Beep.

Beep.

Beep.

Beep.

The noise from his phone was strangely quiet, like it was further away than usual, but his trained ears could hear it. Eijirou groaned, every so softly. Was it really time to wake up already? The warm sunlight that shone through the window was young, but still bright. He brought his free hand to his mouth to stifle a yawn.

His… free hand?

Eijirou's eyes flew open, and his vision was met with an All Might poster on the ceiling. He blinked a few times, squinting, before…

Oh no.

He was in Bakugou's room. He was in Bakugou's room… lying on Bakugou's bed, with his arm around…

Ohh no no no.

Slowly, so slowly, he looked down. And he had to completely restrain himself from yelping because holy fuck.

Bakugou. Bakugou was sleeping next to him. Bakugou's head was on his chest. Bakugou's legs were intertwined with his. He was in Bakugou's bed, his arm wrapped around Bakugou, sleeping next to Bakugou, ruining his extremely delicate friendship with Bakugou. Bakugou was going to wake up any second now and he was going to die and it was going to be because Bakugou killed him.

He couldn't breathe. A thousand thoughts raced around and around in his head, but ones related to his survival stuck out the most. It was a good thing Bakugou still seemed to be asleep, because that meant Eijirou still had a chance to turn off that fucking alarm and get out of this fucking bed before the entire fucking prefecture was burnt to a crisp.

He took his free arm and reached toward the floor. That's where his phone was, on the futon, thankfully on the corner closest to the bed. He could barely reach it from where he lay, but with some gentle stretching, he was able to tap the alarm off. It was his 7:00 weekday alarm. His dumb, forgetful ass must have forgotten to turn it off before Saturday.

Eijirou looked back to the pile of blond hair that still lay on his chest, trying to work out what to do next.

How in the world had Bakugou slept through that? The redhead was a pretty heavy sleeper, and even he had woken up to the quiet alarm. But… the blond did need the sleep, desperately, even more so than Eijirou did. Maybe his brain just had not let him wake up, at least not yet. Well whatever the reason, asleep was exactly how Bakugou needed to stay.

Next was the tricky part, a very delicate process that could wake Bakugou up at any time. Eijirou was careful – ohhh boy was he careful – as he slipped his other arm out from underneath his friend. Slowly, he untangled their legs and began shuffling his torso out from the dead weight that rested on him. He breathed a sigh of relief as he managed to free himself from the strong arms that were wrapped around him, and he gently rolled the duvet off of himself and sat up, swinging his feet to rest on the floor. He was cautious as he rose, eyes squeezed shut, listening for any mattress squeak that could give him away. As his weight finally lifted from the bed, he all but collapsed onto his futon.

A part of him was scared to look up. A part of him was scared to see two beady, livid eyes staring him down. But even with his hammering heart warning him, Eijirou lifted his head and peered over the side of the bed.

And oh, wow. He couldn't help but gaze at the wonderful sight.

The soft rise and fall of Bakugou's chest, the sunlight filtering gently through his golden hair. His face was lax and missing his characteristic scowl, was missing the angry creases around his eyes, and his lips weren't turned down in a frown for once. He looked so… innocent. Sure, any sleeping person tended to have such a look, but with Bakugou, it was especially amazing, like comparing night and day. He was just so calm. Eijirou had never seen him like this before.

A wave of relief passed over him. He had done it. He had actually done it! Yet, Eijirou couldn't help the feeling of guilt that snuck into his gut. His memory of waking up the night before was hazy at best, and when he had jumped into Bakugou's bed, he had probably been acting on instinct. But still. It wasn't like he had asked permission to intrude like that. Maybe it was a good thing that his alarm had gone off when it did. He had no idea how Bakugou would have reacted if he had woken up to the two of them cuddling like that.

Eijirou looked away.

Right. That had just happened.

His cheeks and the tips of his ears were heating up, he could feel it. He buried his face in his pillow, hoping the cool of the fabric would relieve his blush. It wasn't like he had never cuddled with any of his bros before. He was an affectionate guy, after all. But he had never felt this way about it. Why was Bakugou any different? Maybe he was just being dumb.

But as Eijirou lay there, calming down from his previous distress, he couldn't help but feel like he was missing something. Like there was a gap within him that he couldn't fill. He brought his pillow between his arms, hugging it, trying to fill at least some of the empty space that surrounded him.

Eijirou couldn't pinpoint the moment he fell asleep again, but he must have at some point because here he was, waking up to the bright sunlight once again. And he actually felt incredibly well-rested and refreshed, for the first time in several days. He stretched his arms over his head, feeling the tug and pull of his muscles and he let out a yawn. It was amazing –- just one night of good sleep had released tons of pent-up tension that he hadn't even realized had accumulated.

He checked his phone. Eyes widening in shock, he sat upright, suddenly feeling very, very awake. It was 12:47.

He heard a slight wrestling of sheets, followed by a long groan. It seemed as though Bakugou was waking up as well. Images of earlier that morning appeared in Eijrou's head, oh right, that had happened, and his heart suddenly felt as though it was stammering uncontrollably. He looked to his left, watching as Bakugou turned to his side, facing where Eijirou sat on his futon, his face scrunching up as consciousness came to him. His eyelids fluttered open.

Their eyes met, and the air between them stilled.

He held his breath. Bakugou's gaze was absolutely piercing, and a chill crawled up and down Eijirou's spine. God, did he remember? Did he know?

But as he studied the blond's face, Eijirou relaxed. Surely, he was just being paranoid. Even though he was awake, Bakugou still retained a calmness that he did not otherwise possess. The bags under his eyes were still there, but they were less pronounced, and his skin was more colored, his eyes more life-like. His hair was illuminated by the sun's rays, giving it the appearance of a fiery halo, the soft shadows falling across his cheekbones making his face seem less rigid, and everything about this picture just looked incredibly dreamlike, like a spell had blanketed them. He knew he should probably stop staring, but he couldn't bring himself to look away.

"Good morning Bakugou," he finally whispered.

He smiled warmly, gently. And it was small, so small that he was not even sure he saw it correctly, but maybe, just maybe, Bakugou smiled back at him. Just for a moment, before it was replaced by a hefty yawn.

The blond rubbed his eyes with a loose fist. "Mmmm. What time is it?"

"Almost one."

Bakugou froze for a second, before flopping his hand back on the bed. "Fuck. Really?"

"Yup. But, I think we both needed to catch up on sleep. How do you feel?"

"Like I've been run over by a fucking garbage truck," he grunted as he sat up. "But otherwise, I'm fine."

Eijirou sniggered. "Little steps, little steps."

A strange rumbling filled the room. Bakugou looked down at his stomach in absolute horror.

Eijirou could not contain the laughter that bubbled up inside of him, and he let it out freely. "Sounds like someone needs breakfast! Or, erm… lunch?"

"Does it matter? I'm fucking hungry."

"I could tell," he he raised an eyebrow pointedly. "Good thing the cafeteria's open on weekends now, huh?"

Bakugou hummed, and he began climbing out of bed. Eijirou followed suit, trying his best to act as natural as possible. The two of them began some semblance of a morning routine, but as they got ready for the day, Eijirou couldn't help but feel a little on-edge. His brain would not stop wondering, how would Bakugou have reacted that morning? What if he had woken up? Would he have been angry? Disgusted? Too tired to care? And oh no, now Bakugou was looking at him strangely. Maybe he was thinking too hard.

Don't think about the cuddling, don't think about it, do not think about it at all and you'll be absolutely fine...

He did his best to look as unassuming as possible. But as the two of them got dressed, brushed their teeth side by side in a strangely domestic setting, Eijirou couldn't help but consider – perhaps the confusion of his awakening had sent him into a little bit of an exaggerated panic? It was just Bakugou, after all. Bakugou was his bro now, right? Sure, maybe he would have been a little pissed off. But as Eijirou recalled his calm, sleeping face, he doubted that the guy would ever seriously hurt him.

But… did he really know for sure? It was this uncertainty that was driving him up the wall. Did Bakugou even think of him as a friend? If he didn't think they were close, then Eijirou's actions the previous night would have been completely out-of-line. He wanted Bakugou to consider him as a friend, but if the blond didn't think he was, then maybe he really did deserve a blast to the face.

Well… what Bakugou didn't know wouldn't hurt him, a part of Eijirou's brain reminded. But the guilt was still there, tugging at his conscious. Regardless of if Bakugou would have gotten angry or not, there was one thing that was undeniable: the cuddling had stopped the nightmare. Maybe Bakugou deserved to know at least that much.

The two of them had just begun fixing their hair in the tiny bathroom mirror, when Eijirou decided to finally test the waters.

"Hey, Bakugou? You aren't… usually very sociable, with anyone." He cringed. Great start.

Bakugou looked up at him, frowning, with hard eyes. "What are you going on about?"

"Like… No offense, but you don't strike me as the kind of dude who hangs out with people a lot, much less all of…" he waved his hand around, gestured to everything and thereby nothing in particular. "All of this. So why me?"

"I… don't fucking know. I don't have a reason. It's not like I have to have one. You just think too goddamn much."

"Yeah, probably. But that doesn't stop me from being curious, man."

Bakugou shrugged. His voice came out in a mumble, like he couldn't be bothered to speak clearly. Or maybe he was self-conscious about the question? "I just… fuck, it's not really something I can explain. I like having my distance from people, so this 'friendship is magic' shit isn't exactly something I'm used to, but... I don't... hate you, I guess."

"Aww, bro!"

Coming from Bakugou, that was quite the compliment. All things considered. And as far as opening up to his peers, it was a fantastic start. Maybe... maybe with a little nudge of encouragement, Bakugou could learn to make more friends.

"Well, maybe you branching out is a good thing. There are merits to having friends," Eijirou pushed gently, suddenly turning thoughtful. "More support in the professional hero world later on, for one. And the more people you are friends with, the more you can learn from them. And… it feels nice, being kind to people, ya know? You have the power to make or break people's days. It feels good, knowing that you made a positive impact on someone." He smiled at Bakugou.

He was speaking from raw experience. In that moment, Eijirou himself could feel that fullfilling sense of satisfaction of knowing that his bro was feeling better, and the slight pride in knowing that he was the one who had helped. It blossomed in his chest, making him feel warm and fuzzy all over. It felt amazing, and he couldn't help but smile. Bakugou looked otherwise disinterested, but Eijirou could see the blond watching him curiously from the corner of his eye. Maybe he was really listening?

He continued, slowly. "To me, friendship has a lot of value, Bakugou. There's more to growing as a person than just growing in strength and skill, you know."

Bakugou paused the fingers that were fixing up his hair, looking at his own reflection in the mirror. He seemed to think hard about that.

After a few moments, though, the blond finished his hair and had shoes on before Eijirou had even left the restroom.

As the redhead strung up his shoes, Bakugou groaned, standing up from his bed. "Quit your fucking dilly-dallying, asshole. My stomach feels like it's trying to eat itself alive."

"I'm coming, I'm coming," Eijirou rolled his eyes, a slight smile tugging at his lips as he finished lacing up his right shoe.

"Well, I'm going. Hurry up."

Bakugou made his way to the door and swung it open. The, he paused, as if contemplating something. Decided, he threw one last comment over his shoulder.

"By the way? That alarm of yours is fucking annoying. It better not go off next time."

The door slammed, leaving Eijirou alone. And when Eijirou finally processed what he had said, he nearly choked on his spit.

… Next time? There would be a next time?

Oh my god.

Surely, he had misheard or something, he had to have! But the words repeated over and over in his head, clear as day. Bakugou wanted there to be a next time. Bakugou was asking for another sleepover, no way...

... Hold up. Hold the frick up.

Eijirou's face paled, his eyes widening, jaw dropping. Holy shit. The alarm. He had heard the alarm. That meant… That meant… He knew.

Holy shit.

He knew, and he wanted there to be a next time.

Holy shit.

Eijirou laced his other shoe as quickly as he could and dashed after Bakugou, almost tripping over his own two feet in the process.

Holy shit, holy shit, holy shit...

He sprinted down the hallway, turning corner after corner down the stairwell, hoping to catch up. He ran through the common space, across the campus.

When he burst into the cafeteria, a few heads turned his way. There were only a few students in the room. It was past 1:30, so much of the lunch crowd had already moved out, but there were still some lingering groups. Eijirou paused to catch his breath, scanned the sparse crowd, looking for a head of explosive blond hair. He needed answers, dammit! Where did Bakugou usually sit? He swiveled his head this way and that, trying to capture an image of every table, searching, searching...

Bakugou was nowhere to be seen.

Of course. Eijirou sighed. Bakugou kind-of did whatever he wanted whenever he wanted, so if something else had caught his attention, he probably wouldn't have hesitated to ditch the cafeteria. Whatever. It wasn't that big of a deal.

So why did his heart feel like it was sinking?

He was about to turn on his heel and go back to his dorm to whip up some cup ramen or something when movement from across the room caught his eye. Ashido and Kaminari were waving at him. He grinned, trying to hide his disappointment, and waved back. They motioned for him to sit with them. He held his thumbs up reflexively – whoops, looks like he was eating in the cafeteria after all – before working his way to the lunch line.

The line wasn't long, and he got his food quickly. He moved toward his friends, sliding into a seat across from them. He broke his chopsticks apart, muttering a quick 'itadakimasu' before digging in to his natto and rice.

"Yo, Kirishima, fancy seeing you around here!" Kaminari flashed him a goofy grin. "What have you been up to this morning?"

"Ah, well to be honest, I woke up like less than an hour ago."

"Holy crap. Dude. Is something keeping you up?"

"Yeah, I… um…" He couldn't tell them about Bakugou. He really couldn't. Crap. Eijirou racked his brain, trying to formulate a passable excuse. "I haven't been getting enough sleep, because of the new dorms?"

"Yeah, being in a new place is super weird, isn't it?" Ashido joined in, bringing a spoon of broth to her lips, "And exciting. But I haven't been sleeping the best either."

Kaminari nodded, "Yah, same. But we'll get used to it eventually! Now that you're here, wonder if anyone else is gonna join us?"

Eijirou shrugged, trying his best to keep his mind off of the disappeared Bakugou. Trying his best to ignore the uncomfortable squeezing in his chest.

The three of them continued small talk about this and that, asking about their weeks, and how school was going, and how their families were fairing without them. It was a pleasant conversation, but Eijirou knew that his mind was elsewhere. It's not like he could help it – everything that had happened that morning left him in a little bit of shock. It was happy shock, as he looked forward to spending more time with his bro, but after that cliffhanger, it still consumed his thoughts.

Why wasn't Bakugou there? Was he embarrassed about what he had said? Embarrassed about the position they were in that morning? Embarrassed about being okay with it? Was he okay with it?

Suddenly, Ashido trailed off in the middle of a sentence, her eyes widened in confusion, looking at something behind Eijirou. He didn't think too much about it, until she quickly nudged Kaminari, who then donned the same expression, his chopsticks frozen halfway between his mouth and his plate. Now, that got his attention.

"Um. Guys?"

The slamming of a plate onto the table made Eijirou jump. A figure took the seat next to him. "Fucking took you long enough to get here, fuck-munch."

And just like that, a wave of relief washed over him. Bakugou hadn't abandoned him after all! "Oh! Hi, Bakugou! I didn't see you when you came in."

"You walked right past me, dumbass."

"Really?" Eijirou laughed, rubbing the back of his neck. "My bad!"Must have been one of these weird inside bushes in the way or something."

His voice came out extremely bitter. "I even texted you."

"Sorry, sorry!" Eijirou brought his hands together in a mock bow as he grinned from ear to ear. He quickly went back to eating his food. But when he looked back to Ashido and Kaminari, they had gone completely silent, watching this scene play out, exchanging bewildered expressions.

Oh. Right.

Eijirou had always tried to be friendly toward everyone in the class, even Bakugou. Because of the nightly explosions and following confrontations, Eijirou had gotten quite comfortable around the blond, no matter how foul the mood. Maybe it was just him, but he felt as though the two of them had grown a lot closer. The sleepover had exemplified this, and now Eijirou was happy to call Bakugou a friend. Maybe… maybe even his closest friend at UA. And maybe, Bakugou even felt the same way about him. But it never occurred to him that other students would still feel uncomfortable in the guy's presence.

Oh well. If he just acted chill around Bakugou, treating him like a human being rather than a ticking time-bomb, then hopefully his classmates would eventually follow suit.

He tried striking casual conversations, ones that included all four of them. About school, families. Simple things without a lot of risk. It took a bit of prodding, but eventually, Kaminari and Ashido opened up. Before long, they were laughing and chatting like they usually do about their class' shenanigans, despite being in the presence of such a volatile peer.

Bakugou didn't say much, other than the occasional snarky remark. He looked a little uncomfortable, actually, and a little red in the face as if he was doing his best seal all of his rage into a bottle, but he was being unexpectedly civil.

As he noticed this, Eijirou thought back on their conversation that morning. He recalled what he had told Bakugou about friendship. And now, as he continued to watch their meal play out, as Bakugou became more involved with their conversation, and as Ashido and Kaminari continued to relax and accept a new member to their peer group, it occurred to Eijirou that he was trying. The guy was actually trying to be nice, trying to make friends, possibly for the first time in his life.

Pride blossomed in Eijirou's chest. Bakugou had listened to him. He had taken his advice to heart, and was trying to put it into practice.

He knew the smile that was plastered into his face probably looked ridiculous, but it refused to go away for the rest of the meal.

Afterwards, the four of them continued talking as they walked to the common room. If Ashido and Kaminari were still uncomfortable with Bakugou being nearby, they didn't show it. Eijirou was thankful for that. There were a few other students in the common room, and Eijirou said hello to everyone. Bakugou didn't follow him, but he didn't exactly stray too, far either. Some kids gave him a questioning glance, but turned away quickly as soon as they caught his eye.

When Eijirou had said his hellos to everyone, he started heading toward the stairs, and Bakugou quickly joined him. The two of them made their way up to the 4th floor. They were mostly silent, until they reach the last flight of stairs. Then, Bakugou spoke.

"Why are people so damn nervous around me?"

Eijirou turned to him, his steps faltering for just a second as his brain blanked. Bakugou just kept walking. He quickly caught up.

"What… what do you mean?"

"Like. You talk to people so easily, and they look so fucking happy to be around you. But at lunch today, the conversation stopped as soon as I got to the table. It took a while for it to pick up again. It was starting to piss me off."

"Bakugou. My man. I don't know how to break this to you, but you are scary."

"What?"

At that, Eijirou stopped walking completely. Bakugou quickly turned to him, his eyebrows scrunched together in irate contemplation. "You mean… You mean, you aren't trying to be? Like, you honestly aren't trying to be intimidating, it's just… your resting bitch face?"

"No, I do make it a point to be intimidating," Bakugou corrected. "And my resting bitch face is a fucking masterpiece. And I am kind-of almost always pissed off…" he froze. "… Oh."

"Yeah. Oh."

The look of puzzlement on his face was nearly laughable. Like… how had that realization never occurred to him? Maybe it was just that the guy had never stopped to consider another person's opinion of him. The fact that he was doing so now spoke volumes about how hard he was trying. Had Eijirou's words really meant that much to him? Was this more of that respect that Midoriya had mentioned before?

The two of them stepped into the corridor, and Bakugou seemed to snap out of his stunned silence. "But, they're scared of me? Like… even when I'm not pissed off or anything?"

Eijirou stared at him blankly. "… Dude."

Bakugou huffed, his face falling into a puzzled pout that was almost cute. "But you're not scared of me?"

"Well, I have my quirk. It's not like you can hurt me or anything. Plus, you're my bro!" He fist-bumped his friend's shoulder. "Since I've gotten to know you more, I think you're a pretty cool dude."

"But… but they're fucking scared of me? Like, actually frightened?"

"Well. Maybe not frightened? But definitely cautious."

"Oh."

"Um." Eijirou looked away. "Isn't that… a good thing? To you? Like, isn't that the vibe you're going for?"

"I… don't know."

Eijirou couldn't quite read the expression on his bro's face. Contemplation? Concern?

With that, Bakugou opened his door, beckoning Eijirou inside. The red-head took one look at the futon and took a deep breath.

Right. He had legit almost forgotten about that. If Bakugou wasn't going to bring up the cuddling, then neither was he. But, he couldn't make any assumptions. He had to know one thing.

"With what you said before… Do you want me to stay over again tonight?"

"Fuck," Bakugou mumbled. Oh. Maybe he was regretting saying it. Eijirou tried his best to look indifferent. The blond cleared his throat. "If you don't want to, then no, that's definitely not what I want."

"Um. Okay..." Eijirou blinked. "… Is that a yes?"

"Yes, moron."

He felt his heart soar.

The two stayed up working on homework for a few hours, Bakugou sitting on his bed with his notes splayed out around him, and Eijirou making due at the desk. They didn't chat much, but they didn't have to. Being in each other's presence was enough to make them content. Not to mention that Bakugou still looked pretty exhausted, and Eijirou didn't want to annoy him with his constant yammering. He wanted Bakugou to feel comfortable with him.

But as the sun set and the sky outside the window became darker and darker, Bakugou stopped trying to conceal his yawns. The two agreed to go to bed, and after settling down under the cover of his futon, Eijirou all but passed out.

And several hours later, when he was roused by the popping bright lights that became more and more intense with each second, Eijirou didn't need to hesitate. He didn't need to worry about how Bakugou would react in the morning, because in his own strange way, the blond had given his approval. He was there to help his bro, any way he could.

So in the blur of his half-asleep state, he climbed into the bed, usng his quirk as a safe-guard against the explosions as he took Bakugou into his arm, running his fingers through soft, yellow hair, rubbing circles into his back, whispering gentle words of encouragement, before giving in to sleep.

And the next morning, the too-bright sunlight flitted across his face, awakening him. He started to pull away, to leave the bed for his futon, but strong arms wouldn't let him leave. He looked curiously at the blond, whose face was the embodiment of sleeping innocence, but whose arms were much too sturdy.

He tried again, gently pushing Bakugou away so as to not disturb him. But there came a whisper, so soft that he almost missed it:

"Stay."

"… Okay," Eijirou breathed, clinging on to his friend with new resolve before falling asleep once more.