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Dating Keith is weird. It is the weirdest relationship Lance has ever had. It’s been two weeks and it seems like they have hardly progressed. It’s not like Lance is asking for much. Really all he wants is to be kissed but every time he thinks it’s gonna happen it doesn’t.
Hunk interrupts them to try a new recipe, Pidge burst into the room with a new robot startling Lance off the couch, the mice were watching, Kosmo was watching, and that horrible time Lance leaned in then suddenly had to sneeze. It was horrible.
The worst part is that Lance was the one always making the moves. Lance initiated every touch, every intimate moment. It was all Lance. Keith didn’t do anything.
Now Lance knows Keith isn’t as touch feely as he is but he’s had enough. No more waiting. Lance was going to corner that boy and straighten this out.
It didn’t take long for Lance to find him, he only had to ask a few of the Atlas crew where he was. In the Black lion’s hanger. Lance should have known.
“There you are I’ve been looking for you!” Lance called across the hanger.
Keith slowly turned from his conversation with Kinkade to glare at Lance.
“We need to talk.” Lance jabbed a finger into Keith’s arm, “Right. Now.”
Keith’s brow pinched in confusion, he looked back at Kinkade, who only shrugged, then back at Lance, “What?”
“WE,” Lance gestured quickly between him and Keith, “NEED TO TALK!”
Kinkade let out a low whistle before patting Keith’s arm, “Good luck.” and he walked away.
Keith watched him go still looking confused.
Lance glared at Keith.
Keith turned back to Lance and jumped a little when he saw Lance’s glare.
“Uh…”
Roughly grabbing Keith’s hand Lance pulled him out of the hanger and down the hall to one of the many small meeting rooms. It housed a table for ten with one wall length window that viewed a beautiful nebula they were currently passing. To bad Lance was too pissed off to enjoy it.
Lance let go of Keith’s hand as soon as they were in the room. He crossed his arms over his chest as he stepped up to the window directing his glare at the universe outside. Keith hung back by the door.
“Lance,” His voice was soft, “Are you ok?”
“No.” Lance huffed, breath fogging the glass.
“Alright,” Keith swallowed, he was nervous. “You’re going to have to tell me what is wrong, you know I’m not good at this type of stuff.”
Lance huffed again, “No shit.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“Just that your communication skills suck.” Lance finally turned to face Keith across the room, “Worse than Coran’s cooking.”
“That is uncalled for, I’m not that bad.” Keith crossed his arms defensively.
“You so are that bad.”
“What the fuck is going on Lance?”
“Oh nothing really, just I don’t know where the hell we stand in our relationship.”
Keith’s brow pinched in confusion again, “What?”
“You know when people start dating there are usually things like hugging and kissing, that sort of thing.” Now that he had started Lance could feel the dam break and the words flooding out of him. “Holding hands and cuddling, yet every time I try you do nothing, you don’t even try. I need physical contact.” Lance was now gesturing wildly with his hands but he couldn’t help it. “I need to be shown affection, so if this is some boundary thing then you need to tell me what those boundaries are! I can’t keep trying to guess what you are thinking or where we stand!”
Keith looked dumbfounded, “Um… We’re dating?”
Lance’s fury and frustration came to a screeching halt as did every other thought in his mind. “Was that a question?”
Keith slowly nodded and embarrassment filled Lance’s chest choking him.
Lance closed his eyes, he couldn’t look at Keith, “Haven’t we been dating for the past two weeks?”
____
Keith was lost. Did Lance just ask if they had been dating? For two weeks?
He felt that sinking feeling. That horrible sinking feeling when he knows he has missed something important. Very Important.
He had noticed Lance had been clingy lately, but it was normal right. It was like he was with the rest of the team. Right?
Lance covered his face and sucked in a deep breath, “You know what don’t answer that. Just… just pretend this never happened.” Lance stepped toward the door.
Keith stepped into his path blocking him, “No.”
He had to fix this. Admittingly Keith knew he didn’t get all the social cues that he should and for the most part there was no harm done. But this was big, this was important.
This was Lance.
Lance was covering his face again, “Move. Please.”
“No.” Keith soften his voice, “Lance tell me what happened, what did I miss?”
He reached up pulling Lance’s hands away to reveal the tears he was trying to hide. “Maybe I am as bad as Coran’s cooking.”
Lance huffed out a laugh through his tears, “Fuck, your worse.”
“Tell me,” Keith wiped the tears from Lance cheeks, “Tell me how it started.”
Lance pulled Keith’s hands way from is face but held them in front of them. His studied them as he started.
“Remember on the planet with the swamp… Krestal or something?”
Keith squeezed his hands for him to continue.
“The one local kept asking to court me or something, and you… you said…” Lance sniffled.
“That you were taken.” Keith remembered. He remembered how uncomfortable it was making Lance, even if he was still being friendly, and Keith may have gotten a bit protective. Plus he was pissed that the guy kept trying to steal Lance’s attention away from him. It was the first mission they had had together in a while.
“Remember… remember when I later asked if you really wanted to do that? And if… if that day was our first date?” Lance’s voice grew smaller as he asked that last question.
Keith had to think about that one.
He remembers they were hacking their way through the vines in the swamp looking for a downed Galra battleship. Lance had been talking but Keith doesn’t remember anything he said.
Oh Shit.
Keith remembers not hearing him clearly, knowing a question was asked but not knowing what the question was. Figuring it was just another joke Keith just answered with a Sure.
Lance had asked him the one thing Keith was too fucking chicken to ask himself and he missed it. He fucking missed Lance asking him out.
Lance was deflating before him, his shoulders dropping, “You don’t remember.”
“I…” How the fuck was Keith going to save this? “I’m not sure, I remember answering you but I don’t remember what you asked.” He was such an asshole. “I’m an asshole, I should have been listening better.”
Lance dropped his hands and crossed his arms, “I’ve been all over you for the past two weeks and you didn’t think something was up?” Lance was glaring again, “All the times I cuddled with you and hugged you didn’t tip you off that something had changed?”
“I thought you were just being friendly like you are with Hunk.” Keith said sheepishly. He really should have picked up on that.
Lance just stared for a second before answering, “I’m not that affectionate with Hunk. Keith, we took naps together.”
“You take naps with Hunk.”
“Not in his bed! Damn it Keith, I was laying on top of you.” Lance glared at the ceiling and groaned, “I tried to kiss you several times!”
Keith could feel his face turning red. How did he miss that?!
“You should have stopped me if you didn’t like it.” Lance continued.
“Who said I didn’t like it.”
That surprised Lance into silence.
Keith saw his chance to clarify things and fix this. They both wanted the same thing Keith was just to stupid to see it before.
“Lance, you should know I’d never allow our first date to be trekking through a swamp to kill a bunch of Galra and have to spend an hour getting swamp out of our hair. I’m sorry I missed what you said, but I’d like to start over and take you on a real date.” Keith smiled as he watched Lance relax a bit. “I would never just ignore a boyfriend and I don’t really have any boundaries.” Keith stepped forward backing Lance up. “If you have any tell me. Please.” Another step and Lance’s back hit the window. “Lastly, I would love nothing more than to kiss you right now.”
“Was that a question?” Lance whispered.
“You got an answer?” Keith was only inches away.
“Yes.”
“Yes??”
“Shut up and kiss me already.”
Keith did just that. He pressed forward into Lance eagerly slotting their lips together. Loving the soft feeling of Lance’s lips and the small gasp that escaped through them.
____
Lance was losing his mind. Here he thought he had been doing something wrong when it was a severe miscommunication. Mostly Keith’s fault. Now he was opening up to let Keith’s tongue explore while he was pressed up against a window.
It’s exactly what he’d been missing. The heady rush of making out with his boyfriend. He loved it.
Keith pulled back taking a deep breath, “This ok?”
Lance was a bit breathless himself, “Yeah, just don’t wrinkle the new uniform.”
Keith grinned, “No promises.” And he kissed him again.