Bodysnatchers

10

Keith leaves the hall with a thin layer of sweat lining his forehead and his cupids bow, the palms of his hands clammy. He barely knew the answer to a single question.

It's as if his brain was divided into two segments: before Lance, and after Lance. The bad part of that however, is the 'before Lance' is like a zip file and Keith for some reason can't unzip it, and it's frustrating. He just can't seem to access it.

And so his pen had just wiggled across the blank pages, leaving messy and smudged words behind that had no fucking meaning. He'd bullshitted his answers to high heaven, talking about revolutionary France wasn't something he wanted to or knew how to do. But there is a lump in his throat because good boy Keith Kogane was predicted an easy 95 and he doubts that he has even managed to get a 60.

He's fucking disappointed in himself.

Shiro is going to kill him.

He turns his phone on with sweaty fingers. What he feels he needs right now is one of his most stupid, ridiculous ideas because it is not what he needs at all after that disaster of an exam. What he really needs is an early night and a few hours of study, a cup of tea since he's off classes for the rest of the afternoon, and he needs a healthy afternoon snack cause he was stupid and didn't eat breakfast or lunch before the exam, and he really, really needs to fucking study-

Yet he's dialing Lance's number against his better judgement as he picks up his bag, slinging it over his shoulder.

He needs to study, sure; but what he feels he needs right now is to kiss Lance, and smoke something. Or maybe lose himself and all of his doubts in Lance's touch if they have sex or something-

Lance doesn't pick up. And Keith furrows his brow because it's 3pm and he knows that Lance had a morning exam. He tries again. Then again.

It's weird, he thinks. Lance always answers, since he's always on his phone unless he's asleep.

Keith decides to give it a minute and goes to walk out back to the parking lot instead of staying in the school longer than he needs to.

He tries again once he's outside sitting on a curb. One more time. And thankfully, Lance picks up.

"Hey," Keith says. "Thanks for the text earlier. I'm pretty sure I failed, though."

"Oh," Lance says. His voice is empty and quiet. "Yeah, that's shit."

"Yeah," Keith says. "Do you want to do something? I'm bored already."

"Can't."

"Oh..." Keith's taken by surprise. He sounds clingy and ridiculous, sure, but the thing is that Lance has always made time for him. Always. "Later, then? I feel a bit shit."

"Can't," says Lance.

There's a beat. He adds, "gotta study," but it sounds like a second thought to add

Keith considers questioning his bluntness and the fact that he sounds like the Lance who is rude to people he doesn't like, rather than Lance- Keith's boyfriend Lance.

But he doesn't. It's another reminder that he's pathetic, tiptoeing around Lance the way that he always does.

"Okay," Keith says. "Um. That's alright. When are you free?"

"I'm not. I have to go though, bye."

Lance hangs up before he can get another word out, and Keith feels sick.

He doesn't feel sick because Lance is being short and he sounds angry, or because he's probably failed his exam. Not even because he hasn't had enough sleep recently and he feels like shit in general.

He feels sick, first and foremost, because Eric Kelly is standing across the way with a few friends by his side. And his friends, they're typically glaring and scowling. But Eric Kelly isn't. Eric Kelly's smiling, smirking, and he is looking right at Keith.

"Had a few words with Lance," Eric Kelly calls, and he jumps down from the car that he's sitting on. "He didn't seem to know much about you. Funny, that. Seeing as you're all loved up and shit, yet he didn't even know who you were!"

Keith freezes on the spot. His mouth is hanging slightly open.

Fuck.

"Now, that wasn't very nice of you, Kogane," Eric Kelly laughs. "Honesty is important in a relationship, ain't it?"

"I- I am honest," Keith stutters.

"Don't even," Eric Kelly shakes his head. "McClain barely even knew who you were. What were you trying to do, Keith? Laugh at him?"

Keith shakes his head. That was never his intention, not for one moment.

"Well that's not what he thinks," Jamie chips in, a little gleeful. Aiden is grinning.

"What do you mean?" Keith croaks out. He's panicking now, his palms sweating. He doesn't want to lose Lance.

Aiden shrugs. "We're your friends, remember?" he say. His voice is mocking. "We were just looking out for you. Looking out for Lance. We just had a friendly chat with him."

"You seemed to have missed quite a few points about yourself," Eric Kelly laughs. "Do you even know who you are?"

Eric Kelly's not intelligent. He's a bully, and his words are just for taunting, to hurt Keith. To make him feel like an idiot. Eric Kelly isn't even thinking about what he's saying and yet, Keith is. His words hit a nerve, strike something. Because no, Keith doesn't. He used to be so sure of himself and now he isn't, and something has changed.

"Trouble in paradise, then," says Aiden.

"I think you might get dumped soon, dude, pity," adds Jamie.

"Fuck you!" says Keith, and the words are out through trembling lips before he even knows what he's saying. Eric Kelly's eyes darken, his fists pinch white. They're going to kill him.

"Don't even talk to us!" Aiden snaps. "You're nothing, Kogane. Just a lying little faggot. You are nothing."