To say he was tired was an understatement. Lance thought that he could feel the exhaustion down to his bones. He leaned against the nurses station with his head resting in his hand. The doctor to be drummed his fingers on his cheek in no particular beat. "I can barely keep my eyes open." He complained and the nurse giggled at him. He peeked up at the sound and she motioned beside him. Romelle had fallen asleep standing up. Her head was close to slipping off her hand and smacking onto the counter. He nudged her and she woke with a start.

"I'm awake!" She explained before closing her eyes again. Romelle groaned. "What time is it?"
She could just glance down but seemed to just want Lance to tell her. He looked at her Spider-Man watch but before he could tell her how early in the morning it was, nurse Luxia interrupted him.

"Hon, it's close to three." Romelle groaned at her words. "You should just go home." The woman said softly. Queenie Luxia was a beautiful and caring woman. She had a fierce temper and fought for her patients and doctors alike. She was Lance's favorite nurse. She was easy to work with and so incredibly nice to everyone around her. Queenie smiled at the pair kindly and Lance wanted so badly to just do as she said. There was something mesmerizing about her. He was sure anyone would follow what she said. Nurse Luxia's eyes held vast oceans and her voice seem to drip with honey.

"We can't. Lance and I promised our patient that we'd be there for her when she woke up." Romelle whined tiredly and a slight frown took over her features. He wanted nothing more than too to be in his pajamas but there he stood in his scrubs and lab coat. Lance sighed and rested his head back in his hand. He was almost tempted to help Queenie with her rounds. She took out the pack of gum from her scrubs pockets and offered him a piece. Lance shook his head with a smile. She shrugged and took a piece for herself, crumbling the wrapper and throwing it in the garbage near the computer.

Someone cleared their throat. "What are my students doing here after their shift?" The sound of Kaltenecker's voice made the pair jump. They quickly turned to greet him. He rose an eyebrow at them and Romelle laughed awkwardly.

Lance decided to speak up so Romelle wouldn't have to. "Well we promised Narti we'd be there when she woke up from her surgery and she hasn't woken up yet." Lance had a sneaking suspicion that was also why the older doctor was there despite their shifts ending hours ago. Kaltenecker promised Narti"s daughter, Kova, that he'd look after her mom. Narti was still unconscious so the doctors hadn't left. Lance knew that Kaltenecker had a soft spot for his patients, that despite him claiming to be uncaring he had a good heart.

"You have a shift later today." He tried to reason with them. His monotone voice betraying the concern present in his grey eyes. That was when Lance then realized Kaltenecker not only cared for his patients but for his students and residents. He suddenly remembered how kind Kaltenecker was to him after he cried in the stairwell. "If you're not going to go home the least you can do is sleep in the on-call room." He grumbled and Queenie made a sound of agreement from behind the computer screen. His wrinkled scrubs suggested that he had just woken up. Kaltenecker had slept at the hospital waiting to be sure his patient was okay. Lance wondered if Romelle and him would do the same.

"Thank you, sir." Romelle smiled kindly at him and Kaltenecker seemed embarrassed that he had been caught having such a moment with his students. He was supposedly cold and distant. Romelle looked down at her watch despite being the told the time a few minutes prior. She settled on something before she glanced up at him. "Lance and I were going to hit up a 7-eleven for a slurpee would you like anything?" Her sweet voice sounded nonchalant but Lance knew she was worried about the older man. As much as they complained about him they did care about him

"We were?" Lance looked at her incredulously and she elbowed him in the side. "We were!" He smiled at Dr. Kaltenecker and discreetly held his ribs.

The doctor's eyes softened before he cleared his throat and looked away. "No thanks. You both look tired so whoever drives make sure you're careful. I don't want to find you being wheeled in on a gurney. I'll be less inclined to help if I find out the accident was completely preventable." He left to check on Narti and the pair watched him leave.

"He looks tired," Lance noted and fixed his stare on Romelle. "We should get him a candy bar or something." Romelle visibly brightened at the idea, her tiredness was still there and presented itself with dark shadows under her eyes but she no longer was falling asleep at the counter.

"He likes Hershey with almonds," Nurse Luxia supplied quickly. "But you didn't hear that from me." She winked at them and went off to check on some of the patients.

Lance and Romelle took the stairs to the parking lot, hoping that some cardio would make them feel more awake. It sort of helped but sort of didn't. Lance climbed into the driver's seat and took the keys from his best friend. By the time he was buckled and started the car she was already playing a new album by the band she was trying to get him into.

"It's a bit loud, yeah?" Lance started heading to the nearby 7-eleven. it wouldn't take more than a few minutes so they didn't feel bad about leaving. Romelle rolled down her window and motioned for him to do the same. It was one of the many things he picked up on about her. She liked driving with the windows down. Lance wondered why that was.

She grinned at him mischievously before turning up the music and singing at the top of her lungs. Lance laughed and suddenly wished he knew all the lyrics. There was something about her that just made him not feel as alone as he felt all of the time. That familiar loneliness became a dull ache that settled behind his teeth but with her it was bearable. He was almost disappointed when he had to pull into a parking spot and get out. Lance just wanted to drive away with the windows down, singing with Romelle. He knew that wouldn't solve his problems but it may have been the place to start. He parked and together they entered the store.

It was almost completely empty. It was three in the morning so he didn't expect it to be buzzing with activity. A bored looking cashier barely raised his eyes to meet them. Romelle slipped ahead of him to grab the candy bar. He almost laughed. They looked completely out of place in their scrubs. Lance didn't pay attention to the other person in the store.

"So what slurpee are you getting?" She asked as they stood in front of the machine. Lance watched the mixtures being spun. "I think I want a little bit of all of them." Romelle looked at him seriously and he made a face. She clearly enjoyed her thought ruining his tastebuds.

"That's gross." Lance nearly whined. He didn't know what he wanted. His indecisiveness making it impossible for him to pick a flavor. She giggled and surged forward to grab a cup and quickly began making her monstrosity. He knew there were layers of sugary colors in her cup. Romelle got a bit of every flavor exactly like she said she would. She looked incredibly happy. She grabbed a straw and tore into the plastic wrapping. Romelle sighed in content when she took her first drink.

"I'll let you have a sip." She cooed at him, holding the cup for him. Lance shook his head and grabbed a cup of his own. He looked over the flavors as Romelle tried to get him to try any weird combination that she came up with. Lance went with what he knew and what he liked. Blue raspberry.

He stared down his cup. "Should we get Queenie anything?" Lance asked after tasting his slurpee. "She's always offering me gum do you think I should get her a pack?" Romelle was too busy drinking to answer so he turned to go back to the candy aisle. Romelle followed him happily humming. She was no help but he didn't blame her. He quickly picked up a pack he thought Queenie would like and turned to Romelle for approval. She nodded and he smiled happily. They began walking to the register talking about nothing in particular.

"So I wanted to talk to you about something." Lance turned and looked at her, suddenly interested in whatever it was that she was about to say. Romelle looked nervous and she was looking anywhere but him. Her phone was in her hand like she was gathering support from the device. They turned the corner and Romelle tensed. "I met- Wait, Lance!"

It was too late. He ran into someone.

His face was practically touching the other person's chest. His cup was crushed between them. It was just his luck that in a literal empty store he would run into someone. The plastic top clattered helplessly to the floor and Lance felt his eyes go wide. The drink dripped between their bodies. The blue slurpee was seeping into the fabric of his scrubs and into the stranger's jacket and shirt. The cold made him shiver. Lance couldn't even look the stranger in the eye. "I'm so sorry," he breathed out. "I didn't... I didn't see you and... I'm sorry." His voice sounded meek. Romelle ran off to get napkins. The stranger hadn't said a word. His face was blank and cute but mostly blank.

Romelle was back before Lance had even realized that he had stepped back from the stranger, letting the cup join the mess on the floor. His friend thrusted a bunch of napkins at him and he quickly began scooping off some the chucked ice from the stranger's jacket, whispering apology after apology. "I can get your jacket dry cleaned if you want. I'll give you my information and..." He bit his lip and stopped talking. Lance probably wasn't making the situation much better. He shut up. Romelle hovered by ready to defend Lance if she had to. He looked up at the stranger expecting to see a scowl but was instead met with that same blank incredulous look. The stranger's brown eyes were staring at a spot on his chest. Lance glanced down briefly and saw that the stranger was looking at his name tag.

"Lance McClain?" The stranger said breathily. Lance began noticing how sticky he was from the blue mess but nodded anyway. "I can't believe it's really you!" A grin took over the stranger's features and he surged forward to wrap his arms around Lance. The doctor to be flushed from shock and embarrassment. He could feel the chill from the frozen drink from where he and the stranger touched. Romelle bristled and Lance babbled incoherently. The stranger broke away, smiling still, and held onto to his shoulders.

Lance felt he should know the man but he couldn't remember. "I'm sorry I don't..." He didn't want to finish the sentence. The stranger's hands were warm or felt warm through the fabric of his scrubs.

"It's me! It's Keith!" That sentence seemed to steal his breath away. Keith was in front of him! Lance hugged the other man tightly, gripping onto the back of Keith's jacket like he didn't want to let go. For some reason, Lance was sobbing and he didn't know why that was but Keith cradled his head gently and let him.

After a few minutes, Lance finally stopped and he stepped back so he could get a good look at him but held onto Keith's arms. Keith seemed to be doing the same like he just had to be touching Lance to make sure he was real. Now that there was a face to the voice Lance was probably going to become more flustered. Keith was beautiful.

"I'm sorry about your clothes." Lance looked at the discolored stain on the other male's red shirt. "It's not how I wanted to make my first impression," he flushed and let his arms fall to the side and Romelle approached the pair sensing their moment was coming to a close.

"If that's what it takes to meet you then it was worth it," Keith said cheekily. Another grin was sent his way before his eyes focused on the woman beside Lance. "You must be Romelle." He held out his hand awkwardly but Romelle pulled him to into a hug that he sort of just melted into it.

"It's nice to finally put a face to the name, Keith." Romelle smiled and let go of him. Turning back to her not ruined slurpee she began to drink again. "Let me grab the candy and I'll check out." He handed her the pack of gum which mostly came out unscathed. Romelle left them there and they stared at each other for a moment before Lance realized the mess he made and quickly bent down to clean it up. Keith bent down and began helping Lance who shot him a grateful look.

"You don't have to help it's alright." Lance smiled but Keith shrugged and pushed the ruined napkins into the crushed cup.

"I caused half the mess the least I can do is help clean it up." His voice was so nice in person. Lance became suddenly embarrassed when he remembered the hours they spent together. They stood up when they mostly cleaned it up. Their fingers were sticky and their eyes were just drawn to one another. "What are you doing up so late?" It was a question that Keith frequently asked Lance when their calls went into the early morning.

"I could ask you the same question," Lance rose an eyebrow at the other man who seemed sheepish under his inquisitive stare. "One of the patient Romelle and I have been with since the start of our rotation just had surgery. We promised her and her daughter that we would be there when she woke up." Lance said softly and Keith nodded because he understood. Shiro probably spent multiple nights at the hospital for the same reason. "What about you?" Lance shifted on his feet and Keith smiled just watching him.

"I couldn't sleep. Wanted to write but had some writer's block so I went out to grab a candy bar or something." Keith sighed. "I was thinking about calling you but decided against since I thought you'd be sleeping. I didn't expect you to be awake at this ungodly hour. Imagine my surprise when I literally ran into you." Lance laughed and so did Keith. "Let me buy you a slurpee as an apology." The older male walked to the back where the machines were and Lance had no other choice but to follow.

"It's fine! You don't have to!" Lance protested but Keith simply waved it away. He picked up the same sized cup as Lance discarded the old one. Keith filled the cup with blue raspberry slurpee and grabbed him a new straw. A red that rivaled Keith's shirt and matched Lance's cheeks.

They walked to the front and Keith brought out his wallet and Lance tried not to look as embarrassed as he felt. Keith didn't seem at all embarrassed. If anything he looked cool and unbothered. Though it might have been the effect of the black jacket. Lance bit his lip.

"You're buying the one you spilled too right?" The cashier fixed the pair with an annoyed stare, obviously upset that he would have to mop up that section of the floor. Lance winced and tried to bring out his card to buy but Keith stopped him.

"Sure whatever," Keith said and passed the cup to the student doctor when the cashier had finally scanned it. Lance took a grateful gulp and let the sweetness of the slurpee hit his tongue. He felt himself relax.

Romelle was waiting by the door for them. She waved them over quickly. "Let's take a picture!" Lance shrugged at Keith and made his way over to her. Keith stayed close behind Lance and when they took the picture they all squeezed in really close. The scent of soap and detergent washed over his senses and calmed him. Romelle took a bunch and he hoped that they all looked good in at least one of them.

Romelle pushed the door open and the pair followed her. "Well we have to go back to the hospital soon so we're going to have to go," Romelle said sadly. She looked at them and neither moved. "Lance if you give me the keys I'll start the car," she said sweetly. Lance tossed her the keys and she left with a short goodbye to Keith.

"I didn't realize how bad I got your scrubs," Keith breathed out. "I might have a hoodie or something in my car if you want." He motioned to his car and as much as that appealed to Lance the younger male shook his head. He didn't want to bother Keith.

"It was partly my fault so it's alright." Lance smiled. "I guess I'll see you around the chatroom." He laughed nervously.

"I guess we will," Keith said. They didn't move away from each other. Their eyes studied one another like they were trying to commit what the other looked like to memory. To compare with what they imagined before and the person in front of them now.

"You're nothing like how I imagined." Lance blurted out like he had to say it. He flushed as Keith laughed and threw his arms around Lance in one last hug before parting. Lance hugged back. Keith smelled like blue raspberry slurpee and the soap he used. It was nice.

"You are so much more," Keith said softly before finally letting go. "Enjoy your slurpee, Lance." He nodded and turned to leave. Lance watched his back and only turned after Keith had gotten in his car. Lance met Romelle who was trying to hide her smile.

"So," she drew out the vowel. Glancing at him with a knowing smile. "Keith is cute." She drummed her fingers on the steering wheel.

"Yeah." Lance nodded to himself and took a sip from his drink.

"I have pictures." She exclaimed happily. "Lots of pictures. Cute pictures. Pictures that could be your new background." Lance instantly flushed and felt the heat trapped under his travel down his neck.

"Why?" He asked as he fanned his cheeks suddenly finding the inside of the cup particularly interesting.

"You guys were just so cute!" Romelle pulled out of the parking lot and began driving back. "I had to take some for Pidge of course." Romelle nodded to herself. "Plus I want to put together a scrapbook that has a bunch of memories and I'm sure you'll both want to remember that." She smiled.

"Let me guess Allura and you started it at the sleepover?" Lance rolled his eyes and stared out the window. He thought about Keith. That soap smell was in his nose and if he breathed deep enough he could feel the pressure of Keith's arms around him. It was all psychological but Lance wanted to hug himself. Was it possible to miss someone you just met? Lance thought so. His fingers itched to see if Keith was in the chatroom, to call him just to hear his voice.

"Well I started it when we picked out our plants." Romelle's hair whipped behind her from the slight wind from the open windows. "I want to remember all the stuff we do together because you remind me of my brother." Lance felt a lump in his throat. "I love you and stuff." She said nervously.

"I love you too, Romelle." He grinned. "I think the scrapbook is an amazing idea." She seemed to breathe a sigh of relief. "I think it will be fun looking back at." Lance took a sip and offered her his straw.

She took a sip and sighed. "Ya basic," she giggled to herself. "You should get more flavors next time." She said and continued to drive.

"Yeah okay," Lance smiled. "Definitely next time."