Author's Note: This chapter is unedited, I apologize for typos/grammar errors. Please enjoy!
Song Inspiration: Heaven by Kane Brown
TWENTY-NINE | HEAVEN
The pain in Ochaco's chest was a result of the stress and worry swelling within her. She needed to calm down, but the thought of Bakugo dying had her rattled. Everything had happened so quickly and so slowly at the same time. One minute she was asleep, the next she heard loud crashes and bangs. All the students were trying to figure out what was happening, but until they knew what was going on she and Momo had to get them back in their rooms.
After five minutes of getting everyone to calm down, she noticed Amaya had been missing. She hadn't been in her room either, so she raced downstairs to the cafeteria, but all the entrances had been iced off. At first, she took it as a sign that Todoroki had things under control, but after some explosions and screeching, she thought otherwise.
Those moments standing on the other side of the ice wall had been the longest seconds of her life. She heard more bangs and crashes. Bakugo had shouted and Todoroki had as well. Soon All Might and Dr. Yamaguchi had come down to join her while Present Mic and Momo kept the students upstairs.
When everything subsided, Ochaco noticed an orange glow on the ice wall. Todoroki called out from the other side, saying Bakugo had been severely injured. By that point, it was as though the ground had disappeared. Panic, fear, and distress overtook her. Her body trembled, her heart raced in her chest, and her stomach was doing flips.
After a minute, the ice had melted away and Ochaco swore she had stopped breathing. Bakugo lay on the floor, blood pooling around him, face pale and eyes closed. Dr. Yamaguchi wasted no time. She ordered for them to get an airlift out of there. Ochaco couldn't make sense of any of it. She stood frozen as Bakugo faded further and further away.
All Might called for an emergency evacuation, ordering them to arrive as soon as possible. Todoroki ran across the room and cradled Amaya in his arms. She was in bad shape too, but had been nowhere near as bad as Bakugo.
Dr. Yamaguchi assessed that Bakugo's lung had been punctured and that he was drowning in his own blood. Never in her life had Ochaco ever been so scared. It was in that moment she realized how important Bakugo had become to her. He was a friend, a good friend, someone she truly trusted with her life. However, seeing him unconscious, bleeding out, life fading away...she came to understand that she loved him.
Ochaco pushed the thoughts from her mind. Dr. Yamaguchi by some sort of miracle bought him some time, at least enough to get him to the hospital. Unfortunately, Ochaco hadn't been able to go with them in the helicopter, but when they arrived at the hospital the nurses told them he was still in surgery and Dr. Yamaguchi was working on him.
They had been in surgery for almost seven hours. Ochaco's back hurt from sitting hunched over in the chair. Her eyes were bleary, most definitely puffy, and her mind had been clouded with negative thoughts. The girl who was known for being positive and cheerful had been broken. She raked her fingers through her hair and leaned back in her seat, staring across the waiting room.
Todoroki and Momo were seated across from her. On the sleeve of his hero costume, there were several stains of blood. Ochaco looked away and glanced down the long corridor, hoping to see Dr. Yamaguchi. All Might and Present Mic along with several other pros had all the students taken back to UA's campus. They both said they'd come by after getting all the kids settled in.
According to the clock on the wall it was just about to be eight in the morning. Ochaco watched the second had tick by, nurses scuttled by, doctors in their white coats floated like ghosts. The phones rang, visitors asked for directions, some were taken to private rooms to be given the worst news in their life. Ochaco gripped the armrests of the chair tightly. She wondered who would tell Bakugo's mother and father if he didn't make it. How did one even begin to tell someone their child preceded them in death?
A single tear rolled down her cheek and dripped onto her lap. She was still in her pajamas and she refused to change or go anywhere until she knew how Bakugo was. He had to live. It was Bakugo! He had been through much worse; this was nothing. She sniffled and buried her fast in her hands, rubbing her swollen, tired eyes.
Ochaco had been so lost in her own thoughts, she jumped when Momo crouched in front of her and placed a hand on her knee. "Sorry," Momo said in a soft voice and offered up a small smile. "How are you holding up?"
"I'm worried," she admitted, leaning back in her seat. "I don't know how, but Bakugo has managed to worm his way into my heart."
Momo took a seat on the chair beside Ochaco and took her hand, giving it a comforting and reassuring squeeze. "He's going to be okay. Bakugo's resilient and always has been."
Ochaco nodded stiffly. Resilience even gave in sometimes. Being stabbed in the chest and through the spine would take more than resilience alone. She closed her eyes, willing all those negative thoughts away; they wouldn't do her any good. Nor did they help Bakugo.
"I was going to ask if we could go see Amaya, would you like to come?" Momo asked.
Ochaco wanted to say no. She didn't want to leave the waiting room until she heard from Dr. Yamaguchi. At the same time, Bakugo had gotten hurt trying to protect Amaya. She bit the inside of her cheek and glanced back down the hall, still no signs of the doctor. It would probably do her some good to stretch her legs, maybe get a coffee on her way back. Just for a few minutes.
"Shoto will stay here just in case," Momo said as she stood and held her hand out. "We'll be back in ten minutes. Come on."
She wanted to say no, but her hand took Momo's and she got up. It felt good to stand. Momo nodded and pulled her along toward the nurses station around the corner. Three nurses were behind the desk, flipping through paper work, answering phones, and typing away on the computer. Despite the early hour, they were already hard at work. Had things been different, Ochaco would be hard at work too. They'd be doing morning workouts with the students, running through the forest and hills.
Momo stepped up to the counter and greeted the nurse in the mint green scrubs. "Would it be possible for us to visit Amaya Goda?"
The nurse clicked around on the computer for a moment, but Ochaco had her eyes locked on the surgical wing doors. Still no one had come through to let them know what was going on. She wasn't the type to worry so much, but seeing Bakugo half dead…
"She hasn't woken up yet, but she's stable if you would like to sit with her. She's in room 225, right down the hall." The nurse pointed to the hall around the corner, which would take them even further from the surgical wing.
"Thank you," Momo said with a smile and made her way around the corner.
Ochaco shook her head and followed. She needed to clear her mind for a little bit, if she worried any further, she'd give herself an ulcer. Dr. Yamaguchi was by far one of the most skilled doctors in all of Japan and her healing quirk was considered to be one of the very best. She had to put her faith in her.
They ventured down the hall, passing other patient rooms and a few gurneys out in the hall. When they reached the end, Momo pointed to the door with the number plate 225 next to it. She peered through the window in the door and slid it open. The rhythmic beep of the heart monitor was the only sound. Ochaco closed the door as Momo walked to the edge of Amaya's bed.
Her head had been wrapped in bandages and her bloodied clothes had long since been removed, leaving her in a simple off-white hospital gown. It was as if she were sleeping, her long purple locks splayed along the pillow. She had dark bruises on her neck as though she had been choked. Ochaco frowned. Amaya's injuries were worse than she thought. Her lip was busted and swollen, her arm had been placed in a cast, and though Ochaco couldn't see her whole body, she imagined it was banged up. Todoroki gave an incident report to AU, the police, and the HPSC and stated when they found Amaya the whole room had been in a disarray.
"She has no family," Momo said, her eyes still on Amaya. "She got into UA thanks to Iida's agency."
Ochaco nodded. She remembered that, and it made it so much sadder. "She's such a soft spoken girl. Since we've met her I think she's said all of five words to me."
"She's super smart," Momo said with a chuckle. "I gave her an IQ puzzle to solve, she scored a 141. I was blown away by it."
"That's amazing," Ochaco agreed and walked over to the window. The blinds were closed. She opened them up to light in some sunlight. "Her combat skills are decent, nothing to write home about."
"It takes time, they're still kids. We weren't much better than them when we were their age." Momo looked at Ochaco. "You and Bakugo. Is there something going on?"
Ochaco licked her lips and shrugged. "I don't know."
Momo's brow furrowed. "What?"
"Maybe," Ochaco replied, meeting her friend's gaze. "I care about him a lot. More than a friend."
Momo smiled. "I'm glad."
"I guess that's why I'm so worried and scared."
"It's going to be okay."
"I hope so."
Momo was about to speak, but fell silent when the door to the room rolled open. They both looked to the entrance to find Yudai standing at the threshold.
He froze, staring at both of them, clearly surprised that they were in the room. After a few seconds, he cleared his throat and rubbed the back of his neck. "Good morning, Ms. Uravity and Ms. Creati."
"Yudai? What are you doing here?" Momo asked.
"I came with All Might and Present Mic. I begged them to let me come. I know Amaya doesn't have any family, so I wanted to be here for her when she woke up." Yudai stepped into the room and closed the door quietly. "How is Mr. Ground Zero?"
"He's still in surgery," Ochaco said in a sad voice.
"Is he going to be okay?"
Ochaco couldn't bring herself to answer, because she honestly didn't know. Before the helicopter arrived, Dr. Yamaguchi stated that not only had his lung been punctured, but part of his spine had been damaged as well. She said that without opening him up in surgery there was no way to know how bad it would be. That alone had Ochaco sick to her stomach.
"Dr. Yamaguchi is doing everything she can for him," Momo said. "He's in good hands, so all we can do is hope."
"They said a monster attacked, a lizard thing, was it someone's quirk? A villian?" Yudai asked. Clearly, the teachers hadn't told them much about what had happened.
"We don't know," Momo replied with a shake of her head. "There's a lot of unanswered questions."
"Amaya was finally starting to open up." Yudai walked over to her bed and sat on the edge, staring at her sleeping face. He frowned and tousled his mohawk around before looking back at Ochaco and Momo. "This trip was the first time she really started talking to the others. She mostly kept to herself, but I always pestered her to hang out with the rest of us. She warmed up to me, but...she really didn't need this."
Listening to him, it warmed Ochaco's heart. In a way it reminded her of how Kirishima used to force Bakugo to come and hang out with the class. He'd barge into his dorm room and drag him into the common room to play games, to watch movies, whatever they were doing he made sure Bakugo was around. Yudai seemed like a genuine person and that would be exactly what Amaya would need given her tragic past.
"She'll be okay," Ochaco said after a few moments of silence passed between them. "A good friend is all she needs, so be that for her."
Yudai nodded. "I will."
"Good," Ochaco said with a smile then looked to Momo. "We should head back, maybe they have news about Bakugo."
Momo agreed and said they'd come back in a little while to check in. Yudai thanked them both and waved as they exited the room. Ochaco went straight down the hall, not waiting for Momo, ignoring all the hustle and bustle around her. She hoped and prayed that Dr. Yamaguchi had finished or that someone from in the operating room had come out to give an update.
When Ochaco rounded the corner, her heart stopped as her eyes fell onto Dr. Yamaguchi coming from the double doors of the surgical wing. She was still in her scrubs, mask still covering her face. Ochaco took a deep breath and marched forward, hoping and praying that Dr. Yamaguchi had saved his life. Just as she reached the waiting room area, she pulled off her mask, her face unreadable.
Todoroki, All Might, and Present Mic all came forward to meet her. Ochaco stood beside All Might and ignored everything else. The only thing she wanted to know was if Bakugo had made it out alive.
"He flatlined twice," Dr. Yamaguchi stated firmly, looking at everyone before her. "He's alive, but in critical condition. The next twenty-four hours will be crucial. If he makes it through this, I expect him to make a full recovery."
Ochaco let out a breath of relief and placed a hand on her chest. "Thank goodness."
"He needs to take it easy, his spinal column was badly injured. My quirk repaired it, but the reality is it still needs time to heal. I'm not a god. If he overdoes it too soon, he may very well damage it again and be paralyzed from the neck down."
"You might need to lock him up somewhere then," All Might said with a small laugh. "Young Bakugo has never learned the meaning of the words: take it easy."
Ochaco had to agree. Bakugo went zero to a hundred in the blink of an eye.
-xXx-
Tension and soreness radiated from the center of Bakugo's chest. Something similar to a bone being bent and then snapped in town. And he'd broken enough bones in his lifetime to know that sharpness and ache. His eyes took a few seconds to adjust to the fluorescent lights shining down on him. He turned his head only to be met with the blinding light of the morning sun. Why did they have to leave the blinds open in the first place?
Along with the soreness and pain strumming through his body, stiffness had his limbs stuck in place. It was as though he hadn't moved in days or weeks. Then it flooded back into his mind, that lizard monster had pierced through his armor and chest like he was a stick of butter. A rhythmic beeping sound came from behind him on his left and an uncomfortable pricking rubbed against his left hand. He glanced down, IV drip hooked in along with some other wires and tubes.
Well, at least he was alive. Or the afterlife had a very strange sense of humor.
The door of his room slid open. Kamui Woods stood in the threshold, holding his son in his arms. It had been six or seven months since Bakugo had seen his kid, who just so happened to be a huge fan of him. As it should be, Bakugo was on the track to becoming the number one hero after all, the kid clearly had good taste.
"I told you he'd be awake!" Yukio beamed, tapping his father's shoulder. "Ground Zero would never die because of a stupid lizard."
Bakugo chuckled. "Damn straight, kid."
Kamui let Yukio down. He was a mess of shaggy blond hair and he always had a gleam of mischief in his purple eyes. The five-year-old ran across the room and climbed onto the bed, sitting close to Bakugo, examining him closely.
"What's the prognosis, kid?" Bakugo asked as Yukio tapped his chin.
"Two more days of bed rest, then you'll be saving the world again," Yukio replied with a toothy grin.
"If that's what the doctor says."
"Well, maybe just one day," Yukio whispered, then glanced at Kamui before leaning in closer. "Between you and me, I think you could get out now."
Bakugo smiled and ruffled Yukio's hair.
Kamui stood at the foot of the bed, eying Bakugo for a moment. "How do you feel?"
"Sore, but I can manage. How long have I been out?"
"Almost four days."
Bakugo blinked then ran his fingers through his hair. Almost four days. He couldn't believe it, but then again he took a spear more or less through the chest. His hand drifted to his chest. Bandages wrapped around his torso and over his shoulder. Clearly he had been lucky to survive such an attack.
"What about the others?" Bakugo asked, turning his attention back to Kamui Woods. "Icyhot? Plum?"
"Todoroki is fine and I'm assuming Plum is Amaya Goda? She's okay too, she is being released from the hospital today."
"Do we know what happened?"
Kamui Woods shook his head. "Not exactly. We're not sure how that thing you fought got into the lodge undetected. Yaoyorozu and Todoroki are working on that."
Yukio sat quietly on the edge of the bed, his head ping ponging between the two of them as they spoke. He kicked off his shoes and turned his whole body toward Bakugo, crossing his legs beneath him. "Uravity's worried about you."
Bakugo blinked. "Did you tell her who I was and that I wouldn't die because of a stupid lizard?"
Yukio chuckled and gave him a thumbs up. "You bet, I did!"
"Yukio go get Dr. Yamaguchi," Kamui Woods said. "You remember where her office is?"
"Yeah." Yukio gave his dad a thumbs up and scooted off the bed, slipping his shoes back on. He ran over to the door and flung it open. Kamui scolded him for being too reckless, commanding him to walk in the halls and not run. Yukio apologized and closed the door, leaving the two of them alone which is exactly what Bakugo figured his boss wanted.
Kamui walked over to the window and leaned back against the seal, resting his elbows on the lip. "You're very lucky," he said in a firm voice. "You flatlined, twice. I know this isn't your fault, but—"
"I'm not stepping down from the case, if that's what you're asking."
Kamui scoffed. "I'm your superior, Katsuki Bakugo."
Bakugo rolled his eyes and stared straight ahead at the boring white wall with the simple blue stripe going around the room. He knew he was lucky. That lizard pierced through his chest and clean through his back. It was even more luck that Dr. Yamaguchi had been on the scene otherwise things would have been very different. Bakugo rubbed the back of his neck and glanced at Kamui. "It's been four days since this happened," he gestured to his bandaged chest, "have the others returned?"
"Team Eraserhead returns in a couple of hours. Kirishima had to be hospitalized for a couple of days."
Bakugo's eyes widened. "Is he okay?"
Kamui nodded. "Yeah, he's going to be fine."
"When are we debriefing with everyone?"
"In a couple of days."
"Are you taking me off the case?" Bakugo locked eyes with Kamui, knowing full well that he wanted to. And in a way that worried Bakugo, because he didn't want to have gone through all this bullshit only to be kicked off when they were finally getting somewhere.
Kamui sighed and rubbed his temples. "Even if I did, I doubt you'd stay out of it."
Bakugo chuckled. "You said it yourself, this is a career defining case. I've put too much into it to stop now. And honestly, these bastards have really pissed me off."
A knock sounded from the door and it slid open, revealing Dr. Yamaguchi and Yukio trailing behind her. He ran over to the bed and jumped on it, little legs dangling off the edge as he kicked off his shoes and folded his legs beneath him. Bakugo smirked, Yukio was something else, he'd watched that kid grow up.
Dr. Yamaguchi smiled at Bakugo and joined them closer to the bed. A stethoscope hung around her neck, hands stuffed into the pocket of her white coat going over dark blue scrubs. Her hair had been pulled back into a neat bun and her violet eyes shined with relief and hope.
If Bakugo had to guess, she had been worried about him as well. It must have been much worse than he had assumed. Then again, flatlining twice meant that he had basically died on the operating table only to be brought back. Dr. Yamaguchi was a miracle worker, first she fixed his hand and now she'd brought him back from the dead. But at what cost?
"I may not be able to heal you again should another severe injury like this occur," Dr. Yamaguchi said, meeting Bakugo's eyes. "Each person I heal, has a time of twenty-four hours that I can heal them. Once all that time is used up, my quirk will no longer work on them. Given your hand surgery and this one, you only have about ten hours left."
"So am I back to normal?" Bakugo asked.
"You still need some bed rest. In order to keep some time for you in the event of an emergency I did not heal you to a hundred percent, but rather seventy-five percent," Dr. Yamaguchi turned to Kamui Woods. "He needs a minimum of two weeks bed rest."
"Understood." Kamui nodded and glanced at Bakugo. "That means no coming into the office."
"What about the debrief?"
"Todoroki was there, he can fill in for you."
"No way," Bakugo growled, eyes narrowing. "I'm going to the debriefing. I don't have to work, but you can't kick me out."
Kamui huffed. "Fine, but as soon as the meeting concludes you're out of the office and back home."
"Fine."
"Before you return to work, I would like to make sure you are fully healed, so make sure you come see me the day before you're back on duty, okay?" Dr. Yamaguchi said and her pager went off. She grabbed the device from her pocket and turned it off. "I have other patients to attend too, please excuse me. And Bakugo, please take it easy otherwise your rest time will be made longer."
"Yeah, yeah," Bakugo grumbled.
Dr. Yamaguchi smiled and turned on her heels, making her way to the door. When she opened the door someone was standing on the other side. Bakugo couldn't see around her, but given the chocolate brown hair and short stature, it could only be one person. Dr. Yamaguchi stepped aside and Bakugo smiled as Uraraka walked into the room.
"You should be resting," Kamui Woods said to her with a shake of his head. "You're just as bad as Bakugo."
Uraraka chuckled. "I'm sorry, but I couldn't sleep. I was too worried about him."
"Come on, Pink Cheeks, I ain't dying that easy," Bakugo assured her.
She took in a deep breath and tears welled in her eyes. Bakugo frowned as she cried across the room. He wanted to get up and hug her, but his body was far too stiff. Her shoulders trembled as she cried silently across from him. Yukio scooted off the bed and walked over to her. He stood before her for a moment then opened his arms, hugging her tight around her legs. She dried her tears and leaned down to hug him back.
Kamui turned to Bakugo. "I'll be back tomorrow, you stay here."
"Yessir," Bakugo replied with a nod.
Yukio let go of Uraraka and took hold of her hand. "He's okay, don't be sad."
Uraraka laughed and knelt down, ruffling Yukio's hair. "Thank you. You're a sweet boy."
He grinned and looked back at Bakugo and his dad. When they both smiled back at him, he faced Uraraka again and threw his arms around her. She hugged him back, picking him up off the ground and squeezed him tight.
"Alright kid, let's go find your mother," Kamui said as he approached. Uraraka kissed Yukio's cheek and put him back down before looking at Kamui, who waved a finger at her. "Don't sleep on that couch." His eyes drifted to the pale gray couch across from Bakugo's bed.
Uraraka nodded. "I won't."
When the two left the room and the door closed, Uraraka and Bakugo stared at one another. For whatever reason, it felt awkward to be around her. He didn't know if she was mad or worried or happy or maybe it was a mix of all the feelings. She walked over to him and stood at the edge of his bed, gazing down at him with reddened eyes.
"If you die," Uraraka said in a calm tone. "I will find a way to bring you back just so I can kill you myself."
Bakugo smirked and reached for her hand. He tugged her forward and pressed his lips against hers. She leaned in. He let go of her wrist and cupped her face. When they pulled apart, Bakugo kissed her forehead. "I'm not going to die, Pink Cheeks."
"You did though," Uraraka whispered.
Bakugo sighed and scooted over. He pulled the sheets back and patted the empty space beside him. "Come on, lay with me."
She bit her lip then nodded, kicking off her flats. She crawled in beside him and leaned into his side. He put his arm around her and pulled her close. The aroma of strawberries reached his nose as he rested his chin on her head. He stroked the side of her arm, her skin so soft and supple.
Bakugo wanted to stay just like this forever. He didn't want to leave. All he wanted to do was hold Uraraka and enjoy her company. Nothing could be better than being with her, laying beside her. Bakugo stroked her hair and kissed the top of her head. "Everything is going to be okay."