Chapter Thirty-Nine: In Denial

Adrenaline.

That was the only thing Katsuki wanted to breathe, drink, or feel. He wanted that rush—the burn in his veins like a drug that washed out the blood pumping from his heart. It was the only thing that made his body sting enough to counter the chest pains he'd been having lately.

He was in the forest with Kirishima and Kaminari. It was early, and his two extras complained constantly like whiny toddlers about being woken up before dawn to train with him. Kaminari had reached his limit a while ago, and was currently walking around giving the world a thumbs-up with a dumbass grin on his face. Kirishima was reaching a breaking point as well, heaving for breath and bleeding in several places.

Katsuki, on the other hand, was just getting started. He didn't feel the least bit worn out from their fight. In fact, he could have gone another ten rounds! His muscles were screaming, his blood was pumping, his chest felt light. He wasn't ready to stop. His ragged breath came from anger and frustration rather than physical exhaustion. If he stopped, he'd crash. And when he crashed, he'd feel. Every day, the same cycle. Adrenaline, crash, feel. Every day was more annoying, frustrating, and stupid than the last.

He dragged his two friends out into the woods every morning before class, and insisted they get extra practice in. Despite his constant warnings, they didn't keep their complaints or their opinions to themselves, even after he pummeled them half to death.

"I think he's just bent out of shape about Aisla," Kaminari gibed just before Katsuki gave him a black eye that lasted five days.

"You don't have to take your anger out on us," Kirishima advised once. "Aisla will probably forgive you for whatever dumb thing you said." Katsuki blasted him so hard after that, he had to call Recovery Girl to heal the damage.

Now, he threw out another blast toward Kirishima, who just barely had enough time to harden his skin enough to protect himself. He still winced on impact and stumbled back several feet before he could regain his balance and give Katsuki a pained expression.

"Hey, man. Don't you think that's enough for today?" the redhead suggested. "I'm all for letting you take your anger out on me, but it's been getting a little out of hand lately. Maybe we should take a break."

"We'll take a break when you're dead!" Katsuki yelled, lunging forward with a blazing fist.

He was so angry! No matter what he did, how many punches he landed or took, he always came right back to a heavy, chest-crushing rage. It started that day, when Aisla humiliated him at dinner with her parents. Gross, nauseating embarrassment had led him to hiding out in his room, never wanting to show his face again. But All Might came to his room and reminded him that he was a hero and he should focus on class rather than holing up like a coward.

All Might didn't know anything about what had happened or how embarrassed he felt, but the lecture flipped a switch in Katsuki. He realized the old pro did have a point. Katsuki couldn't put everything he'd worked so hard for on the line for some girl. He couldn't hide out in his room like a damn chick from a soap opera and risk losing everything he came to UA to achieve. All Might had been right; Katsuki needed to get back to what was really important.

Since then, Katsuki's humiliation had festered and morphed, shifted and transformed into a white-hot rage that boiled hotter every day.

Especially when he saw her.

The first time was when she came back to class on Wednesday. For a brief moment, when his eyes landed on her and scanned up her thin body to her tired eyes, he forgot about their fight. She looked sick and weak, and an old instinct told him to run to her, to take care of her and shield her from whatever had made her look so broken. But then, he suddenly remembered that disgusting feeling of humiliation and betrayal, remembered their fight, and knew that he was the reason she looked like that. Instantly, new and familiar rage kindled inside of him, and he turned his attention back to hero studies. She wasn't his priority anymore, therefore, he wouldn't waste anymore time thinking about it.

The next time he saw her was the following morning when he noticed her slinking out of Icy Hot's room as if she'd been there all night. The expression she wore when she saw him staring confirmed as much: shame, anger, and guilt. He saw her sneaking out of that room each morning after that for three days until he finally couldn't take it and decided to get up even earlier for training. He couldn't handle one more morning of that twist in his gut as he watched her sneak out of Todoroki's room, the deep and wild thrashing that screamed its way into rage. He didn't want to think about what she was doing over there every night with the guy who'd been Katsuki's main competition the entire time they were dating. It wasn't his concern anymore. Katsuki was a free man; Aisla Haru could do whatever—or whoever—she wanted.

"Shit!" Kirishima swore as Katsuki landed another painful blow to his face. "Back off, man! You're getting too violent and you know it. It's time to stop for the day; Kaminari's already messed up. That's enough, Katsuki."

"SHUT THE HELL UP AND LET ME KILL YOU!" he roared, but just then he was caught up in Aizawa's capture scarf and flung across the clearing. He smacked into a tree and let out a string of curses before crashing to the ground.

"That's enough, Young Bakugo." All Might's face appeared over his, concern etched deeply in his sunken-in eyes. "It's time for you to call it a day."

"I'M NOT FINISHED HERE!" he yelled, but made no attempts to get up.

Mr. Aizawa walked up and glowered down at him with blazing red eyes. "Do not tempt me to give you the fight you're asking for," he warned.

Katsuki sneered but didn't argue, knowing full well that his teacher would win in a one-on-one fight, leaving Katsuki looking like an even bigger idiot than he already did.

Mr. Aizawa's hair fell around his shoulders as his eyes returned to their normal emotionless void. "Let's go, Bakugo. Don't make me send you back to Hound Dog's office."

Katsuki scoffed and got to his feet, shoving All Might away when he tried to lend a hand. "I'm not talking to that mutt and you can't make me!"

"How about suspension, then?" he offered.

Katsuki stiffened and gritted his teeth. "Whatever," he finally spat. "I don't even want to fight these two losers."

"Hey!" Kirishima called from where he was helping Kaminari walk. "You dragged us out here, remember?"

"SHUT UP!" Katsuki retorted.

"All of you shut up," Mr. Aizawa commanded as he led their group back to the dorms. "I want to see you in my office in an hour," he told Katsuki. "And do not try to get out of it. I will find you and I will have you suspended."

Katsuki gulped. He'd already missed out on enough training and didn't want to be forced to stay in his room again. The last time he got suspended, he and Deku had to clean the whole dorm. Katsuki never realized what pigs he lived with until that moment. He secretly hated them all for being disgusting swine, and vowed never to get suspended again, lest he have to see the contents of Mineta's trash again.

After an hour-long lecture about Katsuki's 'violent behavior,' he was given three days of detention with Mr. Aizawa, and a warning not to beat his classmates to a bloody pulp again. He promised, even though secretly he told himself he was still going to beat them, he just wouldn't make them bleed.

Once he was permitted to leave, he went back to his room to be alone. It was a Saturday, so most of his classmates would be doing activities outside of the dorm. He might actually have a few moments of peace and quiet.

Before he reached the safety of his own room, however, he noticed Icy Hot and his new girlfriend standing in the hallway in front of her door. Maybe that wasn't accurate. For all he knew, Aisla and her loyal retriever were rebound fuck-buddies, not a couple—honestly, he wasn't sure which of these possibilities made him more furious. Blue eyes stared back at him with a cold expression before she disappeared behind Todoroki's door, giving the wood a little extra push than necessary. Icy Hot stood there, glaring over at Katsuki with crossed arms.

"What the hell do you want?" Katsuki demanded.

"Why are you such an asshole?" the freak asked in return.

Katsuki sneered. "You got the girl, so go celebrate or something. You won." He threw his hands up in the air.

Icy Hot frowned. "I didn't get anything," he argued, almost convincingly.

Katsuki clenched his fists. "I know you're getting cozy with her, so don't try to deny it! She sleeps in your room almost every night now! What do you two do in there, huh? Talk shit about how terrible I am? You keep her nice and warm with that quirk of yours? Bet you jumped like a dog the first time you got an opportunity to feel her up, didn't you?" The words were panicked, delusional, fueled by his explosive anger.

The other boy looked surprised at this outburst, then perplexed, then finally he rolled his eyes. "Bakugo, you really are an idiot if you think Aisla wants me the same way that she wants you. She's lonely and heartbroken; I comfort her. That's all it is."

Katsuki scoffed. "Whatever. Like I give a shit what you do with that…that…girl!" he finally snapped, then stepped into his room and slammed the door. His nunchucks fell off the wall with a loud clatter, as well as a picture that hung loosely from a piece of tape. He bent down to pick it up and turned over the sheet. It was the picture Aisla had drawn with him of the super villain attacking a town. The words 'Jailbird' were printed in elegant script on the bottom corner of the sheet alongside Aisla's signature. He'd completely forgotten she'd given him the picture once she'd completed it. She'd hung it up one day when she was in his room, giving him a proud smile.

He crumpled it in a tight fist and clenched his teeth together as anger burned through him. He was so mad that she'd humiliated him in front of her whole family, made even worse when it hadn't even taken her two days to move on. She was with Todoroki now, wasn't she? It was obvious. She hadn't come to Katsuki apologizing for embarrassing him, or asking to talk about shit or whatever. Instead, she went straight to Icy Hot—the boy Katsuki knew from the very start was better for her than he'd ever be.

What made him mad wasn't the fact that she'd moved on with Todoroki, but rather the knowledge that she'd supposedly felt all these feelings for Katsuki, but was somehow able to forget all about him and put those feelings on someone else so soon. Maybe she'd never really felt anything for him at all. It had all been a huge joke to mess with his mind.

Love? That was a joke. She'd humiliated him with that word and in the end it meant nothing to her.

Well, joke's on you, Aisla Haru, he thought angrily as he tossed the balled-up picture across the room. I never felt anything for you, either. So, whatever sick game you're playing won't work on me…

Katsuki put his all into training. He worked so hard that no one wanted to team up with him during their class exercises. Even some of the teachers refused to train with him because he'd been decimating them all in a matter of minutes. Aizawa and Ectoplasm were the exceptions, but Katsuki didn't really feel very accomplished fighting clones, and his teacher always ended up capturing Katsuki in his scarves before he even had the chance to really let loose.

Today, they were all gathered at Ground Beta for another rescue exercise. Katsuki stood in the back of the group with hands buried in pants pockets and lips twisted into an irritated sneer. All they seemed to do lately was rescue exercises! Katsuki wanted more fake villain attacks, more fighting, more chances to prove himself, more adrenaline. Rescue exercises weren't cutting it anymore. He had half the mind to leave campus and search for real villains on his own.

"WHAT THE HELL?!" he bellowed when Aizawa informed him that he would be one of the rescued this time and not a rescuer. "THIS IS SOME BULLSHIT AND YOU KNOW IT!"

"Calm down, Katsuki," Kirishima advised quietly from his right. "It's not that big of a deal. We all have to do it sometimes. We can't always be the ones doing all the rescuing."

"SHUT UP, YOU STUPID ROCK! YOU GET TO DO THE RESCUING!"

Katsuki was not going to be in this position again. He didn't want to feel helpless, defenseless, or vulnerable anymore. He didn't want to sit in silence with his own thoughts, waiting for someone to find him. If he had to pretend to be a victim in this simulation, then he was going to kill every single person who dared try and rescue him because Katsuki Bakugo saves himself!

"That's enough, Bakugo," Mr. Aizawa chastised. "Kirishima is right: sometimes you'll be the one in need of rescuing—that just comes with the job. The purpose of this exercise is to teach you how to be cooperative and treat others with respect. Yelling at someone who's been in a life-threatening situation will only make matters worse. You need to learn sympathy. So, take your damn card and go act like you're dying."

Katsuki snatched the card that told him what ailments he was supposed to have, and stalked off with a cloud of burning hot rage enveloping his entire being. He thought he caught sight of Aisla's crystal eyes following his progress, but didn't stop to talk to her and he didn't turn to look at her. He didn't care what expression she wore or if she was holding hands with his arch nemesis. He didn't care that she slept in that pansy's room every night like she used to sleep in his room. He didn't care about anything except pretending to have a broken leg and a knife wound to the gut. At least it would be easy to fake that second one. He could imagine what a knife to the gut felt like perfectly. The only thing missing from his card was a knife to the back.

When he reached a spot he thought was far enough away that no one would bother him for a while, Katsuki crawled under some rubble and pulled his knees against his chest, glaring holes into the rocks around him with his stare and willing his eyes to create laser beams. He was instantly bored of this sorry excuse for an exercise and was seriously contemplating how much trouble he'd be in if he just bailed and went to the forest to train by himself instead.

Shouting and sounds of rubble being moved could be heard from across the arena. Fortunately, no one else seemed to find his hiding spot a good place to play possum. Katsuki could end up being stuck there all day if he chose to do so. He couldn't decide if that would make him feel better or worse than getting rescued and ending his torment. He could make some noise to draw attention to himself and get this whole thing over with, or he could be silent as a mouse and wait the others out so they got a failing grade for not finding all of their victims.

"This is pointless," he grumbled when another twenty minutes passed and still no signs of life came his way. It sounded like everyone was to the right of him and directly behind him. Hadn't anyone seen him run over here? Maybe that was the problem—his classmates knew where he was and were purposely choosing not to save him because of how badass he was. That made sense to him, and he refused to acknowledge the possibility that they were avoiding him because he'd been a dick to his friends for the past few days, but it was really fucking annoying to sit around.

Even so, he stayed where he was with his knees tucked to his chest and a scowl deepening with each passing minute. Soon, the late-afternoon sun would turn the sky dark and he'd still be wedged in this crevasse of rubble and despair.

No, not despair—anger. I'm angry and annoyed and everyone else sucks at hero work! I should be the one out there doing the rescuing, not holed up here like a worthless, pathetic loser who can't manage to save himself!

Katsuki let out a huff of indignation. Thoughts like those were pathetic. He should be thinking about how to beat up whoever was brave enough to try and rescue him. He wasn't going to be an easy victim that just submits to the fake hero's will. Katsuki was the hero. He'd rescue the rescuer and show everyone in his class that even with a broken leg and a knife piercing his stomach, he could still outshine every single one of them!

Because no matter how bruised or broken Katsuki Bakugo might be, he refused to crumble.

As the minutes ticked by, however, he was growing more restless. He was starting to believe his earlier thoughts, that no one was going to come looking for him out of fear or some inferiority complex. Katsuki knew he'd been rough on them lately, but he didn't think he'd been so out of line that no one would dare come near him, even during an exercise. What would his teachers do if no one wanted to rescue him? Did they even notice or care?

Probably not, he decided, scowling at the idea. No one in their right mind would want to be around someone who always pushed them away, who hurt them when they tried to get close. Of course, all of them would prefer to deal with someone nicer, friendlier, and more docile than Katsuki. Someone like Todoroki, he thought bitterly. If Katsuki was that Icy Hot loser, then maybe his friends and teachers and…

Fuck that. I don't care. I'm fine on my own. I always have been.

He was just about to cave and come out of his hiding place when he heard the soft sounds of footsteps heading his way. Pebbles crunched under boots, rocks were kicked aside, and a familiar voice was grumbling something unintelligible.

Katsuki scowled even harder and stayed as still as possible. He'd rather be dead than be saved by her of all people. Imagine the humiliation that scene would cause. Rescued by a small, weak, helpless girl who couldn't do anything without a man around to do the heavy lifting.

Not true, something snarled inside of him. You don't think that.

A piercing pain that had nothing to do with his fake injury shot him straight through the heart. He wasn't sure what caused it, but the feeling was so sudden and intense that he let out a soft grunt of surprise before he could stop himself.

The footsteps stopped as the rescuer listened for where the sounds had come from. He heard boots scrape against gravel as they swiveled in his direction, then slow, careful steps heading his way. He thought about darting out and running in the opposite direction, or moving farther into the cave-like structure, but it was pointless now. Besides, he'd been cramped in here for so long, he just wanted to be done and go back to his room.

"Where are you?" a soft voice asked from his left. He stayed still, refusing to aid in her search. It didn't take her long to find him, however. When she did, her eyes widened, dilating so much that he could barely even see the blue irises. Her gaze flicked all over him as if trying to decide if he was real or if she was just imagining him there. He hoped she would decide he was only a mirage and move on, but after several moments of scrutiny, she closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and offered him a forced smile.

"Can I…help you?" She spoke stiffly and formally, her eyes never fully meeting his own. She was biting her lip now, too, a habit he knew she did when she was feeling particularly anxious about something. She was uncomfortable being there with him, he could tell that much from her rigid stance and eyes that kept flicking around them as if contemplating the urge to run away.

"Go away," he said, cringing at the poor choice of words. He'd meant to say, go ahead, but his thoughts had jumbled and came out in a grumbled mess.

Now, those pale pink lips formed a hard line, and her normally brilliant blue eyes turned cold. She stared at him unblinkingly for so long he was sure she'd turned to stone right before his eyes.

"Right," she finally said shortly, turning away to face the opposite direction so she wouldn't have to look at him anymore. "Right…"

He watched her walk away, watched the slight tremble in her clenched fists and heard the thudding of her boots as she stomped in the rubble.

"Aisla!" he called, hand reaching for her with desperate fingers extended. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean that. I…"

She turned to face him, tears clinging to blonde eyelashes. "What…?"

Chest crushed tightly, all rage dissolved from his lungs, a broken plea. "I'm sorry."

She smiled at him. Not the cold, icy way she'd glared at him lately. Her beautiful, Aisla smile that he swore shined only for him. "I know, Katsuki. It's okay."

Except.

None of that happened.

He didn't call out to her. She didn't look back. He just sat there, watching her back as she turned a corner and disappeared from his sight.

Katsuki let out another long sigh and buried his face in his hands, tugging angrily on the ends of his hair as if the small burst of pain would counteract the feeling clawing at his insides. All he had to do was read off his symptoms and accept the help she offered. Instead, he'd growled at her to go away and said nothing as she stared at him with that icy expression.

I don't care, he reminded himself weakly. I don't care about Aisla Haru.

Katsuki was tired. He hadn't slept at all that night and felt like he was barely hanging on to consciousness now. Class had only just begun for the day, meaning he had another seven hours before he could go back to his room and sleep. Maybe he could claim to be sick and go take a nap for a few hours. He was certain he wouldn't miss anything important. Aizawa was droning on about their final essay assignments for the year. They each had to choose a topic to research and write a five-page paper about over the course of the next month. They wouldn't be sharing them in class—much to his relief—but the paper itself was worth forty percent of their final grade in literature.

Katsuki barely heard what the allowed topics were as he spaced out at his desk. He already knew what he'd do his essay on, and he knew he'd get a passing grade like he always did. He wasn't the best writer and literature wasn't his best subject, but he'd managed to skirt by with a pretty solid B-minus the whole year. If he scored a high enough grade on this essay, he might even be able to bring that grade up to a B-plus, but that would require studying and paying attention in class. Normally, he'd study with Aisla for a big test like this, but…

His eyes shifted to the back of her shimmering blonde hair of their own volition. She sat rigidly in her seat like she was trying to improve her posture, hands folded neatly in her lap, notebook open in front of her, but clean of any actual notes for once. Usually, she could be seen taking pages of notes. For a brief moment, he wondered why she was so absent today.

It's because of you, his mind supplied. Her feelings were hurt because Katsuki hadn't accepted her ridiculous gift. Who gave someone else a present on their birthday anyway? She had to have known what a stupid idea that was when she'd brought the thing the her parent's house. No matter her lame excuse about forgetting to give it to him on Valentine's Day, that wasn't the right time to give him something like that.

Didn't she get that? Didn't she understand that he would have taken the dumb present if she'd given it to him in private? He would have still thought it was stupid and would have cringed at those words she used, but he would have taken it. He probably would have even pretended to like it. Really, this was all her fault. Besides, clearly she wasn't that torn up about it anyway, or she wouldn't be permanently affixed to Todoroki these days.

He felt a scowl settle on his lips as he thought about that night and had to force the image out of his mind before he started growling like a feral cat. He didn't need to think about Aisla or her new boytoy or anyone else! Katsuki was going to be the number one hero, dammit! Some girl and her stupid words and her fickle feelings wasn't worth his time.

When class finally ended, Katsuki sprang out of his seat with sudden vigor and flew out of the room like a speeding bullet. He noted Mr. Aizawa's glare as he raced by him, but didn't wait to see if he wanted to speak with him. Katsuki wanted to get out of there before that girl decided she wanted to turn around and talk to him. He had better things to do.

As he made his way down the hallway, however, someone jumped out in front of him and laughed maniacally in his face, head thrown back in an obnoxious show of mockery. Katsuki did growl this time, hands forming fists that he was seconds away from letting loose—suspension be damned.

"Hey, Bakugo~" Monoma from Class 1-B taunted, flashing Katsuki a shitty grin that said he knew something he didn't. His eyes were smug and not fazed in the least by Katsuki's anger. Or maybe he was just feeling bold with a group of friends crowding around them.

"I hear that there's been in-fighting in class 1-A. Not much of an infallible team now, are you? Something about the class golden boy beating up his friends, spending time in detention, skulking away from Hound Dog's office, and…oh what was that other thing?" He tapped his chin as he pretended to think. "That's right. You scared off your little blonde girlfriend. You know, it's really too bad that you couldn't manage to keep the only girl who'll ever look twice at you," he remarked pityingly. "You'll probably die all alone now."

A different kind of anger twisted and coiled in Katsuki's gut. Monoma was an asshole, always trying to show that his class, and himself, were better than class 1-A. But the pompous prince hadn't gotten personal like this before. It told Katsuki that people were talking about him and Aisla. People outside of their class. People with no business butting into something that Katsuki didn't even want to be party to.

"I don't really see why it was so hard for you to keep her around, though. From what I hear, sweet Aisla Haru's pretty easy, if you know what I mean."

Easy?

Monoma's eyes, a similar shade of striking blue as Aisla's, seemed to be searching for something. Confirmation? Weak spots. He was trying to push Katsuki's buttons, probably to see just how weak and pathetic Katsuki had gotten over the past few days.

"You don't know anything," Katsuki hissed, eyes narrowing at the comment.

The other boy gave a nonchalant shrug. "I know what I've heard. And from the sound of it, the indomitable beast of class 1-A roared away his friends and girlfriend—and the meek little tigress went on to pounce on other prey. It's laughable, really! Where are your loyalties? Your camaraderie? The friendship you all wave around in everyone's faces? I thought it was the power of love that made your class so impervious to villain attacks!"

Katsuki should have walked away. He'd seen this loser run his mouth about their class a million times, and yet… He was talking about him. He was talking about Aisla.

"What, don't tell me you actually thought she felt something for you?" He let out another laugh. "That's actually the most hilarious thing I've ever heard! Imagine a brute like you who had to be chained up at the Sports Festival actually having someone who cares about you. And even if that were remotely possible, I can't imagine it would be her. You know what people are saying about her, don't you?"

Aisla…

He didn't want to know. He didn't want to hear this. Whatever it was, it wasn't his business. And yet…he stood there, with fists clenched and trembling.

"There are so many rumors," Monoma drawled, looking at the back of his nails casually as he leaned against the wall. "People do like to make things up about the girls in your class, though, it's not uncommon. All lights are on the people at the top, I suppose. There are always stories about the class 1-A girls getting around."

Katsuki hated this. He hated what the bastard was implying about her.

"Maybe you can tell me if there's truth in any of it. After all, I saw her just the other day," Monoma continued with feigned thoughtfulness. "She was hanging all over that one pretty boy in your class, Endeavor's son? Gosh, what was his name…?" He pretended to remember, eyes lighting up. "Oh, right, Todoroki. I saw her with my very eyes, attached to him like a leach." His eyes were still challenging, carefully watching as he tried to peel Katsuki apart from every angle. "They sure have been getting cozy, wouldn't you say? I've heard stories of them sleeping together, too. But that one could be an embellishment." He winked.

"Shut the hell up," Katsuki growled through clenched teeth.

The shithead didn't flinch at Katsuki's tone. If anything, his eyes got darker, even more thoughtful as he continued. "That's not all," he went on. "There are other things. Little whispers here and there. You'd know if you'd been paying more attention." He paused, as if there was implied meaning here, like he was calling Katsuki out or something, like it was Katsuki's fault that Aisla was apparently at the center of the rumor mill after breaking up with him less than a week ago. "One mouse told me that she was expelled from Shiketsu High after being caught in the boy's bathroom in a rather…compromising position."

"Who told you that?!" Katsuki snarled. His rage was expanding, the gross and horrible twisting in his gut getting even more knotted with each word.

"Don't shoot me, I'm just the messenger," Monoma said darkly. "I suppose this means you won't want to hear about the rumors that there's a reason she's Aizawa's favorite student, then? Apparently, so I've been told, there's not much she wouldn't do for a good transcript or a good grade. I've heard it all. Guys all over campus are talking about how your ex-girlfriend is quite the whor—"

Katsuki's fist connected with the boy's nose before he'd even allowed the hand to move. Monoma went flying, causing the other students in the hall to shriek and jump out of the way. He landed with a groan of pain several feet away, clutching his face with both hands.

"Ah," Monoma hissed as he tried to stop the blood from seeping out of his broken nose, "now you're paying attention."

"DON'T YOU EVER SAY THAT SHIT ABOUT HER AGAIN, YOU GOT THAT?!" he bellowed right before he noticed the aforementioned blonde who stood just beyond the bleeding boy. Katsuki's gaze lifted to meet bright blue eyes that looked at him with a mix of shock and horror. His face paled.

She's here, he realized too late. Then, that creep's words flooded through his mind like a film reel on max speed. Her face was hot with humiliation as she looked at him, waiting for him to say something.

"Aisla, don't worry," he said, chest heaving. "I won't let them talk shit about you."

Her eyes shone with relief and tears. "It's not true," she whispered. "None of it."

"I know. I'll rip apart anyone who tries to say otherwise! You can count on me. You can always count on me to be there for you."

That was how it could have gone, if he'd said something.

He didn't.

Katsuki took the easy way out, like always.

He jutted his chin in the air, turned on his heel, and fled the eyes that bore straight through to his soul.

When he reached his room, he was so hot with rage that his sweat dripped onto the floor with audible plops. He ignored the perspiration there and stalked into his bathroom to splash cold water onto his face. He only got about three splashes in before he gave up and dropped to his knees on the cold tile, not even bothering to turn off the faucet.

"Dammit," he swore as he slammed a fist into the cabinet below the sink. It rattled under his fist like it was about to break in half. He slammed his head into it next as he let out another string of curses that would earn him a week in detention. He didn't care, though. He wanted to run off and beat down some trees until his fists were bloody and raw, but he didn't want to risk running into any of his stupid classmates again. Or, god forbid, Monoma. Katsuki would probably get suspended for handing that idiot his own ass, but he didn't even care. The things he was saying about her…

"Fucking Monoma," he growled. "Fucking Aisla…" The name itself made a vein pulse in his forehead. Thinking about her made him so angry, but he was starting to wonder if he was so mad because he felt scorned by Aisla, or if the real reason had to do with something else entirely. Maybe, if he was being honest with himself, the reason her name made him so livid…was because he missed her.

"That's fucking stupid!" he shouted a moment later. He couldn't miss someone who didn't belong to him. She was just a stupid girl he used to be friends with. So what if people were spreading rumors about her? That wasn't his problem—that ball was in Icy Hot's court now. It was his responsibility to defend her honor or whatever. If someone needed punching, it was that idiot's job to handle it. Katsuki was going to stay out of their lives and ignore the rumors, and ignore her.

With that resolve, he was able to push himself up enough to turn off the tap before collapsing into bed fully clothed. It was still fairly early and he hadn't eaten dinner, but he was tired and pissed off and wanted the sweet reprieve of sleep. He curled up on top of the blanket and clutched a pillow to his chest like he used to do when he was a little boy. He stayed like that, frozen in time, until the sun dipped below the horizon and sleep finally pulled him under.

In his dreams, Aisla was there waiting for him with a smile, holding out a hand as if asking him to take it. When he tried, she snatched her hand away and gave him a look of disgust.

"Did you really think I meant those words?" Dream Aisla asked. "Of course I don't feel that way about you. Who could ever have feelings for the boy who should be a villain?"

Katsuki tried shouting to her in his dream, but his mouth made no sound. Empty air escaped his lips and nothing more. Dream Aisla laughed as if to say, see what I mean? Then, she turned around and walked away, hand-in-hand with a white and red haired boy, leaving him behind all alone.

A/N: On time this week! Wooooot! So, kind of an emotional roller coaster for our boy today. He's pretty "in denial" about what he's feeling, and doesn't really want to take responsibility for them. His biggest weakness seems to be his own insecurity mixed with a whole lotta stubbornness. Originally, the direction of this chapter went a little bit different, but my beta helped me to make it flow much more smoothly, and a lot more angstily XD So you can all thank her for making this pack an even bigger punch than it already did. She helped me out a LOT with this one, and I'm very grateful!

ALSO, a bit of a throwback to the original story there in the chapter title! The title actually fit the chapter perfectly, but it was also fun to bring back that OG fic name. Apparently, he hasn't learned his lesson since his last attempt. This story is a do-over, Katsuki, make it right! XD

Reviews:

MeMyselfAndI82907: No worries about not reviewing the last chapter. This one more than made up for it! I really appreciate each and every thing you guys have to say, so thank you so much for continuing to read, and for taking time out of your day to say something about my story. I bet you want to punch Katsuki even more after this chapter! He's definitely being a shithead, for sure! Go ahead and give him a good beat down, looks like he's in need of one.

Your "five wieners" comment had me DYING for days, btw! That was too funny! And it made me feel validated that I'm not the only person who thought that was a hilarious joke when those kids called him that. Poor Shoto, lol.

As for your next thought, I do have to agree on that. "If you tell yourself a lie enough, it becomes your truth." That can be true, especially for stubborn people such as Bakugo. The whole idea of this story was that Katsuki is in denial of his feelings. In his mind, he keeps telling himself that he doesn't have feelings—he doesn't like Aisla, he doesn't love her, and he's done nothing wrong. To him, these become true because he's constantly trying to convince himself of this fact. Deep down, he knows he's being a shit, but on the surface, he's able to fool himself into believing he's totally faultless.

We could all use a Dr. Fujinari in our lives 3 (That's supposed to be a heart, I think). We could all benefit, I'm sure. He's a pretty cool dude, anyway. He seems like the type of person who would be easy to talk with. If not, at least he has good tea. I wish I could take credit for how awesome he is, but you'll have to praise my beta for that one! I'm sorry that you have also been through some trials of your own. Depression is really hard to deal with, no matter the cause of it.

Beta: yellowchikadee