Keith POV
The fifth and sixth were in the locker room. I'd seen James working out in the weight room several times, and he was pretty strong. He had decent legs, and nice sized biceps. I went into the room, beginning to change into my workout clothes. I had just taken my shirt off when I saw James walk by me, headed to his own locker. I unconsciously followed him, curious. He started changing, and I couldn't take my eyes off of him. He had a fine body. Defined back muscles, along with what looked like a six pack. He suddenly glanced behind himself and saw me, his face turning red. I smirked and stared walking over, James glancing at me every few seconds. "What's wrong Griffin? Cat got your tongue?" I asked. We were close enough that if I wanted to, I could hug him. He said nothing and turned ever redder, pulling his jeans on. "No? I bet you wish I did, don't you?" "Fuck you Kogane." He grumbled. "Mm, not today. Maybe a kiss though." I mused, and he looked at me, eyes hard. "I thought you said we weren't doing that anymore." He grumbled, clearly annoyed. I cupped his face and began to lean in. "I say a lot of things."
And I kissed him. He eagerly returned it, pinning me to the lockers. He forced my mouth open with his tongue, which then started swirling around inside. I groaned in please and pulled his hair a bit, causing him to bite my lip and squeeze my ass. I moaned and started kissing him harder. He picked me up by my ass and held me against the locker, and I locked my legs around him, starting to grind against him. He moaned a bit and did it too, and I swear I saw stars on the inside of my eyelids. James was a grind GOD. It. Felt. So. Fucking. Good.
He pulled his lips away and started kissing down my neck, finding my spot quickly and abusing it. "Fuck...James." I breathed, our hips still grinding against each other. "James.." I whined, lightly pushing him back. "Hmm?" "No-no marks." I said, and he nodded. "No marks. Sure thing princess." I felt my face heat and smile creep its way there. "Just shut up and kiss me." I ordered. He quickly reclaimed my lips, and as we made out we continued grinding until both of us were taken care of. I pushed him away and he set me down as we both caught our breath. "This- this never happened, alright?" I asked, and he nodded. "If that's what you want." I thought for a moment. Was that what I wanted? Yes, yes it was. I think. "It is. Good. Well, uh, bye Griffin." I stammered before running out. I was halfway to my room when I realized I didn't have on a shirt, but I didn't care. I'd just made out with James, again, while also grinding against him, getting hard and coming. What was wrong with me? Why did I always end up kissing James?
The seventh was the day I left the Garrison. I had stormed into my room and begun packing my few meager possesions when he showed up. "Kogane? Are you okay?" He asked. I stopped packing and sighed. "No Griffin, I'm not. My brother is probably dead, and instead of following in his footsteps and being a great pilot, I got myself kicked out of the Garrison." "You got kicked out?" He asked in disbelief, and I nodded. "Why?" "Punched Iverson in the face. Right in the eye. Called him a son of a bitch and asshole too, so that probably didn't help." I grumbled. "Wha- Keith! You can't leave!" "Why not?" I asked, turning to face him. "Well, what about Adam? And Lance? And Pidge? Won't they miss you?" He asked. "No they won't. They'll be fine. I have no reason to stay." I said, grabbing my bag and heading for the door. I was almost past him when he grabbed my wrist, stopping me. "What about me? Am I a good enough reason to stay?" He asked, staring into my eyes intently. his eyes were a whirlwind of emotions, confusion, worry, love, hope, all in them. I cupped his face gently and brought him into a kiss. It was sweet and innocent, so much unlike the ones we had previously shared. "I'm sorry James. But you're not." I whispered against his lips before stepping away. I felt his eyes on me as I left the room, and the hall.
I tried to forget about the kisses, about him, I really did. I tried to block all of those thoughts from my mind when I was in my house. When I was in the Castle. When I was in the lions. When I found my mom especially. I didn't want her to see those in the flashes. Those were my memories and mine alone, only shared with the other person inside them. But she saw them. And from the look on my face she knew not to ask. When we found out that Earth had been invaded, I'd had a small panic. Was Adam okay? What about James? Would I ever get another kiss? But I banished those thoughts form my head the second I saw him pull up in that jeep. He snapped at us, warning us about the drones.
When we were back at the Garrison, he beckoned me with his eyes. "Come with me." He seemed to say. I followed him to a remote hall, far away from the others. And I had a feeling I knew what he wanted to talk about. "Look, Griffin, I don't have time for this right now." I started. "I-" "Did it mean anything?" He asked, interrupting me. His eyes were filled with hurt and hope, staring me down. "James I-" "Did. It. Mean. Anything." He repeated, scanning my face. "I need to know." Did he really still care? After all these years? I scanned his face, and, on impulse, I surged forward and kissed him. Our hands found our places on each other's bodies, and the kiss became heated. I broke away and scanned his face again before walking away. It wasn't the first time I'd done that after a kiss, and I had a feeling it wouldn't be the last. That was the eighth kiss.
The ninth was at a party after the war. There was booze, lots of it. We'd somehow made our way to James's room, and before I knew it, I was kissing him again. I could taste the beer on his tongue which was fighting with mine. We ended up in bed, and he fucked me until I saw stars. But I doubt he'll remember. Much. He'd wrapped an arm around me as we slept, and woke when I pulled away. "Don't go." He muttered, eyes still closed. "I have to. I'm sorry James." I whispered before kissing him slowly and sweetly. He fell back asleep and I got dressed, leaving a note, some water and meds for him.
"You weren't doing to good last night, so I took you to bed. Both ways. But we don't need to talk about it. It never happened. I left some high-quality hangover meds in the kitchen if you need them. And trust me, you will need them.
Your friend,
Kogane."
The tenth came after a battle. James had almost taken a direct hit from a crusier, which would've killed him. I'd pulled him aside afterwards and punched his arm. "You fucking idiot!" I hissed. "You could've gotten yourself killed!" "But I didn't. You have to stop worrying so much Keith." He said, and I sighed and rubbed my temple. "You're right. I'm sorry James. I just I don't want to see you get hurt." He grabbed my hands and held on his chest. "But I'm fine. See? Not a scratch on me." He met my eyes, and I stared at his. His blue-gray eyes. They were beautiful. A swirl of colors, glistening in the lighting.
I realized that he had begun leaning closer to me, eyes beginning to flutter closed. "James?" I'd asked, face heating up a bit. "Sorry." He muttered, and I laughed a bit. "It's okay." I said, pulling him into a kiss. No tongue or roaming hands, and it was the best so far. And just as quickly as I kissed him I pulled back, a shy smile on my face. "Stay safe Griffin." I muttered before walking away again. I liked kissing James. It just felt.. right. Like it was something I was supposed to do. Something I had to do.
The eleventh and twelfth came after our final battle with Honerva. She had died, and Allura had sacrificed herself to save all realities. I had no idea how Lance was going to cope. They had just started dating. I had also heard on the comms that Adam and Ina had both been injured in the battle, and had been rushed to the hospital. The second I landed my lion I searched for James, running and hugging him. Clinging to him like he was the only thing in the world. "James I'm so glad you're okay." I whispered. "Me too. How else am I going to kiss you?" He said, and I could hear the smile in his voice. I pulled back from the hug and brought him into a kiss. It was soft and sweet, gentle even. The others around us all hushed, and I felt their eyes on us, but I didn't care. It was just a kiss. We'd done it before.
I pulled back and smiled at him, which he did as well. "There. You got your kiss Griffin. We don't need to talk about it." I said, and his smile fell. "Keith, yes we do." "Why? It's just a kiss between friends." I asked, raising an eyebrow. He pulled my hands away from his head, staring at the ground. "But I don't want to be friends Keith. I want them to mean something." Really? After all these years? He still wanted me that way? "Griffin, please. Not now. We don't need to talk about it. We can just do it." I was about to lean in for another kiss when he pulled away, unshed tears glistening in his eyes. "Yes we do. I can't keep doing this Keith. Eleven times you've kissed me. Did any of them mean anything to you?" He asked. I sighed. It was complicated. The first few hadn't, but after the one in the hall.... maybe I did start caring. "James I.." I trailed off, pulling him into another kiss. Why couldn't this wait? All I wanted to do right now was kiss him. But instead of kissing back, he pushed me away, shaking his head. "No. No. Not until I get an answer. I can't do this Keith." "Why?" I asked. We'd kissed before. "Because I love you. I have for years." He said, and I was shocked. James loved me? James LOVED ME? "And these eleven, now twelve, kisses mean something to me. But I can't keep doing it if it doesn't mean anything to you." "James.." I started. "No. Stop Keith, just stop. You can't play with my emotions this way anymore. I won't let you. No. Just no." He said, voice wavering as he backing away. "I can't keep doing this." James whispered, before turning and running away. "James!" I called, but he ignored me and kept running, disappearing from my sight. Just like he did after the first time I kissed him. He ran away and hid, gone from my sight.