Work Text
Lance didn’t expect his heat, but, honestly, that wasn’t a weird thing for him. Even on Earth, when he could track his schedule better, he would usually be surprised by it. He knew Omegas who would start to smell sweeter gradually for a week before their heat actually started, and Omegas who would go around gathering all of their friends’ jackets and such for nests, and Omegas who would get cramps and enough to be excused from classes like a week before their heat started. But he wasn’t one of them. More than once he had to leave in the middle of a class to go home for the duration of his heat. During the garrison days he used suppressants, but obviously those were long gone.Lance managed to find Hunk to tell him that he’d be in his room for a few days. Hunk gave Lance an understanding nod. “No worries, dude, I’ll bring some clothes and extra sheets and stuff for your nest. And I’ll remember to bring you food.”“And could you ask Allura for a –” Lance started.“Heating pad! And ice packs. I remember the list.“ Lance smiled at Hunk and felt a burst of gratitude in his chest. “Do you remember that heat you ended up helping me with?” Lance pulled his jacket off and then leaned against the wall. He could feel his body temperature rising already. “You were such a big help.“ Hunk nodded and looked up at the ceiling. “Yeah, how could I forget? I remember having to chase that one Alpha away from our freaking room, too. That was weird.“ Lance shrugged. “It kinda was, but at the same time, that kid came from an Alpha boarding school before he came to the Garrison, so it was probably the first time he ever smelled heat.”Hunk wrinkled his nose. “That doesn’t make it any less weird or any more acceptable, though. “ Lance took a deep breath and looked to his right, down the hallway. His legs started to wobble under him and he took a few quick sniffs of the air. “I better go, Pidge smells worried.“ “And she’s an Alpha, and everything else, I’ve got your back, buddy. Go lay down, I’ll bring ice packs and clothes in like twenty minutes, probably.” Hunk watched Lance to make sure he could actually walk himself, then started walking towards Pidge. Lance felt his chest tighten as he half-jogged down the hall to his room. His legs felt weak and he knew that eventually Hunk would bring a hearing pad too, which was great because Lance was pretty sure his legs were dying. His thighs felt almost-but-not-quite numb, and what he could feel was painful. His stomach wasn’t far behind on the betray-Lance track. His insides already felt twisted and his body temperature was steadily rising, his core radiating heat. Heat. Ohh, quiznak, he was going into heat. He wasn’t ready at all. No scented fabrics for his nest– no nest at all! No food or water stash, no temp regulators, nothing! He was lucky he had Hunk to help get all that stuff together. Lance shut himself in his room and looked around frantically as the door whooshed shut behind him. He ran a hand through his hair and it came away sticky with sweat. “Gross,” Lance muttered, wiping the sweat off onto his jeans. He tossed his jacket onto the bed and looked at his stuff. He wanted stuff that would help. He didn’t have anything from anyone in his pack and he was starting to question if he wanted his pack’s scents in his nest.Lance’s mind started to get muddled. He didn’t want Coran or Allura anywhere near his room. He didn’t want Pidge or Hunk near his nest. He wanted—Nest. Nest, Lance still needed to make a nest. With, limited supplies. Lance pulled out his bathrobe and put it on his bed next to his jacket. He frowned and make a sad chirp in the very back of his throat. He rubbed the back of his neck and pulled his hand away sweaty. Rubbing his hands off onto his jeans again, Lance could feel himself becoming more and more agitated. Not enough blankets, not enough pillows, not enough good scent. He could only smell himself, his scent filled the room to the point where Lance felt like he was breathing in his own pheromones, making him only feel more panicked. He heard a knock on his door and he flipped around to face it. “Hunk?” he asked in a raised voice, ensuring he would be heard through the door.Hunk’s reply was muffled but understandable.“Yeah, I can smell you through the door, is it okay if I come in?“ Lance whined quietly but told himself to shut up. He cleared his throat before calling, “Come on in!” He resisted the urge to stand between the door and the bed, knowing that Hunk was only there to help. He didn’t even have a nest built yet. Hunk came in and the doors opening sucked all the Omegan scent out into the hallway. He blinked a few times but didn’t let it phase him. He went over and scented Lance’s neck glands with his wrists. “Wow, Lance, those are kinda swollen.“ Lance cleared his throat. “Yeah, that’s pretty common, no worries.” He tried to smile but it was more of a grimace.The Beta scent helped console Lance’s hormones and he took a deep breath. He tried to focus on Hunk’s words. “—so, you’ve got Keith’s jacket, Pidge’s blanket, Shiro’s pillow, and my blanket, too actually.“ Lance reached into the pile and laid the blankets on his bed. He would put them on the floor as soon as Hunk left. “Thanks for bringing all this for me, Hunk, it means a lot to me.“ Lance carefully took the red jacket from Hunk’s arms and resisted the urge to just put it on right at that moment. Keith really gave Lance his jacket? Lance put the great-smelling cloth right next to his own pillow. “So where’s my snacks?” Lance joked. He hugged Shiro’s pillow to his chest. After turning around, he shoved his nose into it and gasped a huge breath. The pack-Alpha’s scent was overwhelmingly enticing.Lance knew it was better to not be around anyone but Hunk during his heat. Hunk had been through this with him before. And more importantly, Hunk wasn’t an Alpha. There was nothing wrong with Betas, Betas were actually great at helping mates through heats, but Lance didn’t have a mate. And an Alpha could cause an Omega’s brain to become heat-muddled. Omegas weren’t completely “out of it” during heats, but heats caused inhibitions to be lower considerably— meaning any Alpha in a pack could come under an Omega’s devoted attentions during heats. Many Alphas, though able to control themselves, wouldn’t, taking advantage of unmated Omegas. Lance had faith in his fellow paladins, especially his pack’s Alphas. He knew they would be able to resist. The only problem was the fact that Lance had feelings for two of them. Unannounced feelings. Feelings that he was not willing to let mix with heat-muddle. “Lance?” Lance looked up. Hunk was looking at him with a confused expression. His hands were at his sides, but everything about him said he wanted to reach out and pull Lance to him. Lance gave a half-hearted chuckle. “Yeah? Sorry, I’m a little out of it, what did you say, though?“ Lance focused on Hunk’s lips to try to force himself to concentrate on and process his friend’s words. He was starting to smell himself again, and the room’s air was feeling thick. He hoped it wasn’t bothering Hunk.room’s“I’m baking you cookies and a load of bread. The bread is going to take way longer, but it’ll be good, worth the wait, I promise.” Hunk smiled encouragingly and Lance nodded back. “Thank you,” he said. He turned his neck slightly and Hunk reached up and scented the Omega without letting his wrist actually touch Lance’s neck. Hunk let his eyes take in the room before he turned to go. It seemed cramped because it was kind of messy, but Lance’s scent made the room seem like it was the size of a shoebox. He clicked his tongue quietly and Lance looked at him. “You can go, thank you, and I’ll be looking forward to those cookies,” Lance smiled. His eyes felt heavy and his legs still felt sore. Hunk’s scent had calmed him down and now he just wanted to collapse into his nest— which he still hadn’t made. Hunk was halfway out the door when Lance said, “Oh! Could you bring some plain sheets? Like, extras that haven’t been scented any?” Hunk hesitated right before the door but nodded. “Of course. Any reason why?” He knew it was silly to be upset about Lance not wanting his pack members’ scents in his nest, but it was a bit hurtful, if only because it was so unusual for unmated Omegas.Lance wished the castle would just eat him right then. “Ah, just, I have, uh, feelings for somebody in the castle and it makes all the scents be more or less pleasing so, um, I’m just trying to keep the nest, hm, neutral?“ Hunk nodded and gave Lance a friendly smile before heading out for cookies and blankets. Lance walked over to the bed and pulled on Keith’s jacket. It felt way too short but it smelled, so good. Lance felt himself settle just a bit and his head cleared slightly. He sat down on top of his own jacket on the bed and pulled Shiro’s pillow into his lap. He buried his face into the pillow and breathed in as deeply as he could through the fabric and stuffing. Feeling at least mostly in his right mind, Lance stood and surveyed his current nesting supplies. There was no way in heck that Pidge’s and Hunk’s blankets would be in his nest, but they could be in the room. Maybe in front of the doors. It would scent the room more like pack, which would be very good. At the very least, they would be laid out on top of his stuff.Lance took them and tossed them onto the ground. Soon, he would get to them soon. Lance went ahead and put his pillow and Shiro’s pillow next to one another in the corner of his bed. He stood debating what to do with his robe and jacket when he smelled it. Them. Lance tripped over himself to try to get to the door as it slid open. “Keith-” Lance heard Shiro start to say. Keith caught Lance before he could hit the ground and then held the Omega in a tight hug. Their neck glands pressed up against one another and Keith almost aggressively scented Lance. Keith felt the muscles in Lance’s back melt under his hands. “Good thing I caught you,” Keith whispered. He shifted Lance slightly so he could reach up and cup the back of Lance’s neck, keeping the two of them close. Keith’s eyes flicked down to see his jacket on Lance and a slow smile spread across his entire face.“Good thing you’re holding him up or he would’ve fallen the moment he smelled you,” Shiro remarked from behind Keith. Lance blinked heavily a couple of times up at him and swallowed hard. “W-What are you guys doing in here? This is a bad idea, you’ve gotta go, I’m in heat, and I —" Keith let him go and Lance gritted his teeth to stop a whine from slipping out. “We smelled you. You smelled, well, you smelled good —" Keith’s eyes flicked down to see his jacket on Lance and a slow smile spread across his entire face.“You smelled distressed and we wanted to check on you, make sure that you’re safe.” Shiro’s eyes were serious, his arms crossed tightly in his chest.Lance wanted to coo, wanted to wrap himself up in those arms, wanted to wrap his legs— No. No, bad brain, no, no. “Thank you.” His voice sounded strained even to his own ears, how bad did it sound to them? “For being concerned and all.“ The trio stood in a silent, awkward triangle for a minute or so. Shiro cleared his throat. Keith looked at Lance. “Listen, Shiro is probably gonna get after me for saying this to you, but we would really like to help you through this in any way we can.“ “Keith, this isn’t really the time to —" “Sure it is, no time like the present.“ The two Alphas got into a nonverbal argument that Lance followed closely, even though he had absolutely no clue what was actually being communicated. He was curious to hear what Keith has to say, but he hoped the two of them would hurry up and say something or leave. The smell of Alphas, of Keith and Shiro, was getting to his head some. The room was full, overflowing even, with all of the scents and emotions. Lance could’ve named every feeling Shiro and Keith were working themselves into and through, if he’d been able to put together a cohesive thought. The two of them were getting more and more worked up, and Lance’s mood quickly followed.Shiro gave a small sigh, but offered Lance a gentle smile. Keith spoke again. “This really isn’t something we’re just trying to jump into because of your, ah, current state. It’s something we’ve been talking about for a while. And we think—” Shiro clicked quietly and Keith raised an eyebrow, but didn’t stop talking. “—okay, I think it might be a good idea to help you with this. Through this.“ Shiro stepped over to Lance and gently put his hands onto the shorter man’s shoulders. “I am not opposed to anything Keith said, I just don’t want you to rush into anything because of hormones or biology. I want you to know what you’re doing, I want to know that you know what’s going on.” Fighting himself to not just spit out every word in his head, Lance bit his lip. “I— well, I do like you—” He quickly turned to look at Keith, who raised his eyebrows slightly “—both of you. Both. B-but I didn’t want to, be, you know, involved, like that.” A burning feeling crawled up his neck and across his cheeks. “Not yet, so, I, wanted to stay away? I don’t want t-to be taken advantage of?“ Shiro tried to say something but Lance shook his head. “Let me finish.” It was a forceful statement, but with the whine creeping into his voice, the words lost some of their power. “So, maybe, it’s better if, we wait? Until after my, um, my heat?” These words were becoming increasingly harder to speak, as Lance’s mental dialogue was slowly filling with dirty words and high-pitched pleas. There was a whine sitting in the back of his throat that Lance just couldn’t seem to swallow. Shiro nodded, but Keith cleared his throat beside them. Lance quickly turned his head, half thinking that it was a growl.Taking his hands off of Lance’s shoulders, Shiro faced Keith fully.“You have a different opinion?” The two Alphas both stood with their arms crossed, biceps flexing.The frustrated air took on a new level– there was anger boiling on top of desperation now. Lance started shifting his weight between his legs, fidgeting with his hands. The Alphas, his Alphas, smelled agitated, but they also smelled so so good, he wanted them to pay attention to him, stop fighting and pay attention to him.He pulled himself out of his thoughts by pulling his eyes up to their faces. The black and red paladins were having another nonverbal argument.The whine that had been sitting in Lance’s throat finally squeezed out. Shiro and Keith practically jumped on Lance, releasing calming scents and crooning quietly.“If you’re going to fight, at least do it with words so I can fight, too,” Lance grumbled. “I know it has to do with me and I’d like to be able to defend myself.”Keith and Shiro exchanged looks and Lance almost growled.“There it is again! Stop! Use your words!”Both men turned red at the Omega’s chastising. Shiro looked ashamed. Keith looked like he wanted to argue with what Lance had said, but knew he had no defense. All three of them knew who was right.“Sorry,” Shiro said, looking at Lance. He gave Keith’s foot a nudge with the toe of his boot.“Yeah, sorry,” Keith muttered.Shiro dropped his arms. “Keith, go ahead and say what you’d like. Lance is right, we should talk about this.”A feeling of pride and excitement pushed across his chest as Lance replayed the words Lance is right in his head.Keith bit his lip. “I just, really hate the thought of you stuck in this room alone your whole heat. We really care about you, Lance, we don’t want you to suffer. Just, freaking thinking about having to leave you alone, it’s hell, it’s like a living hell. We’d, we’d still be able to smell you and if we were close enough, we could hear you, and we wouldn’t be allowed to help, and that would be hell, Lance, it really would.”Lance opened his mouth, but Keith continued. “And, no, as much as I’d like to, as nice as it is to think about, as much as I’ve thought about it, I don’t think it would be a good idea to mate with you just because you’re in heat. First of all, because you’re the romantic type, you like that emotional stuff, and I wouldn’t want to take the magic or whatever away from you. And second of all, because you said no, and you need to know that we respect you, we respect your no, we don’t want to do anything to hurt you or make you feel bad or disrespected or anything.”Keith took a deep breath. “Whatever you decide is great, okay? Just, know that our help doesn’t have to be sex.”“We know how to control ourselves, you’re safe with us,” Shiro said to Lance. He looked over at Keith and nodded. “You said all of that really well, and you’re right.”Keith gave Shiro a small smile and then turned to Lance and raised his eyebrows. “It’s really up to you.”Lance glanced at the two of them and then around the room. His head felt clearer and he felt, well, he felt like crap physically, but mentally, he felt great. He had control over his thoughts again.Shiro and Keith were trying to help Lance stay calm, but he could almost taste how eager they were to hear what Lance would say. And Shiro, Lance knew Shiro was worried, too. About Lance saying yes? Or Lance saying no?Lance looked directly into Shiro’s eyes, and he knew from how soft the grey was that Shiro was worried about Lance saying no. Lance took a deep breath and tried to ignore how much his legs were shaking. “I think, as long as there’s no, you know, doing the do, I would really like to have you guys help me through this.“ Shiro looked as happy as Lance at Christmas, and Keith looked excited and proud, his ears just slightly pink with blush. Lance smiled at the two men in front of him and felt a blush creep its way up his neck. ”Oh, and one other thing?“ “Yes?” Shiro asked, concern weighing down his brow. Lance wrapped his arms around his stomach. “If you guys get upset about anything, I need you to leave. It makes me heat-muddled and messes with my head and I really don’t like that at all.“ There was a sliding noise and they all turned to look at the door. Hunk stood there with a plate of cookies in his right hand, four sheets in his left hand, and shock written all over his face. Keith growled quietly. Shiro took a step forward just to be standing between Lance and the door. The room quickly became as tense as a rubber band stretched two inches too wide.Trying to get to Hunk, Lance tried to get around Shiro, but Keith wrapped a hand around Lance’s upper arm. Lance whined and Keith let go. Hunk stepped into the room. “Lance? You good, buddy?” Hunk’s voice revealed how nervous he was. He did not want to have to fight off Keith or Shiro- let alone both of them- but was fully willing to do so if Lance needed him to. Lance chirped quietly and slowly made his way around to Hunk. “Yeah, I’m okay. They’re gonna help me through my heat, but not! Like that!“ Hunk fixed his eyes onto Lance’s face. “Is there anything else you need from me then?” he asked hesitantly, voice lower than usual.Lance took the plate of cookies and nodded. “Thanks, Hunk. Shiro? Can you take those sheets please?“ Lance set them on top of a shelf.Shiro stepped up and took the sheets from Hunk. Pausing next to Lance, he looked at Hunk seriously and said, “Thank you for taking care of Lance when he needs it.”Hunk smiled a little bit and visibly relaxed. “You’re welcome, Shiro. And, not to be rude or disrespectful or anything, but if you guys hurt him, I won’t hesitate to protect him. I gotta take care of my best buddy, you know?”Hunk gave a wry smile and reached over to pat Lance’s shoulder. “If you need anything, alright?”Lance smiled widely and nodded. “Thanks, seriously thanks, Hunk.” Lance put his hand on Hunk’s, then extended his other arm and pulled Hunk into a hug. Hunk tightened the hug. When Lance let go, Hunk gave him a solid pat on the back then looked up at the other two men in the room.“Have a good time, then,” Hunk said, nodding respectfully to them all before he stepped out of Lance’s room. “Oh! I’m making some fried plantains later, okay? With those potassium pods we found? Just send one of them to come get it when you get hungry later.”Lance shot Hunk a thumbs up. Hunk gave a little wave and then let the door slide shut.Keith immediately came up behind Lance, wrapping his arms around Lance’s waist and tucking his face into Lance’s neck. “You smell so good,” Keith whispered, his nose pressed right up against Lance’s gland.With a quiet groan, Lance turned his head to the side until Keith could practically drown in the scent. Lance’s legs finally gave out and he simply leaned back into Keith.Shiro came over and watched the two of them, stance open and eyes smiling. “You’re cute.”Keith rumbled deep in his chest at the compliment. Without missing a beat, Lance laughed out loud. “You just purred! I felt that and heard it! Shiro did you hear that, he purred! Holy crow!”Keith pulled his face out of Lance’s neck and narrowed his eyes. “That was not a purr, that was a rumble.”Lance rolled his eyes, but raised his arms and leaned back further into Keith. “We’ll talk about that more later, but now, my legs are dead, can you get me to my nest?”Keith nodded and pushed an arm under Lance’s knees and swooped him up. Lance let out a soft whine and hugged Keith’s shoulder.“You okay, Lance?” Shiro asked following a step behind them.Keith set down Lance, who slowly stretched out. Keith watched every movement. Lance covered his nose with a red sleeve and stared at Shiro. “Can I have those blankets?”Keith leaned his head on Shiro’s arm. “Look at him.”Shiro nodded. “He’s beautiful.”Lance blushed and covered his eyes with the other arm. “I need those blankets.”“Can we do anything for you?” Shiro asked as he carefully placed the sheets beside Lance on the bed.Lance sat up, his face contorting slightly. “Nah, I’d actually prefer if you guys turned around? I’ve never had anyone watch me build a nest, and that’s kind of a mate thing, so if you could–” Lance drew a little circle in the air.Shiro turned around immediately and then cleared his throat when Keith didn’t turn around.“Is this another one of those romantic tradition things you like?”When Lance nodded yes, a bit sheepishly, Keith turned around. “I just wanted to why.”Lance smiled at the two of them, not moving for a few seconds. He loved the image of the two of them next to one another.Shiro was the poster boy for Alpha-prime. Tall and a leader in every and any sense of the word. Obviously the strongest one in the room. But he was so eager to treat Lance gently and with utmost respect and kindness. Lance shivered, knowing that Shiro was most definitely patient enough to take him apart completely, piece by piece.Keith was the complete opposite. Short, moody, temperamental. He looked weak, but Lance knew the true. Keith was just as great an Alpha as Shiro. He was protective and observant. He gave himself completely over to anyone or anything he cared about. His impulsivity was merely a reflection of his desire to protect his pack members usually.Lance loved them both. Together, separate, any way. They were wonderful, and now they were his. Lance chirped to himself quietly and started lining his bed with the scentless sheets. He hummed to himself, tucking sheets by the walls and using blankets as extra padding on the bed.It only took a few minutes, but he didn’t like how one of the blankets along the wall looked, and he untucked and retucked it multiple times.“Yeah, that looks good,” he muttered. “Okay, you guys can turn around!”Shiro tried to look excited, but honestly did a horrible job. Keith, however, looked intrigued.“It looks soft, you did a great job,” he said quietly, eyes roaming over the nest carefully. “It makes the whole bed look bigger, more inviting.”Lance chirped, excited and loud. He patted the spot beside him and nodded at Keith to come closer.Keith raised his eyebrows, but slowly and carefully climbed in. He snuggled into Lance’s side without a word.Lance watched Shiro shift uncomfortably for a minute or two. Shiro gave him a soft smile and waited.“Shiro?” Shiro visibly perked up.“Yes, Lance?”“Would you please get the cookies?”Lance pointed over at the shelf by the door where the cookies sat. Shiro looked confusedly over his shoulder and then nodded. “Uh, yeah, of course.” His disappointment was audible.He walked carefully around Lance’s piles of stuff, succeeding at not knocking anything over. He grabbed the plate and made his way back over.Lance nuzzled his head under Keith’s chin and sighed. His stomach was killing him and there was slick leaking out of him. He’d need to excuse himself to his bathroom soon to change his boxers. Shiro stood beside the bed offering the plate of cookies with both hands. “Lance, can I come into your nest?" Lance smiled and nodded. "Yeah, but you’ll have to feed me." Shiro clambered into the bed and gently plopped down beside Lance. "That’s the whole point right?" "Hm?" Lance opened his mouth for a piece of cookie. Shiro broke it into fourths , putting a piece into each of their !mouths and the last piece onto the plate again. Keith made a contented noise, kissing Shiro’s fingers before he pulled his hand back with a smile.Lance closes his eyes and opened his mouth for more cookie. He has started to drift off to sleep when he heard Shirk whisper, "This is real, right?" "Yeah, I’m real, you’re real, he’s real. This is real.”Shiro shook his head and part of his hair fell in front of his eye. “No, I mean the relationship. This—” he motioned between the three of them “— is real, right?" Lance didn’t hesitate for a moment. "Yes. Yes, this is real." He reached and grabbed Shiro’s right hand, pressing it up against his cheek, not even flinching at the cool metal. Lance turned slightly to find Keith’s left hand and pressed it against his other cheek. "As long as you guys will have me, I’m —” Lance’s voice broke off into a whimper and he curled his knees up into his chest. He clutched at their hands tightly, too tightly, and screwed his eyes shut. "Ow, ow, ow, ow,” he whispered, shivering as he felt a large glob of slick drip out of him. Keith quickly rearranged to face Lance, right beside Shiro. “Lance, baby, what’s wrong? Talk to us.”Lance groaned and let go of their hands, covering his eyes. Shiro clicked at Keith, who shot him a worried look, but quieted down. "Breathe, sweetheart. We’re right here, we’ll help.”Lance whined and forced his eyes to open. “It’s, I’m, hurting, it’s kinda normal, it’s, just, cramping basically." Keith relaxed and slid next to Lance again. "Where, baby? Just tell me where.”“Everywhere,” Lance said, his voice cracking with a quiet sob. Shiro reached up and wiped away Lance’s tears, crooning softly in his chest. “Where, sweetheart? We’ll give you a massage." Lance whimpered and shook his head. Keith glanced at Shiro for a split second and then cleared his throat. "Lance,” Keith said in his Voice, “tell us where it hurts, please." Lance’s body quivered and he took a deep, shaky breath. "M-My whole tors-so.” He choked on his right throat and took another deep breath, still crying. “An-nd my, my thighs." Lance lay shaking slightly, but his tears were coming slower and he was sniffling instead of sobbing. Sitting on the other side of Lance, Shiro gently pulled Lance out of the fetal position he had forced himself into, shushing Lance’s cries of pain softly. Shiro pulled Lance onto his lap and started to gently massage Lance’s cramping tummy. Keith slid closer and started to massage Lance’s thighs, but much more forcefully, using his fingers to work the muscles.“Do it harder, please, harder, Shiro, like Keith,” Lance babbled, covering his face with his hands.Shiro blushed and glanced over at Keith. Keith didn’t look up from his ministrations, but Shiro knew he had heard Lance because of he was smirking.“You heard him, Shiro, do it harder.” Keith’s gave him a mischievously playful look, nodding towards Lance’s stomach.Shiro pressed a bit harder, making sure not to be too rough, he didn’t want to hurt Lance— Lance let out a low moan and his hips shifted on Shiro’s lap. Shiro froze for a split second but a whine from Lance got him right back to task. He glanced up at Keith, who looked like he was about to burst into laughter. Keith’s jaw, though, looked like it was clenched tight enough to crush his teeth.This might be a bit harder than Shiro had originally thought.~Lance sat on the edge of his bathroom’s tub. He was sweaty again already, but redressed from his shower. He looked up at the door when someone knocked from the other side. "Yeah?” He stood up and cringed slightly from the sore feeling those muscles gave. “Are you alright in there?” Keith.“Yeah, I’m alright, I’m coming out.” Lance stepped over to the door. “You don’t have to, I was just making sure you were okay, and Shiro—” Lance opened the door and wrapped himself in Keith’s arms “—went to get your food and some pain meds for you and just to, you know, take a moment to relax, ” Keith said, hugging Lance. Lance nodded and pushed his face down into Keith’s shoulder. Keith made a low noise deep in his chest. “You’re purring again,” Lance said, with a small smirk. Keith growled quietly. Lance tried to ignore how much he liked that. “It was not a purr, it was a rumble,” Keith told him.“Tomato, tomato; purr, rumble. It’s the same thing." "Yeah, but rumble sounds tougher." Lance slid out of Keith’s embrace and tugged him by the hand towards the bed. "You mean like, let’s get ready to RRRUUMBLLLLLE!”Keith snorted and gave a short nod. “Yeah, basically." Keith helped Lance into the nest and then stepped up into it himself. Lance twitched his nose to the side. "I guess that’s fair, but it’s still the same thing.” He sat with his legs crossed and bounced them slightly. Keith sat next to him.Keith rolled his eyes. “I guess. It’s the same definition, but they have two very different connotations." "Fair statement, I’ll give you that one." They sat for a moment in silence. The room was quiet, settled."Would you—” Keith started. “Can I—” Lance almost asked.Keith laughed quietly and Lance waved for him to go ahead. Keith shook his head, “You first.”Lance bit the inside of his lip. “Can I kiss you please?” He stared at Keith, whose eyes were focused on the blanket. He was positive his face was red.Keith smiled and looked at Lance’s face. “I was going to ask if you would mind me kissing you, so yes, you can." Lance scooted a bit closer and then leaned toward Keith. Keith leaned over a bit and Lance felt like his heart was going to explode. Lance watched Keith’s eyes shut and then he shut his own eyes. Their lips brushed softly, and it wasn’t magical, but it felt nice, it felt good. Keith reached up and gently put his hand on the back of Lance’s neck. Lance pushed a bit into the kiss. Keith pushed back the same amount, but no more, and Keith was the one to pull back first.Lance smiled and his lips tingled just barely, like they were excited. "Your lips are pretty soft, Lance,” Keith said, practically beaming but obviously trying to downplay it. Lance opened his mouth to reply when Shiro stepped in, looking refreshed, with a plate and glass of water in his hands. “I’ve got pain pills, what did I miss?" Lance and Keith exploded with laughter.~Shiro sat, watching Lance sleep. His expression was serious, but his eyes were smiling.The door opened with a quiet whoosh and Shiro looked over to see Keith with still-damp hair. "Hey,” Shiro whispered, a fond look softening his face. Keith smiled warmly at Shiro. “Hey,” he whispered back, silently making his way over to the nest. He stopped before Shiro and climbed up to sit with their sides pressed tightly together. Shiro turned to face him, then tipped Keith’s face up with his finger, bringing their lips together as their eyes shut. They kissed with a steady pressure, a gentle push and pull, because they knew one another. It was practiced, sure, but it still had plenty of passion behind it. They pulled back at the same time, and Keith leaned his head against Shiro’s shoulder. Shiro leaned his head down onto Keith’s head. “Thank you for speaking up yesterday afternoon." "Hm?” Keith mumbled.“I don’t think I would have, and I don’t know if we would’ve been able to figure out a way to say it after his heat, because —" "Because everything would’ve sounded like we were trying to get into his pants?" Shiro smiled and tried not to shake his head. "Yeah, exactly. So thank you." Keith shrugged and then pushed himself under Shiro’s arm, laying his head on Shiro’s chest. "Thanks for loving me and him, both." "Thanks for loving me and him, both, too.”Keith scoffed but hugged Shiro. “Of course.” Keith closed his eyes and tried to hide a yawn.“Goodnight, Keith,” Shiro whispered, tucking him closer. “Night, Shiro." Shiro watched over both of them and the shadows in Lance’s room until he drifted off to sleep.~Lance woke up to a strong hand on his shoulder and a firm voice. "Sweetheart, wake up, Lance, c'mon, you’re alright." "Shiro? S’that you?” His head felt foggy and his face felt wet. “What’s up?”Shiro pressed his lips tightly together, then whispered, "Lance, you were crying in your sleep." Lance gave him a confused look. "Wh-?” He still felt asleep, and was processing too slowly to be wonderfully articulate. Shiro’s eyebrows were knitted together and he chewed his lip for a moment. “You were practically screaming. You, you were afraid of something.” He paused. “You’re not afraid of me, of us, are you?" Lance almost melted with appreciation for this man. Lance reached up with one arm, pulled Shiro down, and pressed their scent glands together.”’M not afraid of you,“ Lance muttered. "Keith still sleeping?" "He went to get a glass of water, actually. So you’re okay?" Shiro pulled out of Lance’s arms and stared down at him. Lance blinked slowly. "Have you even slept at all tonight?" There was a pause. The air grew thicker between them. Lance’s body was still radiating heat, but not enough to make him sweat buckets anymore. "Shiro?" Shiro sighed. "No, I wanted to be ready in case you needed something." Lance yawned, but he was cohesive. "You’re already a light sleeper. What I need is two well-rested Alphas in my nest. You, cuddle me and sleep. Tell Keith to do the same when he gets back." Shiro slid wordlessly into place beside Lance, letting him wrap an arm around his chest. He rumbled and Lance let out an exhausted giggle. "I’m really not afraid of you,” Lance murmured right before he dropped off into sleep again. Shiro let himself feel tired and he closed his eyes. Well-rested. He would try. ~Lance was belly laughing, and Keith was glad that Coran had given them the pain pills, because they helped Lance’s muscles feel decent enough for him to relax. And while relaxed Lance could be loud and occasionally frustrating, Keith would die for Lance to never cry like he did that first night again. “Lance,” Shiro’s tone was tense, “it’s not that funny." "Well, maybe it is, though, Shiro,” Keith interjected. Shiro narrowed his eyes at his hand, full of cards. “Don’t be a co-conspirator, Keith.” He laid down a blue three, then put his left hand on Lance’s bouncing knee, laying his cards face down on his thigh.Lance took a deep breath. “Ah, Shiro? You do remember you’re talking to the guy who almost religiously believes in the existence of Moth Man and Bigfoot, right?” He slapped a green three down onto the discard pile. Keith sucked in a sharp inhale. “First of all, McClain, those are special interests, so quiznak off. Second of all, Mothman and Bigfoot are cryptids, not conspiracy theories. And third of all, I am legally required to take Lance’s side on everything he’s right about, Shiro, so I’m not sorry." Keith laid down a green two. "Uno." He caught Shiro’s right hand and pressed a kiss into the metal palm. Shiro rolled his eyes but smiled. He straightened the discard pile then laid down a wild. "Uhh,” he shuffled through his deck-of-a-hand. “Yellow. Well, all I’m going to say is that both of you would probably quit after getting seven draw two’s stacked on you." Lance shrugged and put down a yellow plus two. "Maybe, but you’re supposed to be the bigger person, because you’re the Black Paladin." Keith muttered a curse and drew two."The only reason I’m not going to argue that is because it’s a compliment,” Shiro said. Keith laid down a yellow six, so Shiro picked up his cards,then frowned. “Do we have to finish this game?”“You’re just sore because you’re losing,” Keith said.Lance nodded. Shiro pressed his lips together. He put down a yellow two. “Shiro?" Shiro looked up at Lance, eyebrows raised. "Hm?”“Thank you for being my entertainment,” he smiled.Shiro tried to stop the proud smile from growing on his face. “You’re welcome, I guess." Lance leaned over and sloppily kissed Keith’s cheek, then laid down a green two. "Uno!”~Hunk handed Keith the bowl of crunchy protein beans. “He seriously just wants these?" Keith shrugged, an unsure look in his eyes. "He just said, ‘Man, I really want those peanut thingies, the ones we made the Lov That Cronch jokes about.’" They both stared at the bowl for a silent minute. "Omega cravings, right?” Hunk gave a slightly nervous laugh and an encouraging smile to Keith. “But they’re so dry!” Keith whispered emphatically. Hunk shrugged. “Gotta do what you gotta do, my man." Keith nodded and shuffled out of the kitchen, staring almost judgmentally at the snack in his hands. "Lov that cronch,” Hunk whispered, then shook his head. Gross snack. ~Lance woke up. Everything smelled less. His head was on Shiro’s chest and he had an arm wrapped around Keith’s shoulders, tucking himself firmly between his two boyfriends. Lance patted Shiro’s chest. Shiro woke immediately. He growled quietly and wrapped a protective arm around Lance. "What is it? What’s wrong?” He smelled the room and looked around with wide eyes. Pressing his nose into Lance’s neck gland, he sucked in a deep breath. “You’re bit on your heat anymore, are you?" "Nope, we’re still boyfriends, right?” Lance tiled his head to be able to see Shiro’s eyes.Shiro blinked, then nodded. “Of course, unless you’ve changed your mind,and if you have,we’ll respect that,we can be our if here in five minutes, sorry if we’ve bothered you—” he patted Keith’s head, reaching over Lance “—Keith, get up, we need to—" "No!” Lance exclaimed. He hugged Keith closer, and Keith squirmed a bit, but settled quickly. “Can we figure out whatever we’re figuring out without screaming, please?” he huffed.“Yeah, sorry, Keithy,” Lance stage-whispered.Keith rolled his eyes but nodded appreciatively. “What do you want, Lance?” Shiro asked quietly."I want you guys to be my boyfriends." There was a pause of confusion. "I was just making sure you guys really wanted to, you know, be my boyfriends.”Shiro nodded. He stretched and pressed a kiss onto the top of Lance’s head. “We do." Keith flopped in Lance’s arms so he was lying on his stomach. He rested his chin on Lance’s tummy. "We do." "Sounds like we’re getting married, lol." "Lance, did you just say ‘lol’ out loud?" "Shut up, Keith. You purr, so.” He shrugged at Keith’s glare. “Lance, I swear—" "Guys,” Shiro cut him off, sounding absolutely exhausted.Lance laughed and kissed Keith on the nose. “I’m hungry,can somebody carry me to the kitchen?”Shiro snorted. “Hi hungry, I’m Shiro." "I hate you.” Lance groaned, covering his face with his hands.Keith sat up. “You don’t hate him, but why do you need to be carried, you’re not in heat anymore." Lance was quiet. "Well, honestly i was hoping you wouldn’t catch on to that, Keith." Keith smiled softly, standing up and stretching. "Listen, I’ll give you a piggy back ride, but this is not a regular thing, okay? Understand? Got it?" Lance hopped off of the bed immediately onto Keith’s back, wrapping his legs around Keith’s assist and his arms around Keith’s shoulders. "Yeah yeah sure got it, of course." Shiro got yo slower and followed behind the pair on the trek to the kitchen. "Keith, you do realize this is now going to be a constant thing, right?" Keith sighed. "Yeah, I know." Lance cackled. "As long as you know,” Shiro said, his fondness audible. He watched the two the whole walk, following a few feet behind them. His smile was amused and his eyes were proud. His mind was filled with the words “lucky guy” and he knew he was right. “Gross! No PDA in the kitchen!” He heard Pidge scream when they walked into the kitchen.Lance grabbed Shiro and kissed his cheek. Shiro turned bright red, Keith dropped Lance gently, and Pidge yelled, “Stop! This is not allowed!” Shiro could hear Hunk laughing. Lucky guy, indeed.