"Lance is asking for you"

Keith diverted his eyes from his history book to look at Allura, who is at the door of Shiro's room, holding her clipboard and looking at Keith. When their eyes met, she raised her eyebrow.

"I'm sorry, what?" Keith asked, confused.

Allura sighed and entered the room, closing the door behind her. She leaned against the wall, rubbed her tired eyes and turned to look at Keith again, who was still confused with what she just said. Why is someone asking for him? He didn't know anyone in this hospital besides Allura, Romelle, Dr. Coran and a couple of nurses who took care of Shiro when Allura wasn't around or occupied with another patient.

"Lance is asking for you" she repeated and then glared at Keith.

"Yeah, I heard that" Keith said, rolling his eyes "But I don't understand"

Allura frowned, giving one of her famous are-you-kidding-me face making Keith cringe in his chair. Allura could be terrifying when she wanted to.

"What is it that you do not understand?" she asked, her tone of voice demonstrating that she had neither the patience or the time to be having this conversation with Keith.

"How is someone asking for me? I don't work here and I spend most of my time hiding here to be stuck around making conversation with people" he said annoyed, trying to explain and to understand. But he also didn't want to have this conversation. And by the way, who the hell is this Lance?

"Well, I don't as well" Allura said, raising both of her arms in frustration, almost knocking over her clipboard. She straightened the clipboard in her arms, and pointed at Keith. "But, he wants to see you… he demands, actually"

Keith raised an eyebrow.

"Are you sure it's me?" he asked, crossing his arms "Couldn't have been somebody else with the same name? Keith it's a fairly common name if you search correctly."

"No, it's really you. I'm sure of it" she said, now her voice in an amused tone

"How are you so sure?"

"For once, Lance keeps saying that he wanted to talk to the 'mullet boy'" Allura explained, a little grin on her lips when she saw Keith's expression "And I only know one person who has this hairstyle" she paused and looked at Keith, now a wild smile on her lips "It's you"

Oh.

Oh.

So, the name of the cute patient from the room 507, that he went to deliver that package yesterday, it's Lance. Keith remembered his face when he said that he didn't know him, it was like he was hurt, and Keith didn't know why. He should never want to speak with Keith again, but now he was asking for him.

"Why?" Keith asked.

"What?"

"Why is he asking for me? I don't know him at all, but apparently he knows me and it looked that I hurt his feelings when I said that I didn't know him, because I'm pretty sure he might have cried when I left his room yesterday" He said, frustrated with this whole situation.

Allura looked at him with a strange expression, making Keith feel as if she had been scanning his brain.

"You went to see him yesterday?" she asked, her tone a little harsh.

"Y-Yes? I mean…" Keith paused, licking his dry lips "Romelle asked me to deliver a package for him because one of his friends left there, and she didn't want to disturb his family." He explained "Since that I was heading to the fifth floor, she asked me to do this favor and I ended up meeting him"

Allura stared at him for a few seconds and then sighed. She turned around and started walking towards the door. Keith watched her open the door before turning to speak to him.

"Talk to him" she just said and then left, closing the door behind her, leaving Keith only with his thoughts disturbing his mind.

Keith didn't go talk to Lance.

In fact Keith spent a good amount of time in Shiro's room, stuck in his thoughts, the history book he was reading, forgotten at the small corner table. He debated whether to go talk to Lance or not. Why should he go? He didn't know Lance, and just thinking about trying to talk to someone else, his anxiety would begin to appear.

"You should at least apologize for being rude yesterday," his conscience said.

Keith shook his head. No, he wasn't going to talk to Lance, even if for some reason he felt guilty for potentially hurting his feelings (even though that hadn't been his intention because, again, he didn't know Lance at all, even that he seems to know him somehow)

Sighing, Keith checked the hours on his wrist watch and was surprised that it was getting late, and the visiting hour was already running out. He picked up his history book, put it in his backpack, and took the backpack, resting it on his left shoulder. He looked at Shiro who was still in his deep sleep, and felt the tightness in his chest.

"I'm going, Shiro" he told his brother. "Tomorrow I'll show up a little late. I'm in detention for two days." He rolled his eyes.

Keith was halfway out of the room when he stopped and looked back at Shiro.

"Please wake up soon" he murmured.

Keith made his way down the hallway when he noticed the door to Lance's room open. The voices from inside the room echoed down the hall, and he recognized Dr. Coran's voice between them. After Dr. Coran had finished speaking, Lance's voice joined, and he seemed... nervous? Anxious? Keith couldn't understand what they were talking about and the curiosity inside him surfaced and without him noticing, his legs started to move and he was only a few centimeters near the Lance's room door. He couldn't see much, but he recognized the tall figure of Dr. Coran. He saw Lance on the bed, with two other people standing closer to his bed.

"... and this is supposed to make me better?" asked Lance's voice.

"Precisely," Dr. Coran replied. "It's the best treatment right now so you can get better"

"But, I'm going to have to feel like crap during this whole time? With the side effects, I literally feel like I'm slowly dying." he said, in a joking tone, but for some reason, Keith felt he was saying the truth and that seemed to scare Lance.

"You're not dying, Lance!" said a familiar voice in a tearful tone. He was closer to Lance and was holding his hand.

Lance chuckled.

"Not yet, Hunk" he said, his voice breaking.

Keith heard Dr. Coran speak again in an optimistic tone and two other voices (Hunk and a female voice he didn't know) joined in the conversation, talking about how Lance's treatment will occur for the next few weeks. Lance looked extremely quiet. Keith was beginning to consider spying on the room when he noticed that Lance was looking at him. Keith's eyes widened, his face burning with embarrassment. Lance gave him a small smile, and Keith could feel that his face was growing redder. Without thinking twice, Keith ran to the end of the hallway, pressing the elevator button quickly, too many times. As the elevator opened the doors, Keith entered and sighed in relief as the doors closed.

Keith leaned against the wall of the elevator, and brought his hand to his chest, feeling his heart beat quickly against the palm of his hand.

What was that?

"I can't believe you got detention again," Pidge said, her eyes fully focused on the game in front of her.

Keith rolled his eyes.

Every Wednesday, he and Pidge had a movie night followed by a round of video games. It was a kind of tradition that started years ago when he first met Pidge. Shiro and Pidge's father worked together on Garrison, and one day Sam Holt invited them both for dinner at his house. First Keith didn't want to go because he doesn't like meet new people but after Shiro insisted they went and that is when he met Katie Holt or Pidge as how she liked to be called. She was a little different from the others that Keith has met, but she always exuded intelligence. She was always sincere and she wasn't afraid to speak her opinion on any subject.

That night the two of them (mostly Pidge) talked about computers, new types of technology, games and movies. Since then, Pidge had invited Keith to her house every Wednesday where they watched a different movie. One week Keith chose the movie and Pidge chose the game, in the other it was Pidge's turn to choose the movie and Keith the game. They formed a bond and Keith always saw Pidge as his younger sister. She was part of his family, along with Shiro and the rest of the Holts.

"It's not like I go to school looking for a fight with anyone or something." Keith rolled his eyes as he pressed the joystick buttons repeatedly.

"That's very rich coming from you" Pidge said and Keith groaned. "But seriously, what did you do this time to get detention?"

Keith was quiet for a while, focused entirely on the game that Pidge began to wonder if he had heard her question. She was about to ask again, when Keith decided to speak.

"Something about me not paying attention in class and drawing in my notebook" he replied, his voice low.

Keith was never a drawer, but he had always had an interest in art, and art classes were his favorite subject at school. Once Shiro caught him drawing in his notebook and was impressed by Keith's talent, and encouraged the lanky boy to take art classes. Keith never seriously thought about it because he never thought that his arts were that great, until the accident happen. When the new school year began, he enrolled in arts classes. It was the only subject he really enjoyed in school. He had bought a sketchbook, and on weekends he would always go somewhere new and draw, with a promising that he would show Shiro as soon as he woke up.

If he wakes up.

Pidge looked quickly to look at Keith. She studied his face for a while, then sighed. He never told Pidge directly about the arts classes, but he suspected she that knew about it.

"Only you to get a detention for lack of attention." She shook her head.

Keith shrugged.

"It's not my fault that my teachers seem to hate me" he muttered.

They were silent for a while, only the sound of buttons being pressed and the music of the game to keep company. After a while playing Pidge declared victory, getting up off the ground and jumping, a wild grin on her face and pointing deviously at Keith.

"Dude, I can't believe I finally beat you this time" she said, throwing a pillow in Keith's face.

"Pure luck" he replied, tossing the cushion back at Pidge, which she swerved easily.

Keith stretched his arms before leaning against Pidge's bed. He watched Pidge's small figure walk through her room before heading out to the kitchen to make popcorn for them. Keith settled on the floor and closed his eyes, listening to the familiar noise of the Holts' house. He could hear Colleen Holt talking to someone on the phone, could hear Sam Holt talking to Pidge in the kitchen and then the voice of Matt Holt, Pidge's older brother, joining the conversation.

Keith always felt comfortable and at home in the Holt's house.

Pidge returned to the room, holding a bucket of popcorn and two cans of soda, accompanied by Matt, with a completely bored face.

Keith accepted the can Pidge was offering, and turned to Matt who sat next to him.

"I thought you had a date today," he asked, taking a sip of the soda.

Matt sighed, hiding his face in his hands.

"I don't want talk about it" he whined.

"She stood him up" Pidge answered for Matt, laughing.

Matt lifted his head and turned to look at Pidge, an indignant look on his face.

"Pidge!" he said, his face totally red "You don't have to spread it to everyone!"

"Relax, big brother, I'm sure she is going to go out with you in another other day," Pidge teased "Someday"

Matt groaned and Keith chuckled.

The two continued to bickering for some time while Keith continued to take sips of his soda and watched the two siblings with a small smile on his lips.

"Hey, how's Shiro doing?" Matt asked after Pidge took the pillow that she had previously thrown at Keith, and threw it at her brother's unprepared face. "I wanted to visit him, but I was busy doing some stuff for the Garrison"

"He's still the same," Keith replied, feeling his throat dry at the mention of the Garrison. He coughed a little, and took another sip of his soda. "He still hasn't woken up from the coma, and it doesn't look like he'll wake up anytime soon..." he added, his voice fading.

"I'm sorry Keith," he said, voice gently, placing a hand on his shoulder for support. "I'm sure he'll wake up soon"

"It's not what it looks like," Keith whispered.

"What?"

"Nothing"

After this little conversation, they kept silent while Pidge put the movie on so they could watch. The movie began and Keith's mind began to wander.

Everyone told him to not give up on Shiro, that he would wake up soon, but how can they be so sure? Even Dr. Coran wasn't sure when Shiro would wake up. It had been almost a year since the accident and months since the last time Shiro had shown signs of consciousness and he didn't look like he was going to wake up. Keith wanted to believe, he really wanted to think that one day he would go to the hospital and find Shiro sitting up in bed, awake and waiting for him. He wanted to believe it, but it was getting harder every day to go to the hospital and find him lying on the bed, in a deep coma.

Keith could feel his eyes fill with tears. He wouldn't cry again, he would lock all those feelings deep down and he'd never allow himself to feel this way anymore. He hated it.

Keith shook his head and tried to clear his mind and think of something else.

…

"Lance is asking for you"

Keith gasped in surprised.

Why is Keith thinking about that? He had already made up his mind that he would not visit Lance, especially after he caught him spying on his private conversation with Dr. Coran.

Why was he thinking about Lance?

What happened to Lance that he ended up hospitalized and having to do some kind of treatment that left him feeling like crap and making jokes about death? Is he dying somehow and this treatment is his only option to make him better?

…

Keith mentally slapped himself.

Why is he so curious about Lance?

Sure he still wanted to know how Lance knew him, and why he wanted to speak to him, but Keith didn't want to get to know Lance. He is not the kind of person who makes friends easily. People tend not to like it, and Keith stopped trying and eventually to care. Besides Shiro, the Holt's siblings and Allura was his only friends.

He is not interested in making more.

"You're late today, did anything happen?" Romelle asked Keith when she handed his visitor badge.

Keith shrugged.

"Nothing much, I had to do some things in school today, I ended up losing the track of time" he said, adjusting the badge on his shirt.

Romelle was silent for a while, looking suspiciously at Keith, when suddenly her eyes widened in realization and she smirked.

"Let me guess, you've got detention again?" she teased, crossing her arms. "How many days you've got this time?"

Keith groaned.

"Don't' you have a job to do?" he said annoyed.

"Oh, but how many times since I met you, you had detention? Only this month was ten detentions" she continued.

"Bye, Romelle" Keith said, stepping away from her. As he walked toward the elevators, he could hear her laugh reverberate through the hallway.

Keith made his way down the fifth floor, toward Shiro's room. He noticed that the door to Lance's room was open again and the familiar voices of Allura and Lance came from her. He hurried down the hall, and was about to enter Shiro's room when he heard Lance call him and he froze.

"Hey, mullet boy, I know it was you who just walked down the hallway," he called out. "I thought that I had asked for you to talk to me yesterday but-

Lance's voice was abruptly cut off, and Keith suspected that Allura was scolding him for making noise and disturbing the peace of the other patients who were resting on that floor.

Keith breathed a sigh of relief and quickly entered the room, taking his place in the chair next to Shiro's bed. He started talking about his day to Shiro, as he did every day until he found himself talking about Lance to Shiro.

"... and I don' know why suddenly he is so obsessed with me" said in frustration "just because he knew me from somewhere and because I did Romelle a favor and I deliver a package for him two days ago, but he keeps trying to talk to me!"

Keith ran a hand through his messy hair.

"And I can even say he's cute and have a nice face and a beautiful blue eyes, but I'm not interested ... in talking to him"

He frowned.

"Why is so interesting in me that he is insisting to talk to me?" he asked in a low tone. He knew that he was asking more to himself than to Shiro. Keith sighed "It's not that you can answer that to me…"

Keith remained silent, lost in his thoughts, when the door was opened, and Allura entered the room, with a look of utter irritation. She folded her arms, and cast Keith a sharp look.

"I thought I asked you to talk to Lance yesterday" she said.

Keith raised his eyebrow.

"Why should I go?" he asked "Allura I don't even know him, why is he so obsessed in talk to me?"

"I do not know, but he keeps bothering me and asking you haven't seen him yet, and he is also bothering the others nurses, asking where are you, and my patience it's running low" she paused and walked towards him "So please, just go see him"

"Allura…"

"Now, Keith" Allura sighed closing her eyes and rubbed her forehead. She looked like she was having a bad headache. She opened her eyes and looked at Keith, who is still trying to fight her, but he knew that it was useless "Please"

They looked at one another for a few seconds before Keith rose from his chair in defeat.

"Fine, I go"

"Thank you" Allura said, relieved "I will check Shiro and keep an eye on him for you"

Keith nodded and left the room.

It took him a while to get into Lance's room, wondering what the hell he was going to do now. He had no idea what Lance wanted to talk to him about.

Keith looked at the closed bedroom door, feeling nervous, and knocked on the door.

"Come in, mullet" Lance responded and Keith felt his nerves being replaced by irritation.

Keith opened the door and marched inside, and was greeting by Lance with a wild smile on his face.

"Finally you decided to show up" Lance teased "Because of you, I made Allura really angry, but I can't say that it wasn't worth it, because I would be lying" he said gesturing to Keith and laughed "But hey! Here you are!"

Keith remained silent and Lance pursed his lips.

"Did you lost your hearing or somehow you're mullet's evil twin-

"Why?" Keith suddenly asked

"W-What?" Lanced looked at him, confused.

"Why are you so determined in to talk to me?" Keith asked his frustration showing in his voice "Why?"

Lance shrugged.

"Why not?"

"Why not?"

Lance smiled.

"Seriously, why are you make a big deal out of this?" he asked, shaking his head in disapproval "It's that so bad that I want to talk to you, mullet?"

"Don't"

Lanced frowned.

"What?"

Keith sighed, and ran a hand over his face, still frustrated with the situation.

"Don't call me mullet" he said, looking at Lance.

"So, what do I call you?"

Keith ignored Lance, and walked and walked closer to his bed. The balloons that had once been strapped to the head of Lance's bed were no longer there, but the flowers were still decorating the room. It looked like new ones were added around the room. Keith turned his gaze to Lance, and it was then that he noticed that the boy looked pale, and had purple bags under his eyes.

Was this the effect of his treatment?

Was he okay?

"What do you want talk to me?" Keith asked, looking away from Lance.

Lance shrugged.

"I just wanted to talk to anyone" Lance confessed, sheepishly looking at little embarrassed.

"But why me?" Keith insisted "Why not your friend, or your family, or Allura?"

Lance chuckled.

"I'm pretty sure Allura is sick of me" he said "Hunk, my friend, is always kinda busy after school, so he can't come all the time. And my family…" Lance paused, taking a deep breath "It's nice to be around them, but they are here all the time, and I just want them to rest, and they only wanted to talk about my 'condition'" he grimaced "So I'm kinda alone here, and for the past three days that I've being here, I was saw you around so…"

"So you expected to talk to me" Keith completed.

"Yes" Lance said, and weak smiled on his lips. He was looking at his hands and he looked nervous.

Keith started to feel a little guilty. He could understand Lance's situation, he just wanted someone to talk about anything and Keith was the only viable option that Lance could find.

"It's Keith"

Lance turned to look at Keith, a question on his eyes.

"My name" he explained "It's Keith"

"Oh" Lance's expression changed completely "Nice to meet you, I'm Lance" he giggled, and held out his hand to Keith.

Keith walked closer towards Lance, and took his hand. His hand was cold and little sweaty, and he felt that Lance was shaking at little.

"I already know your name" Keith said.

Lance looked surprised.

"How?"

"Allura"

Lance laughed and Keith felt something warm on his chest of the sound of it. He bit his lip, trying to hold a smile.

Someone knocked on the door, and entered. Keith turned around to see a woman who looked quite like Lance entering the room. She just seemed to be a few years older than him, but she had exactly the same mackerel, but her eyes were much brighter blue than Lance's.

"Lance, I brought you…" she stopped in her tracks when she saw Keith standing next to Lance's bed. "Oh, I didn't knew you have company." She said to Lance, but her eyes were on Keith.

"It's ok Veronica" Lance said, in a cheerful tone "This is Keith"

"Hi, I'm Veronica, his big sister" Veronica said, a large smile on her lips "Nice to meet you"

Keith felt a little embarrassed over Veronica's gaze at him.

"You too" he said.

"So, are you one of Lance's friends?" she asked and then smirked "Or are you his secret boyfriend?" Veronica asked maliciously.

"I-I'm not!" Keith said, his face turning a bright red.

Lance giggled and Keith turned to see him, with a hand on his lips. Keith glared at him, and the boy only shrugged, a giggled escaping his lips.

"I should go back to my brother" Keith said, still glaring at Lance and then turned around to face Veronica "He is a room here too"

Veronica's teased expression change for a comprehensive, and nodded.

"Yes, sure. Don't let us keep you" she said, gently.

Keith was about to leave the Lance's room, when Lance called him back.

"See you tomorrow!" he said.

Keith turned to see Lance, who looked at little uneasy. Keith knew that he was asking him to come back, and wasn't sure if Keith would. But after the conversation they had minutes ago, Keith felt at little reluctant in deny.

"Sure" Keith said.

Lance smiled, and Keith felt that his smiled could light up the entire floor

That night, when he was in his room, Keith drew Lance on his sketchbook, using a blue pen that looked exactly as the blue of Lance's eyes. His smile brighter than the sun and the starts.

Keith smiled.

He could be interested.