Lifesavers~ Klance

4

For some reason, Lance was kind of looking forward to his session with Keith today.  He pushed a pack of lifesavers into his bag and zipped it up, then slunk down the hall towards the library.  A chuckle sounded behind him.  "Hey, idiot.  Off to your tutoring session?"  Lance whipped around to face the two people he hated most. Rolo and Nyma.  They looked okay at first- Rolo was the popular bad boy and Nyma was his cheerleader sister. But together, they made his school life a living hell. "Yeah. I am." He turned back around and started walking away, but Rolos hand grabbed the back of his collar. "But Lance!! You can't go without your homework!" He jerked the skinny boy back, his backpack toppling from his shoulder. Lance twisted, trying to get out of his grasp- he had been in this situation all too many times.  "Not so fast, McLame." Nyma attacked from behind, pushing him into the wall and pinning him there.  Rolos fists flew forward in slow motion. Lance tilted his face as far from it as possible, but the hit only reached his shoulder.  Nyma dropped him to the floor, her tall heel colliding with his stomach. He let out a grunt of pain, despite having been holding his breath. With the next kick, he felt his ankle bend in a completely new direction, letting out a sharp crack and a pop. Nyma winced at the harsh noise, then started to laugh.  Lance squeezed his eyes shut.  Another grunt, that was to his chest. Then one more to his jaw. He pursed his lips so he wouldn't scream.  

"You're fine." Rolo snarled, flicking him over with the toe of his boot.  With that, he walked away, Nyma on his heel.  Lance grimaced, trying hard not to breath and cause pain to his ribs.  He lay for a minute more on the tiled floor, his vision swimming, before straightening out and standing up. Leaning against the wall, he let out a wet splutter of a cough into his hand, then fumbled for a napkin as he realized it was blood.  One more cough into the tissue, which he crumpled up and kept pressed against his palm, then he limped the rest of the way to the library. "Man up, Lance. You're fine." He muttered to himself, furrowing his brows.  

Kieth watched the automatic doors as they opened and closed.  He wasn't usually this late.  He frowned, tapping his foot.  After a few minutes more, the doors opened to reveal the familiar tanned face of his pupil- a smile had obviously been forced onto his face, but Kieth didn't push it.  "Hey. What kept you up?"

"Ah- nothing important. Sorry to keep you waiting." Keith waved it off with a flick of his wrist, noting how Lance approached him with a slight limp. "It's fine, what happened to your leg?"

"I tripped on the way. I'm fine." Lance smiled again, then his hand shot up to his jaw. A grimace threw the smile off his face. "Lance." Keith warned. "Come on, you can tell me." The black haired boy leaned against the table to make himself seem more approachable. "Really, Keith, I'm fine. I just fell out there, promise. Now can we drop it?"

"You're limping, it must be pretty bad. Can I check it out?"

"No! Uh- no. I'm honestly fine, Keith. Let's just get to work." 

When Lance left that day, he didn't even say goodbye. 

Keith burrowed his head in his hands.  He lay on his bed, face down, trying to make something of that evenings events.  What was wrong with Lance?  His head pounded.  All around him, the darkness seemed to close in, and the bright white of his clock blared into his eyes.  It was 2:05- he needed a drink.  Padding down the hall to the kitchen, thoughts buzzed around Keith mind.  Lance was limping, scowling, he didn't make any jokes. Just sat down and got straight to work. That was so strange, but the weirdest thing was that he had dirt all over his shirt.  Keith knew that he said he had fallen in the hall, but the floors had just been waxed- there shouldn't have been any dirt, unless Lance was just really dirty, but Keith had never known him to be like that- he was a true fashionista.  "Ugh." He mumbled, filling a glass with water and trudging back to his bed.  Netflix played on his computer softly, and he absentmindedly stared at the screen, occasionally taking sips from his glass. He looked like he was watching, but his mind was reeling with something else. Before he knew it, the sun peeked over the bottom of his windows and the blinding clock screamed its alarm.  Keith sighed. It was going to be a long day.