{ Klance makes me soft ;-; even if they aren't in the same place at the same time. }

There was about nothing worse and nothing so good as that feeling. Being okay while laying alone was one thing, but there was something more to it. Keith had wanted that feeling for so long, the one he got when he found out James' charges and saw his mugshot on the news. But the funny thing was... it hadn't lasted long.

As the omega stayed there, a practical burrito inside of his comforter, he could only think of one thing: Lance. Although he felt safe alone, something that had been completely foreign to him for a long time, he'd found that it didn't make him as happy as he'd thought it would. Lance... Lance made him feel whole, and when he wasn't there, nothing felt right.

Keith swung his feet off the bed and tossed the covers aside, accidentally waking up Kosmo who was sitting at the foot of the bed. He cringed, but then the dog settled back down and he didn't feel as guilty.

The clock read 2 in the morning, and he was wide awake as he made his way from the bedroom. He was barefoot and wearing a t-shirt and spanx, having been really hot for the past couple of days. He was just riled and on edge no matter what he did to cool off, and he figured it was just because his mind was still reeling from what had happened.

Pulling the fridge door open, Keith grabbed a Mountain Dew and went to the pantry, pulling out some popcorn. He wasn't exactly being healthy in that moment, but he didn't care. He was up.

He sat at the breakfast bar and switched on the TV in the living room, being able to watch it from there. There was nothing in particular that he was looking for, so he just switched on one of Lance's old videos, one of them where he was microwaving random stuff.

It wasn't too much longer before Keith heard footsteps and perked up, seeing that Romelle was walking into the kitchen. Her hair was braided into two tight ropes that hung down and swayed as she walked.

" Oh... hey." She said once she noticed Keith. " I didn't realize you were up."

" Couldn't sleep." Keith said.

" Me either." She replied, then grabbed a glass from the cupboard. Filling it up with water, she leaned on the counter, looking at Keith from across it.

Keith figured he had to talk to someone about what he was feeling. He'd tried to mask it and cover it up and distract himself but somehow he got nowhere. It was like he was going in circles and nothing was going to stop him unless he got it out.

" I really do love him..." Keith finally said, looking up at his sister.

Romelle wasn't shocked at all.

" It really took you this long to figure that out?" She asked, a light snicker sounding in the back of her throat.

" Well, no..." Keith smiled downward. " It's just... whenever I'm away from him, I don't feel like myself. I miss him and my scent gland gets achey. I miss him ten times more than I should and I think I get why..."

" Why?" She asked. It was pretty obvious what was happening, but still, she wanted to hear Keith admit to it.

" I think it's time we move in together... our bond is getting stronger to the point we have to." He told her, then took a big drink of his soda. It was a lot to process, being that he'd never felt that way about anyone before, never had his scent gland respond to an alpha in that way.

" You guys are pre-bonding... and I could've told you that." Romelle smiled. It was a process she'd been waiting for Keith to go through with someone, but it was finally happening. Essentially, it meant that an alpha and omega's souls and scent glands were becoming attached though they weren't soul bonded yet. It wasn't exactly common, since it could only take place when an alpha and omega loved each other unconditionally, but if it were to happen for anyone, Lance and Keith would be the ones on the receiving end.

" I don't know if Lance feels the same way, though... and that's where I'm stuck. I don't want to rush into anything and scare him off." Keith ran a hand through his hair. " I just want to spend every day with him... and I want to know that we can sleep in the same bed, and I won't have to feel guilty for keeping him away from home, or being away from my home all the time."

Romelle felt like an actual relationship counselor in that moment, but she oddly didn't mind it.

" Keith, listen. Lance loves you and it's clear to literally everyone. You just need to go for it and tell him everything because he'll love you either way. What's the worst that could happen?" She asked and reached across the counter to rub Keith's hand supportively.

" Well, he could get scared and break up with me, tell me no, or-"

" Woah. No. Stop that." She interrupted. " He would never."

" How can I know that for sure, though? I trust him with my life... but I don't know how he'd feel about such a big step..." Keith elaborated. " This is basically a huge step and commitment to a serious relationship. What comes next after moving in? Marriage? Kids? Bonding? I don't know how he'd feel about everything like that, especially with all of the shit going on in our lives right now."

" If you don't tell him I will." Romelle raised a brow. " Seriously. You have nothing to be scared about."

" Okay! Fine!" Keith exclaimed. " Tomorrow I'll tell him..."

But there was one other thing that Keith wanted to know. Why couldn't Romelle sleep? What was on her mind?

" So... why are you up?" He asked. " Are you in love with someone, too?"

That was meant to be teasing, meant to be a joke, but... when Romelle started to blush and chugged water, he wondered if she was.

" Okay." Keith coughed and ate some popcorn. " I need details. Who is it?"

" I'm not in love with anyone." She folded her arms and stuck up her nose, but then popped an eye open to see that Keith was still staring her down with that same fucking look on his face. Damn big brothers for knowing everything.

" But you like someone." Keith said.

" Shut up no-..." She sighed. " Maybe... but it doesn't matter, because he's in a relationship and we're just friends."

Keith's eyes bulged for a moment as he processed what Romelle was saying. Okay... well that made things more complicated. He was not about to see his sister be some guy's side chick, if that was her plan-he hoped it wasn't.

" Um..." The brother said. " You're not going to get with him, are you?"

" What?! No! I would never... not if he's with someone." Romelle insisted.

" Good." Keith said. " Just... be careful. I don't want you to end up hurt."

" I won't. I know I can't see him that way... even if I want to." Romelle said. " You just make sure that you get together with Lance tomorrow and talk to him. I'll be fine." She was quick to try and go back to bed after that, feeling like it might've been awkward if she continued getting relationship advice from her omega brother. Or maybe it was just her guilty conscience. Yeah, probably that.

Keith went and got his phone before sitting back down, pulling up Lance's contact. He pondered what he should text him, figuring that he should pick his words carefully. Or not? Would that make it even worse?

Keith 2:09 AM: Hey Babe. Are you up?

Somewhere in his heart, the omega could tell that Lance was awake. The reason why was unclear, but it was practically fact in Keith's mind.

Babe 2:09 AM: Yup. What's up?

Keith had changed his name a while ago to something more loving and mushy, and it seemed to fit Lance better than anything else.

Keith 2:10 AM: I miss you and I want to see you today

Keith 2:10 AM: Not to film or anything either. Just us

He saw that Lance was typing and gulped.

Babe 2:11 AM: UwU you miss me?~ That's cute KitKat. But no seriously I'll be there tomorrow :)

Keith smiled to himself and texted Lance back an okay. He couldn't wait to see him, but he needed all the time he could get to tell him everything.

...

Lance could tell something was different as he got ready for Keith's that day. He reached up and felt his scent gland, rubbing it and massaging it as it tingled. He looked in the mirror and craned his neck, then thought about what might've been going on.

He didn't know why his scent gland was swollen, slightly raised like that. His rut wasn't close, nor was Keith's heat as far as he knew.

So he did the only thing he knew always helped, for advice at least... he called his mom.

" Mamá. Hola." He greeted, speaking the way she'd taught him to. The younger siblings didn't really speak Spanish that much, since their mother had given up on trying to make everyone do it in the house.

" Lance! My son! How are you?" Camila asked in a happy way from the other end.

" Well... you see... I hate to call you just because I need something, but-"

Camila sighed from the other end in a tone that only a mother could. It was one of experience and unrivaled knowledge.

" What is it? You can ask." She assured.

" My scent gland is kind of acting weird... and I really don't know what's happening. I feel like it has something to do with Keith, but at the same time... I know he doesn't have heat coming up or anything. Sorry if it's weird that I'm asking you, but I'm not sure who else I can talk to about it."

Camila was definitely thinking for a second on the other side, but once the idea crossed her mind, it seemed like a very real possibility.

" Have you been sleeping? Has it been tingling?" She asked.

" No, and yes to the second part."

That definitely solved it. Camila didn't want to be the one to tell Lance this, and would've much rather had her son figure it out on his own, but at the same time, he was sort of forcing her hand.

" Lance, I think... it sounds like you are pre-bonding to Keith." She said with a mature tone.

Lance's eyes widened and he stared at himself in the mirror. That would've made a lot of sense, but he almost couldn't believe it. Already? It seemed like he and Keith had known each other forever, but in actuality they hadn't been together for a long, long time.

" Really?" He asked.

" Yes. It's your body's way of nudging you to get closer with him. You're attached and your scent gland doesn't like not being around his-"

" I know what it means, just-... it..." Lance blushed at his feet. That meant that he wasn't delusional for loving Keith with all of his heart, and it was the best feeling ever. He hadn't even gotten signs of that after he and Allura had been together for longer, and that was the best part.

" Talk to him about it as soon as you can." Camila instructed. " But don't rush into bonding with him. I don't want you to scare him off." She was smiling to herself while sitting there, just thinking about the possibility of Lance being with someone forever. Her son deserved it.

" Bonding?! No! Not even close!" Lance exclaimed.

They had a long way to go before then.

...

Keith was pacing around his house, wondering how he was going to do this. He'd already figured out that he and Lance were going to order pizza and spend the night inside, but he didn't even know how to bring the subject up.

" Oh, yeah, Lance, Babe? I love you and our bodies are starting to bond and I want to move in with you." Keith whispered to himself, then smacked his hand up into a facepalm. " Idiot."

He was hopeless as he flopped over on the couch with Kosmo. Lance would be arriving soon and Keith was ready to just bite all of his nails off from how nervous he was.

Romance? Humor? Steam? He didn't know the mood he wanted to use to establish any of this. Casual would've been... a recipe for Keith stammering and whatnot.

Meanwhile, as Keith was ready to jump out the second story window from frustration, Romelle was in the guest room.

She was contently watching Netflix on the TV, but when her phone chimed, she looked down at it.

Lotor 4:00 PM: Hey. So my life is nuts

She made a perplexed expression before texting back.

Romelle 4:01 PM: I could've told you that. But why? What's up?

Lotor 4:02 PM: My girlfriend is pregnant and she just posted about it on YouTube and now I feel like the internet is going to break

Romelle gasped and covered her mouth. Lotor?! A father?! Holy shit! This should've made her jealous, but it honestly didn't. She was so happy for him that it made her emotional.

Romelle 4:02 PM: That's great! How far along?

Lotor 4:03 PM: A couple weeks

Lotor 4:03 PM: I just wish we could've kept it private for a little while longer

Romelle 4:04 PM: What's her YouTube?

Lotor 4:04 PM: Allura

She moved out of the iMessage she was on and went to her YouTube app on her phone, searching up the name. Romelle was more than a little shocked by the number of subscribers and she recognized the girl's face. Just not the name.

She was gorgeous! No wonder she was with someone like him. Curiously, Romelle clicked on her newest video, titled Lotor Got Me Pregnant. Wow. Original content. Lovely.

" I'm just happy that I'm going to have a child with someone who loves me." Allura said in the video, and Romelle didn't know why, but Allura gave her a bad feeling. She couldn't quite put her finger on why, but it was enough to make her click off a short time later.

Either way, Lotor was her friend and she had to be there for him, even if his girlfriend seemed like a snake.

Romelle 4:12 PM: Congratulations. Let me know when you have a gender reveal :) I'll definitely come

Keith got a text from Lance that he was on his way, and he was still at a loss. He was just about to give up when he got a phone call from Shiro, which he picked up.

" Hey." The little brother said. " I haven't heard from you in a while."

" Yeah, I know. It's been crazy with the fiancé collection and other stuff." Shiro awkwardly chuckled from the other end. " That's actually part of why I'm calling."

Keith raised a brow.

" How would you and Lance feel about going out to dinner with us tomorrow night? Pidge and Hunk and Shay are already coming." Shiro explained.

" What's the occasion?" Keith asked.

Shiro felt like he might've blown his own cover, but then took a deep breath.

" Just wanting to catch up. That's all." He said, and a Keith figured that it was reasonable enough.

" Sure." The omega replied. " Is this a fancy place we're talking about?"

" Marmora's. So definitely dress nicer than a t-shirt." Shiro said.

" Sweet. Let me know more tomorrow."

And with that, Keith hung up. He knew that when Lance got there, he was expecting just a normal night in... but he would've been severely mistaken. He knew what he had to do. Telling Lance was one thing, but Keith also had to stop himself from missing the alpha.

And that required much more than a simple conversation.

{ Hmmm wonder what's gonna happen next chapter :P

Tell me predictions. I love hearing y'all speculate lmao. }