Chapter Text
Hunk gave Keith a Look™ as he finished up Shiro’s physical.
“No lasting damage,” he said pointedly. “This salve will help those bites avoid infection. I would put a dressing across them, but I don’t have one big enough.
This time, his look turned into a glare, and out of the corner of his eye, Shiro could see Keith avoiding Hunk’s.
Making a point, he lifted his chin proudly. A week straight of heat sex hadn’t dampened his spirits one bit.
“Fine by me. I’m hoping at least one of them scars.”
He could hear Keith choke, and he couldn’t resist a small smirk. In contrast, Hunk’s mouth was a flat line. Shiro didn’t care.
“What about you?” Hunk asked, turning to watch Keith.
“No. I want to leave mine.” Keith’s eyes had shifted to Shiro and he smiled, small and careful.
“…Okay. Well, wash them with salt water at least. Or ask Shiro to clean them for you if you guys get the chance; his saliva will be faster than anything I could give you, anyway.”
Shiro grinned like an idiot, leaning forward to bump his head against Keith’s temple. “Really? That easy?”
“That’s pretty much it. You guys can do an exit interview, but you don’t have to. It can be good to talk about what you want done differently next time—”
“I’m good,” Keith said quickly, as Shiro’s stomach dropped.
“Next time?” He glanced back at Hunk, expression nervous. “Are we still expected to…”
He didn’t want another Adam.
Shit. Adam. His eyes widened.
“Is Adam okay?”
Hunk blinked. “Oh, uh. I’m sorry; I made an assumption. Of course you don’t have to work together after this. And Adam is fine. We… allocated him elsewhere, and it all worked out.”
“You don’t want a next time?” Keith’s quiet voice cut into the discussion, and Shiro noticed that he had grown tense.
“Of course I don’t want a next time!” Shiro snapped, agitation rising. “Isn’t that what got us into this mess in the first place? I just want to be with you—I want to do this with Keith. Does it matter who I’m—who I’m fucking, as long as I pop out babies?”
Hunk let out a little laugh, and Shiro bristled even more at the idea of this being something worth mocking over. “With Keith, I was saying. And I believe Keith meant, as well. Isn’t that right?”
Keith blushed, but didn’t falter. “I’d like to accept your application, Shiro. I’d never make you go back out there on your own. I’m sorry I rejected it before. I was just… scared.”
“…Oh.” Well, now Shiro felt more than slightly ridiculous. But then something occurred to him, and he swallowed.
“What if I’m pregnant?”
“Then you won’t be called in except for checkups.” Instead of watching Shiro, Hunk eyed Keith meaningfully, and Shiro wondered at the unspoken discussion.
“And will Keith?” he asked quietly.
“…That’s up to him,” Hunk said carefully. “He’d have to be reevaluated after the recent incident, of course.”
Shiro watched the panic set across Keith’s face. Violet eyes lifted, wide, to meet Shiro’s.
“This… is the only job I have.”
The words shouldn’t have punched him in the gut like that. He gripped the arms on the chair. Right. Fine. He could… do this.”
“Okay,” he said carefully. “Sure. That’s okay. I get it. I understand.”
Keith looked away, staring hard at his knees, voice lowering.
“I don’t… have any money, or qualifications, or connections. Just a list of ‘minor infractions’ and an attitude problem.” He breathed in, the noise shuddery. “I don’t… can we work it out?”
Shiro didn’t care what it might cost; he wasn’t going to let Keith go to sleep hungry for his sake. He reached out, taking his hand.
“Absolutely. I’m going to—I want to be with you, no matter what you do for a living.”
Keith swallowed, and he finally lifted his eyes. “With me?”
“With you,” Shiro said firmly, “always.”
For a brief moment, there was no one in the room but him and Keith.
Keith squeezed Shiro’s hand. “I want to be with you too,” he admitted quietly.
Shiro nodded, lifting the hand to kiss the back of it gently. He smirked as Keith went bright red.
Hunk cleared his throat, and Shiro turned to see that he had raised his eyebrow at them both.
“I was going to mention,” he said, voice dry, “that there is a position for alphas to look after pregnant omegas. It was designed specifically for those who meet someone within the program that they want to mate with. We might be losing a breeding alpha, but bonded pairs are more likely to produce multiples, for one.”
Shiro flushed, glancing down at his flat abdomen. Was there a chance that, if he were already pregnant, it wasn’t just with one? Could there be two, possibly three? Keith had mentioned that he was Galra, too; with that and the fertility drugs… Shiro had heard of litters, but he’d never thought…
“It comes with other expectations, too; there will be work you’ll be doing with other omegas, just not involving sex. Sometimes they just need to be calmed, or have a steadying presence, especially after emotionally intense situations such as birth. It would require an evaluation—and possibly some sensitivity training—but we can certainly explore that option.”
Keith brightened, and it was like watching the sunrise.
“Yeah, I’d… I’d like that.”
Hunk nodded. “Then there are some things I need to discuss with you—about the incident last week, for one, and begin the process to have you certified as fit to handle those things.”
“Yeah, sure, whatever you need. But I want to do that.”
Shiro nodded eagerly, beaming. “That sounds wonderful.” He knew that it was probably too much to lean over and kiss Keith, but he squeezed his hands.
Keith squeezed back, looking up at Shiro like he couldn’t quite believe that this was real. After a moment, he turned back to Hunk.
“Can we do it now? Shiro, I can meet you in the cafeteria?”
Shiro hesitated, not saying anything, but his spine prickled, anxiety beginning to settle within him.
Keith tightened his grip, turning to focus all of his attention on Shiro. “Hey, it’s okay. What’s wrong?”
“Why do I have to leave?”
The words sounded idiotic, but though his heat had technically passed, it had left him emotionally and physically ravaged. The latter had been quite nice; the former… not so much. The idea of being separated from Keith again, so soon, left his stomach churning.
They sat in silence for several moments, and then Keith reached out to smooth his hand down Shiro’s chest.
“How about we both leave, and I come back in tomorrow?” Keith asked gently.
The words felt like a punch to the gut. “You want to go?”
“You’re coming with me,” Keith amended quickly. “Uh, I hope. Or I’m going with you. I’d like to spend time with you outside of here.”
“Oh.” The concern ebbed from Shiro immediately, leaving him even more embarrassed than earlier. God, last week had affected him even more than he had realized. “Right, okay. Sure. Do you… have a preference?”
“…My neighborhood isn’t the best place for an omega coming down from a heat. So. Maybe, uh, not there.”
Shiro nodded distantly. “Sure. I just moved into the Initiative-provided housing. It’s very nice.”
Keith’s expression was weirdly shy. “Sounds, uh, good.’
Shiro squeezed his hand. “I can… be here with you. For the interview. If you want.”
“Thanks, Shiro.” Keith’s face broke into a smile, and Shiro wanted to imprint it on his heart forever. “I trust Hunk. It’ll be okay.”
Shiro turned, watching Dr. Garrett warily as he remembered the reason for their future separation. “You sure?”
“Yeah.” Keith nodded, looking far more at ease than Shiro felt.
Shiro hated it. But he had no choice.
He eyed Dr. Garrett with clear mistrust.
“Anything else you need?” he asked, voice a little cold.
“Not at the moment. You two can head on out when you’re ready, and we’ll contact you about your next appointments.”
“Fine,” Shiro said shortly, still eyeing the doctor.
Keith stood, cracking his spine, then extended a hand to Shiro.
“I think we’ll go, then. It’ll be nice to see the sun again.”
Shiro took Keith’s hand, and Keith nearly dragged him out of the room with a cheerful, “Bye, Hunk!”
Shiro followed along; the windows were bright and Shiro wanted to be outside.
“Do you want to ride with me? I have my bike parked outside.”
“I want to ride you again,” Shiro said bluntly. “But yes, please. I didn’t bring a car.”
Shiro spotted the flush on Keith’s face as he shot a dirty look over his shoulder. Shiro smirked. “Maybe if you’re really good, that can be arranged.” He waved at the receptionist and burst out into the street. The sun was glorious on their skin, and Keith turned to drop a kiss on Shiro’s cheek.
Shiro laughed delightedly. “And what if I’m really bad?”
“Then I suppose I’ll have to teach you how to behave.”
“I sure hope so.” Shiro reached out and tangled their fingers together; Keith took the opportunity to lean in and kiss Shiro sweetly.
Keith had parked two blocks away; Shiro eyed the bike as they walked up, smirking. “Have I mentioned that you tick every one of my boxes?”
“I think we went over that at the beginning, but I guess you like her, huh?”
Shiro hummed, running his hand over the leather seat. “I really, really do.”
“Don’t go making me jealous, now.”
Shiro sauntered to the other side, then bent over, crossing his arms on the seat and leaning on them with a smirk. As he watched, Keith leaned his weight on one hip and whistled.
“She’s prettier with you on her,” he drawled with the tone of a man wondering if he could get his boyfriend to lose the clothes on a motorcycle sometime. Shiro looked forward to the day he discovered Shiro would do so with alacrity.
“Glad you can appreciate a view.”
Keith pushed him off, cheeky but gentle, and threw one of those perfectly-shaped legs over the seat. He pressed his thumb to the ignition, and the bike lit up with a throaty rumble. “You getting on, then, hot stuff?”
Shiro scoffed, but settled in behind Keith, pressing his lips to the nape of his neck. “I’ll tell you the way, cherrybomb.”
Keith shivered underneath Shiro. “Hold on tight, then.”
He revved the engine hard.
—
Without a helmet for Shiro, Keith went slower than usual, but Red wasn’t made for dawdling. The streets blurred by as Shiro alternated between kissing the back of his neck and murmuring directions. They eventually found themselves in the nice part of town, right next to the university.
It was swanky. Keith felt completely underdressed, and a bit like people would be able to smell how poor he really was if he got too close. They coasted slowly past boutiques and ice cream parlors and houses with little balconies.
Finally, Shiro pointed with a laugh. “There! Right there! Through the gate.”
Keith wobbled a little. No way. It was cute, but looked expensive as hell. He hadn’t asked what sort of deal Shiro had cut with the Initiative, but he had to admit… intense curiosity.
Still, he glided through the gate.
Shiro nodded at the doorman—the fucking doorman—and then directed Keith to a parking spot. Keith just followed instructions silently.
Shiro linked his arm through Keith’s, heading upstairs, waving at a neighbor, giving off contented omega scent. Keith kept his head ducked, but the comforting smell helped him ground himself. These were just people with big bank accounts or a really good deal with the government. They all shit the same way in the end.
“You okay, baby?” Shiro murmured, and Keith tightened his grip a little and lifted his chin.
“Yeah. Yeah, I’m good.”
“You sure? If there’s something wrong…”
“I’m with you. Nothing could be wrong.”
Shiro unlocked the door and stepped inside. As Keith followed, his nostrils flared. Everything smelled… scentless. It was weird.
“You really did just move in, huh?” Keith asked, wandering further into the lovely space.
Shiro hummed. “Yeah. It’s pretty… new. And all that. But so much bigger than my dorm room was.”
“You used to be in a dorm? Man, I guess… I don’t actually know a lot about you. That’s kind of weird.”
“I told you I was in a fraternity,” Shiro laughed. “I lived in their housing. But now that I’m starting grad school, I want to free that up for someone else.”
“Oh, yeah, you did.” Smart jock, Keith remembered thinking. Someone way more than Keith was capable of matching up with. But his heart had latched on anyway, and now they had… this.
“Do you miss them?”
“Nope; I still go to the same school.” Shiro winked at Keith, and Keith’s heart did a little backflip.
“I meant living on your own. Is it weird?”
“Oh.” Shiro thought for a moment. “Actually, it’s nice having a place of my own.”
“It’s good to have your own space. But it’s quiet.” Keith reached out to touch a face in a photograph, then pulled his fingers back.
Shiro turned and tilted his head, watching Keith fondly. “Hoping you can fix that.”
Keith ducked his head. He knew what Shiro meant, but the implications… he tried not to think about it.
Tried not to hope too hard. Not just yet.
Shiro leaned over, nosing at Keith’s cheekbone. “You’re staying the night, right?”
Keith exhaled, contentment settling over him as he turned into Shiro. “Yeah. Yeah, I’ll stay.”
“Can stay the weekend, too. And maybe the week…” Shiro hummed.
“How about… I’ll stay three days. And then go three days. And we can see how we feel? Test the waters.”
Shiro huffed, but the little pout on his face was fucking adorable. “Well, as long as you can help me scent up the place.”
Keith felt himself puff up, and he smirked. “I can definitely do that. Just show me where.”
Shiro smirked back, grabbing Keith’s wrist and dragging him in the direction of what, Keith soon learned, was the bedroom.
They spent the next four hours marking every surface in the apartment as theirs.