Fourteen Days (5 Days Left)

Day 13 (Always)

(Keith)

"Hey Keith, you going to finish that?" Shiro asked, as Lance and I sat our plates down on the counter, and Shiro eye balled the two mini burritos left on my plate.

I shrugged.
"Their all yours, I didn't like them."
I said slowly, still feeling as if I were walking on the thin icy lid of a frozen lake. Shiro seemed completely casual, but I couldn't get that look on his face this morning out of my head.

Shiro happily slid them onto his plate, but had a slightly offended look on his face, and wasted no time eating it in a single bite. Moaning with the pleasure of the taste as it went down, then bending over with a cough as he choked on it for a moment.

I chuckled a little, releasing some tension.
"You should probably chew the next one."
I said with a slight grin, that felt clearly forced.

Shiro held up a finger as he was bent over.
Then slowly stood back straight red cheeked and grinning. "You have no taste. If you appreciated them like I do, you wouldn't waste time chewing either."

I put on a smile, but it also felt fake. I slowly began to turn, Lance turning with me. Shiro began eating the other burrito.
I faced away, but didn't walk forward, I stood still, Lance looked at me with a cocked head. My feet felt planted to the floor. Unwilling or unable to move, like something was left unsaid, and I couldn't move until it was spoken.

Again I tried to move them, but I only saw Shiro's shocked expression. And his now care free attitude.

'Does he know? Does he not care? Is he not going to mention it, and pretend it never happened?'
All these thoughts raced through my mind.

"You okay?" Lance asked quietly. His brows furrowed in a concerned way, his fingers gently brushing mine, as if asking for permission to comfort me.

''I love you.' Lance had said to me. He said he loved me. And Shiro, and Pidge....am I okay?' I pondered that for a moment, while I was stuck to the ground.

I let out a sigh, and decided.
'So long as I have you.' I thought,

I took a deep breath, and kept breathing in.
'I will turn, as soon as my lungs are full.'
I thought. So I kept breathing in until my lungs couldn't hold more, and I let out the long breath. Then considered taking another, or counting to three, or maybe just having this conversation later.

Then I felt Lance's fingers caress my own, and that was enough.
'I have you.'

I turned back to Shiro, who was looking at me with a smile, and leaning against the counter, one leg bent, foot on top of the other. So casual, it almost seemed forced.

'But not the smile. That's the same smile Shiro wore when I first hugged him months after he took me in.'

"You alright Keith?" He asked.

I tried to speak, but I choked on my words, and they almost came out as a whimper.
Shiro took three steps forward, and wrapped his arms around me, holding me tightly. I lifted my own arms, and clamped onto Shiro, burying my head into my brother's chest.

After a moment, I slowly pulled back, and Shiro just smiled at me, and spoke.

"If you ever need to talk, Keith, I'm here.
If not, I'm still here, always."

I hugged him again, finding the courage to speak only when my face was buried into Shiro's chest, and I couldn't see his reaction.

"You- Shiro, I'm- you don't-" I stumbled over my words, trying not to sob, even as my tears wet Shiro's chest.

Shiro brushed a hand over the back of my head. "I know Keith, it's okay."

I slowly pulled back, somehow finding the strength to chuckled through my tears.
"You know? I haven't said a single thing that makes sense."