#we gotta huddle down and come up with a clever ship name

[heartsfortwotpot]

Hello! How are you doing today? I hope ur fine!

Can u draw me ur favourite object show ship? (Xfohv, bfb, bfdi, tpot, ii, whatever is ur fave!)

& thank you ! :D

I CAN HIDE NO LONGER....

[capricornus-rex]

Refuge in Sorgan (3)

Cal Kestis x Reader

Him loving to hear you talk. He could listen to your voice for hours. [source]

Summary: Still on the run after bumping into some of Greez’s old friends, you charted a course to a remote planet in order to seek refuge and replenish some supplies.

1 | 2 | 4 | Masterlist

3 of ?

It was time for supper. A warden of Rodik’s approached your cottage, inviting you over to the celebration by the bonfire, both of you exit the cottage and joined the villagers. As you stepped out into the open, a few youngsters approached you and recognized you; in a split second, you realize that these youngsters were the children that you met during your first time in Sorgan. You expressed your surprise on how much they have grown from small boys and girls now into young men and ladies.

“A few more months and you could be taller than me!” you teased a young blonde boy as you patted his head.

A woman walks up to you and offers each of you a bowl filled with a generous helping of food—a combination of grains, oats, vegetables, and grinjer meat—with a complementary beverage.

The two of you found a spot by the bonfire, watching the men play music while the adolescent boys and girls dance in a circle formed by joined hands, the children were singing along with the music. When the music toned down, a little boy shyly approached and then tugged your sleeve.

“Can you tell us a story about what the Jedi do?”

You smiled, endeared by the child’s request and noticed that he had a group of friends behind him with the same request when you peeked over his shoulder. You couldn’t say no, so you tell them to gather round and find someplace to sit. Cal offered his seat to one of the kids and he sat down on the floor with the rest of them.

You gestured to the other children to come join in, when the teenagers saw the little ones huddling around you—they gathered round as well. Apparently, they all have been waiting for you to tell them about your adventures.

“Well, what do you want to hear about? Though, I’ve so much to tell!”

It was a mixture of requests—some wanted to hear about tales of fighting giant monsters in scary planets, others wanted to hear about the Clone Wars and how you fought in it. You decided to throw in a clever compromise: you narrated your mission in Onderon where you had to fight a dispatched army of droids and then eventually fighting off a nasty swarm of wild Rupings with very few men to help you.

“What’s a Ruping?” a little girl asked.

“Well, it’s a big bird but instead of feathers, it’s got scales and sharp teeth in the beak,”

You splay your arms wide to make an impression of its wings with your hands complementing as claws as you describe it to them, then you slowly lowered your arms and attacked the small boy next to you with tickles as you embraced him—pretending to be a Ruping yourself.

The giggles of the children rang amidst the crowd, Cal glanced at their smiling faces and then back to you—thoroughly enjoying your time in sharing your stories. When it eventually became more animated as you continued to use your hands for gestures, Cal’s eyes would wander over your entire person—the way you spoke, how you panned your attention and eye contact with the children including the teens at the back of the huddle, how your eyes twinkled against the flickering firelight, your interaction with them, and how you effortlessly made these kids laugh and smile at impressions, gasp at suspenseful moments, and just excite themselves over stories of grandeur, adventure, and danger.

Cal finds himself smiling at the sight of you around children.

As he too listened, he leaned his cheek over his fist while lovingly staring at you while you kept on telling stories. He could imagine the moments as you retell them—he could hear the lightsaber’s humming, the Ruping’s deafening screech, the firing of the blasters, and the muffled voices of the clone troopers underneath their helmets.

The story transitioned to how you were fighting off the creatures with your lightsaber while the clones blasted it. The children could only imagine the intensity of the battle, a few of them shifted on their seats while some intently propped their chins on their palms as they listened.

You were at the part where you jumped on a Ruping that was trying to gnaw one of the clone troopers to incapacitate it. You left out the part with that trooper already dead to spare them the trauma.

“And then what happened next!?” a child eagerly asked.

“I hit its wing with my lightsaber, I hit it many times but it kept flying, until…” you paused for dramatic effect. “It started to fall down—I had to grab on tight to it!”

The children were eager to know the conclusion to the story; when the Ruping—along with you still mounted on its back—plummeted down, you took a leap of faith when Commander Vim, the clone commander of your squad, caught up to you via the Low Altitude Assault Transport.

“He told me to jump before the Ruping could land, he told me he’ll catch me and…”

You had this habit of pausing at the most suspenseful moments, Cal saw your technique and he’d privately chuckle while seeing the kids gasp and plead for you to go on.

“I jumped.” You spoke softly, but the thrill of that memory was felt through your voice. “And he caught me!”

Half of the children sighed in relief after holding their breaths for that part, the other half cheered—rooting for you to be caught by Commander Vim safely.

“How was it? Falling from a high place?”

“Very scary, but I had to be brave. And when you are brave, you know that you can do a lot of things—even the ones that used to scare you.”

The little ones went hush, but the little “oohs” were audible to everyone else.

“Could you tell us another story? Did you ever pilot your own ship?” an adolescent boy standing in the middle of the crowd asked in the midst of the silence.

“I did,” you smiled. “We even went through a nebula.”

The idea of entering and passing through a nebula was fantastical enough for these young minds. They have never seen the outside of their planet and the vast reaches of the galaxy, but they have an idea of what these stellar elements are—during the rare nights where there are nebulas near enough Sorgan’s orbit to light up the night sky. In the backs of their heads, the youngsters could imagine the iridescence of nebulas, dotted with glittering stars like a piece of luxurious fabric; what more if they could see the inside of a nebula?

“What was it like?”

“Was it bright?”

“Is it true that there are creatures living inside nebulas?!”

The teenagers bombarded you with the questions that you didn’t know which to start with. Eventually, the parents started calling over their children, including the adolescents, lightly scolding their children that they have worked you up with the stories and that you needed rest. The little ones groaned, wanting more; you didn’t want to make promises that could be broken, so you just watched them be shepherded by their mothers and fathers, retiring to their cottages. The parents would glance to you, give you quick smiles, or inaudibly mouth the phrase “Thank you” for entertaining the children.

When the herd has thinned, Cal joined you to his original seat when the child that occupied it has left; a girl with sandy brown hair, perhaps not older than nine years old, approaches—at first she seemed shy and yet persistent to ask or tell you what she needed to. You saw that her mother was waiting way at the back, where the crowd of adults was standing earlier.

“[y/n], miss, do you think I can be a Jedi too?”

Both you and Cal were taken aback by the child’s question, you had to exchange looks with one another before answering her. You look into her eyes and realize that she does not grasp the big picture—but you don’t expect her to. Neither of you could lie to a child. You took her hand—surprisingly, a strong enough surge of the Force flowed within the small body of this little girl. Indeed, the Force flows healthily within her—a vessel pure of heart and innocent of spirit. You smiled, brushing her hair to the back of her ear.

“Yes, little one, you can,” after hearing your answer, never have you ever seen a child’s genuine smile stretch ear-to-ear for a long time. “Just remember: trust the Force, feel for it and it will guide you. Always.”

“Will I ever feel the Force, Miss [y/n]?”

“Yes, you will, but you have to be patient. When you feel it close to you, welcome it. Do you understand?”

She nodded with a smile.

“What is your name?” you asked.

“Elura, miss,”

“Such a beautiful name, Elura,” you cooed, caressing her tender cheek before finally letting her run back to her mother.

Now all that’s left is you and Cal still sitting by the fire. When most of the villagers have retreated to their cottages for the night, both of you relished the serenity of the night—the glittering stars over your heads, the crackling embers of the fire, and the chilly fresh air. Cal places his poncho over your shoulders to blanket you, but instead you shared it with him—snuggling close together with Cal wrapping his arm around the small of your back.

“Wow,” he muttered quietly.

“What?”

“I never knew you were so good with kids,”

You clicked your tongue, “There’s no big difference between younglings and village kids. They still dream of grand things and adventures,”

“Still, you managed to make them sit still for your stories. I don’t know what you did but you gotta teach me that mind trick soon,”

“I didn’t use mind tricks on the kids, Cal!”

“Hey, kidding!”

You softly thumped his chest with the back of your hand as you two softly laughed. He tightened his hold around you. Something has been running in his mind ever since the storytelling session. You sense his thoughts, they were loud but of good intentions.

[makeste]

BnHA Chapter 027: The Ol’ Run and Float

Previously on BnHA: Deku won the obstacle course and made All Might proud while pissing everyone else off. Midnight announced that the second event would be a cavalry battle. The kids were told to team up in groups of 2 to 4, and that each team’s captain would wear a headband with a point value based on how that team’s members placed in the obstacle course. Deku found out he was worth ten million fucking points.

Today on BnHA: Midnight explains the rules of the cavalry battle. U.A.’s first years set out to assemble their teams. Bakugou doesn’t fucking know who any of these people are. Iida wants in on this rivalry thing too. Deku gets off to a shaky start, but actually manages to assemble probably the best team out here, thanks in large part to its abundance of girl power, but also because my bird bro Tokoyami decides to get in on this as well.

(As always, all comments not marked with an ETA are my unspoiled reactions from my first readthrough of this chapter. I’ve read up through chapter 51 now, so any ETAs will reflect that.) 

new volume cover!! lots of kids this time! twelve of ‘em!

we’ve even got that steampunk girl. SHE DOESN’T EVEN GO HERE

this is the calmest that Bakugou’s face has been on a cover yet, I think. he’s even letting Kaminari lean all over him. he still doesn’t know how to smile, but at least he’s looking at the camera, unlike Todoroki up there in the corner

and we’ve got Ochako up there in the top left! KICK SOME ASS OCHAKO

Deku looks pretty happy and doesn’t appear to be fearing for his life, so we can confidently assume that this picture wasn’t taken during the sports fest! ahahaha

“the boy born with everything” hmm that sounds like Todoroki to me. could be Bakugou too I suppose, but right now I’m leaning more toward the kid who hasn’t had much development yet and whose mystery dad seems like he might be introduced shortly

I freaking love that... [checks the handy dandy character guide] Hagakure is on the inner cover cheerleading with these two

(ETA: I can’t believe such a cute fucking page was so ruined for me with context.)

okay I skipped past the characters cuz I already know who they are, and definitely skipped past that chapter index. here we go

seems pretty fucked up to me. do they have twists like this every year? if yes, then why do the kids who’ve watched it religiously since childhood (i.e. Deku) not anticipate that and maybe just shoot for top 5 rather than #1?

well Deku, you’re just going to have to continue to be just that damn good, I guess. you’re screwed otherwise

even Ochako omg

he’s still thinking to himself that it was just dumb luck that he came in first. by my reckoning it was actually ridiculously quick and adaptive thinking, more than a little cleverness, no small amount of physical strength and endurance, and a reckless disregard for his own safety bordering on the insane! but sure, call it luck

wonder where all of that GARRRRR energy has gone now. it’s like he was running at 300% for that entire event, and now all of a sudden he’s run out of batteries

okay here we go, some detailed rules

that’s going to be a lot of zeroes for Deku’s team

glad they designed the headbands to fasten with velcro so that these kids don’t go snapping each other’s necks

and apparently once someone grabs your headband, they’ve got to put it on and wear it themselves, so as long as time’s not up, you still have a chance to get it back

so then Deku won’t necessarily be the main target the entire time. ooh, this changes things. I like this game now

that little shithead Mineta might be a problem if his team utilizes his stupid grapes

and Tsuyu could potentially just use her tongue and be snatching up headbands left and right

apparently they’re allowed to use quirks, but not allowed to maliciously attack teams “with the intent of making them fall.” well what are the rules then. is that basically just a “don’t kill each other” rule and aside from that everything still goes? this opens the gates for some inconsistent refereeing. but I suppose these games are just an exhibition match to show off anyway, so as long as everyone gets to do that, it doesn’t matter as much who actually wins or loses

unless your name is Bakugou Katsuki and you went up on stage in front of a hundred thousand people and were all “it’s me I’m the winner”

or if you’re Todoroki “dad is watching and I just made Deku my rival fifteen minutes ago, so I don’t want to lose to him” Shouto

or Midoriya “dad is watching and I promised him I’d tell the world I AM HERE” Izuku

then you’re probably more invested in winning

so should be interesting

(ETA: actually, getting into the round of 16 really did make a difference in terms of who got drafted afterwards.)

time to start forming teams!

Deku already seems to know who he wants!

Tsuyu or Ochako, Deku. either is good. both are even better

Iida’s also fast! and loyal! (ETA: HAHAHAHA) but the second that fucker gets distracted, his weird hand gestures will get you dropped on the floor right quick

Bakugou and Todoroki would NEVER!! so let’s not even bother with that

Sero is another one like Tsuyu that would probably be really good at snatching bands

anyways, enough with the hypotheticals, let’s scroll down and see who this thoughtful young man actually decides on

heyyy. booooooo we’re cutting to the security staff

they don’t seem to be doing a very good job

wow. these guys are kind of the worst

“drag others down.” what a cynical fucking take

now they’re talking about how the cavalry battle teaches cooperation. well no shit, just like literally any team exercise ever

these are the most demotivational superheroes I’ve ever seen. the complete fucking opposite of All Might. no wonder he was so desperate to find someone with the right attitude to be his successor

WOW CHECK OUT MISTER POPULAR OVER HERE

OH NOW Y’ALL LIKE HIM, HUH. I WAS HERE FIRST

he seems to have someone else in mind maybe?

wow

“WHO ARE YOU PEOPLE”

wow Bakugou. wow. I may not know all of their names yet, but at least I know... two of their quirks

-- and actually I do know their names! Sato, Hagakure, and Mina! wow! guys! I did it!!!

meanwhile All Might’s up in the stands with his own hot fresh takes on Bakugou, which mainly consist of “he may be a jerk but he sure is talented and that sure does make him popular.” yep. are you proud. he’s still our son, All Might

Todoroki already picked a team while Bakugou was standing there trying to figure out what everyone else’s quirks even are and what exactly is this mysterious “teamwork” thing anyway

luckily he has a good friend who mysteriously loves him for some reason!

even though Bakugou doesn’t even remember his name sobbbbb

to be fair, I sure took a long hecking time remembering it myself

Kirishima is pointing out that he’s the best fit since his quirk allows him to take whatever explosions Bakugou dishes out

wow they really are compatible. this seriously could take over as my main ship, were it not for the fact that Deku has so plainly been in love with Katsuki since he was three years old

but even so! like, I’ll just nab this little KiriBaku tugboat, maybe, and let it puff along next to my main ride

incidentally, Bakugou doesn’t even know what Kiri’s quirk is

and Kiri DOESN’T EVEN SEEM TO MIND ANY OF IT

“Bakugou who should you ride?” “idk someone with a death wish cuz I sure fucking will blow them up you can be sure of that” “no!! me!!!”

that’s the pure kind of unconditional Yamamoto-esque love that can withstand whatever pain and hardship life decides to dole out. good shit

so who’s he gonna pick as his final teammate then

guess who doesn’t care who Mineta picks. me

Shouji if you agree to team up with Mineta you will be cancelled by association until the end of this challenge. it’s not your fault, it’s just the way things are

DEKU WHY ARE YOU STILL STANDING THERE. YOU SEEMED LIKE YOU HAD A PLAN. THAT’LL FUCKING SHOW ME TO ASSUME YOU WOULD EVER TAKE THE INITIATIVE IN LITERALLY ANY KIND OF SOCIAL SITUATION

so then. you’re either stuck with the most desperate peeps, or your loyalest most dedicated besties

eh, I fail to see how punching something really hard one time and then having your body fall apart would inspire faith, though. please note that your fellow classmates, who have seen your quirk, are still avoiding you

oh! I see a “Deku” speech bubble though! only one non-Kacchan person here who calls him that! :D

LOOK AT YOU LUCKING OUT OVER HERE DEKU

this was seriously one of his best prospects to begin with. her quirk would help a lot when it comes to avoiding people, and with him having the highest point value to start with, they don’t really need to go after other people’s points

so if he’s teaming up with her, then Iida is definitely the best choice for a third teammate. they work well together, and I guarantee no one else has offered to team up with him yet lol. just gotta watch out for those hand gestures like I said

but before we get to that let’s just appreciate Deku’s meme face

is this face a meme. if not, my question is how could it not be

yesss. it’s all coming together now. THE OL’ RUN AND FLOAT

now they’re in the huddle and Deku’s explaining the ol’ run and float plan

but interestingly, he doesn’t intend to be the rider? he wants someone physically strong? well there are a few options then, but honestly there isn’t anyone else here who’s actually stronger than you bud

WOW now Iida’s suddenly deciding to be a spoilsport?!

YOU CAN REFUSE MY FOOT IN YOUR ASS YOU TREASONOUS CAD. A POX ON YOU IIDA!!!

apparently he’s decided to make Deku his rival too. EVERYONE, RIVALS. HE HAS ENOUGH RIVALS!!!

“ever since the entrance exam... I’ve been losing to you” well then sure as hell don’t expect it to stop now

he’s teaming up with Todoroki. wow. wow, Iida. you wanna be cancelled too because this is how you get cancelled

I’m not actually mad in all seriousness though, I just gotta protect my sweet Green Tsuna here who apparently has no Gokuderas to fall back on except for Ochako, that beautiful, rule-breaking moth

does the math actually work out so that there’s gotta be at least one person left for him to team up with?

dammit who’s it gonna be

OOOOHH

IT’S THE SMART STEAMPUNK GIRL FROM THE SUPPORT COURSE. I LIKE THIS! SHE’S A WILD CARD. GET IN HERE SUPPORT COURSE GIRL

HATSUME MEI YOU BEAUTIFUL TALENTED BRILLIANT POWERFUL MUSK OX

she says she wants to team up with him so she can be in the spotlight. see, this is what all these kids are forgetting. it’s not really about the points, it’s how well you show off what you’ve got

and she apparently wants to show off “her babies.” her inventions, I’m guessing

PLEASE JOIN US AND BE OUR WINRY ROCKBELL. BE OUR USOPP, MEI

SHE HAS JETPACKS. DEKU!!! DO IT

aww. Ochako don’t be jealous. he needs you, you’re the MVP even if no one else here knows it yet

okay so they’ve got three again. but Deku still seems to think they need one more person

“our formation’s just lacking some power...”

off he goes

who else are you gonna sweet talk into this group Deku

I should probably make a guess so that I can either brag afterwards, or laugh about how wrong I was

he keeps saying power. but most of the obvious 1-A powerhouses are already taken. Sato seems pretty tough, though, and there’s also that rock guy who is like the only guy left in the class who hasn’t done shit. and I think Tsuyu might still be available and she’s a dark horse IMO. my money’s either on her or Rocky Road

okay, this Viktor-looking guy has been making faces and mugging the camera this entire time, and now it looks like he’s actually gonna get a bit of focus here

and he’s acting like class B hung back on purpose. sure, okay. do your thing then; just don’t expect me to learn twenty more names when I only just got done with this first group after 27 fucking chapters

we’d better see who Deku picked before this ends or it’s a waste of a cliffhanger

oh good there’s one last two-page spread

Deku ended up as the rider after all huh

OH

I FORGOT ALL ABOUT HIM! NOW I FEEL DUMB. HE’S FUCKING PERFECT, AND HE ACTUALLY AGREED TO JOIN THEM! TOKOYAMI, FROM THIS POINT ON YOU SHALL BE KNOWN AS “NEW IIDA”

THE SHADOW THING IS GONNA BE SO OP OMG. LET’S FUCKING GOOOOOO

BONUS:

“steampunk-related things” they didn’t even pretend

I’m glad Horikoshi made so many interesting female characters and went against his initial instinct to make several of them guys. class A only has six girls out of 20 people total, so it’s not quite balanced, but it’s better than there being like. four girls. and they’ve all got heaps of skill and talent, and varied and interesting personalities

so the support course peeps are basically the Tony Starks of BnHA

I am so down with this. go on and befriend Deku and make him all sorts of cool shit later on and further enrich the series with your general presence, Mei

[curiosity-killed]

Heith meeting at a coffee shop au?

I...really have no excuse for this

send me a ship and a number for a short fic

Keith blinked again, staring down at his keyboard. Despite his best hopes, his fingers still hadn’t started moving, and when he looked up, the document that stared back at him was a vast expanse of nothingness. He groaned, dropping his head to the wooden tabletop. It was a simple essay. Two pages. Not a big deal. Still, somehow, he couldn’t manage to get the words in order in his brain. He’d start planning out a sentence only for the words to fall out of order as his thoughts drifted elsewhere. He scrubbed at his eyes. Running on four hours of sleep probably wasn’t helping, either. His phone vibrated, skittering across the tabletop and earning him a couple sharp glares from the tables around him. Ignoring those, he swiped the lock combination across the screen and opened up the text waiting for him. Pidge: coffee now Pidge: y/y

Shaking his head, Keith sent back an affirmative and leaned back in his chair to wait. Sure enough, Pidge’s reply came back before he could more than lift his gaze from the screen. Pidge: meet at usual spot Pidge: eta 2 min Shoving his phone in his jacket pocket, Keith stashed the rest of his stuff - laptop, two textbooks, half-empty notebook - into his backpack and shrugged it over one shoulder before heading out. The library was stuffed with all the students studying and finishing homework in between classes, and he skirted around over-filled tables and reading nooks on quiet feet. The noise grew as he descended the stairs, comfortable conversation rising up from the group work stations, but it was still fairly quiet. He passed by and escaped into the brisk autumn air outside. The leaves were just starting to change, green turning yellow and orange, and the sky was an artificial blue overhead, nearly one of those default colors on MS Paint. He looked up as he rounded the library corner, smiling a little at the cloudless sky. No season would ever top summer for him, but there was something invigorating in the crisp air of October, in the way the light spilled bright and clear over campus. His and Pidge’s usual meeting spot was one of the metal benches along the back of the library, and as he approached, he spotted her familiar mound of tawny hair. Her head was bowed over her phone, face scrunched up in a frown as her thumbs skittered over the screen. “Hey,” he called as he neared. “Where’re we headed?” Pidge glanced up, lips twitching upwards as she finished typing and shoved her phone in the water bottle pocket of her bag. She started walking as she did so, and Keith fell in step beside her. “Cafe Leon,” she replied. Keith faltered, a hitch in his step causing him to lose Pidge. He caught up in an instant, hastened on by his own worry. “Right now? What about Marmora Cafe? Or Dunkin?” The latter earned him a disdainful glare, and Keith grimaced at his misstep. He and Pidge shared a similar distrust of corporations, and normally he’d never bring it up. As it was, this was an emergency. “I’ve been up for thirty hours,” she said. “I need peanut butter energy balls. I need it.” “I think you probably need sleep instead,” Keith retorted. Pidge raised an eyebrow, looking pointedly at where Keith knew he had some impressive dark circles. “Uh-huh,” she said. “How late were you and Shiro at the shop, again?” Keith grimaced, shoulders slumping, and ceded the point. He and his best friend had been rebuilding a bike for the past six months, and as they grew closer and closer to completion, they both were getting less and less sleep. He was pretty sure Shiro was focusing on the bike to avoid stressing over his capstone projects, but it was hard for Keith to drop a project once he’d gotten going. There had been a couple times in the past few weeks where he’d fallen asleep on the garage floor and woken up to Shiro’s guilty face telling him he should get home. “Still,” he said, refocusing on the important point at hand, “other cafes have energy bars, too. And Red Bull. And really strong coffee.” Pidge paused, turning to face him fully with an intent stare. Keith averted his gaze, trying to affect innocence. “This is about Cafe Guy, isn’t it,” she said flatly. “I have no idea what you’re talking about,” Keith said. Pidge rolled her eyes and started walking again, this time with a more determined stride. Keith let her go for a few strides before huffing a sigh and hurrying to catch up. “It’s embarrassing!” he said. “Just talk to him,” Pidge retorted. “I do,” Keith groaned. “That’s the problem! The lie’s gone too far.” Pidge reached up to rub at her forehead, knocking her glasses off-kilter. She adjusted them absentmindedly and gave Keith a pointed side-eye. “You sound like Lance,” she warned. Keith scrunched up his nose, reflexively insulted. Though he and Lance had grown out of their freshman year rivalry to become something like friends, he’d gotten too used to reacting in a set manner whenever they were compared to get past it. “We’re not in a soap opera, Keith,” Pidge continued. “Just be honest with him. Or don’t and come up with a clever way to get his name without telling him that even though you’ve known him for two and a half years you can’t actually remember his name.” Whether the condemnation in Pidge’s voice was real or imagined didn’t really help Keith feeling a sour twist of guilt at her description. It was mortifying, if he was honest. He’d been going to this cafe since freshman year, often enough to have a fairly good idea of the so-called Cafe Guy’s schedule. Because he was there every time Keith went in on weekdays. For two and a half years. The worst part, of course, was that Cafe Guy clearly knew him - had recognized him by name at the start of sophomore year. The guy was like sunshine incarnate - soft eyes and a big smile and the kind of genuine interest that made it seem like he really cared about Keith’s answer when he asked how he was doing. And Keith had no idea what his name was. It was a terrible tragicomedy, the type that was nothing but fitting for Keith’s life. Of course he’d meet a gorgeous, kindhearted guy and proceed to fake his way through every interaction for a year and a half. Catching himself, Keith grimaced at his own whining. Okay, maybe Pidge had a point about Lance rubbing off on him. Although… he nearly cringed at the thought. Taking a pointer from Lance might not be a bad solution. Swallowing his pride, Keith turned to Pidge with his most beseeching expression. “Please, Pidge,” he begged. “You know I’m not clever. Remember when I asked Shiro out?” As expected, Pidge blanched immediately. The memory was one Keith avoided bringing up generally, but now wasn’t time to half-ass. Pidge had been the sole witness to the tragic and extremely drunk disaster of freshman Keith asking his gorgeous CA out at three in the morning. It had started with Keith lying facedown on Shiro’s carpet and ended with him huddled in a mound of blankets, puking in Pidge’s bathroom. “Do you really want a repeat of that?” he asked. “God, no,” Pidge breathed, horrified. “No one wants that.” A distant part of Keith was offended by the absolute terror with which she said it, but the more rational part of him echoed the sentiment – vehemently. “So you’ll help me?” he asked. Pidge heaved a sigh, throwing her hands up. “Fine.” Keith grinned, relief washing through him. Pidge raised a finger at him, though, forestalling too much optimism. “But first,” she said, “peanut. butter. balls.” Keith rolled his eyes but followed her without further complaint the rest of the way to the café. It wasn’t the one Keith frequented the most – Marmora Café was closer to his apartment and ran specials on Monday mornings – but he’d been here enough for the broad windows and white walls to be a familiar sight. Inside, the café turned half into an indie art gallery: local artists’ works hung on all the walls, neat little black placards telling their creator and medium. Pidge didn’t spare these a single glance as she beelined to the baked goods display case. It was a small miracle she didn’t start drooling then and there, Keith thought; her eyes were about the size of CDs as she gazed longingly at the pyramid of peanut butter bites on the top shelf. She’d discovered them last year and somewhere in the midst of finals gotten addicted. They were, as any baked good in Café Leon, delicious, but Keith was pretty sure Pidge’s fervent belief that they could fully replace sleep was a delusion. “Keith! Hey!” Dread settled heavily in Keith’s stomach as he turned to that familiar voice. Sure enough, Café Guy stood at the register, smiling. His smile made it all so much worse. No one that nice deserved to have their name forgotten. “Hey,” Keith replied, shoving his hands in his pockets and shuffling after Pidge. Pidge lifted a hand to wave absently at Café Guy, but her focus was quickly redirected when one of the other baristas came to ask what she wanted. Café Guy waved Keith past her to the register, a fond look crossing his face as Pidge set about ordering her peanut butter balls and coffee. “Cinnamon latte?” Café Guy guessed. “Uh, no,” Keith said. “Just a large dark roast.” Café Guy winced, ringing up the order. When he’d finished, he gave Keith a sympathetic look. “Settling in for the long haul, huh?” he asked. Keith could never decide whether it was unnerving or sweet that Café Guy recognized his different orders and what they meant. He wasn’t used to someone paying that much attention to him, and it sent a tentative thrill of delight at the same time that it worsened the guilt in his stomach. “Yeah, I guess,” he said, rubbing the back of his neck. “Gotta get an essay done.” Café Guy ‘oohed’ sympathetically and accepted the wrinkled bill Keith passed over. He paused before typing it into the register, though. “You sure you don’t want something more substantial than just coffee?” he asked. “I just made a fresh batch of pumpkin bread.” Keith hesitated, about to say no before he looked at Café Guy’s hopeful expression. A dollar ninety wasn’t that big a deal. “Sure,” he said. “Thanks.” Café Guy beamed. Sunshine, Keith thought again, a little manic. The guy had a way of smiling with his whole body, as if his very skin was infused with happiness. “Do you bake everything here?” he blurted. Café Guy looked up, smiling a little still. There was a hint of pride in the expression, as if he knew exactly how good his baking was. Which, to be fair, he probably did. “Yeah,” he said. “I’m doubling in culinary sciences, so it’s fun to experiment a little.” “Culinary sciences?” Keith echoed, storing that tidbit away with the meager information he had about Café Guy. “Yeah, I know. People are always surprised to combine engineering with cooking,” Café Guy said as he stepped around the display to pull out a slice of pumpkin bread. “But you’d be surprised how related they are.” Keith found himself smiling a little in reflection of Café Guy’s enthusiasm as he accepted the brown paper bag. He was pretty sure it was a form of hypnosis, based on what came out of his mouth. “I’d love to hear about it some time,” he said. Café Guy froze and Keith’s heart skipped a beat before Café Guy smiled, small and private. “Yeah?” he asked. “Yeah,” Keith said, riding the swell of this unexpected confidence. “It’d be great.” A throat cleared to his right, and Keith glanced over to realize a line had formed behind him. Pidge’s expression was blatantly gleeful, but the rest of the customers couldn’t be described similarly. Keith winced, clutching his pumpkin bread a little closer. “Oh, um, your coffee will be right up,” Café Guy said hurriedly, turning to Pidge. Disappointed, Keith trudged over to a table by the window. It was dumb to think that today he’d suddenly be smooth enough to get Café Guy’s number, but it had been going so well. He settled into his seat and pulled out his laptop, opening up that still-blank page. He’d gotten no further when the other barista called out his order, and he trudged over to retrieve his coffee with a cloud of despondency settled over his shoulders. He returned, sitting the cup down beside his laptop and turning back to the unwritten paper. “Oh my god,” Pidge mumbled through peanut butter. He looked up, half-expecting her to be choking on the energy balls. Instead, she was staring wide-eyed at his cup. He followed her gaze and found nothing – just the usual white cup and black logo. He turned back to her, squinting in confusion. Rolling her eyes, Pidge pointed emphatically at the cup. “Turn it around!” she ordered, though the words were barely understandable. Doing so reluctantly, Keith froze. Black Sharpie was scrawled over the back of the cup in quick, peaked letters and a phone number. He read through them once, them twice, and then a third time before turning to Pidge with a grin and the words committed to memory. From one Hunk to another, how about a date? :)