Work Text
Lights up. Clair is sitting on the couch, drinking tea in her pajamas. Suddenly, there's a knock at the door. She ignores it. There is another knock. She stretches, then gets up to answer the door. There's yet another knock.
Clair: I'm coming, dammit!
She opens the door, and Lance storms in.
Clair: Do you have any idea what time it is?Lance: 1:06 AM JST.Clair: Yeah. So, what the hell are you doing here? And take off your shoes! Don't track mud in my house!
Clair throws a newspaper at him. He kicks off his boots and sits down. Clair groans, taking his boots and throwing them out the door before closing it.
Clair: Why are you here?Lance: I didn't feel like going all the way home.Clair: You never go home. Besides, don't you have your own quarters on the Plateau?
Lance is quiet.
Clair: Did you lose?Lance: What? No!Clair: Then why didn't you just stay at the Plateau?Lance: I needed a break.Clair: Even Agatha's asleep by this time.Lance: From there.Clair: Okay, so what happened?
Lance doesn't respond.
Clair: C'mon, if you're gonna bust into my house in the middle of the night, the least you can do is not act like an adult.Lance: A lot of things happened.Clair: Okay, so start at the beginning.
Lance brings one of his knees up to his chest.
Lance: I broke up with Lorelei.Clair: Shit, okay, that explains a lot. Is it your first breakup?Lance: No.Clair: Right, makes sense. You've never been so mopey before though.Lance: It's just… There's a lot going on.Clair: Okay…(beat) Why did you break up?
Lance doesn't respond.
Clair: Okay, you don't have to–Lance: I cheated on her.Clair: What?! Why the hell would you do that?!Lance: I didn't mean to.Clair: The hell is that supposed to mean?!Lance: I-I was drunk. I didn't even remember what had happened at first. I just… I woke up, and I was in his bed.Clair: You weren't taken advantage of, were you?Lance: No. I don't think so. He was pretty drunk too.Clair: Okay. That doesn't make you less of an asshole– Wait, did you say "he"?
Lance stares at the ground.
Clair: I thought you were straight?Lance: I am. I-I mean, I was drunk. I wasn't making good decisions then.Clair: That sounds like you're trying to reason with yourself.Lance: I just… I can't be gay. I've been straight for thirty years, I know I like girls, so why…(pause) Why do I like him like that?Clair: Oh, Lance. No wonder you're such a wreck.
She sits next to him on the couch.
Lance: I don't get it. I have enough to worry about with the League, I don't have time to worry about trivial things like this.Clair: Sexuality isn't trivial. I mean, it's a huge part of your life and who you are. It's okay to need time to think about it.Lance: But I don't want to! I want things to be normal!Clair: Being gay is normal.Lance: I'm not gay!Clair: Well, you're certainly not straight either, apparently.Lance: I want things to go back to my normal! Wanting to kiss guys isn't normal for me!
Lance is breathing heavily, like he's about to cry.
Lance, weakly: I just want to know what I am.
Clair shifts closer, putting an arm around him.
Clair: It's okay to be unsure. I get how uncomfortable figuring yourself out can be. I mean, everybody's gay awakening is different.
Beat.
Lance: How did you figure out you were gay?Clair: Whoa, a bit personal, don't you think?
Lance glares at her.
Clair: Okay, fair point. Well, in all fairness, I never thought I was attracted to guys. I didn't even think about crushes until I met Lorelei.Lance: You had a crush on her?Clair: Duh. I thought it was obvious. Either way, when I met her, I started feeling like how all my friends described feeling around boys. I guess I either didn't know about the taboo of being gay or I didn't care, because I decided to just go with it. I was a girl who liked girls, what of it, y'know? I figured out that the word for it was "Lesbian" a while later.Lance: I wouldn't have dated her if I knew you were crushing on her.Clair: It was a long time ago, don't worry about it.
Beat.
Lance: Is there… Is there a word for a person who's attracted to both men and women?Clair: Yeah, Bisexual.
Lance nods. Beat.
Lance: Hey, Clair?Clair: Yeah?Lance: I think I might be bisexual.Clair: Okay. Thanks for telling me.
Lance hugs Clair. After a moment, she pats his head affectionately.
Lights down.