Natepat & Septiplier oneshots

116. He stayed himself

SHIP:
Klance (this is more a platonic friendship love)

WARNINGS:
Cancer talk (I know this is a sensitive subject for some people it definitely is for me as well)

EXTRAS:
I was watching The Fault in Our Starts and got sentimental remembering certain things so I decided to write this (I do not wish to over romanise cancer or anything along those lines either - some of this is based on real life)

High School AU

WORDS:
723 (this short and badly written but it means so much to me that I decided to write it... blame it on feeling sentimental)

________________________

Lance: I've just been diagnosed with a cancerous brain tumour

That text came through the summer holiday of their second year into their third year of secondary school - Galaxy Garrison Academy. A school which trained those who went their who to be pilots however the purpose of the school is unimportant what mattered right now was the text. Keith simply stared at his phone blankly, it was true that Lance had been oddly silent and hadn't been speaking, rumours had travelled around the school before they broke up about his disappearance but now here was his answer right in front of him. The rumours had been true. Keith immediately rushed down the stairs of his house and got out his laptop, googling cancerous brain tumour... he knew what it was but he wanted the internet to lie to him, to tell him something other than truth.

That's when the tears began to spill, the more words he read on a health website the more tears ended up falling until he eventually slammed the laptop shut. He couldn't say a word and he didn't speak to anyone.

Summer ended quicker than Keith was ready for and he was somewhat scared of returning to school. He wasn't ready to see his best friend, he expected him to look so different than he remembered and he did. Lance did look different but he was still Lance. His hair had been shaved so he wore a hat to cover it and he had to be pushed in a wheelchair but his humour remained the same and he lived life in good spirits. He was still the same Lance that Keith remembered, he was defined by the cancer and he didn't let it rule his life. He remained his own person.

Lance viewed his cancer as more of a joke than anything else and used it as an excuse to get out of things and honestly that made Keith smile cause he saw that Lance hadn't changed at all. The Latino was still his best friend that he loved so very much. The two spent less time together as their timetables weren't exactly the same but that didn't alter their friendship at all and Keith visited Lance a lot where his mother, Rosa, grew to love Keith because he didn't treat Lance any differently due to his cancer and treated Lance normally unlike a lot of people who had gone to treading on eggshells around the boy. Rosa shared many stories of her son's hospital appointments much to his embarrassment.

The two always had a good time together and it was always a laugh. Keith enjoyed lightly hitting Lance on the side of his face because he was blind on the left side and this would cause Lance to squeak and jump, also cause him to drop whatever he was carrying meaning that he ended up throwing their stuff down corridors. Mostly Lance appreciated having a friend who didn't define him by his cancer and never really spoke about it to him unless the Latino wanted to... that's what made him appreciate Keith.

However all good things must come to an end and the next summer Keith received a phone call when he was on holiday from one of his friend's enlightening him that Lance had passed away. A lot of tears were spilled that night however Lance was to be remembered because of the way he handled life even after being diagnosed he continued to be himself and keep the same humour and that was what Keith loved about his best friend.

Two years later

Keith continues to remember his best friend and swore to never forget him. He will always love and care about him. Lance McClain was a brave man.

Life moves pretty fast. If you don't stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it.