"I'm here! I'm here and I'm so sorry I'm late!" Uraraka puffed and ran as quickly as she could without spilling the two drinks in her gloved hands up to where Bakugo was waiting in front of the planetarium. Scowling.
"So, so sorry!" She continued to yelp out apologies as she reached him.
"Don't burn yourself!" He snapped out and grabbed the cups from her, thoroughly inspecting her with narrowed eyes to find any offending drops of hot coffee. Thankfully, she was unscathed, though she flushed from the realization he was more worried about her hurting herself over making him wait.
"You went to the cafe?" His eyebrow quirked up as he gave her back the cup without the hurriedly drawn pepper on the side.
"Mhmm! It took a little longer than expected. I got kind of, umm, sidetracked with Iida." Uraraka recalled how the older brother figure rattled on and on about being responsible, safe, and self-assured in order to have a loving, mutual relationship. She blurted out her embarrassed goodbye and rushed out of there, but it still left her 2 minutes behind.
"Fucking four-eyes…" Bakugo muttered out over a sip of his coffee, letting the spices hit his throat pleasantly.
"Sorry." Uraraka frowned, wishing she had better planned out her timing. She wanted to surprise him with a drink on their first date, but ended up messing it up already.
He grabbed her chin and tilted her face up so she would meet his eyes directly. "Stop apologizing so much. Either you own up to what you did wrong and make yourself better, or you recognize how fucking awesome you are. Got it, Angel-face?"
Her heart filled with so much gratitude towards the man in front of her, she was afraid it'd pop in her chest. "Ok." His thumb brushed against her jaw so fleetingly as he let go, she wasn't sure if she imagined it. But the goosebumps prickling across her arms told her she wouldn't mind it if it were real.
"What's that?" Bakugo asked her, pointing to her drink.
"Caramel latte with whipped cream. Wanna try some?" His face scrunched into a dramatic look of disgust. "Or not?" She retracted her offer with a laugh.
"Sounds like something for a 4 year old." As he commented, he took out his phone and turned away to start typing something.
She didn't mean to pry, but caught a glimpse of his screen, which looked suspiciously like a digital notepad with a list. And on it, Bakugo was typing in the words 'sweet tooth- caramel lattes + whipped cream'
"Are you… writing notes about me?"
His back stiffened at the realization he'd been caught.
"No! Don't delete it! It's cute!" Uraraka frantically tugged on his arm through her belly-aching laughter to stop him from furiously hitting the backspace button.
"Fuck you! You can't stop me!" He shoved the phone into his pocket against her protests. "That's what I get for being fucking nice." He muttered to himself.
"You are fucking nice. It's not a secret to anyone but you." She grinned at his signature scowl and interrupted before he could argue. "Now hand it over! Lemme add more stuff!"
"Hell no!"
"I'm not gonna snoop or anything! I promise I'll only look at my list."
"Your list?"
"Yeah. I mean, I'm not gonna peek into other people's stuff."
"Fucking hell, cheeks. I don't keep a list of every person in my life. That'd be a fucking nightmare to keep up." Uraraka wasn't sure if he was pinching the bridge of his nose because she asked a ridiculous question, or because he was getting a headache from imagining having to maintain multiple lists.
"Oh… then why do I have one?"
"Because I need to be the best!"
"Huh?" That was not the answer she was expecting.
"I'm not gonna be like those fuckers who didn't even get you a single thing of shitty flowers. If I'm gonna be your boyfriend, I'm gonna be the best one out there!"
Ah. That did sound like him.
Ambitious, over the top, and constantly making her fall irreversibly deeper for him.
"Well, then. What else do you want to know about me?" She offered, shivering through the tingles running down her body.
"... What radio station do you listen to?" He begrudgingly took out his phone to input her answer.
Fighting the urge to jump up and embrace him on the spot for the fear of never letting go, Uraraka answered all of his questions. Favorite color, the kinds of snacks she enjoyed, allergies.
"I'm slightly lactose intolerant, does that count?"
"This ain't a medical examination."
"What about you?"
"Nothing. My body isn't weak."
"Hey!"
So they sat on the bench outside the entrance, finishing their coffees and adding to the growing list, which she found out already had her birthday, the importance of making a good impression on her parents, and the fact that she liked stars.
"What are you going to school for?"
She swallowed back her nerves and played with her fingers on her lap. "I think I'm going to take this quarter off to figure out what I want to do. I have some ideas, but I need some time to figure out the details and make sure I'm doing things for the right reason."
It wasn't a decision she made lightly, to take a break from school, and she stood by it. But still, she had this nagging worry that people wouldn't be supportive.
"Ok." Bakugo replied like it was hardly news.
"Y-you don't think it's pathetic?"
"Fuck no. Good for you."
"Thanks." Second to her parents, she was terrified of how Bakugo would react. He was the most brazenly over-achieving person she knew and he was the whole reason why she was brave enough to take this step in the first step.
"And if you need to be tutored again, I'll help you."
"You'd be willing to do that?"
"Just don't waste my time."
"Th-"
"And don't you dare go to Deku to tutor you again! In fact, that fucking nerd has no business being anywhere near you!"
"He's just a friend, Bakugo. And more than that, he's yours too."
"Who the fuck told you that? I'll kill them."
Rolling her eyes and leaving him seething on the bench, she plucked the empty, crumpled cup from his fist and threw it away. Without the warmth of their coffees, it was getting a bit too chilly for her to stay outside, even with the extra layers under her beige pea coat and her scarf wrapped around twice.
"Can we go inside? I'm getting kinda cold."
He peered closer at her face and saw the red tinge at the tops of her ears. "Damn it, round-face. Why didn't you say so earlier?" He took her hand in his surprisingly warm ones and dragged her into the large building. "You need to speak up more."
Uraraka couldn't believe how lucky she was. She went from minimizing herself and her desires to being with a guy who wholeheartedly supported her and encouraged her to go for everything she wanted.
If it wasn't so soon, she might've thought she was in love.
Once they were inside the building, Bakugo let go of her, like he hadn't meant to impose himself onto her and was simply caught up in his goal of getting her warm. But Uraraka was certain she wanted to hold his hand, so she did.
She pulled her gloves off by the fingers and stuffed them into her coat pocket. Then she grabbed the hand of an unassuming Bakugo and interlaced their fingers, locking them into place between them.
"What the hell are you doing?"
"I wanna hold your hand."
"Fine."
And that was that.
They walked through the exhibits and between floors hand in hand, only letting go when Bakugo paid for admission and when Uraraka took her coat off. Otherwise, they remained connected, even as they leaned back in their seats to look up at the domed ceiling dotted with white and orange and goldenrod yellow against the dark expanse of the night sky.
"I'm so excited." She whispered, unable to contain her anticipatory joy as the room dimmed to darkness, marking the start of the presentation.
And when the whole room became bathed in the light of stars in a spectacular bang, Uraraka turned her head to gauge Bakugo's reaction amidst the gasps of people around them, only to see that he was already looking at her.
She wondered if the tiny orbs of light were reflecting off of her pupils like they were in his.
"You're gonna miss it." She murmured under her breath, appreciating the way the purple haze of the sky projected onto his face.
"Don't care."
And surprisingly enough, she found that she also wouldn't mind watching him over the stars. When did that become a thing?
They spent the rest of the 25 minute show in silence, watching the space above them unfold into the vast expanse of the cosmos. They whizzed through space and time as clouds of dust collapsed and condensed into flaming balls, creating celestial bodies and altering the unending fabric of the universe.
She clapped for the woman bowing by the projector as the wall lights gradually turned back on, marking the exit to make room for a new wave of spectators. When she finished her applause, Bakugo was nudging her to claim her hand once more.
"Wasn't it incredible?" She exclaimed with awe, swinging their arms as they entered a new wing of the museum.
"It was fine."
"You didn't like it?"
"I don't give a shit about planets and stars. But I like you." He said with his face breaking out in a brilliant crimson.
"That's fine! You can just think of them as space explosions, you like those, right? I mean, stars don't technically explode, they condense into really hot balls of gas, but then those are expelled like an explosion so you can think of it that way! And for planets, maybe you could- why are you so red?"
"Forget it!" He shouted loud enough to garner the attention of people around them.
"Bakugo, what's wrong?"
"Nothing! Quit asking!" He continued to yell as he speed walked and consequently pulled her towards the exit, hoping to god he would stop sweating so much.
"Is it because you said you liked me?" She asked, scurrying forward to try and get a good read at his face.
He nodded almost imperceptibly as he shoved the glass doors open like he was suffocating and desperate for some fresh air.
Uraraka yanked on his arm, halting his long strides and forcing him to look at her directly. "I definitely heard you, I just didn't want to bring attention to it. I figured you wouldn't want me to make a big deal, especially in front of other people."
Bakugo got that look on his face again, the one where it looked like he had been struck on the head and time had stopped.
"I mean, if it were up to just me, I'd hug you and maybe even kiss you." Uraraka continued, her voice getting gradually smaller at her timid suggestions. "But I know you're not a big fan of physical contact and I want to respect that. And if it's uncomfortable for you to say out loud that you like me, I don't want you to force it. We can just be like this. Because I like you the way you are."
She searched in his face for any sign of understanding, but found none as it looked like his brain was buffering.
"I'm sorry if what I said was too mushy! Was it too much?" She blurted out, nervous that she may have pushed the conversation towards a direction he wasn't quite ready for. "We don't have to-"
Bakugo smushed her cheeks between his palms and effectively silenced her rambling. "You gonna take it back?"
"Whaaa?" She said in his hold.
"I told you not to apologize unless you're owning up to what you did wrong. You gonna take back what you said?"
Her forehead creased as she frowned. "No! I do like you!"
"And you wanna… hug and shit?"
"Yeah." She shrank shyly. "Only if you want to."
And it seemed like he did. Because one of his hands moved to cradle the back of her head while the other tilted her up as he descended down towards her. His lips landed firmly, but gently, on hers. It was surprising, she would've thought he'd be a passionate kisser, as he was with everything, but then she realized he may not have much experience.
He pulled back abruptly, much sooner than she had hoped. She didn't let him get too far, holding him by the shirt and tugging him back.
"You know, you can kiss me harder than that." She teased breathily.
His head snapped back to her and his pupils darkened just before he dove back into her. This time, he leaned enough to make her swoon backwards, holding on tight to keep from falling entirely. She experimentally swiped her tongue over the seam of his lips, hoping he'd get the hint.
And as he granted entrance to her, tongue meeting tongue, she couldn't help but giggle at the faint hint of cayenne and coffee she was tasting. It wasn't like the time she tried it at home, hot enough to make her guzzle down milk by the carton and swear off the concoction. No, this time it was warming.
All the way down to her toes curling in her boots and turning her deliriously addicted.
