Bakugo blamed Deku for this, as he always did whenever anything went wrong. It was such a small, stupid comment and now he couldn't stop the nagging.
That idiot had to mention that Bakugo had a thing for a girl and now all of his former classmates and current coworkers wanted to meet her. He didn't give a fuck about any of them and very loudly and rudely warned them all that further questions would result in bodily harm. However, when Best Jeanist, his mentor, his role model, the person who truly helped shape him into something heroic asked him about Tsuyu, he couldn't find it in him to say no.
He didn't even know how to explain his relationship with her. They were certainly friends, maybe close friends, but there were times when her eyes sparkled a little differently and she smiled at him softly which made him think that maybe they were slowly moving towards something more. She teased him and sometimes did so flirtingly, but he wasn't confident enough in his social skills to be certain he wasn't imagining things.
Now, an important father figure to him wanted to meet her and he didn't know how to make it happen. Would it scare her away? Would Best Jeanist say something that made her think he liked her? Would she even want his affections? Bakugo's insecurities crushed him from the inside out, and he brooded in a corner of the aquarium, pondering his dilemma.
He was so busy falling through the rabbit hole in his head that he was startled by the flashlight dancing around him. He looked up to see Tsuyu waving a light blue spot at his face. She was smiling and he blinked, confused.
"This corner was looking a little dark, I thought I should check what was hiding here." Her voice held a light tone, but Bakugo still had trouble parsing her meaning. "It's a special light we use for when sad fishes fall to the dark corners of their tanks. It doesn't hurt them, and we guide them towards the bright spots, where there's light and food." She wiggled it in front of his eyes, but it didn't hurt him. Tsuyu sat next to him, clicking the flashlight off.
"I was thinking…" Bakugo realized she caught on to his mood and had been trying to get him to stop brooding.
"Do you want to talk about it?" She asked him softly. He looked at her concerned yet kind face. She probably thought it was something dark and Bakugo felt bad for worrying her.
"It's just my mentor. He wants to meet you." Bakugo sighed. He brought an anxious hand to his hair, running his fingers through his messy hair. "It's nothing bad, just he heard about how there's this civilian that's important to me." Bakugo tried to downplay the situation, hoping Best Jeanist would be perceptive enough to not let Bakugo's true feelings for Tsuyu slip.
"Does he want to assess me? Like he's scared that I'm a weakness or something like that?" Tsuyu looked worried, wringing her hands together. Bakugo's heart skipped several beats, feeling bad for worrying her.
"No! He'd never think that. I'm certain he just wants to get to know you. I don't uh, I don't have many friends and he cares about me, I think…" Bakugo blushed. He felt more nervous about what Best Jeanist thought than his own parents.
"Oh okay. Well, I suppose you've technically already met my family, so I guess now it's time for me to meet yours." Tsuyu nodded. Bakugo's mouth ran dry. He hadn't thought of it like that. She was right he had met her family, but he felt like he had cheated since they didn't know they were meeting him.
"I should probably properly introduce myself to your family. They didn't know I was well, me." He thought out loud.
"That's true. I didn't tell them about your job." Tsuyu nodded.
The couple sighed together. Noticing their synchronization, they smiled slightly at each other. Tsuyu lightly bumped their shoulders together.
"It's going to be fine. We're good people, there's no reason why anyone shouldn't like us." Her words reassured Bakugo. Staring at her, he felt confident they would be fine. Tsuyu was a pragmatic person. Even if she didn't like him back, he trusted that she'd still be his friend. And he was confident Best Jeanist would like her too. He doubted anyone who knew her could hate her.
"I'll talk to him about it and call you later to set up a date and time?" Bakugo confirmed that she was alright with the get-together.
"Yep!"
.
.
.
Tsuyu paced around her small apartment anxiously. She stopped in front of her mirror, to carefully analyze her appearance. A simple yet tasteful soft pink dress, shoes with heels that masked her webbed feet, a cute flower bracelet around her wrist, a white cardigan to wear over the dress, and her traditional bow on her hair. This was the closest she could get to a normal, average girl. Perhaps she was trying too hard, but as she stared at her droopy eyes, her wide mouth, and her extremely long fingers Tsuyu felt the doubt creep in once more.
When Bakugo had told her about Best Jeanist and how he wanted to meet her, she felt it wasn't a big deal, assuming he was simply Bakugo's boss. However, after arriving home that day, she researched him and quickly regretted her decision to be so blasé. Clearly, their relationship was much more than just a working one. Best Jeanist had been mentoring and sponsoring Bakugo since his high school years. Instead of going to meet his boss, she was going to meet a father figure.
Tsuyu checked her phone, they would be picking her up in less than five minutes. Deciding she didn't have the time to change anything, she steeled her resolve and left her apartment. Tsuyu fidgeted with her small handbag through the slow elevator ride downwards. As soon as it hit the bottom floor, she spotted the bright red sports car stop in front of the gate.
Tsuyu gulped once and walked towards it, fumbling a bit with the lobby door in her nervousness. As she approached the car, Bakugo exited the passenger door and stepped out, leaving it open to her. She traded a questioning look towards him. He tilted his head towards the inside and she hesitantly climbed inside. Bakugo closed the door behind her and walked towards the back, entering the back seats.
"Hello, Asui-san. Nice to meet you." Best Jeanist greeted her as Bakugo grumbled in the back.
"Nice to meet you too. What should I call you?" Tsuyu asked, hoping she didn't offend him by not knowing the answer already.
"Just Tsunagu is fine." He smiled warmly at her soothing Tsuyu's nervousness a little. He redirected his attention to the road and the car sped forwards.
Best Jeanist drove like a maniac, going as fast as he could. Tsuyu couldn't help but hold on to her seat as her heart raced.
"Oi, slow down or you'll get another ticket. It's the third one this month, old man." Bakugo loudly spoke from the back seat. Tsunagu simply laughed him off. Tsuyu didn't expect this kind of behavior from a top-three national hero. "If we crash I'm not gonna save you," Bakugo growled. Tsuyu shot him a worried look.
"I've never crashed, Kacchan." Best Jeanist chuckled and Tsuyu's eyes widened at the nickname. She swore for a second there was smoke rising from Bakugo's ears, but he simply seethed in silence.
The trio quickly arrived at their destination, a nice place in the downtown area. Tsuyu rarely ever visited the fancier side of town and immediately felt out of place. Bakugo opened the door for her once more and she took the time to admire his attire while Tsunagu left his car with a valet. Bakugo wore a simple pale orange button-down and black pants. They hugged his fit body extremely well and Tsuyu was once again hit with how handsome he was.
Once she properly looked at Best Jeanist she felt better. He was completely covered in deep blue jeans. Compared to him, she looked fine. The two young adults followed him inside, where they were led to a private room.
Tsuyu looked around the fancy modern style, but both Bakugo and Tsunagu didn't spare their surroundings a second look. The two took their places on the circular glass table casually, leaving Tsuyu to follow their lead.
Tsuyu noticed there was no menu and looked around curiously, but neither Bakugo nor Best Jeanist looked concerned.
"We've already put in our orders ahead of time. This is a weird place like that." Bakugo explained once he noticed Tsuyu's confusion. "I know you're vegetarian, and I warned them. Don't worry, they frequently serve heroes with diets so they'll be mindful."
Tsuyu smiled at Bakugo's reassurance. Most people thought it was weird that she had dietary restrictions, but he never thought twice of it and had even shared some of his own.
"Ah yes, I don't think Kacchan told me anything about your quirk, Tsuyu-chan. Can I call you that?" Best Jeanist smiled kindly and Tsuyu nodded for him.
"I have a frog quirk. I can stick to things, do stuff with my tongue, jump very far, and some other stuff." Tsuyu never mentioned what she could do with her stomach because everyone always looked disgusted.
"That sounds very interesting. Did you ever consider a hero career? I could see someone with your abilities being a powerful support hero." Tsunagu smiled at her, lacing his fingers.
"Actually I did. When I was younger I applied for UA, passed their first exam too, but in the end, I never went to the practical exam." Tsuyu smiled, thinking back to her teenage years. She had wanted to be the rainy day hero, Froppy.
"Really? We could have been classmates, why didn't you go to the exam?" Bakugo asked and Tsuyu sighed.
"My mother passed away and with three younger siblings, my dad needed the help." Tsuyu explained. A silence took over the room and she quickly amended her words, hoping she hadn't soured the mood. "But I got to be a marine biologist, and I really like my job, so I don't regret it or anything."
"That does explain the first time we met. I remember noticing that you had been unusually calm and helpful for a civilian." Bakugo praised her and Tsuyu blushed slightly. She had always tried to make sure to use her quirk relatively often to prevent deterioration.
"Ah, how did you two meet?" Best Jeanist asked with a smile.
"I saved her from this weirdo that was trying to steal poisonous fish."
As the night went on, Tsuyu found herself relaxing more and more in Best Jeanist's company. He was kind and friendly, and with Tsuyu's natural friendly predisposition, she quickly found herself enjoying his company.
The most important thing she noticed was how much Bakugo respected his mentor. Despite the endless teasing that Tsunagu threw his way, the temperamental young man never had any mean words towards his mentor.
Just as the dessert showed up, the ground began shaking. The two men immediately jumped to alertness. Tsuyu admired how quickly and seamlessly they transitioned into heroes, both of them worried about the ones around them.
"Clear out the civilians. I saw Endeavor and his wife as we walked in, he and I will take care of whatever is causing this." Best Jeanist opened a window and jumped off. Tsuyu worried over his well-being for a second, until Bakugo took her arm, pulling her away from the window.
"C'mon." He was completely calm and she followed him unquestioningly, trusting him with her life. When they reached the main lobby, a white-haired woman was leading people outside. She looked a bit frail, but there was a fire in her eyes. Bakugo nodded towards her and Tsuyu wondered who she was.
"There might be some kitchen staff, Bakugo-kun. Could you check on them?" The white-haired woman sounded familiar with Bakugo and Tsuyu wondered who she was. Bakugo set off running towards the kitchen. Just at that moment, a strong impact hit their building, crumbling the roof.
The three of them looked up, but the white-haired woman acted first. A burst of ice pushed Tsuyu and Bakugo backward. Using the momentum, Tsuyu shot out her tongue towards Bakugo, wrapping it around him as she stuck to one of the pillars.
Beneath them, the ground shook and opened. Bakugo dangled above the abyss and Tsuyu used all her strength to keep the two of them from falling into the darkness.
"Let me go!" He yelled at her. She couldn't answer, but she'd be damned if she was going to release him. Fires burst from the darkness, and the heat brought tears to her eyes. "Tsuyu, let me go. I will save us both. Trust me." He looked completely serious. "Listen to me, when I tell you to let go, you let go, and I will catch you." He sounded so certain and Tsuyu closed her eyes. She relaxed her tongue and retracted it, letting him fall towards the flames.
For a second her heart fell with him, doubting him. She watched him fall towards the flames, angling his body so that he was facing her. He smiled and suddenly his momentum shifted. Loud bangs began echoing as debris began shaking. Bakugo began moving towards her and although she couldn't listen to his voice among the noise, she saw his mouth form words and she released her grip on the slab of concrete.
Tsuyu fell towards him but he intercepted her fall, keeping them moving upwards. Using her quirk, she stuck to him as he flew out of the crumbling building into the sky. As she looked down she was relieved to see the white-haired woman among the civilians. She had formed a protective ice dome around them. Nearby, Best Jeanist and Endeavor were fighting a villain, but Bakugo headed away from the fight.
Flying with him was unlike anything Tsuyu had ever experienced, the cold wind shaking her dress and hair wildly while the heat of Bakugo's intermittent explosions warmed her. They were so far up, the cars looked like toys and the lights looked like stars. It was a sight she'd never forget. He landed atop a tall building, and it took a second for Tsuyu to let go of him. She had never stuck to anything as hard before, and she profusely apologized as they tried to untangle themselves.
"You alright? Anything hurt?" Bakugo looked her over. Her dress was partially singed and her hair was a mess, but otherwise, she felt fine.
"I'm good. You?" Tsuyu asked back, panting from the adrenaline.
"Yeah. We made a good combo." He smiled reassuringly and Tsuyu couldn't help but laugh.
Later on, she'd blame it on the adrenaline rush and the stars, but deep down she knew it was just an excuse. She simply had wanted to kiss him and her heart was already too fast to stop. At the moment, Tsuyu simply closed the distance between further, placing herself right next to him, as she brought her lips to his.
Bakugo was warm and solid as if he was a completely immovable object. Yet after a second, he became soft, wrapping his arms around her carefully. He returned the kiss passionately yet carefully, allowing her to set the pace she wished.
They parted breathlessly. Tsuyu smiled at him brightly, and he returned her wide smile. She had a second to appreciate his teeth before he linked their foreheads, their breath mingling. In the distance, a loud explosion rang, but neither of them cared. Bakugo kept his arms wrapped around her until their moment was interrupted rudely by a new arrival.
"Uh, Kacchan?"
Surprised by the new presence, Tsuyu tried pulling away, but Bakugo kept his arm around her waist, locking the two together. He faced the new arrival with a scowl.
Tsuyu blushed under Deku's curious look, but Bakugo didn't look ashamed or embarrassed.
"What do you want?" Bakugo yelled at him.
"No, just uh, well you know, uh…" Deku looked to where a huge fireball made its way towards the sky. "Well, um, that's your jurisdiction, and um…"
Tsuyu could feel the deep intake of breath that Bakugo took as she was so close to him.
"Can you take her to the street level? I'll change and we can go together." Bakugo finally released her with an apologetic stare and Tsuyu took hold of his hand for a final reassuring squeeze.
She walked towards Deku and Bakugo began unbuttoning his shirt, revealing his hero costume underneath.
"Asui-san, I'd recommend closing your eyes." Tsuyu looked at Deku once, noticing his kind smile and awkward fidgeting. Nodding, she closed her eyes. She felt his hands grab her and a second later they released her. She opened her eyes and she was on the sidewalk. He nodded once and disappeared from her eyesight.
Shocked, Tsuyu looked up and a couple of seconds later, Dynamight and Deku were flying towards the confusion in the distance.