A/N: Please note that I do not have ay medical experiencewhatsoever

Keith woke up to a beeping noise that was almost as annoying as the pounding in his head. He attempted opening his eyes but that task was too hard for him for a few minutes. He must have moved or made a noise that he didn't recall because someone said his name. He knew the voice but the person wasn't coming up in his brain. Keith tried really hard to open his eyes and was successful the third time around. First thing he realized was that he was in a hospital room. Second was that Shiro was sitting on the bed he was on and was now stroking his arm in a comforting gesture. Shiro's significant other, Curtis, was in the room too, sitting on the wheelie car that the rom had. On the couch near him was Lance; sleeping probably. Keith mades sounds with his mouth that form words Shiro could understand. Shiro explained what happened; Keith remembers the drug bust gone wrong, heading to the apartment. Shiro mentions something about "Lance" and "faint". He paused before going on, saying something about morphine. Keith was apparently on it. Morphine? Is Keith going to morph into something? He giggled at the thought of turning into a dog. Shiro inquired but Keith just calmed down. He rolled his head to look at his roommate.

"I wanna make Lance a card," Keith slurred. Shiro smiled warmly, patting his arm.

"Maybe do that when your coordination is better," Shiro suggested.

"It's fine!" Keith exclaimed. Shiro told him to lift his arm to prove it. Keith looked at the arms, in which he could feel, but they were like lead. No matter how much focus and brain energy he put towards it, Keith couldn't do the task. Keith sighed defeatedly and went back to staring at Lance. Shiro noticed, obviously, where the younger cop's gaze was.

"Shiro?" The older cop hummed "Do you think Lance is pretty?"

"Um, what?" Shiro giggled, not expecting THAT to come out of Keith's mouth.

"He is pretty! And smart, and brave…. I just don't know why I don't try to figure out my feelings for him."

If Keith was not on all the medicines he was on, he would have seen the Latino boy in question smiling slightly with a tear running down his face.

"You have feelings for him?" Shiro asked.

"Yeah… But I guess I am damaged goods. I can't give him what he wants," Keith tore his eyes away from Lance and closed them.

"Keith, there is more to a relationship than physical intimacy. It is okay to be scared to participate in it if it is unexplored territory for you. Lance would understand."

"I haven't felt this way since Travis… But it is different too. More intense, more right. But I barely know him."

"Well," Curtis interjected. "You have known him for a few months. That's more than Shiro and I before we started dating. We talked for a month over an app and then met up. The rest is history."

Curtis gave Shiro a kiss on the cheek. Keith looked away, noticing the clean bandages.

"I was shot?!" Keith exclaimed. Shiro chuckled softly then asked what he remembered. Keith stuck his tongue out.

"My tongue ith futhy" He said, tongue out. Shiro chuckled softly. So did Lance. Keith, despite his state, noticed that. Keith exclaimed his name. Lance moved, wanting to get up, to which Curtis approached to help Lance orientate himself. Curtis assisted Lance with getting up and replacing Shiro's spot on the bed. Curtis and Shiro moved to the couch Lance was previously on. Lance locked his gaze with Keith's drifting focused eyes.

From the short amount of time Lance had seen and heard Keith in this kind of state. Not to mention how he was talking about Lance. The Latino hoped that Keith too under the influence of meds to notice the blush and giddiness that Lance thought was obvious. Did Keith really like him or was it the morphine? The shock of getting shot? Lance didn't want to heighten his expectations only to be torn down. He looked Keith over and felt bad for him. Keith's eyes were glazed over with tiredness despite just being roused from unconsciousness. He could barely move and speak. Keith's walls seemed to be coming down, but Lance didn't like it. Because it wasn't Keith's choice; he wanted Keith to open up to him like this on his own terms, not because a medicine/drug was the culprit. Lance asked in a soft, tired voice if there was anything Keith wanted that he could get. Keith requested water, food, and a nap. Curtis volunteered to go get a nurse to help, Shiro leaving to go to the bathroom. Leaving the two boys alone. After they were gone, Lance looked around the room, trying to keep himself together.

"Lanthe?" Keith quietly said. Lance looked at him and nodded. "I don't like it here."

He noticed the quiver in Keith's lisping voice now and it hurt Lance's heart.

"Why not?" Lance asked.

"I just don't… I want out but I know I need to stay… and if you want to go home I would understand."

"Did you want me to stay here?" Lance asked. Keith looked at him with a child-like fear, as if Lance leaving meant death and to have the option of staying was life-saving. He eventually nodded slowly. Keith tried to adjust himself but was too weak to do it. Lance offered assistance. Keith was in a sitting position when a doctor and nurse came in with Curtis. The nametags read "Acxa, Ph. D." and " Ezor, LPN". Dr. Acxa was a tall woman, lean, more muscle than cellulite. She obviously worked out in her spare time. She had a resting face that made her seem unfriendly. The nurse looked quite young, as if she just came out of med school. The first thing Lance noticed was her long, multi-colored hair. Her demeanor was more welcoming, as she greeted the group with a smile and inviting eyes. The nurse gave Keith a cup of water; Keith chugged the whole thing in seconds. Then he was given a bright red cherry popsicle. The group left the room, closing the blinds and shutting off the lights and then closed the door. The two medical professionals led the group, upon Shiro's return, to a private room to talk. There were two chairs and a couch, a table separating the two. The Doctor opened up a file folder, took the group in and began talking.

"Mr. Kogane, as you all probably know, was shot twice and stabbed. He had large amount of blood loss which we had to give him some donated blood. He needed surgery to remove the bullets and then stitches. The wounds were small. We performed these as it was an emergency situation. According to Kogane's medical file he does not have any next of Kin documented. Officer Shirogane here," Dr. Acxa gestured to Shiro with her pen, "informed us of the patient's relationship status with you all as well as a few others mentioned here."

Dr. Acxa turned to Lance.

"You are the patient's roommate but not blood relation. Are you willing to take liability on Mr. Kogane's behalf?"

Lance felt like a spotlight was put on him. "Ummm…. Until Keith can consent to it, I guess?"

Lance signed a few waivers. They moved on to explain the next steps. Keith will stay until he does not need morphine. Walking will be too much of a strain so he will use a wheelchair until cleared for walking. The Doctor prescribed some medication for pain and other things, giving that to Lance. Keith must be cleared medically before going back to working in the field.

Keith was awake when Lance returned from his trip to their apartment. Shiro and Curtis offered the rides, and they said Hunk would stay at their place to look after Kosmo. Lance grabbed clothes, hygiene stuff, and a few other things that he figured Keith would want or need. They had moved Keith in a room with a second bed for Lance to sleep on. Nurse Ezor from earlier was checking up on Keith's stats upon Lance's entry. She smiled at Lance. Keith was pale as a ghost and sitting perfectly still other than the tremble of his hands that he tried to hide by holding them together. Keith seemed to be more himself now, still drugged but Lance could sense he wasn't as bubbly as when Lance left. The nurse informed Keith that he had to lie down in order to change his bandages and check out the stitches. Keith just stared at the wall ahead of him. The nurse repeated but Keith wouldn't budge.

"Keith, this nurse wants to help," Lance said soothingly. Keith was tensed up. His knuckles were white.

"Did you want me to hold your hand?" Lance asked without judgement or belittling Keith's feelings. Keith noded tightly. A few tears escaped. Lance assisted the nurse with positioning Keith. He had the blanket basically up under his armpits. Ezor folded the blanket to expose the hospital gown Keith had on. She started unlacing Keith's gown. Keith's eyes were squeezed closed but that didn't stop tears from escaping. He started hyperventilating. Ezor stopped, waiting for something, a look of worry on her face. Almost as if she thought she did something wrong. Lance was sitting on the bed; he grabbed Keith's hand, giving it a reaffirming squeeze. His breathing slowed.

"You're wearing underwear, right?" Lance asked. He suddenly remembered that Keith was shot in the leg too, specifically the thigh. Keith nodded. Lance turned to the nurse.

"I think I know what might help, if you don't mind pausing."

Ezor nodded. Lance turned back to petrified Keith. He asked gently what about the situation was causing Keith distress. Keith, in bullet point fashion through speech, said being exposed, being in the hospital, and having to be cared for were all things that he felt discomfort with. Lance briefly let go of Keith's hand, told the nurse not to freak out. He took off his shirt, then his shoes, socks, and pants. He rejoined Keith on the bed.

"There. We will be equally exposed."

Keith didn't mind the view. Seeing Lance like this reminded him of his crush on the Latino which made him blush. The culprit of the blush seemed to notice what he had done even if he didn't connect the two. Keith felt better about being exposed to Lance; besides, he had seen it before. When they met, Keith had kept his pants on though. He nodded at the nurse to continue. At every touch he whimpered. Ezor tended to his leg wound first, cleaning the area and replacing the bandage. Keith broke inside and couldn't hold back vocalizations. He squeezed Lance's hand as hard as he could. The nurse moved on to the next wound, and the process happened again. When finished, Keith was a shaking, crying mess. His hospital gown was returned and the nurse left.

"May I, uh, help? What do you need?"

Lance barely heard his request. He barely processed it.

"Hold me."

Keith was so distraught and wanted Lance to help. Lance adjusted the bed to a loose sitting position. He crawled in on Keith's good side, opening up for an embrace. Keith snuggled in, the blanket also returned. The two were fast asleep in each other's embrace when Pidge and Allura came to visit.

Lance stayed with Keith for the two weeks he was kept in hospital. The two boys did not mention what Keith said when he was on morphine; Lance didn't bring it up in case Keith didn't remember it, and Keith was too embarrassed to bring it up. The closest they came was when they would steal glances at the other boy when he wasn't looking. Keith was reserved as usual once off of the morphine. The two boys had been bonding when Lance was off of work. Lance helped Keith take care of himself when Nurse Ezor was unavailable, apart from bathing. Lance was surprised when Keith got him to help him change for the first time. Keith was shaking the whole time, said nothing. Lance kept his expression neutral, his eyes not wandering. Keith would always quietly mutter a phrase of gratitude. Sometimes the pain Keith had would be so much post-morphine that it wrenched Lance's heart, and all he could to to help was hold him while he cried. He felt guilty for seeing Keith so vulnerable. Lance had comfort in that Keith wanted him there because when he told Keith he could leave if the cop wanted, Keith ordered him not to. His want for Lance to help him was more due to him being familiar with Lance than his attraction toward him. Keith hated being cared for by strangers.

He sat pondering their relationship - he didn't have much better to do when Lance was gone - while Ezor was changing his bandages. She was pleasant towards Keith, humming to herself as she worked. She told Keith on this day that the stitches could come out and they could schedule something for the afternoon. The nurses figured out pretty early that the best way to handle Keith was to "schedule" when he had to go through medical stuff. And that way, he could get a friend, typically Shiro or Lance, to be there. They set the time to be after Lance gets off of work at a local coffee shop. Ezor kept accidentally referring to Lance as his boyfriend which did not help Keith's thoughts about Lance. Lance was becoming something that Keith couldn't quite put a finger on. He knew that there was not exactly a friendship but also not a romantic relationship. They were roommates but it felt like more. Keith knew he had a crush on the ex-criminal. He was embarrassed for what he said while on morphine but Lance hadn't mentioned it.

Keith, in total and complete sobriety, decided then and there he would investigate how Lance felt about him. Was the vibe he was receiving from Lance correct? Lance seemed to care about him and a way that differed from his friend Shiro, whom he had known for a few years. Lance acted in ways the past two weeks that made Keith question Lance's feelings toward the cop. He knew that Lance was into boys; evident from when they first met.

He was interrupted by the person in charge of physio; the hospital had been tracking his progress with walking and strength. The bullet was in his thigh and therefore it affected his whole leg. Out of the wounds, Keith despised this one the most. He didn't like being dependent on others for moving. He felt accomplished after physio; the physiotherapist told Keith he could walk by himself if he got a cane. His stab wound was the worse healing-wise, as it was the worse wound. It made his stamina decrease. But he could walk. Keith showed Dr. Zethrid after, and the two medical professionals signed him off to be able to leave that following evening. He was given a note for Lieutenant Allura, saying he could return to work in a few days as long as he was not in the field. Upon returning to his room, Keith immediately called Lance then Shiro to tell them the good news. Keith was tired after and decided to read to distract himself. He was too tired to pack.

Lance entered just as Keith was finishing a book. His seventh book during his hospital stay. Lance placed down a sandwich on Keith's bed table and immediately started packing up their stuff. Keith just watched him, not wanting to move until Ezor came to take out the stitches on his thigh and shoulder. The one for his stab wound would need to stay, and re-bandaged, which Lance was taught.

"How was work?" Keith deadpanned. He didn't feel like eating just yet.

"Good," Lance breathed as he threw stuff into a bag. "I spilled some coffee on me but other than that, it was good."

Ezor entered after a long silence, the only noise being Lance getting everything together. Lance came to Keith's side, holding his hand as Ezor took out the stitches. Lance about a week in started singing to Keith to help him calm down. Much to Keith's surprise, it helped a lot to focus on the words and sounds coming from Lance's mouth. The pain this time was a tight sting; Keith cried emotionlessly, without making any noise.

Shiro came and picked them up since Lance couldn't drive and Keith wasn't allowed. During the drive, the car was silent apart from the radio and Shiro's humming to the music. Keith was examining himself, looking at his injuries. Lance had to help by putting his phone in selfie mode to show Keith the marks. One thing Keith would not be able to cover up was the bruising on his arms from where the IV didn't go in correctly. He thankfully was passed out and didn't remember that at all. He quietly asked Lance if he could help him cover that up once he was ready to back to work. Lance agreed, telling Keith that he has makeup and practice. Keith was going to question it, but remembered when they went to get Lance's belongings from his parents' house and didn't say anything.

Shiro had insisted walking them to the apartment, helping by carrying the bags while Lance spotted Keith, who was using his new cane. Lance opened the door for Keith.

"SURPRISE! WELCOME HOME KEITH!" A group of four exclaimed, all jumping out from different points in the apartment when Keith got to the center of the living room. Pidge, Hunk, Allura, and Coran were all in the room; streamers and each of them had noise makers. Keith crossed his arms uncomfortably, averting his eyes, but everyone caught the small smile on his lips. He muttered that they didn't have to do that, and Allura assured him they wanted him to know he was missed at work. The smell of something delicious floated in from the kitchen as the group commiserated. The other members of the precinct sat down with Keith, squeezing themselves into the little furniture the boys had. Keith was blocking out everyone's voices and focusing on the smell wafting in and the television that was on. There was a game show playing, one Keith vaguely remembered watching in hospital. Garfle Warfle something? Keith didn't pay much attention when in the hospital to the television. Someone poking him drew him back to the social world.

"Hey, are you good?" Lance quietly asked. His brows were furrowed slightly and his face was full of anticipation.

"Just tired," Keith brushed off. He was tired, and the thought of his own bed made him want to ditch his friends.

"Are you wanting some alone time?" Lance inquired. Keith did. But his friends spent time into being here, he wasn't going to kick them out. Keith suddenly got a pained expression. Lance reacted quickly, jumping up, as Keith wrapped his arms around himself, shaking. The others froze in place, not sure what to do. Lance returned with the painkillers the doctors gave him for Keith. He quickly crushed the pill up, stirred it into a cup of water, and assisted Keith in taking it. Lance told the group that Keith would probably be groggy as he took his place next to the cop. Keith sat and waited until the meds kicked in before booting everyone out, which took about 40 minutes. By then Keith was already leaning on his roommate for support.

"Keith?" Pidge asked. He barely heard her.

"I'm not tired." Keith slurred groggily.

"It's okay if you want to go to bed." Lance gently said.

"I don't want to. I've been in bed ever since going to the hospital. I'm fine."

Lance let the conversation stop there because he felt that Keith was lying. His suspicions were correct, as Keith was snoring on the Latino almost five minutes later. He scooped the cop up into his arms, Shiro grabbing the cane and his bags. Everyone else left, knowing that Keith was still recovering from his procedures and knew he would be back at work when he could. Lance thanked the cops for coming and got his roommate into bed. Kosmo entered the room and snuggled up with Keith.

While Keith was in the hospital, Lance had decided to take a few courses at a university through the internet. So when Keith was off to dreamland despite it being early in the evening, Lance went on to the school's site to do his coursework. He was interested in helping people. He felt fulfilled when helping Keith, even if the cop treated him like a gremlin. Keith seemed okay with it not, but he was also given no choice. Lance wanted to go into a job where he could help others. The work was tough; Lance had to do a quiz about each of the systems in the human body. He learned way too much about the reproductive system for his liking. He checked up on Keith in between quizzes. He was sleeping each time. Lance smiled.

Keith was snuggled into his pillows, the blanket wrapping around him in a way that left his chest exposed but his entire back covered. From the door Lance could see the rise and fall of his chest, hear the tiny snores. Lance stayed at the door too long to be normal. The thought of possibly crawling into bed with Keith, wearing matching pajamas that Keith hated but wore for Lance, snuggling until they both fell asleep made Lance melt but also break. Sometimes he caught glances, speech patterns, and irregular behavior from the cop that ignited the hope inside of him that there was something between them. There were other times that Keith completely shut himself off and Lance didn't know why. He wanted to know. He wanted to help if he could. His mind kept searching for clues when he was up at night and forgot to take his meds. Or when there was down time at work in the past week. Or in moments like this, where Keith was unaware of Lance's presence. Lance didn't watch him sleep on a daily basis, but in moments like when he enters a room Keith is in and hasn't made it clear.

"Do I need to taser you to wipe that goofy grin off of your face?" Keith said, his voice muffled due to the pillows. This snapped Lance into the now, dumbstruck. Keith chuckled. He attempted to roll over by himself but it was agonizing for his stab wound. Lance sprung into action, helping Keith adjust his position to be comfy. Keith looked at Lance and smirked.

"Party's over?" Keith deadpanned. Lance nodded.

"Son of a- aaahh" Keith groaned as they moved him. Keith laid on the bed panting, eyes closed, under the blankets. Lance fidgeted as he stood there. He needed to change the dressing like the nurse taught him to. His first time doing so. He was studying medicine, but he didn't think this would come so soon, even if it was not a part of his coursework. He hated seeing people in pain. The thought that he could help and relieve some of that made him want to be a nurse. But seeing Keith in pain made something inside him cower back. He didn't want to mess up and hurt Keith more than he already was.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" Keith snipped. Lance scratched behind his head and then grabbed the supplies needed. Keith sighed and cursed. He covered his head with the pillow and screamed. Lance told him to relax, that he would do it carefully and as quickly as possible. Keith was shaking now. He mumbled something from the pillow and Lance asked for clarification. Keith lifted the pillow just enough so it wasn't blocking the sound. Lance was taken aback.

"Go get my handcuffs, I have two sets." Keith ordered, strained.

"What, why?!"

"Because," Keith tore the pillow away from his face to look his roommate right in the eye. They were red and filled with fire. Keith was shaking. "If you don't I may punch you. You do NOT want that."

"Why would you punch me? You didn't punch Nurse Ezor…" Lance questioned. He was confused... Keith was decently behaved in the hospital. What was different?

"Good behavior meant getting out quicker. Also…" Keith averted his eyes, crossing his arms. "I had you to help…" He said the second part in a quieter voice, sounding vulnerable.

Something in Lance shattered and melted at the same time.

"Now you are the one who is being the nurse. I am consenting for you to handcuff me to the bed so you can do what you need to."

Lance followed Keith's instructions on where to find the handcuffs. Keith gave him a weird look once Lance was done cuffing him.

"I can't believe I'm asking this but have you done this before?" He asked incredulously. Typically people put them too tight or too loose their first time cuffing someone.

"Remember how we met?"

How could Keith forget now?

"Well… Some people I meet up with…" Lance trailed off. Keith didn't need him to finish that sentence. Lance asked if he could start and Keith nodded, squeezing his eyes shut. Every gentle touch of Lance's fingers made his skin crawl with both anxiety and yearning. Lance folded up Keith's shirt, then carefully slid his pants down to expose his abdomen, leaving everything below covered. Lance began changing the dressing, asking if Keith was okay every few seconds. Keith squirmed under the contact but managed to not scream. Lance helped him breathe through verbal instruction. The stab wound still had stitches which they would need to go get removed once the wound healed some more. Lance's shoulders released their tension once he was done. His face softened. He took the cuffs off of Keith; the cop rubbed his wrists and offered a small "Thanks". Lance left to throw out the old wrappings.

Keith was dressed normally when he returned, and to Lance's surprise was standing. With his cane, but still. Lance rushed over, telling Keith to sit down. Keith obeyed begrudgingly. Lance left again, grabbed his laptop, then returned. He sat down next to Keith, who was sitting on the edge of the bed rather than against the headboard. Keith watched as Lance did another quiz online.

Keith thought about the last two weeks. About the last few months of being with Lance. He was alone with him now. He knew Lance liked him back.

As soon as Lance was done the last quiz for the week, Keith stole the laptop from him. Kosmo had gone back to the living room when Keith was cuffed to the bed. Lance questioned Keith; the cop put on some slow music, set the laptop down on his empty bedside table, and then stood up. Lance jumped up to join him, grabbing his hands. He questioned Keith some more but Keith just adjusted their position. His arms wrapped around Lance's neck. He placed Lance's hands on his hips. Lance looked confused but with an undertone of excitement.

"Lance," Keith pulled him close so Keith could rest his chin on Lance's shoulder. "I think I like you. I know that might be weird considering our history but I suspect you feel something too. You have treated me these months we have been together with compassion and gratitude. I know that you were a criminal but… you have better intentions than anyone I have had to put behind bars. I understand it was survival for you, because you cared about your family. I'm not one for big expressions of feelings or monologuing but.. You have brought this out of me Lance. I didn't expect to like you but here we are..."

He pulled away to look Lance in the eyes. They were big, his mouth agape.

"Keith.. I… I like you too. Kiss me?"

They had kissed before but this was different. Before there was a desperation. No emotional bond between the two boys. They didn't know each other;they were strangers. Now there was passion and love and a hunger. The first kiss was short. The two locked eyes upon separation for a brief moment then dove into the second kiss. Soon Keith was on his back on the bed, Lance carefully straddling his waist. Kissing. Happy.

A/N: I kind of want to end it there but if you want more, comment!

Shout out to Shiranai Atsune for requesting this! I had originally thought it would only be 2-3 chapters long but thus idea was great so it expanded to more.

Thank you sooooo much for readin and I hope you enjoyed :)