A/N: To that one person who decided to call this work shit and a waste of time - I am aware what I choose to write isn't to everyone's tastes, even I'm not a big fan of this piece but I will complete it regardless because there are people out there who enjoy it, there are people out there waiting for it to be completed. We all read pieces that don't agree with us and that is perfectly fine. Does not mean you have to put it down though. Didn't anyone ever teach you that if you have nothing nice to say, then say nothing at all :P
I have been in the headspace before where I have dropped entire fics before because of one negative comment so constructive criticism is one thing, but please don't dump on people's work. They have put time and effort into writing what they want and feel passionate about so if you don't like it, just leave.
And to all the people who are following this fic and enjoying it just a big THANK YOU for your love and support 3
A bar.
That was the girl's stupid plan, if you could even call it that. She had flashed a flirty smile and her fake ID at the guy watching the door and was waved on through without a second glance. Deku and I were standing so close behind her that he didn't even bother looking at us twice luckily.
The place was dark and borderline humid compared to the colder weather outside. It was all warm colored lights and dark timber floors, furniture and bar. It was crowded too, having to turn on our sides to weave through them all to keep up with Miko who threatened to disappear amongst them with Deku right behind her and I'd be damned if I let the nerd out of my sight.
The place was loud too. There was the constant rhythm of live music coming from the rear of the bar which seemed to be the direction Miko was leading us too till she diverted off to the side where, god knows how, she managed to get a round table and sat down with a pleased grin. Deku looked a little more wary in a place neither of us should have even been allowed inside of but then he sat down too. I pulled one of the remaining seats out and let myself drop onto it, leaning in with my elbows on the table.
"What the fuck are we doing here?" I hissed to Miko on my right while Deku continued to glance around.
"We are here for that" she smirked back at me and threw a finger towards the rear of the bar. I followed her finger with narrowed eyes and past Deku opposite me to see the source of the live music elevated on a lit stage, only it wasn't a band. It was one solo signer, belting it out like we were at their own personal concert. I turned my glare back to her. Miko's grin widened before she rose from her seat. Deku moved to follow till she waved a hand indicating for him to stay. He sat again and his worried green eyes turned to me.
"This is you're fault nerd" I hissed to him before I leaned back and crossed my arms over my chest. Deku looked a little taken back by my comment before he settled on an unamused frown and let his eyes drift back to roaming the bar. Finally he turned his attention back to the performer on the stage, their song ending, the crowd standing before them cheering before the next song, a totally different genre, started up. Seemed more like some hard-core karaoke to me and I narrowed my eyes at the stage wondering what he girl was thinking.
My thoughts were interrupted when movement caught my eye and I looked back over to see Miko returning to the table with three little glasses of clear liquid. She plopped them down on the table, bringing Deku's attention back to her as well as she sat back down.
"What's this shit?" I asked with a sneer, sitting forward and reached for one. I had only intended to bring it to my nose to sniff but she slapped my hand away with a smirk before her eyes turned to Deku who had done the same as me only she hadn't slapped his hand away as he brought the tiny glass of liquid to his face and sniffed it before he screwed up his freckled nose and put it back down. His eyes turned to Miko with suspicion.
"These," she slid all three in front of Deku, "are for you" she offered with a smile. He narrowed his eyes at her.
"So, you," she pointed behind him, "can do that" Deku turned his head to follow her finger to the stage before looking back to her, his green eyes wide.
"No," he responded with, "no, no, no"
"C'mon," Miko pressed, moving to lean into his shoulder with a smile, "I know you can, I've heard you singing in the shower and around the apartment. You're good"
"I was only doing that to strengthen my throat" Deku explained, leaning away from her.
"C'mon Izuki," she pleaded almost playfully, "I spent my last cash on these"
"You what?" I hissed across at her, "you brought us here for fucking karaoke?" I seethed before slumping back in the seat with an irritated huff.
"It's a competition," she explained, "they hold it each month. Participants pay a fee to enter and then go up there and sing five songs. First prize is $500. I've already paid for Izuki"
The person on the stage finished another song and the crowd cheered loudly for them.
"Awfully popular for a small town karaoke game" I added with a sneer towards the stage as the person performing stepping down and another took their place.
"It is" Miko agreed with a smile my way, "it's been going on for years here. It draws in a lot of people from the neighboring towns"
"You're too happy about this" I sneered back at her and she turned her attention back to Deku who was still eyeing off the three glasses with disgust.
"And you expect him" I turned my glare to Deku with a pointed finger, "to win? HA" I barked a laugh and Deku turned his disgusted glare from the glasses to an irritated one pointed my way.
"What? You singing? No way" I scoffed back at him and he frowned back unamused.
"He can sing" defended Miko, "you just haven't heard him"
"Ha, I've know the nerd my whole life and he's no singer" I smirked back at her, "he sure as hell isn't going to get on some stage and do it in front a room of people and what, you expect him to drink underage? HA the nerd would never-" my words died with my smirk when Deku's glare turned from me to the glasses and he picked one up, tipped back his head and smashed it back. The other two quickly followed.
He stood with one final take-that-glare before he turned away. Miko stood and walloped him supportively on the shoulder, hollering her support as Deku turned to head towards the stage looking closer to pissed off than anything else. Miko sat back down with her own take-that-smirk and I scoffed at her.
"Guess you didn't know him as well as you thought you did huh?" she said with a raised eyebrow and I shot her back my dirtiest glare. Stupid nerd. I turned my gaze away, watching the current person on the stage belting one out while the people before them waved their hands in the air like they were at a concert.
"Does it sting?" spoke up Miko, leaning in across the table to be heard over the cheering crowd. I turned my burning gaze on her.
"What?" I spat back.
"Does it sting?" she repeated, "that you don't know him as well as you thought you did" I narrowed my eyes to her but she wasn't smirking for a change and leaned back in her seat. It did a bit, but I wasn't about to admit that to her of all people.
"How the hell are you so confident about this?" I shot back instead.
"Because unlike you, I've heard him sing and he's good" she threw back at me.
"Yeah and I know the nerd, he freezes up speaking in front of class, yet alone singing in front of bar full of strangers"
"That's what a little bit of liquid courage is for" she smirked back looking too pleased of herself.
"You're a freaking idiot if you think some alcohol is enough to make this shit work" I shot back.
"Oh it works" she assured me with a smirk and I glared back at her. She leaned back in close across the table.
"I spiked the juice once just to see what would happen" she confessed with a giggle, "the confidence boost," she laughed, "you should have seen it. Let me tell you –"
"I don't need or want to know about you and the nerds shit" I interrupted with a raised hand.
"Our shit?" she asked with a cocked brow and leaned back, standing to shuffle her seat around the table and sitting back down right beside me. I gritted my teeth and rolled my eyes. I hadn't asked her to get closer.
"I don't want to hear shit about your god damn lovey shit" I warned her with a hiss. She leaned in closer with a smirk while I leaned further away with a grumble.
"You seriously think me and him are together?" she asked with a smirk . I only threw a glare back her way. She tipped her head back in laughter and swatted me on my upper back.
"Wow, just wow" she grinned at me.
"You sleep together in the same damn bed. You're practically glued together at the fucking hips. Don't bullshit me" I hissed back at her.
"It's purely platonic" she assured.
"Yeah right" I threw back at her.
"Honest," she insisted with a smile, "don't get me wrong, I love him, but he's like a brother to me" I narrowed my eyes to her with a frown but her smile was sincere, warm, honest and caring all rolled into one.
"Brother?" I sneered.
"Do you have siblings?" she asked, her eyes blue and searching.
"No" I admitted.
"I did," she responded and for once I looked to her with less scorn than before, "I had an older brother once, but I lost him" she turned her head away, watching the stage while the person up there was finishing off another song, "and then Izuki showed up, or I suppose I found him more than anything. He reminds me a lot of my brother" the crowd cheered as the person on stage raised their hands with some kind of triumph before moving onto their next song.
"I heard that he has a brother too," she went on, "but that they don't exactly get along" she turned her head to me and the way she flashed me a crooked smile I knew that I didn't need to tell her about it.
"I know it probably sounds corny, but to me anyway, it feels like we both fill a hole the other had" her blue eyes shone with the most sincerity I had seen since meeting her and for once I had nothing to bite back with. I didn't have a sibling. I didn't know what that was even supposed to feel like. I felt like this was the part where I was expected to say something but I couldn't think of anything to say aside from grumbling that its thanks to her that Deku didn't come back but then again, if not for her, who knows where he would have been. So I said nothing other than giving a grunt of acknowledgment. We sat in silence while the person on stage finished another song before stepping off.
The bar quieted for a brief moment as the stage was left empty while somewhere tucked away out of sight, someone made remarks over a microphone about the overall performance of the last person competing. Nothing said was negative, it was like listening to Present Mic back at U.A with the same energy they carried with just their voice.
Miko perked up in her seat and started smacking me in the arm again with excitement while her eyes remained trained forward on the stage. I hissed at her through my teeth to stop, following her gaze to see Deku stepping up to the stage and I searched him. His black hair shone under the stage lights. He had taken off his glasses before stepping up and I couldn't see him trembling in the slightest. Liquid courage huh?
The crowd cheered welcomely to Deku as he stepped up to the microphone stand in the center of the stage. The commentator made some useless comments and then the music kicked in. Miko was practically bouncing in her seat beside me with anticipation and thankfully not hitting me in the arm anymore.
The music was playing, the intro dragging on to a song I didn't recognize but Deku just stood there, shoulders rising and falling with each breath, his nerves getting the better of him.
"Izukiiiii!" Miko rose with her hands pressed to the table, her chair screeching as it was forced back and she called out his name. It was like a verbal glass of water being thrown in his face. His head shot up, he held the microphone stand and pulled it closer, opened his mouth and –
He sang.
And he wasn't shit. Growing up with him, his voice had always been so wobbly and cracked when he felt under any kind of pressure. The only time he spoke clearly was when he was muttering to himself or when he was angry. Even that had only been a recent development as that too used to come out shaky when he was younger.
The song wasn't jumping like the ones sang by the people before him that had the crowd jumping and moving and singing along like they were in some kind of mosh pit, instead this song had them standing still, listening carefully to his words as they came from his lips. A handful seemed to know the song and chimed in but the crowd up the front were mostly still as Deku rounded off the indie song. It ended and the crowd was a little slow but they did eventually clap and cheer, some whistled but they didn't have the same energy as they did before.
"Who picks the songs?" I hissed to Miko who was sitting again.
"I did," she admitted, not taking her eyes off the stage, "I've heard him sing them all plenty of times so I know he knows them"
"Well if you wanted to win this thing you did a shitty job" I told her. The intro to the next song started playing, smooth guitar coming through.
"We shall see," she smirked back and looked to me from the corner of her eye, "I'm going for a build up rather than just smashing out one high energy song after another" she turned her attention away again showing no indication of wanting to elaborate further. I huffed at her and looked back to the stage just as Deku opened his mouth again to sing.
Beside me Miko hissed through her teeth with concern. I glanced to her out of the corner of my eye.
"Lower," she hissed quietly to herself, "go lower" I realized she was whispering to Deku, not that he had any hope of hearing her but after the first few words escaped his lips he seemed to catch on and his voice smoothly dropped and just like that, it fit. His voice came smoother, his words dragged in all the right ways, fitting the movement of the instruments in the background perfectly and the crowd liked it. They loved it. They cheered and raised their hands and bounced on the spot. The song wasn't the dancing or bouncing sort, more of a soft sway if anything but they ate it up and Deku played it up. He pulled the mic from the stand and took his time walking across the stage, leaning down towards the crowd as he let his words drag only to reel back and tip his head back at other points and they loved it.
The music changed tune, giving him a brief moment of no words until he picked it up again, holding the mic close to himself as he sang directly into the crowd before him and then just like that, it was over and the people before him cheered loudly and whistled and Deku was left panting on the stage with a lopsided smile that only seemed to make the girls in the front squeal more before the third song started up without a moment to waste.
Beside me, Miko was grinning like a proud idiot.
The next song didn't have much of an intro and Deku was thrown right back into singing into the mic without getting a chance to catch his breath properly after the last one had taken so much from him. I could almost feel Miko vibrating beside me with how tense she was getting.
The next one started slow, almost like he was just speaking into the mic rather than singing before the music slowly built up behind him and then the crowd was jumping and singing along to the words they knew, most of them making up for the sounds other than the lyrics. Deku's green gaze scanned over the crowd as he sang, lifting to cover the people sitting at tables behind. He let his eyes close for the chorus each time and turned his head from side to side at other points that just worked. Deku was practically bouncing on the stage at some points, holding out the mic with a grin towards the audience, encouraging them to sign along to fill the spaces between the lyrics.
The moment the song ended who ever was in charge of starting up the next one did so immediately, letting the new beat roll in. Like the last one, this one left no time for Deku to catch his breath properly before having to dive right into the alternative song.
This one started slower again before picking up thirty or so seconds in and suddenly Deku was throwing out the words with all the energy he had, bouncing back and forth across the stage like he was a true performer. There was a break in the lyrics where he centered himself on the stage again and held the mic close to his face with both hands, singing into it intimately, his hooded green gaze on the people before him and they ate it up before it picked up again and he was back to moving across the stage.
Under the intense glare and heat of the stage lights, his movements and the humidity of the bar his skin glistened with sweat. I was already sweating from just sitting in the crowded place enough for even me to smell the sweet scent so I could only imagine how he was feeling.
The song ended and Deku stood still, swaying on his feet a little before the next song jumped straight into it and he opened his mouth to sing into the mic again. His body was a little slower to steady itself, his voice a little breathless, his words starting to slur and Miko to my right squeaked with apprehension, her fingers to her lips. This was the final song that she had chosen and it was one that everyone knew. The crowd broke into wild cheers at the first few words and they were jumping with hands in the air and singing along in an instant. Deku pushed on, trying to keep up the high energy song that Miko had selected for the finale, moving across the stage, clutching the mic with one hand and waving his other about in a half dance while he let his legs move him across the stage and his hips do the rest when he did stop here and there. To his credit, he kept the energy up, bouncing on stage and giving the audience all of his attention until the song ended and the crowd cheered loudly and he was left standing on the stage, his shoulders slumping from exhaustion or too much alcohol in such a short period of time or both and his chest heaving as he caught his breath.
The commentator chimed in, going on about the build up and the energy given and someone from the side of the stage had to step up, take the mic from Deku's hand, placing it back on the stand before ushering Deku off. Miko was up and already moving away from the table before I even knew it. She returned a little while later with a hand around Deku's waist and his arm over her shoulders. She put him down in his seat opposite us with his back to the stage and shuffled her seat back to sit between us with a huge grin.
"That was awesome," she beamed at him, tapping his shoulder, "that was so good. I knew you could do it" Deku lifted his hooded green gaze just enough to smile back at her with a hum.
Behind him, someone else took their turn on the stage.
Miko stood, saying something about getting drinks and left. I didn't have it in me to glare at her. Deku had done what she wanted so I doubted and hoped she wasn't bringing back any more alcohol. Opposite me Deku rested an elbow on the table and let his face rest in his hand. Miko returned with three more glasses crammed between her two hands and put them on the table before us. Thankfully they were standard size. She pushed water towards Deku and a glass of cola towards me. She nudged Deku to get him to drink which he did and I sipped at mine, having never been a fan of soda much to begin with.
"So how much longer are we supposed to just sit here?" I asked her after another sip.
"I think they said there's another four or five people to go still after Izuki, so we will have to wait till they have all had their turn before they announce the winners" she told me. I grumbled back at her and rolled my eyes. That was easily another 15-20minutes per person, meaning we would be here for another hour and a half at least.
"I can order us some food while we wait if you're hungry" she offered, moving to rise.
"Why would I want to eat greasy bar crap" I shot back, turning my glare to her, "and I thought you said you used the last of the money getting those drinks and putting Deku in this stupid competition"
"I used some, but not all. There's still some more left" she told me.
"Well don't waste it on shitty food" I retorted and she settled back in her seat with a huff of her own. Opposite, Deku had settled back into his previous position of resting his chin in his hand and his heavy lidded eyes watched us.
"How ya feeling nerd?" I asked with a grunt, turning to him. His green eyes turned my way and he only smiled and hummed in response again. I clicked my tongue at his uselessness.
"Was he like this last time?" I asked, turning my glare back to Miko.
"Pretty much," she smiled back warmly, her eyes on him, "full of energy and confidence until he burns it all up. Then he's just a content slug"
"You're a slug" Deku shot back, his eyes narrowing into a glare and pouting at her. She only responded by lifting a hand to ruffle his hair and he grumbled while she did it.
And so we waited.
Despite the noise Deku had slumped forward, his arms crossed over the table and his cheek pressed to them as he dozed off. Miko swapped between watching the competition carefully on stage and gazing back down at Deku occasionally while I leaned back in my seat, feeling my patience being sapped away after each song. The place was loud and warm and I really just wanted to get the fuck out and lay down to sleep.
The last competitor finished their round and stepped down. The commentator rounded up their performance in a few words and added that some time would be needed to decide on a winner which only made me tip my head back and groan. It was past midnight by the time a winner was decided and the stage had been left open and a screen moved into place so bar patrons could sing their own karaoke which was so much worse than the people who had at least been taking it seriously and had decent voices. Finally they announced a winner and much to Miko's disappointment it wasn't Deku, although he did get second which surprised even me. The commentator went on about how energetic he had been on the stage and interacted with the audience despite his occasional slurred words. Miko had to shake Deku awake who blinked around him hazily to encourage him up onto the stage to claim the cash reward of $250 which was better than nothing. Deku was worse for wear now though. Despite resting he was more wobbly on his feet and struggled to keep focus on anything. Luckily he didn't have to do much more than step into stage, shake someone's hand, take the money and step back down.
After that we were finally out of there, thank fuck.
Only, I had to carry the damn nerd otherwise we never would have made it back before sunrise.
"He was better than you thought wasn't he?" grinned Miko as she walked beside me back to the hotel. Deku was pressed against my back, his arms hanging uselessly over my shoulders as he snored lightly into my ear.
"Wasn't he" she pushed and poked me in the arm.
"He wasn't total shit" I grumbled back and she beamed at me. I chose to focus my attention ahead of me instead. I was just glad when we made it back to the room and I could shrug Deku off my shoulders and collapse onto the couch.
A/N: It is a personal head cannon of mine that Deku can actually sing and that he has a good voice only he is too shy to use it - so here - after using singing to strengthen his voice again after being poisoned he is putting it to good use! And yes, his throat will be hurting in the morning.
The songs Deku sang are in order as follows:
Hold Me Down - Halsey
Everything or Nothing - Willyecho
Weak - AJR
Bloodshot - Sam Tinnesz
TiK ToK - Kesha
I do not expect anyone to agree with these song choices!