[ it’s the second time keith’s done it in the span of minutes; shiro ought to be more prepared in adjusting to it. he’s not, of course. he tenses at the weight thrown over his side and sucks in his belly with the surprised inhale, holding still even as keith tightens his elbow to coax shiro to scoot backwards. it feels nice though, just as it had the first time keith curled up behind him. this’ll be different, he muses. it won’t be a thigh to his back, it’ll be hips, belly and chest. he might even have keith’s breath tickling the flyaway strands at his nape if he’s lucky. if he’s lucky? he bites his lip and contracts, just beginning to push back, only to stop before any actual progress.
ah. taking full advantage of shiro’s lowered defenses, huh? he pauses, frown pinching his brow. a touch grumbly: ]
It’s not stoic leader crap. I mean it. [ a few words in and the frown loses strength, self-awareness pinging as he hears himself. horseshit, right? a little more sheepishly now: ] Mostly.
[ a pause follows, but only in speech. he sighs out afterwards and in lieu of admitting the, frankly, untruthfulness there, he offers an olive branch in the form of him scooting backward. their bodies brush and then press when shiro takes another inch with one last scooch. there, he settles. adjusting his hand under the pillow and resnuggling the side of his face into it, shiro relaxes, marginally and slowly, exhaling a heavy breath before picking up where he should have begun. ]
Just… [ he wavers, hesitating. ] I didn’t think I’d be a prisoner again.
[ it’s an answer, yet not one. how is he doing; he can’t answer it directly. he doesn’t want to. he doesn’t want to openly admit that despite his push to cooperate and make due with the situation they’ve found themselves in, he isn’t actually as put together as he’s trying to present himself as. everyone on the team is having such a hard time, someone has to be the anchor.
but this is keith. and faking it around keith never seems to last. ]
Feels like I just escaped the last time. [ he laughs softly at that, the sound hollow. ] I know things are better here than they were with the Galra but… you know…
[ and he trails off, not knowing how to put it into words. ]
no subject
ah. taking full advantage of shiro’s lowered defenses, huh? he pauses, frown pinching his brow. a touch grumbly: ]
It’s not stoic leader crap. I mean it. [ a few words in and the frown loses strength, self-awareness pinging as he hears himself. horseshit, right? a little more sheepishly now: ] Mostly.
[ a pause follows, but only in speech. he sighs out afterwards and in lieu of admitting the, frankly, untruthfulness there, he offers an olive branch in the form of him scooting backward. their bodies brush and then press when shiro takes another inch with one last scooch. there, he settles. adjusting his hand under the pillow and resnuggling the side of his face into it, shiro relaxes, marginally and slowly, exhaling a heavy breath before picking up where he should have begun. ]
Just… [ he wavers, hesitating. ] I didn’t think I’d be a prisoner again.
[ it’s an answer, yet not one. how is he doing; he can’t answer it directly. he doesn’t want to. he doesn’t want to openly admit that despite his push to cooperate and make due with the situation they’ve found themselves in, he isn’t actually as put together as he’s trying to present himself as. everyone on the team is having such a hard time, someone has to be the anchor.
but this is keith. and faking it around keith never seems to last. ]
Feels like I just escaped the last time. [ he laughs softly at that, the sound hollow. ] I know things are better here than they were with the Galra but… you know…
[ and he trails off, not knowing how to put it into words. ]