
Keith sniffled and then he pulled back to wipe at his face, turning again and hiding away, ashamed of how upset he’d gotten.
“I’m sorry.” Shiro said again, a hand on his shoulder, “Do you...maybe want to start over so I can react properly?”
“No.” Keith scoffed wetly, “It’d be weird.”
“Weirder than my initial reaction?” Shiro wondered.
“Y-yeah. I’m sorry I-I’m crying I just- I need to calm down.” Keith sniffled and exhaled shakily.
“Don’t apologize, Keith. It’s not your fault at all. And it’s okay to cry, especially when your feelings were hurt like that. I can’t imagine what that felt like, makes me feel horrible knowing I did that.” Shiro came closer and wrapped his arms around him from behind. “Also I want to assure you that I don’t think less of you for being pregnant. What you said yesterday made me realize that’s probably an insecurity for you, so I’m also sorry I triggered that.”
Keith nodded, gesturing to the couch and sitting down with him, still hiding his face in sheer embarrassment and grabbing the pillow to hold tight in place of Shiro’s hug.
“So, um…” Shiro began, “That...that was not a good first impression. It’s awkward now, but...to try and get on a better note: do you know how far along you are?”
Keith shook his head, “Haven’t been to the doctor yet.” he said, “Just haven’t been feeling great and I took a test yesterday.”
Shiro leaned in, bumping his forehead against Keith’s. “Maybe we can make a better memory and go together for an appointment?” he suggested.
“Maybe.” Keith hummed, “I’m still mad at you.” he added quietly.
Shiro nodded, “I figure I deserve that much.”
Keith turned his head in obstinance.
“Keith.” Shiro sighed, “Hey.”
“I know you’re sorry. Just let me be mad for a bit.” Keith muttered, wiping at his face again to get the last remnants of his tears.
“Okay, baby.”
Keith glanced over at him when he stood, and then he perked in mild alarm when he walked toward the door.
“Where are you going?”
Shiro turned on his heel, surprise on his face.
“Um...letting you be mad? Giving you space?” he said in confusion.
Keith pursed his lips.
“I don’t like space.” he said. “Never said you had to go.”
Shiro chuckled, “Well what do you like, then?”
Keith patted the couch again, and Shiro’s brow rose in amusement as he went to return to his seat.
And then Keith scooted over, once, twice, settling against Shiro and nuzzling into his shirt.
“Just cause I’m mad doesn’t always mean I want distance.” he said, “Like...it would have been nice if you would’ve pestered me last night instead of giving me space. Wanted you to.”
Shiro was stiff for a moment before he wrapped an arm around him, “I didn’t realize, when you were younger you always liked it.”
“No I didn’t.” Keith said, “Just...felt like I had to be the loner. I always wanted love and attention...from you, at least.”
Shiro’s breath hitched and he turned Keith’s chin up to kiss him gently. “I’ll be sure to change my ways, then.” he assured.
Keith smiled softly and lay his head on his chest with a contented sigh.
Shiro slowly stroked his hair and Keith started to doze. He didn’t realize he could sleep more after the night he had. But then again, it wasn’t very restful without Shiro beside him, plagued with dreams, tossing and turning.
Shiro gently nudged him, then scooped him up into his arms and walked them toward the bedroom, settling in with him and holding him close.
“I’m sorry, baby.” he murmured against Keith’s temple, pressing a kiss there.
Keith smiled a little, glad to hear him say it again. It wasn’t as if he hadn’t forgiven him for the misunderstanding, but it certainly helped cement the fact that that’s what it was. A misunderstanding.
“You don’t mind?” he rasped.
“Mind what?”
Keith tucked his face against his collarbone, hands grabbing at his shirt, “That I’m pregnant.”
“No, baby.” Shiro said earnestly, “I’m sure I should probably seem more surprised, but I had a long night to think about it. And I’m glad, excited.”
Keith nodded, “Okay.” he breathed, sagging in relief.
“I love you, Keith.”
Keith’s smile returned, and he hunched his shoulders, blushing, “I love you too.”
It was quiet long enough that Shiro obviously began to doze as well.
“April Fools is a stupid holiday.” Keith stated firmly, making Shiro jump in surprise.
And then he chuckled, “It is.” he said, pressing another kiss to Keith’s temple, “It really is.”