Say The Word (Klance AU)

Chapter 13

The fact that Lance made it back to the hotel was nothing short of a miracle. It was like everything was clearing the way for him to get through. People avoided him, cars stopped and even the traffic lights turned so that he could cross the streets safely. The whole walk back, his phone was up to his ear. Keith's voicemail answered for the fourth time and Lance quickly hung up to tried again. The next time, he didn't even get any rings. It went straight to voicemail. Keith turned off his phone.

He waited until it beeped; giving him much needed time to control his voice. "Keith. Please pick up. I need to talk to you- just please tell me what's going on?? Please please please just pick up the damn phone..."

His vision started to get blurry as tears began to fill his eyes. Lance was close to the hotel now. He couldn't just break down in the middle of the street. The solidarity of his hotel room, the quiet that being on the fifth floor provided, the chance to break down privately. He needed all of that desperately.

"Lance! Hey buddy I thought you were... you were..." It was Hunk. Good, sweet, dependable Hunk. By the look of it he was alone, stepping out of the hotel lobby ready to go on an adventure. Lance froze, every part of him motionless except for the tears that had finally bubbled passed his eyelashes.

Hunk hurried over and put a hesitant hand on his shoulder. "Lance? Lance... what's wrong? Where's Keith? Is everything okay?"

Lance took a deep, shuttering breath. "He... he's gone. Hunk I think that we... I think that he just..."

Hunk shushed him and put one strong arm around Lance's shoulders. He pulled him close, sheltering him from wondering eyes as the two hurried inside. They rode the elevator in silence, Lance trying to call Keith. It went straight to voicemail again.

The room that the two of them shared was close to the elevator. Hunk hurried him inside, propping it open just a smidge. Lance reached for the bed and slowly set himself down. His phone was clutched in his hand so tight, his knuckles were turning white. Hunk sat next to him, a bottle of water in his hands. He held it out but Lance shook his head.

"Lance what happened?" Hunk finally asked.

The last thing Lance wanted to do was talk about it. He didn't want to relieve what just happened. Didn't want to remember Keith's raised voice and watery eyes. But he needed answers. He needed a clear head to sort out everything Keith had said and help him make sense of it all. He needed his best friend.

"Keith he... I think he just broke up with me." A fresh wave of tears burned down his face, dripping down his chin on to his lap. Lance tried to stay calm but the words quickly overwhelmed him and he began to sob into Hunk's big shoulders.

Hunk hugged him tight, rubbing his back and murmuring all sorts of comforting words.

It'll be okay.

I'm here for you.

We'll get you past this.

I'm sure everything will work out.

Right now those kind words were going in one ear and out the other. Nothing stuck when he was this distraught and all Lance could do was ask himself: why?

Why did Keith break up with him? He didn't say the words, but getting in a taxi and telling a person you're leaving is a pretty good sign that things are over. Nothing Keith said made sense to him. Nothing he did made sense. Why did he assume that Lance was angry with him over a few missed calls? Why did he feel like he couldn't make it up to Lance with a simple response? Why did he feel like this small problem was so much bigger than it actually was?