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Four years. It has been four years since the war against the Galra empire ended. It is almost surreal to think how fast the universe is getting back on its feet. With the coalition’s help and new technology, planets and solar systems are healing by a fast rate, though there is still a long road ahead.
But even more surreal is to think that the now retired Team Voltron has spent a whole year back on Earth, each one of them forging their own paths in life. Despite leading different paths, their friendship has stayed strong, and they had all eagerly agreed to meeting at least once a week in one of Shiro’s favorite 50’s diners — by his choice.
"The perks of being the oldest retired leader of Voltron," Shiro reasons.
"Aw, come on, Shiro, don’t you think that’s a bit unfair? I mean, I did call the dibs on the head back on Arus," Hunk protests.
"I was Voltron’s leader too for a while," Keith deadpans. "I should have a say in this too."
"Well, technically speaking, I should call the dibs. Blue chose me first, remember?" Lance replies, grinning.
Pidge throws her hands up and groans exaggeratedly: "Guys, seriously? Does it matter where we meet?"
"No, it doesn’t. We’re together just like back in the old days. It’s our spirit that matters," Shiro chimes in, like a true leader.
He gets the final word.
It starts as an almost unnoticeable shift in the current. It’s there, subtle, but you don’t notice it before the current pulls you underwater and everything changes in a crash. It’s an elation at seeing Keith smile — at the fact it was Lance who made Keith smile, that it’s Lance’s joke that earns that rare smile of Keith’s that makes him look genuinely happy, carefree even. That’s how it all starts — or rather, continues — for Lance.
But he’s not aware of it yet.
Then, one day, Lance is walking down the street with Keith, both of them recalling old memories from their Paladin times. They have grown closer again during the past year, but with no childish rivalry between them, things are different. Spending time with Keith is fun, and Lance wonders if this is how things could have been years ago, had they met under different circumstances or been more mature.
Keith’s voice breaks Lance away from his thoughts.
"I can’t remember if I ever told you this, but I’m glad you were my right hand when I piloted Black."
"Really?" Lance asks and continues, voice teasing "I do remember you mentioning that, but do go on."
Before, Keith would’ve risen to the bait, but now he only rolls his eyes and nudges his shoulder against Lance’s. Lance returns the gesture gladly.
"I’m starting to regret flaunting your ego. But no, I’m serious. I could always entrust the team to you no matter the circumstances, and you saved my ass countless times."
"Well, for what’s it’s worth, I think you grew to be a pretty damn good leader. A pain in the ass sometimes, though."
Keith throws his head back, laughing in genuine amusement. Lance watches him, grinning, when suddenly, like a lightning bolt striking the Earth, something in Lance’s mind clicks. He can only continue walking beside Keith, all the while his mind is trying to make sense of this weird feeling that’s somewhat familiar yet new at the same time.
Later that day, Lance starts reflecting on this feeling. He becomes aware of the fact that he’s always gravitating towards Keith, orbiting him — Or are they both? He can’t be sure — and once he makes this discovery, his thoughts won’t leave him alone.
Lance tries to keep acting casual around Keith whenever they meet, but by each passing time, ignoring his thoughts proves to be a greater challenge. He becomes acutely aware of all of Keith’s actions and words — how some of them make his heart beat just a little faster and give Lance an inexplicable sense of belonging.
The truth, though? Lance doesn’t want to ignore his beating heart, so his attempts to ignore the elation that flows through his veins whenever he makes Keith laugh are half-backed at most. Being with Keith makes Lance happy, simple as that. Yet, Lance finds his heart yearning for something more each time, though he doesn’t understand what.
The more time passes, the clearer Lance sees that this feeling has been growing for much longer than he first thought. He has only just become aware of it now, but he recalls a moment when he felt like this back at the Garrison, watching Keith. It’s not quite the same now, though. Nor is it the same feeling Lance got when he met Allura. No, this is different.
Lance knows he doesn’t need to impress Keith — there is no need to prove himself. Keith knows him. Keith has grown to trust him and has entrusted his own life in Lance’s hands.
This is not infatuation, but something that grows with time, a steady current that only runs forward.
Sitting home alone one night, lost deep in his thoughts, Lance makes a shocking discovery: He has been falling for Keith. He has been falling for him, slowly but surely like water smooths a stone in the river with time.
He’s in love.
Suddenly, Lance feels an unstoppable need to tell someone about his discovery. The words itch on his tongue, ready to be let out any moment but there is one problem: He is not sure know which of his friends to call.
Lance supposes he could go to Hunk. Few people give out as heartfelt advice as Hunk does. There’s only one but: Hunk's love life has always been easy, and he knows what he feels clear as day. So asking for advice from him when you have unconsciously fallen in love with your ex-self-proclaimed rival feels, well, awkward.
Lance also knows better than to consult Pidge after she had indicated her clear disinterest in all things romantic as "too messy to get into".
Shiro on the other hand... their former leader surely has more life experience, so Lance could consult him, but with Keith being the subject, Lance has a strong gut feeling that their conversation would turn embarrassing in minutes, no matter how greatly they got along. More than that, it feels too big of a step to take before Lance has told Keith of his feelings. Shiro is Keith's big brother, after all.
So Lance calls Allura. Allura, who he loved years ago. Allura, who he now proudly calls one of his best friends. Allura, who knows about all kinds of feelings — both messy and clear as day — as much as Lance, if not more. Allura, who has found true happiness with Romelle, among their people, leading New Altea.
Lance picks up his tablet and dials her.
"Lance! It is so good to hear from you!" Allura’s face fills the tablet screen after a few seconds, "How are you? How are things on Earth?"
"Hi Allura. I’m keeping busy here, but things are going well," Lance pauses and recalls what the latest reports have stated. "About ninety percent of Earth’s habited areas been rebuilt already. Rebuilding‘s the easiest part, though."
"That’s wonderful news! I do hear of Earth’s situation regularly, but after Coran traveled back to New Altea, news do not reach me as fast as I would like them to. I am so glad to hear Earth is recovering steadily," Allura answers, twirling a lock of her hair around her finger.
"How’s New Altea? Getting stronger by the day?" Lance asks.
"Quite so," Allura chuckles. A mechanic noise reaches Lance through the tablet’s speakers, making Allura glance away from the screen. Lance notices her features lighting up. "Romelle! It’s Lance! Can you spare a tic?"
Romelle’s signature laugh sounds from somewhere behind Allura, and then Allura shifts to let Romelle occupy half of the screen’s space. Romelle plops down to sit beside Allura, a wide smile on her face.
"I have a whole Varga to spare!" Romelle answers and glances from Allura to Lance, "Lance! Quiznack, if it isn’t good to see you!"
Lance waves his hand in response.
Allura laughs: "Romelle, darling, you’re picking way too many speaking habits from those Unilu pirates."
"I can’t help it! They tell the best stories on this side of the universe! You’ve met the Unilu, right Lance? Oh, only Coran’s stories can beat theirs!"
Lance grins. Romelle has always had an ever-present energy to her that Lance appreciates immensely. Talking with her always comes easy.
"Sorry Allura, but I have to agree with Romelle," Lance shrugs and then addresses Romelle. "Pidge has sailor’s mouth nowadays. Nothing shocks me anymore. Though I’m afraid Natalia and Sylvio will pick up all those curse words soon and then I’m the one who’s going to hear of it..."
They all laugh together, and fall back on exchanging news from their own side of the universe.
During their call, Lance can’t stop thinking about the reason behind his call. As they talk, Lance starts recalling old moments he shared with Keith — their bonding moment in the Castle of Lions, their conversation back on Thayserix, and how elated Lance felt when Keith came back. Lance realizes that he, and perhaps Keith too, have been dancing on the edge of something for years. Always pushing and pulling, but retreating at the last second. Even back at the Garrison, Lance wanted Keith to notice him, but he couldn’t for the life of him understand why.
Ironically, now he does.
Maybe he couldn’t quite name these feelings before, or maybe he was too eager to make a competition out of things to take that final step towards realization. Maybe there was simply too much going on with defending the universe and his focus on Allura and feelings he could recognize easily. Maybe Lance simply wasn’t supposed to become aware his feelings for Keith sooner.
Maybe this is how it was always meant to be.
After a while, Romelle seems to pick up on Lance’s mood. She frowns: "You seem quieter than usual. Is everything alright?"
Lance freezes for a second, trying to compose himself quickly. He glances at Allura and Romelle, then at his hands sitting in his lap, not knowing where to focus. "Actually, yeah, there is something on my mind."
"Lance, has something happened?" Allura asks, eyebrows knitting together worriedly.
"No— well, kind of—," Lance starts, scratching the nape of his neck nervously. This went so much smoother in his mind. Lance sighs, irritated at his old insecurities rising up. Talking about his feelings still isn’t easy for him even after all these years, not even when any awkwardness between him and Allura has long since been gone. No use to think it over, he decides. Just say it.
"I’m in love with Keith."
The two women stare at him with wide eyes. Lance feels warmth creeping up his neck to his cheeks.
"I just realized it, but I think I’ve been falling in love with him for a while. We’ve been spending a lot of time together for the past year, well, like you know," Lance continues explaining, daring a quick glance at the screen. Allura and Romelle are both smiling widely, their initial reaction calming Lance’s nerves.
"Oh my gosh, that’s amazing news!" Romelle beams, jumping up from her seat and then plopping back down.
"Lance, I cannot begin to describe how happy I am for you. This is wonderful news!" Allura smiles, then continues: "Have you told Keith already?"
"No, not yet," Lance smiles, bashful."I needed some time to figure things out first. To understand what I’m feeling and why."
"Lance, tell him how you feel! There’s nothing stopping you," Romelle encourages him, hitting her palm with her fist excitedly — and old habit Lance noticed her practicing back when they had just gotten to know each other.
Allura offers him a warm smile: "Lance, you deserve love — to feel appreciated and share your happiness with someone. I believe Keith and you can find that kind of happiness together. You’ve always had a special kind of bond, one I could never truly figure out."
"That’s because we were too stubborn to realize we could’ve been friends ages ago instead keeping up a childish rivalry," Lance chuckles.
"Sometimes we may need time to realize what is right in front of us. Sometimes we need to grow and walk a different path before we can pursue something that has been waiting for us from the very beginning. It is an old wisdom my father always told me, and I understand his words better every passing day. We are all walking forward and learning more of ourselves each day. It is something we should be happy about," Allura tells him, and Lance knows he made the right decision to talk to her and Romelle.
"Yeah, I can’t disagree with that. Thanks Allura. Thanks Romelle. I— I think I’m going to tell him how I feel." The last part Lance says more to himself, to solidify his plan.
"Keep us up to date!" Romelle grins.
"Good luck! Say the team we said hello," Allura smiles and reaches for the screen on hers and Romelle’s end.
"I will," Lance answers, "You two take care back there!"
When Lance ends the call, Allura and Romelle are both smiling brightly, wishing him good luck. Lance smiles back at the two women who are now leading Altea together. An invisible weight drops from Lance’s heart.
He is sure now — he is going to tell Keith of his feelings.
The next time Lance meets Keith, they’re walking on a beach barefoot, chattering about every day things — a custom they’ve developed since getting closer and seeing each other more often.
"— and guess what Kosmo did yesterday? He stole my slipper again. I tried to get it back, but he wouldn’t give it up. He even teleported it on the damn roof to keep it from me. Can you believe him?" Keith prods and glances at Lance, waiting for a reaction.
Lance kicks at the sand on the ground, humming in agreement.
"You’ve been spoiling him too much," Lance muses. " I still remember how you insisted he stay in the lion’s cockpit when we were on our way back home so he wouldn’t get lonely. He did a good job at destroying part of our cargo."
Keith chuckles, shaking his head in mock disbelief, and Lance can only stare at him — at the way the settling sun casts its golden light on Keith’s face and hair, how it makes his dark eyes shine, how it brightens his smile just a bit more. It’s a sight Lance wants to paint on his retinas to look at every night.
Lance can’t recall a moment when Keith looked this at ease from their time as Paladins. He looks... content. Before there was a never-ending restless energy to Keith, as if he was desperately trying to race against something, or towards something. But now? He looks genuinely happy, and Lance knows he has to tell Keith how he feels, no matter the response. Lance has gotten his heart broken before — he’s no longer afraid of it. It would hurt, yes, but keeping this hidden would hurt far more. Lance has had enough of hiding his feelings.
So Lance reaches for Keith’s sleeve. His fingers brush Keith’s, and the contact is simultaneously comforting and world-changing. Lance remembers, oh he remembers it now — how many times he wanted to reach out to Keith and ask him to stay, only to stop himself at the last minute and instead watch Keith walk away. Yet here they are, years later, side by side, Lance holding on to Keith. He won’t let go anymore, unless Keith wants it.
Keith stops in his tracks and turns to glance at Lance, alarmed by Lance’s sudden action. His eyebrows knit together in what Lance can only read as confusion.
"Lance?" Keith asks.
Lance inhales to calm his rapid heartbeat. He looks straight into Keith’s dark eyes. No turning back now.
"I— I love you."
Keith’s eyes widen, his mouth opening into a small ‘o’. There’s something in his eyes that Lance cannot for the life of him decipher. He only recognizes the intensity of it.
"...What?" Keith’s voice comes out barely a whisper. It breaks at the end.
"I’m in love with you, Keith." Lance repeats. No more retreating. No more dancing around the obvious. Come what may.
Keith swallows thickly, staring directly into Lance’s eyes: "Do you... do you mean that?"
Lance meets Keith’s gaze head on and squeezes Keith’s hand. The contact is making his nerves burn, but he’s not running from this. Lance is not going to watch Keith walk away before he can convince him of the sincerity of his words.
"Yes", Lance answers, then continues, "I’ve been ignorant, Keith. I’ve been falling for you for years and I only now realized it. I’m so sorry. I don’t mean to make things weird between us, but you’re one of my best friends. I don’t want to regret not telling you."
Keith is still looking at Lance like he were a desert mirage, stunned into complete silence. Lance doesn’t remember ever seeing Keith like this. The sight makes a lump form in Lance’s throat. He has to say something, anything.
"Keith, it’s okay if you don’t—"
Suddenly Keith squeezes his hand back, and it’s Lance’s turn to fall silent. He glances down at their intertwined hands, then back at Keith, and his breath catches in his throat.
Keith starts shaking his head, laughing under his breath. He glances up at Lance, a smile lighting up his features. "I love you too."
"Oh my God," Lance breathes out. He may have entertained the thought of Keith reciprocating his feelings, yes, but hearing him actually say it? It tilts Lance’s world upside down. Keith loves him. Keith loves him.
Lance stammers out the next words, too shocked and elated to care: "You— I— since when?"
Keith’s smile drops, his expression turning guarded. "Does it matter?" he asks after a few seconds, voice low, defensive.
Lance stares at Keith, flabbergasted by his words. He lets go of Keith’s left hand and reaches for Keith’s shoulder to squeeze it firmly.
"Keith... what are you talking about? Of course it matters," Lance stares straight into Keith’s eyes, trying to convey his thoughts through a look alone.
I’m not walking away from you, Keith, no matter what you reply. Don’t shut me out.
Keith stares back at Lance, his expression determined. "Since our Paladin days, just before I left for the Blade of Marmora. I can’t pinpoint the exact moment. I realized it once I’d already fallen for you."
Years. Keith has been in love with Lance for years. Hearing the confirmation simultaneously warms Lance’s heart and makes it feel hollow. No wonder Keith reacted the way he did earlier. It must feel surreal to have your feeling reciprocated after so many years.
"Keith..." Lance reaches out to cup Keith’s cheek. Keith doesn’t shy away. The wind plays with his hair, tossing it every which way. It grabs on to their jackets and smooths the sand at their feet. Neither of them care.
"Why didn't you ever tell me? Is that... is that why you left the team?" Lance can’t help the hurt from his voice. It’s an old wound, one he thought they’d already mended. But now that Lance knows how Keith felt, there’s a different type of ache in his chest when he asks Keith this question: empathy. Lance feels hurt, but not just for himself. He feels even more hurt for Keith.
Keith gives him a wistful smile that doesn’t reach his eyes. Lance finds himself hoping the curve of Keith’s mouth would turn up in a different way — into a happy smile.
"Part of it. I was scared, Lance. I had no idea how I’d tell you. I left because I didn’t know where my place was. I was afraid the team wouldn’t need me, so I left on my own terms. And I left because I didn’t want you to lose your place. You belonged with Voltron, and so did Allura. At the time, I thought I was doing what was best for everyone... I’m sorry."
"Keith, you..." Lance starts and bites his lip. The hollow part in his heart deepens. I’m so sorry. I blamed you for running away."
"No, you were right. I did run away," Keith glances down, regretful. His finger’s twitch against Lance’s, and his hold tightens. " I didn’t mean to hurt any of you, but that’s what I ended up doing. I hurt you, and I’m sorry."
"Don’t apologize anymore," Lance pleads, shaking his head. He squeezes Keith’s hand ever so slightly tighter, "I missed you, Keith. The team wasn’t the same without you. But why didn’t you tell me later, once you were back?"
Keith looks down at their intertwined hands, recalling old memories and feelings.
"I was gone for two years, Lance. Stuck on that space whale, I gave up on the hope that you’d reciprocate my feelings. I had to push it all aside and focus on surviving. I had too much time on my hands to think about my feelings if I had stopped.
"Then I came back and saw how close you and Allura were. I didn’t want to come between you two, so I tried to keep to my role as Voltron’s leader... I guess I was trying to protect myself too. Even after you two went separate ways, it felt wrong to tell you. So I thought since I kept my feelings to myself for so long, I’d just continue doing that. Your friendship meant too much to me. I didn’t want to ruin things. I never got over you, though. I tried, but I couldn’t."
Lance can see it clearly now. Keith, years younger, distancing himself from everyone without telling a single person why. Only this time, Lance recognizes Keith's actions for what they truly are: fear. Fear of getting too close to people you care about only to watch them disappear or abandon you.
Lance understands, and his heart aches for Keith.
"Keith... Shit, I had no idea," Lance says, angry at himself, "It all makes sense now. All those times I felt there was something between us, but I couldn’t place what. I’m so sorry. I never realized your feelings. Hell, I didn’t even realize my own until now..."
Keith smiles at him, the sun’s light reflecting from his eyes. There’s a shadow of sadness in his expression, but it fades in front of relief and a fondness Lance can’t place. No, that’s wrong. It’s love, Lance realizes.
"That’s how I wanted it to be, Lance. So don’t be sorry."
Lance inches closer until their faces are only a breath apart. The contact calms Lance’s mind and clears his thoughts. Keith’s hair tickles Lance’s nose, and Lance inhales deeply. Keith smells of fresh sea wind — of salt and freedom. Lance feels an indescribable sense of peace wash over him.
"Keith, promise me you won’t hide your feelings anymore. Please," Lance whispers against Keith’s lips.
Keith looks straight into Lance’s eyes, a hundred different emotions in his gaze, all of them burning intensely: "I won’t. I promise."
As if to seal the promise, Lance closes the distance between them and presses his lips against Keith’s. Keith’s hand sneaks into Lance’s hair, tangles itself between the curly locks, and Lance smiles against Keith’s mouth and presses his body against Keith’s, melting. It feels right, like they were simply meant to be. Lance has just found a piece of himself that he didn’t know was missing.
Then Keith deepens the kiss, and that fire they had between them years ago comes rushing back, making Lance feel light headed. Except this time that fire isn’t channeled into competition or a made-up rivalry. Instead, it feeds on their feelings and makes Lance tug at Keith’s lip with his teeth.
Lance takes a step back, pulling Keith with him, but Keith’s step falters, his weight tipping Lance backwards dangerously. Lance yelps, grabbing onto Keith’s coat to balance himself, but he only ends up pulling Keith down with him. They fall down and hit the bed of sand with a thud, Keith on top of Lance.
Lance blinks once, twice, staring at Keith on top of him. He can’t tear his eyes away, not that he wanted to.
Keith is staring at him, eyes wide from shock. His expression is kind of ridiculous, yet the most endearing thing Lance has ever laid his eyes upon. Laughter bubbles deep in Lance’s chest. He lets it pour out. Delight, that’s what his laugh is. Keith joins him, his laughter like music to Lance’s ears.
"That was a rough landing," Keith says after he’s caught his breath. "Are you okay?"
"Yeah, never been better," Lance grins. His smile falters after a second.
"I can’t believe I didn’t realize this until now... You were right in front of me," he muses, tracing his fingers over Keith’s cheek. "All this time you were here and I didn’t notice you until now."
Keith sighs.
"Lance, listen. If there’s one thing I’ve learnt, it’s not to dwell on the past," Keith says, then continues, "I ran away from my feelings because I wasn’t ready. It was my decision and mine alone. Yeah, I may regret it now, but that changes nothing. You see me now and I don’t need to suppress my feelings anymore — that’swhat matters."
Lance smiles again, a hint of wistfulness lingering in his heart as he trails Keith’s scar with his fingertip gently. "When the hell did you become so good with words?"
Keith smiles at him. "Maybe leading Voltron helped. I couldn’t have led the team without you though. I could always trust you to be my stability."
Something in Lance’s chest flutters at Keith’s words, and he feels his cheeks warming up pleasantly. He welcomes the feeling gladly.
"So," Lance starts. "Are we doing this? Us, together?"
Keith brushes Lance’s hair out of his eyes and smiles, all teeth and dimples and messy hair.. The sight steals Lance’s breath away.
"Yeah, if you want that too."
Lance grins at him: "Are you kidding me? After years of not realizing I was developing feelings for you, then realizing I love you and now getting to hear you love me too? There's no chance I'm letting this go. You're stuck with me, Mullet."
"There's nobody I'd rather be stuck with," Keith answers without the slightest bit of hesitation.
"Good", Lance replies, grabbing Keith by the waist. Before Keith so much as yelps out a "Hey!", Lance has rolled them over, now looking down at Keith laying on the sand.
Keith stares at him, dark hair spread against golden sand, and grins. He presses his forehead against Lance's lightly and whispers: "You're getting sand in my hair."
"Oh yeah?" Lance challenges.
This time it's Keith who loops his arms around Lance’s back and switches their positions, as swiftly as he moves in battle. He leans in close, his hair curtaining the settling sun's light from Lance's vision. The only thing Lance can see is Keith's face, his eyes shining brightly like stars in the night sky, and with them in such close proximity, it's more than enough to make Lance’s head spin.
"Are we making this into a completion?" Keith whispers.
"Oh, you're on," Lance answers, teasingly.
Keith smirks, but the gesture falls short as Lance closes the distance between them and kisses Keith again.
Images of him and Keith, younger and more competitive, flood into Lance's head. For a moment, a sense of nostalgia fills him as Lance is back at the Castle of Lions, smiling at Keith without knowing what the weird feeling fluttering somewhere deep in his chest means.
Then he's whisked back into present, sand in his clothes, Keith's steady hands in his hair, the waves crashing to the shore somewhere behind them. Lance smiles against Keith's mouth. Here they are, years later, older and more mature. Now they’re ready to give a name to their feelings, and Lance knows that everything will be okay.
"I won’t take my eyes off of you ever again," Lance whispers against Keith’s lips.
It’s a promise he intends to keep a lifetime.