My Dear Copycat
Chapter 11.5
Too Late

Trigger warning: abandonment

They stared at each other for what felt like an eternity. She remained unmoving, same as he as they just watched each other while the crowd below gawked. He internally begged for a reaction from her – a little wave, a nod…hell, even the middle finger would have sufficed at this point. Do something…anything. Please. He saw her hand twitch and rise slightly, he readied himself for her interaction. What she does would tell a lot about how she feels seeing him again.

The sound of shattered glass and yelling caught both of their attentions. Copycat's attention snapped away first and sprung ahead in the direction it came from. Dynamight on the other hand was disappointed by the interruption but followed suit. They both ran along the rooftops, jumping from building to building either using their quirks or jumping depending on the size of the gap. The crowd scurried along the street below, hoping to see some action and phones at the ready. Not wanting to miss a thing.

He could not stop glancing over at her as they ran, and couldn't help but notice she continued to look ahead, not once sparing a peek his way. She was focused on the task at hand, just like I should be. Knock out of it! Not a minute had passed before they reach the scene. Two shaggy looking men were running from a jewellery store – they had seemingly gone in with a sack through the main entrance and then jumped out through the window, which was smashed by the second man's whirlwind quirk. One of them was carrying the sack, now filled with jewellery and cash while the other acted as protection.

They both appeared to be common thugs taking part in a thoughtless crime. How clever could they be robbing a highly valuable store just up the road from a popular pro-hero's Meet and Greet? There's no way they could stand a chance against two top pro-heroes like them. Both Dynamight and Copycat were highly-skilled and powerful heroes. With the experience of fighting together as a team – they fought alongside each other during many battles, including during the Meta Liberation War and the Second Meta War that followed their graduation. Though that was a few years ago, they both must have grown as heroes and people since then.

Dynamight launched himself from the rooftop, foot ready to strike and aiming towards the second thug that tried to shoot them both with a potent whirlwind attack. He got the thug in the head, knocking him down before he could shoot Copycat as she purposefully fell through the air to land in by the first thug with the stolen goods and pursued him.

The crowd soon joined them, stopping less than a hundred yards away, cheering on the heroes recording their fight on phones and waving banners and signs of love and appreciation. They were in disbelief at being able to witness this partnership.

The second thug called out, "hurry up man!" Dynamight punched him square in the face and knocked him unconscious - which he did not realise until he lifted the guy up by the scruff of his hoodie. Dynamight blinked in surprise. That was easy, he scoffed. Pathetic didn't even have to really use my quirk.

The first thug tried to get clear, frantically spinning his hands in the air. He was suddenly jerked back as Copycat pulled his hood as a portal of a blackish-green hue began to form. This was a very rare type of quirk to have and yet, May found her mind flooded with images of a cruel large, inhuman sharp-tooth smile that always tormented her – that second of a distraction allowed the thug to complete his portal and enlarge it enough for transport. The wind picked up around the portal, pulling small loose items towards it. The longer the portal was open, the stronger the pull and the bigger the debris became. It was like some sort of black hole portal. Copycat planted her feet to fight against the pull, the thug attempted to throw the sack through but she grabbed it, overpowering the thug with ease and flung it to the side to hopefully be picked up by police shortly.

The thug in desperation meekly punched Copycat and tried to fight her in hand to hand combat, she easily blocked his weak attack and felt almost sorry for him – so she held back her own counterattacks while Dynamight handcuffed his opponent, and then made sure the crowd was a safe enough distance pack to not be affected by the force of the portal. He trusted she was fine dealing with such a weak opponent. The wind began to pick up and larger, heavier items began to get pulled in. He saw a filled trashcan fly towards Copycat, she raised her hand quickly and a faint purple shield protects her from it, only to then be hit directly in the visor by a rogue plant pot from a different side. The impact caused a deep crack in her dark visor. The thug took this opportunity to escape, knowing there was no way he could really fight her and win. He jumped through the portal and as she tried to stop him, she was picked up by the force of the wind and Copycat was pulled through.

The crowd audibly gasped, "Copycat!" Dynamight called out as he sprinted towards the portal as it began to shrink, he had to make it. He had to. They had no idea what was on the other side. Without a thought of anything other than wanting to see her safe, he lept through just in time before the portal shrank to nothing. Leaving the crowd in shock at the disappearance of the two heroes. Police forced their way through, collecting the sack of stolen jewellery and arresting the tied up thug.

The dorm building had been very quiet the last couple of weeks, as more and more of Bakugo's classmates moved on now that the war was over. They were allowed to stay until they had everything organized for the next phase of their lives which included jobs as pro-heroes, accommodation and enough funds to see them set up comfortably – UA Highschool had been more than accommodating for the post-graduates that put their lives on the line.

Bakugo of course had plenty of offers, and he had more than enough money to buy himself a flat on the good part of town – but something was stopping him from leaving. He would tell the others that were still there that he would be the last to leave, as their commander during the war, he would ensure them all through to their next steps. It wasn't exactly a lie, but it certainly was not the whole truth. He wasn't quite ready to say goodbye to it all. As it meant accepting that it was all over. He knew he had made friends and comrades for life within his classmates, and he would never be able to shake them off even if he wanted to, but that is because they are staying on this side of Japan. But May, she was leaving the country entirely, to fulfil her dream of becoming a relief hero for disaster-stricken areas all over the world.

The only ones left at the dorm now was Koda, Sato, Mineta, Toru, May and himself. They were all set to be out within the next week. Everyone was ready. May though was leaving as soon as tomorrow.

He was lying on his bed listening to his rock music on a low volume. He had been throwing a ball up and catching it. It had been a few days since their conversation in the gym. The rest of that day May had avoided him completely and kept herself to herself. The following day, she had been more civil, and spoke to him if needed but ultimately brushed him off. The day after that she had been in better spirits as if she had fully accepted what happened between her and Mirio and she was hanging out with the rest of them, laughing, joking and discussing the future. She and Bakugo even held a decent conversation for the first time since the gym. Then today, she was back to avoiding him again. She stuttered when he greeted her and then later scurried off hiding her face when he offered to make her dinner and settle anything that was left in the air between them. That was a few hours ago and he had not seen her since. He sighed and sat up, clutching the soft foam ball in his scarred hand until his knuckles hurt. Old Bakugo would only try to solve his problems through aggression and violence, but he had grown since then. He now knew not every problem could be fixed with a fist or an explosion. He learnt that the hard way.

Bakugo stood and stretched. She was leaving tomorrow and he potentially would never see her again. He decided that he was going to go to her room to talk, he had to clear the air before she left. He took a deep breath to ready himself and made his way to his door, a faltering hand resting on the handle. One could ask him to take on any villain or monster no problem, no questions asked and he would gladly do it with no hesitation. But accepting the fight with his own feelings, and his own internal battles was still something he was working on. His ears perked at the sound of a caught breath on the other side of his door. Someone was there, and he knew who. He flung the door open and saw her there, causing her to jump in response. Her hand was raised as if to knock, but he had opened it before she could.

"Hi…um…" she fiddled with fingers, a light blush heating up her pale cheeks. She wore different clothes now than she did earlier, and they weren't her nightclothes either. She now bore black translucent tights and a dark burgundy floral dress that hung loosely from her hips and ended mid-thigh. Her hair was not in its usual two bun style, but instead hung over her shoulder in waves and rare makeup of eyeliner and deep red lipstick decorated her porcelain face. This was not her usual look, it was darker, more sensual. She was a woman that enjoyed flowy skirts and dresses, fluffy socks and woolly cardigans. She must be heading out somewhere, no way she dressed up for me.

Doesn't stop him from enjoying the view though. He raised his eyebrow, "hey…"

Her sight met his, no longer confident but instead awkward and timid. Why was she being like this? He thought they were beyond this. So cute! He could almost hear his own heartbeat, she's so cute when she's shy. May opened her mouth to speak but closed it again as her gaze drank in his frame. He wore only dark jogging bottoms and a grey vest, his feet and arms bare. He had grown a lot over the past few years, he was now over six-foot-tall with the muscular physique that fans gawked over. His difficult and intense training regiments paid off. His thick arm that gripped the door tensed up, flexing the muscle. He had to stop himself from smirking at the sight of her ogling at it. She shook her head and took a step back as if coming to her senses, "I…I don't know why I'm here. Sorry to bother you…I'm gonna…go…yeah, go," she turned on her heel and made to leave.

"Wait…" she paused, her breath catching in her throat as she fiddled with the hem of her dress. "Do you want to come in?" she turned and observed him, waiting for some kind of trick that never came. He took a step back from the doorway, to give her room to come in.

She thought for a moment and silently accepted his offer. As she took steps into his room, he stayed put as she got closer. Her breath was erratic as her soft gaze peered up at him. He lowered his face closer to hers and his citrusy scent was intoxicating. His demanding presence alone was overwhelming. She felt herself shrinking to it, she wanted to give in to it in her entirety. "Katsuki…" was all she could muster before a large hand takes the back of her head, calloused fingers becoming tangled in her wine-red locks and pushing her head forward, bringing her into a starved longing kiss. Her hands reached up and clutched his vest, feeling the defined strength underneath. It made her knees weak. It made her heartbeat so fast she thought it would explode. Why is he so damn enchanting?

With a flick of his wrist, the door was shut and May found her back hitting the wood. Their lips pressed harshly together, fighting for dominance, their tongues hungry for a taste and their hands feverishly travelled the other as if to try and feel everything at once, worried this moment was going to be torn from them. He lifts her up and instinctively she wraps her legs around his waist, allowing their bodies to get even closer. Her fingers intertwined in his hair as he bit her slender neck. The pulling of his hair and the nails on his scalp spurred him on even further. His own fingers dug into her thighs as he pressed himself against her, both begging for some kind of friction.

During her whole relationship with Mirio, she had longed for heat like this and she often thought back to what May and Bakugo did in the forest. They didn't do anything beyond kissing, but there was a dark craving there, an exhilarating feeling that trapped and excited her. This was something Mirio just could not give her. He was too sweet and loving, even when she pushed for the same roughness, he simply could not bring himself to push back. There was more pure lust and need in that one make-out session with Bakugo than the three and a half years with Mirio. They enjoyed each other's company sure, but they were just not compatible that way.

The sensation of him rubbing caused her to groan out his name, a rumble then rose from his chest as he growled against her shoulder. He bit and sucked harder as he lost himself, marking her perfect skin. Her nails clawed deeper as she hung on. Her hips rolled to meet his grinding as they teased each other to breaking point.

He jerked her off the door and carried her to his bed. They fell onto it, never once letting each other go as their hands travelled and their lips locked again. Bakugo held himself up on one elbow so as not to crush her. He stopped kissing her and tried to swallow the lump that had formed in his throat. He had to control himself, with their foreheads together and lips so close their panted breathes warmed their faces. His brow furrowed as he took a moment, her little whines begged for more and weakened his resolve. "If we keep going like this…I don't think I'll be able to stop…" he couldn't take the teasing or the grinding anymore. It wasn't enough. He wanted more. He felt like he would die of thirst if they kept at this. But he didn't know how far she wanted to go.

"Good…I don't want you to stop…" she pushed down his head to kiss him deeply and lifted her hips to rub against the hard promise she ached for. Assuring her that every inch would be as invigorating as the last. His fingers clawed at her tights and ripped them off with a terrifying growl against her lips. It was as if she had given him permission to turn into an untamed beast – the sounds he made, his impatient hands and digging fingers were reminiscent of a starved wild creature finally tearing into his prize. He yanked the torn tights off as she pulled up his vest and teased the hem of his joggers. He wasted no time and in one swift motion, her dress was over her head and on the floor, leaving her in just her underwear – a matching set of black lace.

Bakugo leaned back panting, taking in every part of her, god, she's gorgeous. His finger toyed with the hem of her panties and he smirked, watching her face carefully. Not only had she dressed up -half of it now torn- and put makeup on -which was now smudged and driving him mad- but she also had this see-through set of black lace lingerie on. He pulled at the hem with his finger, her begging look made him smirk, "you dressed up so pretty, was this meant for someone else…or was it all for me?" for all he knew, she just planned on speaking with him before heading out and got pulled into the moment.

She bit her lip and propped herself up, kissing and sucking on his torso, "wouldn't you like to know?" licking his taunt nipple.

He hissed and grabbed her hair by the root, forcing her to look up at him. A possessiveness laying claim over him, "I need to know…" her lips twitched upwards into a smirk, she was enjoying this. She firmly rubbed her hand along the front of his joggers, arching her hand to get around him. She had to feel what he had, what he was hopefully going to give her. He bit his cheek and pushed her back onto the bed, grabbing her foot and bringing it to his shoulder. He noticed for a brief second a small tattoo of a reddish-orange feather on the bottom of her foot. It looked familiar. But he was too distracted and too riled up to care right now. "Doesn't matter…I have you…" she had belonged to another for so long, he had yearned for her for years, "I've marked you…" and now here she was, he kissed his way down her soft supple legs, leaving her squirming, "you're all mine tonight…all mine."

Just for tonight.

His head hurt. His body hurt. He felt sick. Where the hell…? Dynamight's eyes snapped open to find they were in a dense forest, lying in the dirt and sunlight barely breaking through the trees. He jumped into a crouch, ignoring his banging head. They were in a strange place, he had to be alert. Copycat was a little ways away from him on her front, she also was starting to come around and the thug that bought them here was doubled over by a tree coughing up his lunch.

With a few quick strides, Dynamight was at the thug's back, grabbing him by the throat and pinning him back against the tree, "where the fuck are we?!"

The weasel of a man laughed, causing Dynamight to roughly shake him.

Copycat's soothing voice spoke out behind him, "good news is we are still in Japan. The bad news is…I don't know where."

Dynamight shook the man again, "answer me you rat!" while he continues to shake the thug down and interrogate him, Copycat begins to really take in their surroundings. Taking a step back, trying to gauge where they were and ensuring they were safe. Why would the guy bring them here of all places? She paused, something didn't feel right. She felt like they were…being watched. "Dynamight…" he didn't hear her, he was getting more and more agitated with the snivelling thug who took pleasure from the explosion hero's agitation and thought their predicament was becoming more and more hilarious with every passing second. The infamously angry and brutal hero no longer having any mercy left for him, raised his hands that sparked with the threats of explosions. "Dynamight!"

"What?! Can't you see I'm busy?!" still holding the thug by the scruff, he looked back at her over his shoulder.

"I don't think we're alone…" by the time he came to the same realisation it was too late, two gas grenades were thrown into their vicinity releasing a vivid green gas. Immediately the three of them began to feel woozy. The thug was the first to drop unconscious on the floor with an unsettling grin on his face. Then it was Copycat, who stumbled on her way to him before falling to the ground – the crack in her visor had weakened her helmet that usually has no problem with filtering out gases. Then it was him. He tried to fight it, he held his breath but he had already breathed some of it in before he could react. His eyes felt heavy and his knees threatened to give out. As he staggered back, he witnessed several masked men appear from the darkness of the trees. He fell backwards and sleep took him.

The clock read 03:08, and the two were still awake albeit quiet and sleepy. They lay facing each other, their faces a mere inch apart. A naked May was kept warm by his embrace and the duvet as they spoke gently to each other. They made their peace. "I thought it was all a trick, feeling the way I did. I had never…felt that way before. I thought that I could undo whatever it was and go back to focusing on becoming a hero. But it never went away, I couldn't stop. I treated you so cruelly, and you forgave me. Why?"

Her fingers stroked the scars on his chest, biting her lip, wondering whether or not to come clean herself, "I guess…because, no matter what you did…I couldn't stop either. It only made what you did hurt more. I wanted to hate you, but I couldn't."

He pulled her closer and kissed her softly, "I'm so sorry, for it all. I-I didn't understand until it was too late, and now it's too late again…I don't want you to go," his arms around her tightened, not preparing to let her go in several hours.

"I know…" she moves up and kisses him lightly on the forehead, her hand resting on his cheek. "I'm sorry," he suddenly began to feel incredibly sleepy, battling with his eyes to stay open as exhaustion threatened to take him. Was she doing this? Using her father's quirk again? "I'm sorry Katsuki, but I have to go. You were always the one I wanted…"

"Please…don't go…"

When he awoke it was gone midday and his room felt stuffy. He bolted upright, clutching his head to try and understand what the hell happened last night. He was alone. She was gone. He realized there was something on the bed with him then. A bottle of water which he snatched and downed in a few gulps as he realised his thirst and then a black box with some weight to it. The box had a yellow post-it note stuck to it, nothing written on it save for a drawn heart. He removed the post-it and kept it to the side, it was a symbol she liked to use and had done since their early days. He opened the black box and emptied it. Inside was the same rose gift he had gotten her years ago, the gift that Kaminari and Kirishima helped him choose. Only now it was encased in resin, freezing the deep red roses in time forever. His thoughts went back to that time, how easy it was, back to before he sabotaged himself. He was the happiest when she was around before he ruined that. He wanted to go back, he wanted a redo and change everything. Maybe things would have been different now.

He jumped out of bed and quickly got dressed, throwing on his boxers, jogging bottoms and vest. He left his dorm and made a beeline for her room. He had to be sure. His chest felt tight and heavy. He burst into her room to find that it was empty. Her stuff was gone. All that remained was the standard UA furniture they had issued. He pulled out his phone from his pocket – no messages – he rang her. The number had been disconnected. He knew this was going to happen, he knew that she was leaving the country today. But it hurt all the same. He was lost. She was truly gone.