Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

To SpaceDad

MyDogIsBetterThanYou: Shiro... I need your opinion on my latest song.
SpaceDad: I'm sure its fine Keith.
MyDogIsBetterThanYou: But it's not...
SpaceDad: Keith stop worrying.
MyDogIsBetterThanYou: Shiro come on, please. Kosmo wants to see you.
SpaceDad: I am going out with Adam I cant.
MyDogIsBetterThanYou: Fine...
MyDogIsBetterThanYou: I'll just scrap the idea.
SpaceDad: Ok fine Keith I'll be over now.

{-}

"The sun makes the water catch on fire and so do you with my heart."The finished lyrics of Keith's newly written song played through the large black speakers that lay either side of the 80-inch tv.

"Hmm, I don't know Kosmo... Is this good enough?" Keith questioned himself, having second thoughts. Kosmo, who was sprawled on Keith's lap let out a small bark of approval. "I don't even think people will like this. It's just... different," Keith states with a small sigh following.

As Keith pressed the play button on his phone again, he heard the sound of a door slamming shut and immediately paused the song just after the first few notes.

Shiro walked into the room Keith was currently in, tossing the extra set of keys to Keith's apartment onto the small desk lining the hallway. "So you decided to turn up, huh?" Keith commented with a bit of sass in his voice and a smirk plastered onto his face.

"Well, yeah, I couldn't just let you scrap your project," Shiro chuckled, slightly ruffling Keith's hair in a brotherly way that suggested he's done the same so many times before. Kosmo let out a small yip of greeting from his spot nestled into Keith’s lap and received the same ruffling treatment. The large dog evidently enjoyed it much more than Keith did, the latter now patting his messied hair down in mild annoyance.

"Wow, thanks," Keith sarcastically replied.

“No problem, in fact it's so much of a not-problem that you are following me to the florist’s to get a bouquet of flowers for Adam.”

“What, what for?”

“To make up for not being able to take him on a date this fine night.”

“You are such a sap.”

“Hmm. Are you gonna let me hear your song or what?”

"Ok, so here we go." Keith quickly pressed play on the song with a bit of excitement building up inside his gut. Shiro was usually always the first to hear any song he writes, even when then it was just voice memos on his phone.

No matter how tinny his voice sounded or how much static cut through his actual singing, Shiro had always been supportive of every song from the very beginning. Letting him listen to a song that was already in its studio-produced entirety struck a wrong chord in Keith and his hand shook a little as he pulled back from his phone, having disconnected its wireless connection to his speakers.

He hoped that was enough to water the sound of production down slightly.

His song titled The Heart Of The Sunset began to play. Soft notes matching up with other instruments and vocals that made the melody come alive filled the room. The floor-to-ceilings windows, the stark white of the walls and the glaring shine of the built-in ceiling lights disappeared. Keith was pulled back into his own world as he listened to his song.

The track came to an end finishing with a small, soft speaking part. The perfect way to finish a love song.

"Hmm..." Shiro smirked towards Keith, who looked confused and tried to read Shiro's expression to no avail.

"What is it, Shiro? What's the problem? Is it good? Bad? Both?" Keith anxiously pestered him to speak. "Say something, please!" Keith whined, wanting an answer, reducing to sharp pokes in his now stubbornly tight-lipped brother’s side.

Well, if he wanted to be a stubborn ass, Keith can be one too. He continued poking insistently.

"Oh, it's amazing Keith. Perfect even. I just didn't expect this," Shiro stated with a mischievous grin forming on his face.

"You didn't expect what?" Keith grumbled in annoyance, fed up of waiting for Shiro to give his opinion.

"I just didn't expect you to write a love song that would go so well with slow-dancing is all. Was it intentional, might I ask?" Shiro tried to hold back his grin as he watched Keith's expressions change. "Usually, you’re the definition of a pop star, with your booming bass and synth.”

“Don’t worry, it’s a nice change. I’m sure your audience would like it.” Shiro hastily added when Keith opened his mouth, a worried furrow already forming on his face

“ And if you don't mind, I would love to use this for some future performances. It would go so well in a collab with other dancers," Whilst Shiro's thoughts wandered off, possibly already thinking of choreography, something in Keith sparked and he blurted out "I'm making a dance video to this."

A very pregnant silence followed.

"What?" Shiro blinked a few times, traveling back to reality from his trailing thoughts.

"Well... I was thinking of making maybe a ... dance video," Keith stated shyly, glancing away and crossing his arms on habit, almost forgetting Kosmo was still on his lap. Switching his hands from clasping his forearms to his dog’s soft fur, he stroked Kosmo and scratched him behind the ear.

"Keith dancing? Keith and dancing. Dancing Keith" Shiro repeated at an almost whisper tone. Shiro stared straight forward trying to contemplate what his brother was saying. On the other hand, a very tense Keith was rubbing Kosmo's belly as the wolf-sized dog made small barks, chirps, and playful growls.

"Yes, Shiro, You heard me," Keith blandly spoke, a large sigh following.

"I thought you didn't want to do dance. After all this time, you're finally agreeing to it? Keith, are you ok? Did you hurt your head?" Shiro teased, putting on a worried expression. Keith scoffed.

Ever since Keith had become big, Shiro had wanted him to add dancing to his music videos but Keith constantly denied it by saying things like "No, I can't dance," or "It just wouldn't suit me plus I would look like a fool." The number of excuses Keith would say to Shiro was uncountable. He would always find a new one, much to his older brother’s chagrin.

"So what's with this change then?" Shiro slyly stated. "It’s just not like you. I wanna know why?"

"I-I don't know..."

"I'm sure you do." Shiro pressed, determined to get an answer out of him.

"N-no I-"

"Come on Keith! Why?"

"I-I guess..."

"Keith," Shiro said in his brotherly tone.

"Ok fine! I just want to try do something different," Keith exclaimed before realizing he’d made Kosmo jump and immediately calmed himself. Although Keith was sort of lying, it did sound real.

But Shiro was his brother and of course knew it was only half true.

"Totally, Keith," Shiro rolled his eyes with an amusing sigh. Damn, there was just no convincing him, wasn’t there?

"I wrote the song because... because I wanted to find someone like you found Adam," Keith shyly spoke finally. He realized he had crossed his arms in defense again and rubbed his left arm, looking down. His eyes met Kosmo’s and he focused on the detail of the dog’s irises, not the soul-spilling words he was going to say.

"Everything mentioned in the song is what I want to experience, what I want to feel... What I want to have with someone..."

"That's why I want to start dancing. It would make the song come alive and it would be a way to express my emotions. Since I'm not too good at it, you know, like, verbally," Keith sighed his voice changing to a smalll whisper near the end. “Who knows? Maybe through the experience, I will meet someone.”

Fat chance, his mind supplied helpfully and with every word he spoke, he wanted to curl up more and more into a ball.

Keith looked hesitantly up to see Shiro with his mouth hanging slightly open, evidently very surprised that Keith has just opened up to him. He looked taken aback and pretty damn dumb with his jaw unhinged like that. Keith stifled a chuckle.

"Keith," Shiro smiled putting his arm around Keith, just like he did when they were kids.

"What?" Keith questioned looking up at his brother, still nervous from his soul-sharing therapy session. Shiro just chuckled.

"I know just the people you need!" Shiro smiled, pulling out his phone.

{-}

"Lance, how do you even stretch that far?" Pidge questioned, their eyes wide at the fact that Lance was so flexible.

"Lance just is the master of flexibility, right buddy?" Hunk said with a laugh as Lance glanced up at them from a bent over position.

“More like he’s just made of rubber.” Lance heard Pidge mutter darkly before dipping down in a stretch of their own. He heard a tiny mewl of strain as they went to touch their toes.

"Well, I do get all the ladies from it," Lance said in his usual cocky tone with a smirk soon following.

"Hah.” Pidge started blandly, voice as dry as dust. “So you're into invisible people now, huh? Because I can't seem to find any ladies around." Pidge snorted, glancing around and tilting their head up, a finger on their chin. To emphasize a point of course.

"HEY!" Lance shouted, offended and getting up from his bent over stretching position. "I'll have you know I've hooked up with a lot of ladies, thank you!" Lance retaliated, cheeks aflame, which only served to make Pidge more amused.

"Sure, Lance, I believe you," Pidge rolled her eyes, turning away to only try to contain her laughter. Her voice was as monotone as a voice can be and Lance was about to snap back a witty retort when Hunk’s voice popped up.

"Lance, buddy, I love you and all but I have to agree with Pidge. You haven't had a girlfriend in ages. I can't even remember the last time you did have one." Hunk added, trying to be kind but it wasn't the nicest comment.

"Wow, thanks, you guys! I thought you were my friends," Lance dramatically said, moving into another stretch.

“Top ten anime betrayals.” Pidge muttered like the meme-loving gremlin they were.

Lance put in extra effort to not only touch his toes but to wrap his hands entirely around his feet. His actions didn't go unnoticed, as Pidge let out a strangled choke at the sight and promptly turned away.

“Rubber, I tell you.” He heard them mutter in their conspiracy theory voice.

Satisfied at having the last word, Lance pulled out his phone and tapped for a few seconds. The familiar melody of a pop song started filling the room. Lance let it rattle his bones and ignite his muscles, already feeling the urge to shimmy away.

Only to be knocked abruptly out of his little bubble by two groans in perfect unison.

“Really, Lance?”

“Buddy, you’ve been playing this song for a week and five days now. It's starting to get old.”

"Well, I just like it and I don't feel like changing it," Lance smiled, wiggling his toes to the beat.

"Well, if your hap-" Pidge stopped. Their phone had pinged, signaling a new message. They scrambled over to it.

From SpaceDad

SpaceDad: Hey Pidge! I need your help with something.
Pidgeotto: Sure what is it?
SpaceDad: My brother needs dancers for a music vid.
SpaceDad: You up to it?
Pidgeotto: Oh course!
Pidgeotto: Wait who's your brother again?
SpaceDad: Uhh Keith Kogane... Remember?
Pidgeotto: Wait... The Keith Kogane!
SpaceDad: Uhh yeah you up for it?
Pidgeotto: Hell Yeah! When and where?
Spacedad: Next Tuesday at 12 at the Altea Studio.
Pidgeotto: Cool cya then Shiro.

“Well, butter my rolls.” Pidge murmured, watching as their screen faded into black. They looked over to the side where Lance was bobbing his head and Hunk was bouncing up and down on his toes as a warmup.

A mischievous grin grew on their face.

"GUYS GUESS WHAT!" Pidge exclaimed excitedly which drew both Hunk and Lance's attention.

"What, Pidgeon?" Lance got up from his stretching.

"Shiro just asked us to be in dancers in Keith’s music video!" Pidge screeched, ecstatic and waiting for a response from both Lance and Hunk.

“Wait, Keith Kogane? Like the music artist Keith Kogane?" Lance muttered out, seemingly on the verge of freaking out.

"Yes!" Pidge replied rapidly.

"No way! We get to perform with Keith Kogane? Holy shit, this is a dream come true. To perform for a real music artist. I have to get listening to some of his songs again!" Lance mumbled in a daze of excitement before rushing off to the aux cable.

He quickly searched up some of Keith's songs on his music app and clicked shuffle.

The first song in line began to play as Lance sat down near his phone. He nodded his head to the beat, taking in the words of this upbeat song.

Pidge and Hunk scooted over to his side and together they listened to dozens of songs to get a feel of what Keith’s music was like. He was a mainstream artist and a good few of his songs have actually been played countless times on the radio so it wasn’t like they were unfamiliar with it.

The song came to an end only for the next one to play. Lance got up and started slowly swaying his body to the music. He cocked a hip, making Pidge giggle. A grin made it way onto his face and he pulled his two dance partners to their feet, sashaying away while motioning for them to join him.

Their styles were so different yet them being able to work together and combine all three together seamlessly was what kicked them off as a noticeable dance group in the first place.

Lance was sultry in every move he made, each hip sway and shoulder roll was to charm and enchant.

Pidge was a literal machine. Their limbs worked like clockwork, jerking and twisting like they were made of gears and metal.

Hunk was like a bubble. His style was unpredictable and bouncy, the embodiment of a good dance song that makes you tap your fingers and sway your body.

They danced, watching their reflections in the glass for hours on end. Laughter bubbled out when one of them tried a move only to flail awkwardly for a beat. After the fifteenth song, they all sprawled out on the floor, chests heaving and sweat dripping.

The next song started and Lance perked up instantly.

"Ok, Lance that's enough for now, " Pidge let out a worn out sigh before marching over and pulling out the aux cable from Lance's phone.

"Pidgeon!" Lance exclaimed in disbelief.

“We’ve been dancing to this for two hours now and we gotta start practicing our charity dance.” Pidge nudged Hunk with their foot and he rolled over. “Oh, cmon, Hunk! Do it for the critters!”

“That motto sucks.” Hunk muttered from his spot with face on the ground.

“Can we dance to one of his songs, do you think?” Lance mused, mind still wandering. “I have a good song for it, he sounds really good there. How can someone sound so sexy and yet cute at the same time? It's gotta be illegal and-”

"Lance, You need to stop swooning over him and get a grip, lover boy." Pidge said sternly before going into a fit of laughter at the sight of Lance’s face catching on fire. Hunk chuckled quietly with them.

"Uhhg, I don't like him that way, guys, why are you even like this?"Lance grumbled, frustrated that they would think that. The two still kept on chuckling, sending Lance into another bout of ferocious blushing.

"Stop that! Ugh, I'm going to the washroom." Lance sighed picking up his rucksack and storming out of the room to only storm right back inside to snatch his phone from near the aux cable. He then stormed out for the second time.

Pidge and Hunk just stared at each other for a few seconds before both going into a fit of laughter. "He hates us now but that was funny, you have to admit it." Pidge calmed themselves from all the laughing.

"So you up for it? I don't need to ask Lance. He'd probably set all his face creams, masks and lotions on fire rather than miss out on seeing his ‘not-crush’." Pidge questioned Hunk to which he nodded with a smile.

"Yeah, I'm up for it,"

{-}

"Woah, Allura this is amazing!" Romelle said wowed by the dark girl’s latest performance.

"I have to agree there, Allura, the outfit is truly remarkable, Well done, Romelle." Lotor said with an appreciative smirk whilst gazing at the computer that Allura was balancing on her lap.

A small miniature Allura was twirling across a massive stage onscreen, wearing a soft-looking tulle dress. Soft tinkling music drifted through the speakers and they all let out amazed noises as sparkling confetti burst forth from the ceiling just as screen-Allura leapt up in a graceful arc.

"Yes, that is truly amazing isn't it," Coran added. “Allura has always been a star ever since she was born.” His voice was fond while saying this while leaning over the back of the sofa that Lotor, Allura and Romelle were sat on. Allura was in-between Lotor and Romelle, holding the laptop on her lap and she tipped her head back to look at her uncle, smiling sweetly and thanking him profusely.

"Wow, Lotor you did an amazing job on hair and makeup!" Romelle says with a smile.

"I know, I know, " Lotor smirked, loving the praise he knew he deserved. He curled his fingers around thin air while Allura and Romelle smirked back at him before all three looked back to the screen.

"The dance is just so... beautiful, Allura!" Romelle exclaimed with a soft smile whilst watching the ending of the performance on the computer screen. “Choreography is definitely your thing. Every performance just gets better every time!”

"So what gig have you got coming up next?" Lotor questioned, wanting an idea for the makeup and hairstyles he would create for Allura's next performance.

"Well I have one in a few weeks at a stargazing event, so maybe you could make something elegant for me to wear," Allura smiled towards Romelle to which smiled back before sitting back to brainstorm ideas.

"Ooh, babe, I can do the best makeup in this business, so of course I can make something out of this world!" Lotor declared, clicking his fingers.

"Oh, I have a great idea!" Romelle exclaimed happily. "What about a space princess!" She smiled before mumbling multiple ideas for a space princess themed dress.

"Romelle,that idea is great," Allura said softly, a smile forming.

"I'm going to go grab something to drink, anyone want anything?" Coran asked, getting a few mumbles of yes please and sure anything will do. With that, Coran walked out of the room and the sound of a refrigerator door slamming shut followed a few minutes after.

"So what do you guys think of th--" Romelle was cut off by the sharp buzz of Allura's phone.

To Allura

SpaceDad: Hey Allura, you fancy working on a new project?
SpacePrincess: Oh that would be lovely. What type of project?
SpaceDad: Oh You know my brother Keith? Well, he wants to make a dance video and needs the best choreographer I know.
SpaceDad: He will also need the best glam team when you're at it! You up for it?
SpacePrincess: Of course let me ask my team.
SpaceDad: Okay let me know and i'll set up a meeting date.

Allura turned to Lotor and Romelle with a large grin spreading across her face.

"How you guys feel about a new project?" She asked, waiting for an answer and winking.

"Oooh, of course!" Romelle said with a smile.

"I'm up for it!" Lotor exclaimed, muttering a few cocky comments under his breath. Mostly about him being the best.

To Shiro
SpacePrincess: Yep they are indeed up for it!
SpaceDad: Ok so i'll send you the details later. Thank you Allura, knew I could count on you.

Chapter Text

“Alright then, Keith. Get ready so we can go pick up those flowers from the florist,” Shiro said calmly whilst standing up, with a small stretch and quiet yawn following.

"Uhhg, and here I thought you forgot or changed your mind..." Keith complained before nudging Kosmo to try to get him to move off of his lap.

"When did I say that?" Shiro smirked, side-gazing a grumpy Keith.

"Ok, ok, I'll go get ready," Keith whined, pushing Kosmo gently off of his lap to stand up and slump away to his room.

He tried to open the door with his palm and when that didn’t work, he tried to twist it with one finger. Hey, Shiro told him to go get ready, but he never said to make it snappy.

When he finally made it into his room (it only took him one more finger), Keith stared longingly at his soft bed before trudging to his wardrobe.

The things he does for Shiro, honestly,

He picked out some black ripped jeans, a dark grey t-shirt, a red and black checkered flannel top and when he passed his mirror and took one look at the bird’s nest on his head, snatched a light grey beanie that had a weird stain on it but Keith smushed it on his head anyways.

He grasped his wallet and shoved it into his pocket before strolling casually out of his room kicking the door softly on the way out, hearing a soft mechanical click of the doorknob sliding into place.

He headed back to Shiro, who was stood waiting and scrolling through his iPhone.

"You ready to go?"

Shiro looked with a smile and said, "Yep,let’s roll.."

“Oh my lord, never say that again.” Keith’s annoyance only caused Shiro’s smile to stretch into a full-on grin.

With that, they both walked out the door and down the corridor to the large lift. The two brothers leaned on opposite sides of the elevator and as he heard the whirring of floors passing by, Keith stared at his lopsided beanie in the mirror over Shiro’s shoulder.

Once they had gotten to the bottom floor, a ding echoed daintily.

Keith stepped out with a sigh, knowing there was no going back upstairs now to escape Shiro’s indecisiveness when it came to his boyfriend.

Shiro walked at a natural pace as Keith sluggishly followed behind him.

Keith reached into his ripped jeans pocket to pull out a set of earphones. He put them in and plugged them into his phone before scrolling through his music app to click play on a song.

The music vibrated into his skull as he followed Shiro’s lead to the florist.

It was quite a bit of a walk as Keith lived quite far away from the shop and Shiro had denied the idea of driving by saying, "You really need to get out more, Keith. You used to run like five times a week. Now you run three and you need exercise!"

They finally arrived at the florist and even outside on the sunlit sidewalk, the pungent floral smell attacked both of their noses. Keith sniffed to get rid of an itch to sneeze before plunging even deeper into the life-size perfume bottle that was Bonnie’s Bouquets.

Once inside, not only was their sense of smell working overtime to decipher all the different scents but their sights were constantly being pulled in different directions from a pot of the reddest roses to an array of golden sunflowers.

Keith's eyes landed upon a small bunch of around ten balloon flowers. The flowers were a beautiful shaded indigo blue that stood out to him and he reached a finger out to swipe a drop of dew off a sapphire petal.

"See some that you like?" Shiro chuckled, tapping his shoulder.

"U-Uhh, what? No, the flowers are just... pretty, I guess..." Keith quickly stated, trying not to show a weakness in anyway to Shiro that would result in any teasing.. “But Adam likes orange, right? I saw some chrysanthemums over there just now that could work.”

"Ok, we’ll go check them out," Shiro smiled, walking further into the maze of colors and scents.

They both gazed around for a while looking at roses, tulips, orchids and so much more that caught both of their attention.

Eventually, they picked out a bunch of flowers that consisted of some pink roses, some pure white lilies, a few white daisies, some pink anthuriums and lo and behold, some of the chrysanthemums Keith pointed out.

The florist wrapped the bunch in ways so that each flowers complimented the one next to it and tied it all neatly up in a roll of tissue paper and a purple ribbon.

To finish it all off, Shiro wrote a little note and stuck it in the flowers. It sat there, flapping in the breeze as the bouquet was passed between hands. Meanwhile, Keith gazed at the glass divider behind the counter.

The florist wasn't just a florist but also a small cafe.

"Hey Keith, You want to sit for a while? It’s been a while since we’ve tried those chocolate donuts you like so much here." Shiro winked and Keith nodded immediately.

Thank the lord for chocolate donuts.

They walked over to a petite-looking table and as Shiro listed off their usual order to a pretty waitress, Keith stared at the little porcelain pig statuettes that they used to keep creamers and sugar for coffee in.

As they waited for their donuts to arrive, Shiro turned to Keith expectantly.

The younger one of the duo leaned away instinctively at the wide-eyed look and muttered suspiciously, “What is it? What do you want? Stop that, you look like a creep.”

At that, Shiro’s smile fell away before he said haughtily, “I’m disowning you.”

“Not if I disown you first.”

“You mother-”

“No cursing around your little brother, Takashi.”

“-clucker.”

Their donuts came and they practically pounced on them. Shiro paused in their ravenous wolfing to fix Keith with another expectant look.

“What is it now?”

“I’m waiting for you to ask me about your team.”

“What?”

“I take that back, I’m demanding you to ask about your team.”

"You can’t-” Keith scoffed, before relenting, swearing it’s because Shiro bought him donuts. “Ok, fine, I guess it's better to know sooner or later, right?"

Shiro pulled out his phone and began scrolling through stuff in his gallery before pulling up some videos of The Garrison Trio. The volume suddenly blasted and Keith guffawed at the sight of Shiro trying to silence it with chocolate-covered fingers.

Once he got it under control, he handed the phone to Keith so he could watch the dance video, but not before shooting him a dirty look. Keith choked a few more giggles down at the sight of Shiro’s ears glowing slightly pink.

He looked down at the screen and immediately recognized Pidge before he even pressed play. He then did press the play button and let the music come from the phone at a publicly appropriate volume.

Keith watched silently, thoughtfully chewing the remnants of his last bite of chocolate donut. Shiro sat watching his expressions, trying to read his every move to determine whether he was enjoying it or not.

On the screen, Keith watched as three dancers moved fluidly across the screen. At first, he focused on Pidge, recognizing the unruly hair that they cut themselves and the way their body seemed to move in jerks and cranks.

Then, a larger guy came into the spotlight, his movements wide and announced, meant to catch your attention. Keith found himself smiling as the guy jumped around like he was made of springs, lively and contagious.

Then he caught Keith’s eye. Suddenly, his vision tunneled and he could only follow him across the screen.

Long, lean arms stretch into and swipe across the air, flicking at the wrists and curling at the fingers.

Legs, oh god, why does this guy have legs for literal days?

The dancer swivelled his hips, ran palms over a covered but very obviously toned stomach and Keith’s face turned ablaze. Was this okay to watch in a family-friendly cafe? He was thinking maybe not.

Then he got to the dancer’s profile and immediately wished for the hundredth time he was back in the safety of his room so he could restart the video and just only stare at that fucking gorgeous face the whole time.

“You’re drooling.”

“I’m not!” Keith hissed as Shiro swiped at his phone, taking it from the seething younger boy. “And who cares if I am? It’s because of the donuts.”

"So what do you think?" Shiro asked with such a smug look that Keith wanted to smash the remaining bits of chocolate donut into his face. He refrained as Shiro, nudged him, wanting to know Keith's honest opinion.

"Well, for starters, you didn't tell me Pidge was gonna help." Keith smiled, trying to keep up the moody facade at Shiro but it was easy to tell he was happy that their bespectacled genius friend was to be working with him.

"Hah, I wanted it to be a surprise. But besides her? What do you think of the other two? " Shiro grinned and leaned his chin on a hand which he propped up on the table.

"Well uh, the yellow one has a good style and looks really easy to work with. He looks like he can support others well for lifts, real solid and strong-looking," Keith replied.

"You mean Hunk." Shiro smiled softly. “The guy is super nice and friendly, the human equivalence of a teddy bear. You’ll love him.”

Keith analyzed the performance in his head then spoke once more.

"Pidge dances really well in her style. It’s incredible, I mean, she is obviously the best dancer in her style that I’ve seen," Keith mused, reducing to pinching the porcelain pig in its sides and poking its ears.

"And what about Lance then?" Shiro smirked, waggling his eyebrows quickly. "He can be..." Shiro chuckled watching the pinkish blush appear on Keith's face within a few seconds. “... quite the alluring type.”

"I have no idea what you’re talking about." Keith quickly spoke, crossing his arms defensively like he normally does when feeling attacked. “Well, I mean that, you know, he dances, dances good but it’s not, what did you say, alluring. Yeah, nah, he’s just…”

Shiro gave him a raised eyebrow look that had you’re kidding me, right? written all over it. “Good?”

“Yeah… good…” Keith shrunk into his seat, feeling another wave of heat cascade onto his face.

"Heh, right. You’re right. I’m sure he’s totally not hot at all, really kinda heavy on the eyes actually. His ears are a bit lopsided, one’s a little bigger th-"

“Excuse me, his ears are perfect!”

"Oooh, Lance, you are so handsome, please kiss and cuddle me till I die!" Shiro tried to imitate Keith's voice and though he failed terribly in Keith’s opinion, he still seemed to devolve much joy from it, judging by the laughs spilling out of his mouth.

Keith looked away and growled under his breath before screeching quickly and defensively at Shiro.

"So what if he’s hot and stupidly fucking sexy or whatever? And that he has legs that go on for days and that means he’s taller than me? Which means nice cuddles? Doesn’t matter at all, ‘coz you know why? ‘Coz it doesn’t matter." Keith backed up in his chair, annoyed and arms still crossed.

The porcelain pig stood there with its packets of creamer and sugar as if mocking him and Keith glared at it, feeling betrayed. Can’t even trust porcelain nowadays, for Christ’s sake.

"Don’t- Don’t tell him I said all that." Keith then murmured under his breath meekly.

So what if he’s already got a baby crush on someone he’s never met before because he dances like a sex god? Lance could be an asshole for all he knows. And having little meaningless crushes every once in a while is healthy. So yeah, whatever. Doesn’t matter one bit.

“You know I won’t.” Shiro’s soft voice said and Keith felt relief that at least he wouldn’t be ratted out. All he had to do now was make sure he didn’t rat himself out by blushing everytime he sets eyes on Lance.

"Seriously though, what do you think of his dance style?"

His face instantly alighted with the heat of a thousand suns. Wow, his plan wasn’t exactly going as he planned.

"Uhh, well, his dance style is, well, nice, I, umm- I like it. I guess. He looks confident and I think he's perfect..." Keith swallowed, nervously rubbing his left arm.

At the realization of the words that he had uttered, Keith threw his hands up and hastily screeched, “Perfect for the video! Not like perfect in general! Shiro, stop laughing!”

"Good to hear!" Shiro stood shakily, still gasping for air between giggles, grasping the bunch of flowers. “Let’s head out.”

With that, he started heading for the door and Keith quickly nudged the porcelain pig back to its usual spot before catching up.

"Wait, where are we going?" Keith complained at the older boy’s fast steps.

"You’ll see, let's go, come on," Shiro walked with big strides and Keith had to jog slightly to keep up.

Keith plugged his earphones back into his phone and put them into his ears as he followed Shiro, wondering where he was taking him.

They walked for around ten to fifteen minutes till they reached the familiar building of Altea Dance Studio. Keith had never danced or anything like it inside it before, he was usually only there to accompany Shiro in his dance practise sessions.

Keith halted looking up at the dance studio. "Shiro, why are we here?"

"Time to meet everyone!" Shiro smiled, pushing open the doors to the Altea Dance Studio.

“What?” Keith squeaked, a little mortified. “Shiro, I have a stain on my beanie and chocolate on my shirt! I can’t show up like this, I have an image to keep up!”

“Your image is fine and so are your clothes, Keith.” Shiro said without missing a beat. “Besides, it’s not like you don’t know all of them. Pidge is there and they’ve seen you in way more embarrassing situations-”

“Let’s not remind them of any.”

“Allura’s basically your sister.”

“Wait, Allura’s gonna be there?”

“Yup, so are Coran and the glam team. See, you’ll do fine.”

Keith had to physically bit back the retort of no, he was not going to do fine because a certain tall, lanky, unfairly attractive boy his age that he would very much like to kiss senseless was going to be in the same room as him and that’s a sure recipe for disaster and-

Too late, Shiro dragged Keith in by the hand into the dance studio lobby.

They were sprawled all over, on the reception desk and on the soft armchairs provided. They were talking like they’ve known each other each since the beginning of time and oh god, Keith isn’t going to fit in, he doesn’t even know half of them-

“Hey, guys.” Shiro stepped forward, waving a hand with a smile. Keith suddenly felt like a kindergartener again, hiding behind his brother’s looming back. That is, until said brother reached backwards and tugged him out of his safe shadow. “Meet Keith. I’m sure you’ve heard of him.”

Keith shuffled uncomfortably as he felt the burn of eyes roaming on his person. God, did he hate that beanie right about now.

“Keith? Nah, never heard of him.”

Head snapping upwards, Keith gasped, “Pidge!”

The small teen was giggling at his affronted look and Keith realized with a burst of fondness that maybe this wasn’t so bad after all.

“Keith, sweetheart, c’mon here.” Within an instant, he was enveloped in a hug and the smell of sweet jasmine perfume. “I’m glad you made the choice to dance. I’m so proud of you.” was whispered in his ear before Allura pulled away with a huge smile.

“Thanks, Allura.”

She patted his cheek and straightened his beanie for him. “No problem, kiddo.”

A warm hand appeared on his shoulder and he looked to see Shiro gesturing, "So there's your dance team."

Pidge gave him a wicked grin and he squinted playfully at her in response. He moved on to a tall and beefy guy he could only assume was Hunk. True to Shiro’s word, the guy was an absolute sweetheart, getting up to shake Keith’s hand and thank him profusely for the opportunity to work together.

Yeah, Keith loved him already.

And then there was-

“Lance.” The tall tan Cuban boy winked at Keith, pointing twin finger guns at him. Keith stupidly realizes that wow, his eyes are so blue what the actual fu-

“The eighties called. They want their hairstyle back.” Wait, what?

Keith self-conciously reached for his hair with a frown, curling his fingers around the strands. “Wha-?”

“Dude, you’ve got a full on mullet there. You kinda belong in a museum in this decade.”

Keith’s cheeks set aflame, not because of the reason he thought they would, but because of embarrassment. He vaguely registered Pidge muttering a soft oh my god and Hunk facepalming.

“Yeah, well, like you’ve got any right to judge.”

It was Lance’s turn to give an insulted gasp and brought a hand to his chest. “Are you insinuating I have bad taste too, Mullet?”

“Definitely seems like it.”

“Alright, guys, break it up. Let us get through introductions first and then we’ll resolve this.” Shiro authoritative tone was enough to send both boys into silence and he took it as cue to continue.

"Your choreographer, Allura and your director, Coran. Only the best for this project after all,” Both professionals ducked their heads modestly as a thank you.

"And we can't forget your design crew. Lotor as hair and makeup and Romelle as costume designer. And I think that's everyone!" Shiro grinned, moving away slightly as Keith blinked a few times.

"It’s great to meet all of you.” keith trailed off uncertainly, speaking was never his strong suit, “Thank you for agreeing to this, first of all.”

"So, how about you tell us all about your vision for the video?" Shiro said calmly with a smile, silently encouraging Keith.

"It’s a slow song, a love song. So slow dancing is kinda a must. That’s about all I’ve got for now." Keith rubbed the back of his head. “Oh, wait, I can play you all the song if you want- just lemme-”

"I presume Shiro didn't send you the song so I- I hope you will like it," Keith pulled out his phone and silently searched through it before hitting play.

As the song filled the room, Keith fidgeted uncomfortably, not used to having to stand in silence with only his music playing for everyone to listen and judge. The warmth from before came to rest on his arm and he silently thanked the heavens for Shiro’s existence.

The song ended and everyone broke into scattered applause. Snippets of praise reached his ears but it was all drowned out by one voice.

"Wait, wait, wait... the Keith Kogane making a slow dancing love song that he wants to dance to...?" Lance clarified, not sounding mocking but Keith bristled anyways, the sentence having hit just the wrong buttons.

"So what if I do? You have anything against it?" Keith said evenly towards Lance, crossing his arms in defense. Even if the guy turned out to be an asshole like he predicted (still not a big deal), he had to remain professional.

"Whoa.” Lance shoved himself up from the wall, a defensive frown plastered onto his handsome features. “You know what I have a problem with? That tone you’re using, dude. Like what’s your problem?”

“My problem?”

"Seriously, Lance, just stop…” Hunk tried to put a hand on Lance’s shoulder but the leaner boy shook it off. “Go on, pretty boy. What’s up with you?”

Keith didn’t even have to try to keep a flush away from his face at the compliment, as he clenched his jaw. No asshole was ever going to see that side of him, no matter how good their dark arms looked in that sweatshirt.

“Are you going to work with me on this or not?” He muttered.

“Depends.”

“What?”

“Like you would actually dance to something like this. Stick to it and we’ll see, pretty boy.”

“Deal.” Keith gritted the single syllable out as he watched a lazy grin form on Lance’s face. He heard shuffling behind him and a firm grasp clasped his forearm, pulling him into an equally firm chest.

In his annoyance, he hadn’t noticed both him and Lance slowly advancing towards each other in their little argument.

“A word, Keith.” Shiro whispered in his ear before whisking him away, giving the younger brother no chance to object.

They huddled near the entrance next to a lush and healthy looking potted plant.

“What the hell was that?”

“He started it.”

“He is one of your dance partners!”

“Doesn’t change the fact he’s an asshole.” His retort left Shiro with one hand dragging down his face, emitting a tired sigh. “Keith.” He started slowly, “For this to work, you need to work together with everyone.”

A tinge of guilt wormed its way into Keith’s stomach. He paused before muttering, “I’ll try.” With that, he tried to move away from Shiro and back to the team, but the sturdy chunk of older brother in front of him didn’t yield.

“You have more to say. You’re biting your lip, stop that.”

Keith released his bottom lip in a haste, crossing his arms. “Fine, I got pissed because I’m nervous about dancing to a love song. I’ve told you before. And that dick just stomped on those insecurities like-” A groan bubbled out.

"I-I just... I try to make something different, hoping people will like it but of course, it was probably the wrong thing to do." Keith mumbled, looking off to the side.

Another sigh came from Shiro, only this time more understanding and a little fondly exasperated. “Keith, you can’t ever do anything wrong with music. It’s from you, your heart and last time I checked, you have a good one. So don’t worry.” A clap on his arm.”They’ll love it.”

“But Lance-”

"-was just doing it to get onto your nerves. Talk to him, he has a different way of dealing with stuff and only by communicating with him will you learn that truly," Shiro smiled, placing a brotherly hand on Keith's shoulder.

Keith looked up towards Shiro, trying to smile."I'm sorry.”

"Hey, it's ok, little bro. Now let's get back in there and explain your ideas! And maybe ignore any of Lance's snarky comments this time." Shiro winked.

Shiro knew Keith wasn't good at dealing with emotions. The fact that he knew that, though he denied it to the ends of the earth, his little brother had high hopes for Lance Mcclain didn’t help matters either. Still, he knew Lance and that the kid hid a lot under humor and jokes, so he was determined to give them another chance.

Lance POV

“Lance, you absolute disaster.” was the first thing that registered clearly in Lance’s mind the past ten or so minutes. He let out a small miserable wail.

“I know, I know. Lower me into my grave, I’ll go easily.” He sobbed into Hunk’s shoulder, feeling a pat on his back.

“You were pretty unreasonable there, bud.” Hunk agreed. “What happened?”

Lance felt his heart sink as he recounted, “I don’t know. He walked in and holy shit Hunk he’s so much more prettier in person and I guess I kinda panicked? And I switched into default Lance mode which is like when I make the worst jokes that I don’t mean Lance.”

“Ah.”

“Doesn’t change the fact you were a dick.”

“Pidge, what do I do? He’ll never forgive me now. All my daydreams of making a good impression are gone, oh my quiznak.”

Allura twisted a strand of loose hair around her finger. “Apologizing to him would be a good start.”

“Ooh, he likes pretty sketchbooks! You could get him one.” Romelle piped up, holding a finger in the air. Lotor looked up from his phone, “I’ve sent you a list of his recently favourited selections online.”

Lance felt his phone in his pocket let out a happy thrill and gaped at the trio. “You guys are like a machine, whoa. And, uh,” He pointed at Lotor with a cocked brow, “how’d you get that list?”

“He sends me lists of stuff he likes sometimes.” Allura supplied instead, “And I tell Lotor and Romelle about it. Keith is adorable like that.”

Lance had to agree.

He ran a hand through his hair. “I messed up real bad, huh?” To his despair, he received nods everywhere.

“Reminds me of the time I accidentally insulted the prince of a distant island by suggesting that he not use diamonds as spectacle lenses.” That managed to rouse a smile out of Lance. “How’d that turn out?”

“We worked it out. He gave me a pair of the useless diamond glasses and I have them up to this very day.” Coran announced proudly, twirling his moustache. Lance said his thanks for the advice just as Keith and Shiro walked back from their private talk.

Lance quietly cleared his throat as Keith took his stand once again. He was determined to make it up to the pretty boy some way or another.

He would check that list of sketchbooks as soon as he got home.

Keith POV

"Ok, so now everything is sorted, introductions are made and we have the whole team present here, what ideas do you have, Keith?" Allura asked curiously, crossing her legs delicately on the armchair she was perched on.

"Well, like I said before, slow dancing. But the rest can be up to you and the others. Any suggestions are welcome." Keith said, shrugging.

“Allura, you can take this over since you are the choreographer.” Hunk gestured over to her and received multiple nods of agreement in response.

"Oh, it’s an honor." Allura smiled, before starting to speak, “We can’t get around to immediate choreo since I’ll need time to put one together. We need background dancers for some of you too, if we are to go with Keith’s idea of slow-dancing.”

A playful grin started to form on her face and in her eyes. When said eyes locked onto Keith, he froze. “And we can’t forget the beginner in our midst.”

Feeling suddenly self-conscious, he frowned, “Is that a good thing?”

“Of course! Imagine how fun it would be to discover your style together.” Allura clapped her hands together in excitement, “We will be able to witness your entire journey!”

"Ok, umm, when do we start?"

“When is the first practise date?”

“Will we be doing sessions here in the studio?”

Everyone asked in unison which ended up with the whole group breaking out into a fit of laughter for something so small and silly. An invisible thread of a bond winded through all of them.

"Is next week ok for all of you?" Allura asked before quickly adding, "It would give me time to choreograph it once we have gone through some more things next week."

Everyone affirmed their greenlight. "Ok, see you all next week then?" Keith smiled, spreading his palms out.

He got replies of Yep, Cool, Nice and See ya then, before everyone parted and headed off to the places they were meant to be at within the next hour or so.

Keith waited for everyone to go before following Shiro out of the building. "Well, I'm going to head back home.” Keith jabbed a thumb over his shoulder. Shiro nodded.

“Get some rest, little bro. You’re gonna need it. Allura does not kid around when it comes to choreo.”

“Sounds like something you should’ve told me before we hired her.” Keith smirked.

“Would you have said no?”

“...no.”

“Exactly.

Shiro nodded a goodbye and with one last Call me when you get back home! walked off in the opposite direction to Keith. Keith plugged and put in his earphones before walking back towards his penthouse.

As he bounded across the street, a freefall of excitement gripped his insides, just like whenever he would start a new project.

Fingers already itching to do something, he pulled out his phone and set a countdown timer to the first practise next week.

Five days and ten hours left to: hey now hey now this is what dreams are made of.