Pidge's POV:

1. Coran

I take a deep breath and look up at Lance, hesitating in the door to the bridge.

"Are you sure about this?" I ask, wringing my hands.

"Of course, Pidge," he says. His warm smile sends little flutters through me. He puts his hands on top of mine and turns them over, leaning down to kiss my palm. My face turns beet red. Lance chuckles. "Relax, it's just Coran. Now, I'm going to tell Matt. Can't tell Keith, he's still with the Blade. Meet you later?"

I gulp.

"Your room. And...good luck with Matt. Hopefully he won't point a gun at your head." Lance grins and kisses my forehead before walking away. I turn toward the bridge and call, "Coran!", waving the mustachioed Altean over to me. I try to calm my racing heart by taking a deep breath.

"Hello, number five!" he says with a wave. "What can I do for you?"

I blink slowly, take a breath, and blurt it out.

"Lance and I are dating!"

Coran blinks down at me for a few seconds, and for every moment of silence that passes my stomach forms a new knot. How could Lance have thought this was a good idea? How did he convince me to do this? What am I -

"Pidge, that's wonderful!" Coran says finally. He ruffles my hair with a hand. My mouth falls open.

"You're...ok with it?"

"Of course! Why wouldn't I be?"

I put a hand to my heart and exhale. Oh, thank goodness. My heart was beating out of my chest just a few seconds ago. I was afraid I was going to pass out. I'm so caught up in my relief I don't hear Coran when he asks a question, and I shake my head and ask him to repeat it.

"I said, how long? Surely this didn't start yesterday." He smiles, and I can't help but return it.

"About a week ago," I say, adjusting my glasses. Coran chuckles.

"So that's what you two were doing during the meeting." Instantly my face flushes, and I wave my hands.

"N-no! Not like that! We were just talking!" I wipe my forehead, hoping I'm not sweating as hard as I think I am. Coran just smiles.

"Ah, to be young. You know, this reminds me of a time when I was just like you, on Altea. Oh there was this delightful young Altean that had my stomach doing flips! I would-"

Before he can finish, I bolt from the room. I get about two hallways away before I collapse against the wall, panting.

"All right." I whisper to myself. "Meet Lance in his room, them tell the rest of the team. Doesn't sound so hard."

Why, why is this so impossible?