A/N: It's been a while since I last updated. Hopefully, this wait didn't take too long. For those of you who've been occasionally checking my Tumblr's pinned post, you may recall that I had mentioned how I had been burnt out and needed time to recover. Thankfully, I've been recovering and doing well now, and I think I've gotten to the point where I'm enjoying writing again. I had also promised that I would release this chapter before the end of 2021, so here it is!

This chapter is shorter than the previous chapters, but I thought that this was necessary, given the state of Katsuki's and Tsuyu's relationship at this point in time. This chapter, of course, doesn't solidify them now becoming a couple (which is one of the end goals with this fanfic, don't worry). If anything, it's another stepping stone toward it.

Based on the title of this chapter, you can probably guess what this will be about. I think some of us who have gone to school had an instant where we got sick—especially if it was during cold or flu season and, worst of all, before exams. I hope it satisfies all your Katsuyu-depraved hearts before the end of 2021.

I have plans for what the next chapter will encompass, but I won't spoil any of that for now. I'm hoping to have it up soon, but we'll see how things will go.

All that said, enjoy, everyone, and Happy New Year!

Change of Heart

Chapter 7: Sickness, Health, and Comfort

Weeks had passed, and Katsuki found himself staring at the ceiling, exhaustion overcoming him as he dragged himself out of bed and looked at his phone's calendar.

Katsuki clicked his tongue at the date and time: Wednesday, October 17, 5:32 A.M.

Yesterday was Eijiro's birthday, which he thankfully could celebrate with him and Izuku before Eijiro spent the rest of the day with Mina. It was a nice change of pace with how much everyone had been heads down on college, work, or God knew what.

Unfortunately, that didn't change the fact that midterms were next week, and Katsuki felt like shit—not just mentally, but physically as well. His body ached, he had chills, his head hurt, his throat felt sore, and seconds later, he sneezed.

Katsuki sniffled. "God fucking damn it."

Katsuki had realized he was in a dilemma after he tried to go to the medicine cabinet in the kitchen. He was out of acetaminophen, ibuprofen, and cold medication.

And now, here he was, staring at his cell phone's LINE list of friends. His gaze lingered on Tsuyu's name.

They had added each other on LINE after their talk at the skating rink. Katsuki had never realized that he had never added her until then because he was so used to seeing her presence near home.

Katsuki could ask Eijiro and Izuku to buy some medicine for him, but if they both got sick, he wouldn't live that down, especially if his cold mutated into something worse for them. Not to mention that they didn't live anywhere near his place and Eijiro's birthday was just yesterday…

"God damn it," Katsuki muttered before coughing, feeling his throat hurt.

If he had known this would happen, he would've made some soup ahead of time. Congee sounded pretty good right now…

Just then, he felt his head get dizzy, and he groaned, forcing himself to lie back down on his bed and shutting his eyes. He let out a sigh when the throbbing in his head finally reduced, opened his eyes, and tapped on Tsuyu's name on LINE.

Their chat history was empty.

It had been weeks since their interaction at the skating rink as part of the mixer. There was a part of Katsuki that felt unsettled about messaging her, even now. Despite how fuzzy his head felt from his cold, he could vividly recall how they had exchanged their contacts on LINE with each other.

Tsuyu was the one who had brought it up, surprisingly enough.

"Wow, your feed and profile are pretty empty, and you don't even have a banner," Tsuyu said after they had added each other, and she scrolled through Katsuki's profile and feed. "Oh, it looks like you started posting less after college."

"What are you trying to say?" Katsuki retorted, narrowing his eyes. He was tempted to look at her profile—heck, her profile picture looked…pretty good—but he'd be damned if he got caught by her since he knew Tsuyu would tease him about it.

"Nothing. Just that it's like you."

"What?"

Tsuyu lifted her gaze back up and smiled in amusement. "You're a private person, aren't you?"

Katsuki pursed his lips because, well, she had a point.

"Also, I feel kind of honored."

"Why?"

"I'm your fourth friend on LINE," Tsuyu replied as she held up her phone, showcasing Katsuki's friend count.

"Ha, ha, very funny, smartass," Katsuki retorted, but there was a slight pang in his chest as he said those words.

Since then, there was a part of him that felt uneasy about messaging her. Although, any remaining uneasiness in him dissipated as soon as he let out a coughing fit, and he finally realized that hesitating would only delay his recovery.

Hey Tsuyu, he texted before waiting for a response. He hoped that she would reply soon despite how early it was because the more time passed, the fuzzier his head felt. Just then, he heard a ding.

Hey Bakugo.

Katsuki let out a sigh of relief at her quick response. Can you do me a favor?

Sure. What's up?

Can you get some Tylenol or ibuprofen and any other medicine for colds on your way home from school today?

Not a problem.

Katsuki let out another sigh of relief, but before he could reply, he saw that she sent another message.

Are you sick?

Katsuki grimaced, but he figured she'd eventually find out, so there was no point in hiding it. Yeah, I came down with a cold. Not sure how, but I did. Got to recover before midterm week comes around, and I still need to work. Looks like I'll have to take this weekend off.

Are school and work all you're thinking about right now?

"What else am I supposed to fucking think about?" Katsuki muttered out loud.

You probably overworked yourself or didn't get enough sleep, and that's why you got sick.

For fuck's sake, Tsuyu, just get me my meds. I don't need a lecture right now.

Fine.

Katsuki blinked at her curt message, but the throbbing in his head prevented him from thinking further. All right. I'll pay you back for them later. You can leave the meds on the door handle when you're back. I don't want you to get whatever I have.

Katsuki had expected the conversation to end there, but he was surprised to see that she was still typing. He watched the dots move on LINE before she finally sent her response.

Have you eaten yet?

Katsuki's eyes widened in surprise.

You know you have to get some nutrients in while you're sick.

Katsuki pursed his lips, debating on whether he should lie to her about not eating yet, but when his stomach growled, he let out another sigh. No, I haven't eaten yet.

Okay.

Katsuki saw that she was no longer typing, and a part of him wondered what she meant by just that simple response, but his head felt fuzzy, he was tired, and seconds later, he put his phone away and drifted off to sleep.

Katsuki awoke to the sound of his doorbell ringing. His vision momentarily blurred as he tried to process what was going on, and then he realized that he still felt sluggish, but at least his head didn't feel like it was pounding as badly as earlier.

He heard the doorbell ring again, and when he looked at the time, he realized it was 5:24 P.M. He narrowed his eyes, trying to see if he read the time correctly. When he heard the doorbell ring once more, he groaned because God damn it, he really did miss an entire day of school, and shit, hopefully, there wasn't any new material for midterms.

"Wait, no, there should be recordings," Katsuki murmured to himself. Seconds later, he heard the doorbell ring again, groaned before managing to get out of his bed despite the immense fatigue in his system, and dragged himself to the door. When he opened it, he frowned.

There, standing before him, was Tsuyu, dressed warmly in just a dark green turtleneck sweater, faded black jeans, white socks, and her usual sneakers.

"I thought I told you to leave the medicine on the door handle," Katsuki said.

"You didn't seem to respond immediately," Tsuyu coolly replied.

"You're just asking to get—" Katsuki then broke into a coughing fit, but he managed to cover his coughs in time with the inside of his shirt. He then sniffled, feeling the hoarseness of his throat. "God damn it."

Tsuyu sighed before she moved past Katsuki.

Katsuki nearly glared at her for not even asking to enter until she gave him a stern look of her own. He was baffled as soon as he saw her close the door behind them and lock it.

"You. In bed. Now."

"What—"

"Now, Bakugo."

Katsuki was confused and further baffled as he watched her already take off her sneakers and put on slippers. Just as he was about to retort, he felt her shove him toward his bedroom door. "Okay! Shit, I'm going!"

"Good."

Katsuki turned around, watching Tsuyu approach his stove, and he noticed then that she had been carrying more plastic bags than he realized. It finally clicked in his head when he saw her wash her hands at the sink and then take out various fruits and vegetables onto the counter from the bags. "Wait, Tsuyu—"

"Here's the medication," Tsuyu interrupted, taking out the medicine from a small paper bag inside one of the plastic bags. "You can take it after you've had some food."

He didn't realize how quickly she had gone through everything. His brain was starting to feel fuzzy again, and he could feel another headache developing. He wanted to retort, but his headache kept pounding. "God damn it, Tsuyu."

"What?"

Katsuki pursed his lips, his eyes narrowing slightly at the headache when he noticed how she looked at him again, still with a stern gaze. He wanted to tell her to leave—that she was overstepping her boundaries as a friend, even if she felt like helping him while he was sick—but the more he stared at her stern face, the more confused he felt, which only added to his headache, and he winced. "Fuck."

Tsuyu sighed. "Bakugo, seriously, you need to go lie down. Did you drink enough water today?"

"I don't remember," Katsuki grumbled.

"What?"

"I don't remember," Katsuki repeated, only louder this time for her to hear.

"But you know you haven't eaten."

Katsuki grunted in response.

"Okay, how about you rest on the couch, then?"

"What?"

"Go rest on the couch."

"Tsuyu, why are you even doing—"

"Go rest on the couch before I make you," Tsuyu interrupted with a flat tone and stern look on her face.

Katsuki was baffled again before pursing his lips and heading to the couch without realizing it until he sat down and leaned back. He was half-tempted to just lie down on the couch instead until his gaze unconsciously fell onto Tsuyu, who was already going through his kitchen and taking out several pots to see which one would be best, cutting up fruits and vegetables, and he could hear the water boiling as she turned on the vents and even opened the closest window in his apartment to the kitchen area.

His gaze followed every movement she made, even when she tied her hair into a high ponytail. He was surprised, to be honest, considering how thick her hair seemed, and it looked better on her than he thought.

"Bakugo, wake up."

Katsuki blearily opened his eyes. Seconds later, he felt his neck was sore right off the bat, and he groaned. "Ow."

"That's what you get for falling asleep in this position," Tsuyu replied. "You should've lied down."

Katsuki's gaze fell in the direction of Tsuyu's voice, and surprisingly enough, she was sitting close—right next to him. And then he winced when he felt his headache come back.

Tsuyu sighed. "Do you think you have enough energy to go to your dinner table?"

"Why?" Katsuki muttered weakly.

"I made dinner. You need some food in you and then take some medicine before going back to sleep."

Katsuki resisted the urge to groan, and his stomach growled as if in response.

Tsuyu sighed.

"Give me a second," Katsuki muttered.

"Here," Tsuyu said, handing him a cup of warm water. "You're dehydrated. At least drink some water if you can't get to the dinner table."

Katsuki grabbed the cup of water and downed it within seconds, not realizing how parched he was until then. "I can get to the fucking dinner table."

"I know."

Katsuki resisted the urge to shudder at Tsuyu's tone.

"I can bring the bowl over for you. Would that be better?"

"No, it's fine," Katsuki replied, forcing himself to stand up, the empty glass cup still in his hand, and walked to his dinner table where he saw a bowl of congee and vegetables in it. Once he placed his empty cup onto the table and sat down, he stared at the food, feeling the heat emanating from it and smelling its aroma, and finally, his gaze moved to Tsuyu, who stood next to him.

"I moved your medication to the medicine cabinet while you were asleep," Tsuyu said, gesturing to the kitchen before her gaze moved back to Katsuki. "I was worried that you'd accidentally crush it if you shifted in your sleep."

Katsuki wanted to retort that he wasn't the type to move or thrash around in bed if that she was implying, but instead, he grunted in response, grabbed his spoon, and began sipping his congee. Seconds later, he froze.

It was good—or maybe it was because he was so sick that even simple congee was enough to make him think that it was good. Then again, it helped soothe his throat.

"I made enough to last you for a while," Tsuyu said. "You should eat the vegetables, too, if your throat doesn't hurt too much."

"It doesn't," Katsuki muttered, yet his voice barely came out. He felt the soreness of his throat kick in again, but another spoonful of the congee was enough to soothe it.

"That's good." Tsuyu paused, looking over the table one last time. "Well, I finished cleaning up already and putting everything away while you were asleep, so I'll take my leave."

"Tsuyu," Katsuki instantly called as he stood up, grabbing her wrist when she tried to head for the doorway. He felt his heart start to pound loudly in his ears as his gaze landed on her doe-like eyes, but he wondered if that was just his headache acting up again.

"Yes, Bakugo?" Tsuyu asked, her stance relaxing.

Katsuki pursed his lips, glancing away as he felt her soft skin again—how small her wrist felt in his hand—before he managed to look at her with confidence. "Why did you do this?"

"What do you mean?"

"Why did you do all this for me?" Katsuki clarified, his lips now forming a frown.

"Bakugo, if you're feeling ashamed for needing help—"

"I am not feeling ashamed," Katsuki retorted softly, his voice slightly breaking before he began coughing into the inside of his shirt again.

Tsuyu's gaze softened.

Katsuki instantly looked away and released his grip on her, doing his best to focus on his congee.

"Bakugo, remember to take some medicine after you're done eating, all right?"

Katsuki grunted in response. He heard her soft footsteps begin to retreat until they stopped. He finally looked up, seeing Tsuyu at the doorway.

"If you need anything, you can let me know on LINE, okay?" Tsuyu said, holding up her phone for emphasis.

Katsuki grunted again, averting his gaze to the table for a few seconds before looking at her once more. "You still didn't answer why you did all this, you know."

Tsuyu blinked a few times, already putting her phone away. "You're my friend, Bakugo. Why wouldn't I do this for you?"

Katsuki resisted the urge to let out a sigh of exasperation, especially with how much his throat hurt. He wanted to tell her that friends normally wouldn't go this far—but then again, he was close enough with Izuku and Eijiro, and he wouldn't put it past either of them if they tried to do the same for him.

Still, something about Tsuyu doing this for him unnerved him deep down. Was it because he knew that she used to have feelings for him?

"All right, fair enough," Katsuki managed to reply, pursing his lips as his gaze averted to the table again.

"Do you want to lock up after me?"

Katsuki grunted, already getting up and following Tsuyu as she headed to the door.

When she stood outside the door, she smiled at Katsuki. "Get better soon, okay? Don't overdo it."

Katsuki grunted again, half-tempted to groan.

Tsuyu paused in her movements as she was about to head next door, and she faced Katsuki again.

Katsuki furrowed his brow in response, especially with how serious she suddenly looked.

"I mean it, Bakugo," Tsuyu said. "Ochaco heard from Midoriya about how you got sick, and she asked me if I knew how you were doing since she knows we're next-door neighbors."

Katsuki had no energy to stiffen at hearing Ochaco's name. He blinked a few times, staring at Tsuyu for a while as he focused on her serious figure. Seconds later, her smiling face from earlier popped into his head, and he couldn't help but let his gaze linger on her for longer than he intended.

Tsuyu's face slowly turned into one of concern. "Bakugo?"

Katsuki blinked, finally snapping out of his stupor. "Oh, yeah, my bad. I'm out of it."

"Yeah, I can tell," Tsuyu said, laughing a bit before she waved and headed to her apartment next door. "See you later."

"Yeah, see you later," Katsuki mumbled before he closed his door and locked it. He rested his forehead briefly against the door, trying to reorient himself before heading back to his dinner table.

When he stood at the doorway, he looked at his food again, staring at how Tsuyu had made him everything.

He told himself that they were okay again—that he shouldn't be worried about this because she said she moved on from him—but nothing changed the fact that his chest felt queasy at that thought.

Tsuyu was just a friend. He had to remind himself of that. He was just confused because she used to have feelings for him, and she only did this because she cared about him.

Katsuki paused in his thoughts, feeling his chest lighten a bit.

Tsuyu cared about him. She cared about him enough to be stern, make food for him, and get medicine for him.

As Katsuki finally headed to the dinner table again and began eating the congee again, he felt the warmth of the soup soothe his throat. Without hesitation, he took out his phone, opened the LINE app, and tapped on Tsuyu's name.

Thanks, Tsuyu, Katsuki texted.

Seconds later, he heard a ping.

Any time, Bakugo.