Work Text:
June 1876
Lance seriously contemplated his reasoning for taking up the family ranching business as the afternoon sun bared down on his back. With the rise of industrial machines and the fall of smaller farms like his, it was hard to come to terms with.
His family moved out West to Nebraska to find another plot of land, one that would hopefully be more fertile. But despite how much he wishes he could join his Mama and Abuela, Lance knew this was where he belonged.
He loved the familiar smell of freshly turned soil from their home garden, and the mostly unpleasant stench of the cattle manure. He loved the mornings greeted by sunrises that shone through his window, giving him a fresh start to each day. Most of all, he loved the sweeping green hills and valleys that make up beautiful Missouri.
“Lance! We need your help over here!” a familiar voice yelled.
So much for appreciating the view. Lance adjusted his suspenders and made his way to the cattle barn. Built by his Abuelo, the barn had been a staple in the McClain ranch business. It towered at three and a half stories with red wooden panels worn by the worst storms the new frontier can brew. Some shingles have blown off in years past, but the barn was too out of style by the time Papa had realized, so finding replacements was near impossible. A lantern hung in the top window, swaying in the summer breeze in greeting. He used to sneak away up there on summer nights as a kid, a perfect view for stargazing.
As soon as Lance stepped foot in the barn, a loud bellowing sound echoed across the space. Lance winced. He knew that noise anywhere. He made his way to the back stall where Hunk was attempting to push a cow out to the center of the floor.
“Come on Kaltenecker,” Hunk groaned, pressing his shoulder into the rear of the cow. “We have to get your hooves checked!”
Pidge, on the other hand, was at the front of the stall. They held a stick with a bundle of carrots hanging off the end with a string. “Pushing him won’t get us anywhere,” they said with a roll of their eyes. “Surely the appeal of food will draw Kaltenecker to the trimming station.”
Kaltenecker did not look interested in the slightest. His eyes blinked slowly as he carefully chewed on some hay. Lance chuckled. For Hunk and Pidge being the animal handler and mechanic of the ranch, they still have a long way to go when it comes to Kaltenecker, the ranch’s oldest cow.
“Okay guys, let me show you how the real master does it.” Lance rolled up the sleeves of his undershirt and stood at the front of the gate, meeting eyes with Kaltenecker. “Hey boy, let’s get you some grooming.” He extended his hand, palm facing the cow.
“Lance, I don’t think that’s going to wo-” Hunk started, but stopped when the cow ambled over and rested his cold snout against Lance’s palm. “Never mind.”
“You owe me one, Hunk,” Pidge said with an eager smirk.
Hunk sighed. “Fine. Just don’t make me organize the tools.” He shuddered at the thought.
Ever since his family traveled further west, the ranch has been a bit short handed. As a result, Hunk and Pidge had to take up some tasks outside of their normal areas of expertise. It pained Lance to have to divide up work like this, but it was the only way they could keep the ranch going. He had to keep it going.
“Hey Lance,” Pidge piped up, starting to untie the carrots from the pole. “Have you heard back anything from the post in town?”
Lance shook his head. “Not yet. I’m hoping to hear back soon, but if not-”
“Hello?” a deep voice came from outside, unfamiliar to Lance’s ears.
He glanced back at Pidge and Hunk, who just shrugged in response. Lance poked his head out of the barn. What was once a clear uninterrupted view of open fields is now interjected by a man on a black horse. He wore a leather vest over a white button down rolled to his elbows, with a red ascot around his neck. He stopped the horse with a gentle nudge of his riding boots and dismounted. Here, Lance could see he also had a blade sheathed at his thigh and fingerless black gloves. But what really caught his attention was the horrendous black mop the man had styled his hair into.
“Can I help you?” Lance asked, resting his hand on his hip.
“I’m here about your posting,” the stranger said. He pulled a piece of paper from his satchel, and sure enough, the parchment showed Lance’s call for help.
“Great! Welcome to McClain Ranch.” Lance offered his own classic grin and extended his hand. “Lance McClain. I run the place, if you couldn’t tell by the name.”
The man eyed his hand warily before eventually extending his own. “Keith. Keith Kogane.”
“Now the question is, how much can you lift?”
“Excuse me?”
“You’ll be doing a lot of manual labor around the grounds. Placing fencing posts, lifting piles of hay, the sort.”
Keith shrugged. “I can handle more than my own weight.”
Lance chuckled. “Let’s put that to the test.”
He led Keith to the storage shack – much smaller in comparison to the cattle barn. Despite its size, it could still hold a hefty amount of tools and supplies. Propped up against the back wall were at least a hundred wooden fence posts.
“We need these to go up around the perimeter of the ranch. You think you can handle it?”
Keith scoffed. “Easily.” He handed Lance the parchment with the listing and walked inside.
Lance could only ever carry one or two at once, and was lucky that his older brother did most of this work. He figured Keith could carry the same, since they had nearly the same build. Keith didn’t seem the strong type. A small panic set in as he watched Keith adjust the grip of his gloves. What if this guy didn’t work out? Would the ranch go back to barely scraping by? Would he let his family down?
However, Keith took all those worries and buried them in the ground as he managed to snag two posts for each arm. Lance’s jaw dropped to the floor as Keith walked out, not even breaking a sweat, and threw a smirk so bold that Lance swore his heart stopped beating for a second.
As Lance watched him walk away, awe and shock still rocking through his body, he heard the footsteps of someone from behind. “Looks like the position is filled, huh?” Pidge asked.
Lance snapped back to the present, his face hot. “Y–Yeah. Definitely. We’re good.”
“Oh by the way, Kaltenecker won’t move again.”
—
With Keith’s help, work on the farm moved by much faster than Lance could have ever anticipated. Fences get built in a matter of days instead of weeks. New supplies get moved with ease instead of everyone having to drop everything to help. Things moved smoother than they ever have, even with Lance’s parents being around. Lance has to admit it’s almost like a ranch paradise.
However, as much as Lance has appreciated Keith’s help, he also has felt hindered by it in the weirdest ways. There was a day where Lance was looking out his bedroom window in the morning, holding a freshly brewed cup of tea. Keith was already at work, wearing a black undershirt that fit him much too well. As Keith replaced some worn posting around the barn, Lance could make out the muscles that composed his arms, how they flex under the strain-
Then Keith would turn to see Lance watching him and wave, and all composure Lance had flew out the window. He jerked back to life and felt a sharp burning sensation on his hand that made him yell. He had forgotten completely about the tea.
Lance cursed himself for falling down the rabbit hole that was Keith Kogane. Keith was under his employment. Could he even date his own employee? Not that Lance wanted to, that is. Who would want to date a guy with hair like that anyway? Lance had higher standards.
What worried Lance was what Pidge and Hunk would think. A part of Lance knew they wouldn’t care and would support him. Not only were they loyal workers, but also amazing friends, with unique perspectives and personalities that always bring joy to Lance’s day.
The other part of Lance was held captive by constant anxiety. Would Hunk try to be a confidante and flat out embarrass Lance in the process? Would Pidge laugh at the idea of him trying to hit on someone? He worried it would scare Keith away, not only from the ranch, but also from him. The thought of Keith leaving sent a chill up Lance’s spine.
No, he wouldn’t let that happen. So Lance chose to stay as neutral as possible.
Until one day when Lance was at the barn, fixing a rusty hinge on the barn door. Lance had to use a ladder to reach the hinge. He was up on the tips of his toes, and he almost had it, when a voice called to him from below.
“Okay, the fence is all done.”
Lance almost lost his balance but quickly regained it by gripping onto the door frame with all of his might. “God, Keith! You have to stop sneaking up on people like that! You’re going to get someone killed. That someone is me.”
Keith raised an eyebrow. “Sorry you’re such a scaredy cat, McClain.”
Lance scoffed. “Excuse you. I am not a scaredy cat! I am one of the bravest people on this ranch!”
“Last week you jumped into Hunk’s arms at the sound of a pile of hay being dropped.”
“Okay, that was because I was talking to Hunk about Kaltenecker. I was distracted.”
Keith chuckled, and the deep resonance of his voice sent waves of warmth through Lance’s body. “Okay, you keep telling yourself that, partner.”
Lance waved the screwdriver towards him in scolding. “I’ll prove it to you. I’m not that scareable.”
“Look out!” a voice called from around the corner.
Lance turned in his spot on the ladder and horror dropped into his stomach. Rounding the corner of the barn was Hunk, running as if his life depended on it. But even worse, Hunk was chasing down Kaltenecker, who was somehow on the move. Lance couldn’t recall the last time he saw Kaltenecker run. Hell, he didn’t think Kaltenecker could run.
What made Lance hold on for dear life was the fact that Kaltenecker was barreling right towards the ladder. Before he could react, the cow charged straight into the ladder, sending Lance into the air
He screamed, feeling air rushing around him, like arms attempting to catch him but falling short. He shut his eyes. If he died, he didn’t want to see his last few moments in this world.
Suddenly he felt his body crash into something… soft, but he kept screaming.
“Lance! You’re fine!” Keith’s voice called to him. “You can stop screaming now!”
Lance stopped screaming and slowly opened one eye to check his surroundings. He wasn’t in the air. The ladder had crashed to the side and Hunk was still chasing Kaltenecker around the ranch. He opened his second eye, and then he glanced down. Keith, who was somehow still standing, held Lance in his arms.
Their faces were close enough that Lance could see the grayish purple of Keith’s eyes and the way they were laced with mild irritation and – was that concern?
Lance felt heat rush to his face as suddenly every part of his body was aware of where Keith was touching him. “T-Thanks.”
Keith was silent for a moment, and despite how close he was, Lance couldn’t make out the expression on Keith’s face. “Yeah, of course.”
Keith lowered him to the ground, and Lance was never happier to have his feet be on soil. Lance patted a few parts of his body to make sure they were still there. “Everything in place, good,” Lance said, mostly to keep himself distracted. “If I lost a leg, you’d never hear the end of it.”
Keith chuckled. “Oh, I believe it.”
An awkward silence filled the air around them, which was eventually broken by the sound of Pidge screaming.
“I should get going. To help them.” Lance pointed his thumb in their general direction.
Keith nodded. “Yeah, you should. Good luck.”
Lance nodded and turned to leave, but stopped as he felt Keith’s gloved hand grip his wrist. He looked back at Keith. “Is something–”
“Did you want to go on a night ride? Just the two of us?” Keith asked abruptly.
Lance was stunned to the point where he couldn’t speak. Did Keith just ask him out? Like on a date? The heat that had finally subsided in Lance’s face came rushing back with a vengeance. There’s no way Keith thought of him that way… did he?
“If you don’t want to, that’s fine–”
“No!” Lance exclaimed. “I mean yes, I’d like to go with you.”
Keith smiled, and for a moment, Lance’s world was blinded by how bright it was. “Okay. Good. Tonight? ‘Round sunset?”
Lance returned the smile and felt his chest lighten. “Works for me.”
Keith released the hold on his wrist and Lance immediately missed his touch. “See you tonight, partner. Good luck with Kaltenecker.”
—
That night, Keith met Lance on the edge of the ranch with his black steed named Kosmo, which Lance found a weird name in comparison to his horse named Blue. Keith was tying off some knots for some supplies, including some water and firewood.
“All set?” he asked as he saw Lance approach with Blue’s reins in hand.
“Ready when you are.”
They both mounted their horses and rode off into the sunset. Keith led the way as the sky melted away from oranges and pinks to a midnight blue on the verge of black. Stars slowly started to glimmer through the sheer curtain of night, and the moon started to shine its silvery light onto the world.
Lance glanced over at Keith, and the moonlight caught his raven hair, making it glisten as if it were a silver-touched halo. Here, Keith was relaxed, calm… beautiful. Lance didn’t want to be caught staring, so he focused his attention back on the stars.
Eventually Keith and Lance found an area perfect for a resting spot. They dismounted and Keith started setting up camp.
“Need help with anything?” Lance asked as he tied Blue to a nearby tree.
Keith shook his head. “I’m good. I’ve done this enough times.”
Lance tilted his head. “You travel a lot, then?”
Keith hesitated as he stacked logs. “Kind of.”
“You don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to.” Lance took a seat next to Keith as he worked.
He didn’t respond for a few moments as he worked with the flint to get a fire started. Only once a few sparks flew towards the logs and caught to start a small flame did Keith speak. “I lived with my dad growing up. My mom was there for a bit, but was captured by some gang when I was a kid. She left me this.” He pulled out the blade he had strapped to his thigh that Lance saw the day he arrived. “So the first chance I could, I left home trying to find her. I’ve never really had a home to call my own since.”
Lance frowned, feeling his heart sink in his chest with Keith’s story. “Have you found anything at all?”
“I’ve found some clues, but nothing definite.”
“Is that why you came looking for a job? To get your clues in place?”
Keith nods and sheathes his dagger. “Kind of. As nice as it was being on my own, I realized I can’t keep doing it forever. So here I am.” Keith turned to lock eyes with Lance.
“Here you are…,” Lance said, his voice drifting off.
By now, the fire had grown in size. The warm glow emitted from the fire cast itself on Keith. His gaze was on the flames and how they danced, flickering upward and into nothing as ashes wove into the darkness. Lance swore it was a trick of the light, but he thought he saw a fraction of a smile on Keith’s face.
In this moment, Lance wanted to break down Keith’s walls and learn all he could about him. Where he found Kosmo. What his favorite song was. Everything. He felt his heart dance in rhythm with the flames, passionate and ablaze with the curiosity that is Keith Kogane. Although he had left it unsaid, Keith was here and Lance didn’t want him to leave.
As night stretched on and the flame started to die down, Lance’s eyelids started to grow heavy with the weight of both tiring work and lack of sleep. A yawn escaped his lips.
“Packing it in, already?” Keith teased.
“Yeah, I’m beat,” Lance stretched his legs. Then a horrible reality hit him. “Oh… I didn’t bring a pillow.”
Lance wasn’t sure if it was the fire or a trick of the light, but he saw a faint pink dusting on Keith’s cheeks. “You can use me, if you want.”
“Are you sure?”
Keith nodded. “I’m sure. Here.” He reached over to his bag and pulled out a tan blanket.
Lance could already feel the cold of the plains at night seeping into his skin despite the fire, so he took the blanket. “Thanks.”
He draped it over him and immediately felt warmth soak in. He hesitantly rested his head on Keith’s shoulder. “Are you sure–”
“Just go to sleep,” Keith said as he draped his arm around Lance. This time there was no bite in his voice, just ease and comfort that made Lance feel at home.
Keith didn’t care, so why should he? Maybe it could be a step in the right direction for both of them. Sleep overtook Lance with a smile on his face.