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Shiro startles awake. It’s not an anxious spike through his stomach and the vague sense of fear that often follows a nightmare. It’s peaceful and easy, one moment he is asleep, and the next he is wide awake. He lifts his head slightly to peer through the sliver in the curtains, and catches the soft orange beginnings of sunrise. The house is silent aside from the occasional creaking as the old shack sways in the desert wind. Kosmo’s snores are a soothing drone that fade to the background from where he sleeps at the foot of their bed. Shiro falls back into his pillow and turns to face Keith. Keith may have been raised in the desert, but his Galra genes never seemed to fully adjust to such intense heat after being conditioned for the cold of space. He often awakens with his legs tangled in the sheets, and his hair slightly sweaty and stuck to his forehead and cheeks. Despite the strands falling into his mouth, and the soft snores that ruffle them back and forth, Shiro thinks Keith’s the most beautiful thing he’s ever seen. They’re married, sue him.
No matter how many mornings Shiro gets to wake up by Keith’s side, it never ceases to amaze him how soft Keith looks in sleep. His face is so smooth and young, and the innocence makes something squeeze in Shiro’s chest. Seeing the softness of Keith’s cheeks and the slight flutter of his eyelashes, Shiro can’t help but think of all the nights Keith has spent alone in this shack. Shiro won’t deny that he has gone through hell and back, but he imagines Keith’s year in the desert to be a whole different kind of pain. Shiro has always been aware of what an important role he played in Keith’s adolescence, and it is not a privilege he ever took lightly. It’s why thinking of Keith’s year in the desert, forced back into the loneliness and quiet of his life before the Garrison, tears Shiro’s heart apart. It is a unique type of grief to be left behind, to be so wholly and completely alone. It makes Shiro love Keith even more. It’s a grateful love, because Shiro has no illusions to how dark things got during those solitary months, and Shiro loves Keith so much for making it through, and making it back to him.
Keith stirs, grumbling lightly in his sleep. His chest is bare and exposed, his thighs covered only by a sheet. There are pink and purple marks littered across his skin, souvenirs of a giggly, tipsy midnight welcoming in a very special day. Shiro takes one more moment to drink Keith in before slowly rising from the bed and tiptoeing towards the door. He makes his way downstairs, stealthily avoiding the creaky corner on the fifth step down. The downstairs windows are bare and the room is bathed in light, soft dust particles floating in the rays. The digital clock on the stove reads 6:53 am. and Shiro spares a moment of gratitude for how late the sun rises this time of year. Keith is a light sleeper, so when the fridge grumbles as Shiro pulls it open, he pauses for a moment to ensure all remains silent upstairs. When no noise comes, Shiro bends to the bottom shelf where he had hastily stashed the dozen cupcakes Hunk had dropped off last night. Shiro and Hunk had tried to be stealthy, but alas Shiro’s husband is an elite extraterrestrial spy, and so therefore he was most definitely aware of the box stashed in the far back corner. At least Keith had been gracious enough to pretend he wasn’t.
Shiro’s stomach flutters as he carefully opens the box and pulls out a pair of cupcake. He grabs a singular red birthday candle from the baking drawer and places it on the equally bright red icing Hunk had kindly decorated onto the cupcakes. Surprises make Shiro jittery, even small ones like this. He just wants to get upstairs already so he can wake Keith up and kiss the taste of frosting from his mouth. Shiro balances the two cupcakes and lighter as he makes his way back upstairs. He forgets to avoid the creaky step, and it squeaks loudly as Shiro places his full weight on it. He winces, but keeps going, pushing their bedroom door open with his shoulder. He finds Keith spread starfish across their bed, legs hopelessly entangled in the sheets, ass bare in the morning light. A very impressive maneuver for the five minutes Shiro was downstairs.
Shiro carefully puts the cupcakes down on the night stand, and sits on the edge of the bed. He slides a warm hand across Keith’s back, shuffling closer. Keith groans, but begrudgingly approaches consciousness. He slowly blinks his eyes open, squinting in the soft light, and Shiro can’t help but grin all big and excited.
“Good morning babe,” Shiro lowers a hand to Keith forehead, pushing the dark hair out of his face, and Keith pouts.
Shiro just smiles, “happy birthday.”
Keith’s nose scrunches, “happy birthday,” he echoes, his voice rough and morning deep. God, Shiro loves Keith’s voice in the morning. He turns towards the bedside table and takes a moment to light the birthday candle, slowly turning back to Keith and presenting him with a bright red birthday cupcake. Keith sits up, pulling the sheets with him. He leans his head back against the wall and sleepily hold’s Shiro’s gaze as he sings him a solo rendition of “happy birthday”. When Shiro’s finished, Keith closes his eyes briefly, before reopening them and blowing the candle out. After that, he is quick to put the candle aside, and dig in to the cupcake. It baffles Shiro slightly at how Keith can have an appetite within moments of waking, but he’s sure Hunk will be pleased to hear his cupcakes are such a success. After a moment of watching Keith eat, Shiro turns and picks up his own cupcake. He takes a small bite, and the middle is still cold from the fridge, but it’s sweet and fluffy. Keith grins at him as he chews, teeth stained slightly red from the icing.
Cupcake successfully inhaled, Keith tugs him back under the sheets, crumbs be damned, and kisses him on the mouth. He tastes like sugar and smells morning sweet and Shiro loves him so, so much. Shiro can’t think of anything better than Keith’s sleep warm, bare skin beneath his palms, first thing in the morning. They kiss lazy and unhurried, taking a brief break when Kosmo finally rises, eager to join in on the birthday fun. After bounding onto the bed for good morning pets, Shiro bribes him out of their room with the remaining half of his cupcake, and shuts the door, returning to a slightly red cheeked, out of breath Keith. Their lips meet once again, and Shiro’s kisses eventually travel farther south and Keith’s giggles turn to moans as Shiro gives him his first birthday present of the day.