(( Secondhand embarrassment warning. God, I love Ronny sm. Also, I wanted to switch things up and let Lance have a nightmare for once. The events that take place in it are very triggering and involve violence, as well as blood. In Lance's hormonal, paranoid mind, he's terrified of something like this happening to Keith. But in all relationally, if he sits down to think about it, he knows it won't. It is just the alpha inside of him that causes him to be like this.))

" KEITHHH!" Ronny yelled, coming through the front door. Lance was off at work already, so it was safe. The twins were with their Abuela, and Camila and André were still sleeping.

Keith was at the kitchen table, filling out a Starbucks job application. He was so startled that he almost got stray pen marks all over the paper.

" Keith!" She called a little quieter, remembering that her parents were still in bed. It was after school, so they'd be waking up in an hour or two for work.

" What's up?" Keith asked, seeing Lance's sister rush into the kitchen, holding her phone and looking at it in terror.

" What do I do?! What do I do?!" She exclaimed, appearing to be frantic.

" About what?" Keith questioned, setting his pen down.

" Well I- I should explain everything first, right?!" Ronny tried to take a couple deep breaths.

" That might help." He stayed calm, and pulled out the chair next to him. Keith was perfectly happy being the person that Veronica could confide in. It made him feel more involved in Lance's family.

" It's Sasha." Ronny said.

Keith's immediate thought wasn't good. After all, people were supposed to be cautious about alphas.

" It happened in gym class and-and..."

" And what?" Keith had wide eyes. " Did she touch you?!" He asked, wondering if Ronny had bitten off more than she could chew.

" What?! No!" Ronny looked at Keith like he was stupid. " She asked for my Snapchat!" She whined. And Keith deadpanned.

" Is that what you're freaking out about?" His eye twitched while asking.

" Yes! And now she's messaging me and I don't know how to respond!" Ronny set the phone on the table. " I'm not a natural flirt like you!"

Keith facepalmed.

" What makes you think I'm a natural flirt? That's your brother's thing, not mine." He didn't even know if he could help her with this one.

" I'm not talking to Lance! I need you to help me..." She lowered her volume, knowing that there'd be hell to pay if they woke up Camila and André.

Keith sighed.

" What did she say?" He inquired, and Ronny slid the phone to him. First of all, the Bitmoji was cute. This Sasha girl was definitely attractive, and even Keith could acknowledge that.

Hey, gorgeous... wyd?

" Okay yeah... this is totally flirting." Keith cleared his throat. He was gay as hell! How the fuck was he supposed to flirt with a girl without it being awkward?!

" No shit, Sherlock!" Ronny said under her breath. " I don't know how to do this..."

" Ummm... just say you're watching TV or something." Keith said, sliding the phone back. And Ronny looked at him questionably before following his instructions. " I've never had to flirt with a girl before. Are you trying to play hard to get?"

" I don't even know- fuck! She opened it!" Veronica almost chucked her phone out of nervousness. She nearly wiped off all of her winged eyeliner when she rubbed her eyes.

Oh lol. I thought you'd be doing your emo girl things.

" How do I respond to that?!" Ronny could've ripped her hair out as she got up. " Oh shit, did I open it too soon?!"

" You're overthinking it." Keith said, examining the message. " This honestly sounds like something Lance would say."

" Ew! I don't wanna think about my brother sliding into my DM's..."

She jumped upon feeling her phone buzz again.

How's your chest doing? Sorry again about that...

Keith made a perplexed face.

" What does she mean by that?" He asked Ronny, who was embarrassed right away.

" Well-uh... you see... we were playing softball in gym class... and she was batting..." She explained, sitting back down. Ronny was trying to stop being so restless. " And I was in the field and..."

" And...?" Keith nudged her to finish the sentence.

" Long story short, she swung and the ball slammed into my boob and I fell over." She hung her head, still flustered from how humiliating it was.

Keith stifled a laugh.

" Not funny!" Ronny narrowed her eyes at him and shot up upon hearing a snicker from him.

" So what happened after?" He folded his lips inward to contain any more laughter threatening to erupt.

" She helped me up and asked me if I was okay." Ronny said. She neglected to tell Sasha about how her boob was numb. " Now what do I say?!"

" I hate to break it to you, but I can't do this for you. You need to do it yourself." Keith crossed his arms. " Remember she's an alpha, so she probably sees submissiveness out of people all the time."

" Your point?"

" Throw her a curve ball. I know you're funny and sassy, but does she?" Keith got up.

Ronny looked confused at first, but then she understood what Keith was saying.

" Is that what you did with Lance?" She smugly asked. Keith was blushing in a matter of seconds.

" I played hard to get. Lance was into it. That's all I'm saying." He shrugged, trying to play down his bashfulness. Oh God. He remembered how Lance was pining after him for a while there.

Ronny sighed before responding.

It's fine, just bruised up and stuff. I think the bra helped soften the blow.

It was read immediately.

Keith was getting himself more ice cream. He could get away with it because Lance and Camila weren't around. No shame. None.

This is a first. Any other time I'd be much happier if you weren't wearing a bra ;)

" Keithhhh!" Ronny whined.

" Yeah?" He raised an eyebrow, still kind of entranced while admiring the ice cream. Keith had a problem.

" Help me please! Pleaseeee!" She was a step away from begging him.

" What did she say?"

Ronny scrambled out of her seat and shoved her phone in Keith's face. At first he wasn't expecting much, but he was soon choking on air.

" I'm too gay for this!" Keith coughed. " This is literally female Lance!"

" Fuck!" Ronny squeaked. Her face was the definition of red. " Fuck, fuck, fuckity fucking shit! What do I do?!"

" I don't know!" Keith was getting some hardcore secondhand embarrassment from this.

Ronny panicked, trying to think of a response. Sassy flirting?! It should've been a piece of cake, but it wasn't.

Me too. Bras are uncomfortable.

" Is this fine?! I sent it!" Veronica showed Keith.

" I don't know the difference! I can't flirt with girls!" Keith wanted curl up in a ball, so he couldn't even imagine how Ronny was feeling right then.

Glad you think so...

Ronny didn't know how to do this. She'd need some lessons from someone who actually liked girls. AKA her big brother, and master flirt. He'd managed to get with Keith. One of the most stubborn people Veronica had ever met. That took talent.

She awkwardly typed back.

So... you excited for the swimming unit?

Those few seconds before the chat was opened were nerve wracking.

Only for the seeing you in a swimming suit part

Keith looked over at her, seeing that she was almost keeling over from how flustered she was.

I'm nothing special.

She answered.

" She wants to see me in a swimming suit!" Ronny exclaimed to Keith, who was currently eating ice cream.

" Is that... good?" He asked, trying to figure out how she felt about it.

" Yes-no! I don't know?!"

That's a matter of opinion. Don't be so modest.

Ronny loved this but hated the anxiety that came along with it. She'd have to dig out the bikini now. Or was that not playing hard to get? Ugh.

...

By the time Lance got home, he was completely burnt out. He trudged through the door, taking off his shoes and noticing how sore his feet were. All that running around for things definitely took a toll.

He was exhausted. But at least it was Friday. He'd get to sleep in, have a day with Keith. That was the light at the end of the tunnel of a long week.

He went upstairs, checking that the twins were in bed, which they were thank God. Lance also knocked on Ronny's door, and he got a quiet 'What?' in response.

" I'm home... and I'm going to bed. Night." Lance said, knowing she probably wouldn't want him to intrude. He walked down the hall, leaving his sister to her business.

The alpha went into his room, relieved to see that Keith wasn't looking to fuck again. Lance honestly didn't have it in him right then. Keith didn't either, because he was peacefully sleeping on his own side of the bed.

There was a small smile that appeared on Lance's face, and as he threw his work clothes into the hamper, it only widened. Work was done for the day, so was school. He could crawl into bed, snuggle up to Keith, and finally clock out.

Lance got under the covers, making sure that he didn't cause the mattress to bounce due to the weight transfer. He slowly slid closer to Keith, and the omega stirred, opening his eyes.

" Lance?" He groggily asked.

" Sorry, Babe... didn't mean to wake you up." Lance cringed, mentally kicking himself.

" Mm..." Keith hummed, still half asleep as he rolled over to face Lance. He just repositioned himself, and found his little spot against the alpha's side. Just like that, his eyes were closed again, and he was drifting off.

Lance wrapped an arm around his boyfriend, hugging him into his chest gently.

" Love you..." He murmured tiredly, kissing Keith's head before settling into the pillows.

...

He couldn't move. He couldn't do anything other than lay there, with his bloodied face swelling more by the minute. It was too late. Lance had tried, yet he'd failed the most important person in the world. He'd failed to be alpha enough to protect their baby.

" STOP!" Keith screamed, but he was slapped harshly across the face for a third or a fourth time. He'd lost track at that point. Lance could only listen to Keith spit blood onto the floor.

" Get rid of the baby, Keith! Do it!" Shiro yelled, raising his hand yet again while pressing Keith to the wall with his other one.

" NEVER!" Keith bared his teeth, seething while blood dripped from his split lip.

" K-Keith..." Lance tried to talk, but barely anything was coming out. He'd been beaten so badly that his jaw refused to move. He was supposed to be an alpha, yet his omega and unborn child were currently being subjected to abuse.

" You really want to raise a baby with him?! Look at him! He can't protect either of you!" Shiro barked, and Keith tried to thrash out of his grip, but it was pointless. The smaller boy was stuck.

Keith didn't say anything.

" I'll drive you to the abortion clinic right now! Or I can do you a favor right here!" Shiro growled. " Don't make me do this, Keith!"

Lance's eyes were wide as could be as he tried to roll over. It was excruciating, being that his ribs were almost... crunching... in his chest.

" You don't have to do anything! Just let us go!" Keith cried, but Shiro was soon kneeing him swiftly in the gut, over and over and over. The omega was pretty much coughing up blood by the time he hit the floor. The pain was indescribable.

Keith was trying to crawl away, trying to get to Lance. Even as red began to stain the area between his legs, and leave a bloody trail in his wake. It-

Lance shot up from bed, screaming like a mad man. There were tears clouding his eyes, racing down his cheeks. His breathing was shallow, rapid, and it was something that had never happened to him before.

Keith was awoken suddenly, and he had no clue what to think as he saw Lance freaking out next to him.

" K-Keith, Keith, K-Keith!" Lance was trembling and sobbing as he hugged Keith. The omega could only let him nuzzle into his neck, drenching his skin with tears.

" Lance?" Keith asked in a rough, sleep stricken voice. He was still quite drowsy, but he was awake enough to comfort his boyfriend, who was obviously in need of support. " Babe, what is it?"

" Th-the b-baby... Shiro..." Lance rambled unintelligibly. He was a shaky mess of shallow breathing, and it was only getting worse every second. He was spiraling into a panic attack, and Keith soon realized it as he took note of his premature respirations.

" Lance... breathe with me, okay?" Keith whispered, pulling back so he could look at his alpha. He was no stranger to panic attacks, so he knew how to help.

Lance's breath was raspy, and seemed to break at random times. It wasn't in some sort of pattern, or really anything that could've been considered regular. He tried to make eye contact with Keith, but his orbs were foggy from tears.

Keith took a deep breath, holding it for a few seconds before letting the air out through his mouth.

" Lance, try it with me." He said, doing it again, and at least that time he seemed to see an effort from Lance. The taller male just couldn't hold the air in, no matter how desperately he tried.

Keith did this with him, and after at least twenty times, he was finally getting somewhere. Lance's breath would still hitch occasionally, but other than that, it was back to normal. There were tears draining from the far corners of his eyes, running down his freckled cheeks quietly.

" You're okay... I promise you're safe..." Keith said, hugging him and rubbing his back in a circular motion.

" It's not me I'm w-worried about." Lance sniffled.

" I'm okay, too." He whispered, raking his hands through Lance's hair and moving back to wipe away his tears. " It was a nightmare, wasn't it? I know... they can seem so real."

" He-... Shiro hurt you..." Lance said, not even thinking about the way he'd been injured as well.

" Shh... we don't have to talk about it unless you want to." The omega responded, seeing that Lance was actually starting to get better.

" I can't just not talk about it... it was so... vivid." Lance inhaled deeply, trying to compose himself.

Keith wasn't sure that talking it out would help, because after all, it never seemed to help him. It only sent him spiraling once more. But maybe Lance was different.

" What happened?" Keith asked, concerned as he saw the expression on Lance's face.

" I... we were at Shiro's-or I guess your house. And... he beat me up... and I couldn't help you and..." The alpha's breath was trembly as he paused for a moment. " He was trying to take you to the abortion clinic and... and when you wouldn't go... he just... started kneeing you... and you were bleeding and screaming and I-I couldn't do shit." Lance exhaled sharply, trying to keep it together.

" Babe..." Keith said with melancholy pulling down on his facial features. " He would never do that to me... or to you. You know that."

" I know... but what if he did?" Lance fretted, and worry flashed in his currently beady blue eyes. " I wouldn't be able to stop him..."

" You don't have to think about it. Shiro might've almost touched me, but he'd never take it any further than that. I promise." Keith cupped Lance's cheeks in his palms. " I promise." He repeated.

" I know." Lance said. " Sorry..."

" The last thing you should be doing right now is apologizing because there's nothing you have to be sorry for." Keith assured him.

Lance was silent for a second before a weak smile lifted his lips.

" I love you." He told Keith, looking in his eyes while doing so. He also grabbed one of Keith's hands, lowering it from his face, where he placed a kiss on the top of it.

" I love you too..." Keith said, and it wasn't long before they were both laying back down in bed again.

Lance had no clue what he'd do without Keith beside him.