"Hey!"

"Hi"

Lance paused and then gently pulled Keith's arm to lead him further away and closed the door.

"Sorry I didn't check earlier, but I'm not out to most of my family. Are you fine with being just friends for now? At least when we're at home"

"Oh, that's perfectly okay."

Keith smirked

"I'll try not to flirt with you"

Lance chuckled

"Oh! How will you ever survive! The torture. Come on, it's only lunch"

"Keith's here!"

A chorus of greetings erupted from all around and he chuckled nervously. Lance pushed his shoulders and guided him to the couch.

"It's okay, I'll get you a drink?"

"Yeah, thanks"

"Hey, I'm Rachel"

"Hey"

"You seem pretty stiff, you alright"

"Um, big family. There's only 4 of us at home"

"Oh, right sorry. So this.. Whole thing is probably a bit overwhelming for you"

"Just a bit"

He heard a high pitched gasp and someone came running.

"Rachie Rachie Rachie! It's a cat!"

Rachel caught her around the middle and held her on her knee.

"Nadia, calm down. This is Keith, Lance's friend."

"Keith how do you get your cat to sit on your shoulder like a parrot?"

"Um, I don't really do anything. She just wants to sit there and I let her"

"Can I pleasseee pet her?"

"I dunno.. Would you know when she doesn't want cuddles anymore?"

"I will! I will!"

He faked a heavy sigh

"Well okay, but only scratch her head. Don't pick her up"

She squealed and he grinned.

"You didn't have to say yes, you know"

He turned around and shrugged

"Why not? As long as red's boundaries are respected it's fine"

He hummed and held out the glass of water

"Here"

Red nudged her face into his cheek and meowed. He gave a quick smile and reached his hand out and Lance pushed the glass into his hand.

"Thanks"

"Ma says its gonna be about half an hour Rach."

"Ah sweet! There's enough time for a couple games"

"Hey, Keith"

"Mm?"

"Come, I'll show you my room"

"No, you're just running away! What if he wants to play with us!"

"Rach, we all know how chaotic family games get. I don't think it's a very good first impression"

She sighed and rolled her eyes.

"Finnee."

__

"Thanks"

"Hey, I get it. They can be.. A lot"

"You have somewhere I can put my glass?"

"Oh yeah, here I'll sort it"

He lifted it out of his hand and set it down on the desk.

"Hey! We've got fireworks later I just remembered. How long are you staying?"

"I dunno, whenever someone comes to pick me up"

Lance scoffed

"That is not an acceptable way to tell the time"

"Mm, but it works"

He poked his cheek

"It does not, 'whenever someone comes to pick me up' what is that? You didn't even request a pick up time?"

"I suppose not"

Lance scoffed and jabbed his cheek again

"You should know if you did or not. I told you that you were going to be here for lunch, how long do you think that would take?"

He shrugged

"Boo"

He pushed his finger into his cheek

"Give me a real answer"

He laughed and pushed Lance's hand away

"Stop"

Lance took a step back and just stared at him. Keith quirked an eyebrow

"What?"

"I like your laugh"

Keith snorted into his fist and covered it with a cough.

"Thanks"

"Foods ready!"

__

The sky was beginning to darken so they all settled down on the grass outside. He scratched his wrist and red shuffled and sat on his hand. He sighed and played with her fur.

"You alright?"

"Kinda.. There's just something you should know"

"Okay"

His jaw worked and he tried to form words but they stuck on his tongue. He dropped his arm over his eyes and sighed.

"Hey, you don't have to tell me. Not if you don't want to"

"But I do want to! I just- I've never had to.. Explain this to someone before. They were all.."

Lance hummed and rubbed circles on Keith's palm.

"I just.. Don't know what to do."

"It's okay. Do you want me to call Axca?"

"I don't know. I want to stay here but I'll just be thinking about.."

He screwed up his face and waved his hand around in a circle.

"No matter where I am until I-"

He bit down on his lip and sighed.

"This shouldn't be this difficult."

"Hey it's okay"

"I just - I can't- Ugh!!"

He shook his head

"Why can't I tell you?"

"Hey"

He turned his head towards him. Lance pushed his hair away and planted a kiss onto his forehead. Keith instantly tensed at the touch and Lance lingered before pulling away.

"Sorry"

"No.. Your family?"

He heard Lance shuffle and his thumb stroked across his cheek.

"If they haven't noticed already, I doubt they will. They're too invested in the fireworks"

Keith exhaled a chuckle

"I.."

Keith bit down on his lip

"You don't have to tell me now"

"I just didn't rehearse what I was going to say and then it was a good opportunity to tell you but if I go over anything in my head it just sounds wrong and-"

"And.."

The words died in his throat and his mouth was working without noise. He winced when a firework exploded and 

Lance shifted to lay closer. He turned his head to the side and he could almost touch Keith's cheek.

"Do you want to go somewhere quieter?"

Keith's jaw clenched and his eyes widened.

"Oh, fuck.. I don't know.. If it was silent I think I would have even less success."

"It doesn't have to be to talk"

He paused and raised an eyebrow and chuckled

"Oh and you thought you had to be careful of my flirting"

Lance sat up and glanced down at him. Keith's hair was sprawled out over the grass and a soft smile sat on his lips. 

Before he knew what was happening, he reached out and tucked a stray piece of hair behind his ear. Keith's eyes flicked over and Lance huffed.

"You are so pretty.."

He traced a thumb through his hair and smiled. His heartbeat thundered in his ears and he shot up. Lance yanked his hand away with a yelp. They said sorry in unison and Keith cleared his throat.

"So about that quiet place?"

"Is that a yes?"

"Yes"

__

They had their backs against the bed and sat on the floor with their legs spread out in front of them. Keith fiddled with his fingers and Lance sighed.

"You okay?"

"I really want to tell you"

"Just forget about it for a couple minutes. You said yourself that you would have less success if it was silent"

"I know.. But.."

He dropped his head onto his shoulder and took one of Keith's hands in his own. He rubbed his thumb over his skin and brought it up to his mouth and kissed it. Keith exhaled a shaky breath. Lance held his face in his hands and brushed his lips against his cheek. His breath hitched and he just stared. Lance kissed his forehead and lingered for a while. Keith's hands moved up to his wrists and Lance drew back.

"You okay?"

"I'm okay"

His voice barely came out as a whisper because he didn't trust it to not betray him. Lance's thumbs rubbed over his cheeks.

"Really, I am"

Keith looped an arm over his neck and drew him close. He felt the hesitant brush of skin against his lips and sighed. He drew away after a couple moments and Lance whined. Keith chuckled.

"Can I.. I want to try it."

He felt his rapid heartbeat through his neck and Lance's exhale landed on his face.

"Yeah.. Okay"

Keith leaned in again and just barely touched his tongue to his bottom lip. Lance twitched and his stomach clenched. Keith drew back a little but Lance tightened his fingers, not wanting him to leave. He did it again, but firmer, and Lance made a soft sound against him. Keith pulled away to breathe and Lance had to stop himself from chasing his mouth.

"Are you okay"

"Yes"

He couldn't manage anything more than a whisper. Keith smiled and placed his palm on his cheek.

"You're so warm"

"Stop"

Lance's face got hotter and he chuckled. He pressed their lips together again and drew back. Lance whined, he mumbled a sorry before Lance surged forward to connect their lips.

He had too much momentum and they topped backwards. Keith laughed and dropped his hand on his own stomach. Fuck.

"This isn't fair."

He grinned

"What?"

Lance poked his shoulder.

"You should have weak nerd arms"

Keith laughed again and flexed his arm.

"Sorry to disappoint"

Lance huffed and rolled off him.

Keith exhaled a whisper

"I'm blind.."

"What?"

He clenched and dropped an arm over his face.

"I can't.. See the fireworks"

"Oh, I could open the curtains"

He stood up but Keith grabbed his hand.

"No. I-"

His mouth stubbornly locked shut and Lance knelt down. He rubbed his thumb across Keith's cheek and he closed his eyes and sighed.

The door swung open and Lance shot up. Keith grinned and pressed a finger to his mouth. Lance coughed to compose himself.

"Vero"

She snorted

"You two sure are subtle"

"Listen-"

A laughed escaped from Keith and he turned it into a cough but couldn't suppress the smirk on his face.

"I knew it would be the same Keith when you told us he was coming over"

"The same?"

"Don't answer."

"He talked about you before"

Lance sucked in a sharp breath

"Ah right."

"V."

"Ma's gonna notice you're missing soon, go make up an excuse"

He sighed

"Okay, don't make up lies about me"

She hummed and he scoffed.

"So, what do you want to know?"

Keith laughed

"Wow betrayal"

"He never said anything about truths"

"Right, how long have you known?"

"His first kiss, so flustered, you must have made an impression"

"No way that was his first."

"Oh it was"

"He is so flirty"

"How.. Often does he get attention?"

She sighed

"Not much by the parents, mediocre by me and Rach and it depends with his niece and nephew"

"That's sad"

"Why do you ask?"

"He's surprised whenever I listen to him and pay attention"

"Mmm that's sad"

Keith fidgeted and rested his teeth on his finger.

"You okay?"

He shook his head but answered with a 'fine'.

"I like him, but I don't think I'm ready for a relationship. I've got.. Things to deal with that I'm not used to talking about but he deserves to know"

"You're allowed to take your time"

"I just.. Freeze up whenever I try, and I got it out once but it was too quiet."

"Well what is it?"

His mouth opened slightly and he blinked a couple times.

"I'm blind"

Keith scoffed

"Of course that was so easy."

"I'll be honest, Lance is an idiot. He probably won't even notice"

He sighed

"Okay but, everyone except him knows. It's just fair"

"You don't need to rush into telling him. Do you really think it's going to change that much if he knows?"

He shrugged and rested his chin on his knees.

"I just owe it to him. But how do I know if he'll act differently? What if he doesn't hear it from me and just hears a rumor?"

"You're putting too much pressure on yourself. It shouldn't be as complicated as you're making it"

He shook his head

"It's been a couple months since it happened. I should.." 

"It takes a lot more time than a couple months for people to even process traumatic events. Give yourself time, you've got plenty"

"I almost died.."

He heard her intake a sharp breath and he rested a hand behind his neck.

"I don't know how long I have. I could die tomorrow and wouldn't even know. Things happen all the time and especially since I can't see threats coming, anything could happen"

She let out a low whistle and shook her head

"Nice mentally you got there.."

He huffed and sank further down into his arms.

"Hey, everything sorted with ma?"

"Yeah"

"I think I should go soon"

"Why? You okay?"

"I-I'm pretty tired and I should use the drums before I go to bed"

"What did you say to him"

"Lance-"

"She didn't say anything, we were just talking. This happens sometimes"