#this is a short version of what happened btw because it lasted like ten minutes while i argued with him and tried to tell him im not lying

[bolszaja-miedwedica]

me: *getting undressed to take a shower*

Lucifer: wait show me your body i wanna do a check up

me: huh? i don't self harm tho?

Lucifer: well i don't believe you. sometimes when you're upset you have worrisome thoughts so i wanna check for myself.

me: but- i don't self harm! i wouldn't do that to you guys because i know you would be worried! I'm not doing that!

Lucifer: okay well i don't trust you just let me check-

me: no! listen to me you're being a fuckin jerk right now! frankly i want you to apologize because what you're saying right now and accusing me of is hurting me and i deserve an apology for that!

Lucifer, smiling: yes you're right I'm sorry for accusing you of something like that and being a jerk i won't do that again.

me:...

Lucifer: *smiling even harder*

me: was that a lesson?

Lucifer: I'm so fuckin proud of you *hugs me hard*

me: I'm still mad

Lucifer: i love you 😊

[yourfavewriteress]

check you out (part 1) | connor mcdavid

Teaser: “This is a grocery store, we really can’t control who comes in here.”

(i know i should be working on something else but sometimes i really can’t help what i come up with :/ )

Four Times Connor wanted to ask for your number + the one time he finally did

one.

“Please wait for assistance.”

You sighed, standing up straight at your post to move towards the waiting customer.

“Hi, how are you?” Smiling at customers had become second nature for you, having been working at the grocery store for almost a year. Although not a marvelous job, you got a weekly check that you had earned yourself and you were finally able to pay for your own bills without the help of your parents. 

“Good, you?” He responded.

“I’m doing okay, how can I help you today?”

“Do you know what aisle your pasta sauce is? I was looking for a bit and I didn’t see it.”

“Should be in aisle 7,” You directed. “Did you check there?”

“I think so, but I’m going to check again anyways since I now know where to actually look,” He let out a laugh before looking back at you. “Do you- Can I leave my stuff here while I go grab it? I’ll be five seconds.”

“Yeah, go ahead, I’ll watch them for you,” You smiled, nodding.

“Thanks,” He turned on his heel, quickly walking towards the aisle. You continued smiling at customers passing by, leaning against the machine. As he disappeared into the aisle, you looked over the items he was buying. Protein powder, a lot of healthy shit that you had never seen before, and literally one bag of candy (that was sugar free, btw). You laughed to yourself, wondering how disciplined this guy had to be to stick to whatever diet he was on.

A few seconds later, he re-emerged from the aisle and you took your time to study him as he walked. Clearly taller than most guys you’ve seen close up, he had to be at least six feet. In his jeans and hoodie, you could see the shape of his body, and judging by the diet, he most definitely took care of himself and his health. 

“Thank you,” He smiled when he finally reached you. “I don’t know how I missed it the first time but you’re a lifesaver.”

“No problem,” You nodded, walking back over to your post. You looked over all the customers in the self-checkout area, trying to find something to occupy your attention as you still had three hours left in the shift. When you looked back over to the right, you were surprised to see the man from before standing in front of the kiosk. 

“I feel like that annoying customer right now and I’m sorry, but I’m pretty sure my machine just froze,” He said, scratching the back of his head. You peeked over to the machine he was using.

“If you think you’re annoying, you wouldn’t survive two minutes as a cashier,” You replied, walking with him to the machine. “Let’s take a look.”

He laughed in response, shaking his head. “I probably wouldn’t.”

Tapping a few buttons on the screen had no success, “What happened exactly?”

“I’m not really sure, I scanned everything, I put a $50 bill in there and I was just waiting for my change.”

“Okay,” You mumbled, pulling the key from your pocket to open the machine. He stood behind you as you worked to figure out the problem, or at least get his bill back to send him to another machine. When you crouched down to be eye-level with the cash acceptor, the man’s eye’s couldn’t help but travel over your body. Although covered in your uniform of the store shirt and black jeans, he saw enough that made him have to look away otherwise he was sure he would be seen as that creep customer that couldn’t keep his eyes in appropriate places. 

You felt his eyes on you, and while this wasn’t a rare occurrence with the many forward customers who shop at your local supermarket, his look (if he was even looking, as far as you were concerned) didn’t make you uncomfortable in the slightest. To be fair, you already had your chance to study him when he wasn’t looking. Making sure you weren’t still smiling at the thought of him checking you out, you looked back, your eyes immediately locking on his.

You paused as he let out a gentle smile, asking, “I broke it, didn’t I?”

You couldn’t help but laugh then, your head leaning on your forearm that was holding the machine to keep you from falling in your crouched position. “You didn’t break it, these machines have minds of their own, trust me. But, I just need to grab a different key to get this part open and then I can take care of you.”

He swallowed at that, and even though he knew it was in reference to his grocery order, he couldn’t help it when his eyes once again trailed over you as you stood up to walk towards a nearby door.

“Got it,” You smiled as you came back into view of him. He stepped aside to allow you to crouch down again. The man focused his eyes on his items on the belt in order to avoid being caught admiring you again red-handed. Really, he could feel blood rushing up his neck, and in other places. It was better for him to look away now before it was too late.

“Ah, here it is,” He heard you say before holding up his crumpled bill. “I’m pretty sure it just got jammed somehow after you put it in, wasn’t your fault.”

“I still feel bad for causing all this trouble,” He replied, biting his lip.

“It’s no trouble, it actually gives me something to do other than stand here like a statue,” You said, closing the machine and standing up.

He smiled then, although you didn’t see it. “I’m glad I can help, then.”

Not knowing what to respond, you moved on, “Okay, I’m going to have you pay at my station because I don’t want the same thing to happen again.” You restarted his machine and then reached for his water pack, to help move it back to his cart.

“No, no, it’s okay, I got it,” The man said, stepping closer to you to motion to the water. “You’ve done enough, literally.”

It was your turn to swallow as you got a whiff of his scent, which was hard to describe in any way besides manly. You know that scent that you think a true man has? It’s strong, but enticing. Clean, but also sweaty in a way. It was like a version of Old Spice but younger, and hotter (at least to you).

Taking a breath to soak in as much as you could without being a creep, you stepped back, “Okay, I’ll meet you up there then.”

You turned on your heel, your mind racing as you thought of how to compose yourself until he left the store.

Working in a place that had different people coming in everyday, you were used to the occasional smokeshow and having to not stare. You usually didn’t have to interact with said smokeshow, but you always had to be professional. This case was nothing different. No matter how hot this guy appeared today, or how nice he smelled, he was still a customer and you were still an employee. Get it together! you thought.

“Okay, here you go,” The man said, handing you his bill again.

“Thank you,” You replied, taking it and giving him his change. “Sorry about our machine, but I hope you have a good day.”

“Thanks, you, too,” He smiled. “It’s been a pleasure,” Trailing off, his eyes fell to your chest, “Y/N.”

Although his eyes prompted it, you didn’t allow your jaw to drop as you watched him, pushing his cart away with a smile still on his face.

You thought about him for the next hour, and when you finished wiping down your machines, you caught your reflection in the store window.

Your eyes locked on your name tag sitting on your chest. Why the hell does he get to know your name but you don’t get to know his?

two.

The next few weeks went by as uneventful as any other time in your life. You worked at the supermarket, and when you weren’t there, you were at your apartment, catching up on as many shows as you could with the free time. Until you had to return to your college classes, you were going to relax as much as possible.

“Hey, Y/N,” Your boss said, approaching your station. “Do you think you can stay until 10 tonight? Eva just called out.”

“Uhm, sure,” You shrugged, looking down at the time. “That’s fine.”

“Thank you, you’re the best,” He breathed. “Seriously, I can always count on you and I’ll never forget that.”

“I just like the extra money in my paycheck,” You joked. 

“I’m going to act like I didn’t hear that,” He began as he walked away, laughing.  

You shook you head, laughing as well. As you were still smiling, you could hear one of the machines start up, meaning that you finally had a customer after ten minutes of complete silence. The back profile seemed familiar, including the large container of protein powder in his cart. A few moments later, he looked over, smiling.

“Hi, Y/N,” He said.

You did your best to hide your blush as you smiled back, “Hey, how are you?” Not a big deal, you thought, he probably just remembers everyone’s name.

“Pretty good, how about you?”

“Same old,” You shrugged. “Try not to break the machine this time, though.”

He laughed, his head falling back on his shoulders, “Last time I checked, you told me the machine’s have minds of their own. I accept no responsibility.” 

He made a note in his head of the fact that you remembered him from your last encounter. It wasn’t the last time he was in the store, but it was the last time he saw you. Every time he stepped into the store since then, he searched for you near the registers and today was the first time in weeks he finally saw what, and who he wanted to see.

“I only said that because you looked scared, and I wanted to make you feel better.”

Better wasn’t the only thing you made him feel in your short encounter, and the man knew this as he replied, “How noble of you.”

You laughed at that, so much you didn’t catch the look of pure admiration he gave you as he studied your features from where he was standing.

“Yeah, someone has to do it, right?” You breathed.

He didn’t respond, but you saw him smiling as he shook his head at the machine.

three.

It was a pretty boring day. With only one other cashier in the store, it truly felt like you were in the middle of the woods. You leaned over onto your station, chin in your palm as you looked around the store in view. 

“Hi,” A voice broke you from your daze. You stood up straight looking over at the customer.

“Hi, can I help you with anything?” You asked.

“Not at the moment, but I’ll let you know,” He said as he walked over to a nearby machine.

You had every intention to lean back down in your spot, but as you peeked outside, your eye caught the sight of your favorite mystery customer. He was getting out of a nice white car, a car that made you mumble holy shit to yourself. Looking away quickly, you stood straight at your station. Since you couldn’t see the entrance and wouldn’t dare to look if you did, you didn’t know when exactly the mystery guy walked into the store. 

However, about 10 minutes later, he was walking into the self-checkout area.

“Hey,” He smiled as he approached the empty machine next to a slightly older man.

“Hi, nice to see you,” You smiled, as politely as possible. 

“You, too,” He smiled.

After a quick once over of him, you looked back to your monitor. At this point, his face had already been burned in your brain every time you came into the store. His voice burned into your memories, especially when it was saying your name, addressing you. Whoever the hell he was, he had an effect on you that forcibly kept him on your mind, no matter how minimal your encounters with him had been thus far. 

It was maybe a minute before you dragged your eyes up to look around. Spending a longer second on him, you could see the muscles he had clearly through his simple black tee. Snap out of it. You sighed, looking back at your monitor, even though you didn’t really want to. Why the hell was he so nice? Why the hell was he so hot?

“Excuse me, I need some help,” The man at the machine next to him called out. You nodded, moving towards him.

“How can I help?”

“I’m not sure how to do these tomatoes. They don’t have stickers.”

“Sure,” You replied, stepping closer to the screen to put them in. As he didn’t step back, you kept a safe distance, reaching around him. You did your best not to make a face signaling back the fuck up but that was only made harder by his stare that you could feel on the side of your neck.

“I see you here a lot, do you get a lot of hours?” He said in a teasing tone. 

“I get enough,” You responded through a polite one.

As you finished the tomatoes, you looked up at him, “Anything else?”

“What do I have to do to get your number?” He asked. “This has to count as, like, our fourth meeting.”

“I’m sorry, I don’t give my number out to customers,” You pursed your lips, eyes flickering back to the machine. “Anything with your items, though?”

“Make an exception for me,” He said, ignoring your redirection.

“No, I’m sorry. But, if that’s it with your items, I’m going to go back over there.” As you turned around to walk back over to your station, he grabbed your arm, halting your movements. It wasn’t a tight grip at all, but it was locked. You could cause a scene, scream and draw unnecessary attention, but you opted out. You still attempted to pull your arm free, getting more frustrated as he didn’t let up.

You turned, locking eyes with him, “Let me go.” Punctuation every word, you pointed to the cameras that you were only 20% sure were actually recording the encounter.

“Let me give you my number, then.”

Your eyes once again scanned the area that apparently had everyone looking everywhere but where you were basically being held against your will. You looked over at the mystery guy who was focused on bagging his items now, holding your eyes on him longer because you really didn’t know what to do and he did seem like your closest solution without drawing too much attention. If only you knew his name. Shit. 

“I said no already, seriously, stop,” You narrowed your eyes back at the man holding you, hiding the true fear you were feeling under your skin. “You do know that this is grounds to get you banned from this store, correct? Arrested, even?”

“Come on,” He jerked you slightly and you tried again to calmly remove his hand.

“Dude,” You heard suddenly. You looked over to see the mystery guy, who you could now call your hero, beside you, bags in hand and eyes trained on the man’s now tightened grip on your arm. “What are you doing?”

“We’re talking,” He responded, releasing you within seconds, especially after the mystery guy stepped closer. You stepped back, closer to the mystery guy unintentionally.

“That didn’t look like talking, man.”

“How about you worry about your own shit?” You rolled your eyes at that, walking back over to the station. You took a deep breath, rubbing the area that had already started to redden from his grip. You didn’t look up as the two men exchanged words or when the mystery guy came over.

“Are yo- Wait, is that your manager? Should I go get him?” You followed his pointer finger then looked back down at the monitor.

You shook your head, avoiding his eyes, “I’m fine, thank you though. I really appreciated that.”

“This is your place of work,” He said, slowly. “Are you sure you don’t want me to tell someone? Give a statement or something? That was insane.”

You nodded, “It’s fine. A guy with an ego as big as this store is not worth me stressing over.”

“I’m sorry I didn’t notice it before, though. Is your arm okay?“ His eyes trailed down and you shifted on your weight onto your other leg, looking down at the damage, but also to look somewhere else besides his eyes.

“I’ll be okay, I’ve suffered through worse,” You gently shrugged, looking back up at him. He was already watching you and you could see his shoulders slump.

“I’m sorry, again-”

“-You are not the one who should be apologizing,” You started. “This is a grocery store, we really can’t control who comes in here.”

“They should,” He raised his eyebrows. “For your safety.”

You were sure he meant “your” as all cashiers and not just you.

You paused for a moment, unsure of how to respond, going with, “Yeah.”

“I’m still sorry that he thought it was okay to put his hands on you,” He said. You nodded slowly and he smiled then, a light laugh escaping his lips. “I hope you have a safe rest of your shift, Y/N.”

As you held eye contact, your stomach did a flip at the thought of him saying your name. It was music to your ears, and also a slight boost to your ego.

“You know, it’s a little unfair that you know my name and I don’t know yours since we’ve talked multiple times at this point.”

Adjusting his bags to one hand, he held the other out to you, “I’m Connor.”

“Well, it’s nice to finally have a name to put to the face,” You responded, returning the handshake. You cursed yourself in your head for not double checking for sweat as your hands touched but he didn’t seem to mind, if there was. In fact, all Connor could think about was the fact that you basically just admitted to him that you had been thinking about him. Or, at least that’s what he hoped you meant because that would make him feel less weird for having thought about you so much. 

This was only the third time he had seen you and you were on his mind more than he ever expected. At this rate, Connor knew he was fucked. But, he didn’t know you were, too. He didn’t know anything about you, and that was the problem.

He thought about doing it then, putting himself out there to a complete stranger, even though you didn’t feel like a one to him. Just ask for her number, he thought. Then, he remembered the asshole you had both just dealt with and decided to leave it for now. Bad timing, he convinced himself.

“I’m sorry I don’t wear a name tag like you,” He joked.

You smiled, rolling your eyes, “Yeah, lucky you.”

“I’ll see you around,” Connor then replied. “Be safe.”

“I’ll try,” You sighed. “Bye, Connor.”

“Bye.”

Watching him as he walked off, you thought back to what had all just happened. You made a note to tell your supervisor when he got back from his lunch and of course, have that man banned from the store. You also started to mentally prepare yourself for your next encounter with Connor. Connor. Now you had a name to think about during the boring hours of work.

four.

“Fancy seeing you here.” You nearly jumped out of your skin as you walked through the parking lot of the supermarket. You had the early morning shift, which was usually a graveyard, and had hoped you wouldn’t have to work too hard.

Turning on your heel, you were surprised to see Connor getting out of his car. How the hell did I miss his car right in front of me? you thought as you looked down, double-checking your appearance subtly. You weren’t a slob, especially lately since you never knew who you would run in to. Who am I kidding? This is exactly what you wanted to happen. Maybe not early in the morning but beggars can’t be choosers, can they?

“Who goes to a supermarket at 7 am?” You asked, stopping with your hand on your hip. 

The sun was shining bright behind Connor, and you couldn’t see his eyes trail over you. You looked better than he even remembered. You were wearing blue jeans that were exactly your size and since you had classes the day before, your hair wasn’t a total mess. It was a simple look but still made Connor’s breath hitch as he stood in front of you.

Much to his despise, it had been over three months since he last ran into you at the store. On top of his practices in preparation for the upcoming hockey season, he had media interviews up to his neck as a young captain in the NHL. 

You, of course, had resumed classes and worked less hours at the supermarket to keep academics as your main priority. Having only three shifts a week seemed small, but you were stressed and the semester wasn’t even halfway done. When did professors stop giving students a few weeks before killing them with assignments?

“Someone who has a tight schedule,” He smiled, walking until he was by your side. Nodding to the store, “Opening shift?”

“Unfortunately,” You sighed, nodding. 

“Well, at least you’ll be awake for the rest of the day,” He said.

“Thinking like that is the only way I convince myself to get up,” You laughed.

“How have you been?” He slyly slowed his stride as you walked towards the entrance together to prolong your conversation, hoping you weren’t running late for your shift. You noticed, and continued at his speed, biting your lip to stop from smiling.

“Pretty good, tired,” You shrugged. “How about you?”

“Same,” He laughed, putting his hands in his pockets. “How long have you been working here?”

“Like a year and a half,” You answered. “It’s close to where I live.”

“Hm,” He hummed.

“Close enough that I could walk if I wanted to,” You said. “But, also driving is an option, I guess. Not that that’s important or anything, or that you even needed that much detail.”

If it wasn’t for him standing next to you, you would have pinched yourself for how awkward you were being. You weren’t used to talking to an attractive guy this early in the morning. Or, at all.

“No, it makes sense,” He replied, laughing. “I was just asking because I feel like I would have noticed you before we met.”

“Notice me?”

He looked down at you, a smile still on his lips, “Yeah, I would definitely remember you.”

“My first memory of you is when you broke our machine,” You teased.

He rolled his eyes, “I didn’t break it, it did that to itself,” He defended. 

“Sure,” You nodded sarcastically.

“Anyway,” He sighed dramatically, letting out a laugh after. “I think that’s when I first saw you, too.”

“Now, I finally know your name,” You said as you finally reached the entrance.

“You do,” Connor responded, smiling. 

As you entered the store, you couldn’t miss your boss already waving you over with a wide smile on his face. Furrowing your eyebrows, you looked back at Connor to say bye but he moved to speak at the same time.

“We-”

“Ca-” You both froze, and you blushed under his eye. He smiled again, “You can go first.”

“No, I think you should go because I was just going to say that my boss is waving me over like a crazy person.”

Connor turned around to your nod, and you watched your boss furrow his eyebrows before Connor looked back at you.

“I was just going to say I hope you have a good shift, if I don’t see you before I leave the store.” That wasn’t at all what Connor wanted to say but he knew you had to go. And, he’d much rather ask you out when your boss wasn’t watching less than 20 feet away.

“Oh, thank you,” You smiled, oblivious to his failed attempt. “Have a good day, with whatever crazy thing has you here at 7 am.”

He laughed, “I’ll see you around.”

and, one.

Finally free, you thought as you adjusted your bag on your shoulder. You had just finished your shift, the day finally reaching 5 pm. You were on your way out of the store, waving bye to your coworkers on the registers when you saw Connor bagging items near the exit.

You noticed he was practically done and simply gathering his things together to walk out and you thought about speeding by him as sly as you could, hoping to avoid an encounter when you were sure you looked as drained as you felt. However, before you could even make a decision, he looked over, eyes locking on yours.

He smiled, brightly, “Y/N, hey!”

“Hi, Connor,” You smiled, laughing lightly at his excitement.

“How are you? Are you just now getting off?” He looked down at his watch.

“Yeah, I’ve been here for a few hours,” You replied. “More protein shakes?”

He laughed, “I’m actually good on those. I had to restock on my unhealthy stuff this time.”

“I’m surprised,” You said. He grabbed his bags, motioning to the exit. This is it, he thought. Connor heart rate quickened as he quickly went over what he wanted to say in his head.

“No one eats healthy all the time,” He said as you both walked towards the exit. “Did you drive today?”

“I did, actually. I knew I was going to be too lazy to walk after eight hours,” You admitted. “And, it’s been getting dark a lot earlier.”

“Smart,” He smirked. 

“I haven’t seen you in awhile,” You commented after a few moments. “Awhile,” meaning a little over two months. 

“I’ve actually been out of town for a few weeks,” He said. “But, I did have a question for you, so I’m happy I caught you today.”

“About the store?” After it came out of your mouth, you realized how truly stupid you sounded. Obviously not.

“No, not really,” He said, looking down at you briefly. 

“What’s up?” You asked him. At this point, you had reached his car in the parking lot, your car only a few spots down. He set his bags on the ground, slightly fumbling around to find what you thought were his keys.

You watched him, and held in your smile when he finally found them, letting out a slight breath of relief. He looked over at you, and you were caught red-handed. You weren’t sure what reaction you expected, but blushing and shaking his head was not one of them.

“Give me a sec,” He mumbled as he pressed a button on his key to open the trunk of his car. You looked over the part of the clean interior that was visible to you, admiring it.

“This is a really nice car,” You said as he placed his bags in the trunk.

“Thank you,” He said, reaching up to close it. “Can I walk you to yours?”

“Sure,” You felt your heart rate pick up as he locked his car again. “It’s just right here.”

“So, you can absolutely say no, I can take it,” He started, and you couldn’t tell if he was still blushing from a few moments ago, or maybe it was just the reflection of the headlights of passing cars. “Would it be okay if I asked for your number?”

You had enough self control in the moment to keep your jaw from falling, or your face from turning as bright as firetruck, but your words were always another thing. “You want my number?”

“Yeah,” He laughed softly. 

“Why?” The word came out of your mouth before you could stop it. You also couldn’t stop the blush then, taking a breath to push your hair out of your face, nervously. “Sorry, I mean, uhm, what-, why-”

“-Our sixty second conversations kinda have me hooked,” He explained. “And, I’d really like to take you out sometime, but obviously I wanted to work my way to that since we don’t know each other and I get that this might be weird. And, maybe you get this a lot working here.” He was beginning to ramble so he stopped, staring into your eyes to hopefully communicate that he really wasn’t some weirdo. Just a guy super into you, even though he barely knew anything besides your name and your laugh. And, so far, also your corny but admirable digs at him. 

He couldn’t help but smile when he was around you, and he really couldn’t help but want to see you outside of the store. He wanted to get to know you, and spend more time with you. He knew there had to be a lot more to you than your job.

“This does happen sometimes,” You nodded. “Usually, older, perverted guys. The occasional young guy with a big ego, really depends on the day.”

“I hope I don’t fit into either of those categories,” He laughed. “I really don’t want to overstep or make you feel weird.”

“You haven’t,” You responded quickly. “It’s okay, do you have your phone on you?”

He smiled then, reaching into his pocket before pulling out his phone. Unlocking it, he handed it to you and watched as you typed away. 

Holy shit, he thought again. It was the first time that he was ever really nervous to ask a girl for her number and he almost expected you to reject him. Already be in a relationship, or just simply not be interested. He expected the worst, just like you did.

You hoped he couldn’t see the shaking that you felt in your fingers as you created a contact for yourself in his phone. Once you were finished, you looked up to find him already watching you. Blushing, you held his phone out to him, “There you go, that’s me.”

He took his phone back, smile widening after he looked down at the screen. “Thank you.”

“I guess I’ll talk to you soon?” You suggested, finally unlocking your car.

“Definitely, I’ll text you later tonight,” He responded, stepping back a few steps.

“Okay,” You grinned, opening the door. He nodded before a smile appeared on his face as he walked backwards towards his car.

“Bye, Y/N.”

“Bye, Connor,” You responded as you slid into your car. Closing the door, you let out a breath as you kept your eyes forward to start the car.

[masahikass]

okay so since i couldn’t resist, here’s some info about my random ie:go steven universe!au because i have no energy for online lessons :)

also i didn’t want to post about another au since @/primsbean is making so many posts about her ie:go madoka magica!au which i fUCKING LOVE OHMYGOD- but yeah, alternate universes are my favorite snacc. i have another one to talk about but first let’s say things about the SU one <3

under the cut because it’s LONG - and remember i’m not a native english so i might do some mistakes

okay so first of all, don’t blame me if there will be some events that don’t follow the plot (since i’m NOT remaking steven universe with ie charas!!!!! please keep this in mind) or events that Rebecca Sugar would have never inserted in her show. I respect everyone who worked at steven universe, and my intention is not to say their plot/story was bad, i’m just adding something that did never happen with any chara in the su series to make my au more original, that’s it. peace and love oN THE PLANET EARTH- okay that was the best su song hands down

also keep in mind gems don’t have “gemmic” names (if you know just a little of the su series, you should know all the gems are named after their gem, but i wont give that kind of names to the ie boys - or should i call them gems then? lol)

all the gems - for now - will be males too (as there werent any og male gems in steven universe besides steven, which is an hybrid though so...)

i will list each chara’s gem and ability after the general plot <3

so, the actual protags (though all the charas are!!! these are the two) are Tenma and Fey, who are around 5,000 years old - please if you don’t remember how the gems’ years worked go search it up, there are so many threads about that - and protect inazuma city (insert shooked face) from corrupted gems’ attacks. these attacks are not really frequent and they seem to deal with the situation, but one day they start increasing, being more frequent than usual and also the gems who attack are stronger and different from the previous ones. Fey starts making a theory about a possible new attempt of the homeworld gems (i still haven’t decided which charas will “represent” them, though, since this plot is a kind of season 1 we could say??) to start colonizing Earth via war, as they already did 3,500 years before the current events but failed, with the terrestrial gems rejecting them but also losing a lot of them - since some of them got shattered during the war and others escaped to travel to other planets to start colonizing them theirselves so they could live a new, pacific life. Tenma, at first, isn’t that sure about what Fey said, but as the corrupted gems’ attacks kept increasing he realized he could have been right. as they’re the only two gems who protect their city, they start thinking they should ask help to someone, trying to find more powerful gems. 

Fey suggests to search for a trio (whose name is still not 100% sure... i randomly thought about Prism Trio just because I couldn’t remake Crystal Gems ahahah I still don’t know) which protect old war ruins in a forgotten area which is actually near Inazuma City though - but still, only some gems know about it, for example Fey did researches but Tenma knew nothing. This trio will be formed by your local ie:go chaotic trio aka Shindou, Kirino and Kariya (well, if i don’t get any more ideas for the name, then Gay Trio will be alright), who are respectively 7,600, 8,000 and 7,100 years old and actually fought in the first war. They find them fighting against a corrupted fusion, and try to join them to finish it easily and fastly. As they actually give the trio a good help, they still get scolded by them because they went in an area they shouldn’t have been to. However, the trio is still thankful to them for their help, and when Fey tells them about the situation in Inazuma City Shindou replies telling him his theory might be right as he had heard about the increasing attacks, also because the ruins were more attacked than usual in that period. Tenma kindly asks them if they could give their help back, coming with him and Fey and trying to reject the attacks together, even though he thought they’d never agree. Kirino is absolutely okay with that and shows positivity towards Tenma’s idea, while Kariya isn’t that sure since all of them should get used to a new routine, different from the one they were used to in the last millenniums. Shindou, who was neutral at the beginning, proved Kirino right since that would have been the best way to know more about the new attacks, and finally convinces Kariya to join them.

As they get in TenFey’s temple (which is the only thing IDENTICAL to the original SU one, except for the statue in the original version which is absent now), they start organizing their rooms (you know, in the temple there was that one door who led to each gem’s personal room, so the trio starts get used to them), they also keep fighting against new species of corrupted gems who keep attacking the city.

One day, then, all the five gems get to another ruins area, further from the ones the trio used to fight in, and at a moment Tenma remains alone and encounters... bepreparedtocringeihadnoideassorry... Sasuke. Yes, I did a Lion reference using Tenma’s dog instead. Original af, congrats. BY THE WAY,, he understands this gIaNt DoG (ohmygod the lion sounded better,, damn me and my dumb ideas) is related to gems somehow, and when he gets back - since Sasuke disappears after some seconds - tells the others about it, but everyone gets it as a joke and doesnt trust him. In the next fight, though, Sasuke approaches the gems and gives them help (still idk how, gotta rewatch all the lion episodes 382679345 times to get more ideas), so they all understand Tenma was right.

Some days after that, while Tenma is playing with Sasuke (gOOD BOY,,,,, I MEAN GEM,,,,,,,,,,), the dog drags him into a portal/warp (did i spell it good omg my english gets worse every day...) - just as lion sometimes does in the og series, lol - and since this warp keeps being open for some seconds, the other four gems enter it as Tenma might be in trouble alone. They all discover Sasuke led Tenma to an unknown area, which i wanted to be a desert bUT THAT LOOKS A LOT LIKE THE OG SERIES HOLY SHI- so okay, let’s make it a normal land, where there’s a fight going on. They notice a gem fighting a corrupted one all alone, and this gem seems really in need of help so they try everything to save him (oMg SpOiLeRs ThE gEm Is A mALe ToO!!11!!!111!) as they see he doesn’t have any weapon and only fights with the things he finds around himself, such as common rocks. That gem is no one else (???) than Hikaru *cries in i needed to add him hes so baby* who tells the five gems he had never seen such a powerful corrupted gem before and that he was used to reject the previous attacks in that zone more easily, and when Tenma asks him if he wants to come with him and the others to the temple Hikaru accepts without any doubt. As he gets to the temple, the others ask him if he has any weapon, but he tells them he never had the strenght to “develop” one. Perhaps, his ability (the only i’ll reveal here in the plot!!) is really useful, as he can generate light from his gem and make people and other gems blind for a limited amount of time - which, at the beginning, is really short but always increasing. He also wants to practice it as he wants to control the limit of time (for example, blinding people/gems just for a minute even if he could do for ten). When he shows his ability to the other gems, they all get blind... besides Kariya and here the ship sails *coughs* n-nothing, who is actually immune to the light’s effect. Being the only one who doesnt get blind, he starts helping Hikaru to develop his weapon.

I still haven’t thought about the rest of the plot, but there are still three characters I wanted to add. In order: Kyousuke, as an hybrid whose backstory will be way different from Steven’s in the og series (as he wasn’t born an hybrid, neither one of his parents was a gem), then Minaho and Manabe who are gems from another planet (not Homeworld, though) that are usually fused all the time... but, still, I have to think abt a plot ahah

If you’ve got this far, well... congrats? I know this is really long oh damn-

Btw, before I go, here’s the gems’ weapons and abilities as I promised! <3

Tenma: bow and arrow, he can control the wind

Fey: he basically makes grow poisonous creepers from everywhere (kind of inspired from Lapis in the og series as she generated water and could control it), controls nature in general

Shindou: sword, his voice can reach really high pitches so if he screams he can destroy things (and, maybe, he could start shattering gems too... who knows)

Kirino: lance, has a really high speed

Kariya: basically can make strong claws grow from his hands (idk how to describe it holy fuck,,, i cant draw either, if i could i’d have showed u), his ability is telekinesis

Hikaru: well, i don’t wanna spoil his weapon as i’m gonna make another post asap... i already said what his ability was, btw. also!! i didnt mention it before, but his age is around 3000 y/o

Kyousuke: katana, he can read any person’s mind for ten minutes if he had contact with them, same goes with gems but he must touch their gem in order to read their mind (age, in human years: 17)

Minaho: guns, he can understand if someone or something interacted with someone/something else just by smelling it (sounds cringe ik,, btw his age is the same as Manabe’s, 6,700)

Manabe: since i had no more ideas, don’t blame me if this sounds Peridot-ish, but he can actually generate small but powerful robots he can control and fight with, his ability is controlling technology in general.

Another last thing... these nine characters are the same of the other au i mentioned (which is way more calm than this,,, i also have more info abt that, too), so look forward to that too <3

I’mma go now, bye!

[tauers-go-dutch]

Italy: like putting on an old boot

Since losing my passport in Madrid, I had a two-week window before our next trip to get a new one. I ended up going to the US Consulate in Amsterdam, which was an adventure all in its own. If you picture the DMV, but on ‘roids, that is about the experience of applying for a passport abroad.  After getting a new passport photo, I got to wait outside the building on the literal coldest day of the year for an hour before being ushered through security in order to wait for another two hours interspersed with quick trips up to the counter to explain that I don’t know what happened to my passport because I lost it and then being chastised for losing my passport because I must look too young to possibly be able to comprehend the gravity of importance such a document.  Oh, and I had to pay $140.  But luckily the US is very efficient at printing rush order passports and it arrived the following Friday, just in time for our trip to Rome.  But of course, there would be one more hiccup in the story- the city lost power on Friday afternoon when I planned to pick up my passport.  So the Consulate did not have power… or at least the backup generator did not power the whole building.  Luckily, the guards were able to just grab the newly printed passports (I was not the only one trying to pick one up that day), and I was on my way.

Once we got into Rome, the same feeling of joy I had from my first visit washed over me, and I think I had a smile on the whole weekend. Rome is a huge city, so it is crowded, busy, smelly, full of trash, a bit rundown, etc.  However, I love it for the amazing art, culture, and food.  What can I say, Rome was the center of Western culture for much of history, and for much of my Catholic upbringing (and my brief stint as a Latin nerd), so it generates some degree of awe.

We threw in our coin, so I guess we’ll be back again

We checked into our hotel, which was across from some state building.  When checking us in, the clerk said if we take photos from the window, the state employees might think we are spies and send people over to the hotel to investigate. I’m pretty sure he was joking?  Mariah may have tested the theory the next evening after a few drinks.  

We went to dinner that evening and tried some authentic Roman dishes, including an artichoke sampler platter. To be honest, steamed artichokes and butter was one of my sister’s favorite meals growing up, but they were never one of mine. But the Roman style artichokes blew me away. They are originally prepared by Jewish immigrants, but were quickly adopted by the Roman locals, so much so that Rome is one of the largest artichoke producers in the world. The Jewish version is lightly battered and fried, while the Roman version is steamed, and both are incredible. I also had pasta al’amatriciana (tomato sauce with pork cheek) and Mariah had ravioli before we split an incredible tiramisu.  Before calling it a night we walked over to the Trevi fountain and threw in a coin.  I guess we’ll be back one day.

Magical artichokes

We had some super delicious pastries in our hotel the next morning before heading to St. Peter’s Basilica. After taking some initial photos, I was talked into upgrading our museum tickets to a guided tour.  While this is expensive, it is worth it- the guide is great, but you’re really paying to skip the 3+ hour line to see the basilica from the museum (and Sistine Chapel).  We learned why the Vatican is its own country (long, convoluted story short- the modern church never wanted to join the united Italy, and the arrangement stuck- helps when you have your own private army). The Vatican treasures are as incredible as they are extensive. We saw Greek/Roman gods, human personifications of the Tiber river, supposed tombs of Helena and Constantina (mother and daughter of Constantine), maps of the world, paintings and tapestries for days, and a Roman Zach Galifianakis. But this was all a lead in to the Sistine Chapel, of Michelangelo fame. Of course there are no photos, but the Creation of Adam and the Last Judgment are every bit as amazing as hyped. We then fast tracked to the staggeringly beautiful St. Peter’s basilica.  We saw the tombs of the popes (St. John Paul II has his own chapel on the main floor) and the Pieta, but my favorite is the altar from Bernini.  Just look at the pictures.

St. Peter’s Basilica

Is that you, Zach?

Pieta

Pope JPIII!

Bernini’s altar

After a lunch of arancini (rice balls- I might not be able to eat the ones at Cinzetti’s ever again) and cacao e pepe (literally cheese and pepper- basically Italian mac ‘n cheese for adults), we set out to explore the city.  We saw Castle Sant’Angelo (the pope fortress/Church of Illumination), Piazza Navona, The Pantheon, the Spanish Steps, and so much gelato.  Eventually, we met some friends who also happened to be in Rome, and had dinner and a shared a few bottles of wine.  

Gelato number two - sadly, we have no evidence of number one

The Pantheon

These two like their Italian wine

Brent and Christine happened to be in town

The next morning, we packed in some more sightseeing with the Altar of the Fatherland (Mussolini funded statue dedicated to the united Italy), Palatine Hill, the Capitoline Wolf, and Turtle Fountain (which does not have live turtles in the fountain). We ventured to the Jewish quarter of town, and had more marvelous artichokes, pasta, and possibly some of the best table bread ever (I had to take a picture it was so good).  We went to a beer bar and enjoyed some brews (Italy has some good breweries), before going over to the hip Trastevere neighborhood and having more food (including a tremendous prosciutto sandwich which I would not shut up about, more arancini and a pizza) and beers.  We needed to get back to the hotel, and decided to walk by the Colosseum and the Circus Maximus on the way.  Unfortunately, the sky opened up and we were drenched in ten minutes… so we made a quick pit stop for more gelato to let the rain pass.  There are worse things.

Remus and Romulus!

No live turtles

Mariah’s happy place (Gelato three of four?)

...and mine (prosciutto sandwich)

Sometimes I can get her to drink a beer

But it generally involves bribery with margherita pizza

Aaaaand it’s pouring outside

Rain keeps the tourists away - most of them, anyways

Are you not entertained?

All that’s left of the Circus Maximus

We packed a ton into our Rome weekend, so in Florence (the following weekend) we were a bit more relaxed. We arrived late on Friday so our adventure really just started on Saturday morning. Our first stop was to the Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore, which is better known for ‘il Duomo,’ or the massive dome that adorns the church and dominates the city skyline.  It was a fairly easy climb, but the vertigo is real when you are on the interior of the church and looking down. But you are rewarded with amazing art reminiscent of Dante’s Inferno (Florence is his home town, btw) and panoramic views of the city.  

I hope you’re not claustrophobic... or afraid of heights!

Afterwards, we put our name down at Trattoria Mario for lunch, and killed some time at the markets before our table was ready. I don’t think you can see more leather outside of a Vegas S&M convention, but to be honest it is really cool.  We stopped into a market and bought some pastries- creampuff for me and a chocolate cookie for Mariah- to hold us over. Luckily we did not have to wait for lunch long.  Trattoria Mario is regarded as the best restaurant in town, and is only open for lunch. The place is tiny, and you will be seated at a two-person table with two other people and sit on stools that are made for toddlers. The bread is disappointing, but the food is marvelous. The place is meat-centric, and their specialty is the classic bistecca alla fiorentina, which is a super thick, bloody porterhouse steak. The frites were good too.

After lunch, we crossed the famed Ponte Vecchio to the other side of the city.  We walked up to the Piazzale Michelangelo for more magnificent views of Florence.  We walked along the river and stopped by a small tea shop, and sampled some of their goodies. We walked out with some good stuff, and an aspiration to become a tea sommelier and to (keep) travel(ing) the world. We had a rest at a dessert shop before finding dinner (easier said than done, since our first choice for dinner just never opened the restaurant for service- no notice posted physically or online), and closed the night with more beers. It was a bit early, but we have been traveling a lot.  

It was a pretty creepy sculpture...

We slept in, but woke to go to the Galleria dell’Accademia, which is a museum that has nothing of much significance except for a little piece from Michelangelo called the David. Before seeing the main event, we did explore some of the other parts of the museum, including the musical instruments and some religious paintings.  Two asides- first, we saw a pair of little girls (say seven) on a private guide with their parents looking at the musical instruments and throwing out some serious knowledge of the Medicis and the Renaissance art movement (the girl was a self-proclaimed art history buff, and I believe it!). Second, some of the art made to explain the dogma of Christianity is as bizarre (though simultaneously stylish) as the Thai paintings we saw in Bangkok. Seriously, if I didn’t have knowledge of the immaculate conception, I would have thought Christians believed that an old cloud god shot pigeons at a sleeping woman while some creepy dude with wings looked on approvingly. 

But onto the David.  It is every bit as masterful as everyone says.  The story is unbelievable too.  Just think, some 27 year-old just said, ‘hey, can I use that chunk of marble over there? I wanna make something for you.’  And then the Florentine people were graced with one of the most incredible works of art in history is ridiculous.  Michelangelo was TWENTYSEVEN!!!  Oh, and he made the Pieta before that (pictured above, from Rome).

Just look at him! 

Afterwards we just relaxed. We had some pizza, coffee, macarons and beers. I did grab a snack- a lampredotto.  There was a stand just outside of our hotel which filled up during lunch with locals, so I figured I’d try it. The sandwich is made from spiced lamb intestine, and it’s pretty good. I mean, it’s no prosciutto sandwich, but its good. We did make our outside the Uffizi gallery before leaving, and took in some of the city’s most famous patrons before saying goodbye.

I throw my hands up in the air sometimes... singing ayo... 

NBD, just our country’s namesake

Last minute snack

Italy is superb.  It is a country with so many different layers of nuance and culture.  Sometimes I feel people boil it down to pizza and statues, but it’s so much more.  Each region, from Rome, Florence, Venice, Naples, Sicily, Milan, etc. is so different from the next. The food, outside of the tourist traps, is every bit of what makes Italian fare heralded as some of the world’s best. The culture and history is dense and rich- just think, Rome was the center of the western world through two different points of time for two different reasons. Sure, Italy has its problems and frustrations like we all do, but it is a country I will enjoy returning to time and time again.

[my-trashy-writing]

One night Keith stumbles upon homesick Lance talking to the mice.

I don't know how it happened but it was supposed to be much shorter, under 1000 words. But it turned to be almost 3000. I planned only the scene on the training deck but then I kept adding and adding and here we are now. Similarly to my previous Klance, Bonobo's Surface was a big inspiration. Only for the part on the training deck, though. Later I switched to Josef Salvat, especially Open Season (English and French) and Paradise (also both English and French versions).

Btw - I really wanted to do something for Klangst week but...

SFW, Klance Words: 2950 Also on ao3.

“ - the upside is that you’re still together, right?” Keith heard Lance’s voice when he came back to the training deck, searching for his forgotten jacket. “I know that my family should be fine but I’m not sure if I ever see them again. And they don’t even know if I am alive,” Keith knitted his brows - no-one was answering Lance and it seemed as if he was talking to himself. What’s more, he was sitting on the floor, tightly wrapped in a blanket. “I really want to go home,” Lance added softly.

“Ha-have you seen my jacket?” Keith asked from afar, not sure how to approach Lance.

“Do you want to kill me?” Lance jumped up to his feet, clutching at his heart.

“No?”

“Then don’t surprise me like that,” he fumed. “And yeah, your jacket is here. The mice are using it now, though,” Lance pointed with his finger to the floor, where all four animals made themselves comfortable on the red material.

“Oh, so you were talking to them,” Keith commented quietly, making Lance gasp.

“How much-?!” Lance asked, jabbing his finger into Keith’s chest.

“How much what?”

“How long were you eavesdropping?”

“I wasn’t? I mean, yeah, I’ve heard some things, that you want to see your family for example, but it was by accident,” Keith answered, surprised by Lance’s reaction.

“This is the worst,” Lance huffed and sat on the floor again. He fumbled with the blanket a bit, so it also covered his head.

“Um… Are you… ok?” Keith asked hesitantly.

“This is pathetic, Keith is pitying me,” Lance grumbled to himself. “I’m feelin peachy! Go away,” he turned to Keith, forced smile on his face.

“I came for my jacket, though,” Keith answered and sat beside Lance, reaching with his hand to pet one of the mice. “Shouldn’t you - “ he started, not looking at Lance, “ - go to Hunk?”

“Huh? Why?”

“I don’t know. To talk? Or something? So you would feel better,” Keith sounded genuinely concerned and that stopped Lance from blowing up at him completely.

“Are you stupid? I can’t bother Hunk all the time. He’s in the same situation. And it’s not like I have it the worst, right? Pidge doesn’t know if her father and brother are alive. Shiro was fighting in the arena and got experimented on. Coran and Allura don’t even have a home anymore! And I’m just…” Lance paused, also reaching to pet the mice, “ - I’m just homesick.”

“It doesn’t mean that your feelings are any less valid. Others also have it bad, some of them might have it worse but, in the end, only your feelings are… yours,” Keith waved his hand around. “I can’t really relate to what you feel, since I… was alone for years and there’s no-one left on Earth that I care about. But I can understand that it’s not easy being here. Because this is my reality too. We’re in this together. So you’re not alone,” Keith turned towards Lance. He flinched, when he realised that Lance was staring at him, small tears in the corners of his blue eyes.

“What the hell, Keith?” he whispered almost inaudibly, quickly turning away and rubbing his eyes.

Seeing Lance like this, quiet and vulnerable, not loud and cocky, was something unusual. And it made Keith feel as if something snapped inside of him. He slowly shifted, so he wasn’t sitting beside Lance but behind him:

“Give me this for a second,” Keith said quietly, lightly tugging at Lance’s blanket. Surprisingly, Lance didn’t protest.

Keith put the blanket away for a moment and scooted even closer to Lance. When the other was sitting between his legs, Keith wrapped both of them in the blanket and hugged Lance from behind.

“What-? Why-?” Lance stuttered, stiffening in Keith’s arms.

“It’s weird when you’re like this,” Keith answered quietly, pulling Lance against his chest and leaning his chin on Lance’s shoulder.

“You’re the one who’s weird,” Lance mumbled, trying to sound annoyed. Nevertheless, he grabbed Keith’s hand and squeezed it lightly. “Thanks, though,” he whispered, slowly relaxing.

Keith wasn’t sure how long they were sitting there. They weren’t talking, so the flow of time was even more unnoticable. Maybe only few minutes have passed. Maybe much more. Keith didn’t know. But there was one thing he definitely knew - that, despite their, slightly weird, not the most comfortable position, Lance fell asleep.

Although Keith was tense himself, he could feel how Lance was gradually relaxing in his arms. He also had the impression that Lance’s hand was steadily becoming warmer and warmer. Keith didn’t really want to admit it but it was a pleasant feeling. That’s why, when Lance’s hand slipped down after he fell asleep, Keith grabbed it himself, lightly rubbing the tan palm with his fingers. He was surprised how soft, especially compared to his own, rough hands, Lance’s skin was.

Instead of absentmindedly staring at the empty space in front of them, Keith shifted his gaze to look at Lance’s face. He was struck by the sudden urge to touch it, to check if it was as soft, or maybe even softer, than his hand. Keith flinched, when he realised what he wanted to do.

“This is bad,” he whispered, trying to ignore the weird feeling bubbling in his chest. He couldn’t allow himself to think that being like this with Lance actually felt good. It would complicate their, already rocky, relationship even more.

When Keith started to feel drowsy himself, he decided that it was high time to leave the training deck. If they were going to sleep, they should do it in their beds or else they would be aching all over the next day.

“Hey, Lance, wake up,” Keith slightly shook him.

“Five more minutes,” Lance mumbled, snuggling into Keith.

“Lance, please,” Keith tried again, feeling the heat rising in his face.

“Don’t wanna, it’s warm,” half-asleep Lance shifted slightly, leaning his cheek against Keith’s shoulder. The other stiffened again when Lance’s breath tickled his neck.

“This is gonna end in a disaster if someone sees us,” Keith said quietly. He took a deep breath and then slowly stood up, picking Lance up.

*

“Hunk, you won’t believe it but our self-proclaimed Prince Charming just got carried princess style,” Pidge bursted into Hunk’s room, waking him up.

“What?” he asked sleepily, rubbing his eyes.

“By his arch-nemesis to boot! This is hilarious.”

“What the hell, Pidge?” Hunk sat up, completely awake now. “When was the last time you slept?”

“Hear me out and then judge. So here’s the thing - I was tinkering with some stuff in Green’s hangar-”

“Like always,” Hunk interrupted.

“Yes, like always. Anyway - I lost the track of time and-”

“Like always,” Hunk repeated with a chuckle.

“Hunk, please, if you don’t want to hear the whole story, then say so.”

“I’m sorry, continue, please,” he smiled apologetically at Pidge, trying to counter and soothe her angry glare.

“Ok. So when I decided it was high time I got some sleep and was walking near the training deck, I’ve heard the door open. My instincts told me to hide and it was a great decision to listen to them. So yeah, the door to the training deck open and out comes Keith. Carrying Lance! Princess style! Or bridal style, however you want to call it.”

“No way, I don’t believe you. Lance would kill Keith and then himself if something like this happened,” Hunk shook his head. “Are you sure it wasn’t a dream?”

“Traitor!” Pidge gasped. “That was my first thought too, though. But when I looked closer, Lance was like… unconscious? So I thought that maybe they were sparring in the middle of the night, blowing some steam or whatever. They are idiots after all. I mean, Lance isn't exactly stupid but he definitely behaves as if he was. Anyway, back to the topic because I’m starting to digress, I thought that Keith knocked Lance out or something. But when they walked past me I’ve noticed that they weren’t looking as if they were fighting. Keith looked sleepy and Lance was actually asleep. Keith even had a blanket draped over his shoulders! Hunk! Sleepy! Asleep! Blanket! The two of them! Alone!”

“This is surreal.”

“Definitely. But it’s not everything yet! I followed them, they went into Lance’s room. I was waiting for good ten minutes but Keith hasn’t come out? Like… what the hell? Maybe I am sleep deprived? Maybe I hallucinated the whole thing?” there was a flash of panic on Pidge’s face.

“You’re good, don’t worry. But getting some sleep would be a wise idea in your case, anyway. Go to bed. I still don't completely believe you, though. But if it is true, then someone is going to die soon. Either from embarrassment or Lance is going to get ballistic and becomes murderer. Or maybe it would be Keith? If, you know, Lance forgets their bonding moment again.”

*

Just like Pidge saw, Lance was carried by Keith all the way to his room. What’s more, he was unconsciously holding onto Keith, almost desperately craving the warmth of another person. And that was probably the reason why, when Keith finally laid him in his bed, Lance wasn’t eager to let go of him. And Keith, too tired and too flustered himself, decided to lie down beside him.

At first, Keith felt weird. Seemingly, it wasn’t that much different from what they’ve been doing moments before on the training deck. The biggest change was that they weren’t in the neutral space but in Lance’s room, in Lance’s bed. And it was enough to completely change the atmosphere. Keith was slowly starting to overthink the entire situation and he simply short-circuited, when Lance snuggled into him yet again. Luckily for Keith, his fatigue took over and, soon enough, he also fell asleep, his arm loosely wrapped around Lance’s waist.

*

“Have you seen Keith?” Shiro asked during breakfast. Both Keith and Lance were absent but it wasn’t unusual for the latter to sleep in if he had a chance to. “He’s neither in his room nor at any other place where you can usually find him.”

“Holy shit, Hunk,” Pidge whispered, her eyes shining mischievously. “I wasn’t hallucinating?”

“No, this is impossible, Pidge, no way.”

“What?” Shiro raised his brow at both of them.

“Ok, so here’s the thing - yesterday-” Pidge started but was interrupted by Keith entering the room. Both Pidge and Hunk were watching him like hawks, searching for any signs of what might have happened during the night.

“Where were you?” Shiro asked. “I’ve been searching for you.”

“In my room?” Keith answered, running a hand through his hair.

“Eh? No. I checked you room. And it was empty,” Shiro tilted his head to the side, confused.

“I came here straight from my room, Shiro,” Keith said slowly, his face getting red. He wasn’t looking at Shiro. Or any of them for that matter.

“Oh boy, oh boy, oh boy,” Hunk repeated quietly at the sight. Now, he believed everything that Pidge said she saw.

Before any of them could say or do anything more, Lance came inside too.

“Ugh, first thing I see in the morning and it’s this stupid mullet,” he grumbled dramatically.

“Oh yeah, it definitely was the first thing,” Pidge teased.

“Huh?” Lance knitted his brows.

“So has the Sleeping Beauty got woken up with a kiss?”

Keith whined at Pidge’s question, getting unbelievably red. On the other hand, Lance quietly gaped at her but composed himself pretty fast:

“The only Sleeping Beauty in this Castle is Allura and, sadly, she woke up by herself not by Prince’s, namely - mine, kiss. Ah, I’m so heartbroken that I completely lost my appetite,” he dramatically touched his forehead with the tips of his fingers. “See you later, guys,” he stormed out of the room.

“I knew it’s gonna end up like this,” Keith mumbled, helplessly plopping on the chair and hiding his red face in his hands.

“What happened?” Shiro asked, his confused gaze going back and forth from Keith to Pidge.

“I thought that Keith has more game than you, Shiro - ” Pidge glanced teasingly at Allura, “ - but I guess I was mistaken.”

“Something? Happened? With Keith and Lance?” Shiro asked, still confused.

“Please, don’t,” Keith said softly, leaning his forehead against the table.

“What is a Sleeping Beauty? Some Earth thing?” Allura asked curiously, changing the topic. Keith almost thanked her out loud.

At the very same moment, Lance was screaming into his pillow. He cursed his earlier embarrassment, he hadn’t thought that it might have been better to talk, to come up with some sort of a strategy with Keith. Because, if Pidge knew, they were in for the ultimate torture.

After he calmed down slightly, Lance noticed faint, unfamiliar, but definitely not unknown, scent on his pillow. It made him remember what happened not even an hour ago.

*

When Lance woke up, he was unusually warm. He marveled at how pleasant it felt and it took him few moments to realise that he wasn’t alone in his bed. What’s more, the one right beside him, hugging him and being hugged by him, was Keith. Immediately, memories of the previous night came back to him and Lance groaned, feeling more and more embarrassed. He didn’t have the slightest idea how to deal with the situation. So, when Keith stirred, waking up, Lance pretended to be still asleep.

“Shit,” he heard Keith whisper under his breath. “He hasn’t woken up yet?” Keith continued quietly. “Maybe he will let go of me now. I need to get out, this is too much, he’s going to kill me, even though it’s all his fault,” Keith shifted, cautiously trying to wriggle out of Lance’s hold.

Lance felt offended at his words but the embarrassment won. He let Keith slip out easily and, moments later, he was alone.

“I’m never going to bring this up with him. And I am going to kill him if he does so.”

*

“Ok, I admit, that was a bad decision. But who could have known that Pidge knew? How she even came to know?!” Lance sat up. “I don’t really want to but I need to talk-”

“Lance, are you here?” he heard Keith from behind the door. Sighing deeply, Lance got up to meet him.

“What?”

“We… I think that we need to… talk.”

“I don’t want to but I have to agree with you,” Lance sighed again and moved a bit, letting Keith in. Just to be sure, he peeked outside to see if someone, namely - Pidge, was following Keith.

There was a long, awkward silence between them, until Lance finally spoke:

“I’d rather remain oblivious but in these circumstances I need to know what happened. I mean, I fell asleep on the training deck but woke up here…” he plopped on his bed.

“I tried to wake you up but it wasn’t working. I didn’t want to leave you sleeping on the floor so I… carried you…” Keith was standing in front of Lance, leaning against the wall and looking everywhere but at Lance. “I guess Pidge saw that.”

“No…” Lance whined, rubbing the bridge of his nose. “Ok, listen, because I’m going to say it only once,” he looked at Keith with determination.

“Ye-yeah?”

“I’m sorry, it was mostly my fault. And also - thank you. For, you know…” he trailed off, waving his hand around. “Now we have to decide how to deal with them. Pidge mostly. I guess. She’s going to have a field trip with teasing the hell out of us.”

“She already is…”

“Yeah… I think that the best thing would be to play along? Until she gets tired of it.”

“Play along? Lance, you know that I won’t be able to do this.”

“Ah... Yeah,” Lance leaned back, so he was lying on the bed. He hummed quietly for a while, thinking. “In your case maybe ‘yeah, you’re right, whatever’ approach would be better? Play your I’m-so-cool-and-don’t-care card with her and it should be fine,” he shrugged.

“You always make everything sound so easy.”

“Fake it ‘till you make it,” Lance waved his hand around one more time and then groaned, realising what, and to whom, he just said. “Anyway - “ he sat up and looked at Keith again, “ - we’re in this together and that’s the plan. Deal?”

“Deal,” Keith agreed, nodding his head.

“So the talk is over. Now go away. Or Pidge’s gonna get even more ideas,” Lance shooed Keith out of his room. When he was alone again, Lance fell face-first on his bed.

“I need to change my sheets,” he grumbled. “Why the hell it smells so much like him after just one night? And it actually doesn’t stink,” he rolled around, so he could lie on his back.

After a moment of simply staring at the wall in silence, Lance groaned again. He desperately tried to not think about how thankful he was that Keith hasn’t brought up the fact that they slept together. Though it wasn’t the thought that he wanted to push to the back of his mind the most. Because, the thing that he was grateful the most for was how Keith comforted him on the training deck. And he didn’t want to admit how good it felt to cuddle with Keith or that he definitely wouldn’t mind doing it again. Or that the additional scent on his sheets wasn't so bad either.

Lance hasn’t realised yet, that his biggest problem at the moment definitely wasn’t Pidge and her teasing. He also wasn’t aware that, in the room right next to his, Keith was having similar thoughts.