Chapter Text
The stars stretched endlessly across the inky black sky, shimmering like tiny shards of light. Keith sat in the cockpit of his ship, staring at the distant glow of Earth as it grew larger in his view. He hadn’t been back to Earth since they defeated the Galra Empire and restored peace to the universe. It had been a long, exhausting war, and after it ended, they had all gone their separate ways—Pidge to her family, Hunk to help rebuild planets across the galaxy, and Lance… Lance had returned home to his family, where he belonged.
Keith hadn’t.
He’d gone off to help the Blade of Marmora, traveling across the stars, doing what he knew best—fighting, protecting. But Earth had never really stopped calling to him, not entirely. And neither had Lance.
As his ship descended through Earth’s atmosphere, Keith felt a strange mix of emotions churning in his chest. He hadn’t seen Lance in months. They had kept in touch, of course—sporadic messages, quick holo-calls—but it wasn’t the same. Something was always missing. Something Keith hadn’t been able to shake, no matter how far he traveled or how many battles he fought.
Lance.
The realization had hit him slowly, like a creeping dawn. At first, he’d told himself it was nothing. He missed the whole team, after all. They had been through so much together. But Lance had always been… different. And the more time Keith spent away from him, the clearer it became. He missed Lance’s jokes, his ridiculous flirting, even the way they bickered like two old married people. But it wasn’t just that. He missed Lance—the real Lance. The one who could make Keith feel like he wasn’t always on edge, like maybe there was more to life than just fighting and surviving.
And that terrified him.
But today, after months of avoidance, Keith was finally doing something about it. He had never been good at this sort of thing—feelings, emotions, confessing—but he had to try. Because if he didn’t, if he just kept running, he knew he’d regret it.
He glanced at the small bouquet of wildflowers sitting in the seat beside him. Flowers. God, what was I thinking? Keith wasn’t the type to give flowers. He was the type to wield a blade, charge into danger, and maybe grunt awkwardly at someone he cared about. But flowers? It had seemed like a good idea at the time, something he’d seen in one of the old Earth movies Lance was obsessed with. A gesture, a way of saying, I care about you without having to stumble through the words.
Now, he wasn’t so sure.
His ship touched down in the open field near Lance’s family home, the soft hum of the engines fading as he powered it down. Keith’s heart pounded in his chest as he grabbed the flowers and stepped out of the cockpit, the cool evening air wrapping around him like a welcome he wasn’t sure he deserved.
The house wasn’t far, just at the edge of the field, its lights glowing warmly in the distance. Keith could see movement through the windows—Lance’s siblings, his mother, the life Lance had always talked about with such warmth. It was all so… normal. And Keith suddenly felt like an outsider, a wanderer from some distant place, unsure of his footing.
But he wasn’t turning back now.
He approached the door, his heart hammering with every step. His grip tightened on the flowers, and he took a deep breath, forcing himself to knock before his nerves got the better of him. The sound echoed louder than he expected, and Keith had half a mind to retreat, but the door swung open before he could.
Lance stood there, barefoot, wearing a loose-fitting t-shirt and sweatpants, his hair a little messier than usual. He looked like he had been lounging around with his family, totally at ease in his own world. The sight of him hit Keith like a punch to the gut, all at once overwhelming and grounding.
Lance’s eyes widened in surprise when he saw Keith standing on his doorstep.
“Keith?” he blurted, a grin spreading across his face. “What are you doing here?”
Keith shifted awkwardly, suddenly very aware of the flowers in his hand. “Uh… hey. I was in the area.”
Lance raised an eyebrow, crossing his arms over his chest. “You were in the area? What, flying through the galaxy and thought, ‘Hey, I’ll just drop by Earth for a quick visit’?”
Keith could feel the heat creeping up his neck. “Yeah, something like that.”
Lance’s grin softened, and he stepped aside, motioning for Keith to come in. “Well, come on. Don’t just stand there.”
Keith hesitated for a second, then stepped inside. The warmth of the house surrounded him, the sound of laughter coming from the living room, the smell of something sweet baking in the kitchen. It was so different from the cold, sterile halls of the Blade’s ships or the vast, empty landscapes of distant planets. It was… home.
“So,” Lance said, closing the door behind them. “What brings you all the way to Earth? Not that I’m complaining or anything, but it’s kind of a long trip for a casual visit.”
Keith swallowed, the flowers still clutched tightly in his hand. Now or never. He took a deep breath and turned to face Lance, his heart pounding. “I, uh… I wanted to see you.”
Lance blinked, taken aback by the sudden seriousness in Keith’s tone. “Me?”
“Yeah.” Keith shifted awkwardly, his eyes flicking to the bouquet before he thrust it forward, holding it out between them like a shield. “I, uh… I brought you these.”
Lance stared at the flowers, his mouth opening and closing like he wasn’t sure what to say. Finally, he reached out and took them, a smile tugging at his lips. “You brought me flowers?”
Keith nodded, feeling more awkward by the second. “Yeah. I thought… I don’t know. I saw them and thought you might like them.”
Lance looked at the flowers, then back at Keith, his expression softening into something unreadable. “They’re… really nice, Keith. Thanks.”
Keith let out a breath he hadn’t realized he’d been holding, but the hardest part was still ahead. He shifted again, his hands now empty and feeling strangely useless. “There’s, uh… something else I wanted to tell you.”
Lance raised an eyebrow, clearly intrigued. “Okay. Shoot.”
Keith ran a hand through his hair, his heart racing. This was harder than he thought it would be. He had faced down entire Galra fleets, had fought for the fate of the universe, but somehow this—talking to Lance—was the hardest thing he’d ever done.
“I’ve been thinking a lot,” Keith started, his voice low, hesitant. “Since the war ended. About everything. About… us.”
Lance’s teasing expression faltered, replaced by something softer, more serious. “Us?”
Keith nodded, swallowing hard. “Yeah. I mean… I know we’ve always had this thing between us, you know? Fighting, bickering, but… I don’t know, it was always more than that for me. And I guess what I’m trying to say is… I’ve liked you. For a long time.”
Lance stared at him, his eyes wide with surprise, and Keith felt like his heart was going to explode out of his chest. The silence stretched on for what felt like an eternity, and Keith suddenly wanted to run, to bolt back to his ship and disappear into the stars.
But then Lance smiled.
It wasn’t his usual cocky grin or teasing smirk. It was soft, genuine, filled with something that made Keith’s heart stutter.
“You… liked me?” Lance asked, his smile fading in suprise.
Keith nodded, his throat tight. “Yeah. I still do. And I was kind of hoping… maybe… you’d want to go out with me? On a date?”
Lance stared at him for another long moment, his eyes searching Keith’s face like he was trying to make sense of what he was hearing. Then, slowly, Lance’s grin returned, this time warmer, softer than ever before.
“I thought you’d never ask,” Lance said, his voice filled with laughter and something else—something deeper.
Keith blinked, his mind catching up with what Lance had just said. “Wait… you—you did?”
Lance laughed, stepping closer, his eyes sparkling with mischief and affection. “Keith, I’ve been waiting for you to figure this out for years. To be honest I had given up hope.”
Keith’s heart skipped a beat, his mind reeling. “You… you knew?”
Lance rolled his eyes fondly, reaching out to playfully punch Keith’s shoulder. “Of course I knew. You’re not exactly subtle, you know.”
Keith felt the tension drain from his body, a laugh bubbling up from somewhere deep inside him. Lance had known all along. And he hadn’t run. He hadn’t pushed Keith away. If anything, he seemed… happy.
“So,” Lance said, his voice softening again, “how about we make it official? You, me, dinner tomorrow? It’s a date.”
Keith smiled, feeling lighter than he had in years. “Yeah. It’s a date.”
Lance grinned and stepped to the side, wordlessly drawing Keith not only into his home, but into his heart.
And just like that, standing there in Lance’s warm, welcoming house, with the smell of wildflowers in the air and the soft glow of Earth’s twilight outside the window, Keith finally felt like he was exactly where he was meant to be.