'such a pity, a boy so pretty'

37. sorry about your bike

The next day Lance again woke up in the hospital, his head throbbing and the rest of his body tingling with pain. He looked around until his eyes landed on Keith, their hands linked, sighing, he sat up and groaned a little, waking Keith up.

"Hey" Keith smiled, yawning, Lance smiled back and kissed his hand.

"Hey" He replied, sighing again. Keith noticed his low mood.

"What's wrong?" Keith asked him, stroking his hand. Lance smiled a little.

"Nothing... I just wanna go home." Lance groaned and sighed. "Come here." Lance shuffled to the side of the bed and Keith got in next to him, Lance sighed happily, leaning on his boyfriend.

"Better?" Keith asked and smiled.

"Mhm" Lance said in response. "Sorry about your bike by the way" Lance stroked his tanned fingers up Keith's arm, sighing.

"It's okay, don't worry about it" Keith took Lances hand and smiled a little, and they led there, hand in hand, together.

"You should go home, you don't have to stay here all the time" Lance said, feeling guilty.

"But I want to, I want to know that you're safe." Keith retorted, kissing Lance's knuckles. Lance's mouth twitched at the ends and he shuffled even closer to Keith.

"I am safe. I'm fine. Can't I just go home? I'm bored and I feel fine." Keith looked at him and kissed his forehead.

"Okay, I'll go talk to the doctor" Keith untangled himself from Lance and walked out the room. Lance sat up and looked at his phone.

The doctor had said yes, after asking Lance one hundred questions. A few days later, at home, Lance was finally allowed to walk, well limp, around the house, under his mother's, and Sophia's strict supervision. He sometimes snuck out onto the roof for privacy, but not to often.

Keith came round almost everyday after school, just to be with Lance and they would watch movies and Keith would draw while Lance stretched his legs.

He kept insisting that he was fine, but often got into series of bad moods, being inside too much was starting to get to him and he often slept for longer than usual. Keith tried to cheer him up as much as he could, always asking if he was okay or if he needed anything, he would also ask if he remembered anything from the night of the party, Lance said no.

"Okay, I'm just making sure. The doctor told me too" Keith told him, biting his lip and laying down next to his boyfriend.

"Mhm, I know" Lance said and took Keith's hand, interlocking their fingers. "What if they won't accept me anymore" Lance wondered out loud.

"What?" Keith questioned. "Are you talking about UCLA?" He stroked over Lances knuckles, his thumb brushing softly over caramel skin.

"Yeah.. What if my leg doesn't heal properly or they don't want to wait until I'm healed. What if they give the scholarship to someone else..?" Lance held Keith's hand tightly, gripping it like a lifeline as he spurted all of his insecurities onto his boyfriend. He wasn't good enough, he won't ever be good enough.

"Stop." Keith told him. "Your leg will heal fine. You'll be okay and you'll go to UCLA just like you planned, then you'll become the best basketball player the world has ever known." Keith said to help cheer him up, but Keith's words burned with the guilt that this was his fault. He did this to Lance. If Lance didn't have the scholarship that was his fault. Keith would never be able to forgive himself, and he knew Lance wouldn't be able to forgive him.

"What if I don't?" Lance said and Keith almost froze, what else could he say other than a small 'You will' and a gentle squeeze of the Cuban's hand to reassure him that he will be able to go to UCLA. "Mhm.." Lance sighed, a deep sorrowful sigh and cuddled up to Keith, succumbing to his warmth and closing his eyes.

Keith slowly ran his hand through Lances hair, tracing his thumb over the the scar on his forehead on which, Lance had previously joked he was now the chosen one. He sighed and kissed over the scar. Keith felt a pang of guilt every time he asked if Lance remembered, but he was scared. He didn't want Lance to leave him, or get angry at him.

No harm had been done, other than Lance almost died, because of him, and Lance himself didn't even know. Keith felt terrible. He felt undeserving of Lance, who rested his head on the crook of Keith's neck, arms latching around him. Again, like a lock and key.

Keith's thoughts drifted to Lance's previous debacle. Surely his leg would heal fine and he would go to UCLA, and Keith would go to Art college and everything would be just as they planned. They haven't had a letter from the university yet, so everything was fine. It would be fine.

But the Korean still bit his lip hard. If Lance didn't get to keep the scholarship, that would be his fault, he was to blame. And Lance would be crushed.

In the past, Keith was anyways the one that depended on people, no matter how much he tried to be independent and refuse help. But now he realised, Lance needed his help, he needed him. And he needed the truth.

Keith stroked Lance's soft cheek and sighed, held around his boyfriend and closed his eyes. He couldn't keep lying to him. So Keith made a decision.

He would tell him, soon.

end of chapter 37.

sorry this is so late i guess i've just been super busy cause i'm starting my A-levels and i'm always so tired. But thank you for being patient!