A few days had gone by and Bakugo's routine hadn't changed. He woke up, went to school, exercised, and tried to sleep. Each night Bakugo hadn't slept more than 2-3 hours, some nights he couldn't sleep at all. He laid awake in bed, frustrated at his own exhaustion. It would be impossible for him to continue on this way, he was reaching his breaking point.

School life hadn't changed either. After their incident, Minamoto began ignoring Bakugo, only speaking to him when it was essential. The whole class was suspicious, there was an odd tension whenever the two interacted. Luckily, Minamoto didn't tell anyone about the bruise. Bakugo overheard her telling some friends that she accidentally hurt herself while exercising. While Bakugo felt relieved, it didn't make him feel any better about hurting her.

Minamoto's cold amber eyes haunted Bakugo, they were all he thought about. He laid awake at night, replaying the moment in his head, feeling worse each time he watched it. Bakugo had no escape during the day either. Hearing Minamoto laugh, seeing her smile, it was torture. While it was short-lived, he remembered the few words they had shared. The way she smiled at him, the way she said his name, the way she pushed him during the exam. It felt nice, it felt nice for a girl to talk to him and not feel intimidated by his explosive personality.

He missed that, he missed her. He missed things being normal. He wanted to apologize, maybe clearing his conscience would actually help him sleep at night. Bakugo wanted to talk to her but he had to find the right moment, she had to be alone. He didn't want people asking questions. If Bakugo was going to finally give in and show some weakness, he wasn't going to do it in front of an audience.

"I'll catch her on the way to school." Bakugo thought to himself. "No, she always walks with the girls." Bakugo laid in bed, thinking of the perfect moment to pull Minamoto aside. Lunch? No, no one knew where she went during lunch and he didn't want to ask around. After school? No, she usually hangs out in the main room with everyone else. Being a student of class 3-A, he knew she stayed in the same dorm but had no idea which room was hers. "Dammit is this girl ever alone?!" Bakugo thought to himself, feeling frustrated at the countless loopholes in his plan.

It was at that moment that a thought popped into Bakugo's mind. The gym. It was literally the only place he had ever seen Minamoto alone. Based on the other day, it was apparent that she liked to work out late at night. Bakugo checked the time, 11:42 PM. "Shit, she might already be there." He said to himself, hopping out of bed and getting dressed.

The dorms were silent as Bakugo made his way down to the gym. Almost everyone had already retired to their own rooms for the night, that is, other than the ones who were secretly sleeping together. It wasn't that out of the ordinary, considering they were all 17-18 now. Jirou and Kaminari were the first to come out with it. Then it was apparent that Todoroki and Yaoyorozu were also sleeping together. Bakugo had even caught Midoriya sneaking out of Uraraka's room a few times.

Unfortunately, Bakugo wasn't as lucky as some of his male classmates. Pretty much all of the female students at UA were afraid of him. They practically avoided him on a daily basis. The only girls who actually spoke to him were in class 3A, but he wasn't interested in any of them. It was hard for Bakugo to actually be interested in a girl romantically. She had to be strong, he didn't like weaklings. She also had to be intelligent, funny, sexy, and share some of the same interests as him. He didn't care if he was alone though, getting a girlfriend wasn't the first thing on his mind. He had to stay focused, to make sure he became the number one hero.

Bakugo finally reached the first floor and walked over to the gym. He stood outside the door and took a deep breath. This was it, no backing down. He firmly clenched the handle and practically threw the gym door open. To Bakugo's dismay, the room was quiet and dark, Minamoto wasn't there. His only plan had failed.

Feeling even more frustrated than before, Bakugo slammed the door shut, cursing under his breath. He had wasted what little energy he had left. Feeling defeated, he figured there wasn't anything left to do except go back and face the long, sleepless night that waited for him upstairs. At least it was Friday, he didn't have anything to do over the weekend and could try to relax.

Bakugo turned and made his way back, thoughts deep in his mind. How long was he expected to go on like this? He was exhausted, all he wanted to do was sleep, sleep, and feel okay. The late nights had not only taken a toll on his physical state but his mental and emotional states as well. He found himself feeling depressed more frequently than normal. Luckily, he still had enough willpower to pull himself out of it. Bakugo's life was starting to become a blur. He trained, went to school, and tried to sleep. That was it. He had even begun to lose interest in his normal hobbies. Even training didn't have the same feel to it anymore.

Before heading upstairs, Bakugo figured he might as well get something to eat to help pass the time. He took a detour to the kitchen, taking out some bread to make a sandwich. Luckily, UA dorms were usually stocked with the essentials, bread, milk, eggs, free of charge. The staff also took an interest in each student's preference, making sure to have something for everyone.

Bakugo took out a few ingredients, enough to make three sandwiches. He quickly assembled his midnight "snack" and headed back upstairs. He took a few bites on his way up, careful to not drop any crumbs. Bakugo's room was the second to last room down the hall with Kirishima on one side and an empty room next door.

He finally made it back to his room, feeling completely exhausted. His mind began to go numb as he turned the doorknob to enter his room. It was at this moment that Bakugo heard a noise in the dark. He quickly turned his head, it was coming from the empty room. The door slowly creaked open to show a light shining from inside. "Who the hell-" Bakugo thought before gazing his eyes upon a small, white-haired girl. Minamoto had been living right next door this entire time and he had no idea.

Their eyes locked together, neither saying a word, neither expecting to see each other at this exact moment. Minamoto's cold amber orbs stared into Bakugo's tired crimson eyes. After a moment, Minamoto's eyes fell to the floor as she walked past Bakugo, not saying a word. Bakugo once again found himself frozen. She was right there, alone. Now was his chance and he couldn't do a damn thing but watch her walk away.

Her now-familiar scent swept over him. Jasmine and amber, so sweet. It filled him to the rim, instantly calming his body. This calming sensation seemed to relax his body enough to allow him to speak. "...Hey." Bakugo said in a low voice. To this Minamoto paused, not turning around. "Yes?" Her voice was soft but serious. Bakugo stalled out. He had her but didn't know what the hell to say. All of his previous planning had left his head.

Minamoto waited for a moment but then sighed, continuing to walk away, she wasn't going to let Bakugo waste any of her time. Bakugo felt a small panic, he had to say something, anything to get her to stay. "Minamo-" Bakugo said but she quickly cut him off. "What?!" Minamoto said. Her voice was now emotional. "C-can I talk to you?" Bakugo said, trying to keep his emotions under control. He felt frustrated, not at Minamoto but at the entire situation. Minamoto paused again, finally turning around to face Bakugo. Her eyes, still cold, holding small tears in the corners.

Bakugo felt a knife dig into his chest at this but didn't show it. "What do you want?" She asked. The two of them kept their voices down, hoping to not wake any of their neighbors.

"I just...I want to talk to you dammit." Bakugo said, feeling more frustrated.

"Then talk." Minamoto said in a cold voice.

"Can we not talk here? I don't want to wake anyone up." He said, gesturing to the hall which surrounded them.

"No. Just spit it out, what do you want." She was demanding. She knew what Bakugo wanted to say but she wasn't going to make it easy for him.

"No, let's just go somewhere else." Bakugo said, now with a slight attitude.

"Why? Feeling embarrassed?" Minamoto said, tilting her head and crossing her arms.

"I mean, yeah, I'm in the middle of the hallway." He said, looking away.

"Yeah. I can relate to that. The way you embarrassed me, in front of the whole class." Minamoto said. She paused, allowing her words to sink in, and they did.

"Yeah..." Bakugo said, the feeling of shame washing over his body.

"You know, you were a real dick to me." Minamoto said, sounding frustrated and taking a step towards him.

"I know." Bakugo said.

"You hurt my feelings, not to mention my hand." She continued, taking another step.

"I know." He replied.

"You acted like a sore loser, like a child." She snapped with one more step.

"I know." This was all Bakugo could say. He knew she was right. Every word Minamoto was saying had repeatedly passed through Bakugo's brain over the last few days.

"Then?" She asked, now standing right in front of him.

He looked into her eyes feeling tired, feeling like shit. Why was it so hard to apologize? He knew it was right, he knew he wanted to but couldn't. The words wouldn't escape his lips. He stuttered a few times but was never able to form any words. Minamoto stared into his eyes, never looking away. Bakugo was just about to give up when a sound caught both his and Minamoto's attention. It was a growl.

Minamoto suddenly jumped up, looking shocked. Her face quickly turned red. "What the hell was that?" Bakugo thought to himself. Judging by her reaction Bakugo figured it had to have come from Minamoto. A second growl quickly escaped her. She was hungry.

Bakugo stood there, watching Minamoto as she sheepishly looked away, placing a hand on her stomach. "S-sorry, I guess I'm pretty hungry." The two of them stood there awkwardly for a moment before Bakugo's mind finally came up with a decent thought. He looked down at the two and a half sandwiches in his hand and glanced back up to Minamoto. "Do you want one? I just made them." Bakugo said, holding the sandwiches up to her view.

She hesitated at first, not wanting to accept any gifts from the enemy but a third growl caused Minamoto to cave. "What's in them?" She asked, looking suspiciously at Bakugo. "Uh, I don't know? Meat, cheese, it's a fucking sandwich." He replied accidentally with a sarcastic tone. Minamoto pursed her lips and raised an eyebrow. "Are you always this much of a gentleman?" She responded with equal sarcasm. Minamoto held out a hand, taking the sandwich from him. Bakugo chuckled. "Only when in the presence of such a classy lady." Bakugo knew he was finally in the clear when Minamoto smiled, taking a bite out of the sandwich.

Before either of them knew it, they were slumped down in the hall, quietly enjoying their sandwiches and making small talk. The two tried to keep their voices down as they laughed, exchanging sarcastic remarks and sassy comebacks. The topics were endless for them. Music, video games, movies, comic books, the two were able to find common ground in all the subjects. For the first time in a while, Bakugo felt normal. Tired, but normal. It wasn't long before Minamoto let out a long yawn which was then passed to Bakugo.

"Are you tired? You should probably get to bed." Minamoto asked while letting out a big stretch.

"Exhausted, but I won't be able to sleep." Bakugo replied, finishing the last of his food.

"Why not?" She asked curiously.

"Just can't. It's no big deal. What about you? I've noticed you're up pretty late." Bakugo said casually.

"Yeah but I'm used to it." She said pointing to her ear. "Wolves are naturally nocturnal."

"Oh, so you're a wolf? I thought you were a dog or something." Bakugo said with a teasing smile.

Minamoto jumped up, lightly hitting Bakugo on the arm. "Yes, I'm a WOLF. Calling me a dog is such an insult."

"So, what is your quick then? Like, sure you're a wolf but what can you do?" He asked with great interest.

Minamoto thought for a moment. "Uh well, I can run pretty fast, especially on all fours… as you've seen." Minamoto said teasingly before continuing. "I also have sharp teeth, really good hearing… Oh! And my sense of smell is really strong."

"Hearing and smell. You'd be great for search and rescue." Bakugo gave a smirk.

"Yeah, but it helps when someone is really loud and has a naturally strong scent. Just like you." Minamoto said, smiling back.

Bakugo looked at Minamoto confused. "Me? I get the loud part but, a strong scent?" He asked.

"Your scent, burnt sugar, from your quirk, right? It's a dead giveaway. Most people smell like soap or normal sweat, but not you. I can smell you from a mile away, literally." She said, giving Bakugo a wink.

He rolled his eyes with a smile. "Yeah, well whatever perfume you're using is also pretty strong."

Minamoto laughed at this. "Yeah right, I don't use perfume. It's too distracting for my nose."

At this Bakugo felt a little confused. If she never wore perfume, how could she smell so strongly? Jasmine and amber practically followed Minamoto anywhere she went, that doesn't just happen naturally. He brushed this off. There was a silent moment between them. Bakugo could feel his eyes getting heavier by the second.

"You sure you don't want to try and get some sleep? You've been looking really tired lately." Minamoto said, noticing the tired look on Bakugo's face.

He took a moment to respond, now feeling the full weight of his exhaustion. He let out a deep frustrated sigh before responding. "Yeah, I guess I should at least try." Bakugo honestly didn't want the night to end just yet but decided it was for the best. The last thing he wanted was to accidentally fall asleep in the hallway.

Bakugo rose to his feet and held out a hand to help Minamoto up, which she gladly took. "Thanks." She said with a laugh. "My legs were seriously asleep." The two exchanged a soft smile before turning to their dorm rooms. Bakugo watched as Minamoto gripped her door handle, taking in her scent one last time. She paused and turned back to him.

"Hey, um… You wouldn't happen to be doing anything tomorrow, would you?" She asked, a hint of shyness in her voice. Bakugo was so tired he almost couldn't understand her question. He waited as she continued. "I'm going to the mall to pick up a new game and a few things. You wouldn't… want to come with me would you?" She asked, avoiding his eyes.

Bakugo's brain was still foggy but he understood enough, she wanted to see him again. Bakugo let out a quiet "sure" followed by another yawn. "Cool. I'll see you tomorrow then." Minamoto smiled, slowly entering her room and closing the door behind her.

Bakugo watched her door close, leaving him alone in the dark hallway. He entered his room, shutting the door behind him, with a smile.

Thank you for reading, I hope you're enjoying the story so far! Chapter 6 coming soon!