Stay connected to your favorite content
Keith - Blog Posts
here's the part 2 gift for @veilofemptyspace
so this is sangria shiro and xuo keith
sangria- A poison creature that is similar to a witch/wizard and a bat when a human got covered or got poisoned after it was merged with a sangria it becames part sangria part human and it has the ability to squirt colorful slime aslong as the black diamond stay's on it's chest (by the way when shiro turns into one his right arm grew back and he still got his legs except purple)
Xuo- A fire creature that is similar to a dragon and a flareon when someone gets burned by the fire at any amount after being merged it turnes into a xuo (keith still has his legs but wolf like legs with red and orange skin)
And about paraloxia lance
Paraloxia- A water creature that is similar to a jellyfish and a spider,paraloxia's are lived in the water and land when in sits,lie down or squat the spider legs are bendable for any movement and the tentacles under it's head it squirts salty and toxic water and fresh water but when someone touches salt or toxic or any non fresh water after being merged it turnes into part paraloxia and part human (lance still got legs but blue skin and his arms are noodle-ish and round but he can turn his paraloxia arms to normal arms if he wants) and if anyone redraw this ask me with credit okay
Happy 80th Birthday Keith!! ❤️❤️❤️
Happy 80th birthday Keith Richards aka my god!!
I’ve never seen Voltron but this is a gift for my wonderful friend @casterrunes who does amazing art please check her out
Unpopular opinion
Season 8 was good
Yeah, some things were questionable
But the writers did a good job
Y’all a just salty
Hey so is anyone gonna talk about the fact that most of the paladins (bar Keith with his dimensional trip on a whale) have been gone from earth for roughly 5 years, but it’s only been less than 2 for them. Their families have been mourning them for 5 whole years, imagining them dead or, more likely, imagining missing 5 years of their lives and their children returning as adults in their early 20s. Like it’s such a throwaway line when Lance sees his family, but when he tells the youngest ones that they’ve gotten so big, they respond with “you’re exactly the same”. It’s even more noticeable with the main Garrison cadets being fully grown adults trusted with being leading pilots in experimental crafts. What a shock it must have been for the Garrison to be expecting cadets like these only more hardened with experience to come home, men and women growing up in a galactic war, only to be met with the same young faces that left all those years ago. How hard would it have been to sit and discuss war council with the legendary Voltron, while looking into a fifteen year old girls face knowing you were sending her out to possibly die. I think about it a lot. And it’s horrifying. The next question is: who is gonna write the fic where the garrison is trying to prepare for the final battle, and has to simultaneously wrap their heads around the fact that they are sending kids to fight their war? The higher ups will dismiss them despite their reputation because they see them laughing and goofing off in spare time, only to confront them with reprimands to reveal that the paladins, particularly Lance, joke to stay positive in the face of the horrors they’ve met. (And it’s obvious that these kids may be young but they have gone through more than anyone can comprehend, as Pidge offers a plan based on the horrific night of going solo against Sendak in the Castle of Lions, or Hunk absently mentioning the hallucinations they experienced prior to earth via a monstorous being and how he was going to sacrifice himself, or even Lance letting slip that he LITERALLY DIED. What can you say to these horrors?)
Shiro choosing Keith to be a cadet over Griffin is the equivalent of being shown the most well-behaved dog in the pet store but still choosing the one that’s been chewing on your shoe the whole time.
My favorite thing about that conversation between the two is that one of the last things Shiro saw Keith do before they got sucked into the wormhole was decide he could successfully 1v1 immortal space Hitler.
Like my man really saw Keith do the most stupid and impulsive thing he’s ever done and went “yeah that guy could lead Voltron”.
keith: shiro when you told me ‘be the leader’ i actually thought you were delirious with pain why the quiznak do u think i should lead :/
shiro: bc i know what you’re capable of :) also if you’re gonna be the leader you’re gonna need to completely change every aspect of your entire personality
"Mothman Squad" just floating zero gravity, as you do. <3 === I decided to do a different Pidge ship every day just because I think they all need a lil love. And because I just want Pidge to be happy 😭 ===
CHAPTER 15 IS OUT!
I REPEAT!
CHAPTER 15 IS OUT!
First Chapter-related post on Tumblr, so I honestly don’t know what to say except…SUFFER.
HAHA I’m joking! (no…not really)
So @lotidge @galacticlee @olkarianprincess @risingpheonix527 (people I know who have DEFINITELY read GM) Enjoy!
Gelatin in space! Looks a bit like a tadpole when it is floating around, but I promise it was a tasty treat for us on the Space Station. The food lab prepared drink bags with gelatin mix inside, and I made gelatin for the crew. It is very tempting to play with your food when it floats.
“Keith”
AKA I’m still not over this scene from season six, so take this messy sketch
Some tennis studies with Keith!! I might draw the rest of the paladins playing sports too…
first year is over n ive been in Deep art block for like two weeks pls standby
They're all literally me rn
This Is Why We Go To Camp
At six years old, Keith was a scrawny, pale, wild haired little boy. He was short tempered and quiet, had a difficult time making friends, and preferred his books and karate classes to playing on the playground and going outside.
As such, Keith had also never been up to the mountains. Mountains were hard to come by in the stifling desert heat of Arizona. So when a flier from the local parks and rec department came, advertising a six week sleep-away camp, his parents had thought it was a great idea to send Keith away to “make some friends” and “have a good time” away from home. He was less than thrilled for many reasons.
Keith’s List of Reasons Why He Should Not Go to Summer Camp:
(Presented by Keith. Written by Keith. Copyrighted by Keith.)
1. Summer camp is outside. Outside has bugs. Bugs bite.
2. There are going to be lots of other kids.
3. I won’t be able to read in the outdoors.
4. I have never spent the night away from home.
His list of reasons was very convincing, but not convincing enough for his parents not to put him on a bus full of loud children with a suitcase full of clothes and only one book for the whole trip.
Keith can’t remember much of the bus ride there, now that he’s older, but he does remember stepping off the bus and stepping into a sea of children, overwhelmed and definitely smaller than everyone else. He had always been a nervous child, but this was like nothing he had ever experienced in his life. There were so many children, all of whom weren’t paying him any attention.
“Hey! Are you lost?”
Keith remembered this moment quite clearly — it was one of his most fond memories. He looked up at a tall, gangly, grinning boy. There was a bandaid on his knee and dirt smeared on his cheek. He had the bluest eyes Keith had ever seen.
“Yes,” he remembers saying, tilting his head back to look up at him.
“My name is Lance,” the boy had said, holding out a hand to him. “I’ll help you find where you’re supposed to go.”
That was the day he met his best friend.
*
“Keith!”
Twelve years later, and Keith was still going to the same camp, but now he was a counselor instead of a camper. He was still a little awkward, still a little hot tempered, but this camp had done a world of good for him. Besides, he had met the single most important person in his life here.
“Hey, Lance.” He looks up from his clipboard, grinning at his best friend. Lance had grown into the gangly limbs. Now he was tall and handsome and often the object of many middle school girls’ affection (not that Keith could blame him, be still his gay little heart).
“You get stuck in the Beavers cabin again?” Lance teases, slowing to a stop in front of Keith and reaching out to ruffle his hair.
Keith ducks away from his hand, swatting at him with his clipboard. “Um, excuse you, but the Beaver cabin is the best cabin.”
“Uh, no. The Turtle cabin is superior, obviously.” Lance laughs.
Keith rolls his eyes. “Yeah, we’ll see about that at the tug of war competition.”
“Hey! It’s not my fault it rained and the mud got my kids.”
“No, but maybe it’s because you have no upper body strength.” Keith teases.
Lance gasps, pretending to clutch his pearls. “The audacity. How dare you come into my house-”
“This is the woods.”
“-with that sort of talk! Keith Akira Kogane, I expected better of you. And to think, they let you around children.” Lance whispers the word children, shaking his head gravely.
“Yeah, it’s a tragedy.” Keith agrees, looking down at his clipboard.
“How many kids do you have this year, anyway?” Lance peeks over his shoulder.
He does a quick count, smiling when he sees a couple familiar names. “Mm… seven, I think. They said they might add a couple kids if there are any last minute scholarships.”
“Hey, same!” Lance grins, taking his hand and pulling him along toward the place where the buses were going to pull in. “Come on, the kids will be here any second.”
“I’m coming!” Keith laughs, stumbling after him and shaking his head.
He looks up at his best friend as they walk, his smile melding into something softer. Lance had been his best friend for twelve years, but at least in the past two, he’d developed a, er… crush. It was no secret that Lance was attractive — there was a reason he was the most popular counselor among all the kids. Not only was he handsome, but he was charismatic and had a way with the kids that Keith was always bordering on jealous of.
But there was no way that Keith would ever make a move on it. They lived in different states, for one, and he wasn’t even sure that Lance even leaned toward guys. He didn’t want to ruin what they had. So, for now, he was happy with spending six weeks of his summer with his best friend and spending hours on the phone after camp was over, counting down to the next summer.
There was no need to dwell on this, though, not with the buses pulling up to the campgrounds. He looks over at them, letting a smile tug at his own lips. This was the start of yet another great summer.
And to think, twelve years ago, he’d tried to talk his parents out of sending him here.
Newest Edition
I’m back with another part to my omegaverse au!! This time Keith has a baby... there is baby.
*
Keith absolutely adored his baby.
Of course, he had loved his baby from the moment they had found out he was expecting and that, for once, everything seemed to be in order. No miscarriage. No complications. Nothing at all that was worrying in any way. The doctors were a bit worried about the birth, considering that he’d had some complications in the past, but they had scheduled a C-section in order to have complete control of the situation. Which was more than fine with Keith.
He and Lance had decided to wait to see the sex of their child was at birth. Lance liked surprises, and Keith wanted to venture away from the binary-construct that came with having a baby boy or a baby girl. He’d been adamant, despite the teasing from the more traditional side of Lance’s family.
And because he loved his omega and his not yet born baby, Lance had spent an exhausting weekend painting the nursery a light shade of green and white, constructing furniture and converting the office into their baby’s new room. Keith had overseen, of course,
The more pregnant Keith got, the more fussy and emotional he became. At first, it was endearing. He was more protective of Lance, always sure to scent his alpha furiously before and after he came home from anywhere — work, the store, a friend’s house.
He was also more snuggly than usual, often curling up either in one of Lance’s shirts and a nest of blankets, or simply in his mate’s arms. He liked it when Lance touched his belly and talked to their baby. He liked being close to his source of safety and comfort.
However, there was also the downside of the hormones. Keith got upset very easily. He cried over things constantly, sending Lance into a mess of panic and concern and worry. It was often nothing more than a stubbed toe, being unable to reach something, or maybe something on the TV (he always tried to dissuade him from watching soap operas, but after a nasty fight over it, he had given up).
Not only that, but midnight cravings were serious and made him mean if he didn’t get what he wanted. Lance became a regular in the Taco Bell drive through at odd hours in the night. And Lord forbid anyone comment on his eating habits.
However difficult pregnancy was, Keith was still so happy at what was coming from all of it. He spent hours in the nursery, falling asleep in the rocking chair or reading the picture books they’d been given.
After the baby shower they’d been thrown, Lance had taken to working from home for the last couple of months until the due date. Keith was still insistent on doing things on his own, and Lance regretted buying a house with so many stairs. Although once Keith got to a place he liked, he generally stayed put. Working from home gave the omega time to unpack all of the things from the baby shower, and gave Lance peace of mind.
This doesn’t mean Keith wasn’t still his same stubborn, independent self.
One morning, Keith woke up with a funny stomach ache and a weird pain in the very low part of his back. A look at Lance told him he was still asleep, and the clock by the bed read 6:58am. It was still too early to be awake.
The omega sighs, rubbing his face and resting a hand on his belly. As usual, their baby gives a little kick, pulling a smile from its mother.
“You behave,” he whispers, “or we’ll wake up your daddy.”
He gets another little kick in reply before the baby rolls over and settles.
Keith settles in, drifting just back to the cusp of sleep, when a sharp pain cuts through his reverie and up his spine. He inhales sharply, pushing to sit up. His heart was racing, but the baby seemed okay. There was no blood between his legs, he checked first thing. Maybe it was just a weird bout of back pains.
Lance shifts beside him, just barely awake. “Wha...? S’early, baby, c’mere…”
He reaches for his omega, and Keith lets himself be pulled back down into the warmth of his alpha and the covers. Lance’s hands settle neatly on his belly, his face tucked into the back of his neck. “Okay?” He rumbles.
Keith nods, melting against him. “Okay. Just… restless.”
He gets another sleepy rumble in reply, then a soft snore. He smiles to himself, rolling his eyes, and settles back in. The pain doesn’t come back right away, and sleep comes easier tucked away in Lance’s arms.
*
The pain comes back later that morning.
He was in the kitchen, putting dishes away — because even nine months pregnant, he still insisted on being useful — when it happens.
The pain is sudden and blinding, tearing up his spine and through his hips. Keith gasps, dropping the plate in his hands and reaching for the counter. The plate shatters at his feet, but he hardly registers it, too busy focusing on not biting through his tongue. After a few seconds, the pain is gone and he’s left panting and hanging onto the counter.
A few seconds later, Lance comes skidding into the room. “What happened?!” He yelps, gingerly scooping Keith up and away from the broken ceramic, setting him carefully on a kitchen chair and kneeling to check for injury.
“I’m okay,” Keith protests when he can get his wits about him. “It was just an accident, I’m fine.”
The alpha nods, but continues checking his feet and hands to ensure that he wasn’t hurt. Satisfied, he lets out a breath and leans up to press a relieved kiss to Keith’s lips.
“You scared me.” He murmurs, pressing his lips to his forehead next, lingering.
“Sorry.” The omega offers weakly, resting his hands on Lance’s shoulders. To be honest, his heart was still pounding, but that was probably because his back was still aching.
Lance pulls away, looking up at him, blue eyes searching purple. “Are you okay?” He asks, earnest. Keith can feel his heart melt.
“Yeah, I’m okay. I just got this weird sort of pain in my back. I probably just moved wrong.”
“Okay…” His mate says dubiously, the doubt in his voice reflected in his eyes. “I’m gonna go clean up the glass. You stay put.”
The omega bites back a protest, instead deciding it felt nicer to stay in the chair than it did to stand. Besides, like this, he got to see his mate bend down to pick things up, and that in itself was a treat.
*
The pains wouldn’t go away. It was starting to frustrate Keith immensely. Lance had sensed something was up after his omega had seized up and made a noise that could only be described as agonized when they were cuddling.
After fussing and ensuring he hadn’t done anything to hurt Keith or the baby, the omega had been left in a very grumpy pile of blankets and pillows, Lance at his side and on his computer.
“I feel fine.” He protests, not for the first time.
“I know,” Lance replies, also not for the first time.
“It was just indigestion, probably.”
“I know.”
“Nothing to worry about. You don’t have to hover.”
“I like hovering.”
Keith makes a dubious tch sound, settling back into the blankets. They’re quiet for a moment, enjoying each other’s presence, when the omega goes stiff and makes another noise of pain. One that sends panic and helplessness through his alpha.
“I’m calling the doctor.” He says, getting up and shutting his laptop.
“Lance!” Keith protests, or tries to. He’s cut off by another sharp pain, this one tearing the breath from his lungs and making him clench his teeth.
“I’m calling the doctor,” Lance says, kneeling in front of him as he dials the number, his gaze pleading. “Okay?”
“Okay,” He gasps when the episode passes, nodding and reaching for his hand. Lance takes it, squeezing gently. His touch is warm and grounding.
They wait in silence for a while before someone picks up. “Hi! Uh, hey, this is Lance McClain-Kogane. Can I speak to Dr. Smythe? Yes, thank you.” They wait a beat, the alpha’s thumb rubbing over the back of his hand, before anyone picks up.
“Hey, Coran, it’s Lance. I — Well, I… Keith is having some pain and I’m really worried. He’s um, well… it seems to be sudden…” He trails off, glancing at Keith for confirmation. He gets a nod before yet another searing pain tears a devastating noise from his omega.
“Yeah, uh, no it’s — it’s pretty bad. It’s happened a few times, I think..? I dunno, hold on, um. Babe,” He tilts the phone away from his mouth. “When did this start?”
“This morning,” Keith manages to hiss through his teeth.
Lance nods, his concern growing, before reporting this to the doctor. He listens a moment, then nods. “Right, yeah, I’ll— I’ll do that right now.” He gets up, squeezing his hand. “I’m gonna get you a heating pad, okay? Stay put.”
The omega nods, closing his eyes tight against another wave of pain as his alpha hurries off, still babbling to the doctor. He tries to breathe through it, tries to tell himself that this is all fine, everything is fine. It’s probably just… well, he doesn’t know what, but it sure is something.
The pain ceases abruptly, far more abruptly than before, and with it comes the tiniest popping feeling and then a rush of clear fluid. Keith goes still, understanding dawning. And then the pain hits in double.
“Lance,” He calls, his voice shrill.
No answer.
“Lance!” He shrieks, panic clawing up his throat and bleeding into his voice.
There’s the sound of thudding from upstairs, panicked alpha scent drifting into the room before Lance scrambles in, wild eyed. “What is it? Are you okay?”
“I think my water just broke.” He breathes, his eyes still on the mess in his lap.
The two of them are silent, save for the tinny sound of their doctor trying to get Lance’s attention. A pained whimper from Keith sets Lance back into action. “I’m here!” He says, both to the doctor and to his mate. He rushes over, dropping down in front of him and holding tight to his hand.
“Yeah, uh, his water just broke. No, there’s no blood— I don’t… no, we won’t have time to get to the hospital, his contractions are really close together. A… About thirty seconds? Oh. Oh, shit. Yeah, I’ll… Yeah.”
His eyes widen and he sets the phone down, putting it on speakerphone. “Okay.” He says.
“Hey, Keith.” Greets Dr. Smythe. “How’re you feeling?”
“Not very good,” He wheezes, clutching his belly and kicking a leg out in restless desperation. “I think this baby hates me.”
Their doctor chuckles. “No, I don’t think so. Listen, you’re going to need to start pushing soon. I’ve sent a dispatch team and they will be there as soon as they can.”
“What?” Keith’s eyes widen, the acrid stench of pained and panicked omega blooming in the room and making Lance hover closer. “But— no. No! I’m not supposed to… we’re supposed to do a c-section, I’m not supposed to do this naturally!”
“Hey, baby, hey…” Lance takes his hand, kissing his knuckles. “We’ll be okay. The ambulance will be here soon, all we have to do is try and deliver this baby.”
“Oh, yeah!” Keith cries hysterically. “All we have to do is delivery a baby! That’s it! That’s all!”
“Keith, I need you to breathe.” Dr. Smythe says calmly. “Lance is going to be with you the whole time. Are you comfortable?”
“Yes,” He hisses, the word more of a whine than an actual word. As comfortable as he was going to get, anyways, with all this pain taking over his autonomy.
He spaces out when another contraction hits, missing the instructions Lance is getting from the OB. He’s more focused on not dying and not freaking out, because apparently freaking out was bad for him and the baby. Which was inconvenient if you asked him (which no one did).
When he comes to, Lance is looking up at him with his eyes filled to the brim with love and a little bit of concern. “Come on, love,” he murmurs, “let’s deliver this baby.”
*
By the time the ambulance gets there, Keith is crying and exhausted and holding the little bundle they’d been waiting years for. He cries even harder when they take her — her — away from him to check her over and put her in an incubator until they reach the hospital.
Lance is with him the whole time, holding his hand and brushing his sweaty hair out of his eyes, whispering how proud of Keith he was, how amazing it was that he’d brought that little bundle into the world. The omega doesn’t stay awake long after they’re loaded in the ambulance and on the way to the hospital. Not with his sight on the little baby and his mate’s fingers tracing over his neck and cheek.
The second time he drifts back into consciousness, he’s in a sterile hospital room. There’s an IV in his arm and he’s hooked up to a couple machines to monitor his vitals. His whole body is sore and he feels like if he moves, he might scream.
This all fades away though, when he looks over to see his alpha holding their baby girl. She was swaddled in the pale green blanket he’d picked up a couple weeks ago — Lance must’ve grabbed it before they left. She was quiet, probably sleeping, and Lance was looking down at her with an expression so tender it almost made Keith cry.
“Hi,” the omega breathes.
Lance looks up, a wide smile taking over his face. “Hey, baby,” he murmurs, walking over to sit in the chair he’d pulled close to the bed. “How’re you feeling?”
“Sore. Tired.” Keith’s gaze never leaves their baby.
“Yeah, I’ll bet.” His mate chuckles, leaning over so Keith can see. “Look…”
The omega takes in his baby. She’s so sweet — she has Lance’s nose and darker skin, but Keith’s hair and eyes. He can’t help but smile, falling hopelessly in love with this tiny human. All the pain he’d gone through and all the fertility treatments and all of… well, everything had been so worth it.
“Can I hold her?” He whispers, emotion choking his throat enough to make it impossible to speak.
Lance gives him a soft smile before passing her over, resting her gently on Keith’s chest. She stirs, making a soft noise of annoyance before settling in, content when she smells her mother’s comforting scent.
“Hi,” the omega whispers, eyes full of tears. His fingers brush over her tiny little fist, traveling up to her downy hair. “Hi, baby…”
“You did that.” His alpha was close to his ear. A kiss was pressed to his temple, a hand combing through his hair. “I’m so proud of you, baby. She’s so beautiful.”
He can only sniff, pressing his nose to her tiny little head and closing his eyes. It takes a while to gather his thoughts, gather his words, before he realizes she needed a name.
“Can we name her Akira?”
“Yeah,” Lance breathes. “Yeah, of course. That’s perfect. You’re perfect.”
Keith gives a wet, emotional laugh, cupping the back of Akira’s little head. He had loved this baby — their baby — since he had found out nine months ago. But having her here, holding her close, he wanted nothing more that to protect her for as long as he could. He was definitely going to be a little bit of an overbearing mom.
“I love you, Akira.” He whispers.
“Go to sleep, baby.” Lance murmurs against his temple. “I’ll be right here. I won’t go anywhere.”
As the world fades away and Keith slips back into sleep, he falls into a blissful state of contentment and security, his alpha watching over him and his little girl safe against his chest.
*
You can find me on AO3 a Renegade_Reaper <3
I’m back!! And also SBT updated!
Hello! I am back! Sort of. Well, I updated State of Broken Things so I guess that means I’m back??
You can find chapter three here
Tell me what you think!
I missed you guys
Somewhere Over the Rainbow
Hello! I am back! I wrote a completely new Alternate Universe that... I don’t think it’s ever been done before. This is only part one of many.
So this is my baby. I love it dearly. Please enjoy with me.
If you don’t want to read the full thing here, you can find it on AO3: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18105458
***
Why are there so many songs about rainbows And what’s on the other side — Rainbow Connection
As far as Lance was concerned, there was only one side to a rainbow.
At least, that was what he had been taught. You see, he’d grown up on the one side of the rainbow - the one with the light and the color and the beautiful arches stretching over the city, as far as the eye could see. He lived in a city with buildings made of crystal, made for light to refract off them and fill the world with color.
The people themselves were bathed in color - dressed in beautifully colored clothes that complimented their rich and luxurious skin tones, hair that caught the beautiful colors of their world and took it as their own. Their eyes were luminous and their smiles bright. It was as though whatever had created them had harnessed the sun and the colors of the rainbow it had made their home to write them into being.
They learned in school about how to take these colors and put them to use; how to harness the power they’d been gifted and use it to better the world around them. Lance had chosen blue. It was the sweetest of the colors, cool and refreshing. They used it on the bodies of water around them, purifying and healing with it. Many citizens who wielded blue became nurses or midwives or caretakers. They were sweet and gentle and curious beings.
This curiosity was both a blessing and a curse. It often got Lance into trouble as a child. When he got older, he sated his curiosities with the vast collection of books in the city library and archives. He also went on excursions past the city lines when it got to be too much, but nobody knew about those. Not even his best friends.
But after he’d read all of the books he could get his hands on, after he’d learned about the same things in a hundred different ways in a hundred different author’s words - Lance got bored again.
It wasn’t until one specific librarian had noticed him sulking in the stacks that he had been given one particular book.
This was the day Lance McClain’s life changed.
***
“You really shouldn’t do this, Lance.” Hunk hisses for the third time that afternoon.
“Yeah, you said that.” Lance rolls his eyes, looking over at the yellow wielder. Hunk was nervously folding Lance’s basket of unattended clean clothes. He tended to fuss when he was anxious.
“I think it’s cool.” Pidge pipes up from where she was lounging on his bed. The green wielder was scrolling through her datapad.
“We don’t even know if what that book said was true - it’s a hundred years old!” Hunk insists. “I’m almost certain that it’s just some elaborate plan to kidnap unsuspecting victims!”
Lance rolls his eyes, packing a water bottle into his backpack and zipping it closed. “And what if it is true?” He challenges. “If it’s true, then there’s a whole other world beyond the borders of our city! I want to see it.”
“Of all things, why did you have to be blue?” Hunk bemoans, folding a shirt a little too aggressively. Pidge snorts.
“I’ll be back before school tomorrow.” Lance huffs. “And remember - I’m sleeping over at your house, Hunk.” He winks. “Bye!”
“Please be careful!” Hunks calls after him as he slides out the window.
“Bring me pictures!” Pidge hollers after him.
Lance grins, slinging his bag over his shoulder and heading toward the setting sun.
***
There are rumors of a place far beyond our borders — a place devoid of light and color and beauty. I have only heard of it twice, in hushed conversations and fearful whispers behind closed doors. Those who know of it call it the Monochrome, or the other side of the Rainbow.
It is said to be a place where the evil are cast out, but there is no evidence of this. I have looked extensively into our justice system, and there is no sign of anyone ever coming close to sending people there. It would be considered inhumane in our leader’s eyes.
Although many people seem to be afraid of it, I have not heard of any threats or worrying behaviour from the Monochrome and its people. As the devout scientist and explorer I claim to be, it is my duty to not only find this place, but learn everything I can about it and its people.
Wish me luck.
— Dr. C. Wimbleton-Smythe, Over the Rainbow
***
As the light faded from the sky, drained from vivid golds and pinks and oranges and replaced with silver and gold and navy of the richest kind, Lance found himself venturing farther from the city than he had ever been before. It was thrilling, but he couldn’t decide if that was a good feeling or not. He knew his mother was going to kill him if she caught wind of what he was doing, but hopefully it wouldn’t come to that.
He wasn’t paying much attention to the things around him. Or he didn’t until he realized that the colors of the sky were duller than they had been minutes ago. Upon closer inspection, he realizes that the color around him was fading. Muting itself. He looked down at his own skin, at his own clothes, and felt oddly out of place. He seemed a little too bright, a little too intense for this place.
Lance stops in a clearing in the trees, looking around. The ground drained from a muted green to a dull, drab grey. It bled into the trees, into the sky, into the land that stretched for miles before him. It doesn’t even occur to Lance to take the pictures Pidge wanted.
The color was gone, replaced with shades of grey and blacks and whites. Lance pulls out the journal he’d been given by the library, grinning and leafing through to the bookmark he’d left.
“The Monochrome.” He breathes, his fingers brushing over the yellowing pages.
“What are you doing here?”
The journal snaps shut between Lance’s hands and he jumps, whirling around to look at… a boy.
Well, not exactly a boy, he looked to be about Lance’s age. But that was where the resemblance stopped.
He was shorter than Lance, his arms crossed over his chest and his brow furrowed. His stance was defensive, his lips turned downward in a scowl. He looked angry, but that’s not why Lance found that he couldn’t breathe.
This boy was breathtaking in a way that Lance had never seen before. His skin was pale and unblemished, almost glowing in the dim moonlight. His hair was the color of ink, looping around his face in soft waves that brushed against sharp cheekbones.
Lance couldn’t quite make out the color of his eyes. He guessed they were some form of grey, because they were softer than the rest of his features, however wary and angry they were.
“Uh…” He chokes, after he remembers to breathe. What did he say to someone who looked so different yet also made Lance’s heart thump hard in his chest?
“What,” the boy repeats, stepping closer toward Lance. “Are you doing here?”
“I’m exploring.” Lance declares after he’d gathered his wits about him. “I read about this place in a book - I thought it wasn’t real! But, wow, look- it is! You’re real! Wait till Pidge hears about this, she’s gonna be so psyched! Can I take your picture?”
The Monochrome boy gives him an incredulous look, some of the defensiveness draining from his posture. “Excuse me?”
Lance grins, then extends a hand. “Hi, I’m Lance. I’m a big fan.”
His eyes flick from Lance’s hand to his face, uncertainty flickering across his face. He takes a step forward after a while, reaching forward and taking his hand.
The Monochrome boys touch is… well, normal. Lance wasn’t quite sure what he had been expecting. Cold? Calluses, maybe? Anything but the soft, warm grip that slid into his own, shaking his hand firmly. It’s gone as soon as it had come.
“Uh… Keith. I’m Keith.” He - Keith - says, the wariness giving way to confused curiosity. “What… are you doing here?”
“Exploring.” He says, holding the journal aloft. “So you guys aren’t a myth. There’s more than one of you, right?”
The apprehension is back. Keith edges away, picking at the hem of his shirt. “Why do you wanna know?” He asks, his expression pinched. “You aren’t a spy, are you?”
“What?” He blinks, looking down at his vibrantly colored self. “No! Besides, if I was, I would be the worst spy in the world. I don’t fit in here at all.”
Keith relaxes again, smiling faintly. How Lance — or anyone, for that matter — could have thought these people were cold and threatening was beyond him. Keith had the nicest smile he’d ever seen.
“No,” the Monochrome boy concedes. “I guess you don’t.”
The two of them stand in awkward silence for a moment before Keith clears his throat. “Well. It was nice to meet you, Lance, but I should…”
“Can I come back?” Lance interrupts, blushing faintly. “I mean… I know it’s probably weird I’m here. But nobody knows you exist! Or… I don’t think that anyone does.”
Keith smiles faintly, tilting his head to the side. “Why are you so interested in my people?”
Lance thinks about this a moment, brushing his fingers over the old, leather bound book that had taken him this far and brought him to Keith. He wasn’t quite sure why he’d come, let alone why he was so interested. There was just something about Dr. Wimbleton-Smythe’s genuine curiosity that had resonated with Lance.
He wanted to prove that these people were worth knowing about. Nobody deserved to be a long-forgotten myth. Especially not when they still existed.
So he answers honestly. “I’m not sure yet. But I’d like to find out.”
This makes Keith give him a wide, crooked smile. Lance finds he’d like to document that smile. “Okay.” The Monochrome boy agrees. “You can come back.”
“Thank you.” Lance breathes. “I can’t- thank you. Tomorrow? Here?”
“Tomorrow,” Keith agrees, tucking his ebony hair behind his ear, a hint of that smile tugging at his lips. “Here.”
“I’ll see you tomorrow, then.” Lance grins. “Bye, Keith.”
“Goodbye, Lance.”
***
I have reached the part where our two worlds collide. The color has faded, like something has sucked the vibrancy away from this stretch of land. At first I thought it may be sick, but upon closer inspection, the foliage seems to be in peak condition.
This is a phenomenon that I have never seen before, and I can only hope to meet someone from this land who may explain it to me. That said, I have decided to stay on the edge of this land, in case these people are as hostile as they have been proclaimed to be.
I am optimistic and hopeful toward the future of my research and adventures.
— Dr. C. Wimbleton-Smythe, Over the Rainbow
***
“Pics or it didn’t happen,” Pidge scoffs the next day at school, leaning back in her seat and munching on her sandwich. It was one of the rare times she wasn’t typing away at her screen.
“I told you,” Lance groans. “I forgot! Plus he didn’t seem like the type who would’ve wanted his picture taken. I was being respectful!”
“It was safe though, right?” Hunk worries, not even blinking when Pidge reaches over and takes a handful of his chips. “He didn’t seem… I dunno, aggressive?”
“What? No! No, he was… Well, I mean, he was worried at first. But he was nice!”
“Did he seriously not have any color?” Pidge leans forward, her hazel eyes intense. “Like - just black and white? Like one of those weird pictures they keep in the museums?”
“Weird… pictures? Museum?” Lance blinks.
Pidge nods, pulling back and giving him a bored look. “Yeah, like the ones nobody goes to anymore? They have this weird section with black and white pictures.”
Weird pictures. Weird black and white pictures. As far as he knew, the cameras here had never been black and white. Maybe… maybe-
“Pidge, I need you to take me to the museum. Right now.”
“Now?” She asks incredulously. “Right now? In the middle of lunch?”
“In the middle of school?” Hunk yelps.
“Yes!” Lance springs out of his chair, packing up his bag haphazardly. “Right now, I have to go!”
“This journal is making you crazy.” Hunk says warily. Pidge only heaves a frustrated sigh, grudgingly packing her own bags. “Fine. But if I fail chemistry, it’s all your fault.”
“I can live with that. Now come on!”
***
The museum desk clerk looked bored out of her mind when she gave them their passes. “The exhibit is that way.” She points, popping her gum and tossing her bright pink hair over her shoulder. “Have a wonderful day.”
“Come on!” Lance walks as fast as he could, his long legs eating up the ground under him and basically leaving his friends behind. Which seemed to be fine with them; they were going to explore other places of the near-empty museum.
Sure enough, the black and white exhibit was tiny, but it was there. And right before the hall, there was a massive portrait and a plaque that read; This Exhibit was Founded by the Research of Doctor Coran Wimbleton-Smythe.
The man was a regal, expressive creature, with wild orange hair and an impressive mustache. He had a wide smile, mirth and wisdom twinkling in his blue eyes. He looked like he had seen the world and found beauty in all of it. Even in the Monochrome.
A thrill runs through Lance. He wanted to be just like Dr. Wimbleton-Smythe.
With a reverent, hopeful breath, Lance walks into the room that had long since been forgotten and looked over.
The walls held big black and white pictures, full of life despite the colorlessness. Coran seemed to be in every single one of them, vibrant still despite the lack of pigment. He had his arm thrown around a beautiful woman in one, his head thrown back in laughter, a drink in one hand. The woman was grinning, staring off just past where the camera was aimed. The plaque on the bottom read Midsummer Festival, circa 20XX.
The next picture was of a family, drawn close together, arms around one another. The mother was cradling a baby. At first glance, they seemed somber, but Lance had seen that expression on Keith, and somehow he knew that these people simply took everything seriously.
The room was filled with similar pictures. There were weddings, celebrations, funerals, or simply people going about their day to day lives. Dr. Wimbleton-Smythe had taken these people and painted them in the same light as the ones from Rainbow City. They weren’t different at all.
***
The people here are more lovely than anyone I have ever seen in even that of my own home. I find their lack of color to be more appealing than that of my own people. Their beauty is not found surface deep, but instead found in the kind way they treat each other and the loyalty that holds their society together.
I have found that the people in my own home, while they may be derived from heavenly color themselves, are vain and condescending toward that which they do not understand. And, as such, I have found that they do not understand the people of Monochrome.
There is such a deeply rooted fear of the unknown in my people. It closes their minds and hearts, poisoning their reasoning and clouding their judgement. I wish they would only get to know the lovely people in these towns to love them just as dearly as I do.
Dr. C. Wimbleton-Smythe, Over the Rainbow
***
“There’s a museum exhibit with pictures of your people.”
Keith looks up, surprise writ on his face.
They were sitting under a tree, the only one standing on the in-between. Keith had suggested they do it, after Lance had revealed he’d brought snacks and the Monochrome boy had admitted to never having tried the things Lance had brought.
“There is?”
Lance nods, giving him a small smile. “It isn’t very big, but… It’s there. Dr. Wimbleton-Smythe instated it a really long time ago. I guess nobody has bothered to take it down.”
Keith blinks, then tilts his head to the side. “How do you know about him?”
“Oh!” Lance turns, pulling the journal out of his backpack. “The librarian gave this to me after I read all of the books in the library.”
Keith snorts. “You read all of the books in the library?”
Lance smiles sheepishly, turning to hand him the book. “Yeah. I was a pretty hyperactive kid. It was that or get into more trouble than it was worth.”
The Monochrome boy chuckles, shaking his head and looking down at the book. A bit of hair falls into his face, and Lance has the urge to push it away from his face. He’d always been an impulsive boy.
Keith looks up when Lance’s fingers brush over his cheek and ear, his eyes wide and his gaze slightly awed. For a moment, they stare at each other, unable or unwilling to break eye contact.
But then Lance pulls his hand back, a brilliant red blooming over his cheeks. “Sorry.” He says quietly, glancing away from Keith.
He only looks up when a thumb brushes over his cheek. Lance jolts, surprised, and turns to see Keith with that same awed expression. It occurs to him then that Keith had probably never seen color — or at least not color as vivid as this before. So he leans into the boy’s touch, letting him trace over the slowly fading blush.
“Why aren’t you scared of me?” Keith whispers, looking up at Lance, his gaze troubled. Upon closer inspection, Lance realizes that his eyes are a muted purple, like some sort of smoky amethyst.
“Should I be scared?” Lance asks, just as quietly.
He gets a smile and a little shake of the head before Keith is pulling his hand away. Lance wants to pull him back, hold his hand there. But he doesn’t, instead watching as porcelain fingers brush over yellowed pages.
“I can’t read this.” He admits after a moment, looking up at Lance. “I don’t read this language.”
Lance laughs, taking it back. “Do you want me to read it to you?”
His heart flutters when he gets that crooked, happy grin for the second time. “Yes, please.”
***
I have fallen in love.
It isn’t with a woman, or a man, or anyone in between. No, I have fallen in love with this culture and harmony. These people feel like home. It hurts me to think that I have to go back to Rainbow City, but I also feel at peace with my decision.
The people who raised me need to know who these lovely, monochromatic people are. They need to hear from one of their own that these are not people who need to be feared, let alone casted out for the way they were created. I — we — owe it to this beautiful group of people to understand.
I have fallen in love. Irreversibly, irrevocably in love.
— Dr. C. Wimbleton-Smythe, Over the Rainbow
***
The sixth time Lance visits, Keith falls asleep against his chest.
Lance was reading to him, the sun still in the sky. Keith had settled under his arm to see the diagrams and sketches that filled the empty spots in the pages. Somewhere along the way, his eyes had grown heavy and he had fallen asleep against the boy from Rainbow City.
He hadn’t noticed, not at first. But when Keith stopped asking questions or making Lance pause a moment so he could study the sketches, he trailed off and looked down.
The Monochrome boy had his cheek pressed against Lance’s collarbone. His thick eyelashes brushed over his cheekbones, his lips parted as he breathes, soft and even. His hand was curled, his knuckles pressed against his cheek and holding on loosely to the sweatshirt Lance had thrown on.
He was lovely.
Lance could see where the Doctor had been coming from. Then again, he had seen it since the first time he’d bumped into Keith. And to think, before this journal, Lance hadn’t even known that someone as beautiful as the boy on his chest had existed.
He brushes a hand through inky locks, not daring to move an inch in case he disturbed Keith.
And after his foot fell asleep and the chill from the setting sun started to creep from the floor into his bones, Lance realized he might just be a little bit in love.
***
“My mom wants to meet you.”
Lance looks up from divvying out the fruit he’d brought, his eyes wide. “I… Excuse me?”
Keith looks away, rubbing his cheek in a gesture Lance had come to realize meant that Keith was being shy. “She… I’ve been talking about you, and… she wants to meet you.”
“You talk about me?” Lance squeaks, not quite able to compute. Keith talked about him! He could sing praises to the heavens, run a thousand laps around the city fountains, die happy in this exact moment.
And then he realized just what Keith had said, and his elation turns to slight fear.
“Your… mom wants to meet me.” He repeats, after Keith nudges him with a worried call of his name. He must’ve been unresponsive.
“Yes,” the Monochrome boy nods, biting his lip.
“When?” He asks, his voice faint.
“Um…” Keith smiles, shy. “Today? She said I could invite you to dinner. So.. want to come to dinner?”
Lance stares at him, his eyes wide. The silence drags for a long, terrible minute, before Keith pulls away, his face falling. “Unless you don’t want to, that’s okay- I get it. I’m- I’m me, and… that’s okay.”
“No!” Lance reaches over, taking his hands, shaking his head quickly. Oh, heavens, stars almighty, he was an idiot. “No. I’m sorry, I just- you caught me off guard. Of course I want to come to dinner. Thank you for inviting me.”
The Monochrome boy looks down at their hands, then back up at him, his smile hesitant. “Yeah?” He whispers, squeezing Lance’s fingers hopefully.
“Yeah.” Lance whispers back, taking a chance and leaning forward, pressing a soft kiss to this beautiful boy’s flawless forehead.
***
Krolia Kogane was the single most terrifying woman on this side of the border, Lance had come to realize.
He and Keith had made the trek into town, past a few dozen curious faces and polite smiles (he was certain he’d be met with hostile stares and terrified mothers pulling their children away. That’s what Keith would have been greeted with). They’d walked through the town, right to what seemed to be the biggest house in the whole place.
Standing in the doorway was Krolia Kogane, cutting an imposing figure as her son lead a Rainbow City boy up to her and into her house. And now she was sitting across from him at their kitchen table, her gaze inscrutable.
“So,” she starts, and he snaps to attention. “Keith tells me you’ve been visiting him.”
“Yes, ma’am.” Lance replies hastily, then clears his throat and adds, “He’s very nice.”
Krolia gives him the slightest of smiles. One of Keith’s smiles. “He is, isn’t he?” She looks toward the stairs, where Keith had disappeared to get one thing or another. She turns her gaze back to him, then sighs. “I don’t know what you know of our history, Lance, but the Rainbow folk haven’t exactly been the most friendly.”
“Yes, ma’am. I… I know a little of it.” Lance nods solemnly. He hesitates a minute, then lifts his gaze to hers. “I’m sorry.” He says softly. “I don’t want to hurt Keith in any way. I… I really like him.”
Keith’s mother studies him a moment, then smiles and sits back. “You look at him the way my husband used to look at me.”
And again that bright red blooms over his cheeks, warmth settling in his chest. He looks toward the stairs. “I really like him.” He says again.
The three of them spend the evening making traditional dishes and swapping stories. Tonight was the first night Lance heard Keith laugh without restraint and the first night he wanted to pull him close and kiss him.
At the end of the night, he gets that chance. They’re lingering on the border, standing in their perfect little in-between. Keith is stalling, dragging out their goodbyes with soft thank yous and his fingers twined around Lance’s.
When there’s a breath of silence, a moment with their eyes locked and the silence heavy around them, Lance leans forward.
Keith’s lips are soft and gentle, his breath stalling between them as his brain catches up with his body. His arms reach up, wrap around Lance’s neck. Lance puts a hand on the small of his back, pulling him against his chest and kissing him like it was the only thing in the world he wanted to do. Because, in all reality, it was.
They part with the promise to see eachother again the following night. And the one after that. And the one after that.
When Lance leaves, all the colors around him seems dull without Keith by his side.
***
“I think I’m in love with him.” Lance says one afternoon, when all of his friends are hanging out in his room.
Hunk looks up, surprise flickering over his face. Pidge’s typing stops.
“What?” His best friends echo, almost in sync with one another.
“You haven’t even known him that long,” Hunk protests.
“We haven’t even met the guy!” Pidge huffs.
Lance rolls over on his bed, blinking at them. “Do you want to meet him?” He asks.
That night, Lance asks Keith if he wants to meet them.
“Will they like me?” Keith asks, worried as he looks up at Lance. They’re curled up in Keith’s bed, back to their usual reading sessions (or, rather, Keith’s daily naptime before dinner).
“Of course they will.” Lance smiles, smoothing his hair down and kissing his forehead. “I like you. They’re bound to like you — we have similar interests.”
“Okay,” Keith concedes after a moment of long and hard thought, snuggling back in. “Tomorrow?”
“Tomorrow.”
***
It wasn’t going well. Keith was flighty and nervous the moment he saw that there was three of them. He flinched when Lance took his hand, apologizing softly when he sees the concern on the Rainbow Citizens face.
Hunk was anxious as all get out; he had done some research himself, but of course he hadn’t borrowed the journal from Lance. All of the feedback he got painted Keith — sweet, soft, beautiful Keith — out to be a cold hearted monster.
Pidge had her own suspicions. This was displayed after tense introductions when she leaned over to Hunk and murmured, “He looks like a ghost.”
They hadn’t seen it, but Lance had seen his Monochrome boy crumble. He had felt fingers tighten on his own, heard the soft exhale.
“Pidge,” Lance says, aghast. “He can hear you.”
She has the decency to look sheepish. “Sorry.”
After an hour of agonizing small talk and mediating from Lance, he’d given up and told the group he was getting tired and that they should probably head home. But once they’d started off, he hung back.
Keith holds it together for a few minutes after they’re out of sight. But then his lip starts to tremble and his fingers twitch.
“Oh, Keith,” Lance breathes, pulling him against his chest, just in time to catch a weak sob against his shirt.
“I’m sorry.” He gasps wetly. “I’m so sorry.”
“No, no. It isn’t your fault. You haven’t done anything wrong. I forgot… just how much my society has been taught to pretend yours doesn’t exist.”
He feels Keith try to form words, and he feels his heart break when all he comes up with is another sob. So he holds him, until the tears are dried and he can kiss those trembling lips.
“I want to take you to my parents.” He whispers, stroking his cheek, brushing away the tears. Keith looks up at him, smoky eyes wide and dewy. “I want to show the world — my world — just how much I love you.”
“You do?” Keith asks, and smiles.
“I do.” He tilts his head up, pressing his lips against his forehead and lingering there.
“Tomorrow?” Keith whispers.
Lance smiles against his skin and nods. Tomorrow.
***
A life well spent is, in my eyes, one spent devoted to easing the suffering of others. I believe I have had a good life. A wonderful life, even. Though I was unable to change the minds of many people, those who listened made a great difference, and I hope that one day, it may change this world for the better.
My life as I have known is nearly over. My bones are fragile, my health even more so. The rest of my life may be spent in a bed, but I am surrounded by loved ones and filled with happiness.
I hope that you, my dear reader, have gained something from listening to the ramblings of an old man. I hope that your life is filled with as much wonder and beauty as I was able to find. I wish you well, in your studies and your happiness.
Dr. Coran Wimbleton-Smythe, Over the Rainbow
***
The walk through town stops many people, gathers much attention, earns stares and murmurs from people who happened upon them. But Lance walked proudly, Keith at his side. And Keith was glowing, hardly paying attention to the people around him as he took in all of the color with childish wonderment.
“It’s so beautiful,” He had said in hushed tones the moment they entered the city.
“Not as beautiful as you,” Lance had answered.
Now they were stepping into his house, into Lance’s life. With his many brothers and sisters, with his mother cooking dinner at the stove, with the house full of the memories he’d carried with him for his entire life.
“Lance! Where have you been? I need you to come help with dinner, Veronica is-” His mother rounds the corner, then stops, her eyes falling on Keith.
Lance steps forward, Keith’s hand in his. “Mom,” He says, with a voice that promised them both an eternity of tomorrows and an abundance of love. “This is Keith.”
It’s out! Let me know what you think!
https://archiveofourown.org/works/17702057/chapters/41757839
New fic incoming!
Guess what!!
After a million years (back to my hetalia phase… geez I’m old), I’m finally writing a multi-chapter fic! The name of it is gonna be State of Broken Things, so if you end up liking it, look out for those tags!
I’m trying my hand at Sheith, which should be interesting, and it’s a slight murder mystery/horror type thing? I have a basic outline of things up until the middle, but I think it’ll be somewhere around 12 chapters? Maybe more? I’ve written the first chapter, and it’s about 3k, so it’ll definitely be longer than any of the short oneshots I’ve been writing. It’ll be up by tomorrow at the latest!
Once I post it, please, let me know how you like it! Tell me if you have ideas! I love to hear from you guys, it’s always so nice. I look forward to sharing this!
soft
Keith can’t help but stare into his eyes, lose himself in the depths of those ocean blue eyes and wonder if they, too, hold the secrets and mysteries that the sea itself does. He’s never seen such blue before - not in another persons eyes. And he’s been to so many planets, seen so many people and aliens alike, but he’s the one who gets to come home to this blue, this ocean that he isn’t afraid to drown in.
He traces over the similar markings under those lovely eyes, his touch reverent. Those eyes stare up at him, soft and inviting and fond.
“Keith,” Lance breathes underneath him. Emotion surges through him and he sits up, kneeling over him and pressing a kiss to those rosy lips.
“What’s gotten into you?” His muse, his love, the brightest star in the sky, murmurs. Keith smiles at him, tucking his hair from his eyes.
“I love you.”
Lance sucks in a breath, reaching up and tangling his fingers in ebony locks, drawing Keith closer and down into a kiss. It’s soft; purposeless and simply for the pleasure of closeness and intimacy. It was always a wonder to hear those words, to feel the intensity of emotion behind them. Keith had never been good with words. Lance considered himself lucky to have a collection of them safely tucked close to his heart.
They part after a long time, each one dusted with the slightest of redness. Lance’s eyes have softened immeasurably, his grip on Keith’s hair making it impossible for him to stray far.
“I love you, too.” He murmurs, and Keith has to stifle the glee that works its way up his throat, settling instead on a blindingly happy grin and another smothering kiss pressed to laughing lips. He could die happy here, in the gentle grip and under the soft gaze of his most favorite person in the entire cosmos.
~~~
I was being soft for my girlfriend and stumbled upon the wip @bittenred posted a few days back so... this happened! Here’s to living vicariously through my favorite boys <3
Old Habits Die Hard
Keith and Lance’s New Year’s Resolutions:
1. Eat less sweets
2. Work out every morning
3. Go to bed early
4. Organize the basement
5. Spend more time with each other
One
Lance was very weak when it came to sugar. And of course, Keith had put ‘cut back on sugar’ at the top of their resolutions list, like some kind of monster. Maybe it would be better at the bottom of the list? Or in the middle? It was kind of insulting that he had put it at the top! And that knowing little look he’d given Lance? Ugh.
Keith’s unreasonable request was the exact reason why Lance was in the kitchen at 2:43am, sitting on the floor and halfway through a carton of rocky road ice cream. He was eating it out of spite. His boyfriend was being ridiculous, and Lance was not going to stand for it.
In retrospect, maybe eating a carton of ice cream just a few hours before he had to wake up and get ready for work had been a really bad idea. Lance groans, burying his face in his pillow and clutching his stomach.
“Should I stay home?” Keith frets, checking his forehead for the millionth time. “You seemed fine last night…”
“No!” Lance says quickly. Keith did not need to see him drown himself in pepto bismol and Sprite. Also, there might be a couple empty ice cream cartons he needed to dispose of. Just a couple. “No, go to work… I’ll be fine. It’s probably just a 24 hour thing.”
His boyfriend gives him an odd look, then rolls his eyes. “Does this have anything to do with the empty ice cream carton in the freezer?”
His blood freezes in his veins and he swallows very loudly. “No?” He says, very convincingly. Keith was going to be so convinced.
There’s a soft scoff and then a hand ruffling his hair fondly. “I knew it. I’ll call your work and let them know you caught a bug. Want me to have Hunk bring you some crackers and Sprite?”
“Please…” He moans, clutching his stomach as another wave of nausea hits.
“Will do,” Keith chuckles, leaning down and pressing a kiss to his forehead. “And tonight when I get home, I’m getting rid of anything sugary we still own. I’ll find that secret stash of yours, McClain.”
There’s a sense of finality in his tone that both makes him nervous and turns him on a little. “Okay.” He mumbles guiltily, settling in to deal with his horrible mistake.
Two
“I don’t want to.” Keith groans, pulling the blankets up over his head.
Lance puts his hands on his hips, huffing. “Keith Kogane, you were the one who decided it would be a good idea to get up at the ass crack of dawn and go to the gym.”
“We did that yesterday.” The Korean whines petulantly.
“The list says every morning, so we’re going.”
The covers are pushed back slowly, revealing a mop of messy black hair and amethyst eyes narrowed to evil little slits. Surprisingly, Lance was the early bird in this relationship. It drove Keith absolutely nuts, which was why he had decided that if he was going to be disturbed by his boyfriend in ungodly hours of the morning, he might as well make the most of it.
But this morning, he was not having it.
Lance is unprepared for the sudden attack, squawking as his boyfriend launches himself at him, yanking him gracelessly back into the bed and aggressively koala hugging him.
“No.” Comes the verdict.
Lance almost wants to struggle, but then Keith presses a line of kisses over the exposed skin of his neck and tucks the warm blanket around them, and he’s weak. Leave it to Keith to play dirty.
“Okay.” He sighs.
And there went their second resolution.
Three
“We should go to bed.” Lance yawns, rubbing his eyes and looking at the clock. It read 10:38pm.
Keith glances up from his computer, where he’d been playing Poptropica for the past three hours, hoping lance hadn’t noticed (He had). “Can’t we stay up for another half hour? I’m almost done with this isla- uh… thing.”
Lane throws him an amused look, picking up the book on the coffee stable he’d been meaning to read. “Yes, finish playing Zomberry Island. We can stay up another half hour.”
His boyfriend gives him a sheepish, grateful little smile before turning back to his screen. The two settle into comfortable silenced, the sounds of clicking coming from Keith’s computer and the rasp of pages against fingertips filling the room between them.
Time flies past, neither of them really keeping tabs. Keith finishes Zomberry Island and starts on another one, completely engrossed in the screen. Lance loses himself to the plot of his book. Neither of them notice the time.
Well, not until Lance’s phone buzzes angrily, letting him know that it was well past the time for it to be plugged in for the night. He passes a hand over his face and marks the page, sitting up to see what it was fussing about. He freezes when he reads the time.
3:07am.
“Keith,” Lance says, staring in silent horror. “Babe, I think we should go to bed.”
“But I’m almost…” He trails off, falling back into his hyperfixation.
“No, Kogane, it’s bedtime.” Lance walks over, gently pulling his hands from the keyboard and stealing a kiss.
Keith gives him a dazed look, then glowers. “Hey, I was focusing.”
“I know.” He says, amused. He turns his phone on, then shows him the time. Keith’s eyes widen. “But it’s seriously time for us to go to sleep.”
Keith’s mouth twists into a wry smile as he lets Lance pull him from the chair and towards their bedroom. “We’re really bad at this whole resolutions thing, aren’t we?”
“The worst.” Lance laughs.
Four
“No.” Lance says stubbornly, standing at the top of the basement stairs. “Absolutely not.”
Keith kicks a box out of his way, wading into the piles of random and useless crap and the sea of boxes. “But we said that we’d do this.”
“The Lance that said we’d clean this monstrosity was also drunk and considering dying his hair bright pink. I am not that Lance anymore, Keith.”
The Korean lets out a snort of amusement, looking up at a stack of boxes that was taller than him. “Well… somebody’s gotta do it.”
Lance crosses his arms, leaning against the banister. “That somebody is not going to be me. And knowing you, you’re going to get through half of this and I’ll find you at four in the morning sitting in a pile of old clothes and covered in dust because you found an old toy and you’re playing with it.”
Keith gives the boxes a reproachful look, but even he can’t deny that. “Yeah…”
“We can bribe the Holts and Hunk to do it with pizza and beer.” Lance shrugs.
“Yeah.” His boyfriend nods, hardly taking a second to agree. “Yep. Okay. Let’s do that.”
“C’mon, mullet.” Lance chuckles. “Get outta there before I lose your short ass to dust and spiders.”
“Spiders?!” Keith shrieks, immediately jumping away from the boxes and bounding up the stairs.
“You fought intergalactic space monsters and you’re afraid of spiders?” Lance laughs, switching off the light and closing the basement door.
“It’s different, Lance! They have too many eyes and legs!”
“Whatever you say.” Comes the amused reply as they leave the messy basement to debate arachnids.
Five
“So I bought all of the movies you texted me because I couldn’t pick. Also I got Mike and Ikes, licorice, Reese’s, Twix, and a shit ton of other stuff. And Chinese.”
Lance looks up as Keith dumps the haul down on the counter, smiling fondly and nursing his cup of tea. His boyfriend looks up, then walks over and tips his chin up, giving him a soft kiss.
“How’re you feeling?” He asks quietly, his amethyst eyes searching Lance’s.
The Cuban gives him a wobbly, wet smile, shrugging. He’d forgotten a dose of his anti-anxiety meds and had called Keith at work in the middle of a panic attack. Keith had immediately packed his things, talking to Lance as he headed to the store to pick up things for a relaxing evening.
“C’mon.” Keith says, his tone soothing, leading Lance to the couch. “You relax and I’ll put a movie in.”
Lance settles himself on the couch while Keith slots a disney movie into the DVD player, bustling about to get their food and snacks ready for the night. It was going to be a long one. Keith was determined to calm his boyfriend down so he could sleep easily tonight.
The two settle into a cocoon of food and drinks and blankets, ready for their night.
“Thank you.” Lance says quietly as the opening credits of their movie start rolling.
“Of course.” Keith gives a soft look and an even softer kiss. “We’ll make Friday nights movie nights, okay?”
“Okay.” Lance whispers, pillowing his head against Keith’s shoulder, smiling to himself.
Maybe they were bad at keeping trivial resolutions, but they excelled at the ones that meant the most. And, really, that was all that mattered.