Archive of Our Own

It was getting ridiculous, really.

Keith was seeing double, but he was going to flunk this class if he didn't finish this essay that was due by midnight. It was finals week, and here he was writing this ridiculous 10-page essay on Oscar Wilde's "Canterville Ghost" when he could be studying for his other subjects. He continued typing anyway on his laptop, and as soon as he reached the very bottom of the 10th page, he stood up and did a quiet victory fist bump in the air.

He looked around only to see no one else was on the same floor as him, except for the librarian on duty. It was 11:25 in the evening and most students were already at home. He headed towards the printing corner, his flash drive in hand because god he was finally done and he could go home and get that good night sleep since he had to wake up at 3 am to study for his exams.

"Chikushō!" someone cursed in Japanese.

The sudden realization that Keith heard someone speak his mother tongue made him stop in his tracks. It was a bit disorienting. He was here on a foreign exchange program for two years taking English Literature, and his ears were so used to English by now (he was pretty good at it too, so communication wasn't really a problem). So he was a bit curious who this Japanese swearing person was.

He continued walking to the printing area only to be met by a guy inside the room, running his fingers through his hair out of frustration. He had an undercut and the semi-shaved part had three completely shaven lines that made it so damn attractive. The guy, however, looked like he wanted to cry.

"Dude, you okay?" Keith asked as he joined him.

The guy looked up, as if shocked to see someone was in the library as late as he was. He sighed and answered as he pointed to the only printer on their floor. "The printer stopped working and my papers are due until midnight!"

"Oh shit. Really?"

The guy nodded.

"Mine, too. And I have to get these done and have it mailed to my professor because I am not going to flunk this subject." He looked at the guy accusingly. "What did you do to the printer?"

The guy widened his eyes and scoffed. "You think I did this?!" He gestured to the printer.

Keith looked around them as if to prove a point, then he returned his attention back to the guy in front of him. "You're the only one here," he said innocently.

"UNBELIEVABLE!" he cried out.

Keith smiled. "Watashiwa Keith Kogane-desu." 

The way the guy's eyes lit up fascinated Keith to an extreme. "Whoa! You're Japanese, too?"

Keith cocked his head and grinned. "Kinda the whole point of me speaking it, don't you think?" 

The guy laughed and offered his hand for Keith to shake. "I'm Takashi Shirogane, but most people here call me Shiro."

"Fitting for your white tuft, huh?" Keith pointed at Shiro's white hair. "You trying to be edgy or are you just really a grandpa?"

"Hey!" Shiro pouted. 

Keith couldn't help but chuckle. "My printer works in my dorm." He pointed at the direction behind him with his thumb. "If you still want to print your paper that is. It's only a two-minute walk from here." He offered, thinking a few more pages to print wouldn't be much of a trouble for his printer. Plus, the guy looked like he wanted to cry a few moments ago. 

The next thing Shiro did was something Keith hadn't expected from someone he just met under such circumstances. Shiro hugged him tight that caused him to step back a little, because damn was Shiro such a big guy or what?

"Bless you!" Shiro then cupped his face that made him widen his eyes in shock. Every move Shiro made seemed to be getting bolder and bolder by the second. "I could just kiss you right now!"

Keith knew it was a joke so he laughed, but that didn't mean he couldn't tease him back. "Buy me the third book of Harry Potter first and we'll see."

They started hanging out right after that printing room incident and Shiro couldn't be any happier.

They'd gotten quite close for the past few months and Shiro learned a lot about Keith. Like him, he was also a foreign exchange student from Japan but from a different school. Keith was taking English Literature while Shiro was taking his pre-med. He later soon found out that Keith was a Tokyo boy which made him tease him with "You're one of those city boys, huh? Looking down on us Kyoto boys. But we're tougher than you lot." Keith just laughed at him and if Shiro was being honest, Keith's laughter became one of his favourite sounds.

He was on his way to Burger King that was located beside their university, where Keith and him were about to meet to have their usual lunch.              

Takashi Shirogane
I'm on my way! :D
Sorry class got dismissed a little bit late. :(

Keith Kogane
It's okay. I'm just here waiting.

That made Shiro smile. Keith never texted with emojis and at first he was a bit disheartened that Keith didn't like him as a friend, that he found him boring. But Keith actually told him that he just wasn't using emojis because that required more effort.

What a lazyass.             

Takashi Shirogane
Did you order yet?! :O

Keith Kogane
No, I haven't.

Keith also texted with proper grammar, punctuation and all that. Shiro actually used to text in shortcuts but when Keith texted him, he felt required to text in full words with proper spelling, even though he knew Keith wouldn't even mind the text spellings.           

Takashi Shirogane
Okay okay okay! Almost there.

Keith Kogane
Run.

Shiro laughed as he brisk walked to Burger King.

He opened the glass door and immediately scanned the place for a certain black haired guy. He saw Keith by the corner in a table for two, reading a book. It was most likely a young adult novel because he didn't read books that were required readings in public. "Those are meant for suffering, Shiro. Not pleasure. And I don't want to read something school related when I'm trying to chill." 

Shiro was sure he was reading "Uprooted" by Naomi Novik, since he saw Keith started reading it yesterday.

His friend was wearing a plain black shirt and black pants with matching red converse shoes. He looked really handsome despite the simple clothes, but Keith made it work. The first time Shiro saw him during that printer incident, he already found Keith attractive--he wasn't blind, after all. He was pretty sure a lot of people were crushing on Keith. He couldn't blame them, the guy was easy on the eyes.

"Hey," Shiro greeted as he took the seat in front of his friend.

Keith looked up and smiled, "About damn time. I thought I was going to get stood up."

Shiro laughed as he shook his head in amusement. "And what? Miss out seeing your handsome and beautiful face? Never." 

They did this quite often, they knew it was harmless teasing because Shiro had a girlfriend. She was great but they didn't have the same lunch break so he always ate lunch with Keith.

Keith rolled his eyes, he closed his book after he placed his bookmark on the page he was on. It was Shiro's gift to him on his 22nd birthday a few days ago. A bookmark with a Japanese painting of the Kiyomizudera Temple in Kyoto. It was pretty simple but Keith appreciated it a lot and would use it often, which made Shiro happy. He hoped Keith would remember him every time he sees the bookmark.

"It's my turn to order for us, isn't it?" Keith asked.

"Yeah," Shiro nodded as he got out his wallet to fish out some bills and handed them to Keith. "Just the usual for me, please."

"Okay." Keith stood up, wallet in hand and headed towards the counter. 

Shiro followed him with his eyes and sighed.

It was eating him up for the past few weeks now and he honestly couldn't deny it any longer. He liked Keith as more than a friend and he was slowly falling in love with him--it was driving him nuts. He had a girlfriend whom he had to admit, he wasn't really in love with, but she was great in her own way. He liked her enough to be in a relationship with her, but Keith was just something else. Keith wasn't even doing anything to make Shiro fall in love with him and that was just the thing! He was just himself, not trying to impress anyone and yet Shiro still found himself falling for him.

It was the little things Keith did, as corny as that sounded.

The way he clicked his pen again and again whenever he was doing his homework and he couldn't get anything right. The way he was so engrossed with the book he was reading, showing different facial expressions as he read along (not to be creepy or anything, but yes, Shiro observed Keith while reading). The way Keith preferred cold chocolate milk from the hot one, which was honestly endearing because Shiro preferred the hot chocolate to the point they debated which was better. Keith won, only because Shiro let him. The way Keith would message Shiro about a new book that was coming out and he would fanboy about it as they get a copy together under the cold weather, because Shiro wouldn't allow him to go alone and get sick because he didn't wear any coat to protect him.

Keith was just, to put it simply, pretty damn charming. He didn't think he'd fall for a guy in his life, because he was so sure he was into girls even way back then. And yet here he was.

Shiro felt like he was cheating in a way, so he needed to get his shit together or this wouldn't end well.

He sighed loudly and buried his head on the table.

Stupid Keith and your stupid handsome face. Making me feel stupid things and you're not even aware of it!

"Dude, you okay?" Keith asked as Shiro heard him take a seat and place their food on the table.

Shiro looked up and groaned. "I'm doomed."

Keith patted his head affectionately. "There, there. Welcome to the club."

"I'm a free man now." 

Keith blinked. That was not something he dreamed of hearing from Shiro--at all. 

"What?" He asked dumbly as he tapped on his bed, trying to find his bookmark without taking his eyes off at an approaching Shiro. 

Shiro just smiled brightly at him. "I broke up with her."

"Okay?" Keith raised an eyebrow as he closed his book.

He knew there was more to the story here and he was going to be all ears. "Why do you seem so happy about it? Aren't breakups supposed to leave you..." He gesticulated because he couldn't wrap his mind around the whole idea that Shiro was girlfriend-less. They were the perfect couple and a lot of people admired their relationship! "...heartbroken? And yet here you are smiling at me."

Shiro frowned as he sat beside Keith on the bed, making Keith move a little. Shiro, whom he considered his best friend, was welcome anytime to go to his dorm room because his dorm building was just beside his. They were like neighbors, in a way.

"It's weird." Keith eyed Shiro suspiciously. "Something fishy is going on and I'm not going to--"

"I just didn't love her," Shiro shrugged. "It didn't work out no matter how much I tried. I didn't want to lie to myself anymore and just go through it just for her, you know?"

Keith smiled in understanding. "Well, I, for one, am glad I don't have to do some comforting thing with you because I have no idea how to do that." He laughed while shaking his head. He was about to open his book again when Shiro hugged him.

"Keith, I'm so heartbroken. Please love me." Shiro sobbed as he hugged him tighter.

Pathetic acting really that Keith couldn't help but roll his eyes, but despite that, he still hugged Shiro back.

"There, there, buddy. More free time then."

Shiro released him and beamed at him.

God. Shiro, stop it with the face. 

"You know what this means? Aside from the fact I can have five kids with someone I actually love, I get more free time to spend with you in the evenings!" Shiro tackled him down to the bed, laughing like an idiot.

"Oh my god! Dude!" Keith cried out in shock as his head hit the pillows, making sure his book was safe from the giant who was clinging to him.

Shiro's hands made their way to wrap around his waist and Shiro buried his face in Keith's neck. "I'm just so happy, Keith. I've never felt so relieved in my life, to be honest." Shiro said quietly. "She didn't actually take it well. I wanted us to remain friends, but she just couldn't and ended our connection."

Keith sighed. He wasn't good at this comfort thing, damn it. He thought he already avoided it. 

"Sometimes things just don't work out the way you want to, y'know? Sometimes you have to let people go, even if you want them to stay."

Keith was talking shit.

He knew it. He wasn't even sure what he was saying. He was just spouting some cheesy nonsense he read from a book or from a movie he watched. Heck, he wasn't even in a relationship with anyone--ever. So this wasn't his area of expertise at all. He just wasn't into the whole relationship thing and he didn't have time to think about it even. He was too damn busy being a nerd.

"Keith?" 

"Hmmm?"

Shiro moved to look at Keith, their faces were a few inches apart that Keith could see just how grey Shiro's eyes were. They were so pretty, that the contrast was so obvious with his irises and his pupils. Keith could even see them dilate while looking at him, which was weird because pupils dilated when one looks at someone they liked.

Oh.

"You won't leave me, right?" Shiro whispered, sounding broken.

Keith's heart started beating loudly. Oh god. He hoped Shiro couldn't hear them, because he felt his own chest tightening and suddenly he felt like he couldn't breathe. Those eyes just stared at him expectantly. 

Shiro's eyes wandered quickly to his lips and Keith wanted to run away. 

"Of course not," Keith let out a nervous chuckle.

Keith was dumb.

Hundred percent dumb because he didn't want it to happen, but it did. And he couldn't stop it now even if he wanted to. Everything was just so dumb and so stupid and he wanted to cry like a baby. It wasn't fair.

Shiro wasn't fair.

After that whole dramatic announcement of Shiro being single, and Keith thinking maybe Shiro liked him more than he should (blame the fricking dilated pupils of Takashi Shirogane DAMN IT!), Keith couldn't get Shiro out of his mind for a few days now. He couldn't stop thinking about wanting to hold Shiro's hand or kiss his cheek. 

It was dumb.

Keith was dumb, yet the idea was making him smile like an idiot.

It was giving him unnecessary chest pains and he was so young to even experience heart failure. He buried his face in his book and started pounding his clenched fist on the table.

Why Why Why Why Why WHY.

"Keith, what are you doing? Are you even listening to me?"

Oh, right. Shiro and him were in the library, studying. His best friend was helping him for his exam in a few hours and Shiro was asking him questions from his reviewer.

"I'm doomed." Keith groaned, copying Shiro's words.

Shiro had the audacity to chuckle. "You will be if you don't pay attention to what I'm saying."

Keith noticed but he was trying his best to be oblivious.

He didn't want to encourage it because he knew Shiro would treat him differently if he found out. Better stop it before it would get worse. But god, it was getting harder when Shiro was sitting beside him on the sofa, glancing at him every single time he thought Keith wasn't looking. 

Keith placed his book on top of his lap, sitting cross-legged. 

Shiro was still staring.

He needed to put an end to it because it was getting obvious, and as much as Keith wanted it--he finally admitted to himself a few weeks ago that he did love Shiro that way now--they were going to graduate this year and it would be the end for their friendship. They would probably go back to Japan and live their own separate lives, away from each other. That way, Keith's feelings would most likely fade for the better.

Besides, Shiro probably just liked him. It probably didn't even go that deep.

Keith sighed and was about to say something when Shiro beat him to it.

"Keith, have you ever kissed someone?"

The question surprised him, so he snapped his head quickly to his friend and raised his eyebrow. "Uh, no?"

Shiro blinked at him in disbelief. "What? Are you serious? So you've never had your first kiss? At all?"

Keith blushed in embarrassment. "Well, uh, you see." He scratched his cheek out of nervously. "I'm kinda reserving it for someone I like, you know."

It's you. It's fricking you, Shiro. But that's not gonna happen because I won't let it.

"And I don't want it to be one-sided either. I want my first kiss to be with someone who likes me back, too." He added a nervous laugh. "Kinda dumb, isn't it?"

Shiro shook his head.

Keith swallowed the lump in his throat.

"Keith, can I kiss you?"

The question almost killed Keith on the spot. He didn't die (thankfully) but he lost his balance and fell off the sofa dramatically, hitting his head on the carpeted floor.

"Ugh," Keith groaned as he rubbed his head. His legs were draped on the sofa while his upper body was on the floor.

"Oh my god!" Shiro panicked. "Are you okay?" He asked as he offered his hand.

"Shiro, are you fucking serious?" He blurted out, ignoring the offered hand that Shiro quickly retracted.

Shiro avoided his eyes as he kept looking everywhere else. Keith thought he saw sweat starting to form on Shiro's forehead. Oh god. He probably said it as a joke and Keith was being a hopeful idiot. See, this was exactly why he wasn't into relationships. It was just going to crush his heart and he was going to die because of a broken heart. Which was a bit of a ridiculous scenario, but one could never know.

"Shiro. Look at me." Keith demanded, trying to look all intimidating despite the fact that half of his body was still lying on the floor and his legs had more chances of kissing Shiro than his mouth. He probably looked silly but Keith didn't give a damn.

"Can we at least get you up here on the sofa?"

"No, we're doing this now because you're going to avoid the topic. I know you, Takashi Shirogane." He placed both of his hands on his stomach, getting comfortable with his position despite his back beginning to hurt. 

Shiro chuckled and ran his fingers through his hair.

Not the time to get all sexy in front of me.

"This is kinda weird and not exactly how I planned to confess to the person I love," He looked at Keith on the floor and smiled sweetly. "But I guess beggars can't be choosers."

Keith just stared at him.

"You love me?" Keith almost choked out his words.

Shiro laughed. "Yeah, I love you. Is that weird? Hence, I want to kiss you but I won't if you don't feel the same way."

Shiro loved him.

Takashi Shirogane, the object of his affections, loved him. He couldn't believe it, but Shiro said so himself, so that was definitely not a dream, right? He didn't just like Keith, he loved him! He wasn't expecting that at all. And he asked if he could kiss Keith knowing he reserved his first kiss for the person who shared mutual feelings with him, implying perhaps Shiro must have caught on with his feelings, right?

Right?

Holy Shit.

"Are you going to say 'no homo' or...?" Keith asked. It was dumb but he needed to make sure.

Shiro shook his head. "Nope. Kinda homo all the way, bro."

"Bro," Keith pretended to sniff and started laughing like an idiot. That was the perfect time his book decided to fall on top of his head, causing him to stop laughing. "Ouch!" He glared at the book that was now on the floor, beside his head.

He heard Shiro laughing and Keith smiled.

"You love me," Keith repeated again with that big dorky grin on his face. 

"I do," Shiro confirmed the second time. "Do you feel the same way or--"

"I do," Keith answered quickly and then he covered his mouth and started laughing again. "Oh my god. It's mutual. You love me. Dude."

Shiro just looked at him while shaking his head fondly, knowing Keith was completely losing it but he shouldn't blame him. This was new for Keith. He was allowed to feel happy about something like this.

He was nervous but he was happy and so elated at the same time. His tummy was doing those cheesy weird flips (IT ACTUALLY FELT LIKE SOMETHING WAS FLIPPING INSIDE, IT WAS RIDICULOUS. KEITH DIDN'T THINK IT WAS REAL BUT HERE HE WAS--EXPERIENCING IT) and his heart was pounding so fast and so loudly again that he couldn't even think straight. He felt like his heart wanted to rip out of his chest and kiss Shiro itself!

"Now will you please come back up here so I can kiss my new boyfriend?" 

Keith laughed even harder.

Oh god.

Kissing Keith was probably the best thing Shiro has ever done in his life.

He was aware that this was Keith's first kiss and it showed. Keith didn't know what to do, as expected from someone without any previous experience. So Shiro guided him and slowly he was able to get a hang of it. There were no tongues involved yet, because god Shiro felt like dying. Keith's lips were as soft as they looked and he was kissing them and he wanted to cry. But who the hell cries while kissing someone they loved?

Keith loved him back.

Keith loved him back and this was the fifth time of the day he wanted to die. 

He brought his hands up to touch Keith's soft hair as Keith opened his mouth to breathe, giving Shiro an opening. If Keith didn't want any of this, he would just push him back, but so far Keith welcomed it and even tried reciprocating. He slowly made his way towards Keith's shirt, then down to his pants. When all of a sudden, Keith froze and quickly grabbed his hands away from his body.

"Don't," Keith let out breathlessly.

Shiro looked at him, startled. Keith was sitting on the sofa hugging his legs and he had his eyebrows knit. He was shaking.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to--" Shiro stretched out his hand towards Keith who flinched.

"Please don't." He said again.

He retracted his hand and sat down away from Keith. He probably came on too strong and he was going way too fast. He knew that this was Keith's first kiss and he probably wanted it innocent and Shiro just ruined it for him because he was a hungry guy. 

God. I'm such a fool.

"I'm really sorry, Keith."

Keith just nodded, still not looking at him.

"I'll stop touching you now. I should probably just go." He was about to leave when Keith spoke up.

"I'm asexual."

That made him stop and stare at the boy in front of him, who looked like someone just broke his favourite Red Power Ranger action figure. Now everything started to make sense. Keith always had this air of innocence around him that drew Shiro in, and now he finally knew why.

Keith was ace.

"You probably hate me now, do you?" Keith asked with a tiny voice as he looked up at Shiro. 

Shiro sat down closer to Keith and rubbed his arm in comfort. "What are you talking about? I don't. I still love you."

Keith shook his head and whispered, "Not for long, you won't." 

"What makes you so sure of that?" Shiro raised an eyebrow. "I know my feelings better than you, Keith."

"I know that, but you don't know what the future holds, Shiro." He sighed and untangled his limbs as he decided to sit cross-legged. "You probably think I'm like a kid now." He let out a sarcastic laugh. "Heck, I feel like a kid. I know that because that's exactly what I have been feeling for a few years now."

"What do you mean?"

Keith looked at him with worry in his eyes, his shoulders sagged down in defeat. "Everyone's moving forward, Shiro. And I'm not. Everyone's thinking about having kids and having family, and here I am, thinking of getting the new Fables comic book that will be released in a few months."

"Not everyone has the same priorities."

Keith shook his head in agreement. "Yeah, I know, but the thing is, I've never thought about it. I'm not interested in it for now and probably even in a few years. Not until someone asks me to marry them, then probably I might. Probably. I'm stuck in this bubble world and I can't get out."

"Keith..." Shiro said softly.

"I can't give you that, Shiro. I can't offer you what you want." Keith frowned as he buried his face in his hands. "I'm sorry."

"Keith," Shiro tried again. "You don't know what I want."

"Yes, I do," Keith mumbled. "You want sex and I don't."

Well, okay, Keith wasn't wrong about that, but Shiro wasn't that stupid and shallow. He was in love with Keith for a few months now and he knew his feelings were very deep for the boy. He wasn't going to let him go just because he didn't want to have sex with him. At least Keith was being honest with him and Shiro appreciated that a lot.

"I thought that perhaps I could try it, you know? But I can't. I'm scared, yes, but I know deep inside I don't want it either. I don't need it." Keith continued. "But god, I love you, Shiro, but if me being ace is going to---"

"It's fine by me," Shiro finally said. He made up his mind and it didn't matter anymore because he valued Keith's sexuality and he respected that.

Keith looked up and just gaped. "W-what?"

Shiro shrugged. "I said it's fine by me if you don't want to have sex with me."

"Are you serious?" 

He nodded. "Keith, I don't want you to be uncomfortable when you're around me. I'm not going to do anything that would cause you such discomfort. Relationships don't work that way, and if you wanna make this work like I do, then we have to agree on the important things. Like the one just now for example." Shiro smiled. "I'm really glad you told me."

"Are you sure?" Keith quietly asked, feeling doubtful.

"Yeah, I mean," Shiro looked around and returned his gaze at Keith. "We can just lay on the bed forever for all I care, it's honestly fine by me. We can listen to music, or watch movies. We can even just read books silently in the same room. I'm not really picky." He rubbed Keith's hand with his thumb and said, "I don't really mind as long as I do it with you."

Keith just stared at him for a few moments and Shiro was starting to get anxious. He hoped he didn't sound too desperate to keep Keith, but god he loved him so much he was willing to throw away all the sex shit out of the window just for him.

"Wow," Keith smiled bashfully. "You really do love me, huh?"

Shiro blinked and then chuckled. "Duh! I thought that was pretty obvious, man."

Keith laughed with him. "I do like kissing you though, so that's okay."

Those were the words Shiro was going to have written on his grave. "Really? I like kissing you, too."

"Oh god, I probably sucked though. I'm sorry." Keith's cheeks turned crimson, and if that wasn't the cutest thing Shiro had ever seen, he didn't know what else was. 

"Nah, you were quite good. You'll get better in time."

Keith smirked. "Are you implying we're going to kiss more in the future?"

"Only if you want to."

"Maybe." Keith answered but he started leaning in towards him, and Shiro saw his eyes flickered on his lips and as much as Shiro would love to go back to kissing Keith (Because it was just the best thing and he wondered why no one else thought of kissing this boy in the first place? Everyone should want to kiss him!) there were things he needed to know first. 

He placed his index finger on Keith's lips to stop him. "Before that, I'd like to ask some questions."

Keith went crossed eyed looking at Shiro's finger (it wasn't supposed to be adorable but it was! And Shiro was dying.) He nodded as he positioned himself back on the sofa. "Okay, what is it?"

"Aside from kissing what else am I allowed to do?"

"Oooh," Keith pondered. "Well, I'm okay with the hugging. In fact, I love hugs. Holding hands would probably feel great, too." He blushed and Shiro just wanted to kiss him but he needed to restrain himself. "I mean, only if you want to hold my hand that is. I don't want to impose or anything."

"I'd love to," Shiro said and just to demonstrate his point, he took Keith's hand and squeezed it.

"Okay," Keith smiled as he stared at their hands, then Shiro interlaced them which earned him a beaming Keith.

God. This was just too much for him.

"Anything else?"

"That's it, really. Just no..." He waved towards his lower body and looked back at Shiro who nodded in understanding.

"Got it."

It was their semestral break and they were headed back to Japan for a few weeks.

They both agreed that they would visit the Koganes first in Tokyo, to formally introduce Shiro to Keith's family and then right after, they would head to Kyoto for Keith to meet the Shiroganes.

It was exciting but extremely nerve-wracking at the same time.

Shiro looked at Keith who was sitting by the window during their flight.

"You sure about this?" Shiro asked, as he rubbed Keith's hand in comfort.

Keith looked at their hands and then at Shiro. He smiled and said, "Yeah, hundred percent."

Their first anniversary of being together was spent attending the Comic Con, and Shiro had never seen Keith go around like an idiot, dragging him everywhere because DUDE, I THINK I JUST SAW DEADPOOL OVER THERE! MOVE YOUR ASS, SHIROGANE.

First anniversary had turned into third anniversary until it became eight.

Eight years.

He had never imagined for them to last longer than three years, but he hoped back then that they would---and they did. They decided to stay in the country when they graduated and found jobs. Shiro was now a brain surgeon at the prestigious hospital in the city, while Keith was a book editor in Hyperion Books. It was his dream to get accepted in there and he made it. In fact, he was their top editor and Shiro had never been so proud of him.

Keith still made him blush like a mess after eight years, it was honestly ridiculous. But god, he was just so in love with him every single day no one had the right to blame him. They had stable jobs and they were both making more than enough money that each of them could afford better-than-average apartments. 

They'd been dating for eight years and Shiro thought it was finally time.

Exactly why he was in the jewelry store trying to find a ring. Something caught his eye and he smiled.

It was perfect.

"This one please."

Shiro entered Keith's apartment and quietly made his way upstairs to his boyfriend's bedroom.

It was seven in the morning, and here he was trying to be all ninja because today was the day Keith was so excited about. He kept reminding Shiro about it for the past few weeks. It was the day Harry Potter and Deathly Hallows was supposed to go on sale, and Keith wanted to get a copy as soon as possible. So Shiro had to be his human alarm clock. He didn't mind, of course, he had supported Keith's shenanigans for eight years now and he wasn't stopping anytime soon.

Plus, excited Keith was something Shiro really loved seeing.

He opened the door quietly only to be greeted by a sleeping man in his pyjamas with manuscripts all over his bed. He was obviously working really hard last night that Shiro frowned. He should've visited last night to make sure he slept comfortably, but he had a late shift at the hospital last night so he couldn't visit.

Books were scattered everywhere in the room because Keith didn't have time to buy a new bookshelf, so Shiro tried maneuvering his way around until he made it to Keith's queen-sized bed. He slowly gathered all the papers on the bed and placed it on the table beside it, along with the gift he brought.

He stared at Keith and he looked so peaceful sleeping like an adorable kitten. Too bad he was going to wake him up and turn him into a grumpy one. Shiro didn't really like waking him up but he had no choice.

"Keith," He started softly. "Wakey, wakey." 

Keith didn't move a single muscle, so Shiro started pampering him with soft sweet kisses all over his face. "Baby, wake up."

Shiro heard Keith's legs moved. Good. That was a good sign.

He continued giving him kisses, and Shiro was fairly enjoying it because Keith wasn't awake to stop him and push him out of the bed. Plus, soft Keith was one of Shiro's favourite. "Baby, come on now. Time to wake up!" 

"SHIRO. GO AWAY. IT'S A SATURDAY!" Keith grumbled angrily as he tried pushing Shiro off the bed and pulled the covers over his face to resume sleeping.

Shiro laughed. "But it's the day Deathly Hallows go on sale!"

Now that caught Keith's attention. He immediately sat up, wide-eyed looking at Shiro. "Dude."

Shiro just nodded excitedly.

"Holy Shit." He quickly got out of bed but his legs were tangled up with the covers and suddenly he was met face-to-face with the floor. He groaned while rubbing his head. "Ugh. Oh god. Why does this keep happening to me?"

Shiro laughed so hard as he bent down to push Keith's bangs away from his face. "You really love the floor, don't you?"

"Not a word, Shirogane." Keith grumbled as Shiro helped him up. 

Shiro hugged his boyfriend and gave him a quick morning peck on the lips. "Good morning to you, my sunshine."

"Morning," Keith smiled and then something caught his eyes past Shiro's head. He could only guess it was the wall clock. "Holy shit, I really need--" He was about to entangle himself from Shiro's hug, when Shiro stopped him by grabbing his arm.

"Oops, no need."

"What do you mean?" Keith asked incredulously.

"Since I'm such a wonderful boyfriend, I got you the book and it arrived last night!" Shiro announced happily. He made his way to the table beside Keith's bed and grabbed the gift-wrapped book and handed it to him.

"Baby," Keith ran his fingers on the gift. "You're the best, you know that, right?"

Shiro just shrugged with a smile.

Keith smirked. "Kinda pointless gift wrapping it though when you already told me what's inside."

"Oh, c'mon. I wanted to do it right, okay?" Shiro rolled his eyes. "Just open it."

"Thank you," Keith kissed him on the lips before he sat on the bed with Shiro. "I can't believe this. I feel like I might cry." He laughed.

"Well, as much as I don't mind you crying out of happiness, you might want to have some reconsideration for the book here."

"I know." Keith agreed.

He carefully unwrapped the gift that Shiro took time to wrap last night, and placed the wrapper neatly folded on the side. Shiro loved the fact Keith was very appreciative of the little things Shiro put effort on. Keith looked at the book in front of him and just gasp in awe. He looked at Shiro while smiling so excitedly.

"Oh god. You weren't lying," Keith said breathlessly as he ran his fingers through the hardcover of the new Harry Potter book.

"Open it." Shiro nudged Keith.

Keith snorted. "Okay, but I'll try not to read 'cause I don't want to spoil myself or anything." 

Keith slowly opened the book and inside was a small black velvet box in the middle. Shiro cut a few hundred of pages in the middle of the book for the box to fit and he tried his best to make it look presentable. He glanced at Keith to see how he was reacting to the thing that was in front of him. Keith didn't say anything, he just took out the black box and opened it to reveal a silver ring with eight rubies in the middle.

Keith just stared at it intensely and Shiro was getting nervous.

"Keith, I..." Shiro gulped hard. "I just want you to know that, well, I’m not pressuring you or anything but I felt like, you know… We’ve been together for such a long time now and honestly…"

"Shut up, Shiro." Keith cut him off.

Shiro was taken aback. He looked at Keith and blinked at him in confusion. Did he just get rejected? God. He blew it, didn't he? Keith and him weren't on the same page.

"W-What?" He finally managed to ask.

"I love you so much. Of course, I'd say yes." Keith smiled at him as he hugged him tightly.

Shiro was getting dizzy, he didn't know what was happening anymore, but he hugged back and let out a nervous laugh. "Oh my god. I had a speech prepared and all."

Shiro smiled when he felt Keith's vibration when he laughed. "You idiot. No speech needed." Keith hugged him tighter. "I just can't believe you beat me to it! Oh my god." He quickly separated himself and looked at Shiro in disbelief. "You even ruined a Harry Potter book for your proposal! Who does that?!"

"Apparently I do."

"Exactly! Unbelievable." Keith shook his head in disbelief and then suddenly Keith turned quiet as he looked at Shiro straight in the eyes. "You sure about this? I mean, I'm ace and all that..."

"Hundred percent." Shiro nodded and then Keith's eyes started to water. "Oh god, baby no... please don't cry."

Keith--Shiro's fiancé--tried wiping his tears using the back of his hands. "I just, I... I never thought that... well, I'm like this and..." Keith looked at him and a tear fell down as he helplessly continued with a small voice, "...I can't really give you anything else."

That broke Shiro's heart. To think after eight years, Keith was still this insecure about himself. Keith's love was all Shiro ever wanted and nothing else. Just Keith and his whole ace-ness. He pulled Keith into a hug once again and stroked his hair. "Hey, don't say stuff like that. I've wanted this for a very long time now and it's been eight years, you know? I've kept my word."

Keith nodded. "I know. I didn't think you'd do that for me, but you did." Shiro felt Keith's warm tears hit his shoulders and now he wanted to cry too. "I thought that you'd get bored of me because I wasn't giving you what you needed and you were tired of being considerate."

"I love you so much and I'd never get bored of you, Kogane. I'm kinda offended you think lowly of me," Shiro teased.

Keith shook his head. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to. I just didn't think I'd actually find someone who was willing to marry me, you know? I thought that in order for me to get married, I'd have to find another ace. And that's quite hard because not a lot of people are like that. And---" He paused to sniff and then laughed. "Oh my god, I have snot all over your shirt now."

"That's alright," Shiro chuckled.

"You're going to marry someone who's going to shower you with snot and you can't back out now," Keith held him tighter, in fear Shiro might actually run away.

"I wouldn't have it any other way," Shiro smiled as he kissed Keith's neck.

"You destroyed my book," Keith sobbed even more.

"I actually have two copies, so the other one is in the car." Shiro laughed as he rubbed circles on Keith's back. "Do you want to have it now?"

"No, let's just stay this way for a while."

"Okay."

It was the night after their wedding and their honeymoon was in Venice, Italy.

They were in their room and Keith was sitting on the bed wearing pyjamas, drinking his cold chocolate milk. Shiro sat beside him and leaned his back on the headboard. They were both tired because of their day trip. 

"You sure about this?" Shiro asked.

Keith just eyed him while drinking his milk.

"I mean, we could not do it, y'know? I'm totally cool with it. I lasted for eight years, Keith. I can--"

"Exactly." Keith frowned as he placed his mug on the table beside the bed. "I think if it's you, it's okay."

"You sure?"

"Probably," Keith smiled.

Oh.

Shiro didn't want to push if Keith wasn't sure. This was a huge step for Keith and he didn't wanna pressure him into giving up something important that he treasured so much. He didn't want him to do it for him, it had to be mutual or it would be pointless.

"Well, I'm going to sleep now so you should too." He started getting under the covers. "It was a long day--"

He was interrupted when Keith kissed him on the lips. 

"I love you and I'm sure." Keith finally said.

They bought and moved to a big fancy house because We don't get to splurge much, Keith. And it's not like we're poor or anything. We could afford five of these houses anyways without putting much of a dent in our bank accounts.

Their house was perfect. It had seven rooms because Shiro wanted five kids, so Keith had to take that into consideration. In fact, Shiro hadn't mentioned kids for such a long time now that Keith was worried he probably didn't want one with him. Which was pretty understandable. Getting a surrogate would be expensive and they didn't have that much time to cater to her needs if ever they went in that direction.

Perhaps one day those six other rooms would be filled with children, or they would be converted into completely something else, like an extension of Keith's figure room or library. Shiro already had one for his clinic, so that only left five rooms. Two could remain guest rooms while the other three... well, they'd think about it when the time comes.

Keith was preparing dinner when Shiro came home from work. 

His husband had a weak smile on his face and he made his way to Keith to give him a kiss. 

"Did something happen at work?" Keith asked, eyebrow raised as he placed their food on the table.

"Well, a bit of a bad and good news."

Keith frowned. Well, that couldn't be good.

"You know Matt, right? My colleague and a good friend of mine."

Keith nodded. He had no idea where this was going. 

"He got into a car accident and was rushed to the hospital a few days ago. They couldn't save him, Keith." Shiro looked down at the floor with his fist clenched. "He was a great cardiologist and he was raising his little sister who's three years old because their parents died in a plane crash."

Keith placed a hand on his mouth. "I-I'm so sorry." He wrapped his arms around his husband. 

Shiro hugged back and added, "The thing is, his little sister, Pidge, is now an orphan and I thought perhaps maybe it's time for us to adopt?"

Keith looked up and Shiro and he was smiling down at him.

"W-What?"

"She's really an adorable baby girl. I'm sure you will love her."

"W-What?" Keith repeated, still in shock.

"We've been married for three years now, and I thought maybe that's already enough time for us to adjust to our new lives and time to add a little one in the picture?" Shiro grinned. "Or maybe three if you're okay to make a trip to the orphanage tomorrow?"

There were so many things going on inside Keith's mind, that he didn't notice tears started forming in his eyes until Shiro panicked.

"Oh god, okay, that's probably a no, huh?" Shiro tried wiping Keith's tears. "It's okay, baby. We can wait a few more years or maybe you don't want kids after all--"

Keith kissed him to make him stop. His husband was kind of an idiot at times like this. 

"I'd love to visit the orphanage tomorrow. I thought you'd never ask." He pinched Shiro's side who just grinned back at him.