Katsuki Bakugou is stumped.
One moment, Deku was all happy-go-lucky and the next he looked freakin' terrified.
And Bakugou had No. Idea. Why.
Was it something I did? Was it 'cuz I cheated? No, he wouldn't be scared by that. The blonde racked his brain for anything he might've done wrong in the past hour.
Wait.
He sat upright as a thought came to mind.
Was it 'cuz I smiled?! Alarm bells rang in his head as he remembered how the corners of his lips had automatically turned upwards at seeing Izuku surrounded by snow, wide eyed with dewy, pink cheeks.
Fuck! Was it that fucking creepy?! He wondered anxiously, peering at his reflection from a glass window and trying to replicate the smile he had made then.
A little boy watching from inside saw Bakugous' attempts and briefly broke out in a sob. Katsuki quickly turned away when the childs' mother began to frantically search about for the cause of his dismay.
Goddamn it… Bakugou thought.
"It's a sin to frighten children you know?" A feminine voice called out from above.
Bakugou looked up and sneered at the girl talking to him, "Yeah? Well, you know what they say when you assume shit. Makes an ass out of you and me or whatever so how about you mind your own damn business?" He snarled.
"Ugh! What vulgar language!" The girl cried out, she looked really familiar now that Bakugou took a good look. She had fair skin and vines for hair-a feature one would normally notice right away, but Bakugou couldn't place where he's seen her before.
"You should go to church sir, I hear there's one not too far up the road." She said, taking a seat next to him. She dug through her purse and pulled out a pamphlet, "Here, have this."
Katsuki glanced over the laminated cover; the image of Jesus being hung on the cross was exaggerated and quite visceral-to be frank. Captioned above his spilled guts were the words 'Die the right way!' in off-putting bright bubble letters.
Katsuki Bakugou has left the bench.
He does not like me that way-he can't. There's no way he would. I'm overthinking things, like I always do, It's just not possible-it's just NOT.
Right?
"Wrong!"
"Eeeep!" Izuku jumped a foot in the air and slipped backwards as he came back down.
"Oh shit, sorry Midoriya! I didn't mean to scare you! My bad." Denki apologized before lending a hand to the other.
"Kaminari!" Midoriya exclaimed in surprise. He graciously accepted the help. "What're you doing here? I didn't expect to see you-not that I'm unhappy about it or anything-!" The extra sentence felt necessary to add after a lifetime of misunderstandings with another certain blonde.
Kaminari grinned and gestured behind him. The green haired boy tilted his head and saw a green haired girl in the distance, sitting on a bench. She looked awfully lost.
"Ah!" Recognition flickered across his features. "That's the girl from the sports festival! What was her name again..? Shiza...shizo…?"
"Ibara Shiozaki! She's my date!" Kaminari proudly announced.
"Really? That's great Kaminari!" Izuku clapped as if the electric boy had just won a medal. He's genuinely happy for him, Kaminari has wanted a girlfriend for forever and after many, many rejections, he finally got a date!
"Kanashami!" Ibara suddenly shouted, "Are you sure we're at the right place?"
"Yes my dear, I'm positive~! Don't worry your pretty little head about it!"
"My phone says St. Chapels is another 20 miles in the other direction! Are you actually a tour guide?"
"..."
"..."
"J-just a minute!" Denki shouted back, "I'm talking to a friend!-And the name's Kaminari!" Before Midoriya could further pity him, Kaminari swiftly steered the conversation away from himself.
"So anyway! Enough about me, who were you mumbling about just a moment ago?" He asked, wiggling his eyebrows suggestively. Izuku stared blankly, seemingly confused. Kaminari sensed this and jogged his memory,
"Ya know? When you were saying stuff like, 'They'll never like me back, it's impossible'-something like that?"
Izuku's eyes grew wide in realization. AHHHH! I DIDN'T KNOW I WAS TALKING ALOUD! THAT'S SO EMBARRASSING, WHAT IF I STAYED BACK WITH KACCHAN AND BEGAN RAMBLING LIKE THAT!? THAT'D BE THE ABSOLUTE WORST WAY TO CONFESS-!
"BA-BAKUGOU!?" Kaminari yells, choking on his own spit. "IT'S BAKUGOU?!"
Izuku slapped a hand over his mouth.
I DID IT AGAIN!
"WHO THE FUCK IS SHOUTING MY NAME!?"
KACCHAN!
Kaminari's eyes widened with alarm as Izuku slapped another hand over his mouth, muffling a high pitched scream. Spiky, blonde hair soon came into view over the sloped road and caused Izuku to flush considerably because,
One-The sound of Kacchan's laughter was still fresh in his mind, as was the toothy smile he sent his way, the dimple that appeared with it, the feeling of Kacchan's hands in his own, his lips on his cheek- Urghh! Stop it. STOP IT. It was all PLATONIC, he DOES NOT like me like that, stop being delusional!
"He-hey Bakugou!" Denki says, turning around.
Oh, and two-KAMINARI KNOWS!
What if he tells Kacchan?!
"Pikachu? Ah, I should've known that dying donkey bray of my name could've only come from you." Bakugou said, coming closer.
"Okay, rude-"
"Deku? Hey, what's wrong?" Katsuki asked, completely ignoring Kaminari as he noticed his childhood friend crouched on the ground. "Why do you look like you're gonna throw up?"
Izuku responded by squeezing his palms tighter against his mouth; he didn't trust himself to not say anything stupid, given what's happened beforehand. It didn't help that Katsuki leaned down to his level and put a hand on his shoulder, staring right at him.
Kaminari watched the scene with bewilderment; this was the first time he saw Bakugou care about someone else, and for that person to be Midoriya of all people-it was unexpected to say the least.
Geez, I guess a lot changed over the break… He thought as he observed his classmates' interactions.
Midoriya seemed to be very interested by his shoes right now-he was the same color as them too-while Bakugou's sole attention was focused on the smaller boy in front of him, his eyes scanned all over the others' face for clues on what ailed him and again-Bakugou, just showing concern, that by itself is bizarre...but, there was another emotion lurking behind those red eyes that went beyond mere concern….
Kaminari sighed and put his thoughts to the side for now, he needed to get some space between them before Midoriya overheated.
"Umm Bakugou?" Kaminari began, "I wouldn't stand too close to him if I were you man. Midoriya was just telling me he wasn't feeling too well, he probably caught the corona-or uhh, cold. He probably caught a cold."
Izuku perked up at the statement and nodded vigorously, puffing his cheeks out like he was about to hurl for added effects.
Bakugou's demeanor did an immediate u-turn, "Oh my god, is that why you were acting weird earlier!? If you didn't feel good, you should've just said so! Fuck, you always keep things to yourself..." He grumbled angrily.
"Hey, don't be so hard on him Bakugou, he's sick! You should be treating him to a nice, hot meal, not yelling at him." Denki admonished, then he remembered, "In fact! The shop over there sells amazing ramen, you should buy some for Midoriya!"
Katsuki glared at the dainty ramen shop by the booths before glancing at Izuku, who looked like he'd pass out any minute. He turned his attention back to Denki and huffed, "Fine. Better not be shit ramen."
"Hahaha, oh I can assure you it's not! The quality is just exquisite, trust me, the subtle nuances of food are my area of exper-oh, he's leaving."
Izuku giggled quietly at Kaminari's crestfallen face. Afterwards he says,
"Thank you Kaminari. I don't know why but I was worried you would tell Kacchan about...well, you know…." He scratched the back of his head sheepishly. "I'm sorry, I freaked out over nothing…"
"Whaaaat? Dude, no way I'd do that. Not to you anyway; if it was someone like Sero or Kirishima, then yeah, I'd tell the whole class who they liked." Denki grinned mischievously at the thought of exposing his friends in such a way. Izuku smiled uneasily.
"But don't worry Midoriya, your secret's safe with me." Kaminari promised. His face then took on a serious expression, "You should definitely ask Bakugou how he feels though. I don't think it's impossible that he likes you back."
Izuku opened his mouth, undoubtedly about to deny it-so Kaminari spoke again,
"After all, it's better to know than to always wonder 'what if', right?"
"ACHOOOOOO!"
It turns out Izuku actually did catch a cold.
"Ughhh…" He groaned as his head fell back against the couch's armrest; even sneezing took a lot out of him. He pulled the covers tighter around himself, shaking from the cold yet sweating at the same time.
"Izuku-kun? What're you doing on the couch?" Mitsuki asked as she descended down the stairs, buttoning her blazer.
The green haired boy raised his head and mustered a weak smile. "Ah, I caught a cold aunty….I didn't want Kacchan to get sick too so I slept here last night."
Mitsuki snorted. "Hah, that's very thoughtful of you but lemme tell ya, that brat-" she paused to put on her coat. "-doesn't get sick. Ever. I don't know why, everyone gets sick sometimes but not him apparently."
Why does she say that like it's a bad thing...? Izuku sweatdropped.
"The fuck? You want me to catch the flu or something?" Bakugou scowled from the upper floor. He probably just woke up, judging from the bedhead and lazy posture. "Some mother you are." He scoffed.
"Well it wouldn't have hurt to catch a break once in a while when you were a little demon spawn! You were always running around causing some kind of trouble, in fact, you still are! When the hell will you grow up?" She berated him.
"Shut up, it's too fucking early for lectures, go to work already."
"It's never too early for lectures. But I am running late so you're spared for now." Mitsuki said as she put on her heels. "Take care of Izuku, Katsuki! There's lentil soup in the fridge and tylenol in the cabinets, if you need to pick up more medicine there's money in my drawer, search the one on the left okay? Shit, I gotta go, bye boys!"
"Bye aunty!"
"Later Hag."
The door closed shut with an ominous click, leaving a thick tension behind as the two teenagers were left alone. Izuku's eyes flitted from Katsuki's form, making his way down the steps and gulped, feeling nervous for no reason in particular.
'It's not impossible he likes you back.' Kaminari's words rang through his head.
"Oi, get up Deku." Bakugou commanded as he stood in front of him, "The couch's uncomfy as hell, you can rest in my bed for today."
Izuku was slightly taken aback by the offer, Kacchan never let people use his stuff if he could help it. "Th-thanks Kacchan, but it's okay! I don't want to spread any germs in your room-"
"Didn't you hear the hag? My immune system's a fort. If anything, your germs will die in my room."
"Even so, I don't wanna risk it."
"You doubt me?"
"No, I'm just comfortable where I am is all."
"Yeah right, come on."
"Really! It's okay, the springs aren't even that out of place-eep!" Izuku yelped as the blonde suddenly picked him up and carried him bridal style towards the stairs. His entire body flushed as Kacchan gripped his bare thighs, having worn shorts to sleep.
"K-Kacchan! Put me do-down!" Izuku stammered, pushing a hand against his chin and kicking his knees into his abdomen, both of which were ineffective with how weak he felt physically and mentally.
"I will, when we're in my room-quit struggling already!" Bakugou tightened his hold so that Izuku wouldn't cause them both to fall off the staircase.
Izuku flinched as Katsuki brushed against a bundle of nerves on his inner thigh, his leg shot up violently and he quickly buried his bright red face into the others' neck out of reflex, ears burning with embarrassment as he held in a strangled whimper.
Bakugou looked down at the twitching boy in confusement. Confusement soon diverted into realization however, and his lips slowly spread out into a sly grin.
"Damn, someone's a bit sensitive, huh?" Katsuki said teasingly as he pinched the pale skin.
"Mphm!" Izuku buried himself deeper into his neck and bought one hand came up to cover his mouth as the other clenched a fistful of Katsuki's shirt.
Something in the blondes' stomach stirred as he felt the curved nose dig into his collarbone and he wondered, what other noises could he coax out of the teen and-nooooope. No no no, he was NOT going down that train of thoughts, NOPE.
Katsuki willed his blush to go down as he kicked open the door and unceremoniously tossed Izuku onto his bed.
"Ow! Can you be a bit more gentle next time?" Izuku complained as his head bumped the bedpost.
Katsuki ignored the unintentional innuendo and rummaged through his drawers for a thermometer. He finally found one and stuck it in the others' half-open mouth, who didn't appreciate the sudden nature of the action but complied nonetheless. A minute later, the thermometer was pulled out and read,
"101 degrees. Not too bad." Katsuki stated, "Get some more rest while I make a fresh batch of soup, who knows how long the hags' just been sitting in the fridge."
Izuku immediately sat up, a polite response already tumbling out, "Ah! Kacchan you really don't have to-!"
"Don't test me nerd." He warned from the doorway.
How am I-?
The door slammed shut, leaving Izuku by himself. He sighed exasperatedly. He was too tired to make sense of Kacchan's logic. He laid down on the mattress and was instantly relaxed by the softness of it, it was amazing after almost two weeks of sleeping on the floor...
It's like I'm on a cloud…. He thought as he snuggled into the fluffy pillow. Kacchan's scent lingered on the pillow and Izuku took a deep breath.
Kacchan's so nice sometimes...He thought with a yawn, I can't remember the last time someone took care of me when I was sick...actually, I can't remember the last time I was sick…
Darkness filled Izuku's vision, his breathing slowed down into steady puffs of air until he was fast asleep.
It was hot.
Extremely hot.
He blearily blinked open his eyes and saw a familiar ceiling. How can a plain white ceiling be familiar? Izuku doesn't know, but he's sure that this is his room despite having a complete lack of All Might merchandise. In fact, his bedroom was oddly empty, the only decoration being a plastic model of a rocket and a moon dangling over him. The cheap decor shook as loud footsteps stomped about, shadows of vague figures moved in the dim, hallway light.
"Honey wait!" The smaller figure shouted, "He has a fever! He didn't mean to-"
"I don't give a damn! A boy his age should know better than to barf over the carpet!"
That voice. That was his mother screaming.
Dread pooled in Izuku's stomach. Who was the other voice she was yelling at?
"He's only three! He wouldn't know that-AHH!" Inko's scream tore through the air as she was backhanded.
"He's ALREADY THREE! IT'S ABOUT TIME HE LEARNS MANNERS!" The furious voice roared. The hallway light suddenly went out and the room was pitch black. Out of nowhere, fingers latched around Izuku's neck.
"HISASHI DON'T!"
It was too late.
Izuku jolted awake, panting and out of breath. His heart hammered and he was drenched in sweat, he could still feel invisible hands around his neck.
Midoriya knew it was a dream but, it felt so realistic.
D-Did that really happen?
Bakugou came in with a bowl of soup, "It's still hot so don't-"
He stopped mid-sentence when he saw Izuku, grasping his neck with tears streaming down his cheeks. He placed the bowl down on a desk and rushed to his side.
"Deku, hey, look at me. What happened? Why're you crying?" He asked, tilting his chin up and wiping his tears, it was a pointless endeavor though as they just kept on pouring out.
Izuku finally looked up at Katsuki, wide eyed with fear-as if he's just seen a ghost. The blonde could literally feel his heart breaking into pieces as he faintly whispered, "K-Kacchan…m-my dad...he…ch-chok-"
More tears spilled out and the freckled teen couldn't stop the ugly sob that erupted from his throat. Strong arms soon wrapped around him and enveloped him into a hug,
"It was just a dream Deku. He's working abroad, remember? You're fine, he's fine, everything's okay." Katsuki spoke gently as he rubbed the other's back comfortingly. The soothing circles seemed to have calmed him down a bit as his tears slowed down ever so slightly.
Right… Izuku sniffled and nodded shakily, Mom always told me stories about what a loving father he was, that couldn't have been real… He thought to himself.
Gingerly, he hugged Katsuki back and they stayed like that for a while...
Izuku gradually inhaled and exhaled, trying to gain control of his breathing while Kacchan gave gentle, reassuring pats, unconsciously tightening their embrace. After the green haired boy had calmed down completely, he grew slightly flustered from the close proximity.
"Kacchan…?" He murmured into his shoulder.
"Hm?"
His heart sped up again as he felt the hum vibrate in his ear,
"...I...um…"
He gulped, suddenly feeling the urge to tell Kacchan just how grateful he was, how much he meant to him, how he's always, always meant the world to him. He wanted to tell him everything, he wanted to tell him-
I love you
But the words got stuck in his throat.
"Thank you…" He said instead.
"...No problem."
Hey! So what do you guys think? Do you believe the conspiracy theories about Izuku's dad being a villain? Tell me your thoughts below and thank you for reading! Hopefully the corona virus doesn't get me before I finish this story, I am legitimately terrified of how fast it's spreading :(
Stay safe guys! Wash your hands and eat plenty of citrus!