*wipes away dust* Oh hey Fanfiction . net! Long time no see. I've moved mostly to AO3, and that's where I do most of my publishing under the same name. Honestly, I didn't know that anyone still used this website! But upon learning that people do use it, I've decided to upload my AO3 fics here as well. So no need to message me and tell me that someone stole my work and put it on AO3 - if it's the same pen name, it's me.
That being said, here is my first ever BakuShima fic. It's a short little one-off that's holiday themed and fluffy. It was my first try at writing these characters, but now they've become so so precious to me. I hope that you will enjoy reading this story as much as I enjoyed writing it!
(No warnings apply other than lots of fluff, future canon universe)
The hustle and bustle of the holiday season was one of Katsuki Bakugo's least favorite things in the entire world. He hated the crowds of people shuffling here and there, he hated the stupid jingling sound of bells in the air. He hated the pressure from companies to buy expensive gifts for people, and he hated going to crowded shopping centers filled with screaming children and frustrated parents.
And yet, he found himself at the city's largest shopping center on Christmas Eve, falling guilty of the thing that he hated the most about this time of year - last minute shopping. Katsuki normally didn't have to buy Christmas gifts for people other than his parents, and they were easy. His father always wanted Katsuki's "favorite book from this year" and his mother always wanted a gift certificate to a local spa. They were easy. He suspected that they tried their best to make things easy for him because they knew that he hated having to be creative about gifts. But this year was different, this year was special. This year he needed to make sure that he found the absolute perfect gift for the absolute perfect someone.
This was his 7th Christmas dating Eijiro Kirishima. Every year, Eijiro got Katsuki the greatest gift. The first Christmas that they'd spent together, when they were in high school even, Eijiro had gotten Katsuki an incredibly thoughtful and useful pocket knife. But not just any pocket knife, one with 10 different functions, unbreakable steel, and a custom engraving that said "Lord Explosion Murder". His old high school hero name, the one that he'd chosen before he'd really learned what being a hero meant. The one he'd chosen when being a hero still meant being the flashiest guy in the room with the biggest means of destroying the building. Now, he went by "Igknight" and had made a pretty big name for himself in the hero community. Eijiro had always been more grounded than he was. He'd picked the perfect name in their first year, and now the Red Riot had also made a pretty notable difference in the world.
The point of course, was that Eijiro had always given so much thought to what he got Katsuki for Christmas. Last year he'd gotten Katsuki brand new quality blasters for his costume. The ones that he'd had were feeling worn out and his agency was refusing to buy him new ones until the old ones had completely died. Seeing as they were really really expensive, Katsuki just dealt with it instead of buying his own. Last year he almost blew up the Christmas tree when he'd opened the box and saw the gleaming gauntlets. He also felt instantly embarrassed about the crock pot he'd gotten his boyfriend.
Eijiro never acted like he was disappointed, but Katsuki could read him pretty well. He was happy that Katsuki had gotten him anything at all, but Katsuki knew that he could do better, he should do better.
It wasn't like the gifts that he got Eijiro were bad necessarily, it was just that Eijiro had always gotten Katsuki gifts that were so fucking thoughtful. Katsuki got Eijiro gifts that were useful. He'd gotten him the crock pot because the damn idiot was a shit cook, and using a crock pot was super easy. He'd gotten him hair repair cream because all of the red dye was going to make the man go bald. He got Eijiro gifts that he needed, but never really gave much thought about what Eijiro wanted. This year, he was determined to get Eijiro the best damn Christmas present in the entire world. This gift was going to top all of the gifts that Eijiro had ever gotten him.
If only he had any fucking clue what to buy.
He'd been at the mall for 2 hours now. He'd gone into more stores than he could count, looking for the perfect gift. The mall was an outdoor shopping center and the air was absolutely freezing against his face. He pulled his scarf up over his nose and pressed on.
The outdoor area was decorated with bright golden lights and brightly-colored wreaths, and an obnoxiously loud piano version of "Jingle Bells" was blaring out of every speaker. Despite the cold, the mall was absolutely packed with people. Women dressed in puffy coats holding so many shopping bags that you could barely see their hands, men still in their daily business attire typing away frantically on their phones trying to figure out which stores to go to. People who, like Katsuki, had waited until now to buy gifts for their loved ones. Christmas Eve was manic and stressful and so damn crowded.
How many damn stores were there in this damn mall? Katsuki could feel his patience growing dangerously thin. What kind of gift would Kirishima want? He tried to think. What could he get that would be special?
Katsuki heard a gasp behind him. Before he could turn to investigate the source, he was being tackled by tiny hands.
"Uncle Kacchan!" Tiny indigo pigtails bounced up and down at Bakugo's waist and tiny hands wrapped around his knee. "It is him mommy! It's uncle Kacchan!"
"Isuzu-chan!" a familiar voice called out, coming in closer from behind Katsuki. "Let go of him! He's trying to shop in peace!"
Ochaco appeared from behind him, a small infant on her hip. The infant gave Katsuki a crooked smile, his face covered in sugar from the candy cane he was holding.
"Aww!" Katsuki breathed a sigh of relief as Isuzu released her grip. "But I haven't seen him in so long!" She looked up at him with her way too fucking cute big round eyes. The glasses on her face only made her look cuter.
"Hey," Katsuki said, pulling down his scarf so that he could speak clearly. "Watch your damn kid." There wasn't any acid behind his words. He and Ochaco had buried the hatchet years ago. They were friends now.
"Sorry," Ochaco said, lightly pulling Isuzu closer to her. "Tenya went to get tea but hasn't come back yet."
Ugh. Tenya was here too. On the list of people that Katsuki did not like seeing after high school, Tenya was on the top 5. Unfortunately since he'd married Ochaco, Katsuki was stuck dealing with seeing him more often than he'd like to. In fact, being friends with Ochaco meant that he had to see almost everyone that he didn't care about now that high school was over. Her friendship with Deku meant that Katsuki had to see him at her birthday events and her Christmas parties. And Deku's stupid relationship with Todoroki meant that Bakugo couldn't avoid seeing that asshole either.
Katsuki made a face. "You're still with that loser?"
Ochaco clicked her tongue. "Yes, Katsuki. I'm still married to my husband."
Katsuki smirked. "You shouldn't have to settle, you can do better." He teased.
Ochaco smirked back, "Well speaking of people who shouldn't settle and can do way better than the person that they're with, where's Eijiro?"
Katsuki rolled his eyes. "He's working."
"Aw that's too bad. I know he loves seeing the baby." She adjusted her hold of the tiny human on her hip.
Babies. That's something Eijiro liked. But Katsuki couldn't just buy him a baby for Christmas. And sure, Eijiro liked babies, but did he want one? God that was a loaded fucking question.
In the 7 years that they'd been dating, they'd only talked about kids once. It was a short and simple conversation - neither of them wanted to put their careers on the line to take care of a child. Sure, Eijiro wanted kids. He loved kids. But he also loved being a pro hero. When they had the conversation, they'd only been together for 2 years. A lot had changed since then.
Back then, the most important thing in the world was being the number one hero. Katsuki wasn't even willing to date Eijiro at first because he was afraid that it would mean putting something else before his dream. And while he was right, it wasn't nearly as bad as he'd feared. Being number one wasn't the most important thing in the world anymore, not by a long shot.
Now? The thought of having a kid with Eijiro didn't sound like a nightmare at all. There was of course the issue of being two hard working pro heroes. Although it was long ago, the issue that they'd first discussed was still very much an issue. They really didn't have the time to put into raising a kid. But it was more than that.
For a lot of heterosexual couples, having kids seems like an easy next step. When the relationship has been going on for a while, the logical thing to do is to add another member to the family. To go from being two people with seperate lives to becoming one solid unit - a family. For two men, it was a lot more complicated. The world's views on homosexuality had changed dramatically with the appearance of quirks. Suddenly there were a lot more things that could make someone "weird" than just being gay. People stopped caring, it became part of the norm. But it didn't mean that things were suddenly easy for gay couples, either. Katsuki loved Eijiro, but the power dynamic between them was complicated. They were both so independent, and neither liked the idea of being tied down.
"Bakugo!" Tenya's always alert voice rattled Katsuki's ears and interrupted his thought process. "it has certainly been a while! Is Kirishima with you?" He was holding two steaming cups of tea.
"Working." Katsuki repeated, pulling his scarf defensively over his face to cover his scowl.
"Ah, yes. There does tend to be a lot of crime on Christmas Eve." He knelt down and handed one of the cups to Isuzu. "It's very hot sweetie, so make sure that you blow on it."
Isuzu obeyed, closing her tiny gloved hands around the steaming cup. It was amazing how much she looked like both Tenya and Ochaco. "Thank you daddy." She said, blowing the steam away from the brim of her cup.
"Tenya, could you give me a minute to talk to Bakugo?" She asked, handing the baby over. "I wanted to ask him about Kirishima's Christmas gift."
"Of course!" God,Tenya was annoying. How the hell did Ochaco deal with him? "We will have a seat on a bench over there and await your return!" He took the baby from his wife's hands. "Come on Isuzu-chan, say goodbye to uncle Kacchan."
"Aww!" She whined, looking distraught. "But I didn't even get to talk to him!" She looked up at Katsuki and his heart started to melt. "Will you be at our Christmas party? Will you? Please say you will and bring uncle Eijiro!"
How could he say no to that?
"I go every year don't I?" He replied, putting on his best tough voice. "You think I'd blow it off?"
She giggled. "I'll make sure to keep uncle Shoto away from you."
"That's my girl." Katsuki bent down and ruffled her hair. "You have a merry Christmas, okay?"
"Okay!" She smiled. And with that, she left with Tenya and her baby brother to give Katsuki some privacy with her mom.
Katsuki straightened up, and adjusted his scarf.
"Did you get Eijiro a present yet?" Ochaco asked, trying to sound casual.
"What the fuck does it look like?"
"Well, it looks like you're at the mall, which you hate, on the busiest night of the year, which you hate, in the freezing cold, which you hate. So I can only assume that you waited until the very last minute possible to get your very loving and amazing boyfriend a Christmas gift."
Bakugo didn't answer at first. The two walked in silence. They passed by a watch store, with Katsuki vaguely wondering if Eijiro would even have any use for a watch.
"What did you get him?" He asked, sinking lower into his scarf.
"Oh, ya know," Her voice was light, "A custom Red Riot motorcycle jacket."
"Fuck you." Bakugo said, this time with a little more real aggression. That was a really good gift. Thoughtful, too, since Eijiro had just gotten his motorcycle license a few months ago. "Give it to me."
"Nope. It was my idea." She smirked at him. "What are you thinking of getting him?"
Bakugo grunted, annoyed. "I have no fucking clue. I've been at this damn mall for hours looking for the perfect gift and I seriously can't think of anything!"
"Well, what kind of thing were you looking for?"
"Are you fucking deaf? I just told you that I have no fucking idea!"
Ochaco went quiet at this, chewing the inside of her cheek thoughtfully.
Bakugo didn't say anything else. It was getting late now and the stores were going to close soon. Katsuki could feel the anxiety starting to rise inside of him. What if he didn't find anything before the mall closed? Why had he waited so damn long?
"How do you do it?" Bakugo asked quietly, eyes glued to the floor.
"Hmm?"
"How do you balance having a husband and two brats while also being a pro hero? I've seen the news, and four-eyes is all over the place. So are you. But you still have time to go out shopping and get tea with your family. How do you do it?" His voice was low. This wasn't the sort of thing that he usually said aloud.
"Is that what's on your mind?" Ochaco stopped walking and stared at Katsuki. "Do you want a family with Kirishima?"
Bakugo didn't answer her. He kept walking forward. This was stupid.
"Katsuki…" She took a few big steps to catch up with him and stood to block his path. "Do you want-"
"Shut up, okay? Forget I asked."
Ochaco crossed her arms. "Having a family and being a pro hero aren't opposites."
Katsuki met her eyes. Her expression was stern, serious.
"Honestly, having Isuzu-chan made me more sure than ever that being a pro hero was what I wanted to do. Having someone so close to me who needed me, who needed this amazing world that we live in. It's what we fight for, ya know? What's the point of putting your life on the line on a daily basis to protect the world if you don't have people in the world that you want to protect?"
She was right, of course. It was that very attitude that made Katsuki realize that being the number one hero wasn't all that there was in life. It was that very attitude that made Katsuki realize that he didn't have what it took to be the number one hero if he didn't have anyone in his life that was worth protecting.
Endeavor was an example of this. He was strong and cool with an amazingly powerful quirk, but none of that mattered in the grand scheme of things because he was incapable of showing compassion. Katsuki suddenly remembered last year's christmas party. He'd accidently been forced to overhear a drunken conversation between Todoroki and Deku while he was using the bathroom at Uraraka's house. They'd decided to have their private heart to heart outside of the bathroom that he was using, so he really didn't have a choice. Todoroki was upset. Something about his father, something stupid. But Katsuki remembered the part where Todoroki explained to Deku why his father would never be able to be the number one hero, let alone a good father. Endeavor had nothing to fight for other than an empty dream and a broken family that wanted nothing to do with him. That's why Endeavor would never be able to surpass All Might. Even when All Might retired and Endeavor became the number one hero, it wasn't good enough. He wasn't good enough.
Eijiro had been Katsuki's reason for fighting even before they had realized their feelings for one another. His friends had been his reason for fighting, even if he never liked to admit it to anyone. But Eijiro… He was different. He was special. Did he know how special he was? Did he know that Katsuki would die for him, that Katsuki would give up the chance to be the top hero if it meant that they could be together?
He needed this Christmas gift to tell Eijiro that. He needed it to tell Eijiro that he was going to keep fighting for him, that he was going to fight for a world that they could live in together.
His eyes widened. "I know what to get him."
"You do?" Ochaco grinned. "What?"
There was no time. The stores were closing soon and Katsuki had to hurry. He had to find the perfect one. He rushed through the mall, dodging other last minute shoppers with Ochaco trailing close behind. He stopped at the occasional store to look in the window but when he couldn't find what he was looking for he hurried forward. He was beginning to lose hope until he finally saw it - perfect, on display in a window.
Ochaco gasped when she saw it.
"Are you serious?" She said, her voice just above a whisper.
Kastuki nodded.
"Oh my gosh, Katsuki...It's perfect. He's going to die."
Katsuki pulled his wallet out of his pocket and stepped inside the shop. The employee working there was extremely accommodating and even offered to gift wrap it. Katsuki declined. He was going to give this gift to Eijiro tonight. On Christmas Eve.
He'd just finished paying and saying goodbye to Ocacho when his phone buzzed.
Shitty Hair: heyyy:) just got out f work, r u home?
Blasty: I'm at the mall. Meet me here?
Shitty Hair: the mall were we had r 1st date?:0
Blasty: Yes.
Shitty Hair: ok! B there soon 3 I luv u!
Blasty: Love you too, idiot.
Shitty Hair: aww b nice its Christmas TT-TT
Blasty: Just hurry up and get here.
Shitty Hair: Ok ok im getting on my bike now see u soon 3 3 3
Katsuki put his phone in his pocket. He was nervous. Had he chosen the right gift? Would Eijiro like it? He sat on a bench and waited. The stores around him started to shut their doors, and families started to go home. The occasional customer would run up to a door only to realize that the store had closed and throw their hands up in defeat. Jeez, Katsuki really hated people who waited until last minute to buy Christmas gifts.
"Hey! Katsuki!" Eijiro's voice cut through the now dull piano rendition of "Silent Night" and echoed through the empty mall. Katsuki could spot Eijiro's crimson hair from a mile away. He ran excitedly over, out of breath by the time he reached Katsuki.
Eijiro's hair was perfectly spikey. He'd worked today, so he must have used extra product. His bright yellow puffy coat was just as noticeable as his hair, and upon closer inspection Katsuki noticed that Eijiro was wearing a scarf with little Christmas trees on it.
"Nice scarf." Katsuki snorted, getting up to greet his clown of a boyfriend.
"What? You don't like it?" Eijiro asked, wrapping his arms around Katsuki is a warm embrace. He squeezed tightly, and Katsuki nearly melted from how good Eijiro smelled. How the hell did he always manage to smell good after a day of hero work? Katsuki always reeked after work.
"I thought you wanted to always look manly."
"Dude, Christmas trees are TOTALLY manly!"
Katsuki snorted, and kissed Eijiro softly. He normally wasn't super into public displays of affection, but this was different. And besides, there really wasn't anyone left at the mall.
"Seriously! Nothing says 'manly' quite like soullessly ending the life of a beautiful young tree to dress it up in decorations until it rots. And have you seen a lumberjack? All that scruff and plaid? Totally hot. And totally manly."
"You're an idiot." Katsuki teased, pulling himself free of Eijiro's embrace.
Eijiro laughed, and Katsuki couldn't help but smile. Eijiro's laugh was probably up there on Katsuki's list of Top 100 Greatest Things About Eijiro Kirishima.
"What are you doing here anyway?"
"Hah?"
"It's the mall. On Christmas eve. I'm sure it was packed, and dude, you freaking hate the mall when it's packed."
Shit. Why did everyone know him so damn well?
"I uh, had to get some shopping done."
Realization dawned on Eijiro's face faster than Katsuki would have liked.
"Whatdyagetme?" He asked excitedly.
"Later." Katsuki promised. He grabbed Eijiro's hand and led him though the mall.
"Bet what I got you is still better. I really outdid myself this year." Eijiro swung their hands up together. Little by little, it started to snow as they walked. They stopped by the fountain, which was turned off due to the cold weather. Katsuki sat down and Eijiro joined him.
"I ran into Ochaco today." Katsuki said, his heart suddenly picking up pace.
"What, seriously?!" Kirishima broke into his signature toothy grin. "Did she have Isuzu and the baby with her?"
"Yeah, she did."
"God those kids have no business being so freaking cute. But I guess it makes sense, Ochaco was always a cutie." Eijiro watched the snow fall, a smile on his face.
"Do you remember when you asked me if I wanted kids? Back when we first started dating?"
Eijiro let out a loud laugh, "yeah I do! You should have seen your face when I asked. We had just started dating and you acted like I was trying to chain you up and make you my prison wife."
Katsuki shifted in his seat. "Well I was talking with Ochaco today and I started thinking about things..." His voice was on edge. Why was it on edge?! Even when he tried not to, his voice always made him sound like he was pissed off.
"Woah." Eijiro narrowed his eyes, expression serious. "Are you about to ask me if I want to adopt a kid with you?"
"What? No!" Katsuki almost laughed. "Sort of. But, no." He sighed. Feelings were hard to talk about. "I was just thinking about the fact that back then, when I told you that, being number one was the most important thing in the world to me. So the idea of having a kid with you, with anyone, was a nightmare come true. But now things are different."
"How so?" Eijiro leaned his head on Katsuki's shoulder.
"Now I have you, Shitty Hair."
"Awww, Katsuki! You're making me blush!"
"Idiot! Can you just…" he sighed "Let me say what I gotta say?"
"Right!" The redhead laughed "Sorry. Being quiet now."
Katsuki continued, "Now there's you. And you're not something that I want to lose. The thought of not having you in my life seriously pisses me off. The thought of you not realizing that I care about you pisses me off."
Eijiro didn't say anything, he just tightened his grip on Katsuki's hand.
"I love you. And I know that I've told you that, but I don't want you to forget it. I don't want you to ever forget that you're…" his heart was pounding now. He reached into his pocket and wrapped his hand around the gift that he bought for Eijiro. Now or never.
He stood up, pulled the ring box out of his pocket and opened it. The ring was perfect. It was made from the stone of a meteorite that had fallen from space. Supposedly, the man who made it had a quirk that allowed him to shape and bend metals and rocks, and this ring was unbreakable by anything. No amount of force could break this ring. It was perfect, because this ring was them. They could withstand anything. Eijiro could withstand anything.
Eijiro gasped, eyes widening at the gift.
"I don't...I don't ever want you to forget that you're the reason why I am a hero. You're the reason I fight. And." Bakugo could feel his face burning despite the snowflakes that were falling onto his skin. "And I want you to fucking marry me."
Eijiro's expression was priceless. Eyes wide, mouth open, cheeks bright red to match his hair. Katsuki wished he could capture this moment to have forever.
"Dude…" Eijiro stood up. "No way."
Katsuki's heart sank.
"No way!?"
"No! No! I mean, yes! But, no!" Eijiro reached into his pocket and pulled out a ring box. "You stole my idea!"
Katsuki stared at Eijiro, eyes wide, heart swelling. "Seriously?!"
Eijiro laughed, "but yes! Of course yes! 1000 times yes forever and infinity!"
He hugged Katsuki, squeezing him tightly.
"I love you! Of course I want to marry you! This is the best Christmas gift ever!"
They kissed, the snow falling silently around them. For a moment, it felt like the entire world was theirs and theirs alone.
Eijiro opened the ring box and showed Katsuki the ring he'd picked out. It was jet black and made from volcanic rock. It was so incredibly thoughtful. Just like every other gift that Eijiro had gotten him, the ring was perfect.
