[ he doesn’t? that’s news. or is it? it’s been months since the bonfire without any change, just one disappointing crush and now a disastrous something at the bar. maybe keith’s found remaining single more desirable? if that’s true, however, then why is his inexperience a big deal to him? why did that become such an issue at the bar, almost like he had to one-up shiro on the pathetic meter? no answers will be found now, of course, not when keith follows it up shortly.

the words themselves are disarming. the kiss is more so; it silences his brain for a solid two seconds, everything so quiet inside himself that the gallop of his heartbeat rings that much louder in his ears. keith pulls away and shiro blinks down at him, once, twice, and then smoothes those hands on either side of his face back, combing through hair as he goes until he clasps the back of his head to haul him back in. shiro goes for easy too. familiar. he’s done this enough times that the flow of movement is confident, without a hint of stilted awkwardness. he presses his lips to keith’s forehead and stays for a long tick that then bleeds into two.

unlike the pecks he’s given after a particularly grueling day for keith or the occasional one snuck in when a goodnight hug has gone on too long and worn down his restraint, shiro doesn’t immediately back off once the pressure of his mouth eases. still close, he whispers the words there, lips brushing every few words against his skin. ]

Don’t wanna miss you anymore either. [ and why he’s stuck close becomes apparent when he presses another kiss to the same spot; one much quicker and more akin to the pecks he’s been doling out in recent weeks. he pulls back then, looking down at keith. the gentleness of his expression is overshadowed by a somberness that now has him looking sad. ]

I did – for the longest time. [ practically a year and a half. the last two-thirds was, of course, the more brutal part. shiro missed a lot of people and a lot of things during captivity. he continually circled through memories to keep himself occupied and perhaps even sane while his life became literal hell. out of everything though, keith seemed to pop up with the most frequency and when he did, kept shiro’s attention the longest. all their shenanigans on garrison grounds, their adventures out into the desert, the dreams they shared, how they could be themselves around each other – there was endless material to revisit and analyze. but mostly, he'd worried and hoped in equal parts. he'd worried that keith would take the failure of kerberos hard but he'd hoped he’d realize he didn’t need shiro in order to succeed and achieve his dreams. beyond that though, he'd worried that the galra would inevitably visit earth but he'd hoped and hoped and hoped that keith would be okay.

it still feels surreal that they’re here together, after everything that’s happened in the last couple of years. ]

Then you found me and… [ gosh, is his voice getting thick? maybe he’s far drunker than he thinks he is. he huffs and breaks out in a smile, hands at the back of keith’s head dropping to refold more securely around him again. shiro follows the motion and hugs himself in, hooking his chin on keith’s shoulder and – not quite nuzzling, but resting his face closer to keith’s neck. mumbles: ]

I’m lucky to have you. [ here. anywhere. as an ally, as a friend, as family. ]