Don't You Dare Touch Him Again...

Chapter 9

Lance called the police, and soon there were red and blue flashing lights surrounding the house.

James was taken away by the police, having woken up by then. Keith sat in the car, hugging himself and looking down at his feet.

Lance stood outside the car, a police officer coming up to them to ask some questions.

Keith answered with short and blunt answers. He didn't want to say more than he had to. The officer walked away when he got the information he needed.

Lance got in the car. He didn't look at Keith. He just looked down at his feet, but yet, he spoke. "...I'm so sorry that I didn't get to you sooner..." He mumbled. "...I knew I shouldn't have let you go in alone." Lance felt like he was somehow to blame. He was the one that took Keith here, knowing fully well that this could happen...

Keith looked over to Lance. "...What are you talking about? It's not like you could have known he was there... You stopped him just in time... Thank you." He reached his hand out to Lance, somewhat as a small action to thank him.

Lance glanced over at Keith's hand, then up at Keith's face. He shone a small smile, taking Keith's hand. "...I'm just happy you're okay..." He was honest.

Keith nodded, "..Can we leave this place though? I don't wanna be here more than I have to..." He mumbled.

"Yeah, absolutely, let's go back to my-" Keith interrupted him before he finished his sentence.

"Let's... Not go back yet? Just... Let's go for a drive... Just you and me." He squeezed Lance's hand gently. "Please? Just to clear our heads.."

Lance agreed, "That sounds really nice. Let's do it." He let go of Keith's hand and began to drive.

Keith stared out the window at the passing cars and landscape they passed. His nerves eased with the nice view, as well as the soft sound of the radio acting as white noise to Keith. It was calming.

He felt that finally he could breathe. Like a weight had been lifted off his chest and he could finally move. Sure, he wasn't too happy with how it happened... But at least James was gone, Keith could be himself again.

He glanced at the boy driving. Lance hummed to the music, but Keith didn't really hear it. He could only think about how thankful he was to have Lance. How grateful he was for this angel that had saved him from that hell. A smile crept onto his face and he turned to look back out the window.

As his anxieties relieved themselves, Keith felt his eyes getting heavier, his thoughts slowing down, and soon, he was asleep.

Lance looked over at Keith to see him completely relaxed. It brought a smile to his face. Seeing Keith so calm made him feel happy. "That's enough driving for today..." He spoke softly to not wake Keith up and turned the car to go back home.

It didn't take long for them to get to Lance's house again. Lance looked at Keith again, he still slept. He didn't wanna wake Keith up, not when he looked this peaceful. He got out of the car and went over to the passenger's side where Keith was. He opened the door and carefully lifted Keith up into his arms. He was careful not to wake him up.

He brought Keith inside and up to the guest room, resting him in the bed. The smile stayed on Lance's face. He walked out of the room, looking at Keith one more time, just making sure he was okay, before leaving and closing the door.

The next morning, Lance woke up rather early. He headed downstairs. Keith wasn't awake so he decided to get on with breakfast.

He was about to start when there was a knock on the door.

Lance went to open it, seeing Shiro standing outside with a sad look on his face. "Oh, hey Shiro. I wasn't expecting you here this morning?" Lance said.

"...I heard about what was going on... Is Keith with you?" Shiro asked.

Lance raised an eyebrow, "..You heard about it..? How?"

"It doesn't matter. Is Keith with you?" Shiro repeated his question.

"Yeah, he is. He's still sleeping. I got him out of there before that bastard could do anything... But he's still really shaken up from it." Lance sighed. "Do you wanna stay for breakfast? You could talk to Keith about it yourself. I really shouldn't be the one talking about it."

Shiro nodded, ,"Yeah, if that's okay?" Lance moved aside to let Shiro in, both of them heading to the kitchen while Lance finished getting breakfast ready.

Soon, Keith woke up as well. He followed the smell of food down to the kitchen. He rubbed the sleep out of his eyes as he came in, "Morning Lanc-" He kinda froze when he saw Shiro. "Shiro? Why are you here this early?" He asked, seeming somewhat confused.

Shiro turned to Keith, a concerned look on his face. "Keith... I'm so glad you're okay." He got up and gave Keith a hug. "Why didn't you come talk to me about that? I'm your brother.. I thought you'd tell me these things..."

Keith looked at Lance quickly, then pushed Shiro away. "...How did you find out about that..?"

"There's a bunch of news outlets talking about it. I came here as soon as I heard about it." Shiro rested his hands on Keith's shoulder.

Keith looked down, hugging himself loosely. "..I didn't want you to know..." He mumbled. "But it doesn't matter anymore. It's over and done with... Lance got me out of there..." He looked to Lance with a thankful smile.

Lance smiled back at Keith, "Yeah.. don't worry, I'll keep him safe."

Shiro looked between the two boys, sighing. "..Okay... Okay... I'm glad to hear that." He smiled a little. "Just.. keep safe, okay? I worry for you." Shiro said to Keith. "I'll leave you be then." With that, Shiro left, leaving Keith and Lance alone.

Lance looked at Keith in the eyes, smiling at him, "..Can you promise me something?" Lance asked.

Keith looked to Lance in the eyes. "..What?" He asked.

"Promise me.. that no matter what the situation.. you'll talk to me about it? Even if you don't tell anyone else, tell me."

Keith stared at the floor. He wasn't sure if that was a promise he could keep. He wasn't sure he would always be able to tell Lance about every situation. But eventually, he looked back up at Lance. "I'll try my best. That I can promise."

((Word count 1117))