Note:
"Utsuro" = Nickname, means hollow. At first used to pick on Koge and be an insult, it became her permanent nickname, and she quite likes it. It references to her constantly blank expression.
"This movie fucking sucks." Bakugou grumbled under his breath, taking a moment to toss some popcorn into his mouth. With her head on his chest, the sound of him chewing resonated in Koge's mind like an annoying echo, cutting off her comprehension of the movie. Though, she didn't truly mind, willing to suffer even through his incessant snoring to get to lay with him like this. In the chill of mid winter, she had talked him into spending their day off from Hero work laying around, as lazy as possible. Their lives the past few years, after graduating from UA, have been hectic and incredibly fast paced, so she figured a slow day was something they both desperately needed.
Cuddled up and laying on the couch, Koge pulled her ice cold toes back up under the fleece blanket that covered them. "It's not all that bad. It's pretty violent and gory, though." Neither of them reacted to the loud screaming and violent death by chainsaw that erupted from the television speakers, both immune to such fictional carnage. "What about it sucks to you?" More crunching of popcorn came before Bakugou's response, and Koge found herself craving some of the buttery snack as well.
"The graphics, for one thing." His eyes glanced down from the screen as Koge's arm slithered out of the blanket, snatching a few pieces of the popcorn before vanishing back underneath. "The acting is really bad, too. These people don't have any idea what this shit is really like." Koge gave a small grunt in response as she munched on the popcorn, regretting reaching for it as her arm was chilled just in those few seconds. "It's not real, Katsuki, of course they wouldn't know how to act if someone was coming after them with a chainsaw. These people are supposed to be quirkless, which is interesting, but I guess that makes it more dramatic. Makes them helpless."
As Koge put her arm back around his bare torso, she wiggled her hand under Bakugou's back, making him hiss in discomfort. "Fuck, Utsuro, your hands are like ice! How can you still be cold, laying on me and you have that blanket!" Koge turned her face more into his chest, pressing her frozen nose against his skin. "I'm just cold blooded, Katsuki. That's why you're my personal heater." Bakugou grumbled a bit, putting down the bowl of popcorn on the floor so he could rest his arms around her instead. "Tch, don't call me that, you bum. You're such a leech. You're even wearing my warm pajamas."
Koge shifted her body upwards a bit to be able to see the television over his arm, nudging her head up under his until his chin rested on her. "Hey, you let me wear them. Oh ouch, screwdriver in the eyeball. Talk about a killer headache." Bakugou groaned at the bad joke, rolling his eyes. "He can't have a headache because he's dead." Koge pouted, pinching his side gently. "Stop picking on everything I say. You picked this movie, I should at least get to make jokes about it." With a scoff, Bakugou pinched her back, making her jump and whine in protest.
"Only if your jokes are good." He adjusted his arms to fit around her after she stopped wiggling. Koge shook her head, huffing a bit as she focused back on the movie. The two fell back into silence, absorbed by the screeching and bad special effects of the B-rated horror movie. Koge was eventually pulled from her trance by the feeling of a slight tug to her scalp, noticing that Bakugou had begun to absentmindedly twist a lock of her hair around his fingers. Tightening her hold on him a bit, she nudged her head up into his gently. "The main character kind of looks like you."
"What?! No he doesn't, he's such a fucking pussy." Bakugou dug his chin into her scalp in disagreement to her statement, making her wiggle in discomfort. "The only thing that is the same is the hair color. And right now he's in the same bullshit situation I was a few years ago." Koge frowned at the mention of his kidnapping, noticing that it was quite similar to the way he had explained it to her years ago. She was actually surprised that he had even brought it up, as it was a topic he had a tendency to avoid as much as possible. "That's true, I suppose…" Her pale blue eyes fell from the television to her hand, watching her own finger as she picked at the fleece of the blanket.
That had been both a negative and positive time for them. Negative in the way it affected them both individually, but positive in the way it helped to push their relationship to the next level. Her fear of losing him at the time pushed her to finally confess her feelings for him, and from some force of fate that Koge knew must have been magic, he had been receptive. Hesitant, but receptive in a positive way, and everything only improved for them from that moment.
"I had a dream about that the other night, actually…" Koge spoke softly. "Well, more of a nightmare." Bakugou gave a short huff, stroking the hair on top of her head gently. "And why didn't you tell me?"
Koge sat on the couch in her father's living room, a blanket wrapped
tightly around her body and pulled up over her head,
completely engulfing her. Eyes glued on the television, she listened
to the news anchors with a racing mind, almost unable to comprehend their words.
Her mind was too focused on the video playing before her, watching as All Might
fought for his life against an incredibly powerful villain. She had seen this all
already, from the live video and from the hours of footage replaying afterwards.
Although her heart ached for All Might and the other victims of the attack, she already
knew their fate. There was one whom she had still not heard anything about,
her crush and close friend: Bakugou.
Shifting in her spot a bit nervously, Koge covered her cold nose with the blanket. "I didn't want to bother you with that… I know you don't like to think about it." The fingers in her hair were comforting, and she could already feel her eyes growing heavy. "Utsuro, that doesn't matter. I'll get over it. You don't have to keep that shit to yourself." Bakugou massaged the base of her skull, and Koge felt as if she could purr.
Ever since the news came out that he had first been taken, Koge hadn't hardly slept or eaten anything.
She was an emotional mess, feeling helpless. She had her phone clutched in trembling hands,
constantly checking the online news, social media, and just waiting for a text from him or
from anyone that would give her good news. Up until now, there had been nothing,
except for a text from Kirishima hours before the big battle began.
It'll be okay, Koge.
Snuggling her body into his tighter, Koge pulled the blanket tighter around them. "It's been the first one in a while… I think it was brought on by all the horror movies we're watching lately." Noticing that neither of them were paying attention to the movie, Bakugou shifted them so that they were on their sides, keeping her facing him. "You can tell me about it if you want."
Now, it was nearing sunset of yet another day without hearing anything about him,
and her exhaustion was starting to catch up to her. Leaning her head back
on the couch, she sniffed, her sinuses clogged from crying and worry.
Her eyes ached, and unable to resist the weight of her eyelids, they began to close.
She was startled awake by the sound of a police car outside, noticing the
red and blue lights flashing through her living room, casting purple
shadows in the gloom.
"Well… I mean, it was just the same stuff that happened, only… worse, you know." Koge made sure the blanket reached around to his back, even though she knew he didn't get cold like this. "You don't remember me getting out of bed a few days ago?" Bakugou helped her to adjust them, grumbling a bit in thought. "I mean, you do that sometimes. But you know I'm a heavy fucking sleeper, I'm not going to notice something unless you wake me up." Koge gave a soft laugh, running her fingers along the sharp form of his collarbone. "You sleep like a rock. No, I just couldn't find it in myself to bother you… It just wasn't a nice version of everything…"
Stumbling up from the couch, Koge quickly ran up the stairs to her bedroom,
throwing open her curtains to peer out into the street. A few houses down,
there were a couple of cop cars parked outside of Bakugou's house.
From what she could see, there was a small group standing around,
including police officers and two that she could recognize as Bakugou's parents.
Her heart beginning to race in a panic, she saw one of the backdoors of a car open,
and a familiar tuft of ash blonde hair poke out.
"So what happened, did I die or something?" Bakugou sneered at her refusal to tell him, feeling as if she were underestimating his ability to handle it. Koge narrowed her eyes at him, not really finding his jest to be funny. "That's not funny, Katsuki. That really could have happened…" With a roll of his eyes, Bakugou pressed his lips against her forehead in a firm kiss. "You're doing the worrying thing again, over something that already happened."
"K-Katsuki…" She spoke through a dry throat as she watched him
exit the car, immediately swallowed by the affections of his parents. In the moment,
she was surprised that he accepted their attention, though he had little to no reaction himself.
From the looks of things, he seemed unharmed. Still, the urge to see him, to hug him were nearly overwhelming.
Her body moving as if it were a puppet on strings, she made a mad dash down the stairs and out her front door.
Koge sighed, giving a small nod. "Yeah, I know…" She reached up, gripping his face to squish his cheeks together, giggling at the scowl that strained against her squishing. "My Mr. Squishy-Man hates it when people worry about him, I know." Bakugou snapped at her hand, prompting her to pull it away from his face, though she still found it to be quite funny as he growled at her. "You're going to think 'Mr. Squishy-Man' when I squish your pretty little head between the couch cushions."
Gasping in the hot summer air, Koge ran across the street and
down the sidewalk, until fear made her skid to a stop.
What if he didn't care about seeing her right now?
It had to be the last thing on his mind, if it crossed his thoughts at all.
He has to be exhausted and tired of people pestering him with questions as concerns.
She stood there in silence a few yards away, staring at his back as the police addressed the family.
Koge knew she had no business here.
"Oh yeah, that's all you'd do? That's not very scary." Koge wiggled one of her ice cold feet up into the leg of his sweatpants, making him wince at the cold and try to push her leg away. "Damn you're cold everywhere! Stop using it as an advantage over me!" With a gasp, a sly smile crossed Koge's lips. "What's that? You just admitted your weakness?" In an effort to keep her icy feet away from his legs, Bakugou wrapped his own around hers, trapping her. "No! It's not a weakness!"
Though she knew she should turn around and leave, she felt frozen in her spot,
unable to move even as the police got in their cars and drove away.
Koge wanted to say something, to say anything as Bakugou's parents began to usher him inside.
"Katsuki, wait-" Her voice was no more than a whisper,
finding the strength to take a few more steps forward.
Just as Bakugou was about to cross the threshold of the wall that
surrounded his home, he stopped, an exhausted, dull gaze
turning to one of surprise as his eyes locked with hers.
Koge snickered. "It is a weakness. Just like this-" she squeezed his bare ribs, making him writhe in protest. "Utsuro, don't fucking tickle me!" He snatched onto her face, squishing her cheeks just as she had done to him. "I'm going to destroy you if you don't stop." Koge scoffed playfully, rolling her eyes. "Okay, okay." Bakugou released her face, wrapping his arms around her again to try and hold her still. Face now free, Koge leaned up and kissed him softly, easing his annoyed tension. "Although it was an awful thing that happened… I am glad about one thing."
As he turned to face her, Koge felt her heart beginning to race at the calm look that took over his features, nothing like the frustrated scowl she expected.
He took a few steps towards her, though stopped as he spoke.
"Utsuro, what are you doing here? You look like shit."
Koge began to feel her emotions well up violently, hiccuping as she tried to control her tears.
"Katsuki…" Her body felt as if it were a magnet being drawn towards him,
stumbling over her feet before she was running once again.
Coming to a stop right as she reached him,
she struggled to keep her composure, rubbing her tired eyes. "I… I'm glad you're safe."
Bakugou tilted his head to the side a bit as he observed her,
his hands still resting in his pockets. "Don't tell me all this cry baby shit is over me."
Bakugou furrowed his brow, unable to really think of anything good about it. "Which is what?" Koge cuddled closer, nuzzling her head up under his chin, her lips resting against his neck. "It helped break the ice between us… And that's the first time I cried in front you, too." Giving a small grunt, he held her closer, and Koge felt tingles spread through her body as his hand moved down to rest at her hip. "Yeah… That's true. Though I think just crying is an understatement."
Koge moved her gaze down to his feet, beginning to feel ashamed
of being in front of him in such a pathetic state. "I was worried…"
Bakugou scoffed, removing his hands from his pockets.
"Just another person to underestimate me."
Koge couldn't see the glare on his face, but she could hear it in his voice,
and it made her regret this decision even more as he continued his rant.
"Everyone thinks I'm such a weakling, that I'd let myself get hurt or killed by
stupid fucking assholes like that!" Koge shook her head, clenching her eyes shut
tightly as she began to feel overwhelmed. "That's not it at all, Katsuki!"
Pulling one of her legs free from his grip, she moved it to rest up over his hip, pulling herself in closer. "You were so angry at me. I thought I had ruined our friendship by going to see you like that." His firm grip moved from her hip, down her thigh and Koge was finally starting to feel hot under that blanket. "All it did was prove to me how emotional you really are, Utsuro. Behind that blank face. I liked it."
"Excuse me?" Bakugou took a step towards her, and Koge almost feared she
would be taking an explosive trip down the road. "W-we aren't acting like this because
we think you're weak!" She finally looked back up at him, meeting his glare with her own.
"It's because we care about you! How dare you think so little of us!"
She reached over and took him by the hand, ignoring the burning heat from his palm
and his smoldering glare. "If you're going to shut people out already, then so be it!"
She could no longer control the tears, allowing them to flow down her face freely.
"But I'm going to cry for you, you stubborn asshole! I've never been so happy to see you in my entire fucking life!"
Koge laughed softly, closing her eyes as she soaked in the feeling of his touch. "You liked me calling you an asshole?" Bakugou rolled back over onto his back, pulling her along so she laid on top of him once again. "Not that particularly. I liked the emotion. That you would show that much emotion for me, when you wouldn't even smile at your parents. I felt proud of it, that I could pull that out of you." Koge felt her face flush, sitting up straight with her weight on his stomach, keeping the blanket wrapped around her. "You thought that way, even then?"
Before Koge could say anything else, his grip grew tight on her
hand before he pulled her forward, forcing her into a tight embrace.
At first, Koge was too shocked to react, until she felt his hand
rest on the back of her head, the other wrapped tightly around her torso.
As he spoke, her trembling arms moved to caress him tightly,
clutching onto the back of his shirt.
"You're such an idiot, Utsuro. Crying and screaming at me like this. Who do you think you are?"
Unable to hold it back any longer, Koge began to sob,
her knees buckling out from under her.
Bakugou squatted down, still holding her as she collapsed to her knees.
Bakugou nodded, reaching up to move some of her hair from her face. "Yeah. Even now, you have a red face, but a blank stare." Koge gave a small nod once he finished messing with her hair, watching as he moved his arms to rest behind his head. "So? You can tell how I'm feeling by now without me having to show it, I'm pretty sure." Bakugou narrowed his eyes at her, and Koge almost felt like he was digging into her brain. "Well for one," he started, sly smirk on his face. "You're hungry." Just as he said this, Koge's stomach growled, and she felt more heat grow in her cheeks. "Cheater."
Sobbing and hiccuping into his shoulder,
Koge couldn't respond, feeling relief and happiness flood through her.
Eventually, calmed by the feeling of him stroking her hair and the
heat of his body, she pulled herself together enough to be coherent, sniffling.
"I'm your friend, Katsuki. And I care about you more than I care about anyone. Please don't shut me out like that… Please stay with me."
She felt his grip grow tighter with her words, feeling worried that she had only upset him further. Instead, his words made her stomach flutter violently.
"Why would I want to leave you?"
Bakugou chuckled, bending his leg up to press into her back, forcing her to bend forward over him and prop herself up with her arms. Removing one arm from behind his head, he reached up to grip onto her face loosely, running his fingers along her cheek as his smirk grew. "Also a little frisky. Which I'm not surprised." Koge narrowed her eyes at him, indeed feeling her heart racing, though she stayed quiet. "Though," he continued, letting his hand move to rest against the side of her neck. "Mostly you're just happy and loved." Koge couldn't resist a smile, resting her body back down onto his to kiss him softly. "Katsuki… You don't regret letting me cry for you back then?" He moved her hair back from her face again, his calm expression filling her stomach with butterflies.
"No, Utsuro. That's something I'd never regret."
