Story bits

Lance's pulled the car up to the brownstone. "Thanks for the ride." Keith told them, grabbing his jacket. Allura chuckled. "Don't thank us, thanks James." Keith rolled his eyes as the other two snickered. "Yeah yeah, I will. I'll tell him you say hello." Keith tells them. He climbed up the steps, pulling his keys out of his coat pocket. He reaches for the door, and finds it unlocked.
He raises an eyebrow, cop sense kicking in. He pushes the door open a little, and sees what looks like blood on the wood, and a dent in the wall. "Keith? You good?" Lance calls.
Keith looks at them with wide eyes, reaching for his gun and nodding towards the door. Allura and Lance nod, getting out of the car and unholstering their own weapons. "This is 7 Adam 13. We have a suspected home invasion at 54166 Creekwood Drive. Requesting backup." Lance said into his police radio. The radio crackled. "We hear you. Sending back up now. Procede with caution."

Keith pushed open the door slowly, it creaking a little. They heard movement, and stepped lightly into the house. "James? Are you okay?" More movement and a crash. "Keith!" James's voice called. He'd never heard him sound like that. They heard a blow landing. "I TOLD YOU TO BE QUIET!" A male voice yelled.

The burst in the apartment, guns out. "HANDS IN THE AIR!! ON YOUR KNEES! NOW!!!" Allura yelled. "You're in no position to be giving orders lady!" A second male voice said. "SIR, GET OUT HERE WITH YOUR HANDS UP NOW!" She ordered. "Just do it. We're already in enough trouble." A third voice said. "Alright, we're coming out. Don't shoot." A fourth voice said.
A man stepped out of the kitchen area, hands above his head. A second and a third followed. "Sir, we know you're in there. Come out with your hands up. There's still a chance to fix this. DA's go easier on guys who turn themselves in than those who put up a fight." Allura told them. "I'm coming. Hold your horses lady."
A fourth man came out, one hand in the air and the other off to the side, hidden by the wall. "Sir, I need to see your hands." The man grinned. "Alright. Chill. Come on boy. Move." He jerked his arm out, and Keith had to suppress a growl.

He had one insanely large hand around his bicep. He brought his other hand out, showing a gun, which he pressed to James's temple. They pointed their weapons at him, but he yanked James in front of him before they could fire. "Ah ah a, don't want to hurt your little boyfriend now, do you?" The man asked. James's hand were behind him, probably zip tied, and his white button up shirt was rumpled, and his boot heels clicked on the tiles. He must've been getting ready for their date tonight, inferred from the black jeans he had on instead of his slacks. He jerked in the man's grip, trying to get free, but he tutted again and pressed the gun harder into his temple. "Not so fast pretty boy. Or my friends might put some lead in your friends. You got it?" James rolled his eyes. "Got it?" The man growled, and James nodded. "Good." He turned back to them. "Now, you three. Put your guns on the floor and kick em over here to my friends." Allura, Lance and Keith knelt down slowly, setting the guns on the ground and doing what the man said. The other three knelt down and picked them up, aiming them at the cops. "Now get on the floor, hands behind your head."
They obliged.
The man sneered. "Good. Now, you-" He jerked James closer. "- are gonna show me the goods." "What goods? There's nothing valuable here." James spat. "Not those goods. I mean the ones in your pants." "In your dreams." James told him. "Yeah. And you're gonna make them a reality. Or these three here-" he nodded to the others "- are gonna pump your friends heads full of lead. And then when I'm done with you, I'll do the same. Now." He jerked James towards the kitchen. "Come with me." "What if I don't want to?" James asked, digging his feet into the ground. "It doesn't matter what you want, it matters what I want. And I want you/." The man said. "I assume with the way you've been treating me and my associates, you're pretty rough. And you don't stop until you get what you want. And you'll make as much noise as you need to get it." The man frowned. "That's right. And unless you want me to beat you until you scream and then plow your tight little ass, you should shut up."
"Hey bossman, what you want us to do with these three?" One of the men asked. "Keep em there. And make sure the long haired one is all ears. I want him to hear me fucking all those little noises out of his bitch." "Sure thing Sendak. Whatever you say." A second said.
Sendak dragged James into the kitchen, and Keith lost sight of him. He tried to hear what was going on, but the other three started talking, which made it impossible.
"Remember what the bossman said. Listen to your little bitch's noises." One said, pointing his gun at Keith. "You think he'll lets us do him too?" The second asked. "I dunno. Bossman is pretty rough. And if he likes him, he'll keep em. Then any of us can go at him, anytime we want."

Keith heard clattering in the kitchen, and feet hitting the floor. A cabinet door slammed, and he heard someone grunt.
"Little bitch! Spread your legs already!" Sendak ordered. "Get! Off! Me!" James yelled. He heard a blow land with each word, and he heard someone, presumably Sendak, fall. There was a loud clatter, and heels hit the ground. Footsteps, and James came out, gun in hand.
His shirt was slashed, in almost claw-like patterns, and his hair was a mess. He pointed the gun at the other three, who returned the favor. "On your knees, NOW!" He yelled. "Shouldn't you be on your knees for the bossman right now?" The second asked. "I already took care of your bossman. He's in the kitchen. And unless you want to join him on the highway to hell, I suggest that you drop the guns and get. On. Your. Knees." The hesitated and his eyes narrowed. "NOW!" They stiffened and put the guns down, hands behind their heads as they knelt on the ground. The cops picked up their weapons ad pointed them at the others.

Blue and red lights flashed in the windows. "Finally. It's been almost 10 minutes." Lance muttered.

"YOU LITTLE BITCH!" Sendak roared, running at James. He whirled around and aimed at him with the gun. His right eye was bleeding, and there was a boot heel print on his cheek. "One step closer, and I shoot." James threatened. Sendak sighed and put his hands up, revealing the knife in his right. "Good choice. First one so far." James said. He grabbed the cuffs off of Keith's belt. "Hands behind your back." Sendak obliged.

But when James reached for his knife hand, he growled, and turned, punching him in the ribs with the other. James grunted and swung at him, but Sendak dodged. His associates got the idea and jumped up, two going for Allura and one going for Lance. Allura kneed one guy in the gut, and shoved him into the other before swinging at him. Lance decked his guy and pushed him into the wall, but he got kneed in the process.
Keith and James grappled with Sendak. He swung his knife, slashing at Keith and cutting his cheek. James kicked him in the back of the knee and got ontop of him, pushing him to the ground. "Keith. Knife!" He grunted. Keith pinned his arm down and tried to get the knife away from him, but
Sendak rolled over, crushing James beneath him. He groaned and Sendak got off him and pulled his arm away from Keith, going at him with the knife. He stabbed his shoulder and Keith growled, slamming a fist into his bloody eye. He howled and backed away, pushing a palm to his eye. "Motherfucking- I'm gonna kill you." He stated. They starts exchanging fists, and a few attempted knees.

Three loud "BANG"s sound, and Sendak stumbles, clutching his arm. He turns to James, who's literally holding the smoking gun. Keith brought his elbow down on the back of his head, and he crumpled. James sighed and put the gun down. "God. I hate having to fire." "Well I don't." The second guy Allura was fighting said. His gun fired three times, and they all flinched. "Hank, put the gun down you dumbass." The guy Lance was fighting said. "They're cops. That's a fucking felony." Lance looked up at him, hair in his eyes. "Might wanna listen to your buddy Hank. Could save you a few years in the joint." Hank frowned and dropped the gun. "At least he missed." Allura said, going to cuff him.

"Keith..." James said.
He turned towards him and gasped. He was holding his midsection, bright red blood blooming on his shirt. "James!" He stumbled and fell to the ground. Keith rushed to his side, kneeling next to him. He pulled him to his chest, brushing hair out of his face. "James.." "Left. My- my left side." he mumbled. Keith pulled open his shirt, seeing the wound. A bullet had lodged itself in James's side, and it was bleeding. "Holy shit James." Keith whispered, starting to put pressure on it. "That bad, huh?"

Allura opened the door. "Detective Altea! We need some paramedics! Gunshot and knife wounds! Get your asses in here!" She yelled.

"Come on Jamie, stay with me. Stay with me." Keith muttered, pushing his hands down. James cupped his face, smiling at him softly. "Keith- ungh-" He grimaced. "Keith, I-" "Yeah?" Keith asked, meeting his eyes. "Keith, I love you. I love you. I love you Keith." Keith smiled, feelings tears streak down his cheeks. "I love you too Jamie." "I want you to remember that." He chuckled, brushing hair out of his face as Keith kept pushing down. "You have such beautiful eyes." "Like galaxies. That shine like stars when I smile. I know." Keith told him. "Yeah. I love you. I love you Keith. I love you." Keith pressed a light kiss to his lips. "I love you too Jamie. I love you." James smiled at him, his grip on Keith's face loosening. His eyes fluttered close, and his head drooped against Keith's chest.

He choked back a sob, tears red hot on his face. "MEDIC! I NEED HELP! PLEASE! HE'S BEEN SHOT! PLEASE, HELP ME!" Keith cried. A trio of medics rushed to his side, inspecting James. "Sir, we need you to back away. We need to get him in a bus." One said. Keith nodded numbly, scooting away.
They loaded him onto a stretcher, a breathing mask on him and bandages on his side.

Lance knelt next to them after they took him away. "Keith buddy, the medics need to check you out." Keith stared down at his hands, which were shaking. "It's his blood. His blood is on my hands. Lance, James might die." He choked out. "You don't know that. But right now, we need to get your shoulder checked out. Then we can head to the hospital and wait for James to get out of the ER." Keith nodded, rising. Lance led him outside, where someone cleaned and bandaged both his shoulder and cheek, along with a few on his arms and midsection. He wrapped a blanket around himself, staring off into the distance.

Shiro pulled up in his car, running to his side. "Keith! I just heard! What happened?" He asked, hugging the man. They were like brothers. "Excuse me Mr. Shirogane, but we're gonna have to ask him, Ms. Altea and Mr. McClain to refrain from talking about what happened here tonight without an officer present, or a recording machine." An officer said. "And why's that?" Shiro asked. "This is a very serious incident. Three people are in the hospital, three officers are involved, all of which have sustained injuries, and all of which are witnesses to the crime. This is a very delicate matter." "A delicate matter is the fact that it took police almost 10 minutes to get here, and it took medics even longer to attend to the wounded!" Shiro snapped. "Sir, I understand that you're upset, but right now, we need to focus on the integrity of the case. Now, if Coran says you're on the case, you can ask him all the questions you need. But for now, I think it'd be best if you got Mr. Kogane here to the hospital. I believe the other victim and him were close." With that, the officer tipped his hat and walked away.
"Ass. Come on Keith, let's get you to the hospital." Shiro said.

They didn't have to worry about Keith's bloodstained clothes or physical state because the medics and other officers already had them, along with him, Allura and Lance's body cams, which they had turned on before entering the house. They'd also taken pictures of his cuts, for use at trial, which the assured would happen. He'd been able to grab a change of clothes for both him and James from their bedroom, with an officer watching.
All of this, he told Shiro.
"I can't believe them! Watching you in your own bedroom? What did they think you were going to do, pull a gun on them?" Shiro huffed. "I swear, some of these procedures are insane." Keith shook his head, pulling the blanket tighter around him. "Rules are rules Shiro. And in our line of work, they can mean the difference between life and death." Shiro shook his head, his prosthetic hand clenching the steering wheel. "I'm filing a complaint. 10 minutes to respond? And the medics didn't even enter until Allura told them to? Unacceptable."
Shiro, after an unfortunate accident with a suspect that cost him his arm and nearly his life, quit being a cop and went to law school. He was a civil lawyer, handling lawsuits and the occasional divorce. "You can do that later. Right now, I just want to see James."

"I'm sorry sir, but unless you're family we can't let you into Mr. Griffin's hospital room." The nurse repeated. "I'm his husband!" Keith snapped. "And it's Griffin-Kogane. We hyphenated our names." The woman raised her eyebrow. "Please, can I just see my husband? It's been 18 hours, and 8 since he left surgery. Which I, as his husband, was able to sign off on." She pursed her lips, shaking her head, sending her blonde waves cascading down her shoulders. "I don't know. Was it a church or courthouse marriage?" "Both! We did the paperwork and then had our wedding with friends and family." he rubbed his brow. "Look lady, can I just see my husband?" She shook her head. "I'm sorry, but Mr. Griffin didn't say anything about a husband when he came in." "He was unconscious when they brought him in, of course he didn't say anything!" "I'm sorry sir, but unless you're family I can't let you into Mr. Griffin's hospital room." Keith groaned and buried his head in his hands.
"Ms. Worthington! What seems to be the problem?" Adam asked, coming over. His scrubs were clean, and his glasses gleamed in the light. "Adam! Thank god! Tell this bitch that James is my husband! She won't let me go see him." The woman gasped. "Rude!" "Rude is not letting me see my husband who could've died in my arms!" Keith snapped. "Look, sir, I can't let you into Mr. Griffin's hospital room unless you're family or he says you can go in, got it?" She asked, crossing her arms. Adam sighed. "Karen, cut the crap. Let Keith into James's room. They're married." Karen pursed her lips. "I want proof. A marriage certificate will do."
"A MARRIAGE-" Keith stepped away from the counter rubbing his brow with one hand and putting the other on his hip. He turned back towards the nurse, a fire in his eyes. "Look, I've been waiting 10 hours to see my husband. The past 8 of which he's been out of surgery and cleared. The other 10, he was in and out of ERs and surgery getting a bullet taken out of him and his ribs fixed after some bastard beat up on him. And I can't bring you our marriage certificate because it's in a safety deposit box, along with our other important papers. Now listen. You are going to let me see my husband, and you're going to stop being a little bitch about it. I don't care if you have a problem with gay people, but I'm sure your ethics committee would love to hear about how you denied a gay man the right to see his partner. Which I will tell them about, along with the complete and total disregard for other people's feelings and worries, if you don't let me see him." "Is that a threat?" Karen asked. Keith's eyes narrowed. "That's a promise."

"Whoa! What seems to be the problem here?" Another blonde asked, coming over. "Keith, why aren't you with James? He's probably expecting you." Romelle says. "This bitch won't tell me where his room is! Says I need my fucking marriage certificate to prove I'm his husband before she lets me in!" "It's policy!" Karen snapped. "Well, Karen, I don't recall you demanding that Mrs. Sanchez show her marriage certificate before she came in to see her husband. Or Mr. O'Brian when he came to see his wife." "That was different!" Karen protests. Romelle raises an eyebrow. "Really? How?" "Well, for one thing, they were conscious when they came in. And, they hadn't just been shot in their home! For all I know, this man shot him." Keith fumed. "WHO THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU ARE, ACCUSING ME OF SHOOTING MY OWN GODDAMN HUSBAND?" "Sir, lower your voice, or I will have you removed from the premisis." Karen said. "I'VE BEEN WAITING 8 HOURS TO SEE MY HUSBAND, AND YOU KEEP GIVING ME THE SAME BULLSHIT EXCUSE AS OF WHY I CAN'T SEE HIM EVERYTIME! I DON'T NEED TO SHOW YOU MY GODDAMN MARRIAGE CERTIFICATE TO PROVE I'M HIS HUSBAND!" Keith yelled. "SIR, IF YOU DO NOT CALM DOWN, YOU WILL BE REMOVED FROM THE PREMISIS!" Karen yelled back.

"ENOUGH!" Romelle snapped. Then she sighed. "Adam, please take Mr. Kogane here to Mr. Griffin-Kogane's room. Karen, you're excused." "Excuse me?" Karen asked. "I said you're excused. Go home. I will talk to you later." Karen flushed but left the desk. Romelle turned to Keith. "The next time you need help, just ask. Do not aggrivate my staff." Keith opened his mouth to respond, but Romelle held up a hand. "I will deal with her later. Now go. He's expecting you." "Thank you." Keith said. She nodded.
"Right this way."
He led him down several halls, and up to the 4th floor. "He down the hall, third door to the right." Adam reported when they reached the floor.
Keith nodded and set off down the hall, coming face to face with two officers. "I'm Keith. I'm his husband." The one on the right of the door looked at a list in his hand, then nodded, him and his partner stepping to the side. Keith rushed to James's side, throwing his coat in a chair. He was sitting up in the bed, leaning back on some pillows. "James..." He whispered, brushing some hair out of his face.
His eyes opened and he turned to Keith, smiling at him weakly. "Hey babe." He croaked. Keith felt his eyes water as he caressed James's face. "I thought I was going to lose you." James shakily took one of Keith's hand in his own. "Come on. You know you're never getting rid of me. 'Til death do we part', remember?" Keith chuckled. I had a hell of a time telling the lady at the front desk that. She wanted me to bring her our marriage certificate to prove I'm your husband." James scoffed. "Bitch. Depriving you of my presence? Gotta be out of her mind." Keith chuckled. "And guess what." "Hmm?" James asked, raising an eyebrow. "Her name was Karen. With a K. And she was blonde." They stared at each other for a moment before bursting out laughing. "Ha ha ha ha! Really?" James asked, and Keith nodded. "Really. She even did the 'excuse me' thing when Romelle dismissed her." "Which one is she again?" James asked. "Blond. Pink, purple eyes, smiles a lot, talks real fast." James nodded. "Right. Allura's friend?" Keith nodded. "Speaking of which, how's she doing?" "Good. But you should see the other guy." James chuckled. "Here I am, lying in a hospital bed after being shot, and we're cracking jokes." Keith shook, his head, a soft smile on his lips.

"How are you feeling?" He asked, concern lacing his voice.
James thought for a moment. "I'd feel better if I got a kiss." He suggested. Keith smiled and leaned over, planting a soft one on his lips. James smiled into it, humming contently.