Well, there was no running away from this situation now. Dabi had told Hawks he was going to be here to meet him, and Rei had overheard. There was no way that she was going to let him leave after that, especially since she had been the one to tell him to call the hero in the first place.

Dabi sighed, taking the last drag from his cigarette before stomping it out under his shoe and heading back inside.

He hadn't said the exact words displaying what he was beginning to feel for Hawks, but it was close enough. He didn't doubt that Hawks made the connection, seeing as the other had just gone on a huge rant about how much he loved Dabi and wanted to spend time with him.

If Dabi was being honest, he liked that.

Sure, he went around saying that he didn't need anyone and certainly didn't need the affection and attention from Hawks, but damn if it didn't feel just as nice as the affection from Rei. They were slowly getting him used to receiving positive interactions and letting people in, although he had a nagging feeling that it was going to turn him into a softy.

He couldn't be soft. Soft people got hurt.

The only way to stop being hurt was to become as hard as his scarred skin and push people away before they had a chance to even think about harming him.

He had tried to do that with Hawks, but that hadn't really worked out. Even though he tried to get Hawks to stop talking to him, stole his stuff, and told him it would never work, Hawks was still there and wanted to talk to Dabi.

That was such a foreign concept to him, and Dabi didn't understand why Hawks would even bother in the first place. Even when he continually told Dabi why he wanted to talk to him and help him and be with him, Dabi still had trouble accepting it.

His horny ass aside, Hawks wanted to be in a romantic relationship with Dabi.

He loved Dabi, and he wanted Dabi to love him back.

He wanted to do cheesy romantic shit with Dabi like cuddle on the couch while watching a movie or make breakfast for each other in the morning while the sunrise came in through the window and sent a soft glow over Hawks' skin as he smiled at Dabi and his honey golden eyes sparkled while watching Dabi make eggs and bacon-

Fuck.

Okay, so maybe Dabi wanted to do cheesy romantic shit with Hawks too.

There wasn't anything wrong with that, was there?

He had a right to do things that normal people could without worrying about things like being labeled as weak or soft because of the other choices he made in his life.

It wasn't his fault that his father was fucked up and beat into him a fear of attachment.

Right?

Hawks said he wasn't a bad person and that he cared about people, which Dabi knew to be true deep down. He just didn't show it because attachment was a weakness and a liability in the villain profession. He didn't know if he wanted to be a villain anymore, really, or just slide under the radar until he found a way to make Enji pay for what he did.

Either way, he was stuck here till Hawks showed up.

Not to look too eager Dabi chose to sit in the living room and watch television quietly instead of waiting visibly for Hawks to show up. Rei was in the kitchen, keeping an ear out for Hawks so that she could let him in and give the two of them some time to talk.

Dabi heard the door open quietly before he heard Hawks' voice, and even though he had planned to stay sitting he found himself getting up to head over to the entryway regardless.

Rei skirted away quickly once she saw Dabi show up, giving him a knowing smile that made Dabi want to role his eyes and scoff. But it felt natural in a weird way, like how a mother and son were supposed to act with each other. It was late, for sure, but he actually had a mother to tease him about his stupid crush now.

Yes, fine, he did like Hawks more than just a work acquaintance or even a friend.

He wasn't sure what his own expression was when he looked over at Hawks, but he didn't have long to think about that before he was suddenly tightly wrapped in Hawks' arms and overwhelmed by his familiar scent. It was distinctly not like Dabi, who seemed to always smell of cigarette smoke and charred skin. It sent Dabi back to the memory of the two of them in Hawks' apartment, curled up under his blankets and tangled together as Dabi sobbed into his chest.

That was the most vulnerable that Dabi had been in a long time, and it was Hawks who saw that side of him.

"You have gotten me into some deep shit, Dabi, but I'm glad you're okay." Hawks pulled away from the hug, and Dabi sucked in a breath as he realized that he hadn't done so when Hawks was so close to him. He caught the smile on Hawks's lips, and returned it with a grin of his own.

"Oh, well, you know me. Fucking shit up for people since day one." Dabi managed a bitter chuckle with that, knowing how much Hawks knew about his situation with his father. But it only prompted Hawks to reach out and grab Dabi's wrist carefully, as if he wanted to prevent him from crossing his arms or pulling away from him.

"Dabi. You know that's not what I meant. Stop pushing me away. I don't think less of you because I got in trouble for letting you out. That was my choice, and I stand by it." Hawks took a step closer to Dabi, who considered backing up but decided against it in the last moment for some reason. His face was inches from Hawks', almost daring him to continue pressing closer to Dabi. Yet, Dabi peeled his eyes away from Hawks and set them on the ground.

"Why? I literally keep making shit worse for you and yet you still decide to come all the way out here and talk to me and I don't understand why-"

Dabi didn't get the chance to finish his counter argument however, being silenced as he felt flesh pressing against his lips. For a flash of a second he thought Hawks' had just gotten fed up with him and slapped a hand over his mouth, but that wasn't the case. Hawks' had decided that the best way to silence Dabi's never ending doubts was to kiss him with his soft lips, which seemed to have done the job well enough.

Aw hell, he was literally thinking about how soft Hawks' lips were against his instead of being concerned that Hawks had just decided to kiss him.

"Because I love you, okay? Is that enough to convince you?" Hawks' breathless words slapped him back to it as Dabi realized that he had pulled back, breaking off the contact. Worst of all, Dabi knew that he liked it.

To hell with this anti-romance shit he was spewing. He leaned in, this time being the first to make contact. He probably tasted like shit to Hawks, with his chapped and scarred lips as well as smoke breath, but he didn't care.

"Yeah, I guess it finally is."