Taking A Chance

Fixing The Damage

Damn it,' muttered Pidge
‘Pidge, you okay?' asked Keith.
She looked up. ‘Hey, Keith,' she said. ‘My arm is too shot to plug the power supply back in.’
‘Can I help?' asked Keith.
'Yes please,’ she said getting up from the floor. ‘Can you reach in there, at the end is a plug that need to be pushed in.’
Keith slipped his jacket off and lay on his back on the floor and reached into the hole. Pidge looked down a hole from the top she saw his hand and then his arm. As he grasped the plug she looked at the criss-cross of scars on his wrist and her heart sank.
Keith always acted like nothing phased him, that he was strong and tough, but in reality he was a little bit broken.
Just then the machine came to life.
‘Excellent,' Pidge grinned.
‘Shit,' Keith said.
‘What happened?' she asked.
‘Sharp piece of metal,’ he muttered.
She looked down at him and saw a cut that want along the underside at his forearm from the elbow crease to wrist.
‘Are you okay?' she asked.
‘Yeah, it's not too bad, I'll go and fix it up,’ he said.
Keith went back to his room and threw his jacket on the bed before going into the bathroom. He cleaned the wound under the water then looked for a bandage in the draw.
He heard the bedroom door open. ‘Keith?’ asked Lance.
‘In here,’ he said.
He was still going through the draw when Lance came in.
‘Oh my god, Keith,' Lance cried.
Keith's head snapped upat the sound of panic in his voice.
‘It's not what you think,' Keith said, quickly. ‘It was an accident. I was helping Pidge with something.‘
Lance grabbed a towel and placed it under Keith's arm and put the lid to the toilet down.
‘Sit,’ Lance said.
Keith did as he was told while Lance collected what he needed together and sat on the edge of the bath, and Keith turned to him.
‘You don't need to worry,' Keith said.
‘I can't help it, it's part of my nature to worry,’ said Lance. ‘My mama says my twin sister and I got a bit mixed up. Veronica is not the Ieast maternal, but I am. Hell, I'm so gay it's a wonder I don't piss rainbows.’
Keith laughed.
‘Then what's with flirting with girls?’ asked Keith.
'Because being gay isn't always accepted at the Garrison. I found that out the hard way,’ Lance said.
He clearned and dried Keith's wound.
'They hurt you.’ It was a statement rather than a question. It explained his reaction to what happened on Okarina.
Lance shrugged. ‘Some of us aren't so badass that we get left alone. So, in order to fit in, I became something that was accepted and in the end it became a habit,’ said Lance. ‘My dad has trouble with the fact I'm gay, he doesn't say anything, but I know he's disappointed.'
Lance applied an Altean healing gel to the wound and placed gauze over it before he started bandaging Keith arm.
‘So, tell me, why did you break up with Greg?’ asked Lance
Keith grimaced. ‘He was becoming clingy. Telling me who I could and couldn't talk to, I'm mean we weren’t even going together. He was just…a distraction.‘
'Just a good shag, hey?’ chuckled Lance.
'Not particularly. Believe me, I was glad to get rid of him,’ Keith said. ‘In truth, you're actually my first partner.'
‘Oh?’ Lance said in surprise.
'I've never wanted anyone permanently in my life,’ said Keith. ‘I never wanted someone hanging off me, and invading my space. But you're different because I hate it when you're not around, I miss your touch, your smell, your smile.’
Lance's hands still as he gazed at Keith.
When Keith realised Lance had stopped he looked up at him, and the unshed tears in his eyes.
'I said something wrong,’ worried Keith.
‘No,' muttered Lance, ‘you said everything just right.'
Lance continued to bandage Keith's arm then secured it.
Keith absently rubbed tiredly at his eyes.
‘You should get some more rest,' said Lance. ‘Coran said it could take up to a week to get your strength back after your first heat.’
Sadness crept back into Keith's eyes. Lance took Keith's hand and lead him back out to the bedroom and to the bed. Keith turned Lance to him and kissed him, and Lance melted into it. Keith had withdrawn into himself after his heat feeling guilty about what he'd done to Lance. This was the first time Keith kissed him since it happened.
Lance moved back to the bed and lay down, bringing Keith with him for an intense make out session. When Keith pulled back they were both panting.
‘Get some rest,’ Lance said.
Keith lay down, his head on Lance's chest and he happily let sleep claim him.
An hour later when Adam came to get them for dinner, he found them still entangled together, deep in sleep and left them there, but he did frown at the bandage on Keith's arm.
Shiro looked up when Adam came back to the dinning room alone.
‘Where are they?’ Shiro asked.
‘Asleep, but Keith had a bandage on his arm,’ Adam said.
‘What?’ asked Shiro, unable to keep the panic out of his voice, as he sprang to his feet.
‘That happened while helping me with some repairs,’ said Pidge, ‘he didn't do it to himself.’
Shiro relaxed and sat down again.
'I would never have pick Keith to be unstable,' said Coran. ‘It was a complete shock to see he had cut himself.’
‘When did he do that?’ asked Adam.
‘A month or so ago,’ murmured Shiro. ‘The Princess told him he should have died on the Galra ship after she shot him. He was not in a good place anod her words cut deep.'
‘Everyone can the pushed to a point where they can't think of another way out,’ said Adam, sadly. ‘Keith shuts himself off from people so he does risk being rejected again. If anyone ever got to close to him, wanting more commitment than he was willing to give he would walk away, but there is something about Lance that's different.’
‘Yes,' said Shiro, ‘it was a surprise to find out they were together, and even more surprised they're still together.’
‘I'm not,’ said Hunk. ‘Lance has been in love with Keith since they met at the Garrison, we just all thought Keith was straight.'
‘It was a shock to find out he was bi,’ Pidge admitted.
‘I find human's to be a complicated race,’ said Coran, ‘and confess a very interesting one as well. I have rarely met a race who finds relationships and so difficult.‘
‘You never had problems with the ladies, Coran?’ asked Hunk.
‘No, I met my wife and courted her in a matter of months,’ said Coran. ‘We had three daughters and two sons.’
‘I didn't know you had a family,' said Pidge, ‘you've never spoken about them before.’
Coran's smile faltered. ‘They were on Altea when it was destroyed, I like to think of them as they were in life.’
They fell into silenceas they ate, all caught up in their own thoughts.