Chapter Text
Lance looks over through the open bathroom door to Keith’s room, where the other boy was hunched over his computer, tight arm muscles apparent as he typed hurriedly, thick black hair messily falling across his cheekbones from where it was escaping his bun. Lance lets out a small sigh, because as annoying as Keith Kim - his one rival at this school - is, Lance has to admit the other boy is all kinds of hot.
And okay, Lance should maybe also admit he has no idea how annoying Keith is, because they’ve barely hung out since school started in the middle of August and now it’s late September. Keith is in all of Lance’s astrophysics classes and already considered one of the aces in their specialty dorm for S.T.E.M. students. Lance, being the second best student in astrophysics (and first on some assignments, thank you very much), is a little put out. Hence the rivals thing.
Plus, it’s not all on him, since Keith spends most of his time in the R.A.’s room and sounds and looks pissed half the time when Lance asks him anything, and confused the other half, as though he doesn’t expect to have to talk to anyone. So yeah, Lance feels a little hurt since most people find him to be a delight.
But … Pidge likes Keith, or at least tolerates him (which is honestly the same thing for her unless you’re her brother or Hunk) and Hunk suddenly insists Keith is actually really nice after they spent a night together trying to make an old motorcycle work, and well. If all of Lance’s lunch buddies like Keith, Lance supposes he can put a little effort into getting to know the guy.
“Hey Keith, what are you doing? You haven’t left your room in like, two days,” Lance calls as he crosses through the bathroom, giving Keith his most charming, devil may care smile.
Keith blinks at him owlishly, mouth open a little like he’s shocked Lance is talking to him. But … looking at the expression up close, the disdain Lance has assumed isn’t there. Keith looks more … nervous and genuinely surprised than anything else. Huh. “I went to class. And fencing practice.”
“I wasn’t being literal,” Lance assures him, smile a little gentler as he leans against Keith’s desk. Keith gives him a small smile in return, playing with the edge of his frayed hoodie as he glances up at Lance. “But still, the sun misses it’s favorite hothead.”
“You yell at one professor for being unfair to your older brother one time and it’s all anyone remembers about you,” Keith says in mock-affront, but his smirk has a hint of mischievousness to it that makes Lance return it in full force, shaking his head a little.
“It was the first day, Keith,” Lance points out with a light shrug, glancing at Keith’s open astrophysics book, coming dangerously close to knocking over one of the many succulents decorating Keith’s room. Keith studies more than anyone else Lance has ever met (and okay, that might be why his grades are the highest in the class. Just maybe). “Are you still studying for tomorrow’s test? There’s no way you’re going to get less than an A.”
“But I need to get an A+,” Keith says, expression sliding back to his usual determined glare as he flips a page. Lance lets out a small sigh, because of course Keith is an intense perfectionist. How is Lance ever supposed to compete with that?
“You need to have a life outside of your books,” Lance mutters instead, both a little sullen and a little serious. No wonder Keith is so awkward and grumpy if he does this all the time instead of playing Mario Kart or spending all day in the dining hall.
“Not if I want to stay number one in the class like Shiro was,” Keith answers, glancing up at Lance with the same determined expression he usually were during tests. But there is something sad and longing behind it this time, vulnerable. Then Keith smiles, a little crooked and sweet. “After all, I’ve got some pretty tough competition.”
Lance can feel his heart in his chest. He suddenly gets why Hunk and Pidge want to be friends with Keith now. He does too. “Yeah, I must say you do. See you at lunch, Keith.”
Keith smiles as he sits down at his computer, feeling a little sheepish since it will be another night spent alone in his room. He knows he’s not the most social kid, but tonight is his biweekly talk with his other best friend besides Shiro. Who is an online friend who Keith has never actually seen nor does know the real name of, and has Keith mentioned he’s not very social. Yeah. Either way, Nightcrawler (they used to RP together on an X-Men blog and the nicknames stuck even after they gave up on Marvel) is the first person he wants to tell about the latest Lance update.
MagikFan: Hey.
Nightcrawler26 : Yo!, Magik, how’re things going with your crush? He hate you any less?
Keith flushes a little as he types, remembering the way Lance looked over at him during lunch yesterday. His expression had been soft and warm, like Keith was something precious. All Keith said was that Lance was better at essays than him, so Keith’s not even sure why Lance looked so touched. That is just a fact.
Magikfan: Maybe? He came into my room and talked to me three days ago and I’ve been having lunch with his friends. He even /smiles/ at me.
Nightcrawler26: Well, who wouldn’t smile when they got a sight of those arm muscles?
Keith rolls his eyes, letting out a loud sigh that he’s glad Lance and Hunk aren’t across the bathroom to hear. Sometimes Keith deeply regrets sending Nightcrawler his fencing tournament photos. Keith figured it was okay because of the mask, but now Nightcrawler insists on teasing him about his arms every chance he gets. Keith is too shy to return the favor about his Beach episode Sokka cosplay, and well. Keith actually thought his abs looked pretty good and he can’t just come out and say that to someone whose face he’s never seen, even if Nightcrawler is his best friend.
Magikfan: Haha. You forgot they’re attached to an awkward face.
Nightcrawler26: Never seen your face but I know it’s as adorable as your personality.
Magikfan: So not at all?
Keith types before he can stop himself, staring anxiously at the screen when several minutes go without a response. Keith tries not to talk about himself – down or otherwise – this personally. Their friendship has been built on shared interests and ramblings stories. Nightcrawler knows the big things (Keith’s time in foster care, being adopted at 13) but not stuff like that. Keith knows it’s better to keep those feelings inside.
Nightcrawler26: Hey, low self-esteem is my thing in this friendship. And who doesn’t like really passionate but shy nerds? You’re like a shoujo hero.
Magikfan: Thanks, Nightcrawler, but that doesn’t really work out when your shyness shows itself by you glaring at everyone and sounding like you want to murder them.
Keith’s stares at the messages and frowns, taking a sip of his juice box as he waits for a reply. Nightcrawler has never seen just how standoffish and awkward Keith is in real life. He has no idea that Keith has no friends outside of his own brother and maybe Pidge (Keith can’t tell because honestly Pidge is terrifying) or that Keith scares everyone off because his anxiety looks like he wants to stab something.
Nightcrawler26: I bet you don’t or you wouldn’t if you weren’t thinking about it so much. You need to relax my friend. Then you can win over your charming crush.
Magikfan: You think?
Keith feels bad asking for reassurance, but he could use some. He knows he can’t rely on Nightcrawler’s judgment here – again he’s never seen just how bad Keith’s resting angry face is – but it’s better than nothing. Keith wants Lance to like him more than he’s wanted anyone to like him in a long time.
Nightcrawler26 : Of course, just don’t make me too jealous. You’re still my number one crush, you know.
Keith snorts softly as he writes his reply, because honestly he’s lucky someone as friendly and charming as Nightcrawler has talked to him for this long, Nightcrawler having an actual crush on him from personality alone? Not happening.
Magikfan: Riiight. TTYL.
Still, Keith signs off with a smile on his face, feeling lighter than he had since school started. Lance finally likes him enough to have lunch with him, and Nightcrawler is still there. Things are looking up for Keith. Now if he could only bring himself to care about his major, everything would be almost perfect.
Keith realizes after a week and half that while he and Lance are finally bonding, eating lunch together everyday and sharing toothpaste, they’ve mostly talked about class. That isn’t going to work if Keith wants to be real friends with Lance. He needs to get to know him on a deeper level, or at least a more interesting one. So Keith bursts into Lance’s and Hunk’s double, wincing as Lance scrambles on the bed and nearly topples his bowl of popcorn over with those ridiculously long legs of his (that Keith definitely never fantasizes about). Keith probably should’ve knocked first.
“Why did you decide to major in astrophysics?” Keith asks because he is actually somehow even worse at this than he thought. Lance gives him a blank look and Keith can feel his face heating up. Is Lance not an astrophysics major? “If that’s your major, I mean.”
“It’s the plan,” Lance answers with a small shrug, and Keith remembers they’re not technically required to declare majors until next term. He just chose his right away because he knows what he needs to do. Lance might not yet. “I guess I’ve just always found space really fascinating? I had a giant book of constellations as a kid and I memorized all of them and used to sit outside mapping them out, and then when I got a little older I wanted to know what they were made up of, what was out there. I guess I could’ve gone into astronomy, but it didn’t seem proactive enough.”
“Wow, that’s really impressive,” Keith answers softly, glancing down at the ground to try and hide the slight jealousy building in his stomach. Not only does it sound like Lance knows what he needs to do, it sounds like he also loves astrophysics in a way Keith can never imagine.
When Keith glances back up, Lance is giving him a curious look, eyebrows sloped downward and frowning a little. He pats his bed and Keith takes the hint, sitting down next to him and giving Lance a small, awkward smile to try and break the tension. “What about you, hotshot?”
“Well, Shiro’s mom and dad adopted me when I was 13, and I wasn’t the easiest kid to deal with, you know? And mo- Hinata is an engineer for NASA and George works as a systems analyst, and Shiro is going to be an astronaut,” Keith explains as he plays with the edge of his fingerless gloves. Lance cocks his head a little, gaze growing softer as Keith keeps talking, Keith’s stomach flip-flops a little at that. “I guess I felt like I kind of owed them to go into the family business?”
“Huh, that’s not what I was expecting,” Lance says after a beat, carefully throwing one arm over Keith’s shoulder as he glances down at him, a grin on his face as gentle as the look in his eyes. Lance is gorgeous and Keith forgets how to breathe a little because he’s looking at Keith like he’s never seen him before, but in a good way. “You’re a loyal kid, huh?”
“I guess?” Keith answers, nodding a little. Shiro’s said that before too. Keith never gives it much thought. It’s easy to be loyal when all you’ve ever wanted is people to be loyal to, after all.
“What is your passion then? Swords?” Lance asks, voice taking on a lighter note as he leans forward, grabbing a handful of popcorn as he waits for Keith’s answer. Keith can’t help but let out a small snort, shaking his head a little. He loves fencing, but he’s not going to become a professional fencer, it’s just for fun. Keith’s not dedicated enough and he knows he’d have to give all his time to fencing if he made it his career, just like he is with astrophysics now.
“No, plants, actually,” Keith answers instead, smiling widely at the wide-eyed expression on Lance’s face. It’s nicer than the distance and mild annoyance Keith’s gotten used to, and he steals a little popcorn from Lance’s hand as he leans against the bed. “I just – I really love being in nature, you know? And there’s still so much we don’t understand even though it’s right there. Like, did you know about the Elephant-foot yam? It’s related to the corpse flower and smells like death too, but its way more interesting. You can eat it and it’s a delicacy in a lot of cultures. I really want to try it. That whole genus is awesome.”
“That’s the most excited I’ve heard you about anything,” Lance says, raising his eyebrows a little as Keith finishes speaking. Keith looks over at him, scrunching his eyebrows and pouting a little as he realizes he might have been awkward. Again.
“Oh, yeah, I kind of rambled, sorry,” Keith mutters, but he’s surprised to find Lance looking at him fondly, none of the usual annoyance that comes with Keith’s hyper focusing or the expression he’s making right now. Maybe Nightcrawler was right after all.
“No, no, it was nice,” Lance assures him as he leans over and ruffles Keith’s hair, freezing for a second and giving Keith a terrified expression as though he only just realized then he might have crossed a line. Keith laughs, nudging Lance with his shoulder a little to let him know it was okay and praying he can’t tell Keith is blushing. “Please tell me about more weird plants. Maybe from the sea? You know I like to swim.”
“Oh, that’s going to take weeks,” Keith answers with a wide grin as he steals a little more popcorn, narrowing his eyes as he starts to get his thoughts in order. Next to him Lance snorts a little, but in a nice way, and Keith wonders if that means they’re friends now.
Lance is pumped for his weekly talk with Magik because this time he has good news instead of “my rival/suitemate is a jerk” news. He’s really been bringing down their chat lately, and now that Lance knows Keith is just a(n adorably) socially awkward nerd he feels a little bad for all the times he said he was arrogant or a hothead. Keith is, Keith is his friend now and for some reason he really wants Magik to know.
Nightcrawler26: MAGIK! Remember my beautiful but cruel suite mate?
Magikfan: You mean the one who didn’t do anything but kind of ignore you?
Lance rolls his eyes a little at the response, but his smile is fond as he goes to type again. One thing Lance both loves and hates about Magik is that the other boy can be just as blunt as Hunk when it comes to pointing out that Lance is being ridiculous or unfair. Keith may have been one of those times.
Nightcrawler26: Beside the point, the point is he’s not actually an asshole! He’s a nerd who loves plants.
Magikfan: Hey loving nature is cool.
Lance laughs a little, because how did he, the epitome of a city boy, end up with two friends who loved plants and went camping? At least Keith probably stays somewhere with a bed or at least a cot, unlike Magik who just uses a sleeping bag, so he’s by the dirt. Lance has always been too afraid of the answer to ask what happens to his facemasks when he does that.
Nightcrawler26: Whatever, you’re a heathen who sleeps on the ground instead of camping.
Magikfan: :( I can’t believe you’re insulting my childhood stories.
Lance grins a little, because he can just imagine the pout on Magik’s face right now, the way his big eyes get mock-teary and – nope. He’s picturing Keith. Mixing his two nature boys together because they’re both adorable, which is unfair to both of them. Especially since he only plans on asking one of them out in the near future.
Nightcrawler26: But like you, he is actually pretty cute when he starts rambling about weird plants. He has dimples when he smiles and he talks with his hands a lot.
Magikfan: I thought he was a pretty jerk?
Lance winces again, because he really needs to stop talking about people before he starts talking to them, at least if intends to befriend them later. At least this isn’t as bad as when he called Professor Haggar a “cool chick” on the first day of classes. He dropped that one in a hurry. But with Keith, Lance is happy to be wrong because it means he gets to see those adorable smiles and confused looks when Lance makes a pop culture reference and hear how excited he gets over plants and cryptids and – No. He has a crush on Magik. Not Keith.
Nightcrawler26: Pretty yes, jerk looks like it might be out, we’ve been hanging out a lot the past two weeks.
Magikfan: So you’re saying you gotta a crush.
Nightcrawler26: You’re still my number 1, Magik.
Lance knows in his gut that Magik is rolling his eyes right now, can almost see it in his mind’s eye even though what he knows about Magik’s appearance (Korean, long hair, frequently has black eyes for stupid, stupid reasons) don’t really give him much to go on. But he knows so much about Magik and so little at the same time, and it’s a strange, frustrating thing that Lance needs to fix.
Magikfan: Kind of think you should go with the guy with a face.
Nightcrawler26: You could finally let me see yours.
Lance takes a deep breath as the three circles start and stop several times. This is the moment he’s been waiting for since he was 16 and befriended Magik. Two years of bonding without ever seeing his face or knowing his name, because Magik’s parents were overprotective about the internet and Magik, as impulsive and defiant as he sold himself the rest of the time, always listened to them. Said he owed them. But now they’re both technically adults, they’re past that hurdle. The only one left is Magik’s insecurity about his looks, and Lance can’t believe Magik thinks Lance even cares what he looks like when Lance has been in love with his personality for like two years now. Lance just wants to know who his best friend is.
Magikfan : I – okay. But I’ve warned you many times –
Nightcrawler26: Next Saturday?
Magikfan: Deal.
Lance lets out a small whoop of victory, ignoring the startled look on Hunk’s face. He’s finally going to get to meet Magik in real life. Kind of. Still, it’s enough for Lance right now, and he can’t help but spin in his chair and pray that the rest of the week passes as quickly as possible.
“What’re we doing for Halloween?” Lance asks as he sits down with Hunk at the table Pidge and Keith are already occupying, Pidge typing away on her laptop and Keith sitting there with two books open. Lance smiles when he sees one of them is about tundra flora, even as he clucks a little at both their untouched trays. Hunk, however, gives them both a stern yet worried expression until they both sheepishly turn away from their homework and toward their food. Lance can’t help but stare at Hunk in a little bit of awe.
“Its in 2 weeks, isn’t it kind of late for a group costume?” Pidge asks, raising an eyebrow as she takes a bite of her chocolate chip cookie first, probably just to annoy Hunk. Lance scoffs at her words, shaking his head and pointing at her dramatically enough to get a few stares from other tables. Lance ignores them, because now is not the time to worry about what other people think. Not when Halloween is on the line.
“Not for cosplay experts like me and Hunk,” Lance corrects her with a wide grin, and next to him Hunk smiles as well, pulling out his phone to show them their transformers cosplay from high school. Lance was Bumblebee and Hunk was Optimus Prime and it was awesome. Lance can tell Pidge and the people staring from before agree, going by their sharp gasps. “We can help you two out.”
“I’ve done a little with Shiro, but nothing much,” Keith throws out with the small, shy smile Lance has come to associate with a happy Keith. It looks good on him, better than his nervous glares or annoyed pouts (though those were pretty cute too). “I’m good at sewing.”
“Of course you are,” Lance says with a small sigh, resisting the urge to roll his eyes. He wonders if there’s anything Keith isn’t good at instinctively. Keith looks down, glaring a little with a tight frown, and oh yeah. This doesn’t come easily for Keith. Lance leans over and ruffles his hair until Keith bats his hand away, but his smile is back and that’s what matters. “You in Pidge?”
Pidge peers at them all over her glasses, glancing from person to person as though trying to make a major life decision. It’s enough to make Lance feel nervous. “If we can skip my bio class?”
“What? Katherine “Pidge” Holt wants to skip a class?” Lance gasps in mock shock, throwing his hand over his heart and leaning back against Hunk who catches him with practiced ease. Keith is staring at them with wide eyes and his mouth open a little. It’s honestly so adorable Lance is a little sad when Keith catches on and starts smirking along with them, though that also has its charms. “Who are you?”
“Don’t get me wrong, nature is important and Dr. Olkari is great, but my kind of nature leads to nuts and bolts, not trees,” Pidge answers with a shrug, not deigning to give their dramatics any kind of response, though Lance can tell from the sparkle in her eyes that she thinks they’re hilarious. Then Pidge gives him a knowing, playful smirk as she glances first at Keith and then back to Lance. “Plus there’s this one REALLY nerdy kid in my class who asks way too many questions.”
Keith looks over at her, cocking his head a little as though waiting for her to name names. Next to him, Hunk scrunches his eyebrows at makes a little waving gesture at Keith, as though trying to help him catch on. Lance would, but he figures Hunk has it covered. Lance watches as Keith’s eyebrows shoot to his hairline, mouth hanging open a little as he turns to Pidge, who’s laughing her ass off at this point. Yeah, Pidge definitely meant Keith. “Hey! I’m just curious. Besides, not all of us are Chobits characters and wanna date a robot.”
“You watched Chobits?” Lance asks, leaning over to look at Keith curiously. He and Magik had watched that together on Rabbit years ago and argued over how problematic it was and where it should fit on the scale of problematic Clamp. Between that, the lack of pop culture knowledge, passion about plants, and dry wit, Lance is starting to wonder if they’re the same person. But no, Lance’s life isn’t a Tom Hanks movie. He’s a real person and Magik probably lives across the coast or in France, not in his suite. Besides, lots of people watch anime and like weird plants. It’s just a coincidence.
Keith, meanwhile, has turned bright red under his considering gaze. He’s playing with the edge of his gloves again. “I – yeah, I know that’s kind of nerdy but -
“Keith, we’re literally in a dorm for nerds and you have two books on the Mothman,” Hunk interrupts, giving Keith a warm smile. Keith grins back at them, relief clear in his gaze. Lance smiles at him softly and makes a mental note to show Keith his Funko Pops later. “Back to Halloween. Something simple yet creative. Maybe Avatar or Korra?”
After that conversation falls into an easy debate over if they have enough time and if Keith has to be Mako if they do Korra, and it’s easy and warm and Lance feels his heart skip a little whenever Keith’s dimples show up. Lance is in over his head and he doesn’t even mind.
“Hey, you know if you want to, you can switch majors to biology and stay in this dorm,” Lance announces suddenly as he appears in Keith's doorway, using one of his long, lean arms to snatch a twizzler out of Keith’s hand.
Keith glares a little, because how dare Lance use his shortness against him like that. Then Keith actually processes what he said and glares up at him sharply, though he’s more surprised than anything else. “What?”
“I just mean, look if Shiro’s - your parents are anything like Shiro, they all just want you to be happy,” Lance points out with a small shrug as he chews on his twizzler, giving Keith a knowing look. Keith crosses his arms defensively, even though he can’t help but smile a little when he calls them Keith’s parents too. Lance seems to catch on as he leans over, smirking a little and letting his messy bangs fall across his forehead.
Keith gets Lance’s point though. Shiro and mom and dad aren’t like that. They’ll be happy no matter what career Keith chooses, and Keith crosses his arms a little tighter. “Right, but –“
“If that’s what they want, and you love plants a lot more than space,” Lance says, holding one hand out and then the other like scales while he wriggles his eyebrows. Keith snorts a little, but he can’t help but roll Lance’s words over in his head. “Just maybe think about it?”
“I – yeah, Lance,” Keith promises with a small nod, giving Lance a small smile as the other boy heads to the door. Lance grins back at him, bright as the sun, and Keith sighs when the door falls shut. He knows Lance is right and Lance cares enough to try and help him and –
Keith’s glad he’s talking to Nightcrawler tomorrow because he needs all the advice he can get.
Keith lets out a small sigh of relief when he hears the ding indicating he has a new message, quickly opening his chat. He misses his friend now that college has them too busy to talk hours on end every single day, and honestly these twice a week chats aren’t enough. They haven’t even talked about Zelda: Breath of Wind or which anime to watch over break yet. The first message, though, deals with none of that.
Nightcrawler26: Update: Okay, roommate has gone past cute to adorable in the three weeks we’ve been friends. He’s precious underneath all the glares and short answers.
Magikfan : I knew you’d replace me someday.
Keith feels a small pang in his chest at the thought, and tries to shake it off by reminding himself he’s being an asshole. He’s the one who keeps asking Nightcrawler for advice on how to win over Lance, he doesn’t get to be upset Nightcrawler has an obvious crush on his roommate. Keith doesn’t deserve either of them, let alone both.
Nightcrawler26: Nah, you’re my best friend besides Hunk.
Magikfan: Don’t know my real name or face.
Nightcrawler26: I’m about to know both. Photos with peace signs first and then video chat?
Keith freezes because he’s forgotten they’re doing that tonight. Keith winces, shaking his head and hoping Nightcrawler isn’t too disappointed with what he sees. Keith knows people joke about him being too pretty for his own good, but he’s not sure which part is the joke. After all, Keith had braces until a few months ago and he’s only recently gained any muscle mass and mostly just in his arms, and some people call his hair a mullet and he just … Keith doesn’t care about looks most of the time, but he knows Nightcrawler puts a lot of effort into his, a little like Lance actually. Keith doesn’t want him to be disappointed when he sees an awkward skinny kid whose never been asked out before.
Keith wants to impress him and Keith almost never cares about impressing anyone except Shiro.
Magikfan: If you can handle seeing more of my face after the photo.
Nightcrawler26: You don’t do dramatic self-deprecation nearly as well as I do, Magik.
He lets out a small sigh, because Keith knows he’s being an idiot. Nightcrawler’s not a dick, so it’s not like he’s going to tell Keith he’s right about his face. Keith just can’t help but be a little worried that he’ll still be able to see the crush die during the video chat.
Magikfan: Sorry not all of us can be good with words ;).
Nightcrawler26: Well not all of us can have arms like yours. Now let’s see the face that goes with them.
Keith takes a photo, smile nervous and a little pained, dead eyes and limp peace sign turning it into a grimace from his nerves. His face looks eerily pale in the cold light of his desk and his sweatshirt has crumbs on it. Yeah, Keith isn’t sending that, but at least it’s his anxiety making it bad and not him. He deletes it and takes off his hoodie, pulling on a red V-neck Shiro bought him instead. He goes to take another photo when he stops halfway through, nerves getting to him.
Magikfan: …
Magikfan: You first?
Nightcrawler26: Of course.
Keith sighs in relief, even as he internally winces at himself for being a coward. Keith faces his problems head on. He doesn’t run from them, he finds a way to solve them or makes a solution. And now he’s freaking out over a photo just because a boy whose face he’s never seen, a boy who probably doesn’t actually like him like that and isn’t even Lance, might think he’s ugly. He needs to get his shit together. None of that makes Keith any less nervous when the photo comes through, because none of that means Nightcrawler isn't his best fried. Keith has to take a deep breath before he finally looks down. He gasps, sharp and high, because nothing could’ve prepared him for the sight in front of him. It’s Lance, smile bright and warm, eyes sparkling in the dimming sunlight from where he’s casually leaning against the windowsill in his brown jacket. He looks long and lean and perfect because it’s Lance. Nightcrawler is Lance. This is insane. Keith starts laughing, muffling his voice the best he can in his sleeve as he types.
Magikfan: Wow, you’re like. You’re really really cute, but we’re probably not gonna need video chat.
Nightcrawler26: What? Why not?
Keith quickly pulls his hair back into a ponytail because Lance mentioned liking that once and leans against the window to try and get the same light. It doesn’t really work, but honestly none of that is the point. Keith sends his photo, glancing at the door and counting down in his head.
5, 4, 3, 2 1 -
“You’ve been telling me you were awkward looking for years when you look like that?” Lance shouts as he throws open the door to Keith’s room, arms spread wide and face wild as he swings one arm over to accusingly jab Keith in the chest.
“That’s the part you’re concerned about right now?” Keith shouts back, crossing his arms and letting out a small huff, though Lance doesn’t miss the momentary relief that flits across his face. Lance raises an eyebrow at that, because there’s no way Keith doesn’t know he’s hot right? Like, they live in the same reality as far as Lance knows so Keith must know that.
“Not that alone, I’m just saying! People ask you if you want to spend the night “studying” all the time and they’ve never even talked to you before,” Lance points out and Keith blinks at him owlishly, before he slowly starts to blush as his eyes widen in slow growing horror. “Did you honestly not get they were trying to hook up with you?! Keith.”
“Then why did they ask to study – are you not at all concerned with what I said?” Keith cuts himself off, suddenly looking at Lance pointedly as he leans in, arms still crossed even as he glances up at Lance nervously, biting his lip a little.
“Oh, oh right,” Lance says, pulling himself up to his full height as Keith’s last message hits him. Not only is Keith cute, but also Keith thinks he’s cute. Keith Kim, the ace of their dorm, thinks he’s cute. Lance thinks he must still be dreaming. “Do you really think I’m cute?”
“I mean, you know how I said I had a crush on my suite mate all semester? It wasn’t Hunk,” Keith admits, voice small and shy as he glances up at Lance, a light flush still spread against his cheekbones. Lance takes a deep breath, bringing one hand up to rest lightly against Keith’s shoulder and then more firmly once the other boy doesn’t push him away.
“Oh, well, that’s really convenient since I’ve had a crush on you since we were 16,” Lance reminds him with a small, giddy laugh of his own, because he can’t believe this is happening. His two crushes turned out to be the same person. This is some dating sim style bullshit and Lance couldn’t be happier about it.
“Wait, you were serious?!” Keith asks with wide eyes, arms falling to his sides and hanging loosely there as he looks up Lance in wonder. He leans forward, pivoting so he’s on his toes and can look Lance in the eye, and Lance can barely keep himself from cooing because that is just so cute. “But … look, I don’t want you to be disappointed.”
“This isn’t really a disappointing scenario, Keith,” Lance points out with a small frown, cocking his head a little bit at the nerves that haven’t quite left Keith’s eyes. Was Keith disappointed it was him? Lance couldn’t really blame him. Keith was beautiful and brilliant and naturally good at everything except social situations from what Lance could see, and Lance was a seventh wheel, a friend you invited along but who didn’t really add much and who wasn’t ever going to be the top of the class and – Except Keith does like him, he just said so, and even Lance’s self-esteem can’t ignore that or the way Keith looks at him in awe every time he makes small talk or shows how passionate he is about space or archery. Lance might not think much of his skills, but Keith does. The thought makes Lance break out into a wide grin even as it makes him more confused.
“I just … you like Magikfan, and I’m a lot less likable in real … Lance why are you poking me in the cheeks?” Keith asks softly as Lance starts poking him, softly glaring down at the other boy as he finally gets what this is about. Keith is jealous. Of himself. This is the saddest thing Lance has ever heard and also kind of hysterical.
“I’m poking you in your dimples because you’re an idiot,” Lance says with a small shrug, even as he stops poking Keith and instead rests both of his hands against Keith’s cheeks, marveling at how soft his skin is. Keith looks up at him, gaze soft and hopeful, and Lance knows he’s going to fall in love with him. It’s not even a question. “Magikfan is just you with your guard down. I honestly started to wonder if you could be the same person three days ago when you talked about Chobits, I just thought it was too weird to be possible.”
“Well, you always said you wanted a meet cute,” Keith murmurs and the look he gives Lance is so adoring, so longing, that Lance wonders if maybe Keith is already in love with him, if they’re just in love right now. It’s probably just the endorphins, but either way Lance feels a little drunk on Keith right now. “Not that this, or you, I mean – sorry.”
“Keith, can I kiss you right now?” Lance asks instead of saying “I love you” or any of the other ideas swirling in his head right now that are almost definitely bad. But a kiss is a good start, it’s the best start, and honestly this is a meet cute. What kind of meet cute doesn’t end with a perfect kiss?
“Yeah,” Keith answers, smirking a little even as he shakily leans forward to press his lips against Lance’s, small hands coming to grab Lance’s waist. Lance grips his shoulders a little tighter, his other hand coming up to cup the back of Keith’s head. Keith’s lips are chapped and the kiss is sloppy on both ends, but also perfect because it’s them, Nightcrawler and Magik, Lance and Keith.
When they break the kiss, Keith stares up at him with dreamy eyes, hands coming up to softly wrap themselves around his neck. Lance smiles down softly as he watches Keith let out a contented sigh – and then becomes nervous when Keith suddenly takes on the determined look he wore during tests or fencing matches. Lance isn’t ready for where those eyes might be going, he doesn’t think. “Lance! We can do the Robins if Avatar is too hard!”
“You’re a nerd,” Lance snorts and leans down to kiss Keith again, short and sweet before letting himself be dragged to Keith’s computer to spend what he’s sure will be hours researching DIY costumes with Keith half in his lap. Lance wouldn’t have it any other way.