When practice on Thursday ends, Keith has to admit it: he's a little excited to have everyone stay over tonight. He spent all day cleaning with his aunt to prepare. He dusted, vacuumed, helped rearrange furniture, and basically left the place sparkling. No one's going to believe that people actually live in their house, it's that clean.

And then Shiro asks who's going to be in which car. Matt and Pidge already said when they arrived at practice that their dad would pick them up like usual so they could shower at home before coming and also wouldn't have to tote all their stuff to practice, so that just means Hunk and Lance and Shiro and himself. Which should all fit in just one car.

"We were gonna send Acxa with you and the rest of us will ride with Hunk," Ezor says, and Keith turns to see his least-favorite quintet all standing around, ready for a sleepover. Out of the corner of his eye he sees Lance staring at them in outrage, and Hunk calmly patting Lance on the back. Keith doesn't know Hunk all that well, but he suspects that Hunk might have known about this already.

"See you guys in a bit," Pidge calls from the doorway, and waves. Lotor and his crew all turn and wave back cheerfully. Keith hears Lance growl something about "the little traitor!" in a rather vicious tone. So Pidge knew. Shiro knew. Hunk maybe knew. Lance didn't. And Matt? Was Matt in on this- this- Keith didn't know what to call it. A cruel prank? A set-up? An ambush?

They head out to the cars, and Shiro gives tells their address to Lotor so that their car can get directions on his phone. Keith tries not to grind his teeth over it.

"You can sit up front," he grunts to Acxa when they reach the car.

"What a gentleman," she comments drily. It's a little sarcastic, but Keith doesn't give a shit right now. This kind of crap is just another reason not to have friends.

"At least he's not inviting himself along to other people's houses," Lance snaps.

"Oh but Pidge invited us. And Shiro said it was okay," Acxa replies sweetly. Lance's lip curls upwards in a snarl, and he gets in on the driver's side of the car where he sat yesterday and slams the door. Keith and Acxa follow suit in their respective seats, though with a little less slamming. Keith would love to slam the door like that, but Shiro would pitch a fit.

The drive is even more uncomfortable than the one yesterday, when Shiro kept making conversation and Lance was chatty until Keith ruined it all. A small, ugly part of him is glad that he was able to dampen the mood so much, because it means that he can have an effect on Lance, even if it's only a negative one. But mostly he just feels like a piece of shit for that. Tonight though, no one even bothers to try talking. The mood in the vehicle is just too oppressive for any kind of conversation.

Keith's aunt and uncle don't seem surprised at the amount of guests either. It seems everyone knew but him. And Lance. Maybe. Lance always boasts about his acting skills, so maybe he's just acting surprised and upset, and was in on the prank all along.

They all go in and Keith tries to be a good host and offers up the shower to anyone who wants it. The Galra dojo crew all politely decline, saying they'll shower when they get back to their hotel. In this manner, Keith discovers that they aren't actually staying the night, just for dinner and a bit after. It's a small blessing. So that just leaves three of them who need to shower, and despite the fact that it is his home (for the time being anyway) and he should let the guests go first, Lance insists that Keith ought to shower first. Keith doesn't have the energy to argue, so he does. When he gets out, Pidge and Matt have arrived, and everyone is playing cards. While Lance and Hunk take their turns in the shower, the rest of the group teaches Keith how to play "Egyptian War" and "BS". He's pretty good at Egyptian War, but Lotor completely dominates at BS. It might almost be fun, if it weren't for the people he's playing with.

After everyone has showered, his aunt announces that dinner is ready, and they eat. Everyone compliments his aunt's cooking, and Keith feels a touch of pride hearing that, because his aunt is a pretty good cook. And she's outdone herself tonight with her homemade lasagne. He's mildly amused when Hunk asks her for the recipe she used.

After dinner, they decide to play "truth or dare" until the Galra dojo kids have to head back. Or rather, Pidge suggests it and Lotor and his miniature harem all voice agreement, and with a little encouragement, Lance begins to boast he is the king of daredevils, and Hunk is saying he will gladly take on any eating challenge, and Matt is grinning, and so Keith knows it's happening whether he wants it to or not. He's not sure if he wants it to happen or not. It could be fun? Maybe? But he feels just a little nervous somehow.

Zethrid goes first.

"Gimme a dare," she states proudly.

"Sing us your favorite song," Ezor says with a wicked grin. Zethrid turns the color of a beet but after a moment, sings out in a slightly off-key voice "Twinkle twinkle little star…" The rest of the song is drowned out by laughter.

Next is Narti, who apparently chooses truth.

"Hmmmm. How about… who would you cosplay at an anime convention?" Matt suggests.

Narti's hands move, and keep moving, and finally Lotor cuts her off with "Okay, I think we all get the point that you are secretly a huge cosplay fan."

"I'll go next. Give me a truth too," Pidge says.

"Tell us your most embarrassing moment," Zethrid says without hesitation.

"Oh gosh. Oh no. Okay. So." Pidge takes in a deep breath through her nose, then heaves it out through her mouth. "Okay. This one time, in like, fourth grade, we were playing 'around the world' for math class. And… I lost. I had a cold and started coughing and so I was a bit late with my answer."

"That's your most embarrassing moment?!" Lance cries.

"Yes because I can't believe I actually lost to you!" Pidge screeches.

"Didn't you still ultimately win that day?" Hunk asks.

"Barely! I will never live that humiliation down!" Pidge cries. She's actually almost in tears.

"I want a dare," Matt says.

"Handstand for thirty seconds," Acxa challenges.

"Aw crap," Matt groans. It seems likely that Acxa has picked up on the fact that Matt has balance issues.

"I'll spot for you," Keith offers. "If that's allowed?"

"Just don't hold him up," Acxa agrees. Matt inverts himself, and they all count the seconds as Matt's face gets redder and redder until finally they reach thirty and he all but collapses to the ground.

"Okay, who's next?" Ezor asks eagerly.

"I'll go," Lance says confidently. "Give me your worst dare." He crosses his arms and leans back, the epitome of confidence.

"Alright," Lotor says with a sly grin. "I dare you… to. Kiss. Keith."

Keith feels himself turn pale. He turns towards Lance, and they lock gazes. Keith's mouth goes dry as he knows Lance is going to do it. It'll be his first kiss (he refuses to count what happened at the ice rink), and with the guy he likes, and he hasn't even brushed his teeth and he probably has bad breath from the garlic and onions in the lasagne. He is so not prepared for this, he'll never be prepared for this, and yet somehow, it feels like his whole life has all just been a prelude for this moment. Until Lance shatters it with his words.

"I can't do that."

x

"Lance, are you sure? It means surrendering your 'King of Daredevils' title," Pidge says, raising her eyebrows. She knows how much Lance hates to lose.

"Look, it's like this. There are certain lines you just don't cross, and that dare is just past the line. I can't. It wouldn't be right."

"Well then, guess it's time for punishment," Lotor says.

"Pu-nish-ment! Pu-nish-ment!" Zethrid and Ezor start to chant.

"The traditional punishment for us has always been a forehead flick," Matt says. He gets booed. "Hey, not my fault! I was all for upping the ante but my dad caught wind of it and threatened to ground me for a year."

"Alright, I'll do it since I issued the dare," Lotor says. Lance closes his eyes and awaits the flick. He deserves this. Actually, he deserves worse. Because for a second there, he almost did it. He almost caved in to the nasty impulse that said to go ahead and kiss Keith, and knock his socks off with it. But that would have been the douchiest move in the history of ever, and Lance just wasn't on that level. He suspected some girls he'd had run-ins with the past might be inclined to disagree, and maybe he had been a little too persistent at times, but he'd matured a bit since then and learned to be a better guy.

The flick is intense, and Lance nearly falls over. He sucks in a breath from in between his clenched teeth, and blinks a few times to keep from tearing up. Though that might not be from the punishment. That might be because of a lot of things, like the opportunity he'd just passed up, or the shock on Keith's face right now, or maybe because he knew deep down that there was no way he'd ever kiss Keith, no matter how nice that seemed like it would be.

The game continues, but Lance doesn't care. Why should it matter to him who Acxa's favorite actor is, or which superhero Hunk would most like to be. He doesn't care if Lotor gets dared to drink a mix of orange juice, chocolate milk, and tomato sauce, or if Keith is dared to climb onto the roof- a dare which is cancelled when Shiro overhears and forbids it. Lance just doesn't care right now. Maybe he should just go home.

After the game is over, they can tell that it's starting to get dark, and so the Galra dojo crew head out. They opt to run back to their hotel, claiming that Zarkon-sensei will keep them running all night if they accept a ride, and insisting they can handle anyone who tries to give them trouble along the way. Which they can, but it's clear Shiro still doesn't like them going alone like that.

After they say goodbye, everyone heads back inside to discuss what movie to watch. Lance figures now is the time to talk to Shiro about getting a ride home. Though first he should come up with a reason for it. He could claim he feels sick. It's not exactly a lie. He definitely feels heartsick right about now.

"Lance, can we talk?" Keith asks, surprising him. Keith, who hasn't wanted to even acknowledge he exists for the last couple of days. He thinks about refusing, but it's Keith, and he just doesn't have the willpower to say no.

"Alright, sure," Lance sighs. Keith grabs his wrist and tugs him outside to the back deck.

"Ummmmm," Keith begins. He falls silent, and Lance heaves a sigh. Would Keith just get to the point already?

"About earlier… I, uh, that- it would have been okay if you had done it."

"Pardon?"

"The dare. If you had kissed me? It would have been fine."

Lance sighs again. Of all things, this is the last subject he wants to talk about.

"No, Keith. It would NOT have been fine," Lance snaps. "Maybe it would be fine for you because you don't give a damn about me, but the fact of the matter is, things have been weird for me lately. And at first I couldn't figure it out but finally it hit me that it's all because I like you. As in, I LIKE you. And so kissing you, when I have feelings and you don't? That's really gonna hurt. I'm the one who's gonna get burned here Keith, so don't say it would have been fine."

Keith blinks, and Lance turns to head back inside. He just feels so hollow right now.

"Since when do I not give a damn about you?" Keith's question brings Lance to a halt.

"Since when do I not have feelings for you?" Keith asks accusatorily, coming up beside Lance. He grabs Lance's shoulder and turns Lance to face him again.

"I already told you how I was flirting with you that first day because I was attracted to you, danggit!"

"Yeah, and since then I have been a total dick to you pretty much every time we were anywhere near each other, and attraction can only go so far, man. The way I've acted towards you, you must hate me by now. There's no way you wouldn't!"

"Lance," Keith says, his jaw tight as he takes a deep breath to calm himself. "For the past several months I have spent every day reminding myself what a jerk you are and telling myself that having a crush on you is the dumbest thing I've ever done. And then I see your smile and every pep talk I give myself to try and talk myself out of liking you goes out the window, and I see you being a dork with Pidge and Hunk and sink a little deeper, and now you go telling me that you're the one who's interested and I'm the one who can't be bothered? God damn it, Lance, I am so completely over the moon for you, I would do anything to get kissed by you!"

Something clicks inside Lance. Keith would do anything to get kissed by him? Anything? Like get Lotor to give him that dare?

"Wow. I am such a fool. You were never bothered by Lotor, were you? It was all just a ploy, wasn't it? And I fell for it." Lance laughs bitterly, but then he notices the genuine confusion and outrage on Keith's face.

"A ploy? Seriously Lance? Is that really what you think of me? And here you were saying that you like me. What a load of crap." Now it's Keith's turn to laugh bitterly.

"Well what else am I supposed to think? You tell me you would do anything to get kissed by me, and not even half an hour ago Lotor dared me to do just that! I'm not the best at math here, but I'm pretty sure that there's some really high odds of you being in cahoots with him!"

"Ummmm," Lance and Keith turn towards the sound of Pidge's voice. She, Hunk, and Matt are all standing at the door, listening in. Lance realizes he has a grip on Keith's shirt, and Keith has a grip on his. Lance lets go, and Keith looks down, startled, before following suit.

"We, uh, we might be able to shed a little light on this situation," Hunk says with a nervous laugh.

Lance folds his arms and waits for an explanation.

"Sooooo, first off, I may have told Lotor about Keith having a crush on you on the first day of the training camp," Matt admits.

"By 'may have', you mean you did," Keith spits.

"Details," Matt says with an airy wave of his hand that has Keith's fists clenched at his side.

"And Hunk and I have known since, like, forever that you were denying a crush on Keith, because, frankly, you're kinda obsessed with him," Pidge tells Lance. "And I noticed that the more Lotor hung around Keith, the more you looked like you were about to pop, and it was clear Lotor had noticed as well, and at first I thought he was just messing with you two until that thing with the closet. So I offered to help him get you two together, because, really, it's about damn time, we're honestly sick to god about you complaining about Keith, Lance, especially since you would not believe how many of your complaints are actually backhanded compliments. For example-" Pidge points to Hunk with both hands, and Hunk immediately launches into an impression of Lance.

"Oh my god. Keith is such a jerk. He acts like he's so great just because he has the nicest abs you've ever seen and god they are just sooooo fine and I kinda want to kill myself just seeing him without a shirt because they're just begging to be touched and I hate him so much!"

"Hunk? Drop dead," Lance says icily.

"Anyway, it just so happened that right after that you came up with your cock-eyed 'let's protect Keith from Lotor' scheme, and it was the perfect opportunity, so I went ahead and recruited Matt and Hunk to help me make sure you guys got some quality time together, and it was totally working too until… it wasn't. And since we couldn't really figure out what went wrong we figured we'd try going for a chemical reaction. And since Lance never turns down a dare, we figured we'd challenge you to kiss him and you would do it and it wouldn't stop at just one kiss and while seeing you two eat each other's faces off isn't exactly my idea of a great night, I figured I'd tolerate it like the good friend I am. Only then you actually backed down for once. Way to choose the worst time to be a coward, Lance," Pidge says.

"A coward? Pidge, kissing someone who doesn't like you is a totally dick move!" Lance explodes.

"Yeah, except he does like you. And you like him," Matt points out.

"But I didn't know that!"

"Well now you do, so hurry up and do it."

"But I already took the punishment for the dare, Matt. It's already been resolved."

"Don't do it because it's a dare, do it because you want to."

"Matt, you are the worst friend ever," Keith growls. "Let's just go watch a damn movie."

Lance follows gratefully as they return to Keith's living room to watch whatever movie everyone picked out. Shiro's already there with a couple of bowls of popcorn, watching the previews. He's pretty embarrassed right now, about confessing to Keith, about accusing Keith of working with Lotor, about being overheard, about pretty much everything that had happened tonight, about everything that had happened since the Galra dojo visit started. The last thing he needs is to add on the embarrassment of snogging with Keith while having an audience.

Hunk knocks out during the first movie, like he always does. Shiro chooses a romance for the second movie, which puts Pidge out as well, so they decide to call it a night there. Matt goes to brush his teeth and Shiro goes to clean up while Lance takes the movie out of the DVD player and Keith unfolds the couch into a bed.

"Hey Keith?" Lance says while they still have a moment of relative privacy.

"Yeah?"

"Sorry about accusing you of working with Lotor."

"No, I overreacted. The way I phrased things- I probably would have come to the same conclusion if I were you."

"If you were me I'd be crushing on myself," Lance laughs.

"Then you'd have some pretty good taste."

"I already do. It only developed recently, but it helped me finally notice how great this one guy I know is."

"Then if, hypothetically speaking, that guy were to ask you out- like on a date- what would you do?"

"Iiiiiii'd have to tell him that my parents imposed a rule where we're not allowed to date anyone until they've met and been approved of by the entire family. Like, aunts, uncles, cousins, the works. And I'd have to admit to saying some not very nice things that were mostly- and by mostly I mean completely- uncalled for, and so I might need a little time to retract all those things I've said about him and butter them up so they'll have a positive impression and not hate him from the get-go. And I'd have to ask him if he still thinks a date with someone like me is worth it if he first has to go through all that."

"I thought meeting your family was supposed to be a step that happens when things get serious in a relationship!" Keith yelps as quietly as he can.

"Dude, I've already met your cousin and aunt and uncle. Besides, my family is of the opinion that you need to be serious right from the start. No casual dating. Everyone you bring home has to be someone you think you will commit to."

"That's not scary at all."

"And I haven't even told you about the time they ran my sister's ex off through sheer intimidation, or about how her other ex got chased off by my grandma because the moron called Grandma's cat the ugliest creature alive," Lance says, shaking his head in mock concern.

"You really love to freak me out like this, don't you?" Keith says suspiciously.

"I'd say I'm sorry but I'm honestly not. And my mom taught me not to waste my breath with apologies I don't mean."

"You could at least pretend to mean it for my peace of mind. But aside from insulting your grandmother's cat, are there any other faux pas to avoid committing?"

"Just be polite, and be real with them. And like I said, let me build up your reputation a bit first since I've kinda dragged your name through the mud and I doubt I can convince them that your not THAT Keith."

"Just don't take too long about it. I really would like to have a date sometime."

"Wait, what's this about a date?" Shiro asks from the doorway. Both Keith and Lance flinch. Just when things were finally starting to calm down, they had to get complicated again.