Hangover Pancakes and Adventure Rooms

"Here we go. One step in front of the other," Lance encouraged Keith, his arm firmly around his drunken boyfriend's waist as he guided him from the elevator to Keith's door.

Keith's answer was a giggle. Keith was giggling. Lance rolled his eyes, thoroughly amused.

"I couldn't be more thrilled that you're a happy drunk, babe, but you gotta help me here. Use your legs."

When they reached Keith's door, Lance found another dilemma. Keith's keys were…somewhere…and Lance didn't have his own. "Where's your keys, babe?"

"In mah pooooooocket," Keith sang, ending with a giggle.

Lance waited a beat, bearing Keith's weight. "Can you grab them for me?"

"How 'bout you grab them, Babycakes?" Keith giggled again.

"Babycakes? That's a new one," Lance said patiently. "Can you at least remember which pocket?"

Keith reached up his hand to boop Lance on the nose. "You gotta find 'em."

"Fine," Lance huffed out.

"Why're your cheeks turning all red?" Keith slurred.

Lance tried to slip his fingers into the front left pocket of Keith's jeans. His too-tight jeans. Oh god. Keith started humming, his tone low and too close to a moan for Lance's comfort. "Find anything in there?"

"No keys," Lance said through gritted teeth.

Another giggle. "I think you found something eeeee-elllse," Keith sang, stretching out the last word in a sing-song.

Lance did and quickly withdrew his fingers from where they pressed against something they shouldn't be. He tried to get his fingers into Keith's other pocket, but it was an awkward angle and Keith was a limp weight against him. It also didn't help that his accidental brush of fingers reminded Keith his boyfriend was holding him close.

"Mmm, Laaaaance," Keith breathed out, leaning his full weight against Lance, which in turn pushed him back against the door. Keith somehow nudged his lips against Lance's neck, giving him little nibbles that distracted him from his goal. Getting in the door.

"Keith, c'mon honey. I need to get you inside."

"Mmph," was the only answer as Keith worked at a spot near Lance's collarbone.

"Keith. Seriously. Not here in the hall."

"S'no one here."

"It'll be more private in your apartment."

Keith slumped against him, his mouth still pressed against his skin.

"Keith? Keith? Are you fucking passed out? Oh my fuck, I swear to god."

The whole situation was both funny and irritating. He'd never seen Keith let loose like he had tonight and this new aspect of his boyfriend made him fall in love further, if that was possible. Keith had a fun side, he knew, but he was much more reserved than Lance. So to see his boyfriend jump up on stage and totally rock a sexy dance made Lance wish tonight was their tenth date.

Of course, Lance didn't want to do that with one of them drunk. So, maybe it was a good thing it wasn't the tenth.

He wriggled his fingers into Keith's other pocket and felt the metal of Keith's keychain. Relief rushed through him. He had no idea how he managed to unlock the door, but they soon stumbled in, Lance straining to keep Keith upright.

He kicked his foot back to slam the door shut and figured he'd get Keith to the bed and come back to lock up. Red came over from his spot on the couch to investigate, meowing his concern over his comatose minion. "He'll be alright, Red," Lance assured the majestic feline. "I promise to take care of him."

Which was a pretty hard promise to perform. Keith's dead weight in his arms was difficult to maneuver through the apartment. He was heavier than he looked and his body was all floppy. "Come on, baby. Work with me here," he grunted, shifting Keith in his arms to get a better grip on his boyfriend.

"Mm Lance," Keith mumbled, his arms draping over Lance's shoulders. His face pressed into Lance's neck as Lance picked him up, grunting again when he lifted.

"Let's get you to bed, my own personal Brendon Urie," Lance huffed out. Keith's legs wrapped around his hips now and Keith clung to him like a koala.

He felt Keith chuckle, then start nibbling at his neck again. "Yeah, bed. I want to get you in my bed."

"You will," Lance promised.

"Imma make love to you all night."

"I'm sure you'd like to," Lance said wryly.

"No. I wanna. I wanna do all sorts of things to you."

"You can't even walk, sweetheart. And this was only date five."

They reached the bedroom and Lance toppled Keith on the bed, who bounced on the mattress with another giggle. Lance watched amused for a second as Keith stared at him. He lifted his arms and made grabby motions with his hands. "C'mere," he demanded.

"I need to lock up first and make sure Red has food, babe. Give me a minute."

He turned to leave, ignoring Keith's whiny wail as he went out toward the kitchen. Red followed, voicing his displeasure at waiting forever for his dinner. Lance chuckled, admonishing the indignant feline. "First of all, you faker, I know for a fact Keith gave you something to eat before we left."

Red trotted ahead to the kitchen, flicking his tail at Lance's words, and plopped his noble cat butt next to his empty bowl and waited while Lance locked up.

"Second of all, you are generally overfed, so there's nothing you can say to me to make me think you're a starving cat."

Red swished his tail back and forth, his eyes trailing Lance's every move as he moved about the kitchen, filling bowls, cleaning up, and making sure everything was in Keith's preferred perfect order.

"Laaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaance!"

"I'm here, Keithy," he said as he went back into the room. Keith was splayed on the bed now facedown on his stomach. "C'mon, honey. Need to get you dressed and get your teeth brushed. Think you can handle it?"

"Mmrpfhph," Keith mumbled into the bedding.

Lance helped drag Keith up into a sitting position, his legs dangling off the edge of the bed. He let go to fetch a t-shirt and the shorts Keith liked to sleep in, but in that brief time Keith managed to slump over onto his side and lay like a slug.

"Sweetie, you're not helping."

As gently as he could he pulled Keith back up into a seated position, but Keith's eyes were closed and his expression was slack. Lance looked at the clothing in his hands and almost decided to let Keith sleep in his clothes. However, he knew the jeans were tight and the shirt wasn't exactly made to sleep in. Keith would be upset if he woke up in them. But, getting Keith into his sleeping clothes meant he needed to strip him first.

Blushing more than he should have, Lance put the clothes in his hands on the bed next to Keith and attempted first to get Keith's shirt off. That woke Keith up a little, and he blinked sleepy eyes up at Lance. "Are you taking off my clothes?" he asked in a low and gravelly voice.

"Only to get you into something to sleep in," Lance said, somehow keeping his voice even.

"Are you suuuu-uuuuure?" Keith sang, walking his fingers up Lance's stomach.

Lance swallowed, then cleared his throat. "Yes, Keithy. Just to sleep."

"You know I like when you call me that."

"You keep yelling at me when I do," Lance said, amused.

"I secretly like it. Shhh, don't tell," Keith giggled, putting his finger against his lips.

"I won't say a word," Lance promised.

"That's cause you're the best, Lance. The best ever."

"I'm glad you think so," Lance said. "Because I think you're the best ever." With his cheeks still burning, he clumsily pulled Keith's shirt off over his head, ignoring the slight complaining noises Keith made as Lance accidentally pulled at his hair.

"So we're the best ever," Keith concluded.

"Yes we are. We're a good team."

"The best."

Lance helped get Keith into his t-shirt, a plain gray one. He tried not to dwell on half-naked Keith all loose and compliant in front of him. He also tried not to think too much about the next step. He had to get those jeans off, and he devoutly hoped Keith wore some sort of underwear.

"Can you stand, honey?"

He attempted to pull Keith to his feet, but Keith tottered and slumped against him. He laughed against Lance's shoulder. "No!" he said, before letting himself fall back on his bed.

Lance sighed, though the sight was nice to see – Keith splayed out there. But this made his task all that much harder. "Sweetheart, I'm gonna get your jeans off, ok? If you're ticklish…"

"Already getting into my pants, Lancey?"

"No," Lance said firmly. "I'm changing you into your sleep shorts. Do you have underwear on?"

"Guess you'll have to find out."

It was not. Easy. His blush was almost painful. Keith started squirming and laughing as Lance tried his best to undo Keith's pants and peel them down his legs. He kept his eyes averted, though thankfully Keith had briefs on. Briefs that didn't leave too much to his imagination. His mouth went dry as Keith kept moving and Lance's fingers brushed against Keith in a way that made both of them freeze. Apparently, a sober part of Keith was still working at the back of his mind.

Then Keith hummed and sort of bucked his hips up. "Touch me more."

"Keith," Lance replied softly, glancing up and meeting Keith's eyes. That was a mistake. He knew Keith was drunk off his ass. That was obvious. But the look he gave Lance was too intense for his heart. Keith's eyes were dark and focused on him, his hair tousled on the rumpled bed cover. Of course, his t-shirt hiked up a bit, showing off his stomach and the happy trail that disappeared below his brief's waistband. His pants were around his knees and Lance couldn't help but notice he was half-aroused.

"Lance, please," Keith whined, reaching a hand toward him.

"We promised to wait."

"I can't. I want you so much."

"I want you too."

Keith lifted enough to catch Lance's hand and yank at him. The move caught him off guard and he stumbled forward to land on top of Keith. His drunk boyfriend was strong, even when intoxicated, and got his arms around Lance. Lance was sorely tempted. Keith's lips were kissing him, tongue seeking entry. Lance was able to brace his hands on either side of Keith and pull away a little, which only made Keith whine louder.

"C'mon, Lance," he complained, his hands clutching at Lance's shirt.

"No, sweetheart. I want you sober when we do this."

"But I want you now."

"I've wanted you since the minute I met you, darling. But not like this, ok? We'd regret it tomorrow."

"I'd never regret anything with you."

Lance smiled down at him, then shifted his weight onto his left hand so he could caress Keith's face with his right. "I know, baby. But we really would. You trust me, don't you?"

"With my life," Keith answered, finally smiling. He kept his eyes locked with Lance for a few moments and Lance couldn't look away from his stare. Keith had never looked at him like this and he felt his breathing stop. "Lance," Keith whispered then. "I lo-"

Lance panicked and immediately pressed his fingers over Keith's mouth before he could say what Lance thought he was trying to say. Did he want Keith to say it? Of course he did. Not this way, though. Not drunk and not in his normal mind. He didn't doubt Keith felt it, to be sure. He only wanted Keith to be completely sober when he did.

"Keith," he whispered back, "don't say it yet, ok?"

Keith stared at Lance for a long time before he finally nodded. Lance then felt him kiss his fingers and Lance smiled down at him before removing them.

Lance got back to his feet and Keith kept quiet while he finished pulling off his boyfriend's jeans. He had a hard time concentrating on the task as his heart was racing. No one had ever said that to him, at least in a romantic way. He was so happy he could barely stand it. Part of him wanted to call Hunk right away, but Hunk and Shay had probably passed out themselves by now, so he decided, for once, Hunk didn't need to know Keith almost said he loved him. At least not yet.

With Lance's help, Keith was able to get his shorts on, making Lance breathe a little easier. "Think you can make it to the bathroom to brush your teeth?" he asked, then realized, once he looked back up at Keith's face, his boyfriend had fallen asleep.

Red jumped up on the bed and investigated his minion, sniffing at Keith's face before touching his paw gently to his human's cheek. Lance crossed his arms over his chest, with one hand raised to help stifle the laugh he wanted to bark out. Then, remembering his phone, he quickly pulled it out of his pocket and took pictures and video of Keith sleeping and Red puzzling over this strange position his human had gotten himself into.

Red got bored with it soon, though, and curled up in a spot on the foot of the bed, watching Keith with his large, yellow-green eyes. Lance worked to move his boneless boyfriend into a more comfortable position-more in the middle of the bed and head on pillow. The room was still warm (Lance grumbled a bit that the air conditioner hadn't been repaired yet), so he didn't have to worry about getting Keith under the covers somehow.

Satisfied that Keith was comfortable, he quickly changed into his own sleep clothes – a tank and shorts – which he pulled from his drawer in Keith's dresser. A long trip to the bathroom to cleanse and moisturize his face, then brush his teeth, was his last task before joining Keith in his room.

As it had every day this past week, his heart sped up as he settled into the bed next to the warm form of his snoring boyfriend. While he was looking forward to a more physical relationship, he was so content to lay there with Keith in his arms. He felt protective of his boyfriend and proud at the amount of trust Keith showed him as he snuggled back into Lance's embrace.

He loved, too, that Keith was cuddly and happy to be close while asleep. Even in the warm humidity of their room. Their room. He hadn't slept in his own apartment all week. Couldn't bring himself to go back to his lonely bed now he knew how perfect it felt to lie next to Keith. Keithy, he thought with a quiet chuckle. Oh, he wouldn't let Keith live that down.

He settled his arm around Keith's waist, smiling when – even in his drunken and passed out state – Keith instinctively adjusted himself against Lance's front with a slight sigh that interrupted his snores. Snores that shouldn't be as endearing as they were.

"I hope you don't regret this night in the morning, my love," Lance whispered as he tangled his feet with Keith's. His last conscious sensation was the feeling of Red tucking himself against their feet.

Hunk: Are you guys alive?

Lance: I am, at least

Lance: Keith mgiht not be

Hunk: Is he breathing?

Lance: Last I chekced

Lance: I take it u and Shay are alive?

Lance: Or at least U

Hunk: we both are

Hunk: barely

Hunk: Srsly is Keith ok?

Lance: Still passed out

Lance: I was gonna maek him breakfast

Hunk: NO

Hunk: Unless it's cereal

Hunk: I don't think you could burn that

Lance: Rude

Hunk: I'm making the hangover cure

Hunk: drag Keith over here for it

Lance: U are a god among men

Lance: I'll wake him and we'll be over in an hour

"Keith, sweetheart, wake up. Keith? Honey? Come on," Lance said softly as he shook Keith's shoulder. Keith looked like a wreck, lying face down on the bed, his hair a rat's nest, drool covering his pillow, face mashed against the fabric.

The only answer was a long and drawn out moan as Keith turned and buried his face.

"Babe, you're gonna suffocate," Lance said, pushing gently against Keith's arm to try and turn him over.

"Oh my fuck," Keith groaned as he rolled onto his back. An arm came up to cover his eyes as he scrunched his face.

"How you feel, baby?"

Keith didn't answer; just lay there working his mouth in a way that Lance assumed it was dry or something. Keith's tongue poked out to wet his lips, then he groaned again.

"Baby?"

"What time is it?" he croaked.

"Almost eleven."

"Fuck."

"How do you feel?" Lance asked again, sitting on the edge of the bed.

"Like I'm dead."

"I imagine you do."

"What? What the fuck happened?" Keith asked, lifting his arm just enough to peek an eye out at Lance.

"Many beers were consumed last night," Lance told him.

"How many?"

"Honestly, I lost count after, like, the tenth round."

"I am the stupidest man alive."

"Well, you can't be too stupid. You are dating me."

Keith grunted. "Why do you look so fucking happy?"

"Because I," and here Lance pressed his palm against his chest, "only had three beers early on and sobered up by the end of the night. I called an Uber."

"How long you been up?"

"A few hours. I fed that majestic feline of yours. I also dusted and did some laundry, so you don't have to worry about it today."

Keith's hungover brain processed that for a few minutes. "I don't remember anything."

Lance chuckled, then reached over to move Keith's arm from his face. He kissed the grumpy face's cheek. "You gave quite the performance."

"Fuck. Tell me I didn't sing."

"Oh, honey, you didn't just sing. You became a legend."

"Fuck. Fuck. Fuck."

"Wanna see?"

"You fucking recorded me?" That earned Lance a glare.

"Oh no. I was too stunned. One of the girls at the bar did and texted it to me." Anticipating this, Lance already had the video called up and ready. "See?" he said, pointing the screen towards Keith's face. Keith's voice belted out the Panic! At the Disco song and Keith cringed as he watched himself.

"Fuck."

"I think this ranks up as one of the greatest things I've ever seen."

"Turn it off," Keith groaned, hiding his face with his arm again.

Lance, of course, didn't. He watched the rest of the video. "I didn't even knew you could move like this, Keithy."

"Don't call me that," the sufferer grumbled.

"Then I probably shouldn't tell you that you told me last night you secretly like when I call you Keithy."

"I did not."

"You did."

"I can't believe this. What the fuck else did I say and do?"

Lance opened his mouth, then hesitated. He almost told his boyfriend that he almost drunkenly confessed his love. He didn't want to tell Keith, however. No need to make him suffer more, or regret anything. "Nothing else much, sweetheart. I did like your new endearment for me."

"What?"

"Babycakes," Lance said brightly.

"Ugh. I can't imagine calling anyone that."

"It was cute. You're the happiest drunk I've ever seen, though. So much giggling."

Keith let out another groan and rolled over to his side to face the wall. Lance patted him on the hip. "It's ok. I thought you were insanely cute. Why don't you get up and get in the shower? Hunk invited us over for a hangover brunch."

"Gods, the sound of food is disgusting."

"Hunk is the king of hangover food. If I know him, and I do, there'll be eggs and bacon and sausage and pancakes…"

Keith made a gagging sound and definitely looked green.

"Shower, baby," Lance ordered. "Shower and then the Alka Seltzer I have waiting for you in the kitchen." Lance stood up and leaned over to kiss Keith's cheek again. "And definitely brush your teeth."

Lance was a little concerned for Keith. Even after a shower, coffee, and Alka Seltzer, the poor boy still looked green around the gills. He wore his sunglasses for the drive over to Hunk's - though the day was cloudy with a threat of rain - slumped up against the passenger door of Bunny. He was quiet, too, and while Keith wasn't as verbose as Lance could be, their drives anywhere together were generally filled with talk.

Not so today. Keith was the equivalent of a sack of potatoes in his car.

It took a lot of effort to get him out of the car when they arrived at Hunk and Shay's townhouse. Keith looked to be in pain as he gingerly made his way to the house, where the smell of greasy breakfast foods greeted them when Lance opened the door.

"Oh gods," Keith gagged.

"Once you eat, you'll be fine," Lance assured him. "Hunk's hangover brunch is legendary. It got us through our early college years."

"Do. Not. Talk. So. Loud." Keith ground out.

Lance didn't think he talked too loud, but he wisely chose not to say anything to his little grump.

For once, Shay did not look like the ray of friendly sunshine she always did. Dark circles under her eyes, her hair pulled back in a loose bun with frayed strands sticking up, a large cup of coffee in front of her on the table as she rested her head on her upturned hand. One eye peeked open as Lance and Keith entered the dining room. "Hey," she rasped before closing the eye again.

"Morning Shay!" Lance said brightly, getting an elbow in his side from Keith, who fell into the chair opposite Shay.

"Don't make me kill you, Lance," she grunted.

"I think I'll go help Hunk."

"Do that."

Hunk didn't look much better, but at least he was upright and standing at the stove. His long, dark hair was held back with the ever-present yellow headband thing he liked to wear. He didn't look as rough as Shay or Keith, but Lance could see how red his eyes were.

"You ok, Hunky?"

"Alright, considering," Hunk said, not bothering to bite back a huge yawn. "Want to shred the cheese for me?"

"Sure. What's the cheese for?"

"Shay wanted an omelet. I wasn't going to argue."

"You are a wise man."

"Everything's almost done. How's Keith?"

"Hopefully he'll return to his human form after your food."

Hunk chuckled. "I can't believe his performance last night."

"You can't believe it? I mean, I knew my man was sexy, but holy balls, that came out of nowhere."

"Have any trouble getting him home?"

Lance shook his head, then voiced his answer as Hunk's back was to him. "No. I mean, it wasn't easy, really, but I got him changed and put to bed."

Hunk looked over his shoulder at Lance, who kept his eyes on the cheese in his hand as he grated it. "And?"

"What do you mean 'and'?"

"What happened?"

"Nothing happened, Hunk. I got him out of his clothes, put his sleep stuff on, shoved him onto his side, and we went to bed."

"Hmm," Hunk murmured, turning fully around and crossing his arms, greasy spatula standing up straight in his hand. "Spill."

How did Hunk do this? He always knew. Lance sighed. "I think Keith tried to tell me he loved me."

"Really?"

"Mhm," Lance said, tapping the cheese out of the grater into a bowl. "I stopped him before he could."

"Why?"

"I don't want him to tell me drunk," Lance said with a frown, looking up to Hunk's eyes.

Hunk nodded. "Ok, that makes sense," he agreed. "Does he remember?"

Lance shook his head. "He doesn't remember anything."

"Did you tell him?"

"No!" Lance exclaimed, then spun around to make sure Keith and Shay weren't near. "No," he said quieter. "I didn't want to embarrass him. You know, if he's not ready to say it."

Hunk smiled, his tired eyes crinkling at the sides. "I'm proud of you, Lance."

Lance's brow furrowed. He didn't understand. "Proud of me? For what?"

Hunk waved the spatula at him. "Old Lance would have let him say it. Old Lance would have jumped on him the second he woke up to confess his own love. I'm proud. Looks like you've matured a bit." That said, Hunk turned back to the frying pan to turn over the sausages.

Lance pursed his lips as he wrapped the leftover cheese up in its' package. "Thanks, Hunk," he said. "I'm not sure if it's that or not, but I don't want to screw anything up with Keith. I know I feel that way, so I don't want to lose what we have. I'm gonna be patient until he's ready."

"And that's what makes me proud, Padawan."

"Nice!"

Hunk laughed, then looked over his shoulder again, only this time toward the entry to the dining room. "Hey, come here. I need to ask a favor."

Once they ate, Keith, Hunk, and Shay began to resemble humans again. Keith, particularly, finally perked up enough to take his sunglasses off. Yes, the eyes remained bloodshot, but Lance knew that would clear up by the end of the day. The brunch was a staple Hunk always made after nights of drinking. Not that the trio partied and drank much. Usually just on the karaoke nights. For some reason the grease and carbs worked magic on the suffering friends and by the time they were cleaning up the dishes they were actually speaking to each other.

"So," Lance said, with his usual dramatic pause, after the dishes were in the washer and the friends had retreated to the living room for an afternoon of quiet and movies. "Saturday is my turn to plan our date."

"Uh, wait a minute," Keith spoke up, rubbing at his eyes. "You picked karaoke last night. That makes it my turn."

"True," Lance said, with a shrug, "but I have an amazing idea for something we can do."

"Like last night turned out so well?" Keith asked, eyebrow raised.

"Better!"

"Somehow I doubt it," Hunk said wearily.

"Trust me, Hunky."

"Run the idea by me and we'll see," Keith said. "I'm not agreeing to a karaoke surprise again."

Lance huffed, pretending to be offended. "Have you guys ever heard of an adventure room?"

"Lance," Shay said, conveying her strive for patience in her tone, "I've told you a million times that Hunk and I are not going to one of those sex clubs."

"You've tried to get Hunk and Shay to go to a sex club?" Keith asked, turning his head to glare at Lance. "You've tried to go to a sex club?"

"Shay is exaggerating, Keithy," Lance protested, ignoring the way Keith's glare intensified at the nickname. "I merely suggested it once when I was at a weak point in my life."

"Anyway," Shay said.

"Anyway," Lance said, "it's a thing where they lock you in a room and you need to solve puzzles and stuff in order to get out."

"Wouldn't it be illegal to lock someone in a room?" Hunk asked.

"You're not really locked in," Lance said. "I mean, you are but you aren't. Someone at the aquarium told me about it. He said with a group of friends, it's a lot of fun."

Keith nodded, unknowingly helping Lance. "I've actually done a few," he said. "Back home."

"See! It's a good idea, Keithy!"

"He's not wrong," Keith said. "For once." Lance squawked indignantly.

"You know, I don't know if your dates count as dates if you keep dragging Hunk and I with you," Shay said.

"But we love you, Shay!" Lance exclaimed.

"Still. Don't you guys want to be, I don't know. Alone?"

"We're alone together a lot Shay," Keith said with a slight shrug. "He's practically living with me now. We like hanging out with you and Hunk."

"Besides, Shay," Lance said, emphasizing her name in his dramatic way. "Everything we've been deciding to do is more fun with more people!"

"So what is this thing again?" Hunk asked.

"It's like a mystery you have to solve. My brother and I have done it a bunch of times back home. Well, usually we let Pidge solve everything, but they're pretty fun. Especially with a group of friends," Keith explained.

Shay looked at Hunk, "It does sound like fun. We like games and puzzles."

Hunk shrugged. "If you want to, sweetie." He turned his gaze on to Keith and Lance. "Um, none of that competitive crap from the mini golf date, got it?"

"This is a thing about teamwork, Hunk. Of course it won't get out of hand," Lance said.

"You can trust us, Hunk," Keith affirmed.

"Somehow I doubt it."

Lance ignored Hunk. "Cool! I'll call and set it up for next Saturday!"

"So this is the Cabin," the game hostess said in a dramatic voice. She gestured around the small room designed to look like a kitchen in a rustic cabin. There was a table in the center and a counter with cabinets above. Some of the cabinets were locked with padlocks, some with chains. A chest sat on the floor and two locked boxes were on the counters. Other puzzles and props sat around other surfaces. "You are investigators sent here to look for a thief. The thief stole jewels from a diamond store in the city. The thief isn't here, but you're hoping to find the jewels stashed somewhere in this cabin."

"Sounds simple enough!" Lance said, grinning at Keith.

Keith nodded. "At least Hunk and Shay here can probably figure it out."

"Hey! I'll have you know I'm great at puzzle solving!"

"You'll have one hour in here," the hostess said. "Everything that has a red sticker dot on it can't be touched or removed. Everything else is fair game! Put your thinking caps on and don't overlook anything! Here's a walkie-talkie," she added, handing Hunk the device. "You have the opportunity to ask for help twice. There's a monitor in the room counting down your time. If I see you struggling with something, I might flash a clue there to help you out. So keep an eye on that too."

All four of them nodded their agreement.

"Any questions?" When there was none, she smiled at them. "You're technically locked in, but of course if you need to leave for whatever reason, let me know," she added, tapping on the second walkie-talkie in her hand. "Just know you can't come back in. Cell phones are not allowed either."

With that, the hostess left, 'locking' the door behind her. Once alone, the four of them started dashing around the room, pulling the puzzles out and trying to figure out where to start.

Lance inspected the cupboards, while Shay went right over to a puzzle board on the table. Hunk and Keith checked over the walls and the chest, trying to figure out if there was a way to get into it.

"I found a key!" Lance yelled, dumping one out of a tin coffee pot. There were quite a few key padlocks in the room, so he dashed from one to the other trying it out. It opened a cupboard and Hunk went to help him. Keith went to Shay to see what she was working on.

"It's like Braille, only not," she murmured, trying to decipher the code.

"There's a paper here," Keith said, dragging over a laminated sheet. "It has some Braille symbols on it."

They studied it. Keith half-paid attention to Hunk and Lance. They held a lockbox in their hands that was the size of a standard toolbox.

"There's a letter code on this lock," Lance said. "We need four letters."

"I got it!" Shay called, pointing to the solution that now was obvious to Keith. "Try the letters U-P-J-R," she suggested.

Hunk keyed those in and the lockbox opened. "Sweet!"

There were puzzle pieces in the box and Hunk dumped them on the table to solve it. When they solved the puzzle all that was on it was a number.

"Maybe it's for that huge chest?" Shay said, pointing at the large box under the 'window'. "It has a four number combination. That could be the first number."

"Brilliant, sweetie! So we need to figure out three more numbers," Hunk said.

Lance and Keith glanced at each other. Hunk already knew the solution to all of the puzzles. They were just along for the ride. They, along with Hunk, were supposed to act dumb enough to keep from solving all the puzzles in ten minutes. None of them wanted Shay to be suspicious.

She beamed at Hunk, and then they moved on to figuring out more ways to get into the locked cupboards and drawers.

Lance discovered a key in a glass vase welded to a shelf. It took him a few minutes to figure out how to get it out. He couldn't remember what Hunk said about this one. He knew there was something. He glanced around and beckoned to Keith.

He could tell Keith remembered, but he hesitated long enough to make it look as if he didn't. "There's a float attached to the key," he said. "Let me try something."

Keith filled the coffee pot from earlier with water from the sink and brought it over to pour into the vase. It worked. The key, attached to a floater, rose to the top enough for them to be able to reach it.

"That's clever, you guys!" Shay praised them, from where she was working on deciphering some news articles for clues.

The key fit a drawer that had some playing cards in it. Hunk helped them use the cards to figure out another numeric combination that opened a lockbox. This continued over the next half hour as the four of them solved puzzles and riddles in order to get the next clue, the next key, and the next combination to figure out the mystery.

Hunk, Keith, and Lance knew there was a second room, hidden behind a panel, but they couldn't exactly "discover" it without getting to the puzzle that opened it. Hunk nervously checked the clock every minute.

Lance's nerves were keyed up, so he couldn't imagine what Hunk felt right now. If the look on Hunk's face was any indication, Hunk was close to passing out. Lance knew they were working on the last puzzle before finding the 'jewel stash'. It was a two-part puzzle – they needed a numeric code and an alphabet code to enter into a safe on the wall.

Lance worked on solving the numeric puzzle with Hunk, which involved solving a riddle with certain dates involved with the thief. Keith and Shay were on the floor with a pile of blocks to attempt to figure that one out as well. Lance declared they needed to split up as Hunk and Shay were the smartest of them all, so each should be on a puzzle. His real motivation was to keep Shay from noticing something wrong with Hunk.

"You doing ok, big guy?" Lance whispered as they made a show of poring over the cards in their hand. They already had the code. So did Keith, but he put on a good show of ignorance as he let Shay do most of the work. They all had an eye on the countdown. If Shay didn't solve it soon, Keith would suddenly get it and 'help' her figure it out.

"I think I'm about to die," Hunk said, his quiet voice tight and almost strangled.

"Don't do that," Lance advised. "It'll ruin the moment. And I doubt she'd say yes to a dead guy."

"Not helping, Lance."

"What do you mean? Look how much I've helped!"

"I know, I know."

"You can do this, Hunky. You know she's gonna say yes. Who could resist the thought of marrying you?"

"I can think of a lot of people."

"If she does, then you can marry me and Keith."

"Let's worry about you and Keith getting to the next step before worrying about including me."

Lance snorted, nudging against Hunk with his shoulder. "Think it's time to put in the code. Show our brilliance and 'solve' this first? Cause you know if Shay solves theirs, she'll come over here to help. Can't have that. She'll know something's up just by your face."

"Yeah," Hunk said, taking a deep breath. "Keith knows to pretend to solve it once we go over, right?"

"Yep."

Hunk took three more deep breaths and glanced at the clock. "Ok. Ten minutes to go. That shouldn't make her too suspicious. You remember how we planned this?"

"Of course, Hunky! You can count on me!" Now raising his voice, Lance squealed, "Hunk! Look! I think I have it!"

Hunk acted excited, "What do you see?"

Lance pretended to point to a few things. He saw Keith and Shay glance at them curiously, but they soon returned to their own puzzle.

"See? Use the dates in reverse. That makes sense."

"I think you're right!" Hunk exclaimed. "Let's try it!"

The two of them went to the safe and punched in the code for the numeric line. The light next to the electronic code turned green.

"You did it, Lance!" Hunk said, giving his best friend a high five.

"Shay, what if we…" Keith murmured, moving a few blocks around.

"Oh! I think we have it!" Shay cried, helping Keith.

"You got it?" Lance said, bouncing over to the pair and dropping to his knees. "You get this, we win! I think?"

"I hope so too!" Keith said, placing a few more blocks into the pattern.

"Try Z-Q-U-P-T!" Shay called over to Hunk as she jumped up, followed immediately by Keith and Lance. Hunk pressed those letters into the keypad and it turned green. They shouted their success. "At least it better be the end!" Shay said. She was peering around Hunk, her hands clutching tightly to his biceps. "We only have about five minutes!"

Hunk yanked open the safe to reveal the small velvet bag tucked inside. He started to reach in but Lance grabbed his hand. "C'mon, Hunk. Shay did most of the work. She should have the honor of winning this for us!"

"Yeah, Hunk!" Keith agreed.

"Oh, I don't mind, sweetie," Shay said. "Just grab it and win."

"Nah, they're right. After you," Hunk said, stepping aside and gesturing to the safe in a gentlemanly fashion. Shay didn't notice Keith and Lance step back, or Lance lift his phone to record the moment.

Shay laughed, "Ok sure. Maybe they'll let me keep the jewels." She grabbed the velvet bag, pulled it out, and tugged at the drawstring to loosen the ties.

A velvet box slid out onto her open palm, landing upside down.

"What…?"

The bag dropped forgotten to the floor as Shay turned the little box upright, her hands shaking slightly and her brow furrowed. Bracing the box with her hand, she opened it to reveal a ring. Then gasped.

Hunk carefully picked the box off her palm and stepped back to drop to his knee, his eyes on Shay and his expression anxious. He held the box in both hands so she could see the ring. Shay's hands flew up to cover her mouth.

"Shay," Hunk's voice quavered. "You have been my solid rock for so long. I don't know what I would do without your love, your support, your spirit, your heart, or your soul. Everything good in my life comes from you and I can't begin to describe how rich you make me by your loving ways, your kindness, and your faith in me. Would you do me the honor of accepting me as your husband? Will you marry me?"

Shay nodded, speechless for the moment, then using the fingers still pressed over her mouth, she moved them to wipe at her eyes. "Yes, Hunk. Yes. I want to marry you more than anything."

Hunk stood and took the ring from it's cushion so he could slide it onto her finger with his own trembling fingers. Shay gazed at the ring, shining in the lights of the room. "It looks just like my mother's," she said in an awed tone.

"I had them make it to look like it," Hunk said.

More tears fell as Shay threw her arms around her new fiancé and kissed him fiercely. Lance stopped the record, amazed he'd been able to keep it steady as he recorded the proposal. The newly engaged couple remained wrapped up in each other for a few minutes before they remembered they weren't alone. Hunk turned his head to smile sheepishly at Lance and Keith, who now felt it was time to rush to the couple for hugs, kisses, and congratulations.

"It looks like you've won!"

The voice of the hostess broke into their celebration. Still clinging to each other, Shay gazed up happily into Hunk's eyes. "I won a long time ago!"

"I can't believe how much I have to do!" Lance exclaimed as he and Keith got out of Bunny.

"What?" Keith asked peering over the car at his boyfriend.

"Best man duties, Keith!"

Keith's mouth quirked into a grin. "Getting a little ahead of yourself, sweetheart. They've been engaged a total of three hours and are nowhere near picking a date."

"I know! But still!"

"You're adorable."

Lance blushed. Keith came around the car and took his hand as he said it. "Stop. I am not."

"I'm a better judge than you."

"Psht, no way Kogane. I'm the one with good judgement. I picked you, after all."

"That is true. A pretty convincing argument."

"I realize Red's probably starving," Lance said, pulling at Keith's hand a little. "But do you wanna walk for a bit?"

"Walk?"

"Yeah. Night's young and it's nice out. I feel a little restless from the excitement. All that planning with the adventure room place this week has me frazzled."

The heat wave blasting their city this week broke sometime during the day. The humidity, anyway, had disappeared, and Lance wanted to take advantage of it. Strolling among the blocks near their apartment complex sounded like a nice idea.

"If you want. It is nice."

They set off down the street toward the city center, where the nightlife had started to pick up. Other couples and groups of friends wandered around along with them, some bar hopping, some heading home for hookups. They passed a bachelorette party of drunk women being herded around by a harassed-looking bridesmaid.

"Should I take Hunk to a strip club?"

Keith turned his head to stare at Lance. "Do you honestly think Hunk would enjoy that?"

"Well, no," Lance admitted. "I'm just trying to stick with tradition."

"Somehow, I can't picture that pure soul sitting in a strip club getting a lap dance."

Lance tried to picture it. He really did, but there was no way he could conjure up the form of Hunk in a dark room filled with loud music and naked women. Definitely not.

"It'd probably be as comfortable if it were us," Keith added as he turned his head to peer at one of the downtown store window displays.

Lance snorted. "Ok, true. No strippers for Hunk. For us? Doesn't Vegas have an all male revue?" He blushed when he realized what he said could be construed as suggesting he and Keith would get married.

Thankfully, either Keith didn't construe it, or he didn't want to comment on it. "Uh, no. A guy swinging his junk in my face isn't really my thing."

"Depends on the guy, I hope."

"If you're suggesting yourself, then I guess I could allow that."

"Don't forget, I saw you in all your glory last weekend. Well, most of your glory."

"Fuck. I'm never gonna live that down, am I? I still can't believe I sang on stage."

"I wasn't talking about the stage, Keithy. I meant when I had to change your clothes."

He could see the gears turning in Keith's mind as he processed that. He obviously had not given too much thought to the fact he wasn't wearing his date night clothes when he woke up the morning after. "Shit, you saw me naked?"

"Almost. You had underwear on."

"Thank the gods."

"I did think about taking them off."

"Lance!"

"Well, can you blame me? My boyfriend is hawt."

"You're such a dork, you know."

"Yeah, but that's why you like me."

"One of the reasons."

They turned back down the street leading to their apartment. "So, I know tonight was supposed to be your choice for date night, but it kinda got pre-empted for this proposal thing…"

"Yeah?" Keith asked curiously.

"And technically next weekend should be your choice."

"True."

"Only," he paused. "Only, Hunk and I found this thing we want to do next weekend, and we can only do it next weekend, cause it's the only time it's being held."

"What is it?"

"I want it to be a surprise. Hunk and I have talked about going to it for years, we just never have. It's always in June and by now we'd usually have gone home for the summer."

"So you want to pre-empt my choice this week again?"

"Yes, but that means you can choose all the things we do back at your home," Lance reasoned. "And that only makes sense cause how could I choose when I don't know what there is to do there."

Keith laughed. "Ok, it's a deal. You had this weekend and next weekend. Then I've got both weekends we're home." He stopped and they faced each other on the sidewalk in front of their building. Keith had this look in his eyes that turned Lance's knees to jelly. Keith let go of his hands to slide up and grip his biceps. "I can't wait to take you home."

"I can't wait for you to take me," Lance said, arms automatically going around Keith's waist, then sputtered when Keith chuckled. "I mean, take me home. Fuck, you know what I mean."

"I know." Keith tilted his head up for a kiss, a little chaste one. Lance's whole body burned from it, but the mention of their road trip reminded him of something.

"Is Shiro and Pidge any more," he paused, "excited…that we're visiting."

He couldn't miss the fleeting look of annoyance that crossed Keith's expression. Keith spoke often to his brother and best friend – always a Sunday night call and nightly texts to Shiro as well as constant texting to Pidge when she was in the mood. Lance also knew both of them weren't thrilled about Keith's relationship with him. Keith hadn't told him much, but overhearing the talk Keith and Pidge had a few weeks ago told him enough. Lance was hesitant about this trip home. As much as he wanted to see where Keith grew up and meet his friends and family, he didn't think he'd be up for two weeks of hanging out with two people who didn't like him just because he was dating Keith.

Keith sighed, then reached up to brush Lance's hair back from his forehead. "They'll come around."

"It's been five weeks, Keith…" Lance said. Neither Shiro nor Pidge ever wanted to actually speak to him over the phone when Keith face-timed with them, though he knew Keith offered.

"To be fair, only three weeks since I told them. I told you, sweetheart, they're annoyed with me, not you."

"But I think they blame me."

"Even if they do, I'll set them straight. And once they meet you, they'll know how wrong they are."

Lance nodded, not fully convinced. He trusted Keith, of course, but the idea of meeting these two people who loomed so largely in Keith's life intimidated the hell out of him. He was afraid, in spite of Keith's constant reassurances, that Keith would dump him if Shiro and Pidge did, in fact, hate him.

"Look," Keith continued. "Don't worry about it. Though," he huffed out a little laugh, "I know telling you isn't going to make you stop. Let's just concentrate on this week, ok? We get to celebrate Hunk and Shay and then next week celebrate Shay finishing up school. All of us together. Let me worry about my stupid brother and my stubborn friend. Our trip home is going to be amazing. I promise you."

Lance kissed him, hoping to make Keith think he was ok. He wasn't. That tendril of worry still snuck its way through his brain and heart, but Keith was right about one thing. The trip to his home would be amazing. The plans Keith kept coming up with were exciting – another adventure room, axe throwing, camping. It all sounded fun, and at least he knew Hunk and Shay would have a good time. If Shiro and Pidge didn't like him – well, he would deal with it then. The fear of possibly losing Keith prompted him to tighten his hold around Keith's waist. Keith chuckled and deepened the kiss.

"No worries, sweetheart…" he murmured in a pause for breath.

"No worries, Keithy."

Author's Note: The proposal is based on the actual proposal that one of my beta readers (and good friend) did for his girlfriend. He arranged with the manager of a local Adventure Room and the 'prize' they found at the end was a ring. I thought the idea ridiculously romantic and begged to use it for a story - which he was happy to allow. I don't know why, but it fit Hunk and Shay to me!

If you've never done an Adventure Room, find one in your area and try it out. They are so much fun with a good group of people!

As always, much love to the Klasix for all your support!

And find me on Tumblr devooshawrites