Chapter Text
The moon never set.
The stars glittered like pieces of ice below him, reflected in still water. The surface barely rippled, even as he dipped a toe in and looked up. The lake was brightly lit, glowing with a light glow that would never fade, stars twinkling without fail. He brushed hair out of his eyes, taking a moment to breathe, then pulled his foot out of the cold water and retreated to the soft sand that made up the beach behind him.
The moon, the stars, the water. This was the world he knew.
The world he knew never warmed, the cold marble of the temple beneath his feet, the stars silent and stoic in the sky.
Keith watched them, nothing new in his world.
This wasn’t happening.
This couldn’t be happening .
Lance was a born swimmer, he was amazing, it wasn’t even that cold out and yet here he was, sinking and desperately holding his breath as pain shot up his side and his muscles cramped. He fought, despite the pain, reaching up and hoping someone, anyone, Hunk maybe would see his hand and pull him up to air. Blessed air. Something he never took for granted. Ironic.
His mind was racing - it seemed he had too much time to think and no time at all. He thought about his mom, god, she’d be devastated. Hunk and Pidge, would they have to pull him out? Call the police?
He decided his computer could go to his little brother. Wait, who would tell him?
Fuck. His lungs were on fire, they suddenly hurt worse than his side and he was blacking out. Fuck. No. He could see the fuzzy black creeping into his vision and he kicked, pain bursting in his chest and then with a final thought of,
oh god I’m dying I’m gonna die
, his world went dark.