"Hey, Izu-kun?"

"Oh hey!" Izuku said brightly, his attention quickly going back to his phone; he was reading the news. "Did you see that fight this morning? Wasn't it amazing!? Mt. Lady is really coming up in the pros, huh?"

"Yeah, it's pretty cool." Koharu agreed. "Izu-kun, I want to ask you something."

Izuku gave her his full attention. "What is it?"

Koharu paused; she wanted to find the right way to ask. "Why...do you want to be a pro hero so badly? Why do you want to go to Yuuei, even knowing you don't have a Quirk?" she frowned somewhat guiltily; Koharu didn't want to dash her friend's hopes, but he had to know the reality of what he was doing, right? How could he seriously even consider signing up for Yuuei? "Even if they took you in, you could really get hurt."

"I've always wanted to be a hero." Izuku answered quietly; he had a bashful smile on his face, like he felt a bit ashamed to even say such a thing out loud. Not that Koharu could blame him; the whole class just got done having a good laugh at his expense.

"While I said nothing…" she felt a prick of guilt.

"Being a hero, it's my dream. Don't you want to be a one Koharu-chan?"

"Me?" Koharu asked in disbelief. "I could never. My Quirk is pretty useless in combat situations."

"But being able to change the length of your hair means you could use it in an infiltration mission!"

"What?"

Izuku's enthusiasm shone through his face. "You could use it to help disguise yourself!"

"I guess, but it's still pretty limiting." Koharu smiled wryly at his wide grin. "You really do wanna be a hero, huh?"

His face grew a bit red again. "Um, yeah...guess you think it's stupid of me too?"

Koharu frowned sadly at his expression. "Of course not. I just don't want you to get hurt. You're my friend Izu-kun, and if this is really what you want, I'll keep my fingers crossed for you." she felt her own face flush slightly. "I don't care whether you have a Quirk or not. You're-"

Koharu's phone rang loudly, nearly making her jump in surprise; Izuku looked at her pink face curiously.

"Uh, hold on, I gotta take this." Koharu smiled apologetically, inwardly screaming in frustration, and made her way to the girl's bathroom; she passed by Katsuki and his gang standing at the classroom's door.

"Hey Katsu." Koharu waved and gestured to her phone; she was sort of glad for an excuse not to stop and chat.

"Hey Ko" he grunted as she passed; he seemed irked, but that wasn't anything new.

"Okay, calm down." Koharu told herself after she had finished her call, dabbing her face with a wet napkin. After checking her hair for flyaways, Koharu walked back to the classroom with butterflies in her stomach; the swarm of butterflies faded as she stopped short of turning the corner. Koharu could hear Katsuki's voice cutting through the air maliciously.

"Is he picking on Izuku again? Wasn't what he did enough?" she thought angrily; Koharu shook her head in disgust and disbelief at the last comment. Katsuki just told his former friend to jump off the school building.

Koharu glared as he turned the corner with his friends, if she could even call them that. "He said it like it was nothing!"

"Hey, what's up with you?" Katsuki asked; he was used to Koharu's scolding after all these years, but for her to give him such a hostile glare was almost unnerving. "The hell's up with that look? You get your period or something?"

"Shut up you jerk!"

Katsuki's cronies stepped back slightly.

"Uh, we...gotta use the bathroom!"

"Yeah, yeah! We'll just…"

Katsuki glared as they practically ran away. "Cowards, running away like pussies just 'cause they're afraid to get lectured." he turned back to Koharu with a glower of his own, expecting a full on talk about "respecting others" and "being nice".

She was crying.

"The fuck?" Katsuki's exceptional anger melted away at her look; Koharu almost looked hurt, as if it was she he had been threatening. "Why the hell are you crying?!"

"How could you?" Koharu asked softly. "How could you be so mean?"

"Hey, that fucking nerd needs to learn now how the world works; it's not my fault he can't get it through his thick head he can't be a hero. Look at it this, way i'm doing him a favor." Katsuki snorted with an audacious grin; it couldn't be more plain he wasn't taking her seriously. "Come on, stop cryin'. We're gonna go to the arcade today, I'll even treat you-"

"Don't do me any favors." Koharu spat out. "I don't want to go anywhere with you, I've had enough of this…..we're done."

Katsuki just stared as she turned away; he felt steam coming from his hands as he speed walked over to her.

"What the fuck is that supposed to mean?!"

Koharu stopped to face him. "You know, you have all this talent and drive. I used to think you were the best."

Katsuki frowned in confusion, his breakfast flipping around inside his gut; she looked so sad. Koharu was never sad when she was with him. Koharu was his biggest fan, his long time friend, and here she was crying over Deku, telling him to buzz off.

"I always thought that as much of a loud mouth you are, you weren't a bad person." Koharu shook her head at her own foolishness. "God, I thought you were a hero, but Izu-kun's the one who deserves the recognition. He actually cares about other people, he never gives up!" she fought off the ridiculous impulse to smile at the memory of Izuku's ambition, as impossible as it may seem; Koharu could only dream of being that strong. "Quirkless or not, he's better than you'll ever be."

Katsuki was too shocked to yell at her for a moment. "Where the hell is this coming from? First she cozies up to that shit for brains and now she's defending him?!"

"He could never be a hero!" Katsuki growled. "He's just Deku, a good for nothing, Quirkless loser! He'll never get into Yuuei, he'll never be a pro hero, and he'll never be better than me!"

Koharu gave a derisive snort and turned her back on him once more. "Keep telling yourself that."

The sleeve of Koharu's uniform smoked slightly as Katsuki grabbed onto her arm.

"You've got to be fucking kidding me Ko." Katsuki said; he was fixedly staring down at his hand encircling her wrist. "Don't tell me….you actually like that-that-?"

Koharu wrung her arm away from him. "Watch it, you're going to burn me!"

"We're not fucking done here!" Katsuki told her, his teeth gritting together as he tried to keep his Quirk in check. "You just stay away from him!"

"What?!" Koharu asked frowning; Katsuki just clenched his fist, imagining smashing them right in Izuku's face. "How dare he...his head is going to blow up from how big it's getting! Does he really think he can tell me who to hang out with?!"

It made him so angry. Koharu was looking at him like he was an insect, like he was a villain.

"Why?" Katsuki asked himself as he tried to keep control; it's not like he wanted to hurt her; he just didn't get what her problem was. "Why do you always have to stick up for Deku? You were supposed to back me up!"

Koharu wasn't supposed to look at anyone else like that, like she admired them, like they were special.

Like she adored them.

Katsuki growled under his breath; his chest hurt. "Whatever, it's not like it matters! I just need to lay down the law with her, I've been too lenient about her palling around with that damned nerd."

"Stay away from Deku." Katsuki ordered; he looked into Koharu's eyes, his own burning in anger and resolution. He needed it now more than ever. "He doesn't deserve you."

"I don't care about that shit nerd. I meant what I said. I am better than him. I will never, ever give up anything to someone like him! He doesn't deserve her looking at him like that!"

Katsuki's frame was shaking. "Deku doesn't deserve you." he repeated.

Koharu wanted to run away more than anything in that moment, but Katsuki's stare had her floored. "Katsu…"

"But I do!"

Katsuki felt his temper flare up at the tense silence that followed his confession.

"Well? Answer me dammit!"

"Do you even know what you're saying?" Koharu asked him in disbelief; Katsuki was momentarily caught off guard.

"Of course I fucking know, do I look stupid?!" Katsuki retorted impatiently, using bluster to cover up his uncertainty. "I hate it! I hate that you tell me to lay off, like you're in charge of me or something! I hate when you look at him like that, like he shits diamonds or something! It's not right, you're not supposed to look at him like that!"

"Katsu..." Koharu watched somewhat fearfully as he seethed. "I don't think he even realizes what he's implying...does he?" she didn't think he cared about anything other than being a hero and showing off.

"I don't fucking like it and I swear to god Ko, if I catch you looking at him like that again, I'll blow that Quirkless good for nothing to bits until his body is char and ashes!" Katsuki ground out.

"And you have the nerve to call yourself a hero?" Koharu laughed hollowly. "Just stay away from me or I'll report you. Then we'll see how good your chances are of getting into Yuuei!"

Katsuki just stood frozen as she ran away; he was so angry, but he wasn't about to hurt her. No matter how much Koharu lashed out, he couldn't bring himself to retaliate.

"What does it matter, she already hates me." Katsuki glared at the ground; this wasn't part of the plan. She was supposed to look up to him; he was going to go to Yuuei and she would call him her hero.

Koharu was supposed to love him.

Katsuki froze in his tracks. "Shit….."

He was going to kill Izuku.

Katsuki cursed lowly and walked back to his homeroom, but Izuku had already left; he swore the next time he saw him would be his last.

"You're gonna pay Deku, you pathetic wannabe….you're gonna pay for stealing what's mine." Katsuki shot a small explosion into the lockers, arm trembling from having contained himself for so long. He didn't know he had that kind of restraint, but now he couldn't hold it in.

"I'll make you wish you had jumped off the roof."