ｔｅｍｐｏｒａｒｙ ⇒ 𝕝𝕒𝕟𝕘𝕤𝕥

Oh starry night

Written by catradoraistan

It was quiet outside. It was Lance's favorite time, but also the time he dreaded the most. Lance slipped out of bed and into some shoes. He tread lightly past his sisters and his mamá's bedrooms. A glance at the clock above the microwave revealed that it was 1:37 am. Lance pocketed his house key and left.

If there was one thing he enjoyed more than being able to see his family every day it was the view of the stars. The sky was free of light pollution, making way for millions of stars. It was a beautiful sight, but one that made Lance's stomach twist and bile rise in his throat. Lance tore his eyes from the starry sky and made his way past fields of juniberry flowers to a tall tree. 

There was a tire swing hanging from the sturdiest branch and a crudely etched heart by the bottom-most knothole. M+H. Marco wrote it. There was also a perfect spot for hiding, crying, thinking or sleeping. of course you have to climb a couple of branches to get there. But hey, for Lance it was a piece of cake. Lance swung himself up the tree and settled into its branches.  Lance hit his head on a mango. He plucked it from the trees leafy limbs. He threw the mango from hand to hand as he stared into the sky. He could see two outlines in the vast space. two nebulas that seemed to be able to be spotted from anywhere in the galaxy. The faint shimmering image of a princess and prince.

Lance stared resentfully at the stars.

no matter what he did. where he'd go. Space followed him.

he'd tried to forget. live a peaceful life with his family. But Voltron still haunted him.

Saviors of the universe? what bullshit. He had killed more people than you could count on a thousand hands. Suffered more than your average high school drama. he had died at the hands of a galactic war. both physically and mentally. And he could never forget. not as long as he could see those stars.

Lance couldn't lie. He'd considered plenty of times taking his own life, but every time he thought of his family and he couldn't do it. Lance supposed that was sad. He had killed so many people with families. But he couldn't kill one more? He was cowardly, selfish, a fool. 

Lance hadn't even realized he had been squeezing the mango until he felt it dripping down his arm. Lance threw it away in disgust. He curled into a ball and put his head between his knees. He could still feel the presence of the stars. They bored tiny holes into his back. Each one burning a searing fresh memory into his head.  

"I'm afraid this is where we part ways."

"This is our only chance to undo what has been done, to save all of existence."

"this is my purpose."

Lance cried out in agony. Tears rolling down his cheeks. Lance clawed at his eyes, desperate to rid himself of the only thing that kept him tied to his old life. That damned starry night. Lance made ragged lines down his face.leaving his fingertips stained red. As a last desperate move lance snapped a twig from the tree. He felt its sturdy weight in his palm before raking it across his eyes. 

Lance expected to feel some sort of liquid ooze from his eyes, but he felt only pain. Black spots were rapidly expanding in his vision.  He got a final glance at the spiraling pink nebula before it all went dark.

Lances head felt woozy and he began to tilt forward. He slipped from his nook in the tree and fell to the ground. 

Lance turned his head upward as his consciousness faded. At long last. He couldn't see that starry night.