5. Kurage Awako
She moved her gaze upward.
3. Bakugou Katsuki
Her hands tightened into fists and she felt a rage begin to bubble up from the pit of her stomach. She felt light-headed and her temples began to throb over and over of the exertion. She took long gulps from her canteen to calm her burning throat.
She choked on the water.
"Awako-chan are you okay?" Tsuyu asked, tilting her head up to look at Awako's face. Awako wiped her mouth and tried to calm herself down from her coughing fit. Her face was a burning red from both the coughing and the looks people were giving her for making so much noise. Specifically Katsuki.
"Wanko," he began, taking a step towards her. The leer she gave him made him stop dead in his tracks.
Tsuyu had began to rub her back softly, saying "Maybe you should go to the nurse's office, Awako-chan."
Quickly she waved her hand at Tsuyu, saying "I'm okay. Really! The water just went down the wrong pipe."
When she caught Izuku eyeing her she waved her hands again, saying "Honest. I'm fine."
Aizawa turned to look at the both of them, handing them two slips of paper. "Here, both of you. Have Recovery Girl fix you up. Tomorrow's challenges won't be any easier."
They took the slips of paper, looking at one another.
She caught Katsuki's glare before they left.
"He really is weird," Awako said to Izuku as they headed to Recovery Girl's office. "But I think he'll be a good teacher. "
Aizawa didn't even seem to bat an eyelash at her name, another person to add to her growing list of people.
She looked over to Izuku and eyed his finger before asking "Does it hurt? It must be so hard to deal with your quirk manifesting so late…"
Izuku seemed to grow nervous, laughing a little as he said "O-Oh, well, just a little." He looked away and scratching the back of his head, saying "It'll just take some practice is all."
She nodded, but stopped when she felt herself become dizzy. Izuku reached out to steady her, saying "Boy, you really gave it your all today, Awa-chan."
"Yeah...I….uh," she mumbled, looking to the side and rubbing her arm," Wanted to beat Kacchan."
His eyes nearly bugged out of his head at her words.
"You two are still fighting!" he accused her. Awako felt her face begin to burn and she brought her hands to her stomach.
"I...haven't spoken to him since the mud villain incident," she finally said, looking down at her feet. Izuku looked even more surprised.
Awako rubbed the back of her neck, saying "I guess...I just…"
She stopped.
"I guess I just want Kacchan to see me as something more than just…"
Over-exertion had her thoughts jumbled at this point. She felt like a mess. What did she want Kacchan to see her as?
"I just…"
Why were they fighting?
"I…"
She placed a hand on her face, suddenly feeling very small.
"Awa-chan?" Izuku said, looking concerned. "Come on, let's just get to the nurse's office, okay?" he said, gently touching her arm with his good hand.
By the time she finished with Recovery Girl she had seen that everyone had left for the day. She trudged her way to the classroom, sliding the door open as she rubbed her eye.
Katsuki was waiting for her.
She closed the door.
He had slid it back open in an instant, a scowl on his face as he thrust her bag out at her. She was reeling at this, looking from the bag to him and back again. A year ago she would be the one waiting eagerly for him to get out of class. She would be so excited to ask him about class or to tell him a new idea she had for a bracelet even though she knew he could care less.
He remained silent, staring at her as he waited for her to take her bag from him. There was no getting out of this, she thought, finally taking it from him and slinging it over her shoulders.
His eyes ran over her pale face, her bushy hair tied up in a bun on her head. She had bags under her eyes and seemed to be more tired than she was after the tests.
Good thing for Katsuki this made her too tired to run away from him. So instead she stared back at him, minutes of silence ticking by.
"Say something!" he finally snapped at her, causing her to jump a little. She could nearly see steam coming off of his body.
"L-Like?" she asked, taking a step back.
"Anything!" he exclaimed, throwing up his hands. "You bracelets! Homework! What you had for lunch! Anything, Wanko!"
She stared at him, her eyes nearly bugging out of her head. Bakugou Katsuki was begging for her to speak to him. He actually...cared...about what she talked to him about.
Shuffling her feet for a moment she finally said in a tiny voice "I want to go home. I'm tired."
He watched her before rubbing his neck.
"Then let's go home, stupid."
The walk to the train station seemed to take forever. The silence seemed to be deafening as both of them didn't speak a word to one another. He kept his eye on her, stopping whever she teetered on her feet, yet looking away everytime she looked over at him.
The ride home was even quieter. They were the only two in the train car and the silent hum of it on the tracks was the only noise between them.
Awako refused to sit with Katsuki, wavering on her feet as she held onto the pole. He leered up at her, his arms crossed and his trademark pout on his face. She was nodding off, and he shot up to catch her as she nearly fell over.
"Sit down, idiot," he grumbled in her ear. Her face turned pink and she was too tired to fight him this time so she took a seat beside him, pouting herself. She hugged her bag close to her as he began to fidget in his seat. He took peeks outside the window before moving his gaze to her. He'd turn his head quickly, tapping his foot and running his hand through his blonde spikes.
"Say something," he finally mumbled.
She was silent at first before finally asking, "Did you really mean it?"
He looked over to her.
"Do you really not need me?" she continued, looking back at him.
It was his turn to be quiet now,.
"Katsuki," she said softly, making him flinch back. She never called him by his real name. Not even when she was mad. Not since they were kids. He couldn't help but think back.
They were only seven years old. He was walking home from school when he saw them. Awako was crumpled on the ground. She had bruises and scratches all over her body. From her nose leaked blood.
His eyes widened.
He was well aware of who Kurage Awako was. He even bullied her himself a few times. But he never took it this far. He never hurt her this...bad.
Her cheeks were streaked with tears and she was begging for the bullies to stop. He saw one raise a large rock.
"Hey!" he shouted before he could stop himself. His palms were crackling and he was rushing at them in an instant. He threw fire-cracker punches wildly, taking a few hits himself and getting a black eye and bloodied nose. He remembered his mother bitched at him for days after the ordeal until she had seen Awako, who was much worse off.
When it was just the two of them he held her hand as he wiped the dirt from her face with the sleeve of his shirt.
"They're all fucking stupid. Stick up for yourself, dumbass," he said as he tugged her in the direction of her home. It had changed awhile back, and he remembered his mom saying something about custody going to her Dad. Whatever that meant. What happened to her mom? He decided to ask Awako next time.
"Katsuki," she whimpered, "Am I a monster?"
"Don't be so stupid. You're more like a puppy dog than a monster! I should call you Wanko instead," he declared, giving her his trademark smirk.
"You're so cool, Katsuki," she said, stars in her eyes as she looked at him. He swore they shone brighter than the ones in the sky.
"You should become a hero! I bet you can become the best," she chirped, wrapping her arms around him in a hug. His face turned red and he pushed her away, looking to the side.
"I don't need you!"
The memory of his own words snapped him out of his thoughts. How long had he spaced out for?
He heard the overhead speaker chime their stop.
"Katsuki," Awako repeated. Katsuki felt sweat form at the back of his neck. They walked silently out of the station and towards Awako's home, both looking away from one another. The sky had began to turn orange.
Awako watched the clouds.
In a sad way she was glad that he didn't answer her. What would she do then if he said he meant it? But she knew he could go on to become the greatest hero without her. Then what would she do? What would become of her then?
A flash of grey eyes that resembled her's crossed her mind and she stopped mid-step.
"Awako, are you good or bad?"
Katsuki stopped, turning to look at her. Her face was white as a sheet and she trembled slightly.
"Wanko," he said, reaching to grab her wrist. He tugged it gently, trying to get her to walk again. When she followed after him her turned away from her, keeping his hold on her wrist. She stared at his back, her gaze focusing on his broad shoulders as they walked. She focused on his calloused hands, warm against her clammy skin. She felt something stir deep inside of her and the tips of her ears begin to burn.
His grip seemed firm on her wrist now and his pace began to slow down as they turned down Awako's street. They stopped infront of her home, looking at one another for a long time.
He never let go of her wrist.
Then, hesitating at first, he let her go. He walked past her, slipping his hands into his pockets.
She watched him until she couldn't see him anymore and then headed inside.
She awoke from a nap an hour later when she heard her dad call her down for dinner. She took a plate of food upstairs with her to her room, placing it on her desk. Then she gracefully tripped over her backpack, kicking the contents out of it. She heard something slide underneath her bed.
Muttering a few choice curses she hopped slightly, holding her foot. She almost felt tears prickling her eyes as she stared down at the mess she made. What a day.
Then she simply went to work picking everything up and putting it back into her bag. She did a double take when she saw she had all of her things.
What slid under her bed?
She got on her knees, reaching beneath her bed and patting around.
Shoes, clothes, a box.
There, got it.
She pulled it out, looking at her palm.
"My...bracelet?" she said to herself, her eyes widening slightly. The braid was crooked and mix-matched yet the beads themselves were patterned even nicer than when she did them. She could tell that care was put into laying them out. She raised it to the light, watching as they sparkled nicely still. That's when she noticed something dangling from it.
She let out a tiny gasp, covering her mouth.
A tiny cartoon Shiba Inu head hung from her bracelet, smiling at her. It was as big a her fingernail and made of metal.
She slipped it on her wrist, moving to sit on her bed. She fell to the side, smiling wide as she held her hand out. She felt a warmth course through her body and it felt like bubbles were popping all over. Maybe this showed her the answer after all.
"I don't need you!"
She frowned, slipping off the bracelet and putting it on her nightstand. She turned over in her bed, wrapping herself in her blankets.
That night she dreamt of calloused hands on her face and the smell of soot.