Work Text:
The fair(est love)
Keith hates Valentines day. He really hates it. All the hearts, the pink the red, not to mention all the giggling girls everywhere. There was just so long he could hide in his flat before he had to show his face. He knew this day was going to be long. His best friend, Katie, also known as Pidge, had tricked him into going on a blind date. On valentines. He was surly doomed.
Lance loved Valentines day. There wasn’t anything he wouldn’t do just by association with it. He helped his friends make chocolate, decorate for parties, and getting the right outfits for their dates. But Lance was forever alone. The 19-year-old had never been in a relationship before but was a terrible flirt. He went after anything he deemed hot, be that man or woman. But this year was a bit different. His friend, Pidge had lured him into agreeing to a blind date. On Valentines. This was doomed before it even began.
“Pidge, you know I love you, right?” Pidge looked up from the computer she was fiddling with and raised an eyebrow. Lance swallowed. “I can’t do this!” He blurted out. He had been dreading this day since Pidge had proposed it almost a month ago. “Nope!” Pidge popped the p as she stood up. “Not happening, buddy. You will go to the date, and I know that you will have a good time.” Lance sighed and shook his head. “I really can’t do it, Pidge. I’ve never been this nervous before, and you of all people should know that I never get nervous. “He started pacing in the small living room that belonged to Pidge and some dude named Tom that Lance never hade met. Pidge stalked over to him and punched him in the gut. Lance doubled over, clutching his stomach and gasping for air. “Don’t be such a wimp, Lance. I know you will like your date.” She sniffed the air for a bit, then a mischievous smile graced her lips. “I have even chosen the location for your date. It will be small, cosy and private, so you don’t have to worry too much. Besides, if you really don’t like the person, you can just leave, but I am sure you won’t do that.” She beamed at him. “Now shoo, I have tons to do before Tom gets home, and you need to get ready.”
Someone was knocking frantically on Pidges door, about 10 minutes after Lance left. Now, that would either be Lance again, or the other participant in the nights blind date plans. She opened the door, and it turned out to be the latter. “I’m not doing it!” He stated as soon as she had gotten the door open. Pidge gave him the look, and he hunched in on himself, flinching a bit. “Pidge!” He whined. She huffed out a breath and opened the door a bit more. “Get in here, you wimp!” Keith walked past her, his head low, looking at the floor. His hands were shaking, the nerves clearly eating at him. “I had you date here not 10 minutes ago, in more or less the same state as you’re in now”, she commented before plopping down in an armchair. He slowly looked up at her. “He was also this nervous...” She trailed off, gesturing at Keith, to emphasise her point of them being the same. He sat down in the armchair opposite Pidge. “I can’t help it, you know. I’ve never done anything like this, and the few souls I’ve dated doesn’t want anything to do with me. The las one literally left the country.” Pidge gave a weak smile. “I remember, but you will be forever alone if you’re afraid to do something about it. And besides, I can assure you that your date, they will not run of to some far away country to get away from you.” Keith only gave her a disbelieving glance, to which she just laughed. “He had the same worries too. He might not have said them out loud, but he is afraid to let people in. Afraid to be vulnerable. He is afraid of losing before even playing.” She had a thoughtful look on her face. “I know I shouldn’t say anything, but this person, they are someone you already know.” Keith sucked in a breath. Someone flashed through his mind. A hope that it would be them, but he reined himself in. “’Keith, just trust me on this, please? Go home and get ready. You already know where you are to meet. And since I told you this much, you will know who it is as you see him, even without the blue and white jacket I’ve forced him to wear.” Keith only nodded and got up ready to leave.
Lance was pacing in front of the diner he was supposed to meet his date at. And as usual, he was almost 30 minutes early. His pulse rapid, as he tried to calm his nerves. This was ridiculous. He was Lance McClain. Notorious playboy. Or at least, that was what he told himself. He looked at his motorcycle, giving fleeing one last thought before he stalked into the diner, getting a seat in an empty corner. His hands were sweaty, and his leg bounced uncontrollable under the table. He sat like this for about 10 minutes before the bell above the door chimed. Lance’s head snapped up, and he chocked on his breath. In the door, looking impeccable as always, was Keith. His secret crush for the last 4 years, and the reason why Lance never really pursued anyone. Keith was looking around, and then it hit Lance. The jacket Keith was wearing. It was the same on Lance was wearing himself, but instead of the blur, Keith’s were red. It was Keith. Pidge had set him up with Keith. Just as the realization hit him, Keith spotted him. And really, if Lance had been his usual self, he would have laughed at the expression on Keith’s face, but instead, it made his heart skip a bit.
Keith walked slowly over to the booth Lance had secured and looked as if he wanted to be anywhere but there. He slowly slid into the booth, opposite of Lance. Lance was still staring, as if in a trance. Keith cleared his throat, and Lance snapped out of his thoughts. As this happened, a goofy smile graced his features. “Hi”, Lance whispered, as if Keith would disappear if he broke the silence. The smile was infectious, as Keith looked into Lances eyes. “Hi, yourself,” he said, not afraid of breaking the silence. Lance finally laughed. “How did she reel you in?” He asked, and they both knew that the “she” was none other than Pidge. Keith shook his head. “I owed her a favour, and of all things she would want back, was… well… this” he said and made a gesture between themselves. Lance smiled sweetly and laughed again. “She promised me that I would get to arrange Tom’s birthday party next month if I did this for her.” He looked up at Keith, a bit shyly. Keith laughed too, and he could just as well have punched Lance in the guts, as he lost his breath. Lance bit his lip, and Keith took notice of it. This was it, Keith thought. The on who won’t run away. The one who’s, going to stay.
Lance shifted in his seat. He was still nervous. He had no idea what to say for once. He was usually a real chatterbox, but everything was blank. Nothing to fill the silence with. It wasn’t until the waitress appeared by their side, asking for their order, that the silence was broken. By a high-pitched yelp from Lance who had been so lost in thought that he hadn’t seen or hear the waitress as she approached. Keith had to put his hand over his mouth and turn away and the poor waitress grabbed her heart, just as startled as Lance, who by now had gone a lovely shade of cherry. “Two specials, one diet coke and an orange juice, please,” Keith said, trying to sound unaffected. The waitress nodded and ran off to get it done. Lance was hiding in his hands, and Keith could no longer contain the laughter. Tears were rolling down his face as he clutched his stomach. Lance made a sound, somewhere between a sob and a whine, and Keith laughed even harder, with Lance following suit.
The food arrived and the two ate in a comfortable silence. They were about halfway through their meal, when Keith felt something brush against his ankle. He glanced over at Lance who looked overly interested in the food on his plat. So, instead, he looked under the table, and sure enough, Lance foot was just inches away from his own, the edge of his trousers lightly touching Keith’s bare ankle. A light blush dusted his face as he tried to focus on the food, but when the pressure on his foot increased, a sign that Lance had moved his foot closer, he nearly lost it. He banged a fist in the table, and Lance jumped, moving his foot to his side of the table. Hurt evident in his eyes, he apologized lowly, keeping his eyes on the plate in front of him. Keith silently cursed himself for scaring him, Pidge’s words fresh in his min. “he is afraid”. He reached over and grabbed Lance’s hand. “We’re paying, and we’re getting out of here!” he exclaimed, released the hand and stalked over to the counter before Lance even knew what was going on.
Keith’s hand had found Lance’s again, and he dragged him out of the diner, and towards the fair that was in town. Lance scrunched his nose, looked from Keith and towards the fair, as if he knew where Keith was taking him. “Not to complain or anything…” he waited a bit to see if there was a reaction from Keith, but all he got was a grunt, so Lance took it as a sign to continue. “But why are we going to the fair? I thought you hated this stuff?” Keith stopped dead in his tracks and turned so fast that Lance didn’t have time to stop, so he crashed right into the chest in front of him. A deep flush crept up his face as he slowly looked up at the man in front of him. A soft look adorned Keith’s face and he smiled down at Lance. “I might,” he whispered. “But you don’t.” With that explanation, he turned again, and Lance was once more dragged after like a dog on leash. Leash. God, Lance really needed to stop thinking. The direction his mind was taking was dangerous. Keith didn’t stop until they had reached the Ferris wheel, and by this point, Lance knew what was happening, so he grabbed Keith’s arm, and held it in a vicelike grip. “Are we… going up there?” he squeezed out. Keith had the audacity to smirk. He knew Lance was dead terrified of heights, and he still wanted to get him up there. “Yes, we are”, he said. He turned around and shook free from Lances grip and put an arm around his back, pulling him close before putting his lips right next to Lance’s ear. “Do you have a problem with that?” he purred low. And if Lance squeaked at that, no one mentioned it. All he could do was shake his head no to the question Keith had posed. Satisfied with the answer, they took place in the queue.
Lance was gripping Keith’s arm so hard it hurt, but Keith was not about to say anything. He had dreamed of this for years, and if it came with a little bit of pain, he wasn’t going to complain. They were almost at the top, and Lance had his eyes squeezed shut, nit daring to open them. “Hey”, Keith said, moving his free hand to cup Lance’s face and turn his head. Lance barely lifted his lid and satisfied that he could only see Keith and nothing else, he opened his eyes. They were looking at each other, and Lance’s grip loosened a bit when Keith moved his face a little closer. Lance’s eyes were drawn to the others lips before they found his eyes again. There was a fire in Keith’s eyes that he had never seen before, but instead of scaring him, in made him feel breathless. He moved one of his hands away from the arm it was holding, and instead splayed it over Keith’s heart. He could feel the beating under his palm, just as erratic as his own. The proof that Keith was just as aware of him, as he was of Keith. The hand holding Lances face, slowly slid back, and cupped the back of his head. Keith tilted Lances head back a bit, before he smiled at him. Lance closed his eyes and relished in the feeling of Keith’s hand in his hair, and his soft breath on his face. “You’re beautiful”, he heard, and his eyes snapped open just as Keith’s lips met his own. Lance forgot to breath; he was so surprised. Keith drew back just a bit, and Lance gulped down some much-needed air before he threw everything in the wind and connected their lips again. Their lips moved against the others like they had never done anything but. The hand still remaining on Keith’s arm slid up and fisted itself in the others hair instead, and Keith took the opportunity to move his know free arm behind Lance’s back and draw him close to his chest. They drew back and all that could be heard where soft pants as they caught their breath again.
When they were safely back on the ground, Lance’s face was flushed, and his hair dishevelled. Anyone looking would be able to tell what they had been doing up there, but Lance found that he didn’t care. His finger laced with Keith’s and they looked around the fair, before they found out that they would rather be somewhere else. Keith had taken a cab to the diner, so they ended up going back, as it was there Lance had left his ride. They locked eyes, and they both knew that they were not going to their respective homes.
They had barely passed the threshold before Lance was pushed up against the door with Keith’s tongue down his throat. He moaned and clutched Keith’s shirt between his hands. Keith let his hands wander down the chest in front of him, until he found the hem and slid his hands under. The first reaction of Lance as he felt Keith’s hands against his skin was a mewl, which in turn got a low groan from Keith. Keith suddenly had had Lances jacket thrown somewhere on the floor with the shirt following suit. He stepped back and watched the perfection that where Lance, leaning in the door, panting and looking utterly dishevelled. Keith practically growled and connected their lips again. He grabbed the back of Lances knees and lifted. Lance, who barely had any conscious thought left, crossed his legs around Keith’s back as he carried him to the bedroom and threw him on the bed, fore he crawled over him like a predator before pouncing on his prey.
It was in the early mornings that Lance woke up to arms around his chest. It took him some time before he was able to remember anything from last night, he had been so drunk one the feeling that was Keith. He remembered how in the throes of passion, as he screamed out in pleasure that Keith had held him so gently and whispered sweet nothings in his ear. And when they came undone, he remembered how he had told Keith how much he loved him, and the tears that followed when Keith had held him tighter and told him “I never thought I would hear those words from you mouth directed at me”, he stopped to give a long drawn moan, before “ I love you so much, Lance”.
Keith started to stir behind him, and Lance felt his arms tighten around him. A smile graced his face as he nuzzled back into the warmth that was Keith. Keith lightly kissed Lance’s neck and buried his face in his hair. “Morning beautiful”, he whispered. “Morning”, Lance said in wriggled until he was able to turn around and look at Keith. Keith took in the sight before him. Every part of Lance’s tan torso was littered with dark marks. A rather large mark, right above Lance’s collarbone stood out the most, and Keith flipped them around, so Lance was on his back, with Keith looming over him. He lowered himself, and lightly kissed the mark. Lance squirmed a bit as one of Keith’s hands had graced his side. Keith looked him in the eye, and Lance started to panic. He knew that look. It was the same one he had every time Pidge became a victim of tickle attacks. He started to inch away, but Keith was to damn fast, and soon, Lance was howling with laughter, trying and failing to stop Keith. The only thing that stopped them in their tracks was an incessive knocking on the door. Lance grumbled about people in the mornings before he crabbed out of bed, threw on some boxers and she shirt closest to him, which belonged to Keith. The knocking still hadn’t stopped, and he snapped out a “I’m coming! Jeez!” When he opened the door, he wished he hadn’t, because there was Pidge, and one look at him, his state of undress, and the fact she knew the shirt, and annoyingly knowing smile came over her. Lance groaned and dragged a hand over his face. “Why are you here? And I don’t mean here, here, but rather now. It’s to early!” he complained. Pidge’s mouth twitched. “I just had to see if you were still alive”, she said simply. And at that, he decided revenge was the best course of action. “Well, as you can see, I am just fine, though after the pounding I took last night, there was a point were I thought I would wake up by the pearly gates”, he gave her a saccharine smile and she blanched, turned and left. He closed the door and laughed all the way back to the bedroom where Keith finally was fully wake. He looked at the shirt Lance was wearing. His shirt, and a smile rivalling the sun. A warm feeling filled his chest. So, this was how it felt. To love and be loved. He could get used to this.