Smoke and Mirrors

Traumatized

Keith was asleep on the bed, wrapped up in Lance's hoodie. It seemed this pregnancy wasn't going to be as easy as what they experienced in, that they referred to as, their non reality. He was tired and nauseous most of the time, but seemed to be managing okay at the moment.

Coran was still the only one who knew. They knew they had to tell Allura and Shiro before Keith began to show. With a bit over two months left, that would not be far away.

There was a soft knock at the door, and Lance took a moment to decide if he would open it or not.

Getting up he hit the button and it slid open.

'Hey,' Hunk said.

'Um...hey,' Lance replied, frowning.

'I baked cookies.' Hunk held the plate out to him, but he didn't take it.

Instead, Lance reached out to close the door.

'Please, don't,' begged Hunk, lowering the plate. 'I'm sorry for everything. I have no excuse for the way I treated you. I got caught up in wanting to find Pidge's family as much as she did.' He looked away for a moment and took a shaky breath. 'Maybe because I missed my own family...and just wanted...family, anyone's family to be here too.' He looked back at Lance. 'In doing that, I hurt my brother, my best friend, my rock. You are anything but weak, Lance. You wear your heart on your sleeve, and you're not ashamed to show your love or vulnerabilities.'

Lance reached out and took a cookie. He stepped aside and let Hunk into the bedroom.

Hunk took the desk chair as Lance sat on the edge of the bed and finished the cookie.

'I still can't get my head around you and Keith being together,' Hunk said.

'Best thing that's ever happened to me,' said Lance. 'I wouldn't imagine being without him now.'

There was still a bit of awkwardness there, but they both wanted to get their friendship back.

'I'm really glad for you,' said Hunk. 'Someone deserves happiness after being out there all this time.' He looked down at his hands. 'It's not much of a life jumping around the universe fighting a war.'

'No, it can be lonely.'

Hunk nodded. 'Not likely to meet anyone out here either.'

'Need a good shag, hey?'

Hunk gave a weak chuckle. 'You know how it is.'

'I didn't need to know that,' Keith mumbled.

Lance took another cookie from the plate.

'I have a sugar filled cookie here that doesn't taste or look like goo.'

Keith sprang up and sat next to Lance and grabbed the cookie and bit into it.

'Mmm, yum.'

Hunk watched the way Lance smiled warmly at Keith, and ran his fingers through Keith's hair. There was devotion in Lance's gaze. It wasn't staged or put on, it was totally real.

'PALADINS TO THE CONTROL ROOM.' Allura said over the speakers.

Keith pulled on his boots and they hurried to the control room to find Krolia on screen.

'What's going on?' asked Shiro.

'We think we've had word of two humans being kept at a Galran outpost.'

'What, where?' Pidge asked.

'The outpost is in the outer reaches,' Krolia said.

'On the edge of Galran space,' Pidge said.