#ladyjanriel

“Lance hurry up! We’re going to be late.” He called, though a part of him hoped his boyfriend didn’t listen. He hoped Lance’s near religious beauty regiment kept him stalled in the bathroom until their set departure time came and went. But he knew better. Lance’s excitement in seeing his family again rivaled a child on Christmas day. There was nothing Keith could do to prevent him from seeing them, and quite frankly, Keith wouldn’t dream of doing that to Lance.

In the four years they have been dating, this would be the first holiday Keith had the pleasure of meeting the entire McClain-Alvarez family. Four years was a long time to wait – not that Lance hadn’t tried. Being an orphan, Keith’s only known family was his adopted brother Shiro and his parents. But Lance, having been a big fan of Shiro before he ever laid eyes on Keith, was already quite familiar with the Shirogane family. Time constraints had kept Keith from meeting the entirety of Lance’s family. In fact, it was only this past New Year’s did Keith finally get the opportunity to officially be introduced to Lance’s parents.

Keith grimaced. Their encounter hadn’t been too terrible, far from it, but Keith would be lying if he said he hadn’t been nervous. Terrified, actually. His boyfriend’s parents. The memory alone was enough to make Keith’s stomach quiver in nervousness.

He took another shaky breath. At least Shiro would be there. Keith didn’t know how he planned on surviving without his big brother there as a support system.

Lance came rushing into the living room, a beanie over his head and a blue scarf wrapped around his elegant neck.

“Ready?” He grinned. He made way toward the kitchen and pulled out two travel-sized water bottles from the fridge. He tossed the second to Keith and took a desperate swig from his bottle.

Keith quirked a curious brow. “Nervous?” He teased.

Lance drank the cool liquid in three big gulps. He wiped his mouth with the back of his sleeve. “Psssh! Me? What do I have to be nervous about? They’re just my family.” He rolled his eyes dramatically then eyed his half-empty bottle of water.

His knuckles were white against his tan skin, taut with how hard he gripped the bottle.

Keith closed the space between them and laid a gentle, warm hand against his boyfriend’s arm.

“Hey, I’m nervous too.” He murmured.

Lance’s deep ocean blue eyes snapped to his face, thin brows furrowed in disbelief. “Babe, seriously? My mom practically adores you. You have nothing to be nervous about.”

Keith laughed. It came out breathless and airy, sabotaged by the anxiety flowing in his veins. He hoped Lance didn’t see how much of a wreck this entire trip was making him feel.

“I’ve only met your parents once and that was this past New Year’s, Lance. Just because your parents like me doesn’t mean the rest of your family will. So yes, I’m freaking out here.”

“Okay, okay,” Lance sighed. He downed the remainder of his water then grabbed another. Without warning, he pulled Keith into his chest and captured his lips; cold and moist from the drink, but still soft and plump as Keith remembered. They pulled away, rosy-cheeked and breathless.

Keith swallowed thickly, his mind suddenly a jumbled mess. “What was that for?”

“Courage,” Lance grinned, his breath cold against Keith’s lips. “We’re going to need a lot of it to get through today.”

They kissed again, delicate and slow, basking in the comfort of each other before Keith reluctantly pulled away. He grabbed both of their luggage and glanced at the clock.

“We should go.”

“Right. Yup! Let’s go!” Lance grabbed their coats from the closet and rushed out of the apartment, his mouth moving a mile a minute as he twittered about traffic and presents and who he expected to be at the gathering.

Keith sighed. He grabbed the forgotten car keys from the key holder, locked up their apartment and followed Lance into the elevator.

-x-x-x-

The drive to Lance’s family home wasn’t a long one. It was an hour and thirty minutes at most with no traffic, but it was enough time for Keith to simmer in the passenger seat, his body thrumming with excessive energy. He listened to his boyfriend’s anxious ramblings, his words no longer coherent. Keith would have preferred to drive, it would have kept his mind off of their impending destination, but Lance’s insistent drumming against the door would have driven Keith up the wall. So for now, Keith let his boyfriend distract himself with the endless expanse of road ahead of them.

Lance’s fingers tapped the leather steering wheel in a disjointed rhythm. He hummed to the music from the radio, sang when he knew the words but mostly, Keith listened to the boy talk to himself about highway exits and bathroom breaks. (He debated for fifteen minutes if a bathroom break was needed despite being on the road for less than ten minutes.)

 From the corner of his eyes, Keith caught the tension building in Lance’s lanky frame. The way his jaw clenched and his lips thinned, Keith wanted nothing more than to run his thumb over his boyfriend’s jaw to soothe away his fears.  

“You’re going to have a blast, Keith.” He said after a while. “Especially if Titi brings the coquito.” The smile on Lance’s face morphed into a grimace. “Or maybe not. I forgot you’re lactose intolerant.” He glanced at Keith with sympathetic blue eyes before turning back to the road.

Keith snorted, a small smile on his lips. “So who’s going to be there exactly?”

“Uh, my parents obviously. You said Shiro was coming right?”

“With Allura.”

Lance nodded. “Right. Then there’s my grandparents, my siblings… uh… Titi Maria, my little cousins…” Lance trailed off, counting the guests in his mind. “Twelve people. Maybe more? I don’t know. It’s hard to tell with the holidays.”

Keith tensed, his anxiety spiking. He stared at the shifting scenery and forced his muscles to relax for Lance’s sake. He heaved a heavy sigh.

“Okay. Cool.”

Lance glanced his way, adoration in his eyes. With his right hand, he reached for Keith’s and intertwined their fingers.

“You’re going to have a great time, I promise.”

Keith squeezed the warm, sweaty hand in gratitude.

-x-x-x-

They reached the house just as the sun dipped below the horizon. It bathed the sky in an array of reds and oranges that brought comfort to Keith despite the nerves that clawed in his gut. He scanned the house for any sign of life. He bit his bottom lip, half expecting a crowd of people to parade out into the lawn once Lance parked the car. And yet, no one came or noticed their arrival. In truth, the house seemed devoid of life. Covered in a rainbow of lights and decorated from roof to bottom in holiday decorations, the house was a gorgeous beacon of light in an otherwise quiet, dark block, but Keith heard no music or saw shadows dancing across the curtain covered windows. For just one second, he liked to pretend there was no one home.

Lance’s shaky exhale brought him back to reality. He turned to his boyfriend, who gripped the steering wheel as though his life depended on it.

“We’re here,” Lance laughed shakily. “Did Shiro message you?”

“Yeah. He’ll be here in thirty minutes.”

Lance nodded. “Okay. Cool.”

They remained in the car, the air tense with their apprehension.

“We should go in.”

“Y-yeah, we should.”

Neither of them moved.

Keith’s clammy pale hand found its way to Lance. He pried his boyfriend’s fingers from the steering wheel and laced their fingers together again.

“We’ve got this.” He murmured, violet eyes bright with determination.

Lance licked his dry lips. “Y-yeah,” he nodded stiltedly. “We can do this.”

Keith pressed a tender kiss against Lance’s knuckles. He traced his thumb over his lover’s skin in small tranquil circles. “I love you.” He smiled warmly. “And thank you for bringing me here. For trusting me and loving me enough to do this.”

Lance swallowed. He leaned in, closing the gap between them and pressed his lips against Keith’s mouth in a desperate, grateful kiss.

“I love you too.” He whispered. He rested his forehead against Keith’s, hot breath ghosting against pink lips.