Chapter 2

The next morning after Mina and Kirishima's round two on the kitchen counter was over and they left for the day, Misa crawled out of bed and jumped into the shower to prepare for the day. She chose a simple pair of ripped jeans and pale blue crop top with a light jacket for the day's attire since she had no idea what they were planning on doing. Her make up was simple with winged eyeliner and smokey grey shadow and neutral lipstick. Her hair had always proved to be a challenge as it was so long and thick, but she let the onyx mane fall simply behind her back.

As she finished gliding the lipstick over her lip, a knock sounded at the door that she eagerly ran to. "Hey Katz!" She smiled, stepping aside to let the man in. His hands were buried deep in his leather jacket as he entered, adorned with his usual baseball cap to stay incognito from fans. "Trying to hide?" She teased him, looking under the brim of the cap to see teasing eyes.

"And you're not?"

"I'm not exactly as popular as you Dynamight."

"Shira is very popular; number five in the ranks; she'd be higher if she wasn't with a shit agency." Bakugou told her as he watched Misa gather her belongings, including a baseball cap herself.

"People like...strength and good looks. You, Deku and Shoto have both. The top three have never been sexier." Misa smirked as she pushed Bakugou out of the apartment.

"Oh please. If we're talking about appearances, then you definitely deserve to be up there." He sucked his teeth and led her down to where he parked his bike. Misa paled and analyzed the vehicle as Bakugou climbed onto it. "Scared?"

She narrowed her eyes at him incredulously. "I'm glad I wore jeans...let's go!" She smiled and hopped behind Bakugou as he handed her a helmet. Helmet adorned, she wrapped her arms around his waist and nuzzled into his back.

"Hold on tight girl." He told her over the roar of the engine. They rode for a while through the towns, the spring wind blowing Misa's hair wildly. They came to a stop outside of a quaint noodle house when Bakugou killed his engine. "You okay?" He asked her as Misa hopped off the bike and pulled the helmet off her head.

"That was amazing!" Misa squealed, trying to contain her rully wind swept hair. "I have never ridden a bike before, my thighs are vibrating." She laughed as they walked into the cafe with Bakugou smirking behind her.

"Yeah, the engine can cause some vibrations. I'm glad the day is off to a good start." They settled at their table and Misa rolled her eyes at his comment.

"Trust me, the end of the world could happen and it would still be better than that date last night." Misa told him and Bakugou winced. "Sorry, I bet you don't want to hear about my love life." She blushed, tucking some hair behind her ear.

Before Bakugou could tease her, the waitress appeared with a wide smile. "What can I get you two?" The waitress asked the pair.

"Green tea for me please." Misa smiled as Bakugou gave his order of cinnamon tea. "Anyway, what's been going with you recently? It's been awhile since we really talked." Misa's eyes ran over the menu in front of her as Bakugou shrugged his shoulders nonchalantly before he spoke.

"Icy Hot is keeping me busy at work since he's had to take more to the desk recently. He's having a hard time finding a replacement for his admin." He told her, looking at Misa's wandering eyes.

"You aren't partners anymore?" Misa asked. "A few months ago you were."

"Yeah, but the admin went on maternity leave and then quit. Endeavor's agency still has the "tough" reputation since Endeavor retired and Icy Hot can't really shake it, despite his efforts."

"People are still afraid to work there?" Misa asked as Bakugou nodded.

"It's a really sought after agency for heroes, but for the admin workers, I guess it's a bit different. He treats everyone fairly and kindly, but his name precedes him." Bakugou explained, flexing his hand.

"That's a shame. He's so kindhearted. I hope he finds someone soon." Misa murmured. "Oh, I meant to text you last week about sparring with me again? I'm not working out as much as I used to because work is keeping me late; but that's no excuse."

"I'd love to kick your ass at sparring again." He smirked, as the waitress reappeared.

"Any food for you?" The waitress asked Bakugou, a blush creeping on her cheeks. "By the way...I love your hero work." She whispered as to not alert the other patrons of his appearance. Bakugou nodded his thanks to her and ordered a spicy ramen bowl, waiting for Misa to order. Her nose scrunched at the thought of the molten lava bowl as she ordered a miso ramen.

Reading her mind, Bakugou nudged her under the table. "You will eventually get over your distaste for spice Misa." Bakugou chuckled at the girl's scrunched nose. "Anyway, things are worse for you at work? I thought you were going to talk to Ayami?"

"Yeah. I did talk to him but he has this way of turning everything against me. Like I should be grateful I even have a job." Misa groaned, rolling a piece of napkin between her fingers. "He told me the other day that I should thank him for using me as much as he does because when I get old and wrinkly, my career is over." Bakugou clenched his fists under the table at the rudeness Misa had to endure.

"He should not speak to you like that." He growled.

"I should have joined Todoroki's agency when I had the chance. Now I have a year left here thankfully and then I'm not sure where to go." Misa sighed, twiddling her thumbs in her lap.

"I can talk to Todoroki, I'm sure he'd love to have you. He's brought you up multiple times."

"He's never called me though. I thought after the Russian cartel case, people would be vying for me; but I guess not." Bakugou narrowed his eyes at the comment and made a mental note to ask Todoroki about it come Monday.

"Why didn't you choose him in the first place?" Bakugou asked, seeing Misa's eyes dart to her lap. "This isn't about paying your dues is it?"

"Kinda." Misa mumbled, hearing Bakugou scoff. "Please don't laugh at me."

"You've earned your hero title. You worked your ass off in school and the internships. Taking Todoroki's offer would have been the smart choice."

"Guess I'm just not smart then." Misa snapped back, making Bakugou narrow his eyes at her.

"You're letting your father into your head again." He told her more gently. Misa's eyes widened at the comment, realizing Bakugou was right. "He was wrong about you." Misa shook her head and ran her nails through her hair.

"Sorry...I didn't mean to snap."

"I know you regret the decision. I'm telling you things you already know." Bakugou relented. Misa nodded and took a deep breath to calm herself.

"I'm just not happy there; but I love being a hero." She sighed, flexing her nails to show her claws.

"Those always intrigued me...and concerned me." Bakugou commented, causing Misa to cock her head to the side curiously. "Our battle our first year at the sports festival...you said the claws secrete a burning poison if you chose, after you clawed me." Misa blushed and giggled to herself at the memory.

"Oh my god, I forgot about that. You got mad at me because I had different skills than you knew about." Misa remembered, locking eyes with a smirking Bakugou. "You didn't like being in the dark."

"I still beat you." He told her, smelling their approaching lunch. His bowl was blood red with meat and veggies mixed in. "This smells delicious."

"I'm pretty sure your Quirk is powered by your spice intake…" Misa groaned as the spice's found her nostrils and she sneezed. "Mine is so much tastier...because I can actually taste it." She teased Bakugou who laughed.

They ate in a peaceful silence as they enjoyed their food and the company. A few people came up to them and asked for pictures, which they complied with and went back to finish their meal. One little girl spooked Misa as she tapped her on her back and gave the hero a small wave.

"Hello sweetheart, can I help you?" Misa smiled at the little girl who was maybe four years old. Bakugou cracked a smirk at the nervousness of the child as she fiddled with her fingers.

"You..you're Shira right? You go...grrrrr!" The little girl mimicked a growl that Shira had been known to use to distract villains.

"Yep, that's me. Do you need help? Where are your parents?" Misa asked, looking around the room and saw two people waving to her.

"You're my favorite hero! Look, I have your doll." She squealed and pulled out a Shira doll that Misa had no idea was even on the market. Misa's face blushed as she took in the detail of the doll, they even got her claws with flames coming out of them. "You're so cool!"

"Thank you sweetie! Do you want a picture? Maybe mommy can take it?" The little girl squealed and pulled her mother over to the table. The little girl jumped onto Misa's lap and held up her doll as her mother took the picture on her phone.

"Thank you Shira, she absolutely adores you." The mother smiled and took her daughter's hand. "Say goodbye now Tsu."

"Bye Shira!" Tsu waved and walked away with her mother, leaving a smiling Misa and an observing Bakugou.

"Sorry Katz, I didn't mean to interrupt our lunch." Misa apologized and toyed with the end of her hair. "I didn't know I had merchandise available…"

"Don't worry about it; I told you people love you." Bakugou smirked, handing the waitress his card to pay. He saw Misa reach for her wallet and he shook his head. "If you pull out your wallet at any point today...I will explode you."

"Sounds like a good time actually." Misa challenged with a wink. Bakugou froze at her comment which made her laugh. "I'm kidding. Thank you Katz." He nodded at her and they left the cafe, not before waving at the little Shira fan and her family. "She was adorable."

"Looked a lot like you. Dark hair and bright eyes." Bakugou commented and got onto his bike. Misa smiled and grasped onto his waist tightly as the engine roared back to life. "You still like the zoo right?" Misa nodded excitedly as Bakugou smirked and tore off into traffic.

They were halfway through the zoo when Bakugou disappeared for a moment, leaving Misa observing the tigers. She looked around to make sure no one was watching and she let out a low growl to see the tiger's reaction. The massive head of the sleeping tiger rose and he arched his ears to find the source. Misa growled again and this time, he saw her. He stalked over to the girl slowly and she let out a mating call which drove the tiger to prance around to impress her.

"You're teasing the poor cat aren't you?" Bakugou's voice sounded from behind her, handing her a cotton candy.

"Aww thank you, I've never had one of these before." Bakugou gaped at the admission and Misa busted out laughing. "What? I rarely had money growing up with my Uncle. These were a treat."

"Lot's of firsts for you today." Bakugou said and bit into his own cotton candy, noting Misa's surprised look when the cotton disappeared in her mouth. He also noted the tiger was still parading around and growling, causing Bakuogu to nudge the feline girl. "Look what you did. Got him all riled up."

"He wants a mate. He's lonely." Misa stated and bit into her cotton candy more. "I learned a few years ago I can talk to cats; not very handy in day to day combat, but I can create an army of tigers if need be." Misa laughed and cooed to the tiger to calm him down. "Let's go see the monkeys."

They walked to the ape exhibit and the question that had been burning in Bakugou's mind since the night before was rearing up. "Hey Misa? If Shinso didn't go to America, do you think you'd still be with him?" Misa regarded the question carefully before tossing her empty candy cone away.

""I don't think so. I loved the guy, we were together for two years; but he just didn't seem like he wanted what I wanted towards the end." Misa replied, leaning on the rail to watch the chimps.

"What do you want?" Bakugou asked, seeing a sligh sadness on Misa's face, internally cursing himself for putting it on her.

"The whole package; kids, marriage, house...eventually! Not when we were in our early twenties. But, I think that thought scared him." She explained, pushing her baseball cap further over her eyes as a large crowd began to gather. She linked her arm with Bakugou's and led him over to a less crowded spot.

"Do you still love him?" These questions were foreign for Bakugou to ask, but his curiosity had been ebbing at him for months after he broke up with Camie.

"I still care about him, but no. The love is gone. I think that it's okay to fall out of love with someone if they aren't right for you." Misa managed to smile at him from under her cap. "I also think the way he ended things helped the love leave too." She growled, remembering the single piece of paper Shinso had left on her pillow; explaining he would send for his things.

"Yeah. He was a dick for that. Worse than a text message." Bakugou agreed, enjoying the small monkey show in front of them.

"Why all these questions? It's not like you to care." Bakugou blushed and sucked his teeth at the jab.

"I always care. I'm just...curious. Just wondering why you don't have a million guys knocking at your door." His tone was sharper than he wanted it to be and Misa arched her eyebrow.

"I can ask you the same thing. You and Camie seemed like the endgame. I was very sad when I heard the news." Misa told him, her arm still looped through Bakugou's. "If I remember correctly, it happened the same time me and Shinso broke up. Yet, you took care of me when I really should have taken care of you." Misa poked him.

"Nah. I wasn't heartbroken over our break up. I was just more frustrated over what she wanted from me." Bakugou told her, feeling the slight breeze tickle his face.

"What happened? We never really talked about it."

"Well, it wasn't just one thing you know? Just a bunch of little things that piled up. I wanted to work on them, but she didn't. Me going to therapy was a big issue for her." Misa winced at the confession and tightened her hold on her friend. It had been Misa's encouragement that had pushed him to go see someone for his anger.

"I'm sorry. It's my fault you broke up." Misa mumbled, loosening her hold on Bakugou.

"How did you arrive at that notion?"

"I pushed you to go to therapy. Maybe if I hadn't…"

"I'd still be the angry, abrasive bully. I'm glad I went. It really helps me." Bakugou told her, patting her shoulder in comfort. "You did not have anything to do with my break up." Misa turned to him with glistening eyes, searching for a sense of deceit in his words. "Things happen. We learn and move on right?"

"Right. I feel like such a terrible friend though. All those hangout sessions, the movies, the spar sessions, the cry sessions; you did all that for me. While you must have been hurting too. I did nothing for you."

"Not true. All those things helped me. You do your best work when you don't try Misa." Bakugou smirked, nudging Misa playfully to get her to smile.

"I hope you'll find a girl again." Misa eventually smiled up at the smirking Bakugou as he led them out of the zoo. However, a large crowd of paparazzi gathered outside the zoo, flashing their cameras and pushing microphones into Misa and Bakugou's faces.

"Shira! Is this a friendly UA reunion with Dynamite?"

"Have you finally moved on from Camie, Dynamite?"

"You two look adorable! When did this start happening?"

"Does this have anything to do with Shinso finding love in America?"

Questions were being thrown around too much that Misa was becoming flustered and her eyes couldn't focus due to the flashing lights. Her claws flexed through Bakugou's jacket, so he pulled her through the crowds. "Come on." He whispered to the girl and found his parked bike, placing her on it before starting the engine.

The ride was quick as Bakugou drove to a gym near the zoo where they wouldn't be followed. This facility was for training up and coming heroes; so the security was insane. Misa's claws had retracted as she got off the bike and deposited her helmet onto the seat.

"You okay? They spook you?" Bakugou asked as Misa nodded. "Vultures. Friends can't go out without people thinking it's a date."

"I'm not used to that kind of attention." She admitted to a confused Bakugou. "Cats don't like flashing lights; it almost makes us blind at times."

Bakugou now understood why she froze, she didn't know where to go when the cameras started flashing. "I know more about cats than I ever thought I would know." Bakugou jokes, leading Misa to the facility.

"Why are we here?" Misa asked, noting the high level secured facility. "Are we reliving the sports festival again?" Bakugou smirked and grasped her hand to pull her into the building.

"I signed you up to train some of the younger recruits with me; I do this every week. These kids are training to join UA in a few years, I thought we could prepare them since we know what the school expects."

"You teach kids?" Misa asked incredulously as Bakugou signed them in at the front desk. "Now I really feel like a terrible friend."

"Calm down. I've only done it for a month. My therapist told me it would be a good way to test my patience; so far so good. At first, I hated it. But these little gremlins grew on me I guess." He led her to the locker room to change and told her to meet him in Hall A. "There should be some gym clothes in there, see you in a bit."

Bakugou let Misa go, watching as the girl entered the locker room. Whilst he was changing, his mind kept repeating what one reporter had thrown at them in the zoo.

"Does this have anything to do with Shinso finding love in America?"

Misa hadn't mentioned Shinso dating, so maybe she didn't know. Hopefully, she hadn't heard the question. They broke up six months ago and he was already dating? "Asshole." Bakugou mumbled.

Meanwhile, Misa changed into the black leggings and sports bra provided and found Hall A to find Bakugou with ten or so kids circling around him. They looked around ten to twelve years old and were totally enamoured by Bakugou. "Hey kids, this is my friend. I'm sure you all recognize her?"

"Shira!" Some of the kids cheered as Misa nodded with a broad smile. "You're friends with Dynamite?"

"We actually went to school together at UA. You all were too young to see our sports festival on television." Gasps and ooooo's rounded the room as Bakugou smirked at the kids' reactions.

"Okay gremlins. You treat her with respect okay? She's going to help us out today. Ask her questions too if you need help." Bakugou told the kids. "Understood?"

"Yes sir!" They cheered and got to their feet.

"Okay. Usual stretching and go into your phase one training. We will circulate and observe what you should be practicing every day. Get on with it!" He commanded and the kids dispersed. Misa stifled a giggle as Bakugou's arms crossed over his chest as an intimidation tactic while the kids stretched.

"Your entire reputation would crumble if people knew how much of a softie you actually are." Misa whispered while Bakugou glared at her in amusement.

"Yeah hey...I'm not that soft…" Misa winked at his defensive tone and waited for the kids to start their training. "So if I see something is being done wrong?"

"Correct it. Only way they'll learn. These kids have all sorts of Quirks; but this isn't Quirk training, this is endurance training."

"Understood." Bakugou was always adamant about endurance in high school and Misa always had to work hard on hers because she had two very physical Quirks. She stretched herself while observing the kids and stole a glance or two at Bakugou as he helped a little boy with his push ups. A ghost of a smile appeared on Misa's lips when Bakugou caught her staring.

"Excuse me Shira?" A small voice sounded, snapping Misa out of her trance. A short, black haired girl was waving her over for help.

"Hey, what's up?" Misa asked and noted the discoloration on the girl's face and neck. Badly applied makeup attempted to hide the bruising, but Misa knew all too well the cause of the marks. Misa's eyes shot to the discoloration and then back to the querying girl.

"I'm having a hard time getting stronger. I'm doing the exercises Mr. Dynamite tells me, but I can't... Could you help me?" Her small voice sounded, pointing at the weighted bar the girl had been trying to lift.

Misa smiled at the girl and got to the girl's level. "Sure, what's your name?"

"Rin. Rin Kantanbe." She replied shyly.

"Nice to meet you Rin. I had a hard time with my strength too when I was younger, you know? These weighted bars are not a good place to start if you are struggling."

"My father said if I can't lift the bar then I'm too weak to be a hero." Rin explained quietly. Misa's heart twitched at the confession and set a soft hand on the girls' shoulder.

"How old are you sweetie?"

"Nine. My birthday is in a couple of weeks." She replied, a small smile played on her lips.

"Oh you're turning ten? That's a big birthday." Misa told her happily, causing the girl to giggle. "Now, if you want to get big and strong, you start somewhere small. You're still young, so we can start with some push ups okay? I did a hundred a day five times a week before I felt I was strong enough."

"That's a lot!" Rin squealed with panic in her eyes.

"I didn't do them all at once; that's almost impossible! You take small steps and eventually, you work up to being strong. Come on, I'll do as many as you can do with you." Misa said and got into a push-up position and waited until Rin was ready.

Meanwhile, Bakugou noticed the interaction between his quietest student and Misa and felt a warm sensation flood in his chest. Rin had spoken maybe ten words to anyone in the group since they started meeting a month ago. Seeing her smiling and working with Misa made him feel more at ease about her progress. He counted twenty push-ups before Rin fell onto her stomach, causing Misa to giggle. "Mr. Dynamite? Am I doing this right?" His other student asked as he squatted with a weighted bar.

"Oh right, sorry Asane. Yes, great form."

"You did more than I could do at your age! Good job Rin." Misa complimented the blushing girl. "Do as many as you can everyday and you'll start to feel stronger. I promise."

"Thank you Shira!" Rin smiled and continued her exercise as Misa continued analyzing the group.

An hour or so passed and the group was about to be dismissed before a student raised his hand. "Akabane?" Bakugou asked the red haired boy.

"Do you think that you and Shira could...demonstrate what all this training results in?" This teenager was the oldest in the group at fourteen and close to his entrance exam date. Bakugou debated the question as the crowd murmured their agreement.

"What do you think?" Bakugou asked Misa who shrugged her shoulders with a smile.

"It's been awhile since we sparred."

"No Quirks. Just straight strength." He reminded her as they put some distance between themselves. "Ready?" He asked her as she braced herself for the spar. "Go."

Bakugou was the first one to take a swing that Misa dodged easily and swept under him and kicked at him. He grabbed her ankle and twisted her in the air and she landed on her feet swiftly. "Cats always land on their feet?"

"Always."

"I said no Quirks kitty cat." Bakugou reminded her as she rolled her eyes.

"It's not my Quirk, I'm just that agile." Misa winked and began punching at Bakugou. They blocked each others' punches and swipes swiftly, floating around the arena easily, while their eyes burned into each other. The kids observed intently at the duo, noting the strength both adults showed.

"You got faster." Bakugou smirked as Misa took a swing to his abdomen, knocking him backwards. "You also used to have a tell whenever you changed an attack. Your eyes gave you away."

"Hm, I learned." Misa bragged and charged at him, jumping onto his shoulders and squeezing her thighs around his neck. She twirled and brought the man down to the mat and pinned him down with her legs. Their faces were inches apart when the kids began cheering. "I win." She whispered as she got to her feet. Rin was clapping excitedly when Misa sent her a wink.

Bakugou got to his feet and dusted himself off as the kids cheered and clapped for Misa. "Well, maybe Shira should teach you instead of me huh?" He asked the group jokingly.

"Or together? Two minds are better than one." Misa offered to an excited group. Bakugou smiled at her offer and nodded his approval before dismissing the class.

"That was a lot of fun!" Misa smiled at Bakugou. "They're great kids. They really look up to you." She nudged him playfully.

"Go shower. I'll meet you outside." He rolled his eyes in response.

Once the pair were showered and dressed, the sun was beginning to turn the sky a shade of pink, signaling the end of the day. "I suppose it's time for me to get you home." Bakugou murmured as they walked to his parked bike.

"Yeah, I can cook us some food if you don't have anywhere to be?" Misa offered as she mounted the bike. Bakugou smirked and drove them back to Misa's apartment through the dying traffic.

From his spot on Misa's couch, Bakugou watched the girl move around her kitchen. She was humming a small tune as she brought their meal together with last touches."We don't have much, I need to go shopping. However, I hope you like it. Come and get it!" Misa blushed and pushed a bowl of steak stew towards Bakugou as he sat down. The aromatic spices reached his nose and his stomach greeted the food warmly.

"This is amazing. Spicy though; how are you eating it?" He asked, noting the same meal in Misa's bowl.

"I threw more cream into mine than yours. Mine is only a little tangy." She smiled and nibbled away. They sat in a comfortable silence as Misa's music played softly in the background. "Thank you for today Katz. It was really fun."

He smirked and nodded at her kindness. "You're welcome. After this week? You deserve a little fun." He shrugged his shoulders, spooning the last remnants of his meal into his mouth. "Rin seemed very taken by you at the gym. She's barely spoken to anyone in the group, myself included." Misa nodded her head in agreement until her face turned serious. "What is it?"

"I think she's being abused by her father." Misa told him, causing Bakugou to pale. "I saw bruises on her neck and face. She tried to cover them with makeup; she's nine so of course she doesn't know how to use it properly."

"That is a pretty big accusation Misa, did she say anything?" Bakugou asked, rubbing his finger up and down his glass of water.

"No, but she did say her father told her if she couldn't lift a weighted bar, she was weak."

"That doesn't prove anything." He told her carefully, knowing that abuse was a sensitive topic for Misa. "He could just be giving her tough love." Misa shook her head in disagreement at his counteroffer and picked up her bowl then Bakugou's.

"I don't think so, Katz. Can you just keep an eye on her please? I really am worried." Misa asked him as she soaked the bowls. Bakugou got up from the table and nudged her out of the way of the sink. "Hey, let me clean."

"You cooked. I'll clean." He told her and pointed at the table for her to sit. Instead, she chose to sit on the counter near him and sipped on her wine.

"So was that a yes to looking out for Rin?"

"Yes. I'll keep an eye on her. We can't do much without actual evidence; but I can still keep watch." Bakugou told her as he rinsed the bowls out. Misa smiled warmly and noticed how soft he looked when doing a normal task. "I know you're staring at me, what is it?"

"I'm just...happy." Misa said, swinging her legs. Bakugou chuckled to himself and finished washing the dishes before turning to Misa with a towel in his hand.

"Weirdo." And snapped the towel near Misa's swinging legs.

"Hey! Watch it...I can use my Quirk now that we're out of the gym." Her eyes glowed as a small flame came out of her finger tips.

"Yeah? Me too." He challenged, letting his palms spark. Misa laughed loudly at the interaction and hopped off the counter, smacking Bakugou on the arm as she passed by him.

"I don't think Mina would appreciate the fire damage in her apartment." Misa slumped onto the couch with her wine and flicked on the TV.

"This is her place?" Bakugou asked, grabbing a beer from the fridge, joining Misa on the couch.

"Yep, remember? It was a graduation gift from her parents. I ended up here after my internship with Hawks ended." Misa told him. "I probably will have to start looking at my own place soon when Mina and Kiri move in together." Bakugou choked on his beer at the news and wiped his chin of trickling liquid. "What? You didn't know? By the end of the year they were planning on moving in together."

"Well shit. Guess I should look too. It's Kiri's place." Misa laughed and patted his shoulder soothingly before deciding on an old action movie. "Before you complain...it's got some hot girls in here apparently. So you'll enjoy it." Misa winked as Bakugou scoffed.

During the movie, Bakugou stole subtle glances at the girl next to him. It had been far too long since they had this much time together and he had to admit, he had missed her. Even though she smiled most of the time, her serious frown and subtle sadness when certain topics came to head, made his heart ache. The light from the movie made her onyx hair turn silver, but her eyes still glowed in the dark like any cat would. He had always found Misa entrancing; but something stopped him back in high school from making a move. Blaming his focus on being number one; but now he had no excuse. Now was the time.

"Hey Misa?" He asked her, turning the movie down slightly. Concern flooded Misa's face as she turned to the man. His breath caught in his chest at her worried face and he almost lost his nerve. Thankfully, Mina and Kirishima crashed into the apartment, seemingly drunk.

"Hey guys! We missed you!" Mina squealed as Kirishima stumbled to close the door. "Oh are we interrupting something?" She asked, clear mischief on her drunken face. Misa rolled her eyes as Bakugou got to his feet to put some distance between the pair.

"No Mina, we were just watching a movie before Bakugou asked me a question."

"Oh what was the question?" Mina asked as Bakugou planned her murder in his mind for her curious tendencies.

"Wasn't a question Pinky. I just need to head out; I have an early start for me tomorrow." He lied, checking his watch and seeing 9:30, cursing at himself internally for the weak excuse. He gathered his jacket and nudged a swaying Kirishima on the shoulder before turning back to Misa. "Good day today...I'll see you later." Misa waved at him in response.

"Well...we were definitely interrupting something." Kirishima slurred against Mina who giggled at her drunk boyfriend. "Sorry Misa."

"Don't worry about it, nothing was going on. I'm going to head to bed now guys. Are you okay with going to bed?" She asked as the couple stumbled against each other.

"We'll be fine, get some rest Misa!" Mina told her as Misa clicked her door shut.

"I wonder what got into Katz? He seemed fine until we weren't alone anymore." She mumbled to herself as she took off her clothes and wiped her makeup off her face. She snuggled into bed, her heart warm from the adventures of the day and realized that she hadn't been this happy in a long time. Before sleep could consume her, her phone rang. "You ok Katz?" She asked.

"Yeah, I'm good. I just had one thing that had been bugging me since the zoo." He told her quickly to calm her panic.

"Sure. What is it?"

"That reporter said that Shinso was dating. Did you know?" He asked her carefully, the seconds dragging by as he waited for her response.

"Yes I did. Ochako told me because Deku and Shinso still keep in contact." She sighed, laying back down in her bed.

"Are you okay? You never told me." He mumbled slightly, causing Misa to chuckle.

"You don't have to save me all the time, Katsuki. I can take care of myself." He scoffed on the other end of the phone at her comment, but chuckled himself.

"Yeah you can. I just don't want you to." Misa's throat constricted at the softness of his voice before he spoke again. "That's all I needed to know. Goodnight Misa."

"Goodnight Katz." She breathed, placing her phone on the table. A warmth spread throughout her body as she settled back into bed. A strange feeling that had been buried since her high school days. A crushing feeling of want for the explosion hero.