Chapter Text
~BAKUGO~
Waking up in a hospital bed was never a great feeling. His head felt dizzy and there was always this sheen of oil no matter how much you endeavoured to wipe your forehead. The beeps were incessant and he couldn’t help but groan at the several places in his body that were seemingly hurt. Glancing around the room, he decided that the lights were much too bright for whatever the fuck was happening in that moment.
At least he knew he was alive.
He was a little surprised that his boyfriend of five years wasn’t already there fussing over him, but he was probably still at work and unable to get free. It was just part of being a Pro. He was sure that if it had have been serious, he'd have been there. That was reassurance enough.
With that thought in mind, Bakugo closed his eyes once more and fell back to sleep.
Sometime later, his eyes fluttered open to the sound of annoying voices carrying through the room only to find fucking Deku and the half-half bastard talking between themselves.
“What the fuck are you two doing here?” He ground out, causing them to look up at him in surprise.
“Nice to see you finally awake.” Candy cane head mused, crossing his arms and leaning back in the chair. If he thought he looked cool, well, he was a fucking idiot.
“We were just discussing the case.” Deku informed him easily, like he had any clue what he was talking about. “They must have temporarily dulled your senses to be able to drop you midway through an attack like that. I just wish I knew what sort of Quirk she had to do it. Mental? Chemical? Body manipulation maybe?”
“What the fuck are you talking about?” Bakugo snapped, hauling himself upright. “Why the fuck would I be working with you two for starters?”
“The mission?” Deku asked, tilting his head to the side. “The one we decided to take on as the heads of the agency for our debut?”
“What fucking agency?” None of what he was saying made any sense. “What fucking mission?”
“Maybe you hit your head after the fall?" Todoroki frowned, studying him closely. “I have another theory but I'm kind of hoping that’s not it.”
“Fuck, whatever.” He threw his hands up in exasperation before sighing and looking around for Kirishima. “You’re not making any fucking sense. Where the fuck is Ei? Has anyone even fucking called him yet?” The other two looked at each other in concern then, seemingly confirming something from Todoroki’s mindset. Although he was convinced everyone was a love child of someone so it wasn’t like his theories held much value.
“What year do you think this is Kachaan?” Deku asked, frowning slightly. When he answered, the others nodded between themselves, annoyingly leaving him out of the fucking communication.
"What the fuck are you two nodding about?" He decided to take matters into his own hands and throw a pillow at them. It feel feebly to the ground, almost embarassingly so.
“I think it was a memory erasing quirk.” Todoroki informed the room solemnly ignoring the pillow, causing the green haired bastard to nod in agreement.
“I don’t give a shit what you think.” He growled, glaring over to them. “Call Ei already so I can get the fuck home.”
“Kachaan….” Deku sighed heavily, like he didn't want to relay the next bit of information. “You and Kirishima broke up two years ago.” The words echoed like nails on a chalkboard and it made him shiver. The rest of their words were lost to his thoughts as he zoned them out.
Bullshit. It had to be total fucking bullshit.
Why the fuck would they have broken up? They lived together. They were fucking in love. They’d been together for five damn years and they were strong. Unwavering. Loyal. There was no way that they were telling the truth.
He had no idea why the idiots would lie to him, but they obviously were talking out their asses. Even if he had been hit bit a memory erasing quirk, why what reason did they have for only doing two years? It made no sense. Kirishima wouldn’t leave him. It didn’t matter that Midoriya’s hair was shorter or that he had more scars that he’d never seen. It didn’t matter that Todoroki looked taller, a bit more muscular and wiser in the eyes. That could be explained away to time spent in the gym and a haircut.
There was definitely some sort of mistake and he yelled as much to the others. So much so that they decided to call in reinforcements in the shape of a blonde-haired dunce with a Pikachu aesthetic. At least the idiot looked the same. Bakugo was almost sure the man never aged. He still looked exactly the same as he did in high school. Sixteen had been his last growth spurt and they had all been subjected to his stupid fucking excessive skin care routine. Bakguo pretended he thought the routine frivolous, but he had adopted a lot of it into his own pre-bed care. The only person who knew that though was Kirishima, which bought his mind back in a full circle to the issue at hand.
“This isn’t who I told you to fucking call!” He almost screamed at the sight of him to which Kaminari raised his eyebrows.
“Woah dude, relax.” He sauntered over to the bed and propped himself on the end of it. “Who were they meant to call? All I got was an evasive ‘need you at the hospital for Katsuki’. I am a little flattered that I am the voice of reason in an emergency, but details would have been nice considering I thought you were actually really injured. I’m pretty sure I got a ticket rushing here.” Kaminari shot a forceful look over to Todoroki who merely shrugged.
Bakugo blinked at the words before his face morphed into a scowl.
“Fucking just give me my phone and I’ll do it myself.” He growled over to the other two who were weirdly silent. Fucking Deku looked sad and he hated the fucking pity in his eyes. It was weirdly disturbing.
“We told you, it was smashed in the impact.” Todoroki told him; tone seemingly uninterested but there was something calculated about it that had Bakugo on edge. "Although I'm sure you'd stopped listening at that point."
“Then give me yours you fucking idiot.” Bakugo snapped out, whipping his hand out. “I’ve known the fucking number since I was in high school.” Kaminari looked around the room inquisitively, clearly trying to piece together whatever he had missed.
“He’s been hit with a memory quirk.” The shitty green haired man explained quickly. “The last two years have seemingly vanished.”
“Oh, shit.” The blonde’s eyes flew open as he attempted to register where on the alleged time line he was.
“He wants to call Eijiro…” Deku stated hesitantly. “He believes that… they’re still together.”
“Why the fuck wouldn’t we be?” God this was so infuriating.
“Dude…” Kaminari looked at him with a bit of pity and sadness in his stupid eyes. Damn, no. Not him too. That was just too much. “Ei moved to Osaka. You guys haven’t seen each other since he left.”
“Why. Are. You. All. LYING! To. Me.” The alternative was too horrible to even comprehend. “He wouldn’t do that. Not to me. Just call him. Let me talk to him.” Kaminari must have taken pity of him before he slowly sighed and pulled out his phone.
“Let me talk to him first, okay?” Fine, if that’s what he had to do to prove this nightmare wasn’t real. Fine.
~KIRISHIMA~
He was part way through making dinner when his phone chimed with Kaminari’s ring tone. It was odd but not totally unwanted. He could use a chat and a lively spirit after the depressing as balls day he’d just had. It wasn’t like it was anything traumatic or massively crazy, it wasn’t even anything work related. It had actually been his day off and it was just one of those days where he missed everyone. Moving away from all his friends and family had been difficult, he missed them a lot. It often made him wonder if he had done the right thing because even though his career had taken off, there was something incredibly sad about being there alone with nobody to share it with.
His thoughts were dangerously close to something he tried to not think about, the person he missed the most, but going there would just send him down into a spiral he couldn’t get out of.
“Hey man!” He answered, turning the steak in the pan and admiring how beautifully cooked it looked, something of which he had learned to do from a certain person he didn’t think about. “A bit early for our weekly call but I’ll take it.”
“Hey Ei.” Okay he sounded weird. With a slightly faster heart rate, he waited for him to continue. “Um, so we have a predicament and I’m not sure how this is going to go down.”
“Is everything okay?” His mind went to instant panic. “Is everyone okay?” There was what sounded to be a tousle and then a smack in the background before he continued.
“Yeah, look it’s to do with Katsuki.” If silence could be deafening then this long, drawn out pause was something for the books. So much for not thinking about him. They didn’t ever talk about Bakugo unless it was important. He knew he kept alive based on the news and news alone. It was all still too raw. Even his first name felt like a dagger was being driven straight through his heart.
His heart was now frantically beating against his rib cage, hoping and praying he was okay. Just because they’d broken up didn’t mean he didn’t love him after all. His name bought forward an ache that sat heavy in his heart. A longing formed in his chest and he felt a little nauseated at how big the visceral reaction had hit him. After a much too long moment, he shook his head and cleared his throat that had felt like it had constricted.
“What happened?” He tried not to sound panicked and like the world had just pulled a rug from underneath him.
“So… apparently he got hit with a quirk…” In the background, he could hear Bakugo growling something loudly and that instantly made his heart settle slightly. Not gravely injured then. “The guys think it affected his memory. Long story short, he is two years in the past and believes you’re still together. He’s been asking for you for hours.”
“I… uh.” Shit, what was he meant to do with that? “He’s really been asking for me?” It seemed like such a stupid factor to focus on, but it was validation of some sort that they had meant something to each other. He’d barely gotten that much in the five years they had been dating.
“He wants to talk to you.” Kaminari stated hesitantly and Kirishima suddenly felt a headache come on. “I get it if you don’t- not fucking yet Blasty- can’t do that.”
“No.” He shook his head quickly, more so at his next decision than anything else. “I’ll be there in a couple hours. Send me the hospital and room number.”
“Ei, you don’t have to do that.” He knew he didn’t, but he got the distinct feeling Bakugo wasn’t going to take no for an answer in his current state. An emotion curled in his chest and settled there unpleasantly. Bakugo was asking for him and just like the fool he was, he was going to go, just like he knew he fucking would every damn time.
“I… just… a couple hours, okay?” He swallowed hard, waiting for his friend to respond. Kaminari sighed heavily, like he was preparing himself for the fall out long before it happened.
“Okay man.” He agreed, with a distinct slapping noise in the back, as if he was battering someone’s hands away. “Just… remember to do what’s best for you, okay?”
“Sure.” Because what else can you say to that? They exchanged their goodbyes and Kirishima set off to probably get his heart shattered completely this time.
Arriving at the hospital, he was nervous to say the least. It had been two years since he’d left and not once had Bakugo chased him. Not once had he contacted him asking for an explanation. He almost wished he had. Unfortunately, it just proved the point he had made by leaving in the first place. That he had been fighting a losing battle the other wasn’t willing to even participate in.
It wasn’t as if he’d left without any notice. He’d threatened it for months leading up to the actual move. Even the night before, he’d sworn black and blue he’d be gone by the morning if Bakugo didn’t come home to talk things through. He didn’t come home and Kirishima left at five am feeling like a devastated fool. Work was Bakugo’s main focus. Always had been and probably always would be. It didn’t stop him from missing him with everything he had. It didn’t stop him from loving the abrasive, absent asshole. He hadn’t even managed to even consider dating since. It felt like an ultimate betrayal, even though he was technically single. Maybe he had just been holding on to the hope that once day his fierce blonde would turn up and profess his love. It was a fantasy of course, because Bakugo had never been good with words or loving touches or confessions of love. It had been fine at the start in high school where the other had reluctantly held his hand, allowed for secret kisses and cooked for him for date nights.
Hero work had put a little strain on their relationship, once they were pro and Bakugo had goals and ambitions so big that Kirishima doubted, he had ever been included in his future. In the end the blonde had started picking up more shift and missing important dates. He had started getting so tired that they would barely see each other save waking up or going to sleep. Kirishima had started getting lonely in his own home, he had started resenting being alone when he had technically been in a partnership. It had been hell.
Maybe he should have said something earlier, sure. Maybe he shouldn’t have sucked it up and settled for something that wasn’t working, but he loved him. Kirishima had loved him more than he loved being a hero and he had compromised and settled for someone who didn’t have that same sentiment about him. It had always been the blonde’s ambition and goal to be number one, despite who he was with. Kirishima knew that and it had been foolish thinking that he might become Bakugo’s priority one day. It fucking hurt, even if he had known the deal deep down, it hurt.
All in all, he wondered what the hell he was doing here. He was definitely going to regret this and yet he had seemingly dropped his whole life for the blonde just because he was asking for him. It was so damn stupid and it was going to break his heart all over again.
Swallowing harshly, he braced himself as he slid the door open only to be met with a quiet room where Bakugo was peacefully asleep. For some reason he kind of thought the others would be there but it was close to ten and the only reason he’d been allowed in was because his name had been given to the front desk. God, he looked beautiful. Kirishima’s heart ached at the sight, wanting nothing more than to reach out and stroke his hair just like he used to do when he was sick. Instead, he balled his hands into fists by his side to stop the temptation.
Thankfully he looked relatively intact. A broken arm and leg slabbed in casts and a few bruises and cuts to his face, but otherwise intact. Except, apparently, for his mind that had a massive gap. Bakugo’s face was strain free. The angry crinkle in between his eyes had disappeared in his sleep, smoothing out his features. His skin was slightly more tanned than the last time he’d seen him, not by much, but enough for him to notice. His hair looked shorter at the back and sides and the cut, Kirishima thought, was very complimentary to his face shape. Fuck, he was still the most beautiful person he’d ever seen. He didn’t ever think that would change.
Taking a step forward, the blonde stirred at the noise. Kirishima stilled as his eyes blinked open and studied him, drowsy and tired enough to make him wonder if he was on some killer pain meds. A dopey smile spread across Bakugo’s face when their eyes met and he threw out his good hand for him to take. The smile took his breath away. It was a Bakugo rarity. In retrospect, he hadn’t seen him smile for anyone but him.
“Finally.” He didn’t quite know what to say to that but Bakugo didn’t need him to say anything. “They gave me some really strong shit.” His eyes fluttered closed again. “Come sit with me.” He opened and closed his palm, waiting for him to take it. Hell, it couldn’t hurt in that moment, right? Not if he was high as a kite and needed that peace. So, in his weakness he took hold of his hand and squeezed it tight before taking up the chair closest to his bed. Bakugo sighed in contentment before bringing the hand up to his lips and kissing it gently. “Thanks.”
It was enough to make the tears well up and fall silently into the sheets between them.