Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Concerts weren’t meant to be attended solo.

They were a social gathering; a place you took friends, significant others, and family members, though the latter really depended on who was playing.

And seeing Allura live was definitely not a family outing Lance was willing to be apart of. Her music wasn’t meant for the older generations, or even the younger ones. It resonated with people his age, which was why Lance had invited Hunk to go along with him.

Well, invited was putting it nicely. Begged was probably a better word to use, but his best friend had eventually agreed to go, if only to keep an eye on him.

“I don’t want you coming to babysit me buddy,” Lance had complained after hearing Hunk’s justification. “I want you to come because it’s Allura . Live. ”

“Yeah I guess, but I don’t even listen to her. I know like, maybe one song of hers.”

Lance placed a hand on his shoulder, staring down at the ground and taking a deep, melodramatic breath.

“Your words wound me Hunk. I don’t think I can go on…”

“Just because we’re best friends doesn’t mean we have to like all of the same stuff. You hate some of the music I listen to.”

Lance lifted his head to stare back up at his friend through half-lidded eyes.

“I’d hardly call that country crap you like music.”

Hunk raised an eyebrow in a very ‘what did I tell you’ sort of way, and Lance groaned.

“I’ll make you a deal,” he went on, and Lance folded his arms over his chest neatly as he appraised him.

“Go on…”

“I’ll go with you to this concert if you promise to join me the next time one of my favourites comes to town.”

Lance groaned louder this time, letting his head fall back as he glared up at the ceiling. He knew the type of ‘favourites’ Hunk was referring to, but it was a fair enough deal, and seeing Allura in concert was worth the sacrifice of attending one country hoedown, so he had eventually agreed.

“Fiiiinnnnee,” he drawled, and Hunk had held out his little finger.

“Pinky swear it.”

Dammit Hunk!

“Ugh, fine.” Lance held out his own pinky, making to twine it around Hunk’s and seal their promise, when his friend had pulled back.

“No crossing your fingers either. Hold out your other hand where I can see it.”

Lance hesitated for just a moment before slowly withdrawing his other hand from behind his back, where his middle and pointer fingers had been locked in what he had hoped would be his ticket out of attending a future country concert. He huffed in defeat as he held it out in front of him for Hunk to see.

“Happy now?”

Hunk nodded, holding out his pinky once more.

“Oh, and crossing your toes doesn’t count.”

Curse you Hunk!

“Alright fine! I’ll go with you to a concert of your choosing. One for one.”

“Equivalent exchange.”

They sealed the deal with their smallest fingers; as valid a contract now as any signed piece of paper.

“Not really equivalent, since Allura is a fantastic rock singer and you’re in for a real treat, but whatever,” Lance moped, and Hunk chuckled lightly.

“Undoubtedly. But I know how you like to get right up into those mosh pits, and you know how much I hate them. So, it’s a pretty fair trade.”

“Ah Hunk, the mosh pit is the only place to be during a rock concert! No one goes to these things to sit down in an uncomfortable chair for three hours!”

Hunk had rolled his eyes then, mumbling something about how he thought they were comfy, before listening to Lance ramble on and on about how amazing the event was going to be.

And it was, truly, one of the most memorable nights of his life.

But not for the reason he had originally expected.

They arrived at the venue two hours early.

Lance had wanted to leave his house even sooner than that, but Hunk had talked him out of it.

“We’ll be standing for close to three hours already, let’s not make it worse.”

“But we need to get a good spot!” Lance argued back, to which Hunk sighed, his patience wearing thin.

“We will. And you’re an expert at wiggling your way to the front of any crowd anyways, so I don’t know why you’re worried.”

“I’m not!” Lance said, starting his vehicle and waiting for Hunk to get in before continuing. “I’m just excited is all. I finally get to see Allura live!”

Hunk chuckled, adjusting the seat to better accommodate him as Lance navigated his way through traffic.

“Do we have to do the mosh pit thing?” he asked after a minute, and Lance glanced over with a scoff.

“Of course! Besides I bought floor tickets so we don't have a choice.”

“I mean, yeah,” Hunk went on, scanning the radio for a decent station. “But there are always empty seats. We could just go up and steal those later.”

“STEAL?! DOTH MINE EARS DECEIVE ME?!”

Hunk flinched at the sudden change in volume of Lance’s voice.

“Oh my god you nearly gave me a heart attack!” he panted, clapping a hand over his chest and leaning back in his seat with a huff. Lance swerved into the proper lane as he did, shaking his head in disappointment.

“I can’t believe Wholesome Hunk just suggested we steal other people's seats. I’m in shock.”

“Not stealing if they weren’t anyone's to begin with.”

“Who are you!”

Hunk rolled his eyes.

“The guy accompanying you to a concert that’ll leave him with hearing problems for the rest of his life,” he retorted, and Lance huffed.

“Worth it.”

“Is it though?”

Lance shot him a wink in reply.

They pulled up to the venue and parked a good distance away from the entrance, to save them time leaving once the concert was over. Nothing was worse than rowdy young adults after a rock concert all trying to make it to their respective afterparties in a cramped parking lot.

And Lance was smarter than that.

“See, good thing we came early,” Lance commented as they approached the doors, seeing a group of girls already standing outside the front; dressed to the nines in outfits similar to what Allura typically wore on stage. Only she could pull off that much leather and belts though, and the white wigs the girls wore were downright cringey. “You’re so lucky you listened to me.”

Hunk sighed dramatically, sitting down on the cement and digging through the small bag he had brought with him.

“You’re so lucky I brought snacks.”

Lance rolled his eyes, plopping down beside his friend and bopping up and down eagerly as more people showed up; the line steadily growing as the minutes ticked by.

I’m going to see Allura live! Lance thought as his excitement grew.

This is gonna be so awesome!

All he had to do now was wait.

Concerts weren’t meant to be attended solo.

And yet, as Keith maneuvered the growing throng of people pushing and shoving and screaming and basically doing all of the things he despised most, he found himself doing just that.

This is the last time I come with you Shiro.

It was a thought he repeated to himself often, though he had yet to follow through on it. His brother was part of Allura’s crew, working as the sound technician. Which meant that, wherever she went, he went, and by extension, Keith went.

It also didn’t help that Shiro was harboring a major crush on the rockstar, and Keith had been around the two of them long enough to know it went both ways.

Either had yet to act on their feelings, at least from what Keith had seen, and where it had been cute at first, was now more of an annoyance than anything.

Which was why Keith had wandered off in the first place. He worked on the stage sets for Allura; doing repairs and fixing anything that happened to malfunction prior to a show, but so far everything was running smoothly.

It was a good thing really, but Keith had been dying of boredom in the back where the rest of Allura’s crew relaxed as she performed, and had elected to join the mob of people in the stands simply for something to do.

Besides, it was hilarious to see how obnoxious Allura’s massive following of fans were; all screaming her name and various other phrases Keith wanted nothing to do with.

If only they knew how nerdy she was in real life.

In hindsight, Keith should have stayed put.

He’d been to enough of Allura’s shows to know how they played out. She was a rock goddess after all, and the people that came to see her were eager to show their love.

It just happened to be a love that involved a lot of jumping and yelling and unwanted physical contact.

Goddamn it, where’s the exit?

Keith hadn’t meant to get swallowed up with the growing crowd; all chanting Allura’s name as they pressed forward down into the mosh pit.

He hadn’t meant to be bullied into following the flow of the horde of people.

But at least with those things he had no real choice in the matter. It was like fighting against a current, and Keith knew that was futile. So he let himself be pulled forward, until he was able to catch a break and angle towards the bordering gates, where he knew security would be patrolling.

I’ll show them my badge and get them to get me out of here.

He managed to get a hand on the railing, and pulled himself inwards until he was pressed flush with the bars. He called out to one of the men standing near the edge of the stage, dressed in black to blend in.

“Hey! Over here!” he called, and the guard glanced over.

Too late Keith realized who it was, and bit back a groan as Matt, one of Shiro’s friends and Pidge’s older brother, approached.

“Keith! Look at you! Enjoying yourself in there?” Matt had to lean forward in order for Keith to hear his words, but even then his voice was drowned out by the crowd.

“What?” Keith yelled back, then shook his head. “Nevermind, just get me out of here!”

Matt was grinning, taking out his phone and snapping a few quick pics as Keith was tossed back and forth by overzealous teens.

Fucker! You’re not supposed to have phones on the floor.

“Matt c’mon get me out!”

“Alright fine,” Matt relented, shoving his phone back into a pocket and beckoning over to a few more guards further down. He whispered something in their ears that Keith couldn’t hear, and glanced over at him with varying looks of amusement.

More of Shiro’s friends? Typical.

“Having fun?” One of them asked, taking hold of Keith’s arm while Matt grabbed the other and hoisted him up. A girl cursed at him for temporarily blocking her view, but Keith was too relieved to care.

“Thanks guys,” he started to say, but then another guard was coming over at Matt’s behest, and Keith lowered his eyebrows in confusion as they neglected to put him down. “Uh, you guys can let me go now.”

“I would love to,” Matt called out over the multitude of voices belting out lyrics to one of Allura’ songs, “but Shiro made me promise.”

What?

Before Keith could even begin to ask however, he was suddenly hurtled back over the railing separating the stage from the crowd of people, up and over their heads with a sickening stomach drop.

And then hands were touching him everywhere, in places hands had no business being, and Keith knew exactly what was happening.

“NO!” he yelled, twisting to glare at Matt and his friends as they all laughed and filmed him being carried away by the crowd. “YOU FUCKERS! LET ME DOWN!”

But no one was listening. The crowd roared beneath him, passing him along to the next set of hands as he involuntarily traveled over their heads.

“WOOO WE GOT A CROWD SURFER!” someone called out, and suddenly everyone in his proximity was staring; cameras and phones and even a Go-Pro or two turning in his direction as Keith made his way to the front of the pit.

I’m gonna KILL THEM! Keith thought savagely as the shouting threatened to drown him; palms touching and steadily maneuvering him towards the middle of the mosh.

And then, to make matters entirely worse, a beam of white, intrusive light was shining down on him, following his movements as the crowd dictated his direction.

PIDGE!

He knew it was her. She helped run the lighting system, and there was no way Matt wouldn’t have told her what had transpired, considering they were siblings.

That’s it! I’m so quitting after this!

But in the meantime, Keith was subjected to the embarrassment, at least in his eyes, of having everyone in the stands able to see him in perfect clarity; the people in the crowd below him all turning to try and get a hand on him, if only to be seen better by Allura up on stage by getting below the spotlight.

Like she would be able to see anything anyways. The lights up there are too bright thank fuck.

But that didn’t stop the mob from trying, and Keith was hurtled back and forth for what felt like an eternity before the fingers finally tapered away.

Except then he was tumbling downwards into a gap, and gravity quickly took over as he dropped.

“Ah shit-” he managed to get out, before another set of hands was reaching up to catch him. Only this time they didn’t pass him off. This time they collapsed underneath him, and Keith was subjected to another stomach dropping sensation as hands became arms, and he found himself thoroughly cradled against the chest of-

Oh wow…

This guy is HOT.

Literally and otherwise.

Sweat was beading on a deep brown forehead, which hosted a pair of delicate eyebrows that were raised high above a dazzling set of blue irises. His saviours mouth was parted slightly, most likely just as shocked as Keith was at the sudden turn of events, and for a moment all they did was stare at each other; the sounds of the crowd fading as Keith’s heart pumped frantically against his ribcage.

And then those lips were twisting up at the corners, until a goofy, lopsided grin was lighting up the guys features better than the spotlight still shining down upon them.

And then he was calling out.

“HALLELUJAH IT’S RAINING MEN!”

A roar of cheering went up, and Keith hoped it was because Allura had done something cool on stage. But he had his doubts.

Mostly because this guys voice carried far, and the spotlight was still firmly highlighting them in the mosh pit. That, coupled with the fact that everywhere Keith looked he was faced with a camera of some sort, was enough of a sign that the crowd, at least those around him and this guy, were all watching.

Had all seen.

And had most definitely heard.

It was suddenly all too much.

Get me OUT OF HERE.

Keith quickly scrambled out the grip of the stranger beaming down at him, his cheeks blazing with embarrassment and...probably something else. But mostly embarrassment.

“Uh, thanks,” he managed to get out, though he doubted his words reached the ears of the guy who had caught him, and he didn’t stick around to find out. Keith spun on his heel, edging away from Pidge’s light until it finally shut off, and then he disappeared in the crowd.

He dodged elbows and shimmied passed bodies until finally he was free of the mosh; eager to be away from it and put as much distance between himself and the group of fans and, unfortunately, that guy as humanly possible, at least until he had to do his final stage check.

And as much as it pained Keith to leave in such a rush, basically pulling a Cinderella as he fled his Prince Charming, it had been too much. Crowds he could do, sometimes. He hated them still, but he could handle them if he needed. And meeting people at concerts was a common occurence sure, and Keith was use to that as well.

But the combination of spotlight, crowd surfing, cameras and then hot guy was altogether overwhelming, and as much as he had wanted to stay and possibly chat, his flight or fight instinct had kicked in.

And it didn’t take a genius to know which he had acted on.

I’m going to MURDER SHIRO.

And that was a thought he planned on following through with.

Lance hadn’t meant to get separated from Hunk.

One moment he had been right beside him, dancing along to Allura’s music and feeling entirely too giddy, and the next he was alone.

Well, alone in the sense that he was now surrounded by strangers, and Hunk was MIA.

Oh crap, Lance cursed as his eyes scanned the group of people around him, but it was no use.

I’ll have to find him once this crowd thins out a bit.

But that was also wishful thinking. As Allura’s songs continued to carry out over them, echoing loudly off the walls and mixing with the voices of thousands of fans, the mosh pit grew unruly.

Or, moreso anyways. It tended to happen as concerts neared their end, with people pushing their way to the front in a final attempt to get close enough to touch the artist. And Allura’s concert was no exception.

If anything it was worse, since her fan base consisted of people his age, meaning they weren’t entirely opposed to a little rough-housing to get what they wanted.

This isn’t good, Lance worried as another wave of pushing thrust him up into the people in front of him. He tried to apologize, but had they heard, they didn’t care.

This was a mosh pit quickly coming alive; living and breathing Allura’s music and gaining a mind of its own. And Lance had no choice but to go along with it.

Usually he would be fine in this type of situation. But after losing Hunk, he was less certain. Plus the whole ordeal with catching that random dude from before had really stolen a lot of his energy, and Lance was running on empty as another song started up.

Oh god, I just want it to end!

Lance quickly shook his head of the thought.

No. This was a concert featuring one of his favourite artists. He could persevere. And he would like it!

Scratch that.

He would love it.

But unfortunately, no amount of pep talk could tame the crowd of people; rapidly becoming more beastly as the night went on. It was all Lance could do to stay on his feet, but even that was too much to hope for apparently.

As another surge of people pushed the crowd forward, Lance tripped, arms flailing uselessly as he struggled to keep his footing.

Oh shit this is it! I’ll be trampled! Just like that scene from the Lion King!

He shut his eyes, waiting for the impact as he tumbled downwards.

But the fall never came.

Instead, two hands reached out and caught him, steadying him as well as hoisting him up in one fluid motion. Lance opened his eyes, and as surprised as he was to find himself standing once again, it was nothing compared to finding out who had done the honours.

There, standing in front of him with a small smile and flushed cheeks, framed by- is that a mullet? How did I not notice that before? -was the guy who had fallen from the heavens.

Well, not really, but he may as well have considering how angelic he looked. Lance was once again stunned speechless as his eyes grazed over the face of the one who had saved him; their roles having apparently reversed.

He could sense the stares of several people around him, but was too preoccupied with the boy in front of him, who still had his arms secured tightly around him, to care.

And then, after forcefully reminding himself that words were a thing, Lance was able to speak.

“First you come flying my way and now you’re here to save me. Are you my guardian angel or what?” Though the crowd was deafening, he knew the boy had heard him, as his own smile grew, dimpling his cheeks.

Oh fuck that’s cute.

And then his arms were leaving Lance’s sides, and he silently mourned their loss.

“A simple thanks would have been enough,” the boy was saying, leaning forward slightly out of habit to ensure his voice was audible. Lance grinned back, tilting his own head down closer to his saviours ear.

“I’m eternally grateful,” he replied, but before he could say much else, the crowd surged forward once again, shoving them aside as a large line of people tried to weasel their way to the front. Lance reached a hand out, not fully knowing why, only feeling deep in his gut that he didn’t want to lose this guy again.

The first time had been bad enough, but now that they had met again, in a mosh pit no less, Lance wasn’t keen on letting the opportunity to at least introduce himself pass by.

But it was not to be. Even as the stranger, whom he’d saved and then been saved by, reached out his own hand, trying desperately to lock fingers and stay together, it wasn’t enough.

The mob had a mind of its own, and the wishes of two were nothing compared to the hopes of a thousand.

The boy slipped away, swallowed just as Hunk had been by the throng of people, and Lance was once again left alone.

“Oh my god I found you!”

Lance looked up from where he was standing near the entrance, arms crossed over his chest as his eyes frantically searched the horde of people as they left for the night. He jumped when he heard the voice, and then Hunk was there, wrapping him up in a bone crushing hug.

“I thought you were gone forever!”

Lance patted his back reassuringly, trying to dispel the growing disappointment settling in his gut.

Now if only I can find that other guy…

“What happened?” Hunk was asking, stepping back and scanning Lance’s face with worry. “I lost sight of you for a split second and then you just vanished! See, this is why we don’t do the mosh pit. I tell you all the time that something-” but Lance was no longer listening. He was doing another sweep of the crowd, hoping to see that same smile, or those glistening eyes. Hell, even the mullet would be a welcome sight.

Where are you?

He wasn’t sure why he was so determined to locate the guy who had fell right into his arms, not only once but twice that night, but it just felt like the right thing to do. And if he just left without trying then what was the point?

Magical things happened at concerts, and Lance didn’t want his story to end just yet.

“Lance?”

Hunk’s voice cut through his thoughts, and Lance blinked as his attention was pulled back to his friend.

“Hmm? Yeah? What’s up?”

Hunk frowned, glancing behind him in the direction Lance had been looking.

“Are you searching for something?”

Lance sighed, shaking his head lightly.

“Um, nah. We can go.”

But Hunk was stubborn, and whipped back around with a knowing gleam in his eyes as he smirked down at Lance.

“Oh, not something, but someone. You’re hoping to see that guy again!”

Lance could feel his cheeks heat, but there was no point denying it. Besides, maybe Hunk would be able to help him search.

“Yeah. After I lost you in the mob I ran into him again. Or, well,” Lance chuckled dryly as he rubbed the back of his neck, feeling the ghost of the stranger's hands on his back. “More like fell into him.”

“What? No way. It was the same guy?” Hunk asked, and Lance nodded. “What are the chances!”

“I know! That’s why I was trying to find him, to see if he was leaving or...I don’t know, say hi or something.”

“Thank him for saving you?”

“Yeah.”

“Get his number?”

“Yea-wait, what?” Lance shoved Hunk’s arm lightly as his best friend started laughing. “Ha. You’re funny.”

“I’ll help look,” Hunk said once as his giggles subsided. “It’s not everyday you run into the same stranger twice, especially at a concert.”

Lance felt his heart swell as Hunk began scanning the crowd, and then he was smiling warmly up at him.

“Hunk, have I ever told you you’re my best friend?”

“All the time buddy,” Hunk answered, and together they waited to see if Lance’s mystery man would make a reappearance.

“SHIRO RUN!” Matt’s voice cut through the busy clatter of machinery as the crew worked to disassemble the stage Allura had just finished performing on.

Keith saw his brother glance up from where he was toiling over the mics; saw Matt waving his arms frantically as he noticed Keith approach, and heard the shout loud and clear.

And maybe before he would have made Matt’s warning worthwhile, charging up to his brother and tackling him to the ground for having put him through the trauma that was crowd surfing.

But instead he let it go, giving Matt the stink eye as he made to sit on the edge of the stage near Shiro.

His brother was watching him, waiting to see what he would do.

“So….” he started, and Keith turned to face him. “Uh, how was the concert?”

Keith glanced over at Matt, who was now cowering behind a large speaker and eyeing them cautiously, and shrugged.

“Oh, good. Loud.”

Shiro was watching him suspiciously, as if on edge.

Hmm, good enough for him. I’ll get my revenge later though.

Currently he was too preoccupied thinking about those blue eyes.

And those lips…

Keith jumped as a hand clapped down on his shoulder, and suddenly Shiro was crouching at his side, concern etched in his features.

“You ok? Look, I’m sorry I asked the guys to do that, but I wanted you to have the full concert experience at least once on this tour. I know you’re probably mad-”

“I’m not,” Keith interrupted, and Shiro fell silent. “Well, I was . Pissed actually. People were touching my butt Shiro. Unforgivable.”

“Yeah...sorry again…”

“But I changed my mind.”

Shiro opened his mouth as if to say something, but closed it after a moment, his confusion evident as he waited for Keith to elaborate.

“Oh! OH!” Matt ran over, having apparently heard the exchange, and held out his phone. “It’s because of this!”

There was a blurry photo on his screen, showing the crowd from a bird’s eye view. It was hard to make out much, with most of the people ending up as smudges of colour from the unsteady hand that had taken the picture, but Keith was able to identify enough to know the photo was of him, being carried by the mosh pit, with the spotlight highlighting his every move.

“Where-” he started, and Matt happily filled them in.

“Pidge sent it to me. I got her to shine the light on you after texting her what we did-OW!” he yelped as Keith landed a solid punch to his arm, rubbing at it as he pouted and edged away from where he was sitting. “Yeah, ok I deserve that.”

“Yeah. You do.”

“Wait,” Shiro yanked the phone from out of Matt’s hand and squinted down at the photo. “He’s not even crowd surfing! He’s just...being held? Who is that?”

“See?” Matt leaned forward, wary of Keith’s arms. “He landed on some guy! Pidge said it was super awkward.”

“It wasn’t!” Keith exclaimed, and quickly shut his mouth as the volume carried a little farther than he had been anticipating. “He just caught me is all.”

Shiro hummed, handing Matt back his phone and tousling Keith’s hair lightly before getting back to work.

“So he caught you?” he asked, fiddling with the various wires.

“Yeah? I told you that already.”

“Did he do anything weird I should know about?”

“What? No! He-”

“Was he cute?”

Keith froze at the question, feeling his face begin to burn and fumbling over his words.

“I mean, sure, in a way-he...yeah, I guess if you’re into that sort of thing.”

Shiro raised an eyebrow.

“Thing as in guys?”

Again Keith faltered, but then nodded. There was no point pretending otherwise, and everyone on the crew already new his sexual orientation. It wasn’t exactly something he hid.

“Yeah.”

“So he was cute.” It was a statement rather than a question, but Keith found himself answering nonetheless.

“Yeah.”

Shiro hummed again, a smile playing at his lips as he watched Keith out of the corner of his eye.

“Did you get a name? Number?”

Keith sighed, tucking his legs up underneath him as he picked at the edge of the stage idly.

“No...I didn’t. But I ran into him again later on when I was checking on the wiring near the front, and he was really nice and-”

“Hold up,” Shiro interrupted, and Keith glanced over at him. “You’re telling me you bumped into the same guy, who you think is cute, twice in the middle of a mosh pit and you didn’t get his number?! Or even a name ?! ”

Keith blushed anew, ducking his head deep into the collar of his jacket.

“No…”

“Keith! What’s the point of going into the crowd if you don’t take advantage of the hotties!”

“I tried!” he groaned back, and Shiro raised an eyebrow skeptically. “A group of people got in between us and I couldn’t grab hold of his hand in time!”

“Woah what!?” Pidge’s voice came from above them, and suddenly she was shimmying down a ladder and trotting over to where Keith and Shiro were. “You guys met up again and I missed it ?!”

Keith opened his mouth to answer, but Shiro beat him to the chase.

“Yeah. And he didn’t get his number. Or even a name.”

“Keeeiiittthh,” Pidge drawled, throwing her hands over her head. “And after I put in all that effort of making you stand out!”

“Uh yeah about that-” he started, but Matt interrupted him this time.

“Yo Pidge, great light show tonight! I heard Keith really enjoyed it.”

They high-fived, and Keith let his head fall into his knees with a whine.

“I hate you all,” he muttered, voice muffled but still audible. He heard the others chuckle.

Jerks.

Then again….without them I wouldn’t have met that guy…

But what was the point? Keith had failed to get a number, and he had no idea what the guy’s name even was! He had just about as good a chance at seeing the stranger again as he was getting his friends to quit teasing him.

A.K.A slim to none.

He groaned again, and felt Shiro’s hand on his back once more.

“Hey, don’t fret. If it was meant to be something more would have come out of it, right?”

“I don’t know man,” Pidge was saying. “They met twice in one night, in a mosh pit.”

“Yeah those are already some crazy odds,” Matt added, and Keith groaned louder this time.

“Guys, not helping,” Shiro whispered, and Keith flopped down on the stage with a resigned huff.

“My life is a tragedy,” he pouted, and then Shiro’s hand was hovering over his chest, and Keith took it after a moment. He was hoisted to his feet with ease, and Shiro smiled down at  him.

“Whatever the case, at least you had fun, right? You’ll remember this night for a while.”

“Yeah, as the one that got away,” Pidge muttered under her breath, and Matt smacked her lightly on the arm.

“I guess,” Keith replied, and then crossed his arms over his chest as he raised an eyebrow up at his brother. “But don’t think for a second that you’re forgiven. You better sleep with one eye open.”

Shiro scoffed, placing a hand over his chest and taking a dramatic step backward.

“You wouldn’t hurt you dear elder brother, would you?”

Keith shrugged.

“Hurt? No.” He made to jump off the stage, turning back after doing so and gesturing to Shiro’s head. “But you do need a haircut…” he left then, grinning to himself as he heard his brothers startled shriek as his hands flew up to protect his bangs, the ones he had bleached white to match Allura’s.

Keith had no real intention of messing with it, but for now he would let Shiro panic.

It was only fair really, considering he had been the one to initiate the entire crowd surfing incident in the first place. Even if it had resulted in him landing in the arms of such a stud- a nameless one- Keith wasn’t about to forget the imprints of hundreds of foreign hands all over his backside easily.

In fact, the only touch he cared about lingering on him was that of the stranger who had caught him; feeling strong arms tense under his weight, and hands grasp tightly to his shirt during their second encounter. And yeah….those eyes were still on his mind.

If only I had managed to get a name.

But there was no time for could’a should’a would’a. Keith had a job to do, and he set to work taking down equipment from the show, grateful for something to help keep his mind from wandering too far down fantasy lane.

But the thought remained, no matter how hard he tried to dispel it:

If only I had gotten his name.

The roads had been fairly clear driving back to Lance’s house.

It helped that the more eager bunch of people had left quicker, wanting to get home and likely drink into the wee hours of the morning following Allura’s concert. But mostly it was because he and Hunk had stayed nearly an hour and half after the show ended, trying to find the guy Lance was quickly losing hope of ever seeing again.

In the end, after another hug from Hunk and an offer to drive them back, Lance had agreed it was time to leave.

He must have slipped out early.

Lance wasn’t sure what he had been expecting. Maybe a quick run-in? A brief moment to say hello?

But then what?

What made him think that this guy would even want to find out his name? Hell, for all Lance knew, he was straight as an arrow, uninterested in him at all, and had simply been in the right place at the right time.

Twice.

But that doesn’t just happen!

And there had been no denying the flush that crept up the stranger's neck and into his cheeks when they had been in each other's arms.

If only I had been able to hold on.

It was frustrating, and Lance hadn’t really slept that night. Hunk had insisted he try and get some rest, but try as he might, Lance’s mind was running in circles about all the ways he could have changed the outcome of the night.

Maybe if I had given him my number…

Is that too forward?

Nah, it would have been fine.

People do that at concerts all the time!

But no, instead I stood like an idiot gaping at the dude, unable to make words work.

I didn’t even get to introduce myself!

UGH.

He must have passed out at one point however, because when Lance awoke the next morning, or mid-afternoon as it was, his neck was kinked and two of his pillows had been tossed haphazardly on the floor.

“What-” he croaked, ears feeling muffled from the intense volume of the show mere hours before. He yawned, and felt one of them pop pleasantly, and suddenly the world sounded much crisper.

Lance rubbed the sleep from his eyes, repositioning himself on his elbows as he reached groggily for his phone. Hunk had sent him a good morning text several hours before, and Lance was once again baffled at how amazing his best friend was.

How the hell was he up that early?!

Maybe because he wasn’t up all night thinking about a stupid mullet.

Yeah, that’s probably it.

Lance groaned, throwing a hand over his face as he rolled over on his side. His dreams, from what he could remember of them, had been all based entirely on the events of the concert, only he didn’t think he’d been wearing pants.

But that had been a minor detail. Everything else had been the exact same as what had happened in real life, and Lance was once again reminded of his shortcomings.

I should just forget about it. It’s not like I’ll see him again.

He may have spoken too soon.

After scrolling through his friend’s stories on Snapchat and liking several new photos on Instagram, Lance made his way over to Facebook, wincing slightly at the harsh white light as the app loaded.

And then his eyes were blown wide.

There, at the top of his feed, shared by mutuals he wasn’t sure he even knew, was a video.

A video of Allura’s concert.

Only, it wasn’t of her, as Lance would have expected. Instead the caption at the top read something else entirely; something that had his heart pumping a few beats faster as his finger hovered over the play button.

Hallelujah It’s Raining Men!

I said that!

He clicked on the video, and right away Lance knew exactly what it would show. Allura’s music blasted in the background, a song Lance recalled belting out with the thousands of other strangers in the venue, and for a moment all the screen displayed was a horizon of hands waving excitedly in the air.

And then screaming could be heard as a something passed overhead of a group of giddy girls; white light following its movement.

Lance’s stomach flipped.

It’s him!

But that wasn’t even the best part. Lance watched as the camera followed the light, and thus the stranger, as he traveled reluctantly over the heads of everyone in the mosh pit. The video zoomed in, trying to capture everything as the guy suddenly toppled downwards towards-

IT’S ME!

Lance jolted upright, bringing his phone closer to his eyes to better analyze the video. Sure enough, his own face came into view as the camera zoomed in closer, several arms swinging back and forth in front of the feed as fans danced. He could see the moment where he caught the crowd surfer as he fell; saw them stare at each other for a solid four seconds, and then heard himself loudly proclaim the very same words the video had been named after.

“ Hallelujah it’s raining men!”

Lance felt his cheeks heat in embarrassment as the crowd around them roared, but he couldn’t deny how awesome the line had been.

“I can’t believe someone caught that on tape…” he mumbled, and then the screen went black as the video ended, but Lance knew how the rest went: with the wide-eyed beauty promptly fleeing the scene.

I should have made more of an effort to find out his name!

Ugh stupid! Stupid!!

Lance watched the video again. And then a third time.

He tagged Hunk in it after the fourth playthrough, but paused before pressing enter in the comments section; his eyes having scanned up briefly to see what others had written.

Holy crap…?

There were a variety of different remarks; some saying simple things like ‘lol’ or ‘omg’, but others had his cheeks heating all over again as he read through them.

Things like: ‘that guy is hot!’ and ‘I want to be caught by someone like that’.

But the most abundant comment Lance read was causing his heart to expand uncomfortably in his ribcage, while simultaneously making his lips curl up in a wide beam as he saw how many people seemed to agree.

It was the recurring statement of ‘I ship it’.

Sure, there were other variations, such as ‘OTP’ and ‘star-crossed lovers’, but they all meant the same thing.

That people were one the same page as Lance about the whole mystery man thing. That it was more than just a fluke meeting.

That is was fate!

I knew it!

Lance jumped out of bed, completely forgetting to actually share the video with Hunk as he got dressed and opened his laptop. He needed to do some serious research now that he knew there was a video out there of his fallen angel.

I can try and see if anyone knows who it is...or see if there are more videos!

That’s not creepy right? Just curiosity…

And who could blame him.

Lance quickly opened Facebook, scrolling down to the video and sharing it to his own feed.

Maybe one of my friends is a mutual of his or something.

It was wishful thinking, but luck must have been on his side that afternoon, because right there, recently posted in the comments section of the video by someone random he didn’t know, was a link.

And right below the link read:

Guys there’s a part 2!

Lance blinked once, wondering what was meant by that, and his burning desire to find out more soon had him redirected to a YouTube video, where Allura’s concert was once again portrayed through the lens of a phone camera.

Except it wasn’t the same scene as before, with him catching the mysterious mulleted man. Instead it was of him falling, quite embarrassingly, forward as the crowd surged towards the front of the stage, and the person filming the incident did a double take with the camera; zooming in on Lance’s face as he tumbled down into the arms of-

Oh my GOD they got this as well!

He could hear the person filming gasp, and then his own voice was filling his ears as his eyes drank in the scene.

“ First you come flying my way and now you’re here to save me. Are you my guardian angel or what? ”

“ Oh my god it’s the same guys!” the person filming said; their voice louder but still hushed as they were jostled around by the crowd. The footage was interrupted by an arm as someone cheered loudly for Allura, so Lance missed seeing the part where the stranger smiled. But he could still vividly recall those dimples.

So unfair…

The video re-focused in on them again, and Lance could just barely make out the words his saviour had spoken over the collective roar of the people.

“ A simple thanks would have been enough. ”

And then his own reply of: “I’m eternally grateful.”

Lance cursed himself as his eyes scanned the screen; pinpointing the exact moment when the crowd started to move again, forcing him and his rescuer apart.

I should have said something more! Or held on tighter!

But as much as he wished it, Lance couldn’t go back and change the past. He watched as they were pulled apart, their arms outstretched and reaching in vain, and he chanted along with the person recording as they began saying “no” over and over again; clearly as upset about the turn of events as Lance was.

The clip ended with the camera being turned back to the main stage; the owner of the phone saying one last line as the feed focused in on Allura.

“ Lovers in a dangerous time I guess…”

And then the screen went black.

Lance heaved a breath, leaning back in his chair and groaning softly as he rubbed his eyes.

Lovers in a dangerous time? More like ‘haven’t met you yet’.

“My angel in disguise….where art thou?” he mumbled to himself, staring up at the ceiling as he pouted. How was he ever going to find this guy? And...hell, should he even try? Maybe their chance meeting was just some fluke, and he was thinking it over too much.

But it must mean something. You don’t just run into the same guy twice at a concert in the middle of a mosh pit. You don’t just save each other twice either. It means something!

But that’s not how life works, he argued with himself.

No...but it’s how fairytales work...

This isn’t some Disney movie though!

True, but...what if it is?

Lance shook his head of the thoughts and reached for his phone. Clearly he couldn’t be seeking advice from himself; that was just a recipe for disaster. But Disney movie or not, he needed to vent to someone.

Someone he could trust not to tease him, or belittle his ideas and thoughts.

Someone with a voice of reason he could fall back on and help ground himself in case his mind decided to float away with possibilities.

He unlocked his screen and quickly opened up his contact list.

“I need to call Hunk.”

Keith was tired.

Mostly because his job was exhausting, what with the long hours and busy schedule that tended to accompany a rockstar on tour, but he was used to that.

He had trained his body to take power naps when needed, made time for exercise whenever he could, and always had a mental map of all the nearest coffee shops with each new city their crew travelled to.

He was on top of his game really, or had been at least.

And then it had all gone to shit.

It had been two days since Allura’s most recent concert, the one where Matt had subjected him to crowd surfing under Shiro’s instructions. Keith had yet to get revenge for that, but his heart hadn’t been in it.

Neither had his head for that matter.

Instead it daydreamed distractedly about strong arms and tan skin, and every time he tried to close his eyes and get some sleep, all he could see was sky.

Who said he could have eyes like that.

Keith groaned as he tossed around in his bunk. Allura’s show wasn’t worldwide, and they travelled around in one of those massive touring busses, and since Shiro was one of her crew leaders, both he and Keith had been given beds in the same one as her. Keith suspected there was more to it than just Shiro’s position on their team, but he hadn’t complained.

Besides, as uncomfortable as it was to watch his brother and Allura make eyes at each other across the table at breakfast, it was better than rooming with Matt.

That guy snored like nobodies business.

Despite the comforts of his bed though, Keith still couldn’t sleep. It was frustrating. And he was exhausted.

But no matter how hard he tried, he just couldn’t get those eyes out of his head.

I should have- he began thinking, but groaned as he rolled over onto his stomach, flattening his face into the pillow. Ah fuck it. It doesn’t matter now anyways.

It was in the past, and their crew was now hours out of the city that likely contained his bronzen hero. Everything was said and done.

More like unsaid and undone, Keith moped, and sighed heavily into the fabric. I should have-

But again he stopped himself. There was no use playing the game of ‘what-ifs’, and Keith had already gone through every possible iteration of that night, so there was no point anymore.

Try as he might though, there was no hiding from that pretty blue gaze that had seemingly imprinted itself behind Keith’s eyelids, and with another huff of resignation, he gave up on trying to sleep.

It was nearly dawn anyways.

Keith padded quietly out of his room, eyeing Shiro’s floof of white bangs and smirking at the thought of cutting them off, but thought better of it as he closed the door behind him and made his way to the front of the bus.

Their driver, who mostly slept during the concerts in order to drive at night, was humming quietly to himself at the wheel. He looked over with a warm smile as Keith sat down in the passenger's seat; the corners of his bushy orange mustache turning up.

“Bit early for you, is it not?” he asked as Keith strapped himself in with the seatbelt and pulled his legs up to his chest. It wasn’t exactly the safest position, but it was comfortable, and Coran never seemed to mind.

“Couldn’t sleep,” Keith answered, eyes scanning down the road as it whipped past them; the surrounding landscape bathed in pastel as the sun slowly woke. He tried not to make any connections with the brightening sky and the stranger's eyes, lest he once again be drenched in regret for not having tried harder to get a name.

He wasn’t very successful.  

Coran must have sensed his mood.

“Something on your mind lad?”

Keith sighed, dropping his chin to his knees as stared out the windshield. He was certain everyone knew the story; had been teased relentlessly by Pidge and her brother, as well as the other crew members over the whole incident with the crowd surfing and the mystery man.

Even Allura had made a few jests at his expense, though they were harmless enough, and Shiro was constantly reminding him to ask for a name the next time something like this happened, though Keith had already learned that lesson. At least with a name they had something to go off of, Shiro would say, and Keith would nod in agreement; his melancholy growing with each passing mile.

And though Keith hadn’t explicitly told their driver what had occurred, there was no real reason why Coran wouldn't know about it all either. Rumours spread fast on tour busses, no matter how elaborate they were.

Where he would usually keep his thoughts to himself however, Keith didn’t see the harm in sharing with Coran. He was a nice enough person, and the rest of the crew considered him to be their father-figure, or crazy uncle. Whatever the case, Keith wondered if maybe he had some hidden wisdom to share, or merely some advice.

“I just…” he took a breath, “I keep thinking about that guy, and I know it’s dumb because it’s just a concert and it means nothing and I’ll likely never see him again but-” Keith broke off, realizing he was rambling, and leaned his head back on the seat. “I just can’t get him out of my head.”

Coran was silent for a moment, and Keith was beginning to wonder if maybe he was stifling laughter or something, when the man finally spoke.

“Who said it means nothing?”

Keith blinked, turning to stare at their driver in disbelief.

“I uh...what?”

Coran glanced over at him, expression serious and eyes questioning.

“Who said it means nothing?” he repeated, and Keith swallowed thickly. He had heard Coran perfectly clear the first time, and his utterance of confusion hadn’t been due to a lack of understanding. It was simply that he hadn’t expected to be asked such a thing.

“I guess…” he began, but trailed off as he realized that no one in his crew, despite their teasing and sometimes bothersome comments, hadn’t once told him to give up, or that the chance encounters were meaningless. The only person to say such a thing was-

“Myself.”

Coran hummed, turning his eyes back to the road.

“You know Keith,” he started, shifting slightly in his seat, “the universe works in mysterious ways. I know that sounds like a quote from a fortune cookie, and maybe that’s where I heard the saying in the first place-” Keith snorted lightly at that- “but the point remains. People have tried explaining it. They’ve tried putting it all down to math and science, religion, philosophy and art. But fate has always alluded our comprehension.”

“What do you mean?” Keith asked, wondering what any of this had to do with his problem, and if perhaps Coran was leading him out on a tangent.

The man shrugged.

“I mean simply that everything happens for a reason, and you meeting that same boy twice in one night may mean nothing…” he looked over at Keith again; eyes gleaming. “Or it may mean everything.”

Keith frowned, his hands coming up to rest under his chin as he stared out over the road as it blurred beneath them.

“So you’re saying that I’m not crazy for thinking about him so much? Even if we hardly spoke and I don’t even know his name?”

Coran chuckled softly beside him, causing Keith to glance over curiously.

“Not at all dear boy! In fact, I met someone who I hold incredibly dear to my heart in a very similar way.”

Keith blinked, dropping his legs to sit properly in the seat as he turned to stare at Coran.

“Who? What happened?”

Coran smiled, but there was a sadness in his eyes that Keith couldn’t quite explain, and he wondered briefly if maybe he shouldn’t have asked.

“It was ages ago,” Coran explained, “and a great deal of time has passed. But I remember it all still. We kept bumping into each other at a jazz club back when I was a younger lad. Same as your situation really; not knowing each other's names, only exchanging a few pleasantries here and there. But every time I went there, we would meet again. And I couldn’t help but start thinking that the universe was trying to tell me something.”

“So what did you do?” Keith egged, and Coran’s smile shifted downwards as he sighed.

“It took me a long while to work up the nerve to have a genuine conversation. Too long…” he trailed off, and there was a heavy silence for a few minutes before he went on. “I had been out of town for a few weeks prior, and over that time I had made the decision to finally ask them their name. But when I got back, I discovered that the jazz club had been shut down. Windows boarded up and door nailed shut. It was a terrible thing to see.” Coran released a steady breath, turning to stare at Keith with shining eyes. “But the worst part was...I never got that name.”

A shiver ran down Keith’s arms, and he tucked his legs up under him once again as a feeling of unease settled over his mind.

Just like me…

“Oh, that was probably not helpful of me to say,” Coran went on hastily, noticing Keith’s actions. “But my story doesn’t end there. I mentioned that the universe works in ways we do not understand, and a week after discovering the closure of the jazz club, I met someone new. Someone I had no trouble striking up a conversation with. And it just so happened that we both had been going to that same jazz club for years, and had simply never bumped into one another.”

“Really?”

Coran nodded.

“Everything happens for a reason, remember? Maybe the universe has plans for you and this boy, or maybe, like myself, you just need to wait and see.”

Keith hummed as he pondered Coran’s words. His story was very similar to Keith’s, and he had, in his own roundabout way, brought some comfort.

He smiled, staring up into the much brighter sky as the sun peaked over the horizon, and felt a wave of exhaustion wash over him.

Yeah, if the universe wills it, so be it.

“Thanks Coran,” Keith mumbled, undoing his seatbelt and standing up.

“Anytime my boy,” the man replied. “But if you don’t mind me asking, are you planning on doing anything? About the boy that is.”

Keith stretched, feeling his muscles pull tightly in his arms and upper torso, and felt himself grin.

“Yeah,” he said, gaze wandering up to the sky again; the blue so reminiscent of the stranger's eyes that Keith could almost pretend he was staring into them again.

And then Coran’s words echoed softly in his head, about the universe and fate and everything happening for a reason, and he sighed contently as he turned away. “Yeah, I think I’ll let fate decide. And in the meantime I’ll have a nap.”

“Keith, wake up!”

What..?

Keith’s eyes opened slowly, his mind groggy from sleep as he took in the form of his older brother hovering near his bunk.

“C’mon get outta bed you slug!”

Keith groaned, attempting to roll over on his other side and away from Shiro, but a heavy hand landed on his shoulder, preventing the escape.

“I have something to show you, and I can promise you’re gonna like it.”

“Doubt it,” Keith mumbled back, but his eyes were already blinking away sleep, and he slowly lifted himself out from under the covers on his bed. “I swear if it’s another picture of a baby sheep-” he broke off as he saw Shiro’s shit-eating grin, and felt his eyebrows lower over his eyes as he frowned. “What did you do.”

“What? Nothing!” Shiro exclaimed, but Keith wasn’t sure how much he trusted those words. “Just get out of bed and come to the table. Bring your phone.”

Bring my phone…? What?

But Shiro was already leaving, closing the door behind him to give Keith the privacy to change.

Ugh.

He took his time getting ready, mostly to prove a point to his brother, but also because, despite the nap, he was still incredibly tired. He had only slept for a few hours after talking with Coran, and could feel himself growing irritable at each minor inconvenience, such as misplacing his hair brush, or discovering his shirt was inside-out.

I need coffee.

When he finally emerged from his room and stumbled into the kitchen part of the tour bus, Keith was greeted by the grinning faces of several of his friends.

He immediately knew something was up.

“What did you guys do,” he demanded, folding his arms over his chest as Matt and Pidge waggled their brows at him. It was then Keith realized they weren’t moving, and that their entourage were pulled over at some kind of pit stop.

That explains how Pidge and Matt are here…

But Keith didn’t take any comfort in that knowledge. In fact, it made him even more suspicious of the group of people sitting down at the table in the bus, and he leaned on the counter near the coffee pot as they all stared back at him; various degrees of amusement plastered on their faces.

“ We didn’t do anything,” Allura explained, and Keith narrowed his eyes at her as he heard the way she emphasized that first word. Rockstar or not, she was just as bad as the others when it came to teasing him, and was as close to an older sister as Keith could imagine.

She’s been hanging out with Shiro too much.

“But someone did,” Pidge added to Allura’s statement, and Keith groaned as a series of snickers went around the table.

“Multiple someones,” Matt chimed in, and Keith rolled his eyes as he poured himself a cup of coffee.

“Shiro if you woke me up for some dumb prank or to tease me about that guy again I swear to-”

“Keith,” his brother interrupted, a smile playing at his lips as he pulled out his phone. “Just, check your phone.”

What?

“Why,” he said instead, and saw them all exchange knowing looks.

“Just do it.”

“It’s dead.” Which was true. His phone usually charged at night, but Keith had forgotten to plug it in before taking his nap. It had been nearly at half battery when he had left Coran, but sometimes his phone had bad battery days and crapped out earlier.

Either that or he had received a notification during his sleep, and the incessant blinking of the light had drained the life of his cell.

“Go charge it then!” Shiro blurted, and Keith grumbled as he took a large swig of his drink.

“It is! Calm your tits.” He grinned as he saw his brother scoff. “Why do I need it though? Just tell me what’s going on and why you’re all staring at me like I have dirt on my face.”

“Ugh, you are the worst ,” Pidge huffed, taking out her own phone and unlocking the screen. She gestured for Keith to come forward, which he did hesitantly, before thrusting the phone into his hands. “Just look.”

Keith did as he was asked, setting his mug on the table as he scanned over the app Pidge had opened. It was a Facebook page, and Keith’s eyes grew wide as he read over the title.

Lovers in a Dangerous Time

“What is this?” he asked, and Allura thumped her head down on the table with a groan.

“Just keep reading!”

Geesh fine.

He turned his attention back to the screen, over the confusing title, and-

“Holy fuck is that me?!”

“There we go,” Matt whispered to Shiro, who was nodding enthusiastically at Keith.

“Keep reading!” Allura encouraged again, and Keith didn’t hesitate.

His eyes trailed over the page, but there was no doubt that it was himself in the photo, blurry as it was. No one else wore a jacket like his.

And no one else had gone crowd surfing the night of Allura’s concert, from what he had heard anyways.

So yeah, there was no denying the figure in the photo was of himself.

“Why is there a photo of me on this?” he asked, and all together his friends answered.

“Keep reading! !!”

Keith did as they demanded with a huff.

He scrolled down to read the caption on the photo, and his confusion only grew.

Find the Mystery Crowd Surfer

What the actual hell?

He scrolled down further, where a video had been posted. He played it, feeling his jaw drop open in shock as he saw himself drop down from the crowd, right into the arms of the stranger with startlingly blue eyes.

Oh my GOD.

He knew his friends were staring. Could feel their grins as they watched him quickly come to understand what this page was for.

He tried to calm his racing heart, but with each new post, every new photo or comment or status update from random people all over the internet he saw, the more his head spun.

There were hundreds of videos that had been posted to the page, each showing a somewhat different variation of both his and the strangers encounters. Different angles, different commentaries, but always the same scenes.

I forgot how attractive he was…

But that was about the only thought Keith could form as his mind worked to process what he was seeing. It was all so much, and the comments on each post were so embarrassing that he could feel his cheeks heat to the point of burning.

I ship them so much!

New OTP!!

They are perfect I want five.

That taller guy is so cute!

I like the one with longer hair.

Someone write fanfiction about this!

GET THEM TOGETHER ASAP

“Allura’s Facebook page has been blowing up,” Pidge informed him. “People are flooding her inbox asking if she can find out who the guys in the videos are.”

“I’m so glad I don’t run that thing,” Allura added, and Pidge grumbled under her breath.

“Yeah it’s a nightmare right now. I’ve not released any information about you Keith, but I did make a post asking for updates. I’m super curious to find out who this guy is as well now.”

“I know I was teasing you before,” Matt spoke up, “but you’re like, an internet sensation right now. The hashtag ‘concert strangers’ is trending on Instagram and Twitter, but so far no one has figured anything out. It’s so frustrating! I wanna know who this guy is!”

“Well, it doesn’t help that Keith doesn’t update any of his sites. I think the last thing he tweeted about was Heelys, and those stopped being a thing ages ago,” Pidge continued, but Keith was no longer paying attention.

He could feel his pulse rising in his ears, and the voices of his friends grew fuzzy as his eyes swam over the page.

This is crazy. This can’t be happening.

He hardly felt Pidge take her phone from his shaking hands as he struggled to comprehend it all.

“Woah Keith, you ok?” he heard someone ask, but he couldn’t determine who had spoken.

This can’t be happening….

“Keith,” Shiro’s hand landed on his shoulder, jolting Keith out of his trance. He blinked, eyes unfocused as they lifted to search his brothers face. “Are you alright?”

He nodded, words not forming properly in his mouth.

“You sure?” Shiro asked. “I thought you might be excited to see this, since you’ve been so down lately. But if you don’t like this then we can block it-”

“No,” Keith heard himself say a little too hastily, and then he cleared his throat and stepped back. “No, it’s alright.”

“Are you sure?”

He nodded, and then Matt was piping up from the table, leaning across Allura to get a better view of Keith from behind Shiro.

“So lover boy, whatcha gonna do about it all!”

They were all watching him expectantly, waiting for an answer, and Keith took a deep breath before giving one. Coran’s words once again surfaced in his mind, and Keith felt a faint smile creep across his face as he recalled their meaning.

“I think I’m going to take the universe’s hint.”

He turned on his heel then, rushing back to his room and his charging phone, ignoring the confused looks on his friends faces he exited the kitchen, completely forgetting his coffee on the table.

But he didn’t need it now. Adrenaline was coursing through his body, and as Keith dove down onto his mattress, hastily turning on his phone as it slowly charged away, he felt more awake than he had in days.

I’m gonna find you, he thought as his screen came to life, displaying an unbelievable amount of notifications. But he didn’t care.

I’m gonna find you.

And I’m gonna ask you your name.

Lance hadn’t expected to become an internet fad.

No one does really, until they do, and Lance wondered in the back of his mind if there was a wikiHow page out there somewhere explaining how to deal with the sudden popularity.

I can’t believe it!

Hunk had been too busy to come over after Lance had called explaining the videos, and had told Lance to hold off on doing anything too drastic until he could be there to help.

That had been two days ago.

And when Hunk was finally able to visit, Lance was practically crawling up and down the walls from having stayed off his social media until his best friend could aid him.

“You didn’t have to stay away from the internet buddy,” Hunk told him as Lance practically pounced on him upon entering his house.

“Hunk, you know me. And you said nothing drastic. That’s practically my middle name!”

“True,” Hunk admitted, and together they had begun scouring the web for any new news on the mysterious guy Lance had met twice that fateful night.

They hadn’t anticipated finding the Facebook page dedicated solely to that very same purpose.

And then the Twitter tag had blown up, and Instagram posts were surfacing all over his feed showing images of Allura’s concert and the same reoccurring hashtag of ‘concert strangers’.

Hunk had been the one to suggest they take the more subtle route, and together he and Lance had posted their own photo from that night to Lance’s Instagram; one they had taken outside the poster displaying who they had come to see.

And then, because it was better to not come across as desperate and maybe make things more natural, Hunk had advised Lance against using the now popular tag, and instead let the internet seek him out on their own accord.

It hadn’t taken long at all.

In the span of an hour, Lance’s Instagram had gained fifty new followers, and his Twitter, which was linked in his bio, was sending him an influx of notifications from random people tagging him in posts screaming that they had found one of the guys.

It was entirely overwhelming.

But Lance was buzzing with excitement.

I have a chance at finding him!

And as thrilling as that thought was, Lance couldn’t help but feel nervous. What if the stranger was completely against finding him? What if he was seeing all this and choosing to ignore it in order to forget about the whole thing?

Hunk had tried to provide comforting words, saying that it was possible he didn’t have Facebook or Twitter or Instagram.

But that was preposterous. Who didn’t have at least one of those in this day and age?

What if he’s weirded out by all this.

Should I be weirded out?

Lance had never really cared much about his privacy, so he wasn’t concerned about having strangers stalk his social platforms, but he knew not everyone felt the same.

What if he already knows who I am and thinks I’m ugly or something? What if he doesn’t want to find out more about me?

He hadn’t shared that thought with Hunk. Instead he buried it deep down and pretended it didn’t exist.

“Hey Lance, I gotta get going.” Hunk was donning his coat, and it took Lance a minute to zone back into the present. He blinked, stretching from his seat in front of his laptop and tossing on an award-winning pout.

“But Hunk! What if we find him! There’s gotta be someone on the internet who knows who he is!”

His friend shrugged.

“Undoubtedly, but I promised mom I’d take care of the house while she’s away, and I need to walk Pistachio.”

Lance groaned.

“I can’t believe your dog is taking priority over me.”

Hunk chuckled, tossing a pillow at Lance’s head lightly.

“You can take care of yourself, but Pistachio doesn’t know how to use the bathroom in the house. And if she pees on the floor I have to clean it up. You know how much I hate doing that.”

“Yeah yeah, I know where your loyalties lie,” Lance whined, throwing the pillow back on his bed. “What am I supposed to do without your guidance!”

Hunk walked over to where he was sitting and promptly closed the lid of his laptop.

“Hey!” Lance protested, but Hunk ignored him.

“You go outside or something. You’ve been staring at a screen all day.”

Lance scoffed, crossing his arms over his chest and jutting out his lower lip.

“What are you, my mother?”

“No, but if you want I can tell her what you’ve been up to-”

“Alright fiiiiinnnee,” Lance drawled, interrupting Hunk. The last thing he needed was his real mom finding out he’d been on the internet all day searching for a stranger. He didn’t need that talk again. “I’ll go outside and use my imagination.”

Hunk grinned, nodding to himself as he headed for Lance’s door.

“Good. I’ll be back later. I just have to clean up the house a little before my own mother gets home.”

“Mhhmm,” Lance replied, waving a hand absently as he watched his best friend leave. He sat in his chair for a few minutes, starting at a spot on his floor, and then promptly stood.

“Maybe fresh air will help actually,” he admitted to himself, and quickly tossed on a beanie and a sweater before heading out. A cool breeze washed over his face as he exited his home, and Lance sighed contently as it played with his hair and tickled the back of his neck.

He began walking down the sidewalk, heading in no particular direction, and let his mind wander.

I wonder what would happen if I actually found him.

Should I send him a message? Or just a friend request or something?

Or do I just forget about it all?

There’s no way this guy hasn’t seen what’s been going on. No way. He must know.

So what if he’s ignoring me on purpose?

“Ugh,” Lance groaned, letting his head fall back to stare up at the sky. He was overthinking things again, and without Hunk here to vent to, his thoughts stewed and boiled until they were threatening to consume him, and Lance finally halted his walk to sit on a park bench and check his phone.

Sorry Hunk, but the suspense is killing me!

There were nearly seventy new notifications waiting on his phone when he took it out.

“Yikes…” Lance mumbled under his breath as he began sorting through them all. Most were new follow requests on his Facebook and Instagram, but there were several from Twitter as well, and Lance sighed as he read over the new posts with his name tagged in the comments.

Oh well, even if this doesn’t work out the way I want it to I’ll have a bunch more followers.

He was nearing the end of the long list of notifications when the Twitter icon popped back up on his screen, and Lance frowned slightly as he read over the brief description the notification provided.

It was from another random person on the internet, with the name ‘Kogane489’ attached to the message.

‘This is all your fault.’

Lance’s frown deepened, and he wondered hesitantly if he had done something to upset someone, or said anything that could have been taken offensively, but nothing came to mind.

His curiosity finally won out, and Lance quickly reopened the app in order to check out the tweet.

There, beneath the username and the line ‘this is all your fault’, was a photo collage. Lance clicked on it, and his jaw grew slack as he realized what it was he was seeing.

Notifications of all sorts, from various social medias, much like the ones plaguing his own phone, had been compiled into this one photo, and it took Lance a full thirty seconds to realize that this wasn’t just some random person on the internet tagging him in another concert related post.

This was the guy.

“Oh my GOD!” Lance exclaimed, his voice echoing sharply across the park and startling several nearby pigeons.

Holy shit it’s him!

Lance knew he should contact Hunk, but his impulse control was out walking a dog, and in the span of ten seconds he was sending a reply.

‘LOVERBOY MY ANGEL I FINALLY FOUND YOU AGAIN!'

As soon as the tweet went out he regretted it.

Fuck, what if he’s actually mad at me! I probably just scared him away!!

“Oh crap,” he cursed, exiting the app in favour of sending a quick SOS text to Hunk.

‘ HE FOUND ME AND I DID THE DRASTIC.’

Hunk’s reply was instantaneous.

‘ LANCE WHAT! Where r u im coming over!’

But before Lance could send out his location, his phone began buzzing anew, and an influx of notifications flooded his screen as the internet seemingly got a hold of the exchange.

Oh fuck…

Lance felt his palms grow clammy, and he stood hastily, eager to be moving in order to defuse his nervous energy.

Oh god what have I done!

I ruined it. I just ruined it!

But try as he might, Lance couldn’t ignore his phone for long. He pulled it out again, shifting his weight anxiously from one foot to the other as his eyes scanned over the long list of usernames now flooding his Twitter notifications.

He searched, not recognizing any of them, and felt his panic grow.

Oh no I scared him off!!

But then, just as he was about to throw his phone across the park in frustration over his impulsivity, a familiar name reappeared on his screen, and Lance’s stomach dropped as he read the reply.

‘You just made it even WORSE!’

“Dammit,” Lance cursed, and instead of retweeting his answer publicly, he tapped on his mystery man’s username instead, in order to message him directly and hopefully calm the raging waters of the interweb.

‘ I’m so sorry I was just excited that I actually found you!’

He waited forty-three seconds for a reply. They were the most suspenseful seconds of his life.

But the reply did come.

‘ Technically I found you.’

Wait...what?

Lance paused, his fingers hovering over the screen as he re-read the message.

Is he not angry?

And then another message popped up on his screen, and Lance nearly forgot how to breathe as he read it over.

‘And since I won, I get to choose the prize.’

WHAT?!

Lance had to sit down, the blood rushing to his head and making his vision blur as he typed out his response.

‘ So you aren’t mad at me?’

The next message came through in a matter of seconds this time.

‘ Mad? Why would I be mad at the guy who saved me from that awful crowd surf?’

Oh my god he’s not upset!

Lance felt a wave of relief flood into his body, and he sunk deeper into the park bench as his muscles relaxed. He was grinning as he typed out his reply.

‘ Well you saved me from falling flat on my face so I guess we’re even. ’

‘We were even, until I found you first. So I win and now I get a prize.’

Oh my god he’s cute, Lance thought as he snickered at the message, and decided to play along.

‘Alright then my angel, what is it you so desire?’

Lance had been expecting something flirty in reply. His mind had also wondered briefly if this guy was just after pics or something, but he was pleasantly surprised when he discovered the prize was entirely innocent.

‘ What’s your name?’

“Wow he’s adorable,” Lance muttered as he sent his response.

‘My name? That’s all? Not a very good prize if you ask me.’

‘I didn’t get a chance to ask you before, and I don’t want to miss out on the opportunity again, so yes.’

‘Also I think it’s a very good prize.’

Lance could feel his cheeks heat as he read over the messages. He nibbled on his lower lip absently as he grinned, fingers flying over the keyboard.

This is it. The moment I’ve been waiting for.

And luckily for him he had been rehearsing the perfect line for the past two days.

‘They call me Lance, but you can call me anytime ;)’

It was several minutes with no reply that had Lance beginning to wonder if maybe that had been too much, when a responding message finally came through.

‘Really?’

Really? Lance repeated, confused at the single word, and then realized this guy had taken his flirt quite literally.

I didn’t think that would actually work!

Like, he wants my number!

But what would Hunk say? Should I give it out just like that?

Probably not…

Oh but I want to!

No, wait for Hunk. He’ll know what to do.

But as much as Lance knew that was most likely the proper call, he couldn’t bring himself to do it. Why wouldn’t he give this guy his number?He had been dreaming of giving out his digits ever since meeting the boy, and here he was once again presented with the opportunity to do so even after he had begun to accept the possibility that it was all futile.

It didn’t take a fool to know when to take a chance.

Or maybe it did, but Hunk wasn’t around to stop him, so Lance made his decision.

There was another message waiting for him when he turned his attention back to his phone.

‘Oh wait, I get it now. Sorry…that probably sounded super creepy and eager. I didn’t mean to freak you out or anything...’

Lance chuckled, and if his mind hadn’t been made up before on the matter, it definitely was now.

‘Nah it’s cool. This is using up my data anyways.’

He typed in his phone number, and then waited.

A minute went by.

Then two.

Then five.

It was on the seventh minute that Lance was beginning to worry, and then suddenly his phone was buzzing again. Only this notification wasn’t via Twitter, as Lance had been expecting, but rather a phone call, and Lance’s heart jumped into his throat as he scanned over the unknown digits.

Is he calling me?!

Lance hesitated as his phone rang, not knowing what to do. It wasn’t like him to be nervous over such things, but that didn’t stop his pulse from kicking up ten notches as the numbers danced across his screen.

He’s calling me though, that’s a good thing!

It means he wants to talk. Like we did in person!

And if it’s weird then at least I’ll know right away, right?

Lance shook his head of the thoughts and let his impulsivity take over. In one fluid motion he slid the phone icon over to answer, and brought his cell to his ear.

“Hello?”

There was a pause, and then, hesitant but reassuringly familiar, a single word was spoken.

“Lance?”

Lance chuckled despite himself, amused at the questioning tone.

Who else would it be?

“The one and only,” he answered, and heard the resounding sigh of relief on the other end.

“Oh thank god,” Lance chuckled again as he heard the mumbled phrase, and then the voice on the other end was coming through his speaker loud and clear, and he could almost picture the guy standing right next to him; eyes sparkling in the dim lighting of the mosh pit. “I figured this would be easier than texting, but if it’s creepy just hang up. I won’t mind.”

Again Lance laughed, and felt his own nerves ebb away as the voice of the stranger rang pleasantly in his ear.

I can’t believe this is happening!

“Why would I hang up? My guardian angel is calling me! And after all I went through to find you!”

He heard a soft chuckle on the other end, and could just picture those dimples denting rosy cheeks.

“I think the internet did most of the work, but yeah. This is kinda cool, right?”

Lance was nodding along his agreement as he spoke.

“More like surreal. I didn’t think I’d ever get the chance to see you again, much less talk to you. I feel like I’m in a dream.”

“Or a fairytale?” the voice asked, and Lance huffed out a small laugh.

“Definitely a fairytale. Hollywood is gonna be knocking on my door asking to write a movie about us soon. We’re internet sensations.”

“Yeah, was not expecting that to be honest. I think I might have to delete my Twitter now that I’ve found you. People keep tagging me in things and it’s exhausting.”

Lance bit back a grin.

“Oh angel, I think it’s only going to get worse. I’m for sure going to tell the world that I finally found you.”

“You mean that I found you ?”

“Minor details,” Lance scoffed, and he heard the voice huff out a breathy laugh.

“I’m Keith, by the way.”

Keith…I like that.

Lance smiled into his phone, closing his eyes as he let the sound of Keith’s voice wash over him, bringing with it memories of their brief encounters. He didn’t know if they meant anything. He wasn’t sure if this would even amount to much more than a phone call, but Lance couldn’t care less.

He and Keith had met twice at Allura’s concert, and had been rescued by each other on both occasions.

Maybe it was fate, or sheer dumb luck, but somehow they had found each other again. Someone the internet had helped bring them together once more, and as ironic as it was to admit, the very same people who had come between them in the first place had worked to get them in contact once again.

And this guy, Keith , who was not only impossibly attractive but seemingly too adorable to be real, was now talking to him, even if it was via a phone call. And though Lance wasn’t sure where Keith was or if he would ever see him again, none of that mattered right then.

All Lance knew was that he finally had the name of his guardian angel; this boy who had quite literally fallen right into his arms.

And with a wide beam slowly spreading out across his face, Lance relaxed once again into the back of the park bench, and said the words that he had been sure he would never get to speak.

The sentence he had been hoping to utter ever since bumping into the stranger in the mosh pit at Allura’s concert.

He closed his eyes, imagining the boy standing in front of him, and felt the ghost of those hands wrap securely around his back.

“Well Keith,” he sighed contently, “it’s nice to meet you.”