The past few days were agony. Every morning, Lance would get up from his sleepless night and hurry down to the pod chamber to check on Katie. He'd sit there until someone would pull him away, try to get him to eat, try to distract him. He appreciated what they were trying to do, and he'd play along. He'd manage a smile or two, and yesterday he'd even been able to make a lackluster pun.

Today was the day, though. He'd been pacing all day long, and not even Hunk could get him to stop. They were opening her pod after dinner, and waiting was torture. No matter how hard he tried to keep himself busy, he kept finding himself back in the pod chamber staring at her.

Maybe it was his subconscious leading him there. Maybe it was Red's concern, ebbing and flowing in gentle waves. Maybe it was Blue's anxious prodding, pushing him to check up on her just one more time. Maybe it was Green's warm reassurance, telling him that she would walk out totally fine. Maybe it was the fact that without Katie smiling by his side, he felt completely and utterly lost as to what he should do.

But it was finally time, and Lance felt like he was going to be sick. Keith gave him a pitying look as they walked down from dinner (where Lance had eaten nothing), and Lance turned away. He couldn't stand pity. He just wanted everything to be fine. He just wanted his Katie back.

Coran went up to the pod, and Lance sucked in a sharp breath. Hunk put a hand on his shoulder. Tears were stinging the corner of Lance's eyes.

Por favor, Dios…

The pod opened with a hiss, and a thousand thoughts hit him all at once.

What if she wasn't okay? What if her oxygen levels had never returned to normal? What if she'd hit her head in the blast? None of them had ever experienced something like this before— what if the pod hadn't been able to fix it?

His heart was racing, his mouth was dry, and he couldn't breathe.

Then—

A pale hand reached out from the mist.

Lance lunged forward, grabbing hold of Katie before she hit the floor. She fell against him like a rag doll, and he adjusted his hold to account for all of her weight. She wasn't moving.

"Querida?" he breathed.

A shift, then— she was blinking up at him blearily, her nose wrinkled in confusion. "…Lance?" she whispered hoarsely.

He couldn't hold the tears back anymore. He held her close and wept, not caring that everyone else was there watching. Moments passed, and he felt Katie's arms wind around his waist and tighten firmly.

"I'm here, sweetheart," she said, and he cried even harder when the endearment slipped off her tongue. She'd never called him that before. One of her hands was carding through his hair. "Shhh, I'm okay, it's okay, I'm fine—"

His tears came to a stop slowly, and by the time he was able to see, he realized that everyone was staring at them. But it wasn't like they had been the other day— no, he'd felt that, and it made the hair on the back of his neck stand up.

They were gazing at him and Katie softly, almost like they were in a daze. Keith and Hunk were smiling gently. Shiro's arms were crossed contentedly, and Coran was sniffling. Allura had tears in her eyes, and Matt was at her side wiping his own away.

Lance and Katie's eyes met, and they smiled. "If you couldn't tell, we missed you a lot," Lance joked, even though his voice still sounded raw with emotion.

Her eyes trailed back to their adopted family. "I could tell," she hummed, then said louder, "What are you guys waiting for? I want my mandatory post-crisis group hug."

There was a quiet laugh that ran through the group, and they did as they were told. The hug lasted much longer than their usual one— maybe because there were so many things to celebrate all at once.

When they let go, Hunk's eyes were bright. "Pidge, I'm honestly so glad you're back, Lance has been impossible these past few days-"

"Hey!" Lance exclaimed.

Katie laughed, and Lance blushed bright red when she leaned up and kissed his cheek. "I'm sure he has been," she teased adoringly.

"I thought he was going to pace a dent into the floors," Allura joked lightly.

"And I thought he was gonna pass out on the way down here," Keith commented.

"Okay! Okay!" Lance cut in, his ears burning. "We get it, I've been a mess without Katie."

Shiro chuckled. "That's an understatement."

Everyone shared a laugh, and Lance couldn't help but laugh along too. Katie found his hand, and they squeezed at the same time.

"You never did explain how you knew Pidge was in trouble," Shiro reminded him.

"Yeah, how did you do that?" Hunk questioned.

Lance looked down at Katie, their eyes silently communicating all they needed to say. Katie nodded subtly, then looked back at their expectant audience.

"When we got back, Green found out about us on accident," Katie explained. "She wanted to approve of Lance, so I brought him into the cockpit. From there, it's…" she trailed off, glancing up at Lance. "…it's kinda difficult to explain."

Coran snapped his fingers. "She opened up a bond to assess his heart, didn't she?"

Katie nodded, now leaning into Lance. He wrapped his arms around her as she said, "That's basically it. We repeated the same thing with Red and Blue the next day so that they could approve of me. Since then, we've been connected to each other's lions."

Hunk frowned. "Wait, then can you two talk through your bond?"

"Only if the lion opens it between us," Lance answered.

Keith raised an eyebrow. "So why can't I talk to you guys? I'm connected to Red, too."

Katie replied to this one. "We've figured out that the lions control when the bond is open and when it is closed. We can't open it if we want." Her eyes trailed up to Lance's. "I'm guessing when I got hit, Green told you?"

He nodded. "I wouldn't have known otherwise." She frowned at the bittersweet tone in his voice, taking a brief moment to rub his back in a way that meant more to him than she could possibly know.

Shiro was crossing his arms now. "I still don't understand it. How-"

"Look, can we explain this when I'm not on the verge of falling asleep?" Katie yawned. Lance wasn't surprised at her snappy answer. She'd been slowly leaning into him more and more over the past few minutes.

Eyes understanding, Shiro nodded. "Of course. Go get some rest, okay?"

Katie nodded, and Lance began to lead her out. They walked down the hallway in a content silence, and Lance felt his heart tighten happily. Finally, all was well again.

When they reached her room, he pressed the button for the door to open. She turned to face him, and he melted a little. She looked so tired, and so sweet, and he'd missed her so much, and before he knew what he was doing, he was cupping her face and leaning in.

"Lance? Lance?"

He blinked. She was looking up at him sleepily, her head tilted to the side.

Then he blushed. Had he really just nearly kissed her?

"Y-Yes?" he stuttered.

"I, um…" she started, looking down at the floor. "I can't thank you enough for saving me. Well, you and Green, but-"

Lance pulled her into a hug. "I'd do it again a thousand times," he whispered. "I will always be there to save you, querida."

She nodded against his chest, and he forced himself to let her go, pressing a kiss to her forehead as he did so. "Now, sleep well, okay?"

"I will," she smiled softly. "Goodnight, Lance."

His first true smile of the past few days emerged. "Goodnight, Katie."

To be fair, if she'd had enough oxygen in her body for her brain to work properly, she would've seen it coming.

But no, in her recovering state, Katie couldn't figure out what that banging sound was. It woke her up, she knew that much. How long had she been sleeping, anyways? A look at her alarm clock told her that it was 2:07am. Why would there be a banging sound at 2:07am?

"Katie?"

Ohh, that's why. It was Lance.

Katie climbed out of bed slowly, shivering the second she left her warm cocoon. She shuffled over to the door and pushed the button, looking up at her boyfriend knowingly.

"Nightmares?" she asked. He just nodded. "Come on," she said gently, taking his hand and leading him to her bed without hesitation.

"Lie down," she instructed, and he did as he was told. Katie turned to grab an extra blanket from her closet, and when she turned back, her heart broke.

His face was blank, but his eyes were filled with fear. His entire body was curled in on itself. He was holding her comforter close to his face, trembling as he stared off into space.

Eyes soft, Katie climbed into the bed beside him, curling up into his side. Lance shifted numbly and draped an arm around her waist. His eyes wouldn't meet hers, and she knew then that it must have been bad.

She waited a few moments before she said, "So what was it about?"

His lip quivered, and she smoothed a thumb over his cheek. "Shh, it's okay," she soothed. "Take your time."

Lance took in a shaky breath.

"There you go," Katie hummed. "Just keep breathing, and when you feel okay, you can tell me."

Minutes passed by, consumed by the sound of Lance taking in one shivering breath after another. Finally, he looked into her eyes, and she nearly cried at the haunted look in them.

"It was you," he choked out. "It was you, Katie. I-I was…I was too late," he sobbed, tears spilling over. "I couldn't save you, and you were g-gone, and—"

"Okay, okay," she stopped him gently. "I get it. You don't have to say any more."

For the second time that day, she held him tight, not caring that her favorite t-shirt was getting soaked in tears. They'd all been through hell in this war, and they all dealt with it differently. Keith would fight the Gladiator for hours. Hunk would bake. Shiro would stare out at the stars. Matt would make jokes. Allura would reminisce about her father. Coran would tell them stories.

This was how Lance dealt with things. He would laugh it off for a time, then let it all come crashing down all at once.

She felt guilty, in a way. This time, it was all her fault. He was crying over her. She'd caused this pain.

Katie held him closer, nuzzling into his chest. His sobs had quieted down to hiccups now, and she ran a hand over his back. One circle on his shoulder, then another. His breath was warm on her ear, and she listened as it slowly settled down to normal.

She swallowed. What did she say? What could she say? The possibility of either of them dying out here was very real. They'd been more than lucky the past four years, and they knew it. What could anyone say, really?

Thankfully, Lance always knew the answer to that.

"I'd never been more scared in my life," he told her, his voice small. "Green told me what was going on, but then— I was just," she felt his hands fist her t-shirt. "I was so angry. I thought I could take all of them on myself, make them realize they should never mess with you, but…"

"But it wouldn't change what had already happened," she finished for him.

Lance's eyes widened in surprise that she knew, and he nodded slowly. "You…Katie, I don't know if you know how much you mean to me," he whispered. "You are everything to me—"

"Everything?" she teased.

"Everything," he nodded. "And you're gorgeous—"

"Debatable."

"-and crazy smart-"

"Well, we knew that one."

"And it's really cute how you can't take a compliment," he laughed, and she blushed. Lance squeezed her gently. "You are everything I could've ever wanted and more," he continued. "I felt so empty without you these past few days. You weren't there to keep me going, you know? I'm so dependent on you, I hardly realized it until you weren't there."

Guilt twinged in her heart. "I'm sorry," she whispered.

Lance practically sat straight up now. "For what?"

She shrugged. "I don't know…I don't like the fact that anything that happens to me affects you so much. I don't want you to hurt because of me."

He settled back down next to her, leaning over and kissing her forehead sweetly. "That's what it's all about, Katie…you are the one person I can't imagine being without."

"What about Hunk?" she suggested.

Lance snorted. "He's great, but you're cuter. And well…" he trailed off, and she saw him swallow nervously. "There is something else that separates you from all the rest."

She raised a curious eyebrow at him.

He looked away, blushing. "A-And I know you already know this because, well, Green kinda gave it away when we first connected," he rambled. But then, his face was serious, and his eyes were gazing into hers, and she felt her heart rate pick up.

"But Katie Holt, I love you."

She froze, and he continued on, not noticing her reaction because he was looking away bashfully. "I-I mean, you knew that, right? But I just wanted to say it, because it's true, and—"

Of course. It all made sense now. That's what all of this was called: love. She'd been searching for the right word for weeks now, but she could never find it. She'd tried admiration, enamored, infatuated, but now— it was love. She was in love. With him.

"-and I know all of this has been very fast, but I really do, I love you so much that it hurts, and—"

Her eyes widened. How stupid was she? How did it take her all this time to realize it? She'd been in love with him for, quiznak, who knows how long!

"-and I don't want you to feel pressured or anything to say it back yet, because I know that I've been in love with you for much longer, but I—"

A warm tingly feeling spread through her body, and she couldn't help but smile because he was still talking and she felt so overwhelmed and happy and before she knew what she was doing, she cupped his face and pressed her lips against his.

She knew it wasn't the right timing. She knew that it was literally almost three in the morning by now. She knew that he had just been crying. She knew that her hair was a mess. She knew that this was literally the least romantic setting in the world for her— for their— first kiss.

But man, did it feel so right.

His lips were soft, she noticed happily. Soft, and still against her own. For a moment, she worried she'd done it wrong, but then he held her tight and angled his head.

Oh.

That's what it felt like. It was blissful, his lips moving slowly against hers. She unwittingly let out a sigh, her hands searching to get tangled in his dark locks. His hands were wrapped around her waist, and even though they were as close as they could get, it still didn't feel like enough.

Katie didn't want it to end…but she did want to say something.

So her lips left his, and her eyes fluttered open. She knew she was smiling like an idiot, but that smile grew even more when she saw how wide Lance's beautiful blue eyes were. She leaned in and pecked his lips once more, unable to resist.

"I love you too," she confessed, her breath brushing against his skin.

"Y-You do?" he squeaked.

Katie burst out laughing, falling back onto his chest and nuzzling into him. "Of course I do, silly," she giggled. "I wouldn't have kissed you otherwise."

Suddenly, Lance was swooping down to capture her lips again, and this time, he wasn't still. She could feel it— all of his emotions pouring over, even without the bond open.

When they parted, Lance leaned up and kissed the top of her head. "I love you so much," he whispered, and she could see now that his eyes were glassy.

She reached up and pulled his face down gently, kissing his lips once more because honestly, she couldn't get enough.

"I love you too."