Work Text:
Wanderlust, noun
1. A strong desire to travel
“Do you ever think about going out there? Exploring way out in the stars?”
Shiro isn’t asleep, instead tipping somewhere between hazy restlessness and active dozing, but it’s early enough to still be late and he’d sworn Katie had already tapped out. The last few months together have taught him that she had a tendency to ramble her way straight into sleep, and she’d fallen silent well over an hour ago. It takes him a moment to work his brain around a response.
“Considering I applied for and got into the Space Exploration Program, I’d say there’s a pretty good chance I’ve thought of it once or twice.”
He shifts a bit in her cramped twin bed and props himself up on one arm in time to see her nose wrinkle at his teasing. Her eyes flutter open. Even in the dark it seems like he can see the warmth radiating from her honey-brown eyes. That heat, slow and languid, had been seeping deep into his bones for a month, two months, maybe forever, until it felt like he could remember no other way of living than this: tucked against her side, staring down at her and forgetting things like how to breathe or what it means to be cold.
“Obviously,” she says, shaking her head.
With a bit of jostling, Katie rolls over in bed to face him. He doesn’t miss her cheeky half-grin as she throws one bare leg over his, just like she doesn’t miss his shiver when she does. While there were plenty of reasons why he prefers having her over at his apartment, the forced proximity of the tiny bed in her 2nd year Garrison dorm room isn’t one of them. He slides one hand onto her hip, but resists dipping further. He’s got the sense she isn’t done with her question.
“So?” he prompts.
“Well, in theory, the answer seems straightforward, but not everyone’s reasons for applying to S.E.P. are the same,” she starts. “Keith told me he just wants to fly the biggest, fastest thing possible-”
“I think he might be disappointed to find that traveling in space feels a lot slower once you get up there.”
Katie laughs. He suddenly understands all of those clichéd love songs about wanting to bottle up someone’s laughter and keep it forever. The Garrison Engineering Program would be missing out if they didn’t start researching the power of Katie’s concentrated laugh to fuel the fleet.
“I tried telling him that,” she says, “but he was way too interested in that 25,000 MPH take off.” She rolls her eyes hard enough for him to practically feel. “And my brother’s not a whole lot different. Matt just wants to play with all the newest cutting-edge goodies, even if that means getting his ass shipped to space every few missions. Well, that and Dad really wanted us to be in the program…”
She trails off, leaving the air thick with something unsaid. Shiro presses his lips together, unsure how to continue. They'd talked about Garrison upper program applications only once, a conversation shared not long before they'd gotten together. Katie had been torn between applying for the Engineering program or Space Exploration; Shiro had been torn between encouraging her to do what was best for her, and doing what would keep her closest to him.
He wishes he could say he tried not to influence her decision, but she’s always been good at cutting through his BS. Katie turned down an fast-track opportunity within the Engineering program, choosing instead to go through the full 3 years of S.E.P.
“What about you?” he asks. “Can’t stand Matt getting his hands on all the new tech before you?”
“Well yeah, I need to get my hands on some super cool alien technology before Matt does, but really… I wanna see what’s up there.” She pauses and chews at her bottom lip for a moment, as if mulling over her next words. “Earth is cool and all, but just imagine everywhere we could go in space. I want to travel to different systems, make contact with whoever - or whatever - is out there. See a new world.”
It’s the raw excitement in her voice whenever she discusses something she’s passionate about that hooked him in the first place. It made him want to become her friend, explore her mind and all of its intricate algorithms, and it draws him to her now. He worms his arm under the sheets and slings it around her waist to pull her flush against him. She giggles a little and squirms but doesn’t twist from his hold.
“You’re brilliant,” he breathes. “If there’s anyone out there who’ll find and learn how to use some wild alien computer or robot or something, it’s you. You’re going to discover all kinds of amazing things.”
She lowers her eyes and smiles, looking a bit abashed. Shiro leans in until his forehead rests against hers and wonders if her lashes, long and light, have their own gravitational force. He can’t escape the pull towards her, nor would he want to.
“I know I will,” she says. “I’ve just been thinking about it a lot… Especially now that you’ve graduated and are getting your first assignment soon.”
Despite five years of working harder than he ever has before to get through the end of the S.E.P. with top marks and a commendation from the Admiral, his first assignment is the last thing he wants to think about tonight. Rumors of an extended outer-system mission had been floating around the S.E.P. for the last few months, and there was a chance that if any new graduate pilot were going to get the mission, it would be him. There’s no doubt Katie’s just as aware of the fact. It hangs heavy there in the space between them.
So, he closes that gap between them with a soft kiss. Her eyes shut and he kisses her again. She takes the opportunity to deepen the contact, sliding the tip of her tongue along the line of his lips. Shiro opens for her, relishing the way her tongue probes the features of his mouth, gliding along teeth and slipping along his tongue. She had a knack for exploration, there was no denying that.
They break away after a few moments, already gasping. He’s ready to dive back into her in every way possible, but before he can, she takes a ragged breath and goes, “I know you’re going to space first. Just save some discoveries for me, okay?”
If Shiro were being entirely open, his answer would sound a lot like this: “I don’t want to go anywhere that isn’t where you are.” But it sounds too much like something else, something they haven’t said, something he desperately hopes but has no idea if Katie even feels.
So instead, he flashes a smile and says, “It’s a deal. Besides, you’re going to need a skilled pilot once it’s your turn.”
She raises an eyebrow and smirks. “A skilled pilot, huh?” He feels her knee bump his thigh and a second later her leg slots between his. “Probably someone with good directional sense, who knows right where to steer.”
A shiver courses down his body as Katie runs her hands along his sides and then across his back. Her fingers slide further down at a snail’s speed. He beats her to the chase, cupping her ass and eliminating the last of the space between them.
“You’ll want someone who has intimate knowledge of what they’re piloting,” he adds on. They’re nose to nose, chest to chest, breath erratic.
“And who likes to take a risk from time to time,” Katie continues. “Have any recommendations on where I could find a pilot like that?”
Grip still firmly situated on her backside, Shiro rolls them both until he’s flat on his back. Katie grins down at him.
“I think I might know a guy.”