Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

This is just a list of everyone’s schedules because I feel like it would be helpful. 

• Keith, Lance, and Allura all have their ‘extra’ classes in the morning.
• Hunk and Pidge have ‘extra’ classes in the afternoon. 
• Keith’s focuses are music and art.
• Lance’s focuses are dance and vocal music.
• Allura’s focus is drama. 
• Pidge’s focuses are computer science and graphic design (like video games).
• Hunk’s focus is culinary.
• Pidge is ahead in math and science 
• Half hour break between second and third period 
• School is from 7:45 - 3:00
• Dinner in the dining hall is not mandatory for ‘high schoolers’ 
• Dinner is at 6:30 

Lance - Sophomore

• Breakfast
• Vocal Music
• Dance
• Algebra 2 
• U.S. History 
• Spanish 1 
• Lunch
• English 2 
• Chemistry 

Keith - Freshman 

• Breakfast 
• Music 
• Art 
• English 1 
• Physical Science 
• Health 
• Lunch 
• Algebra 1 
• World History 

Allura - Sophomore 

• Breakfast 
• Theater 
• Stage crafting 
• Algebra 2 
• Spanish 1 
• English 2 
• Lunch 
• Chemistry 
• U.S. History 

Hunk - Sophomore 

• Breakfast 
• Algebra 2 
• English 2 
• Chemistry 
• U.S. History 
• Spanish 1 
• Lunch
• Culinary (cooking) 
• Restaurant management 

Pidge - Freshman 

• World History 
• English 1 
• Pre- Calc
• Physics 
• Health
• Lunch 
• Computer Science 
• Graphics 

Chapter Text

Garrison Academy was one of the most prestigious schools in the north-west. It was mainly a school of arts, but they also offered some incredible science programs. Lance had been attending since he was in middle school. He got in the first year he was old enough, on a scholarship for dance and vocal music. The school ranged from fifth to twelfth grade. All the dooms were also co-ed. Most of them only had two rooms, but Lance was blessed with one of the few three bedroom ones since he was one of the students who had been there the longest, meaning he had his own room. There were four of them in total. Pidge and Allura shared a room since they were both girls and became very good friends as soon as they met. Hunk and Lance both had their own rooms. Honestly, Lance wouldn’t have minded sharing, but Hunk paid extra to have a single.

 A week ago at dinner, the director Mr. Iverson announced they were getting a new professor. He would be teaching a martial arts elective that would begin after break and anyone could sign up. After dinner, he pulled Lance aside and told him he was getting a new roommate. He was excited. Honestly, he hated being alone, so the idea of a roommate excited him. He spent all of break with his family back in Cuba, but flew back to campus the day before. Iverson had asked that they all be back before five that afternoon so he could bring their new roommate. 

Now, Lance, Pidge, Allura, and Hunk were all waiting in the living room. Finally, there was a knock at the door. When Lance opened it, Iverson was standing with a tall man with a streak of white hair, and a shorter kid who was standing behind the man. 

“Uhhh… hi?” 

“Lance, this is Takashi Shriogane, the new martial arts teacher. I know you don’t have his class, but he wanted to meet you all.” The man extended his hand. 

“Shiro is fine.” He said as Lance shook it. 

“So… Do you guys wanna like come in?” 

“I’m heading back to my office now. Get to know them.” Iverson said before walking off. Lance waved the other two in. The others all gave them some form of greeting, before Hunk spoke up. 

“Don’t get me wrong… I love company, but what’s going on right now?” 

“I’m Shiro. This is Keith.” He gestured to the kid behind him. “He’s your new roommate.” 

“Okay…” 

“He’s my brother. I uh… he wanted me to come with him so that I could explain some stuff.”

“Go for it.” Lance said, motioning for them to take the other couch as he sat down with his roommates. 

“Okay, so basically… he’s kinda been through a lot. I’m not his blood brother. I took him in a few years ago, and when I got the job here, he got a spot. He can’t stay in the teacher’s dorms or else he would. Basically, with everything that happened… due to trauma I guess, he doesn’t talk. He may open up to you guys eventually, but don’t push it. He might text you guys, or just write… and if you ever need anything, I’ll leave you my number. I’m in dorm twenty-three in the teacher’s building.” Everyone nodded a little confused, but understandingly. 

“Okay, well what grade is he in? If you give me his schedule I could take him on a tour. It might make things easier for him to know where everything is.” 

“He’s a freshman.” He said, handing Lance the schedule which he took a picture of. “That’s his schedule. We both really appreciate it. I don’t even know where anything but the dining hall, dorms, and my studio are.” 

“Yeah man, don’t sweat it. I’ve been here since fifth grade so I could walk through this place blindfolded.” 

“What grade are all of you in?” 

“We’re all sophomores.” Allura said, motioning to herself, Lance and Hunk. 

“I’m a freshman.” Pidge added. 

“Okay. Well, I’m gonna go grab some of his stuff. Which room?” 

“Last door on the right.” Lance responded. 

“Okay. I’ll be back. You can go take him on the tour if you want. Is that okay?” He asked, turning to Keith at the end. He hesitated, but nodded. Lance motioned for him to follow as he walked off. 

“Okay. Looks like you have arts courses in the mornings and core classes in the afternoons. Same as me. So, you know where the dining hall is?” He nodded. “Ok, cool. Only thing to really know about that is fifth through eighth grade all on the right side and ninth through twelfth all sit on the left. Everyone eats at the same time, so you can sit with us.” Lance led him to the arts side of the campus. “Okay, all arts classes are here. I take classes for both vocal music and dance… you take classes for music and art, cool. So, this is Mrs. Stella’s room, your first period class, music theory.” The rest of the tour continued like that, then Lance took him back to the dorm. “You’re rooming with me. Come on. I’ll show you around.” He said as they walked in. “Honestly, there’s not much to see. That’s the kitchen. Hunk is basically a food genius. He’s here for culinary, so we get to taste test all of his assignments. That’s the common room.” He said, leading him a few more steps in. “We do movie nights all the time, and Friday’s are usually game night, and this hall leads to all the dorms.” He said, walking down the hall. “That’s the girls’ room. That one’s Hunk’s, and this one is mine, well ours now.” 

Keith nodded and followed him in. It was fairly simple. Lance had moved all of his stuff to his side before he left for break, so the other side was bare apart from the school’s furniture and Keith’s suitcases. Lance’s side was covered in posters and pictures of his friends and family back home. His desk was a scattered mess of papers. His bedding was all complimentary shades of blue, and he had a TV set up towards the middle of the room on his dresser. 

“Well, make yourself at home. Hunk said he’s gonna cook since the dining hall isn’t open yet. He was making pizza crust when I got here , so I’m assuming we’re having pizza. I’ll leave you to like unpack and stuff. Come out when you're ready, or I could just bring you some.” Keith shrugged. “Oh, I should probably give you my number.” He said, grabbing a random piece of paper from his desk and scribbling it down. After he handed it to Keith, he walked out. Once he was gone, Keith stood up and started unpacking. He got most of his stuff put up before Lance came back in. 

“Food’s done. Woah, you play guitar?” He asked, pointing to the base leaning against the wall. Keith nodded, then scribbled on the sheet of paper with Lance’s number on it ‘bass’. “Oh, cool. You should play for me some time. Anyway, you wanna come eat with us?” Keith shook his head. “I’ll bring you some. We’re probably all gonna watch a movie after, and we’re gonna start watching ‘Breaking Bad’ tomorrow night since we finished our last show before break. You’re welcome to join us if you want to, if not that’s fine.” Keith nodded. Lance appeared a moment later with a plate of pizza and a bottle of water. 

“Alright, well enjoy. I’ll be in the common room if you need me, or you can just text me.” 

Chapter Text

After dinner Lance stayed up to watch movies with Pidge, Allura, and Hunk. When he finally made his way to bed, Keith was already asleep. When Lance woke up that morning, he was already gone. As per usual, he waited until his other roommates were all dressed, and they made their way down to the dining hall. Keith never showed. Since they took different arts courses, Lance had to wait until lunch. He still never showed. Of course, with Lance being a year above him, he has no classes with him. He also never came back to the dorm after classes. Finally, just before dinner, Lance got a text. 

Unknown Number: Shiro said I have to come. Where are you? 

Lance: I’m assuming this is Keith? We’re at the third table from the door at the end. 

Lance never got a response, but about ten minutes later, Keith sat down a seat away from Lance. He awkwardly sat down, refusing eye contact from the rest of the table. 

“How was your first day?” Lance asked. He just got a shrug in response. Then Keith pulled out his phone.

Keith: When is dinner over?

“The cafetera stays open until seven-fifteen, the dining hall closes at eight. You can leave whenever though. Since you’re a freshman, dinner in the dining hall isn’t mandatory. You have to stay on campus unless it’s the weekend though. A lot of us cook in our dorms, Hunk usually does, but he only got stuff for pizza before we came back.” Keith just nodded. “You don’t wanna be here do you?” He shook his head. “Well, I’m almost done eating anyway. If Shiro asks, I asked you to come back to the dorms with me. Just give me a second to tell the others and throw my food away.” Keith seemed surprised, but nodded.

 Lance shoved a few more bites of chicken in his mouth, then turned to the rest of the group. 

“Hey guys, I think I’m gonna head back to the dorm. I have to work on something for class and I’m assuming you guys don’t wanna hear it.” 

“It’s literally the first day of class! Is Mr. Knight really already having you learn a new piece?” Allura asked. 

“Yeah, well kinda. We start on it tomorrow, but I’d rather know what I’m doing before then.” 

“Well, try and be done by the time we get back.” Pidge mumbled. 

“Yeah, yeah. We still on for ‘Breaking Bad' tonight? I got snacks before I came in yesterday.”  

“Yeah… We’re out of Doritos…” Hunk said half-under his breath. 

“Of course we are…” Lance laughed. “Well, see you guys later.” He said before standing up. He started walking away, then he realized Keith never followed. He was stopped by Allura. By the time Lance turned around, she had slid down to the seat in front of him. Even from a distance, he could see Keith trying to find a way out of the situation. He quickly made his way back to the table. 

“Oh, I totally forgot I was gonna help you move your bed, you wanna do that now?” Lance asked. Keith nodded quickly and followed him out. As they walked, he sent Lance another text. 

Keith: Thank you.

“No problem. Allura’s a little… socially impared. I think it’s part of the theater kid thing. She’s kinda always like that. It’s a bit much at first, I know… but it grows on you. She’s actually really sweet.” Lance said with a huge smile. 

Keith: You like her?

“No, I did. We like… had a thing like two years ago. It was middle school, so it wasn’t super serious obviously, but it didn’t work out… We’re still really good friends though! The reason it didn’t work out was totally unavoidable, now it’s just kind of a running joke. She’s one of my best friends though.” Keith nodded as they made their way into the dorm. Keith flopped down on his bed almost immediately. He was exhausted to say the least.

 Lance finally took the time to start unpacking. After he got anything that wasn’t clothes out of his bag, he took it down to the dorm’s laundry room and dumped it all in, without bothering to sort anything. When he came back, Keith was sitting up in his bed. He scribbled something on a sheet of paper and held it up. 

‘Can you tell me more about everyone?’ 

“Yeah, sure. Well, we’ll start with Pidge.” He said, still putting things away. “She’s been here almost as long as me. She came when she was a sixth-grader. She’s in your grade now, you might actually have a few classes with her. Anyway, she’s basically a genius. She’s here for like graphic art stuff. She wants to develop video games. Her brother is an alumni that I’m sure you’ll hear about at some point. Matt Holt. He was here for some kind of science, I don’t really know, I’m not good with that kind of stuff. She’s pretty quiet, but she will argue with a brick wall if she feels strongly about something. She’s also like super sarcastic, so don’t take anything she says to heart. She’s from Nebraska, close to that space center thing.  Also, if you hear something rummaging around in the kitchen at three A.M., it’s probably her, not an axe murderer.” Keith nodded. Lance finally sat down on his bed, facing Keith. 

“Next, hmmm… Whatever I didn’t tell you about Allura I guess. She’s been here since I think sixth-grade, but like second semester I think. She’s a Sophomore now. She’s here for musical theater. She’s actually pretty good. Last quarter they did a production of ‘Sweeny Todd’, and she played Mrs. Lovett. It was great. Her ‘uncle’ actually teaches a playwright course here. She’s a little extra. For an actor, she has a hard time with social cues and takes things very literally. She can also be a bit bossy at times, but she is one of the most kind-hearted people I know. Also, if you didn’t catch it earlier, she british. Her father sent her over here when Coran landed the gig. He thinks she’ll make it big in acting. 

Hunk is honestly the best person you will probably ever meet in your entire life. He’s the best friend ever. He’ll talk to anyone, and would probably kill for anyone he cares about. His love language is food, so don’t question it if he just randomly hands you a plate of cookies or something. I met him on my first day here. I told you yesterday he’s here for culinary. He wants to have a restaurant in New York, with one of those fancy star thingies, I dunno what they’re called. Anyway, he’s awesome. He moved to Hawiaii when he was like seven, but he’s originally from Samoa. He’s awesome…. Yeah, that’s about it I guess…” Lance finished. Kieth then scribbled on the paper again. 

‘What about you?’ 

“Hmmm. Well, I’m here for dance and vocal music, like I told you before… I came in fifth grade. Uhhh… oh, I’m from Cuba, near Varadero Beach. I go back like every break. I have a huge family, but none of them go here. Uhhh… hm, I’m bad at this… Luckily, we’re roommates, so I’m sure you’ll learn more quickly.” 

“Lance! You left the door unlocked again!” Pidge shouted from the common room. 

“My bad!” He shouted back. “Yeah… I have a tendency to forget to lock the door, and to forget my key… and several other things.” Keith nodded. “I’ll be right back.” He said before he stood and went to talk to everyone. 

“So? How was everyone’s first day back?” He asked. 

“Pretty good. We’re doing a new thing where we do different countries' food every week. Regular class was lame, but I’m sure you already knew that.” Hunk answered. 

“Yeah, I do. Pidge?” 

“Decent. We aren’t doing anything yet. The new syllabus looks pretty cool though.” By the time she finished, Allura looked ready to explode. 

“I think I figured out this quarter’s production!” 

“What is it?” Lance asked, laughing adoringly. 

“I think it’s going to be ‘Into the Woods’! Guess which part I’m going for if we do?” 

“Uhhh… I dunno… Red Riding Hood?” 

“No! Florinda!”

“I’m gonna pretend like I know who that is.” Lance replied, earning a laugh from Pidge. 

“So… Where’s the new guy?” Hunk asked. 

“In our room. I’m gonna invite him to watch the show with us, but he might not be down. I think Allura freaked him out earlier.” 

“My bad… I just wanna get to know him.” 

“I know. I do too, but we all will in time. You can just be a little… animated at times. Just give him some time to get used to it here. You guys remember what it was like when you first got here, right?” 

“He’s got a point.” Hunk added. 

“I just can’t believe you’re the one saying all that. Usually, you’re the over-socal, excited one. Plus, he doesn’t really seem like he would be someone you’d befriend.” Pidge argued. 

“Yeah, well he’s our roommate. They put him with us for a reason right? I mean technically he should be rooming with other freshmen. You’re only here because they had no room your first year, then when everyone moved to the highschool dorms, you convinced them with a powerpoint that you should stay with us. He didn’t do any of that. Also, what do you mean about the befriending thing?” 

“I dunno, you just aren’t friends with any of the… awkward kids here..” 

“Pidge, I’m friends with you.” 

“Once again, he’s got a point.” Hunk added with a chuckle. 

“You guys wanna go change and get ready for the show? I’ll go see if he wants to come.” Everyone agreed, leaving him to convince Keith. When he came in, Keith was sitting on the floor by his bed, listening to music and working on a sketch. He knelt down and waved a hand in front of him to get his attention. He pulled an earbud out and looked up. 

“We’re all gonna start that show soon if you wanna come. I promise it won’t be that bad, and you can always just leave if you want to. We have popcorn, and Hunk’s making some other snacks.” Keith shrugged. “I’ll call off Allura if I need to.” Keith just shrugged again. “Okay, well I’m gonna go change. You can decide while I do that. Everyone gets sucked into whatever we’re watching, so they’ll probably leave you alone if that’s what you’re worried about.” He nodded as Lance grabbed a pair of sweats and a t-shirt from his dresser and walked to the bathroom. When he came back out, he asked again. 

Chapter Text

“So, you wanna come?” He hesitated, but nodded softly. “Change if you want. I have to do something real quick anyway.” Keith nodded and grabbed a few things from his dresser, when he came back, he was wearing a black hoodie, with the hood up, and a pair of baggy black shorts. Lance stood and wrapped a blanket around his shoulder. Keith did the same. 

He awkwardly followed Lance out to the living room, expecting to be berated with questions from the others, but none came, just a silent wave from Allura. Little did he know, while he was changing, Lance begged them to chill out. There were two couches in the corner of the common room. Allura was on one, with Pidge sitting on the floor in front of her. Lance flopped down on the other, and Keith followed, taking the farthest side from everyone else. 

“Alright. I got popcorn, chips, and I made some cookies. Oh, and I restocked the mini-fridge with drinks like I said I would. We have water, Sprite, Coke, root beer, and yes Lance, I got your Capri Suns.” 

“See Hunk, this is why we love you.” Lance said, walking over to the mini-fridge. 

“What do you guys want?” 

“Water.” Pidge and Allura said in unison. 

“Sprite.” Hunk responded.

“Keith?” 

Keith: Water.  

After Lance passed out the drinks, Allura played the show. They made it through three episodes before everyone started to get tired. It was a pretty calm night other than comments about the show. By the time everyone else decided to turn in, Keith had fallen asleep. After everyone else left, Lance woke him up. It clearly freaked him out. He shot up and scanned the room for a second before he realized what was happening. 

“Sorry… didn’t mean to scare you. I just figured you would rather sleep in your bed. These couches aren’t great.” Keith nodded and stood up, before stumbling to their room. When Lance finished cleaning up the common room and got back to their room, Keith was laying in his bed, texting on his phone. Lance flopped down on his own bed and got comfortable. Keith eventually sat his phone down. Just as he was ready to go to sleep, he got a text. 

Unknown Number: Hey, it’s Shiro. Sorry to bother you so late, but I just wanted to check in. How’s Keith doing? Is everything working out okay?

Lance: You’re fine. I think he’s doing well. He watched TV with us all for a little while. I think he’ll get used to everyone fairly soon. 

Shiro: Good. He said he likes you a lot, so whatever you’re doing, keep it up. Also, if anything happens tonight, I’m in room twenty-three, or call if you need to. I meant to tell you last night. 

Lance: I’m glad he likes me, but what would happen?

Shiro: Hopefully nothing. Simply a precaution. Get some sleep. 

Lance plugged his phone up and looked over to Keith who was now dead asleep. He wondered what Shrio had meant, but he was glad Keith liked him. Lance eventually fell asleep. He woke up early that morning to shower. Keith was still dead asleep. By the time he had showered, gotten dressed, and done his skincare routine, Keith was dressed and waiting for him. 

“You coming to breakfast today?” Keith nodded. “Cool. Let me grab my stuff and we can leave. The others are probably already down there.” Lance said as he put on his converse. Once they both had everything they needed, they made their way to the dining hall. Today’s options were cereal or omelets. They both opted for cereal. When they got to the table, Allura was rambling about something she had planned with a friend, Pidge was still half asleep, and Hunk was silently judging his omelet. 

“Morning!” Lance said, announcing his presence. They all exchanged greetings and ate while trying to come up with weekend plans. Lance was the only one with a car meaning he usually ended up giving people rides everywhere. Luckily, there wasn’t much they didn’t all do together. Eventually, they all made their way to class. Lance’s classes went as well as usual. They started working on a new number in his dance class, then a new song in his vocal class. He spent all of their break in the dance studio. Algebra was lame. He was bored out of his mind by the end of class, and he kept getting in trouble for not paying attention. He decided to skip History. 

Keith wasn’t having as good of a day. His first class was music. They went over a few basic things, then they started working on composition. His art class wasn’t bad either. Since it was one of the first days of the semester, things were simple. During the break, he sat outside and worked on a sketch. Then, he had English. The professor announced they would be studying ‘The Grapes of Wrath’. That was fine, until she said everyone would be taking turns reading a section. When it got to him, he freaked and walked out. He knew Shiro had a class, but he texted him anyway. 

Keith: Are you teaching?

Shiro: Yeah. Why?

Keith: Nothing.

Shiro: I can slip out if I need to. 

Kieth: No, it’s fine.

Shiro: I know something’s up.

Keith: It’s fine.

Shiro: Really?

Keith: It’s not worth you leaving class.

Shiro: You sure?

Keith: Yeah. 

If he was being honest, he wasn’t fine at all. Not only could he not read a simple paragraph out loud, but he also freaked out and ran out of class on the second day. None of that was fine. He could feel his anxiety rising as his thoughts spiraled. He knew he needed to find somewhere to hide out for a while. He didn’t know anywhere to go since he didn’t really know the campus yet, but then he remembered Lance’s tour. He had shown him this spot under one of the stairwells that he goes to when he skips. He made it there just before the bell rang. 

“Keith?” Lance called out as he ducked under the stairs, making him jump. “What are you doing here?” He just shrugged, avoiding eye contact. When Lance got closer, he could tell something was wrong. He was sitting in the corner with his knees to his chest and his breathing seemed off. “You okay buddy?” Keith nodded slowly. “I can tell you aren’t… Can I sit with you?” He asked, wanting to make sure he was okay with it. Keith nodded. “You wanna text me about it?” He shook his head. “You wanna sneak back to the dorms? I can get us there without anyone seeing.” Keith nodded.

 Lance led them down several different hallways that Keith had never been down, and somehow they made it across campus to the dorms. As soon as they got there, Keith crashed into his bed. Lance stayed and watched him. He wasn’t sure what to do to help, so he just watched Keith wrap himself in his blanket and roll over to face the wall. By the time the lunch bell rang, he still hadn’t moved. 

“I’ll be back.” Lance said before slipping into the cafeteria. He grabbed a plate of both food options and brought them back to the room. Luckily, he didn’t run into anyone. 

“I’m back. I brought you some food. I don’t know if you want any, but I got a plate of both. It’s chicken tenders or ham sandwiches. I didn’t know which one, so I brought both.” Keith slowly sat up and took the plate of chicken tenders. He ate a few bites, but not much, then laid back down. Lance decided to message Shiro. 

Lance: Hey… So something happened with Keith. I don’t know what though. I found him hiding out. 

Shiro: I know, he texted me, but I was teaching and he told me not to come. I was going to come find him at lunch, but I didn’t see him.

Lance: Yeah, I kinda snuck him back to the dorms… 

Shiro: Good. What’s he doing?

Lance: Just laying in his bed.

Shiro: I figured. I have a meeting in a few minutes, but I can come up after if he isn’t feeling better. Just let me know if anything changes. 

Lance felt awful watching him lay there. He wanted to help, but he wasn’t sure how. He just met him, he had no idea how to help. All he could do was ask. 

“Keith… buddy?” He asked as he walked over to his bed. “Can I do anything?” Keith just shrugged. “Shiro said you texted him earlier. He’s gonna come up when he gets out of his meeting.” Lance said softly. Keith sat up and gave him an awkward thumbs up. Lance moved to sit next to him. “You sure I can’t do anything?” Keith shrugged and leaned his head onto his shoulder. Lance hesitated for a moment before wrapping an arm around him. Soon, Keith’s phone vibrated. He held it up for Lance to see. 

Shiro: Meeting’s over. I’m on my way up. 

“I’ll go let him in.” Almost as soon as Lance got to the kitchen, there was a knock on the door. 

“Hey.” He said as he opened it. “He’s in our room. Lunch is over soon, and I should probably go to class. Let me grab my stuff and I’ll head out.” Shiro nodded as they made their way to the bedroom. After Lance grabbed his bag, he stopped and turned to Keith. 

“Text me if you aren’t feeling up to coming down for dinner. We still don’t have any actual food here, so I’ll grab you something if you wanna stay up here.” Keith nodded, and Lance left. 

“What’s going on?” Shiro asked after he heard the door shut. Keith just shrugged. “Lance left. It’s just me if you wanna talk.” Keith just shook his head. “You gotta help me out a little bit…” Keith shrugged and sat up fully. 

‘English class.’ He signed. 

“What about it?” 

‘Reading.’ 

“You had to read? I don’t get it.” 

‘She wanted me to read out loud.’ 

“I’m sorry… I told all of your teachers. What did you do?” 

‘Left.’ 

“You just left?” Keith nodded. “Are you in trouble?”

‘No idea.’ 

“And how did no one find you?” 

‘Lance did.’ 

“I know, I mean like anyone else.” 

‘I hid under the stairwell.’ 

“Okay, well I have a class period… Are you gonna be okay if I go?” Keith nodded. “Try and go to your last period if you can, okay?” Once again, Keith just nodded. 

Chapter Text

Kieth finally forced himself out of the dorm a few minutes before the bell for his last period. Luckily, History was uneventful. He felt like there were a million eyes on him. He was basically counting every second until the bell rang. When it finally did, he was the first one out the door. After class, he had about three hours to do whatever he wanted. He decided to go back to the dorm assuming no one would be there, he was right. He decided to take a nap. When he woke up, there were only a few minutes until dinner. He waited until the hall was mostly clear to make his way to the dinning hall. He honestly really didn’t want to go, but he didn’t want to bother Lance, and he knew he’d bring him food if he didn’t show. 

He slid his earbud in as he made his way down the hall. When he finally located Lance, he was already at the table. He was the only one there so far, meaning the others might just look over him, if he was lucky. He pulled one of his earbuds out as he sat down, in case Lance wanted to talk to him. 

“Oh, hey I was just about to text you.” Keith gave a slight wave. “Where’s your food?” 

Keith: not hungry. 

When Lance looked up from his phone, Keith had his earbud back in and his head on the table. Honestly, Lance thought he fell asleep, at least until Allura finally showed up. Another day of theater, meant another dinner filled with her rambling. Most people would probably find it annoying, but they had all learned to love it. When she set her tray down, she started squealing about her newest possible play conspiracy. As soon as she started, Keith shot up. Lance was already fully engaged in conversation, giving him the perfect opportunity to slide out, or so he thought. By the time he made it to their hall, he got a text. 

Lance: Where’d you go?

Keith: The room. 

Lance: You okay?

Keith: I’m fine.

Lance: Okay… well we’re having a Disney movie marathon tonight. You should come.

Keith: Maybe. 

He didn’t want to go. He was already starting to hate it here. When he got to the room, he decided to spend some time practicing bass since no one else was home. He had an old red Gibson Thunderbird. He spent the whole time they were gone playing a few of his favorite songs. He didn’t even notice when Lance walked in. He was playing YYZ by Rush, or trying to. He’d been trying to get it down for a little while now. 

“Oh, sick. Is that Rush?” Lance asked, shouting a little over the amp. The music immediately stopped. He nodded awkwardly. “It’s good. I’m gonna take a shower, then we’re watching movies. You don’t have to come if you don’t want to though.” Keith nodded again before unplugging his bass and hanging it back on the wall. Honestly, he was feeling a bit better. He still didn’t necessarily want to hang out with everyone, but he decided he would anyway. It looks like they do this every night, so he might as well get used to it.  By the time Lance got out, Keith was already changed into sweats. 

“You goin’ to bed already?” He asked, noticing Keith’s wardrobe change. He shook his head.  “Oh, are you gonna come watch movies with us?” He nodded. “Cool. You ready?” Once again, Keith nodded. “Alright. I doubt they’re out there yet, but we can go ahead and set up.” Lance said, grabbing his blanket and walking out, Keith followed. By the time they had everything set up, Pidge and Allura came out. Then, Hunk appeared from the kitchen. 

“Alright, we don’t have much, but I got some stuff from the class pantry, which you didn’t hear, and made some brownies.” 

“Man, what would we do without you?” Lance asked. 

“Starve, eat the nastly cafeteria food, or live off of Ramen. That reminds me, I renewed my Costco card, who’s down for an adventure on Saturday?” They all nodded in agreement, and Lance started going through movie options. Eventually, they landed on ‘Luca’, ‘Liio and Stitch’, and ‘Aladdin’. By the time they got to ‘Aladdin’, everyone was starting to get tired. Allura was still humming along to the songs, Hunk was leaning against the arm of the couch half-asleep, and Pidge had found her way onto the couch. She wasn’t actually very tired, but she was starting to get there. Lance was pretty tired himself, but he was fine. Keith on the other hand was clearly only moments away from falling asleep. Lance nudged him lightly.  

“You wanna go to bed? You seem tired.” He whispered. Keith just shook his head, then sat up fully, trying to wake himself up. It didn’t work for very long. When they were about half-way through the movie, he had fallen asleep leaning against Lance’s shoulder. When the movie was over, Lance woke him up, but he just nuzzled back into his side and fell back asleep. After a few more attempts, Lance gave up and decided to just carry him back when everyone else left, he figured he couldn’t be too heavy. He was right. Once everyone was gone, he slid his arms under him and carried him down the hall. He managed to get him in his bed, then went to sleep himself. 

Keith woke up the next morning before anyone else was up. He took it as a chance to go see Shiro. He knew he would be awake and probably already in his studio. He quickly showered and got dressed, deciding to just tie his hair up today and not deal with it. He grabbed his bag and made his way out and to Shiro’s studio. As he expected, Shiro was already there doing some light training. He knocked on the door frame and made his way in. 

“Keith? What are you doing?” 

‘I woke up early.’ He signed. 

“No one else is out here yet…” 

‘I know’ 

“Well… How did yesterday afternoon go? I texted you last night, but you never answered.” 

‘Fine I guess. I was watching movies with them, sorry.’ 

“It’s okay, I’m glad you’re hanging out with them. Do you like them all?” 

‘I guess. I don’t really know anything about Pidge. Hunk is nice I guess. Allura is kind of a lot, but Lance is cool.’ 

“Yeah? Well, I’m sure you’ll warm up to Allura. From what I’ve heard she’s really nice.”

‘Lance said she was. It’s not that though, she’s just loud I guess.’ 

“Is Lance not? He seems a little… sporadic…” 

‘He is, but not all the time.’ 

“I know yesterday wasn’t great, but I think you’re gonna end up liking it here. From what I can tell, this place seems great. Anyway, breakfast starts in a few minutes, you should probably head that way.” 

‘I guess. I’ll text you later.’ 

“Okay. Have a good day!” Shiro shouted as Keith made his way to the dinning hall. He grabbed a bowl of cereal and plopped down next to Lance at the table. 

“Hey, where were you?” 

‘Shiro’s studio.’ He signed without thinking.

“What?” 

Keith: Shiro’s studio. Sorry. 

“So you know sign language?” Keith nodded awkwardly. 

Keith: It’s how I usually talk to Shiro without talking. 

“So you talk to Shiro?” Lance asked, kind of surprised. Keith just stared back. He wasn’t thinking, he shouldn’t have said anything. Now Lance is going to expect it. He had one person he was even slightly comfortable around that wasn’t Shiro and he ruined it. 

“Hello? Earth to Keith?” Lance said, waving his hand in front of Keith’s face, pulling him out of his thoughts. “I wasn’t trying to freak you out man. You just like froze up there.” 

Keith: Sorry. 

“Don’t worry about it. Anyway, I was gonna say I know a little. Not a lot though. My sister and I used to use sign language around the rest of the family when we didn’t want them to know what we were saying.” Keith just nodded, still visibly anxious. “Okay… what’s going on up there?” Keith shrugged. Lance studied him for a second before he finally made the connection. “Ohhhh! I get it. Just because I know you talk to Shiro, doesn’t mean I’ll expect you to talk to me. I mean if you ever decide to that’s cool, but if not that’s cool too. Besides, I think I probably talk enough for the both of us right?” Keith smiled a bit and nodded. “You should do that more.”

Keith: What?

“Smile. It looks nice on you.” Keith just rolled his eyes and went back to his cereal. “Anyway, tomorrow’s Friday, meaning we currently have a total of twelve more classes before we’re free for two whole days. Hunk has already requested a Costco trip Saturday which you should definitely join us for, I promise it’s not as lame as it sounds. Plus, it’s my car so I get to choose shotgun, which would be you since I know you haven’t really gotten to know the others yet. I was also thinking we could do something Sunday too, but I’m not sure what. So… You down?” 

Keith: Uhhh. I’ll think about it.

“You can stay here if you want, but it’s usually pretty awesome so… Also, if you come up with anything to do on Sunday, let me know.” Keith nodded. “Alright, well I have to head to the studio early. I told my teacher I’d help move some stuff around before class today, see you at lunch.” 

Keith’s first two classes were great. Both of his teachers were well aware that he didn’t talk, so they never even attempted to get him to speak in class. He also actually enjoyed those two classes since he actually cared about music and art. He spent his break in one of the practice rooms practicing bass. He wasn’t so lucky with English. Today, his teacher left him alone for the most part, until the very end of class. For some reason, she felt the need to apologize in front of the entire class, meaning all eyes were back on him. He knew he couldn’t skip his math class though, so he went. He felt like everyone’s eyes were piercing him. Finally, it was lunch. 

Chapter Text

“Hey mullet!” Lance shouted as he caught up to Keith in the hall, earning him a weird look. “What?” Keith rolled his eyes and dug his phone out. 

Keith: Mullet?

“Yeah. I have to come up with your nickname at some point. Everyone has one.” 

Keith: Everyone? 

“Yeah. Pidge’s real name is Katie and Hunk’s is Tsuyoshi.

Keith: That’s only two of you. 

“We call Allura princess sometimes, she prefers Allura though. The others have kinda just accepted theirs.”

Keith: And you? 

“Uhhh… Don’t worry about that…” Lance said, in a much higher voice than normal. 

Keith: What do you expect me to do? Say it?

“Oh wow, Keith’s got jokes now.” He said, earning a slight smile from Keith. 

Keith: Fine, but you can’t call me mullet then.

“Ughhhh. Fine…” Lance whined. “Taylor, but I’m not telling you why.”

Keith: but I’m curious now. 

“Well, too bad. You’ll have to find a way to convince me.” Lance said with an exaggerated huff, crossing his arms. “Anyway, how were your classes?” 

Keith: Okay I guess.

“Not very convincing.” 

Keith: Oh well.

“So, we’re not talking about it then. Cool.” Lance said as they grabbed their food. Keith watched as his roommates all talked about their days, obviously not adding anything to the conversation. Soon, lunch was over and it was time for class again. Thankfully, time passed fairly quickly, and Keith was back in the dining hall after spending all of break in Shiro’s dorm.  

“So… How do you feel about horror movies?” Lance asked. Keith shrugged. “Well… I kinda have a bit of a despicable plan. Come here.” He said, leading Keith to the other end of the table. “Okay, so I have a suspicion that two of them…” He said, nodding his head back to the group. “... have a thing for each other, but are too oblivious to realize it. I think if we watch a few scary movies with one of them being the way she is, it’ll end with them huddled together and I won’t have to watch them pinning over each other anymore.” He finished with a smirk, making Keith smile a little again. Lance loved it. Keith honestly had no idea why he was smiling, but he was.

 “So… horror movies?” Keith nodded. He actually hated horror movies, but he wasn’t going to say anything. He could suffer through a few so that Lance could do his plan. 

“What was that about?” Allura asked when they got back. 

“What was what about?”

“I know you have something up your sleeve. Just tell me.” 

“No can do.” 

“Ugh, I hate you sometimes.” 

“Love you too Princess.” He said smirking again, earning a huff from Allura. “Anyways, movie night tonight as per usual. Hunk, I think popcorn is fine for tonight. Also, you should totally invite Shay. I’ve seen y’all in history, I know what’s up.” 

“We don’t have enough seats though.” 

“I’ll just take the floor with Pidge. I think you guys would be cute together.” Allura offered. 

“Ugh… fine. She’ll probably say no though since it’s Thursday.” 

“Try.” 

“Okay, okay. I’ll go after I’m done eating. You guys better have everything ready when I get there though. I don’t want to sit around awkwardly waiting.” 

“Yeah, I got you buddy. I’m almost done, so I’ll head up in a few.” When he was done, he got rid of his tray and left, totally unaware Keith had followed him, until they turned a corner. Suddenly, Lance screamed a little. 

“Jesus dude, you’re like a ninja! I had no idea you were there.” 

Keith: Sorry… 

“Hey, you're just lucky I didn’t whip out my sick karate moves.” He said before he showed Keith his awful attempt at karate, almost earning a laugh. 

Keith: So scary.

“Hey! I would totally beat you in a fight!” 

Keith: I highly doubt that.

“Dude, I’m like twice your size.” 

Keith: You’re like a few inches taller than me, and that really doesn’t mean much if you can’t fight.

“Okay, first of all at least five inches. Secondly, I could just pick you up.

Keith: Not if you can’t catch me.

 “You’re playing a dangerous game, Mullet.” 

Keith: Sure. 

“I’ll get you one day. Element of surprise.” Lance said, trying to sound ominous. Keith just rolled his eyes. As he started to unlock the door, he made a move to grab Keith, but he dodged it, Lance just ended up swiping at the air. When he looked over, Keith was standing on the other side of him smirking. “You win this time Mullet…” He said, squinting his eyes. Then, he tried again, and failed again. This time, Keith pinned his arm behind him. “How?” Keith just shrugged and smiled before walking to their room. He quickly changed and met Lance back in the common room. 

“Okay. I’m gonna go change now and grab some extra blankets. You wanna get some popcorn going?” Keith gave him a thumbs up and went to the kitchen. Soon, everything was set up and Pidge and Allura were there. Now, they just had to wait for Shay and Hunk. Lance already had a few movies queued. Finally, they arrived. 

“Hey guys, this is Shay. Shay, you already know Lance and Allura, but that’s Keith and Pidge.” 

“Hey guys! So… What are we watching?” 

“I found some cool horror movies we can watch. I have ‘The Exorcist’, ‘Texas Chainsaw Massacre’, and ‘Insidious’.” 

“Sounds great.” Soon, they were all comfortable. Lance and Keith took one couch, Shay and Hunk took the other, and Pidge and Allura were on the floor. Everything was going to plan. Lance was finally going to set up all of his roommates in one night, well all of them but Keith. He was mainly paying attention to the other four for the first half of the movie. Both pairs were huddled together, glued to the screen. Then, he finally felt Keith jump. He ignored it at first, thinking he just missed a jumpscare, but about ten minutes later, he looked over again. Needless to say, he figured out Keith wasn’t a fan of horror movies. 

“You alright?” He whispered. Keith nodded shakily. “You sure?” He nodded again. Lance decided to drop it for a little while. By the half-way mark of movie two, Keith had somehow ended up right next to him. He was practically shaking. “You don’t like horror movies do you?” Keith hesitated, then shrugged. “Do you wanna go back to our room?” Keith shook his head with no hesitation this time. Lance sighed and wrapped an arm around him. “You’re difficult. You know that?” He nodded and nestled into Lance’s side. 

Suddenly, Lance caught himself smiling. It was probably just because he felt like Keith trusted him. By the end of the third movie, Keith was practically in his lap. Shay thanked them all for the movie night and snuck back to her dorm. When the lights were back on, Lance saw that Pidge and Allura had both fallen asleep on the floor, cuddled up together. 

“You get Allura, I get Pidge?” Hunk asked. 

“Yep. Same as usual. You think they made some progress?” 

“So that’s why we did this?” 

“Yup. Alright, let’s go.” Keith finally moved to let him up and watched as they each picked up one of the girls and took them to their room. He slowly stood up and walked to his room himself. He sat down in his bed and pulled out his phone to check for any texts from Shiro. Surprisingly, there were none.

“So… why didn’t you tell me you didn’t like horror movies?” Lance asked as he walked in, making Keith jump. He shrugged and put his phone on charge, hoping if Lance saw it, he would leave him alone. Of course, that didn’t work. “You coulda said something man. We could’ve watched like dumb rom-coms. It would’ve still worked.” Keith just shrugged again. Lance could see he was still super on edge. 

“You still seem a little… jumpy…” Once again, Keith just shrugged. “Do you want me to text Shiro?” He aggressively shook his head. “Okay, no Shiro… Can I do anything? I don’t wanna leave you all freaked out… I mean it’s kinda my fault…” Keith grabbed his notebook. 

‘Does the door lock?’ 

“Yeah…” Lance said as he walked back to the door and locked it. “Anything else?” Keith shook his head. “So… are you ready to go to sleep then?” Keith nodded and lay down.

 Lance already knew he wasn’t sleeping for a while. He decided to play a few games on his phone to keep him up until he knew Keith was asleep. About half an hour later, he had fallen asleep. Lance plugged up his phone, deciding to do the same. When he was almost asleep, he heard Keith moving around. He slowly sat up and saw him curled up into himself. When he moved closer, he heard quiet whimpers. He decided to try and wake him up. As soon as his hand landed on his shoulder, Keith shot up. 

“Sorry… It’s just me… you were-” He was cut off by a tight hug. “You okay?” He asked as he wrapped his arms around him. Keith nodded softly before he finally let go. “Are you gonna go back to sleep?” He nodded again. “Okay…” Lance said as he started to walk back to his bed, but he was stopped by a hand around his wrist. “You need something?” Keith just looked up at him with puppy-dog eyes. “What?” He tugged his arm softly. “You want me to stay?” He nodded. “Alright, scoot over.” 

Keith did as he was told and moved closer to the wall, making room for Lance. He carefully laid down next to him. When he properly laid down, Keith curled into. Without even thinking, Lance started running his fingers through his hair. Soon enough, Keith was asleep. Lance followed soon after. Keith slept calmly all night. 

Chapter Text

Keith woke up in a vice-like grip. At first, he panicked and struggled to get away. All of the movement woke up Lance. He groaned as he looked over to the clock on Keith’s nightstand. 

“Keith, you can go back to sleep. We still have like an hour before we actually need to get up.” As Lance spoke, Keith relaxed. He wasn’t sure why, but he felt really safe with him. Once Lance had fallen back asleep and loosened his grip, Keith slid out from under him. He wasn’t sure what he was feeling, but he knew he didn’t want to be here when Lance properly woke up. 

He quickly showered and got ready for the day. By the time he was ready, Lance was up walking around their room looking for clothes. He tried to slip out without being noticed, but it didn’t work. 

“Hey. What are you doing ready so early?” He asked, making Keith stop in his tracks. 

Keith: Shiro.

When Lance looked back up from his phone, he was already gone. He shrugged it off and got ready himself. He expected to see Keith at breakfast, but he never showed up. Usually, Lance would pass him between classes, but he didn’t today. He also didn’t know up to lunch. That’s when Lance started to worry about him. On his way to class, he shot him a text. 

Lance: You alright? I literally haven’t seen you all day.  

He never got a response. He decided to message Shiro if he didn’t find him at dinner. After his last period, he waited a few minutes before he went to the dorm in case Keith was waiting for the crowd to thin out. He made sure to look for him the whole way there. Keith wasn’t there either. Eventually, dinner time rolled around and once again, he didn’t see Keith. 

Lance: Do you know where Keith is? I haven’t seen him all day. 

Shiro: No, I haven’t either. He hasn’t texted me either. 

Lance: He didn’t come see you this morning?

Shiro: No, why?

Lance: He said he was going to. If you see him can you tell him to text me. 

Shiro: Yeah. I’m going to text him, but he may not answer. 

Lance left dinner early and started his walk back to the dorms. When he was almost back, he met Keith who was also heading to the dorms. 

“Keith, there you are! Where have you been all day?” He just shrugged. “Well, the dining hall food sucked today, so you didn’t really miss out. I’m kind of thinking TacoBell sounds good right now.” Keith cocked his head. “It’s Friday. We’re out of school after the last class. I have a car. There’s a TacoBell like twenty minutes away. You should come.” Keith shook his head. “What? Why not?” 

Keith: I hate TacoBell. 

“Literally how? We can go somewhere else though. I’m kinda just bored and mainly just wanna go for a ride. I’ll give you aux.” He offered. Keith shrugged. “Please? We’re supposed to be best friends now, you’re my roommate.” He whined. 

Keith: Fine. Let me go talk to Shiro first though. 

“Alright, well text me when you're done, I can just pick you up at the teacher’s dorms.” Keith gave him a thumbs up and walked off. He didn’t really want to go, but he felt bad, so he was going to go as long as Shiro said he could. Finally, he made it to Shiro’s dorm. 

“Hey, there you are.” He said as the door opened. Keith waved and followed him in. “So… where were you?” 

“Class.” He mumbled. 

“I mean why did Lance say he hasn’t seen you all day?” Keith shrugged. “He said to ask you to text him if I saw you.” 

“I talked to him before I came here.” 

“Good. So, what was wrong?” 

“Nothing. Lance asked me to go get food with him off campus.” 

“Okay… Well you can go. Just wear your seatbelt and text me when you get back. Here-” He said, digging through his pocket. “Take some cash.”

“He also wants me to go out with them this weekend…” 

“Do you want to?” He shrugged. 

“I mean… it’ll probably be fine.” 

“Okay, just text me if you decide to go.” Keith texted Lance and told him he could come get him. A few minutes later, he got a text saying he was outside. 

“He’s here. Bye…” He said, walking out the door. 

“Wear your seatbelt!” Shiro shouted as the door shut. When he got outside, he saw an old gray station wagon with Lance in the driver’s seat. He quickly walked around and got in the passenger seat. As Lance started driving, he realized they hadn’t decided where to get food. 

“Where do you wanna eat?” He asked. He didn’t get a response. Instead he saw Keith pinching the bridge of his nose. “Oh, right. Probably shouldn’t text me… Well, you’re not from here right?” Keith shook his head. “Okay, we’ll go somewhere local then…. There’s a diner across town we could go to. They have like everything so…” Keith nodded. “Oh yeah, the aux cord is the blue one. Play whatever you want.” Keith plugged it in and searched through his playlists, looking for a good song. Finally, he landed on ‘Everlong - Acoustic Version’ by the Foo Fighters. Lance smiled and turned up the volume. 

“This is a good one!” He said before he started singing along. For some reason, Keith was surprised, both at the fact he liked the song, and that he could actually sing. He knew he was here for vocal music, but it still surprised him. He sang along basically the whole way to the diner. When they got there, Lance led him in. It was just a little roadside diner that looked like it was trapped in the sixties. 

“How many?” The waitress asked. 

“Just two.” 

“Right this way.” She said, leading them to a booth. “You guys are really cute by the way.” 

“Oh, we’re not-” Lance said, totally flustered. 

“Sorry, you two just seemed… Anyway-” She said awkwardly. “Mark will be here in a few for your orders.” They looked at the menus in silence for a minute, before Lance landed on garlic knots. 

“So… What do you want?” Keith shrugged. “Based on the fact I’ve only ever seen you eat chicken and cereal, I’m assuming you’re picky?” He shrugged again. “So, that’s a yes then. Chicken tenders and fries?” Keith nodded. “What do you want to drink?” Lance asked. Keith pointed to the Sprite logo. Then, the waiter appeared next to the table. 

“Hey guys, what can I get you?” He asked, drawing Keith’s attention to him. He was tall with a somewhat muscular build. His eyes were forest green, and he had a sweet smile. 

“Uhh, I think I’m gonna have the garlic knots with a coke, and he wants the chicken tenders with a Sprite.” Lance said, motioning to Keith. 

“Alright, I’ll have those out shortly.” He said, smiling to Keith as he left. Lance saw Keith looking at him, he wasn’t sure why, but he was kind of jealous. 

“You want me to get his number?” Lance teased, earning a confused look from Keith. 

Keith: What? 

“Please, you were staring at him.” 

Keith: I stare at everyone moron! 

“Not like that.” 

Keith: Like what? 

“You know… like… you know!” He could tell Lance didn’t like the idea of him liking the waiter. 

Keith: I don’t know what you’re talking about. I stare at everyone. I don’t like people. Why do you care anyway?

“I don’t.” He said defensively. They continued bickering until the food came. When the waiter put their plates down, he stopped. 

“So… are you two like… together?” He asked. At first, Lance wanted to say yes, just to see Keith’s reaction, but he didn’t. 

“No, just roommates.” He nodded and slid a napkin to Keith, before walking away. 

“See? Even he knows I’m right.” Lance huffed. Keith rolled his eyes and dramatically ripped up the napkin. 

Keith: See? For all you know, I’m straight anyway.

“Are you?” Lance said, raising his eyebrows. “Because it seems like you would’ve said that when this all started if you were.” Keith shrugged and looked down to his food awkwardly. “Obviously, I don’t care either way.” He said, sensing the discomfort. “I mean… everyone in our dorm is gay so…” Keith looked up and cocked his head. “What? Was it not painfully obvious?” 

Keith: I kind of assumed with the girls, but no. 

“Wow, you’re oblivious.” Lance laughed, taking a bite of his garlic knots. “Pidge thought she was aromantic actually, but then she realized she was just a lesbian and just never thought of it. Allura is also a lesbian…” 

Keith: So that’s why you two stopped dating or whatever?

“Yup… that was an awkward experience.” He chuckled. “Hunk’s pansexual, and I’m sure you know about me.” 

Keith: no? 

“How? Wow, you really are oblivious. I literally have a bi flag on the wall behind my bed man. How have you not noticed that?” 

Keith: I don’t know… I just haven’t. 

“So? Are we getting our token straight, or…” 

Keith: no. 

“Cool. So, did you think about the Costco trip?” He nodded. “You’re going?” 

Keith: I guess. Shiro doesn’t care. 

“So, do you like have to ask him everytime you go anywhere?” 

Keith: No, I just do. It makes it easier to convince myself to do stuff. 

“You don’t have to come if you don’t want to…” Lance said guiltily. 

Keith: No, I think it’ll be fine… probably. I mean… you're coming. 

“Yeah, I won’t let anything bad happen.” He said, smiling at the fact Keith’s reasoning to be okay with going was him. 

“Hey guys, here’s the check.” The waiter said, winking at Keith when he put the check on the table. He didn’t even notice though, he was looking at Lance this time. His smile was honestly better anyway. 

Chapter Text

“So… You really didn’t want his number?” Lance asked as he led him back to his car. Keith shook his head. “Why not? He was cute.” 

Keith: I don’t really do the whole dating thing. 

“Why not?” 

Keith: How would I? I literally can’t talk to anyone. 

“So? You can text and write. I don’t see the issue.” 

Keith: Yeah, well everyone else does. 

“How do you know that if you’ve never tried?” 

Keith: I have.

“Okay, and?” Keith just shrugged and got in the car. “I take it you don’t wanna talk about it?” Keith shrugged again. “Okay, well do you wanna do anything else?” Keith shook his head. “Home it is then.” They rode home with the music a lot quieter and Lance just humming along. When he looked over, he could tell Keith was getting tired. By the time they got to the dorm, he was half-asleep. 

“You coming?” Lance asked, nudging him. He stretched and stumbled out of the car. It was an almost ten minute walk back to the dorms. No one understands why they built the parking lot so far from the dorms, but you get used to it. When they finally got to their dorm, Keith immediately went to their room. 

“Where were you guys?” Pidge interrogated as soon as she saw Lance. 

“The diner..” 

“Why didn’t you tell us? We thought you guys just disappeared!” 

“I texted Hunk. Did he not tell you?” 

“No, he’s been with Shay all afternoon.” Allura cut in. 

“Okay, well I didn’t know. I’m sorry. Well, it’s already nine and I’ve got some homework, plus I’d like to leave before noon tomorrow, so I’m going to bed. Does like nine tomorrow sound good to you guys?” 

“Yeah.”

“Yeah, sounds good. We have to stop for coffee though.” 

“We always do. I’ll just text Hunk and let him know. Goodnight guys.” 

“‘Night.”

“Goodnight!” When Lance got to the room, he heard the shower running meaning Keith was probably getting ready to go to bed. He sat down at his desk and sent Hunk a quick text before starting on some of his math work. By the time he was done and had moved onto English, Keith was out. He came into the room wearing red plaid pajama bottoms and a black tank top with a black jacket that was hanging off of his shoulders.. Lance caught himself staring as he pulled his hair up into a hair tie. Lance pulled his eyes away and back to his book. Keith suddenly appeared next to him. 

“Hey. What are you doing?” Keith shrugged. 

Keith: What are you reading?

“Some weird book my English professor assigned, ‘Metamorphosis’. It makes like zero sense. I don’t know why I can’t just read ‘Harry Potter’ for the rest of my life.”

Keith: What do you mean? Kafka’s great. 

“How? Did you have to like do a report in school or something?” 

Keith: No, and I don’t know. A lot of what he writes is actually really relatable. 

“First of all, how? Dude literally like turns into a bug. Secondly, you read this for your own entertainment?” Lance asked furrowing his eyebrows, earning a silent laugh from Keith. 

Keith: It’s not actually about him turning into a bug, it has deeper meaning, and yeah, I read a lot. I’ve read Metamorphosis a few times. 

“A few times?!? Why?” Lance asked in total disbelief. “Also, I have yet to see you even touch a book. When do you read?” 

Keith: I haven’t really had time.

“And what books? All I’ve seen in here is ‘Grapes of Wrath’, and I know you’re reading that for class because I did last year, and Pidge is too” Keith pointed to his standing wardrobe before walking over to it. He dramatically opened the door. It was just filled with boxes. He took one out and carried it back to the desk. It was filled with old books. 

“Are those all books?” He nodded. “That you’ve read?” 

Keith: No, only about a third of them probably. The rest are just on my list. 

“Are they all lame like this one?” 

Keith: That one's not lame, but no. There’s like a ton of different genres in there. You’ll see when I eventually take the time to organize them. 

“So basically when I have to write this stupid essay you’ll help me?” 

Keith: Maybe. 

“Please?” Lance said, begging with his hands. 

Keith: Okay, fine. You owe me though. 

“Anything you want. I’m done for tonight though…. Which brings me to my next question. Can I braid your hair?” This earned a weird look from Keith. “Please? I think it’ll look nice.” 

Keith: You make fun of my ‘mullet’ all the time.

“I don’t know what the quotes are about, that’s literally a mullet, but I like it.” Lace pouted. “I like your mullet. Now, let me braid it. Please?” 

Keith: Ugh, fine. I’m taking it out right after though, I don’t wanna have to straighten it tomorrow. 

“No. Keep it. I’ll straighten it for you tomorrow. Or you could just put it up like that.” 

Keith: Fine. 

“Yay!” Lance said smiling. He ran over to his bed and motioned in front of him. “Come on.” Keith rolled his eyes, but followed. Lance took his hair out of the little bun it was in and started running his fingers through it. 

Keith: You know what you’re doing right?

“Yes, I know what I’m doing. I have a lot of girls in my family. They all taught me before I could even ride a bike. You know, I actually used to braid Allura’s hair almost everyday before school. I still would, but she wears it down now. Don’t get me wrong, it’s pretty like that, but I used to do two french braids and they looked great. She still lets me do it if she has a rehearsal day though.” Lance said as he started. As much as he hated to admit it, Keith was loving it. He liked people playing with his hair. It was really relaxing. When he was done, Keith turned around with a mischievous smile. 

“What?” Lance asked cautiously. 

Keith: Since I let you do that, you have to let me paint your nails. 

“That’s like more permanent though.” He whined. Keith shook his head. 

Keith: I have nail polish remover. 

“Fine. You have to do yours too though. And not black. For mine or yours.”

Keith: Ugh. Fine. That really narrows down your choices though.

Keith walked to the bathroom and came back with a few bottles of nail polish and handed them to Lance before sitting on the floor again, motioning for Lance to join him. He had white, black, bright red, and a dark blue. 

“I’ll do the blue, you’re doing red.” 

Keith: How did I know? Also, you do know I won’t be able to text you for a while after right?

“Well, I guess I’ll just have to read your mind. You wanna do mine first or yours?” Keith pointed to him then took out the blue nail polish. He took Lance’s hand and started polishing them. “So you do this a lot? I saw some black on your nails when you first got here, but your sleeves usually cover your hands..” He nodded. Soon, he was done and started on his own nails. Lance just watched. About half an hour later, their nails were dry. 

Keith: They should be dry now. 

“You know, I don’t hate it.”

Keith: Good. I like it.

“Maybe I’ll keep it for a while.” 

Keith: You should. 

“Well, I’m gonna head to bed. We’re leaving at nine tomorrow. You still coming?” Keith nodded. “We’re also stopping for coffee in the morning.” Keith nodded again and got into his own bed. Lance flipped off the lights and laid down too. They both tried to go to sleep, but neither of them could. “Keith? Are you still up?” Lance asked after about an hour. Keith sat up and nodded. “I can’t sleep.” 

Keith: Yeah, me either. 

“You wanna see something cool?” 

Keith: I guess. 

“Put your shoes on. I know I still haven’t given you the other tour a.k.a the cool one, but this is part of it.” Lance said, walking to his shoe rack. Keith grabbed his boots and pulled them on, not bothering to properly tie them. “You ready?” Keith nodded and grabbed his phone as Lance threw on a jacket. He grabbed Keith’s hand and pulled him out into the hallway. They walked up a few flights of stairs, then down a corridor until they reached a door at the very end. Lance pulled Keith up two more flights, and out another door. They were now standing on the roof of the dorms, Lance still hadn’t dropped his hand. 

“What do you think? Best view on campus.” Lance said smiling. 

Keith: How did you even figure out how to get here?

“I’ve been here for six years now. I know how to get basically everywhere. I come up here when I can’t sleep. I like the stars. Come here.” He said, leading him back to the little brick structure where the door was. He kicked an old crate over to the wall and pulled himself up, then extended a hand to Keith pulling him up next to him. He laid back, and Keith followed. They laid there in silence, just looking at the stars, then Lance found himself no longer paying them any attention, he was looking at Keith. When he saw Keith fighting to keep his eyes open, he decided it was time to head back.

“Alright, we should probably head back now.” He said jumping down. Keith sat on the edge and looked down, looking for the best way to get down. “Just jump. I’ll catch you.”Keith stared back at him like he was crazy. “What? You’re not heavy, I won’t drop you I promise.” Keith still seemed unsure. “Do you trust me?” Lance said, offering his hand. 

Keith: Really? Aladdin?

“Yeah. Come on. Seriously, I got you.” Keith hesitated, but eventually jumped down. “See?” Lance said before setting him down. “Told you.” Keith rolled his eyes and made his way back to the door. 

Chapter Text

The next morning, Lance woke up a little later and took a shower. When he got out, he threw on a pair of boxers and went to wake up Keith. His first attempt failed. He had tried to shake him awake, but he just rolled over and sleepily waved him off. 

“Keith. Get up.” He said, shaking him again, this time it worked. He rolled over and glared at him. “Guessing you’re not a morning person?” Keith shook his head. “Alright, well we’re leaving in twenty.” He nodded and stood up. He grabbed a few things from his dresser and walked into the bathroom. 

When he came back out he was wearing a pair of black pants and a dark gray tee shirt. He quickly grabbed the red jacket that was hanging on his bedpost and threw it on. Lance was standing at his dresser mirror doing his hair. He was wearing jeans with a white shirt and a green jacket. He watched for a second before grabbing his black fingerless gloves and throwing on a belt. Lastly, he pulled his boots on. Then he had to figure out his hair situation. When he took the braid out and ran his fingers through it, he was left with a wavy mess. He walked up to Lance and glared. 

“Hey, I like it. If you really hate it I’ll help you straighten it, or you know you could put it up like you had it yesterday.” He rolled his eyes in response and pulled his hair up into a little bun at the back of his head, then pulled out a few pieces at the front to frame his face. Lance watched, then studied him for a second before reaching out and pulling out another couple of pieces. Keith rolled his eyes, but honestly it did look better. 

“You ready?” Keith nodded. Lance grabbed his hand again and pulled him to the living room where everyone else was waiting. “You guys ready?”

“Yeah, let’s go, I made a list.” Hunk said excitedly, heading out the door. Pidge and Allura followed. 

“I don’t know where they think they’re going. They have no idea where I’m parked.” Lance whispered, making Keith smile. When they got outside, they saw the rest of the group walking in the wrong direction. “Wrong way!” He shouted, making them turn around. Keith and Lance were both already in the car by the time he got there. Pidge and Allura took the third row, and Hunk took the middle to himself. 

“Okay, Jim’s or that place on Estes?” 

“Ooh, Jim’s!” Pidge shouted. 

“Jim’s it is.” Keith listened as Hunk told everyone what all he was looking for. Soon, they arrived at a little coffee shop in the center of town. Hunk got out and pulled the seat up to allow the girls out, who immediately took off to the shop. Hunk followed a little less energetically. Lance waited as Keith walked around the car. 

“This place is great. They have tons of different coffees and some tea. I’m assuming you’ll need a second to figure out what you want?” Keith shook his head. “No?” 

Keith: I only like black iced coffee. 

“Really?” He nodded. “Well, I’m getting a caramel cappuccino.” Lance said as they walked in. “You can go sit over there if you want while I order.” He offered, but Keith shook his head. They ordered, then took their coffees to the little lounge area where everyone else was. Lance flopped down on one of the smaller couches and patted the spot next to him. Keith sat down and drank his coffee while everyone tried to come up with ideas for tomorrow. 

“What’s with the nail polish?” Allura asked. 

“Oh, he let me braid his hair so I let him paint my nails. I made him let me pick out his color though. I kinda like it honestly.” 

“I do too!” Allura chirped. “I suck at painting my own nails. You should do mine sometime.” She said, turning to Keith. He nodded softly. He was kind of happy she asked. He needed to hang out with more than just Lance. Soon, their coffee cups were empty and they were back on the road. When they got there, Hunk led them inside. Suddenly, Keith latched onto Lance’s arm.

 “People?” He asked. Keith nodded, wide-eyed. Their school wasn’t that big, but even walking through the halls there made him anxious, so Costco on a Saturday morning seemed like hell. At least at school he kind of knew a lot of the students and it was very unlikely anything would happen, here he wasn’t so sure. “Have you ever been here?” He asked, pulling his arm back, then interlacing their fingers. Keith shook his head. “It’s pretty cool. They have like everything.” He said, trying to distract him, but it clearly wasn’t working, so he stopped and pulled him into an aisle with less people. 

“If you want to leave at any point, just tell me… better yet, just squeeze my arm or my hand twice. We can just go wait in the car. Either way, I promise everything will be fine. I won’t leave your side, and you know I won’t let anything happen to you right?” Keith nodded shyly. “Do you want to just leave now?” He asked softly, but Keith shook his head. “Alright, let’s go find Hunk then.” He said, re-interlocking his fingers and leading Keith past a few alise until he saw the others. Hunk was standing in front of an empty pallet, looking up. 

“You need a hand?” He asked. 

“See? This is why I love you.” 

“Which one?” Lance asked through a laugh. 

“There should be a big bag of carnaroli rice up there.” 

“Say no more.” He said before turning to Keith. “I’ll be back in like thirty seconds. I promise, it’ll be fine.” He whispered before grabbing the shelf and pulling himself up, then climbing up to the next one. “You ready?” He shouted down. 

“Yeah. Here, aim for the cart!” He tossed the bag off the shelf, landing it in the cart. 

“You ready? You better not drop me this time!” 

“I won’t!” Lance climbed down to the lower shelf and jumped off, landing in Hunk’s arms. “Thanks.” 

“No problem buddy.” He replied walking back over to Keith. He immediately grabbed his hand again. “Sorry.” He whispered. “Allura won’t do it. She’s the only other one who physically can, but she got yelled at by security one time and refuses now.” Keith nodded. They followed Hunk around for a while, but Lance started to get bored. “You wanna do something fun?” Keith just shrugged and Lance pulled him away and to the paper towel aisle. He quickly pulled himself onto a shelf, then pulled Keith up with him. He started rearranging the extra stock and basically built a fort. “Come on.” He said, motioning for Keith to get behind the wall he had built. 

Keith: Why are we up here?

“Because I think it’s fun and there’s no people. Once Allura realizes I’m gone she’ll start looking and we get to see how long it takes for them to either freak out or find us.” 

Keith: You’re strange. 

“Yeah, you like it though.” 

Keith: Maybe.

Keith could feel his blush, he just hoped Lance couldn’t see it since the lighting was bad. They sat there for a few minutes before Lance got a facetime call from Allura. He held his phone super close to his face so she couldn’t see and answered with a smirk. 

“Lance! Where are you? I was worried!” 

“What do you mean?” 

“Where are you?” 

“Allura… Why are you calling me?... I’m like three feet away from you.” He said almost convincingly, making her look around. Lance immediately started laughing. 

“Lance! Not funny!”

“Yes it is. Besides, you know you love hide and seek.” 

“Not when you just disappear, not to mention you have Keith too. I thought you both got kidnapped or something! At least give me a hint for emotional compensation.” 

“Hmm… you’ll have to look up from your phone.” 

“Lanc-” He hung up, cutting her off.

Keith: What kind of hint was that?

“A good one. She’s smart, she’ll figure it out.” About fifteen minutes later, one of the packages of paper towels was pulled down, then another. 

“I found you!” Allura chimed victoriously, standing on the bottom stack of towels. 

“Yep. Sixteen minutes and twenty-three seconds. Not your best time.” He said, slinging himself down using the bar of the shelf. 

“Where’s Keith?” 

“Still up there. Go find Hunk, I’ll be there in a minute.” 

“Okay, he’s almost done so we’ll probably be in the produce section.” 

“Cool see you in a few.” He said as he skipped off. “You know I’m not gonna drop you now?” Keith rolled his eyes and jumped down, landing in Lance’s arms. “Alright, let’s go.” He said, grabbing his hand. They saw Hunk studying the tomatoes in the produce section. 

“I just have to grab tomatoes, lettuce, and onions now. Then I say we go get some lunch.” 

“Sounds good to me.” Soon enough, they made it to checkout. “I’m gonna head to the car. I should probably make sure there’s nothing in the trunk.” He said to the group before pulling Keith out. He knew there wasn’t anything in the trunk, he just knew the check out area was the busiest and didn’t want to make Keith stand there. When they got to his car, he sat down against the hood. He looked over to see Keith confused since he was with him when he checked last night. “I figured you wanted to leave.” He nodded and sat next to him. 

Chapter Text

Suddenly, Lance noticed him tense up. He looked around, then saw a man standing across the lane staring. When he started walking, he pulled Keith behind him and pulled him to the passenger side and pushed him in, locking him in. Then, he leaned against the door. Keith knocked on the window and gave him a confused look, but Lance just held up a finger. The man was still walking towards him. When he was only a few feet from the car, Lance took a step forward. 

“Can I help you with something?” He asked as nicely as he could. 

“Yeah actually.” He said walking up to him, stopping only a few inches from Lance’s face. He honestly wasn’t much bigger than Lance. He was about an inch shorter and probably only had about thirty pounds on him. “I think I saw you at the diner last night. With the emo kid too.” 

“And?” 

“And, I wanna talk to him.” He snarled. 

“Yeah… not gonna happen.” 

“Why not? He’s my nephew.” 

“Yeah? What’s his name?” 

“I don’t have to tell you shit.” He hissed. 

“Actually, you do. If you can’t prove you know him, you’re not going anywhere near him.” Lance said, getting more in his face. “Now, turn around, and walk away.” The next thing he knew, a punch landed on his jaw. He blocked the next, then hit the man in his stomach with his knee before driving his elbow into his back, flipping him over his knee. “You wanna try that again?” The man stood and got back in Lance’s face, who just glared back. After a few seconds of staring, the guy backed off and walked away. He watched as the guy got back in his car, before he unlocked his own and opened the passenger side door. When he opened it, Keith was just staring at him. 

“Hey.” He said casually. Keith didn’t respond. “You okay?” 

Keith: What the fuck just happened?

“Oh… uh he was like a junior or something when I was in like seventh grade and we kinda had a rivalry.” He lied. “Guess he’s not over it.”

Keith: I know you’re lying.

“Okay… I honestly don't know. No idea who he is.”

Keith: What did he want?

“To talk to you.” Lance sighed. “See? Told you I wouldn’t let anything happen to you.” Keith reached his hand up to Lance’s face, turning his head. “I’m fine.” He said, noticing Keith’s shakiness. “You alright?” Keith shrugged. “Hang on.” He said, running over to the drivers side and scooting over to the middle. 

Keith: Why did he want to talk to me?

“I dunno.” He whispered, wrapping an arm around him. “Don’t worry about it. He’s gone now. Told you I could fight.” He said with a sympathetic laugh. Keith just curled into him. “You want me to have Hunk drive and we can ride in the back?” He just shrugged. “I’m gonna take that as a yes. They’ll be here in a second, go ahead and get back there on the right so I can let someone in the way-back.” Keith nodded and moved as Lance walked behind the car, waiting for the others. When they got there, he tossed Hunk the keys. 

“What?”

“You’re driving. My head hurts.”

“Okay… Why not Allura?” 

“You know why not Allura.” 

“I heard that!” She shouted as she opened the trunk.

“You can pick the restaurant for lunch if you do.”

“Fine. You have to help us unload though.” When they got everything unloaded, he let Allura into the third row, he sat next to Keith in the middle, and Hunk and Pidge took the front. As soon as he was back, Keith moved over to the middle. He was still a little shaky. 

“You alright?” He whispered. Keith nodded. “Everything’s fine. We’re gonna go get some food and head home.” He said, pulling him closer. 

Keith: I’m sorry about your face… Why didn’t you just get in the car?

“Don’t worry about it, I’ve had worse…. And because I told you I wouldn’t let anything happen. I never will. I would honestly do just about anything for anyone in this car, you’re no different.” He whispered, pushing a piece of Keith’s hair behind his ear.

Soon, they arrived at a little burger shop downtown. Hunk said they had the best burgers in town. Honestly, Lance didn’t care, he was just hungry. Lance practically guarded Keith the entire way to the booth, and let him in first so he would be against the wall. Allura sat next to him and Hunk and Pidge sat across. 

“You want Sprite or what?” He asked. Keith just nodded. “What do you want to eat?” 

Keith: I’m not hungry.

“I figured… Will you atleast try and eat some fries?” He shrugged. “I’m gonna order you some. You should really at least try and eat something. You haven’t eaten all day.” After they ordered, Allura leaned over and whispered in Lance’s ear. 

“You like him and what happened to your face?” 

“I don’t, and I hit myself with the car door.” He whispered back. 

“How hard?” 

“Like full strength.” He said, selling it with a laugh. He knew it would work because he was constantly injuring himself by being clumsy. 

“Also, I can tell you do.”

“Do not.” He argued, feeling his face blush before he turned back to Keith, feeling him bouncing his leg. He put a hand on his knee. 

“Calm down. Everything’s fine I promise. Remember, I’ll obviously put someone on the ground for you.” He whispered. Everyone could tell something was going on with Keith, but they figured it was better to just ignore it and let Lance handle it since he still didn’t really seem comfortable around anyone else. Keith only ate a few of his fries, and waited as everyone else finished their food. 

When they got back to the dorm, Keith was still on edge. It was only one, but he was exhausted. He made a beeline for his room. Lance stayed back to help put up some of the groceries. 

“Alright. I need a power nap. I’m gonna hit it. I’ll be back in a little while. We should watch some more ‘Breaking Bad' later.” He said. The others agreed and he made his way to their room. When he got there, Keith was sitting in his bed. “What’re you doin’?”

Keith: I’m tired.

“I figured. You wanna take a nap?” Keith shrugged. “I can stay with you. I need to read more anyway.” He nodded. Lance took off his shoes and jacket, grabbed his book, and walked over to Keith’s bed. “Scoot over.” Keith seemed confused, but did as he was told. Lance sat down, leaning his back against the headboard and opened his book. “You can come over here if you want. Seems like it helps.” Lance offered. Keith moved over, resting his head in Lance’s lap. As he read, one of his hands found its way to his hair. Keith was asleep within minutes. After a few minutes, Lance gave up on reading and just watched over him. After about an hour, he began to stir. Lance quickly grabbed his book off the nightstand and pretended to read as he woke up, not setting it down until he felt him sit up. 

“Good morning sunshine” He said teasingly as he watched Keith rub his eyes grumpily. He was immediately met with Keith’s middle finger. “We’re probably gonna stay in for the rest of the day. You wanna change and go watch some more ‘Breaking Bad’?” Keith shrugged and stood up. Lance did the same and pulled out a pair of sweats and a different tee shirt. He changed and turned to see Keith pulling his hoodie the rest of the way down. He was surprised to see his slight ab definition. He seemed so scrawny, he must train with Shiro sometimes. “You ready?” He asked. Keith nodded and grabbed a blanket from his bed before following Lance out. Everyone was already in the living room watching ‘Steven Universe’. 

“Breaking Bad?” He asked, earning a nod from Hunk. Allura tossed him the remote. He found the show and hit play. Everyone settled into their usual spots and zoned into the show. Honestly, Keith didn’t really care for it, but he did find it entertaining to watch everyone’s reactions to whatever was happening. 

“Does Jesse just get beat up in every episode?” Hunk asked. 

“Yeah, it kinda seems like it…” Allura responded. 

“I kinda feel bad for him.” Lance added. After a few episodes, Hunk decided to start on dinner. 

“Okay, I’m thinking salmon filet. And yes Lance, I got you chicken nuggets. How are you literally from an island and you hate fish.” 

“I’m assuming you don’t like salmon?” He asked Keith, who shook his head. “Go double on the nuggets. Also, I don’t hate all fish. Also, fish is better back home, and we never really eat salmon there.” 

“Well, you know salmon is a lot better for you than frozen dinosaur nuggets?” 

“Yeah, maybe, but you know what, dino nuggets make me happy.”

Keith: You are a child.

“Don’t hate on the dino nuggets. Besides, why not enjoy the things I did like ten years ago? I refuse to abandon all the things I used to love.” 

“Oh no, don’t get all sentimental.” Pidge mumbled from the floor. 

“I’m not!” The others talked as Hunk got started on their food. Hunk made roasted brussel sprouts and rice to go with the salmon. When it was done, he plated everything. 

“Do you guys want any sauce?” He asked Lance and Keith. Keith shook his head. 

“Just ketchup for me.” Hunk brought them their plates first, then took plates to the girls, and finally sat down himself. 

“Can we watch Harry Potter?” Lance asked, already searching for it. 

“Yes!” Pidge shouted. Allura and Hunk both nodded and Lance hit play. After they ate, they continued watching until Lance remembered he still had some history work he had to get done. 

“Alright, I have to finish up some homework, I’m gonna turn in.” He said standing up and taking his plate to the sink with Keith’s. When he left, Keith followed, flopping down in his bed. “Do you not have any homework?”  

Keith: Just math. I did everything else in class. I’m probably not gonna do the math though. 

“How did you have time? Also, why not?

Keith: Math is dumb and I hate it. Also, I don’t talk to anyone so… 

“Fair point. You should still do your math though.” 

Keith: But I hate it :( 

“It’s not that bad.” 

Keith: It totally is. I think I’m like number dyslexic. 

“Well, me too, but words, it’s not that bad though. Why do you think I hate reading? Besides, I can help you. Believe it or not I’m actually really good at math. I finished my freshman year with like a ninety-six.”

Keith: Yeah… I was like three points away from failing last year. 

“Okay, so let me help you. What do you have to do?” 

Keith: Just like textbook questions. I started on them yesterday, but I gave up after like four questions.

“Okay, well I have to do some essay questions for my history class. Why don’t you start on it and I’ll help you when I’m done.” 

Keith: Fine.

Chapter Text

Keith sat at his desk and tried to do a few problems. He got through about four before he gave up and started staring at the ceiling. About twenty minutes later, Lance rolled his chair over to Kieth’s desk. 

“How’s it going?” Keith just rolled his eyes and shook his head. “Let me see.” He scooted his chair over, making room for Lance beside him. “Hey, you got like half of them right, that’s not too bad. So, this one, you just left out the negative. That threw you off here.” He said, showing him where the problem was. He helped him finish the rest of the questions, explaining everything. Keith was just lost. “So, did any of that make sense?”

Keith: Not really. A little more I guess.

“You’ll get it at some point. I can always help you though. I actually kind of like math.” 

Keith: Why?

“I dunno. It stays the same I guess. I mean there’s a specific way to do everything and for the most part it stays the same every time.” Keith nodded and got up to go shower. While he was gone, Lance decided to try and read more. When Keith came out, he was wearing another black tank top with a thin black sweater over it,  and a pair of baggy red shorts. As he walked to his bed, he pulled his still damp hair back up. It was only nine now, so he wasn’t very tired. 

“You wanna go see downtown tomorrow?” Keith shrugged. “We don’t have to if you don’t want to, but we could just go walk around. It’s a small town, so… you know I won’t let anything happen.” He shrugged again. “Where are you from anyway? I never asked that, just if it was here.” 

Keith: Texas originally, until I was like ten. North Carolina for a little while. Then I moved to Wyoming with Shiro.

“So you're basically a cowboy?” Lance asked, resulting in an eyeroll. 

Keith: I lived on a ranch in Texas, but Shiro and I lived in Riverton, so no. 

“Living on a ranch sounds cool. I mean, I definitely prefer the beach, but still.”

Keith: Well, that makes one of us. 

“You don’t like the beach?” 

Keith: I can’t swim. I would probably die. 

“How?” 

Keith: I literally lived in the middle of nowhere in northern Texas, we never went to the gulf. Then I moved to Wyoming. I just never really hung out near the water.

“Not even like a pool?” 

Keith: No. Never really had an interest in it.

“Well, sounds like I’m dragging you into the pool at some point. We have two, one’s for the swim team and it's all deep, but the other isn't.”

Keith: I don’t even have anything to wear so… 

“Okay, well I do. You can borrow something.” 

Keith: But I’m “Like half your size” 

“They all  have drawstrings. Quit using my words against me!” 

Keith: If I agree you have to tell me what the Taylor thing is about. 

“Or I could just throw you in.” Lance teased, making Keith’s eyes shoot open. “I;m joking. Fine, but I’ll tell you after.” 

Keith: Fine. 

“Yay! You wanna go tomorrow night.” 

Keith: I don’t WANT to go period. 

“Cool. So we’ll go after dinner. You wanna go to bed, or…”

Keith: I’m not tired yet. 

“Good, put on a warmer jacket.” 

Keith: Where are we going? 

“The roof. If you’re down.” He nodded and pulled on a jacket and a pair of sweats over his shorts, then put on his boots. Lance led him to the roof and back up onto the part where the door was. They stayed for about an hour before Lance saw that Keith was cold. 

“Alright, let’s head back. It’s kind of cold out. I mean, it is almost November.” Keith nodded and came down with a lot less hesitation this time. When they got back to the dorm, they both fell asleep fairly quickly. Lance woke up around two in the morning to see Keith freaking out. He was breathing super heavily and practically clawing at the sides of his head. 

“Keith?” He got no response. “Keith?” He asked again, sitting on the side of his bed, he still got nothing. Finally, he stood and quietly walked over to his bed. “Keith? What’s going on?” He asked, putting a gentle hand on his back. He tensed under the touch, but relaxed when he realized it was Lance. It really didn’t help though. “Come here.” He said, pulling him to his chest and pulling his hands away. “Can you try and follow my breathing for me?” He asked. Keith didn’t respond, but he started exaggerating his breaths anyway. Eventually, he followed. After a little while, his breath was finally mostly back to normal. “You wanna tell me what’s going on?” He asked, flipping on the lamp. Keith shook his head. “Do you want me to- are you bleeding?” He cut himself off, seeing the red on Keith’s hands. He just pulled his sweater over his hands and shook his head. 

“Come here.” He said, dragging him into their bathroom. He flipped the light on and pulled Keith’s hand out. They both had dried blood on them. He was just staring at the floor, avoiding eye contact. “Can you tell me where it came from?” He shook his head. Lance pulled up his sleeves and found the source of the blood. His arms were both covered in dried blood, and some fresh blood. He grabbed a hand towel from the closet and started wiping them off. When they were less bloody, he saw the red lines where the blood was coming from. He quickly cleaned them and wrapped a bandage around each arm. 

“Take the sweater off. It’s probably bloody.” Keith did as he was told, still avoiding his eyes. “Come here.” He said, pulling him into a hug, resting his chin on the top of his head. Keith didn’t move, he just stood there. He felt a few tears land on his shirt before he pulled back. “What did you do that with?” He just held up his hands. “Your hands?” Keith nodded. “So it was already there?” He nodded again. “Do you want me to text Shiro?” He shook his head quickly. “Okay… Come on, let’s try and get some sleep.” He said, pulling him back into the bedroom. He went to his closet and pulled out a blue hoodie and handed it to him before climbing into his bed next to him. Keith pulled the hoodie on and rolled over to face the wall. 

“Keith… You wanna come here…” He offered. Keith hesitated before turning and curling into Lance’s side. “So does Shiro know about this?” He shrugged. “Can I ask why you did that?” Keith motioned for Lance to hand him his phone. 

Keith: I didn’t mean to… I’m sorry… 

“You didn’t mean to?” Keith shook his head. “What do you mean?” 

Keith: I didn’t know until you saw it.

“Okay… So I’m assuming you just busted them open?” Keith nodded. “How long has it been since you actually cut?” 

Keith: Not long. Are you mad at me? 

Keith: Please don’t say anything to Shiro.

“No, of course I’m not mad at you. I get it, trust me. I won’t tell Shiro if you promise me two  things. When you want to do that, you tell me, and we talk about what happened. Not necessarily now, but at some point. I don’t know what’s going on, but I would like to. I wanna be able to help you.” 

Keith: Why?

“Because you don’t deserve to feel like this…” Keith just shrugged and turned his phone off. Lace assumed that meant he was done talking. “Alright, let’s get some sleep” Keith nodded and rolled over. Once Lance was sure he was asleep, he went back to sleep himself. It didn’t last long. A little after four-thirty, Keith shot up again, waking Lance up. He immediately held both of his hands and moved to sit in front of him.  Keith immediately fell into his arms. “Are you sure you don’t want to go to Shiro's? Don’t you have a key? I can walk you over there.” He asked after getting him to calm down a little. He shook his head. “Okay… Let me know if you change your mind.” Keith nodded and sat back up. “You wanna try and go back to sleep?” He shook his head. “Do you want to sneak out and go for a walk? Maybe it’ll help.” He thought for a second, but finally agreed. “Okay… Do you have anything warmer than that? It’s probably only about forty degrees out.” Keith shook his head. “Okay. Give me a second. I have an extra coat somewhere from a few years ago. It’ll probably fit you.” 

After he dug around in his closet for a minute, he tossed a black coat onto the bed next to Keith, then dug out his own. After he put it on, he threw on his shoes. Keith pulled on his boots and followed Lance out. On the way out of the building, Lance had an idea and led them to his car. They were close to the Cascade mountains and the sun was going to rise in a little over an hour. Keith got in, confused, but trusting Lance. They drove for about forty-five minutes, then the car stopped. They were pulled over on the side of a mountain road. Lance got out and motioned for Keith to join him. Realizing he had no cell service, he went to his notes app. 

‘Where are we?’ 

“Honestly, not sure which mountain, I just know how to get here. These are the Cascades. There’s a cool stop up here. It’s only like a mile away.” Keith nodded. Suddenly, Lance’s hand found his. They walked to a little clearing overlooking a valley with a lake. You couldn’t really see it yet, but you would be able to in about ten minutes. “We’re here.” Lance said, pulling Keith to a rock on the ledge. The sun was just starting to rise. It was amazing. The sky started to turn pink, then the orange and yellow came through. For some reason, it helped. Keith was totally lost in the view. Lance watched, still loving it even after seeing it hundreds of times. Then, he felt Keith’s head fall onto his shoulder. When the sun had fully risen, Lance turned to him. 

“You wanna go get Waffle House? Then we can go back to the dorms so you can go back to sleep if you want to.” He nodded, Lance relaced their fingers and led him back to the car. After another twenty minute drive, they arrived at Waffle House. Lance led him in and sat on the open side of the booth, putting Keith between him and the wall, knowing it would make him feel safer.

Chapter Text

 “What do you want?” Lance asked before the waiter came. 

Keith: Waffle and orange juice. 

“What do you want?” A clearly exhausted girl that didn’t look too much older than them asked, with the expected Waffle house attitude. 

“I’ll take a chocolate chip waffle and an apple juice, he wants a waffle and orange juice.” 

“Cool. I’ll have that out at some point, hopefully soon.” She droned. She started to walk away, but turned back. “I’m sorry… Do I know you from somewhere?” She asked Lance. 

“Uh… no, I don’t think so.” She studied him for a second. 

“Lance?” 

“No, I’m Evan.” 

“Huh… ok then.” She said walking away. He looked to Keith who was staring at him, clearly very confused. 

“Long story… Basically I went on like three dates with her a few months ago and she was… well psycho.” He whispered. 

Keith: Psycho? 

“Yeah… I mean, that tends to end up being my type though so, I should be used to it. She was obsessive. We went out for like three weeks and she came over once. She totally flipped out about Allura just existing, which I understand, Allura is well, Allura. Anyway, I explained to her that Allura opposed no threat and she totally lost it. I mean she seemed crazy before that but yeah…” Keith nodded.  

Keith: So you have a bad track record too?

“Yeah… I guess you could say that. I mean I’ve only really dated one person for longer than a few months. That one was rough. Other than that, yeah usually something like that happens. I actually suck at the whole dating thing, even though I probably seem like I flirt with anything that walks.” He said with a quiet laugh. “Yeah, that’s actually kind of where Taylor comes from.” 

Keith: How?

“I thought we said swimming first?” 

Keith: Come on. 

“What’s in it for me?” 

Keith: One question, not dodging it.

“Well, that’s actually better than I was hoping for. Can I redeem it whenever?” 

“Fine.” 

“Okay. Well, originally Hunk decided my nickname would be Princey in like sixth grade because we called Allura Princess, but now I’ve been left with Taylor. Fun back story there. Basically in seventh grade, I kinda realized I was bi because of this one guy in my gym class right? His name was James and I was like totally obsessed with him. So, what else would I do other than shamelessly flirt with him? Anyway, finally I left him my number in his gym locker and we started texting. Then, we started hanging out and the first time he ever tried to say my name he called me Taylor. I let him call me that for like a week before I just moved gym periods and blocked him because I didn’t know what to do.” He said face palming. He looked over to see Keith trying not to laugh. 

Keith: That’s awful. I mean, could’ve been worse… but wow. 

“Yeah. First real girlfriend was rough. So how about you?” 

Keith: Is this your one question?

“No.”

Keith: Then… don’t worry about it.

“Fine. It’s my one question.” 

Keith: I’ve dated two people. 

“That’s not all you’re gonna tell me!” He said clearly offended. “I did not tell you all of that to know you’ve dated two people!” 

Keith: Fine, I dated a girl for like three months and that ended for obvious reasons. 

“Obvious reasons?” Lance asked, resulting in Keith sighing and shaking his head. 

Keith: I’m gay, we went over this.

“Oh, yeah right. Continue.”

Keith: After we broke up I didn’t date anyone until like a year ago maybe. I dated this guy named Nathan for like six months. He would be why I don’t do the dating thing now. 

“What happened?” 

Keith: You already asked your question. 

“Fine.” 

Keith: You’ll find out at some point I’m sure. 

Soon, the girl came back with their food and drinks. She slid them onto the table, stared at Lance again, then walked to the window. 

“Whatever I say in the next few minutes, so with it.” He whispered. As she spun back around. 

“You lied to me! That’s your station wagon! I remember when you got your license!” She hissed. 

“I’m sorry? Who are you?” He asked, trying to keep up the act like he didn’t know her. 

“Uh, Rebecca. You’re Lance McClain, you go to Garrison Academy for singing and dancing. That’s your station wagon. We dated and you ghosted me! What are you with that weird theater bitch now?” She yelled, making Keith tense up. 

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” 

“Quit lying Lance! I deserve an explanation!” 

“Listen lady. I don’t know who Lance is. My name is Evan, I’m from California, not here. And I don’t know who you’re talking about, but I’m gay.” He said, wrapping his arm around Keith.  “This is my boyfriend… Jackson. We’re literally just here for my sister's wedding. Whoever Lance is, it’s probably a good thing he ghosted you. I’d honestly be worried about him if he didn’t.” She glared at Keith before huffing and walking away. When she walked away, he turned to Keith with an awkward smile. 

“Sorry..” He whispered. 

Keith: Yeah, I believe you about the psycho part now. 

“Yeah… She definitely didn’t believe me, but she knows she’ll look crazy if she says anything again. Everyone heard all of that.” 

Keith: How did you do that? 

“I’m a decent liar. I had a big family growing up, you learn how to get out of stuff.” Keith nodded and started in on his waffle. When they were done, Lance decided to just leave some cash on the table so they could just head out without seeing her again. Keith was half-asleep when they got to the dorms. Lance was too, they had both only gotten a few hours of sleep, so they both definitely needed a nap. When they got to their room, Keith took off his coat and flopped down on his bed, then rolled over to the edge and motioned for Lance to come with him. He agreed without hesitation. They fall asleep back to back, but Keith was just happy to have him close. 

Lance woke up to a mess of black hair covering his chest. Throughout their nap, they must’ve moved. Now Keith was curled up in his arms. He thought about getting up, but decided against it, thinking about the events of the last day. He spent a while just watching him sleep, playing with his hair. Then, he suddenly heard the girls scream. He jumped out of bed and ran into their room, thinking something had happened. When he got there, they were looking at Pidge’s phone giggling. 

“You guys have to stop doing that. I thought something was happening to you guys.” He said half out of breath. 

“Sorry.” Allura giggled. “You remember what I said at the burger place?” 

“Yeah, and you’re wrong.”

“Is she?” Pidge asked, turning her phone around. First, she showed a picture of them curled up together asleep, then one of him awake playing with Keith’s hair. 

“Yeah, she is. He’s having a hard time, I slept with him because I think he likes contact. Besides all of you know I’m just a cuddly person. You’ve all woken up like that with me.”

“Yeah… I don’t believe you.” Pidge said. 

“Me either.” 

“Okay, well think whatever you want, I’m going back to my room. Quit screaming. I thought I was going to have to fight someone.” He said walking out. Maybe they were right. When he got back to his room, Keith was sitting up. He was kinda cute all grumpy with his messy hair. 

“Sorry, the girls were screaming and I thought something might be happening so I ran in to check on them. They were just screaming about some guy they think is into someone.” He said, which was technically true. “You wanna go back to sleep?” He shook his head and grabbed his phone 

Keith: Do you still wanna show me the city? 

“Really?” 

Keith: Yeah, I need a distraction. 

“Alright, get ready and we’ll go.”

Chapter Text

When they got downtown, Lance parked on the street and paid the meter. Without even thinking, he opened Keith’s door and grabbed his hand, pulling him to his right side, away from the road. They were on the main intersection of the city. 

“Okay, so this is downtown Enumclaw. It’s not super small, but it still has kind of a small town feel to it.” Keith nodded.  “There’s not a ton down here, but I like it.” He said as they started walking. He showed him some of the best restaurants, the video game shop, the music store, a cool little rock shop, then he led him down another street. “I’ve never been here for obvious reasons, but I thought you might have an interest in it.” He said motioning to a little bookstore. “Do you wanna go in?” Lance asked, making Keith drop his hand. 

Keith: Not today, I have too many books as it is. 

“Fair enough.” Lance said, smiling as he felt Keith’s hand return. “You’re cold.” He said, making Keith furrow his eyebrows. “Your hand is freezing and your nose is pink.” He said with a laugh. “Come on, let’s go to the cafe down the block and get something warm to drink.” Keith nodded and followed. It was a cozy little cafe with the entire inside decorated like a mountain cabin. The second they stepped in, they were hit with a wave of warmth from the fireplace.

“Okay what do you want?” Lance asked, looking up at the menu. 

Keith: Apple cinnamon tea. 

Lance ordered, then led them over to a couch by the fire, handing Keith his tea and taking a sip of his cocoa. They enjoyed the fire for a while before Lance finally spoke again. 

“So, what do you think of the city?” 

Keith: I like it. It’s kind of like the college area of Riverton. 

“Was it this cold there?” 

Keith: Sometimes, yeah. Not in Texas though. I never really liked the cold. 

“Yeah, me too. I mean it’s at least seventy back home right now, if not in the eighties. It took me like a whole two winters to get used to it here.” 

Keith: I never got used to Wyoming. I doubt I will here either. I’m always cold though. 

“Really, why?” 

Keith: I’m anemic. 

“Is that why you’re so pale?” Lance teased. 

Keith: Shut up. 

“Hunk just texted. He said he’ll have food done in an hour, you wanna head back?” Keith nodded. They threw out their cups and walked back to the car. When they got home, the smell of stir fry filled the kitchen. Hunk filled their bowls and took them to the living room. 

“Chicken stir fry. I have a pie in the oven too.” 

“What kind?” Lance asked excitedly. 

“Huckleberry. Shay’s family sent her back with a bunch so she gave me some.” Lance turned to Keith with a wide grin. Keith gave him a warning glare and shook his head. 

“I’ll be your huckleberry.” He said with a smirk. 

Keith: It’s huckle bearer.

“Well, you correcting it makes it work even better! You just claimed your cowboy heritage!” 

Keith: Tombstone is in Arizona, dummy. 

“What what?” Allura asked. 

“He said it’s huckle bearer not huckleberry. Also Tombstone is in Arizona not Texas.”

“What? What does that mean? Also Texas?” Keith ran his tongue over his bottom teeth and flipped Lance off. 

“Yeah, what does that mean? Explain Walker. Educate us.” Keith rolled his eyes and began typing. 

Keith: Basically a huckle is the hardware on a casket. A huckle bearer was someone who carried the casket. Like a pallbearer. Doc Holiday was basically warning Ringo that he was going to kill him. On another note, Lance, I’ll be your huckle bearer. 

Lance repeated the whole thing without reading it first, making everyone laugh at the ending. 

“Oh, you’re never gonna hear the end of it Joe Dirt.” 

“So why do people say that in an endearing way?” Allura asked, now more confused. Everyone looked to Keith. 

Keith: First of all, Joe Dirt isn’t from Texas. And I don’t know. I guess huckleberry sounds endearing… or because your huckle bearers would probably be like people you loved. I don’t know why you guys think I’m a western encyclopedia. 

“Well, you seem to know what you're talking about.” Lance teased. 

Keith: I don’t even like westerns. 

“Why not? Tombstone is great.” 

Keith: I just never have. I’ve seen like most of the older ones though. Tombstone is like one of the least terrible ones. 

“So what I’m hearing is western night?” 

Keith: I will literally leave.

“Okay, okay, no westerns.” They all finished their food and waited on the pie. Lance basically force fed him, but he had to admit it was good. After dinner, they watched a couple movies and all decided to go to bed since they had school the next morning. Keith woke up in the middle of the night freezing. He had an awful headache too. Assuming he was just feeling sick from the weather, he stumbled into the bathroom. Before he made it there, he got really dizzy and tripped over his desk chair, making enough noise to wake up Lance. 

“What are you doing?” He asked. He slowly sat up and saw Keith standing, holding onto the edge of his desk. “You alright man?” When Keith didn’t react, Lance got up and helped him back to his bed. “You alright?” He asked, kneeling in front of him. He nodded and leaned against the bedpost. He was honestly having trouble breathing. “Is this from anxiety?” He asked, but Keith shook his head. “What’s wrong?” Lance asked. Keith pointed to one of the notebooks on his desk. Lance handed it to him with a pen. 

‘Was trying to get Tylenol.’ 

“I’ll get it. What’s going on?” He asked, as he went to grab the medicine, leaving Keith to write. When he came back, they switched. 

‘Head hurts. Cold. Dizzy. Can’t breathe.’ Lance reached to his forehead.

“Yeah, I think you have a fever… Anything else?” 

‘Chest hurts. Arm hurts.’ 

“Your chest is probably from the breathing. Can you take your arm out of the hoodie for a second?” Keith nodded and struggled to get his arm out. When he did, Lance turned on his phone flashlight and looked at it. He found a swollen red and purple mark on his arm, which looked like a spider bite. He grabbed a sharpie from his desk and drew a thin line around it. 

“I think that might be a spider bite… Which is weird because it’s winter, but I guess it’s not winter to them in here…” He whispered. “Did you see a spider at all today?” Keith shook his head. “Well, I’m assuming if it bit you it was out of defense, so maybe it was in your bed…” He said looking for signs of a spider in his sheets.”Take the hoodie off the rest of the way.” Keith took the hoodie off and handed it to him. When Lance shook it out, a little crushed yellow spider fell out. 

“Okay.” He said, trying to sound calm. He picked it up with a piece of paper and brought it to his desk. Just like he thought, it was a yellow sac spider. Keith looked ready to fall out. “Okay, I think I know what it was. Take some Tylonal and go to bed if you can. If it still hurts in two hours, tell me. It’s five past one right now. Tell me if anything gets worse.” Keith reached out for his hoodie, but Lance ignored it and got a different one out of his own wardrobe since there might have been sider residue in it. “Come here first. You should probably wash it.” He said, pulling Keith up and dragging him into the bathroom. When they were done, Lance took him back and let him lay down. 

“Try and get some sleep.” He said softly, sitting down on the ledge of his bed. “Keep that arm out. You can put it under the blanket, but I want to be able to see it. Keith struggled it out and grabbed his phone. 

Keith: I’m cold.
“I know.” He sighed before pulling off his shirt. “You’re lucky I’ve just gotten used to this from living with Allura. She uses me as a human heater all the time.” He said, laying down next to him. Keith was weirdly jealous at the mention of Allura, but the warmth radiating from Lance immediately took over his thoughts. He immediately wrapped himself around him. Lance loved it. He stayed up and watched as Keith slept. The next time he checked his arm, he was fully broken out in hives. Lance was afraid he was having an allergic reaction, so he woke him up. 

“How do you feel?” Keith shook his head and tried to get across he felt like he mouth was swelling, The red around the bite had now moved outside the circle. Lance knew they were going to the hospital, but he wasn’t sure if he should tell Keith. 

“I’ll be back in a second.” He whispered. He walked out to the kitchen and tried to call Shiro. He called him three times with no answer. Finally, he decided to just text him and try again in the car. When he came back, he grabbed Keith’s boots, phone, and wallet and brought them over to the bed. “You feel like you can walk right now?” Keith shrugged and attempted to stand up, but almost immediately fell over. 

Lance caught him and set him back down, deciding he would just carry him and forgo the boots for now. He dumped out his bag and threw everything in it followed by a phone charger, an extra hoodie, his wallet, and a few other things. Then, he decided to bring the spider. He grabbed a pickling jar from the kitchen and dumped the spider in, adding it to the bag. Then, he wrote a note to his roommates and left it in the kitchen. Finally, he threw the bag on and wrapped a blanket around Keith and slid his arms under him and scooped him up. Keith was clearly not liking the situation, but he gave up fighting quickly. 

“I’m trying to help you. Calm down. You know I’m not going to do anything that would hurt you.” Keith nodded and nuzzled into Lance’s chest. Once they got to the car, Lance dialed Shiro again, still no response. Giving up, he sped off. Technically, he wasn’t supposed to leave campus right now, and technically he was supposed to have taken Keith to the school’s medical center, but they would’ve just sent them to the hospital anyway. When they got there, Lance helped him get his boots on and helped him into the hospital, leaving him curled up in one of the waiting room seats. Then, made his way up to the desk. 

“Hi, how can I help you?”

“Yeah, my roommate got bitten by a spider and he’s like really not reacting well. I’m not sure he isn’t having an allergic reaction” 

“Okay, fill this out and bring it back up here when you’re done.” Lance nodded and took the papers. When he sat down, Keith leaned onto him. He could tell he wasn’t liking being there. 

“I can’t fill out most of this… Can you help me?” Keith nodded and attempted to help. “Okay… hopefully that’s good enough.” 

Chapter Text

“Keith Kogane?” A nurse called out. Lance quickly grabbed his bag and threw it over his shoulder before helping Keith to the door. “Who are you?” She asked.
“His roommate.” 

“You’ll have to wait here.” 

“If you want to know anything that’s going on, you’ll let me in.” 

“Why is that?” She asked, rolling her eyes. 

“He doesn’t talk. Now, let me through.” She looked to Keith who was gripping tightly onto Lance and rolled her eyes again before letting them in. 

“I need his weight and height.” She said motioning to the scale thing. Keith struggled to stand long enough for her to measure everything. “Are you aware he’s underweight?” 

“Yeah.” She then led them to a room. She silently took his vitals and asked what was going on. Lance gave her a run down and she scribbled some stuff down on her clipboard. 

“The doctor will be in shortly.” She mumbled before walking out. Lance dug Keith’s phone out and gave it to him. 

Keith: I don’t like her. 

“Yeah, me either. How do you feel?” 

Keith: Not good. Is me being underweight a problem? 

“No, you’re not even very underweight. Probably just a few pounds. I am too though. They just say that because we’re teenagers and they assume there’s something going on there. I think it’s more of a scare tactic honestly, not to mention, she was kind of a bitch.” Keith nodded and reached out to Lance. He got the memo and moved to the bed next to him. He knew he was cold. “Here.” He said, sliding Keith’s hands under his shirt. “It’s the best I can offer right now.” Suddenly, Lance felt his phone vibrating. It was Shiro. 

“What is going on right now?” He asked frantically. 

“Keith got bit by a spider that was hiding out at the school. He woke me up trying to get Tylenol and I knew something was wrong. Found the bite, and the spider. I watched him for a while, decided he might be having a somewhat mild allergic reaction and took him to the ER. He’s not like going into anaphylactic shock or anything though.” 

“Which hospital?” 

“St. Elizabeth”

“How did you manage to make him go?” 

“I kinda just carried him to my car.”

“I’m surprised that worked. He hates the doctor.” 

“Yeah, I can tell.” 

“Have they told you anything yet?” 

“No. Is he allergic to any medicines? I’m sure they’ll ask when the doctor gets in here.” 

“Not that I know of.” 

“Okay. Are you coming?” 

“Yeah. I’m getting dressed now.”

“Alright. The doctor will probably be in soon, so I’m gonna go.” 

“Ok, tell Keith I’m coming.” 

“I will.” 

Lance expected to see Keith happy that Shiro was coming, but he was just staring forward. 

“Hello? Keith?” He said, waving at him. Finally, he looked over to him. “Shiro’s on his way.” He nodded, then his eyes shot open. “What?” He pulled his arms out of the blanket. “Keith. It’s fine. That’s not gonna be his main concern right now. Maybe when you take the hoodie off you can keep your arms in up to where the bite is. How’s your throat? Does it still feel swollen?” 

Keith: A little. 

Just then, the doctor knocked and came in. 

“Hi there, I’m Dr. Kolivan. You must be Keith.” He said motioning towards him. “So, what’s the problem today?” 

“He got bit by a spider. I think it’s a yellow sac spider. I have it if that helps, I know you're supposed to try and bring it if it’s a black widow at least, so I did. Anyway, I kinda thought he might be having a mild allergic reaction to it.” 

“Okay. Seeing the spider would be helpful, that way we can fully identify it.” He said as Lance reached for his bag. “But, I would like to go over some symptoms and see what all you feel.” He said to Keith, who nodded. 

“Okay. So Itching?” Keith nodded. “It hurts, I assume.” He nodded again. “Muscle pain and cramping?” He shrugged. “Difficulty breathing.” He nodded. It continued like that though his entire list. “And you said you think he’s having a mild allergic reaction?” 

“Yeah.” 

“What symptoms have you noticed?” 

“Hives, fever, he said his chest hurts, and he said his throat felt like it was swelling a little. Also, he’s clearly feeling kind of faint.” 

“Okay. Can I see the bite?” He asked Keith who pulled his hoodie off to show it to him. “Ah, I see someone has already been trying to keep track of spreading.” He said pointing to the sharpie mark. “When did you do this?” 

“Just after one a.m.Is it like moving fast?” 

“Not too fast. I do agree with you though. It seems he’s having a mild reaction, nothing too serious. It’s good you brought him in though. You would’ve had to anyway with the way it’s spreading.” He was interrupted by a nurse bringing Shiro in. “And you’re dad I’m assuming?” 

“Close enough.” 

“Well, from what I’m seeing, everything’s fine. If he was going to go into anaphylaxis, he would’ve by now. I’m going to go ahead and give him an antibiotic now as well as an antihistamine. I would like for him to stay for at least another hour after so that I can monitor him. Is he allergic to any medication that you know of?” 

“No, not that I know of.” 

“Okay. And you said he had Tylenol when?” 

“Just after one.” 

“Okay then, I’ll get him some ibuprofen too. The nurse will be back with it any minute, then I’ll be back within the half hour for a check in. You know, he’s lucky to have such a good roommate. I don’t think I would’ve ever done all this for a highschool roommate.” 

“Yeah, he really does.” Shiro responded. The doctor waved and walked out. Keith pulled his hoodie back on and curled into Lance, clearly wanting to go back to sleep. 

“You gotta stay up for a little bit longer so you can take your medicine.” Lance whispered. Keith glared, but nodded. Soon, the nurse came in with a small cup of medicine and a cup of water. She didn’t say a word as she handed them to Lance and walked away. 

“Wow… she’s kind of…” Shiro started, trailing off. 

“A bitch? Yeah, I know.” Lance said, waiting for Keith to sit up. 

“Wasn’t going to be my word choice, but yeah.” 

“Yeah… She doesn’t like me.”

“Why?” 

“Because she didn’t want to let me come back here. Obviously that didn’t work out for her.”

“I’m glad.” 

“Yeah, I wasn’t gonna abandon him.” He said, watching Keith swallow all of the pills. “You wanna take a nap now?” Keith nodded and curled back into Lance who pulled him closer and started running his fingers through his hair. Shiro watched, trying not to break his serious expression. They obviously liked each other, and Lance obviously really cared about him. Either way, Shiro was just glad Keith found someone else to trust. After another hour and two check ins, the doctor said they were free to leave. Lance tried to wake Keith back up, but he just rolled over. 

“Come on man, we can leave now. Don’t make me carry you.” He said, thinking Keith would get up, but instead he just held out his arms. “Well, that didn’t work. Looks like I’m carrying him.” He said to know one in particular, earning a quiet chuckle from Shiro. Lance leaned over and let Keith wrap himself around his waist. He mumbled something that Lance couldn’t make out, but he still caught himself smiling at the fact he even did that. Shiro may have also snuck a few pictures as he followed them out. By the time they got to the car, it was already past four. 

“Are you going to be okay getting him back to the dorms?” 

“Yeah, I’ll be fine.” Lance said, yawning. “But if I miss some classes, you better vouch for me.” 

“I will. They gave me a doctor’s note for him in case he doesn’t feel well enough to go to school. I’ll try and write you a pass to go with it. None of the pharmacies are open until tomorrow morning. I’ll pick up his medicine when I get up for class and take it to my room. Just come by in between periods when you get up.”

“Alright, thanks man.” He said, finally prying Keith off of him. 

“Don’t thank me. I’m the one that should be thanking you. I’m glad he ended up with you. It seems like he trusts you a lot.” Shiro said as Lance closed the passenger side door. 

“One more question. What did you mean like the second night he was here… about if anything happened?” 

“Sometimes he has a hard time sleeping…”

“He like freaks out in the middle of the night?” 

“Yeah. They say it’s PTSD induced. Has that happened?” 

“Yeah. It wasn’t too bad though.” 

“You could’ve called me.” 

“I offered to. I offered to walk him to your dorm too, but he didn’t want to go.”

“Did he cut or just bust the old ones open?” He could tell Lance was confused. “He thinks I don’t know. Don’t tell him I do, please.”

 “I won’t, he just busted older ones open.”

“So… What did you do?” 

“Well I sleep really light so he woke me up. Anxiety is like a big thing in my family, my little brother has it really bad. He always had really bad nightmares when we were younger, so I just did the same things I used to do with him. Then I found the blood and cleaned him up. Afterwards, I stayed with him and let him sleep, but it happened again, that’s when I remembered your text. He said no and I asked if he wanted to go to bed and he said no, so we went on a walk.” 

“Where?” 

“I took him to see the sunrise. I think it helped honestly. He seemed to enjoy it.” 

“I’m surprised he agreed to that.”

“Yeah, well he knows I’ll put someone on the ground for him.”

“What?” 

“He didn’t tell you about that?”

“About what?” 

“Some creep at Costco. He said he needed to talk to him and he was like his uncle or something, but when Keith saw him I could tell he didn’t want anything to do with him and got him to the car. When I didn’t let the guy through he punched me and I flipped him to the ground.”

“So that’s what’s wrong with your face?”

“Yeah… I dunno, it was weird.”

“What did the guy look like?” 

“Little bit shorter than me, maybe twenty-thirty pounds more. Super chiseled face… oh yeah and he had a scar going down below his eye.” 

“Ok. Well, if you ever see him again, call the cops.”
“What? Why?” 

“I think I know who that was. He doesn’t, keep it that way.” 

“Okay… Well I’m gonna head back. See you tomorrow.” Lance said, climbing into the car. 

Chapter Text

When they got to the dorm, Lance didn’t even try to wake Keith up. He just scooped him up and carried him inside. He laid him down before emptying his back and plugging both their phones up. Then, he went to the kitchen, threw out the old note, and wrote a new one. 

‘We know we slept in. I’ll explain later. Don’t try and get us up please. - Lance’ 

When he got back to the room, he noticed Keith sweating, meaning his fever probably finally broke. He pulled Keith hoodie off of him, locked the door, and got into his own bed, finally being able to go to sleep. When he woke up, it was third period. It got out in about ten minutes, so he decided to go ahead and make his way to Shiro’s room. He quickly scribbled a note on a post-it and stuck it to Keith’s phone in case he woke up. 

‘I’ll be back in a few. Just going to grab your meds from Shiro’s.’ 

He only had to wait a few minutes until the bell rang and students rushed out of the room, leaving it empty other than Shiro. 

“Hey, how’s Keith?” Shiro asked when he noticed Lance. 

“Still asleep.”

“How does his arm look?” 

“About the same. It’s probably going to look worse before it gets better. I got bit in seventh grade by the same kind of spider. That’s how I figured it out so quickly.” 

“Well, you’re both excused for the whole day, so you can stay with him. His meds are on my desk. Give him the antihistamines if he needs them every six to eight hours, it’s Diphenhydramine so it’ll probably make him sleepy. Antibiotics are twice a day with food so I guess wait until tonight to give him one. He can have Tylonal with them too.” 

“Alright. I’ll have him text you when he wakes up.”

“Good. Keep him safe for me.”

“Will do.” Lance said, walking out. He was glad Shiro liked him. Honestly, at first he kind of intimidated him, but he seemed to like him. When he came back to the room, he threw out the sticky note and climbed back in bed. He played a few games on his phone until he saw Keith stretching out of the corner of his eye. 

“Good morning sunshine.” He said, knowing it would earn him a glare. Keith huffed and sat up. “So… How ya’ feeling?” He asked, walking over to Keith’s bed. 

Keith: Awful. 

“Better though?” 

Keith: A little.

“Your hives are gone. Do you feel anything allergic reactionary?” 

Keith: What?

“Like are you breathing okay? Feeling faint? Any swelling? Nauseous? Any of that? You should really be fine other than your arm and maybe a headache now unless you are.

Keith: I don’t know. I think I’m fine. Just my head.

“Okay, let me know if that changes. I’ll go get you something to drink so you can take some Tylenol. You start your antibiotics tonight after dinner.” Keith nodded as he walked out. When he came back, he gave Keith the pills and water. 

“You know, hospital Keith is really clingy.” He said, earning a confused look. “Shiro sent me some pictures, hang on.” He went to Shiro’s contact and found the pictures before showing him the phone. 

Keith: Shut up. I was like literally dying and on drugs! 

“You weren’t dying.” 

Keith: I felt like it :( 

“I know. We’re off for the day. You wanna watch some movies?” 

Keith: What movie?

“You pick. We have the dorm to ourselves until the end of school so…” 

Keith: Black Cauldron. 

“Alright. You need me to carry you to the living room?” He teased, earning a scowl. Keith aggressively stood and started walking to the living room, but had to stop a few steps in to regain his balance. “I was messing with you. Give me a second and at least let me walk with you so I can catch you if you like faint or something.” Lance said, grabbing them both a blanket and walking to the living room, keeping a hand on the small of Keith’s back. 

“Lay down. I’m gonna go see what we have to eat. I don’t really know how to cook, other than a few things my mom’s taught me… but I’ll see what we have.” Keith nodded as Lance walked into the kitchen. He came back a few minutes later. “Okay… so based on what we have and what I know how to cook, we have a few options. I can make ramen, omelets, some kind of pasta, or french toast. What sounds good?” 

Keith: French toast. 

“Okay. You can start the movie. What do you like on it?” 

Keith: Not syrup. I hate syrup. Do you have just like powdered sugar?

“Yeah, I’ll be back in like fifteen minutes.” Keith nodded and searched for the movie. He didn’t even notice Lance was back until he nudged him. “You can go back to sleep after you eat.” He nodded again and took a bite. It was surprisingly good. 

Keith: I thought you couldn’t cook?

“I said most things. French toast is a different story.” Lance said with a laugh. After Keith finished his food, he tried to stay up a little longer, but ended up falling back asleep. He woke up an hour later feeling like he was suffocating. He didn’t know what to do, so he chucked a throw pillow at Lance who was also half asleep. 

“What? You okay?” He shook his head and motioned to his throat. “You feel like it’s swelling again?” He nodded and Lance ran off to their room and came back with the bottle of pills and handed him one, before checking the time to make sure he would wait long enough. Keith struggled to swallow it, but got it down. Lance’s heart hurt, he looked miserable. For some reason, he felt at fault. He was supposed to protect Keith and now he was sitting on their couch struggling to breathe. “Give it like thirty minutes to kick in. I know it sucks, I’m sorry.” Lance said, sitting down next to him. 

Keith: Why are you so nice to me?

“Why wouldn’t I be?” Lance asked. Keith shrugged and leaned onto his shoulder. “Seriously?” 

Keith: Usually people aren’t. I’m not exactly normal. People usually think I’m mean because I don’t talk to them.

“Well, you’re a little moody sometimes, sure, but I don’t think you’re mean. Also, in case you haven’t noticed, no one here is normal. No one at this school, but especially not in this dorm.”

Keith: You know what I mean. 

“Okay, so you don’t talk? Who cares?” 

Keith: Most people.

“Shiro doesn’t, I don’t, believe it or not, none of the others do either. They’ve just been trying to give you space. I mean, Hunk loves everybody, Pidge is just a little anti-social, and you know Allura likes you. They don’t care. I don’t see why anyone would.”

Keith: You will at some point.

“No, I won’t. Even if you never speak to me, I’ll still want you around. Where is all of this coming from?” 

Keith: I’ve just never really had friends, not since before everything happened anyway. It’s weird.

“Well, you do now.” He just shrugged. “Seriously.”

Keith: For how long? 

“Until you get sick of me.” Lance pulled him into a hug. He could feel a few tears fall onto his shirt. “Try and get some more sleep.” He whispered, running his hands through his hair. After he fell asleep, Lance waited for lunch period. Finally, it came. 

 Lance: Hey, can I talk to you about something?

Shiro: What? Did something happen?

Lance: Keith is taking a nap, he’s fine. 

Shiro: Okay. Meet me in my studio in 15. 

Fifteen minutes later, he was walking down the hall to Shiro’s studio. When he got there, he saw him sitting at his desk eating his lunch. 

“Hey.” He greeted. 

“Hey…”

“Has Keith eaten?”

“Yeah, I made him french toast.”

“Okay, what did you need to talk about?”

“Why does he think I’m going to like… stop liking him? He was seriously questioning it earlier.” Shiro nodded kind of sadly. 

“Well, he hasn’t really trusted many people other than me after everything that happened…”

“Okay…”

“So basically, he had one friend at his old school and a lot happened with that, I mean I literally had to take him out of school because he wouldn’t go back. Then, he started dating someone…” 

“The Nathan guy?” Shiro nodded. 

“Same kind of thing happened there. He hasn’t been close to anyone since, until you.”

“What happened?” 

“Well, the school thing was a lot worse, but with Nathan, basically they had been dating or whatever for a few months, and he got tired of Keith not talking to him. I’m not going to go super into detail, but in both situations, he finally trusted someone and they totally broke him. Basically, he trusts you and he’s convinced that means you’ll hate him in a few months.”

“How can I prove that won’t happen?” 

“You can’t, you just have to give him the time to realize it. He even gets like that with me sometimes.” He said before standing up. “Now, I’m supposed to do the whole ‘dad’ thing I guess…” 

“No, no I get it. I hurt him in any way and I’m dead.” Lance said, holding his hands up. 

“Good. I trust you won’t, but I will still kill you if I have to.” He said a little too casually for Lance’s comfort. 

“Well, you won’t ever have to, I promise.” 

“Good, now go check on him.” Lance nodded and quickly left. Everything Shiro said made sense. He had to prove to Keith he was different. 

Chapter Text

When Lance got to the room, Keith was awake. He was sitting on the couch, staring at the door. 

“Hey… You okay?”

Keith: Where did you go?

“I was just talking to Shiro. He was asking about you.” Keith nodded and visibly relaxed. “You wanna watch another movie?” Keith nodded, then Lance got another text. 

Garrison Academy News: We are having some difficulties with the heating system. All classes will continue until the temperature drops to a lower temperature. We expect to have the system fixed in the next few hours, until then please remain in the main building, the dorms will become colder faster. If it hasn’t been fixed by the end of the school day, we recommend everyone comes to the dinning hall. We will keep everyone updated. 

“Did you get that?” Keith shook his head. “Basically, the heat systems messed up. They said it’ll stay warmer in the main building. Do you wanna go find somewhere to hide out there, or stay here and just try and stay warm?

Keith: Here. 

“Alright, well I’m gonna go grab some extra blankets and get you a warmer hoodie.” He said, walking down the hall. He came back with a stack of blankets and one of his hoodies. “Here, but that on.” Keith did as he was told and changed hoodies. “Pick out a movie.” He said, laying all the extra blankets within reach and sitting down. Keith landed on ‘Spirited Away’. Not even halfway through the movie, they already had all the blankets on the couch and he could tell Keith was still cold. “Sit up for a second.” Lance said, Keith sat up and Lance straightened  out the blankets and laid down behind him. “Alright. You can lay back down.” When he did, Lance wrapped his arms around him. “Are you sure you don’t wanna try to find somewhere else? You’re freezing.” 

Keith: You’re not?

“Not really. Actually-” He said, leaning up to pull off his hoodie, leaving him in just a tee shirt. “That’ll probably help.” Keith was starting to get tired. He slowly rolled over to face Lance’s chest. Lance grabbed his hand and slid it under his shirt and onto his back, knowing it would give him a little more warmth. Soon, they were both asleep. When Lance woke up, it was dark outside and their seven blankets had become one. He knew he needed to get up so he could get Keith to take his medicine, but he decided to wait a while. He stayed there for about another half hour, just enjoying the moment, then he finally gave in and woke him up. As per usual, he was met with a very grumpy Keith. 

“Come on buddy, get up. You need to eat so you can take your medicine. I guess the heat is working again.” He said, standing up. He walked to the kitchen and found a note. ‘Pasta in the fridge. Have fun dealing with the girls. - Hunk’. He pulled the pasta out and heated it up for Keith, after he brought it to the living room, he went to get his antibiotics. When he came back, he finally checked his phone. It was only six-thirty. Then, he saw the spammed texts from the girls which were mostly pictures of them asleep on the couch. He sighed. “I gotta go talk to the girls. Take one of those when you're done. I’ll be back in a minute.” He said before leaving. The second he got into their room, they both jumped up from where they were sitting on Allura’s bed. 

“We’re right!” 

“Literally how can you argue?” 

“Guys. Keith and I are just friends.”

“Yeah, you just leave with him in the early hours of the morning and sleep in super late.”

“Yeah actually. The first time we went into the mountains to see the sunrise. He was having a hard time and he needed it. Last night, we were in the ER until like four.” 

“What? Why?” Allura asked, clearly concerned. 

“He got bitten by a spider. You remember the one I went for in seventh grade? Yeah same kind, but he was having a bit of an allergic reaction and they had to hold him for a little while. Shiro got me out of class to watch him today.” 

“And you just decided to cuddle up with him for warmth right?” 

“Yeah.”

“Dude, you’re totally into him.”

“Pidge is right. And I think he likes you too.” 

“Okay, fine. Maybe I do. It doesn’t matter though, he doesn’t date.” 

“What?” 

“He told me he doesn’t date.” 

“Well, he seems to like you. Just… pay more attention.”

“Alright, whatever guys. I’m gonna take him to bed. I may skip tomorrow too so Allura if you could like tell me what all I miss that’d be cool.” 

“Sure.” When he came back out, Keithwas leaning against the arm of the couch. 

“Did you take your medicine?” He nodded. “You wanna go back to bed?” He nodded again. “You gonna go to class tomorrow?” He shrugged. “If you don’t I’ll stay with you.” He nodded. Lance grabbed both of their blankets and led him back to their room. When Keith got on, he immediately laid down on Lance’s bed. “Is that your way of asking me to stay with you?” He chuckled, earning him a shy nod. Lance honestly wasn’t tired, but he knew Keith was, so he threw a blanket over him and laid down. He was really starting to wish they had full sized beds, but he dealt with it for Keith. “How are you feeling now?” He just shrugged. “Well, I have to go to my first two periods tomorrow, but I’ll skip the rest if you want to stay here. Just text me if you need something and I'll get out of class.” He nodded and rolled onto his side to sleep. 

Lance’s alarm woke them both up the next morning. He looked over and was immediately met with Keith’s glare. 

“Go back to sleep. I’ve gotta get ready for class. I’ll be back after second period.” He whispered. Keith nodded, rolled over, and pulled the blanket over his head. He only had about fifteen minutes before breakfast, so he decided to just shower after his dance class. He quickly threw on a new pair of joggers and a hoodie, brushed his teeth, and made his way to the dinning hall. When he sat down, Hunk, Allura, and Pidge were all staring at him, as well as Shay but she didn’t seem to know why.  

“Go ahead.” He said with a sigh, starting on his cereal, knowing he was about to get an ear full since Keith was back in the dorm and couldn’t hear them. 

“Where’s your boyfriend?” Allura asked. 

“First of all, not my boyfriend, will probably never be my boyfriend. Second, he’s still back in the dorm, but I need to go to my first two classes.”

“So, not here then?” Hunk asked. 

“No, not here.” 

“Okay, cool.” Allura said calmly. Lance looked to Pidge who was counting down on her fingers. When there were no fingers left, her rant started. It went on for about two minutes before Shay interrupted. 

“Hang on, I’m lost. What’s happening?” Lance opened his mouth to speak, but Pidge cut him off. 

“Basically he won’t admit he likes the guy that just moved in. We have evidence stacked on evidence, but he won’t admit it. We also think the guy likes him, but he won’t do anything  about it.” She explained. 

“The quiet one?” 

“Yeah. Look.” She said showing her a few of the pictures she had. 

“Sorry Lance, I’m gonna have to agree with them based on that…” 

“Why won’t you just let us help?” Hunk asked. “You literally always set us up with people and it usually works. I mean you literally got all of us together after that movie night.” 

“Wait. You guys are all actually dating now?” He asked, feeling accomplished. 

“Me and Shay are, since Saturday.” 

“And you two? He gestured to Allura and Pidge. 

“Well… technically Pidge and I aren’t dating because someone’s weird about labels, but yeah.”

“That’s great guys, but seriously… I don’t see anything happening between me and Keith.” 

“How?” 

“I told you last night, he doesn’t date.”

“But you like him?”

“Honestly, I don’t know. I don’t know if that’s what it is, I just know that I care about him.”

“You literally got into a fight for him.” Allura argued. 

“What? How do you know about that?” 

“Did you really think I believed you hit yourself with a car door hard enough for it to bruise that badly? It’s still there and it’s been like four days. Not to mention he seemed more anxious than normal.” 

“Since when did you learn to pick up on things like that?” She pointed to Pidge. 

“So… what happened? Give us a run down on everything so we can prove the obvious.” Hunk said. 

“Fine.” He sighed. “Well, nothing really happened the first night. The first day of classes nothing really happened. He asked me about you guys that day… and I convinced him to come watch TV with us… but nothing like that. The next day, I don’t know what happened, but I found him hiding out in my old skip spot and snuck him back to the dorms. We hung out there until after lunch. Nothing else really happened. Uhhh I think the next day we all watched horror movies. I kinda slept with him for like half the night… not in like a ‘datey’ way though. Then, he disappeared all day. I found him on the way back to the dorm and decided to take him to get food so he would actually eat something since I doubted he had. Nothing of too much importance happened… When we got back we talked about the weird book we’re reading for English. Apparently he’s read it and like reads a lot.”

“Really?” Hunk asked, surprised. 

“Yeah, I know. Anyway, after that I convinced him to let me braid his hair, then-” He held up his still painted nails. “Yeah… Then, we couldn’t sleep so I showed him the roof. Then, you know Costco happened. That’s where this happened.” He said, pointing to his face. “After the movies we did homework and I helped him with math, then I asked about like where he was from and all that. Then, we hung out on the roof again. Some stuff happened when we went to bed, I’m not gonna explain that, but he was having a hard time, so we decided to go on a walk before the sun rose. I took him to that spot in the Cascades. Then, we hit Waffle house -Oh, and Rebecca works there now apparently so… maybe avoid that one. When we got back we took a nap. That’s when you two woke us up screaming.” He said glaring at the girls. “Then I showed him around downtown. That’s when he got bit by the spider. Shiro wouldn’t answer, so I took him to the hospital myself. Shiro eventually met us there. He got me out of classes yesterday so I could watch Keith.”

“And you guys looked like this when we got home.” Pidge said, holding her phone back up. 

“The heat went off. He was freezing. You guys all know I’m like a human heater.”

“Now, back to the fight thing?” Hunk interjected. 

“Basically when we went back to the car, we were talking and he like tensed up. There was some guy staring at us and I guess he knew dude was weird. I made him get in the car when he started coming over and locked him in. Dude said he was like his uncle or something and needed to talk to him, but he couldn’t even tell me his name. Long story short, he punched me in the face and I flipped him to the ground and he left.” 

“Do you know who it was?” 

“Shiro said he thinks he knows but Keith doesn’t and not to tell him. No idea what that means…”

“So? When are you gonna make a move?” Allura asked. 

“Guys, seriously I’m not.” He said as the bell rang telling them to get to first period. 

Chapter Text

When his first two periods were over, Lance went back to the dorms. Kieth was still asleep, so he decided to take a shower before he woke him up. When he got out, he threw on some sweats and came out to find Keith sitting up on his phone. 

“Good you’re up.” Keith looked up to see Lance standing shirtless in front of him. The only other time he’d properly seen him shirtless he was half asleep and in pain from the spider bite. He wasn’t surprised to see he had the stereotypical dancer build. He is very lean with broad shoulders and a smaller waist. He could see his slight muscle definition. Finally, he pulled his stare away, hoping he didn’t notice. “You hungry?” Keith shook his head. “Well, you need to eat something so you can take your antibiotic.” Keith just rolled his eyes. He really just didn’t feel like eating. “I’m sorry. Just try and think of something you would eat and I’ll figure it out okay?” He nodded. Lance finished getting dressed as Keith tried to think of something he thought he’d be able to eat.  

Keith: I’m really not hungry. 

“I know, but you have to eat something. If you take it without food you’re just going to feel worse.” Keith started typing again. “Yes, you have to take them.” The typing stopped. “How about just some pasta. You don’t have to eat all of it, but at least some.” 

Keith: Fine. 

“What kind do you want?” 

Keith: Plain. Everything sounds gross. 

“Okay, I’m gonna go get it started. I’ll be back in a second.” Keith nodded and laid back down, deciding to text Shiro. 

Keith: I’m not dead yet. 

Shiro: Good. I highly doubted that would happen, but good to hear. Have you taken the antibiotics yet?

Keith: No, I just got up. 

Shiro: Remember you have to eat with them. 

Keith: I know. Lance is making me. I don’t want to though. 

Shiro: You’ll feel worse if you don’t.

Keith: I know. Doesn’t mean I want to though. 

Shiro: Are you feeling any better?

Keith: Yeah. My arm still hurts and my head does a little. I’m just really tired. 

Shiro: Just try and get some sleep today. You’ll probably feel better tomorrow. 

Keith: Maybe.

A few minutes later, Lance came back with a bowl of pasta, a bottle of water, and Keith’s medicine. He handed the bowl to Keith and sat down next to him, scrolling through his phone. Keith spent about twenty minutes poking at the pasta and trying to eat before he gave up and put the bowl on the nightstand. Lance handed him one of the pills which he took before laying back down. He fell asleep again almost immediately. When he woke back up, Lance was gone. He felt awful. Maybe Lance was right, he should’ve eaten more. He could hear Lance talking to someone in the common room, so he got up and stumbled in. 

“Hey bud, how’re you feeling?” Shiro asked. 

‘Not great.’ He signed before walking over to give him a hug. ‘What are you doing here?’ 

“Checking on you obviously.” 

‘Told you I wasn’t dead.’ 

“Yeah, I had to come see for myself though.”

‘Aren’t you supposed to be working?’

“No, school ended an hour ago.” 

‘Realy?’

“Yeah, it’s good you got some sleep though, but I was starting to wonder if you were ever going to get up.”

‘How long have you been here?’ 

“Only like twenty minutes. I didn’t want to wake you up. Lance has kept me company though.” 

‘Well, I’m alive.’ 

“I know, I can see that. Well, I’m going to get going. I’m glad you’re doing better.” Keith nodded. As he made his way out, Keith flopped down on the couch next to Lance. 

“You alright?” 

Keith: Dizzy. 

“You need anything?” Keith shook his head. “Hunk and everyone will probably be up soon. Do you wanna stay out here and eat or go back to our room and eat?”

Keith: I don’t wanna move right now.

“Okay. If you wanna leave just let me know and I’ll come with you.” Keith nodded and curled into the arm of the couch. Soon, Hunk, Allura, and Pidge were all walking in. 

“He’s alive!” Allura said as she walked into the living room. He gave her a soft wave accompanied by a slight smile. He had to admit, he was starting to like her a lot. Lance was right, she’s just a really sweet person. He still didn’t love her energy level sometimes, but Lance was the same way. Hunk was okay too, he just hadn’t really interacted with him as much. Pidge was basically a complete stranger to him though. He knew she was a bit anti-social, but he still felt like she didn’t like him. 

Over the next few days, Keith started to feel better and was back in classes. Things were getting better with that too, now most of his teachers left him alone. He started becoming closer with Allura too. He even painted her nails the other day. He knew Lance was happy to see them getting along too. Pidge still really hadn’t talked to him, other than joining in on his conversations with Allura. Hunk tried to teach him how to make croissants, it didn’t go well but it was still kind of fun. 

Today is December twelfth, meaning it was even colder out, and everyone would be going home for break soon. Shiro was originally planning on going back home for break, but apparently there was some feud going on which he didn’t want to be a part of. As much as Keith liked Shiro’s family, he was glad they weren’t getting involved. Conflict was always something he avoided. He was a little hot-headed at times and had a tencieny to ignore rational thinking in stressful situations. Everytime someone started fighting, he just wanted it to stop. 

“Keith?” Lance said, jumping onto the bed next to him. He looked over to see a mischievous smirk on Lance’s face. “So… remember how you said you’d let me take you to the pool?” 

Keith: No, I don’t recall. 

“I know you do. Stop lying, you’re not getting out of it. I told you the Taylor story.” 

Keith: Yeah, in exchange for your one question. 

“Yeah, but you totally avoided it.” Lance whined. 

Keith: I totally didn’t. It’s literally December anyway. Why would we go swimming?

“It’s an indoor pool and it’ll be fun.”

Keith: But I’m still dying :( 

“No you’re not. You were literally training with Shiro yesterday.” 

Keith: Stalker. 

“You told me dummy. Come on please?” 

Keith: Why?

“Because you love me and I’m like your best friend? Also I’ll do all your missing math work.” 

Keith: Fine. Just remember I can’t actually swim. Also, I have no way to talk to you in a pool.  

“You won’t have to. Besides, I know a little sign language, remember? Worst case, you can spell whatever it is if I don’t understand.” 

Keith: Fine. 

“Yay! I’ll find something that’ll fit you.” He said, jumping off the bed. Honestly, even though he hated the idea of swimming, he was happy to have an excuse to hang out with Lance more without anyone else around. He was usually a lot calmer then. Suddenly a pair of black swim shorts were thrown at him. “Those should fit. They have a string if not.” Keith nodded and went to the bathroom to change. While he was gone, Lance did the same, slipping into a blue pair. Technically, they weren’t supposed to go to the pool, but Lance used to go all the time and they never really cared. At least that meant they would probably have it to themselves. Keith came out wearing the shorts and his hoodie. Then he threw on his boots while Lance grabbed some towels. 

“You ready?” 

Keith: No.

“Great, let’s go.” Lance said with a huge smile, leading Keith out of the door. It was kind of a long walk to the pool since it was in a separate building, but when they finally got there, the door was locked.  run

Keith: So can we go home now?

“Nope. Stay here, I'll be back in a second.” Lance said, running to the side of the building. Keith watched through the glass door as Lance’s head suddenly appeared by a window. He slid it open and pulled himself through, then ran to unlock the door for Keith. It was cold inside since they turned the heat off after the pool closed. Lance immediately made his way to the control panel and flipped on the pool lights and the heat, keeping the actual ceiling lights off. Then, he walked over to one of the speakers and tried to pair his phone to it. 

“The heat will kick in in just a second. It gets warm pretty fast. Any requests?” Lance asked, gesturing to the speaker. 

Keith: Something that doesn’t suck. 

“Hey! All my music is great. I’ll play my ‘emo’ playlist. I’m sure you’ll like most of it. 

Keith: I know you didn’t just call me emo.

“Yeah, I did.”

Keith: I’m literally not.

“Yeah, you just only listen to this kind of music, have a literal mullet, and basically only own anything in black or red.”

Keith: So?

“So, seems kinda emo to me…” When Keith didn’t respond, Lance turned to see him glaring and flipping him off. “Hey, I like it. Allura’s a theater kid, pretty sure at a normal school that’s worse, and Pidge would be one of those kids you shove in a locker to do your homework.”

Keith: Yeah? And what stereotype would you fit into?

“Honestly, I don’t know. Hunk would just be the guy that everyone likes. Actually, I know. I would be like the local party legend.” He said with a super dorky smile. Keith shook his head. “What do you think then?” 

Keith: I don’t know. I just feel like the party you would be terrifying.

“I doubt it. I don’t really do parties anyway though.”

Keith: Really? That kind of seems like it would be your thing.

“No,  not really. I don’t really like being around alcohol if it’s not my family.” He said trailing off a little before pulling off his hoodie and jumping into the pool. Keith took that as his cue to not talk about it. 

Chapter Text

When Lance resurfaced, Keith hadn’t moved. “Don’t make me throw you in!” He shouted, resulting in a panicked expression from Keith. “I’m joking, Mullet. I’m not gonna drown you. Seriously though, I will gently drag you in.” He said teasingly as he pulled himself out Keith struggled to not stare. “It’s not cold anymore I promise.” He said walking to the pool's thermostat. “Yeah. seventy-nine, perfect. Come on.” Keith rolled his eyes and stood up. He slowly pulled his hoodie off and followed Lance to the other end of the pool. He grabbed Keith’s hand and pulled him down the stairs and to where the water was almost to his chest. 

“See, not that bad right?” Keith just rolled his eyes. 

‘You suck.’ He signed. 

“Yeah, don’t know that one.” Lance said smirking, obviously knowing what he said. Keith just flipped him off. “I know that one. Be nice.”

‘Why?’ 

“Because…” Lance started, scooping Keith up, laughing as he tried to fight him. “I could just do that.” He said, putting him back down. Keith glared and crossed his arms. 

‘I don’t get why you like this.’ Lance took a second to try and remember the signs, but eventually caught on. 

“Lived on the beach until I was like ten or eleven. My front yard back home is literally the ocean. I mean, don’t you like the desert?” Keith shook his head. 

“Why not?” Keith just shook his head again. “Okay… anyways you really can’t swim.” He shook his head again. “Have you ever even tried?” 

‘Not really. Shiro tried to get me because I almost drowned but I never did.’ He spelled out most of the letters.

“I’m assuming that meant Shiro?” Keith nodded. “How did you almost drown?” 

‘Shiro’s family lives on the coast. They have a boat.’

“You fell off the boat?” 

‘No. Well, kinda.’

“What do you mean kinda?”

‘I was wrestling with his cousin and…’ 

“And you got pushed off? And I’m assuming someone had to come get you?” Keith nodded. He hated signing to Lance. He didn’t know how much Lance even knew. He was probably just going off the context of the basic signs. 

‘It sucked.’ 

“See? That’s why you should learn to swim.” 

‘No.’ 

“I won’t let you drown. Then, when you learn how, I can teach you how to do a bunch of cool dives!”

‘What dives?’ Lance smiled and rushed out of the pool and over to the deep end. He climbed up to the shorter board and dived into the water head first. When he didn’t resurface immediately, Keith started to worry. He could’ve hit his head and passed out. He couldn’t even see him in the water. Suddenly, something grabbed his ankle making him jump, then Lance resurfaced laughing. 

‘You’re an asshole.’

“Ah, you love me.” He said through his laugh. Keith just smiled slightly and flipped him off. “Now, let me atleast try to teach you to swim?” 

‘I know how. I just can’t.’ 

“Well, try.” Keith rolled his eyes and agreed. Lance corrected him and they spent about half an hour getting him used to it. Honestly, it wasn’t that bad. “It’s easier if you can’t reach the bottom.” Lance said, earning an aggressive head shake from Keith. “Start at the drop off and just swim to me.” He said, swimming about six feet into the deep end and turning to face him while treading in place. “Just try. I won’t let you drown.” Keith dragged his hands down his face and gave in. When he made it across, he wrapped his legs around Lance’s waist and clung to him. “See? Not that bad.” Lance half-whispered, dragged them farther out. He felt Keith tense up. 

“It’s fine. As long as you don’t let go, nothing can happen. Plus you can swim now.” He said. Keith relaxed a little, but was still not quite enjoying it. Lance looked up to see the stars shining brightly through the glass ceiling, then he looked back to Keith who was still wrapped around him. Allura was definitely right. Eventually, he decided to drag Keith back to the shallow end since he couldn’t really talk to him. When he put him down, he could tell Keith was tired. 

“You ready to go back?” Keith nodded. “Alright. We should probably stay and dry off for a little while since we have to walk outside for part of the way.” Keith nodded again and followed Lance out. When they got to the chair with the towels on it, Lance wrapped one around Keith, then started trying himself off. After another twenty minutes or so, Lance led Keith back to the dorm. By the time they got there, he was freezing. 

“You can go take a shower if you wanna warm up.” Keith nodded and quickly made his way to the bathroom. While he was gone, Lance texted Allura.

Lance: You up?

Allura: Yeah. Watching some anime with Pidge, what's up?

Lance: I need to talk to you. Roof in ten?

Allura: I’ll be there.

He quickly changed clothes and tried to dry his hair the rest of the way before writing a note to Keith. ‘Be back soon. Allura needs to talk about something.’ He felt bad for lying, but he couldn’t tell him the truth. He quietly slipped out and made his way to the roof. 

“Allura?” 

“Lance.” She shouted, motioning to where she was leaning on her elbows against the ledge of the roof. Can I assume this is about Keith?” 

“Yeah…” He said joining her. 

“Spill.” She said excitedly. 

“Nothing actually happened, sorry to disappoint. Basically, I made him sneak into the pool with me… and you’re definitely right…”

“See, told you! Why do you seem sad about it?” 

“Because I kinda am… I can’t do anything about it. He doesn’t date and if I do he might hate me or it might make things awkward. I’d rather suffer and have him around then not have him at all…”

“Lance. He likes you.”

“How do you know?”

  “Please, it’s obvious. I told you already.”

“I don’t know. He just actually kind of trusts me I think… That’s probably it…”

“He wants to be around you like all the time, not to mention you’re literally the only person he’ll let touch him.”

“He painted your nails!”

“Yeah, in that situation he had total control. I didn’t touch him, he touched me.” 

“I thought you were oblivious to all of this stuff?”

“Only when it involves me apparently. I mean we had this same conversation about Pidge…” 

“Fair enough… Still, there’s no way.”

“There is though. Things will fall into place eventually. Trust in the universe Lance. I think you deserve a good break relationship wise anyway. I mean… everyone you’ve dated kinda sucked.”

“You didn’t. I know it doesn’t really count, but you’re great.”

“I was excluding myself, but our relationship sucked too.”

“Not really. Things worked out well. You realized you were gay and now you’re like my best friend.”

“What about Hunk?”

“Hey, love that guy but I can’t talk about stuff like this with him… at least not the same way.”

“So… how was swimming?” 

“He can’t swim.” Lance laughed. “Well he kind of can now. It was fun I guess. I made him swim out to me in the deep end, then we kinda just floated there for a minute… then I realized how totally screwed I am.”

“You wanted to kiss him?”

“I wanted to kiss him.”

“You should’ve just gone for it.”

“No. He would’ve freaked out, let go, and drowned.”

“I think you should just go for it.”

“I can’t… besides what if we end up dating and things end up how they did with Christian…”

“Do you really think Keith would do anything like that to you? Christian was first of all way too old for you, but we’ll move past that for now. Not to mention he was manipulative, self absorbed, a total liar, disloyal, and I would even go as far to say emotionally abusive. Does that sound like Keith? From what I’ve seen, he’s nothing like that. He’s got a hard exterior, sure, but he seems really sweet and he looks at you like you are the most amazing thing to ever walk the earth.”

“Yeah, I guess you're right… But what if I hurt him?”

“Lance, think about it. Of all the people you’ve dated, how many times were they the ones who actually got hurt?” He shrugged. “Exactly, I mean of the two people you’ve dated for longer than a few months, Caitlynn was awful before all of that happened, and Christian was Christian… I don’t think that’ll be a problem. You’ve literally known him for less than a month and you already seem like you would do anything for him.”

“Yeah… I guess you’re right…” 

“I know I am. If you really don’t think it’s a good idea now, just give him some time. I’m fairly certain he likes you too though.” 

“Maybe…”

“Are you feeling any better about it?”

“I guess… can you not tell anyone about this?”

“You know our roof talks are confidential. I’ll try and get Pidge to lay off too.”

“Thanks.” He said, giving her a tight hug. “I don’t know what I’d do without you Princess.” 

“You get into enough trouble with me. I don’t think I want to know.” She teased. 

“Alright, I’m gonna head back so I can shower.” He said before running to the door. He secretly hoped Keith was still in the shower. Of course he wasn’t. He was sitting on the floor by his bed working on a sketch when Lance got back. 

“Hey.”

Keith: Your back.

“Yeah, sorry. Allura needed to vent. What happened to signing?”

Keith: It takes you too long to catch on. This is easier anyway.

“Well, you should teach me”

Keith: I’ll think about it.

“I’m gonna go take a shower.” Keith nodded and went back to his sketch. By the time Lance got back, Keith was already laying in bed. It was almost one A.M to be fair, but tomorrow was also Saturday so they could’ve slept in. 

“You going to bed already?” 

Keith: Yeah. Someone made me go swimming. I’m tired.

“It was fun. We should go do something tomorrow.”

Keith: Maybe. 

“We’ll talk about it tomorrow.” Keith nodded and rolled back over to sleep. Lance decided to do the same. He woke up to a text a little after three.

Pidge: What’s up with Hot Topic? 

He looked up to see Keith’s empty bed. 

Lance: What do you mean?

Pidge: I went to go get a snack and I saw him pacing back and forth in the living room. I didn’t wanna scare him so I came back in here to text you. He seems totally freaked. You should probably go check on him. 

Lance: I will. Thanks for telling me though.

Chapter Text

He quickly got up, and made his way to the living room. When he got there, he saw Keith pacing back and biting his thumbnail. 

“Keith?” He called out, but Keith didn’t respond. He took a few steps forward and tried again. “Keith… You alright?” Still nothing. Finally, he put himself in Keith’s path. “Keith. You’re freaking me out man…” Keith stopped a few inches in front of him and just stared at him. Immediately, Lance noticed the red blotches on his face. “What’s going on?” Keith just shrugged and avoided meeting his eyes. That’s when Lance realized how shaky he was. “Come on, let’s go back to the room.” He said, pulling Keith down the hall. When they got to their room, Lance pulled him onto his bed and wrapped him in a protective hug. He could practically feel him break. Once he calmed down some, Lance tried again. 

“You wanna tell me what’s goin’ on? He shrugged. “Do you want to go to Shiro's?” He shook his head. “You wanna go back to sleep?” Keith shook his head again. “Is this the same thing that happened the other night?” He shrugged. “Why didn’t you wake me up?” He just shrugged again. “I know you don’t want to, but at some point we should really talk about this… But for now, do you need anything?” Keith just tugged at Lance’s shirt. “I’m not going anywhere. Can I ask you one more thing?” He didn’t respond. “Did you… do anything?” He shook his head. “Okay, good. You wanna lay down?” 

Eventually, Keith slid off of him and laid down beside him. Lance did the same and wrapped an arm around him, pulling him to his chest. He fell asleep after a while, but his soft breathing was soon replaced with quiet whimpers. Lance softly shook him awake. Keith tightly clung to him when he woke up. 

“I don’t know what’s going on up there, but I promise nothing bad is going to happen right now. I won’t let it. I promise.” He whispered, brushing the hair off of Keith’s forehead. He slid a hand under Lance’s shirt. “You cold?” Keith nodded. “Let me up for a second.” Lance said, sitting up and pulling his shirt off. He immediately melted into the warmth. Lance could feel him fighting sleep. “Can I do anything to help you sleep?” Keith shook his head and rolled over to face away from Lance. He snaked an arm around him and pulled him closer. When he finally fell back asleep, Lance stayed awake for another twenty minutes or so watching him before he eventually fell asleep too. Just after five, Keith woke up again fighting against Lance’s grip. 

“It’s just me.” He said softly, still half asleep. Keith finally relaxed into him. “You sure you don’t want to go to Shiro’s?” He shook his head. “Okay… Do you wanna go for a walk or something? Seemed to help last time.” He nodded softly. “Alright, get dressed. It’s cold out so wear something warm.” Lance said, standing up and walking to his closet. Once they were both dressed, Lance led him to his car.

Keith: Where are we going?

“Honestly, no idea yet. We’ll figure that out momentarily.” Lance said, trying to decide where to go. He wanted to show him somewhere else today, but he didn’t know where. After a few minutes of driving aimlessly away from the city, he remembered a cool lookout spot. They still had almost two hours until sunrise, so the view wouldn’t be great, but they could at least walk around for a little while, plus the place was at least half an hour away. They finally pulled into a small parking lot overlooking the valley of one of the mountains. Lance parked, then walked around to Keith’s door. He opened the door for him and extended a hand which Keith accepted. 

Keith: Did you just bring me to a makeout spot?

“Technically, yeah. I used to come here a lot for that reason, but that’s not why we’re here. I haven’t been here for that reason in quite some time. We’re going on a walk though.” He said awkwardly as he led Keith to a dirt path, poorly lit by the moon. After an almost two mile walk, they were at the highest point of the peak they were on. He pulled Keith to a rock close to the ledge and they sat down. “So… You wanna tell me anything about this?” Keith shrugged. “I just have no way of knowing what’s going on… even just something small would be helpful…” 

Keith: ✨Trauma✨ 

“Yeah… I kinda guessed that…” Keith just shrugged again. “You don’t have to tell me anything, but you can if you want to. I mean… no judgment for whatever it is man…” 

Keith: Do you really wanna know? 

“If you’re not comfortable telling me, no. If you are then yeah. You don’t have to though. I just wish I knew a way to help…”

Keith: You do.

“How?” Keith just shrugged and leaned his head onto Lance’s shoulder. They sat like that for a little longer until he could tell Keith was getting colder. He stood and took his hand, leading him back down to the car. When they got there, the sun was starting to rise, so they stayed in the car a little longer to enjoy it. “You hungry?” Keith shook his head. “Okay… Do you wanna go back to the dorm and try and sleep?” He just shrugged. “Okay, well we can go back and if you don’t wanna go to bed, we’ll find something better to do.” Lance said, starting down the road. They rode in silence other than the quiet music coming from the radio. When they got back to the dorms, Lance was exhausted and Keith was clearly tired too. He knew that even though he had slept more, he hadn’t slept well at all. Finally, they made it back to the room. Lance changed and jumped onto his bed, opening his arms, inviting Keith to join him. Eventually, they both fell asleep. About two hours later, Hunk busted into their room. 

“Lance! Get up!” He shouted, making Keith jump awake, nearly falling off the bed. 

“What?” He grumbled.

“You said you’d give me a ride to the world market today.”

“Here.” He said grabbing his keys and throwing them at him. “Don’t wreck, Allura can’t drive.” 

“Geez, what’s up with you two? And she’s not going. Just me and Shay.”

“We’re tired. Have fun.”

“Okay…” He mumbled, walking back out. 

“Sorry. Totally forgot about that. You can go back to sleep, I know you need it.” Keith nodded and curled back into Lance. Almost as soon as Keith fell back asleep, Allura walked in. Lance immediately motioned for her to be quiet. Once she realized why, she smirked. 

“So? You changed your mind?” She whispered. 

“No. Did you need something?” 

“I was gonna tell you Pidge and I are kind of thinking about sneaking into the pool tonight. We were going to invite Hunk and Shay too if you guys wanna come.” 

“Yeah, I’ll see.” 

“Or we could go to the drive-in. I think they’re playing like a bunch of old films tonight.”

“Yeah, I’ll let you know. We’ll probably be up in a minute.” She nodded and walked out. Eventually, Lance fell back asleep. Finally, around noon Keith was up. He slid out from under Lance’s arms, deciding to go talk to Shiro. When he got to his door, he could hear him talking to someone, but he knocked anyway. Soon, Shiro came to the door, keeping it half way closed. 

“Hey…” Keith waved awkwardly. “I- uh, I just got done with a meeting about starting a competitive team for my class.” He said, clearly lying. “Give me just a second to finish up.” Keith nodded and sat down against the wall. A few minutes later, one of the computer science teachers walked out. He only knew who it was because he had seen Pidge talking to him after classes. “Alright, come on.” 

“Who was that?” 

“Adam. He’s like the head of the sports stuff..”

“You’re lying.”

“What?”

“I know you’re lying. You’re into him.”

“Yeah, whatever. You know I don’t like to involve you with that stuff.”

“Don’t have to lie to me though…”

“I know, I’m sorry. Did you need something or are you just here to hang out?”

“Lance is asking questions…”

“I know.”

“What have you told him?”

“Nothing really. Have you told him anything?”

“No.”

“Do you want to?”

“I dunno.”

“From what I can tell, he genuinely cares about you and just wants to know what to do about some things…”

“I dunno…”

“And you like him?”

“Not like that.”

“Yeah, and me lying is the problem?”

“Okay, maybe but it doesn’t matter.”

“Keith…” 

“Shiro. I’m not doing it.”

“Why not?” 

“Us being friends is already weird… I can’t do that again…”

“I’m fairly certain it won’t.” 

“And if it does?”

“It won’t. You can’t just go through life avoiding being close to anyone Keith.”

“I have you.”

“You know what I mean…”

“Yeah, I can, I have before. I didn’t even have you before and I was fine.”

“No, you weren’t.”

“Whatever.”

“I think him knowing a little isn’t a bad idea.” Keith just shrugged. “Think about it. If you decide you want to, you could always have me explain if that’s what the problem is…” He shrugged again.

‘I should probably get back. No one knows I left.’ He signed. Shrio sighed and nodded, knowing he was upset, but he couldn’t do anything about it without losing any progress he might’ve made. Keith took the long way back to the student dorms. When he got back to his room, Lance was awake. 

“Oh, hey I was just about to text you. Where were you?” He just shrugged and went to his bed. “You okay?” He didn’t get a response, so he decided to shoot a text to Shiro. 

Lance: Do you know what’s up with Keith?

Shiro: Yeah. He came to talk to me about something and didn’t really like what I had to say about it. We got into what he considers an argument. I kinda figured he’d still be upset when he got there, he stopped talking and told me he had to go so..l  just give him a minute to cool down. He’ll be fine. 

Lance looked back over to Keith’s bed to see him curled up under his blanket with his back turned to him. He walked over and sat down on the edge of the bed. 

“Keith…”

Keith: Shiro. 

“What about him?” 

Keith: Doesn’t matter. 

“It does to me. Clearly something’s going on. If you don’t wanna talk about it it’s fine, but you’re clearly upset.” Keith just shrugged. Lance took that as his queue to drop it and laid down next to him, throwing an arm around his waist. 

Chapter Text

After a while, Keith’s mood seemed to improve slightly. Lance was curious about what happened, but he knew better than to ask. Suddenly, Keith sat up, rubbing his temples and let out a deep breath. Then, he grabbed his phone and leaned up against the wall. 

Keith: I still don’t think I can do it.

Shiro: You know I’d kill him if anything happened. 

Keith: I wouldn't want you to.

Shiro: Well, I think he’s already figured out I would.

Keith: What did you say???

Shiro: Nothing. I just think it’s obvious. 

Keith: Well… still… 

Shiro: You don’t have to worry about it right now. I just don’t want you to avoid being close to anyone again because of people in the past… 

Keith didn’t respond, he just leaned his head back and sighed quietly before looking at Lance. 

“So, you feel like doing anything today?” 

Keith: Like what?

“Uhhh so far Allura’s come up with swimming or the drive-in. She said we can pick if we wanna go since she’s only asked me so far. Or if you can come up with something else.” 

Keith: Do they even do drive-ins when it’s snowing this much?

“It’s snowing?” Lance asked excitedly. 

Keith: Yeah. It was when I went to Shiro’s. 

“Well, I don’t know if they do. If not, do you wanna go swimming or somewhere else?”

Keith: You guys can go swimming. 

“Come on, it wasn’t that bad last time. You eventually started to like it.” 

Keith: Not the issue. 

“What’s the issue then?” Keith motioned to his arms. “I don’t think anyone would notice it. They’re mostly healed now right?” 

Keith: I guess… 

“Besides, they’ll probably all be doing their own thing since everyone else is kind of together. I mean even before Allura and Pidge kinda did their own thing while me and Hunk hung out.” 

Keith: Well, like I said you guys can go. 

“I don’t wanna leave you here.” Lance pouted. 

Keith: I’ll go, but I’m probably not going to get in. I can’t exactly swim in a hoodie.

“Think about it. We’ll go after dark anyway and the lights won’t be on other than the ones actually in the pool. No one will notice, I promise.” 

Keith: Fine, I think about it. That’s the best you’re getting. 

“Good. I’m gonna go talk to Allura.” Keith nodded as Lance made his way across the hall. Their door was already open so he just walked in. They were both on Allura’s bed watching something on her laptop. 

“Lance! It’s literally past noon, are you just now leaving your room?” 

“I’ve been up since a little after ten, and I walked out then, so no.”

“Well, did you ask Keith what he wants to do?” 

“Yeah. Apparently it’s snowing. Do they still do the drive in?” 

“Depends on how much it’s snowing and what the forecast is. Let me check.” She said typing something into her laptop. “Due to the winter weather, all movie times and dates have been canceled. There are currently no dates being scheduled. We will keep the website updated as the weather continues…. So no.” 

“Well then, I guess swimming it is. It’ll be dark by like four-thirty or five. Do you guys wanna go then or later?” 

“Uhh… Hunk said he’ll be back soon, but then Shay wants to go do something. He is bringing your car back though. See what time he’ll be back and if they want to go.” 

“Alright. I’ll let you know what he says.” Lance said, walking back into his room. 

Lance: Going swimming tonight. All of us are going. You should invite Shay. What time do you think you’ll be back for the day?

Hunk: This is Shay, Hunk’s still driving. I’m down. We’ll have your car back in like half an hour, then we’re going to help my roommates with getting a new couch. We’ll probably be done by like four or four-thirty. Is that cool?

Lance: Yeah. Works perfectly actually. Tell Hunk to text me when he’s back. Also is he planning on cooking something tonight?

Hunk: He said he has soup already made. 

Lance: Okay cool. When you get back we can eat and hang out for a bit, then sneak over there. 

He hopped up and made his way back to the girls’ room. 

“He said like four or four-thirty. Then we can all eat and hang out for a bit before we sneak over there.”

“Sounds good.” Lance nodded, then finally sat back down with Keith. 

“So, swimming is a go. It’ll be dark, but I’m not going to try and force you to get in I promise. Hunk’ll be back soon. You wanna come with me to get coffee?” He just shrugged. “Well, if you do, get ready. I also have to stop at the pharmacy though.” Keith nodded and got up to change. By the time they were both ready, Hunk texted and said they were back. “Alright, he left my keys in my car, so we’re good to go.” Lance said, leading Keith down the hall. When they got to the car, Lance handed Keith the aux cord and they drove into town. Their first stop was the coffee shop. 

“What do you want?” Lance asked as he led him in. 

Keith: Black tea. 

Lance nodded and made his way to the counter. After they got their drinks, he took Keith’s spare hand and led him down the street. Honestly, as much as he hated the cold, Keith had to admit the snow made the city so much prettier. They walked in a comfortable silence all the way to the pharmacy. “You coming with me?” Keith nodded. As they walked in, Keith noticed a woman glaring. He immediately dropped Lance’s hand. Lance hadn’t noticed the stare, so he gave Keith a confused look as they made their way into the line. Keith kept his distance as they made their way to the front of the line. 

“Hi, how can I help you?” The pharmacist asked, a little too energetic for Keith’s liking. 

“I just need to pick up a prescription.” 

“Name?” 

“Lance McClain.” 

“And the date of birth?” 

“07/28/2006” 

“Alright. Just let me go grab that.” She said as she walked into the back. “Alright, here ya go. Insurance covers the full price.” 

“Thanks.” Lance said, with a small wave and pulling Keith out with him. “You alright? You seem a little tense?” Keith nodded. “Well, at least you won’t get to see me in full ADHD mode.” Lance laughed, making Keith smile a little. Then, he took Lance’s hand back. It was still only a little after one, and they hadn’t eaten yet, so Lance decided they should stop and get something to eat.

Eventually they decided on some little Italian place. Keith wasn’t sure what to get, so he told Lance to pick. Whatever it was, was pretty good, but he really couldn’t focus on the food. He was worried about swimming later, and he kept thinking about the woman in the store. He felt like everyone was staring at him, the lights were too bright, and he felt like his shirt was choking him. Lance was talking to him but he wasn’t paying attention. He was just staring ahead. When he was able to regain his focus, Lance had moved to his side of the table. 

“You alright?” Keith nodded. “Really?” He nodded again. “You were just totally lost in space…” Lance was still talking, but Keith wasn’t listening. He was just sitting there pushing his fingers into his temples. At this point, Lance had a good idea of what was going on. Lance held a hand out, hoping he would take it. He didn’t want to add to Keith’s problems and just take his. When he saw it, he softly put his hand over it. Lance dug out some cash and left it on the table before leading him outside. It was already a little better. There was less noise and the lighting was better. When they got back to the dorms, he led Keith inside and turned off the lights in their room. He decided to go into the living room and wait there so Keith could have a minute to himself. Soon, he got a text. 

Keith: Sorry… 

He took that as a sign he was feeling better and he could come back to the room. When he got there, Keith guilty looked up at him. 

“Why?” Keith shrugged. “Don’t be. I get it. You were anxious and you got overstimulated right?” 

Keith: How did you know?

“You bite the inside of your lip when you're anxious or you wring your wrists. As for you being overstimulated, I have ADHD remember. I mean, the meds help a bit, but yeah… and obviously anxiety can cause sensory issues, so I connected the dots. It’s fine.” Keith nodded, but Lance could tell he still felt bad. “Seriously, it’s fine Keith.” He said softly. “Did something happen to start all of that or did it just happen?” He shrugged. “Okay, well Hunk’ll be home in about an hour. You should probably eat something.” He nodded. 

Chapter Text

When Hunk got back with Shay, Lance drug Keith into the living room where everyone was already waiting for him to heat up the soup. Keith seemed to feel better. Lance watched from the kitchen as he sent Allura another text. He was glad he was starting to become comfortable around her. Honestly, he wasn’t sure he would with her being so energetic most of the time. He’d also gotten a bit closer to the others, but he still only really interacted with them when he had to. 

“You jealous yet?” Hunk teased. 

“No. Allura’s got Pidge anyways. I’m just glad to see him talking to her without me basically forcing him into it. As much as I love you and Pidge, I was kinda hoping he would get closer to her. I dunno why, but I think having her around could help him.” 

“Lance, it’s obvious why. She’s totally the mom friend out of our friend group. That’s why you’ve always liked her so much.” 

“Yeah… I guess you’re right actually.” 

“I know. Alright, help me carry some of this out there.” Each of them carried two bowls each into the living room and sat down with the other three. They all ate while watching whatever random cartoon was playing. Lance loved soup in the winter. It felt very homey. When everyone was done, Keith had barely eaten, but he didn’t bring it up. Lance helped Hunk with the dishes, while mainly still watching Keith, then he had an idea. 

“So. I feel like we should wait a little longer to go just in case…” He started, making his way into the living room with a mischievous smile. 

“Oh no…” Allura mumbled under her breath, earning a slight smile from Keith and a face-palm from Pidge. Shay was clearly confused. Honestly, no one else knew what he was going to say either, but she still didn’t know him that well, so she didn’t know how dangerous that smirk could be. 

“Everyone know how to play five card draw?” Everyone but Shay nodded. 

“Like poker?” 

“Yeah.” 

“No…” 

“I’ll teach you.” Hunk whispered, starting to explain as Lance ran to the hall closet. They all moved to sit on the floor around the coffee table. Lance shuffled as Hunk finished explaining. 

“So, you ready?” He asked. 

“Yeah… I guess. I’m a little confused, but I think I’ll catch on.” Lance nodded, slid Hunk the tray of chips to pass out, and started dealing. By the end of the first round, Allura and Pidge were the only ones who hadn’t folded. Allura won the first two rounds. Then, Lance one the next. After that, it was Keith. He won almost every round until everyone else was out. Lance being as competitive as he is was totally lost. 

“How?” He half shouted, earning a smirk from Keith. “Seriously? I thought I could read you?” 

Keith: I’ve had a lot of practice. 

“So they really play a lot of poker in Texas then?” He teased. 

Keith: No, I even played poker back home.

“Then how?”

Keith: Don’t worry about it. 

Lance was suddenly able to read him again and realized he should probably drop it. 

“Well, you have to teach me your ways at some point.” He said, earning an eye roll from Keith. “Okay, well that took up a good chunk of time. Do you guys wanna head out now?” They all agreed and went to go change. When they got to their room, Lance decided he should probably check with Keith again. “You know, we don’t have to go if you don’t want to…” 

Keith: You said it’d be fine right?

“I did, and it will, but if you don’t want to go we don’t have to.”

Keith: Like I said, I probably won’t actually get in, but I don’t wanna be here right now anyway so… 

“Alright, well you should still wear some shorts anyway in case I convince you.”

Keith: And how would you do that?

“Umm, because I’m amazing and you love me?” 

Keith: Oh yeah, swimming actually sounds so fun now.

“See?” 

Keith: I know tone doesn’t exactly carry through texts, but that was obvious.

“Totally wasn’t. Here.” He said, tossing him the same pair of shorts from the first time which he had finally gotten around to washing. “You might wanna wear a pair of sweats over them too.” He said as Keith came out of the bathroom in one of his usual black tank tops and the shorts. “It’ll be cold when we get there.” Keith nodded and threw a pair of sweatpants and a hoodie on, before pulling on his boots.

 Lance was already ready, so they made their way out to the common room to wait for everyone. They were all bundled up in sweat pants and hoodies, which Lance made sure everyone knew looked ridiculous. He led them all to the pool house which was locked yet again. Keith watched as Lance went through a side window and let them all in before flipping on the heat and the inside pool lights. 

“Are you not going to turn on the ceiling lights?” Pidge asked. 

“No, when do we ever? The stars are better.” 

“Fair point I guess.” She said, walking over to the chair next to Allura. Suddenly, Keith held up a finger and walked outside. Lance wanted to follow, but decided against it. He watched from the window as Keith walked farther away to one of the nearby picnic tables and answered a facetime call, presumably from Shiro. He was surprised to see him talking, he couldn’t hear it, but it was still kind of weird to see. Then, he saw him prop his phone up and start signing. He could tell something was going on and everyone else could sense Lance struggling to stay out of it. Finally, he watched Keith shove his phone in his pocket and stare off in the distance for a minute. 

“Lance… you look like you want to kill someone…” Pidge mumbled. 

“Not kill, I just want him to stop whatever he’s doing.” 

“Keith?” Allura asked, surprised to see Lance mad at him. 

“No.”

“So Keith has a boyfriend then?” 

“No. His brother.”

“Oh… wait what?” 

“That’s the only person that he would’ve left to answer.”

“Okay?”

“Something’s going on with them and I don’t like it. That’s it.”

“Are you gonna go get him?”

“No, not yet at least.” He sighed. He waited a little longer before he saw Keith drag his hands down his face and get up. When he came back in, he seemed perfectly normal. He just walked over to the chair he had been sitting in and sat back down, crossing his legs. Lance shook it off, knowing he wasn’t going to get anything out of him with everyone around and checked the pool temperature. 

“Alright, it's seventy-eight.” He announced before pulling off his hoodie and sweats. Everyone else did the same, other than Keith. Pidge was wearing green swim shorts and a white tank top style stop, Hunk wore orangey-yellow shorts, Shay wore a dark green one-piece, Lance was wearing blue shorts, and Allura had a blue and pink bikini. Keith was honestly surprised to see that she seemed to be fairly muscular. For some reason, he always pictured her as being very dainty, despite her being like an entire inch taller than him. Even though he had no interest in girls, he had to admit, she was very attractive.

They all made their way to the pool. Allura and Shay took the stairs while Pidge and Hunk opted to get a running start and jump into the deep end. Lance wasn’t with them though, he was walking towards Keith. 

“I know something happened.” He whispered. 

Keith: I’m fine. 

“Okay…” Lance sighed. “It’s hot in here. At least take off the sweats.” Keith rolled his eyes, but obliged, then motioned to the pool, telling Lance he could go. “Okay…” He mumbled before walking away. Truthfully, he just needed Lance to leave so he could finish his conversation with Shiro. He was mad because he had texted Keith multiple times after this morning and Keith had been ignoring him. He could’ve texted Lance, but he knew Keith would be mad, so finally he called him. 

Shiro: Don’t hang up on me Keith. I was just trying to check on you. You haven’t answered me all day, then when you do, you’re outside somewhere, and I have no idea where, but you won’t tell me.

Keith: Because I don’t want to argue with you.

Shiro: I’m not trying to argue with you.

Keith: Then why were you? 

Shiro: Because you’re difficult and you won’t listen.

Keith: Listen to what? How you think you know what I need to do?

Shiro: That’s not even what I was trying to do, but you know I’m right.

Keith: Yeah, because you have a great track record with that stuff?

Shiro: What?

Keith: I’m not as dumb as you think I am Shiro. I know about Zack.

Shiro: What? How?

Keith: Because I’m not stupid. Do you really think I never noticed anything? 

Shiro: I knew that you knew I was seeing someone then.

Keith: Yeah, well I knew more than that.

Shiro: Well, that doesn’t mean I can’t give you advice. None of that was my fault.

Keith: I know, but your advice on that isn’t something that I want okay? I don’t care about what you think is good for me. I was on my own for a long time and I did just fine.

Shiro: No, you didn’t, and you’re not alone anymore, it’s my job to make sure you’re okay and not being self-destructive. That includes ruining friendships and relationships because of your doubts, not just making sure you’re alive and not slicing up your arms .

Keith: I never asked for any of this! I was completely fine on my own. I’d still be fine on my own. I don’t need you to tell me what I’m doing wrong. I can figure it out. Just leave me alone.

Shiro: That’s not what I’m trying to do Keith. I just want to make sure you’re okay. That’s my job. I’m legally your parent.

Keith: I can do that on my own. You’re not my dad and you never will be. Stop acting like it

Shiro: Actually, I kind of am. 

Keith: No, you’re not. You adopted me. That’s not the same thing. Stop acting like it is.

Shiro: That’s not what I meant and you know that.

Keith: Yeah, whatever. 

Shiro: It’s not. Keith, I just want to help you.

Keith: Yeah, you feel bad for me or whatever and you taking me in was just something to add onto your savior complex. I get it, but I hate to tell you this, I really would be perfectly fine on my own. You just refuse to see it because you think I’m totally helpless right. You want proof?

Shiro: Keith. Stop. You’re overreacting. I do what I do because I genuinely care about you. Lance does too.  I don’t need proof. 

Keith: Oh wow, Lance? More about Lance? That’s what this is all about right? 

Shiro: No, that’s not what I was saying. Will you just come to my room please? You know texting about this stuff never works.

Keith: No. I’m done with this. I’m not doing it anymore tonight.

To his surprise, Shiro didn’t respond. Then he heard Lance’s ringtone. When he saw his phone, he read Shiro’s name across the top. He quickly hit decline. 

Keith: Really? That’s why you want me to date him isn’t it? So you can have extra eyes on me? You don’t trust me do you? I’m assuming you’ve been lying and you’ve told him way more than what you’ve told me right? You just picked one of my roommates and decided he was going to be your little CI? Fucking of course.

Shiro: Keith, that's not what happened… 

Keith: Just leave me alone.

Chapter Text

Keith threw his phone down and started to pull his boots on, not even realizing that Lance had been watching him and was already running over. By the time he had both boots on and went to stand up, Lance pulled him back down. 

“What are you doing?” Keith just glared at him and pulled away before grabbing his phone and walking out. He wasn’t sure where he was going, but he knew he couldn’t stay there. He also couldn’t go very far since he was still in swim trunks and it was still snowing outside, or he would have to go back to the dorm. He thought about it for a minute, but eventually decided if he hurried he could grab some stuff. Lance had just gotten out of the pool, he couldn’t run after him soaking wet. He rushed across campus and to the dorm. When he got there, he struggled to pull a pair of black sweats over his boots and threw on a second hoodie. Then, he threw a few things into his bag in case he needed them and ran back to the parking lot. 

When he got out, he realized he still didn’t know the town at all. He wasn’t even sure which direction to leave from to get anywhere, but it didn’t really matter since he had no idea where he was going. He could feel his phone vibrating. It hadn’t stopped since he walked out. So far he had three missed calls from Shiro and four from Lance. He just shut his phone off and kept walking. After about an hour, he was freezing. He knew he had to find somewhere to hide out for a little while, luckily, he had walked in the right direction. There was a twenty-four hour market right down the street. He also knew he was getting closer to the city. 

The bell rang and he walked in and he was greeted by a college-aged guy who clearly hated his job. He walked through the aisles for a few minutes until he felt a bit warmer, then decided to get a coffee. He didn’t really like hot coffee, but at least it would keep him kind of warm. 

“Is this it?” Keith nodded. “You know what. You look like you're having a rough night. Don’t worry about it. Can I ask what you’re doing out here? You’re not exactly dressed for this weather.” Keith panicked for a second, knowing there was no way this guy knew sign language. Then, he tried his best to mime it, hoping it would work and the guy wouldn’t assume he was some run away kid, even if he kind of was. 

“You don’t talk?” He shook his head. “Okay, well…” He slid him a receipt, flipping it to the back, and a pen. “Write then. I can’t just let you walk out of here in good conscious man, you look like you’re like fourteen and you’ve obviously been out walking around for a while.” Keith stared at him for a second before sighing and scribbling on the paper. 

‘I’m fine. Just on a walk. I live like two miles away and I’m 15.’ 

“Well, fifteen isn’t much better. Also, you have a bag full of stuff and I know that look. I can’t stop you from doing whatever it is you’re doing, but I can at least ask you to stay a little while and warm up for a minute.”

‘I should really get going. I told my mom I’d be home in an hour.’

“Now, I know that’s a lie. How long have you been out? I mean, this is a pretty small town and I don’t recognize you.”

‘I just moved here for school. Only like an hour.’

“Okay, I almost believe that one. Why don’t you go sit in the deli area, drink your coffee, and charge your phone? I know what you're doing, I’ve done it too. Like I said, I can’t stop you, but I can at least help you out a little.” Keith hesitated but eventually decided to stay for a little while. He had no idea what he was doing and his phone battery was low, and he knew he probably wouldn’t be able to charge it anywhere else. When he plugged his phone up, he decided to turn it on so he could watch the time and make sure he didn’t stay too long. He was being spammed by Lance and Shiro. Allura even called, then texted, but only once. For some reason, it almost made him want to go back. 

Allura: I don’t know what’s going on, Lance just left totally freaked out… He’s worried about you. No, no one else has any idea. We’re still at the pool, and we probably will be for a while. We usually stay super late. He said you told him you had a migraine and went back to the dorms. I just know when he’s lying. He’s coming to look for you. I just want you to know, whatever is going on, you can tell one of us. If it has something to do with him, you can talk to me, my lips are sealed. I’m worried about you. Both of you. If you get this, please at least let me know you're safe. 

Keith: I’m not dead.

Allura: You’re not at the dorms are you?

Keith: No. 

Allura: Can I come get you if I can convince someone to let me use their car? If Lance is the problem, I won’t let him know. You could just go to your brother’s dorm. It’s too cold for you to be out all night. 

Keith: Can’t go to Shiro’s

Allura: Then I’ll sneak you into my room. 

Keith: I don’t want to come back. 

Allura: Lance will find you. He’ll keep looking until he does. If anyone asks where you guys are I’ll say you both went to your brother’s dorm since I know you probably already hate the fact I’ve picked up on this, but I can’t stop Lance. So, if you don’t want that, let me come get you.

Keith: He won’t find me.

Allura: Okay. Well, text me if anything changes okay?

He didn’t respond. 

When Keith left, everyone slowly realized he was gone. Lance was still standing there, kind of confused, but he was sure he just went back to their room and needed some space. With the way he jerked away, Lance didn’t want to freak him out. Allura was the first to ask what happened. 

“Oh, he has a migraine. I’m gonna dry off and go check on him. You guys have fun though.” He said, grabbing his towel and attempting to dry off. After about ten minutes, he gave up and just threw on his clothes. On his way to the dorm, he called Shiro back. 

“Keith?”

“No, Lance. Where is he?” 

“What?” 

“Either he’s with you, or he’s gone. I’m assuming he’s gone since he’s mad at you.”

“How did you know that?” 

“I could tell.” He said kind of harshly. “I’m going to my dorm to check, then I’m going to go check a few places off campus. You look around campus.”

“Why don’t I go?”

“Because I doubt he’s here and I really don’t think you finding him will help. I may not even help because he’s apparently mad at me too. I don’t think I did anything though so I don’t know what that’s about.”

“Me. That’s my fault. You’re right, he definitely won’t come home if I find him. I’ll look here. Call me when you find him.”

“He doesn’t have like anything that tracks his phone?” 

“No.”

“Okay. I’ll call you when I find him.”

“Me too if I do.” Lance hung up, confused and honestly kind of mad at Shiro. 

 By the time he got to the dorm, Keith wasn’t there. His bag was gone and he’d left all of his school stuff on his bed. He started calling him as he grabbed his keys and ran down to the parking lot. He never got an answer. He kept calling as he drove into the city. He drove down every street, checking the alleys, before parking and checking any stores that were still open. He knew he couldn’t be far, but he also knew this is the only area Keith knew how to get around. He called again as he ran back to his car and drove past the school down the other road, making sure to look out for anyone walking. Finally, he came across a twenty-four hour market. 

The poorly lit market suddenly became brighter with headlights. Keith slowly snuck to the window, where he wouldn’t be visible and saw Lance’s station wagon. He ran back over to the register and pointed to the door, trying to ask the guy to lie for him. 

“Get behind the counter.” He mumbled, opening the gate for him. Keith quickly ducked under the counter, hoping he was fully hidden, just as he heard the bells ring. He could hear Lance walking through the store for a few minutes before giving up and coming to the register. 

“Can I help you with something?” The guy asked casually. 

“Yeah actually…” Lance said trailing off. “Have you seen this guy around?” He could hear a slight panic in Lance’s voice. 

“Nah, I don’t think so… Who is he?” 

“My roommate. He kinda just left.” Lace said kind of sadly as he paced around again. Then, Keith realized he left his stuff by the table. He was silently praying Lance wouldn’t notice it. “Is someone else here?” He asked. He saw it. 

“Nah, just me.”

“So that’s yours?” He asked, clearly not convinced. 

“Yeah man, I was on break, I just came back here when I saw your car.” The guy assumed that Lance was his boyfriend or something and they were fighting over something stupid. He slowly leaned forward and coughed, gaining Lance’s attention before he pointed at the counter, then the gate. Lance just gave him a confused look. The guy grabbed the pen and scribbled on his hand. 

‘He’s behind the counter. Come get him.’ Lance nodded and walked around to the gate. Keith was sitting there, squeezing his eyes closed, with his hood up, hoping Lance would go away. Suddenly, he felt a hand on his arm and opened his eyes. When he realized it was Lance, he pulled away. 

“Come on. You need to come home.” He said probably a little too harshly. Keith panicked and kept struggling away from him,  then the cashier guy pushed Lance away. 

“I thought you were like dating or something and this was some dumb highschool bullshit, but he clearly doesn’t want you here.” Lance just glared in response and pushed past him, but the cashier guy got in front of him. “If he’s your roommate, I’m assuming you’re not much older, meaning you’re all in highschool. The only dorm-campus school near here is Garrison. Am I wrong in assuming that’s your school?” He asked sternly, while pushing Lance out of the gate and standing protectively between the two. 

“Yeah. What does that matter?” 

“My sister goes there. You have multiple rooms in a dorm right?”

“Yeah?” 

“So, he has other roommates, correct?” 

“Yeah. What’s your point?” Lance hissed. 

“My point is, I’m not letting you take him when you’re also a minor, obviously not his parent, and he;s physically fighting to get away from you. Either call another roommate to come get him, or like the dean or something.” Lance rolled his eyes and walked away. 

“I’m not fucking leaving. I don’t trust you.”

“I never said you had to leave. You shouldn’t trust me. I’m some random dude at a shitty market outside of town. Luckily, I have no intentions to hurt him, obviously, but you’re not taking him. If you try again, I will call the police. He clearly doesn’t want you near him. You should respect that.”

“I do, but I don’t trust you. How about you get away from him too?” 

“If that will get you to chill out, okay.” He said, walking around to the front of the counter with his hands raised. “Now, call someone else.” Lance huffed, then stared at his phone, trying to decide who to call. “I’ll be back. Stay where I can see you.” He growled, before walking outside and glaring through the window. 

“Lance?” 

“Found him. He won’t come though.”

“You can carry him.” 

“Long story, no I can’t or I’m getting the police called. I’m calling Allura. Pick her up, bring her to the market on Elmwood.” 

“What?”

“Just do it. When you get here, let her out and leave.”

“No. I’ll just come get him.”

“Shiro. Who the fuck do you think caused this to happen? You really think that’s a good idea? Go wait outside my dorm building. She’ll be down soon. I would come get her, but I don’t want to leave him here alone. Okay?” 

“Fine.” Shiro huffed before hanging up. He quickly called Allura. 

“Allura.”

“Yeah. I know what’s happening.”

“Great. Shiro’s on the way to pick you up. He’ll be outside the dorm building in a few. When you get her, do not let him get out of the car.”

“Lance… Don’t do anything stupid.”

“I’m not. Unless I have to.”

“I’ll be there as soon as I can. Wherever that is. Luckily, I came back to the dorm to get drinks. We were all still at the pool.”

“Ok.” Lance said before hanging up again and walking back inside. He hadn’t stopped glaring the whole time. They stood there in silence, both glaring, until more headlights came.

Chapter Text

As Allura made her way in, Lance stormed out to Shiro’s car, seeing he hadn’t driven away immediately. 

“What are you still doing here?” 

“Checking on Keith. In case you were unaware, even if he’s mad at me, I’m still his guardian.” 

“And I still don’t care. Leave before you make everything worse.” He hissed. Lance just stood and waited until Shiro finally gave up and drove away, then he started his car and watched through the window. 

“And you are?” The cashier asked. 

“Allura, Keith’s roommate. Where is he?” The cashier pointed to the counter. Without a second thought, she walked behind the counter and slowly sat down in front of him. “Can we take you home?” She asked softly, Keith shook his head. “What about if it was just me?” Keith shrugged. “If I can make that happen, will you come? I’ll even make Pidge either sleep in Lance’s room or share her bed with me so you don’t even have to go back to your room, or Shiro’s.” Keith hesitated, but shrugged again. “I’m going to take that as a yes. Let me go talk to Lance.” She said as she stood back up and walked out to Lance’s car. 

“Where is he?” He half-yelled.

“He really doesn’t want to be around you or Shiro. Either I need you to go back to the dorm and let me come back and get him, or you need to call Shiro for a ride. The only way he’ll even give me a shrug is if you’re both completely uninvolved. Lance sighed, Allura could tell he was ready to cry. 

“I don’t even know what I did…” He mumbled. 

“Shrio said he’s been through a lot right? Maybe there’s more to this than we comprehend. Do you want to drive home and let me come back, or call Shiro?” 

“I’ll call Shiro. I need to talk to him anyway. This all happened after they got into a fight. Plus, you don’t have a license, so you really don’t need to drive more than you have to.”

“Okay. I’m going to go back to Keith. Text me and let me know. Also, when you get home. Bring him some clothes to my room. I’ll call Pidge, but we’re switching roommates for tonight.” He nodded sadly as she walked back in. When she got back in, she leaned over the counter. 

“I have a way home figured out. I need to call Pidge, then I’ll be right back.” She said softly before walking to the deli area. 

“Hey…”

“Hi? What’s taking so long with the drinks?” 

“We ran into some issues. I need you to do me a huge favor and not ask any questions since you love me so much.”

“Oh god, what is it?”

“Lance and Keith are kinda fighting. Don’t say a word to anyone. Which I guess just means Hunk and Shay, but I really need for you to let me and Lance switch roommates tonight…. Please?

“Yeah, okay. You owe me though.”

“Whatever you want within reason.”

“Okay, well we’ll head back now so I can take a shower and stuff. I think Shay is staying over too.”

“Okay, keep this under wraps please.”

“You got it Princess.” Allura nodded, even though Pidge couldn’t see her, then hung up. When she got back to the counter, the cashier was leaning over the counter and Lance was leaning against the door glaring. 

“What are you doing?” 

“Relax. I was asking the kid if he wanted anything. I’m a stranger, I get it, but if I wanted to do something, I would’ve when we were here alone. That one would kill me if I touched him, I think.” He said, motioning to Lance. 

“Yeah, he definitely would.” She said, sounding completely serious in response to his joking tone. She could sense him tense up a little bit. Then, Lance spoke up. 

“I’m out. See you guys later. Also, Allura could kill you too.” He said sadly at first, then in almost a hiss. When the bell rang, Allura walked back around the counter and offered Keith a hand. He accepted it and allowed her to pull him up. She led him out to the car which Lance left running so it would be warm. 

“Do you wanna talk about it?” Keith just leaned his head against the window. “Okay. I’m gonna go ahead and start driving that way. I’ll make sure he’s in his room when we get there.” Keith nodded. After the short drive there, he quietly followed her to the dorm, and waited in the hall while she checked for Lance. When she came back, she ushered him in and to her room. 

“Lance brought you some clothes. You can go change in the bathroom. Take my bed, I’ll sleep in Pidge’s.” He nodded and disa[eared into the bathroom. When he got out, Allura did the same. When she got out, he was already in her bed, rolled over, facing the wall. She sighed and decided to lay down herself. 

She woke up a few hours later to the sound of the door closing. She quickly jumped up and cracked it open enough to see Keith sneaking into his own room. She thought he might be over whatever was happening with Lance, but she followed anyway, just to make sure. He left the door partially open, so she peaked her head around the corner. She watched as he walked in, then stopped in the middle of the room and just stared at Lance for a minute. She thought he was going to lay down with him, but he turned and kept walking. He walked into the bathroom, making just a little bit of noise, but enough to wake Lance since he was such a light sleeper. He slowly sat up, clearly confused. When Keith walked out, Lance spoke up. 

“What are you doing?” Keith threw a hand behind his back and shrugged. “Keith…” He immediately started out the door, but Lance pulled him back. “I don’t know what I did and I’m sorry.” He whispered. Keith noticed the hurt in his voice for the first time. “I’m sorry, okay…  please just tell me what I did. I don’t want to do anything to hurt you…” Keith suddenly stopped struggling. “Please…” Keith hesitated, but pulled away and started walking back down the hall. Allura quickly ducked back into her room and shut the door. Lance was going to let him go at first, then he noticed him trying to hide whatever was in his hand. He jumped up and grabbed his wrist. Keith tried to fight against him, but eventually dropped the hidden item. Lance bent down and grabbed it, before looking back up at Keith. He tried to run away again, but Lance grabbed his arms. This time, instead of fighting it, he just fell forward. Lance stood there and held him for a few minutes before pulling him back to their room. 

“I’ll be back in a second. Stay here.” Keith just lowered his head. Lance walked to the other bed and scooped up Pidge to take her back to Allura’s. When he got back, Keith was balled up in the corner of his bed, almost completely hidden under the blue blankets.

“Can you please tell me what;s going on?” Keith shook his head. “I got your phone.” He said, sliding it over to him. 

Keith: I’m sorry. 

“Keith… I-” When he looked up, he could see that he looked terrified. “I’m not mad at you. I’m not going to do anything… I’m sorry if I scared you earlier. I was just really worried about you. You wanna come here?” He offered, opening his arms. Keith hesitated for a second, but eventually he moved closer. Lance wrapped his arms around him and immediately felt tears falling on his shoulder. He carefully moved against the wall and pulled Keith into his lap. “Will you at least tell me why you’re mad at me at some point?” He felt Keith start to cry harder. “I just… I never wanted to hurt you Keith…. And I never want to ever again. I don’t know what I did…” He whispered. After that, he stayed quiet for a while. He didn’t talk again until he knew Keith had stopped crying. 

“Keith?” He nodded softly and crawled off of Lance. 

Keith: I’m not really mad at you I guess… I was, but I was really just mad at Shiro.

“And Shiro?”

Keith: I’m sure he already told you why, right?

“Well, kind of yes, but if you want to tell me so I know for sure what’s going on…”

Keith: We got into a fight. 

“Yeah.”

Keith: Some of it was about the same thing as the last one. Then he said something that kind of triggered me… Then some other stuff happened. 

“And you were mad because he called me to check on you?” Keith nodded. “I’m sorry. I thought you knew he did that…” Keith shook his head. “Can I ask you something?” He shrugged. “Have you done anything since the last time I asked?” Keith hesitated, but shook his head. “I know that’s a lie Keith… Why?”

Keith: Just stuff.

“When?”

Keith: Today.

Lance watched him flinch away as he looked down to his phone. “That’s why you didn’t wanna swim?” He nodded. “Was it like this morning when I found you in the living room or because of Shiro?”

Keith: This morning. 

“Okay.”

Keith: Are you mad at me?

“No, but I need you to show me where anything is that you use.” He shook his head. “Keith…” He sighed and stood up, leading Lance to the bathroom. He pulled out an old medicine bottle and handed it to him. It was a prescription, so Lance would’ve never found them. “Is that everything?” He rolled his eyes and walked over to his bed, pulling a small box out of his nightstand, then a blade with tape on it out from under his bed and handed them over to Lance. “Now?” He looked down and walked over to Lance’s bed where his phone was and popped off the case, handing him his last one. “Are you done?” He nodded, refusing eye contact. He watched as Lance put them all into the medicine bottle, then walked out. Lance hid the bottle on the top of one of the cabinets where he knew Keith couldn’t reach, leaving himself a mental note to throw them out somewhere else tomorrow. When he came back, Keith still would look at him. “Did you at least clean them?” He shook his head. “Okay… Well I know sleeping is going to be hard tonight, so you’re going to let me wrap your arms so you’ll be less likely to bust them open.” Keith shook his head aggressively. “Keith…”

Keith: I won’t, I promise.

“Even if you don’t mean to, you still will.” Keith shook his head again. “Please don’t fight me on this…” Lance pleaded softly. Keith looked away and started taking off his hoodie. At first, Lance was confused because it was just his wrists, but then he saw why. They were a lot worse. The lines went all the way up to his elbows on both arms, and there were even some above his hip bones. “Keith… why didn’t you tell me?”

Keith: Because you would’ve told Shiro.

“I think I have to…”

Keith: NO

Keith: You can’t tell him. If he finds out he’s going to make me go back. I can’t go back. Please don’t. I can’t.

Lance could hear his breath picking up. He knew that the right thing to do was to tell Shiro, but he was questioning Shiro’s likely-hood to help.

“Okay… Okay…” He whispered, pulling him into a hug. “If this gets worse, I have to. I should now, but there’s clearly something I don’t know happening, so for now I promise I won’t…” Once he calmed down a bit, Lance went to the bathroom and got some bandage warp. He wrapped Keith’s arms up and pulled him back into a hug “Well take those off tomorrow so they can heal up better. Let’s try and get some sleep.” Lance mumbled, pulling off his shirt to give Keith some added warmth since he didn’t give him his hoodie back. He didn’t want Keith to be able to hide the blood if he busted them open. Keith curled into Lance and eventually fell asleep as Lance played with his hair. 

Chapter Text

Throughout the night, Keith only woke up one more time. It wasn’t how it usually is, he just sat up and got his phone. Lance watched as he stared at the screen. Eventually he put it back down and curled back into Lance, falling asleep almost immediately. Lance still hadn’t slept at all, but it was a little after six, so there was no point now. He couldn’t get a word out of Shiro on the ride home, and he was going to today. Finally, it was around eight and he slid out of bed, accidentally waking Keith. He reached out and grabbed his hand. 

“Go back to sleep. I’ll be back.” Keith shook his head. “I promise. I have to go do something.” He stuck out his bottom lip and laid back down.  Lance gave him a small smile and slipped out. When he found himself at Shiro’s door, he took a deep breath and knocked, admittedly more aggressively than he meant to. 

“Lance…” Shiro started, holding the door half shut. He pushed through, walking in behind him. 

“We’re talking about it.” He growled. Once he got inside, he saw Pidge’s computer science professor walk out of the bedroom. He immediately spun around to glare at Shiro. “Really?” He hissed, with a sick smile. 

“He was already here.” 

“I don’t care if he was already here. I don’t care that he’s here now. We’re talking about Keith now.” 

“I can’t tell you anything more than I already have, it’ll make things worse.”

“No, what’s going to make things worse is you not apologizing to him. You know he was going to sleep in Allura’s room last night? Actually he did until early this morning. And you know, we kinda talked. He was never mad at me. He was mad at you. He still is, I think. He wants you to talk to him, but he’s afraid to text you.”

“Did he tell you that?” 

“Most of it, yeah, but last night he woke up and just stared at his phone for a while. He wanted to text you, but he didn’t want to get into another fight. I’ll leave, but you need to fix this.” He huffed before walking out and slamming the door. He spent the entire walk back to the dorm trying to calm down. He didn’t want Keith to see that he was angry. When he finally got to their room, Keith was pulling his hoodie on. 

Keith: Where’d you go?

“Just to the dance studio. I had to take something to my locker.”

Keith: You’re lying. 

“Yeah…” Lance sighed. Keith turned away again, he slowly walked up behind him and wrapped his arms behind his waist, leaning his chin onto his shoulder. “I’m sorry I lied…” He whispered. “I went to talk to Shiro.” Keith pulled away and got his phone. 

Keith: Why? What did he want?

“He didn’t tell me to come. I didn’t tell him anything if that’s what you’re worried about. I just needed to talk to him. He refused to talk to me on the way home last night.”

Keith: Why did you need to talk to him?

“Because… I don’t like seeing you upset.” He mumbled. “Even if it’s because of Shiro.” Keith just leaned into Lance’s shoulder. “Can I ask what you guys were even fighting about in the first place?” 

Keith: He was mad because I didn’t answer him after we fought the first time.

“Do you guys fight a lot?”

Keith: No. Usually he leaves me alone when he knows it’s too much. 

“When you stop talking?” Keith nodded with a confused look in his eyes. “I was watching you when you left to answer his call at the pool. I just wanted to make sure nothing happened… So he usually drops it then?” He nodded. “Why didn’t he this time?” 

Keith: I hung up on him. He wouldn’t leave me alone because he didn’t know where I was, so he got mad and kept texting me, then things escalated which is probably my fault anyway. I get why he’s mad at me. 

“I don’t think he’s mad at you…”

Keith: Why wouldn’t he be?

“He’s definitely mad at me, but I think he was just worried… I’m sure he’ll text you soon and it’ll be fine. Don’t worry about it, Mullet.” Keith nodded softly, clearly not convinced. “Well, what do you wanna do today?” He shrugged. “At some point, I have to do my laundry since break starts Wednesday, but that’s boring… How’s your balance?” He said with a smirk. 

Keith: Not that bad I guess… Why?

“I know what we’re doing today! You want me to invite the others or no?” 

Keith: With the smirk… I’m going to say yes. I don’t want to deal with your idea on my own.

“It’s a good one!” Lance said defensively, before walking away. A few minutes later, he came back with a wide smile. “They all said yes. Dress really warm.” He said, as he began digging through his closet. After last night, Keith realized how cold it really was. He added an extra layer to his usual attire and actually bothered to grab the coat Lance gave him this time. 

Keith: Are you gonna tell me where we’re going?

“Nope. I feel like you’d think it was a bad idea until we get there. It’ll be fun though.” He said, pulling Keith to the living room where the other four were waiting. They all piled into Lance’s car. Pidge and Allura took the third row, Hunk and Shay took the middle, and Keith and Lance were in the front. Everyone was clearly excited as they made their way there. Lance was beaming, so whatever it was, Keith decided he would have a good time. He liked seeing Lance so excited about random things.

 Finally, they pulled into the parking lot. Keith realized where they were fairly quickly. It was an open-air ice rink. They were ice skating. He was almost sure Lance would be taking him back to the hospital by the end of the day. He had to admit, it was really pretty. There was still fresh snow on the ground, and the mountains lined the background. There were string lights hanging above the entire rink, and leaf garland lining the banisters. Lance grabbed his hand and pulled him to one of the booths. 

“What’s your shoe size?” Keith held up his fingers, earning a nod from Lance who walked over to the counter, returning with two sets of skates. Keith struggled the skates on, then Lance took their shoes over to the lockers. Keith couldn’t even stand, he had no idea how he was going to skate. 

“You’ve never been ice skating have you?” Keith shook his head as Lance pulled him up. The others had already made their way to the rink. “What about roller skating?” He shook his head again. “Well, walking in these is honestly harder. You’ll be fine when we get on the ice.” He said, leading him to the rink. He immediately regretted his decision to leave today’s activity up to Lance. He held onto the wall for dear life. “Ya know, you’re not gonna get anywhere like that.” Lance teased, earning a glare from Keith. He held out a hand. “C’mon. I’m not gonna let you fall.” Keith hesitated, but took his hand anyway. Lance started skating again, dragging Keith with him. 

“See, not so bad.” He said, spinning to face Keith, continuing to skate backwards. He could see Keith was struggling, but he had faith he would get it. After a while, he started to seem a bit more comfortable, but he was still holding onto Lance. Still skating backwards, Lance hit a piece of broken ice, making him fall back. Keith didn’t let go and ended up on top of him. 

“This doesn’t count as me letting you fall.” Lance said through a laugh as he wrapped his arms around Keith’s waist. They sat there for a few seconds, staring at each other, before Keith awkwardly tried to stand up. He ended up back on the ice almost immediately. “That also doesn’t count.” Lance mumbled as he stood up, then pulled Keith up. They made their way around the rink a few more times, until Keith saw a familiar face. Lance immediately picked up on his discomfort as Keith squeezed his hand. When they made it back to the entrance of the rink, Lance led him out and to a bench. 

“You okay?” He asked softly. Keith nodded in response, trying to convince himself he didn’t actually see him. Lance quietly took off both of their pairs of skates, watching as Keith just stared at the parking lot. “Alright… What’s going on?” When Keith looked up, the man was staring from across the lodge area. He could feel his heartbeat speed up. Then, he remembered when Lance had told him how to tell him he needed to leave. He quickly grabbed Lance’s arm and squeezed it twice. At first, he was confused, then he remembered. “Come here. We have to get the others and our shoes first.” He whispered, leading Keith to the counter to switch out their skates, then to the edge of the rink. 

Keith was trying to hide behind Lance, even though the man had already seen him. As Lance waved them over, he felt Keith tense up more. Then he realized he was still staring at one spot. When he looked over, he immediately knew what was happening. When the others came over, he suggested they go get something to eat, and they all agreed. Lance put a protective arm around Keith’s waist and led him over to the others. Then, he realized the man was walking in their direction, he quickly waved Allura over. 

“Yeah?” She asked, pulling her other shoe on. He tossed her the guys and nodded towards Keith. 

“Walk him to the car.” She seemed confused, but agreed after seeing Keith’s panicked expression. She could tell Lance was trying to guard him. She nodded and led Keith into the parking lot. The others followed soon after, completely unaware of the situation. Lance stormed to the car a few minutes later to find Keith curled into himself in the middle of the front seat with Allura sitting next to him. When he got in, she moved to the back, and he silently started the car and started driving, leaving one hand on Keith’s arm. 

“So, where to?” He asked, turning the awkward silence into a slight argument over where to eat. He could tell it was making Keith’s situation worse. “Okay, the diner it is.” He said, obviously trying to get them to shut up. The rest of the ride was mostly silent. When they got to the diner, everyone got out, but he held Keith back. “That won’t happen again.” He said softly, before wrapping an arm around him. Then, he reached over to his glove box and pulled out a pair of earbuds, before handing them to Keith. He seemed confused. “Just in case you need them.” When he finally looked up, he could tell Lance had gotten into a fight with the man. Lance looked away, then pulled Keith out of the car. 

Chapter Text

When they got inside, Allura was waiting by the door so she could take them to the table. They were at one of the larger booths in the corner by the high top. Pidge, Hunk, and Shay were already taking up one side. Allura got in first, then Keith, then Lance. When they got situated, Keith could feel the other three looking at him. He slowly reached over and grabbed Lance’s hand, taking notice of his bruising knuckles. He rubbed circles into the back of Keith’s hand as he read over the menu. Eventually, Pidge spoke up. 

“So… Are we going to talk about your face?”

“No.” He replied dryly. Honestly, Keith wasn’t sure how he felt. He felt guilty that Lance got into another fight over him, but it also made him realize Lance wouldn’t let anything happen. It also kind of made him nervous though. Pidge gave him a puzzled look, but dropped it and turned back to Allura. Keith slowly moved his hand away and stared down at the table. He didn’t even realize he was scratching his arm until Lance pulled his arm away. 

“Are you hungry?” He whispered. Keith shook his head. “Okay, well I’m gonna order you fries anyway. You should try and eat.” He shook his head again and pulled out the earbuds before laying his head down on the table. Pidge and Hunk shared a confused look, but moved back to their conversation. Then, Lance got a text from Allura. 

Allura: Let him lay his head in your lap. It’ll probably make him more comfortable, 

Lance: He probably won’t with you guys around. 

Allura: Just offer it.

Lance nodded and nudged Keith. He looked up slowly and Lance gestured, telling him he could lay on him. Keith hesitated, but eventually obliged. Being close to Lance always made him feel a little better. He knew everyone else was questioning what was going on, but at the time he didn’t really care. He laid there while everyone else ate, at some point, Lance’s hand found its way to his hair. Finally, they paid and made their way back to the dorms. When they got back, Lance texted Shiro. 

Lance: Ok, what’s the deal with that guy I told you about the other day?

Shrio: Did something happen?

Lance: Yeah. Who is he?

Shiro: Don’t worry about it.

Lance: I almost got arrested. Tell me.

Shiro: What?

Lance: Yeah. So who is he?

Shiro: His name is Zack. We dated for a while and it was… bad. I had to get a restraining order on him, but I guess he followed us here.

Lance: What does he want with Keith?

Shiro: I guess to get to me. What happened?

Lance: Keith saw him and told me he needed to leave, so I called everyone over. I didn’t know why at that point. Then he got all tense and was staring at him, so I told Allura to walk Keith to my car. 

Shiro: And?

Lance: And he tried to get past me, which didn’t really work out. Security came and I almost got arrested, but I got out of it. 

Shiro: Did he?

Lance: I don’t think so. 

Shiro: Good. 

Lance: You need to talk to him. 

Shiro: I know. 

When Lance got to their room, Keith was finishing changing. He walked up behind him and wrapped him in a hug. Keith melted into it before turning around to face him. Lance could tell he was worried about him being hurt. 

“I’m fine. You should see the other guy.” He said with a fake laugh. “Petty sure he got arrested, or at least detained.” Keith nodded and leaned back into his chest. “You wanna go watch a movie?” He nodded again and followed him to the living room. They laid down together on one of the couches and Lance started scrolling through the movie options. Eventually, they landed on one of the Spiderman movies. They stayed like that until Hunk was done with dinner. Everyone was still obviously confused about what had happened, but they never mentioned it. The evening was fairly uneventful. 

When Lance got out of the shower and exited the bathroom, he found Keith on facetime with Shiro. He had his headphones in and was signing, so he had no idea what they were talking about. While he waited for Keith to finish talking to him, he decided to start packing for break. He still had a little laundry to do too, so he took it downstairs. When he got back, Keith was done. 

“Hey.” Keith waved. “That was Shiro?” He nodded. “You guys okay now?”

Keith: I guess. He said he’s dealing with Zack.

“So he told you who he was?”

Keith: No. I knew.

“Why didn’t you say anything?”

Keith: He thought I didn’t know about anyone he’s dated. He knew that I knew when he was dating something, but he tried to keep everything about them from me. 

“Why?”

Keith: He has his reasons. 

Lance nodded, knowing that meant he should drop the conversation. Then, Keith threw a pillow at him from across the room. 

“You need something?” He asked. Keith nodded and sat up. “What is it?” He just stood up and walked over to Lance’s bed and laid down. “Okay.” Lance chuckled as he wrapped an arm around him. They both slept peacefully all night. 

The next day, they all went to their classes as usual. The day went by painfully slowly. Classes were boring, and basically pointless since most of the teachers decided to finish up the last bit of the lessons on Friday, seeing as there were only two days until break. Honestly, as much as Keith hated school, he was dreading break. Either he would be in the dorm alone for the next week and a half, or he would be with Shiro since they weren’t going anywhere. He wasn’t mad they weren’t going anywhere, honestly he didn’t really like Christmas anyway. He just wasn’t sure how things would be with Shiro. 

Finally, after classes, they were all back in the dorm. All the others were backing to go home since they all had flights tomorrow. Allura was going back to Brighton, Hunk was going back to Hawaii, Pidge was going back to Nebraska, and Lance was heading back to Cuba. His flight left early Wednesday morning though. He was already mostly packed, so they were in the living room watching some random show Lance said was good.

“So… You guys are staying here?” Keith nodded.

Keith: Apparently there’s a lot going on with Shiro’s family right now. It’s better to stay out of it. 

“Are you gonna stay here or with Shiro?”

Keith: I haven’t decided. He’s gonna make me go do stuff with him anyway, so probably here when I can. 

“You don’t wanna do stuff with him?”

Keith: Not really. He always wants to do all the Christmas stuff.

“You don’t?” Lance asked, almost sounding offended. 

Keith: I don’t really like Christmas. Holidays aren’t really my thing. I like Halloween I guess, but not really. 

“Why?”

Keith: I mean,  it’s okay, but I really don’t care for any of it. 

He was clearly dodging the question, so Lance dropped it. 

“You better text me over break.” Keith seemed almost surprised. “What? You think you were finally gonna get rid of me for a while?” He shrugged. “I’ll only be like three hours ahead. You could call too.”

Keith: How would that work? You suck at sign.

“Yeah… Well you could still call and just text or write. Point is, I better hear from you.” He just nodded and leaned onto Lance’s arm. Eventually, they both decided to go to bed. Keith was asleep almost immediately after he got into bed. Lance, on the other hand, was not so lucky. He couldn’t stop thinking about Keith. He hoped Allura was right, but he didn’t want to risk doing anything and scaring him. He would just keep letting him make the first moves if he wanted to. 

The next day went by much faster. Before they knew it, Hunk and Pidge had already left. Keith was currently sitting on his desk chair, watching Lance finish packing. Soon, Allura came in to tell them she was leaving.

“Coran is giving me a ride to the airport in a few minutes…” She said walking up to Lance and offering a hug, which he happily accepted.

“See you in a week and a half. Text me when you get there.” She nodded and walked over to where Keith was. She awkwardly offered him a hug, expecting him to turn her down, but he didn’t. 

“You better answer my texts.” He nodded as he pulled back. “Alright. I better head out. I’ll see you both soon. Don’t get into any trouble while I’m gone, either of you.” She said as she grabbed her bags. They both waved as she made her way out the door. 

“Okay, well I’m packed. It’s already kinda late, so I’m gonna head to bed. I have to be up at four so I can make it through TSA on time.” Keith nodded and watched as Lance crawled into bed. When Lance noticed he wasn’t going to bed, he moved to the side and offered the spot. Keith hesitated, but he wanted to soak up as much time with Lance as he could, so he laid down next to him. “I’ll probably be gone when you get up. I’ll text you when I get to Miami for my layover. It’s like three hours so I’ll be bored.” Keith nodded and curled into Lance’s chest. 

Chapter Text

When Keith woke up the next morning, Lance was gone, just like he said he would be. It was already almost eleven and he still didn’t have any texts from him. He did have one from Shiro though. 

Shiro: I’m thinking about training again at noon if you want to come. 

Keith: I’ll think about it. 

He rolled out of Lance’s bed and made his way to the bathroom to shower. He already felt really lonely. When he got out, he realized he was on his own for food. He didn’t bother to get ready, it’s not like he was going anywhere anyway. He just pulled on a pair of baggy red sweatpants and made his way to the kitchen. As he searched through the cabinets, he heard a noise coming from the door. He quickly grabbed a knife from the knife block by the stove and stood at the edge of the kitchen. As the door opened, he tightened his grip on the knife. 

“Keith? What the fuck are you doing?” Lance asked in a panicked voice as he took the knife away from him. Keith seemed confused, but almost immediately wrapped him in a hug, which he reciprocated with one arm, while he put the knife up with the other. When he pulled away, he pulled out his phone. 

Keith: What are you doing here?

“My flight got canceled because of the weather. It was awful, they pushed it back like twice before they finally canceled it. I may be able to get a flight in a few days, but I’m not sure. Now, why did you have a knife?”

Keith: You scared me.

“I’m sorry… I should’ve texted you when I left the airport. I brought you food though.” He said as he grabbed a plastic bag from the top of his suitcase and sat it on the bar, motioning for Keith to sit and eat. He held up a finger and walked down the hallway. He came back a few seconds later, pulling a hoodie on. Then, he sat down to eat. He could tell Lance was kind of sad he wasn’t going home, but he was secretly kind of excited. He didn’t want him to be sad, but he was happy he was with him. 

“So, what do you wanna do today?” Keith shrugged. By the time he was done, Shiro texted him again. 

Shiro: I’m heading down. You can’t just hide in your dorm for a week and a half. You have to at least come over to eat. 

Keith: Lance’s flight got canceled. He might get a different flight out though. Can I stay here until he leaves?

Shiro: Okay… well text me if you need me.

When he got back from throwing out his trash, Lance was answering a phone call. 

“Hey… No, I’m still in Washington… Yes, it got canceled because of the snow… No, I was going to call when I got home… yes I’m about to look…no mama ella se fue a descansar… I’ll let you know… Yeah, okay… love you too.” He sighed as he hung up, then he went to their room and came back with his laptop and made his way to the couch. Keith was just awkwardly watching him. “What? You that upset you have to deal with me a little longer? Come hang out with me while I look for a flight.” He said, waving him over. He sat down next to him and watched him scour the internet for tickets. After about fifteen minutes, he was getting doubtful. 

“I may not be able to find one this close to Christmas. Everything seems full until after. There’s not much of a point in me flying all the way down there for a couple days…” He mumbled. After another twenty minutes, he closed his laptop, clearly giving up. “I’m gonna call her back, give me a second.” He said, walking into the kitchen. 

“I looked… and there aren’t any until about three days after Christmas… no, that’s a lot of flying, and way too expensive for like three days… no, no tienes que intentar volar hasta aquí… no te preocupes por eso, sabes que no me importan los regalos… solo uno de mis compañeros de cuarto... está bien, pero pasa la Navidad con ellos…” It was silent for a little while, then he could see Lance tense up. “ sí... en serio, ¿solo por tres días?... si eso es lo que quieres hacer... sí, te recogeré entonces.” They exchanged goodbyes, then Lance started pacing the kitchen mumbling under his breath. 

Keith: Are you okay?

“My mom found a flight for her to come here… she’s coming tomorrow night and staying for two full days, then flying home early Sunday morning so she can get everything ready back home… Well, she’s flying into Portland and I’m going to go get her when she lands because she can’t drive and-” His panicked rambling was cut off by Keith putting a finger to his lips. He grabbed a Sharpie off of the coffee table and scribbled ‘Breathe.’ onto his hand. Lance took a deep breath and buried his head in his hands. 

Keith: I thought you wanted to see her?

“I do…It’s just… there’s a lot about me I haven’t told her and she’s probably going to find out about it all…”

Keith: What do you mean?

“Well… the main issue is everyone back home thinks I’m straight… and that I’ve been dating Allura since middle school….” He said, speeding over his words at the end. 

Keith: So? No one’s here, it’ll be fine.

“Yeah… I guess… I just need to hide anything that would give it away… also, no one else knows about the Allura thing, so maybe don’t mention it…”

Keith: I won’t say a word. 

“You know what I mean.” Lance said with a light laugh. “Maybe her flight will get canceled… as much as I would like to see her, I just can’t risk that…”

Keith: You don’t think she’ll react well?

“No, I know she’d be confused, but I don’t think she would care that much. I’m more worried about my dad. He’s more… old fashioned I guess…” Keith nodded and leaned against his shoulder. “Well, until then… what should we do?” Keith shrugged again. “Well, I’m exhausted. I think I’m gonna take a nap. We could go walk around Seattle when it gets dark and look at the lights. I know you don’t really care for Christmas, but they’re still pretty.” Keith nodded and pulled his phone back out. 

Keith: I’m gonna go see Shiro. Text me when you get up if I’m not back. 

Lance nodded and stumbled to his room. Keith quickly pulled his boots on and made his way to the studio, hoping he was still there. Luckily, he was. 

“Keith, you come to train with me?” He shook his head. “Okay… Are you okay?” He nodded. Shiro clearly wasn’t convinced since he usually spoke unless there was something wrong. “Are you sure?”

“Yeah, I’m fine. Lance is taking a nap though so I’m bored.”

“Did he find a new flight?”

“No. I’m probably gonna come stay with you for a couple days though.”

“Why?”

“His mom’s coming to see him tomorrow night. He said she’s leaving Sunday though.”

“And until then?”

“I’m gonna stay with him. We’re going to Seattle tonight to look at the lights.”

“She’s leaving Sunday?”

“Yeah, why?”

“I was kind of thinking we should rent a cabin for a few days. I think it would be nice to get off campus for a while. Mom sent us some weird like VRBO credit or something so we could do something since we’re not going there this year. You could see if Lance wants to come, I’d hate for him to be stuck here alone on Christmas. Also, I guess we have some stuff coming in the mail, but I don’t know when it’ll get here.”

“When are we gonna go?”

“Well, Christmas is Thursday right?”

“I think.”

“So, we'll leave maybe Tuesday night and just stay however many days the credit lasts.”

“Is your boyfriend coming?”

“What?”

“That guy. I know he’s still here. I passed him when I was on my way here.”

“Keith…”

“No, I feel like maybe I should actually know this one.” He said with a little bit of venom in his voice.

“Okay, but-”

“Seriously, you should invite him if he isn’t leaving.”

“We just started dating…”

“So? You’re the Christmas spirit guy, you want to leave him here on Christmas?”

“You’re sure you want him to come?”

“Yeah. After the whole Zack thing, yeah. Plus, it’s not like it’ll just be us three. Lance will be there too, probably. It’ll be fine.”

“Okay… I’ll invite him…” He said, walking to his desk. “So… are you feeling any better about the whole Lance thing?”

“Shiro..”

“I’m not trying to convince you of anything, I swear. I just want to know how things are going…”

“Okay… good I guess.” He responded as he watched Shiro trying to type out a text. “I did almost stab him this morning though.”

“You what?!” Shiro asked, staring up at him with wide eyes. 

“He scared me.” Keith started through a laugh. “I was in the kitchen when he got back home and he didn’t tell me he was coming home, so I grabbed a knife when I heard the noises from the door.”

“Okay… Well, don’t stab him.”

“I wasn’t going to when I realized it was him.”

“Well, other than that?”

“I still like him a lot…”

“And?”

“And that’s it I guess…” He said as he got a text. “That’s him. We’ll probably leave soon. Should I ask him now?”

“Yeah. Be careful when you go. It’s a big city and we’re nearing the holidays. Lots of drunks, both diving and just in the city. Wear your seat belt and stay with him okay?”

“Yes dad.” He said sarcastically, earning an eye roll from Shiro. “We’ll be careful, I promise. It’ll be fine.” 

“I’m sure it will, I trust Lance with you.” Keith just rolled his eyes and made his way back to the dorm. When he got there, Lance was pacing the living room, ending another phone call. When he finally hung up, Keith couldn’t even begin to read his expression. 

Chapter Text

“Mom’s not coming. Her flight already got canceled. I think it’s a good thing though. Now I just have to convince my family not to send stuff up here. The postage is totally outrageous. Maybe I can convince them to just return whatever they can. I’m sure they’ll still send money though. I can’t talk them out of that. How’s Shiro? Are you still down to go to Seattle?”

Keith: Yeah, when are we leaving?

“It gets dark at four-thirty, but it’s already two, so maybe in like an hour. That way we can walk around some before it gets dark soon, then we can grab some food and look at all the lights. What do you think?”

Keith: Sounds good. I have a question though… 

“Yeah? Did Shiro say something?”

Keith: Yeah, nothing bad though. Apparently his mom sent us credit to rent a VRBO or something. He wants to get a cabin and go for a few days this week. It’s just him and the guy he’s seeing. Do you want to come with us?

“He’s okay with that?”

Keith: He told me I could invite you when he asked if I wanted to go, so yeah. I mean… I want you to come… 

“Then yeah.” Lance said with a soft smile as he read the last part. “You wanna go get ready?” Keith nodded as he went to text Shiro. 

Keith: His mom isn’t coming anymore. He wants to come with us though. 

Shiro: Great, Adam does too. I found a little a-frame in Maple Falls, near Mt. Baker. I’ll send you the link. It’s got a full kitchen, an indoor fireplace and fire pit, a hot tub, TV with cable and a few streaming services, and two bedrooms. One’s a loft and the other is downstairs. You guys can have the loft. It looks nice, let me know what you think. Also, do you want to leave early? We can rent it for a little longer than I thought, it’s pretty cheap.

Keith looked over the listing, it looked great. It seemed super cozy and the view was amazing. He immediately knew he was going to drag Lance on a walk in the woods with him. The loft looked really comfortable too. It had a queen sized bed that faced the fully glass wall with a view of the mountains. 

Keith: We can leave whenever. That looks nice. Just tell me after you rent it. 

He finally got ready. He had recently invested in some thermal pants like Lance had been nagging him to. He layered those with a pair of somewhat baggy balck jeans. Then, he threw on a Rush t-shirt, a random black hoodie, and his boots. By then, Lance was already ready, so he grabbed his coat, phone, and wallet, then they made their way to the car. As they were walking, Keith handed him his phone with the link pulled up. 

“I’m assuming we’re roomies?” He asked as he scrolled through the pictures, Keith nodded. “We have to go on a walk in the woods.” Keith nodded and took his phone back. 

Keith: We should hunt for cryptids. 

“You don’t like horror movies, but you want to go hunt down the black-eyed children stickmen?” He teased, making him cringe. 

Keith: Not the first ones… that’s creepy. 

“Yea, all of them are!”

Keith: They’re interesting. That’s like the only good thing about the Pacific Northwest. 

“How can you say that, but can’t watch the exorcist? 

Keith: Because first of all, jumpscares, second, none of this stuff is real. Murderers are. Demon’s and ghosts probably are too. 

“What do you mean? All of that stuff is real. Where do you think the stories come from?”

Keith: Shut up. Even if they were, bigfoot just wants a hug. 

“If we saw bigfoot, I think we’d both be running, forget the hug.”

Keith: No, I’d join him in the woods to become a cryptid. 

“No, I’d just do this…” Lance mumbled before grabbing Keith and throwing him over his shoulder before running to the car. He tried to struggle away, but tightened his grip when Lance started running. When he finally sat him down, he glared and softly punched him on the arm. “Let’s go. We can park downtown and find somewhere to eat.” He said as he opened the passenger side door and let him in. “It’s kind of a long drive, so if you need something get me to pull over.” He said as he gave Keith the aux cord. 

“Have you been to Seattle before?” He shook his head. “Well, it’s kind of busy… it’ll be fine though. It’s really pretty. One day we should take the ferry to Bainbridge.” Keith nodded. They spent the ride listening to music, with Lance signing along. When they finally got there, Lance found a garage to park in, and they made their way onto the street. Keith was already nervous when he saw the amount of people on that block alone. Lance could tell, so he grabbed his hand, making sure to keep Keith on the inside of the sidewalk. He felt better almost instantly.  They walked around for a while, going into different shops and enjoying the walk. Finally, they found a restaurant. It was a little burger place that used to be a small concert venue. 

“How many?” The host asked as they walked in. 

“Just two.”

“Alright, follow me.” He said, leading them to a nearby booth. Lance opted to sit next to Keith since there were so many people. “Okay, Max will be here soon to take your orders.” He said as he walked away. 

“What do you want?” Lance asked as he looked over the menu. Keith just stared back at him. “Chicken tenders I assume?” He nodded. “And Sprite?” He nodded again. “And you called me a child.”

Keith: You are. I just know what I like. 

“Sure.” He chuckled. Soon, the waitress came to the table. 

“How are you guys doing today?” She asked, looking at Keith. 

“Good, how are you?” Lance asked. 

“Uh, pretty good… What can I get you guys to drink?” She asked, looking back at Keith. 

“A Spite and a Rootbeer.”

“Okay… Do you guys need another minute or are you ready to order?”

“We’re ready. He wants chicken tenders with fries, I’ll take just a plain cheeseburger with fries too.”

“Okay, I’ll be back in with that soon.” Lance knew she was looking at Keith, but he kind of hoped Keith didn’t notice. Either it would make him uncomfortable, or he would possibly take an interest in her. He still didn’t know if Keith liked girls too. When she came back, she tried to properly flirt with him. Lance could feel him tapping his foot under the table, so he wrapped an arm around Keith’s waist hoping she would think they were dating and leave him alone. It didn’t work. She came back a few minutes later to see how their food was. This time, he could see Keith chewing on the inside of his lip too. Lance wrapped an arm around him again and just glared at the girl. She still didn’t seem to get the idea. 

“So do you guys need anything else?” She asked, leaning forward a bit, still looking at Keith. 

“No, I think we’re good. You need anything babe?” At first, he seemed confused, but then shook his head. The girl just rolled her eyes and walked away. “Sorry… You seemed to not be enjoying the attention…” He just nodded. When they finished eating, Lance led him back outside. It was already dark, so he led him to one of the parks by the water where they had all the lights set up. 

“So… When are we leaving?” Keith pulled out his phone and texted Shiro, then gestured for Lance to give him a second. 

Keith: Saturday morning. We’re staying until Friday around noon. Is that okay?

“Yeah. That sounds nice.” He said as he grabbed Keith’s hand. “So, are we driving separately?”

Keith: We can, or we can ride with them. It’s kind of far and there’s not really anywhere to drive to out there. It’s up to you though. 

“Yeah, we can just ride with them, that way I can actually talk to you.” Keith nodded and smiled. They made their way over to the shore. “They do a like boat light show, it should be starting soon. We can probably see it here.” He said pulling Keith in front of him and wrapping his arms around him. They stood by the rail and watched the lights. At some point, they both stopped watching them. Lance was just paying attention to Keith who was now leaning into him, playing with his fingers. 

“You cold?” Keith nodded. “Alright, let’s head back.” He said softly, pulling Keith away with him. They slowly made their way back to the car. When they got there, they waited a while to let the car heat up. “What do you wanna do when we get back?”

Keith: You wanna go swimming don’t you?

“Kinda…”

Keith: Okay. 

“Really? That easy?”

Keith: Yeah. It’s not like we have anything better to do. 

“Fair enough. Let’s go.” He said, begging to pull out of the garage. By the time they hit the interstate, Keith had fallen asleep.

Chapter Text

When they got back, Lance softly shook Keith awake. He was met by an immediate glare. 

“Awe, come on. You were only asleep for like twenty minutes. Why so grumpy?” He just stretched out his arms and got out. When they got to the dorm they both tore off their coats. “You still want to go to the pool?”

Keith: Unless you’ve thought of something better. 

“Nope.” He said, throwing Keith a pair of swim shorts. “No one’s here now though, so we can do whatever we want.” He nodded and went to go change. When he came back in a hoodie with a pair of sweats over his shorts. “You ready?” He nodded and pulled on his boots. Lance led them out to the pool as usual. He went through the window and let Keith in before starting the heat. Honestly, Keith didn’t want to be here, but he knew Lance was sad he wasn’t going home, and he hoped it would help. It was freezing in the building. As soon as Lance made his way to the chairs, he wrapped his arms around Keith. 

“It’ll warm up in a minute.” They stayed there for what was probably quite a bit longer than necessary, before Lance finally got up. “Come on, should be warm now.” He said as he connected his phone to the speakers and pulled off his clothes. Keith slowly did the same and made his way to the edge of the pool. As he sat down on the edge, Lance jumped in, causing water to splash all over him. Suddenly, his head popped up by his feet. 

“You’re just going to stay there?” Keith shrugged. “Keith!” He whined as he pulled himself closer to the edge. “Don’t be lame.” Keith just rolled his eyes. Lance pulled him closer to the ledge. “Don’t make me pull you in…” He teased, wrapping his hands around Keith’s legs. He tensed up a little, then shrugged it off. So, Lance pulled him in. He panicked at first, but soon realized the water stopped at his shoulder, he was wrapped around his waist. When he finally relaxed his grip, he pulled back and glared and his smirk. 

“You know you love me.” He teased, immediately met by Keith’s middle finger. “Well then…” Lance trailed off and stopped kicking his legs, causing them to start sinking. Just before Keith’s head went underwater, he swam back up. Keith was glaring even harder now. Then, he realized he never told Shiro they made it back. He was probably blowing up his phone. 

“You alright?” Lance asked as he swam to the shallow end of the pool. Keith held up a finger and made his way out of the pool and to the chairs. “Keith?” He just waved him off. He immediately got up and ran over to him. “I’m sorry…” He sat down next to him, earning a confused look from Keith. 

Keith: What?

“I’m sorry.”

Keith: I’m not mad at you dummy. I just realized I never told Shiro we got back. He blew up my phone. 

“Oh.”

Keith: Yeah, I’m gonna go call him. 

“Wait.” Lance said, pulling Keith back. “It’s like thirty degrees out and you’re soaking wet. Just stay in here. You’ll freeze out there.” Keith kind of shrunk down. 

Keith: I’ll just call him later.

“That’s not what I meant…” Lance said softly as he realized how that most likely came off. Keith just shrugged and turned his phone off. “Seriously.” He just shrugged again. “Keith… I’m never going to try and make you talk to me. If you ever decide to, that’s all on you.” He said softly. He just shrugged again. “Keith…” He pulled his legs up to his chest. Lance pulled him into his chest. “I promise you, that’s not what I was saying…” Keith nodded, but made no effort to move. They sat there for a few minutes before Lance wrapped a towel around him. “Do you wanna go back to the dorm? Or you could go to Shiro’s?” Keith nodded and slowly started drying off. When they were both dressed, Lance led the way back into the main building. He started towards the teacher’s dorms, but Keith pulled him back. 

“I thought you were going to Shiro’s?” Keith just shook his head and continued walking. Lance just followed behind. When they got to the dorm, Keith went straight to the shower. Lance decided to go shower in Hunk’s room since he wasn’t there anyways. When he came back, Keith was already in bed. 

“Are you still mad at me?” He asked softly. 

Keith: I was never mad at you. 

“You weren’t?” He asked as he sat down next to him. Keith shook his head softly. “Really? You seemed it…” 

Keith: You’ve seen me mad before.

“Yeah… I guess so… You know I really didn’t mean that right?” He hesitated, but nodded, then moved over to the edge of the bed. Lance laid down next to him and pulled him closer. “Don’t you still need to talk to Shiro?” 

Keith: Probably. 

“Are you going to?” 

Keith: He can wait until tomorrow. I’m tired. Adam’s probably there and he knows I’m alive. Plus I’ve been with you all day, so I doubt he’s very worried. 

“What do you mean?” 

Keith: He trusts you. 

“Really? Why?” 

Keith: I dunno… I guess because I do. 

“You do?”

Keith: You haven’t noticed?

“Well… I mean you actually make eye contact with me now.” He teased, earning an eye roll from Keith. “I thought you were just learning to deal with me.”

Keith: Believe it or not, I’ve actually told you more than I’ve probably told anyone but Shiro and like one other person.

“Really?”

Keith: Yeah. I know I haven’t told you much, but more than most people.

“Well you can tell me anything, you should know that by now.”

Keith: It’s not that easy. It’s kind of hard to do that when you can’t talk.

“Yeah… I think this works just fine though.” 

Keith: I guess. 

Keith shut off his phone and curled closer to Lance. 

“You goin’ to sleep?” He nodded into his chest. Lance wrapped an arm around him and rested his chin on his head. They both fell asleep wrapped up in each other's arms. 

The next morning Keith woke up alone. When he saw that Lance was gone, he looked over to see the bathroom empty as well. When he got up, he was immediately met with much cooler air than usual. He pulled his devet around him and made his way to the living room. When he got there, he heard Lance shout from the kitchen. When he got there, he was running his hand under the sink. 

“Hey.” He said, almost grunting. Keith motioned to his hand. “Oh, I’m fine.” He mumbled as he turned off the faucet and wrapped it in paper towels. “Well, I was trying to make omelets… give me a second to finish them.” Keith walked over and took his hand. When he pulled his other hand away, there was already blood covering the towel. When he pulled the towel off, he realized Lance was definitely playing it down. He started to pull them back to their room. 

“Keith, I’m fine.” He ignored him and brought him into the bathroom. Keith carefully cleaned and bandaged Lance’s hand after trying to get an idea of how deep the cut was, ignoring his protests. “Are you like a doctor now?”

Keith: No, but I have plenty of experience. Let me change that in a little while. Tell me if it doesn’t stop bleeding. 

“I’m fine, I promise. Can I go finish our food now?”

Keith: If you let me cut up whatever you were trying to.

“Fine.” He sighed, as he followed Keith into the kitchen. “Here. Maybe start with a new pepper though, and knife.” He said as he slid a cutting board over to him. As soon as he started, Lance realized he had no idea what he was doing. “You’ve never done this have you?” He just shrugged. “Here.” He said walking behind him. “Hold the knife like this instead, you’ll have better control.” He whispered as he repositioned Keith’s hand. “And hold the pepper like this. It’ll make it harder to cut yourself. When he was finally done cutting the pepper, Lance made his way to the stove. 

Keith: So, if your so good at that, how’d you manage to cut yourself that badly?

“I have like no attention span. I went to go do something else and when I came back I picked it up from the wrong side…” He said with a soft laugh. “Seriously, I’ll be fine.”

Keith: It was pretty deep… 

“I’ve had worse. It’ll be fine, I promise.” Keith nodded and waited for Lance to finish cooking. A few minutes later, he slid a plate across the bar. They ate in silence for a while before Lance had an idea. “You should teach me how to play bass.”

Keith: That’s gonna be hard to do over text.

“You can just show me. It’ll be fine. C’mon, it’ll be fun. It’s not like we have much else to do today.”

Keith: Okay, fine. What song? One that I know. 

“You pick. I don’t know what’s hard.” Keith nodded and watched as Lance took their plates to the sink, then started towards their room. “You coming?” He asked, he hopped up and followed him down the hall. He threw a pen and a notebook on his dresser, then grabbed his bass off the wall and plugged it into the amp. Lance watched as he played around with the sound of the amp and checked the tuning. Then, he motioned Lance over and handed it to him. 

“So, what song am I doing?”  Keith scribbled in the notebook. 

‘21 guns.’

“Green Day?” He nodded. “You should play it first so I can know what it should sound like.” He nodded and took the bass back. He rolled his eyes and played through the first two verses. Lance was already lost. Keith handed it back and Lance threw the strap over his shoulder. Then, he walked behind him to where he could see in the mirror. “Can you even see over me?” He teased, before Keith jabbed him in the side. “Hey! You know I’m funny… So how do I do this?” Keith repositioned his fingers, then showed him which strings to pick. After about half an hour, he was starting to get it. “How do your fingers not hurt all the time?”

‘They’re just used to it.’ 

“What’s your favorite one to play?”

‘Freewill - Rush’

“Play it.” He said, handing him the bass back. He honestly had no interest in playing, he just liked seeing Keith play. This time he played through the whole song, using quite a bit more concentration. 

“How long have you been playing?” 

‘My dad got me an acoustic guitar when I was like seven, but bass for like six years maybe.’ 

“You don’t play guitar anymore?”

‘No. I only ever had the acoustic, but this makes more sense.’

“Really? So I’m assuming that means no George Strait?”

‘Well, do you see one anywhere?’

“But you know stuff on it still?”

‘Probably. Maybe. Why?’ Lance just grabbed his hand and pulled him out of the dorm. He dragged him all the way down to the arts hall, stopping at the door of one of the music rooms. When he tried the door it was locked. 

Keith: Oh no, guess we have to go back…

“Hey, I know that’s sarcasm. No worries though…” He said as he pulled a card out of his wallet. A few seconds later he had the door open. “The locks here suck.” He said as he pushed Keith inside the room. He rolled his eyes, then looked over his options. He landed on a random Taylor guitar and sat down on a nearby box drum. “What are you gonna play?” Lance asked as he attempted to tune the guitar. 

Keith: Not George Strait. 

“Why?” He whined. 

Keith: Do you even know any George Strait songs? Doesn’t seem like your thing… You just wanted me to play a country song right?

“Maybe…”

Keith: Yeah, not happening. 

“Well, what are you gonna play then?”

Keith: Give me a second to look at chords. I haven’t played since I was like ten.

“Fine…” He sighed and watched as Keith attempted to figure out the song. A few minutes later, he started. It took him a minute to figure out what song it was, but eventually, he did. It was Everlong by the Foo Fighters. When he finished, he looked up to see Lance staring at him. 

Keith: Are we done now? It’s cold in here. 

“Fine, let’s go.”

Chapter Text

They spent the rest of the day watching old movies on the couch. By the third movie they were wrapped up together. Lance fell asleep halfway through the fourth, so Keith slipped out to go see Shiro. When he knocked, Shiro opened the door and whispered. 

“Adam’s here. Do you wanna come in, or we could walk down to my studio…” Keith nodded down the hall. The door shut and he could hear Shiro telling him he was heading out. Then, he came out into the hall, quietly shutting the door behind him. When they made it down the hall a little ways, Shiro spoke again. “So… Did you want to talk about something?”

“Not really I guess. Lance is asleep so…”

“Why didn’t you call last night?”

“I was with him. I was fine, I told you that.”

“I know… you still could’ve called though…”

“Yeah, I guess…” 

“Well, We’re leaving Saturday at like seven in the morning. You guys should pack tomorrow night. Also, it’s up North so it’s probably going to be a lot colder, I mean like low of fourteen, high of forty-two. Pack warm, and if you need anything, you guys should go tomorrow, or I can take you. I’ll send you some money.”

“I dunno… I think I’m mostly fine.”

“You should still check. Just let me know if you leave.”

“Ok. What’s up there anyway?”

“Mostly nothing. The woods and the mountains. There’s a few waterfalls out there. I think that there’s a hot springs somewhere. There’s also a little town about twenty minutes away.Thought it might be nice to just go somewhere away from all the people.” Keith nodded. “Are you guys driving separately? It’s like a three hour drive and my car has plenty of space, but Adam’s riding with me so if you want to, that’s fine.”

“Lance said he’d rather just ride with you, that way I can actually talk to him… well text him.”

“Are you sure you’re okay with that?”

“Shiro, it’ll be fine. I’m the one who told you to invite him, remember?”

“Yeah… I just don’t want you to be uncomfortable…”

“I’ll have Lance…”

“I know. I’m sure it’ll be fine…” They talked for almost an hour, then he got a text from Lance. 

Lance: Where are you?

Keith: With Shiro. 

Lance: Pizza tonight. Ride with me?

Keith: Okay. 

“Lance wants me to ride with him to get pizza.”

“Okay, be safe.” Keith nodded and made his way to the dorm. Lance was already outside waiting. He threw Keith his coat. Once he had it on, he grabbed his hand and led him to the car. The pizza place was super busy. It was dine-in and take-out, so there were people waiting for tables and orders. “I ordered on the phone. It’s packed so you can just stay here if you want to. I’ll only be a minute.” Keith nodded. “Keep the doors locked.” He said as he closed the door. He came back a few minutes later with the pizza. “I’m thinking more movies tonight. What time do we leave Saturday?” Keith held up seven fingers. “So I have to manage to have you up by like six-thirty? You’re gonna kill me.” He teased, Keith just smiled and nodded. 

When they got back, they curled back up on the couch and ate while they watched more movies. Eventually, a little after midnight, Keith fell asleep. Lance was getting close too. When he tried to wake him up, he just clung to him tighter. 

“C’mon Keith. Let’s go to bed.” He said softly as he slid out from under him. “Keith…” He whispered, trying to get him up, he just held out his arms in response. “Really?” He nodded. Lance laughed a little to himself and pulled Keith up, allowing him to wrap his arms around his waist. “You’re lucky I like you.” He mumbled as he made his way to their room. They both fell asleep within minutes. 

Lance woke up to noises coming from the bathroom. The door was still half open, and the only light was from a phone. It took him a second to realize Keith was rummaging around in the drawers and cabinets. He didn’t move yet, he just watched. Then he stopped and ran his hands down his face before slipping back into the room. Lance tried to pretend he was still asleep. Keith pulled on his boots and grabbed his wallet and coat before starting down the hallway. By the time Lance got up, he was already almost outside. 

“Keith! What are you doing?” He half-shouted down the hall, making him jump. “Where are you going?” He asked as he ran over. He could see Keith trying to think of an excuse. 

Keith: I’m just going for a walk. 

“Let me come with you then.”

Keith: Just go back to bed. 

“Wait.” He said, grabbed Keith’s wrist as he tried to walk out. “I know what you're really doing…” 

Keith: Please just leave me alone. 

“You know I can’t do that. I will if you come back to the room, but you’re not going to buy anything.” Keith tried to pull away again, but Lance just pulled him closer. “Please…” He kept trying to pull away for a few seconds, then just fell into Lance’s chest and broke down. Lance moved them over towards the wall and down to the floor. After he calmed down a little, Lance spoke again. “You can’t keep doing this to yourself…” He just shrugged. “Why?” 

Keith: I don’t know. 

“You don’t know?” He shook his head. “How can you not know?” He asked a little too aggressively, making Keith flinch away. “I’m sorry… It’s cold down here, let’s go back to the dorm.” He said softly as he pulled him up. When they got back, he pulled off his boots and coat, then laid down, turning his back to Lance. 

“Please, just tell me why…”

Keith: I don’t know. I just needed to. 

“I promise you, you didn’t. It may seem like that, but it’s not gonna help anything…”

Keith: You don’t get it. 

“Actually…” He said, pulling Keith to face him. “I do.” Keith watched as he pulled up one side of his shorts, revealing lines of old scars. Keith just stared back at him. “They’re old. Over six months now. I stopped. You can too.”

Keith: I don’t think I can.

“No, you can. I know it sucks. You’ll probably relapse a few times, but eventually you won’t anymore.” He just shrugged. “Let’s try and get some sleep. We should probably pack tomorrow morning in case we need to go get anything.” Keith nodded and wrapped his arm around Lance. They both fell back asleep fairly quickly. 

Lance woke up again around six feeling Keith moving around. He was still asleep, but it wasn’t going to stay that way for long. He was writhing around in his grip, taking quick shallow breaths. He didn’t want to wake him, but he didn’t want him to wake himself up. He slowly pulled him closer to his chest and tightened his grip before he began running his fingers through his messy hair. After a few minutes of that with a few soft whispers, he had calmed down, and Lance managed to keep him asleep the whole time. Without even thinking, he planted a soft kiss on the top of his head. Keith just hummed softly and nestled into his chest. He stayed up to watch him for a few more minutes until sleep overtook him. 

They didn’t wake up until after noon the next morning. Lance woke up first to a mess of black hair covering his chest. He decided to just wait for Keith to wake up himself. About half an hour later, he rolled over and rubbed his eyes with the back of his wrists. When he opened his eyes and saw Lance, he tried to hide a soft smile. 

“Oh, you’re not all grumpy this morning?” He just flipped him off with a silent laugh. “Okay, we should probably try and pack some, then we can head into town. I know we at least need to get you gloves. Your hands are already cold enough as it is.” Keith glared and rolled onto his stomach. “I retract my last statement. Well, I’m gonna start. Once you figure it out, we can go. We should get something to eat while we’re out too.” Lance half-mumbled as he crawled over Keith. By the time Lance was already half way done, he finally rolled out of bed and got started. He quickly realized he definitely didn’t have enough warm clothes. He threw what he had in his duffle bag without bothering to properly fold it, then jumped onto Lance’s bed. 

“You're already done?” He asked. Keith just shook his head. “You finally realized I was right and you need clothes that are actually warm?” 

Keith: Shut up. 

“Well, I’m mostly done. Do you wanna head out in a few. Are you cool with going to the mall? There’s one in the next town over from here… It might be kind of busy though…”

Keith: Probably. 

“Well, we can always leave if you need to.” He nodded and got up to change. Today he landed on a pair of black skinny jeans and an old Kiss hoodie. It took him a minute to sort out his hair which Lance found hilarious for some reason. 

“Dude, Allura has like six times the amount of hair you do and it takes her like half the time to do it.” He teased, poking his head into the bathroom. 

Keith: Don’t you have like a thirty minute long skin care routine?

“Yeah, but when we’re old I’m still gonna have great skin.” Keith just rolled his eyes and nudged him away. When he was finally done, he pulled on his boots and followed Lance to the car. The drive was fairly short, but when they pulled into the parking lot, it was packed with cars. Keith could already feel the anxiety rising in his chest. 

Chapter Text

“Keith?” Lance called. They’d been parked for a little while now and Keith seemed to be zoned out. “Keith?” He called out again, this time earning his attention. “Are you good?” He nodded. “Okay… Well remember you can just tell me if you need to get out. We’ll try and make it quick.” He just nodded. Lance walked around to the other side as Keith got out and grabbed his hand. 

Keith: Where are we going?

“Well, I’m assuming you mainly need warmer clothes. Anything else?”

Keith: I don’t think so… 

“Well, we can just start at the outdoor shop. They’ll probably have a lot, but if not it’s winter, everywhere has warm clothes.”

Keith: Why don’t we live in Arizona :(

“It gets cold too.”

Keith: Not 14

“Yeah, but it hits the triple digits in the summer, and the monsoons are wild.”

Keith: You’re crushing my dreams. 

“Every state’s weather sucks in some way.”

Keith: California can’t be that bad. Too many people though.

“California sounds nice. Ya’ know, I kind of hate Washington too. Other than for layovers, it’s like the only other state I’ve been to though. I mean Oregon, but just Portland.”

Keith: You’re not missing much. 

“Where all have you been?”

Keith: Texas and Wyoming obviously and a lot of the southern east coast states. Shiro and I also moved to Montana for a while before we moved here, not long though. 

“So a bunch of yee haw states then?”

Keith: Shut up. It’s not like I chose them. 

“And if you did?” 

Keith: New England in fall, or maybe Arizona or Nevada any other time. 

“Why?”

Keith: The leaves are pretty, I like the heat. What about you?

“Honestly, I have no idea. Maybe South Dakota. Bison are cool.”

Keith: They have those other places you know…

“Yeah. I dunno, I feel like the entire state has a small town feel.”

Keith: You like that?

“Yeah? Does that surprise you?”

Keith: A little. You seem to like people. 

“I do, I guess, but I’d rather live in a small town that’s close to the city than in the city. I feel like it would be too much.”

Keith: I lived in Dallas for a while. It sucked. 

“Really? Why? I thought you lived on a ranch.”

Keith: I did.

Lance decided to just nod and drop the conversation. They were nearing the entrance of the mall anyway. He felt Keith’s grip on his hand tighten. As soon as the door opened, the sound of hundreds of voices hit Keith’s ears, making him flench a little. Lance quickly pulled him into the first store, hoping it wouldn’t be too busy. It was usually quiet there anyway. It was similar to a ‘Bass Pro Shop’, but it was clearly more local. Luckily, they found most of what they needed there, most of it was actually picked out by Lance, then Keith found it in black or red. “Okay, that’s most of it, but we need to go to at least one more place, then we can go eat.” Keith just nodded and followed Lance to the checkout. When they got to the register, Lance took over the talking part, which Keith was grateful for. Once he paid, Lance grabbed the bag with one hand, and Keith’s hand with the other and led him to some other store he didn’t recognize. 

“C’mon, it’ll be quick I promise.” Lance said as he pulled Keith to a shelf. He watched as Lance stared at his options, then grabbed two pairs of red, blue, and white pajama bottoms. He could feel Keith’s glare. “You’re not getting out of it. We’re getting shirts too.” He said with a wide smile as he led him to a different self. He grabbed two gray henley style tops. He started to turn, then stopped. “You want it to be baggy don’t you?” He nodded. “I will never understand…” He started as he searched for another size. “Why none of your clothes fit you. Half of them are too small, and half are way too big. I mean, I’d get it if you like everything baggy, or everything tight, but no you’re so random about it.” 

Keith: You’re just jealous because I dress a million times cooler than you. 

“You look like a ‘Hot Topic’ ad.”

Keith: Was that supposed to be an insult?

“Yeah, I can see that didn’t work though.” He mumbled as he led Keith back to the line. The store was way busier than the last. There were more people in the line here than in the whole other store. He subconsciously moved closer to Lance. “You okay?” He asked softly, Keith nodded. Lance could tell he was obviously getting more anxious. He slowly moved to stand behind him and moved his hand to rest just above his hip, hoping it would help some. Keith leaned into his touch. It wasn’t helping much, but he still enjoyed being that close to him. It was kind of weird since they were in public around a bunch of strangers, but he didn’t want to pull away. When they made their way up to the register, he moved to stand behind Lance, but held onto his sleeve. Finally, he led the way back out of the mall. 

“Do you wanna go eat or just get takeout?”

Keith: I don’t care. 

“You sure?” He nodded. “Well, what do you want?” He just shrugged. “So the usual then?” He just nodded again. “Okay, well we can just go to that place we passed coming in then. Are you sure you don’t want to just order takeout?” 

Keith: I’m fine. We can do whatever. 

“Okay…” The drive to the restaurant was short. It was only a few minutes down the road. Lance led him inside. It was busy, but not too busy. He took his usual spot next to Keith. He seemed to be fine. Lance ordered like usual and they talked while they waited. After a few minutes, Keith noticed Lance seemed to be lost in thought, staring down at his untouched food. He nudged him softly. 

“Yeah?”

Keith: Are you okay?

“Yeah, I’m fine.” He said, trying to fake his usual happy, bubbly persona. 

Keith: No you’re not. 

“Seriously, I’m fine.”

Keith: Why aren’t you eating?

“I’m just not hungry.”

Keith: You haven’t eaten at all today and it’s like 3:30

Lance just rolled his eyes and finally started eating, but he could tell he really didn’t want to. He ate about half of his food, then leaned onto Keith’s shoulder. He stayed like that until the waiter brought the check. For once, he didn’t try to talk to him on the way home, they just drove in silence. He seemed mad, so Keith kept his distance as they made their way in. Once they got to the room, they both finished packing their bags, Lance still hadn’t said a word to him. Finally, he sat down on his bed and grabbed his phone. 

Keith: Are you mad at me? 

“No.” Lance half-whispered as he laid down next to him and rested his head in Keith’s lap. “I’m sorry if I made you think that…” 

Keith: What’s wrong? 

“Nothing now. I’ll be fine, I promise. Don’t worry about it okay?” Keith didn’t really give any sort of response, so Lance attempted to change the topic. “What do you wanna do until we go to bed? We probably shouldn’t stay up too late tonight since I have to get you up super early.”

Keith: We could just go watch movies. 

“Sounds good to me. Grab your blanket, it's cold.” Lance said as he made his way to the living room. Keith grabbed his blanket and followed. By the time he got into the living room, Lance was already lying on the couch with his arms open. He threw the blanket onto the couch and curled up next to him. Lance immediately wrapped his arms around him and played a random movie. They stayed like that until they decided it was time to go to bed. 

Chapter Text

The next morning, Lance woke up at six to get ready. By six-thirty he was pretty much done, leaving him to wake up Keith. His first attempt failed completely. On his second attempt Keith just rolled over. Finally, after a few more minutes, he got Keith up. 

“Do you need to do anything before we leave?” He just shook his head. Lance decided it would be easier to just grab anything else he would need himself. When he was done, Keith was back asleep. 

Lance: Keith is being a pain. Where’s your car? I’ll bring our stuff down there then come get him. 

Shiro: Yeah, I figured he would be. You can just bring your stuff down to the entrance of my dorm hall and I’ll take it. We’re going to head that way in a minute so I can let the car warm up. 

Lance grabbed both their bags and threw Keith’s coat onto the top of his, then dropped him off at the dorm entrance. Then, he made his way back to his dorm to deal with Keith. 

“C’mon, our bags are already down there.” He just pulled the blanket over his head. Lance sighed and shoved both their phones, wallets, and chargers into his pockets. Then he remembered to grab Keith’s headphones and his keys. “You really are difficult, you know that?” He mumbled as he readjusted the blanket and put Keith’s boots in his lap. Finally, he scooped him up and carried him out to the car. 

“Wow.” Shiro laughed as Lance struggled to get the car door open. 

“Yeah. He’s a little nightmare.”

“Trust me, I know.” 

“At least he only weighs like three pounds though.” Lance mumbled as he tried to get the seatbelt around him. By the time he got in his own seat, Keith was still half asleep, but had his arm reaching out to him. He took his hand and Keith relaxed and fully fell back asleep. 

“We’ll stop and get something to eat when he wakes up.” Shriro said, looking at him in the rearview mirror. Almost an hour into their trip, Keith woke up. He looked around in a slight panic at first, then Lance nudged him and he relaxed. 

“Wow, only an hour this time?” Shiro teased, earning a glare. 

“Good, the grumpiness isn’t just towards me.” Lance laughed. 

“Okay, there’s a diner at the next exit. I need to get gas anyway. Get your shoes on Keith.” He rolled his eyes and pulled on his boots as Shiro pulled off onto the exit ramp. The diner was in a little truck stop area right off the exit. When Shiro parked, they all got out. Shiro nodded for Lance to walk around so he could walk with Keith. He immediately walked around and threw an arm over his shoulder. As they walked in, they were immediately met by the glare of a table full of middle aged men. Lance protectively pulled him closer and glared back. Luckily, breakfast went by fairly quickly, Keith took note of how little Lance ended up eating though. He knew something was up, but decided not to ask about it. 

When they finally got back to the car, Lance turned and leaned his back against the door, then motioned for Keith to scoot over. He pulled him onto his chest. Truthfully, he knew that Keith was fully aware something was going on. He knew he was going to have to tell him at some point. Keith wrapped his arms around his free arm and fell back asleep almost as soon as they hit the interstate. Lance was kind of glad he fell asleep, it meant he couldn’t ask yet. Most of his friends already knew, but Keith felt different. After a while of watching the scenery and enjoying Keith’s company, Lance fell asleep. When they got close, Shiro cranked the radio all the way up, making Lance and Keith both shoot up. 

“I knew that would work.” He said proudly, earning a small laugh from Adam. Lance was laughing too, but mainly at Keith’s glare. He honestly found it kind of cute. Finally, they pulled into the long drive way of the cabin. It was a little dark green a-frame with tons of windows. There was a little patio out back near where Shiro parked with a sectional wicker couch and a fire pit in the center. 

“Well, we’re here.” Shiro said as he shut off the car and made his way towards the door. By the time the others grabbed their bags and got in, he had already managed to walk through the entire cabin and check each room. “Okay, upstairs is just the loft. Looks like the whole house is on a wood heater though.” He said as he picked up a note from the counter. “There’s some wood already over there, but I’ll probably have to split more tonight. If you guys want to go put your stuff up, I’m gonna figure out how the stove works.” Keith nodded and led the way up to the loft. He threw his bag on the bed, then immediately walked over to the windows. They were on the side of a foot hill, overlooking the valley, it was covered in a blanket of snow. Soon, the cold got to him and he left to go see how Shiro was doing with the fire. 

“Hey, Adam’s outside seeing where they left the logs. How’s your room?” He asked as he looked up from the stove. 

‘Cold right now.’ He signed. 

“Well, we’re either about to have heat or I’m about to start a fire.” Keith cringed a little and nodded. “A joke. It’s fine.” He said as the fire grew and he opened the vents and closed the door. “ He watched for a few more minutes before Adam came back in. 

“The wood is on the other side of our room. We should probably see what they have in the kitchen so we can go to the grocery store soon.” He said as he attempted to shake the snow off of his shoes. 

“I don’t even know where one is. We’ll have to figure that out too.”

“I saw one after we got off the interstate. It was like Doose’s or something.” Shiro nodded and looked at Keith who started to sign. 

‘Can me and Lance go-’

“Yeah, you can go walk around the woods. Just don’t go too far out and keep track of the time. We’ll probably head out in about two hours. You two can stay here if you want, but I don’t want you getting lost out there when I’m not here to come find you. If you two do want to come, I think what he was talking about is in that town we drove through.” He said before turning to Adam who nodded. “If you two want to come, you can walk around for a little while while we find groceries.” Keith nodded and began walking back upstairs. “Hey, I mean it. Be back here by one and don’t wander off too far.” Shiro said in his best dad voice, earning a sarcastic two-finger salute from Keith before he turned back around to get Lance. 

“Do you really think that’s a good idea?” He heard Adam ask. 

“Yeah. He’s not a little kid. He’ll be fine.”

“Yeah, he’s a teenager going out into the woods with the guy he’s clearly into. Does that not seem like it could lead to something?”

“Adam, I’m not worried about that in the first place, I know that’s not what’s going to happen. Either way, that’s my decision.” 

“I wasn’t trying to do that…” 

“That’s what it seemed like. I need you to just trust the fact that I know what I’m doing with him, and you need to trust him too. He’s showing a lot of effort for you. You’re the first person I’ve let around him like this.”

“Really?”

“Yeah. I’ve never had him around anyone I’ve ever dated or anything. I need this week to go well.”

“I’ll try. I’ve never really done this before though. I mean we’re both twenty-five, no one I’ve ever dated has had a kid….”

“Well, I’ve basically had one since I was like nineteen, so just trust me on it.” The conversation faded as they walked into the kitchen. 

“Are you eavesdropping?” Lance asked as he poked his head out of the bathroom. “They have heated floors in here. This is awesome!” 

Keith: First of all, no. Also, out of all the things that you could get excited about, it's the floor?

“Hey! It’s nice!” 

Keith: Yeah, whatever. Get dressed, Shiro said we can go out into the woods but to be back by one. 

“Okay.” He said as he walked over to the bed and started rummaging through his bag. “You totally were though.” 

Keith: Well, it was mostly about me, so I get a pass.

“What about you?”

Keith: Just the usual stuff. Adam basically doesn’t know how to date ‘someone with a kid’. 

“I thought you didn’t meet Shiro’s exes?” 

Keith: Yeah, most of them, but our walls were thin at the old apartment. 

“Ewww.”

Keith: That’s not what I meant. You’re gross. 

“No, I’m funny.”

Keith: Shut up and get dressed. 

“Yes sir.” Lance said sarcastically as he started changing. Keith did the same and flopped down on the bed to wait for him to finish. Suddenly, Lance jumped on top of him. 

“You ready?” He shoved him off and nodded. “Let’s go.” Lance said, offering a hand. Keith happily accepted it as they made their way downstairs. 

“Wait.” Shiro called out. “Are you dressed warm enough?” He asked, pointing to Keith, who nodded. “And you,” He started turning his finger to Lance. “You are in charge of directions. If he thinks the cabin is the other way, he’s probably wrong. He gets lost all the time. Don’t let anything happen.” 

“Aye, aye captain.”

“I’m serious.”

“I know, but I also think you know you have nothing to worry about.” Shiro nodded sternly and motioned for them to leave. Once they got outside, Lance turned to Keith. “What was that about?”

Keith: Adam. He thinks us leaving is a bad idea and Shiro’s probably convinced himself that he’s right. He’ll chill out soon. 

“You’re probably gonna have to use the notes app soon. I’m sure the service sucks and we’re almost out of the wifi range.” Keith nodded and opened his notes app. 

‘Also, I’m not that bad at directions.’ 

“How many times did you get lost when school started?”

‘Only a few. I don’t think it was because of directions though, probably people.’ 

“Fair enough.” Lance said as he led Keith into the woods. 

Chapter Text

After a few minutes of walking, they passed a boulder covered in snow. He sneakily scooped some up and tried to pack it with one hand as they walked by. Once he was sure Lance wasn’t expecting it, he stopped in and pointed to the woods on the other side of them, before throwing it at him. 

“Oh, you are so dead.” He shouted as he brushed the snow off of him. He ran behind a tree for cover as he formed a few snowballs. Keith did the same. After a few minutes of waiting for Keith to come out, Lance decided to try and sneak closer, but he was suddenly hit with one from behind. He looked, but Keith was nowhere to be seen. He waited for another hit, but it never came. A few minutes later, he heard something from behind him, so he followed the noise. Then, he was hit with a few more snowballs before a bunch of snow fell from above. He looked up to see Keith sitting in a tree on a branch just out of reach. 

“That’s so not fair.” He whined, but Keith just smiled and stuck out his tongue. “You’re so sneaky it’s not fair.” He said as he threw all of his snowballs. Only two of them hit though. “Did you think of how you’re going to get down?” Keith just nodded and effortlessly climbed down. Lance picked up a handful of snow as he made his way down and packed it super tightly. He had a plan. He tried his best to fake a sad expression. “Come here.” He said, opening his arms. Keith quickly made his way over, confused as to what upset him. Once he was locked into a Lance dropped the chunk of ice down his back. Keith immediately jumped back and shook out his shirt, glaring and Lance’s laugh. He playfully shoved him back. 

‘You suck.’ He signed, knowing he knew that one. 

“You love me.” Lance said as he pulled Keith into a firefighter’s lift, then softly threw him into the snow. As he landed, he pulled Lance down with him, then rolled to where he was on top and grabbed a handful of snow. Before he got the chance to use it, Lance flipped them over again, both of them were laughing. Then, they stopped. They stayed there for a moment just staring at each other before Lance flopped onto his back next to him. “I win.” He sighed. “Okay. We still have an hour or so till we need to be back. Do you wanna head back now or walk down farther? I’m pretty sure there’s a little stream down there.”

‘We can go a little farther.’ 

“Okay, but no more sneak attacks.”

‘I make no promises.’ 

“C’mon Mullet.” He said as he pulled him up. They walked down to the stream. It was only partially frozen over. Lance sat down on a nearby rock and pulled Keith into his lap. 

‘Do you want to go with Shiro and Adam? We can walk around the town and we’ll probably eat while we’re out.’ 

“Sure. We might as well. We have the whole rest of the time to do this.”

‘Are you going to actually eat?’

“There’s that…” Lance sighed as he leaned into Keith’s shoulder. 

‘I’m sorry…’ 

“No, it’s good you’re calling me on it.” 

‘Why haven’t you been?’ 

“Well, I guess we both have our secrets, huh?” 

‘You can ask me anything you want.’ 

“No, I’ll tell you. You don’t have to tell me anything you don’t want to…” 

‘Maybe I should though..’

“Why?”

‘Because you deal with me.’ 

“Only if you want to… Either way, you’re with me more than anyone, and I need you to call me on this if you see it so… Well, you know I’m at Garrison for dance. Well, we had a different teacher before fall break last year. She was… not great. I mean, she was great in most other ways, but she kind of gave me some issues. Not just me though, which is why she got fired. To skip over all of the boring stuff… Basically by the end of the first semester of my eighth grade year I kinda developed a bit of an eating disorder. I’m fine now though, mostly. After Allura figured it out she made me talk to the counselor. Apparently a few others were having the same issues, but no one would admit where it was coming from. Anyway, most of them kept going to counseling and got better, but I didn’t… and eventually it got really bad and they got permission from my parents and my insurance and all that, and sent me to a treatment center. I stayed for about a month, but it didn’t really stick. Over that summer, my mom sent me to one back home. I stayed all summer plus the first month or two of my freshman year. When I got back, the counselor got it out of me, then she convinced everyone else to tell her too and the teacher got fired. I’m fine for the most part now, sometimes my mind just plays tricks on me.” Keith leaned into his chest. “Seriously though, it’s not a big deal, you should hear it though.”

‘Is that why?’ 

“Why what?” 

‘Your thigh.’ 

“No… I think that’s probably a conversation for a different time. You know, you’re pretty much the only person who knows about that.”

‘Really?’ 

“Yeah, not even Allura.” They stayed there for a little while longer before Lance decided they should probably head back. When they made it back to the cabin, Shiro and Adam were waiting in the living room. 

“Told you I wouldn’t let anything happen.” Lance said as they walked in. 

“I know. You never have. Are you guys gonna go with us?” He asked. Lance looked to Keith who nodded. “Alright then, get whatever you need. I’m gonna put out the stove, meet us in the car.” They both nodded and went up the stairs. 

Keith: How did you tell me that so easily?

“Because I trust you, and it’s just a thing I have to deal with. I mean… it’s just a thing. A lot of people assume guys don’t really deal with it anyway, so I’m pretty open about it. I hate that.”

Keith: But you’re not like that with the other thing?

“No. I think Allura had her suspicions, but she never found out. She would’ve killed someone over it, so it’s for the best.” Lance said as he finally located his wallet. “That one’s not so easy to talk about either, so I kind of avoid it.”

Keith: I avoid everything. 

“I’ve noticed.” Lance teased. “Alright, let’s go.” 

“So, how’s the woods?” Shiro asked after a few minutes of silence. 

“Cool I guess. There’s a stream that’s not fully frozen over yet.”

“Did you guys just walk around?”

“Mostly. I totally won our snow flight though.” He said confidently, earning an elbow jab from Keith. “Ow! Okay, I totally lost. He’s sneaky though.”

“Yeah. You’ll never win with him. How’d he get you?”

“He threw something to distract me and climbed a tree.”

“Sounds about right. Did he get stuck again?”

“Again?”

“He has a habit.”

“Well, he got down fine this time.” Lance said through a laugh. The conversation slowly dwindled as they got further into the town. 

“How’s this look for lunch?” Shiro asked as he pulled into a restaurant parking lot. Everyone agreed as he parked. It was a small diner that seemed to mostly serve southern country foods for some reason. After looking over the menu, Keith landed on his usual chicken tenders and fries and nodded to Shiro, silently letting him know. Soon, the waitress came and took their order. Adam seemed confused when Shiro ordered for Keith without even asking what he wanted, but didn’t say anything. When Lance looked over, Keith was smiling softly at the waitress. 

“Did you find another waiter to crush on?” He whispered as she walked away, Keith scrunched up his nose. 

Keith: She was at least twice my age, and a she dummy. 

“Then what was the smile about?” 

“Her accent.” Shiro interrupted. 

“You think she was from cowboy land?”

Keith: No, more country music capital. 

“Country music capital?” He asked. 

“Tennessee. He’s probably right. My brother-in-law is from a town a little west of Nashville, his is very similar.”

“So you think they came up here to fix the seafood issue?”

“Hey, don’t hate on southern food. Plus, we eat fish back home too. I would assume so though. I mean…” He pointed to the sign by the bar top. 

‘Nashville hot chicken!’ 

“So Keith cheated?”

Keith: I didn’t see it!

“Sure… So you like her accent then?” Keith nodded. “So you are a cowboy then?” Keith just rolled his eyes. 

Keith: I just like southern accents. Let me live. Also, no I don’t still have an accent, you can ask Shiro. 

“Maybe I will.” Lance said matter-of-factly, before turning to Shiro. “So he still has an accent right?” 

“Little bit. I do too, but it’s a bit different and I hide it.” 

‘Do not.’ Keith signed. 

“You totally do. Not all the time, but if you’re tired or mad.”

‘I don’t know what you’re talking about.’ 

“You totally do. Just accept it.”

Keith: I totally don’t. How do you not though?

“I do when I actually speak Spanish, and when I go back home. I dunno, I guess my brain just shuts it off when I’m here. I spent forever trying to sound less Cuban. I think it worked.” 

Keith: Why?

“People understand me better.” Soon enough, the food came and they all started to eat. Keith watched Lance move his food around and pick up random pieces with his fork while he was talking to Shiro, but he never took a bite. Keith nudged him softly. He sighed and started trying to eat. Keith reached over and rested his hand on Lance’s thigh. When he was halfway done, he looked to Keith who just nodded. 

“You guys can head out if you're done. We’re just going to the market across the street. We’ll text one of you when we’re done and you can meet us there. Just stay out of trouble and be safe.” They both nodded and stood up. Keith could see Lance over thinking, but he didn’t know what to say, so he just leaned his head into his shoulder. Lance knew what he meant though. He was getting pretty good at reading his body language. They walked around for a little while before they found a playground. Lance just stopped and looked at Keith. 

Keith: You are a child. 

“Please?”

Keith: Fine. 

Lance immediately pulled him to the playground and took off towards one of the slides. Keith decided to watch him from the top of the monkey bars. He climbed up and threw his legs around a bar, then pulled his upper body though. After a few minutes, Lance got bored and walked over to him. 

“So do you just climb everything?” He shrugged, then motioned for him to climb up. “How?” Keith rolled his eyes and dropped down, then climbed back up. “My legs are definitely too long for that.” Keith frowned, then suddenly dropped down head first. Lance immediately jumped to catch him, but soon realized he was hanging from his knees laughing at him. “You suck.” 

‘I know.’ He signed. Keith reached up and flipped down. 

“Where to now?” Lance asked. He just pointed across the street. “Really? This is supposed to be a break from school and you want to go look at books?” 

Keith: I forgot to bring one. 

“You are so strange.” Keith just shrugged and kept walking. When they walked in, all Lance saw was chaos. It was a used bookstore so there were only a few copies of every book, but the shelves were full. “How do you expect to find anything?” 

Keith: Look up dummy. 

“What?” Lance said as he looked up and realized the rows of shelves were all labeled by genre. “Oh…” Keith grabbed his hand and pulled him to the ‘Classic Literature’ section. He watched as Keith scrolled through his phone, then walked over to the ‘B’ section. He ran his finger along the spines, then pulled one out. Lance took it and read the cover. "Giovanni's Room?” Keith nodded. “What’s it about?” 

Keith: Literally a bunch of gay guys in France. Metaphorically, I’ll get back to you. 

“So you haven’t read it yet then?” 

Keith: No. I wouldn’t get one I’ve already read. Most of those I already have either at the dorm or in Shiro’s room. 

“There’s more? How?” 

Keith: You have a lot of time to read when you have no friends. You realize you’re like only my second real friend I’ve had since I was like seven right? 

  “Fair enough I guess. Is this it or do you want to look around some more?” 

Keith: That’s probably good. 

“Alright. You ready?” Keith nodded and Lance led them to the register. 

“Oh, ‘Giovanni’s Room’, that’s a good one. You like Baldwin?” The girl running the register asked. She was around their age and was dressed a lot like Keith. Her entire outfit was black and purple, and her hair was black with purple streaks. 

“No idea. I don’t read. It’s his.” 

“Have you read it before?” Keith shook his head. “It’s pretty good. I’m sure you’ll like it.” She said as she rang him up. Lance thanked her and began walking away. “You guys aren’t from around here are you?” She asked. Lance stopped and turned back. 

“No, Enumclaw, why?” 

“Just a guess. I just was going to tell you to try and avoid the corner by the record shop. Father Mills was there when I was on my way in this morning.”

“Who?”
“He’s a total asshole. He got me kicked out of my old Catholic school. He stands out there and goes on tangents and hands out therapy pamphlets.” She read Lance’s confused expression. “Oh, are you not together?” 

“No, just friends.” He said as Keith awkwardly looked to the ground. She could tell they like each other  though. 

‘Go for it.’ She mouthed to Lance while Keith wasn’t looking. He gave her an awkward side smile. 

“Well, I’m bi and feisty, so thanks for the warning anyway. I’m sure I’d end up in a fight.” She nodded and they walked out. 

Keith: She had cool hair. 

“Yeah, she did.” Lance said, pulling him to the other side, away from the road. “You should dye yours.” 

Keith: Really? I don’t think I could, and I refuse to go get it done. 

“Is that why your hair looks like that?” He teased. “I could help you. It can’t be that hard.” 

Keith: It would draw too much attention anyways. I would hate it. 

“Really? You get all moody when I don’t pay attention to you.”

Keith: That’s you. I mean like literally anyone else. I like you. 

“I’ve noticed.” Keith’s smile dropped a little and Lance noticed. They walked around for a little while longer before Shiro texted them to say they were checking out and to head to the car. By the time they got there, Adam and Shiro were already done loading the trunk. They both crawled into the backseat. 

“Alright, so when we get back Adam and I are going to go try and find the hot springs. If you two decide to go explore the woods again, leave a note and let me know when you left. It’s supposedly down one of the trails nearby, so we probably won’t be gone too long. Then I’ll cook when we get back. Also if you leave, put out the fire.” 

Chapter Text

When they got back and unloaded the groceries, Shiro got the heater burning, then they left. 

“So… What do you wanna do?” 

Keith: I don’t know. We have a TV, a fire pit, and the woods. 

“And a hot tub.” 

Keith: That too… 

“It would be warm and you don’t have to swim…” 

Keith: Maybe later. 

“Well, It’s already almost four, so it’ll be dark soon. We could watch movies until then, and when it gets dark we could go stargaze.”

Keith: That’s a better idea. Won’t it be colder though. 

“That’s why we’ll stargaze in the hot tub, obviously.” 

Keith: Fine. 

“Let’s go change.” Lance said with a laugh. Keith got done changing before Lance, who was standing shirtless, still rummaging through his bag. He took it as an opportunity to get his revenge from earlier. He snuck up behind him and held his cold hands against his bare back. 

“Ah!” He shouted and jumped away. “You’re a little ice demon!” He said as he threw Keith onto the bed. He was clearly proud of himself. “How are you that cold?” Keith just pointed to the snow outside. “No, it's supernatural.” He mumbled as he pulled his hoodie on. “Do you wanna watch movies here or downstairs?” Keith just pulled the blankets back and crawled under them. “Okay. You find one.” He said as he joined him. Eventually, Keith landed on ‘Howl’s Moving Castle’.  “It’s weird having a bed we both fit in.” Lance laughed before pulling Keith closer. 

After the movie, Shiro and Adam still weren’t back, but it was dark out. After some conniving, Keith finally agreed to go out. They quickly changed and Lance led them outside. 

“I forgot, we should probably let it heat up. Go back inside. I’ll figure out how to turn it on.” Keith nodded and immediately went back in. Soon, he was joined by Lance. “I’ll check it again in a few minutes.” Keith nodded and wrapped his arms around Lance’s waist, leaning into his chest. “You okay?” He nodded softly. “You’re tired?” He nodded again. Lance just laughed softly. A few minutes later, they made their way outside. As soon as the cold air hit him, hopped in. 

“You warm now?” Lance asked as he slid in, earning a glare from Keith. “C’mon, it’s nice.” He said as he wrapped an arm around his waist. The stars were so much brighter out there. Neither of them really cared though, they were really just paying attention to each other. They just stared up at the sky for a while until they heard Shiro’s car pulling in. Lance got out and threw Keith a towel. He made sure to wrap it completely around himself before they went in. When they got in, Shiro and Adam still weren’t inside, so he rushed up the stairs with a confused Lance trailing him. 

“Why’d you run off like that?” He asked as he caught him going to change. When he got back, he pulled a hoodie over his tank top and grabbed his phone. 

Keith: Shirt. 

“What?” He asked confused, Keith just motioned to his arms. “Oh… How are they healing?”

Keith: Fine I guess. It’s only been like a week. 

“I know. I’m gonna go change. Do you wanna start another movie before we eat?” Keith nodded. Once he was gone, Keith texted Shiro. 

Keith: I think I want to tell him. 

Shiro: Tell him what?

Keith: I don’t know, some of it. 

Shiro: I think it’ll be fine. Do you want me there? 

Keith: No, I think it’ll be fine. I just don’t know what to tell him now. 

Shiro: I mean, you could either start at the beginning, or maybe some smaller things. Just text me if you need to.

Once he was done, Lance came out of the bathroom and jumped onto the bed next to him. 

“What are you thinking so hard about? You’re giving me a headache.” 

Keith: I think I want to tell you something. 

“Tell me what?”

Keith: I don’t know yet. 

“Well, whatever it is you can just tell me whenever…”

Keith: I just don’t know where to start… 

“I mean, you don’t have to do this right this second, right? Whatever you decide, you can just tell me then. Don’t stress yourself out.” 

Keith: I wish I could just talk to you like a normal person. I’m sorry. 

“Keith, this is fine. Don’t start thinking like that again. I don’t care if you talk to me or not. If you ever want to, that’s cool too.” Lance said softly, Keith curled into his chest. “What? You don’t believe me?” Keith shook his head softly. “You will eventually.” Lance said as he searched for a movie. About half an hour later, Shiro texted Keith and told them to come eat. Most of dinner was quiet. Adam and Shiro were mainly just paying attention to each other, and Keith was watching Lance. He did a lot better eating at dinner. 

“So there’s a Christmas festival thing a few towns over tomorrow night. We saw a poster for it at the store. We’re probably gonna go, do you two wanna come?” Shrio asked. Keith just looked at Lance. 

“Sure, might as well.”

“Okay, It starts at seven, so we’ll probably head out at six.” He said as he started taking the plates to the sink. “Well, I think we’re about to head to bed…” Keith nodded and motioned for Lance to follow him upstairs. 

“What do you wanna do? It’s not even that late?” Keith shrugged. He wanted to tell Lance everything. He knew that, he just didn’t know how. 

Keith: I’m gonna go take a shower. 

Lance nodded as Keith grabbed a pair of sweats and walked into the bathroom. He turned on the shower, then decided to text Shiro since he knew he wasn’t actually going to sleep yet. 

Keith: Do you think you could actually do it at some point?

Shiro: Do you not want to tell him, not want to be there, or can you just not figure out how?

Keith: I do, not particularly, and pretty much. 

Shiro: When?

Keith: Preferably soon I guess… 

Shiro: How much?

Keith: All of it. 

Shiro: You’re sure you want to? You know that he’s okay with you not telling him right?

Keith: Yeah. I just don’t think I can do it myself. 

Shiro: Okay 

Keith: I’m gonna go take a shower. 

While Keith was in the shower, Lance thought about calling Allura, but he knew she would still be asleep, so he resorted to watching ‘Steven Universe’. He only made it through the first few minutes of an episode before Shiro appeared at the top of the stairs. When he looked over, Shiro waved for him to follow. He was confused, but he still followed. He led him out to his car and told him to get in. 

“You know this seems really shady right?” Lance half-joked as he got in. 

“I’m not kidnapping you. We’re not even leaving. The car just has heat and is private.”

“Are you gonna threaten to kill me again? I don’t think I did anything…” 

“No. Keith asked me to talk to you.” 

“About what?” 

“All of it.” 

“Really?” 

“Yeah. I’m not sure he knows I’m doing it right now, but he told me to do it soon so…” 

“Okay…” 

“I have no idea what he’ll be like when you get back. Just text me if you need to.” Lance nodded.  “I don’t really know how to go about this either, I also don’t know every detail, but I’ll try. I’m assuming you don’t know much, so I’m just going to start at the beginning. I’m just going to try and give you the basics since we don’t have much time. Basically, his mom left when he was about three, then it was just him and his dad. Things were fine then as far as I know. His dad had a ranch out in Texas and did volunteer firefighting. One night I think he was seven, his dad was out working on something and saw smoke coming from one of their neighbors houses, so he ran over. He called the station, but he didn’t feel like he could wait for anyone to come, so he went in. Long story short, everyone got out but him. Keith had followed him there without him knowing. That’s kind of when everything started. 

The ranch went to his aunt and uncle, and so did he. They were actually really shitty people. He dealt with it for a while, but I guess it was finally too much for him and he left. I don’t even think he was nine yet. Somehow, he made his way to Dallas. His freedom didn’t last long, eventually the state took over and put him in the system. A lot happened with that too, and eventually he got out. Obviously a lot happened when he was out on his own so young.” 

“And that’s when you found him?”

“Yeah. I was maybe nineteen at the time. I was on a trip with the guy I was dating at the time and I found him near our hotel. I don’t even remember how I convinced him to come to the hotel with me, but I did. My ex was pissed to say the least, but I didn’t really care, so he left. I basically kidnapped him and brought him back to North Carolina. At the time I still lived with my parents, but my mom loved him, so she decided to give him my brother’s old room. I was still in college at the time, so we stayed there until I graduated. Then I finally got legal custody of him and we moved to Wyoming so I could teach.”

“So when did he stop talking?”

“I’m honestly still not sure. He didn’t when I met him.”

“When did he start talking to you?” 

“Uhh, probably just under a year after we met, I think a little bit longer with my mom, but he doesn’t talk to her very often.”

“So what happened after all of that?” 

“He got caught up with school. He actually even had a real friend. Then he started dating a kid named Nathan. Obviously, it wasn’t very serious since he was like barely fourteen, but he gets attached to people. It takes a while, but he kind of becomes codependent on people. Basically, both of them got tired of him not talking and left. That was already had enough, but they were total dicks to him afterward and I had to pull him out of school and homeschool him. That’s why he’s so worried about you. He doesn’t want you to be the same. I trust that you won’t, but he’s still just cautious. I’m basically the only constant he’s had in his life since he was seven.” 

“What happened that made him leave?” 

“Honestly, all I know is they treated him very poorly. I assume it was mostly his Uncle since he’s so cautious around most men. I also know his cousin wasn’t great.”

“Why is he so afraid of you finding out about his arms?” 

“He thinks I’ll take him back to a psych ward. I never actually meant to take him. I just… I had to call an ambulance one time and they put him on a seventy-two hour hold, and because he refused to talk to anyone, they took him. He was only there for about two and a half months, but he never said anything about it, even when he just got out.” 

“When was that?” 

“About six months ago. That’s why I kind of tried to use you to keep an eye on him. I know that’s not super detailed, but you should probably get back up there. I’m sure he’s out by now and he’s probably freaking out.” Lance nodded and got out. When he got upstairs, Keith was pacing back and forth in front of the bed. When he turned back around, Lance pulled him into a hug. 

Chapter Text

“Quit pacing. It’s okay.” Lance whispered as Keith melted into his arms. “You wanna  watch a movie?” Keith pulled back and went for his phone. 

Keith: That’s it?

“We can talk about it if you want to, but that’s all up to you.”

Keith: What did he tell you?

“He said it was just the basics of everything and didn’t really go into much detail.” Lance said as he flopped down on the bed. Keith just stared for a second before laying down next to him. 

Keith: Are you going to freak out if I randomly decide to speak to you?

“I’d definitely be surprised, but no, I don’t think so. Why?” Keith just shrugged. “You wanna find a movie?” He asked as he sat up against the headboard. Keith shook his head and grabbed his book off the nightstand. “Okay, well come here at least.” Lance said as he pulled him to where he was leaning into his chest. He got comfortable between his legs and started reading. After about an hour, he closed the book and tossed it to the other side of the bed, before stretching and turning to face into Lance’s chest. 

“How’s your book?” 

Keith: Good I think. I’m only like halfway through. 

“You’re tired?” Lance asked, more as a statement than a question. Keith just nodded. “Alright, let me actually lay down.” He said, earning a frown from Keith. “You can come back right after.” He said as Keith got up. As soon as he was comfortable, he pulled Keith back to his chest. They both fell asleep quickly. 

The next morning when Lance woke up, Keith was gone. He could hear Shiro talking downstairs, so he figured he was down there. He threw on a hoodie and made his way down the stairs. When he got there, he saw Shiro standing over the stove cooking, and Keith sitting on the counter across from him. . 

“Wow, you’re actually up?” He teased as he made his way over to Keith. 

Keith: It was bright.  I don’t know how you stayed asleep. Usually everything wakes you up. 

“Light doesn’t bother me.”

“Adam’s out. He apparently forgot to get another pack of cigarettes yesterday. When he gets back we might go hiking. You two can come if you want.” Shiro interjected. Lance looked to Keith who shrugged and motioned back to him. 

“Yeah, maybe.” 

“The trail starts like halfway up Mt. Baker, but it’s not supposed to be very strenuous.” He said before turning to Keith. “I know you say altitude doesn’t bother you, but it’s also cold and you’ll be walking, so if you go bring your inhaler.” Keith just rolled his eyes. 

‘It’s not that bad.’ He signed. 

“I know it’s usually not, but it could be. If you don’t bring it, you’ll have to stay with me the whole time.” Keith just narrowed his eyes. “Why so difficult this morning?” He looked at Lance, then back to him. 

‘You know why.’ He signed before jumping down and walking into the living room. Lance followed, clearly confused. 

“What was that about?” He whispered. 

Keith: He’s doing it again. 

“What?” 

Keith: Arguing. 

“About?” 

Keith: I was trying to talk to him about something, but he thinks he knows everything . I hate it. 

“I’m sorry.” Lance said as he leaned into his shoulder. A few minutes later, Adam came in and they all made their way to the table to eat. They sat in an awkward silence for a while before Adam broke it. 

“So, are you guys gonna come hike with us?” Keith nodded. 

“Yeah. Where is it anyway?”  Lance asked. 

“Not too far. The trail is only a few miles, but it goes up to one of the higher peaks.” Lance nodded. 

“We should probably head out after we eat.” Shiro added. They finished eating the rest of their food in silence, then Lance and Keith went upstairs to change. 

“You sure you wanna go?” Lance asked once they got upstairs, Keith just nodded as he dug through his bag. “We can just let them get ahead of us.” Keith nodded again. Before they even knew it, they were standing at the beginning of the trailhead. Shiro was just staring at Keith. 

‘Yes, I have it. Leave me alone.’ Keith signed before Shiro pulled him back to where the car was. 

“Why are you so mad?”

“You.” He hissed quietly.

“You literally asked me for advice this morning. You can’t be mad at me for giving it to you!”

“No, you asked how things were with him and I answered. I never asked for any of that. I thought I made it pretty obvious that I don’t want your advice about him.”

“No, you made it obvious that you think you don’t need me around, then you only made it a few miles down the road and proved yourself wrong.” 

“I only came back because of Allura! I would’ve been fine if I never met you and you know that.” 

“Yeah, you would’ve gone through life hiding. Not to mention, you would’ve never gone back to school. You would’ve starved to death or worse. I don’t know if you realize this, but you really can’t get anywhere when you refuse to talk to anyone.”  

“Yeah, well I should’ve kept refusing to talk to you.” He huffed before walking away. 

“Keith!” He shouted as he watched Keith grab Lance’s arm and pulled him onto the trail. As he watched them disappear, Adam made his way over to him. 

“So, I’m assuming that didn’t go well?” He asked as he offered Shiro a cigarette. 

“No, it did not.”  He mumbled as Adam lit the cigarette hanging out of his mouth. 

“What did he say?”
“Honestly…” Shiro started, taking a drag. “That was mostly on me…” 

“What do you mean?” 

“I said some things I shouldn’t have… Let’s give them a minute to get ahead of us.” Adam nodded and leaned against the car.  

“Are you okay?” Lance finally asked as Keith’s speed slowed back down to a normal pace. Keith sighed and opened the notes app. 

‘I’m fine. I’m just tired of fighting with him. It’s all just stupid.’ 

“I’m sorry…” Keith just shrugged. They spent most of the hike joking around random things and trying to sneak a snowball hit in at random times. Finally, they made it to the end of the trail. It was a rock ledge with an amazing view of the rest of the snow covered mountain range. Keith pulled him to one of the boulders and sat down. Lance could tell he was anticipating another argument with Shiro once they caught up. 

“What are you guys even fighting about?” He asked. Keith hesitated, then pointed at him. “Me? Why?” Keith sighed and looked away for a minute before finally typing a response. 

‘I like you.’ 

“Yeah, I would hope so. It would be kinda weird to be sitting on the ledge of a mountain with a guy you hated.” He laughed in response, trying not to sound so hopeful. “So, what’s the problem with that?”

‘That’s not what I mean moron.’ 

“Oh. Really?” He nodded and looked away awkwardly. “So why is that causing flights?” 

‘Because he won’t leave me alone about it.’

“He doesn’t want you to?” 

‘He does, but he knew I wasn’t going to do anything about it.’ 

“Why not?” 

‘Because I didn’t want to get that close to you. I think it’s kinda too late for that now though…’

“Because you think I’m going to leave?” Keith nodded. “Well, you’re wrong.”

‘You don’t like hate me now?’ 

“No.” Lance half-laughed. “You sir, are oblivious.” Keith cocked his head. Lance slowly brought his hand up to Keith’s jaw and pulled him forward. The kiss was soft and sweet, only lasting a few seconds. Long enough for it to be good, but short enough for him to know he meant it. When he pulled back, he was met with Keith’s eyes just blankly staring at him. At first, he thought he screwed up, but then Keith pulled him back and kissed him again.  “Literally no one in the dorm has left me alone for weeks now. I thought it was obvious.” Lance said after they pulled away.  He shook his head and leaned onto the other’s shoulder. The moment of peace didn’t last long before Shiro and Adam caught up. 

“Hey.” He called out, making Keith cringe. Lance wrapped his arm around him and turned to Shiro, not even realizing he was glaring. “How’s the view?” He asked, avoiding Lance’s stare. 

“Nice.” He replied in a very monotone voice. 

“So you're mad at me too now then?” He just glared. “You know, you can’t just glare at me and expect it to solve the issue. It’s about Keith anyway, it has nothing to do with you. I’ll deal with him later, just stay out of it.” He said as he walked closer to the ledge. Lance suddenly stood and walked over to him. 

“Actually, it apparently it does have something to do with me. Even if it didn’t, I would still care. I don’t know why you're always so worried about me hurting him. Since I met him, it’s kinda seemed like you got that down all by yourself.”

“So, my advice worked then?” He asked, directed to Keith who just ignored him. “I know what I’m doing. Also, we usually don’t even fight. This all kind of started when we moved here… seems like there’s an obvious variable there.”

“I don’t know why you’re trying to act like it’s my fault.” 

“It’s not mine.”

“So… it wasn’t on you when he just up and left? That was my fault? Right, I totally forgot I was the one that called him and fought with him, making sure to throw in some stuff that triggered him, then didn’t even try to stop him from leaving.”

“I didn’t know he was leaving!”

“Yeah, like that makes it sound any better.”

“He didn’t want you around either.”

“He wasn’t actually mad at me though.”

“Guys!” Adam interrupted, pushing them away from each other. “Stop it.” He said, glaring at both of them as he nodded to Keith who was still sitting on the boulder with his head in his knees, clearly trying to block out the fighting. Lance huffed and walked back over to him, slowly wrapping an arm around his waist. 

“I’m sorry…” He whispered softly. Keith slowly sat up and curled up against his side. He pulled him closer and softly kissed his temple. “Do you wanna go ahead and head back?” He just nodded. Lance led him back to the trail quietly, and out of earshot before he spoke again. “Are you mad at me?”

‘No. I just don’t like conflict.’ 

“I’m sorry…”

‘It’s okay.’ 

Chapter Text

They enjoyed the rest of the walk back, almost making Keith forget about everything. By the end of the walk, he was back to throwing snow and messing with Lance. When they got back to the car, they realized it was locked and they would have to wait for Shiro. Keith jumped up and sat on the edge of the trunk. 

“So…” Lance started as he moved in front of Keith. “Did that go better than you thought it would?” He asked awkwardly. 

‘I don’t know.’ 

“What do you mean?”

‘It did, but now I don’t know what’s going on and I’m really confused.’ 

“Confused about what?”

‘I’m like terrified of this stuff…’ 

“Well, I am too honestly… if that helps.”

‘Why?’ 

“Christian.” Keith cocked his head. “That would be the reason behind my leg…” Keith just looked up and furrowed his eyebrows. “Long story. He was a terrible person.” He nodded and leaned onto Lance’s chest. “But, if you want, we could be terrified together…” Keith pulled back and scrunched up his nose. 

‘That was cringy.’ 

“Is that a no?” 

‘A no to what?’ 

“Us dating…” Keith hesitated, then typed again. 

‘Okay.’ 

“Okay?”

‘That’s a yes dummy.’ Lance looked up with a smile and leaned into another kiss. Keith slowly wrapped his arms around his waist and pulled him closer, eventually, Lance pulled away. 

“You have no idea how many times I’ve had to stop myself from doing that.” He laughed. Keith just smiled and put his forehead to his chest. Soon, Shiro and Adam came down, and unlocked the car. Keith started towards his door, but Shiro pulled him back. Lance started to walk towards him, but he shook his head and Lance went to the car. 

“I’m sorry…” Shiro started. 

“You should be.” 

“I know, Lance was right. I’ll leave you alone about it from now on..” 

“I don’t think you have to worry about that anymore.” Keith said with a soft smile. 

“You finally did it?” He nodded. “How did that go?” 

“Good. Really good.” 

“Are you two together now?” 

“Maybe…” 

“I’m glad. He’ll clearly fight for you.” Shiro laughed. Keith punched him lightly on the arm and turned back to the car. As soon as he got in, he could see Lance was trying to read his expression. 

‘It’s fine. I promise.’ Lance nodded as he read. Shiro started the car, and they began their drive back to the cabin. 

“I’ll cook when we get back. It’s not even three now, so we’ll have a little while before we leave.” The car fell back into silence for the rest of the way. When they got back to the cabin, Keith immediately went upstairs to change since his clothes were kind of damp from the now melted snow. Lance went to follow, but Shiro stopped him. 

“I just want to tell you that I’m sorry for earlier, and for that night. I realize that you only have good intentions for Keith. I do too, but I just speak before I think a lot of the time. Everything that’s happened since we came to the school has been on me, not you. I just wanted him to be happy, and I know that you make him happy…” Lance just nodded. “Are we good?”  

“Yeah. I think so.”

“But, I will sti-”

“You’ll still kill me, I know.” He said with a quiet laugh. Shiro nodded and made his way to the kitchen, leaving Lance to go back upstairs. He found Keith curled up under the duvet all the way over his neck. 

“Are you cold?” He nodded. 

Keith: Did Shiro start the stove?

“Adam was working on it.” He mumbled as he changed into a pair of sweatpants and crawled in next to Keith. “So… What do you wanna do until we leave?” 

Keith: Stay here. It’s warm. 

“Do you want to watch another movie?” Keith just shrugged. Lance grabbed the remote and threw on a random Disney movie, then pulled Keith closer. He had almost fallen asleep by the time Shiro texted them to come eat. They both got up and Lance threw him a hoodie which he slid on as they made their way downstairs.

A few hours later, they arrived in a small town that was bustling with people. It was supposed to be ‘A Christmas Carol’ themed, but it really just seemed like a town covered in lights and other random Christmas decorations. It took them a little while to find somewhere to park, but eventually they did. 

“Okay, you guys can go do whatever. Adam and I are going to walk around for a while, then we’re going to go watch some show he found. Just text me if you need anything.” Shiro said as they walked to the sidewalk. “Be safe, don’t get kidnapped.” 

“We’ll try.” Lance said as he grabbed Keith’s hand. He waved and followed Lance to wherever they were going. As they walked down the street, they started to see more that made sense with the theme. Most of the vendors were dressed in 1800’s style clothes. 

“I’m assuming you like the aesthetic?” Lance asked, Keith just looked up clearly confused. “You know, because it’s a book?” 

Keith: Never read it. 

“Really? Why? I’ve even read this one.”

Keith: Christmas just isn’t my thing. 

“I know, but it’s still a ‘classic’ or whatever.” Keith just shrugged and kept walking before Lance stopped him so he could read a sign. “There’s a parade in like an hour, so it’s probably going to start getting busy soon.” He just nodded and they continued walking. Honestly, nothing was really catching their eye. Before the parade started, Lance had an idea. He just started pulling Keith away from the crowd. He led him up the fire escape of a little apartment building off of the main road and sat down on one of the top levels. They stayed there for the entire parade, which Keith honestly didn’t hate. It was mainly old cars wrapped in lights. After, they decided to wait a while for the crowd to thin out. As they started to leave, Keith got a text. 

Shiro: Meet us at the car in a few - Adam.

“Well, let’s go then.” Lance said after Keith showed him the text. He grabbed his handt and they began the walk back. When they got close, Keith saw Shiro and Adam walking to the car from the other side of the street. 

“Oh, fuck.” He half-mumbled without even realizing. Lance was just staring at him in shock, then he busted out laughing. Keith just gave him a confused look, still not realizing what happened. 

“Really? Out of anything that’s the first thing you say to me?” Keith just looked down at the ground awkwardly. “Less cowboy than I had hoped for. Also, was there a reason for that or?” He asked, still oblivious to the situation. Keith just pointed to Shiro and Adam. Now, he saw Adam dragging a stumbling Shiro down the street. When he looked back over, Keith was already walking over there, so he ran after him. 

‘How much did you let him drink?’ He typed into his notes app. 

“We both had a few drinks, with not much alcohol in them…”

‘And he’s wasted?’ 

“Well, that was not under my supervision… I actually went to highschool near here and I saw an old friend, so I went to talk to her… I came back and he wasn’t at our booth. When I finally found him, he was sitting at the bar, so honestly, I have no idea how much he had…”

Keith just sighed and pulled Shiro over to the backseat of the car. Lance was clearly not enjoying anything about the current situation. When he got back, he held out his hand. 

“What?” Adam asked, confused. 

‘Neither of you can drive.’ 

“Okay, and you don’t have a license.” 

‘I have a permit, and two people over 21.’

“I probably didn’t even have four shots, I’m fine to drive.” 

‘Give me the keys.’ 

“The roads are probably icey, you don’t need to drive.” 

‘Well, it would be better than you driving.’ 

“Shiro would ki-” 

“Give me the keys.” Lance interrupted. 

“Seriously, I can drive.” 

“If you drive, I’m calling an Uber for us.” 

“Fine.” He huffed. 

“Get in the back and babysit Shiro.” He said as he took the keys from Adam, before he crawled into the back. Keith could tell he was kind of on edge, not to mention he was almost guarding him from the other two. His defenses were clearly up. 

Keith: I’m sorry. 

“Why?”

Keith: Shiro. 

“You didn’t do anything. Don’t worry about it.” 

Keith: Do you even know how to get back?

“Not in the slightest. Do you still have the link Shiro sent?” He nodded. “Send it to me, hopefully signal won’t drop.” Keith just leaned into Lance’s side. “Okay, I think I got it.” He said as he got into the driver’s seat. The drive was mostly silent. Shiro was half passed out with Adam watching him, and Lance was just trying to focus on getting back to the cabin. 

Chapter Text

When they finally got to the cabin, Adam gave Lance the keys, and started attempting to get Shiro out of the car. Once he got in, he started messing with the wood stove. By the time he got it working, Shiro was in the living room. Adam started pulling him to their room, but Shiro stopped before they went in. 

“Keith, come here I wanna talk to you.” He slurred. Keith started to walk forward, but Lance stopped him. Before he could even say anything, Shiro was shouting at him. He honestly couldn’t make out most of it, but he could almost feel his entire body pale as he flinched. Keith gave him an apologetic look and nodded him upstairs before following him into the room. Adam stayed in the living room so that Keith could talk since Shiro obviously wasn’t going to comprehend sign language well. 

“Why did you drink so much?” Keith asked as he walked over to Shiro’s bed and pulled his shoes off of him. 

“Because Adam.”

“Did he do something?” 

“No. Just don’t wanna fuck it up.” 

“Well, if he survives this, I’m sure you won’t.” Keith sighed. The room fell silent for a minute, and Keith took it as his cue to leave.

“Maybe you shouldn’t date Lance.” Shiro said, seemingly out of nowhere, stopping Keith in his tracks. 

“Why?” 

“Seems controlling. Wouldn’t let you come in here. 

“Because you’re wasted and he doesn’t like being around drunk people, I don’t know why. You know he usually wouldn’t care.” 

“Not true. He didn’t want me near you when you left.” 

“I told him not to.” 

“Why?”

“I was mad at you. He isn’t controlling, he’s just a little protective, I thought you liked that.”

“I do, just not when it’s towards me.” 

“Okay, well sleep it off. I’m gonna go check on him. You scared him.” Keith said as he slid out the door. When he passed through the living room, Adam was sitting at the bottom of the stairs. 

“You should go up there… I tried to go check on him, but he clearly didn’t want me up there. Do they really not like each other that much? He seemed pretty freaked earlier…” Keith just shrugged and walked past him. When he got upstairs, he saw Lance staring at the staircase, but relax when he saw it was him. 

Keith: Are you okay? 

Lance just gave a small nod. 

Keith: I’m sorry… 

“You didn’t do anything.” He mumbled. 

Keith: Still… 

“Stop apologizing. Come here.” He said, pulling the covers back. Keith held up a finger and pulled off his hoodie and t-shirt before grabbing a pair of sweats. When he finished changing, he laid down next to Lance and pulled him onto his chest. “What did he say?” 

Keith: Nothing really. Just normal stuff. 

“Okay…” 

Keith: I’m sorry he yelled at you. 

“It’s not a big deal…” 

Keith: It clearly is though… 

“I still can’t believe all I’ve ever heard you say is ‘Oh, fuck’.” Lance said, trying to change the subject. 

Keith: Shut up. 

“It’s kinda funny. All I’ve gotten is ‘fuck’ and inchoherant mumbling.” 

Keith: Incoherent mumbling? 

“That night I took you to the hospital… none of it was at all understandable, you were mostly asleep. I don’t know, maybe you thought I was Shiro or something.” 

Keith: I don’t remember like anything from that night. 

“Well, hospital Keith is really clingy.” He teased. 

Keith: I know, you told me.

“Yeah, well it was st-” Lance was interrupted by a crash downstairs. Keith felt him flench. He started to get up to go see what it was, but Lance pulled him back.

Keith: It was probably just Shiro trying to make eggs. He always makes eggs when he’s wasted, or tries to. I’m just going to go check on him, and if I’m right I’m just going to make them. It’ll be fine. 

“But…” He started, but cut himself off. Keith could see the wheels turning in his mind. “Okay, but I’m coming.” 

Keith: Are you sure you want to?

Lance just nodded. Keith threw on a hoodie and led the way downstairs. When they made it to the bottom, he motioned for Lance to wait there for a minute and made his way into the kitchen. 

“Keith! You’re back! Adam crashed like as soon as he laid down.” He half-shouted as he walked through the kitchen. “I want an omelet.” 

“I know.” Keith said as he hushed him. He walked back over to the stairs to try and tell Lance he was fine, but he just followed him back to the kitchen, but stuck by the wall. He watched as Keith located a pan and cracked three eggs into a bowl to whisk and threw a few pieces of bread into the toaster. Then, he grabbed an onion, cheese and ham from the fridge. 

“Dammit! I didn’t get hot sauce!” Shiro shouted from behind him. Keith hushed him as he walked back over. “What?” 

“Quit yelling.” He whispered almost inaudibly. 

“I’m not even yelling.”

“You are, you always do when you drink.” 

“I do not!” 

“Shiro!” He hissed quietly. 

“What? Quit whispering.” He just rolled his eyes. “Seriously, it’s weird.” 

“At Least I’m not screaming. You realize your boyfriend’s trying to sleep right?”

“Yeah, I don’t have to be within ten feet of mine at all times though.” 

“Please stop.” 

“I’m just saying, since you met him, you’ve basically not been away from him for longer than your classes.” 

“Okay, and? I thought you wanted me to have friends?” 

“Yeah, but you’re getting all codepedanty again.”

“I’m not.”

“You totally are. I’m surprised he even let you come down here. Or that you even came.” 

“Shiro…” 

“Can’t even argue with me. You know I’m right. I want you to have friends, yeah, but you can’t just become attached at the hip to one over-controlling guy.” Keith didn’t say anything, he just kept chopping. “What? You’re mad now? Can’t just talk to me?” 

“I’m not talking because I’m trying to not yell at you.” 

“Why? Why are you all whispery? Does Lance not know you came down here?” Keith just sighed and nodded behind him, where Lance was standing just far enough to not hear Keith. He knew he could’ve moved closer, and he wanted to, but he didn’t want to over-hear Keith out of respect. “Oh, so he couldn’t even let you go downstairs by yourself?” He ha;f chuckled. “That’s why you’re all whispery.” 

“He asked to come. I still haven’t talked to him really… now please just shut up.” 

“Why not? If he’s always around, you’re never gonna talk to me. Why does it even matter? Just talk to him.” Shiro said, like it was just a casual suggestion. That was Keith’s last straw, he suddenly stabbed the knife into the loaf of bread. 

“You know what?” He whispered, then yanked Shiro out the back door. “What is your deal lately? Why are you being such a dick? You were never like this? I can’t deal with you like this Shiro. If this is how it’s going to be, don’t expect me to deal with it. You don’t like how much Lance is around now? Just wait until I stop coming by your room completely.” 

“Keith Wh-” 

“No, fuck you. Good your own damn eggs.” He growled before storming back into the cabin and straight up the stairs. Lance followed close behind. He ripped his hoodie off and crawled into bed. Lance laid down behind him and slowly slid an arm around his waist. 

“Are you okay?” He whispered. Keith gave no sign of response. “I’m sorry… I should’ve done something… I just didn’t want to hear you if you didn’t want me to…” 

Keith: I should’ve made you stay up here. I’m sure that didn’t help. You’re like all shaky, stop worrying about me. 

“I’m fine… I care more about you anyway…” 

Keith: You shouldn’t.

“Don’t let him make you think like that again. Keith, I don’t care.” 

Keith: You do though. You were so happy I said one little word, and I didn’t even mean to. 

“Keith…” Lance started as he pulled him to face him. “I thought it was funny. Especially since you’ve never really sworn… I don’t care though. I promise.”

Keith: Even Shiro does. 

“Well, Shiro is kind of being a dick right now… Either way, I don’t care… I should’ve done something…”

Keith: No, it’s fine. We fight, I’ve lived with him for like six years, it’s normal. He’s just drunk.

“And? That’s not an excuse! Don’t think it is. Maybe it’s fine now, but one day it won’t be. If he’s that much of a dick now and nothing changes, what’s going to stop him later?” Lance said erratically, clearly not really talking about Shiro anymore. 

Keith: What?

“I’m sorry…”

Keith: What’s going on?

“I just-” He sighed. “You remember how this morning I told you why I used to cut?” Keith nodded with his eyebrows furrowed. “Well, he was awful. It was kind of on me though I guess. I was in a bad place mentally, and I decided for some reason that me dating someone five years older than me wasn’t an issue. I was a freshman, and he was a sophomore… In college. I wouldn’t listen to anyone who said it was a bad idea. A bunch of stuff happened and we started fighting a lot, then he started drinking a lot… So… yeah…” 

Keith: What do you mean?

“He was just mean… Not really anything physical, I mean he threw plates at me and stuff, but that never really bothered me. I mean that’s like a normal day back home with my siblings. It was more just the stuff he said, or stuff he threatened I guess… I mean I don’t think Shiro would ever want to do anything like that to you, but I also can’t keep myself from worrying about it… 

Keith: Shiro would never do anything like that, I promise. Everything is fine. We fight, he’s basically like my brother or like a weird Uncle or something… It’s fine.

“I know, I just don’t want anything to happen. You don’t deserve that…”

Keith: You have nothing to worry about. I’ve been through worse than him yelling at me, it’ll be fine. He just wants me to stop doing this.

“Don’t you see the problem with that?”

Keith: No. He’s right.

“No, he’s not. It’s a trauma response right?” Keith nodded. “Exactly. You’re not hurting yourself or anyone else by doing it. There’s no reason for you to force yourself to talk.”

Keith: You’re going to get tired of it… 

“No, if you don’t feel comfortable speaking to me, you never have to.” He said as he brushed Keith’s hair out of his face. He just looked up at him with sad eyes. “I promise.” He whispered, before pulling him into a soft kiss. Keith laughed softly, then pulled him back in. They were soon interrupted by Shiro stumbling up the stairs. 

“Keith?” He slurred. He started to get up, but Lance wouldn’t let him go. 

“Please don’t…” He whispered. Keith just held up a finger and pulled away. Lance watched from the bed as he walked over to where Shiro was. 

‘What do you want?’

“Still not talking?” Keith shook his head. “I need to talk to you.”

‘Talk.’ 

“Not here.”

‘I’m not moving.’

“C’mon.” Shiro huffed as he pulled Keith down the stairs and to the couch. After about thirty seconds passed, Lance was running down the stairs. When he got there, he saw Shiro standing by the couch, and Keith sitting in the corner of the couch with his knees pulled up, glaring and trying to hide his arms. He stayed out of sight so he could watch without Shiro’s knowledge.

“So, I’m sorry, okay? Please just talk to me.”

‘Shiro. I’m not doing this right now. Go to bed.’

“Why won’t you talk to me? Lance isn’t even here?”

‘You know why.’

“I know, but I’m sorry….”

‘I don’t really care right now. If I could, I would probably go back to the school right now actually.’ 

“Keith…” Shiro started as he stood. “Stop!” He half-shouted, making Keith stop dead in his tracks and slowly turn around. “When did you do that?” He asked a lot more coherently as he pulled Keith’s arm closer to him. He just looked down. “Why didn’t you tell me? This is worse than normal…” He asked as he dropped his arm. “More?” He asked, motioning to the scars above his hip bones. Keith was still avoiding his eyes. “I’m not mad at you…” He whispered as he pulled him into a hug. 

“Please don’t send me back…” He whispered as he fell against his chest. 

“What?”

“Don’t make me go back to the hospital…” 

“Keith, you know I didn’t mean for that to happen right?” He just shrugged. “You understand that I had to call an ambulance that night, and everything after that was out of my control?”

“You didn’t have to…” 

“Keith, you were passed out and covered in blood. I had to. Whether you like it or not, my job is literally to keep you alive. That’s what I signed up for, that’s what I’m going to do. If I had any say, we would’ve dealt with it ourselves, but I didn’t. You never talked about anything that happened when you were gone, I know you hated it. Unless it gets like that again, I’m not making you go anywhere. Can you please tell me when you did this?” 

“The morning before I left…” 

“Why didn’t you tell me?” 

“Because I thought you would make me go back…” 

“No, not unless it gets really bad again. When we get back, I need you to give me everything, and anything you have now needs to make its way to me when you go back upstairs…” 

“Lance took it all.” 

“Good. All of it?” Keith nodded. “He didn’t tell me.”

“I begged him not to…”

“Well, I’m glad you at least told him…” 

“You’re not mad?” Keith asked, his breathing finally almost back to normal. 

“No. I’m not mad, but you need to stop. I know it’s hard, but you need to.” Keith just nodded. “Do you want anything?” 

“Lance…” 

“Do you want me to go get him?” He shook his head. 

“He already hates that I’m down here with you. I’ll just go upstairs. You need to talk to him tomorrow.”

“I know. Go on. I need to go to bed anyway. I’m still kind of…”

“I can tell.” Keith said as he started towards the stairs. 

Chapter Text

When Keith got back to their room, Lance was waiting on the bed. He saw Keith’s teary face and immediately got up and pulled him into a hug. 

“Are you okay?” He nodded. “I followed you, but I left when I thought you were… What happened?” Keith pulled away and grabbed his phone from the bed. 

Keith: He saw my cuts. 

“And?”

Keith: And nothing I guess… 

“Really?” Keith nodded. “So he’s not doing anything?”

Keith: I told him you already did. 

“And he was okay with that?”

Keith: He likes you. He’s just protective. You are too. That’s why you guys argue. He wants to talk to you tomorrow. He feels bad for yelling at you and stuff… 

“Yeah, he’s threatened to kill me since I met you…” 

Keith: I figured. He could tell I liked you.

“He threatened me before we even really started actually being friends…”

Keith: Yeah, but when we went to the dorms for the first time, you intimidated me the least, so I guess he assumed we would become friends… 

“So you liked me since then?”

Keith: I didn’t say that… 

“Yeah you did. C’mon, it’s been a long day, let’s go to bed.” Lance said, pulling him down onto the bed. Keith took his usual position on Lance’s chest and they both fell asleep fairly quickly. 

The next morning, Keith woke up alone. He slowly rolled out of bed and grabbed one of Lance’s hoodies off of the footstool. He quickly brushed his teeth and pulled his hair up, before making his way down the stairs. Adam was already sitting at the kitchen table, and Shiro was cooking. With no sign of Lance, he walked over to Shiro. He mumbled a greeting, clearly hung over. Suddenly, a pair of arms wrapped around his waist. 

“Hi.” Lance mumbled into his neck. “I was wondering if I was gonna have to come get you.” Keith slowly turned to face him, clearly confused. “What?” 

Keith: You’re acting weird. 

“No. Am I not allowed to hug you?”

Keith: Seriously… 

“I’m just happy you’re finally up, it’s almost noon.”

Keith: Well, I didn’t go to sleep until like four.

“It wasn’t even three. We stay up later back home.” Keith just shushed him and brought him over to the table. 

“Alright, four full days left, what are we doing?” Shiro asked as he brought the food over. 

“We should go ride the ski lift up the mountain at some point! They have one that’s not actually for skiing.” Adam suggested.

“Adam, not so loud.” Shiro half-hissed, cringing at the noise. 

“Consequences of your own actions.”

“I know.” He huffed. “Okay, any other ideas?” He asked, looking to Keith and Lance.  Keith shook his head. 

“I dunno, they probably have a drive-thru light thing somewhere. Or we could try ice skating again.” Lance suggested clearly trying to tease Keith. 

“Okay… How about we go do the ski lift thing today, we can do the lights either tomorrow night or tonight since Wednesday is Christmas Eve and it’ll be crazy… then I suppose we can go ice skating whichever night we don’t do the lights… and what do we want to do for Christmas and Christmas Eve?” 

“We should team up and make gingerbread houses.”
“Yeah, me and Keith against you two!” 

“No, me and Keith against you two. We are the reigning champions of North Carolina.”

“Okay, and I suck, Lance can’t make up for both of you.”

“Yeah, I kinda suck too.” 

“Mmmh, fine.” Shiro said before turning to Adam. “If we lose I’m breaking up with you.”

“Sure you are.”

“Okay, what else? Keith?” 

‘I don’t care. I don’t really do Christmas, remember?’ 

“Yeah, but it’ll be fun.” 

‘You guys pick, I’m just here.’ 

“We should watch movies for like all of Christmas and have a fire.” Lance suggested. 

“Yeah, so skilift and either lights or skating tonight, the other tomorrow night, and we can do the gingerbread houses on Christmas Eve, then movies?” Everyone nodded. “We should figure something out for tomorrow too, but for now, we should probably leave after we eat, it'll be getting dark kind of soon.” They all agreed and finished their food, then all made their ways to their rooms. 

“You look cute in my hoodies.” Lance said as he dug through his bag. Keith just awkwardly started looking for something to wear himself, Lance just laughed to himself. Soon, they were both dressed and Lance was happily dragging him down the stairs. 

Keith: Okay, seriously what’s going on?

“Nothing, I promise.”

Keith: You’re all bubbly. 

“I’m just in a good mood, you’re overthinking it.”

Keith: Why? 

“Because it’s Christmas, I think me and Shiro are cool, and I get to hang out with you for like a whole nother week with no school! Sounds pretty good to me.” Keith just rolled his eyes. “What? You’re tired of me already? Break doesn’t end until next Thursday, no one will be home until Tuesday. Get used to it.”

Keith: No, I’m not tired of you. 

“Good, let’s go!” He said, pulling him to the car. He spent most of the ride rambling about random things. By the time they got to the ski lift place Keith was honestly questioning if he did drugs. As they waited in the line, he stood mostly quietly, rubbing his knuckles together.

Keith: Are you okay?

“Yeah, I’m just like hyper and stuff.”

Keith: Did you not take your meds?

“Uhh.” He started, retracing his steps from the morning. “Yeah, no totally forgot. I went downstairs and then I was talking to Shiro, then we made food, then he needed to split more wood, but for some reason I wanted to do it, so I did, then I came inside and you were in the kitchen and I got distracted.” He sped out, earning a soft laugh from Keith. “Sorry… that was a lot… I’m probably about to be so annoying…” 

Keith: At least I know why you’re acting different. 

“Yeah… sorry…” He mumbled. 

Keith: Well, it’s probably better than me not taking mine… 

“Yeah… We should watch Star Wars tonight.” He said excitedly, earning another laugh from Keith. 

Keith: Okay.

“Come here.” He said as he pulled Keith closer. 

Keith: And you think I was clingy at the hospital.

“Yeah, but we’re dating now, remember? I get to do this all the time now and not worry about freaking you out so much.”

Keith: What? 

“Ask Allura, she had to deal with my venting.”

Keith: Venting?

“Because I’ve liked you basically since you moved to the school dummy. Obviously I didn’t do anything about it at first because I still barely knew you, then you said you didn’t really date anymore, so I tried to ignore it because I didn’t want to freak you out. I mean to be fair, I’ve still only known you for like two months now, but yeah. Allura knew by like the weekend when you first came, she tried to convince me that it was a good idea, but I didn’t think so.”

Keith: Why not?

“Because I wasn’t sure how it would go and I knew that I would’ve rather had you around and internally suffer than not have you around at all… plus I mean, I’ve kinda been avoiding this stuff myself for a while…”   

Keith: I’m glad you’re not now.

“See? You can be all cheesy too.”

Keith: Shut up. 

“Only for you.” He mumbled as he pulled Keith back up to his chest. A few minutes later, they were only about ten groups from the front of the line and Keith took the time to realize it was all the way up the mountain and super high. Lance must’ve noticed his staring. 

“How are you afraid of heights when you literally climb everything?” 

Keith: I’m not afraid of heights, I’m afraid of falling. I know I won’t fall out of a tree or like off the side of a mountain. This is different.

“Not super different. Besides, I won’t let you.” Keith just rolled his eyes and leaned onto his shoulder. Soon enough, they were on their way up. He was clinging to Lance who had his arm wrapped around him. “See? Not that bad.” He said stifling a laugh. Keith suddenly pulled Lance’s arm up and bit his hand. “What? Did you just- Did you just bite me?” Keith just nodded. “Why?” He shrugged, earning another laugh from Lance. When they got to the top, Shiro and Adam were waiting. 

“Do you guys wanna-” Shiro started as they walked over. 

“Your piranha bit me!” Lance interrupted. Shiro looked over to see Keith grinning. 

“Yeah, he does that.” He responded super casually. 

“He does that? What is that supposed to mean? ‘He does that’? To who?”
“Me for starters.” Shiro laughed. “He’s awkward and bad at initiating any form of affection, no idea why biting seems easier.” He explained, earning a glare from Keith. “Yeah, I said it. Fight me!” Shiro said teasingly.

‘I’d win.’ 

“Sure you would. Remember who taught you to fight.”

‘Shut up. I’m sneaky!’ 

“Not sneaky enough. Anyway, do you guys want to walk around up here for a while? They have like a little Christmas village over there.” They all agreed and made their way over. 

“So in other words, get used to you biting me?” Lance asked. Keith just nodded. “You know, you could always just kiss me like a normal person.” Keith pulled out his phone and opened the notes app. 

‘Not as fun.’ 

“You’re a dork.”

‘You went on a tangent about Star Wars like twenty minutes ago, you’re a dork.’

“Different type, but yeah.” Keith just laughed quietly as they made their way into the little village. “Ooh they have hot chocolate! I want one! C’mon!” He said as he dragged Keith to the line inside one of the little cabins. “Do you want one?” He asked. Keith looked ahead and looked at the different types on the menu. 

‘Dark chocolate one.’ 

“Even your drinks scream emo nightmare.” He teased, earning a jab in the ribs. “Hey.” Lance said suddenly. “You have to kiss me now.” He said grinning as he pointed up. Keith just rolled his eyes. “C’mon, don’t be lame. You can bite me whenever you want.” He whined. 

‘Fine, but if I get hate crimed and killed I’m haunting you.’ 

Lance just smiled and pulled him over by his waist. He eventually stood up on his toes and pulled Lance down. Without even thinking, Lance kissed him.
“Hey! You were supposed to kiss me!”

‘What’s the difference?’

“Shut up. You’re short.” 

‘I’m five-eight.’ 

“Yeah, with the boots on.”

‘Shut up. I’m not that much shorter than you!’

“I’m six-one. Yes you are.’ 

‘I’m actually almost five-nine with the boots. I’m literally five inches shorter than you.’

“You were five-seven at the hospital.”

‘I wasn’t standing up straight!’ 

“So? When do you ever? What does that change?”

‘Shut up. It’s almost your turn to order.’ 

“Fine.” Lance said as he walked up to the counter. He ordered and got their drinks before leading Keith back out. “Ewww!” Lance whined after he took a sip. “This one’s yours.” He said switching the drinks. “How do you drink that?”

‘Normal is too sweet.’ 

“How is that not a good thing? Do you not like candy either?”

‘Dark chocolate and sour stuff is okay, but that’s about it.’ 

“Do you enjoy suffering?”

‘Shut up.’ 

“What about like cake and stuff?’ 

‘I like pie, on occasion anyway. Cake isn’t great. German Chocolate is okay, but not with the coconut frosting.’

“Why not?”

‘I hate coconut.’

“How?”

‘Remember how I basically only eat chicken tenders and french fries?’

“But coconut is great!’

‘The flavor is okay I guess, but the texture is awful. Most of my ‘picky’ eating habits are because of the texture.’ Lance just nodded and they walked around for a little while longer until they found a toy shop which Lance demanded they go into. As soon as they got in, he saw a wall of plushies. 

“What’s your favorite animal?”

‘You’re a child.’ 

“Yeah, whatever. Answer the question.” 

‘Fine, hippos.’ 

“Why?” 

‘I don’t know. They’re cute.’

“They’re like the most dangerous animals ever.” 

‘That just makes them better.’ 

“Mines better.” He said as he located a purple hippo on the shelf. 

‘A shark is super basic. They’re also dangerous.’

“No, they’re just little guys. How did you know?” 

‘I live with you. You have sharks like everywhere.’ 

“Fair point.” He said as he grabbed a shark off the shelf too. “Woah! They have laser guns!” He said running over to a table, Keith just rolled his eyes and followed. He ran around the store for a few more minutes before finally deciding it was time to leave. After he paid, he handed the hippo to Keith. 

‘You know, they had smaller ones.’ 

“I know.” He said with a slight laugh when he realized most of Keith’s torso was covered by the hippo. “These are better though.” He said as he pulled Keith outside. They went to a few other little shops, but they didn’t find anything too interesting. After the first two, Keith started getting more clingy, so Lance knew he was either getting cold or tired, so he led him back to the ski lift line. Luckily, Shiro and Adam were already waiting. The sun was already beginning to set. 

“So who’s idea was that?” Adam asked. 

“Me. They’re awesome! Look at how big they are!” 

“Of course Keith got a hippo.” Shiro mumbled. 

“Yeah, why out of all the options?” Shiro looked at Keith who was glaring, already knowing where this was going. 

“I don’t know why, but he really likes them. He was like totally fixated on them when he was in like seventh grade. I took him to the zoo one time and he was like obsessed.” He said, pulling out his phone. “He loved them.” He said as he showed Lance a picture of him knocked out in a hippo pajama suit. Lance just laughed. 

“You look so much nicer when you’re asleep.” He teased. 

“Yeah, the pajamas were my mom’s doing. She used to make us wear them on Christmas.”

“What was yours?” Adam asked. He scrolled for a second, then showed them a picture of Shiro in cat pajamas with Keith on his back, trying to hide from the camera. He could feel Keith’s glare. 

“Quit glaring. You know, you used to be a cute kid. Why do I have a moody teenager now?” He teased. 

‘I will kill you!’ 

“Yeah, yeah, c’mon. We should go eat before we do whatever we’re doing tonight.” He said as he lead them all to the line. 

Chapter Text

  On the way to the restaurant, Keith fell asleep in Lance’s lap, still holding the hippo plush. Lance stifled a laugh and snuck a few pictures. 

“I hope you’re prepared for his insane attachment to that thing.” Shiro half-whispered. 

“What?” 

“Yeah, he probably acted like he thought it was dumb right?” Lance nodded. “Well, he doesn’t. He’s probably gonna be super attached to it for like ever.”

“Why?”

“You gave it to him. He’s not a very materialistic person, but there are a few things like that.”

“Like what?” 

“I’m assuming you’ve seen his red jacket that he still wears even though it’s way too short.”

“Yeah…” 

“Well, it used to be big on him. I got it for him when he first came to North Carolina. He still wears it all the time. Mom got him the gloves.”

“I’m assuming the ring is like that too? I don’t think I’ve ever seen him not wearing it.”

“Which ring?”

“The silver one with the little purple mark on it.”

“Yeah, that was his mom’s. I have no idea what it means, but his dad used to wear it on a chain sometimes. It’s one of the few things he kept when he left. He didn’t start wearing it until recently, but I guess it finally fits his finger. He also still has the book his seventh grade English teacher gave him at the end of the year.” Lance just nodded and started messing with Keith’s hair. Soon enough they made it to the restaurant. Luckily, Keith woke up on his own. 

  When they got in, they all ordered and started trying to decide where to go. Keith was just laying against Lance. 

“I think ice skating because I’ve never gone and it seems fun.” 

“You’ve never been?” Adam and Lance asked in unison. Shiro shook his head. 

“Ice skating it is then.”

“Yeah, if Keith will get up.” Lance teased.

Keith: I’m not tired. 

“You seem it.”

Keith: You’re warm. Stop complaining, you were all clingy earlier. 

“I’m not complaining.” 

They all finished their food fairly quickly, and Adam found a nearby ice skating rink. Adam and Lance were clearly thrilled, Shiro was excited to see what the hype was about, and Keith was kind of nervous. Lance could tell. As they made their way in, Keith was basically stuck to his hip. 

“Why are you all nervous?” He just shrugged. “You know he won’t be here. Even if he was, I wouldn’t let anything happen. It’ll be fun I promise.” He said as they made their way to the counter to get their skates. Once they all had them on, they made their way to the rink. Shiro almost fell immediately. Keith was clinging on to Lance like his life depended on it. 

“So he has awful coordination too?” Adam asked, earning a nod from Lance. 

“Hey! My coordination is fine! You have to be coordinated for MMA!”

“Okay, so I should let go then?” Adam asked and pulled away. Shiro immediately grabbed his arms. 

“No!’ 

“See?” He teased before turning to Lance. “So that one can’t dance either then?” 

“Huh…” Lance said, clearly pondering the question. “I’ve never made him dance with me, which is kind of weird… Keith?” He frantically shook his head. “No, we’re dancing at some point. I mean… we have a dance at school right before New Year’s.” He shook his head again. 

“You’re going!” Shiro said in his dad voice.

“Haha, you have to come.” Lance teased. They managed to make it around the ring a few times before it was time to leave. They were all tired by the time they got home, so when they arrived at the cabin, Shiro started the heater, and everyone went to bed.

Keith woke up to the smell of something burning. Lance wasn’t there. He shot up out of the bed and ran downstairs. He didn’t see Lance or Shiro, so he ran into Shiro’s room which was empty. When he turned around, Adam was walking up to him. 

“Lance and Shiro went to go… Are you okay?” He asked, seeing Keith’s erratic behavior and broken breathing pattern. “Lance and Shiro will be back soon. Can you come sit with me?” He asked, trying to convince Keith to let him help. He didn’t get a response, so he put a soft hand on his shoulder and pulled him to the couch. It was clear he was kind of out of it. “I’m going to call Shiro, but I want you to come over here. I think I can maybe help. If you want to get away from me, I won’t stop you, but please at least try.” Keith didn’t even acknowledge him, so he wrapped a throw blanket around him kind of tightly, then moved closer. “I’m going to touch you. It’s going to seem restrictive, but I promise I’m just trying to help you.” He said before pulling Keith into his lap and wrapping his arms around him tightly. To his surprise, he didn’t resist. He still hadn’t calmed down, but it seemed like it was helping some. He slowly pulled his phone out and called Shiro. 

“Hey, what’s up?” 

“How soon can you be here?” 

“Uhh… I think we’re about twenty minutes out, why?” 

“I don’t know what’s happening. Keith is freaking out.” 

“I’ll make it ten.” He said before hanging up. 

“What’s happening?” Lance asked when he was off the phone. 

“I dunno. He didn’t say.” Shiro said as he sped up. When they got back, they ran into the house to find Keith still clearly freaking out a little, but was still wrapped up in Adam’s arms. He didn’t even notice them come in. 

“Here, take him.” Shiro was even more concerned now, seeing as he was even letting Adam touch him, much less in his lap. Shiro bent down and scooped Keith up, he immediately clung to him. Shiro motioned for the other two to stay there and carried Keith upstairs. He sat down with him on the side of the bed for a while before he finally calmed down enough for Shiro to be able to talk to him. 

“What’s going on?” Keith leaned further against him. “Please tell me… you can sign if you need to, but I need to know what’s going on…” 

‘It smelled like something was burning when I woke up, then you guys were gone.’ 

“I don’t smell anything now. I’m sure it was just because the wood stove was low and it was the embers. Or maybe Adam burnt something cooking. Lance and I just went to get some more drinks. It’s fine, I promise.” Keith just nodded into his shoulder. “Do you want me to go get Lance?” He nodded again and moved over. Almost as soon as Shiro left, Lance was coming up the stairs. Keith immediately wrapped himself around him. 

“Hey… are you okay?”

Keith: I guess… I’m sorry.

“Why?” He just shrugged. “You didn’t do anything. I don’t know what happened, but I’m sure it wasn’t your fault.” He just shrugged again. “You wanna come eat?” He asked after a few minutes. Keith nodded and followed him downstairs. They ate mostly in silence until Shiro finally broke it. 

“So… Do you guys feel like doing anything today?”  He asked, mainly to Keith who nodded. “I don’t really have any ideas…” 

“We could go to that horse riding place over the mountain. I think they're still open. They do hourly rides and I think it’s not guided.” Adam suggested. Keith could already feel Lance’s smirk. 

“I’m down. I might die, but it sounds fun.” Shiro replied. “How about you two, I’m assuming that’s a yes from Keith, Lance?”

“Any excuse to see cowboy Keith.” 

“Okay, it says they close at five, and it's almost an hour away so do you guys want to leave soon?” Adam asked looking down at his phone. They all agreed and finished eating before they all split off to get ready. 

“Cowboy Keith.” Lance laughed as he slid past, Keith just rolled his eyes. 

Keith: Did you actually take your meds today?

“Yeah, Doesn’t mean I’m gonna stop.” He said as he threw on some warmer clothes. By the time they actually got ready, Shiro and Adam were waiting. Most of the ride there was spent with Lance trying to convince Shiro to give him music control. Finally, Adam got fed up and handed him the cord. His menacing laugh was interrupted by Luke Bryan. 

Keith: If you're going to bully me at least play better music. 

“Like what?” 

Keith: I don’t know. If it has to be a country… Merle Haggard? George Strait? Brooks and Dunn? Dolly? Johnny Cash? Tim McGraw?Literally anything that doesn’t make me feel like my ears are going to bleed. Something that’s about something other than beer, corn, and trucks.

“See? You do know country music!” 

Keith: I lived in the south for almost fifteen years! I didn’t have a choice! 

“Nah you like it.” He said as he started ‘Just to See You Smile’ by Tim McGraw

“Hey Lance.” Shiro said with a mischievous tone. 

“What?” 

“Hand me your phone real quick. I have to show you one of his favorite songs.” Keith glarred as he handed his phone to Shiro. Keith huffed and crossed his arms as the intro of ‘Soon You’ll Get Better’ started. 

“Not only Taylor Swift, but The Chicks too?”

Keith: Shut up.

“Hey man, no hate. They’re both iconic. I already knew you liked Taylor Swift anyway. Again, she’s an icon.”

Keith: How?

“You listen to your music really loud and I could recognize ‘The Last Time’ anywhere.” Keith just rolled his eyes. They talked about music for most of the rest of the ride. When they finally arrived at the farm. 

“Adam, Lance is your kid now, sign his waver.” Shiro said as they made their way to the check-in area. When he looked over, he realized Keith wasn’t following them. “Where did Keith go?” He asked Lance, who looked beside him to see Keith was gone. 

“I don’t know… Oh, I see him.” He pointed to the horses that were tied to the fence ready to be ridden.  He was standing in front of a medium sized dun colored horse, petting it and talking to it. “Do you need me to go get him?” 

“No, we should be able to sign in without you guys. Go over there with him though.” Lance nodded and made his way over. 

“You made a friend?” He asked as he walked up behind him. Keith just nodded and kept all of his attention on the horse. “Am I gonna suck at this?” 

Keith: No, I’m sure they’re really well trained if it’s a free ride place. Just don’t scare them or sneak up behind them.

“See? You’ve been here for like five minutes and you’re already bonded with a horse. You are a cowboy!” 

Keith: I just like horses. I lived on a ranch until I was like nine. I learned to ride a horse instead of a bike. I basically grew up with mine until I left. He was born the year before I was. 

“So instead of a dog you had a horse?” 

Keith: I had cats. They weren’t house cats though… but yeah basically. He looked like the one on the end, his name was red. 

“I don’t think I’ve ever even been this close to a horse… they’re bigger than I thought…” Lance mumbled. Suddenly, Keith pulled his hand up to the horse’s muzzle. Lance seemed a little on edge, which made Keith laugh a little. “What?”

Keith: Don’t be scared of him. He likes it. 

“I don’t see how you’re not. He’s like ten times your size.”

Keith: He’s not even that big. 

“Not even that big?” Keith grabbed his hand and pulled him down the line until he came to a huge dark bay colored stallion that had to be at least sixteen and a half hands. Lance just stared as he lowered his head to Keith who offered his hand to sniff. Then, with no hesitation, he started petting his forelock. “He could eat you.”

Keith: But he won’t. 

The horse lowered his head more to where his ears were even with Keith’s nose. His nose was almost to his hips. 

“His head is literally as big as your whole torso!” Keith just nodded. Lance watched as he walked to the first horse and went back to petting it. Soon, Shiro and Adam came over with one of the girls who worked there. 

Chapter Text

“Okay, so my name is Adalee, I’m one of the wranglers here. I’m going to get you all saddled up, then I’m gonna go over some basic stuff, then you all are free to ride until about four-thirty.” She said as she walked over to the horses and started going down the line. “Alright… Shiro, right?” He nodded. “I’m gonna put you on Dante.” She said motioning to the bigger horse Keith had been petting. “He’s a big guy, I know, but he’s a gentle giant. You,” She said pointing to Adam. “I’m gonna put you on Prada. She’s a little smaller, but she’s a little stubborn, you might have to give her some motivation.” She said, pointing him to a smaller brindle mare. “Now, you two…” She said as she walked over to Keith and Lance. “You're gonna go with Brandi. She’s down there next to Dante. And you… you seem to know horses a bit better.” She started as Lance walked away. He just nodded awkwardly. “I saw you over here with Achillies. He’s a little more green than the others, but not that bad. He seems to like you though, so you can ride him if you want to.” Keith just nodded as she took a few steps back. “Alright, If you guys will follow me, I’ll take you to the mounting block and bring the horses over.” She half-shouted. They all followed her to the small platform. She brought over Shiro’s horse first. 

“Okay, grab the reins, then put your left foot in, and throw your other leg over. He knows where to wait, so don’t worry about that.” Shiro nodded and climbed on with ease. She quickly adjusted the stirrups and clicked, telling the horse to move over. She repeated the process with Adam, who also got on fairly easily, then Lance who had a harder time since he was kind of nervous. Finally, Keith got up with no struggle at all and allowed the horse to walk over to the others. Soon, Adalee appeared on a different horse that Keith didn’t see earlier. 

“Okay, this is my horse Apollo. He’s gonna help me make sure you guys know what you’re doing, then you’re all on your own.” She said before showing them how to control the horses. “That’s pretty much it. Just stay in this pasture. Oh, also-” She started as she moved over to Shiro. “You seem like the guy in command, so here.” She handed him a walkie-talkie. “Channel twenty-seven. We’ll remind you about fifteen minutes before you need to be back, and it’s two ways in case anything happens.” He nodded and clipped it onto his coat. “Well, have fun!” She said, leaving them on their own. 

“Yeah… I’m gonna be honest, I didn’t get any of that…” Lance said quietly as she rode away.

“You’ll figure it out.” Shiro said as he started forward, followed by Adam. He looked over to Keith who he watched to see what to do. Eventually, he started getting the hang of it. 

“How do I make it go faster?” Keith laughed and readjusted his body, motioning for Lance to do the same, then he pointed to his feet and squeezed the horse’s sides. Lance did the same, and his horse took off. Keith followed behind. He was only in a canter, so it wasn’t very fast, but Lance still stopped very quickly. 

“Why do I feel like I’m going to die?” Keith dropped the reins from one hand. 

‘Hips.’ He spelled out. 

“What?” 

‘Move your hips with the movement of the horse.’

“I got like half of that…” 

‘You’re too stiff.’ Lance nodded and attempted again, this time was a little better. Keith watched for a minute before breaking his horse into a gallop to catch up. After a few minutes, they pulled them into a trot. 

“How did you remember all of this?” Keith just shrugged. “Right, I suck at sign. We should probably find Adam and Shiro.” Keith nodded and led the way to the other side of the pasture. Eventually they found them. 

“How’s it going?” Lance asked as they rode up next to them. 

“Pretty good. Adam accidently found the reverse though.” 

“Hey! She said mine was stubborn!” 

“Yeah, so are you though.” 

“You are too.” 

“Not as stubborn as you.”

“That sounds stubborn.”

“Shut up.” 

“So lights tonight?” 

“Yeah. Are you two still down?” Lance and Keith both nodded. 

“Did you guys find one?” 

“Not yet. We can either go to one closer by and eat out somewhere here, or go back to the cabin and change then find one.”

“Yeah, I want to change. Especially if we stay in the car.” Adam responded. 

“I don’t care.”

“Okay, then back to the cabin after this.” They all kind of did their own thing until they got their warning to come back to the front. 

When they got back to the cabin, Shiro started the wood stove. 

“Okay, so it just now got dark. When does the light thing start and how far is it?” Shiro asked. 

“Uhhh it’s seven to midnight, and only about half an hour.” 

“Okay cool, so we’ll stop and get food on the way, but I need a nap.” 

‘You’re old.’ 

“Shut up, I’m like what ten years and seven months older than you!”

‘Yeah… Your birth year starts with nineteen though.”

“Nineteen-ninety-seven!” 

‘Nineteen.’ 

“Alright, shut up. You fall asleep every time we get in the car. You probably need a nap too anyway.” Keith just fake-glarred and pulled Lance upstairs. When they got to their room, he pulled off his outer layers and flopped into the bed. 

“I thought you weren’t tired.” Lance said as he flopped down next to him. Keith just shrugged and curled up next to him. “Cowboy Keith.” He mumbled. 

Keith: Shut up. 

“Never.” 

Keith: I’m sleeping.

“Fine, for now.” He mumbled before wrapping his arms around him. They both fell asleep fairly quickly. About an hour later, Lance woke up to Shiro calling Keith. 

“Hey.” He said still half asleep. 

“Lance?”

“Yeah, he’s still asleep.”

“Alright, well get him up, we’ll leave in a few.”

“I’ll try.” Shiro hung up and Lance started attempting to get Keith up. After the first few attempts he just whined and rolled over. “C’mon, we need to get ready.” Keith ignored him. “Okay, you have five seconds until I attack. One… Two… Three… Four…” He jumped on top of Keith and started mercilessly tickling Keith. When he finally woke up, he rolled on top of him to retaliate, but Lance just pulled him down by his collar and started kissing him. “I win.” He said smugly. Keith just shushed him and leaned back down. A few minutes later, his phone dinged. 

Shiro: You guys coming?

He frowned and showed it to Lance. 

“Keith, we literally live together. We can do this any other time, let’s get dressed.” He huffed and crawled off of him. They quickly changed and made their way downstairs. “Sorry, someone wouldn’t get up.” Lance said as they walked to the car. Shiro just laughed and started the drive. Soon, they arrived at a diner on the outskirts of the town with the light show. Dinner was borning, and so were the lights honestly. They were pretty, but Keith didn’t really have much of an interest. As soon as they got back, Keith took a shower and crashed, and Lance did the same.  

The next morning Keith woke up to Lance lying on top of him, nearly suffocating him. He struggled to push him off, which woke him up. 

“Hey.” He mumbled before lazily kissing his neck. After a few minutes spent trying to wake up, they stumbled down the stairs. When they got to the kitchen, Lance found a note. 

“Went to go get stuff for tonight. Be back around noon.” He read. “Well, it’s just after ten now… what do you wanna do?” Keith just shrugged. “We could watch a movie…” 

Keith: What movie? 

“Uhhh… ‘Hercules’?” 

Keith: Do you watch anything other than Disney?

“Horror movies, but you don’t like them.”

Keith: Do you never watch like… classics?

“‘Hercules’ is a classic, and so is ‘Nightmare on Elm Street’.”

Keith: I mean like Breakfast at Tiffany’s or Rebel Without a Cause or something.

“I like movies from this century.”

Keith: Shut up. I like old movies.

“Fine, we’ll watch… ‘Peter Pan’, that’s old.” Keith just shrugged and walked over to the couch. After a few minutes of watching the movie, Lance got bored. “Come here.” He said pulling Keith over to him, he just cocked his head. Lance rolled his eyes and pulled him into a soft kiss. The kiss changed at some point, Lance’s hand had found its way to Keith’s hip, and the other to his hair, while Keith’s rested on his chest and behind his neck. Lance ran his tongue over Keith's bottom lip, asking for entrance. As the kiss deepened, Lance’s teeth tugged on his bottom lip and pulled him forward. He was now straddling his lap. After some time passed, Keith pulled away and looked out the window. Lance moved down between his neck and his collarbone. Suddenly, Keith moved off of him and laid down with his head in his lap. 

“Keith? You okay?” 

Keith: No you didn’t do anything. Just wait about thirty seconds. 

He was confused, but waited. A few seconds later, Shiro and Adam came in with the grocery bags and he realized why he got up. 

“Hey..” 

“Hey.” 

“We got all of the stuff. We’re making food, then we can just do whatever.”

“Sounds good.” Lance said as Shiro walked out. “So… I’m assuming he’d kill me?” 

Keith: Yep. 

“Why exactly?” 

Keith: What? Would you make out with me in front of any of your family?

“Fair enough… but you think he’d actually be like mad?”

Keith: Not sure. Probably. 

“Why?”

Keith: Because he still acts like I’m like nine. Probably my own fault to be fair.

“What do you mean?” He just shrugged and Lance decided to drop it.

Chapter Text

“So, I got like a ton of different stuff. What do you guys want to do?” Shiro asked as he started on the dishes. 

“I say we watch a movie, I’m tired.” Adam responded. Shiro looked to Lance and Keith who both shrugged. 

“Alright, go find one.” Adam nodded and walked out to the living room. 

“Keith, come here real quick.” He said as he started drying the plates. Keith slowly made his way over. “You look guilty, I just needed to talk to you about something, but did you do something I should be concerned about?” Keith shook his head. “Okay, well… this morning mom called. I don’t really know what’s going on, but she asked for us to fly down there soon. I was thinking of flying down there soon, but the earliest flight I can get is Tuesday night. You don’t have to go if you don’t want to, but I’m not sure how long I’ll be gone. So, you can go or stay at the school with Lance.” Keith just shrugged. “Either way, it’ll be fine. Just let me know soon, I need to get the tickets by tonight.” He just nodded and went to the living room to find Lance. When he got there, Adam was on one side of the couch, and Lance was on the other. Luckily, it was a sectional so they had plenty of room.

“What was that about?” Lance asked as he pulled Kieth down next to him. 

Keith: Shiro has to go back home. He asked if I wanted to go?

“Are you going?”

Keith: I don’t know. I don’t really want to, but I don’t know how long he’ll be gone so I don’t know. 

“Why does that matter?” 

Keith: As Shiro says I have codependency issues. 

“What?”

Keith: Literally in the past almost six years the longest he’s been gone is like one night. He never stays out longer than that, much less across the country. 

“Yeah, but you live in the dorms now and it’s fine right?”

Keith: Most of the time, but he’s just across campus. I can’t just walk to North Carolina. And even when I first moved I slept on his couch several nights. 

“When?”

Keith: Most of the time when you thought I woke up first unless I slept with you. 

“You sneaky bastard. Well, go if you think you should, but if not it’ll be fine I promise.” Keith just nodded. “Also, I’ve been thinking. We should move our room around.” 

Keith: What do you mean? 

“We should just move our beds together at this point. I mean, we already slept together most nights before now, so….” 

Keith: Would that even work?

“Yeah. Hunk has his together. We just need to get a bigger sheet that’ll fit over both mattresses.” Keith just nodded and leaned into him, then bit his shoulder. “You’re so weird.” He just shrugged. Soon, Shiro joined them and Adam started the movie. It was some random Christmas movie that Keith had no interest in. He spent most of the time just paying attention to Lance until he fell asleep. 

“Wow.” Shiro said as the movie ended. 

“What?” Lance asked. 

“Look at them.” He said motioning to Keith, then Adam. They were both dead asleep. Keith was curled up on top of Lance, and Adam was asleep with his head in Shiro’s lap. 

“Should we wake them up?” 

“Nah, it’s not like we have anything to do. I’m gonna drag him back to our room though.” Lance nodded and watched Shiro pull Adam up and walk away, then he decided he should do the same. Half way up the stairs, Keith started waking up and quietly whined. 

“I know, I’m taking you to bed.” He whispered. As soon as he put Keith on the bed, he reached out for him. As soon as he laid down, he rolled over to lay on his chest and fell back asleep. About half an hour later, he woke up. 

“How do you possibly sleep so much?” Keith just shrugged and bit his shoulder. “You know, you could just do this.” Lance said before pulling him into a kiss, Keith just shrugged. “Seriously, do you sleep worse than you let on at night?” 

Keith: Eh, my brain works really hard to convince me something bad is going to happen like all the time. I guess it takes a lot of energy. I’m like always tired. 

“What were you worried about earlier? You fell asleep less than four hours after you got up.” 

Keith: Shiro leaving. 

“If you’re that worried you should go.”

Keith: But I hate flying, and airports in general. Also, he doesn't even know what’s going on. What if it’s something bad? If everyone’s still fighting, I don’t want to be there. I hate that. Or if it’s more than just his parents there. 

“I thought you liked his family?” 

Keith: I like his mom a lot. It’s not really that I don’t like them, but it’s kind of a lot sometimes I guess. Plus, you’re here.

“Awe, see you can be all cheesy.” Lance teased. “We have phones, you know.”

Keith: It’s not the same :(

“I know, but it won’t be that bad.”

Keith: But it could be. 

“Wherever you decide to go, I’m sure it’ll be fine. What did Shiro say?”

Keith: He didn’t tell me. 

“Tell you?”

Keith: What to do.

“Is that what you want?” 

Keith: Not really… It just makes more sense sometimes. 

“Do you want to go wait for them to get up so you can talk to him?” Keith just nodded. “Okay, c’mon. Adam can’t sleep for too much longer.” He said, leading the way downstairs. When they got to the couch, Keith climbed into his lap and leaned his head into the crook of his neck. “You’re like a koala.” Lance chuckled before kissing his cheek, Keith responded with a bite. “Or maybe a chihuahua.” 

Keith: I’m not a chihuahua! 

“You’re right, you’re like a cat.” 

Keith: A cat?

“Yeah, what do you think I am?” 

“Yeah. You can be all moody. You don’t like people, except for the few that you do. You don’t trust people at first, but when someone puts in effort and proves to you that they actually care, you let them in.”

Keith: Why did you make that so deep? 

“It seems right.” 

Keith: I was just going to say a German Sheppard, not very deep. 

“Why?” 

Keith: Because you’re pretty and I’ve seen you get into two different fights since I met you, not to mention protective. 

“You think I’m pretty?” He teased. 

Keith: Shut up. 

“So I only get one sappy thing a day?” He nodded. 

Keith: Probably not everyday. 

“Why not?” 

Keith: Because I’m bad at this. 

“So am I.”

Keith: So far, I’m not seeing it. 

“It’s been like two days.” Keith just shrugged. Finally, Adam and Shiro came out, but Lance pointed Shiro back to his room, and Keith got up and followed. 

“You okay?” He nodded. “So no?” He sighed. 

“M’ fine. I just don’t know if I want to stay here or not, and it’s stressing me out.” 

“Why not?” 

“Because that’s like… You’d be across the country and you don’t even know for how long.” 

“So come.” 

“But you said everyone was fighting, and I don’t really want to do that… plus Lance is here…” 

“And you’ve convinced yourself something bad will happen in either situation?” Keith nodded. “Well, you are technically supposed to be in school while I would be gone, and I know you really don’t like airports… maybe you should stay. I think you’re getting more used to me not being around as much, and I think this could be good. Lance will be at the school, and if anything else happens, Adam’s always an option…” 

“What’s he going to do?” 

“Help. He did the other day.” 

“When?” 

“When we weren’t here and you smelled the burning. Do you not remember that?” He shook his head. “Well, he got you to calm down a little.” Keith just nodded, clearly kind of confused. “So, do you want to stay here?” 

“I guess…” 

“I can always call.”

“I know.”

“Anything else?” 

“I don’t think so.”

“Alright, let’s go find something to do.” Keith nodded and followed him out to the kitchen where Adam and Lance were fencing with spatulas. “Literal children.” Shiro muttered, before coughing to gain their attention. They both jumped away and put the spatulas behind their backs. “So, which one started it?” 

“He did.” They said in unison. 

“Why did we pick these ones?” He asked, Keith shrugged. 

‘Good question.’ 

“Okay, let’s just build the gingerbread houses.” They all agreed and Shiro brought them to the table. After a few attempts at getting the walls to stick, Lance gave up. 

“This icing sucks.” Keith just rolled his eyes and took over. Once they were stable, they started on the decorating part. While they were working on the roof, Lance wiped frosting on Keith’s face. He was met by a glare. 

“Ooh, bad idea.” Shiro laughed. Before he could even move, Keith had already smeared double the frosting onto Lance’s face. 

“Oh, you’re so dead!” He said as Keith grabbed some of the stuff from the table and ran away. Lance immediately took off after him. Before he got to him, Keith ran behind him and tackled him onto the couch. 

“Okay, okay, you win.” Keith shook his head. He pinned his arms down with his knees and drew a mustache on his face with the frosting, then put candies on it. 

“You done now?” He nodded and started to get up, but Lance pulled him back and rubbed it on Keith’s cheek. “Okay, back to the house now.” He said, making his way back to the kitchen. Shiro and Adam were already almost done. After they finally finished, Adam and Shiro decided to go change and Lance and Keith made their way to go wipe off their faces. Lance grabbed a rag and whipped his face off first, then handed it to Keith, but before he could do anything, Lance licked his face. 

“What? It’s frosting.” As Keith glarred while he whipped his face. 

Keith: You’re gross. 

“So, I can’t lick you, but making out with me is fine?” 

Keith: Shut up. 

“You like it. I’m gonna go take a shower.” He said before walking away. After he finished washing his face, Keith went upstairs to read. About half an hour later, Lance came out and Keith decided to shower too. As he grabbed a pair of sweats, Lance stopped him. 

“Nope.” Keith looked up and realized Lance was in the pajamas they had gotten at the mall and quickly tried to get a different set of clothes. “You’re not getting out of it. You weren’t before, and you definitely aren’t now.” Keith just glared as Lance held out the clothes. “Please?” Keith huffed and grabbed the clothes before walking into the bathroom. When the door opened again, Keith was standing with his arms crossed. 

“Stop being grumpy, it’s not that bad. Also, I got bored and tried to read your book, it’s so boring.” 

Keith: It’s not that boring. 

“Yeah it is. Come here.” He said, pulling him into a hug. When he pulled back, Keith was still glaring. “Come on, don’t be all grumpy.” He mumbled into his neck. “It’s cute. We’re dating now, this is part of that.” He said as he softly kissed his neck. Keith slowly relaxed and opened his neck more. “Now I know how to get you to chill out.” He teased before Keith bit his shoulder. “You could just kiss me, you know.” Lance laughed as he pulled him into a soft kiss. He slowly backed up to the bed without breaking the kiss and pulled Keith onto his lap. Eventually, Lance’s hand found its way under Keith’s shirt. He immediately tensed up and kind of froze. Lance immediately moved his hand and kissed his forehead. 

“You okay?” Keith just nodded and laid down next to him. “Did I do something?” He shrugged. “I freaked you out.” He shrugged again. “I wasn’t going to try anything if that’s what you thought…” Keith just blankly stared at him. “You tensed up, I connected the dots. You’re gonna have to make a move on that one if it’s gonna happen.” Keith just nodded and wrapped his arms around Lance’s. 

Chapter Text

Eventually, Shiro called them down for dinner. 

“How’d you manage that?” He asked, motioning to their pajamas. 

“I honestly have no idea.” Lance responded as he sat down. 

“There’s not even any black.” 

“I know!” Keith was glaring at them both at this point. 

“He’s clearly thrilled about it.” 

‘You both suck.’ 

“Guys, leave him alone so we can eat.” Adam interjected, which honestly surprised Keith, but they moved back to eating. After they ate, they decided to watch a few movies. 

Keith: So… what are we doing when we go home?

“What do you mean?” Keith just gestured between them. “Well, what do you want to do?” 

Keith: I don’t know… 

“Well, I haven’t told anyone yet, but they’re going to find out eventually, especially Allura. 

Keith: You didn’t even tell her?

“No, I’ve been distracted.” He chuckled. “It’s up to you, but you know no one will care right?” He just shrugged. “If you want to, we can just wait for them to figure it out, but I’m not sure that’ll be much better.”

Keith: What do you mean?

“They’ve spent like everyday since we went to Costco trying to convince me to do something. After us going out to a cabin in the middle of the mountains for a week, I’m sure they’ll be trying to figure out if anything happened.”

Keith: You know, you’re really not helping. 

“What are you so worried about?” Keith just shrugged. “No, you do know. Just tell me.” 

Keith: I’m just not used to this. 

“Yeah, it’ll be fine though. We can just figure it out as we go.” Keith just nodded and curled back into him. After a few movies, Adam stood up. 

“I say it’s bonfire time.” He said as he pulled on his coat. 

“Lance, go make sure he doesn’t die.” 

“What? Why me?” 

“Hey! I can do it!” 

“Go.” After they were both gone, Shiro moved over to the other side of the couch next to Keith. “So… do you wanna go out there.” He just nodded. “Are you sure?” 

“Shiro, I’m fine.” 

“I just don’t want anything to happen…”

“Nothing will. It doesn’t bother me that much.” 

“It did the other day…” 

“Yeah, when it was like in here… That’s like controlled and outside. I don’t care about the literal fire happening like twenty feet away right now. That’s controlled. I’m fine.” 

“Really? You sound a little defensive.” Keith just rolled his eyes, grabbed his coat, and walked outside. When he got to the fire pit, Adam and Lance were arguing over the best way to lay the logs. He walked up behind him and wrapped his arms around his waist. 

“See? You can do affection.” Lance teased. 

Keith: I’m hugging you. I’ve done that. 

“Pretty sure since this week you’ve initiated like two hugs.” 

Keith: Not true. 

“Totally is.” 

Keith: Fine, I’ll stop. 

“No!” Lance whined. Soon, Shiro walked out and took over. 

“Well, you didn’t get past stacking the wood, but I’m not taking anyone to the ER, so I’ll take it.” 

“I don’t know why you’re acting like I’m dumb. I atleast teach a real class!” 

“For computer geeks. Also, it’s not that you’re dumb, you just apparenty lose all of your brain function when you’re left alone with him.” He said, pointing to Lance. 

“Yeah, I have that effect on people. You’re welcome.”

“Yeah, thanks.” Adam said sarcastically as he sat down on one of the benches. Lance was clearly proud of himself. 

Keith: Why are you like this?

“Because I’m awesome and you like it.”

Keith: Yeah, whatever. 

As the fire grew, Keith tensed up a little. Without even noticing, Lance reached an arm around him and he felt a lot more comfortable. They spent a while talking over the fire, and eventually, Keith got tired. He slowly turned to throw his legs over Lance’s lap and wrapped his arms around his waist, nestling his head onto his shoulder. Shiro nodded back towards the cabin when he noticed. Lance just slid his arms under him and walked back into the house. When they got to the room, they both pulled off their coats and crawled into the bed.

Keith woke up late the next morning to Shiro shaking him. 

“Mmh, what?”

“Are you gonna get up? It’s half past noon.”

“No.”

“Why not?”

“Head hurts.”

“Do you want me to find you something to take?” He just shrugged. “Is it just your head?” 

“M’ fine, just don’t wanna get up. Where’s Lance?” 

“I think he’s outside. He went out a while ago on the phone. I’m sure he’ll be back soon. I don’t think we have anything here, but there’s a gas station close by, I can go get you some Tylenol. Do you want anything else?”

“No.”

“Okay, I’ll be back in a minute.” Keith lazily nodded as he walked downstairs. He appeared a few moments later with a bottle of water. “Drink it.” He said as he put it down on the nightstand. 

“You sound like your mom.”

“Good, you listen to her. I’ll be back in like twenty minutes. Text me if you need anything. Adam’s downstairs, and Lance should be out soon.” Keith just nodded and pulled the duvet over his head and fell back asleep. He woke up a while later to Lance snaking an arm around him. 

“Hey.” He whispered. “Shiro brought you medicine, but you were already asleep. It’s on the nightstand. Drink some water too.” Keith just rolled his eyes and sat up. After he managed to drink about a third of the water, he rolled over into Lance’s chest and went back to sleep. Lance just waited for him to wake back up. Finally, about half an hour later, he woke up and stretched out his arms before turning back into Lance’s chest. 

“Hey.” Lance said softly before kissing his forehead. “Is your head feeling better?” He nodded. “Do you wanna go downstairs? We’ll probably eat soon.” Keith nodded and followed him down the stairs to the living room. 

“Oh, he’s alive!” Shiro teased, earning Keith’s usual glare. He followed Lance to the couch and laid down with his head in his lap. 

“What are we watching?” 

“Oh, we just finished ‘Home Alone’. We’re about to go cook, so that’s on you guys.” Adam said as he passed Lance the remote.  

“Okay, Scrooge, any Christmas movie ideas?” Lance asked. Keith thought for a minute, then took the remote with a smirk. He switched to Disney and found ‘The Nightmare Before Christmas’. “This isn’t a Christmas movie.”

Keith: Say the name.

“The Nightmare before Christmas.” He said in a mildly sarcastic tone. 

Keith: Christmas is in the name. It counts. So does Die Hard. 

“Whatever, watch your movie.” 

They spent the entirety of Christmas day just watching movies and hanging out. It wasn’t too bad if Keith was being honest. It was better than he honestly expected. Around eleven, Shiro decided to go to bed. 

“Alright. I’m heading to bed. We have to check out by eleven-thirty tomorrow, so you guys might want to make sure you have everything packed up tonight. Mainly Keith.” 

‘What’s that supposed to mean?’ 

“You do things last minute and get stressed out, and who knows if you’ll even get up.” 

‘I don’t know what you’re talking about.’ 

“Yes you do. Goodnight.” He said as he followed Adam back to their room. Keith just lazily waved as he got up. When they got upstairs, Lance watched as he haphazardly threw all of his stuff into his bag other than a change of clothes for the morning. 

“Wow, you’re very organized.” 

Keith: Shut up, I’m tired. Everything’s in there and it took me like two minutes, I won. 

“Fair enough I guess.” 

Keith: Hurry up so I can go to sleep. 

“Give me like five minutes.” Lance said as he started folding up his clothes. Finally, he climbed into bed next to Keith and waited for him to get comfortable. Almost as soon as he did, he was asleep and Lance followed soon after 

The next morning, Lance woke up around eight-thirty and attempted to get Keith up for breakfast, but failed. After he ate, he helped Adam and Shiro clean up the kitchen and do anything they needed to do before they left. By then, it was almost eleven, so he tried to get Keith up again. 

“You gotta get up. We’re leaving in like half an hour.” He said as he shook Keith again. He just glared and rolled over. “I mean, we’ll probably stop to get food. I’m sure you don’t want to wear that in public.” He finally got up and changed, then shoved the last of his stuff in his bag. “Okay, I’m gonna take our stuff to Shiro’s car. Do whatever else you need to do.” Keith just rolled his eyes and located his boots before making his way downstairs. 

Chapter Text

The ride back to the school was mainly spent with Keith being dead asleep, laying in Lance’s lap. They decided to just get something to eat when they made it back to Enumclaw. Adam fell asleep about halfway back, leaving Shiro and Lance awake by themselves. 

“So… you know I’m leaving?”

“Yeah, he’s staying here?”

“Yeah… He might have a hard time…” 

“I know, we talked about it.”

“Don’t let him do anything stupid, and if you can’t handle it on your own, Adam will be here. I’ve already talked to him about it, so if you need anything…”

“He’ll be fine. I won’t let anything bad happen.”
“I know. I’m glad he ended up being your roommate. I may act like a dick sometimes, but I just want to make sure he’s okay… and try and help him… cope better I guess…” 

“I know.”  The car fell back to silence until they made it back into their town and Shiro woke up Adam. After they decided on where to eat, Lance woke Keith up. It took him a few tries, but he eventually got him up. 

“We're stopping to eat. Get up.” Keith glared, but sat up and tried to fix his hair some. They all ate fairly quickly, and managed to make it back onto campus around six. As soon as they made it to the dorms, Keith crashed into his bed. 

“Why so tired?” Lance asked as he sat down on the edge of the bed. Keith sat up and changed into a black tank top and a pair of baggy sweatpants before grabbing his phone. 

Keith: Couldn’t sleep last night. 

“You were asleep before me and you slept all day… what do you mean?” 

Keith: I woke back up at like 12:30, then didn’t sleep until almost eight.

“Why?”

Keith: I don’t know. Nothing happened, I just couldn’t sleep.

“Okay…”

Keith: Seriously. I’m fine.

“Okay. Well, I’m not opposed to a nap.” Lance said as he laid down beside him. As soon as his head hit the pillow, Keith rolled over to lay almost completely on top of him. He was asleep within minutes. Lance didn’t manage to fall asleep, instead he just scrolled through his phone, while playing with Keith’s hair and waiting for him to get up. 

Finally, after a little over an hour, Keith woke up. He slowly stretched and rolled over towards the wall. Lance snaked his arm around his waist and softly kissed the back of his neck. Eventually, he rolled back over to face him. 

“Are you gonna stay awake now?” He whispered. Keith just shrugged and buried his face into Lance’s chest. “Is that a no then?” Keith sighed, then motioned to his phone on the nightstand. After Lance handed it to him, he watched him read a text, then start typing. 

Keith: I’m awake. 

“I know. What do you wanna do now? It’s already almost six.”

Keith: I don’t know. 

“We can go do something or stay here and watch movies.”

Keith: Here. 

“Okay, what movies?” 

Keith: We never did your Star Wars marathon. 

“Okay, you wanna watch it in the living room?” Keith nodded and sat up, but immediately pulled the blanket back over his shoulders. “You alright?” Lance asked, furrowing his eyebrows. 

Keith: Cold. 

“Give me a second.” He whispered as he got up and walked to his wardrobe. He grabbed one of his hoodies and tossed it towards Keith. He happily took the hoodie and pulled it over his head, then got up and followed Lance into the living room. Lance grabbed the remote and pulled Keith down onto the couch with him. They spent the rest of the night curled up on the couch watching Star Wars. By midnight, Lance was starting to get tired, and Keith had already fallen back asleep, so he carried him back to bed and went to sleep himself. 

The next morning, Keith woke up before Lance and decided to go see Shiro. When he knocked on the door, Adam let him in. 

“Shiro! Keith’s here!”  He shouted as he walked back to the bedroom, leaving Keith alone in the living room. A few minutes later, Shiro walked in. 

“Hey. Everything okay?” He asked. Keith nodded. 

‘When is your flight?’ He signed. 

“Uhh, around one in the morning on Tuesday, the airport’s about an hour away…. So I’ll probably leave at eight-thirty because I’m sure TSA will be crazy from the holidays.” Keith just nodded. “It’ll be fine. Lance will be here and so will Adam.” 

‘I know, but still…’ 

“I promise, nothing’s going to happen just because I’m gone. I’ll be back as soon as I can. You’ll have classes anyway, you’ll barely even notice I’m gone. You barely see me during the week anyways.” 

‘Yeah, but I still can.’ 

“You know if anything happens, I’ll find a flight back. It’ll be fine though.” Keith just shrugged, then started to sign, but his phone dinged. 

Lance: Where’d you go?

Keith: Shiro’s. 

Lance: You okay? 

Keith: Yeah. 

“See? Lance won’t let anything happen. It’ll be fine.” 

‘I guess.’ 

“I’m kinda thinking about going to train a little later. Do you wanna come?” 

‘When?’

“I don’t know. After lunch I guess. You should go eat too. I’ll text you before I head down and you can just meet me there.” Keith just nodded and made his way out and back to his dorm. When he got in, Lance was waiting on the couch. 

“Come eat. I ordered food.” He called out. When Keith got to the couch, he found Lance eating his burger. He sat down next to him and he slid him a box with the logo from the diner Lance liked. After they ate, they ended up just laying on the couch together until Shiro texted. 

Keith: Shiro wants me to go train with him.

“Okay. I’m gonna clean some. When do you think you’ll be back?” 

Keith: Like three maybe, I don’t know. Why? 

“I wanna do something tonight. I mean… I think we should probably go on a real date at some point right?” Lance said awkwardly, earning an eye roll from Keith. 

Keith: We went on a trip together though. 

“Yeah, but that was a thing before, plus it wasn’t like just us…” 

Keith: Well what do you wanna do? 

“I don’t know yet. I’ll think of something while you're gone.” Keith nodded and disappeared down the hallway. When he came back, he was changed into a pair of sweatpants and one of his usual black tank tops with a dark red zip up jacket over it. He waved and started toward the door.  “Wait, come here.” Lance said. When Keith made his way over to the couch, Lance pulled him into his lap. “Haven’t gotten to do this today.” He said before he pulled Keith into a soft kiss. When they broke apart, Keith leaned back and rolled his eyes. “What? Too ‘cheesy’?” He just shook his head and leaned back in. The kiss turned from soft and sweet to greedy very quickly. Only a few moments into the kiss, they were interrupted by Keith’s phone. As he reached for it and read the text, Lance moved to his neck. 

Shiro: You coming? 

Keith: Yeah, in a second. I couldn’t find a hair tie. 

He didn’t realize how much time had passed since his first text. 

Keith: I need to go. Also, if you give me a hickey, you’re dead. 

“I didn’t.” Lance whined. “You like it anyway.” 

Keith: Shut up. I gotta go now. 

“Fine.” Lance sighed as he let Keith climb off of him. He waved softly, then made his way out the door. On his way down to the studio, he checked his neck with his phone camera and saw that it was clear, then tied his hair up. By the time he felt he looked more presentable, he was standing outside Shiro’s studio. 

“Hey.” He called out as Keith walked in. “No one’s here.” 

“Okay.” 

“So, you couldn’t find the hair tie you keep in your wrist like all the time?” 

“No, I had my hair up last night and it came out while I was asleep so I had to find it.” 

“Sure. You didn’t get distracted by Lance or anything.” He teased. 

“No, I didn’t. He was watching a movie anyway.” 

“Yeah, I’m sure he was.” 

“Shut up.” 

“Yeah, whatever. Don’t get all defensive, or if you do, at least fight me.” 

“I’ll win.” 

“No you won’t. You can take off your jacket. I already know, remember?” 

“Yeah… still…”

“It’s fine. Seriously, I’ve already seen it. You move better without it.” Keith just sighed and pulled it off along with his shoes, then made his way over to one of the mats. Shiro followed him and did the same before stretching out his arms. 

Chapter Text

Shiro and Keith spent a few hours sparring until Adam came to tell Shiro he cooked dinner. It was a little later than he thought it would be by the time he checked his phone again. It was almost five, and he didn’t have any texts from Lance and immediately assumed he would be mad. 

Keith: I just got done. Sorry, I thought it wouldn’t be this long… 

Lance: It’s fine. I figured out what we’re doing and we would’ve had to wait a little while anyway. 

Keith: Where is that? 

Lance: You’ll see. Now hurry up, I wanna see you. 

Keith: I’ve been gone for a couple hours. 

Lance: Too long. Hurry up. 

Keith: Okay, I’m already on my way. 

He shoved his phone into his pocket and quickly made his way to the dorm. As soon as he walked in, Lance ran over and picked him up in a hug. 

Keith: Quit, I’m gross and sweaty. 

“Yeah, I don’t care.” 

Keith: Can you let me go shower now? 

“Mhhh… Fine I guess.” Lance mumbled. “You don’t have to dress too warm, we’ll mainly be inside… kinda.” Keith just cocked his head in confusion. “You’ll see. Go get ready. We should probably leave in about an hour.” 

Keith: You’re taking me back into the mountains to murder me aren’t you? 

“No.” Lance said through a laugh. “I’m taking you on like the most cliché date ever. Go get ready.” Keith nodded and disappeared into their room. After a quick shower, he walked back into their room to get dressed and found Lance doing the same. He ended up wearing blue jeans, a light gray hoodie, and a green jacket. Keith went for a fully black outfit with his red jacket. He attempted to straighten out his hair before pulling his boots out and meeting Lance in the living room. 

“Here. Bring it just in case. My car isn’t the most reliable…” Lance said as he handed Keith his coat. “Let’s go.” He said as he took Keith’s hand and led him to the car. When they got close, Lance ran in front of him and opened the passenger side door for him, earning an eye roll. “You have to let me be cringey a little!” Keith just scrunched his nose and shook his head. As they pulled out, he realized he never told Shiro he was leaving, so he sent him a text. 

Keith: I’m going somewhere with Lance. 

Shiro: Where? 

Keith: No idea. 

Shiro: In town or no?

Keith: No idea. He’s being all cryptic about it. 

Shiro: Do you know when you’ll get back?

Keith: No… 

Shiro: Okay… Well, let me know when you figure it out and don’t stay out too late. It’s still the holiday season.

Keith: Okay. 

By the time he looked back up, he realized they had already left town and were merging onto the interstate. He wished he could just talk to Lance, he hated not being able to talk to him while he was driving, but he still felt like he couldn’t for some reason. He hated the fact that he was like this. At first, after his dad died, it came in waves. Sometimes he didn’t talk,  mainly when he was upset, but things got worse. By the time he left the ranch, he had stopped talking completely. It took him forever to talk to Shiro, he honestly couldn’t even remember how it happened. He just remembered how excited he was and how nice it felt to finally feel that safe with someone. He felt almost just as safe with Lance now, which seemed crazy since they had only met after fall break. He wanted to talk to him, he just didn’t know how to… or if he even could. 

About twenty minutes later, he realized they were nearing Tacoma. Lance pulled off at the exit before the actual city, then found a drive-thru. He didn’t bother asking Keith what he wanted, he already knew. While they waited, Keith had the chance to text him. 

Keith: So… what are we doing?

“You’ll see. It’ll be fun I promise.”

Keith: Stop being shady!

“I’m not! We’re like ten minutes away, you can wait.” 

Keith: And where are we exactly?

“Just outside of Tacoma. I don’t actually know what town this is, I just know it’s like on the outskirts.” Lance responded as he pulled up to the window. “Just trust me.” Keith rolled his eyes and sent Shiro a text to let him know where they were, but that he still had no idea what was happening. Ten minutes later, they were pulling into a huge parking lot. It took him a few minutes to realize where they were. 

Keith: You were right, very cliché.

“Hey! Don’t hate on the drive-in. It’s great. Especially this one, they’re always playing old films.” 

Keith: I’m not hating, I’m not sure I understand the appeal, but I’m not hating. What movie are we watching anyway?

“The Princess Bride.” 

Keith: I have no idea what that is. 

“How? You like old movies! It’s great! I can quote like every single line. You’ll like it. After that, they’re playing Killer Klowns from Outer Space, but I’m assuming you don’t really have an interest in that…” 

Keith: It’s fine. 

“I can read your face pretty well at this point.” 

Keith: No, it’s fine. 

“We’ll see after the movie. Do you see the radio station anywhere?” 

Keith: Radio station? 

“You’ve never been to a drive-in?”

Keith: No, I don’t get the point. 

“Well, the radio station plays the movie audio. I think it’s on the sign back there, give me a second.” He said as he got out of the car. When he got back, he found the station and handed Keith his food. “It starts in like fifteen minutes.” He mumbled as he pulled a blanket out of the backseat. Keith just nodded and they ate mostly in silence. By the time they had both finished eating, the movie was finally actually starting. They had already made it through the beginning with the sick kid. 

“Come here.” Lance half-whispered. Keith moved over to the middle and Lance immediately wrapped an arm around him. “See? Drive-ins are great.” Keith just nodded and focused on the movie. His attention constantly flipped between the screen and Lance who was mouthing the words. During the first fencing scene, he laughed a little. “This movie was lowkey my gay awakening.” 

Keith: What? 

“I thought Buttercup was super pretty as a kid, and I thought I just wanted to be him, but I think I secretly had a crush on him.”

Keith: Andre the Giant? 

“No.” Lance chuckled. “I mean ‘the Man in Black.’” 

Keith: Wesley? 

“Yeah, so you have seen it?” 

Keith: No, an eye mask just isn’t a good disguise. 

“Well, it got me when I was like six so…” 

Keith: I don’t see it. 

“You don’t think he’s attractive? Did you not just watch him in that fight?” 

Keith: Yeah, but he kinda looks like he would hate crime me. He’s not even that attractive without the mask honestly. I mean, I knew you had bad taste, so that’s not surprising. 

“Quit being self-deprecating. It’s not like yours was much better. What was it? Some guy from a western? 

Keith: No. Absolutely not. 

“Okay then who?” 

Keith: I’m not sure… have you seen Heathers? 

“Not the movie, but the play, yes. Is that your way of saying JD?” 

Keith: Yeah. Christian Slater was hot in the eighties. 

“Is all you watch really old movies?” 

Keith: For the most part. It’s not my fault. I didn’t have cable until I moved in with Shiro, so I just watched whatever VHS tapes we had. 

“You’re like a little old man.” 

Keith: I’m literally younger than you! 

“Yeah, physically by like a year. Mentally, you’re like seventy-four.” 

Keith: Yeah, it’s probably the trauma. 

“Stop.” Lance whined, Keith just laughed. “You think you’re so funny don’t you?” 

Keith: I think I’m hilarious. Joking about it is a totally normal thing. 

“I know, but I can never tell if you’re actually joking.” He said with a frown. 

Keith: I am. Watch your movie. 

Lance huffed sarcastically and turned his attention back to the movie as Keith nestled in closer to him. Towards the end of the movie, after Inigo’s fight, Lance was getting bored and finding it hard to sit still. 

“You know what else is great about drive-ins?” He asked, earning an unamused eye roll from Keith. “What? I was gonna say I don’t have to sit still.” 

Keith: Sure you were. 

“Well, that’s a bonus too…” He said through a laugh as he turned to face Keith who rolled his eyes at Lance’s smirk. “What? Can’t kiss you now?” Keith smirked in response and turned away, crossing his arms. Lance just leaned over and started kissing his neck, before he reached him, Keith moved down to the passenger seat. Lance just moved over to the middle and tried again, Keith tried his best not to respond. Eventually, Keith gave in and let him kiss him. After one kiss, Lance pulled back, immediately met with a glare from Keith. He just shrugged smugly and turned back to the screen. 

Keith: You suck. 

“You started it.” 

Keith: You were being all sappy. 

“You like it.” 

Keith: You’re a dork. And you’re being mean :( 

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Keith huffed and reached a hand up to turn his head, but Lance fought it. “Sh, I’m watching a movie.” Keith frowned in response and tried again with a little more effort. Lance eventually turned his head and let Keith kiss him, but pulled away quickly. “See? You can initiate affection.” He just glared and bit Lance’s neck. “You’re like a little vampire. I don’t get it.” Lance mumbled before doing the same. “Yeah no, I really don’t get it.” Keith shrugged and pulled Lance back over to him. He kissed him softly, then bit his bottom lip and pulled him closer. Lance just laughed and pulled Keith’s legs down so that he was laying across the seat, then leaned back down, immediately deepening the kiss. Keith moved one hand to his back and the other to his face. Lance was supporting most of his body weight with one arm, using that hand to protect Keith’s head from hitting the car door, and had his other resting on Keith’s waist. To his surprise, Keith slid his tongue into his mouth, making Lance laugh a little as he deepened the kiss even more. Eventually, he broke the kiss to catch his breath, earning a soft whine from Keith as he moved to his neck. Lance pulled away and ran his thumb over his lips. “No hickeys remember.” He teased, Keith rolled his eyes and bit his thumb. “Hey, you said it, not me.” He whispered as he leaned back down. Before their lips met, they were interrupted by a scream coming from the radio, making Keith jump up. His eyes shot open when he saw one of the clowns on the screen. 

“Yeah, we’re leaving.” Lance said softly as he pulled Keith into his side and backed out of the parking spot. 

Chapter Text

By the time they got back to the school, Keith was clearly getting sleepy. As soon as they made it back into the dorm, they both crashed. The next morning, Lance woke up first, but Keith was still asleep, so he decided to just go back to bed. When Keith finally woke up, he shot a text to Shiro and made his way down to the studio. They had already agreed to train again today so he was already waiting. Once he got in, he quickly pulled his shoes off and made his way to the mat. 

“So, what did you guys end up doing last night? You never told me.” 

“We went to a drive-in.” 

“Oh, what did you guys watch?” 

“The Princess Bride.” 

“Did you eat something?” 

“Yeah.” 

“So you had a good time then?” 

“Yeah, can we spar now?” 

“Did something happen?” Shiro asked, assuming he was trying to change the conversation because something did happen. 

“No.” 

“Okay…” Shiro wasn’t really buying it, but they started sparring anyway. After a few rounds, Shiro flopped down on the mat, out of breath. 

“You’re old.” Keith teased as he stood over him. 

“Yeah, whatever.” Shiro muttered, pulling Keith to the ground. “So… I’m leaving tomorrow night…” 

“I know.” 

“Are you feeling better about that?” 

“Not really…” 

“You’ll be fine. I’m sure.” Keith shrugged and Shiro let the conversation end there. Finally, they got back up and started sparring again. This time, Shiro flipped Keith to the ground. As he got back up, Lance appeared in the doorway. 

“Figured I would find you here.” He said as he walked over to the other two. Keith gave him a silent wave and walked over to his phone. 

Keith: What are you doing? 

“I dunno, I got bored. Plus I’ve still not gotten to see you spar.” Keith just rolled his eyes. 

Keith: It’s not very interesting. 

“Well, it beats watching cartoons.” He said as Shiro walked over. 

“You can’t be mad when I flip him to the ground again.” He chuckled. 

‘I let you win.’ Keith signed. 

“Yeah, sure you did. You’ve kinda been slacking today actually. You’ve probably only won what, like three rounds?” 

‘Five, and I’ve been going easy on you because you’re old.’ 

“Well…. You’re the one who was just on the ground…” He teased. 

‘I will kill you.’ 

“Prove it.” Keith just rolled his eyes as Lance laughed at them and Shiro pulled him back to the mat. Keith paused and pulled his hair back up from where it had fallen off before making his way to the other side of the mat. When they started fighting, Lance noticed how differently they fought. Shiro was definitely more offensive. He had obviously been fighting for a while and all of his movements seemed very well thought out. Keith on the other hand was definitely more defensive. He seemed to fight mainly based on instinct. He was very quick and fluid. After a few minutes, it seemed like Shiro was going to win, but Keith caught his arm and managed to get him to the ground. 

‘I win.’ He signed with a smirk. 

“Yeah.” Shiro groaned as he sat up. “Still don’t understand how you do that. I’m like three times your size.” 

‘Because I’m better.’ 

“I wouldn’t say that.” 

‘Really? Because I totally just-’ He signing was interrupted by Shiro sweeping his feet out from under him as he stood up. ‘You suck.’ Keith signed as Shiro stood up. He offered a hand and pulled Keith back up. 

“Go again?” Keith nodded and walked back over to his usual spot. This time, he started off more offensive, but that didn’t end well for him. Shiro quickly managed to flip him to the ground. “You definitely do better when you focus on defense first.” He teased. 

‘One of these days…’ Keith signed, squinting his eyes. 

“What? You’re gonna give up?” 

‘No. I’m going to be able to just knock you out with one punch.’ 

“Yeah, I’m sure you will. You know, you’d probably be better by now if you actually took my class. Then you could actually fight with someone even remotely in your weight class.” 

‘You don’t even weigh that much more than me!’ 

“Yeah, only like… what? A hundred pounds more? And it’s mostly muscle…. Yeah, not much.” 

‘Okay, but you’re taller too so it evens out.’ 

“No it doesn’t.” Keith just rolled his eyes. “I’m gonna go shower. Adam wants to go do something tonight, so don’t get into any trouble while I’m gone. I’ll see you tomorrow.” He said as he started towards the door. Keith followed, but stopped at his desk where Lance was sitting. 

“Yeah, so you totally would beat me in a fight then.” He laughed. Keith just smirked and grabbed Lance’s hand, pulling him over to the mat, then pointed at his shoes. “I’m not fighting you.” 

‘Why?” 

“Because, I don’t wanna hurt you.” He whined. 

‘You won’t.’ 

“But I could.” Keith huffed and grabbed his phone. 

Keith: Shiro rarely does, so I doubt you will. Don’t be lame. Just take your shoes off and throw a punch. 

“Fine.” Lance sighed, pulling his shoes off as Keith threw his shoes to the side. Finally, with a little more convincing, Lance threw a half-strength punch. Keith blocked it, then shook his head and fixed Lance’s form. This continued for a while before they actually started fighting. 

“How are you doing this?” Lance said, almost out of breath. Keith just smirked. “You’re literally tiny!” He said as Keith got a decent hold on him and knocked him to the ground. “How?” He panted as Keith grabbed his phone and opened the notes app. 

‘You won’t fight with all of your strength so it’s easy. Also you don’t really know what you’re doing, you just punch.’ He typed before handing Lance his phone. 

“So you’re saying I’d win if I went full force?” 

‘Maybe. It’s worth a shot. Quit being lame. I highly doubt you’ll actually hurt me. I won’t let you.’ Lance hesitated, but got up anyway. He started off still going mostly easy on him, then finally gave in and actually tried. Finally, he flipped Keith and won, but immediately went to check on him. Keith of course was fine, but had an idea. By the time Lance sat down next to him, he had already rolled over onto his side, holding his ribs, pretending to be in pain. 

“See? I told you that was a bad idea.” Lance said frantically as he tried to assess the situation. He was freaking out, trying to get Keith to respond to him, but he never got a response. A few minutes later, Keith just sat up with a smirk. “You’re an asshole.” Lance said, punching him in the arm. Keith quickly jumped up and started another fight. He actually tried this time as well and managed to pin Lance to the ground. “You win this time.” He mumbled before pulling Keith into a kiss. 

Lance pulled back with a soft smile, but Keith immediately leaned back down. He slowly sat up, leaving Keith in his lap. They both quickly lost focus on anything else around them. Lance deepened the kiss slightly, having to fight to not lose himself completely in the kiss. A soft whine came from Keith as Lance pulled back to catch his breath. He immediately took to Lance’s neck, not wanting the moment to stop. Eventually, Lance pulled him back and rolled to pin him to the floor instead, slipping his tongue in between his teeth. Keith slid his hand beneath Lance’s shirt as he pulled him even closer as the kiss slowly became much more sloppy. Now, they were both trying to pull each other closer, fighting to keep up with the other. Keith finally pulled away again to catch his breath, but Lance just moved his attention to the exposed skin beneath Keith’s collarbone, knowing it wouldn’t be visible if he couldn’t stop himself. Just as Keith pulled him back, they were interrupted. 

“Shiro said he forgot his-” Adam started before immediately looking away. “Phone…” 

“I think it’s on his desk.” Lance replied some-what awkwardly. Adam quickly grabbed it then walked out. Lance immediately broke out in laughter at Keith’s face. He was clearly flustered, both his cheeks and the tips of his ears had turned bright red. “Come on.” He said, kissing Keith on the cheek. “Let’s go back to the dorm. Do you wanna do anything today?” Keith just shrugged and pulled on his shoes before grabbing his phone.

Keith: Do you?

“I don’t know. There’s nothing really going on today that I know of… we could just watch a few movies then maybe go get something to eat.” Keith nodded and followed him back to the dorm. When they got there, he jumped through the shower while Lance waited for him in the living room. 

Chapter Text

They spent most of their night just watching movies. It was boring, but they were just enjoying each other’s company. Eventually, it got late and Lance realized they still hadn’t eaten anything. 

“Let’s go to that diner. We haven’t eaten yet today.” He suggested. Keith groaned, but eventually rolled off the couch to get ready. They both just threw on a random pair of sweats and hoodies, then made their way out. The entire way to the diner, Keith was blessed with a Pitbull concert from Lance. He was honestly impressed that he seemed to know every word of his discography. Finally, they pulled into the diner and were led to a booth. Lance could tell Keith was tired, he kept staring off into space. 

“Do you want your usual?” Lance asked, finally gaining his attention. He just nodded lazily. “Someone’s tired from getting beat up today.” He teased. 

Keith: I didn’t get beat up. I’m not even tired anyway. 

“You obviously are. You’re getting cranky and everything.”

Keith: I’m not. 

“Yeah you are!” Lance said, laughing at Keith’s glare. “Ya big baby.” Keith just rolled his eyes and leaned against the bottom of his palm. Soon, Mark, the same waiter from before came to take their order. As soon as Keith recognized him, he awkwardly looked down, earning a snicker from Lance. After he ordered their food, Mark started to walk away, then stopped and turned back to Keith. 

“So… Did you lose the number or something?” He asked, Keith just frantically turned to Lance. 

“We’re actually dating now… so…” Lance responded. 

“Oh, my bad… sorry…”

“It’s cool. I get it, I’d give him my number too.” Lance laughed. Mark just smiled awkwardly as he walked away. He immediately looked back to Keith who was already typing. 

Keith: Don’t. 

“Okay, okay. So grumpy.” He just rolled his eyes. “Yeah, you’re going to bed when we get home. So moody.” 

Keith: Maybe I wanted to anyway.

“Good.” Lance said smugly as their food arrived. They didn’t have much of a conversation at dinner, they mainly just ate in silence until Mark finally brought their bill back. Lance just paid in cash so he could get Keith back home faster. He led him to the car, then started the drive back with some less enthusiastic sing-alongs. When they finally pulled into the parking lot, Keith was on the verge of falling back asleep. He slowly dragged him inside and waited on him to change and get in bed. He changed into one of his usual black tank tops and a pair of baggy shorts, then flopped into Lance’s bed. He made his way over and sat down on the edge of the bed. 

“I gotta go call Pidge real quick. I’ll be right back.” Keith frowned, but nodded. Lance quickly disappeared into the living room. He sat up to wait so that he wouldn’t fall asleep. Eventually, Lance walked back in and sighed. “Girl’s brains will always confuse me.” Keith just nodded and stretched out his arms. “I gotta go take a shower. I won’t be long I promise.” He crossed his arms and whined quietly. “Here.” Lance said, throwing him the hippo plush from his bed. “That’ll have to do for now. I’ll be back in a minute I promise.” He whispered as he leaned down to kiss his forehead. “Just get comfy.” Keith glarred, but eventually rolled onto his side, and Lance made his way into the bathroom. 

When Lance was done with his shower, he quickly dried off and threw on a pair of pinstriped pajama bottoms. He quickly brushed his teeth, then made his way back into the bedroom. When he opened the door, he saw Keith dead asleep, curled up with his hippo. He quietly pulled out his phone and snuck a few pictures. Finally, he took Keith’s phone and plugged it up, as well as his own and climbed into bed behind Keith and wrapped an arm around him. 

Lance woke up the next morning alone. As he opened his eyes, something blocked his view. He reached up and pulled it off. It was a sticky note that Keith had left on his forehead. 

‘I’m going to Shiro’s. I’ll probably be there for a while. He said you can come when you get off if you want to.’ He smiled softly at the note, then got up and got dressed before deciding to text Keith. 

Lance: I’m awake. You let me sleep so late! 

Keith: It’s noon, which is not even that late and we have nothing to do until school on Wednesday. Besides, you probably needed it. 

Lance: You’re the one that’s tired all the time. 

Keith: Shut up. Do you wanna come over here?

Lance: Are you sure you want me to? I don’t want you to not be able to talk just because I’m there. 

Keith: I already can’t, Adam’s here. So yes. We’re watching One Punch Man. 

Lance: You’re idea?

Keith: No, Shiro’s!

Lance: So I can blame him for your obsession then?

Keith: Yeah, but it could be worse.

Lance: Literally how? 

Keith: Twelve letters and several very attractive people. 

Lance: Am I supposed to guess from that? 

= Keith: Mmmmh, no. I’ll just have to show you at some point. It’s like fifteen seasons though, so it won’t exactly be a short adventure. 

Lance: Okay, well I’ll head up now. 

He quickly threw on his shoes and made his way to Shiro’s dorm, not bothering to knock before he walked in. When he got there, Adam and Keith were both too zoned into the show to even know he got there. 

“Where’s Shiro?” Keith just pointed down the hall and went back to watching the TV. “Nerds.” He mumbled as he sat down next to Keith who nestled into his side without ever breaking his focus on the TV. Almost an hour later, Shiro emerged from his room and pushed his suitcase to the door, before joining the other three on the couch. 

“So, Lance finally got up?” Shiro asked as he sat down. 

“Yeah, someone let me sleep in. He usually wakes me up when he gets up.” Lance replied, making Keith scrunch up his nose. 

“Well… I have about seven hours… Do you wanna do anything?” He asked mainly to Keith who just shrugged with a sad look in his eye. “Or, we can stay in and watch movies, and I can order some pizza later.” He nodded and leaned his head onto Shiro’s shoulder. They argued over a movie line-up for a while, but eventually landed on a Lord of the Rings marathon. They finally ate around five, and everyone could sense Keith getting more anxious as the minutes ticked away. By seven, Shiro was gone, getting ready for the flight. When he got back, he could tell Keith was even worse. He slowly sat down on the couch next to him, and he immediately left Lance’s side to be closer to him. After about another half-hour, he realized it was almost time to go. 

“Do you wanna go start the car and let it warm up?” He asked Adam, who nodded for Lance to follow him outside. Once they were gone, Shiro pulled Keith into his lap like he was still a kid and wrapped his arms around him. “Adam’s giving me a ride. I have to leave soon, but I’ll be back as soon as I can, I promise. You’ll be okay.” 

“How do you know that?” 

“Because, I just do. Do you wanna walk down to the car with me?” Keith nodded, but made no effort to move, he just wrapped his arms around him. “Okay, I’ll take that as a yes. Let’s go.” Finally, Keith got up and followed Shiro down to the car which Adam had pulled around to the door. He threw his bag in the truck, then told Adam to give him a second. He slowly walked back over to Keith and rested a hand on his shoulder. “Listen, I know this is a lot… but I also know it’s going to be just fine. Within the first week of meeting him, I knew that Lance was gonna do everything he could to make sure you’re okay. Nothing bad is going to happen. Don’t stress out about it, and anything that goes on back home is out of your control, so whatever it is, it’s not on you to worry about. I know how you get, but you know nothing that I can’t deal with will happen. Just stay with Lance, go to class, and if anything were to happen where you need me, I’ll find a flight as soon as I can, but I’m sure you won’t have to. Remember, if you need to, you can go see Adam. His dorm number is eighteen and I’m going to send you his phone number… also, I figured you might want this…” He finished, handing Keith one of his zip-up hoodies. “You’ll be fine.” He mumbled as he pulled Keith into a hug. “I gotta go. Call me if you need me.” Keith just nodded and watched as he got into the car and Adam drove away. He almost immediately felt his anxiety rise. He just sat down on the curb and wrapped Shiro’s jacket around him to try and block out some of the cold. 

Chapter Text

About twenty minutes later, Lance started to worry about him and decided to go check on him. When he got outside, he found him sitting on the curb with his knees pulled to his chest just staring forward at the still mostly empty parking lot. He slowly knelt down in front of him and tried to get his attention. 

“C’mon, it’s freezing out here. You’ll get sick.” He said, offering a hand. Eventually, Keith accepted it and Lance felt how shaky he was. “It’s gonna be fine, I promise… and once we get through this, it’ll be over. Also, once you see that you can do this, you won’t have to worry about it so much if it happens again.” He just shrugged and let Lance pull him back to the dorm. Once they actually got in, Keith just laid down. “Do you want me to turn the TV on? We can watch whatever you want to…” He said softly as he passed Keith the remote. He scrolled for a moment before eventually deciding on the old Teen Titans show which honestly surprised Lance a little, but he just crawled into bed next to him and wrapped his arms around him. Eventually, Keith calmed down a little and fell asleep. As much as Lance wanted to talk to him, he knew he was probably drained and needed the sleep, so he decided to just try and go to sleep himself. He hoped that Keith would get up at a decent time and be in a better headspace so that they could talk about what they were going to do about the others. 

The next morning, Lance woke up just after ten to see Keith was still asleep. He was now wrapped around his waist with his head lying just below his chest. As much as he knew Keith probably needed the sleep, he also knew people would start coming home soon. He was pretty sure that Pidge would get home around noon, then the rest would follow soon after and they still needed to decide what they were going to do. It took him a few attempts, but eventually Keith sat up, immediately shooting him a glare. 

“I know, but people will probably start coming back soon. C’mon, I’ll make you breakfast, then we should probably figure out what we’re gonna do about the others.” He said, dragging Keith into the kitchen. He stumbled to one of the barstools and laid his head down on the table. A few minutes later, Lance slid a plate of french toast over to him. “So… Do you know what you want to do about the others?” He just shrugged. “Well, I get it if you don’t want them to know yet, but Allura will probably figure it out, and pretty quickly…” 

Keith: What do you think she’ll do? 

“She’ll be happy. She’s been waiting for this like since you moved in.” Lance said with a light chuckle. “I mean, if you wanted me to, I could convince her not to tell anyone about it…” 

Keith: What about everyone else? 

“Well, I don’t think you have anything to worry about with them. The girls will probably drill me about it, but other than that… I really don’t think anything would happen… but, we don’t have to do anything about it yet if you don’t want to. I know you probably already have enough running through your brain right now.” Keith just nodded. “So, maybe we won’t tell the others yet, and if Allura figures it out, I’ll just ask her not to say anything just yet.” He just nodded again and leaned into his shoulder. “Okay.” Lance whispered as he kissed the top of his forehead. Keith only ate a little of his breakfast before he decided he was done. Lance did the dishes, then followed Keith back into their room. They ended up just watching random shows in silence until Keith fell back asleep. Lance felt awful because he knew he couldn’t really do anything to help. He just hoped that eventually, Keith would calm down and feel better about his situation. 

Eventually, everyone else got home, and there was a knock on their bedroom door. Keith was still asleep, so Lance got up to see who it was. As soon as the door opened, Allura half-tackled him into a hug. 

“Hey?” He asked, struggling to breathe a little. 

“How was your break?” She asked somewhat suggestivly. . 

“It was-” He paused and looked back to where Keith was asleep on his bed. “It was good.” 

“So… What all did you guys do on your little trip?”

“Just… hung out. Shiro's boyfriend is cool.” 

“And Keith?” 

“What about him?” 

“How’s that going?” 

“Good I guess… Is Hunk cooking tonight?” He asked, trying to avoid that conversation. 

“No, he asked if we all wanna go out to get something and catch up. We’ll probably just go to the diner since it’s kind of starting to get late and we all still have to unpack.” 

“Okay, well I’ll get him up and we’ll get ready.” Allura just nodded and walked back to her room. He softly shook Keith awake, but instead of his usual glare, he just met him with sad, almost teary eyes and held out his arms. “What’s wrong?” Keith just shrugged and nestled into Lance’s chest. After a few minutes, Lance pulled back. “They all wanna go out for dinner. We can stay here if you want to, but I think Allura wants to see you.” Eventually, Keith got out of bed and threw on a random pair of jeans and a hoodie, then attempted to fix his hair. By the time he was done, Lance was also ready and waiting. Keith followed him out to the living room where Pidge and Allura were, leaving them to just wait on Hunk. Eventually, he appeared in the hallway. 

“Okay, I’m ready. Shay’s coming too, but she’s just gonna meet us outside. So, the diner then?” Everyone, other than Keith, muttered some form of agreement and made their way to the car. 

Once they made it to the diner, Hunk and Shay led the way in with Allura and Pidge following after. Lance could tell Keith was a little anxious about everyone being around again. He pulled him back and waited until the others had already gone inside, then pulled him closer. 

“Can I ask why you’re so worried about this?” 

Keith: I’m not. 

“You’re biting the inside of your lip. I can only assume it’s because of them.”

Keith: I don’t know. 

“It’s gonna be fine, come on.” Lance said as he pressed a soft kiss into Keith’s temple and led him to the door. They were greeted by Mark who pointed them to one of the tables where the others were already waiting. Hunk, Shay, and Pidge all sat on one side of the booth, while Allura sat on the inside of the other. Lance let Keith in first before he sat down himself. They spent most of dinner just talking about what all they did on break. Pidge spent most of her break working on some project with her dad and her brother, but she didn’t go super into detail since she doubted anyone would get it. Hunk spent most of his time just hanging out with his family, mainly his brothers and cooking with his mom and grandmother. Shay didn’t have much to add, she said that she spent most of her break at home with her parents. Allura surprisingly didn’t have much to say about her time, but she did mention that she saw her mother, so they all dropped it at that, knowing they didn’t really get along. 

“So, how about you two?” Allura asked, trying to change the subject. Keith just looked up to Lance. 

“Well…” Lance said as he sneakily grabbed Keith’s hand under the table. “My flight got canceled, so I got stuck here which I’m sure you all already knew… And Keith didn’t go home either. Shiro decided to rent some cabin up in Maple Falls and let me come. We kinda just hung out up there. I got to see cowboy Keith and…” He was interrupted by a jab in his side. “Ow, and we like went hiking and did all the Christmasy stuff I guess. Also, Pidge, your professor…” 

“My professor?” 

“Yeah, he’s like… actually really cool, I kinda thought he was a dick.” 

“He totally is half the time in class. What are you talking about?” 

“I dunno, seems cool I guess.” They all turned to look at Keith for an explanation. He just sighed and pulled out his phone to text Allura. 

Keith: As Shiro says, Lance causes him to lose all brain function. They act like children. Like spatula fencing.

“Yeah, makes sense.” She said before reading the text to the rest of the group. They finished eating and catching up before they all made their way back to the dorm. They quickly said their goodnights and made their way to their rooms, but as soon as Lance started changing, Allura blew up his phone, telling him to meet her on the roof, 

“Keith… I think Allura knows…” 

Keith: She wants to talk to you? 

“Yeah… are you still okay with her knowing or do you want me to try and deny it?” 

Keith: I don’t care. 

“Okay, I’ll be back soon.” Keith just nodded and got into bed as Lance grabbed his coat and walked out. 

Chapter Text

“Allura?”” Lance asked as he scanned the roof looking for her. 

“Over here.” She called out from the other side. As he made his way over, he could see her smirk. “So… you two are dating then?” He just shrugged, but he knew his face would give him away. “So that’s a yes?” She squealed, immediately enveloping him in a tight hug. “Tell me everything!” 

“Okay, but you have to promise me you won’t tell anyone yet. We already talked about it and he said he didn’t really care if you know, but I don’t think he’s ready for the others to know yet.” 

“Okay, I won’t say anything. Just tell me!” 

“Okay, chill out, it’s really not that exciting.” 

“I’ll decide after you tell me, now go. Just start from when we left, I want the full story.” 

“Fine… So, basically after all of you guys left, I did too. I was at the airport until like ten, it sucked. Anyway, the flight got canceled, so I came back. Keith almost stabbed me, then I called my mom to tell her. She told me-” 

“Almost stabbed you? What?”

“I think I scared him. I forgot to text him and tell him I was coming back. Anyway, I couldn’t find another flight, then my mom found one and she was going to come up here, but that got canceled too, so yeah… then I went to take a nap and Keith went to train with Shiro. When he got back, we had planned to go to Seattle and see the lights, and he basically invited me to go stay with him and Shiro in a cabin they were renting… So obviously I agreed. We went to Seattle, it was fairly uneventful I guess. We kinda just ate and looked at lights and stuff… Then, when we got back, we went swimming.” 

“He actually agreed to that?” 

“Yeah, no fighting either. The next morning, I sliced my hand open when I was trying to make us omelets and he got all worried and made me let him fix it, which was kinda cute…. Oh, then I made him try and teach me to play bass, I kinda suck, but still… The next day, we went to the mall, and just watched movies and stuff… The next morning, we left for Maple Falls.” 

“Ooh, so that means you got together in the mountains. Continue.” 

“Well, it’s a little more complicated than that. As you know, Shiro and I have a tendency to get into fights.” Lance said, somewhat awkwardly, making Allura laugh. 

“Oh no…” 

“Yeah… So, I’ll have to show you the cabin later, but it was a little a-frame in the middle of nowhere which was great. When we got there, Keith and I walked around the woods for a little while and at a snow fight which I totally won, don’t let him tell you otherwise. Then, we went into the closest town with Adam and Shiro so we could walk around while they got groceries and stuff… we stargazed when we got home too… Then Shiro drug me out to his car and basically gave me Keith’s backstory which was… a lot…” 

“And he was okay with that?” 

“Yeah, it was his idea. I guess he didn’t know how to tell me himself. So, everything was going pretty well I guess, we had planned to go to some festival the next night, but before that… that morning, Keith and Shiro got into a fight before we went on a hike…” 

“About?” 

“I’ll get to that. Anyway, they were clearly arguing before I got up, and when we got to the trailhead, Shiro pulled Keith aside and they got into another argument… I still didn’t really know what was going on, but Keith grabbed my arm and stormed off. We beat them to the top of the trail, and I asked him about it… He said they were fighting about me…” 

“About you? What did you do?” 

“Nothing. That’s the thing. He said it was because he liked me.” 

“So he admitted it first?” 

“Yeah…” 

“And that made them fight, why? I thought Shiro liked you?”

“That’s complicated, but yeah he does. I guess that was the problem. He was kind of pushing Keith to do something about it when he wasn’t sure he was ready to. So… I kissed him…” 

“Yes! So then what? Was it like all awkward?” 

“Honestly, no. I thought I was going to fight Shiro when he got to the top, but I didn’t. We left and waited for them at the car, and while we were waiting, I convinced him we should actually date.” 

“So that was?” 

“I dunno, Sunday maybe? Anyway, Shiro and I kinda made up, then we ate and went to some Christmas festival thingy. It was kinda cool I guess, but the night ended up going terribly.”

“What happened?” 

“Shiro got wasted.” 

“And I assume that was bad…”

“Yeah… It was a lot, but Keith talked to me.” 

“What? When? What did he say?” 

“It wasn’t much, and he didn’t mean to, but when he saw Shiro was drunk, I got a quiet “fuck” out of him.” 

“Really?” 

“Yep. Anyway, the rest of our trip was somewhat uneventful. Shiro and I are cool now too. He’s gone though, I guess somethings going on with his family and he had to go back home.” 

“How’s Keith doing with that? I assume not well?” 

“So far, not really, but I’m sure he’ll be okay. I should probably get back though.” 

“Okay, I’m gonna stay up here for a bit. I won’t tell anyone, but I’m really happy for both of you. I think it’ll be good for you both.” Lance just nodded and made his way back to their dorm where Keith was waiting. He pulled off his shoes and hoodie and flopped down in bed next to him. 

“I don’t wanna go to class tomorrow.” He whined. 

Keith: Me either. What did Allura say? 

“She was excited, but she promised not to tell anyone else.” Keith just nodded and laid down, curled into Lance’s side. “I take it we’re going to bed?” He just nodded. 

Chapter Text

Lance woke up the next morning to his alarm blaring, which the mess of black hair curled up on his chest somehow managed to sleep through. It was their first day back, it was also New Year’s Eve, which everyone thought was dumb. Obviously everyone stayed up on New Year’s Eve, so it made no sense to go back to school those two days and be exhausted the day after, but it’s the way it always had been. By the second alarm, Lance finally forced himself to get up, waking Keith up in the process. Of course, he was met with the usual glare before Keith started getting ready as well. 

The idea of actually going to class was something he dreaded. He decided to just throw on one of his usual outfits, black jeans, a band tee, and Shiro’s jacket. It looked kind of ridiculous, but he didn’t really care. Finally, he dealt with his hair and pulled his boots on. By the time he was done, Lance was still getting ready. 

Keith: Yeah, and I take forever.

“Hey, I’m usually up before you.” 

Keith: That doesn’t mean it takes any less time. 

“I’m like almost ready. Give me like five more minutes.” Keith sighed and waited. About ten minutes later, Lance walked out looking no different than normal. He got up and followed him to the door, but before he opened it, Lance pulled him into a kiss. “Okay, now we can leave.” Keith just rolled his eyes and let him pull him out into the hall. Without even thinking, he took Lance’s hand. When they made it to the dining hall, they grabbed their food and sat down. After he was done eating, he leaned onto Lance’s shoulder. Of course, no one at the table even batted an eye, but some of the other students were becoming increasingly aware of what was going on. When breakfast was over, they walked to the art hall together, still getting unnoticed stares. Finally, they went their separate ways until lunch. Both of their classes went well for the most part. They were mainly just talking about the future assignments for the rest of the year, so each bell passed painfully slowly. 

Instead of eating at lunch, Keith ended up sitting across the bench, leaning his back onto Lance, and reading. He barely even noticed when the bell rang. His last two classes weren’t much different, but they were on the opposite side of where Lance’s were, so he usually waited for him to catch up before they went back to the dorm. Hunk had apparently already taken a trip to the store with Shay, so he was heading back to the dorm to cook. Eventually, Lance appeared behind him. 

“Hey.” Keith just gave a silent wave. “So… we may have the dorm to ourselves for the night.” 

Keith: Why

“It’s New Year’s Eve. I mean, everyone else is going to a party. Hunk and Shay are going to one of her friend’s boyfriend's party, and Allura, I think, is going to one of the basketball guy’s party and I’m sure Pidge is going to. I mean… you could go too, but I figured it wouldn’t be something you were super interested in.” 

Keith: I’ll pass.

“I figured. We can just stay back at the dorm and watch some of the shows. You do have to kiss me though.” Lance said, earning an eye roll. 

Keith: Fine. Just prepare for my phone to blow up at some point tonight. 

“Why?” 

Keith: It’s New Year’s Eve, and I have a Shiro.  

“Fair enough. So… how was class?”

Keith: Boring. Very boring. 

“Yeah, I figured. Me too. I do have that essay soon though, so you have to tell me what I’m supposed to think the bug book means.” 

Keith: When is it due and how long does it have to be?

“Like the tenth or something and like twenty-five hundred words.” 

Keith: Okay, that’s not bad.

“Yes it is.” Lance whined. 

Keith: It takes like no time at all to write that much if you know what you’re talking about. 

“Well I don’t.” 

Keith: Yeah, that’s why I’m helping remember. 

“It makes no sense.” Lance laughed as they neared the dorm. When they walked in they found Hunk and Shay cooking in the kitchen and Allura and Pidge watching anime on the couch. “So, was everyone’s day as lame as ours?” He got a chorus of agreement from the others, then listened to Hunk explain his dinner plan. “Okay, well I’m making him explain this book to me, so… we’ll be back.” He said as he led Keith back into their room. He sat down at his desk and Keith sat on the edge of the bed. “So, explain.” 

Keith: Did you even finish it?

“Most of it.” 

Keith: Fine. 

Keith typed for what felt like forever, then finally sent the text. Lance read over it, then just stared up at Keith like he was crazy. 

Keith: What?

“You got all of that from a bug?” 

Keith: Yes. Deeper meanings. I’ve read it several times. 

“So… if I write my essay will you see if any of it makes sense? I’ll owe you like a million math assignments.” Keith nodded and fell onto his back. He eventually fell asleep to the sound of Lance typing his essay. An hour later, Lance shook him awake. “Come on, food’s ready.” Keith just glared and rolled over. “You were literally asleep for an hour. Get up, I’m bored!” He whined as he pulled Keith to the edge of his bed by his ankles. Finally, Keith sat up and grabbed his phone. 

Keith: I’m tired. 

“How?” 

Keith: Because we had school. School means people. People mean I get anxious. Me being anxious means I get tired.

“Well, you got a nap. You can sleep later too, but I’m bored and you need to eat.” Keith rolled his eyes and followed Lance out to the living room where everyone else was already eating. 

“So, what time are you guys all heading out?” Lance asked as he handed Keith a plate. 

“Uh, we’re probably leaving right after dinner. Or, leaving to get ready I guess since somebody takes forever to do that.” Hunk said with a teasing glare to Shay. 

“Whatever. The party isn’t on campus though. It’s like on the outskirts of Seattle. We’re probably gonna crash there.” 

“Okay, cool… What about you two?” Lance asked, turning to the girls. 

“We’re going at like nine, but I’m not sure how long we’ll be gone. Pidge is already thinking of ways to slip out unnoticed.” Allura responded, making Pidge smirk. 

“Well, is it on campus?” 

“Yeah, why?” 

“I was just going to say to call if you needed a ride home but I guess that’s not necessary.”

“No, we’ll probably at least stay until midnight though. Are you two staying in?” 

“Yeah, probably.” Allura just nodded and went back to her food. Most of dinner was spent listening to the others talk about the parties. Finally, they finished and Hunk and Shay left to go to her dorm, leaving Keith, Lance, and the girls. Eventually they landed on watching some random movie until they had to start getting ready. 

Once they finally left, Lance found one of the New Year’s Eve shows to put on and Keith got comfortable on the couch, sure that he would fall asleep as soon as Lance left him alone. Just before he did, Shiro called. He flipped the phone around so that Lance could see the contact name and walked into their room. 

“Is it time for the tangent?” He asked as soon as the Facetime started. 

“Wow, tangent? Really?” 

“Yeah.” 

“Can this even be a tangent if I haven’t started talking yet?” 

“But you have.” 

“Yes, but if anything that would make this conversation the tangent right? Because I called with the intention of having a totally different conversation, but now I’m having this one?” 

“Okay, sure, let me see if I can guess though.” Keith said, preparing his best Shiro impression. “Be careful tonight, it’s New Year’s. If you go anywhere, be careful. There’s drunks everywhere. If you go out, don’t get wasted. Don’t drive if you drink. Blah, blah, blah.” 

“Wow, pretty close I guess. Seriously though. Do be careful. I don’t care if you go to a party, maybe it would even be good. Either way, just be smart. I’m not telling you that it’s a good idea, but you’re a teenager so if you do drink, be smart about it. You don’t have much body mass, and as far as I know, you’ve never drank so… pace yourself. Stick to like two drinks tops and don’t touch the jello shots. Again, I’m not condoning that, but I need you to be smarter about it than I am. And yes, if you do go anywhere, I only want Lance driving you. I know he’s a safe driver so… unless he’s had anything to drink… Just be smart okay?” 

“Relax. We’re probably just staying here tonight. Lance doesn’t really have any interest in alcohol so… and I don’t have any interest in people. I think we’re just going to watch some of the Live shows and go to bed.” 

“And you say I’m old?” 

“You are. What are you doing tonight?” 

“Probably getting wine drunk with mom and falling asleep on the couch.” 

“See? Old.” 

“Shut up.” 

“So… what’s going on there anyway?” 

“I just got down here yesterday. We haven’t really talked much, so… I’m not one hundred percent sure. I’ll let you know when I fully know what’s going on though. How was school?” 

“Okay I guess…” 

“Okay, well I’m gonna let you go hang out with Lance. You have Adam’s number, call if you need him. I’ll be home soon hopefully.” 

“Okay…” They said their goodbyes and Keith went back to the living room where he found Lance pulling on his shoes. 

Keith: What are you doing? 

“I want a milkshake. Put your shoes on. There’s a drive-in like twenty minutes from here.” Keith just nodded and pulled on his boots and followed him out to the car. As soon as they got in, he took the aux cord and started his playlist. Twenty minutes later, they were parked at what seemed like an off-brand sonic. 

Keith: Do y’all not just have sonic here? 

“We do, but this is better. What do you want? Lance asked, motioning to the menu, he just shrugged and started reading the menu. 

Keith: What is a butter brickle? 

“I think it’s like toffee or something.” Lance responded, stifling a laugh from the look on Keith’s face. “I think I’m gonna get caramel…” 

Keith: Does the espresso one have espresso in it?

“I think so…” 

Keith: If you expect me to stay up, then that. 

“Okay.” Lance pushed the button and ordered. A few minutes later, a girl came out with both of their shakes. They ended up talking for a few minutes until she finally gave him the check. After he paid, he decided to start heading back, but before he did, he noticed Keith glaring at him. “What?” Keith rolled his eyes and pointed at the receipt, once Lance realized her number was on it, he just started laughing, earring even more of a glare from Keith. “It’s not my fault!” Keith just rolled his eyes. “Keith, I didn’t even know. I can’t do anything about it.” 

Keith: Stop being pretty then.

“Stop being all moody. You realize people try and hit on you all the time right? It’s not just me.” 

Keith: Literally when? Other than the guy at the diner? 

“You’re just oblivious and I don’t glare at you.” Lance teased. “I mean for starters, the girl at that restaurant in Seattle, and that girl… Lexi I think… maybe… she’s in your art class. She literally asked me about you for like a whole week trying to get your number.” 

Keith: Okay, I think you mean Lizzy, and I had no idea about that, when was that? Also do you not see the difference with that?

“No, I don’t. And it was like right when you got there.” 

Keith: The only possible threat I’m seeing would’ve been the guy at the diner and we weren’t even dating. Also, why did I never hear about Lizzy?

“Because obviously I didn’t give her your number!” 

Keith: Why? You didn’t know I was gay yet… 

“Because I didn’t want her to have it. Because I liked you stupid. The same reason I messed with you so much about Mark.” To anyone else, this would’ve seemed like a real argument, but it was obvious to both of them that they were just teasing each other. Anyone outside the car actually probably thought Lance was crazy, but they didn’t really care. 

Keith: So you got all jealous before we were even dating but you’re bullying me about it now?

“Exactly.” 

Keith: Why?

“Because it’s kinda cute.” 

Keith: Shut up and take me home. 

“As you wish,” Lance said in an awful British accent with a smirk as he backed out of the spot and started the drive back to the dorm. 

Chapter Text

When they finally got back to the dorm, they both crashed on one of the couches and went back to watching the New Year’s eve special. It was only eleven-thirty at that point, so they had some time to kill. Keith was clearly bored. Lance was scrolling through his phone on one end of the couch, and Keith was laying upside down on the other side with his head hanging off the cushion. 

“So, are you ever gonna tell me how you’re so good at poker?” 

Keith: I’ll tell you how I got so good at it, but I’m not revealing my secrets. 

“You suck. So how then? If not being a cowboy?” 

Keith: Psych ward. 

“We couldn’t play when I went for treatment, how did you manage that?” 

Keith: Well, I did learn to play poker when I was like six so I guess you can have the cowboy point for that, but I got good there. I don’t know, I guess I got away with it because it’s like the only socializing I did. I was like the reigning champion of the high risk floor. I think I lost like five or six times the whole time I was there. 

“The place I went to here was cool. We were actually allowed to have our phones and stuff. The one in Cuba was awful though. Honestly I think my entire recovery was me just trying to get out of there. I mean, it worked I guess.” 

Keith: I’m sure mine wasn’t a lot better. I thought I was never gonna get out, honestly.  

“What do you mean?” 

Keith: I never talked to anyone there. Like at all. When I first moved in with Shiro he made me go to therapy for a while which was really dumb since I never spoke to my therapist, but I guess whatever evaluations or whatever were still on my medical records so according to their assesment, my mental state was ‘rapidly declining’ and only got worse the longer I was there. I mean, I never got taken off of high risk. I guess Shiro eventually got me out somehow.

“So, they just let you leave even though you were still high risk?” 

Keith: Yeah, I guess they realized Shiro was doing a better job than they were. Of course I was on meds after that too, but I mean… I think I’m mostly fine now. 

“Good. I’m glad you're here now.” 

Keith: Yeah, you make it more tolerable I guess. 

“See? You can be nice!” 

Keith: Shut up. 

“Hey, stay nice. It’s like four minutes till midnight.” 

Keith: So? 

“So, come here.” Keith rolled his eyes and moved to sit next to him with his legs thrown over his lap. “You have to actually kiss me this time.” 

Keith: I don’t see the difference.

“Yes you do, you’re just awkward.” Keith just rolled his eyes and turned back to the TV. Whatever artist was playing finished their set, then the countdown started. Lance was honestly surprised that Keith kissed him, he expected to have to do it himself, but he did. Of course, as soon as it was over, Keith gave him his usual ‘this is stupid’ look and grabbed his phone. 

Keith: You happy now? 

“Yeah.” 

Keith: So we can go to bed now?

“We can go into out room now and watch a movie. You can go to bed, but I’m gonna stay  up until the girls get home and I hear from Hunk.” Keith nodded and pulled Keith back into their room, opting for Lance’s bed since it was closest to the TV. Keith fell asleep pretty quickly, but Lance ended up staying up until two-thirty waiting for Hunk’s text. The girls had gotten home just before two, he didn’t talk to them, but he assumed Allura was wasted and Pidge was babysitting her. As soon as Hunk texted him, he passed out. 

The next morning went about as normal as usual. Keith was already up and drying his hair by the time that he got up. They quickly finished getting ready and made their way to the dining hall. By the time they got to the table, they realized they made the right decision by staying in. Allura and Shay both looked like death, and Hunk was half-way there. 

“So, you guys all had a good night then?” They all mumbled some form of agreement before Pidge spoke up. 

“She’s a nightmare. She doesn’t listen to anything the second she gets an ounce of liquor in her.” 

“Were you not aware of that?” Lance asked, obviously confused. 

“No, that was the first party I went to here. I didn’t go on Halloween remember? We went to that marathon at the drive-in instead while they went.” 

“Oh yeah… well, did you have a good time?” 

“Mostly. I only had one drink though since I figured out fairly quickly I couldn’t leave her alone. I don’t think I’m very big on parties anyway.” 

“Yeah, me too. Hunk? Shay?” Shay just glared. 

“She’s a little hung over too. I’m mostly fine. We had a pretty good time I think though. It sucked having to catch a ride back so early though.” 

“I’m sure. Well, our night was super interesting, you missed out on a lot. We watched so many awful performances and we got milkshakes so….” 

“I think I’m gonna stay with you guys next year.” Allura mumbled from under her hood. “I forgot how much this sucks.” 

“Yeah, you two look like fashion icons today by the way.” Lance teased, pointing at Shay and Allura who were both in pajama bottoms and hoodies.

“Yeah, thanks.” Shay said sarcastically. The rest of the day was pretty boring. Half of the teachers were clearly hungover too so their classes were mainly filled with ‘educational videos’. By the time they all met back up in the dorm, Hunk had already decided it was a pizza and movie night. They all agreed and started watching movies until about six when Lance called to order the pizza. 

“Okay, I’m heading out in about fifteen. Keith you coming?” He just nodded and disappeared into their room, totally unaware that Lance had followed until he spun him around against the door. Lance was immediately met with a confused, panicked look. “Relax. I just came to do this.” He whispered as he gave him a soft kiss which Keith instantly melted into. “You know, it’s honestly kind of fun not having anyone else know.” Keith just rolled his eyes and stood on his toes to return the kiss. “Okay, seriously though, get ready.” 

Keith: You suck. 

“Yeah, yeah. Put your shoes on.” Eventually he did and they went to pick up the pizza. Their night wasn’t super exciting. They ate and watched movies together for a little while before they all retired to their rooms to work on homework. Unsurprisingly, Keith just flopped down onto his bed, ignoring his math work yet again. Just before Lance could say anything to him about it, he got a call from Shiro and disappeared down the hall. He decided to make his way to Shiro’s room so he could actually talk to him. 

When he got back, Lance could tell something was wrong, but Keith shrugged him off and laid back down. He decided to bail on his English essay so he could try to silently comfort his boyfriend. Keith didn’t bother to text him for the rest of the night, he just curled up with him and eventually fell asleep. The next morning, Lance woke up to Keith trying to slip out unnoticed. 

“Where ya going?” 

Keith: Shiro told me to call before class. I’m just going to his room so that I can. I’ll probably be back by the end of breakfast at least. 

“Okay…” Lance half-mumbled as he got up, deciding to get ready for the day. True to his word, Keith appeared in the dining hall towards the end of breakfast and leaned into Lance’s shoulder. “Everything okay?” Keith just nodded, obviously not in the mood to talk about it, so he dropped it. The next time Lance saw him was lunch. He just poked at his food for a while before eventually scooting over closer to Lance and putting his head down on the table. Everyone knew something was going on, but no one said anything. By the end of the day, he got a text from Keith saying he was going to talk to Shiro again and would be back at some point. 

Finally, just before dinner he walked in. He ignored everyone’s look and Hunk’s offering of food and went straight into his room. Lance followed to try and talk to him, but before he got in, Keith was walking back out with his bass. Before he could get a word in, he was gone. Assuming he wanted space, he decided to just send him a text. 

Lance: I can tell something’s going on. You don’t have to talk about it if you don’t want to, but whatever it is, I’m here. 

Keith: I’ll be back at some point. 

Lance decided to just take that as a win and leave him alone. He didn’t hear from Keith again until he came back around eight that night. Instead of going to bed or talking to Lance, he went straight into the bathroom. At first, Lance was concerned because he was clearly upset, but the shower turned on almost immediately, so he felt a little better. Finally, Keith came out in a pair of his stupidly baggy shorts and a tank top and Lance was able to see for the most part that Keith hadn’t done anything. He threw his hair up and crashed into bed next to him. 

“Hey…” Lance said softly, hoping Keith would say something. 

Keith: I’m fine. I just don’t know what’s happening and people were a lot today.

“Okay. You wanna go to bed early tonight? I’m sure you’re tired.” Keith just nodded and moved to lay between Lance’s legs with his head just below his chest. Lance honestly wasn’t tired yet, but he knew Keith was so he just stayed there and softly ran his fingers down his back until he felt Keith’s breath even out as he fell asleep. 

Chapter Text

The next morning, Keith honestly felt a lot better when he got up. He actually ate with everyone else at breakfast and they actually had real classes. His day was actually going pretty good despite the mild anxiety from whatever was going on back home. At least, it started off pretty well, but that only lasted until his fifth period class. It was his algebra class so he wasn’t even paying attention to whatever they were learning. Halfway through the class, the guy sitting next to him finally got his attention. 

“So, why don’t you talk?” Keith could already tell how this conversation would go, so he just shrugged and turned away with a slight eye roll. “Seriously man? Like you can right? You just don’t. It’s kinda freaky.” He totally ignored him this time. Before he knew it, three of the kids sitting nearby were all attempting to figure it out too. Finally, he had enough. Without a second thought, he threw his textbook in his bag and walked out. He only made it down one hall before he was getting pulled into one of the administration offices. 

“Do you know why you’re here?” Some man Keith had never seen before asked. From the name tag on his desk, Keith assumed he was ‘Mr. Zimmerman’ and he was somewhere below Mr. Iverson. Once he realized he was still staring at him, he just shrugged. “Really?” He just shrugged again. “If you want any chance to get out of whatever trouble you’re in, you need to talk to me.” He said a little too harshly for Keith’s liking. Without a second thought, Keith threw his bag over his shoulder and started to walk out. Before he got out, Mr. Zimmerman stopped him. “Sit down and tell me your name.” He sat down, trying to give the guy the benefit of the doubt that he didn’t know. “You’re name?” Keith sighed and handed him his student ID. “Really?” He just shrugged again. He typed on his computer for a minute then picked up the phone. “You’re lucky your dad works here.” He said as he picked up the phone, Keith did his best to listen in, but it didn’t do much.

 At some point, he must’ve zoned out because when he regained focus Mr. Zimmerman was yelling at him, trying to get him to talk to him. Finally, he just walked out, totally ignoring whatever was shouted after him. By the time he got away and under the stairwell, he already had a text from Shiro. 

Shiro: What did you do? 

Keith: I just walked out of class. I needed to. 

Shiro: Okay, and why is Zimmerman trying to give you a bunch of points? 

Keith: I didn’t talk to him. He kept yelling at me so I walked out. 

Shiro: I’m going to text Adam. Go to his classroom after this period is over. 

Keith: Why?

Shiro: Because I’m not there. I need to make sure you’re okay and I want you to explain to him what the problem is in a little better detail. I’m not having you be in trouble because you won’t talk. Go. 

Keith: Okay… 

A few minutes before the bell rang, Keith walked over to Adam’s room and waited outside. As soon as everyone else was out, he walked in and found his way to Adam’s desk. 

“Shiro texted me already. Are you okay?” Keith just gave him a half-nod in return. “Do you want to explain it a little better?” Keith just shrugged and started typing. He explained everything that happened, then waited for Adam’s response. “Okay. You can go to the dorms, there’s only two classes left and I’m sure you need it. I’ll deal with it.” Keith just nodded and walked off. He made a beeline to his room and immediately crashed into his bed. He didn’t even realize he had fallen asleep until Lance was shaking him awake. 

“You okay buddy? You fell asleep with your boots on…” 

Keith: I’m fine.

“Are you sure… you don’t seem it.” Keith sighed and decided to just copy the text he had sent Adam. “Oh, that guy’s a dick to everyone. Don’t let him bother you, we all hate him.” 

Keith: I don’t really care about him. Still having to get used to being with so many people for so long with no escape again. 

“I know, I’m sorry… At least you don’t have class for two days now. We can do whatever you want to this weekend, even if it’s nothing. We can just hang out here and binge watch something.” Keith just nodded. “Okay, come on. Hunk said the food will be ready in like ten minutes.” Eventually, he got up and followed Lance to the living room. As soon as he sat down, Pidge was already getting up to talk to him. 

“So… I saw you outside Mr. W’s today. So you guys are like friends right?” She asked, sitting on the top of the coffee table. 

Keith: Who?

“My computer science teacher.” 

Keith: Adam? I mean… he’s dating my brother so… 

“Close enough. What do you think the chances are that you could convince him to extend our assignment time?” 

Keith: I’ve known him for like two weeks so… very little… 

“Damn. Is he like really not all surly all the time? I mean, he’s nice-ish outside of class, but he’s like so gruff in class.” 

Keith: Not really. I mean he’s nice I guess. I don’t really talk to him that much though. I mean, I think Lance talked to him more. 

“So Lance, you wanna help me out then?” She asked, moving her attention to Lance. He was just grateful it was off of him. Their conversation was forgotten when Hunk started bringing in their food. Lance and Keith’s were both replaced with chicken nuggets which Keith was thankful for when he looked at the other option. He honestly couldn’t tell what it was, but it didn’t seem like something he was very interested in. As soon as he finished eating, he retired back to his room. He checked his phone for any messages from Shiro, then decided to shower. 

When he finally got out, he threw on a pair of sweatpants and got in bed, deciding there was nothing better to do. He probably should’ve been finishing his homework, but that didn’t really seem important. Finally, Lance walked in and sat down on the edge of his bed. 

“You already going to sleep?” 

Keith: Not yet. Soon probably. I thought Adam or Shiro would text at some point, but I’m about to just go to bed. 

“Well, I’m gonna go shower. I’ll be back in a minute.” Keith just nodded and rolled over. Eventually, while Lance was gone, he did get a text from Adam. 

Adam: So, I had a talk with Zimmerman after my meeting. He had no idea, I guess no one bothered to tell him about you since there’s no reason for him to have anything to do with you. Either way, you’re cleared. I’m sure you’ve already been told, but he’s… not anyone’s favorite person in the world, so don’t worry about it. I also got your absences excused from the end of the day. Has Shiro texted you?

Keith: No, why? 

Adam: I was just wondering. He was going to call me but he hasn’t. I’m sure he’s fine, he’s probably just taking a shower or asleep or something. It’s like a three hour time difference. He was home the last time I talked to him. 

Keith: Yeah, probably. 

Honestly, Keith didn’t really believe that, but he didn’t want Adam to worry, so he just pushed it back. After Lance got out of the shower and started getting ready for bed, he finally got a text from Shiro. 

Shiro: Sorry, I meant to call but I fell asleep. I’ll call in the morning. Adam said he got everything sorted out, so that’s good. I’ll talk to you in the morning. 

Keith: Okay. 

Shiro: Goodnight. 

Keith: Night. 

The next morning, Keith woke up alone. He rolled out of bed and threw on his jacket to cover his arms and made his way out into the living room. As far as he could tell, no one else was home, until Lance somehow managed  to sneak up behind him and wrapped his arms around his waist. 

“Hey. I was starting to wonder when you’d be up. It’s past noon.” Keith just shrugged, realizing his phone was still in his room. “Everyone’s gone for the day. I have no idea where Pidge went, I think her brother’s here for the weekend because there’s some conference here this week or something. Hunk’s with Shay and Allura has a tech week or something.” Keith just nodded and leaned into his chest. “So… today’s a binge watch day?” Keith just nodded and led Lance to the couch. He contemplated going to grab his phone, but he eventually decided against it. 

“So, what are we watching?” Lance asked, he just motioned for him to hand him the remote. It took him a few minutes to find something to watch, but he eventually landed on The Walking Dead. “Really?” Keith just shrugged and hit play before curling up next to Lance. They stayed like that for most of the day. It may not have been very exciting, but they were both just enjoying the other's company, and Keith obviously needed it. They didn’t even leave for dinner, Lance just got something from the dining hall and brought it up. Luckily, the only person that came home before they went to bed was Allura, so Keith didn’t get as awkward as he would’ve with anyone else. Eventually, around ten, Keith fell asleep. Lance carried him back to their room before Hunk got home. By the time he finally laid down, he was getting a call from Shiro.

“Hey…” 

“Is Keith okay?” Shiro asked with obvious worry in his voice. 

“Yeah, why wouldn’t he be?” 

“He hasn’t answered me all day. I thought he was just busy but it’s late so…” 

“Yeah, he’s fine. We stayed here all day, but he left his phone in our room all day. I think he just needed a day with no one around. He’s asleep now.” 

“Good. I’ll just have him call me tomorrow.” They exchanged goodbyes and Lance joined Keith in bed. 

Chapter Text

  The next day was mostly the same as the day before, but they mainly stayed in their room since the others were home. They did end up going out to eat with everyone though. Hunk made up some excuse about how it was their first weekend back, but he really just didn’t want to cook. Keith honestly didn’t want to go, but he did anyway. It honestly wasn’t too bad, he was slowly becoming more comfortable with everyone else. Even if he did have a decent time, that didn’t change the fact that he was exhausted by the time they got back. As soon as they got back, he took a shower and got in bed. 

The next morning, Keith was filled with dread as he woke up. He barely even bothered getting ready. Today’s outfit was black sweatpants and a dark gray hoodie stolen from Lance, he didn’t even bother fixing his hair and just threw it up. Lance took a little longer to get ready, but eventually walked out of the bathroom to see Keithon his bed, leaning against the wall. 

“You ready?” Keith just shrugged and stood up, Lance could practically see the two voices fighting in his head. “I know it sucks.” He started as he pulled him into a hug, resting his chin on the top of his head. “But we’ll be back in a few hours.” He just shrugged. “At least it’s not new people. I mean you kind of know everyone in your classes right? You’ll get used to it again soon, I mean you did pretty quick when you got here right.” He was right, but Keith just shrugged again before Lance took his hand and dragged him out into the hall. 

When they finally got to the dinning hall, Keith made his way to the table while Lance went to get food. He didn’t really feel like eating, so he just waited on everyone else. Once Lance got there, he put in his headphones and slumped against the table, trying to convince himself that the day wouldn’t suck. After he finished his food, Lance snuck his arm around Keith’s waist, thinking it might help. Eventually, the bell rang and he grabbed Keith’s hand, dragging him to the arts hall. 

By break, Keith was honestly starting to feel a bit better about everything. Shiro was fine, and his anxiety level had definitely lowered. He spent his break in one of the open studio rooms like usual. He was supposed to be working on a new song for a performance grade, but luckily he didn’t have to actually do it in class, he just had to send a recording to his teacher. Afterwards, he only had two more classes before lunch. English went by pretty quickly since they were mainly just given time to work on their essays over Grapes of Wrath, and science was all notes. 

Finally, lunch rolled around. He usually never ate at lunch, so he made his way to the table and pulled out his sketchbook, planning on working on a sketch for his art class. Before he got started, Lance put a plate in front of him. 

“You didn’t eat breakfast.” Lance said as he sat down next to him. Keith just rolled his eyes. “Seriously, you should eat something.” Eventually, he agreed and started eating. “So, how’s your day been?” 

Keith: Not awful I guess. You? 

“See? It’s fine. Mine’s been okay I guess. I have English next so that sucks. Allura said we’re working on our essays and I’m lowkey still totally lost…” 

Keith: We did too. I have to go to math next if that makes you feel better.

“How many missing assignments do you have?” 

Keith: Only four. 

“Keith!” Lance whined. “Why don’t you just let me help?” 

Keith: Because it’s dumb. I’m sure I’ll pass, just with like the lowest grade possible. I have so far. 

“Yeah, but you know your grades actually matter now right? I mean it’s all going towards your GPA…” 

Keith: And why would I need that?

“College.” Lance said as more of a question. 

Keith: Yeah, because I’m definitely putting myself through that. What’s the point?

“To get a degree in something?” 

Keith: And what would that be? 

“You don’t have anything you’ve thought about doing?” 

Keith: When I was younger I just assumed I would take my dad’s ranch, after that I just assumed I wouldn’t make it that far. I literally speak to a total of two people, what would I do? 

“I don’t know, but you’re going to make it that far. Even if you don’t think you wanna go now, you shouldn’t rule it out. Maybe you’ll find something…” Keith just shrugged and pulled his focus back to his sketchbook, so Lance dropped it. He honestly had thought about college, but thinking about actually going made him really anxious, so he avoided it. 

Halfway through lunch, he got bored and started listening in to the conversation the others were having. It was about their math teacher, which apparently Pidge had already had the year before since she was ahead. That got boring pretty quickly, so he decided to try and gain Lance’s attention. Leaning on his shoulder didn’t work, so he moved to lay his head in his lap. All he got in return was a hand on his chest. Eventually, the bell rang meaning there were only two classes left. He walked with Lance as far as he could, but he had to walk to a different hall for his next class. Honestly he hated the layout of the school, every subject had a different hall, but they were all connected in one building around the courtyard other than the arts building. 

Like usual, math sucked. He spent the entire class completely zoned out, staring at the whiteboard until he was pulled back into reality by the bell ringing. History was actually not that bad. They were going over Greek history which was actually somewhat interesting. Even if it was interesting, Keith was just ready to go home. He wasn’t really anxious or anything, just tired of sitting in class. Finally, the final bell rang meaning he was officially free for the day. Like usual, he stopped at the end of the hall to wait for Lance. 

“Hey mullet.” Lance said from behind him as he reached out for his hand. Keith just rolled his eyes and pulled out his phone. 

Keith: Really? Back to that? I don’t even have a mullet, especially right now. 

“Yeah you do, you’re just hiding it; plus you secretly love it.” 

Keith: No, I don’t. 

“Yeah you do.” 

Keith: I thought you said you liked it anyway?

“I do, doesn’t mean I can’t call you mullet.” 

Keith: I will shave my head. 

“No you won’t.” 

Keith: I will. 

“No!” Lance whined. “What am I supposed to do? Not bully you? How does that work?” 

Keith: You didn’t when I first got here.

“Yeah, because I didn’t know you yet. Now I do, so get used to it. So… There's a meteor shower tonight. Do you wanna go watch it? I mean, I’m sure you’re tired so…”

Keith: So? 

“So, we would have to stay up kind of late… I mean, I guess you could take a nap when we get back…” 

Keith: That works. I’m not that tired anyway. 

“Okay, well I have to work on this essay some, but I was kinda thinking we could go to that place in the foothills. I think the shower peaks at like eleven tonight because of the moon or something… I dunno, Kaede told me about it in chem. So… leave at like ten-thirty-ish?” Keith just nodded and dragged him the rest of the way to the dorms. Once they finally got to their room, Keith pulled off his boots and hoodie and got in bed. “Do you want me to get you up when Hunk’s done cooking or get something later?” 

Keith: Get me up I guess. 

“Okay.” Lance said as he pulled out his laptop to work on his essay. Keith watched him for a few minutes before finally falling asleep. Lance woke him back up what felt like minutes later to go eat. He stumbled out to the living room where Hunk was bridging everyone their food. He spent most of dinner listening to Allura trying to convince him to come watch the play on opening night. After they finished eating, they decided to watch ss=ome more Breaking Bad since it had been a while. Eventually the others all went to bed, leaving them to get ready to go watch the meteor shower. They got changed into warmer clothes, and Lance grabbed a few blankets before he led Keith out to the car. 

Keith: So where are we going?

“Remember that place I took you to that you asked if it was a makeout spot?” Keith nodded. “Yeah, there. I thought about going into the actual mountains, but it’ll be way colder there so…” 

Keith: So the meteor shower is just a cover? 

“What? No…” Lance said, faking offense. “I mean… the original plan was to watch the meteor shower, but I’m not opposed…” 

Keith: Shut up. 

“Hey, you asked.” 

Keith: Just drive. 

Chapter Text

  When they finally arrived at the spot, Lance started to lead the way to one of the lookout spots, but Keith stopped him. 

Keith: Shiro tried to call me while we were on the way… 

“Okay. I’ll go set up. Just meet me at the first spot on the trail.” Keith just nodded and walked to the other side of the car, waiting until Lance was gone to call Shiro back. 

“Hey, you okay?” Shiro asked as soon as the face time started. 

“Yeah, why?” 

“You declined the call…” 

“I was in the car with Lance.” 

“Where are you? Don’t you have school tomorrow?” 

“Yeah, but there’s a meteor shower tonight and Lance wanted to watch it. We’re at some park.” 

“When do you think you’ll get home?” 

“Not super late. It’s fine, I mean it’s not like I actually sleep half the time.” 

“I know, but still…” 

“So… what’s going on?” Keith interrupted. 

“Uh… Well, it’s kind of complicated right now… I mean, everything will be fine, but for now, I think it’s better to just wait it out a little. With that being said, I’m hoping to get a flight home in about a week or two, maybe… With the way things are right now, I should be able to get back by then.” 

“So…” 

“So, I promise I will fully explain later, but for now don’t worry about it. Just be safe okay?” 

“Okay…” Shiro hung up, leaving Keith still confused as he made his way to the ledge where Lance was waiting. 

“Hey, come on. I’ve already seen like three, but it’s supposed to pick up soon.” Lance said, motioning for him to join him on the blanket. As soon as he did, he could tell something was off with him. “You okay?” 

Keith: Yeah, I’m fine. 

“Are you two fighting again?” 

Keith: No. He just won’t tell me what’s going on. 

“What did he say?” 

Keith: That it’s complicated. He said he’ll probably be back in a week or two though. 

“Well, I’m sure that means everything’s fine. Don’t worry about it too much.” Lance said as he pulled him closer. They sat and watched the meteor shower in a comfortable silence for about an hour before Lance started getting bored. That was made obvious to Keith when he started rambling about some space movie he had seen. After about ten minutes, he was over it. He just rolled over, grabbed Lance’s face and kissed him. 

“What was that for?” Lance asked after he pulled back. 

Keith: You were rambling.

“You like it.” 

Keith: Sometimes. 

“Well, it’s getting late… Should we head back now?” Keith just shrugged, so he assumed that meant yes and grabbed their stuff before leading him back to the car. He could tell he was over-thinking about what was going on with Shiro again, he was chewing on the inside of his lip again when they got in the car. 

“I’m sure everything’s fine. Quit worrying about it. If something was really wrong, he would’ve told you.” 

Keith: No he wouldn’t. If nothing was wrong he would’ve told me.

“Well… He said it was complicated, but he didn’t say anything else right? Did he seem normal?” 

Keith: I guess… 

“So, nothing too bad can be happening.” Keith just shrugged, so Lance decided to drop it and started their drive back. By the time they arrived back at the dorms, he could tell Keith was still anxious, but he didn’t say anything, he just led him back to their room. As soon as they got there, Keith went to take a shower. He came back about half an hour later in a pair of black sweats, and a bright red tank top replacing his usual black one. He ignored all the other things he was supposed to do that night and crawled into bed with Lance, immediately enveloped in his arms. Eventually his mind mellowed and he was able to fall asleep. 

Keith woke up the next morning, dreading the day less than the day before and got ready. Today, he actually bothered getting ready. By the time he was done, Lance was still digging through his wardrobe. 

Keith: Weren’t you complaining about how I take forever? 

“Yeah, I don’t know what you’re talking about…” Lance mumbled as he threw his phone back on the top of the dresser. “I can’t find the hoodie I was gonna wear…” 

Keith: Which one? 

“The blue Campion one…” 

Keith: It’s in the living room on the back of the couch. You took it off the other day and left it there. Also it’s literally purple. 

“You’re colorblind!” Lance shouted as he walked down the hall. He came back a few seconds later wearing the hoodie, then grabbed one of his pillows with a blue pillowcase on it and held it up to his chest. “It’s literally blue.” 

Keith: It’s purple, you’re colorblind. Can we leave now?

“Whatever mullet. Yes, we can leave now.” He said as he grabbed his bag from his desk and offered his hand to Keith. He happily accepted it and allowed Lance to pull him down the hall and into the dinning hall. They got their food, then made their way to the table where Pidge and Hunk were waiting. 

“Where’s the other two?” Lance asked as he sat down. 

“Shay’s not going to class today. She thinks she’s sick.” Hunk replied as he poked at his pancakes judgingly. 

“Allura’s in the auditorium. I think she had to get something done to her costume or something.” Pidge half-mumbled. 

“Oh yeah, when is her play anyway?” 

“Honestly, I have no idea, but don’t tell her I said that.”

“Alright, I’ll figure it out later. So… since it’s just you two, how’re my setups going?” Lance asked with a smirk. 

“Me and Shay are great I think. I mean, she’s awesome. She’s like really chill about everything, and she beats me in like every video game we play - Which is kinda hot…” Hunk replied, mumbling a bit at the end. 

“Good. Pidge?” 

“Honestly, nothing’s very different with Allura. Just mildly less awkward. I still think you should let us help you with… someone…” She replied, glancing over to Keith. Lance’s face immediately turned red as he glared at her. 

“Shut up. Are you and Allura ever going to leave me alone about it?” 

“No, probably not. At least until you do something about it.”

“Pidge!” He whined, stealing a glance at Keith who was just staring down at his cereal obviously trying to look like he had no idea what they were talking about. 

“Hey man, you know I’m not gonna hound you about it, but it’s kinda obvious you have a thing for them…” 

“Guys!” Lance half-hissed, making them both give up. The rest of breakfast was filled with random conversations about classes, but eventually the bell rang and they all set out for their first classes. 

“See? Told you it was obvious.” Lance said as soon as Pidge and Hunk were out of earshot. 

Keith: Maybe that wasn’t about me. Maybe you were totally in love with some random person in one of your classes this whole time. 

“Yeah, maybe.” Lance said with a smirk that was immediately met with Keith’s glare. “I’m kidding!” 

Keith: Not funny.

“You started it!” He said defensively as they arrived at the door to his class. 

Keith: Yeah, but still. 

“But still you started it. Go to class mullet.” 

Keith: Fine. You suck though. 

“Yeah, yeah, whatever.” Keith just scrunched up his nose before turning to go to his own class. 

When lunch rolled around, Lance found him waiting at the table looking at his math book. He didn’t even notice when he sat down and started talking, then he realized his earbuds were in and nudged him to get his attention. He immediately looked up and pulled out an earbud. 

“You’re actually doing math?” 

Keith: Yeah… Shiro. 

“Shiro?” 

Keith: Apparently he can see my grades on his account thingy… that was a fun phone call. 

“It’s that bad? How’d you get away with it before?” 

Keith: Forged his signature on report cards, duh. I mean, he knew my math grades kinda sucked, but not to the extent that they sucked. 

“What do you have right now?” 

Keith: Uhh… below a 100… 

“How bad is it?” 

Keith: Currently 42… 

“Keith!” 

Keith: I know, shut up. My teacher doesn’t take points off for late stuff so it’ll be fine… probably… 

“How many assignments do you have missing?” 

Keith: Like all of them… and apparently the grading period officially ends in like a week so… 

“I’ll help you after school. How mad is Shiro?” 

Keith: Well, I got the whole not mad, disappointed thing so… livid… but if I do bad enough, he’s gonna let me drop the class and just take a credit recovery class next year since I only need three math classes. 

“Won’t it affect your GPA though?” 

Keith: He said it wouldn’t if I drop the credit. Either way, I don’t really care. I mean that means no math for the rest of the semester. 

“Or, you could just let me help you and fix your grade. I mean, you’ve already got a semester down pretty much, so in the long run that’s more math.” 

Keith: Why is this the only time you have any logic? 

“Is that a yes?” 

Keith: Fine. It won’t do much though. Tests are like twenty percent of my total grade. So are exams and I got like a 65 on the midterm. 

“What’s your average on your tests?” 

Keith: I dunno… like a 68 maybe

“Okay, and so far on your assignments?” 

Keith: All I’ve turned in are the ones you made me do so like a 85 I guess. Which is  your doing. 

“See? So if you let me help you you’ll probably finish with like a C or a C +. Plus, your test grades will probably get a little better.” 

Keith: I said fine. 

“Good.” 

Chapter Text

Keith had math right after lunch. He spent most of class totally zoned out which probably wouldn’t help his grade, but he couldn’t help it. History was a lot better. He could actually understand most of what they were talking about. Lance wasn’t so lucky. He had English and Chemistry, English was still mainly spent working on essays, and Chemistry was just confusing. Finally, class was over and Lance made his way down the hall to where Keith usually waited for him. When he got there, he saw him leaning against the wall with some girl standing in front of him. He waited a little ways down the hall and watched, she talked for a while, but eventually took his phone, most likely putting in her number, then walked away. 

“So, you made a friend then?” Lance asked as he threw his arm around Keith’s shoulder. 

Keith: No, not really. We have to do some project thing. 

“What is it over?” 

Keith: I think ours is just about mythology. We have to do like a timeline thing or something. I don’t know. 

“Well, I guess she finally got your number.” Lance laughed. 

Keith: You said that was Lizzy. 

“Actually, I got her name wrong and you said it was Lizzy, but I’m pretty sure that was her. Is she in your art class too?” 

Keith: Yeah… but you said someone else's name so… 

“Yeah, I remember faces though. What’s her name?” 

Keith: Alex… 

“See? That’s like super close to Lexi which is what I said so…” 

Keith: This is gonna be so much more awkward than it needs to be. 

“No it won’t. Just tell her you're with me.” Keith just looked at him like he was insane. “Dude, no one cares here. It’ll be fine.” 

Keith: You don’t know that. 

“It was fine with me. I never hid anyone I’ve dated until now and no one batted an eye.” 

Keith: Okay, but you’re you. 

“What’s that supposed to mean?” He just rolled his eyes and kept walking. “Okay, don’t worry about it. I’m sure everything will be fine. Besides, how much time do you have to spend with her?” 

Keith: Not much. We’re splitting the research, then at some point we’ll have to put everything together. So probably like one day. 

“See? Can’t be that bad.” 

Keith: I guess. Still.

“Well, don’t worry about it for now. We have to get some math done.” 

Keith: You suck. 

“I know. Come on.” Lance said, pulling Keith into the dorm. While Lance caught up with the others who were all hanging out in the living room, Keith made his way into their room. When Lance came in, Keith was sitting on his bed waiting. He dragged his chair over to Keith’s desk and motioned him over. 

“Come on. If you quit being difficult we can get it done pretty quick.” Keith frowned and walked over, but decided he had a better idea that didn’t involve math. Instead of his desk chair, he decided to sit in Lance’s lap. 

“Keith we ha-” He was immediately cut off by Keith’s lips. It took him a minute, but he eventually pulled back. “That’s not gonna work.” He just rolled his eyes and slid off of him, pulling out his phone.

Keith: You suck. 

“I know. You’ve said that a lot today. Come on, let’s do some math.” Lance said as he dug out Keith’s textbook. “What all are you missing?” 

Keith: There’s three assignments in every section. We do a section a week… so like eighteen of them since I turned in those two we did the other day…. 

“Okay… well are they all like what we did then?” 

Keith: Yeah. It’s just like the questions in the book. 

“That’s not that bad, we can honestly probably get like half of them done before dinner if you’ll pay attention.” 

Keith: Fineeeee

“Okay, what’s the first one?” Keith took the book and flipped to the first section, then found the right page. They spent the next two and a half hours doing math before Keith dramatically slid down in his chair, obviously done with math for the night. 

“Well, we got done with like eight and a half of them. That’s not too bad. If you’ll do this with me tomorrow too we’ll be done.” 

Keith: This is dumb. Even if I go to college my GPA wouldn’t be that bad with one F. 

“Yeah, but if your final grade is an F you’ll have to retake it. You at least need a D, but you can get a C if you’ll just do the assignments.” 

Keith: So far this year I’d still have a 3.5. My lowest grade other than math is a B in science. 

“Yeah, but it counts for next year too.” 

Keith: Yeah, and everything will be the same. I’ll probably have a B in Spanish too though. 

“No you won’t.” 

Keith: How?

“I’ll just only ever speak to you in Spanish, then you’ll have to learn it.”

Keith: You’ll give me a breakdown. 

“Whatever, point is I’m fluent in Spanish, you’ll probably get an A.” 

Keith: What’s the youngest you can drop out here? I know it’s sixteen in NC and WY. 

“Eighteen. I think it’s sixteen if you’re like emancipated or whatever. I think I could if I wanted to though… I don’t know though.” 

Keith: What? 

“Back home I’m no longer considered a minor, but here I am, but I think I have something similar to emancipation… I don’t know. The whole thing is really confusing. I mean I think I could just leave and go home. I mean, I don’t want to… but I think I could.” 

Keith: If I’m not allowed to, you can’t either. 

“I’m not. When I turn eighteen I’m getting my citizenship and staying here. I want to go to college up here anyway.” 

Keith: Where? 

“So far I’ve found two schools in New York I like, one in Chicago, and one here. I’m leaning towards the one here though since they only require like a 2.5.” Lance said as he pulled out his phone. “Hunk said food’s ready. Come on.” 

They both made their way into the living room where everyone else was waiting. Hunk had made pizza, meaning it was time for another movie night. Movie night only lasted for two movies before the girls disappeared. By then, Hunk was cleaning the kitchen, so Keith and Lance decided to go back to their room. Lance flopped down in his bed and started scrolling for something to watch while Keith sat down on the floor next to him. 

“What are you doing?” He asked, Keith just held up a bottle of black nail polish. “Back to black?” He just nodded. About half an hour later, he joined Lance in bed where he was watching one of the animated Star Wars shows and decided to text Shiro. 

Keith: I got like half of my math done. 

Shiro: Did you guess or actually try?

Keith: Lance helped. 

  Shiro: Good. Have the rest done by Friday. 

Keith: I will. So… how’s stuff there? 

Shiro: It’s going okay. 

Keith: And that’s all I get?

Shiro: Yep. Should be back soon-ish though so… 

Keith: Okay.

When the episode was over, Lance got up to go shower, leaving Keith alone again. He spent most of the time Lance was gone working on another sketch for class. When Lance got back, he decided to shower too. By the time he got out, Lance was clearly ready to go to bed, so Keith joined him. They both fell asleep fairly quickly, unaware it would be a long night. At about two in the morning, Lance woke up to Keith writing around, pulling against his hold. 

“Keith?” He said as he sat up, getting no response. As soon as his arms were off of him, Keith got up and started down the hall. He didn’t stop to grab anything, so Lance decided to wait a few minutes before he did anything. After about twenty minutes, he could still hear Keith pacing around the living room, so he got up to go check on him. Keith was pacing back and forth with his hands covering his face. When he got closer, he could tell he had busted open a few cuts. 

“Keith…” He said again, of course he got no response, so like before, he moved into his path. Keith stopped in front of him and stared down at the floor, still struggling to control his breathing. Lance pulled him to his chest and half-carried him over to the couch, pulling him into his lap. It took a little while, but eventually he calmed down. A few minutes after his breath evened out and he was no longer shaking, Lance realized he had fallen back asleep. He carefully scooped him up and carried him back to their room. After he got him back in bed, he went to the bathroom and grabbed some bandage wrap and a hand towel which he wet one side of and returned to clean up his arms. Finally, he got back in bed and wrapped his arm back around Keith. Just before he fell back asleep, he felt him start tensing up again, so he pulled him to his chest and wrapped an arm around him while running the other through his hair. Eventually, he relaxed again and Lance was finally able to go back to sleep. 

Chapter Text

Lance woke up first the next morning and decided to let Keith sleep a little later. To his surprise, by the time he got done with his hair and skin, and went to find clothes, Keith was digging though his dresser. After he peeled off the hoodie Lance had given him the night before, he saw the bandages and just looked over to Lance totally confused. 

“You busted some open last night, remember?” Keith just furrowed his eyebrows and shook his head. “You don’t remember waking up?” He shook his head again. “Well, nothing too bad happened. Just that. You were actually back asleep before I even did that.” He nodded, still clearly confused, then peeled off his tank top and looked at his top options, eventually deciding Lance’s closet was more appealing. 

“You little thief!” Lance teased as Keith pulled on a dark green hoodie. 

Keith: Shut up, you like it.

“Yeah, I do.” Lance said softly as he pressed a kiss onto his temple. Keith snarled up his nose before leaning up to kiss him, almost immediately interrupted by a knock and the door opening. He quickly jumped away, hoping it was Allura, but of course it wasn’t. Pidge was standing in the doorway, leaning against the handle. 

“You guys get that text?” She asked.

“No, what text?” 

“There’s an assembly at breakfast. It’s in the auditorium though, and it’s mandatory. Breakfast is after, no break and classes are like ten minutes shorter.” 

“Cool, thanks.” She just nodded and closed the door. “You know, we could just tell her. She’s literally a lesbian dude.” Lance said stifling a laugh. “You’re lucky she didn’t just barge in like she usually does…” 

Keith: No. 

“Can you tell me why?” 

Keith: I just don’t want to… 

“Did something happen to cause that? I mean… you acted weird when I found out you were gay…” 

Keith: Please stop.

“Okay…” Lance sighed, knowing he wasn’t going anywhere and not to push it. It was concerning to see him not fighting it, but just asking him to stop. Finally, they were both ready with just a few minutes to spare before they had to leave. 

“You know-” Lance started as he sat down next to Keith on his bed. “I’m not going to try and make you be okay with telling anyone. It’s okay, but I really don’t think it would be a bad thing.” Keith just shrugged again before pulling out his phone. 

Keith: I’m sorry… 

“It’s okay, I promise. You know I’m never going to make you do something you really don’t want to unless it’s something that will keep you from getting hurt or something. It’s okay.” Keith just nodded. “Now, come here.” Lance said, pulling him into a kiss. Before he knew it, he was hovering over Keith smirking at the light hickey on his neck, then he noticed the glare he was getting. “Stop glaring, there’s nothing there.” He said before moving back to his lips. The thought of the assembly had totally slipped both of their minds until Lance got a call. 

“Where are you two?” Hunk asked. 

“Oh, we’re on the way. I forgot my laptop so we went back.” 

“Well, you better hurry. It starts in like three minutes and Iverson’s already asked about you.” 

“We’re coming.” As soon as he hung up, he let out a nervous laugh. “We gotta go. Like now. The auditorium is like all the way across campus. Iverson’s asking where I am.” Keith nodded and followed him out. 

Keith: If we’re late and he says something just tell him I had a panic attack. It worked with my friend at my old school like every time. 

“We’ll only be like two minutes late, he won’t care. He probably just wanted to talk to me anyway.” Keith just nodded and let Lance drag him the rest of the way to the auditorium which appeared to actually be an old church. They found the others where they had saved their seats in the pews and tried to listen to whatever was being said. Keith was zoned out for the entire thing, barely noticing when the others started to get up. He followed them all down the hall, not really listening to whatever they were saying. By the time they made it to the table, Lance finally said something about it. 

“So? I’m assuming you had no interest in that?” Lance asked. 

Keith: In what?

“The assembly… you weren’t paying any attention were you?” 

Keith: Nope. What was it about? 

“This semester's sports. I don’t see why we all had to go. I mean, none of us do any.” Keith just nodded. He listened in on the conversation everyone else was having, then found Pidge’s attention on him. 

“Dude, what’s on your neck?” She asked. Luckily, Keith's confusion was real at first. He looked at it using his phone camera, then realized, but covered it with a casual shrug. “Not convincing. You have a girlfriend?” 

Keith: Maybe. Maybe not. 

“Ugh, why are you so difficult?” He just smirked before switching to Lance’s contact. 

Keith: So you’re tacky and a liar then? 

Lance read the text, trying his best not to break from his conversation with Hunk to avoid making anything too obvious. When their talk was mostly over, he decided to text back instead. 

Lance: You weren’t complaining earlier. 

Keith: Shut up. 

“So, what are we doing this weekend?” Allura asked. “I have a few things I have to do for the play, other than that… what do we have?” They all gave her some form of ‘I don’t know’ as an answer. “Well, we should do something.” She said just before they were dismissed. As soon as they were out of earshot, Lance bent down a little to whisper. 

“See? If I told you, you wouldn’t have been able to play it off.” 

Keith: That’s like literally the worst possible spot.

“Okay, it was actually an accident. It’d be a lot more noticeable if it wasn’t I promise.” 

Keith: Was that supposed to help your case?

“Uh… yes?” 

Keith: Really?

“I’m sorry, okay, don’t be mad at me.” 

Keith: I’ll think about it. 

“Fine, I’ll see you at lunch.” Keith nodded and continued down the hall to get to his music class. Most of their classes were only about forty minutes long for the day, so most of the teachers didn’t really bother to continue with lessons. His music and art classes were both spent working on assignments. English was spent finishing their essays which were due the next day. They actually did class for science, but it mainly consisted of taking notes, and his health class was just an assortment of random videos. Finally, lunch rolled around, when he got to the cafeteria, the only one at the table was Allura. He sat down across from her and waited for Lance. 

“She still doesn’t know by the way.” She said without even looking up from her phone. “I think she genuinely thinks you’re hiding a secret girlfriend and Lance knows about it. That being said, prepare for her to steal him later to ask him about it.” Keith just awkwardly nodded and pulled out his book before spotting Lance walking back over with Pidge walking beside him, clearly trying to get answers. Before he sat down, Lance leaned down over him. 

“So, you still mad at me?” He whispered.

Keith: You know I never was.

“Yeah, I kinda guessed that.” Lance said as Keith took his usual spot leaning his back against him. He finished his book half-way through lunch, leaving him to find entertainment in his roommates. They were just complaining about classes which was boring. Eventually his silent plea for attention from Lance was answered. 

“So, more math when school’s over?” He asked, resting a hand on Keith’s thigh. 

Keith: Is that a question or a statement? 

“A statement. I have to finish my essay too, it’s due tomorrow so you can help me with that as payment.” 

Keith: Or I could just finish it and you could do some of my math for me.

“You’d sound too much like you know what you’re talking about, she’d know. Besides, I just have to proof-read it and I need you to make sure it’s actually right.” 

Keith: Then I’ll do that while you do my math. 

“Fine, but you’re doing some of it.”

Keith: FIne. You owe me anyway.

“How?” 

Keith: Because I’ve had to walk around all day with a painfully visible hickey. 

“Well…” Lance said with a smirk before moving to whisper so no one else would hear him. “Maybe you should let me do it again before you work on your history project.” Keith immediately rolled his eyes. “When are you doing that anyway?” 

Keith: Friday. 

“Where?” 

Keith: No idea yet. She said her roommates are going out so probably her dorm. 

“Are they going out or did she ask them to?” 

Keith: Are you like actually bothered by that?

“Well… I can’t exactly say anything at his given moment…” He mumbled before glancing over to the rest of the table. Keith just nodded and went back to watching the others talk until the end of lunch when he could finally ask again. 

Keith: So are you?
“A little yeah. I was bothered when she asked me for your number too. It has nothing to do with you, just her.” 

Keith: I really don’t think she’ll bother. 

“But still.”

Keith: I’m painfully gay.

“I know, I know… it’s just the idea of it. I mean… I just don’t like her.” 

Keith: Why? She actually seems really nice. You made fun of me for it when you first found out.

“Yeah, because I didn’t like it. I know there’s like zero chance of anything happening, but she finally stopped asking. What if you go over there and she like starts being more in to you?” 

Keith: She’ll be sorely disappointed.

“You know what I mean. If you haven’t noticed, I don’t appreciate it when anyone even remotely flirts with you. That’s it…” 

Keith: Fine. 

“Fine what?”

Keith: If it makes you feel better, you can give me another one before I have to do that. Besides, it’s obvious why you like it. 

“I mean… I was kind of joking, but it would probably work…”

Keith: This is a one time offer. Mainly because Shiro’s not even here. Otherwise, he’d kill you. 

“I know. I know how to get them to fade anyway.” 

Keith: Good. I’m going to class. 

“Okay.” Lance said, feeling a little victory. 

After class, Lance made his way to the usual spot he met with Keith to walk to the dorm and saw him talking to Alex again. As he got closer, he saw them both smiling as Keith typed on his phone, then received a soft punch on the arm. He started walking a bit faster at that point, but was only able to catch the end of their talk. 

“Yeah, my roommates will definitely be gone… so my place, Friday before dinner?” She asked, earning a nod from Keith before she waved and walked off. 

“She’s flirting with you.” Lance said as he appeared over Keith’s shoulder. 

Keith: Literally how? We were talking about the project. 

“Please, her body language alone, not to mention the giggles and arm punch.” 

Keith: You sound mad. 

“I’m not…” Lance said, noticing Keith’s obvious discomfort. “I’m sorry… I just don’t like the situation, but it’s not your fault and it’s not even you I’m worried about…” Keith just nodded and followed him back to the dorm and to their room. He could tell Keith was still overthinking and felt a tinge of guilt. “I’m really not mad. I may have sounded it, but it wasn’t meant to be that way. It’s just kind of a first response I guess. I’m sorry if I made you think that.” He said softly before kissing his cheek. Keith shrugged and leaned against his chest. “I’ll chill out, I promise… but I will kill her if I have to.” He said in an obvious joking tone, getting a soft smile out of Keith. “Now, math.”