They woke up to a quiet beeping sound from Lance's alarm clock. He rolled over and stopped the alarm by pressing the quiet button on top. Keith propped himself up on his elbow.

"Good morning, McClain."

"'morning." Lance yawned as he stretched. Keith climbed onto Lance's bed.

"Scoot." He said nudging Lance over. Lance buried his face in Keith's neck. It felt warm and... safe.

"I'm sleepy." Lance muttered.

Keith smiled, looking at the stars that weren't covered with the curtains and kissed the top of Lance's head.

"You know-" Keith started. "At first I found you incredibly annoying."

He felt Lance grin. He sat up. "Why did you stop?"

Keith laughed lightly. "I guess because I became attracted to you and the annoying things that you do."

Lance chuckled. "Just wait- I can get even more annoying."

Keith closed his eyes and smiled. He curled up closer to Lance. Lance propped himself up in his elbow and turned to place a gentle kiss on Keith's cheek.

"I'll be back in my bed before the 6 am checks."

Keith pulled the covers. He opened his eyes and turned over. "Do you really have to? What if you just stay with me."

Lance bit his cheek. "Then I'm moving to the single room."

Keith sighed and lay back down. "You're right." He felt Lance sigh and turned to face him. He nuzzled his face into Lance's neck. "You can't leave. Please, Lance. Don't go."

Lance put an arm over Keith who looked up and stole a kiss. Lance returned it and pushed himself up onto his side. "Would it be crazy if we had sex in a hospital at 3 am?"

"With you?" Keith laughed. "That's the best part."

Keith had thrown the thin cotton hospital blankets off of his bed and Lance got up on his knees. He ran his fingers down Keith's chest to his boxers and pulled lightly on the elastic. He freed Keith's cock and slowly put his mouth on it before moving to his hand and kneeling over Keith's thigh to rub his own erection against. Lance's breathing hitched.

"Lance-" Keith whispered. "If you keep going this fast, I'm going to cum."

Lance grinned. "How much longer can you go?"

"Less than a minute?" Keith said, biting his lip.

Lance nodded and positioned his mouth back over Keith and put was about to finish him off when they heard a noise like a shampoo bottle falling in their shower. Lance cursed before kissing Keith's forehead and running to his own bed. Keith grabbed his blankets and tried to cover his erection, which he was also trying to stuff back into his boxers.

Lance was breathing heavy. Keith could tell that he was trying to finish himself off because otherwise he would be stuck with an anticlimactic erection that would probably be sore in the morning. Keith heard Lance's breath hitch.

"Fuck." He cursed.

A light shined down the hallway and Keith ran for the lights, he turned them both ON instead of Lance's light OFF and his light also OFF. Instead they were caught sitting up in their beds at 3:30 in the morning.

"Why are you up?" One of the nurses asked, harshly.

Keith couldn't come up with anything.

"I had a wet dream." Lance said bluntly.

The nurse looked uncomfortable but looked at Keith. "And you?"

Keith couldn't think of anything fast enough. "Me too?"

The nurse frowned. "Well fix whatever you need to and I'll get you both another blanket." He turned around and closed the door.

Lance waited ten seconds and then laughed as quietly as possible. "Room 328. The kingdom of wet dreams."

Keith still had an erection and it was getting uncomfortable. "Well I'm still hard."

Lance bit his cheek in thought. "We'll have to be fast but I can fix that for you."

---

"Meds!" A Clinical Tech shouted, opening their door. Lance was practically falling off of his bed. Keith put on a pair of socks.

"Wake up, McClain." Keith said, rubbing his eyes.

Lance snored himself awake and landed on the floor. "Oh shit- what time is it?" He curled up and looked at his alarm clock. "It's only 7."

"Yeah, which means that we didn't wake up early enough to beat the line."

Lance grinned and shook his head. "We can play the Amnesia Card."

"What in the hell are you talking about?" Keith asked, pulling his bed-head hair through the hole if his shirt.

"If you just pretend that you forgot your pills they'll bring them to you sooner or later."

"Or we could wait in line." Keith argued.

Lance smirked. "I like feeling like I'm special."

They went to morning check-in.

"8/6." Lance said.

"7/9." Keith replied.

They had their arms and legs checked and had their blood pressure taken- routine stuff. It was time for breakfast and a nurse came up to the two boys. "You didn't take your meds." He said, frowning.

"Oh my God- we were so busy putting together a puzzle of cats that we forgot to take them."

He nurse was not amused. "Your past roommates told us about your Forget Play."

"Amnesia Card." Lance frowned.

The nurse was still frowning. "Just come and get your meds at the window."

Lance frowned. "I like it better when they bring them to me."

Keith laughed. "You're an idiot."

"You didn't take your pills either." He defended.

"It was the cat puzzle." Keith laughed.

After the begrudgingly took their meds, they lined up for 'school'. Lance looked over Keith's shoulder to see the rest of the classroom and what they were 'learning'. It was the colors in Spanish.

Keith frowned. "Why are they learning Azul and Rojo again?"

"Because the hospital 'school' syllabus apparently was taken from a 1990's Sesame Street VHS."

Keith laughed. "I guess."

"Hey." Lance started. "Maybe we can have sex ed." He smirked.

Keith felt his face burn up.

When they went back, they were punished with music therapy. Keith got pulled out right at the end to talk with his social worker.

"So Keith, your parents are on the phone. What do you think about your progress here?"

"I think I'm ready to go home." Keith sighed. He had been holding on to that for a while.

His social worker leaned back in his chair. "Have you been filling out the worksheets in morning group?"

Keith thought of all of the 'my healthy coping skills' and 'suicidal triggers list' and other helpful shit that he and Lance didn't do.

"I mean, not all of them." He said, sheepishly.

"Well." His social worker began. "We need at least ten worksheets done before we can even do the discharge papers."

Keith left the meeting, anxious. He made his way to his room where Lance was laying across his freshly-made bed, reading a book.

"So?" He asked.

Keith was grabbing the doorway. "I think I'm stuck here for ten more days!"

Lance raised an eyebrow. "What? Why?"

"I need ten worksheets. I haven't done ANY of that shit because..."

"It's only fair." Lance said, opening a drawer and pulling out a stack of morning check-in worksheets. "I have about 50. Take whichever ones you want."

Keith walked over and looked through the papers. "Why did you stop doing them?" He asked.

Lance shrugged. "I gave up."

"Lance- you can't give up. You need to get out of here. I need you to get out of here."

"Relax." Lance said. "I get out next week."

"That's great!" Keith breathed.

"No." Lance said. "It's not. I'm stuck living with my step-dad."

Keith watched Lance stand up and walk to the bathroom. He went to wash his face to calm down.

"Isn't there anywhere else you can live?" Keith asked.

Lance sighed and pulled out a folded brochure. "They want to send me here."

Keith took the pamphlet and opened it up. He read it. "Second Story. An alternative housing for adolescents aged 13 to 18." He looked up at Lance. "What's wrong with this place?"

"It's a group home. Those things are rough."

"Harder than being with your stepdad?" Keith asked.

Lance sighed. "Maybe not. Anyways, let's get some lunch."

Their day passed. There was a heavy-setting feeling between the two of them. Keith was leaving and Lance was getting passed over to a group home after being in a hospital for over 3 months. That night, Keith got on the phone with his mother.

"Hey, ma." Keith said.

"How are you feeling, Keith?" She asked this every night.

"I'm fine. I'm doing those worksheets tonight and I'm turning them in tomorrow."

"Are you excited to come home? To go to school? Your friends have been calling your phone and asking about you."

Keith sighed. "I don't know. I've gotten used to the hospital."

"Well if all goes well, you'll be discharged on Monday."

"Yeah. That's great." Keith sighed. "Look, ma. I'm just kind of tired so I'm going to go and work on those worksheets."

"Okay." Mrs. Kogane responded. "I love you."

"I love you too." Keith hung up.

Lance was sitting in the hallway on the phone. "Hello?" Silence. "I'm being discharged on Monday and I don't have stable housing." He sighed. "My stepdad can sign. I can't live with him though and he's abusive to my mother who is living in a one-bedroom apartment."

Lance sighed and said "Okay." a bunch of times. "My social worker will stay in contact. Thank you."

He hung up and looked at Keith. "It's official. I'm getting out on Monday."

Keith put his back against the way and slid down until until he was sitting next to Lance. "So. Second Story. What's it going to be like?"

"Daily chores. No car. No self harm. Roommates. No fun."

Keith sighed. "I wish you could stay with me but-"

"No." Lance said. "I'm not dragging you down with me. If anything-"

"What if I'm your boyfriend?"

Lance blinked and looked at Keith who immediately apologized.

"No." Lance said. "I would like that. I can't imagine leaving you after being through everything with you. You were more than my roommate."

"I'm your partner." Keith sighed. He looked at Lance. "You mean the world to me. I am no longer the kid who stood on a bridge, waiting to jump off."

"I don't need to harm myself anymore." He said, rolling up his sleeve.

"Yeah your arm is fucked." Keith replied.

Lance laughed. "Yeah. Let's hope there is no sharp shower drain at the alternative house."

Keith rolled his eyes. "Don't even joke about that."

Lance held up his hands in defense. "Fine."

Keith rolled his head back against the wall. "They're watching Infinity War in B lounge."

"I just want to go to my room." Lance sighed.

Keith nodded. "Yeah. Me too. I have a book to read."

They spent their evening reading and getting meds in the hellaciously long line before going to bed.