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Izuku couldn’t remember how he got here, wherever ‘here’ was. Or maybe ‘here’ was more like nowhere. A vast expanse of darkness trapping him in with only the echoes of his own foot falls.
As soon as that thought appeared, Izuku felt a tug on his ankle, which caused him to lurch backwards. He yanked his foot away in a second attempt, but nothing budged. Nothing could escape this glowing, golden string crawling up his calf like a venomous snake.
In all this darkness, the string alone shone brightly, colors of light dancing across its smooth surface. It was beautiful, and for a second Izuku forgot his fear of being alone and lost. He had the string to keep him company after all.
Crouching down to run a calloused finger over the creeping material, Izuku halted upon contact, bemused. The string didn’t feel so much like string… it felt like hair.
Yelping, Izuku scrambled away, but the hair held tight, cutting into his already aching legs. He pulled and pulled, trying to summon the strength of One for All, but no power came.
Izuku was trapped by the light.
Bolting upright in bed, the boy panted heavily. While evening out his breathing, the room slowly came into focus around him, as well as the incessant wailing of his alarm clock. Groaning, Izuku swatted the machine off, enjoying a moment of peaceful silence in the usually bustling dorm building.
Silence? The dorm floor was never this quiet in the morning, with teenage boys rushing around the halls to collect last minute homework answers and then jump in the showers before all the hot water ran out.
A pit grew in Izuku’s stomach, one that he had become all too familiar with as of late. A sense of dread, foretelling of something to come.
The future pro hero was about to rise out of bed and check the halls when he glanced at his clock once more.
Saturday, it read. 5:52am.
And then reality hit him like a punch from Togata, straight to the gut, and instantly the boy was flying out of bed. Fighting through a dizzy spell from rising so hurriedly, he threw on whatever pieces lay scattered across the floor, plucked up his wallet, and bolted out the door.
Izuku had just completed a rather precarious journey down the staircase to the lounge when he crashed into a oddly placed, and boney, wall. With the growl that followed, the shorter boy didn’t even need to glance up to know he’d made a mistake.
“S-sorry, Kacchan. I didn’t see you there.” Izuku chuckled nervously, but immediately shut his mouth when the other boy started producing small crackles from his palms.
About to scurry away, Izuku halted when he heard Kirishima’s voice call to him from the left.
“Oh, hey, Midoriya!” The redhead waved brightly, grinning through his food stuffed cheeks. The smile faltered however when he took in the other boy’s appearance: green eyes darkened by bags; bushy hair occupied by rats’ nests; wrinkled clothes draped on haphazardly. But then the greenette smiled back and the room grew a little lighter, causing Kirishima to push the worry from his mind away.
Instead he walked up and clapped Midoriya on the shoulder, not noticing the way the boy stumbled slightly. “I was worried we’d have to send Bakugou loose on you too wake you up.” Kirishima laughed teasingly, ignoring the annoyed ‘die’ Bakugou muttered. Rather, his pointy smile grew. “We’re gonna have an awesome time today! I think we could all use a break.”
Izuku nodded numbly as the redhead continued to talk about how everyone seemed pretty stressed, and with work studies starting on Monday, going to an amusement park was just the fun group outing they all needed. With that in mind, Kirishima had set up for him, Uraraka, Asui, and Izuku to go out, of course inviting anyone else who wanted to come along.
That was what was bothering Izuku, because why was Kacchan here? He must have known Izuku was planning on going, and Todoroki had agreed to join when Uraraka asked. Not like Kacchan couldn’t want to go to the amusement park, but it seemed like kind of a waste.
In actuality, Izuku had almost been regretting saying ‘yes’ to the invitation in the first place. There was so much to do, and he needed to keep getting stronger so he could surpass Kacchan, be worthy of One for All, be a hero. Did he really have time to be goofing off with friends? Did Kacchan?
The stressed boy snapped out of his thoughts when he felt a new hand delicately land on his bicep and calming cold seep through his sleeve. “You alright there, Midoriya?”
And now Izuku was worrying his friends. Great. How useless could he get?
“Yeah, Todoroki-kun. Always.” Flashing the sincerest smile he could muster, Izuku slowly backed away from the three males, Kirishima looking confused, while both Todoroki and Kacchan remained unreadable. All three pairs of eyes tracked his movements as he continued backing away, causing Izuku to want to shrink even more. To go to the gym and get lost in the screams of his muscles. To go to his room and get lost in the screams of his guilt.
He was already too lost in his own head to hear the startled warning of Kirishima until his foot caught on the corner of the coffee table, and Izuku was falling.
“Woah Deku, you okay?”
Blinking up, there stood Uraraka, rosy cheeks puffing out with her warm smile.
“We really need to stop bumping into each other like this!” She giggled once more, hand slowly righting the greenette. Izuku felt some of his worry float away with her laugh. “Not like I mind. I’ll always be here to catch you!” To prove her point, she stuck out her thumb, hazel eyes crinkling with laughter.
Laughing along, a bemused smile crossed Izuku’s face when something seemed to dawn upon the girl, and she retracted her hand at once, instead bringing it up to cover the reddening of her cheeks. “S-sorry!” she blurted, much to Izuku’s mystification, before scrambling away to go stand by Asui.
“Ah, Midoriya! You’re awake!” Izuku whirled around as people kept appearing, just to halt at the sight before him. There stood Iida, in all his class president glory, a small first-aid kit in one hand, an umbrella in the other, and streaks on sunblock smeared across his nose and cheeks. However, that wasn’t the most amusing thing, surprisingly.
Izuku bit his lip to keep from laughing too hard. “Iida-kun, why are you wearing sunglasses inside?” He asked at the same time Kacchan spoke up—
“You look like an idiot.”
“Kacchan!” Izuku reprimanded, tilting his head to send a glare his rival’s way, which was easily returned.
“What, De-Ku?”
Izuku was about to stomp on over there and tell him ‘what’, because if Kacchan thought Izuku was afraid of him, he was SO wrong, when more popping came from the blonde’s palms, and yeah, maybe the younger boy would just glare from a distance.
Iida cleared his throat while setting the first-aid kit in his ‘emergency’ backpack, catching the attention of all in the room, which now also included a bouncing Ashido and a snoring Kaminari. “It’s alright, Midoriya, yet thank you for standing up for me. Now if Bakugou wants to neglect proper eye safety, that is completely his own prerogative.” Swinging the bag over his shoulder once more, Iida nodded to himself after a proper head count. “It seems that everyone who voiced an interest in this outing today is here, and we already have Sensei’s approval, so as we’re already running behind schedule, I suggest we quickly, yet safely, make our way to the train station.”
Kaminari yawned, popping his neck in the process. “I still don’t get why we gotta leave so early,” he whined, yet stumbled toward the door, nonetheless.
Iida sighed and shook his head as if he were talking to a small child. “As I already explained, a new section of the park opened a couple weeks ago, and as such the park has been extremely crowded. It is in our best interest to arrive early so we can experience the most rides.”
Grumbling in response, Kaminari continued on, flanked by Kirishima and Ashido, with Kacchan close behind, hands shoved aggressively into his baggy pockets. His shoulders were slumped, and his feet dragged almost imperceptibly. Small sniffles were also sounding from his nose, a tell Izuku had picked up on which showed that the blonde was a little tired.
Izuku just didn’t get it. Why was Kacchan here, at the crack of dawn, on the weekend right after his hero license prep course had started, going to a place full of crying babies and germs and –
“—He invited himself.”
Breaking out of the thoughts which had carried Izuku all the way onto the train, emerald eyes peered up into heterochromatic ones. While Izuku had needed to grab onto the train’s metal pole, Todoroki was tall enough to reach the rings near the ceiling, and now he was leaning over the smaller boy, a tiny smile in place.
“You were mumbling again, Midoriya.”
All Izuku could do was blush and duck his head as the train swept through Tokyo. Todoroki began to say more when Izuku heard Kirishima’s distinctive laugh and distractedly glanced about. Off to the side, Iida was attempting to quiet the redhead, telling him that he was bothering the other passengers. Izuku chuckled at the stressed sweat beading down his friend’s forehead.
“Iida-kun tries so hard.”
“As do you, Midoriya.”
Blinking, Izuku curiously tilted his head up just for it to be shoved back by a sweaty palm. “Move, Deku,” he heard. “I need to talk to Half-and-Half for a second.”
Grumbling, Izuku crossed his arms petulantly, scooting even closer to the dual-colored boy. When did Kacchan even get here? “You can’t just shove me, Kacchan, in the middle of a conversation no less. We’re on a moving train, you know. What if I fell?” Izuku jokingly pouted, looking at Kacchan’s unamused frown.
Sighing, Izuku let the blonde fit himself in the tight space between him and Todoroki. Staring at the floor in the hopes of giving the two some semblance of privacy on the already crowded train, he let his mind go blank. Words filtered in and out, Kacchan spitting a question about the work they had to do over the weekend for their hero license course, Todoroki smirking at how ‘the great Lord Explosion Murder’ needed help, and Kacchan shouting a ‘die’, thus causing Iida to practically have a heart attack before going to console an appalled elderly woman who was complaining about ‘children’ and ‘no respect these days’.
Izuku wanted to laugh at his friends’ antics, but he was tired, and the little details of the silver floor beneath him had begun blending together. Furthermore, his legs were already sore from the extra ‘shoot style’ training he had been doing lately, and thus he wanted nothing more than to sit down and rest.
Floaters began dancing across his vision, until he was practically blind, the world just a series of black and white dots. He didn’t even notice he had let go of the train’s metal bar, nor that as they were reaching their destination the train was coming to a stop. He also didn’t notice the sweaty hand curl around his wrist, pulling him into a safe position between two muscled walls.
Everything sounded as if it were under water. Or sludge. Cold, unyielding sludge.
“Midoriya?... Bakugou, what’s wrong with him?”
“The hell should I know!” The blonde shouted, even as he took in the blank look on the nerd’s face and the way his knees trembled slightly.
“Well. You know him the best.” Icy-Hot said it like it was the most obvious thing in the world, shoulders shrugging slightly. Katsuki wanted to punch him in the damn face.
“Me? Deku’s your friend, not mine.”
Todoroki frowned, analyzing the hand Bakugou firmly had placed on Midoriya’s hip to help him stay steady. Almost to himself, he mumbled, “Then why does he trust you so much?” To this, Katsuki didn’t have an answer. Or maybe he had many.
Because Deku couldn’t hide his secrets from Katsuki. Because Katsuki had spent so much time with the nerd around that he could tell by his demeanor when something was up. Because Deku was too damn trusting for his own good.
No, why Deku was the way he was didn’t bother Katsuki so much. What bothered Katsuki was why he himself actually cared. Of course he wanted to not be kept in the dark with things regarding All Might, or One for All; knowledge was power after all. But he also wanted to know more. Stupid, useless things like why Deku blushed so easily around Round Face, or why he didn’t even react when Icy-Hot brushed against him. Things that wouldn’t make Katsuki any stronger and answers he didn’t think would make him any happier, but he wanted them, nonetheless.
“Kacchan?” The perplexed squeak had Katsuki cursing, pushing the smaller boy into Todoroki’s unexpecting arms, which quickly oriented the greenette. After giving him a once over, Todoroki dragged his eyes across the stopped train car and toward the window, where the park’s gate stood in the distance.
“It seems our friends have left us behind.” Heterochromatic eyes caught cautious red ones, morphing from a blank look into a mischievous one, and Katsuki had a feeling that it was way too early in the morning for whatever shit this bastard was gonna pull. “We should go catch up.” As Todoroki said the last sentence, his feet were already moving, gently guiding a still slightly unbalanced Midoriya into Bakugou’s arms.
As a nauseous feeling rolled over Izuku, he distinctively decided that he did not enjoy being manhandled on a regular basis because of his stature. Tokoyami was shorter than him, yet everyone left him alone. And no one ever tried to touch Mineta.
Izuku was about to bring up this very annoying, yet valid fact when he realized that Todoroki had been whispering something to Kacchan this whole time, and now the dual haired teen was waltzing off the train, smirk in place, leaving Kacchan frozen, ears tipped red.
“Kacchan?”
“Fuck!” The blonde yelped, as if surprised by the close proximity between the two. Izuku was just getting more confused by the second.
“Uh, isn’t this our stop? Because if it is, the doors are about to close.” Laughing awkwardly, Izuku flittered his gaze from furrowed red eyes to the car door and back.
“FUCK!”
*****
Standing off to the side, Izuku worriedly watched Kacchan pace, shouting into his phone and drawing the attention of quite a few alarmed mothers in the process. The two boys had rushed off of the train, ready to search for their friends in the crowd, only to realize that for maybe one of the first times in his life, Iida hadn’t been over planning.
There were thousands of people waiting at the ticket gates, and the park wasn’t even open yet.
With more people constantly flooding into the courtyard, both boys had gained the sinking understanding that they were never going to find their friends. Which led to the current situation.
“What the fuck do you mean you won’t tell me?!”
Cringing, guilty green eyes sent a nearby family a regretful glance.
“No, we lost that bastard… I’m still with Deku, that’s the problem!”
Izuku gulped as he watched Kacchan’s hand curl tighter around the phone to keep it from slipping in his sweaty grip. The blonde looked angry, really angry, and again, Izuku wondered why Kacchan came.
He tried to ignore the lonely feeling in his heart, because he thought him and Kacchan were doing better. He thought that every time he said ‘rival’, Kacchan heard ‘friend’. But if the blonde was so disgusted by the thought of being near him…
A self-deprecating chuckle escaped from Izuku’s lips, only to be drowned out by the grumbling of his own stomach.
“I don’t care that you lost those three in the crowd! Just tell me where the fuck you are!... What do you mean Pinky doesn’t want to say? … put her on the phone so I can kill her! ...You better not hang up, Shitty Hair!”
Watching Kacchan lower the device from his ear, the promise of murder in his seething, sanguine eyes, Izuku quickly scrambled over to pry said mobile from Kacchan’s grip before he could explode it now and regret it later. “No luck?” Izuku gently asked, and suddenly that look of murder was being directed his way.
Izuku immediately began fiddling with the phone in his grip, before an idea struck. He shoved it back at Kacchan and reached for his own. “Well, I’m sure it will be fine, Kacchan! I have Uraraka-san’s number programmed in mine, and Iida-kun’s, and I can just—” Green eyes blew wide and he began frantically patting his pockets.
Kacchan raised an eyebrow as Izuku swelled with embarrassment. His hands fell at his sides “I think I forgot my phone back in the dorm.” Laughing nervously, he scratched his head, playing it all off as being a silly mistake, even when a malicious smirk spread across his rival’s features.
“Hey, Deku.”
“Y-yeah, Kacchan?”
Izuku side-eyed the smoking hand on his shoulder. Should he be worried about that?
“Next time we have a match, I’m gonna kill you.”
“No you won’t.” The statement left Izuku’s lips before he even registered his mouth had opened.
The smirk on the blonde’s face froze in place, and suddenly his palm was retracting, scowl forming instead, and Izuku felt himself deflate in relief. He knew that while Kacchan always gave his best, even if that meant hurting his opponent, he didn’t actually want to harm Izuku. This wasn’t middle school anymore.
Sighing, Izuku listened to the overhead announcement stating that the park’s gates were about to open. “We’re already here, we should at least try to enjoy ourselves,” he thoughtfully mused. Besides, he couldn’t do any training presently. “I’m sure once the crowds disperse, we can find everyone. More likely, they’ll just mess with us for like twenty minutes and then Kaminari-kun will call, crying about how they miss you and spilling their location regardless of others’ protests.”
He was expecting the blonde to argue, favoring charging into the park full force and hunting down their friends like targets, but the teen just grunted instead. “… Then, what do you want to do first?”
Initially taken off guard, Izuku’s face soon bore a surprised smile. He happily gazed up at his rival, and for a second, just one, it felt like they were kids again, ready to go on another adventure. The line to enter the park continued to shuffle forward.
“Well, I’ve never been here before, but the new land that they just opened is hero themed, and in it is the ride that everyone will be heading to.”
Kacchan nodded his head, eyes conveying recognition. “The new All Might ride. The most intense roller coaster in Japan to date.” Then the blonde grinned, eyes roaming over the crowd in a predatory manner. “We don’t have a hope of riding it today unless we get there right off the bat… which means,” he cracked his knuckles for emphasis and Izuku couldn’t help but laugh at how seriously into this the blonde was getting.
Then it dawned on Izuku. Of course, this was why Kacchan was here! No way he would miss the All Might ride, or all the merchandise exclusive to the park, or even the themed food. Izuku had almost forgotten, with how busy they had been lately, and didn’t even consider that the hero land opening might draw Kacchan’s attention.
With his rival by his side, another huge All Might fan, Izuku might just be able to accept taking a break, just for today.
As long as he stayed distracted, he’d be fine.
“We might have to trample a couple dozen little kids to get to the ride before everyone else,” the blonde continued with determination, fire popping, and not a hint of remorse to his voice.
Izuku rolled his eyes fondly. “Kacchan, you know they don’t allow any quirk use in the park.” As he said that, they reached the front of the queue, and he impatiently handed one of the cast members his ticket.
“Well then,” the blonde responded next to him as he handed in his own, “We’ll just have to run. Try to keep up, nerd.” And just like that, Kacchan was off, shoving through the crowd and throwing the middle finger at a woman yelling ‘no running!’.
Giggles bubbled out from Izuku’s panting lips as he attempted to follow the path Kacchan had parted while barreling through the sea of people. He ignored the way his legs ached as he forced his way along, but he couldn’t ignore the fact that the halo of Kacchan’s blonde spikes was quickly disappearing into the distance, and the crowd was swallowing Izuku whole. Trapping him.
Panic seized his heart as things started getting dark. Where was the light? Where was the path? Where was Kacchan?
“I thought I told you to keep up, Deku.” A warm hand grab Izuku’s, and suddenly they were back on their way, clearing a path for the light. Izuku watched the powerful footfalls that pushed them along, the hard-earned muscles that flexed under Kacchan’s T-shirt, the blonde strands of hair that shone gold in the morning light. Suddenly the future pro picked up his pace, until he was pressed side by side with his rival, green eyes flashing in determination.
“Thanks, Kacchan.”
Izuku worked his hand out of Kacchan’s hold; both hurried along in knowing silence.
*****
Izuku was practically vibrating as he scrambled into the cart after Kacchan. They were finally here, and while Izuku had kind of forgotten that this ride existed until today, he was swirling with the anticipation of one who had waited their whole life for this. And really, he had, because how were amusement parks not banking off the success of heroes until now. This was genius, pure genius.
The mixed in-door, out-door roller coaster took the passengers on a journey, as if they were part of All Might’s battles, flying along at crazy high speeds, making sharp turns to avoid villain attacks, and rising up high, with a peak that gave a spectacular view of the surrounding harbor. And through it all, clips of All Might’s voice played from his previous battles, immersing the rider in a complete experience. For just a few minutes, anyone could feel like a superhero. That’s what the ride advertised at least. But Izuku knew that while this ride was going to be fun, it was also a lie. It was a journey where the riders, the heroes, always came out victorious. A set plan, and at the end of it all, one could just walk away, carrying on with their lives.
No fear. No regrets. No loss.
“Sir, please lower your lap bar,” said one of the cast members. Izuku quickly obliged, starting to pull it down as the lady walked away to do a seatbelt check with the other cars. Half-way down, he got distracted by the laugh of a little boy, and by the time he tried pushing the restraint the rest of the way, it was already locked in place.
“Oi, Deku, you do know how rollercoasters work, right?” Kacchan grunted, glaring at his lap bar. Huffing, Izuku pushed again.
“Yeah. I know. But I think they already locked the ride. I can’t…” he gritted out, really putting his back into it to no avail. Maybe All Might’s whole clenching the buttock thing applied to more than just using One for All. About to try, he froze when he felt the mechanisms churn beneath him.
Izuku being Izuku had done a fair amount of research about this ride when its design was initially announced a few years back and he had more time to not be concerned with real life. Sadly, one of the few pieces of information he remembered was this: the ride began at top speed – 0 to 60 in under 3 seconds. 5.2G’s max. Corkscrews, dive drops, a Zero-G roll.
Really, this thing needed more than a lap-bar. Like a padded over-the-shoulder harness might be nice.
Izuku’s ghost would definitely have to bring that up with the design team.
Izuku stared at Kacchan, whose eyes had gone wide, and who had begun calling out to the cast members, trying to gain their attention by cursing at the top of his lungs.
One of the worker’s gazes landed on the pair.
The gears rotated.
The ride shook.
The world stopped.
“Kach-AHHHHHHHHHHHHH!”
Izuku’s body flung forward and up before slamming back into his seat, pressure locking him in place… for the time being. He wasn’t worried, really, he wasn’t, except…
“K-K-Kacchan,” he forced out. “There’s a Zero-G loop soo-OWHAHHH—” his words broke into another scream as they dove down, wind beating all around, track flashing ahead, and okay, maybe Izuku was afraid.
Maybe this ride was more accurate to an actual life-threatening battle than he originally anticipated.
As the track flew past and the car hurtled along, he didn’t know what to do. Like Kacchan had told him before, when Izuku wasn’t blindly rushing into things he often spent too much time overthinking. It was a weakness in some respects, for currently he didn’t have time to form some elaborate plan. He didn’t have All Might to consult. He didn’t have his friends to brainstorm with.
Izuku could always fire up One for All, but if he put in too much pressure at the wrong time the cart might end up with a hole in it, or worse, off the track.
Moreover, he didn’t know the coaster’s layout; he couldn’t predict what was coming next.
But he had to do something.
Flexing his toes, Izuku began to let power flow through him, only to hear the tell-tale squeak of the breaks. The ride was stopping? The ride was stopping. The ride was stopping very quickly.
Izuku didn’t have time to process, and maybe Kacchan didn’t either, but the next thing he knew a strong forearm was pressed into his chest, keeping him from jerking around. His body rammed against Kacchan’s arm, but the appendage refused to budge, relentlessly forcing Izuku back as the ride came to an abrupt stop.
Blinking then releasing the long breath he hadn’t realized he was holding in, Izuku did nothing but sit there, shaking slightly, skin wan, while the other passengers theorized on why the ride had suddenly stopped on this flat expanse of track.
“Oi, Deku.” Katsuki’s voice was hesitant as he said the nerd’s name, but his red eyes remained sharp, watching for any sign of pain on Deku’s face. Below his arm, he felt Deku’s body tremble, and when he dragged his hand down just a little, he realized the nerd’s stomach wasn’t just shaking, it was churning with hunger. Of course, the damn idiot hadn’t eaten breakfast.
That might be a good thing, for his unusually pale skin was bearing a green tint to it currently, but the thought still left a frustrated feeling in Katsuki’s temples.
Deku couldn’t even remember to bring his damn phone, and now this? Could the nerd not do anything right?
“We apologize for the sudden stop. We ask everyone to please remain seated and to refrain from using any quirks during this delay. A cast member will be coming to your location shortly, where upon their arrival the lap bars will be released. They will then personally secure all restraints. Do not attempt to move about the carts or interfere with the locking process. Thank you for your patience. Your safety is our top priority.”
The intercom clicked off, and Izuku allowed his body to relax. “They must have heard your call,” he wearily breathed.
The hand on his stomach continued to warm, and Izuku realized it was keeping down his stabbing hunger pains. He wondered if Kacchan was helping him on purpose, or maybe just trying to slow-roast him alive. Either way, the warmth was welcomed.
Smiling slightly, Izuku leaned his head back and closed his eyes.
“Nah, they just probably heard your pathetic screams.”
“Kacchan~” Izuku whined, before turning to seriously look at the other boy. “Thank you.”
Unsure red met genuine green, and without breaking eye-contact, Kacchan’s removed his warm hand from Izuku, leaving the latter a little colder than before. Then the blonde was huffing and turning to stare out the cart, blatantly ignoring Izuku.
Izuku couldn’t help but shake his head at how bad Kacchan was at talking, not that he was much better when it involved his rival.
Though their last ‘beat-up’ session had been quite productive, save the days of house-arrest, it showed that they both had a long way to go in really understanding the other. But Izuku wanted to get closer. Izuku cared about his rival, and if the whisper of Kacchan’s heated hand on his abdomen was anything to go by, his rival cared to.
Maybe Izuku could start off small, just something to add some normalcy to their changing relationship. He would bring up the most relevant thing between the two then: quirks.
“So Kacchan—”
“—Nineteen seconds.” Katsuki interrupted, turning back to glare at the puzzled boy, whose head was tilted slightly to the left like a puppy. It used to make Katsuki’s blood boil when Deku looked at him like that, with that stupid, childish face, like he thought Katsuki wasn’t smart enough to be looked at like an adult. Now he realized this particular expression wasn’t one of condescension. Deku was just an annoying shit with weirdly puppy-like eyes. “You were able to keep quiet without mumbling for a grand total of nineteen seconds,” he drawled, watching Deku’s freckled face heat up in embarrassment.
“Uh, right. Sorry. Sooo…” Deku mumbled, fiddling with his fingers, before perking up and turning shining eyes at Katsuki, which immediately caused the latter to frown.
Deku’s eyes had been so many different moods today: happy, shy, scared, and worst of all, blank. Katsuki didn’t like how quickly they could change, and he didn’t like not knowing what caused these changes.
Izuku continued, not knowing his rival’s inner agitation. “Sooo… how’s the provisional license training going, by the way? We’ve been pretty busy, so I haven’t had a chance to ask.” Adding, “I mean we’ve been training really hard and all,” as he glanced at Kacchan’s muscles distractedly curiously.
“O-oh, are you getting closer to Todoroki-kun? You went out of your way on the train to talk to him, and I mean I think you guys could be great friends. He’s really nice and smart, and of course he has an awesome quirk. You like strong people after all!”
While Izuku was rambling on, he didn’t notice the frustration growing on Katsuki’s features. At the mention of training hard, Katsuki couldn’t help but think Deku was being sarcastic. After all, there was no way Katsuki’s license course would be anything as great as the work study Deku was about to start, with All Might’s former sidekick no less. And then he had to go on and bring up Half-and-Half, the bastard who Katsuki was forced to spend way too much time with, and who had caused this whole ‘getting stuck together’ mess in the first place.
He just had to distract Katsuki on the train while Deku was too out of it to notice, and then saunter away with that damn smirk.
That stupid, fucking, idiotic, little piece of…
“I think you care about Midoriya more than you let on. I think you want to prove yourself to him. I think you’re not afraid of losing to him. I think you’re afraid of losing him.”
“—Yeah, just like you thought Deku was All Might’s secret love child—”
“I’m still getting evidence for that case, but I have enough information on you. That’s why you agreed to come, correct? To get closer to him? Or at least keep him from getting closer to someone else... To make sure he’s okay.” With the smallest of smirks, that bastard glanced down at Deku’s haggard, mumbling form, his impish eyes shifting to blatant worry. “Have a nice date,” and Katsuki knew it was a challenge more than anything else.
“Who’d wanna date a nerd like him, anyway?”
“…What?”
Katsuki’s eyes widened as he realized he had just said that out loud, right in front of Deku, who per usual, had already been staring directly at him. The blonde felt his cheeks warm at Deku’s attentive mien and instinctively snapped back.
“I said I don’t like strong people! I like those who give 100%, which Icy-Hot does, unlike some people.” He growled at the end, but immediately regretted it when he saw Deku’s eyes dim. Sure, it was pathetic that Deku couldn’t use his full power. Even with All Might paving the way, he couldn’t beat Katsuki.
But he also had seen what happened when Deku did give 100% and wasn’t sure he ever wanted to witness the nerd try full power again. Deku’s broken arms swinging helplessly by his sides as he rushed forward, straight toward the portal that would bring both him and Katsuki into the villains’ hands. All sense of self-preservation gone as he ran towards Katsuki, even if they both knew he couldn’t fight back.
Katsuki couldn’t let the idiot be captured as well. He needed medical treatment; not whatever torture came with being held prisoner.
Of course, in the end Deku came anyway, because he knew Katsuki wasn’t strong enough to save himself. And Deku was right. He couldn’t save himself, and All Might paid for it.
Digging blunt nails into muscled kneecaps, Katsuki raised his head, so damn done with letting himself get vulnerable in front of his rival, only to see that Deku wasn’t paying any attention to him at all. Instead, the boy was engrossed in analyzing the floor, hunched over so his messy green locks fell across his face.
He was trembling too, and when a single teardrop fell onto his scarred hand, Katsuki had to stop himself from reaching out. The urge was so strong though, because this wasn’t the Deku Katsuki knew. The Deku he knew didn’t try to hold back his tears, and if he did, it was always accompanied with a smile. But not this. This was something knew. This was defeat.
The tired eyes. The slow reflexes. The pained smiles. How had Katsuki not seen it until now? How had he not seen it when this was what he himself was going through right before their fight at ground beta?
Izuku squeezed his eyes shut, begging for the tears to stop being pulled down by gravity, but he couldn’t lift his eyes either, for then Kacchan would see. He’d see his rival, weak, and vulnerable, and completely unworthy of the power he possessed.
Kacchan wouldn’t get it. Kacchan wouldn’t understand. Kacchan wasn’t the one who ended All Might.
Izuku was.
Izuku had taken All Might’s power away from him, promising to live up to the name, but Sir Night Eye had told him the truth. There were people like Togata out there. People who could add to the power. People that could take more than 8% without destroying their body.
Izuku had so quickly accepted One for All, just happy for the chance, but that was before he knew what a world without All Might looked like. That was before he realized all that he could never live up to.
He had taken on the work study because he needed to get stronger. To show Sir Nighteye that he was more worthy of this power than Togata, but how? How can he prove this to All Might’s former sidekick, a man who knew some portion on the future, when Izuku couldn’t even believe it himself?
Something bad was coming, and Izuku wouldn’t be strong enough to save everyone. He wouldn’t be strong enough to win.
“Oi, Deku, have you been sleeping much?”
Izuku didn’t raise his head. “Of course—”
“Because if you’re already useless when you’re wide awake, you’ll be even more so when you’re half-asleep.”
The tone wasn’t harsh. It wasn’t gentle. It was just empty. So unlike Kacchan.
Izuku didn’t like it. He didn’t like it when Kacchan did something new, because he never knew if that something would bring them closer or tear their mending relationship apart. He never knew which word would bring it all crumbling down.
Gulping, he shakily raised his head. “I’m sorry Kacchan, I didn’t mean to lie. It’s noth—” Izuku stopped himself, because they both knew that if Izuku said that, a piece of red string would snap. So, he continued instead, “It’s nothing I can talk about right now. But this won’t be like before either, Kacchan. I won’t keep you in the dark if I can help it. I won’t make you search for answers, so p-please,” Izuku finally raised his watery eyes fully to lock gazes with wide, jolted red ones. “Please, just give me some time.”
Another teardrop slid down Izuku’s face, and he quickly moved to wipe it away, giving a self-deprecating chuckle. “Sorry, sorry. Heroes don’t cry.”
Kacchan’s eyes hardened at that, and suddenly hands were clutching his shoulders, rotating the upper half of Izuku’s body so that he was completely facing Kacchan’s way. The hero in training snarled.
“Heroes don’t cry, huh? What happened to all the water works at the sports festival? How about the tears you cried when All Might lost him flame? ...How about the tears you cried for me?”
Izuku’s face paled at the mention of that incident. The one where he wasn’t strong enough to save Kacchan the first time. If he had been, then maybe, just maybe, All Might would have had more time…
The fingers pressing into his shoulders lightened their touch, and realization spread across Kacchan’s searing eyes. “You blame yourself, don’t you Deku?” The blonde chuckled bitterly, and his thumbs unconsciously began gently kneading slow circles into Izuku’s tense muscle. Gaining a far-off look, red eyes ran appraisingly over Izuku’s body. “Maybe you and I have more in common than I thought,” he whispered.
And then Kacchan’s eyes gained their usual focus once more and he carried on. “Listen Deku… not like you’re even capable of doing that half the goddamn time… I know that you want to get stronger, like every other hero wannabe. You want to stop being a useless piece of trash on the side of the road. You know that you can’t afford to be a deku any longer… but you chose your hero name for a reason. ‘Deku.’ Stupid-ass alias if I ever heard one, but it means something to you. You were a deku before. You’re still a deku now. Don’t think you’re so far above everyone else that you never have to cry.”
Kacchan’s voiced stayed even throughout it all, flowing words that Izuku never expected to hear because… Kacchan was comforting him.
Izuku’s first instinct was to reply, opening his mouth to ask if Kacchan -- strong, brave, unmovable Kacchan -- ever cried, but then he stopped himself, because Kacchan did cry. He had cried for All Might, guilty tears streaming from his usually confident face, and he had let Izuku see. He had shown a vulnerability. Shown a trust.
Izuku sighed, tilting his head up to stare at the clear, blue sky above, all signs of dawn a distant memory. That’s right. Kacchan cried. That didn’t make the Explosion user any less of a hero though. That didn’t make Izuku think of his rival as anything less than.
Kacchan seemed to become more and more uncomfortable as the silence stretched on, unaware that Izuku was just pondering his words. “Well?” He said loudly, almost accusingly. “God, why did I even try to talk to a shitty nerd like yo—”
Izuku brought up his fingers to where Kacchan’s hands was still settled on his shoulders, grabbing on uncertainly. “Thanks, Kacchan.” And then he smiled. Not a smile of victory, but one of hope. It was as much as Izuku could muster right now, but it meant so much, because Kacchan had given it to him.
“You know, Kacchan. I think we might be getting better at this whole ‘talking thing’.”
“Shut up.”
As Kacchan pointed his chin up and petulantly stuck out his lip in a way that made him look less like a snarling threat and more like a pouting child, Izuku had to refrain from giggling. ‘Cute…, wait, shoot?’
The younger boy ducked his head to cover his demure, flittering eyes, glancing searchingly at the still grouching boy. But then chattering began to pick up around the nearby cars and Izuku’s train of thought rolled on, burying that secret for another day. Kacchan didn’t have to know everything, after all. “Oh, Kacchan, look, the worker’s here! How do you think they’re gonna get up—oh, they can extend their limbs, that’s so cool!” He gawked, completely captivated by the worker slowly stretching their way. Suddenly, all his focus was turned on Kacchan once more, bursting with enthusiasm. “Oh, speaking of cool, do you know Amajiki-san? Did you ever meet him? Well, anyway, he can eat stuff and then take the attributes from that stuff, of course it’s gotta be way more complicated than that, and I feel so far behind on my analysis notebooks, but anyway, I was thinking, if he ate a person, do you think he could turn into that person? Like if he eats beef can he turn into a whole cow or—” Izuku was suddenly cut off by a hand roughly covering his mouth.
He followed Kacchan’s twitching gaze this way and that, only then noticing the gaping people around them.
“Deku.” Katsuki growled, regretting ever being nice to this idiot and accepting his conversation. This was Katsuki’s punishment. “Why would he eat a person?”
Katsuki felt the mouth beneath his palm pull up into a cheeky grin, and oh was Deku walking on a fucking thin piece of ice.
Katsuki could explode this shitty nerd before anyone could stop him. An accident, of course. All Might would get over it.
*****
The two boys had eventually disembarked from the ride, both safe and unexploded, and with the stress that had been weighing down on Izuku lifted slightly from knowing Kacchan would be there to listen, an opportunity arose for a new issue to come to the forefront.
Izuku’s tummy whined, earning him a glare from Kacchan, who seemed to be personally offended by the sound. Just like that, the blonde was changing directions, away from the next ride they (Kacchan) had decided on, and towards the nearest food stand: a curry popcorn wagon.
“Kacchan, really, I’m—” a sharp pain stabbed Izuku’s middle, effectively silencing him further.
Unamused, his rival barked out for Izuku to go sit down instead of taking up space in the line. Finding a bench, the boy did just that.
A sigh of relief left his lips as the strain of the already long day was taken from his aching feet. Maybe he had been working a little too hard, lately, the boy considered. As Kacchan had said, he was no use tired, and if he was going to prove himself to Sir Nighteye, he had to be in tip-top shape.
Leaning back to pop his stiff spine, Izuku immediately caught a form lingering out of the corner of his vision. He dropped his hands and raised his hackles, hero mode kicking in. The teen on his right seemed to be extremely uncomfortable, exhibited by his jittery hands, bouncing feet, and rubescent cheeks. Trying to not draw too much suspicion, Izuku subtly caught the teen’s stare, just for him to duck away, eyes pleadingly glancing behind to a group of snickering boys.
When he rigidly rounded back, more color had been splashed on his features, and he was smiling, unsure. Slowly, Izuku began to relax back into the bench, but still remained vigilante incase this boy, who was now nervously fumbling his way, felt threatened by some unforeseen force.
Spreading his most reassuring smile, Izuku waited for the boy to begin. However, nothing seemed to happen for a moment besides the dark-haired teen’s mouth gaping open and closed like a fish, until...
“Ask him for his number!” One of the boys from the group behind called, then turning around to hide a snicker. Izuku’s attention stayed on the teen at hand though, who was shooting a scathing glare the group’s way.
“Um, you’re Deku, right?” The teen quietly asked, and Izuku couldn’t help the little warmth that filled him knowing that some civilians knew his hero name.
He smiled. “Yep, that’s me.” Tilting his head, emerald green eyes scanned the perimeter. “Is something wrong?”
Instantly, the stranger’s rosy face lost a little color, and he frantically raised a placating hand. “No, no, nothing like that—”
“Ask him if he has a girlfriend!”
Eyes growing as wide as a saucer, steam was practically rolling off the boy as he rounded on his group of friends once more, calling across the path for them to shut-up. “I am so sorry, Deku, I saw you in the sports festival and wanted to tell you that you were really cool, and the way you talked to Endeavor’s kid was super brave, and how you got out of that creepy mind-control quirk was insane.” The teen’s smile then turned down. “My friends weren’t supposed to be such childish jerks about it.”
“Oh,” Izuku blinked, still slightly confused but deeming there to be no real threat in the area, except maybe Kacchan, off in line by himself, flanked by a crying baby and a stroller designed to hold three children. Izuku smiled fondly to himself as he watched the blonde’s tense shoulders lower slightly in defeat as he bent down to pick up the sippy cup that had fallen from one of the children’s hands. The mother leaned forward, most likely to thank the future pro, only for her smiling to morph into one of distress as words fell from Kacchan’s lips. She then proceeded to scoot her stroller a little farther away.
Izuku was still snickering when the dark-haired teen in front of him cleared his throat. “Deku, did you hear me?”
Izuku snapped back to attention, chastising himself for not paying better attention to the people he was supposed to protect. “S-sorry, uh…?”
“Sato Yuuto”
“Sorry, Sato-san, I got a little distracted. Please forgive me.” Bowing his head, he placed direct, determined attention on the boy once more, who proceeded to flush brightly. Izuku wondered if the teen was coming down with something.
“W-well,” Sato’s voice cracked, “Like I said, you’re really cool, and I— me and my friends, I mean— would love to hang out around the park with you. Uh, you know, talk about quirks and U.A. and stuff.”
The teen then continued to shrink in on himself, and somewhere in the background Izuku heard his friends gasp out laughs,
“I can’t believe he actually asked.”
“Wooo, go Yuuto!”
“So, does he have a girlfriend or not?”
Beaming, Izuku stood up, stepped forward, and placed a hand on the boy’s shoulder. He really would like to hang out — these boys seemed like fun — and talk about what quirks they all possessed, but he had his own friends to find, and… “Sorry, that sounds like a lot of fun, Sato-san, but I don’t think Kacchan is really up for socializing today.”
‘Or ever’.
Izuku breathed out a laugh.
The boy raised his head, glancing around the little square, frown in place. “Kacchan? Are you here with someone…”? His voice petered off while he blanched slightly, and suddenly a bucket of popcorn was being thrusted Izuku’s way.
“Ah, thanks Kacchan! I almost forgot how hungry I am!” With that, Izuku scarfed down a handful of curry corn, humming in delight. “So good!”
Stuffing his cheeks full, he struggled out introductions. “‘Acchan, Hato-an. Hato-an, ‘Acchan.”
“You’re, you’re that explosion guy who won the sports festival,” Sato gawked, backing up a little before whispering to himself, “They had to chain you up when you got angry.”
Izuku frowned, not liking the way Sato’s tone gained an appalled sort of air. Yes, so maybe Kacchan hadn’t responded… well to Todoroki not going all out in their match, but since then the blonde had gained a little more awareness of his actions, and in all honesty, his ego probably benefited from the hit.
He still didn’t get how Todoroki got on Kacchan’s nerves so often, however. The taller boy was a complete gentleman around Izuku.
Kacchan began to speak, and the greenette wasn’t so sure he like where this conversation was heading. “You’re right, they did have to hold me down when I got pissed.” A delighted smile spread across Kacchan’s face. “Too bad there’s no one here to stop me right now.”
In a flash, Izuku’s curry dusted hand was being yanked out of his popcorn bucket and up towards Kacchan’s face. Izuku froze, eyes locked on the blonde, or more importantly, his own finger, which was now being gently licked clean, trapped between his rival’s soft lips. Izuku stared, pleading for his rival to offer some sort of explanation, but Kacchan ignored him in favor of locking eyes with a shocked Sato.
One final twirl of the tongue, and Izuku’s finger popped out of the boy’s mouth. Said mouth then curled up into a Cheshire grin being shot Sato’s way. The poor, unassuming dark-haired teen trembled in embarrassment.
With nothing else to give, apparently, Kacchan rounded on his heel and tugged Izuku along.
Izuku stumbled forward, too distracted by the tingling of his wet finger to pull away from the hand around his own. Instead, he just focused on not dropping his popcorn bucket and not overheating.
His mind was completely blank, only registering the real world when his nose ran straight into Kacchan’s shoulder for what felt like the twentieth time that day. They had stopped in the queue for another ride.
Kacchan was grinning meanly about how scared ‘Hato’ and his annoying group of lame-assed quirked friends looked, and Izuku wondered if the blonde purposefully messed-up names or if he just really didn’t know.
Izuku also wondered why Kacchan was acting so normal, like he hadn’t just swirled his tongue around Izuku’s finger. Or maybe that action was normal for Kacchan…?
No, that couldn’t be right. Sure, Izuku had only been getting closer to his childhood friend as of late, but he never took his eyes off the other boy, even during middle school. As such, he knew that making that type of contact was out of character. He was more likely to try to bite someone’s finger off than anything else.
Also, Izuku really didn’t like the image of Kacchan doing that sort of thing with his other friends.
As a blush grew across Izuku’s freckled face, so too did the uncertain pit in his stomach.
“Kacchan, why did you do that?”
Said boy’s mirth filled eyes hardened into a glare.
“That guy was pissing me off.” He responded, clear-cut.
Was Izuku pushing too much? He could see the way Kacchan was tensing defensively, but Izuku wanted to know more.
“Maybe Sato-san’s tone got a little… questionable near the end, but he and his friends were just being friendly. They wanted to hang out— “
That was when Katsuki snapped. “Hang out?! You were just gonna go off with them?! They could have, have, hurtyou.” God-fucking-dammit, this boy was an idiot. Was he really that oblivious to the way people saw him? Sure, teachers thought he was sweet, children thought he was approachable, classmates thought he was a cinnamon roll, whatever the hell that meant.
And that was all fine, and safe, and normal.
But then there were people like that blonde, crazy chick who was literally obsessed with Deku’s blood. And there was that hand dude who went out of his way to corner Deku in the mall. And Katsuki had heard about Stain’s keen interest in Deku as well. Point was, no one ever knew where threats lied.
An exasperated sigh left Deku’s lips. “Kacchan, not everyone is a villain. In fact, most people aren’t. Most people are actually nice.” And then his tired eyes softened to reveal a hidden joy Katsuki usually didn’t have directed his way. “Thanks for worrying about me, Kacchan, but I’m strong.” His voice wasn’t completely convinced, but trying, hoping. “I mean, you think I’m strong enough to be your rival. Your friend.”
Katsuki wanted to turn away from the smile on Deku’s lips. It wasn’t big and heroic, but rather ephemeral yet longing. Somehow, that made it even more blinding.
“And Kacchan, I said ‘no’ to them, you know. You and I are together right now, and honestly, I’m glad it’s just the two of us. I don’t mean that I don’t want to hang out with all our friends, but after so many years, we’re finally spending time together. Not trapped in a room like during house arrest. Not stuck on the same team when battling All Might. Right now, we are just sticking together, on purpose. I, I like it.”
When the nerd’s little speech tapered off, both teens ducked away, neither able to look the other in the eye.
If they both secretly thanked the lord when a cast worker arrived to usher them onto the ride without mentioning the profuse blush both sported, well, it was getting rather sunny outside, and sadly, Iida did have all the sunscreen.
*****
“Get to your own side, stupid Deku!” Kacchan demanded as Izuku’s body once again rammed into the older boy. It wasn’t like Izuku was trying to smush himself up against Kacchan, but the ride kept going around, pulling them to one side as it swung inward only to wrench them to the other side of the cart as it circled back again.
“I-I c-can’t!” While belly laughing, Izuku tried to pull himself away on the turn, only to be drawn in to Kacchan once more. Shakily, he raised his hand to wipe away the tears dotting the corners of his eyes.
Kacchan was not so amused. “Stop sliding into me! You keep stabbing me with your fucking elbow!” He tried shoving Izuku away, stretching out his arms from where they rested protectively at his abdomen to Izuku’s bicep. However, another turn later, and Izuku was flopping unceremoniously half-way into the blonde’s lap.
Screw never crying again, Izuku couldn’t stop the tears streaming down his face even if he wanted to.
“Why. Are. You. So. Fucking. HEAVY!?” Growling, Katsuki tried to remove Deku from his thigh, but by this point the nerd had decided to cling to his T-shirt like a fuckin’ koala, shaking helplessly from laughter.
Fucking annoying. Katsuki would kill Deku if he got any teardrops on his shorts. Still, it was kinda nice. Deku looked so carefree, so much like when they were kids. When they were best friends. When they didn’t have the weight of the world testing them, hurting them, crushing them.
Katsuki removed his hands, letting the nerd remain there for the rest of the ride. Well, until he caught a glimpse of obviously dyed red hair out of the corner of his eye. Deku still hadn’t seen them through his ugly scrunched-up eyes, but Katsuki had. All of them, from Icy-Hot to Pinky, to Four-Eyes. And they were looking back.
It was too late to shove Deku off without drawing even more suspicion, so there they stayed, Deku stupidly oblivious, and Katsuki completely stiff. He was not looking forward to whatever shit he was gonna get from Half-and-Half later.
When they disembarked the ride, Deku skipped over to their group, immediately assuring them that Katsuki had in fact not traumatized him for life and then began delving into the epic adventures he and the blonde had experienced so far.
When Icy-Hot caught Katsuki’s glare and returned it with a smirk, the Explosion user knew it was going to be a long day.
*****
Izuku couldn’t remember how he got here – a pitch black void illuminated by the single light of a golden string. Hadn’t he just been with his group, frolicking around the amusement park, watching the ever gregarious Ashido make friends with every passerby, and soothing Kaminari after one too many rides and five too many teriyaki chicken legs? Using ‘just keeping Kacchan in check around Todoroki-kun’ as a partial excuse for staying by his rival’s side? Watching how every time Kirishima attempted to sit next to his ‘best Bakubro’ on a ride, Ashido would appear out of thin air to pull the redhead away, leaving a perplexed Izuku and an annoyed Kacchan in her wake?
Being with all of his friends while also surrounded by wonderstruck children and content couples had been a jarring reminder of all that Izuku was fighting to protect. Of how there were too many people in this world who needed saving for him to ever consider giving up again.
However, with those laughing children and his supportive friends (turned almost family) gone, leaving him to drown in this darkness, the feelings of never being enough began to emerge once more. The string – hair, he remembered, tugged. Summoning One for All with minimal effort, Izuku fought back, but the vine kept creeping, up his legs, around his torso, and down his arms, where it burned deep, scarring fire to his shockingly smooth skin.
Still, he wouldn’t give in. He wasn’t strong enough for that. Izuku was stubborn beyond belief, and while he had a long path ahead of him if he ever wanted to catch up to – to surpass All Might – he had fought too hard making One for All his own to let it all end now.
Suddenly, he wasn’t the only one pulling. Glowing eyes filled the dark ditch, and hand after hand lent Izuku their strength. Slowly but surely, the darkness died, and the hair’s grasp on Izuku’s form loosened, until finally, finally, an explosion rang out. Suddenly, the hair’s coils turned from suffocating to soft, and the cold loneliness turned into warm nothingness.
Katsuki watched in contained relief as the trembling boy against his side fell peacefully limp. When Deku’s head first lolled onto his shoulder during their train ride back, Katsuki was planning on exploding the nerd right off. Half-and-Half was on Deku’s other side after all, ready to say something subtly snarky, and the rest of their little group was dispersed about the train car, phone’s surely out in case something like this happened. The girls especially couldn’t get enough of Deku looking/acting cute.
Really, Katsuki was pretty sure that as soon as Deku became a pro, “Twelve Months of Midoriya’ calendars would be mysteriously popping up, and Racoon Eyes would find herself with a few more yen to her name than before
So, as such, Katsuki couldn’t have the nerd’s freckled face smushed up right next to him, nuzzling in like a fucking cat on a heated blanket.
That was when the blonde had realized that Deku wasn’t nuzzling against him, but rather shivering.
“Midoriya?” Icy Hot whispered, gently trying to rouse the boy, yet it was clear to see how exhausted Deku had become throughout the day. He needed any sleep he could get. After all, he couldn’t very well be Katsuki’s rival if he wasn’t in shape. It would be embarrassing for the future number one hero, really.
When a whimper escaped from the boy’s barely parted lips, Katsuki decided that he could just explode everyone’s cameras later, and that Todoroki could go fuck himself, preferably now.
Hesitation gone, Katsuki began carding his fingers through the nerd’s soft curls. Almost instantly, Deku relaxed, breaths evening out to puff against Katsuki’s neck. Continuing the hand motion, the blonde remained there, enjoying the heat against his side. It was warm, but not overly so.
When Icy Hot decided to break the tranquility, he didn’t sound as ‘asshole-ly’ as usual. “How did you do that?” Katsuki couldn’t help but swell at the slight awe in the other boy’s voice.
“I’ve known Deku for a while, you know, and he’s always sucked at sleeping properly, staying up hours into the night doing nerd things.” Katsuki pursed his lips, remembering the days in middle school where Deku would stumble into class, eyes tired and weak but also aware, as his hands protectively wrapped around those hero analysis journals. “When we were kids Deku had a lot of nightmares, sometimes involving stuff he had seen on the news, other times with his dad, or maybe just random kid things. His mom worked a lot too, so he got used to coming to me. I often played with his hair to calm him down” Katsuki gulped, guiltily glancing at the green tuffs of hair tickling his ear. “I told him I would protect him from the monsters.”
Neither boy said anything for a long while, just letting the sunset-illuminated buildings fly past.
“You know he doesn’t hate you, right?” Icy Hot eventually spoke, tone flat. “I know what hate looks like, and it’s never once crossed Midoriya’s face regarding you. I don’t know your past, but Midoriya is my friend, and I know him well enough to understand that he’ll stop at nothing to mend what’s broken. That’s what makes him strong. That’s what makes him a great hero.”
Heterochromatic eyes locked on to searching red ones, the self-assured fire in them burnt out, leaving an unsure, average high schooler with average, non-villain related problems.
“He’s strong Bakugou. You won’t lose him so easily. Midoriya won’t let you. However, if you care about Midoriya as much as I think you do, you need to start acting like it. He deserves a least that much.” Shouto watched his friend snuggled closer into Bakugou’s side and smile dopily. “Even though all you do is snarl at him, he trusts you, for some unknown reason, and with the way he’s been acting off recently, I know he needs you. That’s really why I wanted you to spend part of the day with him, because he needed something, something I couldn’t give him.”
Shouto’s thoughtful frown turned further down at the way Bakugou sat up a little straighter, taking in the praise of Midoriya needing him over Shouto, like he was somehow worth more on Midoriya’s friendship scale. And maybe Bakugou in fact was. Still, the dual-haired teen couldn’t resist messing with the blonde, a task he would thankfully have plenty of time for throughout the following weeks.
“Izuku does however often need me for studying help. We often meet up in his dorm, late at night for it. Uraraka-san joins as well. Iida is usually too mindful of sleep to come, but even so, Uraraka-san and I smush onto Izuku’s bed and the three of us spend a couple hours like that in each other’s company. Usually we leave before anyone passes out, but occasionally Izuku falls asleep on of our laps. Uraraka-san has plenty of photos if you’d like to see. Personally, I’m more excited to take a picture of when she confesses her love for Midoriya while he sleeps against her chest.” Shouto kept his smirking face cool as Bakugou vibrated in rage, the only thing keeping the blonde in his seat being the resting boy against him.
Even in his sleep Midoriya was still saving people.
“Oh, speaking of photos, I’m sure the girls would love to get a picture of this.” An enraged, beat-red Pomeranian being smushed into by an oblivious, drooling bunny – they’d laugh about it a couple years from now, surely.
Well, at least Shouto would.
God, his meddling sleuthing was off to a great start. The next order of business: was Shinso Hitoshi Aizawa-sensei’s secret son, or something more?