Keith was sitting on his apartment's couch, enjoying a book with some Christmas music playing softly in the background, when he heard a knock on his door.

Slightly annoyed, Keith sighed, putting down his book. He was cozy in his blanket and he really didn't feel like moving. Shiro, his roommate, wouldn't be home so early- he was out on a date with Matt and would probably be getting home late, so if not Shiro, who else would possibly want to climb the six flights of stairs up to his apartment?

Groaning internally, he slumped to the doorway, opening it before thinking of looking through the peephole.

What met Keith's eyes was a shivering, bundled-up figure who looked half-frozen. Keith looked down and realized that they were holding a plate of cheerfully-frosted cookies cut out in the shapes of Christmas trees and snowmen.

Keith squinted at the figure, trying to identify them through the bundle of a scarf, hat, earmuffs, and a hood. But the blue eyes that peered back at him between the swaths of fabric were unmistakable.

"Lance? What are you doing here?"

Lance said something muffled in reply, but the scarf was too thick for Keith to understand properly.

Rolling his eyes, Keith reaches forward and slowly tugged the scarf away, pulling down the hood as well. As he did, his fingers brushed against Lance's cheek and he winced at how cold his friend's face was.

"You'd better come inside. They don't have the heat on in the hallway," Keith said, stepping to the side to let Lance waddle inside. Keith realized just how bundled Lance actually was. He looked like that little brother from 'A Christmas Story'. Jeez.

"Here, let me..." Keith offered awkwardly, taking the cookies so Lance could free himself from the multitude of winter gear he had on. It took a few minutes, but Lance eventually emerged wearing his jeans and a blue sweater.

His cheeks and lips were chapped and he still seemed to be shivering, so Keith gave up his dream of having a peaceful night reading by himself and relented into hospitality.

"Let me make you some cocoa. And tell me why you're here, again."

And so, while Keith moved around the kitchen, boiling milk and taking out Swiss Miss powder, Lance explained how his abuela had come to visit for the month and how today, she, Lance, and his siblings and cousins, had made several batches of Christmas cookies.

Lance had a big family, but the amount they made was even too much for the McClain household itself, so Lance's mother asked him to take a dozen to each of his friends, in hopes of depleting the giant hoard of cookies they'd made.

Keith peeked at the cookies again, smiling a little at the messy frosting and sprinkles that the cookies displayed.

"Well, thank you, I'm sure Shiro will love them," Keith said as he handed Lance a mug of steaming cocoa. "Sorry we don't have marshmallows," he added.

Lance looked at Keith, his cheeks returning to the red they'd previously been as he spoke shyly, "I brought them for you, too."

Keith blinked. "What?"

Lance sighed, laughing nervously and running his hand through his already-messy hair. "Nevermind. I should go, it's getting late and I'm sure that you're tired. Thank you for the cocoa." Lance set down his mug and hurried to the front entrance, muttering spanish curses under his breath as he tugged on his coat.

Keith, slightly alarmed and a little sad, trailed after his friend, holding his own mug between his palms, nervously watching Lance pull on his gloves.

Biting his lip, he frowned. "You can stay," he blurted loudly, then looked down at his feet and added, "if you want."

Lance paused, a glove pulled halfway over his palm. Something flickered in his eyes and he nodded slightly, ducking his head in embarrassment. "If you don't mind, I can."

Keith sipped his cocoa. "I don't mind."

Lance's grin was warmer than the cocoa as the two of them settled on the couch, Keith picking up his book again, Lance flipping through a magazine.

Keith smiled to himself. Maybe this wasn't so bad after all.