AF: Hey hey hey! ArtistFox here! Welcome to my story! Before we begin, I have a few things to say. One, this is an au for a show about space Power Rangers who fight monsters in robotic lions, it will not be 100% accurate to real life. Two, Rover is a snake. Yes, I actually have a pet corn snake at home, so I know how snakes work. Rover will most likely not act like a real snake sometimes.

And Three, just have fun reading! That's this story's entire purpose after all, to entertain! Please don't criticize too harshly, but I'm open for constructive criticism. I repeat, constructive. I hope yo enjoy this story! Oh, one more thing, ArtistFox does not own anything in this story. I do not own Voltron, nor any references. I don't want to get sued. Alright, now, on with the story!

Bright early morning sunlight drifted through the crack in the window's curtains, illuminating the small lump curled up on the bed. The figure buried deep in the blankets snored on, not being bothered by the bird chatter nor the distant voices of people already up and about. The peace was suddenly shattered by the phone on the bedside table. Its custom alarm shrieked and buzzed, yelling at its owner to get up already. A small groan emitted from the blankets, and a petite hand snaked out and patted around the bedside table. It fumbled for a bit before finding the phone, mechanically hitting the snooze button. It only had time to slither back under the warm cover of blankets before the door was practically slammed open.

"Good morning Pidge! I won't let you be late for work today, we have a new shipment coming in!" A tall tanned woman marched into the room and pulled open the widow's blinds. The figure on the bed hissed and pulled the blankets closer around them.

"No." She mumbled. "Too early. Go away Allura."

With a large smile on her face, the Allura ripped the blankets off. The petite woman on the bed yelped and covered her head with her pillow.

"Mnph tph merlph…" Her muffled whine and head shake made Allura roll her eyes.

"I'm not above literally dragging you from the bed, Katie Holt. Get up." Her words were greeted with another headshake. Sighing, the woman rolled up her sleeves. "You give me no choice then." She seized the younger girl's ankles and pulled with surprising strength. Pidge, however, was expecting this, and grabbed onto the bars of her bed's headboard and refused to let go. Allura propped her foot on the foot of the bed and pulled harder. Pidge still hung on, now suspended above the mattress.

"Let. Go!" Allura grunted and propped both feet on the bed for leverage. Pidge prided herself for being more stubborn than most, and she wasn't going to let Allura have the satisfaction of out stubborn-ing her. Finally, Allura huffed and let go. She put her hands on her hips in frustration. If they were going to get to work on time, she would have to take drastic measures.

"If you don't get up now, I'll pour the coffee I brought you down the drain." Pidge stiffened and peeked out from under her arm.

"You wouldn't."

"I would. And I will. I'm going to do it right now." Turning on her heel, Allura strode out of the room. Pidge was frozen for a second, and then scrambled off of her bed.

"Wait! I'm up I'm up! Just don't hurt the coffee, you monster!" Allura appeared from around the doorframe holding a steaming cup. With a smirk, she handed it to her friend.

"There, now go get ready. I'll be waiting in the living room, keeping your phone hostage until you're done." Pidge's head whipped around to find that, yes, her phone indeed was missing from its power cord. Scowling, she called out to Allura as she walked down the hallway.

"I regret ever giving you a key to my apartment!" Allura said nothing, only waved a perfectly manicured hand. Pidge sighed and took a gulp of coffee. It burned as it went down, but at least it woke her up a bit. She grabbed her uniform from the closet and stepped into the bathroom. Grumbling, Pidge tried to brush her teeth as fast as possible; Allura could be a real grump if kept waiting too long.

Allura, while one of her best friends, was also her boss. She ran a small yet successful pet shop located about a block away from Pidge's apartment. When Pidge had just finished her junior year of high school, she had been fired from her previous job working as an assistant librarian. Apparently programing the computers during her free time to make them play jump-scares whenever she pressed a key on her own key board was a big "no-no" in the librarian's rule-book. It was worth it though to see the girl who had been sticking gum under the desk shriek like a banshee and topple over backwards. That's why you don't balance on the back two chair legs, kids.

Pidge had been fortunate enough to meet Allura through one of her childhood friends, Lance McClain, who had already been working for her for about a year. It turned out that Allura was short workers and was hiring, so Pidge immediately snatched up the job before anyone else could get their grubby little fingers on it.

At first, it was not as fun as she was expecting. She was strictly on stocking and cleaning duty for the first few months of being employed. Lance had dubbed her "Queen of the Cleaning Supplies", which honestly wasn't surprising, he was the reason why she had the popular nickname "Pidge" anyway. Thankfully, it wasn't too long before Pidge could handle the animals. Now, with her just finishing her freshman year in college, she was in charge of the reptiles, amphibians, and arachnids. Feeding them, cleaning their terrariums, and generally just making sure they were happy and healthy.

Pidge pulled on her dark navy blue shorts and white button down top. It wasn't the most fashionable uniform, but at least it was better than the ones at Galra Outfitters down the street. Lance and Allura wore the same thing, only Allura, being the owner and all, wore a light navy blue vest with a pink border.

Looking in the mirror, Pidge tried to corral her unruly short hair into a small bun, and pinned the 'Hello, my name is Pidge' badge onto her shirt. Once she was done with her morning routine, she stepped out of the bathroom and unceremoniously threw her pajamas into her hamper. Allura looked up from her spot on the couch and smiled when Pidge entered the room.

"Breakfast is on the counter." Yawning, Pidge sipped her lukewarm coffee and nodded.

"Thanks." She picked up the blueberry scone from the counter and took a bite. It was still warm, and the gooey, sweet center made her sigh in contentment. Nothing beat one of Hunk's scones in the morning. Pidge plopped down on the couch next to Allura and took another bite.

"You've eaten yet?" The woman nodded as she fixed her ponytail. Even in the ungodly hours of the morning, Allura still looked perfect. Flawless skin and a figure that women would kill, hide the body, and move to Canada for. She also had gorgeous white hair that flowed down her back. And no, it wasn't dyed, Pidge had asked. Allura just shrugged, saying that it was natural.

Pidge swiped a strand of her own dirty blond hair behind her ear and continued to munch on her breakfast. The scone was gone in two more bites. Wiping her hands on her pants, Pidge looked down and saw that her snake, Rover, was in Allura's lap. The woman stood up, letting Rover curl around her hands.

"Now that you're finally ready, let's get going. I don't think we'll be late, but it may be cutting it close." Pidge put on her purse and accepted Rover from Allura, letting him curl around her neck like a scarf. Rover had become sort of like a mascot for Allura's pet store. Pidge was allowed to take him to work, and the customers always took delight in seeing the black and green snake wrapped around the short woman's shoulders. It was also good publicity for the snakes that had yet to be adopted in the store.

The two women plus snake walked out of the apartment and into the summer morning sun. Rover leaned his head contently on Pidge's shoulder and soaked up at the sunbeams as the girls walked. Pidge had a car, but she didn't need to use it very often. The town she lived in pretty much had everything she needed in walking distance. It was also good exercise for someone who spent most of their free time on their computer.

Allura and Pidge chatted as they walked, occasionally waving at a passerby.

"I'll have you know that I can't wake you up every morning." Allura said, giving her friend a stern eye. Pidge would have been intimidated if it weren't for the smile on Allura's lips. "You have to stop staying up so late! What were you doing anyway?"

"Netflix and dank memes." Allura sighed and looked away.

"Of course you were."

"Hey! It's summer! Finals just killed me, resurrected me, and killed me again, so I deserve a little break!"

"It's just not healthy to have such little sleep."

"I'll make it up on the weekend." Allura sighed once again.

"It doesn't work like that, Katie." Pidge took a sip of her cold coffee and said nothing. A small, familiar building came into view. It was a quaint little bakery painted a cheery yellow with a small flower garden in front. The owner of the bakery claimed that the flowers provided a positive and calming atmosphere for those sitting at the outdoor tables, and Pidge didn't doubt him.

The owner was outside at that very moment, washing a smudge on a window. When he heard their footsteps, he looked up. Pidge could have sworn that his smile was the sun itself.

"Pidge, Allura! Good to see you guys!" Pidge grinned and gave a wave.

"Hey Hunk! Thanks for breakfast!" Allura nodded in agreement.

"Yes. The scones were delicious as always."

"As to be expected from the best baker in the world!" Pidge chimed in. The man, Hunk, smiled with a hint of bashfulness, and played with the hem of his orange headband.

"Aw, thanks guys. Oh, Lance is waiting for you, by the way. He's already at the shop unloading the truck." Pidge looked to sky dramatically.

"Why am I friends with a bunch of morning people?!" Hunk chuckled and put the rag he was using in a bucket.

"You could be one too, if you didn't stay up till four every night." Pidge threw her hands in the air.

"I will not have morning people destroy my way of life! Goodbye." With her head held high, she walked away from the two. But she still couldn't stop a small grin when she heard her friend's laughter behind her. Allura finally caught up to her when Altea's Pet Store came into sight. A small truck was parked in front and a boy was already in the middle of unloading boxes.

"Lance, you traitor! Why must you betray me and the night?" Pidge yelled. The boy glanced at her and smirked.

"Sorry, Pidgeotto. My beauty rest is more important." Pidge snorted and put a hand on the store's door.

"I guess that's true, you definitely need all the beauty rest you can get." Cackling, she ignored Lance's squawking and entered the building. The familiar chime rang as she opened the door. Rover picked up his head and flicked his tongue out at the familiar surroundings.

"Alright, buddy. Into your terrarium you go." Rover had his own comfy terrarium in the back of the store. Pidge unraveled him from her neck and opened the side door of the terrarium. Rover flicked his tongue onto his mistress's cheek and obediently slithered down into his second home. Once she was sure he was comfortable, Pidge shut the door and went to help unload.

The store was small, so it didn't take long to get everything unloaded from the truck and into the backroom. Once it was all over, Pidge wiped the sweat from her head and leaned against the counter in front of their large fan.

"I wonder if we can ask the sun to tone it down a bit." Lance got up from his spot on the ground and stuck his head out the door.

"Oi, Sun! Stop it with the heat or I'll fight you!" Seconds of silence, and then Lance shrugged.

"Welp, I tried. Have fun melting Pidge."

"If I go down, you're going down with me." Lance walked over to the fish tanks and grabbed a large can of fish food.

"I'd like to see you try. I'll snap your little gremlin arms in a second. I mean, c'mon," He held up his arm and flexed. "look at these guns! I'd like to see anyone get the best of me!" Pidge smirked.

"What about that time with Keith?" Lance's cheeks turned red and he began feeding the fish more aggressively than he should.

"That doesn't count! He caught me off-guard!" Pidge scooped up a bunch of crickets from their container and opened the lizard's terrarium.

"You literally challenged him to a fight, and then was the first to initiate it." She grinned mischievously as Lance blushed harder.

"It still wasn't fair. I didn't know that he's practically trained in combat!" Lance shook his head and closed the top of the fish tank. Pidge bestowed upon the lizards the gift of food and moved on to feed the other animals.

"Don't pretend that you don't think that's hot. I saw the look on your face when he pinned you to the ground." The fish food fell to the floor with a clang. Lance whirled around, face bright red.

"I-I didn't think that! God, that's- what the heck? He's my rival! Besides, he's totally not my type."

"Keep telling yourself that, McClain. You probably fantasize about his biker gloves and tight leather-clad ass every night."

Luckily Allura walked in and prevented Lance from strangling his one of his best friends.

"Lance. Pidge. I don't want to know, just please act more professional. Pidge, can you help me in the back. Lance, can you do check-out?" Lance threw one more glare at Pidge and then beamed at Allura.

"Can do, boss!" He gave a snappy salute and vaulted over the counter to settle behind the cash register. Pidge followed Allura to the back to help with inventory.

"Really, Pidge. You have to stop teasing him like that. We all know he has a little crush." Pidge smirked and flipped a pen around her fingers.

"It's really more of an infatuation to the point of obsession really." Allura ignored the comment and began sorting through the boxes of pet bedding and food.

That's how a normal day went. Go to work, have some friendly banter with Lance, help Allura, and basically just go about the day. Their shop was fairly popular, so they had a good amount of customers every day. Sometimes Hunk would pop in during lunch and bring them something to eat like the wonderful teddy-bear he is.

Pidge and Lance would show their gratitude through giant group hug, which would normally end in Pidge getting squashed, but it was worth it. Overall, Pidge was pretty content with how her life was going. She had a good job, great friends, and was doing well in school. Hopefully, in a few years, she would have her degree in Computer Engineering, and finally be able to move out of her tiny apartment.

Everything went on as it was, and Pidge was fine with that. Things change, but for her, she was sure that it wouldn't until several years later. Besides, what could happen in a small town like this one anyway?

Change came crashing in with a bulldozer and horns blaring a few weeks later.

It was a very hot day, one of the hottest of the year. It was fortunate that the pet store had air conditioning, but that didn't stop the heat from wafting in every time the door opened. The fan on the counter was turned on full blast to ward off the heat, making a pleasant background noise in the quiet shop. Pidge stood behind the cash register, elbow propped up on the counter and chin resting on her hand. Allura was in the backroom, talking to her guardian and friend, Coran, on the phone, and Lance was currently outside in the back lot washing a few of the terrariums.

There was a lull in customers, so Pidge decided that there wouldn't be any problem with her reading a book while waiting for the door to chime. Rover was leisurely sleeping around her neck, and she absentmindedly reached up and stroked his scales from time to time. That morning, Lance had looked at her like she was crazy when she brought in a book that he claimed was bigger than her head. She merely smacked him with it and gave him some sunscreen to put on while he worked outside. His tanned Cuban skin could only protect him so much, and the sun would wreak havoc on him if he didn't use anything to ward it off.

The book was getting to an exciting part. A few members of the broken up band of heroes were going to fight a huge evil army while trapped in a city that was located on the base of a mountain. One of the untrained soldiers on the hero's side had just accidentally shot the first arrow of the battle, killing a member of the evil army and inciting them to finally attack. Pidge was so focused on the book that the chime of the door made her jump. Hiding her frustration at being interrupted at such an important part, Pidge closed the book and smiled.

"Welcome to Altea's Pet Shop. How can I-oh, hi Keith!" The young man who entered gave a small smile and wave. Keith was wearing all black despite the heat, making Pidge believe that he wasn't entirely human. They had met a few months ago, when he came in for the first time looking for cat food. Apparently his cat, Red, was a picky eater, and would only touch a certain brand.

The minute he stepped in and saw Lance, the two started to argue. They apparently had met the morning before, when Keith nearly ran over Lance with his motorcycle by accident. The two argued over whose fault it was, and they were 'Rivals' ever since. Pidge had to go over and practically break the two up with a broom. Lance finally and 'reluctantly' (Pidge saw that blush don't deny it) gave him the cat food he was looking for. Keith mumbled a thanks and left, looking slightly in a better mood than before.

Now he came in every so often for cat food or toys, arguing with Lance or chatting with Pidge while he's at it. The thing that really created the friendship between her and Keith were aliens. He noticed her alien-print bag and brought up the topic. They began to theorize the existence of aliens and then cryptids. The rest was history. Without anyone really knowing how, Keith joined their little group of friends. He more often than not joined Pidge and the others for lunch or when they hung out outside of work.

A sudden draft of heat made sweat run down Pidge's neck, and she noticed that Keith was still holding the door open. She opened to mouth to ask what he was doing when her words died in her throat.

Another person came into the store behind Keith. No… not a person. This man could only be described as a god. He was tall, taller than Lance, which was saying something. He was wearing jeans and a tank top that nicely showed off his muscular arms and chest.

Sweat glistened on his neck and arms, and he reached up with a prosthetic arm to wipe the sweaty bangs out of his face. A second of curiosity at the sight of the arm distracted Pidge from the gorgeous creature in front of her. He then turned, and looked directly at Pidge, successfully capturing her full attention again.

His eyes, oh god his eyes. Pidge could feel the heat gradually climbing to her face. They were the sweetest looking eyes, yet, with an intensity she couldn't place. They were…beautiful. With that face, he could rob the store right now and she would be ok with that.

She would like to believe that he was staring at her too, but before she could fantasize more about it, Keith's cough broke her out of her daze. Tearing her eyes away from the stranger, Pidge covered up her embarrassment with a smile at her friend.

"So, what brings you here today? Does Red need more food? You just got her some last week…" Keith shook his head and stood in front of the counter.

"Nah. She's a pig, but not that much. I actually need another toy for her. Her favorite one went missing, and I can't find it no matter where I look. She's been annoying me about it ever since." Pidge nodded and skirted around the cabinet toward the cat toys, trying to ignore how the stranger's eyes seem to follow her every move.

"What kinds does she like?" Keith looked at the cat toys with a thoughtful expression.

"Her previous favorite was a bell with ribbons trailing from it." Pidge hummed and looked for a second before reaching out and grabbing a toy.

"This one's a bell with feathers on it. It's a bit different though." Keith grinned and took it from her.

"It'll be fine. Thanks." Pidge smiled and walked around him, only to nearly run into the stranger. Forcing down the heat that threatened her face once again, Pidge gave a polite grin.

"Ah. Sorry." He smiled, successfully shoving an arrow through her heart. He waved his hand in a friendly gesture.

"It's fine. I'm in your way aren't I? Sorry." Pidge never thought she would ever meet someone whose voice was literally like honey, but here he was. The man scooted to the side, and Pidge awkwardly shuffled past him, giving him another friendly smile, and scurried towards the counter.

Keith looked back and forth between the two. His eyes widened a little bit.

"Oh, I didn't introduce you guys, did I? Pidge, this is Takashi Shirogane, he's my half-brother." Shiro gave her a bright grin.

"I go by Shiro. It's nice to meet you, Ms..?" He looked at her expectantly. Pidge was silent before stiffening.

"Huh? Uh, yeah! My name. It's Pidge, b-but that's just a nickname my real name's Katie Holt, but my friend Lance gave me a nickname while we were watching Pokémon as kids, and…yeah-" she tapped her name badge. "as you can see here, I go by Pidge. So…yeah."

If she could've died right then and there that would have been great. Shiro didn't seem to notice her blatant awkwardness and seemed to perk up.

"Oh, so you're Pidge! Keith has told me about you." He gave another radiant smile. "It's nice to finally meet you!" Pidge smiled and nodded, not trusting her own voice. The back door suddenly opened, making the three flinch and turn. Lance walked in, drenched and covered in soap. He was looking behind his shoulder. He turned and ran his hand through his hair.

"Hey, Pidge, do you know where we put the-" He froze when he caught sight of Keith. His mouth dropped open. Pidge sneaked a peak at Keith. His face expression was so priceless that she was tempted to take a picture. He closed his mouth and gulped, eyes never leaving Lance's.

Lance stood in awkward silence for a minute longer and then snapped his mouth shut. He cleared his throat a little before speaking.

"Huh, fancy seeing you here Mullet. You look like a drowned rat." He gestured to the sweat that cause Keith's hair to cling to his neck and forehead. Keith immediately regained his composure and scowled.

"I was going to say the same about you." Lance's shoulders seemed to lose their tension, but he put on an air of annoyance.

"At least I'm not covered in disgusting sweat. What kind of idiot are you to be wearing that in this heat?" Keith bristled and Pidge sighed. Here we go again. The two infatuated idiots are arguing to hide their raging thirst for each other. Shiro watched the exchange with a surprised look on his face.

"Huh." He spoke to Pidge, still looking at the two boys arguing. "That must be Lance. Keith has talked about him occasionally too. And by occasionally I mean all the time." Pidge snorted with laughter.

"Yeah. Lance is just as bad…" She turned to head to look at Shiro. He was looking at her and gave a small smile. Her heart thumped loudly again. She suddenly felt very jittery. She jumped Keith stomped up to the cash register, face flushed.

"Hey, can you ring this up please? I don't want to talk to this moron any more than I have to." He glared at Lance and set Red's toy on the counter. Pidge thanked the gods for a something to do. She grinned and quickly scanned the cat toy. Keith paid for it and shoved it into his pocket. "Thanks Pidge, sorry, but I got to go. See you later?" Pidge nodded and leaned on the counter.

"Yeah. Take care!" She gulped and grinned at Shiro. "It was nice meeting you too! Try not to be too hot out there-I mean get to hot!" Shiro grinned and waved.

"Haha. Yeah. You too. I hope we get to meet up again. Oh, it was nice meeting you too, Lance!" He gave the Cuban boy a polite grin. He turned and followed Keith. Pidge caught her self staring at his backside as he went. The minute the door shut, Pidge groaned and let her head fall onto the counter with a clunk.

"God, that was horrible." Lance looked at her and leaned on the counter.

"The Keith part was, but who was that sexy slab of man-meat next to him?" Pidge covered her burning face with her hands.

"Don't call him that. His name is Shiro. He's Keith's half-brother." Lance whistled and crossed his arms.

"Wow. He's the type of person I would pay to step on me." Pidge groaned and shook her head.

"That's disturbing, Lance. Besides," She lifted up her face and unraveled Rover from her neck, mostly to hide her burning cheeks. "you don't have to go that far. He wasn't that attractive." Her friend raised his eyebrows and a small smirk appeared on his face.

"I would have taken you seriously if I didn't catch you ogling his ass." Pidge make a noise that sounded like a wounded animal and hit her head on the counter again.

"I'm so embarrassed! I should have been professional, but instead I was flustered mess!" She reached out an arm at Lance. "Comrade. Do me a favor. Take me to the nearest bridge and throw me off!" Lance patted her head.

"But then I would miss out on all the fun of watching you suffer."

"I'm gunna tell Keith that you're a masochist."

"I'll tell Shiro about your crush on the entire Yu-Gi-Oh cast."

"Touché bitch."

Pidge sighed and straightened up. Rover was getting antsy and wanted to go back into his terrarium. She walked over and put him inside his home. She looked over her shoulder at Lance.

"Are you still cleaning the tanks out there? Cause' if you're finished, you should go change your shirt. Keith might appreciate it being see-through, but I don't."

Lance was unfortunate enough that Allura walked in the minute he gave Pidge the middle finger. She gave him a look she usually reserved for misbehaving toddlers.

"You two better not be fighting again. I swear if I have to assign someone to cleaning duty for a month…" Pidge shook her head.

"He's just grumpy because Keith came in and left after only a minute of fighting." Understanding shone in Allura's eyes. A small smile appeared on her face.

"Ah. You know Lance, if you want to spend more time with him, all you have to do is ask him out." Lance scowled at the look on their faces. Throwing his hands into the air, he stormed off to finish cleaning.

"You two suck!" Pidge hid her snicker.

"We love you too!" Lance made a noise of frustration and shut the door. Allura shook her head in amusement and went over to inspect the birds.

"So, who else was out here? I thought I heard another voice." Pidge stiffened and turned away, pretending to be busy with the cash register.

"It turns out Keith has a half-brother. He came into the store with him." Allura smiled as she took out a bag of bird treats.

"Really? You met Shiro?" Pidge quickly turned to look at her.

"How do you know who he is?"

"We went to the same high school. We've been friends for a long time know. I'm surprised Keith hasn't told you about him yet. They're really close." Allura put one of the bird treats in the cockatoo's cage and moved on to the next bird. Her face was lit up in a fond smile. "Shiro's an amazing guy. I hope you, Lance, and Hunk can get to know him. I'm actually meeting him for dinner tonight, maybe I can convince him to meet up with you guys for lunch some time soon."

Pidge's face fell.

"Oh….so you are… his girlfriend?" Allura froze. For a second, Pidge thought she said something wrong. She jumped when Allura burst out into beautiful tinkling laughter. She shook her head and smiled at Pidge.

"Haha…ah sorry, Pidge. It's just, I wasn't expecting that. No, we're not dating. We actually tried once, in high school." Allura shrugged and put away the bird treat bag she was holding. "But it didn't work out. We just didn't have a romantic chemistry. We're still friends of course! Good friends. But I would never think about dating him again." Allura looked at Pidge. The shorter girl shuddered, not liking the sly gleam in her baby-blue eyes.

"Why are you asking? Is someone-" she teasingly poked Pidge's cheek, "interested in him?" Pidge swatted Allura's hand away.

"No! Well, maybe…I don't know. I barely know the guy, so it seems weird to like him."

"It's ok to be attracted to someone at first glance. Besides, it'll be easy to get to know him, I can help you with that." Allura waggled her eyebrows. She giggled when Pidge smacked her arm.

"Ok ok! Thanks for the advice, but you don't have too. I'd rather not try to get involved with anyone right now." Allura frowned.

"Is there any reason why?" Pidge shrugged.

"I dunno. I just- I like how everything in my life is stable right now. I'd rather not throw something in there and make is chaos like it was in high school." Pidge hoped Allura wouldn't push the issue, and she didn't. Allura nodded in understanding.

"Alright. If that's what you want. But if the opportunity is ever there, don't be afraid to take it. Maybe things will surprise you." Allura winked at her one last time and disappeared into the backroom.

The store was silent once again. Pidge sighed and opened her book. She tried to read, but her mind wasn't in it. Shaking her head, she tried to ignore any thoughts of Shiro. Was he gorgeous? Definitely. Did he seem like he had an awesome personality? Of course. Does she want to spent more time with him and become friends? Heck yes.

But, still. She felt a bit reluctant to try to get closer to him in the romantic sense. She didn't want things to turn out like her last relationship.

Frowning, Pidge rubbed her temples.

'Not now.' She told herself. 'Don't think of it now or you'll be in a bad mood for the rest of the day.' Taking a deep breath, she slowly let it out. Everything would be ok, she told herself. Everything will remain perfectly normal, there's no need to worry.

She kept telling herself that in order to make herself believe it. And she did, at least until that night when she got a frantic phone call from Lance.

"Pidge! You gotta help me!" Pidge sat up from her spot laying down on her couch with Rover. She gently stiffened, worry filling her mind.

"What is it? Are you ok? Do I need to come get you?

"No! It's-Keith just talked to me!"

Oh. That's what this was all about. Deflating, Pidge sank back down onto her fluffy pillow and turned down the T.V.'s volume so she could listen to Lance and be a supportive friend. No matter how ridiculous the problem was.

"Alright. What's the issue this time?" Lance began stuttering, which was unusual, and made Pidge raise an eyebrow.

"W-Well, I ran into Keith again at the coffee shop. Y'know the coffee shop we normally go. The one where you accidentally got sick all over-"

"Yes Lance. I know which one you're talking about. Go on."

"Ok. So, it turns out we both like White Chocolate Mochas, which I wasn't expecting. I don't know. Somehow, our argument turned into a conversation over our likes and dislikes, and the next thing I know, I'm sitting at a table with him chatting for two hours, sharing a slice of cake!"

"Oh no. That's horrible." Pidge deadpanned.

"Shut up I'm really freaking out over here! So, we were about to leave, when suddenly he asks for my phone number!" Pidge's eyebrows shot up. She had a feeling where this was going.

"Really?"

"Yes really! And then, oh god, he asked me out!" Pidge sat up so suddenly that Rover almost fell off. Silently apologizing to her pet, she turned her attention back to her friend.

"Oh my god. Are you serious?"

"Y-Yes I'm serious! Why the heck would I lie about this! So, basically, we are meeting up at the Corner Café tomorrow night. What should I do?!"

"Well, first you put on a nice outfit, then you get him flowers, and then you fuck him right then and there!"

"PIDGE! I'm serious!"

"So am I."

"Katie…."

"Wow, breaking out the real name. I guess you are desperate here." Pidge sighs. "All right, I'll go over to your house tomorrow with Hunk and Allura as backup. Have you told them yet?"

"Not yet, but they were next on the list."

"Ok. We'll help you get ready and give you pointers tomorrow night." Pidge genuinely smiled. "Don't worry about it, we're all there for you. Everything will be alright."

"….Thanks Katie. I gotta go. I need to tell the others."

"Alright. Congrats man!"

"Hah. Thanks!"

Lance hung up, leaving Pidge in silence. Wow. This was… unexpected. She frowned, getting up to put Rover in his terrarium for the night. She wasn't upset about Lance dating Keith. No, she was hoping for this. She actually just won a bet with Allura, she would have to collect the money tomorrow.

But…she couldn't help feeling a little unease. This was a sudden change to their peaceful little life. While it wasn't unwelcome, it was still unexpected. But that doesn't mean anything will happen to her, right? Of course not… she'll be fine. Her life will be normal as always, and nothing will come along to change that.

….Right?

AF: Hey howdy hey. What'd yah think? Yay, nay, gay? Either way, I had a bunch of fun writing this! I idea came to me at 3 in the morning and I knew I had to write it! Actually, the whole issue of the story didn't come to me until after I started writing it, but that's life, eh? I really hope you guys had fun, and I hope I get to update soon! See y'all later, and remember, review, or not, it's your choice! Buh-bye!