Izuku sat in his office for four solid minutes before he decided to acknowledge the elephant in the room. Or, rather, the explosion ex-friend.
"So...how's it been?" Izuku felt the sweat roll off of his forehead with his effort to actually not sweat.
Bakugou didn't say anything, just huffing out angrily. It was so strange, seeing him all these years later. He was definitely different. His pride seemed to have settled, if a little and he wasn't actively blowing his office down, so that was a good sign, right?
"You said you want me to check the palms of your hands, right?" Izuku asked, finally turning his eyes from the hero. It hurt, just a little. Bakugou got to become a big hero and he was still here, fixing them. No, stop thinking like that. He enjoyed his job, really he did. Working with so many different heroes that he grew up idolizing. He was a bit of a success in this particular clinic. He knew just how to help people with their quirks, whether that be burns on their hands or back pains from overused tails. There was no reason for Izuku to still be jealous.
"Yeah." Bakugou huffed, finally communicating with him beyond grunts and clipped explanations. "My gauntlets make for a big explosion, but they don't do much in protecting my hands. I tried to ask my Gear Manager about it, but she told me to seek medical help first."
Izuku nodded absently, typing the symptoms into his computer before turning around and sitting in the stool next Bakugou. Wait! Was it rude to refer to him by his name instead of my his hero name? Would he get a face full of smoke for pretending to be friendly? He cut off the train of thought before he could start muttering. "May I see your hands?"
Bakugou-Ground Zero tore his dark green gloves off and shoves a hand into Izuku's waiting palm. After the slight second of shock passes, Izuku began analyzing it. The skin was too soft for the kind of work he did. They should've been rough and peeling at least, but they weren't. His explosions must have shaved off the few calluses he did have. That wasn't good. The very center of his palm had blisters and was a bit red.
Izuku sighed out, letting the hand drop from his grasp as he turned around once again, grabbing a few tools. "Well, the good news is that you haven't completely burned yourself, but it's a close thing. Another couple of long fights and your palm could burst open with puss and-"
"Shut up about the details." Ground Zero hissed. He really hadn't changed that much, had he. He was just as temperamental as ever. Whoever taught him at UA hadn't done much about his ego, though he doubted there was much to do. If the terrible villain attacks during his three years there wouldn't set him straight, nothing would.
"Anyway," Izuku continued. "I'd suggest a three week break for natural healing, but if you must go back to the field, I know a few good healers. They can heal your hands but it'll zap your stamina for a couple of days. The choice is yours." The green haired doctor risked looking at the hero again, seeing a shocked look flash away so fast, he almost missed it.
"Stupid…" Bak-Ground Zero muttered to himself. "If I go the quick way, will it take longer to get this kind of damage again or will it be just as long as normal healing?"
"Sadly, we don't have quirks that good. Really, if you wanted a quick fix that would last the rest of your hero career, you'd have to come here once a month at least. If you healed your hands normally and took the time to really protect them with gear, then you could avoid seeing me for another year or two."
A strange look replaced the hero's angry glare, like he'd just realized who Izuku was, but that was silly. Izuku really hadn't changed from that skinny, quirkless kid he used to be. He had the same freckles, unruly green hair and nervous ticks. His mother still worried about those, saying that if he didn't stop tugging his shirt while anxious, he'd stretch them out. Of course, that didn't really matter to him. He wore scrubs nearly 24/7 anyway.
"Maybe it'd be better to do the quick fix and come back more often." Ground Zero's eyes flickered away. He glared at the All Might posters plastered onto his walls. It had been years since the Number One Hero's retirement, but he still adored the things he did for Japan and the world. Everyone knew he was unforgettable.
"Alright. I'll hook you up with our healer nurse and sign you up for another appointment. Make sure to check with me before leaving. I want to make sure your agency registers the payment for your visit and knows you'll be coming back next month." Izuku rattled on and on, listing the information Ground Zero really didn't need to know but he said it all anyway. By the time he realized he was rambling, he was already finished talking about a few cases he had where a hero didn't tell their agency and got all three of them in trouble.
Ground Zero was already standing, hands in his jacket. There was a smirk on his lips, but he covered it by rubbing at his nose. "You really haven't changed, Deku." He muttered and Izuku wasn't sure if he was meant to hear that or not.
Deciding it was worth the risk, Izuku smiled back. "It's been a while, hasn't it?"
Surprisingly, the smile was met in full blast. Maybe his teacher had beaten the ego out of him. That, or the villains had made a lasting impact. Either way, Izuku enjoyed the small moment. "Shut up." There was no heat in Bakugou's words. "Just sign me up. We can talk about personal stuff later on. I'll be coming back soon anyway." There was hope in that.
Was Bakugou really trying to be his friend? At least to talk about old times, not that they were really much good. Telling him to jump off the room in middle school wasn't very nice, but they've both grown. He had a few things to apologize for too. Maybe not during the time they actually knew each other, but the times he doubted his ex-best friend could really make a good hero, a few as they were.
"Yeah. Well, um, just walk with me, then." Izuku marched down the hall, not brave enough to check if Bakugou was following. He led the hero into his best friend's office, debriefing her on the situation before walking away. She could handle him, surely. They'd had Endevor in at one point.
Once Izuku managed to slip away to his office, he let out a long breath. He'd never thought he would see Bakugou again, at least not this personally. There'd been too much going on to really think about it -but Izuku will never admit that he owned quite a bit of Ground Zero posters. Submitting the file and waiting for the hero to return, Izuku pondered.
Maybe, they could be friends again. It was a scary thought to entertain, considering their history, but Izuku had a feeling about this and he'd never been wrong before. He'd look forward to getting to know Kacchan again.