#sheithauweek

Takashi Shirogane, former race car driver and the object of Keith’s teenage dreams, left the life of adrenaline and national fame after a horrific car wreck, one Keith witnessed on TV. Minus an arm and plus a scar, Shiro traded the life of super-tight jumpers for super-tight jeans, and he opened a diner in his home city with his childhood pal Hunk.

When Keith walked into the diner his first day on the job, he wore a faded and greased up tanktop, a jumper with its arms tied around his waist, and his hair pulled back in a short tail. Yet Shiro looked up from behind the counter and smiled, a beaming, heart-stopping grin that left Keith speechless.

After a few days, Keith fingered-comb his hair before entering, and Shiro leaned an elbow on the counter as he took Keith’s order. After Shiro handed it to Hunk, Keith slipped into one of the elevated stools to watch Shiro work, and they traded stories of their mornings.

Eventually, they began to trade texts, too. It only made sense. Hunk forgot Antok’s bacon once, and when Keith brought back the cheeseburger, Shiro gave his number.

“You’re my best customers. If this happens again, I’ll deliver a new burger on the house – er, restaurant.”

Of course, Keith missed his diner visit one day. He stayed home from work – Flu. Terrible. Contagious. He couldn’t possibly get out of bed. – or so he texted Kolivan. A few hours later, Shiro showed up on his doorstep.

“Kolivan told me,” he said with a sheepish smile before holding up a cylinder container. “Had Hunk whip this up for you. Chicken soup. His grandmother’s recipe.”

“Uh, thanks…” It wasn’t awkward that the owner of the diner he frequented, just happened to worry about him. Nope. Especially since Keith had dreamed this very scenario night after night for the last year. “But…um…you see…there’s this thing...”

Shiro surveyed him, head ducked low and drawn close to scrutinize Keith’s face. “You played hooky.”

Keith let out a defeated sigh and opened the door to show the pillow in front of his PlayStation4 and TV. “I was winning, and there weren’t that many cars in the shop when I left yesterday. I thought…”

“It’s cool.” Shiro’s smile remained effortless, though his lips tugged down on one side. “Here, take the soup anyway. Gotta keep your strength up. And…uh, I’ll see tomorrow? Or maybe Friday?”

“Or…” Keith couldn’t lose nerve now. Shiro showed up on his doorstep, so that had to mean something, even if it was just friendship. And friends did this kind of thing…right? “You-You could stay. Share the soup. Play some Fortnite…y’know, if Hunk and Lance are good at the diner.”

Shiro’s eyes widened; he pulled out his phone. “I’ll text Pidge to keep the place from burning down.”

They spent the entire day together, drinking, eating, laughing – and something changed between them. Keith liked it.

Shiro began to text randomly throughout the day. He made a few trips to the garage rather than making Keith always come to the diner. He shook Kolivan’s hand and teased with Ulaz or Thace. He patted Antok on the arm, and then he sat and watched Keith work, keeping him company throughout his tasks.

But Keith always came to the diner for dinner.

After a particular long day at work, Keith moved from his perch at the counter to one of the large booths. He leaned his back against the window, one leg stretched across the bench, and waited for Shiro to join him. Shiro said nothing, just placed Keith’s order in front of him, then slid into the opposite bench his own plate.

They met after work, on the weekends. Shiro came to Keith’s place or Keith followed him out of the diner. The leaves fell and regrew, and Keith swallowed a large bite of his burger as he watched Shiro take yet another fry.

“You know I don’t eat all this many,” he complained as he dumped another heap of ketchup on his plate. “You put all these here so you can eat them, didn’t you?”

“Guilty as charged,” Shiro replied, “stealing” another fry as if to make his point. “You see the new superhero fic hit on-demand?”

“Yeah. You coming over tonight to watch it?”

“Sure.” Shiro pointed to one of his tomato, and Keith seized with his fork. “What bagel do you want from Coran’s? I’ll pick it up fresh on my way over.”

Which meant Shiro wanted to stay until the morning. Nothing unusual there. He usually stayed over on Fridays. “French toast. See if they can put powered sugar on it, will you?”

“If they don’t have French toast?”

“Set the place on fire.”

“Cinnamon raisin it is.”

“Ugh. No.”

“It’s your second favorite.”

“I tolerate it.”

“I also got tickets to that car show tomorrow.” Shiro stabbed his omelet’s onions, joining the potatoes on his fork. “You working? If so, I’ll give them to Lance. He’s been bugging me about them, but I wanted to run it by you first.”

Keith bit down on his burger and wiped a bit of ketchup from the corner of his mouth, considering. Tomorrow was his day off, and spending it with Shiro…would be exactly how he spent all his other off days. Weekends, too. Free nights he stayed at the diner rather than heading home, and he made sure to wait up for Shiro’s text to know he made it back to his place.

Glass shattered in the back of Keith’s mind as Shiro stole a few more fries off his plate.

“Shiro, are we dating?”

Shiro finished his fries, munching on them slowly, blinking thoughtfully. He swallowed and then took a sip of his seltzer before finally replying, “I think we’re closer to married at this point.”

Oh. Keith weighed that thought carefully, tumbling it over in his mind a few times to get the feel of it. They made plans together, spent time together, considered each other into their lives. Keith brought Shiro shopping for his couch and pots, while Shiro asked Keith to help pick out his last TV. They ate dinner together every night, and they texted each other every morning. They saw each other at lunch.

There was just one thing missing.

“If we’re married, then I want sex.”

To his credit, Shiro didn’t choke on his fries. “We have sex.”

They did and didn’t. Sometimes when Keith thought he could get away with it, he’d lean against Shiro and close his eyes. Sometimes Shiro would wrap an arm around his shoulders or even rest his hand near Keith’s. Every so often, Shiro would turn his head against Keith’s neck, his lips close, and their hands would do the rest. Jeans open, gentle embraces, a cut-off cry, but nothing heavy or all that hot. A few embraces, sharp inhales, and a quick release.

“We don’t have a lot of sex. Not like couples should.”

Shiro looked up from under his mess of white bangs, a bit more open than Keith remembered ever seeing him. “You want to have sex…?”

The absent with me hit Keith harder than it should have. “Well, yeah. Why wouldn’t I?” His seventeen-year-old self would have died from this conversation alone.

Shiro looked away to focus on the suddenly fascinating mustard, but his flesh hand came up from under the table to grip his metal wrist. Keith reacted on instinct, slipping his fingers between Shiro’s metal ones and squeezing. Heat rose in his cheeks as he offered a helpless shrug.

“I like the ridges.”

Shiro’s eyes flashed to his, so crystal and beautiful in the twilight, and they stole Keith’s breath all over again. Huh. This was how married couples were supposed to feel, right? All starstruck and wondrous. Keith would probably never understand why Shiro wanted him, but he would always revel in being the cause of That Look.

“Okay.” With his free hand, Shiro lifted Keith’s burger. “I guess we can have sex after the movie. Or during…? If it’s bad.”

Keith snorted. “We’re scheduling sex now?”

Shiro shrugged and spoke through his munching, “Isn’t that what married couples do?”

Only one thing to do about that. “Guess we should make it official, right? My mom’s coming to visit next week. We could get a courthouse date.”

Shiro’s thumb brushed across the top of Keith’s palm. “Yeah, makes sense. We’ll hold a small reception here. Your uncles and mom, my grandpa.”

“Hunk’ll cater. He’ll like that. We should invite Pidge and Lance, along with Allura, Coran, and Romelle.”

“Sounds good.” Shiro finished up the fries and offered the rest of his rings to Keith, who took them with an appreciated sound. “Your place is bigger, right?”

“And closer,” Keith agreed. “You spend most nights there anyway.”

Shiro nodded as he slurped the rest of his diet coke, then leaned back, never letting go of Keith’s hand. “I’ll get the rings. Saw one the other day with twin red carbon fiber inlays that framed a meteorite strip. It’s perfect for you. And I’ll get the matching one with gunmetal gray.”

Keith let out a tiny gasp, stealing Shiro’s wondering gaze, before cocking a tiny grin. “You’ve thought about this.”

Shiro ducked his head, though Keith spied the rapidly reddening tips of his ears. “I’ve thought about this.” He added in a whispered confession, “A lot.”

That settled warm and pleasant in Keith’s chest. “So…that’s it then. We’re engaged.”

“Yeah.” Shiro’s relaxed, blissful smile was an expression Keith never saw before, but something he could wake up to every morning. With one last squeeze, he let go of Keith’s hand and reached for his plate to clean up. “So I’ll see you at home later?”

The word “home” encouraged Keith to demand more. “Do we have to wait? Can we do it now?”

“Pidge and Lance don’t come on until midnight, but I promise I’ll be home as soon as they – ”

Keith sprinted from the bench and dove between the two plates that Shiro held, pressing his body flush against his fiancé’s. With his arms locked about Shiro’s neck, he startled Shiro with searing embrace that had Shiro grunting and then moaning. Keith bit Shiro’s bottom lip, then smiled when Shiro opened for him. He refused to release his soon-to-be husband until he felt something thick against his hip, lips swollen and red.

Once they parted, Shiro took two quick breaths before yelling over his shoulder, “Everyone out! We’re closing early!”

The End  

________

The distraction had worked, and while troops were being sent away to inspect the explosion, Keith managed to enter the base. It was still guarded, but he used the Force on the clone troopers, so that they didn't pay attention to him.

From listening to their communications, he had gathered that Shiro was being brought to the lab section first, rather than to the cells. What that meant, Keith didn't know, but a knot of anxiety was festering in his stomach.

He managed to keep hidden while exploring the base, and, even if he somehow got lost on the way, he finally found the medical area. The first few rooms he looked into were empty, but he did find a lab that was guarded. He tried to use the Force to get in, but that didn't work.

There were soldiers and medics inside, and they all surged at him when he entered. It was too late to try and curb their will wit the Force, so he just used his fists. When they were all knocked out, he sped to free Shiro, who was strapped to a table. He almost tripped over one of the medics laying on the ground in his haste.

He gasped when he got a better view of Shiro. He was unconscious, and seemed to have aged much more than the two years they had been apart; his right arm had been replaced with a mechanical prosthetic, a scar was barring his nose, and the hair from his bangs had turned white. Keith felt tears well up in his eyes as he muttered his friend's name, wondering what he had been through. But he didn't have time to linger on his emotions.

He took out the lightsaber he had inherited from his mother, and cut the straps that were holding Shiro prisoner. Gently, he tried to lift the big man from the table. The motion caused Shiro to wake up; he panicked and tried to free himself from Keith's hold. Keith didn't restrain him.

"Shiro, it's me!"

"Keith?" Shiro's voice was hoarse and his eyes unfocused. He was obviously still under the effect of some kind of anesthetic. Reassured, he let himself fall against Keith again with a sigh. Keith wrapped Shiro's left arm around his shoulders, and tried a few steps, but Shiro could barely stand. Keith hadn't expected that. Getting out of the base without being caught was about to get more complicated than anticipated.

While he was hesitating, three people barged in. It was obvious they didn't belong there, and were infiltrating the base just like him. A little Mark IV sentry droid was with them, but to Keith's relief, it didn't attack;  from the way it was flying alongside them, it seemed re-purposed to be at their service.

Before Keith could even react, a lanky guy strode toward him, waggling his finger disapprovingly: "No no no no, no! No, you don’t! I'm saving Shiro!". He took Shiro's other arm, helping Keith carrying him. His long face, tan skin, blue eyes and pointy chin were somewhat familiar.

"Who are you?" asked Keith, confused.

"Who am I? Uh, the name’s Lance?” He seemed to expect Keith to react, but that didn’t ring any bell. “We were in the same flight school? We were like rivals! You know, Lance and Keith, neck to neck..."

Oh, right, the flight school Keith had been part of.. before he stole Shiro's landspeeder for a ride, and Shiro insisted on bringing him to the Jedi temple. He hadn't paid much attention to the other cadets at the flight school, but after thinking about it harder, Lance had been difficult to ignore. Loud, cocky, and always trying to confront Keith for some reason. Keith still didn’t get what he meant about being rivals. Wasn't Lance a cargo pilot?

"Oh, yeah, I remember you." grunted Keith. "What are you doing here."

"Saving Shiro!" repeated Lance. "Don't try to one-up me on that!"

That left Keith confused. He was just trying to help his best friend. He didn't even know they were coming. Why would Lance believe...?

"I'm Pidge. We're from the Rebel Alliance" stated the shortest, and apparently youngest, member of the group. They examined Keith sharply through their round glasses. "What about you?"

"Keith. Former Jedi apprentice," mumbled Keith.

"What?! Former? Did they kick you out?" There was some underlying excitement in Lance's tone that had Keith's hackles rise.

"Sorry to interrupt", said the big guy nervously, "but I think we should go. My sensor is signaling droids coming this way. And the troops are going to come back to the base soon!"

Pidge nodded. "Let's go. Rover, you go as a scoot!". The sentry droid took the lead.

They followed the less crowded paths according to the sensor, with Pidge going first after Rover, then Lance and Keith carrying Shiro, and the last one, who introduced himself as Hunk, covering their tail with his blaster rifle.

---

Once they escaped, Keith brought them to where he had hidden his hoverbike. Their ship was bigger, and further away to avoid it being discovered by the Empire troops.

Said troops were back from inspecting the explosion Keith had caused as a decoy. They hoped to go unnoticed, but shots in their direction proved them otherwise. Keith pulled the throttle. The troops started chasing them.

Keith's heart was in his throat. Alone, he would have shaken them off them easily, but with everyone on board, they were overloaded. The hoverbike was slow and unresponsive. The tanks, land troops and battle droids weren't much of an issue, but the droideka were catching up. Thankfully, fire wasn't much nourished, maybe because they wanted Shiro alive.

Still, Rover, who was firing back at the enemy, got shot and exploded. Pidge let out a long wail when they saw that, and fired back desperately. Lance caught Shiro, who was still dazed and almost fell down as Pidge let go of him.  Hunk leaned forwards to comfort the young rebel; it caused the whole hovercraft to nose down. That gave Keith an idea.

"Hunk, lean left!" Hunk did, and the hoverbike did too; Keith used it to gain speed. Going on with this trick, he managed to keep distance between them and their pursuers. Adrenaline was flooding his veins. He shouldn't have fun doing this.

"Guys, i-is that a cliff overhead?!" Hunk's voice was tight with fear. It was.

They were all yelling at him to stop. As if it was an option. He pulled the throttle. The rush of blood was chanting in his ears, the wind from the acceleration tossing his hair and adding to his elation.  

This was a trick Shiro had taught him. Everyone kept screaming, but Keith let out a laugh. He managed to stick the landing. Unable to come down, the Empire troops had abandoned pursuit.

Lance, who had a good sense of direction, guided him towards their ship.

"That's Blue!", he claimed proudly. "Isn't she beautiful?"

Keith lifted a skeptical brow. The ship was older than themselves, and looked like a wreck. It was indeed painted blue, to be less conspicuous while flying in the atmosphere, maybe?

Hunk grinned, patting the metallic carcass: "She doesn't look like much, but believe me, she can fly! Pidge and I make sure of that."

---

They managed to take off from the planet without trouble. Lance had improved his piloting a lot since flight school, but Keith still had to fight back an urge to push him off the pilot seat and to take the commands.

They were headed towards a Rebellion base on Arus, where they would join Princess Allura. Lance said they hoped Shiro could share some of what he had learned in his mission and during his captivity. Shiro nodded, but Keith noticed how tense he had gotten.

Even with light speed, the trip would last at least a few days, which was good, because Shiro obviously needed some rest.

----

After catching up some sleep, Keith noticed Shiro's bunk was empty. He finally found him gazing through one of the ship's viewing bays. Shiro was lost in the contemplation of the stars, but as Keith was approaching him, his focus shifted to his prosthetic arm. Keith's chest tightened; they still hadn't spoken about what had happened to Shiro.

Gently, he put his hand on his friend's shoulder, a gesture that Shiro had used so often to comfort him in the past. "It's good to have you back."

Shiro turned towards him, a wistful smile on his lips. "It's good to be back".

Keith hesitated. "So, what happened out there?"

Shiro let out a distressed sight. "I wish I remembered. My head’s still pretty scrambled. It’s all a blur..." Keith felt worry grow in his heart. He wasn't the most informed, but between this and Shiro's nightmares that night, it wasn't hard to see symptoms of trauma. Shiro continued: "How did you know to come to save me?"

Keith shifted uneasily. "I... heard stuff. Coded communications from the Empire. On my dad's radio."

Shiro was now looking at him with a concerned expression: "But... what were you doing, alone on Tatooine?"

Keith hesitated, and there was a short silence while Shiro held his gaze. Keith bit his lip, folding his arms and looking away. "They said you died. I didn't believe them. I would have felt it. In the Force."

"I... I understand. Sometimes... I remember... sometimes, I felt you try to reach out to me."

Keith felt his heart stop. He had thought of Shiro, often, missed him terribly. He had no idea Shiro would be able to feel that. "I... missed you." Shiro was still looking at him perplexedly, and he realized he hadn't answered Shiro's question. "After being booted from the Jedi Temple..." he heard Shiro's intake of breath, "I was kinda... lost, and felt myself drawn out to this place." His voice was breaking.

"You went home."

"Yeah."

Shiro knew about Keith's past on Tatooine. About his mother disappearing when he was a baby, about his father being killed by the Empire. Shiro was the one who had found him there at the flight school. He had seen him flying, and  had insisted that Keith was force sensitive, and that he used it without knowing for piloting. Keith had been reticent at first, but Shiro had managed to convince him to try becoming a Jedi. He brought him back to the Jedi Temple. They had begrudgingly accepted him, despite his sixteen years- much older than the usual recruits. Shiro was the one who helped him finding his footing living with the Jedi. Who taught him how to manage his emotions better. Keith had hoped becoming his padawan when he was deemed ready. It was the closest bond to him that he could wish for - Jedi were not supposed to love, after all.

As Shiro didn't answer, he added:  "I kept looking for you..." He found himself incapable of speaking more. Emotions were overflowing him and he could barely keep himself together.

"You found me", Shiro said softly. He reached out a hand, tentatively. Keith knew that signal. He took Shiro's hand and they hugged, a long time. It felt nostalgic, and it felt different and new too. Keith hadn't even realized how much he'd missed this. When they separated, they were both a bit awkward and flushed.

"You grew", commented Shiro; he sounded shaken.

"Eh. It's been two years." He hadn't even paid attention to his growth. His pants were a bit short, now, but it didn't matter when he was wearing boots. He knew his work as a farmhand had developed his muscles, but he had never reflected on how changed his figure.

Shiro had changed too. He too had gained muscles. His embrace was still as warm and welcoming as before, but there was metal now mixed with his familiar scent. He was however clearly not ready to talk about it, so Keith changed subject.

"Are you going to contact the Jedi Order?"

Shiro took a moment to consider the question. "I...I don't know. Let's meet that Princess first. We can see from there."

Keith let out a relieved sight. Now that he wasn't part of the Jedi Order anymore, he was worried of being separated from Shiro again if he went back to the Temple. And after they had abandoned Shiro to his fate, Keith didn't trust the Jedi anymore. He wanted Shiro safe. And close to him, if possible.

"What about you?" asked Shiro.

Keith shrugged. "The Jedi won't take me back, so. I guess I could join the Rebellion... Like you said. Let's meet the Princess."

---

A few days later, Blue landed on planet of Arus. Lance, Hunk and Pidge brought them in front of the Princess.

She was in a conference room, discussing strategy with a group of commanders. Her white hair was in a bun, and the pointy ears and cheek marks revealing her altean origins. She was wearing simple flight clothes, despite her rank. When she saw them, she left the holographic map they were examination and walked towards them.

"Hello, I am Princess Allura, from Altea. You are in a Rebel Base. Master Shirogane, as a survivor from the Kerberos mission, we believe you may have valuable information about Lord Zarkon and the Empire. Would you accept to share them with us?"