A/N: This is one of the chapters that got a COMPLETE overhaul when I went back to reread this arc (I've reread through it so many times I can't even keep track anymore hgjkhksdh). I did not like the original version and found the interaction very awkward; I like this one a lot more and find it much more meaningful, even. I hope you guys will like it too :D

Art -

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[Ch. 65] Add /217phtoj4asb to the DeviantArt Stash URL.


Hitomi watched as everyone made a dash for the crystal blue water, still standing in her cover-up dress that hid her swimsuit underneath.

There was one thing about the swimsuit she had a problem with.

The back of it was pretty low. Like… kind of under her waist low.

But… dammit, she couldn't say no to Mina! Her friend had loved how it looked on her, she couldn't just shoot her down…!

Yet all she could think was...

…What would Bakugou think of it?

Hitomi slapped her hands against the sides of her head with a yelp, beginning to pace around in a small circle.

"Shut up, you dumb brain!" she scowled, staring down at the sand. She kicked the ground, causing a small cloud of dust. "It's my fucking back! Who would care about that?"

Hitomi slapped her cheeks, cursing as she felt her heart speed up at the thought of the hot-tempered boy. She was despising the fact that she cared so much what he thought of her.

All I have to do is think about him and it'll send me into a frenzy.

Hitomi sank back onto the blanket Mina had set up for the Bakusquad, sighing as she hugged her knees closer to her chest. She was supposed to be avoiding Bakugou, but she still felt guilty about ditching everyone else on the plane like she did earlier that she didn't have the heart to steer clear of them as the entire class went down to the beach.

Not to mention I still have to apologize…

At least Bakugou wasn't here right now.

Hitomi rested her chin on her knees as she heard the sound of flip-flops approaching her blanket, seeing Mina wave in her direction from the shore.

"Hurry it up, you two!" she heard Mina yell.

"Alright, alright, I'm coming!"

Kirishima's voice. Hitomi's eyes shifted to see him drop a beach bag filled with snacks and towels onto the blanket, the bag making a quiet "thump" as Kirishima shed his sandals.

"You comin'?" he asked her, giving her a toothy smile.

"Ah… maybe in a little bit."

Kirishima's smile faltered slightly, before he turned to look behind him.

"What about you, Bakugou?"

Aw, motherfucker.

Hitomi's gaze shifted back to the water, feeling tense as she heard Bakugou's voice getting closer.

"I'm not in the mood right now."

Kirishima only shrugged before he sprinted towards the water where the rest of the Bakusquad was, leaving Bakugou and Hitomi alone on the blanket.

Out of the corner of her eye Hitomi could see Bakugou sit down on the blanket, before flopping down to lie on his back. From the fleeting glimpse Hitomi got, Bakugou wasn't wearing a shirt, just wearing his swimming trunks. She already could only barely handle seeing him in his hero costume, so she knew that if she saw him shirtless, with his toned body exposed for her to see, she'd basically explode.

She needed to get away from him before that could happen.

"You not gonna join them?" she heard Bakugou mutter.

Right then Hitomi saw Kaminari wave at her, his hand held up to his mouth. "Hitomi, are you coming?"

There was her ticket out.

"...Maybe I will, actually," Hitomi told Bakugou. Right then, she froze, realizing what that meant she'd have to do.

She was still in her cover-up dress.

And if she didn't want to risk losing it or getting it wet by leaving it on the shore, she had to take it off right now.

In front of Bakugou.

Hitomi had to, for what felt like the millionth time, fight the urge to scream.

"Well?!" she heard Bakugou grumble, jolting her out of her thoughts. "You gonna get a move on or what?"

"Uh- right, yeah…" she stuttered.

He must think I'm such an idiot.

Hitomi's hands moved to the hem of her dress, only to hesitate. She let out a small exhale, looking over her shoulder.

Only focus on his face.

Bakugou had his hands held behind his head, his eyes closed.

"Um… Bakugou?"

One eye opened, a red iris staring at her.

"Can you… make sure you don't look? Turn around, even…?"

Bakugou raised a brow, both eyes open now. "Why?"

Hitomi looked away sheepishly, fiddling with the skirt of her dress in her hands. "Well… I don't want to get this wet. So… I have to take it off." She made a small groan, turning away from him completely. "Jeez! Don't you get what I'm trying to say? It's embarrassing, so I don't want you to look!"

"Hah?" She could hear the annoyance in his voice. "Why are you acting as if you're taking off your actual clothes? It's just a fucking swimsuit!"

"Well, why are you arguing with me?" Hitomi shot back. "Just do it, okay?!" Her fingers continued to fidget with the skirt, figuring her face was probably bright red by now. "...Please?"

There was a few seconds of silence, until she heard Bakugou shift, seeing his legs turn over out of the corner of her eye.

"...I'm not looking. I don't even know why you care so much, anyways."

Hitomi glanced over her shoulder, seeing Bakugou was now laying on his side, facing away from her. Her eyes lingered on the outlines of his back before she shook her head erratically, catching herself before she could stare any longer. Hitomi's shoulders relaxed, but her cheeks puffed out slightly. "I don't have to tell you," she mumbled. "Don't turn around until you hear me leave, okay…?"

All she got was a grunt in reply.

Hitomi hurried to pull the dress off, doing a messy job of folding it and leaving it on the blanket before she stepped out from under the umbrella, into the sunlight. She gave one last glance over her shoulder to confirm Bakugou wasn't looking, before she broke out into a run straight for the water.

It wasn't until she'd dived in, slapping her cheeks to dissipate the embarrassment that she realized something.

She forgot to apologize to him, again.

Hitomi stayed in the water for a while, her mind having a back-and-forth battle.

That was the perfect time to apologize…! No one would have bothered us!

But… dressed like this…?

Or- Or him like that?

Maybe not…

I might not have been able to focus if I tried apologizing back there. My apology could have ended up like garbage.

"Hitomi, look out!"

Hitomi was brought out of her thoughts only for a volleyball to hit her smack in the forehead, making everyone yelp. The bluenette was thrown back from the impact, falling deeper into the water. She let out a hiss when she felt a slice along her back, wincing as she felt her arm hit something solid. Hitomi looked over her shoulder, seeing she'd backed straight into a large rock.

And that impact had been hard.

There was a stinging sensation tingling in her back as Kirishima swam away from the volleyball net they'd set up in the water, making his way towards her.

"Hitomi, are you okay?"

Hitomi turned towards him as he approached, holding her hands up. "Uh, fine! Nothing too serious, I think…"

Kirishima grabbed her shoulders, observing her closely and searching for any sign of a grimace in her face. "You sure?"

Hitomi glanced back at the rock. "Pretty sure… I just had a bit of a hard fall on that, that's all." She grabbed the volleyball she'd been assaulted with, holding it out to him. "Here, go back to your game."

Kirishima took it back with a cautious smile. "You sure you don't want to play?"

The tingling felt like it was getting worse.

"Yeah, I'm sure," Hitomi said with a nod.

Kirishima left her with one last pat on her head, before swimming back to the volleyball net.

Once their game had started up again, Hitomi traced her hand along her back where the stinging sensation was, only for her eyes to widen when she saw traces of red on her fingers.

Oh… shit.

She swam back to shore, wincing as the pain felt like it got worse with each movement. Once she'd finally gotten out of the water, she touched her back again, pulling up more red stains.

Yup, that's definitely blood.

Hitomi walked back to the blanket slowly, cradling her arms as water dripped down her hair. She stiffened when she saw Bakugou was still there, lounging under the umbrella.

Hasn't he moved from that spot at all…?

She stopped in front of the blonde, staring down at him with a slight blush on her cheeks.

Maybe he's asleep.

"What do you want?"

Hitomi jumped at Bakugou's voice, taking a step back. "Y-You're awake?!"

Bakugou's eyes opened, staring up at her. "Why the fuck wouldn't I be?" he snorted. "And what the fuck are you doing standing there? Move. You're blocking the ocean."

Hitomi huffed, stepping to the side. "Did Kiri bring a first-aid kit in the bag?"

Bakugou sat up, running his fingers through his hair with a sigh. "Don't think so. I only saw him put in towels and snacks and shit. Why?"

Hitomi rubbed her arms, looking away sheepishly. "I, uh… cut myself on a rock." She began to walk past the blanket back to the house, her eyes glued to the sand. "I think I'll just take care of it inside. Yeah…"

"Holy shit."

Hitomi froze, looking over her shoulder only to see Bakugou staring at her.

"What…?"

Bakugou got up from his spot, his eyes glued to her back. Hitomi blushed, stiffening as he approached and pointed at the cooler by their blanket. "Sit there. I'll get it."

"Huh?" Hitomi stepped back. "Why?! I can deal with it myself…!"

"There's a lot of blood, idiot!" Bakugou retorted, gesturing down to her legs. "Did you even notice the blood you're trailing? If you go inside you're gonna get it all over the floor!"

Hitomi glanced down, seeing the blood from her cut was running down the back of her legs and leaving spots in the sand. "Oh… Oh! Oh shit!"

"Besides, it's not like you'd be able to reach that cut on your own," he huffed with a roll of his eyes. "Idiot."

Hitomi looked away, walking over to the cooler. "That second 'idiot' was unnecessary," she mumbled as Bakugou walked back to the house. She sank down onto the cooler, pulling her hair up away from the gash to observe it.

"Ahhh, that looks pretty bad… Worse than I thought…"

She sat there for around a minute or two until Bakugou came back, a small first aid kit in hand. Hitomi went stiff as he walked over to the spot behind her, setting the box down and opening it. Hitomi bit her lip as she heard him open it, staring at her feet.

"Oi. Move your hair out of the way."

"Oh, right, sorry…" Hitomi pulled her hair over her shoulder, leaving her back exposed.

This is exactly what I was trying to avoid…

Bakugou twisted the cap off of a bottle, holding up a towel. "It's gonna sting."

Hitomi nodded, too embarrassed to look at him. "I know."

Bakugou proceeded to pour rubbing alcohol on the towel, setting the bottle down before he wiped the towel across Hitomi's cut. She let out a hiss, holding back the urge to lean away.

"Told ya," Bakugou snorted, dabbing at the dried blood on her back. "Hey, some of your hair's still in the way. Move it."

Hitomi winced as she pulled the small strands of hair that had escaped her grip back over her shoulder, the stinging in her back enhanced tenfold by the rubbing alcohol. "...Sorry."

"Why do you even need such long hair anyway?" Bakugou mumbled. "Seems like a pain in the ass to manage."

Hitomi ran her fingers through her hair as Bakugou continued dabbing at the gash. "I don't mind taking care of it. I like how long hair looks on me…"

She let out another hiss as Bakugou moved to the other end of the cut, the cold alcohol sending a chill down her spine. "Ow."

They lapsed into silence as Bakugou continued cleaning away the blood, the only sounds being rolling waves and the class playing in the water. Hitomi stared at them from her spot, realizing that she and Bakugou were the only ones away from the shore.

They were alone.

You could do it now, if you wanted to…

"Hey… Bakugou?"

Bakugou grunted in response, pulling the towel away to pour more alcohol on the cloth. "What?"

"I… um…" The embarrassment from earlier was flooding back, piling on top of what she was already feeling in this unbelievable situation. Hitomi shook her head, trying to steel her nerves in hopes she didn't stumble over her words again. "I'm… sorry for what happened earlier. On the plane." She scratched her cheek shyly, recalling his expression. "It must've been pretty nasty…"

Bakugou huffed, placing the towel back on her wound and making her jump slightly from the sting. "Whatever. Raccoon Eyes hardly ever thinks before she speaks. Knowing you, of course you'd react that way."

"You're not mad?"

"Because of you I had to change my shirt. Which was annoying, I guess."

Hitomi hummed, understanding the gist of what he was saying. In Bakugou-speak, that was, "Not really." If he had been particularly bothered by it there would have been a lot more swearing and ranting.

Another bout of silence fell between them as Bakugou finished wiping away the blood, the gash now clean. He put the towel down, beginning to look through the first aid kit's contents. Hitomi heard him scowl as he sifted through the box, mumbling under his breath.

"Bakugou."

"Mm."

"We're friends, right?"

Bakugou paused, looking up from the first aid kit and squinting at her. "What kind of question is that?"

Hitomi bit her lip, her grip tightening on the edge of the cooler. She didn't even know why she'd asked; her mouth had just moved on its own again.

"Just answer it," Hitomi mumbled. "What do you think of me…?"

Bakugou sighed, likely in exasperation as he turned back to the kit. "You're way less annoying than all the other fuckheads." He pulled out a roll of gauze, staring at it for a few seconds before placing it on the blanket to make room to reach the bottom of the box. "And you're not a complete idiot, most of the time."

"Yet you like to call me 'idiot' anyways," Hitomi said, a small smile unconsciously forming on her face.

"What, want me to call you dumbfuck instead?" Bakugou huffed.

Hitomi shook her head. "No… I don't mind you calling me an idiot. Me and my brothers use that and more with each other all the time."

Bakugou let out a huff that Hitomi could've mistaken for a laugh. "Like what?"

"Well… I called my older brother 'edgelord' a lot when we were younger. Not as much anymore though, since he grew out of his emo phase. But I still call my little brother a gremlin all the time."

She heard Bakugou snort behind her, looking over her shoulder. He had a small smile on his face as he pulled out more of the first aid kit's supplies, reaching for the large band-aid patches at the bottom. Hitomi couldn't help but stare at his expression, feeling her heartbeat speed up at the sight.

Smiles like that were so rare from Bakugou.

It wasn't his usual resting bitch face, his screaming, or a cocky smirk. She rarely got to see him smile like that or hear him laugh.

He has a pretty smile.

Hitomi looked away quickly, her face burning as Bakugou opened the box of band-aids.

"Good nicknames."

"Thanks…" Hitomi stared down at the blanket, her eyes trailing over the striped design. "Um… anything else? About what you think of me…?"

"Why do you even want to know so bad anyway?" Bakugou huffed as he pulled off the backing of the band-aid.

"You're… you," Hitomi mumbled. "Aloof, snooty Bakugou," —he tched at her description— "yet you offered to patch up this cut for me when I hadn't even asked."

Bakugou leaned forward, covering said cut with the band-aid patch. He ran his fingers along the sides, sticking the adhesive in place. His hands lingered on her back for several moments, Hitomi noting the callousness of his fingertips.

His hands are gentle…

Hitomi had to refrain from punching herself at the embarrassing thought.

Bakugou finally pulled his hands away with a sigh, beginning to put everything back in the first-aid kit. "That's 'cause you're a space cadet who didn't even notice she was trailing blood. You even got stains on that swimsuit of yours. It would've gotten it all over the floor of Ponytail's nice house." He closed the kit with a small "click", finally getting up from his spot and walking onto the blanket. Hitomi glanced away as soon as he came into view, too embarrassed to look at him. "You're somehow intelligent but a ditz at the same time, who thought you'd be able to take care of that wound on your own." He sank down onto the blanket, dropping the box onto the spot next to him. "'Sides…"

Hitomi finally gathered the courage to look at Bakugou, seeing he was scratching the back of his head as he stared at the rest of the class. "You and the other idiots bother me all the time. Shouldn't that answer your question of whether we're friends or not?" He let out another huff. "Don't even know why you feel the need to ask anyways."

Hitomi blushed, looking down at her feet. "I don't know why I did either," she said timidly. "And, um… thanks. For treating that cut for me."

Bakugou grunted, right as Kaminari was running to their spot.

Kaminari stopped in front of the blanket, shaking the water out of his hair as he reached for the bag Kirishima had brought. "Dude, why'd you even come out here if you weren't even gonna swim?"

"I am planning to, Dunce Face," Bakugou scowled as Kaminari pulled out a water bottle. "I just didn't feel like it yet."

"Is that so?" Kaminari hummed, taking a few sips from the bottle. He wiped his mouth, wearing a grin. "Well, wanna play volleyball with us? We're starting a new game!"

Bakugou's face formed a smirk, getting up from the blanket. "Sounds interesting. I'll play."

"Hitomi, you wanna come too? You didn't join us earlier!"

"Ah, actually, I…"

Bakugou gestured a thumb at her, and then the first aid kit. "Moon Face got a huge cut on her back. I doubt she can even swim right now."

Kaminari's eyebrows raised in concern. "Is that from when the volleyball hit you earlier? Shit, I didn't know you got hurt that bad…! I'm so sorry, Hitomi!"

Hitomi held her hands up, trying to reassure him. "Don't apologize, Kam…! It's fine. Bakugou cleaned it up for me…"

Their conversation was interrupted by the blow of a whistle, the three of them turning to the shore to see Mina waving at them. "Is he gonna play or not?" she yelled, pointing a finger in their direction that was likely at Bakugou.

"Yeah, we'll be right there!" Kaminari yelled back. He turned back to Hitomi, rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly. "Sorry for causing the ball to hit you in the face, though, 'Tomi. I'll give you some sweets I packed later to make it up to you!"

"Don't worry about it," Hitomi laughed. "Go play your game. I'll just be here."

Kaminari nodded, elbowing Bakugou. "Let's go."

He turned away, walking back to the water. Bakugou lingered there for a moment, looking at Hitomi over his shoulder. "Don't do anything stupid to make it worse," he snorted, before following after Kaminari.

Hitomi watched his back as she left, moving off the cooler to sit on the blanket. Her heart was feeling like it was going to jump out of her chest as she watched him join the others at the volleyball net, a smirk on his face. Hitomi sighed, looking down at her lap.

"...Why did you have to go and do that for me?" she mumbled, her eyebrows furrowing. "You might have just made something else worse…"


A/N: Hope Bakugou was in character for this chapter. As much as he is a feral gremlin I really enjoy moments where he's more quiet and insightful, like Kirishima's flashback when he first did Unbreakable :3