đ Happy Birthday Lance! đ
This year I didn't manage to draw anything for the occasion, so let me share with you this piece I made last year. It comes with a small fic! I'm by no mean a good writer, but if you want to read it here it is~
I hope you'll like at least one between the drawing and the fic đ
âCome on dude, didnât I already prove you I blindly trust you?â Lance asked, giggling at his own pun.
Keith sighed, holding back a laugh.
âSay another terrible one like this and Iâll glue the blindfold to your face.â
âRude.â whined the Cuban boy, as he climbed up the last step of the ladder and stood up.
âStop complaining, we arrived.â answered Keith, reaching him immediately after.
âYou know that I know you just brought me on the rooftop, right?â
âThe destination is not what the blindfold is supposed to hideâ said the boy with a sweet, amused voice. He gently grabbed Lanceâs hand and lead him a couple steps forward. âYou can take it off now.â
Lance obeyed immediately, eager to find out whatâs all that mystery about, and he found himself in front of Keithâs shy smile subtly lit by the starlight. He was so captured by that view that in a first moment he didnât even notice the actual surprise.
âHappy birthday.â Keith said softly, his voice like a caress. Lance couldnât help but smile back, then he tried to look away from his face and focus on what he was showing him.
Keith clearly put a lot of effort into it. He laid down a blanket and some big pillows, and on the centre of the blanket he put a huge gift box, topped by a shark plushie. All around the spot he put fairy lights and sea breeze scented candles. Everything of that was screaming Lance.
âYouâre crazy.â is all he managed to say, too amazed by that lovely scenario. Keith giggled, satisfied.
âWonât you open your gift?â
âKeith, you didnât have toâŚâ
âOf course I had to, itâs your birthday.â
Lance smiled. âYeah, but you already did so much!â
âI didnât do that much.â
The Cuban looked at him with a smirk. âYouâre not fooling anyone samurai. Pidge told me how you organized the party almost all by yourself. She said youâve been planning this for months.â
âOk, remind me not to tell anything to Pidge ever again.â
Lance giggled looking at Keith slightly blushing while looking away. He was so funny.
âAnyhow, the party was a wonderful gift already, you didnât have to make me another oneâŚâ
âA party is a party, not a gift, so just open it, ok?â
Lance smiled softly once again, then he finally went sitting on the blanket. Keith followed him and sat by his side. The birthday boy took the shark plushie from the top of the box.
âIs that part of the gift too?â
âIt is.â Confirmed the other guy with a proud voice that made Lance giggle once again.
âI love it.â he said, putting his new stuffed friend on his lap. Keith smiled, enthusiastic. He looked like he was the one opening gifts.
Lance proceeded to unwrap the main gift with greedy hands.
âI gotta admit Iâm a bit scared by this. Itâs huge.â he lied. He wasnât scared, he was hella curious.
The box started showing up from under the wrapping paper and Lance froze as he understood what he had in his hands.
âOh my God.â he said with a trembling voice âThis is not what I think it is, right?â
Keith giggled. âI donât know, what do you think it is?â
Lance looked at him with eyes full of shock. He swallowed, not knowing whether to answer or not. His expression only managed to make Keith laugh even more.
âJust finish opening it, will ya?â
Lance looked back at the package, and after a moment of doubt he finished unwrapping it, revealing the present in all its glory.
âI canât believe it!â
âIs that what you thought?â Keith asked, already knowing the answer.
Lance opened the box, revealing the shiny components of the AstroGazer OS 10 telescope.
âKeith, youâre literally insane!â
âYeah, you already said that. Do you like it?â he asked, his voice filled with anxiety.
âDo I like it? Damn, Keith! This is an AstroGazer! This is literally the best astrophotography telescope ever! I canât- you- God! I canât believe you really got that for me! These things cost⌠shit, they cost a fucking lot! Are you crazy?!â
Keith smiled, blushing a little bit, the anxiety relieved at the confirm that Lance liked the present.
âIf you like it then it was well spent money.â
Lance blushed violently, left speechless by that unexpected answer. Keith remained speechless too when the other boy threw his arms around him, holding him in a hug.
âYouâre incredible, you know?â
Once he got over the surprise, Keith answered to the hug, holding Lance softly.
âHappy birthday sharpshooter.â
He felt the boy smiling on his shoulder at the sound of the nickname. Lance slowly released the hug to look into Keithâs eyes.
âThank you, mullet. I love it.â
They both smiled, both blushing.
Lanceâs eyes sparkled. âHell yes!â
Keith laughed at the reaction, then he helped Lance assembling the telescope. It took them a while, especially since they gave up almost immediately on reading the instructions manual, preferring the trial-and-error method, but at the end they managed to get it all good and ready to use. Lance was enthusiastic as a kid on Christmas when he started looking at the stars with his new telescope. Keith kept staring at him with heart eyes while he tried every single feature of his present, screaming of joy and excitement at each new discovery.
âQuiznack! Look at that!â Lance shouted, grabbing Keith from a sleeve and pulling him towards the telescope. Keith obeyed and looked in the viewfinder.
âAinât that beautiful?â
He had to admit it, the view was mesmerizing, but it was nothing compared to the gleam on Lanceâs eyes.
Lance smiled at Keith as the boy stepped back from the telescope and their eyes met again.
âYou knowâŚâ he started saying, timidly, looking now at the telescope. âYou and the stars are very similar.â
Keith blushed and laughed, amused. âHowâs that?â
âWell, the fact is that even after all the time I spent among the stars⌠they never stop to amaze me. Just like you do.â
Keith didnât see that coming, and his heart skipped a beat. Did⌠did Lance just flirt with him?
Maybe he didnât hear well. Maybe he was still under the effect of that couple drinks he had during the party. Or maybe Lance was, otherwise he would have never said such a thing⌠but he did say it, and it felt nice, and warm.
Keith didnât know how to reply, so he did what he does best: he didnât reply.
âThis thing is cooler than I thought.â he said, looking at the telescope âNow I see why you were so excited about it.â
Lance giggled. âI know right?! Itâs almost like being up there again!â
Keith smiled fondly. âYou know⌠you could go up there again, if you wanted.â
Lance didnât expect the sudden change of topic.
âI-Iâm not saying to go back to full time space life! I know you like it here, I was just thinking, I donât know, maybeâŚâ his voice died in his throat as he started regretting speaking.
Keith was struggling, his face burning red. He bit his lip. It was too late to change topic now.
âMaybe you could come with me, from time to time. Most of my missions are short term ones, maybe you could⌠join me in one of those? It would be no more than a month or two, nothing too serious, you could take that as a vacation⌠so you could⌠see space again.â
It followed a moment of silence that to Keith felt like forever. He screwed it. All those efforts to give Lance a perfect birthday and he ruined it all in two seconds.
âYou know what, forget that, I shouldnât have brought it up, Iâm an idiot-â
Keith raised his eyes, completely shocked.
At that point he noticed Lance was blushing too. He was smiling, but he was obviously nervous.
âI⌠I would love that. To go back to space. With you.â
Keith couldnât believe his ears. âR-really? Are you serious?â
The boy nodded, timidly. âI know I always say I love my life as it is now, and I do, being with my family and everything is amazing but⌠I would be lying if I said I didnât miss space. And⌠I miss my old buddy too.â he said, laying his fist against Keithâs chest. The old buddy blushed. âI donât think Iâm ready to go back to space life, and I donât know if I ever will be, but⌠the idea of a two monthsâ vacation through the stars with you doesnât sound that bad.â
Elaborated the new, Keith felt a blast of joy filling his whole body. It was electrifying. He smiled.
âI have one last thing for you.â
Lance blinked, surprised, as Keith made him turn around and pushed him back to the blanket. They sat down and Keith moved away one of the pillows, revealing a new gift.
âQuiznack Keith, are you serious?â
The guy laughed, amused by his reaction.
âThis one is not as expensive, I promise. Itâs⌠a kinda stupid thing actually.â He put the little box on Lanceâs hands. âBut I wanted a B plan in case you didnât like the telescope, and I thought this could at least make you smile.â
Lance looked at him with a smirk. âAs if there really was any chance I wouldnât have liked the telescope.â
âBetter safe than sorry.â
Keithâs excited smile was so contagious that Lance couldnât help but smile too. âYouâre spoiling me, I donât deserve that.â
âShut up and open it.â
Lance followed his leaderâs order, sincerely clueless about what the content of this new package could be. He untied the blue ribbon and lifted the cover of the little box, and as he did so the sides of the box fell, opening like a blossoming flower with a picture on each petal and a new smaller box at the centre. The pictures were a variety of photos of Lance together with his friends and family. He gasped.
Keith smiled at him and Lance started admiring every single picture one by one, his eyes tearing up.
âDid⌠did you do that?â
The guy nodded. âThereâs more, open the second one.â
Lance proceeded to open the second box and just like the first one, it bloomed into a new pictures flower, revealing a third box. The birthday boy took a moment to appreciate the memories contained in the new set of pictures, and finally he opened the third and last box. Inside he found a bunch of his favourite sweets and two keychains.
âI didnât know which one to get you since you piloted both,â Keith explained as Lance picked up the two miniature lions âso I got you both Blue and Red.â
Lance was speechless. Keith started panicking as he saw a tear running down his cheek.
âOh my God, a-are you crying? Was it that bad?! Iâm sorry, I didnât thin-â
His eyes widened as he felt Lanceâs warm hands cupping his face and his brain stopped working the exact moment Lanceâs lips kissed his own.
He didnât recall drinking that much at the party.
He definitely didnât drink that much at the party.
Lance⌠Lance was really kissing him?!
Keith drowned into the boyâs touch, slowly closing his eyes, and once he came to the conclusion that he wasnât dreaming he allowed himself to kiss Lance back. For a short, sweet moment the world around them simply disappeared.
When Lance parted their lips, Keith knew he was already addicted to him. Their eyes met: Lanceâs full of anxiety, not knowing how the other boy wouldâve reacted, and Keithâs full of desire. He blushed violently as his brain processed what just happened. He looked down, embarrassed.
âItâs your birthday,â he stuttered âyou should be receiving gifts, not giving them.â
Lance looked at him with surprise, not expecting such an answer. He smiled, suddenly free of all his anxieties.
âYou see a kiss from me as a gift?â he teased. Keith blushed even harder, and Lance couldnât help but laugh. Luckily, his laughter helped Keith feeling a bit more comfortable.
âDonât make fun of me.â
Lance wiped away a small tear from his eye, the other hand still resting on Keithâs neck.
âIâm sorry.â he took a breath and put himself back together, than he looked at Keith again. âOk, then⌠if I should be receiving gifts and not giving them⌠I guess youâll have to give it back.â
Keith blushed again. This time Lance was definitely flirting with him. Fine, he can flirt too. Well, he can try.
âWhat if I want to keep it?â
Lance smirked. âDid you like it that much?â
Ok, ok, Keith couldnât possibly win against Lance.
âFine loverboy,â he said, his hand timidly reaching towards Lanceâs cheek. âIâll give it back if thatâs what you want.â
He gently tucked a strand of Lanceâs hair behind the ear, getting so close that their foreheads touched. Their eyes locked into each other for a moment and Keith could feel Lanceâs anticipation. It felt amazing.
Finally, he closed the space between them, pressing their lips together. His hand run through Lanceâs hair and without him even realizing it he was pulling him closer. Lance craved Keith just as much. He cupped his jaw with a hand while the other one greedily climbed through the boyâs mullet, trying to pull him even closer. Keith was going insane, completely drunk of Lance, of his taste, of his soft lips, his silk skin and fluffy hair. Everything about him was just like heaven. Automatically, his free hand landed on Lanceâs side and he felt the boy shivering under his touch. It was electrifying and made him long for more. And apparently, Lance wanted more too as he kept pulling Keith closer and closer, at the point their bodies were pressed together so tightly they could feel each otherâs heart beating in synchro against their skin. They only parted when they were out of breath.
Neither of them could manage to stop staring at each other. They both started chuckling between the panting.
âYou committed a lot just to give back a gift.â teased Lance.
âDid I?â Keith laughed, then his voice got softer. âI⌠Iâve been daydreaming about this for way longer than Iâd like to admit.â
Lance wasnât expecting it and he felt his racing heart melting. He smiled, on the verge of crying once again, and he caressed Keithâs cheek.
He kissed him once more. A small, short but sweet kiss.
âThis is the best birthday of my life.â
This time it was Keithâs turn to get teary eyes. He laid his forehead on Lanceâs, smiling.
âIâm glad.â he said. Then after a moment of silence he talked again. âCan I give you some other gifts?â
Lance giggled. âWhat type of gifts?â
âThis type of gift.â Keith answered, before leaning forward to give Lance another little kiss.
âUhm⌠maybe just another one.â
âJust one?â Keith teased, kissing him again.
They both started laughing and kept kissing between a giggle and the other. Without even noticing it, Lance found himself with his back laying on the ground and Keith over him. Not that he minded it. To be fair, he was the one pulling Keith towards him and getting them in that position.
âKeith.â he hummed between a kiss and the other. âI love you.â
Keith heard his heart skipping a beat at the sound of those words. He smiled as the tears started running down his cheeks. He laid his forehead on Lanceâs and allowed himself to enjoy that sweet moment. Lanceâs beautiful eyes looking at him so full of love, his gorgeous smile, the sound of his heart⌠he didnât want to forget any of this for the rest of his life. âI love you too.â