Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Voltron High was about as normal of a high school as a high school could be. There was a rival high school called Galra High, there were cheerleaders, football players, and over funding for sports. Romance blossomed in the hallways and injuries were made on the football field. What more could be wanted from a typical high school?

The rowdy noise from the hallways were just as typical as everything else, which Keith found extremely irritating. It was game day no less, so everyone was extra hyper and jumpy. The game would be a special home game played every year against their rival high school, which they had never lost yet.

He slammed his locker shut, locking it and pressing his forehead against the cold metal. Being on the cheerleader team had its perks, he got to choose which uniform he wanted to wear, which was both, and he got out of class early on game day. The disadvantage to being a cheerleader was always being around the football players.

It wasn’t the football players as a whole he didn’t like, his older brother was the quarterback and most of the team was pretty cool except for one kid.

Lance Fucking McClain.

Keith’s grip tightened on his bag at just the thought of him, now finally walking towards the exit of the school. Lance was obnoxious, irritating, and thought he was a bigger hotshot than he really was. The guy wasn’t even as good as Shiro, who was the quarterback for a reason, and here he was thinking being on the team made him cool.

Nothing about him was cool. Nothing. Not his nicely tanned skin or his dumb blue eyes. Especially not his terrible pick up lines he used on every cheerleader but Keith. Those he hated the most, those damn lines. None of the lines worked on anyone he saw Lance flirting with, especially not Allura.

The cheerleader left the school, adjusting his uniform pants. He chose the pants and shirt today for his uniform, only because those pants made his butt look better than the skirt. Shiro was the one who gave him the advice that morning and Keith couldn’t disagree.

It wasn’t long until Keith arrived at the football field not far from the school, within walking distance. There were already cheerleaders sitting on the first row of bleachers, all talking and some stretching. The girl that stood out the most was standing up in front of the group, her long white hair pulled into a tight pony tail.

Allura was the head cheerleader and was the only one for the position. Once he locked eyes with her, she excitedly waved him over. It was a little awkward being the only guy on the team, but they really needed him. Without him there would not be as many cool flips or towers. His strong shoulders did wonders with holding up the smaller girls who acted as fliers.

“Glad you could make it, Keith! We haven’t started yet, obviously. We’re waiting for the players to get out here.” Allura spoke once Keith was closer and within earshot. It was normal for them to wait for the team, only because the majority of the cheerleaders had a crush on at least one of the players.

Keith let his bag drop onto one of the bleachers, sitting next to him. He dug around in his bag before finding a hair band. If he didn’t have one he might have had to ask Allura, who probably only had the one in her hair. He would never be able to have as much hair as she did, every hair band broke within days of use.

Once his hair was safely up, Keith moved to go near Allura, slowly dropping down into the splits to start stretching.

“Do you think the Galra Tramp is gonna try anythin’ this game?” A cheerleader on the bleachers spoke up, popping her gum after. A series of giggles erupted from all the cheerleaders, including Keith.

“She better not touch any of our players. Remember how uncomfortable Shiro was last game?” Allura mused as she bent over to stretch with Keith, playfully swatting at his foot. He retaliated by shaking his foot at her, hitting her hand.

Keith stretched down to one foot, holding himself there as he spoke. “I remember he came home after the game with Matt, who was jealous as all hell. Shiro just felt weird about it.”

Another cheerleader in the stands suddenly stood up, adjusting her skirt to look more scandalous than it already was. “Hold the phone ladies and gentleman, the football players are coming out.” Once this was said, every girl sitting down jumped up to also start stretching, some doing more elaborate ones than others.

With how hard Keith rolled his eyes, he was sure the Earth’s rotation shifted. Allura turned her attention to the players now, waving at a few. The male kept his eyes focused on his feet, which he now put together, leaning down till his forehead touched his knees.

“Hey there, princess, you ready to let Sir Lancelot take you on a moonlit date yet?”

Keith recognized that terrible flirting anywhere. He glanced up to confirm his suspicions, seeing Lance standing there and smiling at Allura.

“If I’m a princess then I have better and more important things to do than go on a date with you, Lance.” She flicked his nose and turned away, her ponytail swaying. “Thanks for the offer, again.”

Keith watched as Lance pouted comically, rubbing his nose. Everytime Lance came over it was to flirt with any of the female cheerleaders, mostly Allura. He deserved every rejection he got.

Those blue eyes peered down to meet purple ones, Keith’s cheeks tinting pink. He quickly glanced away, even if Lance was still looking.

“Hey Keith, buddy! Heh, girls, am I right? She is just playing hard to get. I should be getting back to practice, see you around.” Lance gave a quick two fingered salute and flashed that perfect smile before backing up to jog away back to the other players.

Hard to get? More like impossible, because she isn’t interested. Keith watched him go, narrowing his eyes to glare at the back of his head. It was always so irritating when he came over to flirt with the obviously uninterested girls on the team.

He needed to stop thinking about Lance and not letting his eyes fall past his back. Keith couldn’t help it, when he got angry his gaze fell and this time it just so happened to be on Lance’s backside.

Allura snapped him out of his trance though, telling him to get up. Routines. All memorized and didn’t take much thought anymore unless he was lifting someone up. Either way it was something he could focus on instead of that cocky football player.

_________

Half of the game was over and it was time for the cheerleaders to do their special routine for the Halftime show. Keith was very excited for this, he had worked hard with the other cheerleaders to get this part down perfectly. There would be no mistakes and executed flawlessly.

It turned out just as Keith predicted, each cheerleader doing what they needed and the routine causing both crowds to stand and applaud. His chest swelling with pride, he gladly high fived some of the cheerleaders holding their hands up.

Keith glanced over at the football players on the benches getting ready for the second half of the game. His eyes found the back of his favorite, no Least favorite, player. There was another head next to his though, with blonde hair and pigtails. Someone who wasn’t on the football team.

Nyma Kennedy. He would recognize those too tight pigtails anywhere. There was a burning feeling in his stomach as he saw her hand on Lance’s shoulder. What right did she have to touch Lance and get that close to him? Not that Keith was interested in Lance, just concerned for the team overall of course.

But then something happened that Keith never expected. The angry look on Nyma’s face and the dismissive attitude Lance had towards her said it all. He rejected her. Lance McClain actually rejected a girl willingly giving him flirty attention.

It seemed Allura noticed it to, Keith hearing her laugh and say to the other girls, “I bet Nyma didn’t expect to get so bluntly rejected, ha!” The other cheerleaders erupted in snorts and snickers, every cheerleader watching Nyma storm back to her end of the field.

The game was going to start again so everyone was getting back into position, cheerleaders staying near the sides and football players swarming the field to play. Any feeling of possible (definitely not) jealousy fading away after that little show.

Keith let his mind wander as he mindlessly cheered when the other’s did, following their lead. He wasn’t paying too much attention to the game, his mind drifting away. His eyes did follow one individual who was running around on the field, Keith not realizing he was at first.

It wasn’t until Allura nudged him that he came out of his trance.

“Oh honey, you’ve got it so bad.” She gestured to Lance out on the field, still watching Keith. His face rapidly increased in color, his eyes widening.

“Got what bad? I don’t know what you’re talking about Allura! Oh! Look uh it’s the last kick off, you should be paying attention Allura.” He quickly looked away from the snickering cheerleader, watching the runner for the team now.

He didn’t know the name of the kid but he was extremely good and helped the team win their last points. The scoreboard showed the scores, neck and neck. This kick would determine if they won or lost the game. No pressure to the kid, of course.

Keith watched as the kid ran to the ball, the sound of the the crowds screaming warping into one muffled noise. Ends of games always were like this for Keith, everything fuzzy and smashed together until the crowd was gone and he was allowed to go home.

He knew Voltron won when he saw blurs of football players running to each other, hoisting others up, some running to cheerleaders and scooping them up. He saw Shiro bolting for the band section where a kid was literally jumping the wall to get to Shiro. It almost hurt seeing his brother in such a happy relationship; he just wanted someone to run to him.

His fuzzy mind shattered as he heard a familiar voice calling out to him from the field. This was new, Keith now seeing someone running towards him with his arms out.

“Keith!”

Chapter Text

Becoming a football player was the best decision Lance had ever made in his entire life. It started around freshman year when he decided to try out, already having some football experience behind him. Mostly just childhood fun, but still some experience. Either way, he was determined to get on the team one way or another.

Thankfully it didn’t take that much work to get on the team, his try out going mostly flawlessly. The team was like a family to him now, a family full of big, sweaty, attractive brothers. As a football player, he was surrounded by literal babes at all times, whether it was the football players or the cheerleaders.

Lance remembered his first time trying to flirt with a cheerleader. It was the girl with really long, white hair who was the principal’s daughter. Back in her Sophomore year, she wasn’t head cheerleader but boy did Lance know she would be. Allura just had that special leadership quality that made her perfect for the spot.

He had flirted with her for three years, all the way up to his Junior year and her Senior year. By then they had become good friends and honestly, even if he was hoping the tiniest bit for her to accept it one day, it was mostly playful. He knew he didn’t have a chance with her so finally he stopped trying around halfway through his Sophomore year.

By then he had found another cheerleader that was way cuter but a lot harder to talk to. Even worse, the guy turned out to be Shiro’s younger brother! Shiro, quarterback of the team, one of Lance’s sweaty, attractive, teammate brothers. How unfair was that? Two attractive brothers in one family?

His interest in Shiro was only puppy love, he soon realized before anything serious formed in Lance’s small bi heart. He admired Shiro and mostly just wanted to be his friend, which he ended up succeeding in doing. Lance just wanted to be friends with everyone and it was working out so far.

Lance of course had his main squad of friends by Junior year, Shiro, Allura, Pidge, Hunk, and Keith. Alright, maybe Keith. It was a little hard talking to Keith, mostly because of how their personalities clashed sometimes. Lance would say something snarky and Keith would respond with sass and it would snowball from there. Usually it ended in Lance trying to challenge him to something stupid and Keith refusing to do ‘such a stupid thing’.
It was mostly fun bickering until the beginning of Junior year. That was when it started to get weird between the two. Lance would try to talk to him and Keith wouldn’t make eye contact or his cheeks would flush. With anger, probably. Lance never really knew what he did wrong to make Keith hate him. There were times Keith would be really sweet and they could actually have conversations like normal people. Other times though Keith would get red and storm off.

It was terrible and driving Lance insane. Did Keith like him or not? He just wanted to be the damn guy’s friend!

He was going to try again, before the game. It was the only time he had during the day that he could talk to Keith. Lunch was hectic, busy with Hunk and Pidge in Mr. Holt’s room. Practice would just have to do. It was a big game day too so he knew the cheerleaders would be out there when he was.

Once he actually made it outside onto the field with the other players, he spotted the girls (and that precious boy) instantly. Maybe finally he would talk to Keith one on one, maybe flirt a little. He knew he possibly had a chance, Keith was gay as fuck. According to Shiro at least, and everyone else who even knew him.

As he walked over, there was a sudden fit of nerves in his stomach. Oh god, he couldn’t do this. Nevermind, abort abort. But his feet didn’t stop moving, he had to keep walking. If he turned around now it would seem pretty awkward since he was so close.

Who could he use as a way out of this? He spotted that high ponytail and he knew exactly what to do.

“Hey there, princess, you ready to let Sir Lancelot take you on a moonlit date yet?” He flashed Allura his award winning smile, even playfully winking at her to let her know he was just messing around. The cheerleader turned around and snorted a laugh, tossing her hair over her shoulder before answering.

“If I’m a princess then I have better and more important things to do than go on a date with you, Lance.” She flicked Lance’s nose before walking off, ponytail swaying behind her. “Thanks for the offer, again.”

Maybe someday he could get her to say yes. Even as a joke, just maybe. But there went his plan to get close to Keith. When he looked over at Keith though all he saw was that typical pink flush on his cheeks. Blue stared into that gorgeous purple, not wanting to look away.

He rubbed the back of his neck a bit nervously, shrugging as he spoke. Lance could keep the butterflies in his stomach trying to come out through his throat.

“Hey Keith, buddy! Heh, girls, am I right? She is just playing hard to get. I should be getting back to practice, see you around.” Lance gave a quick, two fingered salute before jogging off towards his other teammates. Thank god that was over. He ran a hand through his hair and shook his head. That was terrible.

Lance caught a look that Shiro was giving him, his eyebrow raised and a small smile forming. He knew that look, it was the look Shiro gave him every time Lance showed any sign of being into Keith.

“Oh shut up.” He playfully pushed on Shiro’s face after that, both of them laughing as he went with the others for practice.

----

The game was just starting off, Voltron taking the lead in the beginning. It always was that way, Voltron taking the lead in the beginning of games. Lance was giving the game his all, very happy for half time. Not only did he get a break until the next half of the game, but he would get to watch the cheerleader routine.

It was a flawless routine that had Lance smiling brightly by the end of it. He could see how happy Keith was during the routine and after when it went so well. It made Lance so happy seeing Keith smile like that, especially because of something he was so passionate about. God, Lance was so far gone and he knew it too.

His thoughts of Keith were halted though as a flash of blonde came into view. His eyes followed the blonde pigtails up to the face of a Galra Cheerleader. Nyma Kennedy, huh?

“Hey, Lance. You know, after the game, no matter what team wins, we can both be winners.” She flashed a smile so coated in sugar Lance could feel cavities forming on his teeth. Her hand also went to rest on his shoulder, rubbing it gently.

As much as Lance thought she was a real cutie the first game he met her at, Lance knew all too well about her boyfriend and the things she has done. Not even a cute face can persuade him to the dark side! Unless that cute face had purple eyes and a constant scowl.

It would be a missed opportunity to get a cute girl, but he knew she probably had at least one disease and he would end up with a knife in his back and nothing good could come from this. Lance had to think of an excuse fast, especially with her leaning in already.

“I uh, well you see, I’m kind of a big deal around here and I’m expected at the party after this, ya know?” Lance leaned back trying to act casual, shrugging her hand off his shoulder.

There was a gleam in her eye that scared Lance, her words not helping. “I don’t mind. You can make an appearance and I can wait in your car. I don’t mind laying down in the backseat of your car.”

His eyes widened, a blush forming on his cheeks at the imagery. Fuck. He cleared his throat and shrugged again, crossing his arms nonchalantly. “Sorry, can’t do that. You see, I’m a loyal person and I’m uh, hm, well you see I’m actually uh. Taken. Dating someone. I’m banging someone regularly and it’s kind of a thing now so I can’t really do that with uh You.” He made a new facial expression at the end of each sentence, trying to convince her.

The look on her face was priceless though, eyebrows knitted together and a very angry scowl. Maybe she really was mad that her plan did not work.

“Fine, whatever! Have fun with your slut.” Nyma exaggerated the ‘T’ noise, scoffing afterwards and stomping off to the other side of the field and back to her own team. Finally Lance let himself actually relax, groaning and rubbing his face.

Nyma was now going to tell everyone he was with someone and it would spread to Voltron High real fast. Hopefully Keith didn’t hear about it before he could tell everyone what he did.

There wasn’t much time to dwell more on it though, Lance already having to suit back up and get back in the game. This he could do and not focus on anyone but his team, the other team, and himself.

It was the last few seconds of the game and there was one final kickoff to determine who won. They were neck and neck, so close to winning. He knew the runner on the team, his name was Kyle as he was pretty cool and an amazing player. Lance had all faith in him.

His faith was justly set too as the scoreboard went up in points for Voltron, indicating they won the game. His team erupted in cheers, all the players buzzing with excitement. It wasn’t long until he saw Shiro booking it for the band kid who was jumping the wall. Oh, those two.

Every player was running to someone, whether it be another team member or someone off the field. Lance didn’t have anyone to run to, he wasn’t dating anyone and Hunk wasn’t there.

There was too much energy in his system to stay still so he started running. Running towards the cheerleaders and spotting a very special and lonely cheerleader. One no one ever ran to, no one ever picked up and swung around after winning and being so excited.

Lance was going to change that.

“Keith!”

He didn’t care if Keith punched him for doing it, Lance wasn’t going to stop. He ran right up to the cheerleader, scooping him up in his arms and swinging Keith around happily. Lance was pleasantly surprised when Keith actually gripped onto him and laughed.

Laughed! He was laughing and smiling! Maybe God was real.

After some spinning and laughing from the both of them, Lance finally set Keith down and looked down at him, that bright grin still plastered to his face. His expression dropped after a second though, both of them blushing brightly.

Lance let go of Keith, his hand going up to rub the back of his neck instead now. Neither of them said anything for a solid thirty seconds, both blushing and waiting for the other. Finally Lance couldn’t take the silence anymore, it was creating holes in his brain.

“So uh, Keith, are you going to the party at Allura’s? I, well, I’m going and it would be pretty cool to see you there. I know big crowds isn’t your thing but I um. I want you. To go. There. Please?” Butterflies were swarming his chest and pushing into his throat, making him pause nervously as he spoke.

Most of his nervousness washed away though as he saw Keith smile again after come contemplation. “Uh yeah, sure. I’ll go. I’ll just catch a ride with Shiro then.” Keith nodded before glancing over his shoulders at the other cheerleaders who were starting to clean up.

“I should go. Help clean up before I leave.” Keith shrugged lightly, seeming to hesitate on something before deciding against it. Lance just nodded and took a step back, showing a sign Keith was fully allowed to leave the conversation now.

“Yeah of course. I’ll see you at the party then!” Lance waved to Keith, who waved back as he walked back to the other girls. Once Keith had his back to Lance, another burst of energy surged through him. He balled his hands into fists, pumping his hands in the air.

“Oh Fuck yeah!” He laughed to himself as he jogged off to get his bag to put his gear in so he could go home. Lance had a shower to take, a party to get ready for, and a babe to impress with his amazing party attire. No time could be wasted.

Chapter Text

Once they got home, Keith had rushed inside to start getting ready for that party. He could not be late, he had a football player waiting for him and expecting for him to show up. He searched through his closet, trying to find something good to wear. What did someone even wear to a party? Keith didn’t usually wear anything to impress when he went to after game parties.

But this time he had to look hot.

This meant breaking out the back of his closet, the clothes he never wore. He looked through the clothes that was there, many different crop tops and muscle shirts that he had acquired over the years. Most of the crop tops were from Allura, who either got the wrong size and it was too big or she didn’t want anymore. Keith only kept the ones that fit him, all of them looking great on him. At least he thought so.

He settled with a pair of tight black jeans and a red crop top that had the basic outline of a cat’s face on it. It was perfect. He thought he looked pretty dang hot, admiring himself in his full length mirror. The whistle he heard from the doorway made him spin around, staring at his brother standing in his doorway.

“Looking to impress anyone with that?” Shiro smirked knowingly, looking Keith over and holding up a thumbs up. Keith felt his cheeks burn, a blush rising to his ears.

“No! I uh, I’m dressing for myself, I just think it looks nice. And it’s a party. I have to look attractive.” He sputtered out, quickly grabbing his shoes and slipping them on before slipping past Shiro to run out into the living room.

Still having to wait on Shiro and Matt, who were probably just messing around in Shiro’s room now and not actually getting ready, Keith went to his phone for entertainment. It wasn’t entertainment that he found though. Instead he found the cheerleader group chat spammed with messages.

He scrolled to the top of the messages, looking at the picture one of the girls sent. It was a screenshot of a tweet. A tweet Nyma made, great. He read the tweet, his blood running cold. What the fuck.

[@galracheerbabe: “omg i pity the girl who is dating mcclain, lmaooo and 2 think its a vol high cheerchick snrk mb theyr good 4 each othr, both sluts LOL”]

The fuck.

He read the texts in the chat, most of the girls utterly confused. Allura was demanding to know who it was, but everyone was denying it. Keith stared at his phone with a mixture of betrayal and anger going through him. Why was he feeling betrayed? He wasn’t even dating Lance. He barely liked the guy. Plus he would think such a poorly written and worded tweet wouldn’t get to him, especially one made by Nyma of all people.

But why would Lance ask him to the party if he wasn’t intending on making a move? The way he asked sure made it seem like Lance was going to try something. Maybe Keith was really looking into this too much. Lance just wanted to know if he was going.

The sick feeling in his stomach made him feel like not going. Maybe he would tell Shiro he suddenly felt sick and couldn’t go. Remembered he had too much homework, can’t miss any of that. As Keith was thinking all of this over, he didn’t notice Shiro coming up and resting a hand on his shoulder.

Keith jumped at the contact, looking at Shiro’s concerned expression. Matt wasn’t too far behind, staying back but still looking as worried as Shiro. Curse his inability to hide what he was thinking.

“Are you alright, Keith?” The concern was even in Shiro’s voice, his Dad voice. Keith couldn’t resist that, so he caved. He shrugged and paused before answering.

“Just not feeling the party mood anymore. I think I’m going to stay home.” Keith tried to keep his voice level, which wasn’t too hard to do. He had better control over his voice than he did his facial expressions.

There was another hand on his other shoulder, Keith looking over to see Matt. “How about you come along and if you don’t get into the mood then we can drive you back here. Or anyone who is sober would be willing to do it.”

It was true, there would be plenty of people who would happily take him home if he really wasn’t feeling the party. Hunk and Shay only went to parties for that reason, to be drivers for people too drunk or people without rides back. There would be someone to take him home no matter what.

Keith agreed to go, ending up in the back of the car as they drove. His mood lifted a little once Matt put on his music, the car filled with pop songs and Matt singing along. Shiro danced the best he could while being a safe driver. Those two, dammit. They gave Keith too high of expectations for relationships.

When they pulled up to the party it was already alive, music from the party heard from inside the car. Shiro found a good parking spot before they all filed out. The two lovebirds went right inside, Keith lingering near the door for a bit. He didn’t want to see Lance yet, he was still stuck on that girlfriend tweet. Maybe Nyma was just trying to start shit within the cheerleaders. They all knew she was probably bitter about being rejected anyway.

Finally he opened the front door, slipping inside. There were people everywhere, football players, other cheerleaders, normal Juniors and Seniors he had never talked to but recognized. There was one figure that stood out within the large crowd, his arms above his head and swaying to the music.

Lance McClain.

The only boy on earth who could make a douchey muscle tank top look attractive. What was he thinking? Stop that. Maybe a drink would help him calm down. He started for the kitchen, freezing as he heard his name being called by such a sweet voice above the loud music. He had been spotted, Keith now turning around to spot Lance weaving through the crowd towards him.

Just the guy he wanted to see, of course. Seeing Lance in person now made his chest tighten, the feeling of an elephant sitting on his chest very present. Lance didn’t seem to notice, happily coming up to Keith and waving.

“Yo, glad you could make it. You look uh really nice.” Lance smiled after his words, rubbing the back of his neck. Was he flustered? He couldn’t be. That would be preposterous. Maybe it was the leftover bitterness from seeing the tweet but Keith couldn’t help but be a bit rude.

“Hey. Uh, shouldn’t you be entertaining your girlfriend?” It came out before Keith could really stop himself, Keith staring at Lance’s face to watch his expression. Deep down he felt like maybe, just maybe, he was hoping it wasn’t true.

The confused and almost hurt expression on Lance’s face spoke before he even did. Did he even know what Keith was talking about? Nyma must have just been trying to mess with people.

“Girlfriend? What are you talking about?” Lance sounded just as confused as he looked, it not going away until Keith pulled out his phone. It seemed Nyma was just spreading more rumors. Keith didn’t say anything, just pulled up the photo that was sent in the group chat and let Lance see it.

“Shit, she can never keep things to herself.” Lance rubbed the back of his neck, shaking his head. “No, yeah, I’m not dating anyone.” Keith raised an eyebrow in response to that, prompting Lance to continue. “Okay, ya see, Nyma was like trying to get me to go off and ditch the game in and like, fuck her somewhere else.” His eyes widened now, Lance just faking a dramatic shiver and nodding. “Yeah, so I told her I was already involved with someone on our cheer team to get her to go away.”

Any feeling of jealousy or betrayal washed away from Keith as if someone washed it right off of him. He had to reason to even think about getting jealous. Of course Nyma was just spreading lies and falsehoods. It was her thing, really.

“Sorry if I caused a panic or something with the cheerleaders. Not what I intended, trust me. Just wanted her to leave me alone.” Lance wet down his lips and shrugged, hands going up in the defensive position.

Keith felt so stupid now. He just shook his head and shrugged, forcing a soft laugh. “Allura was demanding in the group chat to know who it was.” As he spoke though he sent a text in the group chat, telling them to relax and it was fake, he just talked to Lance.

Before Keith could offer them getting drinks or doing anything else, Lance was already taking hold of Keith’s wrist and grabbing his attention again. There was something on Lance’s mind, Keith could see him struggling to not just burst out and say it.
“Hey can we like, talk somewhere?” Lance watched Keith hopefully, flashing him a little smile. That was not fair, Keith couldn’t say no to that.

Keith let Lance guide him to the stairs, both of them walking up each step with caution. At least Keith was, his heart was racing, his heartbeat in his ears. Lance wanted to talk. At a party. Upstairs. Alone. Obviously there were a million ways this could end, some good and some bad. At least he knew they wouldn’t be interrupted, people were smarter than to go upstairs at Allura’s parties.

She made it very clear to anyone and everyone invited that upstairs was off limits. She then went on to tell their friend group that if they for some reason ever needed to get away from the crowd for a little bit or needed to go upstairs then they could. But no one else was allowed up there during parties.

Lance stopped once he got to the door of one of the guest bedrooms, slowly opening the door and peering inside. When he saw it was clear he nodded and pushed the door completely open, walking inside. Keith followed after him, shifting nervously. They were really doing this.

Lance sat on the edge of the bed, looking over at Keith expectantly. It took a moment but Keith finally budged from his spot and moved to sit down next to him, staring at the wall. His heart was in his throat at this point, the thrum of the party below sounding like a distant hum rivaling the beating of his own heart.

“Keith, so I’ve kind of been meaning to talk to you about this for a while. I guess I just never really got the chance but I know the dance scene isn’t really your element so I thought now would be better than never. Get us away from the super fun party downstairs and just chat.” Lance rambled on, his hands talking more than his mouth did.

It was endearing to watch, but Keith really wanted Lance to get to his point. It was nerve wracking just sitting there and waiting. So Keith cleared his throat and reached out to place his hand on Lance’s shoulder. “Lance.”

“Yeah?” That snapped Lance out of his rambling trance, looking at Keith curiously, almost like a deer in the headlights.

“You’re rambling.” Keith forced a smile to soften, holding it back as he watched Lance nod and apologize. Lance took a second to clear his throat, shifting to turn and face Keith more now. Their knees knocked together lightly, neither of them moving away from the contact.

Keith’s eyes locked onto those exuberant blue eyes, waiting for Lance to talk again. One of Lance’s hands went up to gently cup his cheek, Keith leaning into the touch gently. He really hoped what Lance wanted to say wasn’t as silent as he was now. That would make it very hard to decipher what he meant.

His thoughts were put on halt once Lance finally started speaking again, leaning in a little as he spoke. His voice was low, hesitant almost, as if talking too loud would shatter the air around them.

“I really like you, Keith. And I want to kiss you.”

Keith’s heart practically shot through his throat at that point. Swallowing down the lump in his throat, he nodded silently and started to lean up to meet Lance’s lips halfway. The distance between their lips diminished, Keith’s hand going to rest on Lance’s knee as he scooted a bit closer.

The kiss was more than Keith could ever ask for. Lance’s lips were warm and soft, fitting perfectly against his own. There were fireworks inside his chest, bright colors bursting behind his eyelids. This was perfect, the kiss was innocent and sweet.

After a few seconds, Lance was first to pull away. Keith’s eyes opened to see a very moonstruck Lance, lips slightly parted and blush forming on his cheeks. He couldn’t see himself but Keith doubted he looked much different. This was a new development in their relationship, it wasn’t surprising that they both were so awestruck.

“I like you too, Lance.” Finally able to bring himself to talk, Keith spoke those five words, unable to stop himself from smiling. The fireworks left behind a nice, comforting warmth spreading through his body.
“Shit, good, okay because if you didn’t then that kiss would have been really awkward and what I’m about to say would be terrible too,” Lance chuckled nervously, his hand leaving Keith’s cheek instead to rub the back of his neck. Keith bowed his head a little as he smiled, peering back up at Lance as he continued. “So, you know how I told Nyma that I was dating a cheerleader from our team? So when I said it, it was a lie. But I was thinking maybe you could help me make it the truth?”

That was quite the way to be asked out. Curse Lance and his ability to make such stupid things into a smooth move. Lance didn’t even know how upset he had gotten over that, so hearing it turned around to benefit him made his heart flutter.

The hand not on Lance’s knee went up to cup the back of his neck, bringing him in close again. “Of course I will.” Without any hesitation from either party, the space between their lips diminished again, this kiss tasting much sweeter as they both kissed their new boyfriends.

Chapter Text

The kiss lasted a bit longer than either of them anticipated, neither of them wanting to pull away. Despite being a bit long, it was still innocent and sweet. No tongue was involved yet open kisses were given. The kiss finally ended one Lance felt his chest warm with delight and he had to pull back or else he would never stop.

They both stayed sitting close to each other, staring at each other until Lance finally cleared his throat, speaking up. “So, new boyfriend of mine, do you want to ditch this party and possibly go see a movie? I brought my car so we can leave anytime.” His cheeks went pink, Lance trying to laugh off the nervousness.

Keith had a processing look on his face, as if he was trying to decipher what Lance said. He always found it extremely cute when Keith had to take a moment to understand what someone said or think about something. This was no exception, especially because he could see gears ticking in Keith’s head.

“Sure, yeah, I’d like that. Parties aren’t really my scene anyway,” Keith started to stand up now as he spoke, offering his hand to Lance. This was the Holy Grail, Keith Kogane offering his hand to be held as they leave. Into a large, public room. Where the whole upperclassmen part of the school was. Thank the Lord.

Lance took his hand and followed after him, taking the lead once they got to the stairs. He glanced around once they got to the base of the stairs, starting to lead Keith towards the door. While not paying attention, he ended up running into a very big frame of a person.

“Shit sorry dude- Oh Shiro, what’s up? You enjoying the party?” Lance rubbed the back of his neck with his free hand, quickly dropping Keith’s hand. He didn’t even remember Shiro was at the party, shit.

Instead of getting an apology accepted type response, he got Shiro stepping between Keith and Lance, crossing his arms over his chest. Lance stared up at the older male, his heart racing in his chest. “What were you doing upstairs with Keith? Alone?” He leaned down towards Lance’s face, causing the Cuban to lean away. This was the time a very drunk Matt came up to the others, holding onto Shiro’s arm for support before muttering something to Keith, confused about what was going on.

Lance laughed nervously and held his hands up defensively, his voice a bit shaky as he replied. “Whoa there, Shiro, we were just talking about something. Promise! We weren’t even up there long enough to do anything nasty, I swear on my purity ring.” Not that he had a purity ring. That probably wasn’t the best thing to say since Shiro only narrowed his eyes, stepping closer to Lance. “A-And my gentle and good-natured spirit!” Shiro was intimidating all the time, but when he was in big brother mode it was worse.

To save the day, Keith piped up and tried to step around Shiro which was ending in failed attempts. “Shiro, c’mon. Don’t scare him off, you were wanting this too you know.” Keith gave Shiro a light push mostly just to try and get his point across, but Shiro didn’t falter much. His gaze softened a little.

“We’re just going out to see a movie and maybe I’ll stay the night too. I’d rather not come home tonight, you and Matt get really loud after games.” The second those last words left Keith’s mouth, Lance was holding back laughter and Shiro’s face went a bright red.

Matt on the other hand did not hold back his laughter, his arm waving in the air. He hooted happily and laughed, tipping his head back. “Fuck yeah we do! All night long, baby!” With Shiro turning to try and shush his shouting boyfriend, Keith took the chance to grab Lance’s wrist and pull him towards the door.

Thank god Keith had spoke because Lance’s heart was racing from the fear of possibly being demolished with a dad talk from Shiro. The two boys quickly escaped out the front door before Shiro could catch them, still focused on his drunk boyfriend. Lance couldn’t help but laugh as they ran off, Lance leading Keith over to his car.

“That was a pretty sick move to get us out of there,” Lance commented as he unlocked the car, both of them going to their respective spots to get into the car. “Also,” he continued, “do they really get loud after games?” Both of them slipped inside, buckling up. Keith just shifted to face Lance, nodding. The look on his face said it all, Lance wouldn’t ever ask again.

“Well uh you can come over tonight if you want. I mean, it may seem really rushed or something since we literally just started dating like twenty minutes ago but you won’t have to listen to your brother get it on with his boyfriend.” The Cuban flashed his boyfriend a smile, starting the car up.

Keith’s cheeks tinted pink as Lance spoke, smiling a little in return. “Yeah, I get it. I’d like that actually, it would save me a night of torture.” Keith staying the night. The thought sent butterflies swarming in his stomach.

Keith. His boyfriend. The cheerleader he had been pining over since freshman year. Keith Kogane, the boy he had only kissed twice before in the last twenty minutes. Lance was a very lucky man and he was not going to let his luck go to waste.

“Got it, you’re staying at my place tonight then. I have the couch downstairs but the living room gets cold at night so the obvious answer to any sleeping arrangement dilemma is you will sleep in my bed with me. Obviously.” Lance couldn’t help but say it a bit fast, almost like he was rushing to say it.

Keith seemed to only find it amusing though, seeing how he was chuckling a little and nodding in agreement. “Alright. I’m okay with that.” With that agreement between them, Lance pulled out of his parking spot and started driving then. It was silent between them, a comfortable silence, until Keith spoke up. “So what kind of movie do you want to see?”

The Cuban just shrugged, waiting to get to a comfortable driving pace before reaching over to rest a hand on Keith’s thigh. What kind of boyfriend would he be if he didn’t hold his boyfriend’s leg? A shitty one, that is what kind. “Not exactly, but hey! We can just see what is playing and pick the coolest one playing. I’ll even let you pick.”

The rest of the drive was mostly silent, Lance turning on the radio at some point. It was on one of the preset stations Lance had set, a completely Spanish radio station. At first he was going to change it to something Keith could understand, but Keith stopped him. He wanted to listen and hear Lance sing along. So he did, if he knew the words, just to make Keith happy.

Once they arrived at the theater and after they found a decent parking spot, both of them walked hand in hand up to the ticket booth outside the front doors. Lance internally sighed as he realized nothing good was playing. Dammit, he offered the date for nothing. Before he could suggest them leaving though, Keith was pointing to a movie and looked up at Lance. “I heard it was kind of bad but we could see that. It’s a movie at least, plus it is roughly the last day to see it.”

Bad movie? With Keith? On a date? In a mostly empty theater room? Hell yeah. That was a suggestion he couldn’t refuse.

“That it is. Two tickets please.” Lance grabbed out his wallet from his pocket, letting go of Keith’s hand for a few lonely seconds so he could pay the guy behind the window and get their tickets. With their tickets in hand, Lance went around to the large doors and held it open for the other.

“Why thank you. So polite,” Keith teased, going inside first, Lance following after him. His arm slipped around his short boyfriend’s waist, pulling him close as they walked towards the concession stand.

“I’m quite polite. Which is why I’m even going to offer snacks. Do you want anything?” Lance was content not getting anything, he wasn’t really hungry. The butterflies in his stomach took up all the room that food might have taken up. Maybe they could get a drink, but he wasn’t really feeling that either.

Keith took a second to think before shrugging. “Not really. But you can get something if you want.” There was that cute smile back in place on Keith’s face. It wasn’t very often he actually got to see Keith smile so he would take a mental photo of every time he did smile and keep it forever. Treasure the rare sighting.

With a gentle tug on Keith’s waist, Lance was leading them both towards the different theater halls. “Straight to the movie, got it.” They both handed over their tickets, getting half slips in return. It wasn’t a long walk until they were walking into the correct theater, Keith getting the door this time. Lance could see the playful irritation when he acted like he was a literal prince having the door open for him.

“I knew this movie sucked but wow. This place is deserted.” Lance glanced around as they started walking up the steps, noticing two other people near the bottom left of the theater room. Other than them though, it was just him and Keith.

Keith moved ahead of Lance and found their seats himself, choosing the very back row near the center where there was a break in the seats. Keith sat on the outside seat, looking at Lance expectantly. Just to be playful, Lance kept walked, aiming to walk across the theater to the start in the chairs again. Instead he was grabbed by his shirt, Keith laughing behind him. “No you dummy, sit over here.”

“Whaaaaat? I was just going to get the next seat way over there.” After walking the few steps back, he sat in the correct seat next to Keith. He shifted in his seat to lean closer to Keith, grabbing his hand again and intertwining their fingers. “So, think this movie is going to suck as much ass as we think?”

“I’d assume so. Now sh, it seems to be starting.” The lights were dimming as Keith talked, both of them quieting down as the beginning credits rolled onto the screen. Both of their attention was on the movie, at least it seemed to be. No matter how much Lance tried to stay quiet, he had to comment on the little things that made no sense or was complete garbage in the movie.

Each time he said something though he got a small giggle from his boyfriend, so that only fueled him to keep it up. By the time the movie was halfway over, they both were giggling and snickering to each other, pointing out all the errors and things they didn’t like. It went silent between them though as the main female role and main male role suddenly became love interests. The characters in the movie sharing a passionate kiss.

Lance was the first to look at the other, their eyes meeting soon after. He wanted to make a move and lean in to kiss Keith, but he didn’t know if Keith would kiss him back. It was one thing to kiss alone in a bedroom, but it was another to kiss in a public area. Even if they were basically alone and hidden at the top of the dark theater.

His thoughts were put on hold as he was brought back to reality, feeling lips on his own. It seemed Keith took the initiative, got tired of waiting on Lance. The response was quick, Lance kissing back sweetly and closing his eyes. They both shifted in their seats to better face the other, Lance leaning in to deepen the kiss.

Lance’s hand went up to gently cup Keith’s cheek, drawing him in more. This kiss was longer than the others they had shared earlier in the night. There was a bit more drive behind this one too, partially from the mood the movie had set. At least that is what Lance assumed it was. Maybe he had just been wanting to kiss Keith again for so long and so much that Keith could sense it and put Lance out of his misery. Aw, how sweet of his boyfriend to do.

The thought just made him kiss Keith deeper as if to say thank you, even if the other didn’t understand. Keith never pulled back so he assumed that Keith at least understood he didn’t want the kiss to end. Neither of them did yet. The feeling of Keith’s soft, perfect lips working against his own was absolute heaven. If Lance had to get addicted to something, he really hoped it would be Keith’s kissing.

Before they knew it, they both had hands in each other’s hair and the kiss had gotten a lot more heated than how it originally started. Lance could not get enough of the taste Keith had on his lips and in his mouth. Both of them seemed to be completely invested in the kiss, their lips locked together.

It wasn’t until a loud gunshot went off in the movie that they pulled apart. Lance quickly opened his eyes and pulled back, looking towards the source of the loud noise. The second he realized he had gotten scared over a false gunshot, he started laughing softly, looking back at Keith. It seemed he had the same initial shock, now laughing at how silly it was.

“I don’t think the theater likes us kissing in its rooms,” Lance whispered as he leaned closer to Keith again so he could be heard. Both of them giggled and settled back into their seats, Keith finding Lance’s hand to hold onto. Lance was still a little dazed from the kiss, his cheeks pink. It was too dark to really tell how red Keith was but he could only assume he had the really cute blush he had when they kissed the first time.

They didn’t kiss for the rest of the movie, hoping to make it up to the movie Gods so they could return home safely. As they were walking out of the theater after the movie ended, Lance slipped his arm back around Keith to pull him close. His free hand was extended out in front of him, moving as he spoke.

“Gotta say. I may have missed a good portion of that movie but I think over all the experience of watching it with someone you care about made the movie worth seeing.” That earned him a playful hip check from Keith, both of them snickering.

“You missed the movie because you were too busy kissing someone,” the shorter male rolled his eyes playfully. Lance gasped loudly, a mock expression of offense on his features.

“You were the one who kissed me!”

“Are you sure? You have no proof.”

“What?! But you literally kissed me, this isn’t fair. I’m being attacked! I take you to see a movie and you hurt me like this? I’m offended, I feel betrayed, hurt, saddened, double cr-” Lance was suddenly cut off by Keith pulling him down by his shoulder to kiss him quickly. It definitely shut him up but left him with a playful pout.

They continued to playfully bicker all the way to the car, it not getting any better by the time they got to Lance’s house. Not surprisingly, like most weekends, his siblings were gone at his mom’s parents’ house, parents along with them. That meant the house was empty by the time they got there.

Going inside, Lance gave a quick tour of the house before saving the best for last. His bedroom. Which was fairly clean for Lance, the floor was spotless and things were actually neat and tidy. Lance wasn’t exactly expecting anyone over, it was his mother who forced him to clean.

Telling Keith to wait, he quickly ran to his kitchen to grab some snacks for them. The rest of the night was Lance eating whipped cream straight from the can, Keith calling him gross, and gentle kisses until they both passed out on each other in Lance’s bed.

Chapter Text

The end of the year always brought around arguably one of the best event that the school put on during the year. The Senior Picnic. Everyone went out of their way to help the teachers and staff prepare for the picnic. Baking club helped with the sweets and food, leadership club helped reserve the park they always used, and on the day of the picnic all the football players and cheerleaders went to help set everything up.

It was technically the Seniors who were only supposed to be allowed, but some of the football players and cheerleaders who helped set up were allowed to stay for the picnic. Most of them left to have their Saturday free to themselves, but a select handful stayed. The rule on which class stayed at the picnic wasn’t that strictly enforced anyway, as long as no one caused any issues.

Keith had gotten a ride with Shiro to the park that morning, arriving a few hours earlier than the picnic was supposed to start. They had offered to help set up everything before the others got there. This was also supposed to be considered a date between himself and Lance so Keith made sure to dress up at least a little bit.

The weather was nice so he went with a simple red button up and rolled up his sleeves, wearing dark jeans and his combat boots with it. His gloves were on as well, even if it would be a bit inconvenient with food. It completed his look and he wore them even if Shiro thoroughly informed him how they made him look like a douchebag. To try and make himself look less like a ‘douchebag’ he pulled his hair back into a ponytail.

More people started gathering in the large park they had reserved. It was the same park that the school called dibs on every year one of the last few days of school. Most of the people coming up were other people there to set up. Some people were from different clubs bringing the events that they were sponsoring. Nothing big and fancy, just little booths for games and such that they could host.

German club had a table set up for different dishes famous in Germany, the French club had the same idea. A table was being set up for the baking club to set up their table of sweets and pastries. Keith had gone over to help set up some of the tables for the food, focusing on helping them set up. It was almost noon so actual visitors for the picnic should be arriving soon.

Keith ran a hand through his hair and glanced around, taking a mental survey of who all was there. He could spot a few important people. Allura was there, Shiro, Matt, Pidge and their friend whatever his name was. Rover? That was his nickname at least. He only recognized the kid from the botball tournaments he had gone to in support of Hunk and Pidge. It was hard not to recognize the kid. His hair was practically silver it was so blonde and messy as all hell. Plus the lovestruck eyes he had for Pidge were unmistakeable. He shook that thought away, smiling a little to himself. Ah, young love.

Something caught his eye though. Hunk was over setting up his table without a certain Cuban near him. Where there was Hunk there was…

Keith suddenly gasped in surprise as a pair of arms squeezed his torso from behind, picking him up and swinging him around. Once those arms set him down, Keith turned around to face his attacker. Lance greeted him with a wide smile, laughing. The laughter was contagious, Keith found himself giggling just because of it.

“Afternoon, mi amor. Miss me? Sorry I’m late, I had to take my time finding the perfect outfit for our lovely date.” Lance gave the last word a bit of a singing tone to it. At the mention of his outfit, Keith took a step back to judge said outfit. Lance held his arms out to give a better view of his clothes.

He wore a muscle shirt with large horizontal stripes alternating between a darker and lighter blue. It had a dark blue pocket on the left side of his chest with a dip in the fabric. Something was in his pocket that was small enough to fit. Hm. Keith looked down at the nice form fitting light jeans Lance was wearing. Those were Keith’s favorite jeans, he loved when Lance wore them. They made his ass look amazing and Lance knew it too.

“Well it was worth the wait. You look really nice, Lance.” Keith stepped back closer to Lance and leaned up on his tiptoes to give Lance’s cheek a quick kiss. He intended it to be a kiss to the cheek, but suddenly there were lips on his own as Lance turned his head to catch the kiss. Keith didn’t stop it, giving him a few quick pecks before pulling away.

“C’mon, I have a spot set up for us already. Did you bring the pop?” Keith took Lance’s hand to lead him over to the blanket set up under a tree that put them in the shade. The only place Keith’s poor pale skin could survive. But Lance gasped and shook his head, giving a quick promise of being quick and bolting to his car. Keith let him go, going over to the blanket by himself. What is he to do with that boy.

His phone started to blow up in his pocket now, Keith pulling it out to see the cheerleader group chat exploding. What was the big deal? He only really looked at the messages that seemed to matter.

(12:35) Princess Pink: Okay girls if you see a guy with long whitish hair and an overly rich kid attitude, someone Obviously not from our school, ignore tf out of him.

(12:35) Princess Pink: That guy is my ex and he is super fucking clingy. Watch out for him. If spotted, report it to either myself or Shiro and we will kick him out!!

Great, that guy. What was his name? Lame ass? Motor? Lotor? Yeah, that sounded right. Allura had told absolute horror stories about that guy. He better not show up and try to ruin the picnic. Mostly because he knew Lotor would make things creepy and spot his boyfriend, his gorgeous and irresistible boyfriend, and flirt.

Keith looked up from his phone to glance around for Lance, spotting Lance setting down a two liter bottle of pop onto Hunk’s table and chatting with him. What made him get up though was the tall figure with sharp features and elegant white hair walking towards Lance. It was unmistakable who his target was. Goddamn it, he just mentally warned the guy to back off. As if that would ever work.

Not going to allow this to happen, he started walking towards the group, speeding up his pace when he saw Lotor closer than he was. The other managed to get to Lance first, tapping his shoulder and flashing him a smile. The bastard. Lance even smiled back! But this was Lance and of course he was just being polite.

By the time he had gotten to Lance and Lotor he was catching the ending of some flirty statement.

“-and your gorgeous prince is here.” The smile on Lotor’s face was sickeningly sweet. But what he said sure gave Keith a quick idea that he could pull off. Without saying anything Keith came up next to Lance and glared at Lotor, slipping his arm around his waist and pulling his boyfriend close.

“You’re right. His prince is here. And has been here the whole time.” It was hard for Keith to keep his voice steady, he really was irritated with the situation. A scumbag flirting with his boyfriend? Not on his watch. Lance looked between Lotor and Keith who were now in a death glare stare down.

Lotor was the one to look away first, scoffing before talking. “How could anyone that short be a prince? At least gain some height before trying to one up me.”

Oh it was on now. Keith clenched his jaw to keep himself from saying something bad. The hand rubbing his back told him Lance knew he was getting him mad and really didn’t want a scene. But Keith needed to say one more thing before he calmed down.

“How could someone with such a failed love life think he could even get a boyfriend in general? Let alone one who is way out of your league and quite happily taken.” Keith raised an eyebrow in question now, feeling a bit smug with himself.

The look on that rich asshole’s face was priceless. There was a mix between shock, horror, and disgust on his features. He opened his mouth to defend himself, saying something about how Lance was way out of Keith’s league but he stopped listening. This was ridiculous. The guy couldn’t take a hint unless it smacked him in the face. Or maybe was present right in front of him.

Without a word he reached up to grab Lance’s face and tug him down, earning a surprised noise. He didn’t waste much time in kissing Lance, closing his eyes and deepening the kiss already. Lance didn’t’ seem to care one bit, kissing back and holding him close. Keith could hear Lotor make a noise of disgust before stomping off.

Keith let the kiss linger a little longer than probably necessary, glancing over to see Lotor being cornered by a few guys, Shiro included. That seemed to be taken care of then. Looking back at Lance now, Keith held back a laugh at the absolute moonstruck expression on Lance’s face.

“Holy shit. Keith. That was fucking hot as all hell.” Lance pulled Keith close and kissed his cheek gently. Keith shook his head and laughed, patting Lance’s cheek before moving away now.

“I know.”

For an hour the two went back and forth between different booths giving out food and doing little games. At some point Lance swore up and down he could do all the games available faster than Keith could. This ended with a war between the two who were darting from game to game to play them then continue on.

At some point Keith almost ran into some girl and scared her, making her drop her cup and spilling her lemonade. Thankfully it didn’t get on either of them but Keith felt so bad he ended up walking with her to get her another one. They were chatting as they walked, Keith forgetting about the competition until he said his goodbyes to the girl and glanced around for Lance.

Instead of spotting Lance he felt the guy crash into his side, arms wrapping tightly around him with a loud cheering hoot of “I won!”

Keith almost toppled over and would have if Lance wasn’t holding onto him so much. He just laughed and pushed on Lance to make him let go, instead taking his hand.

“Yep, you won. But only because I’m not a jerk.” He pulled on Lance’s hand now to make him follow Keith over to the blanket they were originally at.

“I know and I saw that so I took full advantage but also you’re such a good person. I have the best boyfriend.” Lance ended the statement with a dramatic, wet kiss to Keith’s cheek. The boy made a playful disgusted face as he wiped off his cheek dramatically, sitting them down.

“That was nasty.”

“You’re nasty. You nasty woman.”

“Will you stop calling me that?”

“Only after I die.”

Keith knocked his shoulder against Lance’s before instead putting his head there. He distantly remembered Lance saying something about buying Keith a shirt that said “Nasty Woman” on it. Where that came from, Keith had no clue. Lance just started calling him that randomly and he refused to stop.

They sat there in peaceful silence for a while, Keith looking around to people watch and pick out everyone he didn’t know. His attention was brought back to Lance though as he cleared his throat. Once he noticed he had Keith’s attention he shifted away and pulled something from his shirt pocket, hiding it within his fist.

Keith raised an eyebrow and sat up more. He could tell Lance was pretty excited so this must be important. They both were silent for another moment as Keith watched Lance sort out his thoughts. He had his really cute thinking face on where he bit his lower lip and raised an eyebrow while looking off.

“So, Keith, I know we are officially together and all. Trust me, I know and I love it.” Lance paused to wet down his lips, looking directly at Keith. They locked eyes, butterflies going off in Keith’s chest. There were a few ways this could go and Keith wasn’t ready for any of them. He needed at least an hour to mentally prepare himself for anything romantic.

Lance continued on. “Well, anyway, my papa did this with my mama and I thought it was pretty cute.” His fist opened to reveal a ring in his palm with a bright sapphire gem on the top. His class ring. There was a crest in the center of the gem with a fancy M carved into it. Keith’s eyes went from the ring to Lance’s face, then back to the ring.

“I uh, thought I’d give you my class ring. I know we kind of already are going steady and are exclusive but I want to make it official. Really official. My mama even still has my papa’s ring.” The stars in Lance’s eyes were shining so bright as he offered the ring to Keith. He slowly took the ring from Lance’s hand and slipped it onto his middle finger, smiling wide.

“I’ll have to give you mine later today then, huh?” Keith couldn’t stop himself from launching himself forward, arms going around Lance’s shoulders as he hugged him tightly. Lance held him close, hugging him and kissing the side of his head. Keith pulled back enough to kiss him quickly before getting more comfortable to sit in his lap, relaxing against him.

Boy did he love his silly yet romantic boyfriend. They were officially now the cliche, “It” couple. A football player and a cheerleader now exchanging class rings, making plans to stay together forever. Their chances were pretty good on that one.