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“Okay, Lance, this is nice and all, but I’m really not too sure this is a great idea.”
Keith was standing in his trunks at the edge of the pool Lance was currently standing in, a big smile on his face. A few weeks ago, Lance had mentioned visiting his family in Cuba with so much excitement Keith fell in love with him all over again. From that point forth, Lance went on and on about how excited his family was to finally meet Keith and how they could eat at these restaurants and see those landmarks and do so many fun things. The one thing that Lance was the most excited about was swimming and surfing - more specifically, teaching Keith how to surf. There was just one big issue: Keith had no idea how to swim. Matter of fact, he was almost terrified of the water - drowning more specifically. Keith was reluctant to mention his inabilities to Lance since he thought it would dampen his spirits. It did, momentarily, but then Lance’s face lit up when he had the idea of giving Keith swimming lesson at the YMCA so he would be prepared for the waves at the Cuban beaches.
So that was the situation Keith found himself at this very moment: staring into the clear blue of the pool water.
“C’mon, Keith! It’s the shallow end! I’ll be right here.”
Luckily for Keith, Lance had figured out when the pool was least busy, which happened to be around 10 AM. The only other people there were the lifeguards and a couple of guys swimming laps on the other side of the pool. A mother had recently left with her two young children, which relieved Keith since he was too scared to be out trying to swim in front of two preschoolers who looked like they were born for the water. Even so, Keith was still reluctant to get in the pool.
“The water feels great!” Lance glided through the water on his back, smiling up at Keith.
Keith stuck his toe in the water and quickly drew to back out. “It's cold.”
“You'll get used to it.” Lance crossed his arms on the side of the pool and looked up Keith. “This will be fun, I promise.”
“I don't know…”
“We can get Mexican afterward,” Lance tempted
That pricked up Keith's ears. He loved Mexican food, but Lance did not, so it was always special when he got have some. And here was Lance
offering
to get him some of his favorite after swimming. But it still meant that Keith would have to actually get in the water. He could practically taste the enchiladas and empanadas and chilaquiles and his beloved pork tamales as he looked at Lance.
“Can we get ice cream, too?” Keith asked, doing his best to milk this deal of everything he could.
“Sure. Mexican, then ice cream. I even have your lactose pills in the car.”
Keith twisted his toes into the concrete in thought. “I can get anything I want?”
“Yup. Just an hour of swimming.”
“An hour!” Keith whined.
Lance began to glide away from the wall. “If you don't want to, it's fine, but no Mexican, no ice cream, and surfing with me.”
That made Keith’s heart twinge with sadness. Imagining Lance out surfing on crystal blue water, having the time of his life while he just sat under an umbrella and watched from the beach made Keith feel guilty already. And he really wanted Mexican. Keith bit his lip and ground his toes into the cement of the pool deck. He looked at the clock, then to the lifeguard who was busy making sure the other men were still swimming. Lance still had a slimy grin on his face, knowing that Keith couldn’t resist his offer. Keith crossed his arms and walked over to the set of steps leading into the water with a huff. He wasn’t going to let Lance’s little charade mess with his pride. But his plan was soon upset when he grabbed the metal railing and went to put his foot in the water. Keith clutched the railing and screwed his eyes shut as he slowly submerged his foot into the water. It was freezing cold, and Keith felt ice shoot up his spine. He shuddered as he let his other foot meet its frozen fate, his shoulders raising and teeth clenching.
“It’s fucking cold,” Keith said under his breath as he willed himself to go down another step.
“It’s not that cold,” Lance teased, up to his neck in water. “Just get in.”
Keith cursed to himself as he finally got up to his hips in the water, shivering and keeping his arms far above the top of the water. Lance smirked as he glided around Keith.
“How is it?” Lance smirked.
“I hate you.” Keith glared at Lance spinning around him.
“Really?” Lance did one last lap before standing up behind him, lavishing in that three inches he had on Keith. “I thought you loved me.”
Keith yelped as Lance snaked his cold, wet arms around his torso. They slid their way up his chest and fondled his pecs for a moment before Keith pushed Lance away, Lance snickering.
“We’re in public!” Keith snapped, covering is cold, erect nipples with his hands.
“So?” Lance stepped back over to Keith and put his hands on his waist. “No one’s looking.”
“They could be.” Keith let Lance hug him for a moment, resting his head on Lance’s shoulder.
“Who? The guys swimming or the lifeguards whose job it is to watch swimmers?”
“You know what I mean!”
“Do you not when them to see you swimming or me loving that gorgeous body of yours?” Lance whispered in Keith's ear. “Because if it were me, I wouldn’t take my eyes off of you.”
Keith frowned and stepped away from Lance, trying to hide his blush. “Are you going to show me how to swim or not!”
Lance shook his head and chuckled, squatting back down into the water so he was submerged up to his neck. Keith still faced away from him, trying to act suave. “You have to get in the water.”
“I am in the water!”
“No, Keith,” Lance stepped around to face Keith. “The whole way in.”
Keith frowned, keeping his arms crossed. He looked at the water, then at Lance. With another moment of hesitation, Keith slowly lowered himself into the water so he was at the same level as Lance. Lance smiled giddily while Keith pouted in the cold water.
“See? It’s not so bad.” Lance spun in the water. “Now you gotta go under.”
“Under?”
“Yeah!” Lance took a breath and dipped under the water and turned one, coming back up with a small gasp before whipped his wet hair out if his face. He smiled at Keith again. “Now you.”
Keith pursed his lips and eyed the water warily. It was a clear artificial blue that did not comfort him one bit. And going under the water meant not breathing, and not breathing was bad. Plus what if he never came back up? What if he accidentally took a breath while in the water? What if there was some sort of disease just waiting to kill him?
“Keith?” Lance crooked his neck to look at Keith’s face. “Just go under for a couple of seconds. Get acclimated to the water.”
Keith tried to convince himself that going under was a good idea, but every argument he made was quickly shot down by an even worse counterpoint. He bounced on his toes as he tried to put his head in, but his body just wouldn’t go that low. Keith felt his lip start to quiver and he reached out for Lance’s hand, squeezing it tightly when he found them.
“Hey, sweetie, it’s okay.” Lance’s voice was quiet and light as he spoke to Keith. “Do you wanna go under?”
Keith turned his face down towards the water and shook his head a few times, still holding onto Lance’s hand.
“Are you scared?”
Keith barely nodded, lip quivering more.
“Don’t be upset, baby.” Lance wrapped his arms around Keith. “We can work on floating instead, okay?”
Keith nodded as Lance led him a few more feet away from the wall. He kept his head lowered, but glanced up to see what Lance was doing.
“We’ll float now, okay?”
Keith nodded again.
“I’ll teach you how to float on your back. It’s pretty simple, and I’ll be right here with you.” Keith watched as Lance quickly kicked himself up so he was setting on top of the water. “See? Easy.”
Lance went back to his standing position and motioned for Keith to come towards him. Keith stood and walked a few paces so he was next Lance.
“Alright, first things first, you’re going to lay down.” Lance knelt down on the water and Keith followed. “Just bring one leg up first and then the other.”
“Are you going to hold me?” Keith whispered.
“Yes. I’ll be right here.”
Keith reclined slightly in the water, bringing his left leg up so it was halfway out of the water.
“Now your other,” Lance said.
As Keith began lifting his other leg and sinking a little more into the water, he felt one arm brace his back and the other guide his leg under his knee. Keith breathed heavily, focusing on what Lance had told him to do.
“Just keep your back parallel to the water,” Lance continued. “C’mon. Leg up.”
Keith lifted his leg, but in doing so, his head began to tilt back slightly and his ears filled with water. The sensation threw Keith upright, going straight for Lance to hold onto.
“Hey! What happened?” Lance asked as Keith caught his breath.
“I- The water-” Keith took a breath and centered himself. “The water went in my ears and I…”
“How about this?” Lance stepped behind Keith. “I’ll stay here and support your head and show you where it needs to be, then we’ll get back to floating.”
Keith nodded, but he was still hesitant. He trusted Lance fully, but he didn’t trust himself.
Lance instructed Keith to squat down in the water again and tip his head back, so he did.
“It’s gonna feel weird, but I’ve got you.” Lance placed his hand gently on Keith’s head which was now on the top of the water. “Just keep going down, and keep your chin high.”
Keith followed Lance’s words, but when the water touched his ears, he went rigid again.
“I’ve got you, Keith,” Lance said, but his words were muffled by the water in Keith’s ears. “Just a little more.”
Keith tilted his head upward, water spilling over his neck. Lance kept his hands firmly on Keith’s head, fingers moving through his hair.
Lance knelt down in the water. “Raise your chest up, and then we’ll get your legs up.”
Keith pushed his chest and stomach out of the water, one of Lance’s hands going from his head to his back. He lifted one leg up, heart pounding hard and fast. He closed his eyes and, with a few more breaths, he lifted his other leg upward, feeling his body start to sink.
“Lance!”
“I’ve got you.” Lance’s hands pressed firmly against Keith’s back and head. “You’re doing great!”
Keith was now fully on top of the water, but the majority of his weight was being held by Lance, and he was still petrified. All that was shooting through his mind was the thought of going under and sinking and never coming back up.
“Arch your back a little bit.” Lance pushed slightly on Keith’s back, and Keith raised his stomach. Keith put his arms out and breathed through his nose, keeping his eyes screwed shut. His ears bobbed out of the water, and he began to feel sick to the stomach, but Lance’s hands were still there to ground him.
“Awesome! You’re really floating!” Lance let his hands come away from Keith a little bit. “Just relax.”
Keith wanted to jump out of the water and into Lance’s arms the moment he felt Lance’s hand fall away from just a second, but he was determined to stay afloat - for Lance.
You’re okay, Keith,
he reminded himself.
Lance will catch you.
Lance removed his hands from Keith’s back but kept the other under his head. He glided over to squat at Keith’s head. “You’re doing a great job! You can open your eyes.”
Those words made it to Keith’s ears, and he dared force his eyes open. The first sight he saw was the man he had fallen in love with all those months ago smiling down at him, light silhouetting his head. Keith smiled back, and Lance let his hands come away from Keith’s head. For a few seconds, Keith was suspended in the water all on his own. But then he thought he felt himself starting to sink.
“Lance!”
Keith flailed to a standing position, stomach falling and heart starting to race.
“You’re good, you’re good!” Lance put his hands out to catch Keith when he stood in case he fell, but he walked right into them anyways. “You did it!”
“No, I didn’t,” Keith mumbled, keeping his head down as he tried to shake the water out of his ears.
“What do you mean?” Lance leaned in to look at Keith’s face. “You were floating! All on your own!”
“But it was only for a second.”
“That’s a second longer than you could at the start.”
Lance’s sweet smile always put Keith at ease, and this time was no exception.
“Was it actually good?” Keith asked softly.
“Of course it was, sweetheart! You were amazing!” Lance pressed a peck onto Keith’s lips. “Now let’s just do it a few more times, then we can splash around in the pool and get something to eat.”
Keith couldn’t hide his blush as Lance took his hand and led him a few paces away from the wall and began to instruct him on the float again. He didn’t even mind that a mother with some young children had gotten in at the other end to have some fun swimming better than he could.
><><><
Keith was halfway through his plate of food when he finally looked up at Lance. He poked at the food on his plate, finally eating a bit of rice from his fork.
“What’s wrong?” Keith asked through a mouth full of tamale.
“Nothing.” Lance pushed his rice around some more.
“C’mon, babe. I know Mexican isn’t your favorite, but if you were gonna be this miserable, we could have gotten something else.”
“No, I promised you Mexican, and you’re getting Mexican.” Lance grimaced at the taste of the beans that came with his order.
“Didn’t they have a Cuban sandwich on the menu? You like those?”
“It wouldn’t be as good as the real thing…” Lance grumbled, finally taking a bit of the taco he liked pretty well. Keith went back to chowing down on his dish that was enough food for two, but Lance was still peckish.
“Are you excited to go to Cuba?” Lance asked meekly.
“Of course I am!”
“We really don’t have to go swimming or surfing if you don’t want to. It was just an idea…”
“Lance.” Keith reached out and took one of Lance’s hands, running his thumb of his knuckles. “I just want to spend time with you and your family. I will learn to swim if it means I get to see you happy for a little longer.”
Lance smiled down at his almost full plate, happy to hear Keith was also excited for Cuba. Keith was right; it wasn’t about the surfing really, it was about spending time with family.
“If you don’t want to finish your meal, I’ll help you,” Keith said as he reached over to get some rice off of Lance’s plate. “I’ll even let you have a tamale.”
“Really? One of your beloved tamales?” Lance teased.
“Only because I love you.”