"Y'all always late, like what the hell?" Pidge demanded when Keith and Lance finally arrived at the water park.
"Lance had to stop for gas. Plus we left Rachel's kind of late." Keith explained. Lance shrugged.
" We are only ten minutes late Pidge chill out, your sounding like Keith. "
"She's sounding like Shiro." Allura said. She had three different bags with her, despite the fact that they would be at the park for maybe five hours.
" I don't use profanity. " Shiro corrected.
"Yes, and he's taught us his ways." Hunk smiled. Shay laughed.
" He taught you his ways. " Pidge started. "I don't give a damn-"
"Pidge." Shiro glared at her and she sighed.
"So Melles, what's first on the schedule? This is your trip." Matt asked.
Romelle had been showing Coran a little map of the park, trying to explain to him where they were but he couldn't really understand it. "We should start with picking partners. Or groups. You guys can choose between the two but we probably don't want to be moving as all one big gang."
"That's true." Lance said. " I'm not trying to sit in the lazy river for three hours with Shiro. "
"It is a very calming experience.." Shiro started. Coran nodded.
" I do agree. "
"Boomers." Matt muttered. Pidge laughed.
"Don't act like your not gonna be tagging along to Shiro like a pet." She whispered to him. He turned red and turned away.
" I think partners are better than groups. " Keith said.
They all agreed. "I'll go with Hunk." Shay said. Hunks face melted as he slowly wrapped an arm around her.
"Aww." Allura, Romelle, Coran and Lance cooed in sync. Too bad the two weren't dating. Still.
" I am going to take Coran with me. He is having trouble understanding the place.. " Romelle offered.
"Understatement of the year." Pidge muttered under her breath. Coran was still staring at the map, with it right under his nose. Literally.
" And since I know the place best I'll take him. " Romelle finished.
"That's very smart of you." Allura smiled at her. Romelle have her a thumbs up.
" I'm taking Lura. " Lance said, sliding an arm around her waist. She let out a bubbled laugh.
Shiro and Matt caught Keith rolling his eyes and crossing his arms.
"Me and Matt will be partners. Right?" Shiro asked turning to his best friend.
Matt's grin couldn't be wider. "Right."
" That leaves me and you emo. " Pidge said punching Keith on the arm.
"Sounds like a plan gremlin." Keith smirked.
Everyone split up to change into their bathing suits and the fluttering in Keith's stomach started to come back.
Pidge seemed kind of hesitant about choosing the changing rooms but at Keith's gesture of welcoming, she joined him in the guys bathroom. Neither of them really cared much. Nothing was going to happen.
"Ugh I swear to God, my hair will not stay like this in the water.." Allura complained. She had her bags and their contents strewn across three benches in a small locker area where Romelle was tying up her pink bikini, flamingos practically dancing across the bathing suit.
" What's the problem? " Romelle asked joining her friend. Families rushed by, changing, and it was incredibly loud. Water dripped from unknown places and if you weren't careful you might lay eyes on something you didn't want to see.
"My hair. Once it gets wet, it will come out of this. I can't get the braid tight enough-" Allura fidgeted with her loose braid, the curls framing her flushed cheeks.
Shay appeared from a nearby bathroom stall. "..hey guys? Do I look okay..?" she wore a gold bikini that showed off her curves and toned stomach. Despite her height ( taller than Allura), she was shy as her brown hair fell over her blushing cheeks and freckles.
"You look more than okay hun!" Allura immediately forgot about her hair. " Did Hunk pick that out? " she didn't try to hide her wink.
Shay chuckled. "No. I wanted to surprise him...I'm nervous. Its.." she gestured at her bare skin. " Showy. "
Romelle wrapped the girl in her arms. "You're beautiful. Hunk already knows." she reassured her. Shay smiled.
"Thanks. And you too!! I like your..flamingos..?"
Romelle grinned. "They're perfect aren't they?"
" They're definitely you. " Allura laughed.
Shay chuckled as she began braiding a crown around her head with ease. Allura watched in curiosity.
"Hey Shay...could you do me a favor?"
" Yeah, of course. "
"Could you braid my hair?"
"Yeah!"
Allura smiled. "Great. Oh, and by the way. There's a lot of it." and she let out the braid. Shay's eyes widened at Allura's long hair.
" I hate this. So uncomfortable. " Pidge groaned. She sat outside the men's locker room with Lance. She only had on green swim trunks with tropical leaves patterned on them, and a matching water shirt, but she felt so out of place. Her bare chest didn't show that she was though.
"Ah don't worry about it. You look fine. Besides it's just us." Lance grinned. He on the other hand, was decked out. He had blue swim trunks to match his bare chest, but hadn't left his house without a floppy sun hat and rainbow colored heart sunglasses. He looked like a fool and Pidge had told him so many times.
"Tell Keith that. He's taking forever to put on a pair of shorts."
Shiro and Matt got the honor of getting to pry Keith out of the stall while Coran twisted his mustache.
"Come on Keith. I'm sure you look fine dude." Matt called, pounding on the bathroom stall door.
" No. I look like a flashlight, no one told me I was this pale. "
"No I think I did..." Shiro argued. Matt elbowed him.
" Your not helping. " Matt shook his head at Shiro.
"Keith it's just us. Just your friends. Your best friends. We aren't going to judge you I swear."
The door creaked open. Keith popped his head out. "You sure.. ?"
Matt and Shiro nodded. "Positive." They said in usion.
" I am ready for the water! " Coran finally announced. His orange swim trunks and shirt were adorned with teddy bears, and his gigantic orange float wrapped around his waist. He also had sunglasses, though his were shaped in umbrellas. How the hell he saw through those was anybody's guess.
"Yes...You are.." Shiro tried for a smile.
Matt laughed nervously. It was hard for him to not look at Shiro's bare chest, and his abs...and his muscles...
Shiro only wore black shorts. So plain, and yet so so much for Matt's little heart. He gulped.
Matt wore a pair of gray swim trunks and a gray swim shirt to match, with his black flip flops because he didn't feel like walking around on the hot ground barefoot like everyone else.
Hunk came around the corner too. His headband was gone for once, and his hair fell over his eyes again, to the point that he had to continuously push it out of the way. He wore yellow swim trunks with mini sun's on them, as he was a ray of sunshine himself. "I'm ready too!" He grinned. " Where's Keith? "
Coran, Shiro and Matt all pointed to the stall where Keith still hadn't moved. Hunk scooted over to it. "Keith, come on bud, it won't be that bad."
" I haven't been swimming in so long. And also I'm super pale. And also I'm super skinny. " Keith mumbled in complaint.
"And also we love you no matter what." Hunk added.
"And also you'll be alone with a non emotional midget the entire time and she won't give a damn if your skinny and pale. Cause so is she." Matt reassured.
" And also think about the fun you'll have. " Coran added.
"Or think about getting over your insecurities." Shiro said.
"Fine. But if I'm laughed at. I'm coming for all of you. With my knife." Keith mumbled before stepping out of the stall. Barefoot, with his hair hanging around his shoulders, red swim trunks, and staring at his feet.
" You look fine dude. "
"See?? Not so bad!"
" You're doing great already. "
"Absolutely splendid."
His friends complimented and reassured him as they started for the others outside.
"And give us a spin!" Romelle called. Allura and Lance were posing on the sidewalk in front of the locker rooms, looking gorgeous as always.
" Y'all some beautiful people I ain't even gonna lie. " Pidge shook her head as she watched sitting next to Shay. Shay nodded in agreement.
Allura's hair was now a long intricate braid hiding from under her sunhat, the braid reached the middle of her back, where the skin was bare. She wore a one piece lilac bathing suit with the back cut out. It was plain, but she couldn't have looked more stunning. Bypassers gawked at her simplicity and laughed at Lance's wackiness. But there was no denying the passion and talent the two had. Any stranger could tell they'd been modeling for a long time.
"One more spin, there you go." Romelle continued in her husky impression of a photographer as she pretended to click her imaginary camera. " Beautiful darlingssss. " she droned on. Pidge nearly laughed at how stupid Romelle sounded.
"Lance dip her!" Shay called out her request. Lance didn't hesitate to dip her, though their sunhats clashed, causing them to laugh.
"Such a cute friendship." Shay nodded in approval.
" Oh my god Keith! You rose from the dead! " Pidge exclaimed as the rest of the group finally left the stalls.
The first people to spot each other were Hunk and Shay. Hunk's jaw dropped as Shay turned red.
"You look gorgeous." He said sweetly to her. She laughed nervously.
" I'm nervous. "
"No need to be nervous with me." Hunk pushed a loose hair out of her face. She continued to blush and smile uncontrollably.
"Get a room losers!" Pidge shouted.
" When is he gonna ask her out like for real..? " Allura asked smiling.
Keith smiled. Hunk and Shay were wholesome, if annoying with their beating around the bush. It had been what a year of him following her around? Cute.
"Look who finally broke out of his shell." Lance cooed, obnoxiously wrapping an arm around Keith's shoulder. He was so close, Keith could feel their skin against each others, and Lance's heat. The sunhat deflated annoyingly onto Keith's face.
" Shut up. " Keith said pushing Lance off him, but not before his face was a blushing mess. He tried to come back. "Who are you supposed to be anyway? Nicki Minaj?"
Fuck that was trash.
"Don't hate the hottie, babe." Lance winked before spinning on his heel and going to annoy Pidge.
Stupid heart sunglasses. Rainbows.
"Okay, everyone have a towel?" Romelle asked. Coran didn't, and neither did Pidge or Shay. She quickly passed them out and something dropped.
Crack.
"What was that?" Pidge and Shay looked at their feet. Romelle gasped.
" No! Mickey! " she kneeled down. It had been her phone. Keith laughed.
"Looks like your Mickey mouse phone case isn't very protective."
Shiro shot him a glare.
Romelle frowned. "Mickey.."
It was true. The phone was cracked in every which way, jagged edges poking out. Mickey's face was fine though. "Nooo."
" I forgot about that. " Matt laughed. " A very unique phone case."
"Very Romelle like." Hunk chuckled. Matt nodded.
" Okay, I didn't come here to mourn the death of a phone. Can we go now? " Pidge looked at Keith.
Romelle wiped her fake tears.
"Meet here at 4 p.m alright?"
Everyone nodded and broke apart. Romelle grinned at Coran. "Are you ready?"
He twisted his float. "I was born for this very moment."
...
Hunk and Shay headed immediately for the wave pool. A huge beach like vacinity, with a mini dam, that kept water in. Underwater vibrators kept the water moving at high speeds and controlled when the next wave hit. When it did, a large red buzzard went off, warning the swimmers.
"You do look pretty you know." Hunk said as they headed down to the pool. It seemed like hundreds of people were in the water, the waves alive with bobbing heads and laughter. The sun shone bright on them. Hunk grinned. Summer.
Shay blushed again. "Thank you. You look handsome in your swim trunks." They snickered before entering the wave pool.
They floated around for a bit, splashing water at each other and talking about the restaurant and Shay's flowers. Then the red buzzard on the dam started flashing and the tropical music hit with extra bass. Kids giggling in anticipation grabbed onto their parents and Hunk and Shay locked eyes.
"Deep end?"
" Deep end. "
They linked arms and headed farther into the wave pool. They had just made it to the edge of the dam when the wave started rolling. Kids were swept up and laughter reverberated through the pool. As the wave caught momentum and grew in size, Hunk and Shay gripped each other's hands. They braced themselves for impact, and boy did that wave hit hard.
They were thrown against the dam wall, not too hard, but enough to shock them and they were pushed under water as the wave switched directions. They kept their hands linked the whole time.
They came up for air. Hunk's hair was matted against his eyes but he was laughing. So was Shay. Their laughs were infectious and loud, and beautiful. Bubbling, and warm, they held each other as water dripped from their hair and the ripples died out around them.
As Shay continued to giggle, Hunk let an arm wander around her waist. He pulled her in.
"Would it be stupid and grossly poetic if I said I wanted to jump into the deep end with you?" He whispered.
Even with all the noise and energy buzzing around them, she heard him just fine. "I'm assuming you mean relationship wise."
" Perhaps. " his laugh still lingered on his lips.
"Then no. I don't think it would be."
He pulled her even closer. Her breath was on his lips. "Well then. Do you want to jump, headfirst, into the deep end with me?" He cracked a smile.
Shay loved his eyes. They were so warm and welcoming. They made her feel safe, even though relationships were scary. Hunk was safe. He was love, itself.
"Yes. Yes I do."
He kissed her. And that one kiss said a million words, a million words neither of them had said over the year, forced down words, words whispered in dreams, words written in notebooks, words told as secrets to friends.
A kiss that wouldn't be broken. Not even by a giant wave.
...
"Would you hate me if I asked that we spent time in the lazy river?" Shiro asked.
Him and Matt had let themselves get dunked by the giant bucket of ice cold water as their first destination after leaving their friends. Matt still shook from the water. Even the heat couldn't warm him.
"I could never hate you." He cursed at himself for being so obvious. " But it would show how old you are getting. "
"My age doesn't matter to you." Shiro laughed.
" Nah. " Matt agreed.
So they spent the next half hour on a floatee, slowly rotating around a pool. Old couples, holding hands and mothers with babies floated around them. Shiro laid in eternal bliss under the sun.
Matt at first felt blessed. He loved it. Every second. It was calming, and with Shiro having his eyes closed, relaxing, Matt could watch him. And take in the old guys soft features.
"You're gonna be the death of me." Matt said, quiet as a breath. If only he could hold his hand.
But then it got to the point where Matt's foot fell asleep, and his leg cramped up and he fell off his floating device three times and he was starting to not enjoy the ride so much.
After much pestering, Shiro finally awoke from his slumber. "Fine. We'll go somewhere else. Your choice."
Matt's eyes lit up. "Ice cream."
" You got it. "
The line was longer than they had expected so Matt listened to Shiro talk about his new crush Adam.
It hurt, a little, to hear the love of his life talk about another man. But he had known this would happen. And it was his fault not telling Shiro how he felt, so he was a good friend above a love bug infected pest, and listened.
Adam seemed cool. They met at a grocery store apparently, but Adam had been Keith's photography mentor. So that was the clincher. He seemed like a chill laid back dude, a white t shirt and jeans kinda guy, with a cute sense of humor. Matt took in the information willingly. He could tell Shiro was happy talking about Adam.
So he wasn't lying when he said. "I hope you two get together. I hope he makes you happy."
Shiro grinned. "Thanks man, you're the best." and he hugged Matt.
Matt smiled and hugged back. It would be alright.
Until it wasn't.
Until Shiro wiped vanilla ice cream off Matt's nose.
Until they stared at each other for longer than seven seconds.
Until Matt's face was redder than red.
Until Matt slipped some ice cream onto Shiro's nose.
Until Shiro did it too.
Until their faces were covered with ice cream.
Until they were laughing uncontrollably.
Until Matt realized something for the first time in six years.
He was happy. Beyond happy, just being the best friend of such an incredible man.
And as they wiped the faces of each other with cheap brown napkins, he couldn't help but secretly promise them both he'd leave his feelings in the past.
He had to.
Though he would always love Shiro.
...
"I've got to pee like a racehorse, good gracious." Coran announced after him and Romelle got off their second water slide. Romelle sighed.
" I really want to go on devils drop, could you like maybe, wait a second? " she pleaded. It was so high. So exciting.
Coran started dancing around, a maniac like look on his scrunched face. His floatee was twisting.
"God damn.." She deadpanned and pulled out the map. "Follow this map to the bathrooms, okay?"
He took the map before hopping away in his floatee. Passerby moved out of his way with amused looks on their faces. Romelle sighed.
But after she had waited in the line for devils drop for at least fifteen minutes and gone nowhere, she gave up. Her feet ached on the wooden steps, and everyone was close packed. Also she was pretty sure the guy behind her had realized how tight her bikini was. Perv.
" 'scuse me, sorry. Thanks-" Romelle squeezed through the long line of people back to where she had first started. Coran was not around.
"Coran!" she called starting off for him. " Coran?? "
After a few minutes of searching, she realized he wasn't in the area at all. So using her knowledge of the park she set off for the bathroom she had sent him to.
He wasn't there either. Or around it.
She groaned. He had a map with him, how did he get lost??
She wandered around the park. She saw Hunk and Shay coming out of the wave pool holding hands, and saw Shiro and Matt at the Ice Cream Parlor by the Lazy River, but where was Coran? None of them had seen him.
Romelle had made it all the way to the opposite of the park, the back entrance, where she finally found Coran. He sat on the bench waiting next to the bathrooms. He looked up to see Romelle.
"Cheerio dearie. I have relieved myself."
" Coran, why. " she sighed again. "Why are you all the way on the other side of the park. You were supposed to be going to the bathroom one minute away from where I left." Her hair was getting frizzy now. Great.
Coran showed her the map. "I was following the lines."
Romelle laughed. The map was upside down.
...
" Holy shit. This is...kinda high.. "
"Oh someone scared of heights now?"
Pidge and Keith were at the top of devils drop. They had gone on Twisted Twins, the high speed twin slides that threw the swimmers out into a giant pool. Then they had got on a giant raft and rode through The dark, which was a slide four times the size of a regular one, able to take two large sized rafts, though that was dangerous. That has been Keith's favorite, despite the fact that Pidge continuously popped him in the face with her feet as she screamed.
It had taken them almost an hour to get to the top of devils drop, and now Pidge was having second thoughts.
"I'm not scared idiot."
" Really? Then why aren't you going down? "
The line was beginning to mumble and the lifeguard, a girl with sunglasses and straight dirty blonde hair looked ready to blow the whistle.
Keith had to admit it was a little scary. He could see at least ten miles down the highway from up here. The cars were microscopic.
"Want me to go first?" Keith asked, chuckling. Pidge glared at him but she moved.
Keith sat on the slide and gripped the handlebar above him. Yeah okay, he was super high. They were far above the buildings in the distance. He closed his eyes.
And he saw Lance's face. Of course. Cocky grin.
"You scared mullet?"
Then the lifeguards voice. "Don't let go until I tell you..." Her voice faded behind Lance's.
" I wouldn't be scared. You're probably busy dreaming about my eyes, aren't you? "
Keith shook his head. Why was this annoying Nicki Minaj wannabe stuck in his head all the fucking time?
He saw Pidge in the corner of his eye, gripping the handlebars. He looked down. Why was the drop so steep? He nearly couldn't see it...and he definitely couldn't see the bottom...
There was the lifeguard again. "Alright you can let go on 1..."
Lance again. "Haha, my pretty eyes. I'm gorgeous. I know."
" ...2"
" You wanna kiss me don't you? Must be hard taking pictures of such a god, hm? "
"...3!"
Keith let go and Lance was gone. So was his stomach, and his heart. They were left at the top of the slide next to Pidge as he flew at high speed down the nearly vertical drop. He screamed. He actually screamed for once. It was terrifying and his eyes were closed. He screamed and held his arms close to his body as he jetted down. He hit the water at the bottom with a hard splash and sunk to the bottom. He opened his eyes and kicked to the top.
He turned to the top of the slide. Someone was waving, he thought. But it was too far away to tell. He gave a hearty thumbs up before pulling himself out of the pool. His heart and stomach slowly returned. Lance's voice did not, thankfully.
Pidge screamed too, and it was the most hilarious thing. Her hair flew up, and so did her mouth. She was still screaming as she hit the bottom and splashed Keith with water. Plus, seeing how tiny Pidge's eyes were without her glasses was just straight up memorable. Priceless.
She whipped him with her towel because he laughed at her but he easily ran away from her. She chased him out of the devils drop section and they played a mini game of tag around the park until the lifeguards came after them.
It felt good to finally get Lance off his mind, even if it took a near death experience to do it.
...
Lance and Allura had spent their time sunbathing. Sunglasses on, sunhats down, toes stretched out. Two beautiful people, soaking in the sun.
Lance's freckles were more prominent and his smile was as bright as ever. His blue eyes peeked from under his rainbow sunglasses. Allura sighed.
"This is nice. God, everything's been just so stressful lately."
Lance smiled. "Yeah it has. But we're getting through it ya know."
"Yep. Speaking of getting through it, how are you and Keith doing?"
" I don't know. I guess, good? I guess good professionally, because we've been making really good shoots. I look lovely everytime, and ya know Keith does well too I guess. " He smirked.
"Stop it-" Allura laughed playfully smacking him with a towel. "You know Keith must be the best photographer out there to handle your ass."
"Huh," Lance gasped dramatically. " So rude! "
"I'm joking. But seriously give him credit."
" Yeah sure. But I do think he hates me more everyday. And I don't give him reason to. "
"Keep up what your doing. I'm sure it's affecting him somehow."
" Yeah... " Lance shrugged. "What about you?"
" My photographers nice, she's just kind of boring sometimes. My modeling partner though. " She sat up to look at Lance and wiggle her eyebrows. "He's a hottieeee." She laughed.
" Oh really? " Lance laughed. "What's he like?"
" You met him. When you and Keith had that fight? He helped me break you guys up. "
"Ohhh. The guy with the chin."
" Everyone has a chin Lonce.. "
"Yeah, you know what I mean. Like a more...a more interesting chin.." They both laughed at how stupid he sounded.
" Yeah you could say that. But I don't pay much attention to that part of his body.. "
"Oh my god you're so gross what the fuck." Lance laughed so hard his face hurt.
" No. No not what I meant I swear. " Allura added quickly.
"Mhm, suree."
" Don't tell me you don't check out Keith. I saw you earlier. "
Lance sighed. "I wasn't checking him out. I was absorbing his features now that he isn't wearing those finger gloves and skinny jeans."
"Nah, you were checking him out. You think he's cute, I can tell."
" What?! I do not-"
"You're blushing. Look you're blushing!"
" No. I'm not. Leave me aloneeee you monster! "
"You can't tell me honestly you never thought he was cute. Not once."
" Well... I didn't say all that.. "
"I knew it!! When? Tell me when."
"I dunno. When's he's on his motorcycle.."
" More than once! "
"Lura don't go telling people seriously."
" I wont. Pinkie promise? "
Lance sat up and searched her turquoise eyes from under her sunhat. They linked fingers.
"Pinkie promise."
...
4 p.m came quicker than they all expected. Matt had finally got Shiro on a water slide, Pidge and Keith went on every one in the park after getting chewed out by the lifeguards, Allura and Lance spent the time joking around before they hit the wave pool, Romelle took Coran on a few more slides but didn't end up going on devils drop. Hunk and Shay went on the Lazy River before hitting a few of the more subtle slides.
"Guys!!" Hunk exclaimed when everyone was united again.
" Did you guys know Pidge is scared of heights? " Keith teased. He earned himself a hard elbow to the stomach.
"I did not know that." Shiro said.
" I knew. " Matt laughed.
"Must be cause she's so short, get it!" Lance cracked up. Every one shook their head. Pidge kicked him in the shins which shut him up real quick.
"You guys want to go eat or go on more slides as a group?" Romelle asked. When everyone started talking at once she clapped her hands. " Nevermind, let's take a vote. If you want to eat. Raise your hands. "
Hunk, Pidge, Allura, and Shiro raised their hands.
"Slides?"
Matt, Keith, Lance, Shay, Coran and Romelle herself raised their hands.
"Majority rules." Romelle smirked.
The group started off towards the group activities.
"Look at that." Lance said. He had slid up next to Keith. " A race..down a water slide...for two.. " he smirked at Keith.
"You pickin up what I'm putting down mullet?"
Keith rolled his eyes. He cracked his knuckles for emphasis. "I'm picking up that you want your ass beat in front of your friends."
Lance laughed. "Mullets all big and bad now aye? Let's go then."
" Bet. "
And before the others could stop them, Keith and Lance were at the end of the line for the Racer 75. This again was two twin slides, except they were open and were meant for using your momentum to slide.
The entire way to the top Lance was talking trash.
"You're gonna get it mullet."
" Don't forget your mullet up here when we go down. "
"I'm gonna smoke you so bad."
" Your mullet will only slow you down. "
Lance had ditched the sunglasses and sunhat finally, so he didn't look like a total clown going up. But he did sound obnoxiously cocky to the people around them. Keith needed to shut him up.
"As long as your not too busy staring at my ass you might have a slight chance at beating me." Keith spat. It was a little too impulsive and definitely not as arrogant as he had wanted it to be but it worked. Lance was silent.
Finally, it was their turns. They got blue mats to slide on once they took off. The lifeguard held them back, both boys standing.
"I'm going to count down, and when I hit 1, you guys will run and jump into the slide. Whoever has enough speed to get them the farthest, fastest wins. Got it?" The lifeguard explained.
" Got it. " the boys said, glaring at each other.
"3..." Keith gripped the mat.
" 2... " Lance readied his feet.
"1!" They took off, sliding into the tunnels as fast as they could. Keith made himself small so he could slide faster, and Lance pushed off a little harder so he would go farther.
Their friends stood to watch, Pidge going around trying to get paid.
"I bet Keith will win. Bet 5?"
" I bet Lance will win. Wanna challenge me, 10 bucks? "
"They're gonna tie. Wanna bet 15 dollars?"
No matter what happened she would be getting at least 20 dollars she figured.
It was a tight race. Lance was in the lead most of the time but there came Keith, speeding up next to him. Lance kept going, until he started slowing down. Keith zoomed past in the end.
During the race, Shay had volunteered to braid Romelle's hair too and Allura watched as Shay easily folded Romelle's gold locks together.
"Perfectionnnn." Allura praised. Shay just blushed and shrugged.
" Practice. "
"Keith won!! Where's my MONEY." Pidge clapped excitedly. Hunk shook his head.
"Here you go!" Coran cheerfully gave up his 5 dollars. Shiro and Matt were more reluctant with their 10 each. The three were playing uno until they found a slide they were more interested in.
"Beat you." Keith said, glaring up at Lance.
Lance glowered at him. "I want a rematch. I choose the activity this time."
"You chose it last time..."
"Shut it mullet."
And as the two ran off to find their rematch, Coran found The Dark and he took Matt with him to try it out. Shiro joined Hunk to talk about Matt's internship with GAE, and how the restaurant was going.
Meanwhile, Shay, Romelle and Allura were trying to bring Pidge to the dark side aka the hair braiding station.
"No guys, I'm good. Really."
" Please. Just a small style. We swear nothing extravagant. " Shay pleaded.
Pidge glared at them. "Maybe later."
...
" Water guns? " Keith asked suspiciously.
Lance smirked. "Water guns."
As they watched others play in the obstacle course Keith quickly came to the conclusion this was the water park version of laser tag.
"Wonderful."
It wasn't that Keith was bad at this. He wasn't really bad at anything, but he was more of a close combat guy. He knew martial arts.
"Next round of players. Please enter the arena."
Keith and Lance just so happened to be the only people in line. A lifeguard came to greet them.
"Hey, I'm Maddie." She smiled. "Pretty much, you guys will be trying to hit each other's sensors, right here." She pointed at a circular part of the vest she had on. " And when the time runs out, most hits wins. Simple, got it? "
" Got it. Like laser tag." Lance said.
Maddie nodded. "Like laser tag. Over there are your uniforms, choose a team and I'll set you guys up." She climbed into an intercom booth.
There were multiple teams. Yellow, red, orange, green, blue, purple...
Lance automatically grabbed a blue vest and started strapping it on. And since they didn't have black, Keith went with red.
He glanced over his water gun. It was filled, definitely. But what happened when it wasn't? Is that when the game ended?
He didn't have time to ask because the countdown had started. He ran up a wooden ramp and hid behind a crate with fake seaweed and starfish decorated on it.
There was a surfboard nearby with a hole in it he could peek through. He switched spots and waited.
The arena begins in 3, 2, 1. GO!
Keith searched for Lance. If the boy had kept the obnoxious sunhat and glasses, he'd be easy to spot. Too bad for Keith though.
Then he heard heavy footsteps on the wooden ramp and he barely had time to turn before Lance was shooting at him. Keith took off. He heard Lance behind him, but Keith was faster.
The arena had two lower areas, and Keith took his spot in a hidden area at the very bottom, behind another crate. He hadn't used any water yet, but he had been hit twice. And the countdown had 3 minutes left approximately.
He needed to get some shots in.
He wasn't a terrible shot, but he wasn't a sharpshooter either. He crept from behind the crate and looked around. He didn't see Lance above him, so he set off for above ground.
Meanwhile, Lance was still waiting. He had settled into his hiding spot, high above the lower areas, in a barrel where he could aim and stay alert. He saw Keith coming up the ramp. The boy was quick on his feet, and alert. He'd give him that. But if there was one thing other than modeling that Lance knew he was good at it, it was shooting.
It had always been his strong suit. He felt comfortable sniping, and was beyond satisfied when he hit a target. And here in plain view was Keith's target.
Lance fired. The water shot at Keith's chest at lightning speed and the violet eyed boy stared in shock as he was hit. Then in a split second, he rolled away somewhere.
"Fuck, lost him." Lance muttered. His gun was half empty now but he wasn't worried, he had 2 minutes left and Keith hadn't hit him yet.
He decided to take his chance sniping a little closer to Keith's former spot. He knew Keith would have ran far away from there and he would have a clear shot of the boy. Lance was settling into the crate at the corner when his monitor pulsed. He looked down to see it blink twice before he looked to see Keith smirk and shoot him again.
2 hits.
2 hits to Lance's 4. To the one minute on the clock. Lance didn't sweat it and instead dashed after his opponent.
Keith was to be honest, freaking out. He had raced back downstairs, and was heaving as he his behind another surfboard. He had less than a minute left and had only hit Lance twice.
Then he heard the footsteps. Lance's long strides and extra hyper steps. He peaked around the bright yellow surfboard and saw Lance creeping around the corner down the ramp. 30 seconds. Last chance.
He shot Lance twice in the chest real quick before he dashed. Lance reacted quicker than Keith expected, and was atop the violet eyed boy in a second. He tackled him and Keith lost his gun.
"Shit- get off me!" Keith struggled under Lance. Lance pinned him between his thighs.
" You can watch your own defeat mullet. " and as the last five seconds ticked away, Lance shot Keith in the chest eight times. Keith just glared up at him.
"TIMES UP."
Maddie at the intercom announced the end of the battle and Lance's 12 points to Keith's four.
"Told you I'd beat ya mullet." Lance grinned cockily.
" You cheated. " Keith spat, crossing his arms.
"Did I? I didn't hear a rule against it. Besides, why are you so scrawny?" Lance teased as he grabbed for Keith's arm. Keith pulled away a little too forcefully, but his face was bright red.
Lance followed Keith back to the others, and as Keith struggled to find his way around, and to calm the heat burning off his cheeks, Lance flirted with every living creature around them.
"Hey girl, I seem to be lost. Can you help me find my way?"
" I think you just blinded me with your pretty face darling. "
"Hi I'm Lance, but you can call me the tailor, because of how I thread the needle."
"I think I'm dying, there's only one thing that can save me!!! What is it? Your number."
Keith just rolled his eyes as girl after girl swooned or laughed or shook her head. It was annoying and Lance was embarrassing even though he seemed right in his element as he rolled along on the balls of his feet and shooting finger guns. And when did he get his sunglasses and hat back?
What an idiot.
An idiot that has gotten way too fucking close to Keith back at the water gun arena. And now Keith couldnt get his face to revert to its normal shade.
He had been having fun too, though he had a feeling he wouldn't have beat Lance at shooting anyways. He enjoyed just hanging out with Lance even if it was only about five minutes.
And he didn't have pockets in his swim trunks to stuff his hands into and Lance looked too good in his swim trunks. And goddamn where was Romelle and the others?
Lance and Keith found the group at the funnel cake vendor. Plastic chairs and colorful umbrellas littered the small plaza in front of the vendors. They spotted their friends, where three foldable tables had been pushed together.
"And the noobs are back." Pidge said, turning with her phone camera in front of her face.
" Are you recording? " Keith asked. At Pidge's evil smirk, he covered his face.
"I told you to put the camera away Pidge." Shiro warned.
She stuck her tongue out. "Sorry Dad, I want to remember this moment with all my favorite people."
He shook his head and continued talking to Matt.
"So how did it go? The rematch?" Allura asked.
Keith looked at his hands as Lance spoke.
He was still decked out in his outfit, and looked stupid, but he was so happy and excited, Keith couldn't help but smile as Lance retold the water gun match totally inaccurately.
"That moment when Keith's a loser." Matt chuckled.
" So rare. But everyone loses sometimes. " Hunk said cheerfully as he held Shay close. She nodded and fed him another french fry.
"What about you guys? How'd it go while we were gone?" Keith asked Romelle.
She shook her head. She was sitting next to Coran again. "Coran and Matt went on The Dark, and I think Matt peed his pants."
" I did not! "
"Did too you big baby." Pidge cut in.
" Also earlier, Coran got lost searching for the bathroom-"
"Woahhh." Lance stopped her. " Now that's joking worthyyyy. " he clapped his hands and turned to Coran.
"No bullying Lance." Shiro stopped him.
" But you let Keith slide... " Lance pouted.
" The rule applies to dumbasses so I kinda get to slide. " Keith replied easily. Lance stuck his tongue out.
Pidge was still recording. She sighed. "What kind of clownery do I associate myself with.."
"I think we can all agree that questioning Matt is allowed though, right?" Allura asked. " Did you really pee on yourself? "
"It was just water, I swear." Matt pleaded.
Shay laughed. "Who would be able to tell the difference?"
" I could tell the difference. " Coran said miserably.
Everyone groaned in disgust before they all burst out laughing, even Matt.
"Ok, I'm hungry now. Seriously." Lance said. Keith had eaten the rest of Hunk and Shay's fries and dozed off with his sunglasses on.
As he slept, and as Hunk took Lance to get funnel cake, Pidge crept up with her camera on Keith's face.
His arms were crossed, and he had a permanent scowl on as he rested. She grinned. "He always calls Shiro old, but I've never seen a boomer in its true form before this moment."
Keith's eyes flew open and his sunglasses slipped from his face as he reached up at her. "Delete it."
"Nooo." she screamed before running away to hide behind Shay and Allura. Keith shook his head before sitting with Shiro and Matt.
" What can I get ya? " the lady at the funnel cake vendor asked. She wore a pair pink blouse and had pink cheeks. Her shoulder length blonde hair had pink and blue highlights and gave her an adorable badass appearance.
Lance fell right into the trap.
"Your number." Lance laid a little heavy on the wink as he leaned over the counter.
She laughed. " Sorry, we don't sell that here. "
"An address?" Lance tried, with a smile. Hunk deadpanned.
She shook her head and scrunched her nose, amused. "No, sorry."
"A name?" Lance pleaded, pouting and leaning dramatically over the counter.
She laughed. " Ezor. "
"Ezor.." Lance repeated with a smirk. " Such a pretty name for such a pretty girl-"
"What are you doing?" Lance heard the harsh demand behind him and he turned to not see Hunk anymore but a girl a little bit shorter than him.
She had thick black hair in a short choppy cut and piercing blue eyes. She had a crop top that showed off her abs and muscles. Fucking scary. She pushed Lance away and looked up at Ezor.
"He messing with you babe?"
" Nah, just a teaser. "
"You can go tease someone else boy." The girl said, pushing Lance away again.
"Don't be so rough on him Zethrid, he didn't know. "
"Whatever babe. You ready to go?"
" Yeah. One sec. " Ezor threw off her apron, locked the vendor closed and hopped off to wrap an arm around Zethrid's. She turned to Lance and Hunk.
"Sorry for that. Bye!"
Then they were gone. Lance was more than shocked, he was kind of sad too. Hunk was also sad. But more because they couldn't get funnel cake, than the fact that Ezor was gay.
Hunk wrapped an arm around Lance. "It's alright buddy. Let's find funnel cake somewhere else."
" Man, she was so pretty.. "
"Yeah...I'm so hungry..."
Back at the tables, Romelle and Pidge were watching it go down. Pidge got it on camera.
"Knew he'd go for her." Romelle shook her head. " Ezor always toys with the boys even though Zethrid is always close by. "
"You know her?" Pidge asked.
" I know everyone by now haha. " Romelle laughed.
"I would be known she was gay if I was Lance."
" Really? How so? "
Pidge tapped her temple. "My gaydar."
Hunk and Lance finally returned with funnel cake, at least 10 plates atop each other.
"Why so many?" Allura asked. Shay was teaching her a difficult braid using Romelle's soft blonde hair.
" Contest. " Hunk grinned.
"Oh lord.." Shay shook her head at her boyfriend.
"What kind of contest?" Coran asked.
" Eating contest. " Lance said. "And I'm the hungriest here so watch out."
"I'll join! Let's see how much the old belly can hold." Coran grinned. Romelle shook her head at him.
" I want some funnel cake. I'll join but I'm gonna lose. " Pidge said, putting her phone down.
"What about you Keith? Want to get your ass kicked again?" Lance challenged.
Keith looked up from his conversation about Matt's internship. "Not really. But you couldn't beat me anyways."
" Of course I could. I'm better than you mullet. "
"Whatever floats your boat." Keith said before turning away. Lance frowned.
"I'll start you guys off." Shay said. She let Allura finish the braid in Romelle's hair on her own.
Everybody got one plate first, and they sat down at their plate. Everyone got a fork and napkin if they wanted it.
"On your marks," Shay began.
" Get set, "
They all leaned forward.
"Go!"
Hunk immediately started shoving the cake into his mouth with his fork, smearing chocolate sauce and powdered sugar around his mouth. Coran took small bites with his fork and evaluated the cake. It was his first time having some.
"This is quite good." He observed. " Allura dear, have you tried some? "
Allura laughed. "Yes, Coran. I've had funnel cake."
" Its delicious. " Coran stated as he continued eating slowly.
Allura, Shay and Romelle couldn't help but laugh.
Meanwhile, Pidge was tearing apart her funnel cake with her bare hands. Lance used a fork to cut pieces and then tore it with his hands. He ate faster than Pidge and Coran though.
"My boss said he is going to look for an opening for you Matt." Shiro said. "But it might take a little bit. "
Matt nodded. "That's alright, I can wait."
" What are you going to do in the meantime? I can't keep paying for your electricity when you leave the lights on at night. " Keith added.
Matt chuckled nervously. "My bad."
" Its ok. But what are you gonna do? Get a job? "
"I'll try.."
" Whew, I'm done. " Pidge said, accepting defeat after eating half her plate.
Hunk and Lance were already through a whole plate, Lance gaining on Hunk and not slowing down. Coran on the other hand was wiping his hands on a napkin.
"Wanna bet whose gonna win?" Pidge asked as she gave her plate of leftover funnel cake to Allura.
" No. Not again. " Shiro and Matt said.
"Cowards."
"Pidgeeeee." Allura called the girl over.
" Yeah? "
"Can we please please please braid your hair now?"
Pidge sighed. "I have nothing better to do... "
"Oh my god yessss." Allura high fived with Shay.
Romelle's hair was braided intricately though it kept her two usual pigtails. She smiled as she looked at her hair in selfie mode "Thanks guys, it's beautiful." She blushed. "I feel pretty."
" Cause you are pretty. " Pidge said. She turned to Allura and Shay. "Whatever you're gonna do, get it over with."
Meanwhile, Coran had dropped from the competition after his first plate was done, and Lance and Hunk were coming up on their thirds. Lance had slowed down considerably and looked ready to puke. Hunk kept munching.
As Pidge watched from Allura's lap she couldn't refrain herself from teasing Lance. "Imagine believing you could beat Hunk in an eating competition." She called. Lance glared at her and stuffed more funnel cake in his mouth.
Keith laughed. "His ego is bigger than his stomach. Sad."
Lance choked, and then coughed and hacked for a good few minutes. He gulped hard after Hunk had stopped eating and patted him on the back.
"What's wrong?" Hunk asked.
Lance dismissed him with his hand. "I forfit. I feel sick."
Keith and Pidge laughed as Lance went and sat with Shiro and Matt and glared at them.
Hunk grinned. "More for me-"
"Yeah, babe, I think you've had enough.." Shay reasoned. Hunk pouted and plopped one more bite in before coming to her side.
"I thought this would hurt more." Pidge said as Allura easily braided Pidge's honey brown hair.
" You hair is long enough for me to get a tight braid without it pulling. Plus it's not a complicated or extravagant braid. "
"Good."
Finally, Allura pulled her fingers from Pidge's hair. "All done."
Pidge pulled out her phone and told them to take pictures. She stated at them incredulously. "Hm,"
" Do you not like it? " Allura asked. They were basic french braids, one on each side of her head. They were cute, and discrete, soft and easy to take out. Pidge ran her hands gently over her head. Finally she smiled at Allura and Shay.
"I don't like it. I love it." The girls sighed in relief and smiled back.
" Wonderful. "
Then as Pidge was going to feel her hair again, Matt was beside her picking her up.
"What-"
Matt started for the pool nearest them, wide and shallow. It connected to the giant slide farther down but no one occupied the certain area that Matt threw Pidge into. She let out a muted squeal as she was chucked into the water.
"I. Hate. You." she spat as she came up for air. Keith was with Matt now.
" You're braids look nice. " he said.
"Shut up." She said and before either of them could reply, she grabbed their legs and pulled them in. They collapsed into each other in the water and couldn't control their laughter.
"Yo, I missed this." Matt said when he came up for air.
" What? " Pidge asked.
"This." Matt gestured to their friends, Romelle and Shay talking with wild hand gestures, Coran, Hunk and Lance jamming to something blaring from Shiro's phone. Shiro and Allura laughing along. " Us. "
"Yeah, me too." Keith said. Pidge nodded before hugging them both.
" What was that for? " Keith teased.
She shrugged. "Being my favorite goofballs. Other than Lance."
Matt chuckled. "What about Hunk?"
Pidge blinked at him. "Hunk is not a goofball. Hunk is a king."
" Right, my bad. " Matt said nudging Keith. They both chuckled.
When they returned, Keith was dragged into getting his hair braided too since it now reached his shoulders. He had no reason to say no, he liked getting his hair braided. It was relaxing if the person braiding his hair wasn't rough. And when his hair was wet, it wasn't good down. He had also forgot his hair band at home so yeah, that too.
Keith watched Shiro, and Allura get back in the water with Hunk and Pidge. As Pidge climbed on Hunks shoulders and Allura on Shiro's, he immediately knew what they were playing.
The classic chicken fight. Super fun, though chaotic, and extremely dangerous if Lance was involved.
Luckily, Lance sat on the side with Matt talking quietly about something.
Keith watched Allura knock over Pidge three times in a row, and he talked to Shay about her flower business that was "blooming" pun intended, before his hair was done. He asked for pictures and was glad to see, it didn't look too bad. One french braid, though some of his loose curls framed his cheeks. It slicked back easily enough.
He thanked Shay and the two walked to the pool together. Romelle and Coran joined too.
They all say on the side of the pool with Lance and Matt as Pidge finally took out Allura. Shiro helped her up as their opponents laughed.
"Yeah thats what I'm talking about! Team Punk!" Pidge grinned, high fiving her partner in crime. Hunk grinned as Shay cheered.
Meanwhile, Lance had been disturbingly occupied. He had happened to turn around, at apparently the wrong time. The time when Keith was standing up after getting his hair braided.
Violet eyes, dark curls and those fucking abs that he knew were imprinted in his brain. He had always known Keith was good looking but damn, something about him today caught Lance off guard.
Maybe it was his adorable blush of embarrassment when he first came out the locker room hours before, or the cocky smirk when he beat Lance at the racer slide, or the heat radiating off him when Lance pinned him at the water gun arena.
Whatever it was, it made Lance's heart beat up, and made him lick his lips and his hair stand on end. Made him say something stupid.
Like, "Keith's cute."
Luckily, only Matt heard him. But he wasn't one to take things lightly.
"I mean-" Lance's eyes widened as Matt turned to him. "That's not what I meant."
"Really? I think that's what you meant." Matt pressed.
Pidge got knocked over again. Allura hugged Shiro.
Lance locked eyes with Matt. " Don't say anything. To anyone."
Matt nodded. "Sure, dude. But I wanna know what's going on."
" Hell, I don't know what's going on. "
"Y'all gonna join or sit on the side the entire time and watch me get creamed?" Pidge demanded. She held her hands on her hips, steady as Hunk held her in place above the water.
" Let's play Marco, Polo. " Romelle suggested.
Everyone agreed and they randomly chose a Polo. It was Hunk.
"I hate being Polo." Hunk pouted as everyone started swimming away. He closed his eyes and cleared his throat.
" Marco! "
Everyone called Polo, and Hunk set off for the nearest voice.
He found Coran first, who didn't move after he called Polo, because he didn't understand the rules fully. Then he found Shiro, Keith, Shay, Lance, Matt, Allura, and Romelle. He never found Pidge because apparently she sneaked back to get more funnel cake instead of play the game.
"I was hungry. " she pleaded for herself as she licked powdered sugar off her fingers.
"Y'all its like 7 o'clock, the sun is setting. Look." Allura said, pointing. The park was closing and the sun indeed was setting.
" Let's watch it set then go change and shit alright? " Lance asked.
"Language." Shiro stated. Lance laughed.
"Sure thing old man."
Shiro shook his head.
As the clear blue melted away into a pastel orange, and then to an angry red, the group sat at the edge of the pool and talked.
"I'm so glad you guys are finally together. I told Hunk every single day to ask you Shay. Since like, you guys first met." Lance said patting his best friends back. Hunk smiled.
" I was biding my time alright. " Hunk laughed.
"I'm glad we got together too." Shay agreed. Hunk melted.
" So what about you and Lotor, Allura? " Romelle asked nonchalantly.
"Lotor?"
" Whose Lotor? "
"Allura's got a crush?"
Allura looked ready to murder Romelle as the blonde just smiled innocently and wide eyed.
"What about us?" Allura demanded.
" How y'all doing? " Romelle smirked. Allura glared at her.
"Can someone please explain who Lotor is?" Shiro asked. Every one nodded except for Romelle and Lance.
Allura rolled her eyes. "He's my modeling partner. Like Lance was. That's it."
The sky was a shy grey now, receding into the accumulating clouds. It would rain.
"Oh. He helped break me and Lance up when we fought? Right?" Keith asked. The guy was vague in his memory, but Allura nodded.
" And Allura here has a crush on himmmm. " Romelle piped up. She gushed and hugged Hunk and Shay. "Don't you just love love?"
" You're a literal cheesy chic-flic. You and Lance. " Pidge sighed. "Besides, Allura you're a queen. If you like him, go get him."
Allura narrowed her eyes at Pidge. "Not that simple. If I mess it up our dynamic may be blown. I'll wait to confess my feelings after we get a cover deal or the season is over. " Allura said.
"Smart. Reasonable." Shiro nodded.
" I want to meet Lotor. " Coran said.
"Me too." Matt said.
"Same," Pidge and Hunk said together.
" Okay, Okay! You guys can meet him. But it's about to start drizzling so can we talk about Lotor later? "
Everyone laughed and agreed, it was always funny to see Allura get annoyed. They all split up. Showers were taken, clothes were changed, hair was dried.
Finally after 30 minutes of mostly Allura reapplying her makeup, the crew set off for the parking lot. The drizzling rain hazed their vision as they broke off to their cars.
"I had so much fun with you guysss." Lance called to everyone before they split.
"Me too. It's definitely been a while." Shiro added smiling.
" I agree. " Allura said, smiling.
Everyone waved goodbye and departed to their cars. Keith and Lance threw their bags into the bed of Lance's truck and got in.
Keith's braid was coming out, his wet curly hair cascading around his cheeks. Lance's freckles were out to stay. The slight drizzle and late summer heat gave the truck a muggy feel, but they both felt warm for other reasons.
As lance started Blue up, Keith cleared his throat.
"Hey Lance,"
"Yeah?"
" Thanks. For convincing me to come. And making it fun. " he tried for a smile that he hoped didn't say too much. Lance was so beautiful, and the soft rain wasn't helping.
Lance smiled back, taking in every feature of Keith's face in that moment. His hair, his eyes that seemed to glow in the dim car light, and his thin lips, where he bit the bottom one in frustration.
"You're welcome."
______________________________________________________________________
fuck ok
I'm so so so sorry if you hate long chapters because this was a SPECIAL so like I explained, multiple P.O.V's and multiple goals for each character I had, which is what brought us to---
A grand total of!!!!!!!!!!
9647 WORDS!!
Biggest chapter I've ever written and it'll prob take me hours to edit I'm crying 😭😭
sorry it took me so long to update! I got u guys excited then dipped lmao but here it is hope it's good enough to make up for the wait!
I love u all so so so much and I'm so so so grateful for the 7k you guys mean the world to me, each and every one of you <3
Qotd: favorite part of the water park day out??
A: that short snippet where hunk asked Shay out, sorry it was SO SHORT I'm bad at writing for them cause I don't usually and I tried to include Shay a lot but ya know :/ I try
Love u guys!! and if u listened to the music I put hope u enjoyed!!!