ii.

At the Point of Ignition

"There are things you do sometimes, actions that you take by obeying sudden impulses, without stopping for even a fraction of a second to think, and then you spend the rest of your life either lamenting it or thanking yourself for it. They are rare, unique, and perfect moments."
― Irene González Frei

A long stretch of eternity passed, and for each moment that Bakugo's heart didn't beat beneath her palm a sliver of Ochako phased away with him. She was left a shivering mess of silent sobs, her shoulder protesting each jolt against the dead boy's chest; every movement jarring against her slowly dissociating mind.

The pain tried to drag her back, every bit of tooth and nail with claws that curved into her senses and tugged incessantly, but she refused. It was too much, everything was too much and if Bakugo wasn't going to stay she certainly didn't see a reason too either.

Had she been in her right sorts, that thought would have scared her. But she wasn't, so it passed unnoticed, added to the swiftly growing pile of feelings and thoughts that she had neither the time nor the emotional capacity to handle right now.

Something tugged at her awareness, something out of place and unnatural and Ochako pulled her lips from her companions, breath puffing cross the softness of his skin to look up and over into the deep dark.

"Smells good, smells so good…"

The voice was distant but close enough for her to recognize the unhinged sound to it. If she hadn't been shivering already the sound echoing softly down the deep tunnel walls would have done it for her for sure.

She didn't know what it was, a person maybe, or something else.

She didn't want to find out.

"Katsuki," She pleaded in a faint whisper, pausing in the middle of her words to push more air into his lungs. "You have to wake up now, something is coming please, please, wake up." Murmurs left her between one breath and the next and it didn't take her long to lose track of what she was saying.

Somewhere, skimming along the surface of her brain was the thought that no matter how close that voice got- she would refuse to leave Katsuki behind.

She'd be here till the very last.

"Smells good…" A wet shuffling noise began to accompany the voice, bouncing off tunnel walls as it continued its slow but steady approach.

Ochako minded her own damn business, preparing to use her quirk if necessary to haul her classmate off and give them more time. A commodity that every aspect of her life seemed to be lacking right now. She give her whole left fucking hand for just a little bit more time.

It turned out to be a moot plan anyways, because Bakugo sat up.

And time stood still for one, precious, luminous moment before the world exploded once more in a rush of everything.

It was sudden and awkward considering she was sitting in his lap, even more so as he violently began to vomit over her shoulder. He braced himself on her upper arms, and even the screaming agony of his touch on her burns couldn't stop the overwhelming rush of complex, broken emotions that ran amuck in her head.

Ochako's eyes held wide in the dark and her hands smoothed over his bare chest as he shook with the force necessary to expel the contents of his stomach.

His heart beat heavy and fast beneath her palms as if trying to make up for lost time.

Ochako gasped belatedly, squashing herself to his chest in a single minded need to reassure herself that he was in fact alive.

Holy shit he's alive.

He grunted between heaves, an uncomfortable, disjointed sound that echoed off stone walls. It was the most beautiful thing Ochako had ever heard and not even the stomach wrenching sound of someone else puking could interrupt the euphoria that had suddenly eclipsed her entire being.

Her hands slid beneath his arms, completely ignoring the fact that he was pushing against her as if to get her off his lap and she clenched her fists into his back. She was mindful of the puncture in his shoulder that was pulsing hot blood once more, and it didn't take long for her own fingers to become slick with it. She couldn't not touch him right now, she needed to feel his skin, warm and flush and moving.

Ochako held his bulk fast to her body, terrified that letting go might mean letting go.

Oh, gods.

Please, this isn't a dream. Please.

And she burst, she was a cup full and overflowing with so, so much and there had been so many extremes in the last- however long it had been- but she didn't matter, nothing mattered because he's alive, he's breathing again-

She let him out of the life wrenching embrace in favor of clasping his face between her palms, feeling the contours of his gritty cheeks and the curve of the corner of his lips with her thumbs. His filthy hair tangled at the tips of her fingers and his skin burned beneath hers. Ochako moved like a woman possessed and kissed him like she might never get another chance.

Which was still a very real possibility, but thought didn't play a very large role in Ochako's life right now. Just instinct, her fight or flight responses, and the cocktail or hormones she was higher than a kite on.

It wasn't even a good kiss, his breath was horrible and she was sure hers was too and they were both slathered in sewage water to boot. Their teeth clicked together awkwardly but Katsuki stopped trying to push her off of him the moment her lips touched his and he surged forward to meet her and Ochako just didn't care anymore.

He's alive.

Her eyes began to sting, and she realize she hadn't blinked yet despite the river of tears still flowing down her face. She didn't want to let go. Her first real moment of positive sensation, the drugging euphoria and relief erupting in her head and chest, dragging her under and all she wanted was to be with Katsuki. His skin was on hers, warm, living, and his fingers were digging into her hair and surely he was just a deep as she-

"Smells good…"

And reality came crashing back down.

They both stiffened at the same time.

"Time to go!" She huffed the words across his lips even as she began to peel herself away from him; because as much as she wanted to kiss him absolutely senseless she also wanted him to keep living even more.

There was a pause, the shuffling sounds growing louder by the second and Ochako found herself standing over Bakugo, her world spinning on an uneven axis even as she demanded her feet remain firm beneath her.

Bakugo didn't get up, and she wasn't surprised he was have difficulties considering he had just been dead a moment ago.

"One fucking second…" He wheezed like it was all he could do to get even that out, and still he managed to sound so prideful about it. Ochako had no doubt, that if they had the time to give him that he would force his body to work on sheer stubbornness alone.

Unfortunately, that was time they didn't have, and she was no more eager to meet the thing complimenting smells than she was to have tea with the League of Villains.

She slapped her hand flat against Bakugo's arm, probably a little harder than necessary but her sense muscle control was a mile off of normal right now. All five finger pad lit across his skin in a sensation that didn't compare to anything else in her life. A twist in her gut and the twang of a too-tight piano string and Bakugo suddenly lacked all his natural born weight.

Ochako slipped her fingers between his, yanking him up out of the muck and filth and ran like their lives depended on it.

Right into a wall.

Her shoulder popped again, her body slamming full frontal into the moist brick and Ochako couldn't contain the yelp that escaped her mouth.

Bakugo said nothing, it seemed like he was too busy remembering how to breathe and she was loathe to interrupt such important work for any reason whatsoever. So she took his hand again, the sensation of their fingers folding together more poignant this time as she chose a new direction to high tail it.

Her free hand stretched before her in the dark, and the going was so much slower than what would be ideal but she couldn't risk Katsuki getting injured any more than he already was.

She couldn't lose him again.

Her fears chased her just as surely as the thing behind them.

AN: Welcome to the chapter that almost didn't exist! I hope you enjoyed it as I literally just finished it last night. I spent this morning trying to clean it up some but I'll be honest I was actually planning on only updating In The Light today- but well. Y'all know me by now, I lack any sense of moderation while writing and so here we are.

I hope y'all have enjoyed it, I know its short so sorry about that.

PS: A few reviewers have asked me about the name confusion with Bakugo/Katsuki from Ochako's POV, and I know that there is a lot of that in this chapter in particular. This will be addressed in the actual story but not until later, thank you for your patience while Ochako works out her crazy, addled, broken af brain.

I hope y'all enjoyed this chapter! Please Review and tell me what you think!