The cafeteria was bustling with noise that day, metallic chopsticks clanging loudly against bowls, seas of voices senselessly blabbering about. It was a school lunch day pretty much like any other, but given that it's a Monday, it was hella noisier than usual. People just liked to prattle all their stupid weekend stories, apparently.

Across from him sat Kaminari and Kirishima, engaged in their annoying chatter while feeding themselves at the same time. Bakugou tried to ignore the gross bits of rice flying out of their mouths occasionally. Seriously, why did these two idiots insist on sitting with him anyway?

"So how's your project with Uraraka?"

Sparky groaned. "We're thinking of a device that could be floated with her quirk which could then redirect my electric discharge at a certain angle, but it's far too complicated and science-y for both our brains so we're trying to figure something else. How about you and Shouji?"

"Well, we're both pretty reliant using our own bodies for close combat so we're thinking of an accessory that we can strap on ourselves." The redhead shit-for-brains made some circular gestures with his hands. "Something like a spiked belt that could be wrapped around our arms? We're not really sure yet, though!"

"Man, at least the two of you could already visualize something," Soy Sauce Face interjected, who took the liberty of sitting beside him. Thankfully he did a far better job in keeping food contained in his damn mouth. "Jirou and I can't figure something out!"

"Well, both of you are better suited for long-ranged combat and stealth, right?"

"That's true, but it's kinda hard to think of a device that would suit my tape and her earphone jacks."

A synchronized sigh was heard from the three of them, before he felt all eyes on him.

"How are you and Yaoyorozu, though, Bakugou?"

"It's useless to ask him, Kirishima," Soy Sauce Face interrupted before taking a sip from his cup, "He'd just tell you to put a sock in it."

Bakugou glared at the dark-haired idiot. "Shut up."

He just shrugged and looked smugly at Sparky. "See, told you."

"But Bakugou-kun!" Four Eyes stood up briskly and whipped his hand in front of Sparky, which startled the halfwit in the process, "You acquired tickets from Hatsume-kun for the Inagi National Support Fair, correct? How come we did not see you and Yaoyorozu-kun last Saturday?"

With Four Eyes' revelation, different reactions erupted from their shared long table as his classmates began talking amongst each other. Most were shocked to hear about the existence of the support fair and were dismayed how they didn't think of approaching Hatsume. Figures, they were a bunch of idiots.

He thought he could just ignore them and continue eating his lunch in peace when Sparky suddenly stood up, pointing at him with a bold look in his eyes.

"Hey, hey, don't ignore the question! And don't you say it's none of our business since, since!" He shifted his arm to point at someone seated at the next table. He didn't really need to look directly since he already saw her high ponytail from his periphery. "Look at Yaomomo! What's with the scratches and bruises on her face, huh? Meanwhile, you don't look any worse for wear. . . except for that bandage on your face probably but still! Explain yourself, Bakugou!"

He puffed out his breath, trying not to look bothered about his whole accusation. "We ran into some troublesome punks that day."

It caused another wave of shocked reactions which was louder than the first since the occupants of the other table joined along. It didn't fail to increase his irritation even further. Luckily, the noise quickly died down when the other person in question stood up.

"Those people had been reported to the authorities already so there's no need to worry." Yaoyorozu motioned her hand, gesturing for their overacting classmates to calm the fuck down. "And I'm fine now, you see."

"Eeeeh!" Black Eyes began to frantically wave her arms which started cause a scene in the lunchroom. Other students were already looking at them. Fucking scandalous. "But still! Why didn't you tell us your life had been in danger, Yaomomo?!"

All the unnecessary commotion was already giving him a headache. He heard Ponytail girl apologizing as Four Eyes proceeded to do what he performed best by telling every nosy extra that there was nothing to worry about. It effectively scared them off, which was good. For once, he could say he appreciated their weirdo class rep.

"Since you're obviously not talking about it," Kirishima started, "could I just ask if it's safe to assume that Yaoyorozu's wounds were caused by some small time villain or street thug?"

His first response was to tighten his lip, showing an unamused frown. He sneaked a quick glance at Yaoyorozu, who he realized was already looking at him. She smiled weakly when their gazes met.

"Far from it," he responded vaguely, earning him a shrug from the two in front of him. They did a wise decision of dropping the issue afterwards.

The previous day, Yaoyorozu settled two agreements with him. One of which was that there was no need for their whole class to know about the real incident that Saturday. Whether she was talking about the alley incident or their impromptu sparring session or both, she didn't specify, but he definitely shared the notion that it was needless for them to know both stories. Especially about the bit on who actually caused her injuries. If there was one thing he was avoiding, it was how those stupid gossips could inevitably transform into distorted, inaccurate stories that end up painting him in a negative light. Fine, he's slowly coming into the terms that he wasn't the most popular kid anymore the moment he stepped into U.A. but it was damn reasonable to be ticked off by those kinds of shit, right?

However, he did anticipate that they'd still be questioned by their nosy classmates especially since she was against seeing Recovery Girl after their whole skirmish. Visiting her would prompt them to tell the truth, which the old granny would surely report to Aizawa and . . . he wouldn't really want to imagine what could come next. No matter how they looked at it, their little fight would be counted as 'unauthorized sparring and use of Quirks outside school grounds' which was definitely against the rules. In the end, she assured him she was fine anyway. She made attempts to conceal the small bruises with some of those girly compact powder shit, but someone with a scrutinizing eye would still be able to notice them.

Bakugou finished his meal and set aside his chopsticks. As he flexed his fingers and wrists, the dull pain from the previous day made itself present again, though to a lesser degree. For someone like her who had crap offense, he had to admit she made it up with her commendable defensive tactics, going as far as to force him to inadvertently overexert his attacks to the point of straining his hands despite knowing the limits when not wearing his gloves and gauntlets. It annoyed him to be reminded how significantly weak his attacks were in low temperatures, but if there was one thing that made him glad with the whole ordeal, it was being proven right how she possessed the spirit of someone who could be a worthy opponent for him. Bakugou appreciated a good challenge after all.

Eventually, the bell rang and they went back to class afterwards. Nothing worth mentioning happened in the afternoon subjects, apart maybe from Present Mic's announcement that they'd have some long test the next day. Which was expected too, since they've pretty much predicted that the week would be filled with quizzes since the term was ending. And that's where agreement number two entered.

"Let's allot our project time during the weekends only, if you don't mind," he remembered her telling him, "Individually we are still students with other responsibilities too, so I understand if you'd want to focus on your academics during the weekdays."

That, he should've predicted, because she's the freaking unbeaten number 1 in their overall class ranking. While practicals played a big part in their grades, written exams and all the other damn subject requirements constituted a significant percentage in their overall grading system too. Which Bakugou absolutely found pretty shitty because how the fuck can he focus on physical training if he had to study for some damn test? Of course, he was forced with the reality that U.A. is still a high school in the end so it wasn't avoidable, which was why he studied just enough while ensuring he still possessed topnotch fighting skills.

Obviously, his priorities differed from Yaoyorozu's, but it made damn sense in her part too since knowledge played a massive part in utilizing her Quirk. He recognized that she was smart, but that didn't mean he himself wasn't. In fact, he was willing to bet he'd beat her spot if he took studying even more seriously. High grades were just numbers in the end, and if he really wanted them, he'd be damn sure to fucking attain it . . . but that wasn't his style. He aspired to be the strongest hero the moment he graduates, not some damn school teacher or university scholar. He wasn't like Ponytail girl who had probably confined herself in her room to memorize the damn English dictionary or something.

"Little Miss Grade-conscious," he found himself grumbling under his breath. He was casually lying down on one of the couches in the common area, head propped on the arm rest. Kirishima and the other idiots had already retired to their own rooms after probably realizing they weren't being productive with each other's presence. Which was a huge relief for him because finally he could review in silence. He was staring intently at his notes that he didn't notice that someone was peeking at him from beside the sofa.

"'Little Miss Grade-conscious?' Are you pertaining that to somebody?"

The unexpected voice prompted him to reflexively pull away his notes from his head and look up. To his surprise, his eyes met with Yaoyorozu's, face upside-down in his perspective as she was peering from behind him. Heat rose up to his face and he quickly sat up, outraged.

"WHAT THE HELL, YAOYOROZU?! 'THE FUCK YOU SNEAKING UP ON PEOPLE, HUH?"

"Such intense, incensed emotion." Shitty Bird-face commented for the first time in his presence, who remained sitting on the other couch across him. Bakugou glared at him.

"Sorry, that wasn't my intention," she said, smiling sheepishly.

He exhaled hard, venting out the steam. Thankfully she seemed to have dropped off the issue of the little nickname she caught him saying. "Well don't do that again! 'the hell are you here for, anyway?"

"Ah, yes, about that. . ." A tone of hesitance was clear in her words. "Could we talk somewhere in private?"

He raised an eyebrow, looking at her for a moment before snapping his notebook shut with a single hand. There were probably less than half of the class lounging at the ground floor, the less annoying and less hurly-burly ones even, like Rock-face zookeeper and Tail guy. Why was there are need to speak privately? Unless it was something that she wouldn't want the others to hear?

She was fumbling from side to side, and it was only then did he notice that she seemed to be hiding some piece of paper behind her back too.

Given the current circumstances, he could only think that she was asking something related to academics, so at that moment, was this Rank 1 asking help from him, Rank 3, and was ashamed to let the others see? A smirk formed on his lips as he stood and followed her. Well, she came to the perfect person.

But he was proven wrong when she revealed that the pamphlet was something completely unrelated to their English subject. He was glad that all his deductions were made in his mind to save himself from embarrassment. Fuck Ponytail girl and her unpredictability.

If there's something else that surprised him even more than her little revelation and the proposal that came afterwards, it was the fact that he actually agreed to it. Never mind that it actually went against agreement number two, but he also liked to think that he's just had enough of reading about the English grammar and syntax. After telling him she'd wait for him on the ground floor, he walked back to his room to retrieve his winter coat.

"So, a friggin' food expo?" he muttered when they were already outside the dormitories. He zipped his coat shut when the cold winds started oozing through his skin.

She nodded as they started walking towards the large U.A. gates. "Exactly. Do you remember the portable microwaves we saw at the support fair yesterday?"

He recalled the microwave device they saw in the exhibit, which had been used by the hero Fat Gum. They did agree that food could be pretty damn useful for both of them—for her, it's primarily the material source of whatever shit she wanted to create, and for him, it could be a means of generating sweat depending on the flavor and temperature. Funny how going to the support fair made him consider the possibility of making something other than weapons.

"Yeah. It's not a bad idea."

"Indeed! I am familiar with the mechanisms of a microwave so you could leave that to me! Perhaps we should come up with a design that would be suitable for the both of us. However, we have to figure out what kind of food would be best in terms of storage life, portability, and effectiveness, and what better way to know which food to go with our microwave than to visit a food fair!"

He observed her from the corner of his eyes. He could've sworn he caught a glimpse of her literally being enveloped with an aura that matched the sparkly eagerness that she was seemingly attempting to conceal. The sight was . . . odd, but surprisingly, not unpleasant. He somehow likened the quality to Kirishima, who most of the time beamed in a gaudy, optimistic way that may have irritated Bakugou at first, but somehow learned to tolerate until present. Hers glowed a softer kind, too comforting for his tastes that it was starting to bring the opposite effect on him. If he were, say, that idiot Kaminari, he could almost describe her as . . . adorable? But god fucking forbid that wasn't part of his vocabulary. He settled with odd, which was perfect. Much like Four Eyes the weirdo class rep, Ponytail girl would be the weirdo assistant class rep.

The food fair was situated one block away from U.A.'s entrance, so it wasn't a long trip. What was usually a parking space for cars in the day was replaced with various food stalls that sprung up in different colors. He wouldn't say it was crowded, yet a considerable number of people were present—he even spotted some U.A. students who obviously recognized him, but all for the wrong reasons. He just knew, basing from the judging looks sent in his direction.

That middle schooler caught by the slime villain. That angry 1-A guy who was tied down in the Sports Fest. That heroics student kidnapped by the League of Villains.

Fucking extras, why don't they just fall in some shit hole and die?

"Bakugou-san, is everything alright?" asked Yaoyorozu. He didn't notice that he was already clenching his fists hard. He released his hands and walked ahead of her without answering her question.

"Come on, let's get to that damn stall."

He felt her eyes trailing after him but she said nothing, instead following him towards the first stall, which happened to sell takoyaki.

Dozens of ball-shaped snacks were being cooked in the square pans, and from time-to-time, the owner was flipping them around the half-spherical moulds.

"It's cumbersome to make takoyaki from scratch," he said, recalling how his mother used to make them and pretty much forced him to help along. What a huge pain in the ass.

"That's true," she uttered back, not looking away from how the snacks were meticulously being made.

"It involves a shitload lot of chopping, grinding, and whisking it to a certain consistency before the actual cooking process," he added, watching as the snacks simmered as the owner poked and flipped them around. "Unless we opt for the frozen packs, it's best to take this off our list."

Actually, they should probably not consider frozen food too since it'll be bothersome to store it. He wasn't like Half n' Half who could pretty much function like a fridge, so unless they opt to have a portable ice box too, risks of spoiling were there. He definitely wouldn't want to deal with villains and a shitty stomach at the same time. Hero support item ends up supporting the enemy. He could already imagine Aizawa marking them with substandard grades in that aspect. He started walking away, going over to the next stall.

"Wait, where are you going?"

He looked back at her who didn't budge from her spot. "What the hell are you still standing there for? Let's go."

"But," she paused for a second, seemingly fumbling for words, "aren't we going to at least try some of it?" She paused again, before slapping her hands together in front of her. "I'm sure you're quite famished too."

As if on cue, his stomach fucking growled, and despite their distance, he was quite sure she heard it too, judging from her cheeky smile. He frowned, stomping back to her place. Well, it was almost dinner time, anyway.

He ended up ordering a small box of takoyaki with an extra serving of chili sauce, while she opted for a set with assorted flavors and spices. She didn't make an effort to conceal her bliss with how happily she consumed each of them. He didn't comment on it as they went to the next stalls, but he soon noticed that attempts to discuss about their food project were usually short-lived—it wasn't because neither wanted to talk about it, but all the street food just had a high risk of spoilage so they were automatically out of the list. Gyoza, korokke, dango. . . They agreed they shouldn't probably use them, but despite that, it didn't stop her from gleefully going through all of the food stalls.

Bakugou shook his head, feeling like a huge idiot for just realizing it. Why did it have to take him that long—that FRIGGIN' LONG to the point of holding a tray full of street food already stacked high it almost occluded his damn view—to realize he had actually fallen into her trap?

"Just fucking admit it," he growled, confronting her when they finally sat down. "This," motioning at the heavy tray resting on his lap which he also managed to balance with the help of his hands, "is not because of our damned project. You just wanted someone to accompany you here."

She looked like she was about to say something, but he completely cut her off.

"Don't even try to deny it."

Her shoulders dropped in the defeat, the plastic bags dangling on her arms making a brief, ruffling noise in the process. She hid her face in shame while still holding sticks of dango, so it looked like she had two weird protruding horns on her head. She looked absolutely ridiculous. "I . . . brought it this up with the girls this morning but none of them thought it was a good idea after learning we have a test tomorrow!"

He sent her an unamused glint. "I knew it."

"I simply couldn't miss it since it's the last day today, and I'm sure Kyouka-san would've agreed to go with me but I saw that she was feeling a bit out of the weather so—"

"Stop explaining," he interrupted, clicking his tongue in irritation, "I don't give a damn."

She looked at him with widened eyes, speechless; it was the same, brief look she had before she threw those pieces of formula on his face. His eyebrows furrowed while eyeing the dango sticks on her hands; she wouldn't dare stab him in the fucking eyes . . . right?

But instead of looking offended, a curious look took over her features. "Are you saying you do not mind that I have tricked you?"

"I did not say that!"

She pouted. The sight reminded him of a puppy, somehow. His eye twitched.

"Then," she continued carefully, just as he noticed that his fingertips had been sliding tensely under the tray, "you are angry?"

To be brutally honest, he wasn't sure. Ever since this stupid project began he had been in odd situations with Yaoyorozu that stirred strange, conflicting emotions in him sometimes. At that moment, the familiar feeling of heat enveloped his head, serving like an invisible blanket against the shit winter winds. Yet he couldn't enjoy it, since a sloppy, discomfiting weight was squirming in his stomach. He breathed hard.

"If you keep asking stupid questions," he began slowly. He felt her eyes looking at him intently.

Before, she was simply a classmate to him, and much like others, he wanted absolutely nothing to do with her. Right now she was still a classmate, but the only difference was circumstances had forced them together and he had to deal with her. And to hell with crushes, love and other moronic bull crap, he didn't have time for any of those and he didn't think he ever would.

But being with her . . .

It was as if he was actually enjoying her company?

"Bakugou—"

"IF YOU KEEP ASKING STUPID QUESTIONS," he repeated with added intensity, "THEN I'LL REALLY BE MAD FUCKING ANGRMFFFHHM—"

A sweet, savory taste assaulted him, followed by a gradual, burning sensation which began spreading unauthorized in his mouth.

It was a dango.

She stuffed a motherfucking dango in his mouth.

She appeared stricken at her own actions. "A-a-a-I'm sorry! You were already screaming and angry and the boxes were almost toppling and—"

He pulled away his head while biting onto the dumpling so it completely slid off from the stick. He quickly chewed it before swallowing. "I will not let these damn boxes topple over and waste good food just like that! Who do you fucking think I am?!"

Her face looked briefly dumbstruck before it shifted to a giddier smile. "Oh, of course!"

"And who the fuck said I was angry?" The words were only muttered, coming out of his mouth before he realized it. Quickly he turned to her which made her hold her arms up in defense.

"Did . . . you say something?"

Either she didn't really hear it or she was good at feigning innocence. But both meant she was no longer dwelling on the emotions bullshit. Which was good. He took a deep breath. "Nothing."

"Oh, okay."

And then they entered a bout of silence. Beside him, she continued eating, eyes directed forward at the people passing by. He didn't share her view due to the mass of food boxes in front of him, but he actually didn't mind. In fact, it did him good. At least he saw none of the stupid nosy extras.

She broke the silence after five long seconds. "So, what's your opinion on the dango?"

"Not bad." If it weren't for the fact that she pretty much smacked it in his mouth it would've been perfect. "First time I've tasted a spicy variety."

"Me too. I'm not the greatest in dealing with spicy food, but I wanted to try it. The spiciness definitely lingers, right?"

He nodded. It was true. Specks of the spicy flavor with a little bit of sweetness were still present in his mouth.

"Capsaicin."

"The active component responsible for making peppers hot," he added without sparing a glance. "It's capable of stimulating the hypothalamus to activate the sweat glands of the body so it starts producing sweat."

A delighted noise came out from her lips. "As expected, Bakugou-san, you did your research!"

"Of course I did. Didn't I tell you we'd make damn sure this is the best term project there is? That means we're equally responsible to do some friggin' homework."

If anything, his unintended pep talk increased her perkiness even further that she was literally glowing again. "That's right! We just have to figure out the best kind of food to add Capsaicin with while considering both of our tastes! Now tell me what you think about this flavor—"

"Stop mmf—stop feeding me, damn it! Don't treat me like some kid!"

"You have your hands full, though! Now open your mouth—"

"PUT THAT GODDAMNED DUMPLING AWAY FROM MY FACE OR I'LL KILL YOU—!"

They made quite a scene after several unsuccessful feeding attempts, but ended up leaving the food fair minutes later when they were reminded of U.A.'s curfew. He no longer held the tray since its contents were transferred to a trolley bag produced by Young Lady All-around Factory—thankfully she remembered to possess common decency this time by actually informing him she'd make one from her belly. Or was it actually from her chest? Not that he looked nor did it fucking matter.

"Why the hell did you hoard so many food anyway? That's more than enough to feed a friggin' family."

"Well, you are somehow making sense. It is for our classmates, after all! Surely they're hungry after studying!"

Oh right. He almost forgot about the exam. Back to goddamn reality.

"Speaking of studying, in exchange for deceiving you and lessening your reviewing time," she coughed, and then said her next words in straight English. "Please allow me to assist you in practicing your English for our examination!"

"I do not need your help," he spoke back in English, just to prove a point.

"Very nice! That's the spirit, Bakugou-san!"

He slapped his hand to his forehead. Of course, trust her to think that way. He side-glanced at her to see how her eagerness didn't flicker even one bit. It was a huge contrast to the downer Ponytail girl he witnessed days ago.

Bakugou told himself that somehow, he'd rather deal with this current version of her any day.

"Since you're obviously very keen about this, I'll take your fucking game on." He grinned widely. "Did you know there are plenty ways of telling people to be quiet in English?"

She nodded with a confident stance. ''Of course! There's 'be quiet,' 'silence please,' and 'lower your voice.''`

"Hmph, impressive," he commented casually, "but I betcha never heard of this one before!"

Their little game went on even as they passed the giant U.A. gates. He was so immersed in it that he no longer noticed that they've actually passed by some of the students who he knew had been gossiping behind his back. In no time, they managed to arrive at their class dormitory.

Before she opened the door, she parked her little trolley and faced him. "Thank you for today, Bakugou-san. Not only just for our English review of course—I learned a lot from you—Thank you too," her fingers fiddled with trolley's handle, "for allowing me to indulge in these small things."

He puffed air out from his nose. "Hmpf, but you did it under the guise of our term project."

An embarrassed smile formed on her lips. "I'm really sorry. I'll be more honest next time."

He raised an eyebrow. Next time?

"And I know I totally broke agreement number two, but just this time, I promise!"

He just shrugged, slouching his back further. The agreement wasn't even his idea in the first place.

"We may resume our Capsaicin brainstorming this weekend! But speaking of that, I promised Kaminari-san and the others that I'd be helping them in studying for our written examinations next week. I hope you don't mind that I told them you're also reviewing with us!"

What?

"It's hitting two birds with one stone! We can talk about the project while also helping our other classmates. I heard you also study with Kirishima-san so I invited him along too!"

What?

Scratch his earlier thoughts. Was he actually ready to deal with Princess Ponytail of Perkiness Palace?

He soon found out days later. They stood outside the U.A. gates all bundled up in coats or whatever the hell kept them warm the following Saturday morning. Yaoyorozu was busy talking to someone on her smart phone while the rest of them pretty much lined up by the sidewalks.

"Oh man, how cool is this?!" Sparky exclaimed, walking towards the spot where he and Kirishima stood. "The two of you are joining our study sessions!"

"That's not what I came here for," Bakugou growled back, pushing away the idiot's hand when he attempted to touch his shoulder.

"What do you mean, dude?" Kirishima interjected, "I thought you'd totally show off your manly teaching techniques!"

Black Eyes shrieked excitedly, then bounced off to where they were. "So does that mean we have two teachers today?"

Soy Sauce Face showed off his usual toothy grin. "Yaoyorozu-sensei and Bakugou-sensei, eh?"

"Quit it!" Bakugou snapped back, "I ain't teaching anybody!"

Black Eyes clearly ignored him. "I wonder who's better, hmm~?"

"I'm putting my bets on Yaomomo!" Sparky answered back immediately. Veins popped on Bakugou's head but he let the remaining amount of self-control in his system to take over him. Self-control, meaning he wouldn't use physical contact . . . yet. He simply gave off his death glares at Kaminari which effectively made the fool squeak pathetically and cower behind Black Eyes.

"Man, seems like Bakugou's group is complete today," he heard Tail guy comment. Beside him, Earphone woman seemed to mumble some sort of affirmation, adding how energetic they were at that hour.

He eyed all of them, and true enough, these were the guys who just liked acquainting themselves with him.

No wonder academic discussions with them were often such a pain.

He was surrounded by idiots, to put it simply.

Black Eyes then gasped, which caught their attention. She pointed her finger towards the streets. "But guys, do you know what's even cooler?"

He knew he should've totally expected it, but he'd be lying if he said his eyes didn't even widen in awe.

"Um, my apologies for the inconvenience of waiting outside for this long," Yaoyorozu said as a limousine slowly came to a stop right in front of them. He could tell that the others were pretty much frozen in their spot, and it wasn't due to the cold morning breeze. "When my mother learned that all of you will be coming over, she insisted that our chauffeur will come fetch us."

For a moment, images of her enormous mansion entered his head. He wondered whether he also happened to get himself acquainted with an actual friggin' royalty.

"Bakugou-san?" She flashed a smile at him, just as he noticed that the others were already entering the car which had been opened promptly by her driver. She was simply standing beside him, making no motion of going in yet. "Is everything all right?"

He looked at her briefly before nodding his head, trailing after Kirishima who was mumbling astonished nonsense with Kaminari. She then walked closely behind him before thanking her driver. He stifled a chuckle. Royalty or not, Ponytail girl was still Ponytail girl.

"Holy crap, we're actually inside this . . . luxurious vehicle?! It's like . . . we're actual celebrities?" Black Eyes was obviously trying to contain her excitement, marveling at the intricate interiors of the car. Bakugou was only thankful he was sitting far from her so he didn't have to deal with her annoying chatter. To be completely fair, it wasn't really everyday that you get to experience riding in such a fancy vehicle with a large flat screen TV and high-class velvet curtains inside, among all other things. "Kaminari, pinch me, am I dreaming?!"

"It's useless to ask him, Ashido," Earphone woman responded instead, poking the other's cheek with the end of her earphone jack. "Seems like he already short-circuited."

True enough, Sparky, who was seated between the girls, had his signature foolish face activated.

"Kaminari-san, are you feeling carsick? Would you like a lozenge?" Yaoyorozu said, and then proceeding to mutter something about a pressure point which was apparently taught to her by Half N' Half. He wasn't able to hear clearly since he was at the other end of the car. Not that he needed to know, anyway.

"Yaoyorozu's really something else, ain't she?" Kirishima whispered, and he heard Soy Sauce Face mutter a "yeah" as he nodded. Bakugou on the other hand didn't say anything, though at the back of his mind, he was inclined to agree.

The car ride was pretty much uneventful, apart from trivial conversations mostly initiated by Black Eyes. The lively chattering faded to oblivion, however, as soon as their little study session commenced. It no longer surprised Bakugou when he was introduced to a big-ass study hall, perhaps even more enormous than the library where they stayed at before.

They were all huddled together at the end of the table, all scribbling notes as Yaoyorozu was reciting a verse from one of their literature book. Bakugou opted to sit at the other end of the table, away from the little study bunch. Despite Sparky and Shit-for-brains' countless attempts to convince him to join them, all they got was a big fat NO. Predictably they were disappointed, and from the corner of his eye he was sure Yaoyorozu was, too, but she didn't really say anything. He resumed browsing his own notes at his own pace, going over their annoying course outline.

But not even half an hour had passed and he realized he was growing freaking bored. He'd rather talk about their term project—that's exactly what he came for anyway—but that would be impossible since his partner had her hands full. Literally. She was holding a book on one hand and a marker on the other while trying to accommodate the erupting questions from her groupies.

"I just can't seem to understand what exactly was going through this character's head," Tail guy brought up.

"I get what you mean, Ojiro!" Black Eyes added, scratching her unruly hair, "His thought process is so complicated!"

He noticed the creases that formed between Yaoyorozu's eyebrows as her gaze shifted back to the book. "Let's go back to page 37, shall we? From there I'll list down the dialogue that ultimately led to his decision. . ."

They were too engrossed with their discussion that they didn't realize that he had already stood up, only noticing when he strode towards Yaoyorozu who was too busy writing and dictating. She flinched in surprise when she sensed his proximity.

"You're making it way too complicated." He brought his hand forward, gesturing for her marker. "Gimme that."

He faced the whiteboard and wrote large, erratic texts on it. He then encircled the phrase he wrote for emphasis.

"'Take note of the bigger picture and the author's intentions,'" she slowly read, a hand resting under her chin.

"Damn right," he affirmed, then tapping the end of the marker on the board as he faced them, "That's the important shit you have to keep in your heads in all the readings. The answers are all in the texts, anyway. If Ponytail here writes all of the necessary dialogue, it'd take us the whole day just for Modern Literature."

She was pouting. "You're exaggerating, Bakugou-san!" A sigh. "But I guess you do have a point."

"Hell yeah! Now you're joining us, Bakugou?!" An ecstatic grin was plastered all over Kirishima's face, and when he scanned the other fools, he realized they all seemed to share the same blinding eagerness.

He exhaled hard. How annoying. But he grunted in affirmation anyway. The so-called 'Bakugou group' cheered in unison.

"Let's do our best, then!" Yaoyorozu said while Black Eyes and Soy Sauce Face were continuously chanting 'Bakugou-sensei' and 'Yaomomo-sensei.' A warm feeling trickled in his face. He was sure it was the feeling of irritation due to the inconvenience of all the shitty circumstances, not because he was thrilled about it.

The study session resumed from then. Somehow, they settled with an unspoken agreement where Yaoyorozu would discuss and expound on necessary details while he would summarize all the needed shit. He figured it was simply just their way of teaching, or it was just how they were—whereas Yaoyorozu was prim, organized and unbelievably patient with explaining the lengthy know-hows, his way was rough, concise, and straight to the fucking point. For the little study group, the setup proved to be effective. Like when idiot Kaminari couldn't make his damn brain cells to understand a jargon that Ponytail girl had been trying to explain, the halfwit somehow did when Bakugou slammed a rolled handout on his head while exclaiming the same definition with less fancy words and more expletives. It worked the opposite for Kirishima; when shit-for-brains couldn't absorb that all he had to do was to follow the damn formula, he somehow understood more when Yaoyorozu laid out the steps one-by-one.

In the end, it all worked out perfectly. He didn't even realize that they've been at it for almost three straight hours already. He could even say that he'd probably consider the thought that teaching a crowd wasn't that bad of an idea, after all. It wasn't just about 'helping' them, per se; in it's own way, it stimulated his mind which also helped him review in the process.

Yaoyorozu decided that it was the perfect time to have a break. Despite enjoying the looks of their 'students' who seemed to have their brain batteries depleted, he agreed to it. He was getting hungry, anyway, which was why he went off to get their snacks with Yaoyorozu without any complaints. What, he'd get his hands on food much faster that way.

"Do you think we've been a little too hard on them?" she said once they left the hall.

"Nah, that just serves them right. They came here to learn, right? So we better make sure to beat them to a bloody pulp so as not to waste anyone's time."

"Hmm, that makes sense, I guess," she responded, chuckling, "But thank you for helping out. To be honest, I was really disappointed when you told Kaminari-san and Kirishima-san that you wouldn't. I was really looking forward to seeing your 'manly teaching techniques' when I learned that you've once taught Kirishima-san! I'm glad you changed your mind."

He puffed an air out. Trust Kirishima to blather something like that. "You should learn not to spoon-feed them too much, though. If you keep spelling out all words for them they ain't learning rat shit."

She bobbed her head, seemingly all gung ho. "I see. Thank you for your pointers!"

"Don't get used to it. Besides, I only did that to get it over it. The longer you take, the longer I'd have to wait 'til I have you for myself." It took him one long second to realize how he phrased his words, and before she could react, he immediately added, "For the term project, of course. Don't get any wrong ideas!"

There was a dumbfounded look on her face before it completely shifted into a smile which looked far too rehearsed. "Of course. What other reason could there be?"

An uneasy knot formed in his stomach, and somehow, he felt like he regretted saying some of his words.

"Anyway, I'm also glad that you agreed to go with me in the kitchen!" she continued, showing no sign of discomfort from their prior conversation, "In fact, I was really hoping you'd do since—"

"Momo, my dear?"

They completely stopped walking when they came across a woman who resembled the girl right beside him.

"Ah, mother!" Yaoyorozu greeted in a tone that was a lot more sugary sweet than usual, yet he noticed how tense her shoulders were. "This is Bakugou-san, one of my classmates. We're on our way to the kitchen to get our snacks, so—"

"Is that so?" Her mom interjected, and he couldn't help but raise an eyebrow at their exchange, "It's perfect then, because I've just baked my newest batch of cookies for you and your friends!"

An almost panicked look erupted on her face that he began to wonder what the actual fuck was going on. He noticed that something was materializing in her palm, "I see, thank you, mother! I'll go and rush to the kitchen to get them. In the mean time, would you please accompany Bakugou-san first?"

What the fuck?

And then she stormed off, but not before taking his hand and placing a small piece of paper in it. When he opened it, it read: Bakugou-san, forgive me, but please preoccupy my mother. I'll explain later.

He could only watch as her back disappeared towards one of the rooms in the spacious hallway. He shifted his eyes awkwardly towards the woman in front of him.

"Aren't you the boy from the news?"

He frowned, but nodded. Goddamnit Yaoyorozu, whatever reason it was better be fucking good. He wasn't even sure which of those news shit she was talking about.

"I actually really think you have exceptional abilities! I was at the edge of my seat watching your performance in the Sports Festival last year."

Ah, so she's talking about that.

The woman went on talking, something he was kinda thankful about since all he had to do was to pretend to listen until Ponytail girl came back. It caught his attention when she mentioned how worried she was about Yaoyorozu's defeat in the festival. He never got to watch it since he was at the briefing area that time, but he heard it was one of the short-lived battles that wasn't really talked about much. "When I called her after her battle against that other classmate of yours—Tokoyami-san, was it?—she assured me she was fine. I was inclined not to believe her; she has a knack for overthinking, that girl."

He recalled all his previous encounters with her. Somehow, it was all making sense to him now.

"Anyway, I must say I'm impressed by you! You stayed true to your word that you'd win first prize."

He wasn't very impressed though. He's still sour that the two-faced ice bastard didn't go all out on it.

"But I'm sorry it all had to lead to the . . ." There was a sad smile in her face before her eyes widened, then bowing with grace. "Ah, forgive my manners. I don't think it's proper to talk about that."

His gaze shifted downwards. With the tone of her voice, he was sure she was definitely talking about the events that have led to the Kamino incident. "It's fine."

There was a distinct pause before she spoke again. "That time was also especially difficult for us. To be honest, my husband and I were against her joining heroics, but it seemed like being a hero was something we couldn't take away from her."

The information shouldn't have shocked him given how sheltered she seemingly was, yet he found himself listening intently to what was being said to him.

"Momo's head injury caused her to be hospitalized for days. Despite that, we learned she still joined that group that wanted to rescue you. In the end, she was really hardheaded in her own way."

The revelation was even more of a surprise. He knew there were casualties in their class, but he never bothered to ask for the specifics. He knew Deku was one of the seriously injured, but he possessed that idiotic madness that it wasn't surprising when he still came after him. But for Yaoyorozu . . . the righteous, know-it-all who he knew possessed a decent amount of common sense, went against odds and school rules just to go after him alongside those other idiots?

His mind was definitely telling him that it meant Yaoyorozu, much like Deku, Kirishima, Todoroki, and Iida, was a big idiot. But somehow, he found himself being thankful for it.

"You heroes look after people and one another, right?" Her mother continued, placing a gentle hand on his shoulder, "So if it isn't too much to ask, please take care and look after her too."

"Mother, Bakugou-san, I'm back!" Yaoyorozu announced, pushing a fancy, food service trolley in front of her. "Sorry to keep you waiting!"

Her mother settled her hand down, giving him a smile. He simply nodded as she walked away. "I'll be taking my leave, then. Good luck with your studies!"

The two of them walked again through the corridors, on the way back to the study hall. He proceeded to grab one of the pastries. A taste of sweet spiciness stung his mouth as soon as he munched on it.

"How is it?" she asked.

"Not bad."

Her faced beamed in delight. "Great! As I was saying, I was hoping you'd go to the kitchen since I've prepared some ingredients for our Capsaicin project. These are one of the samples I asked the chef to do, but we can make one of our own later on!"

He grunted in reply, then eyeing the cookies placed on the lower compartments. "What about those?"

"T-those are my mother's cookies. . . She has an odd means of baking, so just in case it tasted funny, I asked our helpers to prepare a separate batch of pastries, just in case!" She turned to face him. "Anyway, what did the two of you talk about?"

Her mother's last words echoed in his head. He gave her a brief glance before placing his hands in his pockets, suppressing the smile forming in his lips.

"Nothing you need to know."

A/N: My apologies for the late update, but here it is! Thank you all for your feedback, so far. I truly appreciate them. Bakugou is absolutely tricky to write, especially with how emotionally constipated he is. Have you guys also read the translations for the BNHA novel featuring Yaoyorozu's mom, aka Yaomama? She seems like a really sweet mom, haha, I hope we see her in the canon storyline soon!