Work Text:
The misery of Katie Holt
There's something in the air, Pidge can feel it curling and twisting around her and she stilled her hand from the typing and wait, eyes never leaving her screen.
"KATIE! KATIE IT'S HAPPENING KATIE!"
The screaming came from down the street, filter in through her bedroom windows, and stopped in front of her house. She heard her front door open and slam shut, "KAT-oh hello Mrs.Holt is Kaite home? Yes, it's quite urgent so pardon my shouting, excuse me. KATIE!" Thunderous footsteps run up the stairs and her bedroom door was yanked open to reveal a pale black haired teen standing in her doorway.
Sweat drenches his forehead, probably from running the 100m from his house to hers, and he held up a finger as he bends in half wheezing pathetically like a dying fish. She didn't even spare him a glance as her fingers start up again, intending to finish this English essay by today. It is not the first time this happens.
Since the Shirogane moved in next door ten years ago both families had become fast friends. Both have two children each and in the same age group. Takashi Shirogane, Shiro for short, and her brother Matt who were ten then had strike up a fast friendship and were now off to college together. Her and Keith first meeting was…not as pleasant.
"You're short"
It was hate at first comment. For her that's it. For him, it was the first nose bleed, courtesy of that first comment. It's a silly little thing but for seven years old it's huge. After that they were enemies. Biting, scratching, kicking and screaming enemies that threaten to drive their families crazy.
Then Mothman happen.
Curiosity turns to obsessions that lead to countless exchanges of theories and sleepless nights, and the next thing they know they're the best of friends. They need to be or else Pidge would have bite Keith's head off for calling her Katie, no one in their age group have that privilege. Pidge is also the only one who Keith share all of his thoughts and secrets with, and whom he came to when something happens. Like now.
"IT HAPPEN"
"I know, you keep saying it and leaving it at that, it's really annoying, so if you don't say it in the next five seconds I'm going to start tuning you out."
"Lance ask me out on a date"
She pauses. A phone got shoved into her line of sight open to a messaging app.
‘Wanna go watch a movie with me tomorrow?'
It was sent fifteen minutes ago. Nothing was sent back yet.
"Keith what the fuck, why didn't you send a reply yet?" Keith looks at her like a deer caught in a headlight, "I don't know what to send. HELP ME!" She took a deep breath composing herself, the word ‘boi' at the tip of her tongue but she held it in, before typing a reply.
‘Sure. What's the title, place and time?'
‘Voltron: Legendary Defender tomorrow 12:30 at the town square'
‘Ok see you then'
‘Yeah see you'
The message was read and reply immediately. The poor boy must be waiting by the phone and anxious as hell with the late reply. Good. For all the troubles he'd put her through Lance should suffer at least this much.
Lance McClain, a member of a swimming team from another school in the district who visit theirs for a swim meet a month ago, the bane of Pidge existence.
It's a normal school day and Pidge and Keith were collecting their stuff from their lockers getting ready to head home. They round a corner and that's where Pidge's life went to hell. Keith walks head first, arms full of textbooks, into Lance causing him to drop his books all over the floor. Both dive down to collect them and their hands land on top of each other. Keith looked up and hit his forehead against Lance's chin sending both of them reeling back in pain. They finally got a good look at each other and suddenly the atmosphere seems to turn sparkly pink. And are those flowers? Lance quickly gather up the books and hand them to Keith who's still flat out staring.
"Here, sorry bout that"
"T-thank you, no I was at fault too" finally, bring himself back from the verge of outright drooling and maintain the small ounce of dignity he still has left, Keith stutter out a pathetic reply. Did that deter Lance? Of course not, he looks like Keith just said the most interesting thing he ever heard in his crummy life and Keith is no better.
What is this, a B-rated romance movie? What's with all the clichés? Ugh, this is disgusting. Did they forget that she's still here? She's still here right, or did the world deem her too unimportant and have already erased her from existence because these two dorks clearly don't see her anymore.
A boy was walking down the hall and slip on a banana peel, ‘who the hell leave a banana peel on the floor', comically propel into the air, do a perfect backflip and landed on both feet. It was amazing. She's clapping. The whole hallway was clapping.
Those two were not clapping.
Scratch not seeing her, these two dorks don't see anyone anymore.
"Lance stop flirting we need to go" someone from his team call from down the hallway and the spell is broken. Lance look back and forth between his teammate and Keith before turning to Keith, "come watch me."
Please don't say yes, please don't say yes, PLEASE don't say yes
Pidge chant vigorously in her mind. She cannot sit through a swim meet, too many people too much cheering, she has better places to be. But Keith is already nodding and Lance gives him one last smile before running to join his friends. Curse her luck for being social and having a friend. Keith is still looking after the other teen and Pidge want to break his kneecaps.
Reluctantly she let Keith drag her to sit in the stands. There's already too many people and more are still piling in, ‘don't you guys have anything better to do?' Usually, Keith would be uncomfortable alongside her but today he's just brimming with enthusiasm.
Finally, the athletes walk out and warm up at the side of the pool. Lance stood out among all others. Shiny brown hair and tan skin, broad shoulders with lean muscles and a bright blue fucking speedo. If Keith was not drooling then he clearly is now. As well as the girl sitting beside her, calm down girl you're heavy breathing is edging on borderline creepy.
They get on the podium and bend down to get into position. Keith let out a small whine and Pidge have the sudden urge to punch him in the face. This is unbelievable. Keith is supposed to be a blunt hot headed badass who don't give two shits about what people think of him not this…this whimpering idiot lusting after a boy like a lovesick fool. She felt like she'd enter a twilight zone.
The referee blows his whistle and Lance execute a perfect arch and splash into the water with all the grace of a breaching porpoise, and Keith is so gay. She fumbles around in her backpack and handed him a water bottle to quench his ginormous thirst. He took it and drown it in one go.
Lance came in first. Keith was cheering. Pidge couldn't care less.
Then the tan teen rush towards where they sat and look up at Keith holding up his gold medal as if dedicating it to him. Pidge is impressed since they're sitting right at the far end of the stand pushed up against the wall surrounded by a crowd of people, Keith seems as surprised as well.
"I'd recognized that mullet anywhere" confident words couple with a debonair smile and a wink.
Keith is gone and Pidge is so done.
They exchange phone numbers and haven't stopped talking since. Seriously she's kinda surprised it took Lance this long to ask Keith out.
"Did you reply yet? What did he say?" She hands him back his phone, "Oh god what am I gonna wear tomorrow? You need to help me, Katie." Pidge blow hair out of her face and lament the fact that, no, she will not be finishing her essay today. She saves her work and closes her laptop, "let see what you have", and they walk over to Keith's house to get ready him for his date tomorrow.
--------------------------------------------
"KATIE! KATIE OH MY GOD KATIE"
Pidge suck in a breath as she felt the whole house tremble with the force of the slammed door. "KAT-oh hello Mr. Holt sorry for the late disturbance. Yes, I'm alright, I'm more than alright, please excuse me I have to talk with Katie. KATIE!" She quickly saves her work, thank god she already finish her essay this afternoon, and closed her laptop. Her bedroom door slam open and there is Keith standing in her doorway smiling at her with the power of a thousand suns.
He pranced, pranced, into her room and sweep her into a tight hug lifting her off the bed and spin around the room.
"Goddammit Qweef put me down right now or else you'll really regret it"
He let her down alright, his whole body coming down with her and squash her flat on the floor.
"It was amazing Katie. The movie was amazing, the walk in the park was amazing, the dinner was amazing, Lance was amazing. He asks me to be his boyfriend and I said yes." The idiot just keep on rambling about his awesome date and his now awesome boyfriend and all Pidge can do is growl menacingly, which got ignored. Rude.
She hates both of them, especially Lance McClain, nothing good happened after Keith met him. She'll wait for the day they got fed up with each other, they're bound to be with how crazy they are for each other right now, and when that day comes she'll celebrate with a whole box of peanut butter cookie from the Garett's bakery.
--------------------------------------------
Pidge waited for eight years
It's their wedding day today.
"KATIE! KATIE YOU WON'T BELIEVE WHAT JUST HAPPEN KATIE"
By now she had learned to feel the shift in the air and prepared herself for what's to come. She can practically see her front door slam shut in her mind eye and Keith rushing upstairs, "KAT-oh hello Matt how's work with NASA. Good to hear, hate to cut this short but I need to show Katie something, bye. KATIE."
She was already facing the door when her best friend burst into the room and push his left hand into her face, "LANCE PROPOSED. I SAID YES!" Gleaming back at her from the ring finger was a simple gold band and she glared at it while Keith giggles in the background. Fuck her life.
At least she is flattered that Keith chooses her instead of Shiro to be his best man.
The wedding was a small one, a gathering of only the closest people from both sides and it's noisy as hell. Let it be known that Cubans can throw a wedding. Both grooms wear white with a different color tie. Keith is bright red while Lance is midnight blue. Thank god Keith's hair decide to co-operate for once, she spends hours trying to get them to stay. She has to admit, albeit begrudgingly, that Lance looks dashing with his hair slick back. Unfortunately for those single girls he only has eyes for Keith.
As the couple shares their first dance on the floor she couldn't help reminiscing the past eight years. All those late nights listening to Keith talking about Lance, helping him plan a date, going out to help pick a present for different occasions, all those wasted times she could use doing something more worthwhile; like creating a software that help spaceships built a wormhole or built a giant robot that has the ability to save the whole universe.
But then the two dance past her and Keith glance away from his husband to give her the happiest smile she even saw on his face. The moment passed and they were again halfway across the floor, forehead touched, hands held tight, blissfully smiling, eyes never sway from the other, still madly in love as the first day they met.
Pidge felt tears welled up in her eyes.
It's all worth it, those tired nights, those feet numbing walks, those headaches inducing plans, all of them. Everything for this moment.
Keith, her Keith deserve to be happy.
Because she knows that if the situation was the other way round he would have done nothing less for her.