Keith searched almost every place he could think of in the city. Allura and Lance were both of no help, since neither of them had a clue were to find Lance's body. Not to mention, he didn't want Lance to think he actually cared much to find him.
So Keith tried to recall every place he ever saw Lance hang out. Which were, to be fair, quite a lot of places.

Lance had always been the kind of person who knew everything about everyone. Every person Keith asked, seemed to know the quirky, outgoing version of Lance. Except, not really know him aside from his name and his ability to listen. Which was news to Keith.
Every single one of them told them how Lance had helped them with something. Somewhere, some time ago. Aside from that, nothing.
Not even how old he was. His favorite place to hang out, not even what kind of music he liked.

That was, why it did not come as a surprise to Keith, that nobody had seen him for at least a few days.

When Keith checked out like the fifth disco in town, after searching in at least three different bakeries, talking to at least six of Lance's "bestest of friends" whose name Keith didn't even remember and two parks, he was done.
It wouldn't be so difficult, if a) Lance wasn't so popular, b), people actually seemed to care about Lance and not themselves and c) those places were not marked over the whole town.

Keith sighed, as he turned up the engine of his motorcycle.
Perhaps he should just ask Pi- Great.
Why did he not think of that first? Pidge. She knew Hunk, Lance's actual best friend. They should have an idea where to find the body.

She was probably working on her IT- project right now.
Her IT project, called Chip, was a robot she was working on even after school. With similar mechanisms as Shiro's prosthetic, which she invented. She tried to finish the project for some sort of nerd contest. Meaning, she would be very annoyed, moody and tired, when he'd interrupt her.
With a groan, Keith made his way back to school, where he knew Pidge would be.

----------------

Pidge was hyper focused. She couldn't remember going home on Monday, or sleeping, or eating. But she knew how far she'd improved on Chip.
And because she was so focused, she didn't look on her phone either.
When Keith suddenly crashed through the door, she actually fell over at the sudden noise.

"Keith, what the actual fuck!", she screamed.
"Pidge, I – wow you look horrible.", he said, eyebrows raised as he stopped in the middle of his sentence.
"Yeah no shit. I haven't left this room like since, I dunno, yesterday was Sunday right?"
"It's Tuesday. Like, 6pm Tuesday", Keith gaped.

"Oh fuck and I thought my progress was great. I'm lightyears behind."
"You do know that's not a time digit, right?"
"Holy shit and~ I'm delirious. Hurry up, Keith! Get me some coffee!"

Keith eyed the room. Her coffee mug looked like she'd drunken from it the whole past two days. Papers were lying around everywhere and Pidge was hurrying from one place to the other. Not to mention all the coffee stains on her shirt and mentioned paper. She must have spilled it over at some point. Perhaps more than once.
"This would be so much easier with Hunk around."

Keith hesitated at the comment, before he coughed and finally managed to bring out his question.
"About that. Can you do me a favor?"
"When are you not asking for a favor. Spill it, before I make you.", she threatened, already back at what appeared to be a giant eye-camera-hybrid-thingy. With a screwdriver. Great, now she was armed.

"I need you to ask Hunk where Lance is. Or rather, could be. Since Hunk is out of town and probably wouldn't know where -"
Pidge did not stop with her work, though Keith would not have expected her to anyway. But she interrupted him.

"Since when are you interested in Lance? First Friday, because he looked sad and now today, because you couldn't stalk him? Excuse me, ,look at him from afar'?"

Keith took a deep breath.
"Please, Pidge. I wouldn't be here, if it wasn't important."
"Oh come on, Keith.", she looked up. "What could be so important about Lance fucking McClain, that you have to disturb me at my very much important science project."

Keith had to admit, he was intimidated by this small genius. She was actually like, two heads smaller and at least two years younger than him, but he felt like talking to a giant who could crush him with one hand, if she so desired.
"Lance is dead."

Pidge lowered her hand with the screwdriver.
"What?", she asked, but something sounded different than usual. There was anger leaking into her face, as though Keith was about to cross a line. It kind of terrified him.

"His ghost- he- He doesn't remember where he was when he died, so I need Hunk to tell me where he could have gone and-"
"Stop.", Pidge slowly said, her eyes knitted to the angriest frown he had ever seen her wear before.
Keith did as told and shut his mouth.

Pidge now angrily raised the screwdriver at him and closed up on him.
"Up until now, I've actually tried to be patient. I listened to your stupid ghost stories for about two years now and never, ever, have I made fun of that.
I took you serious.
But this is going too far. I may have been a bit impressed by your tendencies to be surprisingly specific with your knowledge and stuff, but don't you dare make jokes like this.
You have never, not even once given me evidence that ghosts truly exist. I trusted you before. That means I expect you to at least respect me a little. Not – play with my mind and betray that bit of faith I've gathered for you in those past few years."

Keith's eyes widened, as they crossed to keep the screwdriver in sight. But stumbled backwards, if only to bring some distance between them. Or rather, him and her torture instrument.

"Making up stories, with admittedly well researched connections to actual dead people is one thing. Lying about someone in our class DYING is NOT ok! You understand? Now leave this room and only come back when you decided not to mess with me anymore! Got it?!"

Keith's shoulders sagged.
He didn't respond for a while and during that time, it was just him, facing away from her and her stupid screwdriver.

"Fine, I'll leave, before you stab me to death. But I assure you, I would never lie about this.", Keith hissed, turned around and left the room. As the door shut, Pidge almost felt bad. Almost. He looked serious, but she was certain.

She knew Lance. He was the last person on earth who would just go and – die. Like that.
At least she heard what Hunk had told her about him. And he was a nice guy. He did not deserve to die and he definitely deserved more than rumors as such.

At least that was what she thought, when she continued working on her robot. Her phone, still on silent far off her reach. Heavy with new messages, she should have been reading yesterday.
However, they had to wait, until the stress forced her to pass out. Again, in the middle of the room.

-------------------------------

Keith went home furious. But as soon as he opened the door to his home, every emotion fled him at what he found.
He did not expect to find Allura and Lance playing UNO. Of all things, UNO. Where did they even find that game? In Shiro's underwear drawer? Because as Keith recalled that was the place he hid that, back when he moved in with Shiro. And Shiro had insisted on a game night at least once a week back then. That was years ago. He had never seen the game ever since. Never mind.

Speaking of whom, from the sound and smell of it, Shiro was preparing – dinner?
Keith, step by step, went into the living room as though he was in some kind of haunted house. Wait – per definition that was exactly where he was.

"Ehm, hey guys?", Keith greeted the two laughing ghosts. Though, Allura looked painfully concentrated on her cards.
Lance looked from him to her and suddenly started grinning. " Hey there, emo boy!
Don't worry about her. She just has trouble holding the cards. Aand thus, she's loosing."
"Hey, it's not my fault!", Allura pouted.

Keith put down his schoolbag slowly and his helmet right next to it.
"Ok? I take it everything went well with Shiro?", he asked, reminding Lance of their morning conversation.
"What? Oh, yeah. It was peachy, once I stopped him from calling a therapist for you. You're welcome by the way."

Taken aback by the answer, Keith almost replied. But Lance stopped him in the middle of opening his mouth.
"You should refrain from talking to us too much. He heard our conversation this morning. To be more precise, he only heard you. Since, you know, he cannot hear us. Which, admittedly, is always confusing. Speaking from experience here."
Lance put down his last card, almost screaming in delight. "UNO!"
Allura let her cards fall down. "No fair! I have to concentrate to even hold the cards. If I could just hold them, I'd finish you easily.", she crossed her arms over her chest.

Lance laughed at that. "Now, now. Don't be such a sore looser, princess."
Keith sighed. Perhaps he really should not inform Lance on his lack of progress in finding his body.
Once again, Keith felt some kind of dread filling his insides at the mere thought of withholding information from Lance.

For some reason, Keith wanted him to know all about his research that day. And he felt, he could easily tell him. However, he did not want to upset Lance with everything he heard today. Not to mention how he could not even find a way to talk to Pidge about this.

"Seriously though Keith. You need to talk to Shiro about your visions. He's worried about you.", Lance's voice dropped as he became more serious.

Keith blinked as his thoughts were interrupted.
"Not gonna happen. I really don't want to add this to his important worries. Alright?", Keith said. "Especially not before tomorrow." Keith really expected a different reaction from Lance. He had expected at least a confused quirk of his brows at such a cryptic implication.

Instead, Lance stayed silent for like a minute. "Tomorrow is Wednesday, right?"
Keith nodded. Now, Keith was curious. Did Lance know? Then again, how could he know?
Did Shiro talk to himself about tomorrow? Perhaps, Shiro did talk to himself, when he tried to calm himself down.

Was it not considered normal to talk to yourself here and there. As long as you did not see anyone that is. Confusing concept, but still.
Anyway, Lance seemed to know something – more. Something even Keith was unaware of.

"He visits that girl once a week. The one I told you about. The one that is in a coma because of him.", Keith whispered.

Lance looked at him, quiet for a second. He seemed to think for a while, until finally, he shook his head. "Not because of him. Because of the accident, they both were involved in. Don't talk like it's his fault, ok?", Lance said.

"You heard him blame himself, didn't you?", Keith sighed. "Yeah, yeah, sure, you're right.
Can I- can you go with him tomorrow? To the hospital I mean. I've heard her condition is getting worse by the day."
'And I still have to find your body.', he added in his mind.
Surely Lance could search for his body by himself. But Keith felt like that was unwise. Lance did not seem concerned about it at all. And Keith got a feeling. He was unable to put a finger on it, he just knew.

However, was it wise to let Lance go with Shiro? Was it wise to trust him? Again, Keith had a feeling.

"Sure. Sure. I'll inform you, when something happens." Lance's voice was distant now. Keith knew, there was probably more to this story than Lance let him believe. Perhaps he was even connected to this girl in some way. But Keith did not press the matter.

"Hey, ehm, can I sit down?", he asked. Did Lance need a hug? Could you hug a ghost? Was Keith actually capable of hugging someone? Did he want to?

"Dude, this is your couch.", Lance replied, a small smile on his face as he pat the space beside him.
So Keith followed his invitation. Seconds later he felt something pressing to his side. It was not a body, nor was it warmth.

It just felt like that awkward feeling, when you turned around in school, because you thought someone had tapped your shoulder.
Like the memory of a feeling, but more present. As Keith looked to the side, he saw Lance leaning on him. Getting comfortable with his back against Keith's side. It reminded him of water, somehow.

"Now what? You wanna wait for Shiro to call you for food, or do you want to see a movie?"
Keith opened his mouth again, like a fish.

He was not used for people to be this close. It did not matter if Lance was a ghost or not. Physical closeness was something he just never knew.
Even with Shiro, perhaps especially with Shiro around, he usually kept his distance.
Who could blame him for flushing or getting nervous at the mere thought of Lance leaning on him? Because that is all it was, a thought.

Keith stood up after he realized what was happening.
Lance almost stumbled, until he remembered that ghosts did not hit the ground. They could fly for gods sake.

"Yeah, no. You're right, I should probably help Shiro in the kitchen.", he said, far too loud to not be awkward. He could hear Shiro stopping whatever he was doing in there. But only for a second, as Shiro decided to ignore his odd sentence.

As the door shut, Lance could not help but pout at the sudden disappearance.
"Wow, smooth, Lance." Right, Allura had seen everything. Lance groaned. "What?"
"Just saying, you sure know how to flirt. I've never seen him this flustered before."

"What, really?", Lance answered too fast. Even too fast for himself. "I mean, what a shame. It's actually quite funny to see him act like this.", Lance tried to cool it down.
Allura laughed.

"Does it even matter? I mean, I'm dead. I can flirt with like anyone now, without it having consequences, right?", Lance murmured to himself.
Allura seemed to think for a bit about that.

"Well, actually, you can only talk to Keith. And I bet, whatever you do, it will have consequences for him. He may be tough, but I know you noticed that he's sensitive. Don't break his heart."

Lance looked over his shoulder for a moment, in the direction that Keith left.
The guy he was just messing with. Was he just messing with him? Only a day prior, Lance had hated him. And now? He did not even know what had happened. When had the atmosphere shifted so forcefully?

There was an odd feeling in his chest that did not want to go away. When did it get there?
'How are you so sure, he's not going to break mine.', his mind answered for him. It was a treacherous thought that Lance had been unaware of. It crept up on him like a spider, nesting his his ears as the words repeated themselves. Over and over. Even when he noticed Allura disappearing again, it did not stop.
Lance shook his head. It was just a thought.

------------------------

Pidge woke up in the middle of the night. You'd think a teacher may stop her from doing whatever pleases her. And yes, Iversion tried once. Just saying he's been wearing an eye patch ever since.

It was the blinking light of her phone that she only noticed at like 2 am.
Yawning she unlocked it, noticing the 27 new text messages from Hunk. This time, however, he was calling. Apparently not for the first time.

As she finally answered, she was greeted with a far too loud "PIDGE! FUCKING FINALLY!"
Hunk. Was. Swearing. Shit.
"What happened?, she asked, immediately alarmed.

"What happened? What happened?
Have you seen Lance?", he asked. "Huh?", Pidge asked, now confused at the familiar question.

"He hasn't texted me a single text since Sunday, Pidge. He NEVER does not text me at least five times a day. Not to count the thousands of memes he puts in his status. None of that either!

He's not responding to my messages and my calls and since you didn't either, I thought you might have involved him in one of your projects. But it's been more than 48 hours now. What is going on, where is he? Please tell me, you're hanging out."

Pidge needed a second to comprehend what Hunk had just told her.

"Wait a second. Really? I haven't seen him since Friday in school. Come to think of it, Keith came in today."
"Don't change the subject, Pidge. Sorry, but this is kind of important.!", Hunk seemed desperate. Frightening, in a way.
"Yeah, I know. Keith said the same thing."

"What do you mean?", now Hunk was irritated. Great Pidge.

"I don't really know. Even on Friday he seemed a bit concerned, because Lance had a fight with Nyma or something-"
"Oh, yeah, Lance told me about that. She cheated on him with some guy called Lotor."

Pidge's eyes widened. What the -
"Oh, well, that explains a lot.", she calmly replied. Lotor used to be Keith's friend. Perhaps that's why he asked? I don't know, I'm low on sugar, what did Keith say again?"

"Pidge, this is about Lance, not about Keith."
"Yes I know. Oh yeah, I remember. You know how Keith has this weird tick to see ghosts everywhere?", Pidge turned around, reaching up to her face to correct the position of her glasses.

"Yeah? What does that have to do with anything?", Hunk asked. Pidge, quite embarrassed, laughed a little.
"According to that hallucination of his, I think Keith believes Lance is dead."
Silence filled the line. "Hunk? Are you ok? You know he's making that up right?"

"I'm coming over."
Now, Pidge was fully awake. "No, Hunk. There is no need to come over. You're aunt needs you! I'll find Lance, don't worry. I'll -"

"No. Lance is my best friend. He needs me. This is final. I wasn't there for him last week, when he needed me. I'll be there tonight." And with that, their conversation was over. Ignoring completely how ridiculous Keith's theory sounded. Apparently Hunk was not taking any chances.

The thing is, Pidge had never, not even once, been scared in her entire life.
But she had never heard Hunk like this.
For the first time in her life, Pidge was terrified.

-------------------

Despite how it sounded, Shiro loved waking up. Don't get this wrong. He hated standing up, he hated not being able to sleep and he hated that he couldn't just sleep a bit more.
But the fact that he wakes up, means that at least he slept at all.
Some nights he just laid in his bed, staring at the ceiling and trying to ignore the nightmares that crept into his mind.

He could still hear the screaming sometimes, the crashing sound of glass.
Sometimes, he felt his arm being ripped off by that metal thing the other car had been transporting.
A few centimeters to the side and it had either impaled his insides or his head. Who knew? Shiro had been lucky.

The man in the other car not so much. Shiro had seen his face, had been staring right into it as they crashed.
It was like time slowed down as the face came closer, eyes widening until the man crashed right through the window.
Shiro tried telling himself it was not his fault the guy never wore a seat belt. But it had been Shiro who did not see the stop sign. Or rather ignored it.

"Yeah, sure I know. ...... I never forget my helmet. ....... Yes, I've got my keys, mom."
Shiro could hear the voice from downstairs. Shiro did not really know what to make of all this nonsense.
Who the hell was Keith talking to again? According to the sarcasm in the word "mom", he concluded it was not Keith's mom.
Keith laughed.

Shiro sat up immediately on his bed. Did he hear that right? Keith was laughing?
Sneaky, as though he was invading someone else's home instead of his own, he moved his way towards the stairs. He looked down.
Keith must have been done with breakfast already. Just like the day before. And just like the day before, he was staring at a certain spot in the middle of the room.
With like the softest smile Shiro had ever seen on him.

It was the kind of similar to the rare one directed at Shiro himself. And only, when he was feeling particular sick or came back from a trip that took at least a whole month. (Which only happened twice.)
Rather, this smile seemed even more intense. Shy, but genuine. Shiro knew that Keith had hallucinations, sometimes talked to some of them. But since he returned from medical care, things had been fine. The doctors said there was nothing wrong with him. That he would be ok now.
His 'demons' were not evil, they said.
And Shiro really wanted to believe that. For a second, Shiro actually did. Because Keith looked so relaxed at whomever he saw.

"Fine. But keep the volume down. And shut it down when Shiro wakes up.", Keith said, grabbing his keys.
"No, no, I'm telling you. Talking to him about this would be like admitting I'm sick. Which I am not. ..... I told you, I'm not going to drop that ghost nonsense onto him. ...
Ok, yes, you've got a point. ... Trust you? .... hmm, maybe. Depends on how you behave today. Can you let Kosmo out, too? Thanks. .....

And try not to break Shiro, alright, Lance?"
Suddenly, the TV flashed up, Volume a bit too loud to be considered 'low'. Shiro jumped at the sound. What just happened?
"I said, put the volume down. Geez, Lance.", Keith shook his head and went towards the door.

Shiro double checked the whole scene, as he gaped at the sight.
Was that the TV remote floating in the air and the Volume actually turning down?
"Thanks. Just saying. Take care of him, will you." Keith just said and headed towards the door.

"See you.", Keith said, shot the invisible guest this weird smile and left.
And Shiro? Shiro stood there, waiting for anything to happen. But all that did happen was the TV to switch channels, until the remote was put back on the table. The next thing that went up was Keith's recent sketchbook.
Weird, usually Keith never let it lie around the house. Was the Sketchbook not in the kitchen, yesterday? Wait – that was not the issue here.

Shiro took a deep breath. He must be imagining things. Except, Shiro did not see things. He did not hallucinate. Keith did. Also, he just had some rare, proper sleep.

Or Shiro actually did not and this was just some new kind of paranoia he was trapped in?
Was he getting worse?
He moved towards the stairs and tried to normally walk them down. He did not know whether his invisible imagination saw him, but the fact that the TV was suddenly shut down only proofed that either their TV was broken, or Shiro really just saw remotes and Sketchbooks floating around for no reason.

Shiro shook his head, as after that, everything went quiet and nothing strange happened.
He slapped his own face, took some of the Sandwiches Keith left for him and sat down at the kitchen table.
He felt like he was being watched and he hated every second of it.

But what if, what if Keith really had not made up any of his ghost stories? Not that it was possible, but hypothetically?

What if he actually saw dead people talking to him?
What did he call the recent one? Lance? Shiro stopped eating. Was this a coincidence?
Probably. Then again, how many Lance's lived in this town? Emphasis on 'lived', Shiro's mind unhelpfully added. Shiro shook his head. He was going mental.
The whole, Keith was seeing ghosts again only got to him on an emotional level. And his desperate wish to believe in his brother forced him to see things. This must be it.
Except, why was Kosmo not in his usual place but by the couch in the living room? And why did he look, like he was being pet?

Shiro's morning went on like this. It was an on and off, with himself reconsidering the things he saw again and again. Until he concluded that he must be delirious.
Remotes didn't fly and the TV was probably just broken. Nothing to worry about. Kosmo was an entirely different matter. But could Kosmo actually share Keith's hallucinations? He was a dog after all. Was there a difference?

Sooner than he anticipated, it was already time for him to leave.
He left the house, went to his car and drove of. His destination? Obviously the hospital.

The drive, as always, took around three quarters of an hour. The parking lot was full, as always, but Shiro went here often enough to know where the best spots were. And where people tended not to park. Another short walk and he was already informing the woman on the front desk of his arrival.
The woman's name was Romelle. She was a blond nurse with an extraordinary personality. Hobbies? To Shiro's knowledge: Talking, gossip and jokes. She had been here the first day he came and he adored her deeply.

"Hey, Shiro. Everything alright? How did you sleep tonight?", she asked kindly.
"Pretty good actually, compared to usual, thank you. How are you yourself?"

Small talk with her always calmed him. It distracted him from his mind. People were complicated. He once listened to a drunken guy talk about how 'his cat betrayed him', for like a solid hour to get his mind somewhere else.
Shiro had had one of his worse nights that day and was grateful for the distraction.
It was a horrible night.

She went with him into the room. The girl he visited was separated from other rooms. Her mom's new boyfriend had some money on his hand, so they could afford this place.
If it was a waste for a girl who had been in a coma for three years, you may decide for yourself.
But she always looked the same. Needles in her arms, connected to beeping machines that Shiro never wanted to see again in his entire life.
She needed help breathing and nutrients were pumped directly into her veins. Shiro hated the sight. And he hated that it was his own fault.

"She's not getting better, to be honest. Quite the opposite actually. I've heard the doctors say something like, she's not making it more than a week or so. Sometimes I wonder if they make bets, with how obsessed they are with their whole "how long is that person doing this or that..."
Anyway, I heard, the last time her mom came in was like, Saturday?. She's working twenty four seven now, as I heard. She took another job. She used to come here twice a day!
Anyway, I don't even know why she works at all anymore. They have enough money. Why bother, if you cannot visit your own daughter?", Romelle shook her head, a sad expression on her face as she looked at the young lady.

"I think I understand. She wants to distract herself. How to better do this than with work? I mean, it's not healthy, but it feels better than sitting around and waiting.", Shiro explained.

"Sure, still. Can you go and visit her family today?", Romelle asked.
"I was already planning to.", Shiro said and sighed.

"Alright. Thanks. Greet them from me, please.
... I'll leave you alone with her for a second, alright?"
Shiro only nodded. He didn't expect her to stay anyway, Shiro took a deep breath and closed in on the bed.
Romelle was right. The girl looked paler than usual. Grey was not a nice color on her dark skin, Shiro decided. At least her hair looked fine. As fine as a patients hair could look at least.

"Hey there. Long time no see.", Shiro stood there awkwardly for a moment, but he knew it didn't matter either way. She was unconscious. So he sat beside her bed, wondering for the thousandth time if it was inappropriate to be so close to a girl, he never personally knew.

Internally, he flinched every time when he saw the giant scar on her right cheek that was caused by the window her head had crashed through. It was also the cause of her current condition. And it was a torturous reminder of Shiro's sin.

"I actually came for a reason today.", Shiro faltered. Shame was clearly visible in his eyes.
He shuddered at his own words. Uncertain whether or not it was okay to say this.

"Sunday evening, I had an accident. Again. You'd think after last time I'd be more careful. It seems, I'm not. I had my reasons for being distracted, but that is no excuse.
I – I ran over someone.", he admitted, feeling the shivers trail up his skin. Even at the lack of response, he was afraid of every word he muttered.

Suddenly he jumped. He could have sworn there was someone touching his shoulder. The feeling did not go away, but as Shiro looked over his shoulder, there was no one. Must be his imagination again.

Still irritated, Shiro turned towards the girl again.
"Well. Ehm. I- I mean, how unlucky can one person be? I crashed you, your father and now I ran over your brother.

I mean, I barely hit him. He could walk at least. He even ran away. I searched for him, but I couldn't find him and I'm, I'm so sorry, Veronica.", Shiro felt the tears swelling up in his eyes. As he felt the faint pressure on his shoulder tighten, he was not surprised, but it still shook him.

Still confused, he knew now, he was not imagining it.
"Honestly? I feel as though he is here with us right now.", he said slowly. The grip loosened. And suddenly Shiro was scared. Because this was real.
He was certain now. He was going mental himself. He must be. Or did he need proof first? Perhaps that was the more logical turn of action. Testing if Lance was alive.
How better to do that than by visiting the McClain's?

-------------------

The McClains didn't live far from the hospital. Quite ironic, Shiro thought. Not for the first time. Only five minutes and he was at their small farm, barely outside of town. He did not even need to drive there. He could just walk.

The place was huge. Even though they had stopped farming years ago. But what belonged to them still belonged to them.
Who would ever take it away from them?
Shiro passed the trees that stood tall, right next to the surprisingly clean street. It was calm. The sun was laughing and illuminating the green of the leafs. Covering the entire place in light and the feeling of summer.
It smelled like grass and the upcoming of rain and Shiro inhaled the freshness of it all.

The stalls, where cows used to live looked old and the color on it's walls was already fading. One equally old looking bike leaned against it, tires flat. Light reflecting from the metallic surface.
The windows were not as clean, as Shiro would have preferred. But the smudge took the form of fingerprints and children hands. It probably did not make sense to clean them all the time.

The weird part of this household surely was the fact that everything reminded you of sunshine and baked goods. It seemed clean and warm, despite their open doors and messy floors. Nothing indicated what a horrible fate they were suffering from.
It irritated Shiro like almost nothing else.

As he reached the front door, he noticed someone watching him. This time, however, as he turned around, he could actually see the person.
They had a completely different feeling to them than the calm hand presence thing had at the hospital. Still, this stalker was another addition to his concerns.
She was hiding behind one of the blueberry bushes in front of the garden wall.

Shiro inhaled deeply. He should not think too much about this. She was probably a friend of one of the kids that lived in this house. Perhaps she was only waiting for some of them to come out. Then again, should they not be in school?

Still, he ignored her for now and knocked on the door.
However, nobody opened. Right, why was Shiro even surprised at that?
It was Wednesday morning, 11 am. Most adults were at work this time around.

But then, he heard a sound. It came from the garage they had build onto the house, soon after Sendak had come into their life's.
Shiro hesitated, it was not his place to just sneak around at this home. He also did not really like Sendak. No particular reason. It was just the feeling he had around him.
That was, until he heard a loud curse.

"Hello?", Shiro asked, as he followed the sound.
"What? Who's there?", a male voice replied.
"Honey!", a woman corrected his outburst. "What? Oh, yeah right. Inappropriate. I know. Sorry."
The someone exhaled a deep breath.
Finally, Shiro recognized their voices.
One of them was Veronica's mother. She was a beautiful small woman, with a power behind her voice that put most of Shiro's own outbursts to shame.

She had long, wavy brown hair and a spark in her eyes, that only ever died down when she visited her daughter, or her husbands grave.
The man however, was Mr. Sendak. A well known architect. He planned the playgrounds all around town. The only one that was left to be redesigned was the one behind the school yard.

Children had abandoned that place long ago, even before Shiro was born.

Kind of ironic that man. Because whenever Shiro saw him, he expected children to be afraid of them. Perhaps they were.
Maybe, he made those playgrounds as an apology for all the children he ever scared in his life. Who knew? Currently, the man was sitting inside of his car, door wide open. Why?, Shiro asked himself. It did not look like he was going anywhere, but tempering with something.

"Shiro! What are you doing here?", Mrs. McClain asked as she finally saw him. (She had insisted once that Shiro called her his mom. For one, because Shiro did not have a mom. For another, to assure him that she was not mad at him for what happened. She practically adopted him after the accident. It kind of made matters worse. But he did not dare tell her that. He still called her Mrs. McClain.)

"Ehm, it's Wednesday. I visited your daughter.", he said. Mrs. McClain smiled sadly. "You're such a good guy, still coming over once a week."
"Romelle told me, you're not going there every day anymore. She's worried about you."

She looked down. Apparently already regretting ever greeting him at all."I'm sorry. I should go inside. I just came back from the night shift. I'm a bit tired."
She did not even look at him. Shiro wanted to say something, but Mr. Sendak glared at him, before he continued fumbling with the something in the car.

"I understand, Mrs. McClain. You should rest a bit."

"Thanks, Shiro. Let's – let's talk about this another time.", she went to go inside, but then, Shiro remembered something.
"Wait a second, Mrs. McClain."
She stopped in her tracks, looking at him questioningly. "What is it?", she asked, nervous. Nervous?

"I wanted to know, if I could talk to you son for a second. Lance. He- ehm. He's a friend of my brother, I just wanted to ask him something. Keith said, Lance did not turn up in school and I wanted to check on him." It was a lie, sure. But that was a lie Mrs. McClain had yet to discover.

Shiro did not exactly know if Lance turned up in school or not. He did not even know if the Lance Keith was talking to was in his class at all. Or if he was the same age as Lance McClain. Actually, Shiro began to wonder, if he had been too fast in his conclusion. The Lance Keith saw could be anyone. Could be made up. What was he thinking?

Irritated, Mrs. McClain looked at him.
"Wait a second, I'll go look in his room. Now that you mention him, I haven't seen him for a while, either."

She turned around and disappeared inside the house. Leaving Shiro confused. Would she not know, if Lance had left the house in the morning? She could have just told him, that Lance had told her, he went to school. Even if he really stayed at home, would he not have either lied to her or made sure she believed he was sick? You know, to not worry her?

Mr. Sendak just shared Shiro a glance of suspicion. "May I ask, what you have to do with that kid?"
Shiro flinched. ,that' kid?
"Oh, nothing. As I said, he's a friend of Keith's. And Keith was concerned for him. So-"

"Yeah, you know. Just checking. Your brother – he's not a fag, is he? Not that they ran off together or something."

Shiro's eyes widened. ,fag' his mind whispered.
"Sorry, I get that you must be confused. I mean. I'm pretty sure, Lance is one. He's been acting weird, whenever I mentioned this horrible pride march downtown. At one point he shouted at me that it was none of my business, who other people liked. I know I hit a nerve. But, man. That kid has some weird issues. Just when I thought, he'd bring home a decent girl.
Sure, she's an alcoholic. Still better than a guy, am I right?"

Shiro should punch him. He really should. But he couldn't. Not because he did not want to, but because the fear in his veins was keeping him from moving or saying anything. Now that they mentioned it, Keith had never specifically told him who he might like. Neither girls nor guys. He had never even smiled at anyone like he cared.
Except for this morning that is -

"Am I right?", the suspicious question caught him off guard.
But thankfully he did not have to answer, since Mrs. McClain just came back outside.
How had Shiro not noticed the dark circles under her eyes. She had been smiling before. But in this moment, she looked confused and a bit scared. And that was being kind. She was completely pale, eyes wide in irritation and worry.

"What's wrong?", Shiro asked.

"He's- he's not in his room."

Shiro raised an eyebrow in suspicion. "Well? I might be wrong, I suppose."

"No, you don't understand. I haven't seen Lance since last week or so and his bed is still made. He ONLY makes his bed on Sunday, because his aunt likes to check on it and pummel him if he doesn't.
And she only ever visits on Sunday. But on Monday, it's usually unmade.
There is dust everywhere. His schoolbag is also in his room. The only thing that is missing is his phone and I called him. I can only reach the mailbox. And I only ever reach his mailbox when his phone is uncharged.
I- I have no idea where he is!"

Shiro stared at her, eyes widening. Realization hit him. Lance was gone. Truly gone. For all they knew, Keith could be right. Maybe, Lance was dead. Maybe he was a ghost. But there was more.
Because for a second, he felt the presence beside him shift in his position. And not only that. Another person, still hiding between the trees did too.

------------------

Nyma had heard everything. She was hiding behind that bush and she knew Shiro had heard her.
What exactly was going on?
Mrs. McClain usually checked on her children at least three times a day. And now, Lance had been gone for three days at least and she hadn't even noticed until Shiro – Keith's brother of all people, came along and asked?

This was getting more and more scary, with every passing day.

And there was still no sign of Lance.
Shiro looked panicked. He continued arguing with her, were Lance could be, while Sendak only glared daggers at him.

Minutes later, Lance's mom was calling the police. And now, now it was clear how serious the situation was.
If even Mrs. McClain didn't know what was going on, when Keith started seeing his ghost, Shiro kept asking questions and even the police got involved -

Nyma tried to calm herself as she messaged Rolo.
It was time to search for Lance. And she knew exactly where to find him.

Nyma was out with her friends. And as usual, she got drunk. To the point were she made out with literally any guy who as much as looked at her.
But when things got worse, she started puking and they turned away. Disgusted of course. She could not even blame them. She was a disgrace, a mess. Somewhere in the corner of a street, she would wake up with no memories. Only whispers as a reminder that everyone could see her. Everyone would judge her.

And then, Lance came to her rescue. In the middle of a dark september night, when the stars were covered by clouds and rain had drenched her to the point that if he didn't, she might have frozen to death.
Lance helped her get to the nearest toilet to puke her guts out.
He held up her hair, sobered her up with water and took her home. To his own house, because she insisted she could not go to hers like this.

He helped her get in his bed and gave her warm clothes and hot tea to drink. He even slept on the couch downstairs.
He let her sleep through the school day and prepared a hangover breakfast for her, while skipping school himself.
School, only to help her. Even though he needed good grades to apply to that college about astrophysics, as everyone who ever listened to him in class would know.

He ignored that she threw up in his bed and simply cleaned it up. They watched a movie together and he acted like nothing ever happened.

She was mean then. Said, he wouldn't get anything from her, just because he pitied her, because that had happened before. And the memory haunted her ever since.
But Lance had only laughed. And told her, that everyone got drunk then and again. He just helped her, because she was his friend. He loved her and he was certain, she'd do the same for him.
Nyma knew, she would not. Because until then, she had been treating him like shit. Like dirt on the sidewalk. Like people treated her, when she was drunk.

That was when she decided she had to confide in him and told him about her issues at home.
She remembered how Lance had listened. Had comforted her and told her, it was not her fault. How he hugged her and then – then he took her with him, showing him his "favorite place in the world", to distract her. And it was a nice night then. The sky clearing up just enough to see the stars reflected in his eyes.

It was the night she had fallen in love with him.

Nyma shook her head. This was not the time for memories.
But she knew that was the place she had to go to, right now. If she could find Lance anywhere, it was there. Perhaps Lance even wanted her to find him.

Waiting for her apology, which, as she now knew, he deserved.
Nyma was not patient enough to wait for Rolo's answer, though. He may be a rebel, but he always turned off his phone in school. Even Rolo had dreams for the future.

As Nyma saw the school yard, she hesitated. Perhaps this was not the best time to remember that she skipped school today and pretended to be ill.
If someone saw her, she'd be in trouble.

In this very moment, she heard the police sirens. It filled her steps with purpose and her eyes with determination. Lance was worth it.
All that threw her off was the odd look she received from the one person who liked to ignore her at any given moment. Only now, he did not.

Keith was sitting at his usual tree, raising an eyebrow at her.
She shook her head. Keith Kogane was the last person she wanted to talk to right now. Or could, for that matter. She already had to risk being discovered, if she wanted to find Lance. She could not get caught up in his mess.

Only a few meters from Keith stood the person she needed to talk to right now. Rolo.

-----------------------

Pidge could not work. Not when she knew Hunk was coming. And on top of that, for the same reason she had ridiculed Keith.

Now she was walking circles in the IT-lab. If Lance was really gone...
Why did he leave? Where would he go? Could she find him through his phone?
After all, she had his number. That should be enough to find it, right? Then both Hunk and Keith could stop worrying and or messing with her and she had the entire lab to herself again.

So, she sat down on her laptop and started the very same program she used to keep her brother in check. Matt Holt may be a good person and smart and all that. But he was also a dumb piece of shit who went to college to date, not to learn.
He could have skipped more than one grade, if he wanted to. But he had this crush and has been pining after them for years now. So Pidge called him whenever he was somewhere he was not supposed to be and disrupted any chances he may have with that person.
Idiot. Way to ruin your future for a -

Oh, there it is.
Pidge blinked. Wasn't this the police station? Why would Lance be at the police station?
Did he commit a crime?
Then again, she only found his phone. Someone might have turned it in on the lost and found section at the police?
But did that imply that Lance truly disappeared? Or at least, somehow lost his phone?

Pidge shook her head. This was getting more and more out of hand.
Perhaps she should go and talk to Keith? After all, she had been quite angry with him the day before. Keith had only been concerned for what reason so ever.
He meant well, even though he was confused sometimes. Though it was odd that he was concerned for Lance at all.
Maybe, Lance just ran away and after he realized people could track him through his phone, he tossed it away?

Perhaps she only needed to wait for Hunk to return. He may knew were Lance ran off to.
Perhaps they were going to find -

"Pidge?" Pidge looked up. She had not heard someone coming in. In the doorway, however, stood the last person, she'd ever expect closer than one mile radius around the IT club.
Nyma. She looked frantically from side to side, as though she did not want anyone to know she was here. Or that she'd been on the brink of crying.
But why? And why was she here? The place she usually calls the nerd cave. And only, if she was complimenting it.

"I – ehm. I really, really need your help. You're smart, right?", she asked. Pidge could tell how nervous she was. She looked like she ran here. She was fidgety and sweaty. But Pidge could not tell whether from nerves or exercise.

"Yes, I am a genius, thank you. What brings you here."
"I thought, maybe you could track Lance's phone for me.", she said and Pidge gaped. She too? Even Nyma did not know where Lance could possibly be?

"I- I already did that. Hunk called me. He's coming back to find him. Lance has not responded to his calls and-" Was Nyma seriously crying? Here? Right in front of her? The blackmail queen?

"Not even to Hunk, oh god.", she went pale. Like absolutely pale. She almost put Keith's white-as-sheet-paper-skin to shame.

"His phone is at the police station. Maybe someone found it. Or - "
Suddenly there were the sounds of sirens in the distance. Were they there before? Pidge could not tell. She was just so lost in thought.

"Wait, you don't think, they found him somewhere or-", now Pidge went just as pale.
But Nyma shook her head.

"No, no. I was at Lance's house just now. They just called the police. They are searching for him now."
"Wow, they noticed his absence early.", Pidge almost chuckled. If only it was funny.
Nyma looked at her, as if Pidge had slapped her. Guilt written on her face. Which meant – Pidge's eyes widened.
"You mean, they just noticed?"

Nyma nodded.
"Do you know where he might be?", Pidge asked. If there was anyone but Hunk who could find Lance, it was Nyma.
"Y-yeah. I think he might be on the old school yard. It's – it's his favorite place to hang out.
He took me there a few times."

"Why are you not searching there then?", Pidge was curious. If Nyma already had an idea, why did she not do everything she could to find Lance?

"Ehm – Lance is currently mad at me. So I thought he might come back, when he's ready, but he hasn't and now Keith is talking to his ghost and – I'm scared, ok?!"

Pidge raised an eyebrow. "You know that Keith is just seeing things, right? Don't worry. I'm sure Lance just ran away. And – lost his phone on his way and- " Pidge stopped.
"I think we should probably wait for Hunk. If anyone knows how to handle – whatever we're going to find, it's him. It shouldn't take long anymore either. He just texted he'll be here in like ten to twenty minutes."

Nyma accepted with a simple nod, horror in her eyes. Maybe it was not the wisest decision to tell her Hunk was on his way.
" I can - wait here with you, right?"
Pidge sighed, but shrugged with her shoulders eventually.
So Nyma sat down, her legs criss cross on the ground, while she stared ahead.
"Hey, why isn't Rolo with you? If you're searching for Lance, wouldn't you include your best friend?"

"Rolo – ehm – he's not very happy that I asked him were Lance was. He's jealous, because we just started dating and -"
"Oh. Ok. No need to tell me the details. I can tell it's complicated."
"Thank you, Pidge."
"No problem."

---------------------------------------------------

Keith had seen Nyma walk into the school. She was talking to Rolo for a short minute, then she disappeared inside, leaving an angry Rolo behind.
Keith knew, she had been skipping school. Even more concerning to see her here now.

But when he took a double look, he could not help but stare.
He stood up, as the person following Nyma suddenly approached him. So, he had not been seeing things.

"Lance? What are you doing here?", he asked. Because, why on earth was he not with Shiro?
"You promised to take care of Shiro! I thought-"
"Shiro went to my house."

Keith closed his mouth, intelligently. Lance looked serious. Mad, distraught, and terrified. Hurt even.
"He was talking to my mom. And –."
Tears were streaming down his face. Keith gaped, stuttering to find something to calm him down, but what was there to calm down?
But the answer came sooner than expected. "They didn't even notice I was gone!
"I mean, Sendak is a given, but my mom? My own mom?"

His voice cracked and Keith? Keith could not focus on anything or anyone but him right now.

"Holy shit, Lance. I – Are you okay?", what else to say?
But Lance let out a sad excuse of a laugh.

"Peachy, really. Except of course for the fact I died. And, apparently, nobody cares." The sarcasm was heavy in this one.
"I can't believe you're the only one who does. I think. At least you know I am dead. You used to hate me so much, you glared daggers at me in school."
Lance started shivering, despite the lack of movement. He stood there like a statue. As if he had trouble standing still.

Keith did not know what to do. "I never hated you.", Keith said, confused where this even came from. "And of course I care." Well, of course was overstated, perhaps. Keith never cared before, but there was something about Lance that made him.

Lance shook his head. He does know Keith didn't hate him, right?
"Yes, I know. I'm just- ", Lance started.
"Emotional?", Keith unhelpfully finished and again, Lance let out a sob.

And now? Now Keith did the only thing that made sense to him in this context. It's just, that he did not think whether or not it would work and the fact that nobody could even see Lance, made it a bit weird. But honestly? Keith did not care. He hugged Lance anyway.
And despite the fact that Lance was not even physically here, Keith could feel him tense at the action. He could feel Lance's form, as though he was only invisible and not just the faint memory of his existence.
To Keith, Lance was the most real being, he'd seen since his mother died and tricked him into believing she didn't.

It took a couple of seconds, but Lance hugged him back. Unaware of their audience.

"Holy shit, look at what Kogane is doing.", he heard Rolo laugh.
Keith closed his eyes.
"Keith, perhaps you should let go of me.", Lance whispered with a sob.
"Nope. Just ignore him."

But a second later, Rolo approached Keith. "No seriously, weirdo, what are you doing."
Keith barely looked up as he continued to ignore him.
"Honestly, Keith. You should let go.", Lance insisted. "You sure?", Keith asked, without shame.
"I- I am."
"Because just so you know, your feelings are important and you can talk to me anytime." Keith stared him right in the eye and it caused the people around them to whisper. Because now, a small crowd was gathering around the three of them.

"Yes, but so do yours. And – and they are judging you."
"They do that either way. "
Lance stared into Keith's eyes. Knowing that nobody could see his own breakdown. Just Keith talking to invisible air. Still, he was so close.

"Seriously Kogane, you're getting worse by the day, aren't you?" Rolo now said. Something in his voice indicated that Keith's behavior was scaring him. But it was not enough to stop him.
"This has nothing to do with you Rolo. "
"No shit, sherlock. That is not my point! I'm starting to think you're actually seeing those ghosts of yours. And I'm telling you, if that is true, I'm calling the police."

Finally, Keith let go of Lance, making him shudder at the loss of contact. Keith was so much warmer than he was. That alone felt comforting enough.

"Are you an idiot? If I'm mental, you should call a medical facility. Being ill is not against the law.", Keith said, more confused than actually angry.

Rolo's eye twitched. "Watch it, Kogane."
"Or what? You gonna punch me?", Keith said without thinking. He stood between Rolo and Lance's ghost and for some reason, he felt like he was protecting his friend. Despite the fact that nobody could hurt a ghost. At least not physically.
But Keith had never had a friend to protect. The feeling made him feel steady. Strong.

Rolo did not even hesitate as he did what he was told.

Why Rolo was so angry? Keith never knew. But he was the type to act on his anger. Keith stumbled back, as he lost his balance and fell into the dirt beneath him.
Silence filled the air, as Lance gasped at the sight. Keith stood up, his right eye burning and pulsing from the impact with Rolo's fist. But he did not even flinch as he ignored the protective stand Rolo was keeping. He sprinted towards him like a bull seeing red and punched the air out of Rolo's lungs.
Now it was Rolo who stumbled backwards.

"Keith, stop this.", Lance insisted, trying to hold back him by the arm. "This is ridiculous, you know why he does not take you seriously."
"Well, thank you for your support, but I don't care.", Keith hissed, earning a confused stare from Rolo whose eyes squinted with murder intent.

"What is going on?", a someone interrupted. And as Keith turned around in shock, he did not see the next punch coming.
Wheezing, he found himself on the ground again, Lance still trying to stop him.
But even this ended as Lance saw who was shoving himself through the crowd.

"Hunk?", he asked and Keith could tell this was not what he expected.
But Rolo did mot stop. His useless friends were only screaming at him to "give the freak another". The ridiculousness of it all made Keith even angrier.

"Rolo, stop this. We have more concerning things to take care of. Have you seen Lance somewhere around?!", Hunk stood between them now. And Keith? Keith actually let him.

"Hunk? You're here.", the emotions in Lance's voice suddenly wavered. His voice was still cracked from the hurt of his parents ignorance and the gratefulness of Keith's support. But also the anger of him raging out and then the sheer relief of seeing his best friend.

Keith kept silent as Rolo just scoffed. "What about him, huh? That pussy just skipped school a couple of times. Why is EVERYONE looking for him?"
Lance flinched as he heard that, hiding behind Keith now.
Looking at the fury in Hunk's eyes, he turned outright terrified. Of course, the only one who noticed was still Keith. Who would have calmed him down, if he was not trying to retrieve his balance as he still lay on the ground, breathless.

"He's my friend, you bastard. Now, tell me were you last saw him!", Hunk stood there like a giant, demanding to be obeyed.
But Rolo was an idiot. He did not give in. "No. If that attention seeking idiot thinks he can just disappear, then let him. He'll come back eventually."

Hunk's eyes twitched and Lance and Keith both looked at each other. Knowing exactly what was going to happen.
Hunk was about to punch Rolo. Keith jumped to his feet, but Lance was faster.
He screamed, like he had never screamed before. To Keith, it felt like his ears fell of.
"HUNK, STOP!"
Hunk did as told, arms still in midair. Eyes widened and not just his. Rolo as well, cowering before Hunk, turned to see where this came from. The crowd moved as well, trying to find the source of the noise.
"Did- did you just hear that?", Hunk asked, confused. Keith stared at him. "You did?"

"It- it was right beside my ear. Lance? Are you here? Where are you?", Hunk cried out. "You asshole, to think I was worried, show yourself!"

Lance cried again. Tears streaming down his face. "You can hear me?"
But Hunk did not respond. Keith finally stood up. "Hunk."
"Not now, Keith. Lance is here somewhere."

"Yes he is. He is right beside you.", Keith croaked out. Hunk turned, almost touching Lance from the movement. But he stared right through him at Keith.
"Keith, this is not funny."
Keith stood up, slowly. "You don't understand, Hunk.", he said, moving closer to the big guy. The confused, gentle giant.

"Here.", he said, receiving yet another odd look, as he navigated his way around Lance and took Hunk's arm to move it forward, until it touched Lance. Up until now it had been a mere theory of his, but he had to test it either way. Lance did not move, while Rolo looked like he wanted to kill someone for the turn of events. The ridiculous turn of events.
Hunk gasped as his hand reached the nothing. Only that the nothing felt like something. "What is-"
"Hunk. You know who this is."
Hunk turned to Keith. "No. No, that's-"

Lance lifted his own hand, touching Hunk's arm. Again, Hunk flinched at the sudden contact. "He's holding your arm now.", Keith said and as though in response, Hunk felt the touch tightening on his wrist.

"Holy hell.", he muttered and tears started streaming down his face. He turned to Keith. "How long?" Keith did not answer.
"How long has he – how long have you seen him?!", Hunk specified, still shaking at the contact with Lance's spirit.
Keith hesitated until he answered. "Monday morning."
Hunk sobbed. "What happened?", he asked. "I don't know.", Keith admitted. "He didn't tell. But he's happy to see you."

"We – I -", Hunk didn't know what to say.
"What the hell guys. Can you please stop this stupid charade -" "Shut up Rolo!", Keith hissed.