Late Night Training Session
Keith was practicing with his Bayard on the training deck when Pidge walked into the room with a troubled look on her face. Her eyes were gleaming with tears threatening to roll down her cheeks and it looked like she was trying to control her breathing.
"Stop the simulator!" Keith demanded as the training robot stopped midway through a swing and stood frozen like a statue. He deactivated his Bayard and used his towel to wipe the sweat from his rigorous training.
He turned from the robot and walked up to Pidge with deep concern. "What's wrong Pidge?"
"I had a bad nightmare...thought I'd come to the training deck to clear my mind and maybe blow off some steam." Pidge replied with a steadied voice as she took a deep breath to stop herself from getting over emotional.
Keith placed a hand on her shoulder very gently as he asked, "Do you wanna talk about it?"
"Not really..." The young Paladin replied in a soft voice.
Keith nodded his head and rubbed her shoulder. "You don't have to tell me. Just thought I'd ask about it in case you needed to talk someone's ear off this late at night."
"Thanks Keith." Pidge said with a smile, she rubbed her left eye and gave a yawn. "Why don't we spar a little bit? I need to brush up on my combat skills."
Keith raised his eyebrow at her statement. "You sure? It's pretty late at night and you'll be cranky in the morning. I don't want Shiro blaming me for your lack of sleep."
"Shiro doesn't need to know. This can be our little secret from the others." Pidge answered with a wink , she brought out her Bayard and activated it.
Keith did so likewise and the two of them went at it. It was amazing how strong her arms were despite being the shortest out of all the Paladins and not being much of a combatant. They went at it for a good half hour before finally they stopped to breathe. "Have you been practicing?" The Red Paladin asked as he tilted his head slightly.
Pidge shrugged her shoulders and gave a smile. "When I'm not working on my machines I try to figure out new ways to use my Bayard in combat."
"Well you've been doing a good job!" Keith complimented as he took a breath and deactivated his Bayard. Pidge did so likewise and they sat down on the ground to take a drink.
After a few minutes of silence, Pidge finally looked over at Keith and asked very simply: "Do you miss Earth?"
"What?"
"Do you miss Earth? I mean, I don't know how long you've been on your own since you left the Garrison but you have that shack in the desert that you're really fond of. " Pidge said as she laid her Bayard on the ground and gazed into his eyes.
The question took Keith completely off guard as it took him a minute to process her sudden inquiry. "Of course I miss Earth. I miss my home, I miss my rocking chair that I would sit in for hours star gazing on my porch and I miss spending long days just charting out the land looking for new ruins and drawings on cave walls."
"I miss Earth too. I wonder what my mom is doing right now..." The Green Paladin wondered aloud as her eyes started to mist over with new tears.
Keith scooted over by her side and hesitated a little before he eventually wrapped his arm around her shoulder. He was still not completely comfortable with giving physical affection but he had known Pidge for what felt like years after all the battles they fought together with the team.
"It's gonna be OK. We're gonna make it through this twisted war and we'll see our families again back on Earth. I promise you." Keith told her warmly as he used his thumb to stroke up and down her shoulder.
Pidge nuzzled herself onto Keith's chest as she wrapped her arms around his waist. His comforting presence and voice reminded her of Matt to the point where she almost called him "Bro" out loud after he said that. But she stopped herself in fear that she would start crying.
"Thanks Keith." Pidge finally said after being completely silent for a few minutes in his arms. Keith gave her a squeeze and a smile.
Keith didn't expect to comfort his teammate and friend during one of his late night training sessions, but he didn't mind the company in that cold room. It made him feel better knowing he had someone by his side to talk to.
So for the rest of the time while they were still up, they talked about what they planned on doing once they got back home from the war. All the while still holding each other like the family they've grown to be.