The Secrets Within Ourselves (KLANCE)

40: Assemblies

Song Of The Chapter:
Cringe - Matt Maeson

It was strange walking down the hallways of school again.
Keith's eyes roamed where there was still obvious damage where bullets had pierced walls, lockers, and windows.
He could see the looks of unease as students found their way around campus, eyes weary.
Keith couldn't blame them. It put everyone through a lot of trauma, especially those who lost their lives.
There was a new memorial outside school, listing all the people who died. More than half of his classes that day was filled with talking about the incident.
There was an assembly being held before lunch as well.
Keith could barely imagine how Lance felt at the moment, knowing that Lance blamed himself.
Keith sighed, stuffing a textbook into his locker, swapping it out for another book.
He wondered how Lance would get by becoming a hero. How he would achieve his goal?
Public speaking would be a good option to get better known, but Keith feared that it wouldn't go well when people who held spite toward him showed up.

The dark haired boy closed his locker and moved to his next class, Health.
It was, surprisingly, a subject be enjoyed.
It may have been because of his teacher, Ms. Olkari, (Ryner) or the fact that a lot of the subjects covered and the way the teacher taught it made it interesting.
They were on the unit of relationships, though. Any other time Keith would be less interested in such topics, but with his current situation, he couldn't help but listen.
The teacher gave great advice, too. She listened to people's questions, and the class discussed how people should work things out with different people, whether it be family members, friends, or someone in a relationship.
When Keith raised his hand, Ms. Olkari was obviously surprised.
"O-Oh! Keith?"
A breath in as Keith prepared what he was going to say.
"I have a special person in my life who is struggling a lot right now. I want to help them out but I'm not sure how."
"Is it a person you are in a relationship with?"
"Yeah."
"What sort of things, if you don't mind me asking?"
Keith hesitated. "I-It's a little complicated. I want to support them the best I can, and let's just say they have to achieve a goal of some sort. I fear they might not be able to reach it. But reaching the goal would probably benefit both our lives."
She nodded. "I see. Well, Keith, it seems like a struggle trying to support her in accomplishing that goal."
Keith flinched at the word "her."
"Uh..." he said awkwardly, "I... I don't swing... that way. It's a 'he.'"
"Oh! My apologies, Keith. His goal. Well, I suggest you listen to their ideas about how he wants to accomplish the goal. Share ideas. Be open and honest with each other. Being honest with any partner will benefit any relationship, because you then will be able to see eye to eye on things."
Keith nodded, ignoring the shocked looks on some of the other student's faces.

So what if he's gay? It doesn't matter. It shouldn't matter, because he wasn't harming anyone's life by it. They probably wouldn't even know him in a few years, yet alone have a friendship with him.
Keith wished that they could carry on like it was no big deal. But to them, of course, it was. Society has specific molds for different norms. You don't fit in with the daily, normal flow of things? Boom. You're recognised, either in a good or bad way.
That's just the way life is.

Keith wanted to say that, but chose not to.
He didn't want any more attention drawn to himself.

After the classes held before lunch, Keith and all the other students made their way to the gym where the assembly was being held. Scanning the sea of heads for any he recognized, he finally pinpointed the familiar brunette further up in the crowd.
Keith pushed through, saying "excuse me" and "pardon me" mindlessly, trying to reach Lance.
He felt a hand on his shoulder before he reached the Cuban boy, and Keith realized it was Shiro.
Keith's eyes widened for a moment, but then he smiled.
"Hi."
"Hey! How are you doing? I haven't seen you in a while."
Keith shrugged, keeping an eye on Lance. "Fine. Busy, though. A lot of things have been happening lately."
Shiro nodded in understanding. "There's always something, huh."
Keith sighed. "Yep. Come with me," he ushered as Lance's head began to mix in with the crowd. "I need to catch up to Lance."
Shiro nodded, and together the two pushed through the crowd, until they finally reached Lance.
"Oh, hey! Pidge is inside, I saw her go in," Lance said.
He sounded overly enthusiastic, which always was a sign he wasn't doing well. Before Lance could rush forward, Keith grabbed Lance's hand, causing the boy to flinch.
His eyes almost looked frightened, like at any given second someone would yell at him and say it was his fault.
"Hey, hey. Wait."
Lance gazed down, but Keith's finger forced him to look back up. The two shared a moment of silence, almost seeming to have a silent conversation through simple eye contact. Keith squeezed Lance's hand, which was enough to have Lance's face loosen. Begin to fade from the mask he had put up.
"Letse go inside."

The gym was crowded, but somehow the whole group was able to be together.
They met up with Pidge and her brother, Matt. Alongside the siblings, they met Adam, Shiro's boyfriend, as well as Shiro's close friend Allura and her girlfriend Romelle and, of course, Hunk.
"Jeez, is anyone here actually straight?" Pidge groaned.
She had a point.
Matt slowly raised his hand.
"Ah, one straight dude. Sorry Matt, you're kicked out."
"What? What about Hunk! Doesn't he have a girlfriend?"
"Yeah," Hunk shrugged, "But I'm a pansexual."
Matt groaned.
Before Matt could come up with a retort, the assembly started.

It was an emotional assembly, but that wasn't a surprise. People were crying over those lost, sharing their stories about the incident.
Lance continued to look increasingly uncomfortable, fidgeting in his seat whenever anyone mentioned the men who caused the incident.
Until one girl stood up.
"I just wanted to take a moment to thank someone for showing up and helping my whole class escape. I know that they are not popular or necessarily known as a good person, but Frost, the well known criminal, showed up and helped my class get out safely. Without him, we probably might not have all gotten out safely. I wish I could thank him myself."
Murmurs rippled through the crowd. It was already known that Lance, or Frost, had helped people get to safety alongside Slate. News spread quickly.
But hearing someone announce it aloud was a different story.
Lance took a deep breath and smiled.
Maybe people were seeing the good in him after all.

But-

One of the teachers spoke.
Keith had been paying attention, and the moment the teacher cleared her throat, he tensed.
"Yes, I have to agree with you. But keep in mind, students, that he is still a villain. For all you know, he could have planned that to happen and tried to act like the good guy. He's not someone you should look up to, no matter how cool you think he is."

Keith noticed the way Lance clenched his fists and looked down, letting out a small huff of a breath.
It was clear Lance was upset by that remark. Keith was about to place a comforting hand on Lance's, but then he noticed another pair of eyes looking at Lance.
Shiro's.
The man wore an odd look, and Keith almost wanted to snap, "What are you looking at?"
Lance leaned into Keith, and they locked hands.
"I can't handle this," Lance murmured, and all Keith could do was nod, wanting to glare at the older student, but instead closing his eyes.
Lance obviously wanted to go, but leaving at a time like this would be rude, and could cause suspicion.
So, they just sat through it, both knowing the secrets behind what really happened.

And Shiro stared. He stared.

A/N: EyyyYyyY I updated
Yikers it might not be so good in the hood.
I'm planning on having like.... 5 more chapters before the next book will come along? OoF
I can't wait to continue it honestly.
It should be pretty cool.
Well anyways hope you enjoyed the chapter!

Have a my kitty, Jojo