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“Shiro told me you wanted to see me.”Pidge looks up from the current project displayed on her laptop to glance at the visitor entering the hanger bay. She nods, then begins typing again as she speaks. “Thanks for coming Keith. I needed your help with something, actually.” Keith says nothing but his crossed arms and raised eyebrow conveys his skepticism well enough. Pidge huffs. “I’m serious. Genius I may be I still require actual assistance on occasion.”Keith is still for a moment, then slowly walks over to Pidge and sits beside her on a spare chair, peering at her screen. “Is that an engine blueprint?”“Yep. Been working on a little side project. A new engine design for our spacecrafts back on Earth, to be specific. Thought you could take a look at it and give me some feedback.”“Wouldn't Hunk be better for this? He’s the engineering prodigy.” Pidge hums as she continues to scroll through the blueprint, adding more details to the image. “Well true, but he’s been super busy with Coran working on critical repairs to the Castle after that last skirmish.” Keith recalls the nasty quintant long firefight with a grimace. “But from what I’ve heard, you’re no slouch when it comes to engine designs and repairs. Hence why I asked for you.”Keith sighs. “I’ll do my best then, I guess. Go on, shoot.” Pidge does a mini fist pump in the air, which makes Keith chuckle. She scoots her chair over to him to give him a better view of the schematics on the screen. “Currently the most advanced engine the Garrison employs for space exploration is--”“The RL Drive. A zero propellant engine, thought to be impossible tech, until a major breakthrough about thirty years ago.” He pauses, lost in thought for a moment. “Is that what you’re working on, an improved model?”“Exactly.” Pidge continues on as if Keith’s knowledge is perfectly normal, to his relief. Too many people underestimate his own intelligence as it is. “Hunk and I have been reverse engineering the Castle’s own engine system to apply to Earth’s. The problem is most of the materials used are too exotic or rare. Not to mention that full recreation of the tech itself would be a massive undertaking requiring hundreds of staff at the very least. So I figured I would focus on improving the RL Drive and work from there.”Keith looks thoughtful as he stares at the laptop, figuring out what can be done to enhance it. He already figures that Pidge is fine tuning the Drive itself based on what she and Hunk gleaned from the Castleship’s engine.He crosses his arms again, tapping a finger against his upper arm as he considers her line of thinking. The next step would be to find a better fuel source. And based on the canister diagram here-- “Oh! You’re using Quintessence as a source of energy for this engine, right?”Pidge bobs her head, excited that he pieces it together so quickly. “It was thanks to those samples you managed to bring back to the ship before. Coran conducted some extensive research on it and figured out the general refinement process. We could have went with a Balmera crystal, would have been a better option really, but the energy outputs on even the smallest shards are way past anything an Earth ship could handle, even with my tweaks.”“But the energy output from Quintessence is easier to manipulate. Not to mention that you can find it anywhere, so long as you know how to gather it. And then I guess you eventually want to work up to more powerful sources of energy, yeah?”And the rest of the night is spent with Keith and Pidge discussing engine plans and the applications of Quintessence. Shiro finds the two propped up in their chairs, fast asleep. Pidge’s head is resting on Keith’s shoulder and his head on top of her head, laptop long forgotten on the floor. He smiles and finds a blanket to cover them with.The duo has been working on the engine prototype for close to a movement now. For Pidge it’s refreshing to have someone to discuss complex scientific theories with, who isn’t Hunk or occasionally Coran of course. For Keith, he has a chance to geek out for once about his secret passion.“I’ve been meaning to ask you. What got you into engines in the first place? Was it Shiro?” The pair are huddled in Pidge’s room this time, sitting on the floor against her bed. She manages to clear out just enough of her junk to make room for them and her laptop.“Pretty much.” He carelessly shrugs. “Once Shiro got me in the Garrison and I started their courses, I got pretty interested in vehicles. So I studied it on the side. I’m no engineer but I can fix a hoverbike and know how whatever I’m piloting works.”Pidge’s eyes widen at that. “So everything you know, you’re self taught?” Keith tries to wave it off but she won’t hear of it. “Seriously that’s impressive! I learned everything I know from my family and even Hunk learned basic mechanics and maintenance from his. But you taught yourself all this,” she gestures at the blueprint on the screen, “by reading some books.”Even in the dim glow from her laptop, Pidge can make out the slight pink tinge his cheeks and ears take on. “Uh. T-thanks.” They work in silence for a while, Pidge making adjustments and occasionally asking for Keith’s input.The soft blue light from the computer screen casts over their faces and contrasts with the heavy shadows of the unlit room, creating an atmosphere that is gentle and lazy. It lulls them in a deep sense of comfort. A comfort that Keith is debating on taking advantage of, a train of thought that has been weighing on his mind for a while. After a few minutes of deliberation, he goes for it -- it’s always better to gun it then sit on your hands, he always says.“Hey, Pidge?” She hums, signalling her attention. “So...um…remember when we first came here and we, uh, thought you had a girlfriend?”Pidge snorts. “Yeah, man you guys were really off the mark.” Keith chuckles at the memory, then quickly sobers as he remembers what he’s trying to work up to. “Uh, okay so. Do you have a girlfriend then? O-or a boyfriend too?” He realizes his slip up too late. “Instead, not too. Unless you're…” He slaps his hands on his thighs and forces out the question. “Are you dating anyone!” He shuts his mouth, teeth clacking. That did not come out right. He somehow yells it at her instead of just asking. He's really bad at this, he realizes.Pidge pauses and regards him for a moment, the trainwreck she just witnessed still filtering through her head. Then she loudly snickers. “W-wow, that was painful,” and Keith is covering his face with his hands, groaning. Her laughter eventually tapers off and she adjusts her glasses, fingers moving as she focuses on the screen again. “But no, to all of that. Not really interested in that sort of thing.”Keith, who’s mostly recovered, huffs and adds, “yeah, me neither.” He freezes as soon as those words leave his mouth. Pidge stops typing again and turns her head to face Keith, who pointedly refuses to meet her eyes. “I noticed that too. When the others get all worked up over that stuff, you either sulk in a corner or make yourself scarce.”His mouth is suddenly dry and scratchy, like he’s swallowing cotton. “Well, you know, w-we don’t have time to worry about all that. With the war and all.”Pidge continues to stare, only a level one with no intent behind it. But it still makes Keith want to fidget all the same. “What about in the Garrison? Did you care then?”“N-not really, no. Too busy with, um, piloting s-stuff.” That excuse sounds lame even to Keith’s ears. He can never come up with something convincing in time. At least Pidge has the excuse that she’s still young but him? He’s nearly eighteen now and should have experienced or done something. But he hasn’t. And he’s never wanted to. And now Pidge probably thinks he’s a big weirdo or some cold-hearted robot--“Hey Keith?” Said man jolts from his spiraling thoughts and he answers with a soft hum. “You ever feel, like, something’s wrong with you?” She sighs and plays with a lock of hair. “Like everyone else is already thinking about mushy stuff like kissing and dating and you’re just like--”“That’s so fucking gross?” Keith blurts out. The two are quiet for a beat until Pidge breaks the silence with a loud snort.“It is though! Could you imagine kissing someone? With their tongue and spit in your mouth? Super unsanitary I might add.”Keith’s face scrunches up at the mental image and hugs his arms around his midsection. “Or, or sex, yeah? It sounds so messy and nasty. But everyone talks about it around you -- in extreme detail -- and never shuts up.”“Never understood the obsession myself.” Pidge huffs. Then silence that Pidge finds herself unable to break. To her surprise Keith speaks up again.“I. I never. Thought that anyone else was like me. I thought I was, you know. A total freak or like, broken or something.” He exhales. “It’s kinda surreal.”Pidge hugs her legs and rests her head on her knees. “Yeah, me too. I went from my classmates still laughing at bathroom humor to suddenly caring about boyfriend girlfriend stuff. I was already terrible with people and got called a nerd all the time. And then, poof, now there’s an even bigger wedge between me and them.” She stops for a moment and hugs her legs a little tighter. “And even Matt, who’s an even bigger dork than me, constantly talks about girls. So I didn’t know what to think.”Keith considers that for a moment. “Well, at least we know we’re on the same page now. And we have something else to talk about besides engines.” He nudges her side with his elbow and Pidge looks up in time to spot the playful smile on Keith’s lips. She slaps him on the back in return, turning the smile into a grin that mirrors her own. “Looks like we do.”