thanks for all the positivity I received on this story! I really appreciate it! :)

hope you enjoy the last part to this little drabble. it has a happy ending, I swear.

thanks for reading!

Lance wanted to crawl in a hole and never leave. The moment he'd been dreaming about for so long? Totally screwed it up. Not what he wanted to happen. At all.

He'd wanted to kiss Keith since...oh he didn't even know when. Forever, he estimated. He thought about it all the time! Sometimes they'd all be in the bridge, he'd look over at Keith and his heart would melt, always making him turn to flirt with Allura instead. To distract himself. Cause Keith didn't feel the same way, right?

Well. It seemed like the answer was wrong.

But he didn't know what to think. He couldn't even breathe. How could he think right now?

He didn't even want to think. Lance just wanted to kiss Keith again. And he never wanted to stop.

He groaned.

Could that even happen, though? Keith sent a lot of mixed signals. First he was moody, like normal, then he didn't want to kiss Lance, then he did, then he stormed off...what was a guy to do? Lance was so confused. So confused.

What did it mean? Was the right thing to go after Keith? Or was the right thing to just give him space?

Well. He literally just got back from his time away with the Blade of Marmora. That was plenty of space. Plenty for Lance, at least.

He knew what he wanted to do. But what did Keith want?

...Wasn't there only one way to find out?

When Lance found Keith, he staring up at the Red Lion. His hands dangled by his thighs, but they were tense. His whole body was.

Lance didn't like it. That discomfort forced him forward. He cleared his throat awkwardly to push out all of his anxiety and his nerves. ...Well. Most of them.

"Uh...Keith?"

"What is it, Lance?" He sounded hollow, tired, and like he just wanted Lance to go away. And the way Keith said Lance's name reminded him of drinking something too hot and spitting it out before it burned.

Lance stepped closer as his chest clenched. "Can we talk?"

"I don't think we have anything to talk about."

Something felt wrong in his legs. He looked down to realize they were trembling. Swallowing, he raised his eyes again. He faced Lotor and Zarkon and worse things all the time. Talking to the one person he enjoyed doing it with the most? Easy. ...Right?

"Keith…" his voice shed its initial anxious skin, "we can't let this go. It would just become a huge thing and jeopardize the team for no reason. ...Please can we just...can we just talk?"

Keith sighed like he had a pile of bricks on his chest. He did turn around, but it took longer than Lance would've hoped. When their eyes met, a spark set the air between them on fire. Keith looked away. "Lance, I really don't want to have this conversation. Let's just forget the whole thing and never tell anyone about it, okay? I already know how you feel anyway."

Lance's face got warm and he nearly dove for cover. He didn't succeed in hiding his disappointment well. Or his embarrassment. His words wobbled. "Oh. I...I guess I didn't do a very good job of keeping it a secret, huh?" He scratched the back of his neck.

"Yeah," Keith bit back. "Everyone knows you hate me." The second part lost most of the edge, dulling to an ashamed snap. He crossed his arms and stared at the floor.

Cocking his head, Lance furrowed his brows. "Wait, what? Are you crazy?" Keith raised his sullen eyes. Lance wanted to do everything in his power to fix them. For now, though, he settled on closing the gap between their bodies. "You think I hate you?"

"Am I wrong?"

Lance flung his arms outward. "Yes!"

In a tick, Keith's expression went from bitterly defeated to slightly hopeful. He didn't look like the same person as before. The wrinkles in his forehead ironed out across his skin. Each corner of his mouth climbed up from the miserable dimples used to frown with. "Lance, wha-"

"Why do you think I would've...y'know...kissed you if I actually hated you?"

Keith tried for a shrug. "To make fun of me? I don't...I don't know. I have no clue what goes through your head."

"I'm not that big of a jerk!"

"I don't know!" Keith repeated, voice raising, though not nearly to the same level as Lance's. "I just...I didn't think it was because of any reason other than you hating me."

Lance pursed his lips. He was tempted to put a hand on Keith's shoulder, but he refrained. "Are you so self-deprecating that you can't see how little sense your logic makes?"

Keith looked like he wanted to bury himself in his crossed arms. "Maybe. I don't know."

Lance ran his tongue over his lips, slowly and thoughtfully. It immediately hooked Keith's eyes, which hadn't been his intention, but it was still satisfying. He remembered their kiss from earlier, how satisfying it was, how it was better than all the ones he'd ever dreamed about. Honestly, he hadn't stopped thinking about it.

He remembered it was real, not just a dream. It happened. And Keith kissed him back. The way it made him feel was something he couldn't make up. But if he wanted to feel like that again, he'd have to man up, right here and right now. This was when all his burning questions could get answered. He wanted this. He didn't want to be just Lance or Lance without Keith because he felt like he wasn't anyway.

Here goes nothing.

"Keith...I never hated you. Not once." Lance thought he was stumbling. But he saw the look on Keith's face, and he needed to find out what it meant. So he pushed ahead. "Sure, I was jealous of you back at the Garrison. You were so cool. I envied you. And...I still did when we became teammates. But that went away quick. I sort of...got a crush on you."

Keith choked on purely air. "Huh?" he sputtered.

Lance's face grew warmer than his sister Veronica did when she had a bad fever as a kid. He swallowed, but didn't feel ready to start again and swallowed a second time. When did his palms get so sweaty? He looked at his feet. "I don't have one anymore." Something in Keith's eyes shattered and Lance instantly regretted his choice of words. "No!" he said hastily, waving his hands. "No, that's not what I meant! At all! I swear! It's more than just a crush now. It's...it's evolved."

Keith watched him carefully, barely holding his composure. "Evolved into what?"

"Well...just...I mean...you know how I always...tease you and stuff?" Keith nodded slowly. "How I always make fun of you? I'm...just...I'm trying to hide the fact that…that I'm in love with you. That's why I said I've been dreaming about you. I...haven't stopped since you left."

Keith choked again, his voice strained when he said, "Lance..."

With a sheepish laugh, Lance itched a random spot on the back of his head. His cheeks flushed. "I know. It's...it's a lot to take in. I know it'll be weird to get used to…but I just…"

"Lance-"

"No," he waved his name off, "no, you don't have to say anything. It's okay. I have-"

"Lance." Keith's voice hardened.

Lance pouted and took a breath. "You...don't want me to explain myself?"

"You don't have to." Keith bit his lip. Now it was his turn to look away. "I'm...I'm in love with you, too."

Lance's eyes widened. He stepped back, but nearly tripped over his own feet. When he regained himself and recovered from the shock, he connected his gaze with Keith's. Lance's stomach got giddy. A grin stretched across his face, pulling the corners of his mouth higher than he ever knew they could go.

Before Keith could get a word out, Lance jumped on him. Lance kissed him like his lips were a drug he was desperate to taste and Keith kissed him back like he never wanted to be tasted by anyone else ever again.