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Shiro flipped on the light in the mess hall kitchen and cracked his knuckles. Making a few cupcakes shouldn’t be too hard, right? With some whipped cream and what did Adam always put on top? Graham cracker crumbles?
Whatever it was, Shiro was positive he could figure out, and since Iverson was off grounds for a few days to oversee the launch proceedings, Shiro could take all the time he wanted in the Galaxy Garrison mess.
Finding the pans proved more difficult than he thought, and did he really need to use the mixer? Maybe he could conscript the blender. Just what was the difference between a tablespoon and teaspoon? Did anyone really know?
Okay, on his tablet, he found a recipe for “easy red velvet cupcakes with vanilla icing.” Easy. It was in the title. He could totally do this.
Less than ten minutes later, Shiro found himself wiping off an egg, flour, and water mixture from his nose. Maybe he couldn’t do this. He was seventy-five percent sure the batter shouldn’t be gray-green.
“What!” a new voice screeched, causing Shiro to whirl toward the doorway. “You-You did not just destroy my kitchen!”
Shiro paused from demanding, your kitchen, but it wasn’t like Shiro knew the garrison chefs well. Then again, Shiro didn’t remember ever seeing this cadet or officer before. Dark hair, an orange wrap, and a yellow-accented Galaxy Garrison uniform – what rank did that dictate? – he seemed out of sorts, standing in the doorway, glaring Shiro down.
Shiro dropped his tablespoon – or was it a teaspoon – on instinct and raised both hands. “Look, I didn’t think anyone would notice. I was just trying to – ”
“ – paint every single surface of this place in batter, if you can even call it that!” The man stalked forward, keen eyes glaring down at the green concoction as if it personally offended him. Then he looked up at Shiro – and froze. “S-Shiro?”
“Uh…yes?” He didn’t think he’d met this person before, but ever since the Kerberos mission announcement, so many people knew his name. “I’m sorry. I don’t remember…have we met?”
“…not yet, I don’t think.” The man straightened his shoulders and rubbed the back of his hair. “I…guess that wormhole wasn’t as harmless as we thought.”
“Wormhole?” Shiro echoed.
Before he could ask the person more, the yellow-clad officer replied, “Don’t worry about it. I’m sure Allura and Pidge – um, some people I know are working on it. Anyway.” He seemed happier all of sudden, scrubbing his hands together and smirking at Shiro. “What’cha trying to do here? Don’t tell me. Muffins.”
Shiro smiled with a slight wince. “Not quite.”
“Brownies?”
“Getting warmer…sorta.”
The man huffed loudly. “Please tell me you weren’t trying to make cupcakes. You have pepper in this!”
Shiro glanced away. “I couldn’t find the salt.”
“No, nope. Uh-huh. This cannot happen.” He pointed a sharp finger at a stool near the counter. “You sit over there while I clean up the mess and make a proper set of cupcakes.”
“Can’t I help –”
“No!” The officer sucked a quick breath, offered a gentle smile, and patted Shiro twice on the shoulder. “I mean, thanks for the offer, but why don’t you watch me work for a sec and tell me why you were trying to make some cupcakes? I’m Hunk, by the way.”
“Shiro.” Shiro took his designated seat and plopped his chin upon his fist. “Had a craving. My…uh, ex used to make them for me, but…he’s now my ex, so…”
Hunk began to measure out the ingredients – eggs, milk, butter, flour, salt, and vanilla – and nodded along. “Hard after something like that. What happened…uh, if you don’t mind me asking.”
“I’m, uh.” Shiro looked away, unsure why he felt comfortable explaining to Hunk this situation. It wasn’t like the entire garrison hadn’t been gossiping about it for the last week. “I was chosen for the Kerberos mission.”
“Oh, right! I’d heard that. Congrats, man! That’s awesome. Not sure why that means you have an ex. Isn’t he happy for you? Proud?”
“He didn’t want me to go. And I’m going, so…”
Hunk glanced around the room – looking for what, Shiro couldn’t tell – before reaching for a larger bowl with high walls to pour his current mixture into. “I’m sorry to hear that. Relationships can be hard. My girlfriend and I, we’re positioned on different sides of the…world. It’s hard to send a transmission to her sometimes, let alone actually see her. But she hangs in there, y’know? Good times, bad times. That’s how I know it’s forever.”
Shiro glanced away. “…I thought it was going to be forever. I’ve known Adam since…well, our first year at the garrison. We were flight partners, and then – y’know.”
“And I’m sure in some universe, you guys are still together, but in this one – you chose the stars and Adam chose to leave. That’s actually, really mature. You both decided what you could live with and what you couldn’t, and then you moved on and found someone who wants the same thing as you.”
Shiro blinked and sat up straighter, a knot in his chest unfurling. “No one – No one has ever put it like that before. Even Commander Holt said I should try to patch things up.”
“Can’t speak for Holt but it sounds like you and Adam want different things. And that’s okay.” Hunk hooked the larger bowl up to the mixer, and a high-pitched whirling added a soundtrack to their conversation. “Better to figure that out now than after you’re married.”
“Yeah, yeah. I guess so.” He couldn’t deny he would miss Adam, though, couldn’t deny he already did.
“But y’know, might not be a bad idea to at least try to clear the air,” Hunk offered, separating the cupcake wrappers in the tin. “Maybe apologize that things didn’t work out, not that you’re taking the mission.”
Shiro leaned back on his hand and watched as Hunk poured the batter precisely into each cup, wiping the edge of the bowl with a napkin. “Maybe. It’s still a few months away. What about you? You said your girlfriend lives elsewhere? Are you looking to close the distance?”
Hunk nodded. “Yeah, one day, but it’s kinda important the work we’re doing, my team and me. Shay understands.”
“Hm. Sounds nice.”
“It is, but not everyone has what we have. And not everyone finds it as quickly, either – or at all.” Hunk slid the tray into the oven and started the timer. “But when you do – when you find people who love you for who you are, not who they want you to be – you hold onto them.”
Shiro smiled as Hunk handed him the spoon to lick. “Sound advice.”
“Eh. I have a good team leader who knows his stuff.”
As soon as Shiro finished the spoon, he joined Hunk in cleaning up the thrown batter, despite Hunk’s disapproval. Hunk told Shiro he liked his kitchen a certain way, but Shiro wasn’t about to let someone else clean up his mess without any help.
As they worked, Shiro spoke about the mission, about Keith, about his days at the Galaxy Garrison, and Hunk talked about Shay, about his friends, and about meeting new people and learning new recipes.
The oven dinged not long after they wiped down the last surface, and soon Shiro was humming around a delicious set of red velvet cupcakes. They were the best he’d ever had, and he made sure to tell Hunk such.
Hunk blushed and took a bite of his own mini cake. “Hey, y’know, it might not seem like it now, but it sounds like you have lots of people who care about you, man. If you ever want them to bake you cupcakes, you just say the word. I’m sure they would.”
Shiro laughed, though it was hollow. “Thanks, I’ll keep that in mind.”
“And maybe – you might want to tell Admiral Sanda or Commander Holt that when they start training on the Mecha Flex Exofighters, they should work with their best pilots, not cadets? That’s just…conducive to saving the world, y’know? Training the best rather than the youngest.”
Halfway through his second cupcake – screw his pre-mission diet – Shiro mumbled, “What’s an exofighter? I haven’t heard of those before – or flown them.”
Hunk winked. “Just trust me, all right? Mention it to Sam. Oh, and do the world a favor, Shiro. Stay out of the kitchen or only use it with adult supervision.”
Shiro would have glared, but he was too preoccupied with the cupcakes. He would do as many sessions at the gym as needed to finish off yet another two or three.
“Shiro? One more thing,” Hunk added just before he exited the room. “Happy Birthday – and many more.”
Shiro snorted. He didn’t know how many more there would be, but he was determined to enjoy the rest of this one. Hey, there was still a good half dozen left. Maybe he’d take a few to Keith and Matt.
One Mission, Many Wormholes, and Two Birthdays Later
The door to mess hall slid open, and Shiro looked left, then right, before stepping inside. Immediately, the lights flipped on, and Shiro barely held in his screech.
“Hunk,” he managed once he breathed again. “You don’t have to guard the kitchen every year.”
Hunk lifted a tray of expertly decorated and undeniably delicious cupcakes. A few sported little Black Lions while the rest had the head of Voltron. “Yes, yes I do. Trust me on that. Now come on. Get your first cupcake before the rest of the garrison arrives.”
Shiro raised an eyebrow as he selected his cupcake, finger sweep around the edge of the icing. “The rest of the garrison…?”
In less than ten minutes time, the mess hall upon the Atlas was packed with the various teams, including Admiral Allura with her ship crew, Commander Adam West with his MFE Squadron, Prince Lotor with his Sincline generals, and of course, Shiro with his paladins. Black rumbled in the back of his mind, and as he sat among his teams, Shiro smiled and snatched another cupcake or three.
Eventually, he collapsed to the corner of the hall, eyes roaming over the people he held nearest and dearest to his heart. Hunk came to sit next to him and smirked at the wrappers on the table next to Shiro.
“Having a good day?”
“Yeah, yeah. Y’know, Hunk, someone once told me that if I ever wanted cupcakes, all I had to do is ask the people around me.”
Hunk blinked and then shrugged. “Well, y’know, I’m more than happy to –”
“But there’s something special about coming down to a set of cupcakes already made just for me.” He clasped Hunk on the shoulder and smiled. “Thanks, Hunk. It is nice to have people here who love me for who I am, not who they want me to be.”
Hunk smiled. “It is a nice feeling. And my kitchen stays intact. I like that.”
“That’s best for all parties involved,” Shiro laughed.
“Yeah, we wouldn’t be able to form Voltron without its head.”
Shiro let out a quick laugh, which Hunk shared, and decided to assume Hunk was joking. Still, he’d stay out of the kitchen, just to make sure.
The End