Klance oneshots

Soulmate AU

[requested by @nobody_important07]

CW: fire

It is said that the red string of fate that ties two people together is always there, but it only becomes visible once you talk to your soulmate for the first time. Lance has seen his since he was four years old and, at first, he was too young to understand what it was, and he didn't notice it right away.

A couple years later, his mom explained it to him, that the red strings connected soulmates, that they could see the strings but not really touch them, that unless you knew who your soulmate was you wouldn't be able to see the connection between both ends of the string.
It was such a wild concept to him that he immediately grabbed his dad's phone and called his best friend Keith to tell him about it. They made up a plan.
"You really think this is gonna work?" Keith had asked back then.
"Yes!" little Lance replied. "If I pull on the string, my soulmate will fall and I will see who it is!" he stopped talking for a minute "Oooh, do you think it will be Allura?"
"I don't know" Keith said "I guess she's pretty."

Of course yanking the string didn't work, but they had to abandon that plan anyway because Keith had unexpectedly tripped on a rock and scrapped his knee. They tried to mess with their strings a few more times, but they didn't seem to be accomplishing anything.

Making absurd plans to find out the identity of their soulmates was their thing, but the day after Lance's 8th birthday Keith moved out of town.
"My dad has a new job" Keith had explained.
"But you can't leave!" Lance cried out. "We still don't know who our soulmates are!"
They said goodbye and hugged tight, but there was nothing Lance could do to make him stay, Keith moved out and they drifted apart over the years.

Eight years later

Keith woke up, drenched in cold sweat and a bad feeling. He found it hard to breathe. Alarmed, he ran out of bed and into his parents' room, and that's when he saw it: there was a fire in their garden, which suddenly got bigger and crawled up the tree.
"Dad!" he yelled. "Mom, wake up!"
He was desperate. He couldn't see the garden through the window anymore, just fire.
Kosmo started barking.
"Dad!"
Finally, they woke up, startled.

Everything that happened after that was blurry for Keith: he didn't remember when the fire fighters got there, or how he got out of the house, or how did he manage to sneak past his dad when he ran back into the house. All he could think about was that his dog, Kosmo, wasn't outside, and he couldn't leave him in there.

Calling for him, he searched through the first floor, but when Keith managed to find the dog, there was too much smoke around him. The fire hadn't been extinguished yet, he couldn't breathe. He reached out for Kosmo, and fainted.

Next thing he knew, he was being carried out of the house, and Kosmo was with him, so he relaxed. It wasn't until a few days later when he realized his red string was gone.
Well, not gone, just... shorter. Burnt.

"How is this even possible?" he had asked his mom. "It isn't supposed to be something... physical. It isn't supposed to catch fire."

But nobody found an explanation, and everyone seemed to pity him.

Far away from him, Lance was having the same issue: a seemingly burned string, no explanation, and sad looks. At some point, Lance even thought his soulmate could be dead, but ultimately he decided to try not to think about it.

Two years went by, and Lance was still upset about it. He remembered the times when he would try to pull on the string, and he felt like something was now missing. Then, he remembered Keith. They hadn't spoken in three years, but he often thought that he'd like to see him again, so he gave him a call.

Nobody picked up.

Keith stared at his phone, not daring to grab it. Lance was calling, but why? It had been so long, Keith felt like perhaps it'd be awkward. And maybe, just maybe, he was also a little bit scared.

Keith remembered very clearly the day he met Lance: they were four years old, playing together in the park. Keith liked to pretend he was a pirate, and Lance joined him. They instantly became friends.

But we haven't seen each other in ten years, are we even still friends? he wondered, and he hoped they were.

So, when Lance called him, he felt like a coward for not picking up, and again when he explained the situation to his older sister Acxa.

"But" he said "what if he's calling me to tell me he finally found his soulmate? That was our thing, I don't know how i'd feel about that..."

"You think it's him, don't you?" his sister replied "your soulmate."

He stopped for a minute.

"...I don't know."

"But you'd like to."

"We haven't spoken in three years, Acxa." Keith mumbled.

"So what? You guys are still friends. You should go see him."

"You're joking."

"I'm not. I'll even buy your train tickets" she smiled. "You really should go."

And that's what he kept telling himself on his way to Lance's house. "I have to go, I need to see if his string is also burnt."

A few blocks away from the house, Keith decided to call Lance.
What if he isn't home? What if he doesn't wanna see me?

"Huh. Hello" he started.

"Keith? Is that you?" Lance sounded happy to hear him, which was reassuring "Man!" Lance laughed.

"I know it's been a long time but... I don't know. I have something to show you."

"What are you talking about, Keith? Wanna skype? Are you okay?"

"I might or might not be at your doorstep."

Lance hung up and, for a moment, Keith was worried that he had upset him. But almost immediately, he heard rapid footsteps. Lance opened the door, looking like he was out of breath, and Keith couldn't help but smile.

He is taller than me now Keith thought he has more freckles. He's gorgeous.

"I—" Lance muttered "You've changed"

"It's been ten years" Keith cackled. "Can I come in?"

Lance didn't answer.

"Lance? What are you... oh." He was staring at his string, eyes wide.

"That's what I wanted to show you. House fire" he explained.

"It's you" Lance interrupted. "Mine is like that too. It's you!"

"Well, hm. I fell when you pulled on your string that time, when we were six. I thought, maybe..." Keith scratched his head.

They stared at each other for a long time, not daring to break the silence. And suddenly, Lance made a move: he grabbed Keith's shirt and pulled him forward. Keith felt strong arms around him and sighed, relieved, hugging Lance back.

"Aren't you disappointed it's not Allura?" he asked, half joking.

"No" Lance replied. "And this time, Kogane, I'm not letting you go."
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hewwo👀 this was a bit rushed because as i said i'm busy with college, but i hope you'll enjoy it :) as always, if you have any au request you can leave it in the comments
thanks for your patience!