Taking A Chance

Healing

Five minutes after Adam arrived Hunk came rushing through the door.
‘Pidge told me everything that happened,’ Hunk said. He moved to sit on the bed on the other side of Lance. ‘I'll stay with him, I'm sure Shiro needs you right now.’
‘Thank you, Hunk,’ Adam said, as he hurried from the room.
‘Hey, buddy. You need to get some sleep,' Hunk said.
Lance shook his head, and let out a sob.
Hunk put and arm around his friends shoulders and pulled him closer and let him sob against his chest until he had nothing left and slowly fell asleep.
Slowly laying him down on the bed, Hunk covered him with a blanket.
There was a soft knock at the door, and Hunk went and opened it to find Pidge there, and her eyes were red from crying.
‘Is Lance okay?’ she asked.
Hunk stepped back and let her in.
'He cried himself to sleep,’ Hunk whispered.
She nodded. She couldn't imagine the turmoil of emotions Lance was experiencing.
She swiped at the tears falling down her cheeks.
‘I know it was hard,’ said Hunk. ‘But everyone's alive and back here safe.’
He pulled her into a hug, and she felt warm and safe, and for a moment she forgot about what happened, as she melted into his arms.
Closing his eyes, he lay his cheek on top of her head, with a soft sigh and rubbed a hand over her back. Her shampoo smelt like cinnamon, and her hair was soft and he found himself pushing his nose further in and breathing in deep.
His eyes sprang open and his body tensed when he realised what he was doing.
‘Pidge, I'm sorry,’ he said, stepping back.
She gazed up at him. I'm not,' she said, softly. Her cheeks reddened, but she held his gaze.
‘Y... your not?’ he asked.
She shook her head. ‘I've been waiting for you to notice me,’ she said. ‘I'm seventeen now, not a kid any more.’
‘I'm very aware of that fact,’ said Hunk, ‘and I have noticed you, but I thought you only liked me as a friend.'
‘Not anymore,' she said.
‘Get a room you two.’
They jumped and turned to find Lance watching them.
Normally, Lance would find great pleasure in teasing thcan and have a huge smirk on his face. Today he looked devoid of feeling.
‘Could you two please leave so I can get dressed,’ Lance said.
‘Buddy, you've only been asleep for fifteen minutes,’ said Hunk. ‘You need to stay here…’
‘No, I need to be with Keith,’ he said. He sat up and swung his feet over the side of the bed, keeping the blanket over his nakedness because the towel had come away under the blanket. ‘Now, you can either leave, or I can embarrass us all and get up while you're here.’
Pidge took that as her cue to leave.
‘Lance, we've been friends long enough that the sight of you naked is not a new thing,’ Hunk said.
‘True that,’ said Lance. ‘I just want to go and see Keith. I know he'll be in the pod a while, but I need to be there with him.’
‘I know, buddy,’ said Hunk. ‘I'll bring some food down to you.’
‘Thank you,’ Lance said.
When Hunk left, Lance dressed and went to the med bay and moved over to he pod. He placed his hand on the pod and stared at the man inside. Closing his eyes, he lent his forehead on the pod as hot fears fell down his cheeks.
He frowned and turned at a soft grunting noise, and the sound of scrapping to find Pidge dragging a matteress into the room.
‘Pidge?’
‘Oh, I knew you'd never go back to bed so I dragged Keith's old mattress in here for you to sleep on,’ she said, ‘and here's his pillow and blanket.’
She set up the mattress next to the pod for him.
‘Thank you,’ he murmured.
‘Any time,' she said. She went and stood next to him and he put an arm around her shoulders. She lent into his side.
‘You okay?’ he asked.
‘I should be asking you that,’ she said.
‘But I'm asking you,’ he said, looking down at her. ‘You heard and saw what we did, and I know it affected you.’
‘I...I can still hear him screaming,’ she murmured. ‘I hate seeing him hurt all the time, he's been in and out of these pods more than any of us. I just want him to be safe.’
‘So do l,' sighed Lance. ‘I want this war to be over so we can be together, raise a family and put all this behind us. I hate this feeling of not being able to protect him, and forever waiting for him to heal.'
‘It wasn't your fault he got hurt,' said Pidge. ‘They were waiting for you, I don't know how, but they were. Do you think there's a spy in the Blade?'
‘I don’t know,’ he said, ‘but that's the only explanation.'
‘Or Allura,' Pidge said.
Lance shook his head. ‘Keith believes her apology, and I'm inclined to agree.’
‘Then it's a Blade member. I'm going to see if I can work it out,' she said.
She hurried out as Hunk came in with food.
‘Come and sit,’ Hunk said, motioning to the mattress.
When Lance sat he handed him the plate and a mug of coffee.
‘Get some rest, Buddy,' Hunk said.
‘Thanks, Hunk,’ Lance said.
Lance only left the med bay to use the bathroom or to shower and change. Everyone checked in on him, bringing him food and drink, and to make sure he slept. Shiro or Adam brought Molly to see him.
She looked up at Keith in the pod and fround.
Molly pointed at Keith. ‘Pa, Da,’ she said.
Lance grinned. ‘You called me Pa.‘ He cuddled her to him.
‘Da?’ she asked.
‘Yes, sweetheart, Daddy will be better soon,’ Lance said.
One morning, Hunk brought breakfast to his friend. He walked into the med bay and froze.
Keith was asleep on the mattress, wrapped in Lance's arms.
Hunk turned and ran back to the dining room.
‘Keith's out of the pod,' he cried, as he burst through the door.
The others sprang up from the table and ran back to the med bay with Hunk.
The noise of running woke Keith and Lance and they sat up as the others burst through the door.
Pidge ran in and threw herself at Keith, wrapping her arms around him, and knocking him back down on the mattress. She started to cry.
Keith frowned as he held her. ‘Hey, what's wrong?’ he asked. His frown deepened as everyone else looked to be on the verge of tears. ‘Lance?'
Everyone seemed reluctant to say anything. Keith struggle, but manage to sit up and move Pidge off him.
‘Pidge, what's going on?' asked Keith.
Pidge wiped her face and pulled out her datapad. She clicked away on it before handing it to Keith.
He watched video footage from security cameras in the med bay from moments before Shiro put him into the pod and everything that happened after that. When he saw the healing pod turn on and Lance collapsed to the floor sobbing, he handed the datapad back to Pidge.
‘How long have I been in there?’ he asked. His mind was numb, trying to processes the information he'd seen. He'd almost died, or had he died, we wasn't quite sure but either way Lance had completly lost it.
‘Just over 4 weeks,’ said Lance. ‘We're on the edge of Earth's solar system, we waited for you before we contacted Earth.’
‘The information we got from the Galran base?' asked Keith,
‘The attack is planned to happen in 30 days,' said Shiro. ‘The location of the teledove has been given to Kolivan and they will try and extract King Alfor before the attack date. The coalition has been contacted, and a rondaveu place and time has been set up 10 days before the attack where Allura will open a wormhole and let them all through to Earth.’
‘You've done a lot of work while I was healing,’ Keith said. He was a little sad he couldn't be involved.
Allura moved forward. ‘And none of it would have been possible without the information you retrieved,’ she said. ‘Which is why we waited for you to be with us when we contact Earth. We will all meet in the control room in an hour.’