I'm just saying I got a C in my Spanish GCSE so my Spanish is probably bad ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

"Hey, Lance?" Keith spoke up out of the blue whilst we were watching a movie together one day. I had my head balanced on his lap and my eyes drifted up to meet his as an answer. "When was the last time you saw your family?"

"I don't know," I closed my eyes and let out a long breath. I wondered how much my siblings had grown up since I had last seen them. Luis would be thirteen, Marco fifteen and Veronica seventeen. I had missed out on seeing Veronica start college and Luis start secondary school. All because Lotor had told me they didn't care. Keith never failed to remind me that he lied about that. I couldn't help but worry there was an element of truth. "Maybe a year? A couple of years?"

"Would you want to see them?" I pictured their faces when I turned up on their doorstep, uninvited. I pictured Veronica rolling her eyes and my parents' look of disgust and disappointment.

"Not really." I admitted, pulling my legs up onto the sofa. I hugged them against my chest whilst I felt Keith's gaze burn into my side.

"How come? I bet they miss you a lot."

"They warned me about Lotor. They said he seemed a bit possessive but Lotor just said that they didn't really care and they hated him. He said that, in order to be with him," My breath hitched. I brought my hand to my face to rub at my eyes that were quickly filling with tears. "I needed to stop talking to my family. I chose him over my own family. My- My own family, Keith. I bet they hate me for that. I wouldn't blame them. I hate myself for what I did too."

Keith gently brought his hand through my hair. "They won't hate you. They'll probably just be happy to have you back."

"You don't know that..."

"At least give them a call?"

"Fine." I muttered and Keith handed me his phone. He had promised to buy me one but we hadn't gotten around to it yet. With shaky hands, I opened up the keypad to input my home phone number. I could remember it by heart and I didn't think I would ever forget it.

It rung about five times before someone picked up, grumbling, "Hello?" It sounded like Luis but his voice was so much deeper than I remembered it being. I couldn't help the sob rising in my throat and eventually escaping. I clasped a hand over my mouth and Keith rubbed my back a little. "Who is this?"

"Luis... It- It's Lance..." I mumbled after a moment and Luis literally squealed.

"¡Mamá! ¡Mamá! ¡Lance esta en el telefono!" (Mum! Mum! Lance is on the phone!) He sounded distant as he screamed, probably because he was covering part of the phone up. "I kept telling mum you'd come back but she said you'd left forever. I knew you wouldn't leave us like that."

"I miss you so much... how- how's secondary school?" I hated that my voice was a train wreck but I couldn't help the quivering.

"It's really good! I made loads of new friends and they're all really cool."

"That's good. How's Veronica getting on with college?"

"She comes home and complains about it all the time. She has a boyfriend too and they're literally never apart. It's really annoying and I think she might be having a late emo phase."

I let out a small chuckle: typical Veronica. At least I knew they were all doing alright. "Can I speak to mum or dad, please?"

"Yeah! Mamá hasn't been doing too well since you left but she's getting better. I used to hear her cry in her room but lately she hasn't done that. I think she just misses you a lot and wants you to come home. Are you coming home? I know Marco always joked that he would steal your bunk but he hasn't. Mamá wouldn't let him."

"Not permanently. I'm living with someone else right now."

"Lotor?"

"No, no. We broke up a while back. This guy's name is Keith and he's much nicer."

"Good. ¡Mamá!" A couple of moments and a lot of fumbling later, my mum was on the phone, sounding teary.

"Lance, cariño. I'm so glad you're alright." Her voice was trembling almost as much as mine, if not more.

"I'm sorry I didn't listen to you. Lotor never treated me right and he convinced me that everyone I loved actually hated me and didn't care. I really wish I had just listened to you." Keith reached forward and wiped away my tears, setting a warmth up across my face.

"It's alright. Just know you're welcome home whenever and we will always love you. You're my baby: how could I ever hate you?"

"I don't know but I- I'm so glad Lotor was wrong. I never ever want to live without my family. Te amo tanto y- y los amo Luis y Marco y Veronica y papà." (I love you so much and- and I love Luis and Marco and Veronica and dad.) I clasped a hand over my mouth again as another sob escaped.

"We love you too, hijo. Are you going to come and visit soon? We all miss you so much."

"I'll try to visit sometime. I haven't got a source of income at the moment or a car or anything."

Keith tapped my arm, whispering, "I don't mind taking you." I nodded as a silent sign of my gratitude.

"Who are you with? Is there another person there? I thought I heard someone."

"Uh... yeah. It's just my friend, Keith. He's been helping me out a lot and- and I guess he helped me figure out what Lotor did wasn't right."

"Can I speak to him?"

"If you want..." I handed the phone over and Keith took it, immediately grinning when he heard my mum's voice.

I could only hear Keith's side of the conversation and I don't think my imagination was creative enough to even contemplate what my mum could have been saying. Keith's face had turned the colour of a tomato and his words had been rendered nothing but stutters. He kept repeating minor sentences such as, "okay" and "I will", with more emphasis on the words each time. He concluded the conversation with, "I promise I'll take him to visit you," and then hung up the phone. He immediately tackled me into a hug, yelling, "I told you!"

"I can't believe it..." I murmured, wiping at my tear-filled eyes. Keith was looking at me with a large sense of pride and it made me feel so loved. It made me feel wanted. Appreciated. Like I was worth something.

We sat there in silence, both just admiring the moment. Then Keith lifted up his head, furrowed his eyebrows and mumbled, "You're Spanish?"

"I'm from Cuba actually." A smile tugged at my lips as I watched Keith get more and more confused.

"How did I not know that?"

"It just hasn't come up in conversation, I guess."

That night, we curled up on his single bed and I fell asleep in his arms. I didn't wake up and have a panic attack. I slept soundly: I just felt safe.