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🎇

when the castle alarm blared in the middle of the night cycle, lance jerked awake, startled.  as he realized where and who he was, he groaned before he scrambled to get up to get in his armor, all the while cursing out loud. he was only able to fall asleep two hours ago, so this was just great. amazing even. he slipped on his helmet turning the comms on, and then he was out the sliding door, booking it down the hallway into the direction of the control room. i’m so sick of this shit, lance thought as he ran to catch up with shiro, hunk and pidge just behind them. maybe he should’ve been used to getting woken up by sudden emergencies in the middle of the night, after all, he’s had to do it for five years now.  but then again it’s not normal to get jumpscared awake more often than not, so. cut him some slack for being so grumpy about it. he tuned out the conversation around him about the alarm, and thought back to the dream he’d been so rudely pulled away from, images of dark eyes filled with stardust and even darker hair running in between his fingers. a laugh that he was afraid of forgetting the sound of. a warm hand on his cheek, pulling him forward— lance shook his head to clear the images of the dream from his bleary eyes and yawned as they kept running. he heard shiro snort from beside him and lance smacked him with no malice behind it. as soon as they arrived at the control room they noticed allura standing there with coran, arms crossed and a frown on her face. ”what’s going on?” shiro asked as they approached the alteans on coran's work station. coran pressed something on the panel that made an image from outside of the castle pull up in the air in front of them. it looked to be some kind of ship making its way through space, the colors of it unfamiliar and nothing like they’d seen before. lance clenched his jaw. before any of them could comment on it, coran already confirmed what all of them thought. ”there’s an unidentified pod approaching the castle. there has been no attempts of contact from the pilot to us as of yet.” he said, voice uncharacteristically serious, making lance tense up, his gaze hardening.  the others seemed to be on the same page with him, standing up straighter and mentally preparing themselves for whatever was to come. allura turned around to them, face determined and voice leaving no arguments for her plan ”i am going to attempt to make contact with the pilot of the vessel.” she said. ”if they don’t answer, be ready to get to your lions as fast as you can. we are going to stop them before they can make a landing here.” they nodded, all sleep gone from their faces. allura nodded back and sent a contact request to the pod. to all of their surprise, it was accepted almost immediately and the call went through. a black screen popped up and they all held their breath, waiting for something or someone to answer. but it was unnervingly silent. lance’s stomach rolled with unease, hand going to lightly touch his bayard without glancing away from the screen. ”this is princess allura of altea from the castle of lions making contact, identify yourself immediately and make your actions known. if you don't comply, we are ready to take harsher methods to find out what it is that you want.” allura’s commanding voice rang through the silent bridge. there are some things you get used to dealing with and expecting when you’re fighting a ten thousand year old war in space. like the food goo tasting exactly the same during breakfast, lunch and dinner, or the training bots kicking your ass if you’re not paying attention at all times. things like securing some alliances will be harder than others, even when you share the same goal and that people will get hurt even if you do your best to prevent it. and the fact the homesickness never really goes away, you just learn to live with it. yet there’s nothing that could prepare any of them for when the video feed went through and the screen lit up with an all too familiar face. the room descended into chaos but lance couldn’t hear any of his friends' shocked exclamations and gasps. his ears were ringing and he couldn't breathe. he must have been hallucinating the whole scene in front of him. but even as lance took his helmet off and as much as he blinked, keith didn't disappear from the giant screen in front of them. he didn't hear a thing keith was saying with all the blood rushing in his ears and his heart thump thump thump ing a hundred miles an hour in his chest.  he’s alive he’s alive he’s fucking alive holy fucking shit he’s not dead he’s RIGHT THERE HE’S ALIVE was the only thought he was currently capable of. it has been two years since he last heard or saw him. two fucking years. over two years ago they used to message and video call each other almost every night, mostly depending on keiths blade schedule. they made it work though, they made time to talk to each other about their days and recent things happening within their hectic lives, keeping each other in the loop. because, during the time they’d spent in space they had kind of become best friends. that's just what fighting side by side in an intergalactic war does to you.  you forget dumb rivalries when you keep patching up your right hand man after a close call with death, or when u spend your nights in front of the healing pod, waiting for your hothead leader to get out safe and sound.  and of course lecturing the other about their actions after making sure they’re fine. and when you’re not bickering with them, you’re sharing how much you miss your moms cooking and her hugs. and in turn they tell you how they wish they’d known their own mom and wonder if they’re similar to her in any way.  you share hugs and tears and laughter.  and sometimes you help pull a prank on an unsuspecting big brother/role model, and then run away from him as fast as you can, almost stumbling from how hard you’re laughing and only being held up by the warm hand clutching yours. yeah, their rivalry had been dead for years.  the video calls had started after keith first left for the blades. mainly because lance had threatened to be insufferable and bombard him with contact requests for as long as it would take for keith to answer (the threat had not held a lot of weight with lances quivering voice and tear filled eyes but keith knew better than to underestimate the red paladin).  so they called almost every night, and on the nights they were both too exhausted or when keith had a longer quest, they would just text back and forth, just to wish each other good night or to be safe on their next mission. small yet important things to both of them. the last time they were on a call with each other, and the last time lance would see keith’s face, was the night before his mission. they were both in bed, eyes drooping on the brink of sleep, but neither wanted to say good bye yet. 
”i’m not sure how long this one will last, but i’ll call you when i am able to.” keith's tinny voice carried over from lances holopad.
 
(lance missed talking to keith face to face, missed hearing his actual voice and laugh. missed those eyes that sparkled with mischief and the stars and the small secret smiles that only lance received.)
  lance blinked the thoughts away before keith would question his silence. ”dont worry about it, i’m not that desperate to talk to you.” lance huffed.   
keith snorted and lance couldn’t help the twitch of his lips. 
 
”you say that but you ugly cried when i called you for the first time after my two week mission on Xitur.” lances grin vanished as he gaped at keith on his screen. 
  ”hey, we promised not to talk about that anymore! and i’m not an ugly crier!” he exclaimed.   
keith raised his eyebrow, looking very amused. ”there were snot and tears everywhere.”
 
he smirked playfully. “and if i recall correctly you said ‘oh keith, i thought you were done for, i don’t know how i survived without seeing you.’” keith teased him, over dramatizing lance’s words from that time.
 
lance flushed and buried his head in his pillow groaning loudly into it ”ohmygod shut the fuck uppp.” he glared at keith over his pillow when he heard him snicker. 
 
keith grinned at him ”it’s okay, it actually felt nice to be missed by someone that much.” he admitted shyly, rubbing the back of his neck, a small blush on his cheeks. 
 
he wasn’t looking at him but lance felt his heart jump at the words. 
 
and maybe it was because it was late into the castle's night cycle and he was tired, or the fact they hadn't seen each other properly in months, but lance heard himself say barely above a whisper ”i miss you all the time keith.”
 
keith looked back at lance, cheeks darkening, mouth slightly open as if in disbelief. 
 
“oh.”
 
lance blushed and looked away. 
 
”not like- well it’s more just- actually no you know what? i'm not taking that back because i do mean it. i miss going on stupid missions with you. i miss bickering and sparring and pranking shiro with you. i miss talking about earth with you. and i miss you helping me with my injuries while lecturing me about being dumb and reckless on the field when you know all too well you’re the worst one out of the two of us.” he took a shuddering breath, voice full of thick emotion."I just miss you a lot red. i miss having you here.”
 
when he dared to look back at keith, he was greeted with one of those achingly fond smiles he had yearned to see all night.
 
lance’s heart flipped. 
 
keith was leaning his head on his hand, his dark eyes saying a million things at once. and lance had to bite the inside of his cheek not to start crying when keith spoke, clearly just as affected as he was with their distance. 
  ”i really miss doing all of that with you too. and i really hope this next mission goes by fast so that i can sneak out to see you guys.” ’to see you’ was left unsaid but they both knew it was implied.   
lance sniffled ”you better or i’ll come after you.” he wiped at his eyes and was grateful when keith said nothing about it.
 
”i don’t doubt that for a second.”
 
lance sighed heavily and felt his eyes wanting to close themselves.
 
god, being vulnerable really tires you out.
 
keith smiled ”you should sleep.”
 
lance hummed eyes now closed and waved his hand at keith. ”it’s not even that late.”
 
he heard keith huff ”it’s 3am lance, you have things to do tomorrow. go to sleep.”
 
lance cracked his eyes open and squinted at keith. ”and how would you know what time it is in the castle cycle.”
 
keith raised his hand up for lance to see a discreet watch-like band on his wrist that showed a purple glowing ’3:07 AM’ at him.
 
”i got this a while ago from kolivan. it’s mainly for fast communication on missions but i noticed i could put a watch function on it too, so. so i once asked shiro what the time was when i was on a call with him.”
 
”ooh keeping tabs on our schedule huh?” lance teased tiredly.
 
”more like keeping tabs on you getting proper sleep.” keith glared at him playfully.
 
”geez i didn’t know my mom was in space with me.” lance rolled his eyes but huffed in amusement when keith chuckled.
 
”just don’t whine at me when you’re tired as shit tomorrow.”
 
lance yawned ”yeah yeah whatever, just say you can’t wait to end the call with me so you can go sharpen your knife or whatever it is that you do you weirdo.”
 
keith shook his head with a smile ”good night blue, i’ll talk to you soon.”
 
lance hummed fondly. ”g’night red, i hope i can see you soon.”
 
their tired eyes met through the screen, shining with all the things they wouldn’t dare say out loud before making sure the other was not light years away.
 
they’d always been better when together.
 
and they both knew it.
 
”me too.”
 keith didn’t call nor text him the next day, or for the whole week, which lance honestly expected.  he knew some blade duties took a while, with them being undercover and all, and he was now used to having to wait for a week or sometimes two for keith to contact him. not that he would have wanted to wait for that long but it is what it is, so he went about his days as usual. lance started growing anxious when a month passed without a peep from keith.   surely he would give some sign of life soon? maybe the mission is just really intense… lance thought after checking his call logs and texts again and again, just in case he had missed something from keith. but there was nothing new, just the ended 3:08 AM of their latest call looking back at him. lance grew more worried when he asked shiro if he had heard from keith lately, and he shared his concerns in not having any contact with his brother in a long while. 
(“it’s weird, sure it’s not the first time he’s not able to call or text us for a couple weeks but it’s never been this long.”)
 their friends had all worryingly similar answers when asked. it’s like keith had just vanished without a trace. lance had in his desperation and panic tried calling and texting him multiple times but nothing would go through, and it made him all the more distraught. 
”can’t we just call kolivan again and ask him where the hell he is?” lance huffed once when they were eating dinner (lance’s plate stayed full) ((keith had been radio silent for 2 months now)).
 
allura sighed and looked at lance, remorseful. ”i’m sorry lance but you know that he wouldn’t tell us anything, and the last time we tried he said that their missions are-”
 
”’top secret and no one is nor should be aware of the details except him and the ones on the quest’, yeah i know. it’s fucking bullshit though. how can he not tell us anything, he’s just keeping us in the dark like an absolute asshole.” lance griped, crossing his arms and glaring at his plate, appetite fully gone.
 
allura sighed, sullen.
 
lance almost felt bad.
 
he bit the inside of his cheek as shiro's hand landed on his shoulder, squeezing gently. 
 
lance’s eyes stung.
 
he uncrossed his arms to bury his face in his hands.
 
”i miss him too lance, so much that it’s painful. and while i agree with what you said, we know contacting kolivan is as much of a dead end as it was the first few times.” shiro swallowed and gripped his shoulder tighter when lance took a shaky breath. 
 
shiro continued, his own voice affected ”and believe me when i say i would be the first person with you to drop everything to go and look for him, if i had any type of incling where he could be.”
 
”but we don’t, so we can’t.” lance whispered.
 
”yeah.” shiro answered, defeated.
 
after that lance excused himself, claiming he was tired, knowing the others knew he was lying through his teeth yet he didn’t care.
 
he wanted no one to see him as he took himself to keith's old room. 
 
didn’t want anyone to see as he took himself to the small closet and grabbed the only item of clothing left behind. 
 
didn’t want them to see as he laid down on the bed and clutched the red jacket to his chest, as if it would ease his suffering. 
 
didn’t want them seeing when he broke down in aching sobs, knowing he could do nothing to try and find keith.
 lance was slammed back to the present moment as his mind registered the words landing and in two doboshes.  he heard himself breathe heavily, watching keith who was fucking alive, already looking back at him on the screen. he felt tears gathering in his eyes and he bit his lower lip hard to not let out a strangled cry, as keith smiled at him. the years had not dulled the effect of his gentle smiles aimed at him. ”i’ll be there soon blue.” keith said softly and ended the call.

🌌

lance ran. he had never run as fast as he did at this moment. but this was the first time in two years that he would see the boy that he loved, in the flesh, after believing he was dead this whole time. it had been 4 months since keith's disappearance when kolivan called the castle. 
lance held his breath as allura answered the call, anxiously anticipating some good news to finally come their way. maybe they would hear that keith's mission was over, that he hadn’t been allowed any communication with anyone to not risk the quest, that he was on his way back to the blades. 
 
to hear that he was not dead.
 
none of those words left kolivan that day.
 
“i am calling the castle of lions to inform you that our connection with the former black paladin has been severed since half a phoebe ago, and after multiple tries to get back in contact, we have not been able to reconnect with him.”
 
you could hear a pin drop on the bridge at that moment.
 
it felt like the words were registering but made no sense.
 
“what?” lance heard himself whisper and his voice was like a gunshot in the silent room.
 
he stood up from his chair, feeling sudden fury course through him. 
 
“what do you mean you haven’t been able to reconnect with him? is it not your fucking job to know where he is at all times?!” lance yelled.
 
kolivans face hardened. “i believe it is none of your concern what my job is, red paladin.”
 
lance’s voice turned cold. “yes it fucking is when it’s about keith.” 
 
“lance..” hunk tried to calm him but lance just kept going, too angry to stop the words from spilling out as he whipped his head around towards his teammate.
 
“no hunk! he’s our family, he’s shiro's little brother, and he’s my best friend! and we haven’t heard from him in four! fucking! months! for all we know he’s fucking dead!” lance’s voice cracked, tears tracking down his face.
 
hunk looked at him, face washed with sorrow.
 “he has known his location this whole time! and what, now that they fuck up and don't know where he's been for the past two weeks, then he tells us? what a fucking joke.” 
he turned to glare at kolivan, but felt increasingly helpless the more the situation dawned on him. ”so what-“ he took a shuddering breath, all fight bleeding out of him at once. ”what the hell do you mean-” his first chest aching sob stopped him from speaking anymore, a hand coming up to cover his mouth in disbelief. the grief he had tried holding back so hard, laying its heavy hands on him.
 
kolivan looked remorseful as he spoke next “i am truly sorry team voltron. i wish we could have done more.”
 
then the call ended.
 
lance broke down, his legs giving out.
 
shiro came and sunk down next to him on his knees and pulled lance in his trembling arms.
 
“im so- so sorry shiro” lance wept as shiro hugged him.
 
shiro, not being able to speak through his own tears, pulled him closer.
 lance arrived at the hangar for visitors, shiro hot in his heels, and both of them out of breath just as the pod began to descend.  lance squinted and raised his arm to shield his eyes from the strong gusts of wind as the ship finally fully landed and cut its engine. lance had no time to think as the door to the pod started to hiss open. he could hear the others arrive at the hangar but wouldn’t dare to take his eyes off the ship in front of him. 
he had to make sure.
 
this might all be one of those dreams he’d had over and over and over—
 and then.  there he was. the man he had only dreamed of seeing again. 
alive.
 keith stepped to the pod's open door frame, and if lance hadn’t been violently washed with relief, sorrow and happiness all at once, he would have paid more attention to the fact that keith was now taller than him.  he also would have noticed a space version of a wolf right next to keith.  and he would have noticed someone even taller than keith, right behind him. but alas, lance had eyes only for one person. keith walked down the ramp and stopped to stare at them. it looked as if he was taking them all in for the first time, like this is what he had been waiting for for a very long time, yet couldn’t believe it was happening. lance felt his heart jump to his throat when that gaze set on him. ”hi.” keith said, smiling wide, and it was almost like it had been no time at all. shiro let out an incoherent cry and lance could only watch, tears welling in his own eyes, as keith took off to meet his brother in the middle of the hangar, the two colliding in a tight embrace, shiros shoulders shaking as he sobbed.  even as keith had grown taller than lance, he still looked small engulfed by his big brothers arms, safe and warm.  keith laughed wetly. ”hey shiro.” keith croaked into his shoulder. ”hey bug.” shiro’s voice wobbled, and keith buried his face further into shiro’s shoulder, trembling with his own cries. shiro pet through keith's hair and rocked them softly from side to side, quietly hushing his little brother. ”it’s okay, you’re here now, we’re all here.” ”i missed you so much.” keith managed to mumble through his hiccuping cries. the others made their way to the brothers, joining in embracing the lost and found friend of theirs in a group hug, hands wrapping and happy tears flowing. only lance stayed rooted to the spot, sure that if he tried taking another step, his legs wouldn’t be able to carry him to his goal.  ”and you have no idea how much we’ve missed you.” shiro murmured and pressed a kiss on keiths head. ”yeah lance almost bit kolivans head off because he was being a massive bitch.” pidge quipped, which got a few teary chuckles going around the room. at the mention of lance, keith pulled away from the hug and turned to look lances direction. there was soft determination in his eyes.  shiro smiled knowingly, wiping his brothers tears from his face. “go see him.” he smiled at shiro and the others, nodded, and stepped away to walk towards his person. lance took a shaky breath as keith approached him, his cheeks wet and eyes hurting from all the tears, and as keith’s lips formed into that oh so missed smile, he knew his heart was about to be broken and mended all over again. in reality the distance between them was just a handful of steps and took no time at all, but with every step keith took closer, lances mind raced through all the times he had spent sleeping in keiths bed, yearning to be close to him.  he thought of all the times he had been on the training deck, sparring against the robots and how there was an empty space against his back. how every time they were in the middle of a battle his eyes would automatically try to look for five instead of four. how he would always try to patch himself up alone because he denied anyone else's help, and almost ending up worse for it. how many times shiro would find him just staring at his and keith's old call logs on his holopad. how many times he had spent hours in red’s cockpit when he would have no energy or will to talk with his friends. he’d curl up on the pilots chair to be comforted by red’s purring in his mind, even as she missed one of her cubs just as fiercely. they had a shared sorrow for the empty space in their hearts that only keith would be able to fill. keith stopped in front of him, just a hair away from touching, and lance trembled.  his eyes flicked all over keith's face, trying to take in all the new and old.  there were new scars, the most noticeable one going across the bridge of his nose and his left eyebrow. his hair was so long now it came way past his shoulders. and of course, lance had to look slightly up at him now instead of being at eye level.  but also, he still had a dimple on his right cheek when he smiled. his front tooth was still slightly crooked and his eyes still held all the stars of the night sky. keiths eyes softened, watching lance watch him.  ”hey, lance.” keith whispered, not daring to speak any louder. the air between them was delicate and swirling with emotions. lance took a deep stuttering breath and felt more tears flow down his face. ”i’m still not sure you’re actually here.” lance whispered back. keiths eyes glanced between lances. then without a word, he took his right hand suit glove off, then the other.  the gloves dropped to the ground and keith slowly brought his hand to lances face. lance’s breath hitched as keith tuck a stubborn curl of hair behind his ear, the action full of softness and intimacy.  keith’s lips quirked.  then he smoothed the same hand down to cup lances face, his other hand mimicking the action on the other side. lance swallowed and took a hold of keiths wrists, holding them like lifelines. he closed his eyes and leaned on the warm hand on his right cheek.  keith smoothed his thumbs across sunkissed cheekbones, wiping away the tears that didn’t seem to stop. he stepped even closer if possible, the chest plates of their suits brushing, and leaned down to press a soft kiss on the red paladins forehead. a small broken whimper escaped lance, turning into a sob. ”i’m home blue, i’m finally back where i’m meant to be.” lance crumpled to the floor, never fully hitting the ground as keith came down with him and gathered him into his arms, holding his whole soul and being together as he heaved with anguished sobs, letting out all the misery and helplessness he’d felt through the years.  keith held him tight. lance wrapped his arms around keith's waist and fisted his hands on the back of his suit as much as he could, desperately holding on like he was afraid if he didn’t hold him tight enough, keith would vanish again. lance blubbered through his tears ”i- i grie- he- ved you for- for two years kei- th. i thought you were dead this who- le time. i miss- ed you so mu- ch i thought i would d- ie.” keith grit his teeth and closed his eyes, face crumpling. ”i’m sorry lance.” he wept. ”i’m so sorry for all the hurt you had to experience.” ”i have missed you every single day and night i've been away. i was so- so afraid i would never get to hold you like this.” lance cried harder. ”shh, it’s okay sweetheart, it’s okay i’m here now.” keith whispered against his hair, leaving a trembling kiss on his temple. "i'm right here my darling." lance tried to quell his crying by taking deep choppy breaths, encouraged by keith carding his fingers through his hair, whispering you’re doing so good, come on. keep breathing, you're okay.  keith took deep breaths with him until lance’s sobs quieted down into small gasps and sniffles. lance slumped on him, eyes closed as he nosed his face into keith's neck, wanting to be as close to him as possible. he breathed in his first steady breath in a while, calmed by the familiar scent of the man embracing him.  keith squeezed him closer. he bent to kiss lances cheek and lingered there, gently rubbing his nose on the soft skin, the action tender and long awaited. it was all the words they had been carrying in their hearts for the other for so long. ”you’re real.” lance whispered, throat raw from crying. ”yes, and so are you.” keith murmured back. ”my red… you’re really here.” ”yes my blue, i’m here.” lance hummed quietly, his hand coming up to play with the strands of keiths hair. “your hair’s so long now.” he whispered. “mm, can’t call me mullet anymore.” keith teased, smiling when lance laughed. “i’ll come up with something new, you already know that.” “i can’t wait to hear it.” lance yawned and keith was sent right back to the night they had last talked. “we should get you back to bed, ‘m sorry for waking you up.” 
does he not know i would wake up to a blaring alarm a million times over if it meant i could live this moment again.
 lance mumbled something into his neck. “hm?”  lance cleared his throat, voice still croaky “i don’t think i can sleep.” he inhaled shakily ”without you.” “well, lucky you because i wasn’t planning on leaving you alone.” lance swallowed and nodded “okay.” keith, not being able to help himself, pressed one more kiss to lance's temple. “c’mon, i’ll help you up.” as they stood up, arms still around each other, lance noticed their friends had started making acquaintances with the mysterious person that had traveled back with keith. she was tall and noticeably galran, with purple skin and sharp eyes. keith, noticing lance’s curious gaze, chuckled.  “yeah uh funny thing actually, that’s krolia. my mom.” lance whipped his head back to look at keith, mouth agape in shock. “yeah, i know, you should’ve been there to see my face when she dropped that on me.” keith chuckled. “i’ll have a bigger reaction tomorrow when my emotions aren’t all over the place, but what the fuck.” keith laughed loudly, and it was the best sound lance had ever heard. “i’ll tell you all about it tomorrow, hm?” keith said softly, rubbing his thumbs on lance’s waist. lance smiled, “i’m expecting you to.” “good.” “everything alright here?” they turned to look at shiro walking towards them, a small, tired but very happy grin on his face. “mhm, better than alright.” keith hummed and looked back at lance, eyes so full of affection it made lance duck his head down shyly, a blush climbing on his face.  he whispered a ‘yeah’ in agreement. shiro chuckled, a look of warm content settling on his face. “you two better go and get some rest, we’ll have time to catch up tomorrow.” they agreed and shiro nodded before turning towards the hallway to walk back to his own room. “shiro, wait.” lance said and stepped slightly away from keith to grasp shiro's hand.  as shiro turned back to him questioningly, lance pulled him into a hug. shiro, not hesitating, wrapped his arms around him and hugged him close. “you okay?” lance whispered. shiro chuckled wetly and looked up at keith who was watching them, fondness written all over his face. he thought back to the sleepless nights, the crushing worry he had gone through not knowing what had become of his little brother.  the anger and grief that had weighed so heavy on him, while still having no option but to try and move forward. and how all of that would be behind him now. “better than.” he whispered back, echoing keith’s words, and squeezed lance once before letting go. they exchanged ‘good night’s with shiro and the rest of the team, krolia smiling and nodding at them before following allura and coran down the hallway, the space wolf in tow. keith nudged lance’s hand with his own before lacing their fingers together. “c’mon blue, time to sleep.”

🎆

they walked down the hallway in comfortable silence, lance periodically rubbing his thumb on keith’s knuckles and keith squeezing his hand in response. when they arrived in the hallway with their rooms, lance felt like he would collapse from exhaustion and all the emotional turmoil he’d gone through that night. keith, never letting go of lance’s hand, opened the sliding door to lance’s room and walked them inside, the door closing with a hiss behind them.  keith turned around and they stood there with their hands still clasped, watching each other, looks of wonder and affection exchanged. lance broke the silence first “we should get these off, i don’t care how tired we are, I'm not letting you get in my bed with your bom suit on kogane.” he said, gesturing between them. keith snorted, amused. “yeah yeah, let me help you though.” he said and lance nodded. they helped each other out of their fighting gear, clicks echoing with each piece of armor getting removed, quiet laughs and hushed words exchanged throughout. as the last piece of lance’s armor came off and was placed on the pile of them on the floor, lance cupped keith’s face and leaned up to leave a lingering kiss on his cheek, the scar on the bridge of his nose, his forehead. he hesitated over keith’s lips, looking up at his lover for any sign of rejection. keith exhaled quietly. “please.” that’s all lance needed to close the last bit of distance between them. keith wrapped his arms around his waist and kissed him back. they moved against each other, hands caressing across backs and burying in hair, learning what made the other hum or gasp softly. they traded soft kisses full of tender words that hung in the air, unsaid yet so loud. quiet breathy laughs and sounds of their kissing echoed in the walls of the room that for so long had been used to the sound of heartache and misery. lance was so happy to make a change on that. keith ran his hands from lances waist up his back, to his shoulders, and as he took a hold of the zipper of lance’s flight suit he pulled away from the kiss with a quiet smack, much to lances dismay. keith laughed at lance’s pout and left a kiss on the corner of his mouth. ”can i get you out of this?” keith murmured against lance’s lips, making him shiver. lance, unable to find his words, nodded. ”yeah?” keith confirmed. ”yeah.” lance whispered. keith nuzzled their noses together. ”you’re so cute.”  he began unzipping the suit, carefully pulling the zipper down and as it reached the end, he helped lance take the suit off fully, leaving him in just his boxers. lance blushed hard, but keith smiled and pressed a kiss on his forehead. ”wanna help me with mine?” ”yeah, ’course.” lance breathed. keith turned around to make the task easier. lance carefully pushed keith's hair over one shoulder and left a small kiss at the nape of his neck, making keith let out a sigh. lance pulled the zipper down, repeating keith’s actions from just a handful of seconds ago, leaving them on equal state of undress.  when both of their suits laid in a pile on the floor, keith turned around to face lance, appreciating the man in front of him. he couldn’t stop looking at him, feeling overwhelmed at knowing he was allowed to. lance felt the same. keith stepped closer to hold lance’s hips, heat radiating from their bodies. he rubbed his thumbs on exposed hip bones and accepted lance’s kiss on his lips. he caressed his hands up slowly towards lances chest, stopping to glance at him for permission. “can i?” and after a nod of go ahead , he carefully traced his thumbs across the jagged scars on lance’s chest, making him shudder at the intimate action. “you’re so beautiful.” keith whispered, full of affection. lance swallowed the lump in his throat. “have you seen yourself.” he joked weakly, voice wavering. keith shook his head and pulled lance into a hug, both sighing at the skin to skin contact. “smooth talker.” he murmured against lances hair. “just for you.” lance whispered back, eyes closed, head leaned on keith’s shoulder. they stood like that for a few minutes, basking in the closeness of each other, their hearts beating the same rhythm. keith pulled away from the hug when lance shivered from the chill of the room, and tugged on lance’s hand to pull him close to the bed.  he pulled the covers out and sat down on the edge of the mattress, patting the space next to him. lance sat there facing keith, lips quirking as keith kissed him softly. “we’re going to drive our friends insane.” lance muttered between kisses. keith grinned. “and it’ll be great.” lance snickered in agreement. “get comfortable ‘kay? i’ll be back in a minute, promise.” keith spoke softly and when lance nodded, he stood up and walked to the bathroom across the room. as the bathroom door closed with a soft click, lance laid down on his back on the bed and stared at the ceiling, mind a whirlwind of emotion.  for the first time in ages, his brain wasn’t a mess of anguish, but an overpowering feeling of relief and gratitude. his eyes pricked with overwhelmed tears again, and he pushed his palms to his eyes, yet did nothing to stop the onslaught of them cascading down his temples to his pillow, heart bursting in his chest. 
red, he is finally home, he came back to us.
 he got an elated roar in response, making him let out a laugh. he heard keith come out of the bathroom and turned on his side, watching as the boy who owned his heart climbed into bed with him. keith paused and frowned as he noticed his tears, wiping them away with care. lance put his hand on top of keith’s and closed his eyes, feeling so loved and taken care of. “hey, what’s wrong?” keith asked, voice filled with concern. lance opened his eyes to look at the love of his life lying next to him.  
love of his life. yeah.
 lance shook his head, “nothing, i'm just so happy keith.” he breathed. keith’s eyes shone with tenderness and he leaned in to kiss lance long and warm.  “me too.” he said as he pulled away. he got properly under the covers facing lance, smitten smiles on both of their faces, trying to remember every little detail in front of them. keith ran his fingers up and down lance’s forearm as lance tucked a lock of raven hair behind keith’s ear.  “c’mere loverboy.” he whispered and lance crawled into his arms, feeling safer than he had in his whole time in space. he sighed into keith’s chest as he started running a hand up and down lance’s spine, having lance begin to drift off as he traced the edges of his scar. “i’m afraid i might wake up to you being gone tomorrow. like this is all too good to be true.” lance mumbled, at the edge of sleep. keith‘s heart ached and he hugged him closer. “my love, there’s nothing in the universe that would make me want to leave your side ever again.” he whispered back. “i’ll be right here when you wake up lance, i promise.” “okay red, g’night.” “good night blue.” with a reassured mind, lance gave into the sweet embrace of sleep, the roots of love digging deeper into his steadily beating heart.

💜