Chapter Text
Sure, Lance sometimes felt like fluffing plastic Christmas trees was shockingly tedious and would certainly give him contact dermatitis, but he never looked at them like they were Satan incarnate.
And that’s exactly what Keith was doing, nose hitched in a permanent wrinkle of disgust and teeth bared.
Lance sucked in his lips, trying to hide his smile as he leaned against the counter, folding his arms over the chest of his Christmas sweater.
Keith straightened and bent the plastic limbs of the tree with a grimace, doing his best to avoid eye contact with the three other trees that needed to be fluffed.
“They aren’t going to bite you, Keith.”
Keith shot him a glare, venomous even for him, and turned away.
Lance snorted, returning to his attempt of untangling the ribbon spools.
It was December 1st, twenty-four days before Christmas, and Castleship Toys was preparing for war.
The toy store was snug between a local cafe and a bookstore, walking distance from the nearby college and subsequently ravaged by college students and the other stores’ patrons the second they realized it was Christmas shopping time.
The expected onslaught required two employees to come in earlier to decorate the store. Lance, both a Christmas and overtime pay lover, was the first to sign up. Keith signed up as well, likely because he seemed to put a lot of effort in ruining Lance’s general good mood.
Despite their occasional squabble, the store looked fantastic. The interior was all warm hues, old dark wood flooring, cream walls, large beaming windows. On every surface were toys. Their stock varied from hand stitched dolls or stuffed animals from small or local businesses to the latest VR headset. It was a chaotic mess of anything a kid could want and Lance loved it fiercely.
So he did right by it for his favorite holiday.
String lights gleamed above them, throwing glints of colors from the garland wrapped around the windowsills and great staircase up to the second floor. The fake Christmas trees stood tall and proud in each corner of the shop, yet to be fully decorated but glittering with lights. Lance had tried to argue a case for real Christmas trees but Allura, ever the smart owner, had insisted sweeping pine nettles was the last thing they needed to add to their busy schedule. Bright red bows were pasted to their storage cabinets and Lance had half a mind to just start tossing glitter everywhere.
Lance planted his chin on his hand, yawned throatily, and watched Keith struggle with the tree.
He wasn’t entirely sure why Keith decided to work here.
Keith Kogane had been at the toy store longer than Lance had, scowling and grumpy since Lance’s first day. He had even trained Lance, which had led to a flirting incident that they agreed to never bring up again.
(Lance will silently argue his point that when they aren’t glinting evilly, Keith’s eyes are still a little dreamy and he stands by his decision to comment on it. Just maybe check that your new cute coworker doesn’t have a stick up his ass.)
Despite his bad attitude, Keith was a pretty solid coworker. He was focused and smart and gladly handled the worst customers.
Allegedly , he was nice to the others. Lance had yet to witness it, but Hunk and Pidge swore up and down that he was a decent guy to chat with when Lance wasn’t around.
Which, ouch, but Lance didn’t linger too long on it. Keith was quiet and a bit of an asshole and Lance tended to be loud and a gracious creature, so he supposed it was a little natural they wouldn’t mix.
He was happy to coexist.
Until it was ten minutes to opening and almost all the fake Christmas trees were still uneven and lumpy.
Lance groaned dramatically, abandoning his ribbons and stalking over to Keith.
“You know, I’ve hung up all the Christmas lights, turned on the Christmas music channel, switched to our Christmas bags, and prepared our gift-wrap table in the time it took for you to stretch out half the limbs on one tree. Me thinks you are trying to get out of work.”
Keith’s nose wrinkled. “That was way too many Christmases in one sentence.”
Lance rolled his eyes, hip checking Keith out of the way and making quick work of the branches.
“You would be a Scrooge.”
Keith raised his eyes in defeat, stalking back towards the tangled ribbon. “Guilty as charged.”
Lance froze, hands full of plastic nettles. “Wait, actually?”
Keith shrugged, nimble fingers making quick work of the tangled ribbon, asshole, he had so been stalling with the trees. “Whatever, it’s not my thing.”
Lance blinked. “Not your thing ? You’re wearing a red-and-white striped apron and a Santa hat, for god’s sake.”
Keith winced, clearly not enjoying a reminder of their holiday uniform. Lance thought it was hilarious, Keith’s pinched face and mop of dark hair rebuked by a cheerful hat and apron. He should have looked ridiculous, with his ear piercings and dark clothing stuffed into Christmas attire.
(But, naturally, as the gods predestined, Keith looked hot even when he looked like a candy cane.)
Keith checked his watch. “I’ll get the doors.”
“Whoa,” Lance held out his hands. “We need to talk about this. You don’t like Christmas?”
“Yes, Lance,” Keith groaned as he marched to the front doors. “It’s not a big deal.”
“Yes, it is,” Lance insisted as he moved to the next tree. “You work in a toy store, dude. You’re like two steps removed from Santa.”
Keith stopped, turning on his heels with raised eyebrows. “I really hope I’m not going to be the first one to tell you this, but–”
Lance squawked, waving a hand his way. “Don’t even say it. The spirit of Santa lives on in these hallowed walls, especially considering we are about to be chatting with little kids about their wish lists all month.”
Keith looked unimpressed.
“How can you not like it?” Lance asked, moving on to another tree. “It’s cold and there’s snow and fun music and hot people acting like idiots on the Hallmark channel.”
“Sounds like I’m really missing out,” Keith drawled, unlocking the doors.
“And presents!” Lance continued eagerly as Keith hefted their sign outside. “I love shopping for gifts, it might be my favorite part.”
“Figures,” Keith shivered as he walked back inside. “I’m not one for gifts, or cheesy movies, or, you know, snow.”
Lance stared at Keith in disbelief. “You’re serious. What the hell are you doing working here, then?”
Keith shrugged, nonplussed. “I guess I’m a glutton for punishment.”
Lance opened his mouth to respond, actually intending to get to the bottom of this, but a haggard mom burst in with her two kids and the first day of the Christmas season began.
***
“When you say you don’t like Christmas…”
Lance trailed off as Keith shot him an exasperated look.
But he couldn’t help it.
He had been tortured the entire first hour of their shift, doomed to look at a Christmas-hater in the eyes every time the line to check out grew a little too long. He supposed he should have been grateful that Keith was pausing stocking inventory to help him, but he could barely look the man in the eyes.
“Is it the holiday or just the single day?” He pushed on, watching as Keith tried to find the barcode on what looked like a robotic mermaid. “Because I could get behind at least one of those.”
“I don’t know, Lance,” Keith sighed tiredly. “All of it, I’m not a fan.”
Lance shared a shocked look with the customer.
“You can’t hate all of it.”
Keith gave him a challenging look, his eyes glinting. “Oh, I assure you I do.”
Before Lance could argue, Keith had turned to the customer with an irritatingly good customer service smile and the conversation was finished for him.
***
“So,” Lance leaned against the counter as Keith unwrapped another spool of receipt tape. “What about hot chocolate? Peppermint mochas?”
Keith made a face as he plugged the tape back into the printer. “Too chocolate-y.”
Lance gaped at him. “You’re a monster. Apple cider?”
“Too apple-y.”
“Now you’re just fucking with me.”
***
“Did you know Keith’s dirty little secret?” Lance demanded the moment Pidge walked into the store.
They offered him a tired blink as they joined him at the counter, reaching for their apron. “There are too many. You need to specify.”
Keith shot them a dirty look, but said nothing as he pointed a kid towards the mountain of stuffed animals.
“That he doesn’t like Christmas,” Lance said in a hushed whisper.
“Oh, yeah,” Pidge yawned. “He’s never liked it.”
Lance’s jaw dropped.
Pidge had known Keith for years, something about their brothers being longtime friends. He had been hoping that Keith was just fucking with him, only for Pidge to confirm it.
“What is his deal with it?”
“Not sure,” Pidge said airily, walking past him. “I like to mind my business. Has anyone put on a pot of coffee?”
***
“Tell me you’ve at least watched Love Actually ,” Lance called up the ladder as Keith wedged out another box of coloring books. “Because you can’t form your opinion on the holiday until you do.”
“Never seen it,” Keith said dryly, turning and passing the box to Lance.
“C’mon,” Lance complained. “You’ve never seen Hugh Grant as a sexy Prime Minister? Had Emma Thompson rip your heart out to the dulcet tones of Joni Mitchell? You’d sob your eyes out, my man.”
“It’s like you’re talking in a foreign language,” Keith lifted another box.
Lance stared at his shoulder blades as they shifted and lost the plot for a fraction of a second.
“What about A Christmas Story?”
“Is that where Scrooge comes from?”
“Dear God .”
***
“Mariah Carey?”
“Who?”
Lance dropped to his knees.
***
“Carol of the Bells,” Lance said out of the corner of his mouth.
“No,” Keith sighed.
“Jingle Bell Rock.”
“Nope.”
Lance glared at the ceiling of the staff lounge, a small room tucked upstairs in the Castleship and mainly meant for the sporadic meeting or employee catnap.
And Lance had spent the past five minutes before their weekly staff meeting trying to find a holiday song that Keith liked.
“Joy to the World.”
Keith lolled his head. “Assume that any song sung around a nativity scene isn’t my thing.”
“Fair enough,” Lance considered this. “I Want a Hippopotamus for Christmas.”
Keith shrugged at that one.
“Yes!” Lance fistbumped.
“He likes the hippo part,” Pidge said, not bothering to look up from their phone. “Not the Christmas part.”
Lance groaned, dropping back in his chair.
“What is this bothering you so much?” Hunk asked with a bemused smile.
“That’s what I keep asking,” Keith said.
“Because it’s impossible for someone who truly doesn’t like Christmas to work at a toy store,” Lance said matter-of-factly. “They are required to run into their high school ex at a Christmas tree farm while the aforementioned ex is taking a break from the big city. Then they fall in love and have a bunch of babies with names like Holiday or Evergreen.”
Keith looked bewildered. “ Sorry ?”
Hunk patted his back kindly. “You should check out the Hallmark channel.”
“It sounds like not my thing.”
“Shocker,” Pidge added.
Before Lance could throw out another song title, Allura glided into the cramped room, followed by the assistant manager, Coran.
“Good morning everyone,” Allura smiled at them and Lance tried to not drool.
Allura was probably the most beautiful person he had ever seen. He was thankful he had blundered through flirting with Keith on his first day of work, otherwise he might have been stupid enough to try flirting with her instead.
Despite how beautiful Lance found her, Allura’s partner Romelle probably thought she was even prettier.
Allura was a kick-ass boss, no-nonsense when she needed to be and fun when she could afford to.
“Bad news,” Allura sat on a chair opposite them, daintily smoothing out her own peppermint apron. “The block is throwing a holiday event on Christmas night. The stores are opening and contributing to a sort of block party. I looked at this in every way I could, but we simply can’t afford to miss this event.”
Lance winced.
As loved as the toy store was, selling in-store was an antiquated business. The Christmas season was their most profitable time and Lance didn’t blame Allura for not wanting to miss an event. He slowly, with mounting horror, realized where this was going.
Pidge and Hunk looked equally hesitant, while Keith hardly looked bothered at all.
“So,” Allura smoothed out her apron again. “I will be here, obviously. Coran as well.”
The man in question offered a cheery grin in response.
“But we will need at least one more person to work in the store,” Allura said softly. “From three to eight on Christmas night.”
Lance’s eyes widened at the very blasphemy of it.
“Now,” Allura’s smile looked surprisingly nervous. “Thoughts on drawing straws?”
***
Lance tried to lean closer towards Allura’s closed fist, but Pidge swatted at him.
“No cheating!”
“I’m not cheating,” he protested. “I’m just getting a better look.”
“It’s supposed to be luck,” Keith said boredly.
“Yeah, but,” Lance squinted at the four coffee stirrers in her hand, “you never know.”
Allura smiled indulgently at him, tightly holding four stirrers, all cut off at different sizes. The employee who picked the shortest would have to work the Christmas shift.
“Keith,” Allura said warmly. “Since you were the first to sign up for today’s overtime opening shift.”
Lance sputtered in outrage, he had been certain he was the first to offer. But he obliged, stepping back so Keith could reach the stirrers.
With a whiff of spicy cologne and a frankly insulting lack of concern, Keith gently pulled a random stirrer free.
It looked short, short enough that Lance let out a sigh of relief.
“Lance,” Allura offered them towards him.
Lance looked over the remaining three carefully, gauging how she was holding them, their stability, the way he felt about them, the way they maybe felt about him–
“Oh my God,” Pidge groaned. “Lance, pick one or I will kick your ass.”
“Hey,” Allura cautioned lightly, but Lance took the hint and carefully tugged one free.
Immediately he could tell it was shorter than Keith’s. He cleared his throat, trying to not Freak Out, and ignored Keith’s attempts to fold back a smile.
Hunk went next, chewing on his lip, and pulled out an entire coffee stirrer.
Lance couldn’t even fault that, considering his best friend was actually an angel. But Pidge was a little gremlin and could survive a little working on Christmas.
“I can feel you praying on my downfall,” Pidge muttered as Lance watched them reach for the last stirrer.
And it stretched and stretched out of Allura’s hand.
“ No !” Lance dropped to his knees as Pidge and Keith let out matching snorts.
“Sorry, buddy,” Hunk said sympathetically.
“Did I mention you get holiday pay?” Allura asked kindly.
***
The instant Lance got his bearings, distracted himself with a couple really cute kids, took a well-deserved nap on his lunch break, he went in for the kill.
“Keith,” he slammed his palms against the counter, causing Keith to nearly drop a bundle of ribbon.
“Jesus, Lance,” Keith snapped. “You scared me–”
“Trade shifts with me,” Lance said. “Name your price.”
Keith arched an eyebrow. “No.”
Lance’s jaw dropped. “ No?”
“Just because I don’t like the holiday doesn’t mean I have places to be,” Keith said calmly. “Shiro’s hosting a whole thing, I told him I’d help.”
“Three shifts,” Lance said desperately. “No, no, four .”
Keith looked at him with pity. “You’re insane.”
“Five.”
“We all are working overtime all of December,” Keith crossed his arms. “When would you even work these shifts?”
Lance thought this over. “I’ll do your laundry.”
Keith chuckled as he tucked the ribbon into the drawer, sliding it shut. “That’s just gross.”
“Name it, I’ll do it.”
“Why are you even asking me?” Keith asked.
“Because Hunk deserves a good Christmas,” Lance said, earning a nod of agreement from Keith. “And Pidge took me to kick rocks.”
“And you aren’t badgering them?”
“No, because I fear them.”
Keith tilted his head, showing every inch of his impressive jawline and dark hair. “And you’re not scared of me?”
(Lance ignored the sharp jut of his collarbones that, on most days, made his mouth water.)
“I’ll make you lunch every day this month.”
“Lance,” Keith let out a shocked laugh. “This is crazy. Just work the shift.”
Lance scowled. “I can’t. I have a whole family thing that night.”
“Well, I do too.”
Lance’s eyes narrowed. “It’s bullshit that you get the day off. I bet you secretly like Christmas but you don’t want to admit it.”
Keith chuckled coldly. “I can assure you that there is nothing on this planet that would make me like Christmas.”
And that was when an insane idea formed.
“Okay,” Lance grinned. “Fine. You won’t take any favors for the shift. I get it.”
Keith nodded, shoulders relaxing as he turned away to tidy up the gift wrapping station.
“How about a bet?”
Keith froze.
“If I can make you like the holidays by Christmas night, you’ll take the shift.”
Keith snorted, turning to face Lance. He kept that vaguely annoyed smile on his face, but nothing could hide the gleam of interest in his eyes.
“You’re not going to make that happen.”
“Okay,” Lance shrugged. “Then what’s the harm of taking the bet?”
Keith’s eyes rose to the ceiling, thinking.
“And,” Lance rushed in, “ and I’ll sweeten the deal. I’ll work New Years as well.”
Now that got Keith’s attention.
They had drawn straws for who would work New Years Day weeks ago. It was one of the worst shifts for a toy store. Being deathly hungover while listening to kids scream and toys screech was the stuff of nightmares. Keith had lost and was stuck with the shift.
A slow grin tugged at Keith’s lips. “You’re insane.”
“I have a couple rules,” Lance held up three fingers. “First, you can’t just hide away in your little vampire coffin all month. You have to do Christmas things with me.”
“Fine.”
“Second, you can’t be a Grinch the whole time,” Lance said. “You need to be open to trying new things.”
Keith rolled his eyes. “And the third?”
“Easy,” Lance smirked. “You can’t fall in love with me. This is straight out of a Hallmark movie, so I would be careful.”
Keith let out a huff of a laugh. “God, you are going to be so pissed working New Years.”
Lance smiled innocently. “You are going to cry like a baby when you have to work Christmas.”
He held out his hand.
“Do we have a deal?”
Keith slicked his tongue over his teeth.
And then his warm hand slipped into Lance’s and shook.
Thank you to carterfarts on Tumblr for this art! Check out more of their stuff! https://www.tumblr.com/carterfarts