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Lance sat on the carpeted ground of his room, music playing softly over a radio located somewhere deep within the house. It had started raining a few minutes ago and Lance had rushed to his view of the outside world, taking in the droplets as they rolled down the glass and fogged up his side of the window. The water was coming in sheets against the glass and the wood of the house, making it feel a degree cooler in the rooms.
Outside he could hear children giggling and splashing in the puddles, even running in front of his room a couple of times. They waved in their soaked jeans and muddy boots before chasing each other away from his field of vision. A flash of white light and a clap of thunder sent them shrieking back into the house, and Lance rested his head against the cold of the window.
It was dark in his room, the door closed and the sticky stars on his ceiling fading with the dying light. It was 7 during summer and, while the time would usually mean the season made it so the sun was out and shining, the gray clouds prevented any kight from seeping through, making the paladin curl up a bit more into his spot on the floor.
Thoughts weren't really in his mind as he sat, knees to his chest, just the ache of experiencing nature for the first time in what felt like a century. Briefly, he wondered how his Altean friends were doing, and the image made a giggle escape his throat- Pidge was probably trying to calm them down in order to save the garrison from being destroyed.
A small knock on the woof of his door brought him out of his trance, Lance being brought down to the cotton around his feet and the thickness of his fur blanket that rested on his shoulders. He called out, alerting whoever was on the other side of the door that they could come in, Lance was decent. Keith appeared with two mugs in his hands, the look on his face one of annoyance at the two mugs he held in both hands. Lance got up in a flash, crossing the room to help ease the weight of both cups from his friend while he shut the door, a small smile taking place of the scowl he had worn seconds before.
"Hope you don't mind. Your mom made some from the kids and ended up making it for whoever came to mind, which ended up being about everyone within a mile radius," the other spoke, gesturing to the tray under his arm. "She made me the chosen one of delivering twenty cups to everyone." Another roll of thunder and Lance was back on the floor, sipping the hot dark chocolate and humming as the warmth traveled into his stomach, heating up his insides in a way a blanket could never.
Keith joined him on the floor, sitting cross-legged and putting his mug on the space in front of him after taking a sip, making a face that made Lance chuckle. "It's got a very unique taste, I should've warned you. I don't know how they make it but Abuelita's definitely not the hot chocolate that can come from other packets." That probably didn't make sense but Lance wasn't looking to make sense, he was looking to appreciate the rain before they were forced to go back into space and risk their lives.
The silence between them became comfortable, hearing the rain pour. It looked like it wasn't letting up soon, like the earth had saved up as much rain as it could just so when Lance came back, it could greet him with puddles and thunder before he went away again. This was mother nature's gratitude for saving her from aliens- at least, the paladin liked to think of it like that. The music from inside the house grew quiet as the house settled, the walls absorbing any sounds that weren't explosions.
Lance almost forgot about Keith's prescence until a body was moving and picking up any leftover blankets, placing it on around his arms. Rolling his eyes, the Cuban lifted up the blanket from his body and brought Keith to his side, their fronts now exposed to the chill but neither of them really minded. Occasionally, they would bump hands or knock arms together while drinking the hot chocolate, but if anything happened, all they got was a smile or, rarely, a giggle.
Sometimes the house would rile up again, a few times people walked in to check on Lance, but most of the time, it was just Keith and Lance wrapped up in a blanket, pulled together with Lance's head resting on the other's shoulders, hands brushing together but not quite entangled yet. When the rain had stopped and the drinks had turned cold, the night was already coming and the two laid on the ground, blanket on them. Keith was bigger than expected but it didn't faze them, just talking in whispers while the house fell asleep without them.
When the red paladin looked like he was falling asleep, Keith picked him up and carried him the short distance to his bed, Lance's arms wrapping around him and refusing to budge with impressive strength, considering he was half-asleep. "Solo quédate conmigo," he mumbled, trying to bring Keith underneath the covers. "No quiero que te vayas."
"Lance--"
"Keith, stay. It's been so lonely without the others, I don't even know if I'm wanted anymore. Just, stay. You can leave when I fall asleep." The broken tone of his words left Keith with more questions than anything but he'd ask in the morning, or the next day. With Lance's arm wrapped around him, the half-galra was warm in more than just his stomach, cheeks flushed as Lance's breath tickled his neck.
And if, after a few moments of quiet, his breath evened out and his eyes grew heavy as he was spooned, it was really nobody's business if Keith awoke the next day, face buried in Lance's chest and arms wrapped around each other. It wasn't anybody's business if he flushed, smiled, and closed his eyes for a bit more sleep because Lance was warm and the outside was turning gray with what looked like another thunderstorm. What mattered is that Lance loved the rain: loved how it smelled like strawberries and papaya, loved that its lips felt soft against his skin, loved that its arms felt secure and strong. If he didn't know any better, Lance would say he was in love with the rain.
But again, that's nobody's business.