A/N: Wow! An authors note 28 chapters in?!

I just want to give a heads up that there is some racy content in this chapter (and will be in future chapters) but there is nothing explicit. For my regular readers, you might notice that this chapter is out later than usual and the reason for this is that I did do some last minute editing to remove the more graphic content.

I am admittedly in two minds. The image I have of Haruki is that of a unrestrained and uninhibited teenage girl who has had to grow up too fast. I did think about really PGing this story down for the sake of making it more fanfic friendly but I feel like it didn't make sense for me to write a character who is known for her independence and confidence after having grown up without parental authority in the dysfunction of state care to be shy about her sexuality. So with that in mind I've come to a happy medium. I have kept the suggestive themes without the explicit content.

I guess the point I'm trying to make is that if this chapter feels a bit disjointed it's because I literally cut about 1000 words out lmao

Thanks for your understanding.

- Re

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I admit it, curiosity got the better of me. Bakugo had ignored me all afternoon and evening and then he suddenly asks to talk to Midoriya? Something's up and I don't like it. His relationship with Midoriya was sour at the worse of times and often outright aggressive. I couldn't help but be worried for my green haired friend but I was also worried about Bakugo. He wouldn't admit it but he's emotional and easily swayed into anger and despair. I was worried that after having failed the exam he'd do something deliberately self destructive. I'm not about about to let him do something he'd regret. After all he'd done for me I owed him that at least.

So with all this in mind, I activate my quirk and sit near the entry to the dorms out of sight. I knew he'd be meeting up with Midoriya at some point after everyone else went to bed. I'd wait patiently. I would need to be careful careful though. Bakugo's environmental awareness is crazy so I'll need to keep some distance. Hopefully whatever it is he needs to confront Midoriya about is non-violent and I won't have to intervene. If that's the case I want to stay out of it as if I was never there and remain unnoticed.

The two boys meet outside the dorms and start walking. Bakugo doesn't look happy. Midoriya looks nervous. I silently follow my friends by some distance. They're heading out pretty far. I follow them off the footpath, amongst the trees where I can remaining hidden. Where exactly are we going?

Eventually we arrive at Ground Beta. I recognize this is where we first had our combat training at the start of the year. They stopped walking. I duck into an alley way. I was out of sight but close enough to hear them.

"This is where I fought you for the first time and lost," Bakugo said. He turned, glaring at Midoriya.

"You know, you went from quirkless to having this massive power. This whole time you've been getting stronger and stronger, looking so satisfied with yourself," Bakugo spat. I remembered in the quirk assessment he'd said something about believing Midoriya to be quirkless. Midoriya had allegedly developed his quirk very late.

"K-Kacchan I..." Midoriya tries to speak.

"Just shut up and listen asshole. I've been thinking about what you said back at the start of the year... about your borrowed power. You got it from All Might didn't you?" He spat. I furrow my eyebrows. What does he mean he got it from All Might? I had noticed that Midoriya's quick, which in essence was a strength enhancer, was similar to All Mights. But to inherit a quirk? That's impossible right?

"That time after we escaped from that villain who kidnapped Nakashima-chan and I... All Might said, 'you're next'. You interpreted that differently to everyone else," Bakugo said. A silence sat between the two boys.

I felt on edge as I listened. It's true that when we watched All Might on those screens back at the Kamino Incident Midoriya and Bakugo had reacted differently to the rest. Midoriya's trembling words from the incident rang in my mind.

'His secret...' he'd said. I remember taking his hand in mind as he tearfully watched the battle. The significance of this hadn't really made it's impact until now. I feel myself tense up as I listen to the confrontation between my two friends. To have All Mights power though... that's still a stretch right? I listen, waiting for Midoriya to deny the accusation.

"W-what are you going to do with this information?" Midoriya asks. He didn't deny it. I bring a hand to my mouth. Is this real? Have I just become witness to incredible secret?

"I'm going to fight you and find out what All Might found so special about you," Bakugo growled.

Much to Midoriya's dismay Bakugo flew at him, aiming explosions right at him. He was not holding back. Bakugo continued screaming at Midoriya, demanding to know why All Might recognised him.

"Why did All Might recognise your aspirations?! Does that mean mine were wrong?" I hear Bakugo shout. My stomach clenches. What are you saying Bakugo? I watch carefully. I had intended to stop Bakugo if he'd attacked Midoriya but having now heard this secret I'm not sure if I should step in and expose myself.

"Why did I have to be the reason for All Mights end?" He cries. I clench my teeth. I hear the strain in his voice. My heart aches.

"If I had been stronger none of this would have ever happened. If I hadn't been kidnapped by that damn magicians quirk he wouldn't have at to rescue me. I-I tried to keep it a secret, not think about it but all it would take is the slightest slip and it could all start coming out," he cried. I fall back down the side of the wall. I pull my knees close to my chest.

How dare he say all that after what he said to me. He told me there was nothing I could do. And yet he's been holding onto this the whole time? The fucking hypocrite.

"I have no idea what I should do..." he chokes out.

After hearing his words Midoriya is no longer holding back. I hold myself, listening to them fight. I could still try to interrupt them but it sounds like Bakugo needs this.

The fight is hardcore. I maintain cover. If I'm honest with myself with the way they are fighting I might even die if I go out there now. They fly high into the air and then slam into the ground. Suddenly Bakugo has maneuvered on top of Midoriya, kneeling on his thighs. He has a hand shoved into his face, ready to explode.

"That's quite enough you two." I hear the boom of All Mights voice. I cover my mouth again to suppress a gasp. So All Might was here watching as well? I can't see him yet but I listen carefully for his reaction.

"All Might!" The two boys exclaim in unison.

"I took the liberty of eavesdropping. Young Bakugo, I chose Midoriya because I felt it was my responsibility to help him stand in this arena of heroes," All Might explained.

"But I'm weak... and now you're like this," Bakugo choked out. I watch All Mights skeletal body comes into the light.

"You are strong Young Bakugo but you obsess over victory. And you Midoriya, you focus to much on the rescue. If you honestly recognise each other you could both become strong heroes at both," All Might says. Bakugo collapses to the ground next to Midoriya, holding his head in his hands.

"Besides you and Deku, who else knows about this?" Bakugo asks. He sounds despondent. It concerns me greatly.

"Principal Nezu and Recovery Girl. Amongst the students... only you," All Might said.

"Well since you're trying to hide it I won't go blabbering it like Deku, okay? This secret stays with us," Bakugo says. I lean my head back against the wall of the alley behind me. I'll keep my mouth shut as well.

All Might escorts the two boys back to the dorms. I follow silently behind, keeping my distance. Aizawa receives them at the door. From what I can see from the shadows beyond the dorms he looks furious. Bakugo looks resigned to his forthcoming punishment.

It's been a big day for him. Mentally I'm sure he's not doing well right now. I think about getting back to my room but the truth is that I really wanted to see to Bakugo. I want to make sure he's okay. I wanted to give him the same reassurance he'd given me.

We shared an experience by being kidnapped. I was angry that he had lectured me about not blaming myself for All Mights defeat. Yet all this time, even with what he'd said to me, he had considered himself at fault for what happened. I was torn. On one hand I want to beat the shit out of him but I also want to take that anxiety away from him as he'd done for me. He looked defeated after fighting Midoriya. Even more so he looked despondent at having not been the one All Might chose. He was plenty strong but after that confrontation combined with his failure at the exam I'm not sure if he knew this.

With all this weighing on me I walk around to exterior of the dorms to the boys. I look up. Bakugo's on the 5th floor, second from the right. I count the windows up to his room. I find the one I'm looking for. I scale up the side of the building as quietly as I can, reaching his balcony. I hop over the railing. I check the sliding door. It's unlocked.

I step inside, slipping my shoes off, placing them near the balcony door. He's not back yet from his lecture with Aizawa. I slide the door shut I walk over to his bed, sitting on it. Some time passes. After a while I hear him jangle his keys as he unlocks his door. It opens and our eyes meet. He stares at me surprised.

"Nakashima-chan... what the fuck? How the fuck did you..." he started.

"I wanted to see you, Bakugo-kun," I say. I stand up. "You were ignoring me this afternoon after the exam and your balcony door was unlocked so I let myself in."

Bakugo closed the door behind him. He walked into the room and sat on the edge of the bed, hunched forward with his forearms resting on his knees. I turn to face him. He looked down at his hands, refusing to make eye contact with me. He looked utterly defeated.

"I don't need you to baby me, Nakashima-chan." He growled. I roll my eyes.

"Please, I'm not here to baby you," I reply. I step in closer to him. I'm not good with words. The last thing I'd do is try to comfort him by telling him 'everything would be alright'. Even if I tried it wouldn't come out the way I intend.

"Then get to the point already so you can leave me alone," he commanded. I move in front of him crouching down to get a look at his face. It's bruised from his fight. His expression is contorted with frustration. I choose to by straightforward with him.

"I saw your fight with Midoriya-kun," I say softly. He looked at me, shocked.

"How much did you hear?" He growled. I looked into his piercing red eyes. I felt captured by them.

"Everything," I say.

"All Might..." he started.

"... passed his power to Midoriya-kun. The secrets safe with me," I say lowly.

I'm really not good at comforting people with words. When I think of it though, there's nothing I can really say to him that All Might hadn't said already. I think anything I say would just be frustrating for him. What I can do for him though is be close to him.

I liked Bakugo. In fact I really liked him. I knew this ever since he'd let me hug him back when we first moved into the dorms. Fuck, I knew even as far back as when we'd first been going to our internships I was at least attracted to him. At first I found him more entertaining than anything else but we'd grown close. Sure, he was angry and obnoxious but I knew from experience there was a good person underneath all that. I wanted to be closer to that side of him. I think of his flushed face and the times he'd been kind to me. Even at the exam he was trying to help me out, right? He'd shown me kindness to indicate he felt the same about me didn't he?

I'm now kneeling on the floor in front of him, I lean in closely until I'm centimetres from his face. His eyes widen. He places a hand firmly on my shoulder, stopping me from getting any closer. I feel my heart pounding in my chest.

"What are you doing?" He asks lowly. He hadn't immediately pushed me away which I took as a good sign. His face was flushed. I could feel his breath on my cheek.

"Making you feel better," I whisper. I lean forward, capturing his lips with mine. They were warmer and felt softer than I expected. He sat frozen, hand still firmly on my shoulder. When he didn't respond to the kiss I pulled back. His face was still flushed but his expression was unreadable to me. I paused for a few moments. Fuck. I guess he wasn't into that after all.

"Ah, I think I misjudged things a bit," I say, laughing nervously. I move backwards after a few moments to stand up but Bakugo grabs my forearm, drawing me back roughly. I gasp but it's muffled when he crashes his lips back into mine.

He moves his hands to my waist, pulling me in close to his body. His kisses were aggressive and greedy. I manoeuvred myself on top of him, straddling him as he remained on the edge of the bed. I ran my tongue over his bottom lip, prompting him to let me in. I run my hands up his back. I hear a soft rumble from the back of his throat when I do this. I smile into the kiss. Bakugo holds me close, wrapping his arms around me. Eventually I break the away, resting my forehead against his. His breath hitched. The atmosphere had become hot and heavy in nearly no time.

I lean my head into his neck, kissing him slowly from beneath his ear down to his collarbone, being careful not to leave any marks or put pressure on his injuries. I lick along his collarbone, prompting him to hum softly. He brings his hand to the back of my head.

"You've done this before, haven't you?" he asks huskily. Is this jealousy? I go to lean back but he holds my head firmly in his hand, keeping me in the nape of his neck. He moves his other hand up my side against my skin. His fingers trace the scar he'd given me at the last semesters exams, making my heart flutter.

"Yeah," I reply softly. I kiss his neck lightly. "Does that bother you?"

"With Shindou-senpai?" He asks.

"No," I reply. He inhales and exhales deeply. He brings my face back to his, kissing me deeply. I break away, looking into his eyes.

"Are you feeling better?" I ask quietly. A light sheen could be seen on his skin. I watched his chest rise and fall with each breath.

"I'm feeling fucking worked up," he growled lowly. I smirked and ran my fingers down his chest and stomach. I slowed as I got lower, giving him a moment to refuse if he wanted me to stop. Instead he leaned forward, kissing my neck.

It hadn't been my intention to let things go as far as they did. Truly, I just wanted to experience the feeling of being in his arms again and give him something to distract him from the anguish he felt. I couldn't resist the urge though and Bakugo did nothing by half measures. It seemed once we were started he had no intention of stopping and I was happy to oblige. He held me tightly as we moved on his bed, staying as quiet as possible, ending with a shudder.

"That was something," he said breathlessly. He collapsed backwards on his bed, his legs still hanging off the side. I pushed myself to my feet. I looked over him and his injured body. I felt some guilt.

"Well, I hope I made you little better," I say, neatening my appearance. I sit back onto the bed next to his collapsed body. He grunted a confirmation of this, a blush still present on his cheeks. I smiled. I really liked the way he looked when he blushed. I ran my fingers down his forearm to his hand. He laced his fingers between my own. My heart thumped in my chest. It seemed unlike him to act so affectionately. I reluctantly pull away my hand as I stand up.

"I should probably go," I say. He pushes himself up to watch me as I slip my shoes on.

"Whatever, Seaweed Head," he replies. His voice isn't as harsh as it is normally. I can't help but grin at the nickname. Once upon a time I would have been offended at that.

"Hey, Bakugo-kun... do me a favour?" I ask. He shoots me an annoyed expression. "Take your own advice and don't blame yourself for All Mights retirement. Okay?"

He shifts his gaze and doesn't respond. I guess it wasn't easy for him. I won't push it.

"G'night," I say. I quietly slip out his balcony door. I jumped down the side of the building, landing on the ground with a quiet thud.

I make my back up to my own room, collapsing into my bed when I do.

I was under no illusions. What I had done with Bakugo tonight was purely a favour on a physical level. I couldn't deny that I wanted more though. I think he did too but I can tell he's sorting through a lot. After he exam and his confrontation with Midoriya tonight wasn't the time to ask for more. He needed to sort through his thoughts.

I'm not sure how long this will take but for him I would wait.