The Story of Our Lives

Keith wished he could pause time, to capture this moment forever. He never wanted to forget the way Lance was arched up, one hand fisted in the sheets, the other gripping at the headboard behind him.

The way his chest heaved, the marks Keith has diligently made earlier sticking out against his dark skin, while his lips were parted, Keith's name being pounded out of him, amongst the gasps and whines.

The way his eyes were scrunched shut and his legs were wrapped tightly around him, pressing Keith deeper inside him.

He'd seen Lance in the throes of orgasm countless times by now, but it didn't matter; he was enraptured each time he watched Lance unravel beneath him. Or above him.

The way his head would be thrown back while his body shook from the pleasure.

The way he always, always called out to Keith, as if he were a dying man and only Keith's touch could save him.

The way he'd collapse on the bed, breathless, and look at him through hooded eyes, a soft smiling pulling at his lips.

The way he'd tuck Keith's hair behind his ear and kiss his cheek.

The way he loved Keith.

Keith had never been good with relationships, but with Lance, it felt so right. This was where he was meant to be.

"God, you're so beautiful," Keith whispered, taking a warm cloth and washing away the cum on Lance's chest. "How did I get this lucky?"

Lance laughed, cupping Keith's cheek. "I was just thinking the same thing. Can you believe we'll be married by this time next week?"

Keith held onto Lance's hand, kissing it. "Yeah, I can, actually."

"You're such a sap," he said, no heat behind his words. "I love it."

"I love you."

Lance laughed again, pulling Keith down to his lips, murmuring, "I love you too."

x~xXx~x

"Papa, you look so handsome!" Dante beamed, adjusting his flower crown.

"So, do you, mi pequeña calabaza," Lance said, kneeling down on one knee. "Now, were did you get this? I thought the flower girls wore these flower crowns."

Dante twirled around, posing enthusiastically. "Holly's mom made me one too! Do you like it?"

"I love it!" Lance said, grabbing his son and pulling him in for a hug. He made a mental note to thank Shay for the flower crown. "The ring bearer should have a flower crown too. This is now law."

Giggling, Dante threw his arms around Lance's neck. "I love you so much, papa."

"I love you too, calabaza."

"And," he pulled back. "I love Keith. And I'm really, really happy you an' him are getting married. Finally."

Lance grinned, gently bopping Dante's nose. "I'm really, really happy too. Can you believe that in just two hours, Keith and I will be husbands?"

"Yes!" Dante shouted, jumping so high that his flower crown almost fell off. He grinned, grabbing Lance's hand to pull him down closer. "And I know mama is looking down from heaven and is happy too."

Unbidden tears came to Lance's eyes. "You think so?"

"I know so!" Dante turned to Kosmo. "Right, Kosmo? Right! See, she agrees too!"

Wiping away the tears, Lance picked Dante up, unable to stop the groan from leaving his lips—his son was getting big; he was almost nine years old already. Still, Lance would never want to stop holding his son.

"I love you, Dante. And your mama loves you too. Don't ever forget that."

He smiled softly. "I know, papa. I know."

x~xXx~x

Keith fidgeted in his white tux. In an effort to calm his nerves, he ran through how he and Lance were going to see each other.

They had decided to scrap the tradition aisle idea and walk in from the sides. Because they were on a beach (though, currently, they were both in a rented-out beach house, in separate rooms so not to see each other), there had to be curtains on the sides of their makeshift space. Then, as the music played, they would emerge from the curtain, see the other, and then walk to the center and, well, get married.

"Your hand is shaking," someone comment.

Keith whirled around, wide-eyed. "Acxa?"

"Hey, furball."

There, in the doorway, stood his sister, wearing a dark blue dress that hugged her curves and shimmered in the light. Despite already being over six-feet, she wore black stiletto heels, which matched her black hair, just as unruly as Keith's, though you wouldn't be able to tell since it was twisted up into a bun.

"Y-You're really here…" The he scowled. "Don't call me furball."

Her eyebrow quirked. "I RSVP'd to your invite, didn't I?"

"Yeah, but…" Keith shrugged. "You know."

He remembered the day he mailed the note. He'd stared at the envelope for nearly an hour, trying to decide whether to even send it or not. They hadn't spoken in years, years including the time she wrote an email saying, "Mom and Dad died. Car accident. You want a funeral?"and then not even responding to Keith's "No." But that didn't really count as speaking, not really.

The last time they saw each other, Acxa was fifteen and he was twelve, and they were being taken away by CPS. Before either of them could even process a second of finally being out of that hellhole, they were being placed in different foster families from across the state. That had been over two decades ago. They hadn't even tried to find each other on Facebook or Twitter.

Yet Lance, being Lance, ultimately convinced him to send it.

"You want her there," he had argued. "You never would've spent nearly three days looking for her address if you didn't want her there. And if she doesn't come, then that's on her. Not on you. But if you don't send it, you'll never give her the chance to show up."

So, he sent it. And when he got the RSPV back, he half-expected to wake up and it all have been a dream.

But here she stood—living and breathing—right in front of him.

Her eyes shone like she was holding back tears, and he was sure he looked the same way. At the same time, they stepped forward, their arms outstretched. It had been so long since they'd held onto each other, but this time, it wasn't because Dad was drunk and yelling, and Mom threw a glass against the wall.

"I'm sorry I haven't been in contact," she whispered. "I…I think I was scared."

"Me too."

Finally, she pulled back. "I can't believe my baby brother is getting married before me."

"You never wanted to get married," he reminded, wiping the tears from his eyes.

"True, but still…" Her soft smile faltered slightly, and she took a deep breath. "Keith, I…I know it's been a while since we've seen each other. Or talked. But I love you. Okay? I will always love you."

Keith couldn't give a damn that he was crying again. "I love you too, Acxa. I always have."

They broke apart when Shiro entered, blindfold in hand. "Alright, Keith. It's time."

Grinning, Axca nudged him forward. "Go get 'em, furball."

"Furball?" Shiro repeated, looking intrigued.

Keith groaned. "I take it back, Axca, fuck you."

She laughed. "Don't worry, I'll tell the story to everyone at the reception."

"Don't you dare!"

"Love you too, furball!"

x~xXx~x

"Keith," Lance said, his eyes shining. He wore a blue vest underneath his white tux. "You've been there for me in sickness and in health before we were even dating. You're my rock and my confidant and my lifeline. You're my best friend, and I can't imagine a life where you're not in it. Or where I'm not kissing you."

The crowd chucked. Keith smiled.

"I promise," Lance continued, "To be there for you always. In sickness and in health, in times of stress and times of joy, through the ups and downs of this life we call ours. I promise to always be by your side, loving you. Maybe even carrying you, if you need it. I'm strong, I can do that."

The crowd laughed again.

"Yeah, papa, you're really strong!" Dante shouted out.

Lance winked and Keith rolled his eyes, but he hadn't stopped smiling.

"I promise to choose you, to be with you, despite anything that might happen. I promise to be the man, husband, friend, and lover you deserve. You are my partner, my friend, my equal, and my life. I love you."

A sigh went through the crowd as Lance put the ring on Keith's finger.

Keith cleared his throat. "Lance," he said, the red vest underneath his white tux shown under the sun. "When we first met, I had no idea what was going to be in store for me. And as we got older and our lives got crazier, I realized—" he choked. "I realized how much I wanted to be with you."

Lance smiled softly, wiping one of Keith's tears away with his thumb. He kept his hand there, and the crowd Awwed when Keith brought his own hand up to hold Lance's.

"You're so funny and kind and fearless. You make me want to be a better version of myself each and every day. You're raising Dante to be an amazing young man, and I love him as if he were my own."

"I love you too, Papa Keith!" Dante cried out, running up and hugging Keith's pant leg. He was crying too. After a moment's pause, Keith picked Dante up, holding him tightly.

"Lance. And Dante. I promise to be with you through all of life's journey. The good, the bad, the scary, the exciting, the ugly, the beautiful. I choose to have a life with you, and each day I wake up, I will always choose to stay by your side. Even through your bad jokes."

A huff off a laugh passed through the crowd, but most of them were still dabbing away at their eyes.

"I can't imagine a life without you either. Either of you. Lance, you are my soulmate, and I will always want to be by your side. To be a partner, friend, and lover to you forever and ever. I love you."

A tear spilled from Lance's eye too. Awkwardly, trying not to drop Dante, Keith slid the ring on Lance's finger. But when they looked at each other, everything else melted away and it was just the two of them. The moment seemed to last for nearly an eternity. Just them against the world.

"Papa! Keith!" Dante whispered loudly. "The woman said you two can kiss now!"

They blinked, looking away from each other towards the officiant and the crowd of friends and family.

"It's okay," the officiant said, grinning. "Whenever you're ready, you may kiss your husband."

Laughing, they leaned in, pressing their lips together in a chaste kiss. The crowd roared and Dante was cheering right alongside with them.

"I love you," Lance whispered, resting his forehead against Keith's.

"I love you too," Keith said, still crying.

"I love you both!" Dante giggled, throwing his hands around his papas' necks.

x~xXx~x

"Right there!" Keith gasped, gripping at the bedsheets.

Lance kissed the crease where Keith's leg met his hip. There were going to be several lovely, dark bruises in the morning, but the morning was still so many hours away.

"Fuck," he panted, his legs quivering. "I'm ready, I'm ready."

"Are you sure, baby?" Lance rested his head on Keith's inner thigh, looking down at Keith's heaving, bare chest. Well, not fully bare: he was wearing some beautiful love bites and bruises the shape of Lance's lips.

"Yes! Fuck, please, Lance," he moaned.

Walking around Rio was an amazing honeymoon experience, but this moment, where it's just the two of them and Lance is unraveling Keith with just his fingers, was his favorite moment. No one else could see Keith like this, make him feel like this. Only Lance.

"Okay, baby," he whispered, finally removing his fingers from that spot after a few more moments. "Okay."

Keith arched as Lance pressed into him. If it weren't for the fact that they were in their own little cabin, Lance would've been worried their neighbors would've heard just how wrecked sounded.

"God, you're so beautiful," he cooed, cupping Keith's face. "My husband."

Blushing, Keith squirmed on Lance's cock as if it were his first time.

"Oh, do you like that?" Lance teased. "Husband."

"Lance," he whined, covering his face.

He started moving his hips, aiming for the spot he'd grown accustomed to finding over the past year. Within minutes, Keith was writhing beneath him, leaking precum.

"I love you so much," he panted, leaning down to kiss Keith's pretty, red lips. "My husband…"

"Fu-uck!" Keith shouted as Lance's hand moved to grip his leaking cock. Within the minute Lance began stripping his cock, Keith was coming.

Grabbing Lance's face, Keith kissed him hard, but it wasn't until Keith whispered, "I love you too, husband," that he came.

Collapsing on the bed, the two newlyweds curled into each other, ignoring the sticky mess coating their sheets and bodies. It didn't matter. Not right now. Not when they were in each other's arms.

They fell asleep, whispering their new titles to each other.

"I love you…husband."

x~xXx~x

"I'm going to be a big brother?" Dante repeated, frowning.

"Maybe," Lance said, glancing at Keith in worry. "Keith and I want to have another little baby. Is that okay, Dante?"

He crossed his arms. "I'm not a baby. I'm nine years old."

"Of course, you're so grown," Keith said. "And would you be okay with having a little brother or sister in the house?"

"…I won't be the baby?"

"No," Keith assured. "You'll be the big, almost grown up brother."

Lance rolled his eyes, pulling his son into a big hug. "You'll always be my baby, mi pequeña calabaza."

"Papa!" He squirmed, laughing as Lance started peppering his face with kisses. "Stop, papa, you're tickling me!"

Lance pulled back, grinning. "I can't help it, I love you, mi calabaza."

Dante looked up at Keith. "If we have a baby, will he stop doing that to me?"

"Never," Lance insisted, gently bopping Dante's nose

Keith shrugged. "We won't know until we have one."

"Okay, then." Dante nodded. "Yeah, I want to be a big brother. To a little sister."

"We'll see," Keith said, grinning.

Two months later, they found the perfect surrogate: Romell.

"Are you sure you're okay with this?" Keith had asked her for the fifth time.

"Keith, darling, please. Stop," she had said, holding his face. "Yes, I'm sure. Yes, I'm okay knowing it's your sperm. Yes, I'm good with having my best friend's husband's husband's baby. Whatever else you're going to ask me, stop. I want to do this, Keith. You and Lance deserve all the happiness in the world, and I know Allura would want it too."

That had been the first time, apart from the wedding, that she'd seen him cry.

Nine months, one week, and four days later, they were all in the hospital, holding little baby Amelia Mishil.

"She's so small," Dante gasped, staring at the bundle in Keith's arms.

Keith was sitting on the edge of Romell's bed, who still looked very proper despite being in labor for nearly twenty hours.

"Want to hold her?" he asked.

Dante beamed, nodding his head so fast Lance was almost afraid it would fall off. Keith moved to the hospital chair, gently rocking his arms. After a moment, he passed Amelia to Lance, and then patted his lap, so Dante knew he could crawl into it.

"Remember to hold her head," Lance said as he slowly lowered the baby into Dante's arms. Keith wrapped his arms around Dante's for extra support.

"Hi, Amelia," he whispered. "I'm Dante. Your big brother."

The little girl cooed at his voice. Lance leaned down, kissing Keith's forehead.

"Wow…" Dante looked up to his papas. "I think I love her already."

x~xXx~x

"I am so proud of you!" Lance shouted, tackling his son.

"Papa…" Dante whined, but he didn't step out of his father's embrace. In fact, he held back tightly.

A bright flashed caused him to look up.

"Congratulations, Dante! You're officially a high school graduate!" Keith grinned, putting his phone back into his pocket. Then, clearing his throat, he said, "Lance, you can let him go now."

"Never!" he cried out, mostly joking, but also partly serious.

After a few more seconds passed by, Dante tried to wriggled out. "Papa, you're going to have to let me go eventually. I'll have to go to college."

"I'll just come with you."

"And leave me?" Keith asked, his voice playful.

Lance pulled back just enough to squint at his husband.

"I mean…you could come too…"

"And me!" Amelia piped up, brandishing the bouquet of flowers.

Finally, Dante managed to step out of Lance's grasp.

"Of course, you're invited!" he cried out, picking her up and twirling around.

She giggled, clutching at his arms. When he stopped and brought her down for a hug, she whispered, "I'm going to miss you, egghead. A lot."

"Don't worry, sweetie, he's not leaving yet," Keith reminded.

Setting her down, Dante nodded. "Yeah, I don't leave for, like, another two months. And even then, I'll only be an hour away! I'll come home on the weekends to see you guys."

"Oh, mi pequeña calabaza!" Lance threw his arms around his son once again.

"Dammit, papa, I just got you off me," Dante muttered.

Laughing, Keith patted his shoulder. "And I'm sure you'll also be coming home for the free meals, free laundry, and a certain Holly?"

"Holly?" Dante blushed. "I…"

"You're blushing!" Amelia teased. "You like~ her!"

"She's my friend!"

Lance pulled off, shaking his head and rolling his eyes, though he was grinning.

"Son, Hunk and I have placed bets on when the two of you will finally stop dancing around each other and go on a date."

"Papa!"

"So, you better do me proud and ask her out before the summer ends. I have a bet to win."

Dante huffed out a laugh. "I can't believe I'm related to you."

Amelia poked his side. "But you love~ us!"

"Yeah… I suppose I do…"

"Group hug!" she shouted, wrapping her hands around his waist.

Before Dante could protest, Lance and Keith were at his sides, arms wrapped around him.

"We love you," Lance said. "We will always love you, calabaza."

"I know." Dante let his head lean against his father's shoulder. "I love you guys too."

x~xXx~x

Lance sniffled. Hunk was crying.

"Babe," Keith whispered, holding Lance's hand. "It's okay."

"I know, but…look at them!"

In the middle of the floor, sharing their first dance as husband and wide, were Dante and Holly. They were looking at each other like it was just the two of them against the world.

"Remember when that was us," Shay said, resting her head on Hunk's shoulder. "It was so romantic."

"It was the best day of my life," Keith added. He brought Lance's hand to his lips, kissing it.

"Ugh, gross, papa," Amelia muttered, though she was smiling.

No one seemed to be able to take their eyes off the newlywed couple.

"That'll be you one day," Lilly, Holly's sister whispered in Amelia's ear.

She made a face. "What? No, ew!"

Keith laughed, ruffling her hair. "You're only fourteen, sweetie. You don't need to think about marriage at all right now. Or ever, if you want."

"What I want is to dance with my brother." She crossed her arms. "When can I do that?"

"After the song ends," Lance reminded. Then nudging Keith, he asked, "What do you say? Next song, may I have this dance?"

Leaning in to press their lips together, Keith whispered, "Always."

Within the minute, the song had finished and Amelia ran off to get to her brother before anyone else could.

Standing up, Lance and Hunk lead their respected spouses to the dancefloor.

"I can't believe mi pequeña calabaza is all grown up and married," Lance sighed, leaning into Keith's shoulder.

"We'll be grandparents soon," Keith said, kissing the top of Lance's head. "I give it two years tops."

Beside them, Hunk was still crying, holding Shay tightly in his arms.

"She's so beautiful," he was muttering. "My little teine is so beautiful."

"Yes," Shay agreed. "And she is happy and strong, and you helped make her that way."

He sniffled, burring his face in Shay's chest. "I know!"

"I'm not that bad, am I?" Lance asked.

"No…"

"Oh, good."

Keith smirked. "Because you cried a river last night. You had to change your shirt it was so gross, remember?"

"…I hate you," Lance muttered.

"You love me."

"Yeah, I do."

They smiled up at each other before leaning back for another kiss.

As the song came to an end and Holly walked back up to Date, they heard her whisper, "I love you, Dante, mi amor."

"I love you, Holly," he said back. "O loʻu alofa."

x~xXx~x

They crowded around the table, trying their best not to let their plates fall off the edge. There was barely enough room for all the food, let alone their silverware, cups, plates, and bowls.

"How's senior year going?" Dante asked, scooping mashed potatoes onto a plate before handing it over to Holly.

"Great!" Amelia took a bit of her ham. "I got all As this semester, next semester is going to be easy as pie, I'm about ninety-nine percent sure that Harvard will accept me, and Jordan and I are still going strong."

"That's awesome, Amelia," Holly said, bouncing her new baby in her arms. He wouldn't stop crying.

Lance got up, holding out his arms. "Here, give me the little guy and try to eat some food."

Chuckling, Keith, who was already holding the other baby in his arms, added, "Lance was in the kitchen all day working hard on this. He wouldn't even let me get some coffee!"

"You blew up our kitchen!"

"That was one time," he scoffed. "And it wasn't even our kitchen. What am I saying—it wasn't even a kitchen; it was a hotel microwave that would've been considered ancient when we were Amelia's age."

Lance rolled his eyes, the baby in his arms quieting down. "I didn't want to take any risks. This is our first Christmas with our grandkids!"

"They're barely three months old, Lance, they're not going to remember this."

"But we will!"

Amelia sighed, muttering, "Why do you two always do this?" Turning to her brother, she asked, "Are you two going to turn out like that when you're old and gray too?"

Lance whipped around, "We may be gray, young lady, but we are not old."

"Yeah, you kinda are," Dante said, snickering.

"My dad says you two bickered like an old married couple even back in college," Holly added, clearly trying not to laugh. "He even showed me a few videos too."

Amelia stood up quickly, her chair falling over from the force. "Does he still have them? Show me!"

"Hold on," Keith started, but was too slow. Holly's phone was already out. Within seconds, he could hear his own voice, bickering about some class he shared with Lance.

"Oh, this is gold!" she exclaimed. "Send it to me!"

"Done," Holly said. "I also sent you the other three videos too."

"Three?" Lance repeated.

But Amelia was dancing around the room, playing one of the other videos. "Holly, I've always loved you, but now I love, love you!"

Holly grinned. "You guys have always been a second family to me, and now you guys actually are. I love you all too."

x~xXx~x

"I can't believe they want to send us to a retirement home," Lance muttered bitterly. "We've been betrayed by our own kids!"

"They're just looking out for us," Keith said. "The little bastards."

"We look out for each other." Lance flailed his arms. "Just because we're over eighty doesn't mean we need to live in a retirement home."

"Our lives have turned into that one episode of Grace and Frankie."

Lance nodded. "And just like them, if they trick us into going to a home, we'll sneak out!"

They were sitting on their couch, curled into each other as much as their old bones allowed. Something was playing on TV, but neither of them were paying much attention to it.

"Papa? Dad?" a girl's voice flittered through the house.

"Is that Amelia?" Keith mumbled at the same time Lance shouted, "In here!"

Amelia's heels echoed through the house as she walked into the living room. Jordan was by her side, wearing a sharp suit with their hair up in a stylish bun.

"Did you two forget we were coming over?" she accused. "This is why we want you to go to Voltron Acres! You're both always forgetting things!"

"I haven't forgotten shit," Lance mumbled.

"Papa."

He frowned. "What? It's not like you have any kids with you. That's your bother with the two sets of twins."

"We thought we were having lunch with you tomorrow," Keith said, straining to get up. "Isn't today Friday?"

"Today's Saturday." Amelia sighed. "It's okay, I planned for this. I hope you both are in the mood for Mexican."

"Always Mexican, never Cuban," Lance muttered, shuffling over to the table. "You break my heart, mi hija."

"Lance," Keith chided. "Ignore him. Thanks for the lunch. It's nice to see you again, Jordan."

Jordan flashed a grin as they set the table. "It's great seeing you too. How've you been?"

"Great," Keith answered.

"Really, dad?" Amelia asked, frowning.

Lance plopped down on the chair. "Great enough to have sex last night."

"Papa!" Amelia cried, covering her ears.

"Lance, I don't really think hand jobs count as sex."

"Daddy!" Amelia shouted, scandalized. "Will you two stop?"

Lance raised his eyebrow. "Will you guys stop asking us to go to a retirement home?"

She took puffed out a sigh. "Fine. Yes, okay, I promise to stop asking. I can't guarantee anything about Dante, though."

"He's coming over for Sunday dinner," Lance said, shrugging.

Keith frowned. "Lance, you're not going to say that we're still having sex in front of Dante's children."

"They're in high school. They know."

He groaned. "Not the point, Lance."

Jordan looked over at Amelia, grinning at her I'm-so-done-with-them look.

"Hey, babe, do you think that'll be us one day?"

Amelia looked over at her dads, still arguing about whether or not they should tell Dante they're still having sex.

("Lance, it's technically not true!"

"It's true enough, Keith!")

"Yeah," she said. "Yeah, I hope that'll be us one day. I love you."

Leaning over, Jordan planted a kiss on her lips. "I love you too."

x~xXx~x

It was spring when they buried Lance. He was ninety-six.

Lance McClain-Kogane, his gravestone read. Caring Father, Cherished Husband, Punny Friend.

It had been his idea. At the time, everyone rolled their eyes and tried to dissuade him from using it. Now, they were grateful for the reminder that, sure, most of his jokes were bad, but they were still the kind of jokes that would lift your spirits and make you smile.

It was also spring when they buried Keith. He was ninety-seven. He hadn't lasted a full day after Lance's death.

Keith Kogane-McClaine, his gravestone read. Wonderful Father, Loving Husband, Thoughtful Friend.

That had also been Lance's idea. Keith hadn't a clue what he wanted his grave to read, but Lance came up with in in a heartbeat, declaring every word to be true before kissing Keith and making their family roll their eyes while wearing gentle smiles.

As the family finally turned around and walked away from the two grave stones, they didn't notice the ghosts sitting atop of them.

"They'll be fine….right?" Lance asked.

"Of course, they will. They're our children. They can handle anything," Keith said.

They fell silent until all the cars had left. Until they were the only ones in this empty field of green and death.

Standing up, Lance sauntered over to his husband. "I nearly forgot how good we looked when we were young."

"No, you didn't," Keith snorted. "We had pictures of us up everywhere in our house."

Automatically, once Lance was in reaching distance, Keith wrapped his arms around his waist, pulling him in closer.

"You know what we can do now?" Lance asked, kissing along Keith's jawline.

"What's that?"

"We can actually have sex again."

Keith groaned.

"Ghost sex!"

"Lance." Keith rolled his eyes, pulling away. "You're killing the mood."

"Well, we're already dead," he pointed out.

"And we should probably float on up to heaven now." Keith glanced up at the sky.

Lance pouted. "After ghost sex? Please?"

Keith didn't say anything.

"Please, Keith? I want you…so bad…"

He sighed, though the tent in his jeans negated his annoyed demeanor. "Yeah, okay. After ghost sex."

"You're the best!" Lance kissed him, crawling into his lap and rolling his hips. It was easy to balance on a gravestone when you weren't technically even sitting on it. "I love you."

Keith grinned. "I love you too."