Late Night Chatter

Estelle woke up with a gasp; her body shot up from the bed as she tried to collect herself. Her eyes darted around the room to check her surroundings, and she relaxed when she realised that she was in her bedroom.

Looking out of the window, Estelle found it was later in the night. It was frosty outside as it was nearing winter. She hoped that it wouldn't be as cold as her world, but she would just have to find out. Shuffling off the bed, Estelle made her way out of her bedroom and trekked downstairs. She ignored the cold sting of the freezing floorboards as she made her way inside the kitchen.

Taking some milk out of the fridge, Estelle was caught off guard to find Bakugo standing at the entrance. His hair was ruffled like he had just gotten out of bed, and he had his usual glare on his face.

"Sup, Ruby," Estelle murmured out as she poured the milk into a glass. She only received a grunt for an answer and shrugged at the response. She would never admit it, but Bakugo had gotten her into the habit of drinking milk on nights like these. Aware that she wouldn't be alone if she stayed, Estelle brushed by Bakugo in an attempt to leave. Her arm was suddenly gripped by a hand, and Estelle turned quickly to retaliate. Her mind was still a little foggy from the abrupt awakening, so she hadn't registered the movement until it was nearly too late.

Blinking her eyes quickly, Estelle stared down at Bakugo, who calmly stood in her grasp. Jolting back quickly in alarm, Estelle lifted her hand from his neck. The blonde wasn't fazed since he had concluded that she would always stop herself before she caused harm. Like it was a bodily instinct, but her mind consistently stood firm.

Estelle's apology moved to leave her lips. Surprisingly, she was stopped by the blondes hand once again. Forcing her to take a seat in the living room, Bakugo silently left to make his own warm milk and came back. Sitting in peace, the two drank from their cups. Estelle wondered if he could tell when she was in a fragile state again as nothing left his lips. He was like silent support for her on nights like these, which was a lovely change. She usually felt like she needed to be the rock, and she didn't mind it; that was her role in life.

It had been quite some time before he spoke up. "I thought you were sleeping normally again since you stopped showing up."

Estelle remained silent in answer and continued drinking from her cup. Taking the cue, the blonde nodded. "Ah, so you just didn't come down."

"I meant what I said that night." Estelle cut in bluntly as she evaded looking at the male. She could feel the bubbling under the surface from her words next to her. But before she could let him speak, she persisted, "But I do wish I said it differently."

Flicking her gaze back up to the blonde, she observed as he leaned across the couch to make sure he was heard. "Why does it matter?"

Stumped, Estelle stilled as she had no idea how to answer the question. The inquisitive eyes of Bakugo bore into her as her mouth moved in an attempt to form words. Realising that Estelle wouldn't be able to give him an explanation, the blonde nodded to himself before leaning back.

"It matters because you care."

An immediate refusal was at Estelle's lips from the words Bakugo just uttered. But the shaking of the blondes head just proved that he wasn't going to listen to a comment she would say in response. Sighing in defeat, she allowed Bakugo the win.

The quietness filled the air as Estelle mind whirred into oblivion. God, this was so frustrating to her. Why does he always put her in the position? Why does she feel vulnerable with him around?

"Wait, you've been here every night?" Estelle dialled back in stupefaction. The blonde turned his head away from her words, a faint blush on his cheeks as he pouted. Clearly, he hadn't meant for her to take that part in.

Suddenly, the whispering tranquillity was abruptly halted by Bakugo's shout. "Yeah! So what!?"

Estelle remained muted as she gazed at the red-faced male across from her. It was only when she heard his growl of disapproval that she couldn't hold back anymore. Her previous tension began to melt away as new thoughts entered her brain. A small smile drifted onto her face and began to broaden the more tomato he turned into. "I didn't realise you liked my company that much, ruby," she muttered.

"No way! It's not that!" He blurted, his voice still too loud for this time of night.

"Shh! What is it then? My good looks?"

"Tch, now you have jokes."

"Bakugo, you have to admit that this is out of character for you. You're the type to go to bed before it even hits evening. Why are you staying up waiting for me?"

"Tch, it's not that. Well, not really. I've had trouble resting ever since Kamino Ward. I would be sleeping like a baby otherwise."

The surprise was the understatement of Estelle's feelings. She wasn't expecting him to say something serious outright. But by the look on his face, he was uncomfortable admitting that out loud. The realisation was next. So, it was a two-way street. He would come down for himself, and consequently, he would find Estelle.

Unexpectedly, a third and final emotion washed over her; concern. As Estelle's eyes scanned the slightly slumped Bakugo, trying to keep his expression blank. Estelle noticed the slight bags under his eyes and the fatigue in his muscles.

She was so wrapped up in herself that she didn't even realise he was still struggling from the aftermath. She was well aware that he was spiralling when she arrived at UA after Kamino Ward. But, she assumed the fight with Midoriya had resolved it. Estelle should have known better - being kidnapped, feeling powerless throughout the event, and guilty over his hero losing power wouldn't go away that easily.

Bakugo looked up to the sound from the girl as she let out a deep sigh. His eyes broadened when he watched Estelle pat her lap towards him in invitation.

Unsure, Bakugo scowled towards the female in refusal before crossing his arms and looking away. A tilt to Estelle's lips could be seen from the sight; he looked like a child too prideful and stubborn to say yes. It strangely suited him.

Chuckling, Estelle muttered, "Weren't you the one to tell me that these are normal responses to shitty situations? Sounds like someone is too prideful to listen to their own advice."

Growling, Bakugo crawled on the couch to slam his head against her lap with a mutter, "No, I'm not. Shut up, shitty Lioness."

"Hmpt", Estelle allowed as she stared down at the pale blonde laying on her. She knew that this contradicted what she had said earlier, but she couldn't turn down his tired eyes and downturned lips. As much as she hated to admit it, Bakugo had helped her in some of her down moments. Estelle had never done anything in return.

'I'm just repaying him' , Estelle rationalised.

Putting her conflicted emotions aside, Estelle placed her hand into his hair. Feeling Deja vu from his automatic tense body, Estelle disregarded it to soothe his mind. His hair was rougher and slightly spikey. But Estelle didn't mind it; the texture felt nice to play with. And just like most things, it suited Bakugo's fiery personality. Ignoring the thought, for now, Estelle massaged his head as they marinated in the quiet. It was peaceful, and Estelle was reminded of the times he had done this for her.

'I wonder if he felt this way too.'

Estelle hid her smile as the blonde grumpily mumbled before rubbing his face into her thigh as if trying to snuggle deeper. Estelle made no comment since she knew he would probably blow up if she said anything; plus, she wasn't that cruel.

The shifting of Bakugo shook Estelle out of her thoughts; the blonde had turned his body to face her as he attempted to keep his face smushed against her lap. Her lips tilted again from the sight, and she was gifted by a glower from the snuggling boy.

Raising her brow whilst the male asked, "If you never came to this world, what would you be doing now? Or what was the plan?"

Internally taken aback by his question, Estelle furrowed her brows in thought as she gazed at the ceiling. Bakugo's eyes bore into her as he watched her for an answer. "I don't know. Fighting? I was planning on retiring and living out my days in the woods. But, nothing was set in stone. It doesn't matter anyway; I'm here for now."

"Why would you do that?" He grunted back, confused.

"When your whole life is on the battlefield, it leaves little room for peace. I would always fantasise about having a little home for myself and just disappearing. I don't know if that's possible since people would always say, 'when you only know the battlefield, that's the only place you'll feel like home. You'll come back.' So, yeah, nothing set in stone."

Stillness rang out in the room once again, and Estelle came to realise that she knew little of the male she was soothing. It was strange that was the case. In hopes of rectifying that and removing herself from the topic of conversation, Estelle invited, "What about you? What would you have done if not a hero?"

"Tch, nothing. I always knew I was going to be the number one hero. There's no doubt in my mind."

"Humor me, what would you have done?"

"I've never thought about it. Like I said, I always knew I'd be a hero. But, if I were to guess - maybe a drummer. I'm the best at that too."

"What's a drummer?"

"Tch, I forgot you have no clue about that stuff. It's a part of making music."

Rolling her eyes, Estelle gave Bakugo a pass on his ego-stroking for tonight. Shaking her head, Estelle murmured, "Wow, who knew you could make music as well?"

Moving his face up so that Estelle could see his grin, Bakugo responded, "Someone sounds impressed. I'm not surprised. I said I was the best at everything."

Rolling her eyes with a smirk, Estelle laid a light bump to his head to cool it. His laugh rang out in the room from the action as he smushed his face back to the comfortable position. "Besides fighting, was there anything else you liked to do?" Bakugo continued to examine.

"What do you mean?"

"Like hobbies?"

"Hobbies?"

"Tch, yeah, Lioness. Hobbies. It's when you like doing an activity, and you do it for your own enjoyment."

"Oh, well. No," Estelle blandly stated.

"Hah?! What do you mean no?" He startled, his head coming back up to glare at the female.

"Fighting was all I did."

"There has to be something; dig deeper." The blonde probed, befuddled with her reply.

Estelle remained mute as she stewed over the memories that weren't too deeply buried. The only thing she could find was "Flying."

"Hmm."

"I would fly whenever I could. Those were the moments I felt the freest," Estelle thought out loud.

"Hm. I like rock climbing; I haven't had the chance to do it in a while."

"Do you use your quirk for that?" Estelle questioned with a tilt to her head in curiosity.

"Wha?! No! Just your muscles."

"Hmm, interesting. I didn't even know that was a thing."

"Pfft, of course, you didn't," Ruby snarked back with a playful glare.

"I feel attacked right now."

"Don't be a wimp; you aren't one."

Raising a brow from his statement, Estelle decided to return the conversation to him. "Why haven't you done it in a while if you enjoy it?"

"I dunno, I would go with my parents when I was younger. But, it got less frequent the more I focused on training. That's the priority."

"Hmm, you could always make that a part of your training."

"How?"

"You have to balance when climbing, correct?"

"Yeah..."

"When you perfect your balance, your flying becomes much easier. You can also be more agile in the way you move through the air. Your explosions allow you to fly, correct? That requires equal balance and pressure through your quirk."

"How do you think up stuff like this?"

"What do you mean?" The female queried.

"Tch, you didn't even know rock climbing was a thing. Yet, you've managed to figure out a way to implement it to my core training. That's a skill. How do you do that?" The blonde grumbled back angrily.

"When the war finished, I was requested to train soldiers. It's easy to train others when you've been trained yourself. You have to know how to alter training to suit peoples needs."

"Hm. That makes sense."

"Of course it does. I'm the best."

Estelle hid her smile from the blonde as he gazed up with a surprised smirk. Shaking his head with a chuckle, "You wish, Lioness."

"I don't need wishes when I know I'm the best," Estelle humoured back, a tilt to her lips.

"Alright, alright, enough with the self-compliments. You should find a hobby."

"Maybe I'll do that once I'm back home. I'll have all the time in the world to find something. Well, as long as I don't get called in."

"What do you mean?"

"After the war ended, I returned to the human realm. Of course, the humans were grateful I saved their asses from spirits. But, they knew I was too powerful to oppose or let go. We settled on a middle ground. I train military groups, and I provide aid when needed. Otherwise, they'd leave me alone. Unfortunately, humans seem to enjoy warring between themselves. I was furious when I found that out because why did I bother helping people set on destroying themselves? Nevertheless, I agreed to provide aid if I deem it necessary."

"That's ridiculous."

"I know. Well, I know you want to be number one and all. But, is that all you have planned for yourself?"

"I don't need anything else. Tch."

"Really? Nothing else to check off on your bucket list? I'm surprised."

"Grr, is being the best hero not enough?!"

"Whatever you accomplish is always enough," Estelle replied back softly, her eyes gazing into rubies with a resolution that made his heart twist.

Stunned, Bakugo gaped at Estelle with astonishment as he wasn't expecting those words to leave her mouth. Strangely, the conversation stilled whilst Bakugo eyed Estelle thoughtfully, his mouth moving to form words that would not vocalise.

"No, it's never enough. I have to be number one. Nothing less," Bakugo eventually mustered out, his eyes on the pillow across from them.

"Why do you think that?"

"Nobody can look down on me if I'm the best."

"So even though I can kick ass and beat the number one hero - if I'm not called the number one hero myself, does that diminish the fact that I am the best?"

"Hmm, your case is different, though. You don't need to prove it because you already have."

"Aren't you proving your worth every single day? I dunno, I just think that you don't need a label to show that you're the best." Estelle continued, her finger pointed towards his heart, "You should know and feel that for yourself, anything else is worthless."

"I do."

"Then that's all you need, Ruby." She finished with a small smile.

Staring in awe from what Estelle was trying to tell him, Bakugo drowned in Estelle's eyes as she softly gazed at him. He felt warm, and he felt a satisfaction grip on his underbelly that he had never experienced before. He always wanted to be told he was enough; he just never realised it until Estelle said them herself. And they hit him like a violin chord, stringing his heart like the perfect melody.

Realising that they were staring at each other, Bakugo and Estelle turned their heads to ignore the strange warmth in the air. Internally trying to move the conversation along, Estelle and Bakugo shared another look of uncertainty before accidentally speaking over one another.

"Why are-"

"It's getting late-"

Cutting each other off, the two shared an irritated glare to one another, a hint of a smile at their lips.

"Tch, your annoying."

"I have half a mind to dump your body in the ocean."

"Liar."