There was an air of tension in the car that night, colder and heavier than the snow falling outside. Visibility was close to zero so Shiro needed to pay extra close attention to the road ahead of him; however, an uneasy feeling as well as the air of danger was pressing against his mind. Try as he might Shiro just couldn't ignore it. He wanted to keep his eyes glued to the treacherous road but he did chance a quick side glance to his passenger. Keith was slumped down in is seat with his arms crossed firmly over his chest while he glared daggers at the road ahead of them. He was upset and Shiro knew exactly why. The two of them had come out to the mountain to enjoy a much-awaited ski trip at a remote lodge and everything was going so well… until Shiro got a call from his work. Now, not even a full day into their trip they were on their way back to the city. Keith had begged him not to answer his phone, knowing full well this would happen but it couldn't be helped. He hated to disappoint him.

"I said I was sorry, didn't I?" He said, hoping the break the long silence but Keith opted to ignore him, turning his head to stare out his side window instead. Another quick glance and Shiro could make out his facial features in his reflection. He looked angry to a point but it wasn't quite that serious yet. He looked more disappointed than anything else. Keith was already twenty two, no longer a child, but he still had temper tantrums now and then. Shiro had started assigning levels to Keith's attitude to better gage how he was feeling in times like this, when Keith wouldn't respond to him. Having his arms crossed so tightly and avoiding eye contact was part of level one. The way his lower lip jutted out farther than normal was level two. He imagined his toes would be tightly curled if he hadn't been wearing thick socks and his snow boots. While he knew he shouldn't, Shiro couldn't help but find it cute when he did that. Admittedly, he would normally cave by that stage but this wasn't one of those times.

"Keith." Shiro called again, keeping his voice calm and even with just a hint of firmness. This time Keith responded, barking out a reply.

"Yeah, I heard you!" His voice was sharp and it cut through the air like a knife. Stage three? No, stage four. He had completely bypassed his whining phase and went straight to anger. Shiro didn't like this stage. It was harder to pull him out of it than the others and it hurt deep down to hear him like that. He heard the softest sniffle which Keith quickly stifled, wiping at his face with the back of his sleeve.

"Keith…" Shiro's voice softened, frowning. "Keith, I am sorry. I know you were looking forward to this trip but what could I have done? You know how important our work is."

"You couldda told them no, or better yet where to stick it."

"Yeah, right. That would have gone well, I'm sure." Shiro was an important part of a research and development team working for a major company. They used state of the art techniques and the newest technologies in order to create new and innovative devices. Their products, once approved, would improve the lives of people all over the world in the medical fields, construction and education. They were also under several military contracts but that wasn't Shiro's area of expertise. His team was working on developing new scanning tools for physicians to test for early stages of diseases. They wanted to give people a chance to live longer, healthier lives by making early detection easier and less expensive. As someone who suffered from a chronic muscle disorder as a child, this was important to Shiro.

This company was even where he'd met Keith. He came in several years earlier with a group of youths to help test some of the products the company was designing. While most of the teens involved were there by choice, or volunteered by their parents looking for a payout, Keith was more or less given no choice. He'd lost his parents years before and bounced around from one broken home to another before a representative of the company picked him up. His aggressive behavior, while a problem for most, proved to be an asset to his work. He was competitive and outgoing and thus they revered him as some sort of prodigy, even forcing him to test some of the more dangerous products. Keith didn't seem to mind it, simply doing as he was told but Shiro didn't like it. He saw what no one else had bothered to see: that Keith was just a sad, lonely person looking for someone to care about him.

And he did. Shiro cared about him very much. Despite their age gap of roughly six years, the two had managed to form a deep bond. Shiro would never hurt Keith or take advantage but he was of age and I delighted Shiro when Keith had confessed to him. The two had been together for two years already and this was supposed to be a special trip…

"Two months." Keith finally replied, cutting through the silence again and bringing Shiro's attention back to the here and now.

"Hm?"

"It took you two months of begging to get this time off approved for the both of us. If we go back now, just how long is it going to take to get this kind of chance again?"

Shiro sighed heavily. He didn't have an answer to that one.

"Keith…"

"Don't 'Keith' me, Shiro. You promised me! You promised we could get away and spend time together! Just you and me!" That was true. It was hard to find time to spend with just Keith, alone… Even though the two were now living together under the pretext of Shiro "keeping a close eye on the company's prized tester." It was so hard having to keep their relationship a secret.

"And what do you expect me to do, Keith? What do you think will happen if we're suddenly exposed, hm? Interdepartmental dating is highly discouraged and I really don't think they'd approve of us."

"I don't care…" He said, his voice softening along with his expression. Truth was he did worry about it. Keith worried that the company would retaliate in some way, maybe firing Shiro but the worst thing would be to forcefully separate them. He didn't want that. His arms loosened a bit as he thought about it, a deep sadness sinking in. Shiro wasn't sure which was worse, mad Keith or sad one. ….Sad. Definitely. Keith's subtle sniffling pierced right through Shiro's tough mask. Hoping to comfort him, Shiro took his left arm off the steering wheel and set it tenderly onto Keith's thigh, rubbing his thumb against the coarse jeans. Keith blushed and jumped at the sudden action. Shiro could tell even when he was looking away because his blush stretched all the way to his ears.

"I want to get away with you, Keith. I want our time together and I will make it happen, somehow. I promise you. So please try to be patient a little bit longer." He said softly, lovingly. He could see Keith's features relaxing under the touch and he pulled his eyes away from the road just for a moment as he felt Keith set a hand over his.

"Okay…" Keith replied, no longer looking angry as he turned to face Shiro for the first time since their drive started. His smile was soft, still a bit sad but understanding. It warmed Shiro's heart.

"God what did I ever do to deserve you?" His words, while sweet, seemed to embarrass Keith and he looked away to avoid Shiro's lovey-dovey expression. That's when he saw something up ahead. Something dark, barely noticeable had wandered out in front of them, moving slowly from beyond the tree line. Keith's eyes widened as he finally recognized the outline to be a large deer and he shouted.

"Shiro, look out!" The yell startled Shiro, his head whipping back to the road as the headlights illuminated the frightened animal. He clenched his jaw tightly as he turned the wheel in an attempt to avoid hitting the deer but in the process the car hit a patch of black ice. The wheels screeched and the car slid about the road beyond Shiro's control. They drifted at an uncomfortably high speed, sliding right into the metal railing at the side of the road. The impact caused Shiro's side window to break, sending glass flying in at them both. Shiro did the only thing he could think of and stretched his left arm out over Keith to keep him from jostling in his seat while he braced his other arm against his door.

"Hold on, Keith!" Shiro shouted as the car suddenly went into a violent spin. The car impacted the railing again and this time it cause Shiro's head to snap back, smacking into the metal doorframe. His eyes closed and his head lolled forward to Keith's horror. He reached out, dizzy from the spinning and grabbed hold of the steering wheel in an attempt to straighten the car out. They were nearing a sharp turn in the road and try as he might he couldn't get the car under control. He panicked, looking down at Shiro's feet.

"Break… Break, Shiro, the brake!" That was the last thing Keith said as the car crashed right through the barrier, sending them off of the road and down a hill, the car rolling. Half-packed suitcases burst open in the backseat and Shiro's cell phone went flying into oblivion. All the while Keith tried to keep his eyes closed, tried to stay still in his seat. He heard the gnashing sound of metal crumpling before the car slammed hard into a twisted tree. His face slammed hard against the dash. That's when everything went black.