Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

     Lance was walking home from work. It was a dreary, rainy morning, which he actually enjoyed. It was five in the morning, so the streets were basically empty. He was supposed to get off of work at four, but he had to stay late. It kind of sucked working night shifts at the diner, but it was better than working the busier hours. He only really ever had three other people working with him, and they usually only had a few quieter tables at a time, other than the weekends like tonight. On the weekends, people from the nearby bars usually found their way over. That’s why he got stuck working for an extra hour. They all worked the same shift -  ten to four- other than Pidge who worked from midnight to six. The regular morning crew came in at four-thirty, but he didn’t like to leave them there by their self when the customers were acting crazy. 

     His daily schedule was boring. He was honestly considering finding a day job so he could quit the diner, but his coworkers had become his friends and he actually kind of enjoyed working. He just hated his hours. Everyday, he worked until four in the morning, went home, slept until about two, then did anything he needed to do before work. He didn’t really have the time for anything else. He was just ready to get home. Luckily, the diner was only about a half-hour walk to his apartment building. He spent his walk listening to music and taking in the sliver of sun coming in. As soon as he got in, his dog, Blue, met him at the door. 

     “Hey buddy! You miss me?” He said as he knelt down to pet him. He was a husky mix-breed with bright blue eyes. At this point, he was Lance’s best friend. He had adopted him about a year ago when his old roommate had moved out. Honestly, he hated living alone, but he didn’t really have another option. He used to be super social, but after he dropped out of college, he didn’t have the time for it. All of his old friends were still in school in the same town, but their schedules never really worked out. The only exception to that was Pidge. They were actually two years younger than him, but they graduated highschool at sixteen and went straight to college. They originally had planned to go back for their Master’s degree, but they decided to take a year or two off. His other coworkers were Allura and Hunk. Allura went to the same college as him, but she was a year ahead, so he didn’t really know her very well. Hunk’s uncle owned the diner and he was saving up to open his own restaurant. 

     Before he laid down, he decided to go sit out on his patio for a while. He wanted to read some anyway. He had been reading some weird murder mystery that Pidge had recomended. He changed and made himself a cup of tea before grabbing his book and making his way onto the patio. He was only on the fifth floor, but he still enjoyed the the view. He slowly kicked his legs up onto the table and escaped into the world between the pages. About half an hour into his book, he was interrupted by something furry rubbing against his leg. He looked up to see a black cat staring at him from the table. 

     “Hi? Where’d you come from?” He asked as he reached out to pet the cat. He started purring almost immediately. “What are you doing up here? It’s not even seven yet. How’d you even get here?” Of course, the cat didn’t respond, he just curled up in his lap. “Okay, well I should probably find your owner…” Almost as soon as he said that, a guy that was probably just a few years older than him walked out onto the patio next to him. Lance stood up and walked over to the edge of his balcony. “Hey… sorry to bother you, but… is this your cat? He just kind of showed up over here?” 

     “Yeah, my boyfriend’s cat anyway.” He mumbled before walking back over to the door and sliding the door open. “Your stupid cat got out again!” He waited a second, probably getting a response that Lance couldn’t hear, then walked back over to the ledge after grabbing a bag of treats from a counter inside. “Kosmo.” He said as he shook the bag. “Come on, I have to go to work.” The cat just started before turning back to Lance. 

     “I can just bring him around. I mean, you're right next door so…” 

     “That would be great, thanks… I’ll go get the door.” Lance nodded and picked up Kosmo, then made his way out into the hall. By the time he got out, his neighbor was already sitting with the door half-open. “Sorry, he’s stubborn. I’ll make sure he doesn’t get out again… Are you like new around here?” He said as he took the cat from him. 

     “No… I’ve actually lived here for about three years now… you probably just haven’t seen me around, I work nights, and I usually sleep all day so…”

     “Oh, We moved in like a year and a half ago, so I guess I’m the new one.” The man laughed, extending his hand. “Well, my name’s Mark, I’m sure we won’t see much of each other though, I work from eight to five so…” 

     “Yeah, probably not… well, it was nice meeting you I guess… Lance by the way.” 

     “Cool. Well, I better go get ready for work.” Lance just nodded and waved before making his way back into his apartment. 

     “See Blue? I can meet people. He seemed nice.” He mumbled as he laid down, Blue didn’t seem very convinced. Lance finally got to sleep just after seven. By two, his alarm woke him up. He didn’t really have anything he needed to do, so he pressed snooze and went back to sleep. Blue woke him back up about an hour later.

     “Yeah, I know. Food. Give me a second.” He mumbled as he got up. After Blue was fed, he made his way back onto the patio to read some more. He was almost to the end of the book and he wanted to finish it so he could take it back to Pidge when he went into work. Before he even knew it, his book was finished. When he looked up, he noticed a different guy on the next door patio. He had seen him from time to time, but never for very long. He usually avoided being out on his patio if any of his neighbors were on theirs.  He was sitting on one of the chairs with his legs kicked up on the rail, listening to music and appearing to be sketching something. There was a cup from a nearby cafe sitting on the table next to him, and he had a limp cigarette hanging from his lips. Out of curiosity, Lance stayed out for a minute and watched. Suddenly, the cat jumped up and knocked the cigarette from his mouth. 

     “Kosmo! You have to stop doing that!” He half-whined. Kosmo jumped down and pawned it off of the edge through the gaps in the railing. “I know, but I really don’t care right now. Don’t make me put you back inside.” He said as he pulled a new cigarette from his box. Before he had a chance to light it, Kosmo got in between his hand and his lighter. He just sighed and put the new cigarette back in his box and allowed the cat to crawl into his lap. “Yeah, I probably should leave, but where do we have to go? Shiro’s still gone. You’re all I’ve got now, you know that.” He almost whispered. Suddenly, he got up and grabbed his things before walking inside. 

     Immediately, Lance was questioning what he meant. Why did he want to leave? Something was clearly wrong. He almost wanted to go talk to him, but he knew it would seem creepy, so he didn’t. He eventually pulled himself back inside and did all of the things he was supposed to. After he ate, cleaned, and showered, it was just barely eight, so he decided to grab a new book and read some more. When he got outside, the same guy from earlier was leaning his back against the railing, covered in paint, staring at a canvas in front of him. Lance couldn’t see what was on it, but he could see that the guy was trying to figure out what to do. Eventually, he pulled his focus to his book and read until he needed to leave. Before he stood up, he heard the guy huff and looked up. He suddenly grabbed a paintbrush dipped in red and splattered a bunch of it over the canvas, then disappeared  into the apartment. 

Chapter Text

     Work went about as well as usual. Lance only worked until four like usual and took his usual path home. Like usual, he was greeted by Blue, then went and showered. He couldn’t seem to get what the guy had said out of his mind. He eventually flopped down on his bed. He forgot to set his alarm and didn’t manage to wake back up until almost five. He lazily made his way to the kitchen, fed Blue, and microwaved some ramen. He took it to the patio, hoping to find an excuse to talk to his neighbor. A few minutes after he sat down, the door slid open and he walked out and sat down. Lance watched as he stared down at the parking lot for a minute before he lit his cigarette. Lance just watched. He looked numb. A few minutes later, he could hear his door open again and watched as the guy's expression completely changed as he got up and turned around.  

     “Hey, how was work?” 

     “Fine, I guess.” Mark said as he walked out to the patio. Lance quickly pulled out his phone so it would look like he wasn’t watching. Mark pulled out a cigarette and learned forward, letting the other guy light it. “What did you do today, Kit?”  So his name’s Kit… , Lance thought. 

     “Oh, not much…” 

     “You didn’t go anywhere?” 

     “No… I just worked on a painting and did some laundry…” 

     “And you cooked dinner?” He asked, Kit nodded. “Good boy.” Mark mumbled as he kissed Kit’s temple. Now Lance was really confused. Why did he want to leave so bad? His boyfriend seemed nice…  “Alright.” Mark said as he put out his cigarette. “Let’s go eat.”

     “You want me to eat with you?” Kit asked with his head cocked. 

     “Yeah. You’ve been good today.” Kit just nodded and followed him inside. That seemed weird, but Lance just tried to ignore it. He was dealing with his own issues, he needed to focus on that for right now. Tonight, he was asking Hunk to help him convince his uncle to let him change his hours. He would honestly be happy with getting off at two for now, he just wanted a little bit of his life back. He spent the rest of his time before work trying to come up with his plan. 

     As soon as he got to work, he pulled Hunk to the side. 

     “Hey, buddy…” 

     “Hey… What do you need?”

     “Can you maybe… possibly… convince your uncle to change my hours?” 

     “Haven’t you already tried?” 

     “Yeah, but you’re Hunk. He’ll listen to you.” 

     “Okay… I’ll try, but I make no promises.” 

     “Yes! Thank you! I owe you big time.” 

     “Yeah, you do. Also, Allura called out, so you’re on your own for tables tonight.” 

     “What? Pidge isn’t going to help?” 

     “No. Do you really think that would go well?” 

     “Fair enough.” Lance huffed as he tied his apron around his waist. “Well… if you could talk to him tomorrow, that would be cool… let me know as soon as you can.” 

     “You know you probably won’t start until we convince someone to work extra hours right?” 

     “I know. I just want to at least get off at two if possible.”

     “I’ll try. Go take some orders.”  Lance just nodded and walked back out to the front. Luckily, they only had two tables so far. He took the first table’s order and ran it to the kitchen, then made his way to the other. 

     “Hi, welcome to Garret's, what can I get for you guys?” He said with fake enthusiasm before he actually looked up. 

     “Lance?” 

     “James? How’ve you been, man?” 

     “Pretty damn good. I’m currently DD’ing if you can’t tell.” He chuckled. 

     “Yeah, you’re at a diner during nightshift.” 

     “What’s that supposed to mean?” 

     “It means you either came from a bar, you’re on a roadtrip, or you’re a high school trying to be edgy.” 

     “Fair enough…” 

     “So, what do you guys want?” The entire table erupted with orders, then James spoke over them.  

     “Just burgers and water for everyone.” Lance just nodded and made his way to the kitchen. He secretly hated seeing his old friends here. They were all doing well for themselves, and he was working at this stupid diner. He spent the next few hours taking orders and bringing out the food. Around two, there were a few more tables than usual, but it was a Saturday night, so he got to work. 

     “Hi, welcome to Garret’s, what can I get for you guys?” He half-mumled with all of his energy drained. 

     “Mmmh… just five orders of the Denver omelets.” One of the guys slurred. 

     “And to drink?” 

     “You guys got any beer?”

     “No, we don’t serve alcohol, we have coke products, as well as lemo-” 

“Yeah, whatever water works.” He cut him off, Lance just nodded and walked away. He continued work as usual, taking more orders, making runs, and trying to zone out. Eventually, their order came out. He gave a fake smile as he set down the plates. 

     “Took you long enough.” 

     “Yeah, we had a bit of a rush, sorry.” Lance said as he started to walk away.

     “Wait, c’mere.” One of the guys called out. Lance stopped and turned. “No, over here.” He slowly walked back to the table. “You’re kinda cute. I’m gonna give you this, and you’re gonna use it.” He whispered as he slid a napkin into Lance’s pocket. He grabbed the napkin and saw a number written on it. 

     “Yeah… sorry, I have a girlfriend.” He said as he put it back on the table. Before he walked away, he heard a familiar voice. 

     “No he doesn’t, he lives in my building.” When he turned around, he realized Mark was sitting on the end. 

     “I do actually, we just haven’t moved in together. I have to go run some more food…” He mumbled as he walked back into the kitchen. 

     “Another gross table?” Hunk asked, seeing his discomfort. 

     “Yeah. Pidge…” 

     “Which table and what’s left?” 

     “Four and just the check.” 

     “Got it.” 

     “Thanks…” 

     “No problem. I don’t see how this happens so much. It never happens with me when I cover for you guys.”

     “Becuase you look like you’re twelve and you’re not exactly friendly.” 

     “Okay, I’m almost twenty-one.” 

     “Okay, and I’m ‘almost’ twenty-three, but I don’t look like I’m fourteen. Hunk is ‘almost’ twenty-four, he doesn’t look fifteen.” 

     “Well, that just means I’m not gonna be all old and wrinkly by the time I’m thirty-five.” They said, sticking their tongue out. 

     “Whatever. I have some orders to run. Just remember to take that check.” They nodded as Lance grabbed a tray and walked out of the kitchen. The rest of the night didn’t suck as much, and Hunk had managed to find someone to come in to cover the waiting position, so Lance got to leave at four. He decided he definitely didn’t like Mark now. Usually, stuff like that didn’t bother him very much, but tonight it did. 

     For some reason, he decided to take the long way home today. Maybe it was his mood, maybe it was the rain, or maybe it was just fate. Honestly, it was probably a bad idea, it was four in the morning in Chicago, but he didn’t really care. The long way home mainly consisted of him walking on Lake Shore Drive and watching the lightning strike. About half way home, he noticed someone sitting on the railing between the beach and the sidewalk. As he got closer, he realized it was his neighbor. 

     “Hey.” He said as he leaned onto the rail next to him, making him flinch, but he never looked over. “Sorry, that probably seemed really creepy… I’m Lance, your neighbor. We’ve never talked, but I met your boyfriend when I brought your cat back. I’ve just seen you around and connected the dots…” He just nodded. “I saw him at the diner… What are you doing all the way out here?” He just shrugged. “Can I walk you home? It’s late, you really shouldn’t be out here alone…” He just shook his head and pulled out a cigarette, then passed the box to Lance. He didn’t smoke, but he saw it as an excuse to talk to him, so he took one and let Kit light it. 

     “So… what’s your name anyway?” 

     “Keith.” 

     “Keith… What about your cat?” 

     “Kosmo.” 

     “Kosmo, I like that… He’s cute.” He just nodded. 

     “So… what are you doing out here?” 

     “Just bored.” 

     “It’s four a.m. ,normal people are asleep.” 

     “You’re not.” 

     “I just got off work. So, what about you?” He just shrugged. 

     “Dude, you’re sitting out here chainsmoking, halfway across town from our apartment building in the rain, what’s going on?” 

     “Nothing.” 

     “C’mon man, you’ll probably never actually speak to me again. I probably have the opposite sleep schedule as you. Why does it even matter?” 

     “Exactly. You don’t know me, why does it matter?” 

     “Because, there’s clearly something wrong.” 

     “And you just ask some random guy on the street what’s wrong?” 

     “Yeah… I have before…” 

     “Why?” 

     “Because… that was me at one point. College sucked, that’s how I met the guy who gave me my job.” 

     “So what?” He said taking another drag from his cigarette. “I tell you what’s wrong and then you just fix my life?” 

     “Not necessarily. I could just talk to you, walk you home, then that’s it, but there’s a possibility that that’s what you need, so here I am. If Hunk didn’t do this three years ago with me, I don’t know where I’d be right now.” 

     “Sounds great for you, but I’m not going home right now.” 

     “Why not?” Keith just huffed and turned his head to the side. 

     “How old are you?” 

     “Twenty-two. Why?” 

     “Buy me a drink and I’ll think about it.” 

     “Okay. There’s a decent bar down Jackson.”

     “Not that one.”

     “Why?...” 

     “They card at the door.” 

     “So, you’re underaged?” 

      “I’m twenty.” 

     “Still…” 

     “I thought you wanted to talk.” 

     “Fine. Where do you suggest then?” 

     “Somewhere more southside. Closer to the building anyway.” 

     “Okay, let’s go.” Before Keith turned to follow, he flipped his hood up. “You know which bar we're going to, so lead the way.” 

Chapter Text

     They walked basically the entire way in silence. It was almost five when they got into the bar. 

     “Order at the bar. I’ll come when they bring them out.” 

     “What do you want?” 

     “Old Fashioned with a twist, Maker’s Mark.” 

     “That was quick.” Lance said as he walked up to the bar. 

     “Hey, what can I get you?” The bartender asked as he flipped a red napkin onto the bar in front of Lance. 

     “Yeah, uh… can I get a Tom Collins, and I’ll have a friend on my tab. He wants a Maker’s Mark Old Fashioned with a twist.” 

     “Ooh, do I sense a date?” 

     “No.” Lance laughed lightly. “Just catching up with an old friend.” 

     “Nice. Well, let me know if you guys need anything else.” He said as he started on the Tom Collins. Keith was watching from the back wall. He was trying to read Lance’s body language. He seemed very warm and kind. Finally, the bartender sat his drink down and walked away, so he joined Lance at the bar. 

     “So now that you-” He was interrupted by Keith holding up his finger. 

     “Drink first.”

     “Okay…”  They sat in silence while Keith drank about half of his drink, then he finally pulled down his hood and Lance got a good look at his face. 

     “Dude… what happened?” 

     “Don’t worry about it. Drink first.” 

     “I’ll get you another one if you actually talk to me.” 

     “Fine.” 

     “So, why aren’t you going home?” 

     “I can’t right now.” 

     “Why not?” 

     “I’m not allowed to.” 

     “Not allowed to? You’re twenty.” 

     “Yeah, it’s not my apartment though.” 

     “So the real answer is Mark then.” Keith just nodded and took another sip of his drink. “So…” 

     “So… I’m done drinking.” 

     “So… If I get you another drink you’ll talk?” 

     “I’ll think about it.” 

     “Same thing?” 

     “No. I need something a bit stronger. Black Russian, house vodka.” He said as he stood up. 

     “Where are you going?” Keith just held up his pack of cigarettes. “How are you alive?” 

    “Well, I wish I wasn’t, but what do you mean?” 

     “So far tonight I’ve seen you smoke almost a whole pack and put down a drink in a few minutes, not to mention, you’re leaving a total stranger with your drink.” 

     “Yeah.” He responded as he walked out. Lance got the attention of the bartender, and he came over. 

     “So… not going great?” 

     “I don’t know yet. Black Russian house vodka.” 

     “Kid’s gonna get wasted. He looks like he weighs ninety pounds soaking wet. Did he just turn twenty-one or something?” 

     “Something like that.” 

     “Well… since you seem to be the logical one here, if he gets a little… too drunk, I’ll make whatever he wants virgin if you want me to. He won’t even notice if he’s drunk.” 

     “Yeah, we’ll see. We’re definitely gonna have to take the subway home.” 

     “Well, good luck.” Soon enough, Keith came back and immediately started on his drink. 

      “Will you talk now?” 

      “Fine, I never said how much though.” Lance just nodded. “If you saw him at the diner, I’m sure you know he’s wasted.” 

      “Yeah…” 

      “I don’t really know what else you want me to say. I don’t know why you even brought me here to talk I think it’s pretty ob-” 

     “Kit?” Someone shouted from the doorway, making Keith flinch. 

     “Well, that’s me.” He mumbled before he downed the rest of his drink and walked over to where Mark was standing. Lance knew it was probably in his favor to avoid being seen, so he watched out of his peripheral vision as Mark pulled him out by the collar of his hoodie. Then, they were gone. Lance quickly paid his tab and ran out to see him dragging Keith to a black sudan, then watched as they drove off. He knew he wouldn’t beat them back, but he still ran to the apartment. When he got there, the car was in the parking lot. By the time he got to their floor, they were already in their apartment. He just stared at the door for a second before walking into his own apartment. Blue immediately met him at the door. 

     “I know I’m late bud… sorry. We’re gonna stay up for a while today. I think I’m gonna call out tomorrow too.” He said as he sat down on his kitchen floor to pet him. His apartment was silent, so he could hear the muffled yelling from the other apartment. He also heard several different crashes and slams. Finally, he decided to go sit on the patio incase Keith came out. He stayed out there for almost an hour, just scrolling through his phone until he heard noises coming from the otherside.

     He looked over to see Keith with his feet propped up on the railing, holding a lit cigarette in one hand, and a half-full bottle of cheap whiskey in the other. He decided to wait until Keith noticed him to say anything. At some point, he must have. A cigarette flew across the patio and hit him in the face. He picked it up to see a phone number written on it. When he looked over, Keith held a finger up to his lips and took a sip of the whiskey. Lance got the message and texted the number. 

     Lance: Are you okay?

     Keith: Do you only ask stupid questions?

     Lance: You know what I mean. 

     Keith: This is just life. It’ll be fine. 

     Lance: So what? You’re just going to get wasted and smoke yourself to death?

     Keith: Yeah, unless something else gets me first. 

     Lance: Come over.

     Keith: I can’t. Patio door’s locked. 

     Lance: Seriously? 

     Keith: Yep. 

     Lance: What happened? 

     Keith motioned for him to walk to the ledge of the patio, then just handed him the bottle and shoved his cigarettes and lighter into his pocket, then typed on his phone for a second. He suddenly climbed over the railing and kept the toes on one foot on the outside and reached the other foot to Lance’s patio. Finally, he pulled himself over and took the bottle back from Lance. 

     “You know… that was really stupid, you’re drunk.” 

     “M’ not that drunk.” He slurred. “Besides, who cares.” Suddenly, Kosmo jumped over and onto the table, before climbing onto Keith’s shoulder and pressing his forehead to Keith’s cheek. “Sorry, he follows me everywhere.” 

     “It’s fine, he’s cute.” 

     “Yeah…” Keith said as he took another swig. 

     “You should probably… not be out here.” 

     “Yeah, you’re probably right.” He mumbled as he sat Kosmo down on the table. Lance started to lead him inside, but stopped. 

     “I have a dog by the way… He’ll probably be excited…” 

     “S’ fine.” Lance just nodded and led him inside. Blue immediately jumped up and ran to him. 

     “Blue, sit.” Lance said, Blue immediately sat down. 

     “Hi buddy.” Keith slurred as he sat down on the floor next to him and started to pet him. Blue sniffed him for a second before putting his head in his lap. Lance just watched for a while as Keith mumbled to the dog. “I like him.” Keith said as he looked up. “He makes a lot of sense.” 

     “Keith… How drunk are you?” 

     “M’ not that drunk. He just makes sense. He said that I deserve this and I should go back home.” 

     “I don’t think so.” Lance said as he sat down, realizing what was happening. “I think he said that you don’t deserve any of this and that you should let someone help you…” 

     “That’s not what it sounded like to me. What do you think?” He asked Blue. “Yeah, he said you’re wrong. He said I need to go home before Mark sees I didn’t actually kill myself and kills me himself, and I should’ve ignored you.” 

     “That’s not what I heard. He said you should let me give you a dry change of clothes, put yours in the dryer, and talk to me. Kosmo told me that too when we were outside.” Keith finally looked back up and Lance. 

     “You know if he knows I came here I’m dead…” 

     “We’ll figure it out…right Blue? Keith looked back down, like he was waiting, got a response, then turned his head back to Lance. 

     “Okay.” Lance gave him a soft smile and walked to his room. He came back with a pair of black sweatpants and a blue t-shirt. 

    “We have the same apartment, so you know where the bathroom is.” Keith just nodded and got up

Chapter Text

     A few minutes later, he came back drowning in Lance’s clothes, and holding his own. Lance took the stack of clothes from him and took them to the dryer. When he came back, he led Keith to the couch. He sat down and went to take another drink of his whiskey, but Lance took it from him. 

     “I think that’s enough for tonight.” 

     “Why?” Keith whined. 

     “Because…” He said as he put the bottle on top of his fridge. “How badly are you hurt?” 

     “M’ fine.” He mumbled. 

     “Can you please show me? I see your arms and face already.” Keith just looked down at the floor for a while before he finally stood up and walked into the kitchen. 

     “I’m not goin’ to the hospital.” 

     “What?” Lance said, sounding panicked. Keith just lifted his shirt. The first thing Lance noticed was how thin he was. Then, he saw the bandage wrapped below his ribs. “Can I touch you? I just want to see what’s going on.” He said softly, wanting to make sure he wouldn’t freak him out. Keith slowly nodded. Lance took a slow step forward, and slowly unwrapped the bandage. There was a long, somewhat deep cut covering almost half of his chest. “Take the shirt off and go lay on the couch.” 

     “What?” 

     “If you're not gonna let someone else help, let me.” He hesitated, but eventually pulled the shirt off and went to the living room. Lance grabbed his first-aid kit and followed. “Did you bandage it?” He nodded. “If this ever happens again… don’t wrap it like that. It’s bad for your ribs.” Keith let out a bitter laugh. 

     “Yeah, so is everything Mark does.” 

     “Yeah, I believe you… but that’s all going to be over soon…” 

     “Yeah. That’s what I said like four years ago.” 

     “Four years ago? This has been happening for that long?” 

     “No. It wasn’t anything physical until about three and a half years ago.” 

     “Three years? And no one noticed?” 

     “Yes and no. People noticed, but no one cares.” 

     “What about your family?” 

     “All I had was my brother Shiro. He took me in when I was in middle school, but I hid it until he went into the airforce, which was only at the beginning. He’s been gone for two and a half years. He’s overseas. He went to Germany.” 

     “When you were just eighteen?” 

     “Seventeen. I just turned twenty. It wasn’t his choice, he didn’t think he would get relocated that quickly.” 

     “So what did you do?” 

     “Moved in with Mark. He was twenty-two so he had his own place.”

     “He’s five years older than you?” 

     “Yeah.”

     “And you started dating him when…” 

     “We met when I was fifteen. I think I was sixteen when we started dating. I don’t know, it’s kind of a blur.” 

     “Did he know that?” 

     “No, he would’ve killed me. He still thinks he’s only twenty-two.” 

     “Is this the worst of it?” 

     “No.” Keith laughed. “It’s been worse.”

     “Why did you never leave?” 

     “He doesn’t let me work, or really talk to anyone… the closest thing I have to a real friend other than Kosmo is Jo, the girl that works at the corner store I get our cigarettes from. She knows, but she can’t help. The other day- “ He interrupted himself with a sad laugh. “The other day, I was getting our cigarettes, and he smokes like the organic American Spirit bullshit, and hates my reds. The other day I got lights because he was complaining about my reds and she knew… she knew…” He was rambling. 

     “How much did you drink?” 

     “Whatever I had at the bar, a little vodka, but he took it, and the whiskey.” 

     “Was that full?” 

     “Yeah.” 

     “You’re going to feel awful tomorrow.” 

      “Yeah, who cares?” 

      “Are you only telling me all of this because you’re drunk?” 

     “Probably.” 

     “Do you have anything else that’s like open?” 

     “Uhhh… I don’t think so… I need to go home. He'll be leaving for work soon and I haven’t cooked yet.” 

     “How are you going to get in?” 

     “Good point I guess… I wish I could go somewhere else…” 

     “Stay here.” 

     “What?” He suddenly sat up. 

     “Stay here.” 

      “I can’t…” 

     “Just… stay and sleep off some whiskey at least…” 

     “Fine, I guess it can’t get much worse…” 

     “Come on, you can sleep in my room. I’ll take the couch.” He said, offering a hand. Keith cautiously took it and allowed Lance to lead him into his bedroom. Lance pulled back the covers and let Keith crawl into bed. After he lay down, Lance started to walk away. 

     “What are you doing?” 

     “I was just going to go watch some TV…” 

     “Can you… stay in here…” He asked awkwardly. 

     “Okay,” Lance mumbled as he sat down in his desk chair and turned to face Keith. He fell asleep almost immediately. Lance waited a while, then got up and walked into the kitchen to feed Blue. As he scooped out the food, there was a knock on the door. He sighed and prepared himself. 

     “Yeah?” 

     “Look, I just… I wanted to apologize on behalf of myself and my friends last night. We were all really drunk and stupid. I’m sorry.” 

     “Don’t worry about it, man. I work at peak drunk flirting hour.” 

     “Okay… thank you… you haven’t seen my boyfriend have you?” 

     “I don’t know what he looks like…” Mark held up a finger and pulled out his phone, showing Lance his lock screen. He looked at it for a second, like he was seriously trying to recall seeing him. “No, I haven’t. Is he missing?” 

     “No, he just didn’t come home last night. He’s probably fighting off the hangover at one of our friend’s houses. If you see him, have him call me.” 

     “Will do.” Mark thanked him and walked away. Lance let out a breath he didn’t know he was holding and walked back to his living room. He watched a few rerun cartoons for a while, and finally started to doze off around eleven. Just before he fell asleep, he heard Keith’s muffled scream. He ran into his room and found him struggling to breathe. 

     “Hey… I’m going to come over there and try and help. I’m not going to hurt you…” He didn’t get a response, so he slowly sat down on the bed next to him. He slowly wrapped his arms around him and pulled him into his chest. He didn’t fight, he wasn’t sure whether that was a good thing or not. “Try and follow my breathing.” He said softly before exaggerating his breaths. After a few minutes, Keith had calmed down some. “You can’t go back home.” 

     “I have to…” He mumbled. 

     “No, you don’t have to deal with that anymore…” 

     “I deserve it anyway.” He mumbled as he hid his head into his knees. Lance could tell he was trying to stop crying. 

     “No, you don’t.” 

     “You don’t even know me.”

     “You’re right, but I do know that no one deserves this…” 

     “What am I supposed to do?”

     “I think I have that figured out.” 

     “What?” 

     “We’re going to break into your apartment and get whatever you might need and you’re going to stay here for a while. I know it’s not very far, but my lease has to be renewed in like two weeks, or I have to move out… so, I’ll move out and you’ll come with me. Until then, you’ll stay here and keep the doors locked when I go to work. He won’t know I promise.” Instead of saying anything, Keith just suddenly wrapped his arms around Lance tightly. He was still crying, but Lance could only hope it was because he was happy to know he would be safe soon. He wrapped his arms around Keith and they stayed there for almost twenty minutes, then Keith finally sat up. 

     “Do you wanna go try and get into the apartment?” Keith hesitated but nodded. “I’ll go over there and knock to make sure no one’s there, then come get you. I think I can pick the lock. I lock myself out all the time.” Keith nodded again and watched as Lance left. A few minutes later, he came back. “Okay, I got it. Let’s go.” Keith slowly followed him into the hall. Lance opened the door and led the way in. As he looked around, he saw broken glass everywhere. Broken plates, broken liquor bottles, beer can, and other random things littered the apartment. He could feel Keith tense up and they stepped in. “No one’s here.” He whispered. Keith just grabbed his arm and kept following him. “Okay, get whatever you need or want. I’ll go find Kosmo. I don’t know how Blue is going to feel about him, but he can just stay in my room with you.” Keith just looked up at him with teary, confused eyes. “Yes, you’re bringing Kosmo, and yes you’re staying in my room, now, let’s do this so we can get out.” Keith nodded and walked into one of the bedrooms. Lance found Kosmo and took him to his room, then came back for all of his stuff. After he got Kosmo’s stuff all setup, he came back to help Keith. 

     “What else do you need?” He asked as he leaned against the doorway. Keith shrugged and looked around. 

     “I don’t really have much…” He started as he grabbed his sketchbook off of the desk. “I think that’s it…” Lance just nodded. “Can we leave now?” 

     “Yeah, come on. Kosmo’s already in my room.” Keith nodded and followed Lance out. When they got to his apartment, they put all of his stuff in Lance’s room and Keith just stared down at his bags. 

     “M’ tired…” 

     “You can take a nap if you want to…” 

     “Can you stay…” 

     “Sure,” Lance said as he walked to the desk. 

     “No… like…” 

     “You want me to lay down with you?” He nodded awkwardly. 

     “Okay.”

     “Wait, where’s my phone?” He asked frantically. 

     “In the living room, I’ll go get it,” Lance said as he walked out. When he came back, Keith took it and spent a minute, clearly trying to find something. 

     “Fuck it.” He mumbled before walking out. Lance followed and watched as he threw it off the balcony. 

     “Why….?” 

     “He has a tracker on it. I’ve never been able to turn it off…” 

     “Okay… well… I have an old phone. It’s not on a plan, so it only works with wifi, but at least I can check on you from work.” Keith just nodded and walked back to Lance’s room. He followed and laid down next to him. 

     “When do you have to leave?” 

     “I called out today, but usually not until nine.” Keith just nodded and rolled over. 

Chapter Text

      Lance had fallen asleep soon after Keith. He woke up a few hours later to see Keith gone. He quickly got up and walked out of his room. He looked around for any sign of him and eventually saw Keith sitting on the floor with his knees pulled to his chest, staring at the door. He quietly walked over to him and sat down. 

      “What are you doing?” 

      “I don’t know…” 

      “Yeah, you do.” Keith just shrugged. 

      “If I just go back now it won’t be as bad as if he finds me here…” 

      “I can’t tell you what to do… but if you’ll just stay here for like two weeks, I can help you…” 

     “Why do you even want to?” 

     “Because… I have the ability to. Not to mention, you’ve apparently been my neighbor for like a year and a half, if anything I’m a bit late to this…” 

     “You’re just complicating your life…” 

     “Not really. I don’t really do anything other than work. Besides, I was planning on moving anyway. I hate this apartment, I just moved in because I had a friend who had an empty room, but he moved out so….” 

     “Why’d he move out?” 

     “He moved back onto campus. It’s his senior year so I guess he thought it would make things easier.” 

     “You went to school with him?” 

     “Yeah. We met in my freshman year before I dropped out.” 

     “Why’d you drop out?” 

     “I was a double majoring in English and Philosophy. If you can’t tell-” He motioned around the apartment to the guitars on the wall and keyboard in the corner. “That’s not really what I wanted.” Keith just nodded. “I assume you don’t go?” 

     “No. I was going to go, but things happened…” 

     “What were you going to go for?” 

     “Art.” 

     “You could still go, you know?” 

     “Eh, I never really actually wanted to…” 

     “What were you going to do?” 

     “I used to bartend. I actually really liked it, but I had to stop… now I don’t think I would like it…” 

     “Where?” 

     “Not here. I’m from out west.” 

     “What part?” 

     “Texas when I was little, then Arizona when Shiro moved to the base.” 

     “So you lived on base for a while?” 

     “For most of high school, until he left anyway.” 

     “So how’d you end up here?” 

     “Moved for Mark’s job.” 

     “What does he do?” 

     “Accounting. Somewhere on the Northside.” 

     “You don’t know where?” 

     “No. Why?” 

     “I don’t know…  just wondering.” 

     “I still feel like I should leave…” 

     “Can I ask why?” 

     “Because… if I don’t… what am I supposed to do?” 

     “I told you, we’ll figure it out. I’ll find a new apartment and move, you’ll come with me, and we’ll figure it out from there. For now, let’s just get through the next two weeks.” Keith just nodded but didn’t move. He turned to see the time on the stove, then faced back towards the door. A few minutes later, he flinched at the sound of a door slamming, then got up and walked over to the patio and slid the door open partially, but stayed inside. Lance stayed in the kitchen and watched. He couldn’t really hear, but he knew Mark was on the patio shouting. He quickly walked over and shut the door. 

     “That’s not going to make this easier…” 

     “I know…” 

     “You should probably eat something. Do you want to go find something?” He just shrugged. “Okay, get ready. I’m sure you want to smoke anyway and I know you don’t want to go out there.” Lance said as he walked into his room and located a pair of jeans. By the time he was changed, Keith finally came in and started looking for clothes. When he came back out, he was wearing black skinny jeans and a band tee. He sat down on the couch and started lacing up his boots. Lance quickly walked back into his room and grabbed a gray hoodie. 

     “It’s getting cold and it looks rainy.” He said as he offered the hoodie. Keith slowly took it and pulled it over his head. “You ready?” Keith nodded and flipped his hood up before following Lance to the door. He froze when he saw the door to Mark’s apartment. When Lance noticed, he put a soft hand on Keith’s back and walked in between him and the door, and led him to the elevator. As soon as they got outside, Keith dug in his pocket for his cigarettes and put one in his mouth before offering one to Lance. 

     “I don’t actually smoke.” 

     “I figured.” He mumbled as he flicked the lighter. 

     “What?”

     “You looked like you were having a hard time.” Lance just nodded. “Where are we going…?” 

     “I don’t know yet. Probably somewhere in town, Are you cool with the ‘L’?” Keith nodded and followed Lance to the nearest station. They were taking the red line halfway across town to try and find something downtown. Luckily, the train came fairly quickly, but it was packed.  Lance found somewhere to stand and Keith followed. When the train took off, Keith wasn’t holding on to the pole and almost flew backward, but Lance caught him. 

     “You’ve never ridden a subway huh?” 

     “I lived in the middle of the desert, no.” 

     “But you’ve lived here for like a year and a half.” 

     “Yeah, I don’t go anywhere I can’t walk to though.” 

     “Well… maybe hold on.” Lance laughed. 

     “There’s so many people,” Keith mumbled. 

     “Yeah, it’s Chicago. Don’t worry about it though.” He just nodded lightly. 

     “Hey.” A voice said from behind Keith. He didn’t recognize it, so he flinched and ducked his head. 

     “Hey, Hunk.” Keith relaxed slightly when Lance seemed to know him. 

     “What are you doing out here?” 

     “Uhh, just going to get food…” 

     “So you’re not sick then?” Hunk laughed. 

     “Shh, if your uncle asks, I am.” 

     “Yeah, he’d kill you.” 

     “Did you talk to him?” 

     “Yeah actually. I was just at his place.” 

     “And?” 

     “And he said you can start working seven to two on the second. I know it’s still late hours, but it’s something.” 

     “I’ll take it. It’s better than getting home at almost five.

    "Allura’s convinced you called out for revenge for last night.”

     “Maybe I did. Eh, she’ll get over it.” 

     “Well, this is my stop. Have fun doing whatever you’re doing. See you tomorrow.”

     “Yeah, see you tomorrow.” Lance waved as Hunk walked to the door. 

     “That was my coworker. He’s cool.” He half-whispered, sensing his discomfort. Keith just nodded silently. A few stops later, they were nearing their stop. “Alright, this will be our stop,” Lance said as he led them back towards the door and grabbed one of the handles hanging from the ceiling. As soon as they got onto the street, Keith lit another cigarette and followed Lance down the street. “So… what do you want?” Keith just shrugged. “Okay… there’s like a sports bar near here. They have like everything.” 

     “Okay,” Keith said quietly as he stomped out his cigarette butt. Lance led them down a few blocks, then into the restaurant. 

     “Hi, welcome to King’s. How many?” The hostess asked as they walked in. 

     “Two.” 

      “Hightop or booth?” 

     “Either one’s fine.” She nodded and led them to a booth on the other side of the bar. When they sat down, Lance looked over the menu and landed on some kind of pasta that sounded decent, then noticed Keith just staring down at the table. 

     “What are you getting?” He just shrugged. “Well… the burgers are good…” 

     “I’m not really hungry…” 

     “I’m assuming you haven’t eaten since before four this morning, so…” 

     “So?” 

     “So, you should really eat something.” He just looked away. “Well, I’m ordering you something.” Keith stayed silent for most of their dinner as Lance tried to convince him to eat more than a few fries. Finally, they started their walk back to the ‘L’. As they were walking, someone drove up and stopped next to them at the corner of the street. Instinctively, Lance pulled Keith into his side, away from the car, and kept walking. 

     “You’re the guy from the diner?” The guy asked harshly. As soon as they heard the voice, Keith ducked his head, and Lance got ready to try to lie. 

    “Diner? I’m sorry… Do I know you?” 

    “Yeah, I wasn’t that wasted. That's your ‘girlfriend’?” 

    “No, just a friend. Leave us alone.” 

    “Why don’t you let me uh… give you a ride home to make up for it?” 

     “I’ll take the ‘L’, thanks though,” Lance said as he tried to walk down the next street. 

     “Don’t worry, I’ll be back to the diner soon.” He called after him. As soon as he saw the car drive forward, he pulled Keith into the alleyway. He was squeezing Lance’s forearm tightly and staring at the ground. 

     “You know who that was?” He nodded. “I’m sorry…” Keith just shrugged and refused eye contact. “Let’s try and get home,” Lance said softly. As they walked to the nearest subway entrance, Keith stayed a lot closer to him. He didn’t speak the entire way back to the apartment. When they walked through the garage, he saw Keith looking for Mark’s car. When he saw it, he immediately looked away and back to the ground. He honestly didn’t even realize they had made it back into Lance’s apartment until he heard Lance repeating his name. 

     “What?” 

     “I said you can go shower if you want to. I’m gonna go find my old phone.” He just nodded and went to find some clothes. 

Chapter Text

     While Keith was in the shower, Lance found his old phone and plugged it in, then decided to try and look at apartments. Truthfully, he had been wanting to move, but he hadn’t looked at any yet. He had a lot more money saved than he did when he moved into his current apartment, so he was hoping to find somewhere a little better, maybe even rent an actual house. After he had found a few possible places, Keith came out. 

     “Hey, do you wanna co-” He stopped as he saw a streak of red drip onto Keith’s hand. He quickly stood up and walked over to him, but he backed against the wall, so Lance stopped. “What’s that blood from?” He asked as he took a small step forward. 

     “What blood?” 

     “On your hand.” Keith looked down as if he didn’t know it was there and acted confused. 

     “I don’t know…”

     “Keith… Can you come here?” He asked as he walked into the bathroom. He immediately followed behind him. Lance silently asked for his hand and pulled up his sleeve to reveal the cuts the blood was coming from. “What did you do this with?” He shrugged. “That’s a lie, you do know.” Keith visibly flinched and braced himself, but instead of the punch he was expecting, Lance’s arms wrapped around him and pulled him forward. “I’m not trying to scare you, I’m sorry…” He whispered. “But you can’t do this. I just want you to give me whatever you did it with…” Keith eventually nodded and pulled away and reached into his pocket. He slowly handed Lance a knife, which he took and put into his pocket before walking out. A few minutes later, he came back with bandages. He quietly rolled up both of his sleeves and cleaned his forearms, then bandaged them. “Is there anything else?” Keith shook his head slowly. “Okay… leave those on. You can go lay down if you want to.” He said as he walked to the kitchen. 

     He quickly grabbed anything he could think of that Keith could use and hid it on the top shelf of one of the cabinets with Keith’s knife. Finally, he decided to shower himself and actually get some sleep for once. He felt awful about the fact he would have to leave him alone while he was at work, but he didn’t really see another option. When he was done, he found Keith standing by the patio door. 

     “You want to go smoke?” He just nodded, Lance walked into his room and grabbed one of his blue hoodies. “Just put the hood up and don’t face that way. If he comes out, he’ll probably just think you’re me.” 

     “Doesn’t he talk to you?” 

     “Sometimes…” He could tell Keith was overthinking it. “Okay, put the hoodie on and I’ll come with you. If he comes out, I’ll think of something.” Keith gave him a soft, sad smile and pulled on the hoodie, then walked outside with Lance. 

     “So… Tanner is a total dick to everyone?” Keith asked. 

     “Tanner?” 

     "That guy from earlier.” 

     “Oh, I guess. I’m kind of used to it though.” 

     “What do you mean?” Keith mumbled through his cigarette. 

     “He was drunk at the diner. I work like peak drunk, creep hours. It happens a lot. I mean, you said you used to bartend, wasn’t that kind of normal for you too?” 

     “I guess… So, that’s why you’re changing your hours?” 

     “Kind of. Also, I’ve been working that shift for almost like three years now and I’m just tired of basically being nocturnal. I used to like actually have friends and go out at night, I hate not doing anything other than working.” 

     “Yeah, can’t say I relate.” 

     “What do you mean?” Keith took a long drag off of his cigarette. 

     “I’m not very social if you haven’t noticed.” 

     “What about like… before any of this?” 

     “Nope. I had a lot going on when I was younger so… the only person I really talked to for like all of middle school was my brother. High school wasn’t much different until I met Mark.” 

     “You said you met him when you were fifteen?” Keith nodded. “So… where did you even meet him?” 

     “He worked at a bookstore I went to a lot. Well, he was a barista at the coffee shop in the store.” 

     “Oh… Did he kn-” 

     “Yeah, his sister was in one of my classes, he just didn’t care, and I guess I didn’t either.” Lance just nodded and leaned against the railing. “I don’t know… my dad met my mom when he was in high school and she was… older. I guess I just thought it would be fine… “ 

     “I don’t think your age gap is the only issue….” 

     “Yeah… I guess not.” 

     “Is he the only person you’ve dated?” 

     “Yeah… How about you? You’ve gotta have something dark that’s happened.” 

     “Well, yeah. Remember when I told you last night- or this morning… why I stopped to talk to you?” 

     “Kinda.” 

     “Well, I was having a really hard time. That's why I moved in here too. I was probably like barely nineteen… I was living with my parents still, I was honestly going to college for them too anyway… long story short, one night for some reason… I decided to come out to them and tell them I wanted to drop out. My mom was actually super supportive about it, my dad not so much. He told me to leave, so I did. Mom and I still talk sometimes, but I haven’t spoken to my dad in three years now I guess… anyway, I walked all the way from Logan Square to Lincoln Park and just kinda sat there. Eventually, Hunk found me and let me crash at his place for a little while. I honestly didn’t think I would still be alive right now, but I am so…” 

     “You’re gay?” 

     “That’s what you got from that?” Lance chuckled. “I’m bi. I figured that was pretty obvious.”

     “Why?” 

     “I don’t know… I mean, more guys flirt with me than girls so…” Keith just shrugged and flicked his cigarette bud off the balcony. “Do you wanna go to bed?” He nodded softly and Lance led him back in. “Take my bed. I should probably take Blue for a walk so he’ll sleep some tonight. I’ll be back in like half an hour. I’ll leave you my number in case you need anything.” Keith just nodded and disappeared into his bedroom. Lance quickly wrote down his number and put Blue’s leash on before he slipped outside. When he made it to the lobby, he was stopped by Mark. 

     “Hey man, how’s it going?” 

     “Oh, hey… just taking Blue out on a walk.” 

     “You’re not working tonight?” 

     “No, I called out. An old friend of mine was in town so…” 

     “Cool… I’m assuming you haven’t seen Kit around anywhere?” 

     “Kit?” 

     “My boyfriend. He still hasn’t been home.” 

     “Oh… no, did you guys get into a fight or something?” 

     “Yeah, a little. I caught him sleeping with my friend, and he just walked out. He said some awful things, but I know he didn’t mean them, he was wasted… I’m not mad, I just want him to come home.” 

     “Yeah… maybe he just feels guilty. I’m sure that he’ll be back soon.” 

     “Yeah, you’re probably right… Have a good night.” 

     “You too.” Lance could feel his face immediately drop from his fake friendliness to anger. He had just lied straight to his face, and honestly, if he didn’t know what was going on, he would’ve never known. Lance and Blue made their walk pretty quick so they could get back to Keith. When Lance opened the door, he found Keith sitting against the wall in the living room, probably trying to hear anything going on next door. 

     “I thought you were going to bed?” 

     “Couldn’t sleep.” 

     “Are you okay?” 

     "M’ fine.” 

     “You need to stop trying to hear him.”

     “I know…” 

     “Go lay down and try and get some sleep. You need it.” Keith just slowly stood and walked back to Lance’s room.

     “I’m sorry…” He said faintly. Lance quickly followed him, by the time he got there, Keith was in his bed, facing away from the door. 

     “Why did you just apologize?” 

     “You sounded mad…” 

     “You need to work on your social cues…”

     “Sorry…” 

     “No, that’s not what I meant… I’m not mad, I wasn’t mad, I just… think that… that’s not going to help you…” Keith just shrugged. “Okay… Well, try and get some sleep. I’ll be on the couch if you need me.”

     “Can you… stay actually?” 

     “Yeah, sure.” He said softly as he walked around to the other side of the bed and crawled under the covers. Keith fell asleep a lot faster than him, but eventually, sleep overtook him too. 

Chapter Text

Keith woke up late the next morning alone. When he looked at the clock, he realized it was just after noon. He quickly jumped up and walked out into the living room where Lance was sitting on the couch, scrolling through his phone. 

“Oh, you’re up. I was starting to wonder…” He said, barely looking up. 

“I… uh- I’m sorry…I di-” Keith said, clearly panicked. Now Lance was looking up at him. He could see the anxiety rising in him, and the tears threatening his eyes. 

“No, Keith… Come here for a second.” Keith obliged, but instead of sitting on the couch, he sat down on the floor in front of Lance and rested his chin on his knee. “What are you doing?” 

“You said to come here…” He mumbled. 

“Yeah… but why-” He cut himself off when he realized Keith was mumbling something totally incoherent. “Keith. Look at me.” Keith slowly lifted his head. “I don’t know what you thought I was going to say or do… but I know you were wrong. Come sit up here.” He seemed surprised for some reason, but did as he was told and moved to the couch. “What’s going on?”

“I dunno… it’s just… weird…” 

“That I’m not mean to you?” Keith nodded cautiously. “I’m sorry… You know nothing that you’ve gotten used to is going to happen here, right?” He just shrugged. “You’ll get used to it eventually. It might help me out some if you could tell me what some of that was at some point… not necessarily now, but maybe I could make sure I don’t ever scare you that way…” He just nodded softly. “Do you think you could eat something?” He shook his head. “That’s something he kind of controlled wasn’t it?” 

“What?”

“You’ve eaten probably a total of two hundred calories - if that - that wasn’t liquor since I met you, and you’re visibly underweight. I just kind of guessed.” 

“I’m not underweight.” 

“You’re probably what… five-eight and what? Like one-fifteen?”

“Five-nine. One-twenty.”

“Yeah, that’s underweight.” Keith just shrugged. “We have to work on the eating thing.” 

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” 

“Yes you do.” Keith just shrugged. “Do you need to do anything before I have to go to work tonight?” 

“No.”

“Did you get that phone working?” 

“Yeah.” 

“What are you going to do while I’m gone?” 

“What do you want me to do?” 

“What?” 

“You haven’t told me to do anything yet…” 

“I’m not going to… you can do anything you want to…” 

“Oh… I don’t know…” 

“Well… It’s not even one yet. You should probably eat at some point…” He just shrugged. “Please…?” 

“I’m not really hungry…” 

“You don’t have to eat a lot… just tell me something you like and I’ll find it.” Keith just shrugged again. “Seriously man… you gotta eat at some point…”

“At some point.”

“Okay… well I need to go grab something anyway… I’ll be back in like half an hour at most.” Keith just nodded as he slid his shoes on. “Text me if you need anything.” He said as he slid out the door. He was on a mission. He quickly made his way to the corner store on their block, assuming it was the right one, and walked to the register. 

“You’re Jo?” He asked, earning a confused look from the blonde girl at the register. 

“Yeah…and you are?”

“Sorry… Lance… Do you know a guy named Keith?”

“Yeah, why? Did something happen?”

“He’s fine… I was just wondering if he ever buys anything other than cigarettes…”

“Black coffee and gum occasionally… sometimes he gets a protein bar, but that’s it… why?”

“He needs to eat. Do you know which one?” 

“I think it’s got a purple wrapper… who are you?”

“His neighbor.” Lance said as he walked away. When he came back, she was still staring at him. “He lives with me now, but you didn’t hear that.” He mumbled as he looked at the shelves of cigarettes. 

“Good. Let me guess… Camels, menthol?”

“I’m gonna pretend like I know what that means…” Lance chuckled as he pulled out his ID. “For him. The red ones I think… right?”

“Yeah, did he already finish his carton?”

“Don’t think so. He said something about liking these better though. I don’t get it, but I know he’s not going to be happy about the protein bar so…”

“Good call. Mark’s looking for him. Be careful.”

“I know. We’re moving soon though.”

“Okay… Good luck.” Lance just gave a small awkward wave as he made his way back to his apartment. When he got back, Keith was sitting on the floor with Blue. 

“Hey…”

“Hey.” Keith mumbled as Lance pulled the protein bar out of his jacket pocket. He just looked up with an almost unreadable expression. 

“At some point.” He said as he sat it on the coffee table, then slid him the cigarettes. Keith just stared back at him, clearly totally lost. “You like them better. You told me when you came over…” He just nodded slowly. “He’s not home, I checked the garage, plus it’s only like two. You can go out there.” He slowly got up and started walking towards the door, immediately followed by Kosmo. 

Lance watched from the couch as he sat down and looked over to Kosmo who was sitting next to him on the table. After a few minutes, he realized Keith was deep in conversations with the cat. He couldn’t hear anything, but he assumed he was questioning his decision to stay. Eventually, Kosmo decided it was time to go back inside. He jumped off the table and pawed at the door. As soon as Keith opened it, he ran in and jumped on Lance’s lap.  

“Hey, buddy.” He said softly as he pet under his chin; after a few seconds, Kosmo began rubbing his cheek against Lance’s hand. Keith was still standing by the door. Kosmo stopped and turned towards him, then laid down in Lance’s lap. Keith glared at Kosmo, finally giving into his signs, and sat down beside him. “So… the day after tomorrow is Wednesday, which is my day off… I’m probably going to go look at some apartments if you want to come…”

“Okay.” 

“Do you like need anything?” Keith just silently shook his head. “Okay… well is there anything you like from the diner? I can bring you something back…”

“I dunno…” 

“Am I gonna have to take you back out to drink just to get you to talk to me?” 

“Probably…”

“Is drunk Keith less afraid of me?” 

“I’m not…” 

“Are you sure about that one?” 

“Could be worse…” He said with a subtle shrug. 

“Well… we’ll get there eventually…”

“Why are you being so nice to me?” 

“I have no reason not to be.” 

“Not yet…”

“No, not yet, but I don’t think I’ll find a reason, so don’t worry about that.” He just nodded. They sat and watched whatever random shows were playing until Lance realized it was almost five and looked over to Keith who looked like he was struggling to stay awake. “You tired?” 

“No.” 

“What’s wrong then?”

“My head hurts, I’m fine.” 

“Okay… If you want to, you can go lie down. You don’t have to stay out here if you don’t want to either way. Honestly, I kinda need to go to the store anyway, basically all we have is ramen. I’m assuming you don’t want to go?” Keith just shook his head without bothering to look over. “Okay, well I’m gonna head out in a few minutes. Just text me if you want anything.”  

“Okay.” He replied blandly. 

“I’ll be back in like an hour and a half.”

“Okay.” Lance just waved awkwardly and walked out. He managed to get back in just under an hour and a half. When he walked in. Keith was asleep on the couch with Blue at his feet and Kosmo on his chest. When he heard the door, Blue jumped up and ran over. 

“Hey bud, it’s just me.” He said as he reached down to pet him before unloading the groceries. By the time he was done, Keith was still asleep. As he made his way over to the couch, he felt his phone vibrate. 

Hunk: Is there any way you can come in early?

Lance: When? 

Hunk: Like as soon as possible. We’re slammed and two of the servers called out…

Lance: Yeah, I’ll head that way in a few. 

Hunk: I owe you big time. 

Lance: Yeah you do.  

He shoved his phone back into his pocket and looked back over to Keith who was still dead asleep. He thought about waking him up, but decided against it since he probably needed the sleep. Instead, he grabbed a blanket from his room and threw it over him, then grabbed the receipt from the grocery store and a pen to write a note. 

‘Had to go in early. Text me if you need anything. I’ll be back by 4:30ish.’

He left the note on the coffee table and started to leave. As he left the living room, he stopped and turned back around.

“Blue, go lay down.” He half-whispered. Blue immediately jumped into his old spot at Keith’s feet. Lance knelt down by the couch and patted his head. “Keep him safe for me.” He whispered before he stood up. As he walked away, Blue rested his head on Keith’s leg. 

Chapter Text

Work sucked more than normal. He wasn’t sure why, but they were slammed until about three-thirty. Almost everyone who came in was totally wasted. He still managed to go home on time, but he was more exhausted than normal. He hated nights like these, not to mention, his life had been a bit more stressful lately. He didn’t mind having Keith around at all, but there was a lot more going on now.For the first time in forever, he decided to take the subway back home. By the time he got to his apartment, it was only about four-twenty. 

When he walked in, he saw that Keith was no longer on the couch. Once he made his way into his room, he saw him asleep in the bed with both Kosmo and Blue. He quickly grabbed a change of clothes and made his way to the bathroom to shower. When he finally laid back down, he realized Keith was awake. 

“Sorry, didn’t mean to wake you up.” He mumbled. 

“Are you mad about something?” Keith asked cautiously. 

“No, just had a bad night at work.” Lance sighed. Keith slowly sat up to face him and seemed to be waiting on something. “What are you doing?” 

“I just thought… I guess… that…” 

“Lay back down. Wherever your brain went, it was wrong. My only intention at the moment is getting some sleep. You can go back to sleep, or do whatever, it’s up to you. Also, depending on when I get up, I’m probably going to go get some boxes and stuff tomorrow” Keith nodded and finally laid back down. Lance could feel him shivering next to him. “Are you okay?” He nodded. “Are you cold? You’re shivering.”

“Kinda…” He mumbled. Lance got up and grabbed another blanket from his closet and threw it over him. After he got it situated, Keith rolled over onto his side and buried his head in his arms. They both fell asleep fairly quickly, Keith first, then Lance after he knew Keith was asleep. Around eight, Lance woke up to a knock on the door. When he got up, he saw Keith sitting on the floor next to his bed, curled into himself. 

“I’ll be right back.” He said softly as he stumbled to the door. When he opened it, Mark was standing outside. “Hey?” 

“Hey… is someone over here?” 

“What?” 

“Someone was smoking on your balcony and it wasn’t you… I’ve just never seen someone else over here… just wanted to make sure you weren’t like getting robbed or something.” 

“Nah, that was probably just Luke, my old roommate. He crashed here last night. When was it?” 

“Like half an hour ago.” 

“Yeah, that was him. He just left a few minutes ago for class so… not getting robbed. Thanks though.” 

“Okay, well I’ll leave you alone then.” Lance nodded and locked the door before quickly making his way back to his room.  Keith was still sitting on the floor, hiding behind his knees. 

“Keith…?” He said softly, but he didn’t get a response. “He saw you smoking?” 

“I’m sorry…” He whispered with a cracked voice. 

“No, it’s okay. He doesn’t know it was you. You know you could’ve gotten me up…” Keith just shrugged. “Do you wanna get back in bed?” Lance asked, offering a hand. Keith eventually took it, but refused to look Lance in the eye as he crawled back into the bed. “Do you wanna come here? You don’t have to, but maybe it’ll help…” He offered, Keith hesitated, but eventually nodded and moved over closer to Lance and leaned into his side. Lance carefully wrapped his arm around him. He tensed up at first, but eventually relaxed, he was still shaky though. “It’s okay. He doesn’t know and we just have to make it through the next few days. We’ll go look at some apartments tomorrow… Do you want to try and go back to sleep or….?” 

“Okay…” Keith mumbled before laying back down. It was obvious he was watching the front door for Mark. Lance got up and walked over to his bedroom door. 

“The front door is locked and bolted.” He stared as he shut his bedroom door. “And this one’s locked too now. Scoot over.” He said as he took the side of the bed closest to the door, trying to put as much distance between Keith and his front door as he could. By the time he was almost asleep, he heard Keith whimpering. Without even thinking, he wrapped his arm around his waist and pulled him closer. After a few minutes, he finally relaxed and Lance was able to sleep. 

Lance woke up a few hours later to the smell of something cooking. He rolled out of bed and made his way into the kitchen where Keith was cleaning. 

“Did you finally eat something?” He asked, making Keith jump slightly. 

“No…” 

“Then what are you doing?”  He just gestured to the pot on the stove. “So you’re going to eat now?” 

“No…” 

“Then why did you cook?” Lance asked, seriously confused at this point. 

“You… I didn’t yesterday so…” 

“You don’t have to cook for me…” 

“I’m sorry… I just thought that-” Keith started, stuttering through a mumble. 

“Stop apologizing so much. I’m not mad, but this isn’t something I expect from you. Especially if you weren’t even planning on eating.” Lance said softly as he walked over to him. Keith immediately just stared down at the floor. “Come on. Try and eat something, I’m going to go pick up some boxes and stuff if you want to come.” 

“I’m not hungry…” Keith half-whispered. Lance sighed and grabbed two bowls. He filled one with a smaller amount of the rice, and the other with a normal amount, then pulled Keith to the couch, but he took the floor insead. 

“To my knowledge, you still haven’t eaten other than those fries. Please, just try to eat some of it. As long as you eat a little, I’ll leave you alone for the rest of the day about it, but you need to eat something.”

“I’m really not hungry…” He mumbled. 

“Yes you are. I know you are. Just eat.” Lance said a little harsher than he meant to. Keith froze and dropped his head. After a few minutes, Lance realized he still hadn’t eaten. “Are you really not going to eat?” He asked, making Keith flench at the sound of his voice. He mumbled something in response, but it was totally incoherent. “What?” He just shrugged. “Keith?” He didn’t get a response at all that time. “Keith, look at me for a second.” He said in a serious tone, Keith slowly lifted his head. He could see the panic on his face. Guilt hit him immediately. “I’m sorry if that was too much. I didn’t mean to scare you. I just wanted you to try and eat something. You really need to.” Keith just nodded cautiously. “I’m sorry..” He slowly moved to rest his chin on Lance’s knee. He wasn’t exactly sure why he did it, but he knew it was probably just a habit, so he decided not to say anything. “You wanna come with me? You don’t have to.” 

“Okay…” He whispered. 

“Okay, well we should probably head out soon. We’ll have to take the ‘L’.” Keith just nodded and stood up to go change. When he came back out, he was wearing a pair of black jeans and a dark gray long-sleeve shirt. “It’s a little colder than that. Do you have another hoodie or something?” He just awkwardly shook his head. “Okay, I’ll find you one.” Lance said softly as he made his way into his room. He threw on a random pair of jeans, a light gray crewneck, and his usual jacket before grabbing one of his hoodies for Keith. When he got back out to the living room, he was lacing his boots, but as soon as he heard Lance’s steps, he looked up. “Here.” He said as he handed him the hoodie. Keith pulled it on, then got up to follow Lance out the door. When he opened the door, he suddenly pushed Keith into the kitchen. 

“Is Kosmo here?” He heard Mark ask. 

“Kosmo?” 

“Kit’s cat. I thought I saw him on your patio earlier. At first I thought maybe Kit came back and got him, but now I don’t know…” 

“No, I haven’t seen him since I brought him over. Is his food and stuff still there?” 

“Some of it… I just don’t know what’s going on. I’m honestly just worried about him. I don’t know why he left…. I mean if he has the cat, he’s probably okay, but he’s really naive, I’m just worried he got himself into an unsafe situation.” 

“I’m sure wherever he is he’s okay. I mean, the other day you said he just left right? He’s probably just trying to figure stuff out. I’m sure you’ll hear from him soon…”
“So you haven’t seen the cat then?”
“No, I’ll let you know if I do though.” 

“Okay, well you were clearly going somewhere, so I’ll leave you alone.” He sighed as he walked back to his door. Once he was gone, Lance closed the door and walked into the kitchen where Keith was leaning against the counter, covering his mouth with his sleeve as he slowly slid down onto the floor. He immediately sat down next to him. 

“It’s fine, he’s gone now…” Keith just shook his head. “I promise, it’s fine. Nothing’s gonna happen.” He just shrugged and leaned onto Lance’s shoulder. He was shaking and he was struggling to keep his breath calm. Lance carefully wrapped his arms around him. “It’s fine, he doesn’t know.” He said softly. Truthfully, Lance wasn’t so sure that was true. He seemed to find a lot of reasons to come talk to him, and it was starting to seem like he was trying to convince Lance to tell him the truth. After a few minutes passed, Keith finally spoke. 

“He does know.” He whispered into Lance’s chest. “I’m never going to get away from him, and now you’re dragged into it. I should’ve just ignored you…” He mumbled before standing up. 

“Where are you going?” He just glanced to the door. Lance immediately jumped up and stopped him. “You can’t…” 

“I have to…” He almost winced. 

“No you don’t. I can’t make you stay… but I can tell you that going back won’t end well…” 

“It’ll be worse when he actually finds me though… he seems nice now… maybe he realized…” 

“Can I ask you something?” He shrugged. “Even if he was totally different now, but everything that’s happened still happened, would you even genuinely want to be with him? And why?” 

“I don’t know… I mean… he’s just…” Keith paused for a moment, staring at the ground. “No… I don’t think so…” 

“You don’t think so?” 

“No… I- I mean… I know I should hate him, but I don’t know if I do… I hate this version of him… but maybe if I just wait a while…” 

“Keith… I’m sorry, but whoever he was when you started dating is gone. He changed, and not for the better. I really don’t see it getting better. You don’t deserve any of this. You were just a kid when you met him, and he took advantage of that. Even when you thought he was a good person,  he probably really wasn’t… It seems like he may have had some false intentions. From what I’ve seen, he’s clearly manipulated you in every way possible. Most of the things that you do are habits that I’m sure you’ve developed from being with him, and the things that aren’t, you’re convinced I’ll be mad about. Can you even tell me what you see in him?” 

“Other than Shiro he’s like the only person that cares about me…” 

“That’s not true.” 

“What?” 

“None of it. I care about you, and he doesn’t. You don’t do stuff like that to the people you care about…” Keith just nodded and dropped his head. Lance started to hug him, but he fell into his chest before he even wrapped his arms around him. He felt awful, but he needed Keith to realize that he shouldn’t go back. He pulled him closer and rested his chin on the top of his head. “Things are going to be okay soon, I promise. You just have to give me a little more time… And if anything happens after that, I’ll kill him.” Keith gave him a brittle laugh. “I’m serious. I’ll strangle him with my bare hands.” 

“You’ll get caught.” He said with a cracking voice. 

“Yeah, it’d be worth it though. Or maybe I could poison him. Supposedly potassium doesn’t show on tox screens. I think I could get away with it.” Keith just shrugged as Lance pulled away and flattened his hair. “That reminds me… I was thinking last night… Do you know if you have him as an emergency contact?” 

“I don’t know… I don’t even know if I have one…” 

“Okay, well we should probably look at that later. I don’t think anything will happen to make you need that, but just in case.” 

“Okay…” 

“Do you still wanna go with me?” Keith shrugged. “It’ll be okay. Come on. We just have to make it past the door and nothing will happen.” 

“But he’s apparently off today…” 

“Yeah, but we’ll be in public the whole time. Even if we see him, he can’t do anything without having witnesses there and probably going to jail. There’s absolutely nothing to worry about. If you want to stay here, you can, but we really need to start packing soon so we can leave as soon as we get the apartment.”

“Okay…” 

“Great, let’s go.” Lance said as he took his hand and led him past Mark’s door and to the elevator. They made it out totally unnoticed and Lance removed his hand as they started towards the subway so that Keith could smoke. 

Chapter Text

Keith did a lot better on the subway this time since he actually held on when the train started. They made it half-way across town with no problems. The stop was only a few blocks away from the Home Depot. Lance led them down the street and into the store. When they got into the store, he realized Keith was staying a lot closer to him than usual. As they made their way through the aisles, Keith kept his head down low and stayed within a foot of Lance. When they finally found the right aisle, Lance built one of the boxes and stacked a few more in it, followed by tape and a roll of bubble wrap. When he started to walk away, he realized Keith was trying to hide behind him. 

“What are you doing?” He asked, clearly concerned. Keith just shrugged. He pulled him into another aisle. “What’s going on?” He asked softly. 

“I dunno… I’m sorry…” He mumbled. 

“It’s okay… just let me pay and we’ll go home.”  Keith nodded softly and let Lance lead him to the self check-out register. As soon as they got back outside, he lit another cigarette and quietly followed him back to the subway. He just wanted to get back to Lance’s apartment and away from people. The subway was less full this time, meaning they could actually sit down. Lance led him to one of the two-seat benches, letting Keith in first so he was sitting on the inside which he was grateful for. He was honestly exhausted, even if he had only been up for a few hours now. By the time they hit the second stop, Lance could tell he was fighting sleep. 

“You can lay on me if you want to. When we get back home you can take a nap.” Lance whispered. He hesitated, but eventually rested his head against Lance’s shoulder. He knew everything that had happened today probably drained him. Honestly, he doubted he even wanted to come, he probably just didn’t want to be home alone with Mark next door. By the time they were just a stop away, Keith was barely awake. “We’re the next stop.” He said softly. Keith nodded and sat up, waiting for Lance to drag him off the subway. Finally, they made their way back into the apartment. 

“You can go lay down. I’m gonna get some stuff boxed up before I have to go to work.” 

“When do you have to go?” Keith asked with an almost child-like tone. 

“Not till nine. It’s only like five now. You can take a nap.” He just nodded and disappeared into Lance’s room. Lance spent about half an hour packing up the things they probably wouldn’t need in the kitchen, then decided to try and pack up some of his clothes that he didn’t wear that often. When he opened his bedroom door, Keith woke up and flenched at the noise. “Sorry… I didn’t think you would wake up.” He whispered. Keith just murmured something and rolled over. He quietly filled the box he brought in, then checked the time. It was almost six, meaning he could lay down for a little while before work. He slowly slid under the blankets, trying his best not to wake Keith and set an alarm for eight-fourty-five and fell asleep.

Lance woke up half after ten, assuming he had just woken up before his alarm. He looked down to see Keith asleep, curled into his chest. He smiled to himself for a second before reaching over to turn off his alarm. When he turned on his phone, he realized it was a few minutes past eleven. His alarm never went off and he had several missed calls from both Hunk and Allura. He quickly called hunk back and hoped he would pick up. 

“Hey…” He said awkwardly. 

“Dude, where are you? You’re usually here early. What happened?” Hunk asked frantically. 

“I’m sorry man… I have a lot going on. I wanted to take a nap before work and I guess I screwed up when I set my alarm… I’ll get there as soon as I can…” 

“It’s fine, I’m not really that worried about you working, this just isn’t really like you…” 

“I know, I’m sorry… Explaining is probably not a great idea yet, but I’m fine. I’ll be there in like forty minutes.” 

“Okay, Allura might kill you.” 

“I figured.” He sighed. “See you in a few.” He said as he hung up. He must’ve woken up Keith at some point. He quietly whined and stretched out his arms before rolling over.
“Sorry buddy, you can go back to sleep. I gotta get to work though.” Keith just mumbled something totally incoherent and pulled the blanket up. Lance quickly changed and made his way to work. He spent most of his night zoned out and dodging questions. By the time he was getting ready to clock out, Hunk had him cornered. 

“Is there any way you can work tomorrow?”  

“When?” 

“Like midday shift. I have your night shift covered, but I need a lunch hour runner…” 

“Sorry man, I really can’t… you know I would if I could though.” 

“Why not?” 

“I’m… Uh, I'm going to look at some apartments.” 

“I don’t blame you. It’s about time you got a one bedroom.” 

“I’m getting another two bedroom.” 

“Oh? Did you find a roommate?” 

“Something like that.”

“Why aren’t you just staying there then?”

“It’s complicated… I really don’t know if I should talk about it right now.” He mumbled as he started towards the door, but Hunk stopped him. 

“Lance, I need you to tell me if there’s something going on with you.” He said in a much more serious tone. 

“Hunk, I’m fine I promise. The stuff going on isn’t really about me. I’ll explain when I can, but I promise I’m doing fine.” 

“Okay, well let me know if you need help moving.” Lance nodded and gave a two-finger wave as he slipped out the backdoor. He took the quickest route home. As soon as he got to his apartment, he jumped through the shower. He eventually got back to his room and threw on a pair of shorts before setting his alarm for eight and crawling into bed. When he laid down, Keith woke up half way and rolled over. 

“How was work?” He mumbled, barely audibly. 

“It was fine. We need to leave by nine tomorrow, so I’m gonna get some sleep.” 

“Me too.” He whispered as he leaned his forehead against Lance’s arm. “You’re really warm.” He mumbled with a slight laugh. 

“I know.” 

Chapter Text

    Lance and Keith both woke up to Lance’s alarm the next morning at eight-thirty. Lance shut it off and groaned before rolling out of bed and digging through his dresser. Finally, he grabbed a random pair of jeans and grabbed a white hoodie from his closet. As he left to go get ready, he saw Keith staring at him, clearly confused. 

    “We’re looking at apartments today, remember? You don’t have to come, but if you want to get ready. You can just find one of my hoodies if you need one.” Keith just nodded and stood up. By the time he was ready, Lance was already waiting in the living room. “Okay, so I found three that I think would probably work pretty well… There’s one kind of closer to here, one a little ways past the diner, and another that’s in the South Side. I think we can get to all of them on the ‘L’.” He said, standing up. “You ready?” Keith just nodded and followed him to the door. They made their way to the subway station and Lance pulled Keith to one of the benches while looking at something on his phone. “We’re gonna have to switch lines… I think in two stops.” Keith just nodded and waited. Eventually, they got onto the other subway and made their way to the first apartment. 

“Okay, this is it.” Lance said as they walked toward an older looking apartment building. “It’s like just walk in, so we don’t have to talk to anyone.” He said as he led Keith to the elevator and pressed one of the buttons. When they finally got to the right floor, he led him down the hall while checking the apartment number on his phone. Finally, they made it to the apartment. It was a slightly smaller two-bedroom apartment with a decent sized living room and a smaller kitchen. There was also a small balcony, but nothing special. They looked around for a little while until Lance felt like he had a good idea of how the apartment would work. He wasn’t really feeling it, so he led Keith to their next location. It was fairly similar, but smaller. It was farther away from their current apartment though, so Keith honestly liked it better. 

“Well, I’m still not really feeling this one, but I kinda thought we would end up liking the next one better…” He said as he led Keith back to the lobby. He could tell he wasn’t really enjoying their outing, but he tried to keep talking to him to distract him. Eventually, they made their way to a different area of town. “So… this one’s kind of more of an open house kind of deal. Someone’s probably going to walk us through, but if you want to leave, we can. I’m sure it’ll be fine though. I think we’ll like this one better anyways.” Keith just nodded and followed Lance into a house and up the stairs. There were a few other people there, but the agent greeted them as they walked in. 

“You’re here for the open house I assume, can I get the name?” She asked as she looked over her clipboard. 

“Lance McClain.” 

“Great. And you are?” She asked, looking at Keith who just awkwardly looked at Lance. 

“He’s my roommate. He’d be moving in with me.” 

“Just your roommate?” She prodded. 

“Yeah? Is there a problem?” 

“No, just wondering.” She said awkwardly. “Well, if you want to, you can just go look around yourselves, or if you want to wait about… twenty minutes, I’m doing a walk through. I have four units identical to this available for rent right now, so if you decide it’s the right fit, I can take some information today and start the process.” Lance just nodded. 

“I think we’ll just look around ourselves.”

“Okay, well if my tour doesn’t take long so if you’re interested, you can just wait here.” Lance nodded and led Keith out of the living room. They walked around and Lance immediately felt like it would be the right place. It was a duplex, so it was more private for Keith’s sake, and it was fairly close to the diner. It had two bedrooms, and a mostly open floor plan, similar to Lance’s apartment. 

“So? What do you think?” Lance asked as they made their way back to the living room area to wait on the agent. Keith just shrugged. “Do you like it? I mean, it’s the farthest from our building, and it gives us the most space.” 

“Yeah…” 

“Do you want to keep looking? We can, but this seems pretty good to me…” 

“Yeah, this is good I think…” 

“Okay, great. Maybe we’ll be able to move in before my lease actually ends.” 

“When?”

“I don’t know for sure, we’ll have to see what she says when they get done. I’m sure it’ll only be a few minutes. You can go smoke if you want to.” Keith just nodded and walked away towards the stairs. A few minutes later, the agent was back in the living room, talking to two of the other possible renters that had actually done the walk through with her. As he was waiting to speak to her, Keith suddenly appeared next to him, clearly uncomfortable. 

“You alright?” Lance asked when he noticed some of Keith’s anxious habits. He just shrugged and took another step towards him as he ducked his head. “Okay, well I’m gonna try and get some of the paperwork filled out. It shouldn’t take very long once I actually get her attention.” Lance said as he took a step forward then turned. “I’ll be back as soon as I get whatever she needs me to fill out. You can come, but I’m sure you don’t feel like talking to her right now.” Keith just nodded. 

“Lance, right? How did you like the unit?” The agent asked. 

“Yeah, uh we liked it, I think we want to rent… how long do you think it’ll take for us to be able to move in?” 

“Well… If everything works out right, I can have you set to move in no more than a week from now. Uh… Here, fill this out before you leave, and take my card too. Is your… friend cosigning?” She asked, handing Lance a few papers, then looking through the stack for another. 

“Oh… no, just me.” 

“Okay, well that should be basically all I need. Is there a reason you’re in a rush to move?” 

“No, my lease at my current apartment is ending.” 

“And why did you want to move?” 

“This is a lot closer to my work and I think it’ll work better for us.” 

“Okay, well I’ll leave you to fill all of that out. Just find me when you’re done with it, I’ll be around.” Lance nodded and started walking back towards Keith, but stopped when he saw a guy standing in front of him. He couldn’t hear him, but he could see that Keith was uncomfortable and looking for an escape. Finally, Keith’s eyes met Lance's; he was clearly terrified. ‘Just go with it.’ He mouthed, Keith just nodded slightly. Lance quickly made his way over and wrapped his arm around Keith’s waist. 

“Hey babe, I got all the paperwork for us to fill out…” He said before pretending to notice the other guy. “And you are?” 

“Oh, the fake boyfriend trick, nice.” 

“No, real boyfriend trick.” Lance said with a sarcastic smile as he protectively pulled Keith closer into his side. “I think you should probably leave. I was going to be fake nice to you, but that’s clearly not going to work.” 

“You’re obviously not dating, he was clearly confused when you came over here, so I have no reason to leave until he tells me to.” 

“Okay, well think what you want, you’re welcome to stand there like a creep, but we have some paperwork to fill out, so have fun.” Lance said, earning a scoff as he pulled Keith over to one of the couches and pulled him into his lap. He could tell Keith was confused, so he lowered his head and whispered. “Just trust me. We just have to commit to it and he’ll leave you alone. Is that what was bothering you when you came in?” He nodded softly. “Okay, well I’m not going to let him bother you again. He’s not one of Mark’s friends right?” 

“I don’t think so…” 

“Okay, good.” Lance said as he started on the paperwork with one arm still wrapped around Keith. Once he was done, he realized Keith was leaning into his chest, clearly tired. “I gotta go give this back, then we can go back to the apartment and you can take a nap.” Keith nodded and got up, deciding to follow Lance this time. He gave the paperwork back to the agent and they talked for a few minutes before Lance finally led Keith back to the subway. He was still clearly on edge, but Lance was just hoping he would be okay once they got back home. While they were on the ride home, Lance got a call from Hunk. 

“Hey?” 

“Hey…” 

“You’re gonna ask me to come in aren’t you?” 

“Yeah… I’m sorry, I really need someone else in here tonight… Pidge is kinda in the ER right now…” 

“What?! Why?!” 

“I dunno, I guess an allergic reaction. Their brother called and I guess they’re in the ER. He said that he came up to visit them and they were out at some arcade and they like went into anaphylaxis or something. I’m sure they’ll be fine, but I really need someone for prep. I promise I’ll give you your night off tomorrow, and you don’t even have to work your usual hours. They were supposed to work in about an hour until midnight today so… is there any way you can come in for me…” 

“I guess… I’m not home yet though and I’ll still have to get ready and stuff…” 

“Okay, well just try and get here when you can, until then I’ll pull a runner, but you know it’s Wednesday night and we get busy when the churches get out.” 

“I know. I’ll get there when I can.” 

“Thanks, man.” 

“Once again, you owe me.” 

“I know…” Lance hung up, then looked down to Keith who was standing in front of him, holding onto the same pole. 

“I have to go in later…” 

“When?” 

“After we get home. I should get off by midnight though.” Keith just nodded. “You’ll probably sleep the whole time anyways, and we’ll hopefully be approved for the apartment within the next three days, then we can finish packing up and move in. Not to mention, I will start working better hours soon.” 

“When?” 

“Uhh… I guess this weekend.” Keith just nodded again. He stayed quiet for most of the way home, then almost as soon as they made it into the apartment, he crashed into bed. Lance quickly changed, then sat down on the bed next to him. “I’m sorry today was a lot… well I guess it’s been a lot for a while, huh?” He just nodded. “Yeah… I gotta head out now, but I’m working in the back, so if you need anything you can text me and I’ll probably be able to see it pretty quick… He’ll be home soon, so if you want to go smoke, be careful okay?” Once again, Keith just nodded before pulling the duvet up

Chapter Text

As soon as Lance got to work, he knew Hunk would be grilling him. He understood why; he had been acting differently, and he just wanted to make sure he was okay, but he just wasn’t sure he needed to fully explain what was truly going on. He just decided that whatever Hunk asked, he would answer as vaguely as possible. 

“Hey man. Once you get clocked in, I have some stuff I need you to start cutting up that stuff over there.” 

“Alright.” Lance mumbled as he clocked in, then washed his hands and grabbed a knife. By the time he cut into his third pepper, Hunk was already asking questions. 

“So… how was looking at apartments?” 

“I found one.” 

“Really? Where at?” 

“It’s a duplex on 18th. Well, that’s the one we looked at, I don’t know which unit it’ll be.” 

“So you do have a roommate then?” 

“Kinda…” 

“Who is it?” 

“Just a guy I met.” 

“So… either your new boyfriend or a serial killer?” 

“Neither.” 

“Why are you being all weird? Are you sure you’re okay?” 

“Hunk, I’m fine. I just have a lot going on… with like moving and stuff…” 

“So? Do I get to meet your roommate?” 

“Maybe… not now though…” 

“How’d you even meet him?” 

“It’s kinda complicated…” 

“You’re being so ominous.” 

“For now, just know thatI’m perfectly fine.” 

“Okay… Well, let me know when you’re moving, I’ll come help you move the furniture so you don’t have to pay someone. You could probably ask Allura too.” 

“Nah, I think we can do it, plus the less people the better.” 

“Why?” 

“Long story.” 

“I’m gonna get it out of you at some point.” 

“I know. Am I still off tomorrow?” 

“Uhh, you can be, why?” 

“I’ll come in tomorrow, but you should let me off the day that we get approved.” 

“Okay, just call me and let me know and I will, when do you think that’ll be?” 

“Like in the next three days… I think I want to take Keith out to a bar to kinda celebrate it, ya know.” 

“Yeah… so his name is Keith then?” 

“Dammit. I’m gonna stop talking now.” Hunk just laughed as he took a few plates to the window. Lance’s night was mostly uneventful other than Hunk prying to get information out of him. He finally got home at almost one. As soon as he got home, he took Blue out on a walk like usual, then threw on a pair of sweats. When he laid down, Keith didn’t wake up like he usually did, but when he looked over, he could tell he had been crying. He thought about waking him up, but decided to check his arms instead just in case. He carefully pulled up his sleeves, but didn’t see anything that looked new. He waited a moment before deciding to see if he could manage to check his thighs too since he usually wore full length pants. He carefully lifted the blanket off of him and saw that he was wearing shorts for once. He slowly slid them up and saw that there were old scars, but also some that looked newer. He sat, looking at Keith for a second before he got up to see if he could find whatever Keith had used. After checking the bathroom and anywhere in his room he thought would make a decent hiding spot, he found nothing and decided to ask him about it when they got up. Once he finally got in bed and got comfortable, he heard Keith whimpering. He just wrapped an arm around him and pulled him closer. He almost immediately relaxed. 

The next morning, when Lance woke up, Keith was gone. It was after nine, so he assumed he was out on the patio. As he walked through the living room, he pulled a hoodie on. Once he finally got to the door, he saw Keith leaning against the banister smoking. He quietly walked outside and sat down on one of the chairs next to him. 

“So… What’d you do it with?” He asked, trying to sound casual.

“What?” Keith asked as he visibly tensed up . 

“I saw your new cuts. What’d you do it with?” Keith just fell silent and dropped his head, “I’m not mad, I understand that there’s a lot going on, but this isn’t a good way to cope. I need you to give me whatever it is that you did that with and anything else you have that you could hurt yourself with.” He didn’t get any form of response. “Keith?” Still nothing. “Keith?” He asked again, now standing behind him. “Keith…” Finally, he turned to face him, but still dropped his head. 

“I’m sorry…” 

“I’m not mad. I just need you to give me whatever you have, okay?” Keith just nodded silently and let Lance pull him into a hug. “Come on, let’s go in so you can give me whatever it is, then I’m gonna find something to make for lunch.” Keith just nodded silently again and followed Lance inside, where he just sat down on the couch, obviously waiting for Keith to bring him whatever he had. He walked into Lance’s room, then came back out with a few razor blades that he had hidden in a pill bottle. He sat them down on the coffee table, then sat down on the floor next to Lance’s legs. “Is that everything?” He nodded again and rested his chin against his knee. “See? I’m still not mad. I’m gonna go see what I can cook. Is there anything specific that you would eat?” Keith just shook his head, making Lance sigh quietly as he walked into the kitchen. A little while later, he appeared with two bowls of pasta. He sat one down in front of Keith before starting on his own. By the time he was half-way done with his, Keith still hadn’t touched his food. 

“You need to eat.” Lance said, but Keith just shrugged. “Seriously.” He just shrugged again, “Keith, I don’t want to scare you, but you seriously need to eat something.” He just shrugged again, lowering his head slightly. “Why not?” 

“M’ not hungry…” He said in an almost whisper. 

“I know that’s not true. Unless you’ve eaten while I’ve been at work, I know that you still haven’t eaten other than a few fries. That protein bar is still laying right there too. Eat something.” Lance said a bit more harshly this time. Keith flinched at his voice, but eventually picked up the bowl. After what seemed like two bites, he put it back on the table and buried his head in his knees. 

“Come here.” Lance said a lot softer this time. Keith just leaned his head against his leg. “No, up here.” Eventually, Keith stood up and Lance pulled him down next to him and wrapped him in a hug. He surprisingly didn’t resist, he just leaned into the hug. He could tell he was on the verge of a panic attack. He tightened the hug, hoping the pressure would help, and tried to calm him down. After spending almost twenty minutes helping him calm down, he loosened his hold. “I’m sorry… I know everything really sucks right now… but you have to eat Keith. I don’t know how long he was controlling that, but I understand that it’s going to be hard for you to get used to eating, let alone eat an entire meal, but I need you to try. If we can’t make that happen, we’re gonna have to find another way, and I don’t think you’ll like the other way. If you’ll just try, I’ll do whatever I can to make it easier, but you seriously need to find some way to get some food into you.” Keith hesitated for a moment, but eventually gave a soft nod. “Good. I really don’t want this to be harder than it already will be. I’ll leave you alone for today since that was obviously a lot, but we’re going to try again tomorrow.” Once again, Keith just nodded and leaned back against Lance’s shoulder. 

They decided to spend the rest of the day until Lance had to go into work watching TV and trying to pack a little since Lance hoped they would be leaving in the next few days. By the time he left, they had made it through several episodes of South Park and managed to pack up at least half of the apartment, including what Lance had packed before. By the time he had finished getting ready, Keith had fallen asleep on the couch. He debated waking him up, but eventually decided to just carry him into his room. Finally, he set off on his walk to work. 

Chapter Text

For the most part, his night was quiet, and Lance was starting his new shift. It was Thursday, so there really weren’t many people coming through. They never had more than three tables at once which was great, but that also left the others more downtime to question him. By the end of the night, they still didn’t know more than Keith’s name, how old he was, and that he met him on the way home from work. He almost slipped up a few times, but managed to catch himself. Obviously, they didn’t really trust his judgment, Pidge and Hunk had both decided he was a serial killer, and Allura was clearly just lost as to why he wouldn’t tell them anything more. Halfway through their shift, Pidge left because they still weren’t feeling great from whatever had happened, leaving him to help Hunk in the kitchen and run a few orders. He made it very clear that he didn’t think Keith moving in with him was a good idea, but he didn’t understand the situation.
Finally, his shift ended and he got to clock out. He tried to make his walk home a little faster than normal. He still kind of felt bad for everything that had happened earlier with Keith, and he was just happy to get away from all of the questions. As much as he understood it, he just wished they would drop it. He just didn’t feel right telling them what was really going on, it wasn’t his story to tell. When he finally got back home, he realized he left his keys inside. He knocked a few times, then held his ear to the door, hoping Keith was awake for once. A few seconds later, he heard shuffling from behind the door and assumed he had walked over to try and see who it was.
“It’s just me. I left my keys here before work.” He said, hopefully loud enough to be heard from the door. He heard the door unlock, then slowly crack open for a second, before Keith pulled it open all the way. “Sorry, did I wake you up?” Lance said as he walked in and kicked off his shoes. Keith just shook his head. “No? How long have you been up?”
“Since like midnight…”
“Is there a reason for that?” He just shrugged. “Did something happen?”
“I - uh… no…”
“Don’t wanna talk about it then? Okay, well I’m gonna take a shower real quick, then I’m gonna get some sleep.” Keith just nodded and disappeared into the bedroom. About half an hour later, Lance walked in to find him mumbling something to Kosmo who was sitting on his chest. He could tell he was more on edge than normal, but he clearly didn’t want to talk about it, so he just flopped down on the other side of the bed. Eventually, he felt Keith’s weight settle next to him, and assumed he was going to sleep. Just before he fell asleep, he heard a door slam outside, and felt Keith flinch, then he could hear muffled shouting.
“That’s what was bothering you?” Lance asked as he got up to close his door, hoping it would help. Keith just nodded silently. He grabbed Keith’s phone off the nightstand and logged into his Spotify account before digging out a pair of headphones from his nightstand. “Here. Maybe it’ll help a little.” Keith’s hands were visibly shaking as he handed them to him. By the time he laid back down, Keith had found something to listen to and laid back down with the blanket pulled up to his chin. Finally, Lance was once again almost asleep, but there was a knock on the door. Luckily, Keith didn’t seem to hear it. He softly tapped him, making him remove one of his earbuds.
“I’ll be right back. Blue’s whining about something.” He just nodded and put the earbud back in. By the time Lance got to the door, the knock repeated. When he got to the door, he checked that the chain was still locked and opened the door.
“Hey man.” Mark slurred. “You busy?”
“It’s like… three-thirty. What are you doing?”
“I brought a handle, let me in. We should hang out. You’ve been my neighbor for like forever and we still barely know each other.”
“I think you’re already pretty drunk, I don’t drink much anyway. I like just got off work so I’m exhausted, maybe some other time.” Lance said as he started to shut the door. Before he got it shut, Mark pushed it back open.
“C’mon man, what? You hiding something?”
“No, I just want to sleep.”
“Oh, is your fake girlfriend in there?”
“No. I’m gonna close my door now. Go home.” He said a little more dead-toned now as he shoved the door shut and locked it. Mark knocked a few more times, and shouted a few things that Lance couldn’t make out, but eventually it went quiet and he made his way back to his room, hoping Keith was oblivious to what just happened. Ofcourse, with his luck, Keith was sitting up in the bed, clearly more on edge than before.
“Scoot over.” Lance mumbled, deciding it was a good idea to get him farther away from the door. “It’s fine. Nothing’s gonna happen. We’ll probably be gone in a few days. Try and get some sleep.” Keith nodded softly and leaned his forehead against Lance’s arm. Without even thinking, he slid his arm around Keith, causing him to move closer. Eventually, Keith fell asleep and Lance was able to get some sleep himself.
Somehow, they both managed to sleep through the rest of the night with no issues. When Lance woke up, Keith was gone. Like usual, he found him out on the patio smoking. Instead of going out to talk to him, he started on breakfast, hoping he could get Keith to eat something. He knew it was going to be hard for him, but he also knew it had been at least five days now since Keith properly ate anything. As he finished cooking their french toast, Keith came back in and immediately tried to go hide out in Lance’s room. He just barely caught him as the door closed. Instead of fighting anything, he just threw a few pieces on a plate and brought it in. Keith just stared as he silently put the plate down on the nightstand and walked back out. He didn’t eat any of it though, he kind of just stared at the plate until he heard Lance talking in the other room. He quietly walked over to the door and cracked it open to make sure no one was there. When he saw it was just Lance on the phone, he walked out. Lance didn’t even notice him come in; after the first call, he called someone else. He assumed it was someone he worked with. Finally, he hung up and realized Keith was there.
“Hey.”
“Hey…”
“So, good news, we can start moving in on Saturday. It’ll probably take that long to get everything packed anyways. We’ll have to get a Uhaul or something that morning, but we can finish boxing up some stuff today. I called out today since I had to go in last night. I’m thinking we celebrate tonight if you’re okay with going out. Then, I guess Friday morning Hunk might come to help me move some of the furniture. He’s cool though.”
“Okay…”
“I’m sure he won’t be around for long, just to deal with the furniture. It’s not like I have much anyways. It’s only two now, so we can probably get a lot done before we go.”
“Okay…”
“I’m gonna start in here, you can do whatever.” Keith just nodded and walked back into the bedroom. The rest of the day was mostly quiet, they spent several hours boxing things up, then both ended up crashing on the couch. Finally around ten, Lance decided it was time for them to go celebrate.
“Alright, get dressed. I’m sure you could use a drink after these last few days.”
“Where are we going?”
“I don’t know, do you have a preference?”
“No, just not somewhere that’ll card me.”
“Yeah, I could’ve guessed that much. There’s a place up by the diner we can go to. They don’t even card Pidge and they look like they’re twelve, so you’ll probably be fine.”
“I don’t even look underaged!”
“Yeah, you kinda do.”
“You didn’t think I was when we met.”
“Well, it was dark, and you wouldn’t even properly look at me so…”
“Whatever.” Keith huffed as he walked back into the bedroom to search for something to wear. Eventually, he threw on a pair of black skinny jeans that were actually kind of baggy on him and a random black, long sleeve band shirt. By the time he had his boots on, Lance walked out in a pair of jeans and a white graphic tee with his usual jacket over it. He quickly threw on his sneakers and led the way out.

Chapter Text

“So, do you wanna walk or take the ‘L’?” Lance asked as Keith lit a cigarette.
“Can we walk?”
“Yeah, we can get there by walking on Lake Shore trail. It’s only like half an hour to the diner, but the bar’s not much farther.”
“So… I still can’t tell if you hate the diner or not…”
“I do. I mean, with the hours I work, I have to deal with some… interesting people, but at the same time, most of my coworkers have become my friends and it’s decent pay. I don’t know honestly… I mean, I don’t really have any better options at the moment.” Keith just nodded and let the conversation fade after that. He was honestly exhausted by the time they got to the bar, but he did his best to hide it. Lance led him in and to the bar.
“They’ll only card if you open a tab, so…” Keith nodded and sat down on the stool next to him. Lance opened a tab and they both ordered a drink, both went with their usuals. Lance got a Tom Collins and Keith got an Old Fashioned.
“You don’t drink much do you?” Keith asked, with a quiet laugh.
“I did when I was still going to school, but I’ve kinda mellowed out some. Don’t hate on my drink. At least mine actually tastes good.”
“Hey, mine does too.”
“You might as well just drink it straight at that point.” Lance said with a grimace.
“And that would still be better than your Tom Collins.” Keith teased with a slight smirk.
“I don’t see how you can even drink whiskey like that.”
“I dunno.”
“Seriously. Shouldn’t you be like mixing orange juice and cheap vodka together?” Keith rolled his eyes as he took a sip of his drink.
“Ha ha, you’re so funny. You’re literally two years older than me, I’m not sixteen. Shut up.”
“Oh, so you are guilty of that then?”
“Not vodka and orange juice. I hate orange juice, and I’m honestly not big on light liquor.”
“But isn’t a Black Russian vodka?”
“Yeah, but it tastes like coffee and works a lot faster than this. So did you never grow out of your high school mixers then?”
“Hey, in high school I only really drank beer, which I hated or whatever my friends had. I’m sure yours weren’t much better.”
“I only ever went to parties with Mark, so we had more than Smirnoff and Fireball. Either way, some kind of whiskey and Coke.”
“Really?”
“Yeah, I told you, I don’t really like light liquor.”
“Is that the Texan in you?” Lance asked with a cheesy smirk.
“The Texan in me is long gone. I left like seven or eight years ago.”
“And you got rid of your accent?”
“Yeah. I never really had one though. I think the Korean canceled it out.”
“I’m not sure that’s how that works.” Their conversation was actually going pretty well. Lance was just happy to see Keith actually talking to him for once. He wasn’t really sure if it was because they were moving soon or because of the prospect of him getting wasted, but at least he seemed to be in a good mood, even if he was still obviously a little on edge with so many people around. Eventually, the subject of Lance’s job was brought back up.
“So, you just stay because you like a few people?”
“Pretty much. I mean, it’s not hard work and like I said it’s decent pay. The only part that sucks is the hours and some of the customers.”
“So most of it?”
“I mean, it’s not that bad on weekdays…”
“What did you do before?”
“Well, in high school I worked at my dad’s store. He has a grocery shop not too far from where I went to school. My parents didn’t let me work when I started college though, they thought I would be too distracted. Some friends and I used to play at bars for extra cash though. That was actually kind of fun.”
“Why’d you stop?”
“I guess I didn’t really have the time. Things with my parents… now I work nights, plus I don’t really see those friends anymore.”
“So why do-” Keith suddenly stopped talking and slightly ducked his head as a man walked up next to him. He seemed to just be starting a tab, but it was still obviously too close for his comfort. Even after he was gone, he stayed quiet and was obviously tense. By the time he finished his drink, he still hadn’t said much.
“You want another one?” Lance asked, gaining his attention. Keith looked around for a second before he shook his head.
“Not yet…” He assumed he was still on edge, so Lance didn’t question it.
“Play me in pool?”
“You’ll lose.” He said, immediately standing up.
“How do you know that?”
“I may or may not have hustled pool when I was on break while I still bartended…”
“Well, I mean… I’m pretty good so…”
“So, rack the balls.” Keith said, weirdly confidently as he picked out a pool stick. Lance just grabbed a random stick and set up the game. Halfway through, he noticed Keith seemed a little more tipsy than he should’ve been after one drink, but decided it was probably because he hadn’t had anything to eat. By the time they had almost finished the game, he seemed almost as drunk as he had been when he first came over, but he still didn’t say anything until Keith sat down his pool stick and sat down at one of the nearby tables.
“You okay?” Keith just shrugged and held his head up with his elbow. Lance immediately made his way over. “What’s wrong?”
“Dunno…” Keith said, barely audibly.
“Come on.” He said, leading Keith back to a stool on the corner of the bar. He ordered him a water and let him sit down. He stood slightly behind him, on the other side of him. Keith only took a few sips before he let his head fall against his chest. By then, the bartender had made her way back over.
“Is he okay?”
“I don’t know…” Lance answered truthfully.
“Did he just have too much to drink?”
“No, just one drink…”
“Just one?” Lance nodded. “Is this like… normal?”
“No… I don’t know what happened…”
“I think I might… Get him out of here.”
“What?”
“Get him out of here.” She said a lot more seriously. “Don’t worry about the tab for now. Let me just grab your card, and go. What’s the name?”
“Okay… uh, Lance McClain…” He was clearly confused, but he wasn’t going to question her. He slowly pushed Keith back up and knelt down a little. “Keith?”
“Hmm?”
“Do you think you can walk?” He just nodded. “Okay, we’re gonna leave in just a second.” He just nodded again and fell back against his chest. Soon enough, the bartender slid him his card. He quickly shoved it into his wallet and helped Keith off of the stool. He was clearly struggling to walk so Lance wrapped his arm around him to help. As they left, he noticed the same man that had freaked Keith out before following behind them. He immediately knew something was wrong and decided they needed to do something quickly.
“Okay, I’m gonna pick you up. Try and hold on.” Keith didn’t really respond, but he still wrapped his legs around Lance’s waist. Once he had Keith situated, he quickened his pace and pulled out his phone, hoping Hunk would answer. Thankfully, after two rings he did.
“Hey man…”
“Lance? Are you okay? You sound all out of breath.”
“Long story. I know you’re tired of hearing that, but I need you to unlock the side door. I’m like two and a half blocks away.”
“What’s going on?”
“I’ll explain when I get there, I promise. If I’m not there in a few minutes…”
“What are you talking about?”
“I’ll explain. I gotta go.” Lance hung up and shoved his phone in his pocket. Now that he had two arms to help hold Keith up, he could walk faster. As soon as he made it to the diner, he made a beeline for the ‘break room’, which was really just an old storage room with a few plastic chairs and a fold out table. He sat Keith down, who was now barely conscious, then started towards the kitchen without even realizing Hunk had followed him.
“Okay, what the hell is happening and who the hell is that?” He asked frantically.
“I swear, I will explain, but first go get me a glass of water.” Lance almost pleaded, praying he would listen. “Also, if Allura is here, I need her.”
“You sound crazy right now.”
“Hunk, please!”
“Okay… I’ll be right back…” He mumbled before turning back down the hall. Lance immediately made his way back to Keith. All he could think to do was try and get him to come to. He knelt down in front of him and started rubbing his knuckles against his sternum. He honestly had no idea if that was really supposed to work, he just remembered being told to do it in one of his highschool health classes, so he gave it a shot. Eventually, Keith became more responsive, but he was still clearly out of it.
“Hey, I need you to try and stay awake for me okay? Here-” Lance said softly, but still frantically, as he pulled off his jacket and laid it over him. “We’re at the diner now. It’s okay, don’t freak out…” He whispered as he noticed Keith’s discomfort. Finally, both Hunk and Allura appeared at the door. “Hunk, wait out there for a second. Allura, come here.”
“What’s going on?” She asked as she handed Lance the water. He ignored her and turned to Keith.
“Try and drink this. I’m gonna go talk to her for a second. I’ll be right outside in the hallway.” Keith nodded lazily, he honestly wasn’t sure he understood anything he had just said, but it was better than nothing, so he led Allura out into the hall.
“Lance?”
“What’s happening?”
“Okay, so… that would be my new roommate, surprise… Uh… I really don’t know what’s happening…”
“What do you mean?”
“We were at one of the bars a few blocks down and he started acting weird. He only had one drink so I didn’t know what was happening. The bartender told me to get him out of there, so now I’m here.”
“Do you think someone spiked his drink?” Allura asked.
“No idea… I was kinda hoping you could help me figure that out… I mean, your Uncle’s medical right?”
“Yeah, but I don’t know much…”
“I’m still so lost…”
“Yeah… there’s more to this than that… Can you maybe… stay out here?”
“Why?”
“You might scare him.”
“And Allura won’t?”
“I don’t know honestly, but I know that you did on the subway…”
“He was there?”
“Yeah. Okay, come on.” He said, dragging Allura back in. She stayed back and watched as Lance knelt down next to him and spoke to him. She couldn’t really hear what he was saying, so she just waited and watched Keith’s mannerisms hoping to figure something out. Finally, he motioned her over. She got a closer look at him, then knelt down in front of him.
“I need to make sure he’s not like in the process of overdosing.” She whispered. “I’m just going to feel your pulse.” She said as she felt Keith’s wrist. She could tell he was panicking, but she tried to ignore it. “Okay, I’m sure he’d be more comfortable with you checking his breathing. Just make sure it’s not super irregular.” Lance nodded, then just stared at her. “Start a timer for a minute and count how many times he breathes.” He nodded again and pulled out his phone. While he did that, she did her best to see his pupils. From what she could tell, they looked mostly normal, and his pulse was only a little slower than it should’ve been, a minute later, Lance’s timer went off.
“Twelve.”
“Okay, that’s on the lower side of average, not too bad.”
“So?” She nodded to the door, and he followed her out.
“So, if that’s what you think happened, you need to take him to the hospital. He may be perfectly fine, but he’ll probably get dehydrated from the drugs and who knows what it even was.”
“He’s underaged.”
“So? That’s not gonna be the main concern. Unless you involve the police, they most likely won’t even say anything. That’s not their job, their job is to make sure he’s okay, not get him in legal trouble. The worst they would do either way is probably a citation. I’m assuming you need a ride?”
“Yeah… Can I borrow your car?”
“I’ll drive you.”
“You’re working.”
“And there’s a guy in our break room who needs to go to the hospital. I’ll be outside.” Lance just nodded and walked back in. Keith was clearly fighting consciousness again. He knelt down beside him again and hoped he would comprehend what he said.
“Listen, I’m gonna carry you out to Allura’s car, she’s gonna drive us to the hospital. She said that we need them to monitor you for a little while.” He didn’t get a response, so he just scooped Keith up and took him to the car. He sat him down in the back, then slid in beside him. Now, Lance was sure he was pretty out of it since he wasn’t freaking out. Allura managed to make the drive pretty fast, fifteen minutes later, they were in the parking lot.

Chapter Text

“We’re here….” Allura said as she put the car in park. 

“Yeah… What am I supposed to tell them…” 

“I can come in for a little while if you want me to.” 

“Please?” 

“Okay, get him. Does he have an insurance card on him? They might ask for it.” 

“Uh, maybe…” 

“Go ahead and find it if he does.” Lance nodded and found Keith’s wallet. Luckily, he seemed to still be on Shiro’s insurance. He shoved the wallet into one of his pockets and scooped Keith up, following Allura into the building. After he sat Keith down on one of the chairs, he walked over to the front desk where Allura was already standing, talking to the nurse. 

“Okay, and you said his name was?” She asked, Lance paused for a second, realizing he didn’t even know his last name and checked his ID. 

“Keith Kogane.” 

“And how long ago did you notice he seemed… off?” 

“Uh, maybe an hour and a half…” 

“Okay, I’m assuming he can’t fill anything out right now, do you have an insurance card for him?” Lance nodded and handed her his card. She typed for a second, then paused and looked up. 

“Are you Mark Hayes?” He could practically feel his face drop. They never changed his emergency contact… 

“No, Allura.” He nodded her away, waiting until she was gone to continue. “Listen, you can’t call him. I get that he’s the emergency contact, but .... he will hurt him. You can’t.” 

“He’s not alone, so I don’t have to. Do you know how to remove the contact? You can’t, but you can get him to when he’s better.”  

“No, not really…” 

“Well, if you want to, we can just do it here, or when he gets home he can do it online.” 

“I’m sure he’ll want to when he’s feeling better.” 

“Okay, well you guys should be called back pretty quickly.” Lance just nodded and made his way back over to where Keith was. Allura was attempting to check his pulse again. Soon enough, they got him back to one of the rooms and one of the nurses took his vitals, before he left, Allura stopped him. 

“What was his pulse and respiration rate?” 

“Have you been monitoring it?” 

“Trying to…” 

“What were they then and when was that?” 

“Uh, less than an hour ago, I think BPM was around seventy and he was breathing was like twelve breaths a minute…” 

“Okay, it hasn’t changed much then. I’m sure he’s fine, but it is good you brought him here. Most people don’t realize how important it is to come in even if they aren’t involving the police. I’ll have the doctor in momentarily.” They both nodded and watched him walk away. Allura could practically see the wheels turning in his head. 

“Stop worrying so much. He’ll be fine.” 

“I know…” 

“You did good getting him here, there’s nothing else for you to do right now. I know you feel like you need to.” Lance just nodded. Soon enough, the doctor came in. 

“Hi, I’m Dr. Wixx.” She said as she looked over her clipboard. “So, I know we weren’t able to get proper measurements. Do either of you know his height and weight, roughly?” 

“Uh… yeah, five foot nine, One hundred and twenty pounds…” 

“Okay, are you aware he’s underweight?” Lance just nodded. “Well, I’m going to have someone come take a sample of his blood so we can get a tox screen going, then I’ll probably have someone come start fluids to prevent him from getting dehydrated and to start flushing some of the drug out. Is there anything other than his vitals, or him being dizzy, disoriented, or anything like that?” 

“No, not really I guess…” 

“Okay, I’ll have someone come in and get that stuff started, then I’ll be back to let you know if we found anything. You said this all happened when?” 

“Uh, maybe around eleven, or just after…” 

“Okay, and as far as you know, does he take any medication?” Lance shook his head, his attention already back on Keith. Without him even noticing, the doctor slipped out. He barely even noticed the nurse come in until he heard him speaking to Allura and felt Allura nudge him. 

“You’re his roommate?” Lance nodded. “Can I speak to you outside for a minute?” 

“Uh, okay…” He said, following him outside. 

“So, while I was collecting the sample and starting the IV, I couldn’t help but notice all of the bruises and cuts… were you aware they were there?” 

“Yeah… I kinda just met him… He was kind of in a bad situation when I found him.” 

“But that situation is being dealt with?” 

“Yeah… “ The nurse just nodded. 

“He’ll probably wake up soon, once he gets more fluid in his system. Dr. Wixx will be in shortly with the screening results.” Lance just nodded and walked back into the room. He just stared at Keith until the doctor came back in a little over an hour later. 

“Okay, I have some results. Luckily for you guys, we have the equipment to test here. Usually this would take a lot longer. So, as you probably already guessed, we found traces of Rohypnol. I don’t think he was given enough to give him any long term problems, or anything that we can’t deal with here, but with him having such a low body mass, he could have a worse reaction. Typically what we do here is wait until the patient wakes up and perform a basic exam and if they do well, they can be discharged. That being said, even with a low dosage, side-effects can persist for eight hours, and longer with a higher dosage so if he leaves soon, he will need someone to stay with him until the side effects die out.” 

“When do you think he’ll wake up?” 

“Uh, well, he’s almost done with that bag, so probably soon. I think it would be a good idea to get another one going with a slower drip until he does wake up. He can finish the whole next bag, but if he does wake up, press the call button and get someone in here. He may not need more.” Lance just nodded and watched her switch out the bag. “When he does wake up, he will most likely not be totally coherent. He’ll be confused and probably kind of panicked. Similar to waking up after a surgery. I’ve had patients seem perfectly calm after, but I’ve also seen people totally freak out. Just be prepared for that.” Lance just nodded again and waited for her to leave. 

“I’ll leave when he starts to wake up.” Allura said as Lance walked over to the bed. 

“Yeah, probably not a bad idea…” 

“Just call me when you need a ride back. I’ll go back to the diner and let Hunk know everything’s fine. I hope you’re ready for him when you get back…” 

“Yeah, he’s gonna grill me for sure now.” 

“Yeah, but it’s because he cares about you.” 

“I know.” Allura let the conversation drop at that. Soon, Lance nodded her to the door, so she left. Keith was starting to wake up. Lance sat down on the edge of the bed and waited. When he woke up, he looked around, clearly confused for a minute, then Lance heard his breath pick up. 

“Keith, buddy, it’s just me.” He said softly as Keith tried to sit up. As soon as he registered what Lance had said, he fell into his chest. Lance could feel the tears falling onto his shirt. “It’s okay.” He repeated softly. Eventually, Keith started to calm down and Lance snuck a hand around him to press the call button. “The doctor’s gonna come in here in a second. She just has to give you an exam, then we can probably leave soon.” Keith nodded, but he honestly wasn’t sure he understood anything. Soon, Dr. Wxx returned. She gave him a quick exam and decided that he seemed to not be reacting badly to the drugs and that he would most likely be fine on his own. 

“So, his insurance would cover a twenty-four hour stay if that’s what you want to do, but as long as he has someone around, he can be discharged. That’s up to y’all, just let me know what you want to do. Do you have any questions?” 

“I think I’ll take him back home. Is there anything I should do?” 

“Well, keep him hydrated, but don’t give him too much at once. Other than that, if you can, find something he can drink to get some food into him. He needs it. I’ll have the nurse back in here in a few minutes to help you guys outside.” Lance nodded as she left. Keith seemed a little better, but he was still clearly confused and refused to loosen his grip on Lance’s arm. Before the nurse came, Lance texted Allura to come pick them up. 

“Do you remember how we got here?” Keith shook his head. “Well, my friend Allura gave us a ride. She’s gonna take us back to the apartment.” 

“M’ tired.” Keith mumbled as he leaned against Lance’s shoulder. 

“I know. We’ll be home soon though. I don’t have to work tomorrow, I’m thinking we have a movie marathon.” Keith just shrugged. Soon, the same nurse from before came in. It was obvious Keith didn’t like it, but he helped them outside where Allura was already waiting with her car pulled up to the front curb. Once they got Keith in, the nurse stopped Lance. 

“I don’t know if you need any of it, but here.” He said, handing him a stack of papers. “I don’t know what’s going on with him, but maybe something will help.” 

“Yeah… thanks.” The nurse just gave an awkward wave and walked back into the hospital leaving Lance to crawl in the back next to Keith. 

“Am I just taking you two home?” Allura asked once he got in. 

“Yeah, you remember where my apartment is?” 

“I think so.” The first few minutes of the ride were silent, then Allura finally spoke again. “So, how was it after I left?” 

“Fine, they mainly just kept an eye on him and gave him an IV.” 

“So, I’m assuming you’re not going to work tomorrow?” 

“No, I’m gonna call Hunk later though. How late is he working tonight?” 

“Uh, I think he gets off at six, which isn’t too far from now. You should probably call after we get you two back home before he goes to sleep.” 

“Yeah, you know you just missed that turn right?” 

“Shit. You were distracting me!” 

“It’s fine, take this next left, go up three blocks, then hang a right.” Allura just laughed and they let the car fall back into silence. Lance told her to pull into the garage and to just park in one of the spots that were reserved for his apartment. They pulled up next to the much too familiar black Accord of his neighbor and he felt Keith tense up a little when he noticed it, but he didn’t say anything. When Keith got out of the car, he was obviously still feeling the effects of the drug and immediately leaned against the side of the car. 

“Do you wanna walk or let me carry you?” Keith just shrugged. “Okay, hang on. Sit back down for a second.” He said as he walked to the other side of the car and opened Allura’s door. “Come up with me. I’m gonna carry him so…” He said as he held out his keys. She just nodded and took the keys before he made his way back around and scooped Keith up. “I’m on the fifth floor, five-twenty-eight. Elevators are down the hall to the right.” He said before following Allura. 

Chapter Text

Once they finally made their way into the apartment, Lance took Keith into his room and laid him down on the bed. After he sat him down, he dug through his dresser for a pair of sweatpants and grabbed a hoodie from his closet. 

“Here, they’ll be big on you, but you feel like you’re freezing. I’m gonna go talk to Allura. I’ll be back in a minute.” Keith nodded and struggled to sit back up. “You can go to sleep after.” He said as he slipped out. 

“So… Did they tox screen?” Allura asked when he came back out. 

“Yeah. Rohypnol.” 

“Did they say anything else?” 

“Yeah. Wait, what time is it?” 

“Uhhh, six-thirty-four.” 

“Let me call Hunk real quick.” Allura nodded and sat down on the couch as he walked to the kitchen. After he explained, Hunk told him he was off for his next shift and that he would try and convince his uncle to give him a break for a few days. When he finally got back to the living room, Allura was nodding off. 

“Oh, hey.” She said through a yawn. 

“Hey.” 

“So, did they say anything else? What were all of those papers for?” 

“Those were… unrelated… The doctor basically just told me to stay home with him and try to keep him hydrated. Also to try and get him to drink something to get food in him. I don’t exactly know what that means though…” 

“Like protein powder or something probably. I’m sure he won’t feel like eating real food for a little while.” 

“I don’t know if I’ll be able to drink that…” 

“Don’t you have some?” 

“Yeah, I think so. Still though…” 

“Because he’ll know what it is?” 

“Yeah… How’d you know?” 

“Just a guess. I have an idea though. I’ll be back.” Before Lance could even argue, she was out the door. He followed behind her and bolted it before making his way to Keith’s room. He was still awake, with only one arm in the hoodie. 

“What happened here?” He said teasingly. 

“Gave up.” He was still slurring his speech a little. 

“Here.” Lance mumbled as he helped Keith into the hoodie. “How do you feel?” 

“My head hurts.” 

“I know. Let me see if you can take anything.” He just nodded as Lance pulled out his phone. “Okay, I don’t really see anything. I’m gonna ask Allura when she gets back. You can lay down.” 

“Where’s Kosmo?” 

“I think I saw him in the kitchen. I’ll go get him.” Keith finally laid down as Lance went to go find the cat. It didn’t take him long since he was laying up on the top of the couch. “Come on buddy, Keith wants you.” As he reached out to pick him up, he jumped down and ran into the bedroom. “Well, that works to…” He mumbled to himself as he started back towards the bedroom, but he was stopped by a knock. It was a soft knock, so he knew it was Allura. As soon as he unbolted the door, she pushed her way through and into the kitchen. 

“He won’t know the difference.” She said as she sat down a few bottles on the counter and located his cups. He picked up one of the bottles to read the label. 

“Protein2o?” 

“Yeah, it’s not a lot of calories, but it’s protein so… It basically just tastes like gatorade.” 

“If he’ll drink it, I’ll take it.” 

“Do you have any straws?” 

“Uhh, yeah maybe.” He said as he dug through one of the drawers which was mainly filled with random sauce packets and plastic utensils. Eventually, he found a straw and put it into the cup she had poured. “Okay, I’ll be back in a second. I’m gonna try and get him to drink some.” She gave him a lazy thumbs-up and watched him disappear into his room. He could tell she was exhausted. After a few minutes of trying to get Keith to drink, he managed to drink about a third of it before he started nodding off. Lance finally gave up and grabbed a pillow and an extra blanket from his closet and tossed them onto the couch. 

“You can crash here tonight. You look like you’re about to fall asleep standing up.” 

“Are you sure?” 

“Obviously. I mean, you did more for me than this today. Get some sleep. Don’t answer the door, if anyone knocks, come get me.” 

“That’s not sketchy at all…” 

“Just trust me on it.” 

“Okay…” 

“Oh, and I meant to ask you… Can he take anything for his head?” 

“Uh, I’m not sure, did you look it up?” 

“Yeah, but I didn’t really find anything.” 

“Okay, let me look… Yeah, acetaminophen, it says it can increase hepatotoxic activities…” 

“So… what does that mean?” 

“It means no for tylenol. It could mess with his liver…. And Ibuprofen probably won’t really do anything while the Rohypnol is still in his system.” 

“Okay… I guess he’ll just have to sleep it off then… seriously though, it’s almost seven-thirty now, you should get some sleep. If you nee-” Lance was interrupted by a knock on the door. “Great… Stay here.” She just gave him a confused look as he got up to answer. 

“Mark?” 

“Yeah, I’m assuming you still haven’t seen him?” 

“No, still haven’t seen him.”

“Well, let me know if you do. So, I heard you come in, did you have to work late or something?” He asked, obviously trying to see into the apartment. 

“Yeah, or something.” 

“That your girlfriend?” 

“Yeah.” 

“Is it just you two or are you partying without me?” 

“Nope, just us. I wouldn’t dream of it.” 

“We still need to hang out.” 

“Yeah, for sure. I’ll have to find a day off at some point.” 

“Okay, well I better go get ready for work.” Lance just nodded and shut the door, locking and bolting it, before he made his way back over to Allura. 

“I think I may be beginning to connect some dots…”

  “Yeah, probably. Get some sleep. He’ll be gone in an hour, don’t worry about it.” 

“Okay… If you’re still asleep when I leave I’ll text you.” 

“Alright, well, if you need anything you know where to find me.” She just gave a soft wave as she finally laid down on the couch, leaving him to finally get some sleep himself. He quickly changed, then laid down next to Keith. By the time he had almost fallen asleep, Keith rolled into his side, still asleep. Without a second thought, he threw an arm around him and drifted off. 

By the time he woke back up, it was almost three. Allura had already texted saying that she was leaving. He decided to try and get Keith up and get him to drink some more of the water Allura had gotten him. He made his way to the kitchen and poured a new glass. By the time he got back to his room, Keith was waking up. 

“Hey, do you feel any better?” 

“Some… I think… what happened?” 

“We’ll talk about that later. For now, just try and drink some more of this. Do you feel like you can eat anything?” He just shook his head. “Do you wanna go watch some movies?” 

“Okay.” Keith stood up, but was clearly still having a hard time, so Lance helped him to the couch, then went back for another blanket and his drink. 

“What do you wanna watch?” He asked as he threw the blanket over him. Keith just shrugged. “Okay, Harry Potter marathon for now then.” Lance mumbled as he searched for the first movie. Finally, he grabbed the drink from the table and leaned back into the couch. “Try and drink some.” Keith just nodded and took a few sips before handing it back. It had been over twelve hours now and Keith still seemed kind of out of it, so Lance was a little concerned. He remembered what Allura had done the night before and decided to repeat it, just to see. His breathing was normal, so he really just wanted to check his heart rate. He took his wrist, then started a timer. By the time it went off, he had counted eight-six beats, then did a quick Google search and saw that was normal. It made him feel a little bit better, but he was still worried. They made it through a few movies before he noticed Keith getting tired again. 

“Do you wanna go lay back down in the bed?” He shook his head. “Ok…” Lance started, standing up. “Lay down in here then.” Keith just stared at him for a minute before eventually laying down, as Lance went to fix the blanket, he grabbed at his hand. “I’ll stay in here. Sit up a little though.” He helped Keith sit up enough for him to slide the pillow Allura had used under his head, then sat on the edge of the couch by his legs. That didn’t last long though, Keith made it obvious that wasn’t good enough. 

“Okay, scoot over.” Lance said before sliding in behind him. “Get some sleep, you need it. We’ll talk when you start to feel better.” Keith nodded, then rolled over into Lance’s chest, mumbling something that he couldn’t make out. He was asleep within minutes. 

Chapter Text

  Keith’s nap was cut short by a knock on the door. It was just past seven-thirty, so Lance immediately assumed it was Mark yet again. It was obvious that’s what Keith was thinking too. 

“Stay here, but stay laid down.” He said as he crawled over Keith to get to the door. To his surprise, it opened before he got to it. Thankfully, it wasn’t Mark, just Hunk who had an extra key. 

“Hey man, I was on the way to the diner and I figured I would come see how you guys are…” 

“Well, definitely better. I’m sure he’ll be fine after a little more sleep.” 

“You still haven’t fully explained anything…” 

“I know…” 

“Allura said-” He was interrupted by Lance motioning for him to stop talking. 

“I don’t think he remembers…” He whispered. 

“Are you gonna tell him?” 

“Yeah, I just think it’ll be better to wait until he feels better.” 

“Okay… so I managed to get you a bit of a break. Are you guys still planning on moving?” 

“Yeah, technically we can move in tomorrow, or start at least, but I don’t think he’ll be up to it… I mean, this apartment is still mine for another week or so, but I know he wants to get out so…” 

“I mean… I can help. Once you get everything packed up, we can just load it and get it over there. Are you just Uhauling it or what?” 

“Yeah, I guess. I’ll have to get a truck or something.” 

“Okay, well I better get going. Just let me know what you wanna do.” 

“Alright, see ya later man.” Once he was gone, Lance locked the door back and made his way back over to the couch where Keith was laying, staring at him. 

“You feel okay?” 

“I think…” 

“Good, do you feel like you could try and eat something?” 

“No…” 

“Okay, well I’m gonna grab you another drink.” He just nodded and watched Lance leave. When he got back, he was sitting up, waiting. 

“What happened?” Lance sighed and handed him the glass. 

“Try and drink some of that while I explain… but before I start, I want you to know that you’re perfectly safe now.” Lance said before he explained the events of the night before. When he was done, Keith was just staring at him. “We left the bar after you started acting weird and nothing else happened, I just got you to the diner and then Allura drove us to the hospital.” Keith just nodded, but still didn’t say a word, he just looked away. “Keith…”

“When are we leaving?” 

“We can start moving as early as tomorrow, but I doubt you’ll feel like it…” He just nodded and leaned into Lance’s shoulder. 

“Maybe I should just go home…” He mumbled. 

“No, no you shouldn’t. I don’t think this was even him… I’m sorry that I let that happen.” Lance whispered as he wrapped an arm around him. 

“What?” 

“I should’ve paid more attention…” 

“You didn’t do it…” 

“I know. Still…” The room fell into silence for a few minutes until Lance finally spoke again. “So, when Hunk was here, he offered to help us move. So, if you still want to leave soon, we can. I’m sure me and Hunk can have everything loaded pretty fast and you can just hang out in here while we do that. I’ll have to go get a Uhaul or something before that, but it’s up to you. We still have this apartment for about a week, so if you want to wait a little while, that works too.” Keith just shrugged. 

“I’m tired…” 

“I know, I figured you would be for a little while… Well, can you maybe try and eat something? Then you can take a nap. I know you probably don’t feel like it, but I’m sure it’ll make you feel a little better… even just something small.” 

“Fine…” 

“You still have that protein bar, or I can cook you something…” Keith just held out his hand, clearly not liking the idea of eating anything. He managed to eat about half of the protein bar before he decided he was done and handed back to Lance half apologetically. “Okay, do you want to lay down in bed or do you wan-” Before he even finished his question, he laid down, resting his head in Lance’s lap. “Okay then.” Lance said as he pulled the blanket back over him. After he was sure he was asleep, Lance slid out from under him, deciding to continue packing. They were pretty much done other than Lance’s room and a few of the things they might have needed, but if they were moving in the next day or two, he could definitely get some more stuff packed. 

After about an hour, he was mostly done with his room. All that was really left were the few things they would use in the next couple days that he planned to just throw into a duffle bag before they left. As he made a final pass through his room, he heard a thud come from the living room. When he walked out, he saw Keith leaning against the wall. 

“You’re still dizzy?” Lance asked, leading Keith back to the couch. 

“Aparently…” He mumbled. “Sorry…” 

“Stop apologizing. It’s not your fault. Anyway, I got the rest of my room packed up. That really just leaves a little bit of the kitchen and the stuff I know we’ll need soon. Do you want to start moving some stuff tomorrow, or me and Hunk to start moving some stuff tomorrow? I mean, if you wanted me to, I can move the boxes out of my room tonight so you can stay in there while we get everything else into the truck. Or we can wait a few days…” 

“That’s fine.” 

“Okay, I’ll go rent a truck tomorrow. I’m gonna go ahead and move those boxes.” Keith nodded and watched as he moved all of the boxes into the living room, then stacked all the others nearby. Then, he disappeared into the kitchen, most likely to go pack up everything else in there. Eventually, he decided to go lay down. He hated not being able to help, but he was exhausted, it felt like he had just gotten off of a week long bender. Before he made it back to the room, he got dizzy and had to stop to get his balance. Of course, with his luck, Lance had stopped packing to go grab his phone and saw him. 

“You goin’ to bed?” Keith just nodded as Lance threw an arm under him and helped him into their room. “I’ll be back in a little bit, it’s already past ten and I’d like to get up at a decent time tomorrow since Hunk still has to go into work at like nine tomorrow night. Do you want me to get you up when I go get the truck or no?” Keith just shrugged. “Okay, well it won’t be long, I’m sure I’ll be back before you even get up. I’ll wake you up before Hunk gets here though.” 

“Okay.” 

“Alright, I’m gonna go text him and finish up with the boxes.” Keith just nodded and rolled over, leaving Lance to go finish up packing. He got through a few more cabinets before he decided to text Hunk. 

Lance: Hey man, you still down to help us move tomorrow? 

Hunk: Yeah, I get off at two tonight, we’re closing early for some reason. I think we have an inspection tomorrow and my Uncle wants to be able to check everything out before we open back up tomorrow morning. What time should I come over?

Lance: Uh, I think I’m gonna get up at eight and go get the truck. I should be back home by like nine I guess. I already have pretty much everything packed up. I’m sure we can make pretty good time though. I mean, maybe we can have everything packed up by two, then if you can just help me get the furniture in the new apartment, that’d be cool.

Hunk: I have work at nine like usual tomorrow, so I’m really good to help until like seven that way I still have time to go home and get ready. 

Lance: Okay, cool. So see you tomorrow at like nine-ish?

Hunk: Yessir. 

Lance: Thanks man

Hunk: I think I still owed you anyway. 

Lance: Probably. 

After about another hour of packing, Lance decided to turn in for the night. By the time he got into his room and changed, he had woken Keith up, yet again. 

“Sorry…” 

“S’ fine.” 

“Well, I talked to Hunk.” Lance started as he climbed into bed. “We’re on for tomorrow.” 

“M’kay.” Keith mumbled as he rolled back over, immediately falling back asleep. Lance followed soon after, after making sure to set his alarm for the morning. He had already made the reservation online so it would hopefully not take too long. 

Chapter Text

Lance’s alarm woke them both up at seven-thirty. Keith just groaned from his new spot on Lance’s side while he attempted to turn it off. 

“You can go back to sleep, I’m gonna head out in a few.” 

“Not yet.” Keith whined, refusing to move. 

“I thought you wanted to move out?”

“Yeah, but it’s cold.” 

“You’re staying here remember?” 

“Yeah, but I’m cold.” He was obviously still half asleep. 

“So, you want to use me as a heater?” 

“Yeah.” 

“Okay, I’ll stay until you fall back asleep, but you can’t be on top of me or I'll wake you up again. Scoot over.” To his surprise, Keith moved off of him without much convincing. Once Keith was off of him, Lance turned onto his side and let Keith curl into him. He was back asleep within minutes. Finally, Lance slid out of bed and got ready before slipping out and making his way to the rental place. Luckily, it didn’t take him long to get the truck and he was on his way home about half an hour before he originally thought he would be. When he got back, he found a place to park the truck and made his way back into his apartment. While he was in the elevator, he shot Hunk a text. 

Lance: I got the Uhaul, head over whenever. 

When he got back in, Keith was still asleep. He decided to wait a little while before he got him up since Hunk hadn’t texted back yet. While he waited, he started taking some of the boxes down. Luckily, he had rented dollies with the truck, so he could bring one up after he dropped off the two boxes he could carry himself. When he got down there, he saw that Mark’s car was still there. He only made one more trip before Hunk texted saying he was on his way, meaning he needed to get Keith up. By the time he made it to his room, Keith was already sitting on the edge of the bed with his head in his hands. 

“Hey… You alright?” 

“M’ fine.” He mumbled. 

“Are you sure?” 

“Yeah, my head just hurts…” 

“Oh, I think you can take something now. I kept some Tylonal out, do you want me to get it?” 

“Okay…” Lance quickly disappeared, reappearing a few seconds later with a bottle of pills and a bottle of water. After he took the pill, he leaned back onto the headboard. 

“Hunk will probably be here in a few minutes. You can just stay in here if you want to. I think it’ll only take us about three hours to move everything.” Lance started as he walked over to his desk. “Here, find something to watch.” He said as he handed him his laptop, which Keith sat down next to him before he laid back down. 

“It’s cold.” Lance just nodded and dug through one of the bags on his dresser, then threw him a hoodie. 

“Okay, I’m gonna start taking some more stuff down.” He said as he slipped back out. After just two trips, he saw Hunk’s car pull into the garage.

“Hey.” He shouted as Hunk got out. 

“Hey, you already started?” 

“Yeah, but I’ve only gotten like eleven boxes. Grab that other dolly, it’ll make it a million times faster.”  Lance said, pointing to the other dolly he had gotten out. Hunk grabbed it and followed Lance upstairs. They spent the next two hours just loading boxes, then they had to get the furniture. After struggling the couch downstairs, they went back up for another piece. When they got there, the door was open and Mark was standing in his living room. 

“Dammit.” Lance mumbled under his breath. “Don’t say anything.” He whispered to Hunk who was clearly lost. “Mark?” 

“You’re moving?” 

“Yeah… Figured it was time for a one bedroom.” 

“Where to?” 

“That new complex in the Northside.” 

“Cool… So you haven’t heard anything still?” 

“No, but I know where you live, so if I do…” 

“Yeah, I’m sure he’ll turn up though.” 

“Yeah, I’m sure he will. Well, we have to get the rest of my furniture down…” 

“Okay, I’ll leave you to it.” Lance just nodded and followed him to the door, locking it behind him. He totally ignored Hunk’s questions and went straight to his room which was now locked. 

“It’s me.” He said with a soft knock. Eventually, the door unlocked and creaked open slightly and he slid in. He could tell right off the bat Keith was fully aware of what just happened. “You okay?” Keith just shrugged. “We’ll be gone tonight, and now he thinks we’re moving to the Northside. He won’t know.” He just shrugged again. “Hang on, I’ll be right back.” He whispered before slipping back out to the living room. 

“What was all that about?” He asked as soon as Lance emerged. 

“That guy’s a dick. I have to do something, do you wanna go pick up something for lunch?” 

“Sure, what do you want?” 

“Uhhh, nothing actually, but you should eat.” 

“Okay…” 

“I just need a minute.” 

“Okay, well I’ll be back in a little bit…” Hunk mumbled as he walked to the door. It was obvious that he was concerned, but he knew Lance wasn’t going to explain, so he gave in. As soon as the front door was locked, Lance was back in his room. 

“Hunk went to go get something to eat.” He said as he sat down next to him. Keith immediately leaned into his side. After a little while, he seemed to be feeling better. Lance stayed with him and watched an episode of some weird show Keith was watching with him before Hunk got back. 

“Okay, we’re gonna go finish the living room.” Keith just nodded in response as Lance left. Soon enough, he was back to tell Keith they were moving the furniture in his room. He awkwardly sat on the kitchen counter as they moved the last of Lance’s furniture. Finally, Lance came back up. “Alright, I think that’s everything. Hunk’s driving himself and Blue’s going with him, so Kosmo can just ride in the cab.” He said as he passed by and grabbed the duffle bag from his room. Keith got Kosmo and let Lance lead him to the Uhaul. “Fair warning, I suck at driving this thing…” He laughed as he started the truck and followed Hunk to the new apartment. Surprisingly, they managed to get everything moved into the apartment by the time Hunk had to go into work. Now all they had to do was unpack and return the Uhaul, but Lance decided most of that could wait. They spent the rest of the night watching movies after they set up the TV. He had four more days off of work, so he had plenty of time to unpack later. 

Keith fell asleep on the couch just before midnight, leaving Lance to finish setting up the bed. It didn’t take long, but it was a pain to do. They had left the mattress and box spring leaning against the wall, and the bed frame was still in pieces. It was just a metal bed frame with posts that slid into place, but it was hard to tell which post went where. Finally, he got it all set up and went to wake up Keith. Before he woke him up, he stopped and decided against it, he seemed actually calm and comfortable for once. Instead, Lance carried him to bed, then laid down himself. He was honestly exhausted, he barely even noticed the arm that wrapped around him when he rolled over to pet Blue who was sleeping on the floor beside the bed. 

The next day, neither of them woke up until half past ten. Lance woke up first, or so he thought. When he rolled over, he saw Keith sitting up, petting Kosmo. 

“Hey…” Lance mumbled. “How do you feel today?” Keith just stared at him, looking totally confused for a second. 

“Uh, okay I guess…” 

“Really? What’d you look so confused for?” Keith just shrugged. “Okay, well… Do you wanna do anything today? At some point we have to figure out your room, but I’m sure you don’t feel like doing that today, so….?” Keith just shrugged again. “Okay then, more movies?” 

“Okay.” 

“What movie?” Keith just shrugged again. “Alright then, Star Wars it is then.” Lance said as he got up and walked into the kitchen, then realized they had no food. By the time he turned around, Keith had made his way out of the bedroom. “Well, I was gonna ask if you could eat something, but we don’t have any food… I guess I need to go to the store at some point.” 

“When?” 

“I dunno, probably here soon… You wanna come, or do you think you can?” 

“Maybe…” 

“Well, I say we watch a movie, then you can decide, but definitely at some point today. I also need to call tomorrow and turn that phone on” Lance said as he led the way to the couch. Keith followed silently and sat on the other end of the couch. By the time they finished their movie, Lance was ready to go. At first, Keith wanted to go, but he was starting to feel kind of bad again. 

“So, are you coming?” Lance asked as he stood up and started towards the door, but stopped when he didn’t get a response. When Keith realized he turned back, he just shrugged. “You don’t have to if you don’t feel like it. I just thought you might want to get out for a little bit.” Keith just shrugged again, clearly weighing his options as Lance disappeared into his room. After a few minutes of arguing with himself, he got up to go change, but had to stop against the doorway when his vision went black. When he regained his balance, Lance was standing in front of him, ready to catch him. “Yeah, maybe not a good idea yet… You’re still dizzy?” He asked as he attempted to help him over to the bed. 

“Yeah… Shouldn’t that be over now?” Keith half-mumbled. 

“I don’t really know for sure… I mean, the doctor said you being underweight might make you react worse, but it should be over soon… Did you feel okay this morning?” 

“I think…” 

“Hmm… Well, you can just stay here. I’ll see if I can find out anything while I’m on the subway. Your key is on the kitchen counter in case you need it.” Keith just nodded. “Do you need anything?” He just shrugged and got under the covers. “Okay, we’ll call me if you need anything. I won’t be out long.” Lance said as he slipped out of the room. 

Chapter Text

Like he promised, Lance returned home about an hour and a half after he left. When he got home, he assumed Keith was still in bed so he started putting away the groceries. When he was done, he fed Blue and Kosmo, then decided to start unpacking some of the boxes in the living room. As he made his way over to one of the stacks of boxes, Keith appeared just outside the door to the bedroom with a blanket wrapped around him. 

“Hey. I thought you were asleep.” He just shrugged and sat down on the couch. “You okay?” 

“Yeah, just cold.” Keith mumbled. Truthfully, he still didn’t feel great, but he spent most of the time that Lance was gone looking into the effects of Rohypnol and came to the realization that he wasn’t still dealing with the effects, so he lied. 

“Okay… Well, I think I know where those other blankets are. I probably should’ve gotten those out all ready…” Lance said half under his breath as he walked around reading the sides of the boxes. After a few rearrangements, he found the right one and dragged it over to the couch and cut it open. He pulled out the first one and tossed it to Keith, before handing him the remote. “Find something to watch. I’m gonna go unpack some of the kitchen stuff so we can actually eat at some point.” Keith just silently nodded and turned on the TV as Lance walked into the kitchen. While he unpacked, he watched Keith through the serving hatch. He looked exhausted, so he decided to leave him alone about everything for the rest of the day. 

After he got about half of the kitchen unpacked, he decided to cook. He ended up just making pasta since it was easy. When it was done, he grabbed a bowl and made his way back into the living room where Keith was watching some cartoon he didn’t recognize. 

“There’s pasta in there if you want some… What are we watching?” 

“Over the Garden Wall. You're probably too old to remember it.” He said teasingly. 

“When did it come out?” 

“Like 2014 or something.” 

“So, I was like fourteen. I wasn’t too old.” 

“Yeah, whatever. You were probably too busy watching Rick and Morty and thinking you were edgy.” 

“Hey! I didn’t even know what Rick and Morty was until I was like sixteen. Besides, you were like twelve. Same difference.” 

“Yeah, barely.” 

“And now you’re twenty still watching it. Obviously I wasn’t too old. I probably wasn’t even allowed to watch it.” 

“Why not?” 

“My parents were like super conservative and religious, hence me getting booted. This seems all like mystical and stuff… I mean, I wasn’t even allowed to read Narnia, which seems weird because it’s supposed to be like Christain or whatever.” 

“Man, I thought my childhood sucked. At least I could watch SpongeBob.” Keith laughed. 

“Yeah, that one was a big no. I think I saw like three episodes before I turned fifteen. It clearly worked out super well for them though.” 

“What do you mean?” He asked, finally taking his attention off the TV. 

“Well… I mean whatever their plan was didn’t work. I have an older brother that’s like perfect, and I have two younger sisters and a younger brothers. So, as far as I know, they were the same way with the first one. My brother Marco is like four years older than me, he has like the exact life my parents planned for him. He got married to the girl he dated all throughout high school like halfway through college and has two kids. He’s a pediatric physician's assistant and his wife is like the stereotypical stay at home mom. Like picture perfect stuff ya know.” 

“So?” 

“So, then there’s me… That all started when I was like fifteen or sixteen though. They he was already out of the house. My three younger siblings are three, six, and nine years younger. Anyway, I guess I got tired of them controlling my life and had a bit of a rebellious phase. At first it was just stupid stuff, but then when I got my license I was sneaking out like every other day and going to like every party I could. I was always in trouble, especially when I skipped work. Eventually they decided a ‘good compromise’ was to give me a later curfew but make me do a breathalyzer and agree to random drug tests, and if I failed or was too late too many times I was out, so I chilled out a little. I got caught a few times, but I always talked my way out of it, and that was just like fifteen to seventeen. Obviously nineteen hit a bit harder. My first boyfriend was when I was eighteen, we only dated for like four months because I hated hiding it, and I guess because of that when I started seeing this other guy I dated I thought it was a good idea to tell my parents. So basically, I’m a gay, agnostic, college drop-out that according to my father disowned his family. Totally didn’t though. Maybe Marco, but that’s on him. Rachel isn’t a huge fan of me either, but I still talk to my mom sometimes and Veronica. Luis is slowly becoming the new me though. He hates my dad, I love it.” Lance finished jokingly, trying to lighten the mood. 

“So… religious trauma and daddy issues then?” 

“Yeah, definitely… So you got to watch normal shows as a kid then?” 

“Yeah. Trust me, it was one of the only good parts though.” 

“What’s that supposed to mean?” 

“Well, I’m sure you can take a guess. I mean, I moved in with some random guy when I was like twelve then dated a guy that was five years older than me at fifteen.” 

“That doesn’t really explain anything, but I don’t expect you to just trauma dump, so I’ll take your word for it.” Keith shrugged and hesitated for a moment before deciding he could trust Lance. 

“Well… no idea what happened with my mom, I never really knew her. I always thought she died with the way my dad talked about her, but I think she just left. I don’t know though, I was like two or three. Then it was just me and my dad. He was a firefighter and owned a little ranch in Texas. He wasn’t home very much, or if he was he was working with the animals, so I was on my own a lot. He was actually pretty cool though from what I still remember. I spent a lot of time watching cartoons though, which would explain this I guess… Anyway, he died in a fire when I was like ten I think… I didn’t really have any other known family that would take me so I ended up in the system which sucked. I mean to be fair, I’m sure I was awful to deal with, but I spent like a year and a half just jumping from house to house… I guess I got sick of it and just left one night. I snuck out and just started walking.  I was on my own for a few months before Shiro found me. I don’t know why, but I let him take me back to his apartment and I ended up staying there. We moved to Arizona like a year later.” 

“And that’s when you met him?” 

“Not then, a little later. I met him when I was in high school. I was still in middle school when I met Shiro. Well, I had to retake whatever grade I was in when I left. Then when I was seventeen I dropped out and moved in with Mark.” 

“Did you want to?’ 

“Yeah. I wanted to when I was sixteen, but Shiro told me not to. I think I did it like the day after he left. He found out last time he got to come home, which was like a little over a year ago and made me get my GED even though I told him I wasn’t going to college, which he hated.” 

“Why didn’t you tell him what was going on then?” 

“He was only in town for a couple of days, not like he could’ve done anything anyway. He doesn’t even live in the same country.” 

“Don’t you like talk to him?” 

“Yeah, not really… not much anyway. AFIM for a while, but he’s always super busy and I wasn’t allowed to talk to him on the phone without Mark there.” 

“What about now?” 

“I don’t know… I mean getting a call from him is kind of rare and I don’t know… It’s weird I guess…” Lance could tell Keith was pretty much done talking about deeper topics. 

“See, you don’t have to be wasted to talk to me.” He teased, trying to lighten the mood again. 

“Shut up. As far as I’m aware the only alcohol you’ve had at home was my whiskey or else I would be.” 

“You probably don’t need any yet anyway.” Keith just shrugged and zoned back in on the TV before pulling his hood up. “Are you that cold?” 

“Yeah…” He said as pulled an arm out and put his hand on Lance’s arm. 

“Ah! How?” Lance half-shouted as he got up to get another blanket. “Are you anemic?” 

“I don’t know. Wouldn’t they have said something about that at the hospital?” 

“Maybe, but I think they had bigger concerns at the time.” Keith just shrugged again as he pulled the blanket around him. To be fair, none of them were super warm, but it was still concerning. “Are you sure you feel okay?” 

“Yeah… I’m just cold and kinda tired.” 

“Well, it’s only four. Take a nap.” Keith just shrugged and curled up more. He was obviously trying not to, but after another episode of his cartoon he fell asleep. While he was asleep, Lance got back to unpacking. 

Chapter Text

By the time Keith woke back up, Lance had managed to get the rest of the kitchen unpacked. Now, he was attempting to actually organize the cabinets and fridge. Truthfully, his old apartment was much less than organized, and he doubted it would stick; it was worth a shot though. By the time he made it back to the living room to get started on some more boxes, he realized Keith was awake. 

“Hey.” He said as he passed by to the other side of the room. 

“Hi…” 

“You feel like eating? Now that we actually have food…” Keith just stared back at him. “I’m not going to try and make you today; I know you’re tired, but if you don’t today, you need to tomorrow.” 

“Okay…” 

“Was that an okay to eating now or tomorrow?” 

“Tomorrow…” 

“Okay, well I’m gonna do a bit more unpacking.” Keith just nodded and tried to find something to watch. He felt bad he wasn’t helping, but he was exhausted. To be fair, it was his own fault, but he just felt like sleeping. He zoned out to whatever show he landed on for what seemed like a few minutes; then was brought back to reality by Lance flopping down on the couch, his head landing on Keith’s curled legs. 

“I’m giving up for now. I got a good bit done though.” Keith just nodded. “So? More childhood nostalgia?” Lance asked, gesturing to the TV which was playing The Grim Adventures of Billy and Mandy. 

“No. Honestly I have no idea what this even is…” 

“Really?” Lance asked, sounding offended. 

“Should I have?” 

“Yeah! Even I saw this one. Honestly I think my brother was just allowed to watch it and I like followed him around everywhere so… See, this is probably your age showing.” He teased. 

“I don’t think I would’ve been into it as a kid anyway.” 

“Why not? What did you like?” 

“Teen Titans was a good one. The older one, not the newer one. Other than that basically anything like Ben 10, Kim Possible, Danny Phantom… I really liked Danny Phantom. Also stuff more like Adventure Time and Over the Garden Wall, oh and Gravity Falls. That was like a cultural reset.” 

“Yeah… I know like four of those. I’d probably recognize some form when I would go over to a friend’s house though.” 

“So what did you even do as a kid without cartoons?”

“Uhh… I mean I was allowed to watch anything on PBS but obviously I kinda grew out of that pretty quick… I was also allowed to watch like really old shows like Looney Tunes and Andy Grifith… and Giligan’s Island… Oh, oh my God! I totally forgot about ALF, that was like my favorite thing ever! I don’t really see why, I mean honestly some of that was worse than half the cartoons I couldn’t watch but whatever. Also I was forced to sit through all of the super detailed and lowkey gory like retellings of the Bible and stuff… makes no sense. Other than that I read a lot… like a lot… and I mean I had four siblings to piss off so…” 

“I’m sorry… I know the other ones but what is an ALF…?” Keith asked, he had clearly been confused since he said it. 

“It was this little alien dude. It came out in like the eighties and it only had like four or five seasons, but we had them all on VHS so I could probably explain every episode word for word including blocking, but I’m sure you’d rather me force you to sit through it at some point.” 

“Hmm… sounds interesting I guess…” 

“It’s funny I promise. I think they have it on the Roku channel or something, I’ll have to look for it later.” Lance said with a yawn. “So what did you do other than watch cartoons?” 

“Lived on a ranch. There was always something to do. I mean, I was basically working as soon as I could walk so…” 

“No siblings then?” 

“Nope. Just me and my dad.” Lance just nodded, clearly trying to think of more questions. “What part of Texas are you from?” 

“A bit south of Amarillo if you know where that is. I highly doubt you’d know the town.” Keith answered with a light laugh. 

“I have no idea where that is in relation to anything, but I think I recognize it… What town though? Try me.” 

“It’s in the panhandle. You’ve either heard George Strait or you’ve heard of the Cadillac Ranch… I lived in a town with like six or seven hundred people tops, I mean it was the definition of everyone knows everybody…” 

“Okay two things… first what was it?” 

“The name is dumb and incorrect, but it’s like half an hour south of Amarillo… Happy.” 

“No, not yet. You still haven’t told me.” Lance said, obviously lost. 

“No, that wasn’t a question. That was literally the name of the town I lived in.” 

“Really?” He was clearly surprised. 

“Yeah, I know… What was your other question?” 

“Who’s George Strait?” Keith’s face immediately dropped. 

“You’re joking.” 

“No, I’m really not…” 

“I’ll forgive you since I assume you’ve lived here your entire life and have never experienced good music, but he’s like one of the most iconic country music singers of all time. I mean he’s literally known as the ‘King of County’. I was referencing his song Amarillo by Morning when I said that. Also, before you get started, no I don’t really like country music, but he doesn’t count.” 

“I thought it was like Blake Shelton. Like the guy from the Voice.” Keith immediately glared at him. “What?” 

“That’s not music, period.” 

“Show me a song then. I don’t know any country music really, but I guess I should start with the king right?” 

“Okay, give me a second…” Keith said, already scrolling through spotify. “There’s like four I have a mild suspicion you’ll know…” He mumbled. 

“I’ll probably not know any of them… Just play one of those.” Keith nodded and scrolled back up to the top. 

“This isn’t the most popular, or the best, but it’s probably the most referenced.” He said as he pressed play on All my Ex’s Live in Texas. Lance listened to the first little bit of the song, but didn’t recognize it. 

“Yeah, never heard it… play me your favorite.” Keith nodded and started scrolling again, struggling to decide, but he eventually landed on Baby Blue. It was a classic, but it wasn’t super basic. Lance had to admit, the song was pretty good even if it wasn’t exactly his taste, but he mainly found himself listening to Keith’s soft humming. 

“So… What exactly is the difference between this and the other guy?” He asked, knowing he was going to get a bit of a rant. 

“Okay, so there’s like three or four sub-genres of country. Two are good, two are trash. One, classic country music, that would be your George Strait, Merle Haggard, Dolly Parton, Johnny Cash, Kenny Rogers, Willie Nelson, etcetera - one of the good ones. Two, another good one… for the most part, if it’s older… and that would be country women murdering their husbands” 

“What?” Lance asked, finally sitting up. 

 “It’s like a whole thing. It was a thing before Carrie Underwood too. Colter Wall for example sang Manitoba man. It’s great. Now three is where it starts to get bad. That’s like your Luke Bryan, Blake Shelton, newer artists. Some songs aren’t awful, and Luke Bryan as a person is great, but they write songs about beer, corn, trucks, and sex pretty much exclusively. You know, they write about lives they don’t live and our generation eats it up for some reason, it’s dumb. I only really listen to country music that came out before I was even born so… Lastly, we have what has been coined as hick hop. It’s like country rap and it makes my ears bleed. Enough said.” 

“Don’t kill me, but I really don’t see a difference between one and three. Two sounds… interesting and four does sound pretty bad… but I don’t see the difference…” Keith signed and started typing again. 

“Okay, so you remember how that song was like actually meaningful, and well written. Not to mention the instrumentals… Here’s the difference.” He said as he pressed play and Boys ‘Round Here began playing. He turned to face Lance, waiting with his lips pressed together forming a thin line. Halfway through, Lance was stifling a laugh. 

“Okay, yeah the first one was definitely better… What other music do you listen to anyway since you ‘don’t really like country’.” Lance said teasingly. 

“Classic rock for the most part. Some newer stuff too. Midwest emo, basically anything you probably would’ve bullied me for in highschool.” 

“Hey! I listened to some emo stuff in highschool… without my parents' knowledge…” 

“Like what?” 

“I liked Third Eye Blind… and Panic! At the Disco…” 

“God, not Panic!.... I’ll give you credit for Third Eye Blind though, I like them a lot actually. Shiro made me go to a show with him like forever ago. What else do you listen to?” 

“You’re gonna judge me.” Lance whined. 

“Not too hard…” 

“Fine… here.” Lance said, handing him his phone with his liked Spotify songs pulled up. Keith immediately hid a laugh. He scrolled for a few seconds before handing it back without a word. 

“That bad?” 

“I said it wouldn’t judge you too hard, so I’m just gonna stay quiet…” 

“So… very different then?” 

“Yeah, I have the music taste of a middle aged man and you have the music taste of a seventeen year old girl.” 

“I do not!” 

“You so do. Mark’s sister is nineteen now, but literally last month when she came to see him she played like half of those songs.” 

“Don’t hate.” 

“No hate, just judgment.”

“Yeah, whatever.” Lance said as he laid back down and dramatically stretched his arms over Keith’s legs. “What time is it?” 

“Uhh… almost nine, why?” 

“I’m tired… “ 

“Go to bed.” 

“But you're actually talking to me.” He whined. “I’m trying to get the most conversation I can. Not having a roommate sucked, now I have someone to talk to.” 

“Well, I’m tired too. We can talk tomorrow.” 

“Will we though?” Lance asked, immediately noticing Keith’s face faltering a bit, showing some guilt. 

“Maybe… If you let me sleep.”

“Fine. Go to bed, I’m taking a shower first though.” He mumbled as he got up and walked back into his room. Keith waited a few seconds before he did the same, barely catching a glimpse of Lance as he disappeared into the connecting bathroom. 

Chapter Text

When Lance returned, he found Keith curled up under at least two blankets with Kosmo. He flopped down next to him with a smirk. 

“Hey, you wanna see something cool?” Keith internally groaned at his smirk even if he did kind of love it. 

“What?” Lance just smirked more and pressed the back of his hand to the side of his neck. “How?” He exclaimed at the sudden warmth. 

“Because I’m so hot my body can’t even contain it all.” Lance said smugly, making Keith roll his eyes. 

“Sure.” He mumbled as he got up. 

“What are you doing?” 

“Shower.” He said as he dug through one of his bags for clothes. 

“You packed most of them up. I have some stuff unpacked, take what you want.” Lance said, seeing his struggle. Keith just nodded and searched for something acceptable in his dresser, then disappeared into the bathroom. He returned a little over half an hour later, once again drowning in a pair of Lance’s sweats, this time accompanied by a baggy white graphic tee and a light blue zip up jacket. 

  “You warmer now?” Lance asked as he laid down beside him. 

“A little….” He lied. Randomly, Lance remembered the cut over his ribs. 

“How did that cut heal over?” 

“What?” 

“The one on your ribs…”

“Oh, okay I guess…”

“Let me see.” 

“Why?” 

“Because. Show me.” Keith sighed and pulled his shirt up and the blankets down enough to reveal a mostly faint scar. 

“Happy?” Lance just smirked again and put both of his hands on his bare chest. 

“No.” He said with a glare, which quickly turned into a smirk as he sneakily slid both of his hands he knew would be ice cold under Lance’s shirt. 

“Gahhh, Jesus dude!” 

“You did it first!” 

“Yeah, but my hands actually help your situation. Your hands are so cold it almost hurts!” 

“I can’t help it.” Keith mumbled while wrapping back up under the blankets. 

“Whatever, I thought you were going to sleep?” 

“I was…” He replied, turning away from Lance. “But someone won’t shut up.” Lance chuckled a bit before rolling over and wrapping his arms around Kieth. “What are you doing!?” 

“Hey! You’re cold, don’t make it gay.”

“Lance…” 

“What?” 

“I’m pretty sure everything I do is gay.” 

“You know what I mean, shut up and enjoy the warmth or taking it back.” As he finished his sentence, he felt Keith rest a hand over his wrist, silently telling him not to. Eventually, he felt Keith relax, meaning he probably fell asleep. Before Lance fell asleep, he felt Keith move unknowingly to be closer to the source of heat, which happened to be him. 

Lance woke up first the next morning to find Keith now rolled onto his side, curled into Lance’s chest. For some reason, he decided to stay there for a little longer. He didn’t know how much time had passed, but he started to feel him stir, so he quickly dropped his head pretending to be asleep. When Keith fully woke up, he stretched out his arms, then realized where he was and started to pull away. When he realized Lance was asleep, he stopped, deciding to soak up a little more warmth. Eventually, Lance tried to make it seem like he was about to wake up and felt Keith quickly slide away. He dramatically stretched his arms, rolling slightly onto his back. 

“Hey.” He mumbled. 

“Hi….” 

“You been up long?” Keith just shook his head. “You feel alright today?” 

“Uh.. Yeah.” 

“Good. Do you wanna do anything today?” Keith just shrugged. “So… more unpacking then I guess.” Lance said as he pulled himself out of bed and made his way to the kitchen for coffee. Eventually, Keith followed and watched as Lance’s coffee turned from black to almost white with creamer. 

“How can you drink that?” 

“What do you mean?” 

“That’s just creamer.” 

“Yeah, and it tastes like a cinnamon roll.” Keith just scrunched up his nose as Lance offered him a mug which he accepted, immediately taking a sip. “No!” He said, sounding genuinely offended. “Why?” 

“What…?” Keith asked, clearly confused. 

“Black? Really?” 

“Yeah…” 

“You’re so strange…” Keith just hushed him, grabbed his cigarettes - which he was almost out of-  and made his way outside. Lance followed after, joining him on the stoop and watched as he pulled one out, noticing one of the three left were upside down. “What’s the deal with that one?” He asked. 

“Really?” Keith asked, blowing out a cloud of smoke. 

“I don’t smoke… How am I supposed to know? Also, if I just ask you about things I think you’ll judge me for apparently you’ll have a real conversation with me.” 

“It’s like a really common thing.” 

“Well, not common enough for me. I’ve had one cigarette in my entire life, what do you expect?”

“Really?” 

“Yeah… I mean I’ve smoked a few joints before, and I used to vape when I was still in college, before I got booted, but yeah…” 

“Fine.” Keith said with a dramatic eye roll. “It’s a lucky cigarette. There’s not really a point. My dad always did it because his dad did, so I do I guess. My grandfather was the first to come over here, well his parents technically. I don’t really know much about him, because my dad kind of cut him off when he married my mom. He didn’t really like the fact she wasn’t Korean… Anyway, he got drafted when he was like twenty five or something for World War II. It was like a thing the soldiers did. When they got a new pack, they’d flip one upside down, and it would be the last one they smoked if they were lucky enough to live that long. It’s lowkey super morbid when you think about it though… It’s just a habit I guess.” 

“See? I was right. So, have you always done that?” 

“Yeah… I guess it has the same effect even if I’m not being shot at or having shrapnel explode into me…” 

“What do you mean?” 

“I think it’s pretty obvious what I mean…” Keith said, taking another drag, clearly refusing to explain if Lance didn’t connect the dots on his own. Eventually, he must have because he got really quiet for a minute, before finally speaking up again. 

“So… I assume you’ve done that since you were eighteen then?” Keith laughed a little, then looked to the ground. 

“Probably wasn’t even fifteen…” 

“Really?” 

“Yeah… Shiro about killed me a million times, I guess he just gave up after a while, but yeah… I mean, by then Mark was already eighteen so…” Lance just nodded. 

“So you were all rebellious then?” 

“I mean… not really honestly… there wasn’t a lot Shiro cared too much about me doing, as long as I wasn’t stupid about it. Like when he caught me wasted for the first time…” Keith trailed off, then saw Lance look at him as if he was waiting for the story to continue. “Well, he doesn’t really drink, or didn’t. I mean he’d have a beer with his friends on occasion, or a glass of wine, but that was really it. Still, I had no idea I woke him up coming home that night, I was I think fifteen. The next morning, or afternoon I guess when I finally got up, I went into the living room, then I heard him call me into the kitchen. I immediately figured I was screwed. Not so much though… When I came in, he was sitting at the table with a bottle of whiskey and two mason jars in front of him. He made me sit there and drink with him until he was sure I was drunk enough, then he spent most of the day trying to prove to me how important it was to still be in control or whatever. He also made me try to obey all the traffic laws and drive around in GTA trying to prove driving was a bad idea.” He said with a slight laugh. “I didn’t even have my permit yet so I don’t know what he was so worried about. Then, after I slept off a bit of liquor, he pulled out like a whole dad talk. Basically by the end of it he said he didn’t care as long as I wasn’t stupid and told me to stick to like two drinks tops.” 

“Wow…” 

“What?” 

“When I got caught the first time I literally got my room taken away.” 

“You’re room?” 

“Yeah… My parents put a lock on my door and pulled my mattress out into the living room. I literally had to get one of them to unlock it if I wanted a hoodie or something. I think it stayed like that for like two months maybe…” 

“Wow…” 

“Yeah… Also had to do a bunch of work for the church. It sucked.”

“What’s the worst trouble you’ve ever been in?” 

“Well… there’s a lot of possibilities there. Not counting when I got kicked out, I think it was when I was sixteen. One of my best friends then was a guy I went to church with. His name was Silas. Anyway, at that point, his was like the only house I was allowed to stay over at. Basically, we both told our parents we were staying at each other's place, which was not well thought out since the next day was Sunday and they would see each other, but obviously we didn’t think that far ahead. We stashed clothes for the next day in my truck and went to a party where we planned to crash for the night afterwards. It was some guy’s like a grade above us. His parents were out of town or whatever, I know this is totally panning out to be a high school cliche… anyway… We both got wasted, I don’t remember like anything from that night other than getting wasted and smoking with whatever girl I had convinced everyone I was in love with that week. The next morning, we woke up late and had to rush to the church and get ready in my truck. Silas for some reason though sucking on pennies would get rid of the liquor smell in our breath. As soon as we walked in, like two minutes before church actually started, we saw our parents talking, then saw the looks we got and without a word we both just ran out to my truck. I think we might’ve made it to Kenosha, Wisconsin… Anyway, a lot happened, we eventually went back home and both of us were dead. That’s one of the times I got caught. I think I kept my room that time, but pretty much everything else was gone. I kept my truck too but they put a tracker on it they thought I didn’t know about. That’s also when they made me start playing for the worship band. I dunno, guess they thought it would fix me.” Keith was totally lost by the nostalgic smile on Lance’s face as he spoke. “Yeah… that was great. Just imagine two scrawny sixteen year olds with like forty bucks between the two of them, running around Kenosha in church clothes, just trying to have one last day of freedom before their imminent 

demise. Wasn’t the first time either.” He laughed. 

“Wow…”

“Yeah… we were so dumb.” He chucked. “So, what about you then? Was it that or something else?” 

“I didn’t really get in much trouble at home. Shiro’s parents were really strict and he always said that’s why he did a bunch of stupid stuff, so he didn’t want me to be like that. He’d rather just make sure I was safe. I mean we got to the point where I would just tell him what I was doing at any given time. It made him feel better knowing he could find me if he needed to I guess. I mean, he acted like he was super strict around people, especially like his older friends with kids my age. I guess he felt like he was supposed to be harder on me because they all were. Most of them had been in the air force since they graduated though and like all of their kids were like robots. That’s not what he wanted. I think the worst was when I left… Other than that I used to get in a lot of trouble at school. I actually got expelled the year before I dropped out and had to go out of the district. I got into a lot of fights. He was always mad about those, but everytime he would say something along the lines of, ‘you have to stop getting into fights all time. I’m glad you don’t take shit from people, but this is the whatever time this month.’ Which of course wasn’t true. I did take shit from people. Just not those people, plus I think I had a lot of pent up… I don’t know anger I guess…”

“Left?”

  “Oh… yeah… When I was sixteen we got into about something, I don’t even remember what, but he said a few things he didn’t really mean and I was already livid, so I just threw some stuff in a bag, took his bike, and left. He like straight up opened a missing persons case. I was gone for like four days I think. I made it all the way from Scottsdale to like a few towns over from Albuquerque. It took me like nine hours of driving though since I was like terrified of the interstate.” 

“And what was in Albuquerque?” 

“No idea. I’ve never been. I didn’t make it there. I didn’t really have a plan, I just started riding. I probably got like three hours of sleep the entire time. When I got returned, I just went to sleep and then when I got up I was basically on house arrest. That’s really it though. Although I do think he’d kill me if he knew anything that’s happened in the past four years. Especially since I’m basically living with a stranger now.” 

“I’m not a stranger. Not anymore.” 

“You were when I came over.” 

“Yeah, but I think if he knew the reason, he’d be okay with it.” Keith just shrugged. “Well, I have some unpacking to do.” Lance said, making his way back into the house.

Chapter Text

Eventually, Keith went inside to help Lance unpack. By noon, they managed to have basically everything unpacked. They both flopped down on the couch, obviously ready for a break. 

“So, you haven’t seen the city much, huh?” 

“Some. I mean anything within a few blocks of the building, and most of Lake Shore Drive. That’s usually where I went when I had to leave.” 

“So in other words, I get to show you all the cool places?” Lance asked excitedly. 

“I guess.” Keith sighed. “Not all the touristy stuff though.” 

“But you haven’t seen the touristy stuff right?” 

“No, but I don’t really see the purpose of staring at a giant metal bean.” 

“Uh, because it’s cool. And like probably historical or something, I don’t know. There’s a bunch of cool stuff over there.”

“Fine. Only to get you to shut up though.” 

“Cool, it’s Monday, so there probably won’t be too many people around… Well, the high schools get out soon, so… Still better than the weekend though.” 

“So we're going now then?” 

“Yeah, unless you don’t feel up to it, but you’re going at some point.” 

“Fine.” Keith sighed again as they both went to find clothes. Like usual, they were dressed completely opposite from one another. Lance went with a basic outfit consisting of jeans, a white hoodie, and a pair of sneakers while Keith wore black carpenter jeans that nearly fell off of his waist - tied with a shoe string, a tee shirt from what Lance assumed was a band he had never heard of, and a black zip up jacket with moth wings on the back, paired with his usual combat boots. When he got done lacing them, he looked up to see Lance smirking. 

“What?” 

“Nothing…” He said with a shrug. 

“What?” 

“I dunno, it’s just kinda funny.” 

“What is?” 

“Me being who I was and now I have some random emo kid sitting on my couch.” 

“Dude, I’m twenty. Also, not even emo.” Keith said with a glare.

“Kid was meant to be endearing first of all, but I take that back. Secondly, you totally are. You basically said yourself you mainly listen to emo music, and just out of curiosity, how many articles of clothing do you own that aren’t back?” 

“Uh, like a third of them.” Keith said very matter-of-factly, as if it would help his case. 

“And what colors are they?” 

“Gray and red.”

“Gray is the same as black. You’re emo. Not to mention the mullet.”

“Well, at least everything matches.” 

“Wow, you got me there.” Lance said sarcastically. “Come on, let’s go.” Keith nodded as he pulled on a pair of fingerless gloves and grabbed the almost empty pack of cigarettes off the coffee table. “Oh, wait.” Lance said, disappearing into the kitchen, returning later with a new pack of reds. “Here.” He said tossing them over. Keith seemed surprised, but still shoved them into his pocket, then flicked his lighter, only to see it was nearing the end of its life. He quickly went back into Lance’s room to grab the old Zippo he had. He honestly liked using it better, but refilling it was always a pain. Shiro had given it to him years ago since he didn’t need it for anything. It was just an old silver one with the airforce crest on it. He honestly didn’t even remember when he got it, but it had been a while. Finally, they made their way to the subway, Lance told him about a few different places while he finished a cigarette. The subway was a pain, but eventually Lance was leading him down a somewhat busy street. 

“So… where are we?” 

“Close to Millennium Park. We’re gonna go eat, then you have to go see what you haven’t from your walks.” 

“I’m not re-” 

“You said you’d try today.” Lance cut him off. “That’s all I’m asking for.” Keith just shrugged and continued following. “You like sushi?” 

“Wow! Because I’m Asian?” Keith said in an almost serious tone, hiding a smirk. 

“Isn’t sushi Japanese?” 

“Mostly, but so am I.” 

“You said you were Korean this morning, dumbass. Either way, there’s a good sushi place like two blocks away. Or would you prefer Korean barbeque?” 

“Wow… I don’t care.” 

“Sushi it is then.” Lance said with a quiet laugh as he pulled Keith to the sushi place. It was mostly quiet which Keith was thankful for. He let Lance order him something, unsure of what to get and waited. “So, I’m thinking Millennium Park, then before it starts to get dark we can go to the pier.” 

“You’re not taking me on the death wheel.” 

“What? The Centennial Wheel?” 

“Death wheel.” Keith corrected.  

“You’re afraid of heights?” 

“No, I was traumatized.” Keith said, stifling a laugh. “Have you ever seen Sharknado?” 

“What?”

“Sharknado. They’re all like the worst movies to ever be produced and I love them. There’s like six now I think… no idea how though. The first one came out when I first moved in with Shiro and for some reason we thought it was the best thing ever. I mean, we thought it was awful, but in a good way I guess… Anyway, the whole thing is like it’s a storm of sharks. Super dumb, but the first time we watched it I gained a fear of ferris wheels. There’s this scene, I think it’s like Santa Monica Pier or whatever and the ferris wheel brakes and just like starts rolling.” By the end of his explanation, he was forcing away a soft smile. 

“Well… that sounds… terrible, but I’m pretty sure a ‘sharknado’ is a low possibility.” Lance said as the waitress brought them their food, sneaking a small wink at Lance. As soon as she was gone, he turned to Keith with a smirk, immediately earning an eyeroll. After a few minutes of staring at his plate, looking for a way to make it seem like he was eating, he looked up to Lance. 

“You suck.” He deadpanned.

“What? What did I do?” 

“You picked sushi for a reason.” 

“What? What are you talking about?” He said with fake innocence. 

“You suck.” 

“No idea what you’re talking about. Eat.” Truthfully, he did know what he was talking about. He had seen him move his food around, picking up random pieces, then just putting them back down, trying to make it seem like he was eating one of the times he tried to feed him at the apartment. Even though he thought that solved the issue, he saw Keith trying to sneak one of the rolls into the napkin he had stashed in his lap. “Keith, I’m not dumb.” He said, barely looking up. “I said to try. You’re not trying.” When he looked up, he could see Keith chewing on the inside of his lip, guiltily. “Try. It’s okay if you don’t eat much, but don’t try and lie about it.” Keith stayed silent, but nodded. Finally, by the time they left, Keith had eaten two and a half of his sushi rolls, but still remained quiet. Lance paid and led the way out of the restaurant. As they walked down the street, he looked at the receipt, then back at Keith, then tossed it in the trash. For some reason, he didn’t care about the girl’s number. Keith was still just nervously staring at him. 

“You okay?” Keith just shrugged. “You know I’m not mad, right?” He shrugged again. “Well I’m not. I’m glad you got some food in you, even if it wasn’t much. See, this is where I would say ‘ya’ did good kid’-” Lance said in a joking tone. “But someone hates that so…” He noticed the corner of Keith’s mouth turn up a little, but almost immediately fell again. They continued down the street a little ways, Keith clearly not paying much attention. When they got to a corner, he nearly walked out into traffic before Lance pulled him back. “There’s cars there.” 

“Sorry…” Keith nearly whispered. Lance could tell he was overthinking, but he decided to try and get them both to the park in one piece before he attempted to help. Finally, a few blocks later, they arrived at the park, specifically by Lurie Garden. Lance pulled him over to one of the benches. 

“You’re overthinking something. If you tell me what it is I can probably help.” Keith just shrugged and leaned his head against Lance’s shoulder. “Okay… either way, I’m not mad, I’m glad you ate some, and you have nothing to be worried about right now.” Keith just shrugged again and pulled out his last cigarette in the first box. 

“Well, not dead yet…” He mumbled as he held the cigarette between his teeth.

“Good.” Keith ignored him and let the rough smoke filling his lungs push out his spiraling thoughts. It wouldn’t last long, but it gave him a moment of peace. When he finished smoking, he allowed Lance to drag him through the park so he could see everything. 

“I still can’t believe you’ve never been here.” 

“Well, I was only really supposed to go to like three places so…” 

“Well, that’s not the case anymore. It’s gonna get dark soon. Are you still down to go to the pier? We can just like walk around.” 

“Okay.” Keith said, letting Lance lead the way back to the subway. They only rode for a stop or two before he led the way back out onto the much more busy street. 

“At least the L wasn’t busy yet.” Lance said, noticing Keith keeping closer. They made it to the pier and started walking up one side while they talked and Lance pointed out a few things. They spent a few minutes overlooking water before heading down the other side, now talking about music again. 

“So, who’s your favorite musician, like just instrumental?” Lance asked. 

“Honestly, Rush as a whole is pretty impressive, but Geddy Lee is probably one of the be-” Keith cut himself off, before ducking his head and walking in the opposite direction. Lance stood confused for a second, then rushed over to where Keith was already nearly passing the park. 

“What was that?” Lance asked, stopping Keith. When he looked up, Lance could tell he was near a full panic and kind of got an idea. Without a second thought, he protectively wrapped his arms around him and looked around. When he glanced behind them, he saw a familiar face making its way over. “Okay, I need you to go into the Crystal Garden.” He whispered, seeing it was the closest decent place for Keith to hide. “There’s nothing going on in there today. I’ll come find you in a minute okay?” Keith nodded silently and pulled away, leaving just enough time for him to possibly escape unnoticed, then Lance started back towards Mark, pretending not to notice him. 

“Lance! I thought I saw you.” 

“Oh, hey.” 

“What are you doing out here?” 

“Oh, I was hanging out with one of my brothers. He just left, figured I’d take the long way back.” 

“Cool, cool. Was that him you were talking to?” 

“Yeah, he’s heading back home.” 

“Well, can I interest you in a drink? Some buddies and I are out on the patio at Margaritaville.” 

“Nah, I should really be getting back, thanks though.” 

“Alright, well see you around man.” Lance just nodded as he turned to leave, thankful he didn’t mention the fake number, and not at all surprised Margarittaville was one of his hangouts. As soon as he was far enough away, Lance made his way into the Crystal Garden to find Keith. He finally found him towards the back, sitting against one of the shooting fountains. 

“Okay, now that that’s dealt with, why don’t we head home?” Keith didn’t respond, he was just staring out the window with his chin tucked behind one knee. “Keith?” He tried again, putting a soft hand on his shoulder. “Come on man, let me get ya home.” Finally Keith looked back up, clearly still fighting his panic and Lance offered a hand, pulling him up. This time, he decided they would walk through the inside. The entire way back to the subway station, Lance kept an arm around Keith’s waist as if that alone would protect him from Mark. Lance was always protective over the people he cared about, but Keith was different. Halfway to the subway, he could feel Keith shaking again. 

“Did something happen or are you just cold?” 

“Cold…” 

“I’d give you my hoodie, but I don’t have a shirt on under and it’d be too distracting for oncoming traffic.” He said, trying to get Keith to laugh, but he just shrugged. “Well, we’ll be on the subway soon and we only have to switch over once.” Keith just nodded. When they finally got to the subway, they got stuck standing. Lance grabbed a handle with one hand and held Keith in front of him with the other. Usually, Keith wasn’t much for physical contact, but he was cold and it was Lance. 

Chapter Text

Keith remained silent the entire rest of the way home, allowing Lance to keep a protective arm around him. When they finally got home, he had managed to calm his mind a little, but not fully. Lance watched as he disappeared into his room, deciding to wait outside for a little bit, not sure if he was planning on coming back out. Eventually, it was obvious he wasn’t so Lance walked in, finding Keith now in sweats and a hoodie, still digging through one of his still unpacked bags.

“What are you looking for?” He asked. Keith immediately stopped and sat up, dropping his eyes to the floor. “Keith… you can’t keep doing this stuff man… I get that that was less than fun, but this isn’t the right way to cope with it…” Lance said as he sat down on the edge of the bed next to Keith. “Besides, I told you I’d kill him.”

“M’ tired.” Keith finally mumbled. 

“It’s almost eight now, you could just go to bed early.”

“Can y-” 

“I was already planning on it.” Lance said, cutting him off as he made his way over to his dresser to find something more comfortable to wear, eventually landing on a pair of basketball shorts. By the time he laid back down, Keith was laying on his side, half-curled into himself. 

“Cold?” He just shrugged and pulled the blanket up. Lance took that as his que to leave him alone and rolled over to his other side to try and get some sleep. 

The next morning, Lance woke up to find Keith gone. He got up and threw on a hoodie before making his way downstairs and outside onto the front stoop where Keith was sitting. 

  “Hey.” Lance said, sitting down beside him. 

“Hey.” Keith mumbled through the smoke. 

“You sleep okay last night.” 

“Yeah…” He mumbled, obviously lying, but Lance let it slide. 

“Well… you ready to sit through every episode of Alf?” 

“You were serious about that?” 

“Hey! I watch your cartoons!” 

“Fine.”  Keith sighed, getting up to follow Lance back inside where he flopped down on the couch with the remote. After a few episodes, Keith started to understand why Lance liked it, given his other options it was probably the most entertaining. They spent pretty much all day watching it together on the couch. A few hours in, Keith’s lack of sleep caught up to him, Lance caught him nodding off a few times. 

“You know, you can sleep right?” Lance asked, barely turning away from the TV enough to see him shrug. “Seriously man, you look exhausted and you’re nodding off. Stay in here if you want to, but you clearly need to sleep.” 

“Okay…” Keith mumbled, but just sat up more to try and stay awake. 

“You’re difficult” Lance sighed as he pulled him down to where he was laying with his head in his lap, then pulled the blanket down from the top of the couch and tossed it over him. Keith just shrugged and got comfortable, enjoying the warmth and comfort Lance provided. 

Keith woke up about an hour later, still laying in Lance’s lap. When he opened his eyes, he was greeted by Lance’s tee shirt, then realized he had an arm wrapped around him. His first reaction was to quickly pull away, but he found himself struggling to do so. He wanted to be closer if anything, so he did his best to seem like he never really woke up. Of course that didn’t work. 

“Good, you're up. You were gonna miss my favorite episode.” Lance said, not even acknowledging the fact Keith had fully curled around him in his sleep. He hesitated for a second, but eventually sat up, pulling the blanket back around him and tried to pay attention to the show. He caught himself stifling a laugh or two which Lance was clearly proud of himself for. When the episode ended, Lance handed him the remote and made his way to the kitchen. While he cooked, he watched Keith turn on Christopher Robin. 

“Really? That’s not childhood nostalgia. That’s like three years old.”

“Yeah, it totally is. It’s Winnie the Pooh. Duh.” Keith half-mumbled. 

“Whatever dork.” 

“Shut up.” Lance just rolled his eyes and went back to cooking. Eventually he returned to the living room with two bowls of pasta. 

“Eat if you can. Don’t try and act like you did if you didn’t though.” Lance said as he passed Keith a bowl. He inspected it for a moment then shook his head. 

“Can’t.” Keith said flatly. 

“Okay, you can try again tonight.” 

“I’m not even trying to avoid it. I just don’t want you to have to take me back to the ER.”

“What?” 

“I assume this has oregano in it.” He said as more of a question. 

“Yeah… why?” Lance asked, clearly confused. Keith just held out his wrist motioning to the bracelet he always wore. “What?”

“You’ll kill me. Or nearly anyway.” At this point, Lance actually read the bracelet and realized. 

“You’ve lived with me for like almost two weeks and you're just now telling me this?” Lance asked with concern written all over his face. 

“I don’t eat. I didn’t think it mattered.” 

“Still! Are you allergic to anything else?”

“Red dye. It won’t kill me though, obviously.” 

“So… oregano will?”

  “It could.”

“Do you have like an epipen somewhere or something? These are things I should really know about…”

“Yeah. It’s not really an issue though. I’ve only ever had to use one like four times. I doubt I’ll need it.” 

“Still! Where is it? And how severe is it?” 

“In one of those bags and I dunno… it doesn’t take much. I have to ingest it though.” He said way too casually. 

“Dude! I literally could’ve killed you!” Keith just shrugged and moved his attention back to the TV, fully aware Lance was still staring at him. Eventually he stopped and ate before taking the dishes back and cleaning the kitchen, then tossing the jar of oregano out. When he got back to the couch, he went back to questioning. 

“Is there anything else like that I should know about?” 

“Uhh… no?”

“That didn’t sound very convincing.” Lance said a little too harshly. 

“I dunno… I don’t think so…” He half mumbled, shrinking down a bit. 

“Seriously. I should know about those kinds of things.” 

“I just don’t really think about it….” Keith mumbled again as he looked away.

“You just don’t really think about it? How? Something that could potentially kill you just doesn’t concern you? Keith?”

“Please stop…” He whispered, barely audibly and Lance finally realized what he was doing. 

“I’m sorry… I didn’t realize I-.... I’m sorry. Come here.” He hesitated, but eventually Keith dropped his head onto his shoulder and let him wrap his arm around him. He decided it was probably better to stay quiet and wait for Keith to untense a little. Instead, he just tired to silently let him know nothing was going to happen. 

“I’m sorry…” He repeated softly after a few minutes. Keith nodded, but made no efforts to move, so Lance pulled him closer and just waited. Eventually, a quiet mumble came from Keith, but he couldn’t hear what he said. 

“What?” Keith just shrugged so Lance let it go. Honestly, neither of them were sure how much time had passed, but Keith eventually sat back up, still refusing eye contact. He felt bad and Lance could tell, but he didn’t say anything. They spent the next several hours watching random shows, occasionally sharing a quick conversation, then Lance decided it was time for a late dinner. 

“Alright.” He said, slapping his thighs as he stood. “I’m gonna go find something to cook. This time without oregano…” Keith just nodded, barely looking away from the TV.  “Nevermind. I’m ordering Doordash, what do you want?” Lance asked, flopping back down onto the couch. Keith just shrugged, telling Lance to pick. Soon enough, there was a knock on the door, making Keith hide a flench. Lance got up, laying a soft hand on Keith’s shoulder before he walked down the stairs to grab the food. When he came back, he handed Keith one of the bags and sat down. 

“It’s chicken. I still don’t know anything you actually like because you won’t tell me, but I assume if I fed it to my little brother who wouldn’t eat like anything, you’ll maybe eat it.” Keith just nodded and stared at the food in front of him. He honestly didn’t understand why it was so hard. He was hungry, but the thought of eating anything made him extremely anxious. After a few minutes, he managed to eat a little, but couldn’t stomach more than a few bites before he flopped back against the back of the couch. He could see Lance attempting to calculate his intake, which he had already done himself and knew it wasn’t enough. 

“Well, it’s more than yesterday, I’ll take it.” He said with a slight smile that dropped when he saw Keith’s obvious panic. 

“Was it?”

“I mean… I don’t know for sure…” Lance watched Keith chew on the inside of his lip, obviously trying to recalculate in his head. “That’s a good thing though.” Keith didn’t even acknowledge him. Once he was done eating, he took everything back to the kitchen to throw out, then grabbed a Sharpie. He honestly doubted it would help since Keith didn’t eat anything he wasn’t told to, but it was worth a shot. He spent the next half-hour scribbling over the nutrition facts of almost everything in his kitchen. When he came back, he nearly ran over Keith who was walking out of his room. They only met eyes for a second, but he could feel Keith’s immediate panic.

“You okay?” Keith just nodded and sat back down on the couch. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Lance trying to figure out what was going on in his mind. Once he sat down, Lance realized Keith was shaking a little. “Seriously… are you okay?” He just nodded again. “Are you lying?” This time, he just stared to the ground both from the choice of wording and avoidance. As he wrapped an arm around him, Lance could feel him tense up. Eventually, Keith relaxed and carefully leaned into his side. After a few more minutes of silence, Lance finally spoke. 

“Do you wanna tell me what’s wrong?” Keith shook his head. “Did you do something that you shouldn’t have?” He just shrugged. “Okay…” Lance sighed. “Can I atleast clean it?” 

“I didn’t cut.” He mumbled. 

“You’re not hurt at all?” He shook his head again. “Okay. You wanna watch cartoons again?” 

“Okay…” Lance handed him the remote, expecting him to move, but he didn’t. He found yet another cartoon Lance didn’t recognize and nestled closer into his side. He honestly wasn’t paying attention, his mind was still spiraling, but Lance didn’t need to know that. Of course, Lance was fully aware, he had learned to pick up on a few of Keith’s anxious habits. At some point, he must’ve tired himself out seeing as the next time Lance glanced over, Keith was asleep. He took a second to soak up the moment, then turned off the TV, scooped him up, and carried him to bed before changing and laying down himself. 

Chapter Text

The next day, they both slept until about eight. For once, Keith woke up first. He found himself laying on Lance’s chest with a pair of warm arms wrapped around his waist. He wanted to go smoke, but instead, he stayed put. Just before he drifted off to sleep, he felt Lance wake up and mumble something as he removed one arm to rub his eyes. To Keith’s surprise, it was almost immediately put back around him. They stayed like that, Keith still pretending to be asleep, until Lance’s phone rang. He grabbed off the table and read the name before slipping out from under Keith and walking into the living room, not bothering to close the door. Keith listened in, but it proved to be pointless.  

“Hey… What?...espera, ¿se trata de papá?... ¿Es esto solo un argumento, o realmente está pasando algo?...sí…sí importa... porque, realmente no puedes irte porque te peleaste por las tareas del hogar o algo así, ¿recuerdas la última vez? Mentiste y dijiste que era algo más grande, luego te metiste en más problemas... no, estoy feliz de tenerte aquí, pero no necesito que te metas en más problemas... ¿me lo prometes?... está bien, Venmo te enviaré algo de dinero para el metro y mi nueva dirección... también, tengo un nuevo compañero de cuarto, así que cuando llegues aquí, envíame un mensaje de texto para que podamos hablar un minuto afuera... está bien, nos vemos entonces.” As Lance hung up, Keith appeared, acting as if he just woke up. 

//// (Rough translation: wait, is this about dad…yes… it does matter... because, you really can't just leave because you got into a fight about chores or something, remember last time? You lied and said it was something bigger, then you got in more trouble... no, I'm happy to have you over, but I don't need you getting into more trouble... promise?... okay, I'll venmo send you some money for the subway and my new address... also, I have a new roommate so when you get here, text me so we can talk for a minute outside... Okay, see you then.)////

“You speak Spanish?” He asked, wondering what he was talking about, as he grabbed his cigarettes and walked towards the door. 

“Yeah?” Lance said as if it was obvious. “I mean… did you not assume that?” 

“Did you assume I speak Korean?”

“Uhhh… a little, especially after you said your grandfather was the first of your family over here…” 

“I know like the tiniest amount. Honestly, I know more Japanese.” 

“From anime?” Lance asked with his eyebrows raised as he sat down next to Keith on the stoop. 

“Something like that…” Keith laughed. “I don’t know much of that either, but I know like the most basic things in Korean and I haven’t really tried to learn any since I was like ten so…” Lance just nodded, trying to figure out the right way to tell Keith. 

“So… uh… remember when I was trauma dumping the other day?” He asked awkwardly. 

“Yeah… why?” 

“Well, my brother has a bit of a rebellious steak like me… I mean, he’s younger a little younger than I was, but still…” 

“And that was him?” 

“Yeah… he’s kinda about to be on the way over here… he said he needed a place to hide out for a little while… He’s like really cool though, he’s not like… I don’t know, I mean he’s less annoying than most of the thirteen year-olds I’ve met, I mean, you can hide out in my room if you want to, but he was like clearly not okay when he called so-”

“I’m not gonna be afraid of a thirteen year-old Lance. I may be traumatized, but I think I could take him.” Keith cut him off.

“I don’t know… I mean, honestly I think he’s probably bigger than you now, I don’t know, I haven’t seen him since the summer.” 

“What is your whole family built like titans?”

“No, you’re just short.” Lance teased.

“Also, what thirteen year-olds have you been meeting? I mean, you were shocked with my age gap with Mark but… wow.” Keith shot back. 

“Ew! At the diner! They come in super late because they think it’s like edgy or whatever! Jesus, mullet!” 

“Really? We’re back to that?” 

“Yeah. So is that like a yeehaw mullet or like a glam rock mullet?” 

“Neither. It’s me not liking other people touching me. I’ve cut my own hair since my dad died. He cut it before, less mullet-y but mostly the same.” 

“So… you’ve always had a mullet then?” 

“If that’s what you call it, yeah. Shut up!” 

“Hey, I like it.” Lance laughed as Keith put out his cigarette bud. “Well-” He started as he checked his phone. “He just got on the subway, he’ll be here in like forty-five minutes.” Keith just nodded and led the way in before disappearing into Lance’s room to take a shower. Lance anxiously awaited a text that finally came a few minutes after he heard Keith leave the bathroom. 

“He’s here! I’m gonna go talk to him outside for a minute!” He shouted as he made his way back down the stairs where he found Luis waiting with a bag thrown over his shoulder. 

“Hey…” He mumbled.

“Hey!” Lance half shouted, picking him up into a hug. “Ugh, you’re getting too big for me to do that!” He fake-goaned, holding a hand to his back after he sat him back down. 

“Shut up, you’re just old.” He mumbled. Finally, Lance took a moment to look him over. He was obviously upset, but beyond that he had clearly hit a growth spurt. He wasn’t as tall as Lance yet, but he was at least five-seven now and was clearly leaning into his rebellious phase. Instead of the usual straight-fit jeans and ‘appropriate’ t-shirt he had come to expect, he was wearing baggy, darker blue jeans that were nearly shredded, a t-shirt from a band he was sure Keith would recognize with a black long-sleeve shirt under it and a baggy bleach painted jacket. His old sneakers had also been replaced with a pair of Vans that were nearly falling apart and his hair was messy and much shaggier than it used to be. 

“I see you’ve had an upgrade in your wardrobe.” He teased. 

“Yeah, whatever.”

“You need new shoes.” Lance said as he sat down.

“No I don’t. I skate in these.” 

“Dude, I can see the side of your foot.” Luis just rolled his eyes and sat next to Lance. 

“You smoke now?” 

“No, roommate.” Luis just nodded. “So, what’s going on?” 

“Well… we’ve been fighting for like a week now… it started because I got home late last Tuesday because I had detention which the-”

“Why did you have detention?” 

“I got into a fight…”

“Why?” 

“Do you remember when I was younger and I used to have that friend named Max?”
“Yeah… and dad made you stop hanging out with him?”

“No, I did that on my own. You’re thinking of Milo, who is now Maya. We’re still friends.” 

“Okay… what about him?” 

“He turned into a total dick… Maya is actually important to the story…”

“I’m assuming that means Maya is trans and Max is transphobic?” 

“Yeah… He’s been being a total dick to her since she like… changed her name and stuff and him and his friends never leave her alone. I got sick of it, so like usual, I called him out and he swung at me.”

“Did you win?” 

“Yeah…”

“Good. See, this is why we tortured you when we were younger. You used to have to fight off four of us, now you get to be a total badass and beat up dickheads like that.”

“Yeah, thanks.” Luis said sarcastically. “Anyway, obviously the school called mom and dad so that was already bad enough, then they asked why and I couldn’t find a lie, so I kind of told them, but not that it was about Maya… mom kind of dropped it at that point, you know she’s actually a lot more tolerant now, not quite accepting, but tolerant. She misses you.” Lance nodded with a melancholy smile. “Well, dad basically said she deserved it and I shouldn’t have done anything… so that was a bigger fight. Then I obviously avoided being home and skipped a bunch of work…” 

“But… that’s it?” 

“No…” 

“What then?” 

“Well… him and mom have been fighting a lot… They hide it, but I can here her on the phone with Aunt Marie. Dad doesn’t know she knows because she only speaks in Spanish when she talks about it, but I’ve overheard it a lot…” 

“How bad is it this time?” 

“Bad…” 

“Like… they yell a lot or…?” Luis just shook his head. “He’s drinking again too… I tried to help her last night, but I just made it worse… He was so mad and she didn’t even do anything… I mean, she does everything for him and I mean, it’s mom… but he’s so mean to her and she just deals with it… How did you make it stop before? I tried, but I’m not you…” Luis was still talking, but it was now quiet mumbling, clearly holding back tears. Lance pulled him into his lap and waited for him to calm down a little before letting out a sigh and finally talking. 

“This isn’t on you, okay? Don’t let anyone make you think that. It’s not your job to fix it. I’ll figure it out okay? Until then, take the couch. I still don’t have a car, so you’ll have to take the subway to school, but you’re gonna stay here. Rachel moved out right?” Luis nodded. “Okay, Roni’s at home then?” 

“School.”

“Okay, I’ll call her later… He left you alone right? I swear to God I’ll kill him.” 

“Mostly…” 

“What do you mean mostly?” 

“I got in the way… He didn’t mean to…” 

“I don’t care. What was it, where was it, and when was it?” 

“Last night, a plate, my chest…” 

“Okay, I want you to let me see when we go inside. Is there anything else going on I should know about?” 

“Uh… more fighting with dad… he tried to kick me out the other day…” 

“I’m sorry Luis… I really thought he got better after I left… You know you can always come here though, right?” He felt a faint nod. “Now, why aren’t you in school?” 

“I’m still suspended…” 

“I thought you got detention?” 

“Yeah… the first time… I got into another fight on Monday…” 

“Did you win that one?” 

“No… it was more than just him…”
“I’m gonna deal with that too.” They sat in silence for a few more minutes, mainly letting Luis regain his composure, before Lance decided they should go in. “Well, as a heads up… Keith’s kind of quiet. He’s been through a lot, so if he seems a little off, don’t worry about it. He may hideout for a while, I don’t know. I think you’ll like him though. Just give him a minute to get used to you being here. Also, he has a cat named Kosmo that I’m sure you’ll meet. Come on, I’ll make you something to eat in a minute.” Lance said, starting to lead the way back inside, but suddenly stopping at the door. “Also… do me a favor… don’t mention anything that’s going on right now to Keith… If you need to talk about something, we’ll come out here or just say it in Spanish.”

“Why?” 

“He’s been through a lot, like I said…” Luis nodded, then let Lance lead him into the apartment. 

Chapter Text

Once they got inside, Lance motioned Luis to the couch, then walked into his room to find Keith. He was sitting in bed with Kosmo scribbling in his sketchbook. 

“Hey…” 

“Hey.” Keith said, moving his attention to Lance. 

“So… it’s kind of a bigger deal than I thought…”

“What do you mean?” 

“I don’t think I should go into detail… but, I think I need to go home this afternoon.” 

“Why?” 

“I have to deal with some stuff. Luis is staying here for a little while, and Veronica may come over until I can get in touch with my Aunt or something… I would send her to Marco or Rachel, but Marco moved out of state and Rachel’s living on campus with a roommate so… but she really doesn’t need to be home. You don’t have to stay here when I go though. Just don’t go too far and make sure your phone is charged. I mean, Allura doesn’t work until late so if you wanted, I could ask her to come pick you up for a while, or you can stay here, that’s up to you. I’m sorry I’m dropping all of this on you, but I really don’t have another option…” 

“When are you leaving?” 

“I’m about to call my mom, but I don’t want Luis to hear anything so, I’m gonna make him some food first. He’s out there if you want to come out. You don’t have to like talk to him or anything, but yeah… I mean, you could come with me to the kitchen or something.”

“Okay…” Keith mumbled as he stood up. He followed Lance out to the kitchen and stood awkwardly out of view, but still looking at him through the pass-though. He looked almost identical to Lance, just a lot younger and with a lot better style. 

“He dresses way better than you.” Keith teased in a whisper. 

“Shut up. I think he stole half of that from my closet. That’s practically how I dressed in my rebellious phase.”

“Now you dress like a dorky frat boy.”

“Alright, Hot Topic, I see how it is.” 

“Hey! Hot Topic sucks now!”

“Good.” Lance said with a smirk as he started cooking. Keith hopped up on the counter and watched him make two plates of French toast, thankful to be left alone for the morning. Of course, he was unaware one of the plates was for him until Lance handed it to him with a mug of black coffee. “You can go eat in my room. Or try atleast. I promise, my French toast is immaculate.” Keith sighed and waited for Lance to walk out so he could follow and slip back into his room. He could hear Lance talking to Luis, but not what they were saying, then he came in and sat down on the bed and dialed his mother. 

“Hey, mama… I know, I’m sorry, but you know how it is… Yes, I’m fine… no, mama, this isn’t about me… Are you at the store?... Is dad there?... Okay… Luis está aquí... Me dijo lo que está pasando... No, mamá, no intentes hacer como si todo estuviera bien, yo sé que no lo está... Sí, mamá... No, voy a tratar. con eso... No me importa lo que papá piense de mí, él sabe que haré que esto pare de una forma u otra... No me importa lo que pasó antes, me preocupa lo que está pasando ahora... porque aunque peleemos, todavía te quiero y me importa lo que pase en casa... Sí... Sí... No, Luis ya me dijo que está tomando otra vez y ustedes han estado peleando otra vez. .. no me importa... vuelvo a casa esta noche, Luis dijo que ambos estarán en casa a las seis, estaré allí cuando lleguen a casa... bueno, él puede hacer eso si quiere , pero no terminará bien... no... ¿por qué no puedes simplemente dejarlo?... está bien... sí, te veré esta noche mamá, te amo.” Finally, Lance hung up, then flopped onto his back, letting out an exaggerated huff. 

//// (Rough translation: “Luis is here... He told me what's going on... No, mama, don't try and act like everything is fine, I know it's not... Yes, mama... No, I'm gonna deal with it... I don't care what dad thinks about me, he knows I'll get this to stop one way or the other... I don't care about what happened before, I'm worried about what's happening now... because even if we fight, I still love you and I still care about what happens back home... Yes... Yeah... No, Luis already told me he's drinking again and you have been fighting again... I don't care... I'm coming home tonight, Luis said you'll both be home at six, I'll be there when you get home... Well, he can do that if he wants to, but it won't end well... no... why can't you just leave him?... okay... yeah, I'll see you tonight mama, I love you.”) ////

“Are you okay?” Keith asked, discarding his French toast to the nightstand. 

“I will be. Don’t worry about it. I’m leaving here at like five. I still have to call Roni…” He sighed as he pulled his phone back out and checked the time. “Nevermind, she’s definitely in class right now… I’ll just text her, she can call later if she needs to.” Lance said, typing out a text, then sending her some money in case she needed it for the subway. “I’m gonna go check on him… Do you wanna come? You can always leave if you want to.” 

“Okay…” 

“It’ll be fine, come on.” Lance said, offering a hand and pulling him out to the living room, but stopping when he saw Luis was on the phone. “Who’s that?” 

“Maya. She’s in study hall.”

“Hi Maya!” He half-shouted, sticking his face in frame. “Quick question, you really choose to hang out with this loser?” 

“Yeah, he sucks less than most people.” 

“Yeah, but he still sucks.” 

“Yeah, just a little.” She said with a soft smile as Luis glared at the screen, then at Lance. 

“You suck!” He almost whined at both of them. Lance just laughed and led Keith to the other side of the couch, letting him take the opposite end. After a few more minutes, Luis hung up, then turned to Lance as if he was waiting on something. 

“You like her.” Lance said with a smirk. 

“Do not!” 

“You totally do. Don’t fight me. I’m your wise, all-knowing big brother. I know these things.” 

“Bullshit. If you're so wise, why did you wear velcro shoes until you were like ten?” 

“Hey! Language! Also, I’m old, velcro shoes were the shit when I was your age!” 

“No they weren’t. Also, you’re a hypocrite.” 

“Ooh, big words. You’re deflecting?” 

“Am not!”

“Are too!” 

“So mature Lance.”

“Shut up, nerd.” 

“Dweeb.” 

“Anyway, I called. I’m leaving at five and I texted Roni. I don’t know how long I’ll be gone, but I’ll leave you two some cash if you wanna go get food. Just be back by like seven-thirty if you leave, I don’t really know this neighborhood.” Luis nodded, then glanced over to Keith who was awkwardly staring at the TV.  “Oh yeah, that’s Keith by the way.” He just nodded again, sensing Keith’s anxiety and noticing his nervous foot tapping. Lance must’ve noticed too since his hand soon found its way over Keith’s knee. 

“Alright. Now that you're here, TV is a freedom. What do you wanna watch?” 

“I hate to tell you this… but they don’t really care anymore… I mean not as much anyway, we still have rating blockers and some channels blocked, but it’s a lot less lame…”

“Not fair! What’s it gonna be then?” 

“Uhhh… oh, do you have Hulu?” 

“Yeah.” 

“Archer. I watched it at Maya’s the other day. It’s pretty good.” 

“Aw, following in my footsteps.” Lance teased as he searched for the show, keeping a hand on Keith’s knee. 

“Entonces, ¿voy a dormir contigo si Roni se queda a pasar la noche?” Luis asked. ///(“So, am I bunking with you if Roni stays the night?”)///

“No, tendremos que averiguarlo. Solo tengo una cama aquí en este momento…” Lance responded awkwardly. ///(“No, we'll have to figure that out. I kinda only have one bed here at the moment…”)///

“Entonces, ¿es tu novio?” ///(“So, he’s your boyfriend?”)/// 

“What? No!... Es una situación complicada. Todavía no tenemos su habitación preparada. Callarse la boca.” ///(“It's a complicated situation. We don't have his room set up yet. Shut up.”)/// Luis squinted his eyes, but dropped it and moved his focus to the TV. After a few episodes, he got up to get a drink, not realizing a disposable vape fell out of his pocket. Lance picked it up, and studied it before turning to Keith. 

“Do you know what this is?” 

“Uhhh, an Elf Bar. It says it on the side stupid.” 

“Yeah, but like what is it?” 

“A vape.” 

“Like what kind?” 

“Uhhh… nicotine? The only kind? It’s one of the crappy disposable one’s Mark used to use them when he was try-” Keith’s sentence was cut short by Lance marching into the kitchen. 

“What’s this?” He heard Lance ask, clearly not happy about it. 

“Nothing… give it back.” 

“If it’s nothing, I can just throw it out right?” 

“No!” 

“Luis.” He said warninly. “Tell me what it is.” 

“Just a disposable, it’s not a big deal!” 

“A disposable what?”

“Vape, give it back!” 

“I’ll think about it. This isn’t okay. You are thirteen years-old. Where the hell did you even get it?” 

“I know people…” 

“Well, you need to stop knowing those people.” 

“It’s not even a big deal!” 

“Yes it is.” 

“What? You’d rather me smoke cigarettes?” 

“No, you shouldn’t be smoking at all.” 

“Then what am I supposed to do? It’s not like I’m doing actual drugs!” 

“Not this. You don’t need this.” 

“Maybe you didn’t, but I do. You don’t get it.” 

“What do I not get?” 

“You left! Rachel left! It’s just me now. Roni’s never home anymore. What else am I supposed to do? That’s all I have other than-” 

“Other than what?” Luis just looked away. “I’m already upset, it’s gonna go better if you just tell me.” 

“I smoke weed sometimes too… that’s it though…” 

“Why?” 

“Because… I’m not you okay, I can’t do it… everything at home is just a big spider web of lies. We all just lie to each other, then pretend to be perfect. And I can’t even mention you around dad… It sucks. I know it sucked for you too, but I’m completely alone. They would hate me if they actually knew me. Roni and Rachel too…” 

“What do you mean?”

“I don’t wanna talk about it.” Luis said before snatching the vape out of Lance’s hand and grabbing his skateboard before storming outside. Keith could hear his sigh from the living room as he slammed the fridge door closed, then walked into his room. Keith heard a few more slams, then watched Lance half-hop out of his room, still trying to get a shoe on, then rush out the door. About ten minutes later, he came back in, dragging Luis by his collar. 

“Keith…” He said, nodding him to his room. Once the door shut, he sat Luis down on the couch, just staring at him. 

“Leave me alone.” Luis huffed. 

“No, we’re talking about this. You don’t have to tell me whatever it is that made you run out, but we’re talking about your habits.” 

“Whatever.” 

“How long have you been doing that?” 

“This, like since before school let out last year….”

“And weed?” 

“Like the summer… not a lot, just like with my friends…” 

“Do you understand why you shouldn’t be doing that?” 

“Yeah, I just don’t care. You did worse anyway.” 

“Yeah, I know I did. It was stupid, but either way, I was a lot older. Trust me, I get the whole rebelling thing and the who-”

“It’s not even about that!” 

“The whole using dumb things to cope thing. Trust me, I get it. This isn’t gonna help though. I’m not mad, I just need you to understand, this isn’t the way to deal with it. I’m not gonna take that one away, because I know quitting cold turkey would suck, but you better not get another one. I’ll even get you some nicotine patches or something if you really need them. As for weed. No more of that. Not even just because I said so, if dad finds out, you’re dead. Regardless of that, you’re still too young for any of this. Maybe when you're older, but for now, absolutely not.”

“You got in trouble and ran away to a different state. You can’t say anything.” 

“I was stupid. And like three or four years older. I’m serious kid, this isn’t a good way to deal with anything. Not to mention, addiction clearly runs in the family. It’s just this now, but it could be a lot more down the line. For now, you have to stop. I understand that everything sucks right now, but this won’t help. Okay?” 

“Whatever.” 

“Don’t give me the ‘you don’t get it’ bullshit. I wrote the book.”

“You don’t. They’ll hate me more anyway.” 

“They won’t hate you no matter what.” 

“Dad will…” 

“Dad’s a piece of shit. They threw me out, but mama doesn’t hate me.” Luis just shrugged. “Seriously though. All of that, it’s over. If I catch you doing it again anytime soon, forget being in trouble with them, it’ll be me. Now, if there’s something you want to tell me, you should know I’m not gonna judge you for it, and if not, I’ll be here when you’re ready. How much of that vape is left?” 

“I dunno… I was gonna get a new one tomorrow at lunch.” 

“Well, you’re not now. I’ll get you something later. And I’m so serious, do not buy anything off of anyone ever again. That could get you killed. In any case, if it really gets to that point, I’ll get it, but you really need to just quit.”

“Okay…” 

“Okay, I’ll be right back.” He said as he left to go into his room.

Chapter Text

As soon as he was close enough, he flopped down, face first onto his bed with a groan.
“Sorry if any of that was a lot….”
“Are you okay?” Keith asked, not acknowledging the fact that it was.
“Yeah, I just need a minute. It’s fine, this is mostly normal. I usually get stuck stopping him from doing stupid shit because my parents are incapable of parenting their own children. At least it’s not Rachel’s situation. I had to buy her a Plan B when she was just a little bit older than him. Roni’s a saint though. Whatever they did with her and Marco worked I guess.” He said, barely audibly though the pillow before sitting up. “He’s just too young for all of that. It’d be one thing if it was an act of rebellion, but it’s not. It’s poor coping skills. I mean, he shouldn't have to cope with anything, but still… I think he’s gay too so that’s gonna be fun…”
“Why?”
“He said my parents are gonna hate him if they actually knew him.”
“So…”
“So, I don’t know what to do. He’s clearly dealing with this the way I did which got me into some real trouble and if my parents find out about that or if I’m right and they find out about that, I don’t know what I’ll have to do. I mean, things are apparently getting bad again which is why I’m going home tonight, but if I can’t fix it….”
“You will… I mean, you kinda fixed my life…”
“But I haven’t yet. And I constantly do things that make you spiral. I’m not good at any of this, I just had to be. I’ve always had to be. That’s always been my job and I’m so bad at it. What if I go tonight and think I resolved the issue but it gets worse and he realized that Luis told me? He’ll kill him. I hate him, or… I wish I did… I don’t know. I should’ve never told them. I’d still be around then and I could keep anything from happening. None of them deserved any of this. I started it all. Honestly, I have no idea if me going is gonna help or make it worse, but Luis thinks that I can just snap my fingers and fix everything.” Lance’s rant had started to turn into mumbling though panicked breaths about halfway through. Keith suddenly found himself holding Lance to his chest as he continued, now back on the subject of him. “I love you being here. Everything sucked before, I was always alone, but at some poi-”
“Lance.”
“-nt, you’re not gonna be able to deal with me anymore. I don’t know what I’m doing. I -”
“Lance.”
“-just know you’re safer here. I want to kill him too but you’re still gonna get sick of me constantly triggering you and I don’t even fully know how not to… Just like with him. That’s why he left and I know it. I’m so bad at-”
“Lance!” Keith repeated again, finally getting him to stop rambling. “Stop talking. Start breathing.” Lance shut up, but his breathing was still erratic. He slowly relaxed into his chest as Keith moved one of his hands to the other side of his chest, trying to get him to follow his breathing. After a few minutes, Lance had finally calmed down some, but had no plans to move yet. “I wasn’t planning on leaving unless you want me to. I know you don’t mean to do anything… that’s not your fault anyway. Neither is whatever is going on with your parents.”
“But it is. They were fine until Marco left.”
“Were they? Or did he take care of it?”
“I dunno… we don’t talk anymore…”
“Maybe he did.”
“I’m everything that they hated though…”
“Well, seems like they have bad taste then.”
“What do you mean?”
“They wanted you to be some carbon copy Christian man with an apple pie life right?”
“And a wife…”
“Well, the way I see it, that stuff doesn’t matter. What does matter is who you actually are. From what you said the other day, I can tell that that’s not what they care about, but they should. If they can get past surface level, it would be obvious to them that you’re actually a great person.”
“How?”
“Your family booted you, but you’re still here trying to clean up their mess, you’re nice to like everyone you talk to and you clearly care a lot about random people…. I mean… you’d never met me and when you did, you just decided to have me move in. Maybe I’m still fucked up, but I’m still here. And that’s mainly because of you…”
“What do you mean?”
“That night we met by the Lake….”
“What about it?”
“I was going to kill myself. That cigarette I was smoking was supposed to be the last. My plan for the night was to smoke that cigarette and then bleed out on the beach, then this weird, bubbly Cuban guy just appeared next to me and tried not to choke out on a cigarette just to talk to me. He found my note before he found me at the bar… I don’t know why he cared…Then, when he locked me out… Same thing. I was gonna drink that whiskey and end it, but you were on the balcony. Remember when you asked how I was alive?” Lance nodded. “I said that I wished I wasn’t and I meant it. Now, it’s a little more bearable… “ Suddenly, Lance sat up and pulled Keith into his lap, hugging him tightly.
“Please… please tell me if you ever feel like that again. I can’t do that.”
“What?”
“I can’t lose you. I know I just found you, but I can’t… You’ve honestly done more for me than you realize… Please…” Lance was almost begging at this point.
“Okay.” Keith whispered before pulling back to see Lance wipe a tear off of his face. “Why are you crying?”
“Because… I didn’t know that… I should’ve found you sooner, I’m so sorry…”
“Lance, stop. Nothing would’ve happened if you did. I wouldn’t have left. When you found me, I had nothing left to lose and even then I almost went back. It sucked, yeah, but if you were a day earlier, I wouldn’t have left and I probably would have avoided you at all costs…”
“Why not? You were miserable?”
“Well, like I said. That was the night I truly gave up. I tried to call Shiro after he left, but he was busy, let Kosmo out, then started walking. I didn’t care what happened, I just knew I didn’t wanna come back… but someone screwed that plan up.”
“Good. I think it was Kosmo anyway.”
“What do you mean?”
“He started the whole thing. I didn’t know who either of you were until he came over on my balcony. I honestly don’t even know if I had ever seen you before that. Then, the same day I finally saw you. I wanted to talk to you then, but I didn’t. Also if that guy wasn’t a creep I probably wouldn’t have walked home that way. Then somehow you convinced me to buy you alcohol even though you're underaged, which I now realize you’re way more underaged than I thought. I figured you were like a month away, but it was what? Two weeks or something since your birthday?”
“Like four or five days.” Keith snickered. “Like it matters.”
“It’s the concept dummy.”
“Whatever. The point was supposed to be I think you’re doing fine, way better than me, not about me tricking you into supplying me with alcohol.”
“And I still took you to a bar the other day.”
“Yeah ya did. Loser.”
“Whatever, Mullet. I’m serious though, please tell me about that stuff…”
“I’ll try.” Keith said with a soft smile, before they both went silent, just staring at each other. “You should probably…. You know…” He said, nodding to the living room.
“Right… He’s fine now I’m sure, do you wanna come with me? It’s like just now almost noon so we can watch some movies or something. He won’t be very talkative right now anyway…”
“Uhh… okay…”
“You don’t have to, just… if you want to. I know people aren’t really your thing.” Keith just shrugged and got up to follow him out. When they sat down, Lance realized Luis had turned on Steven Universe, causing Lance to turn to Keith, clearly thinking of some way to tease him, but he was too busy focusing on the screen.
“So, I’ve seen this one, but I don’t get it.” He said, trying to get someone’s attention.
“They’re aliens with crystals that have magic powers. His mom had one so he does.” Luis said, deadpan.
“So you’re still mad then?” He just shrugged. “Okay then…” He mumbled before leaning his head onto Keith’s shoulder and scrolling through his Instagram.
“You wanna go to the dive a few blocks from here this weekend?”
“Don’t you have work?”
“Till two. An old friend of mine is playing a set at like three Saturday night. I’ll just get your X’s off once we get in, they still use Sharpie so…”
“Okay.”
“Really?”
“Buy me a drink.”
“Obviously, we're going to a bar.”
“Okay then.” Lance said, sitting back up. As soon as the weight of his head was gone, Keith found himself inching closer.
“Estas bromeando.” Luis half mumbled. ///(“You’re joking.”)///
“What?”
“Te enojaste por el vaporizador, ¿pero metiste a escondidas a tu novio menor de edad en un bar?” ///(“You got all mad about the vape, but you'll sneak your underaged boyfriend into a bar?”)///
“Literalmente eres un niño. Tiene veinte años, es un adulto... ¡tampoco es mi novio!” ///(You are literally a child. He's twenty years old, he's an adult... he's not my boyfriend either!”)///
“Whatever.”
“Stop. Don’t test my patience.” Luis just huffed and rolled his eyes, and Lance went back to watching the TV, noticing Keith’s foot tapping. Without even thinking, he slid a hand over his knee, not even looking over. Eventually, he felt Keith’s cold hand slide over his. That sat like that until Lance got a call from his sister.
“Hey… Yeah, Luis came over… I already talked to mama… Am I still even in your contacts?... Okay, I’ll try… Yeah… no, I’m not sure yet… nope, not really… yeah, go ahead and grab that. Okay, I’ll call. See you soon.” Lance hung up, then stood up and started walking to the kitchen. “I’m signing her out if I can.” Luis nodded. He came back a few minutes later and huffed. “You really have the same office workers five years later?”
“I dunno, not in high school, remember?”
“I wasn’t really asking dummy. I just remembered her. She’s leaving school now, then she’s gonna go home and grab some stuff. Regardless of what happens tonight, I want you two here. Maybe tomorrow night too.” Luis just nodded as Lance flopped back down on the couch, throwing his feet over Luis and his head in Keith’s lap. “You got me all worn out kid. I’m old.” He said through a yawn.
“Go sleep then, dweeb.”
“Maybe I will.” Lance mumbled, relaxing as Keith absentmindedly ran a hand through his hair.
“Sí, no tu novio.” Luis teased. ///(Yeah, not your boyfriend.”)///
“Shut up. You know what, a nap does sound good. Keith?” He said as he sat up, asking Keith to follow, which he did. “Let her in if I’m not up and come knock or something.” Luis nodded, barely listening as he flipped through channels and Lance dragged Keith into his room.
“What was all of that about?”
“We were just messing with each other. Don’t worry about it.” Keith nodded and crawled under the blankets, waiting for a time to strike. Almost as soon as Lance laid down, he slid his hands under his t-shirt.
“Ah! Stop! You’re literally freezing!” Lance laughed, jumping away.
“Yeah, I am.” Keith whined.
“Alright, alright…” Lance said as he pulled off his shirt. “Come on. I know that’s why you’re still here.” He said, motioning to his chest before Keith curled up with him.
“Totally.” He mumbled, hiding a smile. He honestly wasn’t even tired, but then Lance started playing with his hair. He must’ve figured out it made him sleepy. Before he even realized what happened, he was asleep. Lance followed soon after. It was weird being so tired, but mentally, he was already drained, so he needed it.

Chapter Text

About an hour later, Luis was banging on the door. It didn’t wake him up at first, but Keith did. He felt his grip tighten as he tensed up, then heard the banging again. 

“Jesus, I’m coming!” He half-shouted. “Sorry. You can go back to sleep if you want to.” He said as he slid out from under Keith, scuffing up his hair on the way. When he slipped outside, Veronica was waiting on the other side of the door. 

“Your boyfriend’s here?” She asked. 

“No, my roommate’s here.” 

“What’s the difference?” 

“I don’t have a boyfriend, but if I did… I don’t know, I’d tell you guys.” 

“No you wouldn’t.” Luis jumped in. 

“Dude,you were fully aware of my last boyfriend. You played video games with him all the time. And my ex-girlfriend, Roni, you met her.” 

“So why are you hiding this one?”

“I’m not hiding him, he’s taking a nap.” 

“So he is your boyfriend?” 

“No, oh my God. Luis! Either way, why do you care Roni? I thought that weirded you out?”

“It did… Now I don’t really care. I’m sorry about that… Now I just think you deserve to be happy either way.” 

“So, now it’s just dad and Marco then?” He said with a soft smile. 

“Well… Rachel… She's a lot different now… After you left she basically turned into a little Marco…” 

“Why?” 

“So dad would like her. She’s like totally brainwashed. Like… bad…” 

“Oh… worse than you?” He teased. 

“No, Jesus brainwashed, I was never really Jesus brainwashed. At least not after like sixth grade science. I just don’t get into trouble with them because I’m not an idiot.” She said, glaring at Luis. “They think I’m like exactly what they want me to be.” 

“Oh yeah, I forgot about that.” 

“About what?” 

“When you were like twelve, I think I was like a senior so you must’ve been in sixth grade, but you came to my room and tried to get me to help you figure out if everything they’ve fed you was bullshit. You got so mad because I said I didn’t know, because I was supposed to know everything. I still don’t know honestly, I just don’t really think there’s a way to and I don’t really care.” 

“Yeah… I think it’s all bullshit. Whether the basics are real or not. No one even listens to the rules they preach so, why should I believe any of it? I mean, if that’s all real, Jesus wouldn’t have kicked you out, but they did. I wish I would’ve understood that sooner…” 

“Well, you do now, so I’ll take it.” Lance said, pulling her into a tight hug. “Now, has anything been going on with you and the ‘rents?” 

“No, not really. I’m never home anymore. I have school and volleyball, plus I work at the store and tutor when I have the time. When I am home I’m usually in my room studying or something.’

“God! What a nerd!” He teased. “Alright, what time is it?” 

“Uhhh, almost two-thirty.” Luis answered, checking his phone. 

“Alright, you bring that air mattress?” Veronica nodded. “Come on.” He said, leading her to Keith’s empty room. “We haven’t been furniture shopping. You can set it up in here. There’s a shower in there too since I’m sure you two don’t wanna use ours.”

“See? You just said ours!” 

“Because he stays in my room for the time being. We have a lot going on, we’ll get him stuff eventually. There’s more to the situation that you understand Roni. That being said, I am gonna go take a shower, then are you hungry or did you eat at school?” 

“I ate at school. I’m perfectly capable of feeding myself anyway.” 

“Sure you are…” Lance said as he closed the door. “While I’m gone, keep an eye on him. I told him I’d leave some cash if you guys get hungry, but if he leaves I want you to go with him. Keep him out of trouble.” 

“So you found his vape then?” 

“You knew?” 

“Yeah, I found one in his pocket when I was doing laundry. I was gonna say something, but he doesn’t listen to me. Plus it’s not like we really get along that well… he thinks I’ll snitch on him.” 

“Well, I’m making him stop. He’s too young for that. If it was you I’d be one thing - still don’t want you doing it, but you’re at least almost seventeen so - anyway, I let him keep the one he has, but I’m gonna get him some gum or something when I go out.” 

“You think it’ll work?” 

“Hopefully, but you’ll tell me if it doesn’t.” She nodded as Lance heard the front door open and walked out to see Luis gone. By the time he got outside, he saw Luis sitting on the steps watching Keith - who was now standing about ten feet away- smoke. 

“Second-hand isn’t gonna kill me.” Luis scoffed. “You know you could give me one.” 

“Lance would kill us both.” 

“I would kill you both.” Lance said in unison with Keith, who was already aware of his presence, but Luis jumped up. 

“When did you get there?” 

“Long enough to know you’re a little shit. He’s not giving you, regardless of me. You don’t want those anyway, they’re awful.” Keith rolled his eyes and watched Lance send Luis back inside. “No, I didn’t just say that to keep him from wanting one, those suck.” 

“They do not. You’ve literally had one, you’d react that way to any of them.” 

“Would not.” Keith just looked him up and down, then smirked. 

“Hold that.” He said, handing him the lit cigarette and running back upstairs to get an unopened pack of lights he had left over. When he got back, he held the other cigarette in between his teeth and lit one of each of the others. “Take a drag from both, tell me which one’s which.” Lance sighed, but agreed. He coughed on one, but not the other. “That one is the one you like.” He said, passing it back to Keith. 

“They are not that bad, you cheated.” 

“Dude, the girl at the supermarket literally said, ‘Oh, cowboy killers.’ when I asked for reds.

“Yeah, because they’ve killed like four of the Marlboro cowboys. I mean, yeah the lights are milder, but you wouldn’t know that if you weren’t a smoker. You could probably just smell the difference honestly.” 

“Hold up… Marlboro cowboys?” 

“Yeah… you’ve never seen that?” 

“No…” 

“It was like a thing from like the fifties to like ninety-nine. After they stopped using marketing to mainly women. The last one died like seven years ago.They still do them sometimes I think, but I’ve seen more like steel horse cowboys lately.”

“What is that?” Lance asked, still trying to smoke the light. 

“You know you can just put that out right?” Keith teased. “Also… how have you never heard that? Don’t even start with the Texas thing, it’s here too. Like a motorcycle. Bon Jovi?” 

“That’s what that means?” 

“Yeah… What did you think that song was about?” 

“An actual cowboy?” 

“You don’t read into much do you?” 

“No, not really… You clearly do…” 

“Yeah, I do…” 

“Okay, well I’m gonna go shower and find something to wear… I feel like my usual attire is a little too fruity.” 

“I thought you were straight… so…” 

“Yeah, but they know I’m not.” Lance laughed as he walked back inside. After Keith finished smoking, he followed, fully aware of Lance’s sister’s stare. He ducked into Lance’s room and pulled his sketchbook back out. After a while, Lance came out and started digging through his dresser. Eventually he found a pair of more relaxed jeans, and threw on a gray henley top with a dark red button up over it and pulled out a black denim jacket, tossing it on his desk chair. Finally, he flopped down on the bed. 

“What time is it now?” 

“Three-forty five…” 

“Lance!” Luis shouted while knocking on his door.

“What?” 

“Can I go hang out with Maya?” 

“Yeah. Be back by seven-thirty and don’t do anything I would do! My wallet’s on the counter, take some cash with you!” Lance shouted back. “Seriously, be safe, don’t do anything dumb and text me if you’re gonna be late or I’ll come looking!” 

“Fine.” Lance sighed and rolled back over. 

“Well, there’s one less now.” He laughed. “Roni’s a bit easier.” 

“Lance?” He heard Roni say from the other side of the door a few minutes later. 

“Yeah?” 

“When you go home, if we’re gonna stay here longer than just tonight, can you drive my car back here? I didn’t know mom knew we were staying so I left it, but that way I can take Luis to school in the morning too, he’s unsuspended tomorrow, he just has ISS for the rest of the week.” 

“Yeah, are your keys here?” 

“Yeah.” 

“Alright, I will.” Lance waited a few minutes to hear her steps fade out, then turned to Keith. “This used to be my life like all the time.” 

“Yeah… can’t relate.” 

“I literally can’t imagine being an only child.” 

“I kinda had a step sister at one point. She was like way older than me though, and kind of a bitch. So was her mom. I hated it. I couldn’t imagine having a big family. I mean, Shiro’s plenty, I wish he lived here, but still.” 

“I guess I was used to it then… I saw all of them like two summers ago, but other than that, since I left it’s only been one at a time. And I haven’t seen Marco since I was… eighteen maybe… I went to his bachelor's graduation.” 

“So you still talk to all the other one’s?” 

“Well, I’ve always tried to be around with Luis, I mean, I basically raised him until I got kicked out, then Rachel, God Rachel, I was always getting her out of trouble when she got into highschool, but according to Roni, she’s a mini Marco now… then Roni of course, I thought she still kinda hated me, but not like the way my dad does. I think she just wasn’t really old enough to understand, but old enough to know something kinda big happened, unlike Luis. She’s learned to think for herself though I guess. So, really just those two.”

“How old are your sisters again?” 

“Roni’s sixteen, almost seventeen and Rachel is… nineteen I think… She’s in college.” Keith just nodded as Lance checked the time again.”I have to leave in like… an hour. You wanna go watch something?” 

“Okay…” They both made their way to the couch and threw on some random show. It was obvious he was trying to avoid thinking about later. Keith could feel him fidgeting next to him and slid his hand over his where he was pulling on the webbing between his thumb and index. “You know… I could come with you…” 

“That’s really not a good idea… I don’t know what’s gonna happen and you don’t need to be around any of that…”

“So? I could wait outside or something. You’re clearly freaking out a little…” 

“Okay… uh, okay… yeah, that’ll work I guess…” Lance said as he leaned into Keith's shoulder. “Thank you…” Keith just nodded and let Lance’s head fall to his lap, once again he started messing with his hair without even realizing. “You know I usually hate that?” 

“Hate what?” 

“People playing with my hair. Not you though.” Keith laughed a little as Lance moved his head closer. Eventually, some time had passed and Keith realized he was wearing Lance’s clothes and looked homeless. 

“Let me up. I should probably go put on clothes that fit me.” Lance groaned, but sat up anyway and waited. Just before five, Keith came back, actually dressed and thew Lance his jacket before pulling on his boots. 

“Okay… let’s go I guess…” Keith nodded. “Roni! We’re leaving! Keep the doors locked and text me if you leave!” He shouted as they started towards the stairs.

Chapter Text

Lance stayed quiet from most of the trip to his parents apartment. Even though he was freaking out, he still worried more about Keith. He wasn’t sure that him being there was a good idea, but he knew he would’ve come no matter what. He was also clearly still not a big fan of the subway. They rode the entire way with Lance’s arm wrapped around Keith’s waist, and neither knew which one of them it was really helping. 

“Next stop is us, Wellington.” He mumbled as he pulled Keith closer to the door. They walked mostly in silence before they got to an old, historic looking apartment building and Lance stopped. He took a deep breath, staring up at one of the apartments and sighed. 

“I haven’t been here in three years… last time I went to the store…” He mumbled. “Okay… come on, you can wait in the lobby, it’s cold out here.” Keith just nodded and followed him in. He led Keith to the lounge area, and took off his jacket. “Here… I- uh, I’ll be back in a minute hopefully. If anything happens I’ll be in three-d.” Keith nodded, keeping his hand in Lance’s for a moment longer until he left. He waited for almost an hour before came back downstairs, leading a small, older Cuban woman by the wrist, and keeping his head down. 

“You can drive right?” He asked as he tossed Keith the keys. “Out on the left, gray two-thousand-eight Sienna.” He said, still looking down. “I have to call someone, just drive to the park. Turn left out of the parking lot, you’ll see it.” Keith nodded and led the way out, listening to Lance mumbling to his mother in Spanish. They all got in and Lance pulled out his phone, still trying to give directions to Keith. They had been parked for a while before Lance finally hung up. “Okay, you can switch with me now.” He said, motioning for Keith to get out as he slid over the console and into the driver’s seat. 

“La tía Marie vendrá a recogerte mañana, no tengo ningún lugar para que te quedes en mi casa, así que te conseguiré una habitación en algún lugar cercano. Lo siento mucho mamá, ¿por qué no llamaste?” He said, looking in the rearview. ///(“aunt Maire is going to come pick you up tomorrow, I don't have anywhere for you to stay at my place, so I'm going to get you a room somewhere close by. I'm so sorry mama, why didn't you call?”)///

“Esta no es tu pelea mijo. Eras feliz sin nosotros estar cerca” She said solomely. ///(“

this is not your fight mijo. You were happy without us being around.”)///

“That’s not true mama, you know I just didn’t have a choice.” He said as he put the car in reverse and started towards his own apartment, planning to find somewhere on the way. Keith could tell he was avoiding actually looking at him, and his sleeves were pulled down to the edge of his fingertips. He slowly slid his hand over Lance’s which was resting on the gear stick. Lance pulled his out and put it onto, not realizing his sleeve had slipped down, revealing his slightly bruised knuckles until Keith pulled away and stared into his lap. 

“Keith…” He got no response. Eventually, they pulled into a motel parking lot and Lance led them all inside, making Keith come with them. He checked her into a room and walked her to it. 

“Es este tu… novio?” ///(“Is this your... boyfriend?”)/// She asked, the anxiety of the situation fading some. 

“No mama.” He said with a slight blush. 

“But you want him to be?” She asked, whispering in his ear. 

“Mama!” He whined. “Stop it.” 

“¿Es tan flaco que no le das de comer?” ///(He’s so skinny, you don’t feed him?”)///

“I try.” 

“Do better, esqueleto.” She said with her mom voice. 

“Keith? Do I feed you?” Lance asked, he just nodded silently, now avoiding Lance’s glances. “Okay, I have to go to Walgreens before I go home, so I should probably head out. Do you have your L card” 

“Yes, mijo. I’ll be fine, I’ll call tomorrow.” 

“Okay… bye, I have to work at like nine, but before that, I’ll be around so…” 

“I’ll be fine, go home.” Lance nodded and led the way back out to the car, fully aware of Keith’s current thoughts. 

“I didn’t want you to see that…” He said, gesturing to his hand. “I’m sorry…” Keith finally looked up and saw the bruises lining his cheekbone and one of his eyes. 

“Are you okay?” He asked, ignoring his anxiety. 

“I’m fine. If it makes you feel any better, I didn’t swing first, I did that because I had to.”

“I’m sorry…” 

“Why?” Keith just shrugged and leaned into Lance’s chest, “I’m fine man, I just… I didn’t want you to see any of it, that’s why I was going to have you stay home… I’m sorry…” Keith just shrugged and Lance wrapped his arms around his waist. “Alright, come on. We now have a list at Walgreens.” He sighed. 

“What?” 

“I have to get something for Luis, and I can’t go home like this…” Keith just nodded and watched Lance drive in silence until he parked and led the way in, going straight to the makeup section, totally lost on what to get. Keith watched him for a minute before he stepped in. He grabbed three different things and a sponge, trying to get close to his color. 

“Wow, is it that easy?” 

“No, I just know what I’m doing.” Lance nodded and rested a hand on the small of his back, leading him to the register where he got a big pack of nicotine gum. 

“So… you can fix my face?” 

“Well… I don’t know about fixing your face, but I can make the bruises less visible.” He teased.

“Screw you.”

“You wish.” 

“Wow, are you in eighth grade now?” 

“Shut up and move your seat back.” Lance did as he was told, somewhat surprised when Keith crawled into his lap and flipped on the lights. He managed to get the bruises to mostly disappear. When he was done, he took a second to check his work, but ended up getting lost in Lance’s eyes.

“I- uh, I think that’ll work.” He mumbled, pulling himself back into his own seat. Lance awkwardly coughed, then started back towards the apartment. When they got home, Luis and Veronica were both sitting on the couch waiting.

“How was it?” Luis asked. Lance just shrugged and walked straight into his room, leaving them both staring at Keith. “Do you know?”
“Not really… He told me to wait in the lobby…” She just nodded and let him walk away. When he got there, he found Lance pulling his shirt off before falling onto his bed.

“I can’t tell them.” He sighed and Keith took a spot on the floor next to where his legs were hanging down and rested his chin on his knee. “Why do you do that?” 

“What?” 

“You do that a lot.” 

“Oh… habit I guess… sorry…” 

“I knew that. I don’t mind it, but why?” 

“When Mark was… not happy… I was supposed to… I dunno… I guess so I was in reach for whatever he wanted to do…” 

“Do you still think I’ll do something?” Lance asked, sitting up. 

“I don’t know…” He mumbled, trying to hide his instinctual glance to Lance’s knuckles. 

“You will one day.” Keith shrugged and pulled his hair back with a hair tie he had on his wrist. “I learn new things about you all the time, mullet.” Lance said with a slight smile as he moved a piece of hair that had fallen back over his ear. 

“What?” 

“Your ears are gauged.”

“Oh… yeah. It’s just a double zero…” 

“When did that happen?” 

“I did it myself when I was like fourteen. Shiro was pissed. Not as mad as he was about the tattoo though.” 

“What tattoo? You have a tattoo?” 

“I have three stupid. You’ve seen at least one of them.”

“When?” 

“When you bandaged that cut… it’s on my collar bone.” He said, pulling his shirt down to reveal ‘Heith’ tattooed in a fancy font. “He wasn’t allowed to be mad about that one though.” He said as he looked up and saw Lance’s confusion. “It’s my dad’s name. I got that on my eighteenth birthday. It was my first real one.” 

“Real one?” 

“Uh… yeah, my first was kind of illegal…” 

“Let me see it.” 

“You’re not allowed to make fun of me.” 

“We’ll see. Show me.”
“Fine.” Keith huffed as he stood up and unbuckled his belt and showed Lance the basic nautical stars along his hip bone. He looked up to see Lance smirking. 

“Emo.” 

“Shut up. I was like sixteen!”

“That doesn’t make it any better. What about the other one?”

“Oh… well, I got that when I was still bartending, the last time Mark kicked me out…” He said, pulling his shirt off. “You should’ve seen this one too actually.” He said, turning so Lance could see his shoulder. There was a bigger tattoo of a hand and skeleton hand both reaching for a red pomegranate. “Story of my life…” He mumbled awkwardly as he slid his shirt back on. 

“What do you mean?” 

“I thought you read.” 

“Aparently not enough…” 

“Persephone and Hades?” 

“... I know who Hades is…” 

“Well, the story is that Hades was in love with Demeter’s young daughter, and kidnapped her. He opened a hole in the ground in the garden she was working in and the earth swallowed her whole, and he trapped her in the underworld… Basically, he was a dick. One day, Zeus made him free her, but before he did, he fed her pomegranate seeds. Which basically meant she was obligated to return every year and wouldn’t ever get away. Because of the pomegranate, she was only allowed to spend so long outside of the underworld, which is like the reason for the seasons changing in mythology.” 

“I thought they loved each other though…” 

“That’s not really something anyone knows for sure. I think they thought they did… she was confused.” Lance just nodded and leaned onto Keith’s shoulder. 

“Do you want more?” 

“Yeah. I think a Medusa would be cool… I thought about getting a cover, but I’d fuck it up so…” Lance just nodded. 

“Medusa?” 

“Yeah… So, what about you?” 

“One tiny sick n’ poke from college. I dunno, needles freak me out. I had an ear pierced when I first moved out. I wanted both, but I couldn’t do it.” 

“Really?” 

“Shut up. I don’t like needles.” Lance whined. 

“They don’t bother me at all.” 

“How?” 

“Uh… High pain tolerance?” He said, kind of joking. 

“I wish tha-”

“Stop. Let me joke about my trauma in peace.” 

“Can I ask you something?” 

“Probably…” 

“So… if you’re so good at hiding bruises, why don’t you?” 

“Most of the ones on my face are gone now… then before that, you only saw me that night. Obviously I didn’t care then.” Lance just nodded. 

“Lance!” Luis shouted, this time busting through the door, and handing him his phone. Lance took and looked down to see his dad was calling. “Stay here.” He whispered to Keith before walking out and saying the same to his siblings. Keith heard the front door slam, and realized Luis had jumped onto the edge of the bed across from him. 

“Are you and Lance dating?” 

“No.” Keith laughed awkwardly. 

“Why not?” 

“Because… uh, I don’t really think I can do that…” 

“Because he’s annoying?” 

“Yeah, basically.” 

“Do you think Lance is still mad at me?” 

“No. Why?” 

“I kinda wanna tell him something, but I’m scared…”

“Why are you scared?” 

“Because… I can’t go home if he makes me leave…” 

“I don’t think he would make you leave for any reason…” 

“He might though… dad wou-” Luis was cut off by police sirens outside. 

“Shit…” Keith mumbled before walking over to the window and seeing Lance and another man both being talked to by police.

Chapter Text

He pulled on his shoes and ran down to the porch. Lance was holding gauze to his nose and the other man was currently leaning against the bumper of one of the cars. Lance stopped talking mid-sentence when he saw Keith. 

“Please go back inside…” He said before turning back to the cop who shushed him. 

“Who is that?” 

“My roommate.” 

“You. Stay there, I need to ask you some questions in a minute.” He shouted. Keith nodded and sat on the porch, trying to listen in on their conversation. 

“Really? He wanted me charged for kidnapping? They’re my siblings. He’s the one that doesn’t need custody. You want to talk to their mother? I can have Keith go get her? I had to come pick her up from their apartment today. Did you breathalyze him, because guess what? He drove here and intended to drive them home too.”

“This is appearing to be a bigger issue than I thought… I’m detaining you both, I’ll have someone go get your mother. If you would like to, you can ask your roommate to drive your siblings to the station, but I want to speak with him either way. I’ll allow you to go speak to him since you’re cooperating, but first do you need any further medical attention?” 

“What? No, I’m fine… Thank you.” The officer nodded him over to Keith who he immediately wrapped into a hug with his free arm. “I’m so sorry that you’re getting dragged into this, I had no idea he was even here…I’m getting detained, they want to talk to you too… Uh… I’m not allowed to go inside, can you get my wallet and my phone for me, and a shirt I guess… take one of my jackets too. Also, if you don’t mind driving them, bring them. They’ll hopefully help me not get arrested… or I guess Roni can drive, you probably don’t need to, you’re shaking.” Keith couldn’t manage to say anything, so he just nodded and walked back inside. He grabbed Lance’s stuff, then handed Veronica the keys. 

“What’s happening?” She asked, staring up at him. Now that he was closer, she could see his panic. “Are you okay?” He just shrugged and motioned for them to come outside. 

“Are they coming?” Lance asked as the officer slid cuffs on his wrist. Keith just nodded. “Come here, just put that shirt over my head.” Keith obeyed, then just stared. “It’s gonna be fine, okay. I need you to try and stay calm for me okay? Keep my jacket. I’ll see you in a little bit okay, just have-”

“Lance?” Veronica shouted. 

“Give me just a second.” He mumbled, motioning for Keith to back away for a minute. 

“What’s happening?”

“I’m dealing with it, don’t worry about me. You worry about you and Luis for now okay? Follow these cars down to the police station. I’ll see you there.”

“But Lance… I don’t think he’s gonna be able to do this…” She said, motioning to Keith. 

“I know… You drive. Just try and stay more quiet around him, okay?” 

“No, he’s clearly terrified. He obviously wants to be around you.”

“I can’t do anything about that right now…” 

“No, but I can. Give me a minute, call him back over here. He won’t even talk.” Roni said, wiping some of the blood off of his face before walking to the other side of the car where the officers were. 

“Keith, come here…” Keith slowly made his way over, clearly trying to hold back his anxiety. “This is gonna be fine. I’m not gonna let anything happen. Just… whatever any of them say, do it. Trust me. I can’t exactly hug you right now or I would…” Keith just nodded and rested his forehead against Lance’s shoulder. 

“Alright!” The cop shouted. “Dad’s going with Mckinley, a car will go pick up mom, this one’s taking herself and the little one, and you two are coming with me.” He said, grabbing a spare pair of cuffs, making Keith instantly flench away. 

“Wait! Keith, stay here.” Lance said as he stumbled over to the cop. “You have no reason to cuff him. He’s willingly going to be questioned and he’s not being arrested right?” 

“No… but..” 

“And you’re not technically detaining him either?” 

“No…” 

“Then please, don’t cuff him. He won’t do anything, he’s terrified and he’s not even really a witness. He just got out of a very abusive relationship, please just understand that. He’s probably gonna get in the back of that car and lay on me the whole time.” 

“If you’re lying to me, you will be in a great deal of trouble.”

“I swear I’m not. Look at him.” The officer turned to see Keith standing by the car, staring at the ground, anxiously chewing on his thumb nail. He hesitated, but nodded. 

“Alright, let’s go!” He shouted, then walked around to the car, motioning for Keith to get it, then helped Lance in. When he got into the driver’s seat, he looked back to see Lance’s hypothesis was correct and Keith was half-curled into him. The drive was luckily fairly short. Lance and his father were both led into different rooms, and Keith was left in the waiting room, soon accompanied by Lance’s siblings, then his mom. Luis was sitting on one side of Roni, staring at the ground and Keith was on the other one seat away. Once Lance’s mom was tending to Luis, Veronica turned to Keith. 

“You need to actually breathe.” She half whispered, but he totally ignored her, his eyes too busy focusing on a random square of tile as he shakily tried to hold his breath. She tried a few more times, then grabbed his hand and dragged him outside. 

“Dude! You’re gonna pass out! Sit down.” She said, dragging him to the ground, glaring at the officer that had followed them. “You need to try to breathe.” She said as she dug out the cigarettes she had somehow thought to grab for him. “Just, take a minute, being out here will help a little. I’ve gotta go do something.” She said, passing him the box and lighter before standing up and marching inside, clearly on a mission. 

“What officer took my brother?” She asked the receptionist. 

“Uhhh, I believe it was Nelson, why?” 

“Page him. I need to talk to him.” 

“He’s a little busy at the moment speaking to your brother.” 

“Let me back there then. Or you can call him out, but I will lose my shit in about three minutes if he’s anymore than two feet away from me.” She said with a fake smile.
“I’ll see what I can do.” She said before grabbing a radio. A few minutes later, a different officer appeared and walked her down to the room where Lance was with Officer Nelson.

“Roni? What are you doing?” 

“Talking to Mr. Nelson here. So, you want to question his roommate right?” 

“Yes, I’ll be doing that next. Until then, Lance here will wait in custody.” 

“That won’t happen.” 

“Excuse me?” 

“Unless you give Lance a second to help him, he’s not gonna tell you anything. He hasn’t spoken since he walked outside.” The officer glanced over to Lance and read the guilt that riddled his face. 

“What do you suggest then?” 

“Well, I know you don’t want them to speak about anything alone, so I would say bring him down here, undo Lance’s cuffs, keep recording, and lock the door. I know they lock from the outside. Even then, I don’t know how much you’ll get out of him.” 

“I’ll see what I can do. Lance and I are almost finished.” She just nodded and walked out. “You know, she could be a lawyer.” 

“She’s actually planning on forensics, but yeah, she could.” 

“What focus?” 

“Uhh… something with blood I think… I don’t know, I don’t see her much. I know she kind of wanted to do autopsies for a while, but I don’t know.” 

“Why don’t you see her?” 

“My parents kicked me out when I was nineteen.” The questions continued as Roni found her way back out to the waiting room where her mom was gone, leaving Luis alone. 

“Did they take her back?” 

“No.” He said, pointing to the door where she was kneeling next to Keith. 

“You know, Lance is a very sweet boy. He cares too much sometimes, that’s his problem. I lost a lot of time with him because I didn’t understand him, but I think I do now. He cares a lot about you and I can see that… and I can see you are the same way… He’ll be fine, I’ve decided to be honest when they question me. Luis and Veronica will too… but he needs you too. You have to find a way to calm down.” She said softly, honestly not sure he was even hearing her. “You know, my Marco was a lot like you when he was Veronica’s age… Can I try to help?” She asked, moving to actually sit down. He allowed her to pull him against her, whether he was too far in his mind or actually knew what was happening was a mystery, but she sat and ran her hands through his hair, quietly humming a song he didn’t know as he kept a tight grip on Lance’s hoodie. By the time Officer Nelson came to get him, he had calmed down some, but not much. He clearly had no idea what was happening as the officer led him down the hall by his shoulder, then locked the door of the room behind him. Lance gave a silent thanks and got up, immediately enveloping him in a hug. 

“Come on, come sit down with me.” He said softly, pulling Keith over to the chair, then into his lap. It was at that point that Keith finally fully broke. He was terrified. Lance was all he had other than Shiro and his cat, he was terrified of losing him. Not to mention the entire situation was kind of terrifying just stimulation wise. Lance just held him, whispering things he didn’t bother to pay attention to and tracing things onto his back until he finally calmed down. 

“You okay now?” Keith just shrugged, refusing to move from his spot. “Can you talk to me?” He shrugged again. “Okay, once you can, all you have to do is answer a few questions, then they’ll leave us alone until we’re allowed to go home. I’m gonna call out tomorrow which may get me fired, but I really don’t care right now.” Keith just nodded, still silent. “Can you tell me if I can do anything to help better?” 

“You are…” Keith mumbled, barely audibly. 

“Good. They’re gonna come in in a few minutes and take me to the back, probably just until you and the others are done. They’re probably gonna interview everyone else together so it won’t be long.” Keith nodded again, hating the idea. A few minutes later, that’s exactly what happened. As soon as he got up, Lance turned around with his hands behind his back and waited. 

“Don’t worry about it kid. It’s right down the hall, just don’t try anything.” Lance just nodded and let the Officer pull him down the hall and put him in an almost empty cell to wait. It took a lot for Nelson to get Keith to talk, but eventually he did.

“Do you want me to take you back there? You can wait outside the cell.” He nodded and followed him down and Lance immediately shot up and made his way over. 

“See? It’s fine. We’ll be going home in a few minutes, then we’ll go into my room and watch whatever you want on my laptop with Kosmo.” He said softly, reaching a hand out for Keith’s. Finally, an officer came back in. 

“You’re free to go, no charges. You’re father won’t be so lucky. He’ll be held until bail or a court date, but I’m not sure many bondsmen will be interested.” He said as he let Lance out. He thanked him, then led Keith out where the others were and they made their way to the car. 

“Roni, you’re driving, Luis in the back with me and Keith.” He said, opening the door for Keith, then climbing into the middle. It was obvious to almost everyone that Keith was about two seconds away from falling asleep, but he managed to stay awake until they dropped Lance’s mom off and Luis moved to the front. 

“Are you guys staying?” Lance asked. 

“We can, but we at least have to come and get our stuff.” 

“No, don’t worry about it. Mom probably needs you guys more than I do.” 

“How’s he?” She asked, looking into the rear-view and seeing Keith was now asleep. 

“He’ll be okay. I told you guys he’s been through a lot.. Right now I’m like all he’s got so I’m sure this was just a lot for him. He just needs some sleep and to relax for a bit.”

“So? He’s really not your boyfriend?” She asked. 

“No he-” 

“He said that he wasn’t. He said that he didn’t think he could do that. I asked if it’s because Lance is annoying and he said yeah.” 

“Hey! I told you to leave him alone.” 

“Yeah, you were gone though. I was gonna ask him something else.” 

“What were you gonna ask him?” Luis shrugged and fell silent. When they got back to the apartment, Roni parked and they made their way upstairs to get their stuff, Lance carrying Keith behind him. Once he got Keith into bed and peeled his boots off of him, he walked back into the living room where his siblings were waiting. 

“We’re gonna head out. We’ll see you soon, for real this time.” 

“Yeah, I hope so… So mom’s pressing charges?” 

“Yeah, she might drop them though and file for divorce.”

“Okay, let me know… I’ll see you guys soon.” 

“Okay, come on Luis.” 

“No, can you wait in the car for a minute?” Roni nodded and walked out, then once he heard the door shut, Lance questioned him. 

“What’s this about?” 

“Well, everything’s already insane, so I might as well do this now… I’m not straight and I think that I’m non-bianary.” He rushed out with a flench. 

“Cool. So, new name then?” 

“What?” 

“Like… are you changing your name?” 

“Yeah, but you’re not mad?” 

“I don’t care, you should know that. You’re still you, that’s all that matters. I will be mad if you keep doing stupid shit though.” 

“I won’t…” 

“Good, so have you thought of a name?”

“Maybe… I kinda like Arlo…” 

“Cool. Arlo it is then. Get some sleep, you have school tomorrow and it’s already late.”

“Okay, bye…” Lance waved and watched them leave before making his way to his room, peeling off his clothes and climbing in bed. He still had dried blood all over him, but he was honestly too exhausted to deal with it. As he laid down, Keith woke up and rubbed his eyes. “Come here.” He said, offering his arms to Keith. He curled up around him and they both fell asleep. 

Chapter Text

The next morning, Keith woke up hearing Lance on the phone with Hunk in the living room. He stumbled out and flopped down on the couch next to him. Finally, he hung up, then tried to sneak a picture of Keith, but didn’t realize flash was on. 

“Ow! What the hell? That was bright.

“Sorry, mama asked about you.” 

“Why?” 

“She was worried about you. I think she’s planning on adopting you now.” He chuckled. 

“What is that supposed to mean?” 

“It means she likes you. All morning I had to hear about how I needed to bring you over there soon so she can feed you. I think she likes you more than me.” 

“Why?” 

“No idea, but she adores you. I guess I care about you and she can see that so she does too. Also, in case you were wondering, they're all convinced we're dating…” 

“I kinda figured.”

“Why?” 

“I know what novio means.” 

“God.” Lance sighed. “Well, guess that means she really doesn’t care anymore then… Anyway, she’s begging me to drag you over there at some point so sorry in advance for that… luckily it’ll have to be a night I’m off so you have a while before that happens. I think my next day off is like… in two weeks.” Keith just nodded and pulled the blanket around himself. They spent all day just sitting on the couch watching old movies, enjoying a day with less stress. 

 Lance went back to work and things started to get easier for both of them over the next two weeks. Keith finally got to start working again, they had minimal encounters with Mark, and Lance got to see his family more often. A few days before Thanksgiving, he decided to go to Ikea before work. They were having a sale, so he ordered some stuff for the other room to be delivered the next day, thankfully already put together. By the time Kieth got home the next day, it was all set up. 

“Come here.” Lance said when he heard him come in. He could tell something was wrong once he got to the top. “You alright?” He asked, walking over to him. 

“What? Oh… I’m fine, just tired…” He mumbled. 

“Well, go take a nap.” Keith nodded and started towards Lance’s room, he just pulled him to the other door. 

“When did this happen?”

“Literally today. You can get your stuff later, but yeah… Anyway, I have to head into work now. I’ll be home by like two-thirty if you’re still up.” Kieth just nodded and flopped down on his bed after pulling off his shirt. 

For the most part, work was okay. Everyone was still totally lost as to what was going on in Lance’s life, but they all gave up trying. He clocked out at exactly two and hopped on the subway. Once he got back to the apartment, he snuck over to Keith’s door and peeked in to see him away, pulling on his jacket and grabbing his smokes. On his way out, he nearly ran into Lance. 

“Hey…” He mumbled in passing. 

“Hey?” Lance said, realizing he was right earlier. “Did something happen today? You still seem off…” 

“No… Really, I’m just tired…” He mumbled before pushing past him to go smoke. 

“Okay… Well, I’m gonna go shower and get some sleep. What’s your shift tomorrow?” 

“I have a double. I’m leaving at like five. I have to open and close.” 

“Again? Didn’t you just do that?” 

“Yeah… I work midday Wednesday, but then I’m off until Monday.” 

“Oh, nice. I’m off Thursday, most of Friday, and Saturday.” 

“Most of?” 

“I have to do a breaker shift for the morning in case it’s crazy with Black Friday shoppers.” Keith just nodded and made his way outside. Once Lance was ready for bed, he waited up until he heard Keith leave, then finally went to sleep. He woke up a little after noon and decided to go get some coffee at a certain local cafe. It was a quick subway ride closer into town, then a few blocks of a walk. When he walked in, he could practically hear Keith groan from the back as he made his way over to the counter. 

“Oh… Why are you here?” 

“Because I wanted coffee. Plus I just wanted to make sure you were okay. I was worried about you this morning.” 

“I’m fine. What do you want?”

“Surprise me.” Keith nodded and thought for a minute before making him an overly sweet late. 

“I don’t see how you drink this shit, but here.” 

“Because I haven’t killed all of my taste buds like you.” Lance said, taking the coffee and moving to the other side of the register to watch Keith while he made some window orders. “So? Better than bartending?” 

“No. Honestly, the morning crowd and the teenagers are worse than drunk creeps.” He mumbled. 

“But you don’t wanna go back to bartending?” 

“I don’t know… maybe. I’m technically seasonal here anyway. I just don’t know how that would work… At least we could have similar hours though.” 

“I’m thinking about leaving the diner…” 

“For real this time?” 

“Yeah. Pidge is leaving for spring semester, or quitting I guess, they’re staying here and Allura is lunch now. It’s just me and Hunk starting in the first week of December.” 

“Where are you gonna go?”

“I don’t know… Maybe that bookstore that’s like fifteen from here.” Keith just nodded. “I dunno yet…” 

“Yeah, me either… I don’t know if bartending is a great idea…” 

“Fair enough… When’s your break?” 

“In like half an hour.” 

“Hour or half?” 

“Hour.” 

“You wanna go get something to eat?” 

“Uh… okay.” 

“Cool. I’ll be back in like twenty minutes. I actually needed to grab a few things for home anyway.” Keith just nodded and waved as he slipped out. Right as Keith clocked out and made his way to the front, Lance walked back in. He could tell Keith was exhausted. He was dragging his feet, about to spill his coffee as he dug his cigarettes out.

“How much coffee have you had today?” Lance asked as he took the cup from him. 

“I’m gonna refuse that question.” He mumbled as he flicked his lighter. 

“Why?” 

“Because you’re gonna go on a rant about how it doesn’t help my anxiety and I should drink less.” 

“So… a lot then?” 

“Yeah… It’s not my fault though, I only slept for a few hours and we had a big rush this morning.” 

“Still. That much caffeine isn’t good for you. Especially since I know you haven’t eaten yet today.” 

“Shut up.” 

“What do you want?” 

“Uhh… can we get McDonald’s?” 

“Really?”

“Don’t be mean, at least I’m eating.” 

“Fair enough, come on.” Lance said, handing him the coffee and moving to the outside of the sidewalk. They spent most of the walk talking about random things, then Keith remembered Lance had come for a reason. 

“So, why are you out here again?” 

“Oh, I had to get some stuff to make a pie for Thursday. You’re still gonna come with me right? Mama would probably have my head if you didn’t.”

“Yeah… who all’s gonna be there?” 

“Not dad obviously, he’s still not on bond. Marco and his wife may come, but all I know for sure is my mom, Arlo, Roni, Rachel, then maybe Aunt Marie and her younger kids.” 

“So like your whole family?” 

“Not even close. Used to it was my parents, all five of us, my dad’s brother and his three kids, Aunt Marie, her husband, all four of their kids, my mom’s other sister and her two kids, and my Aubela. Sometimes dad’s parents too, but they moved when they retired so…” 

“How do you even remember all their names?” 

“Because we used to all be super close.”

“Still.”

“Go sit down, what do you want?” Keith just smirked. “Really?” 

“Yeah.” 

“Fine, go.” Keith went to find a table and waited. Soon enough, Lance was walking over with his burger and Keith’s happy meal. “You’re ridiculous.” 

“Hey! I like the apples.”

“Whatever. Eat.” Keith shot him a smile and started pulling out his food. “So, you work until…” 

“About that… I’m gonna be late tonight.”

“How late? Don’t they close at eleven?” 

“Yeah, but I’m closing, so midnight, then second shift has a meeting for tomorrow and I have to go to that one too, then who knows what else I’ll have to do.”

“What’s happening tomorrow?” 

“Inspection. So i’ll probably get stuck deep cleaning, but it’s OT so…” 

“So when do you think you’ll actually get off?” 

“Uh, probably not until like two, maybe one-thirty.” 

“You don’t need to walk home that late…” 

“Yeah, I’m gonna take the L.” 

“Same thing. I’ll try and get off a bit early, I probably can if I just go in earlier. That way I can come walk you to the L and home.” 

“Lance, it’s fine…” 

“I’m sure it is, but I’m still gonna walk you.” 

“Fine.” 

“And tomorrow you work… when?” 

“Uhh… like eleven to five or something like that, I’d have to check, why?” 

“Just wondering.” Keith nodded and let the conversation fall. After they finished eating, they waited until it was almost time for Keith to get back to work. He was dreading going back, but he had to. Lance walked him back to the shop and waited for him to clock in. They talked for a few more minutes until one of Keith’s coworkers snuck up behind him and slid ice down the back of his shirt. 

“Ryker. You have five seconds to run.” He said while sneakily reaching for the whipped cream spray. Before he got a chance to run, Keith sprayed him in the face. 

“You suck.” 

“Aren’t you supposed to be on the window?” 

“Shut up.” He grumbled, wiping the whipped cream off on Keith’s back. Lance half-glared, attempting to hide his jealousy. 

“Sorry, what’d you say?” 

“Oh, uh… nothing. I’ll see you tonight. Remember, I’m coming to walk you home.” Keith just nodded as he went to do whatever he was actually supposed to be doing and Lance slipped out. 

After work, Lance rode the subway to Keith’s stop, then made his way to the shop to wait outside. It took forever, but eventually, Keith came out immediately lighting a cigarette which he only ended up smoking about half of. 

“Dude, you look like shit.” Lance teased. 

“Shut up.” He whined, leaning onto Lance’s arm. “I feel gross and I wanna go to bed.” Lance laughed, but walked in front of him and crouched down.

“Get on.”

“What?” 

“Just do it. We’ll get home faster.” Keith groaned, but did as he was told, wrapping his legs around his waist and his arms around his neck. “See? Not so bad.” 

“Whatever.” Keith mumbled as he rested his head in the crook of Lance’s neck. Before he even realized, Lance was putting him down in the L. 

“So, you’re going to bed when we get home?” 

“Shower first. Ryker was on something today.”

“That your boyfriend?” Lance said teasingly. 

“No. Why, you jealous?” 

“What? No. Why would I be?” 

“He’s got a girlfriend either way.” 

“But you do like him?” 

“No. I think I’d strangle him if I had to spend more than a shift with him.” Lance just nodded and checked their stop. They were only two away, so he pulled Keith closer to the door. Luckily, the apartment was only a few blocks away. 

Chapter Text

Once they finally got inside, Keith immediately disappeared into his room and Lance did the same. He jumped through the shower and got in bed. Before he fell asleep, Blue started whining, so he stumbled out of bed to walk him down the block. Finally, by almost four, he laid back down. Before he could fall asleep, his door creaked open. 

“Blue, lay down.” He said before realizing Blue was on the floor next to him and sat up. “Keith?” He said, seeing his silhouette. “Are you okay?” 

“Can I… sleep in here?” He mumbled.

“Yeah, are you okay?” Keith just shrugged and crawled under the covers. “Keith?” He asked again. Finally, Keith turned to face him and he was able to see the splotchy red marks on his face.”What happened?” 

“I dunno…” 

“You don’t know or you don’t wanna talk about it?” Keith just shrugged, meaning it was the latter. “Okay. Roll over.” Keith flipped over to face away from Lance and let him wrap his arms around him and pull him closer. Once he was sure Keith was asleep, he finally got some sleep himself. He woke up late the next morning to Keith gone and decided he should probably start doing whatever he needed to for tomorrow. His mom had requested he make a pie and bring her a few things that he still needed to get. He spent about an hour making the pie, then took Blue for a walk before getting ready. He still had a while before he had to go into work, it was only two, but he figured he’d have to go to a few different places to get everything since tomorrow was Thanksgiving. He figured his best shot would be to go somewhere on the Northside, so he did, Luckily, he was right. He managed to find everything before four, then decided to ride up and drop it off at his mom’s. 

“Mama, Lance is here!” Arlo shouted as they opened the door and let him in. 

“You’re on break then?” 

“Yeah, Rachel’s here too helping her cook, but Roni’s out. I think she’s at the store.”

“Like dad’s store?” 

“Yeah… She opened, I think she’s kind of taking over for dad until she finds someone else too. Hopefully she will today.”

“Yeah, hopefully… So, how’s that gonna work with everything going on…”

  “I guess if mom doesn’t drop charges and goes to court and he ends up in jail, it’ll go to her… but I kind of think she’s going to drop them and file…” 

“Meaning?” 

“I guess it depends on how they split everything… I don’t think she really cares as long as she gets custody of me and Roni.” 

“Yeah… I mean, he’d probably only get a year regardless.” 

“Really?” 

“Yeah, either way I hope she does file. She may have to take him to court for that though, I don’t think he’ll sign.” Lance finished before walking into the kitchen. “I think I got everything you asked for.” He said, putting the bags down on the counter. 

“Good, is Keith coming tomorrow?” 

“As far as I know. Go easy on him though, he’s not used to so many people” Lance said as she opened her mouth to speak. “And no, for the last time, not my boyfriend.”

“I still don’t believe you mijo.” 

“Whatever. Who all is coming?” 

“Marco, Lisa, Sylvio, Nadia, Marie, Clark, and then Liam and Amelia.” 

“So, not Aunt Cat?” 

“No, they’re going to her husband’s family.” 

“Okay, so… like fourteen of us then…” 

“Yes, Marco still doesn’t know about your father…” 

“Oh, fun… when is he coming?” 

“Tonight. They’re going to stay here in his old room, the kids will probably all sleep in the living room together, so if you want to, you and Keith can take your old room.” 

“Yeah, maybe… he may be dying to get home though, so we’ll see…” 

“We’re eating at four, but I’ll be up cooking with Rachel at eight so come whenever.” 

“What about Roni, will she be here?” 

“Yes, we’re closing the store for Thanksgiving. She should be finding a temporary boss today though.” 

“Good. Well, I’m going to head home, Keith is getting off soon. We’ll be here a bit before we eat and I made the pie. You don’t need anything else?” 

“No, go.” 

By the time he got home, Keith was laying face down on the couch, still wearing his shoes. 

“Good day then?” Lance teased.

“Shut up.” He grumbled. “Where were you?” 

“Mom’s apartment. She’s glad you're coming. It should just be my siblings, Marco’s wife and kids, and Aunt Marie’s.” 

“So… other than the two I know, how’s that gonna go?” 

“Well… honestly, I have no idea….” 

“Helpful.” 

“It’ll be fine… I mean… it’s not like you’re too obviously gay anyway…” 

“You’re a bad liar.” 

“It’ll be fine, I think mama would beat them for you anyway.”

“So, why exactly did your mom decide she likes me?” 

“Why wouldn’t she? I do.” 

“You’re both weird.” 

“Shut up. I have to go in at nine, so you have like three and a half hours to tell me what’s been going on with you lately.” Lance said as he pulled Keith’s legs down and sat down.

“Seriously, I’m fine… just tired.” 

“Well, you weren’t last night.” 

“I’m fine, Lance. Drop it.” He almost hissed as he stomped to his room and locked the door.

“Why won’t you talk to me?” Lance asked from the otherside. “Keith?” He didn’t get a response, but could hear him walk closer to the door. “Seriously… It’s kind of concerning…” Finally, the door opened to reveal Keith, avoiding eye contact. 

“I’m just tired…” He mumbled. 

“You already tried that one.” 

“I am though… like mentally I guess….” 

“Is that really it?” 

“Yeah… I’m fine.” 

“Okay… do you want food or anything?” Keith just shook his head. “Okay, I’ll leave you alone then…” Lance said, walking back to the living room. To his surprise, Keith followed and laid his head in his lap. “Try and get some sleep while I’m gone. We’re probably gonna leave around one or so tomorrow.” Lance said softly as he ran his hand through his hair. 

“You get off at two still?” 

“Yeah. Why?” 

“Just wondering.” Keith mumbled in response, returning his focus to the TV. Eventually, it was time for Lance to leave. As he made his way out, Keith disappeared into his room and got in bed. He fell asleep fairly quickly, but woke back to when Blue jumped on his bed. 

“Ugh, what do you want?” Keith whined as he checked the time and saw it was just after one-thirty. “Lance will literally be back in an hour.” Blue jumped down and ran to Keith’s door and whined. “Really?” Keith sighed as he got up. “If you drag me down the sidewalk again I’m gonna kill you.” He mumbled as he clipped on his leash. They walked longer than Keith realized, around two-twenty, he got a call.

“Hey.” 

“Keith? Where are you?” Lance asked frantically. 

“Like ten minutes from home, why?” 

“Because I’m here and you’re just gone. Why?” 

“Your dog, stupid. He was bored.” 

“Good, you shouldn’t be walking around this late by yourself…” 

“Lance, it’s fine. It was a few blocks and no one’s out right now, besides Blue doesn’t seem very vicious…” 

“Yeah, but no one else would know that. He has a mean bark, besides I think he’d protect you either way.” 

“Whatever. I’ll be home in a minute.” He sighed as he hung up. He appreciated the fact Lance cared about him, but nothing was gonna happen on an hour long walk. Finally, they got back home and found Lance waiting in the living room. 

“You should really tell me when you leave, or at least leave me a note…” 

“Lance, stop worrying. I’m fine. See? All in one piece. Now, I’m going back to bed.” He said as he bent down to undo Blue’s leash. “He needed it anyway.” 

“We have a yard now, you know.”

“Yeah, barely. It’s fine, nothing happened. Please don’t make this a thing…” 

“That’s not what I’m trying to do, but you can’t just say that to get out of conversations we need to have. Yes, it’ll make me check my tone and maybe take a second to think, but I’m not always just going to drop it.” 

“Whatever, I’m going to bed.” 

“Keith.” Lance called as he disappeared. He didn’t think to lock the door, so Lance just followed him. “Please just be careful and give me a heads up. It worries me when I come home and you’re not here.” 

“Why? What’s gonna happen? You said he didn’t know where I was. Were you just saying that?” 

“No, I really don’t think he does. Either way, I care about you moron. Let’s just be honest about it, we don’t live in the safest area. I’m sorry if I get on your nerves, but I just don’t wanna see you hurt or anything… Will you just at least let me know when you leave?” 

“Fine…” 

“Thank you. Get some sleep, remember we’re leaving at like one or so tomorrow.” Keith just nodded and laid back in his bed, watching Lance walk out. They were both able to fall asleep fairly quickly. Keith woke back up around ten the next morning and made his way to the porch for his usual morning cigarette. A few minutes later, a girl he assumed was a little older than him walked over. 

“Hey… You live here right?” 

“Uh… yeah… why?” Keith responded, clearly cautious of her. 

“Oh… sorry, I’m Cassie, I’m the lower unit…” He just nodded. “This is like super random, but do you happen to have any sage I could steal? I totally didn’t realize I was out and the stores are all whipped out…” 

“Uh… yeah, maybe… I don’t know, my roommate usually cooks…” He mumbled, putting out his cigarette and motioning for her to follow him, hoping she wasn’t trying to murder him. When they got upstairs, he must’ve woken Lance up while he was looking through the cabinet. He stumbled out, still pulling on a shirt and walked over, not even noticing the girl. 

“What are you doing?” He yawned before leaning against the fridge, noticing her. “Uh… hi?” She just waved awkwardly, with red washing over her face. “Who and why?” He whispered. 

“Oh, I totally forgot to tell you, I’m actually like super straight, that’s my new girlfriend.” Keith said sarcastically, trying to see into the back of the cabinet. 

“Haha, so funny.” 

“She lives downstairs, she asked if we have sage.” Lance sighed and moved Keith out of the way, then grabbed a container from the back where Keith wouldn’t have been able to reach anyway. 

“Here.” He said, walking back over to where the girl was and offering it to her before leaning against the wall. “So, you're our neighbor then?” He asked with a smirk. 

“Yeah… sorry, I’m kinda bad at this whole… cooking thing…” 

“No, it’s fine. So, what’d you say your name was?”

“Oh, I didn’t, sorry… Cassie. You guys just moved in right?” 

“Yeah, like three weeks ago I think. Have you been here a while?” 

“Uh, kinda I guess. My old college roommate and I moved here after graduation, so only about six months ago…” Their conversation continued with Keith lurking in the background, obviously not enjoying her company. “Well, I better go… It was nice meeting you though…” She paused, waiting for his name. 

“Lance… I’ll see you around then?” She nodded and slipped out. 

“That was the most cliche bullshit you’ve ever done.” 

“What?” 

“That was like… total nineties sit-com.” 

“I don’t even know what I did…” Lance said, playing into his confusion. 

“Stumbling out of bed shirtless to come flirt with our neighbor?” Keith responded with an eyeroll. 

“Shut up, I didn’t even know she was here and I was just being friendly. Besides, you couldn’t even get to that anyway.” 

“You totally were.” 

“What? Does it bother you?” He asked with a smirk. 

“What? No, why would it?” Lance just shrugged, still smirking and started the coffee machine. 

“She was nice. Maybe we should invite her over some day.” He teased. 

“Yeah, maybe.” Keith glared at the back of his head. “Do you have to do anything before we leave?” He said, trying to change the subject.

“Uh… no, I do need to grab another bottle of wine on the way up though. Apparently Marco’s already whining about whatever my mom got.” Lance said, passing Keith a mug before grabbing the creamer. “It’s only ten-thirty now and I’m assuming you don’t wanna eat anything beforehand so…” Lance started before flipping his hair back and spinning around. “You wanna watch the game?” He said in his best frat-boy voice. 

“No, no I really don’t.” 

“I was joking, Mullet. Obviously we’re watching the rest of the parade and then Charlie Brown, duh.” 

“Is that like supposed to be something I would know?” 

“Yeah, what did you do?”

“Well… I guess I would be back in Arizona right now… I actually usually did get stuck watching the game and getting day-drunk, so…” 

“With Shiro?”

“No…” Lance nodded and dropped the topic, then pulled Keith to the couch. 

“We’ll head out in… like two hours.” Keith just nodded, obviously a little anxious. 

Chapter Text

Eventually, Lance decided it was time to get ready and they each went to their rooms. After Lance was showered and dressed, he decided to go annoy Keith. When he got to his room, he was still looking through his closet. 

“Nothing you own will make you look less gay. It doesn’t matter anyway, just get dressed.” He said, earning a glare. “What? It’s true.” Eventually, Keith sighed and pulled on a random band–tee, then walked past Lance and into his room. He followed and saw him looking through his closet. 

“I’m stealing this.” He said as he pulled out the black denim jacket he had worn to go talk to his parents. 

“Really? All those colors and you pick one of the only black things?” 

“Shut up. What? Did you think I was gonna wear this?” He half-teased, pulling out a yellow hoodie. 

“Whatever, you ready?” 

“Yeah…” He sighed, shoving a new pack of cigarettes, his lighter, phone, and wallet into his pockets. Before they left, Lance let Blue out into the yard which was fenced in and blocked from Cassie’s side. 

“Alright, come on.” He said, leading the way to the subway. On the way there, they stopped and Lance grabbed two bottles of wine, one Pinot Noir, and one Chardonnay, then kept walking. Keith followed behind as they found a shelf of shooters. Lance handed Keith one of the wine bottles and grabbed a few tequila shooters, then looked at Keith. 

“What do you want?” 

“What?” 

“Figured I might need more than wine… What do you want, I assume whiskey, but I don’t know anything about that so…” 

“Uh… Jack’s fine…” 

“Which one?” 

“Just original…” Lance nodded and grabbed a few of those before making his way to the counter. After he paid, he slid the tequila into his jacket pocket and told Keith to do the same, then they got back on the subway. Twenty minutes later, Lance was leading the way up to their apartment. When he knocked, a guy Keith assumed to be Marco opened the door. 

“Lance… I didn’t know you were coming…” 

“Yeah, here.” He said, handing him the wine and leading Keith in. “Mama, I’m here!” He shouted, not sure where she would be. Soon, she appeared from the hallway and motioned for them to follow her to the kitchen. 

“Sylvio and Nadia are with Luis in his room.” She started as she washed some vegetables. “Marie will be here soon.” 

“What about Rachel and Roni?” 

“Oh, Veronica went to her boyfriend’s house, she’ll be back for dinner though. I think he wanted her to meet the rest of his family. Rachel is around here somewhere… I think she went to her room for a phone call.” 

“So… did you tell them about dad?” 

“Yeah… I did. Rachel is kind of mad, Marco didn’t say much about it…” 

“Why is she mad?” 

“You know how she is…” Lance nodded, then the conversation caught up with him. “Hang on, Roni has a boyfriend?” His mom nodded. “When did that happen and why am I just now finding out? Where does he live? What’s his name?” 

“Well, I don’t know for sure how long they’ve dated, I met him… over the summer I think. You just haven’t been around, I know it’s not your fault, but I’m sure that’s why, plus she knows how you are…” 

“So? I’ve seen her like a few times since the summer, not including the other day, plus she has a phone. Who is he?” 

“His name is Lucas, he lives close to Park West. He’s a good kid, you would like him.” 

“I already hate him.” He grumbled. “She better let me meet him soon.” 

“I’m sure she will.” She said, passing Lance a knife. 

“What’s this for?” 

“Cut those.” 

“Man, I should’ve come later…” He sighed as he started chopping the vegetables. 

“No, you should’ve come earlier. You need to go talk to Marco…” 

“Mama… Realmente no creo que eso sea bue-” ///( I really don’t think that’s a go-”)///

“He’s your brother. Same goes for Rachel. Keith can help me, go.” She cut him off. Lance huffed, but still walked into the living room and sat down on the couch across from Marco while Keith and his mom watched from the kitchen. 

“So, how’s nursing?” He asked awkwardly. 

“I’m not a nurse, I’m a PA.” 

“Whatever, it’s the same thing.” 

“How’s being a dropout? You get that record signing yet?” Once again, Lance huffed, glaring towards the kitchen. 

“I’m perfectly happy with my decision to drop out actually.” He said, trying not to sound annoyed.

“So, ballsy move bringing your boyfriend.”

“We’re not dating. That’s my roommate, mom wanted him to come.” 

“Please, that’s just what she thinks.” 

“No, it’s not. Either way, she would still want him here. She likes him more than me.” 

“That’s not too hard…” 

“Do you really have to be a dick today? I get that you don’t like me or whatever, but whatever you think is the issue between us is totally on you. Can we not just get through dinner without fighting?” 

“It’s not dinner yet, and it’s on you. You left. You stopped talking to us.” 

“No, I got kicked out. You know what…” He said, standing up. “Fuck you actually, where did I try to go? Who turned me down, left me totally alone? You. And why? Just because I don’t have the same beliefs as you? Because I’m gay? Right, because that’s what matters? You couldn’t stand the idea of dad being mad at you, so you just… told me to ‘figure it out’?”

“I thought you would come to your senses!” 

“About what?” Marco just glanced back to the kitchen. “That’s not something I chose. I’m sorry if you can’t get off your high horse for long enough to see that. Stay in your little world of ignorance if you want to, but just know you’re gonna turn out just like dad.” He hissed.

“I hope so.” At that point, Lance was done, he managed to pull himself back to the kitchen and walked over to his mom. 

“I can’t do it, I tried.” 

“Lance…” 

“No mama, I don’t care. I’ll swing next time I swear to God.” He grumbled, “Sorry… I swear to…something else?” He said, seeing his mother’s expression. 

“No, I don’t care about that… You can’t harbor all these things from the past, mijo…” 

“Yes I can. I have so far.” He huffed before walking off. Once he disappeared down the hallway, she turned to Keith. 

“Go, second door on the right.” He just nodded and went to go find him. 

“Lance…” He said, knocking softly. 

“What?” Keith didn’t respond, he just walked in. “Sorry…” He mumbled as Keith sat down on the bed beside him. 

“So… that didn’t go well?” 

“Nope… Just wait for the glare I get when the kids come out.” He said with a bitter laugh. “I just need a minute… she still wants me to talk to Rachel, maybe that’ll be better… Usually I would say she’d at least be civil for mama, but she’s mad at her because of stuff with dad I think… Once Aunt Marie gets here, things will probably chill out though, she still thinks I just moved out…” Keith just nodded and let Lance drop his head onto his shoulder. After a few minutes of silence, Lance finally spoke again. 

“Well, welcome to the tiny escape I had.” He said, gesturing to the room. It was painted gray-blue with all white furniture and a twin-sized mattress covered with dark blue bedding. “I haven’t been in here since I got booted. Looks like they didn’t change anything.” He said, standing up and walking to his dresser. Keith looked around at the various posters and pictures on the wall, then his eyes caught a photo of a lacrosse team, immediately picking Lance out of the group. 

“Yeah… you would’ve bullied me in highschool.” He laughed. 

“Correction, my friends would have. I would’ve just been there and felt really bad.” He said, digging through a drawer. 

“What are you looking for?” 

“Just… memories.” He said with a smirk. “I don’t know how this is still here.” He said as he pulled out a shoebox and threw it on the bed. “That was my old stash. I’m curious to see if any of my liquor is still there. Most of it was open so it would’ve went bad, but I had some rum in there I hadn’t opened.” He said as he opened it and pulled out two empty bottles, followed by a few half empty ones and the empty rum. “I’m gonna go with Rachel on that one.” He mumbled. 

“I thought you only ‘smoked a blunt or two’?” Keith asked, noticing the pipe. 

“Shut up. I told you I had a rebellious phase.” Lance laughed before Keith pulled out a strip of condoms with a raised eyebrow. “I said shut up.” 

“Mhmm… Any other secrets in here?” 

“Yeah… probably.” He said, ducking under his bed. “Ah!’ He said as he pulled out an old Iphone 4. “I wonder if I still have the charger…” He mumbled, rifling through the nightstand before pulling out an old charger and plugging it in. “You can make fun of me later, I gotta go talk to Rachel, that was her walking down the hall.” He said, leading the way back to the kitchen, but she wasn’t there. Before he got a word out, his mom pointed to the patio. He nodded and walked out, leaving Keith with his mom again. They talked while both spying on Lance. 

“Rachel…” He said as she stepped out. 

“Lance! You're here!” She shouted, jumping over to hug him.

“You’re not like… gonna fight me…?” 

“No, of course not. Why would I?” 

“I dunno… I kinda just thought tha-” 

“You’re still my brother.” She cut him off. “Maybe I don’t agree with your lifestyle, but you're still you. Not to mention you kept me out of so much trouble…” Lance just nodded. “Besides, mama told me about dad…”

“She said you were mad…” 

“I was at first, I guess… I wasn’t really around to see anything he ever did or said… You kept us from it and I was gone right after you, I graduated a year early remember?” 

“Yeah…” 

“And she told me what you did…” Lance just nodded. “Thank you… They would’ve never come to me about it… Luis just still sees you as Superman, so… I’m glad you came back.” 

“Yeah… Marco’s not…” 

“I figured… I didn’t know if I would be, but I am…” 

“So… You know they think you’re just like him now, right?” 

“Yeah, I know… Mom and dad were kind of hard on me after you, they thought I was gonna turn out the same… Looks like that wouldn’t have been so bad anyway.” She said with a slight nudge. “So, who’s the new guy?” 

“For the love of God, not my boyfriend!” He laughed. “He’s my new roommate. Mama met him when everything happened, she likes him a lot.” 

“How’d you meet him?” 

“Uh… he was in a rough situation… Originally, he was actually my neighbor. Things were bad for him and I kinda knew that, so I’m trying to fix it…” 

“Of course you are.” 

“What’s that supposed to mean?” 

“It’s what you do. I think you can do it with you and Marco too.” 

“I doubt that…” 

“Yeah, we’ll see… give him a chance.” 

“I already did. I can deal with anything he says about me, you know that, but he said he hoped he would turn out like dad. I can’t deal with that one. If he puts his kids through anything like dad did, I’ll end up killing him.” 

“Fair enough, well, we should get back.” She said, before Lance held up a finger and pulled out a shooter. “Share?” 

“You’re nineteen, also, I thought you were different now.” He teased, drinking half of it. “Not a word, that’s all you're getting right now though. Maybe I’ll sneak you some wine… or depending on how this all goes, I’ll sneak you into the bar down the block.” He said, passing her the rest. 

“How?” She asked with a slight grimace from the tequila.

“I’ve snuck Keith in bars like three times now. They only card at the door, I’ll teach you how to get the X’s off, come on.” He said, walking back to the kitchen.

Chapter Text

When they walked back in, Keith was nowhere to be seen. Without him even asking, his mom pointed to the hall.

“Luis stole him. They’re playing that video game I hate.” Lance just nodded and made his way down the hall. Once he got into Arlo’s room, he was immediately tackled by the twins. 

“God, you guys are huge!” He said as he threw Nadia on to the bed, then sat down on the floor next to Keith. “Wow, you’re even allowed to have Call of Duty now? You’re welcome for that, that was most definitely my doing.” He said, watching them play. “Keith, you kinda suck…” 

“Shut up, they’re cheating.” 

“Am not.” 

“You totally are.” Lance smiled, seeing Keith comfortable around them. He figured today would be a lot, so it was nice to see him at least enjoying part of it. A little while later, two older kids appeared in the doorway. 

“Lance!” The girl shouted immediately pulling him into a hug. “You’re actually here?” 

“Yeah, uh… actually I just moved back into the city…” 

“Really? You didn’t like St. Louis? We went on a field trip, I thought it was kinda cool…”

“I did, I just thought it was time to come back… How have you two been?” 

“Uh… Oh! Mom let me start doing gymnastics!” She said excitedly. 

“Really? You gotta show me something later.” He said, earning a nod as he turned to Liam who was still standing in the doorway. 

“How about you? What’ve I missed?” 

“I play soccer now…” He mumbled awkwardly. 

“What position do you play? Goalie?” 

“Uh… Goalie sub, usually right-center back…” 

“Cool, are you any good?” He just nodded. It was kind of weird seeing him so quiet, but he was younger so he assumed he was just a little awkward. They talked for a few more minutes while Keith and Arlo continued playing video games, then Rachel appeared in the doorway. 

“Mama said we should take them to the park before we eat, especially the twins…” 

“Marco’s not coming?” 

“No. He didn’t like the idea, but you know Lisa…” He just nodded and pulled Keith up out of the floor before getting tackled by Sylvio who was standing on the bed. Lance knocked him off, then bent down and pulled him up to sit on his shoulders. “So… just us then?” He asked before turning to Arlo. “Are you coming?” 

“It’s either this or adult talk.” Rachel interjected. They looked between the two, then back at Rachel. 

“Uh… I’m just gonna stay here.” Lance just nodded and scuffed up their hair before walking out, Sylvio still on his shoulders. They all walked down the block to the nearest park, but Lance could tell Keith was lost. 

“You’re confused on how this is a thing?” He said, looking up to the kid above him. “Marco may hate me, but I didn’t get kicked out until they were three, then Lisa let me see them. She didn’t really care about any of what happened and wanted them to know their family since she doesn’t have any, other than her mom. The other two I see sometimes, not very often and they have no idea about anything, hence St. Louis…” Keith nodded. 

“So… how old are they all anyway?” 

“Nadia and Sylvio are both six, Liam is… nine I think, and Amelia is eleven. The other two are closer to me and Rachel’s age, different dad.” Keith just nodded and followed Lance to the bench where he let Sylvio down to go run out some energy with everyone else while Rachel sat on a swing next to Amelia. 

“So… how was that?” He asked, glancing over to Rachel. 

“Good actually… Arlo clearly still isn’t a fan, but I think she’s more understanding now… Especially when she found out about dad…” 

“She didn’t know?” 

“Nope. I kept it away from them when they were younger. Then I got booted so… I thought Marco would react differently… but yeah, she said she had no idea. She only stayed a little under a year after I left, she went to college at seventeen… Arlo likes you…” 

“Really? I had no idea.” Keith said sarcastically. “They dragged me back there like as soon as you went outside.” 

“I figured they would.” 

“Why?” 

“Well, he’s kinda got a little of the whole emo thing going on now…” 

“And that relates to me how?”  Keith asked as one of the kid’s attempted to pull Lance into a game of tag. 

“You know why. I’ll be back.” He said before jumping up and chasing Nadia around the playground a few times before tagging her and running back, dramatically falling into Keith’s lap. “I feel so old.” 

“You are old.” 

“Shut up.” Keith just rolled his eyes and shoved him out of his lap before walking over to a different area to smoke. Lance just watched, not even realizing Rachel had joined him. 

“So, how’s that?” 

“I already told you.”

“And you made me not believe you. So, what’s his deal anyway?” 

“Uh… ex boyfriend and like some other stuff before that…”

“What do you mean?” 

“He’s just… been through it. It’s kind of a lot, but I think he’s getting better…” 

“Because of you?” 

“Because he had a chance to get away from it.” 

“Because of you. So… how did that even happen exactly?” 

“I recognized him on the way home from work and tried to get him to talk to me… that didn’t really work, but he ended up at my apartment a few hours anyway… Now he lives with me. It’s not like he hasn’t evened the score. Him being around has made stuff a lot better for me too, I just don’t think he knows that.” 

“Well… good. I’m gonna go try and round them up, mom said we're gonna eat in about half an hour.” 

“I thought we were supposed to eat at four anyway?” 

“Yeah, Aunt Marie wouldn’t have gotten here. She said six before we left.” After she walked away, Keith started to come back, but turned around half way. It seemed like he was talking to someone on the phone, but Lance didn’t even have a guess as to who it may have been. It took Rachel forever to round up the kids, but eventually she did and he made his way back over, hanging up. 

“Hey…” 

“Hey, sorry.” He mumbled. 

“What? Why?” He just shrugged. “So, who was that?” 

“My brother… I finally got back on one of the contact sites…” 

“Good.” 

“I don’t know…” 

“What do you mean?” Lance asked, as he got tackled by Liam and let him climb onto his back. 

“I didn’t tell him I left… I don’t think I’m going to, at least not for now. I feel bad lying to him, but I can’t really tell him right now… I don’t even know when I’ll see him again anyway. Luckily it’s nearly midnight there, so he couldn’t talk long.” 

“Why can’t you tell him?” 

“Because… He’d freak out and probably convince me to go stay with his parents for a while back in Texas… He doesn’t really trust me to be on my own, which is dumb because I did fine before…” 

“To be fair, I don’t either. I don’t think it’s that he doesn’t trust you, he just cares about you. You shouldn’t have to be on your own anyway.” 

“He’d probably freak out if he knew I was living with you too…” 

“Well… you’ll tell him at some point.” Keith just nodded and let the conversation fall as he followed the others back to the apartment. When they got there, everyone other than Arlo was already in the living room waiting. They all filed in and Lance’s mom announced it was time to eat, but Keith realized Arlo still wasn’t there, so he slid down the hall to their room and leaned against the doorway. They were just sitting in bed on their phone, it took them a minute to notice his presence. 

“Oh… hi…” 

“You’re not gonna come out?” Keith asked. 

“Uh… maybe later…” 

“Why?” 

“I just… I don’t really want to…” 

“Why not?” 

“Rachel… also, Marco and Lance… I bet they’ll fight…” 

“They already did that. Pretty sure it’s over. Besides, it seems like Lance and Rachel are getting along pretty well so… that can’t be too bad.” 

“Are you trying to convince me or yourself?” They asked. 

“Maybe a little of both, I have to go though. Are you just gonna make me sit there and do it myself?” 

“You have Lance!” 

“So do you, also you actually know everyone here. I’ve met like three of y’all before today. If it makes you feel any better, I think Rachel’s kinda cool and I basically hate everybody.” 

“Ugh, fine… but you have to sit with me.” 

“Deal.” 

“Promise?” 

“On Kosmo.” Keith said, leading the way out to the living room that had been turned into a makeshift dining area to fit everyone. Lance was already waiting. 

“Figured you wouldn’t wanna go over there.” He said, gesturing to the plate next to him. “You drink red or white?” 

“White.” 

“Really?” 

“Yeah, shut up.” Keith said as he took the plate and started following Arlo. 

“Where are you going?” 

“I have a promise to upkeep.” He said, nodding to them. 

“Roni, skooch.” He said, making Veronica move down a seat as he disappeared into the kitchen. Eventually, he came back with two glasses, then waited until everyone was seated to get some for Veronica which he poured into an empty sparkling water can. Keith watched as he snuck behind her and put it on the table before leaning down and whispering something. 

“See? Told you it’d be fine.” 

“Maybe… as long as the other two can steer away from like half of the possible topics of conversation.” 

“Stop worrying about it.” Eventually, Alro seemed to be a little more comfortable with the entire situation, until he heard Aunt Marie talking to Lance. 

“So, how did St. Louis treat you?” 

“Good. I just got bored I guess…” 

“What were you there for again?” 

“Oh, I had an internship with a label down there. It was pretty cool.” 

“I’m sure, did you get to meet anyone cool?” 

“Uh, not really… I was really just working with up and coming artists, they didn’t trust me with the ones that were already famous.” 

“Did any of them make it big?” 

“Not so far, I have faith in a few of them though.” The conversation continued for a little while before Marco stepped in. 

“You realize that’s all completely fabricated right?” He asked, gesturing between her and Lance. 

“I’m sorry?” 

“Stop.” Lance said through gritted teeth. 

“What? I mean, you wanted to be here right? Why lie? What’s the point in that?” 

“Marco.” Lance’s mom said in a warning voice. 

“Really? You’re just okay with this? All of it?” 

“Yes, you should be too, you all should be. He’s my son and your brother.” 

“And? He’s what? Twenty-three? Shouldn’t he be off on his own now. That’s what he’s wanted since he was fifteen. Right Lance?” 

“Why do you think that’s what I wanted? When I was fifteen, you were gone.” 

“I was not! I lived less than two hours away!” 

“But you never came home. You never called, and you never picked up when I did. You can say I chose to leave all you want, but that was you. You left me, and you know that. I’m not gonna sit here and have you berate me over things that were totally out of my control, especially when you could’ve stepped in. No one else here as a problem with me, including your wife. Figure out your own shit before you start coming for me… actually, I think I remember a great verse for that so you can get it through your thick skull. What was it?” 

“Matthew 7:5” Rachel mumbled. “First remove the plank from your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother's eye.” 

“Fits perfect don’t you think?” Marco just scoffed. “Yeah, sorry guys, my parents built this lie around my life, nothing you’ve heard about me for the last three years is true, dad booted me. Then, he left me.” It was obvious Marie and her husband were just lost, but no one dared to join in the conversation. “Any questions?” He asked half-sarcastically, then getting no response, went back to eating. At that point, he realized Keith was just staring in his lap and Arlo was looking around him at Lance. He tried to sneakily slide a hand over one of Keith’s, but it didn’t go unnoticed. 

“You’re fucking kidding right?” 

“Marco… shut up.” 

“You’re ser-” 

“Marco. You will respect him, or you will leave.” Lance’s mother hissed, banging her fork on the counter. 

“What? What did I do?” 

“You heard me. Take your pick. Shut up and eat, or leave. Lisa, you and the kids are welcome to stay either way.” She said, softening at the end. Lance still hadn’t removed his hand or his glare, he was just waiting. He kept the stare as he sucked down the rest of his wine. Eventually, Marco dropped his stare and Lance did the same, letting the conversation turn back to normal. 

Chapter Text

“I’m sorry about all of that…” Lance whispered when Keith started to loosen up a little. Keith just nodded and reached for his wine. He didn’t talk for most of the rest of dinner, trying to ignore the glares he was getting from Marco. 

“So, what are we doing after dinner?” Aunt Marie asked. 

“We’ll hang out for a while before dessert I think, but after that, I have nothing planned. Are you guys planning on staying the night?” 

“Do you have the room?” 

“The kids can sleep in here. Marco will take his room, the girls can share. I’ll sleep in one of there rooms, you two can take mine. I don’t need a queen to myself.” 

“Okay then, I guess we can… Is there anyway the kids can stay here for a little while in the morning. We wanted to get some… shopping done tomorrow.” She said, whispering towards the end. 

“Of course. Good luck out there though. I’m sure it’ll be crazy…” 

“I’m sure it will, but that’s half the fun.” She laughed. “So, what about anyone else? Any plans for tonight or tomorrow?” 

“We’re leaving first thing in the morning.” Marco said, causing all four of the kids to whine. “We have to… remember, we had that thing planned.” He said, clearly lying. 

“Oh no, I moved that to next week, we can stay for a little while if that’s okay with you, Rossa.” 

“Of course it is!”

“Luke is coming over tomorrow…” Roni mumbled. 

“Good. I should’ve met him months ago.” Lance said as he overfilled his glass. “Keith, Rachel, and I are gonna go out later. Silas texted yesterday and said he’d be in town and she wants to see his sister.” 

“Luis?” 

“Uh… I dunno yet…” They mumbled. Eventually, dinner was over and they all spread out, having smaller conversations. 

“Come on, I’m sure you need a break, you can smoke out out my bedroom window.” He said, pulling Keith away, unaware Arlo had followed. As they walked in, Lance pulled out a shooter for each of them. “Cheers?” He said as he handed it to Keith, who immediately downed it. “Jesus dude, you’re like a little robot… how do you enjoy that?” 

“If it makes you feel better, I can’t do tequila.” 

“It would if you did it…” Keith immediately shook his head. “Come on, I’ll shoot one of yours first.” Keith sighed and accepted the challenge. As soon as he tilted his head back, a cringe grew on Lance’s face. “Not too bad…” He grimaced. “You’re turn.” Keith sighed and shot it, somehow without a reaction. 

“That’s fucking gross. You’re gross.” He said, scrunching up his nose. 

“So… is this what you guys do all the time?” Arlo asked, announcing their presence. 

“No, just when we have annoying siblings to deal with.” He teased, really talking about Marco. 

“Where are you really going tonight?”

“I told you. Just going to see an old friend, why?” 

“Because…” 

“Have Roni take you to Maya’s if it gets bad. Or call me and I’ll be here, we’re going somewhere that you can’t get into.”

“But Rachel can?” 

“She’s nineteen. I’ll take you in five years. Until then, don’t take shit from Marco, Roni will be here if you need her and I’ll have my phone. Have fun with Liam and Amelia, you won’t see them until Christmas.”

“Still…” 

“Still… it’ll be fine. Worst case, I’ll even take you home with me if you need a break.” 

“Ugh, fine.” He sighed as he walked back out. They stayed in Lance’s room until they heard his mom shout his name from the living room. 

“What?” He asked, rounding the corner. 

“I have a surprise for you… Guess what I just found.” She said, hiding something in her hand. 

“What?” She just smiled and tossed it over. 

“No way, I thought dad trashed her! Does she still run?” 

“I do-” 

“Yeah, he  has actually done some upkeep, doesn’t drive it though.” Roni interrupted, he immediately grabbed Keith’s hand and started toward the door. 

“No driving! You drank half that bottle of wine!” His mom shouted behind him. 

“Where are we going?” 

“You’re about to meet Roxane!” 

“Who?” 

“You’ll see!” He said as he ran over to an older Maroon trucked and opened the door for Keith, then got in himself. “He didn’t change anything…” He said, looking over the random things he had used to decorate it. Keith looked to, mainly trying to imagine high school Lance. 

“So… what’s with the name?” 

“Hang on…” He said, starting the truck up and turning the volume up. As soon as the radio turned on, Roxane by The Police started playing. “The guy I bought it off of got the disk stuck. It’s the only track it plays too, she chose her name.” He said as he pounded on the dashboard, making it shut off. “I had a bluetooth adaptor too though.”  Keith just nodded. “Oh my God! We should take her camping! Like when it’s warmer.” 

“Lance… what about me looks like camping?” 

“Come on, I’d be fun!” 

“I’ll think about it if you’ll shut up.” Lance just nodded and pulled down the visor, causing a polaroid to fall out. When he picked it up, he glanced at it, then shoved it into his jacket pocket.

“What was that about?” 

“Oh… nothing. It’s just the same as the day I left…” He could tell Keith was still confused so he eventually decided to continue. “The guy I was dating when I came out… kind of an asshole. I got thrown out for him and he fucked my bestfriend’s brother the same night.” He sighed. “But, it’s fine. Things worked out I guess.” Keith just nodded and moved over to the middle. 

“So… Arlo really doesn’t like Marco do they?” 

“No, they never got along, even when Alro was a baby, they wanted nothing to do with him. I don’t know why… they got along a little when we all got a little older, but they’ve always fought the most.” 

“Really? Not you two?” 

“Nope… Until he moved, we were super close. I mean, I would’ve rather hung out with him then like my real friends. I told you I followed him around everywhere. I still don’t know what happened between fifteen and nineteen, but whatever. He’s a prick now.” 

“I’m sorry…” 

“It’s fine, I just wish we could be in the same room for two hours without being at eachother’s throats… Well, we used to be able to even after that, but that was just because I didn’t take up for myself. Now I do and he sees it as a challenge. At least Rachel was on my side though. Mama was about to get the spoon when he wouldn’t drop it though.” Lance finished with a slight laugh. “Defiantly gonna need that bar trip though, and I’m sure your not opposed?” 

“Are you just trying to get me wasted today?”

“Hey, I’m just offering. Don’t act like you’re even tipsy right now. I had twice what you did and I just have like the tiniest amount of tipsiness.” 

“Okay, my whiskey’s a higher percentage than what you have first of all, secondly, I don’t need much…” 

“Mine’s fourty!” 

“Yeah, mine’s… actually… shut up!” He whined. 

“Wow… guess I was wrong, better catch up then.” He mumbled as he pulled his last two out and downed them, only for Keith to take his too. “Great idea, mullet.” He said sarcastically. 

“Shut up.” He mumbled before shooting both and leaning onto Lance’s shoulder. They sat in silence for a few more minutes before Lance’s mom texted him to come up for dessert. When they got up, Lance grabbed a slice of pie and lead the way over to one of the couches since the living room was back to being a living room. 

“Are you not eating any?” Rossa asked. 

“No. mama. Keith’s a little demon, he doesn’t really like sweet stuff. He even drinks black coffee.” He said, teasingly.  “I know, he’s really weird.” He said with a soft smile. 

“When are you three leaving?” 

“Uh… what time is it now?” 

“Nearly nine… if you stay out late, keep an eye on Rachel.” 

“Of course. I’ll bring her back in one peice I promise. W’ll probably head out in about an hour” Rossa just nodded and walked back to her spot next to Marie in the kitchen. “And you sir, need to sober up a bit before we go.” 

“What are you talking about? I had like four.. I think five actually… of the shooters and like a glass of wine.” 

“And some of mine.” 

“When?” 

“When you stared at me drinking it and made grabby hands at it. I’m gonna go make you some coffee so you’ll be less obviously intoxicated when we get there. It’s not too noticeable, but that place won’t let you in if you’ve already been drinking. People used to barhop a lot and it was always causing issues.” Keith just nodded and watched him walk away before Rachel jumped onto the couch next to me. 

“So… this really works?”

“Sorry,,, what?” 

“He can get me in?” 

“Propbably, he gets me in.” 

“Yeah, you look older though…” 

“He says I don’t. I’m like twenty and one month. You’re…” 

“I just turned nineteen…” 

“You don’t look it, but according to Lance I’m tipsy so…” 

“I have no idea what to wear… I feel like this doesn’t help my case…”

“Don’t ask Lance for help, he wears that jacket everyday.” 

“I know, I was asking you stupid. You have a… different style. These people probably know me so, maybe it’s a good excuse for a change in aesthetic…” 

“Are you asking me to make you ‘emo’?” 

“Kinda, could be fun.” 

“What do I have to work with?” Rachel just smirked and pulled him to her room. 

“So, I didn’t bring much of my older clothes to college and I haven’t grone since middle school, also Luis’s tops would be baggy on me so… his band shirts are an option too…” Keith just nodded and walked to the closet, immediately finding a pair of black skinny jeans that would work. He tossed them on the bed, then found a little black button up vest thing. 

“Do you have any like… tank tops with lace at the top, and what about shoes?” 

“Uhhh… maybe and I have like a million pairs of Nikes, red hightop Converse, and some old mary janes from church, they’re all on the top shelf.” Keith just nodded and pulled down the converse and mary janes, ultimately decided the mary janes were close enough, then looked over the tank tops she had pulled out. “The white one. Pin it up or something.” He said as he tossed a sheer black cardigan onto the stack and left to wait in the hall. Before she finished changing, Lance found him. 

“You disappeared…” 

“Yeah, my attention was needed elsewhere.” He said as he felt the door open behind him. 

“So? What do we think?” She asked. Lance was in total shock, which in turn earned a proud smirk from Keith. 

“I think I did pretty good with what I had.”

“Help me find some jewelry too, I need a necklace with this shirt.” He just nodded and followed her back into her room. 

“What did you do to her?” Lance half-shouted as he walked back in. 

“Nothing! She asked for my help.” Keith laughed while looking through her jewelry. 

“But… She- and you- what?” 

“I asked him to make me emo. It’s fun.” Rachel said as she started fixing her half-faded makeup. Keith just laughed and laid what he found on her vanity. “Keith…?” 

“Yeah?” 

“You know, I really think you should let me do your eyeliner…” 

“I haven’t worn eyeliner since like tenth grade.” He whined. 

“Okay? And? It’ll look cool.” 

“Hey! You broke my sister! You get eyeliner!” Lance said, pulling Keith back over to the vanity. 

“Fine, but I’m doing it, you’ll stab my eye out. Actually… you have black eyeshadow? It works better.” 

“Yeah, that smaller gray pallet over there.” He nodded and grabbed it and a little brush, then spent way too long packing it on before aggressively rubbing his waterline to smudge it. 

“It looked a lot better in high school.” He said as he stared into the mirror. By then, Rachel was pretty much ready.

“How’d I do?” She asked, gesturing to her darker makeup. 

“Good… you gotta fuck up your hair a little a though. It’s like way too well done right now.” 

“You’re right.” She said as she sprayed some hairspray and scuffed it up a bit. “Okay, finished product?” Keith just smiled and nodded clearly proud of himself and Lance’s expression. 

“Where did you even get that shirt? Am I gonna have to get into a bar fight tonight?” 

“Dude, literally less than half of my stomach is visible. I’m nineteen, you can drop the big brother act.” 

“It’s not an act! Marco’s gonna kill us both!”

“So, don’t let him see me. We’ll slip out while you talk to mama.” 

“Fine, go.” They both laughed and ran out while Lance grabbed a little container of acetone from her vanity and walked out to the kitchen. He talked to his mom, explaining their fake plans, then slipped out to see Keith and Rachel waiting by the door. 

“Put that in your bag.” He said, passing her the bottle and leading the way to the bar. 

Chapter Text

When they arrived at the bar, they all flashed their IDs and Rachel and Keith got their X’s. Lance led the way to a table in the back corner and grabbed some napkins. 

“Scrub your hands with the acetone, but don’t let them see, then we’ll go up to the bar.” Rachel nodded and started while Keith looked around, the bartender catching his eye. As soon as he felt Lance’s eyes on him, he looked elsewhere, then back to the table to start on his hands. A few minutes later, they were sitting at the bar, opening tabs. 

“So, what can I get you guys?” The bartender asked. 

“Old Fashioned with a twist, Maker’s Mark. Make it bitter.” Keith said immediately. 

“Nice, good taste.” He said, flashing a smile. “And for the lady?” 

“Uh… a gin and tonic…” He just nodded and looked at Lance. 

“I’ll do a rum a sour, house is fine.” The bartender nodded and stepped a little to the side to mix their drinks.

“Lance?” A voice from behind called, making him and Keith both turn around. 

“Chase, what’s up man?” 

“You know, just got done at home, needed a cooldown…” 

“Us too…” He said, walking over to him and out of earshot of the others. 

“So… who’s that?” 

“Chase Pemberton. He was like the hottest guy in our whole highschool… and one of Lance’s best friends. I tried to get with him so many times…” She laughed. “He’s like engaged now or something, but they used to play together at open mics and stuff.” Keith just nodded. 

“So… Do you even like gin and tonic?” 

“Uh… maybe, I don’t know. I kind of just drink whatever I’m given. I don’t know what I actually like, they just order that on TV a lot and I didn’t wanna sound dumb.” 

“Well, what do you like?” 

“Mmmh… no idea. I didn’t think anyone actually enjoyed anything…” 

“We do. Come on, help me out… I used to bartend, I’m gonna find your drink. You know Lance’s is a Tom Collins?” 

“No idea what that is…” 

“Gin, lemon juice, sugar, and club soda. Basically a spiked lemonade… I made fun of him for it, but it makes sense…” 

“What do you think just based off what you know about me? Like if you were bartending and you saw me, what would you think?”

“Hmm… not beer of any kind… I don’t know… We'll find it. You’re not gettin a hurricane, Cosmopolitan, or a seven and seven though.” 

“Why?” 

“Because hurricanes are dangerous, seven and sevens suck, and cosmos are boring.” 

“Fair enough…” She said as the bartender sat down their drinks. Lance returned quickly to grab his, then disappeared again. “Yeah… we can find better…” She said after taking a sip. 

“Thought so… you like whiskey?” 

“No idea…” 

“Here.” He said, sliding her his cup. She took a small sip, then hesitated. 

“That’s kinda bitter, but it’s better than this…” 

“I get it bitter. This is a bourbon. It’s my go to.” He didn’t see the bartender listening in. 

“So, I’m guessing someone just turned twenty-one then?” He asked, she just nodded, somewhat panicked so Keith took over. 

“Yeah, she did yesterday. She’s trying to find her drink.” 

“Kinda figured the gin and tonic wasn’t it.” He laughed. “What do you want? It’s on me?” She just looked at Keith. 

“Maker’s Mark on rocks.” He just smiled and walked off, returning a moment later with the drink. She immediately took a sip. 

“Still a little bitter…” She laughed. 

“Let the ice dilute it a bit, I’m sure that’s why we went with on the rocks?” Keith nodded. 

“I thought that was bad?” 

“Nah, snobs’ll say that. It brings out some sweeter notes. So… you two are together?” They both looked at each other before laughing. 

“No, he’s my brother’s friend. He’s around here somewhere.” Rachel explained. 

“Kinda just guessed from the… looks…” 

“This is normal for him, I let him help me find something to wear.” 

“I like it.” He said, his attention fully on Keith. “Kinda got a nineties grunge vibe to you.” Keith just shrugged. 

“I just like black. She made me do the eyeliner.” He just nodded, flashing another toothy smile. 

“Well, my name’s Blake, I’ll be here basically all night, so if you need something, let me know.” Keith just nodded as he walked away. 

“Dude… he’s totally flirting with you.” 

“He wants a tip. I did the same thing.” 

“Please, look over there when he comes back.” She said, nodding to where Lance was taking a shot. 

“Why?” 

“Just do it.” She said before waving to get his attention. “Can we actually get a few rounds of shots? Apparently my brother’s way ahead of us.”

“Hm, you’re babysitting tonight?” He asked Keith.

“I guess so… three rounds of… “ He said, turning to Rachel. 

“Tequila?” 

“House is fine. I hate it and she doesn’t know the difference.” Blake nodded and grabbed the bottle. 

“Not a tequila fan?” 

“No, I really only drink whiskey. Basically any kind, but yeah…” 

“Really? Are you secretly like fourty?” 

“Uh, no. Twenty-two, it’s all I’ve ever really drank though.” 

“Even in like highschool?” 

“Yeah. Usually with co- Ow!” He said, interrupted by Rachel’s elbow. “Usually diet coke and whatever they had on hand.” He said, glancing over to where Lance was glaring at the bartender. He couldn’t help but wonder if it was jealousy or him just being protective of both of them, so he continued. “It’s all my brother drank other than wine.” 

“So, are you from around here?” He asked as Keith took a shot. 

“No, Texas then Arizona.” 

“Really? What made you leave Texas? I’ve always wondered about moving down there?” 

“Uh… a lot of things… mainly my brother moving onto base in Arizona though. He’s stationed in Germany now though. I just kinda ended up here.” 

“Oh, how long ago?” 

“Like a year and a half ago maybe…” 

“So, Air Force then?” 

“Yeah.” 

“What does he do?” 

“Munitions and missile maintenance I think… I’m not sure what his rank is now though.” 

“Cool, my sister actually does the same thing, she’s stationed in Turkey right now though.” Keith just nodded and took another shot. “So, I overheard you mention bartending…” 

“Yeah, I used to back in Arizona.” 

“Not anymore though?” 

“No… barista though, close enough. I thought about it, but I don’t know…” 

“Crowds not bad in this area…” 

“I live in the southside now.” 

“Damn, understandable then, big college bars down there.” Keith just nodded and took another shot, still feeling Lance’s glare, then turned to Rachel. “Finish your drink or go over there, I wanna go smoke.” 

‘What?” 

“Like… don’t stay here alone, but don’t leave your drink. Finish it and come with me or go over there.” 

“Yeah, not happening. He’s still talking to chase.” She said as he downed the rest of her discarded gin and tonic before following Keith to the side door with open re-entry. He hopped up to sit on the patio railing and pulled out a cigarette. 

“Can I try it?” 

“Wow… the alcohol’s kicking in… will Lance kill me?” 

“Not if he doesn’t know. He’s more worried about your new boyfriend anyway.” 

“I don’t think so. He’s just over protective with both of us.” He said as he lit the cigarette and passed it to her. She took a drag and coughed a little before going in for a second. “Well, you’re doing better than he did.” He said, deciding to pull out another. 

“He totally likes you. He’s just afraid you’ll not feel the same and it would make things weird.” 

“I really doubt that… did he say that?” 

“No, but we all know he has a thing for you. I think the feeling might be mutual, but I’m not gonna say anything… I mean especially when he saw you and Luis hanging out. That’s like a big thing for him. Even if we don’t all get along, family is a big deal to him…”

“Yeah, can’t say I get that one. I just don’t like Marco….” 

“Fair enough. I don’t know if you saw, but he was about two seconds away from stabbing him with a fork when he was glaring at you. Mama really likes you too.” 

“I’ve noticed.” He laughed. 

“So, you should stop avoiding it.” 

“What do you mean?” 

“You’re both avoiding your feelings stupid.” 

“I have to…” 

“No you don’t.” 

“I do. I can’t do any of that again… That’s why if you’re right he’s avoiding it. He knows that.” 

“What do you mean?” 

“Uh… I guess you haven’t heard… The entire reason I met him was because of things with my ex… they were… bad. I can’t do it again. It’d be too much on him anyway.” 

“He would never do anything to purposely hurt you, have you seen the way he acts around you? And what do you mean too much?” 

“I don’t know… I mean, he’s already flipped his entire life for me…and he can’t even talk to me half the time without me being difficult, then he gets annoyed and then… whatever the issue was doesn’t get resolved… He’s gonna get sick of that.” 

“He wants you around. You know what, I have an idea… When we go back in, we’ll order something else, you two can talk and I’ll go tease him about it, see how he reacts.” 

“Won’t he get mad…” 

“No, he’ll get jealous. Then you’ll know.” Before he could refuse, she tossed her cigarette bud and skipped inside, meaning he had to follow to keep her out of trouble. They sat in the same seats and she called Blake over.

“Oh, reds? I was right, good taste.” He said, noticing the box Keith was putting back in his pocket. “What else can I get you guys?” 

“Uhh, get me a hurri-” 

“Nope!” Keith interrupted. 

“Ugh, fine. You pick then.” 

“Get her a Roy Rogers.” 

“What’s that?” 

“Uh… grenadine, coke, and gin.” Keith lied, knowing she needed a minute to let the alcohol catch up with her. 

“And you?” 

“Uhhh… surprise me.” 

“Really? Any limitations?” 

“Maybe avoid grenadine and anything red.” He laughed, Blake just nodded and got to work. He gave them both their drinks and sparked up another conversation with Keith before he took a sip of the drink. 

“Oh, God, what is that?” He asked, cringing. 

“What? I wanna try?” 

“Go ahead.” Keith said, knowing she wouldn’t take another sip. Her reaction was much the same. 

“Ah, that would be pickle juice, scotch, and pineapple juice.” He laughed. 

“Get it away. I’ll go back to the Old Fashioned, I regret my choices.” 

“What? No, give me one more shot?” 

“Fine.” Blake took the drink back and walked away, returning a few minutes later with a new drink in a martini glass. “Really?” He asked, taking a sip. “A widow maker?” 

“Without the grenadine.” 

“Do I look like this is what I’d order?” 

“No, you look like you like it though.” 

“It’s never a go to, but I don’t hate it.” 

“What’s my score?” 

“Uhhh, eight.” He said, turning to offer a sip to Rachel, but he soon realized she was gone.

“She’s over there.” Keith just nodded and finished his drink. He was honestly starting to feel like the alcohol was going to catch up with him and be a bit too much, but he stayed to finish it anyway. As Blake made his way back over, Lance appeared with his arm wrapped around Keith. “The brother I assume?” He asked. 

“Something like that. Keith, do a round with me?” He asked, running hand through his hair. He just nodded and leaned into the touch while Lance decided what they were taking. 

“So… you’re together then?” 

“Yes.” 

“No.” They answered in unison, earning a confused look from Blake and a giggle from Rachel who had managed to get herself a shot too. They all downed it, then Lance decided they should go play pool. When they were setting up, Rachel noticed Blake sliding out from behind the bar, presumably on break.

“You’re on break?” She half-slurred, clearly feeling the effects now. 

“Yeah… what’s the deal with them?” 

“They’re not dating, Lance is ‘overprotective’, come play pool with us.” 

“Well… okay then.” He agreed, following her over. 

“Blake’s gonna play. Lance, be on my team?” 

“Oh, I already told Keith I’d be on his.” He said with a mild-glare. 

Chapter Text

Lance racked the balls, refusing to leave Keith’s side still and told them to go first. Blake had a pretty good break, but didn’t sack any balls. Lance went next and got two stripes in. Rachel sucked. It could’ve been the alcohol, but he doubted doubted it. She scored nothing, then it was Keith’s turn. He was clearly nearly wasted, but still managed to pop the cue ball over a solid and hit a striped ball in, then another with a corner shot. 

“Not too bad.” Blake said, lining up a new shot. He went for a break shot for the rest of the balls in the center, only getting one solid in, then went for a plant shot to get another, then the ball he used to push the other in, finally, he missed the fourth shot, meaning it was Lance’s turn. He didn’t do too great, he only landed one shot. The game continued, eventually resulting in the victory of Keith and Lance. 

“Well, I’m gonna go grab a smoke…” He said, hanging his stick back up. “That pop shot was good though. I still haven’t mastered that one. You’ll have to come play me again at some point.” Before Keith could respond, Lance spoke up. 

“Yeah, maybe. We’ll be back for Christmas I’m sure.” Blake just looked at Rachel, then back to Keith who was clearly wasted, nodded and walked off. “Thank God.” He mumbled. 

“What?” Keith asked. 

“Oh, nothing… you need some water.” He said, leading him to the bar, which Rachel followed suit. He ordered him water and himself another drink. He downed it before Rachel leaned closer. 

“You’re jealous…” 

“This was all you wasn’t it?” She just laughed. “You’re a little snake.”

“You love me. And him.” 

“Shut up. How much have you had to drink?” She proceeded to list off her drinks, then decided she wanted another Roy Rogers. “You know what’s virgin right?”

“Keith! You liar!” 

“What did I do?” He asked, still staring at a corner behind the bar, not bothering to respond when she told him. A few minutes later, he stood and walked out onto the patio to smoke again without Lance’s knowledge. To be fair, he forgot Blake even existed at that point, until he struggled to light the zippo and his cigarette seemed to light itself. 

“So, boyfriend then?” 

“What?” 

“The guy you're with?” 

“Oh… no.”

“Does he know that?” 

“Yeah… why wouldn’t he?” 

“He seemed not to. Does he know you're out here talking to me?” 

“I think… I didn’t even know you were here though.” He said, taking a long drag. A few seconds later, Lance walked out and stole the cigarette from Keith’s lips, taking a drag himself. 

“You ready to go home?” 

“Huh?” 

“I would take that as a yes.” Blake interrupted, motioning for Lance to follow him to the otherside of the patio. “So… you’re not dating, but you hate the idea of me flirting with him?”

“No we-”

“Dude, just go for it. Not now obviously.” 

“There’s more to it than that, besides, why do you care?” 

“Because, look at him.” Lance turned to see Keith sitting on the railing, kicking his feet, watching Lance and waiting for him to come back. “He’s cute, I’ll give you that, but he’s already yours man.” Lance just shrugged and walked back over. 

“I think I’m gonna have one more and we’ll leave…” He said, stopping directly in front of him.

“How’re we getting home?” He slurred, leaning his head into Lance’s chest, 

“We’ll stay at mama’s.” 

“Can I sleep with you?” 

“Yeah, you’re gonna feel like shit tomorrow though.” 

“Nooo.” 

“Yesss, come on.” He said, offering a hand. Keith accepted it and followed him back to the bar, but refused to let go when they got there. Lance had another drink while trying to convince Keith to drink some more water, helped them pay their tabs, then led them both back out of the bar. It was almost two when they started their walk home. Rachel was a little ahead of them, stumbling a bit and Lance was half way holding Keith up. 

“You’re not allowed to drink with her or alone anymore.” 

“Hey! You abandoneded me.” He whined, leaning closer into him. “M’ cold.” 

“I know, we’ll go to bed soon.” As they kept walking, Lance couldn’t help but notice Keith was staring at him. “What are you staring at?” Keith stopped and stood up on his toes, 

“Rachel she uh… I think you should kiss me.” He whispered. Lance was completely shocked at the point to say the least. Not only was that totally out of character from him, but also just unexpected period. 

“As much as I would like to, I can’t.” Lance said, sure Keith wouldn’t even remember the next day. 

“Why not?” 

“You’re wasted.” 

“You are too…” 

“Not really, I’m definitely not sober, but I can think clearly. That would be me taking advantage of you, that’s not what I want to do.” 

“You suck.” Keith whined. 

“We can cuddle when we get back to mama’s, but that’s it. I don’t want you to regret it in the morning.” 

“I wouldn’t…” He mumbled.

“Well, I’m not gonna risk it. Come on, we're almost there.” Lance said, wrapping an arm back around him. “Rachel, let me walk in with you too!” He called after her before she rounded the corner, making her turn back into his vision to wait. Finally, they made it to the door and Lance got them both inside without waking anyone, including the kids that were sleeping in the living room. Or so he thought. After he got Rachel to her room, he went back to his to deal with Keith, but Arlo stopped him. 

“You’re all drunk.” 

“I’m not that drunk. A little, but enough to still be kind of logical.”

“You’re staying here tonight?” 

“Yeah, why?” 

“Just wondering… Where’s Keith?” 

“Now, he’s wasted. I left him to his own devices…” 

“Really? What did he have?” 

“No idea… Mostly whiskey I’m sure. Probably some shot… I was talking to one of my old friends and he was already basically wasted when I got back.” Arlo just nodded. “Okay, I better go deal with him. Get some sleep.” Arlo just nodded and walked away, it was obvious to him Lance was downplaying his level of intoxication, but he didn’t say anything. He was definitely more drunk than he showed and was trying to force himself to sober up a bit. When he got back into his old room, Keith was sitting on the floor by the bed on his phone. 

“What are you doing?” 

“I dunno.” 

“Alright, come on. Let’s go to bed.” Lance mumbled as he pulled off Keith’s boots, then started undressing himself. “Here.” He said, holding out the hoodie he had just taken off. “I’m sure you don’t wanna sleep in that, but you’ll get cold.” Keith just nodded and struggled out of his jacket and t-shirt and pulled on the hoodie. He then pulled off his jeans, not bothering to take anything out of the pockets and stumbled over to the bed. 

“Scootch.” Lance said as he laid down beside him, almost immediately Keith rolled over on top of him, with a glare. “Are you still mad?” Keith just shrugged. “It’s because I care about you. We can worry about that when you’re sober.” He could tell Keith still wasn’t happy about it, but he still dropped his head back onto his chest. Suddenly, Lance pushed the hair off of his forehead and he felt his lips press to his forehead. “That’s all you're getting right now…” Keith just nodded and wrapped one of his legs around Lance’s. A few minutes later, he knew Keith was asleep, so he allowed himself to get some sleep too. 

Keith woke up the next morning alone, and totally confused on how he ended up there. Then, he sat up and felt the pain in his head and it all made sense. As he flopped back down, Lance appeared in the doorway. 

“You regretting your decision yet?”

“Shut up.” 

“Aw, are you hungover?” He asked as he handed Keith a glass of water and some Tylenol.

“Shut up.” He mumbled as he took the pills and drank about half of the water. 

“What all do you remember?” Lance asked, obviously trying to see if he remembered their conversation. 

“That your sister is an awful influence…” 

“She can’t be the influence if you’re older.” 

“By like a year, it doesn’t count.” 

“That’s it though?” 

“Yeah. Pretty much.” 

“You don’t remember you almost getting a boyfriend?” 

“No?” 

“You and the bartender were flirting for like half of the night.” 

“God… was he even cute? Or was he just like twice my age and a walking red flag?” 

“I mean, not my type… I don’t think he was too much older than me though. I honestly thought I was gonna have to fight you not to leave with him.”

“I wouldn’t have. You’re sister made me do shots, I blame that.” 

“Oh, so that’s why you don’t drink tequila?” 

“Kinda, yeah… wouldn’t have left though…” 

“I know, I wouldn’t have let you. Even if I wasn’t with you, you know I was watching you two the whole time.”

“You wouldn’t have had to stop me…” He mumbled. 

“Why not?” 

“Because…” 

“Because?” 

“Two reasons and they totally contradict each other…”
“What do you mean?” Keith just shrugged. 

“Put some pants on and come on. You need to eat something, you’ll feel better.” 

“Ugh.” Keith started, reaching for his jeans. “Food sounds awful right now.” 

“I know, but you need something. Even just some toast or something, come on.” Eventually, Keith got his jeans on and followed Lance into the kitchen. He waited while he made him toast and coffee, trying to block out the kids wrestling in the other room.

“I thought you had to work?” 

“No, breaker shift so just if they needed me to. That’s over in like half an hour though so I think I’m good.” 

“Really? What time is it?” 

“Twelve-thirty. You were knocked out. We didn’t get home till like three though.”

“Where’s Rachel?” 

“Her room probably. Eat first.” He said, putting the plate and mug down on the table and taking the next seat over. “Is there something you needed?” 

“No, just wanted to talk to her.” He mumbled, messing with a piece of the toast.”Where’s everyone else?” 

“Uh… Marie and Clark are shopping, mama had to run up to dad’s store, Marco and Lisa are out somewhere, probably also Christmas shopping, Roni went to get her boyfriend like a while ago, and Arlo went to Maya’s. It’s just the kids, us, and Rachel right now. I got stuck watching them while everyone’s gone. Mama won’t be much longer.” Keith just nodded and leaned against Lance’s arm. “Also, there’s still eyeliner or whatever like all over your face.”

“Shut up.”

“Nah, actually, you wanna hear about your pool game with… Blake I think it was?” 

“No, not really… you suck.” 

“You love me.” 

“Whatever. I ate like half your toast, can I be left alone now?” 

“Fine, get that off your face though.” Keith just nodded and made his way down the hall to Rachel’s room and knocked. 

Chapter Text

“Lance! Get over it!” 

“I’m not Lance.” 

“Oh, Keith. Hold on, it’s locked.” She said, then Keith could hear shuffling behind the door before he was met by Rachel who clearly felt as bad as him. She was in a pair of flannel bottoms with a shirt that was probably four times too big, her hair was up, but falling out, and she still had like half her makeup on. 

“What was that about?” 

“Oh… he’s kinda mad at me…” She said, handing him a makeup wipe. 

“Why?” 

“Because of what we talked about last night…” 

“Us?” 

“Yeah, when we were outside…” Keith stared at her for a minute before remembering what they had talked about. 

“Oh… he knows?” 

“He said you were ‘acting weird’, and he knew it was my doing.” 

“Acting weird?” 

“No idea… I just told him we probably both drank too much…” 

“Well, we did and I blame you.” 

“You drank more than me! You had me drinking whatever that was at the end and told me it had gin in it.” 

“Yeah because I knew you’d be wasted if you had much more, and Lance wasn’t with us.” 

“So?” 

“So, you’re pretty, men are gross and I wouldn’t have been able to do anything about it if something happened. So yes, I cut you off.” 

“What do you mean…” 

“If you haven’t noticed, I’m like terrified of most people… well, mainly men…” 

“Not Blake… Luis, or Lance” 

“He was working, that’s different. Luis is thirteen and Lance is Lance. He still scares me sometimes though…” 

“So… that’s why you got all quiet at dinner then?” He just nodded. “Also, Luis could probably win in a fight with you. Apparently he’s been getting in those a lot at school and he’s not much smaller than you.” 

“Yeah, but he wouldn’t try and fight me unless I deserved it. He’s told me about his fights and I think it was all well deserved.” 

“Fair enough… Why does Lance scare you?” 

“Because… I guess I’ve seen him after he got into fights now… and he’s a lot taller than me and stronger than me… If something did happen I don’t exactly have anywhere to go and I’d be back where I started…” 

“Yeah, but that’s not him. You’re talking about dad right?” Keith nodded. “He deserved that. Even when Lance is pissed, he doesn’t swing first, even back in high school. You really don’t have to worry about him… if that’s what’s stopping you…” 

“I thought I didn’t last time too… but like I said, it starts with him, I’m just stuck…” 

“Well, it won’t …” Keith just shrugged, totally unaware that Lance had heard their conversation, and went back to scrubbing off the eyeliner. Soon enough, Lance walked in and stood behind him, resting a hand on his shoulder.

“You two still dead?” He asked. 

“Yeah…” They said in unison. 

“Movies?” They both agreed and followed Lance out to the livingroom after he sent the kids to Arlo’s room to play on the Xbox. He threw Rachel the remote and motioned for Keith to come sit with him where he had dragged a blanket out from his bed. He felt bad after hearing their conversation, but he couldn’t do anything to fix it, so he just wrapped his arm around Keith and pulled his legs over his lap. Rachel put on some movie neither of them recognized that ended up being pretty good. After it was over, they started another, but only made it halfway through before the door opened. Keith went to move, but Lance kept an arm over his legs, stopping him and kept his eyes on the TV. From the otherside of the living room, they could all hear a scoff.

“Come help me put these things up.” Lisa said. 

“Yeah, I’ll be there in a minute.” Marco said, walking into the living room. Before he actually spoke, he just sat, staring. “What the hell is wrong with you Rach? You’re just okay with this?” 

“They aren’t dating and I like Keith.” He just scoffed and walked off. Lance could practically feel Keith’s heart speed up. He placed a hand over his knee and rubbed circles with his thumb. A bit later, his mom came home and Lace got up to follow her to the kitchen. 

“So, what’d you have to do?” 

“I was going through some old files… I’m not sure that I couldn’t get the store if I file. It would be nice to have it. It looks like we own equal shares.” 

“Really?” 

“Yeah, we bought it together… Maybe if I do… you could run it for a while.” 

“Maybe, I was thinking about leaving the diner…” 

“It’s good pay… What are you two planning for today?” 

“Uhh… we’ll probably head out soon… I thought Roni was bringing her boyfriend over?” 

“They did some shopping, I was just on the phone with her, she’s on the way.” 

“We’ll leave after then.” 

“Did you have a good night?” 

“Yeah… Sil-” 

“I know where you went, I’m not dumb.” 

“You’re not mad?” 

“No, you’re all adults, as long as you were all safe.” 

“We were. I think Rachel had a good time.” 

“And Keith?” 

“I think he regrets his decision to hang out with her. He had to cut her off.” 

“Hmm… What happened? Something happened.” 

“What?” 

“Tell me. You’re bothered by something.” 

“Just… Keith…” 

“Why?” 

“He… he said something that I didn’t expect.” 

“We told you.” 

“But he was also hardcore flirting with the bartender…” 

“Maybe he wanted to make you jealous. Did it work? I know how you get.” 

“Yes, it worked… You really think that’s what it was?” 

“Maybe… you left him with Rachel?” 

“Yeah…” 

“Definitely then, she already said she thinks he’ll make a great brother-in-law this morning so…” 

“Great…” He sighed. 

“Is that not a good thing?” 

“No mama, it’s not.” 

“Why?” 

“I can’t do anything about it. Last night when he said what he did, I didn’t do anything about it because he was wasted, that wouldn’t be right… but I know now that he’s not, that’s over…” 

“How?” 

“Because… I never told you how we met.” She shook her head. “His ex was… a really shitty person. I overheard him talking to Rachel, he said I still scare him sometimes. Which is true… I don’t think he believes that I don’t want to hurt him. I don’t know how to prove that to him… I just want to keep him safe and make him happy, if that means ignoring how I actually feel about him, so be it.” 

“You love him.” 

“What? I don’t know about that… I mean, we just met like a month ago…” 

“That doesn’t matter. You put his happiness above your own and I can tell there’s very little you wouldn’t do for him. That’s love.” 

“Okay, but it’s not like that… I can love him as a person, but not like that…” 

“Don’t lie to yourself. Now, go. Veronica will be here soon.” When he got back to the living room, Rachel had moved over to where Keith was, showing him something on her phone.

“Lance! Help me!” He whined. 

“Sh, no! Tell him to let me do it!” 

“Rach, I hate to break it to you, but I can’t make him do anything. What is it?” She just smirked and flipped her phone around. “Oh, in that case…” He started before grabbing Keith and throwing him over his shoulder, immediately heading to Rachel’s room. 

“Lance!” He whined.

“Shut up, you can take it off.” He said, putting him down on the bed and waiting for Rachel to grab her stuff.

“I hate you.” 

“I know.” Lance said with a smirk. “She’s done it to me too, it’s your turn. I lived with her for… I guess sixteen years…” Keith spent the entire time Rachel was putting the makeup on him glaring at Lance. 

“And… done.” She said happily. 

“Let me see.” Lance said, making his way over to him. 

“I hate you both.” 

“Aw, I like it. You’re a little emo nightmare.” He teased seeing the red and black covering his eyes. He had more eyeliner on and Rachel had blended bright red around it. Honestly, it kind of worked. Keith was just glaring. 

“Can I take it off now?”

“Not yet.” Lance said, pulling out his phone and taking a picture. “Now you can.”

“I hate you.” 

“Come on, it’s cute.” Keith just rolled his eyes and grabbed a wipe. That’s when Lance heard the door open and ran into the living room, assuming it was Veronica and her boyfriend.

“Poor kid…” Rachel mumbled. 

“What?” 

“He’s meeting Roni’s boyfriend Lukas. You know, he’s gonna get the big brother tangent. Did yours not do that?” 

“I’ve only ever dated one person… I think he was just happy I was talking to someone other than him, he kinda left him alone…” 

“Really? So you were older then anyway?” 

“No, I was… I think sixteen, maybe still fifteen, I dunno.” 

“Really? So you dated them for…” 

“Over four years, yeah. Moved in with him at seventeen too.” Rachel just nodded. 

“Well, this should be entertaining, you wanna go watch?” She asked, already leading the way out. When they got to the living room, there was a new guy sitting on the couch with Lance standing in front of him. They watched for about ten more minutes before Lance finished. 

“Okay, he’s fine.” He announced before leaning back down. “I will kill you though.” He said before smiling and turning to Keith. “Okay, you ready to head back? We can take Roxanne.” 

“Okay.” 

“I’ll grab your shoes, my jacket’s still in my room.” He just nodded and waited. Lance quickly grabbed their stuff, then slid on his own shoes and jacket. When he made it back to the living room, Marco had Keith cornered, trying to talk to him.

“What are you doing?” 

“Just having a simple conversation. I thought you would like that.” 

“Leave him alone.” He said, putting himself between the two. Marco just kept trying to talk over him. “Keith, my room, now.” He said through his teeth, causing Keith to slide out from behind him and walk to his room. 

“What? You think he’s gonna fall in love with me?” 

“No, I think you're a dick and you need to stay away from him.” 

“Oh, so… I can’t talk to him, but you want me to be okay with it?” 

“No, I want you to leave him alone. I couldn’t care less what you think about it.” He growled, taking another step forward. 

“What? You’re gonna try and fight me like you did dad? Try it. It won’t go as well. I just can’t believe you did all that because you were still mad.”

“No, I did that for them. I didn’t have to, he hasn’t been in my life for three years, but he’s in theirs and even if they all hated me, I’d still do it.” 

“Lie about dad?” 

“It wasn’t a lie. You just idolize him regardless of who he really is. You’re gonna make your family miserable, I hope you know that. And when Lisa leaves and takes the kids, I hope you remember this.” He said before spinning around and walking to his room. When he got there, Keith was sitting on the floor by his bed, staring at the floor. As soon as he sat on the edge of the bed, Keith’s chin was resting on his knee. 

“I’m sorry… “ He mumbled. 

“I wasn’t mad at you.” Lance said, bringing a hand to Keith’s hair. “I was mad at Marco. I don’t want him around you, especially when I’m not there. I know I sounded mad, but it wasn’t meant to be directed toward you and I’m sorry that it sounded that way. We’ll leave in a minute.” Keith just nodded and laid his head down. “Does this make it better… or do you do it out of fear?” 

“Both I think…” Keith said with hesitation.

“Don’t be afraid of me. Even if I am mad at you.”

“Bu-” 

“Seriously. You have nothing to worry about.” Lance said softly, still playing with Keith’s hair. “You ready?” Keith nodded and pulled on his shoes, then let Lance help him up and lead the way back out, still holding onto his hand. They said bye to his mom, then he pulled Keith past Marco with a glare and out to his truck. “How’re you feeling now?” 

“Less like death… my head still hurts though.” 

“I figured. So… you really don’t remember anything else?” Lance asked as he pulled out of the parking lot. 

“No… Why do you keep asking that?” 

“No reason… Just curious, don’t worry about it.” Keith just nodded and leaned his head against the window. He must’ve fallen asleep at some point because Lance was waking him up when they got home. “Don’t make me carry you.” Keith just groaned and got out, following Lance upstairs and immediately going to his room to take a shower. While he was gone, Lance fed the animals and did the same.  

Chapter Text

    When Keith was done, he walked out to find Lance sprawled out on the couch and laid down half on top of him. 

    “You okay?” 

    “Yeah, why? Keith asked, turning to face him. Lance started to say something, but stopped. 

    “Why is there blood on your face?” 

    “What?” Keith asked, reaching up to touch where Lance had pointed. “Oh…” He said, seeing the spot of blood on his finger. “I guess I cut myself shaving.” 

    “Really?” 

    “Yeah…” 

    “That’s it?” Keith rolled his eyes and gestured to the fact he was wearing a short sleeved shirt and he could see everything. “What about your legs…” 

    “Do you really not trust me?” 

    “I do, but I have to make sure you’re okay. I know if you did do anything, you would say you didn’t.” Keith just sighed and pulled up each side of the shorts he was wearing. 

    “Happy?” 

    “Yes, thank you. It makes me feel better to know.” Keith just nodded and leaned his head back onto Lance. It was only about eight at that point, but Kieth was exhausted, to be fair, his head was still pounding, and he’d been around people non-stop lately between work and Lance’s family. 

    “I’m gonna go to bed…” 

    “Already? You don’t want to eat something first? All you’ve had is toast. Also, it’s not too late…”

    “Yeah… I’m not hungry.” 

    “Are you sure you’re okay? You’re not mad at me are you? You know it’s just because I don’t want to see you hurt regardless of who did it right?” 

    “No, I’m fine, I promise. I just need a break from… everything…” 

    “Okay, get some sleep then. You know where to find me.” Keith just nodded and disappeared into his room. He fell asleep almost as soon as he got into bed. 

    The next morning, Keith woke up a bit later than usual, feeling a lot better and went to see if Lance was up. He wasn’t in the living room, so he started up the coffee machine and walked over to his room. Usually he was up first, so he figured he was just still laying down. He gave a soft knock and got no response, but did hear some movement. 

    “Lance? Are you up?” Once again, he didn’t get an answer, so he decided to just go in anyway. When he opened the door, he found Lance sitting at his desk with his headphones on and walked back out. He got him a cup of coffee, put a ridiculous amount of creamer in and came back. When Lance saw the coffee slide in front of him, he pulled the headphones down around his neck. 

    “Hey, when did you get up?” 

    “Like ten minutes ago. What are you doing?” 

    “Reading over some stuff my mom sent me. She thinks she can get the store if she gets a divorce.”

    “Is that what she’s doing?” 

    “I dunno, she’s meeting with a lawyer on Monday, dad’s court date isn’t until the end of January, so she has a while to drop the charges if she wants to. I don’t think she really wants to have him go to jail, so hopefully this will work.” Keith just nodded. 

    “Do you have work today?” 

    “No, tomorrow night. What about you?” 

    “Monday, another double.”

    “Does your manager hate you?” 

    “No, we’re understaffed. I don’t know how I even got off for this long.”

    “You think it’ll get better?” 

    “No idea. Maybe I should just go back to bartending…”

    “Are you sure that’s a good idea?” 

    “Maybe… I’d have less long shifts…” 

    “I mean… meantally…” 

    “No, but this isn’t great either…” 

    “What else would you wanna do? You could find something with less people…” 

    “Maybe… I don’t really know what there is around here…” 

    “Well, there’s a possibility I’m gonna start running the store, so you could just work there if I do. Or, there’s like a ton of stuff like two stops north…” Keith just shrugged and sat down on the edge of Lance’s bed. “So…” Lance said, spinning around in his desk chair. 

    “So?” 

    “So, what do you wanna do today? I mean… I have a truck.”

    “There’s something, at least it’s a start.” Keith said with a dorky smirk. 

    “What?” 

    “It’s a song, well the lyric is car, but close enough.” Lance just shook his head, hiding a smile. 

    “So, do you wanna stay here or do you feel like doing something?” 

    “Whatever you wanna do…” 

    “You’re stubborn, you know that?” 

    “You like it.” 

    “Yeah, I do.” He mumbled, turning back to his laptop to exit out of all the files. “So… Oh! Let’s go to the zoo! Entry is free, it’ll be fun!” 

    “Isn’t it like forty degrees right now?” 

    “Yeah, but it’s sunny and you can wear one of my warmer jackets if you need to…” 

    “Fine.” 

    “Go get ready.” Keith nodded and walked out. A few minutes later, he returned in a pair of baggy, hopefully warm black jeans and a Rush hoodie. “Yeah…. Sorry, I don’t have a warm black one. I have that dark blue one, that green one, and a dark brown carhartt one.” Lance said, motioning to the jackets on his bed. Keith slipped on the brown one which was honestly kind of big on Lance, so it basically fell off of him, but it was warm. Lance quickly finished changing and grabbed his stuff, then led the way to the truck. 

    “No idea if it still works…” He said reaching to the glove box and pulling out a bluetooth adapter. “But if it does, play whatever you want. Halfway there, Keith figured it out and started playing his music. “What’s this?” 

    “Thirty Seconds to Mars. It was a classic in high school.” Lance nodded and listened to all the songs he played. Most of them were actually pretty good. Finally, they made it to the zoo and Lance parked, then walked to the otherside where Keith was climbing out. 

    “I’m assuming you want to smoke before we go in?” He nodded and pulled a cigarette out. Apparently, he grabbed a dead lighter on the way out though, he tried a few times, but it just sparked. Once he gave up, Lance pulled a lighter from his pocket and held it out, immediately getting a confused look. “Seems like they help when you get anxious and stuff. I figure it's better for me to have one incase you don’t.” He said, kind of awkwardly. It was weird having someone who cared that much, but Keith just nodded and lit his cigarette. Lance just waited for him to finish, then led the way in. 

    “So, where should we start?” Lance asked. 

    “Uh… at the entrance like a normal person…” 

    “Yeah, but which way should we go?” 

    “Either way… don’t they all connect?” 

    “You want to just do the path?” 

    “Why wouldn’t we…?” 

    “Because I have a short attention span and that won’t last long, but we can start there.” He laughed before grabbing Keith’s hand and leading him over to the area with Camels, Zebras, Kangaroos, and a few other animals. “I think I’d be a good Kangaroo. Having a pouch would be helpful.” Lance said only partially meaning to. 

    “You’re so weird… also you wouldn’t have a pouch.” 

    “It’d be so helpful though.” He insisted. 

    “You have pockets.” 

    “It’s not the same.” Keith just rolled his eyes and took a step back as one of the ostriches walked over. “You don’t like them?” 

    “Big birds are freaky. Chickens are already awful and you can kick them. That thing has no reason to run that fast.” 

    “You’re a dork.” 

    “Shut up, I made a good point. Better than a swan though. They’re mean and have a bigger ego than you and that’s saying a lot.” He mumbled, Lance just sighed and pulled him to the next part which he loved.

“Look at that one!” He said, pointing to a younger gorilla that was walking by the window before he dropped Keith’s hand and quickly walked over.

“I understand the attention span thing now.” Keith laughed as he moved to stand beside him. 

“Sh, we’re talking telepathically.” He said, staring back at the gorilla. After a few more seconds, he got bored and drug Keith back outside and to the primate house. They walked around the building, looking at all the different primates, then Lance stopped at the sloths and pulled Keith in front of him. “I love these guys. They know what’s up.” 

“Why’s that?” 

“Look at them. They’re just… hanging there.” 

“Are these the ones that are stoned all the time?” 

“Uh… no, I think those are the like pigmy ones or whatever.” Keith just nodded and leaned his head back into Lance’s chest. Eventually, they made the big cat building. They spent a little while looking at the lions. lynx, and leopards, before Keith saw the red pandas and just pointed. 

“So? You’re favorite then?” 

“No, I just like them. They’re like little red racoons. Do you even have racoons here? I haven’t seen one in like almost two years.” 

“Yeah, we just used to live in a busy area. They stay on the outskirts.” Keith just nodded and went back to watching the red pandas. Lance was really just enjoying watching him. 

“What now?”

“Seals!” Lance excitedly grabbed Keith’s hand again and pulled him outside and down to the seal pool. “These ones are so fun!” He said, pointing to one of them that was swimming past them. Eventually, he got bored and started walking again, avoiding the reptile house, but once Keith saw it, he dragged him in. “You’re so weird! They’re so creepy!” He whined. 

“No, snakes are cool. Lizards too. See? Look at that guy.” He said, pointing to a huge tree boa that was climbing up the glass. 

“No, that’s terrifying. That could literally just bite you and kill you!” 

“No, it’s a boa. They don’t have venom, the snakes back home are scarier. This one would have to strangle me.” 

“How are they scarrier?” 

“Well, some are just little guys, but we have like cottonmouths, rattlesnakes, including diamondbacks, copperheads, coral snakes, lots of them. Those are just the bad ones. Then there’s like hognoses farther east and rat snakes, I used to catch those for fun when I was little.” 

“You’re so weird…” 

“Maybe.” He said, walking to another tank. Keith was clearly enjoying it, but Lance was just ready to get out and to the marsupials. 

“They have otters.” 

“Where?” 

“Down there, come on.” He said, leading the way. They sat and watched for a second before Lance slid behind Keith. “I’ve decided that’s your spirit animal.” 

“Why?” 

“Because, I dunno, look at them.” 

“Aren’t they like super social and friendly?” 

“You can be when you get some tequila in you.” He teased. 

“Shut up, you can do better.”

“You’re right.” He said as they continued through the exhibit, Keith immediately stopped at the armadillos. “Those are so ugly.” 

“They are not! Look at his little face.” 

“Sure they are.” 

“You’re lame.” Keith said, straightening back up and letting Lance pull him to the next area which happened to be the Africa exhibit. As soon as they walked in, Keith abandoned him and walked over to the hippos. Once Lance caught up, he could just see Keith watching them with what would be considered a huge smile for him and stepped back to sneak a few pictures.. 

“So these are your favorites then?” He just nodded. “Are they babies?” 

“No, these are the pygmy hippos. They’re just this little. Did you know they make their own sunscreen?” 

“What?” 

“They have this stuff called blood sweat that protects them from sunburns, it’s really cool. That’s why they’re so shiny.” 

“Really? What other weird facts do you know?” Lance said, loving watching Keith’s apparent obsession. 

“They’re really secretive and solitary. Oh, and they mainly talk in squeaks and grunts, but they’re usually quiet, and they huff when alarmed. They’re lungs are great for being underwater, but they can’t swim… I dunno, a lot.” When he looked back up, Lance was just smiling at him. “What?” 

“Nothing…” He said too quickly, Keith just furrowed his eyebrows and looked back to the hippos. 

“Do they have meerkats?” 

“Yeah, over there.” Lance said, leading him over to them. They spent a little longer in that area, then Lance decided it was time to go to the tundra exhibit to see the polar bears and penguins. 

“What’s your favorite?” 

“Sharks, but they don’t have those. Out of what’s here… seals.” 

“Which kind of shark?” 

“Uh… Lemon sharks they’re cool.” Keith just nodded and let Lance take his hand and walk him across the zoo. 

“What else is there?” 

“Well, I’m assuming you wanna skip the birds? So… more monkeys over there and then the farm.” Lance said, leading him to the Macaque forest.

“What do they have?”  

“Uhh… cows, chickens, goats, pigs, maybe a pony… probably more…” Lance could tell Keith was more interested in that, so he turned and led the way, noticing Keith was starting to shiver. “You cold?” 

“Kinda…” 

“We’ll head out after this. The truck doesn’t have great heat, but it’ll be warmer.” He said, pulling Keith into his side. When they got to the farm area, Keith spotted one of the ponies. 

“She has the same coloring as my horse did.” He said before he did a weird whistle-click thing and she came over, sticking her head over the fence. Lance snuck a few more pictures of him, then stepped behind him and realized he was talking to it. 

“So, you like animals more than people, huh?” 

“A lot more.” He said before walking over to the cows. “I wonder if they like… use these cows…” 

“What do you mean?” 

“Like… you know… I mean those are dairy cows, but those are meat cows.” 

“I dunno… did you have cows?” 

“Yeah. Cows, chickens, turkey at some point… horses, dad had a donkey, pigs, my mom had goats I think. And we had like twelve barn cats.”

“Wow…so you had a million pets then?”

“Well… most of them were food so… not the horses, goats, or cats, but the rest.”

“So they were meat cows then?”

“No, we had both, but dad would let the dairy cows live until they got old even if they weren’t useful anymore and then he’d sell the meat for like fast food places so it wasn’t a waste.” Keith said, leaning onto Lance’s chest. The tip of his nose had turned pink. 

“Okay, we better go before I get you sick.” Lance said, pulling him away and toward the parking lot.

Chapter Text

Lance ended up basically dragging Keith back to the truck. Once they got there, he let him in and walked around to the otherside, shrugging off his jacket. He threw it to Keith, then started up the truck and started back towards the apartment. 

“You haven’t eaten today…”

“I know.” 

“Is that something that’s gonna happen?” 

“Probably not…” Keith mumbled. 

“Is there a reason for that?” 

“I’m fine, I just don’t think I want to…” 

“You’ve been doing a lot better lately, but you haven’t had anything since yesterday morning…” 

“I know…” 

“I’m guessing that means we’re not talking about it…” 

“There’s nothing to talk about, I’m fine… I promise.”

“Okay…” Lance decided to just let the car all silent. It was starting to get dark, so he figured it was better to just get back home before he tried to figure anything out. By the time they got back to the house, Keith knew he was about to start asking questions again. As soon as they got upstairs, he ducked into his room, locking the door behind him. Once again, Lance decided to wait. Half an hour later, Keith emerged from his room, talking on the phone, to grab a drink. Lance couldn’t help but listen. 

“Yeah… I don’t know, maybe… Yeah, he’s at some work dinner thing… I could’ve, but you know it would’ve been tortured… Yeah, I am… No, it’s closer to downtown, remember?...  Yeah, it’ll be five years in January… I don’t know, maybe… We’re both kinda young for that though… Well I’m not doing it, that’s on him… obviously I’d tell you as soon as I could… Yeah, I’m about to finish my second semester… UIC like we talked about for a liberal arts, then I’ll probably still transfer… Yeah, maybe he’ll be home next time you call, he’s just been super busy lately with work, he gets stuck doing more than he should since he just graduated and started like actually working… Yeah, I’m working a lot this week, so I don’t know… no, I didn’t, I lost her number and Mark doesn’t have it… Yeah, I’ll see what time it is back home first… Okay, just call whenever you have the chance and I’ll pick up if I can… yeah, bye.” He finally hung up and groaned before dramatically sliding down the wall and laying on the floor, immediately being checked on by a concerned Blue. 

“Stop licking me asshole, I’m not actually dead.” Keith mumbled, pushing him away. 

“Are you okay?” 

“Yeah I… hang on.” Keith said, pulling his phone back out, then typing something, then got back up and walked out the backdoor seeing the time zone was the same. Lance watched through the glass door as he stood on the back steps, talking on the phone again. This conversation seemed to last a bit longer and Keith was clearly not happy about it towards the end, but eventually, he hung up. He silently walked inside and flopped down on the couch, mainly over Lance’s lap. 

“You okay?” He asked, sliding a hand under his shirt and running it up and down his back. 

“Yep.” 

“You’re ly- I know you're not.” Lance cut himself off as he had recently realized that phrase was an issue. Keith just shrugged. “You don’t have to talk about it, but you can…” 

“That was Shiro, then his parents. I haven’t talked to them in… I don’t know, since he came back.”

“So…” Lance asked for further explanation. 

“So, I mean… I don’t know, they were kinda around for a while… We lived like two blocks away before Arizona and we went home like all the time… I haven’t seen them since a year after he left though and I guess they’ve been asking about me because I kinda fell off the face of the Earth.” 

“And…” 

“And, they want me to fly home for Christmas and bring Mark. I wouldn’t be opposed to going, but obviously there’s a problem with the other part… I don’t know why they even want me to, I haven’t like actually seen them in like… almost two years now. Not to mention, Shiro thinks I’m in college and keeps asking me about it, but I don’t know what to say. He also asked about him like a million times and is obviously suspicious that he suddenly isn’t around the first two times we’ve talked in like… a while. Oh yeah, and apparently, about a month before I left, he clearly gave Shiro the idea he was gonna propose to me on our anniversary which is fucking insane, I mean yeah, he’s kind of old but I literally just turned twenty and Shiro’s apparently just okay with it. You know I wouldn’t have even had a choice either. He was probably gonna do it sooner though and just didn’t want to have to talk Shiro into it so he asked for permission because he knows basically anything Shiro tells me is okay, I will like know- or think is okay. Then, he sent me his mom’s number so I could call them, obviously I had to at that point. Apparently Mark’s still posting on Facebook to make it seem like we’re together, and he literally called them the other day, so there’s one lie already uncovered. He’s literally gonna kill me. They all love him and have absolutely no idea. If he finds out about anything, he’s gonna make me go home. I don’t even want to go home, I have no reason to go back to Texas, there’s nothing for me there but a gravestone now. As much as I love them, I don’t wanna live there. They’re his parents, not mine… He’s gonna know and he’s gonna kill me. He was so happy when he was ta-” 

“Keith!” Lance repeated for the millionth time.

“What?” 

“You need to calm down man… sit up.” Keith did as he was told, but was suddenly pulled back into Lance’s lap and pulled his knees to his chest. “You don’t have to go home if you don’t want to.”

“But he’s gonna make me.” 

“No he’s not. You’re twenty and your own person. No one’s controlling you anymore…” 

“He’ll be so mad…” 

“I don’t think so. Not at you anyway. If he’s anything like me, he’ll be on a manhunt. I would be at the first tear if it was Roni and her boyfriend.” 

“I don’t know…” 

“I know you don’t, but you will. I know you want to, but you can’t run from it forever and you’ll see, it’ll be fine.” Keith just shrugged and curled closer into Lance’s chest. 

“Can I sleep with you tonight?” 

“Yeah, you know you don’t have to ask right? You always can.” Keith just shrugged again. “So,,, what’d you say about Christmas?” 

“I already agreed to work a double that day since they’re already scheduling, so I just said I couldn’t get out of work…”

“Wow, was my family that bad?” 

“No, I just really don’t like Christmas. Figured someone who did might as well be off.” 

“Why not?” 

“Dad and I never really did anything. He kinda got shunned because of my mom so it was just us, there wasn’t really a point. I think there was another reason though because we didn’t even go to the community center most years…”

“What about with Shiro?” 

“That just meant seeing his entire family that I didn’t really know. I usually hid in his old room the whole time. Mark and I usually went to his family’s place for holidays after he left. I don’t like hate Christmas, it’s just not a big deal to me, I’m sure it is in your family though?”

“Yeah… Very Jesusy.” 

“Yeah, we didn’t do that either. Dad grew up Catholic I think, but he wasn’t religious.” 

“So, you never have been then?” 

“No, basically everyone I knew was… Everyone in my hometown was fine, but I went to school out of county and that sucked.” 

“Why?” 

“I lived in Texas and everyone knew I was gonna be gay by the time I was like five.” 

“Fair enough… So… I’m assuming you won’t eat now then?” 

“No, please don’t make me.” 

“I’m not going to, you have to tomorrow though.” Keith just nodded again. “You’re tired aren’t you?” 

“Yeah, but it’s fine…” 

“We can go to bed.” 

“You’re not tired though, I can tell.” 

“So?” 

“So, I’m fine.” Lance just sighed and pulled a blanket around him. 

“Fine. Sleep here then, I’ll just take you when I go, but I’ve figured out how you work. I know after all that you’re exhausted.” Keith just shrugged again, relaxing into him. He tried not to, but he fell asleep pretty quickly after. Lance stayed up for another hour or so, then decided to get some sleep himself. He slid his arms under Keith and carried him to bed. Once he laid him down, he realized he was still in jeans, so he woke him up. 

“What?” Keith whined. 

“You’re still in your jeans, I figured you might wanna change…” Keith just groaned and pulled off his jeans before curling back up under the blanket, waiting on Lance. He quickly changed and slid in bed next to Keith and pulled him closer so that his back met his chest. They were both asleep pretty quickly, curled up together. 

That lasted until about two when Lance woke up to Keith fighting against his hold and sat up. As soon as his arms were removed, Keith was gone and he heard his bedroom door slam shut. Without a second thought, he followed, but it was locked. 

“Keith? What’s going on man?” All he heard was quiet, repetitive mumbling from behind the door where he was presumably sitting. “Keith? Can you talk to me?” Still nothing. “Can I come in?” 

“Please go away…”

“I can’t do that Keith…” Lance said softly, now having an idea of what was happening. “Can I go to the other side of the living room  and you can just come out as far as you feel safe to?” He didn’t get a response, but he walked over to the staircase anyway. He was about to give up and try something else when Keith finally stepped out, keeping his hand on the door knob. Suddenly, Kosmo ran out and rubbed against his leg before running over to Lance. 

“See, Kosmo knows it’s okay, can you tell me what happened? Or maybe come a little closer?” Keith just stared at the ground before sliding down the wall, hiding his head in his knees. “Keith?” He didn’t say a word, but he could hear his breathing had picked up. “Can I come over there?” Still, he got nothing. “Okay, I’m gonna come sit with you, all you have to do is tell me to go and I will, but I just wanna make sure you’re okay.” He said softly as he cautiously walked over. At this point, he realized whatever was happening at first was over. “I’m gonna sit right here. Come over here when you want to.” He said, taking a seat on the closest end of the couch, not wanting to freak him out by touching him. A few minutes later, Keith had moved a little and was now resting his chin on Lance’s leg. 

“You know I’m not mad right? I’m not mad at all, I just want you to be okay…” He said as he slowly reached out a hand to run though Keith’s hair. He resisted for a second, but melted into the touch. Lance slowly moved his hand to his cheek. “Do you wanna go back to bed?” Keith finally looked up at him, his eyes were still filled with fear. “I’m not gonna do anything to you Keith, I just know you’re tired, come on.” He said, slowly standing up and offering a hand to Keith which he ignored. Eventually, he got up and followed Lance back to his room, sitting on the edge of the bed.

“Lay down. I’ll leave you alone, but at least lay down.” Lance said, taking the otherside, knowing he wouldn’t be sleeping anytime soon. 

Chapter Text

Keith finally laid back down on the farthest edge of the bed, still curling into himself. Lance rolled over to face him and just waited. Eventually, Keith rolled over, slightly closer to Lance. 

“Do you wanna come over here now? You don’t have to…” He said quietly. To his surprise, Keith reached out an arm. “Does that mean you want me to come over there?” He just nodded. “Don’t feel like talking?” Lance asked as he moved over, receiving only a head shake. “Okay, is this okay?” Keith nodded as Lance wrapped his arms around him. As Keith started to relax, Lance hurt a quiet whisper, but couldn’t make it out. “If you’re trying to say you’re sorry, stop. There’s no reason to be. Get some sleep, we can talk tomorrow if you feel like it.” Once again, Keith just nodded. About half an hour later, Lance was sure he was asleep and finally allowed himself to get some sleep as well.

The next morning, Lance woke up with Keith still wrapped around him. He could tell he was awake, but he knew he was pretending not to be, so he left him alone and grabbed his phone off the nightstand. After another twenty minutes of scrolling, Keith finally got off of him and silently slipped out. Lance gave him a minute, then followed, but he was already outside. He fixed two cups of coffee, then made his way outside. 

“Hey.” He said, passing Keith a mug and sitting down beside him. 

“Hey…” 

“Are you feeling better?” Keith just shrugged and looked away. “So, we’re not gonna talk about then?” He just shrugged again. “Okay… Well, is there anything you wanna do today?” 

“Don’t you have to work?” 

“Yeah, I don’t have to be there till nine though so…”

“Can we just stay home?” 

“Yeah, I have to run to the store at some point, you can stay here if you want to though. We should find something to start watching.” Keith just nodded and threw his cigarette bud in the ashtray, then got up to walk inside. By the time Lance made it upstairs, Keith was gone, mostly likely showering, so Lance flopped down on the couch, waiting for him to come back. Eventually he did. He was clearly upset again, but he wasn’t avoiding it this time. He took one of his frequent spots on the floor, resting his chin on Lance’s leg like usual, hiding his face. 

“What’s wrong?” Keith just shrugged. “Keith…” He finally looked up and Lance could tell he had most likely just calmed down from something. “Can you tell me what’s going on?” He just shook his head. “Why not?”  

“You’re gonna be mad…” 

“No I won’t. Did you do something to hurt yourself?” He didn’t get a response. “Can I see?” 

“I didn’t do anything…” 

“So… you wanted to, but you didn’t?” Keith just nodded and flinched as Lance stood up and walked into his room. He grabbed whatever looked like it could do anything and took it to his own room, then motioned for Keith to get on the couch with him. “Why would I be mad?” Keith just shrugged. “Well, I’m not. You wanted to, but you didn’t, that’s progress. How long has it been now?”

“You’re gonna be mad…” 

“No I won’t, just tell me…” 

“...Friday…” He mumbled. 

“What? When? I saw your arms and legs… was it after that?” Keith just shook his head. “I’m not mad Keith, not even because you lied… I wish you would've said something. Can you please show me?” Keith sighed and leaned back on the couch before pulling his hoodie up. He glanced over to see Lance’s stare and pulled it back down, but Lance just pulled it back up. “Did you clean them at least?” 

“I did it in the shower…” 

“Well… that’s better than nothing, why did you do it there?” 

“I thought I could hide it better…”

“Well, that didn’t really work… From now on, I don’t care what’s happening, I want you to come to me when you feel like you need to do that. And for now, maybe you shouldn’t keep anything in your room that way there’s nothing in reach.” Keith just nodded and leaned onto Lance’s shoulder. “I’m really not mad. What do you wanna watch?” Lance asked, handing him the remote. Keith found the Shadowhunters series and hit play. 

“Really?”

“Jace.” 

“Fair enough, although Alec’s more my type…” 

“Really?” 

“Yeah, too tall though.” Keith just laughed and moved his focus back to the TV, letting Lance wrap his arm over his shoulders. After a few episodes, Lance decided it was time to try and get Keith to eat something. He slid off the couch and went to the kitchen. A little while later, he came back with two bowls. 

“What?” Keith asked as Lance handed him one. 

“Soup. Eat.” He just stared back. “At least some. You were doing so good before…” Keith sighed, but tried anyway. Lance knew the past few days had been a little rough, so he didn’t say anything when Keith clearly gave up within a few minutes. He stayed for a few more episodes, then took their bowls to the kitchen. 

“I’m probably gonna head out in a few minutes, do you wanna come?” 

“Where?” 

“The store. I told you I needed to go this morning, remember?”

“Uh… Okay.” 

“Go get ready then.” He heard Keith’s door close before he went to his own room to get ready himself. By the time he was done, Keith was already back in the living room wrestling with Blue. He was clearly losing, he was standing over Keith while he tried to hold him back from licking his face. 

“He’s stronger than you, you’re not gonna win that.”

“Shut up, no he’s not.” 

“He drags me when we play tug, yes he is.” 

“He doesn’t when we do.” 

“Because he doesn’t like to play rough with you. I know he looks dumb, but he’s smarter than he looks. He’s the same way with most of my other friends.

“You have friends?”
“Haha, kind of. I used to anyway, but like I said, my hours kinda messed up my social life. I kinda gave up on that, but I guess you’ll have to do. My coworkers used to come over a lot too, but Hunk and Allura are busy with their relationships and Pidge is always busy with like smart people stuff.” 

“Is Allura the one that I kind of met?” 

“Yeah, I’m sure you’ll see her again at some point, but I think you’ll end up liking Pidge more than me.” 

“Who said I liked you in the first place?” 

“Well, I think you kinda have to. Come on, let’s go.” Lance said, offering Keith a hand up. He grabbed his stuff off the table and followed Lance out to the truck. “So… this is actually probably a good time to ask… How do you feel about New Year’s Eve?” Lance said as he backed into the street.

“Uh… it’s an excuse to get wasted I guess, why?” 

“Well… We kinda all do a thing. You should come, I know it’s still like a month away, but it gives you time to decide.” 

“What does ‘a thing’ mean?” 

“Well… we’ve worked the same shift, minus Pidge, since I started around this time like I guess it would be three years now… I dunno, this’ll be the fourth time. Anyway, Hunk and Allura are both older so they got me and Pidge in. Basically, pre-game at someone’s place, then hit the bars and crash at whoever’s place is closest. The diner closes on New Year’s because it would be wild if not and sometimes Hunk sneaks us in for milkshakes. I think you’ll like them all, but if you wanted to go… we could like do something with them before so you can like get used to them.” 

“Like what…” 

“Well, I mean… just kinda whatever… it’s up to you. And you can say no, but you made it through over twenty-four hours with my family, I think it’d be fine.”

“Uhh… okay, as long as you don’t abandon me.” 

“Wouldn’t dream of it. Last time I thought I was gonna have to drag you out by your ear.”

“Shut up. So… when do I have to meet them?” 

“Well, you’ve got two out of three down, but I think Allura would be a good start. She works lunch now… so maybe one day when she has an off day the next day, we could just go to another bar or something when I get off. Then Hunk and Pidge… arcade maybe like before she goes back to school. It wouldn’t matter when I work, but as long as Hunk wasn’t pulling a double.” 

“Okay…” 

“You can say no…” 

“No… it’s fine…” 

“Really?” 

“Yeah… I have to socialize at some point…” 

“Fair enough… if it’s ever too much, I can just get you out of there…” Keith just nodded. “Well, we’re here. I don’t need much, so it shouldn’t take too long.” Keith got out and pulled out a cigarette. “You know you can smoke in my truck right?” 

“Really? You’re gonna try and take home some girl and she’s gonna get turned off by it.” 

“Hey, could be a guy. Besides, I don’t think anyone I’d be into would be bothered by it, not to mention I’m pretty sure most people kinda think it’s hot…” 

“Yeah, high school girls that have a dad that smokes, then they realize their boyfriend’s gonna get lung cancer.” 

“Whatever. I’ll just start smoking too then.”

“You should definitely not do that…” 

“Why not?” 

“Because it’ll kill you.” 

“But it’s fine if it’s you?” 

“Yeah, I sealed my fate like four and a half years ago. Besides, it’s better than what my old meds did to me anyway.”

“What?” 

“Shiro made me go on meds in high school and they made me miserable, he still thinks I’m taking them though.” 

“Did you try other kinds?” 

“No…”

“Why not?” 

“Because… Mark didn’t really like the idea of them…” 

“Have you thought about trying again?” Keith just shrugged. 

“That means like… talking to people…” 

“Yeah, but maybe something could help… I mean, it took me a few tries to get mine right, I’m sure it’s a bit different, but… I’m just saying maybe it’s worth a shot…”

“Maybe… I think they would give me like a million prescriptions now though… it was just really for anxiety then…” Keith said, finishing his cigarette. 

“Well, whatever you wanna do, I’ll be here. Come on.” Lance said, leading the way in. Keith followed him around the store, mostly keeping quiet or grabbing whatever Lance asked him to. It was going fine until they were standing in an aisle and Keith heard a voice a little too similar to Mark’s for his comfort and instinctively dropped his head, grabbing Lance’s arm. 

“Keith? What is it? Do you know him?” Keith just shook his head. “Okay… Do you need to leave? I can walk you out to the truck…” He shook his head again. “Okay… we’re almost done anyway.” A few minutes later, Lance was done and they were walking back out to the truck. 

“What happened?” Keith just shook his head. “Okay… Well, are you okay? Be honest with me.” 

“M’ fine now…” 

“Okay, you wanna go watch more TV?” Keith just nodded again and Lance decided to leave him alone. Once they finally got home, he disappeared into his room to change, then walked into Lance’s and came back out wearing one of his hoodies. “Have you been avoiding laundry or something?” 

“No, I just like this one.” Keith said awkwardly before laying on the other end of the couch, waiting for Lance to start the show again. Eventually, time for him to get ready to leave rolled around. When he was done, he could tell Keith wasn’t happy about it. 

“I’ll be back sooner now since I can drive. What time do you work tomorrow?”

“Uh… I open and close I think, so like five…” 

“Okay, I’ll still be up, let me drive you.” Keith just nodded again. “Get some sleep and please tell me if you leave.”

“Okay. I’ll be fine, go to work.” Keith mumbled, deciding to go ahead and lay down. Before he went to sleep, Shiro called. It seemed like he was hiding something, but he wouldn’t budge. The call was pretty short though, he was asleep before ten-thirty. 

Chapter Text

Keith’s alarm woke him up at three-forty-five the next morning. He stumbled out to the kitchen to make coffee, but Lance was already waiting, holding out a mug. 

“I’m assuming you came for this?” Keith just nodded and took it before going back to his room to get ready. He emerged soon after still looking dead-tired, but dressed. “Are we leaving?” 

“About to.” Keith mumbled, pulling out a cigarette and walking to the stairs. 

“Smoke on the way, it’s cold.” Lance said as he followed. To his surprise, Keith didn’t fight him on it, he just got in the truck and rolled down the window. Ten minutes and a cigarette later, Lance was stopped in front of the coffee shop. “What do you work tomorrow?” 

“Uh… I think like five to ten…” 

“In the morning?” 

“Yeah…” 

“Okay… So, you’ll probably be asleep when I get home then. I’ll drive you again in the morning so you don’t have to get up so early…” 

“You don’t have to…” 

“I know, but I’m still not even super tired. I’ll be up tomorrow morning at this time too, don’t worry about it. “ Keith just nodded and got out, then they both went their separate ways. Lance crashed when he got back home, then called his mom when he got up since she had met with her lawyer. She said that it seemed like things were gonna work out and she was going to have the papers served to him on Wednesday. Then, he took Blue for a walk and decided to relax for a while. 

Keith wasn’t having as easy of a day. They were busy all morning, then they got a big office order at lunch, and a painful high schooler rush around three. Luckily, like usual things mellowed out after about six and he only had to get through for more hours. Finally, just after eleven, he clocked out and started to walk to the subway station. Before he made it there, he got a call from Ryker. 

“What?”  He sighed, answering the call.

“Keith…” 

“What? You just saw me at like seven.” 

“I know…” At this point, he realized something was wrong. 

“So?” 

“Where are you?” 

“On the way to the subway…” 

“Can you meet me at the station?” 

“What? When and why?” 

“I dunno, I’m at the one by my apartment right now… Please…” 

“Are you alone?” 

“Yeah…” 

“Okay, but wha-” Keith was cut off mid-sentence as Ryker hung up. He continued towards the station entrance, then decided it was worth a shot to call Lance. 

“Hey, are you okay?” Lance asked as soon as Keith’s phone reached his ear. 

“I’m fine. I don’t think Ryker is though, he just called me out of nowhere and wants me to wait for him at the station…” 

“Who’s that?” 

“I work with him. He’s the really annoying one.” 

“And he called you, why?” 

“I don’t know yet. Something’s going on with him. I’ll text you when I figure out what’s happening, but I thought you might be mad if I didn’t tell you…” 

“No, not mad. Just worried. Thank you for telling me, it’s just late and you know… Let me know what’s going on and be careful okay?” 

“Okay.” 

“And let me know when you get back home.” 

“Okay.” 

“Okay, I gotta go, text me.” Lance said before hanging up and leaving Keith to wait. Fifteen minutes later, he saw Ryker get off the subway and look around for him, so he made his way over. As soon as he looked up at him, he could tell something was wrong. 

“What’s happening?” 

“You’re going out drinking with me.” 

“I’m underaged.” 

“And I don’t care. Your roommate takes you places all the time, where can you get in?” 

“Uh…” Keith debated which bar they should go to, but eventually decided to take his chances at the bar next to the diner, that way he’d be closer if anything were to happen. “There’s this place up a ways. We can get off at Wabash I think.” 

“Perfect, which line?” 

“I have no idea…” 

“We’ll go with this one.” Ryker said as another train rolled in. Keith didn’t feel like arguing, so he got on and shot a text to Lance. Most of the subway ride was spent with Keith switching between convincing Lance this wasn’t a bad idea and trying to figure out what was wrong with Ryker. He didn’t get far with either before they got to their stop and Keith led the way into the speakeasy style bar. 

“You’ll have to start the tab, I’ll venmo you later.” Ryker nodded and started their order, going with a Long Island Iced Tea plus three Kamikaze shots, then looked to Keith. 

“Uh… Maker’s Mark neat.” The bartender just nodded and walked off to make the drinks. “So… are you gonna tell me what’s going on and why you called me of all people…” 

“Yeah… in a minute.” He mumbled, waiting on his shots. As soon as the bartender sat them down, he took one. “So… you know how my girlfriend came in a few times?” He asked as he took another. 

“Yeah… Bella, right?” 

“Yeah…” 

“What about her?” He held up a finger and downed the last shot. 

“Well… I got off at seven right? But I had some errands to run, so I didn’t get home till… ten I think…” 

“Okay…” 

“When I got home, I walked into our room and she was fucking some random guy. I thought I was gonna kill him, but I guess I kinda knew already… I think I gave up.” 

“What do you mean?” 

“I just walked past them and took a shower…” He mumbled, downing a quarter of his drink. “When I got out, he was gone and she was waiting… You know, I’ve been dating her since we were in eighth grade, you know…. Like eight and a half years now. Anyway, we talked about it…” He continued, stopping for another drink. “They’ve been seeing each other since the summer after we graduated.” He laughed bitterly before throwing a small velvet box on the counter. “I’ve been carrying that around for three months! For no reason. I don’t get it. If she’s been with this dude for four years now, why the hell didn’t she just leave me alone? I mean… fuck, I’ve built my entire life around her and I wasn’t even half of hers. What the hell am I supposed to do? Oh, what’s even better is I told her I was gonna go back home and stay with my parents while she got her shit out of my apartment and she told me not to bother. She already has a place at his. Meaning he was fully aware I was with her.” He ranted, only stopping to down the rest of his drink. “I know you probably don’t really do this stuff, but… I don’t have any friends either apparently. All my friends were her friends and vice versa, but they all knew. And they all think I’m overreacting… I mean… am I?” 

“No… I don’t see why you wouldn’t be mad…” Keith half-mumbled as Ryker waved the bartender back down for another order. Keith was still sipping on his, so he passed assuming Ryker would be wasted in the next hour. He let him rant for a while before he told the bartender to cut him off. By one thirty, he was clearly wasted and Keith’s phone was ringing for the third time. 

“I’m gonna go outside for a minute. Stay here.” He said as he slid off the stool and walked out onto the sidewalk. 

“Sorry…” 

“Are you okay? ‘

“Yeah… I’m fine.” 

“Are you still out?” 

“Yeah… I’ll probably be home after you, I’m gonna have to get him home… he’s like… really drunk.” 

“I get off in half an hour, I’ll just drive. Which bar is it?” 

“Uh… that one we went to by the diner…” 

“What? Why did you go there?”

“Because… it’s close to the diner… I don’t really know him that well…” 

“Okay, you feel fine though right?” 

“Yeah, I only had one drink, I’m fine.” 

“Okay… well come outside at like two and I’ll be there as soon as I can. Do you even know where he lives?” 

“No, I’ll figure it out.” 

“Okay, I’ll see you in a minute.” Keith nodded even though Lance couldn’t see him and slipped back into the bar where Ryker was slumped against the counter. He asked for water and tried to make him drink some while keeping an eye on the time. At two he led the way outside and tried to get his address out of him. Eventually he did, just before Lance pulled up to the curb. Keith got in and moved over to the middle before trying to help Ryker in. 

“Wow…” Lance mumbled. “Where am I going?” 

“Museum Pointe.” He just nodded and pulled back out onto the street. 

“Where’re we going?” Ryker asked, realizing he was in a stranger’s car. 

“Your house dumbass.” He just nodded and slumped against Keith who was obviously not enjoying it. Lance didn’t appreciate anything about the situation, but it made him feel better to know Keith clearly didn’t have an interest in him. When they finally got to the building, Ryker got out and leaned against the truck. 

“I’m gonna walk him in, he’ll probably fall out if I don’t.” 

“Okay, I’ll be here.” Keith nodded and hopped out, throwing one of Ryker’s arms back over his shoulder and helping him inside. Once they got in and he was in bed, Keith pulled his shoes off of him and started to leave. 

“You know, you’re not so bad.” Ryker mumbled, making him turn back around. 

“What?” 

“I dunno… you kind of act super distant and like you hate everything at work. I don’t mind it actually, but you’re actually pretty cool. Thanks for this…” 

“Yeah… Get some sleep.” Keith said before slipping out and making his way back to Lance’s truck. 

“So… what exactly was that about?” 

“I guess his girlfriend dumped him. They’ve dated for like eight years and she was sleeping with someone else for four of them. He said he didn’t have anyone else to talk to…” 

“Wow… understandable then… Did you call out then?” 

“Nope, I can’t.” 

“You can’t seriously think going in is a good idea…” 

“No, I think it’s an awful idea, but he’s supposed to work the morning shift too and that’s obviously not gonna happen.” 

“Keith…” 

“I’ll be fine, I’m just gonna go shower and drink some coffee. It’s only a five hour shift.” 

“Still… you’re already exhausted, you’re gonna drain yourself.” 

“Already there, I’ll be fine. I work afternoon Wednesday so I can sleep from like noon until like… ten the next morning. It’s fine.” 

“Okay… I know you haven’t eaten, at least let me make you something to eat before you go.” 

“Fine.” 

As soon as they got back home, Keith made his way to his room and Lance started making him some french toast. Around an hour later, he came back fully dressed again and poured himself a cup of coffee before sitting at the kitchen bar and poking at his food. He managed to eat two pieces before he sank into the couch, waiting until he had to leave. 

“You look so tired… I really don’t think you should go…” 

“Lance, I’ll be fine. I am tired which means I don’t have the energy to do this. Please just drop it. I really don’t have a choice.” 

“Okay… I’m driving you, let’s go… And I’m picking you up after.” 

“I get off at ten, you should sleep.” 

“No, you should sleep. I’ll just go to bed when I get you back home. You won’t know if I sleep or not anyway.” Keith just rolled his eyes and got in. The ride was silent, until they got there. “Seriously, I’ll be out here at ten. Then you’re going to bed.” 

  “Yeah, whatever. Ten.” Keith mumbled as he climbed out. 

Chapter Text

When his shift was finally over, Keith clocked out and got into Lance’s truck that was already waiting outside. He tried to talk to him, but it was obvious it wasn’t gonna happen, so the drive was silent once again. As soon as they got home, Keith took a quick shower then flopped down on the couch, curled into his lap.
“You wanna come sleep in my room?” All he got was a faint nod. “Okay, come on.” Lance said, waiting for him to move, which clearly wasn’t happening. “God, you’re insufferable sometimes.” He mumbled before sliding him off of him, then scooping him up to carry him to bed. He was clearly fighting sleep by the time Lance put him down. Lance quickly walked around and pulled off his shirt before sliding under the covers. Keith immediately curled up onto his chest. A few minutes later, Blue started whining. “Let me up real quick.” He said softly, earning a whine from Keith. “I’ll be right back I promise. I’m just gonna let him outside.” He whined again, but let him up. True to his word, he was back just a few seconds later and let Keith take his spot back. He was asleep within minutes and Lance followed soon after.
Lance woke up about an hour before he needed to leave with Keith still sleeping on him. Now he was laying with his head on his stomach and one arm wrapped about one of Lance’s thighs. He tried to slip out from under him without waking him, but failed.
“Go back to sleep, I gotta go.”
“Nooo.” He whined.
“I can stay here for thirty more minutes, but then I have to get up, roll over so I can get up without waking you up.” Keith groaned, but did as Lance asked and waited for his arm to slide around his waist.
“You’re so warm.” He mumbled.
“I know, you’ve told me. Go back to sleep. I’ll be back at like two-thirty.” Keith just nodded and let himself drift back asleep. Lance stayed as long as he could, then quickly got dressed and left. Luckily, the diner was dead basically all night. He clocked out at exactly two, then drove home. When he got to his room, Keith was still asleep like he assumed he would be. He’d been awake for over thirty hours, and he knew he was mentally drained as well. He quickly pulled off his work clothes off and laid down, waking Keith up in the process.
“You’re home.” He mumbled with a tired smile.
“Yeah, you going back to sleep?” Keith just nodded and pressed his forehead into Lance’s side, resting a hand on his chest. “Okay….” Lance whispered, running a hand through his hair.
They both woke up to Keith’s alarm at ten. Keith just groaned and got up to get ready while Lance threw on some sweats and a hoodie, then went to make Keith a coffee. When he walked out, Lance could tell he was still pretty tired as he reached for a mug.
“You should stay home tomorrow.” He whispered as he reached over him and grabbed it for him.
“I can’t, I’m off Saturday though…”
“Yeah, and it’s only Wednesday.”
“I know. I’m just working evening shifts after today until then though.”
“So?”
“So… it’ll be fine. Are you driving me or not?” Keith asked, clearly done with the conversation.
“Yeah, come on…”
Keith managed to make it through his next two shifts without any issues. He was exhausted when he got home on Thursday and Lance had barely spoken to him since Wednesday morning, but he figured it was just from working so he let him be. Even when they were both home, Keith was super distant, but he was still eating decently and seemed to be sleeping okay.
Friday, Lance got to leave work almost as soon as he clocked in. He was scheduled from nine to two like usual, but they were overstaffed so Hunk let him go home. He spent most of his night messing around on a new music program he’d downloaded, waiting on Keith to get home. Finally, a little later than he expected, he heard the door unlock, then what sounded like two sets of footsteps coming up the stairs, one heavier and the other dragging. At that point, he got up to see what it was, but they were already in the living room.
“What the hell happened?” Lance half shouted when he saw Keith.
“Well I-” Ryker was interrupted by Keith struggling away toward Lance so he took a few steps forward and let Lance grab him. He immediately fell against him to where Lance could feel his face was wet and his shallow breaths. Lance slowly backed over to the couch and sat down, pulling him into his lap and took a minute to try and help him calm down before looking back up at Ryker and noticing the bruise on his cheek.
“What did you do?” He hissed.
“I didn’t do anything I swear…”
“Why the bruise then?”
“Well… if you’ll let me explain, I’ll tell you… We were working the same shift and I usually walk to the subway with him, but I had to talk to our manager today, so he left before I could. When I left, I didn’t think I’d catch up, but I did…”
“And?”
“And, I don’t know what was happening, I heard some guy yelling in one of the alleys and when I looked down I saw he was like on top of someone, then I realized it was him. By the time he landed another blow I was pulling him off. That’s where the bruise came from. Keith was clearly out of it so I took his key and figured out where you guys live…”
“What did he look like?”
“I don’t know, it was dark… He was like a little taller than me... like around your height, dark hair… I wasn’t really trying to ID him. He must’ve ran when I got to Keith…”
“Do you know his next shifts?”
“He’s off tomorrow, but Sunday he has another double, then mornings until Wednesday. I’m not sure after that…why?”
“I need you to find someone to cover for a few days.”
“He should be fine, I don’t think he’s hurt that badly…”
“Doesn’t matter, you probably don’t know too much about him do you?” Ryker shook his head. “Yeah, there’s a lot more going on than whatever’s physically wrong with him… Just try.”
“Okay… Have him text me?”
“He won’t. Give me your phone.” Ryder pulled out his phone and let Lance put his number in, then sent a text so Lance would have his.
“Okay… I’ll go. I’ll try and figure out his shifts.”
“Wait… is there anyway that guy knew where Keith was coming from?”
“I don’t know, he was halfway to the station, but maybe…” Lance just nodded, silently dismissing him, then got Keith to wrap his legs around his waist and carried him to the kitchen. He sat him down on the counter, slowly lifting his chin so he could finally see his face. He quickly realized the wetness he’d felt wasn’t just tears.
“I know you don’t wanna talk, but I need you to tell me if it was Mark.” Keith just nodded, still refusing to look at him. “Okay…” Lance spent a few more minutes cleaning up his face. “Can you take your shirt off?” Keith looked away and pulled his jacket and shirt off, luckily, it was just bruises. They were bad, but not as bad as the night they met. “Alright, come on. You’re sleeping with me tonight.” Lance said, pulling Keith to his room. He threw him a hoodie, then crawled into bed and opened his arms. Keith immediately took his offer and curled up around him. “Get some sleep.” He whispered before rolling onto his side so he could leave without waking him once he fell asleep. As soon as he was sure Keith was asleep, he got up, pulled on a hoodie, and grabbed his keys before scribbling a note to leave incase Keith woke up. Then, he was on the way to their old building. When he knocked on Mark’s door, it opened revealing him standing there like he’d just been woken up.
“Lance? Why are you here? I thought you were over in Norridge now?”
“You know exactly why I’m here.” He hissed.
“No, no idea.”
“You have five seconds to start talking.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about, but to me that sounds like a threat. Are you sure that’s a good idea?”
“I’ll kill you.”
“Really? Because I don’t think I’ve done anything to deserve a threat. If anything, you’re the one who should be threatened. I mean… as far as anyone knows, you took him. I’ve got a post from a week a ago and Shiro thinks we're getting engaged. And you? You’re just some random guy who used to live in our building.”
“Yeah, I am. You want to keep it that way. Even just look at him one more time and it’ll be the last thing you see.”
“Whatever man, you don’t scare me. Go home.” He said, slamming the door. Lance was livid to say the least, but he needed to get back to Keith. He sped home and found Keith still asleep. As he went to lay down, he shot up.
“It’s just me, it’s okay…” Lance whispered, wrapping an arm around him and letting him curl back around him. “I’m gonna figure it out, I promise.” He said, resting his chin on the top of Keith’s head.

Keith only ended up waking up two more times after that. Luckily, Lance was able to calm him down fairly quickly both times. After the second, Keith decided it was time to actually get up. They ended up back on the couch watching Teen Titans. Keith still hadn’t said a word, he just curled up with his head in Lance’s lap. Eventually, time for Lance to leave came.
“Okay… I gotta go. You’re not working tomorrow so you don’t have to get up in the morning. If you need anything, text me and I’ll find a way to get here… If you wanted to, you could see if Ryker will come stay with you… just keep the doors locked.” Keith just nodded numbly and watched him leave.

When Lance got back home, he found Keith back asleep on the couch. He left him there while he got ready for bed, then scooped him up and took him to his room. When he started to leave, there was a light tug on his wrist. He looked back to see Keith was awake.
“You want me to stay?” He just nodded. “Was everything okay while I was gone?” This time he got a shrug. “Do you wanna talk about it?” He just shrugged again, so he dropped it and laid down beside him.
The next few days were much the same. They would spend all day together at home, Lance would go to work, then come home and get Keith to bed, and repeat the same routine the next day. By Tuesday, Keith had still barely talked or eaten, so Lance managed to get Ryker to get him a few more days off. Finally, Friday he seemed to be doing a bit better. He went back to work Saturday night and Lance just hoped for the best.

Chapter Text

Saturday night, Keith didn’t end up getting home until after Lance had already left, but Ryker demanded that Keith let him walk him home, so Lance knew he was fine. As soon as he got inside, he took a shower, and crashed into bed. He was working from two to nine the next day, so he didn’t have to get up early. Still, he woke up around nine and stumbled into the kitchen to make a coffee, then walked out to smoke. By the time he got back, Lance was also awake. He was sitting on the couch, scrolling through his phone. 

“Good, you’re up.” 

“Yeah…” 

“You’re working today?” 

“Two to nine.” He mumbled before flopping down next to him. 

“Lame. When do you work on Thursday?” 

“Uh… closing I think, why?” 

“Would you want to go out for a drink… like with Allura after. I’m off so…” 

“Okay…” 

“We don’t have to…” 

“No, we can.” 

“Cool, I’ll pick you up after work so we can come back here first.” Keith just nodded. They spent the rest of the day before Keith had to go to work just hanging out and watching TV. Work went surprisingly well for both of them. Keith was already asleep when Lance got back home. The next two days were much the same. Tuesday, Keith was working an opening shift, so Lance had planned to give him a ride. 

“So, you’re off at…?” Lance asked as he got into the truck. 

“Noon.” 

“Great, so I can come pick you up?” 

“No…” 

“Why not?” 

“I’m going to the doctor…” He mumbled. 

“Why?” 

“I think you were right…” 

“About?” 

“Maybe I should try going back on meds… I guess…” 

“Where are you going? I can pick you up from there if you want me to…” 

“Uh… Some place on Fulton…” 

“That takes forever on the subway, just let me take you. That way you can come home first too. Besides, I’ve like barely seen you these past few days.” 

“Fine.” 

Like they agreed, Lance was waiting outside at noon when Keith clocked out. He watched as Keith stopped to talk to Ryker who had followed him out, eventually shaking him and making his way to the truck, clearly not happy about whatever was happening with Ryker. 

“You okay?” 

“I’m fine.” He mumbled. 

“What happened?” 

“He won’t leave me alone.” 

“Does he bother you?” 

“Not usually, but he’s been on my back all day because I… kinda had an anxiety attack this morning, but it wasn’t even that bad and I dealt with it.” 

“He cares about you, maybe it is annoying, but I’m glad he does.” 

“Why? I thought you didn’t like him…” 

“He clearly cares about you. That’s a good thing, and you clearly like him. Why shouldn’t I?” 

“You glare at him like all the time.” 

“You’re oblivious…” He mumbled under his breath so Keith didn’t hear him. “Because if he hurts you I’ll kill him. He should know that.” 

“I think he does.” 

“Good, now… Where is this place?” 

“Over by the mall. What are you gonna do while I’m gone?” 

“I dunno, go walk around the mall or something then. Just text me when you’re out.” Keith nodded and the conversation moved to other random things until Lance dropped him off. “I’ll be around, just let me know when you’re done.” Keith nodded and disappeared into the building, leaving Lance to entertain himself at the mall. By the time Keith texted him, he had found a surprise for Keith, it was stupid, but it was cute. He hid it in the truck, then made his way over to where Keith was already waiting on the sidewalk. 

“That sucked.” He said as he got in. 

“Well… What’d they say?” 

“That I’m insanely fucked basically.” 

“What?” 

“You know.” 

“Did she prescribe anything?” 

“Bupropion. Apparently it’ll fix everything.” Keith said sarcastically. “I doubt it.” 

“Worth a shot right? Is it like gonna be ready soon?” 

“No, I can walk to the pharmacy I ordered it to anyway, I’ll go later.” 

“Okay, anything else you need to do?” 

“Take a nap, that sucked.” 

“Okay, home it is then…”  Keith just nodded and let the conversation fall. It was already nearly four, so by the time they got home, he didn’t have much time with Lance before he left. They ate dinner and watched some TV, but he left before nine, leaving Keith alone. He decided to go to bed since he had another morning shift and went to bed. He was back up at one when Blue started crying. 

“Blue!” He mumbled, only getting more whines in return. “I know you miss him, I do too but you can sleep in here.” Once again, Blue whined this time resting his chin on the edge of Keith’s bed. “Okay then… What do you want? Are you hungry?” He asked, looking for a response. “Do you want… outside? No… Go walk?” This time, Blue gave a small stomp with his front two paws. “Okay, let me find some shoes and text dad, I’ll take you in a minute.” Keith said, finally sitting up, letting out a slight laugh as Blue cocked his head at ‘dad’, knowing he was talking about Lance. 

“Okay, come on.” He said, clipping on his leash. As they walked down the block, Keith shot Lance a text letting him know he was leaving, and making fun of his dog’s poor sleep schedule. They had a shorter walk than normal, arriving back home right before Lance got off of work. When they got back, Keith immediately flopped back in bed, trying to get as much sleep as he still could before he would have to get up. He heard Lance come in about twenty minutes later, then let himself start to drift off. Before he could fall asleep, he heard a slam.

“Fuck!” Lance shouted before running to his room, making Keith rush out. A few seconds later, Lance came back out, holding a hand over his temple. 

“Lance?” Keith said as he watched Lance walk back into the kitchen. 

“Oh, sorry… Do you know where any peroxide or like rubbing alcohol is?” 

“It’s fine… Why do you need that?” 

“Uh… I’m stupid and tired.” Lance said as he removed his hand and Keith was finally able to see the cut on his face that was dripping blood. 

“How did you manage that?” Keith asked as he jumped up to sit on the counter then reached to the top of one of the cabinets to pull down a dark purple bottle. 

“Ha, short.” Lance teased. “I was gonna give Blue a treat and I kinda… hit myself with the corner of the cabinet really really hard…” 

“Good job…” He mumbled as he reached for a paper towel and motioned for Lance to come closer. “I mean, that takes serious skill.” Keith laughed as he cleaned the side of his face. “Wow… How did you… That’s like kind of deep…” He mumbled once he finally got it clean enough to see. “Hold that there for a second.” He said before sliding some things around in the cabinet and pulling out a box of butterfly bandages.

“Keith, I’m fine.” Lance insisted. 

“Shut up, you’re like pouring blood and that’s not gonna just heal up by itself, trust me.”

“Keith.” He whined. 

“The blood has literally already soaked through that… Did you really do that with a cabinet door?” He asked as he pulled Lance’s hand down and replaced the paper towel with gauze. 

“Yeah…” 

  “The one with Blue’s treats in it?” Lance nodded, then Keith slid off the counter and opened the other cabinet, running a finger over the smooth corner. “You’re lying. Why won’t you tell me?” 

“Because the real reason is dumber…” Lance said guiltily. 

“What’d you do?” 

“I was prepping for Hunk tonight… I have a short attention span…” 

“And?” 

“And I kinda forgot I had a knife in my hand when I finished chopping some vegetables… It happens a lot, I mean I’ll walk around for five minutes still holding the knife, but this time I was walking over to the sink and I was pushing back my hair… I know I’m dumb, quit looking at me like that.” 

“Just one more thing… you’re not left handed… So did you bring the knife across your face, like in front of your eyes or did you manage to switch hands? Also why the yelling?” 

“I had sat it down and I was going to take it to the sink, so it was in my left and I had something over it but the dried blood like glued it to my face and it hurt to rip off, and I couldn’t find anything to clean it with so that was the slamming noise… sorry.” 

“I wasn’t even asleep yet, it’s fine.” Keith mumbled before jumping back up on the counter. He picked Lance’s hand up to see the cut and saw the bleeding had slowed quite a bit, then put it back with a slight smirk. “Your ADHD is gonna kill you.” 

“I know. At least I have you to clean up my messes though, even if you are mean to me.” 

“I’m not that mean! You were holding a literal knife and forgot about it! I think this is deserved.” 

“Fair point.” Lance sighed. “At least it wasn’t my neck though…” 

“Yeah… be more careful.” 

“Aw, look at you acting like you care about me.” 

“I’m not acting and you know that.” Keith mumbled, not fully realizing Lance was teasing him. “Okay, take that off and come here.” He said, avoiding that possible conversation as he prepared the butterfly bandages. He carefully placed a few to close the cut, then debated covering it so it wouldn’t come undone in his sleep, but decided against it. When he decided he was done, he struggled to pull his gaze away from where it had become trapped. Finally he did and awkwardly started putting everything back in the cabinet, trying to ignore the fact Lance had just casually landed on his thigh. 

“Keith…” He said awkwardly, making him turn back to face him. 

“Hmm?” 

“Don’t freak out…” 

“What? Why would-” He was cut off by Lance bringing his non-bloody hand up to his chin. He started to finish his sentence, but he couldn’t. Lance slowly pulled him closer and placed a soft kiss on his lips. When he pulled back, Keith was just staring at him wide-eyed. 

“I said don’t freak out!” He whined. 

“I- uh… How di- Why?” Keith stuttered out. 

“Sorry if that was…” Lance said awkwardly. “I just… thought it seemed like a dec-” 

“Shut up…” Keith interrupted.

“What?” 

“Do it again.” Lance just smiled and pulled him back in for another.

“So… you really don’t remember Thanksgiving night then?” Keith shook his head. 

“Rachel said some stuff that was…. I don’t know, that’s all I remember.” 

“You like straight up asked me to kiss you on the way home then got all pouty when I said no.” Lance laughed as he turned to wash his hands. 

“Why’d you say no then if you did it now?” 

“Because, you were wasted, so you wouldn’t have remembered, plus I didn’t think it would be right. I wasn’t very drunk and you were barely standing, I would’ve been taking advantage of you and that’s the last thing I want to do. You did end up getting a forehead kiss though. I kinda thought you were just wasted anyway after seeing you with the bartender…” Lance said as he dried his hands. He turned to see Keith’s awkward, almost embarrassed expression.

“What?” 

“Well… I kinda figured out the whole bartender thing…” 

“What do you mean?” 

“Blame Rachel, she started it!” 

“What are you talking about?” 

“She was trying to convince me… you know… and he was already flirting with me…” 

“And she knew I was jealous so she convinced you to keep flirting with him to prove it?” Keith just nodded. “Yeah, I think he knew that too…” 

“What do you mean?” 

“He talked to me at one point while you were smoking. Asked how we weren’t together but I clearly hated you two flirting. Then said ‘Dude, just go for it.’...” 

“Really?” Keith asked in disbelief. 

“Yep, better than my mom’s talks though. I kinda didn’t think it was a good idea and like why would he care anyway… then he pointed at you and said something along the lines of ‘Because look at him, he’s cute, but he’s already yours.’ I didn’t appreciate the cute part, but yeah… again, better than my mom, and Rachel.” 

“Rachel isn’t that bad…” 

“Dude, she totally is. You wanna know what my mom said the next morning?” 

“Probably not…” Keith mumbled, but Lance ignored him. 

“She said she was talking to Rachel before you got up and she said you’d make a great brother-in-law. Did you really not believe her?” 

“No…” 

“God, you're oblivious.” 

“I’m totally not, you are. How long anyway?” 

“Since I realized about myself… probably when we got sushi and for some reason I had no interest in the waitress’s number on the receipt. You… probably when I noticed you faked sleeping so you wouldn’t have to get off of me, or maybe the fact that my entire family saw it, I don’t know. You?” 

“Uh… me… no idea, and you like one minute ago…” 

“See? You are oblivious.” Lance teased. 

“So… now what?” 

“That is fully up to you. I’m fine with waiting for however long, I just want you to be comfortable with it. As long as you’re here, happy, and safe I don’t care.” He replied as he threw the bloody gauze in the trashcan. 

“Okay… So…” 

“So, until you decide what you want, I’ll be here. Nothing has to change now just because I kissed you, but if you want it to, all you have to do is tell me. I don’t want you to feel pressured at all though so…” 

“I think I do…” Keith mumbled. 

“Okay.” Lance said, pushing away a smile. “In that case I get to call you my boyfriend now and I’ll do my best to avoid doing anything that would make you uncomfortable. If that works for you? Oh! You also have to let me take you out on a date at somepoint.” 

“Okay… Did the zoo not count? That was kinda gay…” 

“Shut up, no it didn’t because we were just friends then. I’ll find something better for this… When do you work?” 

“I have to open…” 

“So you need to leave in like an hour then?” Keith nodded. “I’ll drive you, go get ready.” He just nodded again and slid off the counter, quickly disappearing into his room. He was ready just a few minutes before he had to leave, so he waited outside, smoking. A few minutes later, Lance came out and drug him to the truck. 

Chapter Text

Keith’s day at work was boring to say the least. It was a Monday, so they were fairly busy, but somehow Keith managed to avoid taking orders for most of the day. He did end up a bit longer than he was originally scheduled for though. He was supposed to be off by noon, but he wasn’t able to clock out until three. Finally, he made his way to the subway, then stopped on the way home to pick up his prescription. When he walked in, he looked for Lance, but didn’t find him. He flopped down on the couch and waited. 

“Good, you’re finally home.” Lance said as the door to the back porch opened. 

“Yeah. I think they fired someone. My schedule is like totally different now.” 

“Oh… When do you work tomorrow?” 

“Open to close, Wednesday too.”

“Really? What about Thursday?” 

“Uhh… midday to before close I think…” Keith mumbled, pulling out his phone. “Yeah, it’s one to nine-fifteen. Friday I guess I’m off unless I get called in.” 

“And this weekend?” 

“Open to close Saturday, and I don’t have Sunday yet, I’ll know Friday night probably.” 

“So… You still wanna go out with Allura?” 

“Yeah, I have better hours now if anything, so…” 

“And you don’t have to go in hungover.” Lance teased. 

“I’m not drinking that much like ever again. Why do you let me do that?” 

“I’ve never ‘let you’. The first time you were wasted I barely knew you, the last time that was your own doing.” 

“Yeah, but you enable me!” 

“You could get in some of them without me! You did before right?” 

“Shut up.” 

“Yeah, whatever.” Lance mumbled as he dramatically fell onto the couch half on top of Keith. “Your cat has been a pain lately.” 

“He’s perfect, I don’t know what you're talking about. Your dog wakes me up all the time.” 

“Yeah, but he doesn’t walk around the house screaming because I’m gone!” 

“But he whines until you come back or he goes on a walk.” 

“Shut up…. I don’t wanna go to work!” Lance whined, rolling onto his stomach. 

“So don’t.” 

“I have to.”

“You wouldn’t die if you didn’t.” 

“You’re not helping.” 

“Why don’t you wanna go?” 

“Because I’m tired and Hunk is never gonna shut up about my face.” 

“Hey, you did it.” 

“I know! Leave me alone! It was an accident! Not to mention it looks a million times worse with the eight pounds of bandaids on it.” 

“I’ll redo it before you go. It needed that many this morning or it was never gonna start closing up.” 

“Whatever Doctor Kogane. It would’ve been fine.” 

“You’re just lucky I didn’t make you go get stitches, you probably needed them.” 

“Make me? How was that gonna work?”

“I dunno… It would’ve though.” 

“Yeah, probably.” Lance sighed before sitting up. “I’m gonna go take a shower. They’ll probably start coming off so…” Keith just nodded and leaned back into the couch and zoned into the show Lance had on. Roughly half an hour later, Lance walked out half dressed with his hair still wet. Out of habit, Keith just pretended he didn’t notice and followed him into the kitchen where he was getting out the bandages. Once he got the box down, he turned around with a smirk. 

“What?” 

“Nothing…” Lance mumbled as Keith hopped up on the counter. Most of the old bandages had started to come off, so he pulled them all off and got to work. This time he only put about half the amount he did before since it was starting to close, but it was in a place that could easily make it bust open. “Deja vu?” Lance teased, earning an eye roll from Keith.  

“Are you doing prep again tonight?” 

“Uh… If I need to. Hunk usually pulls me if I’m there and he needs someone, but I think he’s got someone scheduled.” 

“Is it just one person?” 

“At night, two on the weekends. It’s usually not too busy so it works. For a while it was only four of us from like nine to four, but everyone’s leaving or changing hours… I might too…” 

“You’ve said that a million times.” 

“I know, but I’m serious this time… Mom’s working on getting the divorce and it looks like she may get ownership of my dad’s store. They have even shares and she kinda has the upper hand seeing as he’s literally in jail for domestic violence and assault right now… She wants me to help run things for a while, at least until we find someone permanent to like manage or whatever. Right now it’s her and a temp manager so… I don’t know, it might be weird…” 

“Why?” 

“Because… basically everyone who works there now worked there when I was like sixteen. I don’t know, I mean a few of them were like my age, but it would be weird basically managing a bunch of adults that knew me when I was sixteen.” 

“You’re an adult too now stupid.” 

“Yeah, but still… I don’t know, it seems weird. Not to mention they all know how my dad feels about me…” 

“So?” 

“So… that’s awkward…” 

“But if you're their boss what are they gonna say about it?” 

“Fair point, I guess… Are you hungry? I have to leave in like two hours, but I can cook…” 

“No, I ate earlier.” 

“Good… So you got your prescription?” Lance asked as he pulled Keith off the counter and over to the couch. 

“Yeah… No idea when I’m gonna start it though.” 

“Tomorrow?” 

“Maybe…” Keith mumbled before leaning into Lance’s shoulder. 

“You’re worried about it?” 

“Kinda… I just don’t think it’s gonna work like she thinks it will and I made the mistake of reading about it…” 

“And?” 

“And I get paranoid way too easily… also how am I supposed to know if I’m anxious versus having irrational fears? Are they not the same thing, but one’s normal and the other is supposedly concerning, also why am I taking something where a main side effect is anxiety when that’s like a third of my issue? It’s like mainly just an antidepressant. If I turn into a zombie for that I’m giving up.” 

“Well… I’m not sure about the irrational fear thing, but I’m sure we can figure that out if we need to… But you don’t think you should even be taking it, period? What do you think you should take? Maybe you should try a different psychiatrist…” 

“I dunno… I feel like she thinks if I take an antidepressant everything else will go away, but it won’t…” 

“What have you tried before?” 

“A lot… they always like make me half dead and don’t help with much…” 

“So… what do you want to do? No one’s making you take anything, you shouldn’t if you really don’t want to. If you want to try again… maybe you should like… have a few sessions with someone before getting a prescription. Psychiatrists are gonna push meds on you, maybe we could just find a psychologist first. I know you hate the idea of talking to someone, but… maybe it won’t suck as much as you think…” Keith just shrugged. “You don’t have to decide right now, I can see your brain starting to smoke a little.” Lance teased. “Seriously, don’t let this freak you out, it’s not a big deal. You’ll figure it out eventually. If you wanted to try those, I’ll be here and make sure you don’t get zombified, but don’t let it bother you so much, okay?” He nodded slightly and leaned back into Lance’s shoulder. “Okay… well I have to head out in like an hour so…” 

“So?” Lance just sighed and pulled Keith into his lap. 

“So, I want attention.” 

“Is this my life now?” Keith jokingly sighed. 

“I said it didn’t have to be. Tell me to leave you alone and I will…” Keith just rolled his eyes and got comfortable. “So… I’m assuming you’ll be asleep when I get home, but I’ll drive you to work in the morning and Wednesday… At least if I move to the store I’ll have better hours. I think it opens at like nine and closes at eight on weeknights and nine on the weekends. It’ll be a pain to get used to though.”

“When are you gonna start there?” 

“Well… my mom said the job was mine when I wanted it, but I kinda want to wait and see how the divorce is gonna look. Not that Hunk wouldn’t talk his Uncle into rehiring me, but still.” Keith just nodded. Soon enough, Lance was pulling on his shoes, getting ready to leave and Keith was getting up to shower and go to bed. 

“Wait.” Lance said before Keith disappeared into his room. “Come here.” He was obviously confused, but he still walked over. As soon as he was in reach, Lance pulled him in and kissed him. “Haven’t gotten to do that again.” He laughed. “Okay, I’m out. See you in the morning.” Keith just nodded, still kind of shocked about the whole situation and watched him leave before retreating to his room. He took a quick shower then crawled into bed with Kosmo. Blue actually fell asleep too, laying on the floor beside his bed.  Keith didn’t wake back up until Lance was shaking him awake.  

“Get up stupid, you slept through your alarm.” 

“Shut up.” He groaned, pulling the blanket over his head, which Lance just pulled back down. 

“You have to leave in like half an hour…” 

“Don’t care.” 

“Keith!” Lance whined. “Don’t make me drag you out of bed.” 

“You suck.” He mumbled, finally getting up and checking the time to see if Lance was serious. He really did have to leave in half an hour, so he quickly threw on a pair of jeans and one of the cafe’s tee shirts with a black jacket, then pulled Lance out of his room and to the kitchen where the lighting was better to check his face. “Looks better.” 

“You don’t… do you feel okay?” 

“Yeah, just tired. I actually slept last night though so… I dunno…” He mumbled again. 

“But other than that?” Keith just nodded and leaned into Lance’s shoulder. “Okay…” He whispered, placing a soft kiss on the top of Keith’s forehead.  “Well… we should probably go…” 

“Yeah…” He muttered, following him to the truck. The drive was mostly silent until they got to the cafe. 

“Same time tomorrow?” Keith just nodded. “Okay… well, text me if you need anything…” He just nodded again and turned away. Lance made his way back to the apartment and crashed like usual. When he woke back up, he jumped through the shower and changed, then checked his phone, seeing a text from almost an hour ago.

Ryker: You should come see him, something’s off. 

Lance: What? What do you mean?

Ryker: I don’t know, I’ve learned not to pry. It’s weird though, he was like weirdly happy yesterday and now he’s being like super quiet and asked me to switch with him. I don’t know, maybe he’s just not liking all the people today, but I think he’d feel better if he saw you. He’s got a break in like twenty minutes. 

Lance: Let me know if he goes anywhere, I’ll head that way in a minute. 

He quickly got dressed and started the drive over. It took him a minute to find actual parking, but once he did, he walked in and Keith was nowhere to be seen, so he waited for someone to come to the front, luckily it was Ryker. 

“Keith!” He shouted to the back. A few seconds later he came out with a glare. 

“What?” Ryker just rolled his eyes and pointed to Lance. “What are you doing here?” 

“I figured you were on break soon, plus I had to come grab something for Hunk… When is your break.” 

“Like now…” 

“Great, come on.” 

“To where?” 

“I dunno, wherever… unless you want me to leave…” Keith just shrugged and walked around the counter to follow him out. “Okay then… Is there anywhere you would want to go?” Lance asked as Keith dug out his cigarettes. 

“Did you drive?” 

“Yeah…” 

“Your truck.” 

“Okay, I’m parked like half a block down.” Keith just nodded and followed, finishing his cigarette by the time they got there. They both got in and he immediately laid across the seat with his head in Lance’s lap. “You know you can tell me if something’s going on, right?” 

“M’ fine, tired. People.” He muttered. 

“Okay… Do you think you could call out tomorrow, or get some of tonight off? I know it’s understaffed or whatever, but that doesn’t mean you should exhaust yourself…” 

“Maybe… I’ve only worked four days though…” Lance could tell he was frustrated with himself. 

“Yeah… but you didn’t work for like a week. You’re allowed to take a break.” 

“You don’t…” 

“I work way less than you. I rarely get stuck working a what… sixteen hour shift… or eighteen? Back to back? I think anyone would be tired of people at that point.” Keith just shrugged. “Think about it, okay?” 

“I’m literally off on Friday though…”

“So? That’s Friday… Do whatever you think will make you feel better…” He hesitated, but nodded and sat up. “When do you have to go back?” 

“Uh… like fifteen minutes.” He mumbled before leaning back into Lance’s shoulder. Eventually his break was over and Lance walked him back before heading home. He had planned to call his mom soon to see how everything was going. 

Chapter Text

When Lance got home from work, he walked in to find Keith asleep on the couch with an arm hanging over Blue. He figured he would be asleep, but it was obvious he only made it a few minutes after he got there before he fell asleep. He quickly got changed, then came back to get Keith to bed. His original plan was to carry him, but he woke up when he started to scoop him up. 

“Hm?” 

“I was just gonna take you to your bed. You fell asleep out here.” Keith nodded and forced himself to sit up, then stumbled to his room. A few seconds later, he turned back, leaning against the door post. “What?” Instead of a real response, Keith just pointed behind him. “Okay.” Lance said with a quiet laugh, then followed Keith in. He sat down, leaning against the headboard and let Keith get comfortable. He spent the next few hours just scrolling through his phone and letting Keith sleep, then he realized he was supposed to be up and his alarm didn’t go off, so he attempted to wake him up. 

“Keith, you have to leave soon. Get up.” 

“Not going.” He mumbled. 

“You called out?” He just nodded and rolled onto his side, facing away from Lance to go back to sleep. “Good.” Lance said softly before properly laying down and wrapping an arm around his waist, deciding to get some sleep himself. When Keith woke back up around ten, he turned over to see Lance was still asleep. He slid out of bed and made his way outside. When he got done smoking, he came back in and crawled back into bed to wait for Lance to wake up. 

“Hey…” Lance mumbled as he finally woke up, resting his chin on the top of Keith’s shoulder. “What time is it?” 

“Like noon, why?” 

“Mama wanted me to go look at some stuff at the store.” He mumbled. “I’m assuming you don’t want to go, but if you do I’m sure she wouldn’t be opposed to seeing you. I’m probably gonna head over around two if you want to come…” 

“Maybe…” 

“You don’t have to. What about until I leave?” 

“Stay here… “ 

“Sounds good to me.” Lance whispered, pulling Keith closer. “Hopefully I’ll have better hours soon. Actually getting to sleep with you is nice.” 

“We slept together for like the first month I’ve been here…” 

“Yeah, not like this though… I mean, I’ll leave you alone if you want…” 

“No.” Keith whined before curling more into Lance. They ended up spending the next hour or so in bed, barely even talking, just laying there together. It was nice. Soon enough, it was time for Lance to get ready. By then, Keith had decided to come with him. When he was ready, he went to Lance’s room to wait for him. 

“So you’re coming then?” Lance asked, sticking his head out from where he was going his hair in the bathroom. Keith just nodded and waited. Eventually, he was ready and led the way out to his truck. Lance realized fairly quickly how quiet Keith was being, but left it alone assuming he was trying to save his energy for when they got there. That was until a song started playing and Lance could tell he was debating telling him something. 

“So, who is this one again?” He asked, creating an opening for one of Keith’s rants. 

“You’re joking? L.A. Guns.” He mumbled. 

“No I’m not. And?” 

“And what?” 

“I dunno… I thought you had something to say about them… you had that look…” 

“What look?” 

“When you want to tell me about something. Like when we were at the zoo… you go on little tangents about stuff sometimes.” 

“Oh… sorry…” 

“What? Why? I like them, it’s cute. So, did you have some weird little fact?” 

“Uh… not really.” 

“Nothing comes to mind?” 

“Not really…” Lance just nodded and dropped the conversation, he knew Keith just didn’t feel like talking much, so he just let it go. Soon enough, they arrived at the store. It was an older building near Belmont Avenue, the entire street seemed to be almost frozen in time. All of the buildings looked like they hadn’t changed since the eighties, there was even an old movie theater that was now split into a few different shops. 

“Well, we’re here… kinda.” Lance said as he parked a few shops down in front of an insurance firm. He hopped out of the truck and walked around, extending a hand to Keith as he jumped down. He awkwardly took it and let Lance pull him into the shop where they were immediately met by a cashier. 

“Hi, welcome to- Lance?” An older man started to greet them. 

“Yeah…” 

“Didn’t think I’d see you again… How’s your dad?” 

“What do you mean?” 

“I don’t know, your mom’s been all quiet and we got a new hire…” 

“Oh… yeah, well… you know I don’t really know anything…” He laughed awkwardly before pulling Keith with him towards the back. “Well, I guess no one knows what’s really going on if he doesn’t. Everyone used to tell him everything.” 

“Do you like him?” 

“Yeah, he’s worked here since my dad opened I think. He’s actually probably still a manager, but he used to be my dad’s like… assistant manager or whatever. He’s cool, not really like my dad at all. He’s actually the first person I talked to about… everything other than like my best friends at the time…” Keith just nodded. By the time they made it to the back, Lance’s mom was waiting outside one of the office doors. 

“So… Why am I here?” He asked, ignoring her smirk as she glanced down at their interlaced fingers. 

“I want you to look at a few things… You said you were thinking about coming here, I wanted you to look at a few things.” She said, ushering them in. “Entonces ustedes dos son...?” She half-whispered, only receiving an eyeroll accompanied by a soft smile.  ///(So, you two are…?”)/// 

“So… what is this?” Lance asked as he sat down at one of the desks, pulling Keith into his lap. She explained everything to him and told him what she wanted him to do, smiling at Keith who was messing with the zipper of Lance’s jacket. “So… you think you’ll get the store?” 

“It looks like it…  All I have to do is convince him to sign over a few shares, but I think I have that covered.” 

“How?” 

“If he agrees to sign them over to me and sign the papers, and to split all assets without it being a case… I’ll drop the charges." 

“Is that even legal?” 

“I’m not sure. I’m going to see him later… also, don’t tell Veronica or Luis, but he’s getting out on bond soon…” 

“What? When?” 

“I’m not sure… He won’t come home though, I’ve agreed to bring him some stuff from home as long as he stays in a hotel until court. Now all I have to worry about is custody. They’ll most likely honor Veronica’s wishes since she’s older, but I’m not sure about Luis…” 

“Dad won’t get custody, even if you drop charges.” She just nodded and let Lance start looking over whatever it was he came for and tried to drag a conversation out of Keith. After a few minutes of prying, he was actually getting through a real conversation with her, not without anxiously playing with the bottom hem of Lance’s jacket. After a little while, she left to go work on something else and left Lance to finish looking at all the papers she had handed him.  

“She totally could’ve emailed these.” He mumbled. “Definaltly just an excuse to get me up here.” Keith just shrugged and leaned his head into his shoulder. It only took him about half an hour to finish whatever he was doing, then he had to go find his mom. “Okay… that’s done… I should probably go see if that’s all she needed.” Keith nodded and let Lance up, then followed him back out of the office. They walked around for a few minutes before they finally spotted her talking to one of the workers. Once she saw them, she held up a finger and turned back to her. 

“You’re tired.” Lance whispered. 

“Not really…” 

“You’re doing that thing where you shift your weight like constantly…” 

“What?” 

“You do it when you’re tired.” 

“Why do you know all that stuff?” 

“Because you don’t talk a lot, which is fine, but you have a bunch of tells.” 

“Okay, well I’m not even tired so you got this one wrong.” 

“Hmm… I’ll figure it out.” Keith just rolled his eyes and leaned against Lance’s arm. Eventually his mom walked over and they started talking, but Keith was totally zoned out for most of it. They finally said their goodbyes and Lance pulled him back out of the store and down the sidewalk. “Do you wanna do anything else before we go home?” He asked as he opened Keith’s door. He just shrugged and got in. “So no then?” Lance laughed as he walked around. The ride home was quiet, but luckily it didn’t take too long to get home since traffic wasn’t too bad yet. As soon as they got home, Keith pulled off his shoes and waited for Lance on the couch. Once he finally sat down, Keith laid down with his head across Lance’s lap. 

“Yeah, you’re not tired.” Lance teased. 

“Shut up.” He mumbled. 

“You know, you could take a nap…” 

“I just got up.” 

“Yeah, at like what? Ten? If you’re tired you can go take a nap.” Keith just glared up at him. “You’re so stubborn.” Lance sighed as he pulled him up and dragged him to his bed. They both laid down and Lance wrapped an arm around Keith’s waist. Honestly, Keith knew he wasn’t going to actually go to sleep, but he was happy to just lay there with him. They ended up just laying there together until Lance decided they both needed to eat and got up to cook. After a few minutes, Keith got bored and found Lance sitting on the couch, waiting for whatever he made to cook. 

“Hey, I ma-” 

“Your face is bleeding again.” Keith interrupted, making Lance reach up to feel the blood. 

“Huh… I guess it is.” He mumbled as he stared at the blood on his fingers. “It’s fine, it did that earlier too, it’ll stop in a minute.” He said, grabbing a tissue to soak the blood up. “Stop staring at me like that, it’s fine…. See? It’s like barely bleeding.” He said as he revealed the cut that had mostly stopped bleeding already. Keith just rolled his eyes and started to say something, but the oven interrupted him and Lance got up to take out the food. He came back a few minutes later with two plates, handing one to Keith who was sitting on the floor in front of the couch, then he sat down himself and scrolled through the channels on TV. They ate mostly in a comfortable silence while watching The Maze Runner. When they were both done, Keith followed Lance to the kitchen and jumped up on the counter by the sink to talk to him while he did dishes. 

“So… You’re off Thursday?”

“Yeah. We don’t have to go out if you don’t want to though.” 

“We can…” 

“Only if you want to, and we can always leave if you wanted to.”

“Lance, it’s fine.” 

“Yeah, but it’ll be after you ge-” Suddenly a crash broke off his sentence. He had dropped a plate which shattered on the floor. “Shit.” He mumbled as he knelt down to pick up the bigger pieces of glass, then grabbed a broom to sweep up the smaller pieces. “Stay up there for a second.” He said without even looking up. When he finally finished cleaning up the glass, he looked over and realized Keith had completely frozen. “Keith?” He said softly as he took a few steps closer. “You okay?” Keith was still just staring at his feet. Lance slowly reached a hand out, but Keith flinched away. “Okay… That’s okay, I’m gonna go to my room and leave you alone. If you want to, you can just come in whenever, but I can tell you don’t want me over here and I don’t wanna scare you…” He whispered softly, taking a step back. He waited a more seconds, then quietly went back to his room, leaving the door open, meaning he could just barely see Keith from his bed. 

He watched for a while, but eventually Keith got up and walked towards the back door. Lance snuck over to his doorway to watch. He just stood out on the back porch for what felt like ages. Finally, as he turned back around, Lance laid back down. It was almost seven, so he hoped Keith was going to come talk to him before he had to leave. He picked up his phone and pretended to pay attention to Instagram instead of Keith. The next time he glanced up, he was awkwardly standing by the door. 

“You wanna come in here?” Keith just faintly nodded. “Come on, I’m not gonna do anything to you.” Lance said, motioning to the bed beside him. It took a minute, but eventually Keith convinced himself to go in. As he walked over to the bed, Lance sat up and crossed his legs. 

“I’m sorry…” Keith mumbled, barely audibly as he sat down, facing Lance, anxiously pulling at his hoodie sleeves. 

“What? Why?” He just shrugged. “Don’t be… It’s okay, I’m never going to be mad about that. It’s not your fault anyway… I didn’t even think about it, I’m sorry. I have to leave in about an hour and a half… Do you want me to see if I can call out or something?” 

“No I… It’s fine…” He mumbled again, still avoiding eye contact. 

“Okay… Do you want to lay down with me until I have to get ready to leave?” This time Keith just nodded and waited for him to lay down. He hesitated, but eventually laid beside him and leaned into his chest. “I’m sorry that scared you, but that’s over.” Lance whispered before pressing a soft kiss onto his forehead. Keith just shrugged and nestled closer to his chest. He had a feeling he would fall asleep soon, so he just waited, running a hand through his hair. By the time he had to get ready, he knew Keith was asleep, so he carefully slid out of bed and got ready. 

Chapter Text

When Lance got back home from work, he walked into his room to check on Keith, but found it empty. He immediately assumed Blue woke him up and called for him, getting no response, so he decided to wait up for him in the living room. He was honestly kind of upset he didn’t bother to text, but he wasn’t mad. After what felt like forever, he finally heard the door open, then heard Keith’s footsteps coming up the stairs. As soon as they got inside, Blue ran over to him and jumped up on the couch.
“Why didn’t you text me?” He asked, not thinking to check his tone. When he looked back over to Keith, he realized what he did. “I didn’t mean… Can you come over here?” He asked much more softly. Keith just faintly nodded and cautiously made his way over, opting to sit on the floor with his chin resting on Lance’s knee. “I’m sorry… I’m not mad at you, I should’ve thought that through more… I just want you to be safe.” Keith gave a soft nod and laid his head fully against his leg. He slowly lifted a hand to his hair and felt him slowly relax into the touch. After a few minutes of Lance just running his hand through his hair, he seemed to be feeling a bit better.
“You wanna come to bed? I’ve gotta take a shower, but I’m probably gonna get some sleep soon. You don’t have to sleep with me if you don’t want to, but if you do…” Again, Keith just gave a soft nod. “Okay… I’ll be out in a minute.” Lance almost whispered as he got up and disappeared into his room. He felt guilty to say the least. He’d managed to trigger him twice in less than twelve hours, which he wasn’t even home for half of. He had to get better about that, but he was honestly awful at thinking before he said or did anything, but that needed to change. Most of his shower was spent lost in his own thoughts. Finally, he got out, attempted to towel-dry his hair, and threw on a pair of shorts before walking out to find Keith already in his bed. He decided it was probably better to not say anything and just get in bed and wait for him to come closer if he chose to. He was honestly surprised when Keith almost immediately rolled over and threw a leg over him.
“Get some sleep, Mullet.” He whispered as he wrapped an arm around him. He actually ended up falling asleep before Keith, but he followed soon after. The next day when Lance woke up around noon, Keith was gone. He rolled over and grabbed his phone off his nightstand to check his notifications. By the time he looked back up, Keith was standing in the doorway.
“Hey.” He mummed.
“Get up, I’m bored.” He whined.
“How long have you been up?”
“Since like eight.”
“Why? Didn’t we go to sleep at like four?”
“I went to sleep at five, but I slept before then too.”
“Well, what do you wanna do? If you still wanna go tonight, we’ll probably leave around ten since we’ll probably take the L, so… we have like forever.” Lance asked as he walked over to him.
“I dunno…” Keith mumbled, holding out his arms.
“You okay?” He asked as he pulled him into a tight hug.
“Yeah, why wouldn’t I be?”
“You’re acting different…”
“M’ cold and bored.”
“Oh, you just wanted to use me as a heater?” Lance asked with fake offense.
“Exactly.” He mumbled, refusing to let go of him.
“Are we just gonna stand in the doorway now?” Keith just nodded. “You’re difficult.” Lance laughed as he lifted him up enough to walk to the couch. “So, what’ve you been doing since you got up?” Keith just pointed to the book on the end table, A Picture of Dorian Gray and crawled off of him. “Really?”
“What?”
“That is literally the most boring book I own. I only have it from my English class like four years ago.”
“It’s not boring. I used to read it all the time in high school. Most of the other ones you have are weird sci-fi stuff anyway.”
“Yeah, those are great. You’d rather read this than like aliens and time travel? How?”
“I’m sorry, but I hate all the time-travel stuff. It makes like no sense to me.”
“You’re weird.” Lance mumbled before leaning onto Keith’s shoulder.
“Shut up. Can we watch a movie?”
“Yeah, pick one out.” Keith nodded and grabbed the remote to scroll through the options before eventually landing on one of the older Spiderman movies, not really paying attention to which one it was and leaned back on the arm of the couch. As the movie started, Lance crawled onto his chest. “We should probably eat before we go too, but I’m probably gonna make something soon.” Keith just nodded and slid his hands onto Lance’s back. “Ice demon, I swear.”
“You like it.” He giggled.
“Shut up and watch your movie dork.”
They spent most of the day curled up together on the couch watching movies. It may not have been super exciting, but Keith was happy to just hang out with him. Before he knew it, Lance was making dinner.
“You’re just allergic to red dye forty, right?” He half-shouted from the kitchen.
“Yeah, why?”
“Because I still don’t want to kill you.”
“It won’t kill me. Just probably make me break out a little… it’s fine.”
“Well, still don’t want that when I can avoid it.”
“Benadryl exists.”
“Okay, and?”
“I’m not gonna die, stop worrying about it.”
“No. Also, Allura wants to go to a different bar, so we’re gonna leave at nine-thirty now if that’s okay.”
“I don’t care, what time is it anyway?”
“Uhh… almost seven, probably seven-thirty by the time we eat.” He responded as he brought out two plates, and Keith moved to the floor. “Do you just like sitting in the floor?”
“Yeah… don’t act like you haven’t realized I have an inability to sit like a normal person for more than five minutes. Shiro used to have to yell at me when I was learning how to drive because I couldn’t keep both my feet in the floor.”
“What do you mean?”
“Well… I learned to drive the bike first, but he drove a Civic SI which was stick, so he taught me with his mom’s car at first. It was like some Nissan, but I always ended up sitting like with me left leg up, or sometimes out the window… which was like a common thing people did down theorem I dunno… he gave up and taught me to drive stick because he was convinced I was going to get in a wreck and get my leg chopped off.”
“You’re so strange…”
“Yeah… He also only ever let me drive the Honda by myself. Even when I got my own car, it had to be a Honda. That’s like all I’ve driven other than his mom’s car and I guess your sister’s.”
“Why? Is he like car-racist?”
“Kinda. When I was like… thirteen maybe, so he was like… twenty-two I guess, maybe- that doesn’t even matter actually… Anyway, he had a Pilot, no idea why, I think he thought it looked like a Hummer, it totally didn’t, but I think it was like… between Christmas and New Years. We still lived in Texas, Plano which is like outside Dallas and he went out to meet up with his friends for like a party or whatever, but he got hit head on and it like would’ve killed him, if not paralysed him if the engine didn’t drop. Apparently that’s a thing Hondas are good at or something. It like totaled the car and they expected him to be dead when they pulled him out, but he was totally fine other than his arm being burnt from the airbag, he was just knocked out. So yeah, basically he’d kill me if I got anything else… yet I was allowed to drive a motorcycle when I was like fourteen…”
“So… no scary car, but a literal death machine?”
“Yeah. Pretty much. I actually almost got a bike instead of my old car. The bikes have all been Honda too though.”
“What did you have?” Keith immediately started laughing. “What?”
“You’re not allowed to bully me.”
“I make no promises.”
“I had a Maroon ninety-three Civic Del Sol. Shiro wanted me to get like I think it was like an oh-two Passport, but I found the Del Sol for like a way better deal in the long run. It just took like two months to get it running right.”
“That honestly makes sense… Why don’t you drive now?”
“Take a wild guess…” Lance just nodded. “Yeah, that was a fun one… We lived in Phoenix at the time though so I could walk most places. I hated Phoenix.”
“Why?”
“It’s lowkey terrifying. I was a bartender and I worked like nine to three most nights… In Central City, which the crime rate is like four times the national average. And our house was on Mohave which was like… a half hour walk to the bar, and I’m me so…”
“What does that mean?”
“I’m not exactly very… intimidating, also I was probably even scrawnier than I am now, I was like freshly eighteen when I started working there. Middle aged men really like me. I honestly have no idea how I didn’t like die. Nothing ever happened other than like at work or whatever. We had a really good bouncer though.”
“Don’t they have subways though?”
“Yeah, I never used them though. There wasn’t really one that was worth me riding, plus they were lowkey scarier.”
“So that was like actually the first time you rode on the subway when we went to get food that day?”
“Yeah, I rode one once with Shiro when I was like twelve, but it really didn’t go well and I don’t really remember it.”
“So… where all have you lived? I’ve like never been outside Illinois or Wisconsin.”
“Uh, Happy and Plano in Texas, and I guess kind of Sherman, but that was only when Shiro went to basic and I had to stay with his parents for a while. After that Scottsdale, Phoenix and Chandler Heights for like a few weeks… I was trying to go back to Sherman, but it didn’t work. Now here. I moved around Texas for like a year and a half though, I don’t remember where all I stayed. Other than that I’ve only been to New Mexico and Nevada… and we drove up here so that too I guess.”
“Nevada?”
“Yeah. We went to Las Vegas when he turned twenty-one. It was awful.”
“Yeah, I would guess that wasn’t exactly your favorite place to be…”
“No it was not… I ended up staying at the hotel for most of the trip. I mean, I was sixteen so I dunno what he thought I was gonna do. Shiro thought we were going hiking.”
“So did you just work at the one bar or?”
“No, I worked at that one for like a year, then I moved to a different one that was a little closer, but he didn’t like me working there so I left.”
“Why not?”
“It was a gay bar. So obviously he assumed I would cheat on him.”
“Did you like that one?”
“Honestly no, I got hit on more. Sure it was at least usually people under thirty, but still. Plus I kinda liked the regulars at the first one. That’s actually where I met the girl that did both my tattoos. She did the one on my collar bone in the back room when I was on break, then the other one was when I was on my own.”
“What about the stars?”
“I told you, I was like sixteen. I got that done at a frat party. Didn’t you say you had a shitty stick n’ poke?”
“Yeah… I was like wasted and some girl was doing them and that guy I was talking to at the bar on Thanksgiving convinced me. I let her pick it.”
“Is it still there?”
“Kinda…” Lance mumbled, pulling his sock down to reveal a black blob on his ankle. “It used to look like… well, she said it was a Lotus, but it was definitely a weed leaf.”
“But you’ve never thought about getting more?”
“Not really… I mean, I thought about it but… needles. What about you?”
“Yeah… I got in enough trouble for these, but I always wanted more. I actually thought about like doing tattoos for a while, but I don’t like people so…”
“What else were you gonna get?”
“I dunno, I have like a ton that I’ve drawn, the Persophone one is the only one that’s ever made it out of my sketchbooks though…”
“What are some of them?”
“I dunno…” He mumbled.
“You don’t want any more?” He just shrugged. “Can I see some of them?” Keith nodded and disappeared into his room, returning with an older looking sketchbook and handed it to him. “Are these all like tattoos?” Lance asked as he flipped through the pages he just nodded again. “This one’s cool. Where were you gonna put it?” He asked, pointing to a design that looked like it would be part of a sleeve centered around a cool wolf sketch.
“That was an idea I had for an arm cover, but I never got it because I knew I’d screw it up…”
“What about this one?” He asked, now pointing at a moth sketch and a beatle sketch that looked like they went together.
“Oh, that one’s kinda cool… It was gonna go like here..,” Keith said, pointing to the fold of his knee. “It would look like the first one when my leg was open and the second when it wasn’t, so it would like close. That was kinda hard to get right, I had to draw it on myself like a million times…”
“Which one’s your favorite?”
“I dunno… The back piece I thought of was doing.” Lance just nodded.
“What’s this? It doesn’t look like your handwriting…” He asked, pointing to a sticky note on one of the back pages. ‘Patience yields focus’.
“Yeah… Shiro. I dunno, it’s a thing he says… He used to leave those like everywhere.” One again, Lance just nodded.
“Oh, this one’s cool!” He said, flipping the sketchbook so Keith could see what he was talking about. It was a weird geometric shape thing that he couldn’t really tell what was. “What is it for?”
“Again, I thought you read.”
“You read smart people stuff apparently. I like Starwars. I don’t know what it is.”
“The Allegory of the Cave.”
“Which means?”
“Read it.”
“How?” Keith just sighed and got back up, disappearing into his room again, this time returning with a book which he skimmed through, then passed to him. It was The Republic by Plato. “Keith!” He whined. “These are hard words.”
“You’re awful.” He sighed before taking the book and moving to sit in his lap. “And now allow me to-”
“Aw, you’re gonna read it to me?”
“If you’ll shut up… draw a comparison in order…” He read through most of it before looking back up at Lance who just looked confused.
“I don’t get it…”
“Shiro was a philosophy nerd. The real thing is the effect of education on the human soul, but he always said it was about perspective. About like just accepting the life you had because you didn’t know there was better… I don’t know, it was just a thing he talked about a lot.”
“See? I was a philosophy major, I totally wouldn’t have made it, well English and Philosophy but yeah…” Keith just shrugged again. “So, do I get to come with you when you get another one?” Lance asked, resulting in a confused look from Keith. “What?”
“You don’t care?”
“What? About you getting a tattoo?” He nodded. “No, of course not… It’s your body man. One of these days you’ll see… So, can I?”
“Are you gonna freak out watching the needle just stab into me over and over for like hours?... I don’t know if I wanna do that though… I don’t exactly like people touching me…”
“Hours?”
“Yeah, depending on what would I get. I feel asleep with the one on my shoulder, but I kinda wanna get one on my ribs, and I’m… kinda boney so it’ll probably actually hurt a little… but I don’t see myself being able to do that anytime soon…”
“I think I’ll survive, but I mean… if you do decide to, I’d be there so nothing could happen.” Keith just shrugged again and leaned into Lance’s chest. “What? Did I say something? Are you okay?” He nodded softly. “I’m sorry…”
“I’m fine, moron. You asked too many questions at once.”
“Oh… you just got all quiet…”
“I know…”
“Why?”
“I don’t know… I guess because you’re you… it’s a lot different now…”
“I told you it would be.” Lance whispered before pressing a kiss into his temple. “We should probably get ready soon.”
“Yeah.” Keith sighed before crawling off of him.
“Wait! Can I dress you? Please? It’ll be so fun!”
“You made fun of me and Rachel last time, besides it would have to be my clothes so it can’t be much different.”
“Why not mine?”
“Fine, if they don’t fall off of me, but I reserve the right to change and I get to do the same.”
“Deal, come on.” Lance said with a smirk as he dragged Keith to his room. They both started searching through his clothes and threw outfits together.
“Hang on…” Keith mumbled before running out, returning with one of his jackets. “Here, you have to get dressed first.” Lance just rolled his eyes and started changing.
“Which shirt goes where? There’s like nine?”
“There’s two and a jacket. You’re also wearing some of my chains. Do you have any shoes that are not annoyingly bright?”
“Uh, I have some white Fila’s and dark brown boots, but that’s it.”
“How do you not own a pair of black shoes?” Keith sighed.
“Shut up, you never told me how to do the shirts…”
“How are you confused? The white one, you know, the collared one under.” He said with an eyeroll. “Also, wait on the tee-shirt, I think I have one that’ll work better. I think it’s your size actually.” He mumbled before walking out again, immediately throwing a black shirt at him when he came back.
“Really? A band tee?”
“Yeah! At least it’s not Nirvana.”
“I don’t even know this band!”
“A Day to Remember. Put it on, then put on those necklaces.” He said pointing to the pile of silver on his desk.
“Fine. Get dressed.” He huffed. Keith started changing and quickly realized the jeans weren’t gonna cut it, but the top of the outfit was fine. If anything he secretly liked it, he was wearing one of Lance’s most worn outfits which was a blue and white baseball tee with his green jacket. “Yeah no, I’m gonna have to stick to my jeans, no I don’t have any that aren’t black.”
“Just tie them with a shoelace or something.”
“Really?”
“Please?”
“Fine, you suck though.”
“You like it.”
“Shut up.” Keith mumbled, walking back out. When he was done, he managed to get the jeans to fit him and pulled on his boots, then met Lance in the livingroom.
“Really, the boots?”
“I literally have one other pair of shoes that aren’t boots. Shut up.”
“And what are they?”
“Red Vans, but your legs are long and I already have to cuff the jeans, leave me my boots.”
“Fine. You ready?”
“I guess. I hate you.”
“I know, come on.” Lance laughed as he pulled Keith to the door.

Chapter Text

“So, I meant to ask you this earlier… but you’re still like on board with the whole… dating thing right?” Lance asked awkwardly as he pulled Keith to one of the subway poles. 

“Yeah… Why wouldn’t I be?” 

“Just checking… and you’re okay with my friends knowing?” 

“I don’t really care…” 

“I just want to make sure you’re okay with it.” 

“Lance, it’s fine. I’m not gonna freak out because people know we’re…. It’s fine.”  He mumbled.

“Is it?” 

“Why wouldn’t it be…” 

“Because, I know it’s kind of a lot, but you just like totally couldn’t even finish that sentence. You know that I’m okay waiting for you to be ready, right? Just tell me if you’re not…” 

“I’m sorry… it’s just… weird…” Keith nearly whispered, dropping his head. 

“No, it’s okay. I just really don’t want you to be uncomfortable with anything.” 

“I’m not…” 

“Are you sure?” 

“I think… I’ve literally only done this once, and that was like almost five years ago…” He mumbled, somehow almost defensively. 

“Keith, I’m not upset with you. You’re allowed to need time to like… figure stuff out.” 

“No… It’s fine…” 

“Please just promise me you’ll tell me if that changes?” He just nodded and leaned his forehead against Lance’s chest. “We’re getting off in a couple stops, but I’ve never been to this bar… Pidge gets in, so we shouldn’t have any problems.” 

“Okay.” 

“Again, I’m not mad at you. Everything’s fine, I promise.” 

“This is weird!” Keith said, trying to change the subject. 

“What?” 

“I look like you.” 

“Yeah, I know it’s great right? You’re gonna have girls coming at you in flocks.” Lance said with a smirk. 

“I’m gay and you’re a dork.” 

“I know, that’s why I’m not worried about it, but you better stay away from the bartender.” He teased. 

“Stop it! Rachel told me to!” 

“I know.  Next stop, come on.” Lance said, pulling Keith towards the door. Luckily, the stop was only about two blocks from the bar. Luckily, they only carded when someone opened a tab, so Keith got in without any issues. “Allura said she’ll be here in like ten minutes.” Lance said, looking up from his phone. “Do you wanna go sit over there?” Keith just nodded and let him pull him over to a random hightop table. “You want me to go get you a drink?” 

“Okay…” 

“Old Fashioned?” 

“No, Macallan neat. Twelve if they have it.” 

“Ooh, something different for once?” 

“I’ll drink it slower. Not getting wasted again, remember?” 

“You say that now… Allura is… fun.” Lance laughed as he walked away. He came back a few minutes later with two drinks. 

“What did you get?” 

“No idea.” 

“What?” 

“I dunno, I told them to make their favorite light liquor drink. I couldn’t decide…” He explained as he took a sip. “It’s gin I think…” 

“Is it good?” 

“It’s not great, but it’s decent. I’m gonna go scare the shit out of Allura, she should be walking in any second, give me a minute.” He said before sneaking over to the door, shooting him a thumbs up from across the room. A few seconds later, a girl he was sure was Allura walked in. Lance jumped out and grabbed her, but she nearly threw him to the floor. He couldn’t hear anything, but he could tell she was yelling at him while he laughed through the pain she inflicted, then he led her over to the bar to order, still leaving Keith to himself. Of course, that didn’t last long, Shiro’s name lit up his screen. After a few seconds of debating, he made his way to the patio, hoping Lance would see him. A few minutes later, his head popped out from the crack in the door, then he disappeared again, so he assumed it was all good. Finally, he got off the phone with Shiro and walked back in to find Lance. 

“Hey, you’re back. Shiro or Ryker?” 

“Shiro.” He mumbled before taking an obviously tense sip from his drink. 

“Oh? So, not good then?” 

“I don’t know…” 

“What do you mean?” 

“He’s just acting weird… There’s something going on and I don’t like it…” 

“Well, I’m sure it’s fine. Maybe he’s just stressed out.” 

“Maybe…” 

“I’m about to yell, fair warning…. Allura! Over here!... sorry, she looked totally lost…” Keith just nodded and shot down the rest of his drink. “Hm… thought we weren’t getting wasted.”

“Shut up, I’ve eaten today and it’s one drink.” 

“I don’t care, I mean, I’m still taking you home either way.” He said with a wink. 

“God, you’re terrible. That was… stop. Maybe I do need to rethink this.” Keith teased. 

“Aw shut up, you like it.” 

“Unfortunately I do.” Keith sighed before Allura sat down. 

“So, I’m here… Hi!” Keith just gave an awkward smile and Lance wrapped an arm around him. 

“Good, so… it’s been a minute.” 

“Yeah, it has. Do you have like any recollection of meeting me?” She said, turning to Keith. 

“Uh… not really… a little I guess.” 

“Yeah, I figured you wouldn’t… I promise I’m not as bad as he says.” He just nodded again, and leaned his head onto Lance’s arm. 

“So, how’s the lunch shift?” 

“Honestly… kinda better, busier, but it’s working out better with Romelle. I assume nights are still terrible?” 

“Yeah. I’ve been doing prep a lot though. Probably moving to the store though…” 

“I’m assuming that’s what’s wrong with your face… well, I mean the cut, I know we still don’t know about the rest.” 

“I know you're just jealous because I’m prettier than you, so I’ll let that slide, but yeah… the knife got me.” 

“Of course it did.” She sighed. A few minutes later, Keith’s phone was vibrating on the table. He glanced at the name, then declined it and shoved it in his jacket pocket. A few minutes later, Lance could feel it vibrating again, but Keith was obviously ignoring it. After that, he could feel a few text buzzes, then another call. 

“Okay, who’s calling you?” 

“Uh… Shiro’s parent’s…” 

“Is there a reason you’re not answering?” Keith just shrugged. “I’m sure it’s fine. Go talk to them. I’ll go get you a drink. What do you want?” 

“Uh… the usual, bitter.” Keith just nodded and slid off his stool, to walk out on the patio. By the time he got back, Lance had returned with his drink. 

“So, everything’s fine?” 

“No idea…” 

“What do you mean?” 

“They texted me to just tell me what they were calling for… Adam wanted my number…” 

“Adam?” 

“Shiro’s fiance…” 

“And?” 

“He was asking if I knew what was wrong with him… I don’t know why I would know, he lives in Germany and Adam actually moved there too, so I don’t know… I guess… they like didn’t break up, but they kinda did… I don’t know…” 

“So…” 

“So, something’s clearly wrong…” 

“Wouldn’t he tell you if it was?”
“No… maybe… I dunno…” 

“Well, right now it’s what…  six in the morning or something over there?” 

“Close enough…” 

“So, he’s probably working now?” 

“Yeah…” 

“And he was probably like getting ready while you were on the phone with him, so I’m sure it’s fine. Drink some whiskey and calm down.” 

“Okay… I’m gonna call Adam back tomorrow…” 

“See, it’s fine. Let’s finish this drink and you can’t help me beat Allura in pool.” 

“As if, you suck!” Allura said, only hearing the end of their conversation as she came back from the bar. 

“Yeah, but he’s good. Two on one, I’ll take my chances.” 

“You’re on, let me finish my drink though.” 

“Hurry up!” Allura just rolled her eyes and took a dramatically slow sip from her drink. Eventually, they all fell into a conversation, which Keith surprisingly seemed okay joining in on. Once they all finished their drinks and made their way over to an empty pool table. Lance racked the balls and watched Keith pick out a pool stick, laughing a bit at his indecisiveness. 

“Lance, throw me stick.” Allura half-shouted. 

“Get it yourself, Princess. We’re enemies now.” 

“Lance! You’re right there!” 

“Fine, here. You break.” Allura just smirked, knowing she was about to get her first ball in. She managed to hit in one of the stripes, then two more before she finally missed. “Keith… You wanna catch up?” He just nodded and lined up a shot. He managed to hit two in, then a double, then he missed a shot, but clearly messed up Allura’s strategy. The game went on like that, but ended fairly quickly. They were tied up by the end and only had the eight ball left by Lance’s last turn. He called a the top right pocket, but somehow got it in the wrong pocket. 

“Wow! You almost won this time!” Allura teased. 

“Shut up, rematch on New Year’s, us versus you and Romelle.” 

“You’re on! Shot?” 

“I don’t know, depends, what are we doing?” He asked, then looked to Keith who had already agreed. “Fine.” He sighed. 

“Yay! I’ll be back!” She cheered before skipping off to the bar. She returned a few minutes later with a tray of shots. 

“Jesus ‘Lura… There’s three of us!” 

“Yeah, and?” She just shrugged and grabbed one, then motioned to Keith, silently telling him to take one with her. He just watched as they both downed one. 

“Man, are we doing Thanksgiving again?” 

“You said you didn’t care.” Keith mumbled.

“I don’t, I’m messing with you.” Lance laughed, as he slid a hand onto Keith’s thigh. He immediately tensed up and put his hand over Lance’s, moving up to his knee. “Sorry…” He whispered. Keith just shrugged, still mainly paying attention to Allura who was sliding a shot across the table to Lance. “What even are these?” 

“Red headed sluts.” Allura said, as if it explained anything. 

“Keith?” 

“Jager, schnapps, and cranberry juice.” Lance just nodded and joined them. 

“Forgot, totally hate Jager.” Suddenly Keith grew a smirk. “What?” He just shook his head and walked to the other side of the table to whisper something to Allura who immediately started laughing. 

“Yeah, he’ll definitely like that one. I’ll be back.” 

“What did you do?” 

“I’m finding you a new shot. Do you know what a cement mixer is?” 

“No… What is it?” 

“It’s really good, it’s like interactive… I guess. When you take it, you have to like swish it around for a second to get the full experience.” 

“What’s in it?” 

“Uh… coffee liquor. Probably Bailey’s. Just try it.” 

“Fine.” Lance sighed. Soon enough, Allura came back and handed it to him. 

“Take it!” 

“I am, I am.” He mumbled before shooting it and immediately grimaced as he swished it around. “Why? Why do you guys hate me?” He half-shouted as he gagged. They were both just laughing. “I need to stop letting you meet my people.” Lance said, frowning at Keith. 

“You wanted this. Jager’s not looking so bad now?” 

“No, it’s not.” Lance mumbled as he took another shot to get rid of the feeling in his mouth. “You two suck.” 

“I don’t know what you’re talking about, he’s great.” Allura chimed in, raising a shot glass to Keith. Lance just rolled his eyes as he felt his phone buzz. 

“Shit, it’s Alro… I’ll be back.” He mumbled before slipping out, leaving Keith and Allura to make bad decisions together. By the time he got back, they had relocated to the bar. He watched for a few minutes from the wall as they half talked over each other, clearly starting to feel the Jager. 

“Are they okay?” 

“Yeah, they’re fine… They just had a nightmare, it’s fine. How’s it going over here?” 

“Good! I’m replacing you!” 

“Wow! I’ll take Romelle then.” 

“Deal, she’s been a pain lately, honestly.” 

“What?” 

“Uh… nothing.” She mumbled before flagging down the bartender. 

“Keith, how’s it going?” He just smiled. “Yeah… why don’t you break it up with a water.” He suggested, earning a frown. “I still don’t care, but water’s important too.” He said leaning down to kiss his temple. 

“OH?” 

“What?” 

“That happened? That’s a thing?” Allura asked excitedly. 

“Was it not obvious?” 

“You’re weird! I never know! I called it!” 

“Yeah, so did literally everyone else. Shut up.” Keith just laughed and leaned back against Lance’s chest. “Looks like I need to play catch up.” He mumbled before ordering a hurricane, immediately getting a stare from Keith which turned into laughter. “What?” 

“Those are so bad!” 

“Shut up, they taste good and you’re already drunk, it’s only fair.” 

“Whatever! You left me again!” 

"At least you’re not flirting with the bartender. Get that water down though.” 

“Fine!” Eventually after a few more hours of better timed drinks, they were all ready to head home, and none of them were very sober. Lance wanted to wait for Allura’s girlfriend to pick her up, but that didn’t go as planned. After about five minutes of waiting, Allura looked over to him. 

“She’s not coming…” 

“What?” 

“We’ve been fighting alot… She told me not to come, then when I did she texted me and said told me to go stay at Coran’s for the night…” 

“Do you wanna just come stay at my place?” She just nodded and fell quiet. “Okay, let’s go then.” He mumbled pulling Keith along beside him, heading to the subway. To be honest, they were probably all a little too drunk to be walking home, but they made it work. Finally they made it onto the subway and flopped down in the seats. Allura leaned onto one shoulder while Keith practically sat in his lap. 

“You guys are a mess.” He half slurred, earning a glare from Allura and a giggle from Keith. “What are you laughing at?” He just shrugged and bit his arm. “What was that for?” He just laughed. “Okay then…” He mumbled. Finally, they made it to their stop and stumbled back to their apartment. “Allura, take my room. Steal some clothes if you want, I don’t care.” She just nodded and disappeared, presumably to crash in bed. Then, Keith pulled Lance to his room. 

“You’re clothes are awful.” Keith mumbled as he started to get changed. Lance just shrugged and did the same, opting to change into one of the hoodies Keith had stolen from him. Finally, they got into bed. “Will you actually kiss me this time?” He asked as he sat down beside Lance. 

“Yeah, come here.” Keith just smiled and leaned in. After one kiss, Lance pulled back like normal, but Keith leaned back in. Slowly, the kisses became deeper and he realized Keith was straddling his waist. Once he realized, he had a brief moment of clarity and softly pushed him away. “Too much.” 

“What?” 

“Sober you would never do that, drunk you isn’t either.” 

“Why not?” 

“You’ll regret it in the morning. You got all tense when I put a hand on your thigh, this isn’t something you would actually do.” 

“You’re not sober either!” 

“I know, but I also know this isn’t sober Keith behavior. I’m sorry, but I’m not okay with it. It feels like I’d be taking advantage of you.” 

“But you’re not…” 

“Keith, I may be drunk too, but anything you haven’t done sober isn’t happening.” 

“Why not?” 

“Because I care too much about you for that. We can do whatever you want tomorrow, but for now I think we should just get some sleep, okay?” Keith just nodded. Lance could tell he was upset, but he’d rather have him upset now than regretting decisions in the morning. “Come on, lay down.” Once again, he just nodded and moved to lay on his chest. “I know you’re upset… Is there another reason, or is it just because I’m being a little more logical than you?” 

“You still scare me… this makes it easier…” He slurred. 

“I know, but that doesn’t mean it’s okay. Maybe I’m weird about the whole drinking thing because of my dad, I don’t know, but I care about you. Besides, we’ve literally not even been dating for a week. We don’t even have to do that, like I said earlier. I just want you around however I can get it.” 

“You’re gonna get tired of dealing with me…” 

“Never. Get some sleep, I think we should talk about some stuff in the morning.” 

“Okay…” He mumbled. 

Chapter Text

The next morning, Keith woke up alone. He could hear Lance in the kitchen, but had no interest in getting up yet, so he just stayed there. Eventually, the door slid open.
“Are you gonna wake up at some point today?” Lance teased.
“No!” Keith groaned in response.
“Come on, I made breakfast.”
“How do you exist right now? I thought you had a decent amount.”
“I did, I just don’t really get hangovers. I mean, my head hurts a little, but I’m fine. Put some clothes on and come out here. I’m giving Allura a ride back to her place, but I want to talk to you about last night.”
“What?”
“Calm down, it’s not like that big of a deal. Don’t get all worried about it. I’ll be back in like half an hour. Food’s on the stove.” Lance said before slipping back out, leaving Keith to question what he was talking about. He honestly had no idea, so he spent the next forty minutes trying to eat and not freak himself out. Finally, Lance came back in and sat down on the couch.
“Come over here when you’re done.” Keith just nodded and cleaned his plate, then walked out onto the back porch to smoke, mostly stalling. Eventually, he forced himself to go back in, only to see Lance waving him over. He just nodded again and sat down in front of him, resting his chin on his leg, obviously assuming the worst. “You don’t have to do that, you know. We’re just talking, I’m not mad or anything…” Keith just shrugged. “I promise. Do you wanna come sit up here for a minute before we talk, just so you know? Come here.” He said, patting the couch next to him. He hesitated, but Keith got up and sat down next to him, staring down at his knees. At that point, Lance noticed him pinching the webbing between his thumb and index, he could tell he was pinching pretty hard by the way his wrist shook. “Keith, stop that. You don’t need to be worried about this.” He said softly as he cautiously pulled Keith’s hands apart. “If I was mad, I would tell you. I’m not, but even if I was, nothing would happen. I’ll even go stand in the kitchen or something if it’ll make you feel better…” Keith just shrugged and leaned his head into Lance’s shoulder. He slowly wrapped an arm around him and pulled him closer. After a few minutes, he decided to try and start again.
“So… Last night, you know how we talked on the subway about me not wanting you to be uncomfortable?” He nodded, still refusing to look up. “Well, that’s kinda what I wanted to talk to you about, so last night when we go-” Lance was interrupted by a knock on the door. “Uh… I have no idea who that would be… Ryker isn’t coming over is he?” He asked as he got up.
“No…”
“Okay…” He mumbled as he walked down the stairs. A few seconds later, he walked back up. “No idea, do you wanna go to your room or something? It’s probably nothing, but I know you’re already kinda… on edge…” Keith just nodded and started towards his room as Lance walked back down, very untrusting of the situation at hand.
“Hi?” He said as he opened the door, revealing a tall muscular man he didn’t recognize.
“I’m assuming you’re Lance McClain?” He asked somewhat aggressively.
“Uh… Why?”
“So, that’s a yes then?” He said, taking another step forward, now planting his foot over the threshold.
“I’m sorry… What’s happening right now?”
“Where is he?”
“Where is who?”
“Keith.”
“Keith? Keith who?” Lance asked, trying to sound convincing. The man suddenly pushed past him, into the stairway.
“Dude? What the fuck? Why are you here?”
“I’m getting him, then I’ll leave.” He said, backing Lance up the stairs.
“No, you’re just leaving.” Lance hissed, trying to keep him downstairs.
“I don’t wanna hurt you, but I will. Get out of my way.”
“You’re gonna have to. I’m not moving.” He just sighed, grabbed Lance’s shirt collar, and pulled him up the stairs. “Now, where?” He asked, shoving Lance against the wall.
“I don’t even know who you’re talking about!” Lance half-shouted, pushing the man off of him.
“You do. I went to his boyfriend’s place. He said he was here.” He growled, shoving Lance back against the wall with a hand around his throat. At that point, instincts kind of took over. Lance drove his knee into the man’s stomach, making him loosen his grip enough for Lance to escape. Then, managed to pin the man against the wall that he’d just escaped from.
“Who the hell are you?”
“His brother, and I’m ab-”
“Oh my God.” Lance said, dropping his arm, clearly relieved. “You could’ve just said that! Jesus dude!”
“So where is he?” Shiro asked, clearly still pissed.
“Keith! Come here!” Lance shouted before turning to walk to his room. By the time he got to the door, it opened.
“What?” He mumbled before looking over to the living room, immediately realizing why Lance called him out and walking toward the living room. Lance just followed him to the edge of the living room, still untrusting of Shiro. “What are you doing here?” He asked as Shiro pulled him into a tight hug.
“We’ll talk about that in a minute. What are you doing here?”
“I… live here…” Shiro immediately just met Lance’s glare with one of his own.
“I already talked to Mark. I know what happened. I’m taking you back, come on.” Keith just froze and turned to Lance.
“No you’re not.” He hissed.
“I am. I’ll come back for whatever you need. Let’s go.” Shiro said, grabbing Keith’s arm.
“Keith, you have to tell him. Something at least…” Shiro just looked down to Keith who was clearly freaking out.
“Tell me what?” He asked, with his eyebrows raised.
“I can’t go…” He mumbled, barely audibly.
“Why not? How did you even end up here? Mark said he hasn’t seen you in a week!” Keith just shrugged and slowly backed up towards Lance. “Keith?” He just shook his head and turned back to Lance who immediately wrapped him in a protective hug.
“Remember what we talked about like two weeks ago? I’m sorry, but there’s not really another choice right now… He’s gotta know.’ He whispered, ignoring Shiro’s death stare. Keith just mumbled something Lance couldn’t make out. “I can’t hear you, but it’s okay. Do you wanna go try and calm down for a second? I won’t say anything, but I think maybe you should take a minute…” Keith just nodded and tried to pull Lance with him to his room, but he stopped at the doorway. “I think he’ll kill me if I just walk in there with you right now… Give me a minute and I’ll come, okay?” Keith just nodded and slipped into his room, leaving Lance to deal with Shiro.
“You’ve got about three seconds to convince me not to kill you.”
“Yeah, I know… This probably looks really bad…”
“It looks like I should either kill you or call the police.”
“Okay… look, there’s a lot Keith didn’t tell you… He’s lived with me for… almost two months now, and he wants to. Mark lied to you. I can show you pictures of him at the zoo with me from like… almost two weeks ago… or maybe something from my mom’s facebook on Thanksgiving, but I can promise you I’ve never done anything to hurt him or anything. He’s probably going to explain everything, but I need to go in there with him for a minute so I need you to not kill me.” Shiro hesitated, but nodded, knowing Keith was freaking out. Even if he didn’t know why, he wanted him to calm down, even if it meant trusting Lance.
“I could kill you with my bare hands.”
“I don’t doubt it.” Lance mumbled before turning back to Keith’s room. When he walked in, he found Keith sitting on the floor by his bed, clearly trying to talk himself down. “Hey… Is it okay if I come over there?” He nodded. “Alright, come here.” He said as he sat down beside him, offering his lap. “So… He wants to kill me.” Lance laughed. “But he doesn’t seem mad at you… Do you think you’ll be able to tell him anything?” Keith just shrugged. “Can I do anything right now?” He just shook his head and curled closer into Lance. He waited a little while longer, just trying to comfort him. Finally after about twenty minutes, he started to sit up.
“What if he thinks I’m lying because you told me to?”
“He won’t. I’ll be there if you want me to, or I can stay in here. That’s up to you. Either way, everything will be fine. I’m not gonna let anything bad happen, I promise. If I think something bad is happening, I’ll come out… but he’s your brother, he wants to know you’re safe, that’s what this is.”
“But everyone thinks that I’m still…”
“I know. I went to his apartment the other night. I thought I was gonna kill him, but I didn’t… I think he kind of expected this, but it’s not gonna work. He probably thinks I’m in here killing you… you should probably go see him…”
“Okay…”
“It’s gonna be fine. I’ll be right here.” Keith just nodded and got up, anxiously walking out into the living room. He couldn’t make out anything that was said, just muffled voices. Nearly an hour later, Keith finally came back. It was obvious he didn’t have a great time, but he seemed okay.
“You tell him?”
“Yeah…”
“Where’s he at?”
“Outside… He’s mad…”
“Not at you though, I’m sure.” Keith just shook his head and walked back over to Lance. “I know that was hard… I’m proud of you for telling him though. So… he’s not gonna kill me now?”
“No… He said he wants to talk to you…”
“Alright, should we go wait out there?”
“I guess…”
“No, you wanna go smoke don’t you?” Keith just nodded. “Okay, let’s go.” Lance said, pulling Keith out onto the back porch. “So, did he tell you why he came back?” He asked as Keith lit a cigarette.
“No, not yet…” He mumbled through the smoke. “I think he was busy trying to figure out why I was hugging my kidnapper…”
“Yeah… Well, did that go okay?”
“I guess… maybe…”
“Also, just a question… Did he look like that when you just decided to go live with him? Like… you just saw him and decided he wouldn’t kill you?”
“Pretty much… I didn’t have much of a choice to be fair… I don’t know, he’s like… actually really nice… when he isn’t trying to kill someone…”
“Well… I think he’s back…” Keith just nodded and threw his bud into the ashtray, then led Lance back into the house. “Can you not try and kill him again please?” He said as he pulled Lance to the couch, then sat down between them.
“Not gonna kill him, at least for now… So, really two months then?”
“Uh… yeah.” Lance mumbled.
“And you lived in the apartment across the street?”
“No, he was my neighbor?”
“Good… And you just dragged him back to your place?”
“No, he climbed over the railing… What’s happening right now?”
“Just fact checking… Well, sorry I had full intentions of killing you, I owe you a drink.”
“So…”
“So, we’ll probably head out tomorrow morning. I’m glad it was you though, you had no ch-”
“What?” Keith interrupted.
“You’re not staying here. You need to come back home. Mom and Dad miss you anyway.”
“Shiro… I don’t want to go back to Texas…”
“Why not? What do you have here? You’d be safer there. I’m only back in America for another like… two weeks or so. It’ll take us like fifteen hours to get back, I’m sure you won’t drive, so we’ll stay the night in like… Memphis or something, so it’ll be two days of just driving. Isn’t your semester over now anyway?”
“I don’t wanna go back…”
“Why not? Give me one good reason.” Keith just looked at Lance. “Really? See? This is why you need to come back. After all that stuff you just decide that’s a good idea?”
“Yeah…”
“Okay, well it’s not. Do you no-”
“I’m not going back.” He interrupted.
“Can you please just listen to me?”
“No…” He mumbled.
“You clearly don’t know what you’re doing. Which is fine, you’re young, but this is… a lot. I need to know you’re safe.” Keith just sighed, got up, and walked down to the front door. Shiro immediately got up and followed him out. Lance debated going too, but decided to just watch him from the window to make sure he was okay.
“Keith!”
“No. I’m not leaving. I’m not twelve anymore Shiro! I’m twenty!”
“Yeah, and you have like no life experience! You’re young, maybe it wouldn’t be such a bad thing to have someone watching out for you…”
“What ‘life experience’ do I need exactly?”
“Keith, would you just li-”
“No. Why can’t you just understand that there’s nothing for me there? Maybe there’s not much here either, but it’s something. And I think I’ve had enough life experiences for the next ten years. What do you think would happen? You’re just gonna leave again.”
“Yeah, but Mom and Dad are there… You can start next semester at one of the lo-”
“Shiro. I never went to college. I never used that stupid GED for anything. If you couldn’t tell. I’ve been lying to you about like everything for almost five years.”
“Why?”
“I didn’t have an option. You know if I didn’t meet Lance I would be engaged in like three weeks. Because for some reason I think everything you say and you would’ve wanted it. He knew that, that’s why he called you.”
“What? It’s my fault?”
“No, that’s not what I’m saying… I’m just saying… I’ve listened to your ‘advice’ before and it didn’t work out well for me…”
“What?”
“You loved him. You thought he was like amazing.”
“Yeah, because I had no idea… You lied to me, how would I have known? That’s why you should come back and have someone around…”
“I have someone here! I have people here now!”
“What? Some random scrawny kid you lived next door to?”
“Yeah…”
“And? That it? Is that supposed to change my mind?”
“You don’t even know him! But no… I have Ryker too.”
“Another random guy I’m supposed to trust with you?”
“Yeah. His family too…”
“Keith… I’m sorry, but I can’t just let you stay here.”
“Fine! I’ll go home, but when you leave again, I’ll just come back! Is that what you want?”
“Come with me to Germany.”
“Shiro… I think you should leave…” He mumbled, turning back toward the door.
“You can’t just pu-”
“Just go… I survived all of that… I can’t come out the other side and let you control me…”
“Keith, don’t -” He slammed the door shut behind him and locked it before stumbling up the stairs and falling into Lance’s lap.
“You okay?” Keith just shrugged. “Yeah… I’m gonna call out tonight.”
“He’s so mad…”
“He’s worried about you…”
“I know, but… he doesn’t get it.”
“I’m sorry… maybe he just needs a minute to kind of process everything… I mean, I would…”
“Maybe…”
“It’s gonna be okay. Why don’t we just stay here and watch a movie or something?”
“Okay… Can we go to your room?”
“Yeah, you want one of my hoodies too?” Keith just nodded and let Lance pull him to his room. Lance tossed him the blue hoodie he noticed Keith stole a lot, then grabbed his laptop so they could find something to watch. “What are we watching?”
“Can we watch Fantastic Mr. Fox.”
“Yeah, whatever you want.” Lance said as he found the movie, then moved his laptop so they could both see it as Keith curled up around him. “Also… I do still wanna talk, but not now. I kinda just remembered about that… I don’t want you worrying about it right now though.” Keith just nodded again and wrapped his arms around the one Lance had thrown around his waist. “I do have a question though…”
“What is it?...”
“Would it like bother you if I like… called you anything that’s not your name?”
“What like Mullet? Yeah.”
“No, not like Mullet. I mean like… you know, datey names… I mean, I can kinda guess at one they you don’t like, but other than that?”
“I don’t think so…”
“Well, I’m sure I’ll be able to tell if it does, but I’m gross and cringey so… I’ve lowkey had to stop myself like a million times…” Keith just nodded again and moved his focus back to the movie.

Chapter Text

They made it through one more movie before Keith’s phone started ringing. He stared at the screen for a few seconds before he finally answered. He didn’t say much, mainly just one word answers, then he hung up and rolled over flat on his face. 

“So…” 

“He’s coming back over. I think he started driving back home. He’ll be here at like eight. What time is it now?” 

“Five-forty-two.” Keith just groaned in response. “You haven’t eaten since like noon, do you feel like you can?” 

“No…” 

“Okay, I’m gonna make you something later though, you barely ate this morning either.” 

“Sorry…” 

“It’s okay, I figured it was an anxiety thing.” Keith shrugged, then rolled over, leaning his forehead into Lance’s chest. 

“So… What was that about?” He asked timidly. 

“Do you really want to talk about it right now? It’s really not like a big thing, well kinda… but not like in the moment…” 

“I dunno…” 

“We really don’t have to… there’s kind of already enough going on…” 

“Exactly…” 

“So, you want to?” 

“No… but you do…” 

“Yeah, but I don’t want to stress you out…” 

“I’m already stressed out… so…” 

“Okay… Well, you were definitely in worse shape than me, but what all do you like remember from last night?” 

“That everyone you know convinces me to drink like three times what I planned to… And Adam calling… that’s kinda it…” He said awkwardly. 

“But when we got home?” He just shrugged. “Yeah… that’s kinda what I figured… Well, Allura spent the night and slept in here, so obviously I slept in your room…” 

“You usually do…” 

“Yeah, I know. That’s not the point.” Lance laughed. “I don’t like fully remember everything… but drunk Keith is like way more ballsy than sober Keith, which we already kinda knew, but that’s what I wanted to talk to you about… I don’t really remember what I said, but I like made myself a note so I would remember what you said… “ At this point, Keith just seemed confused. “Okay, that was like… not a good explanation I guess… Basically last night you were like full on trying to makeout with me… which was kinda out of character for you… Then I stopped you, because you wouldn’t have done that without the alcohol… I mean, you like tense up if I put my hand on your thigh- which is fine- so… Then you seemed off and I asked if there was another reason… You said it was because I still scare you and that I guess being drunk helps… and I’m gonna get tired of dealing with you… Was that all because it’s what you think I want?” Keith just shrugged. “I don’t want you to do anything you aren’t ready to do… I’m fine with whatever as long as you’re around… even if that means we aren’t together… I just don’t want you to think you have to do anything just because you think I want to. Especially not when you’ve been drinking… Okay?” Keith just nodded. “See, not mad.” Lance said softly as he pulled Keith closer to his chest. He knew it was doubtful, but he was trying to wait for Keith to say something. Finally, after what felt like an hour of silence, he finally did. 

“What time is it?” He mumbled. 

“Uhh… almost six thirty.” 

“Can I take a nap?” 

“Yeah. Do you wanna stay in here?” Keith just nodded got comfortable half on top of Lance. “You want me to wake you up in like an hour?” 

“I guess…” 

“Okay.” He whispered before planting a gentle kiss on Keith’s forehead. He was asleep seconds later, so Lance just spent the next hour scrolling through his phone and answering a few of the texts he got from a concerned Hunk when he said he wasn’t coming in. Once seven-forty rolled around, he attempted to wake Keith up. 

“Hey, Shiro’s gonna be here in like half an hour I guess…” He said as he tried to shake him awake. 

“I don’t wanna.” He mumbled, pulling the blanket over his head. 

“Come on, it can’t be that bad… Don’t you wanna go smoke?” 

“Yeah.” He groaned before stumbling out of Lance’s room. He followed after, but stayed in the living room. A few minutes later, Keith came back in and sat down with his legs thrown over his lap. After about fifteen minutes, Keith heard someone pull in. 

“That’s probably him…” He mumbled. 

“What?” 

  “Someone just pulled in.” He said, walking toward the stairs. 

“How did you even hear that?” Keith just shrugged and went to get the door, returning a few seconds later behind Shiro who just walked past Lance and into the kitchen with Keith still trailing him. All he could hear was faint muffled words and the cabinet door opening, then Shiro walked out onto the back porch. 

“I’m so confused right now.” Keith mumbled, leaning against the wall, halfway to the living room.

“Why?” 

“Because…” He started, lifting a glass of whiskey. “This either means I’m dead or he feels bad, usually I can tell by now… It’s weird…” 

“I highly doubt you’re dead. Go.” Keith just sighed and turned back to the door, leaving Lance to watch through the glass. About ten minutes later, Shiro walked back in, grabbed the rest of the bottle, then disappeared again. Lance waited for a little over an hour before Shiro walked back in. 

“Alright, Stringbean, let’s go.” He said, snapping and pointing towards the door. 

“Shiro…” 

“You said I can’t drive. He’s going to.You drank too so you can’t.” 

“Stop…” This time, he stopped and sighed, before turning back around and wrapping his arms around Keith. 

“I know you’re like all non confrontational now… and I get that, but I’m not. I’m gonna go talk to him. I’ll try not to do anything more than that, but I’m going, because that’s what I’m supposed to do. I’ve clearly failed these past few years… and if you’re gonna stay here, I need to know that that’s over. I love you, kid, just let me do my job.” He whispered. 

“But you ca-” 

“Keith, I’m going. You can be mad at me all you want, but I’m going.” He said, straightening back up, then pointing Lance to the door again. He just looked at Keith who rolled his eyes and nodded, telling him it was okay. So he led the way out to his truck and let Shiro in. 

“I’m not gonna kill you, chill out… at least not for now anyway.” Shiro laughed, seeing Lance’s discomfort. 

“Well, you could’ve fooled me…” 

“Oh, well I was going to, one hundred percent, but I guess I kinda owe you so… unless you screw up, you’re safe for now.” 

“Wasn’t planning on it…” 

“I’m glad you found him… I don’t like the idea of you being with him, but I guess that’s not really up to me… I don’t trust you, but I guess you can’t be much worse… I will still kill you though.” 

“Understandable… I don’t think you’ll need to though…” 

“I hope not.” Lance just let the conversation drop and drove the rest of the way in silence. Finally, he pulled into the garage and took one of the guest spots, then waited for Shiro to get out. “Oh no, you’re coming in. You’re actually gonna go see him first. I want to surprise him." Lance just sighed and got out, then led the way into the apartment building and to Mark’s door, while Shiro waited down the hall. He knocked and the door opened a few seconds later. 

“Did yo- Lance? I thought you’d be dead by now? Where’s Shiro?” 

“Yeah…” Lance sighed before pushing his way into Mark’s apartment. “Didn’t work out in your favor. Trust me, he was ready to kill me, but it was painfully obvious that Keith was safe there. Secrets out.” 

“He’s naive, he’ll realize soon enough where he’s supposed to be. He may think you’re great, nice, whatever, but he loves me. You know, I almost had him too. We were gonna have a nice fall wedding in… I guess nine months from now. He would’ve been so much happier. He’ll be back though, and we’ll just get all the legal stuff out of the way as soon as we can. Then there won’t be an-” He was interrupted by a punch reaching his jaw. “Oh, that’s what we’re doing now?” He groaned. 

“Guess so.” Lance shrugged, dodging one Mark’s fists, then took a few steps closer, attempting to close the space to make kicks less effective. Mark managed to shove him against the wall, then brought his face mere inches away from Lance’s ear. 

“He did it to himself. You’ll be the same way soon. He should be thankful for any scars he has from me.” He whispered with a sick grin. At that point, Lance saw red. He honestly wasn’t even sure who was winning by the time Shiro barged in. He pulled Lance off of Mark, then dragged him into one of the bedrooms, holding the door shut. 

“Jesus dude, where was that when I came over?” 

“I usually don’t swing first.” He groaned, holding a hand over his stomach, just above his hip. 

“Are you okay?” 

“Uh… yeah… I’m fine.” He mumbled, staring at the blood on his hand as he lifted it. 

“Yours or his?” Lance just shrugged and pulled up his shirt to reveal a cut that was oozing blood. He just shrugged again. “Go sit down. Hold some pressure on that or something.” He ordered before barging into the bedroom. As Lance sank down onto the floor, deciding to just use his shirt to soak up the blood, he zoned out, listening to the shouting coming from the other room. Eventually, Shiro came back out and found Lance sitting in the floor laughing. 

“Get up.” He said, extending a hand. Lance just laughed again and let Shiro pull him up, nearly falling over. “When did that happen?” 

“No idea.” Shiro just mumbled something in response and looked around the kitchen. Eventually he found a knife in the floor and picked it up. 

“Wow… Did you not notice it?” 

“Uh… I don’t know.” Lance mumbled. “It’s fine, I just need to change before we go home. This never happened.” He said, stumbling toward the door. 

“Yeah, I don’t think you need to drive… I’m mostly sober, I think I could pass a breathalyzer if I had to… You’re gonna have to like deal with that though, Keith’s gonna see it.” 

“Then we’ll go to the store on the way home and I’ll fix it in the car. He doesn’t need to know I even came in.” He said tautly. 

“Dude, you have a black eye. Hate to break it to you, but he’s gonna know.” Shiro sighed as he searched for something for Lance to soak up the blood with. “Here, hold this over it and let’s go.” He said, handing him a random rag and dragging him to the elevator with a hand around his upper arm. He dragged him all the way back to the truck, then took his keys and got in. “How’s the bleeding?” 

“I dunno. I’m fine… I’ll figure something out, let’s go to like Rite-Aid or something. I’ll call Ryker and tell him to make something up to go see Keith so we have more time.” Lance mumbled as he pulled out his phone. 

“How about this?” Shiro said, taking Lance’s phone from him and clicking on Keith’s contact. 

“Dude, you’re gonna make it worse!” 

“No I’m not… Keith - no - maybe a little bit… - No, I actually didn’t do much - I’ve decided I like this one, we’ll be back in like twenty minutes. Go hang out in your room or something. - No - Just trust me dweeb.” He said before hanging up. “See? He’ll be fine.” He mumbled before pulling out. Lance knew he wouldn’t, but he didn’t feel like fighting it, so he just waited. Twenty minutes later, they were sitting in the driveway. “Let’s go.” Shiro said, jumping out. When Lance got out, his vision immediately went black and his legs went numb. As he reached for the truck to hold himself up, he felt Shiro’s arm wrap under his. “Yeah… let’s not do that.” He mumbled, Lance just laughed as he felt his legs start to properly give out. “You’re honestly kind of terrifying.” Shiro chuckled as he picked Lance up the rest of the way and carried him inside. 

“Shiro…” Keith half shouted when he saw them. 

“He’ll be fine. I told you to wait in your room.” Keith just ignored him and followed him to the couch where he put Lance down, then went to go find their first-aid stuff. 

“Hey…” Lance mumbled with a dorky smirk when he saw Keith kneel down beside him. 

“You’re an idiot.” He sighed as he pulled Lance’s shirt up to look at the cut. 

“Do you have anything other than this stuff?” Shiro shouted from the kitchen. 

“No, how long has he been bleeding like this?” 

“At least half an hour…” 

“Bring me that stuff and go find him a different shirt. His room is the one on the left. He needs stitches.” 

“Really? He’s like barely even cut.” 

“You carried him in here. Stop trying to pretend like it’s fine. Yes I’m freaking out, but I’m more worried about him right now. Just do it.” Shiro just sighed and brought him the stuff he’d found, then disappeared into Lance’s room. “Why did you do this?” 

“Because he deserved it. I don’t regret it.” 

“You shouldn’t have gone.” He mumbled as he started trying to clean the cut. “This is deep…” 

“Oh well. You can yell at me later if you want to. It’s not even that bad.” 

“Lance, you’re like eight shades lighter than normal and you look like you got run over.” 

“Okay, can you just stop for a second…” Lance groaned, attempting to sit up. “Just, come here for a second.” He said, clenching his jaw as he took the gauze pad from Keith. “I know you’re trying to not freak out right now, and I’m sorry… I wanted to fix it before we got here, but he wouldn’t let me…” He whispered, starting to offer a hug. “Wait… blood.” He mumbled, looking down at his arms.  

“I don’t care, I know how to get it out.” Keith said, leaning into Lance’s side, opposite of the cut. “I’m sorry…” 

“Don’t be… It was worth it. I’ve wanted to do that for a while… If it helps, I didn't even notice the cut before Shiro did…” 

“It really doesn’t…” Keith mumbled, taking the gauze back. “You seriously do need stitches, let me figure something out to maybe get the bleeding to stop for now…  Take your shirt off.” Keith said, pulling at the hem. He sighed and pulled it off the rest of the way, knowing he was probably covered in bruises. When he looked back up, he saw Keith chewing on the inside of his lip, clearly trying not to freak out. 

“Keith… It’s okay… I’m okay.” Keith just shrugged, not looking up from where he was attempting to temporarily close the cut. Lance finally just let his head fall back against the couch and shut up so Keith could finish. Before he even realized what was happening, Keith was attempting to wipe the blood off of his face, arms, and hands. 

“What else is there?” 

“I think just bruises, I’ll be fine… Why don’t we just watch a movie or something?” 

“No… You need to get stitches…” Keith said, almost begging, his voice wavering slightly. 

“Whatever you want. I need a shirt though.” 

“Here, Keith, you should go change too.” Shiro said from where he was apparently standing beside the couch. 

“Dude, I totally thought you left.” Lance laughed. 

“Nope, Keith doesn’t need to drive and you can’t. We should take your truck, mine’s only got two seats.” 

“Cool.” Lance mumbled, attempting to pull on his shirt. Eventually, Keith came back and just stared at Lance. 

“Alright, let’s go.” Shiro said, pulling Lance up from the couch, earning a groan as he adjusted to hold him up. “Dude, you gotta move your feet.” 

“I am.” 

“Not really.” Shiro huffed. “This is about to hurt.” He said before throwing Lance over his shoulder. 

“Dude, I’m fine, I can totally walk down the stairs myself.” 

“If you fall out you’re gonna freak him out more.” He whispered.

“Fair point.” Lance mumbled, allowing himself to go limp. 

“Keith, you wanna get the door. Let him on the outside too so you can crack the window. The air will probably help some.” Keith just nodded and did what Shiro said, waiting for him to let Lance in. 

“See? I’m fine.”

“Lance, shut up.” 

“I’m sorry… are you mad at me?” 

“I don’t know… I’m really confused and the past twelve hours have been a nightmare…”

“I know…” Lance whispered, deciding to drop it when Shiro got in. 

“Where am I going?” 

“Uh… not far… left on Michigan I think…” Lance mumbled, Keith just shrugged. 

“Okay… How far?” 

“Till twenty-sixth or something. You’ll see it. It’s like Mercy something.” 

“Not there.” Keith interrupted. “They kinda suck… I’ve gone there…”

“Okay, can you find one then?” Keith just nodded and pulled out his phone. 

“Head North, I’m sure it’ll be in that direction.” He mumbled while scrolling through the hospitals. 

“The other one’s fine.” Lance argued. 

“Lance, please…” Keith whispered, he just nodded and leaned into his side, deciding it was probably better to just let him have a little control over the situation to try and keep him grounded. He just waited for the car to stop moving. Eventually it did. 

“Call me when you’re done. I’m gonna call mom and let her know you’re not coming back.” Keith just nodded and attempted to help Lance into the building. He could tell he was trying to act like he was fine, but was struggling to walk, and trying to hide the blood seeping through his shirt. 

“Why didn’t you tell me it’s still bleeding that much?” 

“I uh… didn’t know…” 

“Whatever. Go sit down, give me your wallet.” Lance just nodded and did what Keith asked. 

Chapter Text

“Here, fill this out.” Keith said, handing him the clipboard the nurse had given him. “Are you cold or about to pass out?” He asked, noticing how shaky he was.
“Uh, bit of both maybe… it’s fine though, I pass out when they do blood tests, it doesn’t mean anything.” Keith just rolled his eyes and shrugged off his jacket, that was actually Lance’s anyway. “Here.” He sighed, throwing it over him. Lance just dropped his head and finished filling out the paperwork, then gave it back to Keith who took it back to the front desk. “He said you’ll probably be next.”
“Okay…” Lance mumbled. About twenty minutes later, Lance got called back and dragged Keith with him. He managed to dodge most of the nurse’s questions much like Keith used to.
“Okay… I’m gonna get you some new dressing, then send a doctor in to do the stitches. I also want to test your hemoglobin levels just to make sure you haven’t lost too much.” She said, grabbing a few things from one of the cabinets. He just kind of nodded and let her change out the gauze, then started to prepare a fingerstick test.
“Honestly, I’m fine. I didn’t even bleed that much.” Lance said, clearly panicking a little.
“Frankly, I don’t believe you. It’s just a little prick, and it’s protocol. I’ll let you pick the finger though.” She said, silently asking for his hand. He flinched as she pricked his finger and collected the blood. “I’ll be back in a few minutes with a general anesthetic, then we’ll get that stitched up.” Lance just nodded as she wrapped a band-aid around his finger, then walked out.
“I would’ve been fine.” Lance whined.
“I’m sorry that I don’t want you bleeding out in our living room.” Keith mumbled. “You have to do like one more needle then you won’t feel the rest. Or maybe she’ll do something topical…”
“Can you come sit with me?” Keith just nodded and moved to sit on the edge of the bed beside him. As soon as he sat down, Lance’s head was on his shoulder. A few minutes later, the nurse came back in.
“Okay… I’m going to clean the wound again, then we’ll use this to numb it. We usually do shots, but I had a feeling this might go better…” Lance just nodded again and watched her clean the cut, then she applied the gel. “Looks like the bleeding has slowed, still the Doctor will be in in a few minutes to sew you up. We can’t really do anything about your lip, but he may want to see about internal bleeding with how low your hemoglobin is, which he wants to double check.”
“So… You can’t just glue it?”
“No, I’m sure we would if we could, but we’re using dissolvable thread so there’s something.” She said with an awkward smile as she walked out.
“Dude, your ex boyfriend’s a dick.”
“I know. You shouldn’t have done that… at least the new one’s not…”
“So… you’re not like…”
“I don’t know… this is weird…” Keith mumbled, taking notice of Lance’s fifth attempt to crack his knuckles. “You really don’t like needles?”
“No, no I don’t.”
“According to Shiro you didn’t even notice the literal filet knife, but you’re worried about the stitches you’re numbed for?”
“Okay, the knife was sharp so I didn’t really feel it, I thought it was like his finger nail or something and he scratched me, but I’ve never had to get stitches… I’ve always just like done little tape strips at home…”
“I’ve had stitches like a million times, just don’t think about it.”
“Wow, so helpful.” Lance said sarcastically.
“It’ll be fine.” Keith said before a doctor walked in, pulling on a pair of rubber gloves.
“Okay… So, I’m Dr. Hawkthorn. I’ll be stitching you up in just a second, first I just want to check everything out, then I have a few questions for you… and I’d like to double check your hemoglobin, and maybe check for some internal bleeding… just based on the location of some of the bruises. So… What cut you?”
“Glass. Car wreck.” The doctor just nodded, looking between the two.
“And your boyfriend wasn’t involved?” Lance just shook his head, picking at his nails. Keith softly pulled his hand away and intertwined their fingers. “Okay, everything looks good here… Can you feel anything now?” Lance just shook his head again. “Alright, lay back for me and try and stay still.” Lance laid back and looked over to Keith who was repetitively rubbing his thumb on the back of his hand, trying to give him something else to focus on. It didn’t seem to help much, but he managed to make it through the whole thing without freaking out like he thought he would.
“Alright then… I’m gonna have to ask you to step out for a minute…” He said, pointing to Keith who just nodded and got up, knowing exactly what was happening.
“What? Why?”
“I need to ask you some questions, and the answers need to be totally confidential.” Lance just looked back over to Keith.
“I’ll be right back.” He said, walking out into the hall. The doctor proceeded to ask Lance a million questions about Keith, trying to see what the actual cause of the cut was, then decided there was probably nothing going on and let him come back in.
“Okay, I just need another blood test to hopefully rule out any signs of internal bleeding, but first I do have to ask if you’re anemic.”
“Uh… I don’t think so…”
“Great. So, usually in men, a hemoglobin level of fourteen to seventeen point five is normal, but your last test read at… twelve point five, which is lower than we want it, but as long as it hasn’t dropped more we can discharge you, I’m going to prescribe some antibiotics.” He explained while pricking Lance’s finger again. “You’re not allergic to anything?”
“No…”
“Great, I’m going to go take this back, write up a prescription, then hopefully we can get you two out of here. I do recommend taking it easy for a couple days, I’m sure you’ll feel faint.” Lance just nodded and leaned back against Keith.
“At least I have an excuse to not go to work tomorrow night.” Lance mumbled, trying to lighten the mood.
“I’m not going either.”
“Why?”
“So I can make sure you don’t do anything stupid. Plus I think Shiro’s staying. He said he still has something he needs to talk to me about, but apparently its a good thing, I don’t know… He’s looking for a motel.”
“He can just stay at our place. We have two beds and a couch.”
“Really?”
“I think I deserve approval at this point, so yeah.”
“Okay, I’ll text him and tell him we’re probably almost done…” He mumbled. Lance just readjusted to get more comfortable and waited. Finally, the doctor came back.
“Okay, so as far as I can tell based on appearance and blood levels, it’s highly unlikely you have any internal bleeding, but I do want you to keep an eye out for any symptoms. I’m sure you’ll be sore for a few days, but if you notice any darker bruising, or your dizziness persists for much longer, I do recommend you come back. That being said, I sent a prescription over to the pharmacy you had on file. For now just stick to over the counter pain relievers… other than that, you’re good to go if you don’t have any questions.” Lance just nodded, not even attempting to move from his spot on Keith’s shoulder and watched him walk out.
“Alright, come on…” Keith said, sliding out from under him. Lance groaned in response before stumbling out behind him. “He said he’s here.” He mumbled, pulling Lance behind him and to the truck.
“So, he’s gonna live?” Shiro teased when the door opened.
“Shut up.” Keith glared.
“You were freaking out, I get to make fun of you.” Shiro said with a yawn. “I got something I wanna show you tomorrow.”
“What did you get another tattoo that you won’t get with me?”
“No, just the one. I told you I would at some point, I’m just never here.” Keith just huffed. “I hate it when you do this.”
“I know, it’s so fun.” Shiro laughed, watching Lance curl up against Keith. “So.. this is like actually a thing then? You never really clarified that…”
“Yeah, I get that from you.”
“Shut up, we literally weren’t together then!”
“No, he just spent the night every night for like six months?”
“Yeah, basically. I was a little too busy for that at the time. I basically kidnapped someone so…”
“Whatever.”
“So? Yes?”
“Yeah…” Keith mumbled.
“Okay.”
“What’s the deal with Adam right now anyway? He called me I guess after you left…”
“Oh… yeah. Um… my commitment is supposed to be over in a few months…”
“And?”
“And he wants to start wedding planning because that was the deal, but I’m probably leaving sooner…”
“What? Why?”
“My arm… I have to get a bunch of tests done when I get back over there, but with things the way they are right now, they don’t want me active if I can’t do much… Adam thinks it’s a good thing, and I don’t.”
“I thought you wanted to come home…”
“I do, but it’s more than that… I knew it would happen at some point, but I’m not even thirty yet. What am I supposed to do when we come back?”
“Teach. You know, use your degree?”
“I don’t know… It’s weird… I was gonna stay in force, even if I was back home, but they want to discharge me…”
“Have you talked to him?”
“Not much…”
“He’s worried about you. You should call him.”
“I will at some point. I’ve been more worried about you lately…” Keith just shrugged and looked back over to Lance who had fallen asleep, wrapped around him. “So… how’s that?”
“I don’t know…” Keith said awkwardly.
“Come on, don’t do that. You said it yourself earlier, you’re twenty now, you don’t get to be an awkward teenager right now.”
“I dunno… it’s weird…”
“What’s weird about it?”
“To be fair, Mark was the only person I’ve ever dated… then he was a total stranger that I just moved in with, had like a million panic attacks in front of, got roofied with in the first week, to-”
“I’m sorry, you left that out earlier. What the heck?”
“Yeah, he said it wasn’t Mark, I don’t really remember it… I just know he took me to the diner he works at that was like a block away, then his friend drove us to the hospital. She’s nice, I like her.”
“Why are you just like okay with that?”
“Because it could’ve been worse, but it wasn’t… it’s better than how things were…”
“I guess so… but you like him? He’s nice to you? You’ve met his family? Like I want to know. So far I think I like him, I mean he was willing to fight me for you and I could kill him so easily.”
“Uh… Yes, yes, and yes…”
“So, what’s his family like?”
“Big… His mom’s really nice, according to him she adopted me like the first time I met her… I kinda met his dad but that’s complicated… He has four siblings that I met… and like everyone else, but it’s apparently only like half of them...”
“So… how was that?”
“I met Arlo first, they’re like thirteen and I like them alot… then Veronica, I think she’s seventeen. I didn’t talk to her much on Thanksgiving, but before that… I dunno, then I think Rachel is nineteen… He told me she was going to be awful, but she ended up being fine, she’s actually kinda the reason this happened…” He said, motioning to Lance.
“You left one out and how?”
“We went out after dinner, I think he needed it after all of that, but Rachel is a bad influence and it was her first bar experience, so…”
“So you got wasted?”
“A little, yeah…”
“And what happened?”
“His entire family already thought we were dating… she kinda convinced me to flirt with the bartender all night to prove their theory…”
“And it worked?”
“Yeah… took a minute, but yeah…”
“And the other one?”
“Oh… they really don’t get along… so…” Shiro just nodded. “So how’d it happen?”
“He kinda cut himself in the face with a knife at work…”
“How?”
“He said he forgot he was holding it, but I was trying to close it and he said ‘Don’t freak out.’ then kissed me…”
“Wow… When was that?”
“Only like a week or something ago…”
“I’ll still kill him, but I think he might be okay.” Keith just shrugged and pushed the hair out of his face. “I mean… he did this for you… I honestly thought he was gonna kill him…”
“He said he was going to when we were getting ready to move…”
“Well, I believe it. He may’ve been more bloody, but I don’t even know how I broke it up. I don’t think he’ll be around again… Has he bothered you since y’all left?”
“Yeah… I think he knows where I work…”
“How?”
“I dunno…”
“What happened?”
“I was closing one night and when I was walking home he grabbed me… Ryker was just a little bit behind me though and he stopped… he walks me home now when we work together if Lance can’t pick me up though… How did you know where I was?”
“Because I’m crazy. I found out where he worked, went there, then asked around, but no one would tell me, so… I kinda might’ve followed the British girl around for like two days and lied to you on the phone while you were at the bar with them, then kinda followed you guys all back to your apartment… Then I had to go back and get the car, which I slept in down the block. When I woke up his truck was gone, so I waited for him to get back and then I was ready to kill him.”
“If you were at the bar, why did you think he was like…”
“Because Mark said you disappeared when he moved and that you were afraid of him… You seemed kind of okay, but I didn’t trust it so…”
“So you stalked me, but you never thought it was weird that I wasn’t allowed to talk to you in private or like… go home?”
“No, Keith you’re a good liar when you think you have to be… I should’ve noticed, and I’m sorry that I didn’t, but it’s over now right? And you’ll tell me if he hurts you?”
“When it’s actually his fault…”
“What does that mean?”
“I dunno… it’s hard going from Mark to him…”
“Because he’s not a dick?”
“I guess… there’s just things that like… trigger me I guess… like remember when you first kidnapped me? How there were things that freaked me out… It’s kinda the same but it’s worse… because I’m stuck between wanting him around and being terrified of him… and he doesn’t know what all does it and I don’t really either… it’s just hard I guess…”
“Well, I’m sure that’ll get better. Do you wanna wake him up or should I carry him?” Shiro asked as they pulled into the driveway.
“I’m gonna wake him up, he needs to change anyway. He bled through his shirt again. You can sleep in my room.”
“So, y’all have separate rooms?”
“Yeah… I don’t really even know why… We’ve literally slept together since we met when were both actually home…”
“Ew, I didn’t need to know that.”
“Not like that. God you’re awful. He had one bed at his old place and I kinda just slept better with him after…”
“Whatever.” Shiro teased as he got out, leaving Keith to get Lance up. Luckily, he wasn’t a very heavy sleeper, so it didn’t take much.
“We’re home. Come on, you need to change shirts, then we can go to bed.”
“Are you okay?” Lance mumbled as soon as he registered Keith’s face, for some reason that hit him in a weird way.
“Yeah, come on.” He mumbled, reaching over to open the door. He walked Lance back to his room in silence, then left him to change, saying he was going to go do the same. When he got into his room, he fell face first onto his bed, ignoring Shiro who was on the phone beside him.
“I gotta go, I’ll call you back in a minute I promise. I love you…” He said before hanging up. “What’s wrong…?” Keith just shrugged. “You wanna tell me what’s going on?”
“I don’t know… I just don’t get it… “
“Get what?”
“He’s so… I dunno…”
“What happened?”
“He literally just left the ER, but when I woke him up he just immediately asked if I was okay because when he got into his fight with his dad… I guess it kind of freaked me out… I don’t know…”
“Got into a fight with his dad? Like a fight-fight?”
“Yeah… Twice actually… He almost went to jail… His dad’s in jail now.”
“Why?”
“He sucks. I don’t really know everything, but he kicked Lance out because he dropped out and he’s gay and like I dunno what else happened with all his siblings, but he was a dick to his mom and Arlo came here to get away from it and he went to go try and talk to him, but I guess that didn’t work…”
“And then?”
“His two youngest siblings were gonna stay here for a while and he put his mom up in a motel, but he came here and called the cops saying Lance kidnapped them, but when they got here he was wasted and they were fighting…”
“And how did that go?”
“I don’t know really… I was kinda… not here for most of it…”
“Where were you then?”
“Like… I mean mentally or whatever…”
“Oh… Don’t let him being good to you scare you. He obviously really cares about you… Get changed and try and get some sleep. I’m sure you already saw what I was gonna show you tomorrow, but whatever.”
“No, I’m still totally lost…”
“Wow, you’re… that’s impressive. Go to bed.”
“Whatever, dad.” Keith said, dramatically rolling his eyes.
“Ew! You know I hate that! You make me feel so old! I’m like… seven years older than you!”
“You’re eight and a half years older loser. And for all legal purposes my dad, so I win.”
“Whatever, quit making me feel gross and old. Go to bed.” Keith just huffed and grabbed a pair of sweatpants before walking out to Lance’s room.

Chapter Text

“Keith.” Lance mumbled, holding out his arms when the door opened. 

“Let me change.” 

“Are you still mad?” 

“No, I don’t think I ever really was…” He sighed. “I just wish you didn’t do that…” 

“I didn’t plan to…” 

“What even happened?” 

“Do you really wanna know…” 

“Yeah… I think…” 

“I don’t even remember what he said… but he sa-” 

“Why did you even go in?” Keith interrupted, finally walking over to the bed, pulling on one of Lance’s hoodies. 

“Uh… Shiro kinda told me to… I think he didn’t want him to know he was coming yet… I don’t know, but I probably would’ve either way, so don’t get mad at him. I don’t think he thought I would do that… anyway, he said something and I just… really didn’t appreciate it I guess… so I kinda punched him in the face…” 

“So… you started it then?” 

“Technically no, technically he started it like years ago… but yeah… then we fought for a second and he had me against the wall, then he said something else… and I don’t really remember much after that…” Keith just nodded somewhat timidly. “But I did it for you… and I would do it again for you… but that doesn’t mean I would ever do that to you. No matter how much you piss me off like ever, that’s not something I would do to you.” 

“Why not?” He said, almost in a whisper. 

“Because I… care about you a lot… You don’t deserve that. He did.” 

“But maybe I did, you we-” 

“Stop it.” Lance interrupted. “No you didn’t. Maybe I’ve only been around for a little while, but based on what I’ve seen, there’s no way you did. Either way, they say you can only hide your true intentions for three months or whatever. It’s been what… half of that now? So, by… uh… the end of January I guess, we’ll know for sure, right?” 

“And if you're wrong?” 

“I won’t be… but either way, even if you do something that upsets me in any way, the worst I’ll do is talk to you about it. I mean… I know I’ve gotten into like three fights now since we’ve met… but to be fair, dad swung first both times, and I was trying to defend my boyfriend’s honor with the last one.” He said, poking Keith’s nose, trying to lighten the mood. “I’m sorry… I didn’t want you to see any of this…” 

“It’s okay… I’m fine… I think… Did Shiro do anything?” 

“Honestly I don’t know, he took him back to one of the bedrooms. I heard yelling I think, but I was kinda busy…” Keith just nodded and pulled him into a gentle kiss. “Wow… you know that’s the first time you’ve done that?” He just shrugged and hid his face in Lance’s chest. “Aw, don’t hide from me. Actually… drunk Keith did it first.” He teased. 

“Shut up!” 

“You know, you’re cute when you get all flustered.

“Lance!” He whined. 

“Come here, I’m tired.” 

“I don’t wanna hit your stitches tonight…” 

“It’s fine, you won’t.” 

“You know if you bust them open it means more needles right?” 

“Well I don’t- No… yea I do care… but I like sleeping with you.” 

“You still can, I just don’t need to be that close to you, or you need to lay on your back and let me on the other side…” 

“Fine.” Lance sighed, waiting for Keith to get up so he could move to the other side of the bed, then waited for him to find a decent way to lay. “This sucks.” 

“Yeah, I know. They’ll probably start healing up in a few days and you won’t have to worry about it too much. Your head closed up pretty fast so…” 

“Still.” 

“Still, you bust them open, you get more. Go to sleep. I’ll go pick up your prescription tomorrow morning.” 

“You can take the truck if you want. My pharmacy is like far on the subway…” 

“Maybe… I don’t know, I’m not used to driving here…” 

“Okay… Goodnight…” He mumbled.  

“It’s nearly four in the morning, I think it’s good morning now.” 

“Shut up and go to bed.” Keith just laughed and nestled closer to him, finally able to get some much needed sleep. Somehow, by nine the next morning Keith was awake. To be fair, it was most likely Shiro’s doing since he was up at seven. Eventually he forced himself out of bed and made his way to the back porch to smoke. 

“You still smoke?” Shiro asked, popping his head outside. 

“Yeah. Obviously, I smell like cigarette smoke like all the time.” 

“And you’re still not a morning person.” He teased. “I don’t know, you just didn’t while I’ve been here…” 

“I thought you stalked me? I was a little more concerned about other things yesterday. I smoked like as soon as you left the first time, and before you came the second, then like half a pack while y’all were gone, so yes, I still smoke. No, I’m not planning on changing that.” 

“You should think about it.” 

“Whatever. I’m going to… New Orlens and Hubbard I guess. I’ll be back in like… forever, then you can do whatever you were going to.” 

“Forever?” 

“Lance wants me to take his truck, but I’ve literally driven here like one time and it was like two blocks so that’s not happening. So subway it is.” 

“I’ll give you a ride. I what I wanted to show you is in the truck anyway. Still don’t know how you haven’t seen it.” 

“Did you rent a truck?” 

“Have you paid zero attention to anything?” 

“Again, bigger concerns. I wasn’t really looking at your car.” 

“Well, it’s dad’s truck. Did you not even question why I drove here when I could’ve just flown in to O’ Hare, stayed a few days, and flown home?” 

“Again, bigger concerns. Also, since when did he have a truck?” 

“Since like… a while ago? How are you that oblivious?” 

“Dude, I haven’t been to Texas since I was like seventeen. I hadn’t even talked to them since the last time I saw you before the other day… Why would I know what he drives?” 

“Fair enough, you’re gonna hate it.”

“Okay, it can’t be worse than the El Camino. That was… bad.” 

“Don’t bully him for his midlife crisis.” Keith just rolled his eyes and finished his cigarette. 

“I’m gonna go change. We should go soon so we can be back when he gets up. He’ll freak out if I’m gone, I’m sure he won’t remember me telling him I was going last night.” He said, walking past Shiro and to his room. He threw on a random pair of jeans and a hoodie, then pulled on his boots. 

“Have you been wearing those boots for the last four years?” 

“Yes, yes I have. Shut up. I like them and they’re still functional. Let’s go.” Keith said, dragging Shiro to the door. 

“Okay, well you can’t look yet if you really haven’t seen it.” He said excitedly. “Stay here for like… until I come get you.” 

“Shiro, can’t we ju-” He was cut off by the door shutting. “Okay then.” He sighed, waiting for Shiro to return. Finally after like ten minutes he came back, half out of breath. 

“Alright come on, but you have to close your eyes.” 

“I hate this.” Keith whined as Shiro covered his eyes, pushing him forward to the driveway. 

“Okay, Happy like super super late birthday… or early Christmas maybe?” He half-shouted as he uncovered his eyes. Keith stared forward for a second before turning back to Shiro, clearly confused. “She’s yours stupid. I wanted to bring it up here before, but I never had the time to drive up here… She needs some work since I haven’t been around, but yeah…” Keith was still just staring. “She needed a new home, and you clearly need a ride. I think I kinda know what’s wrong, but I think you’ve got it.” Keith just nodded. “Well, here.” He said, passing him the keys. “We’ll find a part shop or something later. You took off today?” 

“Yeah… I should be here though…” 

“Then I’ll go. So you can stay here and makeout with your boyfriend.” He teased, jabbing Keith in the side. 

“Yeah… that’s not gonna happen…” He mumbled under his breath. 

“You're telling me you’ve lived with this dude for almost two months, but you’re not gonna make out with him?” Keith just shrugged. “Dude, you’re lying. You have to be.” 

“No… I mean… apparently I tried to but I was wasted and he stopped me, but no… I’ve literally initiated like one kiss…” 

“Wow… well, I can appreciate the fact he stopped you if you were wasted… Is there a reason for that?” 

“Uh… January twenty- eighteen to October twenty-twenty-two happened.” Shiro just nodded and led Keith to the truck. “Oh my God.” He frowned, finally actually paying attention to the bright orange Jeep truck in the driveway. “Why? Who told him this was okay?” 

“I don’t know. He’ll never live it down.” 

“I think I’d rather walk honestly.”

“I know, get in.” 

By the time they got back home, Lance was awake in the kitchen. When Keith walked in, he just saw Lance groan and fold over. 

“Yeah, that’s gonna hurt. What were you trying to get?” Keith asked, seeing the cabinet door was open. 

“The Tylenol is like all the way up there, you can’t reach it.” 

“Better than you.” Keith mumbled before pushing himself onto the counter on his knees. “Here.” He said, jumping back down. 

“Huh? So short people really do learn to adapt?” He teased, wrapping his arms around his waist and pulling him closer, planting a kiss on his temple. 

“You’re so mean. I’m literally five nine, that’s like the national average in America, not to mention I’m half Korean and there I’d be two inches above the average height so…” 

“So you spend a lot of time convincing yourself you’re not short. Either way, the hospital said you were five eight, and I’m six something so I win.” 

“Whatever. Shut up and take your drugs.” 

“Am I supposed to eat with these?” 

“They didn’t say to, but probably… “ 

“Okay, are you hungry? I’ll actually cook if you are…”

“No, not really… Don’t do the thing, I’ll eat later, but I can’t right now. I’m still like-” 

“What thing?” Lance interrupted, clearly confused. 

“The thing! You do this thing with your face! It makes it like impossible!” 

“I literally have no idea what you’re talking about…” 

“Shut up, eat, do drugs, I’m gonna go talk to Shiro.” 

“Wait.” Lance said, pulling him back for an actual kiss which was interupted by laughter. 

“What?” 

“I was right, you do have to stand on your toes!” 

“I hate you.” He said, rolling his eyes before walking out. 

“So… you really haven’t like… do-” Shiro started. 

“Oh my God! Y’all are both insufferable!” Keith cut him off. “Stop it!” 

“Oh, come on. That was like the most morning aft-” 

“Shiro!” Keith shouted, earning a satisfied chuckle from his brother. “I hate you both. I’m going to go take a shower.” 

“What witho-” 

“Dude, I will literally kill you.” He hissed. 

“Awe, come on. This is my job, I’m supposed to make your life hell. I’m probably gonna head out in a few and find what we’ll need… Maybe you should wait on the shower… You’re gonna get greasy.” 

“Whatever, go. There’s a place like ten minutes from here.” 

“Great, I’ll be back in like an hour.” Shiro said before walking out. 

“What was that about?” Lance asked, leaning agaist the kitchen wall. 

“Uh… I’m actually not sure how you’re going to feel about this…” Keith said somewhat nervously. 

“About what?” 

“Shiro kinda sorta… gave me his bike…” 

“Oh, cool. Is it here?” 

“You don’t care?” 

“No, why would I? As long as you don’t drive it like an idiot.” 

“I dunno…” 

“Still think it’s a death machine, but as long as you don’t get hurt I don’t see why I should care. So, are you gonna take me on a ride?” 

“Maybe, it needs work apparently though… and I haven’t driven it in like almost four years so… maybe give me a practice round first so if I like totally wreck it you won’t die?” 

“See? Now you’re making me nervous!” He whined. 

“I could drive it fine when I was like fourteen, so I think it’ll be fine… We have like an hour before he gets back… Do you wanna watch something?” 

“Yeah, but you’re not gonna let me cuddle with you.” He frowned. 

“So you want to have to get the stitches redone?” 

“This sucks.” 

“I know.” Keith laughed, standing back up. “Lay down. Feet that way.” 

“So bossy!” Lance scoffed as he laid down.

“Shut up.” He mumbled as he crawled over to lay between his legs with his head on the opposite side of his hips from the cut, wrapping around his leg. 

“This still sucks.” 

“I’m trying! You’re not gonna let me lay behind you so…” 

“No I’m not. You’re like four inches tall.” 

“I’m probably not even four inches shorter than you!” 

“Whatever. What do you wanna watch?” 

“I don’t care.” Keith shrugged, passing him the remote. Lance scrolled for forever before he landed on The Outsiders. “Wow.” 

“What? It’s Swayze.” 

“Nothing…” 

“No, you wanna make fun of me.” 

“I just think Swayze is… it makes sense.” 

“Dude! It’s Swayze!” 

“I know. Just hit play.” Lance just laughed and started the movie, then moved his hand to Keith’s hair. He was nearly asleep when the front door opened, causing him to shoot up. 

“It’s just probably just Shiro, lay back down.” Lance mumbled, which made Keith relax a little, but he didn’t move. Finally, Shiro made it up the stairs to find Keith staring at him. 

“What?” 

“Nothing…”

“Okay… You wanna come help me? I think I got everything.” 

“Yeah, give me a second.” Shiro just nodded and walked into the kitchen while Lance followed Keith to his room. 

“So, Keith’s a mechanic now?” 

“No, I don’t know a lot, I just know that bike… and the Del Sol I guess… and his old car…” 

“So… yes then? Is that a Texas thing?” 

“You’re awful.” Keith sighed as he pulled on an older hoodie and jeans. 

“Aw, no like mechanic tank tops?” 

“It’s cold and that wouldn’t be something worth seeing stupid. I think your sister has nicer arms than I do… also Shiro doesn’t really know I still… have unhealthy coping skills…” 

“Well, that’s why you need to eat more, also you didn’t have sleeves last night and he didn’t say anything, right?” 

“No, but it was dark… He needs to stay unaware of that… I have no idea what we’re doing yet, so I don’t know how long it’ll be, but it’s cold so if you’re planning on coming put on a jacket.” 

“Aw, look at you being all caring.” 

“Shut up. Freeze if you want to.” Keith mumbled as he started pulling his hair up. 

“I like it when you do that.” 

“What?” 

“You’re hair… I can actually see your whole face.” 

“Shut up, I’m going out now.” He huffed before walking out. Shiro was already waiting when he got outside with two glasses of whiskey on the tailgate of his truck. “So… what exactly is the problem?” 

“There’s a few. She’s been living in mom and dad’s basement since I left so… I’m thinking we start with just like a basic tune up. I got some oil and a new filter, new tank, definitely the chain… all that, then I think there’s come carburetor issues…” 

“So…” 

“So, I think we should just replace the carburetor and tank, then we’ll do everything else and see how it runs. I have some of my stuff in the truck, hold on.” He said, walking to the back of the truck, returning with a toolbox. “Do you remember what you’re doing?” 

“I only did this with the car so… maybe?” Keith mumbled taking a sip of his whiskey. “Did you find replacement parts?” 

“Yeah. Have fun.” 

“Wow. I thought I was just helping.” 

“No, I’m just helping. I know you wanna do it anyway. Where’s your boyfriend?” 

“I guess still in the house…” He mumbled, pulling the seat off, which was admittedly more difficult than he remembered. “I don’t know, I think he’ll come out at some point.” 

“So… What about that other guy?” 

“What other guy?” Keith asked, grabbing a wrench. 

“When we were fighting or whatever you mentioned I guess your friend? What’s his deal?” 

“Ryker? I work with him, I told you that last night…” 

“Yeah, but you’re not like into him or anything?” 

“No, I actually hate him half the time and I’m like ninety-six percent sure he’s straight anyway. He dated his ex for like eight years I think so…” 

“Ew, he’s old?” 

“First of all, he’s younger than Mark, but no… I think he’s twenty… three maybe… maybe twenty-two, I dunno…” 

“And how old is Lance anyway?” 

“Not twenty-five… He’s twenty-two…” 

“Well, that’s a lot better.” 

“Dude, Adam’s way younger than you, shut up.” 

“Adam’s twenty five.” 

“Yeah? And you’re nearly twenty-nine?” 

“Yeah… He’ll literally be twenty-six in like two months though.” 

“Yea… but haven’t y’all been dating for eight years?” 

“Seven years and ten months, but yeah. He was nineteen when we started dating. Not fifteen.” 

“Okay, I’m pretty sure I was sixteen… maybe… and… shut up. You’re old.” Keith mumbled as he went to switch out his wrench for a screwdriver, stopping for another sip of whiskey. 

“But really no other interests?” 

“No… Ryker’s just a friend. I really like Lance…” 

“I can tell, but you know you’re allowed to like… date about first…” 

“I don’t think I can do that… besides, I don’t think I want to…” 

“Well, just promise me you’ll actually keep in touch?” 

“Yeah… I’m actually allowed to now…” 

“Good.” Shiro said, nodding back towards the house where Lance was walking out. 

Chapter Text

“Hey…” Lance said, walking over to Keith.
“What? What’s the face for?”
“Nothing?” He shrugged. “Just you.” He mumbled, looking over the bike.
“Whatever.” Keith said, going back to unscrewing the last of the screws on the clamp. “Get me that wrench?”
“Which one? There’s like eight.”
“The one next to my phone.”
“This one?” He asked, offering him the wrench.
“Yeah…” He mumbled before going back to the carburetor. Finally, he got the airbox out and started on the cables and vacuum hose, then pulled out the carburetor and took it to the back of the truck, stopping for a drink.
“So you do know what you’re doing then?”
“Like I said, kinda. How do your stitches look now?” Keith asked, gesturing to Lance's stomach.
“Uh… fine I think…” He mumbled.
“That didn’t sound very convincing.”
“I’m fine. Go do mechanic stuff.” Keith just rolled his eyes and got started on the tank. It went a lot faster than taking out the carburetor, but when he was done, he pulled out a cigarette.
“You were just holding a gas tank dumbass.” Shiro said, plucking it from his mouth.
“So? I probably didn’t get any on me, it's fine.” He mumbled, taking it back. “I’m not gonna explode. I’ll even go over there so if I do nothing happens to y’all.” He said, walking away, flicking his lighter. He turned back around to see Lance laughing and met him with a glare.
“What?”
“Stop it.”
“You don’t even know why I’m laughing!”
“Yeah, but it’s probably dumb.”
“I think I just figured out that you cover up your real accent.” He teased.
“Shut up, I’m talking the same as normal!”
“Not really, I mean, I’m used to the y’alls, but that was… barely English.” Keith glared, then turned to Shiro who was just laughing.
“It was all English! Shut up!”
“See? Texas did stay with you.” Shiro teased.
“I’m just gonna drop this into the gas tank.” He mumbled, taking another drag.
“You could go drop them in the drain over there.” Shiro interjected.
“Yeah, that seems like a great idea actually.” Keith said sarcastically.
“Dude, you could at least like… not smoke the worst kind.” He just rolled his eyes and put the cigarette out and walked over to Lance, trying to not let him saying that pull him back, but it wasn’t really working and Lance could tell.
“Are you okay?” He asked, wrapping his arm around Keith’s shoulder. He just shrugged, chewing on the inside of his lip.
“Come on, don’t get mad.” Shiro said in a teasing tone, making Keith move closer to Lance.
“That’s not what it is… drop it.” Lance mouthed before turning back to Keith. “It’s just me and Shiro, it’s okay…” He whispered, tightening his hold on Keith. After a few more minutes, he pulled away, finished his drink and walked back over to the bike, avoiding eye contact with Shiro.
“What was that?” He whispered.
“Not that bad… Honestly I’m surprised I even caught it that fast…”
“What did I say?”
“I think Mark used to get mad about the reds… I don’t know, he had the gold one’s when we met… he was wasted and kinda told me about it when he came over… That really wasn’t bad though, he’ll probably just be quiet for a minute…” Shiro just nodded and watched him awkwardly walk back over to get the new tank. Lance didn’t ever take his eyes off of him, other than to pull out his phone and sneak a few pictures of him standing over the bike, holding the new bolts between his teeth.
“So… Keith?” Shiro said, turning to Lance.
“What about him?”
“I don’t know, you tell me. I’m still not fully convinced.”
“Well… I don’t think that you ever will be… but according to my mom I’ve been in love with him since at least Thanksgiving…”
“And what do you think?”
“Maybe she was right…”
“How do you know that?”
“Because… I don’t know… he’s just… him I guess…” Shiro nodded.
“And you thought it was a good time to try and get with him?”
“Honestly… no… I knew he felt the same I guess, but I didn’t do anything about it for a while… Then I kinda just told him it was up to him, because I just want him around in any way I can have him… even if it is just as a roommate. I’d rather him be like happy and comfortable… I dunno… He said he was ready, so…” Shiro just nodded again, letting the conversation fall as Keith walked back over to get the new carburetor. They both just watched in silence until he came back over and poured more whiskey into his cup.
“Do you have an oil pan?” He asked before taking a sip.
“Yeah. It’s back there somewhere…” Keith just nodded and walked toward the cab to find it, failing to ignore Lance’s smirk.
“Don’t do it. I heard it, shut up.”
“You say oil funny.” He teased, earning a glare. “It’s cute, the glare only makes it better.”
“I hate you.” He sighed, pulling himself up with his foot on one of the tires to grab the pan. “You know… you own a lift.”
“Okay, yeah… but I wasn’t thinking about it, shut up. You lay on the ground all the time anyway.” Shiro said, offering a socket wrench. Keith just rolled his eyes and walked back over, laying down in the gravel to pull the oil fill plug, and remove the drain plug. His hands were covered in oil when he got back up, which he just wiped onto his jeans before walking back over to the truck bed to grab the other wrench Shiro had already pulled out so he could get the oil filter out. When he popped it out, he opened his hand, waiting for Shiro to toss him a rag to clean the opening.
“Where’s the oil?” He asked, grabbing the new filter.
“Passenger seat.” Keith just nodded and went to find it, confused by Shiro’s smirk.
“Where’d this come from?” He asked.
“What?”
“Shut up, seriously.”
“Mom had a few things she found when they moved that she wanted me to look at. That was in the box, I figured you wanted it.”
“Oh… So you did take it away from me?”
“You were like thirteen when I did that, to be fair, I needed to. Hopefully I can trust you with it now?”
“Uh… yeah…” He mumbled, feeling the weight in his hand as he walked back over. Lance seemed confused until he saw the knife in Keith’s hand.
“You probably need to sharpen it, but…” Keith just nodded again and sat it on the side of the bed, then took the oil back over to the motorcycle to prime the filter gasket before putting the new filter in and tightening it. Then he put the plugs back and poured in the fresh oil.
“You think the chain’s fucked up too?”
“Keith.” He said warningly.
“Shiro?”
“Don’t do that. Yes, I think the chain’s messed up. It just needs to be replaced.”
“Great, your turn. I hate doing that.” Shiro just sighed and got up, letting Keith take his spot on the tailgate.
“You look good covered in grease and oil.” Lance laughed.
“What is up with you today?” Keith asked, taking another sip from his glass.
“You’re pretty. That’s it… I don’t see how you drink that for enjoyment… I mean, I get drinking it for the results, but you’re just like… sipping on it.”
“It’s good. This is actually scotch, I usually drink bourbon unless it’s this. This is kinda like what I got the other night, but I think it was double cask… Anyway, this is Macallin highland. It’s actually good, drink it.” He said, passing Lance the cup.
“Yeah, that’s great…” Lance said, hiding a grimace as he took a sip.
“You’re so weird…”
“No, you are. This is gross.”
“You’re gross.”
“Actually right now, you’re gross.”
“Shut up.” Keith laughed, whipping oil onto Lance's cheek.
“Usually, you would be dead for that, but I’d rather do this right now so…” Lance said, pulling Keith into a kiss.
“Y’all are gross!” Shiro shouted as he stood up to grab something.
“I don’t wanna hear it Takashi!” Shiro just immediately pinched the bridge of his nose, staring at the ground.
“Look, I thought you were going out for the night.”
“I hadn’t even left yet!”
“It wasn’t even that bad!”
“It totally was!” Shiro just shook his head and went back to fixing the chain. “Works every time.” Keith smirked.
“You’re a dork.”
“Shut up… Does this count as me being drunk?”
“Uh… I don’t think so, why?” Keith just shrugged. “That was weird…” Lance mumbled as Shiro walked back over.
“Well, that should do it.” He said as he wiped off the grease on his hands.
“So it runs right now?” He just shrugged and caught the keys as Keith tossed them.
“I guess we’ll see…” He started up the bike, then signaled he was going to ride around the block. As soon as he was gone, Keith pulled Lance into another kiss.
“What was that for?” Keith just shrugged and pulled him back in, this time deepening the kiss a little. “Your brother will probably kill me if he comes back to that.” Lance laughed, mumbling through Keith’s lips before pulling away. Keith just shrugged and took another sip.
“I’m gonna go smoke… away from the oil and stuff. I only got through like half of the last one.” He said, pulling out a half-smoked cigarette. Lance just nodded and watched him leave. By the time he was done, Shiro was pulling back in.
“So… Do you know the laws up here?”
“No idea… Why?”
“You probably need to get a different license.”
“Mine’s been expired for two years anyway. It’s still the first one.”
“Wow… and you didn’t lose it?”
“Shut up. That was my permit. I’ll do that at some point.” He mumbled, trying to Google the laws. “Yeah, I’ll do it at some point.”
“Don’t do anything stupid, and you need to buy a helmet.”
“Yeah, whatever. I’ll survive.”
“Okay… Don’t do anything dumb. Go.” He said,motioning to the bike. “Just go around the block or something, don’t get a ticket.” Keith just nodded and got on, immediately taking off about three times faster than Shiro was comfortable with. “He’s gonna get a ticket by the end of the month. Make sure he goes to get a license. And a helmet.” Lance just nodded. About ten minutes later, he pulled back in. “I said not to be dumb.”
“And I wasn’t. I’m not in New Mexico right?”
“That was stupid, but seriously, you have to like really obey traffic laws until you get your liscense.”
“Whatever, I’m working a breaker shift Wednesday, I’ll go then.”
“Good. Well… I probably need to go soon… You know you could come home at some point… Just to see them… I don’t go back to Germany until like the day before New Year’s Eve… Or when I get back for good…”
“I’ll think about it…”
“Do. I’m gonna head out. I’m stopping in Memphis for the night so…”
“Okay… Did you talk to Adam?”
“Yeah, I think it’ll be fine. Now, come here.”
“Don’t do the thing.”
“I’m gonna go the thing.” He laughed before picking Keith up into a hug, shaking him slightly, but he suddenly stopped and dropped him. “Get in the truck.”
“What?”
“Get. in. the. truck.” He said, pushing Keith over to the door and locking him in. “No, I’m not kidnapping him, I just need to talk to him.” He said, cutting off Lance’s protests.
“Shiro…” Keith started when he got in.
“No, I’m talking. You’re not doing this again. You can’t do this again. I thought everything was okay now… I get things changed because of him… but you have to stop. If I come back and it’s the same, I’m gonna take care of it again. I want you to tell me right now, exactly how much you think you weigh.”
“I dunno… one fifty…” He lied.
“Keith.”
“Okay… like… one-fifteen now… but I’m not trying to do that it’s just like… I don’t know… I’m trying okay?”
“Take off your hoodie.”
“What?”
“You heard me.” Keith just looked away and did what he asked, but the first thing he noticed was the scar from the cut that still covered half his chest. “Did you do that?” He just shook his head as Shiro took his arms. “How long?”
“Three weeks…”
“How long?”
“I’m trying… Okay, I’m trying…”
“Answer the question.”
“Like… a week… Please don’t yell at me…”
“I’m really trying not to, but it’s hard.” Keith just nodded and lowered his head. “So? I’m assuming you know that would make your BMI like seventeen or something right?” Keith just shrugged again. “And yes, BMI does count for something, don’t pull that argument with me again. If this is how it’s going to be up here, you’re going to go back home regardless of Lance. I get if this is a Mark thing, but that’s over and you can’t just use anxiety as an excuse to not eat. Are you solely living off of cigarettes and alcohol?” He just shrugged again. “And as for the arms. There’s not a world that I can understand that in. Stop it. You have poor coping skills, I’m aware, but that doesn’t mean any of this is okay. You need to go back on meds. I saw your prescription in your room unopened. Take them.”
“But th-”
“But they what? Will help? Will be something you can rule out as an option? Will just sit there on your dresser until you decide to take them all at once? I know they freak you out, but you clearly need to try something. I know you’re gonna be mad or whatever, but I’m only doing this because I love you, okay?” At that point Keith completely lost it. He was trying so hard to just sit there and listen so it would be over, but the way he said that ruined his chances. He tried to open the door, but it was locked, so he just tried to block himself from Shiro.
“Keith? Hey, calm down… I’m not trying to… Keith, I’m not even mad… Can you just look at me? Please?... Keith?” He said, trying to get his attention before reaching out to him, only making him flinch away. “Okay… Why don’t I go get Lance? Then maybe we can try again later… with him there?” He didn’t get a response, but he still got Lance to get in and waited on the porch.
“Keith, it’s just me… Can I touch you? Or do you wanna come sit in my lap? Or I can just stay over here?” Lance said softly as he came closer. He didn’t get a response, so he just slowly rested a hand on his shoulder. He tensed up at first, then realized it was him and tried to pull him over the center console. “That’s not gonna work. Can you come over here? We can just sit here for a few minutes, then maybe you can tell me what happened?” He asked, softly kissing the back of his hand. He hesitated, but crawled over and into his lap, immediately clinging to him. “You know, Shiro’s not gonna hurt you. I don’t know what you guys were talking about, but he won’t hurt you…” Keith just shrugged. “When you feel better can we all go inside and talk a little?” He just shrugged again, but Lance hoped it was a yes and took his hair down so he could run his fingers through it. He spent the next almost twenty minutes paying with his hair and talking to him before he finally said anything.
“M’ sorry…” He mumbled.
“Don’t be, it’s okay. Do you wanna tell me what happened?”
“He’s really mad at me…”
“For?” Keith flipped over his arms and Lance immediately knew some of the cuts were more recent. “Is there more?”
“The eating thing and meds…”
“Okay… Can we go talk to him?”
“Can you stay?”
“Yeah, of course. Let’s go.” Keith just nodded and got out, waiting for Lance to pull him into the house. When he got out, he pointed Shiro upstairs and grabbed Keith’s hand.
“Can I put my hoodie back on?” He mumbled, realizing he was still shirtless.
“Yeah, let me grab it for you.” Lance said, walking back towards the truck. “Here.” Keith just nodded and pulled it on, pulling the hood up and the sleeves all the way down to his fingertips. “Come on, it’ll be okay.” He whispered, pulling him up the stairs. When they got to the living room, Shiro was waiting on the couch and Keith instinctively dropped down in front of him, resting his chin on his knee.
“Keith… What are-” Lance stopped him making a cutting motion over his throat.
“Just let him.” He mouthed.
“Is he okay?”
“He will be… just be careful…”
“Keith…” Shiro started, now actually speaking. “I’m sorry if I got too loud or whatever. I didn’t mean to scare you… We seriously needed to have that conversation though, and I did mean what I said. You need to listen… I only said what I did because I care about you. I still didn’t mean to scare you though. I’ve gotta leave today, but I’ll be back to check on you soon. As much as I’ve decided I like Lance, I won’t give you a choice… I know that sounds like I’m mad or I’m going to hurt you, but I’m not… I’ll just take you back to that place in Austin for a little while, then if you do good you can come back here, but I’d rather not have to do that…” Keith didn’t react at all. “Keith?” He didn’t move, so Shiro looked to Lance who just shrugged.
“When do you have to leave?”
“I mean… I don’t really have to, I had just planned to be in Memphis by eleven and it’s a seven hour drive… I can stay longer though… why?”
“Because you guys need to actually talk, but that’s not gonna happen right now…”
“Okay… uh, should I just go for a while?”
“Maybe… He probably wants to take a nap.”
“Okay… I’m gonna go find somewhere to wait downtown I guess… Have him text me?” Lance just nodded and watched Keith’s chin fall as Shiro stood up. He knew he was convinced something was going to happen, but he didn’t even bother to move.
“You wanna go lay down?” Lance asked as Shiro started down the steps. “Come on.” He said, offering a hand which Keith eventually took and let Lance drag him to his room. “Do you want me to stay?” Keith shook his head. “Okay… I’m gonna go to my room then. Come get me if you need to okay? Or if you decide you’re ready to talk to Shiro again.” Lance said as his phone dinged. After he read the text, he grabbed the pills off his dresser, then checked for anything else like Shiro asked and went to his room.

Chapter Text

It was nearly three hours later when Keith finally emerged from his room, unaware Lance was in the kitchen. He was just trying to pass through to go smoke, but it didn’t work out. 

“How are you?” He just shrugged and held up the box of cigarettes. “Okay… You don’t feel like coming out yet?” He just shrugged again and walked out. Lance just watched from the window as he smoked two cigarettes. When he finally came back in, he walked past him, staring at the ground. A few minutes later, he heard his shower start and hoped it meant he was going to come back out soon. Over an hour later, he did. He walked to the kitchen, still avoiding Lance, to grab a bottle of water, then tried to slip back into his room. 

“Can you come sit with me? Like with me?” Lance asked before he reached the door handle. Keith stopped and turned, obviously hesitating before sitting on the opposite side of the couch, pulling his hood over his head. “Are you okay now?” He just shrugged. “Are you cold?” He asked gesturing to the hoodie and sweatpants combo that could probably fit three of him. He just shook his head. “Do you wanna come over here?” He just shook his head again. “Okay… Can we try and talk to Shiro again?” He just shrugged. “I’m gonna text him. All you have to do is tell me no if you don’t want me to… Is that okay?” He hesitated, but nodded, so Lance shot him a text. “He’ll be here in twenty minutes. Do you need anything before that?” 

“Are you mad?” He mumbled, his voice cracking a bit. 

“About what?” 

“Everything…” 

“No, of course not. Maybe Shiro was right, those are things you need to work on, but I’m not mad. If anything I’m worried about you… I mean… I thought you stopped…” He just shrugged and looked away. “And I thought you were gonna talk to me when you felt like that… when did you do that?” 

“Tuesday…” 

“Is there a reason you didn’t come to me about it? Was I not here?” 

“You were…” 

“Why didn’t you tell me?” Keith just shrugged. “What did you do it with?” He hesitated, but eventually he got up and walked outside onto the back porch with Lance trailing him. “Keith?” He just reached under one of the plastic deck chairs and pulled out a box that had been taped to the bottom, then handed it to Lance, immediately taking a few steps back as he opened it. It was filled with a few gauze pads and four blades. “Thank you for being honest and giving me these, that’s all I wanted. Can you tell me if you have anything else hidden like this?” 

“You know I can buy stuff right?” 

“Yeah, but it’s easier to do it if you have stuff here. Do you?” Keith just stared at the ground for a minute before walking to his room, returning a few minutes later with more. “Is that all of them?” He nodded timidly. “Can I see your phone?” He could see Keith swallow thickly before handing Lance his phone, then locking himself in his bedroom. Of course, just like he thought he would, when Lance peeled back the case, he found another blade. He took everything to his room, then slid down Keith’s door to try and walk to him. 

“I’m not mad at you. I am upset that you lied to me about it, but I’m not going to do anything… Can you let me in please? Or just open the door and I’ll stay out here? Or even just talk to me? Just something?” Keith just slowly creaked the door open, then took a few steps back and sat down on the floor. “Are you okay?” He nodded. “You want me to stay here?” He nodded again. “Okay, I won’t come any closer… Shiro will be here in a few minutes, do you want me to send him in there, or do you want me to tell him to sit like this?” Keith just stared at him. “You don’t wanna talk right now… You want him to come in?” He shook his head. “So, like this?” He nodded. “Okay, that’s okay…” Lance said softly before standing up. “I’m gonna go wait for him.” Keith just nodded again, and waited. A few minutes later, Shiro came in and sat down in front of him. 

“My back is gonna kill me later, but I’m here. Can we talk?” Keith shrugged and glanced up to Lance. 

“You want me to go hang out in my room?” Lance asked, earning a nervous nod. “Okay. I’ll be there.” He said before walking off. He could hear Shiro talking and waiting for a response, eventually getting him to speak about half an hour later. Then, finally Keith opened his door. 

“Hey…” 

“I’m sorry…” 

“It’s okay. Do you feel better now?” 

“I think…” 

“Is Shiro leaving?” 

“Not yet… He’s making me go eat with him…” 

“Okay, are you guys coming back after?” Keith shrugged and walked over to his bed acting like he wanted a hug. When Lance hugged him, he was insanely tense, but he leaned in closer. 

“If I’m not back in like two hours you have to get me out.” He whispered, barely audibly. 

“What?” 

“I don-” 

“Keith! Let’s go!” 

“Keith? What are you talking about?” 

“Just… I gotta go….” He mumbled before walking out. Needless to say, Lance was worried, but he couldn’t do anything, so he just waited. Finally, about an hour and a half later, Keith came home, without Shiro. 

“What were you saying before?” 

“Nothing… I’m gonna go to bed…” He mumbled.

“Okay… Do you have to work tomorrow?” Keith just shrugged. “Okay… well I’ll be in my room if you need anything…” Lance said as Keith disappeared. It was already kind of late, so he decided to just try and get some sleep, until he heard Keith in the kitchen. He waited a few minutes, then after a few seconds of silence, his door opened and Keith walked in with his antibiotics, handed them to him, then walked back out before Lance could even say anything. He took it, then laid back down to try and get some sleep. He didn’t wake up again until three when Keith walked back in and laid on the edge of the bed. 

“You okay?” He mumbled as he sat up. 

“Yeah.” 

“Do you wanna come over here?” 

“No…” 

“Okay… I’ll be here…” Keith just shrugged and curled into himself before going back to bed. The next morning, Lance woke up alone. He threw on a shirt, took his antibiotic, and walked out to make a coffee. He found Keith sitting on the couch, drawing in his sketchbook with his headphones in. He sat down beside him, and Keith took one of the earbuds out. 

“No work then?” 

“Noon to close.” He mumbled. 

“So… you’re leaving soon then?” Keith just nodded and got up, walking to his room. He came back out about twenty minutes later in a pair of baggy black jeans and a baggy black hoodie with his usual boots, then he grabbed his cigarettes and went out on the back deck. Lance just watched and waited for him to come back. Finally, he did. He grabbed his wallet and keys, then started towards the door. “Wait, come here…” Lance said, stopping Keith in his tracks. “Are you sure you’re okay?” 

“I’m fine. I have to go.” He mumbled before starting to walk out again. 

“Be careful.” Lance called after him, getting no response. He knew he would probably still be on edge, but this felt different, so he decided to text Ryker. 

Lance: Are you working today?

Ryker: Yeah, same shift as Keith, why?

Lance: Keep an eye on him for me?

Ryker: Always. What’s going on?

Lance: He’s had a rough weekend. Like a really rough weekend. I don’t think he even wants me around right now, so I don’t know how him working is gonna go… 

Ryker: Well, I’ll let you know if anything happens, but I’m sure he’ll be fine. 

Lance: Thanks man, I owe you. 

He felt a bit better, but he was still worried. The rest of the afternoon was spent trying to find things to distract him from his thoughts. Eventually it was time for him to go to work, still with no updates from Ryker. Work sucked more than normal, mainly because he just wanted to see Keith, but also because of Hunk. He was obviously worried about him and pried a little bit of information out of him regarding the cut. Finally, after what felt like a year, he went home. When he got there, he figured Keith was in his room and went to check on him. When he opened the door, he found him facing away from the door, just laying in bed. 

“How was work?” 

“Fine…” 

“Can you maybe tell me why you’re avoiding me?” 

“I’m not…” 

“You kind of are…” 

“I’m sorry…” 

“Can you just tell me why?” 

“I dunno…”

“Can I sleep with you tonight?” 

“Uh… Okay…” 

“Alright. I’m gonna go shower and I’ll be back.” He said before slipping out. 

Lance: Nothing happened?

Ryker: He was quieter than normal. I’m sure I was the only person there that could tell something was up… Nothing happened at work though.

Lance: Good, thank you. 

Ryker: No problem.

When Lance finally got out of the shower, he threw on a random pair of shorts and made his way back to Keith’s room. By the time he got there, Keith was almost asleep, so he slid in bed behind him, wrapping his arms around his waist. He immediately tensed up and pulled away. 

“You don’t want me to touch you right now?” Keith just shrugged. “Okay… well, I’ll be over here then… When do you work tomorrow?” 

“Same time.” 

“Okay… Goodnight…” Keith just pulled the blanket up more and went to sleep. The next morning, Lance woke up alone again, but this time Keith wasn’t waiting in the living room, so he checked his phone. 

Keith: Went in early. 

Lance: Are you getting off early?

Keith: No. 

He knew he needed to do something soon, but he still didn’t know what to do, so once again, he spent all morning trying to come up with something, but he had to go in before Keith got home. The next few days were the same, Keith still wouldn’t let him touch him or really talk to him. Wednesday, he was working a breaker shift, so he was off unless they needed him, meaning he was home alone with Lance until he went to get his motorcycle license. His appointment was at three, and they were both up by ten, so he had five hours to get through. 

“Can I ask you something?” Lance asked as he sat down on the other end of the couch. Keith just shrugged. “Is there a reason you don’t want me to touch you all the sudden?” He just shrugged again. “You can tell me. Maybe it’s something I can… like help with… maybe?” 

“Shiro…” He mumbled. 

“What? What about him?” 

“He said… you would get grossed out…” 

“By?” 

“Me…” 

“I’m sorry… what? Why?” Keith just motioned to himself, still covered in super baggy clothes. “He’s wrong. I don’t care about that… well, I do… but not the way you look. I just want you to be healthy. I’ll still love you regardless of how you look.” He said before he even realized what he really said. Keith just stared forward . “I… uh… I just want you to be safe and happy and healthy… Honestly, it doesn’t bother me at all. I don’t want you to think I care about the way you look like that…” Keith just shrugged. “Can I come over there?”  He hesitated, but nodded and Lance slowly moved over and wrapped an arm around Keith’s shoulder, not wanting to do too much. To his surprise, Keith crawled into his lap and leaned into his chest. Lance cautiously wrapped his arms around him, then leaned down and kissed the top of his head. “I’m serious. We’re gonna work on it, but either way, you’re still you…” Keith just shrugged again and got more comfortable. They stayed like that for almost an hour before Keith finally spoke again. 

“Can you give me those pills back?” He mumbled. 

“I thought you didn’t want to take them…” 

“Shiro said I need to… He said to let you keep them though…” 

“Keith, you don’t have to take them just because he said to. If you want to, I’ll go get one, but if you don’t, you shouldn’t…” 

“I don’t… but I have to…” 

“How about we look around and find someone else and maybe get a different prescription? I mean… there’s gotta be someone else who will listen to you… Remember, you said you didn’t want to take antidepressants, period?” 

“But Shiro’s go-” 

“I’m sorry, but I don’t care about what Shiro says. We’ll figure it out.” 

“Okay…” 

“When are you leaving?” 

“I dunno… two I guess…” 

“Can I make you something to eat? I know you haven’t done that since he left…” 

“I did at work…” 

“Keith… I asked Ryker. No, I’m not mad, I promise, but you need to eat something… Can I ask why it’s so hard? I thought it was just from how things were, but with how Shiro was talking…” 

“I don’t know… it’s never been a thing I’ve done that much… I like lived off of like nothing before Shiro…” 

“What about when you lived with him?” 

“I guess it got better until I started school again…” 

“So… is that when things got bad?” 

“Kinda… they were already bad, but it got worse…” 

“So… he was talking about taking you to a psych ward then?” Keith just nodded. “He took you before?” He nodded again. “And that’s what you were afraid of before you left?” 

“It’s how he did it last time…  I don’t want to go…” 

“Okay then, we’ll deal with it. I’m here for whatever you need. I’m gonna go find something to cook, eat what you can.” Keith just nodded and crawled off of him. About half an hour later, Lance came back with a bowl of pasta. “I like severely need to go to the grocery store. I’ll probably do that while you’re gone… Do you think you could try those drinks again?” 

“What drinks?”

“Oh… I guess I never actually told you about that… So… when we went out that night, when Allura had to take us to the ER… the doctor told me you needed to like drink some protein shakes or something, but I knew you wouldn’t and Allura said she knew something… So those drinks I kept forcing down your throat were like weird protein water things…” 

“Oh…” 

“If I got some would you try and drink them?” 

“Maybe…” 

“Okay. I’ll get some. I’m gonna go take a shower.” Lance said, stopping to kiss Keith’s cheek before he left. He came back out about half an hour later to find Keith gone. He assumed he was in his room, so he went in. When he opened the door, Keith was pulling down a tee shirt. As soon as he realized he was there, he looked at the ground. “So you’re about to leave then?” 

“Yeah…” Keith mumbled as he shrugged on one of the jackets he’d stolen. 

“Well… I’ll probably be back when you are… I’m working tonight and tomorrow… but then I’m taking off a couple days before I move to the store…” Keith just nodded and kept trying to get ready. “When all are you working?” 

“Open to eleven tomorrow… I think a double Friday, eight to two on Saturday, then I’m off Sunday I think…” 

“Cool… maybe we could do something on Sunday then?” Keith just nodded and pulled on his boots. “You still need to get a helmet…” 

“Yeah. I have to go get some stuff first. They won’t give me a license if not. I don’t think it has to be an actual helmet, but everything else looks stupid.” 

“Okay… How long do you think you’ll be gone?” 

“The appointment’s at three, but I have no idea what they need here.”

“Aren’t you supposed to have a valid license?” 

“No, just a state ID which I have, and my military ID is still valid so…” 

“So, do you have to like wait to get your actual license like after the permit?” 

“Maybe, I think it’s like a year or something if I do… I don’t know. You’ve lived here for forever, you have a better idea than me.” 

“Yeah, but I know nothing about motorcycles, why would I know this?” Keith just shrugged. “Well, are you gonna take me out when you get it?” 

“You need better shoes.” 

“What?” 

“You literally wear like canvas shoes all the time. That’s not gonna work…” 

“Well… I have boots…” 

“Yeah… they’re chelsea boots though and they’re like suede or whatever.”

“Okay, you can pick me some out. We’ll go when you get off tomorrow or saturday.” Keith just smirked. “What?” 

“You make fun of my boots all the time. This is a tiny victory. I don’t know, I  guess I’m kinda just renewing my license though…” He mumbled while looking for his keys. 

“So, you’re leaving then?” Lance asked, holding them up. 

“Yeah. I’ll hopefully be back by like five… they close at six so…” 

“Okay, I’ll be here.” Keith just nodded and walked out, leaving Lance to watch him pull out before getting ready himself to go to the store. They were low on basically everything, so he ended up taking a lot longer than expected to get everything, but he did find the drinks he was going to get Keith. By the time he got home, it was only four, so he decided to take Blue on a walk while he waited. 

Chapter Text

By the time he got back to the house, Keith was pulling back into the driveway, this time actually wearing a helmet. 

“You’re back! How’d it go?” Lance asked, watching Keith pull off the helmet. 

“Fine I guess… I’ll get the actual license soon since I’ve already had one I guess… I don’t know, it was really confusing…” 

“So… you’re legal to drive now?” 

“Yeah.” He said as he opened up the seat compartment and pulled out another helmet. 

“Does this mean I get to go now?” 

“Don’t you have work?” 

“Yeah, but in like… three hours. Come on, it’ll be fun.” 

“Fine… Be careful with your ankles though.” 

“Yay! Give me a second to take him in.” Keith just nodded and sat back down to wait. A few minutes later, Lance came back out and pulled the helmet on. 

“Get on.” Keith laughed. Lance slid on behind him and waited. “Yeah, that’s not gonna work.” He mumbled, pulling Lance’s arms around his waist. “Where are we even going?” 

“I don’t care. Wherever you want to drive.” 

“Okay, hold on then.” Keith said before turning the bike around and taking off down the street. He took a few turns, then Lance realized they were going down Lake Shore Drive. He pulled over near Butler Field and parked. 

“So… You’re definitely not used to that huh?” Keith asked as he pulled off his helmet, while Lance was still squeezing his waist. “You know you can let go now?” 

“Why do you enjoy that?” 

“It’s fun. You’ll get used to it.” He laughed, pulling Lance’s arms off of him as he stood up. “C’mon.” 

“Where?” 

“I dunno… I figured you might want a minute.” He teased as he put both the helmets up. 

“You’re terrifying. You’re telling me you really did that for nine hours?” 

“Yeah. I mean I stopped a few times, but yeah. You’ll get used to it.” 

“Maybe…” Lance mumbled as Keith pulled him across the street and to the railing in front of the beach. “You did this on purpose?” Lance asked, realizing where they were. 

“Did what?” Keith asked with fake confusion as he lit a cigarette and leaned against the railing. 

“You’re trying to be all cringey.” Lance said, gesturing to their surroundings, which were the same as the night they met. “That’s supposed to be my job.” Keith just shrugged and watched as he took one of his cigarettes. 

“You know you don’t have to act like you smoke to talk to me now?”

“Yeah, but it feels necessary.” He laughed, waiting for Keith to light it. He immediately started coughing, but wrapped an arm around Keith’s waist and let him lean into his shoulder. “So… What do you wanna do on Sunday… I still haven’t gotten to actually take you out.” Keith just shrugged. “Come on, there’s gotta be something you wanna do. We’ve literally been together for like a week and a half. We were supposed to do that before.” 

“I don’t think anything about us will ever be at all conventional… I mean… you basically kidnapped me, then we lived together for like however long, I got drugged, you almost went to jail, I got jumped, my brother almost killed you, you got stabbed… not exactly normal…” 

“Fair enough… I didn’t get stabbed though, I got cut.” 

“Same difference. They both suck. Getting stabbed there would’ve been bad though…” 

“Oh, so where should’ve I gotten stabbed?” 

“Not at all.” 

“Wow, that’s totally what I meant.” 

“Well… That’s like closer to your intestines… lower is better. Still don’t get stabbed.”

“What about like my back?” 

“If it’s not like your lungs or spine… like here isn’t too bad either.” Keith said, circling an area of his side with his finger. “It’s not fun though.” 

“What?” 

“What? Did you think I just like research where you stab people?” 

“So… that’s what that scar’s from?”

“It wasn’t him. You’re doing that thing when you get all mad but you’re trying to hid it.” 

“Who was it?” 

“I don’t know. It was like… nine years ago or something, maybe eight…” 

“And you got stabbed?” 

“Yeah. It was the first time I tried to run from the system… didn’t make it too far…” 

“Were you not like eleven?” 

“Something like that. That’s the only time I’ve been stabbed with a knife though. You don’t have to go try and kill anyone.” 

“I will.” 

“Yeah. I know. That’s the only reason Shiro let me stay…” 

“Really? I thought he still didn’t like me?” 

“He said you were honestly mildly terrifying and he isn’t sure you’re not psychotic.” 

“What? Why?” 

“Because you were like on the verge of fainting from blood loss and you were laughing. Also you didn’t even realize you had a deep almost four inch cut across your stomach, and you apparently just laughed when Shiro pointed it out.” 

“Well… I think I was just like out of it…” 

“You don’t remember what he said?” 

“No… well, kinda… but I’m not telling you. You don’t need to hear it.” Lance said, pulling Keith in front of him, wrapping his arms around his waist, and resting his chin on the top of his head. 

“So… what are we doing on Sunday?” 

“I don’t know yet. Am I gonna have to decide?” Keith just nodded and spun around. “Well… I guess I’ll figure it out…” Lance whispered as he pulled Keith into a kiss. “You’re short.” He teased. Keith just glared and jumped up onto the concrete railing. 

“Happy?” 

“Nope.” Lance said, smirking as he pulled Keith back down, making him wrap his legs around his waist. “I like it.” 

“So… Alec?” 

“Yeah, totally trying to hint at you. You’re oblivious.” 

“Okay, to be fair like everyone on that show is hot…” 

“Yeah, but Alec’s not at all my usual type… You’re new.” 

“What does that mean?” 

“It means I had awful taste, but I guess I fixed it.” 

“As bad as mine?” 

“No… but I do have to say, you have like the best taste now.” Lance said with an obnoxious smirk. 

“You’re a dork.” 

“You like it. We should probably head back…” Keith just nodded and let Lance pull him back to where they parked, then pulled the helmets back out. They both got back on the bike, this time Lance immediately wrapped around him, earning a quiet laugh from Keith before he pulled out. By the time they got back, Lance decided it was a bit less likely they were going to die and became much less tense. 

“See? It’s fun.” Keith laughed as he pushed down the kickstand. 

“Sure…” 

“When do you stop working at the diner again?” 

“Tomorrow night. Why?” 

“Because you’ll be here more.” 

“Actually, I’ll be here less.” 

“But like we’ll both be home…” 

“Aw, so you do miss me at night?” 

“Yeah, so does Blue.” 

“Is that why you two end up sleeping together all the time?” 

“Only when his begging for a walk doesn’t work, and he only gets in the bed if I’m already asleep.” 

“Well… I have to leave in an hour… Do you want me to make you something first?” 

“You know I can cook right?” 

“Yeah… but I know you won’t for yourself and I don’t want you to cook for me…” 

“Why not?” 

“Because… I know that was like a thing… I’m not saying you can’t, I’m just saying I’m not gonna ask you to.”

“It’s not like a big deal… It’s fine…” 

“Well… I’m not gonna ask you to do stuff that I know… you know… If you want to that’s up to you. Come on, I gotta get ready.” Lance said, pulling Keith inside. He just followed Lance to his room. “What’re doing?” Keith just shrugged and sat down on his bed. “Are you okay?” 

“Yeah… Why wouldn’t I be?” 

“Just checking… I got those drinks by the way… I know you ate earlier, but just if you want to try one…” Keith just stared at the ground guilty. “Or you didn’t…” 

“No, I did…” 

“Okay… What’s wrong then?” 

“Nothing… I’m fine…” 

“Okay… Well, text me if you need anything.” 

“Lance, I’m fine.” 

“Well, you can still text me.” Lance said as he disappeared into the bathroom to finish getting ready. “Am I allowed to actually come sleep with you tonight?” 

“Yeah…” 

“Good. Well… I gotta go…” Keith just nodded and waited for him to walk over. “This first.” He said, pulling Keith into a soft kiss. “I’ll be back at like two-thirty, do you need a ride in the morning?” Keith just stared at him and raised an eyebrow. “Right… I forgot… When do you work again anyway?” 

“Open to eleven.” 

“Okay, I actually have to go now… bye.” Keith just nodded and watched him leave before walking out into the living room to try and entertain himself until he was tired enough to go to bed. He made it through a few episodes of some One Punch Man before he finally decided to go lay down. Once he finally got comfortable, his phone started ringing. Assuming it was Shiro or Lance, he picked up. 

“What?” 

“Wow, is that the only way you pick up the phone? It makes you sound so mean.” Ryker said, hiding a groan. 

“Ryker. It’s one a.m. what do you want?” 

“Uh… I kinda think my rib’s broken…” 

“What the fuck… why?” 

“I kinda got into a fight… Can you possibly take me to the hospital?... I don’t think I can get to the subway…” 

“I only have my bike… You think you can hold on?” 

“Yeah… maybe… I feel like shit man…” 

“So, no. Where are you?” Keith sighed. 

“That bar a few blocks from the cafe…” 

“The dive or the nice one?” He asked, already pulling his boots on. 

“The dive.” 

“I’m gonna see if I can go get Lance’s truck… I’ll be there in like… forty minutes.” He said as he hung up and attempted to call Lance. He didn’t pick up, so he just started towards the diner. By the time he got there, Lance had texted him twice, but he decided it was easier to just walk in. Luckily, Lance was taking an order when he got there, so he was able to catch him. 

“What are you doing here? Are you okay?” 

“I’m fine… Can I borrow your truck?” 

“Yeah… why though…” 

“Ryker needs a ride to the ER, I can’t take him on the bike.” 

“What why?” 

“I guess a bar fight… I’ll be fine, probably. I’ll bring it back before you get off.” 

“I actually have to work until four anyway, so you can stay if you want to.” Lance said, handing him the keys. “Let me know if you need anything.” Keith just nodded and walked out to find Lance’s truck. Once he did, he had another twenty minute drive to get to the cafe. Once he finally got there, he jumped out to find Ryker who was sitting against the brick wall, curled into himself. 

“Come on.” Keith said, pulling him up. “What happened?” 

“Later.” Ryker grunted as he got in. “Sorry… I really didn’t have anyone else to call…” 

“It’s fine. Which hospital?” 

“Uh… the one down the street from your place.” 

“That one sucks.” 

“And I have shitty insurance.” Ryker said, groaning through a laugh. “God… Can you like… not look over here for a second?” 

“I’m driving, so… kinda looking at the road anyway…” 

“Fair enough.” Ryker said, taking his jacket off and pulling it over himself before trying to take off his shirt. It didn’t work very well based on the yelp Keith heard. 

“What are you doing? Don’t like hurt yourself worse…” 

“Trying to… nevermind… I’ll just…” He mumbled, still moving around. 

“Seriously… what’s going on over there?” 

“Uh… nothing, sorry…” 

“Okay… We’ll be there in like ten more minutes…” Ryker just silently nodded. The rest of the ride was silent until they pulled in. Keith looked over to see him still messing with his side. “Quit touching it stupid.” 

“I… I’m trying to keep something off of it…” 

“What?” Ryker just stared at the ground as they walked in and Keith dropped it. When they walked in, instead of going to the desk, Ryker pulled Keith into the bathroom. “What are you doing?” He asked as he locked the door. 

“Nothing… I just… need help… please don’t like hate me after this, but this really hurts and I’m gonna be here forever and I can’t do it by myself right now…” 

“I’m probably not gonna hate you… What’s wrong?” Ryker took a deep breath that made him wince, then took a step closer. 

“I can’t undo the clips on my binder… It really hurts… please?” 

“Oh… yeah, no I don’t hate you. Come here… Where are they?” 

“Right side, like right where it hurts…” 

“Aren’t the one’s with clasps like really bad for you?” He asked while trying to undo the clips under Ryker’s shirt. 

“Kinda… but it’s fine…” 

“Do you have any that aren’t like this?” 

“No…” 

“Well, you probably won’t be able to bind for a while, but you should really look at some different ones… Why haven’t you?” 

“I dunno… These are easier to find…” 

“Well… it’s not worth hurting yourself…” 

“I don’t really care… Why do you even know that?”” 

“I’m like really really gay. I don’t know much, but one of the regulars at the bar in Arizona binded. They kinda taught me some stuff. Did you really think I would hate you?” 

“Maybe… no one I’ve met since I moved here knew so…” 

“Yeah, well I don’t care. I will if you end up hurt because of it though. Why don’t you try and find one online while you can’t wear one?” 

“It’s fine… I’m probably gonna get top surgery in February anyway…” 

“Still…” He just shrugged. “Dude, I will literally order it for you. I don't care.” 

“Why?” 

“Because believe it or not, I can kind of tolerate you. You’re like the only person other than Lance I talk to. I don’t want you to like fuck up anything…” 

“I would hug you right now, but you hate that and I feel like it would be really awkward now…”

“Why?” 

“Because I basically just begged you to feel me up in a h-” 

“No… I mean why would you hug me?” 

“I dunno… you’re like one of the only people who’s ever like been so okay with this…” 

“Your ex wasn’t?” 

“No… We actually broke up in high school when I came out, but we got back together… my parents kinda hate me too and she’s kinda the reason I’m just now getting top… She said she even made me stop taking T…” 

“Well… that’s dumb. Maybe it’s a good thing y’all broke up then… Come on, you need to like sign in.” Ryker just nodded and followed him back out so he could start filling out paperwork. As he walked over, Keith could tell he was uncomfortable, so he pulled off his jacket and offered it to him. 

“What?” 

“You look uncomfortable… it’ll be baggy on you too, put it on.” Ryker just nodded and shrugged it on, zipping it all the way up. “So… what’d you do anyway?” 

“I was on date… didn’t go well…” 

“What do you mean?” 

“Uh… well… she apparently had a boyfriend I didn’t know about…” 

“So… you got your shit rocked then?” 

“Kinda, yeah… But he was like huge. Like at least six-two and like two hundred thirty pounds of muscle. I think I got in like four hits though… He has a black eye, but I’m in a hospital right now, so I guess he won…”