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Lance let his head fall out of his hands and onto the bakery counter with a dull thud. “Ugh, I finally raise enough money, and I have no idea where to go.” Hunk glanced over at his pathetic friend and smiled. “Really, Hunk? Does my misery give you that much joy?” Hunk ignored his question by asking, ”Haven’t you been wanting this for years? How is it that you haven’t done any research until now?” Lance snorted. “Yeah, like I’m going to trust Yelp reviews with something that will remain on my body forever, great idea.” Hunk just shook his head.
“Anyway, I’m not smiling because of your misery, I’m smiling because I may have a solution to your problem.”Lance’s head shot up, a horrified look marring his self-proclaimed beautiful face. “What the hell, Hunk?! You have a tattoo! Why is this the first time I’m hearing of this? Where is it? What is it? When were you planning on tell-”Hunk quickly shoved his hand over Lance’s rapid firing mouth as he continued to express his outrage through wild gestures. “Relax, relax. I don’t have a tattoo, Lance. You were with me at the clinic. If I can barely get my flu shot without hurling, how do you think I would handle multiple needles piercing my skin over and over for a long period of time? And besides, even if I did get one, you know that I would force you to come with me in a feeble yet fruitless attempt to keep my vomit at bay.”Lance visibly calmed, contemplating Hunk’s words. Hunk retracted his hand as Lance asked,”Then how come you know where I could get a good tattoo? Got any biker friends I don’t know about?”“My neighbor is a tattoo artist. He may not have tattooed me, but I’ve seen pictures of his work and it’s all really beautiful. He works over at Voltron Ink a couple blocks over.”“Hey, I think I’ve heard of that place. The one with the weird robot logo?” “That’s the one. You should stop by and check it out. Just ask for Keith and tell him Hunk sent you.”“Okay, maybe I will. I’m getting off early tomorrow, so I can probably find the time.”“Allura letting you off early? That’s unusual,” commented Hunk with raised eyebrows.Lance smirked and said, “Based on all my recent successes, I don’t find it too hard to believe.”“Does she have a conference or something? A doctor’s appointment?”“...She might have a conference to get to, and she might have told me to leave early because she doesn’t trust me to get anything done on my own. But I’m sure the main reason is because of how great I’ve been doing.”“Whatever you say, Lance.”Lance brushed off his skeptical friend and dug into the pastry he’d been neglecting in favor of venting. He hoped that this Keith guy was really as great as Hunk made him out to be and that the visit to the tattoo shop would be worth his time. --Keith had been having a long day. A very long day. Sure, he loved his job and was immensely grateful that he could do what he was passionate about everyday and get paid for it, but sometimes work sucked, no matter what the profession. First, a man came in at 10:30 in the morning already (or still) drunk off his ass and began yelling at the staff and demanding they tattoo Monica is a stupid cunt on his ass. Keith had at first tried to handle the situation himself which had proved to be a terrible mistake. He kindly and painfully told the man that if he still wanted it when he was sober, they would happily tattoo his left asscheek but that they did not give tattoos to drunks. The man began exclaiming loudly about what an outrage this was and proceeded to try to convince the other customers to leave. Shiro, having heard the man’s loud and vulgar disruption, came out from the back and took control of the situation as Keith was gripping the counter with white knuckles, poised as if to leap over it and force the man to exit the building. Shiro lowered his voice and asked the man if he would like to discuss the details of the tattoo in his office. After about ten minutes, the man left the building without a word, refusing to look at Keith. Shiro came out after him with an innocent look on his face.
“What did you say to him?” Keith asked.
“Oh, nothing much, just the usual.” Shiro said suspiciously as he unrolled his sleeve to cover his prosthetic arm.
Keith smirked. They both knew that Shiro always used his prosthetic as a means of intimidation as, despite it being an artificial arm, it was solid metal and could inflict an alarming amount of damage. Not that Shiro would have ever done something to the man, but Shiro, with his excess of tattoos, gages, and Iron Man arm, could only be summed up in one word: terrifying. Nevermind the fact that Shiro was actually a giant teddy bear and the ultimate dad friend. Keith had known Shiro for years as he had become his apprentice when he dropped out of high school and came to the city to pursue a career as a tattoo artist. Keith had even lived with him for a while when his landlord kicked him out for being three months late on the rent. Shiro had taken him under his wing and become not only his best friend but a brother to him.“Do you have anymore scheduled clients today?”“Not unless that guy comes back sober,” Keith said, earning a chuckle from Shiro.“Okay, well I have a couple of clients coming today so you can work at the counter until we get a walk in.”Keith groaned as Shiro gave him a sympathetic smile. “I know you hate customer service but until we hire a new receptionist, the one with the least to do mans the front counter.Keith nodded and trudged to the front of the shop, bracing himself for the annoying and awkward social interactions to come. Keith had never been good at dealing with customers directly. Coran said it was because he didn’t smile enough, but then Keith had never been a great actor either. When he was being himself, he came off as angry or scary, yet whenever he tried to put on a cheerful face, people always assumed he was being sarcastic or patronizing them. Since the former was the least painful for him and the most efficient in taking care of business, he opted for just being himself. Maybe he came off as too blunt and rude but it was better than the headache that came with trying to make small talk with people that he would otherwise never even share breathing space with, much less talk to. Whatever he thought. Maybe the rest won’t be so bad today.--Lance entered the tattoo parlor and looked around. The interior of the shop was cleaner than he expected, seeing as the street it was located on was caked in grime and trash. The walls were covered in tattoo designs, showcasing the shop artists’ work. His eyes roamed the walls taking in the artwork and admiring the crisp, clean lines of the designs. One in particular caught his eye. It was a bird flapping its wings and the linework for it was amazing. The stark black lines wisped and swayed, perfectly capturing the elegant movement of a bird in flight.“Can I help you?” A monotone voice came from behind him.“Uh, yeah, maybe you can. Who designed this b--” Lance turned and the words died in his throat. Woah. Lance grinned. “Actually, you can help me. You can help me a lot. See, I seem to have misplaced something pretty important, and I think that you might have taken it from me.”
“What? I’ve never even met yo--”“Really? Because I’m pretty sure we met in my dreams when you stole my heart.” Lance winked at the hot guy behind the counter who was currently gaping at him.“... Are you fucking serious?”“About taking you to dinner on Friday night? Hell yeah, I am.”Hot guy’s face was now an alarming shade of red which Lance decided to interpret as encouragement.“I...uh...I-I.” Keith sighed. “You know what, no, I can’t deal with this today. Either tell me why you’re here, or leave.” Lance opened his mouth. “And for the love of God don’t say ‘to see you.’” Lance frowned and thought for a moment.He pointed to the picture of the bird and asked, “Who designed that bird? If they work here, I’d like for them to design a tattoo for me.”
Keith sighed again. “This is just not my day…” he muttered.“What was that?”“Nothing. I designed that, though we have plenty of other talented artists that would be happy to assi-” Keith said hurriedly in a fruitless attempt to save himself from the terrible fate awaiting him.“Beautiful and talented. I like it.”Keith felt his face heat up even more, if that was even possible; a mixture of anger and embarrassment rose to the apples of his cheeks. He opened his mouth to give this guy a piece of his mind but then abruptly closed it. No. Shiro had already had to intervene before when he couldn’t control his temper. He wasn’t going to let that happen this time. He needed to stop making problems for Shiro and then waiting for him clean up his mess. Keith could do this. He just had to be professional.“But, I did come here with a referral for a specific artist, so I should probably mention that first.”Keith perked up a bit. Finally, a stroke of luck. “Oh, who is the artist? If they’re working today, you can meet with them instead.”“Well, my friend Hunk told me about this guy Keith? I haven’t seen any of his work but I guess I should check it out before I make a decision, seeing as he’s the reason I came in.”Well, it was official. Keith had, unbeknownst to himself, committed some terrible crime in his sleep last night, causing the universe to harbor a personal vendetta against him. Because, honestly, Keith could not think of any other plausible reason for being so unlucky today. He sighed, “...I look forward to working with you.”Lance delivered a blinding smile and exclaimed, “Seriously? This must be my lucky day, if I get to spend more time with you. The name’s Lance.”“Do you have anything in mind for your tattoo already? If you’d like, I can schedule a consultation so that you, and I can discuss it in detail,” Keith choked out through gritted teeth, attempting to steer the conversation away from himself.Lance would not be deterred as he said, “Just the two of us, talking, getting to know each other… sounds like a date.”This guy was impossible. “Well, as romantic as the cramped office in the back of the shop is, I’m not planning on discussing anything other than your tattoo.”“That’s the same as getting to know me, though. I have to tell you the story behind it for you to get the feel of it, right? Can I come in on Saturday at 11:30?”Hmm. Maybe he wasn’t completely stupid. It always annoyed Keith when people came in and expected him to know exactly what was in their heads without explaining anything to him. All of his best work came from helpful and specific clients who could describe their vision clearly or at least what the direction they wanted the design to go in. Keith understood more than most how difficult it could be to share private feelings or memories with a stranger, but it was necessary in creating a piece that captured the meaning they wanted it to have. Though, in all fairness, Lance didn’t seem like the type to be uncomfortable with sharing information about himself.Keith’s poker face broke for a few seconds as he looked up at Lance and smiled after penciling in the appointment. “Alright, it’s a date, then.”Fuck. Someone needed to call 911 because he was pretty sure his heart stopped after that smile. How could someone be such a dick one second and then a heavenly angel the next? Apparently, that smile was not good for Lance’s confidence because he was so surprised at the sudden change in Keith’s response that all of the smooth lines that had been pouring into his head disappeared, leaving behind a blank canvas. “Um..I-I.” Keith waited for him to continue, but strangely he didn’t. What the hell? Was something wrong with him? Was he broken?“I’ll see you on Saturday…?” Keith finished for him.“Yes! Right, y-yeah, that’s what I meant. Well, then, good night. I mean goodbye.” Lance said, blushing at his embarrassing mistake.“See you.” Keith laughed in the form of a cute little snort and waved at Lance, who had now walked backwards to the door.“See you,” Lance said his voice cracking a bit on the last word as he flung himself out of the shop, trying to maintain at least a shred of dignity-- assuming he still had some left. He had completely fallen apart, but he couldn’t help it. Keith should not be allowed to look that cute. He was a serious danger to the confidence of innocent and sexy young men such as himself. One look from Keith and he had been reduced to a stuttering, blushing mess. He hadn’t felt this tongue-tied since his freshmen year of college when the first girl he’d talked to had been the beautiful (and evil) Nyma. Even compared to that time though, this felt different.--The bakery door burst open as Lance marched in with a mixture of embarrassment and annoyance marring his normally carefree face. He stomped over to the counter, glad that for once the sweet shop was relatively empty because he had a few strong words to say to the man behind the counter. “Hunk, what the hell?! How could you let me go in blind like that? I thought that you of all people, my padawan, would know to give a guy a fucking warning!”“Lance, be quiet! And what are you talking about? Did you not like his designs or something?”Lance snorted. “His designs! No, they were gorgeous and guess what? SO IS HE! You didn’t tell me he was hot!”Hunk looked genuinely surprised at this. “Really? I didn’t think he was your type. But I guess now that I think about it…anyone is your type.”“No, it’s just that Keith is the type okay? He’s like supermodel level attractive and also by the way a total asshole which you definitely should have told me about but more on that later. The point is next time, I need at least a 24 hour notice. I could have come up with so many good tattoo related lines by then.”“Then you’re welcome, because if you used a line like ‘nice tattoos, how far do they go,’ Keith probably never would have spoken to you again.” Hunk shuddered just at the thought of such a horrifying interaction. Good thing Keith had stunned him, or Lance would probably be in the hospital.“Why didn’t I think of that? That’s genius! All my lines were terrible.”Hunk sighed at his oblivious friend; he refused to learn from his past mistakes and the number of drinks that had been thrown on him.“First of all, I hope you’re kidding. Second of all, it’s not about the lines, Lance. I mean, yeah, they were probably terrible but that’s not the point.” Hunk glanced up to see if Lance was absorbing anything he was saying only to catch him trying to sneak a dab of frosting from the cake he had just finished icing.
Smack!

“Oww! Hunk!” Lance whined.

“I don’t know Keith that well, but I do know that he doesn’t go for shallow pick up lines or casual flings. From what I can understand, he’s really intense and doesn’t befriend people easily. I mean, I’ve lived next to him for about a year now and we’ve only had a handful of conversations, none of which were overly personal.”“So, what are you saying? I should just not show him I’m interested in him?” Lance asked, as if that option had never occurred to him.“No, I just don’t think you should rush into it. Try being friends with him first. Otherwise, you aren’t going to get very far and your tattoo sessions will become increasingly awkward.”“But his personality is awful!”“So, you are only interested in his looks. If that’s the case, then you should definitely give up.” Hunk concluded.“No, it’s just. Ugh. Talking to him is infuriating because he’s such an asshole but then I get distracted by how attractive and talented he is. Huuunk, how do I get a boy to like me?”Hunk laughed as his friend whined about his newest “love.” Lance was always doing this, falling for someone at first sight and obsessing over them to Hunk. Honestly, Lance could probably have a partner by now despite his terrible methods of flirting because he was nothing if not persistent. The only problem was that whenever the current object of his affections started to warm up to him, he would give up on the assumption that it was hopeless and be crushing on someone else by the next day. If he just didn’t come on so strong at first and tried to befriend them first, he would probably have a much better track record for relationships. And maybe that was why Hunk was telling him to only hope for friendship with Keith.“Hey, don’t you have work in like, ten minutes?”Lance shot up from his slumped position on the bakery counter. “Shit! What time is it? Allura’s going to kill me!” Without waiting for an answer, Lance sprinted out of the bakery and down the street, dreading the tongue-lashing he would receive when he arrived at work.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Keith fumbled with his keys, cursing softly when he dropped them. He bent down to retrieve them just as the door behind him swung open. Hunk, his just-a-little-too-friendly neighbor, stepped out of his apartment holding a tray of mouthwatering red velvet cupcakes. “Oh, good you're home,” Hunk said with a smile, much to Keith’s surprise. He was looking for me? Did he get my mail or something? “I made extra, and I was wondering if you wanted some?”
“What?”
Hunk blinked. “Cupcakes. Do you want some?”
Well, when he put it like that… “Sure.”
“Great, come on in,” Hunk said, heading back inside while Keith processed this strange development. His instincts told him not to follow people he barely knew back into their homes and consume food prepared by them, but seeing as Hunk had already shoved two whole cupcakes into his mouth on the way back into his kitchen, Keith figured it might be okay just this once.
And they weren't exactly strangers. Apparently, Hunk had been advertising for Keith as he had gotten him a new client -- an annoying one -- but a new client all the same. He should be the one giving Hunk cupcakes as a thank you, but considering his baking skills, it might be better to express his gratitude verbally.
“I heard you're designing Lance’s tattoo.”
“Yeah, thanks for sending him to the shop,” Keith said, before biting into the mass of buttercream frosting topping the perfect little cake. Hunk gave him a knowing look.
“Do you really mean that?”
Keith flushed. “I mean he is a bit...over the top. But he seems to understand how important the planning in a tattoo is so… he’s not as bad as most of my customers.”
Hunk snorted. “Over the top? We both know that Lance is a full blown drama queen with absolutely no filter and sense. He comes on way too strong to the point of making someone uncomfortable without even realizing it.” Keith couldn't have said it better himself but he figured Hunk and Lance were friends, so he had held his tongue. Apparently they were pretty close too, if he was so comfortable with calling him out on his shit. Keith finished his cupcake before blurting out, “If you know he's so obnoxious then why are you friends with him?” Shit. That was probably not the right thing to say but Hunk’s surprise lasted a mere second before melting into a soft smile. “Lance is like a tidal wave when you first meet him. He’s loud and rude and annoying. He comes into your life unexpectedly and turns everything upside down with his outrageous personality, making you do things you never dreamed you would and don’t particularly want to do. He comes off as shallow and inconsiderate, but when you get past that you realize that that part of him is just the tip of the iceberg. Why do you think he has so many friends despite being so obnoxious?” Keith did not know that he had a large amount of friends, but he guessed that Hunk wouldn’t lie about that. “When he cares about someone, he won’t hesitate to do anything he can for them, whether he’s known them for a week or a decade. He’s fiercely protective of his friends and family and will always be there when they need him.”Keith looked down to find that he had ripped the cupcake wrapping to shreds. A nervous habit. Unexpected social situations always put him on edge like this, even with people as fluffy and kind as Hunk. As wary of people as Keith usually was, he was certain that this man meant no harm not just to him but to everyone.
“Why are you telling me all this?”
“No reason really. Mainly just a heads up that Lance is not the jackass he appears to be. You guys are probably going to be talking a lot since the back piece he wants is so detailed, so it might be a little more enjoyable if every conversation isn’t a painful experience.”
“So, he already has a pretty good idea of the design?” Keith asked, making no promises.
“Oh yeah, he's been planning and saving for this tattoo for ages.”
“Why did you tell him to come to me? I mean I know we’re neighbors and all, but…”
“I'm not really sure, either. But even though I've only seen your designs once, I felt like you would be a good fit for him.”It took Keith a minute to figure out what he meant by that. He didn't remember showing Hunk any of his work. Oh. Duh. His own tattoos. The day Keith had moved in a little over a year ago, Hunk had offered to help him carry some of his boxes. Shiro hadn't arrived yet to help with the furniture, so he had accepted the much-needed help.
Keith had taken off his jacket after carrying the giant boxes labeled CONFIDENTIAL up to his apartment, exposing the full sleeve on his left arm and the partially finished sleeve Shiro had been working on for him.
“Wow, those are seriously amazing!”
Keith turned to see Hunk ogling his arms with unabashed excitement, his eyes practically sparkling. Keith shifted, slightly uncomfortable with the sudden attention, but also pleased at the compliment. “Ah, thanks,” he mumbled turning back to the mess that was to be his new home. Despite being stared at often because of his tattoos which covered most of his body, he still felt awkward when people drew attention to him directly.
“Can I take a closer look?” Hunk said, already invading Keith's personal space. “Were they all done by the same artist? They look like they all have a similar style. Do you have more than this? Is there like a system or pattern to them? Or are they just random? Because they don't look rando--”
“Woah, slow down there, big guy. Yes, they were done by my friend, but I designed them and they are all in my style. I did plan them out and most of them have specific meanings but not all of them. Also, I don't really like talking about them.”
If Hunk’s eyes were sparkling before, they were practically glowing now. “Are you a professional? I can't believe you created all of these!” How was that hard to believe? Would it be hard to believe some other random guy he’d just met had designed them? And didn't he hear him when he said he didn't like talking about them? People were constantly asking about them at work and even though he knew it was naive to expect people not to be curious about such visible tattoos, he at least didn't want to talk about them on his days off. That was another one of the many reasons he hated meeting new people. He had always considered his tattoos to be something private and intimate, which is why his most personal tattoos were easily hidden. He knew getting something permanently plastered onto your body was not exactly a good way to keep something to himself, but it was exactly the act of having it become a part of his body, a part of him, that had drawn him to the art in the first place. Besides, his explanations were always horrible anyway. He preferred to let the ink speak for itself and not the other way around.But he shouldn't take out his antisocial angst on this nice guy. After all, he did help him carry all his shit.“I’m a tattoo artist at Voltron Ink.”“Really? That's only a few blocks from The Desserts of the Universe where I work. I actually…”Hunk had preceded to converse with him for another half hour exchanging general and noninvasive personal information before leaving for a lunch date with a friend and promising to bring him some delicious out of this world pastries soon. Unfortunately, their schedules had never quite synced up again so they rarely talked, but whenever Hunk saw him he would wave and call out to him, refusing to let them descend into the hell that was awkward eye contact and pretending to text while passing one another. Keith didn't know whether to be grateful for this or annoyed. On the one hand, he liked that Hunk wasn't the type to forget someone that easily or at least pretend to for the sake of convenience like most people did (including himself.) But on the other hand, he didn't like having to remain on guard every time he entered or left his apartment, ready to be ambushed at any moment by Hunk’s loud greetings. “All I’m saying is,” Hunk said, bringing him back into the present, “try to keep an open mind. He may not look like it, but Lance has been through a lot, and he's not so great at expressing how he really feels.” Keith didn't see how that was true, but if it were, then he could relate. Keith wasn't usually one for optimism, but maybe this wouldn't be so bad. Who knows? They might even become friends. --They would not become friends. Hunk was certifiably insane, and Lance was a fucking idiot. End of story. Except unfortunately it wasn't, because he still had to deal with this asshole for the next few weeks. Keith huffed, resting his forehead on his clasped hands.
“For the last time, we are not here to talk about me, we’re talking about your back piece. Nothing more, nothing less.”
“Really, because I was under the impression that we were talking about us,” Lance said, waggling his eyebrows suggestively.
“Are you taking this seriously at all?”
“You're beautiful, talented, funny-- of course I'm serious. I mean your personality could use some work but…”
“Hey! I--”
“Look, I promise I'll behave if you just go on one date with me. Please.”
Keith sat back in his chair and regarded the man in front of him, an eyebrow raised in skepticism.
“You'll really stop with the suggestive comments and focus?”
“Yes, absolutely! Strictly business,” Lance replied eagerly.
Keith was certain he would regret this but, “...Fine. But I'm only doing it so you'll shut up.”
Lance jumped up from his chair and swallowed Keith's hands with his. “YES! I knew you couldn't resist me,” Lance said confidently, crushing any and all hope Keith had that this could end in him not being sentenced to life in prison for murdering Lance.
“Yeah, seeing as it only took your otherworldly level of annoyance and bribery to get me to go out with you.”
“Exactly! I barely ever get this far with that alone.” Keith assumed the disgust must have shown on his face as Lance hurriedly corrected, “Uhh, no that was a joke, I don't really… I'm just so excited that you're actually giving me a chance even if it is sort of against your will.” Lance gave him a sheepish smile that Keith might have found cute if Lance had never spoken to him before.
After sorting out the details -- because Lance insisted they do so before moving forward, much to Keith’s chagrin -- they finally addressed the reason for Lance’s being there.
“Alright, so apparently you already know most of what you're looking for. Why don't you start by explaining that to me.”
To Keith's surprise, Lance suddenly looked nervous. “Ah well, I've been dreaming about getting this for years. I want to get a blue lion on my back.” Lance looked at Keith as if searching for any kind of judgment. But Keith was frozen. A blue lion. Does he know? But how could he? “Umm, is that alright? Is it weird or--?”
“No. That's fine. Can I ask you why you want that?” Keith's voice sounded distant and cold. Distorted by the lump of confusion and anxiety caught in his throat.
Lance regarded Keith thoughtfully, noticing the sudden shift in his demeanor.
“Sure. I- well, I come from a big family. Like huge. I have six brothers and sisters. We were always fighting growing up, but anyone could tell that we were close. But I was closest to my older sister. She was only a year older than me, and so we were always in school together. We were inseparable growing up. She was my strength. But in our junior year of high school, she was in an accident and passed away. Her name was Leodora, which literally means “lioness.” She always took care of us like a lioness with her cubs too, especially me. I know it’s kind of cheesy, but I’ve always wanted to get something in remembrance of her and I couldn’t think of anything else that captured her as perfectly as that.”
Guilt prodded Keith’s stomach. This was not his. This tattoo and this memory was entirely Lance’s. It must be some freak coincidence and nothing more.
“Why blue?”
“That was her favorite color,” Lance said blushing slightly. “I thought that this would be easier to talk about, but it’s kind of weird telling you about this right away since we’ll be going out soon.” We could always just not, then, Keith thought, but he didn’t say that. Because Hunk was right. He had been through a lot, and Keith for some reason, didn’t want to add to that. And Lance wasn’t all bad. Just forward. And irritating. And loud. But he was also sincere and sentimental in a way that Keith had never known how to be.
“I’ll start the sketch tomorrow, then. If you have any references, send them to me. We can meet again--”
“Friday at 8:00. I’ll pick you up,” Lance finished for him.
Keith didn’t even attempt to stop his eyes from rolling. He continued, “And, sometime next week, so you can look over the sketches. After that, if you decide on one, I can finalize the design, and we can start tattooing.”

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Lance was not nervous. He was past that. He was anxious. Sure, he’d been on plenty of dates, but not with people he had to see afterwards, and definitely not with people who already disliked him. And never with a guy like Keith. He was so intimidating in the way that he could be practically invisible and in the next second demand the attention of everyone around him with a mere look. He didn’t seem like he’d ever thought twice about anything in his life, but was simultaneously careful about every decision he made. Lance on the other hand was insecure about everything he did, and attempted to combat that by putting himself out there. He’d learned that everything could be laughed off as a joke if you never took anything seriously. But despite his golden rule, he couldn’t help but think of this date as something he absolutely did not want to fuck up. He had gotten there about thirty minutes early to stop by Hunk’s place for a pep talk and a snack, both of which Hunk was great at giving. Hunk might have made fun of Lance for his numerous (and failed) dates , but he knew that it wasn’t easy for him to try as hard as he did and so supported him in the long run. After cramming a few snickerdoodles in his mouth, Lance crept across the small strip of hallway separating his best friend and his newest love interest. He checked his phone. 7:56. He knocked once and then twice for good measure. Nothing. He raised his hand to knock again after thirty seconds of tapping his foot and digging his fingers into the sides of his jeans. He was wearing black jeans, a button up, and a denim jacket, and it had only taken him an hour and a half to try on his entire wardrobe only to end up choosing his first option. Before he could touch his sweaty knuckles to the door, he heard a soft voice call out, “Just a minute,” from the other side. Relief washed through him; he hadn’t been entirely certain that Keith would actually answer. All of his texts about the details had been received with short, precise replies that varied from 1-5 words. Hunk told him that Keith probably texted everyone the same way but, unfortunately, that did nothing to dispel his worry.Oh shit. The door was opening. The door was opening and Lance didn’t know what to do and he was out of time and--Keith was standing in the doorway, wearing jeans, a black t-shirt, and a(n incredibly sexy) leather jacket, the spitting image of cool and casual like the people in the fashion magazines that didn’t actually exist in real life.“Hey.”Lance rebooted. He grinned. “Boy, you look so fine, yo--”“I will shut this door in your face.”“Please don’t. I didn’t bake enough cookies for crying Lance.”“Hunk! Stop listening! I can’t work my magic if you’re here!”Keith snickered. “Feel free to come along then.”Lance gave his laughing best friend a death glare. Hunk put up his hands in surrender and closed his door.“Seriously though. You’re not nearly as infuriating when you aren’t trying to impress me, so just relax.”He guessed he hadn’t concealed his nerves as well as he thought. “You’re right. I’m sorry. You look amazing by the way. That’s why I couldn’t calm down.”
Keith averted his eyes to hide his embarrassment. “We should probably get going.”“Okay, are you ready?”“Yeah. One second.”Keith disappeared inside his apartment and came back with a helmet on and another in his hands. “Here, you’ll need this.” Keith offered him the spare helmet.“What?”“We’re taking my bike.”Lance looked decidedly flustered. “B-But you don’t even know where we’re going.”Keith gave him a look. “Then you’ll just have to give me directions, won’t you?” he said, pressing the helmet into Lance’s chest and striding past him down the hallway. --“Wait, hold on, let’s think about this before--”“Come on, you’ll be fine.” Keith had already swung his leg onto the other side of the bike and was looking expectantly at Lance. He looked gorgeous and deadly, and Lance wasn’t entirely sure he wasn’t dreaming.“But I’ve never rode a bike before and my perfectly safe and mostly functioning car is right over there so we should just…” he babbled on.Keith’s gaze never wavered.“Lance.”“Umm, yes?”“Are you scared?” Keith said, amusement seeping into his faux serious voice. His face was partially covered by his helmet, but Lance didn’t need to see his face to know that he was smirking. “Aren’t you the one who asked me out?”Was he testing him? Well, Lance was never one to back down from a challenge. He took a deep breath and gathered his courage.“I’m not scared. I just wanted to surprise you with where we’re going. But you can just head down 14th Street, and we can walk the rest of the way.” Lance situated himself on the bike behind Keith and resisted the urge to make an inappropriate joke about their seating arrangements. After a second of hesitation, he placed his hands lightly on Keith’s waist. Keith’s head turned back towards him. “What? Should I not have…?” Keith could barely contain his laughter. “No, you’re fine. In fact, that’s perfect.” Lance was thoroughly confused now, but he was also hyper aware of how nice it felt to have his arms around Keith and didn’t want to ruin it by saying something stupid. He braced himself as Keith backed up and started the death machine under them. Keith revved the engine and they surged forward, the momentum almost pulling Lance off the bike. “Shit!” Lance’s hold on Keith tightened as he clung on for dear life. His heart was pounding against his chest, trying to escape. He could feel Keith laughing at his reaction and realised that he had been fucking with him earlier. Asshole. “Hold on tight,” Keith said and accelerated, swerving back and forth through the hectic city traffic. Lance’s fingers were digging into Keith’s stomach, but with the speed Keith was driving at, he couldn’t think to loosen his grip. He could feel the wind ripping through his bones and felt both alive and terrified. He could feel giddy laughter bubbling in his stomach at the rush of freedom he felt. He understood why Keith had been so adamant about them taking his motorcycle. He wanted to share this feeling with him.As he adjusted to the sensation, his heart came down from his throat, but he didn’t loosen his hold on Keith. He loved feeling Keith’s back pressed against his chest as the world rushed by around them, as if they were in an untouchable bubble of their own making. He realized that it wasn’t just his interest in Keith that had attracted him, but the feeling he got when he was with him. Sure, he’d had loads of crushes, but he wasn’t sure that he’d wanted to know someone as much as he wanted to know the boy sitting in front of him.Keith slid into an open space neatly and shut off the bike. He waited for Lance to climb off before doing so himself. Lance patted himself down to fix his outfit, took off his helmet, and then abruptly stopped, his full attention captured by the scene in front of him. Keith had pulled off his helmet and was shaking out his hair. He pulled a hair band off of his wrist and fixed his mussed up locks into a messy ponytail. Lance’s cheeks warmed, and he was pretty sure that his mouth was watering. Seriously, Keith needed to stop being so fucking hot, because it was just downright unfair at this point and it was starting to piss him off. No one should look that good after sweating in a helmet and riding on a motorcycle but lo and behold, he did. Lance knew he sure as hell didn’t. But he had to remember, voluntary or not, he was the one that Keith was on a date with. “So, where is this surprise that you’re so excited about ?”“It's right around the corner. But, before we go, don't judge it by its looks, okay, because it's not exactly the nicest looking place in the world, but I swear it's amazing.”“Should I be worried?” Keith said with one eyebrow raised.“No, I swear the inside is fine! I almost decided not to take you here, but I wanted to take you somewhere I really care about.” Once again, Lance found himself sharing more of himself than he usually would on a first date, but as much as he wanted to impress him, he also wanted Keith to know him. They walked past a few shops and rounded the corner before stopping in front of a tiny hole-in-the-wall Cuban restaurant called Papi’s. Lance wasn’t lying when he said it didn't look like much. In fact, seeing it had him second guessing his resolve, authenticity be damned. Who in their right mind would take someone here on a first date anyway? He should have taken him to the nice Italian restaurant he usually took his dates. Before he could apologize and suggest they find somewhere else, Keith said, “Is this the place?” Lance nodded, searching Keith's face for any sign of disapproval or doubt. “Then let's go in, it's fucking cold out here.” Keith was halfway through the entrance before Lance had realized what happened and jogged in after him. The inside of the restaurant was shaking from the immense noise generated from speakers blaring Cuban music and people yelling over it. They were inside for approximately two seconds before an energetic voice called out, “Lance!” A young man emerged from the back of the restaurant with a handful of menus tucked under his arm. “¡Hace tiempo que nos hemos visto! Ohhh and who is your friend?” the stranger said with a flirtatious wink in Keith’s direction.“This is Keith, my date and tattoo artist. I’ve been super busy with my new job and I haven’t had time to drop in, but I’m going to be at Rosa’s next weekend and we can talk there. Right now, though, you can show us to my favorite booth in the back and not mention this to Abuelita, please,” Lance said, clasping his hands together and looking up at the man with hopeful, puppy-dog eyes.He groaned and said, “Lance, I can’t always give you my best table.”“Pleaaaase, Emilio.”Emilio sighed and said, “Fine, but next time I need someone to cover my shift, I’m calling you.”“You’re the best, Emilio! You know you’ve always been my favorite cousin.”“Yeah, yeah, I know.”Emilio led them to a slightly more secluded booth and walked off without bothering to hand them menus.“So, he’s your cousin?”“Yeah, my uncle owns this place. It may look rough, but they have the best ropa vieja in the city and the inside is clean so…” Lance shrugged. “I actually used to work here in high school and college, so that’s why Emilio didn’t bother giving us menus.”Keith could see how Lance could fit into the dynamic of the restaurant seamlessly with his outgoing personality and the way he seemed so at home from the minute they stepped in the building.“Why’d you tell him not to tell your grandma about this?”“You caught that, huh?”“Well, I did get to Spanish II in high school.”Lance laughed, “It’s not for any serious reason, just that to her ‘I’m seeing someone’ sounds like wedding bells, and she starts prying way too much into my personal life. I mean I love my relatives and all, but sometimes they can get way too invasive, you know?”Keith debated whether or not to give Lance his usual casual nod whenever people mentioned family or to tell the truth and bring on the awkwardness. Surely, the first option would be easier, but Keith couldn’t bring himself to lie to Lance after the way he’d opened himself up to him so readily. It almost seemed unfair to deny him the truth.“Not really, no. My parents died when I was little, and since I had no known relatives that could take me in, I was in a group home until I was sixteen.”
Keith expected Lance to say the generic ‘I’m sorry’ or attempt to lighten the mood, but he didn’t say anything. He just reached a hand across the table and placed it on top of Keith’s. Keith looked up and him and gave a small smile. Keith understood that even if he didn’t know what to say, he wanted to show that he cared. And that was enough.“So, the ropa vieja is to die for?”Lance jumpstarted from his soft expression and kicked back into high gear. “Yes! It’s fucking amazing, and you have to try it. It tastes just like my abuelita's. Emilio probably figured that we’d be getting some, so we don’t have to worry about ordering.”They continued to exchange casual small talk while they waited for their food, and Keith was surprised at how much he enjoyed it. Usually he hated trading unnecessary information that neither parties truly cared about. But with Lance, it was different. Keith caught himself laughing more than he had the entire week and found that he was genuinely interested in their “meaningless” conversations. Because they weren’t meaningless. They weren’t just polite ramblings, but the first steps in learning about someone. --“Really?”Lance nodded and said, “He didn’t even apologize after he realized how long it lasted either! He just laughed harder.”“Are you talking about when Tomás put dye in your body wash right before your date?” Emilio chimed in as he refilled their drinks.“Yes! I was green for weeks after that! I had to cancel on her!”Emilio doubled over in laughter. “Lance wouldn’t speak to Tomás for two months until Abuelita told Tomás to stop being a little shit and made Lance accept his apology.” He added, “It was hilarious though. Tomás! Quit behaving like un tonto! And you,” Emilio turned to Lance, imitating their abuela, “Are you a child? Stop being estúpido and forgive him! Family should not fight like this.”Lance yelled at Emilio in Spanish, but Keith didn’t have to know the language to guess what he’d said judging from his furrowed brows and blushing cheeks.“Fine, fine. I’ll let you get back to your date. Keith you should come again without this loser, and let me show you a date with a real man.”
“Emilio! Leave Keith alone!”“Okay, maybe I will,” Keith said. Keith wasn’t exactly the “flirtatious” type, but the look on Lance’s face was worth it.“Keith, what the hell?!” Lance exclaimed as Emilio and Keith cracked up at his expense.“It’s okay, Lance, we can’t all be smooth like me.” Emilio winked at Keith and hurried to the back before Lance could yell at him anymore.“Is he always like that?” Keith asked.Lance snorted. “More or less. Though he’s not as bad if you don’t encourage him,” Lance said with a pointed look that Keith casually evaded, seemingly fascinated by the colorful tapestry lining the wall.“That’s nothing compared to when all of my cousins are together, though. Our family reunions are always insane.” Inspecting his scraped clean plate, Lance added quietly, “Maybe you could see for yourself some time.”“I’d like that,” Keith replied with a soft smile as he imagined Lance and his relatives laughing and joking with one another. He’d never had anyone like that, someone who supported and loved you unconditionally, no questions asked-- as if it was as natural as breathing. They didn’t care about you because of what you did for them or what they could gain from you but simply because you were born. He knew that this was not the case for all families, but Lance’s was obviously like this from the way he talked about them. Though he supposed, remembering Lance’s sister, that was what made it all the more devastating when you lost them. He wondered if he, never knowing that feeling in the first place, was better off after all. The night darkened but nothing could dim the light emanating from the little table in the back of Papi’s. They’d been there for close to two hours when Emilio came by with the check and said to Lance, “Deberías traerlo a su casa de Rosa. Me cae bien.” Keith raised a questioning eyebrow at Lance, but he was concentrating on his wallet, pointedly ignoring whatever Emilio had said. Keith reached for his own, but Lance shook his head and said, “Don’t worry about it. You drove us here, and I have a family discount.” From the bemused look on Emilio’s face, Keith called bullshit, but he guessed he could let it slide just this once. They left Lance’s vibrant and wonderful slice of home situated on the dirtiest corner in the city and retraced their steps into the chilly night. --When they arrived back at Keith and Hunk’s apartment building, Lance faced Keith and breathed life into a tiny cloud between them in the cool air. “I know I kind of forced you to go out with me, and I’m really sorry about that, but I’m also not sorry because this is the best night I’ve had in ages. And it’s because I was with you. If you never want to see me again or anything except for business that’s fine too, but I just wanted to let you know that. Thank you for giving me a chance and I...” Lance knew he was rambling again, but he wanted Keith to know that this hadn’t just been some random date to him. It was a memory.
“Hey, Lance.”“Yes?”“Shut up.” Lance had a tendency to start babbling when he was nervous, but Keith wanted to nip this in the bud before he kept thinking that he was here against his will. He placed his hands on Lance’s chilled shoulders and pulled himself up to meet Lance’s face, his pulse quickening at their closeness. He pressed his lips to Lance’s for a few seconds in a chaste, warm kiss to convey his feelings of the night.

“If I didn’t want to go out with you, I wouldn’t have opened my door in the first place. I mean, I’m not going to lie, I wasn’t thrilled at the idea of date with you, but when you’re not being an asshole you’re actually pretty cool. I had fun tonight, too. Next time, I’ll pay for the food though.”“Wait, you mean, this wasn’t just your way of letting me down gently?! You’ll go on another date with me?”“Don’t push your luck,” Keith deadpanned, but he couldn’t halt Lance’s excitement. Arms wrapped around him as Lance hugged him tightly.
Keith was by no means a hugger. Whenever he hugged someone, it always turned into an awkward side hug that you give acquaintances or friends you haven’t seen in years and no longer truly know. He did not particularly enjoy receiving them either. But Lance’s hugs were fierce and unapologetic, soothing all of his natural instincts that usually rendered him stiff and awkward. He felt safe and soft in his arms and wondered what it might be like to possess the power to give someone that feeling. Because Keith could see exactly what Hunk had been talking about before when he’d spoken of Lance so fondly. Underneath his idiocy, Lance was kind and warm, the opposite of Keith, and he still could not distinguish why Lance was so interested in him. He was no stranger to his good looks due to working in customer service and getting hit on constantly, but usually people’s interest diminished the second he revealed his actual personality. Lance, on the other hand, seemed to be even more interested after getting to know him.“I’ll see you on Sunday morning.” Lance leaned down and kissed him on the cheek. “Good night,” he said and walked back to his car. Keith was surprised at his abrupt departure, but chuckled when he noticed Lance’s shaking hands and red ears. After watching Lance struggle with his key for a minute or two longer, he finally bested his lock and pulled out of the parking lot. Keith hugged his helmet to his chest and watched until Lance’s car had blended into the night air and disappeared on the horizon.--Keith was half-asleep by the time he reached the door to his flat when he heard a voice behind him say, “So, how was it?”He jumped and spun around, fully awake now, to see Hunk in pajama pants holding a cookie. “Jesus, you scared me.”“I’m guessing better than you thought, seeing as your knuckles aren’t bruised and you’re smiling.”“I’m...smiling?”“Well, more like just barely not scowling, but it’s definitely happier than your usual expression.” Keith glared at him. “Yeah, that’s the one.” Hunk laughed, “So, I’m guessing Lance behaved himself.”“Well, not exactly, but he was better than usual. We’re going out again next week.”“Really? I’m glad. I hope you guys keep getting along well. I stayed up because I’m nosy and I wouldn’t be able to sleep without knowing how it went, but I have to wake up early tomorrow for the morning shift, so good night!” Hunk said cheerfully. Keith wasn’t sure he would go that far as to say they were getting along. He still wanted to strangle Lance at least once every time they spoke, but he also knew that there was more to him than just douchey pick-up lines now. Keith repeated his nicety, and they went their separate ways, disappearing into their respective rooms.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Lance rushed into the tattoo shop, his eyes searching the room for a familiar head of black hair. "Hey Lance," Shiro greeted him warmly, as he had been dropping in between work to have lunch with Keith all week and had become a well-known regular despite it being his first tattoo here. They'd all taken to him due to his approachable and friendly personality and enjoyed teasing Keith about it, however subtly.“Hey, Shiro! Coran, buddy, how are you?”“Not too well, actually. My cats, Yelmar and Yelmar Jr. have been fighting…”“That’s great. Have you seen Keith?”“He’s in the office,” Shiro replied, letting him escape from Coran’s grasp.“Thanks,” Lance said and practically sprinted toward the back.Coran huffed. “Rude.”Shiro chuckled, “Aww, cut him some slack. It’s his first piece.”“Did Keith finish it?”“Last night,” Shiro said proudly.Lance popped his head in the small room and shouted, “Keith! Keith? Keith!”“Shut up, you’ll bother the other customers.”“Is it finished?! Is it really finished? Meaning you can start tattooing?!”“All that’s left is for you to approve it, and I can make the transfer.”“Let me see it!”“Okay, okay, hold on.” Keith pulled the piece out of a folder and slid it over to Lance. Sitting on the paper was a magnificent blue lioness, stalking forward in a field of blue flowers. Her eyes were staring back at Lance, shining with intelligence. Though the piece depicted a great beast, the tone was undeniably gentle. Just like her. “Lance?” He didn’t open his mouth. “Is it..Do you not like it?”Lance looked up at him. His eyes were burning as he said, “It’s beautiful. It’s everything I wanted but better, I can’t… it’s perfect.” He seemed to be at a loss for words.Keith’s shoulders relaxed and he let out a sigh of relief. “We can start the outline the next time you come in. I’ll probably finish that in one session but coloring may take two. We’ll need to wait at least two weeks in between for it to heal as well. And then we need to talk about aftercare...” Lance was still staring at the lioness. “Lance, are you listening?”“Yeah, sorry, I just... I just can’t believe she's finally here.” He made eye contact with Keith and held him there. “Seriously, thank you.”“I’m just doing what you’re paying me for,” Keith said, even though they both knew it was more than that. --“So, what do you want to do on Friday?” Lance asked, holding his phone with one hand while the other gripped his steering wheel.“I was thinking that you could come over to my apartment if you want to.”“If I want to?” Lance snorted. “Of course I want to. Do you want me to bring food or something? And by that I mean dessert from Hunk’s fridge.”“Yeah, sure, but you don't have to worry about dinner.”“Wait, you're going to make me dinner? You can cook?”“Do you have a problem with that?” Keith said scathingly at the disbelief in Lance’s voice.“No, no, not at all. I just didn't peg you for the wine and dine type, but trust me, I am very excited about this sudden development.”“Well, it's not like I do this all the time or anything. I've been living by myself for almost 7 years, so I kind of had to learn.”“The only reason I know how to is because I spent one summer with my grandparents in Cuba and my abuela made me help with every meal. That's about the only kind of food I can make though. Do you know what you’re going to make?”“I have an idea.”“Oh, are you not telling me?”“It’s a surprise.”“I thought you didn’t like surprises.”“I don’t, but you surprised me so this is payback.”Lance laughed and replied, “Alright, well, I’m almost home but I’ll drop by tomorrow for lunch again. Bye.”“Bye.”Lance hung up the phone and found Hunk’s number while he was stopped at a red light. He wouldn’t be home for another five minutes, but he needed to scream at his best friend before he went insane. “Hey, Lance, what are yo--”“HUNK! HE LIKES ME AND HE INVITED ME TO HIS APARTMENT FOR A SECOND DATE AND I DON’T KNOW WHAT TO DO!!”“Well, you could start by not bursting your best friend’s ear drum. And I know he likes you, all you’ve talked about is Keith for the past two weeks and you’ve been eating lunch with him since Friday.”“Yeah, but this is the first time he’s initiated something! I mean, I know he told me that he wouldn’t see me if he didn’t want to, but still. This time though, he was the one who invited me.”Lance waited for Hunk’s exasperated reply but was surprised to hear muffled snuffles instead.“Hunk? Are you crying?”“No! It’s just that my best buddy is finally growing up. You’re getting your tattoo and a boyfriend and you’re so happy and I just… It’s been a while since I’ve seen you this happy.”Lance felt like he might start crying, too. Hunk had always been there for him and he’d never taken that for granted, but now more than ever, he was grateful for his wonderful best friend and giant teddy-bear. The past couple of years since his sister’s death had been rough, but Hunk had stuck with him through it all. There was never a time where Hunk wasn’t available to him if he needed him. Eventually, Lance had learned how to mask his feelings: how to smile when he felt like scowling, laugh when he felt like crying, and joke around when he felt like staying silent. People always commented on how well he was dealing with his loss or how cheerful he was despite the circumstances. The fact that he was able to move on was amazing. But moving on and hiding were two entirely different things. And Hunk had seen that. He’d never said anything to him, but Lance knew that if he ever wanted to talk, Hunk would be there. Because he had always been there.“I love you, man,” Lance choked out.“I love you too, Lance.”“I have to go because I’m pulling into the parking lot, but I’m going to stop by the shop tomorrow.”“Okay, see you.” Lance didn’t want to hang up but figured they would start outright bawling if one of them didn’t. God, Hunk was the best. It only seemed fitting that he had led him to Keith.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Lance felt a sense of deja vu as he stood outside of Keith’s apartment once again, only this time he was holding a tupperware container with brownies inside that Hunk had so graciously prepared for him. He shifted the brownies to his left hand to wipe the sweat from his right palm onto his jeans. He thought after visiting Keith several times at work and texting him practically day and night that his nerves would calm down, but apparently he had no such luck. Keith had told him to wear comfortable clothes when he’d asked, so he was wearing dark wash jeans, a blue T-shirt of his favorite band The Paladins, and lace up Vans, but he wondered if he should have dressed up more. The door clicked as Keith opened it and smiled at him.
Originally, Lance had thought that a smile from Keith was something of a rare commodity and did not often occur in nature, but this theory had proved to be incorrect. Because Keith smiled all the time. You just had to know what to look for. Where Lance smiled with every muscle in his face, Keith’s smiles were more subtle. A lowering of the eyelids, a barely noticeable quirk of the mouth, a softening of the facial features: all of these were signs of a Keith smile, and Lance couldn’t wait to discover more.
“Brownies? I’ll have to thank Hunk.” Keith looked certifiably adorable in an oversized sweater, leggings, and barefeet, dressed, thankfully, more casually than Lance. He had his hair pulled back in a half-up half-down style that made Lance’s heart throb.
“Not me? I could have made these myself, you know.”
“Lance, not only did you tell me that you were getting Hunk to make us dessert, I also heard you pick them up. But thanks for delivering them, I guess.” Keith grabbed the brownies and walked back into his entryway, not bothering to wait for Lance. Some people may peg Keith as rude (as he originally had) but Lance had adjusted and come to appreciate the side of him that ignored arbitrary politeness. Keith didn’t accept people into his life carelessly and that was evident in his behavior. He skipped the uncomfortable steps in between, refusing to walk on eggshells around Lance and instead closing the distance that took most people months to overcome simply because he couldn’t be bothered with it. He didn’t act without purpose, and he made sure that whoever he interacted with knew that.
Lance followed closely into Keith’s small kitchen that was almost identical to Hunk’s, minus the advanced kitchenware and cute decorations. The kitchen opened out into the living room which was somehow cluttered and sparse all at once. Keith had artwork and albums lining his flat, overlapping and fighting for attention on the crowded walls, but his interior design was minimal in terms of furniture. One side of his couch was covered in a blanket, tattoo and motorcycle magazines, and art supplies, while the opposite side looked new and untouched. His bookshelf was overflowing with books crammed together and seeping out of the shelves while his desk was neatly organized and clear, not a sliver of scrap paper in sight. Faint indie music was playing from the record player in the corner of the living room, and a heavenly smell was emanating from the frying pan Keith had simmering on the stove.
“After I dropped out of high school, I lived with Shiro for about eight months, and he taught me to make a bunch of Japanese dishes. I’m making udon tonight.”
“It looks amazing,” Lance said, peering in the pan to peek at the noodles, vegetables, and tofu.
“It’s not, but thanks.”
Lance rolled his eyes at Keith’s inability to take compliments. “You don’t have to say that. I wouldn’t tell you that it was amazing if I didn’t feel that way.”
It was Keith’s turn to roll his eyes. “You would, but fine, if it bothers you that much, it is amazing. And so am I. That’s why peasants such as yourself worship me,” Keith deadpanned. Lance laughed though he hoped that Keith would genuinely try to improve his compliment-accepting skills, because they were seriously lacking.
Lance settled at one of the two barstools next to the counter while Keith hovered over the food, frowning at it and stirring occasionally. A comfortable silence had enveloped the two, but Lance didn’t know how much longer it would last when a nagging question wouldn’t quit prodding the back of his mind.
“Why did you drop out of school?”
Keith’s back stiffened, and he released his loose hold on the spatula.
“Sorry, I know that was probably too invasive and if you don’t want to answer it that’s totally cool, I was just… curious is all.”
“No, it’s fine. I mean it’s natural that you would want to know why. It wasn’t any dramatic or serious reason anyway.” Lance was trying to contain his excitement, but he couldn’t keep himself from bouncing in his seat.
“Living in a group home is exactly like you’re picturing, except make it about ten times shittier, and then you’ve got the basic picture. And then you take that, and you add high school on top of it. But I knew that I wanted to get out of there, so I went to school and I studied and I got straight A's. The only reason I did that though was to leave, but I didn’t know what I actually wanted to do. So, when I discovered that I wanted to be a tattoo artist, and that high school was irrelevant, I left. And then I found Voltron. I don’t regret leaving, but it does sound kind of stupid now.”
“It sounds more terrifying to me. I don’t think I’ve ever been that brave. Weren’t you scared?”
Keith turned, wide-eyed, to Lance. He didn’t tell that story often, but when he did people usually agreed with him. No one had ever asked him that before. And he knew that anyone could have said that, and it was just a coincidence that Lance was the one to ask him, but it felt like more. It was more.
“I was but… I was also ready,” he said slowly. The words felt strange as he said them, as if he’d been waiting to say them, but had never anticipated actually using them.
“My first year on my own was probably the scariest time in my life. I was a dumb kid without any skills in the city on my own. Eventually, Shiro found me and helped me out, but it definitely wasn’t easy.”
Lance’s stomach fluttered when he realized that Keith was probably the bravest person he’d ever met.
“You’re probably the bravest person I’ve ever met.”
Keith kept facing the stove but his ears were red as he mumbled, “Shut up.”Keith switched off the stove and prepared plates for the two of them, passing Lance on the barstool and heading to the couch. Lance hopped up and claimed the neglected side of the couch next to Keith’s spot. “This really does look super good. But I’m surprised that you didn’t ask me any questions about food beforehand.”
Keith eyebrows furrowed. “Are you really that picky?” He held out Lance’s plate, waiting for him to get situated and take it.
“No, I mean, what would you have done if I was allergic to anything?”
Keith paused and retracted the plate a bit. “Are you?”
“No.”
“Then there's no problem.” He plopped the plate down in Lance’s lap and shoved his chopsticks into his own noodles, enjoying the fruits of his labor.
Lance squinted at him and said, “You're no fun.”
Keith shrugged and went back to his meal.
“Have you seen Emilio since last Friday?”
Lance narrowed his eyes and his voice tightened. “Yeah. I’ve seen Emilio. And you want to know the first thing he said to me? He looked around all excited when I showed up, but after a few seconds he looked disappointed. When I asked what was wrong, he said, ‘Oh, I just thought Keith might have come too, but it’s just you.’” Keith burst out laughing, but he was genuinely pleased to hear this. “So, he likes me?”
“Not you, too! You’re not allowed to like Emilio!” Keith couldn’t help it. He lost it again. “This is no laughing matter!” Lance exclaimed angrily.
“No, dumbass. I don’t want him to like me because he’s Emilio. I want him to like me because he’s your cousin.”
Lance’s cheeks colored pink, and he muttered, “Oh. Well, that’s fine then.” Lance hesitated for a moment and then said, “Actually, my Aunt Rosa is having everyone over next weekend if you want to come. I get it if you don’t or it’s ‘too soon’ or whatever but I thought you might want to and I-- Well, I would really like it if you came.”
“I’d really like that, too. It’s just…” Keith trailed off, examining a loose string on his pants.
“What is it?”
“Are you sure they’re going to like me?”
Lance laughed loudly as if Keith had said something too ridiculous to even consider. “Trust me, that’s going to be the least of your problems. Getting them to leave you alone is what’s going to be difficult.” Keith looked at him skeptically. “Okay, but when my niece tries to follow you into the bathroom, I’m not coming to your rescue.” Lance snickered at the alarm on Keith’s face. “If you do feel yourself drowning though, you can always find me or Emilio. I’ll tell him to go easy on you. Though honestly, if you’re still worried about them liking you, make fun of me. Lance jokes are always a big hit, and they’ll have added power coming from you.” Keith wasn’t sure if Lance was kidding or not but decided to make note of his advice. Of course he wanted to meet Lance’s family, but families had never been his strong suit. The closest he’d come to something like this was meeting Shiro’s mom, and he’d been immensely awkward, only managing to loosen up because of her familiar ability to soothe and comfort that Shiro also possessed. He’d been fine with Emilio as well, but Emilio was one person and he also wasn’t Lance’s mom. Oh God. Lance’s mom. What if she hated him? She would probably hate him.
“I feel like you’re thinking dumb things again. Look, if it really bothers you we can just skip it--”
“No, I--”
“Or you can just text me if it’s too much and I’ll come up with some excuse to get us out of there.”
Keith’s heart twisted at the way Lance so easily accommodated for him and understood. “I’ll be fine. I’m stronger than I look. But thanks,” said Keith, and he meant it. He would be fine for Lance because this was important to the both of them, and he wasn’t going to fuck it up. Probably.
“Alright, but don’t hold back. Don’t worry, I’m not against being alone with you,” Lance flirted, attempting to and succeeding at summoning a Keith smile. When Lance flirted with Keith, he could expect one of two responses: flat out refusal or begrudging amusement. Luckily, he managed to garner the positive response, though it was definitely the more rare of the pair. After finishing their food, Keith washed while Lance dried, and then they retreated to the couch once more, Keith veering off to flip the record before settling in. Though Lance enjoyed going out with Keith, he liked these kind of dates the most. Something about seeing Keith operate in his natural habit made him feel warm inside.
Keith had rolled up his sleeves to wash the dishes, exposing his extensive tattoos. Lance realized that he had never asked about them before or even seen most of them. On their last date, they had been mostly covered besides Keith’s hands, and whenever they were at the shop they were discussing Lance’s tattoo. Well, he fully intended to rectify this severe oversight, tonight.
“Would you mind showing me some of your tattoos?”
Keith regarded Lance, a bit surprised at the sudden inquiry. “Umm, sure. I mean, I don’t mind.”
He slowly uncovered the ink on his arms as he pushed his sleeves up as far as possible. His arms were painted murals of black and colored ink, and Lance thought they were absolutely breathtaking. His hands looked almost identical with two black bands on his pinkies and five dots marking his middle fingers. The only difference was in his pointer fingers: the left was adorned with a black sun and the right with a crescent moon. His left forearm featured a few scattered flowers that built up higher on his arm, framing the gentle form of a doe on his bicep. Mixed in with the flora were a few quotes in calligraphic script that Lance thought about asking about, but figured they were practically illegible for a reason and decided not to pry any further, at least not today. He knew that Keith was a very private person and that this was making him uncomfortable enough. His right arm was done in color, unlike his left, and showcased two beautiful koi swimming down his arm, with lotus flowers and lily pads floating around them. He had an additional two quotes there, obscured from view on the underside of his arm. Lance couldn’t read the higher one but the lower one read, “Patience yields focus.”
“Hermosa,” Lance whispered.
Keith wrinkled his nose in confusion, but he figured from the expression on Lance’s face that it was a compliment. “...Do you want to see more?”
“Can I?”
Keith lifted his sweater over his head, his chest facing Lance.

He had a great black tree with branches filling his otherwise pale chest, twisting and shaping patterns across his body. Directly below that Keith had Chinese style dragon on his stomach, disappearing into the waistband of his leggings. “This one wraps around almost my entire right leg, stopping about mid-calf.” Lance felt guilty, but he couldn’t help himself from thinking how sexy that must look. He didn’t want to be one of those people who sexualized tattoos, but he also couldn’t take his eyes off of the dragon or disable his overactive imagination. He gulped.
Keith caught him staring and said smirking, “Hot, right?”
“What? No, that’s not w-what I was thinking,” Lance sputtered, unable to fix the malfunction in his brain, causing him to keep spitting out unintelligible words and phrases like an idiot.
Keith laughed, “Lance, relax. I know you aren’t being creepy and that you don’t think about my tattoos like that. You don’t have to feel bad about finding them attractive. I’m kind of glad you do anyway.”
“Do you have any more? You don’t have to show me them or anything, I was just wondering.”
Keith appeared conflicted for a moment before reluctantly replying, “Yes, a few more on my legs, and also a large back piece. Maybe I can show you the others some other time, but… this one you need to see.” Lance crinkled his forehead. Did he have anything embarrassing? Like a tramp stamp or something that he regretted? On a friend, Lance may have found that funny, but Keith looked so distraught about it that he didn’t dare laugh no matter what it was. Keith stood up and turned.
Lance felt the world stop for a moment.
Because Keith had a red lion on his back.
It wasn’t like Lance’s though. Where Lance’s lion was strong yet kind, this lion was growling and slashing into Keith’s skin, leaving behind 3 angry red marks.
“At first I didn’t want to design your lion because of this, but when you told me about your sister, I couldn't refuse it. I figured you would never see mine. I’m sorry I didn’t tell you about it before.”
“Is it alright if I touch it?”
Keith peered over his shoulder with caution guarding his eyes but nonetheless nodded. Keith shivered as cold fingertips ghosted over his skin, tracing the beast on his back. His heart was pounding. He was exhilarated and terrified, but maybe a little bit calm too. Because as much as Lance’s cool touch set him on fire, it also soothed him. Lance continued exploring Keith’s back, trailing his hands over the three stark red marks marring the pale canvas, surprised to find them textured. What Lance had previously thought was artistic realism turned out to be bumpy, mutilated skin.
“Why did you want this?”
Keith answered quietly, “For my scars. I didn't want to cover them, though. My scars have always reminded me of the experience that put them there. Who put them there. I said I was in a group home all my life, but that wasn’t entirely true. For a while, I was in foster care, but I was eventually put in a group home for my ‘violent nature.’ My last pair of foster parents took care of five or six kids and bullied them, refusing to let them eat if they didn’t finish their chores, and just generally acting like assholes. One day, the wife was being especially harsh to one of the younger boys staying there. He was new and didn’t understand how to act around them. She had a lot of mental issues and snapped. She grabbed a box cutter and raised it at the boy. She might not have used it at all had I not stepped in, but my body moved on instinct. I grabbed her wrist, but it made her angrier. At the time, I was eleven, so she was much stronger and overpowered me. She threw me to the ground and sliced my back several times. Then, as the woman had no prior history of child abuse and bruises on her wrist, and the other kids were too afraid to vouch for me, they believed her story that I tried to attack her. They chalked my wounds up to an accident in my attempt to hurt her. Luckily, I didn’t go to juvy because they didn’t have enough evidence to prove the story, but I was taken out of foster care.”
Keith realized he had started shaking somewhere along the way, shocked out of his distasteful past by a hand squeezing his own. Grounding him. After a deep and much-needed breath, Keith carried on.
“Even though it wasn’t a pleasant memory, I didn't want to forget it because it made me who I am. I wanted to change the meaning of my scars, not erase them. I wanted to make them my own. This way, they have become a part of me just as Red has.” Lance understood that completely. The reason he wanted to get his tattoo was so that he could finally move on while still keeping a part of his sister with him. He would always have her close by, even if she wasn’t there physically. And Keith would always carry this with him. He wondered if that was why Keith’s design of Blue had captured what he wanted so poignantly.
“Thank you for telling me.”
Keith nodded, grabbing his sweater and pulling it back on when Lance retracted his hand. When he sat down, Lance was staring at him with intense eyes.
“Keith.”
“Yes?” Keith said, false confidence coating his nervous voice.
Lance placed his hands on Keith’s cheeks, squishing them lightly.
“Umm, wha--”
“I like you. I like you so much. I think you may be my favorite person. I don’t know what to say right now, but I do know that I want you to know this,” Lance said, unable to think of anything more poetic than what a middle schooler might say to their first crush. But he was undeniably serious.
Lance was sure that his face was bright red, but Keith’s was as well, so he decided not to worry about it.
Before he could continue, Keith said, “So, you’re okay with it? You still want me to tattoo you?”
“Why wouldn’t I be okay with it? Of course I still want you to. Are you not okay with it?”
“No, no, I just wasn’t sure because they’re so similar.”
“I mean it’s not as if they’re matching and their significance is different so…” Lance shrugged. “If anything, that just makes me want it more.”
Relief erased the creases of worry and confusion on Keith’s face as he smiled at Lance. But Lance wasn’t smiling. He was staring at Keith’s lips. They shifted closer towards each other, Keith reaching up to lace his hand in Lance’s hair, the other resting on his neck. Their lips met and moved in sync, heat driving them together. Lance lowered his hands to Keith’s waist and pulled his smaller body gently into his lap. Keith surged forward, placing slow but deliberate touches along Lance’s scorching skin. He left Lance’s mouth, paving a path of small sweet kisses down his jawbone and neck. Lance gasped as Keith nipped his collarbone and snickered at his reaction. He lowered his head, bringing Keith’s lips back to his own. “El diablo,” he whispered, and Keith grinned at him before kissing him again.
They continued kissing on Keith’s couch for what felt like an eternity but was actually about fifteen minutes. Lance finally moved back and said, “As amazing as this is, I-I think we should slow down a bit.” Keith nodded, though the disappointment was clear on his face, much to Lance’s delight. With shaky breaths, they gradually untangled their limbs and regarded one another. Lance’s shirt was wrinkled beyond repair and his mouth was swollen and red. Keith’s hair was a tangled mess that somehow still managed to look attractive, and his sweater had fallen, exposing a pale shoulder. “We look like hell,” Keith said and they laughed together at their dishevelled states.
“It’s getting late,” said Keith. 11:24 glared at them from the clock atop the stove.
“I should probably head out,” Lance agreed and they reluctantly moved to the doorway. Lance stood outside of Keith’s flat, not entirely sure what Keith was doing. He was frowning at him, his arms crossed, waiting. Puzzled, Lance said, “Goodnight?” Keith groaned at his ignorance and stepped forward, wrapping his arms around Lance’s lanky frame.
Okay, now Lance was even more confused. He was certain that the world must be ending, because he may not have known Keith long, but he knew that he did not initiate hugs. Was he waiting for me to do it? Shit. Shit, that was so cute and maybe he was jumping to conclusions, but Lance couldn’t take it. He buried his doubt and his face in Keith’s wild hair, returning the unexpected and much-appreciated embrace. He savored the feeling of Keith in his arms for as long as he could before bidding him goodnight and retreating down the hallway.After Lance’s departure, Keith took a moment to restart his heart and collect himself before paying a visit to his nosy-yet-well-meaning neighbor. He knocked on the door, knowing that despite the time, Hunk would be up. He always was when Lance was with him, and Keith suspected that Hunk was the first person Lance called after their dates. Hunk opened the door, dressed lavishly in boxers and a robe. Keith handed him the brownie container that he and Lance had emptied.
“Thank you,” Keith said.
“It’s no problem. Better than Lance killing you by trying to make something on his own.”
“I thought he said he could cook.”
“Oh, he can, yeah, but Cuban food only. Everything else is awful. Like seriously, do not ever accept food from him that is anything else. You will die,” Hunk warned, shuddering at the mere thought of Lance’s baking skills.
“Good to know. Well, I’ve got some work I need to finish up, so I should go. Good night,” Keith said, exhausted by the sheer amount of talking he’d had to do that night. He edged back towards his flat and had almost reached home base when--
“Hey Keith?”
So close. “Yeah?”
“Just, don’t hurt him okay? I know you guys just started dating, but he really likes you so I feel like I should say this now. Lance may seem like nothing gets to him, but he’s actually really sensitive. He’s already got enough scars, so if you aren’t serious about him, please don’t make him think you are. Because I’ve seen the aftermath of that and trust me, it’s not pretty,” Hunk said, remembering all the times Lance had shown up at his house with tears flowing and snot running. It’d become such a regular occurrence that the two had a sort of routine for it. Lance would empty Hunk’s fridge of anything sweet and harmful to the body, and Hunk would raid his apartment for blankets and tissues, wrapping Lance up like a sushi roll and hugging him as he let out all the heartbreak with Star Wars playing in the background. They would marathon the original trilogy and by the time Luke finds out his heritage, Lance was back to his old self, albeit a bit more tired and quiet than usual. Hunk blushed and smiled at him sheepishly. “Not that I think you would do anything to hurt him intentionally but…”
“It’s okay, Hunk. I get it. I know that Lance isn’t as untouchable as he makes himself out to be. But I care about Lance, and trust me, I wouldn’t hang around him if I didn’t. I can’t guarantee that I’ll never hurt him, but I can tell you that I won’t lead him somewhere I don’t intend to follow.”
Hunk smiled at Keith and said, “Thank you for being honest.”
“Thank you for taking care of him.”
“Can you maybe keep this from Lance?”
“Sure, but he’d probably be happy about it. I won’t say anything though as long as you don’t.”
“Agreed.”
They parted with secret smiles, oblivious to the sly advances of their own friendship which had formed out of their mutual concern for Lance.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

“Ow….oww...OWWWW!”
“Lance, I haven’t even started yet!”
Lance squirmed in the chair as Keith placed a hand on his shoulder in a failed attempt to steady him.
“I know, I know, I’m just scared okay. That is practically a weapon, and I am giving you permission to stab me with it,” he barked back, unable to settle his nerves.
“Everyone gets first time jitters, but you have to stay still.”
“Jitters? I’m about to have a fucking panic attack!”
Keith sighed. “Well, I can’t work like this, so either you calm down.”
“...What’s the next option?”
“There isn’t one.”
“Ugh!” Lance groaned. “I can’t help it. It just freaks me out!”
Keith channeled his inner Shiro and replied through gritted teeth, “What can I do to help?”
“How should I know? You’re the professional!”
Keith ignored his dark desire to strangle Lance and instead thought of a brilliant plan to distract him. Though he would be lying if he said it was just for Lance.
“So, you said that we would be going to your Aunt Rosa’s on Sunday, right? Who all is going?”
“Oh! Right, so, okay, we need to go over some things first. Number one: do not believe anything any of my cousins tell you except for Maria, she is the only one on my side.”
Keith laughed and said, “Alright, I’m going to start. What’s number two?”
“What?! No, wai--”
“Lance. You’re going to be ok. Now, what’s number two?”
Lance squeezed his eyes shut and sucked in a breath. Keith was right. He could do this. “Okay, Number two is-- Ow! Fuck!”
“Stay still!”
“I am but damn, that hurts!”
“Yeah, it’s a tattoo, dumbass.”
“I know that but,” Lance gasped, “that doesn’t make it hurt any less.”
“Quit being a baby.”
Lance pouted, jutting out his lower lip. “And you were so sweet last night.”
“What was that?”
“Nothing.”
“It better be nothing,” Keith grumbled. “Anyway, go on.”
Lance stuck his tongue out in response, ignoring the fact that they were facing away from each other. “Number two: don’t let my abuela corner you. Because she will. If she tries to get you alone, just grab someone and start talking to them. They will understand, I promise.”
The tattoo gun buzzed as it pierced Lance’s virgin skin. He had calmed down from the initial shock of the sensation, and his whining had been reduced to a few winces between words.
“I feel like you’re exaggerating.” Keith wiped the excess blood and ink from Lance’s back, following the lines from the transfer closely.
“Say that again when you’re reciting marriage vows next Sunday night. Seriously, she is relentless.”
“Is there a number three?”
“Boy, there are like ninety-seven. And even then,you still wouldn’t be ready. But, this is the abridged version, so three it is. Number three: don’t let the kids manipulate you. They’ll sense that you’re uncomfortable and mark you as easy prey. Do not, I repeat, do not agree to play any games with them. You think you’re just playing a friendly game of hide and seek and then the next thing you know you’ve been enslaved by a bunch of elementary schoolers.”
Okay, now Keith was mildly alarmed. It’s not that he didn’t like kids. He did. He just never knew what to do with them. Luckily, his job didn’t require him to interact with too many minors, but he was beginning to think that was as much a blessing as it was a curse. He could have used the practice.
“Keith? You okay?”
“You’re asking me that? And yes, I’m just concentrating. It would be pretty bad if I fucked this up.”
“Oh my god, please don’t.”
“Relax, I haven’t made any mistakes. Yet.”
“Shiroooo. He’s bullying me.” Shiro addressed the two with a wry grin before humoring them.
“Keith, stop bullying him. Lance, stop telling on Keith and behave.”
“What? How am I in trouble too? He started it,” Lance complained.
“Maybe because you’re being more annoying,” Coran chimed in cheerfully.
“Oh, thanks, Coran,” Lance bit out.
“No problem! Happy to help!”
All of the Voltron Ink artists could work freely after hiring a new receptionist, a sweet girl named Shay. Seems like someone Hunk might like, Lance thought.
“How long does this take?” asked Lance after they’d been at it for a little over half an hour.
“Depends. How long can you last?” Keith teased.
“Are we still talking about tattoos? Because I can as long as you need, babe, I was just worried about you. Your hand must be getting tired.”
Keith glared daggers into the back of Lance’s stupid head. He moved on to a more sensitive area and pressed the needle in. Lance shrieked, “Keith! You did that on purpose!”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Keith said, failing to mention his planned timing. Leaning in closer to Lance’s ear, he whispered, “And don’t worry, I can go all night.”
Lance’s ears turned pink and he quieted down, mumbling something about Keith being “unfair” and that he was “cheating.” At least he wasn’t screaming anymore.They finished their first session, and Lance sighed in relief that the pain would stop. He inspected his back in the mirror and ambushed Keith with a hug after seeing it. Keith shoved him off and told him to be more careful with his back. They covered his tattoo, and Keith lectured him about aftercare for about the sixth time, still doubtful that Lance had paid attention to any of it. Lance left, promising to bring him food tonight for a third date and Keith would be lying if he said he wasn’t ecstatic. Shiro gave him a knowing smile.
“What are you looking at?” Keith grumbled.
Shiro chuckled and patted his shoulder.
“Nothing. Just glad to see you happy is all.”

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Keith was fine. He was completely calm. Totally zen. Except for the vigorous shaking in his fingers that hadn’t stopped since he slid into the passenger seat of Lance’s blue 2004 Chevy Malibu. And the intense anxiety slowly choking him to death. And the blaring red warning sign running ABORT ABORT ABORT on repeat in his brain. But he was fine! Lance kept flashing worried glances his direction sensing his unease. He was sure that his family would fall in love with Keith, but how was he was going to convince Keith? They stopped in front of a quaint one story house that had entirely too many cars in its driveway and yard. People had given up on parking civilly, simply jamming their car wherever it would fit. Keith was staring at his fidgeting fingers in his lap with wide eyes oblivious to their arrival. “Keith,” Lance roused him softly. His eyes shot to Lance’s, and they spoke without words. Lance took one of Keith’s shivering hands in his own and brought it to his lips. “You’re going to be alright. I know that they’ll like you, though I also know that that doesn’t help much. I am kind of biased. But you and my family already have something in common, so I’m sure you’ll get along.” Raising his eyebrow, Keith silently posed a question. “You both love mocking me.”
Keith laughed and then closed his eyes. He squeezed them shut for ten seconds and then abruptly came back to life. “Okay. I’m okay. Let’s go.”
He gently tugged his hand out of Lance’s grasp and exited the beat up car. He marched up to the door, his face resembling a battle ready soldier stationed on the front lines. Lance matched his pace and slipped an arm around his waist hoping to provide a bit of comfort, though honestly he thought Keith was overreacting a bit. Meeting the parents was always awkward, right? But, even though some nervousness was to be expected, Keith was full on freaking out about it. He thought back to what Keith had told him on their first date about his family and realized that maybe it was that big of a deal to him. Because this familiarity that Lance had always trusted was entirely new to Keith.
Lance touched his lips to Keith’s temple and whispered, “Breathe.”
Keith’s eyes flicked to his face as Lance stepped up to the door and knocked.The door swung open to reveal a short, plump woman resembling Lance, a giant smile engulfing her face. Keith didn’t think he could stretch his face that wide if he tried. She exclaimed, “Lance! ¡Mi hijo! Come in!” She ushered them into the entrance, swinging her arms like mad. She ran her hands up and down Lance’s arms, commenting on every aspect of his appearance before yanking him into an almost violent hug. “You’ve gotten so tall! But, so skinny! Why aren’t you eating? I told you if you aren’t eating properly to go to Papi’s.” She poked his ribs until he caught her hands and said, “¡Mamá! Calm down! I’m haven’t even grown since the last time you saw me, and I’ve been eating fine. Anyway, aren’t you forgetting something?” For the first time, Lance’s mom seemed to notice that Lance hadn’t come alone.
“Lance? Who is this?” Lance hadn’t even told her about him? Oh, he was so going to kill him after this.
“This is Keith. My boyfriend.”Against his wishes, Keith’s heart leapt at the word “boyfriend.”Lance’s mother gaped at them, her eyes switching rapidly between the two boys. “¿Tu novio?”
Lance nodded, and his mother looked Keith up and down sizing him up. Her smile returned, though it had shrunk considerably, and she reached out a hand to Keith. “Hello! I’m Lance’s mother Luz. If I’d known you were coming I could have shown my hospitality better,” she said, shooting Lance a pointed look which he deflected from years of practice. Keith returned her smile and grasped her hand. “Keith. It’s nice to me-- woah!” Lance’s mom tucked him into a bone-crushing hug, cutting off his circulation but at the same time eliciting a calm, relaxed feeling he hadn’t known existed inside him. He felt...comfortable with her. He may have still been nervous, but she had cracked that barrier along with his spine. She freed him from her embrace, but kept her hands on his arms and said, “Lance, how could you not tell me you had a boyfriend? And such a handsome one at that!” She pressed her hot hands to his cheeks and lightly slapped them. “But you, too! Why are you so skinny? You need to eat, eat! Come on and meet the others while I get you some food. They’re in the backyard because Anton is grilling.” “I thought it was quiet in here.”“Don’t antagonize your younger cousins today, Lance.”“Me? They’re the evil ones. I’m telling you, they’re just little gremlins in disguise,” Lance joked and his mother shared a look with Keith while shaking her head at her son’s idiocy.“...Is Abuela here?” Lance asked nervously looking around as if she was lurking in the shadows waiting to strike. His mom laughed and said, “Don’t worry. Apparently, Danny got married to his girlfriend Alexandra in secret, so she shouldn’t be bothering you tonight.”“Oh God. Poor Danny. She won’t be leaving him alone for the next month, let alone tonight ,” Lance said though he sounded less than concerned. Keith couldn’t blame him; he would be lying if he said he didn’t breathe a sigh of relief at their luck.They made their way to the back porch, and Lance opened the door for him. There must have been at least thirty people there, laughing and yelling at one another over the immense noise of the group. He could hear kids screaming off in the distance like a pack of wolves ready to hunt down their next meal. Which he assumed would be Lance. As if on cue, a collection of about six or seven kids ran towards them and screamed, “Lance! Uncle Lance! Play with us!” Keith sidestepped away from Lance to give them more room, but they stopped upon spotting him. The “leader” of the gang, a little girl covered in Band-aids and bruises who was missing a front tooth, spoke for the rest of them, hiding behind her from the stranger.
“Who’s this, Uncle Lance? He doesn’t look like one of us.”
Some of the adults had taken notice of him as well, casting curious glances in his direction.
“Gremlins, meet Keith. Keith, meet the Gremlins,” Lance said, gesturing between the two.
“Hey! We’re not Gwemlins!”
“Do you even know what that is?”
“Get him!” The kids swarmed Lance climbing on top of him. One kid latched onto his leg while another was swinging on his arm and a third scaled his back. They wrestled him to the ground, and he cried out, “Keith! Buddy! Pal! Save me!”
“No, Keith’s on our side. He’s cool!”
Lance threw him a pleading look, but Keith shrugged and said, “You heard them.”
“Traitor! Also, I thought you guys said I was cool? What happened to that, Nicanora?”
“You’re only cool when you play with us,” she replied, sitting on Lance’s chest and resting her tiny fists on his face.
“Well, I guess I’ll just have to play with you then,” Lance said, and she shrieked as he lifted her up and stood. He swung her onto his back and assessed Keith, silently asking permission-- or more likely asking if he was okay. Keith sighed. How could he say no with those puppy dog eyes begging him from over Lance’s shoulder? He nodded and Lance grinned and took off running, Nicanora digging her claws into his shoulders to steady herself. The other kids ran off after him, and Keith was left to fend for himself under the scrutiny of Lance’s entire ginormous family. He gulped.“Keith? Keith! Come sit over here!” Emilio called out to him, raising a hand to beckon him over and save his life. Keith claimed the empty lawn chair to the right of Emilio and joined a sizable group of about eight older teenagers and young adults. The minute his ass touched the seat, he was bombarded with questions by the girl directly opposite him.
“So, you came with Lance? How long have you guys been together? How did you meet? Did you ask him out or did he ask you out? It was probably Lance, it’s always Lance… ”
“Maria, lay off. He just got here, and he hasn’t even eaten yet. And besides, Keith obviously only came with Lance to get to me, right?” Emilio waggled his eyebrows at Keith making him laugh and breaking down some of the awkwardness.
“Looks like I’ve been found out. But, um, it’s fine, you can ask me about it. We’ve only been dating for about a month, and we met when he came in to get a tattoo from me.”
“And then he won you over with his charm?”
“...More like wore me down.”
They laughed at that. Keith was glad he remembered that Lance had told him to poke fun at him and fully intended to abuse that power. Maria sighed, “Yep, that’s Lance. I was hoping he’d done better this time. Though I guess he did, since you’re sitting with us.” She winked at him, to which he offered a wry grin. He liked her already. She was clever in the way that Lance was.
“Wait, aren’t we ignoring something pretty important here?” said the teenage boy next to Maria; he reminded Keith of himself at that age, with a dark hoodie on and black nails. “Lance? Tattoo?” he said loudly to their puzzled expressions.
Maria exclaimed, “Oh, yeah! Lance got a tattoo?!”
All eyes were on Keith.
“Uhh, well, it’s not really my place to talk about it…”
Keith felt a hand drop down on his shoulder. “I don’t mind. But I could just show you instead.”
Lance was standing behind him having miraculously freed himself from the kids’ clutches. Eager voices encouraged him as Lance turned and lifted his shirt as high as he could. Keith, caught off guard by the sudden attention to his work, felt uncharacteristically embarrassed. He generally felt confident in his tattoos, as he had been doing it for years now and had received primarily positive responses throughout his career. But those people knew about tattoos, knew his style, knew him. This was uncharted territory because for once in quite a long time, he found himself caring about what non-clientele thought about his work. “It’s not finished, he still has to come in for a few more sessions and we have to add color…” Keith trailed off when he saw the expressions on their faces.
“Wow,” Maria whispered at a volume he didn’t know she was capable of.
“It’s for Leodora,” Lance said quietly, his face hidden from all but Keith. He was smiling at him, but he looked as if he might cry. Keith thought about reaching for his hand, but didn’t. He wished he had.
“You made this, Keith?” Lance’s mother was standing behind Maria holding a plate weighed down by a massive mountain of food staring at him, her gaze steady and unbreakable. Keith couldn’t look away if he tried. He was caught.
“Yes.” He almost added, “ma’am,” feeling like a schoolchild being scolded. Lance dropped his shirt and waited. She broke the circle and waded through them to get to Lance. She handed Keith his plate absently, her eyes on her son who towered over her. “You asked him for this?”

“Sí, mamá.”
She placed a hand on his face and pulled his head down to lay a kiss on his cheek. He disappeared into one of her all encompassing hugs as she smushed him against her small but stout frame. With unshed tears in her eyes, she said, “Why are you making your mother cry? Why didn’t you tell me you were doing this for your sister?” Lance let out a low laugh and hugged his mother back, kissing her hair as he was an entire foot taller than her.
Keith was not laughing. Made her cry? What the hell did that mean?! Did she like it or did she hate it? She released Lance from her stronghold and leaned down next to Keith, patting him on the arm. “It’s wonderful, cariño. I’m tempted to request one myself,” she said with a teasing lilt in her voice and a twinkle in her eye. The resulting laughter broke the solemnity of the moment and within seconds, everyone had returned to yelling over one another as if nothing had happened.--After sharing Keith’s mound of food, Lance ran off once again, though this time he asked Keith if he would be alright on his own. Keith would have preferred that he stay, but from the looks of it, Lance needed a bathroom and he needed it now. And besides, Keith had been chatting with Maria and Emilio all on his own, so he at least felt a bit more sure of himself than at the beginning of the night. His leg vibrated, and he fished his phone out of his pocket to answer the text that he’d been expecting. Shiro. Checking up on him. Typical.
He didn’t dislike it, but he did wonder if Shiro would still do this when he was in his thirties. Knowing Shiro, he would probably never stop. He texted a quick reassurance that he was fine but Shiro would be the first to know if he wasn’t and not to worry before wrestling his phone back into his skin tight jeans. He started to apologize for the interruption only to realize that he was alone. Shit.
Maybe they all went to get seconds? How did he not notice that? Should he just wait for Lance to come back? That seemed like the only logical course of action. He sighed and settled further into the lawn chair… Keith jumped. He’d dozed off a bit waiting for Lance or the others to reappear. Did something just sit on him? He looked down, mildly terrified, to find a tiny human resting on his legs, not a care in the world.
“Umm, can I help you?”
Lance had introduced all of his nieces and nephews earlier, but he hadn't seen this little girl. Her black curls bounced as she whipped around to face him. She jabbed a stubby little finger into his lips and whispered, her face deadly serious, “Shhhhh.” Her chubby hand latched onto Keith’s arm and she began rubbing the tattoos there. She seemed to be conflicted about them because her cherubic face was scrunched up and a small frown tugged at the corners of her mouth. She looked up at Keith again and said, “Can I have this?”
“My arm or my tattoo?”
“The fishies.”
“Well, no.” Her big eyes drooped, and she looked close to tears at the dismaying news. Keith wasn't exactly sure what she'd been expecting, but it definitely wasn't rejection. “But in about fifteen years, I can design some for you.”
Her face lit up like it was Christmas morning, and she exclaimed, “Really?!”
“Sure, if you still want me to. And they'll be even better than mine. I promise.”
“Are you trying to turn my sweet Sophie into a delinquent like yourself?”
Lance dropped into the chair next to them and waved at Sophie who smiled shyly at him.
“Lance, I literally tattooed you last week.”
"Of course you didn’t. Sophie, don’t listen to Keith, only bad kids get tattoos.”
Keith glared at Lance and said, “Stop teaching her dumb stereotypes.”
Sophie grabbed Lance’s hand and said, “Lance, stop being mean to Keif. He’s my fwiend. Mom told me that being mean to people is bad and that makes you bad.” Her face was deadly serious.
“Keith, you bastard, how did you turn my own niece against me?”
Before he could answer, a woman who looked to be in her late-twenties came up behind Lance and smacked him on the head.
“Ow, what the hell?”
“Stop swearing in front of my daughter, Lance. And what’s this about you getting a tattoo?”
“Ah, I’ll tell you about it later. Keith, this is my older sister Lauren.”
They greeted one another, and she held out her hand to him. Her hand was rough and faded, resembling faithful leather that would never stay in perfect condition but would never wear down completely either. Keith saw this mirrored in her face as well, in the deep lines and sunken bags under her eyes. She looked as if she hadn’t slept in at least a decade. Nonetheless, she was beautiful, in the way that an antique was: timelessly.
Sophie leapt onto her mother and clung to her like a koala bear, abandoning Keith’s lap.
“Did you make a new friend, Sophie?” She nodded timidly before burying her face into the crook of Lauren’s neck.
“Well, Sophie is an excellent judge of character so I guess if she likes you, everyone else must, too. That, and the fact that they’ve all been talking about the two of you, but mainly Sophie.”
“Is that a good thing or a bad thing?” Keith asked, fear leaking into his voice as he feigned light-heartedness.
“Mmm. So far the reviews have been good,” Lauren said with a smile, seeing straight through him. Keith wasn’t convinced, but she also didn’t really seem like the type to give empty flattery.
“Relax. They all like you. And if they don’t, Sophie will beat up them up for bullying her friend, okay?” she said, patting his shoulder. She reminded Keith of Shiro, and he appreciated it. He was glad to see that this was where Lance had come from. He’d grown up with all of these wonderful people who, despite the hardships they’d had to face, were immensely warm and kind and accepting. They were all impossibly different yet undeniably similar in this area.--“Are you ready to go?” Lance asked. They were standing in the hallway,
“Are you?”
“Well, if you want to avoid being smothered by thirty hugs from relative strangers, and I’m guessing you do, we’d better slip out now while they’re distracted by dessert.”
“You know me so well,” Keith clutched his heart dramatically.
“Of course, mi tesoro,” Lance replied, winking at him and blowing a kiss his way.
“I honestly don’t think I would mind with your family though. I mean, I can’t say I would enjoy it, but I could put up with it for them.”
Lance wiped an invisible tear from his eye and said, “This is the kind of love vows are based on.”
“Shut up.”
“Ow! Why’d you pinch me?”
“Love hurts,” he said with a smirk.
He expected to hear a quick comeback -- or a sputtered, half-assed attempt at one or at least -- something. But Lance was silent, unresponsive.
“Keith! Lance! Why are you two sneaking off?”
Lance seemed to snap out of it upon hearing his mother’s voice. “We’ve both got early mornings tomorrow at work,” Lance said. She didn’t look happy about this turn of events but did not try to stop them either.
“Fine. But you must call me more often, Lance. You too, Keith. I want to hear from both of you. And, wait a minute! I’ve got leftovers for you,” she called before dashing into the kitchen. She emerged seconds later with at least five tupperware containers stacked in her arms. Lance’s mom started prattling off a dozen different ways for him to prepare the leftovers as she shoved them into Keith’s arms. He almost felt bad that he would be ignoring them all in favor of nuking them for a few minutes in the microwave.They finally managed to escape and make their way back into the car, setting the food in the backseat. Lance had his key turned in the ignition and his hands were on the steering wheel, but the car was still in park.
“Lance?”
“I-- Can I tell you something?”
Keith gave him a confused look. He sounded strange. “Of course.”
“You promise not to freak out or block my number or something?”
“Umm, as long as you’re not about to tell me you’re a serial killer or something,” Keith joked, though his concern for Lance was genuine.
Lance let out a dry laugh and said, “No, uhh, it’s not that. I’m, well, this might be too soon to say, but it’s what I’m feeling so I feel like I should tell you but--”
“Lance! Just spit it out.” He may have been willing to listen, but that didn’t mean he was patient.
“Okay, okay.” Lance’s body shook with the tremor that passed through him as he breathed deeply. In. Out.
“I think, I’m probably in love with you. Like eighty-seven percent sure. Well, more ninety-eight point two percent sure, but like I said, I’m trying not to freak you out.”He couldn't hear. He couldn't move. He couldn't speak. “Keith? W-Why aren't you saying anything?” Lance asked, but he may as well have said it in Spanish for all that Keith understood. It started in his stomach. And then it spread, traveling up through his chest and into his throat. It wavered there before swimming up into his mouth. It pressed against the door, uncertain but prepared for the world beyond. It was intangible, a sliver of a laugh, a strand of a lock of hair, a whiff of a men’s body wash, a whisper of a feeling swallowed by the wind on the back of a motorcycle on a cold, January night. It was love. And it was inside him, begging to be let out. To be given to the heart beating next to him. Keith opened his mouth, but his breath caught and instead of saying all of the things he wanted to say, he was kissing Lance. He didn’t remember how they ended up this close or unbuckling his seatbelt but there was nothing, not even Lance’s tiny, cramped car, that could keep him from kissing Lance right now. He sucked in a breath when their lips separated and said frantically, “It’s too soon. We’ve barely even dated.” He kissed him again, harder this time, his teeth scraping Lance’s tender lower lip. “But,” he gasped, “I love you. I love you, too. So much.” This time Lance had matched his aggressive pace and deepened their kiss. He could feel Lance’s tongue slip into his mouth before quickly retreating. “So much it hurts.”

BEEP!
Keith had smacked the car horn in his desperate attempt to close the gap between him and Lance, and suddenly they were back in the real world, parked outside of Lance’s aunt’s house and making out like a pair of horny teenagers. It took all of two seconds before they were pissing themselves with laughter.Twenty minutes later, Lance was dropping Keith off in front of his apartment. Keith had his hand resting on the door handle, but Lance’s hand was resting on his arm. Keith waited. Lance leaned toward him, and his pulse quickened as an open mouthed kiss was planted on his neck. Lance moved his lips down his neck and used his free hand to push down the collar of Keith’s v-neck, exposing his shoulder. Lance was acting strange, but that didn’t mean that Keith was going to-- or even had the strength to tell him-- to stop. Soft lips touched down on his skin.
He gasped. “Lance, what the fuck?!” Teeth sunk into his shoulder, and he felt suction on his flesh. Lance was leaving a giant fucking hickey on his shoulder, as if the bite mark wasn’t enough. Lance pulled back, smiling that strange smile he always wore after he’d said something too clever for his own good.
“Love hurts, remember,” Lance whispered, his voice low and captivating in the quiet night.
Keith shivered. “You’re so fucking weird,” he muttered, failing to conceal the embarrassment in his voice. It wasn’t his fault that Lance was a dazzling and dangerous alien being that was performing weird Jedi mind tricks on his heart. Not his fault at all.
“Yeah. But you love me though.” Keith grumbled and flung himself out of the car without another word, Lance’s faint laugh echoing in his ears as the car drove off. It wouldn’t stop until deep into the night when his thoughts finally gave up and left him to rest in oblivion for a few meager hours.
Keith swore he was going to kill him one day. If Lance didn’t kill him first, that is.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

“Why are you so quiet? Did you finally get used to the pain?” Keith asked. He hadn’t heard a peep out of Lance which was odd considering he hadn’t shut up in all their previous sessions. Also, because Lance never shut up in general. It was unnerving for him to be this silent.
“I was trying the grin and bear it method. It’s not very effective,” Lance commented, earning an eyeroll from Keith.
“I will admit, it’s not nearly as bad as the beginning. The outline was hell though.” Keith hummed in agreement.
“I just expected you to be jumping off the walls since I’m just putting the finishing touches on now.”
Lance grinned and said, “I’m saving that for when I see it. Plus, you would just yell at me to stay still anyway. But, don’t worry, I am super excited, darling.”
Shiro covered his mouth with his hand to hide his laughter. Keith was bright red and looked like he was resisting the urge to smack Lance. Shiro was sure the only reason he didn’t was because he had the tattoo gun in his hand. Keith had always been like that. He could say crude words in the same way one might comment on the weather, but when it came to casual affection he was a mess. When Shiro had commented on the "mysterious, dark bruises" around his neck, Keith had practically combusted in embarrassment.
“Don’t call me that. Anyway I just have one more section.” His tongue poked out of the left corner of his mouth in concentration as Keith drew his last stroke on Lance’s lion. He wiped the excess ink and said, “Ready to take a look?”
“Oh my god. No. No, I’m not ready, give me a second. Fuck, who am I kidding? I have to see it now!”
Lance raced over to the large mirror mounted on the wall and inspected Keith’s handiwork. His eyes widened as he took in the image of her, a stark contrast against the smooth, brown skin beneath.
She was captivating, stoic and beautiful, and she would always be with him, immortalized in ink. She gave him the same feeling of protection and safety that his sister once had. He could feel tears welling up but forced them down. He’d cried over his sister for years. He didn’t want her to see him like that any longer.--Clothed in only pants and underwear, Lance sat on the left side of the bed and wrestled his shirt over his head."Wait."
Lance paused. He felt cold hands wrap around his middle, and feather light kisses press into his back. Lance groaned, "Keith, nooooo. I have to go to work, and you know I'm weak to that." Keith kissed the head of the lioness near Lance’s shoulder blades.
"That?" He moved on to the body.
"Are you serious right now?" Lance deadpanned.
"I'm sorry I have no idea what you're talking about. You'll have to be more specific."
Keith placed his lips on one of the flowers resting on Lance’s lower back. Lance turned abruptly and gripped Keith's arms, flipping them so that Keith was lying on his chest. "You really are a devil."
Keith hid his grin in Lance’s warm chest, not wanting to let him go but knowing that he would be late too if they didn’t get dressed. Keith rolled out of their bed and his happy place, locating and shimmying on his discarded boxers from last night. He’d stayed over at Lance’s place that night and still had to ride home, shower, change, and head to work. Ugh. Mornings.
Lance followed him out of bed and headed straight towards the bathroom to start his morning routine. Keith usually took about ten to fifteen minutes to get ready while Lance took at least an hour each time. Keith never complained about it though because the one time he did Lance had made him awkwardly stroke his baby soft face and said, "You don't get that kind of quality in fifteen minutes." That had been the last of that argument.“Oh, I got a call from Lauren, yesterday,” Lance called from the bathroom.
“Yeah?” Now, where did he put his goddamn keys?
“You made a big impact on Sophie, you know.”
Keith frowned “How so?”
“Her mom found her yesterday drawing all over her arms with a pen. When she asked Sophie what she was doing, she said, ‘playing tattoo artist.’”
Keith gaped at Lance who had his head poked out of the bathroom door. “Are you serious? Oh, god. Tell Lauren I’m sorry.”
He laughed and said, “Nah don't worry about it. She really is obsessed with you though. Apparently, she's been asking when you can come to her house to play. She said I'm allowed to come as well, but only if I stay out of the way.”
“Obviously. We can’t have you distracting us,” Keith replied.Lance emerged from the bathroom, having completed all of his skincare rituals in record time. That or more likely he’d done them last night after Keith had fallen asleep. He took Keith in his arms and peppered his hair and face with kisses, whispering sweet words in between every peck. Yep, they were definitely going to be late to work. Finally, Lance reached his lips and after grazing over them, barely scratching the surface, he leaned back and said, “Te amo.”
Keith, blushing furiously, turned his head and mumbled, “I don’t like that.”
Lance paused, hurt cast onto his face, and said, his voice wavering, “Y-you don’t like when I tell you I love you? In Spanish or--?”
Even without looking, Keith knew what that pitiful tone meant and panicked, rushing to reassure Lance that he had misunderstood. “No! No, I… I don’t like when you say it first.”
“And why is that?” Lance asked, thoroughly confused at this point by his fickle boyfriend.
“Because, it puts me on the spot. When you say it first, you’re expecting it and I can’t just not say it. I like catching you off guard.” Keith sighed. “Sorry, I probably should have just kept my mouth shut.”
God fucking damnit. Just when he thought Keith couldn’t be anymore of a cute motherfucker, yet again he was proven wrong. But he suppressed the urge to jump Keith right then and there because something he said was bothering him.
“Keith, buddy, no you shouldn’t have. Because here’s the thing about relationships. You tell each other stuff you want to and stuff you don’t want to.” Keith opened his mouth to protest Lance’s hypocritical statement, but Lance kept going. “And before you say it, I know I’m not exactly the best example for this but that’s kinda the point of being with each other. We get to figure stuff out together and get good at this stuff together.”
“Ugh,” Keith groaned..
“That’s the response I get after that beautiful speech?”
“No. You’re right, but it’s just...we’re so domestic. It’s gross.”
Lance laughed and ruffled Keith’s hair before his hands were swatted away.
“You can’t fool me. You know you love it.”
“Whatever helps you sleep at night.”
“You do. In bed beside me.”
Keith glared at Lance and said, “You’re not making this any easier.”
“When have I ever done that?”
Well, he had a point.