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The paladins are smart.
The paladins tend to pick up on stuff pretty quickly. They picked up on the fact that Pidge was girl fairly fast and accepted Keith was Galra just as quickly, excluding Lance and Allura who maybe weren't as fast to figure everything out, but when did the paladins pick up on the not-so-subtle romance blossoming within the team?
Hunk was the first to find out.
He hadn't known since the very beginning but he knew long before anyone else.
They were sitting in their cabin as Lance was staring at the ceiling. Hunk sat across from him on the floor reading a manual. He looked at and noticed the furrow in his eyebrows and the thin line his mouth had formed as he gazed at nothing. The bigger male nudged him with his foot and raised an eyebrow when Lance blinked as if snapping out of a trance before looking his way.
"Are you okay?"
Lance's nose scrunched up in response.
"What's wrong, dude?", Hunk laid his book on his stomach to show he was listening. Lance sighed and sat up, hugging his knees.
"I keep thinking about my whole...fighter pilot thing."
"I'll tell you it once and I'll tell you twice: you earned this position no matter what they say. There isn't anyone making fun of you, right? Because I haven't know Pidge long, but he seems like the kind of guy that would kill someone under the reason of loyalty.", Hunk scooted over to Lance and put his arm around his shoulder.
"Thanks but no, Hunk. That's not what's bothering me.", Something shining in Lance's eyes.
"Then what is it?"
"You know Keith? The fighter pilot who dropped out?"
"And your sworn rival!", Hunk waved one arm dramatically. "Of course, you glare at him all the time."
"Not all the time."
"Yes, all the time. I actually think he's a pretty cool guy."
"ANYWAY.", Lance waved his hands in front of Hunk's face before dropping them in his lap. "Well, he...it doesn't seem like he would just get kicked out or even drop out."
"What do you mean?"
"He's good at following orders. Sure, he can be rebellious and do what he feels is right but I've done worse than him and I've only be reprimanded. He couldn't do something that bad...and even if he did drop out on his own, he loves to pilot and he's good at it."
"Admitting that Keith is good? Wow, this really is tearing you up."
Lance bit his lip and softly punched Hunk in the stomach. "I'm just saying to add on to my case! If he dropped out, then it has to be really bad. I, just...I'm really kind of-"
"Worried.", Hunk finished the sentence, looking at Lance tenderly.
"Well, obviously I'm worried.", Lance moved his hands and raised and eyebrow.
"About him."
Lance looked at him, eyes blown wide and mouth slightly hung open.
"It's okay, Lance."
His lip trembled slightly.
"It's okay."
Lance threw him arms around Hunk, clutching tightly. Hunk smiled and buried his face in the thin boy's shoulder, wrapping his mighty arms around his torso.
"Thank you."
Not only did Lance unspokenly confess a part of himself to Hunk, but his best friend now knew of his blooming feelings towards the dropout who they were sure they were never going to see again.
It only made sense that Pidge found out next.
Although Pidge didn't take part in romance or crushes most of the time, she spent long enough around her brother to know a boy crush when she saw one. Matt had talked to her enough about Shiro for her to get the idea even if the feelings may or may not have been mutual. She was had started catching on after she met Keith but wasn't entirely sure. It wasn't until she was walking down a long hall to the main dining room that she saw Keith leaning against the frame with his arms folded across his chest. Pidge looked past him and, sure enough, saw Lance and Hunk sitting at the table. Hunk fed Lance a few treats he had made in the kitchen. Lance let out a loud laugh, throwing his head back and Pidge could see Keith curl, pulling on his collar with his hand.
"Hey Keith.", Pidge nudged him with her knee. Keith jumped a foot in the air, face filling with a blush.
"H-Hey Pidge.", Keith quickly tried to pull back his composure.
"Whatcha doing?"
"Just...wondering how the treats taste.", he lied coolly.
"Mhm."
The silence was thick as Pidge smirked, not looking at the older boy.
"We don't talk about this."
Pidge winked at him and grabbed his wrist. "Let's go join them."
Shiro wasn't stupid.
He had known Keith for a while, even before Voltron, and it wasn't exactly a secret that Keith was gay. He remembered when he saw the boy staring in the direction a larger male with an orange headband when they went to school together. Although Shiro was a lot older than Keith, they hung out a lot and he had raised an eyebrow at the boy.
"Who are you looking at?"
Keith snapped up and stared at Shiro. "Pfft, ah nobody. Absolutely nobody."
"I hope you become a better liar one day."
(He did.)
The Samoan teen rounded the corner at the time and beamed at Keith.
"Oh hey, buddy! Good job on the simulator today. Don't worry about Lance, he can be a little rough."
Keith's face turned bright red and he let out a flustered smile. "Yeah...thanks, Hunk."
Hunk walked away and Keith stared after him like a hopeless romantic school girl.
"Keith, you can tell me anything. You know that right?"
"He's just really nice and he always compliments me and I want him to more-"
Shiro smirked and folded his arms.
Keith looked at him and gulped. "Yeah, I'm pretty gay."
An alien abduction and 5 retrieved robotic lions later and Shiro was having major deja vu.
"Can you believe he didn't even remember OUR BONDING MOMENT?! I cradled him in my arms. CRADLED, dammit!" Shiro was doing push-ups on the floor while Keith was fighting the gladiator simulator. Keith gave a hearty slash, sending the gladiator across the room. "I THOUGHT WE WERE GETTING ALONG!"
"You seem to be getting along fine to me."
"That's why we are always fighting?!"
Shiro stopped mid-push-up and looked at Keith. His face was red, the shade it get's every time he gets worked up but it's just as red as it was when Hunk had complimented him so long ago.
"I just want to get along with him.", Keith sighed and closed his bayard. "Simulation off."
A glint of uneasiness and something else Shiro had never seen in his eyes before. He continued to stare at him.
"Seriously, is it so hard for him to be nice to me? I know I provoke him a little but I just want to...I don't know."
Keith's stance was vulnerable, unsure, and completely foreign to everything that made the young raven who he was. There were so many things that were lost on Keith's tongue in that sentence that Shiro gave up on holding himself up, smacking on the ground.
"Shiro?! What the hell?"
"I'm fine, I'm fine."
No, Shiro was not fine.
Maybe it was the lighting or maybe he was just seeing things. He was really tired but Shiro saw something strange. It was so strange that Shiro couldn't contain himself because-
Holy shit, Keith was in love.
Allura and Coran had found much later than the other paladins which were ideal.
Of course, Coran knew a lot longer than Allura. Allura started to figure it out the day Lance's lion got stolen by Nyma and Rolo. Keith had pretended to be calm but Allura was smarter and knew just how worried he was when his lion took off into the sky with a stranger. Keith had huffed and walk to the side before Rolo began chatting him up. Needless to say, his sexuality was clear then.
When Lance got hurt on the Balmera, she had scolded Keith while he worrying for Lance. Soon after, Lance had been released and flirted with her almost instantly. She had seen Keith muttered "classic" under his breath with an almost hurt expression that made Allura's heart thump.
It was always the red and blue paladins that fell for each other wasn't it.
She had played matchmaker and told both boys separately about the Altean pool later. She would deny she did it on purpose to anyone who asked, especially Coran.
"I've had enough with those two!", Allura scratched her head and sighed. "Maybe they really don't like each other."
Allura had pulled her hair back into a bun, wearing her slim armor. She should probably change soon but couldn't bring herself to at the moment. She was stressed about so much in the castle, not just the boys but they have been fighting a lot lately and it was making her anxiety rise. Her head lifted as she heard muttering coming from the main control room. She peeked her head in, not entering the door completely. Sure enough, Keith and Lance were there, both in paladin armor. Unsurprisingly, they were both fighting.
"You've been weird, Lance. What the hell is wrong?!"
"I'm JUST A SEVENTH WHEEL.", Lance's hands grabbed onto Kieth's shoulders and shook them desperately. "Pidge is the smartest person I know, Shiro is the greatest leader and so damn responsible, Hunk is smart and handy to have as an engineer is, Coran does so much for the castle, we couldn't do anything without Allura, and you are just so perfect."
Keith's eye's widened slightly, frozen in shock.
"You're fast and a good fighter. Then's there just...Lance. Lance is just the funny guy who can't do anything."
Keith raised Lance's face to look at him.
"You aren't just the funny guy. You give us all hope when we are down on our feet. You care about your teammates and if you didn't come with me on the mission at the Balmera, I would have gone in and attacked everything which would have definitely ruined everything. You are important. We need you, Lance."
Lance's eyes were watering now, tears threatening to spill down his cheeks.
"I need you, Lance."
Keith leaned forward and Lance moved his hands to Keith's face. His eyelids fluttered to a close as he leaned forward to meet the smaller male. Their lips connected, tears wetting Keith's face as he pushed into the kiss. The kiss went from soft to desperate, both boy's legs giving out and they moved to the ground.
"Hello, Princess."
Allura snapped her head and saw Coran, smiling at her.
"What are you looking at?", he leaned in and saw the romantic scene taking place. "Ah, you must have caught them. Glad they are open about it."
Allura blushed, feeling like she was intruding and closed the door to the room. "What?!"
"Are they not dating?"
"I think that was their first kiss?!"
Coran rubbed his mustache. "Are you sure? I am positive they have been together since I met the lads."
"I don't think so, Coran.". Allura ran a hand down her face. "This is too much, I'm going to need a million naps soon."
"We want, to be honest with you guys.", Lance itched the back of his neck nervously as Keith stared them down as confidently as he could despite the butterflies in his stomach. All of the paladin's stood in a circle.
"We know there is a lot going on with Zarkon and stuff but we wanted to say before everything goes to shit.", Keith reached for Lance's hand and curled his fingers around the darker male's palm.
"We're together.", They said in unison, trying to be as strong as possible.
"Like as a couple.", Lance confirmed.
"I've known for a while but thanks for getting it out in the open for everyone.", Allura smiled.
"Yeah, I figured.", Hunk smirked and winked at Lance.
"Oh yeah, of course.", Pidge tweaked her glasses, innocently.
"Wait we were supposed to think you weren't?", Coran leaned over Allura.
"As I said to Pidge, owning who you are is what makes you both and even greater team and couple.", Shiro beamed at Keith.
Keith and Lance looked at each other and back at the paladins with shock before grinning like idiots. Lance grabbed Keith by the waist and pulled him close, stretching his other arm out.
"GROUP HUG GUYS!"
They all moved in, squishing each other in a massive hug. They curled together and for a minute...
Everything was perfect.