It started when Midoriya lifted the couch to vacuum under it.

A couch that Kirishima and Kaminari were sitting on. A couch that, with their combined weight, weighed around 500 pounds.

Midoriya did it like it was nothing.

"DUDE!" Kirishima shouted and Midoriya jumped instantly dropping the couch.

"Ah, sorry! I didn't see you there!" the green haired boy said shutting of the vacuum. "You didn't get hurt did you?"

"DUDE!" Kirishima said loudly. "How did you do that! I thought you only had super strength when you were using your quirk, but there's no green lightning or broken bones or anything!"

Midoriya squinted looking slightly annoyed. "I'm not breaking my bones anymore," he muttered. "Most of the time..."

"When did you get so swol, little guy!" Kaminari said in what Kirishima called his meme voice.

"He smol," Kirishima said passionately. "But he is also stronk."

Midoriya raised his eyebrows. "Um… since before school started? I have a special workout plan. I… uh… kind have to be strong so that my… uh... armsdon'texplodeoffmybody ..."

"Say what now!?"

"Nothing," Midoriya said too quickly, waving his hand. "Anyway I need muscle mass for my quirk to work properly. So I've been building it up for a while now. I think I currently can safely lift around 600 pounds?"

"Bro," Kirishima said, eyes going scarily wide in his head.

" Bro ," Kirishima said with more feeling. He jumped over the back of the couch and bounced to stand in front of Midoriya. Midoriya leaned back slightly like he wasn't sure what was happening. " Teach me. "

"What?"

Teach me your tiny strongman ways, Midoribro," Kirishima said earnestly. Joking aside, Kirishima was crazy impressed by Midoriya's strength. That was like more than three times his weight. He was way stronger than Kirishima and he'd been training for just as long.

"Oh… uh… I'm not exactly the person to ask," Midoriya said shyly. "I was given a work out plan and it's not the kinda plan I would suggest to anyone. But you can ask All Might to draw you up your own plan. I'm sure he could give you a safe one that challenges you."

Kirishima imagined himself with All Might's very manly muscles. So cool!

Kaminari coughed, "Machamp."

And ruined everything. Now Kirishima will never be able to get that strong and turn to rock without thinking about that Pokemon. At least he didn't have four arms too- oh god now Kirishima will never be able to look at Fourth Kind without thinking about that Pokemon. Machamp was a totally manly rad Pokemon but Kirishima wanted to be like the Crimson Riot not a Pokemon. Wait circular logic! Crimson Riot is as muscly and manly as All Might. Nice save, brain!

Still… "Can't you teach me, bro? There's nothing cooler than growing stronger together!"

Midoriya scrunched his eyebrows together. "I don't know. I think it would probably be safer if you just went to All Might."

Jirou snorted as she walked through to the kitchen, "Since when have you cared about safety."

She didn't even know what the conversation was about and she just burned him like that. Cold blooded.

Midoriya flushed to his hair and looked adorably flustered, "I-I'm not that bad-"

"Come on, man! Do it for friendship!"

Midoriya gave in. "O-okay- but if it gets too strenuous for you promise me you'll stop. I really don't want you getting hurt."

"Was that a humble brag I just heard?" Kaminari said smacking Midoriya on the shoulder. "Hell yeah! You get that ego! Woooo!"

Midoriya blushed worse and was soooo cute. He was like a strawberry with his poof of green hair at the top of his red face and his freckles were like the seeds. He's just great.

"I'll bring down my schedule for you," he said, looking earnest. Kirishima beamed back.

And he kept that smile until he had the paper in his hand.

"Midoriya?" Kirishima's smile was frozen in place but it didn't have the same feeling behind it.

"Yeah?"

"This says you wake up at four thirty in the morning."

"Yeah."

"Oh… okay."

Kirishima had never been a morning person.

"Kirishima," a voice whisper yelled. "Kirishima."

Kirishima groaned and turned over, smacking the hand that was poking him away. It was too early to wake up. Go away.

"Kirishima," the voice said at a normal volume but it was enough to jolt kirishima up with a start and he hit his head against whoever was leaning over him. He let out a yell of surprise and Midoriya stumbled back gripping his chin in pain.

"Ahhh," Kirishima said, heart still not under control. Midoriya was in his room dressed in running clothes and rubbing his now bruised chin. "Midoriya, what are you doing in my room?"

"You told me to come in and wake you if you didn't wake you in time. Gave me the key and everything. Ow. you have a hard head."

"So I've been told." Kirishima gave a sleepy smile. "Wake me up for what?"

Midoriya gave him a withering look and it took a long moment for Kirishima's memory to click. "Oh yeah, what time is it?"

"A little after five, come on," Midoriya said with slight urgency.

"Uh... right!" Kirishima said, stumbling to his feet. "Just- uh- let me find some pants."

Kirishima was wearing underwear but they both ended up blushing anyway. Midoriya stepped back out of the room.

It turned out they were going for a run. The sun hadn't even risen yet and the sky was all gray and misty, like the world hadn't even woken up yet. Everything was eerily quiet. Midoriya quickly led Kirishima through some running stretches that admittedly Kirishima wasn't as good at sticking to as he should be.

Midoriya was already muttering to himself about which route they should take. Somewhere in the rant Kirishima heard that Iida had apparently already taken off. Somehow Kirishima wasn't surprised that Iida was up this early.

They set out a regular paced jog, light to warm up, but after ten minutes of that, Midoriya's expression shifted and he said "Okay. Go." and then he sprinted like he was running from something.

Kirishima stumbled over himself to keep up. After reaching a certain distance, Midoriya returned to a jogging pace and Kirishima felt like he was dying. Midoriya wasn't out of breath.

"You okay?" He asked like he wasn't currently the worst monster Kirishima had ever met. How far was that? Running was part of Kirishima's gym plan, how did Midoriya already wear him out? It wasn't fair. No one could run like that.

"On your left!" Iida shouted cheerfully as he passed by at a brisk jog that was faster than theirs.

Iida didn't count!

"Don't feel bad," Midoriya gave him a sunny smile. "Iida laps me all the time. He's probably on his third lap."

"How even-" Kirishima shook his head, too tired to complete his sentence. The sun still hasn't risen yet. How are these two even alive? Ugh.

"Are you ready to pick up the pace again?"

"What?"

Midoriya had already taken off.

The monster.

It was seven in the morning and Kirishima felt like dying. Midoriya didn't even look tired. How? Was it his quirk? Ahhhhhhh.

"I told you to set your own pace," Midoriya said, struggling with his tie. Damn him for being so cool. Damn him for being so manly. Ahhhhhhhhhhhhh.

He finished tying his tie with a 'good-enough' shrug and slapped Kirishima on the shoulder. Which hurt. Oh the cruel tyrant. "See you for afternoon weight lifting."

Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!

Kirishima was dead. He was literally dead. Between Midoriya's morning run and gym with Aizawa, Kirishima was dead. Totally dead. A corpse.

"You ready?" Midoriya asked with his bright eyed innocence. "If you're too tired you can stop. Really, it's safer that you don't push yourself."

"QUITTING IS FOR THE WEAK!" Kirishima shouted louder than he meant to. "FRIENDSHIP!" he said to motivate himself.

Midoriya did not look reassured. Probably because Kirishima was lying face down on the floor. But Kirishima believed in himself and he was sure that Midoriya believed in him too. He had the fighting spirit. He could do this!

"Uh… well pace yourself, okay?" Midoriya said, patting him awkwardly on the back. He'd already gotten through his warm up stretches and Kirishima was still on the floor. "Remember, you can stop at any time, there's no shame in knowing your limits."

"I… bro," Kirishima said emotionally.

Midoriya seemed to understand what he meant because he nodded, "Knowing your own limits is er… manlier than hurting yourself to keep up with your friends. I understand."

Kirishima burst into tears and hugged Midoriya. He was a good friend. The best. The coolest dude. So understanding. Kirishima's everything hurts.

Midoriya smiled and helped Kirishima into a sitting position. "You can still hang out if you want."

"Yeah!" Kirishima got a second wind in his verbal energy that his body was unable to match. "I still have to observe your strongman secrets! Show me, oh green sensei!"

Midoriya laughed a little and rubbed the back of his neck. "There actually isn't that much to it. Just doing strength training safely and gradually increasing the weight over time." He started moving twenty pound weights onto the bell bar as if they weighed nothing at all. "Anyone can do it really. I just had a good coach and a good meal plan and I put in the work."

Kirishima found himself blinking up at the number of weights. He estimated that they were at least twice Midoriya's body weight. He said he could do three times his weight and had lifted the couch with them on it like they were in some kind of comedy gag show, but seeing that weight laid out in metal plates was different. "You're… you're not really going to lift that, are you?"

Midoriya just laughed and laid down on the bench and said "Sato? Spot me?"

Sato from across the room, dropped the dumbbell he was curling and it hit the ground far harder than Kirishima was comfortable with. Kirishima wanted to be offended that Midoriya didn't trust him to spot him but to be honest, Kirishima didn't trust himself to spot that weight.

Kirishima watched in slight awe as Midoriya lifted the bar and started benching the three hundred (possibly four hundred) pounds. He hardly seemed to be struggling. Sato didn't seem phased.

Like he'd seen it before.

And there was no green lightning dancing across his skin. This was all Midoriya.

He did this often.

HE DID THIS OFTEN!

Kirishima teared up again! He's just so manly !

Later Kirishima was still dead and laying on the couch waiting for feeling to return to his toes. He'd failed in his mission to train with Midoriya and become the two muscle bros but he'd come out wiser for it. Tomorrow, he'd ask All Might to make him a plan tailored to his own body and he wouldn't make the mistake of underestimating Midoriya's strength again. Probably.

Jirou, rudely sat on him. "Wow," she said, "I can't believe Midoriya killed Kirishima."

"Really? Is he okay?" Mina shouted from the kitchen.

He groaned. He always had the energy for outdated memes. "Stop telling people I'm dead."

Jirou poked the back of his head. "You seem pretty dead to me."

"Ugh… friendship!" he said waving a tired fist in the air.

Jirou hmphed and shouted back to Mina. "He's fine but he's dead!"

Someone burst into loud laughter from the entrance. Kirishima tiredly lifted his head and found that the dorms had been infiltrated by Tetsutetsu, his best friend and blood brother. Tetsutetsu was pointing and laughing at him.

"Heard you were trying a new workout plan but I didn't expect you to give up so easily!"

Kirishima leveled a tired glare at him, one that would probably have been more effective if Jirou wasn't still sitting on him. "You are underestimating the sheer manliness that is Midoriya's exercise plan. I assure you, you can't do it."

Tetsutetsu just laughed harder, "Wanna bet?"

"I can't believe Midoriya killed Tetsutetsu," Kirishima grinned the next day.

"So manly," Tetsutetsu said crying on the floor.

"He can't be that strong," Shoji said, as though he didn't have an obvious advantage.

"Jesus christ, Midoriya killed Shoji!"

"I told you to set your own pace!" Midoriya shouted, obviously alarmed.

Unfortunately for him it was becoming clear that this was going to be one of the school wide challenges. The betting pool was only growing and no one had beaten him yet. Soon every brave soul was going to try to beat his work out plan if only to get the money.

In the end it was Bakugou who made it through the day because he actually paced himself better than the 'rest of you idiots' and didn't 'try to beat someone with a strength quirk in a weightlifting contest like some kinda suicidal idiot'. He seemed unsatisfied with that incomplete victory though and Kirishima was pretty sure he would steadily be training to be as strong as Izuku in the future.

What a guy.

"I don't think this is a good idea," Iida said.

"Oh come on man! Don't be such a party pooper," Uraraka said, elbowing him in the ribs. "Don't you wanna see if he can do it?"

"No cheating, Uraraka." Tsuyu warned.

"You have the camera ready, All Might?"

"Ah, yes, of course," All Might said from across the room.

"You ready, Midoriya?" Kirishima exclaimed.

Midoriya licked his lips. "Yep."

"Bitch better not drop me," Bakugou scoffed.

"Okay, ready?" All Might cued. "Now."

"FRIENDSHIP!" Midoriya said in a strained voice as he lifted all his friends. They were sitting on a bar as evenly as they could. It was at least half the class, all of Midoriya's closest friends. Iida, Uraraka, Todoroki, Tsuyu, Kirishima, Bakugou (who got roped in, but totally actually wanted to be here), Shinsou, and Kouda. He got them to chest level and they struggled not to mess up his balance as he did an overhead press and pushed them further into the air.

Midoriya grinned.

All Might took the photo.