#all of those things i did while crying hard enough to completely fuck my sinuses and leave me with the worlds biggest fuckin migraine

[charlieism]

Only My Ashes Will See The Sea

Description:

Ethan, Lex and Hannah reunite in death.

Read on ao3!

Ethan was surrounded by darkness. Infinite, endless blackness; he’d say it stretched on as far as he could see, but as it was, it was so dark he didn’t even know if he was seeing, if his eyes were even truly open.

He couldn’t say how long he floated there for, searching for any glimpse of light. He didn’t know where he was, or where everyone else was, or what was happening. The last thing he remembered was Hannah, terrified and teary-eyed; he’d told her to run, his last coherent memory was just the panicked desperation with which he tried to get her to safety. He wondered if she was okay, if she’d gotten away from those psychos who—Jesus. Did they stab him? He remembered being punched in the face by the feral-looking man, and then a blinding pain in his stomach, sharper than anything he’d ever felt before. He told Hannah to run, then he was thrown to the floor and then it was a blur of pain and thuds and kicks, and then… then… then what?

It was hard to think about. It made his head hurt. He stopped thinking about the moments leading up to now, and focused instead on the chilling situation he was currently in.

The Blackness encompassed him, smothering him, drowning him, its emptiness beginning to drive any rational thoughts from his mind. There was just nothing here, this place felt like the total absence of everything. His mind began to fall into a spiral, panic and fear eating away at what felt like his very sanity. Ethan began to question if he was even alive, and the thought made him freak out even harder than before, despite a hidden part of him instinctively knowing the truth: he was dead. Ethan felt like he was hyperventilating, but there was no air in this empty space, and though he thrashed around he had no way of knowing if he was even actually moving. He couldn’t even see his hands. A scream built up in his chest, clawing its way up through his throat and swelling in his mouth. He could barely keep the shriek in; pure terror, anxiety and panic were working their way through his veins to make his voice louder, but a split second before he snapped and let it out a wisp of a voice floated through his mind.

Calm, it said.

The shock of it, of hearing sound after what felt like eons trapped in nothingness made Ethan swallow compulsively and blink hard. The darkness that came from squeezing his eyelids shut was indiscernible from the Black surrounding him.

“What?” he rasped, alert, ears practically pricked like a dog’s while he searched for another break in the maddening monotony of the void. There was no reply, no strange, other-worldly voice, but a memory pushed its way into the front of his mind. It was a happy memory, one of his happiest, really, and it was so recent it was a crystal clear picture in his mind. 

Hannah, putting on his old cap, her big brown eyes full of trust and awe when he swore to her it’d protect her from anything. He’d been so elated and amazed when she’d listened to him. Then Lex, posing on the steps out the back of Toy Zone, belting her dreams of being an actor in California while he pretended to roll a camera on her. She’d looked so happy up there, so hopeful that it had infected Ethan, made him believe they’d really make it out. The way Lex had smiled into their kiss afterwards, bubbling over with the sheer joy he so rarely saw from her, had made his heart skip a beat. Then there was Hannah, acting like a doofus and copying his smoking dance afterwards; it’d made him laugh on the inside, though he didn’t dare show it in front of Lex. God, he loved them. He loved them more than anybody else in the world; Lex made his heart feel warm and full and whole like nobody else he’d ever met. Ethan was completely and utterly devoted to her. And he loved Hannah, too. He had the urge to protect her like he was her own brother, or her dad, or whatever the hell that kid needed him to be. He’d do anything for her. He just wanted to look after them, his girls, so that Lex wouldn’t have to cry so much anymore and Hannah wouldn’t have to be scared all the time. California was going to fix all of that. They were all so excited to get there. They’d all been so hopeful.

The happy memories felt tinged with bittersweetness now, but they were still effective. The lingering excitement, joy and love he’d felt no-so-long ago (was it hours? Or days? The amount of time he felt he’d been kept in the Black seemed to be shrinking now that his mind wasn’t running on animalistic terror), was beating back the overwhelming anxiety he’d been feeling a minute ago. He focused on the memory of Lex’s laugh, of Hannah’s shy smile, of the happy glimmer in both of their eyes, and his panic retreated, shoved back by the memory of their joy. He’d done that. He’d made them hopeful, made them happy, promised them that things would get better until they believed it. Ethan thought he could feel tears building in his eyes, his sinuses burning, but he wasn’t sure. He thought about the way Lex laughed at him when he did something dumb, exactly the reaction he was always trying to provoke from her, and let out a small, wet laugh himself.

Black and White, the voice whispered eerily, and Ethan startled. Were his eyes closed now? He realised they were, and he cracked them open slowly. At first he could barely tell the difference between his eyes being open and shut, the Black around him as absolute as it had a few hysteric minutes ago. But then, as his eyes flickered around the infinite darkness, it began to lighten.

The change was hardly noticeable at first, the pitch-black void only lightening by a few degrees to a deep, dark grey, but it was enough. He gasped, shakily, and tears filled his eyes again, this time with relief. He didn’t know what was happening, but he knew that the penetrating darkness was becoming lighter and that was good enough for him. He focused on the memory of how tightly Lex had clung to him, wrapping her legs around his waist and laughing into his neck when he told them how much money they were going to make, when she realised they were really going to make it California, and the dim grey lightened even further. He thought of Hannah on a good day, how she smiled when he called her Banana and talked back to him in her own stilted way, and the world got brighter. He let himself feel how much he loved his girls, his family, the sheer force of his emotion overwhelming him even as tinged with worry, concern and grief as it was, and soon the Black turned completely to White. 

He was still floating, it was still infinite and all-encompassing and terrifying, but it was… safer, than the Black. It wasn’t driving him insane, it wasn’t smothering him, it wasn’t trapping him, it was just holding him in place. He was kind of... resting there, clinging to the thoughts of his family. At least here he could see, though the bright White of it all threatened to hurt his eyes with how it shone. His dark, worn leather jacket contrasted sharply with the colourless background, and he took comfort in its familiarity, hugging his arms around himself. Ethan simply stood and breathed for God-knows how long, readjusting to his setting. Well, standing didn’t seem entirely accurate (nothing felt solid here, not even the space beneath his feet), but nevertheless, it was an improvement to the Black.

It still wasn’t great, though

It was silent again, that strange, ethereal voice having disappeared. And he was still alone, lingering isolated in a boundless void. He tried to focus on the memories of Lex and Hannah again, and they came surprisingly easy in this place. Far easier than they had in the Black, at least. He was beginning to feel sane again, his mind less tortured.

And then, after an indeterminate amount of time, there was the faintest boom-crash noise that shook him from his stupor. He looked up, glancing around for the source of the noise, but the White remained as unfathomably blank as it had always been. And then, from behind him moments later, there was a voice. It was trembling and wavering, choked-up and terrified. It was heart-wrenchingly, achingly familiar.

“Ethan?” Lex’s voice warbled.

Ethan spun around so fast he was surprised he didn’t get whiplash, his plaid shirt twisting about his legs. Lex and Hannah stood a way away from him, holding each other, staring at him in shock. Their very presence made the White seem more solid, more like a real place, and the relief at seeing their figures there made him slump in on himself, a sharp exhale tearing its way out of him. Tears rose in his eyes, but this time he knew for sure he was almost crying because Lex and Hannah blurred and doubled in his vision.

“Lex! Hannah!” he yelled, and bolted towards them, feet hitting the White ground solidly and taking him swiftly towards his girls.

They stood in place, looking shocked until he got close enough to see the tears glimmering in their eyes. He stopped jarringly once he got that close, suddenly afraid they’d disappear like mist in the wind if he touched them.

“Are you guys really here?” he asked, voice shaking. The girls stared at him, Lex’s eyes roving up and down his body in panic while Hannah stared directly at his face, eyes wide and shiny. Then, all of a sudden Lex broke down, her face crumpling with gut-wrenching tears. Ethan inadvertently let out a wounded noise, reaching out for her.

“Ethan, you fucking died?” she sobbed.

“What?” he asked stupidly, then blinked and shook his head slightly, his worry about Lex overtaking his fear and current existential crisis. “I mean, yeah, I guess so, I think I got stabbed a while ago. But does that mean the two of you are dead?! Oh my God, are you two okay? How did you die?!” he asked rapid-fire, frantic. He finally got the guts to rest his hand on Lex’s arm and, to his staggering relief, she remained solid under his palm. Lex sobbed again, and released Hannah in order to wrap her arms tightly around Ethan’s waist and mash him into her, her face pressing into his chest and her tears soaking through his shirt. 

“I don’t know, dude, I think we got fucking nuked? Or hit by a meteor? I don’t know,” she cried. Ethan didn’t really know how to process the idea of fucking Hatchetfield getting nuked, so he shoved it to the back of his mind and focused instead on comforting his girlfriend. Hannah took a step back from them when Ethan curled around Lex, but neither of them noticed. Ethan wrapped an arm around his girlfriend’s back and brushed one hand gently through her hair, making soft, helpless noises at her.

“Hey, hey, babe, it’s okay!” he soothed, pressing a kiss onto the top of her head. Her grip tightened around him. “Shh, you’re alright. I’m alright. We’re all alright, okay? We’re all here together now. It’s alright,” he rambled, ducking his face down next to hers until she blinked her eyes open and sniffled, bringing her arm up to wipe away her tears with her sleeve. Unfortunately, Ethan had experience dealing with a crying Lex, though every time it occurred he fervently wished he’d never have to see her cry again, that she’d never be so sad again.

“You okay?” he murmured, rubbing his palms soothingly up and down her back, and she nodded shakily, taking a tiny step back and clinging onto his hand.

“Yeah,” she croaked. “Good as I can be considering I’m dead, I ‘spose. What about you?”

“I’m, well… I’m a lot better now that you two are here,” he admitted, before turning to the other girl. 

Ethan tried to summon up a brave smile for Hannah, not wanting to alarm her any more than what had already been done.

“What about you, then?” he inquired, grasping for some sense of familiarity. “What’s shakin’, Banana?” He stepped forward slightly and raised his arms for a hug.

Hannah took a step back.

Ethan froze.

“Hannah?” he asked quietly, surprised.

“Bad,” Hannah whispered after a beat, watching him warily, though she sounded confused. Ethan’s arms lowered, hurt. He exchanged a wide-eyed glance with Lex, who looked startled.

“What do you mean, Banana?” he asked, going for a cheerful tone, though it sounded shaky even to his own ears.

“Saw you, on the balcony. Wanted Wiggly. Bad double,” Hannah said, arms wrapping around herself. Ethan frowned.

“What? I haven’t seen you since, uh, the Cineplex, bud,” he replied, frowning slightly. “Are you sure it was me?” Hannah paused at that, assessing him, her eyes flickering up and down him and a crease furrowing her brow.

“...No?” she said stiltedly, sounding more confused than ever. Then she tilted her head as though she was listening to someone, and refocused on Ethan. “Not you, not Ethan... a double? You are... the real Ethan?” she asked. Ethan cocked his head, frowning in concern, but slowly nodded;

“Yeah, Banana,” he assured. “I’m the real Ethan, you know me.” He hesitantly made to step forward, but when Hannah leaned away he immediately stopped and retreated. Lex was staring at them both, but Ethan kept his gaze on Hannah. “It’s alright, Hannah. You’re safe,” he soothed. 

He didn’t know what she’d seen after he died, but it had obviously scared her and it obviously had something to do with him. Maybe she’d seen his body or something? He didn’t know, maybe he’d ask later, but right now he just wanted to reassure her. He hated seeing that scared look in her eyes. He waited patiently for a minute, tense silence falling over the three of them. Then very, very slowly, Hannah reached out and snagged his leather jacket between his fingers. She rubbed the material for a moment then looked him directly in the eyes, something she rarely did. Her brown eyes searched his blue ones intently, looking for something like a lie or a hint of mania, but when she found nothing her expression crumpled, much like Lex’s had minutes before.

“Ethan,” she cried, and barreled into him with a fierce hug. He froze, stunned, but his shock barely lasted a moment and he wrapped his arms around her in return, squeezing her softly.

““Hey, Banana,” he smiled. “Good to see you.”

“Missed you,” she sniffed.

“Yeah, I’m sorry, kiddo. I missed you too,” he sighed. Lex made an aw sound next to them, then wormed her way into the embrace. Ethan lifted an arm to box her in and pressed a kiss to her damp cheek. They stayed like that for a while, swaying together in their little group, and even though he was still surrounded by the vast White Ethan almost felt alive again.

“I love you guys,” he said softly, and they all separated slightly. It was an easy thing to say, in the face of death itself. He did love them, why bother hiding it? They already knew he loved them, of course, but he wanted to reiterate it. Lex smiled at him and leaned in for a soft kiss.

“We love you too, babe,” she said. He wrapped her in a side-hug and entwined his fingers with hers, while Hannah clung to Lex’s other hand, and they all stood in sombre, companionable silence for a bit. 

“What now?” Lex eventually asked. . “I don’t know,” Ethan admitted. “I don’t even know where we are. When I pictured death, I never really imagined this.”

“We’re in the White,” Hannah informed them. When Ethan focused on her he noticed she looked remarkably well-adjusted for a 10-year old girl who’d just died and found herself in some kind of alternate dimension.

“Yeah?” Lex encouraged, and Ethan realised she didn’t seem to be questioning it all that much either.

God, he was so fucking confused.

“I wish we were in California,” he sighed mournfully. Lex squeezed his hand, and when he looked at her she mustered a small, forlorn smile.

“It was a good dream,” she said. He nodded, but didn’t know how to reply.

“California has beaches,” Hannah said. Ethan raised an eyebrow at her.

“It sure does,” Lex agreed. Hannah frowned.

“Webby says…” she paused, frowning, and then looked up at them, big eyes bright. “California,” she said, and her eyelids fluttered shut. Lex and Ethan shared a bewildered look, but after a moment of silent conversation something else caught Ethan’s eye.

A way in front of them, the White was steadily turning blue. A picturesque, postcard perfect blue. And it was moving, swelling, gently rising and falling. And then the ground directly beneath them began to shift and crunch under their feet, turning golden and grainy. The space above them turned periwinkle blue and fluffy, cottony clouds appeared out of thin air to dot the sky, perfectly shaped as though they were born straight from a child’s imagination. Far, far above them the sun slipped out from behind one of those clouds, yellow and warm in the most delicious way.

Lex tilted her face upwards and closed her eyes, letting the light play upon her skin, a delighted smile lifting her the corners of her mouth. Ethan admired his girlfriend for a moment, taking in how peaceful she looked before following her lead and tilting his face to the sky, letting his eyes slide shut.

A cool, gentle wind began to ruffle its way through his dark curls, bringing with it the tang of salt and the joyous cry of seabirds. The crash of waves gently pounding against the sand had him open his eyes again, and he looked out at the paradise that had just been created. The ocean stretched for miles, as far as his eye could see, before disappearing into the horizon where its cool blue blended seamlessly with the sky. He’d never seen the ocean in real life before. He shifted, looking down, and watched soft golden sand spill over the toes of his black boots. He blinked against the sea breeze and watched the sunlight glitter off the crystalline water, and without truly intending to, he smiled. 

Ethan looked down at Hannah, who was only just reopening her eyes, and watched the astonishment and delight fill her features as she took in the view. 

“It’s heaven,” Lex breathed to his left.

“California,” Hannah agreed, and Ethan laughed, tipping his head back.

“No,” he said sincerely, “It’s something even better.” He squeezed their hands happily, and they squeezed back. The three of them stood in a line, holding hands on the paradisaical beach made just for them, and watched the ocean sparkle cheerily for the first time in their lives. And, Ethan realised, it finally felt like a happy ending.

I hope you enjoyed! Reblogs are very appreciated <3

#black friday spoilers #black friday #black friday musical #starkid #ethan green #lex foster #hannah foster #webby #lex/ethan #the black and white #robert manion #angela giarratana #kendall nicole yakshe #jay rambles #jay writes #fanfiction #fanfic #god its so late im gonna be so tired tomrrow. i wrote this in a night sorry for any errors #black friday starkid

[iwritesickfic]

not if it’s you

Bo knew that calling out sick for a day would mean he’d see Dell at some point after he was done with whatever he had to do. Part of him is hoping that Dell doesn’t know why he has the day off, but Dell isn’t an idiot. 

Part of Bo’s reasoning is that even though he probably could work, he really shouldn’t. He’s told Dell enough times to not wait until it’s so awful he can’t get out of bed to get some rest, so he’s partially taking his own advice. That said, he feels pretty terrible. Whatever this virus is, it’s absolutely vicious. His sinuses feel like they’re full of concrete, his nose won’t stop streaming and most aggravatingly, he’s sneezing. Maybe for some people sneezing is the least of their worries, but with the aching in his swollen sinuses it makes it feel like someone’s driving a stake between his eyes. 

The final reason is that Bo never really gets sick, and if he does it’s always mild, so he can’t imagine how Dell, who’s genuinely miserable with what others would call a cold, could handle this. The chances are pretty good he’s going to catch it even with Bo taking a day off, but it’s worth a try. Which is why he’s hoping Dell won’t show up at his door tonight, even though he knows it’s inevitable. 

And just as he expected, at 8 PM there’s a knock on the door. Bo takes a deep breath and spends a moment in front of the mirror trying to look less shitty than he feels before opening the door. 

“Hi,” he says, and Dell smiles. Even feeling like this it makes Bo’s heart melt. 

“Hi. You’re sick,” he says, and it’s not really a question but Bo nods. 

“You shouldn’t be here.” All he wants is to be held right now, to be taken care of and looked after and loved but it’s selfish to ask those things of Dell, even if he’s offering them.

“I’ll be fine,” he says, and Bo sighs. His head is really starting to ache from being upright. Dell starts to lean in, and Bo has to put a hand on his chest.

“I really don’t want you to catch this.” Dell tucks a bit of hair behind his ear, and Bo can feel his fingertips brush his temple.

“C’mon, you’re breaking my heart.” His voice is so hard to resist, he’s too damn charming. “Probably caught it already anyway.”

“Well you’re definitely going to if you come in.” A few sneezes catch him off gaurd, and though he’s able to catch them in his sleeve, his head throbs and it’s so bad he’s swaying on his feet. Then, he feels steady arms pull him close, his aching head against Dell’s chest. It feels incredible, being held, and he lets out a shaky breath.

They stay like that for a while in silence, one of Dell’s hands rubbing his back.

“You’re running a fever,” he finally says, and Bo hums in response. There’s another long pause before he speaks again. “Listen, I’ll make you a deal. I’ll go, but you have to take tomorrow off and you have to text me, ok?” Bo breathes a sigh of relief and nods against Dell’s chest. “Alright. One more thing.”

They pull apart, and immediately Bo is disappointed, the steady comfort is gone as quick as it came.

“What?” He asks, and without warning, Dell presses a lingering kiss to his forehead. Clever of him not to ask first, as Bo definitely would’ve said no, but it feels so nice he doesn’t complain.

“I’ll see you the day after tomorrow,” he says, and Bo nods, forcing a little smile. “Good.” He smirks. “Now go get some sleep you look like hell.”

--

Two days later the illness is almost completely gone, the only remnant the odd sniffle here or there and the soreness of his nose from being rubbed raw with tissues. 

He’s glad they’ll be working - it takes care of the whole no-kissing thing without Bo having to actively decline, which is good because he’s pretty sure he’d give in just seeing his smile.

He’s hyper focused on Dell throughout the day, and luckily it seems like he’s feeling fine. He has small tells that Bo’s learned to recognize, but nothing seems off. Usually after work they’d have dinner, but Bo decides it’s best if he doesn’t risk it.

But, the next morning, he sees Dell and his heart immediately sinks. He definitely hasn’t slept well, and he’s touching his septum with his knuckle which nine times out of ten means he’s coming down with something.

“We should take the day off,” he says, and Dell sighs.

“I’m fine. Really.” Bo bites his lip. “Promise. If I feel bad I’ll let you know.” Bo must still look skeptical because Dell puts a hand on his shoulder. “Trust me, I’d love to take a break every time I feel like shit but I have responsibilities. The world’s not gonna stop for me.”

Bo wants to argue but he knows Dell’s right, at least partially. Now of all times it’d be hardest to get a break. He’s still in the process of transitioning into his new role which originally was supposed to be king, but is now just taking over all of the policy his mother doesn’t want to handle. The royal titles are mostly symbolic, but their family still wields considerable political power.

While there’s always tension between Dell and his mother, lately it’s been more pronounced than ever. Things are moving fast and he can’t afford to stumble.

 “Promise you’ll tell me if you need to slow down.” Dell smiles.

“I promise. You’re really cute when you’re worried.” That manages to draw out a laugh, and Dell seems pleased.

The rest of the day goes smoothly, but Bo can tell he’s feeling worse and worse. By the end of the day, Bo’s already trying to see how possible it’d be to cancel their day tomorrow. Better to get a jump on the inevitable.

He’s relieved when they’ve finally reached the end of the day, but almost immediately there’s a new problem.

“Why wasn’t it on the agenda?” Bo asks, and Dell sighs, rubbing the bridge of his nose like he does when he has a headache.

“It’s a family thing, I thought you knew about it. It’s not a big deal, it’s just a dinner.” It’s not just a dinner, Bo knows that. They’ll be entertaining some group of politicians for most of the night, then he’ll have to spend at least a few hours with his family and Emilia. But there’s really nothing to be done. Family commitments are non-negotiable. “I feel ok, really. I’ll see you tomorrow morning, ok?”

Bo takes a deep breath and nods.

“Tomorrow morning.”

The minute he doesn’t see Dell at 6:30 the next morning in the front driveway, waiting for the car, he knows something is definitely wrong. Dell’s never late. Ever. Still, he waits 15 minutes. When he doesn’t show by 6:45, Bo makes his way upstairs and through the maze of hallways to Dell’s apartment. 

He knocks once, twice, three times, all to no response. Finally, he just opens the door. The room is dark, and for a moment Bo thinks maybe he’s not here, when he hears a few muffled sneezes.

He flips on the lights, walking over to the bed where he now sees a lump underneath the comforter.

“Hey,” he says, trying to keep his voice low. If he caught what Bo had he’s probably got a pretty bad headache. When he gets close enough he finally sees Dell curled up under the heavy blanket all the way up to his nose, eyes red rimmed and unfocused. Carefully, Bo sits on the edge of the bed, and Dell lets out a soft little moan. He tries to be gentle, but even pressing his palm to his forehead draws out another half-moan half-whimper.

He’s incredibly warm, but that’s not really a surprise.

“Fuck, did I sleep in?” he mumbles, voice thick with congestion.

“No, you’re fine,” Bo says, not wanting to make him feel any worse. Normally Dell’s sharp enough to tell when Bo’s bullshitting, but now he just accepts the information without complaint. He just lays still while Bo runs his fingers through his hair. “Tell me what’s going on.”

“Head fuckin hurts. A lot.” Bo can tell. Dell doesn’t offer anything more, so Bo lets his thumb run back and forth against his hot temple.

“Migraine?” he prompts, and Dell makes a small sound from the back of his throat. “That’s a yes?”

“I don’t know, Bo. I just feel awful.” His voice sounds unsteady, like he might cry, which ratchets Bo’s anxiety up a notch. That and the fact he’s actually admitting to feeling terrible. Usually statements like that are followed by “but i’m alright,” or “but it’s not so bad.” He starts to sit up, and his face immediately goes pale. Bo guides him the rest of the way so he’s upright, but lets him rest his weight against his chest. His head is tucked into the crook of Bo’s neck. His breathing is strained.

“Hey, it’s alright, just relax, ok?” Dell shakes his head, and Bo sighs. “What’s wrong with that?”

“I have to get up.”

“I promise you don’t.”

“I’ll take an ibuprofen, it’ll be fine.” He’s shaking, but Bo’s not sure if it’s from exhaustion or the fever. 

“Hate to rain on the parade but you can barely sit up. I’m not just telling you to stay in bed, I -”

“Yes you are,” Dell argues back weakly. Bo almost wants to let it happen. For Dell to get up and pass out  just so he’ll understand what’s going on. 

“It’s not an opinion, i swear, i’m being objective here. You’re just too sick.” Dell lets out a small huff and tries to sit up straight. He manages, and somehow gets his legs over the edge of the bed. Bo sighs.

And of course, just as he anticipated, the minute Dell tries to stand on his own his knees go weak. Luckily Bo’s able to catch him and get him stable again pretty quickly, but the damage is done. The shaking is even worse now, and with every exhale there’s a little pained sound. 

“Fuck,” he finally says, and Bo presses a kiss to his temple.

“Just relax, ok?” He says, and Dell nods. Just as he’s pulling away, he lets out a harsh sneeze, followed by what can only be described as a moan. Two more come soon after, and it’s abundantly clear they’re worsening the pain in his head. He sniffles, which draws out another soft moan.

Bo pulls far enough away so his hands rest on Dell’s flushed cheeks, and experimentally, he presses his thumb into the space under his eye and to the side of his nose. Immediately he lets out a choked sob, and Bo frowns. His sinuses are so swollen Bo can tell from that one touch alone he’s got a sinus infection, and a bad one at that. It’s no wonder his headache is so awful. He remembers his own bout with this and how terribly his own head ached. He can’t imagine how Dell must feel. 

“I am so sorry,” he whispers, and Dell shakes his head.

“It’s not your fault,” he says, and Bo sighs. “M’gonna lay back down, ok?” he mumbles, and Bo nods.

“Yeah, definitely. I’m gonna grab some stuff, I’ll be right back.” He nods, and Bo gets up. In the bathroom cabinet he finds a few things that might help, but he’s not totally sure. He has the thermometer, obviously, and at first he considers something cold to help the fever but decides something warm is probably better to help the ache. He remembers an old trick he used to use in university when he ran track, a quick way to make a hot compress.

He brings the supplies he’s got so far back to the bedside table and slips the thermometer under his tongue, before going to the closet and grabbing a sock. It takes him a minute to find the right drawer, but when he does he heads into the kitchen. It takes another minute to find the rice, but when he does he fills the sock about halfway and ties the end, then sticks it in the microwave. It’s sort of strange, but if it works it works. 

When he finally gets back to Dell, the thermometer’s long done. 102.4. Bad, but not catastrophic. Yet. He takes the hot pack and lays it over Dell’s closed eyes, and he lets out a little gasp.

“Does it hurt?” he asks, panicked for a moment.

“No. Feels good,” he mumbles, and Bo is about to reply when his phone starts to ring. Loudly. Dell’s expression tightens, and Bo fumbles to answer the call. He gets up, walking over to the couch.

“Hello?”

“Bo, shit, what’s going on?” It’s one of the family’s other assistants, Marina.

“Dell’s sick. I was just about to call.”

“So when will he be ready?” Bo braces himself.

“He can’t get out of bed.”

“When did you become a doctor?!” She snaps.

“Mari, I’m serious.”

“I’m serious too!”

“He almost passed out trying to stand up, there’s no way he’s going anywhere. Even doped up on whatever, it’s not happening.” There’s a long silence.

“Well...” she trails off. “Shit. You’re sure?”

“Yes, I’m sure.”

“Alright.” She sighs. “I’ll clear everything today and tomorrow, and I’ll put in a med assist request. You better not be exaggerating. This totally fucks the entire week.”

“Why would I -”

“Because he has you wrapped around his finger, Bo.”

“I’m not gonna talk about this with you. Just text me about the med assist and let me know if I need to make any calls.”

“Alright. Talk later.”

“Thanks.” When he hangs up he lets out a heavy sigh, and Dell’s weak fever slurred voice pipes up from the bed.

“Who was it?” 

Bo shoves his phone in his pocket and heads back over to where he was sitting on the edge of the mattress.

“Just Mari.” 

“Why? You said we’re not late.” Bo goes back to playing with his hair, hoping the touch is comforting.

“Everything’s cancelled.” Dell still looks confused.

“Why?” Bo considers his options. He could just tell him the truth - it’s because he’s too sick to even get out of bed - but that might just stress him out more. Knowing that he’s the reason everything’s been rearranged will just make him feel worse.

“She didn’t say.” Luckily, he seems to accept that answer without question, but Bo can tell there’s something more bothering him. “Was everything ok last night?” Dell sniffles, and Bo hands him a tissue from the almost-empty box on the nightstand. He takes the now room temperature compress and puts it on the bedside table.

“No, I didn’t sleep good.”

“I mean with the dinner and everything.” 

“Oh. Uh, it wasn’t great. Just family drama.” He pauses. “No one gives a shit about me, Bo.” Immediately Bo’s hand goes to cup his cheek.

“That’s not true.” Usually Dell doesn’t discuss any of his family issues, even when it’s just the two of them. He’s always diplomatic and vague, never really expressing any opinion. Bo gives a soft smile. “I do, right?”

“Not you, that’s not what I meant,” he says, and Bo sighs.

“Well what makes you say that?” Dell looks lost, his mind cloudy with fever, so Bo resates. “That no one gives a shit about you. What would make you think that?”

“I was so fucking sick last night.” He ends the sentence there but Bo can infer the rest of the meaning. And no one cared. 

“To be fair, you’re very good at looking perfectly fine when you feel like shit.” Bo offers, but Dell’s expression doesn’t change.

“ I can’t...it’s hard to explain it.”

“It’s alright, I understand.” He doesn’t, but the conversation is clearly only making Dell more upset. “Can I get you to eat something?” He asks, and Dell sighs.

“I guess. I don’t know. Can you ask Mari why everything’s cancelled? That doesn’t make sense.” Bo bites his lip. 

“Yeah, I can ask her.” He’s wondering how he’ll even begin to think of a believable lie when his phone buzzes in his pocket. He opens his texts. 

medical got denied. Bo frowns, typing back quickly.

what? why?

She texts back almost immediately.

they didn’t say. schedule is clear though, so that’s something at least.

The frustration must show on his face because Dell speaks up.

“What’s wrong?”

“It’s nothing, just give me a second,” he says, and types back.

he needs the med assist

Another message comes through.

relax. he gets sick all the time its not a big deal 

Bo closes his phone and shoves it into his pocket, trying not to look as angry as he feels. 

“What?” Dell asks, and Bo sighs, brushing some of the hair off his forehead. 

“Just Mari giving me shit, it’s fine.” Dell frowns.

“What did she say about the schedule?” He asks, voice distorted by congestion and fever. Bo takes a deep breath.

“Today and tomorrow everything’s cancelled.” Dell still looks confused.

“Why though?” Bo is really having to weigh the benefits and drawbacks of being truthful. If he lies, Dell might feel better for the moment, but he’s eventually going to find out the reality. But if he is honest - that he told Mari he was too sick to get out of bed - it’ll cause some more immediate problems. Bo decides that he’s going to keep an even keel, and cross the truth-bridge when they get there.

“I think someone last night noticed you weren’t feeling well.” Dell doesn’t look totally satisfied with that answer. “Your mom maybe?” Dell’s expression immediately shifts to one of almost childlike disbelief, and Bo immediately feels guilty. 

“Yeah?” he asks softly, and a lump forms in Bo’s throat. Would it be so terrible to lie if it’d make him feel so much better? He’s so sick he might not even remember their conversation.

“Mmhmm.” He’s really digging himself a hole here. Dell’s going to be devastated when he finds out it’s not true, but for now if it’s what’s going to keep him in bed that’s probably the most important thing. For most people the worst outcome of not getting proper rest with something this bad would be a prolonged recovery, which isn’t great, but it’s much better than what he knows Dell’s experienced twice - sepsis. When a normal infection gets into the bloodstream and wrecks absolute havoc. Insane fever, every nerve screaming, heart racing -

He hasn’t witnessed it himself, just heard the second-hand accounts from some of the other staff, but he knows enough. The awful immune system, the scar on his sternum, the nightmares and panic attacks - that’s where they all come from. One bout after pneumonia went untreated for two weeks when he was 15, the second from a kidney infection when he was 22. And Bo swears it’ll be over his dead body before it happens a third time. 

So maybe he is overreacting, but he’d rather overreact than have to see Dell go through anything like that. Which is all the more reason Dell needs the med assist. 

“Just when I thought she finally, fully, 100% hated my guts...” Dell mumbles, and Bo bites his lip. He types a text to Mari.

who denied medical?

He slips the phone back into his pocket, and goes back to stroking Dell’s hair. He seems so content, like he’s ready to fall asleep.

“Wait, take these first,” Bo says, and hands him two ibuprofen. He downs them quickly, and wastes no time curling back up under the comforter. Bo’s phone vibrates in his pocket.

who do you think? Bo sighs. Another text comes in.

could definitely change though. she’s trying to set some meetings back up, without him obviously, so she might want him distracted

“You keep looking at your phone like that. What does that mean?” Dell mumbles, and Bo rubs his eyes. 

“It’s just Mari, it’s fine.” He slides it back into his pocket and tries to process everything that’s happening. Dell pouts.

“She’s being mean to you?” He almost smiles, but the look on Dell’s face is earnest. He tests the blonde’s forehead. Definitely a little warmer. Once a fever starts getting into the neighborhood of 103, Dell is a little less...filtered. 

“I can’t talk shit about her, especially not to you,” Bo says, and Dell tries to roll his eyes, but his face screws up in pain. Bo smirks. “What’s up?”

“My entire face fucking hurts.” He takes a deep breath, and Bo’s glad it sounds like his lungs are doing fine. He presses the heels of his palms against his eyes and groans. “My teeth hurt, Bo. My teeth. They’re bones.” Bo can’t suppress a laugh. 

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Dell looks at him like he’s an idiot.

“Bones are like...rocks.”

“They are 100% not like rocks. Why do you think it hurts when you break something?”

“Because there’s stuff around it - whatever.” He takes another deep breath and sneezes wetly into his elbow, followed by a soft moan. “Mari sucks. Why can’t we talk about Mari?” he mumbles, and Bo is surprised he remembers the beginning of the conversation. That said, he’s still clearly operating under the fever - he’d never be so candid if he was in his right mind.

“Because it’d be unprofessional,” Bo says, and Dell laughs.

“How does fucking me fit into unprofessionalism?” He asks, and Bo’s a little relieved he seems to have enough mental wherewithal to be sarcastic. 

“Ok, yeah. You’re right.” Bo’s hand has stopped playing with Dell’s hair. “She just said something about me being wrapped around your finger.” Dell opens his eyes wearily.

“More please,” he mumbles, and Bo furrows his brow. “Your hand. Do more.” Bo cracks a smile and continues his ministrations, carefully running his fingertips through the gold-blonde curls.

“I think she was right,” he says, and Dell frowns.

“Bout what?” 

“I’m wrapped around your finger.”

“No, it’s uh...the snakes. Around that thing,” he says and sniffles again. Bo hands him a tissue.

“I’m not following,” Bo says, catching himself before pulling his hand away from his hair. 

“It’s like...two snakes. Around a thing. It’s on a bunch of stuff...” he says, trailing off, and Bo racks his brain.

“Can you give me...literally anything a little more specific?” Bo asks, and although he’s joking, feverish Dell doesn’t seem to get it.

“I’m trying, my head hurts,” he says, sounding genuinely dismayed, and Bo runs a thumb over his hot temple.

“I know, I’m just teasing.” The image suddenly pops into Bo’s head. “Caduceus! The staff with the two snakes, right?”

“Yeah, I guess. They’re like...they’re wrapped around each other. That’s you and me. Wrapped around each other.” Dell closes his eyes, finally seeming content now that he’s gotten a thought across. 

After that, Dell falls asleep for real, which gives Bo a little time to handle everything else that’s going on.

He walks into the kitchen and closes the door before calling Mari.

“Hey,” she says. “Good news. You’ve got your medical but bad news is I don’t think you’re gonna like it.”

“Why wouldn’t I like it?”

“I’m pretty sure the plan is to have a doctor deem him physically unfit for any sort of real political office.” Bo feels a spike of anger in his chest. “It’s kind of bullshit but it might be better in the long run. With everything going on the past few months, he hasn’t been this bad since college. Or so I’m told. It’s what Will says, anyway.” Will’s been working PR for the royals about 10 years now. “He said stress makes it worse. And you know things have been pretty fucking stressful.” 

Bo doesn’t know where to begin. There’s too much he wants to say.

“You there?” She asks, and Bo sighs.

“Yeah. Unfortunately.” 

“They said they wanted the people there asap, so I’d keep a lookout.”

It’s then that Bo hears voices from the other room.

“I’ve gotta go,” he says, and hangs up before hearing her reply. He walks back into the main living area and sees Dell sitting up against the headboard, a young man and two young women are huddled around him. Bo clears his throat, and they turn.

“Bowen, correct?” the man asks, and Bo nods. “Seeing as Mr. Hagen won’t be needing your services for the rest of the day, you’re free to leave.”

“Bo stays,” Dell says before Bo can even open his mouth. The man nods.

“Alright.” One of the women is pulling out some medical tools, the other seems to be prepping a blood draw. The man doesn’t bother introducing himself to Bo, just continues on his conversation with Dell. Bo can’t be sure what’s already been said, but it’s safe to assume Dell downplayed the severity. 

One of the women, Bo guesses they must be nurses, takes Dell’s temperature with an over the forehead reader. Bo braces himself for the reading.

“100.3. Low grade,” she says, and Dell shoots him a look. Either the fever’s miraculously broken in the five minutes Bo’s been gone, or Dell knows how to cheat the thermometer. The nurse taking his blood pressure frowns.

“That’s odd, he’s very warm. Do we have the tympanic?” The other nurse nods, and grabs an ear thermometer from the bag. Dell’s face has fallen. She puts it in his ear and and he sighs. It beeps, and she pulls it back.

“That’s more like it. 103.1.”

“Fuck,” Dell breathes, and the nurse rubs his shoulder.

“It’s alright, just your body fighting to get well.”

“I know,” he whispers. He looks like he might cry. He doesn’t so much as blink when the other nurse starts taking his blood.

“So we’ve gone over how you’re feeling today...” the man says, flipping through pages in a file. “You said mild headache, upper respiratory congestion?” Dell nods. “We’ll add the fever in, and your blood pressure is low...” He draws out his words as he scribbles things down onto the paper. “Obviously I’m just the RN, and Dr. Jones -”

“Dr. Jones?” Dell interrupts.

“That’s who was requested, right?” Dell frowns.

“I didn’t re- where’s Dr. Hansen?” He asks, and the RN looks surprised but not confused. He looks down at the sheet and presses his lips into a line.

“Alright, uh, I see the problem. Dr. Hansen’s -”

“Don’t tell me he’s busy. He’s not busy. He gets paid to be on call, it’s his job to not be busy,” Dell snaps, and Bo’s a little taken aback. He’s never heard Dell demand anything before. “I know what’s going on here, ok? I’m not an idiot.”

“I think your temp-” one of the nurses starts, and he cuts her off.

“I’m not mad because I have a fever, ok? I’m mad because I’m 24 years old and I’m being treated like a child.” He sighs and rubs his eyes. “I apologize, I’m just very frustrated,” he says, and it’s odd to hear him all of a sudden using his professional voice. “I know it’s not...I’m sorry, this is just your job.” He takes a long pause. “My mother made this request -”

“Oh, no. We were told it was uh...your assistant?” He turns to Bo, “I’m sorry, what’s your name?”

“Bowen,” Dell says, voice flat.

“Right. Bowen spoke with Marina, and communicated to her that you were too ill to leave bed. Marina in turn put in a medical assistance request.” 

Dell pinches the bridge of his nose and closes his eyes. 

“Ok, whatever.” He sighs, and when he opens his eyes he looks completely exhausted. “What I mean to say is Dr. Jones reports to my mother, and Dr. Hansen is the doctor with whom I have a confidentiality agreement, so if I’m going to be seen by somebody, I need it to be him. And additionally I’d appreciate it if the vitals were reported exclusively to Dr. Hansen.” 

The RN seems to have no problem with this, looking almost relieved that he hasn’t done something wrong.

“Alright, sounds good. Will do. Is there anything else I should tell him?” His pen is hovering over the paper.

“You can tell Dr. Jones I did a thousand pushups. And to go fuck himself.” The RN laughs nervously, but Dell’s face is blank. “Apologies for my language I’m fuck-” he catches himself and lets out a shuddering breath. “I’m really not feeling well.”

“Right, speaking of that,” the RN seems to be relieved the non-medical part of the conversation has ended, “Like I said I’m not Dr. - I’m not the one who makes the diagnosis, but with a fever that high I’m surprised you don’t feel worse.” He flips back a few pages. “From what you described I’d guess a common cold but it doesn’t square with your vitals.”

“Can I be frank with you?” Dell asks, and the RN twirls his pen nervously.

“Of course, sir.”

“I’m exhausted. If you have what you need -” The RN stands up immediately, and motions for the nurses to grab the bags.

“Yes, of course. Absolutely.” The hurriedly pack their things, and are gone without a trace in under a minute. Dell’s still sitting upright, leaning back against the headboard, eyes closed. Bo sits down on the edge of the mattress. Carefully, he runs his fingers through Dell’s hair.

“I’m not mad at you,” he whispers, but Bo doesn’t reply, just keeps playing with his hair. “You’re just worried about me, you don’t...” he sighs shakily. “You don’t know how fucked up everything is.”

Bo feels tears start to well up in his eyes, and a lump form in his throat.

“hey, hey, it’s alright,” Dell says, and Bo shakes his head.

“I hate seeing you in pain. I fucking hate it. And this is my fault. All of it.” He chokes back and sob and rubs his eyes. “And now I’m crying, and you’re comforting me which is ridiculous, and you’re still burning up and you still have that headache because I can see that crease between your eyebrows, and -”

“Relax.” He grabs Bo’s hand gently. His hot thumb runs back and forth over Bo’s knuckles. “Just relax.” Bo tries, and Dell gives him a sad little smile. “Trying to take care of me is...it’s like trying to build a house of cards in a hurricane. It’s rotten work.”

Bo looks down at their intertwined hands, then back up to Dell’s eyes. He tries to keep his gaze steady.

“Not to me. Not if it’s you.”

#My writing #oc bo #oc dell #sickfic #whump #it's long as hell because i don't know when to stop im probably gonna keep going tbh

[trauma-13]

You know the drill. All them asks. 😈 (is this deja vu?)

You got it dude!! (It is...cause I fucked up 😂)

The meaning behind my url:

Trauma because it's my favorite area of nursing.

Princess because I'm a fuckin princess.

93 because the year I was born.

A picture of me:

If you look hard enough you'll find one on here. Also my icon is me soooo.

How many tattoos i have and what they are:

Oh good lord. I have quite a few....

1. Mom's last name on my left wrist.

2. Flowers on my right foot.

3. Tribal-ish heart my brother drew on the back on my neck.

4. Walt Disneys signature on my left foot.

5. Mickey and Minnie behind my ears.

6. A prior dogs paw print on my left ankle.

7. A dandelion on my right shoulder blade with music notes.

8. My dog, Axel, paw prints on my collar bones.

9. A moon on my right ankle.

10. A semi colon on my right wrist (ulnar side)

11. A arrow on my right wrist (radial side)

12. A humming bird on my right forearm.

I think that's it... for now...

Last time i cried and why:

I dunno, honestly. I cry frequently hahah

Piercings i have:

Labret/Monroe

Ears gauged to a 00.

Traugus both sides

Right sided daith.

Nipples.

Favorite band:

Sooo many. Currently imagine dragons.

Biggest turn offs:

Bad hygiene, liars, cheats, narcacists.

Top 5 (insert subject):

???

Tattoos i want:

Too many to list, honestly.

Biggest turn ons:

I'm a big physical touch person, so basically anything where I'm being touched.

Age:

26

Ideas of a perfect date:

Doing something totally new that neither of us has experienced.

Life goal:

Pediatric ICU trauma nurse, be a mom, be a good wife.

Piercings i want:

Maybe my left daith. Probably a 2nd lobe hole.

Relationship status:

Very happily engaged.

Favorite movie:

Steel magnolias (the old one), Moana, Mean Girls.

A fact about my life:

I'm a nurse, I work in the ER and medsurg/tele, I have 2 doggos, and 2 kittens, I'm practically married at this point, I live on the surface of the sun.

Phobia:

Spiders, failure.

Middle name:

I'ma pass on telling the world that.

Height:

5'6" with shoes on.

Are you a virgin?

Naaah.

What’s your shoe size?

Between 9-10 depends on the shoe and brand.

What’s your sexual orientation?

I am bisexual, however I'm in a heterosexual relationship.

Do you smoke, drink, or take any drugs?

Drink yes, no to the others.

Someone you miss

@car-one-responding

What’s one thing you regret?

Suffering in an abusive relationship because I didn't think I had a way out.

First celebrity you think of when someone says attractive:

Chris Evans.

Favorite ice cream?

I'm honestly not a big ice cream person, but we have some delicious basil-lime sorbet from a local store that I'm obsessed with.

One insecurity:

Weight.

What my last text message says:

"I re sent it. Just delete the other one I guess? Lol" from @car-one-responding in reference to this cause I done FUCKED IT UP.

Have you ever taken a picture naked?

Mmmmhhhhhmmmmm.

Have you ever painted your room?

Not recently at all, but as a kid yeah.

Have you ever kissed a member of the same sex?

Yep, couple times.

Have you ever slept naked?

I usually do.

Have you ever danced in front of your mirror?

Almost every day hahah

Have you ever had a crush?

Duuuh, who hasn't hah

Have you ever been dumped?

Aldo duuuh.

Have you ever stole money from a friend?

Nope. I'm a very honest person.

Have you ever gotten in a car with people you just met?

Hmm. Probably.

Have you ever been in a fist fight?

Does patients attacking count?? I didn't punch, but I got punched.

Have you ever snuck out of your house?

Yep.

Have you ever had feelings for someone who didn’t have them back?

I think just about everyone has.

Have you ever been arrested?

No. Im from a tiny Town where my dad was a cop, mom was a nurse. So everyone knew me.

Have you ever made out with a stranger?

No I don't think so.

Have you ever met up with a member of the opposite sex somewhere?

Like...in a sexual way? Or like hung out? If so yes to both hah

Have you ever left your house without telling your parents?

Yeah, however I'm a pretty open person. I usually tell my mom where Im going. She raised me as a single mom, and I had a lot of freedom as long as I was open and honest with her. That's just transferred into adulthood.

Have you ever had a crush on your neighbor?

No. But I purposely became friends with an old neighbor cause he had a cute ass dog named Max.

Have you ever ditched school to do something more fun?

Yep. Got busted too haha

Have you ever slept in a bed with a member of the same sex?

Uh huh! It's called sleep overs, duh aha

Have you ever seen someone die?

Unfortunately, that's part of my job. Not everyone gets saved in the ER. Plus in the hospital where I work there is a very large group who has very strict rules about death, so frequently we admit people to die either to the floor if we suspect it'll be a couple days, or the ER if we think it'll be quick. Death can be a beautiful process, or it can be horrific, and traumatizing...just depends how ya look at it.

Have you ever been on a plane?

Yeah quite a few times!!

Have you ever kissed a picture?

Honestly what little girl didn't kiss a picture of Leonardo DeCaprio...

Have you ever slept in until 3?

Bro I'm a mid/nightshifter. Weird sleep schedules are my life.

Have you ever loved someone or miss someone right now?

Weirdly worded question. But yes I have loved, yes I do miss people.

Have you ever laid on your back and watched cloud shapes go by?

Yes!! It's one of my favorites. I also love to watch the stars.

Have you ever made a snow angel?

Yeah!!! It's super fun!!

Have you ever played dress up?

Yeah!!

Have you ever cheated while playing a game?

Queen of attempting to cheat at games and failing miserably 🙋‍♀️

Have you ever been lonely?

Mhmm. Side affects of working away from my family.

Have you ever fallen asleep at work/school?

I'm forever sleepy, so yeah.

Have you ever been to a club?

Yeah couple times!

Have you ever felt an earthquake?

Once as a kid. I don't remember much of it besides it waking me up, and I woke up my mom because I didn't know what it was. I was maybe 7?

Have you ever touched a snake?

I love snakes. They're such cool animals.

Have you ever ran a red light?

That may or may not be why I didn't have a drivers license for 3 yrs.

Have you ever been suspended from school?

Nope 😏 I did get temporarily kicked out of nursing school and fought my way back in though. That's a tale for another time.

Have you ever had detention?

Once, for chewing gum.

Have you ever been in a car accident?

Yeah, nothing serious though. *knocks on all the wood*

Have you ever hated the way you look?

I feel like everyone has, unfortunately.

Have you ever witnessed a crime?

1. I live where I live, it's a regular occurrence. We don't carry a gun for no reason.

2. Used to work in the heart of the ghetto.

3. Used to live 5 mins from there.

Safe to say I've seen a crime or two.

Have you ever pole danced?

One drunken Halloween, yes.

Have you ever been lost?

Physically not emotionally? Yes to both haha

Have you ever been to the opposite side of the country?

I have yeah!!

Have you ever felt like dying?

Yeah, on quite a few occasions I don't talk about.

Have you ever cried yourself to sleep?

Yep.

Have you ever sang karaoke?

Again, drunken Halloweens.

Have you ever done something you told yourself you wouldn’t?

Im sure I have.

Have you ever laughed until something you were drinking came out your nose?

Yes I have, it's not fun.

Have you ever slept with someone at least 5 years older or younger?

Hmm.....I don't actually think so.

Have you ever kissed in the rain?

Yes!!

Have you ever sang in the shower?

Every single time.

Have you ever made out in a park?

Mhmm!

Have you ever dream that you married someone?

Yes, and I'm marrying him in a little over a month.

Have you ever glued your hand to something?

My other hand hahah

Have you ever got your tongue stuck to a flag pole?

No..but not for lack of trying.

Have you ever gone to school partially naked?

Uh, no haha

Have you ever been a cheerleader?

Nah, I was a band geek.

Have you ever sat on a roof top?

Yes, it's a great time.

Have you ever brushed your teeth?

I want to say "who hasn't" but we all know there's those people who haven't...

Have you ever been too scared to watch scary movies alone?

Sometimes, yes.

Have you ever played chicken?

Not huh.

Have you ever been pushed into a pool with all your clothes on?

Probably so.

Have you ever been told you’re hot by a complete stranger?

Yep.

Have you ever broken a bone?

A few yeah. My nose, jaw in 3 places, my tail bone, my ankle.

Have you ever been easily amused?

Have you met me....

Have you ever laughed so hard you cried?

Like 45 mins ago hahah

Have you ever mooned/flashed someone?

Yep, regularly occurs in my house.

Have you ever cheated on a test?

Probably way back in the day, but I don't remember anything specific. I'm a pretty honestly person, so if I don't know it, then oh well.

Have you ever forgotten someone’s name?

Every fucking day of my life!

Have you ever met someone who didn’t seem real?

Not quite sure...?

Give us one thing about you that no one knows.

Once upon a time, I was like 13 or 14. I was hanging out with my mom while she cooked dinner and eating a carrot. I suddenly sneezed. I then had a carrot chunk stuck in my sinuses. I could feel it, but mom didn't believe me. So for 3 days straight I blew my nose constantly. And I finally got the carrot chunk out.

#asks #fun times #dont sneeze while eating a carrot #ask me things #meee

[dammitadolfnomorecake]

Caramel Skin Under A Red and Green Cloud prt 12 full

Keith was not a natural-born surfer. It blew Lance's mind that his husband could be such a goofy-footed idiot, especially with all of his training. Acxa wasn't that great, better than Keith, yet wiped out before he did much to Marco's happiness. The pain in Lance's soul nearly had him running down the beach to teach Keith what he was doing wrong. Keith couldn't quite seem to get the popup just right. At first, he was jumping up too early, then too late. His form when standing was... shaky at best. Trying not to cause Keith more stress, and trying not to bring on a seizure, Lance was having a hard time wrangling in his conflicting emotions. He wanted Keith to enjoy himself. Yet, at this rate, he knew his husband was more likely to lose his temper due to frustration and give up completely instead of discovering how fun surfing could be. His indecisions had him nearly in tears. There was a time he would have welcomed the soothing expanse of blue before him. He would have run into the water like he didn't have a care in the world... but that had been taken away from him... He'd started to take back things for himself, but when you have your head held down into sink full of water until you passed out, or have water poured down your throat mercilessly, it dampens the appeal of surrounding yourself in it. Showers were fine because the water disappeared down the drain. Baths he could do with Keith, because he could trust Keith not to let him drown... but taking that first step into an endless bottomless blue... goosebumps erupted across his skin at the mere thought. Watching Keith wipe out again, Lance didn't realise anything was wrong for the first tick... or the second... his old board washed up on the beach on the third tick, then on the fourth he realised Keith hadn't come up. Marco was talking with Veronica and Acxa, the group laughing as Lance jumped to his feet. The fifth and sixth tick passed with no sign of Keith. Lance's heart was racing a million miles an hour as he bolted towards the water. Keith could swim. Keith could swim... there was no way... but what if his husband had hit debris on the bottom of the ocean floor, or what if he'd been barrelled? Racing past the group, he threw himself into the water, almost oblivious to the feel as he dived forward once deep enough. Swimming out to where Keith had been, Lance couldn't see him. Trying to dive under the wave breaking in front of him, he was swept into the turbulent current below, the salt and sand stinging at his eyes as his breath was forced from his body. Forced back, he was at the mercy of the wave, coming up nearly a full half-minute later though it felt as if he'd been trapped for so much longer. Diving down again, he desperately swam as he searched for Keith, nearly yelling his husband's name underwater as his movements became less coordinated, and he was swept up into a second undercurrent. It was perfect surfing weather for someone experienced, who could hold their breath and remain calmer than the average novice... Watching from the beach, no one would think of the undercurrents. Panicking as he was barrelled hard enough to find the one rock in the whole area with his head, he came up in the swash, finding Keith lying face down a few metres further down from him. "Keith!" Pushing his hair back as he ran to his husband, Lance screamed his name as he finally reached Keith's side. Shaking his shoulder, his husband gave a weak cough, sandy water forced up into his mouth through his parted lips. Wrapping an arm around his husband, his scream had attracted Marco who rushed to take Keith's other side, helping to lift Keith up onto his feet where he gave a weak grown. Looking over Keith's hung head, Marco's expression was one of confusion and fear "What happened!?" "Fucking leash snapped and he got barrelled. Saw the board wash up" "Fuck..." "He's breathing. Probably swallowed half the fucking ocean, or at least feels that way. Help me get him up to our towels. I need to examine him" "'m fine... what happened?" Keith's words weren't slurred, but that meant nothing when Lance was already close to tears "You got barrelled, babe. You're probably feeling a bit disorientated" "Sand in my mouth..." "That happens. I'll help you get cleaned up when we get back to the towels... I'm so sorry..." Keith didn't reply to his apology. Reaching their towels, Marco helped sit Keith down while Lance went into fuss mode. His first action was dumping the contents of one of the water bottles all over Keith's sandy face, Keith growling his dislike "I know. I'm a horrible husband. I need to check your face and hair. Put your head down for me" Feeling Keith's hair and scalp for wounds, he came up empty. Tilting his head back to check his face, he breathed a sigh of relief "He hasn't hit his head on anything buried out there" "I could have told you that..." Dragging his teeth over his tongue, Keith tried to spit out the sand in his mouth. Holding his hand out, another bottle of water appeared from nowhere. Bringing it to Keith's lips, his husband blinked at him "Take a big mouthful, then rinse and spit. I've been barrelled before, you probably feel like you swallowed half the water and sand out there" Nodding, Keith did as he was told, rinsing and spitting twice before wiping at his leaking nose. If there was one thing salt water was good for, it was clearing sinuses "Babe. I know it sounds stupid, but can you tell me who you are?" "Keith" "Good. And who am I?" "Lance" "And where are we?" "Varadero beach" "Awesome. I don't think you hit your head, but just to be sure, we're going to chill here for a bit. Marco, don't let Acxa back out. The undercurrents too much" "Are you sure?" Keith had very nearly died. He wanted to hit his brother for doubting his judgment, but at the same time, Marco hadn't been barrelled yet, so had no clue "Yeah. Remember that time I split my leg open on that rock, and papi had to save me? Then you were all telling me I nearly drowned? So you went out and got barrelled just as bad... it's about that bad" "Ahhh. Not beginner level. Alright. You heard the man, ladies. Paddling staying close to the shore is fine, no surfing. This is a private show, time to start moving on" Herding away the small crowd that seen what happened, Lucteal and Tobias stayed behind. Crouching down on Keith's other side, Lucteal's lips did a funny twitch like he wanted to say something but didn't know how to. Knowing him, Lucteal probably wanted to help but didn't want to cross Keith "Lucteal, can you grab the blanket out the basket? Tobias, can you grab the board from the edge of the water. I'll have to buy a new lead for her" "I didn't mean to break your board" Keith sounded like a small child as Lance moved to pull the velcro of the strap undone. It'd dug in a little, but the skin seemed fine "You didn't break my board" "The leash..." With how unhappy Keith scent was turning, Lance felt like a horrible husband for sending Keith out without checking the leash. He'd assumed Marco had when he'd waxed the boards "Surfers literally break leads all the time. She's an old board too, but she's in one piece" "I'll replace it" "Babe, it's fine. Here, use some of the water to wash your eyes out" His own eyes didn't feel great. The adrenaline of what happened was wearing away now that he had Keith safely on land. Wrapping the blanket around Keith's shoulders, his husband shivered visibly "Thanks, Lucteal... He should be ok now. I'll monitor him for the next varga. If the girls can't surf, they might want to play a game of volleyball... or get something to eat..." Lucteal went with him on his hinting "I think I shall try walking in your water" "It's nice. Cooler than I thought it'd be. I have no idea what Rachel and the others could be up. They should have been back by now. Oh... you can take Kosmo with you, here's a ball you throw for him. Just throw it out into the water and he'll bring it back" "You human enjoy throwing balls for no reason?" "It's not for no reason, plus, it makes Kosmo happy because he gets head pats when he brings the ball back" "Then I think I'll try. He was chasing your birds along the beach" "They're called gulls, or seagulls. They give as good as they get" "Very well. Keep an eye on him... he may be an eyesore, but he does have some redeeming qualities" Keeping quiet until Lucteal left with Kosmo's ball, Keith snorted and wipes the snot on his towel "I must look awful if Lucteal was worried" That was the final straw. Throwing his arms around Keith, Keith seemed stunned for a moment before returning the embrace "I'm sorry..." "You scared the quiznak out of me. When you didn't come up again... I thought you were dead" Nuzzling into Keith's neck, Lance didn't care if he was getting snot and tears on Keith's shoulder "I didn't expect to be barrelled" "No one expects to be barrelled! You're a goddamn warrior... you're supposed to be able to swim!" "I don't think those two are mutually exclusive. I don't even remember coming off the board again" "Idiot... stupid idiot... are you really alright? Did you hurt yourself?" "The only thing wounded is my pride" "That's alright then... I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. I forced you to go with Marco..." "Babe" "I should have stepped in sooner..." "Babe..." "I saw you weren't quite getting it but I was so scared of the water... you could have..." "Lance, babe. Hey. I'm ok. Other than the sand" "I used to love surfing... I wanted you to love it too..." He was behaving pathetically. Crying against Keith when it'd been Keith who nearly drowned "Shhh... shh... I'm ok. You came running in to rescue me" "I got fucking barrelled twice... some rescue party I am" "Babe, you do realise you went running right into that water the moment you thought I was in danger..." Oh... that's right... he had "I was terrified... it's not even a big barrel but even the most experienced swimmers can get taken by them..." "That's not a big barrel? I felt like what I always imagined being in a washing machine would be like" Hiccuping out a snort, Lance hugged Keith tighter "You're an idiot... promise me you're not hiding anything. You didn't hit your head on that rock or anything?" "There was a rock? All I got was water and sand" Pulling back just enough, Lance pushed his lips to his husband's. Keith was alright. He was safe. He was safe and shaking, but he was in one piece. Indulging the kiss, the both grimaced at the sand in their saliva, Lance breaking the kiss to wipe at his lips "Thanks. You know how to make a man feel special" Keith was wiping his own lips as he spoke, smiling like he hadn't taken years off Lance's life "It's not my fault. Didn't anyone ever tell you not to eat sand?" "Nope" "They should have. I need to know if you start feeling sick. You probably swallowed a lot of water, which would have found its way into your lungs..." "Babe, I promise I feel ok" "Keith, this is serious. Please... please just give me this?" Staring at him with startling sincerity, Keith nodded "Alright... hey, you're bleeding" Wincing as his husband's hand came up to the small scratch on the side of his forehead, Lance swatted Keith's hand away "It's a scratch. With the water and the fact that head wounds always bleed too much, it probably looks worse than it is" "What kind of an idiot hits his head while trying to save someone?" "This kind of an idiot, who had to save his goofy-footed husband" "What do you mean I was goofy-footed? I was doing what Marco said" "Marco was wrong... I never should have trusted him to teach you" "You think you can do a better job?" Getting off his knees, Lance shifted to sit beside Keith, wrapping his arm around his waist to hold him possessively close as they both stared out at the swell "I think I could. I could probably ride the whole way in... it's pretty low-level stuff" Nudging at him, Keith feigned offence "Ouch, babe. Thanks for that" "It's like two steps above beginner and one below intermediate" "Where do you sit?" "A couple of steps below pro. You're lucky there's no really big breaks today. I wouldn't have let you out at all if there was" Watching the next wave crash, the build of the one behind it would have been a pretty decent wave to catch "Will you show me? How it's done?" "After you got barrelled? I think I'm going to stay right here and keep an eye on you" Taking his left hand, Keith interlaced their fingers "I want to see it. What kind of an expression you make. I don't have any memories of you surfing..." "That's because I was so full of... everything I shouldn't have been when Allura died and Red left. I was only coping because of Red. And the beach was kind of closed..." "Babe..." They both knew he hadn't surfed since before they'd been blasted into space in Blue "I don't know if I can" "You've faced so many fears... and you've smashed down all the obstacles in your way" Lance hung his head, shame filling his tone "What if I have another seizure? It scares the quiznak out of me worrying about one hitting..." "If you have a seizure or come off, I'm going to come running in like you did for me. It'd take everyone on the beach to hold me back. I think... I think this is something you should do for you. You always loved the water" "I did... until they..." Lance shuddered at the memory "They're dead. The dead can't come back. But you're still alive and have plenty of living to do" "When did you become so wise?" "Maybe being barrelled knocked some of those brain cells free?" Lance shot Keith a glare, who'd snorted over his own joke "It's too soon to joke, babe" Nodding, Keith leaned into him "Alright... think about it. I still want to see you show me how it's done" When Keith didn't get worse over the next hour, Lance finally let himself lower his guard. The second half of the hour had been Keith complaining he was fine, insisting they could join the others. Now that Luis and Lisa had arrived with the kids, Nadia and Sylvio were insisting they were too old to build sandcastles, but when Rachel finally arrived with the others, it'd devolved into a competition over who could build the biggest and best.  Having built theirs wrong, Zethrid and Ezor were being lectured by Nadia on the finer points of sandcastle construction. Marco had given up his own pathetic construction effort in favour of teaming up Daehra. Not bothering to participate, Acxa and Veronica had abandoned their group to go swimming... though it was more like making out rather than swimming. The two of them giggling and laughing between kisses. Lance found it equal parts creepy, because V was such a hard arse when on duty, and cute because she and Acxa were very clearly over the moon with each other. He was happy for both of them. Maybe if they got married, Acxa could stand as joint commander on the Atlas. They'd be a force to be reckoned with, yet it'd be cute to see them wearing matching outfits. Deciding he was calling his sister "cute" far too much, he kissed Keith's shoulder "Do you really want to see me surf?" Keith took a long tick to reply, his husband kissing his hair "Only if you don't mind?" "I'll need to use Marco's board... I don't really want everyone making a fuss" "I promise to stab anyone who makes a fuss..." "Babe, you can't make promises like that... I know how seriously you take promises" "Fine... at least let me bash them around a little with my blade?" "I don't think you're supposed to bash your family up" "You're my family... I want to... you know... look after you" Tilting his head up, Keith's lips found his. The kiss soft and full of love "You do. You do so much... You're the love of my life, babe. And tomorrow is the start of our first year as a married couple... and then next year, we'll come back and do this all over again... and again... until we're all old and wrinkly" Keith nodded, kissing him slightly deeper until lingering sand ruined the moment as it fell into Lance's eyes. Wiping at his eyes, he cursed himself for misplacing his sunglasses in his rush to rescue Keith "I'd like that... this, you, us, all our friends and family. I'd like that... maybe Shiro and Curtis can stay next year?" "Hell yeah. Usually, we spend more time in the marquee than we did this year. But next year won't be so bad because they all met you this year... and you'll be able to meet everyone properly... and I won't... my head won't be so messed up, right?" "You're not messed up. You're strong and you're a survivor... I might need some of your courage if we're meeting even more members of your family" Forcing himself to sit up, Lance was only making his eyes hurt more in the pursuit for sand "You've been in the same marquee as them. Next year we can do all the really fun stuff, like the cooking" Tugging his hands away from his eyes, Keith wiped at the corners of his watering eyes "Full confession. I can't cook that well" "That's why you have me to teach you. I mean, I'm no Hunk and honestly cooking and feeding myself haven't been my number one priority because it feels like too much work, but I can boil water without burning it" "Nooo way. How many more of these secret talents do you have?" "I'm flexible... and I can shoot stuff" "I think I've snagged the perfect man" "I'm the lucky one... right, I'm going to do this..." "I know you are, babe. Once you make your mind up, you're an unstoppable stubborn idiot" Laughing at Keith's soft words, he kissed his husband again. It was all because of Keith that he felt "unstoppable"... and maybe a bit like an idiot... but that was completely Keith's fault, not his in the slightest. After all, Keith surrounded him in so much love that more than a few brain cells had died in the shock of it all. * Parties were not Keith's idea of a good time. Not that he'd been much better on the at the beach. He felt somewhat foolish for having been left so disoriented from simply being barrelled. He'd been a quiznakking Paladin. He led his own Blade team... Yet he'd been defeated by waves at the damn beach. Worse of all was how upset Lance had been. He loathed making Lance cry. He loathed causing him pain... but he'd nearly got himself drowned trying to surf... and found he didn't enjoy surfing at all. He enjoyed watching Lance surfing. His husband had been a little shaky at first, simply sitting on the board and letting the waves pass. Keith had thought he was going to have to swim out and tow him back in... Then something changed in Lance. He swung up to lay atop the board, checking over his shoulder. Keith didn't need to see his face to know Lance had become super focused. In a manner of moments, Keith was whooping like an idiot as his husband caught his first wave of the day... he may have also gone running into the waves to meet Lance once he finally fell off the board in the shallows... Lance coming up like a drowned rat with a dorky smile on his face. It was nothing at all like the serious surf pose he'd been pulling. Keith wasn't sure he'd learned anything about surfing from Marco when he realised he didn't know how to compliment or how to tell Lance how hot he'd looked out there. Instead, he accepted a tackling hug from his husband, both of them very nearly taken out by the surfboard in Lance's enthusiasm. After surfing came lunch, Miriam had completely over catered, everyone eating far too much, the settling down to spend the next hour or so sleeping it off. The afternoon was spent losing horrifically at volleyball with Lance the only one of their team who knew what was going on. Plus, Veronica's team had cheated. With Ezor on Zethrid's shoulders, it became impossible to get the ball over the net, no matter how many tricky saves they managed to play. All too soon Shiro was landing his pod on the beach, and Keith forced to say his goodbyes. He loved his brother, but leaving for a party where Lance wasn't involved wasn't the same. Plus, he felt on the outside of Curtis's family. He'd met them all when Shiro had been engaged to Adam, but they'd never gone out of their way to make him feel like he belonged there. Most probably because he didn't. He was simply there because Shiro had taken him in. Nonetheless, he tried his hardest. He liked to think he channelled Lance as he politely asked them how they were and how their Christmas celebrations had gone, without honestly caring about the answer. All he could think was that he'd left his husband behind. He should have been back in Cuba, where more than two people appreciated his existence, not stuck smiling so fakely that his face hurt. By the time 8 pm rolled around, Keith had eyed off the variety of pods and hoverbikes outside Curtis's sprawling family home. The half-Galra had forgotten that Adam had come from money, which meant that as his younger brother Curtis also came from money. Their house was like something out of a magazine, not filled with love and warmth like Lance's. Lance... his precious husband who he should be with instead of standing all alone on the second-floor balcony overlooking the grounds and gardens. He could fly everything in the parking lot, but he'd be spotted the moment he tried to leave. The suit Shiro had forced him in to was only growing more uncomfortable by the minute. He'd showered on the flight over, yet beads of sweat were now rolling down the middle of his back from the humidity of the night "Keith. It's time to leave" Having lost track of Shiro, Keith nearly dropped his empty champagne glass at the sound of his brother's voice. Part of him was tempted to see who it'd land on if he did. Leaving the empty glass balanced on the white railing, he shoved his hands in his pockets as he turned to face Shiro. The smile he expected to see on Shiro's face wasn't there, instead, his brother looked concerned "You don't look too happy. Thinking about Lance?" Nodding, the itch to steal a pod was only growing. He didn't belong here. Not in a place where he felt like something scraped off the bottom of someone's shoes "I feel like this was all a bad idea... I don't even have my comms on me. What if something's happened? Cuba's in a different time zone, isn't it? Is it already New Years there?" "They're three hours ahead... we've been here for the last 5 hours" 5 hours... no wonder he felt so incredibly exhausted. It was if each and every moment of it had dragged on for a decade. He had enough of a time handling 24 hours in a day, let alone 27. So if it was 8 now, that only left an hour until the clock ticked over to New Years in Cuba... "You're not coming to the Garrison, are you?" Keith shook his head "I... I can't Shiro. He's my husband. I don't want to welcome in the New Year without him. I don't care that he said it was alright... I want to be back on the beach in Cuba... Counting down with Mami and Jorge... and our teams... I want to go back to my family..." Holding his arms out, Keith rushed to hug Shiro. His older brother kissing his forehead "I'm so proud of you, kiddo. Let's get you back to Lance" "You're not mad?" "No. I had no idea today's party would be so formal. Curtis said it'd be more of a low key get together. I've spent the last half hour looking for you to ask if you wanted to head to the Garrison early" Keith sighed softly "It doesn't feel right without him... I feel like I've abandoned him after he made so much progress today. I got barrelled trying to surf, and he went right in to find me. Then he went surfing..." Above him, Shiro sounded confused "Lance has always loved water" "They... when he was tortured, they repeatedly tried to drown him... On the Atlas was the first time in over half a deca-phoeb Lance had been in a body of water bigger than a bathtub... but today... you should have seen him. He was so proud of himself. I know if you ask him he says the abuse carried on for only three movements... but I keep thinking about the space dilation out there... I keep thinking they had him for so much longer... he's come so far" "You both have. I'm so very proud of both of you. Let's get you home to your husband" A happy shiver ran up Keith's spine at Shiro openly calling Lance his husband. He was coming home... back to Lance. Where he should have been all along "What about the Garrison?" "I can be an hour or two late... I'm sure the others can handle it" "I meant... about my absence" "Let's face facts, without Lance there you'd most probably find the best corner to hide in and drink the night away, maybe talking to Pidge and Hunk, but most likely brooding over missing Lance" "He was the Red Paladin. No one there gives him the respect he deserves" "I heard he basically told the Garrison to go jump then cut contact..." Pushing off Shiro, Keith could imagine it. Lance flipping the double bird as he flew away. He hoped at the time his husband had looked smug as fuck when he'd done it. He didn't need the Garrison, the Garrison needed them. It didn't matter that Pidge, Hunk and Shiro were the only ones on their payroll. If ties with the Paladins were fractured, the Garrison's popularity would slump. They'd lose trust all over the place, and be alone before they knew it "That's my man..." Shiro crossed his arms, shooting him a very "dad" look "You're not supposed to be encouraging such behaviour. I was told he'd been spending too much time with you by Iverson" "You half-blind one guy by accident and they never let you forget it. From what Lance has told me over how Iverson treated him, he's lucky that things are in the past. Did you know he spent all his training being constantly told he was second best and was only there because I dropped out? That's why Lance never felt worthy of being a Paladin... I get you need to be tough with new recruits... but I can't say that Iverson didn't deserve whatever Lance said, and more" Moving to raise his hands in surrender, Shiro nodded "You don't need to tell me, I understand. Now, am I going to have to throw you over my shoulder so we make it out the building, or are we going to continue plotting against the Garrison?" Keith was one hundred per cent sure that Shiro shouldn't be agreeing so fast, even as a joke. He sincerely regretted what he'd done to Iverson as he looked back at the event now, but Shiro was giving him a joking out and he was taking it "Can we plot while we fly?" "Of course we can" "Then let's get out of here" * Like cockroaches, tourists had flooded onto Varadero beach now the sun was done. Loud music was pumping from a makeshift stage set up, where some kind of party was happening. Unable to drop him directly on the beach, Shiro had dropped him in the parking lot at the back of Ernesto's, Keith had twenty minutes to find his husband, according to the onboard clock in Shiro's pod... which was coincidentally named Shiro... His older brother not helping the situation by counting down every damn minute during the flight. Running down the beach, Lance's family weren't where he'd left them. He found Rachel and Veronica doing shots, with Acxa, Zethrid and Ezor... but they weren't who he was looking for. Checking near the bonfire, he found the rest of Lance's family... without Lance or his team... or Kosmo. He might have slightly looked insane as he ran back across the beach, still wearing dress shoes and his suit. No one else was wearing suits... most people seemed to be in barely anything... including more than one person who was literally naked and being escorted off the beach by the police. With all the people on the beach, they could literally be anywhere. Lance could have gone home for all he knew... No. The truck was in the parking lot still... he had to be here somewhere... If he wasn't with his family... then... Ernesto's? Would he know? Would he tell him, if he did? Racing back up to Ernesto's, Keith kicked sand all the front steps, half toeing and half kicking his stupid dress shoes off. All they'd done was fill with sand, and made his socks feel disgusting. Running into the bar, Keith came to a hard stop at the counter, scaring the closest customer in the process, half arsing an apology, he didn't have time for people who didn't matter "Ernesto, have you seen Lance?!" Raising an eyebrow at Keith's half yelled question, the man wandered down from the other end of the bar "What's it to you? Didn't you have some fancy party to be at?" Keith shook his head quickly "None of that matters. I never should have listened to him and gone in the first place. Do you know where he is?" Reminding himself he couldn't simply shake the answer out the man, he gripped the counter to counteract the urge "He took little Juana home so Luis and Lisa could enjoy the night" The farm... he'd never make it to the farm in time... Wait. Home for Juana wasn't the farm "Home? Or their home? The townhouse?" "The townhouse..." "How do I get there from here?" "You're..." "Ernesto, how do I get to the townhouse? I'm not leaving my husband to start the new year without me" Pulling a napkin out, and taking the pen from his pocket, Ernesto sketched out a map "Go left when you get out the car park, follow the map" Snatching the napkin from the bar top, he could have kissed the man "Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!" Ernesto let out a laugh as Keith ran back towards the doors he'd come through. He wasn't sure how long he had left, only that he was going to do everything he could to make it in time. Following the map, Keith realised too late that he hadn't asked Ernesto just how many blocks he was supposed to go before turning. It was almost laughable how easy it was to get lost in the maze of narrow walkways and streets, everyone he ran into was in too higher spirits to help. Growing more and more frustrated, he didn't know what to do. Surely new year was about to hit. With no other choice, and too determined to give up, he pushed on, yelling Lance's name as he ran, and cursing whoever built the city without thinking of those who lacked a keen sense of direction. Running up the closest set of steps, he tripped spectacularly, losing his precious map and skinning the heels of his palms as he did. Unwanted tears began to well in his eyes. He never should have left Lance. Pushing himself up, he realised he'd also skinned his left knee, hobble limping as he looked around. He didn't recognise the houses... He didn't know where he was... it seemed like a back alley. Warm lights and laughter drifting from the windows above him, as if to mock his failed attempts to find his husband "Lance!? Lance, can you hear me?!" Shivering as the wind seemed to slap him right in the face, he hobbled on towards where the line of houses broke. The walkway so thin that his shoulders brushed against both sides as he started to sniffle. He was a damn soldier... something small like being lost shouldn't have him this upset. Then again, he knew he was lying to himself. He was miserable. Cold. Lost. Hurt. Alone... All he wanted was Lance. Sliding past an overflowing rubbish bin, the street he emerged into looked vaguely familiar. But then again, they all kind of looked the same after a while "Lance!" In the distance, someone yelled at him to "fuck off". Something he'd happily do once he found his husband "Lance! Kosmo!" Limping harder, he wiped at his teary face with his aching hands. He should have left his damn gloves on "Lance?! Babe, where are you!?" He was so lost... "Lance!?" "Keith?!" Three doors down from the house he'd half hobbled past, the open front door spilled light out, casting Lance as a black shadow in the already dark night. Somewhere people started counting down, Keith picking up his pace to a limping run, desperate to make it to his husband in time "Lance!" Jogging to meet him, Lance threw his arms around him as their lips clashed. The kiss painfully toothy, as the night sky erupted into colour. The first firework of new year bathing the world green and gold. Deepening the kiss into something more pleasurable, he found he wasn't the only with wet cheeks as he moved his hands up to cup his husband's face. As the kiss slowly turned to another, he melted against his husband, letting Lance take most of his weight. He didn't want to wish in the new year with everyone else. He didn't want to spend it at some rich persons party when he looked like a trained ape. He wanted to spend it, and every single other New Year's Day with the man he loved. Breaking the kiss, they both sniffled. Lance first to speak "I thought you were at the Garrison" "I was supposed to be... but I've been miserable since I left. It didn't feel right not being with you. Not welcoming the new year in together... not celebrating without my husband" Resting his forehead against Keith's, Keith might have had the few inches in Lance which he knew drove his husband crazy, but with all his weight and his knee throbbing like crazy, he was happy to let Lance have the advantage "I missed you... I told myself not to message anyone. I told myself that I was ok with being alone... I'm so fucking happy you came" "Me too, babe. I love you" "I love you too... I love you, Keith. I don't know what this year is going to be like, but I'm going to keep working on getting better... I'm going to keep working on it. And I'll stop taking the really really dangerous missions... so that... so that this time next year... things would have settled down..." "And I'll be working on phasing out of the more difficult missions. I don't know how great I'll be... but I hate it when you cry. I hate it when I make you cry... I can't promise I'll always be the best husband you could ask for, but I promise as long as we're both alive, you're my number one priority" "You're mine too... I love you so quiznakking much..." "I love you too, baby" Nuzzling into his face, Lance pulled back as he sniffled particularly hard "Keith, why do I smell blood? What happened?" Looking him up and down, Keith was now grateful it was dark and his husband couldn't see what he'd done to himself "I tripped..." Before Keith knew what had happened, Lance had literally swept him up off his feet and was walking back towards the open door he'd appeared from. Unlike him, Lance didn't have the Galra strength boost, but didn't actually seem to need it "I can walk, you know" "Nope" "Babe, it's a graze" "Don't "babe" me, why didn't you tell me sooner?" "Because this was the first chance I got?" "You should have told me when I threw myself at you" "I was too busy kissing the man I love" Carried into the living room, Lance sat him down on the coffee table. Daehra and Lucteal were both asleep on the sofa. Lance had covered the pair with a blanket, the siblings looking kind of cute as Lucteal was curled into Daehra's side "Yeah. They tried to make it. Lucteal barely held on five minutes after Daehra fell asleep. Let me get the door then I'll grab the first aid kit. Where have you hurt yourself?" Keith bit his lip, feeling slightly foolish "Hands and my knee" Raising an eyebrow at him, the Cuban had no shame "You mean I could have had you out of those pants even sooner? Damn" Groaning and blushing lightly, Keith covered his face "If it's your knee, it's probably better I clean you up in the bathroom. Can you make it upstairs?" "It's just a graze" "Don't get your Galra panties in a knot. I'm your husband. I'm allowed to be worried and occasionally overreact. Plus, it'd be a crime against humanity to let those legs of yours be hurt" "For someone who was crying, you certainly seem in a good mood now" Walking over to wait at the foot of the stairs, Lance smiled softly in his direction, extending his hand towards him as he did "I prayed to God that the man of my dreams would magically show up, and you did" What the quiznak was he supposed to say to that? Blushing harder, Keith climbed up off the coffee table to limp over to Lance. Taking his hand, his husband kissed the back of it. Keith's heart couldn't take it. It hadn't even been a year for them. Not with the time dilation fields. The whole Lance doing a runner thing. The stays in the pods... yet when Lance held his hand, he couldn't remember how it felt not to have his husband's love and support. Moving his hand down, Lance wrapped his arm around his waist, then trapped Keith's hand against his stomach lightly with his own "You'd be lost without me, wouldn't you?" Nodding, Keith thought for a moment of making a joke, but the moment wasn't right. He was too emotionally raw from being lost and cold "I would be. You have no idea" "Then it's a good thing I don't plan on going anywhere you can't follow" "I'll always follow you. Until the very end" Using the advantage of stepping up a step before him, Lance kissed him on the top of the head as he turned to look back at him "Good. Because no matter where I go, I always want to end up by your side, Samurai. You and me, neck and neck forever" "Yeah, babe. Not even Zarkon coming back from his grave could stop me from being with you" Nodding with a smile so warm that Lance literally could have done absolutely anything and Keith would have accepted it in that moment, his husband tugged him upwards. Being who they were, they couldn't simply do things the normal way around... Lance still had so far to go, but for Keith, he'd never stop falling harder in love with the most amazing man in the whole universe. He'd do absolutely everything he could to protect Lance. To protect his husband. His home. And his family... which, who knows, might one day consist of more than him and Lance... The future held all sorts of unknown things that both excited him and scared him... but with Lance by his side, he knew that no matter what happened, he'd never be left to walk alone again.

[tvvolips]

🃏 /holy fuck yes

send 🃏 for our muses to play a prank on someone else

Last thing Jesse Custer expected to find outside of Dennis’ apartment (for once, he’d just been out to grab a pack of smokes), was his girlfriend making a drug deal. Least, that’s what it looked like. Tulip was handing a wad of cash to a shifty, twitchy looking teen and receiving a small, brown paper bag in return. They’d done drugs before, sure, coke was always fun, weed too, but right now? Cassidy’s allowed to be into that sort’a shit ‘cos the man lives and breathes illegal substances, but Tulip? How the hell is she gonna catch the little details Jesse always skims over if she’s floatin’ up in the clouds? 

She doesn’t even look bothered when she notes Jesse, just gives the dealer a tip of her head in farewell before pushing the door to Dennis’ place open, “Get those smokes?” she asked. Maybe she was buying drugs for Cassidy, maybe she wasn’t completely losing it after all the shit they’ve gone through. 

“uh—yeah,” Jesse replies, watching her toss the bag onto the dining room table. The moment she was pushing her glasses on was the moment she was up to something. She had that gleam in her eyes when she turned to him and whoever was gettin’ it from Tulip O’Hare better be hauling ass to the nearest storm cellar, ‘cos boy, could she bring down hail. “What is this, Tulip? Drugs?” Jesse finally voiced, nudging the bag with his hand. 

Tulip, currently laying out a tobacco wrap, scoffed at him, “Drugs?” she parroted in that dopey, ‘Jesse’ voice’a hers, “No, Jesse. Don’t got time for drugs. Don’t worry about it,” he figures she’s still sour about, well, everything. He’s only following his predetermined destiny and all, searching for God, but he knows it hasn’t been going as well as it should’ve, and she’s still not sleeping right. Any chance to get closer, maybe get a peek inside of that hard head of hers, he’ll take it. He knows he’s risking her wrath when he slides into the chair adjacent to her, watching her pull out a plastic container of oregano. 

Him and her have been pranking together since the day they met, whether a well-crafted plan of unleashing an armadillo into Betsy Schenck’s room during her annual sleepover or an old fashioned teepee outside of Toadvine. The two of them always had a connection in that sense, often completing the other’s idea during their planning stages. Jesse knows she’s up to something, can’t help but grin at the thought of pranking again after so long. “So, who’re we pranking?”

The question takes Tulip off-guard, her gaze snapping to his, studying his features to study if he’s being serious or not. 

Her gaze burns a hole into his face for a few moments before she twitches her face in an expression of ‘fuck it,’ and dumps some oregano onto the rolling paper, “Cassidy,” she seats herself now, expression almost sympathetic, “Got eiffel tower high and decided it’d be funny to put freakin’ plastic wrap ‘round the toilet,” Jesse had been disciplined enough as a child for laughing at inappropriate circumstances that it wasn’t hard to keep from laughing now, but it wasn’t rightly easy either, ‘cos this was Tulip and Cassidy. Only makes sense that a prank war would break out between those two. 

“All right, so you pissed yourself—” the sharp glare she shot upwards as she pulled on some goddamn rubber gloves (the fuck was she planning) caused him to hesitate, “—well, uh, what’chu got planned, there?” 

Finally, Tulip lost her edge, baring a smile that made Jesse pause to consider that she might actually be plotting Cassidy’s death, here. She reached into the small brown bag, produced a small little vile containing an inch of red dust, trinidad morgua scorpion pepper. One’a the hottest known to man, had to goddamn call in a pepper dealer to get my hands on one. Too many idiots eatin’ them just to look ballsy,” she uncorked the vile, carefully tapped it onto her line of orgeno.  

“Think it’ll kill him?” Jesse questions, brow knit as he watches her carefully roll the ‘joint.’ “Dunno, but he shouldn’t have fucked with me,” Tulip casually states, studying the joint for a moment between her gloved fingers. “When a dog pisses on the carpet, you gotta swat it in the ass so it learns to stop pissin’ on the carpet,” Tulip states, shrugging her shoulders, “Just a part of life, preacher. This look good?” 

She extends it towards him, to which Jesse retracts slightly, as though the pepper could sting his eyes from here. He offers a sheepish grin at her furrowed brow, surprised to see the edges of her lips quirk in a responding smirk. Hell, maybe this was all it took, after all, “Pretty sure Cass would smoke a joint with mold on it, you’re good,” he commends, to which Tulip’s smirk grows (in size and smugness). “You could replace that cocaine stash of his with flour as a fail safe,” Jesse recommends, chest lifting as Tulip grins at him like he’s the sexiest, smartest thing alive. 

“Good idea, how ‘bout you go do that while I finish up here?” his grin fades, ever so slightly, ‘cos the last thing he feels like doing is scrounging through Cassidy’s assortment of weird belongings, used needles, and girl clothes for a baggie of cocaine, but Tulip’s looking at him so expectantly he knows he’s fucked. “Sure,” Jesse Custer, whipped as can be, replies, standing immediately. “Thanks, partner,” Tulip calls as he starts his search in Dennis’ cupboards for flour, Jesse responding with an eloquent grunt. 

Eight in the evening and Cassidy’s home, feet kicked up on the kitchen table, flipping Tulip’s booby-trapped blunt in between his fingers. Tulip and Jesse are there, too, having previously attempted a game of clue with the vampire. Their match remains unfinished, Tulip’s eyes reminding Jesse of a stalking lion’s eyes in one of those nature documentaries, constantly flicking between Cassidy and her blunt. Cassidy’s oblivious to it all, still resuming the rant that stopped the match in the first place, “’m just saying, if you’re going to make a game, name the characters creatively. Bloody birds and sauces? Riles me right fuckin’ up,” and finally, finally, Cassidy brings the blunt to his lips, clenches it between his teeth as he rifles for a lighter. Tulip extends her hand immediately, lighter between her fingers. “Always at the ready. Thanks, Tu,” the two exchange a smile (Tulip’s is maneating, riles Jesse up in all the right ways), before Cassidy’s lighting his joint. 

One puff, two puffs, ten puffs later and Cassidy is still prattling on, completely unaffected. Jesse’s watched as the vein in Tulip’s temple progressively bulges, can almost hear her teeth squeak as she grits them. 

Finally, after Cassidy’s just hit the topic of the absurdity of monopoly pieces, he pulls the blunt away, frowns at it, “Dud joint,” he announces with a grimace, pinches it out between his fingers before standing to toss it in the waste bin. “Dennis must’a plucked it up, poor lad. Not too perceptive. Back in two wags of a lamb’s tail.” 

Once Cassidy is gone, Tulip delivers a kick to Jesse’s shin, evoking a groan of confusion (and pain) from him, “—the fuck?!” “How the hell isn’t he crying for milk right now? That fuckin’ punk give me a fake pepper? I swear if I gotta—” and as suddenly as her fury began, it’s gone the moment Cassidy returns. 

The cocaine. Both Jesse and Tulip forgot about the cocaine fail safe, eagerly watching as Cassidy pours a bit of the powder onto the table before seating himself again. “If me mam’s maiden name was Peacock, she’da offed herself right away, Peacock,” he pauses, leans over and takes a mighty snuff. 

There are a few moments of precious apprehension between Tulip and Jesse as they watch Cassidy retract, scrunch his nose, and finally, he blows. White powder erupts from his nostrils as he sneezes, coating his lower face as he wheezes and huffs, standing so quickly his chair falls flat. 

Jesse’s eyes crinkle in delight, widening as Tulip hops onto the kitchen table, stood with her finger crooked down at him. “GOT YOU, BITCH!!!” she declares, her grin shit-eating to the max. 

Cassidy looks up in horror, wiping his running nose on his shirt as he resumes his desperate attempts to snuff the flour from his sinuses, “CRUEL, bloody…VILE!” he manages between wipes, eyes hurt as he watches her and Jesse share a victorious grin, “Jesse? You were in on this shite? How could ye? My best friend, a TRAITOR.” 

Jesse only gives a mildly sympathetic shrug, halted as Tulip’s sliding down onto his lap from her perch on the table, slinging an arm around his neck. “I’d say we just nuked this fool, babe,” Tulip cheerfully announces, landing a peck upon Jesse’s cheek. 

He glances over to Cassidy, who’s now groaning with a ‘kicked puppy’ sort of grumpiness about him, “Real coke’s under your pillow,” Jesse offers in consolation, to which Cassidy begrudgingly nods. “Good, gonna need something to flush out this witchcraft,” he opens one eye wide towards Tulip in what Jesse assumes is a threat, but it only causes an eruption of laughter from the victorious heap in his arms, “It’s flour, Cass,” Tulip primly corrects. “Witchcraft,” Cassidy repeats before he’s heading back to his room. 

Once he’s gone, Tulip’s turning to Jesse, pausing for a moment before lifting her open palm with a lifted brow. Slowly, Jesse smacks her a hi-five, grinning, “I reckon we did pretty good there, partner,” he says, glancing off towards the doorway Cassidy’d gone through, “Yeah, I’d reckon we did,” Tulip agreed, shifting to rest her temple against Jesse’s shoulder. 

He glances down at her for a moment, realizing he hasn’t seen her laugh this much, let alone smile this much since this whole road trip started. Kinda feels stupid, really, that all it took was this dumb prank. Maybe he should’ve tried something like this earlier, maybe they both should’ve. 

“You gonna tell him about the joint?” Jesse finally asks after a moment. 

“You think I’m a monster? He’d probably start crying,” Tulip peers up towards him for a beat before they’re both laughing again. 

#ur the jessee writing pro here but i had to omg #this is so cute #julip #;meme reply #praecher

[dammitadolfnomorecake]

CSUARAGC prt 12 first half

Keith was not a natural born surfer. It blew Lance's mind that his husband could be such a goofy footed idiot, especially with all of his training. Acxa wasn't that great, better than Keith, yet wiped out before he did much to Marco's happiness. The pain in Lance's soul nearly had him running down the beach to teach Keith what he was doing wrong. Keith couldn't quite seem to get the popup just right. At first he was jumping up too early, then too late. His form when standing was... shaky at best. Trying not to cause Keith more stress, and trying not bring on a seizure, Lance was having a hard time wrangling in his conflicting emotions. He wanted Keith to enjoy himself. Yet, at this rate, he knew his husband was more likely to loose his temper due to frustration and give up completely instead of discovering how fun surfing could be. His indecisions had him nearly in tears. There was a time he would have welcomed the soothing expanse of blue before him. He would have run into the water like he didn't have a care in the world... but that had been taken away from him... He'd started to take back things for himself, but when you have your head held down into sink full of water until you passed out, or have water poured down your throat mercilessly, it dampens the appeal of surrounding yourself in it. Showers were fine because the water disappeared down the drain. Baths he could do with Keith, because he could trust Keith not to let him drown... but taking that first step into an endless bottomless blue... goosebumps erupted across his skin at the mere thought.

  Watching Keith wipe out again, Lance didn't realise anything was wrong for the first tick... or the second... his old board washed up on the beach on the third tick, then on the fourth he realised Keith hadn't come up. Marco was talking with Veronica and Acxa, the group laughing as Lance jumped to his feet. The fifth and sixth tick passed with no sign of Keith. Lance's heart was racing a million miles an hour as he bolted towards the water. Keith could swim. Keith could swim... there was no way... but what if his husband had hit debris on the bottom of the ocean floor, or what if he'd been barrelled? Racing past the group, he threw himself into the water, almost oblivious to the feel as he dived forward once deep enough.

  Swimming out to where Keith had been, Lance couldn't see him. Trying to dive under the wave breaking in front of him, he was swept into the turbulent current below, the salt and sand stinging at his eyes as his breath was forced from his body. Forced back, he was at the mercy of the wave, coming up nearly a full half minute later though it felt as if he'd been trapped for so much longer. Diving down again, he desperately swam as he searched for Keith, nearly yelling his husband's name underwater as his movements became less coordinated, and he was swept up into a second undercurrent. It was perfect surfing weather for someone experienced, who could hold their breath and remain calmer than the average novice... Watching from the beach, no one would think of the undercurrents. Panicking as he was barrelled hard enough to find the one rock in the whole area with his head, he came up in the swash, finding Keith lying face down a few metres further down from him.

  "Keith!"

Pushing his hair back as he ran to his husband, Lance screamed his name as he finally reached Keith's side. Shaking his shoulder, his husband gave a weak cough, sandy water forced up into his mouth through his parted lips. Wrapping an arm around his husband, his scream had attracted Marco who rushed to take Keith's other side, helping to lift Keith up onto his feet where he gave a weak grown. Looking over Keith's hung head, Marco's expression was one of confusion and fear

"What happened!?"

"Fucking leash snapped and he got barrelled. Saw the board wash up"

"Fuck..."

"He's breathing. Probably swallowed half the fucking ocean, or at least feels that way. Help me get him up to our towels. I need to examine him"

"'m fine... what happened?"

Keith's words weren't slurred, but that meant nothing when Lance was already close to tears

"You got barrelled, babe. You're probably feeling a bit disorientated"

"Sand in my mouth..."

"That happens. I'll help you get cleaned up when we get back to the towels... I'm so sorry..."

  Keith didn't reply to his apology. Reaching their towels, Marco helped sit Keith down while Lance went into fuss mode. His first action was dumping the contents of one of the water bottles all over Keith's sandy face, Keith growling his dislike

"I know. I'm a horrible husband. I need to check your face and hair. Put your head down for me"

Feeling Keith's hair and scalp for wounds, he came up empty. Tilting his head back to check his face, he breathed a sigh of relief

"He hasn't hit his head on anything buried out there"

"I could have told you that..."

Dragging his teeth over his tongue, Keith tried to spit out the sand in his mouth. Holding his hand out, another bottle of water appeared from nowhere. Bringing it to Keith's lips, his husband blinked at him

"Take a big mouthful, then rinse and spit. I've been barrelled before, you probably feel like you swallowed half the water and sand out there"

Nodding, Keith did as he was told, rinsing and spitting twice before wiping at his leaking nose. If there was one thing salt water was good for, it was clearing sinuses

"Babe. I know it sounds stupid, but can you tell me who are?"

"Keith"

"Good. And who am I?"

"Lance"

"And where are we?"

"Varadero beach"

"Awesome. I don't think you hit your head, but just to be sure, we're going to chill here for a bit. Marco, don't let Acxa back out. The undercurrents too much"

"Are you sure?"

Keith had very nearly died. He wanted to hit his brother for doubting his judgment, but at the same time, Marco hadn't been barrelled yet so had no clue

"Yeah. Remember that time I split my leg open on that rock, and papi had to save me? Then you were all telling me I nearly drowned? So you went out and got barrelled just as bad... it's about that bad"

"Ahhh. Not beginner level. Alright. You heard the man, ladies. Paddling staying close to the shore is fine, no surfing. This is a private show, time to start moving on"

  Hearding away the small crowd that seen what happened, Lucteal and Tobias stayed behind. Crouching down on Keith's other side, Lucteal's lips did a funny twitch like he wanted to say something but didn't know how to. Knowing him, Lucteal probably wanted to help but didn't want to cross Keith

"Lucteal, can you grab the blanket out the basket? Tobias, can you grab the board from the edge of the water. I'll have to buy a new lead for her"

"I didn't mean to break your board"

Keith sounded like a small child as Lance moved to pull the velcro of the strap undone. It'd dug in a little, but the skin seemed fine

"You didn't break my board"

"The leash..."

With how unhappy Keith scent was turning, Lance felt like a horrible husband for sending Keith out without checking the leash. He'd assumed Marco had when he'd waxed the boards

"Surfers literally break leads all the time. She's an old board too, but she's in one piece"

"I'll replace it"

"Babe, its fine. Here, use some of the water to wash your eyes out"

His own eyes didn't feel great. The adrenaline of what happened was wearing away now that he had Keith safely on land. Wrapping the blanket around Keith's shoulders, his husband shivered visibly

"Thanks, Lucteal... He should be ok now. I'll monitor him for the next varga. If the girls can't surf, they might want to play a game of volleyball... or get something to eat..."

  Lucteal went with him on his hinting

"I think I shall try walking in your water"

"It's nice. Cooler than I thought it'd be. I have no idea what Rachel and the others could be up. They should have been back by now. Oh... you can take Kosmo with you, here's a ball you throw for him. Just throw it out into the water and he'll bring it back"

"You human enjoy throwing balls for no reason?"

"It's not for no reason, plus, it makes Kosmo happy because he gets head pats when he brings the ball back"

"Then I think I'll try. He was chasing your birds along the beach"

"They're called gulls, or sea gulls. They give as good as they get"

"Very well. Keep an eye on him... he may be an eyesore, but he does have some redeeming qualities"

   Keeping quiet until Lucteal left with Kosmo's ball, Keith snorted and wipes the snot on his towel

"I must look awful if Lucteal was worried"

That was the final straw. Throwing his arms around Keith, Keith seemed stunned for a moment before returning the embrace

"I'm sorry..."

"You scared the quiznak out of me. When you didn't come up again... I thought you were dead"

Nuzzling into Keith's neck, Lance didn't care if he was getting snot and tears on Keith's shoulder

"I didn't expect to be barrelled"

"No one expects to be barrelled! You're a goddamn warrior... you're supposed to be able to swim!"

"I don't think those two are mutually exclusive. I don't even remember coming off the board again"

"Idiot... stupid idiot... are you really alright? Did you hurt yourself?"

"The only thing wounded is my pride"

"That's alright then... I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. I forced you to go with Marco..."

"Babe"

"I should have stepped in sooner..."

"Babe..."

"I saw you weren't quite getting it but I was so scared of the water... you could have..."

"Lance, babe. Hey. I'm ok. Other than the sand"

"I used to love surfing... I wanted you to love it too..."

He was behaving pathetically. Crying against Keith when it'd been Keith who nearly drowned

"Shhh... shh... I'm ok. You came running in to rescue me"

"I got fucking barrelled twice... some rescue party I am"

"Babe, you do realise you went running right into that water the moment you thought I was in danger..."

Oh... that's right... he had

"I was terrified... it's not even a big barrel but even the most experienced swimmers can get taken by them..."

"That's not a big barrel? I felt like what I always imagined being in a washing machine would be like"

Hiccuping out a snort, Lance hugged Keith tighter

"You're an idiot... promise me you're not hiding anything. You didn't hit your head on that rock or anything?"

"There was rock? All I got was water and sand"

Pulling back just enough, Lance pushed his lips to his husband's. Keith was alright. He was safe. He was safe and shaking, but he was in one piece. Indulging the kiss, the both grimaced at the sand in their saliva, Lance breaking the kiss to wipe at his lips

"Thanks. You know how to make a man feel special"

Keith was wiping his own lips as he spoke, smiling like he hadn't taken years off Lance's life

"It's not my fault. Didn't anyone ever tell you not to eat sand?"

"Nope"

"They should have. I need to know if you start feeling sick. You probably swallowed a lot of water, which would have found its way into your lungs..."

"Babe, I promise I feel ok"

"Keith, this is serious. Please... please just give me this?"

Staring at him with startling sincerity, Keith nodded

"Alright... hey, you're bleeding"

Wincing as his husband's hand came up to the small scratch on the side of his forehead, Lance swatted Keith's hand away

"It's a scratch. With the water and the fact that head wounds always bleed too much, it probably looks worse than it is"

"What kind of an idiot hits his head while trying to save someone?"

"This kind of an idiot, who had to save his goofy footed husband"

"What do you mean I was goofy footed? I was doing what Marco said"

"Marco was wrong... I never should have trusted him to teach you"

"You think you can do a better job?"

  Getting off his knees, Lance shifted to sit beside Keith, wrapping his arm around his waist to hold him possessively close as they both stared out at the swell

"I think I could. I could probably ride the whole way in... it's pretty low level stuff"

Nudging at him, Keith feigned offence

"Ouch, babe. Thanks for that"

"It's like two steps above beginner and one below intermediate"

"Where do you sit?"

"A couple of steps below pro. You're lucky there's no really big breaks today. I wouldn't have let you out at all if there was"

Watching the next wave crash, the build of the one behind it would have been a pretty decent wave to catch

"Will you show me? How it's done?"

"After you got barrelled? I think I'm going to stay right here and keep an eye on you"

Taking his left hand, Keith interlaced their fingers

"I want to see it. What kind of an expression you make. I don't have any memories of you surfing..."

"That's because I was so full of... everything I shouldn't have been when Allura died and Red left. I was only coping because of Red. And the beach was kind of closed..."

"Babe..."

They both knew he hadn't surfed since before they'd been blasted into space in Blue

"I don't know if I can"

"You've faced so many fears... and you've smashed down all the obstacles in your way"

Lance hung his head, shame filling his tone

"What if I have another seizure? It scares the quiznak out of me worrying about one hitting..."

"If you have a seizure or come off, I'm going to come running in like you did for me. It'd take everyone on the beach to hold me back. I think... I think this is something you should do for you. You always loved the water"

"I did... until they..."

"They're dead. The dead can't come back. But you're still alive and have plenty of living to do"

"When did you become so wise?"

"Maybe being barrelled knocked some of those braincells free?"

Lance shot Keith a glare, who'd snorted over his own joke

"It's too soon to joke, babe"

Nodding, Keith leaned into him

"Alright... think about it. I still want to see you show me how it's done"

    When Keith didn't get worse over the next hour, Lance finally let himself lower his guard. The second half of the hour had been Keith complaining he was fine, insisting they could join the others. Now that Luis and Lisa had arrived with the kids, Nadia and Sylvio were insisting they were too old to build sand castles, but when Rachel finally arrived with the others, it'd devolved into a competition over who could build the biggest and best.  Having built theirs wrong, Zethrid and Ezor were being lectured by Nadia on the finer points of sandcastle construction. Marco had given up his own pathetic construction effort in favour of teaming up Daehra. Not bothering to participate, Acxa and Veronica had abandoned their group to go swimming... though it was more like making out rather than swimming. The two of them giggling and laughing between kisses. Lance found it equal parts creepy, because V was such a hardarse when on duty, and cute because she and Acxa were very clearly over the moon with each other. He was happy for both of them. Maybe if they got married, Acxa could stand as joint commander on the Atlas. They'd be a force to be reckoned with, yet it'd be cute to see them wearing matching outfits. Deciding he was calling his sister "cute" far too much, he kissed Keith's shoulder

"Do you really want to see me surf?"

Keith took a long tick to reply, his husband kissing his hair

"Only if you don't mind?"

"I'll need to use Marco's board... I don't really want everyone making a fuss"

"I promise to stab anyone who makes a fuss..."

"Babe, you can't make promises like that... I know how seriously you take promises"

"Fine... at least let me bash them around a little with my blade?"

"I don't think you're supposed to bash your family up"

"You're my family... I want to... you know... look after you"

Tilting his head up, Keith's lips found his. The kiss soft and full of love

"You do. You do so much... You're the love of my life, babe. And tomorrow is the start of our first year as a married couple... and then next year, we'll come back and do this all over again... and again... until we're all old and wrinkly"

Keith nodded, kissing him slightly deeper until lingering sand ruined the moment as it fell into Lance's eyes. Wiping at his eyes, he cursed himself for misplacing his sunglasses in his rush to rescue Keith

"I'd like that... this, you, us, all our friends and family. I'd like that... maybe Shiro and Curtis can stay next year?"

"Hell yeah. Usually we spend more time in the marquee than we did this year. But next year won't be so bad because they all met you this year... and you'll be able to meet everyone properly... and I won't... my head won't be so messed up, right?"

"You're not messed up. You're strong and you're a survivor... I might need some of your courage if we're meeting even more members of your family"

  Forcing himself to sit up, Lance was only making his eyes hurt more in the pursuit for sand

"You've been in the same marquee as them. Next year we can do all the really fun stuff, like the cooking"

Tugging his hands away from his eyes, Keith wiped at the corners of his watering eyes

"Full confession. I can't really cook that well"

"That's why you have me to teach you. I mean, I'm no Hunk and honestly cooking and feeding myself haven't been my number one priority because it feels like too much work, but I can boil water without burning it"

"Nooo way. How many more of these secret talents do you have?"

"I'm flexible... and I can shoot stuff"

"I think I've snagged the perfect man"

"I'm the lucky one... right, I'm going to do this..."

"I know you are, babe. Once you make your mind up, you're an unstoppable stubborn idiot"

Laughing at Keith's soft words, he kissed his husband again. It was all because of Keith that he felt "unstoppable"... and maybe a bit like an idiot... but that was completely Keith's fault, not his in the slightest. After all, Keith surrounded him in so much love that more than few brain cells had died in the shock of it all.