VOLTRON ONE-SHOTS

Keith - Colorful Sound

He needed silence.

He burst off the steps, inhaling the city air, car horns sounding, teal color flashing in front of him and Keith- nearly breathless by now, heart beating out of his chest and it wouldn't stop- he clutched at his ears squeezing his eyes shut as if that alone would stop the sound from hitting him, get the colors to cease for just a little, please-

But it didn't, it didn't stop anything and he nearly shouted when the deep thrumming noise of people assaulted his ears, splashes of yellow and orange mixing dipping, swirling as a seemingly endless mass of bodies walked into him, pushing past his small body with no remorse as they came up out of the station, shoving him out of the way despite the clear look of fear and helplessness radiating off him.

No one noticed.

No one cared.

And Keith just barely made it to a nearby bench before he broke, clutching his arms to his chest, tears threatening to spill as the bright explosion of color continue to burst in front of his vision, and he hunched over, head hitting his knees as he thought helplessly of what he could do.

How he could make it stop and-

Violet eyes widened just marginally as he gathered the courage to get back to his feet, rubbing his cold nose with his sleeve, gathering himself before rising to his feet and moving to cross the street as the destination came to mind.

(A bell rang nearby, a dark blue bloomed across his eyes.)

There was only one place to go for the silence he was looking for, for a teen who'd just lost a fight, flunked a test, ran away from home (not exactly in that order, but it's enough for you to understand his point, right?). After he'd gotten cornered in the cafeteria of all places to be assaulted with lies and words and God he hated the sound and the reds and browns of their voices and the dull gold of the crowd that had gathered to watch the beating-

He couldn't stand it.

He needed it out of his head.

So he ran.

Ran out the doors, down the steps, only stopping once he'd reached the nearest station, hands itching for his guitar, guilt bubbling in his chest that he was running again, guilty that he hadn't grabbed his instrument, fear mixed with resignation at the thought of what he was doing again and with that he ignored everything in his head the moment he got underground, leaving it behind him, fingers clenching, fighting hopelessly for some control in his own head.

He wanted out.

But there was only one place in the entire city that could help him, help wipe away those sounds for just a little while, clear his sight, let him reset, at least until he gathered up enough courage to head back to his foster home-

Central Park.

He'd spent a few nights in that park before, during the times when he wished nothing more than to have his current foster family to burst into flames. Granted, sleeping in a tree wasn't the most comfortable way to spend the night, but he knew a place, hidden in the trees that blocked the sound from his ears, gave him a small sliver of peace in his head when the flashing colors in his vision became too much to bear.

He just didn't count on running into someone before he got there.

"Keith?"

He paused, just about to turn into the park, having successfully navigated his way across bustling city streets and sidewalks, clearly in no mood to get back on the subway after that mass of sound attacking his eyes-

He saw, more than heard the name echo from behind him. A bright swirl of black fading to purple exploding out of the muddy brown that had currently consumed his sight.