Ballroom Dancing

Midnight Snacks and A Little Too Much Excitement About Altean Clothing

"Lance."
"Lance!"
"Oh my god, LANCE WAKE UP"
I'm violently shaken awake by small hands grasping my shoulder and hitting my face. "Ugh... What the hell, Pidge?"
"Lance, you've had your beauty sleep, now you have GOT to GET UP" Pidge exclaimed, jumping up and down.
"Dude, what's happening?" I say, rubbing my eyes and moving to sit up. Pidge is smiling like a dork. It's a little creepy, but that's Pidge for you.
"Allura has outfits. And they look amazing." She put a space between "they", "look", and "amazing" for emphasis. I immediately perked up. "Wait, seriously?" Pidge laughed, "Why would I lie about cool clothes, Lance? OF COURSE I'M SERIOUS!"
We simultaneously started squealing.

When we got to the rest of the team (except Shiro and Corran, who were meeting with the Arusians about security, so basically just Allura and Hunk) Allura was already showing Hunk some suits that the previous paladins had worn for dances. Hunk was eyeing the old blue paladin's suit with designs along the collar that looked like a galaxy or magic. It was beautiful. When Allura noticed us walk in, she said hello and immediately brought over an array of outfits that she claimed would fit me. She turned to Pidge, "Would you like to wear a dress or a suit? I have plenty of both that will fit you!" I saw Pidge's eyes go wide. Nobody had ever asked her that. "Thanks, Princess! Can I look at both options?" Pidge gushed, a bit more enthusiastically than expected. "Do you just want to look at more cool alien clothes, Pidge?" I whispered as I elbowed her. "Duh, Lance. Duh," she replied as she followed Allura to another corner of her enormous princess closet. I snickered, beginning to look through the suits Allura had given me. They were all stunning, made with a fabric like a mix of silk and cotton, but definitely nothing I'd ever felt before. There was one with shimmering holo, another with a holo-like substance, but it was truly a moving rainbow. There was one with moving stitches, depicting a battle between Voltron and a large alien beast. At the end, when Voltron was victorious, it moved and started over again. My eyes finally fell on a shimmery sky blue suit, accented with fabric that looked exactly like the surface of the ocean, and moved like it too. I immediately took it and tried it on.
It fit perfectly.
I definitely didn't squeal and jump up and down for a solid 10 seconds...

After everyone had picked out their outfits, we all gathered in Allura's bedroom. We all looked around. Everyone looked amazing and high-class, like we should each be holding one of those small champagne glasses and talking with British accents.
Hunk had chosen a sparkly yellow suit that shimmered in the light, a beautiful golden, paired with a shiny black tie. The top looked like it was made directly from the sun. He looked great.
Pidge ended up going with a dress after all. She had an off-shoulder dark green dress with those little sleeves. It puffed out at the waist and flowed down, with a small train in the back. The design of beautiful alien plants looked so real, for a second, I thought they were growing out of the hem of the dress. She looked so happy in it, and she looked amazing.
Allura had a tight light pink dress with blue accents that shimmered when she walked. She also had a tiara with jewels hanging down and into her hair, which was up, but cascading down in the sides. She looked gorgeous.
Keith had a dark red suit, with accents that looked like red fire in the evening, so real I expected smoke to come off it. He had a black flower that looked like it should turn to ash, but in a good way, you know? He looked nervous in front of everyone. I kind of wanted to assure him that he didn't need to be worried... I mean, he looked crazy good. Definitely better than me. Possibly the best in the room, though I hated to admit it. Maybe this ball wouldn't be so bad...
Allura clapped her hands and broke the silence. "Well, you all look wonderful! I'm so glad you like the outfits, too. I had been hoping to reuse them someday," she smiled. "Yeah, thanks Allura! These are so cool," Hunk exclaimed. "I love this so much," Pidge agreed, sitting on Allura's bed and playing with the ends of her dress. Allura laughed. "Well, you all should probably hang those up in your own rooms now. Wash up and rest up! Tomorrow we start dancing!"
I was so hyped up with my new suit, I didn't even mind the impending doom that loomed over me in the form of dance lessons as I showered and put on my nightly Altean face mask.
Well, I didn't think about it until it was the middle of the night and I woke up in a cold sweat from a nightmare I couldn't remember. My feet felt sore. It hit me what was going to happen tomorrow and a million what-ifs ran through my mind at a million miles per hour. What if I fell? What if the fall sprained my ankle? At least then I wouldn't be able to embarrass myself further. But what if they made me dance anyway? What if I was so bad none of us raised money at the ball? Would Voltron die? Would Haggar and her evil druids make the galra reign over the universe once more while we were still stranded in space with no way to get home? I couldn't get back to sleep with all these horrible ideas in my head. So I went out, rubbing my eyes, not sure where I was heading.
My feet took me to the kitchen. I figured a midnight snack might clear my head. (Do Alteans have midnight?) As the door slid open (man I love these automatic doors in the castle) I heard movement in the kitchen. I flinched, only to realize it was only Keith.
"Hey, man. Couldn't sleep either?" I asked.
"I guess... I'm just not that tired. What about you?"
"Oh.... I.. Uh..." Did I want to tell him I had a slight panic attack about how I can't dance and now I can't get back to sleep?
"Let me guess: You're nervous. Honestly, so am I. I don't think I'm a great dancer. I'm also not the most popular paladin, so at least not a lot of people will want to dance with me."
"I'd want to dance with you!" I blurted, immediately regretting it. I don't like seeing my friends upset, especially when I'm already upset. Sometimes I just say whatever I think they'd want to hear without thinking about it first. Not that I wouldn't want to dance with him though, I'd just make a huge fool of myself if I did.
"Oh, thanks, Lance. That's... really nice of you. Maybe I'll take you up on that offer." Not the answer I was expecting but... wait... is he... blushing? It's not much, but I'm pretty sure he is. Oh god. Now I'm blushing too. This is awkward. I'll say anything to break this silence. A small part of my head says "tell him that why you're really here". Okay, anything but that. "So, uh, what brings you to the kitchen?" I ask. Smooth, Lance. Great conversation starter.
"Midnight Snack. Maybe it'll help me sleep. You?"
"Same thing... Hey," I begin. "You said you didn't think you were a great dancer? But you can dance, yeah?"
"Yeah. I mean, I guess I can. I took lessons and I didn't fall on my face, so I suppose I was good." I fell on my face. A lot. I feel my face get warm with embarrassment.
"Why?" Keith asked.
"Well, ugh, this is weird to say, but I can't. Dance, I mean. It's super embarrassing. I tried taking lessons and stuff, but I was never any good," I found myself pouring out all the crap I didn't want to think about. It felt good. "Every time I would try, I would step on someone else's toes, or trip them, or trip myself, or mess up in any possible way. Eventually, my mom had to take me out of dance lessons. I'm still sad about it because I did really like it. Music is a big part of my life, and I just wish I could move to it well. That sounds stupid, I know, but it didn't sound as stupid when I was lying awake in bed, sweating, because I was scared my bad dancing would scare away anyone from donating to Voltron at all, then Voltron would fall and we wouldn't be able to stand up to the galra and they would regain control over the universe and we would all be enslaved to them and all of us would be stranded slaves in space with no way of getting back home." I finished, tears breaking through my eyes and slowly rolling down my cheeks.
"Lance..." Keith sighed, setting his cup down on the counter and opening his arms slightly and comfortingly for a hug. His expression looks so genuinely concerned, which only made me feel worse. Though, if he looked mad or happy or anything else, I'd still feel worse. Nevertheless, the tears started coming faster, and I leaned forward as Keith stepped towards me and wrapped me in a bear hug I didn't think possible for someone of his size.
I sniffed after a bit and Keith gently let me step back. "I've never told anyone all that..." I said quietly. Keith smiled warmly. "I'm glad you told me. Keeping all that bottled up would've killed you eventually. And, if you want, I could teach you how to dance?" he offered. I looked up. No one ever asked me to dance, even if it was just lessons. "I told you, I took lessons before. I'd probably end up getting your wrist sprained-"
"You got someone's wrist sprained?" Keith interrupted incredulously. I winced. "I'm sorry... I didn't mean to- Maybe it'll be easier to learn one-on-one? And with someone you already know?" Keith recommended. "I... I don't know. Maybe? I think I'll tell all that to the group tomorrow, though. It'll be easier now that I've already told you," I sighed. "I'm going to try to go back to sleep. 'Night, Keith."
"'Night, Lance. Hope you get to sleep."

It took me a little while to actually fall asleep, but at least the anxiety had calmed down, more or less. I prepped myself for tomorrow.
I was totally (read: not at all) ready.