"Why do you deny yourself heaven? Why do you consider yourself undeserving? Why are you afraid of love? You think it's not possible for someone like you, but you are the love of my life."

As he drifted in and out of consciousness, Lance picked up the distinct smell of…lemons? Maybe that's what lies behind the light; The light that he was trying his best to ignore. He knew what would happen from watching movies. He goes into the light, then boom, no more Lance. Maybe it's for the best. He'd been feeling like this even before crashing his lion. Feeling like nothing he did mattered, like he was only kept around because there wasn't anyone else that could take his place.

Hot tears began to trail down his cheeks. Lance let out a dry laugh. His voice had gone ragged after spending what had to have been an hour of screaming for his lion to wake up, to move, to do something. It had all been in vain, his connection to his lion was the only thing he hadn't messed up in his life, and now. Now he's done what he does best.

His lion was dead, and he wasn't far behind it. He knew his time was up. His vision was blurring, a ringing was muting his thoughts, and now all he could think about was that damn smell of lemons.

Lance was trying his best, he really was, but the light was getting hard to ignore. He didn't have any more time. "This is it", he thought, this is where his story ends. He wondered what the gang would care more about, the fact that he had died, or that his lion died with him. Lance let out one last defeated sigh, he never even got a chance to tell Keith how he felt. He knew he probably wouldn't have been able to anyways. He would've expressed his feelings with a joke, and wouldn't have been taken seriously, like always. Out of everyone, Keith probably hated him the most. Maybe dying wouldn't be so bad.

After closing his eyes, Lance admitted defeat. He turned to face the light, and funny enough, if he squinted, he could make out the shape of Keith's stupid face. Keith. Lance smiled weakly, then lost consciousness.

When Lance regained consciousness, an all expansive darkness greeted him, and when he focused, he could hear the conversations going on around him.

"I'm not saying that the healing pod didn't work but it's been two weeks!"

Lance instantly recognized the voice; It was Keith.

Allura let out a sigh as she brought her hand up to her brow, "Keith, I've told you countless times already, when Lance's body is ready, he'll wake up. I can assure you that you will not miss anything by resting."

Keith fumed and dropped back into his seat, "I'm not tired."

Allura frowned at the boy; She could tell that he hadn't been taking care of himself. He'd been a wreck ever since they found Lance clinging to life in his lion.

"Keith. I know our relationship has been a bit, strained, since the revelation of your Galra heritage, but I promise I wouldn't lie to you about this."

Keith gave her a sullen nod as he looked over to Lances' still body.

Allura exhaled, then stood up, offering her hand to Keith. "I give you my word. If anything changes in Lance's condition, you will be the first to know. So please, get some sleep. For Lance?"

Keith opened his mouth to speak, then looked back to Lance, and paused before finally taking Allura's hand.

Silence hung in the air as the two left the room, and although they couldn't hear it, Lance was desperately shouting for them to come back.

Allura gave Keith a warm hug before leaving his quarters. He hadn't slept in his bed at all since the accident. Hell, he had barely even slept since it happened. Every time he closed his eyes, images of Lance's bloody tear stained face flashed across his mind like a movie being projected to the back of his eyelids.

He couldn't help but blame himself. The team told him it wasn't his fault, but he knew it was only because each of them were also blaming themselves for what happened.

Keith slumped onto his bed, not even bothering to cover himself up as he closed his eyes and prepared for what his guilty conscience had in store for him.

As Keith drifted off to sleep, he found himself in a dark room that had no walls, it reminded him of the cold nothingness of space. Looking down, he noticed someone laying on the floor, a boy wearing nothing but medical gown.

As he walked closer to the body on the floor he began to realize who it was.

"Lance? Is that…is that you?"

Lance tensed before opening his eyes and sitting up to face him.

Without hesitation, the boy shot up from the ground and lunged at him, wrapping his arms around the shorter boys' neck, "Keith! I thought I'd never see your beautiful face again!" shouted the Lance as he stroked Keith's face, paying no mind to how uncomfortable it made the other boy.

In any other situation, Keith would have shoved Lance off, but now he was responding by bringing his arms tightly around Lances waist and lowering his head into the crook of the taller boys shoulder. He didn't care anymore, if the only way to be close with Lance is in his dreams, then he wasn't going to waste time being a prude.

"You idiot," he mumbled, tightening his hold on Lance.

Lance recoiled indignantly, opening his mouth to defend himself as he wriggled out of Keith's grip.

"If anyone's an idiot her it's- "

"I was so scared," Keith interjected, cutting off Lance while pulling their bodies closer together.

"I knew you were upset but I didn't think you dumb enough to try taking on Zarkon all by yourself. If he…If I…"

"Keith…"

"I haven't been able to get it out of my mind, the way the blood was already dried on your face," his voice wavered before being replaced with desperate sobs.

Lance shut his eyes and returned to intensity of Keith's hold, unsure of what to say, choosing to hold the boy rather than ruin the moment by saying the wrong thing.

After he had run out of tears, Keith stood clinging to Lances body, ignoring the fact that the only thing covering the boy was a thin medical gown; The heart wants what the heart wants.

During Keith's emotional breakdown, Lance had closed his eyes and rested his head on the boys' shoulder. Lance's mind was heavy with thoughts of all that his reckless decision had done, but those thoughts were quickly dispersed when he felt a pair of warm calloused hands fondling his rear.

"K-keith, buddy? What're ya' doin'?" he asked, trying to hide the way his body was reacting to the boys' touch.

Keith didn't respond, at least not with words. He continued his ravaging of Lance by leaving love marks on the taller boys' neck, eliciting a yelp from Lance.

Keith stopped pecking Lance and brought their face's together, "Sorry, you usually don't talk when we do this in my dreams." He then brought their lips together in a passionate kiss.

The mood between the two couldn't be any less romantic, as Keith was preparing to make love, Lance was offended by the revelation that Keith mutes him during his sex dreams.

As Lance was about to lay into Keith he realized something. Keith, the boy he had been secretly pining after, has felt the same way about Lance.

As much as this epiphany excited him, even he had to admit that this wasn't the time or place to be canoodling, and when did they decide that he was going to be the bottom? Well, maybe he wasn't all that upset about his position, but the way Keith was so nonchalant about their first time upset him.

Judging by the way that Lance's attempt to push Keith away were being foiled by Keith's freakish Galra strength, Lance did the one thing he knew would kill the mood, so without reluctance, he let out a belch that would put even Hunk to shame.

Keith recoiled in disgust, and released his hold on Lance and turned a deep shade of red, "Oh god…This isn't a dream, is it?"

"Sorry to disappoint you, Mr. Cop a' feel, but as dreamy as I may be, I'm all real" he said, striking a slight pose .

The embarrassment on Keith's face grew darker as he backed away from Lance, "Oh crap, Lance, I'm so sorry I didn't-"

"We can talk about how much you love me later!" Lance groaned, "For now we need to focus on where we are."

Keith cleared his throat and tried his best to play off the now fading blush, "Good idea," he said looking around at the nothingness that seemed to go on forever, "How do we do that?"

Lance slumped his shoulders and rolled his eyes, "You're no help."

"Are you sure you aren't just a figment of my imagination?"

Lance narrowed his eyes and pouted his lips to mock Keith in a nasally voice, "Are you sure you aren't just a figment of my imagination. That's what you sound like."

Keith growled in frustration and plopped to the floor, "We're getting nowhere. Just tell me something about yourself that only you know, like if you have any secret freckles."

Lance looked dumbfounded, "Secret freckles, that's where we're at? This is hopeless." Lance whined dramatically as he joined Keith on the ground.

"Hey, at least I'm trying here, I don't see you coming up with any bright ideas!"

Lance huffed in response, it was true, he didn't have a clue about where they were, or if any of this was real.

Both boys stayed on the ground in silence, both thinking about how they might get out of their situation, and secretly enjoying the alone time.

"Hey, Keith?"

"What,"

"Am I dead?"

Keith turned his head to see the other boy, who was staring up blankly at the nothingness, a hollow expression covering his face.

"I don't think so."

Lance chuckled, "What do you mean you "think so" "

"I guess you're in a coma? I don't know, dude, Pidge and Allura haven't been able to figure out why you won't wake up."

"Are they mad?"

Keith studied Lance's face before answering, "About what?"

Lance avoided Keith's gaze, "You know…About me trying to take on Zarkon and all,"

"I don't know, Lance. You're gonna have to ask them when you wake up, okay?" Keith said with a tender smile, inching his hand close to Lances' before weaving their fingers together.

Lance turned to make eye contact with Keith, "Do you really think I'm gonna wake up?"

Just as Keith was about to respond he was distracted by the look of terror in Lance's eyes, "Hey what's-"

"Wait! Don't leave me here!" Lance pleaded desperately. Keith looked down to see that his entire body was rapidly fading, his hand had completely dematerialized.

"Lance, Lance!" Before he knew it he was awake in his room, drenched in sweat.

"Keith! Calm down, it's me! Allura!" The silver haired girl assured, grabbing hold of the sides of Keith's face. His breathing was erratic and his eyes were darting across the room.

"Why did you wake me up! I left him all alone in that dark place, why did you wake me!" he screamed as hot tears welled in his eyes.

"It's Lance, his condition has declined, you told me to wake you if anything happened!"

Keith snapped back into reality and focused on Allura, "What happened? Did he wake up?"

Allura's eyes went to the ground as her face dropped, "We've returned Lance to the healing pod, he's stabilized, but we're not sure how much time we have before his body starts deteriorating again. Pidge and Hunk are searching for answers, but…I'm afraid that things are looking grim."

A new emotion flooded Keith as he wiped his eyes and stood up, "I know what we have to do to save Lance."

Allura's face lit up at the sight of Keith's renewed spirit, "What do you suggest?"

"We need to find the blue lion."