It was only a silly little midnight promise. It shouldn't mean this much to Hunk- but it did.
Hunk shouldn't be laying in his bed at all hours of the night wondering if Lance even remembered what he promised him almost ten years ago. Ten years was a pretty long time. He doubted that he was even serious about it, anyway. Or was he? He could have been.
Ten, very long, years ago, Lance and Hunk made a promise. One they swore they would keep if all else failed.
Or, if the concept of being forever alone was actually starting to hit them.
Ten Years Prior…
"Okay, Hunk. I've got an idea." Lance sat up on his bed, a tired look in his eyes. Hunk was at the headboard, sitting up on his phone. It wasn't unusual that they'd spend all hours of the night laying on opposite ends of the bed, talking about anything that happened to come to mind. The two- Lance especially- were very "in the moment" kind of people. Hunk wasn't sure what to expect from Lance, since almost anything could come out of his mouth at this point. It was a little after midnight, which meant that the "cryptid hours," rightfully coined by Lance, was starting.
"This is either going to be really amusing or really bad.." Hunk commented, shifting in his spot as he gazed at Lance.
"No, no. I think it's a pretty damn good idea, Big Guy. So before you say anything else, I'll just tell you my idea now." He paused as a small, yet shy smile formed on his face. That was..strange. "If we're both single by the time we're..oh I dunno, thirty? Let's get married."
Hunk didn't know how to react at first. Part of him was happy that Lance would choose someone like him to marry but at the same time, he felt like a last resort. Hunk always liked Lance. Hell, he's always had a small crush on him. Hunk just never had the confidence to tell Lance about it. Plus, he valued their friendship more than anything. He wouldn't know what to do with himself if he somehow lost Lance.
Wait, is he being serious, though? Why would Lance joke about something as serious as marriage? Actually, he'd totally joke about something as serious as marriage. Hunk looked down at his hands, almost forgetting to respond to him.
"I..I mean. I think it's a great idea… Probably. I don't know how good of a husband you'd be, though." Hunk joked, looking up at his best friend with a small smile. Lance rolled his eyes and laughed as he scooted closer to Hunk, holding his pinky out.
"I'd be a great husband. You'll see if we don't find other people before then. Now c'mon, pinky promise it."
Hunk looked down at his own hands, then to Lance's. He wasn't sure what he'd possibly be getting himself into, but whatever it was, he was more than okay with it.
"Okay, Lance, I promise."
Their pinkies locked together in a tight embrace, then sealed the promise by pressing their thumbs together.
It was harmless. Totally, purely, harmless.
Ten years preceding…
Work started in five hours. That meant Hunk could get at least two hours of sleep before starting his day. He always made sure to block out enough time to shower, eat, and make the full hour commute to the company building. Working as a mechanical engineer was practically his dream job. Every day, he got to plan and build whatever was thrown at him. Eventually, whatever Hunk and his team prototyped would be tested to hopefully be used by someone on this planet. The company that Hunk worked for is an affiliate with a high class physical therapy firm that specializes in high-tech prosthetics. One day, he'd design a prosthetic arm that can connect with neurons in the brain, allowing it to be fully functional. The other, he'd craft a prosthetic leg that has hyper realistic skin. Hunk was pretty damn proud of himself for landing this job, and would never replace it for anything in this world.
Hunk continued to lay in his bed, eyes blankly staring up at the ceiling. Today was Friday, which meant that he had his regularly scheduled bar meet with Lance.
Lance.
Lance McClain was..something. He's known him for over twenty years now. Hunk could tell anyone Lance's entire life story from beginning to finish without skipping over a detail, and vice versa. If anything, Hunk thought that he almost deserved to be with him at this point.
Being with Lance. Lance being his. He's wanted that for years, but could never find the heart to tell him how he really felt. Sometimes, it seemed that Lance felt the same way about Hunk… until he'd go off and flirt with every breathing organism within their vicinity. That's just how Lance was, though. Hunk had accepted that by now. There's no way to change Lance - not that he'd want to, anyway.
One and a half hours left to get some rest.
Dark eye lids slowly closed as Hunk exhaled. He can't be restless while at work. His team had to present a new prosthetic design to the physical therapy firm today; his own design, to be exact. Maybe he'd just have to down some coffee before he went in.
Sometimes Hunk wondered why he was so attached to the idea of being with Lance. There were other people in this world. Shay, for instance. She was nice, smart, beautiful… He saw her regularly, too. Hunk met her through work, and decided that he should keep in touch with her. The two got pretty close, almost too close, if Hunk was being honest. It was obvious that they showed strong interest in each other, but Hunk was too attached to the idea of Lance to even think about dating anyone.
Hunk thanked god for Shay, though. She understood why he was so afraid to commit to someone he wasn't as attached to. She supported him all the way through and promised to stay that way.
Promise.
Hunk really..didn't like that word anymore.
Later that evening…
"No, seriously, Hunk. These kids' problems are the least they should be worrying about. I mean, one girl is stressed out because her boyfriend doesn't text back right away, and this other girl is worried because her girlfriend texts back TOO fast. I don't get it." Lance worked as a high school counselor, which seemed to be easy enough. High schoolers normally need guidance trying to figure out what classes to take and what colleges to apply to, but of course, the personal problems were bound to arise. Lance never thought he'd deal with such…mundane issues, though.
"Well..I mean.." Hunk started as he took a sip of his wine that's been sitting out for far too long, "I don't see why texting back too fast is a problem. And some people..you know..actually have lives outside of their relationships."
"That's what I told both of them, Hunk! They still don't seem to get it, though. Sometimes I wish I applied to work at colleges instead of high schools.." Lance rolled his eyes, letting out an exasperated laugh before sipping on the gin he had.
"Yeah, but you know you'd miss it if you really left. "
"Hey, don't give me that look, Hunk—Oh, shit, wait. I need your opinion on something." Lance began to speak as he took his phone out. Hunk raised a brow, leaning forward on the table as he listened.
"So, you know how Nyma and I have been dating for a few years now, right? I think I might…reel her in." As he spoke, he started to pull up some screenshots of engagement rings on his phone.
That's right. Lance and Nyma had been together since Lance started his job at that high school.
It's been three years, to be exact.
Hunk always managed to block out the fact that Lance has been dating multiple people on and off since they made that promise to each other. Hunk's been single the whole time.
Somewhere in his heart, Hunk always thought that Lance would someday come around to reciprocate the strong feelings he had for him. This..crush he had always felt so one sided and childish to Hunk. He was yearning and longing for someone who only sees him as a last resort.
It kind of sucked.
Hunk tried to stop his expression from dimming, but it was nearly impossible. Lance noticed things like that quickly
"…Hey, Big Guy, what's wrong? Are the rings really that ugly?"
"What? Oh, no no no, I'm just..getting sick, is all. They're both gorgeous, Lance..I think I like the second one best, though."
It hurt. All of it hurt. Hunk wanted to be selfish for once- to finally get what he wanted.
Things seemed to fall apart at every corner. Every stitch and seam was coming undone and detangling within his palms.
Hunk might be losing his chance with Lance, and he didn't want to accept it.