Sparkle Eyes For You (Klance)

Part 6

The walk there usually took only a minute or two, but his slow gate and the thoughts whirling around his head made it feel like hours. Finally, the door opened and he stepped into the room, greeted by the sight of all the other Paladins, plus Coran and Allura, who were in the process of bringing food over to the table. The princess and Keith looked a little shaky, while Hunk was straight up passed out in one of the chairs.

"Oh, Lance, you're up." Shiro smiled warmly, gesturing to an open chair at the table. "Is...everything okay?"

Keith gave him a confused frown, and he realized he'd been staring at the boy since the moment he'd stepped in the room. Quickly averting his gaze, he laughed nervously, scampering over to and into the chair like one of Allura's mice. He sunk back into himself, forcefully avoiding Keith's eyes.

"I'm great! Glad I didn't drink anything last night—it seemed like a terrible time."

"Oh, it was!" Coran fluffed his mustache, setting a plate of blue-green space goop in front of him with a usual dramatic flourish. "After all my years of castle parties, I've gained quite a tolerance to the stuff, but I'm afraid I can't say the same for those three." He jabbed a thumb at Allura, who winced. "After Hunk threw up on Allura, she started calling him Zarkon and attacking him—almost turned the castle defenses on him...We barely sedated her in time...And Keith just sat in a corner after downing three whole glasses. Didn't do anything interesting, though." He gave Keith an annoyed glare, and the red Paladin shrugged.

"I honestly barely remember anything about last night. But I did wake up with a massive hangover. I guess this really is like the alcohol on earth."

Lance flinched at the familiar phrase, and Keith gave him a confused look, which he avoided.

"Well, let's all eat and get our wits about us again," Allura proposed awkwardly, settling into a chair one down from Lance. Her voice made a whole new wave of emotions crash over him. Did this mean he didn't like Allura? Had he been leading her on this entire time? Was he just lying to himself? Or was he bi? But he'd have to choose, in the end.

"Lance?" Shiro set down his spoon, giving him a worried half-smile. "Are you sure you're okay? You seem stressed. If something happened, you know you can talk to us about it, right?"

"No, really, I'm fine." He took a deep breath, purposefully picking up his spoon and scooping a bite of goop into his mouth. Swallowing had never felt so difficult, especially with everyone watching him. With Keith watching him, those big, beautiful eyes filled with barely contained worry.

After a few more bites, Shiro picked his spoon up again, signaling everyone to stop staring at him and get on with breakfast. The meal passed in near silence, the only noises present the squelching of the food and Hunk's light snoring. Lance was grateful for the silence, but he could practically feel everyone thinking about him from all around the table.