Chapter Text
“ Ano hi mita sora akaneiro no sora wo/ Nee kimi wa oboeteimasuka/ Yakusoku chigiri/ shoka no kaze ga tsutsumu/ Futari yorisotta-”
“L- Lance, I really need- need to get that,” Keith panted.
“You so do not!” Lance rolled his hips pointedly, groaning as Keith hit his prostate. Keith dug his fingernails into the man’s hips, back arching with a moan.
“Muri na egao no ura nobita kage wo kakumau/ Dakara kizukanu furi saisei wo erabu-”
“I- It’s Shiro,” he insisted. Keith never let Shiro's calls ring out anymore. He was too guilty, and worried about his brother. Even sex with Lance McClain wouldn't keep him from making sure his brother was okay.
“Fine, but I’m not pulling off.”
“Just keep still.” Keith fumbled for his phone as Lance stilled in his lap, falling forward to nuzzle into Keith’s neck. He answered, taking a moment to breathe before speaking. “Yeah?”
“Hey. I just wanted to see how you were doing.”
Pretty great. Keith slid his fingertips up Lance’s back, tracing his spine. The skin was slick with sweat, hot to the touch, finally filled out and healthy after weeks of effort. He turned his head to nip the man’s ear, earning a gasp for his efforts.
“I’m, uh. You know…” Keith grit his teeth together, tipping his head back against the headboard as Lance nibbled impatiently at his jaw and rolled his hips again. “F- Fi-ine.”
A moment of silence.
“Oh.” A snicker. “Okay. I’ll call back later. Just wanted to chat before your interview.”
“Mhm.” Keith rolled his lips between his teeth as Lance started moving again in earnest. “I’ll come see you after. ‘Bye.”
Keith tossed the phone aside, trusting his brother to hang up, and glared at his lover as a golden-brown hand found the headboard.
“You’re the- oh, fuck- fucking worst.”
“Am I, though?” Lance leaned down, kissing him soundly, hips still moving. “Because -hah- I think I’m pretty great.”
“I think you’re taking too long. Veronica’s going to catch on,” Keith grumbled, surging forward to pin Lance against the mattress. Lance’s eyes were wide with surprise. Smirk morphing into a crooked grin, Keith teased him with a brush of lips. “But don’t worry. I can make up for any lost time.”
Lance giggled, pulled him down for a deeper, more insistent kiss as Keith struck up a decent pace. It was a fantastic start to the morning.
Which made it a brutal contrast walking into the art store two blocks down from the apartment building.
It was a really nice store, smelling like parchment and acrylics, rows of supplies for painting, drawing, ceramics, glass, metal, and even textiles. There was a small coffee bar in the corner. And a counter, behind which sat a single Altean. Tugging on the hem of his new shirt, Keith took a deep breath, steadying his nerves. He could do this. Tons of people did this every day.
He felt jittery and nauseous.
“Hi, I have an appointment.” Keith shifted from foot to foot, tightening his grip on the folder under his arm, fingering the leather of Kosmo’s over-the-shoulder leash. The Altean glanced up, then back to their computer. “I’m Keith Kogane.”
“We’re not interested.”
Keith’s brows crinkled with confusion. “But when I called-”
“We’re not interested. Please leave.” The woman glared out from under strawberry-red hair.
“Oh.” Keith’s heart fell through the floor. He gulped. Normally, he was too used to it to care, but he’d been excited to try working here. There wasn’t anything he could do without getting in trouble, though, so he just had to take it. He couldn't put Lance through a legal mess. He wouldn't come out on top, anyway.
“Okay. I- I understand. I’ll just-”
“Ah, Keith.” A familiar, dark-skinned Altean smiled. Keith’s previous good mood tentatively reared its head again as he knotted his fingers in Kosmo’s ruff.
“Y- yeah- I mean, yes! Yes, I am Keith Kogane.” Keith cringed, hugging his folder to his chest. Kosmo, sensing his mounting anxiety, pressed up against his leg.
“Welcome. Please, this way.” The Altean led him through to a back room. “So. You don’t recognize me?”
“Uh… You do look familiar.” Keith sighed. “Look, are you just taking me back so you take a more intimate shit on my blood? Because I really can just go. I- I don’t mind.”
“No, I’m hoping you can do Luca’s job so things like that don’t happen. And I’m Tavo. We met at the grocery store.”
“O- Oh. Um. Sorry. You- Thanks for your help.” Keith wondered if it was possible to throat-punch himself so he didn’t have to talk any more.
Tavo stepped into an office, sat down on the other side. After a moment’s hesitation, Keith cautiously entered and stood in front of the desk. He wasn’t sure if the Altean would allow him to sit or not. When Tavo looked at him expectantly, he only shuffled his feet.
“You can sit. You don’t have to ask.”
“R- Right! Sorry...”
“I am not an animal, Keith.” The Altean seemed unhappy with him, inciting immediate panic. Alteans were just a subspecies, but they held far more sway in the city than he did.
He hadn't realized how much he feared them until now, when he'd made himself vulnerable in one's presence.
“I’m sorry! I just- I’m sorry!” Keith’s shoulders rose up to his ears, Kosmo whining at his feet. The wolf set his head in his lap, and Keith stroked his head. He took a deep breath, let his shoulders fall, sat quiet and still in the chair. He was doing a really shit-ass job of this. Shiro would be so disappointed in him.
He was disappointed in himself.
“I apologize for Luca’s behavior. This is the only art store in this part of the city, and we’re always busy during store hours, so I can’t get rid of her without someone to take her place. I’m hoping that that someone is you.”
“Okay,” Keith mumbled. “I- I mean- I hope so too!” He sighed, buried his face in his hands. Tavo laughed.
“Relax, relax. You’ve never done this before, have you?”
“No.” Keith dragged his toe over the floor. He was wearing his ‘ass jeans’ and an indigo button up. Lance had pulled his hair back half up into a ponytail. He’d also painted Keith’s nails matte black. “I’ve, uh. I’ve never done anything before.”
“I see. Do explain.”
“When I was sixteen, my parents died in a crash and I was the driver. My brother was shipped off to the border the next morning before I even regained consciousness. Then I kinda bailed on life for six years. But I’m doing better now, and I want to work. I want to do something with my life and this seems like a good start.
“I, uh. I don’t have a resume, since I don’t really have anything to put on it and don’t know how to make one, but I have some images of artwork I did.” Keith awkwardly set the folder down on Tavo’s desk.
“You realize I’m not hiring you to paint for me, right?”
“I know, but I didn’t want to come in with nothing. I know about a lot of different products for painting and drawing, and I’d be willing to experiment with different brands you carry. I can learn their different strengths and weaknesses and whether or not you should even be selling them.”
Tavo took the folder, thumbing through the images. “These are quite impressive. You must have spent a lot of time on them.”
“Yes; I am a good worker.” Keith wasn’t at all sure if that was true, but he could say it like it was.
“Hm.” Tavo set the folder between them. “I thought as much. Lance McClain seems as much like a job as he does a relationship. I assume this is your version of a break?”
“I…” Keith took a breath. “I am concerned that we may become codependent. I want my own life and he deserves to have that as well.”
“Excellent. I want to give you this chance. When can you start?”
Keith bit his lip, wincing as he forgot his sharp canines. “Tomorrow? My brother had surgery yesterday and Lance’s sister flies back to California in…” Keith checked his watch. “Four hours.”
“We’re closed on Sundays, so we’ll go with Monday. Just be here at seven-thirty so I can show you how to open. You’ll train as you go.”
“Sounds great.”
“Of course. Now, here’s my email. Just send me a picture of your SSN card and birth certificate. And…” Tavo slid a small stack of papers into Keith’s folder. “You’ll need to fill these out. Just bring them in with you Monday. Because of your heritage, you have some extra forms. Those are required by federal law. There is also a drug test, which I will pay for you to take. You may wish for a Sapien to accompany you, just in case they try to pull something.”
“Okay. I’ll do that. Um… Do they test for Nekati?” Some places used it as grounds to turn someone down, probably because it was predominantly Galra who used it.
“They do, but it’s not a problem for me if you test positive. Nekati grass isn’t illegal. Yet. Have you been using anything else?”
“Some anti-anxiety drugs, but not for about a month.”
“Then we should have no problems.” The Altean stood, smiling. “I’m eager to work with you, Keith, and I hope we can be friends.”
“Thank you.” Keith stood, awkwardly held out his hand. To his surprise, Tavo the Altean gripped his arm just below the elbow, honoring Keith with a Galra greeting.
“You are most welcome. Do give Luca the finger on your way out. Ancients know she deserves it.”
Keith did just that, beaming as he and Kosmo swept by the racist bitch to meet up with Lance, Veronica, and Pidge for lunch. Even the footman watching him from a bench couldn’t change the fact that his good mood was back on.
“So… I have a question.” Shiro glanced up in time to see Allura throw away a negative pregnancy test. Neither had been surprised by the result. They’d only just started trying a few days ago, after all. Or at least, they’d only just stopped not trying.
“What’s your question?” Allura unbraided her hair, brought up the ends to inspect them.
“Is it normal to answer a phone call while having sex with someone?” Shiro carefully placed his metal fingers in Mei’s line of sight, trying to get the puppy used to them. To his utter relief, she seemed more curious than fearful, cautiously sniffing the white digits.
“Umm… I’m going to go with ‘no’ on that. Why?”
“Because Keith totally just answered the phone while having sex with Lance.”
“Gross! But this is about fifty percent your fault, you know.”
“Why is that?” Shiro grabbed a small squeaky toy from the nightstand, playing a gentle tug-of-war with Mei.
“You two are… unsettlingly close. Some would call it abnormal, or even unhealthy.”
“I don’t think it’s unhealthy. But we are extremely close, I’ll agree. For more than half of my life, he’s the only family I’ve had, and like it or not, he’s always required a little extra care of some kind. Plus, he tends to look after me, in his own way.”
“ Keith looks after you ? I’d love to hear the logic behind that.” Allura sat next to him on the bed, watching him play with his new puppy. Just having her was making a difference, he could tell. Already something about her made him feel a little lighter.
“He… It’s hard to explain. There are some things that I don’t usually allow myself to feel, or things that I can’t feel anymore. He does that for me. Sometimes-” Shiro thought back to yesterday, when Keith coaxed some long-suppressed bitterness into his heart. “Sometimes he can get me to feel those things. They’re not things that I want to feel, but I think I’m finally understanding that I need to.
“I can’t keep pushing it all down and hoping it goes away. There are certain things that I need to face if I’m really going to get past them. He makes me a stronger person.”
“Sounds more like he exacerbates your flaws,” Allura muttered.
“Not really.” Shiro let Mei win their tugging match before gently pinching the chew toy to start all over again. “He more reminds me that I have them. Flaws are important, ‘Lura, and I’m better owning and conquering them than I am pretending they don’t exist.”
“I suppose that’s true. How do you feel about breakfast?”
“Starving!” Shiro grinned at Allura. “What should we have?”
“Hm. I can cook scrambled eggs, but that’s about it. Do you need to use the bathroom?”
“No, I’m good. Even if I did, I can do that on my own. And eggs sound great.”
Shiro pushed himself into a sitting position as Allura pushed Black around to his side of the bed. He’d done this before, had gotten pretty good at it. Under strict orders not to put any weight on his knees, he lifted the slide board from its place between the bed and nightstand, cradling Mei to his chest with his flesh hand.
“Do you want me to hold her?” Allura offered, already holding out her hands. Shiro handed the puppy over, not trusting her to have the balance to stay in his lap while he slid into the wheelchair, or Black, as he called her. Giving the chair a name made needing a chair a more positive experience.
Swinging his legs over the edge of the bed, not looking at the lumps of bandages beneath his pajamas, Shiro worked himself along the slide board into Black, settling in. Handing Mei back to him, Allura took the slide board and slipped it into a pocket on the side of the chair.
“Thanks, love.” He smiled at her, closing his eyes as she carded fingers through his silver hair.
“You don’t need to thank me for anything. Not ever.”
He knew that. Allura had proved her care for him over and over. She’d been by his side since before he even left for his mission. She’d supported him from the moment they met, back when they weren’t even friends, when they were just strangers.
“I know, but still.” Taking her hand, Shiro pressed a kiss to the back of it. “I’m grateful. If it weren’t for you, I wouldn’t even be here right now, let alone have all the things I have.”
“Come on. Let’s make some breakfast.”
“You make breakfast. I’ll just eat it. Hopefully.”
“If you wanna eat out, you can just tell me,” Allura grumbled, sticking her tongue out as she held the door open for him.
“I wanna eat out.” Wheeling himself out of the bedroom, Shiro dodged a smack upside the head.
“Is my cooking really that bad?” Allura asked. Shiro sucked a breath in through his teeth, wincing at the question. “Ouch.”
“Well… If you look at it from a certain angle- I mean, if you really think about it, talent is subjective-”
“Wow, I had no idea a man in a wheelchair was so good at digging.”
“You wanna help me out?”
“Sorry, love. I don’t keep a shovel here.”
“Fair enough. Where do you wanna go for breakfast?”
“McDonald’s.” It rolled off Shiro’s tongue without a second thought.
“Absolutely not. You ate toaster strudels for dinner last night. You cannot have McDonald’s for breakfast.”
“Are you really going to deny Mei the opportunity to discover the wonders of a McDonald's hashbrown?” Shiro picked up the puppy in his lap, holding her up to face height. “What do you think, Sprout? Do you want a hashbrown?”
Mei licked his face, bringing a grin to the surface. Allura frowned, unimpressed.
“I'm absolutely going to deny your very small service dog a hashbrown. She does not eat people food.” Allura sighed. “But… I guess we can get McDonald’s.”
“I hope you’re not this heartless when it comes to our children.”
“I’ll have to make up for you doing your damndest to ruin them.” Shaking her head, Allura hands him a tiny training vest, collar, and leash. “Do you want me to bring a car around?”
“No, I’m good. It’s not far at all and I can get around well enough. I remember the close one has a special table for wheelchairs.”
Shiro wheeled himself into the elevator, taking care not to jostle Mei too much. The pup chewed her toy, just happy to be there. She had a lot to learn, but Shiro couldn’t wait to get started.
“She needs more toys,” he decided. “Like, a lot more toys.”
“... Know what? You’re right. She does.” A moment’s pause. “Can I sit on your lap while you wheel us to breakfast?”
And that was why Allura was the best partner ever. Hands down.