Come Over

by MiraclesAndMonsters

Lance is depressed, Keith is anxious, when will our gay son and bi boy be happy? Hopefully by the end of this 28k one-shot. CW: smut, assault mention, mental illness, death

"Come over." Lance said flatly to the red paladin. The teammates had just completed a drill on the surface of a desert planet, and were on their way back to the main castle hall for a meeting with Allura. Keith glanced at Lance, and stepped closer.

"What did you say?" Keith flicked Lance right on his jawbone, causing him to flinch.

"When this meeting is over, I need to talk to you. Come over." Lance replied in a monotone. He wasn't being his usually cheery self, which moderately unsettled Keith.

Allura greeted the five paladins as the door to the control room shut behind them. The meeting was wordy and long, but not as long as it would have been had Lance been messing around like he always did.

"You could have done better, but I'm glad you all kept going. It was obvious you were getting worn down, but you never gave up," Allura's eyes glistened with pride and her smile stretched almost ear to ear, "I think you all need a much deserved dinner!" At her words, Coran entered and motioned for everyone to follow.

He had prepared a large meal in the dining hall for everyone, and they were hungry. They sat down and ate eagerly, everyone joking and laughing and chowing down on the alien delicacies.

Everyone, that is, except for Lance. He was cracking jokes here and there, and being witty, but he wasn't eating much. In fact, he shared more of what was on his plate than he ate. He seemed preoccupied in his thoughts, and was quieter than usual.

He excused himself and retired early, though no one really took the time to say goodnight. Everyone was still cheerfully telling stories and laughing with one another. Keith only noticed Lance's back as the door shut behind him, before hastily deciding to follow. He recalled how strange Lance had been acting prior to their chat with Allura, and excused himself. Everyone bid him goodnight, though they gave him strange glances before he exited.

Keith hurried down the corridor to Lance's door, but as he reached to knock, he hesitated. He heard music coming from the other side.

After a few moments of silent arguing with himself, he forced himself to give two solid knocks. The music stopped only seconds later, and the door opened seconds after that. Lance's eyes looked red, and his cheeks looked a little flushed too.

"Oh, I didn't - " his voice wavered at first, but he then swallowed hard and started over, "I didn't think you'd actually come, Keith."

"Of course I'd come when you've been acting like some sort of zombie." Keith scoffed, brushing off Lance's obvious emotional state so as not to embarrass him.

"Do you want to come in?"

"You invited me here, so, yeah. You wanted to talk?" Keith stepped into Lance's room, raising his eyebrows. The room was well-decorated compared to the other paladins', especially Keith's. There was a photo taped to the wall, a boom box on the floor, and a handful of CDs lying beside it. There was a colorful blanket atop the bedding that came with the castle.

"Y-yeah...uh...yeah..." Lance trailed off as he followed Keith into the room. He sat on the edge of his bed, and Keith followed suit.

"So what's up?" Keith asked flatly.

"I...uh, well, I've been...are...I just wanted to know if you actually...hate me." Lance said, looking everywhere but at Keith, finally focusing on his shoes. His fists clenched the colorful blanket as he spoke.

"What?" Keith's eyebrows raised so high they disappeared into his disheveled bangs.

Lance sighed, "Do you ha- ," but was cut off by Keith's, "You're serious?"

"Well, yeah." Lance frowned and furrowed his eyebrows.

"No one hates you, Lance." Keith sighed, relieved by the easy misunderstanding.

"Bullshit." Lance slammed his fist into the wall, his voice rattling the room and startling Keith. He looked at Lance with wide eyes, and Lance met his with a narrowed and hostile glare.

"My whole life, everyone hated me. My parents. School. The garrison. Even now - my 'teammates'. My 'friends'. No one ever wants me around, no one ever notices when I'm gone." Lance's voice wavered and he closed his eyes, taking a deep breath. "All I ever wanted was to be your friend, and you didn't even know who I was. But I knew you. You inspired me and made me want to work harder, I wanted to be your rival and your friend. But everyone loves you, everyone thinks you're cool, and everyone wants to be around you."

Keith sat, agape and in silence, for a long moment. He wanted to tell Lance how wrong he was, how everything he felt was just his own self-projection...but the more he recalled, the more Lance seemed to be eerily self-aware. He hadn't even noticed how much he himself disregarded Lance. Everyone always joked and laughed, including Lance - but no one ever included Lance. All his praise came solely from himself...and though this annoyed the others, Keith finally understood where it was coming from. Lance was starving for recognition. He only wanted to feel good enough for the others. Keith knew that feeling all too well, so it shook him to his core.

"Lance, I... I'm sorry, I guess I never realized how much all of us have hurt you." Keith sighed after his stagnance.

"Why can't you just answer my question and not take pity on me? I don't need pity from the lonely, brooding emo kid." Lance spat, crossing his arms and standing up.

Keith hesitated. Lance was facing away from him now, so he stood up behind Lance.

"Lance..." Keith breathed, barely audible enough for Lance to hear. As he turned to face the red paladin, he saw how his head was down turned and his gloved hands were trembling, knuckles white.

Suddenly, Keith's face was on Lance's. It was only several seconds of lip touching before Keith pulled away. His face was quite bright and his face was turned away from Lance.

"Anyway,I don't hate you." Keith rolled his eyes and crossed his arms, then turned to face Lance. He was making the same smug and confident and irritating face Lance was used to, but the redness of his cheeks and ears gave him away.

Then, Lance grinned evilly.

"You're really no good at that." He scolded. Keith's face immediately fell.

"What do you mean?" He cocked an eyebrow in response.

"Have you never kissed anyone before?"

"Y-yes, of course I have. Everyone has. That's totally normal. What's your problem?" Keith stumbled over his words a little bit, obviously caught off guard.

"Cool and suave and stoic Keith...never kissing anyone before. What a story." Lance felt smug.

"Whatever. Take it however you want. I answered you and now I'm leaving." Keith blinked slowly and, arms still crossed, strode quickly towards the door.

"W-wait! Uh, I was only...I'm just joking..." Lance trailed off as the red paladin left the room.

He felt disheartened as he climbed into his sheets and snuggled into his pillows again. Lance worried about what Keith was thinking and feeling now. He got back up and walked over to his stereo, pressing play to resume the music he had been listening to before Keith knocked. The album was "Loose" by Nelly Furtado, and "Te Busque" was next. He made his way back to the bed and hunkered down amongst the pillows, pulling the blanket up to his chin. He struggled to fall asleep, his thoughts about Keith's kiss keeping him preoccupied for quite some time before he was able to close his eyes and drift away.

He woke with a start after only a half hour or so of sleep, and had trouble regaining his restful state as he thought more about Keith. Then suddenly, he had a curiosity that couldn't be quenched.

He rose from his bed and pulled on a light t-shirt and a dark pair of pants. He sprinted out the door and into the corridor, making his way to Keith's room. He knocked several times with no reply before he worked out where Keith may possibly be at this hour. He took swift step after step, keeping tempo with his settling heartbeat from the run to Keith's room. He opened the door to what would be the equivalent of a fitness center on Earth, but what Coran fondly called the "aptitude arena" or something just as ridiculous. Keith was doing crunches on an inclined board; Lance gaped at his chiseled frame that glimmered with sweat. His hair stuck to his forehead and his eyes were shut. He was counting aloud.

"22...23...24...25..." Keith sighed and sat up, removing himself from the equipment.

"Keith." Lance suddenly interjected into the atmosphere, causing Keith to jump up and face him with his gloved hands ready for hand-to-hand battle.

"L-Lance," Keith breathed as he lowered his hands and took a more relaxed stance, "you... surprised me."

"I have a really personal question to ask you." Lance spoke breathlessly, still settling down from his run.

"Uh, okay?"

"Are you a virgin?"

The red paladin became redder, and his flushed face and sweaty, exposed upper body did not make Lance want to look away.

"What does something like that even matter? We're in space for fuck's sake."

"So you are?"

"Who cares if I am or not?"

"Why do you always avoid questions? You're so annoying!"

"Why do you always ask stupid questions? You're more annoying!"

This squabble lasted several minutes, each insult making the other more hot-headed and irritated.

"Listen, fine, okay! Whatever, yeah, I haven't fucked a person. Who cares? Have you?"

"I have. More than once." Lance answered nonchalantly, shrugging.

"Wha- you?! You. Lance 'everyone hates me' McClain?"

"I have some expereince. Some people cope with inferiority complexes with hypersexuality - I dealt with a personal problem by making myself do personal things with impersonal people," Lance shrugged again, "I was going to therapy for it back home."

Keith blinked several times, his jaw slack.

"What the fuck?"

"What?"

"You were just really intelligent and...honest?"

"Yeah, I know right," Lance started laughing, "it's almost as if I'm self-aware of how much of a burden and lackluster team member I am."

"Come on, man, don't say that..."

"What? It's true. If I just vanished I bet everyone would be glad to find a new pilot for Blue. Hell, I bet she doesn't even want me." Lance wrapped his arms around his stomach because he was laughingso hard. Tears were forming in his eyes from his extended laughter.

"Lance..."

"Oh, come on, Keith. It's a joke. I'm just messing around." Lance shrugged it off wiping the water from his eyes as he calmed down again.

"Well, I...am going to get back to my workout, if you're done asking weird questions." Keith said as he shuffled to the next machine. He seemed tired.

"Wait, I have another stupid question." Lance followed behind him quickly.

"What is it now?" He looked at Lance withthe face of a parent who had been answering 'are we there yet?' for the last four hours.

"Why are you up so late?"

"Oh...sometimes I have trouble sleeping."

"Then why are you here?"

"What do you mean?"

"Why are you working out?"

"Oh. If I can wipe myself out while also getting some training in, I figure I should. It will help me in the long run."

"Oh. And...one more thing before I go...?" Lance trailed off, resting one hand on his hip and looking away from Keith.

"Yeah?" Keith was clearly getting vexed by all the questions as he got down into push-up position and began pumping.

"What...did your kiss mean?"

"What?!" Keith stopped in the 'up' position and looked up at Lance.

"Like, was it a joke? Was it an impulse? Was it platonic? Was it romantic? What did it mean? I'm just curious; it was really unclear in the moment."

"Are you fucking joking? Like, legitimately, you literally do not know what a kiss means?"

"I've kissed a lot of people I don't give a shit about, Keith," Lance rolled his eyes and crossed his arms, looking down at Keith, "but since it was probably your first, I was just wondering if it meant something to you."

Keith sighed angrily and shook his head as he walked himself up from the push-up, which looked ridiculous and made Lance snicker. He then turned to Lance quickly and grabbed his face, slamming their faces together.

This action elicited a loud CRAACCK!! as their foreheads collided. Lance stumbled backwards, exclaiming explatives loudly then under his breath as he raised his hand to touch his tender and bruising brow bone.

"Keith, what the fuck?" Lance laughed, "You're a little too eager, don't you think?"

Both of Keith's hands were covering his forehead, and he was turned away from Lance. But Lance could see the red tinge in the other paladin's ear.

"Sorry." Keith said flatly. He grabbed up his belongings quickly and began making moves to leave, but Lance - still massaging his forehead - ran to catch up and grabbed his shoulder.

"Wait!" He tried to pull Keith back to look at him, but Keith shrugged him off and pulled away. His face fell as he watched the red paladin walk away.

"Keith, can you just wait up? Please?" Lance called out quietly, but audibly enough that Keith froze in his tracks. He turned back and made an impatient face, and Lance smiled widely and sprinted over to him.

"Whatis it now? Do you need to make fun of me?" He rolled his eyes.

"No." Lance replied. He just stared for a moment, then blurted out, "Come over." Keith's only response was a reddening face, a side glance, and a slight nod. He followed Lance.

Once the door to the room shut behind them, Lance spun on his heels and was face to face with Keith, their breath warm on each other's faces.

"Brush your teeth." Keith said flatly, looking to the side of the room.

"Take your own advice." was Lance's snarky response. They both smiled, made eye contact, and laughed quietly. Keith noticed Lance's face was flushing a bit now, and felt his face get warmer again as as response. They both stood in awkward silence as they looked around the room.

"Hey, if you're not going to say anything, I'm going. It's cold in here." Keith said. He was still topless from the workout, though he had a shirt in hand. Lance assumed he had taken it off after he started working out,so it must have been drenched before he decided to lose it.

Lance basically lunged at the red paladin. His hands took to Keith's hair and his lips to Keith's. Keith's eyes were very wide and he lost his eyebrows to his messy bangs again. His belongings fell from his hands as he practically caught the blue paladin, immediately resting them on Lance's waist instead.

A few moments of warm, open-mouthed kissing ensued. Lance opened his eyes but kept kissing, and grinned into the kiss when he saw how focused Keith's closed eyes and furrowed brows seemed. It made him chuckle and he pulled away from their kissing.

"What?" Keith was defensive.

"I opened my eyes and I saw you, and you were so cute I couldn't help but smile and laugh a little. Sorry." Lance responded tenderly as he pulled Keith closer. He went in for another kiss, and was met in the middle by an eager Keith. He couldn't help but smile and kiss more, kiss longer. It felt so nice. To be this close to another person filled Lance with longing. He pushed farther and farther, tracing Keith's abs with his wandering hands, pressing his leg between Keith's, grinding into him and holding him against the wall. Lance picked up the pace, too, kissing more intensely. He found himself annoyed with Keith's lack of tongue, so he pulled away and looked at him with frustration.

But his frustration immediately melted away when he saw Keith's beet-red face, mouth still open from the kiss, panting and looking at him with begging eyes. He felt a knot form in his stomach as the image of Keith's desperate face seared itself into his mind. It turned him on.

Keith stood up straighter and cleared his throat, pushing Lance away. He gestured to the door, and said, "It's pretty late. I should...be getting to bed..." He trailed off as he looked around the room, then started turning away.

Lance's body reacted faster than his mind, and his hand flashed out and gripped Keith's wrist tightly. "Stay," he breathed. Keith raised his eyebrows in surprise, and he replied, "what?"

"Please...stay...I guess." Lance let go of his wrist and looked away, his face getting warm.

"You...guess?" Keith looked annoyed.

"I mean, I know...I want you to...but I don't want to sound desperate... like, you can go, if you...want to. I wouldn't mind. I don't care. You don't validate me. Whatever."

"I want to stay, and... I...do want to...kiss more...but I don't...want..." Keith got progressively less audible until he was silent and thoughtful.

"You don't...what?" Lance pressed, impatient.

"I don't want to fuck." Keith said confidently and clearly.

"That's...uh...fine," Lance laughed, "I'm not exactly after that, anyway."

"Then what are you after?"

"Wh-" Lance choked on air and coughed, his eyes wide in surprise, "what?"

"What are you after, if it's not my ass?" Keith smirked.

"I...uh, it's definitely just some affection. I'm in need of physical contact or whatever. Not necessarily sex." Lance didn't sound convincing at all. Though he wanted to avoid sounding desperate, he definitely sounded very desperate. Keith chuckled and put on his shirt, which had dried at this point. Lance made a disgusted face; "Take that off right now, that's disgusting, you can borrow one of mine, ew," he hissed quickly as he pulled out a shirt and threw it to Keith. It hit him square in the face, and Lance held back a laugh.

Keith, with Lance's shirt in hand, removed his sweat-stained shirt. He proceeded to drop it on the floor. Lance was staring, presumably because there was nothing else to look at in the room. Keith pulled the clean shirt on, but it was tight in his shoulders.

"I think I'm just going to stretch this shirt out, Lance. It's too small for me."

"What? Where? It looks fine."

"It's really tight across my shoulders."

"No, your shoulders look great. You're fine."

"Lance, I'm talking about how the shirt fits, not how much you want to see my shoulders rip through the fabric."

"I know that!"

"Do you have anything a little bigger?"

"Everything is pretty much only my size."

"Can I borrow your jacket, then?"

"Sure."

Lance pulled his big jacket out and handed it to Keith. He removed his shirt for the second time, pulling the jacket around him around zipping it up.

"I thought my clothes would definitely fit you since you're so short." Lance teased.

"I'm just too muscular to fit such small clothes." Keith shot back.

"Maybe you're just too wide"

"Maybe you're too narrow."

"That doesn't make any sense."

"Neither does anything you say, like, ever."

"What do you mean? I'm hilarious!"

"To whom?"

"Dude, I make everyone laugh! What do you do? Crunches?

"I do more than work out!"

"Maybe if you worked out less you would fit in some normal sized clothes!"

"Maybe if you worked out more we would wear the same size!"

After a silent moment, Lance responded, "Oh. I mean, that's actually...reasonable." They both laughed quietly. Keith made his way to Lance's bed, tenderly touching the colorful blanket.

"My abuela made it for me. It's a quilt. She takes old pieces of fabric and sews them together. Each piece is from a different year and different event; some of my friends and family back home even gave her different pieces. Some of my favorite t-shirts and pajamas are a part of it. She sews them all together, then sews a bottom layer of just plain fabric, and then stuffs it with...Well, anything she wants, I guess." Lance smiled, his eyes distant as he fondly recalled. Keith stared at him, thinking how beautiful Lance looked when he spoke.

"It's nice," was the only response Keith could muster. Lance stepped closer, now side by side with Keith, and laid a hand on the quilt. Keith watched silently as Lance pointed to certain colors, listing off names of siblings and friends. When there was a lull in the moment, Keith slid his hand into Lance's and intertwined their fingers. Lance turned to face him, and Keith leaned up to kiss him. They closed their eyes and shared the moment, a gentle and warm kiss. Lance brought his other hand up to Keith's cheek and Keith's other hand clenched onto Lance at the hip, hooking a belt loop to pull him closer. Lance pulled away from the kiss and smiled.

"This is nice." He whispered. Keith blushed, then turned away from Lance and crawled into the bed, under Lance's covers.

"Goodnight."

"What the fuck?"

"I said...goodn-"

"That is the least smooth thing you've done tonight, and I have a huge knot on my forehead, Keith." Lance crossed his arms and smirked, one eyebrow raised.

"What are you even talking about?" Keith groaned.

"You're just trying to get me into bed with you."

"I'm not."

"You obviously are. I didn't invite you to sleep in my bed, did I?"

"Are you fucking kidding me? You asked me to stay."

"Not so you could go to sleep!" Lance motioned wildly with his arms.

"Then come here and keep me awake," Keith replied with a smug look on his face. Lance felt himself blush and get flustered at the red paladin's flirty comeback.

"Fine, but only because that quip was so quick."

"That quip was so quick?" Keith mocked.

"Oh, shut up," Lance said as he slid under the covers, "I have an okay vocabulary. I just choose to use it selectively."

"Like when you want to ruin a mood?"

"Like when I want to impress a pretty boy."

Though the room lighting had dimmed, Lance assumed from the silence that Keith was blushing at the comment. He reached out and cupped Keith's cheek with one hand, then moved it down to his neck. He would have gone further, had his own jacket not been in the way of Keith's collar bones, shoulders, and chest. He leaned in closer until he felt Keith's breath on his face, then whispered, "kiss me, loser."

"Make me." Keith remarked in a hushed tone.

"Gladly!" Lance whispered mockingly before pulling Keith into another kiss. This time, Lance embraced Keith. One arm wrapped tightly around the red paladin's waist, the other grasping at his mullet.

Contrarily, Keith's hands were stationary, gripping tightly onto the back of Lance's shirt. His kisses were long and feverish and desperate, but still offered no tongue. Lance pulled away, and whispered tenderly, "are you afraid you'll be no good at using your tongue?"

"No!" Keith exclaimed, then brought his voice down to a lower tone, "I just...I guess - I didn't think I was supposed to start...using it, suddenly."

"What?" Lance laughed quietly.

"I thought...there was like, a certain point...in dating or in making out or something...I don't know, man, I just always thought there would be a signifying moment."

"Then let this conversation be that, and play tonsil hockey with me before I lose my mind."

"Tonsil hockey?" Keith mocked.

"Oh my god, shut up!" Lance laughed and kissed Keith again. Keith was warm and his lips were soft and it was driving Lance crazy. He smelled like shampoo and sweat and the seats of a new car. Lance just pulled him closer. He eventually coaxed Keith into French kissing, which was on an entirely different level. The kisses got hotter, Keith got more into it than he had been before, and the panting and fighting to catch each other's breath became more evident. Lance found himself squeezing Keith's butt, and one of Keith's legs was between Lance's legs. Keith was still holding Lance's shirt in curled fists, but was pulling him as close as possible. Their chests were touching and their noses were pushing into each other, and eventually they both felt so ridiculous that they started chuckling and smiling and they broke their kiss. Lance rested his forehead against Keith's as they laughed, then covered his face in gentle kisses - to which all Keith could do was grin. Their smiles were both giddy, both of their hearts racing.

"That was really nice." Keith whispered.

"Brush your teeth." Lance retorted. Keith punched his shoulder softly.

"Shut up! Listen to your own advice."

"You're really cute."

"...shut up..."

"I like kissing you, Keith."

"It was really nice..."

"I want to keep kissing you."

"Then...do it..."

"I mean after tonight. And after tomorrow."

"I can't believe you." Keith sighed and rolled his eyes.

"What?" Lance was defensive, propping himself up on one elbow.

"I'm telling you to do it. Kiss me. Any day you want."

"What the fuck?"

"What?! You just said that's what you wanted."

"Ah, shit...Keith..."

"Wh-" Keith was cut off by Lance's lips on his. This kiss was very soft, and after Lance pulled away he kissed Keith's forehead. He pulled Keith really close, burying his face in the crook of the red paladin's neck. Keith felt Lance take a deep breath.

"I never thought you'd even want to be my friend. Now, all at once, we're here. Together. And I'm holding you and I'm kissing you and I feel so happy and I'm not as lonely and I'm so...grateful." Lance breathed out, his voice wavering.

"Lance..."

"Thank you so much for even caring an ounce about me...even if you're pretending...I don't care...I don't...care...I'm so happy right now." Lance's hug tightened. Keith pushed him away a bit so he could look Lance in the eyes.

"Lance, this is not pretending. This isn't for your sake. I really like you; I really like kissing you. I want to stay close to you," Keith cupped Lance's face in his hands, using his thumbs to wipe some of the blue paladin's tears away, "for as long as I possibly can. You are wonderful, and the team would be so much less enjoyable without you. You are funny and smart, and no one acknowledges you because you already seem so sure of yourself. But we like you. I like you. I like you a lot." When he finished speaking, he kissed Lance gently. Then he kissed Lance's hands, his forehead, and anywhere else he could reach - each kiss making the blue paladin smile a little wider and chuckle and sniffle. Lancewrapped his arms tightly around Keith again, pulling him into a hug. Keith hugged back, squeezing the blue paladin with all his strength. The fierce hug made Lance laugh, then Keith rolled with him still in his arms so that Lance was on top of him.

This sudden change of position made Lance more flustered than he could ever remember. He propped himself up, one arm on either side of Keith, and looked down at the red paladin. Keith was looking anywhere but at Lance. They stayed in this awkward silence for several moments before Keith mumbled something.

"...sorry?" Lance said quietly.

"Uh..." Keith glanced up at him then away again.

"I just didn't hear you before." Lance coaxed warmly.

"Kiss me, idiot." Keith blurted out. Lance grinned, then shrugged.

"I don't know if I want to kiss someone who bullies me like this."

"Ugh!" Keith groaned, then reached up and wrapped his arms around Lance's neck, pulling him into another feverish kiss. Keith had already learned so much, and was a fantastic kisser. Lance couldn't resist. His mind got hazy and all he could think about was touching Keith, was sullying him. He wanted to make Keith squirm. He pulled away from the kiss again, shaking his head. Both of them were panting, and Keith was a blushing mess beneath him. He reached for the zipper and began unzipping the jacket Keith was wearing.

"Wh- L-Lance...?" Keith murmured, his voice unsteady.

"I know you don't want to. We won't. I won't hurt you. I won't break your trust," Lance whispered things like this as he kissed Keith's body. He kept reassuring Keith, as his lips latched onto Keith's neck and his teeth scraped at his collarbones, "I just want to make you mine. You're mine. I want everyone to know."

"I'm...all yours..." Keith responded gently, his hands rubbing Lance's back. This made Lance blink, and he pushed himself back up from trailing hickies across Keith's body. The red paladin was a mess, moreso now than before. He was splayed out, the jacket open and pulled back on either side of him. His hair was curly and stuck out in several places. His body was now covered in spots varying in shades of purple and red. Lance smirked at his handiwork and gently kissed Keith one more time.

"I...uh, do you...are you tired?" Keith was stumbling over his words.

"Yeah, I...Iguess so. I could sleep."

"Do you...want to...I don't know, maybe...try...like...do you...want...to cuddle..." Keith got more hushed with every word, but Lance could just make out what he was saying. The blue paladin smiled giddily and rolled to his side, snuggling up closely to Keith and tugging the blanket up to their chins. Keith chuckled and slid his arm underneath Lance, who happily scooted closer into the red paladin's embrace.

"Are you..." Lance began. After a solid minute of silence, Keith responded, "Am I...?"

"Are you...are we dating now?" Lance whispered, trying to play off his embrassment for asking.

"I don't know. I don't think so, but isn't this what people do when they're dating?" Keith responded thoughtfully, his face contorting to express his own confusion at the thought.

"Any two people can make out, dude." Lance rolled his eyes.

"I think I'd like it if you were my boyfriend." Keith spoke subconsciously, thinking aloud.

"Wh- what?!" Lance felt his face rise in temperature, and his heart began racing.

"Huh? Sorry?" Keith looked at the blue paladin, and in recognizing his panic, realized what he had said. Then he, too, began to blush and felt alarmed.

"Uh,I mean...! I don't know!" Keith began to laugh nervously. Lance joined him, and eventually the calmed down together.

"Keith..."

"Yeah?"

"I think...that we should take it slow."

"Okay...I think that's a good idea. We probably shouldn't tell the others yet, either."

"Right."

"I mean, we don't even know if there's anything to tell them anyway."

"Right! Just two dudes, making out. Figuring things out. Nothing worth blabbing about."

Though both of them said these things, Keith was wondering when he would have time to talk to Pidge about all of this.They talked for several more minutes, sometimes sneaking in a kiss here or there, before finally falling asleep in each other's arms.

The next morning, a blaring alarm woke them. Keith opened his eyes first, climbing carefully over Lance and leaving quickly to go prepare for today's exercise with the team. Lance woke as Keith was getting out of the bed, but stayed in bed for a few more seconds, relishing in the memories of the night before. He stood up, stretched, and started gearing up for the day. He stretched again when all of his paladin armor was on, then sprinted out of the room and trotted towards the hangar. He boarded Blue and prepared for the training regimen.

The exercise was grueling, but they succeeded and called time after about four and half hours. Allura seemed pleased in their debriefing, and the paladins made their way to the dining hall. Keith and Hunk walked side by side, laughing and joking. Pidge was ahead of them, about two steps behind Shiro, explaining something she had found a few nights ago. They entered the dining hall and looked around, realizing that today's menu consisted solely of leftovers. They all made their way to the storage compartments and coolers, prepping their meals. Keith got some weird space goo; it was purple and bluish. Pidge got something similar to crisps and what appeared to be a normal bagel. Hunk had some soupy substance and what was probably the alien equivalent of wontons. Shiro had...ice cream? Everyone just stared at the black paladin as he ate. He cocked an eyebrow as he swallowed, and muttered, "What? It's like...yogurt, or something. It tastes okay." This response elicited laughter from everyone in the room.

That was when Keith realized he wasn't there.

He scarfed down his food and stood up, excusing himself and darting away. Everyone watched him leave with curious eyes, but continued eating as though nothing had happened.

Keith sped down the corridor toward Lance's room. He stopped, panting, before the door. There was music playing on the other side. He knocked twice. The music stopped. When the door opened, he grabbed up the blue paladin into a tight hug before either of them could speak.

"Uh, hey, Keith..." Lance pushed him away a bit, looking at the floor.

"I'm sorry I didn't come sooner - sorry I didn't realize sooner - I'm so sor-"

"Keith, it's fine. It's not like anyone has noticed before." Lance's words stung him.

"What do you mean?" Keith asked, concern spreading through his face.

"I mean...the first time I skipped was months ago. When I realized no one cared, when I realized no one was coming after me, I just...quit going, usually."

"That's not true. I see you there all time."

"Sometimes I'll go for a little while, on the good days. When you talk to me more than usual, or Hunk pays more attention to me than normal."

"Lance..."

"I just figured you were probably...finished with me."

"Lance!" Keith grabbed his shoulders and shook the blue paladin.

"Don't get a tone with me," Lance hissed, "You're the one who didn't notice until now. Why would I think you cared after one night?"

"I thought...we bonded."

"I think that a lot of the time, but it just...turns out the same." Lance laughed quietly, sadly. His eyes started to glimmer with tears.

"Lance, I...really like you." Keith grabbed Lance's hand, intertwining their fingers. Lance pulled his hand away sharply.

"You should go hang out with everyone. I'm sure they're missing you." Lance stepped back into his room, the door shutting in front of Keith. The red paladin hit the door, panic welling up inside his chest. He knocked on the door repeatedly.

"Lance? Lance!" He cried out in vain. He kept pounding on the door, calling out to him. He felt tears well up behind in his eyes, and he swallowed hard in attempt to push them back.

"Fine! That's how this is, then?" Keith yelled. He hit the door again. "I really thought you understood!" His voice broke. He hit the door again. Tears were staining his cheeks as he stalked away from Lance's door, down to his own room.

"I'm keeping your jacket." He muttered to himself.

He lay in his bed and stared at the ceiling. Keith was thinking about what happened - not even a full twelve hours ago they were snuggled together in Lance's bed, whispering sweet words to one another. He didn't know what was going on or why Lance was shutting him out. Couldn't he see how badly Keith wanted him?

Lance didn't know why Keith came back. The red paladin had practically ignored him through the entire training session, and only thanked him when Lance defended him at one point. He didn't even notice Lance wasn't there! How dare he come back and pretend like he cared? Though these thoughts were plaguing the blue paladin, he couldn't help but feel lonely. He was angry at Keith, he was angry at himself. Why did he always invest himself in people he knew would never love him?

He wished Keith could actually love him. He wished he was worthy of Keith.

Keith sighed deeply, his face buried in Lance's jacket. His eyes felt heavy; he didn't know how long he had been crying. He rolled onto his back, still clutching the jacket to his chest, and stared at the ceiling again. Wondering what he had done to push Lance away, he turned his head and examined the door longingly. He wished for someone to talk to or something to do; he wanted anything to help alleviate his thoughts and take his mind off everything.

And, as though the universe heard his miserable and silent pleas, three sharp taps echoed in his barren room, causing him to jump. His heart began to race and his face and spirits lifted in hopes that Lance had come to talk to him. He rolled out of bed, throwing the jacket to the side, and bounded the few feet to the door. It slid open with a whir, and Keith was smiling brightly.

His face fell when the paladin before him was several inches shorter than he was.

"Oh, hey, Pidge. What's up?" He asked.

"I was just going to ask you the same question."

"Huh?"

"You've left dinner early two days in a row. I know sit-down meals aren't common for us all, but they're sort of a tradition when it's after the team successfully forms Voltr- is that Lance's jacket?" Pidge glanced around Keith and pointed to his disheveled bed, where Lance's jacket was plainly sprawled out. He swiftly blocked her view, which promptedtwo minutes of fighting over the field of vision in the form of body positions.

"Listen, Pidge, I haven't been feeling well lately.I think I'm getting a cold or something, so I've been trying to rest it off."

"Oh, I see," Pidge grinned knowingly, "You know, some old superstition says you can trade your fever for a kiss. I see you believe it."

"What?!"

"Is he in there with you now?" Pidge began trying to get a clear view into the room again, with Keith continually blocking her efforts.

"Pidge, stop it!" He stepped outside and let the door shut behind him.

"Look, I just came to see what was up. Everyone is wondering why you keep leaving in the middle of eating." Pidge crossed her arms.

"I already said I haven't been feeling well," Keith paused for a moment and thought, then asked, "Why hasn't anyone checked on Lance?"

"Huh?"

"Lance. He rarely stays through a meal, if he even bothers coming." Keith voice got quiet and serious as he thought.

"Well, I just always assumed he was off doing...whatever it is Lance does. You know, taking a hot bath, painting his toenails, something like that."

"You notice when he's not there?"

"Of course I do. He's my teammate and, more importantly, my friend. I noticed he's been kind of down lately, but I haven't said anything to him yet. Sometimes he overthinks, and it usually goes away within a few days." Pidge shrugged.

"I...talked to him the other night. He...thinks everyone hates him, Pidge. Like, actually hates him."

"Well, he has self esteem issues, man. He hates himself and is his own worst critic. He takes responsibility for things that go wrong even when they aren't his fault. It isn't healthy, but it isn't my place to tell him how to cope. I just wish he would come to eat more, even if he didn't stay. Don't tell him this, but I think his jokes are pretty funny." Pidge shrugged again and laughed.

"How...do you know all of this?"

"I broke into the garrison to find out more information about where Matt and my dad vanished. Do you really think I couldn't access information about Lance and Hunk? I wanted to know who my crewmates were," she put her hands on her hips and cocked an eyebrow at him, "and I learned a lot more than I was ready to... I still feel a little guilty about knowing so much personal information about him."

"Can you...would you tell me a little?"

"What? Why?"

Keith glanced around, then opened his door and motioned Pidge in. The door closed behind them.

"I knew it was Lance's jacket." She mocked, grabbing the jacket up and waving it like a matador taunting a bull.

"Yeah, I know, I borrowed it. He came to me while I was working out last night, and we ended up in his room and I didn't have a clean shirt. His clothes didn't fit so he let me use the jacket."

"Why were you in his room?" Pidge smirked like she already knew.

"I stayed the night with him."

"Oh my god, you fucked Lance?" She exclaimed at top volume. Her eyes were wide with surprise.

"Can you keep it down?!" Keith responded loudly. He took a moment to regain his composure, took a deep breath, and looked away from Pidge, "We didn't...do anything like that. We just...kissed a lot." He felt his face get warm as he spoke, recalling the night before.

"Wow. Finally."

"What the fuck?"

"You two have so much sexual tension between you I'm surprised I can't grab it with my bare hands at this point." She laughed.

"What are you on about?" Keith grumbled.

"You like him. He likes you. He's always liked you, and it's always been really obvious."

"What?"

"Oh quiznak, I hate you!"

"Why?!"

"Because you're the most stubborn, oblivious, knuckle-headed son of a Kaltenecker ever. Lance has been drooling over you for...probably a decade at this point. Maybe a century, who knows? He's totally obsessed with you."

"All he wanted was to beat me, though, and be better than me." Keith blinked slowly.

"All he wanted was for you to be forced to recognize him. He wants your praise. Your approval. Your eyes on him. He wants your attention." Pidge began in her most patronizing tone of voice.

"...oh."

"Yeah."

After a few silent moments, they ended up sitting side by side on Keith's bed. He asked Pidge several questions in between the long pauses, and she always responded with essentially the same thing: "Because he likes you." A few more minutes of quiet, thoughtful Keith passed before he finally asked Pidge to tell him more about Lance.

"Well, I think it's against some ethical or moral code for me to tell you what I know." She said, swinging her legs back and forth over the edge of the bed.

"Can you just...elaborate for me, then?"

"Elaborate on what? I haven't told you anything yet."

"I know, I know. He said some things, and I was curious, but I didn't want to push it with him because he seemed really depressed."

"Oh? What kind of things?"

"He mentioned...therapy?"

"Yeah?"

"He said he...did some things with people as a way of coping, before he started therapy."

"He was in therapy for about two years before he came to the garrison. I don't know what for, but he had antidepressants and an anxiety prescription coming from that therapist."

"Oh, wow. Really?"

"Yeah."

"I wonder what happened to him..."

"Do you want to know?" At her question, Keith's head snapped towards her. He examined her, but her face was downturned and she looked distant.

"You know?"

"Yeah...I...I do. I...feel...I feel really bad for him."

"What? What is it?"

"He was, uh...he was attacked by someone older than him."

"Attacked? Someone hurt him?"

"...yeah."

"So he got mugged."

"...no, not...not exactly."

"What? Then what do y-" Keith trailed off as he realized what Pidge meant. He looked at the ground as well, and sat with her in silence as sadness and anger rose up inside him. He wanted to protect Lance. He just wanted to hold him, right now, and kiss him.

He was brought back to reality by Pidge's hand on his. He looked at her, and her eyebrows were raised in a clear expression of concern for him.

"Sorry," she said, "are you okay?"

"Yeah," his voice wavered, the he swallowed hard and continued, "...yeah, sorry. I was...thinking."

"You're crying."

"What?" He brought his hand to his face and touched his cheek, realizing it was covered in tears. He wiped them away quickly with his gloved hands, and Pidge patted his back while he did.

"So he was...sexually...assaulted." The words felt like steel stuck in his throat.

"It was...more than just assault. The woman's in prison now, but that doesn't...fix what happened to him."

"Oh my god...no wonder..." Keith pulled his knees up and crossed his arms over them, then pressed his forehead to his arms.

"We've been out here for several months. Do you...think...he maybe ran out of his prescription?" Pidge asked.

"Probably."

"I never thought about it before."

"I never knew."

"I don't think anyone knows."

"Is there any way to help him? Can we get more? Can we make more?"

"I can go read up on it...I don't know why we couldn't." She stood up and stretched.

"Thanks for coming by, Pidge. It really means a lot to me."

"Hey, it's no problem. What will you do?" She turned to him.

"What do you mean?"

"While I'm doing that, what will you be up to?"

"I think I'm going to head to the simulator floor and get some practice in. I haven't gone yet today."

"Cool. I'll see you around then." She turned on her heels and whistled as she walked away from him, out the door, and out of sight as the door shut behind her. After pondering for a few more minutes, he stood up. He glancedat Lance's jacket while he pulled on his own, then put his hands in his pockets and walked out of his room. He strode at a lackadaisical pace down the corridor, in deep thought about Lance.

The sudden blaring of alarms shook him from his thoughts. Allura could be heard over the comms saying, "Paladins! Get to your lions!"

At this, he broke into a full run in the direction of Red's hangar. Once inside, Allura showed upin a pop up on his dash.

"Lance and the blue lion have gone awol," Allura said, "and the castle has picked up readings of Galra ships in the area." Keith's stomach flipped as she spoke. She gave them the approximate coordinates of the Galra fleet and they were on their way.

Keith felt his stomach rolling. He was worried. Did the Galra find Lance? Had Lance tried to find someone to fight? Where was Lance going? What was going on?

Shiro's voice shook him from his thoughts.

"Paladins, we need to split up and approach them from all sides. We don't know how many there are, or if they're still in the same place, so we need to stay aware of what's going on and what's right in front of us."

"Got it." The other three were in sync as they split away from the black lion. Keith was engulfed once more by his thoughts. The voyage to the Galra fleet lasted about forty minutes of uninterrupted flight for Keith, since he was overshooting and doubling back to come at the fleet from the east. Shiro was heading straight ahead from the west; the fleet was west from the castle. Hunk was taking the south and Pidge the north.

Allura flashed up on the screen again, her panicked voice startling Keith.

"There's a distress signal from the blue lion - it's comin-" she blooped out of his screen. He was headed off course now, only a radar on his screen.

"Red? What's going on?" Keith was looking around, feeling anxious. He closed his eyes, and saw a vision of Lance.

"What does that mean?" He asked her again. She boosted her flight and continued at her own trajectory. He sat back and let her take him wherever it was she was going - not that he had much of a choice otherwise. His imagination was taking a toll on him as he got lost in thought worrying about not only Lance, but now the others and their potential fight with the Galra.

"...anyone..." Static and interference came over his comm system, then finally Lance's voice in pieces. Keith's heart began to race as he responded.

"Lance? Lance! It's Keith. Can you hear me?"

"...Keith...stran...pl... help... Blue... alone..." Lance was interrupted time and time again by static.

"Lance, I can't make out what you're saying! If you can hear me, hold on a little longer. I think Red is bringing me to you."

"...critical damage...and I'm all alone, I don't know...and then these aliens...and now I'm in a...hiding from...Blue is...and not responding..." Lance was slowly getting clearer, alarm in his voice.

"Repeat one more time. I think I'm almost in range." Keith pleaded

"Keith, for fuck's sake...hear me? Blue...nd took me to some planet...I didn't mean to go so far, but she kept go...and we were attacked by some aliens. I think we got too close...anet, but they shot us down. I'm injured, Blue is damaged and the engines are in critical condition."

"What planet?"

"I don't know, Keith! The one that's around!"

"Okay, okay, you don't have to yell! I think Red is bringing me to you."

"Good! Hurry. I can't hold out too much longer. Blue is pretty far from me - I had to run. The aliens came for us and I'm hiding in some decrepit structure. I'm hurt. Badly."

"Then save your breath. I'll reach out when we're closer."

"Roger dodger."

Keith was relieved for a few moments, but fear welled up inside him. How badly hurt did Lance have to be to admit he was hurt badly? What aliens would attack like this? How far had Lance gone? These questions plagued him as he waited. An hour passed, and another. A yellow-brown planet was finally visible, and they were headed for it fast.

"Lance?"

"...yeah...?" Lance sounded exhausted and drained.

"I see the planet. We're almost there."

"Oh, that's good. Blue put up her shield. I'm still at the structure, but I can see her. I'm going to...take a nap now."

"No, no, I don't know how bad your injury is but you need to stay awake."

"You're close enough. It's a nap." Lance snapped.

"Please, Lance, if you never listen to me about anything else..."

"Keith, I'm so tired."

"Please." Keith begged him.

"Fine. I will try." Lance said begrudgingly.

Keith sighed athank you.

After about fifteen more minutes, Keith and Red entered the atmosphere. He was looking around, but Red was on her course. As they approached the surface, he could make out traces of blue between the planet's strange trees. An Altean warning popped up on his screen, which he dismissed quickly. Keith was looking for the structure Lance was talking about as Red landed a few meters from Blue. He disembarked quickly and scoured his surroundings. A pile of rubble lay to his left, so he ran for it.

"Lance," he called out, "Lance? Lance!" He searched the rubble for hiding places, looking for any signs of a building or structure Lance may have been talking about. He sighed and then yelled in frustration, running frantically around and checking every nook and cranny.

Then he saw it. Nestled away behind some trees just beyond the rubble was a short, square-ish temple. It reminded him of something Mayan on Earth. He ran again, panting as he got to the crumbling steps leading up to what was once a large archway - closed up mostly by collapsing in on itself. He bounded up them two steps at a time, slipping occasionally on the breaking stairs. He doubled over when he reached the top landing, hands on his knees and wheezing, gasping at the air. He looked out and found he had a clear view of Red and Blue from this point.

"Lance!" He called into the once-entrance. No response, comm or otherwise, again. He sighed angrily and mumbled, "Yeah, you sure tried to stay awake, didn't you?" He doubled over and tried to get a visual inside the fallen building. His helmet's flashlight illuminating all it could, he could only see rubble. It looked rather shallow, so he wondered where Lance could have gone. He glanced over the entrance once more, and looked harder inside, now climbing in a bit on all fours. He saw a path ahead, if he could shimmy through it.

And shimmy he did. He pushed and pulled his way forward, wriggling side to side quitegracelessly. After several meters, the path began opening up a bit more, and Keith could move more freely. He made it into a crawl position and hustled forward. He saw a shoe ahead.

"Lance!" He called out, to no response. A message appeared in his helmet warning him of low oxygen level. He called out again, to no response, then continued crawling forward hurriedly.

The walls of rubbe grew close again before opening up into a room, and Keith quickly stood up and looked around. Just inside and to his left, Lance was lying face down on the floor - unconscious. He knelt beside him and chuckled, then shook the blue paladin.

"Lance, wake up. We need to go." He shook him again and again.

Lance wouldn't wake up. His heart jumped into his throat as he rolled Lance over. He saw Lance's helmet was badly damaged, and that he had several wounds across his body.

"Status. Status. Come on." Keith said under his breath as he tried to get Lance's suit to respond.

The blue paladin's helmet flickered on.

"Status." Keith demanded.

"Deceased." He swallowed hard.

"Status." He repeated sternly.

"Vitals; pulse: 0 BPM; respiration: 0 BPM; temperature: 38 degrees Celsius. Deceased."

He was overwhelmed. Keith was yelling at Lance. His eyes were watering, then he was crying hard. He was gasping for air and his chest felt tight. He pulled Lance into his lap and hugged him tightly. He was screaming and crying.

The building began coming down around them. He pulled Lance close, as if to protect him, and looked up. Through his tears, he could see large claws pulling apart the structure frantically. It was Red. He cried more and looked at her, and she looked at him as she stopped ripping the stone away. Then he closed his eyes and sobbed more.

"I couldn't save him." His voice was broken as he spoke between sobs. "I couldn't save him. Why did he come here?" He yelled angrily and sadly. His whole body was shaking and he felt like his chest was on fire. He wanted to run away. He wanted to punch something until he couldn't feel his hands. He couldn't handle his emotions.

He must have been there, crying, for a few hours before they arrived. He was holding Lance's body close to his, hiccupping. He ran out of tears a while ago. Pidge and Hunk and Shiro were talking to him and to one another, but Keith couldn't hear them. They were muffled under a deafening ringing in his ears.

Pidge rested a hand on his shoulder and spoke to him softly. Shiro was taking Lance. Keith was fighting Shiro, pulling Lance's body back to him. Hunk held him back as Shiro rushed aboard the black lion and launched. Hunk hugged him tightly. Keith began crying again. A tearless, choking cry. Pidge looked at Hunk with a compassionate shrug.

Blue followed Black. Pidge and Hunk said something about going back to the castle then Pidge turned to Keith and grabbed hishand. She gently pulled him along to Green. He sat behind Pidge as she piloted them back to the castle. Red followed.

Allura, Coran and Shiro were waiting in the hangar as the duo disembarked from the green lion.

"He never listened. I think he's still in shock." Pidge said to the trio. Allura nodded, her eyes looking pitifully at Keith. He sighed and refused to make eye contact with anyone else. He strode away hastily to get to his room, but Shiro caught up to him. They walked stride in stride.

"Keith." Shiro said. Keith ignored him.

"Keith. Keith!" He grabbed and halted him. Keith slapped his hands away and shouted.

"What? What do you want?"

"Listen, Lance is -"

"Dead! I know. You think I don't know? I was there." He was yelling, his fists aching from being tightly curled.

"He's not! He's not, Keith. Lance is in a healing pod. He was severely hurt. His suit malfunctioned. But he's in a healing pod and should be totally healed within a few days." Shiro said gently to the red paladin.

"What?"

"The suit malfunctioned. It wasn't taking anything but temperature readings. All the pressure sensors were off."

"He's alive?"

"He's in a pod."

Keith felt breathless. He turned from Shiro and darted down the corridor. He was crying again, still unable to produce tears. He stopped running only once he was in front of the door to the room full of healing pods, then he proceeded inside the room and approached the pod where he could see Lance. He put his hand on the surface of the pod and stared intently at Lance's blue-tinged face.

It went on for hours like this. The others would intermittently stop by. Hunk brought Keith food. Shiro did too. Pidge came a few times, and all she ever did was sit next to him in silent support. Her presence often made him feel better. She helped him know he could go on; her friendship made it possible for him to stay by Lance's side like this.

When it was obvious he wasn't moving, Pidge showed up in her pajamas, carrying two pillows and what looked like several blankets. One of them was the quilt from Lance's bed. He looked ather with inquisitive eyes and took in a breath to speak.

"If you're about to ask why I'm here and why I have this, don't. You can't stay in here by yourself and I know you're not going anywhere. I'm going to be here if you need to talk. Here." She spoke, handing him a pillow and Lance's blanket. When she dropped her pillow and a sleeping bag onto the floor, she handed him a bag that had been hidden in her occupied hands. "It's a change of clothes, some protein bars, and a bottle of water," she nodded towards Lance's pod, "he's taking care of his body in there, so you need to do the same out here."

And with that, she slipped herself into the sleeping bag and rested her head on the pillow.

"Thanks for always looking out for me."

"I just wish you had listened to us on Thalamyssius."

"What?"

"I kept telling you he was alive. I checked his vitals by hand and by my own machines. You were so out of it I don't think you even realized."

"I thought he was dead. I really...thought he died, Pidge. Our last conversation was an argument about him staying awake. I thought..." He got progressively more choked up as he spoke, and she sat up and put a hand on his shoulder.

"It's okay, man. It's okay." She gave him a side-arm squeeze sort of hug, and he thanked her again.

"You need to get some sleep, Keith. I promise he'll still be here when you wake up." She reminded him. He nodded.

"How did you get this blanket?"

"Oh, I just went into his room and got it."

"What the fuck?"

"I have all the emergency entry codes to the rooms of the castle, should Coran or Allura ever be out of commission. I considered this a sort of emergency."

"Why not get my blanket, though?"

"You'll probably just thank me after you're cuddled up to the thing that Lance sleeps under every night." She laughed, then slipped back into her sleeping bag and turned over. He lie down next to her, their bodies forming a sort of V as Keith's head was closer to the pod and her feet were closer to his. He rolled onto his side and pulled the blanket over him.

Pidge was right. He hadn't realized it, but he had grown accustomed to Lance's scent. He couldn't quite place what it was, but it soothed him immensely. He stared into the bluish green light, wondering what Lance might be dreaming about. Keith grew sad as he remembered their conversation from before all of this; it felt so long ago that Lance had pushed him away like that. Now, he'd do anything to go back and at least have Lance yelling at him. Keith missed him. He continued to stare until his eyes were so heavy he couldn't bear to hold them open any longer, and he fell asleep.

When he blinked awake, the room was still dim. He sat up and rubbed his eyes, then yawned and stretched. Pidge was already gone. She had, however, left a small box and a note. It read:

'You're welcome in advance.

Ichanged the lighting so you wouldn't be disturbed by it. I'm assuming you're not leaving until Lance is out of the pod, so I put some things in this box to help you pass the time.

He'll be there for a few days, so I know you'll need them. There's also a backpack with bottled waters, protein bars, and other nonperishables behind the pod activity board.

Please feed yourself.

x Pidge'

Keith felt warmed by Pidge's thoughtfulness. He stood up and stretched again, then looked for the bag Pidge had mentioned. His stomach rumbled. As he circled Lance's pod, the sack came into view. Keith squatted down and unzipped the bag, pulling out a protein bar and a bottle of water. While tearing the wrapping of the peanut butter and honey granola bar, he chuckled to himself. What was he doing, trying to survive in the wilderness while his overprotective mother packs him lunches for while he's away? Pidge didn't need to go this far out of her way to do these things for him. He was grateful she did, though. He zipped the pack up again, stood, and meandered back to Lance's bright and colorful quilt.

He sat down and pulled the 12" by 12" box closer to him. As he ate, he opened the box. He pulled out a deck of cards, an mp3 player, a puzzle, and a book. In the bottom of the box was a photo strip of Keith and Pidge - from the photo booth of the earth goods store in the intergalactic mall. He smiled sadly as he pulled it out and held it up, inspecting theirfour photos.

The top photo was of Keith looking somewhere cluelessly while Pidge was open-mouthed and pointing to the camera. He chuckled at how silly it was, and recalled how he had never been ina photo booth before that day. She was probably showing him the camera because he didn't know what to do or where to look. The second photo lended proof to this theory, as he was now looking at the camera and pointing, and Pidge was looking at him approvingly. The third photo was a true testament, with Keith's right arm around Pidge and her left arm around his shoulders. They were smiling brightly, her eyes were nearly shut, and Keith was laughing. The final photo they did peace signs at the camera, the sides of their faces were touching and they were grinning. Keith chuckled as he remembered how happy Pidge was to have those photos with him. These must have been his copy of the photos, because he had decided not to take them. Pidge must have kept them both.

He grabbed the puzzle next. It was a color gradient and it was 5000 pieces. He sighed, wondering how long everyone thought Lance would be in the pod exactly. On the underside of the box was a note - he carefully extracted it from the tape and unfolded it. It was from Hunk.

'Hey man,

Pidge is asking for things to help you pass the time since you're waiting for Lance to get better. I think puzzles are fun, and they definitely eat up your time. This one is cool and really hard, I think it will help you a lot. Lance will probably be out way before you're even close to finishing it.

See ya soon, dude.

-- Hunk'

Keith smiled at the note and folded it back up before setting the puzzle to the side.

He then picked up the book. It was a light novel entitled "Kringle". He looked it over, the cover art interesting to him. He skimmed through the book and a note fell out. He picked it up and read it.

'I didn't exactly get a chance to get back to Earth and pack up before we left to find Voltron. This book was one of Matt's. It grew on me as he told me about it. It's some coming-of-age story about how Santa became Santa or something. It's supposed to he a fun adventure. If you read it, I hope you like it

- Shiro'

Keith proceeded to read the synopsis on the back cover of the paperback book. It sounded interesting, but he wasn't big on reading fantasy books. He shrugged as he set it on top of the puzzle box, thinking it might be worth checking out anyway.

The deck of cards came from Pidge. She didn't leave a note or anything. The box had her name on it. She did, however, leave detailed instructions on how to play solitaire, and some hand-illustrated guides to card tricks. She had also taken the time to include blueprints for an elaborate house of cards, detailing the physics behind the design wheneverthe architectural integrity of the house wasquestionable. He laughed warmly at this because it was very Pidge-like. He expected nothing less from her.

The final item in the box was the mp3 player. It was old and worn out. It was one of those thumb drive mp3 players, not an iPod or anything with any kind of touch screen. It was shaped like a pill or capsule that was about 2 inches long and was black and red, though the scratches on it revealed a gray plastic underneath the coloring. He turned it on and the small window lit upin several colors before settling on a bluish white. Music began playing in the ear buds dangling from the player. He could see he was on track 47 of 374, and was impressed this tiny and very old mp3 player was capable of storing so much data. The title of the song was sliding across the screen, followed by the artist, on a loop. Apparently, song 47 of 374 was "Say It Right" by someone named Nelly Furtado. Keith put in one ear bud and listened through to the end of the song. He was unimpressed to say the least. He looked back into the box to see another note. It read:

'I stole this from Lance's room when I took the blanket. It was smaller than the boom box and CDs. I have no idea if it still works, or if you'll even like what's on it. I don't really care either, I just know you like music and music helps passtime. You're welcome.

x Pidge'

He put both ear buds in and pressed play, then pulled the puzzle over to him and cleared a space to start.

Lance's musical taste was very...varied. Keith made it through all of Nelly Furtado's "Loose" album, and through Sia's "1000 Forms of Fear". Now he was bobbing his head along to the second Shakira album he hit in this mp3 player.

Only in one corner of the puzzle was Keith gaining any traction. He had most of the edge pieces in place, but the upper left hand corner was where he was thriving. He had about seventy pieces invested in that one red and reddish-orange area. He sighed and stopped, unplugging his ears and pausing the music.

This was boring. He just wanted Lance back. He pulled the deck of cards over and began a game of solitaire. The first face up cards, from right to left, were a Jack of spades, a nine of spades, a ten of spades, a two of spades, a two of clubs, an ace of clubs, and a three of diamonds. He sighed and rested his face on his palm as he pulled the ace of clubs up and put it to the upper left hand corner. This revelaed a nine of diamonds. The two of clubs followed the ace, an ace of spades hidden beneath it. He moved the ace of spades up beside the ace and two of clubs, leaving an eight of diamonds behind, then placed the two of spades on the ace of spades and revealed a Jack of hearts. He then moved the nine of diamonds onto the ten of spades, then moved that couple onto the Jack of hearts. This left a blank where the nine was, and an ace of hearts where the ten had been. He moved the eight of diamonds onto the nine of spades, leaving another blank space in its wake, then picked up the ace and joined it to its siblings, revealing a king of spades. The king of spades took the blank spot of the nine, and under it had been a six of spades. For the first move in the game, he has to consult his deck. The first card is a four of clubs - useless. Then a four of spades. Then a king of hearts. Then a seven of clubs - bingo! He put the seven of clubs onto the eight of diamonds. Then he decided he would go ahead and put the king of hearts out in the available blank. He began flipping again. Queen of diamonds was next, which he put on the king of spades. This let him move the jack of spades onto the queen of diamonds and reveal a ten of hearts, which he promptly placed on the jack of spades to upturn another card - a five of hearts. He moved his nine of spades and its dependants to the ten of hearts, which revealed the Jack of clubs, then moved the five of hearts to the six of spades. Still upturned from his flipping was a four of spades, which he put onto the five of hearts. This allowed him to move the three of diamonds onto the four of spades and created a blank. Where the five of hearts had been was now an ace of diamonds, which he moved up to join the other three and revealed a three of spades. He had to take to his deck again. Next in line was a five of diamonds, followed by an eight of hearts. Then a two of diamonds, which he happily placed on the ace of diamonds. Next was the seven of spades. Then the seven of hearts. He wished Lance was back as he kept turning the cards, revealing in order the three of hearts, seven of diamonds, four of hearts, and four of diamonds. He sighed as he flipped up the next card, an eight of spades, then smirked a bit as he picked it up and placed it on the nine of diamonds. He frowned when he realized he would have to flip through the entire deck again to get back to the red sevens, then continued flipping cards. The next one was the king of clubs, which he promptly used to fill the blank. He flipped again, and it was the three of clubs. The queen of hearts was next, and he quickly put it on the king of clubs he had just lain down. He pulled the Jack of clubs over and flipped the card beneath it to find the queen of clubs. He smirked as he pulled the queen of clubs to the king of hearts, then moved the jack of hearts onto the queen. This revealed an eight of clubs and a six of hearts, respectively. He sighed and began flipping cards once more. Next was the king of diamonds, followed by the six of diamonds, then the six of clubs, then the queen of spades. Next was the five of spades, which he put onto the six of hearts. The last card in the deck was the two of hearts, which he happily placed on its ace. He inspected his cards again and his eyes widened when he noticed that the three of spades had been sitting there this whole time, sitting on top of two more cards. It reminded him of how he had forgotten Lance, and it made him sad for a moment. He paused his game and leaned back, rubbing his neck. He put the ear buds back in and pressed play, relieved by the bass-laden music of Shakira. Her accent had always annoyed him, but Lance's mp3 player had gotten him quite acquainted to her, and he found she was just an acquired taste. "Oral Fixation" volume two was getting him through right now, and he leaned forward again to continue his game of solitaire. He moved the three of spades onto the two of spades and revealed the five of clubs. He moved the five of clubs to the six of hearts to uncover the nine of hearts. This let him move the eight of clubs onto the nine of hearts and uncover the ten of clubs, which he then moved the nine of hearts onto so a blank space was made. He then took the six of hearts and moved it to the seven of clubs. At this point, "Hips Don't Lie" began playing, and he wiggle-danced to it as he kept playing. The card previously concealed by the six of hearts was the Jack of diamonds. He felt snide as he moved the ten of clubs onto the Jack of diamonds to reveal the nine of clubs. He began flipping the deck again. Four of clubs, five of diamonds, eight of hearts - put on the nine of clubs - seven of spades - put on the eight of hearts - seven of hearts - put on the eight of clubs - three of hearts - put on the two of hearts - seven of diamonds - put on the eight of spades - four of hearts - put on the three of hearts - four of diamonds, he paused. He scanned for the three of diamonds, put it on the two of diamonds, and then placed the four of diamonds on top. He continued by putting the next card, the king of diamonds, into the blank. The six of diamonds went onto the seven of spades. Six of clubs was next, which he placed on the seven of diamonds. He put the next card - queen of spades - onto the king of diamonds and restarted the deck. There were only two cards left. He flipped them, the four of clubs going onto the three of clubs and the final card of the deck, a five of diamonds, going on the six of clubs. He grinned widely and began moving the cards into place. Twos, threes, fours, fives... But when he got to sixes, he was surprised to find he had forgotten a card. Beneath the six of spades was the final card of the game - the ten of diamonds. He continued organizing them until they were in neat little piles by suit. "Hey You" was just ending in his ears when he grabbed up the piles and shuffled the cards.

He did this four more times before calling it quits and lying down. He was surprised to find the next few albums on Lance's mp3 player were quite...nice. Keith's tastes were starkly different than Lance's, but Lance had some really bubbly and poetic songs that made him smile. How very Lance-like, to make Keith smile. Owl City was on now, and Keith found himself whimsically drifting along with the daydreamy music. He pulled the pill-shaped music player up to his face, squinting at the tiny, LED-lit screen. He found that the five buttons along the sides of the player had more than just the on/off and volume up or down selections. He was able to skip forward or back, and could enable a shuffle setting.

It was then that he found his way to the menu screen, the small rectangle only offering minute images in place of actual menu items. Unaware of how to get back to the music, he selected an icon in the shape of a folder. The title "Playlists" appeared across the top in scrunched up letters that were barely readable. He clicked through them couldn't help but laugh at some of the names. Amongst certain playlists being grouped by artist, he found "my theme songs", "if my life was a movie", "annoy pidge", "ye olde meme", and "keith".

He hesitated. "Keith"? A playlist named...just Keith? He highlighted and selected it, which created a pop-up menu that displayed icons of a play button and a trash can. He highlighted the play button and pressed select. The first few notes of this song he recognized instantly, causing him to half-gasp. He thought it was strange that a Death Cab For Cutie song was nestled away in Lance's mp3 player, and stranger still that it was under a playlist named after himself.

When the next song began, it dawned on him. After listening to "I Will Possess Your Heart", New Found Glory's cover of "Crazy For You" began. This playlist was full of love songs. He listened through, and the next song began. He didn't recognize it, but once the vocals began he realized it was more up Lance's musical tastes alley. It was a song called "All You've Gotta Do" by Priscilla Ahn. He smiled as he listened to her sweet, high-pitched vocals. Her music was relaxing. He hadn't known his eyes were closed until he sat up, his heart racing from the sudden volume of Panic! At The Disco's "Nicotine". When this song finished, he paused the music and unplugged his ears again. He put the mp3 player to the side and sighed, wondering why that song had to be in the playlist. Was Keith dragging him down? Did he hate Keith because Keith had never realized his feelings? He clenched his fists as he thought, turning his head to stare at the healing pod. He rolled onto his side and continued to stare until his eyes became too heavy to continue, and he gave in to sleep.

When he opened his eyes next, he still felt exhausted. He heard hushed voices near him, and rolled over to see Pidge and Shiro standing at the entrance of the room. They stiffened at his movement, and Pidge sighed.

"Hey, good morning." She offered quietly. He groggily nodded to her, then stretched. He sat up.

"What's up?" He responded.

"Oh, well... I, uh... Here. Just take this." Pidge walked over to him and put two ziplock-like plastic bags in his hands. Each bag contained a different group of pills. He looked at her, puzzled.

"It's Lance's...It's for his...I mean, you know. I found out how to make it. Hunk and Coran went shopping and the ingredients are pretty easy to find intergalactically. Hunk and I made it up pretty quickly...This is - this should be a three months' supply." She said nervously.

"Oh," his face brightened up a little, "this will help him once he's back out, then?" He looked up at her hopefully. She smiled and nodded firmly.

"Thanks, Pidge. You're the greatest." He said as he stood up, bags of medicine still in hand. He hugged her tightly and she patted his arms in response. Shiro smiled at the two of them. When Keith finally freed Pidge from his vice grip, she waved a goodbye and exited the room with Shiro. He sighed sadly - alone again.

Then, he got angry. He didn't know why, but resentment at the others bubbled up in him. It felt warm, like heartburn, and settled right between his heart and his stomach. He wanted to slap sense into them. He shouldn't be the only one so worried about Lance. They should all be here, too, waiting for Lance to come out of the pod. That Lance is okay should be a celebration for every single person on this ship. Keith should not be waiting for Lance alone. He even felt this anger towards Pidge, who had helped and had been there for him. Why wasn't she in here, waiting with him? All of her contraptions could easily function in this room. It's a main part of the ship, so comms could reach them easily should any emergencies happen. He shouldn't be the only one waiting on Lance. He clenched his fists and groaned, and his anger faded away behind a more pressing feeling - hunger. He stood up and rounded Lance's healing pod, squatting down to the backpack and unzipping it. He pulled a cellophane bag of garlic crisps out of the pack and decided to take another bottle of water before zipping it back up and making his way back to his spot.

He sat down and tore the crisps open, munching on them. He continued working on the puzzle.

Hours passed. Keith finished the entire left quarter or so of the puzzle, all the red pieces now in place. He was working hard on the orange pieces, which were coming to a close. A few pieces of yellow were in place as well. He sighed and stretched, unaware of how much time had passed since he even got into this room. He thought this was third day, but he couldn't be sure. He drank the last of his water and stood, making his way back to the backpack. He pulled out another protein bar and bottled water, deciding that though the crisps were tasty, the protein bars satiated his appetite for more of an extended period of time. He walked back to his spot in the floor and kept at the puzzle, unwrapping the protein bar and taking a bite every once in a while.

He worked and worked at the puzzle. It was strenuous, but over half of the puzzle was finished now. He was already onto green, with only a few pieces of yellow left. He yawned and stretched, leaning back on his arms. His back was stiff from sitting, hunched over the puzzle all day. He twisted his body and was met with popping all throughout his spine. He laid back and stared at the ceiling, then turned his head to look at the healing pod. How long was Lance going to dawdle in there, exactly? A frustrated sigh escaped him, and his eyes met the mp3 player. He grabbed it and pulled it up. It was still paused on the next song in his playlist. He put the ear buds in and pressed play. He laughed loudly as he listened to "Untouched" by The Veronicas. He thought it was cheesy and dumb, and he couldn't help but keep laughing. After that, the laughing bout continued as "Shake It" by Metro Station played next. Next came Hellogoodbye's "Here In Your Arms", and Keith was crying in laughter, now rolled onto his side and gasping for breath. He paused the music when the song ended, trying to regain self control. Though the songs were cheesy and he found them hilarious, when he thought about it, the words and the meanings were still cute. It was even cuter knowing Lance picked them out and put them in this playlist. He looked up at the healing pod, seeing Lance's tinted face again. He blinked and sat up, looking again. It looked like Lance was smirking from inside the pod. Keith almost got angry, and said, "If you hear me in there, it's your fault, loser. You're the one with a terrible taste in music!" He chuckled some more and wiped his eyes, then pressed play again. He was surprised by the sudden 80's love ballad, "Heaven" by Bryan Adams. It took him halfway through the song to realize that it was next in the playlist because of the title of the song before it. Keith clenched his fists, mad that he couldn't slap Lance's shoulder or something for this awful joke. The next song was "Heaven" again, but this time remixed by DJ Sammy. Keith preferred the original. When it ended, he sighed. A few seconds of silence and the next song played - one he really, really liked the sound of already. It sounded familiar. He looked at the title, "Light up the Sky" by Yellowcard. He knew Yellowcard. He listened contently. As he recognized the words, the song made his heart sink. He wondered if Lance felt this way, or if this is how he made Lance feel. It ended, and he paused the music again. He sat up and stared at the pod, then unplugged his ears and stood up. He walked over to it and looked at Lance. A knot formed in his stomach as he scanned over the blue paladin. He pressed his forehead to the glass and his palm to where he guessed Lance's hand would be.

"I wish you could've shown me this playlist, Lance." He said sadly. His breath caused a fog on the surface of the pod. "I wish we could've listened to it together, each with one ear bud in. Maybe lying in your floor or something. I'm sorry I listened without you." He kept talking to Lance through the pod.

"I'm sorry I didn't notice how bad you felt. You were so lonely. But so was I, Lance! I felt so alone, my whole life! You had others... I...I - I always thought...That you had others. You didn't need me to see you. You're great on your own." He sighed and shook his head.

"I'm sorry I'm not saying all of this to your face. I should've asked you to be my boyfriend that night. I should've said yes. I just didn't want to stop holding your hand. I thought you'd hate me. I almost thought it wasn't real - like, like...Like it was a dream. But I woke up and when I opened my eyes you were there. You were still there, Lance. Fuck..." He let himself slide down onto his knees, then put his face in his palms.

"I just wish you were here. I miss your shitty jokes, your awful grins. I miss you." Keith half-leaned, half-fell onto his butt and sat there, staring up at the pod helplessly. He frowned as he felt tears come to his eyes and slide down his cheeks. He wiped them away quickly.

"Uh, sorry to interrupt your moment," Pidge's voice sliced through the silent room and startled Keith, causing him to gasp and jump up, scrambling to his feet.

"How long were you here?" He nearly yelled.

"I've been trying to get your attention from over here since you were rolling in the floor with Lance's mp3 player blasting in your ears."

"Oh, my god." Keith huffed and dragged his palms down his face in embarrassment.

"Yeah, so anyway," she continued, Keith just realizing she was in her pajamas and was carrying her sleeping bag again, "I was gonna hang out with you again, but if you love birds need a night to yourselves..."

"Oh, shut up!" He responded with a smile and said, "I'm glad you're here."

With this, Pidge smiled and moved farther into the room, laying down her sleeping bag. Then she looked at Keith seriously, and furrowed her brow.

"Come with me. Now." She grabbed up a paper bag, one that reminded Keith of the shopping malls on Earth, which had been sitting to the side of the room unnoticed. Then she grabbed Keith's wrist and started tugging on him, leading him out of the pod chamber. He dead weighted her at the entrance, however, and asked, "Where exactly are we going?"

"You need a shower. And to change clothes. And to brush your teeth," She responded flatly, tugging harder to make him budge, "I bet you haven't even gone to the bathroom since you've been in there. It's been three days. You're gross, Keith."

"Oh, now that you mention it, I really... I really need to piss."

"Ew, if I ever hear you say that again, I'll kick your ass." She heaved and he began walking with her again. They entered the bathroom and he looked at her.

"Uh, I think I can take it from here, Pidge."

"I have to get ready for bed too. There are stalls around the corner, and showers. There are sinks here." She gestured here and there, Keith following her movements with his eyes.

"You're just going to...Stay in the same bathroom as me? Isn't that weird?"

"It's only as weird as you make it. We're teammates, and more importantly, we're friends. And above that, we are homo sapiens from the planet Earth. We have similar, if not identical, grooming and social habits. I'm going to brush my teeth in here. I don't need to shower or change clothes - I do that daily. What's weird is the fact that you haven't gone to the bathroom in three fucking days. Go take a shower." She shoved the bag of items she had brought him days ago into his hands and waved him away dismissively, turning to the row of sinks before her. He rounded the corner and saw the community showers on his right. Across from them were the toilet stalls, which he promptly entered and relieved himself after setting the bag on the ground. When he returned, he cut the water of one of the showers on and grabbed his bag of belongings. Inside was a change of clothes, a toothbrush, a tube of toothpaste, a tiny bar of soap, and what looked like hotel bottles of shampoo and conditioner. He grabbed the soap and bottles and began stripping. Once he had peeled off his dirty clothes, he stepped into the steaming water of the shower and reveled in how good it felt. He hadn't realized his hair had gotten greasy and clumped together in the back, or that the underside of his fingernails had darkened with dirt. It was a relief to finally feel the warmth of the water pouring over him, to feel his hair weighted down by the wetness. He leaned into it, turned to face the stream of water, breathed in the steam - all things he rarely did as cool or even cold showers felt better to him post-workout.

He grabbed the shampoo and unscrewed the cap, squeezing the clear contents into his palm. He rubbed his hands together, then ran them through his hair and began scrubbing. He closed his eyes and sighed as he thought about how nice being clean would feel. He was so preoccupied with worry for Lance that he had fully neglected himself.

"Hey, Keith?" Pidge's voice jolted Keith from his relaxation, her voice closer to him than he felt comfortable.

"Y-yes?" He returned.

"Just wondering if you're gonna be much longer."

"Sorry. I haven't had a warm shower in a while. Gimme a minute."

"Alright, no problem. I'm gonna head back, though. I'll meet you in front of Lance's pod."

"Okay. See you soon." He grabbed the bar of soap and began lathering it up as her footsteps pattered away and were lost to the sound of splashing water. Her words had made him aware of time now, so he expedited the process and washed his body quickly. He squeezed some conditioner into his hand and spread it through his hair. While he let it sit, he rinsed the lather from his body and washed his face quickly. Once he rinsed the conditioner from his hair, he cut the water off and looked around.

There were no towels. He unlatched the door to his shower stall and peaked outside, looking for any sign of Pidge. When he was sure the coast was clear, he stepped out and looked into the bag she had given him. Lo and behold, Pidge had provided once more. A folded towel was just inside the bag. He thanked her in his head as he grabbed it and dried himself off. Inside the bag was still a change of clothes, which he began pulling out after semi-drying his hair. He pulled on his underwear and felt immediately more secure. He picked up the bag and made his way over to the sinks, the towel resting on his shoulders. He brushed his teeth thoroughly and enjoyed the cleanliness of his mouth. He hadn't realized how gross his mouth had felt and tasted, especially after those mediocre garlic crisps. After flossing and mouthwash, he reached into his bag and pulled out a soft, oversized shirt and...leggings. He stared at the leggings for a few moments, unsure of who they belonged to or why they were in his bag. He saw a tag on them that indicated they came from the mall, and assumed someone must have gotten them for him. He pulled them on first and was impressed to find they were incredibly comfortable. He pulled the top on next, then replaced the towel on his shoulders again. He grabbed the bag and walked out of the bathroom, making his way down the corridor and into the room. Pidge was reading the book Shiro had left, "Kringle".

"Is it any good?" He asked as he set the bag down and walked over to their respective pallets. She nodded as she turned the page, and he sat down next to her.

"Shiro said it's something about Santa?"

"Actually," Pidge paused and closed the book on her thumb, sitting up and looking at Keith, "so far it's about this boy named Kringle. He's twelve, and he lives with someone named Merwen. Goblins attacked his home, and now he's gone to find Merwen."

"Oh?" Keith raised an eyebrow.

"This is one of Matt's favorite books. We've read it together with our mom. It's for little kids - I think he first read it when he was in the third grade. It's pretty fantastic, though. It's a coming of age, action story about the legend of 'Santa Clause'. I really liked it when I was younger, but now I prefer sci-fi action. And now, more just...science...since I practically live sci-fi now." She smiled sadly, nostalgia causing her eyes to glaze over. Her other hand swept over the cover of the book. He put his hand on hers, and she looked at him before she pulled her hand away.

"Sorry, I just-"

"It's okay. You miss him. You miss your home and your family. It's fine."

"Thanks." She sighed. He rested a hand on her shoulder and they shared a quiet moment.

"I noticed you're getting close to finishing that puzzle. Hunk is gonna be surprised." She said after a while.

"You think so? I spent a lot of time leaned over it. It killed my back."

"I think it took him days to finish it."

"Yeah, but I'm sure he took breaks. This is also my second day working on it."

"Hmm. I think he'll be impressed nonetheless." She hunkered back down in her sleeping bag and opened the book up again. He grabbed the mp3 player and lie down on his pallet. He plugged his ears and pressed play, then closed his eyes.

When he opened his eyes next, he was surprised. Gentle, instrumental music was playing in his ears. He turned over and saw Pidge was still in her sleeping bag, but her glasses were beside her and she was on her side, facing away from him. He paused the music and unplugged his ears, then sat up. A quiet snoring was emanating from Pidge's sleeping bag. He grabbed his half-drunk bottle of water and took a few swigs before recapping it and setting it down. He scooted across the floor to his puzzle and, pulling his knees to his chest, began working on it again in the greenish light of Lance's pod. He was finally beginning the blue section of the puzzle, starting with teals and seafoams and other blue-greens. He worked at it in the calm silence of the night, Pidge's steady breathing and occasional snores making the dark room feel secure.

After investing nearly a hundred new pieces into the puzzle, Keith took a break and rested his face on his knees. Then he turned his head and rested his cheek on one knee, staring into the light of Lance's pod. He sighed sadly and impatient thoughts flooded his head. He just wanted Lance to come back. He sighed once more and turned back to the puzzle, but felt defeated. He leaned back and let himself sprawl out on the floor, then closed his eyes and let himself daydream. He felt himself grow tired as he imagined holding Lance's hand and images of kissing Lance fluttered by in his weary mind. He fell asleep not long after.

Keith woke with a start, sitting up immediately and gasping. He couldn't remember what his nightmare had been about, but he knew he was afraid of whatever had happened. He found himself in a cold sweat, so he grabbed his towel - strewn up against the base of Lance's pod - and patted himself dry. He pulled Lance's blanket up and drew it around himself, reveling in the smell. His heart was starting to ache. He just wanted to hear Lance's voice.

"Good morning." A weary voice croaked out. He looked over his shoulder to see Pidge sitting up, feeling around beside her for her glasses.

"I'm surprised we're awake at the same time. You're normally gone by the time I'm up."

"I guess that's true." She yawned and stretched. Keith turned to his puzzle and began picking at the pieces again. She stood up and stepped over to him, squatting down beside him and looking over his shoulder.

"You're almost finished."

"I know. Once this puzzle is finished, I'll have to go back to solitaire until he gets out."

"It can't be much longer now, Keith. It could be any moment."

"I won't hold my breath. It's already been a week."

"It's been four days."

"A month, then."

"Oh my god." She sighed. He looked at her with a smirk and they both chuckled. She sat down next to him and watched as he worked on the puzzle. After a while, however, she bid him farewell and left the room, taking her sleeping bag and pillow with her. He noticed she also seemed to have taken the book, since it was absent, and smiled sadly at the thought of how badly she missed her family. He didn't quite understand, but he could empathize with the loneliness. He focused hard on the puzzle now, finally on his last few hundred or so pieces.

This took him several hours. The colors were running together, as they had always been. He got distracted and took breaks here and there. He ate and he drank and he even got up, left the room, and relieved himself in the restroom. Then, it was time. Five left.Four pieces. Three, two... He held up the last piece of the puzzle. It was a dark, bold sky blue. He stared at it and sighed as he put it into place. The puzzle was complete.

A click sounded in the atmosphere. He turned to the door to see who was entering. The door was unmoving. He swallowed hard, a little unnerved by the strange sound.

Another click. He stood up and looked around. Then a hissing sound came from behind him, and he jumped around to face it. Cold clouds were pouring out of the pod as it slid open with a defined SSSSHHHHK! Keith's eyes were wide with surprise, then a smile broke across his face and his heart began to pound and his stomach flipped and his hands trembled as he clenched his fists. Lance took a step out and yawned.

"Lance!" Keith rushed forward and grabbed the blue paladin, pulling him into a tight hug.

"Woah!" Lance exclaimed, stepping backwards with the force of Keith's weight. The red paladin squeezed the blue tightly.

"Uh, hey Keith..." Lance patted Keith on the back, "nice t-shirt."

"Excuse me?" Keith stepped back and looked over the blue paladin, "Are you insulting my outfit as soon as you get out of the healing pod? Seriously?" He already seemed irritated.

"I was in the -" He looked around at the room, "What happened? Why was I...?"

"You don't remember?" Keith looked at him dumbfounded. Lance's eyebrows raised and he shrugged, shaking his head no.

"You left and got stranded on a planet, and I - no, never mind. It doesn't matter. You're back now. Do you feel okay?"

"Better than ever..."

"I'm glad."

"Kei-"

"Everyone was so worried. I was worried. I thought you were...Lance, I thought..."

"Kei-"

"I thought I'd lost you. I really thought you had died. Alone. On that planet. And I felt like I failed you, you know? I'm so glad you're back now. I'm so-"

"Keith!" Lance grabbed the red paladin's face and squished it up, making Keith look like some sort of smushed fish-face, "How long was I in there?" He freed the red paladin once more.

"I think this is...The fourth day? Maybe five days. I can't remember."

"Were you here...This whole time?" Lance gestured around to the quilt and pillows, the puzzle, the wrappers and empty water bottles littering the floor beside the pod. Keith's face flushed and he felt himself clam up.

"Oh, uh...Y-yeah. Yeah, I was waiting for you."

"How did...How were you able to get my quilt from my room?" He gave a half smile and cocked his eyebrow at Keith.

"It's a long story. I needed it, though. It smells like you."

"Ew, what did you do, become a pizza while I was napping?"

"What the fuck?"

"Because you're being so cheesy."

"Me? I'm cheesy? You have a playlist named after me."

"What the fuck?"

"Uh huh, I found it. And fuck you for your shitty 'in your arms' joke. I've waited two days to tell you how much I hate that joke."

"You listened to my music?"

"Pidge found your mp3 player and brought it to me to pass the time while I waited. It was pretty much an accidental find, the playlist I mean."

"It wasn't done..."

"I didn't listen to all of it."

"I can't believe you heard it."

"I'm sorry I didn't wait."

"It's okay."

"I like some of your songs. That Priscilla Ahn girl is really soothing."

"Thanks," Lance chuckled. He and Keith were all smiles towards each other. Keith couldn't take it any longer, he thought his heart might explode.

"I want to be your boyfriend." He blurted out loudly. Lance blinked in surprise.

"That's pretty forward." He laughed.

"Shut up! Do you want to be my boyfriend or not?" At this, Lance froze up. Keith's face was bright and Lance's heart was in his throat. He swallowed hard as he felt his face quickly heat up under the pressure.

"Lance?" Keith quietly asked after a few moments. Lance glanced away from him. Keith's face fell, and his stomach turned. After moment, his face contorted through several emotions before settling on a fake smile. He turned from the blue paladin and began cleaning up, picking up his discarded wrappers and empty bottles. All Lance could do was stare at him. He desperately wanted to say yes. He wanted to. He was terrified. Keith finished cleaning, stuffing the items into the paper bag. He folded the quilt and took his pillow up in his arms, with the towel and paper bag in hand.

"Leave the puzzle, if you don't mind. Hunk and I will take care of it. Your stuff is there - just the quilt and mp3 player. I'll let the others know you're out." Keith left the room and Lance was left to his own devices. A few moments passed before Lance thought aloud, "That was one of my shirts."

He sat down cross-legged on his quilt. He tried to remember what had happened that put him in the healing pod. The last thing he remembered was...kissing Keith goodnight. It felt like it was yesterday - like he should've woken up in his bed beside Keith. It was all fuzzy and weird after that, memories muddled with dreams, muddied by the healing pod he guessed. He sighed and grabbed his mp3 player, which he smiled at fondly. He turned it on and put his earphones in, pressing play. He skipped until he found some tracks from a favorite artist of his, then hummed along happily as he closed his eyes and swayed to the beat. After the song was over, he turned off the music player and took out the earphones. Keith had come back in the room, and was looking away from him, mumbling to himself.

"Hey, you came back." Lance perked up and called to him, which made him jump a bit and face the blue paladin.

"Uh, yeah!" He laughed nervously and played with a strand of his hair.

"Can we...kiss again?"

"What?" Keith stared at him wide-eyed.

"Well, I know something must have happened between us, but all I can clearly remember is...well, is falling asleep next to you. And I just...would like to...maybe...I mean, you just asked me to be your boyfriend... and I didn't answer yet. I would just... like to kiss you some more."

Keith blinked, his face flushing. He nodded, and Lance smiled brightly and jumped up, doing a small, animated jog over to him. He stood in front of the red paladin, an elated grin spanning his face. Keith looked at him, but couldn't look for too long before being overwhelmed by how beautiful he found Lance. Lance stepped a little closer, leaning his face down slightly. He slowly wrapped his arms around Keith's waist, then tugged him closer. He pressed his forehead against Keith's and smiled as he looked into his eyes.

"Stop it! Just do it already." Keith hissed. Lance smirked and cocked an eyebrow.

"Why're you so impatient?" He laughed. He kissed Keith's cheek, then his jaw, then his neck. He kissed and nipped at Keith's neck, sucking bruises onto his skin and making his breath hitch. Soft groans escaped him occasionally. When Lance was satisfied with his handiwork, he pulled away and leaned into Keith slowly, giving him a gentle kiss that turned into a deep kiss that quickly escalated into a full makeout session. He grabbed the red paladin's butt and squeezed, he pushed backwards until they found the wall, he kissed deeply and passionately. They were heavily panting when they pulled away from each other. The red paladin was a blushing mess, his hair ravaged by Lance's hands. Keith had done a number on the blue paladin as well, red patches of his neck turning dark with bruising. He smirked to himself as he inspected his work.

"What's that cocky face about?" Lance whispered into Keith's ear, causing him to shiver.

"Shut up and kiss me, idiot."

"Make me." Lance hissed.

"Gladly." Keith pulled Lance's face to his roughly, with both hands cupping his face. He kissed hard and fast, running his fingers back through Lance's hair. Lance raised his eyebrows in surprise at Keith's vicious approach, bitting Lance's lips and pressing into him. He smiled into their kiss and pulled the red paladin closer, enjoying the closeness.

After a long makeout session with Keith's back plastered against the wall, it was obvious through his leggings that he was turned on. It was notably less obvious to recognize Lance's own arousal, but still easily available knowledge if one was close enough. Keith, panting, looked at Lance with glazed over eyes and a needy expression.

"I want you." He pulled Lance by his waist, hips against hips, and Lance caught his breath.

"You have me. I'm right here."

"I want to fuck you." Keith hissed, his face reddening as he finally caught his breath.

"Keith...Wow, that's...I mean, that's a little...don't you..."

"I don't want to wait. I like you. I like you a lot, I want to date you, I want to kiss you. I want to touch you and I want you to touch me. I never want to stop. I want to be yours. I want you to be mine." Keith begged, wrapping his arms around Lance's neck now. He pulled him into another series of warm, gentle but passionate kisses.

"Is this really what you want?"

"You're what I want." Keith insisted.

"I'm...Keith, I don't think you know what you're getting into."

"Shut up! Please. Please, shut up. Don't try to convince me not to want you. I've always wanted you. Please, let me at least want you. You're so beautiful, Lance. I just want to kiss you. I want to touch you. I don't want to let go." Keith pleaded, burying his face in Lance's neck. He kissed his collarbone and the crook of his neck gently, sweetly. Lance was blinking in surprise, biting his lip and fighting back the tears welling up in his eyes.

"Keith..." Lance took a deep breath and the red paladin pulled his face away from the other's neck to look up at him. "I'm not...well, okay? I'm not healthy. I'm not someone...good to be around, or be in a relationship with."

"I am. I'll be so good to you and you'll be good back, Lance. You can't tell yet, but if we don't try we can never know."

"Keith..." Lance pulled away from him and sighed. Keith grabbed the blue paladin by his waist and pulled him close again, then wrapped his arms around him into a tight hug.

"I have something for you!" Keith exclaimed a moment later. He freed Lance and sprinted across the room to the bag of things Pidge had left behind the healing pod. He pulled out the two ziplock-like bags of pills and brought them over to Lance.

"Pidge knows...quite a bit about you. We can't replace counseling or therapy, but she was able to recreate your medication. She said this should be three month's worth." Keith pushed them into Lance's hands. He bit his lip and looked down at them, then to Keith, and back again. His hands trembled. Keith saw a drop fall from his face, and his body shook as he cried quietly. Keith felt his heart in his throat, but he didn't hesitate to grab Lance into a hug. Lance reciprocated, wrapping his arms tightly around the red paladin and burying his face in Keith's shoulder. He cried for several minutes, and Keith just stood there holding him. He sometimes hushed Lance, offering kind words and gentle kisses to the shoulder and cheek of the blue paladin.

"Thank you so much." Lance barely managed to choke out past his hiccupping sobs. Keith smiled warmly at him as they both released their embrace.

"No problem." Keith responded with false cockiness. Lance laughed quietly as he wiped his own tears. Keith stepped forward and leaned in, giving a gentle kiss to the blue paladin. They stood quietly for several more moments as Lance recomposed himself.

Then, all of a sudden, Lance blurted out, "Come over." Keith's eyes widened with surprise and his eyebrows succumbed to his shaggy bangs, but a grin crept across his face as he nodded and laced his fingers into Lance's. He excitedly tugged the blue paladin along, and Lance kept in stride as they rushed to his room. Lance opened the door to his room and they entered; Keith immediately bounded over to the boombox on the floor across the room, skimming through Lance's CDs.

"H-hey, what're you - Keith, don't!" Lance was rushing towards him, the door shutting behind. It was too late, though, because Keith found the one CD Lance didn't want him to see.

"You made this playlist...and put it on a CD. Lance, this actually...exists." Keith was snickering as he held up a CD labeled 'bedroom music'.

"In my defense, it isn't supposed to be seen. Just heard. When I play it, when I'm about to hook up with someone."

"I have to know what songs are on here."

"Keith, I swear to god -"

"If you don't want me to listen to it, I guess you'll have to make me do something else." Keith teased, wiggling the CD in his hand. Lance looked pissed at first, but an evil smirk grew on his face and he charged the red paladin, barreling into him and crashing to the floor. He had Keith pinned beneath him, hissing from the impact that had knocked the air from his lungs. Before he could make another snide remark, Lance pressed his mouth onto Keith's and drew an extenuated kiss from him. He pulled away from the kiss and smiled down at the blushing paladin beneath him.

"I don't need that CD to get you in bed with me." Lance leaned in and purred into Keith's ear. He shivered in response, then shoved Lance off of him.

"Sh-shut up!" He practically yelled as he sat up.

"Oh, come on," Lance coaxed seductively. He sat behind Keith now, pulling the red paladin against him and kissing the crook of his neck, "you weren't complaining in the infirmary just a while ago." He whispered into Keith's ear before clamping it gently between his teeth. Keith shuddered in response. Lance continued kissing and nibbling at the red paladin, playing with his hair and trailing hickies in the most obvious of places. Keith sighed and occasionally let out a quiet moan or whimper. Lance teased him endlessly, running his hands up beneath Keith's shirt, scraping at his chest and his back, latching on and biting and sucking on Keith's neck. The red paladin was a blushing mess in Lance's lap.

"Tell me what you want." Lance breathed into his ear.

"I-I...uh, um, I...I want you to..." Keith stuttered, trying to catch his breath.

"Mmmmm?" Lance's hands slid down to Keith's waist, gripping tightly.

"I want..." Keith gave a whimper as Lance ground hard against him.

"What was that?" Lance purred into his ear.

"I... want to go slow...Lance...touch me." At this, Lance raised an eyebrow in surprise, but shrugged to himself and let his hand slip into Keith's lap. The red paladin took a sharp breath, and Lance noticed the trembling body in his hands. In a moment of clarity, he paused.

"I forgot that this is your first time. I can slow down. I'll slow down." He whispered gently, kissing Keith's jawbone. He began pulling his hands back to Keith's waist.

"No! It's too late for that!" Keith protested loudly, grabbing both of Lance's hands and shoving them back into his lap, "I want to do this."

"You're totally sure?"

"I want to do this."

"Okay, okay, but..."

"No 'but's, damn it!"

"C'mere." Lance pulled Keith up with him as he stood. The red paladin was protesting with crossed arms and an annoyed expression. Lance tugged him to the bed, where he pushed Keith forward.

"Sit against the wall. Comfortably, you'll be there for a little while." A smug grin was growing on the blue paladin's face.

"What the fuck?" Keith responded, but obeyed. He crawled to the other side of the bed and turned around, leaning back against the wall as he sat down. Lance followed him and sat in Keith's lap, facing him, wrapping his legs around the waist of the other. Keith's blush returned easily with this. Then Lance leaned in and kissed him, pulling Keith's face closer and kissing him hard. The makeout lasted several minutes before Lance pulled away.

"So why exactly did we need to move?" Keith stubbornly asked.

"I'm going to watch your face when I make you cum." Lance responded in what was almost a growl. Keith felt himself grow more turned on instantly. "Now I want you tell me what you want." He commanded at the red paladin.

"I want you to...to touch me." Keith swallowed hard and Lance's hands trailed down Keith's thighs and into his lap, rubbing and squeezing at Keith's full erection. His breath hitched as Lance stimulated him, and he closed his eyes and leaned his head back against the wall.

"Oh god, Lance..." Keith half-sighed, half-moaned. Lance licked his lips, scooting himself closer to Keith. He leaned in and kissed him roughly, still letting his hands draw out contented sighs from the red paladin. The kissing grew more intense, and Lance found himself dancing around the elastic band of Keith's leggings. Soon, he was sliding them down. Then they were gone, and one less layer of fabric to worry about. The increased sensation as Lance rubbed Keith through only his boxer-briefs made Keith jerk and pull away from the kisses, moaning more loudly and bucking into Lance's hand. Lance was smug, his eyes glossed over and his gaze both tender and animalistic somehow. He looked like he wanted to eat Keith up. This only served to make Keith ever more aroused, of course.

Keith couldn't restrain himself anymore. His doubts were finally outweighed by his desires, and he reached into Lance's lap and began mimicking what he had felt the blue paladin do. His hands rubbed and squeezed at the erection between Lance's legs. The sudden rush of sensations made Lance almost gasp, and he groaned as he rested his forehead on the red paladin's shoulder.

"Mmmmm...Keith, stop...this is for you, not me." Lance sighed.

"No, it's for both of us." Keith responded, his eyes closing again as he sank into the feelings of Lance's hands. Lance licked and bit at Keith's neck again, scooting ever closer onto the red paladin's lap.

Then Lance straddled him, his hands now on either side of Keith's neck. Keith looked up at him, and Lance leaned over his face and kissed him. Keith rested his hands on Lance's waist, then slid them back and grabbed onto his ass. Lance smirked into their kiss and tangled his hands in Keith's hair, tugging gently.

"Lance," Keith pulled away from their kiss and stared up at the blue paladin, "I can't take it anymore," he began tugging at the underlayer of Lance's paladin armor, which was all he had worn in the pod. Lance kissed him gently, over and over, and nodded. Keith's arms and hands made their way up Lance's back, finding the zipper that would be the first step to undressing him. He tugged it down aggressively, pulling it as low as it would go. Then he began pulling the suit off of Lance, as if he were ravenous for the touch of Lance's skin. He was.

When the suit was gone, Lance was left in nothing but his underwear - a pair of black briefs with blue trim. Keith pushed him over and pinned him down, kissing him deeply. Lance was surprised by his sudden control of the situation, but lost his thoughts to the grinding hips against his own. The dominance Keith was displaying was riling Lance up even more, which he hadn't thought was possible when he had the blushing, fumbling paladin in his grasp moments ago. Lance's skin was much cooler than Keith's, so the contact between them was relieving for both. Keith began biting and sucking at Lance's neck, then down his collarbones and chest. He was biting hard, too, not in the same gentle way Lance had done it. And Lance liked it. Keith left large, mouth-shaped bruises and indentions of his teeth. Lance would moan his approval as Keith got lower and lower. His biting grew gentler as he reached Lance's hip bone. He played with the edge of Lance's underwear, slowly tugging it lower. Lance reached down and stopped him, pushing himself up on his other arm. Keith grumbled.

"Keith, do you -"

"Yes, I know what I'm doing. Yes, I want to do it." Keith huffed impatiently.

"I was going to ask if you wanted me to do it first." Lance responded flatly. Keith shook his head and sighed again.

"Why would you stop me for that? Like, clearly I'm en route to your dick, Lance."

"Oh my god, I was just trying to be nice! You told me you're a virgin so I was trying to...I don't know, make it special. It wasn't special for me. I wanted it to be...different...for you..." Lance trailed off as he spoke, sitting all the way up and sighing, "I wanted to make it...perfect, or something." Keith propped himself up on his elbows, resting his face in his palms. He was grinning widely, which was annoying Lance.

"What are you cheesing about?"

"Ugh, I fucking...like you so much."

"What the fuck?"

"You're beautiful, sure, and you're hilarious. But you're also...so kind and you're thoughtful and...you're so good at turning me on. I swear to god I'm going to lose my mind."

"Keith, I -"

"No, no, no! Shut the fuck up a second. I like you, Lance. You're amazing. I know you've convinced yourself you're unlovable, or - or that you're unowrthy, or whatever the hell else. I don't care about that. I know you're sad, I know you're hurting, I know I can't fix you. I know there are bad days, bad days that will only get worse and bad days that will get better. I know, Lance. I know all the consequences. All the ins and outs. I know. And I still want you."

"Keith..." Lance's face flushed and he leaned back down, covering his face with his arms. He trembled as he sniffled. Keith pushed himself up further so he could see Lance's face, which was smiling despite his apparent crying.

"Are...are you alright?" Keith asked. Lance nodded. Keith crawled up his body, and kissed Lance's chin up to his lips. Lance kissed back. Keith pulled Lance's arms away from covering his face and covered his face in gentle kisses.

"I really like you, Lance." Keith said softly, running his fingers through his hair. He kissed his forehead and his cheek and his lips, over and over. Lance wrapped his arms around Keith and pulled him close, and they kissed again.

"You're too much." Lance laughed, tears still rolling down his face. Keith smiled and nodded.

"I am." He kissed him again. He ground against Lance and ran his hands up and down his sides. Lance slid his hands up Keith's shirt, his fingers curling into Keith's back. Keith sighed at the feeling, enjoying Lance's approving groans into their kiss.

They kissed until they were both breathless. Then Lance pushed Keith upwards until they were both upright, Keith on his knees like he was to perform a tea ceremony while straddling Lance, and Lance just sitting flat on the bed. They were both panting, both of their faces flushed. Lance looked at and maintained eye contact with the red paladin as he began to rub him once again. Keith's erection was warm in his hand, and he smiled as Keith's eyes closed in tacit surrender. Keith's hands rested on Lance's shoulders and Lance's free hand was holding the red paladin's waist. He pulled Keith closer and was met only with compliance and whimpers of pleasure. Lance was still watching the other's face, even as he leaned forward and trailed kisses down his neck and chest. He pulled the red paladin forward and pushed up on his waist, halting the sensations that made Keith like jello. Keith was now upright on his knees, still straddling the blue paladin. He looked down at him with a perplexed expression, and all Lance did was smirk. He tugged on Keith's t-shirt, and the red paladin responded with a quick understanding. He practically tore himself free of the dreamsicle colored tee. Lance maintained eye contact as he slowly leaned in and trailed kisses down Keith's abs and stomach. He chuckled quietly when Keith's breath hitched as he played with the elastic band of his underwear. He revered the expression on Keith's face as he kissed just above the waistband, as he slowly tugged them down and followed with kisses.

"Fuck...Lance..." He moaned, his hands now desperately gripping Lance's hair. Lance's only response was more kissing.

"Please!" He groaned, his hips quivering. Lance grinned almost evilly and began kissing Keith's erection through the briefs he was wearing. He let a few sounds escape as response, his face flushing more. Lance was pleased with the needy look on Keith's face - desperate, sweaty, and endlessly aroused. He only kissed for a few more moments before finally sliding Keith's underwear all the way down, having him lean sideways to pull them the rest of the way off at least one leg. After that awkward endeavor, they both laughed quietly and Keith was sitting in Lance's lap again, straddling him. There was doubt in his expression, and he had his hands covering his crotch now. Lance smiled gently at him, then leaned in and kissed him. He kept kissing Keith as his hands wound their way into his lap, intertwining with his hands and pulling them away. Keith, embarrassed, pulled away from their kiss and shifted uncomfortably, but Lance stayed face to face with him. He pulled Keith's hands up to his shoulders and placed them there, the red paladin following his lead and wrapping his arms around his neck. He smiled tenderly at the embarrassed and anxious man before him, then kissed him sweetly. His thumbs traced circles on Keith's inner thighs, then slid slowly up them. Keith gasped away from their kiss when Lance wrapped his hand around his erection and began pumping. Lance watched every contortion of Keith's face as he brought one hand up to cover his mouth, as his eyebrows grew furrowed or relaxed, as he responded to touch. His hips would sometimes sway in rhythm with Lance's hand. He found it incredibly endearing.

After a few minutes of massaging him, Lance quietly coaxed, "I want you to do something for me." Keith moaned and nodded as Lance continued to stroke him.

"I need you to stand up." Lance purred.

"But why?" Keith groaned in protest, not wanting a single moment wasted.

"Trust me." Was all Lance managed to reply. The red paladin sighed and Lance stilled his hand and pulled away. Keith swung his leg over the blue paladin beneath him and stood, waiting, at the edge of the bed. He felt exposed like this, and shy once more, so he made a slight effort in covering himself by holding the blanket. Lance laughed lightly as he, too, stood from the bed. He looked Keith up and down like an animal sizing up its prey.

"Here, this might make you less insecure..." Lance reached for the waistband of his underwear, but Keith lunged at him and stopped him. He raised his eyebrows in surprise at the red paladin.

"I...I'll...I want to do that. Let me do that." Keith stuttered. Lance nodded and waited, watching the thoughtful Keith in front of him ponder how he would proceed. Keith knelt in front of Lance and looked up at him. This angle, looking down at Keith, sent a tingle through his spine. He liked it a lot. Keith's hands met the edge of Lance's briefs, then he slid them down quickly. Lance's erection sort of bounced with the force of uncovering, and then Lance shuddered when Keith unexpectedly took the head of his dick into his mouth. He sucked gently on the tip, which made Lance shiver and gasp.

"Shit...Keith..." He moaned as the red paladin took more of him into his mouth. He began bobbing his head and using his tongue, holding Lance in place with a firm grip on his hips. Lance's hands tangled into Keith's mullet and pulled occasionally, sending ripples of pleasant pain through him.

Lance couldn't believe that Keith had never done this before. No one is that good at sucking dick, not at first. His mouth was warm and wet and Lance had forgotten what this felt like and he didn't know why it felt so much better than he could ever remember. He panted and his thighs began to quiver, loud groans escaping his lips. All he could think of was warm and wet and close...so close...

"Keith, stop. Keith..." He was trying to speak between his moans, "Please, if you don't... I'm close. I'm s-so..." He didn't want Keith to stop. He also didn't want to cum in Keith's mouth the first time he ever sucked a dick, if it was really his first time. Despite his warnings, though, Keith persisted. He wanted to be the best Lance had ever had, and he wanted to take it all in stride. Lance shivered and with a final buck of his hips, he released into Keith's mouth. Keith didn't particularly like this, but it was what his goal had been. The taste of ejaculation wasn't very pleasant, but the look on Lance's face when Keith pulled away from between his legs and licked his lips with satisfaction was worth the effort.

"I can't believe..." Lance laughed as he panted, trying to catch his breath, "that after all this foreplay, I came before the virgin." Keith smiled, his usual smug expression on his face. Keith stood and grabbed Lance by the waist, pulling him close.

"Would it be gross to kiss you after that?" Keith asked, looking more sincere than he sounded.

"I'd be insulted if you didn't." Lance responded, pulling him close and kissing him feverishly, "now, it's your turn." Lance shoved the red paladin down onto the bed.

"Since you stole my thunder with the blow job, I guess I'm going to have to really impress you."

"Oh? And how will you do that?" Keith smirked.

"Well...I recall earlier...you mentioned that you wanted to fuck me?" Lance drew circles on Keith's stomach with his fingers, then traced down to just below his bellybutton. Keith swallowed hard.

"Uh huh."

"I wonder if you meant it?" Lance teased, grabbing Keith's erection once more and beginning to stroke. Keith felt even harder now, though it seemed impossible before.

"Lance...do you mean..."

"Want to?" Lance offered.

"Could...we?"

"I think we can," Lance nodded and kissed the red paladin, "but it will be awkward, and you have to learn how to do it. And there's a chance you'll hurt me."

"I don't want to hurt you!" Keith exclaimed, causing Lance to blink in surprise.

"It's okay," he kissed Keith again, "do you want to try?"

"Do you?" Keith's voice was shaking.

"I'll do anything you want, Keith."

"Oh my god..." Keith groaned and covered his face with both hands. Everything felt so good. He couldn't imagine anything more, it was all too much for him. "I want to fuck you, Lance."

With this comment, Lance stopped touching Keith. He stood up from the bed, then squatted down and pulled a box out from under his bed. Keith sat up and watched him, curious about what was hidden in such an obvious place. Lance tossed him a bottle from the box, which Keith caught with surprise. Then Lance stood up again, a wrapper between his teeth.

"Everything you'll need to fuck me!" He mumbled cheerily around the condom.

"Y-you seem excited." Keith laughed nervously as Lance climbed back onto the bed and sat beside him. He held the condom in his hand and turned to Keith.

"You don't want to go through with it?"

"I'm...I want to...but, I'm..."

"Afraid of hurting me?" Lance offered, leaning into the red paladin and resting his chin on Keith's shoulder.

"Well, yeah." Keith sounded defeated.

"We can do something else if you're unsure."

"You're not nervous at all..."

"Well, I've done this before. I've been on both ends of this situation. I was scared too," Lance shrugged, "but I also had less enthusiastic or patient teachers. I'm excited. I want to share this with you. I want to be close to you. I trust you not to hurt me. I think we can work together and do the best we can."

"But you said..."

"There's a chance, sure," he shrugged once more, "but if we communicate - which we do surprisingly well, by the way - we should be okay." Lance kissed his cheek, and Keith turned to face him and kiss him again.

"Are...we ready? For this?" Keith asked, gesturing to the situation, "I...I didn't even think...think about...like, what are we? What are we doing, Lance? Is this okay? Am I just...am I just...another one to you?"

"I'm sorry?" Lance blinked a few times with a confused look on his face.

"Like, because I was nice to you...do you think you owe me? Once we do this, will it be over? Will we just be teammates again? Will you be able to pretend nothing happened? Am I just another one of the people you're going to sleep with because you feel bad about yourself?" Keith's voice wavered as all of his nervous doubts boiled over inside him.

"Oh, jeez...Um, I'm sorry. I'm sorry, Keith," Lance began.

"Fuck...I knew it..." Keith's emotions bubbled over in the form of tears.

"No! No, no!" Lance grabbed Keith's face and pulled it to look at him, "I meant, I'm sorry I hadn't assuaged these fears already, I'm sorry you've been worried about this. I'm sorry you felt like that this entire time." He hugged Keith tightly. Keith started crying harder.

"All I wanted to do was make sure you knew...a-all this time...I really...r-really like you, Lance." Keith choked out between hiccupping words. Lance was surprised to hear him crying. He held him close as Keith shivered and trembled and sobbed.

"I thought you died...I thought you'd never get to know...I thought I'd never have another chance...I...I don't want to let go! I like you, Lance. I really like you. I want to kiss you. All the time. I...I-I-I want to touch you and hold your hand...I want you to be all mine..." Keith sobbed.

"I'm right here. I'm here. You don't have to let go." Lance hushed him and held him, kissing his cheek and his jawbone and his neck and his shoulder. This ensued for several minutes. Lance just held him until his sobs became quiet hiccups.

"I suppose you're not in the mood for anything else right now, yeah?" Lance said gently, taking the bottle of lubricant from Keith's hands. Keith shook his head no as Lance put the items back in the box and replaced the box back under the bed. He grabbed his underwear off the floor and pulled them on, then handed Keith's to him. Keith followed suit and redressed himself, leggings and t-shirt still nearby on the bed. Lance pulled out a large t-shirt and pulled it on, then crawled into the bed and slipped under the covers. He patted the bed next to him, holding the blanket and sheet up.

"Come over." Lance murmured. Keith slid into the bed beside him and Lance smiled as he snuggled up close to the red paladin.

"I'm sorry I got so worked up." Keith said flatly, looking anywhere but at Lance. Lance kissed him.

"I'm glad you can talk to me." Lance responded tenderly, smiling at Keith.

"Are you upset at all?"

"The only thing I'm upset about is that you made me bust first," Lance looked annoyed, "I wanted to bring you here and treat you. I had so much thought up and so many ideas...I'm mad I wasn't able to watch your face when I made you cum. That's the only thing I could be remotely upset about right now."

"O-oh..." Keith blushed and pulled the blanket up to his mouth. Lance kissed the blanket where his mouth was. Keith pulled the blanket down and kissed Lance.

The blue paladin propped himself up on one elbow, resting his head on his palm. He looked down at Keith, still smiling.

"What is it?" Keith asked, receding into the blankets.

"You're adorable. C'mere." He let himself fall onto his pillow as he reached out for Keith. Keith shoved him.

"Don't patronize me!" Keith retorted.

"Keith~" Lance whined in response, still reaching for him.

"I'm not a puppy. You can't just reach out and hold me."

"You're more like a kitten. Tiny, angry, adorable, and vengeful."

"Shut up." Keith laid his hand in the middle of Lance's face, sprawling his fingers across. Lance licked his hand.

"Ew, what the fuck?" Keith wiped the saliva off on Lance's shoulders, and the blue paladin laughed. He shimmied closer to Keith, and Keith didn't protest when Lance's arms wrapped around him.

"Hey." Lance whispered.

"What?" Keith tilted his head up to look at Lance, who took the opportunity to kiss him. He kept kissing him, over and over. He loved every moment he spent kissing Keith.

"I like you." Lance replied after their moment.

"Shut up." Keith said, pressing his face into the crook of Lance's neck. They mumbled flirty comebacks and snarky remarks and kissed in between for almost an hour before finally falling asleep in each others' arms.

Keith woke up first. It was still dark, and Lance was snoring gently behind him. The blue paladin's arm was draped over Keith's side, resting under his arm and near his stomach. He smiled lazily to himself as he slipped his fingers between Lance's limp ones. The haze of his sleepiness dulled his thoughts, and only one thing seemed to be on his mind. He wiggled backwards into Lance, trying to get closer. He did this until his hips were nearly grinding against Lance's, his ass brushing against Lance's crotch. The blue paladin was already half-erect in his sleep, but he slowly blinked awake as Keith moved around.

"Mmmwhat'cha doin'..." Lance mumbled sleepily, pulling Keith tighter to him. He held onto the red paladin's waist now.

"Waking you up." Keith responded blandly, grinding backwards against Lance, "Is it working?"

"That's nice." Lance breathed into Keith's ear, making Keith's face red. The blue paladin pulled Keith against him by his waist, grinding against him hard. He smiled.

"Lance, I'm still...I'm turned on again."

"Lucky for you, I can definitely go again. But I think twice in the same day is definitely going to be my limit." Lance responded slowly, grogginess still clouding his mind. He chuckled softly as he ground against Keith again. Keith turned over, with much protest from Lance, and pulled the blue paladin into a kiss. He grabbed and stroked at Lance's stiffening bulge; Lance groaned into their kiss as a response. Keith rolled them over, pinning Lance beneath him and grinding himself against him over and over again. Lance pulled away from the kiss and looked up at him.

"This might ruin the mood, but...if we want to keep going, I should really get the things we need back out again." Lance murmured tenderly, leaning up and planting a soft kiss on Keith's lips. Keith sighed, clearly annoyed. He rolled the side and Lance got up, pulling out the condom and lube once more. He climbed back into the bed and set the items beside the pillows, on the side nearest the wall so they wouldn't fall into the floor. Keith pulled him close and started kissing his neck. They were sucked into their own world once more as they began kissing and teasing and grinding again. When the dry humping wasn't enough anymore, Keith sat up and began pulling away his leggings and underwear. Lance raised his waist and pulled his underwear off as well, with Keith's help sliding them off. Keith hastily clamoured back up to Lance's mouth, kissing again. He was nestled cozily between Lance's thighs, and the new feeling of skin-on-skin contact was enough to pull moans from both of their panting mouths. At a breaking point in their heated makeout session, Keith sat up a bit and straddled Lance as he reached for the lube and the condom. Lance noticed and quickly responded by rolling over beneath him, looking back over his shoulder and gently grinding his ass on the underside of Keith's erection. The red paladin's breath hitched as Lance did this.

"H-how..." Keith looked at the items in his hands and back to Lance, "How do you want me to do this?"

Lance smiled sweetly at him.

"You know how to put on the condom, right?"

"Mhmm." Keith nodded.

"Once you've done that, you'll squeeze some of the lube out either onto your hand or onto my...onto whatever part of me you plan to enter. If it's on your hand, you'll just..sort of...stroke yourself a few times to get it nice and lubed up." Lance explained. Keith was blushing, looking at the items in his hands again.

"What is it? Do you have another question?" Lance coaxed warmly, "We have all night. Take your time. Talk to me."

Keith swallowed hard, then managed to ask, "Is that it? I don't have to put my fingers in you or warm it up at all?"

"You can, if you want. It can help make insertion easier for you. But it's pretty easy no matter what." Lance shrugged, "I know that I'd definitely be a mess if you teased me like that first, though. It's up to you." Lance answered calmly, like he'd done this a million times.

"You're...not nervous?"

"I trust you."

Keith swallowed hard again, trying to force his nerves down and settle his erratic heart rate. He tore the wrapper open and unrolled the condom onto his dick, then popped open the lube. He poured a small amount into his hand, then spread it between his fingers. Lance waited patiently, watching from over his shoulder. Keith locked eyes with Lance as he began rubbing gently at Lance's entrance. The blue paladin shuddered and his breath caught in his throat at the sensation. Keith gently applied pressure until a single digit slid slowly into Lance. He didn't want to surprise or hurt him, so he was being as careful as he thought he could be. As he began pumping his finger in and out of Lance, the blue paladin softly moaned a few times. Another finger was added, which increased the frequency of Lance's groans of approval. He buried his face in the pillows and called out Keith's name a few times. Then a third finger entered him, and he moaned loudly and lewdly. Keith blushed brightly as his own erection twitched in response to the sexy sounds Lance was making, certain the whole castle could hear them now. He pulled his fingers out of Lance and leaned forward over him, lining his throbbing member up with Lance's entrance. He rubbed against this hole a few times before pausing.

"Wait," Keith said, sitting up, "turn back over."

"What?" Lance hissed glaring over his shoulder at the red paladin.

"Roll over." Keith commanded in almost a growl, causing Lance's eyebrows to raise in surprise. He nodded and complied, turning over again. Keith grabbed Lance by the thighs and spread them apart, then leaned in and kissed Lance roughly. His breath was rasping as his erection brushed against Lance's again. He sat back up again, now readjustig himself and positioning himself at Lance's entrance once more.

"Why did I have turn over?" Lance whined.

"Didn't you want to watch me cum?" Keith smirked, his normal smug expression returning. Lance rolled his eyes, impatient.

"Let's also get these out of the way." Keith said as he pulled his shirt off and tugged at Lance's. Lance rushedly removed his shirt and pulled Keith down into another passionate kiss. Kwith pushed himself against Lance, slowly adding force so that he slid inside gently.

"Oh, fuck..." Keith breathed as the head of his erection popped into Lance. The red paladin then leaned forward once more, putting his weight on his arms and looking at the beautiful Cuban boy beneath him. He slowly pushed in more, Lance's breathing becoming labored the farther he penetrated.

"Are you okay? Am I hurting you?" Keith looked at Lance with a face full of concern and concentration.

"I'm alright. You're okay. Keep going, you feel so fucking good." Lance replied, reaching a hand up to Keith's cheek and leaning up to kiss him. Keith let his hips fall farther forward as he continued slowly forcing himself into Lance's body. It was agonizing for him; he wanted to fuck the paladin beneath him senseless. An animalistic need was welling up on his gut, but he fought it. He didn't want to hurt Lance.

"Oh my god," they groaned in unison, both heads tilting backwards as Keith's hips were flush with Lance's.

"You're incredible."

"I can't believe you're all the way in."

"I can't either."

"This feels so good."

"This is the most incredible feeling."

"Oh my god."

"Holy fuck."

They laughed quietly and kissed feverishly, and then Keith couldn't resist. He reared backwards and thrusted into Lance, causing the blue paladin to keen loudly.

"Fuck!" He breathed heavily as he looked up at Keith. Keith was panting, his head hanging and avoiding looking at Lance.

"Are you...done?" Lance asked after a quiet moment.

"No...nowhere near it. I'm...I'm nervous again." Keith mumbled.

"I can fix that." Lance purred, wrapping his legs around the red paladin's waist. He forced Keith deeper in by squeezing his legs, which made the red paladin groan with pleasure.

"Don't tempt fate right now, I don't want to hurt you." Keith semi-growled.

"I dare you." Lance wrapped his arms around Keith, his fingers curling into the red paladin's toned back. He used his legs to once more force the red paladin into him.

Something in Keith snapped, and he groaned and leaned his face into the tender skin between Lance's neck and collar bone. He latched on with his teeth, which made Lance cry out softly as Keith began thrusting into him. Keith kept sucking and nipping and biting and kissing Lance's body, anywhere he could reach. Bruises were forming, hickies trailing up and down Lance's abdomen and neck. In a few places he managed to draw blood. Lance didn't seem to mind - he even seemed to enjoy it. He probably enjoyed it as much as Keith enjoyed the feeling of Lance's fingernails digging into his back and shoulders, sliding down his skin and tearing at him. They moaned each others' names among other explatives and lewd noises. Keith, though energetic and forceful now, was ready to climax and with one final, desperate "Keith!" escaping Lance's lips, the red paladin shuddered and thrusted a few more times. He rode out his orgasm, his entire body shaking. He rested his forehead in the crook of Lance's neck, and Lance smiled.

"Your face really turns me on." Lance purred into Keith's ear. Keith chuckled in response, still panting from the endeavor.

"It's your turn again." Keith said after he caught his breath, rolling over and lying beside Lance.

"You don't have to. It will take forever since I've already cum once."

"I want to." Keith insisted, massaging Lance's swollen erection.

"Look, Keith, I'm already annoyed that I not only came before the virgin, but that the self-proclaimed virgin is also really good at fucking me, too. I'm mad that you're so good at this. There's no way you've never done this before."

"Do you not realize how quickly I came as soon as I was inside you?" Keith gestured wildly, his eyebrows in his bangs and his mouth gaping.

"I guess!" Lance responded, annoyed, "I can't believe you're better than me - than I was when I was a virgin. That's all." He sighed.

"I watched a lot of porn." Keith shrugged. Lance laughed loudly, surprised at his bluntness. The atmosphere was quiet for a little while.

"What do I...where should I...uh, what do you want me to do with the..." Keith fumbled with his words, gesturing to his crotch.

"There's a bin." Lance pointed towards a corner of the room, and Kieth nodded. He heaved himself up and climbed out of the bed, shuffling over to the tiny plastic trash bin. He peeled the condom off, relieved to have the strange sensation end. He discarded it and turned around. He looked around for his underwear, finding them beside Lance on the bed. He slipped them on, then sarcastically commented, "Lance, would you put some clothes on?"

"Shut up and come over." Lance said as he laughed, pulling Keith into a warm embrace. He kissed the red paladin sweetly, brushing the sweaty bangs from his forehead and gently placing a kiss there as well. Keith smiled.

"I'm tired." The red paladin said quietly.

"Yeah, sex will do that to you." Lance smirked. Keith snuggled up to him.

"Shut up. Goodnight." He closed his eyes. Lance shook him.

"No, not goodnight. We're getting cleaned up before we go to sleep!"

Keith huffed an annoyed response, but with enough prodding from Lance he finally got up out of the bed once more. Lance shimmied back into his underwear, and they both pulled on their shirts again. Lance took Keith's clean hand and tugged him on, leading him out of the room and down the corridor. The castle was surprisingly bright compared to the bedroom they had just left.

Why had they left?

Lance led them to a bathroom not far from their quarters, and once they were inside he sighed.

"I have to take care of my skin. You should probably wash your hands...and anything else you'd like to do, I guess."

"Right..." Keith trailed off as he inspected the restroom. As Lance went to the sink, Keith turned to the automated door and activated its locking mechanism. After locking the door, he made his way over to the shower. Cutting the water on elicited a questioning glance and a "huh?" as a response from Lance. Keith peeled his shirt off and smirked at the blue paladin. Lance was staring, and Keith strode over to him. He leaned in and kissed Lance roughly. The lighting was better here, so all of Keith's features were far more defined. Lance realized he'd just been fucked by quite an attractive guy - albeit an annoying guy, too. An annoyingly hot, annoyingly stubborn, annoyingly cool, and annoyingly smug - about everything - guy.

"I like you a lot." Lance said.

"I like you a lot, too." Keith replied. He kissed the blue paladin once more, "Will you get in the shower with me?" At this request, Lance blinked with surprise.

"Oh, uh, sure. I guess a shower wouldn't hurt." He shrugged. Keith half-smiled and kissed him again, then slowly pulled Lance's shirt up and off. He kissed Lance again and again.

"You have got to stop flirting with me. I'm exhausted." Lance chuckled. Keith looked at him innocently.

"I don't know what you mean." He shrugged and kissed Lance again. His hands slid down to Lance's waist and his thumbs began rubbing circles into the skin just above his hip bones. Lance shuddered and stepped closer to the red paladin, who pulled him in close. They took several steps backwards, still kissing, before Keith pulled away and looked behind him at the running shower. He turned back to Lance and kissed him again, then gently tugged at the blue paladin's underwear. Lance nodded and pulled away from their kiss, then both boys pushed down their underwear until the pair of briefs fell loosely to the floor. Keith pulled Lance close and kissed him roughly, rubbing at his half-hard member. Lance gasped away from their kiss, looking at Keith with the most lustful expression he'd ever seen. It immediately caused his face to go red. They fumbled their way in to the shower, not wanting to spend a moment without touching or kissing one another. The steaming water cascaded over them, splashing off of Keith's back and pouring down from Lance's hair. They kissed deeply, and Keith grabbed a handful of Lance's ass and squeezed. Lance grinned in response, biting the red paladin's bottom lip. Keith, still kissing Lance forcefully, began touching Lance in ways that made him bite his lip and shudder. This made a smug expression overtake Keith's face, the blue paladin trembling in his hands.

"Mmmmmmmnnn...cl-close..." Lance moaned breathlessly. Keith smirked as he gracelessly dropped to his knees - slipping and catching himself on the shelf of the shower. Lance stifled a laugh and covered his mouth, trying not to laugh too hard as he caught a furious glare from the red paladin. As an act of vengeance, he abruptly took Lance into his mouth and sucked hard. Lance groaned and immediately dug his fingers into Keith's mullet, fingernails scraping at his scalp. The sensation made him feel powerful as he swirled his tongue around the blue paladin's dick, drawing long sighs and breathless explatives from him. His legs were shaking mercilessly and Keith smiled as he made Lance cum again. He stood up again, letting the warm water pour over them. Lance was still shaking, panting and trying to catch his breath.

"Holy shit, my legs feel like jello." He said, leaning into Keith. He kissed the red paladin sweetly, and Keith reciprocated.

Suddenly, Lance pulled Keith into a tender hug. Keith just held him in return, resting his cheek on Lance's shoulder. He closed his eyes and sighed, enjoying the warmth of Lance's body and of the scalding water. Lance also closed his eyes, his chin pressed against Keith's clavicle, and breathed deeply. They held each other for what seemed like hours. Then they finally pulled away - that is, Lance pulled away, mumbling something about the water getting too cold if they took too long - and Lance grabbed his shampoo and began lathering it into his hair.

Then Keith did something kind of weird. He put his hands on Lance's, then took over washing Lance's hair. He was right behind Lance, kissing his neck tenderly as he gently rubbed the shampoo into Lance's scalp. Eventually, Lance stopped him and turned around, ready to rinse his hair. Keith stayed close behind him, wrapping his arms around Lance's waist.

"Want me to wash yours?" Lance asked, cutting through the silence.

"Hmmmm?" Keith responded, raising his face from the crook of Lance's neck.

"Your hair. Do you want me to wash it?" Lance smiled softly over his shoulder at Keith. The red paladin felt his face get warmer at the sight of that tender smile, and he looked away.

"Uh, y-y-y...yeah, you, um...yeah. Yes you can, if you...um, if you want to, sure." Keith stuttered.

"Alright." Lance was still smiling as he grabbed the shampoo once again and began lathering some of it between his hands. Keith flinched as the blue paladin reached for his sopping hair, but relaxed when he began scrubbing the shampoo in.

"You should put conditioner in mine while I wash yours."

"O-oh, uh, okay." Keith fumbled around for the conditioner, grabbing the bottle up clumsily and managing to pour some out into his hand without dropping it or sending the two down in a tangled mess. He put the bottle back down and rubbed the conditioner between his hands, then scrunched his hands up in Lance's hair. The feeling was strange for Lance, but he let the red paladin continue despite the grimaces he was making. Lance also continued to scrub gently at Keith's long hair.

"I feel like this is so...dumb." Keith admitted as he played with strands of Lance's slicked-back hair.

"This is dumb," Lance replied mockingly, tugging on Keith's hair, "you're dumb. Shut up and rinse your hair."

Keith grimaced and turned to the water, running his fingers through his hair until the suds were gone. Lance stepped forward to him and wrapped his arms around the red paladin, kissing his shoulder gently. Keith tensed at the surprise of the touch, then relaxed into the blue paladin. He turned around in Lance's arms and pulled him into a gentle kiss. Lance smiled into the kiss before turning away and grabbing the bottle of conditioner. He squeezed some out into his hand and returned the bottle, turning back to Keith and grabbing the ends of hair. He began slowly massaging the conditioner through Keith's hair, from the bottom up.

When the blue blue paladin finished, they swapped sides of the shower and Lance began rinsing his hair of the conditioner. Keith followed suit, hating the greasy feeling of the conditioner in his hair. Lance surprised him by suddenly pressing a rag to his back and rubbing it up and down, lathering his back with soapy water. He washed Keith's back and shoulders, then wrapped his arms around him and squeezed. Keith half smiled.

"We should hurry up and get out. The water's cold." Lance chided, kissing the red paladin's shoulder.

"Yeah, I guess you're right." Keith turned and took the rag from Lance, doing a once over of his body quickly. Lance scrubbed himself from head to toe as Keith climbed out of the shower and toweled off. Lance stepped out and Keith threw his towel at him, laughing as the blue paladin threw it back in disgust.

"Why are you like this?" He sighed, rolling his eyes as he grabbed his own towel and wrapped it around his waist.

"Because annoying you is fun." Keith was getting dressed now, and Lance walked over to the sink to brush his teeth. When their routines were finished, and both paladin's were dressed once again, they grabbed each others' hand and walked back to Lance's room, where they fell asleep together.

The next few months progressively grew their relationship. Lance finally agreed to be Keith's boyfriend after several days of hard kissing and lots of Keith's persistent touching and begging. Pidge was the first one to find them out, barging in on the two during one of their lying-in-the-floor-kissing-and-listening-to-music nights several days after Lance finally said yes. Hunk was next, a few days later, when sparring with Keith brought their relationship to light - literally, as Keith's neck bore a huge and obvious hickey below his chin. Keith chewed Lance out for it, of course, but Hunk thought it was quite hilarious. Shiro, Coran, and Allura found out all together a few weeks later. The couple had sat them down and let their relationship be known. Everyone was happy, Allura clapping her hands and getting wide eyed as she glanced at Shiro. Shiro sighed, relieved, and Coran simply commented on how quickly the two had gone from enemies to friends. The two paladins both chuckled at the idea of ever being enemies - talk about repressed feelings. Now they spent most nights close to each other, Lance still trying his best to keep Keith on a skin schedule. Keith tried to get Lance into his music, which Lance begrudgingly grew accustomed to. Hunk framed the puzzle Keith had completed, and Lance put it up in their room. They're still happily dating, as far as anyone else is concerned.