"Are you sure you've had enough to eat?"

The dark haired teenager turned to face his boyfriend, squeezing his hand gently as they walked towards the high school gymnasium, now turned makeshift bloodmobile. The doors ahead were wide open and in the distance Keith could see nurses and countless students lying on little medical cots, finishing up their blood donations.

And soon his Lance would be one of them.

"Are you kidding me? After you practically shoved that granola bar and banana down my throat this morning? I think I'm good," Lance chuckled, attempting to ease his boyfriend's worry, but Keith just shot him a look of concern and mild agitation in return. "Look, it's gonna be fine! I just gotta let the vampires do their thing," he added, making a little fang gesture with his free hand. "Besides, if you can donate blood and have no problems, then I bet I can do it in half the time!"

Keith couldn't help but smile. Lance was adorable when he was competitive.

"Okay," Keith sighed. "Just tell them this time if you're not feeling well. You nearly passed out last time and scared the Hell outta me."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, sure mom." Lance said, leaning in to plant a kiss on Keith's cheek. "Just hold onto my stuff till I'm done, wontcha?"

Just as they approached their destination, a nurse appeared in the doorway, ushering the young man inside. "Guess that's my cue!" Lance said as he slung his backpack off his shoulder and handed it to Keith, "I'll see you in Astronomy! You'll take notes for me while I'm gone, right?"

"You mean like I do every day?" Keith poked, smirking and taking his boyfriend's things.

"What can I say? I like your handwriting better!"

And with a little wink and a final kiss, Lance disappeared with the nurse into the gymnasium.

…

It had been over an hour and a half since Keith had escorted Lance down to the blood drive. He knew that the process took time, and that they typically got backed up during this time of the day, but he still couldn't ignore the worry slowly gnawing at the back of his mind as he went over the worst possible scenarios that could have occurred. Keith feebly tried to shake it off and focus on his notes, but to no avail. He couldn't help it. Lance might try to act invincible, but Keith knew more than anyone that he was not.

Then, as if the universe decided to tease him even further, the teacher's speech was suddenly interrupted by a young woman with the recognisable Red Cross badge standing at the door.

"Excuse me, is there a Keith Kogane in here?"

Keith didn't even wait to be dismissed. He was already out of his chair, both his and Lance's things in hand, and rushing towards the door.

"Where's Lance?" Keith sputtered, sounding a bit more harsh than he intended.

The nurse, however, just started chuckling.

"What's so funny?!" Keith shouted, decidingly throwing etiquette out the window.

"Oh, it's nothing," she said, still smiling, "It's just that he said that you'd freak out like this!"

Keith blushed; Lance knew him too well.

"But what happened? Is Lance okay?" Keith asked, attempting to calm himself down as the young nurse lead him downstairs towards the gymnasium.

"Well it's nothing to worry about now, but he did pass out upon finishing his donation. He regained his bearings very soon after, but we're still trying to get in touch with someone to take him home; he's in no shape to go back to class. But in the meantime he was rather dead-set about seeing you. Guess he must like you a lot!" she added with a wink and a giggle.

"He really is such a sweet boy though! When he started feeling dizzy, we asked him if he needed to stop, but he insisted on finishing his donation first; and a double donation at that! Even after that trainee nurse missed his vein on the first shot too." The nurse shuddered a little, "It's no wonder he conked out on us! But there's nothing to worry about now! Just make sure he gets rest and doubles his fluid intake for the next 24 hours; but from what it sounds like, he'll have no lack of good care if he's in your hands. He was telling everyone about how you were fretting over him this morning."

Keith's cheeks were now beet red. He could just imagine Lance telling all the workers everything about their relationship. He didn't know whether he should feel flattered or embarrassed that his boyfriend was so willing to share the details of their relationship with total strangers. "Don't worry," the nurse said, as if reading his mind, "He only had the highest praises for you."

Upon reaching the gymnasium, the nurse led Keith to a small, partitioned-off cot in the corner reserved for emergencies. Keith peaked his head around and saw Lance, as pale as he had ever seen him, curled up with his eyes shut tight. He was sweating bullet and his hair was soaked. Keith held his breath as he made his way to Lance's bedside, trying to keep it together the best he could.

Keith crouched down next to Lance, reaching his hand out to brush away the hair now plastered to his forehead in little wisps. Lance's bright blue eyes fluttered open at Keith's touch, staring up at him wearily. "Hey," he said nonchalantly, as if it he were simply meeting up with him like any other day.

"Hey," Keith replied softly, managing a small smile of relief. There was so much he wanted to say to Lance right then. He wanted to shout at him for being so reckless. He wanted to pull him close and tell him how happy he was he was okay. But before he could come up with the words, Lance decided to speak up.

"I'm sorry…" he muttered weakly as he reached out his hand out to grab Keith's. "I didn't listen to you. I got really dizzy, but I made myself finish anyways."

Keith was floored. He didn't know what to say. Lance had never seemed so utterly vulnerable. His eyes watered a bit. "I just… Why do you have to be so stubborn? One of these days, you could really hurt yourself. Is beating me at everything really that important?" And before Keith knew it, a single tear had escaped his eyes and rolled down his cheek. Lance reached up a shaky hand and brushed it away.

"It's not that, I just… I want to be able to help. I want to feel useful." Lance sighed, he seemed thoroughly exhausted, both physically and mentally. "Look, I know I'm not the smartest person in the world, or the strongest, but this I can do. I can give what I have. And if I can help, then I want to help." Now it was Lance's turn to let his tears spill.

Keith took Lance's hand in both of his and pressed it to his lips. He didn't know what he did to deserve such a selfless soul in his life. "You are useful. You are important. You are irreplaceable. So please, take care of yourself, because I don't know what I'd do without you."

Lance cracked a smile. "A bit dramatic for just a bit of blood loss, dontcha think?"

Keith didn't even get angry at his remark. There was the Lance he knew.

"Lance, your mother is here to take you home, do you need help getting to the car?" the nurse had returned, this time with a wheelchair, just in case.

"I got this," Keith said with a smirk before Lance even had a chance to reply.

"What are you?- Hey, HEY! Come on Keith!" Lance shrieked as Keith scooped him up bridal-style and started walking him out of the gymnasium, much to the amusement of everyone around them.

"You can be a real pain in the ass sometimes, you know that?" Lance said, blushing slightly as Keith buckled him into his mother's car.

"Ditto," Keith said as he leaned in for a kiss.

"I'll be over as soon as school gets out, remember to drink lots of water!" Keith shouted as he watched his boyfriend get driven out of the school parking lot. Lance managed a weak wave out the window before disappearing down the street with his mother.

…..

Keith arrived at Lance's house with the best care package he could put together. Gatorade, trail mix, some of his favorite comics, a movie they could watch together, and a pack of those sweet chili candies that Lance loved so much. But by the time Keith got there, Lance was already asleep; a big, purple bruise already forming on his forearm from where the nurse had missed his vein. Keith just sat on the edge of the bed and stroked his hair while Lance snored peacefully. It didn't take for Keith to stretch out next to him, foreheads gently pressed together as he slowly drifted off as well.

They awoke in each other's arm, both thinking how lucky they were to have one another.