Chapter Text
"Go out with me."
Keith stands there in the middle of the hallway of his dorm, wide-eyed and flustered at one of the most popular girls at the Garrison. Around them is a crowd of other boys his age, all standing around and whispering. Keith has never liked the attention, and the one he's receiving currently is unsettling .
"What?" Keith manages to choke out. He's embarrassed, and he hates how red-faced he looks currently.
"You heard me. Go out with me," Janet, is her name. Keith doesn't really think about attractiveness or girls that much but he even had to admit Janet is absolutely stunning . Her silky auburn hair can be seen from miles away, her milky skin glows under any lighting. When she's not in uniform, she wears the finest of clothes that gives off her hourglass figure. Janet is by far the prettiest girl at the Garrison, and she's interested in Keith. Any other guy there would be ecstatic but Keith frankly couldn't care less. He's not interested in her, in anybody to say the least. Frankly, he's kind of mad at her for embarrassing him in front of everybody.
Janet takes Keith mute response as a hesitance. She takes a confident step forward. Her hands are on her hip. Everybody says her voice is sweet and soothing but to him, it sounds snobby and screechy. "Oh, come on, at least give me one date. I mean, it's not like you're going out with anybody."
What a manipulative bitch. She had this planned from the beginning. Call Keith out in front of everybody so he's trapped. Tell him that he owes her at least one date and basically implore him to say yes because it's true: he's single. Keith sighs, resigning to his fate. There isn't any choice is there?
"Janet--"
"Actually, he is."
The hallway erupts into whispers as Janet's perfectly trimmed eyebrows lift skeptically. He feels confused. Who is defending him? Keith's eyes darts to his rescuer. At the sight of tan skin, an oversized hand-me-down jacket, brown hair, and blue eyes, Keith almost chokes in surprise. Out of everybody to step in and stop Janet, Lance is the last person to come to mind. And yet, there he is, standing beside Keith in a protective stance. He looks angry.
"Oh yeah?" Janet's voice turns venomous instantly. She probably did not take into account somebody taking Keith's side, "Who?"
Keith looks between Janet and Lance. Lance's eyes waver, indicating that he just jumped into the situation without thinking. It only lasts a second before Lance composes himself.
"Me."
Keith whips his head at Lance shockingly. He almost slips out a 'what' before stopping himself. Keith restrains himself from face-palming because god , how much thought did Lance put into this? Doesn't he realize that the entire school knows they hate each other?
The hallway is awfully quiet, making the air thick with tension. Janet and Lance are staring each other down. Janet is looking for something, anything to indicate that it's all a lie because it couldn't possibly be. She narrows her brown eyes.
"I don't believe you," Janet seethes.
"There's no need," Lance replies as he grabs Keith's wrist. For the first time, he turns to Keith, blue eyes looking into his violet ones. "Let's go."
Keith complies, letting Lance drag him away from the hallway. Everybody watches them keenly. He hears somebody whisper, "Is it true?" He doesn't dare look back. Instead, he focuses on the back of Lance's head, studying the way his hair slightly sways to the beat of his stride.
They descend the stairs until they reach the 1st level and immediately take refuge in an empty classroom. Keith's head, still muddling over what had just happened, feels all hazy.
"Sit down," Lance says as he pulls out a chair from a desk, "You'll need it."
Keith immediately takes the seat and rests his head against the cool desk. Behind him, Lance slightly massages his shoulders. He's talking to him, but Keith can't register anything, it all enters and comes out of his brain as gibberish, only a few words stand out. All he knows is that Lance is trying to comfort him, how, he doesn't really understand, but it's working . Keith lifts his head and looks up at Lance. Up close, he's never realized that Lance has freckles on his face. He's tempted to run his hands across his face, to feel the texture of his freckles.
They're silent for a few seconds. Ever since their first encounter, every single interaction they've ever had was bickering or fighting or cajoling each other. It's the first time they've ever been in the same room without being at each other's throats. Keith wants to thank Lance, but when he opens his mouth what comes out is, "Why did you do that?"
Lance blinks, slightly taken aback by the abrupt question. He smiles softly.
"I know Janet, and, you don't deserve to be pressured into a relationship with her."
Keith finds it unbelievable that Lance would say that. He briefly remembers Lance trying to earn her affections last month. If anything, Lance probably did it for his own benefit, but it doesn't matter at the moment.
"But why would you tell her we're dating?"
"Easy, to get her off your back. Can't date a taken man."
"Yeah but, you're forgetting something important," Keith says.
"What?"
"Seriously? The entire Garrison knows that we aren't the best of friends. Especially during simulations."
Lance's face went pale. "I-- I didn't think this through did I?"
“My hero." Keith sarcastically sighs.
"Oi," a group of guys enters the room and the tallest one immediately charges at them, "If the two of you want a place to make out privately, go somewhere else."
Keith opens his mouth to explain that they aren't even together when he suddenly remembers that they were most likely in the hallway when Janet asked him out and this entire mess happened. Keith immediately switches gears and remains silent, slowly getting out of his seat. He takes Lance's wrist, "Let's go."
Lance doesn't respond, his eyes are glued to the group as the tall guy stares him down. There's a shit-eating grin on the asshole and Keith urges Lance to move on by tugging on his wrist. "Come on let's go."
"So, the rumors are true," the tall guy says, "Lance Sanchez loves dick up his ass."
Lance nervously bites his lip. Keith has heard the rumors as well, but he never cared about them. Nor did he really mind the fact that Lance likes both, girls and boys. It's completely natural, and there's nothing wrong with it. It makes Keith angry that these guys are picking on Lance because of it.
"Don't you dare talk about him like that," Keith grits his teeth as he glares at the asshole.
The guy laughs scornfully, "Oh I'm not surprised you too are on the gay train Kogane--
"Yeah, I like Lance and he likes me, do you have a problem with that?" Keith snarls. He intertwines his fingers with Lance's and straightens his back ignoring the sudden rush he got from the contact, "So fuck off."
The guy steps back, putting his hands up in surrender and lets the two of them exit without further delay. Keith guides them to the stairwell and abruptly releases their hands. Lance looks at Keith in a way he's never seen before, grateful .
"Thanks," Lance says rubbing the back of his neck, "But uh, you do realize that you basically confirmed to the entire school we're dating?"
"Ah man," Keith nudges Lance's side, "Guess you're stuck with the guy who you hate as your lover."
Lance abruptly stops giggling and looks right into Keith's eyes, "I've never hated you."
Keith feels his face flush slightly from the intense gaze those blue eyes are giving him. He immediately looks away, "I never did either."
The two pause for a few seconds, soaking in the revelation. Suddenly, Keith giggles immediately followed by Lance. The two begin to laugh, faces flushed.
"Then why have we been fighting the entire time?"
"I don't know," Lance mimics his laughter, "But I'm glad we're getting along now."
"Me too," Keith says in between his fits of laughter. He leans against the railing his face inching towards Lance. Lance bends over the railing letting his laughter echo across the stairways. He has an ugly laugh, but it's contagious. He can't help but be pulled into the bubble of joy he and Lance have created.
He's not sure how, but suddenly the two are on the base of the stairs, holding onto their hurting stomachs. The two sigh heavily, too tired to continue laughing and face each other. Keith lays a tired hand on Lance's shoulder.
"Thanks," he says after collecting his breath.
Lance smiles the white of his teeth shining, "No problem." He winks at the black-haired teen.
"You know, I just realized we're going to have to keep this up for a while," Keith sighs. Next to him Lance groans.
"Okay, do you want to go over to my room to discuss this?" Lance asks.
Keith shrugs, sitting up and slowly standing up, "Sure." He extends a hand to the brunette who gladly takes the hand. Keith ignores the electricity the contact creates as he pulls Lance up.
They walk down to Lance's room in silence, ignoring the others staring at them. It has suddenly dawned onto Keith that this only brought more unwanted attention rather than dispute it. He ignores their whispers but he can't help but feel uncomfortable. News spread like lightning at the Garrison, and Keith isn't sure how to feel about that.
They finally reach Lance's dorm room and Lance swipes his key through the slot before promptly opening it. He beckons for Keith to follow. All the dorms at the Garrison look the same: a quaint studio apartment with two beds on opposing sides of the room. There is a table for a microwave, a toaster, and disposable dishware. Next to it is a mini fridge. On the right side, there's a door that leads into a bathroom. The other side has a closet for hanging clothes. Next to each bed is a desk and a drawer.
Despite each dorm room looking the same, everybody has given their personal touches to it. Lance and his roommate Hunk, have surprisingly kept their dorm neat and tidy, completely opposite of what Keith has expected. Lance pegs him as somebody to have a room that looks like a tornado had just blown through. The dorm room is decorated with posters from animes to video games all over the walls. They have raised their beds to allow a small bookshelf under it where all their electronic devices and books are organized neatly.
"Hunk is out in the kitchen doing some service hours," Lance explains as he sits on his bed. He pats the empty spot on his bed, "C'mon I won't bite you, I'm not into marking fake boyfriends."
Keith flushes as he hoists himself onto the bed. "Mark me and I'll mark you."
"Ooh kinky," Lance winks. In response, Keith punches Lance's shoulder. "Ow!" The brunette rubs it, a look of disdain on his face. Next to him, Keith chuckles as he sticks out his tongue.
"Okay but in all seriousness, we need to discuss how to pull this off," Keith says.
"Alright, alright, mission 1: get Janet off of Keith's dick."
Keith ignores Lance as he says, "Janet needs to believe we're dating. How are we going to do that?"
Lance cocks his head, "Um, by acting like a couple?" Keith stares blankly at Lance. He sighs exasperatedly, "You know, hand-holding, going on dates, kissing, all that kind of stuff?"
Keith's face reddens at the mention of kissing, "Uh--yeah, got it."
"I think hand-holding will do the trick," Lance says, oblivious to the red-faced teen next to him, "Oh and we will also have to spend a lot of time together, but I think that will fool Janet enough." He turns to Keith, "What do you think?"
"Good enough," Keith replies, already starting to slide off the bed.
Lance grabs Keith's wrist and he abruptly turns around. Up close Keith realizes that Lance's blue eyes resemble the ocean on a sunny summer day. He finds his face flushing as they stare at each other in silence. Keith opens his mouth to ask what in the hell is Lance doing but only air comes out. Finally, Lance moves and retracts his hand, the hint of a blush beginning to blossom on his face.
"I'll walk you back to your room," Lance says as he stands up.
Keith stands up as well, "You don't have to. I can walk myself--
"No, I insist--
"No seriously I can walk myself back, it's only a few corridors away--
"But we're dating," Lance reminds him, "Aren't we?"
Keith bites his lip as he turns to the door, "Right."
The brunette opens the door and lets Keith go ahead of him. He promptly closes it behind him and catches up to Keith. There are still eyes on them. The hallway is quiet aside from a few hushed whispers and the oblivious still chatting away. Keith wants to squirm under the attention, he hates it.
"Keith," Lance leans into his ear and whispers, "Hold my hand."
He drifts his eyes over to his false lover, "Why?"
"Just do it."
Keith eye's glance down at their hands. They're close enough that they occasionally bump into each other. What the hell. Keith grabs Lance's hand and looks away. Their fingers intertwine. He focuses on the hallway before them, refusing to look at anybody even Lance. He thinks that Lance's hands are abnormally smooth. His own are rough and ragged from years of labor at his family's farm. It's nice. Keith strangely likes it.
He knows that there are eyes on him, but he ignores it. Lance turns to Keith and whispers in his ear.
"Pretend I just said something really funny."
Keith gives the brunette a puzzled look.
"Not that kind of funny, something hilarious."
Keith lets out a fake laugh. It sounds fake, almost terrible-actor fake, and he hates it, but Lance plays along anyways and smiles as he lightly bumps their shoulders. The brunette chuckles, who knew that somebody could be good at faking laughter? They swing arms as Keith rests his head on Lance's shoulder. He feels Lance stiff a little before relaxing. Keith smiles as his eyes finally trail down to their joined hands. His heart skips a beat.
Before he realizes it, they're standing in front of Keith's door. The two pause briefly before turning to each other. There are still eyes on them, but people have begun to get used to their relationship. So quickly? Keith finds it odd. It's like they just accepted it.
"Keith."
Keith turns to Lance and nods in acknowledgment. Suddenly, there are hands in his hair. Keith stiffens at the touch and glares at Lance. He isn't paying attention at all. He's focused on running his hand through Keith's hair before leaning forward. A blush blossoms across Keith's face. What is Lance trying to do?
"Don't freak out," Lance whispers as their foreheads touch, "But Janet is staring right at us."
"Where?" Keith whispers back.
"Behind you." Keith turns his head to look but Lance immediately turns it back to face him, "Don't look."
"Why?"
"She'll know something's up," Lance replies.
"Then how do we get rid of her?" Keith asks.
"Oh hey lovebirds," Janet's shrill voice sounds like she's mocking them. The two pull apart to face Janet. Immediately, Lance's hand grabs Keith's and holds it firmly. Her eyes trace down to their connected hands and she gives them a once over, searching for any hint of a falsehood. Keith isn't going to let her find anything. He stares her down as their eyes meet. Janet tilts her head, still not believing that they're dating. "Holding hands isn't going to fool me."
"You're right," Lance replies bluntly, "You're a fool either way."
Keith snorts, before covering his mouth in a bad attempt at hiding his laughter. Janet glares at Lance, before turning away.
"Whatever. I still don't believe you're dating," she huffs.
"No need. We knew what's real," Lance replies cooly. He's not wrong. They aren't dating of course.
"Oh, I bet you do."
Once Janet is gone, Keith turns to Lance with a smile, "Thanks," he says as he takes out his key.
"No problem," Lance replies, "I'll see you tomorrow, yeah? How about we eat breakfast together? Say... maybe at 10?"
"Oh no, you don't--" Keith abruptly stops himself. Normally he would reject any invitation he gets to hang out with somebody but Lance is supposed to be his boyfriend . And couples are supposed to hang out often right? Keith internally groans in frustration as he corrects himself, "Yeah, I'll see you at 10."
"Great!" Lance smiles. He looks so happy that if he didn't know the truth, he'd think that Lance is excited to be with his lover, "I'll see you tomorrow yeah?"
"Yeah."
Keith opens the door to his room and switches the light on before plopping himself onto his bed. He doesn't have a roommate so he has the room to himself. Keith closes his eyes and exhales. What a wild day.
He represses the thought that it's only going to get wilder.